Soundtrack to this chapter: "Dumbledore's Farewell" by Nicholas Hooper and "Corynorhinus" by Hans Zimmer.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

"Sif! Lady Sif!"

She looked up from Darcy's bedside immediately as a soldier hurried into the Great Hall, panting.

"What is it?" she demanded. "What's wrong?"

The soldier put his hands on his knees, gasping for breath. Sif's heart pounded. We've lost. Or else one of the Warriors has been killed. Oh no...

The soldier smiled broadly. "It's over, milady. The...the jotun are retreating. We heard the blast of the horn, and they all turned around to return the way they came. Fandral sent me tell you. They were saying something about a portal when I left."

Sif's eyes flashed. "Thor," she said tersely. "He must have negotiated something with the giants."

"They're coming back?" Darcy said, sitting up abruptly.

"No...Darcy, you need to lie down," Sif said warningly, pushing her back into the bed, "you're going to wear yourself out again if you get up too soon."

"Then I'll just drink another potion later," Darcy said breathlessly, struggling to break past Sif's arms. "Please," she said, pouting. "I want to see them."

Sif made a "tcha" of annoyance. "Why you want to see his smug face so badly is beyond me," she said flatly. But she let go of Darcy, grimacing as the girl dashed from the room. It was too simple, she thought to herself. The war couldn't have ended so easily, from mere hours of negotiation. Bracing herself for whatever she found when she rejoined the troops, she left the room stiffly.

The General cast his dagger aside with disgust. It hit the wall with a thunderous crack, and a shimmering portal appeared in its place.

"Take him and go," the General snarled. "Get him out of my sight."

Thor didn't respond. He stared blankly at the ground for a long moment, his eyes fixed on Loki's body. He was gone. This time, there was no doubt. He was gone. Forever. Lifeless. Dead. He distantly felt a hand on his shoulder, and realized that tears were streaming down his face. He turned to look at his father, more anguished than he had ever seen him before.

"Thor," he said quietly, "come. We must go."

Thor shook his head, protesting incoherently. Odin's eyes turned steely as he turned Thor to look him in the eye. "Thor," he said firmly. "We cannot stay here. We must return to Asgard."

Thor's face contorted with rage as he spun on his heel to the General. "You monster!" he roared. "You vile, horrid animal, look what you have done!"

"Leave now," the General snapped, "or I shall seal the portal and you will be forced to remain here, leaving the body to freeze into the canyon. I suggest you run along. My hospitality and my patience are beginning to wear thin."

Thor glared at him, every fiber of his being burning with anguished fury. After a parting glower, his face softened. He bent down to scoop up Loki's body in his arms. He felt his eyes tearing up with newfound fervor, and he began to weep silently as he stood and carried his brother towards the portal.

Odin followed in his wake, looking somber.

"Farewell, Odin," jeered the General.

Odin stopped for a moment, as if considering a reply. Gritting his teeth, he followed his two sons through the portal, as his heart tore open along the chasm that had only just healed. Loki was gone again. And this time, he knew for sure: Loki was dead.

The sun was setting as Jane and Darcy ran to greet the returning heroes.

Darcy suppressed a smile. She could already imagine the things that Loki was going to say when she told him about the spells she had cast-not to mention the fact that she had broken into his room. She tried not to giggle as she evisioned the look on his face when he saw that his mattress had been slit open.

Jane skidded to a stop at the front doors thrown open at the front of the palace, smiling. "Thor!" she shouted joyfully, picking up the hem of her skirt and hurrying down the stairs towards him. And then…she saw his face, downcast and tearful. Her eyes widened. "Oh no…"

Darcy walked through the door slowly, unable to run as her exhaustion finally caught up with her. She saw Jane's face and her smile faded. Her eyes found Thor, and shot immediately to his arms.

"No!" she whispered, stumbling forward. She clapped her hands to her face, instinctively trying to hold back the wails and tears that threatened to burst forth. "Oh God, Loki, no!" she screamed.

Jane's lip quivered. She went to Darcy, her own eyes brimming with tears as she put an arm around the girl. "Shh," she said quietly, stroking her hair.

