Disclaimer: I do not own KnA. That should be obvious. Also I give warning that there is mention of modern widely practiced religions in a not so kind context. Again, as I said in the past, its more of a historical one than a religious one and is not intended to offend anyone who follows the faith(s).
Prose 10:
The next week went by in a large blur. There was so much going on, between going to classes and organizing the Solstice Festival. Yui was also spending her time, researching Yule celebrations as a gift for just the gods, or more specifically the Norse ones. She talked with Balder and Thor on what sort of things they did in celebration of Hödr's birthday. Balder offered up their dorm for the entire celebration, much to Loki's disgust.
Before anyone knew it, the Winter Solstice was upon them, the courtyard filled with Christmas decorations and evergreens. It looked so odd in the daylight, but on the evening of the festival with everything lit up it was so beautiful. Yui only wished there was snow to accentuate the brightness and beauty of light against the calm darkness.
It was still bitter cold and she clothed herself in a jacket and scarf as she wandered around the booths looking at all the treats and gifts the spirit students made. Getting to work at her booth, Yui remained with Takeru and Tsukito serving hot chicken stew and tea to warm the people up a bit.
In the back of her mind, Yui thought that all that struggle, Balder being suspended, being harassed by Crom Cruach and wedging herself on the Aztec gods' good side, was well worth it. People were having a great time, even with the soft Christmas music playing the in the background.
Hades and Dionysus showed up at their booth, enjoying warm ale from Thor's booth. They asked for some nice chicken stew.
"It smells really good," Hades said, taking a bowl from Takeru, whose face lit up at being complimented by the Lord of the Underworld.
"You guys haven't seen Apollo anywhere have you?" Dionysus asked.
They shook their heads, "No…why?"
Hades shrugged, "He's been trying find some fireworks to blow up. We told him that now's not an appropriate time and we don't want anyone to get hurt."
"I'm sure he's perusing the other booths," Yui said, having perhaps a little too much faith in that Apollo wasn't going to do something so outlandish. Dionysus rubbed his bare arms.
"It's turning out great Kusanagi. Can't say I appreciate the weather though," he said, giving out a sputtering sigh against the chilly air. "I don't know how those Northmen take this."
"They're used to it," Yui said, reminded of the bear pelt Balder gave her to keep her warm a while back. "But it's really all missing snow. I was hoping Zeus would be willing to allow that."
Hades growled a little, but smiled, "Fat chance. I apologize Kusanagi on his behalf."
"Don't apologize Hades. It's not your fault," she said, before he sunk into another mopey mood.
Right then they heard a bang off in the distance. Immediately, Dionysus turned to face the direction it came from and went running off, "Dammit Apollo!"
Hades followed with, "Why do I bring this misfortune!?"
Yui sighed and turned to the Japanese gods, removing her apron and pulling on her scarf, "I'm going to take a short walk around again. Is that okay?"
"Sure," Takeru shrugged. "Don't be too long, I want a break too."
Yui left her booth, thinking mildly that Hades and Dionysus must've stopped Apollo from blowing anything else. She shoved her hands in her pockets, feeling the chill reach her fingertips. She passed booths selling Christmas wreaths and candles. She could smell rum bread and turkey. Man, sensations like these only seemed to appear in books. She resisted the urge to peer through every station to see what wonderful things were being offered. Her original purpose was to check and see what her friends were doing.
As she turned the corner she spotted a group of spirits gathered around something. Getting a closer look, she found a figure in the center taking nuts and lighting them aflame, then swallowing it and blowing out pitch-black smoke in thick plumes that mesmerized the crowd.*
She recognized Tezca as the performer; his body was mostly bare, wearing feathers, beaded accessories, leather clothes around his waist and a jaguar print cape around his back. He also wore a headdress made of turquoise. His body was indeed muscular, tense and taught, distinctly defined, looking heavy, his dark skin making the lovely colorful designs of his attire pop.
Yui saw him smile as the spirits clapped and treated them to another flurry of thick black smoke he released from his mouth. The crowd clapped again in awe and Yui wedged herself closer.
"Oh, human," Tezca's golden eyes widened seeing Yui. He stopped his performance he stepped towards her, Yui following, unconsciously, with a step back. Luckily, Tezca didn't seem to notice her being so hesitant to be around him.
"The snake and I couldn't agree on something that fit with your theme. I hope this is what you're looking for."
"Well," her voice came out shaky, "Everyone else is enjoying your performance. It's perfectly fine."
