Loki did not see Aislinn the next day, or the next. He asked questions about her discretely, but no one wanted to answer him. Eventually he used an illusion spell to make himself look like Thor, for all that stepping into his brother's skin made him feel a little sick. As soon as he donned his disguise and approached Sigrid, she was all too willing to tell him anything.
"Aislinn has been sick, and does not wish to leave her room." She said, before leaning towards Loki and whispering confidentially, "Or, that's what she says. She might have been feeling poorly that first morning; you saw how drunk she got at the midsummer festival, could you believe it? Anyway I think she feels fine now, but she's too embarrassed to talk to anyone after the scene she made…." Sigrid could have gone on in this way for an hour or more, but Loki excused himself in his brother's voice, and vanished around a corner as quickly as possible in order to return to his own appearance.
Loki felt very conflicted about what he should do. He could not send Aislinn anything or visit her openly without her handmaidens becoming involved, and yet, he felt like any kind of trick in Aislinn's presence would do more harm than good. In the end, he made the decision to teleport into the darkest corner of Aislinn's room and try to get her attention without the maids noticing.
Her bedroom's layout was essentially the same as his own, but a little smaller. He was surprised, then, when he arrived inside Aislinn's bathing room instead of her bed chamber. Thankfully, the room was empty. He cloaked himself in invisibility and walked around the corner of the door, slipping past without disturbing it into the dressing room.
Aislinn sat there on a chair, looking downcast. She was flipping her dagger up in the air end over end, the blue gem winking in the light. She would catch it by the point and throw it again and again. Loki skirted around her and the objects in the room until he reached the door that connected her dressing room to her bedroom. He looked through and saw Tofa making the bed, and so he withdrew quickly and shut the door between the rooms.
Aislinn started when the door closed on its own, and her hand did not flick out to catch the knife. It thudded into the floor point first, and she wrenched it out and held it before her, unsure.
"It's only me." Loki appeared in a swirl of light.
Aislinn stifled a shriek of alarm and then hissed, "Loki, what are you doing here?" as she dropped her dagger on the dressing table.
"Come with me." He said, holding out a hand.
"Wha-why?" Aislinn stuttered.
"I want to talk to you," Loki whispered, "Somewhere we are less likely to be interrupted." Looking doubtful, but taking his hand none the less, Aislinn found herself in the midst of a teleportation spell. They arrived at their destination in the blink of an eye, but it took Aislinn several moments longer to realize where they were. Loki had brought her to a terrace garden on a large balcony of the palace, a place she had yet to visit. It was beautiful, affording an unparalleled view of the sea, and overgrowing with sweet smelling flowers. Loki walked away a few steps, casting a spell over the heavy door handle that caused a web of energy to flow around it, locking it more securely than any bolt could do.
He stood back up as it was finished, and walked back to Aislinn saying, "I thought we should talk, but you have not been coming to the library."
Aislinn looked sadder still and would not look at him, turning away and mumbled, "I am not sure what else there is to say."
Confused, Loki asked "What do you mean?"
"I acted like an idiot, and I threw myself at you like a childish fool. You were right to reject me." Aislinn put her hand to her face, and continued "Just leave me alone. There's no point in making this worse for either of us." She started to push past him to reach the door, but Loki stepped in her way.
"Did you not mean the things you said to me?"
Aislinn, now obviously crying softly replied, "It is not like it matters now. Please just let me go."
"But it does matter. It matters to me." Loki tentatively reached out and put his hand on her shoulder, trying to look into her face as she tried to avoid him.
"Fine, yes. I meant it. Have your laugh." She spat and tried to brush his hand away, but he caught her chin instead. He pulled gently up, so that she could not look away.
"You cannot remember everything from that evening clearly, can you?" Loki said, almost at a whisper.
"I remember enough. I tried to kiss you and you stopped me and left." said Aislinn, her eyes flitting back and forth over his face, trying to read something in Loki's expression. When she saw him smile and start to chuckle she felt anger rising in her blood and was tensing to strike out at him when he said;
"You are not remembering what came next." Aislinn's expression went blank as she tried to puzzle out what Loki meant by that. He, who had rejected her advances and had been the source of her misery ever since… he was standing so close, and his hand, no longer holding her chin, was cupping her face tenderly. "I told you something then. You really do not remember?" Aislinn shook her head no slightly.
