A Bang and a Whimper

9

When Jenna comes for her next visit, Thor is with her. He settles in at Loki's desk with paperwork. Jenna climbs up next to her uncle on the couch and hands him a book.

"You bring something new?"

"Yes. But it is short. Then we will read 'Neverwhere'- one of the Gaiman books."

"I have seen its cover. It looks intriguing."

"It is. I think you will like it."

"I have liked all the books both you and your father have brought me thusfar."

"Good."

Loki calls to Thor over his shoulder, "Staying to hear the stories today, are you?"

"Indeed."

"You look quite kingly with your royal papers. Is there a reason my desk is more suited than your own?"

Thor taps his pen twice on the edge of the desk, "Father is in a mood. Were he to see that I had left Jenna here alone, he would likely come to her rescue."

"So you bend to his will?"

"No. His will is an end to your storytelling sessions. I choose my battles. And today, I have work to do instead of fight him."

"Ah. I see." Loki is quiet for a moment, and a little sad. Jenna cuddles beside him and he puts his arm around her shoulder and hugs her.

"It's OK, Uncle. Grandfather will come around."

"Given our history...I wish I were so certain."

She pushes her book into his hands, "Will you read what I bookmarked?"

"A short story?"

"Yes. A long short story. Perhaps even a novella."

He looks at the battered pink and black paperback, "'Four Past Midnight'- Stephen King. I do not believe you have brought this King before."

"I haven't. Far too much of it is more frightening than I like. But this one is good. And it's still creepy."

"You and your creepy, child."

"Did you read 'Truth is a Cave'? Did you like it?" She is excited, anticipating his response.

"I did." She claps with glee, "It was, indeed, creepy. And very good. I read it three or four times just to pick up on the masterful subtle details that led up to the final action. I am even more so looking forward to our reading of 'Neverwhere' thanks to it."

"I am so terribly excited to hear you say that! But first, King. Here, this one- about the garden." She slips her fingers between the pages and opens to the story, "Read."

And, on command, he does. And she is right, it is delightfully creepy. So creepy that he thinks he might not want to turn the lights off when he goes to bed hours later. He is amazed that she is so thrilled by these stories.

"How is it that I do not want to turn out the lights after reading some of these things and yet you are so eager to have them read to you?"

"Because my mother was so clear that stories are simply stories, not the truth. And anything can be in a story. So they are more thrilling than scary." She smiles and winks at him, "But I will likely sleep with a lamp lit tonight." She bounds from the couch into his bedroom and returns with "Neverwhere" tucked under her arm, "Now, this one!" She plops down on the couch and snuggles close, "Books are magic."

"That they are. Might I ask what it is about these two authors that you love so dearly?"

She fiddles with the edge of the book, "They were Mother's. And they're really good stories. When she would read a chapter at a time, I would beg for her to read more every night. I loved hearing them. She loved them, too, and you could tell."

"And why do you wish for me to read them to you? Do you not prefer the memory of how the words sounded from her?"

"No, I'll always remember how she read them. But the stories are magic, too. Not just Mother. And I need the stories themselves, too. And you read them so well that it just makes them all that much more special."

Loki smiles and ruffles her hair, "Dear girl, you are delightful."

Thor is listening to the conversation carefully. He is so proud of his daughter and how open she is. Her mother did well to raise her in two worlds, teaching her of all the different kinds of people. It was something that Thor thought simply amazing about Jane- she always considered how a person's past could shape their present. Late at night, long after Jenna was asleep, he had shared his feelings about Loki's death with her, and his regrets that he could not reach his brother before his death. And in those moments, Jane had always talked about Loki as a person who felt deeply, hurt deeply, and loved deeply, even when he was loathe to admit it. Thor had taken to thinking the same way. When he returned from adventuring with Jenna and found that Loki was alive, but gone off to fight a battle on his own that he was highly unlikely to win, Thor had been taken back to these discussions while he searched. And when he found Loki, all he could think of was how much he missed him, and wonder if, somewhere under all the magic, blood, and bitterness, Loki had missed him, too. Hearing him call him "Brother" had made him certain that he did and that they could rebuild. Jane's voice telling him that Loki was still the same person, just a very broken version of it, echoed in his memory frequently.

And Jenna had so much of her mother's spirit. So much of that acceptance and gentleness. There would be repercussions for things done now, but the past...Jane had been so adamant that the past was a shaper of the present, but not the final word on it. It could be laid to rest, just like the dead, and, if it needed to be, it could be forgotten. Or forgiven. Or healed from. There were always options.

Thor returned to his paperwork and listened in on the story. A man named Richard carried an oddly named girl, Door, to his apartment. And then some very creepy men showed up. That Richard then disappeared from his own life seemed very strange to Thor, but these Midgardian authors had brilliant stories tied to the most uncanny and imaginative occurrences. He had read the book many years ago and only somewhat remembered something about an angel, the two creepy men, and a journey to an opposite underground version of London. But there were many details he had forgotten and Loki's storytelling was entrancing. He glanced over to the couch. Jenna was snuggled against him, following along with the story, utterly delighted.

Thor could only hope this peace would last. Loki being content was something so rare that it was precious and he would protect it at all costs.