A Whole Bunch of Loki's

Like That One Story... - Beauty and the Beast AU - Jotun Loki - Part Two

(Merry Christmas and other various celebrations everyone!)

Loki stepped into the too empty foyer, his boots leaving prints in the thick dust that layered the floor.

Immediately in front of him was a grand staircase the split off into the right and the left, either side of the staircase led to various doors, two at each end of the hall and either side of the walls beside him encasing two other doors.

There were broken bits of marble and vases scattered across the floor, all discoloured with age or dust, much like the expansive rug that once must have decorated the hall.

Above him was a tall ceiling, high even by his standards, with glass panels that would offer a magnificent view to the stars on a clear night.

Above the door and leading up the stairs were three chandeliers, their once sparkling glass now coated and offered no light.

The air was musty and damp, not a wholly unpleasant smell, but not one he would wish to reside in outside of necessity.

"Hello?" He called out experimentally, not expecting anyone to reply.

If the foyer alone was anything to go by then he doubted anyone had resided here for centuries.

As he stepped further in, the door behind him slammed shut and surged up some of the dust from the ground, which invaded his throat and caused him to cough.

Loki waved a blue hand in front of his face, though he could barely see it in the ever enclosing darkness, hoping to clear the air and give him a chance to breathe.

By the state of the dilapidated walls, he didn't expect to find anything of much use here, let alone food that wasn't already mouldy and rotten.

Had it not been so horrid outside and getting later by the second, he would have left to continue his blind stumbling in hopes of finding an end to the forest.

But his need for shelter and the little bit of niggling curiosity got the better of him, thus he ended up stepping to the left and trying the first door nearest to him.

He wasn't particularly surprised to find that many were either locked or too broken to open far enough for his large stature to squeeze through, he was tall and thin, but not that thin.

Loki decided that he was too tired to mess around with the doors if they were going to be this finnicky and would instead head upstairs, this seemed like the best bet as the stairs were one of the clearer spaces within the manor thus far.

It was no surprise to him that the wood beneath the worn carpet creaked as he put his weight on them, the sound almost threatening to crack beneath his feet at any second.

With slow movements of caution, Loki made his way up the stairs without hazard, the dust on the carpet kicking up and tickling his nose and throat uncomfortably.

Overhead, the clouds had finally opened and the sound of rain hit the roof over him harshly, though he was pleased to see that there didn't appear to be a leak in the roof like he had suspected there would be.

In fact, Loki had expected there to be more holes than roof altogether.

Although there was still dust covering the faded green scuffed and patchy carpet, it didn't kick up as much as it had on the ground floor, leading Loki to believe that someone had been there recently.

Perhaps also someone seeking shelter.

On the walls, hanging in dark frames high above the landing and leading up the stairs that split off on either side, was a series of portraits that looked worn and torn apart in places in a way that appeared to have been intentional.

Loki's curiosity was telling him to try and press the pieces back together, to see if he could at least recreate the image and decipher what it was, but his exhaustion overcame that need and he continued up the stairs, taking the path which led to his right.

"You shouldn't be here."

He froze mid-step at the voice that invaded the silence, the sentence was growled and unwelcoming.

He hadn't realized that anyone was there, hadn't picked up on anyone else's presence upon entering the building.

Scanning across the landing before him, Loki could just barely make out a silhouette within the deepest of shadows that almost seemed unnaturally cast.

"Pardon my intrusion, I just needed somewhere to stay for the night in this weather."

"That isn't here."

"But this was the only place around for miles-"

"That is not my concern, leave."

"I'm sorry for being to abrupt, but I can't leave in this weather, I am a far way from home and have nowhere else, one night is all I ask."

The unseen resident stayed silent, he presumed that they were giving him a look over, more than likely with an expression of distaste which was the typical reaction others had to Jotuns.

The beats of silence passed achingly slow before being broken by a drawn out, and obviously aggravated, sigh.

"One night, that is all," it conceded.

"Thank you," Loki bowed deeply, feeling out of place with doing such a motion to some unseen being, but feeling obliged to out of respect.

He wasn't sure if they had even seen his sign of respect, no further words were shared and he continued up the stairs into a returning quiet that would have been deafening if not for the battering wind and rain attacking the roof.