Sif (asgardwarrior) wrote in ghosttownrpg, @ 2018-09-07 21:26:00 |
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Entry tags: | !50 points, !log, sif (asgardwarrior), thor odinson (hloridi) |
WHO Sif & Thor
WHAT Sif's arrival
WHEN this evening
WHERE Outside -> Thor's place
WARNINGS None really!
STATUS Closed | Complete
Sif found this Midgardian town to be unlike others she'd seen before. It was empty in a way that seemed almost like a ghost town and it felt very unnatural. The last thing she remembered before waking up in a strange bed was the sense of dying. Disappearing. She didn't understand what happened or why she was here, but the first think she wanted to do was learn about this place. There had been a device in her pocket, something similar to the crude technology of Midgardians so she didn't pay it very much attention right now.
Instead, she sought out the limits of the empty city. SIf knew there would be no help coming from Asgard, not after Odin banished her, so she didn't bother trying to call for Heimdall. She hadn't seen her home in a long time, knew it was pointless to ache for it even as she dreamed of roaming the streets once more. Instead, she lived day to day, traveling across Midgard because it seemed the safest place to be for the moment. She'd never seen anything like this, though.
Sif found that she hit a border wall of some kind and began to examine it when she heard familiar footfalls not too far away. Curious, she followed the sound and saw a familiar but not face.
"Thor?"
***
This town was a place beyond Thor’s imagining. Here, the living mixed with the dead and they were all one and the same. Or, at least he supposed that he was still alive, as he had no memory of dying. His memories were of being one of the last standing, which perhaps was the crueler fate. To live in a dead world, to bear the aftermath of Thanos’s genocide...these things did not make it feel that he had been spared in any sense.
He had faced the border several times, and had been able to make no dent in it. Nothing he was able to do seemed to affect it in any way whatsoever. It was frustrating, and not something that Thor was used to. His strength meant that limits such as this were unfamiliar to him, and so he kept coming back here. Perhaps, he thought, he was simply doing something wrong, and a bit more effort would make the difference.
Today, however, he saw a familiar - and very welcome - face as he approached and his face burst into a bright smile as he hurried towards her, arms outstretched. When he was close enough, he wrapped her in a tight hug, the likes of which only he could give.
“Lady Sif! How good it is to see you!”
***
He'd cut his hair. One of his eyes looked different. But there was no mistaking that smile. Sif couldn't help smiling in return as he engulfed her in a tight hug. It had been so long since she'd seen him that she held on tightly to him for longer than she had before. However brief this encounter would be, she would treasure it.
She pulled back just enough to look at him, for one hand to cup his cheek. "What has happened to you?" she asked, concerned for all she'd missed and the battles she hadn't been by his side for. Ordinarily, she would have teased him or been more playful, but the past few years had been lonely ones and she'd lost that side of herself. Sif knew she hadn't deserved being banished, but she would not go against the will of the King. She had hoped her friends would come for her, as they had for Thor. After a year, and then another, it was hard to keep that hope alive.
"Why are you here?" Surely he had other duties to attend to.
***
Thor’s smile faded a little as she spoke, and asked of what had befallen him. It was not a story he wished to relate, because it would only bring her pain. It would only bring pain to anyone who had once loved Asgard, as he knew that she had. The past few years had not been good ones, and the recent months had been worse still.
“Much has happened,” he said seriously. “And much that I should not tell you on the street.” It deserved a more dignified setting. Not that any setting would be pleasant with the news he had to tell. But at least she could be safe and comfortable when she took the news.
“But it is good to see you,” he said, his smile returning. “Better than you could know.”
Perhaps he was not the only Asgardian left.
***
Sif frowned as his smile fell. Nothing good would come from that look, that much was very clear to her. If he wasn't comfortable telling her about what had befallen him, she wouldn't press. It could wait, especially if they got to have some measure of time together before they were separated again.
"I have missed you tremendously these past few years," she replied. "Ale here is not strong, but it is still nice to share stories over a drink." Sif had no idea if there even was ale here in this empty town, but maybe they would be lucky in that regard. Whatever time they had, she didn't want it marred by whatever he'd been through since her banishment if it wasn't something he wished to talk about right now.
"This...barrier. It's unlike anything I've seen before. This town as well. It's too...empty. Too quiet." Sif would keep her guard up until she had a chance to scope out the entire town, and even then it probably wouldn't lower for a long while. Threats came from everywhere, no matter how well prepared she was. The hardest part was moderating her strength when someone attacked her, underestimated her. She was hopeful that if they were attacked here, she would not have to.
"Heimdall will locate you soon enough, but for now, it would be nice to catch up with you." She took a step back, since she realized she was still embracing him.
