The Midgard Woman

The world rushed around them in a palate of colours as they fell, stars and lights flashing before their eyes, the air whistling about them and stinging their eyes. They could hear the roaring in their ears as memories of their separate lives flickered before them. For Thor this involved riding with his friends, battle training, picking up Mjölnir for the very first time; for Loki every second was a second with Georgiana.

And then the next thing they both knew, they were on the ground. Loki hit the floor first, hard, and a second later Thor crashed into him, or rather, on top of him.

“Get off me, you oaf!” Loki shouted.

“Alright, alright,” Thor grunted, rolling off him. Loki let out a gasp as air filled his lungs once more. “I didn’t know you were under me, sorry.”

Glancing around at their surroundings, Loki glared at him. “I hate you,” he stated, clambering to his knees and brushing dust from his armour. “I actually hate you.”

“I said I was sorry,” Thor countered, testily. “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“I don’t hate you for that, I hate you for everything else,” Loki snapped. “Why the Hel did you have to move when I told you keep still? Do you not listen to anything anyone ever says to you?”

“You had me, I thought we’d be alright!” Thor snapped back, heatedly.

“Well, that answers my question, then! You thought!”

“What is your problem?”

“You are my problem! It’s because of you we’re now stuck here, wherever here is!”

They both looked around them. They were on Midgard. Well, Loki reflected, it could have been worse. They would have ended up somewhere completely unfamiliar and incredibly dangerous.

“Midgard,” Thor pointed out.

“Yes, I know. I have seen it before,” Loki replied, irritated.

Thor glanced at him. “Right. Your wife. I was forgetting.”

“Could have fooled me,” Loki muttered.

Thor ignored him and glanced at the sky. “We were sucked into a wormhole; how the Hel did we end up here?”

“I brought us here,” Loki replied, stiffly. “With magic.”

Thor actually looked impressed. “Really?”

“Yes, and it wasn’t easy,” Loki returned, shaking his head. That was something of an understatement; unlike most spells which were as simple to him as putting on shoes, the power of teleportation, particularly when falling, was a lot more tricky to master, and doing so always left him feeling drained of energy. It would be at least a day before he would be able to perform spells properly again.

“Well, good, we can get back to Asgard,” Thor piped up, cheerfully.

Loki scowled at him. “It doesn’t work like that. Teleportation’s difficult, especially when it involves more than one person being displaced. It’s the Bifrost or nothing for us.”

Thor glanced at the sky again. “Without the Bridge-”

“We’re trapped here,” Loki finished.

Thor sighed. “Damn it!” he muttered, kicking at a nearby rock. Loki just closed his eyes and thought about Georgiana. She would have no idea what was going on, and no one would be able to tell her until they fixed the Bifrost Bridge, or at least until his magic was fully functional again. He supposed that his memories of her were the reason his magic had latched onto Midgard as a landing haven, subconsciously.

“What do we do?” Thor asked, presently.

Loki opened his eyes. “What do you mean “we?”

“Well, we’re in this together,” Thor pointed out.

“Only because you wouldn’t listen to me,” Loki returned. “If you had just ignored Malekith in the first place, we wouldn’t be here.”

“And I suppose that you would have let that comment slide?” Thor snapped back.

“If it kept us both safe, then yes!” Loki exclaimed. “Has no one taught you to think properly; is that it? Or do you just think that you know better than everyone else in the whole of the Nine Realms? Act first, think later, is that it?”

“This isn’t getting us anywhere,” Thor said, stiffly.

“Perhaps not, but it’s making me feel better,” Loki sighed. He turned his head, wondering just where about on Midgard they were. If they were anywhere near to where Margaret lived, at least then he could have some shelter for a while until the Bifrost was repaired.

Thor looked where he was looking. “Recognise anything?”

“No,” Loki sighed. “Parts this place all look the same to me. We could be anywhere.”

“Well, I think we should try that way,” Thor replied, pointing with Mjölnir in the direction of a patch of forestland.

“We?” Loki repeated again. “You can go that way if you want, but since I’ve got no desire to spend even another second in your company, I’m going this way.”

