A/N: Don't own don't sue
Lyrics at the beginning are from 'If I Knew' by Bruno Mars
Lyrics in the middle are from 'Who We Are' by Uncle Kracker
If I Knew
Chapter Seven
I was a city boy
Right into danger's where I'd always run a boy who had his fun
But I wouldn't've done
All the things that I have done
If I knew one day you'd come
"Eira."
Eira blinked, trying to clear her vision. The Queen frowned at her suspiciously and Eira forced herself to smile guilelessly back at her. She was coming down with something, she knew that very well, but she had not been able to visit Loki for almost a week and tonight would be the best opportunity for another week. She was not going to be ordered to take to her bed.
"Your move."
Eira blinked down at the game spread out before them. It was indeed her move. She never won this game, Frigga was exceptionally skilled and Eira had been a lazy student. She poked one of her pieces across the board absently, pondering how to brush a bead of sweat from her brow without alerting Frigga. She shifted idly in her chair to keep herself awake as Frigga chattered about Thor's adventures and the nonsense court gossip. Eira let her mind wander as the coloured squares of the board danced across her vision.
She was almost nervous to see the Prince. Something had shifted between them during that long night in his cell. She wasn't sure what had happened, what was between them now. If there was anything between them. It was very confusing. Eira enjoyed having the control in her dalliances, she very deliberately chose those who would be easy to discard when she tired of them. This was different and she wasn't sure if she liked that or not. It made her feel as if she were sliding into a very deep hole.
Frigga was peering over her shoulder when Eira snapped back to reality and she blinked. Odin was standing in the doorway to Frigga's chambers, his grizzled face unreadable as his single eye darted between them. Frigga stared at him enquiringly for a long silent moment, before smiling across at Eira and dismissing her. Eira curtsied to the King on her way out, scurrying down the hallway before either of them could look too closely at her fever-bright eyes.
She dashed to her quarters and stripped out of her sweat drenched clothes. She just needed to make it through the next few hours, visit the Prince and make it back to her rooms. The hallways leading to the dungeons were blessedly cool as she padded in thin silk slippers towards the huge mirrored doors. She had uncharacteristically bound her hair back from her face to hide the sweat prickling on her scalp but nothing could disguise the hectic flush in her cheeks or the drunken sparkle in her eyes. She almost missed a step on her way into the dungeons and she placed a steadying hand on the cool stone wall.
She hesitated, wondering if she should just turn around. No. It wasn't fair to abandon him. He was unnecessarily unpleasant during her visits, when he wasn't trying to trick her by flirting, but if she had been imprisoned then she was sure one visitor, whether you liked them or not, would be better than none.
"You are unwell." Loki declared, somewhat sulkily. He had been rather looking forward to a night of verbal sparring with her.
"A fever." She said dismissively, turning away slightly so he wouldn't see how brightly her eyes were glittering.
"You should have visited the healers."
She rolled her eyes, putting a hand up to her burning cheek.
"If I had, I would have been unable to visit you this evening. Do you have that many visitors that you can afford to spare one?" She replied sweetly, enjoying the way his eyes narrowed.
"Come here." He commanded grandly, malice colouring every syllable.
Eira lifted her eyebrows, tilting her chin slightly in defiance.
"You presume to order me?"
Pink spots of anger had grown on Loki's cheekbones and his eyes were practically spitting sparks.
"I am your Prince." He snarled, his fingers twitching with the urge to strangle her.
"You keep reminding me that you are not." Eira grinned cruelly.
Loki was emitting as much heat as she was now, anger racing through his veins. How dare she? She stared across at him calmly, but her fingers were clenched tightly into the material of her dress.
"Come here." He tried again, in a more conciliatory tone.
She crossed the cell, sitting warily in the chair that was fast becoming far too familiar to her. Loki turned towards her, leaning over her as she sat stiff-backed in the chair. He studied her carefully in complete silence for a long moment, his eyes vividly blue as he focused. He pursed his lips and she blinked, suddenly realising how close they were, how soft they looked. She was so distracted, she didn't even notice him raise his hands. She jumped when she felt him place a long-fingered hand on either side of her face, his fingertips remarkably cool against her feverish skin.
"What are you doing?" She murmured, too startled to notice the wobble in her voice but Loki noticed and stored it away for later use.
"Keep still." He snapped.
Eira opened her mouth to argue but the look he shot her would have curdled milk and she closed it again with a poisonous glare. Eira held her silence for several long minutes, absently wondering why his fingertips remained cool against her skin.
"What are you doing?" She finally demanded.
"Experimenting." He replied easily.
"Whatever you're doing, it's not helping."
Eira could feel her body burning, could almost imagine the heatwaves rising from her skin.
"Stop." She stammered faintly, feeling her head starting to swim.
Loki didn't reply. He placed his hands more firmly on her, tilting her face until they were eye to eye, inches apart. Eira's vision was blurring but she could see the hypnotising blue of his gaze staring so intently at her she could almost feel it. She felt a strange tingling sensation pulsing over her body, like miniscule insects were crawling through her veins, and then her vision started to clear. Loki's nose was a millimetre away from hers, his mouth, murmuring words she couldn't catch, was so close she could feel the heat of his breath. She felt her skin cooling, the fever withdrawing from her body like a blanket being whipped away. Loki's hands followed the curve of her cheeks, his fingers were in her hair, his thumbs pressing against her temples. The moment seemed to freeze and crystalize between them, suspended like a diamond in whatever energy was pulsing between them.
