Temptation

Letting Time Pass....

"Eva?"

She turned, and he stopped dead in his tracks. This wasn't right. This was so very, very wrong. 

"Loki! Oh my GODS - is it... is it really you?" her hands flew to her face, her eyes widened in surprise.  Much more surprise than it should have been.

Where the back of her head had given no indication, as she turned, he saw the passage of many years. Her temples, once smooth and fresh, now careworn and lined. Her hair, once glossy, now dulled and flecked with grey. Her smile; once dazzling and beautiful, now strained and seemingly unused in centuries.

"Eva?" He crossed the room in two strides. "Darling, if course it's me?" He pulled her into a hug, her body feeling frailer and smaller than he would have believed possible in such a short time away. "Wh... what in Odin's name happened?" He looked down at her, his eyes searching her face. This should have been a mere minute or two for her. It was for him.

"You've been gone so long. I thought... I thought you were... oh darling Loki, you came back to me...." she burst into tears and hugged him tightly. "I waited and waited, every day, by our tree, and you never came back..."

"Eva, I don't understand?" He looked around at the sound behind as the door opened. A young man walked in, looking maybe around what he'd always thought was his own age, but now?

He was tall, dark-haired, and green eyed. His carriage was one of someone who knew his place in the world. He stopped and looked up, their eyes meeting. For a second, there was silence.

"Papa?" incredulous, questioning.

"Erik?" astounded.

"Papa!" In seconds, he was across the room, in his father's arms as Loki hugged him and kissed his hair. "I knew you'd come back, I KNEW it. Didn't I Mother? I always told you he wouldn't be gone forever."

"Yes, you did." She held out her hands to them both. "My boys, my darling boys." She smiled through the tears. Loki held their hands.

"Where's Frigga?....Blez?" He whispered, terrified of the response.

Eva shook her head. "They're gone, Loki. Blezan is on Alfheim. He's a general now." Her face shone with pride, and something else, something that looked like... no... surely not.

"Eva? Where's Frigga?  Where's our little....." His voice was barely audible. Eva and Erik exchanged a look that told him everything he didn't ever want to know.  Eva shook her head, unable to put into words the horror of the truth.

His heart tore in two pieces. "Nooooo!" He buried his face in her shoulder, sobbing. "I don't understand. Mobius promised. He promised..." he shook his head, a cold feeling creeping round his heart.

"It's ok Loki.." she soothed. It's all going to be ok..."

Loki sat up, sweating and shaking, the room dark.  He frantically looked round. Eva lay by his side, breathing softly, sound asleep.

A dream? A premonition? He held his arms around himself, closing his eyes and breathing deeply, terrified this too wasn't real. A cool hand stroked his bicep and he looked down.  Eva sat up, still pregnant, still young, still happy. "Loki?  What happened?  A nightmare?" she kissed his shoulder and he pulled her to him.

"I don't know, I really don't know. I'm scared Eva... what if he's wrong?"

Earlier that day, Mobius sat in the cool room and looked at them both. Eva couldn't stop staring at the man she remembered from her childhood so long ago.  He'd not changed one iota.  Well, almost.  The last time he was here, he looked a lot less haunted.

"So you see, we need you.  To come help us track her down.  She's headed in a direction we just can't let her go.  If we don't find her?  Don't stop her?  All this will be gone.  All of you will be gone." he played his ace card "The baby... will be gone." 

Eva put a protective hand on her stomach and looked at Loki who slipped his arm around her soothingly.

"But I don't understand? How can we be parted for years and then I just come back as if nothing has happened?" Loki scratched his head and made a face like he'd smelled something bad.  He was no idiot, far from it, but he just couldn't see how this could possibly be true.  A timeline that he could just jump in and out of at will?  Other timelines?  Other Loki's?  Impossible!

"Darling, what I think Mr Mobius is trying to say is that with this.... time-pad?"

"Tempad"

"Thanks - with this tempad, you can come and go through time at will. In and out of realities as you see fit. Am I right Mr Mobius?"

"It's just Mobius," he smiled at her gently.  She was every bit as lovely as he'd imagined she'd be.  And bright too.

"Ok, Just Mobius" Loki snarked, "prove it." his eyes blazed with challenge and just a touch of something else.  Jealousy.  Eva suppressed a grin.  Anyone who could do something Loki couldn't - admittedly very little - was met with the same response.  Mobius merely nodded.

"Ok, we'll go to another timeline, walk around for an hour and come back to two minutes from now.  That way, both you and Eva know it to be true. Ok?" he stood up, offering his hand.  Loki stood, ignoring the gesture.

"Ok, an hour, no more. Don't bother looking away love, this is going to be very quick - for BOTH of us!" he sneered. This was utter nonsense.  He stood next to Mobius and to their left an orange portal opened up, resembling a doorway.

Suddenly nervous, he paused and looked at them both.  "You first" he said to Mobius imperiously. Mobius simply shrugged and walked halfway through the door.

"Coming?" 

The door closed on the two of them and the room fell into silence.  Eva held her breath and waited. 

And waited.  

And waited.

She was sitting, where she always had, when an orange glow appeared and into the room, Loki and Mobius walked laughing and joking, clutching what appeared to be parchment cones.  And what in all the Gods' names were they wearing!"

"Eva, darling! You won't believe where we've been! Midgard 1883! I got this suit and do you like my hat? He twirled, tipping his bowler hat to her. "Oh and THIS - you have to try THIS!" he offered her the cone and inside were little rocks.  But they weren't rocks, they were lumps of.... she took one and the taste! It made her moan involuntarily with delight! She'd never tasted anything like it. Loki grinned and turned to Mobius "I TOLD you she'd like it! You do don't you? Oh you should have SEEN it love.  There was a Big Wheel and a terrible diorama of Odin and Thor and some bloke called Baldur.. "

"The Brave..." Mobius chipped in, grinning and munching on his sweets.

"There were lights and...." he was stopped mid-sentence as he became aware she was scowling. "What's wrong love?"

"Wrong?  What's WRONG?" she walked over and slapped him, hard.  "While you have been having a jolly time on Midgard, I have been waiting and crying and waiting and crying and trying to tell Blezan and Frigga their Daddy hasn't left them." she shouted at him, more in relief now that he was actually home safe, than anger.

"Oh sweetheart, it's only been a couple of minutes, ten at most?" he shrugged and turned to Mobius who nodded, equally confused.

"Ten minutes? Loki, you've been gone for three bloody weeks!"