And I've never loved a darker blue
Than the darkness I have known in you, own from you
You, whose heart would sing of anarchy
You would laugh at meanings, guarantees, so beautifully
When our truth is burned from history
By those who figured justice in fond memory, witness me
Like fire weeping from a cedar tree
Know that my love would burn with me
We'll live eternally
-Better love
The crown prince of Asgard had been attending all of his father's meetings, as well as private sessions with him where they discussed different policies and matters of their realm. The first months he had merely observed, despite his father knowing he had determined views on the issues at hand from before, but he remained quiet. But now it was different, he was an active part in the council meetings and expected to have solutions to every possible matter.
It was Odin's way of testing him, he knew that. And so he tried not to react harshly when he was annoyed by the million enquiries and problems he was faced with. He was not really a people person, as Darcy had told him teasingly when he had exploded in annoyance in their quarters one night, and his lack of tolerance for other people was probably what Odin tried to manipulate away in time before Loki ascended the throne.
Loki walked from his quarters in search of Darcy, she hadn't been resting as she used to at this hour. He didn't think she'd be in the gardens, it was a chilled spring afternoon so she would have tried to warm herself somewhere. He hated seeing her in such discomfort, the chill had only gotten worse and if she didn't wear thick enough clothes she would start to shiver quite visibly.
He walked into the healing ward, scanning the place for his wife or Essa. The blonde healer turned from a patient just in time to see him walk in and walked over.
"What can I do for you, your highness?" She asked with a smile.
"Have you seen Darcy?"
Essa frowned "Not since this morning check up, why?"
Loki turned around "Let me know if you see her" and then walked out of the ward. He teleported to his mother's quarters, landing by her fountain. Frigga looked up from her book in surprise and her hand maidens gasped in fear and surprise.
"Loki I didn't expect to see you-"
"Mother its urgent, have you seen Darcy?"
The queen paused before answering "I haven't, will you tell me what's wrong?" he glanced at her handmaidens before looking back at his mother who seemed to sense the ire in him growing.
"Tell me if you do" He then teleported away again near the training yard where Thor and the warriors three were teaching some soldiers new fighting techniques.
"Thor!" Thor looked up at his brother and smiled.
"Loki, what can I do for you brother?"
Loki had rushed down to Thor's side "Have you seen Darcy?"
Thor frowned as he thought "Not since my arrival last night, why? Is she missing?"
"I can't find her…let me know as soon as you might see her" Loki said before teleporting away again. He landed some distance away from the observatory and then started to run towards it over the rainbow bridge. The painful sensation in his chest seemed to grow the closer he got, the current situation reminding him far too much of what had happened nearly eight years ago. His vision started to narrow as he entered the observatory, almost expecting her to stand there at the edge of the bifrost, ready to leave him again.
Heimdall turned around and looked at the prince, who's pale countenance told the guardian exactly how he felt, he didn't need to look into his soul to see the obvious fear and apprehension in the crown prince's eyes.
"Where is she?" Loki asked and handed him the note the princess had left with him, knowing that Loki would go here and that there was no risk of anyone else seeing the note and creating suspicions about why she had left.
Loki snatched the note from the guardian and read it.
Darling, I left the note with Heimdall so that no one else would realize my reason for leaving. He knows everything by default and I knew he wouldn't judge my decision. Tell anyone outside the family that I left to visit my friends on earth. I plan on staying here for the rest of my pregnancy, we can't risk our child's safety by me giving birth on Asgard. If circumstances don't go our way I want our child to be safe, and it will be on earth with my friends.
When you read this note I hope I haven't caused you too much distress. I will miss you on earth, please come to me.
- Darcy
Loki met the gatekeepers golden gaze.
"Take me to her"
"What do you mean no? It's a perfectly fine name" Tony exclaimed as he tinkered with the robotic part of something on his desk.
"Tony for the last time, Tonyetta is not a real name, and even if it was I would never name my child that!" Darcy groaned form the sofa.
They were the only ones in the lab for the time being, the others either had missions or other stuff to do.
"It'll grow on you" Tony said and rubbed some sweat away from his forehead. The room was sweltering hot, but Darcy still cozied up under wool blankets and thick sweat pants and sweatshirt.
