driftfleet | ( how the dinosaurs died )

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( how the dinosaurs died )

Who: Loki + You
Broadcast: Video
Action: Planetside
When: Right here, right now

[ the feed turns on, though it seems to start with a burst of static and a blurry screen before it finally seems to straighten itself out. though the scene you might be seeing seems a little . . . hard to take in. mostly because it looks like everything has been frozen. plants, grass and giant dinosaurs like T-Rexs that were in mid-lunge to bite on . . . a huddled lump who has a quilt over their head and cocooned deep within the covers. And also happens to be sneezing a lot. ]

This — [ loki sneezes, looking pale, harried and a little . . . blue. ] — Is the worst. Why is everything so — [ another loud sneeze. ] — uncomfortable?! And how do you make it stop?!

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[Huh. She pulls back to glance at her hand, but there's no sign of ice or frostbite, just a bit of reddened skin, as if she'd held an ice cube a bit too long. Her body is cool to the touch on a good day and resistant to cold because of what she is, so maybe she's better off than most...? It still seems far more harmless than expected.

Oh well, mystery solved- she shrugs it off and considers him thoughtfully.]

It's not as bad as you probably feel, so... bright side, I guess? Anyway, you shouldn't stay here. Even if it was safe, you're not gonna get any better in the middle of nowhere. Let me help you back to the shuttle, and I'll fly you to the ships so we can get you warmed up.

[ loki nods miserably . . . and sneezes. ]

I've never felt this way before.

Yeah, hang on.

[She grabs a corner of the blanket and tucks it up around his face, just over his mouth and nose, as best as she can.]

Maybe you're breathing in some wacky space spores, who knows. I'm sure some gods are bound to have allergies... better keep this here for a bit. Can you walk?

I can walk. I simply cannot see very clearly.

[ so the chances of him running into a tree are high and hilarious. he sneezes once more. ]

It would be nice if I knew anything about this body.

Yeah, not sure if I can help you with the second bit- you're probably the one who'd know your own body the best. But if the planet's affecting you this way, best option is to get you away from it. If not? We'll take it step by step from there.

[She digs through her bag for a moment and withdraws holding a padded leather gauntlet, plated with iridescent rainbow metal and finely spiked metal knuckles. It's very pretty! ...Though that might be lost on him in the state he's in. She doesn't give it any fanfare regardless- merely slides off the spiked knuckles to tuck into her pocket, don the glove, and offer her now-protected hand out to him.]

Magic ought to save my digits, no problem. I'll guide you, so up and at 'em!

Debatable. There's very little I know of this form.

[ he blinks, looking at her hand as if he has no idea what he's supposed to do before he takes it tentatively. ]

[Without missing a beat she pulls him up to his feet, her free hand lifted to steady him as needed. Once he's upright and stable, she'll start the process of guiding him to where she'd parked.]

"This form"? I thought you were already a Jotun.

[Or at least his dad was, he'd said.]

[ another sneeze. ]

I am, but I know little of them. I was never taught anything about . . . my people.

[Should've brought him some magically heated tissues.]

Huh... yeah, I can see how that would be a problem. I mean, s'not like I got an instruction manual on how to elf, but at least there were enough of them around to get the gist. Not sure what the solution would be for this.

[As per usual, Loki is complicated just by existing.]

No one would know. There are very few left, I imagine and — [ he grimaces. ] — they would want nothing to do with me.

Going from my experience, there's very little info in the universe that isn't written down in a book somewhere. I'll bet you it exists.

Jotunheim is inhospitable to life. It is a broken, battered world with nothing but — [ loki stops himself short from saying monsters. ]

Like fire demons, people don't sit around compiling literature for . . . pests.

Okay, one: that's a shitty way to talk about yourself, even if you're using the words of other people, so stop that, and two: you can definitely find textbooks on all kinds of bugs and pests and monsters and shit. I lived with a botanist for a hundred years and that guy had at least six books at a time on invasive species. So my point still stands- if someone thought they were pests? Someone's written a book.

[ loki shrugs. ]

Well I've never seen any. Granted, I've also never looked. I don't want to know.

Considering your situation, that might not be the smartest thing.

[It's fine to ignore that sort of thing if you're always healthy, but...]

[ he shivers. ]

Perhaps not, but they abandoned me. They left me to die.

[ a brief stumble. ]

But they weren't the only ones.

Oof... that's a rabbit hole.

[It's impossible not to think about what she'd witnessed in that shared dream, the hardships endured. There's still plenty of unanswered questions, but she hadn't wanted to dive any deeper there when it felt like he didn't have much choice in offering her his sad answers.

She slows her pathing a bit, adjusting her position to steady him.]

Y'wanna talk about it?

[ does he? what is there to talk about? loki doesn't even know. he tries to bury everything about his jotun half as deeply as he could, despite no longer harboring the intense self-loathing of before.

still. it never seems to get easier. ]

I'm not sure what there is to say. It was a mess from start to finish.

Start at the very beginning, then. I hear it's a good place.

[There might even be a song about it.]

We still have to fly back- we've got time. Whatever you need to say.

[ the beginning. the very beginning. ]

Very well. Long ago, there was a war between the Asgardians and the Frost Giants. The Frost Giants lost and their world, forbidden to the rest of the Realms. Asgard entered an age of peace, heralded by two princes.

Thor and Loki.

[It's familiar, but she keeps her mouth shut about that; she doesn't know what (if anything) he remembers from the dreams, and even her own memories are a bit foggy. She'd rather not bring up that place when he's already so melancholy, anyway.]

Sounds like a fairy tale.

Most stories are. We walk in myth and legend.

[ his gaze is distant. telling stories is easier, weaving in and out of the narrative. ]

We were taught that the Frost Giants were monsters. Thor would swear it in the halls. I would follow so I wouldn't get left behind.

And then the truth came out.

You found out you were a frost giant.

[She doesn't envy him for that surprise.]

What happened?

[ loki chuckles, though there's no real humour in it. ]

I spiraled. There was a . . . great deal happening on Asgard while Thor was away. I had hoped — [ his voice falters. ] — What I had hoped didn't come to pass.

[The stumble is noted, but she can't help but push a little.]

What were you hoping would happen?

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