Passionate Misfortune

Chapter Five

  The day was long and tiring for Loki as he spent most of his day training. Towards the end of the day, Loki punched at a punching bag with no one else in the room. What surprised him the most was that his punches grew in strength and he believed to be taking his anger out but didn't know what for. After a few minutes, Loki stepped back panting and sighed as he wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel.

"Delysia really is a lucky woman, Loki." Thor spoke.

Loki jumped softly and he sighed as he looked over at Thor.

"Why do you say that?" Loki asked.

"Because if it weren't for you, she would still be living the same life as before or worse. She might have been dead by now. You saved her." Thor explained.

"What caused you to have a change of heart towards her? In the case that you no longer want to have her as yours, I mean." Loki inquired.

"I thought about it, put Sif into her place, and realized I would have acted the same way if she were Delysia. If she were to be put in a cage and stared at for people's amusement and greed, I would have done whatever I could to have saved her." Thor told Loki.

"Did I do the right thing?" Loki asked.

"Of course you did. You gave her a new life." Thor replied.

"She's my wife now. Ehehe, it's even stranger to admit it out loud." Loki chuckled.

"And you her husband." Thor said as he nudged Loki's shoulder.

"We did not consummate the marriage, Thor." Loki told him.

"I guessed that much." Thor laughed softly.

"We did nothing but sleep." Loki continued.

"Why are you telling me this?" Thor asked.

"Because she is still, most likely, a virgin, she is worth more if she were to be sold off. Given that she is a high elf and is still pure...she is worth the entire realm." Loki explained.

"Are you still afraid that the council members will try to do what they can to use her to their benefits?" Thor asked.

"Did you not hear what some of those men suggested? They want to use her and treat her like an animal. It was disgusting. She isn't safe. She never will be. She even told me herself." Loki told Thor.

"She spoke to you?" Thor asked.

"Only when she feels the need to." Loki replied.

"Is her voice as angelic as high elves' voices are said to be?" Thor inquired.

"It is." Loki told him.

"I think you need to try to give this marriage a shot. You seemed depressed." Thor commented.

Loki gave Thor a look and Thor rolled his eyes.

"If you tried to love her, you might not be as depressed as you appear. You might actually be happy and find love." Thor told him.

Loki sighed and walked past Thor to get himself cleaned off of his dirt and sweat. Thor shook his head softly as he followed after Loki. Once Loki had cleaned himself, he made his way back to his chambers to find Delysia sitting at his writing desk while the maids sewed and arranged her clothes in her dresser. Delysia turned to look up at Loki and quickly turned back around. He noticed that she was writing something and furrowed his brow as he looked over at a maid.

"Has she left here at all?" Loki asked in a whisper.

The maid shook her head as she looked down at the floor and Loki sighed.

"You may leave." Loki told the maids.

The maids stood from their positions, bowed their heads, and left the room. Loki walked over to Delysia and when he was in her sight, she turned her paper over, and looked up at him.

"You cannot just stay here all day for the rest of your life. You need fresh air." Loki told her.

"Then, I'll open a window." Delysia said.

"You have to get out." Loki scoffed.

"I can't go out. Not until they forget about me." Delysia told him.

"Delysia, you must-"


Loki watched as she turned away from him and went back to her writing. He scoffed and walked over to his bed.

"Very well. For dinner, I hope you remembered the way to the dining hall because I will not be escorting you." Loki told her.

Delysia turned to look at Loki with wide eyes and bit the inside of her cheek. She slowly turned back around as she nodded her head. Loki knew she was done speaking for the day.

"I'm sorry that came off as rude and I had no intention of sounding that way. I will escort you." Loki told Delysia.

She smiled weakly but Loki had no way of seeing it.

"I hope that one day you can try to talk about what happened in Vanaheim. Given that you are the last high elf and there are no stories of what happened to your people, you could tell me the real story." Loki explained.

Delysia stood up from the desk, grabbed her papers, and walked into the bathroom. Loki sighed as he ran his hand through his hair and knocked on the bathroom door.

"I should tell you that there is a feast tonight to celebrate our marriage. It will continue into the week." Loki spoke.

The door to the bathroom opened and Delysia put her papers on the desk before walking to her dresser, taking out a dress, and going back into the bathroom to change. Loki walked towards the desk and glanced over the paper. He examined her handwriting and thought it was the most beautiful handwriting he'd ever seen. Loki quickly read the first few lines before Delysia entered the room once more.

