~Third person's POV~
"Your highness, it's not that I'm not grateful. I am, it's just I don't think I should go in."
Loki paused for what felt like the twentieth time on their walk down to the dining hall. "I've told you, it's just dinner. Nothing wrong will happen. The others know of your promotion, they won't question it. You just sit and eat. That's it."
Dahlia eyed the door, her panicked eyes betraying her calm breathing. "I don't see why I can't eat in the serving quarters like normal."
"You aren't allowed to leave my side." Loki pointed out.
"Well why can't we eat in your rooms then?" Dahlia pleaded, her fingers beginning to thread through each other as she felt the nerves begin to overwhelm her.
Loki took a step closer, "considering this is your first day not being my maid you've gotten awfully confident."
Dahlia blushed, looking down. "I'm sorry for forgetting my place, your highness."
Loki shook his head, "no. I like it, confidence suits you. Don't get me wrong, so does the nervous babbling, but the change is nice."
Dahlia pulled a face at him, as he took yet another step closer. He rested his hand on her shoulder, killing her plans of turning and making a run back down the corridor.
"Dahlia, why don't you want to go in there?" His voice was quiet, like his words would float away if a breeze passed between them. "It's not the food, or the fact it's with the rest of the palace..." Loki watched her face, ducking his head to watch as Dahlia blinked quickly. "You're worried about Fandral aren't you?"
Dahlia felt the grip tighten on her shoulder slightly as she nodded, her pinned back hair not letting her hide the blush from Loki. He took a step back, sighing.
Dahlia gulped "I'll eat in there if you want. It's just, I feel so awful! I rejected him and eating with you now, I just feel like I'm throwing it in his face. I didn't even lie and go all cliché: it's not you it's me; I'm not ready for the commitment. I just said no outright."
Loki let her rant as the corridor was still empty, and decided to risk being caught. He stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Dahlias shoulders, her ramblings cut short as she felt her head hit his hard chest. Loki waited a second, feeling her hands light on his back, before stepping away. He dropped his arms to his side, his eyebrow raised as Dahlia breathed slowly.
"Fine, we'll go and eat."
The odd pair walked into the dining hall, Loki's body tall and confident while Dahlia walked quickly, her head bobbing below his shoulder as she tried to keep up. He slid into his seat, looking pointedly at the empty place next to him for Dahlia to sit in. The table fell quiet as they looked at each other.
***
~Dahlias POV~
"Aren't you going to introduce us?" A short, fat man asked, his bearded head poked around the side of his goblet of wine.
Loki rolled his eyes, loading his plate with food as he answered, "this is Dahlia. Dahlia this is Volstagg," he gestured to the man, "Sif," he pointed to the fierce looking lady next to me, "and Hogun." Who was sitting in between Volstagg and Thor.
I watched Loki turn to look Fandral directly in the eye before muttering, "you've already met Fandral and Thor." Fandral squirmed under his gaze slightly, leaning to whisper something to Sif who stiffened in her seat next to me. I shot a glare at Loki, but before I could say anything, Thor and Hogun began arguing over sword fighting methods.
I nudged Loki's arm, gaining his attention as he held his fork to his lips. "You didn't have to say it like that to Fandral. You've made him uncomfortable now."
Our eyes flicked over to Fandral who was sitting, pink cheeked as Sif whispered in his ear. Loki rolled his eyes "he deserved it." I stared at him as he just shot me a grin before turning back to his food.
"It doesn't hurt to be nice to-"
"Maid?" I looked up at Thor who was leaning around Loki, waving at me. "Could you please pass me the wine?"
Before I could answer, Loki snapped. "She's not a maid Thor."
I blinked, unsure of what to do. Loki had switched from playful to angry in a matter of seconds. "It's okay, I'll pass it-"
"Don't!" My hand paused, outstretched, hovering near the bottle in the centre of the table.
"Calm down brother, I only asked her to pass the bottle." Thor shot me a smile, but Loki wasn't happy.
