“This is your fault.” Thanatos stood in Loki’s sitting room, flustered and annoyed. “You were supposed to be looking after him.”

“It’s no one’s fault, really.” Loki spoke with ease and calm. “He’s just experimenting with his own free will. I’m sure he’s just... chatting up some young and beautiful maidens somewhere. I mean, I’m sure it’s been a while for him anyhow.”

“You obviously don’t know my son.”

Eros added, “Well, of course not. You only dropped him off here a week ago.”

“Yes, excellent point, Eros.” Death smiled and steepled his fingers, ”Youlost him, and he has only been under your care for seven days, give or take, and youlosthim.”

“Not what I meant,” Eros murmured.

“To be fair,” Loki added, “he only disappeared after having a conversationwith you...”

“Yes, well, he only came to talk to me becauseyou twowere being idiots.”

Eros and Loki looked at each other, confused.

Eros asked, “Damien said we wereidiots?”

Death nodded. “He came into my office and said ′my uncles are idiots’.So, obviously, whatever you two did made him run away.”

“Or,” Loki added, laughing, “he hasn’trun away.He isn’tmissing. He’s just out having fun.”

“Having fun.” Thanatos blinked. “You do remember when he killed Krampus just forfun,don’t you?”

Loki tutted, “Apparently that was Hypnos’s fault.”

Thanatos’s face filled with relief. “Finally, someone agrees with me.”

“Oh! Speaking of Hypnos,” Eros said, “We were having a philosophical disagreement on fate vs free will. That must’ve been the reason he called us idiots. Your son took Fate’s side by the way. You should fix that.” Thanatos squinted. “But the Fates imprisoned him...”

Eros quipped, “You try telling him that.”

Death added, “And what do you mean, speaking of Hypnos?"

Loki gave Eros a burning look.

Eros recognized his mistake and froze, struggling to find words, “Well... see, Hypnos was here-”

Death turned on Loki, “And why was he here? You of all people know how much I loathe my brother. You both do! He’s a horrible influence. He is the reason we are all here right now!”

Eros stamped his foot. “Then you should know-Hypnosis the one who brought him back home after his bender!”

Loki cleared his throat loudly, trying to get Eros to shut up.

“A bender he most likely caused,” Death retorted.

“No-” Eros said.

And Loki coughed, “Shut up.” He cleared his throat and whispered, “Shut up.”

When Death turned back to Loki, Loki made to look out the window.

Eros sighed and said, “It’s too late. I’m telling him.”

“Tell me what?” Thanatos hissed.

Eros prepared himself and bore into Death’s eyes. “Your son is an addict, and it has little to nothing to do with Hypnos.”

Death took a drink of the scotch he was holding. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Look, all in all, Damien needs stability,” Eros began. “He doesn’t need to be bounced around from place to place. He doesn’t need someone who gives up on him when things get hard. Either you take him home, and try your damnedest to be that stability, or you leave him here with us and you don’t say another word about how we handle things.”

The room got quiet.

“Now,” Eros continued, “I’d prefer you give it a go, because I don’t think you’ll like the way Loki and I do things due to the fact you are a raving control freak. And, despite you being just that, I also think you and him are good for each other.”

Death stared at the ground for a long minute, thinking and nodding. He brought a pensive finger to his lips. “He took Fate’s side?”

Loki cleared his throat. “Yes, he did. He thought everything was fated to be. That the Fates are necessary to the balance of things.”

“Necessary?” Thanatos asked. “Including what happened to him?”

Loki answered sadly, “Especially what happened to him.”

Death nodded. “Loki, we’re late for a meeting. Eros, call the office if Damien comes back. Leave a message with Patrice.”

Death headed towards the door, leaving Loki slack-jawed and confused. Eros and Loki met each other’s gaze, but neither had the answers the other was looking for. Loki shrugged, stood, kissed Eros goodbye, and headed to the door, where Thanatos stood impatient, looking at his pocket watch.

Loki and Thanatos left the townhome, and Eros waited quietly after they left until Hypnos popped his head out of the kitchen.

“Is he gone?” Hypnos whispered.

“Yeah. It’s safe to come out now,” Eros replied.

“That was a close one.” Hypnos strolled up to him, his hands in the pockets of his trench coat.

“You know,” Eros said, “one of these days you and him need to work things out.”

“Never gonna happen,” Dream said.

Eros said with the wisdom of his true age, “Eternity is a long fucking time.”

“Tell you what, I promise to work things out with him the day after you do...”

Eros pouted his lips and nodded in defeat.

“Now, should I go find our boy?” Hypnos asked.

“If you think you can. It looks like he blocked out the rest of us from finding him.”

“I’m the unconscious. He can’t block me out...”

“Listen, Loki didn’t mean those things he said about you earlier. He’ll say whatever he has to to win an argument. It’s not his most becoming trait-”

“Nah. He meant it. He might not mean it now, but he meant it when he said it. Gotta split.” Hypnos bent to kiss Eros on the top of his head and disappeared.

***

Thanatos and Loki walked into the big double glass doors to Grim Enterprises. The ground floor was buzzing with people in suits, running this way and that. Each employee seemed to think that whatever task they were set to was the most important thing going on in that building, and that the business itself would simply collapse if they left Grim Enterprises for the leading competitors, or even called off sick. But, Thanatos walked through their swarm, and the way was parted for him, a great white shark drifting in a school of identical fish. He would have no way of knowing if one was missing. He wouldn’t know who they were or what their job code was. The news of their absence wouldn’t even make it to his desk.

