IIIII

"What the hell happened last night?" Regina groaned, walking through the open door connecting their shared hotel rooms. The sun peaked past the curtains shining on her face before she moved away from the light's path.

Turning off the show playing on the tv, knowing he probably wasn't going to be able to finish it. Loki gave a short synopsis. "You drank too much. I got us these two rooms. And I almost got the cops called on us again when one of the neighbors down the hall caught me carrying you. Luckily after an explanation, some fake wedding rings, and waking you up to help me explain. They apologized, and now here we are."

"...I don't remember that," Regina said before sniffing her hair and wrinkling her nose in disgust. "I don't remember any of it after that cop showed up."

"I'm not surprised," Loki replied with a chuckle. "You were barely coherent enough to explain to the couple that you did know me, and we hadn't just met at a bar."

He still wasn't sure if the couple had completely believed them. However, no cops showed up, and no one from the hotel staff came to inquire about anything. So he figured the couple had decided to let them be. Either that or drunks hooking up in hotels was such a common occurrence that no one really cared... A definite possibility.

"Wonderful, can't say I've done that before," Regina said with a glance at the door, then at the rest of the hotel room. "How did you manage to afford this?"

"Magic," Loki answered, smirking as he leaned against the pillows on his bed. He was no longer in Storybrooke, so he had no qualms regarding using illusion magic to trick the mortals into believing he was paying them cash. So, with zero guilt, he'd 'purchased' two connected rooms for himself and Regina. They were nice, with spacious flooring, a nice kitchen, and two large showers in each room. It was not worth the almost nine hundred dollars it would have cost if he'd truly paid, but they were all nice all the same.

"Good, better that than my credit card," Regina replied as she walked across the room to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. The sound of the water from the shower turning on bleeding underneath the door and into the room.

Turning the tv back on, Loki idly watched the show as his thoughts ran through his mind. Thoughts of Storybrooke, his quest, Henry and Regina, the latter what he kept finding himself thinking more and more about. It was strange how quickly he was becoming fond of the witch. She wasn't like anyone he'd ever met before. A line he'd heard many people, his brother included, use when talking about their lovers or romantic interests. But it wasn't until now that Loki truly understood what they meant by those words.

A realization he'd, funnily enough, come to while he was trying to sleep last night. Tossing and turning in his bed, trying to get comfortable, when as if struck by some strange inspiration. Loki found a thought he hadn't noticed had been playing in the back of his mind. Why didn't he court Regina? If she was going to be his companion, why not try and see how things went between them? It couldn't hurt to try, and they got along well enough.

Which lead him to his current problem. If he was going to go about courting Regina, how was he to do it? Outside of physical attraction, he hadn't noticed her having too much interest in him. So he'd have to be careful not to jump too far into the courting stages. Not to mention Regina also had Henry, which meant he'd need to deal with the boy and preferably get his approval. A consideration that would help better than any gift with how significant the boy was to Regina.

After some more time passed, a different show passing by the screen, going completely unnoticed by him. Loki was pulled from his thoughts as he realized the shower was now off, Regina exiting the bathroom a few seconds later. Redressed in her formal business outfit, face twisted in a little disgust, "Before we head back to Storybrooke, we'll need to stop for some clothes. If I have to stay in this outfit for another hour, I think I'll throw up."

Flicking his hand, Loki sent a spell at Regina, cleaning her clothes of any spilled beer from last night. "Better?"

Checking her clothes, Regina smiled, satisfied. "Yes, remind me to learn that spell when we return home. It's useful."

Getting off the bed, Loki wiped away some imaginary dust on his suit as he tried to think of a way to invite Regina to breakfast without it coming off as him asking her for a date. A problem that shouldn't have been a problem. But now that he had the idea of courting Regina in his mind. Every casual thing he could think of, he was now seeing from a different perspective. However, before Loki could even open his mouth. Regina's phone started to ring from the other room.

"Who could be calling now, I wonder." Regina sighed, walking over. "It better not be from someone taking over the office. I'm still the mayor until the election. Though I wouldn't be surprised if Snow rallied the town for one while I'm gone."

While waiting, Loki had just decided to ask Regina where she wanted to eat for breakfast and deal with the courting mess later when he heard a cracking noise come from the other room. Going through the connecting door, he found Regina holding a broken cell phone. The screen shattered, and the battery from the back of the phone laying on the floor.

"What happened?"

"I dropped it," Regina replied, tossing the phone on the bed. "I suppose I'm still a little hungover from last night. Oh well. We'll be back in Storybrooke soon. I can find out who was trying to call me when we arrive."

