More than anything else Brunnhilde had done on Asgard so far, it was deeply surreal to dance the valknut again. The last time she had done it, every woman in the formation had been one of her shield-sisters, dressed in matching formal attire. In its earliest form, the dance had been devised as a training exercise to hone the Valkyrior's coordination and teamwork in battle, a precursor to aerial horseback drills. Now it was done by court ladies who'd only ever moved through the steps as a performance. Whatever remained of Commander Brunnhilde Sigursdottir couldn't help watching them for signs of potential combat ability, but she shook herself out of it. It wasn't going to be that easy for Odin to get her to slot back into the role he wanted her to play.
While she was far too sober to keep those sorts of ideas (not to mention memories) entirely at bay, her dance partner proved almost as effective of a distraction. Loki's movements were a touch stiff and overly practiced, but that might just be his nerves at being made into such an object of curiosity in his own home. He never hesitated or missed a step, and he kept his eyes fixed on her. At first, his look had been determinedly impassive, not so much looking at her as away from everyone else, but as the tempo and energy of the dancing increased (the valknut picking up roughly where the triquetra left off), that gradually changed. She could feel the music thrumming in her veins, and it was like she and Loki were the only dancers on the floor.
X
Being trounced in an argument over the history and politics of his own realm by a mortal who hadn't known life existed anywhere but her own planet for a full month yet was incredibly galling. First Sif and Volstagg, then Darcy. Was Fandral a fool for holding onto his reservations?
He finished his wine and went back down the stairs, where he spotted Darcy in the crowd, already chatting with a young man Fandral didn't know. Well, she wasn't the only one who could find a new "makeout buddy" with ease. He'd practically invented the art of wooing. He spotted a gaggle of maidens and sauntered their way. Before he reached them, he slowed down to catch some of their conversation, waiting for a good opening to join in while deciding which one to ask to dance.
"Did you see the way he danced with the Valkyrie?"
"Who could miss it? They looked so striking together."
"I think our prince is a bit smitten."
"Pfft. You're always trying to guess who the princes are smitten with, and nothing ever comes of it."
"Oh hush, and let me have my fun."
"Don't you think it's sweet, the king finding an abandoned baby and bringing him home like that?"
"And right when he and the queen lost their own baby. It's like they filled in the holes in each other's lives."
"It's so lucky Odin found him. It really must've been the Norns' doing, unless they just abandon babies all over the place on Jotunheim, I suppose."
"I know! It's a good thing he was able to grow up here."
Fandral grimaced and swerved to the side of the group. The last thing he wanted just now was to be bombarded with even more talk of Loki. The ballroom suddenly felt unpleasantly hot and close. He tugged at the collar of his surcoat and decided that some time outside away from this crowd would do him some good.
X
Though the Dance of the Valkyrior was the last of the official dances, it was too early in the evening to justify disappearing just yet. Loki's options were either to keep dancing or to make himself available to all manner of curious, slightly inebriated people who wanted to talk to the Jotun prince. He chose dancing. Curious people still followed him into the dance circles, but at least the most they could do there was goggle at him as they passed.
It would've been better if he could just keep partnering with Brunnhilde, but that way lay an explosion of gossip he would rather not subject either of them to. He danced with his mother, who had an all too knowing sparkle in her eye, with Romanoff, who was easily the best of the mortals at picking up Asgardian dancing, and with Sif, who was being so pleasant to him that it made her rather dull.
Brunnhilde didn't go far, dancing with Thor, Hogun, and then Volstagg in between visits to the drinks table. Loki was very surprised (and not a little relieved) that Fandral never came to try his charms on her, but the blond swordsman was nowhere to be seen, even though Loki had spotted Darcy on the dance floor with a variety of partners.
X
Clint scooped a droopy-eyed Lila into his arms, where she snuggled right up against his neck. "What do you think, time to get these kiddos back home?" They'd been at the banquet for almost three hours now, and it was showing no signs of winding down. He'd even checked with Thor, who laughed and told him that revelry like this often went all night.
"Probably a good idea," said Laura, ruffling Cooper's hair.
