A/N: Hello again! Sorry for the long wait...and for the fact this one is short. My "writing season" is usually Feb-Oct and I'll be getting better at writing longer/better chapters; so again this is just a short little taste!

Song Suggestion: 8 Graves-Burning Alive

Chapter 5

Days pass without further incident, Loki passes the time researching. Although with his limited library his progress is slow. Damn it all! the book goes flying from his hands its contents having proved to be useless. If only my lips weren't bound, I would even settle for access to the Royal Library. He had noticed anytime he attempted magic the thread would tighten considerably causing excruciating pain. Going forward he hasn't even used the simplest of magics, relying only on the leather-bound tomes he was given.

Once again a guard announces the arrival of his mid-day meal, as usual, he was forced to stand against the wall. Loki's lips have healed enough that he can at least scowl properly when the new maid dared to make eye contact. It seems the previous wretch finally snapped. A cruel smile twists his features as he remembers his petty revenge on the servant who had dared call him a "monster". The mouthfuls of blood he had to swallow was well worth her screams of horror as his simple illusion made her believe her skin was peeling off in large rolls.

She flinches at the raw-looking appearance of his mouth, seeming disgusted she refrains from looking at him again. On the other hand, the guard, who has let his hate for the Dark Prince known, has grown bold. So much so that he frequently calls him "Jotun" to his face. Let him have this sense of victory, I have plans for him.

Yet these things were not important in this moment before the maid turned to leave Loki stepped forward to halt her progress. A small scream escaped her lips and the guard lunged, the lunge was easily dodged and he easily grabs her wrist. As she struggles in his grasp his other hand emerges from his tunic with a sealed envelope and he shoves it in her face.

A confused look appears on her face before his intentions dawn on her, she takes it seconds before the guard strikes him in the head.

Day, night, day, night. Time has lost all meaning, there is simply pain and darkness for the woman laying, in the small cell.

Back here again?

Loki sees the glazed look in her eyes but even more so the numerous bruises and puncture marks. Her skin is pulled tight over her skull and the sight stirs his own memories, quickly shaking off the tremors that have started in his hands he takes advantage of an unbound mouth.

"You, woman." no response. "Midgaurdian" again no response. He continues on, simply for the sound of his own voice and the use of his mouth. "I suppose you are in no state to answer questions, let's see if you are vision, illusion or some other form of magic." stepping smartly forward he goes to touch her. Completely expecting his hand to pass right through her he is quite surprised when her pale clammy flesh met his with a definite solidness.

She jerks instinctively at the foreign touch, her head loling away from the perceived threat. Her mind is nothing but fog swirling about trying to keep the pain at bay quite successfully until that hand touched her. The muddy sensation clogging her senses starts to fade and the world begins to come into focus. Starting with her hearing, a sharp voice is asking questions What the fuck...

"Are you an invalid or have they broken you?" the voice is more than sharp it has a commanding quality an air of authority that puts her on edge. A quick shake of her head and the rest comes to focus, the chill of the floor through the thin material of her gown, her aches and pains throbbing through her limbs.

"Wh-what?" it barely sounds human, the sound rattles around the room echoing, her throat is unaccustomed to speaking, making it painful and laborious.

Tch "I despise having to repeat myself." he is the same man as before, his thin lips are turned down in a frown, "Let me re-phrase my questions and you will answer them." a tongue darts out and moistens the lips while taking a nonchalant step forward. He quickly realized his mistake as she collapses while scrambling away from him. Loki stops and raises his hands in placation, Skittish creature isn't she.

"Easy Midguardian. I am seeking answers, not your pain." just like that, his voice lost its edge and the woman is able to breathe again. "Let us try this again, from the beginning. Who are you?"

She responds to the now genuine tones coming from him nodding her understanding. "M-My name is Hannah." a fit of bone-dry coughs rack her thin frame. For what seems like an eternity she is hunched over in pain. Loki's eyes narrow, focusing on her wounds; there were many but what really stands out is the variety of causes. Burns every kind, deep cuts, shallow scrapes, a rainbow of bruises and what he suspects is a few cracked ribs.

"Hm, Hannah", a pause in conversation as he decides how to word his next questions as to not startle the wretch in front of him. "Hannah, do you know where you are being housed? The name of this Midguardian hell-hole?"

Eyes focus and unfocus in thought, "I'm...I'm in Bellview."