Stolen Stars:
Chapter Eleven
I've seen it in you
The entrails of animals
The blood running through
But in order to get to the heart
I think sometimes you have to cut through
(Heartlines – Florence + the Machine)
0o0o0o0o0o0
"Why would the Vanir take Sif? Aren't they your allies?" Rose asked.
Rose had been interrupted in her walk from the library to by shouts and commotion in the corridors. She had found Thor speaking urgently with some of the guards by the throne room and asked what had happened. Apparently Lady Sif had been kidnapped in Vanaheim, one of the Nine Realms, during a routine diplomatic mission.
"There have been pockets of rebel groups in all the Nine Realms which believe the kingdom of Asgard should be toppled," Thor explained. "We have been trying to subdue them for centuries, but they are difficult to track. Frey, the king of the Vanir, has the entire realm in pursuit of Sif's kidnappers, but we have little time before they might escape with Sif indefinitely."
"How can I help?" she asked. Thor looked at her, slightly baffled by her offer.
"By staying here and watching over my brother," he told her.
"I can do more than that, you know," Rose retorted. "I'm not called the Defender of Earth because I look pretty." Thor smiled at her.
"You have a mighty spirit, Lady Tyler," he said. "Maybe another time we can join together in battle, but time is short and I must bring together the Warriors Three. It is a great task for the All-Father to transport just the four of us."
Rose opened her mouth to protest, to tell him of the TARDIS, but thought better of it.
"I understand," she said. "I wish you luck, then."
"Thank you, Rose," Thor grinned and reached out to clasp her hand gently. "I know my brother is challenging at times, but I also know he thinks highly of you. I have faith that you will change Loki for the better."
Rose just gave Thor a tight smile in return and bid him farewell. After the tall warrior exited the hallway, she continued on to the sitting room where Loki was waiting.
Their session was shorter than usual, seeing as neither was particularly interested in conversation, particularly after the events of yesterday. Rose contemplated the silence that enveloped the room when Loki left.
There were limits to patience, and Rose had reached them.
"You seem troubled, Rose Tyler."
Rose looked up to see the robed woman (the Norn?) who had facilitated her continued presence at the palace.
"I don't see how it's any of your business," she retorted, feeling snappish. The woman—Seidh, she remembered now—was unphased by Rose's tone. She sat across from Rose in Loki's chair, her face calm and serene as ever.
"The transformation of the trickster upsets you," Seidh stated. "And your work with him suffers for it."
"I am trying as hard as I can," Rose hissed, her knuckles growing white from her grip on the armrest. "If my ability to help Loki is being questioned, you can find someone else can't you?"
"There is no one else, Rose," the Norn replied gently.
"Then what are you doing here? Other than tellin' me off for not being his perfect little nurse?"
Seidh smiled in sympathy. "Because I wish to let you know you are doing him no favors by bearing such resentment for his behavior. Your duty is to fix Loki, a task appointed to you since the beginning of time. He needs you."
A sliver of guilt laced across Rose's heart. She knew that, but that didn't erase the fact that Loki was ungrateful and spiteful to her. Rose could never be a woman to take that kind of treatment lying down.
"You wish to aid Thor to retrieve Lady Sif, do you not?"
"Why do you ask?" Rose said, suspicion in her tone.
"Loki will not regain a sense of confidence when he is still ostracized by the people he grew up with." The Norn stood. "So, Rose Tyler, you will bring him with you to Vanaheim."
"How do you expect I do that?" Rose exclaimed.
Seidh only grinned and blinked into nothing.
"Lovely," she growled to an empty room.
0o0o0o0o0o0
Breaking the rules was something that Rose knew would be risky in Asgard, but the more she thought upon the plan, the more Rose realized this was very likely the one chance to encourage Loki make a proactive advancement in his station at the palace. His mess of self-hatred and anger towards his perceived oppressors was making Rose sick with anxiety. Not to mention it barbed his words toward her to cut deep.
Time was of the essence, so Rose once again confined herself to her room with the request for Hermod to not disturb her. After deactivating the time lock on the green TARDIS, Rose made quick work of dressing herself in her old jeans and jacket. With a thrill, she knew she was dressing for what was most certainly going to be a lot of running.
Finally.
