It was only once Sif stepped through the wide-opened doors of Bilskirnir that she could finally relax. The consequence of being absent when Thor returned from Midgard, had she known he would be returning so soon, the trip to Nidavellir would have been put off until a later day. Alas, she had not known and arrived back in the Realm Eternal after the celebration had already been announced. Hopefully her last minute efforts to make herself presentable had not been for naught.
Making an effort to shed any harried expression that might have lingered, she immersed herself in the cacophony of the great hall, stepping through the crowd as she moved deeper into the room. Normally sound would echo off the cavernous ceilings, but with so many bodies occupying the space, noise remained localized, the singing of the bards and the melodic harmonies of lute and lyre.
Volstagg's voice rose above the rest as he reached the climax of a story that Sif had heard enough times to have memorized, and a small group of dancing nobles forced her to alter her course by a few steps. The table she sought was in sight, the familiar forms of her closest friends, and a handful of other warriors they had commanded during the battles to put down the marauders that invaded the nine.
Thor had not been immediately visible, but she knew he would make his way to them at some point in the evening. Leaving Fandral and Hogun to listen to their robust friend, she headed for the food table, piled to overflowing with a variety of roast meats, vegetables, and breads. She tucked a lock of loose hair behind her ear and set to work, filling a plate to pick at throughout the night before those with bigger appetites finished it all.