February 12th, 2016
Updating because squigglesquirrel bought me lunch today and this was our deal. :')
____________________________________________________________________________________
Chapter Five
Seline was almost ready to go to sleep when a knock at the door was heard. She sped to get dressed in clothes other than her night clothes, and ended up in a long sleeved shirt and black pants, her go-to outfit. She ran to the door, opening it to see an annoyed-looking Ace.
"You might wanna come to the dining hall," he sighed.
"Why?'
"Loki is drunk off his rocks," he groaned. "And so is everyone else. But he's by far the worst."
She groaned, and walked out of Loki's chambers, shutting the doors behind her. "What kind of a drunk is he?"
"A mischievous, trouble-making, overly giddy one," Ace said. "Somewhat emotional at times, but mostly just amusing," he chuckled.
"So why do you want me to go and get him?"
"Because the rest of the staff and I really don't want to wake up to a torn up dining room. It's bad enough already!" he said, annoyed. "Three of the windows no longer have drapes because Lord Volstagg decided they looked like nice blankets, the table is broken because Prince Thor accidentally dropped Mjolnir on it, and I'm pretty sure that Lady Sif and Lord Fandral may have left. Together. And Fandral was half-naked."
"Well then..." she sighed. "I suppose I should go and get him."
He nodded. "Yes. Yes you should."
They both walked to the dining hall, hearing the screaming and laughing start to increase as they neared it. She walked into the dining room, and saw that it was just as bad as Ace had said. And when she saw Loki, she was even more surprised.
"You have got to be kidding me," she growled, putting her hands on her hips.
Loki was swinging from the chandelier, humming to himself.
"My lord!" Seline called out.
He looked down, then a grin broke out onto his face. "Seline!" he shouted, then disappeared. He reappeared next to Seline, having teleported there. He was less than a centimeter away from her, and she turned to look at him, then jumped.
"Jesus Christ!" she shouted, backing up a little when he suddenly popped up near her.
"Who is Jesus?" he asked, looking completely perplexed with his eyes slightly wide. He looked like a confused and naive little child.
She sighed. "Never mind," she said, then grabbed his arm. "Now, come on. You need to go to bed."
"No!" he groaned, but didn't fight very hard. It may have just been the intoxication in his brain, but he really wasn't trying to get away.
She dragged him out of the dining hall, saying goodbye to Ace before doing so. They continued down the hallway, Loki groaning in protest once or twice on the way there. They were almost there when he suddenly stopped, and Seline turned to pull him again, but then she saw the look on his face.
He was looking at another pair of double doors similar to his, but larger. It took a moment, but she realized why. This door led to Frigga's old chambers, which, according to Ace, hadn't been touched in nearly two years.
The expression on Loki's face almost made Seline cry the second that she saw it.
He had tears in his eyes, and it looked like he had just had his heart broken into a thousand pieces. He looked like he was in emotional agony, and just from seeing the way his hand shook in hers, she knew that he was.
"It was my fault," he said, his voice cracking.
"It wasn't," she told him, walking closer and not letting go of his hand.
"It was," he argued. "I told him where to go. I thought that he might hurt Thor, or even Odin, but... I didn't think of her. I didn't think of my mother," he whispered. "I wasn't even allowed to go to her funeral."
She didn't know what to say to him. In reality, what could she say? Yes, she had lost her own parents as well, but that was to old age. Not to murder.
"I'm a monster," he said, his voice hoarse and cracking once again.
"Loki," she whispered, moving to stand in between the doors and him. She raised her hand to lay on his face, looking him in the eyes. "It wasn't your fault. I can't tell you that it's going to be okay and I can't tell you that she is in a better place because I don't know if either of those things are true," one stray tear fell, and she wiped it away with her thumb. "But I can tell you that you are not a monster."
"Everyone thinks that I am," he said.
She shook her head. "No. Not everyone. I don't think that. And maybe I don't know you well enough to have an opinion on this, but... I will tell you this, Loki," his eyes sparked with something she couldn't quite recognize. "If you are a monster, then so am I."
His lips parted, and he looked confused for a moment, but then his hand raised and went to lay on her cheek in the same way that hers had before.
"Why..." he said, looking directly into her eyes as if he was searching for something deep inside them. "Why are you so perfect?"
She smiled a little. He really was drunk.
"Loki, we need to get you to bed," she told him, taking his hand from her face and holding it. She led him to his chambers, and he didn't fight her on it this time.
She led him to the bed, and he stood at the side of it then attempted at taking off his coat. He struggled, and so she was obliged to help him. She slipped it off of his shoulders and then pulled his arms out of it, leaving just his armor on. She began to unclasp the plates, and she felt his eyes on her the entire time.
