Author's Note: I merely want to reiterate my warnings from the last chapter.
The party lasted well into the early hours of the morning, and all of the guests managed to drink and make merry till their hearts were content. It wasn't till a little after one o'clock in the morning that Loki realized he had lost track of Sigyn and Forseti. He excused himself momentarily from the lady he had danced with earlier that evening and went in search of Thor. The highly intoxicated prince was easy to spot, and Loki quickly pulled him away from the group of women he was with.
"Have you seen Sigyn?" Loki quickly asked.
Either the mention of Sigyn's name, or the concern in Loki's voice caused Thor to sober up slightly.
"She and the Lady Sif left almost an hour ago to go walk in the gardens before retiring. Why?"
"It is probably nothing." Loki responded mechanically as he began to search the room for Forseti once more.
"If you are worried about taking your lovely companion elsewhere without Sigyn noticing fear not, she is probably long asleep by now." Thor teased.
Loki made no response and continued looking about the room. Thor must have been growing concerned by Loki's actions because he placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Loki, what is troubling you?"
The nagging at the back of Loki's brain grew stronger with each passing second.
"Did you see Forseti leave at any point?"
"I don't remember, why? What is going on?"
"I cannot be sure, but I think Sigyn might be…"
Before Loki could finish his sentence however, a frightened voice called out to his mind.
"Please help…Loki…someone…anyone…"
The voice was barely audible, and if he didn't know better he might have thought that it was just the workings of his slightly intoxicated brain. Fortunately, Loki did know better. Sigyn was communicating telepathically, and Loki hoped that these were her first pleas for assistance. If these telepathic entireties to Loki were not her first, he would only have himself and his stupidity to blame for coming to her aid too late. Without hesitation Loki took off in the direction of the gardens in hopes of finding Sigyn still there. Loki could hear footsteps behind him followed by Thor's voice begging him to stop. Loki paid no heed to his brother's requests and continued sprinting down the hallways. It was by luck that Loki caught a glimpse of Lady Sif headed down another hallway towards her sleeping quarters.
"Sif!" he called out, catching the brunette warrior off-guard.
"Yes?" She asked, clearly confused by his hasty and worried appearance.
"Where is Sigyn!?"
"I left her in the garden. She said that she wanted to stargaze a little longer before retiring." Sif explained.
The short conversation had given Thor enough time to catch up, and he now stood by Loki's side.
"How long ago did you leave her?" Loki demanded.
"What is going on Loki?" Thor asked in a concerned voice, but Loki ignored him. He never let his gaze fall from Lady Sif who was looking between the brothers with a conflicted expression.
"No more than twenty minutes ago. What is going on Loki?"
"Sigyn is in trouble." Loki replied hurriedly before running off in the direction of the gardens once more.
This time he was greeted by two sets of footsteps following his lead. It didn't take long for the trio to reach the gardens, and Loki's heart sank as he took in the empty scenery. Sigyn was no longer there. Loki closed his eyes and took a steadying breath. If she wasn't here, then she more than likely was on the way to her room. Before he could take off towards Sigyn's chambers Thor stopped him.
"Loki I need to know what is going on."
"I have already told you, Sigyn is in trouble."
"I got that part." Thor admonished. "What I don't understand is what kind of trouble."
"Forseti has been paying an uncomfortable amount of attention to Sigyn tonight, and when I confronted Sigyn about it she informed me that these attentions have been going on for several weeks now."
"Its true." Sif added. "She mentioned that to me in the garden."
"You cannot assume she is in danger just because a man has been paying her some attention." Thor reasoned.
"No, but I can draw that assumption from the pleas she sent me telepathically." Loki huffed impatiently before taking off again.
As before, Sif and Thor followed him out of the gardens. Luckily Sigyn's chambers were not too far away and the trio made quick time of the distance. The hall in front of Sigyn's chamber was eerily empty. Loki was about to give in to the idea that maybe he really had just drunk too much at the banquet, when Sigyn's tiara caught his gaze. He closed the last few yards to her door and picked up the golden crown. He then turned towards the door, which was securely closed. The palace walls and doors were far too thick to hear most noises through so Loki was forced to put his ear against the door in hopes of discerning what was going on inside. The noise that greeted his ear caused his stomach to drop. Smothered screams. Thor and he needed to get inside. Loki pulled the handle of the door doubtfully, assuming that the door was barred from the inside. He was met with the expected resistance and shot a look at Thor.
"We have to get in there!" He mumbled.
There was a slight chance that they were about to burst in on Sigyn having a rendezvous with a lover, but Sigyn had no lover that Loki knew of. Lover or not, Thor had no scruples about bursting down Sigyn's door, and he proceeded to do so much to Loki's chagrin. Loki had simply intended to teleport himself inside so he could open the bolt and let Thor in as well, but Thor had charged through the door before Loki could even bat an eye. Loki and Sif ran through the doorway quickly, and Loki magically fixed and replaced the door before any curious servants stumbled onto the scene. He then turned on his heel to face the other occupants of the room, and used his magic to relight the lamps. The scene before him was chaos. There were overturned chairs, Thor had Forseti pinned to the wall, and Sif had an extremely disheveled Sigyn locked in a comforting embrace. Thor seemed to be interrogating his prisoner, so Loki approached Sigyn and Sif so as to get a better look at his little sister. She was not crying, but the tearstains down her cheeks indicated that she had been not long before. Sigyn lifted her gaze to meet Loki's, and Lady Sif released her to the arms of her half-brother.
