#alongside rewatching what if and loki | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blindtaleteller · 7 months

Text

MCU Asgard Canon Observation Research [Part 1]

Firstly and before I even start in on the subject, keep in mind that this is what it says: a collection of research into actual Canon Lore from the Marvel Cinematic Universe: not the comics, or the Nordic lore twice removed from it.

Secondly and alongside that, also keep in mind that even back at the start of the MCU as a long term project, while the MCU is based on the Marvel comics universe: the creators made a point of making it a completely different universe: for many varying reasons, including the spaces lacking continuity in the comics over the years that the MCU as a project wanted to pursue from it's first conception.

This is a large part of why there are phases and why they were numbered from it's creation. (And yes also why my tags recently mentioning counting phases are what they are elsewhere, but that's a whole other post.. or set of them.)

These are important to remember because, I would like to avoid previous iterations of people wasting their time trying to insert comics-universe lore and more excessively into or onto this requested post purely for the sake of, well; being argumentative or just trolling:as much as possible. I do try to take some time to respond to comments and reblogs as much as possible, but I can and will ignore or yes, at times point out people unable to manage these things.. and respond as necessary.

I normally wouldn't bother to mention this except yes, that has happened before so: consider this your disclaimer.. I ain't dealin' with you if you're gonna be a trolly shit disrespectful enough of the time effort and willingness to share what research and observations I have, by shitting on it or me in your pursuit of whatever flimsy excuses might be given for any inhuman reactions posted passive aggressive or worse.

More frankly: be respectful on my posts or get lost. I don't tolerate harassment on my blog whether it's aimed at me or others. Passive aggressive or otherwise. I'll discuss stuff, am happy to have any valid references I might miss added to and pointed out. Just don't be an asshat about it, and you'll get the same from me. That's how basic-bitch Karma, and I; both work: you'll get what you give along those lines, while in my space.

The necessary now out of the way... Next!

More as a side note with that mentioned; while I may mention some meta/theory in the form of the most probable (as that's how my meta in particular is formed) it is again: based on the facts of the canon lore and contexts confirmed presented in it; visually, in dialogue, and out of the mouths of the very people who made all that themselves, at the time that lore was given to us on screen: and will be mentioned as the theory and supposition that is 'meta' rather than 'canon'. I have gone out of my way as a fan of world, universe, and character building as a part of the creative process in particular: to watch, rewatch, rewatch again and again, and hunt down all this stuff (often lol purely out of my own curiosity.) All in all Meta is theory, Canon is story/film-established fact; and I do try to keep a clear line between the two of them. The early world and character building in the MCU has always been interesting enough to me alone, to do all that with my free time.

And that's especially true with Asgard in particular, as a main story driving force in one form or another as far back as 2010 when both Thor and CA: tFA's scripts were being filmed and their sets/settings picked out and created.

Final few bits before we get into it..? As Asgard lore (and even a lack of it's presence at times) is directly and appropriately attached and or in relation to the lore of several races, species, and massive events in the entirety of the MCU's first three phases.. I will be touching some of those cultures and places too, where important. Probably not in this particular part, but yeah. It's gonna happen.

As with the research post into Loki and his year of absence prior to Avengers 2012: (yes that's a link to an ask that contains a good chunk of info and years of interviews on that particular subject) this might not be an entirely complete compilation: for the same reasons. As I said, i didn't just watch, I rewatched repeatedly from differing personal mental angles: not just three or four times, but and as I wrote my own fanfiction.. I would also re-watch once or twice just prior to fleshing out an outlined story of my own to refresh my memory, seek out interviews official and otherwise from the creators and actors who made that lore and put it on screen for us to enjoy as part of the stories we enjoyed (or not, depending lol) and well.. the resulting organization of the whole outside of this post is less than comprehensive for anyone else. You can see the explanation for how that happens in the foreword of that thread if you're curious.

As a result, I may or may not exclude the actual interviews if this gets too long. Much of the visual in this first part especially are pretty self explanatory, as I did find some of my dissection pics too.

All said (I think? Gods I hope so that was a lot wasn't it? XD) and as suggested/requested recently in discord?

This one is gonna be expansive.. and hellaciously so: so grab your drinks and your snacks and still be prepared for this series of posts to be going for while (not kidding, may be compiling this properly between jobs for weeks) so yeah..

Here we go again!

The major forgotten fact of Asgard's depiction in the MCU is this:

We the audience are only shown a very tiny fragment of Asgard as another separate planet in space, and: they do show us we're missing as much, from the very first film.

That gif directly from the movie I used at the top? I'm using it again, because...

..look at that.

With topography, perspective and size in mind.

That tiny golden triangle in the middle is the Palace at the center. The little golden bar along that tiny portion to either side? Is the city attached to it proper, with the Bifrost, and as far as we've seen the 'Heroes Road' (as soem are calling it) and city walls cupping the Bifrost Bay directly facing the camera.

This is a space shot (of course,) and that tiny itty bitty moving spec that is still shrinking as it gets further from our perspective and closer to Asgard at the bottom, is the Bifrost in use.

And, they do give us a few views of that as early as five to six minutes into the first movie in 2011, as seen in the first clip below. I've set it to share at the first view of Asgard itself.

Hopefully that works. If not, the timestamp you're looking for is 2:04.

I recommend shutting off the audio, as it's a bit distracting. Trust me, we will get back to the very interesting audio from a world builder's perspective, when we get to the History and Relations section of Asgard's break down.. there are several tons, of that and in that opener alone, to examine later.

youtube

IMPORTANT!! When looking at any of these images or videos, keep in mind and look at the scale. Not just in the scene on screen at that moment, but also in reference to previous shots. Distance is a thing. The size of trees and people are a thing. This place in the MCU is much more massive than where it's very cloistered story parts take place.

This is not a city-planet like and for comparison: Coruscant, from Star Wars... though I am very aware that some people will throw out Asgard's concept art to try and 'debunk' that (yes its' been done and proven pointless in other threads).. that does also bring us to another couple of facts that slip by in their context.

In fact, you know what? I'll throw it in here right now myself:

This concept art: does still apply, if slightly adjusted with the topography and likely under ground portions taken into account.. because Asgard is the name of both the planet AND the city as separate entities of the same locale.

In other words, the concept art is VERY valid as a map of the city itself: but not the outlying locations outside of Asgard as a Capital City Proper, of Asgard as a disk planet.

And again.. they do show us this, and not just in the first film: although that first shot going into the city says as much too, being that..

A. Asgard is established as a society greatly more advanced than Earth and most others, and;

B. there are whole swaths of land (and especially mountain they like to build into) without structure between the edge panned through and the City itself. (see still image below: not the best quality but it's also in the video.)

Which.. we'll touch again a little more in a bit (and probably the biggest lol) part of this breakdown set; digging at History, Culture, and Relations.. as the fact they do prefer to build INTO their environment much more than on top of it is also shown in the shot of the canyons and canals on which not only that city is built, but even what buildings are shown outside of it on that panning-in shot.

We can see in the one above though: that while they did redirect some of the water through canals in the lower shot; they also kept and built into the natural(?*) lay of the river canyons below.

This theme is kept even before we get into the city though with the first part of the shot above the water.

Want a more visual view of the breakdowns as I do them?

Here you go, here's one example from out of my crazy folders and docs, that I made in paint back in 2013 (LOL yes I know. XD) while once again re-watching that same scene.

I would highly suggest clicking on it, as tumblr does downsize images making text on them hard to read otherwise. Crappy in-motion quality screen cap but, it was made more for breaking down the visual elements on screen for what it told us about the land, and more; on it.

----[?*] As a set of side/foot notes to that last bit and the image..

A. the top left corner yes: does reference some of where I use certain observations of canon in my own fics; and how they would have grown or evolved depending on that story. In this case, and at the time: the pink text is making note to utilize those observations in outlining Hvedrungr (Loki from Uni 0) and Flykra's (Loki from Vesti1 Uni 14) universes in particular: both of which return to Asgard at VERY different times and in different situations: while the history and culture I've been able to glean and expand on in some cases is still part of their and the location's background. As I don't have the patience to remove the text from an old paint shop cut.. I thought I would at least explain it's presence left there. These things are, ultimately connected by the culture that originated on and created them on that planet after all.. and why there's an entire section dedicated to the varied aspects of Asgard's presented Cultural, Relations, and History lore. B. The '?' at the 'natural' mention in parenthesis above, also takes into account that Asgard is much older than Earth's culture and has to be: if only because as only three generations have come and gone over the passage of what to us is five thousand years! (see the next installment Thor the Dark World: Bor and Darkalfheim, or just watch the movie with info gathering in mind.) In other words, between Bor's War, and Odin's Asgardian Great Wars: we cannot be certain whether or not 1. those canyons are actually natural or the now aged result of one of many previous interplanetary wars, or 2. whether Asgard at this stage of it's showing timed at 2011 more than a millennia later, has even always been this size, given their advancement in technology and study of magic as presented OR left in question, either. For my part, as there's no conclusive dialogue from that era to state otherwise in the MCU or it's interviews that I know of, and knowing the context of Malekith and Darkalfheim's familiarity with Asgard itself during their raid to reclaim the infinity stone: I tend to veer towards a mixture of the two. While it's very likely at least some of the canyons are indeed natural; the great age of the culture and planet both, along with the nature of Bor and Odin's rules alone as we've seen them: leaves a HUGE and LONG period of time and opportunities for some of those nasty fights to come directly to them... or even their predecessors. Which would also explain why they had that shield for the palace too. You don't build and more importantly upkeep something like that without a very good set of reasons or examples experienced, to do so after all. Much of that is meta though, however based on canon fact it may be: and as many of the creators were not asked publicly during that era, and have been dismissed or moved on to other projects since.. it's hard to know if we'll ever see a *genuine* answer from the people who actually made it all starting sixteen years ago.

Anyway, let's look at a few more shots of Asgard with that breakdown going. Some of these are all old, from as far back as about ten years ago when I first started writing outlines for the varied universes in my Lokiverse Project: but they do still hold up. theer are some from TDW in this bunch too. I heavily dissected these scenes knowing I was going to do whole chapters in multiple differing universes, and wanted to have the presented layout and feel laid out in my head, before I started adding in locations on the planet not yet shown on film. And given my first Book was already going to be DREAMS.. where Asgard has been blown to bits post Endgame? I really wanted to get it right so I could deconstruct it as many times as I and the muses wanted to. Laufeyson (Universe 10 Loki) was pretty insistent too with the opening chapters on his end focusing partially on that chase with Abell through Asgard's blown apart ruin

Sorry for the ramble of an explanation, but that's how it is and how it works over here...? XD

..uhmmmm. Yeah lol! When I said I watch and re-watch from differing mental perspectives..? That's what I mean. I don't usually share those at all... only the unedited pics. Genrally I will take caps or take existing raw caps and pick out piece that catch my eye. I've been told they do help put your brain in the right mode for those who have difficulty processing them in that way, like I do when in that mode. Also yes, trees and fish ...bruh. lol!

It's there, has been for years in some cases; and I'm not messing with it now.

That basic bit out of the way (doesn't sound so basic does it.) Let's backtrack a bit, specifically to Asgard's shape and the placement of it's location and the locations on it.

As I first write this, I don't have the talks I had with a few wild meteorologists and geologists back then directly on hand (as this is a part I still don't focus on too much; but:) shaped as it is, those I did talk to theorized that between the shape and placement of planets as well as the nebula they're partially inside, that Asgard may be shaped and in rotation as it is because of its' placement in it's system: or because of late interference by Asgard's inhabitants to keep it stable.

^ That one scene in particular from Thor 2011 really made my eyes pop. Not because of what's going on in it so much as trying to answer the whys and hows and what the actual fricks man: because..

Can you imagine, the conversation: trying to pitch that spinning death ball to the King there OR anywhere else on the planet before Bor or even his great grandfather?

Or, trying to talk the royalty down from the idea of putting it anywhere NEAR the palace, or other people's homes?

How about testing that house sized death-by-velocity-alone gilded mess? (Yes I still laugh thinking about that. Some poor scholar/engineer type trying to dissuade Bor's grand-daddy from building what would definitely become a giant pinball of death in the canyons and canals, if that thing ever came off it's anchors even once in the city. Good gods! lol!) Who knows; maybe that was when people started moving to Vanaheim... XD! Just (mostly) kidding.

Cray-cray thoughts of high velocity gilded pinball hell that was probably somewhere way back in the Bifrost's likely development and evolution as tech/normie science boosted by magic, and or vice versa, aside:

You probably notice I've mentioned the nebulae and the planets in their rotation more than once. And with good reason.

Backing up a bit; Asgard is interesting well before you hit her shores.

Not only is she a top-shaped disk-planet: but with the way the sky is shown: Asgard has a very interesting rotation if she has any left at all. There's very little we know, but what we do know is she is not alone in her systematic rotation either way.

(Asgard's sky from Thor's personal Hall in Thor: the Dark World)

In fact and as seen in the screen caps above: Asgard has an incredibly close relation to at least three planets in her nebulous solar system. At least one of which is absolutely massive: massive enough that it's close proximity is theorized as being pretty likely to be the only way Asgard experiences night cycles as seen in Thor: the Dark World... mainly through eclipsing the nebulous sun by passing between it and Asgard as a planet.

Which is both cool -and- scary when you take things like degrading orbits, space debris and projectiles like comets and other space science into account.. but also very, very interesting.

It also begs the question either way: why didn't Asgard at their earlier establishment of a greater technological level, colonize or move to those planets sooner? Of course.. the first obvious answer is.. they probably couldn't, at first. And even more probably were past trying by the time the Bifrost was built, prior to Bor's time (I say prior because we have seen Bor use it in Thor the Dark World: and on a massive scale moving whole armies, the same as his son Odin. See some of the scenes from Bor's seizure of the Aether below.)

But yeah, Asgard is a pretty unique place even before you get to the water fall's edge: or questioning what kind of condensed mass it has to retain gravity at it's very small size.

Or, whether that gravity and the shape is in fact generated in some form or another after millennia upon millennia of just the Wars we do know about in their history.

(At current we know about Darkalfheim and the series of Wars including Jotunheim and Muspelheim that they call the Great Wars. While they are definitely aware of the extensive millennia of intergalactic war between the Xandarian based Nova Corps and the Kree Empire put front and center in GotG.. there hasn't been any actual confirmation as to whether Asgardians fought in that war on either side: only that they are at that stage at least loosely allied with Asgard.. if not a more separated protectorate being considered among the nine realms in the MCU.)

Why do I keep pointing out trees, and perspective; or teh size of the city in that first little gif again?

Because.. that is our repeated visual evidence of just how much of Asgard as a planet; the story did not take place in.. huge parts of the place we haven't seen. And that makes sense.

Power plants or generators, smithys, and even schools can be easily placed in the city proper, at this stage.

But what about BEFORE, they got to this stage.. because that is a thing in the MCU in regards to Asgard: and a major plot point for three movies of script running, from 2010 all the way to 2015 when Taika Waititi was hired (unfortunately, for those of us who know the root of what happened there.)

What about food, for thousands of 5000 year lifespans and their kids. And their grandkids. And.. the food for the livestock, or the wild game

Or the bilgesnipes and dragons--well we can guess what happened to the dragons of Asgard in particular actually. If they were anything like Muspelheim's; and on a planet that size..? It doesn't take much to figure out Odin, Bor and their predecessors probably couldn't excuse not hunting a predator big enough to swallow people to extinction: not for much longer than they absolutely had to anyway.

What about fibers and leather for clothes.

How about waste management, for both the city and suburban areas? Sewers? Water filtration? Factories or slaughterhouses to process it all, and the means to support those things. Everything man made, is grown, processed or made somewhere.

We know they have these things, because we know they have and make their own alcohol (fermentation of grains, fruits, and more); as well as other things to eat: displayed in both T1 and TDW.

(The top image is from Thor's table flip scene in Thor 2011; while the one below it is from the tavern scene in the beginning of Thor: the Dark World.)

Meat, vegetables, fruit, grain, herbs, and seasonings are all represented on the tables above. While some might be imported (I really do wonder about the platters of golden apples myself:) it's not very likely all of them are. And it wouldn't make sense for them to have been imported from off world throughout their species development either. After all and again: they would have had to have survived and developed enough to GET TO, that stage in the first place.

You're also looking at Varnish in the shine of that table; smithing and metal working and ceramics in their table ware. Weaving either plant or animal fibers in their clothes, as well as the likely production of tannin (or it's equivalent) and leather working in every leather piece on screen. Candles can be made from varied sources, whether that's actual wax of some form, or condensed animal fat.

Oh, and if you find the enlarged version of those images: you'll also notice things like fine engraving and metal sculpture to the goblets and platters on the Thor 2011 table in particular.

Either way, the images above show us directly that unsurprisingly, they have come to understand whole other sub-levels of production: before you even get to the high-tech and magic ends of any of that to be able to reproduce it in that modern era.

As another side note related to that: the booze alone is pretty telling as to how far off the "Loki" series is on this mark, as well. Creators of current content 'conveniently forgot' that this is supposed to be a space faring, technologically advanced society (even if they're the social equivalent of medieval imperialist thugs .. lol sorry not sorry! That's literally how they're depicted... and honestly that really weird twist IS some of Asgard's most interesting and strange development) whose friends, allies and other examples of places visited DO and HAVE included Earth, Xandar, and six other 'realms' as their etymology names them: for literal millennia. Even taking the other, long established cultural influences and visitations aside? For a society who 5000 years ago was still porting whole armies to other planets to kick peoples asses? The idea they never discovered honey; or sugar especially even on the inside of a fermentation barrel for wine; OR how to process it into something like candy? Is more than just a -little- dumb in the stretch. Sugar often naturally starts to separate and crystallize during the fermentation process. Ask a vintner, or look it up if you don't believe me. Just sayin'.. just on Earth alone, we know sweets were discovered more than 8000 years ago. Eight thousand. And the only reason we haven't been able to confirm people older than that finding things like bee's hives?? Is because well.. that kind of thing rarely survives even that length of time at all, to be found in archeology in order to tell us more. I'll touch that and how it's pretty damned near impossible that 'Loki doesn't know wtf candy is' being 1k+ years himself, and a guy raised as an Asgardian prince & spymaster to boot later into the culture section I think, but mmm.. that whole bit still reeks of stupid, to me And more so after their own DB Cooper scene. Gonna say candy wasn't a snack in that era either? Cause if so; I got big shocking news, for those who think so... XD

In closing.. for this part?