"But I wanna stay!" said Cooper.
"It's past your bedtime, bud," said Clint. "Look at your sister. She's in a real live magical kingdom and she can't even stay awake."
"Noooo," said Cooper. "If we go home now, I won't see Fjolnir again, maybe ever since we don't even live on the same planet!"
Laura frowned. "Honey, he and his parents went up to their room. We don't even know where that is."
"Maybe we can find out," said Clint. Laura gave him a look, and he shrugged. "Plus if we go home now, we'll have to hike back to the house in the dark." By Laura's expression, she had to admit that didn't sound very fun to do with two sleepy kids.
"Can we stay, Mom, please?" said Cooper.
She sighed but smiled. "Let's see if someone can tell us where your friend is staying."
X
Gone were the days when Volstagg and his beautiful bride were free to dance all night at this sort of banquet. Most parents with small children only made it a few hours into the dancing, and they were no exception. It took a bit of effort to track everyone down, but only Gudrun and Gunnhild made any objection to leaving. Volstagg dreaded the day young men would start showing up at his door to ask after them, which might start happening as soon as a century from now for Gudrun.
A skiff large enough to seat the entire family was waiting for them outside the palace, and they all loaded up. Hildegund had little Sigfod in her arms while Volstagg carried Jargsa and Gunnar, both of whom were snoring softly against his chest.
The helmsman didn't need directions and pushed off at a nod from Volstagg. Gudrun and Gunnhild were chattering away about which of their friends they had seen, who had erred in which dances, and which of Hljodfall-Tivar's songs were best. Rolfe and Alaric had gotten into a wrestling match under their seats (so long as Volstagg only heard laughter from their direction, not yelling, he wasn't worried). Sigfod was a bit grumpy, as usual when he was up this late, but between the motion of the skiff and the gentle lullaby Hildegund sang to him, he joined his elder twin siblings in sleep soon enough.
Then there was Leif. He was leaning with his elbows hanging over the side of the skiff, watching the city pass beneath them. That wasn't very like him. "Are you alright, Leif?" said Volstagg. "Why aren't you down there with your brothers?"
Leif shrugged without looking around or speaking.
Volstagg frowned. "What's wrong? Weren't you having a good time with Fjolnir and the mortal boy?"
Leif didn't react. Volstagg's frown deepened, and he met Hildegund's concerned look over the heads of the girls.
X
Brunnhilde's already limited willingness to be at this banquet was reaching its breaking point. She enjoyed it much more than she'd ever enjoyed the Grandmaster's parties, but the more the Aesir drank, the less they noticed that she did not want to talk about her past battles with the Valkyrior or listen to a random Einheri boast about the ones he'd fought in. She was seriously considering nicking a bottle or two of ale and scarpering when Loki popped up next to her. "There you are," he said.
"Here I am," she agreed. "Have you fulfilled your royal duties by now, do you think?"
"Enough that my father can't complain, at least," he said. "Would you like to escape?" He held out a hand. She took it. He waved his other hand and pulled her along in the direction of the nearest pillar-lined wall. The air shimmered around them, and when she looked down, she couldn't see herself at all. Or Loki. Nobody noticed them slipping past. She glanced back and saw that he'd left illusions of them where they'd been standing, which proceeded to walk off in opposite directions.
Thanks to the spell, they were able to make it all the way from the dance floor to the edge of the hall unimpeded, but Loki didn't stop when they reached the pillars, instead leading her back to where the ballroom opened onto the queen's gardens. The cool breeze felt wonderful after the warmth of the crowded hall, and soon the sounds of the music and revelers faded to a low rumble. He finally halted beneath an archway beyond which tall, delicate flowers gleamed in the starlight.
"There," he said. "I think we're far enough out that my brother and Sif can't bother us this time."
"Shut up," said Brunnhilde impatiently, pushing him against the archway. He became visible again on impact, and so did she—maybe because she'd surprised him and broken his concentration for the spell. Well, that made her job easier. She went up on tiptoe, slid her fingers into his hair, and pulled him down into a kiss. She'd been wanting to do this since the valknut. Loki wrapped his arms around her and matched her enthusiasm, and it went on until they needed to come up for air.
