I thought, again, that she was gone, but no…just unconscious again. I looked at the ravens.
When they moved, I thought, that would be it. Was she aware of anything? Was she still in pain? I didn’t want to knew.
Everything seemed to stop for a moment. Especially Ragnarok. Was she telling me that even if I failed to prevent it, I hadn’t lost?
Prevent or start. Not allowed to tell me the actual words of the prophecy. Surtur thinking it was the best thing for his people.
No real bad guys. No real good guys. It spun in my head for a moment, then Hunin flew from his branch. He actually landed on Monica’s chest, tilting his head as if listening.
A smoky darkness started to form around her, something I suspected ordinary people could not see.
I glanced at Seb.
No, I was pretty sure he could not see it, hunter or no.
It had the pattern of raven’s wings. I thought then that I understood, her standing there now, cloaked in raven feathers and power.
“I understand now.”
She smiled, that form of her. “You do?” A bit of an emphasis on the first word.
I laughed. “I won’t ask why.”
“Because you needed a bit of guidance.” And then in a rainbow swirl, she was gone.
“What the heck?” Seb’s voice.
“The Norns.” I paused. “There are more than just three of them.”
And Hunin finished with, “And sometimes they come in different forms.” He was no longer perched on Monica’s body.
It was no longer there. Which, I thought, was rather tidy. “And sometimes human ones, for a while.”
The raven nodded. “And sometimes they were mortal women, before, like the disir.”
He wasn’t going to tell me which was the case here, I knew. But I could not grieve. She had only gone home.
I wished I could tell her parents that. I wished they would understand. Had she been chosen.
Had she always been this and simply not remembered any more than I had.
No.
I rather thought she had been chosen, for some quality within her, some strength…the same strength I had seen in her.
But it was over and there were those who would not understand and would, truly, grieve.