Hi! Not going to keep you waiting! ENJOY!

Chapter 55

Arya silently crept through the dark deserted halls of the palace. Only every now and then she would hit upon a watchful guard, but she skilfully managed to avoid being seen. Finally she reached the stables where she carefully opened the door to her horse's stables. Most of the other horses were sleeping, but when Arya's faithful steed noticed his master, he instantly got to his feet and neighed silently. Arya put her finger on her lips as if the horse would understand the gesture.

"Be quiet!" she whispered while reaching out to get a saddle and the bridle. As fast as possible she saddle her horse and let him out the stables toward the bridge where she quickly mounted and galloped towards the silent building of the Bifröst. When she finally made it, she dismounted and entered. Heimdall was, as always, watching over the stars. When he heard the young warrior enter, he smiled and said: "I thought I would see you one of these days, my lady!"

Arya froze, but quickly recovered and kept walking until she was standing next to the Guardian.

It remained silent for a couple of seconds. Arya cleared her throat nervously.

"My lord, I was wondering…," she started, but Heimdall interrupted.

"He's not fine!" he exclaimed shortly. Arya felt the blood leave her cheeks as she turned to the Guardian. Heimdall locked his eyes on her emerald ones and nodded sadly.

"Our prince is suffering on Jotenheim…"

Arya felt her blood run cold. "But.. but…" she stuttered. "Frigga said…"

"I told the young princess what she needed to hear and, more importantly, what she could handle."

Arya felt new tears burn in her eyes. Why couldn't she stop crying! Why did it feel as if her heart had been ripped out and that the wounds kept bleeding?

"Is their nothing you can do, Heimdall?" she asked in a broken voice. The Guardian's golden eyes turned sad.

"The Allfather refuses to listen… In his eyes, Loki gets what he deserved…"

"But…" Arya started.

"Which is why Thor, Lady Jane, Lady Sif and the Warriors Three are plotting against him at this very moment," Heimdall interrupted. Arya's eyes grew big.

"What…," she whispered confusedly.

Heimdall smiled mysteriously. "Yes… I can see them as we speak."

Arya frowned. "See them?" she asked.

Heimdall turned back to her and smiled, although a touch of sadness was visible in his golden eyes.

"Indeed… They are meeting in secret tonight, hoping to bring an end to these grey times and bring Loki back to our realm."

Arya shook her head. Why hadn't they asked her? Didn't they trust her? And Sif and Jane… they knew there was no one who would fight for Loki as she would. She wanted to bring him back home! Back to her…

However… a spark of hope lit up in the cold darkness of her broken heart. "Where are they meeting?" she asked both kind and demanding.

"The only place where no one's looking…" Heimdall answered mysteriously. "However, telling you where, would be an act of betrayal towards Odin."

Arya sighed and rolled her eyes. "My lord, aren't you betraying the Allfather already by keeping quiet about Thor and the others' plans?"

Heimdall turned his attention back on the stars. "Of course not! I told you, my lady! I'd trust a loyal citizen and ex- Captain of the Guard would tell our king what I just told you right away…"

Arya's eyes grew big. She took a step forward so she was facing Heimdall once more.

"So now I'm committing treason by not telling him!" she exclaimed.

A flash of childish delight crossed the Guardian's golden eyes. "It's not like you were planning on doing anything else, my lady…"

Arya closed her eyes for a second while, for the first time in weeks, she felt the urge to laugh bubble up from inside her.

"Right…" she eventually said with a smile playing on her lips. "Thank you, Heimdall, for your counsel."

The Guardian smiled warmly. "You know where you're going?" he asked.

Arya turned on her heels and started making her way to the exit where her horse was patiently waiting. She smiled. "Yes… your non-treason was pretty obvious, my lord."

-xxx-

Arya silently made her way through the halls while a new found happiness filled her being. A smile played on her lips while she crept along the closed doors of the palace privet rooms. Outside the sun had started her rise in the sky and was already awkwardly peeking over the horizon. Asgard would start waking up soon, so she needed to hurry, but with every step she got closer to her destination, Arya felt more and more nervous. Why in the nine realms was she nervous!

The young warrior's pace slowed down. There, at the end of the dark hallway, a set of closed doors were waiting. No one had set foot near them for the last two weeks because the owner of the rooms behind those dark oak doors was currently housing in one of the darkest, coldest dungeons of Jotenheim.

It was the first time Arya had ever been in this part of the royal palace. Her own former chambers were located in the wing next to this one where most of Asgard's highest ranks had the privilege of staying. It wasn't the fact that she wasn't royalty that bothered her, but the idea of being in Loki's chambers without his permission or will, gave her an anxious feeling. She just wasn't supposed to be here! But that also counted for the others, so Arya swallowed away her fear and crossed the last few meters to the doors. Once she was there she waited a few moments, half expecting to hear whether her guess had been right and that her friends were inside, but she knew no sound would make it through these walls.

