Chapter 24
Everyone bar Thor is at the breakfast table, Teddy eagerly digging into a stack of eight pancakes with syrup, Strawberries, and whipped cream while everyone else enjoys cups of tea or coffee - they already ate, Teddy's just always the last to finish due to being able to give Volstagg a run for his money in an eating contest - when there's a high-pitched shriek from upstairs.
Everyone freezes, staring at each other in surprise before Loki asks "You don't think…?"
Amora glances up to where the shriek came from, and nods her head saying "I do." And, Stars, if she's right...it's hilarious.
A moment later, there's a crashing sound followed by rapid thumping that can only be…Thor, bounding down the nearby stairs in nothing but a bath towel. And a wide-eyed, panicked look on his face, one hand keeping the bath towel secured and the other keeping himself from hitting the floor as he takes the stairs two at a time in his haste to get to the others. "There's an infestation! Little creatures stole my clothes!"
He's met with six wide-eyed stares…until Loki starts laughing like that's the funniest thing he's heard ever. He actually falls out of the chair, Amora following suit a moment later as the two of them clutch at each other in the midst of a laughing attack that has both their faces going red as Amora's hair.
Nobody else seems particularly concerned either, Teddy physically shaking in his chair with the effort to not follow Loki and Amora's example, Nymphadora and Remus with terribly amused expressions, and Andy likely holding her mug up to her mouth to hide her own grin.
It takes Loki and Amora a solid two minutes to wind down on their shared laughing attack - how did he never notice the two of them are Soulmates before when they do stuff like this?!?! - and Amora shakily asks "Were these 'creatures' about this high with large eyes and pointed ears?" She was right, she was right and it is absolutely hysterical!
Thor nods his head at once, and it seems to send Amora into another giggle fit that she at least attempts to muffle into Loki's shoulder - and Loki looks all too amused, running his fingers through Amora's hair as he clearly struggles not to give into his own laughter a second time.
"Loki," Thor practically whines, "this isn't funny! They took my clothes!"
Loki snorts, one eyebrow rising towards his hair, and says "I don't recall that being a problem-"
Thor goes bright red at once, and quickly says "You said you'd never speak of that!"
Loki finally takes pity on Thor, possibly because he looks so thoroughly embarrassed right now, and says "As it happens, Thor, this is rather funny. Those 'creatures,' as you called them, are known as House Elves. They have a symbiotic relationship with whichever Witch or Wizard they Bond with - at least, that's how its supposed to happen. A House Elf cannot generate magic on their own, so they Bond to a powerful Witch, Wizard, or occasionally powerful Wards. The House Elf gets the magic they need to survive and remain healthy, along with food, shelter, and something to wear that's not whatever scraps of cloth they could find, and in return they help the Bonded with daily tasks such as cleaning, cooking, etc. They can also act as bodyguards, housekeepers, or whatever they wish…ideally, at least." That's how it's supposed to be, but with a Bond like that it's all too easy for arrogant, stupid people to get it in their heads that they're better than the Elves and treat them as slaves. Dobby, from Amora's memories, was a prime example of how it can go so very wrong. Everyone in this house treats Winky, Kreacher, and the other Elves with the respect and care they deserve, however.
Loki then snaps his fingers, and Thor finds himself fully-clothed immediately. Thor sighs in relief, and says "Thank the Stars…apologies for the commotion."
As much as he wants to be upset that Loki and Amora both fell into hysterics at his very real panic…when was the last time he heard Loki laugh like that? Or laugh at all, for that matter?
Has he ever heard Amora laugh?
He can't remember, right then, and that fact depresses him more than anything else after he comes to the realization - no real wonder Amora's considered him a terrible brother for so long if he can't even remember the last time Loki was happy at something.
Loki sits down at the café he agreed to meet with Laufey and Farbuti, and quietly sets up several Wards to keep anyone from coming too close - and then adds a spell of his own invention that not-so-slowly drops the temperature inside the Wards to something that'd be found in Antarctica. Cast as a spell, it'd freeze someone through in about five seconds - maybe six if they could cast a Blood-Boiling Charm on themselves or were already under its effects - but when it's added to some Wards it creates an area effect. Amora can't withstand it, unfortunately, but Loki doesn't need it that cold thanks to Hela and Frigga making him half-Asgardian without Odin's knowledge - it makes things cold enough that Loki can switch into his Jotun Form without risking his health, something they discovered the hard way while he was learning to use his Frost Giant Heritage that time they spent as Merlin and Morgana in Hogwarts, but it isn't strictly necessary for him. Laufey and Farbuti, however…
Loki's pulled from his thoughts by the feeling of a Portal opening up nearby, and within a minute he sees a group of three near-identical looking people looking around. Black hair, pale skin…and one of them looks like a teenager. Loki blinks in shock as they see him and make their way over, pulling up a calm mask after a few moments - Laufey and Farbuti had set up a time to meet, and said they'd lock onto his magical signature to open a portal and get there. They did not tell him about any potential teenagers that'd be coming with them - who is he?!
He specifically picked a Café in Maine to meet, as it'd be easier to discretely cool things down further somewhere already cold and damp, so at least he can Apparate back to the house without any difficulty if things go sour…
There's an awkward silence for a moment once the three disguised Frost Giants sit down, and Loki clears his throat before saying "You must be Laufey and Farbuti. Apologies about the delay in contacting you, Amora was attacked shortly after returning to the palace and has only just finished recovering."
