"Thor, hurry the hell up. We are going to be late. Look at you huffing and puffing, consider the cardio option the next time you are at the gym," Loki shouts out the window of her car, honking the horn vigorously. Thor is obviously annoyed as he slides into the passenger seat, but Loki isn't worried. Thor is about as intimidating as a angry puppy.
"I do work on cardio, sister. I am breathing heavily because you sent me a text 10 minutes ago telling me we were going somewhere and I had to rush," Thor grumbles but then turns around to grin at Fenrir. "Hey buddy, how are you?"
"Good!"
"Quit whining. Buckle up," Loki says, turning around in her seat as she backs the car out of the driveway. "Everyone ready to go?"
"Yup," Thor answers through a PopTart.
"Where the hell did you get a PopTart? You literally were holding nothing when you got into the car."
"I will never reveal my secret," Thor tells her but turns to Fenrir and holds his hand up to block his mouth from Loki's view but doesn't bother to lower his voice. "My pocket."
Fenrir laughs. Loki can't help to roll her eyes.
A few minutes later down the road, Fenrir speaks up. "Ma? Where are we going?"
"We are going to look at a new house."
"Why?" Fenrir asks, leaning forward in his seat to get a better look at his mum.
Thor turns to look at Loki, slightly shocked at her response. While Loki had mentioned wanting to find her own place, he never thought she would actually act on that so soon. His gut immediately twists in fear.
"Because I think we can do this. I've told you before that one day we were going to get a new house and live on our own."
"I like living with Amma and Grandpa," Fenrir whines. Loki reaches back to the back seat to hold his hand. She didn't know the best way to break it to Fenrir that they were moving out and understood that this would be difficult. She doesn't even want to approach the subject that they might be moving farther away from Peter… and Tony.
"I know you do sweetie. I like living with them too. But… don't you think it would be cool to have our own house? We can decorate however we like and no one can tell us differently. It'll just be you and me again."
"Like in Room?"
"Never like Room, Fenrir. We are going to have plenty of space, we can come and go as we please."
"Can we get a dog in our new house?"
"I don't know, Fen."
"You said we couldn't have Rocket in Room is because there wasn't enough space. Now we are going to have a lot of space, so Rocket can fit," Fenrir argues.
"You are right. We will just have to talk about it later. I promise we will discuss it," Loki concedes and Fenrir's eyes go wide in excitement at the thought of getting his own dog. Loki's grip on the steering wheel is tight. Thor coughs to break the tension.
Later, as they are walking through a house Thor pulls Loki aside. "Sister, why are you choosing now to start looking for another house? It doesn't make much sense… Are you alright?"
"Yes, I am fine. It's time for Fenrir and I to move out. Dr. Banner agrees that if I'm ready for this, it would be a positive step. Also, I read that this is the best time to search," Loki explains, still looking at the ensuite bathroom with an intensity that Thor doesn't think a bathroom deserves.
"Loki…"
"Thor, I am fine, really. I've saved up for a while so Fenrir and I can get a nice place. Mother and Father don't need us living with them for the rest of our lives. I've been taking my medicine and going to see Dr. Banner every week. It's not an impulse decision, I've been planning this for a while."
"This isn't because of Anthony is it?"
Loki stops dead in her tracks and Thor has his answer. She begins to fidget nervously with the rings on her fingers and Thor pulls his sister into a hug.
"Loki, you can't just run away from him for the rest of your life. Especially since Peter and Fenrir are so close."
"I know and I will talk to him. I promise. It's all so new to me Thor. Relationships. Love. If what I feel for Anthony is… was… still is love? I don't quite understand it all. Fenrir is who I need to focus on right now. Trust me."
Thor nods in response and places his hand on her shoulder. "I trust you, Loki. I always have."
"Thank you, brother. I really appreciate it."
"Ma! Look at the backyard! It has swings!" Fenrir shouts as he rounds the corner, a grin decorating his face from cheek to cheek. Loki can't help but laugh and follow him as he pulls her to see the backyard.
"Fen baby, come on. You have got to put your stuff in Uncle Thor's car, please. We are leaving in 30 minutes."
"I don't want to go."
"I know," Loki pokes her head into Fenrir's room to find him sitting solemnly on his bed, his back towards the door. He has a few toys spread around him with a box open in front of him. She sets her own box down and pushes the door open more so she can enter. She carefully climbs in bed behind him and pulls him into a hug. "I know you don't want to go, love. We are only going a few miles away. Amma is going to pick you up every day after school to go over and play while I am at work."
"I'm sad that we are leaving," he whimpers hiding his face in her shoulder. Loki can feel where his tears are starting to soak her shirt. Her heart breaks a little.
Loki hums, resting her chin on his head, wrapping him up even tighter in her arms. "I do too. You and I have grown a lot in this house. No matter how far we go, you and I will always have a place here with Amma and Grandpa, right? It's okay to feel sad or to cry. I can't promise that leaving won't be hard. What I can promise you is that you will always have me. I love you, sweetheart."
"Love you too, Ma. Still sad though."
"You know what the best cure for sadness is?"
"What?" Fenrir peaks out from her shoulder, his eyes shining with curiosity.
"Well. First, you start off with a big kiss from your mum," Loki grins as she plants a kiss on his cheek, making a loud "muah" as she does.
"MA! Your lipstick tickles!" Fenrir squeals reaching up to rid his face of her lipstick.
"Then you, add a little bit of laughter," she says with a bit of mischief behind it and surprises him with tickles to his sides. Their shared laughter fills the room. He began trying to tickle her back, almost knocking her off the bed.
"Stop!" Fenrir squeals holding his sides in laughter. Loki laughs and stands, handing him one of his toys. His smile fades.
"Next, you do something a little difficult but with some help," Loki told him and pushes the box towards him. Fenrir nods and begin to pack his stuff, Loki praising and helping him along the way.
"The final step to cure sadness is the most important. A step you can never, ever forget," Loki tells him and Fenrir crawls off the bed. "You treat yourself to some ice cream on our way to the new house." Fenrir cheers and bolts towards the stairs, box in hand, leaving Loki alone. Ice cream works every time.
She takes a moment to herself to calm her nerves before exiting the room as well, grabbing her last box and taking it out to the car. Fenrir is chatting with Thor, making sure his box is safe in the front seat of Thor's car. He even makes Thor put the seatbelt over it. She smiles and realizes that now she's closer to happiness than she's been in a while. The feeling is good.
As Loki loads her box into her car, she spots her dad's car pull up. "Loki. Good. I was worried you had left already," Odin greets as he steps out of the car, papers and folders in hand.
"Nope! I thought you weren't getting off work until later?"
Odin's eyes glance down at the files and back up at his daughter. He shakes his head, "He's changed his plea, Loki. He's pleading not guilty and is saying that you consented to the entire time you were there."
Loki feels as if she had been slapped in the face and her breath leaves her body. She has to place her hand on the car to keep her from falling over. "No, that's not possible. How can anyone believe that I…? We were in a shed under lock and key. There's-"
Odin shakes his head, "I don't know. He's charmed his way out of the guilty plea. I'm fighting it the best I can but… Loki. You're going to have to testify against him."