Bruce walked into the lab, carrying a brown bag, his eyebrows flying up over his forehead as he felt how warm it was.
"Jesus, you weren't kidding about having your temperature lowered were you?" Bruce said as he took in the sight of Darcy on the couch under the blankets. He stuck his hand down the paper bag and then pulled out a smaller bag.
"Your chips, your highness"
"Thanks Bruce!" Darcy smiled and then ripped into her chips bag.
"How are the gloves going?" Bruce asked Tony, the other one was about to reply when he got shocked by whatever he was tinkering with and then erupted into a string of yelled out curse words.
Tony took a calming breath "It's going fine, just some small touches, and getting it to work of course" He was using a similar technique as her Taser-gloves for making the delivery gloves the doctor would use during the delivery, so that if the baby had frost giant skin it wouldn't burn the doctors limbs off with frost bites.
Bruce sat down next to Darcy. "Helen is on her way with one of her old friends from her hospital days. She is going to help with the birth, and her friend is informed of your circumstances and is deeply fascinated by this opportunity to study you" He said with a smile and Darcy looked at him warily, he took her hand "Helen assures me that she is the best of the best. Helen is going to be prepared with her machine if anything goes awry"
"I have team of doctors on board as well" Tony said from his hunched over position. "They're on my pay roll now and if they so much as breath a word of what happens in the delivery room they will be on the streets eating garbage" He said it so casually but the threat behind it was very real, and despite being an all around good guy, Darcy had no doubt he would do it.
"Thank you both" Darcy said and Bruce smiled back.
"Of course Darcy. How are you feeling?" Bruce said and picked up a thermometer from his bag.
Darcy turned her head to her side and pulled her hair away from her ear so that he could take her temperature, then she did the same to the on the other side. "Same as two hours ago" She studied Bruce's face as he checked the thermometer, his neutral face telling her nothing apart from that her temperature probably was lower than was healthy.
Bruce put the thermometer back in his bag and then changed the subject "Steve and Natasha is coming back from their mission in a while"
"Did it go well? Where did they go?" Darcy asked and Tony snorted out a laugh.
"To some boat, I wasn't trusted with more. From what I could tell it did, but Cap still sounded pissed off"
Darcy sighed "Well as long as none of them are hurt"
Tony's phone beeped and he looked at it with a smile. "Ah, my fiancé is apparently on her way home from running her empire"
Darcy smiled at the happy expression on Tony's face when he said fiancé, and then she paused.
"Tony, could you ask her to pick up pickles on her way home?"
The tension between Steve and Natasha was high during dinner. It was one of those rare nights when the avengers did something so domestic as to just eat dinner with each other. Thor was in Asgard and Clint was somewhere else, Natasha was the only one who knew where Clint was but it was of course classified. When she had told Darcy that she had been rewarded by a huffed out sigh from Steve who had overheard them, Natasha had glared at him and then turned to Darcy with a smile and started to talk about something else.
The group, Tony, Pepper, Darcy, Steve, Bruce and Natasha moved to the newly renovated top floor and opened up the bar. Darcy drank orange juice through a bright blue straw, still covered under sweatpants and sweat shirt with her many blankets while she listened to the others talking about stuff that had happened while she had been in Asgard.
Pepper had bought her baby clothes and they sat there gushing over how cute they were, something which clearly made Tony nervous.
It was a really nice evening and she had missed them all so much, she started to think about if she could travel to Jane as well, but then remembered that Jane would have to come to her, she couldn't fly in her condition. And the bifrost had made her sick.
The laughter was interrupted the room lit up in lightning speed and then darkened again, and before anyone could ask what had happened the alarm went off. The Avengers shot up and were instantly ready to fight.
"There's something on the balcony" Steve said and all eyes turned to the figure walking from Tony's landing platform towards them.
Darcy stood up with a smile on her lips, the flash of the bifrost and the dark clad figure could only be one person. "Loki!"
She stood up and started to walk to the door, followed by still battle ready Avengers. Loki teleported the last bit and appeared directly in front of her, she didn't have time to breath before he wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him.
Darcy wrapped her arms around him as well, and they stood there in silence. The avengers grew increasingly uneasy with staring at them so they looked elsewhere, at least until Loki started to shout.
