2019-04-24 - A Gift For A God

Summary:

Sif finds two very old acquaintances waiting in the park for her. With a gift.

Log Info:

Storyteller: None
Date: Wed Apr 24 04:06:55 2019
Location: Midtown

Related Logs

None

Theme Song

None

sifastrydfenris

Fenris has more than one guitar, naturally. It's slightly annoying to him that he only has his SECOND best guitar since his best one was broken last night, but he has it. Why?

Well guitars are good things to have while waiting and he IS waiting. As a student of fate he can sometimes - emphasis on sometimes - read patterns and take a guess at when and where people will show up. People that sometimes he wants to see. It doesn't always work. In fact sometimes it backfires rather spectacularly.

"There once was a time when the Northern men sang.
Of a King, lord of all he surveyed.
Of a Lord with one eye, with the light of the stars in his gaze."

"He had broken a vow to the wolf of the sun
Bound with treachery foul, sealed with bright Justice blood
For the Norns they foretold of the doom at the ending of days."

"And the timbers groaned
River wind softly moaned
That the King in the Sky
Doesn't know how a wolf's vengeance grows."

It's a pretty song, set to a tune Fenris had heard with another subject matter called 'Timbers and Wind'. Astryd's heard this song before, of course. Fenris might like playing it.

He looks human, of course. A dark haired man in his mid thirties. Dressed in a collared shirt with the case of his guitar open on the table in the park he's chosen to wait at. People seem to give him a wide berth. They sense, though they don't know it, that there's a predator in their midst.


A tall haughty blonde paces around the table when Fenris is playing. Her aura is nothing like his, but it's still … strong. Of course, the stern look on her face and her cold grey eyes probably don't help.

Coming to a stop beside the dark haired man she looks "And which threads have misread today, my heart?" beat "I trust this won't result in another cut up shirt."


Sif is out wandering again. Are we surprised by now? Maybe it's time to start calling it patrolling instead of wandering. She recognizes most of the buildings now, even if she still hasn't a clue what purposes the Midgardians have for such tall structures that they travel to in hordes every morning then flee like rats from a barn fire every evening.

She's just turned the corner to start down the section of sidewalk where the dark-haired minstrel plays while an impatient woman paces in front of him. She's still a good several meters away when she stops abruptly, getting that same 'a dragon is watching you' sensation she's felt many before. It's been … centuries.

She stands where she stopped despite the other pedestrians around her continuing along their paths, trying to place that really quite unpleasant sensation.


"Patience, raven." The 'minstrel' says to the pacing blonde. "It's New York. In the daylight. We're far less likely to have that problem again." He'd better not before he gets his new koa wood guitar.

Fenris is about to start into the next verse of the song when he pauses and looks up. Ah there. He wishes he could say it was exactly as he'd read the pattern but the patterns are never that exact.

"Well hello." He calls out, loud enough for Sif to hear which is loud enough for Astryd to hear as well.

"The last time I saw you, you had long golden tresses." There's a short pause as he continues to pick away at the guitar. "New look suits you though."


Astryd snorts at Fenris' words, grey eyes turning him, slightly amused. "And yet, I've been your companion all these years, long enough to know that trouble can and will find you." Him, mind. Not her. He might have a thing or two to say about that.

As Fenris looks away, so does the haughty blonde, the snort of amusement even louder this time. "Miss Brant mentioned Lady Sif was in town… " she chuckles again "… and that she mentioned the Lady's hair. It didn't sit well, Fenris."

At least he's paid the other Asgardian a compliment?

"Well met, Lady Sif. I hope. I believe we are waiting for you." How much does Sif know of Odins Exiled Raven.


Sure enough, mentioning her hair does not sit well with Sif. Her eyebrows draw together in a frown, and then she places the voice with the aura. "Fenris. Have you been hiding on Midgard all these centuries?" She doesn't respond to the mentions of her hair, hoping the others will just stop. She can hope.

Walking closer to the pair now that she knows the source of the disturbing sensation, she looks at the man, then at Astryd. "Is Midgard the sanctuary for all exiled from Asgard?" She might not have been a close person friend of the former Valkyr, but she remembers her more than well enough. Especially as Astryd has still got her blonde hair.


