I understand that the first three chapter have been quite short and uploaded quickly, but I have had them written up for quite a while, and because I have had so many DM's off you guys telling me to upload more, I had to! But I am beginning to write the next chapter now, so give me a few days. This is a filler chapter, but just go with it + remember to READ AND REVIEW! I only have one so far, and I need them! I OWN NOTHING.
'These are your chambers' said Thor, opening up the large wooden door and gesturing her inside.
As she took her first steps inside what would be her new room, she was taken aback by the sheer size of it. It could have fit three of her own bedroom inside, holding a king size bed, a large wooden writing desk, a dining table, a wall full to the brim with dusty books and discoloured parchment and an open doorway that lead to a large circular bathtub and the rest of the bathroom.
She felt her mouth drop as she saw the golden walls glisten as the light shining through the window reflected off it. She placed her bag down onto the dining table and walked up to the window, which took up the entire wall behind her bed.
The scenery was impressive. With being inside the King's Halls, she almost forgot how high up this made her, as she struggled to see the bottom of the castle.
As she turned back around to face Thor, she began to feel a sharp shooting pain in the side of her ribs which made her clench her side.
'Lady Howlett are you alright?' he asked, worry spread across his face.
'Just a pulled muscle from being hurtled millions of miles through space.' She laughed, attempting to shrug off the lingering pain.
'I shall take your word for it' he smiled back. 'Your maid shall arrive shortly with your clothes for dinner with my father.'
Wait, what?...I'm being introduced to the entire family now? I didn't realise I was that much of a big deal…
She nodded reluctantly and he walked out, allowing her to exhale deeply and return back to the increasing pain coming from the right side of her ribcage. She slowly made her way through to the bathroom and took off her leather jacket. As she looked into the gold encrusted mirror over the sink she saw her white vest covered in blood. She gasped in shock and quickly took it off in a blind panic and looked at the cause of the pain.
There was a deep gash in between two of her ribs, just underneath her right breast which was beginning to bleed heavily down her side.
Maybe I should start working on some sort of protection during flight…and maybe my landing skills… She thought to herself as she began to feel a ball in throat as she began to feel nauseous from the smell.
She ran over to her bagpack and searched through the spare clothes, toiletries and laptop to get to her medical pack. She took out the antiseptic ointment and bandages and slowly shuffled back to the sink.
She placed the bandages in her mouth as she placed the ointment onto her wound, she groaned and bit down hard on the bandages as she felt the liquid searing through her skin, causing all of her muscles to tense up. She wiped away the excess blood and stumbled slightly as became faint.
Okay, maybe Stark lied a bit when the watermelon survived with a few scratches…the things S.H.I.E.L.D would do to get their way…
'My lady!' gasped a woman's voice behind her.
Mallory spun around and saw a woman that was a little smaller than her (which Mallory thought was impossible) but looked about haggard and fatigued, which would have caused her to age quicker than other people.
She looked down at Mallory's wound in shock, dropped the pile of clothes that she was carrying and knelt down to look at it.
'My lady, you are hurt!' she said, taking off her apron and pressing it down on the wound. 'Here, hold it down with pressure whilst I run you a hot bath.'
Mallory stood still watching the woman bustling around the bathtub as she saw her vision begin to blur from the agony. It shocked her how quick the pain had caused her to deteriorate, when she had encountered wounds deeper and more life threatening than this silly gash.
'I'm fine…' she started, realising she did not know the woman's name.
'Ashla, my lady.' She answered, hovering her hand over the running water, a thick foam layer formed over the water with a strong scent of lavender.
'Ashla, thankyou for your concern…but I'll be fine.' She said, before groaning at the pain shooting up through her ribs and into her chest.
'Don't be childish miss…' she snapped, before widening her eyes in shock at her own words. 'I sincerely apologise my lady, I don't know what came over me!'
Mallory looked up at Ashla, seeing her face fall into a fearful look, terrified of what punishment she may face for her actions. It was then that she realised how harsh being a servant here must be for her, waking up every day expecting to be belittled, hurt and humiliated.
'It's fine…' said Mallory, shuffling towards the edge of the bath. 'I don't appreciate the thought of coming into someone's world and punishing for doing their duty, Ashla. You may speak to me whichever way you like and consider me your equal.'
Ashla smiled gratefully and blushed, never receiving that amount of respect before.
'You are incredibly kind my lady.' She said, stopping the running water. 'So I shall ask for you to stop acting childish and get in the water before you lose anymore blood!'
Mallory smiled slightly, feeling a lot more comfortable in her prescence. She struggled taking off the rest of her clothes and climb into the bath. The pain slowly slipping away as she allowed the heat to warm her through.
'The pain…it's gone?' she asked, confused.
'I may be a maid miss, but we all have our uses, no matter how small' she smiled. 'It's got a healing lotion inside the water, and it should stop the pain for a few hours.'
Ashla picked up her pile of clothes and walked towards the door. She opened up the pile and revealed a dark blue, long sleeved dress, that brushed across the floor. She hung it up on the door handle and allowed it to flow to elegantly.