With clammy hands and her heart beating in her ears, she carefully pushed open the doors. They opened without trouble, so someone had to be inside. Whoever it was had stupidly forgotten to lock the door behind him.

Probably Fandral… Arya thought in an attempt to wash away her fears.

The few sounds she'd heard once the door had opened instantly turned into complete silence. Arya decided to just enter as fast as possible, if only to prevent Thor from throwing Mjölnir towards her head.

The young warrior quickly jumped inside and closed the doors behind her while raising her hands protectively in front of her.

"Just me!" she exclaimed. Just in time apparently because everyone inside the room had already grabbed their weapon and readied for battle. Arya smiled uneasily and scanned the room. Everyone was here, but the first thing she noticed was the size of Loki's chambers. They were obviously a lot bigger than what hers had been. In the middle of the room stood a large table, fit for at least eight people, but there was only one chair. The table was covered in books and parchment scrolls, burned out candles and pens. In fact every other table in the room was stacked with books and parchment. Ironically, the floor and the bed were free of any mess. Arya couldn't help but smile. She felt as if Loki's chambers gave a perfect reflection of Loki himself: a busy, constantly curious and eager to learn mind, but a neat and stylish appearance.

Pressed against the back wall was Loki's king-sized bed and two big closets, only meant for books and hundreds of veils filled with every colour of potion imaginable behind dark opal glass. The left wall of the room existed only out of two glass doors, immediately giving excess to a huge balcony. Arya cold almost picture Loki spending night after night on that balcony, looking at the stars while wondering over far off worlds.

"Arya…" a voice sounded. The young warrior looked up and met Sif's gaze. The female warrior was sitting at the central table on one of the few other chairs in Loki's chambers. Thor set across the table, on Loki's chair with Jane leaning on the back. They both looked up in surprise. The Warriors Three were standing around the table. Arya smiled awkwardly and lowered her hands.

"Hi…," she answered. "I eeer… Heimdall… he told me…"

A short silence filled the air.

"Typical!" Fandral shouted. "You think you know a guy!"

Sif rolled her eyes and turned to the golden warrior. "Didn't you say that you had closed the door?" she asked.

Fandral smiled sheepishly. "I closed it… perhaps I forgot to lock it…"

"Arya?" Thor asked, ignoring his two friends. "Please don't think we didn't trust you."

Again silence fell over the room and Arya felt the old stab of anger return. Before she could answer Jane quickly continued.

"We know we can trust you, we just didn't think you were…"

Jane fell silent, searching for the right words while her gaze crossed Sif's. They were the only ones knowing about Arya's true feelings. Of course they hadn't told the guys anything.

"You seemed a little bit off, lately," Sif concluded.

"Yeah…," Fandral added with a kind smile. "We just didn't want to bother you…"

Arya's lips opened in a silent Oh. She hadn't realised how antisocial she'd been over the last weeks. She quickly shared a look with Jane and Sif, mentally thanking them for not telling her secrets. She was certain the guys would only laugh.

"I… I… suppose I was…," the young warrior eventually admitted. "But I would like to help!" she added. "I want to help bring Loki back to Asgard!"

Silence again. Arya looked around the room, wondering what she'd said wrong. Sif and the Warriors Three suddenly locked their eyes on the ground with grim expressions covering their faces.

Thor cleared his throat. "As a matter of fact, we were just discussing whether bringing Loki back is a good move…"

Arya's eyes grew big. Her eye fell on Sif, who was desperately trying to avoid her stares. Sif knew what Loki meant to her! Why would she even hesitate?

Arya's stare locked on Jane who immediately smelled trouble.

"Look, Arya… We know what you're… thinking…" she tried. "Just hear us out…"

The young warrior needed all her willpower to remain somewhat calm.

Jane crossed stares with Thor before continuing.

"Thor, Frigga and I want Loki back. That's certain. Don't think for a second that Sif and the others wish Loki any harm, but…"

"We might just be asking for trouble…" Thor finished.

Arya raised her hands above her head. "What trouble!" she shouted. To her surprise Volstagg was the one to answer.

"Loki is a Frost Giant, Arya! Doesn't that mean anything to you? Of all the things he's done…"

"Volstagg, my friend…" Fandral tried, but his fellow warrior didn't listen.

"Not only did he betray us and imprisoned us, he is also our sworn enemy! You can't just expect me to forget that! And that doesn't only count for us. What about the people of Asgard? We have a millennia of friendship behind us, they just found out their former king was a liar and a monster!"

