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It's fragile as a soap bubble, this momentary pretense of a normal life. Waiting for the word to attempt Kai's rescue…..but he's working, earning, able to contribute, if a little, to the one housing him. He owes Scarlett on so very many levels, and it's all the token he can really offer in gratitude. So for once he's not taken to the rooftops and the alleyways, but walks home along the pavement. Oh, wary as usual - there still may come the stray bullet, or the hands grasping for him from a strange car. For surely the Russians can't be done with him, not yet, not yet.
Canvas jacket, dark pants, black t-shirt, leather glove on the metallic left hand, he's heading back to Rogue's place at a steady march, as if resisting the urge to run.
*
Amora knew about Bucky's living situation, knew about what torments must be wreaking havok on his mind. The guilt, the fear.. She's heard it all from various sources. And did not particularly care. Such was the Enchantress as she appeared between specks of sunlight as the clouds overheard cast the world in a minute of shade before moving on.
Between one blink and the next, Amora was walking beside Bucky, mortal guise firmly in place. "Well, hello darling. So nice to see that you're attempting to be a gentleman for my apprentice. Honestly, she doesn't need it, but 'tis a sweet sentiment. Truly." She grinned with white teeth flashing, and an apple appeared in her hand, red and delicious, as she took a bite.
*
The Winding Way is a very particular brand of magic. So few people follow it - let's be honest, it has a habit of waning at the most inconvenience of times, and a good portion of sorcerer(ess)-types aren't in magic for learning how to be humble. One of those is Amanda Sefton. Her night off, she's left wards up around the circus she calls home and decided to make an evening of exploring; the city is far too large, and she needs to learn the layout better if she ever really hopes to teleport through it with any kind of ease.
Winding Way limitations: kind of a pain in the butt.
Which explains her rather sudden appears ahead of Bucky and Amora by a hundred feet or so. No limit of distant on her teleporting, her mental image of her destination was just a -taaaad- too unclear, and she got dumped in a place that was vaguely similar. She looks around, mutters something impolite in German, and sighs. She'll have to try again after walking to her destination.
*
Amora and then Amanda - it's enough to make Bucky shy nearly right into traffic, hand going for the pistol under his jacket. He manages to restrain himself, though, only stumbling a step sideways and bumping into some poor commuter. Muttered apologies and then he's looking back and forth between the goddess and the Sorceress, a hair wild-eyed. "Gentleman, ma'am?" he asks, blankly. Then he's looking down the sidewalk to Amanda. "A, uh, acquaintance of yours?"
*
The blonde laughed lightly as Bucky veered nearly into on coming traffic and instead bumbled into another mortal. "Oh dear, you might as well put the mortal weapon to its proper rest. It cannot harm me," She practically purred, fluffing her hair as she walked, her high heels clicking with each step. They were tall, green and looked fit to kill a man.
Then green eyes alighted on Amanada and she hitched a golden eyebrow upwards. "Hmm. No."
With a sway of her hips Amora the Enchantress approached, "Well, hello darling. A bit weak on your teleport there. You really should work on it."
*
Most of the time, this city is just too busy for anyone to really notice when her teleporting falters. She's thankful for that. So of course, the one time when there are fewer pedestrians about is the time she actually gets seen. And here she was hoping the duo had been too involved in their conversation to take notice. Amora's approach, the way she walks, is all taken in. She was taught to be observant. Such habits die hard. But then, this is Amora. It would be hard not to notice.
"It wasn't weak," she insists. "Last minute distraction as I was casting." Hey, if she's going to be called out right away, she's not going to deny what she was doing. Her English has a slight accent to it, close to German, but that's not quite it.
*
"Wasn't meant for you, ma'am," Bucky replies, quietly. He's a few paces behind her, but already craning his neck curiously at Amanda. His clothes are nice enough, no scruff on his chin, hair pulled back….but there's that impression of raggedness to him, somehow. But curiosity's the guiding light now… with an occasional worried flick of a glance at Amora.
*
A tilt of her head followed as Amora eyed the young woman, her own accent sounding vaguely European but somehow, off. She smiled thinly inspecting her fingernails seemingly, turning over the green manicured hand over in the light. Then her gaze flickered back up to Amanda. It would seem the apple she'd bitten had vanished. "T'was sloppy. Such casting could end your life, mortal. But please, continue to cast magic whilst distracted. I shall be most amused when you are half within the wall of yonder baker shop."