She looked up at one point, then back down at the armor. Her eyes went to his now bare neck, and she swallowed. She could practically see the veins pumping in his neck.
When all of the armor was removed, she looked him in the eyes, trying to forget about the blood. "Alright, you need to go to sleep now, my lord."
"Tonight was the first time you called me Loki," he said, his eyes sparkling with mischief and a smirk on his lips. "You should say it more often."
She fought the urge to roll her eyes. Ace was right, Loki was a troublemaker when he was drunk.
*
"Ace!" Seline called out the next morning as she walked into the kitchen. It was late, so late that everyone was gone and the dishwashers were the only ones there. Well, except for Ace, of course. He was planning lunch.
"You don't, by chance, have any ginger root, do you?"
He chuckled. "I'm assuming Loki is feeling the pain of last night's indiscretions?" he turned to head into the pantry and call out to her from there.
"Not yet, but he will when he wakes up," she sighed. "I think I'll also get some hot water, honey, and lemons."
He nodded. "You seem to know a lot about these after effects."
She shrugged. "I've had my fair share of terrible wakings."
By the time he was done, he had brought her a tray with a plate of ginger root, a cup of honey, an empty glass, a bowl of lemons, and a steaming tea kettle. Seline thanked him, then headed back to Loki's chambers. When she walked in and carefully shut the door behind her, making sure to not make too much noise, she saw that he was awake. By now, his chest was uncovered, and he had his hands over his face. He was groaning softly, and she knew it was from the headache.
"My lord," she said in a quiet tone. "I brought some things to help you."
He only groaned in reply, then sat up. He rubbed at his eyes, then blinked rapidly, likely trying to get used to the very small amount of light in the room. Seline was glad that she hadn't opened the drapes yet, or she may have blinded him or made his head explode from pain.
"What happened last night?" he muttered.
"You, Lady Sif, Prince Thor, and the Warriors Three all had a little too much fun last night," she said, setting the tray down on the table against the wall. "Ace told me where you were, and I brought you back here."
"Ace?" he seemed a little irritated. She wasn't sure why.
"One of the cooks in the kitchen," she explained as she filled a tea cup with hot water, a spoonful of honey, and the juice of a lemon slice. She brought it to him on a saucer, and he narrowed his eyes at it.
"What in Odin's name is that?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at the cup.
"A tonic to make you feel better," she said, not feeling up to explaining that it was one of the Midgardian ways of relieving a hangover. "Don't worry, it tastes good."
He sighed, then nodded and took the saucer from her.
She went back to the tray and grabbed the plate of ginger root, bringing it back to him and setting it down on the bed beside him.
"I'm going to draw you a bath," she said, walking over to the bathroom. "I don't believe you have any things to do today, so you can use the day to rest if you wish, my lord."
She went over to the bathtub, looking back to see Loki drinking the rest of the tonic and nibbling on the ginger root. She could tell that he didn't like root very much, and didn't really know why he was eating it if he hated it. Perhaps it was because he trusted her when she said it would help him.
She had the bath ready and had put some bath salts into it. The scent of lavender would help to stimulate his senses and make him feel less groggy.
She inhaled, then realized it wasn't lavender that stuck out the most. Her eyes widened, and she slowly looked over to the sink counter. A cloth was on top of it, and was stained with blood.
She swallowed, and all she could think of was his blood, and how it would taste. She wondered if it would taste as good as it's scent.
She stumbled over to the counter, gripping it so hard that she saw her fingerprints start to appear in the stone. She let go before she could break it, taking in deep breaths and leaning on the countertop with her back turned to the doorway. She almost didn't hear him say her name.
"Seline?"
She turned to look at him, her usually cold skin feeling like it was about to overheat.
"Yes, my lord?" she asked, attempting to hide the shakiness in her voice. Judging from look on his face, she failed in doing so.
He raised an eyebrow, then smirked at her. It was if he was taking pleasure in her current situation, which may have seemed like nervousness to him.
"Are you feeling alright?" he asked, moving a little closer to her then she was comfortable with. He noticed this and, once again, took pleasure in it. He leaned forwards to speak next to her ear in a low voice. "And, remember, I can tell when you're lying."
She swallowed, and he smirked even more at her reaction.
"No, I'm not feeling alright, but that doesn't matter," she said, walking around him to leave him to his bath.
He suddenly grabbed her arm, making her turn back to him with her body now partially against his bare chest. He looked her right in the eyes, as if he was searching for something. Something that he soon realized he couldn't find.
"What are you hiding from me?" Loki asked.
"I am your servant, my lord," she said. "I'm here to do my job, that is all. My problems aren't yours, and you don't need to worry about me."
"They are if I get involved," he told her.
"I suggest you don't."
She yanked her arm from his grip and left, going straight to her chambers.