Bragi was going to send the messenger a thank you card. He was appealing to her logical sensibilities and requesting they not repeat this terrible display of brotherly ambition and tragedy. All that Idun cared about as he spoke as his hand. She wanted to take it as soon as he lifted it. Idun knew now that she had been battling urges like this for months upon months, for the entirety of their time knowing one another. He smiled and Idun smiled. He smirked and she wanted to shout. Bragi talked about Jondi and she wanted to cry. Idun had been battling urges for a very long time, for a variety of reasons, but even knowing as much, she still wanted to take his hand.
But she was too shocked. Her brow furrowed at his questions, and she realized she had completely forgotten what she'd said in the first place. Idun almost laughed. Oh, she had been in trouble for so long, she didn't even mind it anymore. He was trouble and she loved him for it. The other Bragi had seen that, all while scolding her. "He told me to fix you. He rather appreciates when there's a clear distinction between the two of you." Her voice was still far away. This was just silly.
Idun never used to believe in love or magic words or happy endings. She told herself they could never, would never exist to her, and then they stopped existing as far as she was concerned. Bragi wasn't content just proving her wrong about love. He was making a pass at magic words next, just to show her they existed. As he began, she just stared. Idun's brow was going to stay furrowed forever at this rate. Jondi...had died. Her mind raced, and suddenly Bragi was here because of that grief, not because of her. But his words continued and Idun listened, and then the pieces slowly came together. Idun hadn't been ready. Fear was too powerful and too great, and Bragi had decided to battle it indirectly, in secret, with every smile and smirk and laugh and letter. He had concocted a perfect goddess who knew how to love, and he'd shared that all with Idun. It had been a great war and Bragi had won.
Her pointed finger was drawn back in as Idun clapped that hand over her mouth. It wasn't to hide a gasp. Idun just didn't know how else to react to the bubbling laughter that tried to burst from her lips. Her back trembled with the effort and her eyes closed, because she had been so very, very stupid and so tragically, tragically blind. When she dropped her hand, it was with a smile that stood on the edge of insanity, and she reached for his left hand because she didn't see a reason not to anymore.
She exhaled. There was laughter in it still. Idun couldn't help it. "Oh," she whispered. Idun took a tiny step forward and stroked her thumb along the side of his hand. The ocean blue was something she nearly fell into, as all this information tumbled around her. The ground wasn't steady, it wasn't to be trusted. But Bragi was all that mattered, so she held his hand and held his gaze and felt her muscles begin to protest about all the smiling. "I love you," she said, looking him right in the eyes, just as he had. Bragi deserved to know what that was like. It was a rather sneaky thing to do, but Bragi just plain deserved that as well. "And I couldn't say if a goddess called Jondi is alive or not." She nearly smirked.
"But my name is Idun and it's wonderful to finally meet you."