the other kind of endgame.

[rebuildyourruins]

Who: Thor + others
Broadcast: no
Action: the First Breath + some other places
When: June 7th onwards

[A number of closed starters for Thor's canon update to Avengers Endgame. Hit me up on dudemeister if you want one!]

Comments

[Loki]

[rebuildyourruins]

[It isn't much of a startled waking this time. He's well past that sort of thing. In fact it takes him a number of minutes to even clue in to where he is, since he'd just rolled over with a groan and tried to go back to sleep. Only after a few moments Thor does think this is much more room than the Benatar's bunks have. An experimental kick of his foot proves that. So he opens his eyes and actually looks--

And swears. It's this again. Or rather, it's still this, just with new memories.

It doesn't take him long to connect the dots, having done so before. He sits up immediately and scrambles for his communicator, scrolling through the ship manifests with shaking fingers until he finds two specific names. The communicator drops to the side as he buries his face in his hands with a sob. They're both still here. Maybe they don't know, but they're here. His thoughts break off in a million different directions, taking some time to hurtle around before he can gather some of them together and work out what to do next.

After a while Thor exits his room, glancing from side to side before walking swiftly down the corridor. Thankfully it's so early that few of the Blue Fish crew are around, otherwise he's sure his appearance would get some questions. Ones he isn't in the mood to answer.

--halfway down the corridor he whips around and starts going back because this is a bad idea, he doesn't need to do this, he can just wait! And not have his hopes dashed! That's definitely a better idea--]

Stop it, [Thor hisses at himself, spinning around again and once more going towards the shuttle bay.] Don't be a coward.

[It's hard not to feel like one as he pilots the shuttle over to the First Breath, nerves screaming at him all along. There's every chance this could collapse like everything else did. Maybe the names were left there just to mess with him. Maybe he's still drunk from last night and this is a truly awful dream. Still, he sets his jaw and pushes through it. If there's even the slightest chance, he has to take it. He may not get another one.

Thor doesn't want to barge into Loki's room. That's a bridge too far, after what happened last time. After staring at his brother's door for a long moment, he keeps going into the kitchen area. No one's up yet, so he'll just wait here. He remembers well enough where the coffee is and he makes himself one before sitting down at the bench, brushing the hair out of his face.

Gods, this was eerily familiar. He doesn't know whether to hate it or feel relieved.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ loki tends to wake early. not because he doesn't like sleep, but he was always a light sleeper and lingering in bed always made him feel self-conscious. it was hard to feel truly comfortable in the fleet, no matter how well-oiled the routine was. so he rose from bed with a quiet yawn, brushing his hair back when he spots thor.

and stops. and stares. because that was clearly his brother, but also what. ]

— Thor?

[rebuildyourruins]

[It's just a bad hair day Loki, chill out.

Thor also freezes, staring back at Loki with a hanging sense of-- he doesn't know. Everything just screeches to a halt in his head. He had seen Loki briefly when he went back in time, but had quickly passed him by lest he go to pieces over it when there was a mission to carry out. Here, there's no such pressure. And somehow? He doesn't feel like he's going to completely implode over it. Maybe it's the lingering continuity this place brings to his memories, a part of himself that hadn't lost Loki along the way.

Even so, it's a watery smile he ends up giving to his brother. For a greater part of him it's still been five years.]

Took you long enough - I've been out here for a while.

[dothelokimotion]

[ loki opens and closes his mouth abruptly, at a complete loss. change has come to them, but this — this is change on a level loki had never seen, never expected. and they are gods. change has never come easily to them, used to living on years at a time. he moves closer, wary, though loki can't help brushing his fingers over the lines of thor's face, the bedraggled hair.

so soft, the silence could swallow it whole. ]

Oh, brother. What foolishness have you gotten yourself into now?

[rebuildyourruins]

[That is just - unbearably funny. The fact that he has an answer, what that answer is, and the fact that he can give it at all. Thor bursts out laughing, shoulders shaking for a moment.

Then he surges out of his seat and grabs Loki in one of the fiercest hugs ever delivered.]

You have no idea - no idea. [With a huff that's closer to a sob, he adds:] I've missed you.

