"I am so pleased you could come visit the children again, Your Highness," Lady Fulla smiled, taking a sip of her tea and watching Maisy carefully, "When my sister goes on her little trips the poor things seem to find me a rather boring replacement. You are a bright point in their day."
"That's sweet of you to say," Maisy blushed and took one of the dry little cookies from the platter in front of her. She'd just spent a few hours playing with the children at the orphanage and telling them stories about Midgard (they were particularly enthralled with the story of Captain America and how he crashed his plane to save the rest of the world from Hydra).
Sitting with Lady Fulla was incredibly awkward, but the woman had insisted that she stay for tea so that she might express both her condolences and her congratulations. Maisy usually defaulted to trusting people's motives, but spending so much time with Loki had helped her to develop her sense of suspicion. She couldn't help but think there was something fishy going on. And the way Lady Fulla's eyes kept darting to Maisy's untouched cup of tea was less than reassuring.
"You are sure you aren't too tired? We didn't wear you out, did we?"
"I'm fine," Maisy nodded, "I've started training with Sif every day to keep in shape."
"Combat training during your pregnancy?" Fulla raised a brow, "Is that wise?"
"We don't spar. I mostly practice stances."
They were both silent for a while, quietly munching on cookies.
"These are delicious," Maisy said, "Did you make them yourself?"
"I buy those from a woman in the market. But these I make myself. One of my favorite treats," the older woman smiled and bit into another one, making Maisy glad she'd avoided the ones Fulla had baked so far, "It's a shame they are so terribly dry. Makes me quite thirsty."
She took a few sips of her tea. When she set her tea cup down again she gestured to a little bronze bowl of sugar.
"Is the tea not to your liking? I have sugar and cream if you want it."
"Oh, no," Maisy was even more wary of the tea, "Thank you. I am just not in the mood for tea. You know, pregnancy changes your taste for things. I used to hate peppers but now I eat them with every meal!"
She laughed and Fulla smiled tightly.
"Is there anything else I can get you to drink, You Highness?"
"Thank you, but I should probably be on my way," Maisy started to rise, "I hope to visit the kids more next week, would that be okay?"
"My sister will have returned by then. I will run it past her."
Maisy got to her feet and said her goodbyes. The children all waved to her as she and her two guards left the orphanage yard and began walking back to the palace. As they walked they passed through the market and noticed some commotion.
"How many times must we tell you?" A guard shouted at an old woman behind a table laid out with her wares.
"I ain't doing nuffin wrong!" The woman shrieked.
Maisy's guards moved closer, one keeping an eye on the ruckus and the other watching Maisy cautiously.
"You can't sell that poison in the market for Norn's sake!"
"What's against the law about selling pest poison? No one would be stupid enough to eat it," the old woman growled and a guard knocked over her table, scattering her wares everywhere. Maisy gasped and held her breath for a moment.
"If you don't want people to eat it then why do you hide the poison in cookies?!"
There were cookies scattered all across ground and Maisy thought she might be sick. The pest poison cookies looked exactly like the cookies that Lady Fulla had served her. The ones Maisy thought might be safer since Fulla had bought them from the market instead of baking them herself.
"Well rats don't want to eat poison if it smells like poison, do they?" The old woman cackled as she was led away. Another guard cleaned up the mess of deadly cookies.
"No, no, no, no!" Maisy gasped and her personal guards looked at her in confusion.
"Your Highness?"
"I need to see one of those poison cookies," she pressed a hand to her stomach.
"Why?"
"Please, just get one for me. I need to see it!"
Her guard, whose name was Ralph if she remembered correctly, approached the city guard and confiscated one of the cookies. He brought it back to Maisy and held it out to her. She cringed.
"We need to get back to the palace," she said, "Right now."
They hurried along, bringing the cookie with them. Once they were in the palace, Maisy ran to the nearest healer's station. The guards followed behind worriedly and she dispatched one of them to go tell Odin that she was pretty sure she'd just been poisoned.
When Loki, still disguised as Odin, arrived in the healer's station he looked pale. He barged in right as Maisy finished telling the healers what had happened. He straightened up and tried to remember that he was supposed to be the uncaring king of Asgard. Poised even in the face of the death of a loved one.
"What is going on here?" He demanded.
"L- Odin. Allfather, sir," Maisy cleared her throat, "I was visiting the orphanage and talking with Lady Fulla. She offered me cookies and I ate them, but then I saw a woman in the market selling the same cookies except they were actually full of rat poison."
"What?!" He had to stop himself from dropping his disguise and pulling her into his arms.
"Your Majesty, it is a fairly common pest poison," one of the healers said, "It should not be hard to rid from her system."
"And the babies?" Loki gestured to Maisy's stomach, "What of them?"
"If we move quickly then no harm should come to them either. But we must act now. Please give us some space."
"Of course," Loki backed away, watching nervously as the healers used magic and potions on Maisy. She smiled at him reassuringly, but he could not help the sick sense of panic building in his gut. He needed to do something. But he couldn't leave Maisy's side. But he needed to do anything to keep from going crazy. But if he left and her condition became precarious he would hate himself for leaving.
"Guards!" He barked, "Bring Lady Fulla to the Great Hall immediately!"
He could at least ensure that the culprit was apprehended.
"I told you Tyr had a helper," Maisy muttered and then winced, "Err, I told you he had a helper, sir."
"I should have listened to you," Loki sighed. He'd ignored Maisy's claims that Tyr had said he'd had a helper. If he hadn't brushed it off as one of her nightmares then she and the twins would not be in danger.
