AN: now updated as of Jan,2015!
Disclaimer: I own my OC, nothing else.
Fandral was there to give her a small nudge of encouragement just as she felt her knees lock tight into place. For certain her heels were probably digging into the ground so hard that they would leave a scuff, but she wasn't ready to meet the faces of such extraordinary people, and no one could fault her for her reaction. She watched as one large male descended the stairs first in big hulking strides. His face was bright when it came into view, and she recognized the rumored golden veil of hair from any tale told in and around her village. The perfect alignment of teeth was shown in his white smile, and his eyes danced with glory and confidence. How she had longed to see his legendary armor, but he bore only threads of comfort like Fandral today. It was a blessed surprise that the mighty crown prince Thor was first to greet her.
"So this is the maiden dear Fandral had swept away into the night is it?" Thor's voice boomed around the stone columns, creating an echo as he spoke boisterously.
"Aye, this is Halios, she is both delighted and fearful to meet you all." Fandral pointed out. She shot him a short glare before turning her attention to the Thunder God. He looked on her with approving eyes, making her cheeks taint with a rosy glow in shame and embarrassment. She must have looked like quite the sight compared to what he was accustomed to, but he was being too polite to say so. The manners of royalty, or something like that she figured.
"You must forgive Fandral's tongue my dear; it escapes him on how to keep silent." Thor said, his lips quivering to conceal a smile.
"I have come to know only too well of his blundered word," She replied softly. The rest of the groups ears perk up to the angelic sound of her voice, as if it was strange to see that it came from someone like her. "I feel humbled to be in your presence, though I do not know if I am worthy."
"You let me be the judge of that," Thor interjected as he waved an arm in the air in an inviting motion to the others. "Everyone, come meet Halios, she is a dear friend of our Fandral's, and now most certainly one of ours." He spoke with such candor, she could only marvel at his excellence and arrogance.
She gazed passed Thor's large shoulder to the rest of the group making their way over from the great steps, some more reluctant than others to join their leader. Halios knew not to be insulted by their response towards her, as years of living the live of a serf had well shaped her from worse hostility. This visit was just something she promised herself she would tread through for the sake of keeping her friend happy, a pleasantry really, whether she was welcome or not.
A woman with long golden locks approached; her face stern and her body lithe for quick movement. Surely she was the Lady Sif. Her eyes softened a tad when looking upon Halios, noting the girl's hesitance to be present with them no doubt. No one ever wanted pity, but sometimes it could be a comfort, especially in situations such as that. "We did not think Fandral capable of keeping friends with a woman other then myself, and any day to meet the one to do so is a pleasure." Her words were wise and blunt, but not wholly unkind.
"I am pleased with his friendship, as I am also to be greeted with all of you." She felt the need to slip into a slight bow, but was interrupted to do so by the clearing of a throat.
"My goodness, there is no need for formalities. I fear our flighty friend did not properly inform you that we are in no need of such bureaucracy." It was Volstagg. He fit his description remarkably well from the countless stories Fandral had recited to her. His beard was a dark wine red and hung almost to his slightly protruding belly. Despite his appearance, there was no mistaking him for anything other than a warrior, not with the rippling muscles that tightened in his arms as he crossed them. His deep voice sounded almost more like a grandfathers, gentle but stern, and capable to triumph in battle as well as in a crowded dinner hall.
"Perhaps he did, and I was too daft to listen. I felt a trifle queasy before coming here, but my nerves have loosened a bit more now," She said in kind answer, her hands twiddling together nervously. "Is there anything else I should do?" She asked quietly to Fandral, leaning slightly into him for comfort.
"The rest of the introductions can be made throughout our day. I trust everyone can handle that." Fandral inquired of the rest of his friends, and he was received with quick murmurs of agreement.
"Then let us be on our way." Thor commanded with glee. He marched ahead with a smaller figure following by his side like a shadow. She figured him for Prince Loki; his demeanor was cold as winters breath, and he only spared one fleeting look her way before his interests traveled elsewhere. There wasn't much cheer about him, rather dreary in his deathly countenance, while his movements were stiff and practiced like a complicated dance.
She fell in step with Fandral and Volstagg, while Sif remained in the middle with the silent warrior Hogun. Absentmindedly, Halios began to play with her hair, twisting it around her finger only to let it fall loose again in a flat ringlet. The silence made her feel like an outsider, and she thought maybe they weren't speaking because of her presence intruding upon their day, so she decided to break the muted silence to iron out the tension. "Everyone seems very pleasant to be around."
