AN: Well it only took five years after I published the one-shot to get here, so I hope you enjoy.

The fresh fallen snow had kept the young girls heart calm, as it always had. Something about the winter snow made her feel serene. Picking up her bow she was preparing for another successful hunt with her father. They lived out in the wild amongst the beast and creatures. Her father had raised her well in the art of defense. The young girl barely old enough to pull back the drawstring without strain grabbed an arrow from her quiver and knocked her bow. Ahead of her was a stag, big enough to feed her and her father for quite some time. She braced herself and anchored the bow along her jaw. She aimed perfectly for the kill shot. Drawing her sting back she began controlling her breath. She took a deep breath in remembering to shoot on the exhale. She let go of her breath and the string at the same time. When the arrow pierced the animal she heard her father's scream. Forgetting the kill she ran towards the noise.

"Papa!" She yelled running as fast as her little legs would take her. Another scream was heard but this time it was much closer. She raced around the boulder that hid their home and could see the entrance to the cavern in the mountain they called home. The fire flicker that was normally there was gone and smoke was pouring out the hole. She got closer and could see her father bruised and bloodied with a pool of blood forming around his body. There was a blue figure kneeling over the corpse of her father. It turned and look at the young girl with red eyes. She had no knowledge of what this creature was but knew it was a monster. She backed away from it as it rose and walked towards her. "Leave papa alone!" She screamed crying her eyes out.

"Skadi…" The monster said reaching out towards her. The girl got wide-eyed when the beast said her name. She screamed as loud as she could, hoping help would arrive.

/|\

Skadi woke up in her bed years after the accident and saw a dark figure sitting on the corner of her bed. She gasped and pulled the silken pale blue covers closer. She focused her magical energy to light the fireplace in her room. The figure was merely her longtime friend Loki. She sighed with relief when she saw his face.

"By the Norns Loki, what are you doing in my chambers?" She said smiling a bit. Loki shrugged his shoulders and scooted closer to her sitting parallel to her hip. She took notice of his silence and grew concerned. She removed the sheets and crawled over to him tugging his head down to her shoulder. He shrugged her off and grabbed her hands lightly.

"Are you alright?" He spoke gingerly.

"I'm fine," she scanned his alabaster face that was glowing in the firelight of her room. "what troubles you?" She said lacing her fingers in his.

"I heard your screams from across the hall. I teleported over here as soon as I could."

"Twas merely a nightmare Loki, fret not. I always have them near the anniversary." Loki smirked a bit and nodded his head.

"Of course. I had forgotten about that." He said rising. Skadi grabbed his hand and kept him from going too far. Even though he could easily break the hold he chose to remain still at his friend's physical request.

"Were you worried about your little 'Snowflake'?" She said mocking him. Loki let an air of a laugh escape and rolled his eyes.

He turned to face her. "Perhaps I was. Is it wrong to worry about a friend's well-being?"

"No I suppose not, but you can keep me company until I fall asleep?" She said raising her brow and tugging just a bit more on his arm. He smiled and sat down on her bed.

"If my father were to walk in-"

"How often does he check on his children?" She retorted. She pinched Loki's cheeks to poke fun. "You are the big strong Asgardian princes. You don't need nursemaids to look after you." Loki did not look amused and went in to tickle her. She laughed her loud laugh before Loki placed his hand over her mouth. She licked his hand and he pulled it back looking disgusted.

"You are so unladylike!" He chided while laughing. Skadi shrugged her shoulders and Loki plopped down on top of her. She breathed out in surprise and tried pushing him off.

"You should decline more sweets prince. I can't breath" She said.

"This is a comfortable spot I think I shall sleep here!" He said grabbing one of her pillows and placing it on her neck and pretending to snore. Skadi sighed realizing he would choose to be an ass. She moved her hands from trying to push him to using her magic to levitate him in the air. She could feel his panic.

"If you drop me..." He threatened. This wouldn't be the first time she dropped him on his face, or back for that matter, it certainly wouldn't be the last. She giggled and scooted over on her huge bed and let the prince fall on his face making him bounce a few times on her bed. He glared at her but it melted away when he saw her big playful smile. "Fine. You win tonight!" He said getting under her sheets. She tilted her head up in triumph and then crawled next to him under the sheets. She placed her head on his chest and began to drift off again. "Sweet dreams, Snowflake." Loki said while playing with the ends of her curly blonde hair.

