There wasn't any reason for Idun to be here. Yes, she brought apple wine, but that was nothing more than an excuse. The truth was far simpler; she missed Loki. For as long as she could remember knowing him, she'd adored him. She had heard about him, of course, all the women talked about him. It was never like that between them. Maybe because she was so devoted to Bragi, or maybe because their ages were far enough apart, or maybe it was just the way they clicked. Whatever the reason, he was a dear friend and a chosen member of her family.

To her mind she'd not seen her friend nearly enough since he'd left the cave. She was busy, he was busy, it was how life went. Today it seemed she had a lttle time on her hands, and the man she thought of as her big brother popped into her head. Which was often how it went with Idun. She got an idea, and acted on it, rarely thinking it through. Sometimes that had consequences, prices she had to pay for per impulsiveness.

Today that was unlikely. She'd pop over to Loki and Sigyn's and see if he was around. If only Sigyn was there, she'd have a nice chat, leave the wine, and Loki's wife would tell him she stopped by. If no one was there, she was out a short trip. No big deal.

The bag of wine bottles (canvas bags with dividers for wine were an ingenious invention!) in her hand, Idun rang the bell.

For a brief moment earlier in the day, laying a bed just a bit longer than she should have, she considered running off to visit Tyr before the girls came by her house later. It was going to be a surprise. She thought if she did her morning run, got everything situated like she needed to for the day that she could easily slip out about 2 pm, which was around 1 am in Demark if her world clock was correct, and hang out for a few hours before returning to Lana'i. That thought was quickly changed when she pulled up the weather app on her phone and saw that it was cold and raining in Denmark. Screw that. It was temperate and mostly sunny in Lana'i. Low 70s and dry in Hawai'i or low 40s and raining in Denmark. Yeah, no.

( Besides, her friends were coming by and she had to prepare.  )

The place was packed, which was how it was supposed to be. There were costumes everywhere... also exactly how it was supposed to be. Because it was Halloween. It was also Chicago and Americans went all crazy for the holiday. On top of that, it was Thirsty Thursday, something everyone in the American Midwest was familiar with. Professional drinkers, this lot, and Ninkasi loved them for it. Most of the costumed were immortal in some way, not just gods but nymphs and the like as well, but she was clearly allowing an occasional mortal in as well. There were rules outside to her bouncers for screening them properly.

Shortly, the specialty taps would be opened and her private brews would begin to flow. Which is what, she was sure, Kratos was hoping and/or waiting for. ( Wherever he was. )

It was good to be back. Bragi hadn't joined her, and likely wouldn't for a while, but that was okay. They had spent a few wonderful, much needed months together since the incident. Which was about all Idun now thought of it as. The incident. Not even in caps. Because in the scheme of things, it was in the past. Done and over with.

Idun knew the time would come when she missed him, as she always did, but for now she was content. Mostly. What was actually bringing her down just a bit was the seasonal changes. Idun didn't do as well in the fall and winter months. Which was partly the fault of her aspects, and partly just because she was a lively goddess, and those months seemed to her to be all about decay and death. Nothing bloomed, and the world was so still, the silence was almost oppressive to her.

( One enjoyable thing this time of year marked, however, was her apple duties. )

As Idun slowly opened her eyes, she got the rather distinct impression that time had slipped by without her permission. She wasn't opening her eyes from a blink, or from a nap. Her last memory was at the gates of the Underworld. Hades had agreed to let her into his realm. He let her pass, and then she started walking, quickly, because there was a six hour time limit to all of this. Bragi's voice had been incoherent and weak in her mind, but hearing him had been the sweetest relief Idun had ever felt. He was alive. He was still with her. ( And she would find him. )

When Hades heard there was a woman at his gate, trying to abate Cerebus with a basket of quick breads, he'd expected to find an entirely different woman. This woman was short. She looked like she'd been sleeping as well as a beat poet, and eating as well as the skeleton of the maintenance man that stumbled in a few weeks ago and thought this was some kind of death themed amusement park. Short, desperate, too alive, and obviously in grief. Great. A female one of those. ( If she pulled out a violin, Hades was going to shoot her. )

It was rare this time of year that he was able to sit down and put his feet up on the tasseled hassock in his study. Which was why, as he settled into the cushy plumpness of his red velvet chair, Santa began mentally reviewing his to-do list for today. Did he really have time to enjoy his peppermint hot cocoa, or had he forgotten something that would require his attention?

( The List )

Frigg sighed as she stood outside Bragi and Idun's Hall. Though, right now it might have been called Idun's Hall. Bragi was still missing. There had been no consequential developments in locating him. But a moment later she was shaking her head. No, she shouldn't think like that. Even thinking that the Hall was only Idun's now was suggesting that Bragi would never be found and there was no way his father or brothers were going to stop looking until he was found. The rest of them shouldn't give up either. They owed Bragi that honor.

What had her sighing was not her calling on Idun to check on her. Frigg adored Idun, she would be here even if Bragi wasn't missing. But the Foremost among the Asynia knew that stepping inside the Hall would mean seeing all of Bragi's things, seeing the pained look on Idun's face, and knowing there was nothing she could really to about it. What could she do? Odin had looked everywhere Frigg knew to look with his far more efficient methods. ( Short of following up with Hera, there wasn't much. )

Leaving the mixer had been a step. A step away from madness. A step onto a very dark, lonely road. Idun knew that Tyr had approached her at the party. He had done what he could to quiet her worries. Phobetor had offered his assistance. But words were worthless. Without the god of words, what good could they possibly do? Someone needed to act. Someone needed to do something. Idun could take as many steps down this road as possible, but it wasn't enough to walk. She needed to do more. She needed to figure out who could possibly want to harm her husband. Getting up from the sand, starting to feel again, had been monumental in the moment, but now they seemed like trivial, childish accomplishments. So what if she no longer needed to hallucinate in order to remember to breathe and eat and brush her hair. None of that was getting her any closer to her husband.