"Verily, we expect to find the same of you my dear." Volstagg agreed, his beard moved up and down while he nodded.
"Do not worry too much of Hogun, he rarely speaks even to us his kinsmen. And Loki . . ." Fandral paused to think about what to say, but his thoughts seemed to flee from him.
"He's not the most friendly sod, but if he spares you one kind word, you're in the clear." Volstagg finished the incomplete sentence with an uncouth statement about the younger Prince. The luck of being a warrior was to speak ones mind freely she suspected, because he gave no sign of apology.
"Well he is a Prince so I suppose it is his privilege." Halios agreed to appease.
Sif scoffed from ahead, apparently her sentiments leaning a different way. "Right and privilege have nothing to do with it, he needs to lighten up, and spare a laugh for what it's worth. He's more sealed off than the treasure hall." She shook her head as a mistrusting look passed over her face.
"You are not his friend?" Halios inquired in bemusement.
"More like acquaintance. He is good enough in battle, and I owe him my allegiance, but we are not personally friends." She fell back to join with the others, as did Hogun who gives a slight nod to Halios in acknowledgement. His way of greeting perhaps? She couldn't discern if it was friendly, but she simply spared the same gesture in return.
"Let's not spoil the mood by brooding over Silvertongue. We have a new friend in our midst, let's make her feel welcome." Volstagg announced loudly. Birds fluttered away from the trees in a rush, causing everyone to laugh, their chuckles only dying once the last leaves fell from the branches. The pace of their group lagged behind, while the two Princes led on from the front.
Loki took a glance back at the group, them laughing together as Volstagg remained his loud, blustering self. He suppressed an eye roll before turning back to his brother who shared that same merry look about him as the others upon meeting that girl. The novelty was lost on Loki, for she seemed like any other commoner he had come to pass in his days at the market. Her cloth was poor and outdated, and her appearance was disheveled and unkempt as if she had not taken any amount of time at all to present herself. Her nerves were jittery, and she seemed the type of creature to flee at even an eruption of a sudden loud sound. Odin only knows how she kept from jumping at Volstagg's outbursts.
"You seem too quiet brother; should I be worried for some unforeseen plot?" Thor asked with a raised brow.
Loki smirked. As if Thor could ever foresee anything other than the sun rising the next day. Not that he didn't care for his brother, but he was a bit of thick-head, and Loki prided himself on being more of an intellectual than him, if even it was the only trait he could hold in high regard. "I just find it strange that we are so accommodating to some peddler's daughter," He spat the word with some disgust. "What is she doing here? Does she not have friends amongst her own class?"
"Now don't be so abrasive, she seems like a very endearing girl, if a little too quiet." Thor countered with admiration. So his brother had fallen prey to the girl already too. How pathetic.
"Girl, yes the precise word I would use to describe her." He kept his face blank and devoid of emotions. Leave it to Fandral to find some new challenge with a poor girl. Surely he had bedded her by now. It seemed odd he had kept her as a friend for so long after, and now the others were suffering for his mistake. Maybe Fandral pitied her, and opted to keep her company to spare heartbreak from ensuing. Whatever the reason for her being there, Loki seemed to be the only one bothered by her presence, and he couldn't fathom why that was. Were the warriors truly this idiotic? He felt sickened with himself for allowing such insolence to continue in his presence. Why had he even agreed to go on such an endeavor for today? Oh yes, Thor had threatened him to, saying it was his obligations as a friend to Fandral. He would be more favoured to stay alone in the Palace of course. Words were barely shared with him among these people unless the situation was dire, or in battle, so it was not as if they would miss him when he was absent. Naive Thor, he would never learn.
Loki shielded his green eyes from the sun that poked through the pine needle trees. They entered the glade much to his objection, as the others follow suit behind him. The girl stayed close to Fandral which he was thankful for, wanting to keep that distance from her wretched form. He let his gaze wander discreetly to Sif, the female warrior who only ever showed hostility towards him. He would only grin in return, but something of disappointment always fluttered in his stomach when she would look to Thor with longing. Had any female ever shown that look his way? If so he must have turned a blind eye to not have noticed, but secretly he knew none had. The black sheep of Asgard seemed to be his behind-closed-doors title. He looked nothing like his family, or any of Asgard for that matter. They were all tanned light with fair hair and broad features, unlike his fair skin and ink black hair. He was tall and lean in comparison to Thor making him a less fit companion for hand to hand combat. Of course their new companion was also another carbon make in the Aesir form, and it made her all the easier for Loki to dismiss her. All these people were so similar, and it had made him feel wrong in his own skin since he was still a child. To him it felt unfair, like he was under a curse.