A dress…me…in a dress…
'I assume by that look on your face that you are not one for dresses?' laughed Ashla, turning around to look at her.
'Where I come from, we don't have many opportunities to wear dresses, especially one as…elegant as that' said Mallory, feeling her muscles relax as she sunk lower in to the water.
'Well, luckily for you, this is only for the presence of the King, he is still quite…how would you say, old fashioned?' she said, picking up the blood stained clothes and taking a closer look at it. 'We do cater for women that prefer tighter clothes, such as yourself and the Lady Sif.'
Mallory laughed to herself as she had begun to realise that the mythological characters she had read about in her childhood were real life people, living in the same walls as herself. She looked up at the ceiling which was an open window into the darkening sky.
'I shall clean these for you whilst you get changed' said Ashla, wrapping the dirty clothes inside her blood stained apron and making her way to the door. 'I shall collect you shortly to lead you to dinner.'
After battling with two sides of her mind over the wretched dress, she reluctantly made her way behind Ashla through the golden corridors towards the grand hall doors in front of them.
Is it a private meal? There's nobody else here…She thought as a knot built up in her stomach, making feel more and more nervous. She bit her lip as Ashla stopped in front of the closed doors.
'The guards will lead you through soon, but I shall have to leave you here.' Said Ashla with a smile. 'Your clothes will be on your bed when you return, my lady.'
'Thankyou, Ashla' she replied, as she began to walk away.
The dinner was rather quick, although it seemed like the entire population of Asgard had been crammed into one room. Everyone seemed to eat as though it was their last meal, especially the men, and the food never seemed to deteriorate. Granted, the food was incredibly decadent and every mouthful she took was like a haven for her taste buds…and after the ready meals and beer she drank almost every day at the mansion, she was grateful for the proper nourishment.
She was introduced to the King and Queen, which surprisingly went very well, and soon enough, she was left alone with Thor.
'So my dear Mallory, has your first day in Asgard been to your expectations?' he asked, his booming voice echoing through Mallory's chest. He pulled up a chair and sat down next to her.
'I'm afraid I haven't been able to do much just yet' she answered. 'The trip here has somehow taken quite a lot of energy from me.'
'That was expected, I am quite surprised you had even made it to our banquet!' he said, laughing under his breath. 'Although, I'm afraid I must ask for one more favour before you enter your slumber tonight…'
Mallory held her breath as she awaited the God's command, her stomach beginning to tighten up once more with nervousness.
'I have been informed that you know of your duty to be in my dear brother's company for a certain amount of time.' He started, looking into her eyes and seeing her eyebrows frown with worry. 'I must say that, as much as I honour your decision to accept this, I must say that you'll be fighting a war that you will inevitably lose with him.'
His caring attitude towards her flattered her and caused her to smile slightly as she looked back up, his face showed more than just worry, but instead concern. As though she was preparing to enter something in which she may not return.
That's silly, he's a fallen god. He has been stripped of his powers, he has no authority over me and if I was able to…as Fury said 'tame my father' then I will sure as hell try with this guy.
'I appreciate your concern, Thor…but I must try to reassure you when I say that, I have been placed against harsher, more reluctant people than your brother.' She said, seeing his face soften. 'I will do what I was set out to do, and that is to try and change his mind.'
Thor was hesitant as he listened to her reasoning, understanding well what Loki was capable of, and what sordid things he could do to this quaint, naïve girl…who was a long way from home.
'Then before you enter his chamber, I must ask you to change into a different set of clothes.' He asked, standing back up to his normal, gigantic height. 'I don't want him thinking that you are a woman hired for his needs.'
Mallory stopped breathing in shock as she realised what his statement meant. She curled up her face in disgust at the thought of being taken advantage of by some self-obsessed, arrogant man who thought himself a god amongst her own people. This reaction seemed to humour Thor, as his laugh shook the room.
'Ashla will direct you back to your chambers for you to change, and then I will demands guards transport you to Loki's holding room, but I must ask for you not to dawdle in there for too long…he gets irritable when he is fatigued.'
Mallory stood up, nodded at his request and then saw Ashla shuffle up towards her. She looked back down at the table, saw an incredibly large leg of succulent chicken. She grabbed it, wrapped it in her napkin and held it close to her, allowing the flow of her dress to disguise it from the guards.
As she got to the door of her bedroom, she placed her hand on Ashla's shoulder and gently spun her around.
'Ashla…' she said, opening up her napkin, revealing the chicken. 'I want you to have this, no friend of mine deserves the shit they feed you.'
Tears formed in Ashla's eyes as she looked down at the chicken leg, she laughed with happiness and gratefully took the napkin and chicken from her. Her hands shook as she held it tightly, afraid of it disappearing before her eyes.
'I…Thi…My Lady, I have not had any piece of meat for hundreds of years, you're so kind, I…I don't know how to repay you…I…' she stumbled, as the tears ran from her eyes.
'Just eat it' laughed Mallory. 'You deserve it…and call me Mallory…I'm not your lady, I'm your friend.'