(no subject)

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

Hel and her player have a lot in common. Not species, looks (thank God), size, or abilities, but both of them have hips that hurt like demons are sitting on them and prodding them with pitchforks.

The player is on drugs. Hel is not. Coherency may be skittish, but Hel is around to be spoken with, should people so desire. Even, one supposes, Desire, although the only real relationship with it that she has is that of interested observer.

I mentioned drugs, right? Right.

Comments

[latino_menace]

This person desires. Not Desire, but desires to talk. He's not been around much recently - and is certainly too cool to get an entrance post or anything regular like that, but he's in the bar anyway, sitting in a booth and trying not to drink.

He sees Hel come down and sit by the fire though, and he hasn't talked to her in a while so heads straight over.

'Hey.'

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"Ramon."

She got eloquent in her old age. For certain definitions. In this case, "Ramon" means "Where have you been? I've missed you. There has been trauma. If you take two steps closer, I swear to me that I'll cuddle you. Did I mention trauma?"

And she smiles a little bit.

[latino_menace]

He doesn't get all that from her just saying his name - the fool - but probably wouldn't object all that badly to getting cuddled anyway. So he steps within the danger zone without a second thought and makes as if to sit down.

'How're you doing?'

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

There is cuddle. The cuddle, it comes from the niiiiight.

Drugs.

She buries the living side of her face against his hair,

"My father is here."

[latino_menace]

He's OK with the cuddle. He's quite a tactile person really, being South American and all.

'Your father?' Things process. 'You like your father though - so this is a good thing, right?'

He's getting the impression that it somehow isn't.

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"He's horrified that I'm me because he's from before I was born."

She informs him, and if she were younger she'd be weepy again already. She's getting better, though. There is no active weeping.

"All I mean to him is that now he knows that Odin is going to betray him."

[latino_menace]

'He's horrified?'

Ramon pulls back and looks at her.

'But I thought you and he...shit, I guess it's different if you haven't been born yet. But Hel, that doesn't mean that he won't feel the way you know he does later on.'

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"But I don't know!"

She points out,

"He is father of lies!"

She's terrified that its true,

"And its him, its really him but he's...oh, Ramon, he's logical and introspective and nothing like the father of my childhood!"

[latino_menace]

He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head.

'Maybe what he feels is true right now. But that doesn't mean it'll be true when you're born - having kids tends to change a man, you know? No matter what he's like right now, it doesn't mean he's not going to love you when you come along.'

Maybe that's not reassuring but it's what he thinks is true and he's not going to lie to her.

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

She nods, although it doesn't really help. Having your father's initial words to you be rude, and the ones after that aghast leaves a mark.

"I hope you're right. Did your time in the cells go alright?"

[latino_menace]

He sighs because he's really useless at giving advice most of the time.

'It was fine. Boring. A bit tense. Look Hel, I'm sorry if he's an asshole. You want me to go and speak to him for you? You know I will, if you don't think it'll make things worse.'

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"That's very sweet of you, Ramon, but as much as I love him,"

And she does, or it wouldn't hurt so much,

"he's unpredictable at best. Insane at worse. And a god. I think its something I just have to...expect. Accept."

[latino_menace]

'You don't have to accept him being horrible to you! And I'm not afraid of him. If he trats you badly, I will find him.'

He means it as well. After everything she's done for him, he's not just going to abandon her to the mood swings of a nasty father. Besides, it's Hel.

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

Archie smiles at the sight of her.

"Hel, good evening. How are you doing?"

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"It is cold."

She points out, not idly. Her gloved hand rubs her left hip as she speaks.

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

Warming runes are drawn in the air surely, he's been practicing.

"Would you like some tea or some hot chocolate? Perhaps that would warm you a bit."

Ah, the joys of Scotland in January.

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"Chocolate would be nice."

She's realizing that he'll never, ever get that she simply can't taste tea. Its like drinking hot water.

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

Tea is the elixir of life, he would be crushed if he found that out. He figures that it is simply a Norse thing, after all, Svava doesn't really like tea all that much either. Odd girl.

"Chocolate is is then, my dear."

He returns shortly with her bucket cup and his looking ridiculously tiny next to it.

"Aside from the cold, how have you been faring?"

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"Thank you."

She takes a sip, then shrugs,

"I...have been. I am more or less alive. I am home. It could be worse."

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

Merely being alive does not necessarily mean living, but he lets it pass. He reaches over and pats her hand gently.

"I am glad that you managed to come back."

Did he say that before? He can't remember, but that doesn't make it untrue.

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

She was mostly pointing out that she's half dead. Eh,

"Thank you. I am glad that I was allowed to come back as well."

She smiles at him when he pats her hand, and dips her head in a tiny nod.

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

Archie can be affectionate at times, if not terribly demonstrative. He is British, after all. But he likes making her smile.

"Was the time there terribly dull, or did you have enough to keep you occupied?"

He really doesn't know how many books and such she managed to take with her.

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

"I made a sword."

From the sounds of it, that took a long, long time to do,

"And I read about genetics, and computers, and other things like that. It...has been worse."

[prone-to-panic.livejournal.com]

If he knew what the making had entailed, he'd be socked and amazed.

"It must be quite a sword."

How could it not be?

"You are better versed on those things tan I am then, I still haven't a clue about how those things work."

[banished-to.livejournal.com]

Also appalled: she gave it to Ramon.

"It is."

She is quietly proud of it. Of course, with something like that, loud would be too much.

"I had a lot of time."

Her voice is dry and wry.