Welcome to instalment number 4 of The Language Of Flowers! :D
The first three or so chapters will be Loki and Amelia's "honeymoon" aka relaxation time in Asgard (before eventually heading back to Manhattan), and they will be having some fun times and some not so fun times! xD I've gotta drag some light angst in somewhere, it's always fun to write and people love it. But obviously it won't be anywhere near the level of angst in the previous stories. Just a sprinkle of it here and there to keep that drama going. To keep that hurt/comfort in the tags xD
This fic WILL contain sexual scenes, but there will be warnings for them, so that you may skip them if you don't wish to read them.
After the first few chapters, it'll basically be all about the pregnancy and babies :) Hope you're all excited for it!
Hydrangeas Say Our Family Will Flourish
Chapter One: The Art of Magic
The air was warm the morning after their wedding. It was the soft, floral scent wisping through the room that had eventually roused Amelia from her comfortable slumber, and when she blinked her eyes open, they adjusted to the glow of sunlight that streamed in through the curtains hanging from the bed posts.
It was the perfect thing to wake up to. The dull ache in her muscles reminded her of the enthusiastic night of passion she and Loki had shared together, and just thinking about it brought a lazy, tired smile to her face.
Loki was there beside her, still drifting amidst the blissful unaware, sprawled out across the huge bed; if Amelia had moved even an inch, it would probably have been enough to jostle him awake, but the sight of him looking so peaceful and open in his state of repose was enough to keep her as still as possible. It was a surprise that the sound of her sigh when she'd opened her eyes hadn't been enough to wake him, like it had many times before.
Perhaps it was because Loki felt truly secure within the palace of New Asgard, and thus allowed himself to relax more easily, or perhaps it was the many rounds of sex from the previous night, in addition to the exciting day they'd had, that left him utterly spent.
Either way, Amelia was thankful for the quiet moments she could spy upon Loki's tranquil face without his knowledge. He looked so damn adorable when his eyebrows weren't furrowed, like how they seemed to permanently be while he was awake - not that it made him any less attractive, of course. Her husband was the most gorgeous of men.
The realisation that she could actually call him that now was enough to coax a giggle from her throat. Husband. They were married. Amelia could have jumped for joy if her muscles didn't protest the idea.
A quiet snort from Loki indicated his stirring, and Amelia smoothed her palm out over his bare chest, leaning over to gently kiss the corner of his mouth. Then, as an afterthought, she ran a teasing finger around one of his nipples.
It prompted him to shiver and inhale a deep breath, and before Amelia could process it, her hand was snatched up and held above her head, and her husband was poised above her on all fours, a languid desire shining in the beautiful green hue of his eyes.
"You really want to get me going again?" Loki murmured, his voice rather raw from having just awoken, and it sent a pleasing tingle down Amelia's spine.
"Mm. Wouldn't mind it," Amelia whispered an inviting taunt, despite the pain in her muscles. There was something exhilarating about the prospect of fucking her husband all night and all day, she suspected her pregnancy hormones were to blame. Either that, or she was still living off the high of tying the knot with the man she loved.
A throaty chuckle escaped Loki, and down he leant, kissing Amelia's lips with surprising gentleness. It only fuelled Amelia's need, she found it so alluring how one night he could be all about visceral pleasure, and the next morning he would be peppering soft kisses over his lover's body, proving that he was the best of both worlds.
"As much as I would love to have you again right now, over and over till your entire body is trembling and oversensitive-" from the smirk on his face, Amelia knew he was trying to rile her up on purpose, "-you are in pain, and we are covered in dried bodily fluids, so I think a warm bath is in order."
A playful pout reached Amelia's lips, "How did you know I'm aching?"
"You're my wife, and I know things." Despite his declaration that they would be bathing instead of engaging in another bout of relentless sex, Loki's fingers seemed awfully insistent on touching Amelia's skin with unbearable yearning. He wasn't subtle as he gazed at her breasts and her stomach while his fingers traced wherever they wanted in burning circles.
Though it appeared the touch was more innocent than Amelia first believed, because the desire in Loki's eyes had been replaced with doting adoration.
"My wife." Loki repeated, as if testing the words on his tongue.
"Yours." Amelia affirmed, sighing softly from the touch. Her insides turned to jelly when Loki flashed her an answering smile that was so pure and genuine, it caught her off guard.
They bathed in wonderfully warm water, scented with floral oils, and washed the evidence of the previous night from their bodies together, and relaxed until the heat wheedled the sting from Amelia's muscles, leaving room only for deep satisfaction. She lost count of the many sighs that escaped the two of them throughout the entire time they were in the tub.
When they were done, they stepped out of the water, and before Amelia could reach for the towel hanging nearby, Loki's hand was placed over her head, and in the blink of an eye, all the wetness on her body dispersed and left her dry. It was an astoundingly strange sensation, and it took Amelia several moments to understand what had happened.
"What did you do?"