Loki peered down at her; her face nestled in his hands looking vulnerable and more beautiful than ever. There was a flush on her cheekbones that he was certain was not a reaction to her fever. She stared back at him defiantly, her long dark lashes emphasising the brilliant emerald of her eyes. Her plump lips were pursed and a breath away from his. He had been experimenting with his heritage, since he had little else to do in here, and he had managed to combine what he knew of healing with the freezing properties he was learning to harness. He had frozen her fever out of her and he was now feeling inordinately clever and smug. No one appreciated his genius.
He blinked out of his self-satisfied haze when he felt her hands gliding along his arms. He tilted his head slightly as he watched her delicate fingers curling around his wrists. Her lips parted and her lashes lowered, feathering across her cheekbones. Loki had been waiting for her to show him some deference from the day he met her. Now she had, he felt something squirm deep in his stomach.
"I-" She bit her lower lip, her eyes opening as she tilted back her head to meet his gaze.
"It's simpler to be what they expect me to be." He said suddenly, watching a tiny line appear between her eyebrows as her brow furrowed in confusion. "Whilst they're distracted by what they think I am, I can be whatever I want." He cocked his head until her lips were scarcely a breath away from his. "My mask, nightingale."
It took her a long moment, her head swimming from his proximity, to remember her question about his mask, to realise that he was finally answering one of her questions with a whisper of truth. He finally let her go and she wobbled slightly. He stepped away from her, an inscrutable dark look crossing his face.
"Your turn."
Eira blinked, her mind slightly fuzzy from the rapid departure of the fever and Loki's honesty. She looked away from him, scrambling to clear her head and select a song.
"Bourbon and whiskey, tequila and scotch
Chocolate Martinis and Jaegerbomb shots
Ice cold Cerveza replaces the day
Takes off the edge and takes us away
Play us a song about losing
Play us a song about love
Play us a song about freedom
Feeling wild and young
And play that piano
Let every song reach into our hearts
Play that piano
And let us forget who we are
They wanna shake it to Mustang Sally
They're screaming Margaritaville
Writing New Orleans ladies, somebody's baby on one hundred dollar bills
All the boys wanna hear Bocephus, Centerfold and Purple Rain
It's all drunken drama, somebody's mama
Got run over by a damned old train
Sing us a song about dreaming
Sing us a song about life
Sing us a song about leaving
Cheatin' husbands and wives
We hide from tomorrow and yesterday's hells
We run from each other, we run from ourselves
Get lost in the music, get lost in the dark
What we all have in common is our favorite bar
So play that piano
Fill us with laughter and tear us apart
Play that piano
And let us forget who we are."
Loki tapped his chin thoughtfully as she sang, the faint traces of her fever adding a husky seductive lilt. It was a gentle melancholy song and Loki felt an uncharacteristic pang of tenderness pricking his chest. He pulled the chair back for her, gesturing when she eyed him suspiciously. She sank down into the chair warily and he felt a flush of irritation. Why would she doubt him? People were so dubious of his motives. He watched her fiddle with the sleeve on her dress absently. He had never seen her as anything less than poised and graceful. This was unusual and he was mildly surprised to find himself unwilling to press his advantage in this situation. How curious.
"Thank you." She said suddenly, snapping him out of his ruminations. "For healing me."
"You are welcome." He said grandly with a flourishing flick of his wrist and she rolled her eyes. "Do you have your question?"
She blinked, her eyes sliding past him and staring out at the dim dungeon beyond the barrier.
"If there was none of this…" She waved her hand at the dungeon, gesturing up at the ceiling to indicate the palace crouching above them. "No throne, no kingdom. What would you wish for?"
Loki studied her silently for a long time; her elegant profile glimmering in the glow from the barrier, the fiery red of her hair, her posture automatically perfect in the uncomfortable chair. He was not one for sitting and pondering the "what ifs" of existence, his mind went to the future at all times.
"A purpose."
She looked at him over her shoulder, her eyes unreadable but a faint shimmer of surprise flitting across her face.
"I imagine it would be rewarding, to have a purpose." She rolled her shoulders in a half-shrug. "Providing it was a purpose that could be achieved."
Loki narrowed his eyes, trying to discern if she was mocking him or not.
"I don't think I have a purpose." She mused, the light from the barrier reflecting in her eyes. "My family expect me to marry. The court expect me to serve." Eira's gaze slid towards him, a faint smirk dancing on her lips. "You expect me to sing."
"Fulfilling the expectations of others is a purpose in itself." Loki shrugged, flicking lint from the cuff of his shirt.
"Of course. If you have no higher aspirations." Eira snorted dismissively.
"Do you, nightingale?"
Eira pursed her pretty lips, her eyes flashing warningly. Loki smirked.
"And how is your purpose working out for you, Prince?" She asked sweetly, extending her hand to indicate the cell.
Loki's face darkened like a thundercloud. He saw her eyes fluttering, her face pinching with tiredness.
"You should retire."
His mouth flashed that wolfish grin that made her toes curl and he moved towards her. He could see she was justifiably wary as he took her hand and raised her from the chair.
"Unless you would like to stay." He purred, drawing her closer.
She flushed in confusion, trying to draw back from him but he tugged her closer with very little effort. His grip on her hand was like iron and his other arm slipped around her slender waist. He was toying with her, she knew that, but she was affected nonetheless. He looked so handsome with his wicked eyes shining into hers, his mouth curled into a mocking smile sharp enough to draw blood.
Eira could feel her heart pounding painfully against her ribs, her body tingling like lightening. She forced herself to remain calm, to keep her face expressionless while he studied her so closely for a weakness. She met his gaze through her lashes, a faint smile curling her lips.
"Ask me again, Prince." She gently disengaged herself from his grip, darting over to the barrier before Loki could reply. "Ask me again when you mean it."