"You came…" She breathed.
"Of course we came." He reassured the still shaking girl.
Lady Sif went to help Thor question Forseti, who didn't seem to be giving any satisfactory answers to Thor's queries. Meanwhile, Loki pulled Sigyn back from him so that he could study her appearance better. He had hoped that she might simply appear disheveled like she had when he first laid eyes on her, but on second glance she looked far worse. Fresh bruises covered her upper arms, small wrists, and her left cheek. Her hair was coming completely undone from its braid and her golden gown was crumpled on the floor leaving her standing in her bodice and underskirt, the later of which had a jagged tear up the side. Loki decided that it would be best to let Sigyn heal her own injuries since she was already a better healer than him. He assisted her over to her bathroom door not failing to notice that her walking seemed strained. Once he was there he beckoned Lady Sif to help her run a bath. After both women were inside the bathroom, Loki went over to help Thor get answers from Forseti. It seemed that Thor had managed to threaten the man excessively, but had failed to ask any questions of use. This did not come as a surprise to Loki, who immediately took over the conversation.
"Do you care to explain why my sister felt the need to call out telepathically for my assistance?" Loki began.
"I don't know what you are talking about." Forseti replied indignantly. "I saw the Lady walking from the gardens to her chambers alone, and offered to accompany her."
"That still does not explain why she called out to me, or why we caught you in her bedroom attempting to force yourself upon her." Loki charged.
"Why do you assume that I was forcing myself?" Forseti defended.
"Because, as I have mentioned twice before, Sigyn called to me for help. An action she would have had no need of if she had willingly let you into her bed." Loki argued.
"And who said I was in her bed at all?" Forseti countered while waving his hand in the direction of Sigyn's perfectly made-up bed.
This detail stunned Loki for a moment. He wasn't sure how he had missed that obvious fact when he came into the room. Taking advantage of Loki's silence, Forseti continued on.
"Even if I had forced myself upon her neither of you have the right to physically abuse me or interrogate me about it. I would have committed no crime."
Loki cursed under his breath. Forseti did have a point. If Thor bashed Forseti's skull in, as Loki was beginning to fear more and more that he might, he would have to face punishment, but even if Forseti had forced himself upon Sigyn there was nothing either of the Princes could do in the eyes of Asgardain law. Forseti was more than legally within his right to deflower Sigyn in such a way, and it made Loki sick. Loki eyed Forseti closely to see if he bore any marks of a struggle. Unfortunately Forseti was wearing an outfit that covered his arms entirely so any sign there would be completely hidden, but Loki did notice a circular red mark on his left hand that appeared to have just stopped bleeding. Though Loki couldn't be sure, the mark suggested that Forseti had tried to smother Sigyn's cries for help and that she had bitten him to free her mouth. It seemed like something Sigyn would do, and Loki mentally gave her a "good girl" for her effort. The only other thing that Loki could derive from his study was that Forseti had been forced to hastily put his pants back on. He hadn't even had the time to tie them properly.
"Let him go Thor." Loki finally commanded.
"What!?" Thor replied, throwing Loki an unbelieving glance.
"Forseti is correct, he has the legal high ground." Loki conceded.
Forseti's eyes lit up as Thor reluctantly loosened his vice grip enough for him to get away.
"Very perceptive of you My Lord." Forseti replied in a snarky tone. "Now if Your Majesties do not mind, I will be off to my own chambers." He finished with a curt bow without hiding the smugness of his victory.
He hastily left the room and Loki could feel his blood boil.
"How can we just let that wretch walk away?!" Thor fumed at Loki.
"We don't have a choice. The law won't do anything about his actions, so the last thing we need is for him to be able to charge either of us with assault." Loki explained.
"Either of us?" Thor asked a tad amused. "It is not like you Loki to physically fight your battles."
"For Forseti I believe I could make an exception."