"You don't want to call using the phone here?" Loki questioned, gesturing to the hotel phone by the bed.

"I would, but I can't. I never bothered to remember anyone's phone number in Storybrooke. There was never any need."

Nodding his head in understanding, Loki moved on to another topic, food. "Before we get going, how about we get breakfast first. The cafe we passed on the way to the bar is close to the airport. It should have some decent food. Better than anything we might get on the plane."

"Not a fan?" Regina asked, the amusement clear as day in her voice. "I thought the peanuts were a nice appetizer. Not to mention the cheap wine and crying babies."

"Very funny." Loki gave the witch a dry look. "So, cafe?"

"Without question."

"Excellent." Loki smiled slightly, opening the door to the hall for Regina and stepping out right behind her. The thought of eating some real food was an exciting prospect. One that almost put a little skip into his step or would have if he hadn't forced it down. He wasn't a child, nevertheless, after getting meals at Granny's for the past few weeks and eating far too many apples. Loki was looking forward to a nice, palatable meal he hadn't cooked himself.

Twenty minutes later, they were sitting outside the cafe at a table under some shade coming from a nearby tree. The red-bricked building, unlike the more modern-styled restaurants across the street, had plants and vines everywhere. Giving the outside of the cafe a garden dining feel. It was rather charming and raised Loki's expectations for the food.

"Hello, welcome to Simply Grown. What did you two wish to order today?"

Glancing at the waiter who'd appeared beside the table, Loki set down his menu. "I'd like a dark roast coffee and your breakfast special."

"I'll take earl grey tea, two muffins, and a slice of chocolate cake," Regina said right after.

"Okay, we'll have your order out in a minute. The special may take a little longer but not too much." The waiter said, then picked up the menus before entering back inside the cafe.

"Muffins? Cake? I didn't take you for the dessert type, Regina." Loki smirked. "I'm quite surprised."

"And you'd be right," Regina replied with a smirk of her own. "I normally try to stay away from these types of foods. But Henry's not here. So I figured having a little cheat day couldn't hurt. It's been far too long since the last time."

"Well, your secret's safe with me."

"What secret? You'll have no proof when we get back to Storybrooke."

"Hmm... I suppose you're right." Loki chuckled, enjoying the more playful Regina compared to how the witch was last night. Regina, while an interesting drunk, wasn't the best conversationalist. "So, any other plans before the airport? We still have a good amount of daylight left."

"None whatsoever. I assume you do, however, if you're bringing this up?" Regina questioned, tapping her nails against the table in an almost rhythmic manner.

"Yes," Loki admitted candidly. "I would like to take a road trip back to Storybrooke. It's only around four hours longer than taking a plane, and I wish to see more of the outside world. It's an interesting place. So very different from the Enchanted Forest."

A complete or almost complete lie. Loki had seen enough of the mortal world. He didn't need to take a trip, purposefully stopping at interesting locations or sightseeing. That said, he wanted to get to know Regina better and prolong the drama that would no doubt happen in Storybrooke with Henry. He liked the boy enough. But trying to court Regina during that whole affair wasn't going to be fun, and Loki would rather put it off as long as he could.

He also didn't want to be stuck on a plane with any more crying babies. He'd had enough of that from the first flight for a lifetime.

"Here you guys are. A special, an assortment of desserts and your drinks." The waiter said, back again with their food. Setting a tray down, the man moved the items he'd named onto the table. "If either of you needs anything, just let us know. Enjoy!"

"He was nice," Regina said after the waiter left. Picking up her fork and cutting into her cake.

"He was." Loki agreed, not really paying attention now with food in front of him, already stabbing a piece of his eggs and toast. A simple dish, but the smell was quite appetizing and nothing like the greasy air in Granny's. Something, in all honesty, he didn't really mind. Some of the food there wasn't actually that bad. He only considered it bad when comparing the food to past meals. An unfair comparison, but he couldn't help it. It didn't help that there weren't many places other than the diner to eat in Storybrooke. Anyone was bound to dislike something after eating it every day for weeks on end.

"So, road trip? Why now? We could always plan a trip later instead of driving to Storybrooke." Regina asked, sipping at her tea. "It's not exactly an exciting destination."

"True. But it should still be nice. No rush, no crowded space in a rickety aircraft, and most importantly, no more crying babies." Loki said as he finished the last of his food. He'd gone through it quickly and was glad to find it didn't disappoint. "Admittedly, the last bit might be the most important detail. All the same, however, I think it'll be fun."