She stared at his rippling body, at least partially mesmerized by his body and skin. Catching herself, she glanced up, "Aren't you cold?"
Tezca shook his head, "I'm not, no. But that's because I'm not thinking about it too much. By willing I may get frostbite."
Yui smiled at that, withholding laughter. The more she looked at Tezca's expectant face, the more she thought of throwing away all knowledge or concern about human sacrifices or anything Crom Cruach warned her about. It was just stupid. She could hardly trust the harvest god, so why should she give his words more weight over a taciturn, but decent god.
Then, as she was about to ask Tezca how he blew black smoke from his mouth, she felt two hands on her shoulders.
"Finally got a break, señorita?" a familiar voice called right behind her. She turned and found Quetzalcoatl wearing a huge headdress with long beautiful plumes of feathers that seemed to be as long as he was tall. He too was mostly bare.
"You haven't been scaring her with your black mirror magic, Tezcatlipoca?" he said with some amount of seriousness.
"No, no," Yui said, trying to stop fighting words. "I was just about to ask him how he did that."
Tezca frowned and looked away, pretending to be busy with setting up his next performance. Meanwhile, Quetzalcoatl's voice lowered, "Can I speak with you for a moment?"
"Uhh, sure." Quetzalcoatl led her around the side of the booth so that they were alone, away from prying eyes. He removed his headdress and ran a hand through his feathered, rainbow hair.
"What…er…what is it you wanted to talk about?"
"Did Tezcatlipoca do something to you?" he asked, his voice growing low and harsh. His titanium eyes were flashing in the darkness.
"No…I…"
"You sure?" he asked again. "You've been rather stiff around him. Naturally I was concerned."
Yui sighed. She might as well just let it all out. It was a foolish fear anyway. Perhaps discussing the matter would clear things up. She trusted Quetzalcoatl to be understanding.
"No. It's nothing he did. There was this…god, I had a conversation with. Long story short he said you guys…sacrifice humans," she glanced up at Quetzalcoatl expecting to see him confused and mortified. Instead, his face was stone serious. "You guys…you don't do that do you?"
After a short, uneasy pause, Quetzalcoatl answered, and Yui suspected, horrifyingly, what the answer was. His shoulders lifted in a shrug, "What do you want me to say? I can lie and say we don't. I can let you in on our reality and say some of us do."
Disappointment and fear settled in Yui's gut. So Crom Cruach was right. How did the Aztec gods see her then? Were they being nice to her just to keep her oblivious to their true nature? She hated being played, and her look of disgust must've shown clearly.
"It is true that long long ago I indulged in what my worshippers offered," Tezcatlipoca explained. "But over time I grew disgusted by the act of one man killing another just to appease me, especially in times of hardship. I have since disbanded any and all human sacrifices to my name."
This gave Yui pause, as she stared intently at Quetzalcoatl, trying to gauge if he was lying to her or not. She wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. He at least deserved it since he told her in all honesty about the sacrifices.
"But Tezcatlipoca still takes them. A lot of them. He isn't like me, señorita. He is dangerous. He is savage. It would be best if you were never alone with him," he warned. Yui couldn't help but nod, not quite thinking to take Tezcatlipoca's feelings into consideration. She really just wanted the whole "human sacrifice" thing to be behind her.
They couldn't see that Tezcatlipoca was next to the booth and his keen, cat-like hearing could hear every word. His fists clenching, and mouth pulled into a severe frown as hostile feelings towards the serpent god began bubbling up in his chest once again.
Yui wandered away from the Aztec booth, giving Tezca the gratitude of a good-bye wave, which he seemed eager to return.
Eventually she ran into Loki selling hot chocolate.
"Hey, hey! Kusanagi, you gotta help me out here!" he waved her over.
"What is it, Loki?"
"Try this. I told Thor that milk chocolate would be better than regular chocolate. I want to prove him wrong," he held out a mug and Yui eyed it sheepishly.
"I—I don't think so, Loki. I wasn't born yesterday."
Loki was known for his tricks, and he seemed all too eager to get Yui over to drink his cocoa. Loki pouted, "Aww, you're no sport. It's nothing like that. I've been dying all night here. You'd think people would love some nice hot cocoa on a chilly night like this. Here…"
He lifted up a mug and placed it to his lips taking a large slurp. He held the half drunk mug out as if to show proof that it was untainted, "See?"
She knew she was going to regret this. She knew that he had something hidden up his sleeve. Still, just to make him settle down, she cautiously took the mug. Sniffing it once, she drank the rest of the contents.
