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Amora walked into the holding room with a tray of food and water and approached Loki's cell. Loki sat on his bed, his back ramrod straight, his hands on his knees. He looked straight ahead and did not acknowledge her presence.
"Remain where you are, Odinson. Be a good boy and you will be fed," she warned, and Loki did not move. Amora opened the door at the edge of the cell and placed the tray on the ground inside, closing the door once more.
"Have you thought about your answer anymore?" was all she asked.
Loki made no move toward the food, but noticed in half a second that, for the first time, Amora had provided him with utensils. He turned to look at her.
"I will help you."
A slow grin crept across Amora's face, but she remained suspicious.
"And why the sudden change of heart? Surely I did not scare you that badly," Amora said. She paced in front of the glass of his cell slowly, her high-heeled boots clicking with each step.
"I wish to leave this place," said Loki, and he rose from the bed, meeting her eye, "And you are the better sorcerer of us two, I will admit that. I can see now that I will get nowhere by denying you, and what you ask is not a bad thing. And I can admit that I wish to see Lorelei's smiling face once more. So yes, Amora the Enchantress, I will aide you."
Amora studied him, unsure whether Loki was being genuine or not and deciding that he must be. He could see the power that she held.
She realized that he must fear her.
"When and where are all I need; other than that I shall await your command," said Loki.
"Soon," she said, and she eyed him suspiciously, considering his request and finding no fault in telling him, "And I don't suppose there is any harm in telling you where we are, it's not like you can do anything about it anyway. We are inside of Falcor Peak on Niflheim. We shall open the rift where the three frozen rivers meet. The veil between this realm and Hel's in thin there."
Loki nodded and gave absolutely no indication that their location meant anything significant to him. With that Amora left him and his gaze turned toward the plate of food and water.
He knew that Amora and her hulking manservant would not be back any time soon, and Loki took advantage of it. He took the knife and fork and started working on the door's edge, attempting to pry it open. While there was magic guarding the cell, there was nothing special about the door that held the door closed. Once opened he would be able to use his powers again.
But he would wait for that. He had not lied when he admitted that Amora was more powerful than he, but she was not significantly more powerful. If Loki had the right advantage he would be able to defeat Amora and would not risk breaking out of this prison in a frozen mountain just to succumb to the freezing cold of Niflheim. He did not have the proper supplies to weather the stinging blizzards of the world of primordial ice.
Instead, he would spend his precious time arming himself with knowledge.
Loki was finally able to pry the door open and he exited the cell immediately, striding directly toward the book that Amora had dangled in front of him before. He could only read the two open pages when Skurge had destroyed the room, but they were enough to show him that there was no way that Amora was opening a portal to Hel.
She was opening a rift into another dimension.
Loki pored over the book for hours and, having committed the words to memory, placed the tome back exactly as he had found it and returned to his cell, closing the door behind him. He ignored the plate of food and the glass of water but put the fork and knife back to avoid arousing any suspicion and he thought on what he had just read.
It was even bigger than just opening a doorway to another dimension – Amora was going to use him to open a rift to a dimension made up of pure energy. She was going to try to take the energy into herself, rendering herself more powerful than possibly himself, Odin, and Karnilla combined.
Loki couldn't have that.
He stared at the stone wall outside of his glass cell for hours, thinking his strategy over long into the night. Oh yes, she needed him, all right.
But he would need her as well.
x
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x
The friends returned to the cabin on the ferryman's ship and gathered their belongings, dressing behind partitions and making use of the one small bathroom the ship had to offer. They all made sure to put on their winter clothes and Darcy found that the new fur clothing she got in Nornheim was dreadfully warm in the heat of the cabin. After they were dressed they made their way back up to the top level and watched as the boatman maneuvered the ship up to the side of a rickety snow-covered dock. A wooden ramp appeared at the side of the ship which allowed the friends to disembark.
Thor was the last one off of the ship and when his feet were on the dock he reached into his pouch and pulled out two odd, triangle-shaped silver coins and almost handed them to the boatman but he looked over to the shore first.
"And the horses, too," Thor reminded him. All of the horses appeared, unharmed, on the shore and Thor handed the boatman the coins. "Thank you for your services, boatman."
The boatman said nothing and once again took the helm of the ship, turning it around and disappearing into the fog of the cold morning.
