a new journal is full of possibilities

[skyti]

 There are few things Atreus loves more then listening to the stories of others and writing them down.  Okay, okay he definitely loves his parents more.  That's a given though.  Also wolves are cool.  He sure does love wolves.  He's quite convinced he'll prove his father wrong one day and teach himself how to turn into one but that day's sadly a long way off probably.

Writing in a journal though! Back to that! He loves writing about his adventures and and every tale he comes across, and he's wanted to write down his findings of the Nexus too... but he thought it'd be appropriate to have a separate journal for here.  There were so many people from so many different worlds! He figures it'll be really easy to fill up a lot of pages really fast.

That's when he discovered the stationary store.  Which is probably one of his favorite places he's found here so far.  Dozens of different journals in different sizes in so many colors with so many pictures on the covers.  And the writing tools! Markers, pens, colored pencils! In any and every color he could possibly imagine! There were other even more ADVANCED materials like stickers an washi tape but he was honestly starting to feel a little overwhelmed.

So he ended up leaving with a truly epic looking journal with a wolf on the cover and a small package of pens in an assortment of colors.  He's investigate the other materials more thoroughly later.

As he walked he flipped open the journal.  The pages were empty and pristine.  There's a bit of a thrill whenever you look at blank pages like that.  What will eventually fill them? He knows the first thing at least.  He selects a pen and writes in runes 'Tales from the Nexus' and smiles to himself.  That feels right.  Not to just... get those tales!

"Excuse me!" he hails a friend or a friendly looking stranger, or just someone INTERESTING looking as they pass by, "Know any good stories?"

Comments

[skyti]

"You're a skald and you're here, that's good enough for me!" the boy replies. A storyteller is an important person, no matter where they're from or where they are.

It takes him a moment to connect a term. Earth! That's what a lot of the people around here used when they talked about Midgard.

"I knew it! You're from Alfheim, right? I thought you looked kind of like an elf," he frowns then, just a little bit. Only one thing doesn't QUITE add up, "...You're not very glowy though. I didn't know that could be turned off..."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

I don't know where Alfheim is." Ziggy was going to say more and then laughs. "Only if I wear enough glitter."

He knows the boy is being serious but it's too funny to pass up. "Anthea is my mother's home, but there aren't elves there. Nobody's there now probably."

[skyti]

Don't teach him about glitter, Ziggy. His world isn't ready for that.

"There's no one there? At all?" he sounds concerned, thoughts of Jotunheim filling his head. There was no one left there either. Everything was... dead. The only sound that graced those halls was the wind howling through, "What happened?"

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Everyone needs Glitter. Ziggy is probably wearing glittery gold lipstick right now.

"War, greed, violence. The planet started to die.. 12,000? Earth years ago. When they turned to radioactive warfare and started to care about killing each other more than protecting the planet or resources." Ziggy is visibly upset by the history even if it was long before his time. His mother was born during the war though. It was a main reason the Antheans were now passive and pacifistic. They had to to survive and they knew the real costs of violence. "There are only 2 or 3 hundred left. They were going to come to Earth but...it .. they can't."

Ziggy stumbled over the torture of the Anthean who had come to build a ship to save the other Antheans. However, the extreme emotions of loss and pain he is feeling might be picked up by Atreus at this point since Ziggy is a empath without training to control when he feels others or projects himself.

[skyti]

Atreus winces. He's certainly feeling down thinking about Jotenheim, but not all of that is him, he's positive. He's particularly sensitive to certain things, he's noticed it before when things have tried communicating with him in ways that aren't simply opening ones mouth and letting the sounds out. Luckily he doesn't pass out this time like he did when he started hearing the voices of spirits and the dead.

"Umm... skald, do you..." he trails off not really finishing the statement but he holds his arms out in that sort of universal 'would you like a hug' gesture.

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Ziggy hesitates at the offer and then moves in. "Gently."

Atreus will instantly realize the reason for the request when they hug. Ziggy's bones are much thinner than a humans. Though they are relatively strong, they feel fragile beneath the skin. He's also oddly cool to the touch due to his lower body temperature. However, the hug is emotionally warm, his long arms wrapping around the boy. He doesn't usually hug strangers and hasn't been around too many children but he has distinct memories of adoring hugs from his parents when he was a child. Those memories are a source of the warmth in the embrace.

[skyti]

Atreus is absolutely the type who will give anyone nice to him a hug. Except germophobic dwarfs. Not that he hasn't TRIED that. It's the only time he's ever been refused.

Gently indeed. It's like hugging an eggshell! But it's a nice hug either way. He doesn't feel quite so overwhelmed anymore and he carefully disengages.

"I'm sorry about your mom's home. I think I can understand a little about how you feel..." he trails off for a moment and then shakes his head, "Do you know about any happier times there? Before all the war. It might make thinking about it a little easier."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Ziggy is happy with the hug, the calm and comfort rolling out of his empathetic abilities. Ziggy, though wild in many ways, is peaceful and gentle as a rule.

"It was a long time before I was born. My mom was born during the war but she doesn't remember anything about before. I've seen pictures and read the histories but it's not the same."