Work Text:
Thor was not one for midgardian technology. There were too many bits and bobs. Too many pieces.
Asgard was never this flimsy with its technology. Too far advanced to get to this point. Too mastered of the arts.
Afterall, the sciences were the arts, and the arts were the magic, so the magic was the sciences.
Midgardians didn't understand the concept of magic, overruled it to be ‘rubbish’ and ‘mythical’. ‘Mythical’ in the non-existent style. Not ‘mythical’ as in ‘Oh Thor is a Norse God, not really alive or real nowadays, just nice to talk about’. But, well Thor showed them how wrong they were, didn't he?
He developed and adapted, just for the midgardians; he was trying to connect through their language. For even if he spoke through AllSpeak or not, he could never fully communicate through their choice of the Internet. However, that did not stop Thor.
Thor was going to check in with his new friends. He was going to keep in touch with them, especially if he was to visit Earth in between his travels.
The first time it happened, Thor was very adamant about getting it correctly. The whole process. The email address he had memorised. The message he let creative freedom rake control whenever he realises he's in charge of all the right thoughts. All the pictures he had figured out how to save. As well as all the pictures he figured out how to take. Everyday, he took at least five; having a selection helped give options for his intellectual prowess especially when he accidentally deleted some photos the first few times he proposed the idea.
“It's because this Midgardian technology was not made for my huge fingers; Midgardians have such puny, dainty-like fingers. Easy to break and easy for small electronics, yes. Not so fun for those with bigger fingers. Perhaps bigger buttons would be more useful and widely more accessible, yes?”
So, Thor realised he needed help.
If he was to successfully complete his side-quest, to fulfill his self-inflicted task, Thor would be who Thor was: loud, exuberant and stubborn.
“I am not above asking for help!”
Soon, he realised that over time he just asks librarians and friendly-looking passerbys for help. He ends every email with a selfie with whoever helped him send it which was a fun little idea he thought of. To show who helped in his time of need.
And so, the tradition began.
Many travels equates to many emails which leads to many new people to meet.
However, this time was a bit different.
Thor was sent to a new place, new people and new posting. Though that was a given, it was quite hard to find what he was looking for.
He was trying to find the right person to ask. He would say that after so long he'd grown some super sense of choosing the right person.
He scanned the area he had landed in, and he remembered the advice he was given…
Peter Parker entered the room and saw everyone crowded around Thor. They seemed to be debating over something so by default Peter, like a moth to the flame, levitated towards the argument.
“You can't just go around talking to random strangers.” Tony groaned into his hands.
Thor tried to reason with him with, “But that's the only way they will help me..?”
Talking to strangers? Thor? Why?
Help him with what?
“...What do you think, kid?” The voice cut through his thoughts and Peter had no fuxking clue what was happening.
He coughed until he finally got out, “I- sorry what?”
Everyone was now staring at Peter.
Well, isn't that just great?
“What was the erm question?” Peter started fidgeting with his hands.
The room seemed to grow smaller to him but thankfully someone spoke up, “About Thor. He keeps talking to random strangers and that's apparently ‘harassing’ them even though he just asks them for help. And sometimes he just gets in trouble with the people he's asked. Not the right bunch you know? So what do you think we should do?”
Oh.
They were asking for his opinion.
For advice, on talking to strangers?
Isn't that rule number one of what not to do?
Peter looked up at Thor and spoke, “Well, when I was younger,” Thor nodded for Peter to continue, “I was always told that, that if i was ever lost, I could just shout ‘mom’ and someone would turn around and help, but that wouldn't work for you though,” Thor let out a hearty laugh at the thought, “But I'm sure you could do the next idea which is usually more so to do with who older people would ask for help-”
“Well I am quite old-” Thor interjected, to which Peter hesitantly nodded.
Most people did not take lightly to being called old usually.
“Right, yeah, well they usually look for you know the goths for help-”
“Who are these ‘goths’ that you speak of, young hero?” Thor asked with a confused face.
“Oh, so they basically are just the name of people who like to dress in all black kind of? Like they express themselves with the colour but like there's also different types within that like the goths, the ones we're talking about, the emos, more erm depressing states? Oh and the punks. Though I guess some skateboarders also dress in all black plus there's people who dress in like all-black but like in smart clothes but, yeah you know what, how about we try to go over it with pictures and stuff, yeah?” Peter babbled on until he grabbed his phone and started his new presentation with pictures to Thor.
Thor locked in on the one he believed was the right one.
A young man dressed in dark colours shuffled through the market stalls. He seemed to want to be out of there quickly as he slid and ducked through the sides and around the corners. He was a nimble man. Of which of the groups the young hero showed him did he belong to? Thor did not fully know just yet. So, he stayed surveilling for a bit.
The man looked confused. He was stuffing plums into a bag and getting ready to buy some more. He also simultaneously looked as if he was ready to leave. That's when Thor decided to say hello. And, of course, ask for help.
Thor had come to figure out the man's name was James and he very much was not a huge talker nor did he express such expertise with the Midgardian electronic mailing system. James did, however, seem to be willing to try his best to help him, which is all Thor wanted in the first place. James was a man of very few words whereas Thor was a man of very many.
They had been stuck at the computer for a very long time.
What was this weird contraption?
Why was it so different to what he usually used?
The buttons were finally a better size for Thor’s fingers, yet it somehow took longer to send.
It confused him
“So James, have you been here for a long time?” Thor tried to start a conversation to help speed up time.
“No.” Came the quick reply.
Thor beamed through his next comment, “Ah well no fear, I'm also a sort of traveller here so we're already quite similar.”
James just grunted to show he acknowledged the statement, and that was fine. At least he was listening. Thor was ready to accept his new friend's quiet nature just as much as James seemed to accept Thor's more outgoing approach in life.
Soon after, they managed to type out a message and were ready to finish.
“Don't you think that's a lot of those line things?”
James pointed at the screen at the exclamation marks to which Thor responded with, “Of course not, I have been told they can represent excitement so the more the merrier I say!”
Thor grinned at the email and remembered that he just had to press the send button for it to travel back to his friends. “This electronic mailing system you Midgardians have is quite a long ruse isn't it, new friend?” Thor looked back at James and well, James looked quite dazed whilst he slowly nodded his head as he watched the screen go blank.
……
Back with the other Avengers, J.A.R.V.I.S announces that Thor has sent a new email to the others, so they all clamber around the screen to view Thor's recent adventures,
Steve is taken aback to see a very familiar face next to Thor's, with the message "ha! This took us an hour to send!!!! my new friend James also struggles with your electronic mailing system!!!!”
Steve passes out.
Everyone just stares at the place Steve once stood.
Then back to the picture. Then at Steve, now on the floor. Then the picture again.
It was taken outside a market. Lots of people in the background carrying on about their days. Just Thor smiling broadly and this James trying to cower away from the picture holding up peaches in front of his face as best he can whilst being positioned by the God of Thunder. It was a weak attempt of hiding but he still looked quite baffled at even being there. Almost like he was trying to explain to myself that he is there even if he shouldn't be.
Steve grumbled to himself as he regained consciousness. Stood up like nothing ever happened, he grabbed the table nearest to him to hoist himself up.
And, that's all it took.
For Captain America to go absolutely feral.
And, Tony Stark couldn't be more pleased at this sudden change of personality.