Chapter 20! Which is the epilogue, actually!

For those who have been following this story – I have been making some changes. It's explained in the author's note for chapter 19! I hope you won't be too mad at me!

Btw, those drabbles I mentioned in the author's note for chapter 19 – there might be post-epilogue drabbles!

Anyway, here is the epilogue. Thank you for staying with me, for reading, for reviewing, and for…well, making me so darned happy, quite frankly! Thank you!

It's currently five in the morning, and I have a feeling that this author's note was a bit all over the place xD

Again, thank you. A thousand times thank you.

-o-

Epilogue – eleven months, twenty-four days later

"Did you speak to Thor?" Amber asked as she found Loki in the living room. "Will he be joining us?"

Loki snorted a laugh. "Yes. I believe his exact words were 'I shall be honoured to partake in the celebration of Christmas'. So yes, he is coming here later today."

Amber laughed. "That sounds like him. Did you see Frigga as well? Did you give her the present?"

"My mother found me within the first five minutes I arrived in Asgard. She always does, I know not how. But yes, I gave her your present. She seemed a bit confused at first, but was thrilled once I explained. She sends her thanks."

Amber smiled as she walked over to kiss him, and he smiled back as he wrapped his arms around her, returning the kiss.

"And how was your day?" Loki asked as he pulled back, and proceeded to raise an eyebrow when he noticed a white spot on her cheek. "Don't tell me – you are baking."

She gave him a sheepish smile. "Yes. And I may or may not be failing at it."

He smirked. "Are you, really? Unbelievable."

Amber rolled her eyes. "Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, you know."

Loki huffed. "You are insufferable."

"Yes," she quipped, giving him a wicked smile, "you tell me so frequently. Now, are you going to stand here, or are you going to help me?"

He sighed. "The latter, obviously."

Laughing, Amber pulled him with her into the kitchen.

-o-

Amber yelped when there was a sudden flash of light in the living room, but she smiled when she saw Thor standing there. He was beaming.

"I thank you for including me in your celebration!" he boomed as he closed the distance between them to give her a hug - again squeezing the air from her lungs. Letting go of her, he looked around. "Is my brother at home?"

"I am," Loki replied as he came into view in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Brother!"

Loki rolled his eyes when Thor came over to him, but allowed himself to be pulled in for a hug.

A displeased chirp was heard then, and Amber had to laugh when she noticed Shakespeare (yes, she had named the budgie Shakespeare) sitting on Loki's head.

"Hello there," Thor cooed, and Amber had to laugh again when he held up a hand, and the tiny parrot flew down and landed on the God of Thunder's finger. Shakespeare proceeded to fly off again, landing on Thor's head, chirping happily.

Loki rolled his eyes and shook his head, but his expression was not even slightly annoyed. He looked happy, in fact, and the sight put a soft smile on Amber's face.

"You are all insufferable," Loki huffed, apparently noticing Amber's soft smile. "Yes, even you," he continued, pointing at Shakespeare. The bird promptly flew down and landed on the finger pointing at him, and Loki gave the bird a jaded look before lifting his hand so Shakespeare was directly in front of his face. "Especially you."

Shakespeare – completely unfazed by the God of Mischief's insults – shuffled over to the tip of Loki's finger, and chirped lovingly as he stretched his tiny body, nuzzling Loki's nose.

"Why do I even bother?" Loki asked the bird before moving his hand, dropping Shakespeare onto his shoulder. He looked up, and Amber assumed that Thor was sporting a rather amused expression, if Loki's face was anything to go by. "You are setting the table."

"Setting the table?" Thor asked, obviously confused. "But, brother, I-"

"Have no idea how to set a table," Loki interrupted. "I know. That is why you are doing it." Amber laughed, and Loki pointed a finger at her. "And you should stop that, lest you want to vacuum pine needles till the end of January."

Amber managed to stop laughing, but couldn't help the mirth in her eyes. She gave a salute. "Yes, sir."

Loki smirked. "There we go, that is the kind of behaviour I like."

"I shall set the table!" Thor exclaimed enthusiastically, and this time it was Loki who laughed.