He made off in the opposite direction. To his annoyance, however, Thor ran after him. “Loki,” he began, and Loki whirled around to face him.

“What gives you the right to address me as if we’re friends?” he snapped.

“Fine, then, Your Highness,” Thor scorned, and Loki twitched but didn’t react any further. “We can’t go running off in opposite directions like this; we need to stick together.”

“Why?” Loki spread his arms. “So you can end up putting us in even more danger?”

“Alright, so I made a mistake,” Thor sighed. “But we’re supposed to be allies.”

“And do you know what allies do?” Loki challenged. “They trust one another. But the last time we met, you proved that you don’t trust me one bit.”

He turned on his heel and marched off along the country track. With a heavy sigh and an eye roll, Thor followed him. “Look, we can help each other now,” he insisted. “You know, as allies; you watch my back, I watch yours.”

“I wouldn’t trust you to watch my back,” Loki retorted. “I could wake up with the Norns in Valhala tomorrow if I did that.”

“Now who’s being distrustful?” Thor couldn’t help ribbing.

Loki stopped in his tracks and whirled to face him. “Oh, I’m sorry, Prince Thor! I can’t think why I shouldn’t have any reason to trust you whatsoever! Oh, wait, let’s recap shall we? You think that all Frost Giants are savage and inhumane monsters! You react to insults that lead people into dangerous situations! You’re the reason that we’re standing here now with no way back to Asgard or Jotunheim until the bridge is fixed again! And on top of that, well, what could be worse? Oh yes, of course, I was forgetting – you kidnapped my wife!”

Thor, however, reacted rather coolly to Loki’s rant as he folded his arms and simply asked “Finished?”

Loki lost it. He couldn’t help himself. He just lost it completely. And Thor certainly hadn’t been expecting him to; nor had he expected a punch delivered by a Frost Giant “runt” to have the same strength as his own and to be able to knock him off his feet. At any rate, it was all over in a matter of seconds, and even as his hand stung slightly with the pain of contact, Loki was somewhat satisfied about having quite literally wiped the smug smile off Thor’s face.

“Do you never accept responsibility for anything you do?” he snapped, hotly, as Thor pushed himself upright and rubbed his nose. Thankfully nothing was broken, although the blow had hurt rather a lot. “Do you even care about how shaken up she was? Or how shaken up I was at the thought of having lost her?”

Thor looked up at him. “It was an accident.”

“Of course,” Loki replied, lacing his words with all the sarcasm he possessed. “Because of course there’s no possible way that a Frost Giant could fall in love with a human; it’s no wonder you got confused!”

Thor clambered to his feet. “If you’d seen things through my point of view-!”

“Try looking at them through mine!” Loki interrupted. “Georgiana is the most important thing in my life and you tried to take her away from me because you didn’t think!”

They both glared at one another and then Thor broke the silence. “Fine. You’re clearly determined that you don’t need my help, but I can at least swallow my pride and admit that I need yours right now. So, like it or not, we’re stuck here together.”

Loki folded his arms. Georgiana would want them to work together, he knew, or rather she would want him to help Thor at a time like this. He could almost hear her voice inside him, urging him on.

“Please, Loki, for my sake? He needs your help. Wouldn’t you want someone to help me if I was in his position?”

He folded his arms and let out a sigh. “Fine,” he said, stiffly. “But I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing it for her. She wouldn’t want me to just abandon you.”

Thor nodded. “Thank you.”

With a scowl, Loki turned and began to make his way along the track. Thor followed. “This doesn’t make us friends or anything,” he reminded Thor. “I still hate you.”

“Fine,” Thor replied, still irritatingly cool about the whole ordeal.

“How’s the nose?” Loki asked.

Thor rubbed it again. “I don’t think you broke anything.”

“Pity,” Loki muttered, with venom. “I must try harder next time.”

Thor almost laughed, until he realised that Loki wasn’t joking. “You hit as hard as your wife, you know that?” he said instead.

