Giftless

Chapter 41

"How have you managed to steal all of the blankets, all of the bed, and lay on top of me?" Loki grumbled sometime in the middle of the night. You opened your eyes to find out what he was talking about. Somehow you had cocooned yourself in the blankets and had your head resting on his chest. He was also trapped on the very edge of the bed, nearly falling off.

"Sorry," you mumbled, scooting back over to your side of the bed and unwrapping the blankets to spread them back out on the bed. You turned your back to him, feeling uncomfortable at being called out for your bad behavior.

"I was teasing, darling. It's ok," Loki told you. gently. You looked over at him, still feeling a bit bruised and vulnerable, though you didn't understand why. "Love, don't cry," Loki told you just as softly and gently as tears ran down your face. He pulled you into his arms and you sobbed onto his bare chest. "It's ok, love. Everything's ok," he told you over and over until you could finally get control of your emotions. "Darling, please tell me why you're crying," he whispered when your tears finally slowed.

"I-I don't know," you whimpered. His teasing had just been one straw too many on your strained emotions. Too much had happened too quickly.

He nodded and just held you in his arms."It's ok, darling," he told you gently. "Shall we get a cup of tea?" he asked you with a smile in his voice.

You smiled up at him. Of course he remembered that tea came after bad dreams and heavy emotions. "That sounds like an excellent idea," you replied. He helped you out of the giant bed and had a Cheshire cat grin on his face.

He took your hand and you left his suite in your pajamas and barefoot and padded through the halls of the palace. He made a game of avoiding the servants and you giggled like children on your adventure to the kitchens to find the tea.

"Prince Loki," the servants in the kitchen greeted you. They tried to hide their smiles at your childish antics. You made your tea and sat on the floor in the way of all of the servants while you drank it. It was so silly and innocent and fun that you found yourself feeling so much better.

"Brother, have you snuck down to the kitchens again?" came Thor's booming voice. You looked up from where you and Loki were sitting on the floor in the kitchen with tea and a cake some of the servants had brought over to you when you weren't paying attention. Quickly, Loki summoned a blanket and handed it to you. You blushed when you realized you were still wearing the short skimpy silk nightgown. You hadn't even realized it while Loki and you were on your childish adventure. You wrapped the blanket around yourself before Thor found you.

"Brother, why are you here?" Loki asked grumpily.

"Sorry, Thor. Loki has misplaced his manners somewhere. What he meant was, would you like to join our tea party?" you asked, looking up at Thor.

"I'm here looking for you two. Mother woke me to tell you to get your soulbond back to bed," he addressed that last part to Loki.

"Why'd she wake you?" you asked, curious.

"Because she knows I'll make sure baby brother does what he is told. And you need to get back to sleep," he aimed the last comment at you.

"Any particular reason?" you asked, wondering why this was so important at whatever middle of the night time it was.

He shrugged. "Tomorrow is apparently a big day and she said you will need all your strength for it. Now are you coming, or do I have to carry you there?" Thor asked, holding a hand down to you. He looked a little too eager to carry you to bed. His tone was light, but you knew he'd do whatever Frigga had told him. You sighed and reached up a hand so he could haul you to your feet. "Ah, being carried, excellent choice!" Thor exclaimed. He had you scooped up in his arms, wrapped securely in the blanket a moment later. You made an indignant noise at him while Loki jumped to his feet spluttering and complaining about Thor's behavior. "I apologize, kind servants for the trouble my siblings caused you," Thor told them with a head nod in place of a bow.

"Thor!" Loki whined as Thor took off with you in his arms heading back to your suite.

"Come along little brother," Thor replied. "I would like to return to bed tonight too and cannot do that until the boon for Mother is completed,"

"Thor! I can walk on my own," you protested.

"Yes, but this is faster. You two have caused me enough trouble tonight," Thor replied with a chuckle. "Not that I mind trouble, but Torun will have me up early. Plus, if I have you, Loki will follow without dragging his heels. We have been through this debate a lot over the years. He was always sneaking to the kitchen, or library, or roofs, or all sorts of silly places in the middle of the night and I would have to drag him back to bed kicking and screaming. And do not let him tell you it was just when we were children. Just before he left on his journey, Mother sent me to collect him from the library in the middle of the night and return him to bed."

"We got new volumes in from the archaeological dig," Loki protested.

"Which is why I had to carry you to bed after you did not sleep for four days translating the ancient texts," Thor looked over his shoulder as he addressed Loki. "This is much easier with your presence, little sister," he told you warmly. He set you down outside of Loki's suite. He pulled a small vial of liquid from his pocket and handed it to you. "This is from Mother for a dreamless sleep," he told you while Loki came up to you. You sighed, but you could tell from his expression that he wasn't going to leave you alone until you had drank it in his presence. So you unstoppered the vial and downed the contents. Thor took the empty vial back from you with a smile. "Get some sleep, little sister. Stay in your suite the rest of the night, Loki. Do not make me come hunting you again," Thor turned and left you while the warm feeling of the potion filled you.

Loki wrapped an arm around you. "Come, darling. Let's get you back to bed while you can still stand. Mother's potions are always quite effective," he told you as he opened the suite door. After a few unsteady, wobbly, steps he swept you up into his arms. "Quite effective," he repeated with a sigh, since you were falling asleep on your feet. "I have been on the receiving end of that particular potion before. Frequently as you have heard from the oaf," he told you as he tucked you into bed. He joined you, wrapping a cool arm around you. You moved enough to lay your head on his chest and fell asleep listening to the comforting sound of his heartbeat.