Author's note: Dear all, I apologise for the delay! It's unforgivable but here is the next one. Still two more to go ;)

The sun was already setting when Solweig reached the God of mischief's apartments. She climbed the flight of stairs before her, wincing at every step she took for she felt like each and every muscle in her body was protesting against her moving. It was weeks ago that she had last spoke to Odin and the pressure she felt now that the Allfather had agreed on letting her rule was draining. She knew they all felt the same, Sif, Thor or Erik, and more specifically Loki, who proved to be highly demanding, pointing out her shortcomings each time he deemed she could do better. She pushed the door of his bedroom with the hope that he would be lenient with her because she was exhausted, to the point that she could lie down on the doorstep and fall sleep immediately.

She found him sitting at his desk, as he usually did whenever she joined him for her evening lessons. Her eyes lingered on some opened trunks in the middle of the room. She raised an eyebrow interrogatively as she walked in, passing her fingers through the fur of a coat that was lying on the couch.

"Whom is this for?" she turned to him while lifting the piece of clothing, wondering whether it would fit her.

"It's for you. So you won't freeze to death in Niflheim"

Solweig glimpsed at him, her mouth opened. She bit her lip for she had totally forgotten about the trip. The royal family had been invited to celebrate the jubilee of Asgard and Niflheim's friendship and Solweig was expected to join. Only Thor and Loki would be attending, for Odin could not accept the invitation. Due to the recent political instability, he dared not leave the throne and he had asked his two sons to represent him instead. He had also ordered that Loki brings Solweig since he believed it would be a good way to start introducing her as the heir of Vanaheim. For some reason, Loki seemed rather displeased by the idea. Three sharp knocks against the door interrupted her train of thought while an army of servants entered the room and started packing all their belongings within the wooden trunks, bombarding the girl and the prince with questions, whether she wanted to keep her hair lose, did she need riding clothes, would the prince prefer his green or his golden outfit, should they pack his helmet and which books would they take with them. Solweig almost felt dizzy watching the crowd running around as if they were precisely repeating a choreography. When they finally left, she sighed in relief.

The girl looked at Loki who was writing something, his hand moving with agility on the parchment paper, his writing neat and elegant.

"When do we leave?"

"As soon as possible. You should better go take a bath if you don't want the people of Niflheim to believe you belong to the stables"

She humphed, slightly offended but she knew he was right. She had been training with Sif in the mountains and was covered in mud. She bathed and dried herself quickly, nonetheless struggling to pick an outfit until her maid – she got her own staff back after she had met the Allfather – indicated that she should wear her dusty pink dress, for it complemented her skin tone. Solweig gave way to the girl's recommendations, trying to ignore Loki who was standing impatiently in the middle of the room.

Thor was already waiting, surrounded by a crowd of about fifty people, guards, maids, all the staff diplomatic delegations seemed to need during such trips. Solweig caught sight of a girl about her size, her hair very dark under her hooded cloak. She was standing near a taller woman, whose pointy ears seemed familiar. Solweig frowned when she recognised Xefir, Loki's elf girl. She suddenly realised that almost all female slaves of the castle were gathered outside. The Vanir girl shot a glance at the God of mischief, curious as of why they needed to bring the entire crew of concubines to what she assumed would be a political event but he was already walking away, heading to the footbridge. They were taking a spaceship, for the bifrost did not go as far as Niflheim. The pilot guided them to the shuttle and Solweig tried not to panic when she felt the motor roaring.

A few hours later, someone announced that they were touching ground. The doors opened upwards and a gust of wind rushed into the shuttle, making Solweig shiver and her eyes water.

The scenery was breathtaking. They walked out of the ship onto the frozen ground. They'd landed on a white wide plain. All around them were abyssal cracks, disfiguring the land such as nasty scars on a pale skin and in front of their eyes, the castle of Niflheim, springing up from the soil like a stalagmite. They walked the few hundreds meters that separated them from the building, sliding every so often on the ice.

Solweig was freezing, despite the pile of clothes she was wearing under her fur coat. Once they finally reached the palace, she stopped next to Loki and searched for his eyes but he did not look at her. The crystal door opened, casting a mysterious light against the glossy floor before them. Everything in the castle seemed to be made out of ice, yet a pleasant and invigorating warmth seized the girl. She could hear a hubbub of conversations from what she assumed was the banquet hall.

"Welcome my friends! Welcome"

A red-haired man appeared from the side, grinning, followed by two younger folks who seemed to be around Solweig's age. The king of Niflheim walked towards Thor and hugged him firmly before turning to Loki and greeting him in the same manner. He turned to Solweig then, pausing. She realised she was being rude for she was still wearing her hood and swiftly uncovered her head. The man looked at her, seemingly intrigued. He finally reached for her hand and brushed it with his lips.

