Music: The Hurt and the Healer- Mercy Me

I hope you like the chapter- I've been writing over the last couple days. :D 

Chapter Sixty-One

~Nobody's POV~

Thea's wounds do not heal quickly. Over the next few days, she is subject to extraordinary pain as the cuts attempt to heal. She sleeps restlessly, and falls into delirium, little flutters of words escaping from her lips as she tosses and turns. Somebody is always present when she is sleeping, no matter the hour, in case in her confused state, she should do something dangerous. One night, she had subconsciously dug the I.V. needle into one of the wounds she had opened on her neck. Steve had been forced to pin her wrists to the mattress, tearing the needle from her hand, while calling out for Kyle, who had come running.

Videl-who had been put under house arrest in only certain parts of the palace- upon hearing of this incident, had commented dryly, "Perhaps you should just put her out of her misery."

Thankfully, Loki hadn't been around, but Clint had, and had wasted no time in punching Videl in the jaw.

To move her away from the congested halls of the newly restored Velah palace, Thea is moved to a circular room at the top of one of the gleaming turrets, with wood flooring and a giant woven rug depicting much of the flora and fauna of Ardhigiza in the middle. Constant light filters through the latticed glass and the Venetian-like curtains that flutter in the room. Occasionally, when Thea is having trouble sleeping, the curtains are drawn and the light filtered out. In the center of the room, there is a large poster bed with intricate chestnut engravings on the side and on the headboard, with a light, mauve canopy hanging in great ruffles overhead. There are two nightstands- both are cluttered with various medical instruments- standing on either side of the bed. A small settee had been pushed from the center of the room to a far wall, to make room for the constant flow of people. A beautiful, giant tapestry of assorted flowers hangs from the opposite wall of the bed, within perfect view of Thea had she been conscious enough to appreciate it.

The words on Thea's stomach end up putting a fight against their healing, and a few of the cuts open back up and bleed so profusely, Bruce is forced to stitch them up. The bites on her neck heal relatively quickly, catalyzed by the Imeldi blood in her veins, but are still quite painful. In fact, Thea can hardly move without being subject to pain, so that for the majority of that week, she drifts in and out of a sleep that Bruce and Kyle subject her to.

That sleep isn't quite dreamless though, and it's clear that Thea's nightmares have returned to her, probably made worse by Videl's torments in the stone chamber. As for these midnight haunts, Kyle and Bruce are powerless to stop them.

Archer continuously pokes his head in the room to see how she is doing, as do a couple of his friends, mainly a girl with jet-black hair and blue-gray eyes named Amara, a young man named Jijah with messy black hair and her same eyes, who introduces himself as Amara's twin, and a young man with bright red eyes and long blond hair, partially braided, named Lifolas. All three of them are Archer's childhood friends, and all of them have their own unique, but pleasant, personalities. Amara is quiet and reserved, but with a snappy mouth if pushed too far. Jijah is the opposite: open, enthusiastic, and positively friendly. Lifolas is reserved, but mischievous and warm, multiple reasons for him being Jijah's closest friend.

Lifolas is gifted in the art of healing, and so often aids Bruce and Kyle with their endeavors to care for Thea. He had been working on her for a couple days when she actually gained enough consciousness to realize that she hasn't the slightest idea who he is.

"W-w-who are you?" she croaks out, frightened, for Lifolas is dabbing some sort of clear liquid on the slices on her stomach, his long blond hair tickling her side.

"I'm Lifolas," he says with a gentle smile, which reveals his pointed teeth, laying a hand on her arm soothingly, "I'm a friend of Archer's."

Thea apparently wants to say more, but Kyle takes this opportunity to poke her with a needle and send her back into unconsciousness.

*

It is several days later when Thea has the strength to sit up and become fully aware of her surroundings. Her head is still aching, but the majority of the pain has lessened, although she is still incredibly sore. She groans, putting a hand to her forehead.

"Ah, she lives," smiles Lifolas, who is a few feet from her, washing his hands in a basin of cool water.

Her forehead crinkles, "Who are you again?"

"Lifolas. I'm Archer's friend."

"Damn good nurse too," adds Kyle, who is also standing nearby and gazing at Thea with a look of utter relief, "Take a look at your stomach."

Thea does and resists a gasp. The cuts are nearly completely gone: only a few tender white lines signify the tortures she had been subject to.

Lifolas notices her gaze, "Those will probably stay there permanently. I couldn't remove all of the damage. But it should suffice."

"Than-thank you," rasps Thea.

Lifolas hands her a glass of water, "You gave us quite a fright for many days. I had my doubts that you would make it. But you're stronger than you seem, and you pulled through with all of the tenacity of any warrior I have seen."

Thea blushes slightly, "Thanks." She turns to Kyle, "Where is...what's been going on?"

Kyle raises an eyebrow, "Long version or short version?"

She tilts her head slightly, then winces as the motion rubs against the still-raw bandaged bites on her neck, "Long version?" she asks hesitantly.

Rolling his eyes, Kyle leans down and pecks her on the cheek, "Only for you, silly girl."

Thea doesn't say anything, but looks up at him silently. A little tremor of trepidation fiddles its way through his heart, but Kyle tries to ignore it as much as possible.

