Part 3
You walked through the great halls of the Alfheim palace watching those around you out of the corner of your eye as you moved purposely. You had a job to do, and though your time playing pet in Asgard had made you somewhat complacent, that was in the past and you were over that little hiccup, and back hiding in shadows where you belonged.
There was a sort of inter-realm gathering taking place in the Light Elf realm, not that you cared for its reason, all it meant was that you were able to get passed the guards with the aid of a dress and a few smiles as everyone present simply assumed you were there with another realm.
You walked through the halls until you found what you were looking for, the guest sleeping quarters. Always facing forward, you ensured you looked as though you knew exactly where you were going to stave off any suspicion, meaning none questioned your intentions.
You listened carefully as you passed each door in the corridor, trying to hear the accents and languages of those who occupied each room so to establish which realm they derived from. There were Jötnar, Vanir, Aesir and finally Dark Elves. On hearing the Svartalfheim tongue, you took a moment to assess your best plan of action and decided to head to a nearby window and use the ledge to check each room to find the target.
Voices coming down the hall behind you caught your attention and forced you to hide behind a pillar and plant. You watched as a woman roughly the same age as yourself carried a young child to one of the Aesir bedrooms and then the hallway was quiet once more. Climbing out the window, you made your way along the ledge until you found the correct balcony.
It was so easy; the Dark Elf you were looking for was asleep. All it took was a sharp blow to the head to keep him unconscious, then lifting him to his balcony before throwing him off. As soon as he struck the ground beneath, you took your leave and began to make your journey from the room via the door so to head back to the remains of the party.
You were shocked to hear soldiers rushing toward the hall so quickly. Thinking fast, you rushed into the room you had seen the woman go into with the small child not too long before.
Before you even turned around from closing the door, you knew you were not alone. "Who are you, where is my daddy?" a small voice called. You turned to see a small boy looking at you fearfully. "Daddy?" he called.
"What are you doing out of bed?" A voice called. A door to a side room opened as the speaker entered. "And where is…" The sentence died on the speakers tongue as he stared at you. "I assume you're not here on a social visit."
"Loki."
The trickster king looked you up and down as you stood there, slightly shocked. "You look almost the exact same as you did the day you left." He commented. "I thought your Midgardian heritage would have altered you somewhat."
"No, I age at the same rate as full Aesir do, it seems." You informed him.
"Clearly, it has been three centuries, were you to be more Midgardian, you would be dead." He stated in an obvious manner.
"There you are." The woman you saw earlier came out of another room. She froze on seeing you and looked between you and Loki.
"Elena, please take Fenrir back to bed." Loki ordered, not taking his eyes off you. With a nod, the woman did as requested and picked up the young boy and took him away through the door she had entered through before herself. "So is there a body somewhere around here?"
"Svartalfhiem's main delegate is now splattered on the pavement outside." you informed him.
"The poor bastard. Still so terrifyingly deadly I see." He smiled. "We still have not found Tyr by the way."
"I would not count on being able to. The fool made the horrific error of slapping my ass just as I was thinking of making it swift."
"Oh dear, that is the height of idiocy it must be said. Though I do not recall you reacting so badly to such when it was I that did it to you." His smile was devilish as he recalled your times together.
"There was something in it for me then. I did not know these were your quarters, I was simply hiding from guards, so I had better be on my way."
"So soon?" you could hear the disappointment in his voice.
"I think I startled your child, and I doubt your wife will be too pleased at you talking to a random woman so late in the evening. Congratulations are in order by the way, it seems you have a family for yourself." You bowed slightly and turned to leave.
"She is not my wife. Elena is Fenrir's nanny." Loki informed you.
"Well then, I doubt your wife will be too pleased at hearing you were entertaining another woman without her even being present."
"I do not have a wife, much to the disgust of many in court. They are starting to regret your departure it would seem."
"Well none the less I should depart." You stated, ignoring the last statement, turning to leave. When you turned, though you had just been speaking to Loki across the room, he was standing in your way, blocking the exit.
"Did you ever plan on telling me?"
"Telling you what, about this job, I did not know you were here, though had I have known, the answer would have been no." You confessed.
"That is not what I am referring to." He stood tall, his voice angry.
You cocked your head slightly. "I do not follow."
"Fenrir is apparently my very image; he is the picture of me in every way." Loki started. "But he is slyer than even I, with a knack for reading people and thinking swiftly, even for one so young."
"Congratulations, you must be very proud."
"He is so like you in mind, I often feel like you are back in Asgard again." You froze and stared at the raven haired man. "Yes, I found him." He growled. "Heimdall was under order to keep an eye on you after you left, in case you were in danger. He told me nothing of note until after you birthed him, and left him to be cared for in Vanaheim while you fled. I found him, brought him home, and now am raising him as the prince he is." You swallowed hard. "You said nothing." His voice was low, but terrifying.
"I could not."
"You made comment enough about leaving, I am sure you could had added somewhere that you were with child." He spat.
"I had to leave, if I stayed, I would be there still."
"Is that so bad?"
"I am not like most others Loki, I cannot remain still. You acknowledged that yourself."
"You abandoned him." He was seething, shaking with anger.
"There is a hell of a difference between leaving a child to perish alone in the cold and leaving it with someone who will care for it."
"You left him to be raised as nothing more than a farmhand, when he is a prince, and the future king of Asgard. And you are his mother, you should be with him."
"I am no mother, I am a killer."
"Then why carry him."
"He did not deserve to die."
"Many of those you have killed never deserved such fates, yet you chose to let him live, you chose to suffer childbirth alone in a woods and then to do that to him, to our son."
"He is your son Loki, not mine. I am no good for him; I am not a mother for him to take pride in." You felt tears welling in your eyes, which angered you. You felt no guilt the day you left him on Vanaheim, it was the right thing to do, you were in no way fit to care for him. But having seen him, having heard his voice and name, your mind was guilting you for your actions.
"And you will leave now, leave and never wonder of him again?" Loki's tone told you of the hatred he had for what you had done.
"I have no choice."
"There is always choice."
"Not for one such as me. Take care of him Loki, and take care of yourself."
"You pretend to have a heart made of stone, but you do not. He knows of you, I tell him about you. I cannot tell him what you look like, because I know it puts you at risk, but he knows you risked your life for him. He knows you love him, in whatever odd manner you love others and I know now that you have seen him your mind will think of him. All you need to do is look to Valhalla and call to Heimdall, he will bring you back." He took another step toward you, putting his forefinger under your chin and tilting it up so you were forced to look him in the eye. "I see you were the necklace still." he noted. Without taking his eyes off yours, he leant in and gently pressed his lips to yours. "Until we meet again, my sweetling."
And with that you left.
XXXXXXXXXXX
As time went by, Loki's words ran true, you thought often of the little boy, how much he did look like his father, and of the life he had. Pride filled you as you thought of the fact he would be king, something you never would have even thought possible.
It consumed your time more and more, and the more time it consumed, the less you killed, knowing that distraction could be fatal for you. As you sat beside a lake one afternoon, you wondered what Loki read to Fenrir going to sleep at night, knowing the king adored books. With a glance to the sky, you wondered should you speak.