Hello my lovely readers! I apologize for this update taking a few days, I wanted to have it up much sooner than this. Anyway, this is chapter 25 and it is on the sadder side of things, but bare with me, it won't stay that way! As I mentioned in a previous chapter, adolescence is coming to a close soon, probably 2 or 3 more chapters and then this story will begin following the Thor timeline.

To my reviewers:

A Wild Clover- I do too, I like to feel something from a book or movie. Of course, in the moment I'm complaining about how sad it is, but I still like things that provoke some sort of emotion. References are always wonderful! Having characters that have their own inner struggles make it easier for people to relate to who might not necessarily have anyone in their lives to relate to about certain things, or feel comfortable enough to reveal those sides and as people, I think we all deserve someone we can do that with and if we don't have those people, at least we can turn to literature or movies to feel that void until someone does appear.

Thank you, I hope yours went well! I hope you have an awesome trip and this chapter will be available for you to read when you can, it won't leave you! I swear! You are meeting wax Spock? O_o That is quite awesome, I must say. Thank you for your review as always :)

Cougar rolypoly bug- They do need each other! Some of these chapters have been inspired by events that happened this year between one of my best friends and I. We've had some really rough patches and I thought I lost him forever, but he came back in my life and I'm so happy he did. We always get through everything, no matter how bad it seems and what is going on with Aurora and Loki is modeled after some of what I've dealt with this year. I will be! My plan is to end this story with Thor and make the sequel the Avengers, and then I already have a plan for the beginning of the sequel with Thor 2...I really want to get to that scene because it's been in my head for awhile now, but I've got a long way to go! Thank you for your review as always :)

And thank you to Bunicorn for reviewing an earlier chapter, I'm very flattered and humbled by your kind words :)

Also, thank you to my new followers and those who have favorite this! Now, here is chapter 25!

It felt like an eternity had passed before Loki finally returned from Midgard. You knew that your anxious waiting had made time move by slower, but you couldn't help but feel worried about what would happen between you and Loki when he returned to Asgard. You had heard a rumor circulating around the palace that King Odin and his sons would be returning today and while you were accustomed to ignoring rumors, this was one that you hoped was true. However, for all of your anxious wishing, you were also nervous and part of you wished you had more time to prepare to see Loki again. You didn't want to make a fool out of yourself in front of him especially when the last time you saw him, he parted on strange terms. You weren't sure which Loki to expect; the happy and calm Loki or the violent and intimidating Loki. You never knew which side of him you were going to see and sometimes, that was more frightening than even facing Loki's violent side. The unpredictability of Loki's actions was the most frightening of all because you never knew what to expect or when to expect him to lash out. Yet for all of Loki's unpredictability and potential danger, you still cared for him and wanted to remain best friends with him. You saw a light inside of Loki, as dim as it sometimes became, you knew that it was still shining out from the darkness inside of him.

You were walking through the palace nearing King Odin's domain when you saw him speaking to his sons. You quickly hid behind a pillar so as to remain out of sight. You knew that King Odin could detect your presence, but you hoped that he would not feel the need to call you out from your hiding spot. You were relieved when King Odin parted ways with Thor and Loki to return to his chambers while the two brothers began walking in your direction.

You could hear the two brothers talking about Midgard and words that you did not understand. You assumed that the words related to something they had seen or experienced while on Midgard. You were slightly envious of the two brothers because you wanted to travel to the other realms, Midgard included, and Loki and Thor had done just that.

"Okay," you thought, "I'm more than slightly envious."

Anyone who knew you well enough knew that it was no secret that you desired to travel. You liked life on Asgard well enough, but you wanted to absorb the cultures of other realms and see what life was like there compared to Asgard. Asgard was all you knew, and you wanted to know more.

"Brother, that holiday that they call, Christmas was it?" Thor asked.

"Yes, brother, it is called Christmas." Loki replied with a nod as the two brothers continued walking down the corridor.

"Ah yes, well why don't we have Christmas here? I quite liked the festive decorations and happy atmosphere." Thor inquired.

"We do not celebrate Christmas here because it is strictly a Midgardian holiday that was originally instituted to honor the birth of their savior whom they call Jesus Christ. He is one of the three forms of their god, a being of the Holy Trinity as it is called. We do not celebrate Christmas because we are not followers of Christ." Loki explained.

"I see…but it did not look like they were celebrating his birth. Why were they receiving gifts?" Thor asked.

