Chapter 7 - Down

Sigyn stared at the huge pile of rocks which blocked the path back to Vanaheim. The muffled sound of bellows and crashes filtered through from the other side. The troll was obviously distressed at losing his prey. Sigyn could hear him digging and pushing against the pile, but his attempts were futile. Loki was right. There wasn't any way to go back.

"We need to keep moving," Loki said, nudging her toward the trail. The cave was only wide enough to pass through single file, and so she fell in step behind him.

The green flame that Loki had cast bobbed in front of them, illuminating the trail and casting the rest of the cave in harsh shadows. From time to time, Sigyn could see the fire reflected in small, beady eyes peering out of crevices that they passed. There was constant rustling and scratching behind them, but she couldn't make out the source. Behind them was total darkness. The emptiness was unsettling. Sigyn's skin prickled and there was tension in the middle of her back. Her body was tensed in anticipation of attack, but nothing ever came.

It was difficult for Sigyn to believe that only a few hours ago, she had been standing in the sunshine on Vanaheim…or was she still on Vanaheim now? Boundaries were blurred and meaningless here. The road they travelled wound back and forth through the nine realms. For now, it was twisting down.

Down. Down. Down. Sigyn's calves began to ache with the strain of standing upright on the steep grade as they descended ever deeper into the pit. It required a supreme effort to keep moving forward. In addition to her protesting muscles, the dried blood on Sigyn's skin had started to itch. The fabric of her dress was stiff and chafing, and the deep scratches on her arms and shoulders had opened and started to bleed.

Sigyn didn't know how much longer that she could keep walking. She was relieved when the path finally leveled. Craning her ears, she could hear rushing water nearby.

Loki lifted his hands and spread the magical fire again. In its emerald light, Sigyn could make out that the path had widened into a chamber. Water was pouring down from the ceiling in one corner. It splashed over a pile of rocks and fed into a narrow stream. The banks on either side were pebbled, but mostly flat.

"We should stop and rest," Loki announced, tossing his pack and cape onto the ground. Sigyn nodded gratefully. She unpacked her own meager kit while Loki paced the length of the room, securing the openings and setting green fire on the highest shelves of rock to chase away some of the gloom. When he was finished, he walked to the stream and washed his hands and face.

Sigyn followed his example, using the cool water to scrub away the Ettin blood that had dried on her arms and neck.

"You should wash your dress," Loki said, glancing over at the blood-crusted mess. "That can't be comfortable and it's starting to smell."

Sigyn opened her mouth, intending to deliver a caustic response, but her tongue did not cooperate. Nothing came out. Very quickly, her indignation was overcome by embarassment at the thought that Loki thought that she smelled- even if she did have a good excuse.

She scooped some of the water onto the bodice of her gown and rubbed the fabric.

"That's never going to work," Loki interrupted. "You'll have to take it off."

Sigyn hoped that the light from the flames was too dim to betray the flush that spread across her features. "I can't take it off!"

"Why not? The cave is warm enough. Surely you don't take baths in your dresses at home?" Loki's tone was very calm and rational- but Sigyn thought she caught a glimmer of somethingin his eyes. "I don't understand the problem."

"But you're here!" she finally blurted.

This time Sigyn was certain that she was not imagining the mischievous smile on Loki's lips.

"Oh, it won't bother me," he assured her, his tone practically daring her to protest that it would bother her.

Sigyn realized that she had fallen into one of Loki's famous traps. She didn't know which action would make her a bigger fool: to fuss and protest like a prissy maid, or to brazen things out. No doubt he expected the former. Sigyn had hardly distinguished herself at the castle with her damsel-in-distress act in the kitchen.

The dress wasuncomfortable. Sigyn considered that factor as she weighed her options. She didn't know how much longer they had to travel and it would only get worse if she didn't wash it…Besides, it wasn't as if the prince had never seen a woman's body before.

Sigyn didn't understand the pang of jealousy that she felt when she thought about Loki with his lovers, but it incited her to act. Sigyn was a virtuous maiden, just as women of her age and rank were expected to be- but she was certainly no prude!

Sigyn met Loki's gaze with defiance- and then tugged the gown up over her head.

A polite young man would have averted his eyes. If Sigyn was honest with herself, she would admit that she did not expect Loki to be polite. Perhaps she was even counting on it. She was willing to admit a small degree of satisfaction from the way that his eyes widened and his breath hitched at the sight of her creamy skin.

Sigyn turned her head away and bent over the stream to wash, but she could still feel Loki's lustful raking over her body. She ought to be disgusted. Instead, she felt a surge of power. A prince of Asgard desired her! Perhaps she was not as different from Freya as she thought. It was easy to understand how this feeling could become addictive.

