Little One

Chapter 18

I sat in the lab while Tony worked.

"This one is going to replace the old one in my pack. Or maybe I'll make you a new pack that'll be even better. That one's good."

I nodded. "You know it's like 3 am, and I gotta be at school in four hours?"

He looked over at me then at the clock on the wall. "Crud. Sorry, kiddo. Why don't you go ahead and go to sleep? At least get a couple hours."

I nodded and got up. I hugged Tony, strode into the hall, and bumped into someone.

"Astrid. Why are you out of your room?"

It was Natasha.

"Tony and I stayed up too late. He's working on armour for me in case I get attacked again. He doesn't like me being exposed." I said tiredly.

She nodded. "I'm going to walk you to bed. Okay?"

I nodded.

She wrapped an arm around me and walked with me. "He should be more conscientious about how late he's keeping you up. Even if he stays up."

I shrugged. "I'm almost 17. I am just as responsible for getting myself to bed as any of you are. I lost track of time too."

She smiled and nodded as we got to my room. "Alright, Astrid. I will see you after school."

I nodded and hugged her tightly before walking into my room and going to bed. And fortunately, sleep came quickly.

•••••

I awoke to someone kissing my forehead.

"Good morning, Astrid."

I opened my eyes and saw Tony. "Hey!" I said happily.

"How to wake Astrid up. Keep her up until she sleeps in."

I laughed at that. "I think Natasha might kill you." I joked.

"You're probably right. She not so gently reminded me to make sure you get to sleep on time."

I nodded.

"Alright, go get dressed while I make breakfast."

He left, and I threw on clean clothes.

I brushed my hair and pulled it into a messy bun. I walked out and into my dad.

"Tony asked me to check on you."

I hugged him tightly. "Good morning!" I whispered excitedly.

He hugged me back and kissed the top of my head. "Good morning, Älskling." He said, smiling brightly.

I walked out with him into the kitchen.

"What's going on?" I asked.

Steve looked over. "There's some extra activity on satellites. We just wanna make sure it's all clear."

I nodded.

Tony sat a bowl of cereal down for me, and I sat down.

"Thanks a million," I said.

"No problem. I gotta go put your armour in your bag."

He ran off, and dad sat beside me with his own food.

"How did you sleep, little one?"

"Like a dead person," I said through my cereal.

"While I disapprove of the analogy, I'm glad you slept well."

I shrugged. "How did you sleep?" I said, making a face.

"I didn't. I was up reading."

I nodded. "How come?" I asked.

"No reason, just couldn't sleep."

Uncle Thor looked over. His expression said, "Yeah, sure".

"Did you have a nightmare?" I asked.

He choked on his coffee and looked over. "It appears you've inherited my gift for detecting lies. Yes, I saw you injured again. It greatly distributed me."

I hugged him tightly. "I'm okay."

Uncle Thor cleared his throat.

"You don't need to scare her, Thor." He said.

"Scare me?" I asked.

"Loki's dreams are often prophetic."

Dad's face contorted into a grimace.

"Oh. That's not ideal."

He shook his head. "It's not a joke, Astrid. You didn't have to watch your daughter be torn apart by a mad Titan! I did! And the worst part is I may have to watch it again." The last part was a whisper as tears began streaming down his face.

I stepped forward slowly and hugged him.

He hugged me in return and buried his face in my hair. "Nothing can happen to you, little one."

Someone walked into the room. "Hate to break up a tender moment, but I gotta get Astrid to school."

He pulled away and kissed my forehead. "Be safe, be aware of your surroundings, and if anything happens, call me and stab them. Okay?"

I nodded.

"I beg of you, for for the head, little one."

I nodded once more and grabbed my bag from Tony as we left.

"I love you, Dad! I love you guys, be safe!"

They all shouted confirmations as I left.

I hopped in the car with Tony and shut the door.

"What was with the sappy teary stuff?"

I looked over at Tony as he started the car. "Whaddya mean?" I asked.

"Well, your dad only does that when you get hurt or like the first time you called him "dad"," Tony said, pulling out of the garage.

I nodded.

"So, did you do something mondo sweet again?"

I shook my head, and he slammed on the brakes. "Where are you hurt!"

Someone honked.

"I'm not! And you cannot just slam on the brakes." I snapped slightly.

"Sorry. Why was he crying then?"

I sighed. "Dad didn't sleep last night cos he had a nightmare about me."

Silence for a moment.

"Quit pausing!" He said.

"Thanos tore me apart from the sound of it."

Tony nodded. "Yeah, Wanda does weird stuff like that, nightmares. Maybe someone else can do it," Tony said.

"It's all a bunch of mind games, y'know. None of it's real."

I nodded slowly. "It didn't sound that way," I muttered, fear actually seeping into me.

"Whaddya mean?" He asked again.

"Uncle Thor said dad's dreams are usually prophetic. Like part of the magic thing. I mean, I saw dad before I ever met him. He hasn't killed you guys yet, so maybe it's like elements of truth in lies. Like how he and I like to operate."

Tony only nodded. "Well, uh, it sounds like the worst part is trying to figure out what's junk, right?" He said.

"No, the worst part is that it might happen."

A/N: Dun, dun, dun. Loki's dreams are looking bad for Astrid. Tune in next week same bat-time same bat-channel. Lol jk. I'm not gonna make you guys wait that long. See you in a couple days (max)!