Chapter 9
In the quiet solitude of the gardens, away from all things demanding and presumptuous-especially Princes-Erica finally found a spot of her own where she could sit amongst the flourishing bushes and trees and think.
What a day it has been so far...and it's barely noon. The thought was enough to make the young woman emit a soft groan as she settled back and allowed herself to stretch across the plush bed of grass beneath her.
Staring up into the blue sky above, Erica's eyes searched the atmosphere for the answer to a question that has been boggling her mind ever since she had been told of the arrangement. Why her? Why now?
"M'lady Erica!"
The young woman's eyes closed with a soft grimace. Apparently, she would not be finding the answer that she so desperately sought presently. "Yes?"
A moment later, her lady in waiting's head peeked around a brush, "Oh, there you are, Mistress." Iris exclaimed with an obvious notion of relief etched into her voice. "I've been looking for you everywhere...why are you lying in the grass?"
Without opening her eyes, Erica shrugged a nonchalant shoulder, "Just something to do, I suppose."
"Well you best get on up, M'lady...you don't want to stain that dress."
Had her eyes been open, Erica would have rolled them. But since she was in no mood for an argument just yet, the young woman complied. "If you insist..." Sitting up slowly, Erica carefully minded her long skirts and got back on her feet. "For you to have sought me out like this, may I assume you have some kind of business with me?" she asked coolly as she brushed herself off.
"Aye." Iris agreed with an instant, blooming smile, "I have something for you." Reaching into the white folds of her apron, in an excited flash of silver, the old maid brought out her surprise.
Erica stared point blank at the presentation that was being gleefully held in front of her. "What..." the words came out slowly, "...in the blazes are those?"
Iris rolled her aging grey eyes but continued holding a smile upon her face as if she had half expected that answer, "New dress shoes, M'lady." the old maid answered.
"Dress shoes?"
"For the festival tomorrow night."
Festival? A red-orange brow rose into a high arch, "What festival?"
Her lady in waiting clicked her tongue and sighed, "The Summer's Eve Festival...haven't you ever heard of it before?"
The younger woman shook her head, "Surely not."
"Ah..." Despite her mistress' ignorance, the slow, toothy grin Iris flashed in return told Erica she wasn't put off in the slightest. "Then won't you be in store for such a treat."
"Judging by your unfazed reactions, I can only assume this means it's a social gathering, correct?" Erica guessed, already disliking how that sounded.
"Oh, it's much more than that, mistress. There will be feasting and music. Merriment...dancing..."
The red head instantly grew rigid, "Dancing?" Oh bother...
"Aye, tis a glorious night." Iris sighed in a dreamy manner, "...everyone will be in their finest wear. It is a grand masquerade that'll last until the dawn."
Erica subtly cleared her throat, "Well good to know...I'll make sure I keep myself isolated inside my bedchambers while it progresses."
The old maid gasped as though she abhorred the very suggestion, "Absolutely not!" Iris vigorously shook her dark, grey streaked head, "...That is simply out of the question."
"But I really don't care for extensive parties, Iris..."
"Lady Erica, you are going to attend and that is that." the maid answered firmly, "..My lady, Queen has already picked out your evening attire."
Erica frowned softly as her sea-colored eyes narrowed with analysis, "I see..." she answered. So they're already starting to take control of her wardrobe, "...and did she also happen to pick out those?" the red head openly nodded at the pair of 'shoes' Iris still held.
Shoes indeed...
Silver satin embroidered with gold, encased the molding of what appeared to be the average shape of a slipper. Only instead of the bottom being flat as the ground below, this one's was deformed. A wedge of wood, carved and shaped with a specific purpose, had been attached along the bottom, adding another 3 inches in height to the shoe itself.
Iris grinned again sheepishly, "Nay...I selected these beauties for you myself."
Erica blinked, "Why, may I ask?"
Her maid looked taken back."Well... I'm not sure if you know this M'lady...but compared to most women around here..." she quickly looked about as if checking for prying ears that were listening in for the secret she was about to share, "...you're awfully short."
"Short?!" Well, wasn't that a delicate way of putting it...
"The heels on these shoes will help provide you with a more adequate stature...plus they will match your gown very nicely."
Beneath her skirts, the young woman stomped her foot, "There is nothing wrong with my 'stature'..." Erica argued heatedly, "...and I will not parade myself about on those...those stilts. I would probably break an ankle."