"Archer, as part of his whole 'emperor-in-the-making' has been running around like crazy banding these crazy Velah together. Thor, Steve, Sammy, and Tony, when they're not peeking in to check on you, have been with him. Apparently, they're trying to help make the Velah slightly more peaceful, with the ilk of Lify here helping 'im out.  Max has basically been patrolling your hallway, and also guarding that son of a bitch Videl- who has quite the fricking mouth-, with Clint's help. Nat had been mostly spending her time trying to prevent Jack from sneaking in here to see how you're doing- we haven't let you seen him yet, didn't wanna make him want to go on a let's-kill-Videl-spree- but Jijah's taken control of that. Jijah's another of Archer's personal posse, along with his lovely twin Amara. Anyway, Jijah has been taking Jack around the palace grounds and apparently teaching him some neat tricks, although I've been in here the majority of the time, so I wouldn't necessarily know. Jane, after that fiasco had finished up, has been spending a lot of time with Nat, mostly talking, because that's what girls do. Loki has been with Max the majority of the time, right outside this room, although he occasionally wanders around the palace with Archer and company. Bruce has been in here with me- two of us have been switching out, sleeping when the other one's with Lify and you." Kyle pauses, slightly out of breath, "Did I miss anyone?"

Thea shrugs, "Don't...think so."

"Would you like to try to eat something?" asks Lifolas.

Thea glances up at him, "Is blood on the menu?"

Lifolas wiggles his eyebrows and bares his fangs at her. But he can't quite hide the smile on his lips, and Thea attempts to suppress a giggle.

"Not presently, but I have some dyefruit for you," Lifolas says, becoming serious again and taking something from a bowl on one of the nightstands.

She wrinkles her nose at the soft, small slices of some sort of bright green fruit, its juice dripping down her fingers.

"Don't be a fraidy cat," says Kyle, who is busy cleaning up some of the medical junk on the other nightstand, "Eat it."

She reluctantly licks the juice from her fingers and then, when a pleasantly tangy and fresh sensation hits her tongue, she eagerly begins to chomp down the rest.

Chuckling, Lifolas says, "Slowly."

Eventually, after she finishes the fruit, Thea mutters, "Kyle...?"

"Yeah?" he asks as he wipes his hands on a towel.

She murmurs something, but is so quiet, Kyle leans down, "Come again?"

"...Where's...where'd they put..." Thea stops short and turns away, staring at the door with the gilded handle.

Kyle's shoulders fall as he realizes what she's talking about, "Oh. Er, well, right after....the battle... they buried her up the hill a little." Kyle glances at Thea, whose face has remained impassive, save for the single tear trickling down her face. "We're taking her back to New York with us when we're all ready," he adds quietly.

Thea nods a few too many times. Lifolas hands her a tissue, but Thea just sets it down next to her.

Kyle clears his throat, and says, "Do you want to see Jack today?"
Thea shakes her head, still staring at the same golden handle.

*

And so Thea transitions to a listless ghost of a girl. She only speaks when asked a direct question, and even then, it's in as few words as possible. She doesn't put up a fight when urged to eat or sleep, but curiously, over the next few days, she refuses to let Kyle touch her. The first time this happens, when she slaps Kyle's hand, he says, surprised, "Hey, what's up, Thea?"

She just stares steadfastly in front of her and Lifolas and Bruce temporarily take over. Eventually, she lets Kyle tend to her, but it's with distress.

The reveal comes the next day. Thea is pretending to sleep, as per usual, and doesn't even look up as the door opens. But she can hear voices.

"How is she doing?"

Thea feels chills. It's Loki.

"Better," says Lifolas, who at this point has earned the trust of those around him and is deemed safe enough to stay with Thea by himself, "Much better. But she's still apathetic and nothing like the lively girl I have heard about."

"Indeed not," says Loki, and his voice is closer.

But when he tries to rest his hand on her forehead, she slaps it viciously, "Get away!" she exclaims.

Loki startles back immediately, "Thea, what's wr-"

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" she shrieks, lunging up at him, but then crying out as her sore body protests.

Lifolas has grabbed Loki's arm, and now says, "It might be best if you leave."

Loki looks stricken as he watches Thea kick furiously, sobbing, "Go...go...go..."

Finally, he gives in, and nods, his eyes stormy. With one last glance at the incensed girl, he turns and walks out of the door.

*

"It's actually quite obvious," says Bruce. He, Loki, Max, Kyle, and Natasha are standing outside of Thea's room (door is shut), "Is anyone else getting the picture here?"

"Enlighten us," says Natasha.

"Thea obviously feels guilty for Leah's death. We've known this from the get-go. She's also shunning those who were involved. Kyle was holding Leah when Videl attacked. That explains that."

"What explains her rejection of me?" demands Loki.

Bruce glances at him sadly, "You were teaching Thea how to resist mind control back in Stark Tower."

Loki closes his eyes and leans his head against the wall.

"What?" asks Kyle, "What am I missing?"

"Loki stopped teaching her, and it was his own choice. If Thea had learned how to resist Videl, this might not have happened. She's blaming him. Probably more than Kyle."

"But less than herself," adds Natasha.

Loki sighs, his eyes still tightly shut. "She'll never blame someone as much as herself." 

Please VOTE and COMMENT so I can see after class :D 

Love you all!

--- hi I'm back ;) 

So as some people guessed, Lifolas is based off of Legolas from Lord of the Rings. Jijah is  an actor named Mitchell Hope. And Amara is Elizabeth Gillies