***
The sadness washed over him like a wave, and his face melted into a picture of grief. “Heimdall is dead,” he said, struggling to keep his voice from trembling. It was a brutal admission, as painful to him as if he had just now watched his friend die. “Much has happened, Sif, and very little of it good. I wish I did not have to tell you everything that I do.”
It would be like living it all over again, and he did not look forward to that.
He reluctantly let her go - holding her had been a comfort - and crossed his arms.
“Come, we can go to my residence and talk.” They would have to discuss this, and it would be better now than later.
***
Sif stumbled backwards when Thor verbalized what his face had already told her. "No." She couldn't believe it. How could Heimdall be dead? And if Heimdall was truly dead, then what of Asgard? Why had no one called her home, when she would have defended Asgard in an instant? Even if she would be banished again once all was said and done, she would have returned to defend her home.
As much as she didn't want to know what he needed to tell her, Sif had a feeling that her dear friend needed to talk about what he'd been through. She regained her composure, reigned in her emotions, and stepped forward once more to put her hand on his arm. "I am sorry I was not there to aid you," Sif added, her heart heavy for all that she had missed. Perhaps things would have turned out differently if she'd been there. "I have been cut off from Asgard for years. Banished here to live out my days," she explained. It was difficult to stay off SHIELD's radar, but so far she had been successful.
She kept herself close to him, their shoulders bumping together or their hands brushing against one another as he led her toward his living space. Sif would need one of those herself, but for right now, Thor came first. He would always come first.
***
Thor did not say much as they walked, not because there was nothing to say, but because there was too much. He truly dreaded all that he would have to tell her, and all the sadness that he would undoubtedly bring upon her. And then, after he told her about Asgard, he would have to tell her about Thanos, and their failure there. Everything he had to tell her was bad. Everything he had to tell her would hurt. And there was no escaping any of it. He respected her enough that he could not keep things from her. And she would bear it, as he had. He knew that. But he hated that he had to tell her such terrible news.
When they were inside, and he closed the door behind them, he hesitated for a moment. Where to begin? He sighed, running a hand through his hair - or trying to. It still surprised him to find his hair short after having it long for so many centuries.
“Asgard is no more,” he said finally. “My sister…” He waved his hand, then raised it to pinch the bridge of his nose tiredly. “Those who survived on the refugee ship died when Thanos boarded it. I am the only one left.”
He could give her more details, but perhaps it was best just to rip off the bandage.
***
She didn't press him as they walked, nor did she press once they were inside his quarters. Sif stayed near him instead of finding somewhere to sit because she was worried about whatever else he needed to tell her. It was hard to not coax him into talking, though when he did speak, she felt her heart break. Asgard was no more and there had been two villains for Thor to face off against without her.
The Warriors Three were no more, her family, her friends. Had she not been who she was, Sif suspected her knees would have buckled under the pain she felt. "You are not the only one left," she assured him, her voice thick with emotion as she lifted one hand to cup his cheek once more. "I am here." She decided in that moment she could not tell him that she suspected she was dead, that she'd felt Death before arriving here. He could not be truly alone in the world, could not bear even another loss. Sif just hoped she wouldn't live to regret it the longer they were stuck here.
"I will not leave you again." She should have fought her banishment, should have tried to get word to Thor. Anything. Instead, she'd accepted it like the dutiful Asgardian she was and it had cost them all dearly. Sif pulled his head down so that she could rest her forehead against his. "I swear to you."
***
He would tell her everything later. Every detail he could remember, every pain that he had suffered. He would tell her everything about the fall of Asgard, about their fight with Thanos. He would keep nothing from her. There would be no secrets. But now, he had told her the worst of it, and he could not go on. Not now. What he had told her was so much to bear, but somehow telling his pain to another, sharing the grief that had nearly broken him...it eased the suffering a little. There were two of them to bear it now, and he did not have to carry it all alone.
He touched his forehead to hers, closing his eyes as he did. She was one of his very oldest friends, one of those he trusted most. And just having her here was bringing him a great deal of peace. He felt a strong urge to kiss her, but resisted. She deserved more than to be used for the outpouring of his grief...she deserved more than that. And while he had loved her for centuries, he had never considered it a romantic love. Of course, it was possible for things to change, but his emotions were too volatile at the moment.
He pulled his head back.
“There is an extra room here, if you would like to stay the night. At least until you find your own place.”
***
Sif was no stranger to using sex as a means of processing overwhelming emotion. She and Thor had certainly gone that route often enough that she had just begun to move in to kiss him when he pulled back. He had to have been feeling alone and that, along with the guilt he no doubt held close to his heart, was too much for any one person to bear. If she could take some of that from him, she would in a heartbeat.
