Chapter One

The young girl ran as fast and as far away as her legs could carry her, brushing past countless people in the bustling market place. Her face was streaked with tears and anyone who witnessed her running only huffed in annoyance, obviously not noticing her emotional state.

As the view of the town finally dissipated behind her, the little brunette finally slowed to a stop in front of a tiny stream, knowing that she would remain undisturbed for a few hours. Kneeling down, she placed her hands over her face and wept, not bothering about the way she looked anymore.

She must have remained in that crouched position for at least a few hours because when she finally looked up, she saw that the night sky was already creeping in upon the beautiful horizon. Tucking a few strands of wispy brown hair behind her ear, she leaned forward towards the river intending to gather some water onto her palms.

However, just as she began to lean forward, she felt a hard push on her back which resulted in her falling into the stream instead with a loud 'splash' resounding throughout the forest.

Shock had been the understatement of the century in regards to what the girl felt when she first emerged – her body soaked to the core. But as realization of what had just occurred sunk in, her reaction was unprecedented.

She burst out in joyous laughter.

"That's new," said a voice, startling her.

She stood up and looked around the forest, wondering if she had imagined the sound.

"On your left," whispered the voice again, making her jump slightly before she turned towards the source of the sound.

A tall lanky boy about her age stood right in front of her with a cheeky grin etched onto his face. He had jet black hair that was sleeked back smoothly and startlingly contrasting bright green eyes

"What's new?" wondered the girl as she attempted to dry her hair by squeezing it with her tiny hands.

"Your reaction," clarified the boy with twinkling eyes, "Most people would have screamed in shock or would have been morbidly upset. You just acted like it felt liberating."

"You were the reason I fell?" she asked, surprised.

The boy clasped his hands behind his back and walked towards her in a poised manner that made him seem like he was of royalty.

"Perhaps," he replied but then he looked at her with a glint in his eyes again, "Perhaps not."

Unfazed by his nonchalance, the girl gasped, "You can do magic!"

He smirked and waved his hand, pulling a lily out of thin air and presenting it to her. "It's all in good fun!"

Instead of taking the lily from him immediately, the girl beamed at him and repeated the same waving motion that he did. However, a small harmless dagger appeared in her hands instead of a flower. "I can too!"

She took the lily from the boy's palm and placed it behind her ear whilst handing the dagger to him in exchange, stunning him. Then she grinned and asked, "What's your name?"

The boy was still in obvious shock as he had not expected to come across another magic user. A girl about his age nonetheless. Magic was a rare trait amongst the Aesir and was difficult to learn. The fact that this girl in front of him could replicate the spell he did with ease implied that she was adept in it and almost on par with him.

"L-Loki," he stuttered out. "A-and yours?"

"Loki," repeated the girl as she tested the name on her tongue. Liking the way it sounded, she turned back to look at him before grinning happily, her distress and grief earlier completely forgotten at the moment.

"I'm Galadriel," answered the girl, pausing for a split second. "But I prefer Ellie."

"Ellie," repeated Loki, testing the sound of her name like she did with his and glanced at her, taking in her appearance clearly for the first time that evening.

The first thing he noticed about Ellie was the fact that she was unlike any other Aesir female. Whilst most females were light haired and tall, Ellie was petite with mahogany brown hair. Whilst most females had clear skin and large eyes, she had the smallest hazel green eyes he had ever seen and numerous brown spots splayed across her nose.

Freckles – he remembered the Midgardian term for it. It was another feature which was uncommon amongst the Aesir and Loki wondered if she was perhaps Vanir, like Hogun was or of a mix in between. Ellie's appearance was exotic, as was her name but she was undeniably beautiful. And Loki could only stare at her in bewilderment, wondering if it was even possible to meet someone else who was different like him.

"What business does a fair maiden like you have out here in the middle of the forest?" inquired Loki curiously, acting like he had not scrutinized her at all.

Suddenly, Ellie's bright smiling face turned ashen and grim as she was once again assaulted by the images of the events that had happened earlier.

"I wanted to escape for a few hours," murmured Ellie as she looked to the ground. "My mother just passed away because of the Spanish Influenza."

Glancing at Loki's mildly confused face, Ellie gave a small smile which did not reach her eyes and explained further, "The Spanish Influenza is a mortal illness. My mother was human."

Suddenly, it all made sense. Ellie's unique physique and the manner in which she spoke was a result of her Midgardian heritage. She wasn't Vanir like he thought she was and Loki almost felt bad for upsetting her.

Embarrassed and at a loss for words, Loki reached out one arm and placed it on Ellie's shoulder awkwardly, "I'm sorry."

Ellie felt tears burn at the corner of her eyes as she shrugged, "Don't be, it was her choice. She didn't want to live life as an immortal anyway."

Loki could hear the hurt and anger behind her tone and he felt an emotion he had not felt in a long time stir within him. Concern. Loki was concerned for a girl he had just met and that astounded him.

Normally, he would have laughed at someone else's misery.

"I'm sure she loved you very much," comforted Loki sincerely as he took her hands in his right before he was thrown back a few feet by Ellie engulfing him in a tight hug as she sniffed non-stop.

It was uncomfortable, to say the least.

The only other person who had held him this way was his mother so Loki was unsure of what to do. He also felt his clothing get drenched with Ellie's tears and wet clothes but he did not have the heart to pry her off of him at that moment whilst knowing how vulnerable she was. It was strange how out of character he was being around this girl as he let Ellie sob, undisturbed.

They stood there for a few good minutes before Ellie finally let go of Loki and recomposed herself. Blushing profusely, Ellie apologized for her blatant behaviour, "Sorry, I didn't mean to cover you in my snot."

"Snot?" asked Loki with a raised eyebrow, making Ellie blush a deeper red at how she lost her ability to speak eloquently.

"Sorry, I meant my tears and mucus. I'm so used to speaking with human terms with my mother."

"Interesting," mused Loki, deep in thought.

Just when Ellie thought that he was going to tell her to go away, like many others did before when they found out she was half mortal, Loki did something neither of them even expected.

He engulfed Ellie in another hug. "It is quite alright. I understand that you are hurting."

With the tension and depressing atmosphere lifted, Ellie closed her eyes and hugged him back. A permanent smile was etched onto her face as she thought of the first friendship she had forged since the discovery of her heritage and magic ability.

She had a feeling that her life was about to change for the better.

Author's note

Hey guys! I decided to give fanfiction writing another go and I hope you like the idea of this story

It was basically just an idea that had been sitting around in my head for days and since I had time today, I thought that I should just get it out.

As usual, I do not own the Marvel/Thor universe, sadly. But I hope that you enjoyed this chapter

Reviews/feedbacks motivate me to update quicker and I'd love to make improvements based on your suggestions so please don't hesitate to message me!

Thanks for reading!

-Gabby