"That was one of the creepiest dudes I've ever seen," said Darcy and the entire party let out a laugh that they had not realized that they had been holding in.
"I feel like I can breathe again," said Fandral. "Riding with the boatman is always like that."
"And does he always try to jack your stuff? He almost let us leave without our horses!" said Darcy.
"He is a slippery one," agreed Thor, "Which is why one must keep their wits about them when dealing with him. But if you know what you're doing and what to look out for his services can be very useful."
"I wish Loki-" Darcy blurted out before she had realized, but stopped herself mid-sentence. Her friends all gave her looks of sympathy and Darcy took in a deep breath, fighting back tears at the memory of why they had to start the journey to begin with. She blew out a long breath and, when she knew finally that she was not going to be falling apart into a messy puddle, she nodded.
"Let's get moving," she said.
The party looked through their things and made sure all of their belongings were accounted for, which they were. There were no fruits or vegetables around to forage so the friends ate a small breakfast from their current supplies with the sound of the gentlest of waves lapping at the snowy shore in the background. With the exception of the quiet waves, there were no other noises to be heard. No animals, no wind – Darcy found the wind thing in particular to be odd, since there were waves, but it wasn't the first time she had seen weird things in these new realms and Darcy was certain it wouldn't be the last.
They mounted their horses and were off. Thor conferred with Sif and the warriors-three on the best way to get to a nearby clan they knew of – some of the natives of Niflheim were friendly with Asgard and they were certain that they could stop and ask the locals questions without any conflict. The Asgardians had been there only twice before and they all came to an agreement that the safest way to get to the clan they sought was through a nearby forest.
Darcy followed in silence, taking in the scenery of the fourth realm she had ever been to. It was not currently snowing and the fog of the morning seemed confined to the seashore, and the farther away from the shore they got the clearer the sky became. The snow was untouched and thin, papery white trees dotted the scenery. Their limbs were bare and spiky, daring any creature to touch them.
Darcy tried to think on anything but what could be happening to Loki. She had not had any dreams featuring him for several nights and she grew nervous at what that could mean. She did her best to calm down, telling herself that they didn't have to dream together every night and it didn't necessarily mean anything bad had happened to Loki, but she could not help that her mind had drifted in that direction. She fiddled with the ring on her left finger. She followed the others in silence and allowed Domino to pace herself without any guidance from Darcy. As long as they stayed with her friends she just didn't care.
Hogun seemed to pick up on Darcy's withdrawn state and slowed his steed. Domino pulled up alongside him and he looked over at Darcy, his face unreadable. She did not seem to realize that he was even there.
"Lady Darcy," he said quietly, but it sounded loud in the deathly stillness of the frozen meadow.
"Oh," she said with a start, "Hey Hogun."
"You miss Loki," he said. It was not a question.
She smiled and looked down, blinking a few times. "I do. A lot, actually. I try to grin and bear it but I can't help but think about what might be happening to him right now. I haven't shared a dream with him in a while and it scares me to think about why."
"He is a great sorcerer, Lady Darcy. You must not think like that. We are nearly to him and you will see one another, alive and well, once more," he told her.
"Thanks Hogun," was all she could say. But while his words were kind, they were only words.
The friends traversed through the harsh wilderness of Niflheim. While the clothes they wore kept them very comfortable all along their bodies, the breeze cause by the forward movement of their horses stung their noses and froze the small tears in the corners of their eyes. There seemed to be no actual pathways anywhere in the tundra in which they rode, but the horses were able to find their way and keep up a good pace throughout the day.
Darcy remained silent throughout the ride, wracked with worry, and her friends knew it. There was nothing that they could say that would make her feel any better, so they themselves also stayed quiet. Only the sound of the horses trudging through the snow and the stinging wind in their ears could be heard.
After a light lunch on the road, once again from only their provisions since no fruits or animals could be found, they continued their ride. The scenery gradually began to turn from soft snow to hard-packed ice, and the horses were having trouble keeping their footing. There was a small mountain in the distance and Thor told the group that they needed to make their way to it so that they could find shelter for the horses.
They got to the mountain by nightfall, just as the bright lights of aurora began to trace wavy blue-green streaks through the sky, and were able to find a small cave in the icy mountainside that was free of any predators. They set up their campfire and brought the horses inside, brushing the snow off of their legs and feeding them some extra to accommodate the extra exertion they had put forth for the day's ride. They decided to make their own camp in the little cave that night, but the howling wind continued to awaken them and when they finally arose in the morning they found that their muscles were stiff with the cold and lack of sleep.
