I was in the garden, reading, enjoying the bright sun, when I heard Thor and his companions in the distance. Truth be told, it's why I was in the garden. I knew that they would pass through on their way back from training. They had been gone for two weeks. I missed my brother, Fandral, but there was something else. Loki had gone with them, and I missed him fiercely. When he said goodbye two weeks before, it was as my best friend, but something happened in those weeks. It was the longest we had been apart since we became so close, and all I did was think of him.

Fandral, alongside Thor, emerged from one of the paths that ran through the topiaries, and held his arms open when he saw me. I put my book down and ran to him. He wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off my feet as I hugged his neck.

"Miss me," he asked.

"I always do."

He placed me back on my feet and kept his arm around my shoulders as we walked.

"Were you a good girl?"

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not a child."

"No, but you're my baby sister."

"Yes, Fandral," I sighed. "You don't have to worry about me. I didn't do anything that the girls you associate with do."

"Well, that's a relief," he said with a laugh.

"I have to get my book," I said as I pulled from his embrace.

He nodded, then kept his pace with Thor. I jogged back to the bench as the others came through the garden. I grabbed the book and turned in time to see Loki stroll through behind all the others with his usual, casual gait. He stopped just inches from me, causing me to have to look up a little. He wore that mischievous grin that always meant some idea was turning in his mind.

"Miss me," he asked.

"Were you gone?"

"Ouch," he said with a scrunched brow, and laughed.

I smiled, sat my book back on the bench, and grabbed his hand with both of mine.

"You know I did. I had no one to keep me company. No one to talk with."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "You act as if you have no friends."

"None as good as you."

"And they say I bend the truth," he said with a grin.

"Have you ever lied to me, Loki?"

"No," he said, the grin gone from his face.

"Then, why would I lie to you?"

He looked down at my hands, still holding his, and covered them with his other. The grin returned to his face.

"I have to report to father with the others. Will you be free after?"

I nodded, and he smiled.

"Meet me back here in an hour?"

"I'll be here," I said.

He pulled his hands from mine and walked away, and I turned to get my book again. When I looked up, he was waiting at the garden entrance just a few feet away, with a grin on his face. A rush of warmth spread across my cheeks, and I knew I was blushing, though the reason escaped me. It was a grin. Just a look. But it affected me. He smiled, held out his hand, and motioned with his head.

"Come on. Walk with me."

Holding my book in one hand, I gave him my other, and he laced his fingers with mine.

An hour later I was waiting in the garden. I left my book behind, wanting to focus on Loki. I waited, sitting on the bench, or pacing back and forth, until he came jogging through the entry.

"I'm so sorry," he said.

"You are twenty minutes late."

"I know," he said as he took my hands. "Thor and father rambled on and on about the training. A complete bore."

"We only have about an hour until nightfall."

"Are you trying to tell me you're afraid of the dark?"

"No," I giggled, "but I can't imagine why you asked me to meet you out here so late. Wouldn't we be better off inside?"

"Not yet," he said with a grin. "I want to play a game."

"What kind of game," I asked, my eyebrow raised.

"Close your eyes."

He let go of my hands, and I closed my eyes without question.

"We're going to have to work on how trusting you are," he said.

"I trust you," I said with my eyes still closed. "Should I not?"

"No... you will never have to worry about me breaking your trust."

I smiled, eyes still shut tight.

"What am I waiting for?"

"Okay," Loki said. "Open your eyes."

His voice was an echo, and I saw why. Three Lokis stood before me, just out of reach.

"What are you doing?"

"Find me."

"What?"

"Find. Me. The real me. Which one? Which one?"

The three Lokis wiggled a bit as he teased, and I laughed.

"This is your game?"

"This is the challenge I set forth. Am I not called a Trickster?"

I shook my head. "You all look alike."

"Do we?"

Two of the images shifted. One took the form of Thor. The other took the form of my brother. I smiled and stepped closer to the remaining Loki, but when I reached out to touch his arm, the image vanished. The remaining two switched back to Loki, and shook their heads.

"It's like you don't know me at all," they said.

"I know your face, but there are two."

"You know more than my face. Come on... Find me."

I stared at the one to my left. I watched his eyes as he looked at me, and saw a slight shift. I'd seen it before. His eyes shifted to look between mine when he looked at me. I watched the one to my right for a moment, and the motion wasn't there. He looked at me, yes, but it felt hollow. With a hesitant step forward, I reached out to the Loki at my left and took his hand. The one to my right vanished as Loki smiled at me. A smile so bright as to rival the setting sun.

"I knew you could do it. How did you know?"

"You mean, you don't know?"

"No."

"Then what made you so sure I could tell the difference?"

"You know me better than anyone," he said. "Come, now... tell me. How did you know?"

I smiled and shook my head. "I'm not telling."

"Why not?"

"I don't want you learning how to hide from me," I said. "You have your tricks, and now I have one of my own."

"I guess that's fair," he said with a frown, "but not knowing will drive me mad."

I smiled at him, then looked around. "It's getting late... and cold."

I wrapped my arms around myself. Loki placed his hands on my arms and rubbed them briskly, helping to warm me.

"Let's go in," he said. "We'll warm by the fire pit."

I left my arms around myself, and Loki placed his hand at the small of my back as we walked. I wouldn't need the fire pit. His touch sent a warmth through my entire body. We walked in silence. My mind raced as I tried to make sense of the sudden turn in my feelings for my friend. Absence, it seemed, truly did make the heart grow fonder.

