Morphia was not seen again until the following evening. She appeared in the feast hall right after sunset wearing a form-fitting deep orange dress. Her arms were bare, and aside from her piercings, she wore a simple hammered choker.
Loki studied the hall from his perch by an alcove opposite the long table. He wasn't much of an eater, his diet giving him a lean, hungry sort of look. He watched his father and mother converse politely with the young woman as they sipped on wine from their goblets. Thor was engrossed in conversation with his normal group of followers; the other members of the court spoke amongst themselves and everything was quite normal.
Except for this young woman. He'd never heard of a goddess of dreams and thought the power to be quite nugatory. To what great purpose could dreams serve?
Loki looked out of the open alcove into the night sky as its darkness melted over Asgard. Millions of stars glittered in the night sky, but he was ignorant to them. Tonight he noticed how bright the moon appeared and how clearly the other planets aligned in the distance of space. They seemed almost to vibrate, they were lit so bright. As he gazed back into the hall, he noticed, strangely, that all of their light seemed to focus on one woman.
Morphia smiled and lowered her eyes coquettishly at something his father said. Her dark hair was in a simple side braid this night and even in the dim lighting of the room it seemed to shine eminently.
Loki seemed unable to tear his eyes from her, mysteriously drawn to her sight until Odin stood and slammed his staff into the ground.
"My friends. Tonight we will be witness to the first exhibition of our goddess of dreams."
A whisper of excitement flowed throughout the room as Morphia stood and walked gracefully to the center of the room.
"I'm afraid that my powers are not quite nearly as impressive as Odin's wisdom, Thor's strength, or Sif's prowess. And I certainly don't claim to possess even a token of Loki's magic—"
Several heads turned to stare at Loki as he sat on the alcove's low wall; he shrugged a shoulder and smiled half-heartedly, but she continued on.
"The evidence of my power will not be instantaneous or a show of tricks and awe. The dreamer will simply be given the dream of his or her choice and then…go to sleep. Not exactly an exciting series of events," she said with a sly grin.
"That's quite alright. We shall be impressed just the same," Odin said.
Morphia bowed her head and then looked across the room at the rows of people as they sat at the table. She spied a mother with a child draped across her lap and chest, blissfully asleep even amongst the chatter and goings-on. Morphia walked pointedly to her and whispered in her ear a moment, the guests looking on anxiously. The mother smiled and nodded, standing with the sleeping child in her arms and walking back to the center of the room with Morphia.
Morphia gestured to a guard stationed nearby to drag a small chaise lounge over to her and the mother gently laid the child upon it, whispering sweetly to him and rousing him from his sleep.
The room was quite breathless as the child awoke, rubbing his eyes and sitting up, his short legs dangling over the side. Morphia knelt down in front of him and his mother, speaking so quietly that no one could hear her.
The child listened sleepily to her, his green eyes focused intently on her pretty face. He gazed up at his mother as if to ask for permission; she nodded and smiled, rubbing his back.
Loki watched as the little boy spoke; although he could not hear him, he seemed to be explaining something to Morphia. She listened without speaking, and when the boy finished a few minutes later, she smiled and reached out to him. She pressed a hand to his temple and gently let it sweep down his cheeks, over his neck, down his chest, and rested against his heart.
He lied down immediately, curling up next to his mother and closing his eyes.
Morphia stood then and turned around, raising a finger to her lips. "We should let him sleep for a bit."
She noticed the anti-climactic air of the room and smiled, crossing her hands together. "I did tell you that it's not very exciting."
Everyone went back to speaking, albeit a bit quieter, and Morphia returned to her seat.
Loki sighed and rolled his eyes. Completely useless power.
An hour later, when most everyone was growing tired of waiting, the boy awoke on his own. Everyone watched as Morphia stood and began walking to him when she stopped and turned around, reaching out for Odin's hand. "Would you please, your majesty?"
Odin looked at his wife for a moment and then stood, taking her hand. Together, the two stood in front of the boy.
"Will you tell your king about your dream, young one?"
The boy, about 5 or so, raised his eyes to the king and then up at his mother.
"Go on, my dear."
"I dreamed I was a warrior. A great one. And I killed a million frost giants. It was gonna get you, but I stopped him. I was the best warrior. Better than them all. Better than…" the boy paused a moment and looked shyly at his hands. "Thor," he said more quietly.
Odin began to laugh, and the boy played with his fingers. Odin reached down to give his shoulder a fatherly squeeze and the boy smiled, leaning into his mother. "Wonderful, my boy. Wonderful."
The room clapped politely and Morphia shrugged modestly.
When the noise began to wane, Loki stood and walked a few feet towards them. "And how is this an exhibition of your power? Any Asgardian boy could have dreamt that up."
"Especially you, Loki," Volstagg shouted.
Loki ignored the giggles and took another step closer. "What evidence is there that you manufactured this dream?"
Odin opened his mouth to speak and Loki awaited the sharp rebuke, but Morphia stepped towards him and raised her hand to silence him. "My apologies for interrupting, your majesty, but Loki is right."
Loki furrowed his brow.
Morphia smiled at him for a moment before turning her back to him and addressing the room. "I suppose I should have told you all what this young one asked to dream about, but I can assure you that what he told me did materialize in his dream."
"I can vouch for you, my lady," the mother said, standing.
"Tell us what he said, Leera," a young man said from the table.
"She asked him to tell her his favorite story. He told her it was the story of the Jotinheim war against the Frost Giants."
"And that's it? That's all he said?" Loki asked.
Morphia nodded. "So I gave the dream to him."
"So how does this power work then? We tell you what we want to dream or you give us one based off a story?"
She looked at Loki as if in thought before answering. "It depends on the dreamer. You seem skeptical. Shall I try it on you?"
It was Loki's turn to stare back at her. He began to speak when Thor loudly stood and slammed his fist down on the table. "I'll volunteer. What's the harm?" he asked.
Morphia tore her gaze from Loki and smiled as Thor approached. "Tell me what you wish to dream about then."
"A glorious battle," he said without a second thought. The warriors three shouted in approval from the table behind them and Morphia laughed, stepping up to him. He was nearly two feet taller than her, and she had to reach up to caress his temple before trailing her hand down his muscular neck and chest and resting on his heart. She held her hand there for several seconds, her eyes focused on his even as he began to smile awkwardly.
Loki felt a surge of…something flow through his chest as he watched the two. Finally, after what seemed like a very long time, Morphia removed her hand and smiled.
"Now, go to sleep," she said with a wink.
"Yes, it is getting rather late. We will rejoin tomorrow to discuss Thor's dream," Frigga said, resting her hand on her son's bicep. Morphia bowed her head in acknowledgement and the crowd in the hall began to disperse.