"It feels so different when we're the same temperature," he said with a bit of a breathless laugh.
"Which way's better?" said Brunnhilde. Personally, she felt there were plenty of advantages either way. Just as long as the curls stayed.
"I can hardly be expected to answer that after a mere two tests, now, can I?"
"Cheeky git," she said, grinning, then leaned in to keep kissing him, but he held back.
"Have you a preference?" he asked. He was still smiling, but there was something tight around his eyes, like he was bracing himself. The sight sent a jolt through her. Less than a week ago, they'd been nearly on opposite ends of the universe and totally oblivious to each other, and yet she suspected that there weren't many people outside of his family who had as much power to hurt him as she did now.
It was a frightening thing to realize, not least because she actually cared if he got hurt. She'd failed everyone else who ever looked at her that way. She should put a stop to this right now, before they got in any deeper. How she had let herself get in this deep at all, and with a prince of all people... She frowned a little and shrugged. "I dunno," she said. "Might depend on the weather. What were you saying about more tests?"
A startled smile spread over his face, and then he was kissing her again. Maybe she was the most selfish asshole in Yggdrasil, but she didn't want this to stop. Not yet.
X
Gerd closed the door to Fjolnir's bedchamber and turned to face Freyr.
"Asleep?" he asked.
She nodded, walking to him. He met her halfway and embraced her with his strong arms, resting his chin on top of her head.
"Did he say anything?"
"Not really. Perhaps by morning he'll be ready to talk about it."
"I'm sure he will. He never manages to be unhappy for long."
"I don't know. This could be different." She looked up at him. "I feel like such a fool, Freyr. I let myself hope that things could change, but—"
"Shh, don't think like that. We've known all along that this was never going to be easy. There is still hope." He pressed a kiss to her forehead. She tilted her face up for a proper kiss. How was it that she was the one with Jotun eyesight and yet he was so much better than her at finding light in the darkness?
A soft knock sounded at the door, and they broke apart. "Who could that be?" said Gerd.
"The queen?" said Freyr. He went to the door and opened it. It was not the queen. It was the little Barton boy, standing there looking nervous. Agent Barton and his lady stood a few paces back, the former holding their sleeping daughter.
"Hello," said Freyr.
"H-hi, sir," said the boy, picking at a seam on his tunic. "I'm Cooper. Is Fjolnir here?"
Gerd's hand went to her pendant, her mind racing. What was this about? Did this boy have anything to do with why her son had just cried himself to sleep, or why his pendant was gone?
"Why do you want to see him?" said Freyr.
"I just wanted to say bye 'cause I'm going back to Earth in the morning. None of my friends there can do magic, and, well...I'm gonna miss him."
Gerd walked forward to stand beside Freyr in the doorway.
"That's very kind of you, young man," he said, "but I'm afraid he is already asleep."
Cooper looked deeply crestfallen at this. Gerd felt a twinge of shame for suspecting any malice on his part. She was so tired of feeling like she had to be wary of everyone's motives on this realm, and now she was doing it to a good-hearted little boy who wasn't even from Asgard.
"We didn't mean to bother you," said Lady Barton. "It's past our kids' bedtime too."
"Does that mean I can't see him?" said Cooper.
Freyr glanced at Gerd. She tucked an arm through the crook of his elbow and smiled at the family of mortals. "Tonight might be our last night on Asgard too, but perhaps we could breakfast together in the morning before we all return home?"
Cooper's face shone with excitement, and he spun around to his parents. "Can we, Mom, Dad? Please?"
"You're not already having breakfast with the royal family or something?" said Agent Barton.
"Oh, I doubt they'll be breakfasting so early if they continue hosting the ball throughout the night," said Freyr. "It shouldn't be any problem."
"That sounds wonderful," said Lady Barton.
