Chapter 25: Saving Mikan (Part 1):
"Lady Sakura. Mikan… Allice has made of you a terrible weapon. Both capable of restoring him back to greatness and triggering the happening of Ragnarok."
Mikan's jaw went slack. She had now established for a very long time that she was a very unlucky person. But this? This was taking everything to whole new level! Suddenly, a laugh threatened to bubble out of her chest at the ridicule of her own situation. It remained stuck in her throat. All Mikan found in herself the power to do was to stare at the Asgardian ruler incredulously as she tried her best to decide on whether this was all an elaborate joke, or Frigga had completely lost her mind. She opened her mouth hesitantly as if to speak, closed it, unsure of what to say, then finally opened it again:
"Yo-You can't be serious?" Mikan stammered, still in disbelief. "R-Right?" she added faintly.
"Ragnarok is no laughing matter, dear child." Frigga assured her.
Mikan shivered, hardly biting back the tears that were threatening to fall down her cheeks. She gasped for air as it seemed weighted around her and she suddenly became too aware of the chains bounding her to the column, which hugged her figure so tightly she feared her ribs would break at any sudden movement. She closed her eyes shut, wishing for the world surrounding to disappear, and worked on steadying her breath. 'If Loki is merely the result of Allice's schemes, why can't I be too?' Mikan thought bitterly.
Frigga's gentle touch brought Mikan back to reality. She sighed heavily as she allowed Loki's mother to stroke her cheek reassuringly. "I know that this is a lot for you to process, and that is perfectly understandable. But I have proof of what I am advancing, Lady Sakura. All I need is you consent and I will show you everything."
"What do you need my consent for?" Mikan asked, barely swallowing down her apprehension.
"I will need to guide you within the Soul Stone."
"Do I really have a say in this anyway?" Mikan replied abashed. She held few doubts over the Sorceress' sincerity. 'Guide me within the Stone, she says. Never heard of something like that before…' Mikan sighed. At this point, she wasn't even sure she cared anymore. All she desperately wanted was to get some rest, find herself a comfortable bed in which she could fall asleep and, hopefully, never weak up.
"You do, Lady Sakura." Frigga assured her kindly. "I won't press you into doing anything you are uncomfortable with."
Mikan nodded dubiously. "If you say so… Then fine with me. Do whatever needs to be done." she agreed resignedly.
A small smile appeared on Frigga's caring features as her hands fell over Mikan's shoulders. She could sense the muscles beneath them tense under her touch. Frigga lifted Mikan's chin with sorcery so their eyes would be at the same level and Mikan's breath caught in her throat in apprehension as the Asgardian ruler began reciting an incantation in a language she knew not.
Mikan never heard the end of it as the world around her turned black. Although she couldn't see a thing around her, Mikan felt herself being dragged forward at a fast pace and, suddenly, she sensed it. It was once again coming towards her. When a familiar warm light encircled her, all of Mikan's fears vanished. It felt so safe, so welcoming, as if she had just been reunited with a lost part of herself. Albeit this time it was coated in Frigga's magical flow, guiding her and paving the way for her within the Stone.
Unlike her previous experience within it, her journey didn't end there. Mikan felt herself being dragged further within its depths. Finally, she perceived two large doors which carvings were similar to those drawn on the doors of the Hidden Stronghold. As the distance separating them from her was closing rapidly, Mikan expected them to open for her. Sadly, it never happened. Frigga's magic, meddled with her own, hit them forcefully.
Then everything went wrong too quickly.
Mikan had no time to sense their connection shatter as she felt herself fall into a pit of darkness that was all way too familiar. The same inside of which she had been trapped in for two whole freaking years. Mikan turned around, looking frantically for Frigga, but there was nothing for her to see. A dark blanket of cold emptiness had wrapped itself around her. She couldn't even sense the Queen's magical energy anymore. Mikan felt herself start to panic.
'No. Not again, please! Frigga, please get me out of here!'
Her voice echoed in the darkness without eliciting any kind of response back.
Abruptly seized by an overwhelming fear, Mikan felt like crying. However, this time was no different: she couldn't even sense her body.
'No. No. No! Not again, please not again! Frigga, if you can hear me, please pull me out of this place! Please! Don't put me through this again! I beg you Frigga! Please have mercy on me!' Mikan implored desperately. She couldn't fathom worse fate than this.
