Winter of Yggdrasil

Chapter 10

"Kenna!"

Kenna turned, grinned, and ran to Marci. She hugged her, laughing as Marci glared up at her. "Scrunch down so I don't look so short." She turned, waving a tall, blond man over before greeting Rowan. Steve Rogers held his hand out with a polite smile.

"Nice to meet you." He said.

"Same to you." Rowan nodded.

Marci nudged Kenna. "So what are you doing here?"

Kenna shrugged. "You'd be surprised how boring Asgard is when you've been there your whole life so we've come here for the day. Now we just have to figure out what to do here."

"I vote you take the newbie to like Six Flags." Marci grinned. "Anyway, have fun! We gotta go."

Waving goodbye, Kenna took Rowan's hand and led him away.

"SHIELD keeps a room set up on base for Asgardian visitors," Kenna explained as he followed. "Reinforced walls, special locks. They say it's just to be nice but it's more for protective measures. Keeps us where they want us." She opened a door and led him in. "On the bright side, Aunt Marci keeps some clothes stocked for us. You can probably fit a couple of my dad's stuff." He stood quietly, staring out the door at the chrome walls and bustling agents.

"Is this where the Avengers started?"

"Yep." She rummaged in a closet and pulled out a handful of clothes. "Here we go! What about this?"

He shrugged and took the dark blue tee and jeans into the adjoined bathroom. Finally, he returned and she turned, gaping at him. He had grabbed the black converse and matching baseball cap. His hair was tied back into a ponytail and the outfit accented his thin frame and pale skin. She stared at his eyes, noting for the again just how bright they were.

The light brown was spotted with hazel flecks that shone in the light but seemed to hide when he lowered his head in that uncertain fashion of his. She raised his chin and smiled at him. "I quite like you as a Midgardian."

He took her hand. "Come on. What's six flags?"

She led him out of the room and made for one of the main entrances. "A park with these giant machines that you ride. It's um... well for adrenaline and stuff. I think you'd be nauseous."

"Are the machines hard to ride?"

"No, just... big and fast."

"Do they make you nauseous?"

"Oh yeah. Also you erm... don't like heights? Right?" He shook his head. "You'd hate it. Maybe some other time. We can go see a show or visit a big city. They're very different here. Hm... we can go out to eat. Ooh or! There's this place in another state that Mom and Daddy went to when they were courting. Mom took me there once. We can go there. It's very nice. Waterfalls and such."

"There are waterfalls at home."

"Yeah but these don't require hiking through remote forests."

He grinned. "Then yes. And then food?"

"And then food." She took his hand, trying to remember what the place looked like. It was in the mountains, that much she remembered. She racked her brain for the name, finally getting it with a quiet "Ah!" She concentrated on a stable spot, searching through what she knew. Rowan's hand tightened around hers as the world seemed to spin around them. Kenna opened her eyes and grinned at her success. Rowan gaped, staring up at the waterfall in front of them. It wasn't the one she'd been thinking of but she knew it.

Dry Falls roared over the cliff and into a river, filling the air with mist and sheer power. Rowan stared at it for a long time, grinning. A snap made him turn and he blinked at the box Kenna held. She grinned and raised it over her eyes, pointed at him. She pressed a button and the snap came again.