Then her focus returned toward Bucky, "You may use this one as a warning on what magic should not look like, warrior."
*
'Mortal?' Amanda frowns. Here is where her experience ends. Not that she's had extensive experience. Her mentor did, after all, lose her mind and vanish on her. "My teleportation spell doesn't work that way," she insists, managing to not sound whiny. "It won't displace me into solid objects. It was designed that way." She knows well enough that it could be intefered with by someone else, but that would require… well, really, someone like Amora. She runs a hand through her hair in irritation. "And you can use that," she snaps, gesturing at Amora, "to understand that you shouldn't make assumptions about spellwork someone else has done." Hmph.
*
Ooh, sorceress cat fight. Bucky's brows go up. Then he's glancing uneasily at Amora. Someone's kinna cold-hearted….but then, mortals have mayfly lifespans compared to the Asgardians. At Amora's comment, he spreads his hands, and shrugs. "I don't know anything about magic except what little I've seen," he admits.
*
Amora looked down her nose at Amanda, reaching back to fluff her hair. "Mortal spell work is messy, unreliable and notoriously leads to the untimely demise of the practicioner. Tis why mine apprentice uses spells from the other realms." She murmured and glanced toward Bucky as if Amanada wasn't in fact there. "And you shall have to learn the basics very quickly darling, if you're survive Niflheim." She added after a moment.
Then she glanced back to Amanda, a finger raised to tap at her chin.
"A distracted spell caster, is very often a dead one." She mused lightly, a lifting at the corners of her lips following. As if the mortal woman before her was humorous in her own defense.
*
"See? Assumptions," Amanda says to Bucky, her face carefully trying (and probably failing) to remain neutral. "Thank you for the reminder," she manages to Amora, stopping short of some kind of sarcastic flourish. She desperately wants to, though. "I would say you're not missing much, but I'm sure you won't need me to tell you," she says to Bucky, managing a half-smile. It does look sincere, for what that's worth.
*
"I bet," Buck sounds resigned. And then he's striding forward to offer a hand up. The one without the glove, of course. "I'm Jack," he adds, trying for pleasantness. "Her apprentice is a friend of mine."
*
Amora returned to inspecting her fingernails after a brief moment, a sigh pulling from her lips as the mortals spoke. It didn't particularly matter to her. Once those were handled she outstretched a hand toward Amanda. "Lady Amora the Enchantress of Asgard. Goddess of Desire. The Most Beautiful." She smirked, looking for all the world like she expected to either be known or respected just by merit of her titles.
"And darling, when you have lived long enough to see most mortals make fools of themselves and get themselves killed over it, you tend to make educated guesses. If you wish to call those assumptions, then by all means. Continue to do so."
*
Amanda Sefton looks at the hand and smiles, a little more brightly, and shakes the hand firmly. "Franciska," she replies. Because while she may use Amanda Sefton these days, she has yet to determine if any name-based magic would work with that name, or if it required her true one. Still, better safe than sorry.
"Asgard," she echoes, when Amora introduces herself, as grandly as she does. "I know one of your valkyries." The rest of the explanation reinforces Amanda's neutral expression, the smile retreating. "Fair enough." Still, ask Amanda and she'll insist they were assumptions, educated though they might be. She's not wanting to push the issue.
*
"Man, everyone knows ASgardians here," he comments, ruefully. But Buck's eyes are bright.
*
a look of utter interest crosses Amora's features as she took a step forward, invading Amanda's personal space. "Oh?" She paused, her golden eyebrow shooting upwards as she considered the young woman before her, and tossed her hair back with a roll of her shoulders.
"And does this Valkyrie have a name? Or have you only a passing knowledge of her? 'Tis important, for and I warn you if you are lying, I shall know."
*
"Is that how it goes?" she asks 'Jack'. "I feel a bit late to the party."
But then Amora is suddenly /right there/ and Amanda has to take a step back just to keep them both in view. "She has a name. I had better know it by now." Neutrality gives way to curiosity now, as she looks up at the taller woman. "Why does that matter so much?"
*
"I don't know. I'm new here myself," Jack says, amiably. He unthinkingly steps back a pace or so, to keep from crowding either. Amora that close makes him uneasy.
