Idun; Goddess of Youth (maidimmortal) wrote in deities_dot_com, @ 2012-09-25 11:57:00 |
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Entry tags: | ~idun, ~loki, ~odin, ~sigyn |
Lost Without Deserving (Tag: Loki & Sigyn)
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.
Idun didn't have a blanket to spread out, since Bragi was supposed to bring that, but food was taken from her basket, everything was arranged carefully, and only after that did she sit down and reach for the black sketchpad she'd tucked at the bottom of the basket. If Bragi was going to be late, she was going to use her time wisely. This setting was beautiful, with the gorgeous marine life swimming overhead and alongside and beneath her in this big glass tube. Idun lost herself in the task of drawing the creatures swimming by. She pondered potential protagonists for a childrens book. A sea turtle, perhaps. Or maybe just a book of seahorses. Seahorses seemed like they had a lot of stories to tell. The sketches were simple and crude, but they kept her busy. It was only when she glanced at the time that Idun realized how late Bragi was. This wasn't cause for concern, not until she glanced at her phone and realized it wasn't on silent. Bragi just hadn't called. And he called when he was this late. That was odd.
Idun selected 'William <3' from her contacts and listened as the phone rang and rang and rang. When he didn't pick up, Idun set down her phone. Her brow furrowed and she stared at a sea turtle as if the majestic creature had some answers for her. When the turtle swam away, Idun picked up her phone again. She redialed, listened to the ringing, and then decided a voicemail was in order this time. "Bragi," she said calmly, "I'm sorry to say you're no longer toeing the line of tardiness. You've definitely crossed into He's Just Not That Into You territory, because this counts as standing your wife up. Call me, okay? It's really sad when you forget these dates." Bragi had never forgotten a date. He had called to reschedule before, but never had he forgotten. Idun realized that after she hung up. That was when 'odd' became 'terribly worrisome.'
Bragi? Idun thought as soon as she came to that realization. She waited a moment, then released a shaky breath. Bragi, you really need to answer.
But he didn't.
Idun waited for all of a minute for a reply that didn't come, and then she abandoned their picnic spread and stepped into the entryway of Bragi's Boston home. She hadn't been there recently, so she didn't know if the house looked the way it was supposed to. She couldn't tell if something was wrong. Her phone was still in her hand, and Idun redialed because she didn't know what else to do.
When she heard the ringing answer to her call, Idun felt like her heart stopped. She followed the sound with a sense of dread that she was more than ready to shake. Bragi forgot his phone and he fell asleep and he was drunk and there were all sorts of reasons why he wasn't answering. It was all very reasonable. She'd find proof of all that, find his phone and his sleeping form curled up on the couch, the dread would go away, and all would be well. Except...
Except there was blood. A lot of blood. Idun had never seen that much blood before. Her brother had bled, but she hadn't seen it. She hadn't seen the pool. It looked so dark against the wood floors, more like an oil slick, but when the light caught it, the puddle was certainly red. Idun wasn't sure if her brow was furrowed or her hands were shaking or if she was still breathing. She stared at the puddle and somehow ended up very close to it even though she couldn't remember moving. Up close, the puddle wasn't an oil slick at all. Idun dropped her phone because Bragi's was on the ground too, and she didn't know how else to react.
She swallowed, or at least Idun thought she did. Idun sat down very calmly on the shore of this great lake of blood, and she continued to look at it until there was no longer any question in her mind that she was going to pass out if she didn't look away.
Without moving from her spot, Idun turned her head and closed her eyes and called the only person she could think of. It was the only thing she could think to do. Nothing else was making any sense. Loki... she whispered. Do you know anything about blood?