Hermod had stood in his bedroom without moving for at least twenty minutes after Bast had left him. It didn’t even occur to him that he should put his clothes on. He was just too stunned to think about anything. She had left him. For some unknown reason, she had left him.

( What the...? )

Bragi was, and always had been, a bit of a roamer. There was so much to see, experience and record, that it was hard for him to sit still for long. He'd slowed down once he'd married Idun, however he'd been unable to stop. It was a mark of her perfection that his wife was understanding and generous enough to let him continue his wandering ways. His habits had shifted a bit after The Thing with that Greek goddess though. He'd been staying closer to home, and far closer to Idun. ( In truth, he may have grown a bit clingy. )

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. )

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. )

Bragi saw dots first. Millions of them. All whites and grays swirling right in front of his eyes. They were the only light in the room. The sound woke him up all the way. It sounded like a bad rainstorm, but unnatural. Wrong. It was noise, and Bragi couldn't figure out a way to make it stop being noise. Bragi couldn't tell if the throbbing pain in the back of this head came from the noise, or if the noise came from the throbbing. He wanted to close his eyes again, except he couldn't because of the dots, the noise, and his head.

( The dots looked like a blizzard. )

[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. )

(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. )

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. )

OOC note: Posting order is Odin, Frigg, Hermod, Tyr, Bragi, Vidar

He sat with all the appearance of patience, slowly sipping a mug of mead. To anyone passing by, Odin would look as if he hadn't a care in the world. On the inside, however, his mind was racing and he felt just a bit nervous.

( There was every possibility this would not go as well as he hoped. )

Thoth was fond of Berkeley. The campus was attractive, the students were generally pretty intelligent and overall it had a nice, relaxed, homey feel to it. He enjoyed just listening to students postulate on things, come to various and usually incorrect conclusions without piecing together their arguments properly. ( It was what happened when young minds thought they were right on the basis of no one ever having had proven them wrong. )

Even though he had not actually seen many of them in ages, Bragi's family trailed the end of his thoughts like the last scarf in a magician's sleeve. He missed them terribly. That alone hadn't quite pushed him to seek them out more. It wasn't his family's fault but after everything had exploded in on itself, Asgard had started reminding Bragi more and more of cheap grape juice. The kind that tasted good when you started drinking it, but left the bad aftertaste of overly ripe grapes on your tongue forever afterwards. Overly ripe grapes that were almost raisins, but not quite. Bragi thought it best to stay away from that unless he was summoned. He figured if they wanted him, they'd call.

( That morning though, Bragi had decided it was time to seek his brothers out. )