It was rare that Blaze had a moment free of maiming, murdering, and making malevolent machinations. Surtur kept her busy because he knew that if she got bored then she would probably set important things (or people) on fire just to see what would happen. That suited the woman just fine on most days because she knew there were only so many things she could burn before she got herself into serious trouble. However, there was one day a year that she always requested to have to herself.
The anniversary of her mother's death hurt Blaze's cold heart no matter how much she tried to ignore it. For every other day of the year she could forget that she had emotions beyond glee and anger, but on that one day she allowed herself some sadness. The Muspelheim psychiatrist said it was healthier than denying her feelings about her mother's death completely.
Just like every year, Blaze went before her king and requested time off. Surtur may have been a cruel fire giant with destructive plans for the universe, but he did take care of his own. With a sad smile, he nodded at her request and even offered her the use of Muspelheim's old beat up Bifrost if she wanted to get off realm for a while.
"Thanks, sir. I think I will," she clapped a fist to her heart and bowed respectfully.
"Of course," he nodded, "Just be sure to return before tomorrow evening. I would like for you to lead a raid against a Light Elf tribe."
"I promise I'll be back by then, my king."
With a few more respectful nods, Blaze left. She went to the Beat Up Bifrost and Jeff (Muspelheim's non-omnipotent version of Heimdall) grouchily sent her to Midgard for the day. It wasn't that Blaze had any special connection with the middle realm, but when she'd last been in New York she had spotted a place she wanted to spend time.
True to its nature the Beat Up Bifrost spit her out in the middle of a dangerous situation. On one side of her there were criminals with guns and on the other side there were police officers with even more guns. It looked like a massive shootout was about to occur, but Blaze didn't really feel like being in the middle of it.
"Who the hell are you?!" One of the policemen shouted, startled by her sudden, explosive appearance in the middle of the New York street.
"I'm, uh, a superhero. In training," she grinned charmingly at him, "Here to calm down this situation."
"You're a superhero?"
"This chick doesn't look like no Avenger to me," one of the criminals spat, "If she doesn't get out of the way I'm gonna make her into Swiss cheese!"
"Miss, I'm going to need you to step aside and show me some ID."
"I'd rather not," Blaze grinned, "But I can show you a good time!"
She threw fireballs at both sides of the conflict in rapid succession until police and criminals alike were scampering away from the heat. The orange and black clad woman in the middle of it all laughed until she began to choke on smoke. When it was clear that she had created a bigger problem than she'd meant to, she kicked a nearby fire hydrant with her Asgardian-Elven strength. Water gushed out onto the street and put out some of the flames, but Blaze didn't bother to stick around after kicking the hydrant.
She had a destination in mind and no stupid gang or police force was going to get in the way of her day off. Fluffing her red hair as she walked, she made her way to Central Park. Once there, she located the pond she'd seen before and a bench with a good view of it.
Stretching out her legs and laying her sword next to her (in case anyone was stupid enough to interrupt her), she watched the water. Even being a peaceful place, the little pond was not still for a moment. Waterbugs skittered across the surface and fish popped up to eat them. Gentle breezes blew the tall grasses and a child on the other side giggled as she raced a little plastic boat against a leaf.
With a deep breath, Blaze closed her eyes and opened up her heart to the emotions that she usually held at bay. It was crushing, just like every year, to think of how she would never speak to her mother again. To imagine how Drin's horrid "pet" bilgesnipe had ripped the kind woman apart. To remember Tyr's disgusted sneer as he ordered someone to clean up the gory mess - as if Blaze's mother was nothing but a stain on his shirt.
Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and she let them fall. She wiped her nose with the back of her hand and let every feeling consume her. Just like every other year she'd spent this day grieving, she felt like the tears and the emotions would never stop. Mostly she felt sadness and heartache, but anger at her father crept in every few minutes. It took a lot of effort not to let flames lick the wooden bench when Tyr's face crept in front of her mind's eye. But his image went away just as quickly as it came, replaced by her mother's giddy smile and pointed ears.
