Now And Forever

Chapter 32

- Loki's Pov -

I woke up to an empty bed. And a very quiet room. Which is unusual. I quickly got dressed and wander around the hall.
"Thalia!" I called out. Again. And again. My mother walked past and told me to head to the kitchen. I tiptoed down the stairs. I was slightly weirded out to see Thalia was making chocolate cookies. She found the recipe, bought the ingredients and made the dough. Rolled the dough into a sausage and divided it into sections. Now she is using her powers to press man-shaped cookie cutters into the rolled-out dough, carving out an army of cookie men. I am very concerned. I have never seen her like this.
"Hey sweetie," I smiled as I walk into the kitchens. It smells delicious. Thalia looked over her shoulder at me and smiled. And that's more than enough for me to notice that my girlfriend is not happy. Not because she can't cook but because she can. But because her face was blank and it looked like she had been crying. I place a hand on her shoulder "Darling, please tell me, what's wrong?"
"I, urm... Had a bad day... Mood wise. Needed to do something to cheer me up. Anyway, I don't want to talk about it" Thalia waved me away. She was lying for part of that sentence. Thalia never bakes to cheer herself up.
"What's the real reason are you making cookies?" I say, watching from a responsible safe distance. The kitchen makes Thalia weirder than normal. There are all sorts of throwing things, and curses so filthy that I was honestly shocked to hear them in her sweet voice, and knives embedded in the wall. And Thalia doesn't need to look or hold a weapon to throw it, The only downside to telekinesis power. Which to me is somehow more unsettling.
"I just wanted to..." Thalia answers sweetly. She continues cutting out her little men.
"So you're making cookies men because...?" Thalia shoots me an evil, evil look. I relaxed a little; I'm used to seeing that kind of expression on her in this room.
"Because I want to," she says, and she turns back to her project. And begins to hum.
"Thalia -"
"Have you ever had shortbread? Or will this be a new taste for you?" Thalia didn't look at me.
"Um, no, I used to have it when I visited Norway. I still don't understand why you're baking..." Thalia isn't listening. Thalia is humming again, humming a song I couldn't place, and cheerfully hacking little men from her dough. It would be okay if it was just a tray of cookies. (Okay, no, it would still be weird and unnerving.) But there are also trays of cookies, cooling on the counter waiting to be frosted, and more in the oven. Okay, something is definitely wrong here. And with complete disregard for my personal safety, takes some steps toward my girlfriend "Thalia . . . are you feeling all right?" Thalia smiles.
"Sure, sweetie. I feel fine."
"Nothing... bothering you at all?"
"Nope" I slide closer. Thalia is almost out of dough to puncture.
"Nothing at all?" Thalia looks at me, her mouth parted slightly.
"I'm fine. Stop pestering me! Just having a bad day" She tries to shoo me away, but I stay put.
"And that makes you perfectly fine?" Thalia raises her eyebrow with a straight-up glare.
"Yes. Perfectly fine. Go away!" I didn't budge, Thalia picks up the wooden spoon she mixed the dough with and brandishes it like a weapon "Seriously, mister. Have you ever been spanked with a wooden spoon?"
"Yes," I answered before I realizes that I was just asked a rhetorical question, a silly threat, and not a legitimate query. Thalia blushes, biting her bottom lip.
"By who?" She's just too pretty when she blushes. I forget my concerns over her obsessive baking; I close the distance between us. I slip my arms around her waist. Thalia drops the spoon as my mouth finds hers. Thalia's hands cradle my face. Leaving flour handprints on my face, She kisses me back.
"Why were you baking?"
"I just wanted to make a lot of cookies. I used to do it for the kids back in the local kids' home and I saw the orphanage and wanted to do something nice" She says. Her voice is low and breathy, and I can feel the words echo in her chest "Did I get crazy with the baking?"
"Just a tad"
"Oh yeah?" Her mouth twitches and if I wasn't already head over heels, I would dead cert fall in love with her right now "What do you need?" I kissed her.
"Just you. I just need you"
"Okay. At least let me take care of you. Do you want to watch a go for a walk?" I ask.
"Just hold me. Please?" Thalia shakes her head. I simply nod. She smiles, eyes shining like the sun. I kissed her on the forehead and caresses her cheek.
"How can I say no to you?"