At the console, Rose adjusted the dimensional perimeters and set course for the east wing. She knew Loki would be in his room at this time of day, and considering his mood today it wasn't a stretch to believe that he would wish to be left alone.
"Too bad," Rose muttered with a smirk. Getting him out of his comfort zone—that would be enough payment for his attitude.
T-Too landed with a jolt, and Rose smiled at the surprised shout and crash she heard from outside the door.
"Rose, by the realms. What do you think you are doing?" Loki sputtered as she leaned casually on the doorframe.
"What's going on in there?" one of his guards called from outside the room.
"We're goin' for a little ride, Guns," she said cheerfully, ignoring the sharp knocks at the demi-god's door. "So get your arse in the box before the guards come in."
"Where—?"
"Oh, shut up for once and just listen to me?" Rose exclaimed in exasperation before grabbing his arm and dragging him into the TARDIS. As soon as Loki stumbled in behind her, Rose saw his bedroom door swing open. She gave the guards a cheeky wave before slamming the TARDIS door shut and twirling around to skip towards the console. Loki was staring up at the huge coral rafters in something resembling awe.
"It's…ah…"
"Bigger on the inside?" Rose couldn't help but substitute her ire at the man for the delight that went through her when she said those four words.
Truth was, she never had a companion of her own. Not alone, at least. In another life, perhaps, Rose could imagine the man before her joining in on her travels in time and space.
Too late for that, I suppose, she thought as the memory from yesterday's spat soured her mood.
"Odin will punish us both for this."
Rose looked up from her focus on piloting T-Too to eye Loki wryly.
"You don't seem too worried about the idea," she noted, going back to setting the coordinates.
"Should I be?"
"Not if you listen to me," Rose said. She heard his derisive scoff and rolled her eyes at his irreverent attitude. "Seidh paid me a visit an hour ago. We're supposed to go help Thor and the Warriors free Sif."
"How in Hel are we supposed to help?" Loki asked. "And what is the point? Thor can handle such a quest on his own. I, however, am powerless and you have a flying box. The Vanir do not take kindly to strangers entering their realm unannounced. Especially a known traitor of the Realms."
"Exactly. The Vanir are some of the most skilled in magic," Rose recited, proudly recalling one of the many books on Yggdrasil she managed to devour from the library. "Thor said that any indication of foreign magicians or sorcerers on their land will be picked up by the rebel force. Don't you see? It's perfect! You studied under the Vanir, so you know the layout of their city. And I can't imagine the rebels know enough about Time Lord technology to have tripwires set for it. All we need to do is find where they are keeping Sif and sonic it!"
"Sonic it?" Loki deadpanned. He shook his head at her, looking both irritated and confused.
"We can go back," Rose mocked. "Or we can help your brother and your old friends. Don't tell me you would rather be marked as an outcast and a traitor for the rest of your life."
Rose was busy regulating the temporal thrusts, but she could feel the heat of Loki's glare boring holes into the side of her head.
"Right then," she said, taking his silence as acquiescence. "Let's see what this Vanaheim looks like."
With a hard yank on the red lever, she sent the three of them hurtling into the Vortex. The exhilaration of finally going on a real adventure made her laugh aloud, and she turned her head to catch Loki hanging on desperately to a coral. His eyes were wide with fear as the turbulence caught him off balance, which made Rose feel a little sorry for him. She remembered, decades ago, when Loki would very nearly squeeze her hand off whenever they flew in the Zeppelins for official Torchwood business.
Serves him right, though, she thought wickedly.
A violent lurch indicated their arrival. T-Too whined in protest—which concerned Rose. The old ship was doing her best to adjust automatically to the new Vortex, but Rose knew the sooner she got into T-Too's innards to shift the engines the better.
"Alright, if we are really going to do this," Loki said, his voice breathy as he made an effort to compose himself from his unflattering position. "I suggest we head for the outskirts. The Vanir rebels consist of wild men and rogue magicians. The outer ring is heavily guarded, however, by official sorcerers and a wall eighty feet in height. There are beasts of untold horrors that lurk in the forests of Vanaheim."
"Well that makes that simple, Vincent Price," Rose said, switching off the TARDIS engines and striding over to the right corridor. T-Too obliged and moved the wardrobe room to the front. Rose called out over her shoulder as she rummaged through to find two long, non-descript robes. "We evade the guards, jump the fence, and track down the rebels in the forest."
