Cruel Intentions

Chapter Six

Soon after the two finished lunch and Asta was cleaning the dishes as Agnette sewed in her rocking chair, there was a loud knock at their door. Asta jumped at the abrupt noise and paced towards the door. When she opened it, she came face to face with a few guards and she quickly looked over to Agnette who gave her a reassuring smile.

"Thor demands the presence of the maid, Asta." A guard announced.

"That would be me." Asta said.

"Follow us." The guard told her.

Asta did as she was told and sighed as she closed the door. She followed the guards to the prince's chambers and bit her lip as she tapped her foot on the floor. The guards knocked on his door and her eyes widened when she looked at Thor. She had never served him before, but she had some clue as to what he looked like, but seeing him this up close made Asta nervous and frightened of what to expect.

"We have brought the maid you requested to speak with." The guard told him.

"Ah, let her in and leave us." Thor instructed.

Asta walked into his chambers and gasped softly as the guards closed the door. His back was to her and she stared at him uneasily. He turned to face her and chuckled.

"Ah, very pretty...I see why Loki admires you. Anyway, I won't bite. I just wish to speak with you about Loki." Thor told her.

"What about him? Is he hurt? Is he alright?" Asta asked frantically.

"He's fine," Thor replied. "May I call you Asta?"

Asta nodded her head and Thor smiled.

"Please, sit." Thor said as he motioned towards two chairs outside on the balcony.

Asta followed him out to the balcony and seated herself across from him. Between them was a table with sweets and Asta smiled softly as she looked at them.

"Help yourself to anything. I want you to feel comfortable during our conversation." Thor told her.

"Have I done something wrong?" Asta asked.

"No, not at all." Thor replied.

"What about Loki do you wish to speak about?" Asta asked.

"You've done something miraculous, Asta. Something that Loki would never have done in a million years." Thor told her.

"He showed me his scars, yes." Asta said.

"But you see, Loki never shows his weaknesses to anyone." Thor added.

"His scars are a weakness?" Asta asked.

"I see you are not aware of what happened to him in the past." Thor spoke.

"What happened to him?" Asta asked.

"After he was thought dead from falling off the Bifrost, he confided in our mother to tell her about his year with a man named Thanos." Thor replied.

"The name sounds familiar." Asta said.

"He is the ruler of the realm which cannot be seen by Heimdall or visited by anyone through the Bifrost. The abyss that we created that night somehow morphed into a passageway to his realm and that's where Loki ended up." Thor clarified.

"What happened to him there?" Asta asked.

"My mother, the late Frigga, bless her soul, told me, after he was imprisoned, what happened and it's not a tale that should be spread around, Asta. I'm only telling you because he confided in you to show you his scars which he never does." Thor replied.

"Tell me." Asta said.

"Thanos made him a deal. He told Loki that if he helped Thanos retrieve the Tesseract, he would ensure Loki would come back to Asgard with good graces. Knowing that he could never return with good graces, Loki refused him day and night. When it was evident Thanos would not be getting Loki's help, he decided to get his help by torturing him." Thor explained.

"No." Asta said breathlessly.

"He scorched him and whipped him into accepting his terms. Yet when he still refused, Thanos brainwashed him with the mind stone." Thor continued.

"How could anyone do that to him? He's so vulnerable. I don't understand." Asta told him as her voice broke.

"May I ask...why are you crying?" Thor asked.

"Because Loki doesn't deserve anything that's happened to him. He's a good man and it's a shame not everyone can see it like I do. Loki is so kind and gentle with me. Although he cannot speak, I know he would have only nice words about me as do I for him. He treats me properly and shows some care for me. To hear about what he's endured in his life breaks my heart. I see the good in people...I always do. I can feel his pain and I feel my heart break every time I walk into his cell and see him laying in his bed in so much pain knowing that I cannot heal some of his wounds. Loki is a good man and I wish your father could see it." Asta explained.

Thor smiled softly as he handed Asta a tissue.

"Thank you." Asta said softly.

"You really care for him, don't you?" Thor asked.

"Of course I do. He means a lot to me. I've only known for such a short time but...he's one of my favorite patients." Asta replied with a soft giggle.

"Asta, do you love my brother?" Thor asked plainly.

Asta's breath hitched in her throat when he asked the question and she stuttered to reply.

"I...I do care for him but...I don't think I-"

Asta cut herself off as she began to think about his questions. Thor smiled as he watched Asta get flustered and her cheeks flushed red.

"You don't have to answer. You just talked so generously about my brother that it gave off the idea that you had some feelings for him." Thor told her.

"I do. I do have feelings for him but...love? Love?" Asta asked towards herself.

"Now, I just want to let you know that Loki has confided something in you that he would never tell anyone. This means you mean something to him and I hope you understand that." Thor explained.

"I very much so understand." Asta said.

"Good. You can go now." Thor told her.

Asta nodded her head and quickly paced out of the room and back to her quarters in the palace. Thor made his way into the prisons and stopped in front of the barrier of Loki's cell since he was unable to step inside.

"Good afternoon, Loki." Thor said.

Loki quickly sat up in his bed and turned his head to face Thor. When his eyes landed on Thor, they widened as he quickly pushed the covers back and paced towards the cell. This was the first time Thor had ever seen Loki since he had his lips sewn shut. As he looked at Loki, he could see the pain and torture he went through every day here as a prisoner. He was thin and his clothes hung off of his limbs greatly. Thor took note of his sunken eyes and the reddening scars around his lips. Thor watched as Loki's eyes scanned Thor's, trying to memorize his features. It pained Thor to know that his beloved brother was beating treated like scum and there was nothing he could do about it. Loki put his hands toward the barrier and stopped when they were only a few centimeters away.

