Chapter 36: Surprises
It was late at night when Loki and Mayura arrived back home. Both were almost dead on their feet as they climbed up the stairs to bed. Mayura was halfway asleep resting her head on Loki's shoulder, and although more alert than Mayura, he too wished to hit the sack—and preferably wake up around noon—the following week. In his opinion, any day shouldn't start before ten am, and anything earlier than that was a crime... but no one cared about his opinion on such matters. Reaching the door to his bedroom, Loki stopped to open the door. Not thinking, Mayura continued down the hallway to her old room.
"Mayu-chan, where are you going?" You haven't gotten tired of my company already have you?"
Mayura stopped walking and turned around to stare at Loki. "Huh? But my room is that way," she stated confused, pointing to her bedroom door. "I thought that was your room."
Loki, too tired to even tease her, replied sincerely, "Yes, that is your room, just like the study is mine... but this is our room."
"There's a bed in there right?" she asked yawning.
"There is, unless Fenrir ate it for breakfast one day while we were gone."
Loki was still asleep when a very pleasant feeling invaded his dreams. The landscape around him changed, and Loki found himself being kissed by Mayura. Now, this wasn't an unusual occurrence—in fact, Loki had had many such dreams—but the imagination can only do so much and this was definitely better then anything he had imagined before... which meant only one thing. Loki opened his eyes.
"Good morning Loki-anata."
He rubbed his still sleepy eyes. "So, you finally remembered huh?" Loki teased her while stretching.
"Remember what?"
"Last night you were ready to make me sleep all alone Mayu-chan." She blushed. Sitting up, Loki yawned. "I'd get up at six if I was woken up like that every morning."
"Let's stick with the seven o'clock Yamino-san graciously let's us sleep to?"
"Sure thing," he laughed. "By the way, what time is it?"
"Ten thirty... Yamino-san must have let us sleep in because he knew we would be tired after our flight back to Japan."
"I'm surprised the welcoming committee let us sleep in this long though." As he spoke, Loki saw Ecchan float into the room. "Speaking of the little devils... here comes one now. Good morning Ecchan."
"Good morning Loki-tama!" replied Ecchan, landing on Loki's head. "We missed you Loki-tama. Did you have a good trip?"
"Yes we did," he replied turning his head. "Right Ma..." Loki stopped talking, noticing Mayura staring at the top of his head. "Mayura?" asked Loki concerned. Mayura however completely ignored his voice and continued to stare at the pink thing that had landed on Loki's head. She blinked a few times and shook her head but the pink thing—which wasn't blurry anymore—didn't go away. Instead, it flapped its... ears? "Mayura?" asked Loki again, "Are you alright?" She's doing that shaking of her head again... what could be wrong with her?
Tentatively, Mayura lifted up her hand and moved it over Loki's head. Loki meanwhile, watched her intently—still quite confused. Her hand stayed above his head for only a split second, but to Mayura it felt like an eternity. Somehow she knew that something monumental was about to happen. And as much as she loved fushigi mysteries, they scared her too—especially when they directly involved her. At that moment, Mayura could never recall a moment she had ever been more afraid. Even when that processed doll tried to kill her. But something deep within her—something that she loved and cherished, and now considered part of herself—was calling, begging her to take this final leap into a world beyond her own. Closing her eyes, Mayura brought her hand down.
Loki didn't know what to think. It was as if he had been sent back to the first time he and Mayura had met. On that day she had walked right up to him and placed her hand on his head—a quizzical and disbelieving look plastered on her face. And here he was once again staring wide eyed at a disbelieving Mayura with her hand on his... Comprehension flooded his dark green eyes.
That's not a hand... Mayura's hand didn't pass through Ecchan! She's staring at Ecchan! Disbelief quickly replaced the understanding he had gained however. But that's... that's... that's impossible! She doesn't have the gift! She's spiritually blind! And nothing can connect an insensitive to... nothing is strong enough to connect... it would take a direct link with a god to connect... a direct... link...
"Punyaan?" sounded Ecchan in confusion. Ecchan's voice cut through the daze within Mayura's head. Terrified, she scampered to the very edge of the bed, threatening to fall off. Her quick motion caused Loki to pull out of his thoughts. Picking Ecchan up off his head, Loki repositioned the shikigami in his lap.
"Mayu-chan, this is Ecchan. He, she, it..." Loki looked apologetically towards the shikigami, "sorry Ecchan. Umm... Ecchan likes to be petted." Ecchan's ears flopped angrily at Loki's comment.
