Author's Note: My last post of 2013! Yes, I know some of you will read this after your New Year's Eve so it will technically be my first post of 2014, but it is still 2013 where I live. This chapter is a bit longer, as is this Author's Note! Just as a warning I use the word 'ass' 3 times in this chapter. It is being used as the old-fashioned insult of calling someone a donkey so forgive me. I also had someone message me a while back asking me why I respond to reviews in my updates versus using the Private Messaging Reply system, and I thought I should let you all know why. Sometimes people might write a question or observation in their review that other readers would like to know my response to, but might not feel comfortable asking me themselves. Placing my response in the chapters just saves them the trouble of having to PM me or ask themselves. That being said, I love receiving Private Messages so if anyone would prefer to leave comments that way I am amiable to that arrangement. Now that the housekeeping is taken care of… time to reply to reviews! Reteka Hyuuga… yep, that was most assuredly a face-palm moment. Navigating through puppy love is more difficult than one might think! Snow White Queen I am very glad that chapter 16 wasn't too fluffy! Fluffiness has its place, but I feel neither Loki nor Sigyn are ready for that yet! You will find that I apologize for things, like content, in advance (or try to make it sound worse than it really is) so that readers are not upset when they come across it. Yes, their scheme was very tame. This partnership is going to have to test the waters quite a bit to see where they stand. Haha Sif certainly needs to relax. Yet another hot head that needs to settle down (granted she will do so much sooner than Thor will!) This bunch does tend to be oblivious, and while it is likely that at least some of them will stay that way perhaps a few others will see to the heart of Loki's problems. Will Loki go slithering back? He certainly will have to overcome his pride to do it! Looking forward to your next review! A Nice Person I thought Thor deserved to get a little punishment for throwing Sigyn in :) I am very happy you enjoyed the fluffy chapter. I have a couple more cute moments planned for them in the next few chapters, but fluff has never really been my strong suit. I am fairly certain Loki was just as shocked with his emotional outburst as we were, and I hope this next chapter provides you with just as much entertainment!
Fandral had been kind enough to walk Sigyn to the stables, and spent the whole time trying to distract her from Loki's rude outburst.
"He is just wound up from being cooped inside. Once his wounds are healed and he is allowed some exercise he'll be back to his old self in no time!" He encouraged before bidding her farewell.
Despite Fandral's attempt at lifting her spirits, Sigyn knew that it was more than just a lack of exercise that was bothering Loki. She could see the internal battle he was fighting in his eyes, but the question she couldn't answer was what this battle was. His mood had shifted seemingly out of nowhere, and there was nothing that Sigyn could think of that would explain his indignation with her. The next morning she sat in front of her desk staring at a blank sheet of parchment. She had agreed to meet with Loki at the palace the afternoon before, but she was toying with the idea of sending him a message saying she would not be coming. She eventually pushed herself away from her desk and grabbed her cloak. Her curiosity to discover what Loki's problem was outweighed his slights from the evening before, so she would keep their meeting. She arrived at the library at the time that she and Loki had decided upon, but he was nowhere to be found. Annoyed, she pulled out a random book from the shelves and began to read. If Loki wasn't going to show up she was at least going to make the most of her trip to the library. She had gotten about halfway through the book when the doors to the library opened, revealing Loki. He probably hadn't expected Sigyn to still be there waiting for him, but he didn't show his surprise.
"I was starting to think you weren't going to come." She stated impassively.
"I was detained." Was the only excuse he gave.
He sat down across the table from her and leaned back in his chair.
"Shall we discuss last night?" He asked.
"Which part of last night? The part where I successfully pulled off your little prank or the part where you began to act like an ass?"
Sigyn hardly used such strong language seeing as it was unbecoming of a Lady, but Loki had hardly given her a choice. He never liked her to treat him as though he couldn't handle her true thoughts and feelings, and that was how she truly felt about his behavior.
"An ass?"
"Yes, your behavior last evening was both unbecoming and uncalled for."
"As was yours. I might have seemed an ass, but you acted like a wanton flirt!"
"A wanton flirt? How so?! Was it because I smiled and enjoyed myself with Fandral and the others?"
