"Five Things" (crossover), part 2/5.
Chapter One: at Covert Fiction...and at my LJ.
Chapter Two:
Summary: In the wake of the first Thor movie, Sif moves in, and Reva has issues with Asgardian tech.
Reva opens the door a crack, having not removed the chains; this confirms the look through the peephole: "Sif?" Reva asks. You're back.
"It is good to see you again," Sif says. "May I enter?"
Reva unfastens the chains, opens the door for her. "Come in. What's wrong?" her mind calculating that that was the most likely reason for her to be at Reva's door.
"I am somewhat...stranded," Sif says, standing comfortably in Reva's living room. "What happened was..." and she relates the series of events which stranded her here. She omits details, such as who holds guilt in one field or another, such as the Bifrost no longer working, such as a possibility of wars breaking out as a result of events in Asgard - perhaps even a civil war.
"You can stay here," Reva says. That's what family is for.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The light is still on, Sif observed as she slid out from under her covers and up and out of the guest bedroom, down the short hallway. With the kitchen empty of people, there was only one remaining source for the light: the living room. "Reva?" Sif asked, seeing her sister sitting on the sofa, forehead against wrist as she stared at Sif's glaive.
Reva looked up. "Were you unable to sleep as well, or did I wake you?" she asked Sif.
"I'm old enough to be a light sleeper. Are you troubled by any thing?" Sif inquired.
"Nothing."
Sif held her position, watching Reva.
"There is nothing troubling me," Reva said. "I just couldn't sleep. It happens, for about 5% of the year."
"Your forehead was pressed against your wrist. When I do that, I do it when I do not like the implications of what I am beholding."
"Except I'm not you."
"This is true," Sif said.
"But you're also right," Reva said.
Sif took a seat on the opposing chair, ready and willing to wait.
"It isn't you," Reva said, then doubted that was a good opening. "It's your glaive here," the fingers of one hand making a vague half-pointing gesture at it. She sighed and gave the long version: "I told Annie once that there wasn't as much point in sending out manned missions to the planets, as to have unmanned missions or to use the resources on other things... Only there's no point in having any missions at all, is there? Or in research."
"It is a glaive," Sif said.
Reva gave a nod, bitter. "One made with technology far ahead of anything we have on Earth. Probably can cut diamonds as easily as butter."
"That which has been done before, need never be repeated?"
Nothing from Reva, which was all the confirmation Sif needed to say "The peoples of Alfheim have spent millions of years spying upon one another and upon their neighbors. Does that fact render moot all the protocols and training and missions of the covert groups of this world?" Sif asked.
"No," Reva said. "For one thing, they may have been doing it for longer, but they don't come here." Also, either you know what I do for a living, or there's a reason why that came to your mind first.
"Their absence is reason not to stop?"
Reva was about to agree, but then thought a move ahead, and thought about the odds that Sif might interpret that as a cue to 'please leave'. Higher than 50%. "I see what you're getting at," Reva said. "I just took it more personally because I've spent a lot of my career working on getting technology smaller and smaller... and now I see your glaive, which - Why are you smiling?"
"My glaive have no technology," Sif said.
"That's not possible. You showed me how effortlessly those blades slide in and out - unless you have pressure plates and..." frowning now, "Okay, how does it work?"
Sif shrugged. "I know how to clean it." I doubt Thor knows the inner workings of Mjolnir either. "Would you care to sit and observe?"
"Sure," Reva said. "Now?"
In lieu of an answer, Sif reached over and knelt on the floor so she and Reva both had a good view of what was to come. Drawing a stiletto blade out from its hiding place under a tabletop potted plant, Sif used that to crack open her glaive.
Pressure-sensitive skin, has to be, Reva continued to think. But inside in appearance one part honeycomb and one part sponge. And there's nothing else inside, apart from the blades themselves. "How does it work?" Reva asked.
"I apply pressure to the handle, and the blades slide out until I change my pressure, and the same for reversing their direction."
"That can't be it."
"I would welcome you finding a new function or aspect to this glaive," Sif said happily. "Though you need not do it to demonstrate your superiority."
"That wasn't why I -"
"For I already acknowledge you."
Reva blinked. "What?"
"I recognize your intellect, sister. Why do you sound surprised?" Sif asked.
"Because I'm not the one from an advanced intergalactic civilization."
"And yet there are things I envy you for."
Reva had no doubt that Annie, Auggie, even Jai would have had a biting remark or some snappy comeback to that. All that she, Reva Kline, could think of was, "I don't believe that."
Sif closed up her glaive without even looking at her hands. "I could remark on the society you grew to maturity in, or on your friendships as I have heard of them; but I most of all envy you for how well you knew our mother."
Nothing came to mind. Nothing but, "She was just...mom."
A frown came to Sif's face, and she let herself show a bit more sadness than even Thor and Loki or Volstagg had seen on her. "She stayed with you, helped raise you." Would I have given up being a shieldmaiden in exchange for time with her? I cannot say, and I will never find out.
"Could I tell you a bit about her?" Reva offered.