Blaze's mother had been beautiful. Golden eyes, red hair, tan skin, and that perfect, perfect smile that always made it seem like everything would be alright. Even when they spent the night scrubbing floors until their knees bled or polished furniture until they could hardly keep their eyes open - even then her mother's smile helped Blaze keep smiling too. And they made it through their servitude in Tyr's house. They made it through Drin, Blaze's half brother, kicking mud at them. They even made it through the lady of the house noticing that Blaze looked an awful lot like Tyr and having both of them whipped until they couldn't walk. They made it. Until Drin brought that cursed beast home and lost control of it.
"Idiot," Blaze snarled through her tears, "Bloody idiot. I wish I'd killed him myself."
But the Midgardian girl had gotten that honor and she'd probably thrown up her supper after doing it. Wimp. If she couldn't handle a little blood shed then she'd never make it as the trickster's wife. If Blaze had gotten to kill her brother then she would have laughed while doing it and kicked his charred corpse when he stopped burning.
Of course, Tyr was responsible for his son's behavior, but Blaze had no desire to kill the man who'd sired her. She wanted him dead, but she had never wanted to kill him herself. She was quite pleased with how his end had turned out. Loki, as Odin, had impaled him with Gungnir. Tyr never knew it was the prince. He thought his oldest and most loyal friend had turned his back on him. Just like Tyr had turned his back on his motherless daughter. There couldn't have been a more fitting death for the nobleman.
It occured to Blaze, suddenly, that she was completely without family. Her mother, slaughtered. Her brother, killed by a human. Her father impaled at "Odin's" hand. Unless Tyr had fathered other children (which was entirely possible) with other servants as their mothers, Blaze had no blood relations left in the world. She supposed she might have grandparents back on Alfheim, but she doubted it. All of her biological family was dead and even her brother in arms, Egil, was in his grave (well, actually, he was in a cage above Surtur's throne room).
Though she didn't think she really needed anyone, for some reason the thought of being alone saddened her. It brought more tears and snot. Next year she'd have to bring a handkerchief.
She kept crying for an hour or so before she finally pulled herself together. Taking a deep breath, she looked out over the pond and then leaned back and stared at the sky through the trees. She knew she couldn't spend all day emoting, but there was one last tradition that she had to follow through with. A quick conversation with her mother always made her feel ready for the year ahead of her.
"Well Mom," Blaze watched the fluffy clouds move, "I miss you. I always miss you, but today's the worst. As usual."
There was a quiet quacking sound, but Blaze ignored it.
"Not gonna lie, this year is going to be worse than before-"
Quack.
She furrowed her brow, but continued.
"Egil's dead. He was kind of like family to me. Until he freaking tried to kill me, of course, but that was just because-"
Quack!
"-because he was upset about his girlfriend," she sat up straighter, "And I've got no one else. I miss you so damn much and-"
QUACK!
"Alright," Blaze hopped to her feet and picked up her sword, whirling around, "Who is trying to ruin my nice moment?!"
A brown duck waddled out from the high grass and quacked again. Blaze laughed, slightly annoyed, but planning on ignoring the bird. She sheathed her sword and shook her head, planning on finding a less occupied spot to finish speaking with her mother. But after a moment she heard more tiny little quacks and four fluffy ducklings followed the female duck out of the grass.
They were perfect. Brown and yellow with little black beaks and webbed feet. Blaze gasped in surprise and took a step back to give them some space. She watched them, a smile growing on her face, and sat down on the grass to make herself a less intimidating figure.
The mother duck snapped at her children and they waddled curiously around Blaze, always staying a safe distance away. Then they all seemed to nod at her and waddle away from the pond. Wondering where they could be going, Blaze slowly followed them.
They waddled all through the park and then came to the edge, right by a busy street. Watching the traffic carefully, the mother duck quacked irritably. There was clearly no way they were going to be able to cross the street without help. Blaze tightened her sword sheath on her back and took a step out into the busy road. She made a huge fireball in each hand and roared as loud as she was able. Traffic came to a screeching, honking stop, leaving a perfect path for a mother and four baby ducks to walk across.
