Wash Your Cares Away

The little wolf pup was an adorable and unexpected surprise, one that actually brought a smile to Amora's lips. "Where did you come from, little one?" she asked, petting his head idly whenever he came close enough. She assumed it was one of Lyta's pets. That girl always seemed to have a wide menagerie of animals. Eventually both parties lost interest in one another and Amora returned to her massage as the puppy continued his exploration of the area.

Naturally, Kaileena's appearance was easily noticed by Amora. If it wasn't the gust of wind, it certainly was the fact that the nymphs had stopped their work almost immediately when she had entered. Nymphs, Amora had learned, were always doing something. They were fond of casual touches, doing little bits of contact almost unconsciously, so when they stopped doing it entirely, something was most definitely wrong. Resting a hand on one of them, the enchantress tried to reassure them that everything was okay. She remembered what she had glimpsed through the small portal all those years ago. It wasn't something you would easily forget. But Amora hoped that Kaileena's killing sprees were over with.

The polite thing to do was wait until she was noticed before speaking, which was exactly what Amora did. She didn't worry about covering herself up. After all, the girl likely knew her body quite well, if her sister's words were to be believed. She did however motion to the nymphs, allowing them to leave if they like. "You're scaring the bathhouse girls. I guess word doesn't spread as fast as I thought on Olympus," Amora commented. Well, the cat was certainly out of the bag now. If it wasn't spreading already, the news that Kaileena had returned to Olympus soon would be on the lips of every attendant within the hour.

"Your puppy is rather cute and quite curious. He will likely be a handful as he grows." Small talk wasn't really Amora's thing, but she had no idea what else to say and she didn't want Kaileena to vanish immediately. "Sit. Relax. The water stays at a perfect temperature, if you care to ease your muscles. I can try and coax some of the nymphs back if you want a massage, but I can't promise anything." Normally, she would have teased with the offer of massaging Kaileena herself, but she doubted that the idea would be taken lightly.

"Yes, I know what you did is hard for people to forget." The fact that she slaughtered all the gods without any added power, it likely made everyone wary, save for perhaps Circe and Zarda since Kaileena was their daughter. At least a few of the nymphs stayed, that was good. "Clearly I am not afraid of you, even with the threat of death and being called a blue-skinned whore, or whatever insult you threw my way all those years ago." Amora wasn't too worried about that little tidbit getting out as gossip. Without any context, the nymphs would most likely disregard it.

She couldn't help but smile more at the pup, and before his muzzle hit the marble floor, Amora made a pillow appear beneath him, giving the unconscious animal a soft landing. "His nose will likely get him into trouble. Where did you find such an interesting creature? Was it a welcome home gift from your mother?" If the enchantress knew the Sky-Mother at all, she likely tried to make up for the nonexistent lost years with Kaileena, giving her presents and trying to get to know her better. It wasn't always a winning tactic, but given time anything was possible.

Honestly, Amora was a bit surprised at Kaileena's decision to stay. She had expected the pale woman to balk at the idea and leave furious. Instead, she watched her undress, eyes not lingering on any areas of her body in particular. It wasn't until she had settled into the water that Amora rose and moved closer. Her actions caused the few remaining nymphs to make small protesting sounds, so in response she gave them orders. "Bring us food and drink. Fruit and something light, nothing too strong or alcoholic. And bring out the rose, lavender, sandalwood, and cinnamon oils. As well as fresh towels." She was happy to see them obey and scatter to their duties.

"Those scents, at least one I hope will be to your liking. They promote relaxation and reduce stress," she explained before shaking her head. "We have nothing like this on Asgard. Even if we did, I'm sure you know how many would attend just to see me nude. About seven years ago, the Greek giants made a pact with the frost giants. They thought they could topple both realms. I helped Circe fend them off and make them think better. It is how I got these scars," she said, indicating her brow and lower lip. "Since then, she has allowed me to come here as a way of saying thanks."

"I didn't think he was a normal animal. The markings, the intelligence, the way the looks at things. He studies everything, learning. There is also a bit of magic in the animal. Very slight. It's possible it'll grow as he does," Amora commented, watching the sleeping puppy. "As for calling him names, I'm smarter than that. At the very most I would compliment him. Shower him with glorious nicknames. Nothing base or earthy." She smiled, realising the pup was likely a 'I'm sorry' gift from Kaileena's grandfather. He seemed to think that she was like her mother, with animals being the key to salvation. Perhaps he was right.

"Circe is the ruler of Olympus. She does get busy. But I'm sure that if you persisted enough, she would easily find time for you. You are her daughter, after all. In a way." From what she had seen, Melina and Circe got along pretty well, though neither of them played up the whole mother/daughter thing very much, which was understandable.

She watched quietly as Kaileena changed her appearance. The completely white look was stunning indeed, but when she had her color back, Kaileena was even more beautiful. Her eyes in particular were uniquely striking. A brilliant, almost electric blue, something Amora had never noticed before. "Who's to say that these scars are real?" she asked, a soft smirk on her lips. Suddenly, her face was pristine and flawless. "It's true that I was injured and did receive a few scars. They faded with the help of magic, but I found that I was respected more if I wasn't perfect looking. They thought I was just a figurehead, someone Aldrif had given power to in order to have some familiarity. Do you like me better with or without the scars?" she asked, curious to hear her answer.