Darcy burst into tears, burying her face in Jane's shoulder. She didn't even care that she was getting tears all over Jane's dress. She had to get his agony out. It felt like someone had reached inside of her and torn something away, leaving a gaping, burning hole where her heart had been, leaving something in its place: pain. She felt like she was burning and freezing at the same time. And heavy. She was so heavy. She was going to sink into the ground and keep sinking until she hit the core of the planet. It was the sensation of falling, like climbing the stairs in the dark, and expecting one more step, except instead of crashing to the ground, she kept falling, plummetting through the air, her stomach knotting and doing sommersaults.

"This isn't real," she blubbered, choking on her desperate attempts to breathe. She felt like she was drowning. "This is another mind game. It has to be. THIS CAN'T BE REAL!" Before Jane could stop her, she broke free of her embrace and staggered down the stairs, practically hanging off the railing for support. At the base of the stairs, she stumbled forward a few helpless steps and threw her arms around Thor, trying to get closer to Loki's now lifeless body. Thor, understanding, lowered him to the ground gently, his own cheeks soaked with tears as he cried silently. Jane came to stand beside him, and he leaned into her, holding her as he wept. Odin put a hand on Thor's shoulder, not crying, just looking on with sorrow in his eyes.

Darcy knelt beside Loki's body, still struggling to breathe through her tears as she looked at him: his skin even paler than normal, his eyes closed as if to suggest that he were merely sleeping. "Damn it, Loki! Damn it! You promised me you'd come back! YOU PROMISED!" Her voice cracked in an angry, hollow scream, shocking the others from their tears for a moment. And then she couldn't speak anymore. She broke into wordless sobs, collapsing into a heap on Loki's chest, her hands gripping his shoulders desperately as she held him, unable to comprehend how he could possibly be gone forever.

She cried for what felt like hours, though it may have been only minutes. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, her tears began to subside. She couldn't cry anymore. Her tears had simply run out.

Thor cleared his throat quietly. "He," he said thickly, "he said before he died that he wanted you to smile. He said that you have a beautiful smile."

Darcy shook her head, letting out a choking sob that was so far gone it bordered on a laugh. "How could I smile?" she whispered, her voice breaking. "He's dead. He's gone. Forever." But through her tears, she forced a smile, biting her lip to hold back a whimper. He was still so beautiful. She kept expecting his eyes to open, his little angelic smile to turn crooked and mischievous, but his face remained impassive to her tears. "You promised," she breathed. She buried her face in Loki's chest as she was overcome by a new wave of tears.

Suddenly, as she lay there, she felt something against her cheek. A bump. Not a ridge in his chest, but a bump. Like a baby kicking from inside a mother's womb…like a heartbeat.

"Never…broke…my…promise."

Darcy's stomach dropped. She raised her head from Loki's chest with a gasp, her mind reeling. She half-expected to meet bright green eyes sparkling with mischief, but his eyes remained closed. She wondered for a moment if it was just her mind playing tricks on her again. Her heart clenched in wretched disappointment. But then, miraculously, slowly, she felt another heartbeat.

"Never…said…I'd come back alive," he whispered hoarsely. "Only…that…I'd come back."

Her eyes widened. She traced his cheekbones gently, her heart beginning to pound as his eyelids slid open, his jade green eyes peering up at her sleepily. "Loki?" she murmured breathlessly. His only response was a blink and a small half-smile. She kissed him fiercely. She felt him freeze in surprise, and then his lips yielded to her, his eyes fluttering slightly, his heart beginning to hammer against his chest as it had before. His fingers found the nape of her neck, tangling in her hair and holding her close. He promised. And all at once, she was furious. They broke apart.

She slapped him.

"OW!" he said sharply, more from shock than from pain, rubbing his cheek in bewilderment. "Why did you do that? It's bad enough that I've been dead for an hour without you hitting me!"

Darcy pounded her fists against his armor angrily, her weak blows bouncing off his chest like rain. She squeezed her words in between hits. "You...son...of...a...bitch!" Her knees gave out, and she couldn't remain upright to vent her fury on him anymore. She collapsed weakly on top of him, shaking with something between weeping and hysterical laughter.

Loki smoothed her hair out gently, confusion written all over his face. "Arf," he said half-heartedly. He frowned, glancing at Thor, who was smiling down at him like he couldn't believe his eyes. "Thor, not to take my daughter's name in vain, but..." He shook his head, exhaling sharply. "What the bloody hell just happened?"

"I think I have a theory as to the nature of your ressurection," Odin said, smiling. "But we'll have plenty of time for that later. First, I think we'd best get everyone cleaned up. You all look a bit weary from the day's events, understandably so."