Silent Cellmate

10. Healing Part 2

Loki's POV:

Over the next few days, I dumped all the power I could muster into healing Ash. Though her physical wounds have become deep pink scars, her mental state has deteriorated.

She will no longer move on her own so I carry her each morning to the singular chair in our cell so that she doesn't develop sores. She has stopped speaking altogether and will only eat or drink if I feed it to her.

I am growing anxious as each day passes and she appears to get worse. I tell her stories of my youth but her eyes remain glazed, I am not even sure she is listening to me at all.

While she sleeps I try to take a peek into her mind to see what's happening but something is blocking me. I need her to tell me how to help but I don't think she knows that I am even here.

One morning I finally broke and knelt before her as she sat in the chair, gazing off into space. "Ash please, I need you to tell me how I can help".

She did not react to my words. I put my hands firmly on her shoulders and shook her as I grew frustrated, "Ash you have to talk to me this instant".

Slowly her eyes found mine and a single tear rolled down her cheek. "Please," I said softly "tell me what is wrong and how I can help".

She closed her eyes and more tears spilt, rolling down her pale cheeks. "You can't help. I am trapped in this cell for the rest of my life. When you leave no one will be able to protect me from the AllFather. Maybe I would be better off dead", she cried and placed her head in her hand.

"Ash I will never leave you, he can't hurt you anymore. No one can hurt you, I won't allow it. I will never be leaving this dungeon so I can protect you for the rest of our lives" I told her gently. My heart hurt when I thought about being trapped forever, but I knew Odin would never free me.

"All I have known is pain and misery for most of my existence. This time with you has been the best of my life, but I don't want you trapped down here because of me". She began to sob and jumped off the chair into my embrace.

"Oh little one, I would spend eternity in this cell as long as I got to spend it with you. You mean so much to me and I will always care for you. Do you understand?" I asked her gently.

She just buried her face into my chest. I took hold of her chin and forced her to look at me. "Do you understand me Ash? You are mine forever and I will not let you go".

Her lip wobbled and she nodded softly. "Use your words baby," I told her firmly.

"Y..yes Loki, I understand". I let go of her chin and pulled her tightly into my arms. Holding her made me feel as though I was doing my job of keeping her safe. I hope that she drew the same comfort from this contact.

"You know, I've never been the type of guy to enjoy hugs and other types of touching. But with you, your touch is more important to me than the air I breathe", I chuckled to myself. How did this tiny human make me go so soft?

After a while, I felt Ash move her hands to my cheeks and begin to trace the ridges along my cheekbones. I let her feel each and every line across my face and enjoyed watching her concentrate so intently on the task at hand.

She began to follow the ridges down my neck, but her progress was halted by my tunic. "Loki, are these ridges only on your face and neck, or are they all over your body," she asked curiously.

I let out a small laugh and smiled at her, "I am covered head to toe with ridges. I believe their placement of them means something in Jotun culture but, I don't know much on the subject".

She smiled at me and looked away before softly saying "can I see more".

I was thrown for a second and was unsure how to respond. This was all anyone had seen of my true form and I was unsure if she would be frightened by more. Though I knew this fear was illogical, it still stayed at the forefront of my mind.

"Where would you like to see darling," I asked her nervously. I had already guessed her response but I hoped I was wrong.

"Maybe your chest and back if that's okay"

I hesitated before responding cautiously, "you can if you wish, but I must warn you that my back is not a pretty sight. No one has seen it since the.... Incident, but I doubt it would be pleasant to behold".

She paused and looked at me. "What happened to you?" She asked softly as though she was afraid that the question would scare me off.

"When I fell from the Bifrost, a bad man found me and wanted me to do something for him. I knew it was wrong so I refused. Unfortunately, he wasn't a fan of being rejected and used certain methods of persuasion to get his way".

I looked down, I felt ashamed for being so weak. How would Ash trust me to protect her when I couldn't even defend myself?

After a few minutes, she said "if you don't feel comfortable, that's okay, I can wait until you are ready. But I would still like to see it. We both have a past and maybe if we share our pain, it will become a little more bearable."

She spoke with wisdom beyond her years, so after a few minutes of silence, I slowly pulled off my tunic and undershirt. Feeling vulnerable I just stared at the wall trying to keep myself calm.

She began tracing the ridges at the front of my body, taking her time to delicately run the length of each and every one. Starting at the base of my neck and working her way down until she was blocked by my trousers.

She repeated the process with both my arms and hands, even pulling them away from my body so that she could be sure she traced each and every ridge that marked my skin.

After finishing with the front of my body she slowly crawled off my lap and moved behind me. I felt as though I couldn't breathe. I was not only scared of her reaction but I felt as though pain may be inflicted at any second.

But I felt no pain and no reaction from her. After a few minutes, she began to trace the ridges again, the same as she did on my front. However, she did not touch most of my back letting me know that a lot of my markings were gone due to the torture I experienced.

Once she had traced the last ridge I assumed she would come back to my lap but she didn't. Instead, I felt her lightly trace the outline of each scar.

Her touch was so gentle and kind that I felt tears spill from my eyes. Once she was done I felt her brush my long hair away from the back of my neck.

After a moment she pressed a soft kiss on the base of my neck and her arms wrapped around my chest. This gesture made the floodgates open and I collapsed into her arms sobbing.

We stayed like that for a long time and I began to curl up with my head in her lap. She brushed my hair out of my face and began to sing to me.

I tried to focus on the words but the day had left me exhausted so I quickly slipped into a dreamless sleep.