Loki sighed and looked at his brother, "Were you not paying attention to father's words?"

Thor just blankly smiled at Loki who continued, "The holiday known as Christmas has transformed over the years into a holiday of gift giving for most people. Most people have forgotten the true meaning of the holiday or choose to ignore that meaning in order to celebrate it their own way, by satiating their greediness."

"Loki, you make Midgardians sound so selfish and petty." Thor frowned.

"I have not portrayed them in such a light; they have succeeded in doing it by themselves." Loki hissed through his teeth.

"I do not see what is wrong with giving people you love presents. I love receiving gifts!" Thor smiled brightly.

Loki rolled his eyes, "Yes, Thor. Everyone enjoys receiving a token of affection or appreciation, but you mustn't forget to pay proper homage to your superiors."

Thor looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, "I do not think that this Jesus Christ fellow would think himself as superior to the Midgardians. From what father has told us, it sounds as if Jesus Christ views himself as equal to the Midgardians."

Loki scoffed, "Well, if he's a god at all, he certainly isn't equal to them."

"I suppose you are right, brother." Thor said quietly, as if he could not find a way to refute his brother's statement.

"Of course I am." Loki said with a tone of finality as the two brothers neared where you were hiding.

You racked your brain trying to decide if you should remain hidden or if you should start walking so that you would run into the two brothers. While you were trying to make a decision, Loki stopped in his tracks and turned his head to the left which was in your general direction.

"What is it, brother?" Thor asked Loki.

Before Loki responded to Thor, Loki's voice reverberated in your mind, "I can feel you here. Come out, Aurora."

You sucked in a breath before breathing out again in an attempt to steady your racing heart as you complied.

"Greetings, Lady Aurora! I have not seen you for quite some time now!" Thor exclaimed as he pulled you into a bone crushing hug.

"Hello to you to, Thor." You laughed as much as you could with Thor's arms crushing you in his embrace.

"Try not to break her, brother." Loki's calm voice spoke.

"Right, sorry Lady Aurora. I do not wish to break you with my embrace; that would not be a proper way to greet a friend." Thor apologized as he released his grip and placed you safely back on the floor.

"It is quite alright, Thor." You laughed as you smoothed your gown.

"I am glad to hear!" Thor smiled.

"As am I. Now, Thor, would you be as kind as to leave Aurora and I alone for a moment? I have not seen her in quite some time as you worded it, and I must speak to her about something in private." Loki spoke.

You swallowed the lump in your throat as you waited for Thor's response, which would surely be one that adhered to his brother's wishes.

"Certainly, brother. Farewell to you both! I must also seek out my other friends!" Thor said jovially as he left the area.

You stood stark still as you swallowed another lump in your throat while Loki watched Thor depart from the corridor before slowly turning his head towards you.

You steadied your internal flurry of nerves as you met Loki's gaze for the first time in what felt like an eternity. Eternity had ended, and here you were, at the end of your waiting period, yet still waiting for something to happen.

"I know that I have not escaped from your thoughts during my absence." Loki said simply.

"Did your mind reading tell you that?" You asked.

"No, I do not have to invade your mind to know that my manner of parting from you at our last encounter has plagued your mind. It would affect me too, if I were in your position." Loki replied without so much as a smile.

You breathed in and said, "Then why did you leave me in such a state to wallow in this confused and nervous state while you went away to Midgard?"

Loki's mouth twitched slightly, but no smirk or smile resulted as he replied smoothly, "You are not safe."

You stared at Loki and asked, "What do you mean I'm not safe?"

Loki took a step closer to you and stared down at you, "You are not safe near me and I am sure you have already thought the same thing yourself, Aurora."

"Loki, please," You spoke, feeling the hot tears prick your eyes, "don't talk like this."

Loki looked at you expressionless as he spoke calmly, "Aurora, I want nothing more than for you to be safe. Even I do not know when I am going to lose control and I do not want you to be around me when that happens. I am volatile, Aurora. I am unpredictable and impossible for you to restrain. What if I killed you?"

You felt the tears threatening to fall as you shook your head, "You wouldn't do that, Loki."

"But I could, you know." Loki said sadly.

You gingerly reached out to touch Loki's hand as you wrapped your fingers around it and looking up at Loki said, "Yes, you could, but you won't."

Loki looked down at your hand holding his and asked, "How can you be so sure?"

"Because you know that I am not your enemy." You replied.

