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𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆. Serena had eyes that could char flesh faster than a sweltering blaze when provoked. Her blistering glare weathered its victim with unbearable, unrelenting heat, revealing the intense inferno she kept well hidden behind her timid demeanor. She was a walking ember of hellish flames, and as she unabashedly leered at the man behind the bar sending her sultry glances, Lajfen could swear he felt the heat radiating off of her body as her temper rose.
Lajfen assessed his festering friend, eyes tendering at the comical sight of her twitching fingers and narrowed brows. Even in the low light of the tavern, it was still possible to observe the young woman's unmatchable radiance. The way her crimson dusted flesh contrasted with the starkness of her snow-white hair was jarring in the most alluring of ways. She was a beautiful girl, no doubt, and a young woman that in a few years time would grow to be the type of woman men would fighting to obtain. It was no wonder she held the attention of the tavern worker, he probably thought of her as something exotic— The thought made Lajfen frown stiffly.
He quickly shook himself from his thoughts and leaned into his friend's side. "Pay him no mind, Serena. We are here to celebrate, remember? Unless of course, you wish to continue ogling the tavern keeper."
Serena turned her vexed gaze away from the man and onto her company's amuse-ridden face. A childish pout was prominently fixed to her swollen pink lips as she parted them, a snarky quip tingling on the tip of her tongue begging to be released, but just as she went to speak she was quickly hushed as the sweet smell of red wine overtook her senses.
Lajfen placed his cup before her with a playful smirk, "Here, calm yourself, little dragon. I am only teasing you, there is no need to be so cross."
The familiarity of the scent mixed with his words dimmed the fire in her eyes and Serena took the cup graciously, her once unwavering glare wavering. "If he touches my hand one more time in passing by Odin I will stab him with whatever I should find." She seethed before pressing the glass to her lips.
Serena took a small sip, savoring the sweetness of the drink on her tongue. The wine was a mix of black cherry and red plumb, her favorite. She allowed herself to get lost in the sensation before taking a deep breath and continuing, "But you are right, how awful of a friend I am dragging down your celebration." She passed the cup back fo her friend.
Lajfen took a sip himself before sending a comforting smile Serena's way, one that made her heart flutter and stomach tickle when she gazed into his intense chocolate brown eyes.
Serena smiled coyly, hiding her eyes behind a curtain of hair as she attempted to settle her fluttering stomach. She wasn't sure why she felt so on edge around her best friend all of a sudden, but she was too frightened to dwell on the thought for any longer. Perhaps she was just buzzed? After all, she wasn't one who was known for holding their alcohol well.
"Give me that, this celebration is pathetic." Serena grabbed the glass of wine from Lajfen once more and offered him a bright smile before downing its contents in a couple of sips. When she retreated for air she slammed the cup on the table, signaling her desire for her glass to be refilled. When it was she took another large sip.
"Serena, what are you doing!?" Lajfen asked through chuckles, pulling the cup from her hands he placed it down on the counter a little ways away from her reach. Although disguised behind a laugh, the worry was evident in his voice though Serena paid no mind. Instead, Serena rolled her eyes,
"I am celebrating! Now, will you join me, or continue to be a killjoy?" Lajfen looked between the girl before him and the cup before breaking out into a wide smile.
"Then let us celebrate!"
Before long the two friends had fallen into a grossly drunken stupor, their pockets empty of nearly all the coins they had brought, and stomachs filled with enough alcohol to quench an army. As they stumbled from the shanty building they took refuge under the shade of a large tree, giggling over absurd things like fools whilst watching the setting sun.
It was once a moment of silence passed between the two did the realization of the moment set in. In less than fourteen hours Serena would be far from her home realm of Vanaheim. Far from her friends, her people, her normality, and although she knew it was an honor to be invited to stay in the golden realm by the Allfather himself, there was a sadness she couldn't shake at the thought of being away for so long.
Would she perhaps die in a land foreign to her, never again seeing the lush rolling fields of her mother realm? What of her friends? Would she never be able to see them again too? Never hear their laughs or see their smiles? Would she be forced to marry an Asgardian to please her father? Or worse, coerced into starting a family with one?
These thoughts plagued Serena as she sat watching the sun slowly sink beneath the trees and hills. The silence only making her fall into a deeper spiraling madness. "Lajfen," Serena whispered softly.
"Hmm?" Lajfen looked up from his hands, eyes red from where he had been rubbing the sleep from them.
"I am horribly afraid." Her eyes gazed off into the distance, glistening with fresh tears that had yet to fall. Lajfen turned towards his friend, the tone of her voice enough to sober him a bit as he took in her sad complexion with an aching heart. He scooted himself closer, wrapping his arm around her petite frame and stroking her hair gently.
"My darling, why are you afraid? It will be ok."
"I am afraid that if I go I will not return." Serena blinked through her tears and met his gaze head on. The butterflies had returned though she paid no mind to them. "I'm afraid that if I go you will eventually forget about me and I shall live out my days as a dingy milkmaid, friendless and surrounded by twelve cats and a-"
She was unceremoniously cut off by a set of soft lips pressing against her's tenderly, taking her completely off guard and stealing the breath from her throat. Before she knew it, Serena was being kissed by her childhood friend, something she had never thought she would experience, let alone end up liking. But as she hungrily kissed him back a part of her wondered if what she was doing was right and if it were her own actions or the drink urging her to continue.
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ANOTHER VERY SHORT CHAPTER I'M SORRY!!! So sorry!! Also sorry for the slow updates! As always, I hope you enjoyed, and I really really hope you'll stick with me. I know this might not feel like a Loki fanfic rn, but Loki is coming and I promise that once he is here things will pick up and you'll enjoy it more. I'm sorry this chapter is so shitty, I never said I was a good writer! Love you all xoxo
