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Trapped in the past?

Claudia didn't know exactly how it had happened, but the guy she'd been trying to snag an artifact from had caught her instead. She remembered being dragged through some kind of portal, and a conversation with some very strangely-dressed individuals that would have scared even some of the toughs she'd known in her time on the streets. It had been hours before she really understood what had happened, to get even a slight grip on the foreign words and sights around her. Somehow, she'd been sent back in time, when exactly she wasn't certain, and given over to these scoundrels to do with as they pleased. It wasn't until she saw the city that she even knew where she was. Nobody could mistake Rome, even this ancient shining city.

Her wrists tied together and into a string with the other unfortunates, the only real indignities she'd been spared were being stripped of her possessions and raped. From the little she could catch, they thought she would being them quite a small fortune as a wonder. Maybe even one of the senators would find her worth having, and it wouldn't do to damage the goods unnecessarily. Still, she had quite a few bruises and a blackening eye from the casual 'encouragements' she'd received. A halting attempt at what she knew of Latin and Greek had only resulted in snickering laughter and an incomprehensible reprimand with a threatening knife at her mouth. Apparently their definition of 'damaged goods' didn't include the ability to speak.

Now, she was turned over to the slave auction, and there, nothing could have prepared her for the indignities. Her clothes, much the worse for wear after all the travel were unceremoniously stripped off her in front of the noisy crowd as one man gave a long-winded description of her, enthusiasm clear even through the language barrier. She struggled against the touches of interested parties, only her bonds keeping her from being able to strike back.

She'd yanked away from yet another impertinent squeeze when she finally saw a familiar face. It made her gasp, her thoughts latching onto the name that went with it in what might have been a prayer of salvation, but she had to get his attention. And if he was the one from this time, she couldn't just call him by name. Not his real name. Still, she knew one of those he'd used in the millenia he'd been hanging around pretending not to be an archangel.

"Loki! Help me!" The words were in modern english, and that was probably a mistake, but she was too distracted to try for something more appropriate to the era just now. She had to get his attention, maybe get the eager shoppers to give her some space. She had to get out of here.

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"Beads and belt buckles and the like don't take up much room," Claudia replied. She'd discussed it with more than a few of the village council, trying to figure out how she could make up for her...disruption of daily life.

"Don't worry about me, Loki. I'm finding a place here."

"True. Provided there aren't so many, you can't fit any people in the boat," he points out with a straight face. Not that she's going to be making that many of them in a single season.

"I don't have that much free time," Claudia said. A couple of hours most days, unless there was something special planned. Women's work was as important as the men's, and she was not completely excused from any of it.

She was starting to feel a little uncomfortable just standing there, and moved to sit on the edge of the bed, opposite from Gabriel. She'd never spent the night here, despite the assumptions of all in the village and beyond. "It's just that one more mouth to feed can be the difference between life and death to these people. They didn't exactly have a choice but to take me as part of your household, when any other man or woman would have had to go through lots of negotiations with both villages if they were joining together. So forgive me if I feel like I owe them a little more than the benefits of your tributes and 'protection.'"

"You say that like I don't look after them," he points out mildly. True, the winter is when the elderly are most likely to die, but that's entirely expected and so no one's surprised when it happens.

Claudia smiles softly. "You do, but it's not the way they think you do," she said. "I know you're not the one who makes their swords and axes strike true in battle or their animals have healthy offspring, or keep their children from dying of the dozens of ailments so common to them. I also know they need to feel that you are there for them, and I have to keep that belief strong because they see me as your representative in your frequent absences as much as the priests who wander from village to village.

"I've heard the stories the skaldi tell of Loki Trickster, the liesmith and god of fire and chaos. When they come here, it's interesting to watch, because the people all nod and smile, but then tell him that it is another of his tricks because their village prospers at his hand. They both expect you to abandon them and trust that you wont."

She can't understand it, but then, she never was particularly faithful in any religion. Too much of the artifacts they found could have been godstouched, and yet which god was debatable. Poseidon's trident or Pele's spear, for example.

Gabriel exhales a slow breath as he thinks about his answer. "I first came to this village a few generations ago. None of those people are still here. Some because of battle, others because of age. It was under attack and I went after the attackers. It was my first appearance as Loki. Local storytellers can tell the story of how that battle went and what happened afterwards. As can the skaldi who travel. They have reason to believe I'll stay."

"They're yours," she agreed, knowing that he had quite the possessive streak when he wanted to. A hint of mischief entered her eyes, though. "I apologize, but I think I may have accidentally started a legend from my time where Loki supposedly gave birth to Odin's horse."

Gabriel freezes for a moment before giving her an accusing look. "What did you do?"

Great. What sort of bullshit is he going to have to field?

"We were a little drunk, and basically playing a game of telling the most outlandish stories we knew," Claudia said, blushing. "I couldn't remember all the details, I never have been, but I definitely remember mentioning that I once had heard some very strange stories of the offspring of certain gods. Another person mentioned that old saw about the mead that flows from the udders of a she-goat in Valhalla, and it just sorta came out."

So stupid, but also a funny thing, because she knew there were other children of Loki in the sagas, and it was a rather motley crew.

Gabriel groans and covers his eyes with one hand. "Do I need to tell them not to let you get drunk?"

The stories about his supposed children don't really need help being created, thank you. Or introduced sooner than otherwise. HE could feel a headache trying to start, even though it's not possible for him to even get them.

"I wasn't that drunk!" Claudia protested. "It was just a bit of fun."

If he bothered to look at her, she'd be pouting. Because that was not the way she wanted to think about things. She'd just wanted to warn him.

"A bit of fun that will get horse jokes aimed at me by certain people I can name, I'm sure," he grumbles, uncovering his eyes and looking at her.

"An eight-legged horse." Go ahead, you do think it's kinda funny, Gabe.

"It's not like I can tell stories of my homeland, no matter how much they ask."

"Why eight legs? Why not go for ten? Or twelve? Or some other amount that makes walking anywhere from really hard to impossible?" Yeah, he's not finding the humor in it at the moment. Give him some time.

"I don't know. It's the legend," Claudia said, shrugging. "Guess we'll never find out."

"Guess not," he says with a sigh before studying her again. He was tempted. Highly so. Despite what some might think, it's actually been awhile since he's gotten laid.

What with being busy trying to track down this mysterious Warehouse and all.

Claudia flushed a little deeper as she saw that look. It was one that apparently didn't change much in almost two thousand years, the kind of thing that made it a bit uncomfortable for them both.

"That's a pretty bad idea, Gabe," she said, but didn't move to get up. She missed her boyfriend, the times they'd spent together getting into and out of trouble.

"It'd spare you the need to constantly deny you've been getting any with me since there'd be nothing to deny," he points out.

"Who says I deny it?" Claudia retorted. She hadn't in a while, because, well, the others didn't believe her regardless. But damn if he wasn't tempting. "It's different, you're different."

"Wow, a whole thousand years or so of difference in my age," Gabriel says drily.

"It's more a particular pair of brothers who are Hunters," she said, shaking her head. He hadn't changed a lot, but it was where he had that made it hard to put behind her. "I guess...I don't know, I'd feel like I was cheating."

"The ones my big brothers want to wear?" Gabriel asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Those guys, yeah," Claudia admitted, looking away. "It's not exactly pleasant history."

"History that hasn't happened yet for me," he points out.

"Thank God." She had lived through it once, she couldn't bear it again. "Still, you're not really the guy I love, not yet."

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