Chapter 3

"Mom! Wait!" she called as she found herself running after her mother towards the palace. She didn't even take the time to look around at the beauty on display as she followed after her mother.

They were stopped at the gates of the palace. One of the guards recognized her mother and allowed them to pass through. Her mother led them to the throne room where they were again stopped. Darcy was beginning to wonder how all the guards seemed to know who her mother was even though she had been gone for over two decades.

"Darcy, remember you will be addressed as the Lady Sigyn Berensdottir," her mother said as she turned towards her. Looking more closely at her mother, Darcy noticed that she was wearing some kind of amulet around her neck.

"I remember, though I can't say I will answer to the name, Mom."

Keeren, her mother, nodded in understanding. She had not expected her daughter to answer to her birth name as she had only known one name basically all her life and it was the one she identified with.

The great doors opened and the two of them stepped into the throne room and for Darcy a whole new life.

Xxx

The morning that his betrothed was to return to Asgard, Loki went to talk with his mother, Ronin following close behind.

"Mother, please at least tell me what she looks like!" Loki pleaded with the queen.

"No, my son. You must fall in love with her when you see her and not with the image in your head. You have seen her only once before and if you search your memories you will know when for it was not all that long ago." Frigga told him cryptically.

Loki took the bait and began searching through all his memories of his time on Midgard and could not remember seeing the woman his mother
insisted that he had seen. He finally gave up and walked to the hall with his mother on his arm as they went to greet the woman he was to
marry.

He stood by the throne with Ronin standing close behind as stoic as Loki had ever seen the warrior. He wondered absently what the man was
thinking about but shrugged the thought away. However, when the door opened to reveal two strangely dressed women he saw the man's face take on one of recognition.

Ronin saw his mother and the woman he supposed was his sister walk into the room and felt like crying. It had been years since he had last seen his mother and his sister had only been but a babe. She had grown into a very beautiful woman and he felt the need to warn the prince against trying anything with his sister that would not be condoned until they were married.

"My Prince, you do anything to hurt her, I will hunt you down and make you pay," he whispered as the two woman came closer to the throne.

Loki was a bit surprised by the warning but heeded it nonetheless. Ronin was known to take his threats seriously and Loki had no doubt he would
do unspeakable harm to him if he did do anything to hurt the older man's sister.

It was at that moment Darcy's cobalt eyes met the piercing green of Loki's. They both stared at each other for the briefest of moments before she
broke the contact and faced the throne and the man who sat on it.

"Allfather, may I introduce to you my daughter, Lady Sigyn Berensdottir," Keeren said kneeling respectfully before the king.

"Lady Sigyn, welcome home," Odin said with a smile towards the younger woman.

"Your Majesty, I would appreciate it if you were to call me Darcy, as it is the name I have gone by my entire life and the one I most identify with,"
Darcy said with a small bow to her head.

"Of course my dear. I understand that your mother changed your name when you went to Midgard. You will be called whatever you wish, my Lady."

"Thank you," Darcy said politely.

"Lady Darcy, may I be the one to introduce you to your father and brother then?" Odin asked as he motioned the two aforementioned men forward
with a smile.

Ronin and Beren stepped forward and Keeren turned to find her son and husband standing there with smiles on their faces. She broke propriety and
ran to her husband whom she had not seen in two decades and embraced him tightly. Beren looked back towards the king and whispered his thanks and Odin only smiled. Ronin also embraced his mother before looking over to the sister he had missed seeing grow up. Walking over to her, he stopped before her as she held a look of trepidation.

Darcy had seen the man who was before her, standing near Loki when she had first walked into the room. Now that he was positioned before her she was a bit intimidated by his sheer size and couldn't believe that he was her brother.

"Sigyn…. I mean Darcy," he began and Darcy knowing now that this was her brother threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"I have missed you, Sister," he whispered into her ear before pulling back.

Darcy wanted to say something, anything at that moment but she couldn't find her voice.

"Lady Darcy," Odin began and Darcy knew that this was it. She was just about to be presented to the man that she loathed yet found herself mildly attracted too.

"Yes, your Majesty?" she asked though she already knew what was coming.

"I understand that you have just been informed of your betrothal to my son Loki, am I right in understanding?"

"Yes, your Majesty. You would be right in that assumption," she answered then waited to see what the king would say next.

"And do you understand that you will be marrying him soon?"

Now this came as a surprise to her. She had expected time to try to get out of the farce of an engagement but that was not to be she could see that
now. "I did not know that your Majesty. I was only informed that I was betrothed to him, I was not told that I would be marrying him so soon after my return."

"I will give you one month to get to know him and then the wedding will take place,' Odin decreed and with that Loki stepped forward to claim the hand of his soon to be bride.

It had taken him all of two seconds to place where he had seen her before after their eye contact from earlier. She was his brother's paramours assistant. He had placed her when he remembered sending the Destroyer to Midgard to kill his brother before his takeover plan of the same realm.

"Lady Darcy, it is my pleasure to finally meet you," he said kissing her hand and sending her heart into palpitations.

"Likewise," she managed to get out through her suddenly dry throat.

He leaned in closer to her and whispered, "Don't think about trying to find a way out of this my dear. You are mine and we will be getting married by the end of the month."

Darcy wanted to run away then. His voice was doing things to her that she had never felt before. She felt something pool in her lower region and wondered what it was but it had appeared at his softly spoken words. She wondered very briefly if what she was feeling as desire but shrugged it off, for she told herself that it would be a cold day in Hell before she felt that emotion for the man standing so close to her. She swallowed hard as her well thought out plan was fully and completely shot down. She knew that Loki, was not going to allow her to wiggle out of their betrothal and looking over at her now reunited family, saw that they were all smiling at them and knew that they were going to be of no help. She resigned herself to the inevitable then. She was going to have to marry the man standing before her. She really did have no choice in the matter or any say.
So, she had only one month to fall in love with the fallen prince who she knew would do anything within his vast power to make her do just that. She already found him to be charming; a fact that she already figured to be dangerous to her health.