Asgard was thrilled at the return of its king and prince. It was unclear whether its people were glad to have them back or just excited at the prospect of the ball that would be held according to tradition. Either way, the palace was abuzz with anticipation. Eyra found herself looking forward to the event as well. She had never been allowed to attend any of the celebrations held before, and she was quite curious to see what all the fuss was about. In addition, her family would be coming as well. They would be arriving a day early, and Eyra could not wait to see her mother and brothers again.

To pass the time (as well as to distract herself from Loki, though she was loathe to admit it), she spent countless hours on the training grounds with Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three. Apart from Sif, they had all readily agreed that it would be great fun to try and teach her some skill with a sword, and they had begun first thing the morning after Thor's return from Vanaheim. During that time, a startling revelation was made by all present.

Eyra was awful.

It wasn't that she lacked the ability to learn to wield a weapon, it was just that such a huge, heavy sword made her clumsy and slow. The others tried very hard to convince her that it was perfectly normal to start out like that and to keep working at it, but Eyra could see right through them. With a laugh, she had told them that she really didn't think swordplay was her forte, and they had immediately confessed that they had not seen someone so terrible at it in centuries.

"Perhaps twin knives would be a better option for you, Astrid," Fandral had suggested. "You are lithe and nimble which would probably work better with a weapon of that sort."

"That is true, Fandral!" Thor had declared. "Loki is incredibly skilled with his twin blades! I am sure he would not object to training you!"

Eyra's eyes had widened at that, and she shook her head quickly, claiming she had bothered him enough already. Thor had disagreed with her wholeheartedly, but had eventually agreed to having Sif teach her instead. Sif, though she held her tongue, was clearly rather dismayed with this arrangement, but Eyra was overjoyed at the opportunity to get to know the other woman and figure out how to set aside their differences. Thor was right. She needed a good female friend.

And so, Eyra found herself being awakened every morning at the crack of dawn to practice. Fandral had been correct. She was much more capable of wielding the double blades than with a sword, and, though she could hardly be considered a natural, she was a fast learner and was becoming more and more skilled every day. It actually helped that Sif kindled a dislike for her, as she was not wont to demand any less than the very best Eyra could give. Each day, Eyra returned to her chambers to wash up completely exhausted, but satisfied with her progress. It was not until about a week after this routine had begun, however, that she made her first real attempt at breaking down the wall between herself and her comrade.

They had just finished their last sparring round of the morning. Sif had, obviously, slaughtered her, but Eyra took great satisfaction in the fact that she had lasted much longer than she ever had before. As Sif had stepped away from her, she could have sworn she saw a pleased glint in the warrior's eye. Eyra took that as her cue.

"Sif," she began tentatively as they cleaned their weapons and put them away. Sif glanced at her with a neutral expression and nodded for her to continue. "I was wondering...it's been incredibly kind of you to train me, and...it would mean a lot to me if you would have tea with me as a small gesture of my gratitude..."

Sif stared at her for a second, and Eyra bit her lip, preparing herself for rejection. What she heard, however, surprised her. "Well, I don't suppose it could hurt anything. When and where?"

"How about this afternoon in the gardens?" Eyra beamed at her happily. Sif nodded curtly.

"Very well, Astrid, I will be there. Thank you for the invitation."

Tea with Sif was...interesting. She still seemed rather reluctant to talk much, but Eyra made sure to keep a conversation going. Granted, it was she who was doing most of the talking, but Sif did begin to open up a bit more throughout the hour or so they were together. When they finished, she admitted that it was nice to talk to another girl, and it was decided that this would become a regular occurrence.

That would have to wait, however, as Eyra's family arrived at the palace the next afternoon. She hurried back to her chambers after lunch and washed up, did her hair, and dressed herself as nicely as she had in years. When she was satisfied with her work, she dashed back out the door and down the hall in hopes of being able to greet them as they arrived. That plan went out the window, however, when she rounded a corner and suddenly crashed into a body.

"Oh, I am so sorry!" She gasped, looking up at whoever it was she had run into. She froze as she was met with a pair of stunned emeralds staring back at her. "Loki," she breathed before she could process everything.

Since their almost kiss at the gate, Eyra had put forth every effort to avoid encountering the youngest prince. It was something she simply couldn't handle at this point, and she convinced herself that he was now avoiding her as well. That thought helped to prevent the sorrow she felt at what she must be doing to him, but the truth was that the exact opposite was true. He had sought her out constantly since that incident, but had discovered that it was not easy to get her alone to figure out what was going on. She seemed to be constantly in the company of at least one other person, and it wasn't as though he could exactly ask to speak to her alone without arousing suspicion. His heart had soared, however, when he had looked down to see her accidentally in his arms.

"Eyra." His hands had flown to her waist at their collision, and Eyra felt her knees go weak at the contact. "Eyra, could we talk?"

She almost agreed. She really did. In fact, she was certain that she would have had it not been for the fact that she was so excited to see her family. "I'm sorry, Loki, but I'm going to meet my family. They are going to be here any moment." With that, she somehow built up the willpower to pull away from him and continue hurriedly on her way. Loki stared after her sorrowfully, and Eyra cursed herself for the effect he still had over her. This was not getting any easier despite what she had hoped for in the beginning. She forced those thoughts from her mind, however, at the sight of the loved ones she hadn't seen for a month.