We stayed like this for a moment or two before Thalia rushed to take some cookies out of the oven. She then put the last batch in. she went to grab the rolling pin when I grabbed her wrist.
"No more. You have made more than enough to feed an army" I pulled her back to me. There was more flour on Thalia than I care to admit. I pulled at her apron "What was the point of this?"
"Was meant to protect the dress that I love wearing" Thalia smiled softly "Will you help me bag up some of the cookies and take them to the children's orphanage?"
"After we clean you and this place up" I agree as I take my jacket off and hang it up "Right, you finish decorating the cookies and I will start this mess"
"Thank you, baby" Thalia kissed my cheek.
"You owe me a bag of cookies" I flicked flour at Thalia.
"I'll pay you later" Thalia winked at me as she ducked from the flour.

It took an hour to deep clean the kitchen. Flour got everywhere and is not easy to clean off the stone. We pack up some of the cookies and handed them out to the kids (Which took forever. I have never seen so many little demons running around), I guide Thalia back to our room and pulls her close. She is so warm. I often tease her about being a living furnace, but at times like this, I can't help but bask in it.

Things were peaceful over the next few days. Thalia's mood improved once she found out the kids made her some drawings to say thank you for the cookies. Thor was doing whatever he did when he came home (Drinking with The Warriors and Sif no doubt) Mother and father seem to have accepted Thalia far quicker than I had expected. They even invited Thalia to the formal dance that they were hosting tonight.
"I thought only royalty could go to this thing?" Thalia said as flopped on the bed "Makes it worse that I have nothing to wear! I don't even own a fancy pants dress or trousers for even that matter! I have never been to a formal dance in my life!"
"Well in my defence, I didn't know they were holding this dance until about 20 minutes ago" I sat next to Thalia, Elbows on my knees "And will you allow me to sort a 'fancy pants' dress for you?"
"As long as it is not light blue, pink, orange, yellow and no offence, green" Thalia raised her hand as she listed off the colours.
"What's wrong with green?" Loki frowned.
"Green is one of my favourite colours but my skin complexion does not go with those colours" Thalia stated "Why am I invited? I thought you had to be royal to go to the ball?"
"Not really. Thor's had the Avengers as his guests a few times. So you get to be my guest" I flopped back and Thalia snuggled into my side.
"You know, I really feel like bragging to my folks that I am here. I want to send them lots of pictures that I get to hang out with Gods and royalty and they are stuck at home" Thalia smirked "And I think Chris is going to be jealous too"
"And I would happily enable you on that but unfortunately for you, Mobile phones don't work. That's the only thing that Asgard is behind on because my father is what you call a technophobe. You can take pictures. Just not send them" I sighed.
"What do you think I have been doing? Thankfully, I brought this solar charger for my phone. I look like a right tourist when we walk around this place" Thalia smiled as she rolled onto her front. She grabbed her phone from the table and began to show me all of the pictures that she had taken. There was a lot.
"How did you get Heimdall to smile?" I frowned at the second to last picture.
"I asked him to. He really isn't what the books or you say about him. He can be quite funny and insightful" Thalia locked her phone, Throwing it behind her.
"Well he can see across all the nine realms" I smiled. I enjoy messing with her.
"Not that type of insightful" Thalia playfully tapped my arm "Is there anywhere else that I haven't been yet? I want to see everything before we go home"
"You do realise we go home tomorrow?"
"Really?" Thalia shot up, grabbed her head and laid back down. At first, I was concerned but I soon relaxed when Thalia let a long ow "Headrush"
"Silly sausage" I shook my head. Once the head rush had passed, I pulled Thalia closer to me and kissed her forehead "My dear, I have a question for you?"
"Shoot"
"Fancying taking a nap with me?" I took Thalia's hands in mine and kissed the back of it.
"How could I say no to you?"