Atypical (A Magnus Chase fan novel)

He Gives Me This Warm Feeling...It's Not What You Think!

-Amara-

     "You're muslim," I said. She nodded. "You wear a hijab." She nodded again. "But you believe in all this Norse nonsense?" I practically yelled. My voice was rising unnaturally, and kept breaking. Stupid voice. I didn't sound like my normal self at all. But, would anyone in my situation?

     She nodded once more. She seemed a little guilty. And for good reason. What worse crime is there than shirk, the worship of gods besides God?

     "I had a completely normal life," I said, much quieter this time. Even saying that though, I doubted myself. There was a brief silence.

     "Look, I'm sorry I brought you here," she started. "But, it was my job. I mean, I was sent to collect you, and you died bravely. I couldn't back out because you had a scarf on your head. You deserved Valhalla." She sounded like she was trying to convince herself, which was not reassuring at all.

     I fell back on the bed in despair. She had explained everything to me, but I still couldn't believe it. I felt shell-shocked, like someone coming out of a war. I had discussed the Nine Worlds and Ragnarok with her, among other things, but I kept coming back to the fact that it was even real, and that this wasn't some twisted dream. But the scary part was, I believed her. About the gods being real and me being dead. For some crooked reason, it fit. At this point, I guess I was trying to convince myself too.

     Samirah continued speaking. "How I look at it...all this just strengthens my belief in Allah. These deities, once you've met them, really convince you of the creator. That we were all created by something, because trust me, something created them. You just kind of have to calm down, step back, take a breath, and then see it. Open your mind,"

     I sat up. "I don't have a choice, do I?"

     She shook her head and shrugged. "Not really."

     I sighed. "And I'm probably gonna have to go out and meet everyone else too, huh?" She nodded. Just what I needed, an entourage.

     "They'll be like your family in Valhalla, and are probably going to be with you throughout most of your day."

     Family. Oh, I hadn't even thought about my mom. What would she be feeling right now? I felt sick, a pang of guilt in my stomach. I missed her so much. I missed my step dad and sister. I guessed Samirah had noticed her words were a little too soft right now, because she walked over and put her hand on my shoulder, the way an older sister would do to their sibling, and said,

     "Hey. It'll be fine. Just trust me." She held out her hand to me. I took it and stood up. Then I realised a pattern.

     "That's what Magnus said too," I muttered.

     She laughed. "Yeah, he's nice, you'll get to like him."

     For some reason, when Magnus walked in the room, even with his friends, I sensed something...familiar. I thought I was imagining it, but I definitely felt it when he came in alone. Again, I don't know what, just, a warm feeling. It's not what you think, it was like, hot. I had told Sam this, and she said that he was the son of Frey, god of summer. I also kind of recognized his face, but I couldn't for the love of me imagine where I've seen him.

     Isa flew over to me, wings flapping loudly, and landed on my shoulder as I started walking towards the door behind Samirah, who turned around and said,

     "Where did the bird come from?" Muezza chose that moment to slink out of the bathroom and start purring on my feet again. "And the cat?" she asked incredulously.

     "I have no clue." But, I liked the fact that they were there. Both were pets that I had once owned, but passed away. Isa was my first big bird, and Muezza was my first cat. I was shocked to see them here, but with everything else, I didn't really focus on the miracle of them here. I had bigger problems. But they comforted me all the same. It made the room a little less alien to me. I mean, it was amazing, with the atrium, and the room theme like my bedroom at home, but the animals really made it comfortable to me.

     But it wasn't home.

     So I walked out to see all those kids, armed, waiting in front of my room, which was totally not unsettling at all. Magnus looked flustered, but relieved when he saw me and Sam finally come out. I wondered if he was supposed to be somewhere else when he came to find me. I still could not believe I had jumped that high.