Chapter 8.
She was sitting by the fire when he entered the rooms, her automatic response to stand and curtsy with her eyes on the floor. He looked around, the little girl being nowhere to be found and she was alone. He walked to the table, looking at the neatly set places for them to dine and he curled his hands into fists. He took in a deep breath, his shoulders rising with each one and he gripped the edge of the table and overturned it.
"BASTARDS!" He screamed with the act, Lorien backing from him and standing in the corner in fear. He turned, his face stern and she pushed her back against the wall. She blinked at him with wide eyes, he walking toward her and she gasped.
"Please Sir..." She whimpered, and he saw the fear on her face. There was no sign of the kinder man she had come to know, so she did what was natural for her to do. She shivered, her fingers untying the laces at her back and she let the dress slide to her hips. She stood before him in her corset and she started to untie the underskirt, his eyes on her as she trembled and continued to strip in front of him.
"Stop." He said, walking to her and holding the front of the dress back up and putting her arms back in the sleeves. She blinked back tears as he turned her, closing the dress back up and he held her arms to make her face the mirror in the opposite corner. She gasped, tears falling down her face and she shook as he pointed at her reflection.
"That woman is a being, with a soul and a heart. She is not a plaything, a hole to satisfy a man's needs, or a sleeve for his cock. You are that woman Lorien, you have a sister who worries for you, and you are a thing of beauty and perfection. You are not a whore to be used and forgotten about." He said, her eyes wide and she looked at him. "Do you understand why I took you now? Do you see that you are meant for more than a moment of lust? You do not deserve that cruel fate, and you should never compromise yourself for a dalliance."
"I... I am a Pleasure Slave though Sir. I will never be more." She said, her eyes falling on the spilled food and he paced. She wanted to stop him, but she was too afraid to move.
"No! You are a woman!" He shouted at her, she backing up and shaking more.
"Please don't shout, you are frightening me Sir." She said, and he stopped, her request not harsh but gentle. He looked at her, shaking his head and he waved his hand to clear away the mess he made and to right the table. She walked toward him, looking up into his eyes and she blinked at him.
"What do you want of me then?" He asked her and she swallowed hard.
"To know why you bought me, if you only intend to free me Sir." She said and he turned and walked to the Bed Chamber, she following him and keeping him from slamming the door. "I have been afraid since I came her to be raped, to have my maidenhead torn so cruelly, yet you only give me dresses and chores to do. You do not beat me, or call me unkind names. You sought out my sister, and touched me so kindly with that act that... that I cannot say a single word against you. Why do you want me?"
"I brought you here to keep you from that fate. I am also most disappointed that.. that you would, after all that I have done for you, think me such a monster." He said, she looking at the floor and he walked back toward her. "I saw something burning in you that day, the other two girls, and all those before were broken and had no light in their eyes. I looked at you and I saw a fire that could burn all of Asgard, if only a single spark were set free from it."
"You twisted my words, I never said you were a monster. I am most sorry you think of yourself that way and I believe you wanted me, to find a way to set all of those unfortunate girls free Sir." She stated, showing a moment of bravery that shocked Loki and he nodded.
"I abhor those laws and rights that the Nobility take for granted, I want to crush them all and ensure that no more blood us spilled in the name of this practice." He said and turned his back on her. "No woman, born to a small village, should be afraid to be kidnapped and sold because she is attractive. No girl should fear her place in life because there is not enough to eat in her household, and all these Maidens should be free."
He turned back around, looking at her and he let out a long breath. She wrung her hands, blinking back tears and she fought the urge to sob. She gripped the fabric of her skirts, her hands opening and closing as she thought and she looked back at him. Her heart slammed off of her ribs, and it felt so alone in this room.
"You... They... They call you the Dark Prince, but I believe now that you are the enlightened one Sir." She said and his mouth fell open at her statement. He gaped at her, his eyes wide and she stared into him without saying a word.
"Then you are wiser than the King himself." He replied, closing his eyes and letting out a long breath. He felt arms around him, opening them to see that Lorien was embracing him and he froze as he did with Inge. Slowly, he let his arms circled her back and he returned the embrace. "I will not take you into my bed, not unless you consent to have me. That is how it should be, never as a thing to be used. Lorien, I want you freed so that you may pursue your true dreams and hopes."
"Thank you Sir." She said and she sobbed into his tunic. The fear she had felt for so long being replaced by relief, and she accepting that he was keeping her to protect her. She was so small against his frame, and he inhaled the smell of the soap and shampoo that she had used. The pure scent of something clean and unsullied, her delicate scent, and it filled him with promises he intended to keep.
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He woke the next morning before Lorien, leaving her at rest and scribbling out a note before leaving his chambers for the day. He paused, looking at the sleeping girl and covered her better, watching her and he left. He closed the door after him, turning toward the Throne Room to make another plea to abolish the laws that held the girl in his thrall.
What he did not know, was that the sleeping girl was awake as he covered her. Lorien opening her eyes and blinking a moment at the gesture, her thoughts jumbled again and she sat up to change her dress. She found the note next to her breakfast, and expected to find instructions or a list of tasks. Instead, she found a message and she blinked at it in suprise.
Your task today is to play with your sister, she has missed you and it would be a crime to keep you both apart. If you feel threatened by the Ambassador, wrap your hand around the cuff and say my name. I will come.