"I wouldn't know. How many have been exiled since I left?" Fenris keeps playing but at this point he's just picking and strumming in a minor key. "We've been here for some time yes. Midgard is quite interesting to certain eyes and I thought it important that we keep an eye on it."

The Old Wolf smiles a wry smile and nods to Astryd. "We were waiting for you. Would you mind giving her the box, raven?" Raven. As in Raven of Odin though she's not that anymore. Now she's a raven with nowhere to call home.

But the box? Well the box is sitting on the other side of the table behind Astryd. It's a plain looking thing. Clearly magical in some fashion. Wait… actually, Sif may know what this is. A Pandora's Box. Something used to contain or conceal bits of magic that you don't want getting out into the world or being detected by others.

Fenris, and Astryd were waiting for her to give her this?


"It took me a thousand years to find a way to traverse the multiverse, Lady Sif, and make my way to Midgard." Astryd answers. "So not all, no." But … enough. How did Astryd make it here? Odin had forbidden the bifrost to her and the rumour was she'd been cast to the furthest reaches of the realms.

Reaching for the box, the raven smirks at Fenris before handing it over. "Don't ask me, I'm just a messenger at the moment…"


Sif is VERY leery about taking the box, and not just because of the two exiles that are offering it to her. She's had far too many strange occurrences happening lately, and she is NOT telling them anything about the whole mess with Hodr. Thus, she doesn't lift her hands to accept the box. Not yet.

"Why are you trying to give this box to me? Would it not be better served in the hands of an Aesir scholar?"


"I don't know of very many Aesir scholars who would speak to me." Fenris says with a laugh. "And besides fate said that you would be the one coming by here today, not them. But an even better reason to do that is what's inside…"

Fenris opens the box and inside there is knife. Well. It SORT of looks like a knife. It's a cutting tool made of horn or bone. The sharpened claw or maybe fang of some… creature. The whole thing just feels… wrong. Even to look at.

Astryd was there when they acquired this. They did not do so on earth.

"You're aware that Baldur was assaulted recently, I presume. An even deadlier assassin has been called onto Midgard to try again."


Astryd is silent as she watches the proceedings. She'd been there, that's true.

"What he says is true. We fought the beast that … owned … this. Stopped it for the moment. But it will try again." Her grey eyes slide to Fenris "I'm assuming he was thinking you might take this to … those who might do something about it."


Just the odious feel of the knife makes Sif want to recoil from it. But she won't. She's an Aesir warrior. And, of course, they throw out their ace card mentioning Baldur. She looks from Fenris to Astryd and back, not at all happy that they're basically tricking her into taking the horrid thing, but she can't exactly refuse now.

Reaching to close the box, she makes the thing is closed securely before taking it. "What purpose does it serve you to bring me this? Are you attempting to get into the Allfather's good graces?"


"You and I both know that the All-Father won't have me around. After all, I'm the one fated to kill him at the end of all things." Odin would have killed Fenris himself, the wolf is quite sure, but to tamper with a prophesy in that manner is to invite swift doom.

Or maybe Odin is just a little cagier than the Old Wolf likes to give him credit for. There's always that chance.

Rather than answer the question directly though, Fenris leans back a little and looks at Astryd. "We first saw those things in Otherworld, didn't we? It's kind of like Alfhiem but… on drugs. Squid faced, insect winged. They'd drive a mortal mad just to look at them, maybe. Certainly, I think that's probably happened before. That one was tough. It took you two hacks just to take it's claw off." The claw that got made into the knife that is presumably in that box.

"True Faeries." He finally says looking at Sif. "The mortals have lots of names for them. Unseelie is one of the most recognized. I could hunt it down myself but it has my scent now, it'll avoid me. Astryd…"

Fenris look back at Astryd. "Thought perhaps we'd go with the old 'fight fire with fire'. Sometimes the best thing to use against a threat is itself. If only there were a warrior of Asgard who had friends in the embassy who could keep an eye on Baldur…"


Astryd snorts at Sifs question. "And why would I do that? He did exactly as I begged him to do, but he'd already cast me out." She shakes her head, her golden locks probably taunting Sif as they move. "No, Odin One-Eye can sit on his golden throne and feel superior. I have my God-Wolf and the nine realms. That is all that I require."

It doesn't particularly answer why either of them are taking an active interest in this.

