The Lady of Midgard [Book 1]

*Chapter 25*

The temperature had started to cool down now that summer had finally burnt itself out and so far Helena had yet to catch you and Loki together, it helped that she rarely left the palace and you both spent any free time beyond its walls. Sif kept trying to work out what was going on, with you always telling her "Nothing," frightened that if word got out Helena would hunt you down.

— — — —

Kara sat down opposite Frigga once she had been invited in.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your company today, Kara?" Frigga asked, more bluntly than Kara had anticipated.

"Your Grace, I, uh, I have heard reports that Loki and the Midgardian have been seen together," she guiltily told her, unsure now about telling on Loki to his mother.

"They are part of the same group of friends, are they not?"

"I believe so, yes."

"Then what is the problem?" Frigga lifted her cup to take a sip, a fleeting moment of anger filling her gaze.

"Well, it's just..." Kara took a breath, maybe she should have just told Helena instead. "With his betrothal to Helena, isn't it a little...I don't know, inappropriate?"

"Kara, dear." Frigga smiled at her. "I know you and my son have a somewhat intimate history." Kara blushed at her words. "If anything untoward was going on I would know."

"But-"

"-Do not worry, the wedding is still going ahead as planned." Frigga reassured her. "When you next see Helena, tell her I am still waiting on the fabric shipment from Vanaheim."

Frigga sighed and poured herself another cup of tea once Kara had left, staring off into the distance as she sat on the balcony. The visions were changing and she wasn't sure what to make of it. One thing was certain, the Norns were playing with the threads again.

"Well my friend, let us hope that Helena is too stupid to notice," Frigga spoke to the silence around her.

— — — —

Growing bored one afternoon while Áedán was at his lessons, you decided to take a trip to the library. Scouring the shelves you eventually found what you were looking for, Plants of the Nine Realms. Pulling the heavy book off the shelf you made your way over to one of the tables, as much as you would have preferred one of the chairs in the front of the fire you knew you'd probably put your legs to sleep with how heavy the book is.

Hefting it onto the table with a loud thunk and opening the cover you found the items were listed in alphabetical order. Awesome this would make it so much easier. Skipping all the way you looked at the first page and frowned, nope not magnolias. Turning the pages slowly you eventually got to N before frowning again. That couldn't be right, going back you slowly went through the pages again in case you had missed it. That was weird, it didn't exist at all. Maybe it was under a different name. Looking back down at the book you groaned at how many pages you would have to sift through.

You got maybe a quarter of the way through the book before you felt someone lean over you, one hand on the back of your chair, another appearing on the table in front of you.

A playful deep voice sounded in your ear making you jump. "What you reading?"

"A book," you managed to squeak out.

Lifting his hand Loki reached out and shut the book to read the front. "Now I am curious darling, why are you reading this?"

"I was looking for something." Not daring to look at him as much as you wanted to turn and do so.