Frostbitten

Dreaming of You

That night, Sif and Thor rested in one of the many hidden caverns located on the opposite side of the island. While they had both taken turns standing watch, Neither used their free time to sleep. Both were kept awake by feelings of overwhelming grief and fear, even though, they were in great need of rest. 

They looked out at the vast view of their city,which was now practically destroyed. Homes and buildings were reduced to rubble, while many others were ablaze, casting long streams of smoke to billow out into the darkening sky. Sif turned away and shivered. She couldn't bear to look at the sight any longer, plus a wave of cold air had begun to drift along outside of the cave.

Unlike herself, Thor was practically emotionless. His face was somber as he stared straight out of their shelter, not looking at anything in particular. Many times, Sif tried to talk to him, but at her every attempt, Thor would nod and turn away. Although, Sif respected his personal space, as this was a man who had just heard about his brother's death for the third time. After a few hours had passed, Sif finally fell asleep. 

Sif hugged herself tightly as the harsh winds slapped at her face, causing her whole body to go numb all over. The icy wasteland in which she was in was blanketed with countless layers of snow. Each step she took made a loud cracking sound beneath her, making her afraid the ground would fall away into a dark abyss of nothingness. 

"You will pay for all the death and destruction you have called, king!" A strange voice bellowed, angrily from some place in the distance. From where, though, Sif did not know. 

Then, a hand grabbed the warrioress. It was thick and cold, it fingers wrapping around her like she was nothing but a rag doll. When Sif looked closer at it, the  hand was a shocking sapphire blue. She gasped and stared up at the menacing face of her people's worst enemy. A frost giant. Even though she was already scared, she nearly screamed when she recognized the creature's achingly familiar face. 

His red eyes bore into her own, displaying more than just hatred, but sadness...regret.  His raven, black hair was no longer slicked back in the way she was so accustomed to seeing it. Now, it loosely fell down his shoulders in a messy fashion, flecks of ice crystals twined within his locks. Along his icy blue skin were strange markings of which Sif couldn't help but stare at. "Loki...?" she managed to gasp out.

Loki just stared at her, not even daring to blink. All of a sudden, the vast expanse around her went up in flames. Upon Loki's chest, words began to burn into his bare skin. Loki opened his mouth as if to cry out in pain, but no sound escaped him. Sif couldn't tear her eyes away from him, even though the fire around them was nearer closer by the second. The words finally became clear. It read, traitor. 

Sif could feel a tear begin to make its way out of her eye, but she blinked trying to rid the droplet from falling. She put her hand up to the engraving and stroked it, tracing her fingers along each and every ridge. His body was freezing and just the touch of his skin alone made shivers spring along her spine. Sif looked back up at the man whom she had once called friend and saw his face slowly begin to fade back to its familiar form. Before he could fully change back to normal, the flames around her extinguished. Just as her vision began to fade to black, a silky voice whispered to her from an unknown mouth. 

"Save me..."

Sif's eyes shot open. Thor was shaking her lightly, trying to get her to awake. "Lady Sif, are you alright? You were squirming and sweating." 

Sif looked down at herself and just as Thor had said, she was indeed sweating profusely. "I-I'm fine. What time is it?" she asked, her eyes still wide from the horrors of her dream.

Thor looked unconvinced, but he decided to drop the subject. "Just past dawn," he answered. "I was thinking that we should start early on our voyage to find the others."

She nodded, "Good idea. Just give me a few minutes, and I'll be ready in a moment." Thor dipped his head in response and left the cave to wait for Sif to collect herself. After he left, Sif sighed heavily and wiped away the perspiration from her body. As she began to follow Thor outside, she pondered over what the dream had meant. Was Loki still alive and trying to send her a message? He had to be. There was no way Sif would receive such a strange dream without a meaning to it. Even so, Sif  never actually saw Loki die. He had defied death two other times, who was to say he hadn't done it again. Realization hit her harder than a falling boulder as she soon began running out to meet Thor. 

"Thor!" she called. The blonde-haired prince turned and gave her a questioning look. He raised his eyebrow as Sif came tumbling down the hill to speak to him. Whatever it was, it must be important. He thought to himself. 

She finally reached him and put a hand on his bulky shoulder. "I-I know where we must go," she wheezed. 

Thor cocked his head, "And where it that?"

"Jotunheim. I think Loki is still alive."

Author's Note: Ok, kind of a shorter chapter, but whatever. Anyway, I won't be able to post anytime next week because of finals (ugh). So, if you're wondering why I'm gone, that's the reason. So... what do you guys think? Do you think Sif's dream was a sign or maybe she was just over reacting? Who knows?!? You'll just have to find out in the next chapter. (P.S. this has not been proofread yet so, if there's any grammar or spelling mistakes please fell free to let me know.)