Affection 2

Part 13

Luna sunk to the floor when they arrived at Dreco’s palace. Her cries rang through the dark and grim grand hall.

Dreco sighed as he got down to Luna, he wrapped his arms around her, trying his best to soothe her.

"Luna, my sweet, please, you mustn’t cry. You need to know I mean you no harm. I swear." His whispers only made her more angry, thinking that he could actually appease her.

She growled lowly at his touch and fidgeted until he let her go. “Don’t ever touch me again and don’t ever call me pet names, you monster.” Her eyes were cloudy with tears and burned with such ardent hate that Dreco unnoticeably gulped and got up to call over a servant.

He snapped his fingers and a young girl came over. “Please, take the Queen to put on her royal clothes and help her get acquainted with our bedroom, please?”

The girl nodded as she helped Luna up off of the floor and took her to the hall of rooms, but right before she walked out of the throne room, Luna gave Dreco a deadly stare, one that she hoped that, when he looked at her, could convey all of the anger and sadness that was inside of her because of him.

The enormous grey door shut with an ominous slam, leaving Dreco all alone.

Loki awoke in the health ward with all of his friends and family crowding around him with worried looks and concerned faces; he tried to get up, but groaned deeply from the sharp pain from the injury in his back. His eyes went wide as he remembered what caused the pain, he rushed to get out of the bed, but was met with hands on his chest holding him back.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa there, Silvertongue. You need to rest. You got hurt pretty bad." Volstagg softly said.

Loki’s eyes started to mist with tears as he struggled against the hands restricting him.

"I have to get them! I have to save them," he angrily shouted, heartache sinking into his soul.

"My darling," Frigga uttered softly, "Volstagg is right. You really must rest your back. The force of the impact was far too great." She said, sitting down on the bed, soothingly rubbing his forehead and caressing his cheek.

Loki shook his head rapidly, tears staining his cheeks. “No, I need to save them. You don’t understand. Dreco will do terrible things to Luna if I don’t hurry. He’ll think he’s doing things that might show his love and affection for her, but he’s going to hurt her! And gods, I can’t even imagine what he’ll do to Solene. You don’t know Dreco like Thor and I do. When we were kids, if he didn’t like something, he’d kill it. Whether it was an animal or an insect, and he didn’t like me at all; if he hates me, how will he treat her with my Jotun blood running through her veins?!” His frantic ravings sent him back into hysterics as he put his hands on his face, shuddering just at the thoughts. He felt so angry and frustrated and broken; he just wanted to go to Alfheim and beat Dreco senseless.

Without Luna’s gentle presence, he felt like a part of himself was taken from him.

Both of them, Luna and Solene, were his constants in his life.

All of a sudden, Loki felt Thor’s arms around him, giving him this unexpected warmth in his heart.

"…wha..?" Loki mumbled, dumbfounded by his brother’s affectionate action.

"Brother," Thor started, "I will do everything it takes with all the power that I have to help you in your quest to save my sister and niece. Once you try to destroy my family, you must deal with me."

Loki wiped his eyes and nodded his head in gratitude. “Thank you, brother. I sincerely appreciate it, but I must go alone.”

Loki could feel the way Luna felt from the empathy link as he closed his eyes to recollect his thoughts; she felt lost, alone, and afraid.

He felt that only he had to save them. Loki felt that only he had to kill Dreco.

Suddenly, Sif did her salute and bowed to Loki, getting himself out of his clouded mind.

"I, too, will go with the two of you to save them."

Volstagg and Fandral followed suit. “For Luna, anything…” the golden-haired Cassanova admitted.

Sitting back on his bed, Loki chuckled with his eyes closed. With a breath, he huffed, “Fine. You all can help me. Hell, the more the merrier, but…,” he looked up at his brother and friends.

"I have to kill Dreco. He’s mine and mine alone." His green eyes a dark forest green, staring into the souls of his peers; they knew he was not being facetious.

Soon enough, one by one, they nodded in my agreement with Loki’s words.

Loki smiled in satisfaction as he lied back down to rest.