The little family crossed the street and Blaze followed them, allowing traffic to resume. People gave her odd looks and she gave them rude gestures in return, a happy smile plastered on her face.
Once the ducks made it to the sidewalk across the street the mother realized that there was not a pond there. Only cement and fast walking people. The birds turned around and looked at the road again, waiting for an opening. Blaze cheerfully stepped back out into the rushing traffic and repeated her performance from a few moments before.
The mother and baby ducks quacked in appreciation and the pyromaniac nodded respectfully. Almost across the street, one of the ducklings tripped on a pebble and peeped pitifully, unable to figure out how to stand up. The mother duck turned around to help her offspring, setting the duckling back on its feet. Then she ushered the babies forward with her beak and began to follow after them. Just as she was nearly back into the park, one of the cars from the angry traffic jam laid on the horn, startling all of the ducks. Blaze glared and took a step closer to that car, but before she could incinerate the angry driver, he laughed and hit the gas… heading straight for the family of ducks.
Blaze screamed and leapt to protect her new friends. She managed to scoop up the ducklings, but the mother was too far separated from them. Covering the little one's eyes, Blaze had to watch as the beautiful quacking bird was squashed by a tire. Feathers and blood went everywhere, and there was only one more pitiful quack of distress before silence fell.
It was not quiet for long.
"No! No, no, no! You'll regret that!"
Setting the ducklings safely aside, Blaze sprinted to catch up with the heinous vehicle and its driver. She grabbed the bumper and dug her heels into the ground. It came to a squealing stop and the smell of burnt rubber mingled with the smell of duck blood. Jumping on the roof of the car, Blaze didn't even bother to look the murderer in the face before stabbing her sword through the windshield and impaling the middle aged man inside. His dark suit grew darker still with the red liquid oozing from his chest. A coffee dropped from his hand and his eyes rolled back as he breathed his last.
Satisfied with her vengeance, Blaze jumped off of the car and returned to the now orphaned ducklings. The bundles of fluff were quivering and peeping miserably, looking for their mother.
"Oh no," Blaze resheathed her sword and quickly crouched down to their level. They jumped and fluttered their tiny wings in surprise. Moving more slowly, Blaze reached out to them and offered them her hand. The ducklings regarded it suspiciously, but one of them, who had more brown feathers than the rest, finally nuzzled his beak against her thumb. The rest followed suit and one of them even climbed up into her palm.
Smiling softly, she set the duckling down and took off her leather, Midgardian styled jacket. She laid it on the ground and ushered the small bodies into the center of it. Scooping them all up in her makeshift sling, she carried them back to the park. There was a sound of sirens behind her, but she ignored it. The police would be looking for her because she'd stabbed that murderous driver, but that was no concern of hers. She could cut down anyone who got in her way.
The pond where she'd originally met the duck family was quiet. There were no other ducks around and not even any people. Blaze looked around for any male mallards that might be the father to her friends, but found nothing. Eventually she managed to locate where their nest was, identifying it by the egg shell remains and the feathers, but it was empty.
"Orphans," Blaze looked down at her bundle and sighed, "I'm so sorry, friends. You'll have to fend for yourselves. It won't be easy, but if I could do it then you'll make it. Use your skills. Stay together. Help each other. You are now brothers and sisters in arms… err wings. Fight together. Destroy together. You will survive together."
She bent down to leave them at their nest, feeling the sadness coil in her gut again. But what else could she do? She was a lieutenant of Surtur and these were balls of feathers.
"Goodbye, my friends. Beaks up. Be brave…"
Peep, peep, peep, peep!
"I cannot stay. I must lead a raid on Alfheim tomorrow."
Peep?
"It is where the Light Elves live. Where my mother is from. She was cast out by her tribe leader and she moved to Asgard in search of work. I suppose I ought to feel bad about raiding a tribe on Alfheim since I might have kin there, but I don't care," Blaze stroked each of the ducklings' heads gently, "I really must go, friends. I can't take you with me."
Peep…
"Don't sound so sad! It's for the best! You wouldn't want to hang around someone as horrible as myself. Odds are that someone will run me through one of these days and then where would you be?"
Peep, peep!