Mikan kept on sobbing, begging and yelling at Frigga until she ultimately came to the hard realization that her pleas were falling on deaf ears. She shut down as she resignedly allowed herself to be surrounded by a deadening silence. It was only then that she slowly became aware of them. What came to her at first like small whispers grew into intangible roaring screams of agony. Unable to block them out, Mikan resumed on calling for Frigga as she desperately tried to cover them up with her own cries for help.
Frigga's breath caught in her throat the moment Mikan's body went limp and the skin under her touch grew cold almost instantly. Panic had started to kick in and had wrapped itself around her stomach when her bloodshot eyes had opened briefly and she had started suddenly vomiting blood before falling back into a state of unconsciousness. Frigga's bloodstained hands hovered hesitantly over Mikan's shoulders, unsure of what to do. 'I lost her there. Norns what do I do, now? None of this was supposed to happen that way!'
Loud banging on the Stronghold's door tore Frigga off her dazzled state. She jerked her head up and stared at the doors with complete aberration as she sensed Hotaru's presence behind them. 'How did she–? Even Odin hasn't remarked my absence yet.'
"Mikan, open up! I know you're here! I'll give you five seconds to open these damned doors. If you don't, I'll blow them up and we both know you don't want this to happen. One. Two. Three. Four. Fi-"
Drawing Odin's attention was the last thing she needed at the moment. Rising to her full height, Frigga hastily covered the distance separating her from the doors of the Stronghold and flanged them wide open, revealing a furious Hotaru waiting on the other side.
For the briefest of moments, the two women stared at each other. Although Hotaru's expression remained carefully impassive, Frigga perceived the shock and utter surprise in her eyes. Neither seemed to be prepared for such a turn of events. Then Hotaru's gaze fell on Mikan's limp body and on Frigga's bloodstained hands before settling back on Mikan's unconscious form. Shivers ran down her spine at the realization it belonged to her childhood friend's.
'What the is going on?'
Ignoring Frigga's stiff presence, Hotaru shoved her unceremoniously to the side and rushed to Mikan's. She nearly tripped in her haste to reach her. Kneeling beside her, her hands lifted hesitantly to grip Mikan's shoulders. They froze mid-air, stopping before making contact, as Hotaru took sight of the blood gushing out of her nose and her ears, the black marks covering Mikan's body and the blood splatters staining her once blue sweatshirt. Hotaru sat back on her heals and forced in a hitched breath. The air felt weighted around her. 'The Corrosion Alice. Why does she have it? What the fuck is happening?'
"What is happening? Frigga, what have you done? Make it stop. Do something to make this stop." Hotaru demanded coolly.
"I don't know. Hotaru, I don't understand. My spell wasn't supposed to work this way." Frigga admitted defeatedly as she closed the distance separating them. Her hands were trembling and all colors had been drained of her face.
Unsettled by the desperation in the Queen's voice, Hotaru swallowed down her own rising panic and placed her hands on each side of Mikan's body.
"Well then do something. You cannot leave her like that. Unchain her, that's the least you can do." Hotaru's voice was commanding, just enough to snap Frigga out of her panicked state. She shook her head and kneeled down next to her.
"No. I fear this will only worsen the situation. These chains are absorbing all the magical energy emanating from her body. Untying her might aggravate the effects of the curse placed on her."
"You didn't answer my question, Frigga." Hotaru reminded her coolly. "What happened and what were the two of you doing here in the first place?"
As Frigga opened her mouth to answer her question, she was interrupted by the familiar beeping sound of an alarm emanating from the device they had spent hours conceiving. Both women knew exactly what it meant.
'Loki is here!'
Loki wasn't exactly sure of what he was expecting to find when he transported himself to the Hidden Stronghold. So far, he had safely guessed that meeting his moth-Frigga would be inevitable: she wasn't one to run away from her responsibilities. He knew as well that she wouldn't stop him from saving Mikan. He bit at his tongue as he tried to ignore this ridiculously growing feeling of apprehension that had started to build up in his stomach. The sole thought of her made an unfamiliar pang streak through his heart. He hadn't seen her since the day of his trial. She had been exemplarily quiet that day and had simply stood by her husband's sides, eyes filled with pain and worry. A good wife never disagreed with her husband publicly.
Loki strode down the marble hallway with hurry, although briefly halting when the walls of the Stronghold brought to him the echoes of two feminine voices. He recognized Frigga's immediately, but not the second, which sounded angry but, more importantly, wasn't Mikan's.