"A wolf pup that can grow plants." Amora chuckled at the thought. It was not an entirely absurd idea if Helios had given her such a pet, though it did seem a bit odd. But that was how magic worked sometimes; taking the most circuitous route to connect things.

As for talking with Circe, Amora knew the look on Kaileen'as face, the one that said 'yes, you're right, but I want to do things my way and most likely will not take your advice.'Mel had said Kaileena was stubborn and that fact was becoming more and more apparent by the minute.

There was a look in the smaller woman's eyes as she talked. Something barely perceptible, but it was there without a doubt. Amora knew it all too well and it darkened her mood. "Lie and twist things? You think I would do such an act just for my own amusement? Get your head out of your past and stop comparing me to a woman I am not, Kaileena. I am not the one who used you as a puppet. Save for our first encounter, where you were the aggressor, I have been nothing but kind and polite to you. Even then I was on the defensive, protecting myself and not attacking you," Amora argued, her anger causing the marks to slip back into place. "I wore these scars for years, only recently did they fade. It felt wrong not to have them on my face. I felt less with them gone! As if I had not earned the people's respect or become truly worthy of Mjolnir. Will you question Circe as well and ask why she has no scars despite fighting alongside me, giving as well as she took? Are is this judgement only for me?" She could continue her questions, asking why Kaileena had given up her pale complexion, but she knew that it would only further this stupid argument between the two of them.

At the mention of Loki, the enchantress scowled. "I have not that man since Ultron came. If he is on Asgard or any other realm, I have not found him. Ask Frigga and Freyja. They have searched as well. Even Heimdall can not find him. Perhaps he is dead, killed by those damn robots or by the Angelus when the world was remade. Or perhaps he ran to some distant place. I don't care! He is gone! He did not show up after I gained Thor's power. I expected him to, making jokes at my expense and then begging to be put on the throne. Asgard is not his to take. It belongs to Aldrif and I returned the power to her as soon as she asked." Amora's anger faded suddenly, replaced with a sensation of being an outsider once more, something she hadn't felt since she was little. Too small for a Jotun, halfbreed, bastard child, lazy whore, insolent, pretty little princess, blue-skinned whore, Jotun freak, unworthy, pretender, usurping bitch, and countless other names she had acquired over the years. She tried to shut them out, squeezing her eyes shut and concentrating on her breathing, thinking about how warm the water was. But even that, kept warm via magical means, felt like it was starting to cool around her. She hadn't turned to her Jotun form in ten years, so why did she want to become that freak again?

"Who said that I have been lying and twisting things? I have served the All-Mother faithfully ever since Aldrif came into power. I am not so stupid as to try and lie to her. If I did, I would end up dead like Odin," Amora explained, trying to make sense of all this damn confusion. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself down. anger never helped solve anything and it was likely that they would continue butting heads, as both of them were stubborn.

"If you have moved on from your past, then why was that look on your face on your face when you entered the baths? It was not a simple look of surprise. It was one of... 'oh crap, why is she here?'. I know it because I've seen the same look on Sif's face many times." Her words were precise and clear, trying how best to phrase everything with as little confusion as possible. "As for talking to your sister? Is that really such a crime? The first few times we talked, we compared notes, so to speak. She knew nothing of me and I knew nothing of her, other than she was very protective of you and threatened me with bodily harm should I try anything. Naturally I was confused, and confusion leads to curiosity. She also has my sister as a pet. Why would I not want to talk to her? It's the closest I've been to Lorelei, any Lorelei, in years. She's much more agreeable as a dragon."

The urge to call Mjolnir and throw it at he back of Kaileena's head was overwhelming, but Amora resisted. "Go fuck a man? Is that really your answer to everything? Sex or violence? You really do take after Zarda, don't you? Except she has mellowed, I think." She didn't chase after the girl. What would be the point? The argument would carry over and draw others, eventually ending with Amora blamed and banished from Olympus save for official business. And that would earn her no favor from Aldrif. In fact, it would possibly end with her stripped of the power of Thor. "I'm sorry..." she said, knowing full well that Kaileena could probably still hear her, having super-hearing and all. "I am sorry for angering you and opening up old wounds. I meant to help you relax and work to forget whatever bad things being Death had placed upon you. Both the All-Mother and Sif have changed, even if only a little. We all have, or at least I thought so. Clearly I haven't. Perhaps I am not worthy of being able to change. But for wronging you, I am sorry."

"Yes, in the past, I was known for lying, deceit, and trickery. That was in the past. Not now." Honestly, Amora wondered how many times she would have to tell people that she had changed. No one seemed to believe what she said.

"Would I be okay with people talking about me behind my back? They have done just that for all of my life, Kaileena. I am nothing but something to be gossiped about. If it is not my love life, it is my social standings or my parents or the fact that I can never be equal to Thor or they question why Aldrif chose me as an advisor. So no, it is not okay. But, the difference between what I was doing and what others have done is that I didn't do for the laughter." She had also grown a thick skin and learned to ignore what was said by others, but Amora was not about to tell Kaileena to do that. The girl was mad enough, so why make it worse?

The last thing the enchantress expected to see was a puppy topple the former Horseman that was Death. Surprise slowly gave way to a look of humor as Chibi rode Kaileena back into the baths,a pleased look on his face as if he had just brought down a might beast.... which, in a way, he had. And yes, Amora did try to free Kaileena, only to receive a nasty snap on the back of her hands for her efforts. "I don't think he wants us to go away angry. So, how may we appease the young wolf?" she asked, not sure who should say what first.