"Moondust" by Jaymes Young
Dedicated to CarKann for the amazing banner below<3
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"First!" The young prince crowed. He was racing down the lovely countryside at a frighteningly fast pace. "Yet again I bested you!" Sigyn rolled her green eyes as her mare stopped a few paces behind the prince's horse. She was used to Prince Thor's boastful nature since she had met him four years ago. Every other word out of his mouth was a loud declaration of his proud accomplishments or insulting words towards others. The crowned king and queen of Asgard only fed into his juvenile belief that he was better than everyone, more cunning than man, and stronger than the most ferocious beasts. Even though Sigyn was only ten years old, she knew that Thor's parents were simply trying to flatter him to avoid softening his over-inflated ego.
May the gods forbid prince Thor not have a strong ego!
The fourteen-year-old Asgardian prince dismounted his horse with a sly grin, watching as the young girl jumped off her horse and tied it to a nearby post. Thor's copper-red hair was in a rather messy display, and dirt caked his chin. Sigyn fetched a pale of water for his waiting horse, and the prince kept his smug grin. "May the gods bless the day when you'll be fetching my water instead of my horse's water, Sigyn," he said. Another horse finally arrived back to the stables. "Then you will be truly serving a prince!"
Without batting an eyelash, the young girl poured her bucket into the horse's tray. "May the gods also bless the day when you are dismounted from that incredibly high horse you have settled yourself upon, my prince. Perhaps you may join us little people on the hard ground for a change."
Thor appeared confused as he alternated his gaze between his horse and the young blonde girl's face. He didn't understand her remark, but Sigyn found his confusion amusing. Meanwhile, a new rider arrived and dismounted his horse, revealing a near-smile on his pale face. He understood what Sigyn meant.
Loki, the second youngest son of King Odin and Queen Frigga, was rarely seen smiling. However, when he did, his youthful face looked beautiful and radiant, prompting Sigyn to smile back. Although Loki never spoke to Sigyn, as it was considered inappropriate for royals to converse with stable keepers, Thor often talked to her and her brothers without any apparent distinction in their social status. Other royals, including Loki, were less friendly and showed little regard for commoners. Sigyn respected Thor for his kindness. She merely disliked the young prince's boastful nature and overabundance of insulting his brothers. "Say your funny sayings now, Sigyn, we shall make a true lady out of you one day yet." Thor grinned, causing the girl to shake her head at his silliness.
"Having a good day, your highness?"
Thor rolled his eyes tiredly before sparing Sigyn a put-out expression. "I mean when I say I wish for you to refer to me as Thor alone, little one."
Sigyn wrinkled her nose in displeasure. "Tis not proper to refer to royals in such a way," the girl said, while her ivory cheeks warmed finding the prince's younger brother was watching her. It always made her nervous to find Loki was looking at her; he always seemed to have such an old gaze behind his young blue orbs. Sigyn felt compelled to look away only before she realized she did not want to. The young girl enjoyed looking at Loki, it was as simple as that. She had a childish infatuation with the boy where she felt compelled to smile at him whenever he looked to her. A strong part of Sigyn did not know why she bothered to smile; Loki often looked at her as if she were mad.
"As I have told you and your brother Sulgroy before, I do not care what is proper." Thor chortled. "When I reign as my father's successor, there will be no more segregation between royals and commoners," he said, smiling proudly.
Sigyn sweetly smiled back. She believed Thor thought this was possible. She wanted to believe it was possible as well, even though she knew in her heart it wasn't. What the prince described sounded very incredible. But it also belonged in the realm of fairytales.
"I can see why you wouldn't make a good king," said Loki suddenly, looking at Sigyn with disdain. Sigyn looked down at the ground, her green eyes losing their brightness. Loki was right; as a member of the royal family, she shouldn't fraternize with the commoners. She kept her eyes on the ground, not wanting to offend Loki any further.
"If you stop treating our servants differently, they might not act as if they are better than everyone else," Loki said as he turned and walked away.
Sigyn felt sad as she watched Loki go. If her father had seen her talking to Prince Thor, he would have scolded her for sure. She quickly grabbed a broom and started sweeping up the straw. She didn't notice Thor was still watching her until he spoke.
"Don't take Loki's criticism personally. He doesn't like most people, including me and Balder." Twas true what he claimed. Loki and his younger brother Balder quarreled often, nearly thrice a day. However, Loki seemed to hold strong dislike for little Sigyn even though she held no idea as to why. "Why does he hate me so?" The young child asked, not being able to remember a time where Prince Loki did not watch her with distaste. Her very first memory of him consisted of Sigyn offering Loki an apple she had intended to feed to the horses. He then chucked it at her forehead. She was five while he was seven. Still, she felt he should have outgrown his immaturity by now as she had.
Thor's bushy brows softened as he seemed to be struggling to find the right words to speak. Even though the crown prince was very inadequate when it came to be consoling, he got onto to bended knee to make himself closer to the small girl's level. The young teenager seemed to be trying to choose his words carefully. "No one could ever hate a youngling such as yourself, Sigyn."
The girl could not understand how he felt this way. She tried to hide how upset she was. "You hold understanding that I jest with you often, correct?" the girl questioned, arching a blonde brow. "I insult you just as much."
Thor released a heavy snort. He nodded his copper head, smiling impishly. "Yes, miting, I do hold that understanding. However, I do not hold it against you; after all, you clean my horse's droppings." He chuckled, sparing her a wink. The prince stood up, ruffling the child's pale blonde hair as he often did.
Before he could finish leaving the stables, the child had a burning question lingering behind her pink lips. "T-Thor..?" She asked tentatively, feeling odd of saying his name without his royal title attached. The prince turned his head, smirking that the girl finally referenced him without saying prince before his name. "Will we always be acquaintances?" Sigyn asked, finding she would rather forever communicate on a friendly level with Thor than an unfriendly one with Loki.
Thor's brows raised as he appraised this question. "No," he finally admitted, causing Sigyn to look down immediately, feeling downcast. "But we shall always be friends," he said, tossing the child a playful wink as she looked back at him. "I shall see you later, little-lady Sigyn."
"I do detest when you call me that," the small girl laughed lightheartedly.
"And now you hold understanding to how I feel when you use my full title," Thor said, laughing as well. "Place a smile on that pretty porcelain face of yours, will you?"
Sigyn smiled, shaking her head at the prince's silliness. Even though the prince was older, he reminded her of her younger brothers. "Do you think..." she trailed off, thinking this through. "Do you think Loki and I shall ever be friends.?"
At this, Thor's expression morphed into a more somber one. He seemed to know the answer to this but did not look to want to offend little Sigyn's feelings. Even though he said nothing, Sigyn knew he was thinking this was not possible. Loki watched all members of the royal staff with as much dislike as his mother Frigga. He did not possess the kindness that Thor and even Balder held. Prince Thor thought this through – which Sigyn found amusing given the young prince did not usually care how he went about with one's personal feelings – and eventually nodded. "I feel if anyone has a chance of making it past my little brother's frostiness, it is the kind little sprite that resides in you," he said, sparing her a kind smile before heading out of the stables.
Sigyn smiled at the thought while happily finishing up her morning chores.
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