Loki.
She lay the paper back down, eating some fruit as she picked up the lavender dress left for her. She walked into the Bathing Chamber, filling the tub and sank into it. Her thoughts hers as she washed her hair and body, she scrubbed around the cuff to ensure no dirt or filth was under it and soaked in the warm water. She relaxed a bit, her thoughts returning to that sweet kiss he gave to her and she felt a fluttering in her belly.
His promises were not empty either, he said he would not take her innocence and free her. His word, even if it was tainted by rumor and lies had to be as gold, perhaps he would one day ensure her freedom. But Inge would stay with The Queen, it was what was best for her sister. She would get the best education, have the greatest opportunities, all through the kindness of the wonderful woman. She smiled as she dreamed of the child's future, the promise it held for Inge and her thoughts returned to The Prince.
She imagined showing him her secret, revealing what she was and showing him that she was of two realms as well. Her mother being different from that of her other siblings, a first love that left her father with a baby and she without a mother. The child left, wrapped in a blanket on his step and he having to learn how to feed his newborn daughter. A child that had his eyes and hair, a child he had to marry to cover his sin but was adored by her stepmother.
She would tell him, he would understand and he would not shun her as her parents feared she would be. They made her promise to never marry, fear that their secret would be revealed with the first child she bore. All of the Village turning against her and labeling her, she promised to keep her Maidenhood until the day she died and she had so far succeeded. Now, she could show him, Loki, and he would understand.
He had to have a suspicion, Lorien was not an Asgardian name to begin with. It was from another Realm, one that the people were taught to fear.
She dried herself, dressing in the petticoat and wrapping her corset around her. She was lacing it up and pinching it tight when the door behind her opened, she turning to see Queen Frigga standing behind her. She put on her stockings and shoes, picking up the dress and she looked at the floor.
"Yes My Queen?" She asked and Frigga walked toward her. She smiled, Inge with her and the little girl held a new doll in her hands.
"I came to ask you a question, Inge has said something this morning and I need to know if it is true." Frigga said, Lorien looking at the girl as she stood in the blue dress with ruffles and lace. She closed her eyes and nodded, knowing exactly what was to be asked.
"Yes My Queen, it is true." She said and Frigga embraced her, her arms wrapped around her and Lorien felt nothing but understanding. She helped Lorien put on her underskirt, tying it behind her waist and then helped her dress.
"I will honor your secret, if that is what you want. But, someone else heard Inge tell me in mixed words as well, and it will get back to a certain set of ears." Frigga said, and Lorien nodded. She held her hand out for her sister, taking it and she picked the girl up.
"My Prince has given me instructions to play with you today. We had better not disappoint him." She said and Inge giggled. She showed her the two dolls and Lorien hugged her, happy that she was safe.
"Yes. I want to play in the garden." Inge said, Frigga smiling at the girls and she watched as they both left together.
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"Inge, what did you tell The Queen today?" Lorien asked, the little girl and she sitting in the cool grass and she shrugged at her sister.
"I told her that the men man hit you, and that Prince Loki stopped him from hurting you. Then you both were in the room for a long time alone, and that you both came out and you looked sad." Inge replied, looking at her. "I thought that he liked you and that you were kissing, like Pern did with the girl at the Market."
"Inge! People will think poorly of him, you must never gossip like that." She said and lay back in the grass. "Now The Queen thinks he had me carnally."
"What does that mean?" She asked, holding her dolls up and making them hug. Lorien pulled her hands apart, separating the toys and she sighed.
"It means something that you should not worry about until you are married properly." She said and she sighed, staring at the leaves. "Now I have to correct myself and I admitted to the wrong thing."
"But, don't you like Prince Loki? Don't you want to kiss him?" She asked, Lorien laughing at her innocent question.
"It is not proper for a man of his station to kiss a girl of my station. I am low born, a Commonner, like you."
"But, the story Mama told us was about a Prince marrying a Commoner. They were in love and they had a happy wedding, and she was made a Princess." Inge said, standing over her sister and planting her little hands on her hips. Loki walked past the garden, seeing the girls and he took a step to stand out of sight. He laughed to himself, watching Lorien sit up and she sighed at her sister.
"That... it was just a story. Real life does not work as it does in made up dalliances, they are meant to entertain and nothing more." She said and looked at her sister, picking at a plucked blade of grass. "You must promise me something however, and be honest in it."
"Not to tell them that you are half my sister?" Inge said, handing Lorien a doll and she nodded. He saw something in the girls eyes then, a hint of fear and sadness.
"Yes, they must never know where my Mother was from, it could mean a great deal of troubles for me." She said and the child wrapped her arms around her. She pulled the girl into her lap, I ge holding her hand up to hers and she nodded.
"I promise Lorien. I don't want anyone hurting you. I love you." She said and Loki frowned at what they were speaking about, he watched the two play. Thinking back to the face of the man he saw dead and the boy, she shared their hair and her sister had green eyes as well, but her features were different form all of her siblings. Her face was heart shaped, and her lips fuller. Her eyebrows arched a bit more and she had dimples when she smiled on her cheeks, she was not legitimate for sure now. The others had narrower faces, no dimples that he could see and the only trait they all seemed to share was the hair. But, Loki still wondered about why she had to hide it. What shame was there in being born of a tryst, especially when her father was honorable and raised the child?