Over the next few days Maryn made sure to always make her way to Loki's cell. She ate breakfast with Frigga and Odin if he was available and then retreated to the dungeons. She always took a book with her because Loki refused to acknowledge her let alone speak to her. She sat quietly on one of the chairs in his cell, or the step beside the cell's magical barrier, and read while he paced or spoke to his mother.
Frigga was going against Odin's wishes and communicated with her son through a magical likeness.
Maryn listened silently as the Allmother tried to show her youngest son the error of his ways. But Loki continually threw the words back at his mother and more often than not their discussions ended because Loki would snap or throw a verbal barb which always seemed to hit too close to home, and Frigga would allow him to cut short their talks.
The princess watched as her dark prince paced and grew more and more angry. Dark circles ringed his eyes and his cheeks hollowed. She realised that he wasn't sleeping well when she arrived early one morning to see he must have just awoken and the sweat-soaked, crumpled sheets of his bed were not tidied away with magic yet.
He saw her concerned look and waved his hand, the sheets righting themselves and all evidence of his restless night hidden in the blink of an eye.
Maryn was prevented from going to Loki's cell over the next three days and nights. The Allmother and Allfather had organised a series of feasts and revels to celebrate Spring and she had been expected to attend each event and had no way to slip out and see him.
Finally, on the third night she was able to plead exhaustion and sent her ladies-in-waiting to go and enjoy themselves at the final feast of the Spring celebrations. She saw Tora watching her carefully but ignored the other woman's look and turned her back.
She was sad their friendship wasn't as it once was, but Tora had stepped too far. She had taken over Maryn's body without permission and severed a link cruelly. It was something Maryn couldn't forgive.
Once she was alone, the princess dressed in a simple, soft yellow gown with a thin gold belt. Her hair pinned away from her face by crescent moon combs of gold, silver and black metal, and only Loki's pendant, her wedding ring and earrings with hanging golden disks studded with emeralds and diamonds as decoration. Maryn clasped her cloak around her shoulders, pulled up the hood and left Fenrir in her bedchambers to make her way down to the dungeons and to Loki's cell.
The sight that greeted her when she walked through the golden barrier of the cell made her blood run cold. Loki was already in bed. But her heart stuttered in her chest at the sight of the grimace on his sleeping face, the sweat beading his brow and the way his skin paled and started to turn blue even as she watched. This was no simple nightmare; this was a night terror.
All of a sudden, Loki started to thrash and groan and Maryn couldn't allow him to continue to suffer.
Rushing to his side she leaned over him and gently stroked his face. "Loki. Loki my love, please wake up," she murmured careful not to startle him or perhaps make things worse by forcing him to wake too quickly. She opened her mouth to call his name again only for his eyes to fly open. Her heart clenched as they were crimson with the pupils a point of black staring up at her.
He moved quickly, throwing her hands off and pushing her back.
Fear slid up her spine and she backed away from him as he stood and stalked toward her, his eyes their normal green but anger all too clear in them. Maryn's back hit the corner pillar of the cell and Loki towered over her, breathing hard.
"I don't want you here, girl," he snarled, the air cooling considerably around them and his power flowing in angry waves through the cell.
Gathering her courage, Maryn spoke between clenched teeth, "I told you before, Loki; I don't much care for what you want." She made sure to keep her gaze locked on his.
He trapped her between his arms, his hands flat on the pillar behind her. "Leave," he growled out, his jaw stiff and a muscle ticking in his cheek.
Her fear ebbing away as she saw how pale and haunted he truly looked, Maryn softened her voice, "No."
With a derisive growl, Loki stepped away from her, his hand lifting to run through the tangled coal-black strands of his hair. "Why are you here, Maryn?"
His agitation confirmed her fears – he had been hurt when under the Tesseract's control and it was taking a heavy toll on him. "I will be here whether you want me to or not, Loki. I am your wife and it is my duty to stay by your side."
He was silent but she waited for him to speak, wondering if he would open up to her.
"I will petition the Allfather for a dissolution of our marriage." He spoke into the defining quiet of that cell and it felt to Maryn that all the air had been sucked out as he spoke those words.
"W-what?" she asked, tears welling in her eyes.
He turned partly toward her but did not look at her directly, "Your freedom will be granted."
A fine trembling started in Maryn's body and she pressed her palms to the column at her back, trying to hold herself up on legs which seemed unable to support her weight, "You mean your freedom." The words were acrid and stung her tongue as she spit them out, but she knew the truth, he wanted no ties and she was the last for him.
The dark prince turned to face her fully, his face void of any emotion and the look in his eyes flat and hard, "I don't need a wife, and you don't need a husband."
A single tear broke free and slid down Maryn's cheek. She swiped it away with the back of her hand as quickly as she could before glaring up at him, "I hate you."
A cold smile twisted Loki's features as he tucked his hands behind his back, "Ah, the truth at last. The perfect virtuous wife finally displays her true feelings. Do you hate me now, sweet one? Will you hate me forever?" he stalked towards her, closing in on her like a predator which had cornered its prey, leaving it with no means of escape.
Another tear escaped and slid down, leaving behind a silvery trail on the curve of Maryn's cheek. She didn't wipe it away this time. "Is that what you want, Loki? For me to hate you?"
His fists slammed down against the marble just above her head and he leaned down, his venomous words and cold anger making her heart pound, "It's what I live for."
Understanding dawned. Tilting her head minutely, Maryn relaxed, "You won't save my by pushing me away, my love."
His jaw clenched so hard she winced prepared to hear his teeth crack. "Get. Out," he ground out, his voice barely audible.
Breathing in his scent as she tried to steady her heartbeat, Maryn lifted her gaze to his and spoke firmly, "No."
He was silent, his sharp gaze searching hers before one of his hands dropped to her upper arm. The shock of his cold touch and the knowledge that he would push her away made her take a chance. Moving quickly, she pushed up and pressed her mouth to his, her hand lifting to slide into his hair at the nape of his neck and hold him close.
Loki froze as if in shock and then he pulled her closer, a strong arm wrapping around her waist as he slanted his mouth over hers, deepening the kiss.
That simple touch was the end. It was as if the dam had broken and the onslaught of their emotions took over.
Loki's other hand stayed at the column behind Maryn, sending ice sliding over the walls of his cell, blocking prying eyes and dimming the bright light of the dungeons to a pale blue hue.
Maryn pulled back to look into his eyes, tears welling as she saw how cautiously he was studying her. "Don't leave me, Loki, please."
He didn't speak. They both knew he wouldn't promise such a thing, but that didn't seem to matter to either of them. Loki pulled her close for another soft but all-consuming kiss which she felt to her toes, and then turned them, guiding her backwards.
Maryn broke the kiss when they reached his bed, sitting down slowly as Loki stood above her, his eyes never leaving her. Heart pounding, she watched as he pulled his sleep shirt over his head and let the soft material fall to the floor at their feet. Her gaze moved over him; the flesh she knew as well as her own, every scar and blemish, every dip and curve of muscle, the contrast of his dark hair with his pale skin. She knew all of him and yet he still tried to hide from her.
Loki's fingers caressed her cheek and then slipped down to cup her chin, raising her gaze to his. But they needed no words, instead his lips crashed down on hers and he leaned her back into the pillows.
With a soft moan Maryn surrendered to him and the night.