"I can't! You are too sweet to get involved with me."
She got up to leave them and started walking away, trying to ignore how her eyes filled with water. As she started to walk away she heard a sound. It was a really annoying buzzing-rotating-engine-y sound. When she turned to see what it was she gasped in horror.
A gardener was using a weed whacker to cut back some of the taller grass around the pond. He was headed straight for the ducklings, who peeped in distress. Conflicted, Blaze looked back and forth between the gardener and her new friends. As the weed wacker got closer the babies got louder, begging for her help.
"Alright! Alright!" She lunged forward and cut the weed whacker in half. The gardener screamed and dropped the broken pieces of his tool. Blaze ignored him, picking up the ducklings in her jacket again.
"Lady, what the hell?!"
"You were going to whack my friends!"
"Oh," he saw the birds and scratched his head awkwardly, "Sorry about that. But you didn't have to go and cut my weed whacker in half! That's gonna come out of my paycheck!"
"Do I look like I care? Be glad I didn't cut you in half." Blaze turned away from him, ducklings in her arms, and marched away from the pond. She stroked the baby birds to calm them and carried them out of the park. She noticed that police had surrounded the scene of her vengeance. Yellow tape was everywhere so Blaze turned and walked down the sidewalk in the opposite direction.
As she walked, keeping her eyes peeled for something that would make a better carrier, she kept glancing down at them to make sure they were okay. When she'd seen them faced with danger she realized that they could not be left on their own at this fragile stage in their lives. They'd just lost their mother and Blaze related. She had always wanted someone to take her in when her mother had died, but no one had. Odin had even cast her out of Asgard! That wouldn't happen to these lovely birdies. Blaze made up her mind then and there that she would raise them and train them in the ways of the world. They would become the fiercest ducks in all the realms and she would love them like her mother had loved her.
"You'll need names, of course," she told them, "I'm sure your mother gifted you with lovely names, but I do not understand the language of ducks so I must come up with new titles for you."
Peep?
"You shall be Coal," she told the duckling that was mostly covered in brown feathers.
He ruffled his feathers excitedly.
"And you will be Inferno," she tapped the one that was almost completely yellow, "Do you like that?"
Peep!
"Good girl," Blaze smirked, "You will be Spark."
This duckling had little tufts of yellow that sparked across his back and neck. He flapped his wings excitedly.
"And finally," she tapped her chin and regarded the last of her children, "You will be Glow."
Glow, the tiniest of the ducklings, seemed to nod her tiny head, her eyes glowing even though the only color they held was black.
With the babies named, Blaze returned to searching the streets of New York for something that could hold them all comfortably while she walked around. Her eyes eventually landed on a smiling woman who was biking. The pretty blue bike had flowers, streamers, and a basket on the front. Blaze grinned and the woman smiled back, backpedaling to stop when she spotted the ducklings.
"Oh my gosh! They are so cute! Are they your pets?"
"They are my children now. Their mother was brutally murdered by a motorist."
"That's terrible!"
"Agreed," Blaze supposed she could just ask the woman politely for the basket on her bike. She might even give it to her if she told her that it was for the ducklings. But Blaze was far out of the habit of asking politely, "I'll be needing this."
She ripped the basket off the bike.
"What?!"
"Thanks," Blaze smirked and kicked the bike, knocking the woman over, "Good thing you wore a helmet, huh?"
"Ow!"
Ignoring the fallen biker, Blaze placed Coal, Inferno, Spark, and Glow into the basket. She slipped her jacket back on and then looked around for something to use to strap the basket around her hips. She wanted to have both hands free in case the police caught up with her and she needed to use her sword. Nothing in her line of vision seemed like it would work so she kept walking.
As she walked she spotted a store that said "Pet Paradise" on the outside. It appeared to be a shop that carried supplies for animals. She kicked the jangling door open and carried her basket of ducks inside. The clerk looked up in surprise.
"H-hello. Can I help you?"
"Yes. And you will if you'd like for your head to stay attached to your neck," she leaned in and read his name tag, "Ted."
"Ha...ha. You come from a convention or something? Who are you cosplaying as?"
