Mischievous

Chapter Four

        It was late, around 8:00 if time was the same on Earth as on Asgard. The sun was beginning its descent below the horizon, and the sky shone shades of blue, pink, and purple. Only the area surrounding the big ball of light was orange, but even so, the color lessened as minutes ticked by. Few people walked the cobblestone now, but windows glowed and dimmed as parents put their kids to bed. Only a tavern was overflowing with noise, though if the sounds were instead coming from the feast behind me, I could not tell. I felt the wind pick up and a chill fills the air, ridding Asgard of its previous warmth. I did not mind the cold but was alarmed at how suddenly the temperature had changed.

        The feast was going perfectly fine without me, and I heard whom I believed to be Odin deliver a speech in honor of Thor's return home. The fact that he started with, "I the King of Asgard," gave me enough reason to presume it was the Allfather talking. When his rant ended, I caught the sound of china and metal clashing as the attendants filled their plates. I debated whether or not to go back into the hall and eat when a voice cut into the darkness.

        "It is not often someone manages to lie to me."

        I turned around to find Loki standing behind me. Though it was evident he wasn't enjoying the party as much as everyone else, I hadn't expected him to come outside, and I most definitely didn't expect him to talk to me.

        "Big deal," I responded, rudely. "Isn't everything you say supposed to be a lie or a trick? Or are you concerned that your title is at risk?"

        "I may have skewed information here and there, but if it makes you feel better about yourself than feel free to call me a liar," he said, each word laced with venom. "I only came out here as I was curious about the reasoning behind your bluff. Not many would leave their family as eagerly as you did."

        "Maybe because I don't want them to be my family," I snapped. "If I could, I'd have nothing to do with them. There was no reason to stay on 'Midgard.'"

        My tone had calmed as I reached the end of my retort. I tried to find any emotion in his eyes or face but wound up with nothing. He was talented no doubt, but I could only start to imagine what suppressing feelings for too long could do to oneself. With the harshness he used when talking to his mother earlier that day, I had been expecting some reaction when my true sentiment towards my parents was revealed.

        "Why such anger towards your parents?"

        "Cause . . . they're not mine."

        "You were — what do you Midgardians call it? — Adopted?"

        I laughed, somberly. "More like dropped on a doorstep and left to be found, but sure."

        This time, I caught a glimpse of a fire in his eyes that was not there before. It dissipated quickly, but I could tell that what I had said had meant something to him. Our talk took a different turn as Loki suddenly tried to change the subject.

        "You know your sister, Spring, never did manage to finish her recount of the day you, killed a child."

        "She's not really my sister, her name's Summer, and what makes you think I'd want to conclude the tale anyway? I didn't know we were starting to write my autobiography so soon."

        "I could always just leave and return to the—"

        "No, I'll tell you, but I'm not going over anything she already explained. As a god, you should be able to remember something told to you just this morning," I joked, wagging a finger at him.

        I wasn't scared of him even though he towered over me just as every other Asgardian in the hall did. In all honesty, I almost felt at peace as I started to tell him my story. It wasn't every other day someone got to hear a stranger talk about murders they'd committed.

        "I wasn't gonna let the boy get away," I started, looking down solemnly. "I had never been caught before, and for this little . . . nuisance to figure me out just, frustrated me. Without a seconds thought my hands were around his neck and he was trying so hard to get any breath into his lungs. I shoved him in locker and went back to class. It wasn't until I was reunited with Summer that I even realized what I had done, and it wasn't long before the guilt washed over me."

        "So it was an accident," Loki concluded.

        "See, that's the thing, in the moment I wanted to do it. No cares, no regrets. It was no accident, I meant to kill him, and that's what scares me. Summer's my anchor, I've learned, and without her I risk falling into chaos."

        "Here," he said holding a hand out to me. I looked at it and then to him as he was trying to trick me. He nodded, silently asking me to hurry up, and I took it. "It would be best if you returned  to the feast before all the food was taken, though I would not be surprised if Thor has already downed half of it."

        I laughed at this, and smiled, being lead back into the throne room. When we arrived at the table, Loki offered me a seat next to him. However, whatever kindness he showed me in those few moments prior was quickly replaced with a stone face, and for the rest of the night he was silent.