Thor's Lieutenant

"Who says I was in the army?"

We had tanks, and bazooka shells were flying in both directions. A piece of bazooka shrapnel the size of my thumb hit me in the leg and the force of that impact knocked me to the ground. Pain fired through my body until adrenaline crashed over me, blocking my pain receptors. Ihad to get back to the medical station, but a lot of other guys were wounded too, so there was no help. I began to crawl towards the first-aid station. I dragged my gun with me, because you're not allowed to be without a weapon. As I crawled along, I could see the extent of the bombardment. There were a lot of German dead bodies all around and you had little protection. You kept worrying that maybe one of these guys laying around was still alive and just playing dead. The tense atmosphere made me move faster, anxiety forming in the pit of my stomach.

"Not as bad as last night," Alora whispered to herself. Last night she heard bones crunching and screams to accompany the blinding pain.

Putting on jeans, a yellow shirt, a gray sweatshirt and black converse, Alora braided her hair swiftly, grabbing breakfast and feeding her dog.

Arming herself, she made her way out the door with Azai on her heels. Ella and Abram, Wren's parents, were totally fine with her bringing a dog inside the house. In fact, they wanted to know how Wren managed with a dog, as they were considering getting a dog.

Letting Azai into her corvette, she slid into the driver's seat and took off.

❃

Having arranged to meet at a park near the Avengers' tower, that's where Alora parked.

Azai hopped out of the vehicle, following her quietly. His former handler's dog tags gleamed in the sunlight and would grant him immediate access into the park, even if dogs weren't allowed.

She found Wren talking with an unknown child and figured her parents had just left. The woman lazily made her way to her kid, not wanting to interrupt.

Azai's soft growl bought her attention.

Looking closely at Wren, she saw the young girl was close to tears. The other kid looked regretfully smug.

Awh heck no.

Alora skipped over to Wren, Azai trotting after her. "Hey, darling," she purred. The blonde rubbed at her eyes, looking up with a sorrowful expression. The ex-military officer glared at the boy who made her cry. "What's your name?" she snapped.

"Kevin," he swallowed, quailing under her intense stare. Her dog growled, ears pinned.

"I want you to do two things, Kevin," she tilted her head calmly, and that's when Kevin knew he messed up. "The first thing required of you is to apologize to my girl. The second thing I want you to do is go to your parents and tell them exactly what you said to her."

The calm voice with the threat underlying her Australian accent had the boy trembling. "I will make one thing clear, boy," she stalked closer to Kevin, jerking his head up when he flinched away from her. "Bullying is never to be tolerated. Should you ever say something inconsiderate or purposefully rude to anyone, especially my girl, you will regret it."

Kevin nodded frantically. "I- I'm sorry, Wren," he stammered before scrambling away. Azai nipped at his heels, looking proud when he trotted back to the ladies.

Alora rolled her eyes. I hate bullies. Turning to Wren, her expression dropped. Scooping her girl up, she carried her to a tree, sitting down against it. "Alright, mate. What's wrong? What'd he say?" Wren curled up against her, sobbing softly. Azai flopped down on Wren, letting the younger person tug on his fur. Alora thought it was very sweet of him.

She ran her hands through the little girl's hair, biting her lip. Seeing other people cry was an uncomfortable experience. She never knew what to say or do.

"H- he said I'm p- pathetic," Wren whimpered, "for believing the Bible. He said I was stupid for thinking Jesus was real."

"Oh, love," Alora murmured, tugging her phone out of her back pocket so she didn't break it. "Remember reading James?" her stormy eyes flickered. She'd had Wren read James and Proverbs right after Genesis.

"Yes," the blonde confirmed quietly.

"James talks about the restless evil of the tongue, how it's full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise and with the same we curse. Kevin chose to curse, but we chose to praise. Why?" Alora tested her.

"God commands it of us," was her prompt answer. Her crying had diminished to sniffles.

"Mm," the older female hummed. "Good. What is man's chief purpose?"

"To glorify God."

"With that in mind, how are you going to handle this situation?"

Wren's eyes lit up. She got up carefully, letting Azai move off her. "I'll be right back!" She chirped, running toward Kevin, who was talking to stern looking adults.

Alora smiled, watching her run off. "Azai, protect."

Dipping his head, her dog darted after Wren, his goal to protect her.

"I love raising kids," she snickered to herself, standing. Alora brushed dust off her pants, pulling on her hair lightly.

"Are you really just letting the girl go back to him?" an unfamiliar voice caught her attention. Her gaze flickered to the man in jeans and a flannel. He wore a gray shirt underneath.

"She knows what she's doing. You are not Thor," she added under her breath.

"Yeah, Thor wanted to come. Didn't want to pester you, though. Should I tell him you long for his presence?" the man teased, walking closer to her.

Knife. Married. Moderate threat.

"I'm going to have to ask you to keep your distance, mate," Alora sounded slightly apologetic. "What's your name?"

He stopped a good four feet from her, respecting her wishes. "Clint Barton." 

She nodded calmly. "Nice to meet you, Clint. I'm Alora, but I'm sure you know that, since you know Thor. Shockingly enough, he's fun to be around." The woman tilted her head. "Do you contend with that?"

"Possibly. I basically live with him, sooo..." he trailed off, watching Wren talk animatedly with Kevin. "What is she doing?"

"Forgiving him."

"Wow. Any chance I could get you to babysit for when I have kids?" he joked.

"You already have kids, Barton." Alora sighed. "I would be happy to babysit them, provided I don't have to move states."

He stared at her, trying to process what she was saying. "You.. I don't have kids."

"Shield data says otherwise, mate. After your friends dropped in, I decided to do a bit of digging. Hawkeye is a cool name, but I'd change the suit to purple and black."

There was a tense pause, then he chuckled. "You are something else. Are you sure you don't want to join us?"

Her anxiety rose - a roaring wave of cold and prickling needles. She cracked her knuckles quietly, biting the inside of her cheek. Her chest tightened, heartbeat picking up. "I'm sure," Alora replied evenly, remembering the screams of pain from her friends and fellow musicians. "I used to be cut out for it.. Not anymore."

Wren ran back to them, Azai followed amiably. She leapt into her babysitter's arms, trusting she would be caught. Alora wasn't one to disappoint.

"Why'd you quit the army?" Clint walked with her as she headed for her car.

"Who says I was in the army?" Alora countered.

"Your dog tags and Thor said you had a military running system. Personally, I think that system is weird."

She internally sighed. "I didn't tell the General why I retired. Why would I tell you?"

"Just curious," Clint waved her off. "Have a nice day!"