Loki pulled back, still holding on to Darcy's arms. "What the hell are you doing!" Darcy gaped at him in shock, as well as the avengers and Pepper.
"Loki I told you-"
"You did not tell me anything! You disappeared without a word, do you really think that after searching for you all over the castle that my fears would be pacified by a note!" Darcy said nothing and Loki gathered his breath again.
"You can't do that Darcy, you have to tell me, I thought…" Loki stopped speaking and looked around the room at the avengers, before looking down at his wife. He stepped closer to her again and cupped her face in his hands.
"I thought you disappeared again" Loki said quietly and Darcy's eyes widened "I thought that the spirits had managed to take you"
Darcy felt tears pool in her eyes "I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you, I didn't even think about that…I just realized that I needed to go here and I left" She rose up on her tip toes and kissed him, which he eagerly reciprocated and held her close to him.
"I won't do it again" She murmured against his neck and he looked down at her.
"I should bloody well hope so" He sighed and she smirked. Darcy turned around to her friends.
"We're gonna go, have a nice evening guys" Darcy said and led Loki away into the elevator. They had a lot to talk about.
The avengers quietly sat down on the couches again, and then Bruce broke the silence.
"So Loki is going to live here, again"
"It would seem so" Steve stated and drank his beer in one go.
"I don't mind so much actually" Tony said and wrapped his arm over Peppers shoulders. Steve frowned at him.
"How come?"
"I'm comforted by the knowledge that he hates it more than we do" Tony said with a smirk and drank his whiskey. "Cheers to the Asgardians!"
The days passed in relative peace after Loki's arrival. Darcy hung out with her friends (those who weren't away on super-secret spy missions anyway) during the first half of the day and then went back to her old apartment in the tower to Loki.
But Loki had grown bored of the confined space of Darcy's old living quarters. He had studied all he could find about her life on earth, finding traces and mirror images of her life in Asgard. But after ransacking her old life he prowled through Starks tower. A disguise was necessary of course, and so he had taken Darcy's advice in what clothing to wear and she seemed to favor him wearing suits.
Her first reaction to seeing him in a black suit, black tie, and black shirt was to pull down his pants and suck him off...needless to say she approved of his new apparel. And he approved of her reaction to his new look.
He went looking for Darcy in her usual places, the penthouse, inside garden and then the lab.
The doors slid open and his eyes immediately met Stark's. and he was alone in the room.
"She's not here" stark said before he turned around to hover over his screen again.
"Her absence would suggest that" Loki answered drolly, seeing Stark tense at what Darcy would call 'douchy' answer.
"Do you know where she went?"
"The boy wonder went for a walk with her, I don't remember how long ago"
Loki nodded at the answer even though Stark couldn't see him. He was still annoyed by the sight of the saint that was Captain America, but Darcy had told him that the captain was going through though times...and so he tried to not interfere whenever they had their talks.
"Thank you" Loki said curtly before he turned around to leave.
"Wait up reindeer games!" Tony said and turned around, Loki looked back at him with a frown.
"I have a science question"
Loki raised an eyebrow "A science question?" Skepticism rolling off his tongue.
"Yes, for something I'm working on"
Loki's eyes narrowed "did Darcy tell you to include me?"
Tony frowned "No, I wouldn't have agreed if she had asked anyway"
"…I believe you"
They stared at each other for a minute before Loki walked over to Stark.
"The question?"
They spoke at length after that. Stark had an idea, still very much at an infant level, concerning the possibility of building robots to protect the earth's population against alien attacks. Like the chitauri's attack on New York. And make the robots with the same technology as his robotic suits.
Darcy found them debating consciousness and Tony waving calculations about how he had made Jarvis. She had stood there and stared at them for a while with a smile on her face. Feeling better than she had all day, the walk with Steve had alleviated her cramps a little but they was still an ominous thrumming feeling in her body.
"Loki?" Loki looked back and met Darcy's smiling eyes.
"Darling, thank Yggdrasil! Help me educate this pleb"
"Take that royal stick out your ass and listen!" Tony shot back as he started to doodle down an equation.
