a/n: I apologise for the slight wait I have caused for an update. My muse was on holiday. But she's back and here we are. I hope you enjoy the chapter. This is written entirely from Loki's POV. As will be future chapters until I note otherwise. And then again, I am going to keep up the noted POV until I say different again.
Enjoy!
From the second I said those words I regreted having done so. I could not only see the pain in Alfdís' face, but actually feel it. I Don't know how or why, but that was how it was. So I decided to apologize as soon as the next class we would have had together. But she didn't show. Or the next one, nor the one after that. It's been weeks and I was just about to give up hope when I was told she would come back to classes again. The first thing to come up for us toghether again was battle practice and I deemed it as good a time as any to apologize. But, well...
Never before have I seen Alfdís this angry. For a while now, and due to the chaos that has happened before, it would have been stupid for me not acknowledge that I couldn't cause quite a disruption. More than once my father has been angered by my behaviour, and mother had to put me back in place repeatedly. Yet, I never really meant to hurt anyone. Least of all her. That sweet, little girl that gave off the impression to need protecting and that she could handle herself simultaneously. After all, she always told me what she thought of me in all honesty, and yet seemed so vunerable at times. Boy, was I mistaken. Her constant refusal to fighting, and that Alfdís was at best participating practices half-heartedly, made me assume that she just couldn't fight. Not only did our last practice together prove me to be completely wrong in my assumption, but also that there was a strenght to her which actually struck me with fear as well as new admiration. I mean, I've admired her from the first day on, because she neither knew nor seemed to have cared about my royal ancestory. She always treated me the same way as any other boy or girl she spent time with. But now I knew to fear her. Not only because she could kick my ass as easily as crumbling cheese, but because I hurt her. Deeply. And in a way that left me hurt, too. And this feeling, or rather confusion, scared me somehow.
All these things kept going on in my mind repeatedly. Common classes went almost unbearable. Every time I dared a glance, she pointedly ignored me. No pranking other kids, with Thor as favourite target, or teachers together. On the contrary, whenever I played a prank on anyone she wouldn't smile. Not even tell me off or anything. Just plain nothing.
And as if that wasn't enough Soon after the highly escalated combat session, mother came in to tell me that I was grounded. "What!?" I exclaimed, "grounded?! Why?"
She looked at me with a sad, disappointed halfsmile. "Fjǫlmundr told us what happned, of course. And Heimdall came to fill in the rest. Why did you hurt Alfdís like that?", mother caressed my cheek with one hand. That gesture and her words caused as much pain as a thousand daggers, "I thought she was your best friend?"
"She is." I replied, feeling the heat of tears starting to stream down my cheeks. "It was a stupid thing to say. Please let me go talk to her!"
"I'm afraid I can't. You will have to sit through your reprecussions. The King has ordered so!"
I nodded slowly. I knew I was in trouble when mother refered to her husband as 'The King'. But even more so did I feel like I desvered what I got for hurting Alfdís like that.
*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*A*
It has not been disclosed to me when exactly my punishment would be revoked and I was too afraid to ask. During classes I had no chance talking to Alfdís, and with my not being allowed to leave the palace it was very hard for me to even get a glimpse of a chance as to being able to talk to her alone. And the fact that she has inherited both her father's gifts of sight and hearing, as well as her mother's many abilities, including the ability of premonition, didn't make my chances any easier. But I wouldn't give up and decided to practice myself being shrouded from view, still trying to seize every moment that I might be able to catch Alfdís alone. To no avail. Like this, days went into the land and turned into weeks. Weeks soon turned into months. Seasons changed. Thor and the others tried their best to distract me, but it didn't help much.
"You need to get out of here!", Thor stepped up next to me. "You're hardly yourself!"
"Oh, yeah? And what do you suggest, brother? I'm grounded, remeber?", I retorted. "Besides, it's not exactly like she wants to talk to me!"
"Who says anything about Alfdís?" Thor smirked at me, apparently happy to have the upper hand, "It's just unnerving to see you constantly sulking around like that. You really need to get out of the palace more!"
"Look, if you're just going to gloat at me, you might as well piss off!", I scowled at him.
He chuckled. "Nah, I was just pulling your leg. Let's go and find her. I'm sure you can talk her around somehow. You're great with words!"
"It still doesn't change the fact that I'm grounded. How are we supposed to get past that?"
My brother's grin widened, "I've got an idea. Just do as I say, and it'll be alright."
"Fine.", I shrugged. Couldn't get any worse than staying here, after all. I got up and followed him. We wound our way through the palace easily and didn't get spotted up until we closed in to the palace gates. We stopped behind a collumn and I frowned at my brother again, "Now what do we do?"
"Wrap your arm around my shoulders and pretend to be ill!", he replied and I complied. He half dragged me towards the gates and, as soon as we were withing earshot, started shouting "GET HELP! Please, get help! My brother, hes dying!"
Inwardly I chuckled to myself. But before I could wonder if this would actually work, Thor lifted me up and tossed me at them, crying out "Help him!"
It knocked them out alright. So we rushed out the gates, before the guards would come to. "That wasn't funny, Thor. You could have warned me!" I scoffed at him.
"I think it was hilarious! You should have seen your face!" he laughed as we ran off to find Alfdís.