Dear mother,
This is my fourth day here. The maids keep my company and they're very nice. I'm married to the prince, Loki, of Asgard. You always said I'd marry one but you said we'd love one another. He only married me to keep me safe...

Loki furrowed his brow and was taken out of his thoughts when the bathroom door opened and he looked up at Delysia. She put her hands in front of her and furrowed her brow as she looked at Loki's face. He swallowed hard and smiled weakly as he looked at her.

"You look like a princess." Loki chuckled nervously.

Delysia made no expression and walked over to the writing desk. She shoved her papers under a book and inhaled deeply as she stood up straight and turned to face Loki.

"Are you ready?" Loki asked.

Delysia looked back at the writing desk and Loki could see the panic and fear in her eyes. She played with her thumbs as she swallowed and hesitated to look back at him.

"Go back and change into your nightgown." Loki told her.

Delysia furrowed her brow as she finally turned to face him.

"As much as I wish for you to leave this room, you don't have to tonight if you do not wish to." Loki explained.

She smiled weakly and paced back into the bathroom. Loki sighed as he bit his lip to try and get a better look at what was written on the paper, but he could only make so much out with the book covering most of it.

He's nice to me...but...afraid to go out...worried they'll know...I miss you every day...want to...stars with you...

Loki smiled weakly and walked towards the door but stopped when Delysia re-entered the room. She was in her nightgown and Loki smiled brightly.

"You look more comfortable." Loki commented.

Delysia nodded her head and Loki chuckled.

"I'll ask for the guard to stay outside and for a maid to stay with you here until I return." Loki told her.

Delysia sighed as she nodded her head and walked over to the bed.

"Sleep well, Delysia. I'll try not to wake you when I return." Loki said.

He left the room and talked to one of the maids and the guard. Loki made his way to the throne room and was welcomed by all the guests. He made his way over to Thor, Fandral, Sif, and Volstagg after getting a drink.

"Where is Delysia?" Sif asked.

"She was not ready to come out and be seen by all the people again. She had enough of that for some time." Loki replied.

"Do you think she will come on another day?" Fandral asked.

"No. I think she's afraid." Loki replied.

"She shouldn't be. We'll give her a good time." Fandral chuckled.

Loki shook his head as Volstagg laughed with him and Thor patted Loki's back.

"She'll come around. In time." Thor told him.

It was late at night when Loki returned to his chambers and dismissed the maid quietly. He changed into his night clothes and tried his best to not stir Delysia awake room her sleeping state as he got under the covers. Loki inhaled sharply as Delysia turned her body to face him and opened her eyes.

"Did I wake you?" Loki asked softly.

Delysia shook her head and Loki sighed.

"Have you been up long?" Loki asked.

Delysia nodded her head and Loki turned his head to look at her.

"Doing what?" Loki inquired.

"Waiting." Delysia whispered.

"For who? Me?" Loki asked as he furrowed his brow.

Delysia nodded her head and Loki scrunched up his nose at the thought of Delysia waiting in bed for him, like a true married couple.

"Why?" Loki sighed.

"I was afraid." Delysia confessed.

"You have no reason to be. The guard is outside and I let a maid stay here in case you needed anything." Loki explained.

"I don't trust them. They don't get me." Delysia told him.

"It doesn't matter now. Get some rest. It's late." Loki told her.

He turned on his side so he was not facing her and Delysia went to speak but quickly closed her mouth and turned on her side, away from Loki as well. The following morning, Loki awoke to find Delysia at his writing desk, changed, and writing on the papers she had last night. Loki sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes as he groaned.

"What time is it?" Loki asked.

"Late morning. You came in late so I did not want to wake you too early." Delysia replied.

"Have you had breakfast yet?" Loki asked.

"I did not want to leave until you were ready." Delysia told him.

Loki got out of bed and went into his closet to change into his clothes for the day. He walked back into the bedroom and watched for a few moments as Delysia wrote.

"What are you writing about?" Loki asked.

"Nothing of your concern." Delysia snapped.

"Alright. You don't have to get defensive. Write away." Loki told her as he walked into the bathroom.

