Author's Note: Sorry for the wait everyone! I hate to say it, but it will probably be another week till I can update again. I will try my best to get something up before that though! Reteka Hyuuga I am sorry you read the entire chapter, and were then forced to wait quite some time for the next one :( I am very glad however, that you enjoyed the last one! Caitreylove I hope you are recovering well from your surgery! I am thrilled that you enjoyed the chapter, and that my inexperience didn't show too much! As for resetting the countdown… you are safe from any major disasters for a little while longer. FlowRah Welcome back! Hahaha believe me I was hating Loki quite a bit after his affair too. I actually spent a lot of time rereading some of the earlier chapters to remind myself why I liked him XD Seriously though, the reaction to his affair and the fallout that you just described having is exactly what I was going for, so I am extremely pleased to hear it. I hate the waiting part of fan fics too, and I hate doing that to my readers.


Sigyn awoke to Loki poking her in the side and whispering…

"Wake up sleepy, you're drooling on me."

She opened her eyes with a grunt and grabbed Loki's hand before he could poke her again.

"I forgot what a child you can be sometimes." She remarked sleepily.

"And I forgot how cute you are when you first wake up in the morning." He countered while brushing her hair out of her eyes.

Sigyn scowled up at him causing him to smile all the brighter.

"You are even cuter when you act indignant." He declared.

Sigyn stuck her tongue out at her husband.

"Now who is the child hmmm?" He asked.

"You started it." She shot back.

"Then let me finish it." He requested before placing a kiss on the tip of her nose.

Sigyn giggled, stretched out, and then relaxed back onto Loki.

"You can be so silly sometimes." She stated lackadaisically.

"It just comes with the whole mischievous thing I suppose." Loki excused. "So what shall we do today? We have the whole day to ourselves after all."

"We have the whole next four weeks to ourselves really." Sigyn corrected. "No social activities, remember?"

"…that may have slipped my mind, but I like the sound of it. Four weeks of just the two of us? Yes, I most certainly approve of this."

"It might get a little lonely." Sigyn pointed out.

"Not if we stay busy."

"And how shall we stay busy, My Lord? We can't spend the next four weeks in bed if that is what you had in mind."

"As tempting as that sounds, no, that was not what I had in mind. I was thinking something a little more adventurous."

Sigyn visibly perked up.

"Adventurous? Please, do expound."

"How would you like to see some of the other Realms?"

Sigyn kissed Loki excitedly as her response.

"Please promise me that you will always respond that way when your answer is 'yes'." Loki sighed.

"I could, but then how would I say 'no'? Would I slap you?"

"I don't see why that wouldn't work, it seemed to be your preferred method when we were younger."

Sigyn smiled at his jest, but then became serious again.

"Could we really go explore the Realms? Are we allowed to do that? Would Heimdall even open the Bifrost for us?"

Loki placed a finger to her lips before she could ask any more questions.

"Yes, we can go explore the Realms. Are we allowed to? Probably not, but I have never let silly things like rules stop me from doing something in the past. I am not sure Haimdall would open the Bifrost, but luckily we don't need him to."

Loki was able to see that Sigyn was about to ask another question, so he answered it before she could.

"I have ways to get in and out of Asgard without anyone knowing, secret ways that not even the AllFather knows of. I use it sometimes when I am working for the War Council."

"How did you manage to find secret ways in and out of Asgard? Did you just happen to stumble upon them?"

"Some of them yes, but the one we would use I heard of from a source."

"A source? And does this source use this passage often?"

"Not anymore."

"Not anymore?"

"He doesn't use it anymore."

"Why not? Is it unsafe?" Sigyn pressed.

"No, it is perfectly safe. As to why he doesn't use it… I think you would rather not know." Loki determined.

Sigyn's mouth formed a little 'oh'. Theoric had always said the same thing when he was referring to the fact that someone had died. In Loki's case though, Sigyn felt certain that he wasn't merely implying that the source was dead, he wouldn't hesitate to tell her that. No, he was implying that he had been the one to kill him… or her. Sigyn knew better than to ask him the details of it, and she didn't particularly care to know anyways. Instead, she changed the subject.

