Two evenings before the party Thor came over to show Vivienne a selection of alcoholic beverages common on Asgard. Vivienne wasn't fooled; though it was presented as an opportunity to pick drinks for the party she knew it was just an excuse for an evening of drinking and relaxing. It was still thoroughly welcome, Vivienne hadn't tried any alcohol since living here and the idea of relaxing with a few drinks was pleasant.

Thor arrived a little earlier than expected and walked in as she and Loki were still sat finishing their latest lesson. He met the sight of various books and papers sprawled over the coffee table and Loki sitting up on the far sofa, a book in one hand and a green flame sitting in the palm of the other which was held absent-mindedly out to the side. He was reclined back and his attention was on the book, completely ignoring the appearance of his brother.

"Loki's been teaching me about control of fire today." Vivienne said, and Thor noted the pride in her voice and the smile on her face. He was surprised to see her so happy and even more surprised by the sight of Loki so relaxed. Upbeat music drifted in from the balcony that sounded foreign to him, but he saw Vivienne humming along to it as she sat down at one end of the other sofa and gestured for him to join her.

"Oh has he?" Thor replied, as Loki leisurely shut the book and gestured the flame away. He then looked up at Thor.

"Vivienne informs me you're an hour early." He said politely, his voice devoid of emotion. Vivienne frowned at the two gods, noticing the swift change in demeanour from the relaxed Loki that had been in the room before the Thor had knocked.

"I finished my duties early, that is all." Thor replied pleasantly, "I am sorry if I interrupted your lesson. You are free to continue and I shall wait until you are done."

"Nah, let's call it a day." Vivienne said from the floor as she tried to disperse the mounting tension. "All I had left was notes to write anyway. We were talking more than working." She shuffled the books and papers on the table into a pile. "Sit down, make yourself comfortable!" she said to Thor as she carried them off into her office. In her absence Loki stood to leave.

Thor frowned at him. "Leaving so soon brother?"

"The lesson is over." Loki said simply, again his voice was devoid of any emotion.

"You do not have to leave, you are welcome to join us." Thor said, though he was aware of Loki's reluctance to spend time with him.

"Yeah stay and have a drink." Vivienne said as she came back in to the room, her face cheerful. "Come on grumpy, socialise a little!"

"Socialising? With a mortal like you?" Loki said, his lips curling into a smirk as he turned to her. "Now why would I ever do that?"

"Because otherwise all you'd do is sit in your room polishing skulls. Or whatever else it is you do." Vivienne replied sarcastically, her smile far broader. She sat down on the sofa and gestured for Loki to follow. Thor was surprised by how openly she teased him, considering it was only a few weeks since their argument. He had expected her to be a lot more cautious, and for Loki to be a lot colder towards her. He was even more surprised when Loki, after a moment's hesitation, sat down next to her to answer her request. He reclined back as she sat forwards to look at the box that Thor had arrived with.

"So, what've you brought us then?" she asked eagerly. Thor looked at Loki then leaned into the box and pulled out various bottles, talking Vivienne through them. She followed his words and asked questions in the right places. When finished he pulled out three glasses and poured out samples from the first bottle.

Vivienne grabbed one and handed it back to Loki. He took it graciously with a murmured "Thank you" and then continued to sit back silently, occasionally sipping his drink. Vivienne started hers as well, still talking to Thor, and soon conversation turned away from the bottles on the table.

"I used to drink on occasion at home. I had friends that drank a lot more regularly than me, but I only like to drink on social occasions and I didn't have many of those." Vivienne said absent-mindedly, with a slightly sad tone at the end.

Loki gave a huff. "Painting a sob story are we?"

Thor was unhappy with how openly he seemed to attack her phrasing, but she laughed at him and just replied "You know I didn't mean it like that", before turning back to the table. Thor saw Loki smile at Vivienne's back and he realised that these little insults must be a regular occurrence. He found it strange to see Loki look at her this fondly, it was a reminder Thor of a Loki that he'd not seen in a long time and he was happy to see it again. He remembered Vivienne talking a while back about how she felt pampered here and wanted someone to challenge her sometimes. Well from Thor's observations Loki certainly seemed to be providing that, both in lessons and in conversation.

"But yeah," Vivienne continued, "I do like an occasional drink. And I enjoy getting a little drunk, I'm not usually one for full out drunken escapades. I can stay sensible."

