It apparently took three days for his little stunt with the flowers to make it back to his parents, since that was when he received an email ordering him to his mother's office asap for an urgent meeting.
"What's this about?" he asked when he walked through her door, knowing very well what it was about. He sat in the chair across her desk. "I have a meeting with Jane in S&R," Slay and Reindeer, "in fifteen minutes."
"Then I'll cut to the chase," Frigga said, in full business mode instead of mother mode. "What is going on with you and Sylvie?"
Loki raised an eyebrow as if this was an odd question and not exactly what he'd been expecting. "We've been meeting for coffee in the morning. I thought you'd be happy I finally made a friend."
Frigga's expression was doubtful. "A friend, hmm? Then why is it that when I asked Thor how things were going in Cookies, he excitedly told me all about how Loki brought this new girl flowers and how cute of couple he thinks you would be?"
Loki shrugged. "I brought her something to brighten up her office, it was awful dreary in there. I thought you wanted me to be nice?"
Frigga pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled slowly. "I know you better than that, Loki. I can see what you're doing."
Loki crossed his arms, leaning back in the chair. "Do you now? Please, enlighten me."
He could tell the mother in her was wanting to overtake the business woman as her eyes and tone softened. "I know you were upset when she was taking your job, but I thought with her move to Cookies you'd be happy. And I was happy about that, you know how much I love you. I know this situation is hard on you, but you need to stop playing games so she can fall in love with Thor like she's supposed to."
Something about her soft tone was worse. Like he was a child again, playing some little game to get his parents attention. A hot anger started in his stomach and rose up through his chest, in his throat. "Is that what you think this is?" he hissed at her. "Some game? Did you ever stop for a moment to think that maybe I genuinely care about her? That maybe she's not falling in love with Thor because she actually wants me? Or-or what? You think I'm tricking her into that?" The realization weighed heavy on his shoulders. "I get it. Of course," he shook his head. "The only way she could ever want me is if I was tricking her into it. That's what you think."
"It's not like that," Frigga said firmly. "Anyone else and I wouldn't think so, but she's supposed to be Thor's magically chosen true love! Besides…Krampus doesn't fall in love. You know that."
"Right," Loki scoffed. "Anyone else, but with her that's what you think. But with anyone else, it still wouldn't matter! I don't get that!" He shot out of his chair. "I have a meeting to get to." He turned towards the door, making it over in two long strides.
"Loki, wait!" Frigga called after him, but Loki ignored her and left as quickly as he could.
He just wanted to be alone. He wanted to lock the door of his office and have a drink of the whiskey he kept hidden in his desk for shitty days. But his legs didn't carry him to his office, instead he found himself heading down the hallway to Cookies. Maybe he didn't want to be alone after all.
Sylvie was relieved to have some alone time. She'd told Thor that the elfs could use help reorganizing storage, and being the genuinely helpful person he was, he instantly agreed and went to help lift all the ingredients that were kept in bulk sizes. It genuinely needed to be done, so she didn't feel too bad about it.
When an urgent knock came through her office door she dreaded that he was somehow already done, or that they needed her help with something, but instead when she opened it her eyes met Loki. He looked so distressed, it made her frown instantly. "Come in," she said, taking a step back. "What's wrong?"
He came into the office in a huff, starting to pace across the small space, a flurry of restless energy. "My mother called me in for a meeting. She seems to think I'm tricking you into falling in love with me to ruin their plans," he explained, his tone full of frustration. "And when I told her no, I just genuinely care about you, she didn't believe me! My own mother!" He finally stopped pacing and turned to her, holding his arms wide out to his side.
Sylvie raised an eyebrow at him. "But…we are tricking them into thinking we care about each other….Right?"
"Well-well yes. But she doesn't know that! What if I do just genuinely have feelings for you?" he huffed.
Do. Not did. If it was a hypothetical, a purely fictional scenario, then the proper way to ask that would be 'what if I did'. Now, he could just be upset. It was an easy slip of the tongue to make, especially when so frazzled. But one thing Sylvie had learned about Loki over her time here was how precise he always was. He said what he meant, or he said things in a way that would make you think what he wanted you to without technically lying. He was amazing with words, would make amazing puns and double entendres. It was an impressive skill, and one of the things she liked about him.
