A/N: I love you guys…SO MUCH. Thank you so much to Bennlk321, SilverShadowWolf46, Kathrynrose42, WhiteLunaNight, and Wildhorses1492. Your reviews make me so happy! Thank you for loving this story and Astrid as much as I do!
***I do not own anything except Astrid, Mona, and Inga and the other servants***
The pavilion seemed different that night. Perhaps because we entered together. We appeared just as we had in life, leaning against each other-thought we were now both awake. We could never sleep in the pavilion, though both of us had tried at various times. We were simply at the mercy of our own biological clocks. Go figure.
I glanced up at him with a cheesy grin. "Hi" I squeaked. He chuckled.
"Are you still so skittish around me?" he murmured lazily. I rolled my eyes at his arrogance.
"Sorry- you're, I mean…you're kind of a lot" I muttered, blushing. He pressed his nose against my jawline while his fingers carded softly through my hair. "You're…you know…" my voice started shaking. "Sometimes…overwhelming" I sighed, relaxing into that cool intoxicating touch. I played with his fingers gently.
"What are we doing?" I groaned, one part hating myself for getting up abruptly, another part mentally slapping myself. "Nononononono….no!" I raced to the other side of the pavillion, slamming myself against the opposite pillar, facing him. "We…we…" I panted, suddenly unable to form words. "No" I said weakly, feeling resolve slipping away into those intense emerald eyes. "No you are a prince, a god…and I'm….me….and we…we can't….I don't…." I shook my head, feeling tears threaten. He was on his feet in a flash, cocky grin disappearing. Loki looked torn between wanting to go to me and a hesitance that verged on fear. God damn it. Even dreams around here were becoming soap operas.
"Just…I need a break from this…" I whispered, and his face fell. "No, no, no not….ugh not us...just….the seriousness. We need….you know what we need?" His mouth turned up in a quizzical grin. "
."And before you ask, the only thing that can make me feel better right now is a jam-out" Loki's brow furrowed.
"Why in the nine realms would jam help uplift your spirits?" I snorted through my tears.
"No, ugh I keep forgetting- cultural differences" I said laughing. "A jam-out is like a dance party. Listening to party music and dancing and singing along" Loki's brow furrowed suspiciously.
"So it is similar to a ball, but only you are in attendance" he said quizzically. I thought about it and nodded.
"Kind of. Sometimes you have a few close friends over, but not too many people" I paused, a smile creeping over my face. "I wonder how much control either of us have over this dream. Maybe I could show you?" Loki looked startled.
"Why?" he inquired. I shrugged.
"Because. I'm too tired to fight with you. And I don't want to sit here and overthink this with you. Sometimes, the negative energy just gets too much. Not that it's always negative at all but more- intense. You gotta dance it out. And you and I gonna be here a while. So why not? Let me show you" I finished my awkward speech with jazz hands. Loki looked genuinely shocked, struggling to process what I had said.
"Now let me see if I can do this" I said, closing my eyes. I pictured my phone in my mind. I pictured unlocking it…OW THIS HURT. I found my playlist. And….
Ellie Goulding's "Around U" began to play through the pavilion. Loki looked around paranoid, as if he had been struck by lightning.
"No, it's okay" I grabbed his arm gently. "Trust me" For a minute Loki just stared at me with suspicion. Then he tipped his ear upward.
"This is your midgardian music?" he asked loudly. I winced.
"Too loud?" I pictured the volume going down. "Better?" He nodded. For a moment more we just stood in silence.
"And now..we dance" I mumbled, beginning to regret telling him about this. This was a private thing I did in my room without anyone around. Why had I thought this was a good idea? He held out his arms in a waltz like position, looking at me expectantly. "No. No … um….oh god. This was a stupid idea- forget it!" I stopped the music and moved to the other side of the pavilion, going to bang my head against the pillar. A hand caught my wrist delicately.
"What is the source of your humiliation?" he questioned, slowly.
"Oh. I just…I…this is something I do privately. I've never done it with someone else before" I mumbled. Loki gazed at me with a tenderness I had never seen from him before.
"I would be honored to be a part of your jam-out" he said in earnest. I wiped some tears away.
"Really?" I whispered. And he nodded.
"I too tire of being too serious at times" he murmured. I snorted and he caught my chin. "Is this surprising? Am I not the god of mischief? "And...I am quite curious to see Midgardian dances" I smiled.
