On the flight back, the night sky was filled with countless stars.
Hero Rowan was currently brainstorming ways to defeat the evil monster known as Tony Stark and avoid the tragic fate of going to school.
While he was deep in thought, the sky ahead suddenly grew brighter.
“Huh?” Rowan blinked.
“A meteor?” The glowing object seemed to be getting larger.
And larger.
And larger.
Then his eyes widened.
“HOLY SHI—!” Instinct took over.
The Roc twisted violently in midair and barely avoided a blazing object that shot past him like a miniature sun.
A wave of scorching heat washed across his feathers.
The thing missed him by only a few meters.
“Damn!” Rowan’s heart nearly stopped.
“I almost became roast bird!” Still shaken, he immediately started cursing.
“Which idiot threw a hammer at me?!” The words had barely left his mouth when he froze.
Hammer.
…
Hammer.
…
“…Oh.” His feathers stood on end.
“Oh crap.” Rowan immediately turned toward the sky and began bowing repeatedly.
“Lord Odin!” “I’m sorry!” “I wasn’t talking about you!” “You’re a wise and generous king!” “Please don’t smite me!” Watching a giant bird frantically bow to the heavens would have looked extremely strange to anyone nearby.
But sincerity was what mattered.
After a few moments, Rowan relaxed.
“The hammer’s here.” “Which means Thor has already arrived.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“At this point, he’s probably already been tased and picked up by Jane Foster.” Rowan couldn’t help sighing.
“The mighty God of Thunder.” “Knocked out by a taser.” “Honestly, it’s painful to watch.” Still…
Thor was Thor.
A future Avenger.
An Asgardian prince.
A premium-grade thigh to hug.
Might as well get acquainted early.
With that thought, Rowan immediately turned around and followed the direction Mjolnir had fallen.
It didn’t take long to find the impact site.
The hammer had carved a massive crater into the earth.
“Can’t miss that.” “Now I just need to find Jane’s car.” Thor should already be with them by now.
Soon enough, Rowan spotted a vehicle speeding away in the distance.
“That has to be them.” Following the car, Rowan watched Jane, Darcy, and Erik transport the unconscious Thor to a hospital.
Once they arrived, Rowan transformed into an invisible orange cat and sneaked inside.
The events that followed were absolutely glorious.
Thor woke up.
Thor struggled.
Thor demanded answers.
Thor caused chaos.
Then a nurse calmly stabbed a sedative into his backside.
Thor immediately collapsed.
Rowan’s eyes lit up.
He quietly pulled out his phone.
Click.
Click.
Click.
Embarrassing Thor Photos: +1 The next morning, things somehow became even funnier.
Thor finally escaped from the hospital.
Only to immediately get hit by Jane’s car.
Again.
Watching the giant blond man crash into the ground, Rowan realized his opportunity had arrived.
He hurried over and sat beside Thor.
“Meow.” Jane slammed on the brakes.
Seeing that she’d hit someone for the second time in two days, she rushed out in panic.
“Oh my God!” Then she froze.
It was the same giant blond guy from yesterday.
And beside him sat a fat orange cat.
The group eventually loaded Thor back into the vehicle.
Jane picked Rowan up as well.
The moment she lifted him, her arms dipped.
“Wow.” “This cat is heavy.” Rowan instantly became offended.
Excuse me?
Did I eat your food?
And besides, being fat isn’t my fault.
Blame the stupid system.
Still…
He was currently being held by a beautiful woman.
After some consideration, Rowan generously decided to forgive her.
Back in town, they stopped at a small diner.
Thor immediately began devouring food like a starving beast.
Rowan sat nearby and watched with pity.
“Seriously.” “The son of Odin.” “The future King of Asgard.” “Reduced to getting hungry enough to faint.” “No dignity.” “Absolutely no dignity.” Jane, meanwhile, couldn’t stop observing Thor.
The man looked homeless.
Yet somehow carried himself like royalty.
He claimed to be a god.
He claimed to be from Asgard.
Everything he said sounded completely insane.
And yet…
There was something about him.
Something impossible to ignore.
Also…
His physique was ridiculous.