They secured their horses and continued their journey on foot. Darcy and Sif forewent their morning training session simply because they could not spare the energy it would take and they ate their breakfast on the road. Volstagg kept a keen eye out for any fruits, vegetables, or nuts that they could forage to supplement their own rations, but to no avail. There was nothing.
Nothing.
"I don't remember it being quite this bad," said Thor. Ice and snow had gathered on his beard and eyebrows.
"Yes, well, if you recall the last time your parents were with us, and they knew what to expect. Plus we got to travel by Bifrost with a host of servants and guards," said Sif and she shifted her fur around her shoulders.
"That clan is nearby," said Fandral, "I remember that it was a little over a day's ride to get to them and we've already ridden for a solid day. It won't be long."
Darcy still remained quiet, focusing less on her worry for Loki and more on putting one foot in front of the other without slipping or stumbling. Every inch of travel felt like a fight with her tired body and some parts of her warm clothing was beginning to feel cold due to some of the snow that had melted from her body heat. The bottoms of her feet stung with cold so badly that she wished they would finally go numb. She looked around at her friends and noticed that they did not seem to feel the cold as harshly as she did, or if they did they certainly did not show it. She wanted something to take her mind off of the seemingly unending journey that hung above her head like an ax waiting to fall.
"Thor," she said suddenly.
He stopped and turned, a panicked look on his face. The other Asgardians stopped as well and waited for her to catch up to them so that they would not have to shout.
"I'm okay," she said, and relief immediately replaced the panic. She continued to trudge through the snow and in a few strides she caught up with them and they walked together. "I've got to get my mind off of all of this. Do you have anymore stories?"
Thor thought for a moment. "I have a story that may interest you, actually," he breathed and shook the snow from his beard. "You know that Lady Sif's status as a warrior in Asgard is quite remarkable, do you not?"
"Yeah," answered Darcy.
"I am going to tell you how that came to be, if Lady Sif doesn't mind, of course."
"Of course you can tell her," answered Sif from Thor's other side.
"Lady Sif, the warriors-three, Loki and I all grew up together. And where myself and the warriors-three would sword fight and practice battle tactics in Idun's orchards, Loki and Lady Sif practiced their magic-"
"Which Lady Sif was dreadful at, by the way," said Fandral. Sif grinned and crouched low, lobbing a snowball at his head.
Thor grinned and continued. "Sif's magic had some very... interesting results. One day she approached me and asked me to teach her what I was learning about fighting and blocking and so on. At first I didn't believe that she was serious-"
"You made fun of me! Mercilessly!" said Sif with a light laugh.
"Did not," he said back at her, "Anyway, we began to practice in secret. Every single day. And of course being missing for hours at a time every single day led to a lot of whispers around the castle, but neither of us cared. Sif got better and better, and she had a keen mind for battle- often times she would pick up things naturally that others had to be taught the hard way. She began to get very good, and she began to shirk her magic practice and started spending more time with the warriors-three and me instead."
Eventually we revealed to the warriors-three what we had spent our time doing and they received the news quite well. Each one of them wanted to take on Sif, to see if she was really as good as I said. We were all well-matched and began sparring with one another in secret. Soon we all practiced together, sometimes for days at a time, in secret. Sometimes we would head to Vanaheim, sometimes Heimdall would allow us to go to Midgard because as we all know there is no keeping secrets from him- and I think he knew of Sif's affinity for battle before even she did."
"The rumors!" said Volstagg, "The citizens of Asgard had a great time speculating about where we all went off to together every day."
"Right?" answered Sif, "I think my favorite was that Fandral and Thor were sharing me. People's made up assumptions reveal a lot about their own selves, really."
"And she never once let us," said Fandral.
"Gross!" Darcy said and she looked around Thor and Sif to give Fandral a dirty look. All he had gave her was a grin. Sif punched him in the arm in a manner that was supposed to be lightly, but they all knew that that would definitely bruise. Fandral's smile never ceased, but rubbed his arm and kept moving forward.
"So Sif, the warriors-three, and I were walking around the barracks one day perhaps a year after we started her training. And keep in mind that this woman right here had been a novice the year prior," Thor said, pointing ahead to Sif, "and we observed that one young warrior in particular was winning all of his sparring matches against every opponent. And was he arrogant about it, too. Absolutely convinced of his own infallible power and skill in the art of war. And then he cat-called Sif."