"So where should we go?"

"Wherever you want. You are the one who has never been outside of Asgard after all."

Sigyn scrunched up her nose in contemplation.

"Nidavellir." She finally determined.

Loki looked thoughtful.

"The home of the dwarves? Interesting choice… very well, where in Nidavellir would you like to go?"

"I am not sure. Have you been before?"

Loki nodded that he had.

"Then why don't you surprise me?"

"I could surprise you, but I think I have a better idea."

"I'm listening."

"There are four Realms which we can explore safely: Nidavellir, Alfheim, Vanaheim, and Midgard. What do you say to spending this week studying Nidavellir and planning our trip, and then actually going at the end of it? We could do the same thing with each of the other three Realms." Loki suggested.

Sigyn smiled at her husband before kissing him again.

"mmm I think I am going to like this new form of communication." Loki stated before kissing Sigyn once more.

"You'll like it till my answer is 'no'." Sigyn pointed out with a grin.

"I just might like that too." He answered with a wicked smirk.

Sigyn rolled her eyes before rolling off of Loki and placing her feet on the floor.

"Where are you going?" Loki pouted.

"To get dressed. We can hardly take a trip to the library in our current attire."

"We aren't currently attired." Loki reminded her.

Sigyn gave a mocking gasp.

"Oh my, you are right! I didn't even notice!" She teased before smirking and slipping into their bath chambers.

Sigyn could hear Loki rousing himself from bed, and he managed to make it to their bath chambers before Sigyn could finish lacing up her bodice. He had bothered to put some trousers on, and he came up to stand behind Sigyn.

"Would you like some assistance, My Lady?"

"I would very much appreciate some assistance." She answered while pulling her tangled hair over her shoulder.

Loki took the laces of her bodice and he tightened them starting from the bottom and working his way up. He had always been fond of helping her redress, and she sometimes thought he enjoyed it almost as much as he enjoyed helping her undress… almost. He finished lacing her up and moved his hands to her waist.

"Tight enough?" He asked.

"Perfect." Sigyn assured.

"Are you certain? I can redo it if it isn't tight enough."

Sigyn smiled at her playful husband in the looking-glass.

"I am certain. Too much more of that and you are going to find that your trousers are a bit too tight."

Loki gave her bottom a playful slap before going to retrieve a tunic. Sigyn didn't even bother to put on a dress, but instead settled for a nice dressing gown that would be decent enough to wear for the short distance to the library. She then set about trying to untangle her hair. She took a seat at her vanity and began the fight while Loki took a seat on the edge of a counter to watch her. Sigyn couldn't help but smile at how young he looked with his tousled hair and oversized tunic that was only partially tucked in. She eventually managed to get the tangles out, and began to braid it. Loki made a pouting face at her, and Sigyn sighed.

"What is wrong?" She inquired.

"Why aren't you leaving your hair down?"

"Because I am no longer a maiden, I am a married woman."

"My mother wears her's down sometimes." Loki protested.

"No, she doesn't. She wears it partially down, but never all the way."

"Then why don't you wear it partially down?"

"Because it is much simpler to braid it than style it." Sigyn excused. "Why does it bother you that I am not wearing it down?"

"You know I like to run my hand through your hair, and I can't do that if it is in a damned braid." Loki noted.

Sigyn rolled her eyes, but didn't undo her hair.

"Then I suppose it will give you something to look forward to this evening." She remarked while grabbing Loki's hand and pulling him off the counter.

Loki began to chuckle from behind her.

"Sore?" He inquired.

Sigyn began to blush. She had hoped Loki wouldn't notice her strained steps.

"A little." She was forced to admit.

Loki scooped Sigyn up without another word and carried her all the way to the library. She considered protesting, but she knew that Loki was enjoying his first chance to be her caring husband. They didn't see anyone on their way to the library, and Loki shut the doors firmly behind them after he placed Sigyn on a chair. He went to retrieve half a dozen books on Nidavellir. She vaguely recognized a couple of them from when she and Loki had been scouring for information on her stalker, but this time she was getting to look at them in a new light. They didn't bother to keep track of time as they poured over the tomes together. They planned where they could go, what they could see, and what they could do in the land of the dwarves. Loki pointed out the places he had been and Sigyn begged him to tell her about his trips there. Loki refused to do so under the pretense of his business there having been strictly between him and the War Council. Sigyn didn't press the subject, fully understanding her husband's predicament. She had once told Theoric that his past and what he was required to do for his job was his personal business, and she was more than willing to do the same for Loki. Secrets in a marriage were not necessarily a good thing in her opinion, but wasn't she keeping a secret from him?

