The Girl Who Would Be Queen

Chapter 10

He tucks her stuff back into the pocket and offers her his hand. She takes it and they begin to walk about down the mountain. Every so often Lyria notices Loki sneaking glances at her causing her to blush.

"Are you tired, darling?"

"What? No. Why would you say that?"

"Your face is flushed. Are you sure you're not tired?"

She stops and looks at him curiously. "What would happen if I was?"

"Well I certainly wouldn't make my most talented artist endure a wilderness trek if she didn't want to."

"So what, you'd give me a piggyback ride the rest of the way?" She jokes.

Loki looks at her without an ounce of humor on his face. "Yes I would."

"Bend over you giant."

He takes a knee and she climbs onto his back. He stands and holds onto her from underneath her knees before he begins to walk again. To reward him for his very cute behavior, Lyria gives him a kiss on the cheek. Loki smiles to himself and feels a strange fluttering feeling in his chest.

"Tell me a little more about yourself, Lyria."

"Like what?"

"Like... what do you want most in this world?"

"That one is easy. I want a family."

"I thought you had a family. What happened to your parents and your sibling?"

"My sister and my parents are still around. I just don't talk to them very often. When I say I want family, I mean I want a family that feels like family. I want siblings who love me. Parents whose concerns for me are grounded in concern over my well-being not social status. A husband who understands me and plays with my hair and makes me warm baths. Maybe a few kids if I can manage not to screw them up."

"I think you'd make a wonderful mother Lyria. You are kind and patient. My mother possessed those same qualities and they are what I admired most about her."

"Did she pass away?"

Loki pauses for a moment before nodding his head and walking again. "Yes. She sacrificed her life to save another."

"Then she died an honorable death. I imagine you too were close?"

"She was one of a very few people who knew the truth behind my birth, who I was, and loved me regardless. While Odin made it clear his own blood was far more valuable, Frigga loved Thor and I equally. Before she passed, I told her she wasn't my real mother out of frustration and anger. I beat myself up about it for a long time but I know now that she knew. She knew the real me and knew that I didn't mean it."

He blinks away the tears threatening to form in his eyes.

"She would be really proud of you for opening up, for showing me the real you. I knew I never met her but from what you've told me. She would be so incredibly proud."

The tears quietly start to fall from his eyes as Lyria hugs him a little tighter and rests her head on his shoulder. They walk in silence for a few minutes before Lyria points at a pink flower.

"Hey what kind of flower is that? It's so pretty."

"That my dear is a hibiscus rosa-sinensis, more simply known as a hibiscus," he answers. He gently reaches up and takes it off the tree before handing it to her. "I agree. It is a beautiful flower, no more beautiful than you however."

She blushes and takes the flower from him and tucks it into her hair.

"I'm surprised you haven't seen a hibiscus before, darling. They are pretty common in America."