Adult-FanFiction.org : Marvel 'Verse

The Way Things Were	By : LuciferDragon Category: Marvel Verse Movies > Thor Views: 2155 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Thor nor do I make profit from this story.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Chapter 4
"And where do you think you're going?"
Dyre flinched at her father's voice and paused mid-step from her escape into her room. She had almost made it from the washroom after making sure she was completely cleaned up. "Out," she answered simply, hoping he wouldn't ask any further questions.
However, her father wasn't one to leave things alone, or make them simple. "Out? Since when do you think you have the luxury to go out whenever you want?" He stroked his black goatee, locking her gaze with his hazel eyes. "You are a medicine woman. You do not get to abandon your post to flit about and do as you please."
She clenched her teeth, but stood her ground. "Father, I am not an adolescent child anymore. I am an adult. I can choose what to do for myself."
"You still live under my roof; you will do as I say!"
"Then I won't live under your roof any longer!"
Andren paused in shock, and then laughed, his whole beer belly shaking under his brown tunic. "And where do you think you'll go? You can't even afford a room at an inn, let alone find a place to live and eat." His face grew serious once again. "You are staying in and that is final."
Dyre narrowed her eyes at him, not saying a word. She turned on her heel and walked away.
"Don't you dare walk away from me!"
She whirled around on him. "And what will you do? Send me to the streets? Starve me? I'll apparently go through that no matter what!" She made a dash for her room and locked the door behind her, ignoring her father's yells and threats. She held strong until she heard him curse and walk away, footsteps falling heavy on the stone floors. She broke then, sliding to the floor, stilling her shakes against her clothed knees.
She didn't know how long she sat on the cold floor. She knew she had to be ready soon for the festival, but it didn't seem important anymore. Even if she managed to get out under her escort's protection, there would be no coming back. And, if she still knew Loki as well as she had, he wouldn't take no for an answer, even from her father. He had power, not just as a prince, but in gifted arts not many Asgardians possessed.
A soft knock sounded on her door, making her scramble to her feet and step away from it, fiercely rubbing at her eyes. She waited until a second knock came, still just as soft, and waited longer still to see who was behind it.
"Dyre?"
The light feminine voice belonged to only one person in the household, and Dyre reluctantly opened the door for her. "Yes, Mother?"
Eir gave her daughter a kind smile. "May I come in?"
"Yes, of course." She moved aside and let Eir in, closing the door after making sure it wasn't a trick to get her father inside.
They stood in an awkward silence, Eir trying to decide what to say, and Dyre worried that her mother would take her father's side. Eir took a deep breath, folding her hands over her thin blue dress. "Your father means well, he does."
Dyre rolled her eyes and moved away from her mother, tired of the same story. "If he meant well, he would talk to me. See that I am not a child anymore."
"He does not want to admit you've grown into a lovely young woman. You're still his baby girl. Seeing you grown up is terrifying for him." She sat on Dyre's bed and motioned for her daughter to sit beside her. "He just doesn't know how to express fear apart from being angry and trying to keep control of the situation." At Dyre's questioning look, she added, "It is a man thing. A warrior thing. I've given up trying to understand it." The silence grew heavy between them, causing Dyre to look away. Eir bit at her lip. "I'm assuming you've been asked to attend the Winter Nights festival?"
Dyre only nodded. She couldn't tell if her mother would support or hinder her decision to still attend the festivities.
"By whom?" When her daughter remained silent, she asked, "One of the princes?"
Dyre kept stiff for a moment before nodding.
"Thor?"
She shook her head.
"Loki then." Eir sighed. "Well since it is a prince, your father has no say in the matter. You are a royal guest, not just a citizen of Asgard. I believe you should finish getting dressed."
Dyre looked at her in surprise. Until that moment, her mother had never stood up to defend her, or let her do as she pleased. "You're not siding with Father?"
"Not when he is being worse than a common mule in terms of being stubborn." She stood and went to the door to give her daughter privacy.
Dyre continued to stare at the wooden barrier as it closed, leaving her alone once again. She shook her head to remind herself there were still things to do. Lots of things if she would be deemed acceptable for a royal guest. Her heart leapt in her chest at the thought. She only hoped she could escape her home without facing her father again.
Hope, like many things, is for fools.

He could only wonder why his father insisted on a carriage. It would have been a short enough walk.
"Drunks and thieves run amok on the streets these few nights. Do not throw caution to the wind."
"As if I couldn't take care of myself," the prince sneered to the empty carriage. He looked out the window and sat forward in surprise as he saw a familiar blonde walking quickly down the street opposite of the direction they were going. He rapped on the wall where the coachman was seated. "Stop the horses." He heard the two beasts give a sound of protest as they stopped suddenly and he stepped out of the carriage as soon as they came to a halt. "Dyre, what in the nine realms are you doing?"
