A Whole Bunch of Loki's

True to Myself - Part Three

I am out of breath by the time I reach the top of the incline, the trek from the palace to where Loki had asked me to meet him was further than I had anticipated.

"I really need to whip myself into shape," I huff, glad to see the tree that decorated the top of the grassy knoll.

It was a tree older than any of the Nord Gods, no one could honestly say when it had started growing but I had many memories of chasing Loki around the trunk as we squealed with laughter, our mothers sat at the bottom of the hill with tea and cake.

Many a time we'd returned back from playing around and eventually on the tree once we were tall enough to grab the lowest branch, our dresses torn and covered in dirt, hair wild and faces smudged in brown mud.

That felt like an age ago.

Life had definitely taken a different turn than I had expected, I never thought I would rekindle my friendship with Thor and Loki after my duties had taken me away for so many years.

Now we were all grown up, I'd grown from a little gremlin into an apparently well blossomed young woman and Loki had grown from her cute little self into a handsome young man.

A young man who had become nothing but a hassle on my emotions since our reunion.

My previous inclination had been correct, as I assumed from the start, my feelings of friendship were definitely past that part and had fallen completely into romantic intention.

I blame the hormones and Loki, everything is Loki's fault.

That one moment stuck in my head, with him hovering above me, looking at me with an expression I've never had aimed toward me before or after, at least not that I have noticed.

It was muddling my mind up.

"Thinking of Loki, where is he?" I ask myself, more as a form of distraction from my thoughts.

Taking in some deep breaths to try and calm my breathing, I put my hands on my hips and turn on the spot to be startled by the most gorgeous black horse walking up the hill behind me.

It reaches the top and walks around me to stand by the tree, letting out a short snort as I tilt my head and admire the beautiful animal.

I've always had bit of an affinity for black horses, all horses are amazingly beautiful and majestic but there's just something about black ones that get me.

Then a thought hits me.

"Loki?" I ask with a snicker, "are you choosing to live as a horse now? Did you bring me up here for a big announcement?"

"While I'm flattered that you would think of me as a stallion, I'm also a little insulted at your assumption."

I look over my shoulder and laugh as Loki nears, leading a brown horse with a white stripe down its nose behind him as he smiles at me.

"Well, it's not as though I'd know, I've never seen you further than topless."

"I can show you," he smirks, his hands letting go of the reigns and grabbing onto the front of his tunic.

"No, Loki, please."

"Not in public?"

"Not at all!"

He gives me a look and a shiver goes down my spine.

Loki knows I'm lying, of course he does, but he says nothing and instead chooses to guide the brown horse to stand beside the black stallion, that destructive expression holding firmly as we maintain eye contact.