InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "ask me how I am..."

fulltiltdiva (fulltiltdiva) wrote in colligo_threads,
@ 2012-06-05 23:48:00

Entry tags:

cordelia chase, loki laufeyson

WHO: Loki Laufeyson & Cordelia Chase
WHAT: Loki arrives at the local occult shop to acquire some items and hopefully, teach Cordelia how to pronounce some Old Norse.
WHEN: June 5th; Afternoon
WHERE: Something Wicca this Way Comes
RATING: PG
STATUS: In Progress

It was a quaint little place, nothing like the grand halls of the school of sorcerer on Asgard, but what most people might not glance at twice as anything beyond another oddity of this place, a well practiced master of magic could easily sense as a place of power, the magics emanating from within an unfamiliar hodgepodge of energies but strong all the same. Raising a hand to press curiously against the door, trying to gather a greater understanding of the situation he was able to walk into, the strings of energy that he could feel twinging for some sort of escape wound around his fingers, attracted to and playing around his own magic before he pushed open the door and stepped inside, casting a glance around.

He'd dressed down for the event, figuring that striding into the shop in his full armor, even without the battle accoutrements, would hardly make the impression of someone who was willing to cooperate with those who were able to provide him with the items that he might require. While he was still unaware of what had arrived, it stood to reason that if he had been asked how to pronounce Yggdrasil that some items from the world tree had found there way into this realm. With any luck, they would be both the items that he hoped that they might be and that he may make the required impression to be allowed access. And as it was unlikely that Sif or Thor would be requiring any of the items, he had every intention of at least trying to make the necessary impression. There was no sense in them going unused.

"Hello?" Loki called after a moment of lingering in the doorway, closing the door behind him and taking a slow, deep breath and feeling himself rather instantly comforted by the environment. It might not have been Asgardian, but the ripple of magic and the smell of old tomes was more familiar than anything that his homeworld might have had to offer now.

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thisismyofframp
2012-06-10 06:26 am UTC (link)

If there was one thing Cordelia hated more than inventory week - and there were very few things that actually ranked so low as to wind up below that most deplorable of situations - it had to be the week following inventory. Which, of course, she knew was a bit ridiculous by the standards of most stores. However, the store she ran was not most stores. It was a store that dealt with magic in all shapes and sizes. As such, it also had to deal with the aftermath of placing certain magical objects (of various shapes and sizes) beside other magical objects (of various shapes and sizes) that weren't necessarily compatible.

For example, coming across an authentic shrunken head was all well and good. It provided a large profit for the store as well as offered some good mojo should they make sure the head went to a worthy owner. However, apparently placing the aforementioned shrunken head near a book that happened to have a very specific spell on the cover meant that certain chaos was about to be unleashed upon the city. And, although the chaos had been dealt with relatively easy, the fact remained that the possibility had popped up in the first place. And that meant that they had clearly overlooked something fairly dire when actually sorting the head itself.

So, needless to say, by the time someone had stepped into the shop nearly an hour after the incident in question, it was nothing short of a miracle that everything seemed back in order again. And although Cordelia wasn't one to complain to current guests about past issues in the shop, she was still a bit delayed in acknowledging the new arrival until well after the little bell above the door had dinged and the man had the chance to speak up for himself.

"Just a second!" she finally replied, hoping that Willow's anti-theft spells were working even without the witch in the city. Otherwise, the guy upstairs was liable to take off with half of the merchandise before she could even get up there to stop him.

Fortunately, though, that wasn't an issue. In fact, Cordelia was almost shocked to see that, upon reentering the store via the storeroom doors, not only was the merchandise still on the shelves but the man who had gotten her attention in the first place didn't seem at all interested in stealing anything while no one was looking. A quick double-take and she realized why that might be. Instantly she bit down on her automatic 'sell speech' that she tended to give to the locals, instead offering the guy a legitimate smile while asking pointedly, "Loki, right?" She smiled. "Welcome, and all that fun stuff."

What? Just because there were those who were incapable of recognizing a small picture over a device didn't mean that she was one of them.

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fulltiltdiva
2012-06-10 06:49 am UTC (link)

Loki hadn't been too troubled by the delay in her response. If anything, it had given him a moment to step further inside, eyes moving over the things that were gathered and organized as he allowed himself to adjust and acclimate to the magical climate of the place. By the time that the woman he had spoken with over the network, Cordelia Chase, he had taken the time to note with a quick browse through the rest of the network, made her reappearance, he had settled himself into a comfortable state between all of the times of magic echoing about him, "It is a pleasure," He said, returning the smile even though he couldn't help but be a little surprised at how she greeted him. He supposed people could be honestly wary and friendly in the same breath, but he had rarely ever seen it managed.