At first, the taste was pleasant. A thick mocha taste warmed her tongue. Then the warmth started to spread down her throat to a blaze, causing her to cough and sputter.
"Darnit!" she cried as she coughed, "I knew it! I just knew it! Why did I even fall for that?"
"What's the matter? Can't take a little whiskey in your chocolate?!" Loki then cackled outright, his rather tell-tale shrill laugh ringing out.
"Oooh that laugh, sounds like two cats screwing," a slow, dreaded slick voice called out behind them. There stood Crom Cruach, dressed in white robes, holding a satchel at his waist.
"Piss off!" Loki retorted, his glee from before dissipating instantly. Crom Cruach just smiled.
"Come now-"
"Do you want me to get Balder over here? Because I will. He owes you a punch to the face."
Crom Cruach shrugged, before lifting up his satchel and pulling out a small plant. A green plant with white berries. Mistletoe.
"Good, then I can sell him these," he smiled at the look of abject horror on Loki's face. "Or better yet, I can hold them over you two. Give each other a kiss."
"Get over yourself," Yui said defensively. Crom Cruach sighed in disappointment, his grin hardly softening.
"I find it strange that such a symbol of love, can be the source of another's death," the black haired god weighed the mistletoe in his hand as if he were weighing a knife. "Perhaps through the death of another can love and life remain. You see, we snatch these off of trees to cure infertility. And yet here it is, something so fearsome to your folk.**"
"It's not about fear Crom Cruach," Loki shot back. Before long, the two were in a heated argument, but, thankfully, neither Crom Cruach nor Loki were looking for too much trouble. Yui watched the two exchange retorts before skirting out of the way, walking down the path near the edge of the woods in hopes to find a clear path back to her booth.
But she stopped out of curiosity, seeing a large open area with about a dozen or so reindeer standing amongst each other in silence. Amongst them was Cernunnos, casually standing with them, like he was a part of their herd. He was, supposedly, the god of the wild. Surely animals would flock to him like they did Balder. Curiously though, they didn't seem to be any more attracted to Cernunnos. He kept quiet, standing casually like he was with long time friends. He didn't pet them or give them coddling love like a person would a pet. Which is probably why he was so dubbed the god of the wilderness. He wasn't their master. He was just animal of the wilderness like they were, as such Cernunnos gave them equal respect and distance.
Outside of the area was a sign written in really sloppy handwriting that read: Pet-A-Reindeer. At the bottom of the sign in smaller, barely legible print read: Subject to whims of the herd. Whatever that meant. Although, judging by the lack of people wanting a chance to pet an actual reindeer, it probably meant Cernunnos scared them off.
"How have things been going with you, Cernunnos?" Yui waved and stopped in front of the sign, assuming that to go further was to walk into the herd. And that was probably not allowed.
Cernunnos turned from a rather bored looking reindeer to face her, eyes narrowing, "What is it, human?"
"Nothing. I was just asking, since your booth seems…interesting."
"Interesting…" Cernunnos repeated. "It took me a while to convince them to show up to this humiliating event."
He was probably referring to the reindeer. Yui wanted to let Cernunnos be the expert in what the animals wanted, but them looking so bored didn't seem right either. Perhaps letting them stand around in a fruitless endeavor was more unnerving to the reindeer.
"I'm…sorry?" Yui was confused as to who she should be sorry for. A few of the reindeer trotted closer to her, much to Cernunnos' dismay. Did Cernunnos and the reindeer get into a fight? It certainly felt like it. As much as Yui wanted to reach out and touch the reindeer closest to her, she thought it best not to. At least without permission.
"Can I pet one of them?" she asked. Almost immediately, the big reindeer heads turned back to Cernunnos. He looked caught, almost as if the reindeer were daring him to say "no" once again.
"Fine," he growled. "You lot can throw away your dignity. Like I care."
Yui stepped past the sign and reached out to stroke the ear of the closest reindeer, whose eyes closed in contentment. At long last they finally felt the treat of being gently stroked by the human hand. Meanwhile, Cernunnos had his arms across his chest, pouting and looking ridiculous considering he was quite an older god. Yui couldn't think of anything to say. What could she say to a god who knew more about animals than she did? She couldn't just stand and say that he hasn't been "listening" to them. Even to her that sounded like overreaching.
"Your friends are very pleasant," she said, stroking the nose of another.
"Yeah…yeah…" he grumbled. "They are just suckers for affection."
"I hardly think a few pets will ruin their 'wild instincts'."
