A/N: Sorry. Finals. Just... sorry. And I'm going on holidays, which means no computer for me. So sorry.

The title is taken from a song by Serj Tankian called Sky Is Over.

Part II: Kingdom of Heaven-Burning the Past

Chapter XXV–The Sky Is Over

"The Allfather demands your presence. Make yourself presentable, you can't go in such disarray."

"The who demands what?!"

Rebecca rebelliously crossed her arms. Who the hell did blodny think he was to show at her doorstep at one in the morning and have the gall to frown at her dishevelled hair and hot pants and a too big sweatshirt she wore to sleep?

"My father," said Thor slowly, as if that was the only way she would be able to understand. "He demanded I bring you to him."

She snorted. Being awakened after she'd just managed to fall asleep after two full hours of tossing and turning was nowhere near the list of the things she appreciated. "Go to Hell."

"She wouldn't be pleased to see me."

"Yeah, well, go there anyway. Hi, Stark." She nodded at the man behind Thor's shoulder before grabbing the doorknob. "Have a nice night."

She tried to swing the doors closed, but Thor prevented it.

"We need you, Rebecca, you cannot turn your back on us and walk away."

"Sure I can." And she was more than willing to. Having spent the whole evening reading Norse mythology, she was finding it hard not to feel any more resentful than she already was; she did not want to be biased without a proof. But if the stories were in fact true … Then she could only admire Loki for actually still caring for his family. "Odin might be the king of Asgard, but he's no king of mine, so why the hell would I wanna help him solve whatever mess he's in?"

"Whispers," Stark spoke and took a breath to continue, but she cut him short,

"Don't call me that."

"And Loki can."

"He doesn't call me that."

"He did."

"No, he didn't." She pouted. "He said I sounded like whispers."

"Which makes so much more sense."

"I so don't care! Either you two tell me what you're doing here in the middle of the night, or you turn and walk home."

"Jee, Whispers—"

"Stark, you call me that once more and I promise—"

"It's about Loki."

Her pose changed from aggressive to self-conscious. She'd tried to convince herself it mattered absolutely nothing whether Loki was still alive or not, but really she was dying to know. That, and the thought of Loki being dead made her feel like there was a big, heavy cloud above her head and something cold in her stomach.

She swallowed.

"What about … Loki?" She looked from Stark to Thor and back again, but it was the Thunderer who answered.

"His life is still in danger."

"Oh. And what's … Where do I come in?"

"Blue Jay, would you let us in? Nothing against the corridor, it's very … lovely, but I think we might want some privacy."

"Yeah … Yeah, sure." She backed away from the door. "Sorry. I'm just … I just managed to fall asleep and then you woke me up. 'm in a bad mood, I guess. Um, sit down somewhere."

The sofa bed was still unfolded, so the two visitors settled on the loveseat and the small armchair. Rebecca flopped down on the wrinkled blankets Loki had been covered with and wrapped one around her shoulders.

"Okay. Why don't we start at the beginning again? Asgard ninja?"

She didn't think Stark was used to playing the mediator, but for now it was actually working. Or maybe her worry for Loki was stronger than her annoyance with Thor.

"Really Stark? Asgard ninja?"

The billionaire shrugged. "He appeared from out of nowhere."

"Whatever. So, the Alldaddy?"

Thor frowned. "Disrespectful is not something I would advise you to be."

And she would not advise him to hold somebody down so that his mouth could be sewn shut. That kind of made them even.

"I'll keep that in mind." Didn't mean she'd act on it, though. "What's with Loki?"

"My brother has been poisoned." Thor sighed gravely before he proceeded to explain the situation. Rebecca's expression darkened as he talked, thoughts flashing through her mind while she was trying to connect the pieces. If poison was involved, it could make sense for Loki to suffer the effect some three weeks after the actual poisoning, so his bloody stunt could in fact have been the occasion that had eventually led to his current state. It still didn't explain what had happened, but it was something.

Maybe Thor didn't understand Loki's need to fight intruders, but she liked to think she could. Somewhat. Whatever had happened had forced him to learn not to let his guard down with potential danger in sight. Okay, made sense.

But …

"Why me?"

"Because you managed to get through my brother before. He trusts you."

