"Your grandmother?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes, my maternal grandmother." Loki kept his eyes on the road. While he had slowed down a bit, we were still going much faster than the speed limit.

"Did you think I had spawned in a cabbage patch? I told you my real parents died and I was adopted, didn't I?"

He had of course. Loki's real parents had died during an attack on his home, hours after he had been born. His mother had died protecting him, his father elsewhere. That was all I knew about his real parents.

According to the Poetic Edda Loki was the son of the Jotunn Fárbauti, and Laufey was his mother. There was no mention of being adopted by Odin. I had learned quickly not to mention the Poetic Edda to Loki, he thought of it as complete and utter nonsense and it seemed to offend him on a personal level.

According to the Marvel movies, his father was Laufey, King of Jotunnheim, who had abandoned Loki as an infant to be adopted by Odin.

I knew Loki had been adopted by Odin, but that was where the similarities ended.

"I didn't know your grandmother was still alive," I said. I wondered why she hadn't taken Loki in after his parent's death.

"She isn't, she is very much dead. She passed away long before I was born."

Oh, well, that explained that.

"So, we're just going to see her so I can meet her?"

I was trying to make it sound as if taking your girlfriend to meet your long-dead grandmother was a perfectly normal thing to do.

Don't get me wrong, I've spoken to spirits before, not all the spirits I had come across in my job were hostile, but it wasn't exactly normal to just meet your boyfriend's family like that, now was it?

On the other hand, he wanted me to meet his family, that was a good sign!

"No, I was already planning on going to see her before you invited yourself along." Loki smiled. "She has something that belongs to me, it's about time I got it back."

Oh, okay. I had misread that situation a bit, hadn't I?

"Grandmother's spirit resides in Niflheim, where she holds court over the spirits of several of the other deceased amongst my people."

Loki checked the GPS of the car, and make a sharp turn.

"There is a gem that was supposed to have been passed on down to me. It belonged to my grandfather, then my father. It was meant to be mine now, but for reasons I was never completely able to ascertain, it ended up in the underworld instead.

It is called the 'Friezegem' and it was made to be attached to a helmet, created as part of a set of armour to be worn by the consort to the queen.

It is a powerful magical amplifier, enhancing the magical strength of he who wears it.

Even without the helmet, it should still magnify my magic powers beyond what I can conjure right now."

Loki frowned.

"I am done with being captured, enslaved and treated like a lesser creature. It is time to show this world what being a god truly means!"

I could understand that. I mulled for a bit over what Loki had just told me.

"So if the gem is supposed to be attached to a helmet that was made to be worn by the consort of the queen, does that mean…"

"It means my mother was queen, my father prince consort and general of her armies. My people were a matriarchy, unlike most monarchies back then they were always ruled by a queen.

If I would have been raised by my real parents, I would have been a prince, but never a king. My sister would have become queen, or if I had no sister, my eventual wife would have become queen and I would have led our armies by her side as her General Consort."

"And did you have a sister, when you were born, I mean?"

"As far as I know I was my parent's first child."

I put my hand on his leg and gave him a gentle squeeze. There had been so much loss and sorrow in Loki's life, from the moment he was born.

Loki looked at me and smiled for a moment, his eyes sad.

"Halja has her base of operations in a warehouse a few hours from here. She won't be returning there any time soon, not when I might have revealed that location to the Templars.

There is a portal to Niflheim there, enabling Halja to confer with Hel. I am hoping Halja won't have had a chance to contact Hel and we can enter before it closes. I intend to enter Niflheim, find my grandmother and retrieve what is mine."

Loki frowned.

"This is incredibly dangerous, my love. I am not certain your Bee will be able to whisk you to safety from there, and Hel is stupendously strong in her own realm. We would be relying on stealth, but it is difficult to stay concealed from Hel in her own realm and I'll admit I'd like my chances far better if I knew you were by my side should the need for battle arise.

Nevertheless, I would not blame you if you would choose to stay behind."

"I'm coming with you," I said immediately. "I won't let you do this alone.

I'd follow you to hell and back, you know that. I suppose I am following you to 'Hel and back', anyway."

I grinned at my own cleverness.

