Sing Me to Sleep: Three
âThere you are,â Thor rumbled, letting himself in the bathroom where you were toweling your hair and took over the task gently. âBruce was afraid youâd fallen asleep standing up.â
You smile a little and turn your head to kiss his bicep. âNot quite. It was close though.â
Thor my a soft sound, almost like a grunt and picked up a dry towel to wrap you in, âThis canât continue, love,â he rumbled. âYouâre a mortal woman⌠Youâre going to get very sick.â
âThere isnât much choice,â you sigh.
âExcept their is-â
âThe lesser of two evils is still evil,â you murmur. âIâm not a hero. I just want to be better than I was.â
âSweetheart,â Thor protested, âWho you were-â
You hold up a hand and pick a shirt off the laundry basket. You arenât sure if itâs Thorâs or Bruceâs but it doesnât really matter. âThor,â you sigh, âWho I was was a criminal. Who I was should be in jail. The only reason Iâm NOT is because I happened to be⌠talented.â
Thor exhaled slowly, âHow long are you going to allow yourself to be punished?â
âWhether you like it or not,â you tell him softly, âThis is where I can do the most good.â
âAt what cost?â he countered, handing you a clean pair of panties with a frown.Â
âAt no cost Iâm not willing to pay,â you answer, taking them from him.Â
Thor folds his arms across his chest and watches you critically for a moment. You look pale still. Exhausted. Your eyes are glassy. And he knows. Of course, that part of it is that you really are tired. But what worries him is the weight youâve lost. That youâre slower to smile. More withdrawn when you are at home.Â
âY/N,â he murmured, âPlease.â
You stop and look up at him, âWhat would you have me do?â
âJust- Why canât we talk to Stark?â
âSo I can be an experiment? Or an Agent?â
Thor pulled you closer and picked up a hairbrush, âSweetheart. My darling Girl. Youâre one of the best parts of a very long life. And I do not enjoy watching you break yourself a part. You are lighting yourself on fire trying to keep the world warm⌠and We. Are we just to be without you?â
âI worked so hard, Thor,â you murmur. âI tried so hard⌠All I want is to make good.â
Thor tilted your chin up gently and brushed a kiss over your lips, âAnd you are⌠You do wondrous things. But you are one person doing the work of dozens.â
âMaybe not dozens,â you snort.Â
Thor smiled a little, âNo, perhaps not,â he sighed, âBut. You do more than you should.â
âMaybe no one else does as much as they should,â you shrug.
And Thor lets you go, following behind you with a hairbrush, mulling over your words. You were right, of course. You did work no one else wanted to do. That at BEST people applauded from a safe distance and at worse, actively derided and tried to get your programs defunded.Â
He was still thinking in the living room, as Bruce fussed and took your vitals again. You evidently had a low grade fever that he wanted to keep an eye on. Thor watched, smiling a little as Bruce plied you with food and some sort of medicine for the fever, largely ignoring your protests and gently reminding you that you were never sick. And when you were, you tended to do it like you did everything. Overboard.Â
Bruce stood over you and waited while you took the medication and then promptly rewarded you with kisses and a brownie. âIâm not a baby,â you grouse fondly, between kisses.Â
âNo,â Bruce said, refilling your glass of juice, âBut you came home and fainted. And now you have a fever. Youâre gearing up to get very sick. And things being what they are⌠If Thor and I have to leave, there wonât be anyone to look after you.â
âIndeed,â Thor echoed, taking his own seat at the table and helping himself from the containers of food he ordered.Â
âYou two know that I AM in fact, really capable of looking after myself?â you ask, taking a bite of mashed potatoes.
âYes,â They answer together as Bruce takes a seat.
âBut we donât want you to have to,â Bruce said softly. He and Thor both remembered how they had even met you to start with. You were trapped. Pinned down by Hydra agents that seemed intent on getting a hold of you dead or alive. They didnât know what you could do. Or what you were. But. Youâd made a stand. Looked imminent death in the face and helped their actual target, A little boy with big green eyes and the ability to start fires with his mind, escape with his mother. You were battered and broken and still trying to fight back. In his minds eye, Thor saw you as a butterfly bound to a board by a pin. The life. The will to fight, draining out of you slowly.
 And Bruce? He saw a terrier trying to face down a wolf pack. Trying valiantly but doomed to fail. And when your shouts and screams suddenly, heart breakingly became a whimper as you hit your knees in a puddle of your own blood, still resolutely silent. Refusing to give up his location. They knew that there was no way they could leave you be.Â
Thor, instead of echoing Bruce, put more on your plate and kissed the side of your head. âYouâre ours,â he said after a moment. âAnd that comes with specific obligations.â
âBut what about me taking care of you?â you counter, taking a sip of juice.Â
âYou do,â Thor said, smiling a little. âYou give us balance⌠And pancakes on Sundays.â
You smile a little, âThat seems a little uneven compared with all this.â
âWe donât get sick,â Bruce reminds you gently. âAnd I only fight as the Hulk, whoâs mostly indestructible. And Thor has a healing factor⌠And you take care of us when we get home regardless.â
âStill-â
âStill nothing,â Thor rumbled, âYouâre ours and thatâs all that matters.â















