Until Our Paths Next Cross

"You know, I never anticipated that our adventures together would end like this – with all of us imprisoned. Well, except for Hogun, of course. Still, I always believed that I'd continue to fight until the last trace of my youth had faded away, at which point I'd retire and settle down with a lovely young maiden about half my age." Fandral smiled wistfully. "Well, not much chance of that now, is there? Unless of course they allow me to share a cell with a female prisoner…"

"Don't talk nonsense, Fandral," Volstagg grumbled, "The only lady in this prison other than Sif is Lorelei and I would strongly advise against you doing anything with her!" He sighed. "I wonder how my children will cope, growing up without their father. And my wife will be so embarrassed, having to come to this dreadful place to visit me. And then there's the food!"

Fandral looked at his friend quizzically. "The food?"

"Yes, everyone knows that the food they serve prisoners is terrible! Stale bread, little scraps of meat…"

"We should not complain," Sif interrupted, her voice ringing out across their shared prison cell. Fandral and Volstagg glanced over to the far side of the cell, where Sif was sat on the floor. "Thor succeeded in his plan," she continued, "He defeated Malekith! And he couldn't have done that without our help. That is something we should be proud of, regardless of the consequences."

"That is true," Volstagg admitted. Fandral nodded in agreement. The two men fell silent and Sif smiled – the hush that had fallen over the cell would give her an opportunity to think. However, no sooner had she tilted her head back and closed her eyes to ponder how Asgard would manage without three of its finest warriors to defend it, Fandral abruptly started speaking again: "Come to think of it, where is Heimdall? He committed treason as well!"

"Heimdall is far too useful to Odin to be imprisoned. After all, can you imagine any else guarding the BiFrost?" Volstagg replied.

Sif's brow furrowed in annoyance. As fond as she was of her comrades, if they were found guilty at the trial and sentenced to life in prison, she certainly hoped that they would be given separate cells. If she had to spend the rest of her days trapped in a confined space with Fandral and Volstagg she would probably lose her mind. Opening her eyes, Sif turned her head to look out of the glass wall and caught sight of another prisoner leering at her from one of the cells on the other side. As they made eye contact, he raised his hand and waved flirtatiously at her. Sif glared, curled her hand into a fist and raised it threateningly in his direction. The prisoner laughed and Sif turned away, huffing in irritation. If only she wasn't locked in this cell – if only her weapons hadn't been confiscated! Then she would have been able to teach that scoundrel a lesson.

Suddenly, the door to the cell opened and a guard entered. "You are free to go," he stated simply, stepping aside so that he was no longer blocking the doorway.

"Free?!" Volstagg exclaimed, "The king is releasing us? Permanently?"

"You have been pardoned," the guard confirmed.

"Well, that's marvellous!" Fandral beamed, clapping his hands together with joy as he sauntered over to the door, "This calls for a celebration – I'm heading for the tavern! Volstagg, Sif, you'll join me, won't you?"

"As soon as I've informed my wife of the good news!" Volstagg said.

"I'll accompany you, Fandral. Volstagg can join us later," Sif replied as she got to her feet. However, before she followed her friends out of the cell, she turned back to the prisoner who had been bothering her. Locking eyes with him, she smiled smugly and mouthed the word "goodbye". As he gaped at her in a mixture of astonishment and envy, Sif turned away and strolled casually out of the door.

…

"Thor!" Fandral called out as he caught sight of the prince standing outside the entrance to the prison. Thor grinned widely as Fandral raced up to him and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I might have known you'd have something to do with this! Put in a good word for us, did you?"

"All I did was tell my father the truth – that I was the one who came up with the plan and that the only reason you all took part was because you had Asgard's best interests at heart. Oh, and I may have mentioned that our armies would be significantly weaker without you. I think that may have been the point that persuaded him!"

"We are truly indebted to you," Volstagg said, "I don't know how we can ever repay you."

"I do: with a drink! Actually, make that several drinks!" Fandral removed his hand from Thor's shoulder to slap him amiably on the back. "We were all on our way to the tavern to celebrate; if you'll join us, I'll buy you enough drinks to last you a year!"

Thor's smile faded and his expression became serious. "That's a very tempting offer, but I'm afraid I must decline. The reason I've come here to meet with you all is because I want to bid you farewell."

"Farewell?" Sif echoed in surprise, "But where are you going?"

"If there's some trouble you need to take care of or some mission you need to go on you know we will come with you!" Volstagg added.

Thor shook his head. "No, no, you misunderstand. My absence will not be temporary. I am leaving Asgard."

