Against All Odds (Thor and Vane)

[asgirldian]

The storm has been one of her best, thunder had rolled, lightning arced across the sky and the rain came down in a torrent, the ship never stood a chance. The crew had made a valiant effort to keep control but the verocity of the waves and the storm almost ripped the hull apart. The lightning was the final straw, striking the central mast like a hammer and causing the wood to split and crack. That was when they knew there was no escaping it. The violent onslaught of waves and weather didn't stop until the ship was in pieces, its crew drowned or desperately clinging to flotsam, only delaying the inevitable. The ship would go down with all hands.

Only it didn't. Somehow, through ingenuity, luck or sheer tenacity, one crewmember survived... washed up on a nearby island, some lonely little scrub-covered rock in the middle of the sea, windswept and salted and lonely. It wasn't the worst place he could have finished his perilous journey, there were trees and a lake, if he ventured deep enough into the woods to find the fresh water, the rocks looming enough to form cliffs and caves for shelter. It wasn't long-term habitable, certainly, but it was survivable.

Thor had watched the man, half interested, impressed he had made it that far but expecting him to die soon just as the others had, lying on the beach so close to everything he might have needed for salvation. And then he surprised her again, made it into the woods, took shelter in a cave, found food even, and her interest grew. It grew enough for her to set foot on Midgard, on that lonely little island, and pay him a visit.

She moved through the woods towards the cave, less stealthy than she was usually capable of, ensuring he knew of her approach and wasn't surprised. She stopped outside, not wanting him to feel cornered, he seemed like the vicious sort when he needed to be.

"Hello?"

Comments

[nomanbutme]

"How do you know I don't just live here now? Maybe I enjoy the solitude," Charles replied, an edge of bitterness to his words. There was no denying that he enjoyed being alone, but being so with so little prospects like he did now was not too pleasant. She probably knew it, too.

"Have you never found a way home?"

His eyes stayed on her hands, skinning the rabbit she held skillfully. He licked his lips, considering being slightly more polite, just to earn himself some more food for the night. He had seen very little animals around as he walked through the forest, and the idea of a nicely cooked rabbit was definitely making the woman all the more interesting to him.

"I'm Charles. What's your name?"

[asgirldian]

Thor raised an eyebrow at him, a slight smile gracing her lips.
"I saw the storm that destroyed your ship, I know you are not here by choice." judging by the way he so adamantly survived, she was quite certain he wasn't going to sit idly around here 'enjoying the solitude', she fully expected him to find a way home again.

"I haven't left since I came here," she answered as she put aside the skin and reached for a stick to skewer the rabbit on, setting it over the fire. A strange way to phrase it, perhaps, but it wasn't technically a lie.

"My name is unimportant." for now, perhaps later she would reveal to him her true nature, but she didn't want to give the game away just yet.

[nomanbutme]

Charles growled at her non-answers. She seemed to know too much and want to reveal too little, which didn't sit well with him. However, he couldn't deny that he was placated by the smell of cooking meat, his eyes intent on the rabbit.

"A name is never unimportant," he replied, lifting his gaze to her for a moment. His name meant a lot to him, to his men, to his clan. It meant a lot to his known world. It made men fear him, bow to him, help him. A name was never unimportant.

"Do you plan on staying here?"

[asgirldian]

Thor tilted her head, conceding his point but still not volunteering a name. Instead she decided to answer his other question, perhaps a little more firmly than those before, as though she could sense his irritation with her obfuscation.

"No. I do not intend to stay here very long at all." she didn't imagine he would linger particularly long, and she only intended to hang around as long as he did - even then, she probably wouldn't stay as such, but leave and returning as her whims dictated. He was an interesting mortal, but he was not yet interesting enough that she expected him to hold her attention completely.

"Do you?"

[nomanbutme]

The main thought that was running through Charles' mind was that - she was irritating. She kept on dodging his questions and thoughts, cherry picking what she wanted to bring up like she knew much more than Charles did himself, somehow.

Maybe she did, but if it was the case, sharing could only help. He needed to get off of this island as soon as possible, back to his village and his clan. He didn't need her help, but if she knew anything that could make things easier, keeping it from him would only bring anger and resentment.

"No," he replied to her question, gritting his teeth a little. "I have too much to do, too much waiting for me way from here. This is just a test."

[asgirldian]

She could tell she was annoying him and it was kind of delighting, an extra test to see how well he was coping. She felt a little bad, piling such cryptic behaviour on top of an already frustrating and difficult day, but not quite bad enough to stop.

"A test," she repeated, nodding approvingly "That's a good way to think about it. I'm sure the gods are fascinated to see how you'll perform." it wasn't untrue, technically, she hadn't designed it this way when she had conjured the storm that had taken his ship, but now that he had escaped it she was watching him. He was a proud warrior and this was only going to make him stronger, if he performed particularly well under the stress of these events, perhaps he would earn her favour.

"You do honour the gods, yes?" she asked, expression innocent.