"I dried you," Loki stated, and proceeded to do the same for himself, "it is faster than towel drying."
That much was clear, but the demonstration of Loki's magic being used in such a mundane way reminded Amelia of his promise to teach her how to control her borrowed magic and how to do mystical things that mortals could not usually do.
"You still need to teach me magic, Loki. You promised," Amelia pointed out, very easily swayed by the desperate desire to do fascinating things. She turned and reached for her robe, purple and silky, and slipped her arms into the sleeves before threading her fingers through her frizzed up hair in an effort to control it. Loki's little magic trick hadn't taken into account just how poofy her hair got when going from wet to dry so quickly. It probably looked really silly.
Loki seemed to think it amusing, because his eyes lingered on her head with a small and subtle smile. "Learning magic requires patience and focus. Do you think you're ready to exercise those traits?"
"Ehh, I can try!" Amelia shrugged, a dopey grin on her face. While she wasn't expecting Loki to agree to give her magic lessons right at that moment, a part of her secretly wished that he would. If she was only going to have her magic powers until the babies came, she wanted to make the most of it while she could still utilise that energy.
Loki surprised her. "Alright. I can try and teach you something." He slipped on his own green robe and took her hand, leading her back into their main room; he urged her towards the doors that led to the balcony and opened them up, but he did not head out. Instead, he retrieved two cushions from the recliner and placed them down a couple feet apart, just inside the room.
He must have seen the confused look on Amelia's face because he offered an explanation, "You want the perfect balance between relaxed but not distracted. The fresh air will help pacify you, but you want to keep away from any noises or imagery that might draw your focus." He sat down cross-legged on one of the cushions, and motioned the other with his hand, "Sit down, then."
Amelia took her place with a slightly skeptical smile on her face, and looked at her husband, "So what are you gonna teach me first? To move things with my mind? Ooh, to become invisible!?"
"No." Loki's eyebrows rose, "First lesson. I'd like to see if you can control your magic. Call upon it at will, make it obey your wishes." At the sight of Amelia's lips pulling into a slight frown, Loki reiterated, "We do this first, and then I will teach you how to move objects with magical energy. Alright?"
Amelia's face brightened again, "Okay. So what do I do?"
Loki peered down at Amelia's slumped posture with a critical eye, "Sit up straight, don't slouch." He reached out and uncoiled her with a few bossy hand movements before aligning his own back. "I'll show you first what I want you to do, and then I want you to give it a go."
Amelia nodded wordlessly, watching curiously as Loki held his hands apart, palms facing each other, and presumably called upon his magical energy. After a beat of nothingness, a very peculiar looking light seemed to emanate from between his hands, suspended in the air, and then all at once it grew brighter and larger. The sparks and flashes of green created the form of the magical ball, and Amelia stared at it, completely mesmerised.
It didn't last long before the illumination diminished out of existence, and Loki gaze Amelia an expectant look, "Your turn."
Amelia blinked, holding out her hands before her just as Loki had done, but then faltered, "But what do I do?"
Loki held her wrists to steady her hands, "Feel the magic energy thrumming inside you. Feel it flow through your veins, you know the feeling, you felt it before, on the ship, remember? You already know what it feels like. Let it gather at your fingertips and push it out, forming the sphere." Amelia listened to his instructions, and furrowed her eyebrows as she stared down at her hands, trying to do as he had done.
It wasn't exactly simple, and the harder she tried, the less likely it felt she was going to succeed. After a long minute of nothing, Loki let out a sigh.
"Stop," he said, "you're not going to get anywhere by holding your breath and straining your muscles."
"But-"
"That's not how it works, Amelia. I told you to relax. Try again." Loki's words were firm but gentle as he sat back and crossed his arms, observing her once more in her endeavour.
Amelia let the frustration and lack of understanding show on her face, and when she held her hands apart for a second attempt, Loki began to speak softly.
"Close your eyes, if it makes it easier to concentrate," he directed, and Amelia did so, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, "Focus on the feeling of the magic within you. Can you feel it, Amelia?"
She could feel it. When she concentrated, she was able to catch the sensation of warmth and power seemingly vibrating below her skin, giving off a sense of vigour that made Amelia feel stronger. If she were to give a descriptor to the feeling, she would say it sort of felt like a hug from Loki - a constant and amorous embrace. It made sense, it was his magic planted inside her, after all.
"Feel the warmth of the sun on your face, the cool breeze as the wind blows, but don't let the noise distract you. Let the magic collect at your fingertips. If it tries to escape to other parts of your body, redirect it. Send it to your hands."
Amelia wasn't entirely sure how she was supposed to do that, but she remained quiet and focused, imagining as if she was holding the door open and letting the magic energy bustle on through, but standing in its way if it tried to clamour back out. She remembered to breathe, pushing more and more energy back with each long exhale.
"You're doing well. Keep going," Loki encouraged, and Amelia's lips pulled into a smile.
