Homebound: Chapter 2 (Pre Thor story)

Chapter 2
Four years later
Lucy sat in her dad's lab and finished the multiplication page that she was working on. She loved the days that her dad worked in the lab, because that meant she got to do school there. School was fun for her, because it was so easy. She was able to remember things very easily, which made it easy for her to learn a lot of stuff. It just stuck with her. Like, she knew all the 50 states, every president and vice president, the times tables up to 12, and other things, like that there was a man before Columbus who discovered America. At first, her dad had to be very careful to make sure that Lucy was really learning everything, but she proved that she had learned all of it by getting perfect scores on all her tests. Shutting her book, Lucy hopped down from the table and went over to where her dad was working. "I finished," she said handing him the book.

"Oh good!" he said taking it and setting it on the pile of finished work. "Once I finish this report we'll head out."

"Okay. I'm gonna go to the bathroom," Lucy said swinging her little backpack over her shoulder, which contained her faithful stuffed dog Pepper (which went everywhere with her), the Norse mythology book that she liked to look at since the pictures were so pretty, and a necklace that her dad had given to her, which she had taken off that morning, because it got annoying sometimes. But Lucy liked to have it because it belonged to her mom. Robert watched as his little girl walked out proudly with her light blue backpack, and suppressed a laugh. That backpack went everywhere, and if he tried to make her leave it, it didn't end well.

Lucy trotted down the hallway, her long blonde pigtails swishing behind her. Turning the corner, she ran into what seemed like a brick wall and fell back. Looking up, she saw Mr. Adam, one of dad's co-workers. About four years ago he had gotten transferred here to work with her dad with some of his medicine stuff. She didn't really know what they did, but Lucy knew that she didn't care for Mr. Adam.

"Watch out," he said dryly, pulling her up. Lucy smiling a bit, but didn't say anything as she went past him and to the restroom.  It's not that Lucy wanted to not like Mr. Adam, but he seemed very creepy to her. With his gray, dead looking eyes, slicked back bleach-blonde hair the way he walked and the way he looked at her, like he was always sizing her up, he made Lucy get the creeps. Daddy didn't mind him much, except for the fact that he was always breathing down his neck with his research.

She took care of business in the bathroom and went out, relieved that Mr. Adam wasn't in the hall. Going back to the lab, Lucy was happy to see that Robert was all packed up and ready to leave. "How's a trip to the park sound?" She brightened up at this.

"Yay! Let's go!" she said running over and starting to pull her dad out the door.

"Alright, alright kiddo! We're going!"
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The park was in a woody area of New Mexico, an open space with old playground equipment that Lucy enjoyed showing off on. It was a twenty minutes into the mountain area, and Robert had made sure that no tourists were around. But since it was late February, it was an odd time for family vacations, so they were in the clear, and all alone.

Lucy bounded out of the car and her feet left the ground as she sailed over to the playground. Racing up to the top, she boldly walked across the top of the monkey bars. She and Robert knew fully well that even if she did fall, which was very rare, Lucy had a bit of a knack for catching herself, whether flying or pushing down on the ground, which made her stop in mid-air. It was all reflexes now.

It amazed Robert how much Lucy could do, how powerful she was. Over the past few years, they had discovered how to keep Lucy's telekinetic powers from going haywire all the time, and through many attempts that sometimes ended badly, but a window, a couch, part of a swing set and nearly Robert's car, she could now keep it under control. In fact, she could now easily pick up heavy things with her hands, move things around with just her mind, and had even figured out a few little tricks with her special talent. Robert had even started to teach her self-defense moves, trying to ease her into it, and not make her scared of people that would want to use her, but so that she would be prepared.

Robert smiled as his daughter did a handstand on top of the monkey bars and looked over at him with a proud grin. "Look Daddy! Do you see me?"

"Yep, I see ya!" he said, jogging over. She jumped down and Robert caught her, giggles and all. "You're something else aren't you?" He spun her around, which caused more giggles to erupt from the seven year old. Lucy wiggled out and flew circles around her dad. "Okay, now you're just showing off."