-o-

Christmas dinner was lovely, and Amber shooed away the two gods when they had finished eating. "I'll clean up. You two go relax."

The two gods moved over to the sofa, and Amber hummed to herself as she began clearing the table.

She heard Loki laugh while placing plates in the dishwasher, and the sound made her smile.

Oh, how life could change in a mere year. She lived with the God of Mischief, and had done so for more than a year now. The God of Thunder visited regularly, and even the Goddess of Foreknowledge and Wisdom visited from time to time.

The Goddess of Foreknowledge and Wisdom was practically Amber's mother in law. The thought made Amber snort a laugh. It was all so absurd. Surreal.

And she wouldn't have it any other way.

-o-

They had opened presents, and were now sitting in the sofa, just relaxing. Shakespeare was sitting on Thor's head, and Thor was telling a story about his latest escapades with the Avengers, resulting in Shakespeare chirping in annoyance every time Thor moved too much.

The sight was hilarious. Shakespeare had taken a liking to Thor, but even more so - Loki. The tiny bird actually preferred Loki over Amber, something Amber couldn't help being utterly amused by. Shakespeare tended to fly over to sit on Loki's shoulder, nibbling on his earlobe and chirping directly into his ear. Loki huffed and frequently tried to shoo away the bird, but it had little effect, and eventually, Loki more or less gave up.

-o-

It was late night when another visitor arrived. Amber flinched by the sudden bright light, but smiled when she saw Frigga standing there.

Amber actually adored Frigga. The woman had at some point become - Amber didn't quite know how to describe it - a friend, perhaps. A person she went to for advice, or just to talk.

Frigga greeted her sons before turning to Amber. "I hope I am not arriving at an inconvenient time?"

Getting up from the sofa, Amber walked over to hug the Goddess of Foreknowledge and Wisdom.

"Frigga," Amber said, smiling. "Of course it isn't inconvenient. It's lovely to see you. It is always lovely to see you. Would you care for some wine? Tea? Christmas cookies?"

Frigga laughed. "Always so gracious. No thank you, my dear. I am here for a reason."

There was something in Frigga's voice that made Amber pause. "Nothing is wrong, I hope?"

Frigga took both of Amber's hands in hers as she shook her head. "Nothing is wrong. I am here to present you with a gift."

"Oh," Amber said, giving the woman a soft smile. "That's very sweet of you. Did you like your present?"

"I did, very much so," Frigga said, and then paused for a moment, letting go of Amber's hands. "I have something for you - something I hope you will accept."

Amber had a feeling this was something out of the ordinary, and did not quite know what to say, so she opted for watching as Frigga collected something from within her cloak, presenting it to Amber.

It was a small box – about the size of a Rubik's Cube – and from the looks of it, it was made of silver. Amber did not know what to say. She merely looked at the small box, studied the beautiful engravings and inscribed runes.

Amber did eventually meet Frigga's eyes again. "It is beautiful. Too beautiful."

Smiling, Frigga shook her head. "My dear, it is not too beautiful. I had it made for you – for this occasion. But the true gift is inside. Will you open it?"

The tone in Frigga's voice told her that this was truly something out of the ordinary, and Amber's hands shook when she accepted the box. She studied it for a moment before taking a deep breath, and opened the small lid.

She didn't know what she had expected, and looking at the contents of the box did absolutely nothing to make things clearer.

Confused, Amber looked at Frigga. "I am sorry – I don't understand. It is…an apple."

"What?" Loki exclaimed, and Amber flinched when he was suddenly there, staring at the box she held in her hands. After a moment, he spoke again, and his voice was barely a whisper. "Mother…"

"It is time, is it not?" Frigga said, softly. "It is something we have spoken of for some time now, Odin and I. We feel it is time." Looking at Amber again, Frigga continued. "Will you accept it?"

-o-

Loki felt as if he couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He didn't even notice when Thor came over.

"This is an extraordinary gift," Thor said, and his voice sounded just as shocked as Loki felt. "It gladdens my heart beyond words."