"Um, no. No, he doesn't. He has no reason to." After all, she'd betrayed the trust he'd been willing to give her.

But Thor wouldn't have it. "Of course he does. Why else would he have told you he still loved me?"

"Um …" She twisted her lip for a moment. "He didn't exactly say that … But, um, if you read between the lines …" Hell, she couldn't tell him how desperately Loki had called for Thor in his delirium, begged with the desperation she didn't think she'd ever felt.

"Yes, yes, trust, no trust, Blue Jay, you have some weird truce with him, go and help before Thor decides to either drown us in his tears or rearrange by inner organs in rage, yes?"

Rebecca levelled him with a glare, blowing a strand of hair off her face. "Fine." She'd go. Not for Odin or Asgard or even Stark. For Loki. "And what would the mighty Allfather deem presentable?"

Stark grabbed her wrist and pulled her aside before Thor could even inhale to answer.

"I haven't seen you this troublesome before. What's up?"

Rebecca pouted, a retort ready on the tip of her tongue. But there was no trace of mockery on Stark's face, and she only wriggled her hand free.

"Their society is fucked up."

"Ah, that. Yeah, I know. I had Jarvis do the research, and if half of the stuff is true, well … Still, what was with the hesitation?"

She narrowed her eyes. "What about it? It's their shit." Her voice lacked aggressiveness, though, giving in, her irritation slowly evaporating. She sighed. "Look, I dunno if I should try to save Loki."

Star'ks eyes flitted to Thor, who was doing his best to appear nonchalant, although they way he kept shifting his weight ruined it completely, then back.

"Don't you want him to live?"

"Most don't."

Stark scratched the back of his neck."Blue Jay, you are evil. I hat being forced in this moral-supportive-speeches thing. I suck at it. You'll bake me muffins for that."

A flicker of entertainment lit her eyes.

"So. I asked about you, not the entire human population."

And just like that, the entertainment died. What did her opinion matter; this wasn't about her. Remembering the load of pained emotions she'd got to taste wasn't easy. Did she wish to never have experienced it? Hell yes. Did she want to forget them now?

"It's about what Loki wants," she muttered. Stark dragged a hand over his face.

"You know, there are more effective ways to kill oneself than waiting for weeks for poison to do its thing. That was worth another portion of muffins."

"Stark."

"Fine, half a portion."

"Stark."

"What now, I didn't—"

"Would you move away from the door? I gotta change, remember?"

~*oO*o*Oo*~

Travelling with the Tesseract was nothing she could ever forget. The gentle hum of energy drumming in her veins just before it began and blue light blurred her vision, and then a pull, a force that seemed to force her out of her body, carrying her with the speed of light or possibly faster. Colours swirled all around her, hues of blue so exquisite she couldn't tell them apart from the twirling pattern they kept dancing in, something that could have been wind were she on Earth pressed against her skin, but there was no sound at all.

Ground blossomed under her feet faster than she'd been expecting. The contact threw her of balance, and her body felt too much like jelly to even try to remain standing. Instead, she tumbled on her knees, struggling to at least catch her breath if nothing else. This … She'd seen something akin to it before, only with more colours and less twirling

Thor stood beside her, perfectly in control of his body.

"We have returned," boomed his voice even as Rebecca felt to strong hands close around her biceps and pull her to her feet. She finally took a look at her surroundings. Her first impression could be summed up in one single word: golden. The room itself wasn't too big. Fire burned in the square in the middle of the floor, strange golden seats facing it. Intriguing carvings lined the walls, the biggest one of an enormous tree. But all this faded when her eyes landed on the two other persons present, a man with shoulder-length white hair and a golden eye patch, clad in gold and black whose shoulders were even broader than Thor's, and a woman, beautiful despite not being the youngest anymore though her exact age would be impossible to tell.

Rebecca swallowed. She'd seen the man before. She knew who they were. Waiting for resentment to rise inside her, she took a deep breath, but it never came. The couple was too awe-inspiring, radiated too much power, and something in the way that one eye looked straight at her reminded her on Loki way too much.

"Your majesties," she forced through her lips, bowing her head. "Allfather."

Eyes cast to the floor, she didn't see the small smile that crept onto the queen's face.

