Midnight in the garden of mischief & mayhem

Chapter 7

After about two hours of sitting around the table eating and talking, everyone excused themselves and went their seperate ways. "This way," Loki said to me, grinning, and led me down a small hallway. It was only when we reached the end that I understood where he was taking me.

We stood on a balcony overlooking the entire city. From here I could even see the Bifrost bridge and the waters surrounding it gleaming in the starlight. My eyes roamed over Asgard, taking it in from this entirely new angle. "I thought you would like it up here," said Loki, "The city is always more beautiful at night."

That's when I remembered how late it had gotten. I turned to Loki, despising myself for having to ruin our perfect evening, "Loki, I am so sorry, but I must go back home now. My parents will be worried over my absence."

His face fell immediately, "I thought you said earlier that you had all night to do as you pleased."

"I do, but I cannot be much later on returning home."

"You don't have to go home, you could...you could stay here tonight." He looked at me with those hopeful green eyes of his and it took all my power to turn him down.

"Loki, I can't. I've already imposed on you and your family enough tonight-"

"Nonsense. You will stay here, besides, it is much too late for you to be walking home. Come, we will have clothes brought for you." I almost argued, but I knew it was useless. If there was one thing Loki was good at, it was winning an argument. I followed him back down the narrow hall, and into the dining area we had eaten in. There, he approached a servant, whispered something to him that I couldn't hear from where I stood, and continued on his way. I followed, not wanting to get lost in the many corridors of the palace.

"Loki?" I asked, walking alongside him, "Where are we going now?"

"I have something else to show you." He grinned like an excited child and I couldn't help but smile back. We took several turns, and I continued to be amazed at the sheer size of this building. After a few minutes, Loki slowed his gait even further, as we came to a large set of carved oaken doors. They seemed a bit out of place here. They were old, and looked like they hadn't seen the same care and attention that the rest of the palace had.

Loki stepped in front of me and opened the doors. Then, he waved me forward and I walked through.

Books lined every wall, filling bookshelves that reached taller than me. To my left there was a set of stairs leading to a wraparound second floor. There too, I saw shelf upon shelf of books. To my right, the moonlight spilled through a huge window, giving another breathtaking view of the city. In the center of the floor there were two couches of a satiny fabric. "Incredible," I breathed.

"Isn't it?" asked Loki. He had shut the doors and now stood on my left. The way the blue moonlight hit his face sharpened his already angular features. He was so beautiful. "What?" he asked, having caught me staring at him. I didn't answer, but rather, pulled by his ethereal beauty, turned and stretched on my toes to kiss him. His arms encircled me, not at all objecting, and I brought my arms around his neck. I slid my tongue between his lips and earned a moan. I grinned into his lips and ran my fingers through his soft black hair.

It was complete bliss, and in that moment there was no where I would have rather been.

After a few moments, I broke the kiss. Loki looked at me, surprised, his eyes asking for an explanation to my actions. "We can't just spend all night kissing," I teased.

"And why not?" he replied with a grin. I laughed and walked toward the far wall of books. He chuckled and followed me. My eyes scaled the rows. Most of the volumes had titles like "Sword Fighting: Level 1", or "The Supreme Warrior's Handbook". Tucked into one of the far corners against the wall I found one I recognized and pulled it out: a book of Asgardian poems. "That's one of my favorites," came Loki's voice from over my shoulder. I opened it and leafed through the familiar pages, filled with beautiful and detailed illustrations.

After looking at a few of my particular favorites, I placed the book back on the shelf and continued to browse.

Loki and I spent hours in the library laughing and talking about the books we found. When we had made our way through the whole place, we headed back to his chambers. I let Loki lead again, trying to memorize the routes we had taken.

Once we reached Loki's room again, I found a beautiful silk nightdress laying on the bed where my current outfit had been before. I went into the bathroom and hurriedly changed out of my evening dress and into the lighter sleepwear.

When I came back out, Loki had changed into a black, long-sleeved stretch shirt that fit him quite nicely. Other than that, he wore nothing but his undergarments. "You can take the bed and I'll sleep here," he said, gesturing to the love seat near the balcony doors. He didn't wait for a reply, but snapped his fingers and the room went dark. The only light came in through the thin curtains as I got into Loki's large bed.

It was soft and the sheets were crisp. Several pillows sat at the top, each carrying the distinct smell of Loki. I breathed in deeply and settled in.

My eyes snapped back open as the silence of the dark room was broken by the sound of Loki shifting on the love seat. After a few seconds, he shifted again. This happened a few times before I stopped him, knowing he would never find a comfortable position. "Loki, why don't you just sleep in the bed?"

His voice came from across the room, "Because you're the guest, you should have the bed, I'm fine here, really." He shifted again, betraying his assurance.

"I didn't mean that we should switch, I meant that....I mean it's quite a large bed..."

"Oh, " he replied, "really? You wouldn't mind? It's just that this isn't a very long chair, and-"

"Not at all." I said, moving to give him some room.

I heard Loki get off the chair and climb into the bed. "Thank you Allyra."

"It's no problem at all Loki. And thank you for tonight, it has been positively spectacular. I cannot imagine someone I would rather spend this evening with."

"You're welcome. Goodnight my love, sleep well."

I murmured a "Goodnight.", before drifting into a peaceful sleep. My dreams that night were filled with Loki's laughter and the taste of his lips on mine.