X
Fandral didn't remember the last time he'd been in this garden without any maidenly company. He'd known it was one of the most beautiful places on Asgard, of course—hence bringing the maidenly company here—but his attention had been firmly elsewhere on his other visits. Now free to appreciate the breathtaking variety of flora from across Yggdrasil and beyond, as well as the masterful way it was all arranged, he found that the dazzling sights and did little to improve his mood. He should've at least brought a bottle of wine along.
He kept walking aimlessly past vine-laden trellises, bubbling fountains, and intricate flowerbeds with no destination in mind. After a few minutes of this, he had nearly decided to go back in for that wine bottle after all when he heard the unmistakable sounds of two people in a passionate embrace. He frowned. He'd brought Darcy out here once or twice. Could that be her now with someone else? Their brief dalliance had been no less shallow than his usual fare, but surely she would need at least a full day after depriving herself of his talents to move on?
He didn't really know what he would do if it was Darcy with a new admirer, but wounded pride and morbid curiosity had him following the sounds anyway, just in case. They led him a short way down a curving path to a stone archway. He saw a flash of blue and white fabric first. Not Darcy, then. Her dress was black and gold. Another step forward and he recognized Brunnhilde. His curiosity increased as he recalled what Sif had said. Who exactly was her type for Sif to be so certain it didn't include Fandral?
He took another step, and his mouth fell open. "Loki?!" He didn't mean to say it out loud at all, let alone at the top of his voice, but this was so far from what he had ever expected to see that his tongue acted of its own accord.
Both the prince and the Valkyrie made sounds of alarm as they broke apart. "Odin's beard!" Loki shouted, his face going bright red. "Fandral, do you mind?"
"Well it wasn't your brother or Sif this time," said Brunnhilde flatly. "Is this going to happen with every bloody person you know?" She shot Fandral an irritable scowl and tugged Loki around the other side of the archway before Fandral could so much as splutter out an apology.
X
With the help of Gudrun and Gunnhild, Volstagg and Hildegund had all the younger children ready for bed in short order, though the twins required a story from their mama before they would go back to sleep. Once everyone was settled, Volstagg went to his oldest son's room. Leif was sitting atop the bed covers in his nightclothes, face turned towards the window.
"May I join you?" said Volstagg.
Leif shrugged, and Volstagg went to sit on the edge of the bed. The added weight made the mattress dip enough for Leif to nearly roll into him, but it didn't make him laugh the way it normally did. "What's troubling you, son? You've been so quiet since we left Gladsheim." He noticed that Leif was clutching something silver in his hand. "What have you got there?"
Leif held the silver object out to him. He took it and looked at it more closely. It was a large pendant with Elvish designs on the casing, and Volstagg quickly recognized it as the one Fjolnir always wore.
"Did Fjolnir's pendant fall off? Why haven't you returned it?"
"He handed it to me," said Leif, still not looking at him. "And then...and then he turned blue."
"Turned blue?" said Volstagg. "What do you mean?"
"He said he's half-Frost Giant. He had the lines in his skin and the red eyes and everything."
Volstagg blinked, completely taken aback. That would mean Lady Gerd was... "What happened then?" he asked.
"He reached for me and I jumped back, 'cause you told us their skin freezes ours and I didn't want to get frozen. But then he started crying and ran away. Cooper ran after him."
Volstagg's heart sank and all the food he'd eaten seemed to turn sour in his stomach. In their home, Frost Giants had been the frightful villains of many a bedtime story and warning about the consequences of untidy chambers, skipped baths, and uneaten greens. It had never really meant anything to Volstagg and Hildegund; the idea of Jotnar actually coming to their home of all places with intent to do harm was ludicrous. But with the revelation that one of Volstagg's closest companions was a Jotun himself, as well as such charming people as Lady Gerd and her son, all those little stories suddenly didn't seem so harmless anymore.
"Lady Sif helped bring Prince Loki home to the palace yesterday after he was hurt on our quest," said Volstagg. "He was in his Frost Giant form, but his skin didn't freeze Sif at all."
"Really?" said Leif, his brow furrowing.
