A.N.: the next chapter (29) takes place after a significant time skip from the last chapter (27). THIS chapter (28) is a series of fluffy little snapshots that take place during that time skip. The first two drabbles happen within a few days of Kagome and Loki finally getting together, while the last 5 are spread out over the skip. Enjoy this fluffy little interlude!

Snapshots:

Loki sat on a stone bench in the target yard and sharpened his daggers, keeping one eye on Kagome as she set another stance and fired off another arrow at a distant target. His eyes roved over her form, the curve of her figure, they way her body tensed and flexed as she reached back for another arrow. He paused his sharpening and watched her appreciatively as she sent another arrow sailing away and then reached back again to find her quiver empty. With an easy twirl of his finger he replenished her quiver, and when the aftershock of his magic washed over her she peeked over at him. He grinned slow, smug and a little predatory, making her cheeks glow and her eyes sparkle. She smiled, small and shy and waved. His face softened and she turned back to her practicing. He attempted to finish sharpening his daggers, but a large shadow fell over him. He glanced up and found his brother looming, arms crossed and face stern. He rolled his eyes and sat back, meeting Thor's stern glare, already annoyed and bored before his brother had even said a word.

"What do you want." He sighed, ready to get this over with so he could go back to inspecting the rather lovely view.

"We need to talk about your intentions with our sister."

"She is not my sister. I don't know how many times I've had to make that clarification."

"You know what I mean."

"It makes it sound weird."

"It is weird. It was funny at first but now it's concerning."

"She doesn't think so. If you don't believe me I can ask her tonight."

Loki grinned at Thor's sneer of disgust and tried not to laugh outright at the consternation he stirred up.

"Mother was right the other morning when she said this was ill-advised. I don't want to see her hurt when you decide you're done toying with her."

"Now that's cruel, siding with her over your real brother. Who's to say she isn't toying with me? Will you be so sympathetic if she breaks my little heart?"

Thor snorted and shook his head, exasperated with Loki's games and inability to speak plainly, always trying to lead someone around by the nose.

"She's not like you, Loki. She's not like any of us. She's-"

"Sweet, honest and lovely? Yes, I know."

"What?"

Loki's eyes shifted to the side and he smirked a little to see Kagome staring at them with thunder in her eyes.

"I assure you brother, my intentions aren't completely dishonorable. Only a little. And while I will forgive you for this overstep, I'm afraid I can only speak for myself. Brace yourself, you're in trouble."

Thor tilted his head in confusion, and then an ice cold voice frosted with rage froze his insides with dread.

"Thor. What do you think you're doing?"

He spun around, eyes widening at the sight of Kagome's sharp, firey glare.

"I... Uh..."

"You aren't trying to scare him away are you? You aren't meddling in things no one asked you to meddle in, are you? You aren't acting like I'm not a grown woman who can make her own decisions are you? You would never do that would you?!"

Thor spluttered, trying to backtrack and spare his hide from the formidable wrath of the deceptively gentle priestess that lived with them.

Loki went back to sharpening his knives, watching the new show with great amusement.

'Not as nice of a view as I had previously, but it has its merits.'

"You've been spending much time away from your rooms, my lady."

Dala's words were innocent enough, though her tone had just the barest edge of suggestion. It made Kagome's cheeks burn, but she met her maid's eyes in the mirror bravely.

"I have."

"Much time indeed."

Scraping up her stubbornness, Kagome tilted her chin up, hoping to appear much more confident than embarrassed.

"You got something to say about it?"

Dala grinned, but kept her attention on the hair she was currently brushing and fixing.

"I have little to say. But I do have questions!"

The longtime friends giggled and Kagome filled her in on the less embarrassing parts of how she and Loki got together.

"So you'll moving into his rooms then? You're just in here to get dressed?"

"Oh I.. I don't know. I know I've spent the last several nights there.."

"Just ask him. There's no need to be unsure or afraid. Anyway, it's your first feast night with him! Are you excited?"

Kagome fidgeted with some of the pins and ribbons on her vanity table and tried to sort through her nerves. Excitement was there, especially as this was merely a celebration of some successful mission Thor and the Warriors had been on. Very low-key, low pressure and informal. But she was also nervous, unsure how she was supposed to act around the prince in question.

"I am. I'm also nervous. I don't want to make myself look silly by doing the wrong thing."

"Oh you worry far too much." Dala said with a small wave of dismissal, focusing on putting the finishing touches on her hair. "I've seen you two sneaking around, he's certainly more than taken with you. You have nothing to fear."

Kagome narrowed her eyes, and noticed with suspicion that Dala was avoiding her gaze.

"What do you mean you've 'seen us sneaking around?'"

"Just that everyone forgets the servants have eyes and ears that see just as well as everyone else's. Now, enough of that. Time to go!"

Just as Dala said, she worried too much. No sooner had she entered the more informal banquet hall which was already bursting with loud voices and boisterous laughter, had Loki swept her over to where he was sitting with the rest of their friends.

"I was wondering when you'd arrive. You look lovely."