Farbuti, a woman about his height with hair past her shoulders in thick waves and magic coming off her just as thickly, reaches out to him for a moment before pulling back, and says "I'm so sorry to hear that, from what my husband said of her…" Her lips quirk up for a moment before her expression goes somber once more, and she finishes "She sounded like quite the woman."
Laufey huffs, even as a grin forms on his face, and he says "Certainly unique. I can't think of anyone else who would come to Jotunheim only to immediately decide to ice their feet instead to preparing for an attack by angered Frost Giants."
Loki raises an eyebrow, and laughs slightly before asking "Is that how she pulled it off? We didn't have much time to go over specifics when she came back and said she'd gotten you to agree to a new treaty, just that she'd used some unconventional negotiation tactics."
Laufey bursts out laughing at that, and says "She said she's no fan of Odin's, Asgard was in a frenzy, she could've killed us all before we even knew she was there, and when I first saw her she had both her feet stuffed in a snowbank to give off a nonthreatening impression. Unconventional negotiation tactics indeed."
Loki grins at the imagery, and says "I imagine she'd have to do as much to not have everyone thinking she was out to kill them at first sight, practically everyone in Asgard is terrified of her."
Farbuti asks "Why's that? Laufey said she was perfectly civil each time they spoke."
"Every time news of an uprising reaches Odin's ears, Amora heads out to put a stop to it before the Einherjar can be mobilized and Thor and I can be sent out to put it down. Rumors of the 'Deathless Witch' spread after enough failed uprisings…and, well, Asgard has never been particularly accepting of magic." He rolls his eyes, and adds "Either they mock Amora for using magic, or they fear her for being able to kill twenty people nowhere near her with a flick of her wrist."
Farbuti murmurs "The Deathless Witch…even Jotunheim has heard the rumors. We had thought that they were simply extremely exaggerated, as there's few that have the ability to use Death Magic itself. Much less be impossible to kill."
Loki shakes his head, saying "Amora herself can't use Death Magic…but Hela, Odin's firstborn child, discarded by him millennia ago, is the Goddess of Death. She created three magical objects with the purpose of finding her Soulmate and making them immortal so she'd never lose them. As it turns out, her Soulmate is the Greek God of the Underworld, Hades - which left three magical objects floating around the Realms, eventually ending up here on Midgard, with the capability of making someone immortal so long as they fulfill the requirements Hela set when she created them." He's faced with three identical blinks, expressions showing nothing but shock and a bit of confusion. "I know, it's a mess. Hela was working with a rudimentary understanding of a Soulmate, and that was that they wouldn't judge her for what she had to do. The rest of that particular story is Amora's past to share, I'm afraid."
Laufey and Farbuti can quite clearly hear the unspoken words of 'and it's a horrifying past,' but it seems Helblindi doesn't quite pick up on it. "When can we meet her, then? Cause, I so want to hear just how she got three magical objects to decide she wouldn't judge someone! Who are you, by the way? Mother and Father just said we were meeting someone really important to everyone."
Loki blinks in surprise, slightly reminded of Teddy and his never-ending curiosity and straight-forwardness. After a moment, he asks "And…who, exactly, are you?"
The boy straightens his shoulders, and proudly says "I'm Helblindi! Heir to Jotunheim and Mother's best student!"
Farbuti facepalms for a moment, Laufey pinching the bridge of his nose, and Loki says "I…I see. Well, Helblindi, It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I'm Loki."
Helblindi stares for a moment, then says "Father said you were the one that gave us back the Casket. Why'd you have it in the first place?"
Loki laughs, and waves off Farbuti and Laufey's horrified expressions while saying "It's no issue, truly. Amora's Godson, Teddy, is much the same way. I was able to give it back because I was in the position to do so - the current King of Asgard, Odin, had taken it from Jotunheim many centuries ago. As acting King while he was indisposed, I was able and willing to return it without causing any further trouble for Jotunheim." He glances at Helblindi - who's apparently his brother by blood, who Laufey and Farbuti most certainly didn't mention when they set up this face-to-face meeting - and asks "You don't happen to like mischief, chaos, and pranking people, do you?" Loki knows the answer before Helblindi even opens his mouth, just from the way his face lights up and his eyes sparkle - yes, a thousand times yes.
Thank the Stars, he'd be horrified if any blood-relative of his had no interest or skill in messing with people.
Laufey groans good-naturedly and shares a glance at Farbuti, and murmurs "Of course he'd be chaos personified as well…" Perhaps bringing Helblindi to meet his elder brother right away wasn't their best idea ever - while Loki apparently holds no ill will towards his younger sibling, and hasn't shown any interest in Helblindi's impulsive declaration of being heir to Jotunheim, Helblindi's chaos personified all by himself and seems to have made it his personal mission to not only save their dying realm with his own growing magical capabilities but lift the spirits of their people in the process.
And Loki's question has just told him he's yet another mischievous frost-imp...who's older, much more experienced in magic, and has who-knows-what at his disposal to cause as much chaos as possible.
"How many ways do you know to make mischief, then? If you're asking about me?"
Loki grins, looking like he's just been offered a challenge and accepted it wholeheartedly, and says "Well, I happen to be well-acquainted with two brilliant pranksters that run a thriving shop in Britain and have recently expanded into the international market, Amora's Godson is a third-generation-Marauder - which I'll be happy to explain in a moment - Amora herself has a wicked sense of sarcasm and humor, and I'm known on Asgard as the God of Mischief, and on Earth I'm known as the Patron God of Magic and Mischief. Is that a satisfactory resume for my mischief-making abilities?"
"I don't know who you are," Helblindi breathes out in absolute awe, "but you. Are. AWESOME!!"