She stopped short, letting him realize she was holding her arm over the long sleeve of her dress, as if in some sort of pain. She turned just as quickly, but he couldn't see much of her expression in the lantern-lit streets. "I'm sorry, I should have waited but…" She shook her head, attempting a smile, though not before he could hear something off in her voice. "Shall we get going?"
Loki narrowed his eyes as she came closer, allowing him to see reddened cheeks, as if she had been crying not long ago, though her makeup covered any other indication she had been. "What happened?"
"Nothing, really. We should go before it gets any later."
He wasn't to be deterred. He waited until he helped her into the carriage and closed the door behind them to bring it up again. Especially now that he could properly see her distressed features.
"Dyre, you can't lie to a Lie-Smith. Now tell me what happened."
Again, she only shook her head, turning her attention to the window.
Out of frustration, he grabbed her arm where she had been holding it before and heard her hiss in pain. He immediately loosened his grasp. "Dyre…"
"It is not your burden to bear," she said, her blue eyes narrowed in anger, and in pain.
"Like Helheim it isn't." He paused, picking his words carefully, and more calmly. "If he hurt you…"
She looked away, giving him his answer.
Instead of pressing the issue, he gently pushed the sleeve of her light gown up, taking note with a mental smile at her choice of an emerald fabric, and looked for whatever was causing her pain. He didn't have to look hard. An ugly bruise was forming on her forearm. Without a word, he conjured his magic and set to work mending the bruise.
Her breath hitched as she realized what he was doing. "So, even gods can help the commoners."
He frowned at her words and examined his work. He wasn't perfect with healing spells, but bruises he could tend to. "The way I see it, friends should look out for each other." He looked to her, locking their gazes together. "Especially with this." He looked away and rolled her sleeve back down. "Now, tell me what happened."
She went silent again, this time only to figure out exactly how to say what he wanted to know. "Do you remember how I said I was beginning to think my father wanted to confine me?" She waited for his nod to take a steadying breath and explain everything that had happened up until she attempted to leave. "He yelled more, telling me I did not care if patients died while I was off gallivanting and spreading my legs for random men. He grabbed me by the arm roughly, allowing me to smell alcohol on him, and he told me if I left tonight, I had no home." She gestured to the carriage. "And, so, here I am."
Below her line of sight, he was clenching a fist hard enough for his knuckles to turn white. He knew Andren had been frequenting the taverns more often the past two hundred years. He would do so after every hunt, a ritual the other hunters always took part in. Not long after, he began being such a common face, the barmaid kept an open tab for him to pay whenever he had the chance. He usually paid the tab off with money from the other hunters when they played various card games. He hadn't been aware that he had become violent at home.
She looked at him in curiosity. "Loki? You're quiet. I haven't ruined your evening, I hope?" She took his hands, not noticing how stiff they were seconds before. "Please, don't let this ruin anything."
He shook his head. "It hasn't. It's made me realize I do not want you going back there."
"What?"
He leaned back, taking his hands back without noticing. "Stay at the palace for a few days. Let your father calm down. If you return tonight, it may be worse."
"If I return in a few days it may be worse. He'll accuse me of—"
"I'm saying this as a direct order as a prince," he said, his tone serious, making her shut her mouth. He cleared his throat and checked his tone. "And, I'm saying this as someone who's been trying to look out for you all our lives. Don't go home tonight." The horses snorted as the carriage came to a stop and the coachman stepped down to open the door.
She looked out at the marvelously lit palace, her jaw dropping slightly. "I couldn't…"
"It's not like we don't have enough rooms to spare. I'll tell my father of the circumstances. He likes you well enough."
She arched a brow as he helped her out. "Last I checked, your father was bellowing your name in rage as you transformed his helmet into a goose."
He held up a finger. "Half goose. It was still golden and in the shape of a helmet." He offered his arm as they traveled up the palace steps. "It sort of looked like this." He discreetly pointed a finger at a passing guard, and his helmet immediately sprang to life, honking and hissing and pecking the poor man's nose.
Dyre laughed behind her hand, her troubles long forgotten. "Alright, I'll stay. On one condition."
"You and your conditions," he said with a grin. "What is this one?"
"If this ends up as boring as you made it out to be, don't hold back with making it more fun."
The honking subsided and the clanking of running armor ceased, leaving a horribly confused guard in their wake. Loki chuckled. "Now that is a condition I can stand by."
- 3
- 4
- 5
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The Way Things Were