"I would like to stay the night," she replied, "but I would prefer to stay with you, whether on your floor or sharing your bed." Sif wanted to make it clear that if he needed that physical comfort, she would provide it and not make it anything other than what it had been in the past. His feelings for Jane Foster had overshadowed any kind of romantic feelings she'd had for him long ago and Sif had come to terms with that. She also knew that if he could not fight what was keeping them here, he would need another outlet.
Sif moved her hand to his chest, grateful for the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm. "And I will stay by your side for as long as you wish." Whether it was in separate rooms or homes next to one another, she wasn't going to be very far from him. If they were the last of the Asgardians, they needed to stay together.
***
Thor had no feelings for Jane Foster, not anymore. The long distance thing had simply not worked out for them ,and their lives had been going in opposite directions. He wished her well, and he wished her happiness, but she no longer occupied the place she once had in his life. And now that she did not, he thought it likely unwise to attempt a relationship with any other Midgardian. Their lives were but a blink of an eye compared to his, and he didn’t know if he could deal with any more loss.
He didn’t know why he resisted bedding Sif right now. It would certainly not be the first time that emotion had driven them into the other’s arms. Usually it was the heat of battle and the excited glory of winning, but there had been the occasional grief of loss as well. But this felt...different. He wasn’t sure why. He just wanted to hold her close without the frantic coupling that had happened before.
“I would like it if you would stay here,” he said. “You may have the other bedroom. Make it yours, fix it as you will.” He put his forehead back to rest against hers. “As for the rest...we shall see.”
***
Sif knew it wasn't her place to push him any more than she already had, so she accepted his response as it stood now. "Then I will stay," she replied as their foreheads rested against one another again. The closeness was just as much for her as for him, since it had been so long since she'd had any kind of connection to her people. Maybe it was selfish of her to want that physical connection.
She wasn't sure how long they stood there, forehead to forehead, but when it felt like things had settled a bit, Sif pulled back, though she kept her hands on him. "Let me regale you with the tales of my travels," she offered. "I have met many wonderful Midgardians in my years here. They flourish even in times of uncertainty." Midgardians were resilient and they fought for what they believed in, even at great personal cost. Perhaps some reminders of the second home he'd claimed for himself would be a better topic of conversation.
***
He held her hands in his as the grief on his face lessened slightly. He desperately wished to hear her tales, and perhaps even find some joy in them. He had known very little joy lately.
“Come, let us sit,” he said. “Then I will gladly hear your tales. Midgardians surprise me daily and I would love to hear what you have learned of them.” He had much more to tell her too, much more to say about what had happened back home and what he had endured. But something a bit more lighthearted was much more appealing to him at the moment.
“Then perhaps we can go in search of some mead.” He wasn’t sure if they had such a thing here, and Migardian beer was weak. But it would do if they could find nothing else.
***
To see his grief lessen even a small bit was important to her. Given time, she hoped she would be able to help him through more of that grief. "I have found some hard liquor that gives a pleasant buzz if drunk quickly and in excess. It is an expensive venture, I discovered." Sif hadn't exactly been happy to be exiled and she had tried to get drunk on a few occasions while on Midgard.
"I worked off my debt for the first attempt after a few months and it gave me purpose." Sif had been grateful for the hard labor because it allowed her to work through that initial feeling of loneliness. The other women who worked at that particular bar had taken her under their wing and given her a place to stay. She'd worked off her debt and then moved on, trading work for shelter and food.
"It was a steep learning curve, figuring out how Midgardians socialize and what is considered normal. It was almost as hard to learn to moderate my strength even further." Sif smirked at that, because she had quite a few stories of putting men in their place for touching her or someone else without consent. "I did not want to draw SHIELD's attention, but I looked out for the people in whatever towns I found myself in as best I could. I moved on every few weeks, hitchhiking mostly. Everything I had, I kept in my knapsack." It wasn't with her here, which was a disappointment. At least she still had some of her weapons.
***
“Had I known…” he began. He had not originally known of her banishment, or that she had been in Midgard. Perhaps she had been there when he had been, and their sojourns there had overlapped. It was a sadness to have missed her, but there was nothing to be done for it. And it was for the best that she had not been in Asgard. Loki’s treachery had spared her life, and he could not help but be grateful...and feel a rush of grief as to his brother’s fate.
“You were better able to keep hidden than I was,” he said with a self-deprecating grin. HIs first visit to Midgard had certainly attracted S.H.I.E.L.D.’s attention, and had apparently caused problems for them. He had never meant for that to happen, but he supposed that it was inevitable when such people were exposed to such advanced technologies as Asgard had. He did consider Fury’s accusations to be unfair still, however.
“And now we are here,” he said simply, looking around him. “At this place that nobody understands. It appears like Midgard, but I have a strong sense that we are not in the Nine Realms at all.”
***
Sif shook her head, not wanting him to feel guilty for this on top of everything else. "We all have our own paths to walk in life," she comforted. "I am just glad our paths crossed once more." She would always be grateful for it, no matter how long they had together in this place.
