"You aren't from around here, are you?"

"What gave it away?" Anna grinned, stuffing her face with an obscenely large chocolate chip cookie. It was clear that she hadn't eaten in a while for she was ravenous.

"Your accent," Loki said, watching her in amusement as he took a small sip of his earl grey. "It doesn't sound Norwegian."

"And yours is - British?"

"Right," he smirked. He knew the Asgardian accent sounded similar to certain midgardians, as much as that pained him to admit. "Are you American?"

"Yes. I grew up in Maine."

"Maine," he repeated, trying hard to place it. He had studied much of Midgard's geography in his time on Asgard, but many years had passed since then and he was admittedly rusty. "That's north, I believe?"

"Yeah, northeast, so I'm somewhat used to the cold. I prefer it, really. Where in England are you from?"

"London," he said quickly, as it was the first place that came to mind.

"Oh, I love London! It was my first trip abroad."

"Is that so," he muttered, quickly tiring of their pleasantries. It wasn't that he was in any rush to get where he was going, for he knew there was nothing waiting there for him. Still, he had no desire to compare notes on a city he hadn't been to in centuries. "What exactly brought you to Norway?"

"Dreams."

"Dreams?" Loki asked curiously. He had no real idea why he was continuing to entertain this mortal, but for some reason he found her intriguing.

"I've had them since I was a girl. I always knew I would end up here."

"In Alta, specifically?" he asked. What in the nine realms was so appealing about escaping to an arctic tundra? For him, it was practically home. But he didn't understand why anyone on this realm would willingly choose it, especially when midgardians so frequently griped about the cold.

"Yes. I used to dream about a building here long before I even knew what it was, long before it was even built - the northern lights cathedral. One day I found a picture of it online and I just - knew," she said, smiling as she stared out the large cafe window. "I knew I had to come here. There was a reason."

"And did you find that reason?"

"I thought I did," she said, shaking her head as she stared at the ground, recalling the events of the past few years. "Clearly I was wrong. But I don't regret coming. I fell in love with Norway a long time ago. The culture, the climate, the mythology…"

"Oh?" said Loki, practically choking on his drink.

"The stories, the tales, the gods," she grinned up at him, shaking her head in complete wonder. "They're amazing!"

Loki looked around, fully expecting Odin or Thor to pop out from somewhere, exclaiming his exile had been merely a jest. Surely some kind of joke was being played on him.

"There's a part of me, a large part, that believes it all to be true," she continued. "I can't explain it. Every part of this land feels magical to me. When I sit at the top of those mountains, when I walk through the endless woods and watch the snow falling around me, when the sun finally goes down and I see every single star up in that night sky… I feel closer than ever to what I've believed my whole life. So this all felt like a sort of pilgrimage or something, and I ended up staying. Sorry, you probably think I'm totally nuts."

"Not entirely," he muttered, unsure of why he cared to hear any of this. But a midgardian that believed in - well, him? In all of his time spent on earth, he'd never encountered a soul that did - not in the last thousand years, at least. It was oddly flattering, even if he knew the mythologies themselves didn't exactly flatter him.

"Enough about me. Why are you here? You're a long ways from London."

"I'm - on holiday from work," he said, sitting back in his chair, crossing his arms. "For an indeterminate amount of time."

"Well, that sounds nice."

"It isn't, I assure you," he said, noticing her eyes wandering over to the baked goods. She was clearly starving. "Would you like another?"

"Unfortunately, I just spent the last of what I had."

"Get whatever you'd like," he said, gesturing to the counter. "Please."

"Oh, I couldn't do that," she said, shaking her head. He had already been far too kind. "But thank you."

"What about a trade?" Loki whispered, leaning forward again. "You help me, and in return you may have all the cookies you desire."

She smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Well, it depends on what you want, obviously."

"Ah," he said, reaching into his back pocket for a crumpled piece of paper. "I'm looking for this address."

"Don't you have GPS on your phone?"

"I don't have a phone."

"Off the grid. I respect that," she said approvingly, sliding the piece of paper across the table to get a better look at it. Her eyes practically bugged out of her head. "This isn't where I think it is, is it?"

"I'm not sure," Loki said, somewhat nervously after gauging her reaction. Where in the nine realms was his father planning on holing him up? "Apparently the house has been in my family for years, but my father failed to tell me about it. One of many things he's failed to tell me. I've been sent into the unknown, without much of a choice."

"So you're - exiled?"

"In a way, yes. My father - owns a company," he stammered, trying to turn his own lie into some form of the truth. "One that I've been working for. He wasn't happy with the choices I've made, so he's forced me into taking some time off to reflect. And here I am."

"Wow. Well if this is the house I'm thinking of, you might not miss work at all."

"Would you take me there?"

"Oh, I don't have a car."

"Yes, I think we've established that," he said plainly, and she laughed. "Certainly there are taxis, no?"

"Yeah, but you might not need one, depending on how far you like to walk. Lucky you've traveled light," she said, suddenly realizing his lack of belongings.

"I've had my luggages sent ahead of my arrival," he said. More lies to add to the growing pile. "Is it not far then?"

"Not at all. See that street?" she said as she stood from the table, pointing as she leaned over him.

"I do," he said as he moved back to distance himself, trying not to notice how she smelled deeply of lavender, of home. She was beautiful, and he didn't like the fact that he thought so. He had never held any sort of appetite for midgardians.