She admired her husband's features as he talked and pointed things out to her, and it didn't take long for his voice to fade out entirely in her mind. These features that she admired so much were nothing more than a façade. Did Loki suspect it? Had he seen through Frigga and Odin's lies all these years and had begun to merely play along with them? How long could she keep the secret before it began to naw at her mind? It felt wrong that she should have to keep it, especially when she had only made the promise to do so under the pretense of never actually seeing Loki again. She could care less that Loki was truly a Frost Giant, but would Loki care? Something told her that he would.

Loki had noticed Sigyn's contemplating stare and was smiling at her.

"Something wrong?"

Sigyn shook her head.

"No, I am still a little worn out from yesterday." She excused.

It wasn't a lie. She was still drained from their wedding day.

Loki nodded in understanding.

"I am as well. I think we will be retiring early tonight."

Sigyn smiled in agreement.

Loki looked back down at the books spread out in front of them, but Sigyn continued to look at him. His green eyes took in the pages before him with such a look of perception, that even Sigyn felt envious of his mental capabilities. Those green eyes were truly the mirror of Loki's feelings when the rest of his demeanor became detached. If you didn't know him well you wouldn't know it, but Sigyn knew him more intimately than any other person alive. She had seen them shine with both happiness and sorrow, and she could always be ensnared by his sensual playfulness. Those green orbs were a source of wonder for Sigyn for while they couldn't hide Loki's true feelings, they could hide his true nature. The sight of his red eyes had shocked more than frightened Sigyn the first and only time she had seen them, but would they frighten her now? In that moment there had been far worse things to fear from Loki than his eyes turning red, so with those other fears alleviated would she find them fascinating or frightening? It also caused her to wonder what the rest of him looked like behind the spell. She had never seen a Frost Giant before, and her father had only described them as being very tall and blue.

Loki with blue skin…

Now that was an amusing thought. Sigyn tried to imagine him with his red eyes and blue skin, and the result was rather comical. A single giggle bubbled up and she couldn't keep it in. Loki looked at her with a sigh and an amused twinkle in his eyes.

"You are being anything but helpful today. Why are you staring at me this time?"

"No reason. I just had a silly thought." Sigyn excused. "So are there any other places that you will allow me to visit besides the Great Marketplace?"

Loki leaned back in his seat.

"Oh no you don't. I am not letting you off so easily. Please, do share your ever so amusing thought with me."

"I was just imagining what I will look like walking amongst the dwarves. I might seem like a giant to them!" She lied with ease.

Loki smirked at her.

"A slight exaggeration I think. The dwarfs are used to seeing real giants, and practically every other species the Nine Realms have to offer, since they trade frequently with them. Of course you would have known this if you had been paying attention to me."

"Now you know how I felt while wedding planning." Sigyn pointed out.

Loki shrugged before changing the subject ever so slightly.

"And yes, the only place you will get to visit is the Great Marketplace if your only other suggestions are the dark alleys that I have had to navigate previously."

"But I thought you said that we were going to do something a bit more exciting than sitting around the palace!"

"No, I said adventurous, and traipsing about in the circles of the underworld doesn't qualify as either. It would qualify as madness."

"But you would be there to protect me." Sigyn charmed while batting her eyelashes and grabbing his arm.

"Yes, I am here to protect you, and the best way for me to do that would be for me not to take you into harm's way in the first place."

Sigyn pouted her bottom lip, causing Loki to sigh.

"Why can't you just be content with shopping like any other reasonable female?"

"Because if I was you wouldn't love me so much." Sigyn pointed out.

Loki sat quietly in thought for a few moments, and Sigyn sat peacefully with her head resting on his arm.