[dothelokimotion]

[ loki's greatest fear has always been fading away. forgotten. it terrifies him every time he stared down death because he had always assumed — believed that once he was gone, he would simply fade from thought and memory. why remember a scab or a wound, no matter the fondness or pain?

but for the first time, he finds himself a little shaken. even uncertain. maybe it wasn't how he had always pictured. maybe, he had mattered enough.

loki burrows his head against thor's shoulder, his arms circling thor. ]

You fool. I'm still here.

[rebuildyourruins]

[It's clear that not enough time has passed for Thor to age in the slow way their people do. But time has clearly moved on for him, rammed into the space of a heartbeat the way the Fleet likes to do.

He just nods, the dam already broken on his tears.]

Yeah ... you weren't, though.

[First Breath]

[rebuildyourruins]

[It is absolutely not subtle when Thor moves onto the First Breath. He starts doing it even before the transfer goes through. That makes it entirely possible to run into him in the corridors as he's hauling all his stuff in from the shuttles - clothes, various swords, his huge Stormbreaker axe. Honestly he's probably making a huge racket.

Then his name is officially added to the manifest and that's that. He lives here now. Maybe it's not a huge change; Thor had often been over for meals or visits on a regular basis anyway. Now he's just here for all of them.

He cuts a fairly different figure than he did just a few days ago, but he's still recognisable enough whenever you run into him in the kitchen or around the hold. Just don't ask why he's wearing Crocs. There's no good explanation for it.]

kitchen

[abracafcku]

[Thor moving in was a little bit overshadowed by the fact that, at the same time, someone else was also moving in. Taako had had his hands full helping Lup transfer over, or (more accurately) going through Lup's things as she moved them over and decrying anything he thought was originally his. But with both of them moved in and things settling again, Taako's gotten back into his usual groove and is back to the kitchen once more. Today he's feeling pretty good and mixing up a nice batter for some waffles.

So when Thor enters, Taako glances up with a smile and a greeting that dies on his lips.]

...Thor?

[There's confusion and shock in his voice and on his face plain as day as he stares at the god of thunder. The word hangs in the air as Taako's gaze goes from head to toe over him, then back down again. With a look of disgust, he points emphatically with the wooden spoon in his hand at Thor's feet, a few spatters of batter hitting the counter.]

What are those?

[rebuildyourruins]

[Thor's caught in the middle of a casual wave back to Taako, knowing how different he looks and not really giving much of a damn about it - only to blink when Taako points further down than he was expecting. He glances at his shoes, turning them out a bit.]

These? They're called Crocs - good, aren't they?

[abracafcku]

[Good? Good? Taako grimaces and gestures again with the spoon, shaking it back and forth.]

Mmmmnope. Not like that they aren't. You can't just rock up into my kitchen wearing something like that.

[Holy shit, that's the stuff you wear when you're going out for a white wine day drinking event heavily disguised so no one recognizes you because you've hit the point where you no longer care.]

Resident of this ship or no, I'm not about to relax my standards. At least decorate them!

[rebuildyourruins]

What, really? You should have a sign up then.

[There's no dress code at the door, how was Thor meant to know? ... not that he would have complied with it anyway. But he would have read it. Thor lifts one leg a bit, squinting down at his shoe.]

I don't think they need anything extra. I can just take them off if that's better.

[abracafcku]

No, no barefoot hobos in my kitchen! That shit's unsanitary!

[Taako drops the spoon into the batter, wipes his hands on the towel at his waist, and then stalks around the kitchen counter to get a better look at these "Crocs."

They look atrocious no matter the angle, but they do look comfortable at least.]

It's basic-- Ugh, look, if you at least spruce them up, I'll allow it, but until then? Service denied, my dude.

[rebuildyourruins]

Denied? That's a bit harsh. Are you really going to do that when I live here now?

shuttles~

[necromanswers]

[Lup's in the middle of her own move at the same time, so conveniently, her shuttle is parked when he arrives. She's unloading her own things, so as he starts to make that huge racket, she wanders over with a big wooden chest dragging behind her- or rather, floating behind her a few feet off the ground, tied to her wrist with a rope like a child's oversized helium balloon.