Darcy laughed at them and walked over, she bent down and kissed Loki's cheek before leaning against his chair.
"I'd love to let you chat but I think I want to go and see Dr..."
Both men took a while to notice her silence. But we're quickly woken from their argumentative slumber when the sound of splashing echoed through the room.
Loki whipped around and met Darcy's wide open eyes, her hand pressed against her stomach.
Darcy let out a breath she hadn't know she was holding and it manifested into the only words she could think of in that situation "Holy fuck, I'm having a baby"
"Darcy breathe" said but Darcy's scream tuned her out. The makeshift delivery room had been stocked the days following Darcy's arrival and 's team was running around checking equipment and other stats while trying to drain out the soon to be mother's impressive screams.
Darcy's head fell back against the pillows again. Her pale lips shaking from the pain and cold. Her body was covered with blankets and hot water bottles but she was still chilled.
"Helen?" said and the sweet scientist stepped forward from her previous place at another machine.
"Find the father, I need to know more about the usual process for birthing frost Giants"
Helen nodded and turned to leave but Darcy's scream made her halt.
"And when you find him tell him to get his ass in here!" Darcy shrieked and poor Helen only nodded before she scurried out.
When she got out into the other room where Bruce and Steve were currently waiting, they both shot up from their chairs.
"What is it?"
"Is something wrong?"
"No, no she's fine. In pain and about to push a baby out of her genitals but...fine for now. I need to find the father"
"Loki beamed up to Asgard about an hour ago, he said he wouldn't be long-"
"Did I miss it?" They all turned to see Natasha, still in uniform, running down the hallway towards them.
"No, it's not delivered yet" Helen said and Bruce looked at Natasha in surprise.
"I thought you just left for Scandinavia?"
"I did" Natasha answered, a little out of breath. "But when I got your text I flew back" when Bruce opened his mouth to ask about the mission she held up her hand to stop him "it can wait"
Tony appeared in the corridor walking towards them, he was about to say something as he got closer but jumped back in surprise when Loki and another lady everyone but Bruce recognized appeared out of nowhere in front of him.
Loki took one sharp look at them "Is it over?"
Tony snorted as he walked around him "You wish"
Helen stepped forward " needs more information about typical Jotun births-"
"We usually kill them before we ask about how they reproduce!" Loki snapped and glared at Helen. The doctor shrank back a little in response.
They all looked on in surprise as the lady in gold dress next to Loki put a hand on his chest and pushed him back slightly, but not ungently.
"Loki, look at me" Loki met his mother's gaze. "They are trying to help. Let me speak to the healer and Darcy, so we can sort this out"
The avengers all seemed to go slack as the lady turned around and looked at them with a gentle smile on her face. The kindness within her seemed to radiate out and warm anyone who looked at her.
Her smile widened "You must be the friends Thor speaks so highly of. I am Frigga his mother, I'm sorry that I did not have the opportunity to speak with you further in Asgard"
Bruce's jaw dropped slightly "The queen of Asgard?"
"That would be me" She said with a small bow of her head. She was about to speak again when a loud scream interrupted the silence. Frigga suddenly turned very determined "I'll speak to you another time, I'm about to be a grandmother" Loki and Frigga disappeared into the delivery room.
2 hours later.
Loki who had been banished from the delivery room by Darcy lounged in the chairs outside with the other avengers. Tony who obviously had something on his mind had been looking at Loki for an aggravatingly long time.
"What, Stark?"
"How bad would it be if the baby was a frost giant?" Loki paused for a long while after that.
"If the baby cannot hide its appearance somehow…it would mean that we cannot bring it back to Asgard. It would be looked down on and hated in Asgard…so we would find some way to have it here. Darcy mentioned a school for kids with abilities, maybe it can fit in there."
"Why are they so terrible?" Natasha asked.
"They have been the enemies of Asgard for as long as anyone can remember, they are the stuff of nightmares that all Asgardians hear of from the time their born. Their skin is so cold that it burns flesh of bones"
"Darcy said they are blue" Steve said and Loki met the captains gaze, feeling the change come over him. His eyes that met the captains were red, his face, his hands and lower arms were hauntingly blue.