"Would you like to see the forges?" He finally asked.

"Do you even need to ask?" Sigyn replied.

"No, I suppose not." Loki answered with a grin. "I am not going to promise I can get us in, but if it makes you happy I will at least try."

Sigyn showed Loki just how appreciative she was for the effort, and then they determined it was time to call for dinner to be brought to them. They indeed retired early that evening, and spent the next few days in the library or in the gardens. The peaceful atmosphere was nice, but Sigyn was beginning to feel a tad restless. She sensed Loki was beginning to feel the same way, and her suspicions were confirmed the morning they were going to sneak off to Nidavellir. Loki awoke her before the sun had risen, and bid her to get dressed. He had warned her that the home of the dwarves was underground, and therefore cooler than she would probably like. Sigyn dressed quickly and braided her hair in a coronet. Once she was ready Loki handed her one of her cloaks and threw his around his shoulders. He pulled his hood up to hide his features and Sigyn mimicked his actions. It was obvious that Loki was practiced at this, and it set Sigyn's heart a flutter. Her dark warrior seemed nothing short of dashing in her eyes. Loki smiled and placed his hand on her cheek.

"You still blush like a maiden, My Lady." He commented dotingly.

Sigyn felt her cheeks burn even brighter at the observation, setting Loki's eyes to twinkle in delight. He grabbed Sigyn's hand and led her out of the palace using passages that Sigyn assumed were supposed to be for the servants. She followed him silently down to the bank of one of the lakes and uncovered a small flying vessel that could fit two, possibly three, people comfortably. It looked old, but Loki seemed to think it was safe to fly so she didn't mention her fears that it didn't appear to be the most reliable mode of transportation she had ever seen. Instead, she brought up a different topic.

"Won't Haimdall know what we are doing and inform someone?"

"No, as far as Haimdall knows we are still in our bed sleeping soundly, and we will go about our normal daily routine."

"How?"

"Projections of ourselves of course."

"You can make a projection of me? And you can control them from a different Realm?"

"Yes, to both. Now if I was having them do anything extremely complicated I wouldn't be able to, but merely having them walk around the gardens and talking in the library is child's play. As long as no one touches them our cover will hold."

Sigyn didn't question Loki's word on it since she knew very little about magic, and he was sort of an expert. Even Frigga had noted that his powers were greater than hers, and Sigyn had watched her bring him back from the brink of death. Loki assisted her into the small flying craft, and he skillfully navigated it up and over the body of water. They began to pick up speed and Sigyn noticed that they were heading for the side of a mountain face. The closer they got the faster they went, and Sigyn looked up to her husband. What had he said about this passage being perfectly safe? The faster they approached the more she began to doubt that statement.

"Trust me." Loki replied to Sigyn's unspoken worry.

She nodded her head, but held on to her seat a little tighter none-the-less. Just when she was certain that they were going to crash into the mountain, she spotted a small opening. She judged their distance from it, and relaxed slightly when she realized that they would make it in the fissure just fine. The trip through the passage was a strange thing. At first it seemed nothing but a small tunnel lined with crystal, but a blue light soon overtook her vision. The light faded and their little hover boat shot out of the portal and skidded to a stop. Sigyn was grateful that she had thought to grab on to the sturdiest thing she could find because without her death grip on it she was fairly certain she would have been thrown from the boat entirely.

"Are you all right?" Loki asked while looking down on her in concern.

"Yes, perfectly fine." She assured with a smile.

Loki's muscles relaxed at her reassurance.

"Your first time travelling through any passage is always somewhat intense." Loki explained before hopping out of their craft and offering his hand to Sigyn.

She took it and allowed him to assist her out of the craft as well. He pulled it over to a little nook and hid it.

"The market won't open for a little while longer." Loki stated when he returned to stand by Sigyn.

"Then we can make our way slowly there." Sigyn suggested.

Loki nodded and held out his arm for Sigyn to take. She grabbed it and cuddled up next to him as they walked. He had been right, the caverns of Nidavellir were far cooler than she liked, but the strange atmosphere held a sense of wonder for Sigyn as they meandered closer towards the Great Marketplace. The facades of the homes seemed to be carved into the very walls of the cavern, and when Sigyn pointed it out Loki nodded.