"Are you managing alright?" Thor asked.

Loki nodded his head which caused Thor to crack a smile.

"I spoke with Asta just a few moments ago." Thor said.

Loki's eyes widened at the mention of her name and Thor could see the light in his eyes when he said her name.

"Does she treat you with care?" Thor asked.

Loki nodded several times and Thor chuckled.

"Is she kind to you?" Thor asked.

Loki furrowed his brow as he nodded and Thor knew he was confused by his questions and what Thor was trying to figure out.

"Asta is a sweet girl, Loki. She's very polite and she spoke so many words about you. I hope you don't get angry when I say this..." Thor trailed off.

Loki cocked his head to the side and Thor could already see in his eyes the anger building up.

"Because I was so amazed that she was able to help you in ways that I never could, I told her your story so she could understand you better." Thor told him.

Loki let out a loud groan as he hit his hand against the barrier which made him moan in pain as he gripped his hand.

"But, she didn't run, Loki. She stayed and listened and she cried. She understood the pain you went through and it still confuses me on how she did. Loki, she gets you. This girl cares for you in a way I've never seen." Thor explained.

Loki kept his back to Thor and furrowed his brow as he listened to him.

"Loki, do you love this woman?" Thor asked.

Loki quickly turned to face Thor and glared at him.

"Alright, no need to get hostile. I just asked because when I asked Asta if she loved you, her cheeks flushed red and she became nervous. I just thought you might have feelings for her is all." Thor told him.

Loki patted his chest and Thor beamed at his action.

"You better not hurt her, Loki." Thor spoke as he chuckled.

Loki nodded his head quickly and Thor smiled as he looked down at his feet.

"Goodbye, Loki. I wish to see you for more days, if you'd let me." Thor told him.

Loki gave Thor a nod and Thor sighed.

"Then I will see you on another day." Thor said as he walked down the hall.

Loki sighed as he closed his eyes and walked back over to his bed before pulling out a book and proceeding to read while he lounged on the bed. Asta walked back into her quarters to find Agnette cleaning the floor of the kitchen.

"What did he talk to you about?" She asked.

"He told me that he was impressed that I was able to let Loki open up to me. Then, he shared Loki's story with me...about how he got the scars." Asta replied.

"He did?" Agnette asked.

"I started to cry. I never knew how severe those scars were. If I had known, I would have been more surprised when he revealed them to me. And then he asked me one other thing." Asta replied.

"Well, what was it?" Agnette asked.

"He asked if I loved Loki." Asta said.

"Love? As in...relationship wise?" Agnette asked.

Asta nodded her head and Agnette chuckled as she walked over to Asta.

"And you don't." Agnette said.

"I don't know." Asta confessed.

"You don't know? What do you mean you don't know?" Agnette asked as she furrowed her brow.

"I do have feelings for him but I don't know if it's love or not." Asta admitted.

"You must know, Asta." Agnette said.

"That's the thing. I don't. I didn't feel this way until he asked me. I'm not sure anymore. I mean, I love but I don't know if love 'love' him." Asta explained.

"You either love him or you don't." Agnette said.

"But I don't know. I'm afraid to see him now." Asta told her.

"You should never be afraid. Loki knows nothing of this. Tomorrow, I will go with you like you asked of me. Asta, if you're afraid of telling me the truth, you have nothing to be afraid of." Agnette explained.

"I'm not lying. I...I just don't know. I'm not sure if my feeling for him are love." Asta told her.

"Alright. I understand. Just take a nap, relax and we'll talk later." Agnette said.

Asta nodded her head before walking into her bedroom. After a short nap, Asta awoke and walked back into the main room where Agnette sat in her rocking chair reading.

"So, now that your mind is clear, what do you think?" Agnette asked.

"I do love Loki but I don't believe I love him romantically." Asta replied.

"Good." Agnette said.

As she looked back at her book, Asta furrowed her brow at her response.

"Why is that 'good'?" Asta asked.

"Because you...made up your mind." Agnette replied.

"It doesn't sound like it." Asta said.

"Please, Asta-"

"No. What did you mean by 'good'?" Asta asked.

"It's good because you didn't fall in love with a murderer." Agnette confessed.

"He's not a murderer. He didn't want to kill those people." Asta told her.

"And how could you possibly know what he thinks if he can't say it?" Agnette asked as she stood up from her chair.

"Because Thor told me he was brainwashed into killing those people by a man named Thanos. He didn't want to kill them." Asta explained.

"I know that. He confessed it the day I sewed his lips shut. But what you don't get is what he did to Asgard. He tricked his people. He made us believe he was Odin as he sat on that throne. He's still the reckless and carefree boy I once knew. For all I know, he could be manipulating you into getting on his side so one day you could do his bidding. No matter what Thor says, Loki is a terrible man for what he did to us." Agnette explained.

"He's not. I thought you were better than this." Asta said.

"You are young and you don't see the destruction he's done." Agnette told her.

"Just because I am young doesn't mean I can't see and understand certain subjects. Loki has confided in me. He trusts me and relies on me to help him. He's defenseless and just wants help. He isn't the man you once knew. He's changed." Asta explained.

"And how can you tell when I've known him for years but you've only known him through tales and a few days?" Agnette asked.

Asta took a deep breath and thought long and hard before she answered. After a few moments, she looked directly at her grandmother and smiled weakly.

"Because I understand his pain." Asta replied.

Agnette sighed as she shook her head and stormed off into her bedroom.