"Tell me, Ted, what do I need to care for them?" she gestured to the ducks, setting their basket down on the counter. They peeped excitedly when they saw a new person.
"Whoa. Cute! I didn't know you could get pet ducks in New York City."
"What do I need to care for them?"
"Uh, I don't know. I think you might need to look at a farm supply store or something. You'll have to get out of the city to find one of those though."
"You are useless," Blaze scoffed, pulling out her sword and touching the tip to his throat, "C'mon now Ted. Tell me at least what ducklings eat."
"That sword looks really real," Ted put his hands up, "Did you make it yourself?"
"No, idiot, do I look like a blacksmith to you?"
"I don't know!"
"Just tell me what ducks eat."
"I can Google it!"
"Then do so. And do not try anything funny, Ted."
He pulled out a phone and quickly typed something into it. Then he held the screen to face her and pointed at it. She leaned forward to read. It seemed they needed fruits, "feed", water, and mealworms, among other things.
"Do you carry any of this in this shop?"
"We've got mealworms," Ted swallowed nervously, "And bird feed. I don't know if that will work or not."
"We shall try it."
Ted brought her a small styrofoam box filled with live mealworms and a bag of bird feed. He also handed her a bottle of water. She nodded her thanks and then left without paying. There was a bench across the street so she went and sat on it, feeding her babies with the worms and the water. While she gently cared for them she noticed a car pull up and park halfway on the sidewalk in front of the pet store. It was a beat up old vehicle that sputtered and wheezed as the owner turned it off and climbed out. He slammed the door behind him, leaving the windows rolled up.
It was probably wise to leave one's car windows up in a city as busy as this one, so Blaze didn't fault him for that. However, she did fault him when she saw a dog's head looking longingly out the window. It was a rather warm day in the beginning of June and not the kind of weather that would let you leave a dog trapped in a car comfortably.
"He'd better return to his car quickly or he and I are going to be having a conversation," Blaze grumbled, giving Spark another worm, "And I get the feeling he won't like that conversation."
Peep, peep, peep, peep.
"You're right. We'll give him a chance to realize his mistake. He's probably just running in to get a treat for that dog."
But the man was gone for twenty minutes and Blaze was not patient. She held the basket close to her chest and approached the vehicle. Peering inside at the dog - a beagle - she tightened her grip on her basket and felt rage boiling.
The dog had scrapes and scratches all along his sides. One of his ears had a hole in and his nose was rubbed raw at the end. His tail was bent at an odd angle and his toenails had been ripped from his toes. He wore a heavy shock collar and he was panting heavily. On top of everything else he was so skinny that Blaze could make out every one of his ribs.
The door to the pet store jangled again and the man came out, glaring at Blaze. She glared back.
"Hey, get away from my car!"
"Is this your dog?" She asked calmly.
"It was my girlfriend's. She doesn't want it anymore."
"Why not?"
"It got warts on its face."
Blaze could see the little black warts. There were only a few, under the dog's eyes and one on top of his head.
"So you are taking him to the vet, right? To get treated for that and for his other maladies?"
"No, it's not sick. Just butt ugly," the man laughed and took a step closer to her, "I was just asking that wimp in the pet shop if he knew where any places are that would put it down for me."
"Put him down?"
"Y'know. Kill it."
"Why?!"
"Nobody wants a dog that looks like that."
"He wouldn't look so terrible if you hadn't treated him so horribly!" She jabbed the window with her finger, "You gave him all of those scratches, didn't you?!"
"No, he got those himself," the man lied, eyes narrowing, "Get out of my way, lady. I've got to take this thing to be put out of its misery."
"He's only in misery because you hurt him!" Blaze grabbed the man by the arm and twisted him around. She set her basket of ducklings on the roof of his car and grabbed her sword.
"Whoa! Whoa! Calm down! There's no need to lose your head about this!"
"You disgust me," she kicked the back of his legs and brought him to his knees. Someone watching cheered, filming her with a phone. She'd have to deal with that later.
"It's just a dog! You want it? I'll sell it to you! Or you can take it for free!"
