Loki was very pleased with himself.

Asgard was slowly but steadily recovering from the battle against the Dark Elves. The palace was built up again, Thor was on Midgard with his woman, the Eather was safely brought away from Asgard and Loki - he was finally the King he always designed to be.
What did it matter if people thought he was actually Odin? Loki was a better ruler than Thor would ever have been once people payed him the respect he deserved.
Indeed, King Loki was happy. Thor had renounced to the Throne for once and for all, even admitting he cared about Loki, which actually made Loki the legal ruler of Asgard.

Loki casually sat on the golden Throne of Asgard, listening to the concerns of an old lord. It was boring, really, but Loki knew a strong ruler needed to take care of things even if they were dull.

Suddenly, a sharp little scream pierced through the lord's speech, followed by the sound of shattering porcelain.

Loki immediately searched the room for the source of the noises and spotted a young woman standing in the shadow of a marble column. She was wearing the dress of a servant, but the more striking was how she stared at Loki.

"Allfather?" the lord asked softly, but Loki ignored him.

The girl's eyes were widened, her mouth slightly opened, she looked like she had seen a ghost.

Even when Loki stared back at her, she didn't look away, shock and fear mixing on her face.

It was only then Loki realized she was indeed seeing a ghost - she was seeing Loki in his true form.
Loki suppressed a shiver. Perhaps he was being paranoid.

"What happened girl? What are you doing here?" Loki asked, mimicking Odin's way to speak.

For a very painful moment, Loki had no idea how to react.
What if she started screaming again, telling everyone he wasn't the true Allfather?
Again, it was possible he was misinterpreting the situation.

"Answer the Allfather, woman!" the old lord joined in.

Loki made a decision. If the girl lost one word about his true form, he would kill her and the lord immediately. He could not take any risk. So he waited for her to speak. A part of him still hoped he was mistaken, and that something else had shocked her.

„I…I… Apologies" she muttered, her pale face regaining some color.

OoOoO

Ylva's brain feverishly tried to find the right words.
The man on the thrones was not Odin Allfather. It was definitely Loki, the trickster god who had died in battle against Malekith. Black hair, green armour, lean figure, it all fit to his description.

Except it was not possible.
It could not be him.
Loki was dead.
Maybe Ylva was going crazy. Maybe she was so exhausted her brain was playing tricks on her.

He looked at her, his eyes green and piercing, and Ylva feared she would faint.
There was an something like an aura around him, like magic - but he was real. It was Loki Lauffeyson on the throne.

And now he radiated something else. Danger, Ylva thought.
She needed to do something, she decided, and the young woman finally awoke from her numbness.

"I.. I… Apologies" she muttered.

Ylva realized she had two possibilities: Tell everyone Loki was sitting on the throne of Asgard or play along with the trickster's illusion.

It felt like a hot weight dropping on her stomach. Her choice didn't matter. He would kill her anyways.

A part of her asked if her father would ever know who had killed her.
Loki and the lord were waiting for her to speak, and Ylva decided the trickster would be more merciful when she played along.

"I am so sorry. It's my first day here and I was blinded by the… greatness of the Allfather. Forgive me, please" she muttered, looking down to the floor and curtsying.

"You dropped the plates, stupid girl. Clean this up!" the lord commanded.

Ylva nodded and obeyed. She felt Loki's gaze almost physically on her.

"I can forgive your reaction to this" Loki gestured towards the great hall, "as you are new here. Yet you had no business here. You have disobeyed your commander"

Ylva's hands were shaking as she picked up the plates. It was over. Loki was going to kill her right on the spot. Would her remaines be sent back to her father? Would Loki stab her, slit her throat or kill her with magic?

"Guards, take her to her room and lock her in. That will teach you not to put your nose where it doesn't belong" Loki commanded.
The lord raised his eyebrows, surprised how severe Odin was to a servant girl.

Ylva didn't flinch when the guards grabbed her by her elbows. She didn't fight them.
Apparently, Loki was delaying the inevitable. It was logical, since Odin should not execute a servant girl in front of the lords and the guards.

Her room was small, but pretty. The blankets and pillows on her bed were light yellow, like the walls.
It wasn't not a harsh sentence to stay in the beautiful room, but Ylva knew there was more to follow. She burried her head in her hands, trying to tame the mess in her mind.

First, her father had the sudden idea to send her away. Then she moved into a completely unfamiliar surrounding, only to do something completely stupid on the first day.
But the worst was not that she had tried to see the Allfather. The worst was that somehow, she had been able to see past Loki's trickery.
And since no one was the least bit alarmed, she was apparently the only one to know.

For a moment, Ylva hesitated. Maybe she should try to escape the room and warn everyone. Although she had spent her life away from people, Kari loved babbling about the capitol and the royal family.

Ylva tried to reassemble all she knew about Thor's younger brother.

Loki had fallen into disgrace when tried to destroy Jotunheim and kept Thor from becoming King.

While everyone thought the Prince to be dead, he managed to bring a Chitauri army to Midgard, almost conquering the human race.
Yet she completely ignored how he managed to escape his prison and to somehow replace the Allfather.

It didn't matter, she told herself. Even with the little she knew about the Asgardian Prince, it was sure he would kill her for knowing his secret.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It would mean a lot to me if you'd leave a review :)
xoxo & Liebe Grüße