"Really? How would you like it if some stranger walked up and pet your friends?"
Yui thought about it. It was true from that perspective that having some stranger walk up to you and pet you would be weird. But her friends weren't…ordinary people. "You may be right, but I'm afraid about half of my friends would honestly get a kick out of getting pet."
Immediately she thought about Apollo walking down some random street and some stranger rushing up to pet his head. His eyes would no doubt sparkle. Or someone walking up to Balder sitting on a bench and giving him a belly rub, or some poor, curious, soul patting Tsukito's cheek. The Moon god would most likely regard them for a brief period before going back to sleep.
Cernunnos sighed and leaned back against the trunk of a nearby tree. Yui stopped her petting of the beasts and leaned against the tree beside him, watching the reindeer walk about, recharged after finally fulfilling the purpose of being there.
"I never really liked bringing friends out among humans. I am often torn between letting nature run its course and wanting protect the life of the wild."
Yui looked up at him, mildly shocked that he was speaking to her in at least civil terms, "I'm sure its hard thinking about your friends being…umm…in danger."
"Yeah, I've learned to try to let go," Cernunnos, before glancing over at her. "Perhaps you should learn the same."
"What?"
"After you succeed, your friends will be gone. You won't see them again."
Yui was silenced. She hadn't thought about that much until now. Her concerned had been finding a way to return home, she didn't think that she was going to be separated from everyone here. No…she didn't want to think about that.
"I would apologize…" but seeing her downturned face, Cernunnos shut his mouth and took back everything, "You have a bit of time left to think about it. No need to feel so horrible about it now."
Still, Yui let out an exasperated sigh, shoving herself off the trunk of the tree, flinging her hands in the air, "Wow, you gods sure know how to keep the Christmas joy around."
As she marched off, the reindeer glanced accusingly at Cernunnos, who knew full well his mistake. His only excuse was "This is why I don't converse with humans."
Meanwhile, Yui strolled through a largely empty area of the grounds, trying to clear her head of the anxiety caused by Cernunnos. It wasn't his fault, she reminded herself. He spoke the very truth. But she was so used to seeing Apollo's face early in the morning, watching Balder devour a half-pound raw burger at lunch-time, flipping through Tsukito's dense notes, going to kendo practice with Takeru, listening to Hades' warnings about misery, and Loki's rather constant foolishness that she never ever thought that one day, she would never experience all that again. They had only been here a half of a year, and already she knew most of them like the back of her hand. They were so simple, despite their problems, that they were so easy to grow attached to, especially the ones more eager to learn about humans.
Yui was so engrossed with her own depressing thoughts that she barely noticed the building she passed. Yet she stopped in her tracks, noticing that the wooden building was lit beautifully with candles and lights. She hadn't seen a structure like this before here in the garden. While it was mostly made of wood, it looked mostly carved with intricate designs, all the way up to the high pointed steeple.
It reminded her of a rustic version of a small church building. She hadn't had much access to Christian places of worship, but her family often held benefits and fundraisers in conjunction with the local Christian and Buddhist communities, that she was pretty familiar with what defined a tell tale church.
But certainly the churches in Japan never looked like this.
It was quiet, peaceful, the other spirits busy with the booths, it seemed a shame that something as beautiful as this was just ignored. Curious, she opened the wooden door and stepped inside.
Inside, like the outside was lit wonderfully, but not overly bright, the flickering of several candles creating just enough light to bring a warm and comforting atmosphere. She was correct in her assumption that this was a small church. The few wooden pews were lined up in front of an altar surrounded by candles that illuminated a cross with a figure on it.
The church was empty and quiet. So quiet that Yui was almost afraid to make a noise to disrupt the overwhelming peace. That was until she saw a figure kneeling in front of a basin and several candles.
Balder silently inserted one of his festival coins into an offering box beside the basin, took a small unlit candle from beside it and lit it with one of the other candles, placing it neatly on the row. He was then still and silent, Yui genuinely curious as to what he was doing. He raised his head, placed his hand in the basin of water and marked his head, chest and shoulders in the traditional Catholic prayer motions.
He didn't seem to notice her as he stood and sat in one of the front pews, staring at the altar in silence. It was hard to tell if Balder was in deep meditation—if he was capable of such a thing. Yui didn't want to disturb him, but she thought she should at least see if he was alright. Especially in a place like this.
Wordlessly, she stepped lightly towards the pew, sitting down silently next to him. He made no motion as she sat down next to him, he was still staring up at the cross with lazy eyes. Yui did the same. Both took a while, letting their own meditations seep in, comforting their bones, warming their skins.