"I must say, this place is more than I had anticipated," He said, eyes lifting up and about the shop again, an obvious curiosity shining behind them. He didn't want to pester her too much about the unfamiliar essences that kept trying to distract his senses. He had come here for a purpose, after all, and that needed to be attended to, but once that was concluded, he figured that it wouldn't hurt to be at least a little nosy. "Such strength at the heart of this city is reassuring. Even if I do not understand much of what I am sensing," He said, offering her a bit more of a smile.

"But I believe you had some objects to show me," He said, the tone of his voice suddenly taking on a purpose. "And I had some pronunciation to clear up for you." Even if it was still playful at the same time.

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thisismyofframp
2012-06-10 07:04 am UTC (link)

Truth be told, Cordelia likely wouldn't have thought much about his comments in regards to the magic shop if it weren't for one undeniable fact that came with them. Namely, he was Loki. His name, combined with his title - even if it was Norse Mythology and therefore quite possibly not entirely accurate - indicated that he would most definitely be in the know when it came to things of a magical nature. So to have him comment on the magic that held the entire store together...

Well. Needless to say, it was saying a lot.

"You can probably thank the whole not sure what you're sensing thing on Willow," Cordelia replied almost in passing, all but brushing the conversation away in lieu of focusing on his reason for being there. And no, it wasn't just because she might make some seriously good money off of him, either. Because while that bit was certainly true, that really wasn't what she was focusing on. Instead, she was far more interested in actually learning the proper pronunciation of several of the new products they'd received recently. Not that she doubted her own ability to pronounce words based on the names but... well, okay. So that's exactly what she was doing. But the point was, she really did want to know how to say the names of the objects that were for sale in her store. Freaky, oddly worded merchandise included.

Especially considering, no matter what else, it made for good sales. And that was what really mattered to Cordelia, when push came to shove. So instead of brushing him off in lieu of doing other things, she flashed him a smile and stepped forward, extending her hand to be shaken by way of greeting.

"Cordelia Chase," she introduced herself, even if it was entirely beside the point. It was still the principle of the matter. Although, principle or not, she wasted no time in tacking on, "And if you'll follow me, I'll show you what I have in my storeroom." With that, she led him into the stockroom of the magic shop, motioning toward a large shelf in the far corner that housed several items that she didn't know.

"That's them," she said pointedly. "Most of them came with names I didn't recognize and couldn't find in the translations that we have on hand."

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fulltiltdiva
2012-06-10 10:35 am UTC (link)

Willow. It was a curious name, one that he couldn't remember coming across on the network, but Loki had been able to suss out pretty easily that people who had existed and then left still often made a mark upon the city while they were here. It seemed like shop was this young woman's -- at least, he assumed it was a woman as magic of his caliber rarely fell into the hands of his gender, himself being a rather large exception to that fact -- legacy. "She has left you with strong standing livelihood, then," He said as he raised a hand into the aether and peered upwards before smiling a bit. "And equally strong protections. It is rather a shame that I missed the opportunity to meet her," He said as he followed Cordelia. "At least, I assume that is the case with you attending this place instead," He said before pausing as they reached the storeroom.

He had noted the direction that she had indicated, his eyes moving over the items as he stepped forward slowly and picked a single item up from what looked like nearly a crate of the things. Turning the shimmering golden apple in his hand, Loki couldn't help but look amused as he shook his head, "Oh, Idunn is going to be furious," He said before turning to Cordelia with a bit of a smile. "These. Not really suited for public distribution," He said before placing it back down on the stack and moving them to the back as he picked through the other things that had been sent through. It was obvious why she had had so much difficulty. All of the labels that had been provided were still set in Old Norse, no allowances having been made for shifts in the language over time.

"Urðr," Loki said, the word coming out similar to the noise someone might make if they were punched in the stomach, "is from the well of the Urðarbrunnr, the well of the fates," He said, lifting the vials of water that were stacked amongst the other items. "It is used by the Norns, the three sisters Urðr, Verðandi, and Skuld, to nourish the roots of the World Tree. It is also a great purifier and healer. Anything drenched in this water, no matter its state of decay, will be restored to full health. Our host either trusts you immensely or has little to no idea the strength of that which he has entrusted in your care."

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thisismyofframp
2012-06-10 06:14 pm UTC (link)

Cordelia very nearly asked the guy if he was choking when he started making that weird sound, but fortunately years spent up to her eyeballs in dead languages had taught her that not all odd sounds that came from someone were necessarily body functions and it was a little rude to automatically assume they were. Not that she was all that worried about being rude but, well, even she knew better than to go out of her way to tick off a guy with the amount of power that Loki possessed. She was a little ditsy, and could be completely vapid at times, but she wasn't an actual moron.

When he mentioned Asaph, however, she couldn't help but snort in slight derision. "Well, considering we have an orb that can help shove a soul back inside a vampire, and a mystical scythe that's meant to be used by only a chosen one, and a few other odds and ends that pack a pretty powerful wallop, I'm choosing to think he trusts us a lot." A pause before she tacked on pointedly, "Besides. Openly insulting the intelligence of the omniscient being that determines if I get to stay here or return to being dead? Not exactly something I'm looking to do."