Loki was always mildly amused by these disproportionate egos on both sides, so he didn’t even ask what the emergency meeting was about.

Thanatos walked up the stairs to Patrice’s desk and said, “Call the Norsemen.”

Patrice didn’t look up from filing her nails to ask, “Which one?”

“All of them.”

At that, she looked up at him over her cat-eyed glasses.

“Now, Patrice!” he growled. He headed to his office door saying, “Get them here within the hour, and book the conference room. If it’s already booked, clear the schedule for me.”

She picked up the phone and immediately began dialing numbers with her long painted nails.

Loki followed him into the office. “Penny for your thoughts?”

“They’re worth much more than that.”

“Well, add it to my bill.”

“Damien took Fate’s side,” Thanatos said.

“Well, I don’t know if he knew the severity of what he said.”

“He knows.”

“So, what’s your plan, and what do my kin have to do with it?”

Thanatos said, “If Damien is on their side,he might be compromised.I will not have the Fates use him as a weapon against me again. I intend on stopping them before they get the chance, before they get a foothold back into a position of power. So... you were right, Loki. I know how much you like hearing it, so I’ll say it again. You were right. We need to affirm our allies while they are still brave enough to take our side.”

“Oh. Well, I’m glad you came ’round. Not sure if I approve of the reason, but I’m glad you got there in the end.”

Patrice paged on the telephone. “I was able to get a hold of Skadi. She’s going to spread the word.”

“Keep calling the others,” Death told her. “In case we cannot rely on her to work quickly enough, tell them Loki is dead.”

Loki snarled, but Thanatos began to snigger silently as he ended his call with Patrice.

“Bad form.” Loki scowled. “Very bad form.”

Thanatos composed himself, but still held onto his amused smirk.

***

Heimdall showed up first, and his frowning face became even further drooping when he saw Loki standing to Death’s left in the conference room. “I knew it was too good to be true.” Heimdall grumbled and plopped down in one of the white chairs at the opposite end of the conference table.

Thanatos said, “We appreciate you coming in such haste. Despite the false pretense of getting you here, I believe you will relish what I have to tell you and your kin.”

“Nothing can be better than the true death of Loki.”

“Do mind who you say that to,” Death warned. “I can make him live forever just to spite you.”

Loki snapped a terrified grin. Then, cleared his throat to get Thanatos’s attention.

Thanatos only tilted his head slightly to indicate he was listening.

“Forever is a really long time...” said Loki.

“It is. And I don’t intend on going through it alone. Ah- Idun!” Thanatos said. “Please have a seat.”

She brushed back her hair from her face. “If Loki isn’t dead, why are we here?”

Heimdall shrugged and shook his head to her in response.

Loki slumped and started grinding his teeth.

Soon, the rest of the Norse pantheon slipped into the conference room. Give or take, they all had the same reaction to Loki’s lack of being dead, that is, until Thor came barreling through the door. His hammer swung wildly from the holster on his belt. It clipped the door frame as he entered, and Thanatos’s eyes squared in on the dent it left like an angry hornet.

But, Thor neither noticed nor slowed down, even upon seeing Loki. He bore straight to the thin-framed giant and hugged him. Thor pinned Loki’s arms to his side, constricting like a snake.

Loki was squinting and flinching and writhing in Thor’s grip. When released, he took in a wheezing breath. “I’m alright. I’m alright,” he said to Thor, who seemed mildly concerned.

“Good,” The giant-slayer said, “because if you ever lie and say you are dead again, trickster, I will grind your bones to powder.”

“Powder would be rather difficult, don’t you think? With all the blood and bile making a sticky liquid mess?”

“But, it would be worth it.”

Odin came in with his ravens upon each shoulder. His face was stone. But, Munin chirped and snapped over at Hugin as if to say, ”Gawk! Told you so!” Hugin ruffled his feathers and began to prune himself, unphased.

Odin’s one good eye narrowed at Loki who only grimaced back.

Thor asked Odin, “Did you too get the word that Loki had died?”

“No.” Odin broke his gaze to sit in one of the white rolling chairs. “Not exactly.” He folded his hands on the table, and as if back in Asgard, the Vanir and Aesir quieted to hold space for him. “Skadi told me of this meeting with Death, and when she did, the thought did cross my mind...” Odin raised a weathered hand up to Hugin’s beak. The raven nipped lovingly on his finger.

Loki finally sat down himself. He was flattered and produced a cocky smile, “Oh, you almost sound as if you were worried.”

Odin gave Loki a nearly loving look from the corner of his eye. “But, then I remembered...”

Munin let out a deep clicking sound.

“...this is Loki after all.” Odin smirked and the whole room, even Heimdall, let out a chuckle.

But, Death’s lashing voice cut through the comradery, “And of course I would never let that happen.”

The laughing faded, and Odin bristled at Death’s words.

“Now that we are all aware Loki’s death was only a means to an end, let us get to the point, which is I would like to... ap-ap-” Death seemed to choke and had to clear his throat. More raspy than usual, he finished, ”apologize...for my hasty decision the last we met. I would like for you to join our cause. The Fates, or the Norns, as you call them, are still circling the perimeter of our reality. But, they are beginning to reinstate their influence. I want to be ready upon their return. I want you, Norsemen, to help me prepare for war.”