When they reached the restaurant, Loki managed to secure them the finest table - a private, spacious, dimly lit booth overlooking the sea. Anna initially stood to the side and watched him talk up an incredibly attractive blonde waitress who was falling all over him, touching his arm as she laughed flirtatiously. To be fair, the man could charm the skin off of a snake.

"This is amazing," Anna said as soon as she caught sight of their view. The boats on the harbor twinkled like fireflies scattered out across the water while the green lights of the aurora danced through the glass ceiling above them. It was an incredibly private table - the best in all of Alta, she was sure of it.

Loki smiled, always intrigued by her reactions to to even the most unremarkable things. The table was adequate, remote if nothing else. If she could only see Asgard... he thought, immediately forcing himself from his thoughts. The notion was absurd. Dangerous.

"Hi again," the same blonde said as she sauntered over to their table, her Norwegian accent as thick as the makeup plastered on her face. She had two long braided pigtails, bright pink lipstick and her skin was unnaturally tan for the arctic terrain. She looked like a Scandinavian barbie doll.

"I'd like a bottle of your finest red," Loki said nonchalantly as he inspected the menu, paying her no real mind. "Anna?"

"Red is fine," Anna smiled, nodding at the waitress who was looking down at her in disgust, no doubt wondering what the hell a man like that was doing here with someone like her. Still, she was all too happy to lean over Loki to fill his glass with water, her breasts practically spilling out onto the table. When he continued to pay her no mind, she sighed and stalked off.

"She's pretty," Anna said, her insecurities finally getting the best of her. Truthfully, she was curious about his tastes and wanted to gauge his reaction on the matter.

"Mmm," Loki said, entirely uninterested. "I hadn't noticed."

"So," Anna said casually, trying not to make a big deal of what she was about to ask. "Do you like - have a girlfriend? A wife?"

"Beg your pardon?" he asked, finally glancing up from the menu to look at her.

"Back home," Anna said casually, placing a cloth napkin across her lap as she looked down. "Just making conversation."

"I do not," he said after a moment, thrown off by her invasive inquiry. He continued to study the meal options.

"Oh. Boyfriend?"

Loki placed the menu down and crossed his arms over his chest, looking over at her irritably. "No."

"Okay, sorry," she said defensively, getting nervous from his reaction. "I just, there's a lot I don't know about you."

"And I you," he snapped, in a somewhat accusatory tone.

"Here you are," the waitress said cheerfully as she quickly returned with the wine, unknowingly breaking the growing tension at the table.

She filled their glasses and placed two shots filled with a clear liquid in front of them, winking at Loki. "Complimentary akvavit. Do you have any questions about the menu?"

"Lord," Anna whispered, picking up the drink and inspecting it. She knew this stuff well. One shot of it and on top of the wine, she'd be three sheets to the wind in no time.

"No," Loki said flatly in response to the waitress as he watched Anna. She was certainly a peculiar mortal. "I'll have the salmon."

"That sounds great, actually. Me too."

"I'll be back then," the waitress replied, once again disheartened by Loki's lack of attention to her.

Anna sighed as she looked at the array of alcohol in front of her. She shouldn't have it. But if she was going to get any answers from him, it was a necessity to drink - to really drink. She knew she didn't have the gall otherwise.

Loki lifted the aquavit to his lips and threw it back quickly, his eyes never leaving hers. Anna reluctantly did the same.

"That's vile," she laughed finally, wincing in disgust.

"Indeed," he agreed, smirking. Loki had never been one to get rip-roaring drunk, but he enjoyed a good wine or mead with a meal every now and then. Akvavit, however, was apparently repulsive no matter what realm he was on.

"I like that suit. You look nice," she said with a small, polite smile, pushing the loose strands behind her ears. Really, really goddamn nice.

Loki raised his eyebrows and looked down at his attire. Again, something so lacking in comparison to what he was used to.

"You look... well," he managed to say in response, taking a long swig of his wine. You fool, he said, silently reprimanding himself for the idiotic remark. Well certainly did not properly convey how she looked.

