Odin was standing in the main room of the golden palace, his one-year-old son, Thor, playing in the floor beside where he stood. Just a few halls away his wife Frigga, the goddess of marriage, and queen of Asgard, was in labor, with their second child. Odin hopped for another son, one to take over the throne if something was to happen to Thor. He looked down at the small child at his feet, he was playing with his fathers cape, laughing. He soon heard footsteps coming up behind him and his son.
"Your Highness, The queen has just delivered your child," a servant said, not even finishing the sentence before Odin walked past him.
"Take Thor to his room…" Odin said walking quickly to his and Frigga's room. He made it to the huge golden doors. He pushed both of them open, looking at his wife.
Frigga was sitting in there bed, holding a bundle up close to her chest, her brown hair pulled tight against her head, she was looking down at the bundle, talking to it, holding one slender finger out to it.
"Is it?" Odin said watching his wife look up at him, a little sorrow in her eyes.
"No…it's a girl…. I'm sorry…" she whispered looking down at the girl in her arms. The baby had strands of the same golden locks of hair as her older brother, her skin, was so soft, and pale, her eyes where a stunning yet unusual shade of light purple. "Bust she must have a purpose, or else we wouldn't have been blessed with a girl. You would dare to question your anncestors?"
"The child can not stay here, I can not have a daughter, I will arrange for her a place to live, and servants to pose as her parents, she will be gone by sundown. You can name her if you like." Odin said walking out of their room. Leaving his wife and new child alone.
Frigga looked back down at the tiny girl in her arms, her eyes wide open. "Araminta…. my little defender of peace." The girl's mother said knowing she would be lucky if she got to watch her grow up. She got a couple more hours with the tiny child before one her servants came.
"My queen, the king has sent me to take your daughter, he has found her a house to stay in, and two other servants to pose as her parents. If you like I could give you some more time with her…" the woman standing in the door said.
"No, if Odin said its time, then its time. Tell them her name is Araminta…don't change it." the queen said looking down at the girl who had fallen asleep in her arms. The servant came into the room walking over to the side of the bed. Frigga placed a kiss on the tiny girls cheek, as she passed her to the servant. "Take good care of her."
"Yes my queen." The servant said taking the child form the queen placing it up against her own chest, the baby started to make a little noise, almost like it understood she was being taken away from her mother. Frigga watched as the servant left with her newborn daughter in her arms.
"I love you…" Frigga said watching the girl leave.
Araminta was raised by servants that were married, she was told to call them mother and father, but it always felt weird to her. Her parents worked at the palace of Asgard. Her parents would take her with them everyday, where she would get to play with the two princes, Thor and Loki, she thought of them as her only friends in the world, there weren't any other kids her age to play with in Asgard. She was in the huge room where she would play with the two princes, while the queen Frigga would watch. Araminta was sitting in the floor looking down at her reflection in the golden floors, listing too her friends laugh. She noticed the oldest of the two boys, Thor, come sit beside her, he was laughing as his little brother Loki ran around a toy tied to a string.
"Ara…" Thor said looking over at the girl that sat beside him, Ara was the nickname him and his brother had come up with for the girl Araminta was to hard for them to say. "Your hair…it's the same color as mine, its so pretty…"Thor said looking at Araminta's hair.
"Thank you…" Araminta said softly, she didn't talk much; she was more of the quite child. She looked past Thor notching his mother, she was leaned back in the chair she was sitting in, and her hands on the end of the arms of the chair tighten. Araminta noticed a shadow standing behind her and Thor. She watched as Thor turned around, and Loki stopped in the middle of his run.
"Father!" both boys said, Loki abandoned his toy in the middle of the floor, Thor had left Araminta sitting in the middle of the room, looking down at her reflection, her hands on the ends of her hair.
"I think its time Araminta went home, say goodbye to your friend boys." Odin said still standing behind Araminta, his voice sending fear through the tiny girls body. "Frigga…I need to speak with you."
Araminta stood up waiting for the goodbye hugs she always got from her best friends. She watched as the queen left, smiling at her. She watched her two friends run back to their parents, Thor was half running backwards, waiving.
"Goodbye Ara! See you tomorrow…" Thor said taking one of his father's hands.
"Bye Ara." Loki said looking back at her, holding his mothers hand.
"Bye…" Araminta said quietly.
Araminta was carried home that night by her father, she was looking at the hair that was draped over her fathers shoulder, and she couldn't help but think of what Thor had said to her earlier that day. She was asleep before she even made it home.
Frigga was sitting on her and Odin's bed watching as her husband paced around their huge room.
"Araminta can't play with the boys anymore, not after what Thor said, everyone in the palace is talking, they are questioning her paternity, saying she is my daughter…" Odin said not stopping his pace.
"But Araminta is your daughter…." Frigga said watching her husband.