Loki made no reply, which was enough of a response for Sigyn.
"I was not aware that I am forbidden to be merry around anyone besides you."
She didn't even attempt to hide the cynicism of her words, but she supposed that was something she appreciated about Loki. He could handle her verbal jabs and return them with equal vigor.
"It was not your smiles or laughter that bothered me, but the way you were hanging onto Fandral!"
"Oh you mean how I had my hand on his arm? Yes, that was quite a coquettish thing to do wasn't it?"
Oh the sarcasm…
"Perhaps describing you as hanging onto him is a slight exaggeration, but not even you can deny that you seemed very comfortable with him."
"He is my friend so yes, I would hope that I would be comfortable with him. You cannot get angry with me for having friends aside from yourself!" She argued.
Loki just continued giving her a sour look.
"What? Are you going to lock me up in a magical tower so that you can have me all to yourself?" She pressed.
"Maybe." He replied curtly.
Sigyn rolled her eyes.
"You're not very good at sharing are you?" She asked in an exasperated tone.
"No."
"You might be the 'god of lies,' but that certainly sounded like the truth to me."
Loki refused to look at Sigyn and she knew that he was still cross with her.
"So why did you refuse to walk me to the stables last night?" She asked.
"You had Fandral to protect you, you certainly didn't need me."
"It was not about protection Loki, it never has been, it was about spending some time alone with you!"
That got Loki's attention.
"Alone time with me?"
"Yes, do you really think that I always ask you to walk with me because I need someone to hold my hand through the dark?"
"Well I had thought that perhaps…" Loki shook his head instead of finishing his thought.
It looked as if he was replaying what she had just said in his head before he spoke again.
"You truly want to spend time alone with me?"
Sigyn gawked at the dark-haired teen in front of her. How could someone so observant be so oblivious? Was he truly so blind to her feelings towards him?
"Loki I spend most of my free time alone with you." She pointed out.
Loki didn't reply yet again, so Sigyn thought perhaps a change of subject would do them both some good.
"Why were you detained for so long?"
Loki gave a tired little smile.
"I may or may not have been receiving an earful from the AllFather and Queen over my alleged prank on Sif."
Sigyn smiled.
"I see, and I assume you were forced to change her hair color back?"
"I was certainly forced to try."
"To try?"
"I was much more successful at creating the spell that turned her hair black than I was at creating one that could reverse its effects. Not even my mother could get it to change back." Loki answered.
"So her hair will remain black!?"
"For the foreseeable future."
Sigyn felt a little guilty for wanting to laugh, but she couldn't help herself. Sif was going to be furious with her. She would never be able to prove that Sigyn was directly involved with Loki's prank, but Sif was smart enough to know that she was. As much as she would have loved to stay and chat with Loki longer about their successful venture and his subsequent scolding, it was growing late and she was expected home. Now that she was satisfied that Loki's ill behavior had resulted from nothing more than jealousy she felt she could excuse herself politely.
"Well that is unfortunate for her, I hope she will learn how to cope with the change quickly. If you will forgive me, I must excuse myself for I am expected home." She excused before standing and walking to the library doors.
Loki turned around in his chair to watch as she made her way to the doors.
"Are you angry with me?" He inquired with his eyes slightly downcast.
"Exasperated? Yes. Angry? No, besides it was you who was angry with me."
Loki shot a glance out the window.
"It grows dark, would you allow me to escort you home?"
He was obviously trying to make up for his less than amicable behavior from the evening before so Sigyn wasn't about to shoot down his way of apologizing.
"Can you ride with your injury?" She checked.
"Not as quickly as you would prefer, but yes."
Sigyn gave him the "come on" signal with her head and the two of them went off to the stables. The conversation was a little strained at first, but the dark cloud that hung over their heads from the evening before dissipated soon enough. Loki asked her for the details of Sif's haircut and Sigyn asked him for the details of his chastisement as they rode towards her home. Upon their arrival Sigyn thanked the Prince for escorting her back, and bid him goodnight. Before he could ride back to the palace however, she made one final observation.
"I think I know why your mother dresses you in green, aside from bringing out your eyes of course…"
Loki decided to indulge her.
"Why?"
"Have you never heard the phrase green with envy?"