Tired of the self loathing he looked back to the nattering group, only to find that girl staring in his direction. She was biting her bottom lip as if keeping a huge secret she had just discovered. He sent a frosted glare her way, causing her to look down at her lap, though she still held a small smile that perplexed and irritated him to no end. Who was she to smile, and what had caused her little bout of merriment?
"Something you find funny about Loki?" Fandral asked Halios quietly as they sat down in the glade.
She whispered in her friend's ear discreetly, afraid she would be caught for her spying. "Does Loki hold a fancy to Sif, because I saw him staring at her, and it was an embarrassing spectacle . . . and innocent."
Fandral snorted in reply. "Never have the words Loki and innocent been referred to in the same sentence."
"Well does he?" She persisted sharply.
"Perhaps so, but he's too silent to act upon it. Besides, you heard how Sif spoke. I don't think the feelings are shared where she is concerned."
"And yet I can't help but feel sorrow for him." She said with heavy eyes.
"Ah Halios, a tender Goddess of Mercy, you certainly fit your title well," He teased with a nudge on her arm. "But you should know that Loki would rather suffer through Hel then to have ones pity. You waste your time with the likes of that."
"All right, I'll take that into consideration as I go talk to him." She stood up from the circle, and Fandral could only watch after his friend, mouth agape in horror as she made her way over to lie-smith. She planted herself next to him tentatively while her dress fanned around her legs. She was quiet, and waited for him to make the first break in conversation.
"What do you want?" He asked, irked that his silence had to be disrupted, and by her no less.
"I wanted to talk with you, you seemed lonely over here." Her tone was soft and helping, annoying him further. So what if he was lonely, it was not as if he needed her to talk with. The trees were better company.
"I rather liked the silence before you came here." He sneered moodily.
"But it was you who broke silence first," He huffed while she giggled. Gods, there was something wrong with this girl. She must have had the fever, or had spent too long under the sun. Despite his childish thoughts, her laugh wasn't an unpleasant sound, which Loki hated to admit to, even in the cloisters of his mind. "See I was right."
"What do you want from me peddler girl?"
She took the insult lightly, as if it didn't faze her in the slightest. "You know, now that you mention it, I'm not really sure. Maybe I don't want anything from you other than words."
"You can get that from anyone else. I've spared enough for the likes of you I think."
"Then we'll just sit here." He was hoping she would agree to leave, but she laid down in the grass beside him instead. Her hair blew carelessly in the wind, every so often crossing over her face in thin tendrils like ribbon. She watched the very sky her eyes matched with the sensibilities of a child, with wonderment and awe. The lake was situated just across the way from where they were, reflecting sunlight off its sheen surface as the day grew older. During all of that silence, the girl never made a sound, or a jerk with her body, and he thought for a second that maybe she had fallen into slumber from the quiet. His eyes cast a sidelong glance and he could still make out her smile, the thing perhaps permanently carved in her face.
After a time Loki stood to leave her, as she knew he would, his steps taken in derisive retreat from where she had encroached upon his space. She had made the first contact to let him know she would ever talk if he needed. A doubtful thing, but hopefully he would graciously accept one day. It was obvious that she was foolish to reach out and make the invitation, for what would a rich Prince have to share with her? Still, she was proud of her bravery to make the effort.
"Shall we all go for a swim then?" Thor asked aloud abruptly, the silence stretching too long for his liking it would seem.
"Aye, that would be most lovely." Sif agreed.
She took after Thor who bolted ahead to the water. Loki scowled while watching them, only to see the peddler girl raise an eyebrow his way with a knowing smile. He glared at her before turning away. She could tell his pale cheeks were slightly flushed from being caught in a stare at the lady warrior, for his fair complexion was much too light to ever hide such a blush. Halios grinned to herself, once again catching the sneaky God off guard.
"I must ask, how is it you were so nervous to meet people who already favour you, but yet can still manage to talk to sourpuss old Loki out of the blue?" Fandral said while laying an arm on her.
"I think I am better with greeting people who detest me; after all that is what I have become used to all of my life," She shrugged, fighting back on the morose thought. "Remember how shy I was of you when you were first friendly to me?"
"Tis a day forever burned in my heart." He answered earnestly making her laugh like a bell on high. They ran behind the group to the water, while Halios beamed from ear to ear. She couldn't contain the pride she felt for being one of the first to catch Loki in a lie.
Not a lot new to be seen here, but I do enjoy seeing them together again!
