[cross the rainbow bridge of asgard]

[havenoplans]

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[brookesmart]

She's lying on a towel near the edge of the water, not even wet yet, just soaking up the roar of the falls, flipping through the pages of the fashion magazines the bookshelf is forever vomiting forth. It's a good day, peaceful, even, with a soft breeze and dappled sunlight through the trees, and Brooke is beginning to nod off, nose skimming ever closer to those glossy pages, when all at once a sound as loud as cracking thunder startles her right out of her skin. It's more than enough to shoot her into wakefulness. The giant wave that crashes over her after is friggin' overkill.

Leaping upright with a yelp, Brooke looks over her bikini clad body to be sure nothing important got washed away before planting a hand on her hip, the other sweeping suddenly sodden hair from her shoulders. "You better at least be handsome," she tells the dark shape beneath the water. "And not a dinosaur."

[havenoplans]

Whatever ground he gains by kicking his legs, he loses just as quickly, not quite sinking, but not getting any closer to the surface, either. Trying to move laterally instead, he makes a little more progress, but his movements are clumsy in the water, uncontrolled. This is far from his most comfortable habitat, far more graceful in the air. Hitting a rock with the back of his hand, he wedges his fingers into a crack in what he realizes belatedly is part of a larger formation, a wall. Relying on his strength rather than his ability to swim, he pulls himself upward, fighting against the weight of his clothes (he might have unhooked the cape, at least, he realizes, but this is better, faster). When at last he breaks the surface, he sucks in a gasping breath, his mane of blond hair smoothed back against his head, and his irises looking particularly blue against the whites of his eyes, gone red from keeping them open in the water

[brookesmart]

The waters part, revealing the face of a very wet, confused - and handsome, good lord - man. Brooke tsks, making the split decision to grab her towel and drop it at the edge of the pool. With all that sodden hair in his face, he looks like he'll be needing it even more than she does.

"Tabula Rasa," she says, wrapping her sarong around her waist. "It's a magic island, and - " Her eyes widen at the sight of his shoulders beneath the surface of the water. His eyes don't hold the sort of cruelty she'd expect from a man willing to threaten an unarmed woman, but he's huge, and Brooke prefers to err on the side of not having her ass handed to her. "It's totally not my fault."

[havenoplans]

Humans don't put much faith in magic anymore, at least none of the ones Thor's met recently. That the woman refers to this place as magic is of interest, then, even if it prompts more questions than it necessarily answers, especially with her claim of innocence. The towel he leaves where it is for the time being, wanting to get out of the water before he attempts to dry himself. Managing to secure a foothold underneath the water, he pushes his body upwards, one knee landing hard on the rock's edge as he emerges entirely, his cape dragging behind him.

"Are we on Earth?"

[sciencefact]

Back home, Jane spent a lot of time up on the roof of the Smith. As far as she knew, it hadn't been built with rooftop lounging in mind, but the ladder on the side of the building made access easy and there were times-More frequent than she had ever realized before she stopped to consider it-when she just needed a change of scenery. Even here on the island with no one to bother her, she finds herself itching to move from her hut and inherited work site in the hopes that being surrounded by something different might help the figures she's working on make more sense. She's fond of the beach, but it gets hot quickly and no matter how much effort she makes to avoid it, somehow sand gets in absolutely everythingThe waterfall is nice, if not precisely isolated, and the lush trees hang over the surrounding boulders and outcroppings so that the rock stays the perfect temperature. Today she's sitting cross-legged atop one such boulder, sandals and knapsack set aside, chewing habitually at the end of an ink pen as she focuses on the data she's

[havenoplans]

Were he to stop and think, Thor might realize that unhooking his cape might be a prudent course of action, but it's the furthest thought from his mind, his focus too set on simply not drowning to give real strategy any attention. Unable to fly, he's forced to rely on the very same strength that propelled him down here by breaking the Bridge, but whatever progress he makes by kicking his legs, he squanders almost immediately, not quite sinking, but not getting any closer to the surface, either. Trying to move laterally instead, he gains more ground, but his movements are clumsy in the water, uncontrolled. Hitting a rock with the back of his hand after one particularly flailing gesture, he wedges both sets of fingers into a crack in what he realizes only afterward is part of a larger formation: a wall. More confident in his might than his ability to swim, he pulls himself upward. When at last he breaks the surface, planting his forearms on the rock's edge to keep from falling back in, he gulps down the fresh air with a heaving breath.