"Cute fushigi mystery!" squealed Mayura, completely forgetting about her previous fear. Crawling back, Mayura sat back down next to Loki and began to pet Ecchan's head. "You're so cute Ecchan... yes you are. A cute fushigi mystery!"
Ecchan began to purr, "Punyaaaaaaaaan..."
"And Ecchan's a she Loki, can't you tell by her colorings? Boy shikigami have dark red tipped ears."
"Punyaan!" affirmed Ecchan, still looking annoyed at Loki.
"I don't' know what happened, but somehow you've been opened to their world—the spirit world—and I think I'm responsible somehow. I'm sorry Mayu-chan."
Mayura leaned into Loki. "Why? I've always wanted to see Ecchan besides in pictures! Ecchan's so cute!"
"But most spirits aren't cute Mayu-chan, and they're controlled by evil. And now you're going to be able to see them, and be much more affected by them. Because this sight is a two way door... you can see and influence them, but they can much more powerfully now affect you."
"You mean vengeful ghosts, and demons, and poltergeist, and the grim reaper, and..." she hugged onto Loki tightly.
"Yes," he replied remorsefully. "And because I might have accidentally forced open a latent talent, it's possible that you don't have any protection against spirits."
"Is there anyway to shut it off?"
"Maybe if we had spotted it earlier... but no, not now.
"Maybe I can only see Ecchan, being so near to her all the time. Just like Spock began to understand human emotions after spending so much time around them."
Loki laughed. "I guess that's possible."
##bark bark bark##
"Ah! Here comes Fenrir to welcome us back too," he stated trying to sound more cheerful than he felt.
Jumping up onto the bed, Fenrir licked Loki's face and wagged his tail furiously. "Daddy, daddy... I missed you so much daddy!"
"Daddy?" asked Mayura, staring back and forth between Loki and Fenrir. "Fenrir can talk too! And... and Loki's you're daddy?"
"Daddy, daddy! Mommy can her me! You're going to be my mommy right? Not just my step-mommy? Please, please, pretty please... will you be my mommy?" asked Fenrir beseechingly.
"Mo... mom... mommy?" stuttered Mayura as her brain shut down. "Fushigi mystery" she stated incoherently before she fainted into Loki's arms.
"Daddy, she's going to be alright, right? I didn't hurt mommy did I? I didn't mean too."
Loki patted Fenrir's head in reassurance. "No, you didn't hurt Mayu-chan Fenrir. She's just had a big shock this morning that's all. And being asked to be the mother of the great wolf beast Fenrir was just a little bit too much for her. She should be fine in a couple of minutes." Loki moved Mayura into a more comfortable position. "Fenrir?"
"Yes daddy?"
"Did you really mean it? Wanting Mayura to be your mother? I always... I've recently... I've finally noticed your feelings about my relationship with Angorboda." Loki finished looking apologetically at Fenrir.
"Even though mommy thought I was just a cute puppy, she... I want mystery girl to be my mommy. She... she loves me more than mother anyway." Fenrir looked up at Loki hoping he understood what he meant.
"I'm sure she'll love you as much as you love her Fenrir. But give her some time okay? Mayura might not take the idea very well at first."
"Okay"
"But, if she doesn't run away from these events, I think the truth will have to be explained now," Loki mused.
"Loki-tama, you mean...?"
"Yes, with the recent events, I think she has a right to know." Lovingly Loki stroked Mayura's soft hair.
"Mommy..."
Several hours and quite a few cups of tea later, Mayura had finally calmed down enough to really begin to deal with her new talent. And even though everything looked the same, nothing quite felt the same. The kitchen, her old bedroom, Loki's study... even the bathrooms had their own unique... something. Mayura just couldn't put a word to what she was feeling. Loki was sitting quietly beside her, ready to answer the barrage of questions he knew was bound to come. Ecchan and Fenrir were absent from the study for Mayura's sake. They didn't want to push her into one decision or another with their presence.
"Loki... can I ask... umm... never mind..." Mayura finished lamely looking down into her tea.
"Go ahead and ask Mayu-chan. I'll answer any questions you have. Ignorance will only put your life in jeopardy."
"But... you've always told me it was dangerous to stick my nose into things I didn't understand just because I'm curious..." she replied looking away.
"I did. But that was when you couldn't see ... couldn't truly understand what you wanted to know, and running into the thick of it would only have put your life at risk. Now..." Loki sighed. "You have two options Mayura. One is to disregard the spirit world completely in hopes that they will pay no attention to you like your father tried to do... and the other is to acknowledge the spirit world completely and deal with whatever comes your way."