"I was as surprised as you are," said Volstagg. "I'm starting to think there is much we Aesir do not understand about the Jotnar, and perhaps your mother and I have been too quick to speak ill of them."
Leif was looking up at him with wide eyes. The idea that his parents might not know everything was clearly a baffling one (and one Volstagg might regret putting into his head so soon).
"Did Fjolnir seem like he was trying to hurt you?"
"I don't know," Leif mumbled, ducking his head again.
"I haven't spent nearly as much time in his company as you," said Volstagg, "but he has struck me these last weeks as a very kind and considerate boy."
"He said Frost Giants only freeze things when they want to," said Leif. He hugged his knees. "Did I do something bad? Cooper thought so, and it feels like I did."
Volstagg put an arm around his son's shoulders and gave him a squeeze. "It doesn't sound like you meant to. And the blame is partly—or even mostly—on your mother and me for not being better examples on this subject." He raised a hand to stroke his beard. "What would you think of Prince Loki and Fjolnir if you had never learned what you did today?"
Leif frowned. "Well...Prince Loki always tells the best stories and he makes us all laugh. And you've told us about how he uses his magic to help on your adventures."
Volstagg gave him an encouraging nod.
"...And Fjolnir is really good at playing pretend in our games, and he says he wishes he had brothers and sisters to play with all the time like me."
"Are any of those things untrue because Prince Loki is Jotun and Fjolnir is half-Jotun?" said Volstagg.
Very slowly, Leif shook his head. Volstagg smiled and held out the pendant. "In that case, I think you know what you need to do first thing tomorrow morning."
X
This time Fandral did return to the ballroom in search of more wine. He was going to need a lot of it to scrub what he'd just seen out of his mind. Since when did Loki have a passion for anything but books, magic, and trickery? Indeed, Fandral had wondered if his being a Frost Giant didn't account for his almost total lack of romantic inclinations throughout their adolescence and early adulthood, for no one on Asgard was his type in a very significant way, even if none of them had known it. But evidently Fandral had been mistaken; it just took the likes of a Valkyrie to catch Loki's attention.
But how had he caught hers when she'd fought in the war? When all her shield-sisters had fallen beating back the Frost Giant invasion? Surely the Commander of the Second Wing had been there and watched it happen. Fandral hadn't given much thought to what she'd said when the invasion came up on the way to the healing hall, but perhaps he should. Not only had she denied that the Valkyrior fell in battle against the Jotnar, she'd seemed outraged by the mere suggestion. None of it made any sense, and it left Fandral with an uneasy feeling.
"Ho there, Fandral!"
He turned from the drinks table and saw three men lurking about a pillar. He dimly recognized them from the training grounds and was fairly certain they were called Bjarke, Colborn, and Hjalmar. All three were closer to Volstagg's age than his, and they looked a bit deeper in their cups than he was.
"What, no company tonight?" said Bjarke with a bit of a leer.
Fandral smirked and raised his bottle. "The night is still young."
"Forget that," said Colborn, beckoning him over. "The lads and I heard you were there when the second prince landed in the city in his full Jotun glory."
Fandral brought the bottle with him, taking a long swig. "What if I was?" he said.
"What did he look like?" said Hjalmar.
"You've seen pictures of Frost Giants, haven't you?" said Fandral. So far, he was not overly impressed with their intelligence.
"Oh, come on," said Colborn. "We thought we'd get to see it at supper. We've already been disappointed once tonight."
Fandral rolled his eyes. "He has blue skin with odd lines in it and red eyes, like they all do. Bit shorter, though. What did you expect?"
"Why d'you reckon the Allfather had the Valkyrie sitting by him and dancing with him?" said Bjarke.
"She must be under orders to keep an eye on him in case he tries anything funny," said Hjalmar.
Fandral grimaced. "She isn't doing it on Odin's orders, I can assure you."
Colborn waved that aside. "Maybe you could help us out?" he said.
"With what?" said Fandral, taking another swig.
"We tried following Loki earlier, but it turned out to be one of his illusions."
"You want me to help you find him?" said Fandral. The uneasy feeling was getting stronger and did not mix well with all he'd had to drink.
