when the prince ran away

Chapter 2

"You're mad." Loki is pacing the throne room, Sigyn watching him as if he were burning a hole in the floor. "My mother isn't from Fensalir. You must be mistaken. Or lying." Loki stops and looks at the queen. "You're lying, aren't you? Trying to fool the Trickster God. Well, it won't work."

"Loki, I'm not lying to you. Your mother was from Fensalir and she was my mother's lady. Long before she became Queen of Asgard, she was a part of my parents' court." Sigyn walks over to Loki and stands before him. "I would love to explain all of this to you, but I think it would be best if you took a moment to calm down. I will have my guards take you to a bedchamber where you can be alone. Or maybe the library, if you prefer. I'm the only one that goes in there, so it will be quiet." Loki only looks at Sigyn with doubt and hesitation. "Please. I want to help you, Loki."

"Fine. But don't think this means I trust you. I only want to learn more of my mother's origin." Sigyn gives a short laugh.

"I wouldn't dream of it. Trust is earned." Sigyn claps her hands twice and two guards walk in. "Please take Loki to the Green chamber on the East Wing. I think he'll quite like it. He will be staying in the palace as my personal guest for as long as he so desires." The guards only give a weary nod and one goes to pull out the handcuffs from earlier. Sigyn shakes her head. "Guest implies that he will not be bound in chains. Escort him as you would any other guest. Thank you." One guard walks in front of Loki and the other motions for the prince to walk ahead, then follows once he moves. "Feel free to find me once you're ready, Loki." Loki waves his hand in a dismissive manner, but Sigyn only laughs.

-

After an hour of pacing and deep thinking, Loki has managed to calm down enough that he believes he can have a civil conversation with Sigyn. Sigyn. Who is she? Loki understands who she is as far as titles go, sure. But he is still so unsure of who she really is. How did she know Frigga? The way Sigyn talked about the late queen, it seemed that they were close. She had to be more than just Sigyn's mother's lady-in-waiting. Loki shakes his head and goes to the door of his chambers. The door is black wood like all of the others in the palace. His room is quite nice, almost as if it was designed for him. The floors are black marble, equivalent to the throne room, and the walls are kelly green. There is a matching green carpet under the canopy bed in the center of the room. The wood of the bed matches the door of the room and the sheets match the color of the carpet. This queen is one for color scheme, definitely, Loki thinks.

Loki opens the door to his chambers and peeks his head out. There are no guards to be seen which gives him a sense of relief. They don't trust him and, if not for Sigyn, would most likely have his head by now. The queen is the only reason he is alive right now, making Loki wonder why. Why does she seem to trust him so much? He walks out of the room and down the hall towards the direction of the throne room. When he gets to the doors, two guards stand on either side. Loki salutes. "Gentleman. I believe I have a meeting of sorts with the queen so I'll just slip on past you." As he moves to open the doors, the guards block him with their spears.

"Not so fast. The queen is not in the throne room. She resides in the gardens, at the moment." Loki nods in head and turns to find the gardens, but one guard catches his arm before he can leave. He spins the prince around and pulls him close. "Just because our queen finds you to be good company, it does not mean any of us trust or particularly like you. If you step out of line even once or threaten the queen in any way, you will lose your head faster than you can cry out 'mother.' Is that clear?" Loki narrows his eyes, but smiles nonetheless.

"Crystal." Loki yanks his arm from the guard's grip and turns again.

"Walk to the end of the hall, make a right, and walk out of the first pair of clear doors on your left. The gardens begin in a path as soon as you walk outside." The same guard tells him. Loki does not turn, but walks the direction he is told. Once he gets to the clear doors, he sees two more guards.