"Ouch," said Darcy. She rubbed her hands together for warmth and Thor and Sif exchanged worried looks that Darcy did not catch.
"He was such a pervert," said Sif, "And he didn't seem to care that the prince was standing right next to me. It isn't like our friendship was a secret; you could have had him discharged for that," she said to Thor.
"I could have," he agreed.
"So what happened?" asked Darcy.
"Sif challenged the man. Loudly, I might add," said Thor.
"That was a good day," said Fandral with a wistful smile.
"Ooh," said Darcy. Her breath hung in the air in a little puff of condensation.
"She did. Here was this girl, like any other girl from the looks of it, all dressed in airy chiffon that hung from her sleeves all the way down to the ground. The look on the man's face when she challenged him was perfect- would that a painter had seen it to capture its essence, it was that amazing. And the man, in all of his arrogance, accepted her challenge. 'I've never backed down from a challenge from a man, why should I back down from you?' he said to her. Myself and the warriors-three managed to keep stony faces and simply watched in silence as she, very gingerly, hopped over the gate. It was very ladylike. The man laughed and laughed; he laughed so much he almost couldn't keep his sword up when he saw her do that. And she just stood there in the dirt ring with him, her dress brushing up against the dust with her hands folded in front of her while she just watched him, waiting for him to regain his composure," Thor explained.
"His arrogance was his undoing," said Hogun, "He assumed that she would be an easy victory; little did he know that simply by standing there and looking helpless she was disarming his most dangerous weapon."
"His mind," said Darcy, and Hogun nodded.
"Indeed," said Thor. "I tossed her a broadsword which was almost as big as she was, and when she held it up to him with precision the smile left the man's face. By all accounts a girl her size should not have been able to wield it, yet here she was, a noble lady of the court holding the blade of her sword right at his face."
"That was about the time he stopped laughing," said Sif.
"Aye. Now keep in mind that he was a fine warrior himself, and when she held that blade there was practice in her stance – he could tell she knew what she was doing. He began to take her challenge seriously, although there was confusion in his eyes. A small crowd had gathered by then and everyone watched while the two danced around one another. The man struck first and Sif almost tripped on her long day dress trying to block him, which made him laugh. While he was distracted Sif took her own sword and cut a long line down the middle of her dress from the waist all the way through the bottom, and the opening allowed her much more freedom of movement. I think the part that most shocked her opponent was that she was wearing the proper outfit for sparring underneath her dress," said Thor.
"And then chaos erupted after that," said Volstagg.
"Of course it did. I had given my big secret away; I had to dispatch of him immediately or he would gain the upper hand," said Sif.
"She struck at him quickly, knocking his sword out of his hand, but he still had his shield. They went back and forth for a time, but where he had the advantage of size and strength, she had the advantage of nimbleness and cunning. She separated him from his shield and even knocked him to the ground, placing a foot on his chest and pointing her sword down at his face. 'Do you yield?' she asked, and he was silent. In fact, the whole crowd was silent. 'DO YOU YIELD?' she shouted, and he put his hands up. 'I yield! I yield!' he said, and there was naught but laughter in the crowd. I don't think Sif even noticed that a crowd had gathered-"
"I hadn't noticed them until they started cheering for me," Sif said.
"But you could tell that the people loved her, accepted her, for exactly who she was. The crowd was full of warriors and bakers, seamstresses and farmers, and all of them cheered for her. She was magnificent. She thrust the blade of her sword into the ground, ripped her ruined dress off, and revealed her pants and boots, tunic and armor beneath. She lifted her sword to the air and they cheered again, calling her name. She never had to hide after that day," said Thor.
"Wow," breathed Darcy.
"That was a very good day," agreed Sif.
"And after that day she trained with all of us out in the open. Every warrior knew her name and they respected her, treating her no differently than any other member of Asgard's forces," Thor said.
"And that's all I ever really wanted," said Sif, "Just the chance to do what I was born to do without ridicule or retribution. They took it a lot better than I anticipated. I mean, there were your hold-outs, your ignorant 'man's men' that didn't want to believe that a female could possibly hold their own in battle, but for the most part the people were quite accepting. And I'm happy to say that there are a few young girls that have asked me about the life I live, curious to know if it's something that they could do or would even want to do. They now know that they have options. And I always tell them that they can be whatever they want to be as long as they have the conviction to follow through."
