InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Half human on my mother's side"

Richard Wainwright (atrickstertype) wrote in paxletalelogs,
@ 2011-11-13 00:26:00

Entry tags:

jormungandr, loki

We'll Get Together Then, Son
Who: Richard/Loki and Adam/Jormungandr
What: Family reunion times!
When: Backdated to October 31, around 4:00 in the afternoon
Where: Fifth floor hallway of the Pax
Warnings: None

The door marked 508 swung closed behind Loki with a crack. Everything in that room did something. It was almost too much to take in. The boxes hummed and whirred, the furniture grew hot, the pantry grew cold. He had been exploring the room and experimenting with Thor for hours, now, and he was not much closer to understanding the things they had found. Under his confusion (Why would anyone want a box filled with language?)was the bitter certainty that it all should make sense. Richard, certainly, would know what the hard books with metal discs inside them were meant for. The fact that Loki did not was an irritant, and one that he would not accept any longer. From the sound of things, Thor would be preoccupied in his examination of bubbles and heated water for quite a while. It had seemed the perfect opportunity to take a moment alone to try and make some sense of things. Preferably in a place where the decorations did not shriek music at him.

There was also the issue of his health to consider. It had not been as noticeable at first, but as the day had progressed he had begun to feel his body react to his ongoing presence, and not in a way that was at all favorable. The nausea was manageable, the moments of vertigo easily explained, but the headache was becoming a problem. Now, safely out of Thor's sight, he leaned heavily against the wall of the hallway, resting his forehead against the cool plaster. It burned and throbbed, until Loki could only close his eyes against the pain and try to will it away. In all likelihood, he assured himself, it was just a side effect of his presence, not a sign of any great danger. After a time it might become more than a distraction, true, but he was not ready to give up his grasp on this body just yet. If he would even be able to. How this worked was still unclear to him. Which brought him back to his first point. This needed to make sense.

When he heard movement in the hall Loki pulled himself together quickly. A moment of weakness in private was one thing. In the presence of others it was unacceptable. His eyes shot open, and he looked around for signs of who might be approaching.

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jormungandr
2011-11-16 12:49 am UTC (link)

As luck would have it, the face that appeared was a familiar one, and one not prone to judgment no matter the confusion it may happen upon. Jörmungandr slipped out into the hall, slinking out from the doorway marked 503. From beneath their pointed hoods his dark eyes studied the being in the hallway, recognizing him at once for what he was: father; god; the punished. How strange to see him here, so far from the exile that had been his due. Curious, Jörmungandr paused inside the entrance to Urðr's lair.

You, Jörmungandr said. Closer now, he rose from the floor, firm scales lifting him bodily from the carpet. His tail flicked; his forked tongue darted out, tasting the air, as if confirming his suspicions. His body coiled in on itself, growing thicker, longer, larger with each beating of his serpent's heart. Had he been human, or anything at all more its like, he would have expressed earnest joy at seeing his father once more; it was a rare treat, and one whose like he had not known in his time at Pax - at least, since Hel had gone. I knew the boy liked that skin. Now I see why.

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atrickstertype
2011-12-02 10:16 pm UTC (link)

Recognizing the other figure helped Loki pulled his disjointed thoughts together, replacing them with a mixture of surprise and glee. "It is imminently likeable," he said, a grin spreading across his face as he walked down the hall to greet the overlarge snake. Pain temporarily forgotten, he reached out to rest a hand on a scaly coil, the next best thing to wrapping his son in a bear hug. Thor had been unexpected, finding Jörmungandr was an unparalleled wonder. What other familiar faces would he find in these halls?

No matter now. He moved slightly to one side, into the view of one of the snake's eyes. "I had not thought to see you here, my son," he said, smile refusing to fade. "Especially not so close to the Thunderer. But the surprise is not unwelcome." He was ecstatic, fighting the urge to shout and tell Jör what a boon this was -- but in his experience talking to snakes required more restraint than that. "You live here as well?"

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jormungandr
2011-12-07 01:11 am UTC (link)

I do. He raised himself up once more, his head - now larger than a human's, broad and flat, heavy as it swayed from side to side - almost nuzzling into Loki as he sought that warm welcome. He was passing large now, twenty feet from nose to tail, his monstrous bulk setting the floorboards creaking beneath his weight. And still he darted up toward his father more nimbly than any mundane creature, his body holding itself up until they were at eye level. As does Urðr. It seems you have come home to us. His tongue darted out, lipless mouth parting in an apparent smile. Thor remains as petty as ever. It might do us well to have you... He paused, thinking on the world. No phrase seemed to fit. Mediate, he at last decided, knowing it was wrong the moment it was said. But there was nothing for it, and it mattered little at any rate.

Do you like the place? he asked, glancing unblinking toward his father's home. There is much to see.

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atrickstertype
2011-12-10 07:28 pm UTC (link)

"It seems home has changed quite a bit, if I have indeed found it again," Loki said, moving closer to companionably share the same area as Jörmungandr, offering both closeness and body heat to his cold-blooded son. It was for his own safety, as well - if Jör got any bigger the floor beneath them might collapse, and he though he'd have more luck close to his son than apart from him. "Though if I am to be called to mediate..." he laughed, shaking his head in amusement. "It did not work well the last time, but I will try again if I must." Provided, of course, that people were sufficiently thankful for his help. That was key. Still, while they may not be able to put off the inevitable, he saw no reason to hasten its approach. Yet.

"There is indeed much to see," he admitted, nodding towards the door he had emerged from, "and Thor is determined to see it all. I find it... strange." The word was much more mild than what he actually thought, and it came across in his tone. "Do you know aught of why we are here? Or, to be frank, where here is? I have words like 'California' and 'United States', but they mean very little to me."