"Firstly, you called her a maid. And secondly, brother, she doesn't work for you. She only follows my orders."
I could feel an angry blush rise over my face. I thought Loki thought a little more of me than just his maid, but apparently not. I was still only a serving girl to him - his carer, and nothing more.
"I apologise Dahlia, I won't call you maid any longer." I caught the look Thor gave Loki as he spoke, a smile still on his face. I grabbed the bottle in my hand, and pushed it over to Thor as he continued to talk to his brother. "If we want to talk to Dahlia do we have to speak through you?"
"Oh she can speak for herself alright." I bristled slightly as Fandral spoke, his voice quiet though the table heard it.
I tightened my grip on my fork, staring at my plate as Hogun coughed, "shall we just move on?" The table mumbled in reply, the three men and Sif discussing the new sword techniques they'd been practicing recently.
As the maids came over to replace our empty plates for filled ones the table quietened yet again. "Have you decided who to wed after your coronation?" Volstagg asked, mouth full of food as he leant towards Thor. I could feel Loki stiffen slightly next to me, his body tightening in his chair as Thor pondered for a moment.
"I am not sure. I wish to be with Jane but it's been so long since I've last seen her." His voice seemed sad, quiet as he took a break to sip his wine.
Sif looked down at me, speaking quietly so the table wouldn't hear, "Jane lives on Midgard. Thor and her were courting before you arrived."
I couldn't hide the surprise from my voice, "Jane's Midgardian?"
Sif nodded quickly, as Thor sighed. "I should be making a return trip soon. The Avengers requested my presence as well."
My head shot over to Thor, but I bit the words back as his eyes met mine. "You can't come with me." I could feel my face fall, and there was not much more I could do than look dejectedly down at the table. "I wish I could take you Dahlia -"
"Except you don't." I jumped at Loki's voice from above me. "Do not pretend you want to help her Thor. If you wanted to help you would have spoken to your dear father."
I bit my lip as I felt the tensions around the table rise. "Brother, you know once fathers mind is made up there is no changing it."
"Do not be so naive Thor!" Loki slammed his knife on the table. "I now have a carer who cannot leave my side because you are too weak to stand against Odin." His voice rung around the room, hushed whispers breaking out as Loki sucked in a breath.
"I am leaving." And with that he stood up, scraping his chair back before he marched out the room.
I went to follow, slowly pushing my chair back as I stepped away from the group. "It was nice meeting you all." I was met with sympathetic smiles, but before I could leave Thor grabbed my hand, yanking me back to the table.
"Forgive my brother. He does not understand his actions have impacts on other people." I smiled weakly, teasing my hand out of grip. I gave him a single nod before grabbing my skirts and speed walking out the room.
Once in the privacy of the empty corridors I sped up, jogging down the halls to find Loki. I had no idea where to start, but his rooms were surely the best place to.
***
~Third Persons POV~
"Your highness?" Dahlia swung the door open, jogging into the centre of Loki's rooms to find nothing out of place. Not a single thing looked as if it had been touched, and Dahlia sighed, trudging out of the room and thinking.
Maybe he'd gone to the library. Dahlia began making her way through the palace, trying to gather her thoughts together. Over the course of the meal she'd grown furious with the prince: he'd singled her out. Yes he'd defended her to Thor by stating she wasn't a maid, but he announced to the table she was to only follow his orders. Which of course, was true, but the way he'd spoken sounded possessive and unwelcoming, not like he was just explaining the situation.
She hadn't seen him interact with Thor a lot, but she knew there was a considerable amount of friction between the two. And every time Dahlia was mentioned, or she was a focus of their conversation, Loki would resort to arguing at length with him.
As she recognised the gilded double doors at the end of the corridor, Dahlia sped up. She let her frustrations with the prince disappear, knowing it would only do harm to bring them up when he was in such a mood. Anger and vulnerability were such strong emotions that it wouldn't help for her to be angry with him too.