Stepping a bit closer to look at the items in question herself, Cordelia arched an eyebrow. "So the bottled water from the three sisters with the names that sound like something your body would do when digesting food," she drawled, glancing over at him. "It'll restore anything to full health? Like... dead people included?"

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fulltiltdiva
2012-06-10 06:46 pm UTC (link)

"Quite so," Loki said with a bit of a chuckle at the comment upon the Norns names. The three sisters were not pleasant individuals so it was unsurprising to Loki that their names tasted as poisonous on the tongue as so many of their double-edged words sounded to the ears and highly satisfying to hear that they sounded just as unpleasant to mortal ears. "I have seen it done before. Not with water directly from the well but from a similar spring on Asgard with the same properties," He said, gently placing the vial back with the rest. "It is most often used in the anointing of our weapons or to craft the balance of a blade. Certain protection spells and healing draughts require it as well. It is rare and difficult to collect. You are very lucky to have such a supply handy," He said before turning his attention to a basket of gems, a deep ruby red and pulsating with power.

It didn't take him long, staring at the jewels, until he felt a darkness well up inside him, a bitterness that he had attempted to suppress here with no reason or outlet to expend it into, and demand to be let out. Jerking a hand out, Loki slammed the lid closed on the box and took a slow, deep breath, "Gems of the Jinnia," That was at least more pronounceable than anything relating to the Norns. "They're composed of pure emotion, and they bring the best...or the worst out of whoever is in their vicinity. Whatever feeling is the strongest within their heart. Probably best to be careful who you sell them to," He said, already well aware that he would have to be more than delicate should he ever require them. The few encounters he'd had with the creatures themselves had been...less than pleasant.

Moving on the the next set of stores, Loki couldn't help but smile at the sheer variety and collection of flora that had been pulled in. He had been concerned about being limited to his own powers, his own spells and illusions that he could weave without the assistance of anything, and yet, here he was standing in front of the sort of stocks that he hadn't even had access to when he was learning. "I do believe that the rest of this rundown is going to take some time. If you would like to get something with which to write, I can also go over the affects of each of these plants."

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thisismyofframp
2012-06-10 11:38 pm UTC (link)

"Yeah," Cordelia intoned dryly. "You say lucky, I say I'm now sitting around with a big, fat target painted on my back because I happen to have the cool supplies." With a shake of her head, and a mental note to have Constantine make sure that anti-theft spell was in place for all new merchandise, Cordelia fell silent again and watched as he approached the next item on the shelf. When he'd finally shut the box and explained, she tipped her head in acknowledgment.

"Okay, so we have uber powerful healing water and rocks that make you spank your inner moppet," she stated. "This is..." She paused and shook her head. "Yeah, no. I'm still going with 'big, fat target on my back', here." Once more she stopped speaking, although this time instead of listening she gave him a grin.

"Me?" she remarked with a rather undignified snort. "Take notes? Or anything that actually resembles work? Right." With a shake of her head, she pulled her PDA from her pocket. "That's why we have this amazing stuff called technology. And this one happens to come with a pretty decent recorder." Turning the device on and pulling up the proper program, Cordelia set it down near him on the shelf.

"Go ahead and explain the affects of the stinky herbs all you want," she encouraged with a flash of a smile.

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fulltiltdiva
2012-06-11 06:10 am UTC (link)

Loki was still getting used to this place, all the little Midgardian advancements that seemed to be for little or no reason other than avoiding an extra bit of labor, and as she set the PDA down in front of him, he regarded it with a slight air of suspicion before nodding, "I suppose that will work as well." Though, it was likely to work better as Cordelia probably wouldn't be able to transcribe everything that he said. As much All-Tongue as he was using, there were limits to even it when delving into these areas. "And I would say you are rather well protected. My unfamiliarity with the enchantments on this place my complicate my ability to know how to break them, but even then, their strength is undeniable," He said before picking through a few fragments of root and bark, items that would look like throw away lawn clippings if they didn't shine with the same luster that they might still upon the tree.

"Fragments of Yggdrasil," Loki said. "Each are used to augment or support the foundation of a spell. Much of the parchment that we imbue with magic is created from the bark of Yggdrasil, and the root, powdered, is used as a stabilizer in many potions and tonics," He said before reaching out to pick through the various leaves that were in the box as well, pointing each out as medicinal, poison, or some variant of the two depending upon how it was being used. It wasn't until he reached a vibrant green leaf that he hesitated, his expression slowly schooling into well practiced confusion. "I am not really sure why they would send you a weed."

Not that that was what it was, at all, but Loki thought it best not to really share the full affects of this particular herb. "Granted, it is a good addition to most draughts. Lessens the aftertaste."

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