Iris laughed and took a step forward only to thrust the pair of heels directly into Erica's arms, "And that is why you are going to spend the day practicing."
"Practicing?"
Iris walked a few feet over and collected the small basket Erica had been gifted with earlier that morning-inside lied the unused sketchbook and quill. "Yes...you will put those on and train yourself to walk properly. It's as easy as that." she explained as retraced her steps back to Erica's side.
"Iris..."
The older woman held up a hand, asking for silence, "There's plenty of empty corridors around the palace...find one and use it until you feel comfortable wearing these on your feet."
"You must be jesting..." Though her unrelenting determination was awfully astounding...
"On the contrary, I am serious." Iris answered with a warm smile, ".. Now off you go, M'lady. I must go oversee other preparations for tomorrow evening. I shall fill you in on more details later on tonight before you go to bed."
Taking charge was becoming a pattern with this woman, Erica quietly thought to herself as the older woman took her by her shoulders.
Before the younger woman could further protest, she was directed to turn about. Then to her utmost surprise, Iris gave her an almost encouraging swat across her rear, the same way a mother would when her unwilling child was told to complete a list of chores.
"I truly resent this!"
"Fear not, M'lady...you'll thank me for this later."
When Loki made his appearance in the dining hall for breakfast, he immediately took notice of everyone in the room-his father, mother, brother...his brother's rowdy's quartet of warrior friends that huddled around him while sitting at the table as they continuously shoveled food down their throats...
Everything was the exact same way as it had always had been-typically boring and damningly predictable.
Perhaps, and the thought just crossed his mind, he should have lingered longer in the gardens-with Lady Erica. She was at least proving to be a great source of entertainment with every encounter the two of them had. So much, that the younger prince felt almost a sliver of disappointment when he realized Erica was not a member among the others in the room.
"Ah, well..." The Dark Prince thought to himself as he moved further into the chamber, "...perhaps I'll have something to look forward to now." For as long as Erica remained in Asgard, at least.
As Loki approached the table himself, he was greeted with a curt nod from his father and an ever-warm smile from his mother. "Loki..." Frigga spoke as she gestured with her hand for her youngest son to take a seat beside her, "...I was beginning to wonder if you would show yourself to us this morning."
The raven-haired prince complied and settled into a seat beside his mother, "I'd never miss the chance to break the fast with you, mother."
Frigga's smile deepened with motherly affection. "So what have you been up to this morning, my son?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary..." Loki answered as he reached for a green apple that was being displayed on a silver platter holding a variety of fresh fruit. "...the gardens were looking particularly pleasant today, though."
"Gardens?" His brother Thor had undoubtedly overheard him and now fixed him with his complete attention, "...you know I thought I had detected something sweet in the air." The Golden Prince looked across the table at his younger kin and grinned, "Dallying in the honeysuckle, were you brother?" he teased as his blue eyes flashing good-naturedly.
A single corner of Loki's mouth turned up in smirk, "Something like that." Then, he raised the apple to his lips and took a bite.
"You know, Lady Erica was also in the gardens this morning..." inputted Frigga from her place at the end of the table as she leaned almost inward toward the darker prince, "...Did you happen to see her, Loki?"
Loki turned his attention back onto his mother before he nodded his head, "Oh, yes..." he confirmed as lifted a nonchalant hand up to set something down onto the table in front of him, "...I did indeed see her, mother."
The Queen eyed the small branch of honeysuckle before slowly smiling, as if she already knew the story behind it. Then, she gracefully casted her blue eyes down onto her plate, "Did she look well?"
Erica's image flashed across his mind-standing in her gown of teal before the bushes of red honeysuckle, trying ever so hard to maintain a cool, unaffected aura about her. But he saw through that almost instantly. Though her face gave nothing away...every other essence of hers did. And that told Loki something; that whether Erica knew it already or not, she carried something particular about her..something Loki could feel when nearby..something he inexplicably wanted to discover for himself-his answer came swiftly. "Quite."
"What have you got there, brother?" Thor's bellowing voice called over to him once again as he spotted the flowering trinket on the table, "...brought back some potpourri for your bedchamber?" His older brother laughed, "...though it won't make your room appear anymore welcoming, at least it'll smell appealingly." The jest brought about a new round of laughter at the table.
