{SET BEFORE THE EVENTS OF 'THOR'}
-
"Did you know," she said, sitting on the ground and turning to the prince, "that Midgard has an entire language dedicated to flowers? Each of them mean something else. It's a very sweet way they can express emotio...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
*
When the Bifrost released them, Loki and Maeve fell flat to the ground, coughing and shivering. Loki took the brunt of the fall, holding his wife close, but they both immediately felt the ache. She stayed as close to him as possible, not trusting anything just yet. He was safe when nothing else was.
Voices entered her ears, but she barely reacted to them, keeping her face buried in Loki's chest and not trusting anything except him. He was real. He wouldn't hurt her. She knew that.
"Your Highnesses."
"Maeve!"
"Brother, you're safe!"
Loki sat up wearily, holding Maeve close to him as his emerald eyes swept through the gathered group. "Breathe," he whispered into her hair. "You're safe here. No one is going to lay a hand to you now. I've got you."
Maeve took Loki's hand and she stood slowly, only to be swept into a hug. She let out a surprised squeak.
"Brother," Loki said warningly, but Maeve shook her head and leaned into Thor's warm embrace. Sif stood nearby, as did Heimdall.
"Welcome home, little sister," Thor whispered, his deep voice comforting and familiar. "You're freezing."
Thor moved to remove his scarlet cloak and drape it around her shoulders. At Loki's jealous glare, he only rolled his eyes and finished fastening the clasp near her neck. "Your cloak is soaking wet. It would be less than helpful to your wife, so grow up a bit, eh?"
The god of thunder missed the second and more violent glare that his younger brother shot, but Maeve didn't. She only frowned, wondering what exactly had occurred in the months of her absence.
Sif stepped forward and hugged Maeve, then surprised everyone present by throwing her arms around Loki. She whispered something in his ear that no one else caught, but the faintest smile crossed his face as he murmured something back.
Maeve wrapped Thor's cloak around her like a blanket. It dwarfed her, as it was even bigger than Loki's cloaks, but it was warm and soft and felt like a hug. She blinked a few times, feeling slightly unsteady on her feet. Sensing this, Loki stepped forward and wrapped a secure arm around her waist, anchoring her.
"Thor, you and Sif, ride ahead. Heimdall, please inform my mother that we've returned. Tell her that Maeve's ill." Loki's ever-polite words sounded off. Maeve heard a twinge of doubt in her husband's voice. He didn't know if Heimdall would obey him.
After studying him for a moment, Heimdall bowed respectfully. Loki only nodded in response.
As soon as Thor was gone, his cloak turned dark green. Maeve rolled her eyes at Loki, who pretended to not see her exasperation.
Outside, two horses waited for their owners, whinnying impatiently. Loki walked up to Twilight, and whispered something, giving the black stallion a pat. He neighed and immediately took off in the direction of the palace. Only then did Loki help Maeve onto Ingrid, winking as he did.