As far as the world of Asgard goes, we have only been allowed to see a very small part of it: and even then? It is still undoubtedly massively larger than even what's implied: and definitely capable of supporting it's comparatively small base population of less than 10k people.

(Odin's subterranean vault reference: exterior)

The only reason we don't see even more of it; is the fact that films have a limited time to give you everything, and the story focuses on the royal family from the get go. And they live, in the heart of Asgard's capital city... so we largely don't see as much of that as weirdo world building fans like me would absolutely love to see in the process... and frankly; they gave plenty enough to start us off with.

The films would have suffered for having too much more of that, rather than the stories they were trying to tell.

The same.. I would love to know more: and I do wish the current teams paid the previous ones more respect by using what was already there and expanding on it: instead of making mismatched new things up, as they went.

The early creative teams really knew what they were doing back then.

(Asgard's defensive cannons defending against the Darkalfheim air raid in Thor the Dark World.)

And no, this isn't all they showed us, in the show and tell they did manage to give us over the course of years of work... far from it.

Hope you enjoyed part one! Maybe you learned or saw something you missed.. or have been inspired to watch the older films again..?

I know I often am.

#MCU #Asgard #MCU Asgard #Lore drops #research #scene dissection #location and culture dissection #world building #universe building #Lokiverse references #writing references #writing research #Youtube #MCU Lore #part one:#about the land more than the people on it #don't worry: we'll get to that #:3

40 notes · View notes

avelera · 2 years

Text

Slightly more detailed take on Thor Love and Thunder:

If you don't like it or at least enjoy the experience of the film, IMO, you just want a different movie. Like if Loki not being in it is a dealbreaker for you, welp, c'est la vie, he's not in it and you should go watch the Loki miniseries or rewatch the earlier films.

With Dr. Strange MoM I definitely had things I would have done differently and while it was visually interesting and had some moments I enjoyed, I definitely saw a lot of things I would have altered were I the creator.

I don't feel that with TL&T, it feels like a really uniquely told story, it's a joy to watch, I laughed out loud a bunch.

I think what I found most impressive about TL&T is that it reminded you that MCU movies are supposed to be fun. It's ok to laugh, it's ok to not take things too seriously. BUT, when it was serious, when it asked you to take it seriously, it did so with real-world things that really matter

Ok now I'm going to cut for spoilers:

When it has little kids given weapons to fight, I had a knee-jerk moment of, "Oh great, child soldier military propaganda, again?" But it's not that, the more I examined it. It's acknowledging a few complex things, like that children will not always be safe, but seemed to acknowledge it from the angle of someone who regularly interacts with children: the thing that makes them scared is not being able to fight back. The monsters they're fighting aren't soldiers, they're literally shadow spiders. They're scary but as a little kid I know I would have been much more scared of them were it not for a scene showing that little kids CAN defeat scary shadow spiders. It's not about war being great, it's about being able to stand up to the monster under your bed in a very children's literature sort of way. And that makes it fun too! Kids get to fight shadow monsters alongside Thor and WIN and help save the day! It was serious about the fear and helplessness of children and gave them a real way to fight back, with a child's bunny, not against soldiers and real world adult problems, because Thor as the adult takes care of that, but against the things that scare children in a way that I think I would have found empowering at a young age.

The humor landed for me! The screaming goats made me laugh Every Single Time. I was laughing and having a good time throughout, it was fast paced and engaging and wonderful COMIC BOOK MOVIE escapism.

But when it DID get serious it wasn't asking me to shed a tear over a magic space rock or something. It engaged with the pain of fighting cancer and of having a loved one fighting cancer. It engaged with the pain of a parent losing a child, and of a dying parent fearing they'll leave their child alone in the world. When the story was heavy it wasn't being heavy about the fantasy elements but about the real human elements and it did so in a sensitive and, I think, beautiful way. I heard a woman openly crying behind me in the theater and I definitely got choked up once or twice.

I thought the final moment of the "showdown" was one of the most emotionally intelligent takes on the tired old trope of the hero vs villain battle in the MCU. Why stick around when your loss is assured? Go to your loved ones. Choose love. Thor won by reminding Gorr not of his anger at the injustice of the world, but the love of the person he wanted to share it with. And I'm glad the wish wasn't used for Jane, or anyone else, it would have been OOC for Gorr. I thought the choice he made was beautiful and the moment didn't cheapen other deaths in the MCU by making it seem like there's a wishing well somewhere, but it also didn't make the grim point that loved ones can never come back. The miracle was reserved for a child. One child, who died a refugee in the desert. It's the wish-fulfillment of magic without making a magic wand that will fix every problem. But it was achieved because Thor showed his emotional maturity too and chose what was more important, which reminded Gorr to choose what was more important.

That's about all I've got for thoughts for now, but I liked it a lot, I think more than I liked Ragnarok, and I'd definitely watch it again.

#thor love and thunder #thor spoilers #maggie rambles

403 notes · View notes

hugsandchaos · 2 months

Text

The Last Jotun AU

This AU is based off of the Super Hero Squad show. From what I remember, and rewatched, frost giants are mentioned and in the show, but as literal giants of ice. The word or name “jotun” never seemed to come up. Not only that, but there’s a bit of context that hints that the frost giants and Asgardians were rather friendly with each other before “Oh, Brother!”. I know that they’re typically the same thing, but that got me thinking.

Yeah, it’s possible that I’m just overthinking things and this is stupid and the frost giants are just called that so there was no need for the word “jotun” to even be made let alone used, but what if that was simply not the reason why? What if it’s because Jotuns were a separate race and not the frost giants in the show? But if that’s the case, why wasn’t it ever revealed that Loki was a jotun? Maybe it’s because they’re extinct. Maybe no one ever knew they existed at all.

Or maybe... Just maybe... the frost giants in the show served the jotuns, keeping them secret from the world at their request, but something happened. Or rather someone. That someone attacked the jotuns. But they somehow missed one. A very young child. The damage would’ve resulted in the frost giants unable to give the only surviving jotun the proper care needed, so they’d turn to the Asgardians and ask for help, placing a spell over him to make him look like one of them. The king and queen, despite already having a child, would take in the orphaned boy despite not being told where exactly he came from. Only that they’d found him wandering in the snow crying.

That boy would be raised by them alongside their biological son. He’d grow up to see the frost giants during meetings and would eventually learn what he is, where he came from, but never said a word to his parents because they never did either. When he started visiting the frost giants on his own, the spell would wear off and he’d use it again himself when he returned. He’d grow to appreciate magic. He’d grow his abilities beyond his family’s knowledge. He’d meet a doctor on a similar power level as him. He’d have one name, and three titles that go with it.

Loki, the god of mischief

Loki, the god of stories

Loki, the last jotun

Listen, Super Hero Squad hardly gave Loki any depth, so I do what I want!

#au #the last jotun #the last jotun AU #Loki #loki odinson #loki laufeyson #super hero squad show #super hero squad #super hero squad Loki #shs loki

3 notes · View notes

roleplayfinder · 6 months

Text

Hi all! I’m on the hunt for some new partners (not replacing anyone of course) that are interested in angsty, romantic and, of course, dramatic plots. Aside from that though, I am 25 which means all of my partners NEED to be 18+. Also, another lil request if possible: I just moved to the PST and would love some partners over here or who are at least awake during these hours, not a requirement tho!

We can discuss rules, limits and triggers privately if we decide to move forward. Also, when it comes to ooc chatter I don’t mind fangirling or general chit chat, but what does bother me is holding conversations for days on end with no replies or no mention of replies. I find making friends through roleplay a bit awkward so if it happens organically I’m here for it, but I don’t want it to be forced. I hope that doesn’t make me sound harsh.

Right now I’m specifically on the hunt for four fandoms/pairings: Criminal Minds, Stranger Things, MCU & Teen Wolf.

In CM I’d be looking for someone to play Spencer Reid opposite of my character, Olivia Chandler. Olivia is a Gale Weathers type if you know Scream at all, but FAR less of a bitch. I think there’s a lot of longevity for this pair as Olivia is afraid of commitment whereas I see Spencer just hesitant when it comes to romance at all, especially if we set this after Maeve. There’s a lot to her backstory that I think could make for an interesting twist a little further along, but we could do different cases and such and it would be fun!

While I haven’t watched S4 of ST yet (atp I’m just waiting for S5 to rewatch all of it lol), I know most of what happens, but this plot would take place more of s2-s3 and maybe in an AU space s4. I’d be playing an original character, Nancy and Mike’s troubled cousin from New York, and would want to pair her alongside Billy Hargrove. I think they’re ‘fuck this small town’ attitudes would work well along with other things.

In the MCU I’m looking for someone to play as Loki. Don’t fret if you’re not completely caught up on the more recent marvel projects, as the plot(s) I’m looking for would take place preferably pre-Thor. Pre-thor would be lighthearted until we potentially see Loki discover his true heritage and what that means. What does it mean to him? What does it mean to a girl he’s grown up with (my character)? What does it mean to those around him? Themes like that! I’m totally open to other ideas as well and will definitely send you info on my oc when we connect, but this is the basic plot I have in my head rn!

As for Teen Wolf, I’d love for someone to play Derek Hale against my canon-divergent version of Paige Krasikeva. For those who don’t remember, Paige was teenage Derek’s girlfriend who was scratched by an alpha and Derek had to kill himself. In my version, Derek thinks he killed her but Peter brought her back to life and sent her off with her parents who moved. Now she’s back in season 3A as an adult music teacher at the high school with no memories of Derek or werewolves.

If any of this sounds interesting, let me know or add me on discord toxicdeliquency#7795

#submission #eighteen and over #angst #angst roleplay #angst rp #romance #romance roleplay #romance rp #drama #drama roleplay #drama rp #pst #criminal minds #stranger things #mcu #teen wolf

5 notes · View notes

iamanartichoke · 3 years

Text

I need spoilers for episodes 5 and 6. They've got to be out there. I can't take two more weeks of this.

I think what's giving me this vaguely ill feeling, right now, is the sinking realization that there was no grander plan behind Loki's getting drunk, breaking the Timepad, just general kinda incompetent behavior. There were theories and there were hints and subtext and it amounted to nothing.

Cut for spoilers/negativity, sorry.

Basically I'm getting major "that opening scene in IW was just too full of holes, the-sun-will-shine-on-us-again, one little dagger, Loki has to have something up his sleeve - oh .... no, no he's really dead, there was no greater plan" flashbacks.

It's so incredibly frustrating for Loki's narrative to come so close to something profound, again and again, only to swing and miss at the last second. The pieces are there. The threads are there. And tptb keep choosing to just ... sit on them, bc idk, it's easier for Loki's complexity to remain unexplored?

Tom says that episodes 4 and 5 are where the series takes off and I'm just like, you can't wait until the second to last episodes to have something happen! You've been dropping breadcrumbs since episode 1 - episodes 4 and 5 are where you start to sweep them up! You've only got 6 total!

Also, I was really interpreting Loki having confused friendship with romance, bc that's what makes the most sense for his character but then there was this, and the aforementioned 'oh so this really is just surface-level material and I shouldn't even waste my time examining the subtext and context clues' feeling occurs. (Note - this article isn't overly flattering to Loki, bc of course it isn't, so just be aware of that before reading.)

So, yeah, it's just - it's not exactly the content of this episode that has me so upset. I can live with bad plots and dangling threads. Lord knows I tolerate other, arguably much more terrible tv shows for the sake of the parts I like (Reign, Once Upon a Time, a few seasons of Pretty Little Liars, just to name a few).

It's not the content. It's the refusal of tptb to take Loki's character to the depths he deserves, especially since they promised us that this series would really explore his identity and his gender and all of these things that the fandom mostly has wanted. It's frustration in the overall way the surface-level plot makes Loki's characterization suffer. And it's definitely the trigger of those feelings of heartbreak and fury and denial and grief that followed IW. I practically have ptsd from that death scene.

(I realize that these are hefty words to use to describe one's reaction to fiction, especially in the sense that an emotional downward spiral is being legitimately triggered by a tv show, but - look, everyone already knew I was cringe, okay, so leave me alone with my feelings.)

I think that if the show had more episodes, there would have been hope for it? Like all the breadcrumbs that have been dropped implied lots of fascinating things to be explored, but they just didn't have room to explore them as thoroughly as they'd need to in order for all of it to have an impact. Loki/Sylvie does not feel earned. Mobius turned on the TVA super quickly (so did B-15, for that matter). Ravonna went from kinda sus to outright villain in, like, ten minutes. And Loki and Mobius's friendship didn't exactly come out of nowhere, bc it was set up as the outcome from the first episode (in my opinion) but it did happen much too quickly. It wasn't earned, either. And the reason I'm harping on this is because these are all really good character journeys that could have been done so much better - yeah, even Loki/Sylvie - if they had just paced them better, used more of their own subtext, and had a few more episodes in which to develop the characters alongside the complicated plot.

(Yeah, there may be a season 2, but I'm not here for waiting a whole nother year or so for it to be filmed, produced, and released only for it to continue to ultimately not meet my expectations.)

So, yes. I'm sorry for the negativity; I realize I went from "hey I mostly liked this! It wasn't that bad!" to "I will ragequit and kill everyone in this story and then myself" in, like, a few hours but - well. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I'll most likely rewatch it again tonight. I may or may not cry it out and then do my best to enjoy the remaining two episodes for what they are, not for what they could or might be. Once the rawness of all of this fades, I'll focus on the things I liked and come up with my own headcanons, I suppose. Or maybe I'll overall change my mind again. Idk. Whatever. I just need a glass of wine and a few more xanax tbh. (Great. Now fiction is going to give me a drug problem as well lmfao.)

Also - it is actualy really, really funny that, if you think about it, it turns out that a fanfic by Tom isn't actually all that good. (I'm being facetious, but the general sentiment is true.) I'm sorry, Tom. I know you're excited about this and you said this episode was your favorite, so I hope you don't see some of these reactions (either here, or on twitter, or reddit, or wherever he may end up) and feel bad about yourself/your project. I guess there's just no universal cup of tea for everybody.

#loki tv series spoilers #loki spoilers #loki series spoilers #loki series negativity #loki pokey artichokey #no i will not be accepting constructive criticism #(but i mean if this makes you mad and you wanna come at me feel free; i could do with #verbally eviscerating someone. i think it'd make me feel better)#(also i'm not joking - if episode 5/6 spoilers leak or have leaked please link me)#tag rambles

57 notes · View notes

diamondcitydarlin · 2 years

Note

So I actually...enjoyed Loki the show...but I prefer Lokius as a ship and I find your takes on the episodes really interesting! You mention things I hadn't thought of before. tbh I didn't go into the show expecting much in the first place, maybe that explains it lol

Hey no shame, I genuinely envy anyone who was able to find entertainment value in the last three episodes because I spent most of all of them in a silent, perplexed rage lmao. Like, I do get ship/writing preference envy. Do you know how BADLY I wish my brain favored pairings that actually had canon support and romantic advancement??? Not only that, but I genuinely still feel that the first two episodes (and even to some extent the third, in parts) hold up extremely well and, on their own, are pretty good pieces of work. I rewatch them regularly, so that says something.

What it comes down to for me -as it always does in these cases- is the lost potential. What we ended up getting after the first three (generally) strong episodes is not consistent with what was established to begin with, and what was established to begin with was a story that focused on Loki's development as a character alongside his new partner in solving Time Crimes, Agent Mobius, meanwhile both of their preconceived notions about 'how things should work' is unraveling around them along with the multiverse as a whole. Of course it's absolutely possible that I get a little too attached to my own ideas of what should happen next, but then I've enjoyed a great deal of media that took turns other than what I would've chosen- still quality writing choices though that I could respect and didn't feel the need to criticize.

What also doesn't help me is that I watched Wandavision and Winter Falcon (what I lovingly call that show lol) prior to Loki's release and I find that both of these shows were significantly stronger in quality than Loki's series ended up being, so expectations for me were perhaps a bit higher than they should have been. That's not to say Wandavision or Winter Falcon are perfect, I'm still angry about Evan Peters' Pietro and the Ralph Bohner nonsense (tho I'm a Pietro truther and assuming we haven't seen the last of him...that's a different post lol) and Winter Falcon, while having imo pretty solid writing that flows well, is still a little predictable and had some moments that made me roll my eyes a bit (Bucky just so happened to kill the son of his veteran friend who just so happened to be in the same place he was at the right time to get killed??? A WOC leading a group for the humane treatment of human beings is a terrorist?? whahahahaaaaattt??? Bear in mind I might be missing info here, I'm not as schooled on these characters as gay trickster goth) but uh...neither of them ever go completely off the rails and manage to turn into a different show entirely halfway through only 6 episodes. If that were the case Agatha would've just replaced Wanda as the focal character completely instead of getting her own show (that she absolutely deserves!! BTW!!!) and that actually would've made sense and maybe even been funny and...kinda sorta happened but in a way that didn't suck. If Winter Falcon had been like Loki the show would've just entirely pivoted to focus the story on John Walker by the fourth episode and either Bucky or Sam would've been sidelined except to show up to maybe save one of the characters and make a quip. I'm uh...glad that wasn't the case, but you see my point lol.

Lastly, I guess I just feel compelled to share my ideas of what the show could've been, because the potential is just unREAL. Yeah sure I could just shut up and accept that the show wasn't for me and move on with my life, but I'm neurodivergent and I fixate so here we are.

#lokius #loki critical

12 notes · View notes

sweetsunflowerkisses · 3 years

Text

the library.

Pairing: Loki (MCU) x Fem!Reader

Genre: Angst (??)

Warnings: Implied Character Death , Mentions of Loki’s faked death, Descriptions of falling?, Cannon Divergence, Making a bunch of shit up about Asgardian relationships and Asgardians in general? Angst, Bad writing TvT

Summary: In your final moments you reflect on your relationship with Loki and wish that you could be back at the library with him.

