Love is stronger than rage (Loki fanfic)

meeting his kind 23

Waking up in his arms the next morning felt right and wonderful at the same time. If Stevarous hadn't been up already and was busy in the common room, which also happened to be the kitchen, I think nothing would have stopped us to repeat the glorious act of becoming one, we had enjoyed the night before. But in this case, I got up eager to down some of that coffee I smelled, also, I was eager to hear how the village was doing. Unfortunately, there was no time to go and visit them as the matter of Loki meeting his kind and being able to learn more about himself was too urgent. The very same day we would go although we would probably only reach the mountains nearing the evening hours even if we would leave early. So breakfast was not a prolonged matter and in no time, we were on horses on our way to the mountains. 

Sadly I hadn't been able to ride on Roe as her foal was still too small and needed her, but it had been a very beautiful reunion and her foal was the sweetest thing. 

The horses were keen on stretching their legs and after an initial tiredness, I could feel the urge arise to ride fast and furious. Loki seemed somehow subdued, though, so I didn't challenge him to a race as much as I would have loved to. I knew why he was like that, this was, after all, a very significant day in his life. This would be the first time he would come into contact with frost Giants after he had found out he was one of them.

The closer we came the more withdrawn Loki got. I dared not to talk to him. I knew he wouldn't want to talk this through, he was more the kind that liked to deal with his emotions himself. 

Soon the terrain changed, here in the mountains it was a lot greener than on the plains, this was possibly due to the fact that there was a lot of small underground springs. I too, got a little nervous now, imagining what it must be like for Loki and I wondered how they would take to him. What would they say if they found out he is Laufey's son?

We reached the outskirts of the village. Here we were met by two guards, their initial hostile greeting soon turned into joy on recognizing me. That time I had been living with them I had been a curiosity and it was because of that that I was very known among them. We were welcomed and as we made our way towards Nadeaus cave a huge crowd started to gather around us. From the corner of my eye, I could see Loki shifting uncomfortably.

Soon after we found ourselves in front of Nadeaus who smiled at us. We kneeled down to show our respect. "Welcome, Arianna and Loki son of Laufey,"  his voice was kind and welcoming. The mentioning of Loki's full name had caused quite some attention, though. The Throne-room filled with curious onlookers had gone completely quiet. The tension was so thick one could have cut it with a knife. After minutes of absolute silence, a thousand voices seemed to fill the room,  some sounded fearful some hostile. Nadeaus got up and beckoned the people to be quiet. "I have hoped to welcome you here one day," he said, intently watching Loki, "do get up." Loki and I stood up. I gave Nadeaus my biggest, happiest smile to show him how thankful I was for the kind greeting he was giving Loki. "I am deeply moved by your kindness towards me," Loki said addressing Nadeaus, "despite my heritage." He had said this with a deep sadness in his voice. It occurred to me that he had to face every day, since he found out, that he was the son of a tyrant.

Then Loki turned around to face the crowd, also he changed into his frost giant shape. The people gasped. "It is true that I am Laufey's son," he spoke loud and confident, "but I am not proud of it and I certainly mean you no harm. Instead, my intentions are to serve you and to aid you one day in restoring peace to our home realm." These words were greeted with an excited murmur. I hadn't even known about these intentions."I was left to die," he carried on, " found and raised by Odin ruler of Asgard, only recently I have found out about my true heritage. Now I humbly come to you to ask you to teach me what I need to know so I can embrace fully who I really am." I was so proud of him. He had spoken like a true Prince.

His words were once again met with silence at first and then Loki did something I think won their hearts, he said loud and clear:" Please!" Nadeaus got up and the people grew quiet. "I would like to offer Loki a place among us so that he can learn about our ways, all of you in favor of Loki Laufeyson staying raise your hand."

Most of the people raised their hands and those who did not got nudged by their neighbor and eventually everybody raised their hand. I had tears in my eyes marveling at these kind beings who were so generous. Loki too seemed to be incredibly moved, he went down on his knees and bowed in front of his people. At first, the people were stunned by this humble gesture but then loud cheering arose: "Hail the prince! Hail prince Loki." Loki got up smiling broadly, he was physically beaming. I locked eyes with Nadeau, nodding towards him in silent thankfulness. He actually winked at me. 

After that, we got assigned a small hut that was mostly used for storage and was now promptly turned into a living space. It was cosy and it felt wonderful sharing a space with none but Loki. Our own little house. Loki spent his days wandering among the people and asking questions. Everybody seemed to want to teach him something. Often I could hear him laugh. It was good to see him flourish through the love and attention he was getting via his people. I too used the time to find out more. The only strange thing I had to deal with was to have Loki around me in his frost giant shape most of the day but when he returned in the evenings exhausted yet happy he would turn back to the old Loki shape that I knew so well, he still preferred this shape, after all, he lived this way for nearly all his live.