Lowering his hand back down to his side, Loki's hand slowly closed into a fist, "Actually brother, it was more of a...token of affection." After the words had left his mouth, the laughter suddenly died down and all eyes fell upon the youngest Prince in an almost heavy silence. He flashed them all, even his father a half smile, "...if you will."
Though he was certain Erica herself would beg to differ, seeing everybody's priceless reactions made the lie well worth it.
Taking his half eaten apple in one hand and picking up the honeysuckle with the other, Loki rose from his seat at the table, "Now please excuse me...I have a matter that needs attending to." His emerald eyes strayed back over to his mother's where he met a tiny, almost understanding smile.
But as he started turning away, his ears picked up the hushed voices of Lady Sif and her companions, Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun.
"Was he being serious? I cannot tell."
"You don't think he meant..."
"Preposterous."
"She's hardly his kind...
"Since when does he even have a kind?"
It took all his strength to resist the urge to unleash a cluster of poisonous snakes underneath their seats. Had his mother and father not been present though, that is exactly what Loki would've done. Who were they to speak about him like that?
Before his temper could be further tested, the Dark Prince made haste out of the dining hall.
Damn them all for looking down on him the way that they do-all because he wasn't known for being a fierce warrior, like his brother Thor. To them, he would always be just a trickster...a Master of Magic, known his deviousness and craftiness instead of his skill with a blade on a battlefield. To them, his brains made him inferior to their brawn.
How the thought made his blood simply boil in his veins.
The heavy sound of his boot-steps echoed off the stone walls of the corridor as he stormed right through it, heading to...well he wasn't sure where.
His chamber? ...the Library?
Loki was in the middle of passing a hallway that branched off to his left when a flash of teal suddenly caught his eye, bringing the Dark Prince to a sudden halt. Backing up a few steps, he hid himself just out of view but allowed himself enough view to continue gazing down after the object that had caught his attention.
More than midway down the passageway, Lady Erica, with her back facing him, appeared to be carrying something in her arms. She took a moment to skeptically look about, then she quickly darted away and out of site again, turning into a different corridor.
Was she always on the move like this? It did seem to be a pattern with her, Loki thought to himself quietly, remembering the encounters in the Library and Gardens.
Either way, Loki's interest was suddenly peaked-and all previous, enraging thoughts that had been swimming in his mind just moments ago, were instantly flushed out as he stared on after her.
Where did that woman think she was going? An even better question would be for what purpose? Well...
"Only one way to find out..." A slow smile began spreading across his face, "This ought to be fun." the Dark Prince skillfully lightened his steps, then he changed his course to set out after Erica with only one purpose in mind-pursuit.
Left...right...left-Erica eyed each slow step she took as she continued moving one foot in front of the other. Her arms held themselves out from her sides in an attempt to keep her center balanced as her ankles, weighed down by the block-wedges she stood upon, wobbled in protest.
Never in her entire life did Erica feel so ridiculous as she did now. However, the fact that she was alone brought at least a little comfort to her-though it was incredibly slim.
Every now and then, she'd hear a distant sound, a voice...a laugh. And every time, her head would whip about in mortification at the idea that someone would appear and she would be caught in her predicament of 'practicing'.
"How humiliating..." Erica spoke out loud as she reached the end of the empty corridor that was lined with marble pillars on both sides. She then pivoted about, ready to start the trek back down for a fifth time.
Unfortunately however, she miscalculated the speed of her turn with the movement of her feet and without meaning to, the long sweeping hem of her teal gown got caught under her shoe's heel.
"Oh for heaven's sake..." the young woman's frustration was back in an instant. She grabbed her skirts and jerked them free...harder than what was actually necessary for she then lost her balance in the process.
Before she could correct her mistake, her wobbly ankles, tired from the exercise, buckled and rolled-sending Erica sprawling without an ounce of grace to the floor, face first, in a flurry of billowing skirts.
"Bloody Hell!" She swore loudly as she smacked an open hand upon the cool ground beneath her. Then, she furiously scrambled herself free from the tangling skirts of her gown, without even realizing that a pair of intensive eyes had been watching her every move.
Pushing herself up onto her knees, she sat back on her rear, stretching her legs out in front only to forcefully hike her skirts well up past her shins before reaching down to unhook one of the buckled straps of the heels from around her ankle.
Once her foot had slipped itself free, Erica hurled the death trap as far away from her as possible, watching with grim satisfaction as it skidded across the polished floor and ducked behind a pillar, out of sight.