"Oh! Thank you..."

He brushed a kiss against her cheek, sat in a chair in the big middle of Thor, Sif, Hogun and Volstagg, and pulled her down on his lap, making a firm, deliberate statement for anyone looking about the new state of their relationship.

'I guess Dala was right...'

She relaxed then, settling a little easier into the circle of his arms until Fandral strolled up with a girl on each arm and a shit eating grin she wanted to slap right off.

"Oh how I love being right! Thor, you owe me money!"

She tuned them out as they squabbled over lost bets and money owed and instead smiled softly at Loki who wasted no time giving her all his attention the second her eyes were on him.

"Thank you." She whispered, and his brow furrowed a little while he searched her face.

"For what?"

She grinned and wiggled in his lap, her smile widening as his arms flexed tighter around her.

"For making things clear."

His expression cleared and then grew a little stern.

"You were worried? Spend no more time thinking such things, I've already said I am yours, and you are mine. I meant that, and I know you can sense the truth, there should be no room for any fears."

She leaned into him, curling up under his chin, feeling no need to be embarrassed.

"I know."

"Here you are, darling."

Kagome smiled softly in thanks, accepting the cup of warm tea from Loki as he took a seat next to her in front of the fire.

"Thank you. It's so cold!"

Everyone save Odin had piled into the family lounging room to huddle in front of the fire while the palace was warmed. A sudden cold snap had taken hold in the night and they'd been unprepared. But the family room was small and with four adult bodies and a roaring fire, they were warming fast.

"Yes, and waking with your icy feet in my back was a shock I'd rather not have to repeat again in any near future."

Kagome shot a dirty look at Thor who burst out laughing, then hunkered down in her blankets and sipped her tea, allowing the hot liquid to warm her all the way down.

"Whatever jerks. I don't even have the energy to fight you."

Loki settled in next to her, covering them bother with an extra blanket and pressing a soft kiss to her temple.

"Only teasing, darling." He whispered softly, and she rested her head on his shoulder, feeling warmer and safer than she could ever remember.

In a distant, mostly hidden corner of the main library, Kagome sat on a sun warmed couch pushed up against a large glass window and framed by floaty, gauzy curtains. She'd been reading the book in her hands for some time, engrossed in the story and characters, but a pair of lips peppering kisses across her shoulder had begun distracting her.

"Loki, I'm trying to read."

"You've been reading for hours."

She giggled as his breath fanned over the back of her neck, followed by more kisses.

"I didn't ask you to sit here with me the whole time."

His teeth snagged her earlobe in response and she gasped as her eyes fluttered closed and her toes curled.

"J-Just a little longer. I'm almost done."

He sat back with a gusty sigh and crossed his arms and she tried to hide her grin and not make it obvious she was laughing at him. She watched him from the corner of her eye as he fiddled with the curtains, a contemplative look on his finely drawn features.

"You ever wonder what it is Thor finds so alluring about drapes?"

Shocked, Kagome's attention jerked fully over to Loki who's eyes gleamed with mischief.

"Loki... No."

"Truly?"

"NO."

"You're lying."

Her cheeks burned and she averted her eyes to her lap.

"I think it's just the thrill of getting caught, not the actual drapes."

When he didn't respond she glanced back up, blanching at the predatory smirk slowly stretching across his face. He practically oozed satisfaction and suggestion.

"Loki..."

"Just once."

"This is the main library, everyone uses this library."

"No one comes here this time of day, to this corner."

"Loki."

"There is no one even in this part of the palace."

Her heart sped up, her face flushed, her skin tingled, and when she pushed passed the knee-jerk fear of getting caught, she found the excitement she'd heard people speak of. She bit her lip and Loki's eyes sparkled in anticipation.

"Okay, just the once. Just to say we have. But we won't tell anyone!"

"Deal."

He yanked her forward and shattered the rest of her thoughts with a searing kiss, and then they ran laughing to the nearest set of curtains.

"I can't believe you've managed to tolerate him this long."

"I've tolerated you this long."

"That's different, I'm the best."

Kagome rolled her eyes fondly and continued sharpening her arrows while Thor stretched out next to her in the grass. They'd come out to have lunch together in the warm sunshine after Thor pouted that she was letting Loki steal all of her time away.

'He's still just big needy puppy, after all this time.'

He sighed a dramatic, despondent sigh, and in her distraction she didn't notice the devious way he eyed her.

"You love him more than you love me."

"I love him differently than I love you."

Dreadful realization burned through her nerves and she looked at Thor in horror, but if the smug look on his dumb face was any indication, the damage was done.

"Uh... I mean.. I MEAN-"

"Have you told him?"

It was much softer than she expected, and his expression was painted with sweet understanding. She looked away and fiddled with her arrow heads, grasping at even the illusion of distance from this one painful topic.

"I... haven't."

"You don't believe he feels the same?"

"I don't want to presume too much and ruin everything."

"Kagome?"

She met his eyes again, shocked at the subtle sternness she found there.

"Yes?"

"You worry too much."

