A/N: Once upon a time, this fandom had an abundance of Marie/Stein fics with more posted each and every day. It was a wonderful era filled with angst and fluff and lemons galore. Well, I haven't seen one in a while, and it pains me. So, I decided to write something that's been rolling around in my mind for a few months. As always, suggestions for future chapters or any feedback whatsoever is GREATLY appreciated as long as it's constructive! Updates bi-weekly b/c I'm overcommitted in the chapter fanfic department (and life in general). Cross-posted from AO3, my main archive.
Prologue: Reid N. Wheap
Then he gave the hammer to Thor, and said that Thor might smite as hard as he desired, whatsoever might be before him, and the hammer would not fail; and if he threw it at anything, it would never miss, and never fly so far as not to return to his hand… —The Prose Edda, translated by Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur"Your soul is mine, Circe!"
Marie suppressed a disappointed groan. Reid was a good meister, an attractive blonde hair and blue-eyed Adonis. But he never missed an opportunity to deviate from the plan these days, especially when their carefully laid preparations called for stealth. With 99 kishin eggs in the bag (the bag being Marie's stomach), the hammer meister was growing cocky. But Marie pushed her frustrations aside.
This brawl, this particular fight was the culmination of seven years' hard work. Mistakes meant consequences, deadly ones. This was the day that she, Marie Mjolnir, would become a death scythe… If Reid could slay the witch Circe. And, well, that suddenly seemed like a big "if."
"Well now, what do we have here," the pale figure responded with cold gentility.
She chuckled, a sound that caused the hair on the back of Marie's neck to stand on end. At first glance, Marie thought that Circe looked like a beautiful, if frightfully pallid, woman, but Reid had not been so easily deceived. The woman's soul wavelength gave her away.
Reid described the witch's soul as a glowing mauve sphere with a single predatory fin endlessly circling the perimeter. Circe's blue hair moved like a windswept tide. Her locks framed a pair of coal black eyes and gutting cheekbones. The woman's sadistic smile revealed layers jagged teeth, reminiscent of a shark. Yes, just as the assignment brief had supposed, she was a witch through and through.
"Oh, I see," the witch continued, her voice laced with mock surprise. "Two little children wandered away from big bad Death's academy. You could get hurt, you know. Maybe I should teach you and your little weapon a lesson."
"Marie, weapon form now!" Reid bellowed as Circe's form rippled with salacious delight.
Wasting no time, the sea witch lunged forward as Marie transformed in a flash of brilliant white-yellow light. Her hammer form was sleek, all glinting silver metal with lighting markings from hilt to head. Reid grasped her handle with a practiced ease and handily dodged Circe's first spell, a concentrated sphere of water housing a sickly green substance. Marie winced in the reflection of her hammer form as the sphere burst against a nearby brick wall sending a few droplets of green ooze colliding with her metal. The foreign substance sizzled and filled the air with a sour odor.
"Careful Reid!" Marie warned through their resonance link. "That's acid! No more surprises. Let's stick to the plan and wait for our opening."
"Don't worry your pretty little head," the hammer meister retorted. "I'll bag her soul before you break in that new skirt of yours."
"Well… thanks… I think…" Marie used to believe that statements like this were complimentary, perhaps even considerate. She wasn't so sure anymore. I'll bag her soul, he had said. Wasn't that supposed to be a we? As in, we'll bag her soul?
Circe didn't give Marie time to ponder that thought. She muttered an indecipherable incantation and produced a trident formed completely out of coral. Marie viewed the colorful protrusions with both admiration and trepidation; she hoped her meister saw that the spear was as beautiful as it was dangerous. With a shrill laugh, Circe twirled the jagged instrument around her body bringing it to rest in a menacing stance, pointed directly at the pair.
"You are quick boy, I give you that. But I only need to hit you once," she purred. "I'll be gentle if you come quietly. Don't want to rust your little weapon friend. That wouldn't make a very nice corpse to send back to old-Deathy."
Clearly angered, Reid charged on Circe with a telltale yell. The witch widened her stance and countered Reid's first upward swing. Marie both heard and felt the sickening crunch of metal hitting coral as she bounced back. She was sure the shiny finish of her hammer form was marred with uneven scratches, and Circe's trident was also worse for the wear.
However, the sea witch took advantage of her opening with gusto. Even as Reid attempted to block, Circe jabbed the sharp ends of her trident into the spry meister's side. Reid cried out in pain as the calcifications ripped through his shirt and tore at his muscled abdomen.
"We can't take another hit like that," Maire cautioned through the link. "Long-range attacks will work better. Throw me!"
"No!" growled Reid in response. "You're too heavy."
The hammer meister recovered quickly as the witch swiped at his legs. Reid jumped, avoiding the tridents deadly prongs and landing a sideways blow to Circe's head. The force of Marie's powerful hit caused Circe to topple over, dropping her trident. The sea witch's blue hair splayed over her face as she shrieked in pain. Both weapon and meister remained ready to attack, but Circe didn't get up.
"We got her!" Marie exclaimed. "Now, just like we practiced, Reid. A clean, quick shot at close range. Finish her, make me a death scythe and we'll get that wound looked at."
But Reid didn't move in for the kill shot. A cruel smile stretched to the corners of his face as he surveyed the crumpled body before him. He brought his hand to the gory gash and clicked his tongue in disapproval.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… Now, Marie, why would I make this quick and clean?" Reid asked languidly. He spoke aloud, loud enough for Circe to hear every word. The hammer meister causally tossed the lightning hammer in his hands as he advanced on Circe's rousing figure. "This witch ruined my shirt. I think she needs a little pain before we reap her soul. How would you like to introduce this water witch to some lightning?"
"I don't know, Reid. I really don't think that's a good idea," the weapon skeptically responded over their resonance. That move wasn't ready. All things considered, Marie knew they'd gotten lucky. It had been downright foolish to charge into a fight (with a witch no less) without careful preparation. Part of Marie still wished they'd stuck to the plan and finished their reconnaissance instead of charging headfirst into the battle royale, but she couldn't argue with results.
"Soul resonance, Marie!" Reid bellowed. Despite his earlier protestations about her weight, Marie felt Reid rear back, ready to throw her. Coupled with the soul resonance, that could only mean one thing. A lightning attack, they'd been trying to master is for six months with no luck… and something else bothered her about it, but Marie couldn't quite put her finger on the reason.
"Shark, ark, narc, lark! Shark, ark, narc, lark!" Circle chanted weakly. A moderate rain enveloped Marie and Reid.
"Is that all you've got, witch!" Reid taunted. "Marie, Now!"
"I think we should just…"
"I'M THE MEISTER! NOW SOUL RESONANCE!"
Resigned and ignoring the little voice in the back of her head, Marie obliged. She closed her eyes, quieted her thoughts and reached out for the hammer meister. The connection sparked to life as Reid tossed the lightning hammer at the witch with all his might.
He didn't realize that he hadn't worn rubber soled shoes.
He didn't see the small puddle around his feet, connecting him with the sea witch.
The scene played out in a split second. Marie struck Circe in the shoulder, channeling a dose of white-hot electricity through her. She screamed with a sadistic smile, hunkering down in the puddle connecting her with the hammer meister. The lightning traveled instantaneously through the water. It coursed through Reid, wiping the smile from his face.
The wounded witch got away, and it was all Marie could do to get her meister, Reid N. Wheap, to the doctor in time. With each wrong turn, Marie frantically cursed herself. It would all have gone so much better if she'd had a better sense of direction.