He was rapidly closing the distance separating him from them and, although most of their argument was lost on him, he managed to catch a name. Hotaru. It sounded oddly familiar to his ears. His eyes narrowed with frustration; he couldn't precisely recall when he had heard it. 'Probably one of Mikan's childhood friends.' Loki guessed as he was now able to perceive Frigga's and the woman's magical energy. 'Allice's magic runs through her veins too, albeit it is present in a much lower proportion than in Mikan's.' This made him realize that he could not sense Mikan's. Not even faintly. Loki's heart began slamming hard against his ribs. Was he already too late? He picked up the pace, now practically running.
Soon, two women entered his line of vision: Frigga's back was turned on him and was hiding most of the other woman's figure, of whom, from his position, he could only see her wide spread arms. 'She is making a shield of her body.' he realized. 'What is happening?'
Startled by the sound of an alarm that had suddenly went off, Frigga and the Midgardian called Hotaru turned on their heels to face him, finally alerted by his presence. They stared at him with mixed emotions. He read sadness and fearful apprehension in Frigga's eyes and weariness in Hotaru's. Frigga's lips trembled and her eyes grew wet as she whispered quietly his name. Her stomach sank with fear. Her beloved son had been banished. Was he to be caught nowhere near Asgardian territory again, he could face execution for directly disobeying Odin's orders. Her husband's words couldn't have been clearer. Frigga desperately gasped for air as a gut-wrenching wave of panic kicked in.
'Loki. My son, you fool, what have you done?'
'I could ask the same of you, Frigga. Where is Mikan?'
"Loki–" Frigga's voice stuck in her throat as Loki waved his hand to silence her.
"Where is Mikan?" he reiterated his question, aloud this time.
Hotaru and Frigga moved simultaneously aside, finally allowing Mikan to enter Loki's line of vision. His eyebrows arose with surprise as he took in the gruesome sight. Mikan's chin was nearly touching the chains bounding her upper body to the column, blood was dripping from her face which, from where he was standing, was mostly hidden to him, and what was little exposed of her translucent skin was mostly covered in dark marks. His throat tightened as he realized that he still couldn't sense Mikan's spiritual energy. And, although he noticed the faint rise-and-fall action of her chest as she breathed, her body looked like a broken empty shell. His first thought was that she was as good as dead. 'The damages done to her aren't only physical, they are also metaphysical.' Loki furrowed his brow. If this was what he believed it was, then Mikan was in greater danger than he had initially assumed she might be in. 'A fate worse than death that even her own would not release her from…'
For a brief instant, Loki pondered on whether the Ancient One had known that this would eventually happen to her so precious pupil. 'And she still dares to claim that I am the monster.' His fingers curled into tight fists in anger. He wished he had killed her when he still had the opportunity to.
"You didn't just activate Allice protective wards, didn't you? You lost her in there too."
It had been more of an affirmation than a question and the ensuing heavy silence that had followed it spoke for itself. The woman called Hotaru shot them a questioning look as she was obviously the only one unaware of the real gravity of Mikan's situation. It was under her carefully scrutiny that Loki rapidly closed the distance separating him from Mikan within seconds in a few long strides. By the time he made it to the end of the hallway, the stink of blood and dark magic made him want to vomit. Loki pinched his lips together disapprovingly and braced himself over Mikan's hips. From the corner of his peripheral vision, he observed Hotaru draw a small Midgardian weapon out of her purse.
"Do not waste your time. Those do not work on me." Loki warned her, disdain in his voice, without ever turning his attention away from Mikan once.
His gaze lingered on her delicate features. Even in such state he still found himself annoyedly enticed by them. His fingers unwittingly traced her jawline as he stopped her nosebleed and cleaned the blood off of her face. Her skin felt frighteningly cold against his. Loki kept himself from sighing. He had missed her more than he cared to admit. These two days had made him realize how empty the walls of the Mansion felt without her lively presence in it and how much she had grown into him. His hands hovered over her body with the faintest glow as he attempted to determine the nature of the curse she had fallen victim to. It was the first time he could perceived Allice's magic so strongly.
"Don't be too confident. I designed it specifically with you in mind." Hotaru replied.
"You flatter me." Loki sneered coolly.
