Ragnarok | Book 4

Chapter 2: Key

Sigyn came barging through her chamber doors, distressed, shaken and covered in black blood. There sat Loki on the lounges reading a book, he was startled by the sudden intrusion, but was then really startled seeing the state Sigyn was in.

"By the Norns!" Loki threw down his book and ran to his wife, "What happened out there!?"

"I... uh." Sigyn's voice was shaking as was her hands.  Horror struck Loki's face when he see's the black blood Sigyn was covered in.

"I would have her executed for this—!" he tried to grasp her shoulders, but she slapped them away.

"Don't touch me like this!" she says, tears swelled in her eyes. "You don't want it on you."

"My love, I care not." Loki hooked his fingers under chin and tilted her head upwards at him. "What happened out there."

"I don't even know myself..." Sigyn waved him off, but her hand was caught by his, she looked up at him curiously. Loki pulled up the sleeve of her dress to reveal angry red marks left by the hands of the seer with scorches of the black dirt of her hands. Loki brought up Sigyn other hand to see the same thing.

A fire burned in his eyes and he growled angrily, "She will pay for this!"

"No!" Sigyn says firmly.

"What?! Look at that she did to you!" Loki flailed his arms. "Look at the state your in."

"You cannot harm her, Loki." Sigyn shrugged off her cloak and discarded it on the floor at her feet. "We may still need her! What she has done is nothing, you know her mind is scattered."

"What did she say?"

"I don't wish to speak about it." Sigyn lowered her head and headed for the bath house. Loki sighed heavily and chased after her,

"At least let me help you." he says lovingly. "I will draw you a bath to clean yourself."

Sigyn smiled warmly at Loki and headed over to the vanity set, she picked up a cloth and dapped it in the water bowl and rung it out. She began to wipe her face and neck of the black blood and then washed the dirt smudges around her wrist, leaving angry red hand marks.

Meanwhile, Loki drew the bath. He ventured over to Sigyn standing behind her, his hands grasped her shoulders and turned her around to face him.

"I'm sorry you had to go alone."

"Don't be..."

"If only I insisted I accompany you."

"She would not have allowed it, she only requested me." Sigyn says. "It would not have made a difference."

"No one hurts the love of my life and lives. No one." Loki cupped her cheek and ran his thumb across her warm cheek. She leaned into his touch and smiled,

"You are sweet."

Loki brought up Sigyn's hands in his, holding them gently, "Let me heal you." in his hand appeared a healing rock. He crushed it in his palm and started to massage it into her wrists gently, but it was still enough to make Sigyn wince.

"I'm sorry." Loki plants a kiss on her forehead, making Sigyn smile. "There, have a bath. Get some rest, you'll feel better."

Loki washed the resin of the crushed rock in the basin as Sigyn slipped her ruined dress off her shoulder at to her feet. She kicked it away saying,

"Such a shame. It was a nice dress."

"You can have another if you want." Loki chuckled watching as she stepped into the warm water.

"You treat me like a princess."

"You are no princess, my love, you are a queen." Loki says before announcing. "Have you heard the great news yet!"

"About?"

"Our son and his wife are expecting."

Sigyn turned in the water, "What!? They're expecting a child!?"

"Yes."

"This is great news!" All worries and dark thoughts of the previous events left Sigyn's mind and she was over joyed. "We must go see them!"

"What do you say we try for another?" Loki stalked towards the bath with a sly smirk.

"No!" Sigyn pointed a finger at him, but it only made his smirk grow wider as he stepped up the steps, but Sigyn jumped out of the water, pulling a sheet around her wet body and she ran from the bathhouse, leaving water footprints behind.

Loki laughed and chased after her. "Where did you hope to go?" his long strides allowed himself to catch her before she even made it out of the door way. She squealed as he slung her body over his shoulder.

"Loki!" she laughed.

"That is my name, yes." he laughed leaning in to kiss her, but she leaned back laughing.

"No!" 

"Resistance is futile, women."

"Is that meant to insult me?"

"Of course not." Loki took the opportunity to throw her down on the bed and crawl over the top of her and he crashed his lips against hers, tasting the dry winds on her lips. She moaned into the kiss and melted into him, her hands tangled themselves into his hair.

"But what did she say?" Loki asked pulling back from the kiss.

"You completely ruined the moment." Sigyn pouted.

"Tell me." he complained.

"She said I needed to retrieve Jormungandr's horn from Midgard." Sigyn says, she didn't want to tell him the whole truth. There was something in the Seer's voice that told her not to say. But she chose to tell him part of the truth.

"Why?" Loki's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I honestly don't know." she confessed. "She said I would eventually need it."

"Thats all she said?" Loki asked suspiciously.

"Well, she did elaborate but we would be here all day If I would as well."

"Always been a difficult women." Loki sighed heavily and fell onto the bed next to Sigyn. "Always with the riddles, it makes my head hurt."

Sigyn let out a breathy chuckle, before saying, "I would travel to Midgard tomorrow then?"

"If it's what The Seer said to do, then yes."