Thor boomed out a laugh. "On Earth maybe, but I have drunk your alcohol. The drinks here are a lot stronger. I would watch your consumption this evening if I were you."

"Oh I do like a challenge." She replied after a moment before she then downed the rest of her glass in one.

Loki laughed at Thor. "She can be as stubborn as you about a challenge. I don't think you know what you've started."

Vivienne just replied with a "Yep" and opened the next bottle, confirming its name and pouring herself a small measure. The two gods followed her lead, though their measures were double hers, tasting the second before moving on once more. Conversation flowed well, mostly between Vivienne and Thor but with some input from Loki, usually when Vivienne addressed him directly. She couldn't help but notice his reluctance to talk directly to Thor, or for Thor to address him in turn. But she knew well enough by now not to ask delicate questions about why and so turned back to the drinks. By the end of her third glass Vivienne was starting to feel a little tipsy, and by the end of her fifth she was conscious of her words slurring a little.

"Damn, this stuff is strong." She said.

"I knew Midgardian bodies are weak but I did not expect you to be this drunk already." Loki said, but he had been drinking larger measures than her and Vivienne had noticed that he was being very slow and deliberate about his actions, as if he did not want to give away his own tipsy state.

Thor had noticed as well. "Brother you seem to be feeling the influence as well, are you not? You have always been a light drinker."

Loki paused. "I have been compared to most Aesir yes. And it has been a while since I drank alcohol of any kind. I am afraid I have lost what little resistance I had built to it."

"Well I'm just glad I'm not alone in getting drunk then." Vivienne said as she moved onto drink number six, making sure to pour out a much more generous share for each of the gods than herself. "And as I said, I didn't get many occasions to drink. There's no point drinking unless you have good people to drink with."

"I'll take the compliment." Loki said.

"Well as I'm here to stay now, it would be good to find some drinking buddies."

"Thor is a far more suitable candidate for that." Loki said. "I've never been anyone's choice for drinking buddy, I'd usually much prefer to avoid drunken stupidity and go read instead."

"Well you're my first choice." Vivienne declared. After the words had left her mouth she became aware of how obvious they probably were and mentally chastised herself. "And I don't really enjoy drunken escapades either, unless I'm the one doing them."

"I think we can all appreciate that." Loki said. He turned to Thor. "You'd know all about drunken escapades, wouldn't you though?" he said with a wicked smirk.

Thor looked mildly embarrassed. "I did have a tendency to get carried away when drinking in the past yes, but those days are over."

He tried to sound final, but Loki wasn't having it. He tapped Vivienne on the shoulder so she turned to him and said "Shall I tell you about the time we persuaded Thor into a wedding dress?"

Vivienne looked across at Thor and laughed again with a "Really?" Thor dropped his head into his hands as confirmation enough and Vivienne turned back to Loki as he began speaking.

Thor took his head out of his hands to watch Loki tell the story to Vivienne. It wasn't as embarrassing to hear as it used to be, not now that it had been told a thousand times over. Thor soon got over his chagrin and instead became fascinated watching Loki speak. His brother had always been brilliant at weaving a narrative and as he spoke Vivienne was completely entranced by his words. Thor observed how she shuffled her whole body to face towards him, laughing at the right moments and taking occasional sips of her drink.

He was even more interested by Loki himself, who seemed to have let go of the cold demeanour he usually held now around his adopted brother. Whether it was the storytelling or the alcohol Thor could not tell. Loki's face lit up as he spoke to this attentive girl in a way that Thor hadn't seen in years, since before his disaster of a coronation, and his heart ached to see it. And despite his initial scepticism Thor could see it now: his mother had been right, Vivienne was good for Loki. The Thunder God hadn't thought her able to but the clumsy human girl had been able to bring out a side in Loki he hadn't seen in a long time.

By the time Loki had finished his story Vivienne had moved onto her seventh glass and was definitely past drunk. Thor was too far away to be able to intervene but he gestured to Loki. Loki moved forwards and took Vivienne's hands in his own, taking the glass out of them and putting it on the table with a smile and an "Enough now."

Vivienne frowned somewhat at being told to stop but neither Thor nor Loki missed how she blinked at the contact between her and Loki's hands; nor the blush that consequentially crept up her cheeks. To Thor it was like a slap in the face, the sudden realisation that Vivienne thought about his brother that way. Loki himself seemed completely unsurprised, and Thor realised he must have known for a while.