Jane accidentally remembered seeing him change clothes earlier.
Her thoughts immediately drifted in dangerous directions.
Without realizing it, she began absentmindedly rubbing Rowan’s head.
Repeatedly.
Rowan sighed.
“Meow.” Jane snapped back to reality.
“Oh!” “Sorry!” “Did I hurt you?” Rowan ignored her and escaped from her lap.
Then jumped directly onto Thor’s shoulder.
Thor didn’t even react.
He was too busy eating.
Even as a mortal, carrying a cat wasn’t exactly difficult.
Across the table, Jane and the others continued watching him closely.
The night before, they had reviewed photographs of the meteor event.
One image seemed to contain a human silhouette.
As impossible as it sounded…
Jane suspected that silhouette had been Thor.
Nearby diners were discussing yesterday’s crater.
Apparently, dozens of people had visited the site.
Nobody could move the object at the center.
Not even slightly.
Thor immediately recognized what they were talking about.
Mjolnir.
His hammer.
His eyes lit up.
He jumped to his feet and rushed over to question them.
After learning the location, he immediately headed for the door.
Jane hurried after him.
“Where are you going?” “To retrieve what’s mine.” Thor sounded completely serious.
“You heard them.” “The government already locked the area down.” “And it’s forty miles away.” “How are you even getting there?” Thor pointed dramatically into the distance.
“If you take me there…” “Once I recover Mjolnir, I’ll explain everything.” Jane blinked.
“…Mew-mew?” “You mean the cat?” “He’s sitting on your shoulder.” Thor stared.
“No.” “Not this fat cat.” SMACK!
Rowan immediately unleashed a barrage of kitty punches directly onto Thor’s face.
Nearby, Professor Erik Selvig finally had enough.
He pulled Jane away.
In his professional opinion, Thor was definitely insane.
Normal people did not claim to be the God of Thunder.
Nor did they claim to come from Asgard.
As Jane reluctantly left, Thor continued staring after her.
A strangely interested expression appeared on his face.
“She’s gone.” “You can stop staring now.” A voice suddenly spoke beside his ear.
Thor nearly jumped out of his skin.
He flung Rowan off his shoulder.
The orange cat landed gracefully.
Then glared at him.
“What was that for?” Thor coughed awkwardly.
“I wasn’t scared.” “I’m Thor.” “The God of Thunder doesn’t get scared.” “You just surprised me.” Rowan rolled his eyes.
“Sure.” “Whatever helps you sleep at night.” After a moment, Rowan extended one paw.
“Nice to meet you.” “My name is Rowan Ashford.” “I’m a druid.” Thor stared at the paw.
Then awkwardly shook it.
“Thor.” “Nice to meet you too.” He paused.
“What’s a druid?” “Is that the breed of cat?” Rowan’s eye twitched.
SMACK!
Another paw print appeared on Thor’s face.
“Druid is a profession.” “This cat is one of my abilities.” “And for the last time—” “I’m not fat.” “I’m fluffy.” “There’s a difference.” Thor burst out laughing.
“So what do you normally look like?” “A human.” Rowan shrugged.
“But transforming back right now would be inconvenient.” “I’ll show you later.” Thor nodded.
“Fair enough.” Then he stood up.
“Well, Rowan.” “I’m going to get my hammer.” “Want to come?” Rowan slapped away the hand reaching toward his head.
Only pretty women are allowed to pet me.
“Obviously.” “Something this interesting?” “I’m definitely coming.” Then he paused.
“Actually…” “How are you planning to get there?” Thor looked confused.
“What do you mean?” “I’ll buy a horse.” The answer came so naturally that Rowan nearly fell over.
“…Of course.” He covered his face with a paw.
“Thor.” “My brother in Odin.” “Do you ever pay attention to Earth?” “At all?” Thor looked completely serious.
“I don’t need to.” “I fight.” “That’s enough.” Rowan stared at him.
Then sighed.
A long.
Deep.
Painful sigh.
“No wonder Loki runs circles around you.” “Your brain is ninety percent muscle.” For the first time in his life, Rowan truly understood Odin’s suffering.
Having Thor as your heir…
Had to be absolutely exhausting.