"It's maybe a half-hour walk. Your road is the only one off of it, way at the top. Bit of a steep climb, but there's a cable car that can take you part of the way."

"I'm very grateful," he said, and he was. "And I'm very sorry about your situation."

"Oh, I'm not," she said, pulling the gray beanie off of her head, removing the elastic from her hair to shake it out as she slid back into her seat. "Not when I actually think about it."

"I'm happy to hear that," he said politely, watching her run her fingers through her bright red locks that he had somehow failed to notice before. He had never seen anyone in the nine realms don that color, but somehow, she made it work. "Forgive me for staring. Your hair. It's quite -"

"Cinnaberry?"

"Beg your pardon?"

Anna laughed. "It's the name of the color on the dye box. Everyone says it's too much."

"Do you think it is?"

She stopped and stared up at him. He'd done that twice now - ask her opinion in a way that was so genuine, like it was the only opinion that mattered. No one ever cared to ask her what she thought - about anything. She didn't understand why it affected her so much, but his sincerity was raw and transparent. It was a little overwhelming .

"I should probably get going," she said suddenly, hoping he wouldn't see that she was about to get emotional once more. He didn't make her uncomfortable. In fact, he made her the opposite, which was entirely more dangerous. But he, like the rest of the world, was most likely too good to be true and far too good-looking to be trusted. She needed to keep her wits about her. It had been a long day, a long week, and she had barely slept, barely ate. Still, she couldn't ignore the strange magnetism she felt to him, not unlike a moth drawn to a flame. That's one more burn I'd be willing to take, she thought to herself.

"Please," Loki said, gesturing back to the counter. "Help yourself to whatever you'd like first. Perhaps something a bit more filling."

Anna looked back at the food and closed her eyes, taking in the smell of onions hitting the griddle. She really was starving. "Thank you," she smiled, nodding to accept his offer. "You've turned a really bad day around, Luke."

"Anna… where will you go?"

"All of these questions," she smiled, taking another sip of her tea as she stood. "To be honest, I'm not sure."

To be honest, Loki reflected. What a concept. What a liberty.

"But I'll figure it out. I always do," she shrugged casually, but Loki saw her brilliant smile fade as soon as she turned. He watched as she walked over to look up at the menu, her face perking back up as the employee came to take her order. He much preferred her happy.

"Is an omelette okay?" she yelled over to Loki to make sure, and he nodded.

"Whatever you wish."

"Thanks!" she mouthed with a huge smile and a thumbs up. He wondered how she managed to be so positive in the face of the unknown. He silently envied her.

"Anna, what the fuck?" a loud voice suddenly boomed as a man came roaring through the door. "Are you coming or what?"

"Jesus, Bjorn!" she yelled back. "NOW you show up?"

"I'm taking you to the airport, like I fucking SAID I would!"

Loki shifted in his seat, narrowing his eyes at the short, blonde cretin that entered the cafe. The last thing he wanted to do was to draw attention to himself or make a scene. But if that meager excuse for a midgardian took one step closer to her, he would likely end up through the window.

"I'm not going to the airport," she said decidedly, collecting condiments to put on her tray. "I'm not going back."

The man laughed in her face. "You have no money. Nowhere to stay. You can't work. What the fuck do you think you'll do, huh?"

Loki sighed to himself, as he knew exactly what he was about to do.

"She'll stay with me," he said loudly from across the room, staring daggers at the man. The rest of the cafe quieted.

"Who the fuck are you?"

"Luke, it's okay - Bjorn, you need to leave."

"So you know him?" Bjorn continued, grabbing onto her arm forcefully. Anna flinched but quickly broke free. "Wow, you wasted no time."

Loki stood from his seat and crossed the room in several long strides, picking the man up effortlessly by the collar.

"Miss Anna?" Loki asked, his eyes not leaving Bjorn's.

"Yes?" she said, standing there in complete shock.

"Do you wish to go with this man?"

"No, I don't."

Loki immediately released his grip on Bjorn and shoved him forcefully towards the door. "I'll ask you once to leave her be. I won't ask again."

The man turned beet red as he looked between Anna and Loki, his nostrils flaring with each heavy breath. "I'm gone," he said, holding his arms up in surrender. "She's not worth it."

Once Bjorn had left, Loki turned around to find the entire cafe staring at him. So much for not drawing attention.

"Are you alright?"

"Are you kidding?" she said, slapping him on the shoulder. "That was awesome! I've been wanting to do that for years!"

"I meant what I said," Loki said seriously, taking a small step towards her. "Stay with me."

"I - I don't even know you," she said as she shook her head, her smile fading.

"Forgive me, but I think you do," he said quietly, and he meant it. He would never tell her who he was, who he really was. But from the moment he saw her sitting on the bench to the moment she talked about Norway and her love for the mythologies, Loki felt a connection. What kind of connection, he didn't know. But he felt she was his best shot at getting home.

Anna stared up at him. This morning, everything looked so desolate. Everything looked bleak. But now, looking up into the eyes of this man, life looked entirely different. He wasn't dangerous. There wasn't a single part of her that feared him, despite what she had just witnessed. There also wasn't a single part of her that wanted to leave the cafe without him.

"Can I at least finish my omelette first?"

Loki smiled.