Just when Erica was about to copy the same process for the other shoe that remained on her foot, a tall shadow moved into her peripherals, drawing her attention away from herself...onto a certain Raven-haired Prince, who as if by magic, had appeared out from behind a marble column and now stood less than ten feet away.
Locking eyes with the Dark Prince, it took Erica a long moment for the sudden realization that she had indeed been caught after all, to fully sink in. When she watched his lips draw back into a thin grin that flashed his white teeth, the absolute embarrassment of it all hit her with the force equivalent to Thor's distinguished lightning.
"Damn you, Prince Loki!" The outrage she felt was most evident in her voice as Erica frantically pulled herself off the ground and back onto her off-balanced feet. Her face was aflame with her shame as she furiously tugged her skirts back down into their proper place. "How dare you sneak up on me like this!"
How had he even managed to find her in the first place? She was certain she had come here without being followed...
Meanwhile, Loki chuckled without a single ounce of indignity, "Forgive me, Lady Erica..." The Prince dauntingly began taking steps forward, "...but I couldn't help myself." He explained as his long legs continued carrying him closer, "...you made it too easy."
Erica frowned as her hands came to defensively rest upon her hips as she herself took a few steps towards him.
The obvious lack of one heel on the young woman's foot however made Erica appear to Loki as though she was an apple bobbing on water-she'd sink one step, then rise the next. To the raven-haired Prince, the sight was quite humorous and took much restraint holding his infamous silver tongue in check.
"I did no such thing..." Erica argued firmly as the two came to a halt less than a foot from each other. "The whole point of my coming here was to find privacy..." Reaching a hand out, the woman placed the pads of her fingers right on the center of Loki's chest and gave a direct push, "...to which you have ruined, so thank you for that."
The Dark Prince gave a mock bow from his waist in return, "My pleasure."
Almost immediately, Erica's hand made a fist from which a firm warning strike was delivered across the man's sternum. "Hear me God of Mischief...I am in no mood for more of your shenanigans!"
Loki chuckled again, completely unaffected from Erica's blow, "Pity.." he answered as his dark head fell to one side, "Why not?" he questioned as his emerald eyes swiftly traced over her facial features.
"That doesn't concern you." Taking care, Erica moved around Loki's towering form, heading over to the spot a few feet away behind one of the pillars where her other show had been banished to on her accounts.
Only as she peaked around...it wasn't there.
"What the...?" But she was certain it had landed right around here...
"Looking for something?" Loki's voice interrupted her thoughts. Erica turned back around and soon spotted the shoe she had been seeking-and it was already in Loki's hold.
"Curse you, Loki and you excessive trickery!"
"Well, well...someone is incredibly fiery..."
Erica shook her head in disagreement, "I told you I am in no mood for your games."
Taking that as an invitation, Loki instantly covered the feet of distance that remained between them in a few long strides, forcing Erica to take a cautious step back in retreat. Only, she found herself backing up into a granite column behind her...
"And who says this is a game?" Loki returned; the words flowed from his mouth sounding as smooth as chocolate.
The Dark Prince was so close now-he practically stood on Erica's toes, making a small part of her secretly wish she had kept both of those wretched shoes on-if she had, she might not have been put in such a situation. She could have by now, easily walked away...well maybe not too easily...
But any awkward hobble would've been far better than this-being once again isolated in a space with Loki, of all people.
And for goodness sakes, "Why does he have to stand so tall?" Erica thought quietly to herself as her eyes fell upon the wide, lean plane that was his chest. Taking a quick moment to assess their physical differences, Erica realized that even if standing at her tallest...she really wasn't tall at all. Her head would still fall short of Loki's shoulders.
"Damn Iris for being right..." she concluded. "I am short..." But now was not the time to dwell on such awareness.
So instead, Erica frowned with skepticism, "What else can this be called?" she returned coolly. "Harassment?" she suggested.
"Hmm..." the raven haired prince appeared as though he was actually considering the question as his intensive emerald eyes held Erica in a hold of their own, "...how about for now, we go with...chivalry?"
"...beg pardon?"
Did she hear that right?
Loki held the shoe up for display, "May I?" he asked as his mouth once again formed another smile that was uniquely his. It perfectly reflected his mischievous personality...but there was something else within that smile that Erica couldn't quite place.