"I need to practice!" she said, which made Robert burst out laughing. Lucy always had some kind of comeback, and they were usually good, even for a seven year old. Zooming off to the playground again, Robert followed her, watching as she zigzagged in between the swings, went through tunnels and scared a flock of birds out of their minds. One thing he hadn't had to help her with was flying. Nope, she had picked that up all by herself. It came so naturally, and he often had to pull her back to the ground at home, not because she wasn't safe, no no, it was for the safety of everything else in the house.  He played with her without a care in the world, feeling the kind of joy that he used to share with Elizabeth. The two were as happy as could be, and didn't notice that they had a shadow….
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Annar watched from a distance in his shadow form the girl and the human male. The man was an idiot. He had been able to slip under his nose as Lucy grew up, and he was none the wiser. It was humorous to him.

The girl had grown strong the past four years. That manrel had really affected her body, and in this case, it was benefitting her. She could move things without touching them, was incredibly intelligent, and could fly fast than anything he had ever seen. With training she could be a fierce warrior, fierce enough to face the Lady Sif, or even Thor. Massnordore had been pleased with her progress.

There was one thing that bothered Annar though: Lucy was fiercely loyal, and loved her "father" very much. It didn't make sense why the general had been waiting this long, long enough for their bond to become close. How in the word did Massnordore think that Lucy would join him after they took her away from the person she thought was her father? Though only appearing to be a seven year old, she was such more mature than that, and she would understand if something happened to the doctor. Not that Annar cared about any feelings. It was just…strange in his mind. But that was why he didn't make the plans.

He watched for a few more moments as Lucy raced a flock of birds and showed off to Robert that she could lift some of the sixty pound rocks off the ground from up in the sky, and then went on his way.  Coming to a small stream, he pulled out a pouch of dust and sprinkled a bit into the water, making a make-shift portal. A few seconds later, Massnordore appeared.

"General…" Annar started, but was quickly cut off.

"Now is the time."

Annar was surprised. He always hoped for this to come from the general, but he didn't expect it to come so, well, bluntly. "To take the child?" he asked, just to make sure.

"Yes, to bring my daughter home," said Massnordore with a wicked chill in his voice. "From all you've told me over the years, I think it is now a good time to act."

"Of course," said Annar, thrilled that they were finally getting this over with. "Shall I get her now? I know where…"

"No," he said, cutting off Annar once again. "I am coming."

This was even more of surprise. "General?"

"Who better than me to fetch my daughter? I shall arrive soon. We will go at dawn tomorrow. Be prepared Annar."

"For what General?"

Massnordore smiled. "This Dr. Robert you have spoken off. He will not give up his Lucy easily. Though he is just a human, if she escapes, I promise you will be begging for death once I'm through with you." The portal went blank.

Annar sucked in his breath. He would not fail. It was a male and a child. A powerful, Asgardian child, but a child none the less. It would be simple. 'But then again, these things are never simple.' He felt a cold, harsh wind hit his back and sent a chill throughout his whole body. Whirling around, he saw the tall, dark shape of his general. Coming more into the light, Annar could see that Massnordore hadn't changed much over the past four years: he still had long, dark hair that was pulled back, a sharp nose, and the scar across his face that the Allfather had given to him as a parting gift. He was handsome in a way, but his red eyes and always sinister expression made him terrifying to his foes.

"General," Annar greeted with a bow. "When you said soon, I did not expect you…"

" Yes, yes I know Annar," he said, sounding the slightest bit out of breath. "But you of all people should know that when you trip without a cube it drains your energy. And seeing's how you have the only one that is in our possession…"

"I'm sorry General. I meant no disrespect."

"Just take me to your abode so that I may rest you idiot, or we won't get back after we pick up my daughter in the morning."

"Of course General."
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Lucy snuggled into her bed with her blue blanket wrapped around her, like she did every night. Now that she was getting bigger, the blanket wasn't as huge as it was when she was a baby, but it still would drag behind her when she towed it around the house. Robert sat on the edge of the bed, reading from a fairytale book. Tonight's was Cinderella.

"Once Cinderella came down the stairs, the prince knelt down and placed the glass slipper on the maiden's foot. It fit! The prince had found his love. They were married, and as they all do, they lived happily ever after," said Robert, shutting the book.

"It would be neat to be a princess, but I wouldn't want a prince. Boys are gross." No matter how mature a seven-year old could be, boys would always be icky. "Besides, I like my sneakers more than glass slippers. I'll just be a superhero instead."

Robert grinned. "Well, you're my princess and super hero," he said kissing her forehead. She giggled and hid her face under her blanket, pretending to be bashful. "I love you very much Lucy."