"Be quiet, both of you," the healer ordered, "This is delicate work."
Half an hour later they said that Maisy ought to be fine, but that she should rest without disruption for the rest of the day and most of the next day. Loki escorted her back to her room and then closed the door behind them, shedding his illusion.
"To bed with you," he ordered, pulling back the covers for her, "I will hear no argument about it."
"Don't worry," she sat down and swung her legs up onto the bed, "I won't argue."
"Good, good," he paced nervously, "How are you feeling?"
"Fine. I never actually felt like I'd been poisoned. It must take awhile to come into effect and I bet the healers got it out before it even hurt me."
"How could you be so careless?"
"It was a cookie, Loki," Maisy crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, "How was I supposed to know it was a killer cookie?"
"I never would have just blindly-"
"Yeah, well, not all of us are used to having to poison check everything we eat!"
"That gives me an idea," Loki snapped his fingers, "You'll have someone try all of your food before you eat it! That way we can be sure-"
"No way. That's dumb!" she protested, "If it's a slow acting poison then I'll eat it anyway and then not only will I die, but some poor taste tester will too!"
"But-"
"Loki, it's fine. You sent out guards to get Fulla. Once she's caught then we don't have to worry."
"I will always worry," Loki snapped, sitting at the foot of her bed, "Especially when you just go around eating poisoned sweets like this!"
"Calm down," Maisy snapped right back, "It's one time."
"Do not tell me to calm down! I will not be calm when it comes to protecting you!"
"You'd better calm down otherwise I'm going to start getting angry and you really don't want to see an angry pregnant lady, okay pal?"
He paused and glanced at her belly. Running a hand through his hair he seemed to deflate.
"I am sorry."
"And I'm sorry I ate poison."
"It was not your fault," he rubbed his forehead, "I just needed to yell at someone and Fulla is not here yet."
"Do you think she'll try to run?"
"She either has a magnificent escape plan in motion or she will turn herself in. There is no way that we wouldn't blame her if the poison had worked."
"That's true. Even if I was dying I could still tell you that the only thing out of the ordinary I did was eat with her," Maisy yawned, "I think I might take a nap. Let me know what happens with her, okay?"
"And if I should decide that her crime is punishable by death?" Loki asked, fairly certain that would be his verdict.
"Don't get too worked up," Maisy said carefully, "You're supposed to be Odin, remember? If he was so stingy in condemning Tyr then he might be the same way with Fulla. She was a good friend of your mom's."
"But I am Odin and I can make whatever decision I want."
"Just don't blow your cover."
"We shall see how her trial goes."
"Okay," Maisy yawned again, "But be careful. She's known you since you were a little kid. Act extra Odin-y otherwise she might expose you."
"Do not fret over me, my lady," Loki leaned down and kissed her forehead, "Rest. There will be a guard outside your door and you are to alert him immediately if you feel unwell, understood?"
"Mm hmm."
"Have a good nap."
"And you have a good trial."
"As long as I get to see that old bat squirm and plead then I will be pleased."
Maisy drifted off to sleep and Loki changed to look like Odin once more. He would see if the guards had dragged Lady Fulla to the Great Hall yet. If not then maybe he would don his new persona, Berilo, and hunt her down himself. No one would get mad if a mysterious rogue arrow found its way into Fulla's back. Accidents happen.
A note from the author: *vacuum whirs loudly* What?! I can't hear you over this vacuum. Huh? What? *sucks up fluff to make room for a bit of suspense and teensy bit of angst* I'm sorry, you'll have to lodge all complaints with my secretary. I can't heeeaaar yoooouuu! *vacuuming continues* My secretary is Blaze since she isn't up to anything right now and she needs to be kept busy. Please lodge all complaints with her! *vacuums out of the PFoD* *Blaze blinks in surprise*
"Alright, well," Blaze shuffles papers, "That weirdo SnowGlobe lady person left me in charge so I guess I am the one to make all of the announcements," she looks slyly around the room, "Announcement one is that Blaze is henceforth the supreme ruler of the Pillow Fort of Denial and shall be given all of the snacks!"
"I heard that!" I yell from where I am vacuuming.
"Oh now you can hear?!" Blaze sticks out her tongue and looks at the papers again, "Alright, alright. the results for something called a 'ship name poll' are in. I have no idea how to pronounce anything on this poll, but I'll give it a go. Bjinn got one vote. And there was a three way tie between B-b-how in the heck do you pronounce this? Bjorlin? We're going with that. Between Bjorlin, Linorn, and Guardian, buuuut, in the reviews we got another vote for Guardian so that wins."
*polite applause*
Blaze wrinkles her nose and crumples up the paper. "I don't know what the heck any of that means, but I'm glad you weirdos are happy. Announcement two is that I am the best character, but you all already knew that. I'm also supposed to thank all of you for reading, so thanks very very much from her stupidness, the SnowGlobeBean."
"It's SnowGlobeQueen!"
"Yeah, whatever."
Special thanks to my reviewers:
Ninja Squirrel: I have a baby naming book that sits on my bookshelf and one of my friends saw it one time and was like "is there something you need to tell me?" My absolute favorite way to name characters is to go to thinkbabynames dot com because not only can you search names there, but you can search what you want the name to mean and it will bring up a whole list of names related to that meaning. It's where I got Linn's full name, Linnea, from because there's a little pink flower called Linnea. :)
AnonymousMe: Awwww! You're going to draw them? That makes my heart feel all warm lol. :D
Until next time!