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“Do you want to talk about anything you remembered?” I asked tentatively, so I wouldn’t seem too pushy.
Her lips twisted. “In a moment. I’m still processing—it’s why I wanted to go on this walk instead of immediately going to bed.”
“Did you enjoy yourself today?” I wanted to be sure that out of everything, she at least enjoyed her time. She’d been doing so much training, Astrid deserved time to relax and have fun.
Astrid nodded. “I had a lot of fun. And, as strange as the feeling is to adapt to, quite glad becoming a Valkyrie means I can’t get drunk.”
“So scratch the plan where I go hunt down Olympian wine for you?”
“Huh?”
I chuckled. “It’s rumored wine of the Olympian gods is the only stuff that can get an immortal drunk. But they guard it so closely, it’s hard to say whether it’s true, or if they’re just stingy bastards.”
She made a thoughtful noise and then shook her head. “Trying the wine to know what it tastes like would be nice, but that’s it. As much as I enjoy recreational drinking, getting drunk, and the dreaded hangover after, are not my favorite parts.”
“Not even if it means you can forget about something for a moment?” I distinctly remembered a night after a war celebration, learning Astrid had wanted to be drunk so she could avoid her troubles that I later realized were caused by me.
She shook her head. “I’ve only ever done that once, and I refuse to do it again.”
I could respect that decision. It took a lot of courage to face your problems instead of burying your head in the sand.
The tingling sensation of Aya’s magic around my head disappeared. I reached up and ran my hand through my normal-styled hair.
“Hey, your grays are back.”
I snorted. “I don’t have grays.”
“Uh huh, you keep telling yourself that. If I got grays at twenty-one, then you definitely have some.”
I glanced down at her. “You don’t have grays.”
She stuck her tongue out. “Sure do. Nearly had a heart attack when I found them. Diego thought my freakout was hilarious, until I found one he had. He then tried to blame me for all the stress in his life and Aya thought it wassohilarious.”
I shook my head.
“Were you always a god?” she asked.
I nodded. “As far as I remember. Though, that’s not saying much, because there is a point where my life is just… blank. I know I was born and grew up and then never aged past my mid-thirties, but I don’t have any of those memories. My parents, childhood friends, anything, I don’t remember them. I just remember being a war god that the Norse people took as their own.”
“Strange…” she mumbled. “Maybe it’s your old age at play.”
I rolled my eyes, and she laughed.
Silence fell over us, something calm and comfortable. Her magic lights floated around us, and I couldn’t help but try to catch one. She giggled.
“This is a rather creative way to use your magic.”
“I wish I knew how I was doing it.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You’re not actively using it?”
Astrid shook her head. “Just started doing it. I also don’t recall any memories where I did something like this, making it extra odd.”
She was right. I couldn’t think of a time she used magic lights in this manner, either. But it was the passive use of the ability that was most interesting. This hadn’t happened before, though her magic did sometimes seem to have a mind of its own when she was training.
“Well, I hope you figure out how to use it at will. It’s a neat trick.”
Astrid made a thoughtful sound and tried to catch one of her lights. I watched her. She had a thoughtful look about her. I wanted to ask her what was wrong, but also wanted to give her the space to share at her own pace.
