The Witch's Familiar

Chapter 53

Loki cuddled you close to his chest for a minute until you could stop mewing so plaintively at him. You were scared to be stuck like this. Your magic felt less and you wondered how Loki had handled it for so many months, besides that he was that pissed with Odin for sending him to Midgard.

You were about to find out.

You were expecting it to be a long however-many months until you were human again.

Though even in only a short minute, you realized how easier your heart felt. Cats had simpler emotions, simpler minds, and while you were still a witch in a cat's body, you felt some of that relief, some of that simplicity. It eased your mind and helped you deal with the missing piece of your soul.

"Better?" Loki asked you gently. You nodded and gave him a small meow of assent. He seemed to understand, though you didn't have enough magic at the moment to properly reply. He lifted you so you could climb on his shoulder, which you did, careful not to claw him up in the process.

You zoned out while he and Thor threatened the Cursemonger for awhile to make sure he stayed out of trouble. They both threatened him with a very long, very slow death. By whatever means entertained Loki at the time.

No one ever wanted death by whatever means entertained Loki.

He could be really creative about killing people who annoyed him. Or who hurt someone he cared about. Which definitely included this man who was a threat to you and who had turned you into a cat.

The Cursemonger agreed over and over again that he would keep out of trouble and agree to all inspections from the princes and guards of Asgard. He didn't want to die. Whatever else he did, he was full of self-preservation. He knew that he was a minor provocation away from Thor and Loki smiting him down, so he'd say or do anything to keep that from happening.

You zoned out while they were talking. It wasn't important and you were tired from the magic used on you. You settled more comfortably on Loki's shoulder and dozed while they yelled at the Cursemonger. You started paying attention again when your group was leaving. Loki mounted his horse and Sif attached your horse's reins to her saddle to lead your horse. That made sense as you couldn't ride at the moment. Loki pulled you down from his shoulder to cuddle you in his lap. "You're safe, magelet," he reassured you as he cuddled you close. You nodded and yawned, curling more comfortably in his lap and dozing off.

You must've desperately needed the rest, since you didn't wake again until Loki was dismounting at the palace. He held you in his arms while he went to report to Frigga on what had happened. She agreed to send out mages to the Cursemonger periodically to make sure he was living up to the bargains that the man had made with Loki and Thor. She looked over you sadly and you saw her eyes glow gold as she used her healing magic to see if you could be helped.

"Can anything be done?" Loki asked her when her eyes stopped glowing. He was desperate for a way to help you, though you could hear in his voice that he doubted anything could be done.

Frigga shook her head, looking mournful. "He was correct, the spell to remove the curse required a price, and that price is the healing of her soul. It will not be reversed until that healing has occurred. Soul healing is unfortunately not a type of healing that can be sped up with magic," she added sadly. Loki looked devastated that his beloved mama, his mama who could fix absolute any broken bone, cut, or scrape, who could fix a broken mind, had found the one thing she couldn't heal: a broken soul.

You spent the night on Asgard, curled in Loki's arms. You'd all decided to rest before you headed back to Midgard the next day. You were grateful for the delay. You weren't looking forward to the embarrassment of having to explain everything to the team back home.

All too soon, though, it was morning and you travelled back home on the Bifrost. Loki held you securely to his chest while you were traveling, and donned his cat-ears and tail again when you landed to make you happy. You cuddled up with him and purred at his antics to try to cheer you up.

"It also makes speaking with you easier, love," he reminded you in cat, which he spoke a lot more easily with the cat-ears. All-speak was really useful, but you wouldn't blame him for using something easier. Especially when you were so used to your Lokitty.

"I've missed talking to you," you replied in cat, which only Loki and Thor could understand.

Loki gave you a gentle smile and scratched behind your ears. "I can always understand you, my darling," he reminded you warmly and cuddled you close as he walked into the tower.

"What is that??" Tony demanded when he saw you. The entire team turned to stare at Loki cuddling a cat to his chest.

"A cat," Loki replied dryly. Which was only technically true. And not true. It was complicated.

Tony wasn't buying it.

"That is not a cat,"