"Otherworld yes. One of the unseelie. Possibly one of the Slaugh itself." The Unseelie Host that rides out for the Wild Hunt when it's called. "It was a formidable opponent and I would hunt it myself. But if I did… "

Fenris has said it. Baldur needs to be protected.


Sif looks at the pair again for a long moment. Unseelie. Wild Hunt. She does not like these words at all. She knows just enough about them that they paint a very grim picture indeed. "I think I know who I need to show this blade to, then." Again, she doesn't dare mention Hod's name specifically in front of this pair.

"Should I inform Baldur that you are both here? He may wish to see you." Because the lad never had animosity toward anyone. Ever. That really is his one major failing.


"If he does not know already, you may as well. We aren't hard to find. My name among the mortals is Ulric Kerensky. I'm in the phone book." Fenris smirks. "She's Natasha. SHe makes a lovely Natasha don't you think?"

"We've had mortals by recently. Curious ones." Another glance to Astryd. That had been an entirely novel evening. "If those from the Embassy wish to see us, the rules of hospitality will apply."

That of course means that Fenris pledges to be a good host to all who come beneath his roof and see to his needs. But they, in turn, pledge to abide by the duties of a guest.

"Would we let even Odin come?" Fenris asks Astryd. Would they? Under guest right? I mean, it's never likely to happen but… you know.

"Show it to whomever you wish. But make sure that it remains with someone who can be near Baldur. We went through much to secure that. Astryd was laid up for a couple of days. Those things have some kind of… dream venom that slips into the mind."

Her nightmares were… unpleasant. Fenris hadn't liked watching her have them.


"I'd be surprised if the others didn't know we were here. It's not like we're newly arrived. But they'd be welcome. Even Odin One-Eye though I'm not sure we'd have much to speak of." She smirks at Fenris envisaging that.

"Don't think on it, my heart, I recovered." She knew it had concerned him, to watch it. To know that he could not walk her dreams and ease them.

Those cold grey eyes fix on Sif again. "You are welcome, Lady Sif, even though you are marked as Oath Breaker. I have heard from one of Thoths hand maidens what transpired."


It takes a few silent repetitions for Sif to be fairly certain she can remember the names. Ulric. Natasha. Strange names. "I will remember." And she thinks she knows who might be able to stick close to Baldur better than she can. She would offer it to Baldur himself, but she's not sure that that is the wisest option.

She looks peeved again at the reminder of being marked Oathbreaker, but then it becomes surprise almost immediately afterwards when Astryd mentions how she heard about it. "Thoth's haid maidens?" Her eyes flick between the pair again as she shifts her weight uneasily. "That seems… to be less than a coincidence."


"I agree." Fenris rumbles. "Thoth was rather upset about the whole ordeal and let it be widely known. Very quickly. And while I don't personally suspect Thoth in any complicity in the matter the whole thing feels rather… arranged."

Astryd had thought the same thing. Which is why she told Sif that she was still welcome under their roof. If they thought that Sif really was a threat, that would not be on the table.

"Astryd has… well all kinds of contacts. Don't you, m'dear?"

ALL. KINDS. That could be useful actually.


"You hear things when you meet in certain places. I … " Astryd offers the God-Wolf a genuine smile "… do, yes. It helped to get me across the multiverse and has helped us multiple since then."

"Thoth is furious about their Priestess but as Fenris said, we're not sure on it." beat "Besides it's Baldur this is for…"


"This is feeling increasingly intentional," Sif comments. "There was a priestess murdered, but … my companions and I happened upon the room and the Midgardian was already dead. That was when Thoth suddenly appeared and decried us as Oathbreakers."

She shakes her head. "I should get this back to the Embassy where it can be kept safe." As well as close to Baldur. "Fare well, both of you." She nods to the pair, the turns and walks off briskly. She's head straight back to the Embassy, as she said she would.


As Sif walks away she can hear the tune change and Fenris' voice drifts after her. It's a… well not up beat song but more peppy.

"And who are you the proud lord said that I must bow so low?
I'm only a cat of a different coat that's all the truth I know.
And A coat of gold, a coat of red, a lion still has claws.
And mine are long and sharp my lord. As long and sharp as yours."

The music picks up a little as Sif gains distance.

"So he spoke, and so he spoke. That lord of Castamere.
And now the rains weep o'er his hall with no one there to hear.
Yes now the rains weep o'er his hall with not a soul to here…"

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