*
Amora's eyes narrowed, "Because my little mortal spell caster, there are factors at work beyond your pitiful knowledge. I know, 'tis not your fault you are ignorant of the Realms at large, but I needs must know. So tell me, what her name is." Her lips thinned after a moment, her hand settling on her hip.
"And before you start asking me why I needs must know, there was an attack on Valhalla. The honored dead were slaughtered."
*
She's sure that asking how the dead got slaughtered would be a stupid question. At least, to Amora it would be stupid. So she doesn't ask. "You know I do know that some magic requires just a true name," she points out. "And given I don't know you, it would be… unwise to just volunteer the name." She tilts her head a little to make sure she's looking at Amora. "But if you can tell lies from truth, you can tell how honest I am when I say I know one of the valkyries. She's been here on… " Oh, what was that word? "…Midgard… with me for several months."
*
The sound effect there for Bucky is one long record scratch, and here comes the stupid question. He instantly stares at Amora, any good nature faded. It leaves his face curiously cold and empty. "How does that work?" he asks, voice gone flat. "Don't they rise again?"
*
An annoyed glance, one that Amanda had avoided by not asking the question, followed and she straightened. "They rise again if they were fighting back. If they were caught unware, or under a cowardly demeanor they becom the dishonored dead." She bit out, "I shall not be sharing information beyond that, however suffice to say, The Thunderer and I think it tied to what happened with Kai. We are unsure as of yet how, but we think it not unconnected." She offered toward Bucky and then her attention shifted back toward Amanda.
She glared.
"You are lucky I have not turned you into a tree for your tongue, mortal." She snapped, looking irritated. "If you mean to imply Brynnhilde, or Brunnhilda as your mortal tales call her. Then 'tis nothing. But if you mean another Valkyrie then she is out of place and suspect. Speak plainly, do not toy with me."
*
Rather than point out how ridiculous it is that Amora's getting irritated, Amanda just sighs. Mostly in Bucky's direction. She smiles a sad little smile and shakes her head. "No, I don't mean Brynnhilde." Her pronunciation of it isn't half bad, either. "Her name is Danielle Moonstar." She looks expectantly at Amora, waiting for some proclamation of truth, but she's sure that Amora is all bluster on that front.
*
Buck pulls a face at that. Not happy with what he just learned. "Damn," he says, "That sounds unfair. We might have to rescue them, too." Steve's optimism is catching. Like certain social diseases.
*
Amora blinked, the name not seeming to register anything on her features. Her irritation evaporated and she stepped back from Amanda and glanced toward Bucky. "No. They are where they are by the means of the Norns. We have no the ability nor power to return them. The numbers would be few. They might yet reclaim their honor, they might not. Tis of the natural order of things." Never mind how unnatural it was for the dead to die anew..
A few steps followed and Amora seemed to lose all interest in the two. "I know not whom you speak of, mortal." A glance spared in Bucky's direction. "I shall fetch you if Loki moves with his plans." And just like that she vanished into a puff of smoke.
*
"…and mother used to accuse me of a flair for the dramatic," Amanda murmurs as Amora is suddenly gone.
*
"Man, she's…..well." Bucky has no words. None at all. "Anyhow," he adds. "I wish you luck with your magic. D'you know a guy named Doctor Strange?"
*
"Yes!" Amanda claps her hands together excitedly. It's like the Amora-shaped torment never happened. "I've run into him a few times. He gave me advice about a problem with an elemental we were having around home!" She rather likes the man, despite his odd demeanor. "Why do you ask?"
*
"HE's like….one of the only wizard type guys in town that I know of. I figured I'd introduce you if you hadn't, but you do. That's good. He's helpful," Bucky looks relieved. Strange might not have appreciated Buck showing up with a magical stray.
*
"Yeah. He was," Amanda confirms, nodding. For a moment she looks around, the awkward setting in. "Well. I think I'll move on before she appears. But if you need a hand with anything, there's a circus out by Westchester you can usually find me at."
*
A circus. He hasn't been to one in years. "I'll keep an eye out," Bucky says, generously. "Take care."
*
Amanda Sefton smiles. She offers a slight wave. "You too." She thinks a moment, fingers on either hand bending in no particular order - it seems - and in a flash of light she's gone. Hopefully this time, she doesn't end up somewhere more embarrassing.