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Chapter 28: Another!
The feast was starting and I was famished.
Platters stockpiled with various fruits, vegetables, honeyed breadrolls, smoaked meats, and unknown delicacies were everywhere. Tall, intricately crafted pitchers caried beer, rum, wine, juice, and water—all flavored differently. I hadn't even tried anything yet, but just glancing around the table made my mouth water.
I had died and gone to heaven.
Loki sat to my left while Queen Frigga sat on my right. Then on the queen's righthand side sat the king at the head of the table. On his other side sat Thor and Sif. Everyone else were complete strangers to me.
Plates and platters were being passed around. Meanwhile, Queen Frigga was asking me about my life.
"How old are you?"
"What is your job back on Midgard?"
"How are you liking Asgard?"
"How did you come to meet my son?"
All these questions politely came from the beautiful queen before me. I tried to answer her as clearly and confidently as possible, but my nervousness ate at me from the inside. King Odin kept his mouth shut and instead he preferred to watch me carefully, eating in silence, as I answered the queen. Every now and then, I would glance his direction and shy away from his sole gaze.
He probably thought I was worse than a goat.
"Mother, your questions are keeping Laurel from her food. She is going to starve," Loki said as he placed his hand on my knee under the table. An electric current shot up my back and I held in the shiver of nervous excitement that filled me at his touch.
The king spoke up next, speaking directly to me for the first time all night. "You must try the bread pudding and the wine. Its heartiness will fill you with renewed strength. You will heal much swifter that way."
"I agree. My apologies. I just wanted to get to know you better. Enjoy your meal, Laurel," Queen Frigga murmured with a smile. I nodded, thanking her for her polite conversation, and turned to Loki.
"She's being so nice to me. Even your father hasn't compared me to livestock yet…" I whispered in his ear.
His hand trailed upwards by an inch as he replied softly. "Now who told you about Jane Foster?"
"Sif did."
Loki laughed softly and his fingers danced upon the skin of my lower thigh. "My adoptive parents knew Thor wasn't meant to be with Jane. Mother was always polite and curtious, like she naturally is, but Odin greatly disapproved. They regarded Heimdall's words quite highly. Heimdall said that Thor would marry an asgardian warrior maiden…who I happen to know for certain to be Sif herself, and so Odin looked down upon Jane with unease."
"And?" I asked further.
His hand moved slowly up my thigh even more, dangerously close to my underwear while he whispered in my ear. "And…both Odin and frigga know you are the mortal woman Heimdall spoke of. That is why you have not been called a goat," he chuckled against my neck. "They rather approve of you." His breath tickled my skin and I felt goosebumps appear across my body. I smiled softly at both the good news and Loki's affection, then closed my eyes.
"Another!" someone abruptly shouted. The person then threw their mug upon the ground and it shattered. I startled at the loud noise, jumping in my seat and pulling away from Loki's touch.
Laughter errupted as a readheaded, bearded man was then presented another mug of ale. Thor clapped his hands, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest as he politely just asked for someone to refill the mug he currently held outwards. He noticed my staring and called out across the table to me, "During my time on Midgard, I learned that smashing mugs upon the floor surprisingly was not customary. Here, however, it is when one wants another drink. I still prefer not to, though."
I smiled, thanking him for the explaination and grabbed a honeyed roll from a nearby platter. They had easily become a favorite of mine in the few hours I had been here on Asgard. As I chewed my food, I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. The pain in my side was beginning to grow. My wound was not yet fully healed and it still ached.
"Here, Laurel," Loki murmured as he held out an outstretched hand to me. He curled his fingers against his plam, making a fist, and then unfurled them once more to reveal a smal glass vial. Loki had conjured up the object out of thin air. Magic. I looked down at his hand with confusion, one eyebrow arched upwards.
"What is that for?" I murmured as I sat down my half eaten breadroll on my plate.
He smirked, "It's medicine…for your injury, of course. Pour it into your wine. Its composition is stable enough to not react badly with the alcohol. It will promote further healing and reduce pain. I've seen the way you wince when you move too quickly. Your earlier dose is beginning to wear off. Take it."