"I would like that much," Sif said. "Thank you, sister. Reva."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end of this chapter
Chapter Two:
Summary: In the wake of the first Thor movie, Sif moves in, and Reva has issues with Asgardian tech.
Reva opens the door a crack, having not removed the chains; this confirms the look through the peephole: "Sif?" Reva asks. You're back.
"It is good to see you again," Sif says. "May I enter?"
Reva unfastens the chains, opens the door for her. "Come in. What's wrong?" her mind calculating that that was the most likely reason for her to be at Reva's door.
"I am somewhat...stranded," Sif says, standing comfortably in Reva's living room. "What happened was..." and she relates the series of events which stranded her here. She omits details, such as who holds guilt in one field or another, such as the Bifrost no longer working, such as a possibility of wars breaking out as a result of events in Asgard - perhaps even a civil war.
"You can stay here," Reva says. That's what family is for.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The light is still on, Sif observed as she slid out from under her covers and up and out of the guest bedroom, down the short hallway. With the kitchen empty of people, there was only one remaining source for the light: the living room. "Reva?" Sif asked, seeing her sister sitting on the sofa, forehead against wrist as she stared at Sif's glaive.
Reva looked up. "Were you unable to sleep as well, or did I wake you?" she asked Sif.
"I'm old enough to be a light sleeper. Are you troubled by any thing?" Sif inquired.
"Nothing."
Sif held her position, watching Reva.
"There is nothing troubling me," Reva said. "I just couldn't sleep. It happens, for about 5% of the year."
"Your forehead was pressed against your wrist. When I do that, I do it when I do not like the implications of what I am beholding."
"Except I'm not you."
"This is true," Sif said.
"But you're also right," Reva said.
Sif took a seat on the opposing chair, ready and willing to wait.
"It isn't you," Reva said, then doubted that was a good opening. "It's your glaive here," the fingers of one hand making a vague half-pointing gesture at it. She sighed and gave the long version: "I told Annie once that there wasn't as much point in sending out manned missions to the planets, as to have unmanned missions or to use the resources on other things... Only there's no point in having any missions at all, is there? Or in research."
"It is a glaive," Sif said.
Reva gave a nod, bitter. "One made with technology far ahead of anything we have on Earth. Probably can cut diamonds as easily as butter."
"That which has been done before, need never be repeated?"
Nothing from Reva, which was all the confirmation Sif needed to say "The peoples of Alfheim have spent millions of years spying upon one another and upon their neighbors. Does that fact render moot all the protocols and training and missions of the covert groups of this world?" Sif asked.
"No," Reva said. "For one thing, they may have been doing it for longer, but they don't come here." Also, either you know what I do for a living, or there's a reason why that came to your mind first.
"Their absence is reason not to stop?"
Reva was about to agree, but then thought a move ahead, and thought about the odds that Sif might interpret that as a cue to 'please leave'. Higher than 50%. "I see what you're getting at," Reva said. "I just took it more personally because I've spent a lot of my career working on getting technology smaller and smaller... and now I see your glaive, which - Why are you smiling?"
"My glaive have no technology," Sif said.
"That's not possible. You showed me how effortlessly those blades slide in and out - unless you have pressure plates and..." frowning now, "Okay, how does it work?"
Sif shrugged. "I know how to clean it." I doubt Thor knows the inner workings of Mjolnir either. "Would you care to sit and observe?"
"Sure," Reva said. "Now?"
In lieu of an answer, Sif reached over and knelt on the floor so she and Reva both had a good view of what was to come. Drawing a stiletto blade out from its hiding place under a tabletop potted plant, Sif used that to crack open her glaive.
Pressure-sensitive skin, has to be, Reva continued to think. But inside in appearance one part honeycomb and one part sponge. And there's nothing else inside, apart from the blades themselves. "How does it work?" Reva asked.
"I apply pressure to the handle, and the blades slide out until I change my pressure, and the same for reversing their direction."
"That can't be it."
"I would welcome you finding a new function or aspect to this glaive," Sif said happily. "Though you need not do it to demonstrate your superiority."
"That wasn't why I -"
"For I already acknowledge you."
Reva blinked. "What?"
"I recognize your intellect, sister. Why do you sound surprised?" Sif asked.
"Because I'm not the one from an advanced intergalactic civilization."
"And yet there are things I envy you for."
Reva had no doubt that Annie, Auggie, even Jai would have had a biting remark or some snappy comeback to that. All that she, Reva Kline, could think of was, "I don't believe that."
Sif closed up her glaive without even looking at her hands. "I could remark on the society you grew to maturity in, or on your friendships as I have heard of them; but I most of all envy you for how well you knew our mother."
Nothing came to mind. Nothing but, "She was just...mom."
A frown came to Sif's face, and she let herself show a bit more sadness than even Thor and Loki or Volstagg had seen on her. "She stayed with you, helped raise you." Would I have given up being a shieldmaiden in exchange for time with her? I cannot say, and I will never find out.
"Could I tell you a bit about her?" Reva offered.
"I would like that much," Sif said. "Thank you, sister. Reva."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end of this chapter