The Light Elves were those of young deities of nature; and the most beautiful voices and story telling.
More beautiful than the Sun, the Light Elves were held in such a high stance.
And the young Princess Dahlia was no exception. Daughter of Freyj...
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As the sun hung just above the trees, Dahlia collapsed onto the grass below and let out a tired sigh. The young royals were still in Pegasus Pond, and had spent the last hour or so running around with the animals.
Thor was absolutely in love with them; he was overjoyed each time he was able to climb onto their backs and ride them even if it was only for a few feet before he fell off again.
And Fleur was ecstatic to see it all for the first time.
Dahlia was always a wild heart and she had the most fun, running around with the baby foals. It had taken her great convincing to get the God of Mischief to play as well; but in the secret of the little field, and the protection of the willow trees, he allowed himself the freedom and pleasure of acting like a child again.
But now they were all exhausted after the morning that they had, and sat together in a circle. The small foals sat beside them, one of them leaning against Dahlia and another against her sister.
Dahlia opened the basket and pulled out the foods that she had picked a few hours ago. Some fruits, bread, jugs of water and the left over moon cake from last night.
"You know, I have to ask, what exactly is this mooncake that everyone fancied last night?" Thor asked.
Fleur was the one to answer. "It is a honey cake, baked under the light of the moon. It is my favorite."
"I believe it is my favorite too, small Princess." Thor smiled at the girl.
The four new found friends ate their snacks happily in the grass. Thor told stories of what it is like on Asgard, and the Princesses listened with wide eyes and a never ending smile.
Even Loki found that he was enjoying himself. Perhaps it was because of the peace that could be felt in the Realm, and the fact that he was away from all the daily drama of life on Asgard. He enjoyed sitting in the forest, listening to his brother tell silly stories of when they were younger.
The God of Thunder told stories of Loki's pranks and the Princesses were more thorns delighted. They in turn told the Gods of their little pranking, while it not comparing to the Gods in the slightest.
Though as happy as they were, as the sun climbed higher in the sky, they knew that they needed to return to the Palace. So they packed the small woven basket and said goodbye to the beautiful Pegasus; Dahlia promising to return later.
On the walk back, it was noted by the Gods how the woods came alive with little creatures, all following the Light Elves as they walked.
Loki happily escorted the oldest sister; her hand comfortably resting around his arm as they walked. Thor and Fleur, though separates by a thousand years, bonded over their childlike behaviors and ran in front of them.
Loki was happy; it gave him the chance to steal Dahlia's attention for himself. He had noticed that as kind as she was, her attention was always every changing. Every little thing excited the Princess and her attention never stayed on one thing for very long.
But it was on him, and he wasn't going to waste it.
"Tell me Princess, what is it like to live in such a peaceful Realm."
Dahlia thought for only a moment. "Oh, it's very lovely. It's always very calm and peaceful. And of course, there aren't many of us. A child is born only once a few hundred years, and my sister was the most recent. But it is nice."
"It is. Alfheim is very different from Asgard. I enjoy the quietness of it."
"Asgard must be lovely. Is it beautiful?" She asked and looked at her new friend.
"Very. Haven't you ever read about it in books?"
Dahlia shook her head. "We do not have many books here. Only a handful are kept at the palace. In truth, I have never been very good at reading. It's not of most importance here. Everything we do, we learn from others. Not words."
Loki stayed quiet for a moment. "I cannot imagine what that must be like. Sometimes I feel as if reading is my only form of solitude."
Dahlia squeezed his arm. "When I need a moment away, I usually sneak away into the woods. I do a lot of singing there, and of course, dancing."
The God of Mischief smiled. "I believe that is very fitting for you."
"Loki, I would love to see your magical powers sometime. It must be so magnificent." Dahlia told him with a smile on her face.
"I will show you, if you'd like." He told her the same thing he had told Fleur last night.
"Oh, when?" Dahlia stopped walking and looked at him.
Loki realizes she wouldn't move until he gave her an answer and at that, he smiled. "Perhaps tomorrow if you are up for it. I can suspect that our parents will want us in attendance for the rest of our day."
Dahlia nodded and together they started walking again. After a few seconds she spoke again. "Perhaps, when you go back to Asgard, if possible, and you were not to mind it of course, can you send a book to me? It doesn't matter what it is about at all! I would be very happy with just a little one. One that you won't miss."
Loki looked at the girl, his heart beating steady as ever as he took in her beauty. "I shall send you as many books as you want."
"Thank you," Dahlia said happily. "That is most kind of you. I do not know why they call you God of Mischief. Is it because you have magic powers?"
And while Loki knew the reasons why he was the God of Mischief, he chose to believe that her reasoning was right. "Yes, Princess. It's because of my sorcery."
*
On the balcony in the palace, eating little gingermoss pie and sipping on sweetly aged ale, Odin of Asgard sat with Frigga and Freyja. The soft breeze kept them cool under the mid sky sun.
Laughter filled the air as they told stories of their youth and poked fun at the other. They had lived thousands of years in each other's lives, and seemed to be the best of friends.
At the sight of their children walking from the woods, Queen Freyja nodded in humor. "Ah, I see the children have taken fondly to each other. Much as expected."
At her words, Odin turned to look at them. Frigga did not miss the way his jaw clicked when he saw Loki escorting the eldest Princess towards the Palace.
Frigga was the one to watch her son. They had always had the most special of bonds. And she saw the way that he looked at the Princess with fondness and admiration. She could see how gently he was escorting her, even from above them. And she loved seeing that.
Her youngest son was always filled with such anger all the time. Perhaps it was the powerful that the Light Elves had over men, their beauty was enough to get any man on his knees. Either way, her son looked happy and in peace.
She did not want Odin to spoil it. She prayed that Odin would let his ideas go.
On the other side of the table, Freyja noticed how taken Loki seemed to be with her daughter. And it did worry her. She knew that the God of Mischief was not always to be trusted, and she knew he caused trouble where trouble shouldn't be.
But she did notice how taken he was. She prayed that Odin wouldn't further his ideas. She would never want her daughter to be betrothed to either of the Gods. She wanted to keep her safe from any harm in Alfheim.
