The encounter shook me a little. Just a kid, a nice kid I wanted to like. But clearly part of the anti me marrying Surtur faction.

Or one of them. It was very complicated. It was, though, heartening to know at least one fire giant didn’t want to start Ragnarok. Might fight hard if they did, but didn’t want to.

It did mean it might be possible to negotiate some sort of peace. Which brought me around to: If it was to bring about peace, would I marry him?
Maybe.

But I didn’t want to. It wasn’t just that I didn’t really want to marry anyone other than Kanesha, although that was emphatically true.

I really didn’t want to marry somebody who reminded me of the X-Men’s Magneto, except possibly more aggressive and even more delusional. And as much as I’d accepted the possibility of marrying for reasons other than love, I wanted to at least have some sense of liking for the person.

Some feeling that I could love them with time. I shook my head again as I walked away.

“You handled that well.”

“Hi, dad.”

He fell in next to me. “Interesting to know they aren’t all quarrelsome warmongers.”

I shrugged. “Interesting, but heartening. Maybe we can solve the entire thing.”

Loki laughed. “Except one day the war will have to happen. You know that. I know that.”

I shivered at his words. “I know.”

“You just don’t want to admit it.”

I looked around. “I want to preserve this.”

“Even with the climate going haywire and black people being shot in the streets?”

“Even with.”

“You have too much faith in human nature.” A pause. “Or maybe I have too little.”

“You’re a trickster. What do tricksters have faith in?” I grinned at him. “You don’t need to answer that.”

But he did. “Your mother.”

I thought about that for a moment. “Well, she has stuck by you no matter what.”

“I tricked her into marrying me, you know. I didn’t think she’d have me otherwise.”

“Did she tell you how much of a fool you were?”

“Yes.” Then he let out a breath. “You’re closer to the solution than ever, Siglaugr. Don’t give up.”

He didn’t often call me by my real name, but then, he wasn’t always this serious.

He’d given me something else to think about. As if I needed it.