Tyr x Reader

Nineteen

A cold shiver chased goosebumps all over your body as you set foot past a waterfall high up in the mountains. From your childhood you knew the sight from afar, high mountain peaks covered with snow, cut by a cloth of fine blue.

It was the first time however that you were this close. The gushing sound of water falling in masses filled your ears, mixed with the moist air that was caused by the black stones.

"Be careful not to slip.", Tyr reminded you as your steps grew more impatient.

He walked a bit behind you, not strangely far away, but far enough to miss what he was doing. Even though it had been his idea to go to this place he seemed rather unsure.

It caught you the wrong way that he also did not walk by your side as he usually did. Or at least close enough to have a small conversation.

You kind of missed to have a chat with him. It was the smalltalk about nothing yet everything that made you feel so close to him.

And Tyr usually wasn't shy to spread his knowledge. He was happy to give answered whenever you had questions and at the same time listened if you were more educated on a topic.

But not this day. Or maybe you were just imagining things.

"How did you find this place?", you asked as a room of dripping stones opened before you.

At your feet, water gathered on a mosaic of blue tiles and gold. Runes adorned the walls, while pictures of faded paint told a story.

The sound of the waterfall was now gentle and soothing as if you were entering the home of a friend.

"It's been a while since I first entered this place.", Tyr said, coming close enough to put a hand on your shoulder.

Taken off guard by the gesture, you tensed slightly. The touch felt strange. Not like anything he would do. Or at least not in that way.

"The door...", your gaze lingered on two large rocks with a crack running down the centre to below the cave ceiling. "There is no handle. How could one get in? Is there even something behind it or is it just a gimmick?"

He hummed, let go of you and walked right into the middle of the room. His steps caused the thin layer of water to throw small waves.

Somehow it felt like he moved less soft. All he did was set one foot before another instead of his usual light walk.

"You have a good eye.", he said as he walked along the rounded walls and let his fingers run along the runes. "I am convinced that there must be something behind it. Why else would someone put such advanced magic to seal it?"

Your eyes wandered along the runes. They looked somewhat familiar but you failed to read them. Perhaps they were ancient, older than the runes you had learned to read as a child.

However, there was one of the symbols that seemed to be explaining itself.

There was the picture of a man, or at least it seemed like it was supposed to be a man, with the head of a bird. He kneeled down, his arms stretch towards the ceiling.

It was strange, the way he was presented, together with these clothes of his. You had never seen something like this before.

Perhaps because he was from another world.

As the thought crossed your mind you had to look over your shoulder to Tyr. There was this lingering feeling in the back of your head that told you that he needed to know who this man was supposed to be. Or at least where he belonged.

But as your gaze fell upon the god of war he just stared at the symbol with both confusion and annoyance on his face. He was clueless.

A weird experience. You had never seen him entirely clueless before. It has always seemed as if Tyr knew about everything, at least a little bit.

But not this time.

Unless...

"Tyr...", you breathed, carefully, as to not alarm him.

He ignored you for a moment. Or perhaps he was just lost in his thoughts.

"Tyr.", you called out for him, louder this time.

He blinked. But his head did not move towards you. Instead, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

"This place has been created by the giants.", he finally said, still not paying any attention to you. "But they couldn't have build it on their own. It's too... out of these realms."

You frowned. Confused, you tried to understand what he said but it all seemed so unreal. Almost as if this was about something beyond any understanding.

"You mean someone... helped the giants?", you asked.

A hum made his chest vibrate.

"Indeed. The giants were rather peace loving folks. They made friends where friendship wasn't supposed to blossom."

A huff escaped your lips.

"Are you talking about yourself?", you asked with a smirk.

Now his eyes jumped over his shoulder to meet yours. Immediately a cold shiver crawled down your spine. His gaze frightened you. It was so icy, so unwelcoming.

Never before had you felt this way in his presence.

It made you wonder.

"I made friends with the giants indeed.", the words fell from his lips like rainbows from a leave that became too heavy to carry them. "A rather daring decision. But then I also outsmarted them."

The last bit struck you by surprise. Wrinkles appeared on your forehead.

"Outsmarted them?", you asked, audibly upset.

A deep breath made his beard rustle.

"I was simply smarter.", all of a sudden he turned to face you.

Startled, you flinched and took a quick step back. You slipped, lost your balance and crashed to the ground. Water splashed into the air, seeped into your clothes.

Cautious, you did not take the time to pick yourself off the ground and instead started to crawl away from him.

This wasn't Tyr. Something was awfully wrong.

Your brain started to wildly think about an escape plan. The exit was behind him, so there was no way to jump up and make a run for it.

At the same time he kept coming closer while his eyes lingered on you.

"I always wondered how to make sense of this place.", he stopped right in front of you, trapping you between him and the wall. "But it seems the answer is close."