I own Vielae. Everything else belongs to their respective owners.

...and sat up screaming. Loki awoke with a start at the sound of her scream. Jumping from his bed, he ran toward her cell in a panic. Her eyes were wild and flashing and she was heaving for breath. Her face was a mixture of fear and fury, as if something horrific had just happened. Two guards came running, and as they were interrogating her, Loki watched as Vielae feigned relaxing, though her eyes still flashed. Once the guards were gone, Loki locked eyes with Vielae.

"Are you alright?" he asked. Vielae tried to break his gaze, but found that she could not.

"It was just a dream," Vielae said. Loki cocked an eyebrow at her, which made her wince a bit.

"It doesn't seem like it was just a dream," he said, skeptical. Vielae sighed. She should have learned by now that it was not wise to lie to the God of Mischief. He saw straight through it. Vielae closed her eyes and heaved a huge sigh. She knew that, eventually, he would figure out who she really was. However, she wasn't ready to tell him. Vielae trusted him, but not enough to tell him everything; not yet.

"You're right, it wasn't just a dream," she said. "It was a memory; the memory of my first kill." When Loki didn't say anything, Vielae continued. "It was the Master-at-arms, Margrim. He was never fond of me. In fact, I would go so far as to say that he hated me. I had sparred with a boy named Arlith, and we had both fought well...well enough for me, at least. Margrim wasn't impressed at all. He said I could have beat Arlith much faster than I did. Anyway, he ran and told my..." Vielae caught herself. Loki's green eyes narrowed slightly, like he could tell that she wasn't telling him everything. "...Lord," Vielae continued, trying to keep her voice steady. "I was summoned to him and while we were discussing things, Margrim got angry and struck me. We fought for a moment, and I was dismissed. Lord Malekith gave me a horrid tongue lashing later for fighting in his presence and not on the sparring field. I was taking a walk to clear my head when Arlith called me." Vielae paused, the vision still fresh in her mind. Loki knew what she was going to say.

"Margrim killed Arlith, didn't he?" Loki said softly. Vielae looked at him, tears welling up. The Prince marveled at her tears. Against her black eyes, they glittered like opals. Despite the sadness, they gave her eyes a sparkle, making her more beautiful to him. She nodded, allowing the tears to fall from her eyes, creating a wet trail down her cheeks.

"To this day, I don't know if Margrim was aiming for me or Arlith," she said, her low voice cracking, not even bothering to hold back the sound of pain and sadness. "I don't remember much after that. The next thing I knew, I was standing behind Margrim's body. I was shaking, and my heart was pounding in my chest. A crowd had gathered and everyone was just staring at me, not saying a word. I looked at Margrim's body. His head was facing me, but the rest of him was on it's side. Lord Malekith came up to me and simply lead me away. I think he said something, but I still wasn't in my right mind. I asked Algrim, my teacher, later on about what had happened. According to him, Margrim and I fought for a full hour. For the better part of it, I was on the offensive. He said that I was like a feral animal; that the only expression on my face was pure rage." An image of Vielae's face contorted with rage popped into Loki's head. He shuddered a bit, for it looked truly terrifying. Vielae closed her eyes, allowing the emotions to flow. She struggled to keep them from her face, but her tears gave it away. Loki found himself wanting to embrace her; to hold her close and try to make the pain go away. The urge increased as Vielae wrapped her arms around herself, as if comforting herself. Without thinking, Loki got up and moved to the edge of his cell, pressing his hand against the wall. "It doesn't matter now," she continued. "I've killed many since that day, but I'll probably die here, so I can't kill any more. Perhaps it's for the best." Vielae got up and looked at Loki. The look of longing on his face surprised her, as did his stance. With a grin, he backed up slightly and adopted the first stance of the first level of Surit'sa Rahi.

"Dance with me, Vielae," he said. Vielae was shocked. His stance was absolutely perfect. There wasn't a muscle out of place. He looked as though she could throw a stone at him, and he would not budge. With a small smile, Vielae fell into the same stance, and in perfect sync, the two moved through the first form at a slow tempo. Every movement their bodies made was fluid, smooth, but powerful. Vielae felt her breathing slow, her heart stop pounding, and her muscles relax. She remembered back to meditation classes that she had taken as a child. She never felt comfortable meditating like that. It was calming sometimes, but not always. With a smile, she realized that this was her meditation. For some reason, moving through the form in sync with someone was more relaxing than sitting and breathing deeply ever was. Her mind was focused and her body relaxed. It was bliss. Allowing herself a moment to look over at Loki, she remembered that he had asked her to dance. She found herself wondering what it would feel like if she actually danced with him. When they were finished, Loki looked across the way at her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Much better, now," she replied, stretching her arms as a cool-down. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said, bowing slightly. "If there is one thing that I do not enjoy, it is a woman in distress." Just as he said that, a squad of guards came in, accompanied by Lady Sif. She was dressed in her golden armor, shield on her left arm, sword sheathed at her right side. Her long black hair was pulled into a high horse tail, away from her chiseled yet feminine features. They marched straight to Vielae's cell.

"Against the wall, prisoner," she said, her tone authoritative and cold. Vielae backed up slowly until her back touched a solid wall. The outer walls were deactivated, two guards entered, and placed shackles on her.

"Are we going somewhere, my Lady?" she asked, not afraid to address the fearsome Valkyrie.

"The Allfather has summoned you. That should be enough reason for you, Elf," Sif said, spitting the last word out. As Vielae was lead past her, she met Sif's terrifying gaze and grinned.

"Dark Elf, my lady. If you're going to show contempt for my race, at least do it correctly." Loki couldn't help but snort at the comment. He made even less effort to hide his mirth when Sif shot him a glare. As Vielae was taken away, Loki's eyes followed her. The door slammed shut and his smile widened slightly.

"I like her," he said quietly to himself, and laid down on his lounge for a nap.