"What should I do Loki?"
"I can't decide for you Mayura. That's something you have to do one your own."
"But I don't know!" she wailed. "What about Ecchan and Fenrir? If I took the first option, would I have to forget about them?"
"Yes"
"And you too?"
Loki gasped in shock at Mayura's question. It was something he hadn't thought of. He didn't want to think about it. "Yes" he whispered reluctantly.
"I don't want to leave you! I'll accept anything..."
Loki cut Mayura's speech with his finger. "Before you make any decision... there are a few things I have to tell you." Loki hesitated, fearful that Mayura wouldn't understand... wouldn't forgive him for what he was about to reveal. "Since the beginning of our association you've been used as a pawn in plots to kill me or cause me great pain. You've been kidnapped, cursed, possessed on multiple occasions and almost killed before my eyes because of who I am."
"I already knew that associating with you brings lots of dangers, and I've accepted them. I want to be with you. I wouldn't run away because this new ability of mine may cause more problems. I love you Loki, and nothing will change that."
"I'm not who you think I am..."
"What do you mean Loki? Of course I know who you are."
"I've been lying to you Mayura. Ever since I met you, I've been lying. Yamino-kun doesn't call Fenrir nii-san because he reminds him of his older brother. Fenrir is Yamino-kun's older brother.
"Yamino-san's brother is a dog?! Fushigi mystery!"
"A wolf actually," Loki didn't pause after answering Mayura's question and plowed into the next topic. "You weren't allowed in the basement because we were storing jaki down there while I was trying to regain my true form."
"True form?"
"Yes, true form. When you met me I had been sealed into the form of a child, and I was collecting jaki to gain enough power to regain my adult body."
"Adult body? But you were still a kid when I was allowed into the basement. And there wasn't anything there!"
"I had already regained my true form by then."
"But Loki... I watched you grow up!"
"Yes you did, but that was the second time I've grown up. I used my magic to shift back into the form of a child."
"When were you not a child?!"
"That day I ran into you by the cake store, and the time you were looking for me as Loki-kun."
"But that wasn't you! That was Loki-sama!"
"Yes, you did meet the Norse god Loki those days. In fact, you've been in the company of the god Loki for a very long time." Loki looked into her bemused eyes. "At first you were an annoying thorn in his side, and it seemed like every second he was saving you from one dangerous situation or another." Mayura looked down in embarrassment. "Eventually freed from his imprisonment, he planed to return to the world of the gods. His departure was delayed however, by you. Distressed at your frantic search for his child form, the god Loki at first planed to erase all your memories of the gods you had met during his acquaintance." Loki placed his fingers underneath Mayura's chin and forced her head up to look at him. "But somehow, during his exile on Midgard as a child, you had weaseled the way into his heart. Unable to leave you, the Norse god Loki reverted back into the form of a child by his own free will to be with you, and love you, and kiss you, and marry you."
"That doesn't make any sense! If that were true, then you would be... you would be..." she stuttered, her eyes wide in disbelief.
"A god?"
"Then you're..."
"Loki, the Norse god of fire, mischief, and chaos. I've been hiding my true identity from you the whole time, with stupid lies and half truths." It was Loki's turn to lower his head in embarrassment. "At first it was to keep you safe and out of the way since it wasn't your concern. Later I didn't tell you because... I kept telling myself it was because I was afraid of Odin's displeasure, but it was really because I was afraid of your reaction." Loki looked at Mayura's eyes for a second before dropping them in shame.
Mayura stayed quiet for a while, trying desperately to understand and process all the information she had been shocked with that day. Naturally however, she was finding it quiet difficult. It's not often the man you love turns out to be a god after all. "You're Loki-sama."
"Yes"
"And Fenrir calls you daddy because..."
"I am his father."
"Then Fenrir is..."
"The great wolf Fenrir of Norse mythology. You found him in puppy form after my daughter Hel somehow released him from the chains that bound him in Asgard."
"If Yamino-san is Fenrir's brother, then who is he?"
"Midgardsormen"
"The Midgard Serpent?! I hate snakes!" Mayura shuddered.
At that moment, Yamino had opened the door to the study. He was hurt at Mayura's words even though he knew she didn't really mean them. She was just reacting by first impulse to everything at this point, and Yamino knew that Mayura hated snakes. But that didn't change the fact that her actions hurt him deeply. He wasn't ready to call her mother yet... but he highly valued his relationship with his father's new wife and he didn't want to think about her hating him on account of his natural outward appearance. "Loki-sama, I received a call from the Norns. They'll be over after dinner. And on that note, dinner is served. I cooked Mayura-san's favorite, shimeji rice and shrimp tempura."
