Laufeysdottir: Loki's Little Sister

Chapter 18

Catch-up

I carried the bulk of the grief, only willing to share a small fraction of it, yet I felt numb. Cold, and not physically. I felt mentally drained. And the last thing I remembered was the sound of glass smashing before the world went dark.

Present

"She will recover alright, my Queen. It seems like whatever spell was performed taxed her magic, and whilst keeping all the emotions at bay, she pushed herself too far." I heard a voice say as my eyes slowly started to open.

"Thank you, Eir. You may tend to your other duties." Frigga's voice was near, but it wasn't next to me, where I felt another presence.

I opened my eyes and saw my father kneeling next to me, concern reflecting in his gaze.

"What happened?" I ask no-one in particular.

"You fainted due to an overtaxation of magic." Frigga glumly answered.

"What else happened..." I questioned as I noticed my father's rather depressed gaze.

"You died, Lita." My father almost sounded as if he whimpered.

Jotuns can whimper, and I don't mean the kind where you whine at the end of a sentence. I mean, we can literally whimper, the way some Midgardian dogs can. We can also purr, like a Midgardian cat.

"What do you mean?" I sat up, alarmed.

"Your pulse stopped, Lola. We had to literally breathe oxygen into your system." Frigga replied.

"Please, Lolita. Don't push yourself that far again." My father let vulnerability seep into his words, which was rare considering he is a warrior, and warriors are taught to never show their hearts unless an axe reveals it.

"I'm sorry, father. But he was in pain, and he wasn't trained to use his sorcery the way he should have been with the elders. He was endangering himself and everyone on that wing. One life is nothing compared to dozens." I logically replied.

"That 'one life' is my everything."

"I won't push my boundaries like that a second time, father. You have my word." A Jotun's word is valued back home. Despite how childish it may sound to Midgardians, it is like a verbal oath.

"How is Loki?" I changed the topic.

"Asleep in his chambers, oblivious to what happened on the otherside of his door." Frigga answered.

"Can we keep him oblivious to the matter? He is emotionally vulnerable, and knowing what I did and the result would only add to his concerns." I reasoned.

"If that is what you wish." Frigga smiled. I nodded and went to stand up.

"Lola, you shouldn't be standing. You just died!" My father fretted.

"You are acting as if I just gave birth again. I'm fine." I brushed off his worries as I steadied myself and got over the slight wave of dizziness that washed over me.

He sighed and stayed close, fearing that I would trip and hurt myself.

"I need to check on Loki. He used alot of untamed power." I stated and walked out of the healing wing as if I had entered with a mere papercut and not with no pulse.

It was only a short walk to my brother's chambers, and I entered without knocking, knowing his protection barriers would recognise me instantly and, if he is awake, allow him to know that I have stepped foot into his living quarters.

I opened his bedroom door, and he was still passed out on his bed. The rise and fall of his chest assured me that he was still breathing.

A thin layer of sweat coated his pale face so I removed the soft covers off of him. He mewled at the sudden change in temperature. "Shhh. Rest, brother. You are safe." I whispered to him. He settled back down and nuzzled himself into his pillow.

I started tiding his room up. Picking up the paper and putting it in a neat pile on his desk, collecting the quils and pencils that had been scattered, and I started picking up pieces of a broken wooden chair.

"Aye, shit." I cursed in my native when a bit of wood wedged itself into my finger.

"What happened?" My brother's groggy voice tore my attention away from removing the wood from my finger to him, slowly sitting up in his bed while running his hand though his hair.

"You lost control."I softly said, although I could hear the weakness in my voice.

"What are you talking about? Lost control of what?" He had very little memory of what happened.

"Let me show you." He nodded his head and I showed him my recollection of the events that took place simply hours beforehand.

I stopped before it showed the spell I did. He didn't have to know that.

"What happened after that?" He suspiciously questioned after my abrupt halt while showing my memory.

"Nothing you need to worry about."

"Lola. What happened." He knew I did something.

I sighed and showed the part where I took his grief away, and where I blacked out. Then when I woke up and was informed that I had died, and me simply walking out of the healing wing.

"You shouldn't have put yourself at risk like that, Lola." He softly said as a tear slid down his cheek.

"But I did. The past is the past, nothing can change what I did and I don't regret it. The grief you felt was overwhelming, especially with all that was already going on. The least I could have done was help you process it." I reasoned.

Loki simply sighed before noticing that I was still trying to pull the wood out of my finger.

He stood up and walked over to me before kneeling down and taking my hand into his own. He used his magic to pull it out and quickly used a simple healing spell. I thanked him before continuing to tidy up the mess.

"Why didn't you just use magic?" Loki asked me.

"Im drained. I need time to allow myself to regenerate and restore what I have used." I answered. He clicked his fingers and the room was nearly sparkling again.

I huffed a chuckle and stood up, giving myself a second to find my balance. I walked out and sat on his sofa with my back to the armrest and my side snuggled into the corner. I pulled my knees to my chest and slowly found myself drifting off to sleep.