"I am really sorry," Amber said in an almost panicked voice. "But could someone explain to me what this is, exactly?"

"The Golden Apples of Idunn," Thor explained, but Amber still looked just as confused.

"They grant immortality, Amber," Loki almost whispered. "Taking one bite of this apple would make you immortal."

Amber fell silent, and Loki watched her as her expression went completely blank. Fear filled him then. This was something they rarely spoke of, because every time the subject of immortality came up, Loki ended up in a dark mood.

Loki was immortal. Amber was not. Human lives were short, fleeting, and eventually he would lose her. Loki could not - would not - think about it. The thought of losing Amber - he could not bear it. He had lived for more than a millennium, and this was the first time he was truly happy. But happiness was fleeting, just as human lives were fleeting. The thought of continuing his life without Amber in it - living for thousands of years without her - it was a thought he kept locked away, deep in his mind.

He knew of Idunn's Golden Apples of course, and it was something he had thought about more than once. He had even considered going to the Allfather, begging if he must, but he knew it would be for naught.

All through history, only six Midgardians had been granted one of Idunn's Golden Apples. Six. Not in his wildest dreams had he even considered that this could happen, that Odin would find Loki's happiness worthy of a seventh apple. Because that was it, was it not? Amber had not performed miracles, nor had she made an impact on the world, not on the larger scale. She had made an impact on Loki's world, yes, but on the larger scale of things, Amber was just another human being. And yet, here she was, holding a silver box with a Golden Apple inside. Loki was speechless.

Amber was still completely silent, her face blank, and Loki felt as if he couldn't breathe, waiting for Amber's reply.

He did not know if Amber actually wanted immortality. Since they rarely spoke of it, and Loki knew it would never happen, he had never asked her, because that would only make it worse, no matter what her answer was. Knowing that she wanted immortality, that she wanted to stay with him – it would make it harder to lose her. Was it the other way around, that she did not want immortality… This too was painful to think about, because if miracles happened, and Amber was given the option of becoming immortal just to decline… It would break him.

And so, he had never asked, and now he was standing there, waiting for her answer while terror ran through his veins.

Frigga was the one to finally break the silence. "The day you decorated the Christmas tree – do you remember?"

Amber finally turned her gaze away from the apple, looking at Frigga. "When Loki was away," Amber whispered. "Yes, I remember."

"Do you still feel the same?"

"Yes," Amber replied without hesitation. "Yes, I do."

"Then the answer should be easy."

It was like Frigga's words snapped Amber out of a trance, and she turned to Loki. "What do you think?"

Loki just stared at her for a moment, trying to make his brain comply. "What do I think? What do you mean?"

Amber nodded at the apple. "This. Me. Immortality." When Loki didn't answer, Amber continued. "Simply put; do you want me to eat the apple?"

Loki hated himself for what he was about to say. "This is not a decision for me to make, Amber. This choice is yours."

"I know that, but I already know what I would choose. Now, answer my question."

He gazed at her for a long moment. "Yes," he said, averting her eyes for a brief moment. "Yes, I want you to eat the apple."

Amber gave him a small smile. "I was hoping you would say that."

And then, Amber simply picked up the apple, and took a bite.

Everything changed in that moment, and for the first time, Loki truly allowed himself to hope. To believe. For the first time, he allowed himself to picture a future where he would be happy.

His thoughts were interrupted by Amber's soft voice. "Are you all right?" He nodded, and Amber seemed to study him for a moment. "Are you...happy?" she continued, and he could hear the hint of uncertainty in her voice.

"Yes," he whispered, pulling her into his arms. "Yes, I am. Very happy."

"Good," she whispered back, leaning into his embrace, "because so am I." She paused for a moment, tilting her head back to look at him. "I love you."

Loki looked back at her, and the softness in her eyes made the idea of a happy future seem even more believable.

He gave her a soft kiss before looking at her again. "And I love you."

Amber gave him a small smile. "Will you love me in a hundred years?"

"I will love you in a hundred years," he whispered, gently stroking her cheek. "And in a thousand years. Always."

"Promise?" she whispered.

"I promise."