Loki winced at the pun but then grinned despite himself.

"Do you need to ring Jessie? She'll be worried."

"I don't have my phone, I left it at home because the Templars can track it. She'll be okay, she knows I was going to get you back. She was worried about you too."

"Yeah," Loki stared at the road. I understood he felt bad about having just left the way he had.

We were quiet for a minute, I wasn't sure what to say either. I still didn't know what was going to happen after this between us.

"Why don't you get some rest, darling? It will be a few hours until we get there, and you'll need your strength."

I didn't think I'd sleep, but I closed my eyes anyway. I hadn't really slept since Loki had left, and having him near was enough it seemed. As I dozed off, I felt Loki pull his cheap cape over me and tuck it in around me, and I fell asleep with a smile.

"Darling, wake up," Loki was gently shaking my shoulder. I sat up sleepily, where was I? I was still in the car, tucked in under the cheap nylon.

We were at an industrial estate, abandoned from the look of it. Loki was wearing a suit and tie instead of the Halloween costume I'd last seen him in.

"I did some scouting ahead," Loki shrugged at my questioning look, "and I got changed. The few remaining guards have been taken care of and the portal is still open, we should go now before it closes."

I followed Loki into the warehouse, almost tripping over the body of a guard. Loki swiftly lead me to a basement, where the portal stood.

The portal itself was about eight feet tall, made of bone and decorated with skulls. It looked pretty much just the way I had imagined it would. Through the portal, we could see a dimly lit landscape ahead of us.

"Are you certain you are willing to come along?" Loki asked one last time. I nodded. Loki took my hand, and we stepped through the portal together.

The first thing I noticed was the cold. It was bitter, damp and frigid, a cold that chilled me to the bone. The second was that everything around me was made out of skulls and bones. The path ahead of us, the landscape around us. What seemed trees first of all were skeletal hands reaching up to the dark and cloudy skies above, the hills were piles of skulls, and the creatures scuttering around were all skeletal as well.

"Well, this place is cosy," I muttered.

"Hel has a rather singular taste when it comes to decorating I'm afraid," Loki replied dryly.

"Come, we have to move quickly. I have us shielded from scrying eyes, but it won't take long before Hel's minions notice us. This way."

As Loki pulled me along down the path I could feel bones crunch and skulls break beneath my boots. It was dark in Niflheim, the ghostly blue glow of the torches along the path (skulls on sticks, Hel was really dedicated to the aesthetic it seemed) doing very little to actually light the way.

I don't know for how long we were rushing down the path, I lost all track of time in the dark, when suddenly in the distance to our left we could see the sky light up, as lighting came crashing down.

"Oh shit," Loki said, his eyes wide.

I stopped and looked at what was happening. Far away I could see what seemed like a flight of birds. No, not birds, winged horses! On the back of each flying horse sat a female warrior, clad in armour, spear in one hand and a shield in the other. They were fighting a menagerie of skeletal creatures both below them and in the air.

"Are those…." I began to ask. Loki impatiently pulled me along.

"Valkyrie, yes! Come, we don't want them to see us either!"

On the road ahead of us a squadron of skeletal knights came galloping along on skeletal horses. Loki dragged me off the road, both of us running as fast as our legs could carry us.

The skeletal trees and bushes grasped and groped as we ran past, tearing our clothes and cutting our flesh. We hid behind a small outcrop, as the skeletal knights thundered down the road.

"This could work in our favour," Loki said softly, wiping blood from a gash on his cheek. I gathered my blood magic and healed him, then healed myself.

"The Valkyrie are here to reclaim a soul Hel has falsely claimed. As long as Hel's attention is on them, she might not notice us."

"Should we go and help them?" I asked.

The Valkyrie seemed awesome, I was dying to take a closer look. I mean, Valkyrie, how amazing is that?

"Absolutely not," Loki frowned. "The leader of the Valkyrie doesn't like me very much, she holds a grudge against me. They are as likely to want me dead as Hel is."

"You really don't make many friends, do you?" I asked.

"I have no idea why, I have such a sunny disposition and such a charming personality," Loki replied innocently.

After the skeletal knights had passed, we made our way back to the road and continued on.

