Sigyn's Discovery (Part 1)

The Gift (SIGYN)

Speaking with False Odin always resulted in him making an appearance in my dreams, and I awoke the following day with sore eyes from unrestful sleep. I left the bed all the more quickly for it, forcing myself to remember my place and to stop making attempts to earn his approval the way I did with Frigga. He was an entirely different animal in more ways than one.

Practicing my knife skills helped realign my priorities. I unsheathed my dagger and stood with my feet shoulder-width apart, gaining my ground. It was a relic of a weapon, a style nearly forgotten before it was gifted to my father, but its weight meant I couldn't treat it lightly. Once, I'd lost grip of the weapon, sliced my thumb, and made up an excuse that I'd hurt myself while doing kitchen duty on accident.

Loki traced the scar on my hand few nights before. Did he wonder where it came from?

To banish him from my mind, I raised the blade to my chest to make it even, and with a rapid motion, I practiced a few choreographed movements—two steps forward with accompanying thrusts, feet together, swing behind the back and turn. I repeated the routine a few times until my heart raced and woke me up enough to face the day. The weapon was returned to its proper place under my mattress, and I went about my daily business all over again.

***

Darkness swept over Asgard after the sun set, and I stared up at the sky in hopes to see a few peeking stars. Alas, the clouds were too thick.

Perhaps another night. I returned from False Odin's chamber for the evening and greeted Tiwaz at my door. He perked up his tail straight and high.

"What have you been up to all day, Tee?" I patted his head and opened the room, and he hopped on the bed beside a large bundle wrapped in thick paper and twine.

I turned to look down the hall in both directions, but saw not a soul. How did that get in here?

Tiwaz chirped at me and nudged the package with his head.

Before I closed my chamber door, I lit a few candles and took a deep breath. A small note sat atop the bundle, and the whole thing had a decent amount of weight to it. With careful hands, I detached the folded parchment beneath the twine. The unfamiliar curving script slanted ever so slightly to the left.

.

So you may show your loyalties.

.

I squinted. Tiwaz purred hard at my side and nudged the gift again. I gently pulled the bow and allowed the package to naturally unravel. Beneath the still packaging, a soft, thick fabric fell onto the bed.

Unlike the handwriting, this I did recognize. "Goodness," I whispered, spreading out the green sheet that was once my second skirt. It made me smile and had been unchanged since I last saw it.

So Loki did take it from me. But why?

As I held it up over myself and tried to ignore the fact that his unmistakable earthy scent washed over me, another small note fell from within its folds and onto the floor. It had many creases and was clearly intended to be private.

My heart skipped a beat when I read its contents, finally understanding the riddle.

.

The cape of Loki Laufeyson. May he rest in peace.