"Your highness?" Dahlia walked the length of the library, peering around each bookcase, only to find the room growing darker, and completely deserted. As she made her way back to the doors she spotted something from the window, catching her eye and dragging her attention to the gardens.
Snow. Snow and ice? On Asgard in Autumn? Dahlia knew it was cold outside, and the coat Loki had bought her had helped to keep the chill away, but even she knew snow wasn't forecast just yet.
Her feet crunched on the thick ice, and Dahlia regretted not fetching her coat before stepping out into the icy storm. It seemed to be coming from the centre of the garden, a small whirlwind of snowflakes flying quickly around a dark figure. Her teeth chattering, Dahlia pushed on, sure that the silhouette belonged to the prince.
She reached a small patch of particularly shiny ice, but Dahlia didn't notice as she tried to speed up. Her foot slipped, and she could feel her body jolting back as her foot flew upwards into the air.
But she didn't reach the ground. Somebody's arms were wrapped around her waist, slowly walking her back into an upright position. The hands guided her so she was facing the palace, and Fandrals chest. She placed her hands on his arms and slowly stepped away.
"Thank you." Dahlia kept her eyes on her feet, embarrassed by needing to be saved from her clumsiness.
Fandral shook his head "it's okay. But you shouldn't go to him. He's dangerous when he gets like this." His eyes were locked on the continuing swirling of snow.
Dahlias red cheeks glowed as she shook her head "I need to. It's my job Fandral. It's the whole reason why I'm here, to look after him."
Fandrals face hardened "Dahlia if you go after him you're going to get yourself killed."
"Didn't stop me last time." Dahlia mumbled, thinking about the night he strangled her in his sleep, but Fandral heard her.
Bending down he stared at her, "what do you mean?"
"Nothing." Dahlia fixed a smile on her face, shrugging as she pushed herself away from Fandrals arms. "Thank you Fandral, but I have to go. Let me go." Fandral let his arms drop, his face falling as he watched Dahlia turn and run into the eye of the storm.
Her eyes were forced into slits as she blinked the ice away. Her arms were so cold she could no longer feel them, the same for her legs. She chastised herself for the lack of a coat for the second time that evening, her hands numb as she tried to warm herself.
"Your highness?" She shouted, her voice dying instantly in the wind. "Your highness?" She yelled louder, spinning as she heard noises approaching her through the cloud of ice. She continued shouting through the snow until she began to feel like she was slipping. Her eyes were tired from being forced open, and her limbs were stiff with the cold. Her hair was tangled and blown from the wind, freezing in knotted clumps.
In a final attempt to catch the mans attention, she screamed his name. "Loki!"
At once the swirling clouds slowed to a breeze, the snow lying thick on the ground, marooned in piles. Dahlia pulled her feet out of a particularly large mound, not recognising her skin as they had turned purple from the freezing weather.
Loki had sought escape from his brother. At first he'd considered storming to the library, but as he felt the rage simmering to the surface of his skin he decided against it and marched out to the cool evening chill that the garden offered. He knew he had changed appearance, but rather than repressing the feeling, he embraced it, enjoying the power as he circled the garden, the ice forming and flying around his body in a protective fashion.
He had lost track of the time as he let the inner frost giant rule the gardens, manipulating the weather to create his own guard. Nothing has ever drawn him out of these moments - not Thor fighting him, nor his mothers pleads. But something changed, when he heard a voice calling him.
It was faint, but he knew it was her.
She had called his name. Not his title, but his name.
The icy cloud dispersed, the frosty bite fading into a chill breeze, slightly colder than when Loki had first entered the gardens. His skin flushed, the blue paling and fading, the raised patterns across his body flattening, shrinking until they were no longer visible.
