Perhaps [thor/loki]

Chapter 11

The following evening, Nora dressed for dinner at her family home. She brushed her hair in the mirror, taking note of the large bruises that had formed around her eye and her wrists. She conjured herself an outfit that covered the bruises on her wrists and arms so that they would not be a point of conversation that evening. Then she placed as much powder as she could around her eye to cover the blue hues of her skin. She did not want to see blue skin ever again.

Thor came to find her, holding a bouquet to his love at her door. "I was hoping I might join you this evening."

"It's just dinner with my family," Nora said, "You don't have to."

"Nora, you are my family now," he said, bringing his hand to her cheek. He kissed her bruise, "I would love nothing more than to be with you."

Nora's face turned pink at the vow. She nodded, accepting his request to join her. They set off into town to Nora's family home, her hand resting in his large one. Thor had a habit of lifting Nora off her feet when she held his arm, and it was a bit of a running joke between them now. As they walked down the steps of the castle, she would glide down three stairs for every step Thor took.

It felt normal to be walking beside Thor in the town Nora had lived her whole life in. Being away from it made her feel out of place, as she had never pictured what other realms may look like.

"I could have flown us across town, you know," Thor offered.

"I know," she said, "But I always enjoy our walks."

"As do I," Thor said. "I must tell you, Gyda and Volstagg have been spending quite a bit of time together. I wouldn't be surprised if-"

Just as they neared Nora's home, Volstagg opened the front door and rushed out to greet them. It had not been announced, but Volstagg had also been invited to the reunion dinner. Suddenly Nora was grateful for Thor's presence.

"My friends!" Volstagg cheered. "How good it is to see you!"

"Hello, Volstagg," Nora said, eyeing his excited demeanor. "What brings you to my family's home?"

"I invited him," Gyda shouted from the kitchen. Nora, Thor, and Volstagg joined her inside. "Is that a problem?"

"Not at all," Nora assured her, smiling at Volstagg. "I suppose I was gone longer than I thought."

"No matter the length, it was too long," Thor said.

Ulfar came and joined them. At the sight of Nora, he pulled her into a tight hug and then shook Thor's hand. He quickly poured four glasses of ale, for all except Gyda. Gyda had been embarrassingly drunk in front of Volstagg on their first introduction, yet she did not see that he found her endearing because of it. All the same, she had sworn it off for the time being as Volstagg had begun to court her.

"Welcome home, Nora," Ulfar said as he raised his glass. He encouraged them to sit around their kitchen table. "Tell us, what was it like where you were?"

"Cold," Nora told them. "Dark. Dim."

"You must have been so frightened," Gyda said.

Nora thought it over, "No, I wasn't." If anything, she had been sad.

"Nora escaped on her own," Thor explained, reaching his hand aside to take hold of hers. "We simply helped her return home."

"How did you get out of there?" Volstagg asked. "Did Loki have you locked away?"

"Loki had the Frost Giants take me captive instead of killing me," Nora said, "I'm not sure if I would have survived otherwise. I was outnumbered."