Word Count: 1.9k (It’s kinda short TvT)

a/n: I was rewatching Thor and the first avengers movie and this idea popped into my head and I kinda hate myself for writing it :D Also I’m working on Secret Identities Are Hard To Keep, I promise TvT

Falling. You had always wondered what it would feel like going from a height like this. It was almost euphoric, the wind pushing against your back as you fell, carrying your tears up with it. These were your final moments, you knew that, there was no surviving a fall from this height, not even with the strength provided by the asgardian blood that ran through your veins. So you did what most people did in their final moments, reflected on how you got here.

It all started centuries ago, in the golden palace on Asgard, the place where you were raised as a noble, your father being one of the Allfather’s most trusted advisers. Your memory of those years were riddled with the overwhelming feelings of loneliness, your only company being the vast array books in the palace library. You were lonely until the day you met him.

It was a day like any other, your father was tied up in various meetings with the Allfather and other important asgardians and like always you were camped out in the library. Through the years that you had spent here it had become your safe space and in the very back in a small corner was your place of happiness there was a small emerald chaise lounge with just the right amount of light and all of the books you had ever enjoyed stacked up around it. What you didn’t expect was for someone to already be occupying your oh so sacred spot.

He was stretched out on the lounge, his thin form but tall form draping over the edge a book in hand. You knew who he was of course, you were a noble after all, the dark prince, the forgotten prince, the boy that spent his years in his brother's shadow. In all of your 400+ years you don’t think you had ever seen him so peaceful, so you did what you usually did around people, you turned to leave. What you weren’t expecting was to feel the feather light touch of a hand on your wrist.

You looked up your eyes meeting his soft green ones. You wondered how he knew about this corner, about you and your time here, but pushed the thought aside as your gazes locked. There was something there, an unspoken understanding from one outsider to the other. He smiled softly, pulling a book out of seemingly nowhere and handing it to you wordlessly. You smiled in thanks and watched as he left, his green cape swaying behind him. And that was how it started.

You would have expected falling to be something that was over quickly yet it somehow seemed like the longest moment of your life. You knew you were getting closer though, you could see the tops of other buildings now, so as you waited you went back to thinking.

After that fateful meeting your relationship with the raven haired prince slowly started to change, for nearly fifty years the two of you would simply give each other books you thought the other would like, starting off wordlessly and eventually progressing into bigger and bigger conversations until the two of you would spend hours in the library together, animatedly talking about whatever book you were interested in that day, no doubt blowing off countless responsibilities your fathers had begun to place on you now that you were growing older.

It was around a hundred years after your first meeting that your relationship crossed from friendly conversations to stolen kisses and secret meetings. The two of you were around 500 and 600 now, both preparing for your futures. Loki trained to become both a warrior and a king, despite the limited possibility of him ascending to the throne, and you training alongside Her Majesty the Queen and other female nobles, preparing to become the perfect wife and partner for the next generation of Asgardian nobles. Yet you still found time for each other, spending as much time as you could together, only finding comfort in one another.

It was when the two of you hit 900 and 800 that Loki became consumed by his anger. It was in secret of course, as most of his emotions often were, but his emotions were always something you and you alone had the privilege of seeing. By now you and the pale prince were an official couple, Odin and Frigga having blessed the relationship, allowing Loki to court you and eventually allowing the two of you to biome some form of official, not married, but official enough to be allowed to share a bedchamber without getting odd looks.

In the past Loki had always confessed his anger to you, never allowing it to influence his actions, reveling in the catharsis he achieved by ranting to you as you played with his hair, but now, as he watched his arrogant brother become more and more loved by the people, as he watched his brother be promised the throne despite his hotheadedness and obsession with being a warrior, something within him snapped. Now he would yell for hours on end, often trashing your chambers, rather than his usual soft kisses that were full of love, his kisses were messy, needy and full of all the rage he could never show. It was in everything he did every emotion tainted by the anger that masked the true emotion. But you accepted him, every bit of him and so you did what you could. You matched his energy but also reminded him that you were still there, still there to give him new books, still there to play with his hair and still there for him to lean on.

As you fell your thoughts wandered back to the present, you were nearly there, you could hear the screams below, and you could see the chitauri army and the chaos that they brought with them. You could see the faint outline of Iron Man landing on the tower and your thoughts once again returned to Loki and everything that brought you here.

After the exile of Thor and the era of Loki as King you thought maybe everything would stop, the looks and the whispers that everyone would finally stop treating Loki like he was just a liar and a danger, you yearned for and prayed for the return of the Loki you fell in love with. You were distraught when Thor returned, telling you that Loki’s ascension to the throne was all based on lies, that he had been responsible for the frost giants that had gotten in the palace, that he had tried to kill his friends, that he had tried to kill his brother. And that he was now plotting something far worse. Somehow, as much as you didn’t want to, you knew it was true, but despite everything you knew that your feelings wouldn’t change. So you fought Thor, or at least tried, not being able to actually bring yourself to deal any damage to the god, too overwhelmed with the truth of it all, so you ran. You ran back to the place where it all started, back to the library, back to your corner of safety.

You found out he was dead the next day, Thor sought you out to tell you himself, yet somehow there was the nagging feeling in the back of your brain that Thor was wrong, and boy were you right.

It was 2012 when he finally resurfaced, you had spent most of your days hiding from the asgardian population, from the prying eyes of everyone who figured you had something to do with the events of the previous year. You were once again faced with the fact that your feelings remained unchanged for him, that despite the reality of what he was doing, trying to enslave a whole population you would still do anything for him. It was Heimdall who alerted you of his return, but it was the Queen who convinced you to go to him, to try and bring back the love that you had spent nearly 600 of your years devoted to. So you did.

You landed on the rooftop of Stark Tower, admiring the pretty pattern the bifrost has burned into the gravel. It wasn’t long before Loki found you, after all the Bifrost was kinda hard to miss. It was emotional for you, seeing the man you loved after spending so long thinking he might be dead. You approached him slowly, he rushed to you in return, overjoyed at the sight of you, telling you of his grand plan, inviting you to join him, to be his queen, to rule over Midgard with him. It was tempting and for a moment, just a single moment you considered it. But you refused, nearly begging him to stop the madness, to return to you, attempting to reassure him that no matter what you would still be there, that you would still love him despite the things he’d done in the past few years. You told him how that while you didn’t quite understand everything that you could listen and love him, that you would give him everything the world never did. Yet, it was when you looked up into his eyes that you realised that something was truly wrong, that your prince might truly be gone, rather than the normal green that usually stared down at you a piercing blue met your gaze.

You backed up slowly, this was the man you loved yes but there was something else in him too, something that was evil and corrupting, something you were sure would infect you too if you joined him. And it was backing up that had been your mistake, the platform on top of Stark Tower was by no means small but you had simply landed too close to the edge, and as you stepped back you felt nothing and you began to fall.

Loki lunged, moving faster than he ever had, just barely grasping your left hand in time. And you watched as his eyes flickered in between his green and the unnatural blue and that's when you realised, he was scared. But you were slipping and his grip simply wasn’t enough. You smiled softly, knowing what was going to happen next, tears beginning to stream down your face, and with your last words you simply whispered “I love you.”.

You fell, leaving Loki only clutching air, but then he felt something else as his fist closed around the air where your hand had just been. He knew what it was almost immediately and looked down to find the gold band with a single emerald in it sat in his hand. The ring that had adorned your ring finger for the past three years, the proof that despite it all you loved him. And you smiled.

You knew it was the end now, the sound of cars and people louder than before, and you wondered what would have happened if you hadn’t been in the library that day. With your very last moments you imagined yourself on the emerald chaise, surrounded by books with Loki on your lap, playing with his hair as he read to you and you smiled for the last time

#loki #loki x reader #loki x reader angst #loki laufeyson #loki laufeyson x reader #loki x you #loki x y/n #loki laufeyson x you #loki laufeyson x y/n #marvel imagine #marvel x reader #marvel x y/n #marvel x you #marvel #loki fanfic #loki imagine #loki laufeyson imagine

51 notes · View notes

yana125 · 3 years

Text

10 fandoms, 10 characters, 10 tags

Thanks @azorell for tagging me! :D

1. Supernatural – Dean. I’m not writing an essay again X’D

2. Bleach – Rukia. The first fictional character I ever related to (not the most, but as I said, I’m not writing an essay again). She was my… big sister figure as a teen. I love her and she’s beautiful and Kubo did dirty to you in the last few chapters, honey, you deserved better.

3. Star Wars – Ahsoka. She’s just the best. I remember watching the Clone Wars movie and thinking how annoying she was, but then the writing and the character development was so good, she quickly became my favourite character. What did we do to deserve you, Dave Filoni? You single handedly saved the prequel era and the whole franchise. (Also Rex, but one fandom-one character so…)

4. Stargate – Sam. My parents are big sci-fi fans, so Stargate was one of the first sci-fi series I watched as a kid (alongside Sliders), and I loved it the most. Sam was one of the first role models I ever had, because maybe she was the only female member of the SG1, but she was never less than them. She really was just one of the main characters who happened to be a female. In an interview Amanda Tapping said that the writers tried to make Sam more feminine, but Amanda told them to write her as they wrote any other character, she would add the femininity. She’s a soldier and a scientist and a badass who blew up a sun, she has no time for misogynistic bullshit X’D

5. Marvel -> Avengers Academy – Janet Van Dyne. I could’ve chosen MCU – Tony, but AvAc is (was TT_TT) THE healthiest Marvel franchise. The characters were well written, they actually TALKED with each other, and they were actively building bonds. I could also say Tony, Steve and even Loki with AvAc, but Janet. Jan. She’s THE character. Maybe I liked her so much because she reminded me of Stella from Winx. I even cosplayed her once. (No, there are no photos X’D)

Speaking of Stella…

6. Winx – Stella. Sunshine girl. Bit of an airhead. She may be a princess, but she’s princess-y in a very kind way. She doesn’t really care about status and she’s protective of her friends. (What the hell, Fate…) Maybe I liked her so much because she reminded me of Sailor Venus.

Speaking of Sailor Venus…

7. Sailor Moon – Minako. I think I have a Magical Girl type. (Should I also say that Cornelia was kinda my favourite from W.I.T.C.H., but I’ve only read a few chapters of the comics and only seen a few episodes of the cartoon series, so I can’t really tell?) I can’t decide which Minako I like the most. Manga Minako, 90’s anime Minako and PGSM Minako are all unique, can’t choose between them.

8. Mysterious Cities of Gold – Zia. Looking back, I think I liked her because she was a really strong character on her own unique way. Maybe she got captured a lot and fainted even more times, but she’s a proud Inka girl who would never betray her people and would do everything to keep her friends safe. I… have my issues with Zia in the new seasons, but that may be because I fixated so much on this series as a kid (I rewatched it like a hundred times until the VHS tapes lost their will to live) that I have a really hard time accepting the new seasons and their more modern way of writing. (I was honestly offended when Zia let that rabbit go in season 2 when they were hungry because ‘Oh! Poor rabbit!’, while old episodes Zia helped the boys hunt down a giant lizard that they then ate around a campfire.)

9. Voltron – Lance. Yes, Voltron. Legendary Defender. Only the first few seasons are valid, when the writing was still consistent. I still remember that sketch of Shiro and Lance holding up the LGBT sign, show runners! Damn you, show runners! They formed the wings of Voltron, you asses!

10. One Piece – Vivi. VIVIIIIII!!!!!!! TT_TT This scene will forever make me tear up. (One Piece tends to do that to me.) I am honestly afraid of what would happen to her in future chapters.

2 notes · View notes

thesaltysocialworker · 4 years

Text

Are you with me?

While I intend to complete the third piece of my Loki piece using the lyrics from The Greatest Showmen, I was rewatching crimson peak the other day and another muse hit me. There is just something so appealing about Thomas Sharpe.

Are you with me?

Wordcount: 4323

Warnings: Smut, character death.

Synopsis: Reader is a world renowned psychic who met Thomas Sharpe during an investigation of the infamous Crimson Peak. After growing closer with Thomas, the reader buys the home and the two can no longer ignore their feelings for each other.

“This is your home, love?”

The cab driver stared at the massive, gothic home in disbelief as you dug through your wallet for the proper change. “Yes, Sir. This is it.” There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as you offered the older man your money but he was still drawn towards the home. “Is it- comfortable?” he asked, causing you to sigh under your hat and sunglasses; attire that had been meant to hide your identity. “You can outright ask me if it’s haunted, Sir. It is the infamous Crimson Peak. We all know the stories.”

“Bad things happened here. Even if it’s not haunted some of that has to resonate here.” He accepted your money, and you slid off of the leather seats of the car. As you stepped out into the sunlight, the cab driver lingered to count his money. He got out of the car, helping you with your bags. “Wait… I recognize you! You’re the psychic! You’re y/n!” He announced, a hint of excitement in his voice. You thought you’d be able to make it all the way home from the airport without being recognized, damn! You smiled kindly as you pulled off your hat and glasses, spinning around on your door-step. “It’s me, y/n. The owner of Crimson Peak.”

“No wonder you’re so interested in owning this house! We all wondered who’d be mad enough to buy this place and put so much money into renovations. Are you hoping to commune with something here? Release some demons?” You glanced at the house, it looked different now that the landscapers had finished their work. It certainly looked more approachable. “I’m a psychic, Sir. Not an exorcist.” You announced, opening the massive front doors and stepping inside. The man placed your bags into the entryway, and you noticed his hands were shaking as he did so. He glanced around, as if waiting for something to jump out at him. You moved to offer him a few folded bills for his tip and when you reached towards him the fireplace roared to life in the background behind you. In front of the fireplace was an illuminated shadow figure of a man.

The driver shrieked, scaring you more than the shadow figure and bolted out the front door without closing them to the chilly spring air. The last you saw of the driver, his tires were squealing out of your driveway and he was tearing up the gravel of the drive. You turned to look back at the fireplace; the tall, shadow figure took a few soundless steps forward to reveal a pale man with dark hair, handsomely chiseled features and bright blue eyes. “Damnit, Thomas. We’ve talked about this! You can’t go scaring off everyone in Cumberland and making them believe this place is legitimately haunted if you wish to be left alone.” You sighed, moving to shut the doors and bolt them. “You should’ve heard what he was thinking about you. Lewd, disgusting things.”

You slid out of your coat and tossed it over a near-by chair before moving to Thomas. You stopped, setting a hand on his shoulder. “It’s 2020 now, Thomas. Men aren’t as dashingly old fashioned or as noble as you.” His smile was tense, but it was there. His blue eyes meeting yours. You could feel his longing for you, feel it resonating through your chest and causing your pulse to race. You cleared your throat. “I should bring my things upstairs, start putting them away.” You announced, breaking the tension between the two of you. “We’ll be having company in a few days.” You called over your shoulder as you moved to lift the heavy leather bags and past the massive white marble fireplace to the elevator. “Oh?” Thomas asked curiously. “I’m inviting some friends over now that the renovations are done and it’s how we want it to look.”

You went up the few floors to the third floor, Thomas was already there waiting for you. “No Ghost Hunters, right? I find them tiring and demanding.” He moved alongside me, causing me to chuckle. “No Ghost Hunters. No other psychics. Just my friends.” His master suite had become your room, and you set your bags on the bed before you began unpacking them. You and Thomas spoke about your trip in America, and you allowed him to look at your cellphone at the pictures you’d taken- mostly with him in my mind- knowing he was bound to the house yet he longed to see how the world had changed. You paused, sitting on the end of the bed and staring openly at him as he struggled with the I-phone and made comments under his breath about how New York had changed.

When you’d first made the decision to do a walkthrough of Crimson Peak for a Television series about Haunted Houses around the World; you didn’t know what to expect. The place was dilapidated and you worried about the safety of the cast and crew. From the rumors of the town’s people in Cumberland, the house had a portal to hell inside. You’d done your research and knew about the murders that happened there, so you were cautious. What you didn’t expect was a lone spirit there, a confused and exceptionally lonely man named Thomas Sharp. He had been shocked that you could see him, speak to him. Something about him had caused you to lie to your producer; there was nothing there you could sense. You had no desire to cause unease with or exploit Thomas, who seemed easily startled to begin with. It that moment, you had earned his trust.

You had visited a few times after that, alone. You sat with Thomas and spoke with him at length about the history of the house, his family, what had really happened at Crimson Peak. Although in the history books he had been painted as nothing more than a heartless murderer, you had begun to realize that perhaps he wasn’t heartless and just easily manipulated; especially when it came to his sister, Lucille. “She’s not still here, is she?” you asked, hoping to never come across her. Thomas was melancholy about your question. “No, it’s just me now.” You had almost wondered if he was afraid to move on, and wondered what he was hanging onto. But recently you had begun to wonder if he was hanging onto you. Recently, in a turn of events even you couldn’t understand or anticipate, he had begun to be able to physically touch you. You’d never seen anything like it in any of your investigations or home visits and you’d had your abilities since you were three years old.

You’d returned so frequently that you decided to use your new found fortune from television and appearances to buy the house. It was the first time you’d seen Thomas happy ever. He wasn’t even upset about the renovations even though you’d tried to include him in those renovations just to be considerate. It was his home, too. At first you assumed he was just happy to have some company, but then it became clear that he was happy to have your company.

“Are you well?” He asked, lingering over you. “Tired. Jet-lagged.” You sighed, opening your eyes and glancing up at Thomas. He looked uncomfortable. “Your friend Derrick sent you a message.” He handed you the phone. Thomas didn’t care much for Derrick; especially once he found out the two of you had previously dated. You knew Derrick was an idiot, you weren’t sure why you kept him around or even communicated with him anymore. But somehow he had managed to find out about your house warming party and invited himself. You sighed, looking at the phone then tossing it somewhere onto the bed. “Great.” You muttered, rubbing your eyes and moving to sit up.

“I’m going up to my work shop.” Thomas whispered, refusing to look at you as he turned to go. Aside from fixing the roofing and the heating up there; it was the one room you left untouched for him. It was his space and you didn’t intrude unless he invited you in. “Thomas, please don’t go.” You called out to him, and he lingered in the doorway between the hallway and your room. His fingers gripped the polished wood of the doorway. “I’m not sure if you’ve realized this, y/n. But I’m in love with you. I know I can never go you a normal life like Derrick, but he will never care for you as much as I do. No one will ever love you like I do.” With that, he was gone. He disappeared into thin air. You knew that took a lot for him, though he’d began to trust you he was still closed lipped about his feelings.

