A/N This came from a chat with SpaceAnJL, wherein she suggested the troll bit, and I totally lifted it for this chapter (With her gracious permission, of course). So thank you SpaceAnJL!

Beware of Trolls

Matron Murgatroyd had just drifted off when there was a knock on her door. She sighed, knowing who would be on the other side of the door before she opened it.

She pulled on her housecoat and opened the door. As expected, Haley stood there. "Sorry to bother you, Miss, but he's at it again."

Matron Murgatroyd followed Haley up to the Geeks Lair. She knew what she would find when she got there: Loki seated in front of one of the computers doing cyber-battle with some poor fool who had disagreed with him. He clearly had too much time on his hands.

The Matron had to admit to surprise that he'd chosen to stay at St. Trinian's. He had been there for over a month now, despite his obvious boredom.

She wondered privately if he liked it there or just didn't have any idea of where else to go. She suspected that it was a combination of both.

He had to feel quite welcome there; Miss Fritton had professed herself delighted at his continued presence and had happily offered him a room, allowing him to vacate the infirmary.

Murgatroyd knew it was a flaw in her own character that made her question his residence. She would certainly feel better about the situation if she could find some reason why…why he stayed, certainly in the face of his boredom.

Matron followed Haley into the Lair and bit back a grin. Angel was staring reproachfully at Loki. No good deed goes unpunished, Matron thought. Angel and Haley had eagerly agreed when Loki had asked them to help him learn about Earth, and the UK specifically, and to acclimatize himself to the mores.

The girls had, in fact, dedicated one of their precious computers to just that cause. They appeared to regret it, as Loki had taken it over completely. And since he had discovered chat rooms, it had gotten so much worse. The Matron wondered idly if he had discovered porn yet.

She shook her head to clear that thought. "Mr. Loki?" She said finally.

He grinned up at her. "Ah, Matron."

"It's time for bed." She said.

His eyes darkened, "is it?' His voice lowered.

She blinked in surprise. "Yes. May I escort you to your room?"

He re-focused on the computer. "Not yet. This idiot is trying to convince me that he knows more about Norse Mythology than I do."

Oh dear. The fact that the "idiot" may indeed know more about the mythology was irrelevant. To Loki, they were talking about his actual life, and the story of it. She snorted. "Well, obviously he doesn't."

"Obviously," he drawled. "He's blathering on about myself being turned into a horse, and, after allowing myself to be mounted," his lip curled, "and impregnated, I gave birth to Sleipnir, Fath… Odin's horse."

"Ewww," Angel and Haley chorused.

"Indeed." He narrowed his eyes and returned his attention to the screen. "He is a fool."

"Of course he is. But there is little point to continuing to argue with him. He's clearly far too thick to even comprehend how thick he is. You'll never convince such a one, and meanwhile, you will have squandered your valuable attention on an undeserving fool."

Haley and Angel exchanged admiring looks as Loki seemed to see the reason, and rose from his chair.

"You are quite correct, Matron," he said decisively. "Goodnight ladies, my apologies for keeping you up so late." He bowed to them.

"Goodnight, Mr. Loki," the girls returned.

Loki stopped to allow the Matron to precede him from the Lair, and offered her his arm. They walked in companionable silence until a question that had been niggling at the Matron finally had to be asked. "Out of curiosity…, *how* were supposed to have been turned into a horse?"

He stopped walking and looked down at her. He quirked an eyebrow, even as he answered her. "According to the myth, I turned myself into a horse,"

"Oh." She considered this for a few seconds. "Could you?"

"Of course," he answered without hesitation.

"Hmmm," she said, an idea beginning to form him her mind. She began walking again, and he followed without missing a step.

They stopped in front of the room that Miss Fritton had assigned Loki. "Good night, Mr. Loki."

"Good night, Matron." He opened his door, allowing her an unobstructed view of his room. For the first time, she saw that he had removed most of the original furniture, and most of the room was taken up with a large four-poster bed. Her eyes widened momentarily at the size of the bed. He smirked down at her, waiting for who-knew-what.

For just a few seconds she allowed herself to be distracted, until her innate practicality raised its head. "I believe that the room next to this one is empty, I'm sure that it could be turned into some sort of sitting room for you if you wanted, assuming that you would be able to create a doorway between the rooms."

He raised his eyebrows. That had not quite been the response that he had been looking for. Although, it was a thoughtful one. "Of course I could."

"I'll speak with Miss Fritton tomorrow then. The girls would probably be willing to move one of the computers down here for your use, and you would have a bit more space, and of course privacy."

His eyes softened. "That's very thoughtful."

She smiled sweetly at him. "Glad to help. Good night, again."

He dropped a kiss on her cheek. "Thank you, Matron. Good night."

A few nights later, after the changes that she had suggested had been implemented, the Matron was passing Loki's door and clearly heard him swearing at some "thrice bedamned troll."

She walked away grinning.