"We are blue"
Rana was born without any remarkable complications. The mother was healthy. The baby was too, despite having a lower body temperature. When Loki first held her, just hours old, he had let out a deep sigh and his skin had rippled into deep shade of blue. Rana had stared up at him for the longest time, and then slowly her lips, her eyes, hands and feet turned a turquoise hue. Her touch was a little cold, but nowhere near painful.
Her father had cried from joy.
…
The newest addition to the royal family was presented at court four months afterwards. By then her parents were sure she was healthy and knew exactly when she was likely to change hue, as it seemed to be instinctual.
It was agreed by all nobles that she was the most handsome child, especially her eyes. Her eyes were a gift from her mother, but as Darcy frequently said, they were much more beautiful than hers. And even Loki, who loved everything about Darcy, had to agree. Rana's eyes were truly beautiful, they swirled like a waterfall, like a river. Both dark and light blue.
Her grandfather had shed a tear when he first held her. Thor had gotten teary eyed as well. Odin would have laid down the crown for his granddaughter from the moment she reached out and grabbed his finger, so complete was her power. Odin, Loki and Thor had immediately started to guess what she would be the goddess of.
Frigga had looked at them, holding the little bundle of joy in her arms, with a secret smile on her face. The moment Rana had been born, had handed her to Frigga who had then proceeded to magically examine her. And as soon as Rana's skin met hers she had had a vision.
No she wouldn't be the goddess of war or battle, not of magic either. No, she would be the goddess of the sea. She had seen her beautiful granddaughter ride the sea serpent enveloping the worlds, Jörmungand. She could part seas, she could turn it to ice, to rain. She would guard the souls of people lost at sea and bring them home.
And maybe her being the goddess of the seas would solve the mystery of why she turned this light shade of blue, a sea goddess would have to have some water in her blood after all…
But she wouldn't spoil that surprise for her parents or the rest of the family.
…
"I want another one" Darcy whispered as she stood looking down at Rana in her crib. Loki stood behind her and hugged her from behind.
"That could be arranged" He kissed her ear and Darcy smiled and turned around to kiss him.
"I'll let the nanny take her for an hour or two" Loki then picked her up and walked out of the nursery into their bedroom. Darcy landed on the bed with her husband above her seconds later, kissing and eagerly peeling her clothes off.
Knocking on the door ruined the mood, however. Loki growled in frustration "What!" He called out and Darcy instantly flinched at the loud sound, Rana would probably wake up from it.
The door opened and Darcy's maid stepped in and Thor rushed past her like a whirlwind.
"Brother I need your help!" Thor boomed and Darcy flinched yet again.
"I just got her to sleep" Darcy groaned and Loki got up to face his brother.
"What Thor?" Crying in the other room made Darcy's maid, Tanni, rush towards the nursery door. Darcy got up and waved her away.
"I got it, Tanni"
"Yes, mistress" Tanni said and then left the room.
When Darcy got back after comforting Rana, cuddling her daughter to her chest, she was met with Loki's astonished expression. Thor must have really fucked up this time.
"What is it?" Darcy asked and Thor turned and started to explain it for her.
Darcy then sat there, in her newly 'just got her shit together' life and stared at Thor in complete astonishment.
"You mean to tell me that Jane was possessed by an evil space elf weapon and is now trying to kill her, and that the dark elves that were thought to be extinct will come for her now that their 'force has awakened' them"
"They have hidden themselves from Heimdall's sight but mother felt them through her pool"
Rana's spit bubble popped and the four month old squealed in delight, while her parents sat there motionless staring at her uncle.
Darcy finally blinked, and took a breath "You have got to be kidding me"
Fin!
Fact check: Rana is originally named Ran in Nordic mythology, she is the goddess of the sea and has nine daughters all named after different types of waves, with her husband Ägir.
Rana is a Jotun so it fits the story quite well, you may see my interpretation of how she meets her future husband at some point down the road...
I wanted to end on a comedic note as well as show that the adventures of Darcy and Loki aren't over, but this story is.
That is it from this story (except for that one shot I'm going on about). Review and tell me what you think.
Huge hugs and thankyous to all who reviewed and favorited and followed the story, I love the response the story has gotten and I'm happy so many people liked it.
Love you all, and thank you.