“I should hope so. I taught her everything she knows.” Loki stopped, suddenly, and turned to him. “Wait; she hit you?”

Thor nodded. “Slapped me. Rather hard too, I might add.”

Loki allowed himself to smile. “That’s my girl.”

They walked in silence for a while until they reached a milestone, reading Daventry 30 miles, and pointing dead ahead. Loki allowed himself to relax a little. “Right,” he muttered, “I know where I’m going now.”

“What’s Daventry?” Thor asked.

“Didn’t you read anything about Midgard when you were a child?” Loki asked, with a scowl.

“I don’t have the patience for reading,” Thor replied, flatly.

“Clearly,” Loki muttered, and then went on before Thor could respond to that snipe, “Daventry’s a large town close to where Georgiana was born. Her Mother still lives there.”

“Great,” Thor replied, waving a hand. “Lead on.”

“I intend to,” Loki muttered.

Thor learned rather quickly that Loki was in no mood for talking as they walked. Still, he attempted to remain positive about their situation, even chuckling merrily when he almost fell in a small ditch alongside the road when not looking where he was going, although that just served to irritate Loki even further.

“I hope you appreciate this, Georgiana,” Loki muttered under his breath, glancing skyward. “Babysitting a thick-headed Asgard Prince on Midgard was not something I planned to sign up for!”

Eventually, however, it seemed like Daventry was getting no nearer and they both had to sit down for a while. Thor’s stomach gave a nasty rumble. “Norns, I’m starving,” he muttered.

“Me too,” Loki agreed, conjuring up some food. Usually his magic could do a lot better than a plate of cold meats, some cheese, some bread and a flask of mead, but it was better than nothing. He took a piece of bread and then noticed Thor glance longingly at the food. Thor noticed his gaze and looked away. Loki sighed, cursing his good nature, and then held out of the plate. “Go on, you can eat,” he said, “pacify your stomach before it drives me insane.”

Thor smiled and accepted the plate with a mutter of “Thank you.” Loki just nodded and went back to his bread, wondering what Georgiana was up to at this moment in time. She was probably worrying because his illusion had faded in front of her eyes and she had no idea why. He promised himself that the second his magic was strong again, he would let her know what had happened and that he was alive. Not knowing must be the worst thing.

“Do you miss her?” Thor’s voice broke into his thoughts, bluntly.

Loki glanced sideways at him. His tone of innocence wasn’t put on, it was genuine. “You’ve never been in love before, have you?” he asked. Thor shook his head because his mouth was full. “Then you don’t know what it’s like to wish that every single second of your life could be spend just you and that one person you love, who loves you back. Being torn away from them, even for a minute, knowing that they’re far away from you, is agony. So, yes, I do miss her.”

Thor blinked at him, taking it all in. “Are you worried about her?”

“No, she’s alright,” Loki replied. “She’s safe in Jotunheim, and with the Bifrost Bridge out, I don’t have to worry about any Dark Elves invading and trying to hurt her. Besides, she might not be trained in combat but she’s tough. She can look after herself.”

“How long have you been together?” Thor asked.

Loki decided to try and be civil if only to shut him up faster. “Married? Or are you asking how long we’ve known each other?”

“The latter,” Thor replied.

“Twenty years now.”

“Twenty?”

“We met when we were children,” Loki explained. “Became friends, and then fell in love. Five years ago I asked her to marry me and she said yes.”

Thor was silent a while and then he said “You’re lucky.” Loki glanced at him and he elaborated, “To have someone so devoted to you.”

“Devoted” seemed just about the right word, Loki thought, although he would never admit it, of course.

“I know,” he replied.

Darkness soon rolled in and Loki realised that they were never going to make it to Daventry today at the rate they were going, so when Thor tentatively suggest that they make some kind of camp for the night, he agreed without protest. Unfortunately for them, the ground was a bit thin on much they could use to make a shelter, but eventually they came across a slab of bark broken away from a rotten old tree which could just about cover them when propped up. Loki noted that, in spite of his disinterest in reading, at least Thor had had training in roughing it in the great outdoors, so between them they were able to rig up a make-shift tent of sorts. He just prayed that it wouldn’t rain, although he did once remember Georgiana telling him that this particular part of Midgard, which her people called Great Britain if he remembered rightly, was one of the wettest countries in that realm.