You had to do something, you were sharing a house with him and neither of you would be leaving anytime soon. You were bound by the amount of money you’d put into the renovations, and he was bound by death. But it was more than that, you were bound to Thomas and he was bound to you and somehow you felt distance would never change that.

“Thomas, are you with me?” It was how you had started every conversation with him when you called out to him; especially when you first started visiting the house and he had been shy about showing himself to you. You stood in the entryway in your little black dress, waiting for your first guest to arrive. He didn’t come, he didn’t answer. “Thomas, it’s been twenty-four hours. End the radio silence.” You called out in frustration to nothing. He was ignoring you, he was still mad or upset. You’d tried to speak to him numerous times and there was nothing. God, please don’t let him have moved on. The thought made your blood run cold. The realization hit you, you weren’t ready to let him go.

There was a knock at the door, and you moved over the wooden floor in your favorite red heels. When you opened the doors you were not surprised to find your first guest was Derrick. You had secretly hoped he wouldn’t come; but you knew that your new found fame was too tempting to him. “Wow, y/n! You look great!” He took you in from head-to-toe with dark eyes, grinning as he stepped in without being invited. “Thanks, you’re early.” You closed the doors, and as you spun around you glanced up to the intricate staircase to find Thomas watching the two of you; glowering from the shadows as he leaned on the handrail. “Damn, it’s cold in here. It’s colder in here than it is outside!” Derrick laughed, rubbing his upper-arms. You didn’t dare tell him that it was because the resident ghost was jealous of him.

“So, this is Crimson Peak, huh?” He glanced around as if he expected to see a body lying on the floor in a chalk outline. “You did a really nice job renovating the house.” You offered him the tour, showing him the modernized kitchen and the living areas; the backyard that you’d put so much landscaping into. You moved into the office/library and you had framed some black and white newspaper copies of when the murders at Crimson peak first came to light. You had black and white photos of Thomas and Lucille in the office. Derrick read the newspapers, shaking his head. “I can’t believe you’re comfortable living here, knowing all this.” He lifted his cellphone to take a picture of one of the newspaper stories. You saw it in slow motion, Thomas appeared and slapped the phone out of Derrick’s hand. Thomas had done it with such purpose that it didn’t just hit the floor and shatter; it fell into the fireplace with an active fire. Derrick looked around in disbelief. “One of them is here, aren’t they?” His voice waivered as he spoke, his hands shaking.

“He’s so brave, heart of a lion.” Thomas whispered, he wasn’t present but he whispered it in your ear and it caused goose flesh to form over your arms. You glanced around, but he still wasn’t present. “Yes.” It was all you had to say, and Derrick practically flew out of the room. “I need a drink, this shit is freaking me out!” He called, taking the steps two at a time. You exited the library to follow him when Thomas stopped you at the top of the landing. “I would’ve tripped him but if he dies here we’ll be stuck with him forever.” He was bitter when he spoke, but his dark sarcasm actually made you laugh a little. “It’s good to see you, Thomas.” You reached out to him, and he vanished again without saying anything. You found yourself hurt, and released a heavy sigh as you went downstairs. The doorbell rang and your next set of visitors had arrived.

Your friends mingled over drinks and appetizers while it felt like you gave a million tours of the house. Thomas had gone missing again and his silence made you hit the champagne a little heavier than you wanted too. You’d retreated to one of the back hallways near midnight to go to the bathroom when you ran into Derrick again. His hand went to your hip, you could smell the alcohol on his breath. “You know why I’m here, y/n. I know things ended badly for us last time but I’d like to give it another try. I’m willing to move here to be with you.” He tried to press his lips to yours, and you stopped him. “It didn’t work the first three times, Derrick. It’s not going to work the fourth time because you want to be seen with a celebrity.”

Derrick sputtered with laughter, stepping back from you. “I’m the best you’ll ever get, and this is my last offer.” You felt insecurity creeping into your soul, but the sound of someone clearing their throat from the background made you turn around. “She’s not interested, she’s spoken for.” Thomas’ voice rang out in the hallway. You glanced over your shoulder and found Thomas taking a few slow steps towards Derrick. Derrick looked perplexed. “Who the hell are you?” You couldn’t let Thomas tell him the truth. “Thomas Sharp the third, the great grandchild of the owner of the house.”

“You’re choosing the greasy, thin bloke over me, huh?” Derrick smirked like he’d just won a battle. You couldn’t have stopped Thomas if you wanted too at that point. He was enraged. “Get out of my house. NOW.” He roared. The lights started to flicker, the chandelier in the entryway shook as the fires raged out of control. The framed photos on the wall shook, and Derrick panicked. You heard him muttering ‘holy shit’ as he raced out of the hallway. You could hear some of your guests screaming, you heard footfalls racing towards the exit. Then there was silence. You and Thomas stared at each other from opposite ends of the hallway. “Do you feel better now?” you asked, your hands falling to your hips. Thomas exhaled, as though he was physically releasing the stress from his body. “Yes, I do. Almost.”

He was toe-to-toe with you at a speed that your human brain, especially intoxicated, couldn’t comprehend. Then his cold hands were on you, one of his hands moved to your lower back while the other caught your chin and pulled you towards him. Your lips met his, and you felt like the wind had been knocked out of you. You were going to push him away as your hands found his chest but then you relaxed against him. Your hands slid up his chest and rest on his shoulders. His hands had begun to move over your body, and you let out a moan into his mouth that you never intended. You were embarrassed. How were you supposed to act around him? He wouldn’t have been your first lover, your first time with a ghost but not a man. You were no wilting flower, while the women of his era were not meant to own their sexuality.

Thomas lifted you, holding you in his arms and carrying you up the stairs like he would a bride. The two of you made it to the bedroom, and he set you down gently. “Are you sure about this, y/n? I don’t think I could bear it if we followed through with this and you had a change of heart later.” He uttered, his fingers lingering on the zipper of your dress. The alcohol made you honest. “I can live without you, Thomas. But I don’t want too.” You whispered, your hands cupping his face. He pressed his lips to yours again, tugging the zipper of your dress to hard that your dress ripped. You shimmied out of it, kicking your shoes off and leaving you in just my panties underneath him. Your hands worked the buttons of his white shirt but it wasn’t quick enough and with a tug and a rip you heard the buttons hit the wood floor of the bedroom. Thomas slid out of the shirt, his eyes reminded you of a stormy sea as he stared at you. “You’re so beautiful.” Thomas uttered, his fingers brushing over the bare skin of your stomach and my hips.

He was over you, his hands moving over your body wherever he could touch as though he was mesmerizing you through touch. The two of you pushed your bodies against each other, as though you couldn’t get enough of each other as the atmosphere in the room grew heady. You pushed him underneath you, and he let you take charge. Your lips moved from his, down to his neck and across his chest. Your eyes lingered on his, as you moved lower and lower. You could see the nervousness forming on his features, his discomfort. “Relax, Thomas.” You purred. Despite his discomfort, he could take his eyes off you as you pulled off his belt and tugged his trousers down his legs. Your fingers very gently wrapped around his shaft, moving up and down as his breathing became ragged and a moan fell from his lips. It was one of the most erotic things you’d ever heard in your life.

You pressed your lips to the tip of his shaft, your tongue darting out to taste him. Then you wrapped your mouth around him and began moving slowly up and down his massive length. “Y/n…” He breathed out your name like a prayer, his head thrown back in utter bliss. How could this even be? You mused to yourself, wondering how this was able to even happen. But you were quickly losing your train of thought, your own arousal causing you to reach between your legs and rub yourself through your panties. “If you don’t stop…” Thomas groaned, and you removed your lips from with cock with a ‘pop’ echoing throughout your bedroom. You sat up, and before you had time to react Thomas pinned you underneath him. He pulled your panties off and tossed them somewhere into the darkness of your bedroom.

He was gentle with you, at first. But you could see his resolve breaking and his eyes becoming lust blown. He slid himself inside of you, your hands gripping as his arms. Thomas was well-endowed, and he seemed to know that. He lingered over you, pressing his lips against your forehead. “Are you—okay?” he asked through his panting. You could tell it was taking everything in him not to move into you. “Yes. Thomas, please. I need you.” You practically begged him. He was controlled, watching your facial expressions and making sure he wasn’t hurting you. He was ever the gentlemen, but you didn’t want that. Your fingers nails grazed up and down his back, and then tangled in his hair. You could see him gradually losing control, his muscles tensing as his controlled thrusting became erratic and wild. You could feel yourself spiraling, wrapping your legs around his thighs.

You melded your body to his, wanting to feel every inch of him. “Sweet, sweet girl. Gods, I love you. I love you so much y/n.” Thomas muttered, just on the precipice of control. His hand reached between the two of you, pressing against your clit as you felt yourself tighten around him as you reached your release. “Thomas!” You shouted his name, sure the neighbor’s miles away heard you glass-shattering shrieks as you peaked. Thomas threw his head as he came, you could feel him pulsating inside you. He took a few moments to collect himself, breathing deeply and reaching up to wipe the sweat from his brow. Then he collapsed next to you; pulling you against his body so you were facing each other.

“I love you too, Thomas.” You finally said the words, and his smile caused butterflies to flutter in your stomach. “But I don’t know how this is going to work with you being…” You hesitated, not wanting to ruin the mood. “It’ll never be normal, love. But it’ll be worth it.” He whispered. “I’m not sure I even know what normal is.” You chuckled. The two of you slid under the covers, wrapped around each other. The two of you fell asleep, intertwined and utterly spent.

You awoke the next morning and you were alone. You sat up, looking around the room for any sign of Thomas and trying to make sure that last night wasn’t some sort of bizarre dream. “Thomas, are you with me?” You asked, and there was no answer. You could smell something cooking downstairs, and you could hear the piano playing a song you didn’t recognize. You rose, wrapping your robe around you and heading downstairs towards whatever Thomas was making. It smelled divine and you were ravenous.

You walked past the library, and you did a double take as you walked by. Was there someone at the piano? At first you assumed it was a shadow figure. But then you saw the fanning of the skirt black as night, the skeletal hands dancing over the keys. “Lucille.” You uttered, barely recognizing the withered skeleton before you. She rose slowly from the piano, letting out an inhuman shriek as she flew across the room towards you. You backed up, getting ready to run. But as you were getting ready to run you ran into Thomas, and he pushed you behind him. Lucille stopped at her brother’s form, it was as if she was unable to move. “Go, Lucille. I won’t let you control me any longer, and you won’t hurt any other woman I love.” He spat. She shrieked, and then seemed to explode in a cloud of dust before the two of you.

“How did she? You told me she wasn’t—“ You started, as Thomas wrapped an arm around your shoulder and lead you to the kitchen. “I kept her at bay. You’ve given me the strength to stand up to her. She won’t hurt you, I won’t allow it.” He brought you into the kitchen, sitting you down in front of your breakfast and a cup of coffee. You were a bit shell shocked, hesitating before you started eating your eggs and toast. After the shock of the morning wore off, you wanted to talk to Thomas about how this was going to work. He sat across from you, reading the paper and occasionally glancing up at you with a small, tense smile.

“Thomas, I—“ As you opened your mouth to speak but you felt sick to your stomach. You glanced up at him, gripping your stomach as a horrible realization dawned on you. “Thomas, what did you do?” You asked, as he set the paper down on the table. He looked pained, pursing his lips. “It’ll be quick and painless this way, my love. I—couldn’t stand the thought of losing you. I knew eventually you would tire of me, you’d want someone normal. I can’t chance you leaving me. This is the only way.” He brushed his hand over your sweaty brow, and you drew back from him. “You said you loved me.” You were anguished in pain, both physically and emotionally. You trusted him, you believed him!

“I do love you, y/n. I love you so much I can’t bear the thought of losing you. I had to do something. I’m sorry.” You felt blood running from your mouth, trying to pull yourself away from him across the kitchen floor towards your phone but you were growing weaker and weaker as you did so. Your vision was blurring, and eventually you collapsed before you could reach the phone. You saw Thomas bend down in front of you, holding you in his arms. Everything he had said was a lie, and you wanted to shove him away. But you were too weak, and it felt like you were drifting off into a heavy sleep.

You weren’t sure how long it’d been, but when you awoke you felt no pain and you feared the worst. You were still in his arms, and as your eyes opened to meet his he uttered an all too familiar phrase. “Y/n, are you with me?”

Please consider supporting the starving artist/social worker if you’re able. :)

#thomas sharpe #crimson peak #thomas sharpe x reader #thomas sharpe x you #thomas hiddleston #crimson peak imagine #imagine

32 notes · View notes

northlandian · 5 years

Text

How I Fell in Love with Marvel

As a die-hard MCU fan today, it's hard to imagine where I would be and what I would be interested in today if it wasn't for my discovery of these fantastic movies. This is the story of how I accidentally saw my favourite movie to date, resulting in me finding one of my greatest passions today.

For context, before that day occurred, the closest I had been to anything Marvel related was having seen the original Spider-Man movies, 1 through 3, and I actually liked them (well, except for the obvious). A few years after that, I also saw Guardians of the Galaxy in theatres, which also happened to be on accident, as I was cottaging in a small county during the summer, and my sister and I were bored one night. However, Guardians wasn't enough to reel me in. If I'm being completely honest, it was never one of my favourite MCU movies (I even prefer the sequel over it). Not that it's not good, it was, but at the time, there was a lot of information thrown at me all at once that I didn't quite get because I didn't see any movies previous to it. Obviously, being young, stupid, and not that into that kind of stuff at the time, I didn't know I was supposed to.

It's also worth noting though, that before this accident I'm about to delve into occurred, I knew I wanted to be a Marvel fan. I had seen the Spider-Man movies and enjoyed them (although I didn't know that the MCU would differ from those, but anyways), so I knew there was a fairly good chance I would enjoy the others. Just the idea of these incredible fighters had always intrigued me, and it's probably why I enjoy video games as well. But I also wanted to feel like I was part of something, something bigger than myself. I was over my book phase, Gravity Falls had just ended, and I had finished all the Harry Potter movies... I wanted to find something else to love. But at the same time, I could never really find the time or effort to catch up on however-many countless movies were out at the time.

SO, without further ado, this is how I happened upon the MCU.

First of all, it was near the end of December 2017...yes, this took place just last year, I'm aware of how new I am and I only wish it could have happened sooner.

Anyways, my sister and I were staying at my cousin's for a few days during the winter break. We decided to go downtown for the day, which included seeing a movie. We hadn't bought the tickets ahead of time, but we were planning on seeing Coco - I had only heard good things, so we were all really excited. We get to the theatre, and one of my cousins goes to buy the tickets, while I wait with her three little brothers and my sister. Eventually, she comes back, only to tell us that Coco was sold out...big bummer for me. There was nothing else to see. My sister began complaining. My cousin then informs us that she had instead, purchased us all tickets for the new Thor movie...what? Her brothers seemed happy about it, and I decided to grin and bear it, but I gave my sister one look and knew I'd be sitting through one boring boy's movie. Whatever. I'd get it over with.

So we sit down in the theatre, we sit through the previews (I saw the preview for Black Panther for the first time, and ironically thought, "huh, that looks pretty good"), and the Marvel logo comes on. First impressions? Well, it was pretty cool. It was my first time seeing the newest Marvel logo, considering Guardians never had it.

Then it pans down to Thor, and he starts monologuing in his deep Asgardian accent, and I'm expecting it to be expositional and boring but...wait, it's not? It was actually pretty funny. The Surtur scene continues, and now first impressions are really kicking in... they were able to make it expositional and funny at the same time, and it worked well. Then the fight began, and suddenly, I was like...woah. These fight scenes are really good. Like. Really good. I found the camera angles made to follow the hammer very cool. Enemies were being taken out like dominos. Even Thor using his hammer as a shield against Surtur's fiery breath was literally a battle move I had doodled all the time! And now I was seeing it in front of me! Then, of course, his escape. I fell in love with the score instantly. The Bifrost aesthetic had me captivated. And from the moment the camera panned up into birds-eye view to read "Thor: Ragnarok", I knew this movie was going to be a bit more than interesting.

Suffice it to say, first impressions were good.

I won't go into detail about every scene like I just did, but I'll highlight the important ones that really made the movie for me.

Loki's introduction. Little did I know I'd be meeting one of my favourite characters of all time. His magical capabilities were revealed instantly for a first-timer like me, something I appreciated at the time I was watching. So was his relationship with Thor; not all of it, obviously, because there are many, many layers, but it was enough for me to determine that he was someone who had the kind of relationship that allowed him to act very jokingly, as seen while also being very jealous deep down, and expressing resentment (his desires of wanting to be King, making a stage production out of his own death, exiling his own father, etc). I could also pick up his immediate character traits fairly quickly - he’s funny, he's someone who practically embodies trouble, and he will always put himself first. It was unclear how much he truly did care for others, specifically his brother, but then again, it's been like that throughout most of the MCU anyways. I, of course, did not know why he was the way he was, but his personality had me intrigued from the very beginning.

The references made to past MCU movies. Believe it or not, I wasn't completely lost, unlike with Guardians. The reason for this was because it was presented in a way that made it so simple. For example, Loki faked his death. How do I know? Because Thor comes back to a stage production about it, but surprise! He's not dead. Another example is, Hulk and Thor always fight alongside each other. How do I know? "He's a friend from work". "Work" obviously being the Avengers (I didn't live completely under a rock, at least), and "friend" being enough to tell me that they were on pretty good terms the last they saw each other. Even the line "adopted" being enough to tell me that there was some deeper story behind why Loki is the way he is. It was small things like that that really set this particular movie apart, and sure, there were some references I didn't catch until seeing the previous movies ("Yes! That's how it feels!"), but it was nice to not always be in the dark about everything.

Valkyrie. Literally, everything about this character. I hadn't exactly been acquainted to Natasha Romanoff yet, so she was the first female badass I had ever had the pleasure of watching. From the moment she's introduced, you can tell she has a deep backstory. Her confrontation with Loki had me rolling when she beat the crap out of him, and then proceeded to throw a bottle at him shortly after. And of course, there's her entrance onto Asgard... enough said.