Her instincts were telling her to back away, but she stood her ground instead and adjusted the weapon's height, making sure to keep Loki in her firing line. Loki chose to ignore her and secured a lock of Mikan's wet hair behind her ears instead. Hotaru's eyes narrowed slightly: he had carried the gesture far more gently than he needed to. She threw in a quick glance at Frigga, her small look of muted surprise confirmed her that she had noticed it too.
"What do you intend to do to her?" Hotaru asked. She had no intention of lowering her weapon yet.
The woman was starting to grow on his nerves; Loki answered her question anyway: "If my intention were hostile, I would have spared myself the trouble of coming here by myself. You seem to have done a pretty good job at it on your own." Loki's voice was biting, his frustration making an unusual show of slipping in his voice.
Loki ignored Frigga's slight flinch and preferred to keep his attention focused on Mikan's unconscious form instead. The Ancient One had not lied to him: most of her magical energy had been drained out of her, the one actually coursing through her veins being Allice's. Just like she had claimed, the curse he had placed on her wasn't meant to kill her. No. It acted in a more vicious way, blocking what remained of Mikan's magic, weakening her body enough for it to succumb to the enormous quantity of Alices within it. With the spell Frigga had placed on her and the chains bounding her, it had simply been overkill.
Loki cursed under his breath. From the looks of it, he wouldn't be able to untie Mikan before her body had been restored with enough magical energy to combat the curse on its own and taking her back to the Mansion was out of question in this state. He highly doubted that she would survive the first two portal jumps, how would she the remaining twenty?
Loki pressed his palms against the cold metal of the chains. They were hugging Mikan's figure so tightly he pondered on whether he would also have to patch some broken ribs once he would be done with them. He frowned slightly in concentration. These chains formed a strong, powerful barrier impervious to any kind of magic. It was what was keeping Mikan from dying, and yet, for now, it also was one of the first greatest challenges he would have to overcome to successfully heal her. However, Loki could already distinctively perceive their limitations. They guaranteed far less protection from their outsider wall and, theoretically, they were supposed to allow small quantity of magic in. Theoretically. One important question remained though: would that be possible without compromising his chances of bringing them back to the safety of his chambers in Allice's Mansion? Loki decided within moments that it was.
His evergreen eyes fell back on Mikan's pale features. Her lips were turning blue. Loki pressed a cool hand against her forehead. She was well below freezing. Loki's frown deepened with worry. He shifted his hands up to unclasp the cloak from around his shoulders and wordlessly covered Mikan with it as he placed a warming charm on it.
Loki sighed, he had to act quickly. Mikan's condition worsened with every passing moment. In her current state, he gave her less than thirty minutes to live and he certainly wouldn't be able to keep himself hidden from Odin for that long. Loki jerked his head up to face Frigga.
"I can save her." he affirmed confidently. "This might take some time though and I won't be able to keep neither myself nor Mikan hidden from him for that long. I will let you take care of that."
"I will." Frigga nodded quietly. Relief washed over her. She would have never been able to forgive herself if Lady Sakura was to die in there because of her.
Meanwhile, Hotaru lowered her weapon but made no sign of moving. Her eyes were hard, the skin next to them had tightened considerably and she stood stiffly next to Frigga, greatly annoyed to be left in the dark as to what was going on with Mikan. Her guts were telling her that it was much worse than what she could imagine.
Hotaru observed as Loki placed his hands on the chains tying Mikan and his eyes clenched shut in concentration. She still couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that the god of Lies and Mischief was ready to risk his freedom to save her childhood friend. 'He needs Mikan more than I had first imagined.' Hotaru noted as she quietly observed Loki use his magic to save her friend. Somehow, she found herself wondering on the nature of their relationship. 'She is the kind of idiot who could fall for him. He seems quite enticed by her too and he isn't even trying to hide it.' Hotaru sighed heavily as she realized that she wasn't getting any closer of gathering the explanation she had expected from her childhood friend.
Loki's magic tested the chains, carefully studying the impervious barrier they drew as he tried to find a breach that would allow his magic to break through it. It turned out to be more difficult than he had anticipated. For several minutes on end, his efforts turned out to be vain. Unwilling to let himself abashed by the feelings of frustration and deception that had overwhelmed him, he opted for a different approach.
Sitting back down on his heals, Loki focused every ounce of his energy and projected a powerful wave at the barrier. Once again, his attempt was meet with failure. Not giving up, he directed a stronger wave at it. Still nothing. Loki's teeth grinded harder together. The third blast wave was so powerful that it made the entire walls of the Stronghold shake. His magic finally managed to tear a breach through the barrier.
