So, long time no see...

I just had the urge to come back to this story and continue it. Maybe Ragnarok has awoken long forgotten Loki-feelings. And the fear of his fate is close! Awwggghh. To distract myself I started writing again. Is anyone still interested in this story? If so, please tell me and I'll try to continue! :)

S.

Chapter 8: Greetings

When she woke up, she had no idea how long she had been asleep. She had almost forgotten where she was, but the memories came back quick. Odin had decided not to put her back in a cell. He had decided, that she should stay in Asgard nontheless. She wasn't completely free.

But there was another thought scratching at the back of her head. Loki. She had overheard the news of his death and she wasn't sure how excactly she felt about it. They did spent a lot of time together, since they only had each other for company. She kind of grew fond of him and his rude nature.

Sitting on her bed and contemplating her feelings about Loki's death suddenly made her feel really empty. Like a little piece was ripped out of her and the gaping hole that was left just couldn't stop bleeding. She just felt so alone, after losing the only person she had to make eternal imprisionment a little more bearable. She quickly got up and tried to distract herself with something. After making herself a little more presentable, she opened the door and found her personal guard Carreck right outside it.

"So I'm stuck with you it seems?" she said while walking away from the room. Of course he followed her instantly.

"I am just here to take care of you and.."

"You mean make sure I am watched over all the time, so I don't do anything stupid?" she interrupted.

"No, eh.. Of course not. I, I mean.."

"He, big guy.." she stopped and turned around. " I get it. You are only doing your job. Don't beat yourself up." She continued walking, not knowing where. They walked aimlessly through corridor after corridor. Carreck never stopped her or asked where they where headed. He just followed, as if he knew she just wanted to walk for no other reason than to get her head empty of thoughts about Loki.

The next few days seemed to never end. She had nothing to do and only Carreck (and sometimes Layla) to keep her company. She mostly just walked around and tried to explore her current "home". Sometimes she sat in a quiet corner and just thought about the situation she was in. She didn't really know what it was excactly. She was no prisioner but she wasn't free either. She had not seen Odin since he send her away, so she couln't ask him to leave Asgard. She didn't want to be here anymore. She denied it but it did hurt a lot, to walk around the palast and think about how Loki must have grown up here. She came to the conclusion, that they must have been something like friends. She did miss his company.

One evening Layla came to her with some tea. They sat at a small table in her room and Layla poured them each a cup in silence.

"So..." Layla began. "You seem quite unhappy." For a moment she just looked at Layla. It was always a little bit weird, whenever Layla spoke or acted serious. She was always happy and cheerful, with giggles and smiles. She liked her for that. A little ray of sunshine through the clouds.

"Well, I am quite unhappy." She said after a while. She wanted to lie, but what's the point? She hated everything aroud her at the moment and just felt like smashing the whole room into pieces.

"Well, I can't get you out of here but I can show you something." Layla suddenly got up and went to the door. "Are you coming?"

"Right now?" She asked obviously perplex.

"Right now. Tea can wait." Layla took her hand and led her out of the room with a huge grun on her face. Carreck followed them of course. They walked for a few minutes through the different stairs, halls and corridors. Layla led the way as if she knew it by heart and could find it, even in complete darkness. They came to an opening that led outside of the palast.

"There you go. Take a look. It always cheers me up or gives me space to sort my mind." Layla smiled so sweetly she almost burst out crying. She took some steps forward to see what Layla meant. Carreck wanted to follow her but Layla stopped him.

"Just give her a few minutes,ok? She won't do anything, I am sure." Layla plead and Carreck gave her a simple nod, then started pacing along the hallway. Layla was satisfied enough to go back to her usual work. She would check up on her later.

She walked through the opening and came into a beautiful garden, full of plants and flowers she had never seen. The colours were vibrant and unique and everything seemed to radiate peace. She walked through the garden for a few moments, taking it all in. Then she found a small pond and sat next to it, throwing some rock in it. Her mind wandered to her current situation and she felt awful again, but different. It felt like she could for once let all the negative feelings out of her body. She got angry and sad and scared. All of her feelings flooded through her veins and out of her body. The grass around her started to freeze and the ice was quickly spreading. It froze all of the plants around her, the water some trees and flowers. Soon enough everything around her was frozen to ice. In the middle of all this she sat, hugging her legs. Then she startet to cry loudly, letting her head fall onto her knees. She cried for so long, when she finally stopped it was from exhaustion. She lifted her head and looked at the ice around her. How can I be so powerful, yet so weak? she thought. Her head and her chest hurt. But she felt better, like a little bit of weight was liftet off of her. She got up to her feet and looked at the frozen garden again and contemplated undoing it. She started to melt the ice, when a voice broke the silence.

"I think you should leave it like that."

"What?" She turned around trying to find the source of that voice. A young man, wearing a guards uniform came into view.

"I said, you should keep it like that. I like it." He smiled at her. But not in the pure way Layla would. There was something behind that smile. She couldn't tell if it was dangerous. He was a bit taller than her with short hazel hair and blue eyes. An ordinary but attracktive face.

"I don't give a fuck what you think." She was irritated by him and felt like he was destroying the peace she found in this place. He gave a low, amused chuckle and looked at her intensely.

"Oh, I forgot how cheerful you are." Before she could even think of a response he held out his right hand and green light engulfed her completely. It was gone a second later, but her stomach felt as if it wanted to show her how her last meal looked. She instantly fell on her knees, gasping for air and trying desperately not to vomit.

"I always forget how it affects people the first time." Came a amused remark, but it was not the voice of the young man who had disturbed her. She spun her head around and there he was. Her memory had not betrayed her. It was Loki with a stupid smirk on his face and expectation in his eyes. For a moment or two she just looked at him with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open.

"Well, I thought you would be a little more happier to-" Loki was suddenly thrown to the ground by a huge snowball.

"What the fuck!?"