"Thanks," she replied, trying hard to take that as a compliment as she smoothed out the fabric on her lap. "It's the only dress I have, but I do love it."

"Do you desire more?" he asked suddenly, matter-of-fact. Why hadn't it occurred to him? She had very little to her name. Certainly there were other things she required.

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant, I-"

"Anna, I have means," he said, thoroughly enjoying the fact that he did. "You've been of great service to me. I wish for you to have whatever it is that you desire."

Anna felt her face go hot at his words. Whatever it is that you desire. She hated it, hated that every single time she was around him, her mind eventually went there. He exuded raw sexuality with every look, every breath he took - did he have any idea? Was he doing it on purpose?

"You've given me enough," she said quietly, looking down as she was afraid he could somehow read her thoughts.

"Perhaps a weekly stipend would be appropriate? For your services."

"Luke, I-"

"I must insist."

"Sure, I guess," she finally shrugged, throwing her hands up as she stifled a laugh. She knew that if she argued the night would go south quickly, and that was not what she wanted. She would fight him about it later, but decided to let it go for now. "This is crazy."

"Is it?"

"At the beginning of the month I was set to leave this place behind," she said, shaking her head incredulously. "Now I have a job, a roof over my head. I wake up every morning in the most beautiful place and..."

"And?"

"I don't even mind the company," she smiled, raising her glass of wine.

Loki smirked and took a sip of his own. "How is your wound?"

"Oh, fine," she said gratefully, wincing down at it in the dim light. "There's hardly anything there."

"May I?"

Anna swallowed and nodded. She reached slowly across the table, trying not to flinch as Loki took a gentle hold of her hand. He inspected the wound closely by the light of the candles, turning her hand every which way to get a better look. He traced the barely noticeable line with his fingertips, discreetly using his magic to feel beneath her skin. There was no infection brewing, no further complications. It was practically healed.

Just as he was about to release his hold, he caught sight of a ring she frequently wore, noticing the details for the very first time. It was tarnished gold with a familiar tree etched onto the flat face of it. Around the tree were nine incredibly small gemstones, each a different color.

"Yggdrasil," he whispered in awe.

Anna raised her eyebrows, shocked again by his knowledge of Norse mythology. "Yes. Wow. How did you know?"

"Where did you find that," Loki asked seriously as he released her hand, certain he had seen this ring before in his lifetime, though he could not place where.

"At a winter market, a couple of years back," Anna replied, looking at him curiously. "There was a Sami vendor selling old jewelry. She claims it's from the 10th century, if you can believe it. Probably just wanted to make a sale."

"Did she say where it came from?"

"I think Tønsberg?"

Loki's jaw tensed. He didn't know the names of many places in Norway, but Tønsberg, especially 10th century Tønsberg, he was familiar with. It was there Odin fought Laufey and the frost giants, protecting Midgard from a new ice age. Not long after, Odin brought the battle to Jotunheim, where he first found Loki.

A chill swept over him as he looked out onto the harbor. From the moment he met the girl he knew she was his ticket home. Was this the answer? Was this what he was supposed to retrieve? This ring was not of Midgard. And he had seen it somewhere before. But where?

"Luke, are you religious?" Anna asked, noticing how out of sorts he suddenly looked. "I don't want to keep offending you with this stuff."

"That I am not," he said, coughing as he tried to keep his composure. "It does not offend me."

"When Bjorn would - find my altars or find me doing anything that was, well, what he'd consider to be out of the ordinary, he'd -"

Loki stopped fidgeting, stopped looking frantically around the room for any sign that this was his answer. The waitress brought over their entrees and a basket of breadsticks and left again.

"He'd what?" he asked quietly, his eyes flickering to hers, his expression darkening.

"Hit me," she whispered after a moment, gazing out into the night as she took another drink. She was embarrassed, ashamed by the admission - one she wouldn't normally make so freely. It was clear that the liquor was starting to take hold.