"Loki, if you keep on like this, I won't be able to hide you." Frigga warned him as she tugged nervously at the folds of her golden dress.
"It does not matter." Loki replied as he breathed a sigh of relief. "I am in."
Loki breathed a sigh of relief as his magic broke through the barrier and began to reach Mikan's veins. This whole process was too slow for his liking and too costly in energy. Less than a third of the magic he had to deploy managed to reach his Little One's veins as the rest of it unfortunately went to waste. He wished there was some way to rush things out. Unfortunately, none crossed his mind.
After five minutes some colors started to appear back on Mikan's face and, although her body was still entirely limp in his arms, her skin felt warmer against his. In a few more minutes, he would be able to take her back with him to the Mansion, with barely enough resources to make it there.
A beeping sound pierced the tense silence that had settled over the Hidden Stronghold. Loki lifted his head to identify its location. He observed a deep frown appear on Hotaru's face as she reached for some device which was not familiar to him.
Loki is here, where are you?
"Hurry up, Loki. They know you are here." Hotaru stated warily. 'I almost forgot that Jane has one too.'
Loki cursed under his breath. 'How could they possibly know?'
Loki's gaze fell back on Mikan. She hadn't regained enough energy for his liking but he was certain that if he took her with him now, she would survive the trip back to the Allice's Mansion.
Hotaru's eyes hardened as she watched him take care of Mikan. Her whole stature stiffened as she readied herself to do something both incredibly stupid and immensely crazy. But, as long as Mikan's life was hanging in the balance, it didn't matter. She would always stand by the side of those who could ensure her safety. And, for now, she decided that it was Loki.
"How long do you think it will take to heal Mikan?" Hotaru asked him.
Loki weighed the question. He hated that his first thought was: 'I don't know.'
"It is a variable. It can as well take a week, a month or more." Loki admitted reluctantly.
Hotaru nodded.
"A tracking spell has been placed on you." she blurted out. "Make of that information what you wish."
She could have sworn that she saw him blanche a little.
Loki's thoughts whirled. It was with an overwhelming feeling of frustration that the confrontation with a certain Midgardian wizard came back to his mind. 'Does this mean that the Mansion's position is compromised?' The unpleasant thought suddenly crossed his mind. Several weeks had already passed since then. He decided that since no one had attempted to take it under assault, going back there was still safe. They would probably just have to lay low for a while and he would have to extend the protective spells in his chambers to the whole Mansion. 'This might take a while too.'
With one hand still conveying his energy through the chains, Loki closed his eyes, forcing as much of his consciousness into his magic as he could. He inspected it as he tried to uncover the foreign presence that had been meddling with it. After two whole minutes of searching, he finally sensed it. Almost too faint for him to notice but he did. Although, Loki would never admit to it aloud, he was impressed with the wizard's capacities. Simple but efficient, it had now been fooling him for weeks. His shoulders relaxed a bit as he shrugged the spell off. It was one less problem off of them.
Then, with no time to waste, Loki scurried to vanish the chains bounding Mikan to the marble column. Beneath him, she breathed so hard it actually rocked him in his place on her hips. It was with dreadful apprehension that Loki removed his cloak from her and lifted her sweatshirt, just above her bra, to examine the physical damage the chains had caused to his Little One. He pursed his lips into a thin line as he saw the blooming marks they had imprinted on her torso. He quickly evaluated the damages and narrowed them down to two broken ribs. Nothing that he wouldn't be able to patch up.
Loki adjusted Mikan's clothes and covered her back with his charmed cloak. He then removed himself from above her and secured her in his arms, as gently as he could.
"If you fail to save Mikan, I'll make sure to kill you myself." Hotaru threatened.
Frigga opened her mouth to interject but Loki beat her into it:
"It won't happen and I would like to see you try." he growled at her, slightly annoyed, as he snuggled Mikan closer to his chest. Then, turning his attention back to Frigga, he added in a much gentler tone: "Do not blame yourself for what happened today. This is entirely the Ancient One's fault, not yours."
With that, he vanished into thin air as he transported Mikan and himself back to the safe walls of Allice's Mansion.
A.N: Thank you for reading this chapter! Constructive criticism is always welcome, please leave a review!