"No, she is not, Araminta has never been my daughter, I cast her out the day she was born. I have to stop these rumors." Odin said walking to their bedroom door.
"Odin, what are you going to do?" Frigga said standing up.
"I'm going to change her appearance. So no one can question her paternity anymore. And these awful rumors can stop." He said looking back a Frigga. "Go tell the boys they wont see her again." he said pushing the doors open.
Araminta was placed in her bed as soon as her parents got her home. Her mother had pulled the girls golden hair back and laid her down, placing a kiss on the girl's forehead. The woman who was raising her was the same one who had taken her from the queen 6 years ago; she loved the girl as much as she knew the girls real mother did. She couldn't imagine giving her child up, but understood while the queen did it. Araminta's foster mother was in bed now herself, her foster parents room wasn't far from her room, the girl was prone to nightmares, and she wanted to be close to her parents.
Araminta woke up the next morning, with the sun, she sat up stretching, excited to go play with her friends again. She heard a knock come from her door, it was her father, he would wake her up every morning, she watched as her door opened slowly, she crawled out of her bed and ran to her door.
"I'm up already father…." The girl said as the door opened, her mother was standing there looking at the girl.
"Your father isn't here, he has already gone to the palace…your going to stay with me today okay." The girl's mother said picking her up.
"Okay…are we going to go to the palace later?" Araminta said, her mother was carrying her to into her parent's bedroom, where she would get her hair brushed out every morning. Her mother sat down in front of the small mirror.
"No darling, I'm going to stay with you here everyday now. The king said we don't have to go back anymore." Her mother said carefully pulling the tangled mess down. What Araminta saw immediately sent her into tears. Her golden hair was now the same dark brown as her mothers, it was shoulder length now too, and the girl turned to burry her head into her mothers shoulder. "Mommy. My hair, what happened to my hair?"
"Nothing Araminta, hair changes color as you get older, my hair used to be the same blonde as your used to be, I woke up one morning, and mine was this brown." Her mother said trying to comfort the girl. She knew the girl's hair hadn't changed over night, not on its own.
Her and her husband where getting ready to go to bed themselves after they put Araminta to bed, when there were three loud knocks at their door. Araminta's father went and answered it, her mother stayed in their room. It wasn't long until Araminta's father came back into their room, sadness written all over his face.
"Its King Odin, he is here to change Araminta's appearance. The rest of the kingdom is starting to wonder about the girl's paternity, and so are the princes. He doesn't want her at the palace anymore, he said you could stay home and take care of her." Araminta's foster father said looking at his wife; she was sitting on a small stool, in front of a mirror.
Araminta's mother was gently rubbing her daughters back listing as she cried, the girl loved her blonde hair, but she knew her daughter was even more upset about not being able to see her friends again.
Thor and Loki had just returned from a day of training with there father, Thor was now 11, Loki was 9, both the boys still acted as if they where small children. Both of them where running down the hall to the room there mother was sitting in, she could hear them, they where yelling back and forth at each other, but it was playful. The golden door was pushed open, and Frigga's oldest son came through, his brother Loki following him.
"Mother…" Thor said stopping in front of his mother.
"Did you boys have fun today." Frigga said wrapping her arms around Thor.
"Yes mother, Father let us play outside after our training today, we saw Araminta today as well." Thor said watching his mother hug his brother.
"Araminta…" Frigga said softly sitting back down in the chair she was sitting in.
"Yes. We got to play with her for a little while, until father caught us." Loki said sitting in the floor in front of his mother.
"Why don't we get to see her anymore mother? She was so much fun." Thor said sitting beside his brother. "Dose father not like her?"
"No boys…" Frigga said she wanted to tell her boys who Araminta really was, but knew if Odin found out she told them he would never forgive her.
"Then why can't we play with her anymore mother?" Loki said looking at his mother, "we miss Ara."
"I know boys, but your father doesn't like her, he has never liked her." Frigga said, watching as her boys looked at each other.
"Mother, who exactly is Araminta, she cant just be some servants kids or father wouldn't hate her." Loki said knowing something was bothering his mother.
"Araminta is your sister." Frigga said with a sigh.
"Our sister…" Thor said looking up at his mother. "That's why she has golden hair…"
". Yes that's why her hair is the same gold as yours. She is a year younger then you Thor, and a year older then you Loki." Frigga said watching as her two sons slid closer to her.
"Why dose she not live with us." Loki said he missed playing with Araminta, and was in disbelief that she was his older sister.
"Well after she was born, your father was upset that she was a girl, and had her sent to live with two servants, they were told to pose as her parents. He didn't want a girl, he said he couldn't have a daughter he wanted two sons. But you two were never supposed to know. So don't mention Araminta in front of your father, promise me boys, you wont mention her. Ever." She said leaning closer to her sons.
"We promise mother…" both of them said at the same time.