"That's awesome, Sif," said Darcy.
The friends found that their spirits had lifted somewhat and they talked and laughed for another few miles, taking in the scenery and ignoring their screaming limbs. Their surroundings had changed and they came upon a forest of trees so thick that there were patches of frozen, bare, black earth beneath some of their numerous branches. The branches, however, were heavy with snow and ice, and patches of light shone between the limbs in rays.
"We're close," Thor said to Darcy.
"Those are some of the best words I've ever heard," said Darcy, "Definitely in the top ten."
Their steps came more easily in the forest. Although they were dodging trees left and right, there were no bushes or underbrush and the areas that were free of snow allowed them to move through the forest much more quickly than they had been used to in that realm. After an hour of travel through the forest the light from a fire could be seen up ahead.
"A sight for sore eyes, indeed," said Volstagg.
"At last," said Thor.
Thor led the group as they made their way to the firelight. The sound of their approach in the otherwise silent forest alerted the realm's natives to the Asgardians' presence and a few large men emerged from the woods up ahead to investigate the source of the alien noises. When they saw the friends all but one raised their bows at them, pointing their arrows directly at Thor.
"Identify yourselves," said the closest. His had long white hair that hung to his waist and his pale blue hands held the bow with deadly accuracy.
"I am Thor, King of Asgard. These are my friends. We mean you no harm. We wish to speak with your leader, Faolan," said Thor. He put his hands up to show that he wielded no weapon. The man who did not hold a weapon stepped forward and approached Thor.
"You have grown, King of Asgard. The last time we met you were but a prince," he said. Recognition dawned in Thor's eyes.
"Faolan!" he said, and the two embraced one another, "It has been far too long! I hardly recognized you without a gaggle of children at your feet."
"And I hardly recognized you without you clinging to your mother's skirts, but here we are," said Faolan with a grin and they separated. Faolan's men all lowered their bows. "Please come inside. I know how you Asgardians cannot stand the cold, too used to your long summers I imagine."
"It's not we Asgardians I'm worried about, Faolan, our bodies are made of sterner stuff. But we have a Midgardian with us and she needs warmth soon," said Thor. Faolan glanced back at Darcy, her lips had begun to turn a pale shade of blue-white and she nodded once at him.
"Follow me," Faolan said and they did. They made their way ahead to the campsite and there was nothing there to indicate that any life was there other than the fire – no blankets, seats, cooking supplies, nothing. To Darcy's dismay they walked right past the blissful fire and into more woods. All she wanted to do was run back and hold her numb feet near the flames.
It was not long before they came upon a ring of trees with an almost-clearing in the middle – save for a single, largish tree in its center, there was nothing around its base for twenty feet. Faolan approached the tree and ran a finger along one of the ridges in its white bark, and there appeared in its trunk a door large enough to fit even Thor, although only one Thor would be able to fit inside of the trunk at a time. Darcy raised an eyebrow but asked no questions, assuming that the answer would present itself. Faolan held the door open and gestured at the others to head inside. Two of Faolan's men stepped inside, one after the other, and then both disappeared. Then Thor. Then Sif.
It was Darcy's turn to step inside and when she did, she found that it was just the inside of a tree trunk. It was dark and she was not certain of what she was supposed to do, so she stood there and looked out at Faolan and the warriors-three expectantly. Just as she was about to ask what she should do, she felt a hand pull at hers from behind.
Darcy turned around and found that it was Sif's hand that had found hers, and that she was no longer on the inside of a tree trunk. They were in a room made exclusively of the dark earth that Darcy had seen above ground- the walls, ceilings, and floors were all the hard-packed black dirt and the ceiling had tree roots poking out of it. The room was lit with lanterns that held no fire, only a beautiful white energy that emitted no heat. Across the small room were several doors, and each had a label in a foreign language that Darcy could not even begin to comprehend. One of the doors was open and Sif led Darcy through it.
"Your hands are like ice," said Sif, and she did not let go of them. Sif's hand felt so warm against hers that it was almost uncomfortably hot. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Because what could you guys have done? I'm not going to be the stupid human that slows you down because she's cold," said Darcy.