"Come on Mayu-chan, let's go down for dinner. Talking is hard work on an empty stomach."
Mayura giggled and allowed herself to be dragged down for dinner, although in truth she didn't feel that hungry. Walking into the kitchen, Mayura couldn't help but see Fenrir and Ecchan, but she remained silent and sat down in her seat. Loki greeted Fenrir and Ecchan as usual. They were just about to start eating when Narugami ran into the kitchen.
"Sorry I'm late. I got tied up at work," he apologized sitting down at the table.
"Don't you have anywhere else to eat Narukami-kun?" asked Loki continuing his almost weekly ritual.
"Yeah, but eating here is so much more fun. And besides... four-eyes makes better food." Loki rolled his eyes at that comment, but said nothing else.
Dinner continued in an uncomfortable silence. Narugami, clueless as to what caused such tension in the air, decided to start conversation on a hopefully safe topic. "Mayura-san how was the trip to Norway?" Mayura's eyes lit up and Narugami congratulated himself on his lucky choice.
"It was wonderful," Mayura gushed. "First we just walked around Oslo looking in the shop windows were we found a store with Hagar the Horrible on the front window...
The fourth day we went to Hadeland Glassworks and we were able to dye our own candles, and blow glass. We met a really cool master glassblower named Anders too. He..."
On the fifth day we... we went to Aass Bryggeri, the oldest beer brewery in Norway! We bought you a souvenir from there. It should be in the refrigerator, right Yamino-san?"
"Ah, yes it is Mayura-san."
"We bought Yamino-kun a cooking variety, and although the brewery was out of it while we were there, it should be coming in the mail in the next day or two."
"Thank you Loki-sama," replied Yamino excitedly.
"After the brewery, we went to the Viking Ship Museum. Everything there was really old and you weren't allowed to touch anything, but I didn't mind. There were really cool stories about where they found each ship and what archeologists think the ship was doing when it sunk! For the last two days of our trip, Loki took me to a farm called Rime Gard. There's no electricity or gas heating there. Everything was cooked on this big fireplace that was heating the rooms too!"
"What town was the farm in Loki?" Mayura asked him innocently. Narugami-kun's inquiry about her honeymoon had made her completely forget the recent discussion she had had with her husband and god.
"Norefjell"
"Yeah... whatever he said. And on our last night there we saw the Aurora Borealis, also commonly known as the Northern Lights. They were so beautiful! Loki said we were lucky to see them since at that latitude the Northern Lights appear about three times a month. And we were especially lucky because it was only October 2."
### Ding Dong###
"That must be the Norns. I'll go invite them in," stated Yamino.
"What are the Norns doing here Loki?" asked Narugami tilting his head.
"A few things have happened since we've seen you last Narukami-kun," Loki explained. "Come on Mayura, let's go met the Norns. Yamino-kun's probably taking them up to the study."
Everyone was in Loki's study. Verdandi, Urd, Skuld, and Narugami were sitting on one couch, while Yamino, Loki and Mayura were sitting on the other. Fenrir was sitting on Yamino's lap and Ecchan was on Mayura's. She found it comforting to pet Ecchan's head... and Ecchan wasn't about to complain about that. "Loki-sama, why did you ask for us to come so urgently tonight?" asked Urd.
"Earlier today it was discovered that Mayura can see the spirit world. I asked you here to see if you three could find out how extensive her new abilities are, why she recently received them, and if they can be shut off or lessened. As you know, these questions required abilities beyond my province to answer."
"What type of powers have you observed so far Loki-sama?" asked Verdandi.
"She can see and hear Ecchan as well as Fenrir. That's all I know right now. I haven't been able to test her abilities as of yet of course. But on our honeymoon, I think she communicated with fire."
"But that's a feat only you and perhaps I could do!" insisted Narugami standing up.
At Narugami's statement, Mayura looked questioningly at Loki. "Narukami-kun is Thor, Mayu-chan."
"Oh"
"Loki! What are you doing?!" he demanded, steam rising from his ears.
"Don't worry Narukami-kun. She knows that I'm a god."
"Oh" The air seemed to deflate out of Narugami and he flopped back onto the couch.
"And I know that only you and I should be able to command fire, but that doesn't change the fact that I saw Mayura communicate with it."