The last thing I'm going to mention goes out to the film's director, Taika Waititi, as well as the perfect portrayal performed by the actors, and that is the constant humour in the movie. Perfect example: “Get help”. It had me rolling. This is why I always consider it the most wonderful, yet coincidental incident because the truth is, if it was any other MCU movie, I wouldn't have been enticed enough. The movie was so damn funny, I must've laughed through half of it. Before I had seen it, I didn't know Marvel didn't take themselves so seriously. Or at least, I didn't know they didn't have to. I know now of course that that movie specifically was purposed to completely rebrand Thor in order to make him more interesting, and damn, did they do a good job.

So, that last point especially lingered as I left the theatre that day. I cannot express how much I thought about that movie for the rest of the night, which rarely happened to me, as it only happens when I watch something really good. The best thing I can think to compare it to was when the author of the journals was revealed in Gravity Falls (for those who have seen it). I even remember asking my cousin, "Wow, I had no idea Marvel movies were that good. Are they that funny in all the movies?". She responded, "Yeah, we should definitely watch the Avengers tonight", to which I agreed.

We watched Wonder Woman. I was highly unimpressed. Sorry, not a DC stan, never will be.

But when I got home from my cousin's, I did end up watching it. And then I watched Ultron. Then the Thor's. Then the Iron Man's. Then the Captain America's. I loved them all. I even enjoyed Guardian's 2 and Spider-Man: Homecoming, as I was hesitant about both. A few months later, I went back to the theatres to see Black Panther, just like I wanted to. With each time I watched and rewatched the movies, I fell more in love with the characters, I picked apart more from the storyline, made sure I knew every after-credits scene...started crafting my own theories for Infinity War.

And of course, little did I know, it would smash my heart to pieces not five months after I first discovered it.

And now, here I am, still obsessing over these movies, still undecided on who I could possibly like more, Thor or Loki, just as I felt from the moment I left the theatre for the first time. It's cool to think I found my passion on a happy accident, and it's weird to think that considering how happy it's kept me, what I'd be doing without it today.

#marvel #MCU #storytime #thor ragnarok #thor #loki #avengers #iron man #captain america #spider-man #guardians of the galaxy #origin #story #love

4 notes · View notes

thegingerlikes · 6 years

Text

Literal brOTP

My new favorite thing, especially in Marvel films, is family relationships. My favorite part of GotG2 is the Nebula-Gamora dynamic, my fave part of Spiderman: Homecoming is Dad!Tony and his Spiderson, and my favorite part of ANY Thor movie is the Thor-Loki sibling rivalry. I’m going to focus on the latter in this squeal-essay.

I have really enjoyed Loki and Thor’s development over the films, both separately and together.

Thor is my favorite Avenger now because he has gradually shed his brawn-heavy approach and become more of a strategist. That, coupled with his loyalty and his newfound selflessness, make him a great role model and a perfect foil for Loki.

In the first Thor film, Loki progresses from a restless little brother to a man obsessed with simultaneously proving himself to and defeating his adoptive father and brother. At the core, this validation is all he really wants, even more than dominion over others (though he might settle for widespread fame and adoration). In Thor: The Dark World Loki experiences the ACTUAL loss of one of his “false” family, and is actually affected by it. This surprises even him. This causes, I believe, for Loki to stop trying to kill Thor and Odin. In Thor: Ragnarok, Loki realizes he not only doesn’t want Thor dead, but he wants to be a family with him. I’ll delve into why later on.

As Thor and Loki evolve over the span of the films, so too does their relationship with each other. To me, this is the most interesting part of either of their characters: Thor isn’t as compelling without Loki, Loki is just another trickster without Thor.

Even in his initial jerk form, Thor is loving toward his little brother. Even when he finds out they aren’t related, he’s still loyal and believes the best of Loki. Pre-first film, I like to think this was a point of pride for Loki. He’s able to do whatever he wants and still retains the love of Thor. But since Loki is a trickster, he may think Thor only loves the mask of the dutiful brother he puts on. For a while this is partially true, and prevents Loki from truly connecting with his brother.

Loki’s family history is truly tragic. He was thrown away as a nuisance, picked up as a boon, and deceived his whole life. He has such low self-esteem that his first reaction to his Jotenheim heritage is to completely eradicate it. When a reformed Thor denounces the genocide, Loki is confused: didn’t Thor want war with Jotunheim before being banished? Then he realizes his brother has changed. What’s worse, he’s changed for the better, and Loki had no hand in it (this is why Loki is so bitter about Jane in Thor. Not because his brother was in love, but because Jane had accomplished in days what Loki couldn’t in years. Though, in reality, Jane didn’t do much to humble Thor). In his eyes, he’s not only lost his adoptive father to the Odin sleep, but he no longer knows his brother.

Thor, conversely, doesn’t ever consider Loki not his sibling, even after learning that Loki is a frost giant. But he also holds onto the brother he knew like a totem, not considering that Loki might have changed or, even worse, had always been different than the way Thor saw him. This blind love produces blind loyalty in Thor. Thor’s loyalty infuriates Loki. He wants to be the victim, wants to be completely justified in the horrible acts he commits. Thor’s love for him prevents that, in the eyes of others and even himself. So he denies Thor’s feelings as illegitimate, while simultaneously striving to make Thor hate him to kill off the last scrap of connection he has to his adoptive family.

Over the movies, he succeeds, to an extent. Thor holds out hope for Loki all through the murders he commits during the Chitari invasion, continuing to fall for Loki’s tricks because he still trusts him. Then Loki kills Coleson. After that, Thor accepts that Loki’s darkest side has consumed him: Loki is selfish, murderous, and without remorse. Still, he doesn’t hate him, doesn’t kill him. He never even comes close.

And Loki doesn’t, either. Upon rewatching Avengers recently, I noticed Loki’s hidden blade he stabs Thor with was very small. It would have been easy for Loki to carry a longer knife (heck, maybe he did), but his goal was to hurt Thor, but not kill him. Loki might tell himself he spared Thor because he wants his brother to witness his success, but really, he values his blond counterpart.

Loki’s dependence on Thor for validation becomes more obvious in Thor: The Dark World. This movie is a mess, but it does accurately depict how the Attack on New York would affect on the brothers. Loki has begun to realize his limits, and Thor has realized how dark and demented his brother is. At the beginning of the movie, both men are content to despise each other for all time. Then, Frigga dies.

Frigga’s death greatly impacts how each son treats the other. Thor’s opinion of Loki changes very little, but he does want to be reasonable with Loki, so as to honor their mother’s memory. Loki, on the other hand, gains a stronger appreciation for his family after experiencing how profoundly his mother’s death affected him. The viewer can see him wrestle with this during the film, as he wants Thor to trust and pay attention to him, but also does whatever he can to rattle Thor’s cage. And in a hilarious turn of events, Thor accidentally encourages this behavior by pulling tricks on Loki.

My favorite parts in any Thor movie are when Thor gets one over on Loki, because not only is it funny, but most of the time you can tell Loki loves it. Before, Loki played a one-sided, cat and mouse game Thor didn’t even know about. Now Thor is in on it, and Loki is surprised to find he likes the challenge. It also feeds into Loki’s pretty obvious masochism, but I won’t get into that here.

One of the obstacles to Loki trusting Thor is Thor’s blind faith in Loki. It’s not until Thor begins distrusting Loki and anticipating his schemes that Loki believes his brother could actually love the true him. The tables have turned: now that Loki has finally attained his goal of making Thor disillusioned towards him, he now he wants Thor’s esteem. We have to give the trickster some credit: he knows his brother, and he knows what works for him. But instead of playing the long game and slowly regaining Thor’s trust, he fakes his own death, banking on the moral benefit of dying for another, and the “absence makes the heart grow fonder” principle.

And that death scene. Oh boy. I acknowledge Loki’s main motivation in faking his death was to escape prison and be venerated as a hero on Asgard, but he put in the extra effort to be Thor’s hero specifically. He says he’s sorry (for what? It could be for “not listening”, it could be for all his sins in the past), then he admits he died for Thor, not Odin. When recounting Loki’s heroism, Thor would have left this out, and Loki knows this. He wants to show Thor his hope in him wasn’t unfounded. Thor, his loyalty for his brother renewed, accepts his death (again), not believing even Loki could pull off such a deception.

But of course, he does, and even succeeds to peacefully and deftly usurp Odin in the process. Then, in the last scene of Thor: The Dark World, Loki as Odin talks to Thor. He gives a very self-aware speech about being proud of Thor, which I know is mostly for the audience’s benefit, and Loki could have only said what he thought Odin would say. What caught my imagination was that Loki!Odin didn’t send Thor on some long mission, or banish him, or suggest he wasn’t ready to rule. In addition, Loki couldn’t have been sure Thor would reject the throne, so what if Thor hadn’t? I believe Loki would have relished being Thor’s mentor, of ruling Asgard with him. This ambition definitely comes across in the next film.

Thor: Ragnarok is the culmination and resolution of all the past development between the brothers. Thor, bless him, figures out Loki’s deception pretty fast because, as Neil Gaiman writes in Norse Mythology, “when something goes wrong, the first thing [Thor] always thinks is, it is Loki’s fault. It saves a lot of time.” Even though he thought Loki was dead.

So Loki is almost back to square one as far as Thor is concerned. Thor distrusts him, and is angry with him for hexing and sending away their father. However, Loki doesn’t comprehend how badly he’s screwed up until Odin dies and Thor get murdery-eyed on the Norwegian plain. In that split-second, Loki knows that Thor is dangerously close to hating him. Curiously, he doesn’t prepare for a fight, but looks as if he’s going to beg for his life. Who knows what would have happened if Hela hadn’t shown up.

To his credit, Loki doesn’t attempt to join her side at any time in the film. Loki continues to act like Loki, though, putting his best interests first and his brother’s second. But Thor is his second. On Sakaar, Loki immediately invites Thor to be his co-conspirator in a coup d’état, again showing his willingness to rule alongside his brother (even if Loki is first-partner).

However, this is all too soon for Thor, who still sees his brother as an adversary, not an ally, and he rejects Loki’s offer. During the famous elevator scene, Thor tells Loki he agrees they shouldn’t even keep up the pretense of being a family. While Loki is obviously conflicted about this, Thor’s speech also isn’t all that seems. In a role reversal, Thor how Loki thinks, and he knows Loki thinks he’s stupid, too stupid to manipulate him, or to know when he’s being manipulated. He carefully constructs his speech and responses in the elevator to push all of Loki’s little brother buttons (this coming from an older sibling with experience in this area).

Thor begins by telling Loki flattering truth: that he idolized him and thought they’d be together forever. This inflates Loki’s ego, as he always wanted Thor to recognize him as an equal or superior. In the same moment, he realizes this is no longer the case due to his actions. Thor then alleviates some of the burden, inferring with “you’re you and I’m me” that their separation was inevitable. This and the paths diverging statement are both beliefs Loki has held, but never wanted Thor to have. He’s used to his brother chasing him. In order to reinstate this status quo, Loki says “it’s probably for the best that we never see each other again.” He expects Thor to protest here. After all, Thor has crossed galaxies, fought armies, risked death to be with his delinquent brother. Thor doesn’t deny or affirm Loki’s statement, but responds with the piece de resistance: “It’s what you’ve always wanted.”

This is the ultimate challenge to Loki. First of all, Thor is presuming to know what he wants, which Loki doesn’t think Thor can know about him, which makes Loki rethink what he actually wants. His gut reaction is to rebel, to say “don’t tell me what I want!” but that would mean he actually wants to stay with his brother, to be a family. Is that what he wants? Maybe. Now that Thor accepts the idea of their separation, maybe being a constant thorn in his side isn’t a bad prospect. All this, of course, ends up being a distraction so Thor can put the shocker on Loki’s back, but that it distracted Loki at all is telling. In reality, Thor didn’t agree they should become strangers, but he knew framing it that way would make Loki consider becoming his brother again. And that’s sibling love right there.

Immediately after this heart to heart, Loki pulls another Loki and tries to betray Thor. Thor doesn’t even hold it against him anymore: he just thwarts his brother and carries on. Perhaps he knows Loki will show up when he’s most needed later.

He’s right, of course. And when he does show up on Asgard, he does so in typical Loki fashion: in a cry for attention. But that’s who Loki is: selfish, murderous, short-sighted, but sensitive and seeking acceptance. Thor has now accepted Loki for who he is, and Loki isn’t about to lose that. Not only does he go along with Thor’s plan for Asgard (and revels in his brother’s recklessness), but he recognizes Thor’s kingship for the first time. That moment when Loki looks up from the final battle to see Thor embracing his true power, and that pride on his face… oh, my heart!

If I were writing the continuation of Thor and Loki’s relationship, I would never give Loki a redemption arc. Loki is the god of mischief. Instead, I would make him a part-time ally, but only with Thor. He doesn’t do anything selfless unless he knows Thor would be disappointed if he didn’t. He still plays tricks on his brother and the Avengers, but he no longer commits major crimes in their jurisdiction. Loki is at his mildest when bantering with Thor, and at his fiercest when Thor’s life is threatened. This is all selfish, though: without Thor, no one would accept him or be his equal. Thor knows all this, and is resigned and secretly flattered. He takes their relationship from day to day, enjoying fighting side-by-side again.

After Infinity War, though, (God willing they both survive) I think Loki would strike out on his own for a little while, in search of what would make him “more than a god of mischief.” Because he sees his brother’s progression, and like a little brother, he wants to keep up.

PS I know I focused a lot on Loki in this essay. This was unintentional, but happened because Loki’s development as a character is more dependent on Thor than Thor’s is on Loki. Thor’s changes center more around Odin, Frigga, and Jane, and the loss of said people. However, I wasn’t writing about their separate development in this essay, but the progression of their brotherly relationship. I hope I succeeded.

PPS In lieu of the new “news” about Loki being on Thanos’s team, I have heard multiple theories, and here’s what I like:

Anything involving Loki being mind-controlled. It prevents the whole “Loki, again?!” reaction, and provides lots of nice conflict.

Loki being forced against his will in some other way.

I will say this: they better not kill Loki off, because that’s also cliche at this point. They should kill Thor, and have Loki go ballistic. And then bring Thor back in some later film. Because, once again, Loki isn’t himself without Thor, and Thor isn’t a hero without Loki.

#thor #loki #thor odinson #loki laufeyson #thor: ragnarok #thor: the dark world #marvel #infinity war #character development #opinion #essay

29 notes · View notes

dappled-things · 6 years

Text

Why I Think Loki Isn't Really Thanos's Ally [and More]

Why do I think Loki is not REALLY Thanos's ally?

Read on...

1. THE LOGIC OF PLOT

Although it looks like Loki is handing off the Tesseract to Thanos and/or one of Thanos's henchmen, it doesn't signify betrayal really because Loki could have totally given the Aether and the Tesseract to Thanos at anytime during his reign as LO/din. Why did he send the Aether to the Collector? Why was the Tesseract in the Vault? Maybe...

2. THE PAST

Loki is more likely AFRAID of Thanos because of his past failures. The Other (Thanos's sidekick) threatened Loki pain should Loki fail. Loki, thanks to the Avengers, failed, so there's no doubt he's avoiding Thanos and his sidekicks. So, this moment of betrayal is probably more of self-preservation or an attempt to stop the deaths of Asgardians as Thanos searches for the Tesseract.

3. THE MOTIVATIONS OF LOKI

Contrary to popular opinion, Loki does not begin as a bad guy... and his evolution is psychologically complex. Many people have forgotten the first Thor film, but it'd be good to rewatch for a refresher.

Loki in the first Thor film (and sorta in the second and third) touches on his motivations.

A) he wants respect

B) he wants equal opportunity

C) he wants to be loved/accepted regardless of who he is

D) he wants to prove his loyalty/love for Asgard to his family, Asgard, and himself

E) (debatable) he wants the throne

I suggest that E is debatable in the sense that he wants the throne but only in order to achieve A through D.

In Thor 2, he tells Thor he did it for Frigga and Thor - not Odin. And in Thor 3, the play (written by Loki), the statue, and Loki's "your savior is here~" moment all show that Loko still craves acceptance and approval.

None of these motivations would be fulfilled alongside Thanos with Asgard extinct.

4. THE ACTUALITY OF THE MOMENT

We actually don't know the full context of this moment, so we don't really know why Loki id handing over the Tesseract. It may be a move for self-preservation, or it may be a (vain) attempt to save lives.

5. THE LOKI ARC

I am hoping that Loki hasn't suddenly decided to in truth side with Thanos, only because his arc thus far has been toward one of redemption.

Recall that initially, Loki was supposed to die in Thor 2, saving his brother and dying a hero of some sort. That was kiboshed, but that arc appears to have held despite some major plot changes. In Thor 3, Loki returns to help Thor and Asgard, and he says, "I'm here" and catches what Thor tossed him, thereby bringing an elaborate metaphor about relational illusions, dishonesty, and transparency to a lovely close. Infinity War better not pretend that didn't happen...

...it's not the first time a major arc film flattened characters for plot needs...

Why did Loki take the Tesseract?

So far I can think of two reasons. One is soo bad it better not be true.

Reason 1: Loki wants to use it as a bargaining chip for his future. This would come in handy to get in the good graces of, say, the Avengers.

Reason 2: The MCU production team needed to get the Tesseract off Asgard so Thanos could nab it easily at some point. Ugh. For this to happen just because PLOT REQUIRES would be terrible!

The only reason that could be worse than Reason 2 would be because Loko has been Thanos's henchman all along. Oof. Not good.

What is gonna happen to Loki?

Well... Here's what I've thought of so far...

1. LOKI DIES...

A. ...as a dick

-----> So basically, Loki tries to save himself by handing over the Tesseract and then is killed. I don't see this happening only because Feige wouldn't say he's an ally of Thanos unless Loki was hanging about a little longer. Also Loki is credited in Infinity War II. Of course, Feige could be trolling us.

B. ...as a hero

-----> Loki tries to save his people and Thor and tries to bargain with the Tesseract and then is killed. I could kinda see this happening but that would out question marks around Loki's credits in Infinity War II... and Feige's ally remark.

2. LOKI BOWS OUT EARLY

After Loki hands over the Tesseract, he promises to help Thanos... and at the first chance he gets, he skeeves off and disappears for the rest of the film. Unlikely, due to the two reasons above: Hiddleston's credits in IW2 and Feige's comment.

