The Enchantress

Chapter 42: Will you...

Amora was struggling to stand on her own, Loki held tightly to her as he helped her. The enchantress had been trying to regain her strength, the wound on her arm almost healed but securely wrapped in a cloth to keep from anyone or anything touching it. It was also straining on her abdomen as it wasn't fully healed as well. Amora's legs felt like jelly, they refused to hold her weight but Loki was making sure she wouldn't collapse. A rush of pain flooded through her, causing Amora to fall back onto her bed, sitting on the edge of it.

"Damn it" she mumbled, running her fingers through her hair.

"You seem distracted" Loki sat beside her and wrapped his arm around her. 

"No, just frustrated, we've been trying for days to get my strength back but nothing is working" she sighed.

"You're not telling me everything"

Amora fiddled with her hands, staring at them to ignore Loki's statement. The god stopped her hands and held them in his own, tracing along her hands as he spoke.

"Amora, what is troubling you?" He sighed.

Amora inhaled deeply and relaxed, leaning her body into Loki's. "Skal asked me if he could call me mother..."

Loki stopped tracing her hands and looked down at her, "he what? What did you say?"

"I-.....I told him that I'd have to think about it" she threw her hands up in frustration. "Loki...what do I say to that? I'm not a mother, I've never been one, what if I'm not what he expected. What if he is disappointed in me later in life because he finds out all the bad things I've done?"

Loki smiled, chuckling before interrupting her, "My love, the fact that you are worrying so much shows that you already know the answer"

Amora looked up into Loki's eyes, she knew what she wanted but was too afraid to ask for it. Carefully she laid her head on Loki's chest, feeling it rise and fall with his steady breathing as he wrapped his arms around her. Pulling her body closer to his, Loki rested his chin on her head with a sigh.

"Amora..."he mumbled, breathing in her familiar peppermint scent. "The Norns told me that Skal was a new beginning for you, don't push it away like everything else"

Amora pulled away, looking up to meet Loki's gaze. "They told you that Skal was a new beginning for me?"

"Yes"

"Liar" she mumbled, "tell me the whole truth"

Loki cursed himself for not remembering that Amora was capable of detecting his lies no matter how much magic he used.

"They said it was a new beginning for...us"

Amora's eyes widened as she opened her mouth to speak but couldn't find the words. The sound of the beating of her heart was making her mind and thoughts all confused.

"We haven't really talked about..." she paused, averting her gaze down to her hands. "Us"

"We've come a long way haven't we?" Loki awkwardly chuckled.

Both of them were uncomfortable with the topic, which was strange considering their history. Amora couldn't help but feel as though they both had to discuss everything but at the same time nothing at all. The memories resurfaced as she sat there staring at her hands; their first kiss in her chambers on Asgard and how childish it was, and even the moments they spent hiding away from the rest of Asgard in their secret hideouts they made when they were kids. For some odd reason, Amora found herself thinking about the moment they met all those centuries ago.

"Loki" she finally broke the silence.

The god quickly looked up at her with a hopeful but curious look in his eyes.

"Do you remember when we first met?...officially that is"

Loki narrowed his eyes, thinking back. "I....it was...it was a cool spring day, I remember that much, I think I had been reading a stupid adventure book about elves when I saw you alone in the throne room"

Amora chuckled, "Karnilla had just stormed off and I remember feeling so horrible, but you started to compliment me on my magic" She stopped to laugh, remembering the moment. "Your face was so red from embarrassment!"

"Watch it" Loki scolded, holding back laughter of his own. "Heh...I remember thinking you were too beautiful to be acknowledging me, it wasn't everyday that I got to talk to a beautiful girl who was gifted with magic like me"

Amora laughed, something she hadn't done in a while. The memories were warm and comforting as she thought about it, "you were a prince! You could have had your pick of any woman in the nine realms and yet I was so confused as to why you chose me to talk to...even after that moment, when you started to climb the garden wall to spy on my lessons"

"I did no such thing" Loki protested.

"Oh so I guess the scrawny dark haired boy who climbed the walls and fell into the roses bushes several times was just a made up thing?"

"Damn those roses bushes and their thorns..." he mumbled. "There is one thing I remember"

"Do tell" Amora smiled.

"The moment I realized that I needed you by my side" Loki carefully took Amora's hands in his own. "There are things that I've done that I'm not proud of, allowing myself to fall victim to Thanos and being used to attack Midgard is  the main one..." 

Amora's mouth hung open as she listened.

Loki smiled softly and looked down at his hands as they held Amora's, the subtle pull of his magic on his fingertips as he thought of something. Carefully he stood up and pulled Amora to her feet, the enchantress clung to him tightly so she wouldn't fall.

"Do you trust me?" He whispered.

"Yes" Amora didn't take a moment sooner to answer.

"Close your eyes"

Amora nodded and did as she was told, still holding tightly to Loki, she could feel his magic at work around them, even moving her hair around as it worked. After a few moments Loki prompted her to open her eyes. Amora was taken aback by what she saw in front and around her.

"Do you remember this?" Loki chuckled, motioning to himself.

It was still Loki except he was younger, his hair no longer fell nicely around his shoulders. It was shorter and Loki's stature was thinner. The appearance made Amora's heart flip, she was looking at the boy she fell in love with all those years ago.

"You..." she couldn't find the words as she reached out to run her fingers through his hair.

Loki chuckled and summoned a mirror to show her reflection to her. Amora was younger as well, to immortal gods this wasn't something that was easy to spot but based off of the length of her hair and it's style she could tell.

"Oh, one more thing!" Loki waved his hand around and changed the scenery.

The two of them stood in the middle of the Asgardian throne room, now wearing their formal attire only seen at royal functions. Amora gazed down at the flowing emerald gown around her with the black boots she had remembered loving so much that Loki had stolen them once.

"Now I can do this properly" he sighed, obviously nervous.

"Do what?" Amora chuckled, admiring Loki's golden armor and horns.

Taking a deep breath, Loki summoned the emerald and gold dagger into his hands as well as a small black box.

"The dagger! You fixed it" Amora smiled.

"It's a little old fashioned but nevertheless" Loki carefully knelt down on one knee, holding Amora's hand. "Lady Amora of Asgard, Queen of Nornheim, I offer you this dagger as a promise of protection"

Amora carefully took the dagger and held onto it as Loki spoke.

Taking a deep breath he opened the small black box to reveal an emerald ring on a golden band.

"Amora, will you marry me?"