Arya opened and closed her mouth in awe. "Is that what you're all thinking?" she asked while letting her eyes glide over Sif and the Warriors Three. "Because whatever you're going to say, it all applied to me as well! I didn't know the truth either! I don't seem to have such a problem with it!"

"Sure, of course you don't…," Fandral muttered. Arya turned towards the golden warrior. Her emerald eyes lit up in her anger and heartbreak.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" she cried out without thinking. Fandral seemed surprised at first, but quickly shook his head.

"Nothing…," he said.

Thor sighed. "My friends, I understand you don't feel comfortable with Loki being a Frost Giant, let alone bringing him back to Asgard, but if I could accept that truth, if my mother could, my father even accepted it once, then you should be able to do the same. What is Loki without a bit of mystery? Without secrecy?"

"The hell with secrecy!" Arya interrupted. "Have you all forgotten what Loki has done for us? How many lives he's saved, including ours! He led us into battle! He saved Frigga's life! He saved the whole of Asgard from starvation! He freed Vanaheim from the bandits rampaging!"

Arya's voices echoed through the room, leaving everyone speechless. After a couple of seconds, the young warrior seemed to relax a bit.

"Loki made my mother pass to the Other Worlds in peace, without fear, without pain…" a voice suddenly rang out. Arya turned to the only Vanaheimer in the room and swallowed. Hogun had locked his eyes on the dark golden floor of Loki's chambers, but while his words slowly faded into silence, he looked up. "I promised to follow Loki that day, for he had proven his strength and noble heart. I have always looked upon Loki with a twitch of distrust… Although I had never expected the truth to be this drastic, I would be lying to my own senses if I were to neglect what I always have known. "

Fandral slowly nodded. He folded his arms in front of his chest while a serious frown appeared on his handsome face. "Perhaps we are forgetting that Loki did not know of his truth parentage himself until a few years ago. There were times I trusted my life to him. I would not do that with an enemy! I think we all knew that Loki was different from us… But we never let that get in the way of our friendship! Why start doing that now?"

Volstagg and Sif shared a glance. They both sighed and diverted their eyes, fighting an inner battle between their heart and common sense.

"But what about the rest of Asgard?" Volstagg sighed after a few moments. "And Odin… he won't let Loki stay! Even if we manage to rescue him, The Allfather will most likely kill Loki once he sets foot on Asgard!"

Arya turned to The God of Thunder. "Is there nothing you can do, Thor?" she asked.

Thor shrugged. "What do you think I've been trying to do during the last few weeks, Arya? My father just won't listen!"

Arya shook her head. There had to be something they could do! In fact she wanted to depart for Jotenheim right now, save Loki and bring him back home. She would protect him! She would give her life if she had to, but what good would that do?

"You know…" Sif suddenly joined in. "Right now, The Allfather isn't listening, but I am certain that the people of Asgard, at least some of them, want Loki back just as much! There's no denying that he has been a better king than Odin so far."

Jane nodded. "Yes… That's what I've been thinking as well. They won't go against Odin right now, but if Loki's here, he won't be able to just kill him. The people won't tolerate that!"

Thor smiled. "Even the Lords are having their doubts! I believe Loki might have their protection as well."

"It's still a huge risk though…" Volstagg said. No one could argue that thought. "We would commit treason of the highest sort. Odin has been easy on us, but this… this will cost us our necks!"

Thor shook his head. "No, The King is not allowed to perform any kind of execution without the approval of the Captain and the Lords. He won't kill me, for I am his heir, so I'll have a word in the matter!"

"Not if he takes away your title again!" Sif pointed out.

Arya sighed. "Guys, we have no time to argue about this!" she exclaimed in panic. "I am sorry to tell you this, but Heimdall said Loki is being tortured down there! If we don't go now, he won't last much longer!"

Thor felt his blood run cold with fear. There it was again, that infernal brother instinct! He hadn't known this… of course it didn't come as such a surprise, but Odin must have known somehow… How could he tolerate this! Thor's fear washed away when a new wave of anger, that had been building up for weeks, took over. Jane looked down at her husband's clenched fists and immediately knew things were getting out of hand.

"Let's not make any rash decisions!" she quickly said, but one look on the others in the room, made it quite clear that she was too late. Everyone had the same look of hatred and determination in their eyes, as an almost automatic reaction on hearing that one of their team was in danger.

Even Volstagg suddenly forgot about his fears. He'd never wished Loki any harm. Not now, not ever!

But at the same time, everyone felt betrayed by their own judgements. What had they expected to hear? They'd all known Loki had to be in danger if he was still alive, only now when the word was spoken - tortured! - they could see.