3. LOKI IS BENCHED

Loki either gives the Tesseract to Thanos as an ally or as an attempt to save people... but at some point he is injured (by Thanos or an Avenger), so he can't help anyone. Think coma or something like that. Unlikely... but a possibility.

4. LOKI IS AN ANTI-HERO

My hope is for this one. Loki appears to have sided with Thanos, but in reality, he is trying to help the Avengers in secret. At this point in time, he may even be imprisoned. In IW2, his secret efforts are made known...

at which point he... either...

a) is killed OR b) survive.

If B, he may choose to either...

a) stay with Thor OR b) travel the universe.

These are my thoughts...

#loki #infinity war #infinity war guesses

28 notes · View notes

ramajmedia · 5 years

Text

Infinity War And Endgame Moments That Made Doctor Strange More Interesting

Doctor Strange is a fascinating character. His powers are mind-boggling, he’s amusingly arrogant, he has an Infinity Stone dangling around his neck, and he’s played by the effortlessly charming Benedict Cumberbatch. However, Strange’s 2016 MCU solo movie was a pretty formulaic origin story that failed to drum up a huge amount of interest in the character. Fortunately, his subsequent appearances in the next two Avengers movies, Infinity War and Endgame, made better use of his powers and characterization to make him more interesting to moviegoers. So, here are 10 Infinity War And Endgame Moments That Made Doctor Strange More Interesting.

RELATED: Doctor Strange 2: 5 Things It Needs To Improve From The First One (& 5 It Should Keep The Same)

10 Seeing 14 million alternate futures

Avengers: Infinity War is a prime example of MacGuffins in practice. The movie has six mystical objects that the villain is trying to collect. That gave the movie a plot, and also tied together all the characters. Gamora was the only one who knew where the Soul Stone was, Vision had the Mind Stone in his head, Loki had secretly nabbed the Space Stone from Asgard etc. Doctor Strange was a key part of this, as the sworn protector of the Time Stone. Before Thanos arrived on Titan, Strange used the Time Stone to see 14,000,605 alternate futures – and only one where the Avengers won. Here, Strange was used to telegraph the stakes of the movie.

9 Tricking Thanos on Titan

The skirmish on Titan is one of the most exciting sequences in Avengers: Infinity War. A lot of people hate Peter Quill for screwing up the plan to take the Infinity Gauntlet from Thanos, but let’s be honest – even if they’d managed to get it off his hand and keep it off, it wouldn’t have been off for long. At one point, there’s a quiet moment in the conflict as the Mad Titan attempts to remove the Time Stone from around Doctor Strange’s neck. Strange tricks Thanos by scattering his own physical consciousness like a deck of cards, so there are dozens of Doctor Strange copies floating around.

8 “Oh, congratulations on the wedding, by the way.”

Stephen Strange might be arrogant and egotistical – it is his defining flaw, as identified by the Ancient One (and Christine Palmer and Wong and Karl Mordo and just about everybody else) in his initial 2016 solo outing – but he can be polite on the odd occasion.

RELATED: MCU: 10 Ways Pepper Potts Could Return In The Future

When Bruce Banner arrives at the Sanctum Sanctorum to warn Doctor Strange and Wong about Thanos’ imminent arrival, the Sorcerer Supreme transports himself to Central Park, where Tony Stark and Pepper Potts are out for a walk. Strange tells Tony to come with him, but not before congratulated the couple on their highly publicized wedding.

7 Holding off a tidal wave during the Battle of Earth

The final battle sequence in Avengers: Endgame has since been dubbed “the Battle of Earth” by official Marvel canon. That’s a step up from the first Avengers movie’s Battle of New York (although this one did also take place in New York – upstate this time). Midway through the battle, the barrier protecting the warzone from the ocean broke and the water started flooding in. So, Doctor Strange stepped in to hold it off, pushing it up into the air in a kind of whirlpool. This prevented him from having the much-anticipated rematch with Thanos, but it also saved our heroes from getting swept away.

6 Creating a shield to protect the surrounding Avengers from Thanos’ warship

When Thanos realizes he’s losing the Battle of Earth to the Avengers, he orders his soldiers to open fire from his warship hovering in the sky. His generals warn him about his own troops, who will be killed in the fire, and Thanos tells them to do it anyway. So, Doctor Strange, Wong, and the other Masters of the Mystic Arts quickly create mystical shields to protect everybody. The shields won’t hold of the fire from Thanos’ warship forever, but that’s when a beam of light comes thundering through the sky and crashing through the ship, disabling its weapons systems and bringing it down. It’s Captain Marvel!

5 “Is that everyone?”

At the beginning of the final battle in Avengers: Endgame, the Masters of the Mystic Arts open up portals to allow hundreds of warriors onto the battleground to back up Captain America. And then Doctor Strange asks, “Is that everyone?” and Wong sarcastically replies, “What, you wanted more?” Props to the Russo brothers for choosing this moment to have Scott Lang enlarge himself from under the wreckage of Avengers HQ, having saved Rocket, the Hulk, and War Machine, and put them down alongside everyone else on the battlefield. Strange wanted more, despite having dozens of armies from all over the universe, and against all odds, he got more at that exact moment.

4 Helping Peter Quill to fight Thanos

Screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely chose their teams wisely when they penned Avengers: Infinity War. Tony Stark and Peter Parker developed their father-son relationship, Tony’s witty banter with fellow arrogant hero Stephen Strange was a lot of fun, and the Guardians of the Galaxy were thrown in for good measure. Strange used his powers to help Peter Quill fight Thanos. First, he gave him mystical stepping stones that carried him over to Thanos, and then he opened up a portal for Quill to disappear away from the Mad Titan’s grasp. As he hopped into the portal, he took a second to remove his mask, show Thanos his goofy, insulting facial expression, and flip him the finger.

3 Giving up the Time Stone to save Tony Stark’s life

“We’re in the endgame now.” Thanos was about to kill Tony Stark when Stephen Strange stopped him and relinquished the Time Stone. He had said earlier that he would happily let Tony die to protect the Time Stone, and now, he was handing it over to Thanos willingly to save Tony’s life – he didn’t even seem to be reluctant to do it.

RELATED: Avengers: Endgame: 10 Times A Whole New Timeline Was Created During Time Heist

This is the moment that set up the sequel. The one scenario where the Avengers won that Strange saw involved Thanos succeeding in his plan. There was no way he wasn’t getting all the Stones and snapping his fingers. Tony needed to be alive to invent time travel and bring everybody back.

2 “If I tell you what happens, it won’t happen.”

MCU fans went into Avengers: Endgame knowing that whatever happened had been prophesized by Doctor Strange when he saw 14 million versions of the future and only found one where Earth’s mightiest heroes eventually triumphed over Thanos. We know that it involved Tony Stark in a major way, because Strange traded away the Time Stone in order to keep him alive. On the battleground at the end of Endgame, Tony said to Strange, “You said one out of 14 million, we win, yeah? Tell me this is it,” and Strange gravely told him, “If I tell you what happens, it won’t happen.”

1 Opening the portals to bring everybody to the battleground

There are many incredible moments in Avengers: Endgame that made it the highest grossing movie of all time. If it wasn’t for those moments, there’s a chance that not enough viewers would want to rewatch the movie for it to topple Avatar as the box office king. Arguably, the most breathtaking moment in the whole three-hour epic sees Doctor Strange and the Masters of the Mystic Arts opening up portals to bring all the resurrected characters onto the battleground on the rubble of Avengers HQ to give a lone Captain America some backup. This moment sums up the entire MCU.

NEXT: Aga-Mottos: 10 Of Doctor Strange’s Most Quotable MCU Lines

source https://screenrant.com/doctor-strange-infinity-war-endgame-best-moments/

#screenrant

0 notes

phagechildon · 7 years

Text

The Greater Good - Chapter 1

Read on AO3

Author’s Notes: Ever since I rewatched all of Xena: Warrior Princess, I’ve been desperately wanting to write a Hijack au to it - and here it finally is! I’ve been working on this since last year, maybe around November? Maybe a little earlier? I wanted to wait to upload it until I had a good amount prewritten. I have fifty pages now, though it’s still at the beginning x.x So I figured I should start uploading it and just keep writing whenever I have time despite having a full time and part time job now. This isn’t strictly a Xena AU, it has elements of many different things, but it’s the main theme~ Also this universe takes place between the movies and books. Since I love them both and couldn’t pick one universe, I decided to go inbetween~

Summary: Jack, unable to handle the dark life he’s living, is now trying to redeem himself by using his skills and demigod powers to protect the innocent. Though he gets more than he bargained for when he meets Hiccup, who unknowingly holds the very fate of the world in his hands.

Words: 9,788

-------------------

Smoke billowed from the charred, decaying boards of wood that scattered across the battle-scarred village as a lone rider wearing a white turban strode slowly through the village. Silence rang in his pale, pointy ears as his conscious reminded him of everything that happened here; the screams of terror as heavy black smoke suffocated the homes and streets, the pleading of simple farmers to spare their families, the cries of sorrow as loved ones took their last breath...

Yes, this place was a ghost town that still haunted the rider who clenched his fists around the reins of the horse he rode on, silently pleading his steed to go faster. He didn’t want to linger – he didn’t want to lose himself to insanity.

There was still too much to do to give in now.

The sound of footsteps made him pull the reigns back, halting the horse in an instant. The hair on the back of his neck stood up and he quickly unsheathed his sword and pointed- only for his deep blue eyes to settle upon a small boy covered in ash and grime. He looked thin and sick, obviously one of the only survivors of the village.

“S-sir… d-do you have any food to spare?” The raspy voice of the child spoke before he hacked violently. He needed water too.

“We all wish we had food to spare,” he said, seeing the child’s face sink in sadness. “Luckily I have some.” Rummaging in one of the side compartments on the horse’s saddle, he pulled out food wrapped in fabric and tossed it to the starving boy. He caught it with ease as his eyes lit up, and when the man tossed a large canteen of water by his feet, he practically cried.

“Thank you sir - Thank you!!”

With a small smirk, the rider rode off, waiting until he was far enough from the child before he let his face fall. That child lost his family because of him. He’d still be living in a cozy warm house filled with food and water alongside his family if he hadn’t been born. But he’d come to accept this long ago. He was, after all, the son of the Norse god Loki. Trouble, tricks and lies loomed over every step and every breath he took. And yet his own father hadn’t had the guts or nerve to talk to him.

Maybe even the great Loki was disappointed in him, and honestly he was okay with that. He hated his birth father, and he hated his human parents.

A numb coldness started to seep out from his body, his horse starting to neigh in protest.

No – no he couldn’t think about that. He needed to focus on his objective. He needed to help as many people as he could all around the world. Though he wasn’t even sure if his new destination even existed. He heard about it when he was working with The Nightmares.

Rumors spoke of a prospering village at the top of the north mountain called Berk that was inhabited by large Vikings that were /one/ with dragons. They say armies would scale up the mountain only to be thrown off the cliff by the most feared dragons in the Archipelago – Monstrous Nightmares, Deadly Nadders, Hideous Zipplebacks, and even small dragons that are normally pests but were vicious like vipers. Yet with travelers like the famous trading man, Johann, they were welcoming and friendly.

Surely such a place didn’t need someone like him – someone who wanted to help in any and every way he could, even if it was just bringing joy and fun to children. But part of him wanted to go up there, if not for them then for himself. Ever since he was a child, he dreamed of seeing this place and its beauty even if he wasn’t too fond of dragons himself.

Fire and ice doesn’t mix well.

Making it to the base of the mountain, he dismounted from his horse and gently pet its neck. “It’s too dangerous for you to come with. Wait for me here, okay?” He smiled as he gently pecked a kiss to its forehead. The horse gently nudged him, trying to insist on coming, but he merely shook his head. “I’ll be fine. I’m Jack Frost, after all.” He cracked a bright and brilliant smile that only made the horse worry more. “See you in a few days Baby Tooth.” Taking the saddle off, he hid it in some bushes before starting his trek up the steep mountain.

The further he ascended, the colder the air became as the wind became fierce. It would’ve bothered a normal human, but Jack of course, was a demigod – an ice demigod. Cold weather never bothered him.

However, weariness and exhaustion did. As the sun started to set, his boot-clad feet dragged in the slushy mud as he fought to keep his drooping eyes open. He bit his pale lips and started to gently sway his hips back and forth, humming a soft tune to keep himself occupied. With the wind in his face, it worked - for a few more hours. When he could hardly keep his eyes open at all, he kept going until he made it to a rather wide area on the road. Letting out a deep sigh of relief, he pressed his back against the snowy cliffside, sinking to his bottom.

He was kind of disappointed. So far he hadn’t seen or heard any dragons. Even now as he strained his hearing, he didn’t hear anything but the wind. Maybe he wasn’t high enough yet; this was the largest mountain in the valley after all.

With that small hope in mind, he let himself fall into a deep slumber where his past gripped him by the throat, desperately trying to strangle the life out of him. It was true what they said, no matter what you do, you never truly left The Nightmares…

When the sun peaked over the horizon, it blinded him, even in his sleep. He was still so tired but he didn’t want to waste valuable sunlight.

Forcing himself to stand, he shook the snow off that had settled on him overnight and continued the hike, the wind and cold being harsher than yesterday. If there were dragons on this mountain, how did they manage to fly in these winds when he could hardly stay stable? It only made him even more determined to make it to the top to find out.

It was rare for him to be this motivated. So he didn’t rest – he didn’t pause. He kept hiking until his feet went from hurting to numb, and his stomach hissed at him for food. Only when the sun was down again did he finally rest, eating a little bit of dry, crumbly bread before falling asleep.

He repeated the process for a few days, each time finding something new to keep him preoccupied. From kicking rocks to dancing, he’d find something to entertain himself until it was finally time to sleep. By day five he was starting to get exhausted, yet he was used to this kind of situation – having to walk endlessly for weeks straight with very little food or water. At least he had reached a point where the wind wasn’t as vicious and he wasn’t nearly stumbling off the ledge. It was almost as calm as the wind was on the surface world.

It was perfect weather for a fire, and despite loving the cold, his body still needed warmth.

Gathering twigs and wood from the trees growing on the side of the mountain, he started making the fire. It was so nerve-wracking, as it normally was as he scratched the two rocks together over the pieces of wood. He was so afraid of feeling those flames touch him. Fire was his biggest weakness, and one of his biggest fears. Wounds caused from fire always took forever to stop bleeding, let alone heal. In cases of intense heat, it felt like the fire was literally sucking the life out of him. The fire he was currently making wasn’t going to be all that high or intense, but it still made nervous beads of sweat slowly trail down the sides of his face. He just wanted the light and to feel a little bit of heat.

Striking the rocks together a few more times, he almost dropped one, his sweaty palms making him curse under his breath. Maybe he should just put up with the darkness of night and take comfort in the cold. Yet his fingers scrambled in the dirt and picked the rock back up, striking the stones a few more times until sparks suddenly flew. With an intense fear, Jack pulled his hands back just as the branches finally caught fire, making him laugh a little in excitement. That was the first time he made a fire without burning himself! It was such a small feat yet it meant so much to him.

With a shake of his head he slowly laid down on his side, watching the fire blankly as sleep slowly started to consumed him. However, he heard something with the wind – a soft flap, like a bird’s wings. Thinking it was part of his imagination, Jack curled his legs closer to himself, licking his lips. He heard it a few more times and opened his eyes a slit, not seeing anything.

Bats, he assumed as he closed his eyes again. They were harassing him all last night. With his luck he chose one of those areas to sleep in again.

Swoosh – a large gust of wind made his eyes snap open, seeing a large body with massive wings before his fire was snuffed out.

It was unmistakable though – that body type, that sound, those wings - this was a dragon about five times his size. It would’ve been fascinating if only he knew if it was a friend or foe. Heck it probably saw him as dinner!

“Are you okay?” Someone suddenly spoke, making him scramble to his feet. Dragons he could deal with. They didn’t have an agenda. Humans on the other hand, they could never be trusted. Even now as Jack searched the cliff, he couldn’t see anyone. Was this a trick? Was someone trying to ambush him and using this dragon as a distraction?

“Where are you; show your face!” He demanded, drawing his sword. Instantly the dragon went wild and made angry noises, to which made Jack take a few steps back.

“Do you want to be eaten?! Put your sword away!” The voice gasped in irritation, and as the clouds moved /just/ right, the moon’s light brightened up the area. On the back of the dragon sat a boy about his age gently moving his hands around the dragon’s head and neck, whispering what could only be soft reassurances to the beast. The sight was enough to make his jaw to drop and the sword to fall from his hand.

It was just like the stories!! This boy – man, however old he was – was riding on the back of this dragon! Something no one’s dared do! There were truth to the stories after all!!

Gods just the thought made him beam with excitement, but he held in his energy. If this man could ride this dragon, he probably had some control over it. In a moment’s notice, he could make Jack into human barbeque.

“Sorry, you startled me,” Jack admitted, making sure his hands were where the rider could see them. “I knew there were dragons here, but I didn’t expect the legends to be true.”

At this, the rider glowered as he sat up straight, the dragon growling. “And why are you looking for dragons? Are you here to scout the area for an invasion?”

Quickly Jack shook his head. “No, I’ve just heard stories since I was little about Berk, and I wanted to see it for myself. I have a fascination with adventures and journeys – stories if you will. I’m a traveling bard.” It wasn’t a complete lie. He did travel to cities to tell children stories and put on plays for them too. He just left out the part of being, what some called, a warrior of justice.

Skeptical, the boy rose a questioning eyebrow (or at least it looked like he did from this distance) as the dragon finally landed on the road. Luckily Jack had stumbled upon a larger nook than usual tonight, leaving plenty of room for this encounter. “And how do I know you aren’t lying?” The freckled man asked as he slid off the back of the larger dragon.

Jack opened his mouth to speak but stopped when he noticed a small black dragon on his shoulder, seemingly sleeping. It only made him more excited knowing smaller dragons were here as well! He wondered if they were the ones knocking people off the mountain like the legend stated.

“I could’ve killed you by now, but I haven’t,” he honestly said, which only made the freckled man snigger.

“Oh really? You couldn’t even keep the sword in your hand.” He mocked as he put his hands on his hips, the larger riding dragon standing up tall next to him.