"Whatever you're thinking about, stop. Keep your mind on the task, Amelia." There was no bite behind his scolding, and as much as Amelia wanted to giggle, she managed to push the smile from her face. In all truth, she had been thinking of the first time Loki had tried to teach her some self-defense alongside Natasha, how he had been harsh in his criticisms when she showed little progress.
A lot had changed since then. He understood Amelia's drive for aspirations, and what it was that pushed her forward. Positive reinforcement.
To Loki's credit, he showed a lot of patience as Amelia tried and failed several times to achieve what was probably the easiest thing in the world for him. He'd hardly batted an eyelid when he'd made the glowing green ball appear between his hands, it was probably second nature to him.
"I know you can do this, Amelia. I've seen the things you can do." No doubt he was referring to the moment Amelia's life had been in grave danger, when Ularis had her hands around Amelia's neck, squeezing with a purpose, and Amelia had had no choice but to let the magic energy go all at once in an explosive wave.
It had been powered by desperation at the time. Harnessing control and trying to get the magic to do exactly what she wanted it to was a very different experience.
"Almost, Amelia. You're close, I can sense it."
The underlying eagerness in his voice sent a wave of excitement through Amelia, and solidified her determination to do this simple, yet excruciatingly complex task instead of throwing in the towel. Loki was right, she could do this. She'd called upon the magic when she'd needed it most before, and it had listened to her then. It would damn well obey her now.
"Yes! That's it!" Loki exclaimed, and Amelia's eyes flew open to view her progress.
The illumination of green energy fizzled between her palms, about the size of a small marble, probably looking rather pitiful to somebody who had trained well in the art of magic. Loki's magic sphere had been about the size of a soccer ball, majestic and dazzling, so much more incredible than what was crackling and sputtering between the space of Amelia's hands in that moment.
And yet, the look on Loki's face was that of joy. He looked genuinely proud of her, and it made Amelia's lip tremble to look upon his authentic grin.
Naturally, Amelia became distracted by her husband's face, and the tiny ball of otherworldly power hissed out of existence very quickly, leaving her somewhat embarrassed, "Ah… well… maybe I can try again later…"
Loki could sense the self-doubt in Amelia's voice, the underlying tone that suggested she wasn't too impressed with her own abilities - because it was such a tiny display and she barely held it for more than a few seconds - and he thwarted those thoughts at once. Leaning forward, he caught Amelia's lips, his hand around the back of her head holding her closer, and grinned when they parted, "You did fantastically my dear. Marvellously, in fact. Your powers are young, and you are inexperienced when it comes to both the practical and theoretical side of magic, but that does not mean that you can't grow more adept through practise."
Amelia was immediately soothed and swayed by his words, and fell forward into his embrace, snuggling up against him as the summer breeze rolled through the room. Now that she thought about it, she did do good. How many humans were able to achieve what she had just achieved? Not many at all.
"Mmm," she hummed contentedly, "perhaps you'll make a sorceress out of me yet."
Loki laughed, "Maybe. You'll have to join me in meditation to hone your focus if you want to become as powerful as I."
"Ugh. Meditation is boring though. You just sit there doing nothing."
"You think that when I meditate several times a week, I'm just sitting there doing nothing?"
Amelia tilted her head back and looked up at Loki, "Yep."
Loki rolled his eyes with a smile at his lips, "Shows how much you know. You should try it some time-" he glanced down at Amelia's stomach and his hand moved over it, "meditation is good for relieving stress, and I heard that stress is bad for pregnant women, so it makes sense that you should give it a go."
Amelia followed Loki's gaze to her stomach and rested her hand over his. She was now three months along in total. Twelve weeks into her pregnancy, and her stomach was visibly beginning to swell - she was shocked at how quickly the days were slipping by. The excitement of her wedding the day before had completely distracted her from it, but just the thought of what was to come brought that pesky, prickling anxiety feeling back.
There was a lot that needed to be done - a lot of preparation and research and learning - Amelia knew she would have to visit the closest library back in Manhattan and check out as many books as she could on the topic of pregnancy and parenting. But they had received a lot of support already from the rest of the Avengers, and the reassurance was incredibly helpful. They weren't going to be alone in their journey into parenthood. They had help, which was always good to know.
"...Loki," Amelia said his name absently after a few minutes of staring at her belly, "do you think they're going to inherit your magic abilities?"
"Mmm," Loki hummed idly, "I hope so."
The thought of having twins with an affinity for magic may have sounded like a sweet little notion at first, but the only thing running through Amelia's head was the potential for a whole lot of mischief. She could picture herself then, rushing around in a panic in search for her twin children after they'd cast a spell and turned themselves invisible.
"Well, you better teach them to use magic responsibly if that's the case."
Loki smiled, "No promises, my love." And with that, he pressed a kiss to the back of her neck, knowing it would make her melt like putty in his hands.
As always, please drop me a comment to let me know what you think - feedback makes everything easier! And if you have any more ideas you want to see with Amelia and Loki, feel free to suggest them as I'm still taking ideas!