"You are even more beautiful than the gossips have it... I suppose you are Solweig, daughter of Freya and Óðr. Property of Loki Odinson…" he added with a sly smile.

"Heir of Vanaheim" rectified Thor firmly.

She bowed and she caught sight of the king glimpsing at her neck where her collar should have been. Luckily, she had been smart enough to conceal it behind her clothes before they departed from Asgard. She knew people would confront her, for rumours had spread in the weeks that followed the revelation of Loki's and Thor's scheme to Odin.

The king raised his eyebrow amusingly and looked alternatively at the princes.

"Very well then. Solweig, heir of Vanaheim" he chuckled before introducing the people behind him: Arne and Helga, his twin children. "Like you and your brother" he added, winking at her.

The staff was dismissed but the two princes and the crowd of girls remained. The king led them to the banquet hall and voices quieted in deference. The people stared at the guests standing on the threshold of the room.

"People of Niflheim" claimed the king, his loud voice resonating against the ice walls. "I am delighted to announce that our guests from Asgard have arrived!" the crowd cheered in glee and the king guided the visitors towards the empty seats at the table. Solweig wished she could be dismissed and simply leave the party because she was exhausted and longed to sleep. Yet she repressed a yawn and sat next to Loki.

After a while, people started to move and Solweig eventually ended up discussing with Thor and Arne about the state of various political affairs concerning Asgard and Nifheim. Solweig tried to focus on the conversation but her eyes kept wandering to the God of mischief who was chatting with the red-haired princess. She bit the inside of her cheek when she saw the girl resting a hand on his thigh as she bent forward and whispered something in his ear. He answered back and she laughed, her hair moving gracefully around her face. She stood up then, her dress flying around her and Loki followed her, the both of them disappearing from the banquet hall.

Solweig struggled for air and she took off her coat, trying to compose herself. She saw Thor looking at her worryingly and she contorted her mouth into a small smile to indicate she was doing all right. Yet, she wasn't, and when she understood after what seemed like hours, that Loki would not be coming back, she stood up and excused herself, claiming that she was tired and needed to rest. She walked out of the hall and a servant led her to her bedroom.

"The king informed us you will be sharing the bedroom of Prince Loki" she declared and Solweig tried to dismiss the thought that she might walk in on them both being butt-naked in bed, but when the door opened, the room was empty.

The Vanir girl dismissed the maid and dropped her clothes on the sofa as she undressed. She noticed that her nightgown was neatly folded on the bed and felt a pang in her chest at the thought that she might be sleeping alone that night. She headed to the bathroom, rinsing her face with some lukewarm water. She tried to convince herself that this had to happen eventually. She perfectly knew what awaited her once she would be queen. He would free her, and they would part. As she looked at her own reflection in the mirror, she told herself that she had no right to be jealous, for he had warned her that he would not be faithful. She wiped a tear with the back of her hand and untangled her hair energetically.

She walked towards the window and looked through the pane but it was pitch-black outside.

"I was searching for you"

She jolted, surprised to find him casually standing in the opened door. He was stripped from his coat and cape and she tried not to search for proofs that he had been spending the last two hours in Helga's company.

"I am sorry to hear the princess was not enough to entertain you tonight" she spitted between gritted teeth despite her desperate attempt to compose herself. He raised an eyebrow and entered the room, the door closing behind him. He walked in her direction and stopped once he was facing her. She was avoiding his glance but he lifted her chin with two fingers. Solweig shivered, the skin of her arm pressing against the ice cold window pane. She could not bring herself to hold his gaze so she removed his hand and turned away from him.

"You should leave. She's probably waiting for you to come back"

He did not respond and she felt his eyes scanning her face.

"Are you jealous?"

"Am I even allowed to be?" and her voice broke as she spoke.

Loki lifted his head ever so slightly, his eyes fixated on her. He studied the girl for a while, quietly. He noticed that her chest was moving up and down, her face turned towards the window. He wondered if she was about to cry. Gently, he reached for a strand of hair that he slid behind her ear, revealing her cheekbone.

"You had sex with her didn't you?" she questioned, her voice hoarse.

"I did" he acquiesced, his voice surprisingly soft.

The girl inhaled, a lump growing in her throat. She felt distressed but let him put his hand on her hip, bringing her close. She rested her head against his chest while he wrapped his arms around her back and breathed the smell of her hair.

