Sorcha's Secret World, Part 2: Mystery and Mischief.

Chapter 24, Family dinner.

The Odinsons and their drinking buddies did not return home until the early hours of the morning, seemingly having had a grand old time.
I was using my blood magic to heal a cut in Loki's lip.
"Thor got a bit overenthusiastic. He doesn't seem to truly understand the concept of feigning a fight," Loki explained with a grin. To my relief, the alcohol levels in his blood were negligent. "I think we got the rumour mill rolling though!"
I shook my head. "You realise you have just made us all the main target, don't you? Our home will be at the centre of a warzone.
You'd better use that brilliant mind of yours and start thinking about how you are going to keep us all safe. How you are going to keep Jessie safe."
Loki's face turned serious, as he took my hand in his.
"Darling the hold will be the safest place in the realms. We literally have armies on our doorstep to protect us. If Jotunnhold falls, Beaumont will have won.
At that point, no place in the universe will be safe. Either for ourselves or for Jessie."
"I know," I sighed, "but that isn't going to stop me from worrying."
Loki smiled. "You would not be you if you didn't."

I had made it a habit of practising with the others every day. When the time would come to fight, I wanted to be the best I could possibly be. Sif had soon invited me to train with her and her Valkyrie.
"They could do with the practice, and you can learn a thing or two from us as well," she had said.

"Do you yield?" My voice thundered over the practice area as I held Val at a distance in a fist made of ice.
"Fine!" she finally yelled, "but I still think that is cheating!"
I deactivated the necklace and returned to my human form.
"Turning into a twelve feet tall ice queen in the middle of combat is ridiculous," Val grumbled.
"You owe me lunch," I grinned at her.
"Only because you cheated," she began to laugh. "I'm just glad you are on our side and not on theirs."
"You were solidly kicking my ass until I remembered I had the necklace on," I admitted.
"I know! As I said, you cheated. You are Loki's wife for sure!"
I just laughed. There was no way I was going to win this argument, Val was as stubborn as a mule.

I walked back into the hold. I had a shower, put on some leggings and a sweater I'd stolen from Loki, and began to load the clean laundry from the washing machine into the tumble dryer.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Loki enter the kitchen. I stood up.
"I can explain, it was in my wardrobe by accident and I had forgotten it was yours..." I preemptively lied before he could say anything about me wearing his clothes without asking.
Loki just smiled, eying me appreciatively. His eyes lingered slowly over the curves that even the bulky sweater could not begin to hide.
Oh. We were in that mood, were we?
I wrapped my arms around his neck.
"I thought you were stuck in meetings for most of the day," I murmured.
There was something wrong about the way Loki looked at me, something off about his smile.
I tried to take a step backwards but he wrapped his arms around me tight, his kiss rough and bruising.
"Loki, stop!" I angrily tried to push him away but he wouldn't let go. It wasn't like Loki to persist where I didn't want to.
We might enjoy getting rough sometimes but we always respected each other's boundaries.
"Oh, come on baby..."
'Baby?' Since when did Loki call me that?
"...don't be like that," he smiled a lopsided smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Give daddy some sugar!"
His words were like a punch to the gut, for a second I couldn't breathe. I stared at him, my eyes wide. There was no silver in the hair at his temples, no crowfeet besides his eyes!
That was not my Loki!
Blasts of lightning hit the clone, because that was what he had to be, if it was not Beaumont himself, lifting him off his feet as he hung in the air.
"Wrong thing to say to a girl who hates being infantilised!"
It wasn't the best tagline, and certainly not quote-worthy, but I was too angry to think of something better.
I directed the lightning streaming from my hands to bash him against the ceiling, then smack him into the floor.
"Asshole!" I yelled angrily.
How dare he! In my own home!
The clone shook his head groggily and weakly lifted up both his hands.
"I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot here..." he smiled that snake-oil salesman smile that I found cute when my husband tried it, but there was nothing cute about it now.
"Got off on the wrong foot? Really? You think? No shit, Sherlock!"
I was fuming. Jessie could have been home instead of me! He could have done who knows what to her!
"Get up!" I growled. "Get up and shut your mouth!"
I didn't want to hear him talk. I could barely look at him. He was wearing my husband's face, my husband's body. He was even using Loki's voice. It was too weird for words.
Below the hold, past the training room, were some cells, from the size of them presumably for Asgardians. We had left them there when we moved in. Now they'd come in handy.
I decided to lock whoever or whatever it was I just captured up in there for now.
"Get in!"
"Please, if we could just talk..."
"Oh, shut up," I shook my head in disgust and activated the magical barrier to hold him inside.
I tried to ring Loki, but he had his phone turned off. Not completely unexpected; Odin hated it when phone calls interrupted his meetings.
"You stay here, you won't be able to leave anyway with that barrier. And don't even think about shifting into a Frost Giant, you won't be able to get through that way either."
"Please! I've changed! I'm a better person now!" he pleaded.
I rolled my eyes. "Sure, Jan. Maybe I'd believe that if you didn't just try to force yourself on me against my will. You disgusting creep!"
I turned my back and walked away.
"Asshole," I muttered again.