Chapter 3: Jotunheim and a Broken Heart

Immediately, the palace went into panic mode. The frost giants were not allowed in Asgard. That was part of the peace treaty created after the war many years ago. But as of now, the treaty has been broken. Odin, and his two sons rushed to the relics vault kept underneath the palace. Lady Frigga kept the people calm, and sent them home. She reasurred everyone that they would be safe, and word would be sent as to when Thor would be properly coronated. After the palace was mostly empty, she led Celestrial into her bedroom to discuss details of what was to happen. The ladies decided that Thor would become king when the sun vanished from the sky, and the wedding would preceed as planned. Once they finished their discussion, Celestrial got up to leave, when she was stopped by the queen. "Celestrial, I am so glad Thor found love with you. You are one of the most well mannered, beautiful, and strong ladies that I know. I wish you two the best," she ended with a large smile. She walked up to her future daughter, kissed her on the forehead, and hugged her.

As the younger woman opened the door, the king was standing there as if he was about to open the door himself. She quickly bowed and stated, "My king, I was just leaving. I hope everything is alright." "It is alright, for now. Go and rest, for I still plan to have you as my daughter tomorrow," he breathlessly replied. She could tell he was getting too old to be running around and chasing invaders out. He knew this too, which is another reason Thor was to be king. She bowed again as she walked out into the throne room. Thinking of the man she was to marry, she walked towards a large balcony on the side of room. Looking out, she noticed several people on horseback riding towards the bifrost. It is a machanism that allows quick travel to other realms. She watched as Heimdall, the all-seeing gatekeeper, let them pass. The bifrost started to spin, signifying that it was about to transport whoever was in front of the portal hole. A bright, rainbow colored beam of light shot out from the side. After watching the light fade away, and the spinning come to a stop, Celestrial left her spot on the balcony to find something to eat. When she got to a small feast hall however, she noticed a table had been flipped over and all the food was scattered on the floor. "Must have been Thor," she said to nobody in particular.

Suddenly, she heard a heated argument coming from the throne room. In a matter of seconds, she heard feet running along the marble floors. Quickly, she went back to the balcony to see the king riding very fast along the rainbow bridge that connects Asgard to the bifrost. Something told her this was not good. Almost as soon as the mechanism shot out its light beam, it shot it out again to receive whoever was in big trouble. Squinting her eyes to get a good look, she saw Sif, Volstagg, and Hogun running towards the palace carrying an injured Fandral. She left the balcony once again to get to the healing rooms as soon as possible. "OW! Don't run so fast! Please," she could hear Fandral down the hall. "My lady, help us get him to the healing rooms," said a worried Sif. As soon as they got there, the nurses went to work on his injury. It looked as if something had stabbed him through the shoulder. As they started to dab the blood, the nurses sent the others away before handing Hogun a small container, pointed at Volstagg and whispered, "For his arm. Apply only once." The four of them made their way to a lounge area with a fire pit in the middle of the floor. As soon as Celestrial sat down, a guard came to escort her to the throne room. As the two got closer, she could hear Lady Frigga sobbing. She walked in with a bow, "My king, you have sent for me? What is it tha-" Odin held up his hand to stop her. "Lady Celestrial, did you know of Thors' intentions?" "My king, I know not what intentions you speak of.." she trailed off, uncertain of what was going on. "You are telling me that Thor said nothing to you of Jotunheim?" She shook her head. "Well, at least you are saved a punishment."

"My son reacted to the intrusion of the frost giants in a negative way. He led his brother, Lady Sif, and the warriors three to the cold of Jotunheim. He seeked out war. Fandral and Volstagg were injured, but if I had not been told by Heimdall, they could have all been killed. I could not make peace whilst I was there, so we are now at war with the Jotuns. As punishment for his foolish actions, I took away Thors' power, his ability to wield Mjonir, and banished him to Midgard. Only when he learns humility can he return to us. I am not happy with what I have done, but I did it for a reason. I am sorry for what this has done to you. You may wish to stay in the palace until his return, or you may return to your family. If you do decide to go home however, you have my permission to come back at any time. I still think of you as my daughter Celestrial, and I eagerly await the day you wed my son. You may go now. Dinner will be served soon."

