First Impressions

Part 5

The evening at your aunt's started off on the awkward side. Having never actually spoken to your aunt and uncle for more than a few minutes, Stephen had begun with small talk. Your relatives were polite, but it was a little too obvious he didn't care for them much.

Especially when he kept making small, somewhat snide references to their social differences. God, you hated that.

Wickham arrived shortly after. You were pleased. Hopefully he wasn't a complete asshole, and you could have someone else to talk to besides Jane and Wanda.

Your aunt seemed to have different plans. All throughout dinner she peppered Wickham with various questions, with Stephen butting in with a comment of his own every now and then, usually something to do with Jean Grey.

After dinner, everyone gathered in the living room for cards and chitchat. You opted out of playing. Once your uncle had a few glasses of wine, the game became an all-or-nothing gamble. You would rather watch it all unfold, especially when Stephen was dealt in.

Those plans were quickly dashed when Wickham sat next to you.

"Not playing?" He asked.

"I'd rather watch," you replied.

"May I join you then?"

"By all means."

You wrestled with yourself for a good bit, trying to decide if you should ask about Loki. Just as you figured it was best not to spoil the evening, Wickham spoke up.

"I didn't know Loki and Thor had moved here," he said.

You glanced over at him. "Not moved, just visiting, from what I've heard, with their friend Minerva. They bought an estate called Midgard."

"Have they been here long?"

"A few weeks."

He hesitated. "Have you seen much of them?"

"It's a smaller town," you replied. "It's easy to run into people, especially when one of those people is sweet on your sister."

"Loki?"

"God, no. Thor."

The grin that appeared on Wickham's face disappeared as quick as it came, though a hint of it lingered in his eyes as he gazed at you.

"Do you know them?" You asked.

"I grew up with them," he replied after a moment. "My father was friends with their mother. When he passed she took me in and raised me with her own sons. I don't think there was ever a moment where Loki liked me, even when we were children. Thor was kind, but we didn't interact much."

"Sounds like Loki hasn't changed much," you muttered.

"No," Wickham agreed. "If anything, he grew worse as we got older. Their mother passed a few years ago, you see, and her will stated that each of us would receive a certain amount of inheritance. Loki wasn't very fond of this, and found some sort of loophole to keep me from my share and collect it for himself. Whatever lies he told Thor was enough to separate me from them for good. Thus my dreams of going to law school were dashed, and I'm forced to stick to retail work."

You placed your hand over his, stunned. "My God, Wickham, I'm sorry."

His smile was bitter. "It's not your fault. It just hurts to see him."

"Will his presence here affect your stay in town?" You asked.

"Absolutely not. If Loki doesn't want to be around me, he'll have to avoid me, not the other way around."

Wickham seemed to want to say more, but hesitated. You raised an eyebrow.

"They have an older sister," he said. "Hela. She moved out of their house a while back. We used to get along well as kids, but she might as well be Loki's twin."

A chorus of cheers erupted from the table.

"You play well, ma'am," Stephen said to your aunt. "Jean Grey would enjoy playing against you, though she would certainly beat you."

"Is he always like that?" Wickham asked quietly.

"Unfortunately," you replied as the group dealt cards again.

"How does he know Jean Grey?"

"He works for her."

"Has he met Loki yet?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Why?"

"Jean Grey is his godmother."

You thanked the powers that be that you hadn't had anything in your mouth at that moment, or you would have choked.

"You're kidding," you said.

Wickham grinned. "Afraid not."

"Oh my God."

-------------------------------

You repeated what Wickham had told you to Jane when you returned home that evening. To say she was surprised would have been an understatement.

"That can't be true," she said.

"Loki is a prideful asshole," you reminded her. "It could very well be true."

"There has to be some misunderstanding," she insisted.

"Why would Wickham lie about it?"

She pointed her finger at you. "I'm not saying he's lying, I'm saying we've only heard one side of the story. Based on that I don't think Loki is capable of doing something like that."

You just shrugged. You could absolutely see Loki doing something like that.