She smiled wryly and sighed, shrugging helplessly before laying back in the grass beside him and gazing up at the floating clouds.

"Yeah, so I've been told."

Kagome could feel her eyes glazing over as she listened to someone from some realm she couldn't remember prattle on at her about something she couldn't follow and didn't care about, but she had to play along and make a good impression.

'Keeping political relations up is exhausting.'

They were all in the Alfheim court for a shmooz-fest disguised as a ball, and while it was admittedly opulent and beautiful, it was also mind numbingly boring.

A throat cleared, silencing the man who'd been speaking to her and they both turned to acknowledge who'd interrupted.

Her hackles immediately raised to find the Alfheim prince.

"Hello my good man, do you mind if I steal this lovely woman away for a dance?"

"Of course not your highness!" He dipped a bow and scurried away, and before she could protest, she was swept across the floor in time to the soft music tinkling from the musicians.

"Hello, I remember you."

"How... generous of you?" Kagome replied uncomfortably, wondering if it was possible to get away without insulting him.

"Yes. You look ravishing this evening. How do you find my ball and what you have seen of my palace?"

"Uh, thank you. It's lovely, truly."

Something dark glittered in his eyes and the little alarm bells in the back of her head rang. He leaned in much closer than was necessary for their dance and she shivered in disgust at his hot breath in her ear.

"Let me take you on a much more... personal tour, starting with my bedchambers?"

Her eyes widened in shock and anger, but before she could ruin everything by decking the presumptuous prince in his pretty face, she was deftly spun out of his embrace and held firmly in another.

"I'll thank you not to be so familiar with my lady in the future, are we understood elfling?"

She sagged in relief as Loki's aura wrapped around her, agitated as it was, and took great pleasure at the Elf prince's look of shock.

"Well, this is certainly a new development."

Loki looked utterly bored and slightly put out to be speaking to the elf prince, but Kagome could feel the satisfaction in his aura.

"Not new, just since the last time anyone bothered with you."

He bristled but caught himself, bowing lightly with a strained smile.

"Forgive me for the insult, I don't mean to come on to your little pet."

He strolled away to go find a new target, and then Loki pulled her closer, wrapping his arm around her waist and leading her into another dance. She watched the elf prince walk away slack jawed and enraged.

"Did you.. he just.. I can't... he called me your pet!"

"I do believe I told you he was an imbecilic fool, did I not?"

She huffed and then turned back to Loki who sighed and wilted just slightly.

"I hate it here." He said emphatically, and she had to agree. This was the most boring party ever, and the crown prince's personality left much to be desired.

Taking a covert glimpse around, Kagome ascertained that no one was watching them, and even ducked close to whisper to him, and her impish secrecy woke Loki's mischievous side.

"You know... I think Alfheim probably has drapes..."

He squeezed her closer, nuzzled at her ear, and the husky, pleased tone of his voice sent fire racing down her spine.

"Indeed. Perhaps we should go find some."

A zip of magic made them invisible, and they left the awful ballroom behind.

The iridescent light of the Asgardian night filtered through his open window, illuminating Kagome's skin as she slept next to him. Loki traced all the glowing parts of her with sharp eyes and a warm heart, lightly skimming his fingers along as well.

She was so soft, so sweet, and the fact that she was his still filled him with awe, wonder, and a smug sense of pleasure. She was a treasure among all of Asgard, and that she'd given herself to him above all others was a point of pride he did not take lightly.

He caressed her face, smiling indulgently when her lids fluttered open and she stared unseeingly at him before scootching closer and curling up against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her back, holding close, reveling in the feel of her body pressed so trustingly close, the smell of her air. She nuzzled into his chest and sighed, and then whispered the sweetest words he'd probably ever heard.

"Love you."

Her voice was small and muzzy with sleep and she probably didn't even realize she'd said it out loud, but that didn't dim the joy that erupted in his heart and soul.

He pulled her ever closer, pressed several soft kisses on the crown of her head, and then closed his eyes, letting a content, peaceful sleep claim him.

The next morning, as she sat and brushed out her hair in the mirror of the vanity table they now shared, Loki slid in behind her chair and took over, dragging her comb through her silken tresses, grinning as she sighed from the inherent pleasure of someone else grooming your hair.

When he was sure she was good and relaxed, any possible tension combed out until she was pliable and unsuspecting, he sprung his attack.

"Did you know you mumble in your sleep sometimes? Last night, for instance, you said something rather interesting."

"Oh? Was it embarrassing?"

When he didn't answer, she cracked one eye open and tilted her head back until she could see him.

"Loki? I mean it, what did I say? Was it embarrassing?"

Nerves mounted as he gently set the comb back down and then stepped around her chair to crouch beside her. He took her hands in his, placed soft kisses across her knuckles, met the confusion in her eyes with all of his heart in his own.

"I love you too."

She searched him, his face, his eyes, his soul, and then she threw herself into his arms with a sob. He tightened his hold on her, and Kagome let her tears fall as every piece of her that had ever felt tired, tattered, lonely and lost, finally felt whole, loved, complete, and found.