"Everything's…turning out nice," he said finally. Yui smiled a little, chuckling.
"Yes, I'm quite surprised. What is this place anyway? I know it's a church, but…why?"
Balder shrugged with a wry smile, scratching his brow, "I suspect its Crom Cruach's construction. To tease me. Or Zeus' to test me. Too bad it's backfiring."
Yui leaned forward in her seat with a sigh, "I didn't know they made churches like this. It's so…calming."
Balder nodded, "They do have that affect, yes. They are considered sanctuaries. This…this is a stave church. A lot of Scandinavian Christians built churches to look like these."
Yui took a brief moment to look around. It wasn't so extravagant. It was rather simple, at least compared to the cathedrals in Europe. In some ways it rather described the Scandinavian old gods well. Simple, but efficient, not doing more than what was necessary and what was necessary was of the utmost quality. "You seem to know the customs of prayer really well…for a Norse god."
Balder responded with a wry puff of laughter, nodding his head, "I can't exactly help if I'm close to the source. Wait…that makes little sense."
"No, no, it does. You said yourself that churches like these sprung up over your temples a while back. It would make sense that you would…pick up on things. But…were Norse temples that much different?"
"I…" Balder paused. His next words were disheartening to Yui. They were tinged with every bit of sadness that he had tried so hard to hide, "I don't…remember."
Immediately Yui braced her arm around his back as he brought his hand over his mouth in what she perceived was to hide a sob. She tried to be of some comfort, but quickly he pulled himself together with a long inhale through his nose. He rubbed one of his eyes with the back of his wrist and murmured, his voice heavy, with what Yui knew was an unreleased sob. "It was so long ago. Since then I have found enjoyment in other activities."
He was referring to his friendship with Loki and Thor and their extensive adventures, and his time with his family in Asgard, shut away from Midgard and from humans. What was done was done. It left scars on many old gods, not just the Norse, and all have learned to live with that reality.
Balder leaned back, allowing Yui to retract her arm, and glanced up at the cross, with the carved figure hanging from it. "But you know, a god like that, he isn't so bad. Sacrificing his life to save humans. It doesn't take a large imagination to see why people would be drawn to him."
"No, I suppose not," Yui commented. "Obviously his sacrifice meant something for half the world to want to follow him. Though I will submit some of that following may have been through force."
"Still, I don't see why he had to die to earn the love of more followers. I suppose if it was to save mankind…"
"I can't answer that, Balder," Yui said honestly. "I'm not a theologian."
Balder wrested his elbows at the back of the pew and murmured softly, "I finished the book you gave me."
Yui remained silent.
"You're right, Yui," he said. "It was indeed something incredible. It helped me realize that everything I've felt towards the holiday is stupid and moronic. It means something bigger than what's on that altar. I thank you."
She patted his leg, "No need to thank me, Balder. Err…did you…"
"I returned it," he answered immediately, smiling at the look of relief on her face.
"Oh good…Thoth was going to flay me alive if I didn't return that book."
Balder chuckled and after a short pause he turned to her, "Come on. Let's get out of here."
He stood and helped her up. He walked ahead of her, stopping briefly at the basin to repeat the prayer motions before leaving the church. Yui followed him out into the brisk cool air.
Balder kept his hands in the pockets of his jacket as he strolled down the empty pathway with Yui at his side. She breathed out, feeling the pleasant sting of the cold air against her cheeks, "You know if I don't return to my booth, Takeru's going to scream himself hoarse. I was supposed to be back a while ago."
"I—I didn't mean to draw you away from your duties," Balder stammered pathetically.
"No, I wanted to take a stroll anyway and I just got side tracked," Yui nudged her friend. "Come on Balder. Cheer up! Yule's almost here, so you have that to look forward to."
"I do…" he replied distantly with a smile on his face. He licked his chapped lips and reached out and touched her sleeve.
"What is it?" she asked as she turned to face him, but she noticed he was holding something in his hand. He held it up and opened his fist.
"I finally finished this."
Inside was an amulet with a rather simple design. It was round with lines crossing through the center. It reminded her of a wheel or a spinner's wheel. The chain was a beautiful metal woven tightly into a knit design. She remembered watching Balder begin the chain work a few weeks back, but this time a smaller leather strand wound around the tougher metal chain.
"It's beautiful," she said, admiring the craftsmanship more than the actual design. She was certain though that the symbol had some sort of meaning.
"Here," he said, holding it out further. "It's yours."
