Loki Laufeyson: A One Shot Series

Dancing On Your Toes

{Loki demands a dance...how could you possibly say no?}

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His hands were completely unwavering, confidence exuding from him as he took the initiative to press all ten digits into my hip bones.

"Join me in a dance, my dear." His voice was insistent, the sentence dangling in the air like it had nowhere else to land.

I scoffed, eyes doing a turn in their sockets as I continued to stir the pot filled to the brim with fettuccine noodles.

"Huh...I'm not hearing any music." I noted matter-of-factly.

Without warning, Loki snatched the wooden spoon from within my grasp, hanging it a few feet above my head...the unfair advantage of his height.

"Hey, quit it!" I exclaimed, stretching my arm up in an attempt to repossess the utensil, "I have to finish making dinner!"

"Oh, do you now?"

I couldn't help but giggle as a sly smirk stretched like putty across his face and a laugh escaped from the depths of his chest. He backed away from me until his backside hit the kitchen island. He hit the granite with an 'oomf' and stretched his back until it could bend no more. It was always a game to him. My hands pawed at his torso as I continued to reach for the object...but it was no use. I was plucked like a feather from the ground and placed on the countertop.

Loki's hands fell to my waist as my arms slung lazily over the hills of his shoulders in defeat. I groaned, forehead kissing his as my legs childishly swung back and forth.

"Dance with me, love." His voice was much quieter now, nose skating over top of mine.

I huffed, lower lip jutting outward.

"Okay, okay!" I rattled, shooting my hands to the sky, "No more than five minutes though. I can't have these noodles turning to mush."

Loki helped me slide off the counter, careful not to knock over the salad bowl just inches away.

"Now you see..." Loki began, sounding incredibly rehearsed as his hands found the sweet spot of my lower back, "It isn't about the music, per-se...it's about the moment within the music."

I scoffed, arms slinging around the pole of his neck, "So romantic it's sickening, aren't you...?"

The God's grin was wicked, repositioning my hands so that one held his and the other landed flat against his chest. We stayed that way for a while and he stared down at me in adoration until we began to sway. He twirled me about, his motions effortless while I, on the other hand, floundered about like a ragdoll tripping over my crooked ankles. Loki chuckled, the sound sending a wave of electricity up and down my back that I couldn't contain.

"How in the world did you learn to dance so fluently?" I asked in an astonished exhale.

He chuckled once more, "I've lived one-thousand lives, my dear...and Asgard, well, it held its fair share of get-togethers..."

"I'm a firm believer in a bit of alcohol consumption before throwing myself in the arms of Gods for a spur of the moment waltz, Loki Laufeyson..."

He shuddered, his name on my tongue like sweet, sweet nectar.

"You see, a trick I was taught," He began, toeing at my ankles, "Is to stand on one's feet."

"Oh...?" I asked, tilting my head to the side like a dog.

He nodded quietly, motioning for me to do as I was told.

"If we move as one, it will feel as if you're the greatest dancer in all the realms." His voice flourished theatrically.

I snickered in response to his antics. His black, woolen socks were warm and inviting under the pads of my bare feet. I nearly sunk right into them, our bodies nearly fused as my chest pressed into his navel. He was slow to lift his heels, keeping me steady so that my body wouldn't topple over. In an instant, we began to ballroom as he held me safely and securely atop his feet.

"Does this feel better to you...?" He asked as he smiled down at me, a smile worth far more than the words he spoke.

I nodded, cheeks turning rainbow shades of pink. He placed a tender hand over the base of my neck, holding me like a hostage against his chest. The side of my face melted into the fabric of his lapel like chocolate to a hot stove.

It was a wonder. A man as debonair as himself having so little to show for it. I imagined women and men alike throwing themselves at him just to attract a millisecond of his attention...but he mindlessly flitted past like any other mortal man. It was clear to me that he didn't mind. He had stolen a single heart. A heart that belonged to that whom he loved. It was all he really needed.

He began to murmur a tune that I had never heard before. It escalated until his full voice was singing in an unknown language so melodic it felt criminal.

I looked up, eyes bearing into him.

"What are singing?" I asked, curiosity peaking.

He hummed softly, inviting my hand to enter his, "An old Asgardian love song...the one my mother and father danced to at their wedding ceremony...Frigga...she would always sing it to me in childhood. A lullaby, I suppose."

The warmth in Loki's voice caused my core to disintegrate into absolute oblivion.

Loki sang the translation into the conch of my ear, breath like spring winds against the peach hairs on my cheek.

"It is only I, my love, my heart...lest it beat so true for you, my sweet...come home, come home...a warm embrace to carry you til dawn...life is you forevermore..."

Tears nearly escaped from the brims of my eyes, coating each duct, and threatening to fall.

"Darling..." The word exited in a waver as the pride I had so often swallowed down diminished.

He chuckled, pinching my chin between his fingertips and leaning down to place a fruitful kiss upon the center of my forehead. I took a breath in as I allowed the sensation of his warmth to fill me and boil over.

As we continued on dancing, he continued to sing.

My head found comfort in Loki's arms. His heart motioned so steadily and so quietly against the palm of my hand that it was almost indetectable. The only sure sign that it was even there was how clearly I could hear it beating with my ear to his chest. The sound emanating from within him carried on, the serenity of it matching the pace of our dance and the song in his voice. I could've listened for hours and still not had my fix.

It was beautiful. It was him.

I couldn't have been more present with this man if I had tried. My breath began to imitate his in a way that made us seem completely inseparable. A thought crossed my mind. I wondered if others had the immense pleasure of sharing in this level of inescapable closeness with Loki. If they too had the golden opportunity to dance with him, stand upon his feet, enjoy the simplicity of a serenade, and take in the all too human sound of his beating heart.

Loki looked at the clock ticking away on the wall and slowly peeled himself from me, finding difficulty in doing so.

"Well, now I do suppose it's been 5 minutes..."

I smiled, pulling his hand to my lips and gracing it with a kiss before speaking.

"5 minutes more."