At that she was dismissed. She walked out, and the doors were closed behind her. She just stood there, unsure of what happened. With tears forming in her eyes, she slowly made her way to her bed chambers. Unable to see where her feet led her, she bumped into somebody walking the opposite direction. "Prince Loki," she looked up in surprise, "please forgive me." Looking down into her soft eyes, he quietly replied, "Always." He continued walking towards his destination, leaving her wondering if anything was real. Thor had been banished on the day he was supposed to be king, and the next day she was supposed to marry him. But those plans are gone, and now, Loki was kind to her. Thinking it was just lack of sleep, she kept on to her room. As she opened the door, she noticed a roll of parchment tied with green ribbons laying on the corner of her bed. She gently picked it up, sat on the bed, and opened it slowly with curious eyes. Her gaze scanned over the words;

My dearest Celestrial,

Please, forgive me. It is my fault that Thor has been banished. After we left the relics vault, I talked to him about how the Jotuns may try to cross our borders again. That statement was what drove him to travel to the frozen realm and fight. I tried to stop him, but you know how he gets. Again, I am dreadfully sorry for the sorrow and grief I have caused you.

Yours Truly,

Loki

P.S. The offer I made several nights ago still stands.

Again, she wondered if anything going on was real. And what offer was he talking about... "Oh...oh! How dare he? His brother has been gone not even a day, and here he is trying to court me!" Infuriated, she stormed out of her room to find him. It didn't take her long though. He was in his favorite thinking spot, one of the larger, higher level balconies. If he could not be found anywhere else, he would be here. "Loki, how could you.." Hate filling her voice. "My lady, I thought you were going to sleep?" He didn't look confused though, it was almost as if he had expected this. "I was," she snapped back, "but I found something laying on the edge of my bed. What do you mean by all of this?" "Please Cellie," "Don't call me that! That is the name only my love can use." Crossing her arms, she slumped against the wall already tired from the day's events.

Loki wanted her. He wanted to marry her, make love to her, and raise a family with her. And now that Thor was out of the picture, he could have her as well as Asgard. This was his chance to make her realize just how much she cares for him. "My lady," he whispered softly, "do you know why your name is Celestrial?" "What does this have to do with the letter you wrote?" She looked into his eyes with curiosty and decided to play along. "Because my parents loved the stars in the sky." "Ah, but that is not the only reason. You see, the root of your name is from the Latin word meaning 'heavenly', Celestial. Your mother wanted something different, something nobody else had. Adding an 'r' brought the meaning to 'heavenly stars', which in itself means beautiful stars. When you were born you were as beautiful as the stars, even though you still are, which is why you have the name Celestrial." She stood there amazed by how he knew about all this. Had he always known, or was this new information for his as well? "You certainly have done your studying Loki, but why does any of this matter to you?" He took her hands into his own, stepped in closer, and looked deep into her eyes, "Cellie, I love you. I have since we first met. Always, I have been jealous of Thor. He got everything, including you. Please listen to me, I did try to stop him. I even told Heimdall to go to Odin after we departed so that we could return safely." "Loki..." she tried to talk, but he had pressed his lips against hers.

His lips were cold, and the kiss was rough. He pulled away and smiled at her. This smile however, quickly faded when she slapped her hand across his face. Wide eyed, he looked down sadly to his hands. She followed his gaze and saw what it held. "Celestrial," he called as she ran off. She couldn't believe what he had just done, and was about to do. Running so fast that people were just blurs, she got to her room in no time. Plopping herself onto her soft red sheets, she began to cry. No emotion was held back. Thor was gone, maybe forever, Asgard was at war with the Jotuns, and Loki...just Loki. She cried so hard no noise came from her mouth. It was a silent sob.

Authors' Note: So, what do you think? Am I doing good here, or is it taking a turn for the worst? However you see it, leave a review! Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading, and I'll try to post the next chapter today as well.