She looks at him. Looks him up, down, all around. And then:]

....Huh.

[That's... different.]

[rebuildyourruins]

[At first he's more focused on getting his two swords and halberd under his arm, but then he turns around - and brightens.]

Hey, Lup. It's been a while.

[necromanswers]

Clearly.

[He gets a smile anyway, mostly because he just looks so darn happy to be here. She has no way of knowing how long it's been for him, but obviously longer than it's been for her.]

You've changed. How long is a while?

[rebuildyourruins]

A little bit, yeah.

[No, it's a lot, he knows. Having gone through a similar thing back home when returning to the Avengers compound already, he's not too hung up on having to do it again. Though doing it sober certainly feels a bit more stark. He sighs, shifting the swords under his arm so they don't slip out.]

Five years, give or take a few months. I know it hasn't been that long around here.

[necromanswers]

[Lup whistles. Five years isn't a huge amount of time, in the grand scheme of things, but it's nothing to scoff at, either.]

A lot can happen in five years, my dude. You okay?

[rebuildyourruins]

[He has to snort at that, amused despite himself.]

There were one or two huge things, yeah. I'm all right - really.

[The last time this had happened, of course, he had been a complete wreck emotionally. This time ... well, he's more a wreck physically, but otherwise doing a lot better.]

Things have gotten better since last time.

kitchen

[shroudedsecrets]

[It had been a chaotic sort of time, with those two very important ship moves coinciding with the fact that Haggar had been extremely distracted during it, as she had been dealing with being nearly overwhelmed by the siren call of the planet among some of her other issues. But once she was found and brought back to the ship she was making more of an effort to be present, at least as much as she could manage.

So here they are in the kitchen, since Kova has made it a point to not leave her alone, almost as if it's his job to meow or alert someone if she seems too distant. The kitchen has become strangely such a significant place on the ship, despite how often Taako complains that the crew doesn't appreciate his meals. Kova's eating for now, at least, though he looks up from his bowl when Thor walks in.

Haggar is half-leaning against a counter, dressed in one of her recent fashions of blue and white, though she doesn't notice him immediately, her attention seemingly taken up by watching something on a tablet-like device. Usually she's more attentive to Thor.]

[rebuildyourruins]

[It's better really, for him not to be noticed immediately. It makes him feel less like a fish out of water, despite all the familiarity around him. The First Breath had always been a welcoming enough space for him. There's no denying though that his moving in here, and the manner in which he had done so, was ... well, jarring. For others as well as himself.

So he glances at Haggar briefly when he walks in, expecting some kind of response. Only - there isn't one. Eyebrows raised, he keeps moving past her and grabs a mug out of the cupboard. Thor and Haggar had never been very close, which makes this perhaps more awkward than the others. Or maybe it's less awkward.

He feels awkward, either way. After a second or two he taps his fingers against the mug and says:]

Sooo, uh. What are you watching?

[Totally Normal Behaviour here.]

[shroudedsecrets]

[As awkward as Thor is being, for a moment she doesn't really seem to hear him. Luckily for both of them, however, her cat is being particularly attentive to this situation, as he meows and wanders over to her and bumps his head firmly against her leg.

That seems to work at least, since she blinks sharply, a few times. A slight shake of her head as she realizes that for one, she's missed at least over a quarter of this movie at some point, and then as she takes stock of why the cat bonked her in the first place, she realizes that Thor is standing there, quite close and -- she hadn't realized he'd walked by her? Had he said something?

Well. Even she realizes that is a bit awkward on her part, even if it's difficult to be helped with her sensitivity to the range of the planet. Quickly, she pauses the movie and nods to him, with an apologetic lilt to her usually measured voice.]

Please forgive me for my... inattention. You are long overdue a welcome from me.

[rebuildyourruins]

Oh, no, don't even worry about it.

[He waves a hand, all exaggerated nonchalance.]

It's not like I wasn't over here all the time anyway.

[shroudedsecrets]

That is fair.

[Still, there is warmth in her tone. Seeing him here like this reminds her a little of their first real conversation. There's undeniably something very different about him, for him to have made such a decisive choice.]

Something significant must have changed for you, but it is good to have you with us.