I lifted my eyes from the vial of clear liquid in his palm and let my gaze fall upon his face. His raven colored hair was neatly tucked behind his ears, slicked back and neatly combed, enhancing his perfectly straight hairline. His lips were parted slightly, relaxed, and waiting for my response. Brows were lifted ever so subtly as he watched me study him. Loki's emerald eyes were dark and shining with an emotion I couldn't place.
My hand rose from my lap and carefully took the small glass vial from his palm. My fingertips brushed ever so softly against his skin as I grasped the medicine and uncapped it, pouring it into my wine.
I took a sip, tasting no hint of the miracle drugs, but instantly began to feel the pain in my side lessen. A warm, tingling sensation washed over me and I sighed in relief. "Thank you, Loki."
He nodded and began to continue on with his meal. As I ate and listened around me to the multitude of happy conversation, I wondered what the future had in store for me—for us.
Where do we go from here?
XXX
Three rolls of bread, two slices of smoked ham, two helpings of bread pudding, a handful of fruit, and three glasses of wine later…the ball began.
Everyone who had their fill of the delicious food now rose from their chairs and grabbed a partner. The legs of the chair to my left squealed upon the floor as its occupant pushed away from the table. Loki stood and held his hand out to me. I placed my hand in his and he led me away.
We danced and I laughed as I couldn't figure out the steps for this faster paced routine. My head felt light as if it was filled with bubbles. I ended up stepping on his boots, twice, and apologized profusely. I couldn't disscern if it was due to the wine or the difficulty of the new dance that brought about my clumsiness. He assured me all was well and ended up spending most of the song teaching me the steps himself while beautiful string instruments played in the distance.
Five songs later, someone lightly tapped me on the shoulder.
I spun around, curious, and found Thor to be standing behind me. "Do you mind if I cut in, brother?" he asked Loki.
Loki's eyes narrowed suspiciously and he looked to me for my answer. I shrugged and he nodded my way, then he murmured his response, "Be my guest, Thor." He paused and continued lowly, "But be warned…if you upset her in any way whatsoever, I will make you pay."
The burly blond smiled and gently took my hand in his. "This way, Laurel," he spoke, unaffected by his adopted brother's words. I glanced back at Loki once more and found him and Sif to be glaring at each other. Apparently, they weren't on good enough terms to dance together while their partners were momentarily absent.
Once Thor and I were deep enough into the crowd of people that Loki and Sif could not hear us, he started talking while we followed the steps of the current dance. "Do you notice how he only calls Father and I by our names? He still hates us…"
I frowned, "I think he's just mad at you. I doubt he actually hates you both."
He smiled and gave a light chuckle. "You are kind and mistaken, but that is all right with me. You care about my brother," it was a statement and not a question.
Still, I nodded as if he had asked. "I do," I murmured.
"Even despite what he did to Midgard?"
"Yes. I was angry for the longest time…but then I forgave him."
"Why?" he asked, curious.
I paused, thinking of how to phrase my answer. "Because I was dying and I wanted to be free of resent and anger. Also because I can see why he did it. Loki likes power and—on some smaller scale, who doesn't? Who doesn't want to feel in control? I don't agree with the way he tried to achieve it, but I can understand why he did it. He told me about his childhood—"
"Now I always treated Loki fairly, Laurel. If Loki said otherwise—" he interrupted me and I raised my hand to stop him. Taking back the conversation, I continued, "He never said you bullied him or anything. He just didn't get raised the way he should have. He didn't have the support needed. Let me put it this way…I garden. I know that if one plant grows quickly from proper sun and water and another right next to it doesn't, the more the healthy plant grows…the bigger its shadow overcasts the second plant. The second plant can get weaker as the first one continues to thrive and block out the sunlight it needs."
"I…do not quite comprehend what you mean," he mumbled.
I sighed, "Your father started off giving you more attention than Loki. Now, as you and Loki grew and got older…you kept thriving on the attention while Loki felt like he was suffering. So Loki had to branch out and try to find his own 'sunlight'. He craves power now and these past few years he did some rather unorthodox things trying to achieve it. Maybe now he'll find a more acceptable way to get what he wants."
"Yes, Father does rule upon the throne of Asgard…always gaining from victories and making treaties with other realms. I suppose that is his way of staying in power. Perhaps that is where Loki learned his thirst for control from. Father just goes about it in a slightly more acceptable manner…"
"I have hope that Loki will find his own way," I whispered, eyes searching the crowd for Loki's face. I wanted him to find happiness. I really did.
