Hela

Leopard print pants straddled Nat's lap, and fiery red dreadlocks fell into the face of an umber skin woman. Her golden eyes that seemed to see everything but held an air of mischief and mystery; sharp jawline just like her brother along with those hollow cheeks. All dress like an outfit that steps out of a rock' n roll album cover. 

Nat awoke feeling this sharp pain move across her face repeatedly. She stared up at the redhead before shoving her off as Hela let out a worldly chuckle. She stood adjusting her famous red leather jacket only to be tackled down by her brother, Erik; he placed her in a headlock with a hand over her mouth and a look of panic which he directed towards Nat, who struggled in her seat; but Hela just let out a muffled laugh.

"What are you doing here?" his hold was still in place but he lifted his hand from her mouth.

"Getting strangled by you," she said before breaking the headlock. "Hiya, Oh, big bro, haha…. you are gonna get it" she was ready to pounce when Nat stepped in between them which made her grab Nat by the waist. "Hey, beautiful, steal my soul, why don't you?" Hela whispered in Nat's ear, causing her to blush and Erik to roll his eyes.

"What are you doing here? Hela" Nat asked the fallen angel, who was kissing up her neck before biting it. "Ah, Hela!" she rubbed her neck as Erik pulled Nat away from his sister's attention.

"Ok, ok," she raised her hands in surrender. "Well, I met this guy, and he bought me… like 20 beers, told me I was pretty…." She touched her hair and daydreamed.

"Hela!" he warned while Nat looked down the hallway to the door where the soul slept before grabbing Erik and Hela's hand. And pushing into the little garden through the French doors.

"Go on" Nat waved her hand at Hela, who moved towards her again, taking both Nat's hands in hers and swinging them about.

"Well, he tried to get me drunk to fuck, but you know I can't get drunk off weak mortal shit. Then he tried drugging me which was such an inconvenience," she rambled and Erik's eye twitched "like can't a girl just have fun without the fear of death" she exhaled "so I skinned him then walked the whole way here," she said pressing her finger to Nat's nose and bopping it.

"Why didn't you teleport here?" Erik rubbed his eyes at his sister's attic.

"Because I was hoped on spirit juice" she winked at Nat before running to a stone and hitting it open to find bottles of the stuff "I brought more on my way back from Rainbow Valley" she turned to me with a smile, "Sean says hi" she waves at Nat, who Erik turns and glares at "he also said thank for a really good night" she moans at the end of the sentence.

Erik turned to Nat, his eyes inflamed "Sean, Really?" he grabbed Nat's arm which she wiggled free.

His assistant crossed her arms "I haven't seen Sean since 1889" she waved her hand at him before he could go on with his questioning.

Hela laughed and clapped her hands "did I cause some trouble in paradise" Erik gave her a death glare which made her raise her hands "ooo sorry, anyway, I brought gifts" she squealed.

"Wait, how did you know we would be here?" Erik looked to her sister who struggled.

"I always bring you all gifts, so shh" she dug in a tiny bag. And pulled out a bottle that look like it was carved out of bone, it had a rib cage and spine going up each side and a skull as a cap with words "soul dust" carved in it "for you" she offered it to her brother who took a sniff of it and he went wild. His fangs came aching through his gums and he grabbed his chest hyperventilating "enjoy" she ignored his hunched over the state while Nat went over to help him but he put his hand out to stop her "chains for Jasper, they unlink and relink themselves" she pulled out a heavy chain and threw it into the tree where Jasper's pale hand grabbed it.

"Oh cool, still has blood on it" Jasper's voice came from above while Nat tried to look for him.

"hahaha I know right, for Poppy, a badass mask for her hunting, it is pastel and so cute, so she doesn't scare the children" Poppy appeared at the end of the garden. Hela threw the mask and Poppy caught it as she moved into the cabin.

Nat was shocked at how calm the two were at Hela's unexpected arrival "omg!!! It lights up" Poppy squealed from inside. Nat leaned her head against her fingers and closed her eyes.

Hela kneel before Nat "and Nat" she pulled a moonstone ring with delicate detail silver work around the stone but it had a lid "for you…" she was stopped by Erik shaking his head, grabbing Hela by the arm and lifting her to her feet "ok, ok, it is a poison ring, so…" she lifted the lid to show on a piece of licorice in it, Nat couldn't help but smile at her "I won't eat it unless you want to go on a hell of a trip" she rubbed her hands on her pant and looked up at the group. The atmosphere changed as she crossed her arms "Now, who is the bitch in my bed?" her face turned stone cold "you two think I am that dumb" she crossed her arm, Nat looked to Erik whose eyes were cast down. 

"She is a pure soul" Nat stepped forward as Hela's face turned to pure sadness, she went up to her brother and hugged him.

"Oh, my, we got to get the girl ready then," she said moving to the house.

"Hela, wait!" Nat moved to the door and stood in front of it with her hand spread "she doesn't know yet" Hela turned to her brother and instantly read the fear on her brow.

"how the hell did you get her here then?" she asked, looking at him and a smile broke out on his face.

"Well, Nat," he began to laugh, the kind Nat misses "She pulled the poor soul out of a halted car and gave her choices of life and death, it's shocking and hella hilarious" he chuckled which made Nat smile and a sigh of relief that Erik wasn't mad at her while Hela's eyes were curious and impressed with the assistant.

"If I remember correctly, you were ready to kill me" Nat teased as he moved closer to her.

Leaning his head against hers "I was but a small voice said to trust you" he smiled but his eyes got intense " and I do trust you, Natasha" she didn't know how to react so she pushed his head away.

"Now, let's wake up the cupcake" Hela appeared next to Nat who grabbed Hela's fleeing body by her neck. 

