Admirer still in tow, Kari searched out her grandfather to see if he could be of help – that's what family was for, right? Her hope was, perhaps, Fandral would challenge the lovesick idiot to a duel or some other noble rubbish to protect his granddaughter's honour. They were into that sort of thing in asgard she assumed, what with all the bragging and songs of dead ancestors. Her last chance savior was not so much a white knight, however, Kari having finally located the overly slippery and much to pretty for his own good, cad. She'd walked in on him, with someone, or two someone's, she wasn't really sure it was a tangle of limbs and her eyes immediately began to burn.

"Oh my god, granddad!" She screamed, covering her eyes. "Lock the door!"

There was squealing, followed by giggling and rushed apologies within but she was already out the door trying to rub the image out of her pupils. She wasn't even sure why she was surprised, he was a playboy and she hardly ever saw him even when he wasn't off on some ludicrous quest. What had her grandmother ever seen in him? Maybe it was the moustache – god did she hate moustaches!

The door besides her scraped open, Fandral draped in a bed sheet closing it behind him as he watched her desperately trying to wipe the telltale signs of tears from her eyes. She refused to look at him at first, trying to reason out in her head what she was actually upset about and finally settled on one of two things.

"Kari, my dear." He reached out a hand to place on her shoulder, not really sure whether to chastise her lack of knocking or not.

"Don't you "my dear" me!" She shrank out of his touch. "Your horrible! You're all horrible but especially you! How many children have you even fathered? With how many god damn women? I don't know even if the next person I speak to is my cousin or aunt or some shit! Do you even know?"

"This is not the place for this conversation." He was looking somewhat fierce but that was more the hurt he was receiving with every word blow.

"I don't give a fuck!" She screamed at him, angry but then as suddenly deeply sad; her arms rising up to meet the tilt of her head as she sobbed through a cascade of tears. "I don't even know who you are. Did my grandmother even know who you were? My mother sure as hell didn't know who you were. Was it all just a notch on your belt? Did you care? Did you even look back? Do you know how much you hurt them? What did it mean? What do they in that room mean? What are any of us too you? What am I to you?"

She found herself slipping, the inner turmoil catching up like an unpaid loan and crippling her. Before she reached the ground arms were around her, strong safe arms pulling her back up to her feet and folding her close against him. She cried, hard, unable to stop herself from covering his chest in a stream of salty tears but he only squeezed her tighter as she shook against a childhood deep sorrow working its way out.

"I lied."

"What?" He was surprised when she finally spoke again, not really registering what she initially said.

"I did know my father."

"Was he like myself?"

"No." Her grip tightened on his chest, digging into the skin roughly. "My mother wasn't a nurse either. She just used to say… say she was 'taking care' of people." She closed her eyes fighting back a new rush of misery as her mothers voice replayed in her mind, 'Not now baby, I'm taking care of someone'. "I used to think it was strange that she only ever took care of men," it was his turn to tighten his grip now, "but my father would get so mad at her if she wasn't 'taking care' of them. They were always fighting." She bit her lip as a new memory flashed behind her eyelids – colouring in a picture of a giraffe that she'd get a gold star for next day at school, pretending not to hear or see daddy smacking mummy around. "Then one day, mother says we're going away somewhere. "Be a good girl and put on your coat. Don't wake daddy he's sleeping." And we're in the car; I'm showing her my picture that I got a gold star on. I was so proud but she was busy trying to start the engine. Then he's standing there in his underwear, I remember laughing because I thought it was so funny not even noticing he was holding a hunting rifle and pointing it straight at mother. He kept telling her to stop playing stupid and get out the car but it was like she was frozen. I called to her, she breathed and slammed her foot on the accelerator. I couldn't stop staring at her, even when we hit the wall. There was blood, so much blood, all over me, her, everything. I don't remember screaming or moving. I think I just sat there looking at her until they cut me out the car."

Fandral shuddered, she wasn't sure if it was the angry or sad kind, she couldn't look him in the eyes. They were both silent, contemplative, Kari wondering if she should have even told him that. The lie would have made him happy forever, but on the same token a part of her wanted to hurt him and give him a piece of the misery he'd left behind. Was she evil for wanting that? Maybe it was just what being family meant, sharing burdens and being honest.

"Is he dead?" His words were icy, filled with a vengeful promise.

"Very dead." She croaked having to swallow several times to remoisten her parched throat. "It's not easy to survive having your head cracked open and a car impaling you."

"Good." He stated matter-of-factly, pulling back from her long enough to plant a kiss on her forehead before reeling her in once more. "As for Francesca, all that I can say is, I am truly sorry."

"Hmmm." Kari pushed away from him, realizing for the first time it was not her apology to hear. "I… I should go. It's late. Sorry I… Next time I'll knock."

Another day, another game of hide and seek from Egill but at least today – despite the depressive nature of the night before – it felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She almost didn't mind at first, when her suitor had come up behind her with a morning greeting and buttock pat. That was short lived, however, especially when he started talking about marriage. Oh was she running for her life now.