Loki's hand dropped away and clasped with his other behind his back as we entered the room. Thor and Fandral were there with a few others, and we could hear them talking and laughing as we approached. There was just one seat available. Loki leaned next to my ear and whispered.

"Go and sit. Warm yourself."

I smiled at him and took the empty space next to my brother.

"You look cold," Fandral said.

"A little."

"Here," he said as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his side.

"Thank you."

I glanced up at Loki, still across the room, and he grinned before looking away. He slowly circled the room as the others talked about their training and current affairs. Everyone had an opinion, and shared it freely, but Loki mostly remained quiet and listened. He was an intent listener, lurking behind the others, taking everything in so that when he did speak it seemed to surprise everyone, as if they had forgotten he was there. Everyone except for me. I watched him as he walked the circumference of the round room. His eyes were cast downward, but for the occasional glance in my direction, or whomever was speaking at the moment.

I was startled by a voice at my ear.

"You're very quiet," Fandral whispered.

"Just listening."

"Good thing you don't listen with your eyes. They have yet to fall on anyone who is speaking."

I looked up at my brother, and he raised an eyebrow at me.

"Okay, fine. I'm a bit bored," I lied. I didn't want the embarrassment of my brother realizing I had fallen for my best friend.

"Why don't you call it a night?"

"Because I'm not a child and my bedtime is much later now, thank you."

"It was just a suggestion," he sighed. "You seem distracted."

"I'm not."

The conversation eventually reached a lull, and the group began to disperse. In the midst of a few goodbyes, Loki pulled me aside and whispered.

"Ten minutes. Meet me in the garden."

"Will you be on time?"

"I promise, nothing will make me late."

I smiled. "Ten minutes."

He returned the smile, then said goodnight to the others. He exited one way, while Fandral took me out another.

"Tell me you aren't becoming enamored of Loki," he said.

"What?"

"You don't hide it well."

"Hide what? That I care for my friend?"

"That friend loves to cause mischief," he said. "You should be careful."

"You don't like that we're close, do you?"

"Not terribly, if I'm being honest. I can't get a true sense of the man, and that makes me wary."

"Well, I have a true sense of him."

"Or so he let's you believe."

"Fandral..." I groaned his name in frustration.

"Just promise me you won't lose yourself to him, or let him draw you into his mischief."

"I promise."

Fandral kissed my cheek goodnight, and I made my way to the garden. Loki arrived on time, just a moment after I did, with a large roll of something under his arm.

"What is that?"

"Blanket," he said with a smile. "I taught you something today, now I want you to teach me something."

I raised a questioning eyebrow as he unrolled the blanket and laid it out over the lush grass.

"What did you have in mind to learn?"

"You," he said as he stood, "know so much about the stars across the realms that you rival the knowledge of our most prodigious scholars."

"This is why they say you bend the truth," I said with a blush.

He lay down on the blanket and crossed his legs at the ankles, than patted the spot next to him.

"Lie down," he said.

I lay next to him, purposely leaving a small space between us for my sanity.

He pointed out a constellation.

"What's that one?"

"Loki, if you're going to make me do this, at least challenge me. Even small children know that constellation. It's the easiest one to find."

"All right," he said as he waved his hand.

Our stars dissolved and new ones appeared. I stared at the sky above us in awe.

"That one, then," he said as he pointed.

"That is the sky of Vanaheim!"

"See... a vast knowledge."

I looked at him to see him smiling at me, and I returned it before my eyes found the constellation he had pointed out. I pointed out my favorite stars and constellations, telling him the stories that always seem to come with them. I talked for over an hour before he waved his hand again and brought up a different realm. I laughed.

"Are you trying to learn in one night what took me years of study?"

"I just love to watch you enjoying yourself."

At some point, our fingers had intertwined, and he held my hand. His thumb brushed back and forth as we fell silent.

"Do you mind," I asked, "if we just lie here and star-gaze for a while... at our own sky?"

Loki waved his hand once more, and the sky of Asgard reappeared.

"The entire realm is probably in an uproar over that little trick," I said.

Loki laughed. "Now you flatter me with exaggeration. That was only for our eyes. No one outside of this garden saw it."

We fell into a comfortable silence. It had been a long time since I had looked at the sky, not as a student, but as an observer. Just to look at the stars and enjoy the beauty.

The breeze in the air blew harder and cooler as the time stretched on, and I shivered. Loki released my hand and worked his arm around my shoulders, pulling me to his side to keep me warm. His free hand covered mine after it came to rest on his chest. All of that without a word, and our eyes were once again focused on the sky. I don't know how long I stared at the stars until I fell asleep, but the next thing I felt was a light touch on my cheek. I opened my eyes to find his face just inches from mine. His thumb gently brushed over my skin, and his eyes bore into mine as a small smile pulled at his lips. For just a moment, I thought there was a look of something more in his eyes. Something more than care and friendship, but he pulled his arm from me and helped me sit up.

"It seems my company puts you to sleep," he said.

I giggled, not quite feeling awake enough to verbally spar with him. He stood and took my hand to help me up, then he gathered the blanket and tucked it under his arm. He took my hand in his and walked me back inside. We parted ways and I went to my chambers. The bed called to me and I fell across it. Loki's eyes stayed on my mind as I drifted back to sleep.