"I think I will," she snarled at him, "But I want to make sure you can't ever do this to another dog again."
"What are you going to do?"
"Oh calm down," she snickered and lowered her sword, "After all, there's no need to lose your head about this, right?"
With a quick slice the man's neck was severed and his head rolled under the car. The people who had been cheering for her a moment ago screamed in terror and ran away. Blaze kicked the body and then smashed the window of the car open. The dog wagged his broken tail weakly and nervously approached her. She held out her hand for him to sniff and he licked her.
"Hello darling," she scratched him behind the ears and helped him climb out of the car. Taking the shock collar off and stealing a nice new one from the pet store, she looped his leash around her wrist after she put her sword away. Then she ripped out one of the car's seat belts and used it to tie the duckling basket to her waist. The babies peeped at her and looked over the edge of the basket at the dog, seeming to greet him.
"We should probably get out of here before the police show up. Surtur might get pissed if I kill too many people on my day off," she walked the dog and the ducklings away from the car and then threw a fireball at the engine. Then, realizing that it was close to the pet store, she kicked the vehicle down the road quite a ways, where it rolled to a stop in front of a liquor store. That would make for an exciting explosion.
Walking away from the crime she'd committed, she made her way to a secluded alley and sat down on the grimey cement. The dog whimpered in pain when he tried to wag his tail and Blaze realized that she needed to get him to a veterinarian before she left earth.
"You'll need a name, of course," she pet him and he licked her hand, "I've used most of the fire words that I know on these cuties."
The dog stuck his head in the basket and gently licked each of the ducklings on the head. Blaze watched carefully to make sure all of her new friends got along, but Spark, Coal, Glow, and Inferno all loved the attention and they picked at his ears with their beaks.
"I could name you Egil Junior," she commented, but quickly shook her head when she saw the dog's sweet gaze. "No, you aren't anything like him. "What about Lyall? It means wolf."
The dog sneezed in a disagreeable manner.
"You are right. That's too obvious. The tag on your old collar said you were called Fido, but that is idiotic. You need a new title. Something more fitting of your station."
He barked.
"You really are majestic, aren't you? Such a good boy," she tapped her chin in thought, tapping her booted foot, "We could call you Thor. That's a good name, right? Good enough for the prince of Asgard. That might get confusing though… I've got it! We'll call you Thorbert!"
He tilted his head to the side.
"Isn't it great? It suits you I think."
Thorbert wagged his wounded tail and Blaze scratched him behind the ears again. The ducklings peeped happily, hopping around in their basket. Blaze let them out so they could play with Thorbert for a little while and all of her new friends got along swimmingly. Thorbert chased them around in circles and then they chased him. Blaze watched the whole thing, laughing.
When they wore themselves out, she helped Glow, Inferno, Spark, and Coal back into the basket and snapped Thorbert's leash back onto his collar. Then they all headed out. She grabbed the next person she saw by the throat and ordered him to Google the nearest veterinary clinic. Once he told them and then ran away Blaze led her young ones in the direction the Google Map had shown. When they got there, it was closed and Blaze growled in frustration.
"Why the bloody hell are you closed?!" She bellowed at the windows, "If you didn't take care of sick dogs I would burn this place to the ground!"
No response.
"Whatever. I know where I can get Thorbert healed."
She led her friends all the way back to Central Park and looked up at the sky. She knew Jeff back in Muspelheim could not see her. He did not have Heimdall's abilities so he would just pull Blaze back to her world when Surtur ordered him to. But even if Loki had replaced Heimdall on Asgard, the new person would still be able to hear when the Bifrost was called for. It was up for debate whether or not this new person would let her onto the planet, but she was sure Loki would allow it, knowing that she could spill his secrets whenever she wanted.
"Hello?! Heimdall? Or whoever? Let me up! I've got to talk with your king!"
She yelled at the sky for a whole minute before the clouds parted and the Bifrost descended, collecting Blaze, Thorbert, Coal, Inferno, Spark, and Glow. She came face to face with a man in black armor. He had black tattoos on his bald head and a goatee. There were a few Asgardian ladies behind him as well as a stash of items from across the cosmos, mostly earthen junk.
