The Last Shifter (a Loki romance)

Chapter 9

I had not forgotten Sif's challenge from last night so I put on a fresh set of riding clothes, as they were the closest things I had to armour, before finding a dress that went over them.  To my knowledge, nothing special was going on today so I settled for a simple blue dress.  I still wore my normal ring but I decided to pull my hair back in an elegant braided bun just in case Sif brought the challenge up again.  I would have to pick out some new weapons and I knew already that my skills would be somewhat rusty but I would still give her a run for her money.  I was about to go to breakfast when I remembered something.  Turning back to my dresser, I opened one of the smaller drawers at the top to reveal all of the jewelry I had ever owned before I went to Earth.  In the center was the piece I was looking for.  One of Kayerith's scales that had come loose after a battle.  Loose dragon scales were like loose teeth, there was no way to stick them back on again once they came loose so instead of waiting, Kayerith had made me pull it off and let me keep it.  Making it into a necklace seemed like the best way to display it.  The scale was pearly white, as it had come from her underbelly.  I began to cry again as I fastened the necklace around my neck.  Now that Loki wasn't around, my grief hit me with full force.  The tears came like a mountain stream in early spring, I could stop them even if I wanted to.

"Arista?  It's time to g–" I didn't need to look up to know that Loki was at the door.  I rubbed my eyes vigorously, trying to get rid of the stinging sensation the tears left behind.

"I'm fine.  Let's go."

Loki's POV

I may have just met her yesterday but I could see that she was in no way 'fine'.  Her cheeks had wet trails on them, she sounded horribly congested when she spoke, and her eyes were red.  Wait, what?!  I looked again and saw that I was right.  The brown iris cover she had in her eyes had shifted due to her excessive crying, revealing their true color to be blood red.  I would be lying if I said it didn't scare me but I was determined to not let it show.  I shut the door behind me silently and knelt by her side.  I tried to wrap my arms around her but she pulled away, sparking a sudden pain in my heart.  Not a life-threatening, physical one but one much more painful.  The pain of rejection. 

"Arista–"

"No." She choked out.

"Please.  Will you just hear me out?" No reply.  Just a sniffle, "It's going to be ok." Weak. I screamed at myself internally.  That's what everyone would say to her and that's not what she needed to hear right now.  She still said nothing.  I sighed.  This was going to be harder than I thought.  I reached out, intent on comforting her.  Arista let me pull her close to me this time and I took the opportunity to remove the strange Midgardian iris covers from her eyes with magic.  Arista panicked as soon as she saw them floating in front of her and made to grab them but I wouldn't let her, jerking them high above our heads.

"You don't need those right now Arista.  We can be a little late to the morning meal."

"But–"

"No.  You won't be any help if you bottle this up."

"And now you're suddenly an expert on emotions?" Even in her sadness, she was able to make a witty comeback.

"No, and that's the scary bit.  I know next to nothing but I know that."  Something gleaming on her chest caught my eye.  A white and orange scale, one that looked much like the scales her dragon had had.

"At least you got the eggs to safety." I pointed out, "You still have a little something left of her." She still said nothing to me.  She just buried her face in my chest and cried.  That dragon must've meant a lot to her. 

Arista's POV

I shouldn't be doing this.  I shouldn't be increasing the amount of physical contact we had but I couldn't help it.  He was drawing me in like a moth to flame.  I wanted to stay here forever, enveloped in his cold, yet comforting embrace and his scent.  The scent of leather, masculinity, and a faint trace of wintergreen that flooded my nose with every shaky breath I took.  Loki stopped trying to calm me down verbally when he saw that it wasn't working and settled on rubbing slow, firm circles on my back instead.  It worked.  I forgot my sadness over Kayerith's death and in its place came the calming peace of mind that I always had when I was around Loki.  At last, when the tears stopped, I sat back, pulling away from him slowing.