( The more evident that became, the more fire filled her heart. )

[Before Bragi wakes up from his head trauma coma...]

Idun opened her eyes. There was a feeling somewhere deep in her bones that told her that Bragi was still very much asleep. Somewhere nearby, his breathing was shallow and even, and it would have been very easy for her to listen to that wonderful lullaby and fall asleep with her face nuzzled against the crook of his neck. But Idun knew she couldn't do that. That was another one of the feelings locked deep in her bones. Bragi needed to be awake. He needed to be awake in the same way that rings needed to be green and feet needed to wander. It was very simple. It was just a fact, and so Idun took a few curious steps forward in search of her slumbering husband, and as she walked, the milky darkness rolled away and was replaced by a very, very green forest.

If she looked close enough, she would see the bird that Bragi had scared off when they first met, perched in the very tree where that meeting had taken place. The epiphany tree. Not far off was another tree, this one not far from a narrow dirt path. A broken net swayed gently in the warm breeze. Idun didn't look very closely, but only because she had found Bragi. He was asleep at his desk, the one in the lecture hall, not the one in their home. It made her chuckle. ( Of course he was sleeping between classes. )

Bragi was a god of many gifts. Punctuality was only sometimes one of them. But Idun knew this. She'd known this for a very, very long time. It didn't bother her, because she knew it was a possibility, and she knew that when Bragi did arrive, he'd bring with him a very colorful story explaining what had detained him in the first place. Listening to one of his tales was a hardship Idun had somehow learned to live with. It wasn't like she lived for all his pretty, pretty words. Wasn't like that at all. Besides, Idun never let Waiting be her primary activity, ever.

When Idun arrived at the aquarium first, she wasn't terribly surprised. They had made these plans, but time has passed between then and now. A budding genius was in dire need of creative inspiration in a university library somewhere. A struggling musician was stuck on the chorus of a song that would send tremors through the hearts of millions after a tiny shift in notes. There was always someone, somewhere, who Bragi could help. And even if he wasn't helping anyone, there were plenty of interesting people to talk to. If they hadn't decided to break into the aquarium after closing, Idun could only imagine how many visitors she would stop and talk to before she could actually get to the observation tunnel. Talking was a hobby they both enjoyed. Idun arrived, and as the shimmering blue glow of the water washed over her, she briefly wondered what conversation her husband was having right then. ( But then she let the thought go, and went about setting up their picnic. )

(OOC: Immediately following the Double Date thread.)

Bragi and Idun were no strangers to the fine art of matchmaking. They were seasoned professionals, and nobody could ever truly deny that. But Idun wasn't typically this invested when they set out to pair two individuals off. She was always excited, and there was definitely a thick layer of curiosity every single time they played matchmaker, but she didn't love the people involved. Not usually. But Philotes was one of her dearest friends, and Vidar would probably be her favorite brother-in-law if Idun were actually to pick favorites. She wouldn't, obviously, because she loved them all, but if she did, Vidar would definitely be a top contender. He was just such a good listener, and so lovely to Bragi, and so wonderful overall...

Their guests had left. The dishes had been left in the sink and the bunnies had been let free, and exhaustion was beginning to settle in. Not in a bad way, though. Idun felt accomplished. She had been invested in this evening because she was invested in the happiness of both Vidar and Lottie. And, though it was technically too early to tell, Idun felt like the evening had been a success. ( She'd go so far as to say a declaration of love was in their near futures, but Bragi would probably tell her she was getting ahead of herself again. )

She need to stop this. And she knew that she needed to stop this. It wasn't good for Harmonia if she kept mother-henning her; Harm needed to get out and learn and grow and do things on her own. It would be better, she'd get her legs under her faster, and then she'd be able to move on. Philotes knew all that, and she wanted it, deep down, really, she wanted that for her friend. But she just couldn't seem to keep herself from hovering and fretting and generally being a pain in the butt probably.

( Especially when her friend came home talking about somebody from another pantheon. )

Lottie had been to Asgard to visit Idun a billion times. Well, maybe not a full billion. But at least a million, certainly. Trips to her friend's home, to bake, to watch My Little Pony, to show off a new outfit, to ask for advice, to see Idun for a myriad of reasons, had been regular and frequent. But this time was different. This time was special. ( This time she was going to be introduced to Idun's husband. )

Idun didn't care what anyone said. Minnesota knew how to do malls. She hadn't spent much time in this particular region of this particular country, so Idun didn't actually know what else Minnesota was capable of, but she was definitely pleased with the mall. It was huge. It would never replace tiny village markets or ancient exotic bazaars in her heart, but the mall was still pretty fun. There were rides. There were all sorts of delicious foods to sample. And there was an aquarium. Idun spent an hour staring at seahorses. Now she had a milkshake in one hand and a gift shop bag containing a turtle-shaped hat in the other. There was no way to top a turtle hat. Rather than trying, Idun decided to spend the rest of her time in Minnesota window-shopping.

She hadn't expected to see an old friend through one of the windows, but, like the terrible window-shopper she was, ( once Idun saw him, she had to have him. )