"Who are you?" Blaze wrinkled her nose. The ducklings were strapped to her hip, which meant her hand was free to grab her sword if she needed it.
"I am the Gatekeeper. Skurge."
"Really? They replaced Heimdall with you?"
"Heimdall is a criminal."
"Of course he is," Blaze rolled her eyes and bent to pet Thorbert, "Whatever. I don't care. I want to talk to Odin."
"What are you? You're dressed as a Midgardian but you look like one of us."
"I'm a minion of Surtur's. Odin's expecting me though. At least, he should be. Always. He and I have a bargain sort of thing going on."
"Let me call for guards to escort you-"
"Not necessary, I know the way."
"But-"
"You call for guards and you, the ladies, and all of your stuff take a dip in the void at the end of the Rainbow Bridge, eh?"
"You're just one girl- ow! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!"
Blaze twisted his ear and then kicked him in the groin.
"Thanks. I'll show myself the door," she whistled at Thorbert, who was sniffing Skurge curiously, "C'mon boy. Let's get your booboos taken care of, hmm?"
Thorbert padded along behind her happily. The ducklings all peeped impatiently and Blaze decided they might like a walk. They made quite the procession heading for the palace of Asgard. Thorbert followed along right behind Blaze and behind him the ducklings waddled happily. It was slow progress and Skurge recovered from his pain before they made it far.
He watched them go and shook his head. The lady visitors he had watched him with raised brows and he sighed.
"Uh, right," he cleared his throat, "I should probably go let the Allfather know that a crazy woman is on her way to the palace," he frowned and then smiled at the women, "But first let me tell you about Tex-ass."
Loki was busy. Ridiculously busy. It seemed that every single person in the realm wanted his opinion on something that day. Well, not his opinion, obviously, but Odin's thoughts on matters were in high demand. Common citizens wanted him to help them with farming issues and market issues. Noble citizens wanted him to make decisions about property rights and who owned what. Ambassadors from other realms wanted him to sit with them and work on alliances or treaties.
All he really wanted to do was to go back to his and Maisy's room and watch her embroider baby blankets while he griped about how terrible his day had been. But he couldn't do that because just as he wrapped up with one ambassador, another one requested his attention. It was exhausting, even if the resolutions he came up with were satisfying. If kingly life kept up like this then Loki could see why the Odinsleep was necessary. He no longer blamed his adoptive father for taking week long naps when things got a little hairy. Of course, Loki would have never picked the moment his son found out he was adopted to fall into a deep sleep, but he could see escaping other things.
Finally finishing his discussion with the Vanaheim ambassador, Loki closed the door to his study. He rested his head on his desk and closed his eyes, intent on dozing for a few moments. It was no Odinsleep, but it might give him enough energy to deal with all of the petty nobles that would be at dinner.
Just as he began to fall asleep there was an angry rapping at the door. He groaned and donned his Odin disguise once more. Lifting his head from the table he called for the person outside to enter. The door flew open and Blaze burst in.
"Oh Norns, not you," he gestured for her to close the door and she did, but not after a dog followed her inside. At her hip there was a basket full of ducklings. Loki raised a brow.
"Hey princey," she smiled at him, fluffing her hair, "How's life as king?"
"Fine. What do you want? How'd you get in?"
"I didn't kill anyone, don't worry. There are several guards stuffed in a broom closet and Skurge might be in a bit of pain, but everyone's still alive."
"And you've come to Asgard because…?"
"Right. You were never one for pleasantries," she bent down and picked up the dog, setting it on the desk and patting its head, "This is Thorbert."
"He looks like he might die at any moment," Loki commented, noticing how beat up and skinny the creature was, "What did you do to him?"
"I rescued him from an idiot Midgardian," Blaze declared proudly, "While I'm here I might as well introduce you to my other friends as well. Spark, Coal, Inferno, and Glow."
"The ducks?"
"Yes. Try to keep up."
"And why have you brought all of these… pets to me?"
"They aren't pets," Blaze snapped and then gestured to Thorbert the dog, "I brought them here because I want you to heal my guy here. His tail is all out of whack and he's got all these cuts all over him."
