Growing Pains

Sixteen

Helena was scared. She was almost to the door with the blue ribbon on the outside when she heard her name called.

"Helena!"

She spun around and saw Frigga rushing towards her.

"Follow me, my dear, you'll be safer this way!" Frigga said, grabbing Helena's hand and pulling her down a different hallway.

"The guards s-said there's-" Helena began as they ran.

"Invaders in the palace." Frigga confirmed, slowing and leading Helena to a more secluded room.

"Why are they here? Why were they in the dungeons?" Helena asked before realizing what she said.

She just admitted to being in the dungeons- the one place she wasn't supposed to be. Helena was going to try and correct her previous statement, but Frigga waved her off.

"It's fine my dear, I know."

"What?!"

"I know you've been speaking to your father. It was only a matter of time until it happened, it was just the matter of keeping it secret from Odin until he warms up to you, a secret which you've kept quite well."

"You aren't mad?" Helena asked slowly.

"No, I always advocated for Loki to know about you. I know people say he's dangerous, and he is, but Helena, he's my son." Frigga explained.

"You think there's still good in him?"

"I know it." Frigga said.

There was a noise outside the door. Frigga had delayed it with magic, but when it began to shake, Helena grew more frightened. Then she remembered her daggers. Helena began to reach for one.

"I'm afraid that won't do, my dear." Frigga frowned.

"What?"

"One training session's worth of fighting won't get rid of them- they're dark elves."

"What are they doing here?" Helena asked.

"Searching for something."

"What do we do then? You could take off my cuff and I c-could try to, um-"

"No." Frigga shook her head, "Don't use your magic- not today."

"But they're going to break down the door!" Helena cried.

Frigga pulled back a curtain and revealed a small door in the wall.

"For storage." Frigga explained to her quizzical look.

Helena looked at the space behind the door. She would just fit, but there wouldn't be any room for Frigga.

"No!" Helena protested as she figured out Frigga's next plan.

"I'm sorry to ask you of this, my dear, but you must go in and stay silent, no matter what, alright?"

"No! No, no, no-" Helena began to panic.

"You're going for be okay." Frigga whispered and leaned in to kiss the top of Helena's head.

"I can't leave you." Helena whimpered.

"I know." Frigga smiled sadly and waved her hand.

Helena felt the incantation fall over her. Her body moved without her permission and she was quickly inside the small storage room. She could barley see anything in the room, but she could head everything happening outside it. She could hear when the door gave way and the dark elves came into the room. She could head Frigga fight some of them off. Then, the sounds of the elves falling stopped.

"Where is it?" One of the elves asked.

"You will not find it here on Asgard." Frigga replied calmly.

"We know you have it! You locked the door!"

"For my safety, alone, not to hide anything." Frigga said.

"Then you are useless."

Helena almost cried out when she heard Frigga's grunt. She covered her mouth with her shaking hands.

"You'll never win." Frigga gasped before falling silent.

"Search the room." The elf commanded.

Helena's eyes were blurry with her tears and they blinked to adjust to the light as the little door opened before hands came and wretched her out of the storage room.

"This little one was hiding." An elf said.

"Does she have it?"

"No."

"Kill h-"

The elf was interrupted by a large hammer flying into him. He hit the wall behind them and Thor was in the room in an instant. The three elves in the room were quickly taken care of but Helena couldn't focus on that. All she could pay attention to was Frigga's body on the floor. Thor asked her if she was alright, but she couldn't hear him. Then he saw what she did and let out a yell of grief before falling to his mother's side. Helena stood paralyzed. The woman who had been so kind and motherly to her was gone. The AllMother was dead.

Helena then snapped out of her trance and looked down at her wrists.

"T-Thor?" She whispered.

He glanced at her.

"No, Helena." Thor said, "She's g-gone."

"But I don't want her to be." Helena said.

Thor reached out to embrace her, but Helena stumbled backwards. She turned and ran out of the room. All of the dark elves had been either killed or retreated, so her path was clear. All Helena could think about was the blue and gold blurs of people that she loved but would never see again. She ended up in a garden somewhere, vaguely recalling it as Frigga's favorite, but not quite sure how she got there. Helena sat on the grass and squeezed her eyes closed. It was a long time before anyone came by, and when they did, she could hardly believe who it was.

"She wouldn't want you to cry." Odin said.

Helena's eyes opened. He held out a hand to help her up, but she scooted backwards and away.

"No... you should hate me." Helena said.

"I do not hate you child."

"Because you do not know what I have done." Helena said, "I was there, in the room. I hid in the little storage room. She gave me enough time to be saved by Thor."

"I know." Odin said.

Helena looked gave him a puzzled look.

"Frigga would not have sacrificed herself for just anyone. She saw you for the good person you are. There was an enchantment on you that made you enter that storage room, wasn't there?"

Helena nodded.

"And even if there wasn't, it's what-... it's what Frigga wanted." Odin said.

Helena noticed a tear streaking down the side of his face. She looked down at her hands.

"I'm so sorry." She said.

It wasn't her fault, but guilt hung heavily over her head. Why did everyone she loved have to die?