Right – that was an embarrassing first impression to leave, he blushed a bit as he looked down at his hands. He couldn’t tell this man he could’ve frozen them out of the sky. Nothing good ever came out of people knowing he was a demigod, let alone the son of Loki.

“I have my ways,” he decided to say threateningly as he crossed his arms. “So… you’re from Berk?”

“No, I’m from the other village on the mountain,” he said, his sarcasm oozing with each word. Jack couldn’t help but roll his eyes as he took a few steps forward, watching as the other tensed up. He hated seeing that.

“Look, I just want to experience your village. Are strangers not allowed?”

The stranger looked at his riding dragon as it made a few noises, nodding as if understanding the creature. Then the dragon on his shoulder opened its eyes, making noises as well.

“I’m not gonna just leave him!” He snapped to the smaller dragon who only seemed to have a few teeth. “Windwalker’s right,” he sighed as he looked at Jack again, letting his hands slide off his hips. “Sorry, we were attacked last week, I’m still a little on edge. I’ll walk with you the rest of the way. It’s only a few more turns.”

Jack raised a questioning eyebrow as he looked around. He wanted to walk, while it was still dark out? Wasn’t that dangerous? “Cool! Lead the way, oh great Dragon Whisperer~” he smirked as he bowed, trying not to freak out over the fact that this kid seemed to understand the dragons.

His ministrations must’ve caught the other off guard as he blinked a few times, not sure how to react. Jack gave himself a point on his imaginary scoreboard, determined to leave him thoughtless because the face he made was just too cute (he also loved messing with people – it was in his blood).

“Just make sure to keep up,” he mumbled as he started upwards, the large dragon leading the way. It kept sneezing though, Jack just noticed. Could a dragon even get a cold? Maybe it had allergies.

Shaking the thoughts from his head, he picked up the sword he abandoned, gathered his things and ran up after him. “The name’s Jack, by the way, Jack Frost.”

“Jack Frost?” He snorted, glancing back at Jack. “Sounds like a stage name.”

“Well I am a bard~” he playfully smirked, giving him a wink. “And if you don’t lead me to my death, maybe I’ll put a show on for you~”

At that the freckled one rose a confused eyebrow, still looking at him as he strode forward. “A bard tells stories, not plays.”

“Ah, well you see-“ he said as he quickly caught up with him, walking right at his side. “I have many skills~” At this, the Dragon Whisperer looked him up and down, studying his thin, yet tall body, the clothes he wore, and the bags he carried. His eyes lingered on a few parts, as if he was taking mental notes of some kind.

“I see. So you’re a swordsman, archer, good with a staff, bard, thespian, and don’t tell me, a great cook,” he spoke with his hands as he gave a dry laugh. It was obvious this new character didn’t take him very seriously, but who would? Humans had the tendency to lie, especially to impress people or for personal gain.

“Yes to all of those, exceeptttt that last one,” Jack admitted with a laugh. “At least it’s edible.”

“You have more skill than half of Berk,” the freckled one smiled, unconsciously petting the dragon on his shoulder. “I’ll spare you the horror stories.”

Jack sniggered at that, casually throwing his hands in his white robe pockets. “As much as I love stories, I’m grateful you gave me a pass. Though,” he looked over at the stranger with a hopeful smile. “I didn’t catch your name.”

The freckled man turned to him with a sly smirk of his own, a daring fire sparking in his eyes. “ ‘Cause I didn’t throw it~” He teased with a little raise of his shoulder.

Oh Jack was determined to win now. “That’s okay,” he smirked as he looked forward again. “I’m sure as soon as we get into town, I’ll hear your name.”

He expected another clever and witty comeback, he expected a sneer or embarrassed answer. But instead he was greeted with silence, and it worried him. Chancing a glance back, he saw the brunette looking sadly forward, a haunting look in his eyes.

“I doubt it,” he whispered, obviously noticing his gaze. Jack wanted to expand on this; he wanted to know why the mood suddenly shifted, but he decided against it. He just met this guy, he didn’t want to pressure or rub him the wrong way.

“Well, I hope I do at some point,” he merely said as the sun started to blind them, making it a bit more difficult to see. They were following the dragon though, so Jack had to put faith in the pair. “So… stop me if this is a sore subject, but why were you guys attacked, and by who?” Maybe there was a way the could help this village after all.

The tension in the Dragon Whisperer’s shoulders suddenly depleted as he deflated, the tense atmosphere slowly fading. “The Outcasts. They’re a band of people-“

“Who’ve done terrible things and were banned from their homes,” Jack growled, the other looking up at him in shock.

“You’ve heard of them?”

“Unfortunately,” Jack mumbled, remembering the time where The Nightmares teamed up with The Outcasts. They betrayed them in the end, and his boss never forgave them. “What do they want with you guys?”

“What they normally want, our dragons, knowledge, and treasures. Though their leader seemed more interested in learning how to control the dragons.” He mumbled. “If he learned how to…”

“He could assemble an army,” Jack finished as he clenched his fists. “How close did they get?”

“To the gates of Berk,” he said, which honestly wasn’t all that bad. In fact it was good – really good.

“Only to the gates?” Jack let out a laugh. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about, especially if you keep an eye out-“

“On the path, yeah we know. We won’t be caught off guard again, which is why I’m not too worried.” He smiled as he glanced back up at Jack. “You were the one that asked.”

“Hey, sorry just curious,” he mumbled, inwardly sighing in relief. There wasn’t much he could do then when the village was practically impenetrable. Unless these guys suddenly stopped making rounds and paying attention, Jack didn’t think it was much of an issue. After all, they could just have a dragon swing in and knock the invading army off the cliff.

Speaking of gates, as they rounded another corner, the gates to Berk came into full view, making Jack’s jaw drop. It wasn’t completely at the top of the mountain, but it worked out better that way because a giant waterfall was at the center of their world of beautiful greenery. Dragons of all sizes were flying around while the dragons on guard duty each stood on posts on the walls. There were two Monstrous Nightmares and two Deadly Nadders, all looking at them, studying them – evaluating them.

“Hey guys, he’s cool,” Hiccup said before speaking in another tongue. If Jack didn’t know any better, he could swear he was speaking to the dragons in their own language because the dragons all stood up tall and went back to their posts. Did these people really learn their language too? He did seem to understand them a bit earlier too. “Please don’t tell anyone you heard me talking like that, I’ll get in trouble,” he admitted as he approached the gate. Simultaneously the dragons all blew fire, giving the signal to open the gates.

“Why? Are you talking to dragons??” Jack asked his face full of excitement. His reaction made the other blush a bit as he bite his lip, obviously not sure how to respond. “Y-yeah… but it’s forbidden here, so…”

Forbidden?? Jack couldn’t help but blink, shocked. Why would such an amazing discovering be forbidden, especially in a village that were friends with dragons? Unless it was to prevent people from having more control over the dragons…

“Fine, I won’t tell, on two conditions,” the demigod smirked. Those words made Hiccup pale over before sighing dramatically, putting a hand on his right hip regrettably. “You tell me your name~”

“Of course,” he mumbled, though despite his grumpy remark, there was a small smile. “It’s Hiccup, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III.”

It took everything Jack had not to laugh. Hiccup? Seriously? Why would someone name their kid Hiccup? Then again, he’s heard worse. “Well, Hiccup,” he put emphasis on the name, rubbing in his win which only made Hiccup roll his eyes. “The second condition is that you’ll show me around town~”

“Fineee,” he whined as the gates finally opened for them. “Now, be warned, we’ve lived up here for years without much contact with the outside world. Some of us aren’t the smartest, and some of us aren’t the most… sane.”

“It’d be boring if you guys were normal,” Jack admitted as he followed behind Hiccup, taking in all the scenes. There were so many people, sheep, dragons and – chickens? – running amuck. The little kids were chasing the smaller dragons, playing either hide and seek or tag while the grownups worked and shopped, dragons loyally following behind them. It was a sight he thought he’d never see, and now that it was in front of him, he wanted to engrave it in his mind. “You guys have a lot of shops,” he observed as they started to pass them by. He wanted to look at each and every one of them, but he’d do that after Hiccup showed him around. Despite being partnered with him, he didn’t want to waste Hiccup’s time.

“Yep, there’s a shop for everything, evennn a shop full of nothing,” he sighed, the disappointment obvious in his tone.

“Do people actually buy nothing?” Jack blinked, not believing it.

Hiccup nodded, though shame filled his features. “Some Berkians… aren’t the brightest.”

Not really sure how to respond, as he wasn’t even sure what to think, Jack just nodded and kept following him. After all the shops they had the store houses where weapons, food, water, and other materials were stored. They were two-story warehouses as well and they apparently had replicas on the other side of town in case anything happened to one of the buildings. Beyond that was the town hall, standing large and proud. The large, marble carved Vikings on each side of the door were a bit intimidating though, which was impressive considering he didn’t even know who they were.

Behind that were the homes, each about the same size. Though it was easy to distinguish which house had how many kids because a floor was added to it. It was frightening – there was a house that had to be at least nine stories high. What was really amazing was that between the homes, there was room and space for dragons to sleep, eat and drink. The dragons were literally part of the family.

“-and here are the crops. We have a statue of each god and goddess surrounding them with hopes that they’ll watch over our crops.”

Jack’s eyes narrowed at that, glaring at the statues. That was one addition he hated. Everything else was beautiful, even the area where the dragons and people played around by the waterfall. But this? The fact that they had a statue of each god, even Loki his supposed father, made his blood boil.

“The gods don’t do shit,” Jack couldn’t help but grumble, glowering up at his father’s statue. “I doubt they even know you have the statues here.”

Hiccup, noticing the change in Jack, turned to him, curious. Realizing his outburst, Jack tried to downplay it by coughing a bit awkwardly, looking the other way. “This was definitely worth the hike,” he admitted, clearing his throat. It wasn’t a lie, he was impressed with everything, except the statues. “So… what do you usually do around here-“

“Useless!” A snotty voice snapped, making Hiccup groan.

“One second,” Hiccup whispered as his riding dragon flew off, heading towards the waterfall. The little one on his shoulder though jumped up and floated by his side, glowering at the rather short and large man that approached them. Just like the other Vikings he saw around the village, he wore a metal Viking helmet with tusks sticking out on each side, covering the top of his short and spiky black hair that reached just past his ears. Blue piercing eyes filled with mischief looked Jack up and down, his posture and devious facial expression speaking volumes.

This was someone Jack wasn’t going to like.

“Giving the enemy a grand tour of Berk, are you~?” He smirked as he put his hands on his hips, to which Hiccup merely rolled his eyes.

“He’s just a traveler, Snotlout. I found him on my patrol last night.”

“And how are you sure he’s not a spy?!” He snapped, crossing his arms skeptically as he took a few steps closer to Jack, his look turning more sour by the minute. “I bet you’re playing right into Alvin’s hands!”

Hiccup rolled his eyes as he stood between them. “Oh yeah sure, send your spy up the cold and freezing mountain with no supplies and just a thin robe to keep warm – no, not even Alvin’s that stupid. This is just some idiot who didn’t think before he took the trip. Not everyone’s out to get us.”

“And not everyone’s who they say they are!” He snapped as he twirled around with a huff. “I’m telling your father about this, and he’ll take my side!” Putting two fingers to his mouth, he whistled. Just seconds later, a dragon – a Monstrous Nightmare – landed. “Let’s protect Berk from its embarrassment Hookfang,” he laughed, jumping on.

The small black dragon hovering next to Hiccup made a few noises, to which Hiccup merely shook his head. “No, let him go. Trying to stop him will only add fuel to the fire,” he sighed, turning to Jack. “We should head over to my place. Once my father gets an opinion, it’s… hard to change it.”

Oh Jack knew what that was like, so he nodded, following Hiccup back to the residential area. They didn’t have to go far to see a large man that resembled Odin himself walk towards them, two dragons flying at his sides.

“Hiccup, is what Snotlout said true?! Did you let a spy into the village?!” He snapped as the two hunting dragons surrounded them, unnerving Jack. Despite being interested in dragons, he still feared them, especially the fire types.

“No, Snotlout’s just being paranoid,” Hiccup quickly responded as he stood in front of Jack, his arms outstretched as the smaller dragon fluttered above Hiccup. “He’s a traveling bard whose dream is to travel the world and collect stories.”

“It’s true sir,” Jack suddenly spoke up, moving Hiccup out of the way, not wanting to look weak. Besides, he didn’t need to be protected. “I was actually hoping to tell stories to the children, if… that’s okay with you. Anyone can attend,” he glanced at Hiccup with a hopeful smile.

Stoick though put his hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes studying the weapons slung on Jack’s back. “If you come in peace, why the weapons?”

At that, Jack could only let out a laugh. “Travel without a weapon? In this world? I don’t have a death wish,” he admitted as he pointed at his sword. “Just killed three thieves attacking an old farmer on the road towards Paradise Valley. They outnumbered and outclassed the old man, three to one with a savage glint in their eyes.” Stoick’s hard eyes softened and glittered with a warrior’s curiosity, which made Jack gleefully smirk. “I was making my way here on the back of my trusty steed when we saw the scene. The old man was begging the thieves to spare him, begging them to spare the only crops that grew for him and his family after the first harsh winter storm blew through. The leader of the three thieves, who stood in the middle of the other two men, looked at his comrades and said they’d spare him. But then a wicked smirk crawled like a black widow on his lips as he took out his sword and thrust it into the old man’s shoulder.”

“How despicable! How dishonorable!” Stoick gasped, his fingers tightening in anger on his own sword. But that’s how Jack knew he had his audience captivated as he drew his own sword, holding it high in the air with one hand to show he meant no harm.

“That’s what I thought too. So I took up my sword and charged in, my determination to save the old man blazing.” He moved his body with the story, demonstrating his moves and actions. “The three men, shocked to see me running their way, collected themselves as they readied for battle. But they made the tragic mistake of underestimating me. I stopped my horse midway and flipped off it, landing and swiping at their feet. My blade cut into the ankle of one of the thieves as the other two were smart enough to sidestep away, then one of them charged. I took my sword and swung it behind me, letting it rest in my armpit as I twirled around him, laughing as he rammed into his comrade, stabbing him with his own sword.”

“Idiot!” Stoick laughed.

“Right? Their leader was the same,” Jack smirked as he took his sword in both hands, slowly moving to the side, his eyesight and sword pointed in the direction where no one stood. “He stood, just like this, his eyes glowing with hatred and revenge. ‘Scum!’ He yelled as he took a stab at me, but I moved back, easily parring his swipe. When I fight, I use my senses to their fullest. So I was prepared when scurrying footsteps came barreling towards me. Without a second thought, I rolled off to the side, my sword safely tucked with me. The other thief had grasped a hold of reality, yet was blinded by revenge. Foolishly he came at me, sword swinging and used all his brute strength to thrust his sword forward. I, of course, predicted this move and easily moved out of the way, immediately thrusting my own sword forward. As the second one fell, the third yelped in anger and anguish. He charged as well, but I surprised him with my special attack,” he smirked. This is where his story became false, like always. “I grabbed this magic powder, a gift from the gods, from my pocket and tossed it forward, the sparkling dust lighting up in such a way he stopped dead still. I told him I was sorry I had to kill his friends, but I’d spare him as long as he tried turn his life around. ‘How am I supposed to do that?’ He asked, his voice breaking in anger and sorrow. He still hadn’t forgiven me for slaying his friends, but there was still a chance this man could do good with his life – I couldn’t give up on him. ‘For starters, you can take this man back to his people and work for him until he’s well enough. You owe him that much. Then maybe you can settle down, or work to protect others.”

“That’s stupid!” Stoick snapped, his fingers leaving his sword as he crossed his arms again. “He’s scum! He’s not going to change just because you spared him! He’ll just hunt you down for revenge!”

“But he didn’t,” Jack said as he put his own sword away. “I checked on him before coming back up here, and he found his calling. Now the village has a protector and blacksmith who knows his weapons. Everyone’s thankful he’s there – he’s saved the village from two raid attacks. He even found a wife.” As he finished, he chanced a glance to Hiccup whose eyes were sparkling. The sight made him blush a bit as he cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his head. He hadn’t expected Hiccup to look at him that way, with such admiration and respect. It made him uneasy.

“I’d say he’s telling the truth father,” Hiccup said, looking up at his father with a bright smile. “For an outsider, he tells great stories.”

Stoick, who blinked a few times because he hadn’t even noticed how engrossed he had become coughed, avoiding eye contact. “Well… I guess there’s no harm in performing, but no weapons.”

Instantly Jack beamed in happiness, relieved he would be able to perform. It was something he could cross off his bucket list. “When can I do it?”

“Tonight at the amphitheater,” Stoick said as he whistled, his two hunting dragons flying back to his sides. “Hiccup will show you the way.” He then turned to his son. “If he turns out to be a spy-”

“I know, I’m banished,” he mumbled as the small dragon flew back on his shoulder, those acidic green eyes glowering at Jack. He quickly turned away, avoiding the gaze, already feeling dizzy. One of the first rules when dealing with dragons is to never look them in the eyes. Doing so gives them complete control over you so they could either eat you, use you as a slave, or make you spill your secrets.

“Good, see you two later tonight,” his father said as he mounted one of the dragons and flew off, leaving the two of them alone.

“So,” the demigod started, seeing as Hiccup seemed to be composing himself. “Your father seems nice.”

Hiccup couldn’t help but snort as he turned to him. “He can be, when he’s in a good mood,” he admitted. “If you hadn’t started your story though…” He shook his head, unable to say the rest as he crossed his arms. “Normally he doesn’t listen to me, but your bard skills distracted him.”

Was that supposed to be a compliment? Jack was pretty sure that was a compliment, so he smiled, feeling victorious. “Well, I don’t mean to brag,” he smirked as he clasped his hands together to stretch them out in front of himself. “But I’m pretty awesome.”

Pain shot through his butt as what felt like teeth sunk into his skin, making Jack gasp and jump. Twirling around, he expected to see a large dragon trying to make a meal out of him, but instead saw the small black dragon shaking in laughter in mid air, no doubt laughing.

“Thanks Toothless,” Hiccup gave a smug smile as the dragon slowly flew back to him, laughing and giggling the whole way.

Despite the pain, Jack couldn’t help but give a small, playful smirk. “What was that forrr?” He whined, rubbing his bottom. For a dragon with very few teeth, that chomp hurt like hell.