Delysia nodded her head in response and waited for Loki to return to bring them to the dining hall. Once they were seated at the table, Delysia looked over at everyone and found that almost everyone would either glance up or blatantly stare at her. It made her feel like she was getting smaller in size and inhaled deeply as she tried to calm herself. She made eye contact with Odin and he gave her a smile that made her nose scrunch up and she looked down at her plate. Delysia ate her food as she observed everyone and listened to what they had to say.

"It was such a shame you did not come to the feast last night." Fandral commented.

Delysia nodded her head softly and Fandral raised a brow at her.

"Well, there are five more nights for her to put on a dress and come to celebrate her union." Knorr told Fandral.

Loki glared at Knorr and Varin raised a brow at him, making Loki look away.

"I'm sure that when she feels comfortable, she will make her appearance. Won't you, dear?" Frigga asked.

Delysia looked up at her and Loki swore he saw Delysia smile. She nodded her quickly and Frigga beamed as she turned to look at Varin and Knorr. After breakfast, Loki walked Delysia back to their chambers and he sighed as she shut the door behind her before Loki could say anything. The maids entered the room and he inhaled deeply as he walked down the hall to meet with the others. Varin and Knorr quickly made their way to the guard who was drinking with his some of the other guards. They pulled him to the side and the guard sighed.

"Anything last night?" Varin asked.

"Nothing. She's still pure." The guard replied.

Knorr and Varin chuckled to themselves as the guard downed his drink.

"I'm starting to think that our prince is not keen towards women." The guard snickered.

Knorr slipped the guard a gold coin and the two were on their way. Loki walked through the gardens behind the others as they chatted and laughed with one another. Fandral was talking with a woman of the court and Loki looked at the girl. She was tall, curvy, and very bubbly. Her eyes were hazel and they glowed when in the right angle when they caught the sun's rays. Her hair was a field of wheat that flowed beautifully down her back and sculpted her face perfectly. Loki knew she was beautiful and looked to have a personality he could get along with but...he wasn't attracted to her. He felt no need to go and talk to her. He was interested...but he knew he should be. Loki furrowed his brow and shook his head as he walked away to catch up with the others. From her balcony, Delysia watched Loki and the others. She wanted to join them but, she would be stared at by everyone from the court. She would be gawked at and ridiculed, just as she had been on Vanaheim. Delysia didn't want to relive it. She knew she was safe in her chambers and nowhere else. As she watched Loki staring at the woman, she furrowed her brow and was taken aback when he walked away. Delysia believed he was going to try and woo her. After all, he told her that when they were married, they didn't have to act like husband and wife. But, to Delysia, he was acting like a husband. She knew he just wanted her to feel safe and protected and wanted to be her friend, but sometimes, she thought otherwise. Delysia walked back into the bedroom and seated herself at her desk and continued to write.

You would approve of him, mother. He's kind and has a pleasant face. Unfortunately, I do not know how I feel about him yet. He proposes marriage to save me. It seemed odd when he told me. I thought maybe he'd make me his ward like Oleif had when he was about twenty. She was a pretty girl. I remember their wedding very clearly. It was a joyous celebration. I would have loved to see what their kids would have looked like but, that opportunity was taken from them. He's a good man, mother. He's a prince and I am a princess once more.

That night, Loki and Delysia walked back to their chambers and he went to his closet as Delysia changed in the bathroom. Both re-entered the room at the same time and there was a small, awkward silence as they looked at one another. Loki gestured to the bed and Delysia smiled weakly as she paced over to it and got under the covers. He stood at the foot of the bed and two waited for the other to speak first.

"How was your day?" Delysia asked.

"Not very eventful. I suspect you stayed here again." Loki replied.

"I did." Delysia said.

"And you will not be coming to the feast tonight?" Loki asked.

"No." Delysia replied.

"Well, whenever you feel ready to, just let me know." Loki told her.

A maid entered the room and bowed her head as Loki turned to acknowledge her presence. He then looked back at Delysia and patted the banister before exiting the room. Delysia watched the maid sit by the fireplace and work on some embroidery. Delysia sighed as she closed her eyes and tried to sleep. She found sleep to be useless when once again, all she could focus on were the laughs and conversations of the people and the music playing loudly throughout the palace. She tried her best to fall asleep but nothing seemed to work, so she decided it would be best to pretend and wait until Loki arrived later that night.