"I love you too Daddy," she answered peeking out from her hiding place. Ruffling her hair, he stood up, switched off the light and headed to his room.

Far from being tired, he sat on his own bed and stared at the picture that sat on his night table. Elizabeth was laughing as she held a one year old (well, they thought she was a one-year old) Lucy and Robert was hugging her from behind. He still missed her, but it didn't hurt him as much as before. Lucy brought him such joy and made him discover new things about himself and life every day. He didn't know what was going to happen in the future with her, if she would ever be a "superhero" like the people in the cartoons, but he did know one thing: If it ever came to it, he would die if it meant saving her from any danger.
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Robert stood at the stove, cooking some eggs for his and Lucy's breakfast. It was a cool day for this time of year, so he had decided to take her to the zoo. Since it was a school day, not many people would be there, expect for field trips and random pedestrians who brought their little ones. It should turn out to be a good day.

Hearing a small crash from somewhere in the house, he switched off the stove, moved the finished eggs and went to investigate. It wasn't uncommon for Lucy to drop something in her room, but it was a little strange because she hadn't said anything. Usually it was, "I got it! Don't worry!" Just as he was about to head to her room, the doorbell rang.

Opening the door, he saw a man that was quite tall, wore sunglasses and had a large scar that ran along his face. "I'm sorry, my car just broke down and I need a phone. May I come in?" He had an accent that Robert couldn't place, but something about him seemed off. But before he could do anything, he heard a cry from inside. "Daddy! Help!" Before he could close the door, the man burst in and slammed him against the wall, causing him to see a few stars. In a wild attempt to stop the intruder, he swung a fist that connected with something, but it didn't seem to faze him because the intruder just slammed him back again. Robert slummed down and the man just went right past him.

Lucy had been getting her yellow converse on when Mr. Adam had showed up in her room out of nowhere. When he appeared, he had knocked over Lucy's chair which had a big pile of books on it. The look on his face was not friendly at all, and getting scared, she threw her other shoe at him. It beamed him right in the middle of his head and he was stunned for half a second, and then charged right at Lucy. Grabbing her by the wrist, he started to drag her off the bed. That's when she had yelled for her dad. She heard banging in the hallway as she was pulled out, and thinking quickly, she pushed Mr. Adam back and he went flying into the wall.

She bolted from the room and down the hall, and she ran right into a very tall man. "Ah, Lucy. Finally, we are together again." Scared, Lucy blasted him back as she did Mr. Adam. He flew back a few feet, back he didn't hit the wall like Mr. Adam did. And he started laughing. "Oh, Annar was right about you. Quite strong for one so young. And small." He started to advance towards her and she backed away. Robert jumped up and blocked Lucy from him.

"Get. Away. From. Us." Robert made every word be a sentence.

The man chuckled. "Oh, Father Dear protecting his little treasure. Too bad that she isn't yours."

Robert raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself. Massnordore. I've come to collect my daughter."

"Your daughter!" exclaimed Robert. Lucy was holding onto Robert's shirt and glancing behind her at Mr. Adam who was now coming out of her room.

"Why yes! You see, a thousand years ago, my meddling brother Konur and the younger of the princes of Asgard took Lucy to year and hid her from me. Now I've come to take her back with me," he said as if this was all just a normal thing that happened every day. "And now Annar…" As Massnordore said this, Mr. Adam, or Annar apparently, grabbed Lucy from behind.

"No! Help!" she cried as Annar pulled her away from her dad. Robert whirled around and tried to get a hold of Lucy, but Annar was holding a dagger to her throat.

"Let her go you…" but he was cut off by his own cry of pain as some sharp went through the back of knee. He feel forward, and as he was kneeling on the ground with blood starting to drip out the back of his leg, he saw Annar produce a glowing red cube from his jacket.

"Remember, that one only takes you back to Asgard. You know what to do from there," said Massnordore, kicking Robert in the back, causing him to go down on all fours.

"Stop it! You're hurting my dad!" Lucy screamed, trying to push or kick or break free of Annar, but this time he had a good grip, and a dagger. Massnordore grinned and stepped over Robert, who was trying to catch his breath.

"Why do you care? He's not your real father. I am," he said coolly.

"You are not my dad!" she yelled, spitting in his face. His face turned red and he reared back his hand to strike her, but before he could hit her, Robert leaped up, grabbed his arm and socked him right in the jaw.

