I present to you the third installment of "Through a broken mirror".
If there was one thing that could not be denied about Loki, then it was that he was proud. He was certain of his worth and convinced that nothing could ever hurt him. If anything, he was the one hurting others albeit unintentionally. And it was all good even when the Asgardians threw him veiled looks of distrust. It mattered little that his brother was stronger, the favourite son and the inheritor. That hadn't bothered him until he found he was Laufey's son. He had lost everything but his own sense of worth. That morphed his benign pride into unadulterated arrogance that threatened to pull him apart and drive him mad.
Just as quick as his world had been taken down it was rebuilt with the help of those who loved him even though he was what he was. Thor didn't give up, his parents, especially Frigga, held onto him and most importantly Darcy supported him. The human woman, who he had come to know as Darcy Lewis, stood by him after his defeat at the hands of the Avengers and helped knock some sense of reality into him. He was grateful for her persistence and tied a friendship to her. She was one of the few he counted as friends.
And as most friendships between males and females go, Loki found himself being pulled in by Darcy. He started wanting her close, valuing her opinions, caring for her well being and even letting it affect his own. These feeling were almost foreign to him – close to something his family brought out in him but not really comparable. It scared and thrilled him that he could care for someone else, namely a human, like that but he embraced it wholeheartedly. Since there was nothing to be done about it Loki simply permitted Darcy to occupy his every waking thought.
But like most things in his existence, his relationship with Darcy was inevitably burdened by expanse of her mortal life and his superior condition. Then Loki did the brave gesture that was needed from him. He faced Odin in all his might and took the punishment he deserved. Frigga had told him once, a long time ago, that he'd have hardships to face but there would be one beside him to share the load with. And the telltale look in his mother's eyes when she set them on Darcy spoke volumes.
Odin passed judgement and Loki bowed his head, the awareness that he would be gaining so much humbling him. Darcy was a breath away from him, too shocked to move an inch when he was ordered to sew his mouth shut. He let the needle pierce his skin and the blood coat the enchanted string as Darcy whimpered behind him. The pain was insignificant but a promise of better times so Loki absorbed it and let the sting pass over him.
Lips sutured shut, effectively bereft of powers, he turned to Darcy. What he had been made to do gnawed at his pride but he endured it for her and himself and them as a whole. As if understanding his sacrifice she swiftly approached him with a piece of immaculate cloth in her hands. Raising it to his lips she cleaned the crimson away, her movement a sweet caress to his aching mouth. Tears shined in her half-closed eyes. Nobody said a thing. Lean arms pulled Darcy along.
Loki walked the halls to his room with Darcy in tow. She would feel changes and he had to tell her why. What they had implied trust, he wouldn't destroy that. Her first reaction was disbelief. She begged him not to toy with her feeling and Loki assured her that he wasn't. He designed the perfect the way to show her just how serious he was about it. Darcy let herself in his hands, she gave him free reign of what was his and would always be. Sharp lines and sinewy muscles sought soft curves and dipping valleys like a million other times. Hunger was sated and pain was forgotten. Hope flowed unbound and love triumphed. Limbs remained tangled and minds dipped in sweet slumber.
Frigga stopped her spinning for a moment to look in the distance. A delicate smile painted her lips and Fulla raised her eyes to her in question. Hlin and Gna shrugged and carried on with their duties. Odin's spouse closed her eyes, a sign for Fulla to get back to spinning, and contemplated her younger son's fate with a smile on her face. Things would be good.
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