"Bryn!" She hoisted her skirts up and sprinted forward. The second eldest met her halfway and caught her in a tight embrace, each of them shedding a tear or two. "Oh, Bryn how I've missed you! And how glad I am to see you!"

"You too, Eyra-Bear," he mumbled in her ear. "Life is so dull without you around to make me laugh."

Eyra felt herself being pulled out of Brynjar's arms and into another pair. "I've missed you, munchkin!" Asmund chuckled, though his voice was thick with emotion. "How've you been?"

"I've been well enough, Az." Eyra buried her face in her oldest brother's chest. "How are you?"

"Just happy to see you again." He kissed the top of her head before allowing their mother to take over.

"Oh Ey...Astrid..." she caught herself, hugging her only daughter. "I'm so proud of you."

Inghard's arm suddenly wrapped itself around Brenna's shoulders. "As am I, Astrid. This is such a wonderful opportunity for all of us."

Eyra forced a polite smile as she looked at him, though she felt a chill run down her spine at his words. Was he making her do this for his own selfish ambitions? Shaking the thought from her head, she looked around at her family, grinning radiantly.

"I am so thrilled that you are all here," she told them sincerely. "I've missed you immensely."

"I can't wait to meet your fiancé, dear!" Her mother expressed. "Is he as handsome as they say? How is your relationship faring?"

"He is very handsome," Eyra responded with a strained smile. "We are doing very well, though around half of my time here has been spent while he was on Vanaheim."

"I do hope that didn't mean you encountered his brother too often," Inghard said with undisguised contempt. "Loki, is it? I hear he is as no good as they come, always causing some sort of grief for his parents and the whole realm. I'm sure he would be delighted to do the same to you."

Eyra fought to keep a carefully neutral expression, though she could not keep her eyes from hardening in rage. "Prince Loki has been wonderful to me," she retorted. "He strove to ensure that I was not lonely in the slightest during Thor's absence and has been lovely company to have."

Inghard laughed heartily. "Oh, Astrid, how you jest!"

Eyra's hands shook with anger, and she was about to tell him off again when her brothers each put an arm around her shoulders.

"May we steal her for some much-needed brother/sister time?" Brynjar asked hopefully.

Brenna opened her mouth to protest, but Inghard waved his hand. "Be on your way. I must introduce your mother to Queen Frigga," he said importantly.

Asmund and Brynjar each gave him a smile of thanks before dragging their sister outside with them. As soon as they were out of earshot, however, they stopped and turned to her, arms crossed and eyebrows raised.

"Care to tell us what that was all about?" Bryn smirked.

"What what was all about?" She asked innocently, though she knew exactly to what they were referring.

They both gave her looks that clearly said they didn't buy her act, but Asmund clarified anyway. "Your sudden leap to Prince Loki's defense? You've never talked back to Inghard like that."

Eyra felt her face flush hot, but shrugged casually. "Loki is my friend." Her voice squeaked slightly. "I didn't want to listen to Inghard insult my friend. That's all."

Her brothers glanced at each other in disbelief, but let the matter drop. "If you say so," Bryn said doubtfully.

Eyra spent the rest of the afternoon showing them all of her favorite places in the palace: the gardens, the library, the beautiful balconies, etc. She didn't share much about what she had been up to since she left him, but her brothers were thrilled to learn that she was being trained to fight.

It soon grew late, and the three of them made their way to dinner with the royal family. It passed without incident, though Eyra found herself beyond annoyed at Inghard's constant comments about her relationship with Thor. He showered the eldest prince with compliments and questions, as though trying to win his stepdaughter's fiancé's heart himself. He made not one acknowledgment of Loki throughout all of dinner, though Eyra could see both of her brothers scrutinizing Loki and herself carefully as though trying to deduce what manner of relationship they had. Loki, as usual, tried his darnedest to catch her gaze, and she found herself giving in every once in awhile. He would get this look in his eyes like he had just performed the most spectacular feat known to the nine realms, and then he would offer her a tentative smile. Eyra would blush deeply and return it uncertainly before catching herself and looking away again. None of this went unnoticed by her brothers or Frigga, who had still not given up hope of the two of them mending their relationship.

As each of them retired to their beds that night, Eyra found herself once more embraced by her entire family. As Asmund held her close, he whispered in her ear, "Goodnight, little munchkin. Sleep well! Tomorrow is to be your very first ball!"

'Yes,' Eyra thought to herself as she made her way up to her chambers. 'It is to be my first ball.' She could not help, as she drifted off to sleep, but consider just how much more excited she would be for the event if she was to be attending on Loki's arm. With a sigh, she forced the thoughts from her mind, though her dreams were filled with countless variations of sparkling emerald eyes.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed Chapter 9! Thanks again to everyone who continues to show me so much support! You are wonderful!

Deductions-of-Sherlolly: Haha gosh dang it Thor! That is a perfect description of him! I do love him, but yes, he is sort of getting in the way here, isn't he?

sarahbearalove: Oh sorry! Huhhhh can't they just admit they love each other finally? Haha thank you for your review!

chyanne200: Thanks so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it! I hope this chap was satisfactory as well! :)