"So I am jealous because I wear green?"
"No, you wear green because you are jealous." She teased.
"So why do you always wear yellow?"
"It is called aureolin, and I don't always wear it!" Sigyn defended.
"It is yellow, and you wear it more often than not." Loki teased before turning his mount and heading home.
Sigyn returned Roan to the stables, and went to wash up before supper. After the meal, she spent the rest of the evening looking up the meaning of the color yellow. If your favorite color said something about you and her favorite color was yellow, what did it say? It was a ridiculous notion, but it occupied her thoughts for several days. She didn't see Loki the next few days so she was forced to ponder that thought alone, though Frida did indulge her musings on it when she was not spending time with Markus. When she finally received a letter from Loki requesting that she come visit at her soonest convenience, Sigyn was all too ready to comply. On the day of her visit Loki was ready and waiting to greet her at the stables.
"I am afraid Thor has asked that I join him, Lady Sif, and the Warriors Three in a little training before we spend any time conversing. I will not stay long, but I can hardly refuse since the healers have suggested light exercise would be beneficial to my wounded arm."
"Go train with Thor, it will make him happy." Sigyn encouraged.
"Will you wait for me in the library?"
"No, I plan on going to watch."
Loki's cheeks took on a light shade of pink and Sigyn smiled. She wasn't sure if Loki was nervous or embarrassed by the prospect of her watching him train. In all honesty it was probably both. He tried to persuade her that her time would be better spent in the library as he walked with her to the training area, but Sigyn would hear none of it. She was genuinely curious about Loki's fighting abilities. Fandral and Volstagg waved as the two approached, Sif ignored them, and Hogun gave them a courteous nod of his head. Thor left his friends to greet Loki and Sigyn when they got closer.
"Good to see you have decided to come brother, and I see you brought a friend."
Thor took Sigyn into a hug before she could protest, and she was relieved that his body was merely warm from mild exertion and not sweaty, as she had expected it would be.
"Will you be joining us today?" Thor asked Sigyn as he pulled back.
"No, I merely thought I would observe. I fear I do not have the makings of a warrior."
"That's never stopped Loki." Sif interjected from behind Thor.
She sent both Loki and Sigyn a condescending look, and returned to what she had been previously doing. Thor chuckled at her remark believing it only to be a jest, but Sigyn sensed that Loki was livid. She had half a mind to give Sif some biting comment in return, but she knew that having a girl interceding on his behalf would only make Loki look weak in front of his warrior friends. Loki responded by gritting his teeth and leading Sigyn over to an area where she could observe their training comfortably. It was a fascinating thing to watch. Thor was truly remarkable in his skills. He was quicker and more flexible than Sigyn would have guessed by simply looking at him. His greatest asset however was his raw power. Loki's training was being highly regulated because of his injury so there were several drills he had to sit out entirely, but Sigyn could still admire his lithe and almost graceful fighting style. His motions were smooth and precise, and he had an innate strength all his own. He also had a high level of agility that only Sif could match. Despite his inherent strengths, Sigyn could see that he was practically laughed off by his companions. There was a certain discouraged look that his green eyes held, so at the first small break they were given Sigyn made her way over to Loki. She had no intention of giving him some speech to make him feel better about himself since that would likely only bring more scorn from those witnessing it. Instead, Sigyn had a more practical plan to help him. He was throwing daggers into a target with his uninjured arm so she approached him carefully.
"You have good aim." She remarked as Loki launched a dagger into the heart of the target.
"I have a lot of practice." He replied in between throws.
She went to his side and studied the target with him after he threw his last dagger.
"Teach me!" She requested.
"Teach you?" He asked quizzically.
"Yes, teach me how to throw a dagger."
Loki smiled and his eyes lit up a little.
"You truly want me to teach you?"
