#helinherbones

[starxlark]

"No one's ever built me a shrine before..."

Gods and Deities Sentence Starters//accepting

“Nor I.”

The bitterness that surely would have coated such an admission in her youth is lacking today and the loss surprised her. Her hand paused halfway to claiming another apple tart. Perhaps time had finally softened the discrepancy between Laerke’s dominion and those of her (often overwhelming) family members. It was a pleasing thing to consider.

This growth did not erase the memory of how such an absence stung and she knew to proceed with care. Hel was a a goddess and a queen; she deserved such tribute.

“When a shrine is built for you, what would you like for it to include?”

[daudsdottir]

light & dark | closed

@hel-inherbones

Having a twin was nice because it meant that neither of them was ever alone, and in Odin's case that may have been a bad thing. He banished them from Asgard together, which Hela was thankful for, as being alone in such a place as this would be awful.

Hela was the paler version of the two, and Hel, who was only slightly older than she, with the same eyes, but the blonde hair instead of the dark brunette, almost black hair of her sister. Loki had always told them that they were of one soul, which was why they matched, other than their seemingly light and dark differences.

"Hel, my darling sister," Hela began, as she ran her fingers mindlessly through the dark locks her sister had. "Why do you never allow me to braid your hair? It would look so lovely."

[gulldrengur]

hel-inherbones

   “No!” he screamed, broken and rotten, knowing that beyond this world, there where the living rest there was a battle like any other. “Did you knew of this? My family is dying out there, Hel... let me go or let me help, just let me do something.”

[starxlark]

@hel-inherbones cont.

Send “Mine!” to squish my muse’s cheeks and claim them!

Little Hel giggled, pushing her aunt’s hand away from her cheek. “Auntie,” she said through her giggles. “I belong to Papa.” She reached her arms out towards her aunt, a universal want for a hug. “You’re still my favorite auntie though.”

“I suppose you are your Papa’s first,” Laerke allowed as she scooped Hel up and started spinning around. Her steps were slow enough to be safe but confident enough to hopefully bring forth more giggles.

“But right now you’re mine! All mine!”  She gently bounced the child in her arms for a few moments before smothering her face in noisy kisses. “And you’re always my favorite niece!”

[ircnwccd]

@hel-inherbones liked the thing.

The streets of Midgard are boisterous, or so Angrboda perceives them to be. Their means of transport and their horns loud, the mechanical devices of communication always beeping, people’s heads down, gaze fixed on them. It is not vexing to her. She only finds them superfluous, but then again, she is not from this place, nor this time. An old soul, that is what Angrboda is, scarred from years and years of anguish and pain, but sustained by a limitless love for her own. Which is precisely why she walks on these streets, wearing clothes that are not hers -- no fur, no armour.

“So this is what Midgard became”, she says, as she finds her child. No glamour, no amount of seidr can mask her flesh and blood. Her façade may be different -- as is Angrboda’s own -- but her heart knows her daughter’s, regardless of time or ambiance. “I hate it”, she announces soon after. “But you look well”, Angrboda adds with a minute, almost somber smile.

[ircnwccd]

hel-inherbones replied to your post: [[MOR] i am currently having the WORST migraine...

I hope you feel better!

It’s still hurting a bit, but it’s much better. Thanks. <3

[laerkeodinsdottir]

@hel-inherbones

Hel stared blankly ahead. On the inside she squirmed. Everything inside of her trembled at the words and the voice. But she couldn’t go to her aunt. She might never have meant to, but Laerke too had abandoned her. And in short she had thought her aunt had forgotten. Many years had passed while Hel was away in exile. It wouldn’t be a surprise if she had. Hel wasn’t a little girl anymore.

She turned slowly and stately, the way she thought a queen might. She looked at her aunt. Hel was taller than her small aunt now, though not by much. “Yes,” she replied simply and without feeling. “I thought you did.”

Laerke studied the visiting queen from the doorway. Every move Hel made was deliberate, and it hurt Laerke’s heart to see the young woman trying so hard. 

You are here because I arranged it.

I still have not stopped fighting to have you named my ward.

Being unable to save you has been my greatest failure.

You are always in my heart.

There was no justification she could give Hel that would not sound like a flimsy excuse. There was nothing she could say to fix what destruction her father had brought upon her family. There was no hug to erase the pain, no gift to bribe her niece's heart.

Only patience and time could hope to rebuild their relationship.

“That is an unfortunate, but an understandable assumption.” Her voice is soft, even. “And it is also an inaccurate one, though I understand if that does not bring you much comfort.”

It was a fact, not an appeal to her emotions. Laerke does not yet well know the young lady before her, does not yet know the full extent that her darling niece has changed. But she knows trauma. She knows isolation, abandonment, fear. She suspects only a fraction of what Hel has endured.

[laerkeodinsdottir]

@hel-inherbones

Hel was quiet. Her visit to Asgard was one she had long dreaded, but one that was now required of her. Odin had commanded her visit and she must answers the summons. But she dreaded it. It had never been a secret that Odin had disliked her, but now it was blatantly obvious. Hel was afraid.

She eyed the golden halls that she had once loved as a child. The hood of her cloak was up around her face, the cloth pulled tightly around her body. It was the only shield she had between herself and those who paraded around the golden halls who would avoid her at all costs.

Hel wanted to cry when she saw who was waiting for her. A meager welcoming party, but Hel wasn’t sure if she hated her aunt for not stopping the banishment or loved her aunt for coming to greet her. She remained quietly where she was for a moment, then continued walking towards the hall, walking by her aunt as if she wasn’t even there.

From the moment Odin informed her of the summons, Laerke had done her best to prep herself for seeing her beloved niece once again. It would hurt, of that she never had doubt. So many years separated them now. 

Hel was not Laerke’s ward (despite momentous effort) but she was still her niece and the world would turn to ash before Laerke would allow her to be alone on a day such as this. And so she waited.

Looking upon Hel was excruciating. 

There was no hint of the vivacious girl who used to run the halls. No sign of the child she had known. Laerke wasn’t surprised, but the sadness weighed heavy on her heart. Still she greeted Hel with a bright smile and a gentle, “Hello.”

When she walked right on by Laerke turned and followed without hesitation. She felt into step beside her niece, unsure of how to proceed. It was important that Hel set the tone and so she waited for some form of acknowledgment.