[video]; thunderer

[worldsaway]

[The video begins in the swampier edges of the jungle. Thanks to the flooding, the water is up to Thor's waist and he has mud up his arms and on his face. He holds the camera up at a selfie angle, smiling into it and waving with a muddy hand.]

If anybody happens to know where a big, fat crocodile went, let me know. He's got a scar over his eye and his legs are very stumpy. Embarrassingly stumpy.

[Thor looks about him, holding the camera out so the audience can really appreciate the view of the overflowing river and not the fact that he's wearing a wet singlet.]

And if you've lost anything in the floods, let me know and I'll keep my eye out for-

[He cuts himself off when he catches sight of something making ripples on the water. His arm whips out of camera, snatching the tail of a snake that he brings into view.]

Look at this! Did you know snakes could swim?



[The snake hisses, flicking its tongue at Thor even as it coils around Thor's arm in a lithe, slow crawl. When Thor's hold lessens though, the snake rears back slightly like a mirage before vanishing and revealing a grinning Loki who very casually slides a small dagger into Thor's side.]

Oh dear. Was that me?

[Thor grunts, mostly in surprise but there's pain in it. The little blades sting, and it's a miracle that he can hold onto his camera (lopsidedly) when he drops to his knees and grips his side.]

You've done it now, brother. [Thor growls, with a clenched jaw.] It's all going dark. Dark and cold. I see a light, it's calling me. I'll bleed out before they find me.

[And with his final breath, he musters the strength to try kick Loki into the mud along with him.]

Comments

video, @hiccup

[thisisamazing]

[Okay, that's... That happened. Hiccup is thankfully less alarmed than he could be because he's seen a crocodile try to eat Thor's entire arm for dinner. This and someone else's over-the-top marriage announcement have him frowning slightly.]

Is it Loki Day already? [Berk doesn't have April Fool's Day, they have Loki Day.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki's expression lights up. ]

What day?

[thisisamazing]

Loki Day. [Said like it's a totally normal thing.] It's, uh, supposed to be a celebration of your birthday. I would be surprised if we got the date right in that regard. But it's a holiday on Berk where vikings spend the entire day pranking each other for fun. When you get someone, you shout 'Loki'd'.

[dothelokimotion]

[ This is the best thing Loki has ever heard of and he can't even hide the huge grin spreading all over his face. In fat, he even laughs. ]

That — surpasses all expectations.

[thisisamazing]

Oh, you've never even experienced it. Some people take Loki Day very seriously. [He stifles a snorting laugh.] The last Loki Day my friends and I spent on Dragon's Edge, we got fed up with the twins and their pranks - they love you, by the way, huge fans - and- [He laughs again, shaking his head.] Sorry, this is the best part. Astrid - my, uh, my girlfriend - she. She and her dragon lifted their entire hut off the rock, and flew it out onto a seastack. We left them there until morning.

[dothelokimotion]

Well done.

[ Loki loves a good prank. In all the ways. ]

I . . . never realized people had such a fondness. For what I do.

[thisisamazing]

She's incredible. [He agrees. It was a very good prank. Namely because it was Astrid's, and also she got the twins hard. They deserved it after pulling pranks during a dragon rescue.]

Why not? We appreciate all the gods. Including you. Granted, the twins... appreciate you a lot more than average, but still. Everyone gets in on Loki Day, not just them.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Incredible, huh? Loki files that away. ]

I don't remember that. It was mostly Thor, in those days.

[thisisamazing]

Well, yeah, Thor gets a lot of the attention, but not all of it. Vikings are very superstitious and we generally respect all our gods.

And anyway, I don't, uh, think you would remember Berk. Different universes, right? We're-, we're very different vikings from Ivar's kind of vikings.

[worldsaway]

I hope the Loki Day prank is the existence of Loki Day itself.

[thisisamazing]

Oh, no, Loki Day is very real. Very, very real. [This is the tone of a man who has Seen Some Pranks.] It's the favorite holiday of two of my friends, unfortunately for the rest of us.

[worldsaway]

I'll be hearing about this for the next thousand years, I'm sure.

Sounds like you aren't a fan.

[thisisamazing]

At least. [He's not that sorry.]

I don't dislike Loki Day. It can be a lot of fun. I just have friends who take it way too far sometimes.

[worldsaway]

Then you can imagine what it would be like being related to someone who celebrates Loki Day every day.

[thisisamazing]

[That gets a somewhat dry look.] Between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, two of my dragon-riders dedicated their entire lives to Loki, and being the most Loki-like they could be.

Iiii can imagine.

[worldsaway]

It's admirable that you still think of them as your friends.

[thisisamazing]

[That makes him laugh.]

Well, you know, otherwise I'd have a zippleback needing two riders, and we're short on manpower.

video; un: sg.rogers

[livingsymbol]

You have a day dedicated to Loki?

[Oh, that will stroke his ego.]

[thisisamazing]

I'm learning today that, like Snoggletog, Loki Day is apparently not a thing anywhere else.

[livingsymbol]

Well, I haven't heard of either, but that doesn't mean they don't exist in other worlds. It could just be coincidence.

Tell me about them. I'd like to hear about your world.

[thisisamazing]

So far it's just been mine. That's alright, though, I've always known Berk is... unique. [To say the least.]

Snoggletog is basically- it's like your Christmas, or Yule. Basically. [A frown as he has flashbacks to Yule. He adds,] With less goat sacrifice and no hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Loki Day is to celebrate Loki's birthday - not that I know if this is really his birthday - by playing pranks on each other. When you get someone, you shout 'Loki'd'. It can be a lot of fun.

[livingsymbol]

[The word unique gets a smile from Steve. He can't disagree with that based on what Hiccup has shared already, but it adds a certain charm to the whole experience. He enjoys hearing about other worlds.]

Goat sacrifice?

[That catches him by surprise. He remembers a conversation he had with Ivar, but-]

That's... not like Christmas or Yule that I'm used to. I thought it was a viking tradition.

This Loki Day... you pull pranks to honor him? [It sounds accurate.] And everyone in your world does that?

[thisisamazing]

Yeah, they- they uh,... That was a thing. [He's slightly squeamish at just the memory. That is the part of last year's Yule that he ducked out of at the time.] I guess it's a viking tradition, but my tribe is pretty different from Ivar's. It makes sense if you think about it, we're an island tribe and more isolated, and his is from the mainland.

[Or that's his working theory, anyway, for why they look to the same gods but don't have the same traditions and holidays.]

Yeah! Just about everyone, anyway. Some people go more all-out than others, but it's a fun day to break up the usual work a little. And Loki apparently likes the idea, so we've got that right.

[livingsymbol]

Well, different regions do have different customs. Personally, I prefer my holidays a little less bloody... The trees and sweaters are a little more my speed. But I guess I've seen enough fighting for a while.

[He doesn't mind if his sentiments make him look too soft.]

Loki would like something like that. He does like his pranks...

[Hmm.]

You said it was to honor him, right?

[thisisamazing]

You and me both. Nothing wrong with a good old Yule tree, and I have grown to enjoy sweaters. [He's amassing a collection of hoodies and sweatshirts for day to day wear because they're comfy. That next comment has him looking a little curiously at the camera, though.] Yeah? Were you a soldier?

Of course it's to honor him. Or make him happy, or something along those lines. It's nice to see people celebrate something like it here.