Loki's grip tightened around the stem of his glass. He swallowed hard, but said nothing. It wasn't surprising - he remembered the imbecile all too well, remembered the way he'd handled her in the cafe. He recalled how she had acted in the kitchen when he lost his temper this morning, the look in her eyes, how she cowered from him. The realization made his stomach turn.

"I'm still paranoid he's there, you know," she continued, still staring out the window, her arms wrapped around herself as if she felt a chill. "Waiting in every dark corner. It's hard to sleep. Sometimes I think the fear alone will kill me."

"I'm sorry," was all he could manage, the rage surging within him. If he ever crossed paths with the man again, he would certainly end him. This he vowed.

"I'm sorry too," she said, shaking her head. "Sorry I stayed so long."

"Why did you?" he asked incredulously, trying hard to watch his tone. It would do no good to berate her on the matter. She had made her choices, good and bad. He found he could relate to that.

"For a while, he wouldn't let me go. And I was too sick, too afraid," she said, taking a small bite of her breadstick. "Eventually he started screwing around with someone else, so the focus was off of me. He wanted me gone, to go back to the states, back to a home that didn't exist anymore."

A home that didn't exist anymore... that too sounded familiar.

"I just couldn't leave Alta."

"But why?" he pressed, growing impatient.

Anna swallowed. "The dreams."

Loki remembered her briefly discussing her dreams the day they met. She had taken up residence with a man clearly not worth her time for... dreams? It was asinine, to say the least. Midgardians, on the whole, weren't exactly the prophets some believed themselves to be. Nevertheless, it intrigued him. She intrigued him.

"These dreams of yours," he said casually, taking a bite of his salmon. "There must be something truly extraordinary about them."

"If I told you, you'd think I was nuts."

"Try me."

"I've had the same recurring one for a long time. One where I find him," she said proudly, her chin raised with an unapologetic smile. The alcohol was most definitely giving her courage now, for this was something she hadn't ever shared with anyone. "I find Loki."

"I beg your pardon?" he asked, choking slightly on his drink. He never got used to hearing his name on her lips.

"I'm in a forest, lit only by the moon. I know it's Alta, because I can see the cathedral down below the trees and off in the distance," she said, taking another long sip of wine, recalling the dream like a fond memory. "I'm running and running frantically through the trees to get away from something and I'm terrified. And I feel sick - really sick. I see this faint green light, deep in the woods, so I go towards it."

"And?"

"And when I finally reach it, he's there. I can't remember his face, but I don't need to. I know it's him," she replied, wiping a stray tear from her eyes. "I cry, and he holds me. And I'm not afraid anymore. No matter how I've tried, I can't ever forget that feeling. I was safe. I was... home."

Loki felt sickened by her words. If by some chance in the nine realms she had been granted prophetic abilities, if it was no accident that they were to meet, then why hadn't he been sent to help her earlier? Why was it necessary for her to live through torture while she waited for his aid? The thought was maddening. He cursed Odin silently, for the billionth time in his existence. Why her?

"So that was it," he said, suddenly unable to keep his voice from growing in anger and disgust, the guilt overwhelming him. "That was the reason you stayed. You endured years of agony. All because of a foolish dream."

Anna was taken aback, hurt by his words, even in her slightly inebriated state. But instead of backing down, of being usual coward that she was, she simply glared at him.

"Look," she said impatiently, her voice shaky. "I'm grateful for everything you've done for me. Truly. But when I've had nothing, when I was beaten and bruised, laying in hospital beds, when I was sick and alone and no one could fucking help me, praying to him was the only thing that I had, the only thing that got me through. So no one will ever tell me again what's ridiculous."

Loki stiffened and his jaw tensed as he returned the glare. Her words cut him. She had no idea what a monster, what a fool she worshipped, but she worshipped him all the same. He didn't come here for her. In fact, he housed her merely for his own benefit. He was not a savior, not the god she fantasized existed. He wasn't worth her pain, her tears, her prayers. And she would never know the truth. Never.