"I am not a healer or an animal doctor."
"But you have magic."
"Surely you could have taken him to someone in Muspelheim. Egil was not the only sorcerer there."
"No, but I don't trust any of the others. They all enjoy seeing things in pain too much."
"Is everyone in Surtur's realm sick and sadistic?"
"Mostly, yes," she softly booped the dog's nose, "Can you fix my friend or not?"
"Why should I?"
"If you don't I'll find Thor and tell him that you aren't dead."
"Very well," Loki sighed and summoned as much healing magic as he was able. He directed it toward Thorbert and did his best to bring comfort to the dog. His broken tail straightened and began to wag. When Loki had finished the hound licked his face appreciatively.
"Aw, look at you!" Blaze cooed, "All better, right? Right? Oh! Such a good boy!"
Bark!
"He still needs food," Loki commented, "You are welcome to take some scraps from the kitchen if you'd like."
"No, no," Blaze waved the idea away, "He needs to get used to Muspelheim food."
"You mean the food you steal from other realms because nothing is meant to live or grow on Muspelheim? That food?"
"Yes! Exactly," she winked at him and turned to go, but then turned at the last second, "One last thing, princey."
"What?"
"Do you know any spells that will fireproof my friends? I know you must. Egil knew some. He fireproofed me. I can walk around in a volcano barefoot. Can you do something like that?"
"I suppose," Loki sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "I hope you realize how utterly ridiculous you are being. Ducklings? Really? And a dog?"
"Yes really," she snapped, "Now fireproof them."
He did as she asked, more for the poor creatures' sakes than for Blaze. It wasn't these animals' faults that a crazy woman had stolen them from Midgard and was going to make them live in one of the most dangerous realms.
"There. They ought to be able to withstand heat just as well as you can."
"Excellent! Thanks, princey! I'll leave you alone now. It's my day off after all and I don't want to waste time with you."
"Of course not," Loki rolled his eyes as she walked away. He was too tired to fully process what had just happened so he went back to napping. When he told Maisy about it later she seemed to think that Blaze was turning over a new leaf. Perhaps she would become a better person with such sweet creatures influencing her.
That's what Maisy thought until they found the three guards Blaze had stuffed in a closet were all dead and not just incapacitated. And Blaze had also set several houses on fire on her way out of town. So maybe not a new leaf.
A note from the author: This is something no one asked for and no one wanted. But way back in Chapter 87 of Till Death Do You Part, Loki is trying to make everyone think he's the worst person to ever exist and he says something about murdering ducklings and Blaze says "not the ducklings" in horror. And as I was rereading some chapters looking for details that I needed for THATH, I saw that line and an idea was born. So we get Blaze as a mother duck. You're welcome?
I'm not sure if we'll see anymore of Blaze and her new friends or not. If I think of another story with our resident homicidal-pyromaniac then the ducklings and Thorbert will probably make an appearance.
"Finally, you posted my story," Blaze bursts into my room and starts flipping through books and getting soot all over the pages, "It's about time, SnowGlobeBean."
"Do you have anything you want to say to the people who read it?" I snatch my book back.
"You have good taste for reading a story about me," Blaze winks at you guys, "Well done."
"And?"
"And what? I already complimented them, what else do you want from me?"
"Manners, Blaze."
"Oh right," she fluffs her hair, "Thanks, I guess. Although, you should really be thanking me for allowing you to see this snapshot of my soft cuddly side. Not everyone gets to see it, you know? And by the way, if you tell anyone I'll set you on fire."
"Blaze!"
"Later, weirdos!" Blaze jumps out my window and skips down the street, kicking mailboxes as she goes.
But in all seriousness, thank you very much for reading/following/favoriting! I really appreciate it. :)
Special thanks to my reviewers:
abbynormal315: I'm sorry you have stressful things happening right now! I hope that you have some more peaceful days ahead. Thank you so much for reading the last chapter, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Guest: There's more where that came from, lol! I hope you liked this chapter as well and whatever odds and ends come next! :)
You guys are amazing! See you soon!