"You're no fun." Vivienne slurred after a moment. "I revoke- I mean remove, is that the word? I remove your title as official drinking buddy."

"Well then I guess you'll have to find new company to drink with." Loki replied, clearly amused.

Vivienne slouched back on the sofa. "All I ever do here is "find new company"." She said. "You know you guys and Sif and Frigga are still the only people who really don't treat me like I'm inferior. Well. Loki does but he doesn't count." Loki laughed at her from the other end of the sofa and she clumsily nudged him with her foot and told him to shush.

"I'm sure you'll find good company in the end." Thor said. "But be patient, the Aesir do not know much about humanity. It will take time for attitudes to change."

"Yeah but "time" for you could be my lifetime. I sometimes feel like I'll never find many good friends. Let alone like, boyfriends or whatever. Oh god." She stared at the wall with sudden realisation on her face. "Relationships are a whole other thing. Like, what Asgardian would want to date me? I'd just die on them."

Loki laughed at her from the other end of the sofa. She looked at him.

"No but I'm serious! You guys live so long I could pledge my life to someone and to them it'd be little more than a fling."

"I am sure you will find romance someday-" Thor began, but Loki cut him off.

"She had a point Thor." He said. "It's a legitimate concern."

"Exactly!" Vivienne slurred. "Oh god. I'll never get married. I never really wanted kids but I'm kinda sad it's not even a possibility. I'm going to die a virgin."

She only realised what she'd said after she'd said it and felt very embarrassed. Thor look mildly embarrassed for her but Loki just threw his head back and laughed loudly. It was more uninhibited than any action Vivienne had seen from him so far, so honest, with a slightly manic tinge to it. It made her smile as well.

"I'm sure you could find some way to lose that." Loki said when he had calmed down. "If you really care there will be someone willing to bed you if you look hard enough."

"Yeah but even then it'll mean nothing to them. I always had girly visions of having someone special or- wait why I am talking about this. No. Anyway." She looked at the two gods. "What about you guys? You wanna get married, have kids? Are either of you actually seeing someone?" she questioned.

"Alas, I am not seeing anyone romantically." Thor said. "There was a girl, on Earth actually, but it was not meant to be."

"Yeah, see exactly! Human." Vivienne said.

"But," Thor continued, "I do hope to wed someday. It's expected of me as king one day to wed and sire heirs to the throne. But I do not feel that pressured, as I have always wanted a family."

"If he doesn't produce any heirs I'm technically next in line for the throne." Loki said. "Though given my recent uh, adventures, I'm sure in the event of Thor's sudden death they'd find a cousin to give it to."

"And what about you?" Vivienne asked. "You got anyone special?"

Loki laughed at her. "Who would want to date a war criminal adopted from another race?" Thor frowned at him and so did Vivienne, but she spoke first.

"Wait what do you mean adopted?" she asked.

The smile fell from Loki's face and he cursed himself for drinking this much and letting the statement slip. He took a sip of his drink and thought over his words before replying. "I'm not truly as Aesir. I am magically disguised to look like one, so well that I myself didn't realise until a relatively short while ago, but I was born on Jotunheim."

"Oh." Vivienne said quietly, her frown remaining. "Wait, but what does that make you actually then?"

Loki shot a look at Thor, who was sat very still watching, before turning back to her. "I'm a Jotun, commonly referred to as a "Frost Giant." It's not a desirable race to be."

"Wait, isn't that the place they were going to exile you to when you hit me?" She continued.

"Yes," Loki replied, his face and body language becoming more and more withdrawn. "But I do not wish to discuss it further."

Vivienne looked at him for a moment, questions still visibly brimming beneath the surface, but after a moment she gave up and slumped back, holding them in. Thor looked between the two of them and searched for a way to change the subject.

"Alas, I hope both of you can find love someday." he said.

"Oh I've found someone to love, they'll just never love me back." Vivienne slurred, without thinking and sounding defeated. She didn't seem to realise what she'd let slip, as she sat looking down into her lap. Thor looked across at Loki, who was watching Vivienne intently.

