The Brightest Star

Chapter 4 - Meeting Loki

(Kára's POV):
"Almost done," Eydis spoke, pinning the last bits of my hair back. Eydis reminded me much of my youngest sister, Erna, and it was comforting to have someone that reminded me of home. She must not have been too old, her face full and holding a youthful beauty. She wore the traditional garments of a chambermaid, but yet I could see her in the frilly dresses of children, with her hair tied back by bows.

I sighed, "I do not see what all of the fuss is about, I could have replicated this in a matter of minutes with my magic, you certainly did not have to do this by hand."

"Now that you are living with royalty, you must exhibit some of their beliefs. Yes, you could do this with magic, but I must do this on principle. Besides, your hair is very nice to play with," Eydis replied with a smile as she moved away from the vanity. "There, now you are done, what do you think?"

I used a handheld mirror to see what the back of my head looked like and I had to admit that I was quite impressed. Eydis had done more to my hair than I could have imagined with my magic and for once in my life, I felt above my class. My blonde hair was pulled back into a complicated braid bun at the back of my head, with a few strands curled and loose framing my face as well as a length of excess hair cascading down my back. Across the base of the bun was a strip of a gold colored mesh-like material adorned with small pearls.

My normal mess of dark green robes and a hood had been replaced with a pear green gown with gold plated armor as well as an overlay of red organza on either side of my skirt. One arm was made of a strong gold material that hooked around the middle finger of my left hand and the other arm was bare save for a sleeve of green leather that covered from my wrist to my elbow. The bright green color of the dress highlighted the green in my hazel eyes, making them appear a striking green color.

"It looks absolutely stunning, Eydis," I smiled, relishing in beauty that the outfit radiated. "I will admit this is more than I would have create with my magic, I am quite impressed."

She broke out into a wide smile that made her look even more of a child than she already appeared. "I am glad that you approve. Now, the Queen has requested that I escort you to the practice room so that you may await the Prince there."

I could see the flash of fear flash through her eyes when she spoke of Loki and I could not help but wonder what exactly he had done to earn such a reputation. At the marketplace, I had gathered that Prince Loki had committed treason years ago and that he later died as a result. However, I heard a plethora of stories as to what exactly he had done and the multitude of explanations in addition to the fact that he was clearly alive and well made me hesitant to trust any of the rumors that reached me in the outskirts of the city.

Uncertain how to inquire into Loki's past without upsetting Eydis, I chose not to ask her about it quite yet and simply followed her silently out of the room. As we walked through the hallways, Eydis would point out every room that we passed and inform me as to what lay behind the door. It was actually quite fascinating to hear how few rooms were actually being occupied in this part of the castle now that Loki had been exiled here.

"And this is the room that you will be practicing your magic in, I trust you remember it from yesterday?" Eydis commented as we approached the room Frigga had brought me to the day before.

"Yes, thank you, Eydis. Can I expect you to escort me back at the end of the lesson?" I inquired, placing my hand on the handle of the door.

She shook her head, "I do not want to risk running into Loki and, besides, I have other tasks to attend to. There are plenty of guards to show you back to your room once you are finished. Might you dismiss me for now? I fear that Loki will be brought soon and I really do not wish to see him more than is absolutely necessary, I must admit that he scares me."

"Of course, thank you for everything that you have done this morning," I dismissed her, although her reluctance to even see Loki was making me even more curious as to what exactly he had done.

"I was only doing my job, Lady Kára," she replied with a bow. "I wish you the best of luck today with your first lesson."

With those words, she turned and walked down the hallway, leaving me in solitude. Nerves began to to creep through me once again as I gently pushed open the door and stepped into the practice room. It looked very similar to the day before, but now a table and another chair joined the singularly chair that sat there yesterday. There was also a small shelving unit full of books, which I assumed to be books containing various spells.

While waiting for my pupil to arrive, I selected a book at random and began to flick through it at the table. Most of the spells were ones that my mother had taught me or appeared very simple with the experience that I had. This helped calm my nerves a bit as I was assured that I should not have to perform any magic that I was not comfortable with in the presence of the Prince.

After a while, the door of the room opened, causing me to startle and quickly close the book I was skimming. I put the book back on the shelf with the help of magic and stood to meet the Prince. Two guards entered first and stood on either side of the door as he followed, with two more guards behind him.

Loki was certainly not what I was expecting, although I did not quite know what I had been expecting. He was quite tall and pale, covered by a tunic of black and gold leather with pants of the same color and material. He wore a coat of emerald and gold, the clothes fitting tightly on his lean frame. His face seemed chiseled out of marble, with cheekbones so sharp that one could most likely use them as blades. But what caught my attention most was his green eyes that held a twinkling of vexatiousness and his thin lips that upturned into a mischievous smile, as though he was constantly five steps ahead of everyone around him.

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(A/N): Loki has arrived! I hoped that you enjoyed this chapter (even though there is like no one reading this at this point, but I suppose this message would then be for the potential readers that I have in the future!)