This time when sleep greeted Sakdi, she didn't dream of death but of playful things. Her vision was of her first meeting of Loki and how he had tried so hard to impress her but failed miserably. Skadi had been left alone for the first time after her father's death and desired to see the sky. She had locked herself inside her new chambers that the Allfather graciously offered to her for her loss and had been stuffed inside the pale blue and white chamber long enough. Though the selected colors did bring her some comfort reminding her of the snowy woods she knew so well, there was no cure like nature itself. She had been in the palace for three months now. Emerging into the daylight she found the snow was still trying to compete with the rays of the spring sun. Feeling empathy for the snow that was trying too hard to stay together, Skadi used her magic to recover the peeping grass with snow.

"What did you do that for?!" Yelled a child close to her age. She quickly spun around not sure who the person was and if they would hurt her for practicing magic or not. The pale boy dropped his look of anger when he saw her hurt face. He knew it was the girl his father was taking sympathy on. "I'm sorry."

"No, I am sorry. I did not know magic is forbidden and-" She began.

"What? Magic is encouraged! It's a fine skill to have Sk…."The boy trailed off not remembering her name.

"Skadi." She spoke gently.

"Prince Loki." He said bowing to the lady. She tilted her head not sure of why he was doing that. He rose grabbing her hand and kissing it. She forced her hand back not liking some strange boy kiss her. Her father would kiss her cheek at night and this boy was not him. Loki looked upset but then a mischievous smile appeared. "Would you like to see my hidden stronghold?" He said perking up. Skadi shrugged her shoulders in response and nodded not sure if she really had room to refuse the prince. He walked off and Skadi followed him past the walls of the palace and beyond the woods.

"How far is this place?" She asked. She ducked under a branch and knew she was nearing the base of the mountains she was raised on. Loki smirked turning around and pointed up.

"Just a bit further." He waved his hands in a grand gesture above them. Skadi looked up and the branches moved back so she saw the huge fort stretching across three trees. A rope fell from the center tree and Loki grabbed it holding it out to Skadi. She shook her head, she was no fool.

"I'm wearing a dress! You go first! When you're up in the tree you can pull me up." She crossed her arms and could tell Loki looked taken aback at her comment. Without saying anything about her comment he wrapped the rope around himself in case he fell and started climbing. Skadi leaned against another tree while Loki climbed. In the distance she saw an animal headed her way. She hid in the nearest snow covered bush and kept her eye out. Her eyes darted from Loki to the animal. He was at the top and on the ledge of the fort. He looked behind him but could not see Skadi anywhere.

"Lady Skadi?!" He yelled. Skadi shushed him as best she could without being too loud, but the distance between the pair was no aide to her warning. Loki yelled for her again and she sent a prayer to the norns that he would be quiet. She knew the animals around these areas reacted badly to loud noises. The animal heard Loki and started charging towards the tree he was in. Skadi now saw that the animal was a mountain goat, perhaps the largest she had ever seen. It was headed to ram the tree and Skadi knew it would break the tree in half after a few rams. "Skadi! Come about!" Loki yelled unaware of the goat preparing to ram. Skadi sighed and tried to gather all the magic she could. Before she had any power to summon a bow and arrow, she heard the goat ram into the tree and Loki scream. He had fallen out of the tree and was dangling by the rope swinging back and forth…. Upside down. Loki shook his head and Skadi snickered a bit. The goat rooted in the ground with his hoof and breathed out its nose in a huff. Loki gulped and the goat sniffed his face and began to walk away. Loki sighed all to soon as the goat kicked him in his sensitive area with his back legs causing Loki to hit the tree with his back. The rope that held him broke and Loki landed with a thud on the ground groaning and crying. Satisfied it had eliminated the threat the goat trotted off. Skadi just laughed and laughed and laughed. It was funny too her. She walked out of the bush and saw the poor prince trying to heal himself and she just couldn't stop laughing. She had not laughed like this in too long and she began crying along with the prince. Although Loki was hurt he enjoyed the sound of her laughter, the uncontrolled joy that it was. He liked her even more this way and didn't want her to ever feel sorrowful after today.

Skadi awoke with tears from her laughter on her face. She smiled at the dream she just had it all seeming so vivid. She turned over in bed hoping to see the man that made her laugh so much but her good mood was damped by the vacancy in her bed. She sighed at her foolishness. Of course he wouldn't stay with her all night, the rumors would fly and she was at that age where having a man of any kind in the same room as her, if only briefly, was inappropriate. She walked over to one of her windows and drew the curtains back. The dawn was just greeting the sky and that meant she had very little time to meet up with her princes and battle them.