She tossed one robe towards Loki before heading towards the TARDIS door. Loki stared after her in confusion and did not move. She raised a brow questioningly, her hand on the doorknob.
"What about weapons?" he asked. She smirked and began to put on the robe.
"Not exactly my style, mate," Rose quipped as she stuck her arms through the sleeves.
"You are planning to go against a hostile force without arms?" Loki asked, dumbfounded. "That is not the Rose I remember."
"Yeah, well, after a few decades you pick up some tricks," she said.
"From the Doctor?" she heard Loki mutter darkly. Rose just sighed and headed out the door. They had landed within the middle ring of buildings, with T-Too tucked away in an alley. Rose took a moment to admire the organic architecture before scanning the streets. A few people in different colored robes glanced over her way, but the TARDIS's perception filter encouraged them to pass by without incident. She turned back to the TARDIS to see Loki close the door behind him.
"Lead the way, then," Rose whispered to Loki, jerking her head towards the road. She saw that he had managed to pick up the few knives and a pair of scissors she had had scattered on T-Too's floor and was tucking them up his sleeves. She pursed her lips in displeasure, but he ignored her. Loki just shoved the hood of the robe over his head, concealing his face. His hand reached out and pulled the hood over her hair as well.
The two walked quickly down the cobbled streets of middle Vanaheim, heading towards the huge grey wall in the distances. They avoided living beings as much as possible, veering off down empty alleyways when a group of armed warriors marched past.
When they reached the wall, they paused again to examine their surroundings.
"This is a five hundred yard span at the southernmost tower that has no permanent guard. It is, however, heavily warded. What do you expect to do without frying us like chips?"
"Sonic it," Rose sang, pulling out the sonic for emphasis. Loki shook his head and sighed, but he did follow her when she made a break for the grated door.
It took a few tries and a few mildly burnt fingers, but Rose managed to deactivate the wards within ten minutes. The door was solid rock, and she moved to push it open.
"Allow me," Loki muttered, firmly moving Rose aside.
Loki grunted as he shoved a shoulder against the slab. It didn't budge. Frustration lit his green eyes and he tried a second time. Still nothing but a sore shoulder, as Loki reached up and rubbed his arm furiously before ramming his body against the door a third time.
Rose watched him struggle for another couple of seconds before stepping beside him. With almost comic ease, Rose's added strength allowed the door to open slowly but smoothly. As soon as they slipped through to the other side, Loki stared down at the woman with a mix of apprehension and embarrassment on his face.
"Don't. Say. A word."
"About what?" Rose asked innocently. "The fact that I'm stronger than the great god of mischief himself? Nah, I think that's one for the books."
"Rose—" he warned, but he was cut off by a poke to his chest. Rose had enough of his attitude. She wasn't the one charged with genocide. Maybe showing off the fact that she could very easily sprawl him on his arse would make him give her some of the respect she deserved. Being nice hadn't gotten her far in his eyes, apparently.
"I won't embarrass you about it, Loki. But do me a favor and don't take it for granted," Rose told him grimly. She removed her finger from his chest. "Understand?"
Loki seemed taken aback by her words, more shocked than angry.
"Very well," he finally replied, his face carefully neutral. But Loki could not hide the glimmer of begrudged admiration in his eyes. Satisfied, Rose motioned for him to lead the way once more. He was more apt at tracking than she was, in any case.
After about a half hour of wandering in the dark wood, Loki began to mutter his findings to Rose. They were beginning to approach a makeshift trail.
"Camps like the ones the Vanir rebels construct are shaped like a horseshoe," Loki explained. "There will be protective wards on every side, so we'll have to go 'round and find a weak spot. Your…sonic, can it detect wards as well?"
"Yeah, that's how I got in to your cell," Rose murmured. "Where do you think—?" But Rose's question was interrupted by a snap of a twig off to her right.
Loki swore. Rose turned, and swore as well.
They were surrounded on three sides.
"This isn't particularly good," Rose commented, trying to dumb down her panic as she raised her sonic in semblance of defense.
Loki did not answer, only reached into his sleeves and sidestepped in front of her, partially standing between Rose and the rebels. They caught each other's eyes for a moment. Rose almost thought she saw an apology in his before Loki turned back toward the advancing enemy, knives at the ready.