"Well, you may be in for a bit of shock" I smirked, and he smiled that sexy grin. I closed my eyes, shaking slightly- and the music re-started. I took a deep breath, feeling his eyes on me. Just pretend he's not there.
I bobbed slowly swaying my shoulders and hips to the beat. His lips broke out into a wide grin.
"I JUST WANNA BE AROUND YOU" I lip synched, flipping my hair around, jumping up and down. "IS that too much to ask?" Grinning, I grabbed his hand and lead him to the center of the pavilion. Taking his hands, I lead him with me bopping to the music. My dancing is not the greatest- but I have a lot of fun. I'm the kind of dancer that lip syncs over dramatically and tries to act out all the lyrics. Loki was speechless.
I gave him the come hither finger, smiling. "Just let go" I shouted, twirling around. I flipped my hair to the lyrics. I grabbed his arms and moved them with me.
"The key is to look as stupid as possible" I shouted "Cause no one's around to see you. And then….if you have long hair….you flip it" and I demonstrated dramatically.
Loki laughed, a real laugh.
Drunk on the encouragement, (I had never felt this open with him)I grabbed his hands and led him to the middle swinging them playfully like I did with my friends at a dance. He raised an eyebrow, before turning me into an elaborate twirl. Breathless, I felt myself spin back into his chest.
Abruptly, the song ended.
"Huh that's weird" I said softly. "I didn't do that. At least…I don't think" I glanced at Loki who then took my waist, as if to dance. His gaze entranced me and I forgot to breathe. To my humiliation the opening notes of Marvin Gaye by Charlie Pluth began to play. As I blushed, he pulled me close (right as the lyrics matched) eyes sparkling with mischief. To my shock, he began swaying us to the beat, attempting, hesitantly to imitate what I had been doing. My smile could have broken my face, I was so happy. The simple gesture was not only adorable, but genuinely enjoyed that he was letting me in- and enjoying me at my most myself. He was grinning widely, ear cocked, listening to the lyrics with a smug expression, wiggling his eyebrows. While some words were unfamiliar, I could tell he got the gist of the song. I bopped around, beaming from within, pretending my fist was a mic and holding it out to him, laughing at his confusion. I propped his hands up above his head.
"Now sway" I said, waving my arms back and forth. He imitated me, raising an eyebrow, moving to one side, then the other. Gently, I relaxed his arms.
"You're so stiff" I said shaking my head. It was then that I realized how close we were. The tip of his nose brushed mine.
Eventually we (and by we I mean me) tired out, and laid out against the cool tile, with Loki joining me.
"You know- I have a king-size bed" he murmured, smirking. I sighed and rolled my eyes "Oh my god" I tried to be exasperated, and moved to hit him on the arm, but his catlike reflexes caught my arm. He rolled me on top of him, so my chest was against his. His eyes were playful, but pinned me in place.
"Win"
"What?" I said confused.
"You heard me correctly. Win" he murmured, brushing his lips ever so slightly against mine.
I reached for the warm body that had been pressed against mine, but felt only cool sheets. A pang of deep disappointment hit me painfully. I missed him. Before I could blink, Inga entered.
"Mistress!" she jumped back. "I thought you were still out" I scratched my head.
"Well I thought I was too" I replied as I blinked in the sunlight streaming in through the window. Inga relayed that the queen had requested an audience with me as she did my hair. I had requested a simpler hairstyle than the tight braided buns favored by Asgardian ladies. We compromised on a loose braid paired with a delicate chain headpiece that dangled a large emerald set in gold over my forehead. For some reason it wasn't heavy, though I was almost positive it was real. After Inga left, I slumped against the door, somehow overwhelmed still.
The Jam-out with Loki last night had brought up…well, a warm spark. Except that it wasn't a spark. It had turned from a spark, to a tingle, to a shock that lit me up whenever he was around. And somehow that made small talk with Inga, which I usually enjoyed- an ordeal. I kept being paranoid that she knew- that somehow she had seen what I had done.