Sif's mouth set in a hard line but she said nothing. Darcy's step faltered and Sif flung one of Darcy's arms around her own shoulders, supporting part of her weight. They walked through the winding hallway that was made of the same hard-packed frozen earth. At the end of the long hallway was an opening and Sif and Darcy emerged into a huge common area filled with native people of Niflheim.
"What do I call them?" Darcy whispered to Sif, "Niflheimens just doesn't sound right."
"Niflheimites," answered Sif.
"Thank god," said Darcy, "That would have been embarrassing."
Every face in the room turned toward them. Their white eyes were framed by pale blue faces, faces like Faolan's, and each had bright white hair in an array of lengths and styles. Thor gestured for them to follow him across the room and through another door.
The door led to a small bedroom, and off to one side of the bedroom was a bathroom.
"Faolan's wife said we could use this room for her," Thor said to Sif before he left the bedroom, closing the door behind him after he left to go back into the common room.
"Are you able to undress?" Sif asked. Darcy brought her numb fingers up to her fur-laced hood and was able to remove it, but when her fingers got to the ties that held the fur clothing snugly to her body they failed her. Sif assisted her and soon Darcy was down to her underwear, her teeth chattering, as Sif helped her to lay down on the bed. Sif pulled off her boots and went into the bathroom, and moments later Darcy could hear the sound of a bath being drawn.
Darcy drifted in and out of consciousness, her muscles singing with the relaxation of laying down in a proper bed but at the same time screaming as chills racked her body. She wanted to warm her hands and feet, but whenever they touched anywhere near the warmer parts of her body she jerked away from them. Sif had not been joking when she said they were like ice.
Darcy thought she must have drifted off to sleep because the next thing she knew she was being lifted from the bed and carried into the bathroom. Sif helped her lower herself into the steaming bathtub and the stinging heat was painful against her freezing cold skin, but she became used to it after a few minutes. Sif watched her with a wary eye as Darcy's eyes continued to flutter open and shut.
"Are you going to make it?" Sif asked, half-jokingly.
"Yes," said Darcy as she gave a small, involuntary smile, "Thank you so much."
"Well I owe you one. I don't think I could have faced Fandral again if he had been the one to help me into the hot springs back when I hurt my ankle after dealing with the Jotuntonn," said Sif and Darcy snorted at the thought. "I am going to be in the bedroom; when you're done bathing and you've warmed up I can help you into bed. Can you move your toes?"
Darcy gave them a test wiggle and they all moved perfectly.
"Yep," she told Sif.
"Wonderful. Call me if you need anything," Sif said. With that Sif left the bathroom, closing the door behind her to allow Darcy some privacy. Darcy shimmied out of her wet bra and panties, tossing them into the sink across the room. She spent several minutes simply feeling the hot water warm her to her core, and she washed her hair and body when she felt comfortable moving that much. When she was finished she drained the tub and it took all of her strength to lift herself from it, but she was able to do it and wrapped a towel around her torso before heading heading back into the bedroom. Sif awaited her and had some borrowed clothes laid out for her, blissfully dry as they were. Darcy was able to get into the clothing and the bed on her own and Sif left her to rest. Darcy was asleep within minutes.
x
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x
"You called for me, my love?" asked Skurge. He stood in the doorway to Amora's dressing room and tried not to let his eyes wander all over her body since she would be able to see him in her vanity mirror.
"My spies have informed me that our guest's friends have made landfall right here in our lovely realm, darling," she said and did not turn away from her own reflection, "They have sought refuge with Faolan's clan. Loki's mortal is with them."
"Consider it done," said Skurge, and he turned away.
Amora smiled to herself, the only genuine smile that she ever gave to anyone anymore.
x
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x
When Darcy's eyes opened, she was in Loki's arms. Relief flooded her as she hugged him, awakening him as well.
"I thought something happened to you," she said, and although he could not understand the words she spoke, he clearly knew what she was trying to say. He held her close and ran his hand over her shoulder repeatedly in an effort to calm her. He jerked suddenly with a memory, startling Darcy, and he got out of bed quickly.
Loki walked over to the cell of one wall and Darcy propped herself up on her elbows, watching him while he blew icy Jotun breath onto the glass. While the glass was frosted over Loki drew on it with one finger, and with each stroke a shape emerged from the lines. When he was done he looked from Darcy to the drawing, pointing at it and blowing on it a few more times to keep the image clear.