"Don't you dare touch her!" he shouted, staggering a bit, as the knife that had entered his leg was still there and his back was not in the best shape at the moment. Massnordore stepped back slightly, rubbing his jaw.

"You got a good swing for a human, I'll give you that much," he said softly. "Go Annar. I'll deal with our friend here."

"No! Dad!" But before Lucy could do anything, there was a flash of bright light, and she felt her feet leave the ground. They were going so fast, and it seemed like it would never end, though it only lasted for a few seconds. Landing in a huge green field, both of them lost their balance and Lucy went tumbling down a hill. When she reached the bottom, she laid there for a few seconds, trying to figure out what had just happened: she had woken up, gotten dressed, was putting her shoes on, and then Adam, or Annar, showed up in her room and a big guy who said that he was her father from a thousand years ago and her dad was in trouble and now she was here. But where was here?

Sitting up and looking around, she saw that it was very beautiful. The sky was clear as glass, the grass was soft and she could see huge mountains in the distance. And Lucy felt strangely… stronger here. It was weird. She heard a shout. Looking up, she saw Annar running down the hill. Scrambling up, Lucy ran, then pushed off into the air. Flying was much faster than running.

"Help! Help someone!"  she shouted. She looked behind her and saw that Annar was falling behind, but that didn't mean she was going to slow down for him. Turning back again, she saw the figure of the man just before she fly right into him. They both went down. 'Man, I need to work on not running into people' thought Lucy as she rubbed her head and looked over at who she had run into. He was tall, thin, and young looking with pale skin and jet black hair. But what really got her were his eyes. They were the same bright eye as hers. He was very handsome, and looked noble. He looked at her with a very puzzled expression.

"Who are you?" he asked, which snapped her out of her trance. Coming back to reality, she remembered that she had been running away from a bad guy.

"Please, help me! There's a man chasing me and I don't know where I am and my dad, he's with this guy named Massnordore, who says he's my father but really…."

"Wait, wait, wait," said the man, sitting up and trying to get her to slow down. "Did you say Massnordore?"

"Yes! And he's hurting my dad and there's this guy Annar who's trying to hurt me!"

"Loki! What is this?" boomed a loud voice. Lucy turned to see an even bigger man, with blonder hair and blue eyes, who was holding a big hammer.

"I'm not sure," he said standing up and offering his hand to the girl. She took it and the man, whose name was apparently Loki, pulled her up. "Now please, tell me everything, slowly this time."

"Alright," she said. But before she could start, Lucy caught a glimpse of Annar. "Oh no!" she exclaimed, hiding behind Loki.

"Greetings your Highnesses. You have something that belongs to my general."

"And what pray tell this that?" asked the hammer man.

"I don't expect you to know Thor, but Loki, don't you remember at all? Sure, it was a thousand years ago, and she was a bit smaller then, but you and that dog Konur were the ones that spoiled Massnordore's plans." Loki glanced down at Lucy. "Give the child to me and I'll be on my way to the Bifrost."

"And what makes you think Heimdallr will let you pass?" asked Loki.

"I have my ways. Now, Miss Lucy if you please." Lucy started backing away slowly, getting ready to run again. Loki looked over that his brother Thor, and Thor grinned

"Go, I'll take care of him," said Thor. Loki nodded and without a word, he scooped up Lucy and vanished in a plume of green fire.

They both reappeared on golden steps, right outside a gigantic castle. Loki set her down, and Lucy looked up at the beautiful building. But she wasn't as amazed as any other seven-year old would be, because she knew that her dad was in serious trouble, and she had no idea what was going on.

"Um, Mr. Loki, where am I? And who is Massnordore? And why is he saying that I'm his daughter?"

Loki looked at the little girl, who was dressed in Migardian clothes, and only had one yellow shoe on, the other foot having a blue sock on it. She was looking right into his eyes, and he knew that this was her. They called her Lucy. It seemed to fit. Goodness, had it really taken a thousand years for someone to find her? He had just met her, and he had saved her life once again. This girl was trouble, but there was something about her that interested him. Did he see some of himself? She was still looking up at him with those big green eyes that were almost a perfect match to his. She was a child, so he had to put aside himself for the moment and get to her level.

Kneeling down, he came down to face her easier. "Lucy, there's a lot you need to know."