"They are. The dwarves carved out their living spaces from the rock itself instead of building separate standing structures."

"Does the passage we used only travel here?"

"No, I can use it to go to any Realm that I know of, and probably others that I don't."

"How? How can you control where you land?"

"Much in the same way Haimdall can control the Bifrost. He knows the paths of Yggdrasil's branches and can pick out which of those paths leads to which Realm."

"So you just do it through your mind?"

"Not exactly. The Bifrost is a stationary passage that pulls you in and the destination is set before you even enter. The passage we used requires movement to activate it, and even then the destination is not set."

"You are telling me that we were just lucky that it shot us out in Nidavellir?"

"No, you can reach specific and intentional destinations. The passage itself simply releases high levels of energy when activated, a destination is reached when the user influences that energy with an outside source to deliver them to a specific location. If they didn't, the energy of the passage would simply kill them. My former informant used some sort of relic to harness the energy, I simply use magic."

"You use magic to direct where you come out at."

"I use magic to coax the energy along the branch of Yggdrasil that I wish to travel." Loki clarified.

"So how many times did you end up in the wrong spot before finally figuring out how to 'coax' the energy?" Sigyn inquired playfully.

"I am not sure, I lost count after about the hundredth time." Loki replied with a sheepish grin.

She wasn't sure if Loki was exaggerating or not, but it didn't really matter to her either way. The closer to the market they got, the more life they began to see. Sigyn watched wide-eyed as they crossed paths with dwarves, elves, giants, and other races she didn't recognize. Some seemed Asgardian, but Sigyn wasn't sure that they were. Loki walked her around in what Sigyn knew was circles for a while longer.

"Is there any reason you are stalling?" Sigyn finally inquired.

"I want you to see the market when it is bustling with life, and it is still a bit early for that." He justified.

"Then you could have at least taken me to a few different areas instead of walking us mindlessly around the exact same route."

Loki smirked.

"I would have loved to, but there are a few places here that it would be best for me to avoid."

Sigyn raised an eyebrow, but didn't press him to explain. It was obvious that Loki had gotten himself into a bit of trouble here while working with the War Council.

"And are we going to run into this problem on every Realm we visit?"

"Not all of them."

"Just most of them." She echoed knowingly.

"I promise this is the worst of them."

Sigyn shrugged.

"I don't mind, it makes me feel like I am living on the edge. It is a bit exciting really."

"Well let's not go looking to make it too exciting."

The two of them walked a little longer in silence before Loki finally guided her the rest of the way to the Great Marketplace. A sharp intake of breath accompanied Sigyn's first glimpse of the impressive sight. There were merchants and buyers everywhere. The wares of the dwarves glistened and shone in the torchlight, and the sound of haggling echoed loudly through the hall. It seemed to Sigyn that this marketplace was a Realm all of its own. Loki gave her a little tug on the arm.

"Do you merely wish to stare at it all day, or would you rather join the fray?" He asked lightheartedly.

Sigyn let her hand slip down from the crook of his arm to grasp his hand, and she pulled him excitedly into the marketplace. She knew she must have looked like an eager child as she drug Loki around the different venders. There were weapons, jewelry, and decorative items of extreme beauty and fine craftsmanship everywhere she turned so she hardly knew where to look first. Loki didn't protest as she dragged him from one vender to another. She assumed he was just grateful that she wasn't begging him to show her all the dangerous places he had been.

"Are you simply going to gawk at everything, or are you actually going to purchase something?" Loki finally asked.

"May I buy something?" Sigyn inquired.

"As long as we can get it back to Asgard, yes. It would be a shame for you to come all this way and not make a purchase."

With this reassurance, Sigyn began to look around the vendors with a new mindset. She observed the interactions between the merchants and the buyers intently. Not only was she going to buy something, she was going to do it like an experienced shopper. Haggling was going to be fun. How often did she get to test her ability to manipulate people? Loki caught the mischievous glint in her eyes and sighed.

"I seem to have rubbed off on you too much, My Lady. I believe I have created a monster." He noted before allowing Sigyn to pull him off once more.