"It was our past experiences that showed me it was better to stay off their radar, though I half believe Agent Coulson knew and was simply keeping it under wraps." The man was a good one, even if SHIELD was no more. Sif had done her best to steer clear and drew on the knowledge of her experiences with his team to guide her as she made her way through the world.
She looked around the room they were in and couldn't help but agree with Thor that they might not actually be on Midgard. "Wherever we are, whatever this is, we will be better off to stay by each other's sides." Sif believed that down to the very core of her being.
***
Thor believed that, as well. They were the last two Asgardians, so far as he knew, and as the two survivors of a devastated race, they had more in common with each other than anyone else in the Universe. And in addition to their biology, they were friends, which was reason enough in his mind to stay together. Friendship was such a crucial thing in a cruel world. That was part of the power of the Avengers. They were, he liked to believe, friends as well. At least, he felt he had no enemies among them and would die for any of them.
He squeezed her hand tightly. “Agent Coulson?” A sadness entered his eyes at the name.
“He was a good man,” he said seriously. “But I did not know that you knew him before his death.”
***
Sif was quite confused when he seemed to mourn the man. "The last I saw of him, he was alive and well," she replied. "Heimdall sent me to Midgard to confront a Kree warrior who had landed there. He had been chasing after experiments and one of them is a member of his team. I brought the warrior back to Asgard, but I left Skye in Agent Coulson's hands." It was a decision she questioned repeatedly after seeing the young woman in the news, but she could not get involved.
"It was well after the incident in Greenwich though," she explained, trying to understand the timeline. "When did you hear of his demise?" Midgard had certainly lost a great warrior and leader with Agent Coulson's death. It was difficult for her to see that kind of sadness in Thor's expression. Sif reached for both of his hands to hold tightly to him. "I do not know when the loss will end for you, my friend. I am so very sorry I was not there for you." She would be here for him now, though.
***
“Before the battle of New York,” he said, his voice filled with grief. “Loki murdered him. I witnessed it, and was helpless to assist.” That, perhaps, had been the most painful part of all. He had been unable to help Coulson, and he had died alone. But at least he had not remained unavenged. But the timeline was very confusing to him.
“I did not know that you were on Midgard then. I did not know it -” He shook his head. “But I suppose I was largely busy with other things, and with Jane.” Still, he thought he would have noticed had she not been there. Something didn’t seem to be adding up.
***
Sif shook her head. "That was well before I was sent after Vin-Tak," she replied, confused further. "Thor, I swear to you. I saw Agent Coulson alive and well some three years after Loki's rampage on Midgard." She was deadly serious about that because while she had one secret she would keep from him, she would keep no others.
She searched her mind for some kind of explanation. "Loki has come back from the dead. Who is to say the Midgardians didn't find a way to save one of their best?" It was a stretch for her to believe that, but what other explanation could there be. Sif could hardly think of one. "I do not know how they did it, but Agent Coulson was alive and well."
***
Thor’s heart soared with hope. Was it possible? Had there been some trickery, or had some scientist as wise as Jane found a way to bring him back? What a relief it would be to lose that guilt that had never stopped weighing on his shoulders. What a blessing it would be to know that brave Phil Coulson, who had the heart of an Asgardian, in Thor’s mind, still lived. But how could it be so? Why would they not have been told? What cruelty would allow them to grieve and suffer when there was no reason?
But he knew Nick Fury well enough to know that he would not hesitate to keep secrets from the Avengers, if he felt it necessary.
“Perhaps…” he allowed himself. “It is long since I have had hope, but you give it to me, Sif.” He raised her hand to his lips and kissed it softly.
***
Warmth blossomed in her chest when he said that he had hope. "I am glad to do so," Sif replied softly. He had a great many lives weighing on his shoulders and she was certain not all of them belonged there. Thor had a big heart and took his responsibilities very seriously, so it was only natural that he would feel those deaths acutely.
"I will always try my best to," she promised him. She wouldn't leave his side again unless he personally cast her out.
***
“Then come, let us not talk of sad things for a short while, at least,” he said, holding her hand as he stood again. “Shall we explore this place? I find resting here to be difficult while there is so much about where we are that I do not yet understand.”
He smiled at her, for once warm and open.
“And together, perhaps, we can understand more than we would on our own. And perhaps find some of that liquor you spoke of.”
***
Sif nodded and returned his smile with one of her own. "I would like that very much," she replied as she stood with him. "Both finding information and liquor. It has been a long time since we have had a contest of skills." Their friendship was a strong one and it amazed her how much better she felt just to have him in her life again.
She let him lead her back out into the empty town, content to follow him once more just a step behind him. Sif would always be a step behind him, watching his back as he moved through the world. There was nowhere else she'd rather be.
***