The Brightest Star

Chapter 16 - Family Matters

(Kára's POV):
"Lady Kára, if you do not get up you shall be late to your lesson," Eydis spoke, shaking me awake.

I sighed, throwing the covers off of me and swinging my legs over the side of my bed. A groan of pain escaped my lips as I moved, a painful memory of what had transpired the night before.

"Are you alright, Lady Kára?" Eydis asked in concern, placing my tray of breakfast down on my vanity and rushing to my side.

"I am quite well, I am simply having trouble fully waking up this morning," I easily lied, standing up and trying not to let my soreness be noticed by her. "I apologize for making you wake me up, I suppose I really was exhausted last night."

Eydis seemed to buy my lie, or at the very least she did not press any further. She then got me dressed for the day and styled my hair while I ate the food that she had brought me. I was still eating when she finished, so she simply left Frigga's response to my report on my vanity and then left the room. Frigga informed me that she had had a rather unsuccessful meeting with Loki directly before our lesson and seemed to believe his change in behavior was due to that, which I did find rather reassuring. Even still, I now felt more pressure than before to get Loki to trust me as I was running out of time to prove myself as a worthy teacher.

I was a little nervous as to how the night before would affect our relationship during the lesson, however Loki acted as though nothing had happened. I tried to do the same, but even I could tell that I was being more cautious and acted a bit shyer than I had in previous lessons. However, Loki did agree to continue with mind magic, much to my relief, and I hoped that he would continue being as obedient throughout the rest of our lessons.

At the end of the lesson, I informed Loki of what I planned to write to Frigga on the topic of his behavior before leaving the room to go inscribe it. Part of me wanted to inform Frigga about Loki's threat as it felt like something she would want to confront, however I was afraid that Loki would discover that and use the later events of the night to get me fired. Despite what Loki had said, I feared that the knowledge I had slept with him could easily result in my position being terminated and I could not afford that.

Returning to my room after the lesson, I decided that I needed to see my family again. I needed to make sure that the money they were being delivered was enough for them to live off of and warn them to save any excess money as my position was appearing quite tenuous, even more so than it was when I first began. In addition, I felt that perhaps I could help them save up for the future. I searched through the drawers of jewelry, deciding which pieces would sell for the best price while still trying to not make it obvious that I had taken them. Then again, Frigga had given the jewelry to me as a gift and I had not been wearing it, so perhaps she would not be upset even if she did end up discovering that I had stolen some.

Not sure if I had permission to leave the premises, I decided that I would wait until dark to sneak out. I would have to walk off of the grounds, as Loki had informed me that I could not teleport directly off of them. So if I were to sneak out through the gardens, careful to avoid any patrolling guards, I could make it to the edge of the property and teleport home from there. With my plan set, I finished my report for Frigga, taking a brief break to eat lunch. Guilt began creeping up inside me; guilt that I had not visited my family since acquiring the job, guilt that I was betraying the Queen's trust, guilt that my actions could result in the loss of my position and I would end up failing my family.

After Eydis left that night, I used magic to change back into the garments that I used to wear everyday. The last thing I needed was to walk around in the elegant clothing that Frigga had provided me with and besides the hood of my cape provided me with the concealment of my face. I slipped the jewelry into the pockets of my dress, then made sure that the door of my chambers was locked in case for some reason someone came to visit me during the night.

Feeling a bit nervous to see my family again, I teleported to the gardens, which were directly below the balcony of my bedchambers. I ran behind a tall tree, checking for any guards that may be patrolling the grounds at night, jumping when I felt a hand placed on my shoulder. I spun around, shocked to be face to face with my pupil.

"Loki!" I gasped, backing away from him, but forgetting that that path was blocked by the tree that I had been using as cover and flinching as my back slammed into the sturdy trunk.

"Good evening, Kára, might I inquire as to what you are doing out here, hiding behind the shrubbery?" He asked in his normal calm and collected demeanor, despite the strange scenario.

"O-oh, nothing," I panicked, desperately trying to come up with a decent excuse. "I was merely out here to take a walk around the gardens, but I was not sure if it was allowed so late at night and wanted to check for guards. And you, what are you doing out here, besides surprising innocent women enjoying nature?"

"It gets tiresome being cooped up in the palace all day and I, too, came for a walk around the gardens. Also, you do not need to fear guards catching you, they do not patrol the gardens, only the areas surrounding," he replied, shocking me with the fact that he seemed to have believed my lie. We fell into an awkward silence, as I simply wanted to leave his presence, but had no excuse to, and he was not much of a conversationist, at least not with me.

Loki finally broke the silence, "since we are both out here to enjoy the gardens, perhaps I could give you a tour."

"Thank you, but that is not necessary, I should probably be heading back inside soon anyway," I lied, although wondering if going with him would lead to him putting more trust in me.

"Heading in so soon, when you have only just arrived outside?"

"Yes, well, how about you? How are you even out here alone, where are your guards?" I asked, hoping to change the subject.

"Oh, they are far too easy to sneak past," he replied simply, shocking me with his honesty.

"Loki! If your mother finds out about this-"

"I am certain that she will not, that is, unless you tell her," he spoke, his words almost sounding like a threat. "I have found that the guards are quite lacking in intelligence and it would be far too easy for me to escape further than just to the gardens. Now, come this way, there is something that you must see before retreating back inside."

Loki grabbed my hand to lead me to wherever it was that he felt so strongly about. I followed him without much resistance, unsure of how to slip away with out making him suspicious. Besides, I was now rather curious to see what he wanted to show me, and it certainly would not hurt my goal of getting closer to him.

He stopped by a tree with long hanging branches, making me curious as to what he found so spectacular about this tree when we had passed many flowers that, in my opinion, were far more spectacular. Before I had a chance to question him, he began to lead me off of the path and closer to the tree, careful not to step on the smaller plants in our way. He then pulled the branches apart and motioned me inside.

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(A/N): I am so exhausted and cannot move my arm, but at least I watched Thor and Winter Soldier today so I suppose that makes everything better! I hope that you have enjoyed this chapter (if anyone is still reading this lol)