Sigyn nodded and Loki went to retrieve the daggers lodged in the target. When he returned, he helped to position Sigyn in the correct stance to throw. He stepped back to take a good look at her stance before he gently placed a single dagger in her hand. He guided her hands and arms through the appropriate motions over and over till he felt that she had the basic grasp of it. He explained everything to her calmly and clearly, as a good teacher should. After a few minutes of pantomiming the action of throwing a dagger, he finally allowed her to actually try it without him physically walking her through it. Her first throw missed the target entirely and she looked to Loki with an embarrassed flush on her cheeks. Loki smiled, but he didn't laugh at her sad attempt though he could have easily done so. Instead, he made a simple adjustment to her throwing motion and had her try it again. Her dagger flew by the target once again, but it was closer to landing than the first one had been. The process continued for several minutes. Sigyn would miss and Loki would kindly correct her. She was getting more and more frustrated with each failed attempt, and Loki must have noticed it because he walked up behind Sigyn and molded his stance around hers.
"Try once more. I won't guide your motions, but I will tell you when to release the dagger." He whispered into her ear.
Sigyn took a deep breath as he placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze to signal that she could make her throw. Sigyn tried not to hold her breath as she drew her arm back.
"Now." He whispered in her ear part way through her throwing motion.
A flicker of doubt flitted across Sigyn's mind, and she hesitated. Surely he was telling her to release the dagger too soon? Despite her momentary doubt, Sigyn let her dagger fly. She fought the urge to cover her eyes in humiliation, and almost fell over in surprise when it hit the target. Since she had delayed her release slightly it only landed in one of the outer rings, but the important thing was that it had landed. She clapped her hands excitedly and turned to look at Loki for approval.
"Not bad, now we just need to get you to the point where I don't have to tell you when to let go." He mentioned with a gleam in his eye.
Sigyn smiled, but was forced to return to her observation post as Loki and the others were called back to their training. As she watched the rest of Loki's session, she could see a marked difference in his behavior. He no longer seemed as defeated as he had been before. Sigyn was finally beginning to really understand the younger Prince of Asgard. He put on such a confident and self-assured air that he came off rather cocky and superior to others, but they were merely that: airs. In reality Loki was truly self-conscious. He hid his doubts about himself behind a façade of restrained emotions. If someone would simply acknowledge his strengths then perhaps his confidence would grow to match that of the airs he put on, and Sigyn had a feeling that she would have to be that someone. Sigyn was so intent on her thoughts and keeping an eye on Loki, that she didn't see Sif approach her.
"You should start distancing yourself from Loki while you still can." The female warrior stated coldly before taking a seat next to Sigyn.
"Shouldn't you be out there training with the others?" Sigyn replied, ignoring Sif's previous remark.
"It is a drill to test our balance, I can afford to sit it out." Sif determined.
Sigyn didn't doubt Sif's words so she chose not to respond.
"I know you were in on Loki's little scheme to ruin my hair, Sigyn." Sif stated.
Sigyn was smart enough to know not to incriminate herself, so when she refused to respond again Sif continued.
"It doesn't seem like something you would come up with, so I will lay the blame at Loki's feet. I am going to warn you to stay away from Prince Loki though. Trust me when I tell you that all he will bring you is trouble. Perhaps you see his pranks and deception as innocent fun now, but before you know it he will be dragging you into things far less savory. Mischief has always followed his footsteps, and someday that mischief is going to develop into chaos."
"Why this sudden concern for my well-being? I thought you were still furious with me?" Sigyn interjected.
"I may not appreciate the role you played in Loki's scheme, but it was I who came up with the idea of throwing you into the lake."
"I fail to see how these two things relate." Sigyn admitted.
"A wrong turn for a wrong turn is no way to live honorably. I feel that I at least owe you a fair warning of Loki's character before you cause yourself, or your family, any more grief."
"I thank you for your concern Lady Sif, but I am sure that I know Loki's true character better than you or any of his other friends."
With that Sif stood from her seat and strutted away. Loki passed the goddess on his way to join Sigyn.
"What did Sif say?" he asked when he reached her.
"That you were going to lead me into a life of debauchery." Sigyn remarked with a smile.
"Well she's probably right. You could still get out now if you wished." He replied with a matching smile.
"I fear I am too far down the road to turn back now. I am sure that you have cast some wicked spell to keep me forever at your side."
Loki folded his arms across his chest. "I have not, but now that you have mentioned it…"
Sigyn grabbed Loki by the hand and pulled him away from the training area and towards the library before he could finish that thought.