Anyway, sighing in relief, I moved away from the door. His last words to me bounced around in my head. He couldn't have meant….my heart thumped painfully. Win the competition? I had almost- almost forgotten why I was here. IT was an idea that hit me like a pile of bricks. Marry Loki? Become his Queen? Rule Asgard with him? Leave home? My world spun. I didn't know what to do. I needed to clear my head. But before I could, the wall I was leaning against spun in on itself. I jerked, letting out a small yelp and falling through. Immediately, I knew that I was in a very, very private space. The room had been fashioned after a planetarium, with a glittering model of the nine realms hanging from the ceiling. The walls were navy blue, dotted with silver stars, highlighting constellations. A long work table had been set up- with various jars labeled, and maps spread helter skelter over the table. I had fallen next to a claw-footed desk, where my eyes met the hemline of a maroon gown.
"Aha! I thought you had the room next to me!" the Queen laughed, pulling me to my feet swiftly. "You have a lovely voice" I blushed awkwardly at the thought of how many embarrassing jam-outs (not with Loki) I had had in there by myself.
"Your highness!" I exclaimed.
"Jane, please! I'm only queen temporarily" she chirped.
"This…is your room?" I murmured, gazing around. The Queen shook her head.
"Yes and no. This is my laboratory. Workspace. Thor set this up for me. I spend majority of my time here. The rest of the time…well…." She cleared her throat. "I stay with Thor, of course" I smiled at her.
"Of course. So…you wanted to speak to me?" I asked, whilst wandering the room a bit, looking at the designs on the walls.
"Oh yeah. Listen. Astrid. I wanted to talk to you about Loki" I stopped stiff.
"Yeeesss?" I said, drawing the word out carefully.
"I'm sure you know by now that this competition was not Loki's idea" she said wryly. I laughed.
"I figured" She smiled.
"It was Thor and I's hope that he find someone would care about him. Keep him safe. Talk him out of … invading other realms, thing like that. We wanted to know that we could leave him in good hands." I nodded, and she hesitated: "I've seen the connection between the two of you. I've never seen him this…unburdened. I know he cares for you. And the last thing he needs is some power hungry uppity princess from another realm who will only drive him into darkness. And I know that this is probably against the rules but….I want you to win" she said with a grin. "So I'm going to help you" I blinked, processing her words.
"You are?" I asked stupidly. She guided me to a chair.
"Now listen carefully. There is a test tonight. Each of the remaining ladies will be asked to provide the entertainment at tonight's ball. It is a test of traditional feminine stuff- stuff I was never into, but Thor insisted because of Asgardian tradition. Singing, dancing, musical instruments. Talent in the arts" A lump rose in my throat. Privately, I loved singing and dancing. But publicly? In front of everyone?
"Uh…um" I mumbled. "Well shit" I cursed, then instantly covered my mouth. Jane laughed, surprised.
"Do you know how long it's been since I've heard our curse words?" she snorted. "Too long!"
"I can keep going" I joked. "I remember all of em" I paused. "Anyway listen- Qu-Jane, I really appreciate you telling me. But I really don't think a couple hours notice is gonna make much difference. I don't exactly have the resources here to pull off a huge musical number even if I wanted to…." Jane smirked.
"Actually, I think I can help with that…"
Minutes later, Jane had assembled Inga and a few of her fellow servant girls.
"Ladies, would you like to have Astrid as your Queen?" Jane asked, before I could shush her. Damn. Shush the Queen? Jane was acting so fun-loving and carefree it was hard to remember she was a monarch I was supposed to be formal with. They all nodded animatedly.
"Majesty, we love her" Inga blurted out and the rest of them nodded. "She deserves to win! She is so different from those others. She is funny and kind, and she would make Prince Loki very happy. Already he is a different man!"
"Yes!" Another servant girl piped up, a tall, slim brunette. "Forgive me for speaking out of turn your majesty, but yesterday, he thanked me for cleaning his room" Ripples of exclaims and shocked laughs went through the girls. Jane smiled brightly, and I stood shocked and deeply touched at the servant girls' support.
"This is wonderful" Jane said. "But we must keep this between us, understood? Prince Loki will be not be pleased to hear the servants have a favorite" she said quietly. They shook their heads in agreement.
"You guys really want to do this for me?" I murmured, and they nodded- seeming excited by the idea.
"We will help you with your song and dance, miss?" A petite redhead asked cheerfully. "Perhaps a ballad of Prince Loki's courage in rescuing his brother from peril?" I smirked.
"No, actually I was thinking of a little Midgardian number….." I said slyly, looking sideways at Jane, before whispering something in her ear. She burst into peals of laughter, while the servant girls smiled hesitantly.
"Oh god. I'm so glad I snuck my videocamera here. This is gonna be one for the books"