"If you never approach the people you have feelings for you'll never find any of their feelings towards you." he said casually, before looking over at Thor. There were too many mixed emotions in his face for Thor to pick apart, but the Thunder God got the overriding message, which said "Let me handle this." Thor hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to trust Loki with Vivienne's feelings, but given how good she seemed to be for Loki in the end he gave a small nod.

"Telling someone I like them won't make them love me." Vivienne said quietly, the defeat and slightly bitterness still evident in her voice.

"No, but if you aren't honest about your feelings they might not even consider you romantically."

"Romance." Vivienne snorted. "Romance is boring." She started humming to herself.

Thor looked across at Loki, his words as full of meaning as Loki's previous ones. "Maybe you should follow your own advice and be more honest about your own feelings."

"That would be unwise." Loki said back, his voice also loaded with emotion. "I have seen enough of the universe to doubt that I will ever find love, or that anyone else will for that matter." his gaze flickered to Vivienne briefly. Thor saw but she wasn't looking.

"Unlikely, but here's hoping." Vivienne said, reaching for her glass again and completely missing the double meanings in the gods' words. "A toast to finding love! Or at least getting laid." she said, before downing what was left of her glass. Only when she'd finished did Thor realise she'd just used Loki's words as an excuse to drink more. Loki was watching her, a smirk appearing again in the corner of his mouth.

"Woah." she said as she tried to put the glass back on the table and missed. It fell the short distance to the floor, but it was empty and didn't smash. Vivienne tried to stand to pick it up, but stumbled with the motion. Loki sat forwards and took one of her hands in his own and placed his other hand round her waist to steady her.

"I think you need to go to bed." he said quietly, amusement and fondness in his voice. Thor nodded in agreement from across the table. "I think it is time for me to leave now as well."

Vivienne let out a pout but didn't voice her protest. Loki stood and placed his glass and hers from the floor onto the table. He wasn't wobbling visibly but his movements were slow and deliberate. Thor was reminded of when Loki played the sober friend in the past when he and the warriors three had been out drinking.

With a gesture Loki magicked the remaining bottles and the glasses back into the box. He looked up at Thor.

"If you're alright to remove these, I'll put her to bed." he said swiftly, moving to guide Vivienne round to her room before Thor had time to protest. Vivienne wobbled a little when walking, but gave Thor a cheery enough "Bye Thor!" before taking Loki's arm. Thor picked up the box and stood, feeling the pleasant buzz of alcohol in his system but not feeling impaired by it at all. He watched Loki guide Vivienne through the door into her room, her hanging off his arm to keep herself upright, before turning to the door and leaving himself.

Inside Vivienne's room Vivienne herself giggled as she stumbled to sit on the bed. She felt a little embarrassed and felt the flush rise in her cheeks as Loki slowly knelt in front of her and started unlacing her shoes.

"You know I could do that myself right?" she slurred, but he just smirked up at her.

"Oh I believe that completely," he started, sarcasm evident in his voice, "but let me."

She sat silently as pulled her shoes off, watching his hands. When he finished he stood and smiled down at her.

"Would you like me to fetch some nightclothes for you?" he asked politely. Vivienne was mildly confused by now nice he was being, but couldn't think straight enough past the alcohol to work out why.

"Um, no, it's okay. I'll sleep in this, change later. I don't usually wear anything in bed anyway." she paused. "Wait no I didn't mean to say that."

Loki laughed but pulled the covers back and allowed her to climb in. When he finished he turned to leave but Vivienne called out on impulse.

"Wait! Stay." she said. "I don't want you to go."

"I need to go to sleep myself." The trickster replied, amusement in his voice.

"Sleep here then." she said, gesturing to the remainder of her huge bed. For a long moment he didn't react. "Or you know, you don't have to-" she began after the silence, but she fell silent in surprise when he walked back towards the bed, moving round to sit on the other side.

"Thank you. I like being with you." she said quietly, watching as he unlaced his boots and, after undoing several buckles, shrugged his coat off.

"That looks complicated." she said, and he smiled again. "And you look small without it." she frowned, looking him up and down now he was reduced to a green under shirt and trousers.

"Small?" he questioned, as he carefully lifted the bed covers and slipped in beside her. There was still a reasonable distance between them as he lay down on his side, facing her.

"Yeah." she said eloquently. He snorted with amusement but gave her a slightly drunk and slightly affectionate smile.

"Goodnight Vivienne."

"Goodnight Loki." she replied, and closed her eyes. She was asleep almost immediately.