Unexpected

Chapter 10

That night, they met in their dreams, unbeknownst to either of them, it happened because of Loki. As they were lulled into a deep sleep by distant cracks of thunder, Loki's hand slid down Sif's arm to encase her hand within his own. Muffled hums of approval were lost in the pillows and a dim green glow emitted between their palms. Subconsciously, Loki's mind searched for her and the magic in his body did the rest by bridging the gap between their minds.

It wasn't exactly an enchantment, but it was similar. They were to meet in a memory, but not a big or recent one. It was to be from long ago, one that had been lost to time under a deep pile of impressions. At first, Loki couldn't place where he was. But he knew that it was a dream due to the signature lack of stability beneath his feet.

There was a soft voice echoing down the hall he stood in and Loki felt his body pull toward it without effort. It got louder and soon he recognized it as an angelic choir that was emitting from the ball room. A piano and small orchestra was being played and a single woman's voice reverberated through the halls of the palace. He found himself at the doors of the ball room and peered in to see the auditorium bustling with guests. Noble families from around the country were mingling about and eating at the long tables that encircled the dance floor and those who were coupled together, moving to the slow rhythm of the music. A gentle nudge in the back of his brain reminded Loki that this was Thor's birthday, from long, long ago. They would have only been children, barely resembling 12yr olds. The details of this event were cloudy, but one person stood alone amongst the crowd, Frigga.

Loki's heart skipped and he felt the floor drop beneath his feet. He clung to the wall, trying to stay in this moment and not be peeled away into another memory. He rarely dreamt of Frigga anymore, but it always overwhelmed his senses when he did. He forced himself to drag his steel feet across the floor to her, not taking his eyes off his mother all the while. Guests blurred in his vision as he moved her way. He could see that she was talking with a pair of noble parents that he didn't recognize, smiling and laughing in earnest. After what felt like a lifetime, he reached the base of the short staircase that led to the throne by which she stood.

The noble pair bowed and retreated back to the dance floor hand in hand, not looking at Loki as they passed and without pause Frigga turned to her son. A loving smile came over her face and she opened her arms wide in greeting, beckoning him closer. It felt as if her magic had grabbed hold of his body and sucked him up into her embrace, where he crumbled into her arms like a scared child clucking her cloak. 

"I've missed you gravely, my son." She held him tightly in her arms. Even in the state of the dream he felt the reality of her touch and the love that flooded his body making his insides melt and ache to feel this all the time.

"As have I." His face was buried against her neck, soaking in their time together, "I'm so sorry for what I did, for what I said. I never got to say goodbye or apologize for my actions... It was my fault, mother, it was my doing!" He felt his eyes misting and failed to keep his guilt from spilling over into her hair. He sank to his knees before her, head bowed with fingers pressing into the bridge of his nose. Frigga descended to meet him where he was and cupped his face between her hands, pulling him up so to look in his eyes.

Culpability riddled his expression, but she looked at him with an expression of love that only a mother can convey, "Loki, my son, you think that I never knew your heart? You were more transparent to me than your father or your brother combined. I could read you like a book. I knew you and loved you before you could speak or learn to know yourself. You were my son, through and through, no matter your actions or heritage. I will not pretend that some actions that you carried out did not hurt me, but despite your wrongdoings, I understood your motives and those were rarely malicious. You're not an evil person, my son, and I forgive you. I only ask this of you: Please, now, forgive yourself." His mother pulled him close one last time, laying a gentle kiss to his forehead and when he reached out to touch her again, she was gone and there was nothing.