Round a corner, through a storeroom, up a pillar to the next floor balcony. She was getting really quite good at surprising feats of athleticism. Thor had bellowed with laughter as she climbed into a room he was occupying, hair somewhat of a mess and stopping to drink his cup of wine to show him who was boss. So in the know he didn't even require explanation to her activities, promising to tell her suitor she had flown away back to midgard if asked. There was a nagging sensation, somewhere toward the conspirative side of her brain, which was slowly starting to believe Thor was possibly stirring things at either end but such deviousness was more commonly associated with his brother. She was sure Loki wouldn't have gotten involved though, to beneath his radar, and dually hopefully wasn't in the library.

Ducking inside the god of mischief's favourite lair, having heard Egill on her tail again, she tiptoed discreetly into the maze of bookshelves. It wasn't hard finding a good hiding place, tucked away into an alcove and blocked from view by a collection of horribly dusty looking tomes. She sat on the ground, pulling her knees tight against her as she caught her breath and tried to be very quiet. Hopefully Egill wouldn't come in, head straight pass thinking she wouldn't dare go inside and perhaps search for her in the dining hall during dinner like he usually did.

The library was silent, except for a distant sounding whispering of a conspirative nature. Kari creased her brow, removing a book from the shelf behind her to remove an obstacle between herself and the words she was half hearing. It sounded like Loki, he was speaking to someone but that someone didn't seem to be speaking back. She strained her ears harder, desperately trying to pick up every little sound until more began to ring clear.

"-not too big." He was saying. "It will look accidental I assure you… Perhaps… Just coax it toward the spot and let nature run its course… No… You are as wonderful as ever… Yes… Very well…"

There was a light pop, a static noise she hadn't even been aware of at first, sucked out of the air as the conversation ended. He must have been using some sort of magic, perhaps, creating something like a telephone to communicate? But with whom and about what? Realizing she was suddenly very vulnerable, trapped in the library with a plotting Loki, Kari rapidly replaced the books she had removed onto the shelf and went rigid trying to even keep her breathing to a minimum in order to avoid detection.

He was walking around now, the tap, tap, tap of his boots going down a row of shelves before pausing to retrieve a book. She could hear him flicking through the pages, clearly not having found what he needed and sliding the tome back into place before the tap, tap, tap began again, inching closer to her location. He stopped several times along his way, each time retrieving a book then replacing it moments later. What was he looking for? She certainly hoped he'd find it sooner rather than later.

Finally, he turned into her line of shelves with that tap, tap, tap, of doom inching closer and closer. Her heart was thudding in her ears, face turning a reddish blue colour as she refused to breathe. He paused, a book was removed from the shelf to her left, pages turned and then put back. He should have started to leave at this point, like the other times, should have began to tap, tap, tap, away but there was only silence. She needed to breathe, was desperate to take in some oxygen before she passed out. In a final bid for hope of escape she looked up hoping to see him round the edge of her hiding place about to leave but gasped greedily at the air instead.

He was standing there, looking down at her with a new expression she had not seen before. Apparently she had lost her graduation cap and completely de-evolved down to poop under his shoe now.

"I know I'm not supposed to be in here." She was talking faster than she thought capable. "And I wasn't eavesdropping I swear!" He continued to stare at her saying nothing; it was easier to have her incriminate herself. "Look I have a perfectly reasonable excuse. You see there's this guy and he won't stop chasing me around so I ran in here hoping to-"

"Enough of your petulant whining." He hadn't even said it loudly but her ears felt his words like a level 10 shockwave. "I care not of your insipid plight."

"I'll just go then." She got to her feet, hoping to make a speedy retreat around the green-eyed monster.

"Will you?" He was standing in her way, his tone so cold she could feel the air around her freezing from his will alone.

He was going to kill her. That feeling rang true in every bone throughout her body like the inescapable clutches of death his or her self.

"My love?" Egill burst into the library calling for her, she in turn instinctively pressing herself back into her hidey-hole. "Ah, Loki, my friend, have you seen a maiden pass this way?"

"Very few enter the library, as you well know, even less are of the maiden variety." Loki sounded pleasant, a stark difference from only a moment a go and he was hiding her too. Suspicious.

"Of course, of course." Egill laughed, the general air of sexism was hardly new to her ears in asgard. "I shall leave you to your studies."

"That would be greatly appreciated. I have much t-"

"Egill! I'm here!" Kari dashed out from her hiding place, brushing past a now scowling Loki and into the warriors eagerly waiting arms.

"My love! You have come to me at last!" Egill was so ridiculously happy he began shedding tears of joy as he lifted her above his head much to her horror. "What trick was this Loki?"

"No trick." The prince falsely grinned. "The lady wished not to be found. Or so she claimed."

"You lie." Egill was annoyed, pulling his love protectively to his side.

"Oh I think not." That iciness was back again, but he was also amused, she could tell by the twinkle of mischief in his eye.

"Whatever, I need to get out of here." Kari muttered, trying desperately to get out of Egill too eager clutches and away from Loki's wrath.

All in all, this wasn't going to end well no matter what she did.