Before Erica could give her answer, the Dark Prince slowly took a knee before her and allowed a single pale hand with long, capable fingers, to lift the skirts of her gown ever so slightly so that the bareness of her shoeless ankle was revealed.
"You know...I've never understood why women go through such lengths for the sake of fashion..."
Erica felt her cheeks fill with heat from the boldness of his move, "And who says I'm wearing these for the sake of appearance?" she threw back. "I could care less about fashion statements-ah." A gasp slipped past her lips when she felt the cool tips of his fingers grazed the skin around her ankle bone.
Though his touch was light, it sent an infinitely questionable jolt through Erica's body-one that was quick to remind her that this wasn't a man she should would be wise in trusting.
Using only his eyes, Loki looked up from his position and smiled knowingly, "Why else would a woman subject herself to such titivations?"
Erica's mouth moved, trying to form a response, but found she could not gather one well enough to present a legitimate argument.
Sighing, Erica tossed her head of pinned up red-gold curls, "Touché, Loki..."
The dark prince chuckled...then to Erica's complete surprise, the remaining buckled-strap she wore was suddenly snapped away and her foot was given liberation by Loki's hand who in return, collected the pair of shoes together and leisurely stood back up onto his own feet.
Standing once again in the Dark Prince's shadow, feeling the soothing coolness of the floor beneath her bare feet, Erica found herself rendered speechless as the two interlocked their eyes.
"My Lady..." to her surprise again, Loki respectfully held the shoes out for Erica to take. Which she did, all the while not allowing her eyes to stray from his face as she blatantly searched for an explanation as to this display was occurring.
"Thank you..." She carefully returned, knowing full well that her obvious puzzlement must've been most apparent on her face at this exact moment for Loki's eyes gleamed with a kind of self-satisfaction he must acquire from reading the reactions he instills from her. "But...why..?"
"Why did I assist you with your shoe predicament?" He stole the words right out of her mouth before giving a soft shrug, "...It's no wonder that those things are in no way comfortable to wear, even for fashion statement...and after that fall you took..." The Prince chuckled as he watched Erica's cheeks redden once more, "...well, let's just say I didn't think you could afford another one without receiving more serious repercussions."
And that was the polite way of him telling her that she would be too clumsy for her own good...
Erica rolled her eyes and huffed a heavy sigh, "No...I meant...why were you observing me?"
"Ah..." His response came with a subtle half-grin, "I have my reasons, little Erica..." He explained, "...but fear not. You need not worry about it." he paused for a moment as he considered his own words, "...well, for now at least." he added.
Erica felt her spine go rigid from the hidden promise in his statement, "What do you mean, for now?" she softly demanded.
"You'll have to find out for yourself, won't you?"
Oh, this man was impossible...
"Splendid..." Erica grumbled underneath her breath, understanding that she would not be getting a more detailed answer than that from him. "Well then, I'll go start preparing for the upcoming torment, shall I?"
Loki's dark head dropped back with an alarming, hearty laugh. It wasn't at all as maniacal as Erica had assumed his laugh would be, being who he was. In fact, it was quite the opposite-it was rich, welcoming and deep-like tantalizing velvet. The sound sent chilling waves down the young woman's spine...but this time, the chills came from something other than mistrust for the man before her.
But what that was, she couldn't say just yet...everything was now all jumbled together. She didn't know what to think presently.
Fuming quietly at both herself and him, Erica turned and started moving away. But after barely taking one step, Loki's hand ensnared her free wrist and brought her to a swift halt.
The woman rearranged her body's position so that she was mostly facing the dark prince head on once again. "What now?"
Bringing her hand up to his mouth, Loki pressed a kiss over the backs of her knuckles "You have an astonishing sharp tongue, little Erica..." then, he freed her. "...I wonder what else you'll be surprising me with while you remain here in Asgard."
As Erica continued moving away, against her will, she found the corners of her mouth starting to turn upwards into a cool smile of her own as she twisted the Dark Prince's own words against him, "Well...you'll just have to find out for yourself, won't you, Loki?" Leaving him with that thought, barefooted Erica swiftly moved down the hallway.
"Touché, Erica." In return, Loki's emerald eyes followed after her. First, they traced over the curves of her back and waist, then they trailed down to the appreciating roundness that were her hips which held a distinctive sway when she walked.
Now what was Sif and the Warriors Three saying about his preferences, when it came to women? That he didn't have them?
Well...what a brilliant lie.