[sciencefact]

All things considered, Jane probably should have instantly suspected Thor, as this isn't the first time he's come tumbling from the sky in her general vicinity. Before he'd even fully surfaced, she'd recognized broad hands and strong arms, though, and quickly enough that she's mostly collected herself by the time those electric blue eyes focus on her.

Mostly. She might have flailed a little bit.

Her smile is wide and artless, reflecting not just happiness but a nearly overwhelming sense of relief. She'd not fully understood until this moment how much she'd wanted to see him again.

"You're late."

[havenoplans]

"I am?" he asks, his confusion slipping into his voice in lieu of his expression. His subsequent breaths are no less desperate than the first, and he swallows, thickly, between gasps, though his smile remains fixed. Kicking under the water in an attempt to find a foothold, he uses his legs as well as his arms to push himself up out of the water, trying his bed to avoid getting Jane wet, though he's not sure the effort isn't futile. Sitting heavily, now, at the water's edge, he huffs out a grunt as he settles, tearing his gaze from Jane just long enough to get a better look at where he's landed this time, requiring no explanation to realize this is as much New Mexico as it is Asgard. It's lush and green, and the air tastes humid on his tongue, tinged with salt though the water is fresh. He peers up at the pale blue sky, searching for some sign of what's happened with the Bifrost, but there's not so much as a cloud.

"What is this place?"

[little_moons]

It's all peaceful, fuckin' Hallmark in its beauty and domestic bliss, me sprawled out with an inventory checklist for the diner, and the girls playing near the water.

Then, there's no fuckin' peace at all. There's an ungodly splash, and Mack shrieking about her ruined sand castle -- which was really more of a mud castle this far inland, anyway -- and Flo frozen like a goddamn frightened bunny, her doll clutched protectively to her chest.

"Come 'ere," I say, waving them over to huddle on the blanket, putting myself between them and whatever the fuck just fell out of the sky.

[havenoplans]

There's no progress to be made in trying to swim upwards, a lesson Thor learns quickly enough, and so he attempts to move laterally instead. He moves without grace, his arms all but flailing as he fights against drowning. Eventually striking something hard with the back of his hand, a rock, he shoves both sets of his fingers into a crack in what he realizes belatedly is part of a larger formation, a wall. More confident in his strength rather than his ability to swim, he pulls himself upward, and out of the water.

Sucking in a gasping, bewildered breath as he props his elbows on the rock's edge, Thor takes a wild look around at his new and unexpected surroundings, his gaze eventually falling on a boy and two children. Loki's nowhere to be found, nor Mjolnir. He frowns, his confusion blatant in the line of his mouth, the slight furrow of his brows.

"I mean you no harm."

[little_moons]

Jesus fucking Christ, where do these guys keep coming from? Not that I'm complaining or anything, but even in the water, he looks fucking huge, and he's wearing armor, for fuck's sake.

Grinning crookedly, I say, "That was a pretty impressive dive." Mack's edged closer, peering over my shoulder with her hands literally clutching at my hair, and I brush her gently away, climbing to my feet, turning back to the two of them and saying, "You stay right here on the towel, you got it? Don't move."

Edging closer to him, I arch a brow at the visible parts of whatever the hell that outfit is and I say, "Looks kinda heavy." I lean down, like I'm gonna help haul him out, even though I know there isn't a fuckin' chance in hell I could pull him outta there, armor or not.

