Mother Dearest

Lunch in the Garden

Frigga always spent a lot of her time in the palace gardens. After Odin had left for the war she quickly found it to be her place of refuge. It was a place where she could escape to every afternoon and enjoy time alone, away from the humdrum life that usually went on inside the palace. It was a place where she could go and be away from the servants and do things for herself. She would always take a good book with her and spend hours reading under her favorite tree by the pond. It had helped her to forget the war and danger that lurked just outside the realm if only for a few hours. Some days she took Thor with her, other times she had left him with the nursemaid so she could have a break and some alone time.

Even though she had seen the gardens many times, she still marveled at the sheer beauty the place offered every time she stepped out onto the lush and vibrant green grass. Never had she seen such a beautiful place where trees and flowers of every variety grew and the air was filled with the comforting and sweet scent of everything combined. The flowers were her favorite part, especially the ones that grew between the pond and her favorite tree. They were a type of Asgardian orchid, having large petals that ranged from bright pinks, purples, and yellows to the deepest blues that resembled the night sky. No matter their color, all of them were decorated with silvery splotches and designs that shimmered in the afternoon sun.

The garden was also full of animal life as birds of every kind flew around in the tops of the trees, singing out their joyous songs while squirrels skittered from branch to branch forever on the search for nuts and other delectable snacks the trees offered. Beautifully colored butterflies and buzzing bees occupied the flowers while fish swam in the pond. There were shy rabbits and other small critters that occasionally made their appearance. One of which poked its head out from under a nearby bush to watch the Queen of Asgard make her way across the lawn to the place where her nursemaid sat.

"What happened?" Lífdís asked with concern, watching Frigga walk up and sit down on the grass beside her. She noticed that the All-Mother was wearing a different dress. "Changing a diaper doesn't take that long."

"Loki peed on me," Frigga replied, putting Loki on her lap and giving him the stuffed rattle cat she had brought. She was struggling to keep a straight face the whole time. "So I had to change my dress."

Lífdís held a hand up to her face to hide the giggle that came out. Both women watched as Loki put part of the toy cat into his mouth and chewed on it.

"You little rascal." Frigga lifted Loki up and smooched his face. Loki just smiled, eyes fixated on Lífdís. He concentrated on chewing the cat he held in his hands, tugging on its tail and shaking it to make the rattle sound loud.

"Gah!" Loki chirped, holding the cat out and offering it to Frigga.

"Yeah, you're a rascal." She smiled, giving him another smooch.

Loki gazed around him at all of the beauty before his eyes. His small mind whirled with wonder as he peered at the leafy branches of the trees and the colorful flowers and the shiny surface of the pond beside them. Was this the garden? It had to be the garden. It was pretty! Loki twisted his head to look at the area behind him and saw Thor digging around in a dirt mound with a stick. Quickly he snapped his head back around to take in the rest of the garden, his eyes wide and dancing. Never had he seen anything so beautiful, bright, and colorful. Well, he hadn't seen much of anything since the day he was born, but what he had seen was mostly the white, ice-covered landscapes of Jotunheim and the dark interior of the Frost Giant dwellings, which, he admitted, had been positively dull and boring even for a baby. He hadn't understood what all of that had been about anyway, but he did know that it had been horrible, uncomfortable, and loud. Did everyone's life start out like that? He assumed it did. But Mommy was here now, and everything was okay.