A/N: Sorry it has been so long. Hope you enjoy.
Frigga watched Odin as he sat in his study. He looked contemplatively at a letter that had been drawn up regarding princess Cassidy and lord Navier's stay.
"You know you are giving your former enemy more leeway than your own son? Perhaps it is time to loosen your grip?" She stated softly.
Odin sighed. He had known it was only a matter of time before this came up again, and it had been coming up quite often as of late. He pinched the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb as he answered.
"It is for his own good."
Frigga glared at him. "No it is for your own good, because you fear him."
"I do not fear him" Odin contended.
"Then you fear what he may become! You are only hurting him by keeping him locked up."
"You well know he does not stay in his rooms. He is always tricking his guards and getting out somehow." Odin roared back.
"And what has come of him doing so?" Frigga questioned accusingly.
Odin sighed again; he had to admit nothing had happened. A few harmless pranks after he had loosened his limits but other than that there was not even a sign that Loki had misbehaved during his punishment. On most accounts he had actually followed Odin's orders.
"Why do you not believe him? Even Thor is trying to help. He has come to you multiple times now on his brother's behalf." Frigga pressed.
Odin gave in. His wife was very persuasive but even more stubborn.
"I do believe him my love." He said tragically, "That was never the issue." The grief on his features was genuine. "You are correct in saying his punishment was for my own benefit. You are wiser than I like to admit." He took a breath before taking Frigga's hands in his.
"I was afraid. Afraid if someone so powerful could manipulate and control Loki's actions so thoroughly he may still have persuasion over his mind. Our son is strong of will. I could not imagine the process it would have taken to convince him such actions on Midgard were necessary. I was hoping it would show in time. If that happened at least we would have control over his location and may have a chance at restraining him and stopping history from repeating itself." Odin looked mournfully at Frigga who looked away knowing exactly which history he spoke of.
Their true firstborn, Hella, the daughter Odin had raised, and failed. He had shown her a path of destruction but had not known its recourse over time. Once he realized peace was necessary for the realms to properly prosper he changed their course of action. Hella, as stubborn as her mother and father put together, if not more, had resisted. She had begun the Great War with Vanaheim leaving much death and destruction in her wake. That is what caused the necessary treaty to be formed. Odin had tried to reason with her. He explained how things had to change. She refused claiming he had turned his back on his people and her. How she would prove herself and rule as a gracious queen. Her ambition proceeded to cleanse the realms in blood. Odin had no choice but to imprison her for treason. His own teachings had driven his daughter to destroy what they held dear. Now he feared something or someone more powerful than even he, had control over their son. He hadn't wanted to abandon either of them but he had seen no alternative options.
Loki had been controlled, and it had changed him. Would he ever be the same? There had been a time when Loki had wanted to assist the realm even knowing he may not be king. He had taken every opportunity presented to learn all the roles in the castle so he could support Thor when the time came. Although he always strove for the position of king he had not been unreasonable. It was only when he grew older and learned his true parentage that he became bitter. Odin knew his own actions had begun his son's downfall. His mistakes from the past would always be just that; mistakes. He knew if things had been different perhaps he would not be in this position today. He also knew he could not blame anything other than his own fears.
Even with this knowledge he had to admit, Loki had been following the rules and staying out of trouble. Thor had even brought all this to his attention several times. But fear held him back from offering Loki his freedom. What if they were wrong? What if Loki was gone forever? Now was not the time to be taking chances when they finally had an alliance with the Vanir in sight.
Odin shook his head. Things had to be dealt with cautiously now that their guests were staying with them for the foreseeable future. He suddenly had no idea what the right course of action was. He had a possibly dangerous swordsman, Lord Navier, now living in the castle in order to train the soon to be Queen. Frigga had also mentioned that although Cassidy spoke of diplomacy there was an underlying tension and threat to her words. Things did indeed have to be just right if they were to find the true meanings and intentions of all parties involved.
"Frigga, things are so … strained right now" He nearly pleaded.
"This will not be easy and I understand your hesitations; but you need to remember, Hella is not Loki. Their situations are very different. Hella choose her path; Loki did not have the opportunity of a choice. His life has been chosen for him on more than one occasion, and he still tries to do right by you. Odin he is a good man and if you allow it, a good son. You need to let him show you that."
Odin furrowed his brow and rubbed the back of his neck nervously with his hand. He did not like this situation any more than her but to just release Loki? He felt it was asking for a disaster.
"I will continue to think about it." Odin finally conceded grumpily. "But no promises Frigga." He added as she smiled at her king. She could see the inner turmoil of his current situation and his past. His fear was not without warrant. Hella had become a tyrant and could not be reasoned with. Frigga hadn't even seen an alternative and she had fought for her daughter as best she could, but in the end there was nothing left to fight for. She could only hope Odin could see what she did and allow Loki a chance to show his full potential.
"Perhaps you can give him a project; one that will benefit the kingdom and its people. Something to prove to him and you, and eventually everyone, that between all of us this can still work. A little responsibility can go a long way. Perhaps he will surprise you in the end"
With that Frigga kissed Odin's forehead and went to check in with the palace healers a smile rested on her face knowing her husband and King would make the right decision.