"And the car? I don't suppose you've thought that far ahead yet?" Regina continued to ask her questions. Though Loki was pleased to hear her not yet rejecting the idea.

"Do you truly think so little of me, Regina? There's a used car dealership by the airport. Likely a rental place, but I'm sure I can convince the owner to sell me a car at a good price."

Taking a bite of her muffin, Regina seemed to mull over his words as she chewed before finally sighing. "To hell with it. Storybrooke can wait a little longer. Let's take a roadtrip."

IIIII

"I can't believe you did that, Loki." Regina chuckled as she drove down the highway toward's Maine. "Was it truly necessary to negotiate a better price when you weren't going to pay anyway?"

"It's the principle of it all," Loki said, resting against the leather cushion behind him. The man at the dealership had wanted an outrageous price for the car. Sure, it was a nice model, a mid-sized SUV with comfortable, spacious seating. But thirty grand was practically robbery. "I wonder how long it will take him to notice the missing cash."

"Not too long," Regina replied, not sounding like she cared too much about the man's eventual discovery. "A day or two at most. More than enough time for us to reach Storybrooke."

"Oh well."

Turning the dial on the radio, Loki picked a station, and for the next few hours. He listened to music with Regina, the atmosphere in the car settling into a comfortable musical silence. A silence that at first was only occasionally broken by one of them changing the station to another. Which then led to Loki informing Regina of the better station. Regina, in turn, claimed otherwise. So for close to the entire trip, Loki and Regina tried convincing each other of their taste in music, time flying quicker than it did during the flight.

Before too much longer, Loki saw familiar landmarks and knew they were getting close to Storybrooke. Far sooner than he'd expected, which annoyed him a bit. Besides getting to know Regina better, the whole point of the trip had been to think of a way to court the woman. Yet, outside of music, he'd done none of that at all and was no closer to a solution than he was earlier that morning.

"You know, it just occurred to me. Last night you said your brother's name was Thor? Loki and Thor? How did that come about?" Regina asked as they passed the welcome to Storybrooke sign, pulling Loki from his thoughts.

"Hmm... I'd say coincidence. Or perhaps my mother saw it and chose those names as a joke." Loki lied easily, having already thought of an answer last night after his slip-up.

"She was a seer?"

"In a way. Though It wasn't her expertise, my mother knew enough about the art." Loki frowned. He'd never liked the idea that Freya could see his future, mistakes, and paths. Of course, it wasn't that far into the future. Nothing Like Odin's ability or the time stone. Nonetheless, it was uncomfortable to know someone could see his future, more so because he couldn't do it himself.

"She wasn't killed by Gold, was she?"

"...What? No, she died in battle." Loki replied, feeling a little baffled at the question. "What does Gold have to do with anything?"

"Probably nothing," Regina answered slowly. "I just remembered an old document in my mother's archive. It had records of the seer massacre. A rather dark event in our history. According to the story, a witch, a seer of considerable power, crossed the dark one. Tricked him, or perhaps something else. That part isn't clear. But the result was Rumplestiltskin hunting down every seer in the enchanted forest. Now there hasn't been one seen or heard of for the past one hundred years."

"I see. How fascinating." Loki murmured, mentally making a note to check more on that story later if he got the chance. Gold was turning out to be quite the interesting fellow. The more he learned about the man, the more the mystery around him grew. Perhaps the oddest of all was why such a man was with Belle. Even from only one meeting, Loki had difficulty seeing the young woman being fine with Gold starting a massacre.

"Did you say a hundred years ago?" Loki asked after a pause. "How old is the man exactly?"

"No idea. The only thing anyone know's is that he's been the dark one for centuries. Even when he was teaching me, that was one question he wouldn't answer." Said Regina.

Nodding, Loki decided to stop asking any further questions. Even if he wanted to ask what Regina meant by the dark one. If Gold had been under that title for centuries. Even with Loki's hermit background, not knowing such a thing might be a little too far-fetched and cause doubt about his identity. Glancing out the window, he frowned as they passed through a street on the way to the manor. Something felt strangely off. It had only been a day, yet he couldn't help but feel a change in the town.

"Do you feel that?" Regina asked, slowing down the car to a stop. "Something's not right."

"Yes, odd, isn't it?" Loki's eyes narrowed as he opened the door and stepped out. The instant his foot touched the pavement road like a signal, causing a cloud of dark, black magic to erupt from the ground and flash through him. Carrying with it what sounded like the screams of a thousand people.

"LOKI!"

IIIII