"Father, I have brought Lady Rebecca.

"Yes. Raise your head, child."

She could only comply. Her gaze met the Allfather's one. Suddenly she saw him sitting on the throne again and wondered more than ever why Loki had slipped that image between the illusions of horror. Not that asking Odin was an option.

"Welcome to Asgard."

"Thank ... you. Look, I can, I can try, but I really don't know if this'll work, so please don't blame me if it doesn't, 'cause I really have no idea about—"

"Rebecca." Frigga's voice was gentle and kind. How could anyone sound so soothing? This woman must have been meant for putting children to sleep, not like Rebecca … "We won't blame you, do not fret. All we ask is that you try."

She nodded, not willing to trust her vocal chords. Frigga rose. She swept to where Rebecca stood, gently touching her shoulder. The journalist twisted the inside of her lip between her teeth. All this kindness had an air of bone-deep sadness enveloping it, of exhaustion hidden in faint lines on the family's faces, and that somebody so powerful had come to the point where they needed her filled her with dread she couldn't explain.

Frigga led her through the door and down the corridor, and Rebecca's breath caught. The passageways were exactly like the ones she'd seen, soft firelight illuminating the place, shadows ghosting over the walls.

A knot tightened in her throat.

Loki had shown her this. Had he wanted her to come here? Had he known he was going to be brought home?

"Rebecca?" Thor asked somewhere behind her ear.

She shook her head. "It's nothing."

A lie.

But if she knew it to be a lie, then at least she couldn't lie to herself.

They entered through an ornate double door, and Rebecca could swear she'd never felt more self-conscious than now, with half a dozen women, all clad in elegant dresses, stared at her and her attire—black jeans, green T-shit, a silver bracelet with small keys hanging from, and suddenly she understood why Thor had glanced at her so startled after she'd emerged from her room. Those were Loki's colours she was wearing. Unintentionally. She only hoped everybody would be too busy with the oddity of the style to give the colours a second look.

Not a word was said. She was with the royal family, and those were the one residents of Asgard one did not question. Thor nudged her shoulder, directing her towards the back of the spacious creamy place filled with beds, doors, and cabinets. A much smaller room opened in front of her, containing a single bed, four chairs, and a table upon which a bowl was placed. The details went ignored. All of Rebecca's attention was reserved for Loki.

He could hardly say he looked worse than the last time she'd seen him. There was a bit more sweat covering his brow, and his shoulders were bare. Soft sheets were wrapped around his slightly trembling body.

"I take it Thor has explained the situation to you," Odin said.

Rebecca nodded. "But I don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"Make him lower his walls."

Yeah, she'd heard that before. Did they all think she knew how to do that?

A hand touching her shoulder nearly made her jump. Frigga's voice was soothing, though. "Talk to him."

"And what … What should I say?"

"It does not matter. We only need Loki to relax, so Odin can plunge into his cells with magic."

Rebecca nodded. Okay. Okay, she could do that. Talking wasn't so hard.

Yet her body felt stiff as she moved to the bed and awkwardly sat down on the edge.

"Hey," she muttered and gazed at Frigga, who nodded encouragingly, then back at Loki's pale face. "I … Um … Dunno if you can hear me, but …" She sighed, looking up again. "This isn't working. I really don't know what to say, I'm sorry."

"What would you say to Loki if he were awake?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"Thor and I can leave if you wish. Just remember, you are talking to my son, not at him."

"Thank you." Rebecca tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I appreciate this, your majesty." Especially knowing Thor had to be dragged away.

When the door closed, she took a deep breath in a half-hearted attempt to steady herself. Her fingers slowly slid under Loki's hand, thumb caressing the back of his palm. It brought a memory back; how she'd done the same thing for the first time, Loki's troubled sleep …

"Hey, Lokes," she murmured. "I didn't think I'd see Asgard for real. Not that I've seen much so far, but I'm here, and this is … this is all just crazy. It's fine, though. Everything'll be fine, okay?" Her other hand sneaked up to his face to push a stray black strand off his forehead. "You're safe here." Her voice was barely a whisper. "You can let them help you. I mean, I'm not … 's your choice. I'm sorry if you didn't want me to tell Thor. And I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I really, really am. You should have … I … That was … I didn't know anything back then, and nobody wanted to tell me, so I googled stuff, and … There's some pretty nasty legends, you know? And God, I hope they're not true, 'cause that would be really sick, even Stark said that. Not that you'd care about Stark … But you …

"What happened to you? I know I wasn't supposed to hear all those things, but I did and I can't—hell, do you even know everything you said?"

