Beauty and the Beast

Chapter 42

Loki spent hours, days, maybe longer, in his room mourning the loss of his love, of his family, his old life. All of those feelings had come back to the surface and he had no choice but to let them out. He lost track of time as he mourned.

Due to the way the spells were set up around his suite, Breya had the ability to slip through his shields. She came and brought him food and made sure he ate and slept and cared for himself as much as he could. She didn't dare let the people know about his condition or how he got to be that way.

From her much more logical and rational point of view, it was a couple of days before he came back to himself. His heartbreak had taken more of a toll on him than he had originally thought.

Breya was sitting by his bedside when he woke. She looked up from her book and gave him a small smile. "Welcome back to the land of the living," she greeted her brother warmly, glad to see him awake.

Loki glared at her, angry and distrustful. "Why are you here, Breya?" He demanded in a snarl.

She cringed like he'd slapped her. "I just brought you dinner. I'm sorry!" She scrambled up to leave, clutching her book to her chest. She was so little and Loki tried to remind himself that she was not only his sister, but barely not a child.

Loki groaned as he sat up and schooled his expression, running his fingers through his hair. "I apologize. I'm just...not myself," he said gently, trying to soothe her

She nodded, but didn't relax. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have, I'm-" she scurried from his suite, afraid of him and his anger.

Loki sighed, tears forming in his eyes over the monster he'd become. He'd scared his sibling and his only ally on this realm. He curled back up in his bed and drowned his sorrow in more sobs.

He eventually returned to his duties, who knew how much longer later. He was practically a robot while he did, though. He completed his duties for the day and then returns to his room on repeat and remained this way for a long time with no emotions.

*

"Do you want to go home to her?" Breya asked him one day about five minutes after she'd managed to get back in his good graces. They were sitting together in Loki's sitting room, safe from prying ears. It was one of the first times she'd braved talking to him about anything other than her duties.

Loki shook his head firmly. "I can't. I'm only a danger to her. It is better this way," his voice was dull and lifeless. His expression stone like.

"You hate it here and you miss her," Breya pressed her luck that he wouldn't just get angry with her. She paused and considered something. "Wait. You were raised on Asgard. You never learned to control your Jotun abilities, did you? Is that what this is about?" She asked too astutely.

Loki raised an eyebrow and gave her his full attention. "What are you getting at?" He asked, showing real interest. Maybe she knew something.

She fidgeted anxiously and blushed a light purple. "Just... you said you're a danger to her... I thought..." she shook her head, trailing off when she lost that last bit of bravery.

"I have a duty to Jotunheim. There is nothing we can do to change that. Morgana is better off without me. She will find someone that is much more suited for her than I ever was," Loki replied, resigned to the situation. He was still stuck in Jotun form too. Morgan was far better off without a monster like him.

"There is something we can do to change that," she said so softly that her voice as barely above a whisper. She wouldn't look at him, too afraid for that. "I know you hate it here and have since you arrived. I took the liberty of finding out how to get you off the throne..." she explained, afraid he was going to snap at her.