rebuildyourruins | Drift Fleet

[ Right, well, at least he knows that the time excuse won't hold water here... but the inclination?

She tilts her head a little to ask: ] Why not?

[Thor leans back against the wall, letting his head thump back as he stares at the ceiling. It's a simple question with a thorny mess as an answer.]

Loki and I were at odds for the last few years. Most of our encounters in that time were fights. [Fights, deaths, betrayals. A lot of hurt. He looks down at Katara again.] Things are better now, but this just reminds me of those times.

[It shouldn't. This was nothing like their howling brawls or bitter arguments. Yet it does feel like a step backwards to Thor, pitching him back into a defensive mood.]

[ ...okay so. She doesn't think Thor is talking of 'yelling matches' in terms of fights, so maybe she should think about them less in terms of her and Sokka and more in terms of Zuko and Azula? Except she'd seen Loki care for Thor, and vice versa so.... Zuko and Azula on better terms? ]

That sounds... really frustrating and hurtful. I'm sorry. [ She bit her lip for a second, swallowing back her instinctive impulse to offer advice. ] I don't know what happened between you two, so I can't offer advice, not really. [ And he's skimmed through enough that she gets the feeling he doesn't want to go into that. ] And you don't have to tell me, but you can if you want to. But knowing just what I know right now - maybe I can offer a suggestion?

[There's definitely a reluctance to go into the whole sordid mess. Not because he doesn't like to think back on it - Thor rarely avoids his own issues. But despite his current frustration at Loki, he's not inclined to drag his brother through the mud right now when few here know the history.]

What is it?

Think of it like a battle. [ A little half shrug. ] When what you're doing doesn't work, try something else. Decide what you want the relationship to be and take steps to address it. That won't mean you can change Loki's responses, but I think he does care about you, Thor. That doesn't change what he did in the past, or what he did in going off to the ship by himself, but unless he knows you want something different, and what that looks like, he can't work toward it either. I think you should try telling him why this bothered you so much. [ A small, half smile. ] And if you go over while he's sick, he can't run away. I can make you some soup to bring him.

[This is really new territory for Thor: having someone actually talk through this sort of thing with him. His mother certainly hadn't tried to make him go talk to Loki when he didn't want to (when his brother was rightfully imprisoned and the idea of going to see him made Thor cold inside) and by the time Thor made his way back to the Avengers, Loki had been 'dead'. All he had said was that Loki was gone, then carried on as best he could. No need to discuss any friction or fractures.

What Katara's saying now makes sense. In fact, it's how he prefers to do things himself. Directly. It isn't the easiest thing in the world when Loki insists on twisting in the wind and turning matters around until they bite back. Yet Thor knows he had also stormed out of that conversation early rather than let his disappointment echo around the halls.

It's with all this in mind that Thor listens to Katara intently, a crease between his brows all the while. He has to smirk a bit at the idea of ambushing Loki while he's ill, because no doubt that would pin the other man down effectively.]

He couldn't run, but I would probably get a knife thrown at me for the effort. [Thor says that lightly though, as though it's not really a concern.] You may be right. That's something we do need to discuss again.

[ ...okay, casual knife throwing is definitely out of her sibling experience. But if Thor's not going to be worried about it, she won't stress too much. ]

Change is hard, especially when you're used to viewing a person a certain way. [ Definitely thinking about herself and Zuko here now. ] But if there's one thing this place is good for, it's... plenty of time to work on this stuff. And no where to run to get away from it.

[ So, yeah, you might as well try to deal with him again. ]

...even if that doesn't always feel very good.

Oh, it won't. I have no doubt about that.

[That seems fairly likely. If they can get through it without turning into another shouting match that would be good enough for Thor.]

I know if I wait for him to come to me it probably won't happen. So I had best speak with him.

[ She nods. ] Once you've had some time to think about what you want to say, and what you want out of your time here together, that's probably a good idea.

[ She offers a small smile. ] Let me know when you're going to go back over there, if you want me to make up some soup for him. It'll be important that he stays hydrated.

[Can't Thor just dunk Loki headfirst into the bath, that would solve both problems in one hit. Despite this petty thought, Thor smiles back at Katara. There's no doubt that speaking of this has relieved some of the pressure.]

All right, I will. Thank you, Katara.

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