Something strong gripped her chest.

"You probably won't explain anything even if you do, right?" She tried to smirk. "No, of course you won't. I just hope you'll survive, you know. I do owe you …" Or maybe it was he who owed her, she'd lost count, and had they began marking their debts at the same time anyway? Did Loki know he'd accidently saved her life, that he'd began the chain? "And I will listen if you'll want me to, okay? I will—"

Loki's whole body jerked. Rebecca twitched, pulling her hand away from his face.

"Keep talking," Odin ordered. His brow was furrowed in concentration, and so was Loki's now, though from what was hard to tell. Hoping it wasn't pain, Rebecca tightened her grip.

"Shh," she whispered. "It'll be okay. You'll be fine. You don't have to fight anymore, 's over. Go back to being your stubborn, cranky self later, just rest now, 'kay?" She was running out of things to say, and so she settled for stroking the back of his hand while whispering it would be all right, apologizing from time to time, and promising he was safe. If he remembered anything later, he'd probably accuse her of lying, but she could live with that. His life on her conscience—not so much.

"Well done, child."

She gazed at the king, a relieved breath escaping her lips. "Did it work?"

A solemn nod. "It appears so. You are dismissed now. There will be somebody to escort you to your rooms."

She was staying in Asgard? Was Loki's life in danger still?

Reluctantly, she stood up. "Will Loki live?"

That piercing blue gaze was accompanied by a long, heavy silence. "Very likely."

Hating the lack of explanation but knowing it wasn't her place to inquire further, she bowed her head on instinct and left the room. All eyes were immediately on her again. Her first instinct was to make herself as small as possible as if that could hide her from the questioning gazes. Instead, she squared her shoulders. She'd seen Loki stand among his captors proudly; she could deal with curiosity. With what she hoped was determination, her gaze met the closest pair of eyes, blue, and belonging to a petite blond woman, dressed differently than the rest. She was not a healer.

"Lady Rebecca," the latter spoke half a moment later. "If you would follow me."

The journalist only nodded. Odd, to be addressed in such a way. there was a familiar curiosity in these women, and Rebecca could practically hear gossip forming on their lips already, yet there was also respect, and in that moment she was truly aware Thor was a prince, and his father was the king, and she'd come here with them. She'd met a real royal family. She'd talked to them, touched them. hell, she'd had a prince on her sofa!

The woman led her in silence. Was she afraid to ask? Forbidden to ask? Rebecca knew the workings of a monarchy in theory, but was it the same in praxis, who stood where, and what exactly did that mean?

After many corridors and a couple of halls, lots of glances and some whispers, they stopped in front of a door made of dark, polished wood.

"Your rooms."

She pushed the door open to be met with a sight of an enormous bedroom in creamy colours, with a king-size canopy-bed covered by silky silver sheets. Windows ran along the top of a whole wall in a continuous line, allowing soft light to caress the stony floor. The furniture was made of the same dark wood as the door (Rebecca really wished to know what tree it came from). Fire crackled in the fireplace. Three doors led out of the room, one of them opened wide. Behind it was a balcony, and behind that …

Rebecca sucked in a breath. The sky, bathed in purple and pink, stretched out as far as she could see, littered with specks of gold and clad in nebulas like a shy virgin, teasingly caressing white peaks of heaven-reaching mountains, serving as an extension of the glorious city beneath it, a creation that would put every earthly architect to shame and render art historians speechless.

"A bath has been prepared for you, and you will find clothes in the wardrobe. Food should be brought here soon. Is there anything else you wish? Lady …?"

"Rebecca," she added absent-mindedly, feeling her throat closing up and legs moving towards the balcony. The view was beautiful, but it wasn't just that. Loki had shown it to her. Loki. Whatever the reason. Whatever it meant. She'd seen it before, so maybe it wasn't so bad that the image got blurred by her tears this time.

A/N: Please review ;)

~shades