Fenris & Mott by Greg van Eekhout

Author:Greg van Eekhout
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2022-07-09T00:00:00+00:00

10

HEAVY CLOUDS BOMBED THE EARTH with rain. Mott didn’t know if the booms rocking the sky were thunder or the din of Tew and Vidar fighting. Fenris tried to bite raindrops as if they were bees. Drenched and miserable, Mott steered Scooty home. By the time she and Thrudi arrived, their shoes squelched like sponges, but at least, according to NeighborSnoop, they were miles away from battling gods.

Thrudi hesitated when Mott went through the apartment complex’s front gate. “I will remain outside and stand guard.”

“Don’t be weird. It’s a firehose out here. Come inside with me.”

“You must remember, Mott, I am accustomed to harsh environs. I should tell you about the time I fell down a well full of snakes.”

“There’s water in my pants, Thrudi! Come inside!”

Thrudi considered. “Very well, I suppose I can be on guard for angry gods indoors. But I will remain hidden from your mother, as must Fenris. Perhaps you can roll us up in a rug?”

Mott grabbed Thrudi’s wrist and pulled her through the gate. “We’ll have to hide Fenris in my room, but I’ll tell my mom you’re a friend who needs a place to stay the night. She’ll have a few questions, and she might ask to talk to your parents. But she’ll let you stay. Okay?”

Thrudi didn’t answer, and Mott got the feeling she’d brought up a sensitive topic.

Soon, they were in dry T-shirts and sweatpants, and Thrudi’s furs and leathers were clanking around downstairs in the building’s laundry room.

“I hope your stuff doesn’t get ruined in the dryer,” Mott said, heating up two mugs of cocoa in the microwave.

“I don’t mind wearing your clothes. They allow great freedom of movement.” Thrudi practiced sword lunges until Mott handed her a mug.

“This is amazing!” Thrudi said after a sip. “So warm! And rich! Mott, my sorcerous friend, this beverage is magical!”

“Oh, that’s right, you’ve never had chocolate before.”

“Where I come from the most hallowed warriors drink mead straight from the udder of the goat Heidrún. It’s not as good as your chocolate drink. This is almost as good as root beer.”

Mott smiled, pleased. Thrudi liked Mott’s clothes. She liked hot chocolate. And she really liked root beer. She liked the things Mott liked, and it made Mott feel as though Thrudi might like her, too.

“I wish we could just hang out and do stuff,” said Mott.

“What kind of stuff?”

“I don’t know. Watch Chris Hevans movies. Or you could review root beer with me on my root beer channel. Or you could teach me how to use a sword.”

Thrudi wiped a hot chocolate mustache off her lips. “That sounds like good stuff. Yes, Mott, perhaps one day.”

A happy Fenris thumped his tail on the kitchen floor.

After such a harrowing two days, it was nice to be with a friend and a cute pup and pretend everything was normal and safe, even if just for a few minutes.

The rasp of a key sliding into the front doorknob ruined the illusion.

“Oh! We have to hide Fenris. And come up with a reason why you have a sharp, bladed weapon.

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