Loki took a deep breath, and hoped his silver tongue still had skill enough for this. "I told you that I was afraid the wine was making you say things, offer things that you were not ready to-"
"You thought I was insincere?" Aislinn's eyebrows knotted together and she looked angry.
"No, drink never makes a person say untruths. It merely can make them say things they are not ready to speak yet." Aislinn started to step away before Loki hurriedly said, "But that is not the point. I told you that night as you were falling asleep to come and find me the next day. I asked you to tell me how you felt again, and if you did…"
Aislinn froze, overcome with Loki's words. "W-what are you saying?" said Aislinn, unsure.
"I am saying 'I love you too.'" Aislinn's beautiful face lit up, despite the tear still trickling down her cheek. Loki wiped it away with his thumb, and took a half step closer. He leaned down, resting his forehead against hers. He was about to kiss her, when he teasingly backed off and said, "Do I have my lady's permission-?"
"Just kiss me!" Aislinn gasped, trembling slightly under his touch. He leaned down to comply, smiling as he did so.
Their first kiss was light, lips barely brushing, like breath on skin. Loki stepped closer once again, wrapping an arm around Aislinn's waist to hold her against his body, and their lips met again. She was surprised how soft Loki's lips were and how tender his kiss felt; nothing at all like his brother's forced gesture. Aislinn slid her hands up his chest, and cast her arms around his neck as they kissed. Loki moved his hand to the back of her head, burying his fingers in her silky hair as he held her close. Loki began to run his hand up and down the gentle curve of her spine, from between her shoulder blades to the small of her back. It filled her with a tingling, shuddering feeling, and she moaned softly as she pressed harder into his embrace. The sound, small that it was, threated to drive Loki insane. He kissed her with more passion, his tongue flicking out to run along her bottom lip. Her lips were just beginning to part under his when a banging came at the door.
They sprang apart at the sound, startled, although Loki kept his arm around her waist, not letting her step away. Playfully, he pushed her in front of him until she stumbled backwards into the wall, and he whispered the words of an invisibility spell into her neck, his tickling breath causing her to shiver, pinned as she was.
As they vanished from sight, Loki released the spell holding the door. It crashed open, causing a guard to stumble through suddenly. He looked around the terrace for a moment, and then called her name. This made Aislinn stand up and push Loki off her gently. Loki made a frustrated sound, but she slid past him anyway.
Dismissing the illusion from around herself, she called out to the guard: "I am here, what is it?"
"Lady Aislinn! There you are."
"Can I be of any help?"
"Your handmaidens were concerned, because you disappeared from your room and did not go out the main door."
"I only came here. It is alright." Aislinn said.
"Your face is very flushed… we were told you were ill. May I assist you back to your room?" Aislinn blanched at that, putting her hand up to her cheek and finding it red hot with her excitement.
"We?'" Aislinn asked, dreading the answer.
"Yes, all the guards were asked to look for you."
Aislinn groaned and said, "Very well. Give me a moment and I will come with you." The guard looked unsure, but stepped back into the hall, closing the door behind him.
Loki appeared beside Aislinn, looking sheepish and nervous.
"I think I should go." Said Aislinn, Loki looked down at the floor awkwardly, unsure if she might be upset with him. Aislinn stretched up on the tips of her toes and kissed Loki softly, before starting towards the door.
"May I see you, tonight?" Loki called after her.
"Come after Tofa and Sigrid have left?" Said Aislinn. "The last thing I need is another round of guards searching for me in the same day."
She disappeared through the door, leaving Loki alone. He touched his fingertips to his lips, and let out a shuddering, calming breath. Part of him could not believe it had happened. He remained in the garden for over an hour, lost in hazy, happy thoughts.
...
Okay, I need a wee bit of advice/opinions. I'm considering writing some smut in upcoming chapters, but I've never done it before and I'm worried it may take something away from this particular story. Please let me know your thoughts on this! Reviews make me very happy, so don't hold back!