"Balder…I can't…"
"I'm serious," he said. "Consider it a gift for Christmas."
"Uhh…okay…but really it's too much."
Balder put the amulet over her head, his fingers lingering on the wheel, before relinquishing like he was giving her something to be responsible over, "It'll give you protection. That is a sacred symbol of my mother. So long as you wear it, you will have her power beside you.***"
Yui choked on words and instead watched Balder's eyes as he made sure the amulet was secure. She had no choice but to be honest.
"Balder. I don't know what to say."
"If you don't like it, let me know."
"No, no! I love it, it's just…I don't know how to thank you."
Balder shifted and continued his walk, "No thanks necessary."
Yui followed after, clutching the amulet as she struggled to keep up with his long strides. "Come on, Balder. At least I can give you something in return. It'll be a Christmas exchange."
Balder slowed and glanced at her. "An exchange?"
"Yes," she replied, "What do you want for Christmas? New workout clothes? A nice steak?"
Balder normally would jump at the chance to receive meat as a guaranteed gift. This time he hesitated, and stopped in his tracks. Yui glanced back at him, her face etched in worry.
"Balder?"
"A kiss." His voice was barely audible.
Yui blinked, unsure if she heard right, "Umm…what?"
"Not until Christmas. But I would like a kiss from you."
"A kiss?"
Balder seemed impatient as he reiterated, "Yes a kiss. Is that a problem?"
Her breath caught in her throat, "But do you understand what a kiss…is, right? It's not something two friends just…do, willy nilly."
"You asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I told you."
He was right. She did ask. She couldn't really take back her offer. Could she? Perhaps she was making it too much of a big deal.
"What kind of kiss are you looking for?" she asked.
Balder blinked and paused, before shrugging his broad shoulders, "What kinds of kisses are there?"
Yui refrained from rolling her eyes. Surely he knew that there were several types of kisses. A small kiss from a relative, a chaste kiss from a friend or partner, and then there was…the heavy kissing. Wait. Did Balder not know how to kiss?
"Well…" Yui said immediately regretting what she was about to say, before she said it, "There are platonic kisses between friends…I guess. On the cheek?"
Balder's heavy brow lowered in disappointment.
"On the lips?"
"That is how kissing works right?"
"I guess but…you aren't wanting…" Yui closed her eyes as she finished, "…tongue?"
She didn't dare open her eyes until he answered, which wasn't as immediate as she anticipated.
"No…that's not necessary…" his words hung as if he wanted to say more but thought better of it.
Yui stood in the cold air, in front of Balder, deep in debate. A quick kiss on the lips wasn't so bad. It was either that or she would have to prepare herself for something she wasn't ready for. Plus she wouldn't have to stiffen up and kiss him until about a week from now. And it wasn't like Balder was the last person she would want to kiss. She just never thought about any of the gods in such a manner until now.
"Okay," she nodded. "A kiss on Christmas. On the lips, for…what? A few seconds? No tongue."
The corner of Balder's lips twitched, showing his approval, "Right. I don't know if we should shake on it or…"
Yui held out her hand and said jokingly to herself, "Well, better now than after the fact. Unless you really want a high-five after a make out session."
Balder shook his head, dead serious, and maybe a tad confused. He reached out and tugged on her sleeve, "You should probably get back. You don't want Totsuka to blow a vein."
*Tezcatlipoca-his name in Nahuatl (Aztec language) means "Smoking Mirror" which is a possible reference to obsidian which mirrors were also made from. Modern depictions of this god sometimes include a mirror for a weapon in which black smoke erupts from. So in this case I made him blow black smoke.
** Curious thing about mistletoe. The druids considered them the...umm...testicles of oak trees, and during seasonal ceremonies druids would dress in white (Crom Cruach's attire in this chapter) climb the tree and pluck the mistletoe off of it. After sacrificing two white bulls, the mistletoe was then made into potions that cured poisons and infertility. From this relation to fertility, the tradition of kissing underneath it eventually formed. Also, the kissing tradition does come from Scandinavian countries as well. If two fighters were caught underneath mistletoe, they were to lay down their arms and not fight for one day in remembrance of Balder. Obviously, like the druid tradition it evolved over time to kissing. I just recently found that last fact and thought it fascinating.
***There are no known "symbols" of Frigg, at least nothing as tell tale as Thor's hammer that people wore for protection. But she was known to spin clouds from a spinner's wheel, so I just made her protection amulet off of that wheel design.
A/N: You know the drill, read and review if you please.