Past Friends

Part 106: How Long?

"Shit," you whispered under your breath, you woke up and got your period this morning, you jumped out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. Unfortunately, you were in Loki's room and had no pads, so you were kind of stuck for a second. You could text Wanda or Natasha but you felt embarrassed at the thought, so you decided to just stuff a bit of toilet paper in your underwear and quickly but carefully run off to your room. Your period had always been irregular before, showing up whenever it wanted like, "surprise bitch, I'm here," it always happened at the worst times. But ever since you got your powers it was like clockwork; every 32 days for 7 days you got your period. You had forgotten all about it, too focused on being back with everyone else but mostly being with Loki. 

It had only been a couple of days but he hasn't really left your side since you got back, the only time you did spend away from him was when you went out with Wanda and Natasha for "girls day". It was weird being back, walking around looking the way you did, some even wanted to take a picture with you, thinking you were some kind of cosplayer. You didn't think you were dressed that differently until it occurred to you that you were wearing a cute and short purple sundress. "Oh shit I look like Starfire," you said thinking about all the comic books of the DC Universe, the character Koriand'r of Tamaran often wore purple and had long red hair. 

You slammed your head against the outdoor coffee table where you were sitting with Wanda and Natasha saying "damn it," under your breath but they're confused about why you're upset. Keeping your head on the table you pull out your phone and pull up pictures of the fictional character to show them and both ladies burst out laughing. "Oh my god sweetie, it's uncanny, all your missing is the orange skin," Natasha chuckles and you tell her to shut it. You quickly leave the cafe but they kept calling you Starfire all day and even after getting back to the Compound. The others soon joined in, even asking "where's Robin" or "how are the Titans doing", Tony even Jokingly referred to Loki as Nightwing. You had to explain it to him, along with Thor, Bucky, and Steve that Starfire was a comic book character showing them a picture and they all quickly understood. 

You just finished up in the bathroom, new underwear and a fresh pad, you took some pain meds, not sure if they'd work considering you were some sort of fire being now. You walked out and Loki was right there, worried after you bolted out of his room without saying a word. "Oh no, I'm okay, I just got my period," you say before asking if he knew what that was, and yes, he understood. His mother Frigga had to explain it to him when old Y/N got hers, both he and Thor thought she was dying. 

Loki was a little confused though, you hadn't got your period before, at least with him, they had been together for a few months but still nothing, he thought it was supposed to happen once a month. "Yeah, it's different for every woman but for the most part it's supposed to happen once a month," you said while crawling into your bed, as you planned on going back to sleep. You then explained, "yeah mine was always irregular, showing up a couple of times a year but after getting these powers it has always been every 32 days for 7 days straight," you explained before asking Loki for cuddles. "But you've only been gone for..." Loki started but his voice trailed off, as all the pieces fell together; you wouldn't have been able to learn how to control your powers in just a month, the way you reacted when seeing him was weird too, you clung to him in his bed back in Asgard, like you hadn't seen him in forever, and you confirmed it just now, that you were gone a lot longer than a month with your observation on your cycle. 

"How Long?" Loki asked, you sat back up, remaining quiet, you knew you had to tell him but you were scared of how he would react. He walked over and got on top of you, asking again how long you were gone for, growing nervous about your answer as he could see the hesitation and the tears beginning to form in your eyes. You explained that time worked differently in the Dragon Realm, telling him you ended up training there because of the Fire Crystal controversy surrounding you; some people still wanted the crystal destroyed, seeing as they thought you were too dangerous so Iron Fist took you to the dragon Shou-Lao, he would keep you save and train you in the ways of fire. You looked down at your lap, knowing what came next but Loki just grabbed your face, making you look at him as he once again asked you, how long. 

"Like I said time works differently in the Dragon Realm..." you began as you started to tear up, you paused before continuing, "a day here... is a year there,". "30 years? You've been there for 30 years? How are you..." Loki asked but his voice trailed off again, overwhelmed that you were gone that long and confused why you looked the same, were you "immortal," you whispered, interrupting Loki's train of thought. You explain that at least according to Shou-Lao you were immortal now, you could still be killed but you wouldn't age another day before you burst into tears. You knew that one day you would have to say goodbye to all of your friends and go on without them, but you didn't think you were strong enough to do that.  

"I don't want to say goodbye to anybody," you sobbed, as Loki held you close, comforting you on your new reality. He knew you were really upset about it but he couldn't be happier and he felt kind of guilty about it. He couldn't help but be happy, he wouldn't have to find a way to make you immortal like he was planning to, he could keep you by his side without the worry old-age would separate you. Loki told you everything was going to be okay, he would be here for you and together they'd get through it. He told you it would be hard to say goodbye to people we love but they're never truly gone if we remember them. You ended up laying down together in your bed, Loki held you tight, rubbing your back gently and you stayed in bed the rest of the day, at least until you had to go off and save the world, again.