The landscape slowly changed as the skulls and bones became larger, gigantic. Ahead of us stood a huge mountain, giant skulls and bones piled up to the sky. Loki stopped and turned to me, he grimaced, then grinned apologetically.

"I probably should have told you this earlier. I may not have been completely honest about my true nature."

I was shocked. No! Loki, being dishonest! (Oh, come on, dear reader, don't tell me you aren't thinking the same thing!)

"My mother was Laufey, the last Queen of Jotunnheim. My father Fárbauti was her General Consort, her husband and the leader of her army. My name is Loki, son of Laufey, prince of Jotunnheim, and quite possibly the last living of my kind."

And before my eyes, Loki began to change. His skin grew blue, ridges creating beautiful markings appeared on his face and hands, and his eyes glowed red. His clothing changed into black, blue and silver armour, shimmering in the ghostly light. And Loki grew tall. He grew impossibly tall.

By the time he finished his transformation, he stood at least twelve feet tall. I barely reached above his knee.

Loki gave a small bow.

"Hello darling," he said with what was more of a grimace than a smile, "this is me. Or at least who I would have been, had I been raised by my own people."

He reached down.

"Lift me up like a child and I'll kick you in the shins," I warned him.

Loki held up his hands. "Very well, suit yourself. But we must make haste."

He reached down his hand and I wrapped my hand around one of his gigantic blue fingers.

As I trotted beside Loki, struggling to keep up with his strides, I tried to collect my thoughts.

I had known this was a possibility, of course, the thought had crossed my mind. But seeing him in his full humongous blue glory, well, it was a lot to take in. A lot.

This was going to make things a bit more complicated.

My eyes involuntarily rose from his knees upwards, stopping just below his belt. This would a problem. A huge… problem.

I snapped myself out of it. I supposed I would just have to get creative.

At the foot of the mountain was a cave. It was guarded by two ghostly Jotunn warriors, their bones visible through their translucent skin, resplendent in their armour.

They crossed their spears warningly the moment we came near.

Arrogantly, Loki stood before them.

"Who are you, barring the way before the last living prince of Jotunnheim?" he asked scathingly. "I am Loki, son of Laufey and I am here to see my grandmother, Queen Nál. Move your weapons or face my wrath!"

The guards looked at him for a moment, then moved their weapons aside without saying a word.

Loki strode in.

I was still half walking, half running by his side, holding on to his finger, like a toddler trying to keep up with a parent in a rush.

"Don't say a word." Loki hissed at me from above. "Follow my lead. Grandmother, like all spirits, is stuck in the past. She does not understand that time has moved on. I will have to do my best to persuade her to grant me the gem, and I might say things that upset or offend you. Do not let it bother you, it is merely a means to an end."

The inside of the cave was dark. Ghostly Jotunn formed a line on both sides of us, funnelling us towards a throne made of ice, elaborately carved and decorated. On the throne sat a woman, a giant like the others. Her silvery hair was done up in elaborate tresses and an icy crown rested on her ghostly brow. She wore opulent ceremonial armour on top of long flowing robes and in her hand was a ghostly staff of silver, decorated with silvery leaves. A silver serpent rose from amongst the leaves holding a ghostly gem in between its fangs. I wondered if this was the 'Friezegem'.

Loki knelt down, pulling me down beside him. I quickly knelt too.

"Who are you, to invade our sanctuary?" Nál's demanded to know, as her voice echoed through the cave.

"I am Loki, son of Laufey," Loki still bowed his head respectfully.

"Laufey has no son. Laufey is dead, she is dead…" The queen began to wail, a keening sound that rose and rose. I felt so sorry for her, I could only imagine the grief I would feel if I were to lose Jessie, even in the afterlife.

"Laufey is dead, but she is not here! Where is my daughter, I need to see my daughter…"

Silvery tears fell from the ghostly queen's eyes.

"Laufey haunts the place she fell," Loki spoke softly, his own voice breaking. "She is not able to move on. She died defending her child, the son she had only borne hours before her death."

"Laufey had a son? Where is this son, where is my grandson…"

"I am him, grandmother. I am here."

Loki looked up at the grieving queen, tears shimmering in his own eyes.