The Norns and Narugami looked at each in shocked agreement. "Loki-sama, if this happened because of what the four of us think is the cause..." Verdandi didn't finish her sentence to consult with her sisters. "If the cause is what we think it is... then the answer lies beyond even the providence of my sisters and I."
"Then who would be able?" asked Loki, visibly worried.
"I think a meeting of all the gods currently present on Midgard should be called. Perhaps working together an answer may be found," Urd informed.
"Could the meeting be after dinner?" asked Verdandi. "That will give me enough time to run the tests I wish to do on Mayura-san's current physical condition."
"Sure," Loki replied. "That'll give Mayu-chan more time to deal with this situation... in whatever way she chooses."
"Mayura-san, I'd like to take a strand of your hair and a blood sample if that's alright with you."
"Sure Verdandi-san. What do you need them for though?"
"Since your hair is so long, I'll be able to get a long term record of your physical condition. Any changes to your system since you've known Loki-sama will show in the top half of your hair. Anything that happens in more recent months will show up in the last few inches of growth. The blood sample is the best source for current information however."
"I'm not pregnant if that's what you're thinking."
The Norns looked at Loki and laughed. Narugami meanwhile was staying very quiet. "Mayura-san, even though Loki is one of the more prolific gods in Asgard, he's still a god. And gods are no where near as fertile as mortal males. Goddesses are close to their mortal counterparts, but gods aren't. We've never quite figured out why. But it keeps the birthrate down to next to nil, so we've never bothered to fix their... infertility."
"Oh"
"Right Narugami-san, Loki-sama?" Blushing furiously, Narugami and Loki were wearing twin expressions of embarrassment on their faces.
"But there is compensation for them Mayura-san, and I'm sure Loki-sama will show you eventually... multiple times. In fact..."
"Of course some of the males need some help and since Freyr isn't good at potions, but Verdandi is..."
"Unfortunately that new fangled human medicine isn't strong enough for them to use."
The Norns talked with Mayura late into the night about things Narugami and Loki thought should never be uttered in a male's presence. And as a result were desperately plugging their ears, singing songs to themselves, and trying not to remain the tomato color they had achieved in a little less than five minutes into the Norns' conversation. Loki didn't interfere however, knowing that as much as disliked the conversation, Mayura found it enjoyable. Besides, it was definitely getting her mind off her current problems, which Loki knew would be difficult for the next few days.
"We better get going." "Yes, it's really late now." "And I still have to run those tests tomorrow," stated the Norns as they were leaving the house.
"I'm sure with all of us together we'll find the answer Loki. Do you want me to invite the other gods?" asked Narugami.
"Please Thor... I'm going to have my hands full tomorrow explaining things to Mayu-chan. She's been really quiet all day and I know there must be a million questions in her head by now."
"And they're all going to come out tomorrow morning before breakfast, after a night's sleep huh?"
"Most likely."
"Alright, I'll tell the others to come by at around six thirty. See you tomorrow."
"See you later Narukami-kun," replied Loki before shutting the door. It's over... it's over! I swear, another fifteen minutes of that conversation and I would have run out of the room screaming.
"Loki-sama?"
"Yes" Loki turned around and was surprised to see Mayura. Loki-sama?
"Can I sleep in my old room tonight? I really need to be alone for a little while to think things over."
"Okay Mayu-chan, whatever you want." I hope you don't run away from me Mayu-chan. I need you.
Omake: Chapter 36 Outtakes
Director: Alright, scene 27 and action!
Mayura: "You're Loki-sama."
Loki: "Yes"
Mayura: "And Fenrir calls you daddy because..."
Loki: "Luke, I am your father."
Loki: "I'm his sugar daddy?"
Director: Cut!
Loki: (respirator breathing) I couldn't help it.
Director: Scene 154
"But that's a feat only you and I do!" insisted Narugami standing up.
At Narugami's statement, Mayura looked questioningly at Loki. "Narukami-kun is uke, Mayu-chan."
"Oh"
"Loki! What are you doing?!" he demanded, steam rising from his ears.
"Don't worry Narukami-kun. She knows that I'm bi."
"Oh" The air seemed to deflate out of Narugami and he flopped back onto the couch disappointed.
Director: Cut, cut, cut. Can't you guys ever get serious?
Thor: Once he and I were a VERY serious item. The scandal of all Asgard.
Loki: Heimdall's better.
Author's Note: Unlike some Omakes in this story , this one is not part of the "Trials We Face" plot line. It's just something really funny. Sorry Heimdall/Loki fans.