Loki's Daughter

Break Out

Hela found she couldn't sleep for many reasons that night. For one, Fenrir wasn't snuggled up against her side. She found it hard to sleep without the little fur ball in her arms. Secondly, she was very worried about her grandfather. Now that all the commotion had died down, she began to worry if he was all right. Thirdly, the three keys still hidden under her dress were pressing coldly against her chest.

It had to be at least midnight and she still hadn't slept a wink. Hela huffed in irritation and flipped on her side, her bright green eyes glaring at the balcony.

She sighed and closed her eyes, trying to will sleep to come to her. She waited seconds, then minutes. And then she growled and sat up.

Tossing the blankets off, she made her way over to the balcony and pushed the glass doors open. It was a beautiful night in the palace walls. From where Hela was standing, she could see the gardens just below her, and the castle gates. And beyond that? The city, and then the BiFrost.

Hela put her chin in her hand and sighed softly. She tried to imagine what her friends were doing. The girl rolled her eyes. They were probably asleep, given the time. Not Bruce, though, or Tony. Those two work nonstop.

Her mind drifted to her father. Despite how much she had hated him at first, now all she wanted to do was see him. He wasn't the perfect father. But, who was?

Tears filled the edges of the girl's eyes and she quickly blinked them away. No, she wouldn't cry. It would only be one more night.

Sighing, Hela went back inside and closed the doors. She crawled back into bed and closed her eyes, finally slipping into a light sleep.

"Awaken," whispered a voice. It was male, and oddly familiar. And yet, Hela was sure she had never met a person with such a voice.

She whined softly. "What?"

"Awaken," the man repeated, "A long day awaits you. Awaken!"

Hela jumped up with a start. Her eyes scanned the room to find the source of the voice, but there didn't seem to be one. The room was empty, save her of course.

She clutched the ends of her blanket, tensing. Hela knew she had heard someone. She knew she had. So, where had they gone?

A knock on the door made her jump. "Hela? Get ready and meet us at the stables!"

It was Vali. She heard Nari behind him, whispering something about breakfast. Smiling faintly, she called back with, "All right! I'll be down in a minute!"

She hummed a little to herself as she ran to take a quick bath. Once she had finished, she dried off and went to find clothes.

Unlike her usual pretty dresses, Hela had asked Sif if she could have a few shirts and trousers made for playing purposes. It was the truth, Hela was always afraid of tearing one of her dresses.

She pulled on a dark green blouse and tied it up in the front. The sleeves were were puffed slightly, but all together it was very pretty. Grabbing a pair of black trousers and boots, Hela then put her hair in a braid to keep it from getting in the way and left.

Hela was glad to run down the hall despite the disapproving looks she got. She was too excited. They were going to find her father today.

Her siblings were waiting for her as she got there. Vali looked up and smiled as he held out a blueberry muffin. Hela gladly took it.

"When do we leave?" she asked as she chewed the muffin thoughtfully. She sat down and Fenrir gladly hopped to sit on her lap.

The brothers looked between one another. "Tonight," Nari answered. "When there aren't as many guards."