"You are talking nonsense, Inga."
"I am NOT! I heard Annik and Lenke talk about it, and if there is anyone to know for sure, it is them!"
I chuckled. Inga seemed so convinced. She so desperately wanted to believe in the fantastic stories people kept telling each other around here. Anything to make a kitchenmaid's life more interesting.
"I cannot believe you doubt this, Alva. You have seen for yourself what he is able to do! Don't you remember?"
I rolled my eyes, grinning. "Yes, of course I do. He made a for-"
"A FOREST appear!", Inga interrupted, "Exactly! In the middle. Of. The. Dining hall!" Inga exclaimed triumphantly, as if this proved her point unquestionable.
"I could not even forget this if I wanted to, Inga – you talk about it everytime we come across a damn tree."
I walked over to one of the huge, wooden cupboards to put away the plates Inga had just cleaned. Rearranging the dishes that were standing in the way, I said: "It was a trick, nothing more. An illusion to amuse the noble guests. Do you remember what happened when we tried to touch the trees?"
"That fat guard kicked us out of the hall and called us stupid geese."
"Yeah well, before that."
"We could not touch them, they were like smoke.", she confessed, frowning, while trying to keep her expression stubborn.
"Right, nothing but light and air." I groaned from the effort of pushing a huge cauldron aside to make room for some cups. "And if we weren't able to touch that forest, I doubt we would be able to touch any other of his illusions." I smirked at her while standing back up.
Inga turned around, throwing her head back in frustration. "But what if he can actually not only cast illusions, but also transform things into something entirely different?", she prattled exasperatedly.
I pursed my lips. "Well, I admit... I don't know about that. Look, I am just trying to say that there is no actual proof to Annik's and Lenke's story. You know perfectly well that Lenke tends to exaggerate and that Annik always goes along with whatever Lenke says and does. I'm sure prince Loki can make himself look like a woman. But that does not mean he can physically transform into one, or that he could ... err... create a touchable illusion of one, does it?" Inga shook her head, laughing, clearly not ready to drop the topic before she had me convinced.
~~~~
"You are serving the gods and you still doubt their powers! Some would call this sacrilege, you know.", the blonde girl, Inga, stated in a playfully acusive tone.
Loki's eyebrow shot up. He leaned against a cold stone wall, in the shadows of the huge larder next to the kitchen.
He had come here to warm up, after the long hunting trip he had been on with Thor. It had been a disappointing endeavor. It started snowing heavily, as soon as they had reached the edge of the woods, and all tracks they might have found dissappeared under a soft blanket of ice crystals.
As the prince had been walking over to the hearth, the unexpected mention of his name had stopped him in his tracks. "... they call prince Loki 'trickster', not 'sorcerer'. And there's a reason for this - his magic is nothing but air and dust.", the dark haired one had said. He wasn't even sure why he decided to eavesdrop on them. Servants and maids were always gossiping about the rich and nobles, and it was hardly ever something of importance. Still...
"Alright then Inga, I am begging you not to reveal to anyone... ", the one called Alva started to say, giggling, "... that I highly doubt our dear younger prince's ability of becoming an actual woman! Or create one he could really touch!"
"You are utterly impossible, you know.", Inga stated, shaking her head.
Alva faked astonishment: "But maybe you truly are right, Inga!" The adressed maid raised her head, curiousity on her face.
"If his highness was indeed able to cast touchable illusions, it would explain why he prefers the privacy of his chambers to anyone else's company." Alva's grin widened, while Inga rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "People say he is quite narcisstic – he most likely prefers playing with himself than with anyone 'undeserving'!", they both started laughing out loud now, Inga playfully hitting her friends arm.
Loki's jaw clenched.
For a second he felt anger rise inside his stomach. Insufferable wenches. How dare they discuss his magic – a matter so far beyond their understanding? Not only discuss, but doubt it. Mock him.
He recomposed himself quickly, the brief surge of emotion not visible on his face at all. They would be scared to death if he suddenly appeared behind them, out of thin air. He smirked slightly. He wondered if their feeble attempts at talking themselves out of this would be as amusing as their ongoing banter.
He made himself invisible and strode out of the larder and over to the kitchenmaids, silently. Loki stopped right behind the girls and waited for the perfect moment to make his appearance, his gaze focusing on Inga.
The dark haired one turned around abruptly and almost ran right into him, her arms loaded with wooden cups. The prince jumped aside, surprisedly.
They continued to talk while she dried the cups with a rag. Loki wasn't listening to their babbling anymore, though. He stepped closer to Alva. He had only seen the two of them with their backs turned to him, before. She actually had a rather pleasant face. Fair skin, slightly reddened cheeks from the effort of carrying dishes around, big, round, grey eyes.
He pursed his lips, looking her up and down. She looked skinny. Loki drew closer to her. He could smell the scent of her hair now, and the light smell of sweat. It excited him.
Standing right behind her, he glanced over to Inga. Her shape was actually more to his liking, he mused. Soft curves, more like a woman than a girl.
Alva shifted in front of him. He stepped to her side, carefully avoiding to touch anything. Strands of her dark hair hung in front of her face, like a torn curtain. Loki's gaze dropped to Alva's busy hands. They were small, with slender fingers, the knuckles as red as her cheeks from working ceaselessly. Nimble fingers. A lopsided grin contorted Loki's lips for a moment. He had to admit, she intrigued him somehow. Very likely just because she is doubting you, he thought, raising his eyebrows again.Well, let's prove her wrong, then.