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jormungandr
2011-12-11 12:08 am UTC (link)

Jörmungandr found himself oddly grateful for his father's proximity. Though they had experienced their share of distance, physically and otherwise, it felt right to have a part of Midgård so close to him once more. However they felt about one another, whatever they had been through over endless millennia, they were ever bound by that unearthly blood. He would tell his father what he knew, and perhaps together they might come to understand.

A human world, he said. I am here, and yet in the sea, and so it must be part of Yggdrasil. Though no part I was aware of before. He thought for a moment, distantly realizing that where he had had a year and more to come to terms with their situation, Loki was far more recently adjusting. His head canted to one side, black-green eyes shining like emeralds. As for why, I cannot say.

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atrickstertype
2011-12-11 10:50 pm UTC (link)

The level of disappointment Loki felt at that admission was surprising. He had hoped that someone would be able to shed some light on the situation. Now, again, that hope was thwarted. There was little hope of learning any more from Thor or Melinoe, and if Richard knew anything then it was out of Loki's reach. And not knowing was the worst thing Loki could think of. He was the one that was supposed to know what the problem was and how best to fix it. Here, already so far out of his element, it was dangerous not to know, and it made him profoundly uncomfortable.

"I had hoped that you would know more," he admitted to his son, feeling his headache returning. "I am... very much adrift in this place. Can you tell me of the body you share? What magic is behind that, I wonder? Are all those who live here affected?" It seemed beyond even Odin's power to cause such a duality in so many mortals, but Loki knew not to write off any possibilities. Besides, there were older and grander things than the All-Father.

At least he was not alone. Even to the end, when his friendships had grown old and rusted and his brothers had abandoned him, Loki had cared deeply for his family. Seeing that at least one of them was still here was heartening in ways that few other things could be.

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jormungandr
2011-12-18 05:22 pm UTC (link)

All I have met, Jörmungandr said. He had some knowledge on this score - more than his human host could or would have shared - and was glad to be of some small assistance. The circumstances of their awakening clearly bothered his father, that was clear. Whatever his father's concerns, Jörmungandr himself did not share them; they were now where they were meant to be, as ever. He hoped that by his calm, by his clear and ready acceptance of their fate, he might ease Loki's apparent fears. If he was unable, perhaps Fate herself might better serve. He made a mental note to ask her when again they were together.

Not all are Norse, he added. It seemed relevant, though by no meant necessarily a deterrent to his father's boundless curiosity. I met a Slav earlier this morning, in fact. A fearsome, lovely corpse, with brutal strength. His coils shifted, piling in upon themselves, making a living seat upon which he rested his monstrous head. There are many Greeks as well, some noisier than others. Some happier than others to be in human skin.

He thought, then, on the skin he himself wore, on the soul he felt residing alongside his - subsumed, for the moment, but not for long. Adam is mine, he said. His head canted sidelong, green eyes glittering in the light. I have been with him since he was born. He has ever been close to the flesh of Thor and Urðr; perhaps that is what drew me to his soul. I do not know what continues to bind us, though similar temperaments may be to blame. He is a good boy, and patient. Qualities I appreciate.

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atrickstertype
2012-01-06 08:33 am UTC (link)

Melinoe had not identified her place of origin, but the idea that there were gods from across the world in this place came as no great surprise. "I met one myself, a woman of a complexion not unlike your sister. Melinoe. I suppose that would be Greek." Probably not the All-Father's doing, with a range like that. Loki shook his head, still uncomfortable despite his son's customary calmness. Not knowing what was going on left him with only possibilities, and none of the ideas he came up with made any sense. If even the Norns were here...

Wait. "Urðr?" he repeated, only now catching his son's mention of the lady. "She walks here as well?" He scanned Richard's memory for a woman who might contain such a more-than-goddess, but no one stood out of the scant few images he could glean. "I had not realized." He wondered what other information might be locked in Richard's memories, to this point out of his reach. It was doubly frustrating to think that there might be important information hardly out of his reach.

"Richard and I are perhaps too similar," he admitted, by way of explaining. "I have been with him since his birth as well, but only in a distant way. He has," Loki searched for words to explain himself, "blocked me from his mind. The man is, if nothing else, stubborn. From what I can tell, he sees my presence as a madness." Loki chuckled at that, "A conclusion that some others might agree with."

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jormungandr
2012-01-07 02:18 pm UTC (link)

Hel. The serpent's heart thumped one slow beat as he remembered her. He had had her for a time; her calm presence, her soul as sure as his own that all was in its right place. Her human skin had behaved strangely at times, but her spirit had always been everything it needed to be. Uncharacteristically he wondered if he might ever see her again in this human life; at some point their spirits would call to one another, but he knew well that could take aeons or more. His tongue flicked out. He moved on.

He seemed to smile at the mention of Urðr, his companion and seeming soul mate. Though the conversation rightly carried on he took note of his father's interest, intent upon reintroducing him to his dearest friend as soon as he was able. It would be simple enough to arrange even in Adam's skin, he thought, their proximity making meetings a simple thing to occur, orchestrated or not.

Jörmungandr tipped his heavy head to one side, his smile softening, though not fading altogether, at Loki's apt assessment. Most others, I believe, he said. It's taken a year or more for some of them to even entertain the idea in their own private thoughts. And considering the year some of them have had... ritualistically murdered bodies turning up, dreams, transformations, amazing violence... that's saying something. Most humans want to think or to discover they're special. These are and fight it at every turn. His laugh was quiet, almost rueful. Rightly so. The modern world thinks it has no place for such things. Our influence, certainly, but not our physical manifestations. Like as not they'd end up in chemically induced stupors or padded rooms, at best, were they to admit what they're starting to know.

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