"Then we have to go now!" Fandral shouted. His normally always playful glare had faded and made place for one of worry and hatred.

Thor nodded and got to his feet.

"Guys!" Sif called out. "We don't have a plan!"

"We go to Jotenheim, we get Loki, we come back!" Thor growled angrily, before continuing his way to the door. Jane sighed and rushed after husband, jumping in between him and the door.

"And how exactly will that work?" she asked. "First of all, Heimdall has to let you pass! Secondly, you'll have to do it without Odin knowing!"

"He'll know anyway!" Arya sighed. "We just do it or we don't! But if we don't, Loki will die!"

Jane turned to Arya when she heard the young female's heartbreak and fear in those last words. A stab of guilt cut through her heart. She knew how Arya felt! She felt the same way every time Thor would leave her side. It didn't matter if they were immortal or not. If the one you loved died, it didn't hurt any less…

"All right…" Jane stuttered after a short silence. "But you still can't leave without a proper plan, Thor!"

Sif nodded and joined Jane. "Exactly! This is Jotenheim! We can't forget that the Jötuns have every right to keep Loki prisoner. He is on their world, he belongs to them! Freeing him will not only go against Odin's orders, it will also break the treaty with Jotenheim. We need a plan to free Loki without them noticing, to escape without being seen and to make Odin claim Loki as an Asgardian again before the Jötuns declare war upon Asgard. It's the only way!"

"That already sounds difficult, don't get me started on actually making it happen!" Fandral joined in.

"Perhaps Thor needs to stay here…" Arya proposed. "Of all people, he's the one Odin's most likely to listen to!"

Thor sighed and rubbed his forehead. "He doesn't listen to me, Arya!"

"I know that!" the young warrior threw back. "But he absolutely won't listen to any of us! He despises Sif and the Warriors Three for betraying him in the past, he doesn't value my opinion and Jane's but a mortal!"

"That's true…" Hogun suddenly said. "But we can't leave Thor on Asgard. We might need a quick escape! We need Mjölnir!"

"Precisely!" Thor agreed. "And I will not abandon my brother, nor will I let any of you set foot on Jotenheim without me!"

"Trying to convince Odin while you're gone is not going to work anyway!" Jane said. "The moment he finds out where you've gone, he'll just come and get you himself!"

"But if we bring Loki here, we'll just drag him to his death!" Sif called out. Jane nodded.

"I realised that, but at least he'll be safe from the Jötuns!"

Thor nodded in agreement. "We'll have to convince father after we've come back!"

"There're enough people in Asgard who are ready to protect Loki… if we get them to stand up for Loki, we might be able to bring Odin to his senses!" Fandral added.

"It's risky…" Sif said after a short silence.

"Perhaps," Fandral said with the same creepy serious look in his eyes. "But it's all we have for the moment!"

"Fine…" Sif finally said. "Who will go then?"

"Jane and Arya will stay here!" Thor immediately answered. Jane didn't argue, knowing that she wouldn't be much help on Jotenheim, but Arya jerked her head towards The God of Thunder.

"What!" she exclaimed furiously. "I want to go as well!"

Thor's jaw clenched.

"ARYA!" she roared, making everyone jump a foot in the air, while they were reminded of Thor's power and authority.

"You follow my command!" he continued while taking a step towards the now slightly frightened young warrior. "You'll stay here! The people of Asgard will listen to you and Jane! You will follow the plan, talk to them, convince them to stand up to their king in order to protect Loki!"

Arya swallowed. She suddenly realised how incredibly disrespectful she'd been during the last minutes, completely ignoring her status. She was a common Asgardian now, with no title what so ever. The only reason her friends had tolerated her behaviour must have been out of friendship. Thor had every right to order her, and she had to follow him. Of course Arya was almost certain that nor Thor, nor anyone else in the room would ever use their power to boss her around. Only now, when she'd spoken out of line, when she was acting like a reckless fool, they did…

Arya slowly nodded. "Yes…" she muttered while silently bowing her head.

"When do we leave?" Fandral asked after a short awkward silence.

Thor turned his eyes away from Arya and took his final steps to the door. "Now!" she answered in a low voice.

I know it took some time, but I still hope it was worth waiting for... at least a tiny bit...

As a response on my latest review, I honestly have every desire to finish this story, people! I'm soooooooooooooooo sorry my updates take so long! But I will finish it. Promise! Really, really, really! So don't worry about that ;)

Please let me know what you think so far. Your feedback means the world to me! So an extra THANK YOU to everyone who has reviewed on my fic. You make my day!

Thank you all for not hating me too much yet!

Rumple x