Loki bit his cheek, casting a dark glance at Brunnhilde. Was that really necessary? The Valkyrie squinted her eyes.
"Is that what happened to you?" he shot back. He wanted her to fuck off. Not that there was much left to save... Knowing Aella she would get pretty pissed before he'd get another chance to be inside her again. If she would ever let him at all. "Did you let a human ride you after which you lost your divinity? Or was it the grandmaster? He had a soft spot for you, huh?"
Brunnhilde strode towards him and grabbed him by the throat. Before he realized it, she lifted him up and slammed his head against the wall. "I didn't lose my powers," she hissed.
For some reason, Loki felt less powerful without his clothes on. Yet, he wrung his fingers around her wrist and pulled her hand away from his throat. "Well, you had your say. You can fuck off now, whiner. You're just jealous because no one's paying attention to you."
After sending him another glare, she left the room, the shards crunching beneath her feet. On the threshold, she stood still and looked over her shoulder. "Don't be a fool, Aella. You mean nothing to him. The only thing he wants from you is your power."
Her footsteps died away. What was left, was a bitter silence. Loki suppressed a sigh and mentally prepared himself for the shitstorm that was about to come. He expected at least a few punches in the face.
He turned towards Aella. She was sitting on the bed and was wearing her shirt again. She bent her head so her hair fell in front of her face. He felt a pit in his stomach when she started to sob quietly. Despondent, Loki stood in the middle of the room, contemplating if he should sit down next to her to comfort her or to leave her alone. With doing the latter he would quietly agree with Brunnhilde's words and he didn't. He wasn't after her powers. He however was afraid she wouldn't believe a denial anyway.
He wasn't even sure he believed it himself.
In the end, he sat down on the edge of the bed and waited until she started to speak. All that time, he listened to her grief. He didn't feel annoyed, he even felt guilty.
"All this time I wondered what you really wanted from me." She wiped her eyes and shook her head in disbelief. "I was so stupid. Everyone warned me and I kept telling myself you intended me no harm."
"I —" He kept silent as he saw the furious look in her eyes.
"There's no point in lying," she answered fiercely. "Don't think I'll ever let you touch me again."
Loki bent his head and raked a hand through his hair. He didn't particularly like that prospect. "It's well known that Valkyries lose their immortality after having intercourse with a mortal. But I'm not a mortal, Aella," he said after a while.
"So what would have happened?" she huffed.
"Nothing." She still refused to look at him and he didn't want to force her. "Nobody knows what will happen," he admitted. "Not a single Valkyrie ever bedded a god."
"You're not a god," she scoffed. "You're a frost giant, you're only raised by gods."
"Valkyries don't sleep with frost giants either."
She let out a humorless laugh. "No — I'm the only one who's that stupid. Well, congratulations. You completely played me." She applauded mockingly.
"I didn't want to play you." Despite the situation, a smirk crossed his lips. "Not mentally, at least." He became serious again. "I just didn't think about it."
She shook her head, looking at him with raised eyebrows. "You really believe that? You're non-stop scheming and plotting."
"Not when you're around." He held her glance. "Then you're all I can think about."
"Yeah right. You have no problem with turning me into a lab rat."
"A lab rat for what?" he asked, a bit irritated now. "What the hell is in it for me when you lose your divinity? You think I wanna be with someone who doesn't have divine powers?"
She stared at him.
It took a few seconds before he realized what he had said and for the first time in his life, he felt his cheeks heat up. Where the hell had that come from?!