There was a moment's pause. Then, just as suddenly as the silence had fallen, it was broken again by Fandral and Volstagg, their voices overlapping each other: "But why, Thor?" "Surely you are jesting, old boy?!" Sif, however, remained quiet – her shock was so great she felt as if she had lost all power of speech.

"No, Fandral, I am not jesting. The incident with Malekith has made me realise that the universe needs someone to protect it – and I can hardly do that if I remain here and become burdened with all the responsibilities of being king. Therefore I have decided to abdicate the throne and set up home on Midgard" Thor explained.

"But your father isn't getting any younger! When he can no longer rule, who will take over from him?" Volstagg queried.

"He will think of something," Thor reassured him, "This was not an easy decision for me, not least because it means being separated from you all. But it was the right one to make."

Volstagg gave a solemn nod, accepting the situation. "Very well, Thor. If this is what you believe you must do, that is fine by us."

"You will visit us, though? This won't be the last we'll see of you?" Fandral asked.

"Of course not! I will return here for our most important celebrations. We can all go to the tavern together and you can regale me with tales of what has happened while I have been away."

"You're sure we can't persuade you to have a drink with us now? Just a quick one before you go on your way?" Fandral offered hopefully.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot. I must leave as soon as possible, but before I do, I was hoping I could speak with Sif."

The lady warrior blinked in surprise. "With me?" She uttered, finally finding her voice again.

"If you'll allow me to."

Sif nodded, feeling a sudden spark of hope ignite within her. "Certainly."

"Right, Fandral," Volstagg announced loudly, sensing that it was best to leave Thor and Sif in private, "Let's go – the tavern awaits us!"

"Steady on!" Fandral protested as Volstagg grabbed hold of his arm and practically dragged him away down the corridor, "We're not in that great a hurry!"

"Oh yes we are!"

Sif smirked at her comrades' antics. "Volstagg's never been particularly subtle, has he?" She remarked when the others were well out of earshot.

Thor shrugged. "At least he means well."

"Anyway, what did you want to discuss?"

"Sif…you are a fine warrior. In the past, when I have been unable to lead the Warriors Three – or the Warriors Two, as they now are – into battle, you have taken my place and have done so admirably. Now that I am leaving, I would like to place you in charge of commanding them. Would you be willing to do so?"

Upon hearing this, the small spark of hope that Sif had felt earlier was extinguished, leaving only cold disappointment in its place. Yes, Thor's offer was very generous and she was flattered to think that he had such great respect for her combat skills – but was that really all he wanted to talk to her about? Was there nothing else he wanted to tell her before he left? However, the last thing she wanted to do was make him feel guilty, so, trying her best not to appear crestfallen, she grinned as widely as she could and replied, "I would be more than willing, Thor. Thank you."

Thor regarded her for a moment before murmuring, "You seem disheartened."

Sif frowned, feigning confusion. "What do you mean? It is a great honour to be placed in charge of the other warriors!"

"No, something is troubling you, I can tell."

Sif shook her head firmly. "I can assure you, you are mistaken."

Thor gazed at her intently and for a moment Sif felt as if he could see right through her façade, that he could finally see how she really felt about him. She held her breath in anticipation.

"Is it because you do not wish me to leave?"

Sif hesitated. This was her opportunity – she could tell him that she had fallen in love with him. But something held her back. If she did tell him, what would that achieve? Thor was in love with the Midgardian woman who he brought to Asgard a couple of days ago. And even though his decision to leave Asgard was based on his desire to protect the universe, Sif was certain that he had chosen Midgard as his new home because he wanted to be able to live with this other woman. Telling him how she felt wouldn't change anything – Thor had made his choice and that choice didn't involve her. If she did tell him, it would do nothing but embarrass him. It might even cause him to distance himself from her and Sif couldn't allow that to happen – if she couldn't have Thor as a lover, she at least wanted to keep him as a friend. The latter was better than having nothing to do with him at all.

So Sif decided to mislead him. Well, she would only be misleading him slightly – it was true that she didn't want him to leave; she just wouldn't tell him exactly why that was. "Yes, it is. I will miss you if you go. And so will Volstagg and Fandral."

"I know, I know; I am sorry. I will miss you all too. But I need to do this, Sif. It is for the good of all the Nine Realms and beyond. You must understand it is not because I wish to be separated from you…"

"No, I understand, truly! You are only doing your duty." Sif paused for a moment and then, trying not to sound too eager, she asked: "Do you think you will one day return to Asgard for good and make it your home again?"

Thor gave a contemplative nod. "Perhaps, sometime in the future. But what I can promise you is that in the meantime I will visit as often as I can, just like I told Fandral. It's not as if I am being banished again!"