"Is that why you wanted me to stay in Asgard?" she found the courage to ask. "So you could spend time with her without me bothering you?" she puzzled, struggling to steady her voice.

"Why would you think such a thing?"

"I heard you last time. You were talking to Thor. You said you wished I could stay out of this"

He stepped away from her, frowning.

"Sólveig, what do you remember of the chapter on Niflheim's diplomatic practices?"

She bit her lower lip awkwardly. He had asked her to read that book about the realm's history once he heard their attendance was required. Truth was, she hadn't, for she already had so much to read and she doubted she would learn anything more than what she already knew: Asgard and Niflheim always held tight relationships and the world of mist was where all rivers stemmed from. Would a conflict arise, Asgard could be deprived of water so Niflheim had to remain a close ally to the kingdom.

Loki stared at her, stone-faced.

"Do you not recall that in Niflheim the guests are supposed to provide the entertainment. Do you understand what that means?"

He pursued, his features stern as if he was scolding her and the guilt of having disregarded his order washed all over her.

"We are the entertainment Sólveig... And now that Odin insisted for you to be here, you are too"

She paused, glancing at him dumbfounded until she managed to find her next words.

"Are you seriously implying that we are expected to have sex with people here just for the sake of diplomacy?" she asked, doubtful. "What kind of practice is that? Prostitution?"

He sat down on the couch next to her pile of clothes and sighed.

"Sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself for the greater good, princess" he indicated. "This is the hard truth of ruling"

She played with the ring of her necklace absentmindedly, giving some thought to what he just said.

"Arne asked me if he could have you tomorrow"

She looked at him, not sure she'd heard him properly.

"I'm sorry?"

He looked at her for a while as if probing her.

"I told him I would ask you. Odin did not send you as my slave but as an independent representative of Vanaheim. You have to choose whether you want to spend the evening with him. I cannot tell you what to decide"

When she entered the room, the two men were sitting on the couch, drinking wine. They turned their head to look at the girl while she closed the door behind her and she felt a bizarre mixture of apprehension and excitement at the thought of what was going to happen.

"It will be all right" Loki had reassured her during dinner. He had said that she could stop whenever she wanted, that no one would feel hurt if she would decide not to go on. "I will be there the entire time" had whispered the God of mischief, stroking her hip lovingly while dessert was served and she noticed that Arne was staring at them across the room. "I won't let anything happen that you don't feel comfortable with" he had said, before whispering in her ear that they would take good care of her. She'd reached for his hand and squeezed it and he had kissed her cheek before standing up, asking her to join them whenever she felt ready.

She stood near the entrance for a while, observing them both before her eyes met Loki's gaze and she felt like she was melting. She did not know whether she did it for herself or for the sake of Asgard but she did not care, for he shot her that look that she always fell for, the one that meant she was his, the one that made her surrender.

She was jolted out of her thoughts when Loki asked her to come closer. He reached for her hand once she was in front of them and he kindly pulled her towards him, sitting her down between them both. The prince of Niflheim asked if she wanted a drink and she nodded. She saw him adding a white powder to the liquid before he handed it to the girl. She shot Loki a suspicious look but he soothed her, saying it would only help her loosen up and that she should relax. The wine was bitter but she took another sip of it.

"It is a great honour to have you here Solweig, queen of the Vanir, heir of Vanaheim" cooed the heir of Niflheim before reaching for her hand and bringing it to his lips.

They rested on the couch, panting. After a while, Loki shot Arne a glance who kindly removed Solweig's head from his thigh where she was resting. He stood up and got dressed.

"It was great pleasure to meet you, queen of Vanaheim" he told her before he kissed her, striking her cheek. He kissed Loki too and walked towards the door. Solweig was lying on the couch and watched him leave, her golden hair spread on the fabric, her arms resting over her head. She met Loki's gaze and she noticed he was staring at her.

"How do you feel?" he asked in a gentle voice as he rubbed her calf with the flat of his hand. Her feet were cold so he took them in his hands, put them on his thigh. He caressed his chest absentmindedly, as if to ensure of his own tangibility and she smiled at this thought.

The girl said she was fine and indicated that she'd fancy a bath. Loki stood up and went to the bathroom, Solweig's eyes fixated on his naked body as he moved. She thought he was handsome and she was surprised to find herself aroused again but she felt sore and exhausted. She closed her eyes, peaceful, until she heard the sound of water and noticed that Loki was standing next to her. She took the palm he was handing her, helping her to stand. He guided her to the bathroom and they cuddled in the water, Solweig straddling Loki.

"Thank you" she whispered against his neck, her head resting on his shoulder.

"What for?"

"Everything"