Nál reached out to him, but her hand passed right through him.

"You are her child? Laufey's child?"

"I am, grandmother," Loki looked his grandmother's ghost in the eyes. For a moment, there was a spark of recognition from the ghostly queen.

Seizing the opportunity, Loki pressed on.

"I am here for the gem, the Friezegem. It was supposed to have been passed on from my father to me, but it never did. Rumour has it that it is in your possession now."

The queen however ignored him, seeing me for the first time.

"Who is this? You bring a mortal into my court?"

Outrage was clearly written on the queen's face, my very presence was offensive to her.

"Just a servant, no one of consequence," Loki reassured her hastily.

I raised an eyebrow but stayed quiet. We'd have words about this later. No one of consequence!

"Who are you?" Nál asked Loki as if she was seeing him for the first time.

"My name is Loki, I am Laufey's son," Loki explained patiently.

"Laufey is dead, she is dead…" the queen began to wail again.

"She is, she died defending her newborn son."

"A son, Laufey has a son?"

I admired Loki's patience, I knew being patient didn't always come naturally to him. But it was hard to get upset with this grieving spirit, heartbroken by her daughter's death.

"She does, I am her son."

"A son, Laufey has a son… there are daughters too?" Nál asked hopefully.

"No, there is just me, grandmother."

"Are you married?"

"No, I am not," Loki admitted.

"You must marry, and soon. The line must continue. Have you at least met anyone yet? Asked them for their hand?"

I bit the inside of my cheeks to hide a grin. Even ghostly Jotunn queens are first and foremost grandmothers it seemed.

"I'm working on it," Loki muttered a bit surly, a deep blue blush creeping up over his cheeks.

Oh?

Oooooooh….

I blushed as well.

"You must continue the line! Our blood must stay strong!"

Loki carefully avoided my gaze.

"Yes, grandmother."

"Then take the gem and leave. Hel must not find you, lest she keeps you here."

Nál reached down beside her, and a small coffer made of glowing blue ice decorated with silver markings appeared in her hand. She opened it and inside lay a beautiful oval cut icy blue gem, slightly larger than my fist.

Loki reached out and took the gem. It looked a lot smaller in his giant hand.

"Now leave, before it is too late!"

"Yes grandmother, thank you, grandmother."

Loki bowed his head one more time and stood up, taking me by the hand.

"And get married!" Nál reminded him.

"Yes, grandmother," Loki muttered.

We started walking to the mouth of the cave.

"Who are you, that you invade our sanctuary?" Nál's voice came from behind us again.

"Keep walking," Loki whispered at me as he dragged me along.

"Laufey's son," he replied a bit louder, sounding sad.

"Laufey is dead, she is dead…" the Queen's voice wailed in our ears as we left the cave.

Loki had his gem, but it didn't feel much like a victory, at least not with the heartbreaking keening wails coming from the cave behind us.

"Let's just go," Loki said as he shrunk down and shifted back into his old familiar self, "there is nothing we can do for her, or for any of them."

The Valkyrie were still fighting in the distance, unknowingly buying us safe passage as we made our way to the portal.

My heart was still aching, both for Nál and for Loki. It was heartbreaking how his own grandmother kept forgetting who he was, as she was stuck in a painful past, in an afterlife without comfort.

I did wonder what he had meant by being 'possibly the last living of my kind'. What had happened to the other Jotunn?

Now wasn't the time or the place to ask, however.

We made our way through the portal without incident, and the warehouse was still abandoned on the other side.

Before getting into the car, I pulled Loki into my arms. Whatever was or wasn't between us, I just couldn't bear seeing him this sad. He froze for a moment, then wrapped his arms around me and held me so tight I could barely breathe, burying his face in my neck. I held him, gently stroking his hair, neither of us saying a word.

Loki looked up, unshed tears shimmering in his eyes, and gently brushed his lips over mine.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you," I whispered back.

And as if the sun came out, a smile broke out on his face, and I couldn't help but smile back.

Loki tossed the gem up in the air and caught it again.

"Come on, get in, let's go and see what this blue beauty can do!" he said, as he opened the door to the passenger seat of the car for me.