"Well, be sure to remember that, because if you are gone for too long we will all journey to Midgard, find where you are dwelling and forcibly drag you back here to the taverns!"

Thor raised an eyebrow. "You would go so far as to take me hostage?"

"You do not want to know the lengths to which I would go," Sif uttered in a mock-threatening tone of voice, keeping her expression completely serious.

Thor burst out laughing. His chuckling was infectious; a couple of moments later Sif felt a small smile tugging at her lips and, abandoning her mock-solemn manner, she joined him in his giggling. Her laughter was not as intense as his – she could not shake the heaviness in her heart which was caused by the knowledge that he had chosen the Midgardian over her – but she still welcomed this opportunity to share in Thor's merriment before he left. When their chuckles eventually subsided, a sudden hush fell over the two of them as they realised that there was nothing left to be said.

Thor was the first to break the silence. "Well, I am afraid I must take my leave now…"

"Yes, of course. I will not hinder you any longer," Sif replied. Stepping forwards, she prepared to walk past him, but before she could do so Thor reached out to place a hand on her shoulder, rooting her to the spot.

"Sif?"

The lady warrior's breath caught in her throat as she looked up at him. "Yes?"

"Be sure that no harm comes to yourself, all right?"

Sif frowned, surprised by his sudden concern. "What makes you think I will be harmed in some way?"

Thor hesitated for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "I do not wish you to take unnecessary risks. When you become leader of the other warriors you are not obliged to prove anything."

Sif briefly averted her eyes as she was reminded of her behaviour when she first joined the other warriors. In particular, she remembered one occasion on the battlefield when she had left the rest of the group and attempted to slay ten enemy warriors on her own. "I had to do it!" She had protested to Thor when he confronted her afterwards, "As the first maiden to become a warrior, I must prove to all of you that I am not a coward!" Sif knew she had been insecure in the past, constantly charging off into danger in an attempt to show her male comrades that she was every bit as tough as they were. But that was centuries ago – she had matured since then. She knew that her fellow warriors had complete faith in her fighting abilities and she realised that it was foolhardy to take such risks during battle.

She turned her gaze upwards, her eyes meeting Thor's once again. "Thor, I am aware that I was reckless in the past, but I can assure you that that is no longer true of me. If you think I would jeopardise the lives of our friends…"

"No, no, you misunderstand!" Thor cut in, "I know you would never endanger the others. It is your own safety for which I am concerned."

"How so?"

Thor sighed. "What I have been trying, and mostly failing, to say is: I do not want you to think that your new rank means that you need to put yourself in any more danger than you already do. No-one fights for Asgard more valiantly than you do. And I fear that if you attempt to do more, you will be putting your life at risk."

Sif blinked, touched by Thor's words. She had no idea he cared this much about her. It was moving to think that he had such feelings for her, even if they weren't romantic in nature. "I will be fine, just as I always am. I give you my word," she promised him.

"Good." Relinquishing his grip on her shoulder, Thor opened his hand and held it out to her: "Until our paths next cross, my friend."

Reaching up, Sif took hold of his hand and gave it a firm shake. "Until our paths next cross." She withdrew her hand first, not wanting to linger too long in case it made things awkward. She then stepped to the side and began to walk past him, reaching out to give him a playful punch on the shoulder as she did so. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw raise his arm in an attempt to do the same to her and she hastily picked up her speed, dashing away from him before he could retaliate. She heard Thor give a half-amused, half-annoyed huff and she looked back over her shoulder, giving him a fond smile before turning her head back and continuing on her way.

Now that she was no longer facing him, Sif's smile vanished from her face and her expression became more contemplative. She was being sincere when she told Thor that she would be fine. She would miss him and the knowledge that he was with a different woman would sadden her, but she would not allow these feelings to consume her. After all, this was not the first time she had been hurt in love. If she could recover from that first misfortune she could recover from this one.

And now that she reflected on it, it may still be too early to abandon hope; there was no guarantee that Thor's relationship with the Midgardian would last. It was possible that they may part company at some point. And it was clear that Thor cared a great deal about Sif – the fact that he worried about her safety was proof of that. Maybe one day these feelings of close friendship would grow into something else.

But one thing Sif was certain of was that she didn't intend to give up yet. True warriors knew when to admit defeat – they did so when all hope was lost. And as far as she was concerned, that wasn't the case yet.

Author's note: For those of you who don't watch Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.", the part about Sif having been hurt in love before was a reference to the episode "Yes Men", in which it is revealed that Sif's first lover was taken away by Lorelei, who placed him under an enchantment and turned him against Sif and the other warriors. Just thought I'd bring you up to speed!