To Love A God

Wide Awake

"She will wake soon, Loki," a female voice said soothingly close by, "Do not be so impatient. Have faith."

"For how long?" Loki questioned his voice full of despair.

"As long as it takes," the woman said again the soft, reassuring smile on her face clear in her tone.

"What are we waiting for?" Rika asked as she tried to pry her eyes open. They felt like two ton weights were being held down on them and her whole body ached of weariness.

"Rika!" Loki exclaimed.

"Shush!" Rika hissed and laboriously lifted her hand to the side of her head where his sudden volume increase caused a burst of pain, "Not so loud, love."

Rika felt herself being lifted up and onto Loki's chest in a split second, "I was so worried," he said barely above a whisper as he pressed his cheek to the top of Rika's head, "You've been asleep for weeks. I feared . . ."

Rika's arm went around his neck reassuringly and she managed to open her eyes to peek up at him, "Shush now, love," she coed up at Loki as she stroked his hair, "It's all right."

She saw the tears that brimmed his eyes and her heart ached. Had she really been asleep for so long? It had seemed like just a few minutes ago....

Rika gasped, "New York!" she clutched to Loki, "The fight! We won! Was everyone okay? What about Tony! I saw him fall! What happened to him. And you! Are you okay!"

She forced herself out of Loki's arms so she could touch him, check for herself that he was fine, but her legs gave under her weight and Loki caught her just as her knees hit the hard stone floor.

"What's wrong with me?" Rika questioned as she rubbed her weak calves while Loki held her to him on the floor.

"You have been in stasis for a little over a month," a female voice said gently from behind them, "Your body is weak from total exhaustion. You expended every ounce of strength your mortal body possessed trying to save Loki’s life."

Rika finally looked up, remembering that the conversation Loki and this woman she was looking at now was what she had woken to. The woman was beautiful. She had magnificent blonde-brown hair, pulled up in a curling bun, stunning blue eyes, and lovely fair shin. She wore long, gold amber earrings and a beautiful green-yellow dress with a cascading cape of the same color, silver cream on the inside, drawn over her shoulders. She was the singularly most beautiful woman Rika had ever seen.

"Dear child," she smiled lovingly with a soft laugh, "You mustn’t bug your eyes out of your head."

Rika felt her cheeks heat with color as she looked down to Loki's chest, mumbling an apology, she hadn't meant to stare but she was so captivating.

The woman laughed softly, shaking her head.

"Where are we, Loki?" Rika questioned looking around. The room was dim but she could still make out the area. The walls were bronze in color, scaling up to the vast golden ceiling. The floors were polished soft brown with speck of white, silver, gold and amber mixed in. Next to them was a huge bed about three feet of the floor and covered in black, gold, and green blankets, pillows, surrounded by a sheer black canopy. She knew it was Loki's room the minute she saw the colors.

"Asgard," he said softly stroking Rika's hair, "It was the only place I knew to bring you to. The only place I knew they could save you."

"Asgard?" Rika repeated her eyes growing wide, "The Asgard!"

Loki's smile spread and Rika's heart skipped a beat at the site of it, "Yes, lille, my home," he laughed, "And I was hoping," he took her left hand and caressed the ring he gave her, "Yours as well. If you still want me."