“Someone was getting cocky, we had to put you in your place.” Jack couldn’t help but chuckle as Hiccup turned on his heels, making his way back to the heart of the village. Oh he’d get him back sooner or later! Hiccup was messing with a child of Loki!

“Was that story true, by the way?” Hiccup’s tone changed, no longer jocular and challenging. This one seemed more sincere; gentle even. It caught Jack off guard.

“Yeah, all my stories are real,” he admitted, looking down at the soil as they continued, trying not to remember the stories he tried putting behind him. “Even the ones I don’t want to remember.” Slowly Hiccup turned, pity written on his face. Jack hated that look, but he always asked for it with answers like that.

“Then… why do you tell them if they hurt you?”

That… was a good question. Why did he tell them? Wouldn’t it be better to just bury some and pretend they never happened?

“I guess… it’s a release,” his mind supplied. “I’ve been through a lot of battles and a lot of wars, I guess telling others is therapeutic.”

“I can respect that,” Hiccup said as they stopped at the edge of the shops. “You gave that thief a second chance. Not all warriors do that,” he bite his bottom lip as he looked up at Jack, a soft smile crossing his thin lips. “How did you know he’d change?”

Jack bite his bottom lip as he looked to the ground, not really sure how to respond. “After… everything I’ve seen, I couldn’t see a killer instinct in his eyes.”

Hiccup’s eyes widened as he tilted his head, amazed. “You can see that?” He blinked before shaking his head, noticing the way a haunting expression seemed to cloud Jack’s eyes. He didn’t have to explain if he didn’t want to, so he decided to change the subject. “What did the dust do? It was a little unclear.”

Jack felt his heart beat fast for a moment. He had hoped he wouldn’t ask, but of course he did. “Well that’s a secret,” he smiled before playfully nudging him. “If I told you, I’d have to kill you.”

A challenging smirk returned to Hiccup’s freckled face and eyes. “I’d like to see you try.”

Jack couldn’t help but snort, looking Hiccup up and down. He didn’t mean to judge, but Hiccup did /not/ strike him as the fighting type despite the missing left leg. Yes Jack noticed the small limp in his step, followed by the faint sound of metal. “No offense, but you don’t seem like the fighting type.”

Quickly Hiccup drew his sword, revealing a small yet elaborate blade. Just like a sword should be, it was an extension of his own arm and he held it with confidence as it was pointed at Jack.

Slowly Jack put his hands in the air. “That wasn’t a challenge, I promise,” he said. “I barely got permission to do my bard thing later, I’m not about to throw the opportunity away.”

“Like Useless could hit you anyway,” the familiar voice of Snotlout came from beside them, making them both turn. Before they could even protest, Snotlout pulled out his own sword and darted towards Hiccup. In an instant the Dragon Whisperer got ready to parry the attack, but there was a dangerous look in the bully’s eyes. A look Jack had seen too many times. Snotlout was looking for blood.

With ease, Jack drew his own sword and blocked Snotlout’s, though blinked in surprise. Parallel to his own sword was Hiccup’s, and his stance was almost flawless despite his shaking arms from the pressure the larger boy was forcing upon them. There was more to Hiccup than he thought. But he wasn’t going to let this fight progress. With the strength that came from a demigod, Jack pushed Snotlout back, knocking his sword to the ground. “We’re not looking for a fight, go home,” he hissed, putting his own sword away.

Snotlout, however, glowered up at them. If looks could kill, Jack would’ve been a dead man. “No one makes a fool out of me!” He snapped before turning to leave. For half a second, Jack could faintly hear the sound of metal cutting through air behind him.

Was he really trying to stab a man in the back? Was Snotlout really this pathetic?

Quickly his hand went for his bow and held it backwards, catching the sword through the strings before he yanked both to the side. Like he expected, the sword was dull, leaving his bow undamaged. “Didn’t your parents teach you manners?” He snapped as he kneed the new comer in the stomach so hard he doubled over. “Never stab a man in the back; it’s dishonorable,” he hissed, turning to Hiccup who went and grabbed the bow that lay next to the now unconscious man.

“We should hang outside the gates for a bit,” Hiccup whispered as they quickly headed in that direction. “He doesn’t take defeat well.” The dragon said something from his shoulder, which prompted Hiccup to sigh. “Yeah, he set fire to the crops during one of my shifts when I was on the other side of the island and blamed me for it all. And since he’s the star pupil in Gobber’s training, everyone believed him over me.” The dragon on his shoulder sunk its claws into Hiccup’s shoulder, making him gasp. “Yeah yeah, sorry, over me and Toothless, whatever.”

Normally Jack didn’t stand down to bullies, nor did he hide from them. But he didn’t want to lose grace with Stoick, and he didn’t want to get Hiccup banished. He’d stay out of trouble… for now.

“Lead the way~” he said, following Hiccup back outside the gates. The guardian dragons glanced over at them as they neared the gates before returning to their positions. Jack was surprised they let them out, but didn’t question it as Hiccup led him to the side of the mountain where there was shade from a tree above.

“I know it doesn’t have the best scenery, but we’re alone out here.” Jack couldn’t help but smile a bit at that. Hiccup liked solitude too? If everyone treated him like Snotlout did, he couldn’t blame him.

“Does everyone treat you like Snotlout?” He asked softly, almost hesitantly. He hated the idea of Hiccup being cast out.

“No,” he said as he pulled his legs close to his chest, Toothless flying up to the tree above to snack on insects. “I don’t like talking about it.”

“Sorry-“ Jack was quick to say, pulling his own legs to his chest. “With the way you handled that sword, I know you can take care of yourself, but…” slowly he looked to Hiccup, his deep blue eyes meeting those forest green ones. “You shouldn’t have to protect yourself from the people you live with,” he said, his voice darkening a bit.

“Well… we’re cousins, actually, Snotlout and I,” he said, biting his bottom lip as he looked to the ground. “And even though I’m supposed to be next in line to be the Chief of Berk, he wants my position.”

“So he’ll kill you to get it?” He asked, watching as Hiccup’s face cringed a bit in fear.

“No, I mean, he’s done some… questionable things, but I doubt he’d actually, you know, go through with it. Besides, I always make it out in the end, as strange as it sounds. It’s like… the gods want me to stay alive or something.”

Unintentionally Jack growled at the statement as he clenched his fists against his pants. It was a habit, he couldn’t control it. Even if he could he’d still curse the gods and tell others not to listen to them.

“Is there a story behind it?” Hiccup asked quietly, making Jack blink a bit in confusion.

“Behind what?”

“Why you hate the gods so much?”

Of course he’d ask that. He pushed into Hiccup’s life, now Hiccup was pushing into his. It was only fair.

“Let’s just say one of them ruined my life,” he said. “They led me down a dark path I couldn’t get out of. It’s why I’m trying to redeem myself. The least I can do is help as many people as I can, and to make people laugh.” He stopped after that, bitterly spitting off to the side. Hiccup, who only grew more curious, opened his mouth to speak when an arrow whizzed past his face, barely missing him, and stuck into the wall between them.

Quickly they both sprung to their feet, Jack taking his sword out. The dragon guardians all got up and growled, howling the signal.

They were under attack, and with Jack’s horrible luck, they were outside the gates as an army started to pour onto the main road.

“Toothless!” Hiccup cried as the little dragon fell out of the tree and onto his shoulder, hissing at the amassing army. “Think we can make it to the gates?” He asked, seeing his people and dragons flying upwards.

“It’s too risky, we’d be hit with an arrow as soon as we started to run.”

“Right-“ Hiccup said, feeling like an idiot before he let out a strange, gargled sound, earning a look from Jack. “It’s a Monstrous Nightmare call. They all have saddles so we’ll be fine.”

Monstrous Nightmare – oh gods Jack felt his face pale. There was no way he was getting on the back of one of those. If it decided to light itself on fire, he wouldn’t stand a chance. He’d get a heat stroke and fall unconscious in a matter of seconds.

“Why a monstrous nightmare? I mean, wouldn’t a deadly nadder or something similar be better??”

“If the dragon’s mature enough, the nightmare’s flames can melt the weaker arrows before they even get close. And if we get surrounded, people will scatter at the sight of fire.”

‘Yeah, so will I,’ Jack wanted to say, but kept his mouth shut. They’d figure it out. Even if he had to make Hiccup leave by himself, then so be it.

“Get them! Bring Hiccup to Alvin!!” One of the front leaders commanded. A few men made a mad dash for them, Jack shoving Hiccup behind him as he raised his sword at the ready.

“Hey!” Hiccup cried. “I can FIGHT!” He growled, trying to push himself forward as the first man came over, swinging his sword. Easily Jack disarmed him, stabbing him in the chest without mercy.

“I know you can, but have you killed before?” The silence that followed was all he needed to hear before he rushed the next two guys, moving away from one of their blades and kneeing him hard in the groin. He then slammed his sword down on another man’s hand before using the hilt to slam the sword on his head; both fell to the ground instantly.

“Once you kill, everything changes,” he said as he plunged his sword into yet another warrior, watching the light leave the man’s eyes sadly. “You’ll never sleep peacefully again.”

Hearing that made Hiccup gulp. It was the truth. He couldn’t even bring himself to kill a dragon, instead he befriended nearly the entire species. But out here, right now, he couldn’t befriend all these soldiers. It was literally a kill or be killed situation. If it really came to it, would he really be okay sinking metal into another’s flesh? Would he really be okay watching as the blood trickled down the polished silver while the light left someone’s eyes?

No… he couldn’t do it…

With a distressed sigh, he sheathed his sword, grabbing Jack’s bow out of his pack. “Fine, I’ll just beat them with this.” The demigod would’ve protested, but he was just glad he was listening to him. Most people didn’t, then regretted it later.

“Ready? Here comes five, I won’t be able to stall all of them!”

“I’m ready!” Hiccup said as Toothless flew around them, the dragon looking determined.

When they came, Jack was able to distract three of them with ease, immediately disarming one. The other two both charged. When they were inches away Jack dropped to the ground and grabbed their ankles, forcing them to fall on their faces. The sound of flesh being shifted by metal reassured him that one of them fell on their own sword. The other was hovering above him, lifting his sword to plunge into Jack.

With a deep breath, he rolled back slightly and kicked the man in the stomach, his hands going weak and dropping the sword. The man on his right regained his sense as he gripped his ankle free from his hand and stumbled to his feet. Fearing he’d go after Hiccup, Jack rolled forward, managing to get to his feet and jumped into a fighting stance, only to gasp. The man was running towards him with his sword, but behind him two men had Hiccup by the wrists, trying to drag him away. Hiccup, of course, was flailing and fighting against him as much as he could with Toothless trailing behind him, being hunted down by a third guy with a sword.

“Hiccup!!” He cried as he parred the guy’s sword, but unlike the others, he didn’t lose his grip on his weapon. Instead he kept fighting, proving to be formidable. He tried all his tricks, all his skills, but no matter what, he couldn’t get this man off him. The other men who were dragging Hiccup were nearly in their safe zone. Even with dragons firing down on them and Toothless desperately biting at their noses and wrists, the dragon was too scared to blow fire, fearing he’d hurt Hiccup. Yet his efforts didn’t seem to be working. One of them, furious, punched Toothless, and with a shriek, the dragon slammed into the ground.

“TOOTHLESS!!” Hiccup cried as he managed to kick one of them in the knee, freeing himself for a few brief seconds before a soldier slammed the hilt of his sword against the side of his head. With a pained gasp his eyes went wide, his body crumbling in their hands.

He had no choice – there was only one thing left to do even though he hated it.

He’d lose the friendship he had with Hiccup – he’d lose Stoick’s respect. But honestly… did he expect a different outcome? He could never be happy….

Bringing his sword close to his face, the air around them grew colder and colder, the wind more violent. The man attacking him looked around, watching the sky darken in fear.

“I’ll give you one chance. Fall back, or face my wrath.” Icicles slowly started forming along his sword, his eye’s reflection fogging over in the blade. The man faltered for a moment, unsure of what he should do. But just like all of them, he continued to come forward, making Jack sigh.

“Let this be a lesson to all of you!” He snapped, swiping his sword as wind pushed the icicles off the metal and into the attacking man, killing him instantly. A few horrified gasps came from the army, even the people dragging Hiccup stopped – only for a moment though. Foolishly, they continued to drag him forward.

“You think this is a trick?!” He snapped as he brought his empty hand to his lips. Softly, he blew against it, unleashing a line of snow that billowed from him and intercepted the people taking Hiccup, making them run right into a snowy wall. Despite being injured, Hiccup used the opportunity to grab one of their swords and slammed the hilt in the back of their necks, knocking them both out. When one of the men hopped the mount and dashed towards Hiccup, who was gathering Toothless in his arms, Jack was suddenly there, his hair now as white as snow and his eyes mirroring the darkest depths of a frozen lake.

“Freeze,” he whispered as he touched him with – wait was that a shepherd's crook made of ice? Where did he get that?? – and instantly, he froze. The dragons and Berkians above were speechless, not really sure what to do while the rest of the army stared on in shock. With a weightless jump, the wind helped Jack up and onto the snow wall he made, stuffing his free hand into one of his pockets while he held the shepherds crook in his other hand. “Leave Berk and never return, or face the wrath of the great Jack Frost!” Wind and snow raged as he said this, laughing maniacally for effect as he watched the army retreat with their tails between their legs.

“You okay Hiccup?” He called, though didn’t look down at him, afraid to see fear, hatred and anger.

“Uhm… more or less,” Hiccup merely said as he pulled Toothless closely to himself, the dragon slowly coming to. “So… is this the magic powder-dust-whatever the gods gave you?”

Despite the situation, Jack couldn’t help the small snort as he turned to him, seeing Hiccup’s face only light up more in fascination than disgust. That… was a first. He wasn’t sure how to respond. This was the first time someone didn’t curse him.

“More or less,” he smirked as he jumped down, using the wind to let him glide down, some parts of his hair losing the frost and returning back to its natural deep brown color. “You’re… not afraid of me?” He mumbled, unable to hide the vulnerable tremble in his voice.

“Should I be?” Hiccup rose an eyebrow as he leaned down and gathered some snow in his hands, forming a ball. “You seem to have it under control, and I sort of, maybe, think it’s kinda awesome.” He smiled, his excitement nearly uncontainable. The relief was enough to make him laugh, a true, genuine laugh as he reached forward, moving to take the snowball when a blast of unfathomable heat rushed towards him. With a painful gasp Jack scrambled back, already feeling himself weaken, nearly falling unconscious. He was extremely sensitive to heat, and for good reason.

“Wait- what are you doing?!” Hiccup cried as he scrambled in front of Jack, acting as a shield. “He saved us, he’s not part of Alvin’s army!!”

“But he’s a demigod, Hiccup,” Stoick boomed as his father’s hunting dragon approached, his face full of fear. “And not just any demigod, a son of Loki! We can’t trust him!”

Hiccup rolled his eyes, staying his ground. “Just because he has ice powers doesn’t mean he’s the son of Loki! He also controlled the wind – there’s lots of gods that have that ability!”

Those words made Jack’s eyes widen, shocked Hiccup would even bring that up. In all honesty, he wasn’t even sure if his father was Loki. He just assumed that because that’s what everyone else said. No one wanted to risk housing or harboring the child of a traitorous, lying, thieving god.

“He’s got a silver tongue, he had me so invested in that story earlier I literally saw it before my eyes!”

“Maybe because he’s a bard, and a damned good one at that?” Hiccup shook his head. “Even if he is the son of Loki doesn’t mean he’s bad! Fishleg’s father is Alvin, and look at him! He only has Berserk tendencies but he’s not evil!”

Stoick’s face scrunched up in pure fury, veins popping in his forehead. “HICCUP! You will not question me in front of the tribe!” He snapped, his words far sharper than any sword as Hiccup’s eyes averted to the ground, body tensing. “Are you trying to embarrass me?!”

“No,” he whispered, slowly turning to Jack. “You’re embarrassing yourself, attacking someone who just saved us. We owe him our gratitude, not his execution.” Hesitantly, the dragon whisperer turned back to his father, clenching his fists at his sides. As much as he loved his father, he refused to put up with his stupid views, especially when they were wrong.

For a moment, Stoick hesitated. He looked to Jack, his face softening a bit, but then he looked back to Hiccup and scowled. “Get out of the way-“

“You don’t have to worry about me,” Jack suddenly spoke up, wind picking up. “I’m leaving.”

“What?!” Hiccup gasped, dropping his guard as he turned to him, watching as the wind picked up Jack’s pack he left back at the tree and brought it to the demigod. “No it’s not fair – it’s not customary! Just give me a few minutes-“ he stopped as Jack gently rest a hand on his shoulder.

“Thank you for showing me your village, but even if I was allowed back in, I couldn’t bear to see the fear on their faces.”

“But they shouldn’t…” he whispered, seeing the sad yet peaceful look in his deep blue eyes. It was the look of someone who had given up a long time ago, but found a way to make peace with it. No one should harbor that gaze.

“It’s fine, I’m needed elsewhere, I’ve been selfish long enough.” Gently he patted Hiccup on the shoulder, a sign of pure gratitude as he threw the pack on his back. “The ice wall should keep them out for a bit. Even if they wanted to attack they’d have to climb over it, but they won’t be able to make it to the top before the dragons surrounded them.”

“Jack-“

“You’ve been the best company I’ve had in a long time,” Jack whispered down to Hiccup, not daring to meet my eyes. It was hard to say goodbye. “Thank you.”

Before Hiccup could even muster up another argument, Jack jumped, a gust of wind forcing him to shield his eyes. “Wait – let me get you provisions-“ By the time the wind calmed down enough for him to lower his arms, the demigod was gone, leaving soft snow glittering from the sky.

------

I hope you guys like it so far! I have thirty more pages written up, so enough for another chapter >////< After I polish it up I’ll upload as soon as I can~! Thank you so much for being my beta reader Tashi~

#hijack #frostcup #phage writes #the greater good #i havent been able to write in so long yet i was able to write so much of this flaiushfliuashdf im so happy >///< I've been working on this #for a while falaflihds even taking a notepad to work to work on it during my breaks flaiushf sometimes i'd leave early just to have sometime

15 notes · View notes