Out of reach • A Loki fanfiction

Chapter 7 - For what it's worth...

For Loki, the evening went by far too slow.

It was hard not looking in Era's direction every now and then. And everything in him had the need to walk up to her. Why, he wasn't sure. Loki had never been the one for sentiment, so wanting to hold on to a one-day-'friendship' couldn't exactly be the reason. Could it?

Either way, walking up to her was out of the question. Even someone so into mischief knew better. Era had been conversing with another prince already. It wouldn't do good for her nor him to seek for her attention. Now, Loki wasn't a perfect gentleman, but at least he had some manners. And this woman named Bodil would be ruined if Loki was seen with another just a couple of hours after their first dance. Then, of course, the difference in race. An Aesir standing and walking up to a Vanir just to talk wouldn't go without gossip. Especially when there was royalty involved.

Loki was smart enough to stay put.

But Loki could only take so much. He could only take so much of his own table, where Thor kept on whispering what a lovely woman this Bodil was.

All the more the reason to turn his brother's ale into a mug filled with spawn.

Of course, he got to endure everyone's complains after that, but it wasn't like no one at the table wasn't used to it. Thor should simply know better than to meddle in his personal life. And if half-choking on something slimy would teach him that, so be it.

But as his eyes automatically started drifting again, the sight of Era's change in negative posture had his heart actually beat a little faster. He couldn't see all that much. Her table was blocked by dancing people every other second. But it wasn't hard for him to figure out what was going on. Because at the moment, only her brother and father were present at her table—at least he presumed them to be her family, seeing it was her family table. And they were talking, though Loki presumed that they were arguing instead.

It all just got to him, without even realising that it did. A Lady like her shouldn't sit with a spine that tense.

Loki didn't need to make up an excuse for himself, he never did so anyway. Walking away whenever he got bored or annoyed was something he was known for along the people surrounding him right now. So he left.

He made sure to keep close to the corners of the room as he walked to the other side. Getting attention was the last thing he wanted right now. And slowly walking on his own, head down, behind people's backs, was the perfect way to prevent that.

Most eyes were on his brother nowadays anyway. Ever since he decided to announce that he began on courting Lady Sif, it was thus the more easy to sneak away from the public eye.

Still, getting closer to the Vanir side was a risk. A risk he now took.

Loki cared less for his own reputation. Era had done nothing wrong to lose hers.

It wasn't hard getting Era's attention. She had been blankly staring ahead for minutes now. Precisely stepping into her sight was enough to get her brows furrowed in confusion. After she took a good look at the royal Asgardian table and back, Loki nodded his head in the direction of one of the room's double doors.

But again, Era's shoulders sagged. And then, she slightly shook her head.

Of course Loki knew why. Unlike him, Era couldn't just simply leave. Because as Loki had stated the day prior, Era was one to actually play her part.

But Loki wasn't. Not always. And not now.

Wiggling with his fingers, hidden behind his back, he focused on the beverage standing on the table right underneath the older man's nose. And as he told his seidr to do, he tipped it over with ease, draining Frode's robes in the red colour of Asgardian alcohol.