Loki sighed, but did not remove his hand from yours as he said, "You are not my enemy, and I know that, but when I lose control, I don't know anything anymore. Everything fades to black and it's just me all alone in this abyss of anger and a desire to destroy anything in my path or cause pain."

"Loki, no," You shook your head rapidly, "that isn't you. You are more than your anger and abilities. Those things don't make you."

"Then what does make me?" Loki jerked his head up with watery eyes to look at you.

"Your soul, Loki. That is what makes you. In here." You spoke as you touched the front of his armor, right over his beating heart.

Loki breathed in deeply and you felt the rise of his chest under your palm as you looked at him, hoping, silently pleading for a breakthrough.

"What if I do not have one?" Loki asked you.

"You can't be serious, Loki. Everyone has one, and that includes you." You spoke.

Loki looked forlorn as he replied, "I am not as convinced of my good nature as you are. My bright is too slight to hold back all my dark, Aurora, and it is not going to get any brighter than it is now."

You shook your head again as you clasped Loki's hand tighter, "There is good in you, Loki. I've seen it!"

Loki knitted his eyebrows at you in disbelief, "I doubt that."

"No, Loki. I see it every day. Whenever I'm with you, I can see it, I can feel it, and I can hear it, that you are good. You may not think so, but I know you are. I know that you care about me and love me as your best friend, and while sometimes things go wrong between us, I'm never going to give up on you. I promise you that Loki Odinson, do you hear me? I promise you I will never give up on you!" You exclaimed as you grasped his hand tighter and shook it with both hands for emphasis.

"Aurora, I want you to be safe. Do you hear me? I do love you and care about you and that is why I am telling you that it is best for you if I distance myself from you. I'm dangerous and we both know it. I appreciate your resilience and loyalty, but I do not want those admirable traits to be your demise, Aurora. Even more so, I do not want it to be my fault. I could not live with the guilt. Could you please give me this, Aurora?" Loki asked as he placed his hands on your shoulders.

You simply stared up at Loki, finding it harder and harder not to cry.

Loki continued as he said, "Do not cry, Aurora. I am doing this for your safety, you may not think I am being a good friend to you right now, but in time you will see and you will understand why I had to do this. I do not want you to be sad, but I do not want you to get hurt by me either."

"I can take it." You choked out through your tears.

Loki looked at you with his emerald eyes full of sadness, "No, you can't Aurora. Any day I hurt you could be the last and I never want to see that day come."

"Don't speak like this, please, Loki! You don't know what you're saying!" You screamed.

"Oh, but I do, Aurora. I do know…" Loki trailed off as he looked down at you, "I want to protect you, Aurora. I am your friend and I have to protect you from anything or anybody that may harm you, and that includes me."

You felt as if your heart was truly breaking inside of you, you felt an immense, throbbing pain in your chest as if your heart was threatening to burst inside of you. If this was what it felt like to truly have your heart broken, you never wanted to experience it again.

You stared at Loki as you tried to ignore the pain in your chest, "I won't let you."

Loki sadly smiled at you looking wistful as he said, "I knew that you would be stubborn about this."

"You should never expect any less from me, Loki." You replied trying to prolong his stay.

"Aurora," Loki began, "I want you to know that my actions do not mean I do not love you. I do, Aurora, you are my friend and I love you, but that is why I have to stay away from you. I have to keep you safe; even if doing so means that I have to exit your life."

You shook your head furiously at Loki as he stepped closer to you to place his hands on either side of your face. Loki stared into your tear stricken eyes and spoke softly, "You will have a fantastic life, do you hear me? You do not need me in it to have a wonderful life. I understand that you might be mad at me, but that is alright because I would rather have you angry and safe than placid and at risk."

"Loki, I do need you. You are my friend, my best friend and I-" You began but stopped speaking when Loki pulled you into a hug.

At that point, all of your resolve broke down as you freely sobbed in Loki's arms. Loki let you cry as he moved one of his hands in circles around your back. Then, Loki released you and offered you a faint smile.

"I do not want to go, but I must. Please do not hate me for this, Aurora." Loki spoke sadly as his own eyes became shiny with fresh tears threatening to fall.

"I could never hate you, Loki." You managed to say.

Loki gave you a small smile, stared back at you for what felt like an eternity, and then walked away taking eternity with him. You watched Loki go, waiting for him to turn around, but he didn't.

That is, until the walls caved in around you.