"My apologies," he said quietly after a minute, tearing his gaze away from her. He had certainly done cruel, inane things in his time, but belittling a meek and abused mortal, one whose world apparently revolved around him, was a new low point. "I suppose it's not the proper time to inquire about your illness."

Anna wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and shook her head, unable to look at him. He knew. Somehow, he knew something was wrong.

"Not particularly."

Loki nodded. He had no desire to upset her further, but with the events of the morning and her frequently mentioning her ill health in passing, he began to suspect that something was going on. She seemed exhausted by dinner most nights, frequently complained about aches and pains and today he watched more blood pour from her hand than he knew was normal.

"I won't press the matter," he said, removing his napkin from his lap and placing it on the table. "But if you feel unwell, if you feel you cannot cook or clean, I -"

"I can," she said, rather irritably. "Please. I don't want to have this argument again."

"Very well, but if there's something I should know I -"

"Luke."

"And I would never harm you," he said suddenly, quietly, before he could stop himself. Every one back home surely hated him, surely thought he was the scum of the nine realms. He didn't give a damn what a single one of them thought. But he cared what she thought. For whatever reason, he did. And she needed to know. She needed to know that she was safe.

Anna looked up at him through watery eyes and nodded.

"I know," she whispered. And she did. "I know that."

Loki returned the nod solemnly, grateful when the second bottle of wine arrived. The two continued eating their meals in silence.

By the end of dinner, Anna was tired and intoxicated. Loki, much to his surprise, was also feeling the effects of the alcohol. A heavy depression hung over the table. She was certain by now he thought she was crazy but the worst was that she clearly harbored some type of feeling for a man she barely knew; a puzzle of a man that clearly had no interest in her. And why would he? She was pathetic, really. Battered. Sick. A complete mess of a person. She had no business being drawn to him, no business expecting anything from him. They had an arrangement, that was all. She was nothing more than a charity case.

Loki's own racing thoughts turned from Anna to Asgard, to his battle with Thor on the Bifrost, to his actions in Puente Antiguo. It had been a month and there was no word, no explanation, no time frame as to when this would all be over. Just exile. Just isolation. And now he had been thrust into the company of a kind, beautiful mortal, a mortal who unknowingly thought of him as her god, who was clearly suffering in more ways than he could admittedly comprehend. There was nothing accidental about it, about any of it.

He didn't want to think anymore. He didn't bring her here to give her the third degree about her painful life, but somehow, that's exactly what it had turned into.

"Did you enjoy your meal?"

Anna jumped at the sudden sound of his voice, as she had grown used to the silence. She smiled. "It was really delicious. You?"

"Indeed. The fish was quite fresh."

"They catch it right out on the Altaelva. I don't think there's better salmon in the whole world."

"Do you care for dessert?"

"I'm fine. What about you?"

"I do believe I drank too much," he said, unbuttoning his blazer for the hundredth time, pinching the bridge of his nose in an attempt to ward off his worsening headache.

"Cheers to that," Anna said, holding up her empty wine glass.

"She is attractive," Loki said randomly as he glanced over at the waitress who was walking back towards their table. "But not exactly my taste."

"No?" Anna said, leaning into the table curiously with a hint of an amused smile, her heavy mood lightening. This was much more fun, a good distraction. "And what exactly is your taste?"

Instinctively, before he knew what he was doing, before he could stop himself, Loki's heavy gaze fell briefly over Anna.

As soon as he had realized what he had done, his eyes shot back up to hers and the two stared at one another. He prayed she didn't notice, prayed she was too intoxicated to realized, prayed that he could merely blame it on the shot and the bottle and a half of wine he drank...

Anna's heart began to race. What the hell was that?

"Are you ready for dessert?" the waitress said, popping up with a fake smile.

"Ah, no," Loki said quietly, suddenly unable to look at the shell-shocked woman sitting across from him. "We'll take the check."