"I expect to be here longer," she says. "The original trip was supposed to be short; but it wasn't supposed to be here, and I would have expected to have already been fetched or visited if that were feasible from their end. As such I think they're having serious technical difficulties and am planning on being in this realm continuously until I finish my teleportation spell and can go wherever I like."

"Ah, all right. Is it possible that others landed where you did and just happened not to run into any of our people?"

"I landed alone even though I was intending to travel with a friend; it's loosely possible he wound up somewhere else in this realm but more likely that he's in another one or still on Asgard."

"Perhaps he's in Valinor." She smirks. "It's not that bad."

"...I don't think he'd like it."

"Nor would I, and I don't think that's likeliest. But maybe he'd kick up enough of a stir they'd send the aid we desperately need. It took three or four of them to beat Morgoth last time."

"But he wouldn't know about the situation on this continent unless someone told him. He'd kick up a fuss but it wouldn't be very directed."

She laughs. "You have good taste in friends, I take it."

"Sigyn's substantially like me in some ways."

"Any friend that accompanies you into exile is a good friend. Though by that standard I guess Elu has a hundred thousand."

"Sigyn is my best friend."

"Well, here we are. Loki, Islin, and her three children all of whom she assures me sleep through the night. Islin, thank you so much, darling."

"Thank you very much," Loki adds. "It is good to meet you."

"It's good to meet you too! A bird, everyone's saying, another messenger of Ulmo, and I'm thinking, do we need more messengers of Ulmo? I think we got the message. I'm Meril's sister-in-law, by the way, and we're good friends. She didn't mention about the sister-in-law because my husband died and so now everyone lacks all vocabulary to talk about the fact he existed at all, and she didn't mention we're friends because then I'd have an opening to demand she show up once in a blue moon to talk something other than business."

"I see. I'm not from Ulmo, I just turn into a bird for unrelated reasons."

"So I gathered, and was delighted. Though if I could turn people into animals I think I'd go for a deer or something, turn orcs into venison."

"...An understandable impulse, I suppose. I designed the spell for its applications to myself, and I did want to fly and did not want to be venison, so."

"Mm, lobster." In she comes. She drinks tea and eats lobster and does not ruffle the hair of the adorable children, but she does have a miniature tiger illusion prowl up to the lobster plate of the would-be tiger child and a dolphin swim through the air at the would-be dolphin child.

This delights them and they giggle through most of dinner.

Giggling children are an excellent distraction from the fact that there isn't any butter on this lobster. Loki idly continues animating the animals for them after the meal is over.

The animals vanish. "In this city? Tomorrow morning I'll deliver a science lecture to anyone who's interested and then I'll probably be on my way."

"Do feel welcome to return," she says, "Meril likes you so you're probably quite remarkable."

"Does she not like most people?"