Darcy got out of bed and moved toward it to get a better look. It was a triangle with three lines that formed a large 'Y' underneath it, but it meant nothing to her. Loki saw her confused expression and simply kept pointing at it, urging her to keep looking, to commit it to memory.
Darcy nodded once to indicate that she had it down. They both got back into the bed together they spent the rest of their time silent in one another's arms, reveling in the closeness that had become almost foreign to them.
x
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x
When Darcy awoke she felt as though she had slept for days, but since there were no windows in the underground home she had no way to tell what time of the day or night it was. She lay there for a few minutes, allowing herself to awaken fully while she listened to the muffled voices of her friends and the Niflheimites out in the common room. Darcy arose from the bed and stretched, reveling in the feeling of simply being a comfortable temperature. After using the bathroom and fixing her hair Darcy stepped out of the small bedroom and into the large common room. As they had done when Darcy had first walked through the common room, every face turned to the sound of her door creaking open. The Asgardians sat amongst the Niflheimites and smiled at her in welcome.
"And here she is now," said Thor. Darcy gave the room a wave and some of them waved back, quickly getting back to their conversations. Darcy took a seat between Thor and Fandral and realized that they were sitting across from Faolan and a woman who must have been his wife.
"I cannot recall the last time we entertained a Midgardian," said Faolan's wife, "Welcome to our realm, Darcy Lewis."
"Thank you," she answered. "It's very pretty, Mrs...?"
"My name is Aisling; Faolan is my husband and this is our family. Some are my children, some are his, and some are ones we picked up along the journey of life," she said, gesturing to the other Niflheimites in the room. They ranged in size from knee-high to full grown men and women sitting around the room. Some of the resemblances to their mother and father were striking, but other faces were clearly from different families entirely.
"Thanks for letting me sleep here," said Darcy.
"It was no trouble at all. We are always happy to host the house of Odin," said Aisling, "I understand that you and your friends are on a mission to find Loki."
"Loki!" Darcy gasped, suddenly remembering her dream. Thor, Fandral, and Faolan looked at her in surprise and she turned to look up at Thor. "I had a dream. Loki drew me a picture and made a really big deal out of me remembering what he drew. I'm not sure what it is, though."
Faolan spoke. "Take this," he said, and handed her a thin, sharp stick, "and draw it right here on the floor between all of us."
Darcy took the stick and drew quickly, and soon the floor held the same symbol that Loki had drawn for her – the upright triangle with three lines that formed a large 'Y' beneath it. When Darcy was done she leaned back to let everyone get a good view of the image.
Faolan and Aisling gasped.
"That's Falcor Peak," whispered Aisling, and Faolan nodded in agreement. "That's where three of the world's frozen rivers meet at the base of the mountain."
"Are you sure?" asked Thor.
"There is no mistaking it," said Faolan.
"Is it far?" asked Darcy. Sif, Hogun, and Volstagg heard the commotion and had gathered around to listen as well.
"Not at all. Maybe a half days' ride from here," said Faolan and Darcy gave a little squeak.
"Are you serious?" she asked breathlessly. "Thor, what time is it? How long was I asleep?" she asked frantically.
"You were out for about two hours. We still need to rest and eat, Darcy," said Thor.
Darcy could have exploded with frustration. "But we could get to him tonight, we could-"
"Darcy," Thor cut her off, but his voice was not unkind, "We are weary. We must rest and eat, and we cannot possibly traverse the land in the dark and cold. We must wait until morning. Loki will be fine for one more night."
She opened her mouth and closed it a couple of times, trying to find the flaw in his logic. She realized that he was right- she did not know the land at all and she would not get far without her Asgardian friends. And she definitely needed more than a two-hour nap to recharge from a day of trudging through knee-high snow and ice.
"Okay, but can we get an early start tomorrow?" she asked.
"I can wake you all as soon as the sun rises," offered Faolan.
Thor agreed and thanked him. With that the Asgardians dispersed to the rooms that the Niflheimites had prepared for them and Darcy went to her own room, but sleep did not find her easily. Her heart and mind raced with thoughts of what might be- what might she find? Loki had been prisoner for over a month at this point and god knows what his captor had done to him. While he seemed healthy in her dreams, could she count on those images as truth?
It was hours before she finally fell asleep, and when she awoke she realized that it was not Faolan who was waking her – it was a stranger, and he had a knife to her throat.
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