"Well, you're his friend, aren't you?" said Bjarke. Much that Fandral did not like was implied by the man's tone: a challenge of Fandral's loyalty to Asgard; an expectation that he would do whatever they decided he should in order to prove it unwavering. What was more, Bjarke and Hjalmar had subtly moved to the sides so that the three of them had him nearly surrounded. He recalled a tendency of theirs to gang up on younger fighters at the training grounds. They had not been well liked. "It should be a simple thing for someone who knows him so well to track him down."
"Why do you need to find him?"
"We just want to see what he really looks like, don't we?" said Colborn.
"That's right," Hjalmar muttered. "A Frost Giant on Asgard, and Odin expects us to put fist to heart for him?"
Fandral's stomach squirmed. He had said nearly the same the night before. It sounded rather less reasonable the way Hjalmar said it.
This was his own doing. He hadn't liked some of the rumors, but he had trusted that they would push Odin into giving his subjects the explanation they deserved, and so he hadn't complained. He hadn't thought it through beyond that point because he had not believed the answer could be as simple as adoption, despite what Thor had said. What if the king and queen and Thor and Sif and Volstagg and Darcy and even the Valkyrie were right? What if Fandral had done all this to his friend, who did not deserve it, and his life was to be full of suspicion and mistreatment from the likes of these three from now on? "And after you've seen his Jotun form?" he said tightly. "What then?"
Colborn looked at Bjarke and Hjalmar. "Oh, we'll just give him Asgard's welcome for a Frost Giant. You don't have to worry." He grinned. "It shouldn't take him more than a few days to recover."
Before he knew what he was about, Fandral had drawn back his fist and punched Colborn square on the mouth.
Fandral's a big dummy, but he got there in the end. I don't know how common people who think like these louts are on Asgard, but for them specifically, I'm picturing an unpleasant personal history with Loki. Like, back when Thor, Loki, Fandral, and Sif were about tween age and new to combat training, these three were teens who enjoyed bullying kids their age. Possibly they singled Loki out at one point for some petty cruelty and he got revenge with magic. Since Loki is a prince, if anyone else found out about that, they likely would've been flogged, and maybe Loki was punished in some way for his retaliation. Maybe there were multiple incidents, but even if there weren't, the bullies have had a personal grudge against Loki ever since. I highly doubt all this context is going to make it into an actual chapter because I don't plan to spend too much time on them, so I'm sharing it here.
Loki and Brun are approaching this maybe-relationship from rather different angles, which is interesting to work with. It seems like he's kind of imprinted on her like a baby duck because of the way she initially reacted to him in Jotun form (not too different from how baby Loki imprinted on Odin when he picked him up), whereas she likes Loki but also likes the way she doesn't have to think about her baggage while she's snogging him (not too different from her reasons for drowning herself in alcohol). Anyway, as long as they continue to disregard my pacing advice, I am going to continue to throw other characters at them whenever they want to be alone. :D
I feel like I've gotten a pretty good handle on the way this is playing out for Fandral. The hardest part was figuring out a way for him to interrupt the Loki/Brun kiss without it feeling forced, but Leif was actually the trickier one to write in this chapter. I initially had Volstagg notice he was acting off at the banquet, and he and Hildegund had a rather after-school special chat with him right there at the table. It was all wrong and I hated it, so I had to rethink the way that would play out more realistically, which meant taking longer and not being perfectly tidy. (Also I misremembered how many brothers and sisters Fjolnir said Leif has all those chapters ago, so I had to iron that out and give the rest of them names, and the twins are now a boy and a girl instead of two girls. The names are all taken from the list of Volstagg and Hildegund's kids' names in the comics, but I only gave them eight instead of fifteen or so. Sheesh.)
I'm looking forward to what's coming up next. This has been a really fascinating arc to work on with all these characters in Thor and Loki's orbit. I'm not sure how many more chapters are going to be this long, though. It makes it harder to get them posted on a regular basis. It's easier to just crank out the normal-length ones, but there just haven't been good places to break the last few up into smaller pieces.