Sylvie found herself moving closer to him, prowling over until she stood right in front of him, closer than she had any reason to be. "What if you do?" she asked in a low voice, looking up at him through her lashes.
She could see him swallow hard as the energy around them changed. "What if I do?" he repeated in barely a whisper.
Sylvie went up on her toes and kissed him. Yeah, this had started as a revenge plot to get back at his parents, but the fact that he went along with her revenge plot so wholeheartedly should have been her first warning sign that this was a man she could so easily fall for. She always joked she'd need a partner who would be down to hide the body. And then they'd gotten coffee together every morning and it was better than easy, it was the highlight of her day every day. She should have ran the moment she noticed herself lighting up when she'd happen to catch him in the cafeteria for lunch. She should have ran the moment he brought her those flowers and she found herself going warm every time she glanced at them on her desk. She should have ran so many times if she didn't want to fall in love, but she hadn't.
The kiss was soft and slow and lasted only a few moments before they pulled apart. "Then I'd have to tell you that I care about you too," she answered the question, grinning up at him.
Loki's eyes closed as he tilted his head forward to rest his forehead on hers, grinning just as much as she was.
Sylvie waited for the anxiety. The fear to tell her to run away. That no one could be trusted, and she was a fool who was going to get her heart shattered if she didn't run now, but it never came. She felt safe. She felt happy. She felt like it was a damn Christmas miracle.
Loki took a deep breath before pulling away from her again. "I should go, I have a meet-" but he cut himself off as his eyes grew wide, looking at something behind her.
"What?" Sylvie asked as her eyebrows pulled together and she turned to see what he was looking at. She froze when she saw it, and they both sat their in stunned silence for a long moment. Finally, she broke it with a shaky, "Loki?...Why do I have a tail?"
It looked lion-esque, a dusty tan thin line with a floof of chocolate brown fur at the end.
"It's…It's a Krampus tail, I think," Loki stuttered out, still in shock.
"But you don't have a tail?" Was her voice weirdly high pitched at the moment? Probably.
Loki shook his head, blinking a few times, as if checking if the tail was still real. He took another deep breath. "I do. I just use magic to hide it, to stay in my human-looking form. But I have one."
"Okayyy…but why do I?" Sylvie asked him, her eyes not leaving the freaking tail.
"Well…I don't know for sure, but…Alright, so if you had started to fall in love with Thor, started on the path of becoming Mrs. Claus, then you would start taking on the Mrs. Claus traits. The rosy cheeks, the white hair, all that. But I guess, since you're…well, whatever you feel towards me you're taking on..Lady Krampus traits."
Sylvie's attention finally turned towards him. "Lady Krampus? I've never heard of a Lady Krampus?"
"Neither have I," Loki admitted. "Krampus actually isn't supposed to fall in love, it's against the myths, but-but the magic seems to be accepting you."
It was Sylvie's turn to take a deep breath. "Okay. Okay. Alright. So you're telling me that the magic that runs this place, that depends on the myths being followed to allow it all to happen, has decided 'you know what? Fuck it, Lady Krampus'?"
Loki just nodded slowly, a little speechless. "I…guess so?"
"And if I keep on this path, keep being with you…it'll continue?"
"Probably. That's what happens to Mrs. Claus. Though you could run, change your path, and it'll go away." It almost looked like it pained him to tell her this.
She looked at him with absolute bafflement. "Why the actual fuck would I want to do that?"
Loki studied Sylvie for a long moment before a huge grin spread across his face, and then he pulled her to him and gave her the best kiss of her life.
"Wait," Sylvie said, pulling away much earlier than she wanted to.
Loki looked confused, but let her go as she pulled away from his embrace. Sylvie went over to her office door and locked it before nodding and moving back to him. "Okay, now we can continue," she said and pushed him back onto her desk as she kissed him with abandon.