The brothers stood awaiting Lady Sif and Sigyn to rejoin them before retiring for the night. Thor preoccupied his time by sitting uncomfortably in a chair. Loki on the other hand tried to piece together what must have happened. He was not considered the 'god of lies' merely because he was a good liar, but because he was good at detecting them as well. Forseti had been smart enough to never directly answer his questions because he knew Loki would call him on a lie. Answering a question with a question also meant that Forseti never had to actually admit to anything. He had acknowledged that he had walked Sigyn to her chambers, which Loki believed was the truth. Escorting a young single woman to her chambers in the dead of night after a party for safety reasons was considered an acceptable thing for a young man to do, but what had occurred afterwards between Forseti and Sigyn was not. Sigyn's tiara had been on the ground outside her door, which meant that Forseti had probably forced his way in when she opened it. Forseti's suggestion that Sigyn might have welcomed his advances was clearly disproven by the abandoned tiara. It would have had no reason to fall off if Sigyn had let him into her room. Its presence in the hallway clearly implied that a struggle had occurred. Once inside the room the scuffle had continued to ensue, evidenced by the toppled chairs in the sitting area. Forseti had managed to get Sigyn's gown off of her between the sitting area and the bed. Loki carefully picked up the golden garment to inspect it. There didn't appear to be any tears. It would have been an easy gown to get off of her though since it had only one shoulder. Loki laid the gown across the undisturbed bed, and walked over to where Thor had had Forseti pinned against the wall. At first glance Loki didn't see anything to suggest what had happened between Forseti and Sigyn, but a closer inspection left Loki livid. Slung carelessly at the foot of the bed was a pair of female underclothing, and Loki almost timidly picked them up to inspect them. They were obviously Sigyn's, and they had obviously been torn or cut off of her. Given the clean tear Loki assumed the latter. Forseti had probably used a small dagger to accomplish the task. This discovery forced the adrenaline to finally fade and left Loki facing the harsh reality of the situation. It wasn't as though Loki wasn't accustomed to seeing, and/or removing, the intimate apparel of a woman, but this was different. This wasn't just some random girl that Loki was having his way with. This was Sigyn. This was the most important female in his life aside from his mother. Even at the discovery of Sign's underwear however, part of Loki still hoped that he, Thor, and Lady Sif had arrived in time to keep Forseti from claiming his prize. The fact that he had never gotten her into the bed was a sign in his favor. This final hope was dashed though when Lady Sif came out of the bathroom to retrieve Sigyn a nightgown. In her hands she held the bodice and underskirt that Sigyn had been wearing previously.
"I think you'll want to see this…" she whispered, handing the bundle to Thor who had stood from his seat on her arrival.
Sif quickly grabbed a nightgown from Sigyn's wardrobe and disappeared back into the bathroom before Thor undid the bundle of clothes. It took only a moment for both Thor and Loki to notice what Sif had wanted them to see. Thor angrily threw the ruined fabric across the room in anger. Loki cursed himself for not thinking to completely check Sigyn over before sending her off to the bath. She never had turned her back to him so he never noticed the blood, and Thor had been too busy harassing Forseti to think to look at Sigyn.
"We shouldn't have lingered so long in the garden!" Thor fumed. "If we had come straight here maybe we would have been in time to… help her…to stop him…"
Thor would have continued on in a rage so Loki interceded.
"It was my fault. I knew that Forseti was not to be trusted, and instead of keeping an eye on him I let a woman distract me."
Neither Thor nor Loki could deny that the deed had been done. The only thing that was left was to ascertain once and for all if Forseti had forced himself upon Sigyn. Loki felt a bit uneasy about asking Sigyn in a blunt fashion, but he knew that she would not approve of him beating around the bush. The two Princes did not have long to wait before Sigyn and Sif left the bathroom. Lady Sif dismissed herself quietly so that the siblings could have some privacy. The three stood there awkwardly for a moment. Surprisingly it was Sigyn who spoke first.
"I know what you would ask me." She began. "You wish to know if Forseti's advances were welcomed or if… if he took me by force."
Loki nodded silently, and Sigyn took a deep breath.
"No, I did not welcome his advances. I never wanted him to… to…" but Sigyn could not finish her statement.
The dirty blonde quickly covered her face in shame as silent dry sobs racked her body. Thor, always the more willing to show his emotions, quickly wrapped his arms around Sigyn and began to 'shush' her. After a few minutes of whispering comfort to her, Thor led Sigyn to her bed and pulled the covers back. She reluctantly agreed to go to sleep, but begged her brothers to remain with her till she finally drifted off. Loki and Thor both readily agreed. Thor brought a chair up to the side of her bed and Loki climbed in next to her. Loki sat above the covers and just held Sigyn to his chest so she could hear his heartbeat. The steady pulse finally lulled her to what Loki hoped was a dreamless sleep. There was nothing that the law could do for her, but as Loki sat there with her sleeping on his chest he realized that there was something he could do. Forseti might have taken her innocence away from her, but Loki could at least help her forget. Sigyn would never have to remember the humiliation that Forseti had put her through. Loki's mind was quickly made up, and without running his plan by Thor, Loki cast a spell that would repress the memory of what had happened. Sigyn would wake up the next morning knowing only that Forseti had walked her to her bedchambers and that she had gone to sleep soon after. The spell complete Loki urged Thor that it was safe for them to leave. On the way out he scooped up the ruined underwear and underclothes in order that he could destroy the only physical evidence that could jar her memory. Once outside of Sigyn's room Thor asked Loki why he had taken the clothing and Loki enlightened Thor on the spell he had used. It had been Loki's intention all along to do so to avoid Thor saying anything that would break the spell. Thor agreed that Loki's idea was probably for the best, and they determined that they should inform Lady Sif the next morning to insure that she would not say anything to Sigyn either.
As for Forseti, Loki determined that while he might have won for now, he would pay for his actions in time. Loki intended to make Forseti's life a living nightmare in every legal way possible as penance for raping his sister, and he did.