[havenoplans]

"Yes," he agrees with a short, breathless laugh, looking up at the boy (or young man, Thor realizes once he's come closer). Securing a foothold under the water as leverage, he pushes himself up out of the water, his knee landing hard on the rock's edge as he clambers forward. Still panting, he gets to his feet, looming wet and large over the idyllic landscape, and he holds out one hand to summon Mjolnir, albeit to no success.

"Is this Earth?"

[halfscarlet]

Billy choked on a sudden wave of water, the solitude he'd found floating on his back in the water completely destroyed by the loudest splash he's heard in a while. He was of the opinion that anyone who dove off the cliff had to be insane, but usually they had the decency to call out some kind of warning before they did.

Still sputtering, Billy was ready to call out to whomever had jumped - but they hadn't broken the surface yet, and all he could see was red and grey under the waves.

[havenoplans]

This is far from Thor's most comfortable habitat. He's graceless in the water, moving instinctually rather than giving the matter any thought. Despite the weight still tugging at his neck, his shoulders, it doesn't occur to him to unhook his cape, and whatever ground he gains by kicking his legs, he loses just as quickly, not quite sinking, but not getting any closer to the surface, either. Trying to move laterally instead, he makes more progress, however, and eventually, his efforts find him hitting a rock with the back of his hand. Wedging both sets of his fingers into a crack in what he realizes belatedly is part of a larger formation, he relies on his strength rather than his ability to swim, physically hauling himself out of the water. When at last he breaks the surface, his forearms supporting his weight on the rock's edge, he sucks in a gasping breath, his mane of blond hair slicked back against his head, his blue eyes wide in his confusion

[halfscarlet]

"Little bit," Billy replied, stunned at the vision in front of him.

With Iron Man and Captain America here, it was no question that Thor would soon follow, Billy had once thought, but thinking it and experiencing it were two totally different things.

As was having a one-on-one conversation with the guy he'd kind of admired since he was a little kid. He thought back, as he pushed dripping wet hair out of his eyes, to his costume folded neatly in a drawer in his room, his red cape and spandex so similar to the man in front of him.

"I'm fine," he said, then his eyes widened. "And you're - do you need help?"

Because he could totally help Thor, who probably outweighed Billy twice over.

[havenoplans]

"Help? No," says Thor breathlessly, sounding amused at the prospect. Finding a foothold underneath in the water to use as leverage, he helps himself out of the water in a slow, if powerful, movement. His knee lands hard on the rock's edge, but he pays it no mind, too grateful to be out of the water for any pain to register. Dripping everywhere, he clambers to his feet, holding one hand outstretched to summon Mjolnir once more, but he's met with no success. Confusion registers on his features, and he looks over again to the boy.

"What is this place?"

[oscaroscaroscar]

There was no hesitation, no doubt. One moment, Felix was nothing more than an unwary passerby, minding his own humble business. In the next, he was lightning in action, kicking his shoes off and valiantly diving into the water to lend assistance to the hapless figure who'd found himself suddenly struggling to keep above the water. Admittedly, this reaction may have been somewhat hasty, considering that he hadn't actually taken the time to make sure the stranger in question actually needed rescuing, but these were mere semantics. It was better to be safe than sorry, and heroism waited for no man!

[havenoplans]

There's no thought process to his movement. Not in his natural element, Thor's arms flail gracelessly, wildly. Whatever ground he gains by kicking his legs, he loses just as quickly, not quite sinking, but not getting any closer to the surface, either. Trying to move laterally instead, he might have made some measure of progress, but his efforts are soon hindered by the added weight of a man's hand trying to grapple him. For a moment Thor thinks it to be Loki's, but his brother wouldn't be so foolish, even with the threat of drowning, and so Thor continues his sideways approach, air seeming much more important than anything else. If a new battle awaits him, he'll fight it on land

[oscaroscaroscar]

"I dare no such thing!" Felix sputtered, helping all the while in his own unique fashion, which currently consisted mostly of just holding up the man's cape. "Unless you come from a place where saving a person from drowning constitutes a threat. Honestly, I wouldn't be entirely surprised."