Odin sighed and began reading his documents once again; all the while Loki was on his mind.
Ashera squared up. Today was combat day. It hadn't been long since they added new training topics but she already felt stronger both physically and mentally. They had doubled their meetings to accommodate the workload and the constant knowledge was making her powers grow quickly. They were going through the motions of a few blocks and kicks that would soon become muscle memory. Ashera loved the combat days. Loki would go through the motions with her and end up telling stories of his brother and a time when the moves came in handy or when he had to save the day with magic because you could not rely on one tactic alone. Today he was explaining how defensive moves sometimes proved more useful.
"I remember," Loki grinned as he spoke "one time in training Thor would always use offensive maneuvers coming right at me relentlessly but all I had to do was block and dodge. He used most of his energy quickly and I was able to trip him up." Loki chuckled at the thought. "He never tried that again and bested me several times following"
Ashera smiled at the memory he painted. "You care for him, don't even deny it!" She laughed at his shock. "You taught him what you're teaching me and made him better. You still don't fool me. Have you talked to him yet?"
Loki, suddenly uncomfortable, looked down as they continued their motions. "I haven't gotten around to it." he said sheepishly not wanting to admit he had been too prideful to speak to him.
"How about you, hmm? You can tell stories about your past too." Loki said, remembering too late.
Ashera let her head drop slightly
"I'm sorry I... forgot" Loki said sympathetically.
She lifted her head again holding it high against the painful memories she still had.
"It's ok. I know I told you I didn't remember my past, but I do remember a ways back. Parts are fuzzy, some details limited, and after a certain time I don't recall anything at all. That's why I am so limited in my knowledge of my powers." Ashera stopped her motions and turned to Loki taking a shuddering breath. "I apologize for not admitting this sooner but what I withheld was that I don't age as a normal human. I have probably been around for centuries in their time." Ashera lowered her head. "I was afraid of what you might think."
"Why would I think less of you?" The question was quick and rang with anger, "I myself am centuries old, it only means you are not fully human." He was confused by her shame, and angry that she would even feel that way about herself. His fists clenched as he looked at the girl, her head once again lowered in disgrace. Her magic was strong; she had no reason to be upset by it. He could feel his anger building as he thought of previous words she had used to describe herself.
"I am not what I seem and it scares people who find out." She shrugged and shook her head looking off to the side not meeting Loki's now dark eyes. "The earliest thing i can recall is running. I'm sure I had family but I don't remember anything about them or what happened to them. I just know I was being chased by some followers of a group called Hydra. Their leader had learned of my magic and wanted to use it in their war. They thought they could win if they possessed a beast like me."
Loki sucked in a breath his jaw set in a hard line. He was nearly shaking as he tried to control his temper. He continued to watch Ashera relive the memories she did have and it pained him to see her suffer. This was why she was afraid.
"They hunted me for years until I hid in the forests as a wolf, becoming almost feral. I lost track of time so I don't recall most of it. At that point I was just… surviving. I finally hid long enough to feel safe again and somehow regained some humanity. I settled in the outskirts of a small town in Washington. I thought I could stay safe there and be able to participate in society again. It just felt like what I should do. I had run so long I didn't know how else to live; and the world had changed so much. I knew I had to learn about it in order to keep surviving. I was only able to stay a few years. Things were good until i was discovered again." Ashera took a shuddering breath trying to keep the sadness of her existence from pressing in on her.
"Some men in suites from some new government agency showed up in the town I was close to. I heard from some of the folks that they were looking for a girl with my description. They tried to force me out by destroying everything I had come to know. Buildings, people, they didn't stop until my name was destroyed. It made many of the people turn on me when things went wrong." she paused as if keeping something to herself, "so I ran."
Loki could tell it was not everything but it was enough to fill in many of the blanks. His anger shuddered through him at what she had been through. He focused on his breathing in order to stay calm. Slowly regaining control he relaxed and took a step toward her.
"Well," Loki said contemplatively, "we can try to unlock more with time." He gave a small hard smile; one Ashera hadn't seen before. It was hesitant and kind but still held a stronger emotion at bay. "I think it's plausible." He continued.
"You don't think it's been erased?" Ashera gulped, regaining a little of her confidence.
"Memories can never be truly erased, simply hidden, or manipulated." he added looking away.
"How… How do you know?"
"Well, when I was checking your mind for disturbances, after our dream fiasco, I came across a dark space. Something locked to even you I suspect. That is probably the missing memories."
Ashera went wide eyed with shock. She had a chance to finally know about herself and possibly her kind. She had been alone for so long without knowing and now there was a chance. The smallest piece of hope settled in her chest. Overjoyed by the possibility she thrust herself at Loki, wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug. Loki was caught off guard before he settled his arms around her protectively and let his cheek rest against her head for a moment, enjoying the embrace.
His resolve set in once again, he would help this girl however he could. She was no longer going to be alone, ever. He would make sure of that.
After releasing each other Loki cleared his throat as Ashera bit her lip. "I think that's enough for today." Loki announced. "Take this," he added before opening the portal, "It may help with our next lesson." Ashera took the offered book and smiled shyly as Loki ushered her back to her realm.
"Until next time." He waved his hand and their field disappeared.