….

After the introduction was done, Hela dressed the ginger in a boho jumpsuit which was in fresh cream with vines of deep green leaves curled around the fabric. Apparently it was from Hela's 'boho' phase, Nat sat watching Erik's eyes move as ginger spoke. He watched her existence with such novelty that it caused that familiar ache to settle in her chest but this time it squeezed and twisted before burning into her stomach. Even though this feeling was running rampant in Nat's body she kept her face neutral because she knew Hela watched her every move.

Before they knew it, Erik and Hela had disappeared. And Nat and Nanala found themselves laying across the comfy couches watching some reality show; Nanala was engrossed in the drama and tried to explain to Nat what she had missed from the previous episodes but Nat's mind was restless. She suddenly stood summoning guns at her side before turning to the soul.

She stood in front of the ginger "come on" before moving towards the french doors. Into the little garden, they tracked deeper to find a lake and full practice court.

Before they could take another step, Erik appeared, causing the two women to jump "what are you doing?" Nat placed her hand on her chest.

"teaching Nanala some basic self-defense" Nat smiled at the soul who was still frightened by Erik's sudden appearance.

He grunts at Nat "she doesn't need it" he said before turning to Nanala and saying in a softer voice "Could you give us a moment" she nodded, running off into the cabin, lightly like her feet were walking on air "she doesn't need to learn this stuff, she will end up getting hurt" He argued but Nat shook her head and began setting up equipment.

"She will end up dead with that attitude" Nat moved about the practice area while Erik's eyes followed her impatiently 

"I will protect her" he growled like his strength was being judged.

"And what happens when you are not around to protect her" Nat moved towards him "what if she is in a position, a spot where you can't get to her, where we can't get to her, she needs to know enough to survive" Nat grabbed Erik's arm and looked into his eyes "we are bringing this woman into a world far beyond her own" Nat watched the wheels turn in his mind.

He bit down on his lip while staring at Nat's hand on his arm "fine" he sneered before turning towards the door "if she gets hurt, I will kill you" he pointed towards the door.

Nat struggled "no doubt about that'' as soon as those left her mouth, deep down she knew it was true this time.

Nat held Nanala by her waist as she aimed a gun toward a target. She kept fixing her stance while she kept asking questions about Erik "so why is he mad, all the time" she asked as Nat straightened her chin.

"He's not mad, just worried," Nat said slowly. "Try now, stand proud and confident, gun straight" Nat waved towards the target while stepping back.

"I don't think I have the confidence for that" she teased as she shot the gun but missed terribly and the bullets burst into smoke.

"That's your problem" Nat moved her once more "do you know why you are here?" Nat stiffened the ginger's stance, standing beside her to aim the gun. She pushed Nanala's legs apart so that she was more sturdy.

"Well, no one wants to tell me" she shook her head irritated.

"You are a pure soul, untouched by the darkness of this world, as cheesy as that sounds" Nat took the gun from Nanala and placed it on the table where other weapons sat.

She watched closely as the soul tried to comprehend this news "I am far from a pure soul" she huffed when Erik appeared behind her.

"having thoughts of a sexual nature are that of a human, it's natural" he spoke softly as if to seduce her. "but you have not once had thoughts of someone in pain, in vengeance, in pure evilness" he grasped at the end with his eyes solely on her.

"You shine, Nanala" Nat smiled at her "people want to destroy that because it reflects their shortcomings" Nat moved to the door, she knew her work was done here "but we will protect you" she passed Erik and gave him a look before entering the house. 

She left the house marching through the front door, trying to run from the scenes developing in her mind. She moved into the nearby woods as the burning sensation seemed to grow in the pit of her stomach when she came to a little clearing. A pond in the middle of towering trees, pebbles surrounded the pond, along with fallen trees and logs laying about. Nat sat down on a log then just listened to the sounds; she wanted silence but the place was filled with life. And she welcomed it as a distraction.

But her mind went back to the couple on the Lakeshore. They will talk about her life and its purpose to him, they moved into their dark past and hers will be good and noble, hindered by bad people and he will be greedy and achieving. They will stare into each other's eyes, growing their bond over trauma. And Nat will sit here in the woods, wishing she was in the ginger's place; wishing that it was her destiny even if it will never be. It will never be her and him. 

Nat was engrossed in her self-pity and loneliness that she didn't sense the new presences that enter the atmosphere. A sound of a stick snapping rang out in the forest and Nat instantly summoned a toothpick dagger. And threw it towards the sound only to have it push into a tree and disappear in a puff of smoke.

"on edge, are we?" Hela said as she walked towards Nat.

Nat instantly relaxed "I am sitting in the middle of the woods, alone, what do you think?!" she pushed her hair back, regretting her rudeness "sorry, just worried" Nat held herself, rubbing her arms as Hela plopped herself down next to Nat.

"don't be" she placed her arm around Nat's shoulders, the stiffness in Hela's shoulder made Nat aware she was uncomfortable with the emotions. "He won't kiss her yet" she joked as Nat pushed her off.

"Fuck off" Nat stood walking a tad bit away from her "I just want to be alone" her voice bleeding with emotions like a lump was in her throat.

"And what? Sulk!" she shouted from afar "honey, I love you, I do but being sad over a man is way too pathetic" she stood upon a stone, stuffing her hands into her beat-up red leather jacket "I mean he is the worst of all males. Of all time" she laughed as Nat just stared at her.

"I don't need a lecture, Hela, I just to be alone" she moved away from Hela and her antics.

"No, love, what you need is a drink" she summoned her spirit gin "let's have some fun!" she winked before teleporting towards Nat and grabbing her by the waist.