Sigyn took her time scrubbing the last of the Ettin from her skin and hair. She sat back on her knees, allowing Loki one final look as she knotted her wet hair on top of her head. Then she reached out her hand toward him.

Loki swallowed hard.

"Give me your cape," she commanded, gratified again when he scrambled to obey her command. Sigyn wrapped the green velvet around her body once and tucked it in at her chest, forming a makeshift gown before kneeling to scrub her dress and cloak.

Eventually, Loki tore his gaze away. By the time that Sigyn had finished washing, he had built a real fire in the center of their camp. Sigyn had no idea where he had found the wood and tinder- perhaps he had used his magic- but she didn't really care. Unlike the magical fires, which offered only light, the natural fire gave off a cheerful warmth. Sigyn draped her clothes across a stone near the flames and then unbound her hair again. She raked her fingers through the damp curls, spreading them in front of the heat to dry.

"Here," Loki offered her an apple and a hunk of stale bread which she accepted gratefully. The meal was simple, but welcome after the arduous day. After eating, Sigyn settled down next to the fire and fell into a dreamless sleep.

She awoke hours later to the feel of soft velvet and the scent of pine trees and ash. Briefly disoriented, it took her a moment to realize that both sensations were attributable to the fact that she was still wrapped up in Loki's cape.

On the other side of the fire, Loki looked far less comfortable. He was still asleep, curled up into a tight ball. Without his cape to use as a blanket and pillow, he had been forced to sleep on the bare cave floor. Sigyn felt a little bit guilty until she remembered the way that he had teased her the night before.

Enough time had passed for Sigyn to feel embarrassed by her own behavior. She hoped that Loki wouldn't tell anyone. Freya was notorious enough for their entire family on her own.

Sigyn's clothes were mostly dry. She hurriedly put them back on and went to the stream to wash her face. She dried her skin with the hem of her cloak and started to turn back toward camp when she saw something odd out of the corner of her eye.

Sigyn squinted through the darkness. On the other side of the stream, near the place that the water came through the ceiling, she thought that she could make out strange markings reflecting the light of the fire. She jumped across the water to investigate more closely. As she moved closer, the squiggles resolved into individual symbols. It was writing of some sort- but it disappeared when her shadow fell across the wall.

"Dwarvish." Sigyn spun around at the sound of Loki's voice. He was walking toward her, awake now- although he looked rather worse for wear. His normally impeccable hair was mussed and his clothes were rumpled. "The runes will only show in firelight..."

Sigyn stepped back. As soon as her shadow left the wall, the symbols appeared again. They glowed and flickered as if they were made of fire themselves.

"Do you know what it says?"

"It's a warning," Loki answered. "It says 'An unpleasant death awaits he who trespasses on the lands of Gloeim'". Despite the unpleasant sentiment, he was smiling.

"And that's…good?" Sigyn asked uncertainly.

"Yes!" Loki put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them. "It means that we've made it to Svartalheim! I thought that this place looked familiar!"

"Familiar?" Sigyn's eyes widened. "You've been here before?"

"Oh, yes," Loki said, a thread of weariness in his voice. "I've had more than my share of dealings with the dwarves."

Sigyn Loki started back toward camp. Sigyn scurried to match his long strides.

"Do you know Gloeim?"

"I know of him…but dwarves are all the same for the most part."

"How's that?"

"Short," Loki responded dryly.

Sigyn's lips twisted into a pout, but Loki probably didn't notice. He was already working to dismantle their camp. He threw dirt onto the fire and gathered up his pack. Instead of starting back on the trail, however, he went to the stream and started sorting through stones.

"What are you doing?"

"Working on our plan…" Loki answered. He held one of the rocks up in the light, turning it over as if he was looking for something and ultimately tossing it back into the water wish a splash. "You asked me earlier how all dwarves are the same…well, the thing that is the same about dwarves is that they all love one thing."

"Gold?" Sigyn suggested.

"Gold." Loki nodded and stopped speaking again as he finally seemed to find a stone that met his approval. He hefted it in his hand, checking its weight and then held it up to his ear.

"But those rocks aren't gold!" Sigyn said, confused.

"No." Loki shook his head in agreement. "Not yet."

A/N – Thank you all so much for your reviews! I can't tell you how much more motivated I am to write when I know that someone is waiting to read it! I cherish them all…but I wanted to point out that, in this chapter, I need to send a special shout-out to LillianClaire. I had intended to send Loki and Sigyn directly to Svartalheim, but Her comment of "God of mischief, chaos and now ruiner of dresses. Looks like the only thing left is to strip your future wife out of it," wouldn't get out of my head…I will try to put some more "easter eggs" in for my commentors- I want you all to know that I appreciate the effort that you take to leave them for me!

Sorry that it took so long to update. I went out of town for the long weekend. I am already working on Chapter 8, so hopefully it won't take too long (famous last words).