I loved him and was beginning to realize just how much I didn't want to give up on us.
"Laurel," Thor murmured, catching my attention once more. "You have already steered Loki onto a more straight and narrow pathway. I doubt he will ever truly be calmed, but I know you will keep him from becoming completely ruthless. Heimdall said just so."
"You know about Heimdall's prediction?" I asked in mild surprise. He nodded. "How many people know about Loki and I?"
"Just Father, Mother, Loki, myself…and you of course. You shall make a fine queen at his side. I can tell already."
I scoffed and smiled, "Thank you, but I have no idea what the future holds for Loki and I. I'm a mortal, as your people often say. How exactly is that supposed to work?"
He shrugged and turned us around while the lute and harp played softly behind us. "I do not know. I fell for a woman from your realm, Jane Foster, and we ultimately drifted apart for many reasons. One of them was the fact that I could not bear to watch her die while I lived on, but I am confident you and Loki will find a way…" his smile was tight and a sadness gleamed in his eyes. He knew there wasn't much hope for me. I would die within a few decades and he knew it.
It was the unspoken truth of humanity.
Mortality was inevitable and it would claim me.
"My apologies, I did not mean to upset you—" Thor quickly murmured, noticing that I saw through his attempt to hide how he really felt. My vision became blurry and it was then that I realized I was starting to cry. Perhaps at another time, I would have held in how sad I really was until I was alone and out of public view, but now the wine from earlier was making my fear and sadness bubble up and over like a volcano. I couldn't hold in my tears any longer.
"What have you done?" a cold voice hissed behind me. I turned around and saw Loki glaring daggers at his brother. I tilted my head and breathed out his name, "Loki…"
"Come with me, Laurel. Let's get you out of here," he replied, placing his arms around my shoulders and steering me away from the crowd of bustling people. In moments we had left the great hall and entered a narrow walkway through the castle. Loki cupped my face in his hands and spoke to me. "Laurel, what happened? Why are you upset? What did Thor say to you?"
"I…I'm going to die!" I cried, looking up at his worried face. A tear caught on my long lashes for a moment before falling onto my chest.
"Thor told you that you were going to die?!"
I sniffled, "No. Not exactly…"
Loki looked around the less occupied hallway, a few remaining patrons glanced at us with curiosity, and then made a decision. "Hold on," he murmured and then took my hands in his. A flash of green and gold light filled my eyes and I felt gravity tilt and waver. My head spun and suddenly we were no longer in the sparse hallway. We were in a room.
"Where…where are we?" I asked as I wiped my eyes.
"These are my chambers. I decided that we should talk alone and away from the gaze of others," he replied. "Now, what has gotten you so upset?" Loki took my hand and led me to his bed. It was covered with black, silken sheets and half a dozen pillows. He lay down first and then moved to pull me to him. Despite the fact that we had been apart for years, I still found his touch comforting. I went to his arms willingly and settled at his side.
Taking a deep breath, I started explaining myself. "We were just talking about you…and my future with you, and then…then I could just see it on his face, Loki. He looks at me with such sadness because he knows what it's like to love someone like me! He let Jane go because he couldn't handle it."
"He let Jane go because he is meant to be with Sif," he urged me.
"But that wasn't the only reason! He couldn't bear to see Jane fade away with time. And you told me the same thing! You left me before because of it!" I cried, hiding my face in his chest. I didn't want to see him—to see the look of pain in his eyes.
He lowered his face into my hair and inhaled deeply before quietly murmuring to himself, "How terrible it it so love something that death can touch."
A sob escaped my throat.
"Hey, shhh…Laurel. I was cowardly before. I. Will. Not. Leave. You. Now." he emphasized each word.
"But I will leave you! Don't you see, Loki? I am going to die one day and leave you behind to live a life without me. And that scares me!"
Loki took my chin and lifted my face to meet my gaze. Heavy droplets of moisture clung to my lashes and fell as I blinked. A tear rolled down my cheek to land upon his shirt, leaving a dark mark as it dampened the fabric. Our eyes locked onto each others as he spoke, "I will find a way."
"W—what do you mean?"
"I mean…that I am going to find a way to make you immortal."