Loki turned as he was met with silence. Dahlia stood a few feet from him, her thin blue dress clinging to her body, the harsh ice freezing it against her skin. Her face was flushed, and her bare arms were an unnatural shade of purple. Loki blinked, as Dahlia looked up from pulling her sandalled feet from the piles of snow beneath them.
"What are you doing here?"
Dahlia looked around at the rings of snow that circled the pair of them. She bit her lip, "would you believe me if I said I fancied an evening walk in a magic snow storm?"
Loki shook his head, his thoughts flying as he questioned why she had come after him. "You... but... where's your coat?" He mentally slapped himself at the stupid question, but Dahlia just offered a weak smile.
"In your rooms. Where you should be right now. I don't really fancy a punishment, and I can't feel any part of my body, so... please can you wrap whatever this is up, so I can find a fire and warm myself up a bit?" Her teeth chattered, but she'd made her point, as Loki looked at the mess he'd created around them.
Within seconds all traces of ice and snow vanished, and a thick green cloak was wrapped around Dahlias shoulders. The fur lining poked out from the hood, framing Dahlias face as Loki crossed the distance between them and grabbed her arm.
Dahlia blinked, and a second later they were stood by the lit fire in Loki's rooms. He let his hand fall down, but only took a single step from her, as she sank down to sit closer to the flames.
"Dahlia, why did you come after me?" His voice didn't hint at a single emotion, and Dahlia was too tired and cold to discern the worry and intrigue found in his question.
"I get paid to follow you around." A second of silence crossed between them, before Dahlia realised what she'd said could be interpreted wrongly. She shook her head, twisting slightly to peer up at the towering man behind her. "I wanted to see if you were okay. You looked upset, and... if I was upset I feel like you wouldn't let me cry alone."
Loki frowned, blinking at her as he let her words sink in. Dahlia turned to face the fire, her hands outstretched, close to the flames as the painful cold slowly subsided. Loki sank down, leaning his back against the sofas as he stretched his legs by the hearth.
"I wasn't crying."
Dahlia couldn't help the small smile flick across her face, "right. Of course not."
"I wasn't!" Loki insisted, and Dahlia nodded.
"I believe you."
Loki eyed her, tilting his head. "You really are one of the most infuriating people I've ever met."
Dahlia yawned, burying her face in the fur of the new cloak. "Do you wish me to be quiet, your highness?"
Loki rolled his eyes. Truthfully, he didn't. He enjoyed his conversations with Dahlia, even if she was paid to stay by his side. Their... relationship, for want of a better word, had been all too odd for Loki to keep track of. It hadn't been too long since Loki had first met her as a quiet, obedient maid who'd been beaten so much she dare not answer a question she'd been asked. And now Dahlia cracked jokes, started the conversations, and spoke with such passion about subjects she'd only learnt about since Loki had taught her.
He just shook his head, studying the profile of Dahlia's face as she watched the flames flickering. Shadows flashed across her face, but her twinkling eyes never died - they were smiling though Dahlia herself was trying to prevent yawns from escaping her lips.
He knew the day would come when he would have to explain his frost giant past, if he wanted her to trust him. It wasn't necessary that she did, but Loki felt a sense of unease at the idea of her not knowing what she was getting into.
"If you're feeling better," Loki was snapped from his thoughts as she spoke, slowly shifting her gaze from the fire to Loki's soft green eyes, "I'm going to run myself a bath and then go to bed."
Loki nodded, as Dahlia stood, slowly peeling the cloak from her shoulders. She hesitantly fingered the fur trim, holding it in her arms before reluctantly holding it out to Loki. "Thank you for letting me use this."
He raised his fingers, "it's yours. Good night Dahlia."
Dahlia smiled with surprise, and knowing she wouldn't hear anything else from him, she spoke softly, "thank you. Good night, your highness."
As she turned to leave she heard him speak into the fire. "Call me Loki."
A smile stretched Dahlias lips as she stopped and turned back to face him. "Good night Loki."
As she tested the word on her tongue, Loki couldn't help but feel a little flutter in his chest.