“Should one of us keep watch?” Thor asked. “We could take shifts.”

“I don’t think there’s any need,” Loki replied. “From what Georgiana’s told me and all I’ve read, this area’s fairly safe. We’re not likely to be disturbed by wild animals or bandits here.”

Thor nodded but Loki noted that he kept a tight grip on his hammer even so. They both lay down and stared up at the stars in silence. It was strange, Loki had always found, that all the realms were linked by the sky. The Asgardians, the humans, the Frost Giants, the Dark Elves, they all saw exactly the same sun, moon, clouds and stars every day, just from different angles. He wondered if Georgiana was watching the skies right now, praying for some sign that he was alright.

Presently he heard Thor fall asleep and he sighed to himself. “So much for being worried for our safety,” he muttered, rolling over. He couldn’t sleep just yet. His mind was still on Georgiana. For some reason, his thoughts landed on their first time sleeping together, although why he had no idea. Perhaps it was just due to missing her so much, a sign that unconsciously he was missing all of her, not just her presence.

“Oh, Loki,” Georgiana breathed, taking in the surroundings. The room was lined, like so many, with those special stones that radiated the heat, but these particular ones were carved with delicate, intricate patterns, somewhat reminiscent of the same swirl patterns that adorned the skin of the Frost Giants, and in front of her lay an enormous bed, covered in furs. What had made her gasp, however, was the fact that in an effort to be romantic, Loki had had the room filled with vases of flowers, including Eisblumen and Kaltetulpe and all other exotic varieties. She turned to him with a coy smile. “Did you do this just for me?”

“No one else,” Loki replied, slipping his arms around her and pulling her close.

“Well, thank you,” Georgiana smiled, cuddling against him.

Loki hesitated, a thought crossing his mind. “Well...I want our first time to be special...but if you’re not ready, it doesn’t have to be tonight. We can wait.”

She frowned. “Well, won’t they be expecting it?”

“They’ll understand,” Loki reassured her.

Georgiana smiled and then looked up at him. “The thing is, though, I do want to. I mean, I have been thinking about it for a long time, what it must be like...with you,” she added, running her fingers up the front of his tunic in a teasing manner.

“Oh, really?” Loki smiled at her. “And just what exactly have you been thinking about us doing together, my wife?”

Georgiana giggled as he walked her towards the bed. “Well, my husband, I imagine that there must be a lot of kissing...and touching of an intimate nature...based on what I’ve heard...”

Loki sat down on the bed, pulling her down beside him and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. “Tell me, have you actually imagined us undressing one another, Georgiana?”

“I have,” Georgiana replied, leaning back slightly and pressing his hand to her back, where her dress laced like a corset. “And now I would like you to undress me, Loki. I think we’ve both been clothed in front of one another for far too long.”

“Mm, I think you’re right, my love,” Loki smiled, his nimble fingers already loosening the fastenings of her dress. Georgiana reached up to remove the pins holding her hair in place and it brushed against his hands as it swept down loose from its intricate style. Loki leaned forwards and kissed her before softly pressing kisses in a trail down her neck towards her shoulder. Georgiana twitched slightly as he found that curve that always tingled whenever he touched it and made a small sigh of pleasure.

“Loki, I think you just found one of my sweet spots,” she whispered, and when he kissed her there again, she trembled slightly. “Yes...”

Loki moved his head, kissing her shoulder as her gown opened to expose her smooth skin beneath. Georgiana made a small murmur of contentment and allowed her hands to fall to the hem of his tunic. With a small smile, Loki helped her remove it and then helped her to her feet. To be perfectly honest, Georgiana was so eager for him that she wouldn’t have cared if he had literally ripped her dress off her, in spite of it being the one she had just married him in, but she waited patiently as he helped her to peel it off slowly before tossing it onto a nearby chair. Their soft touches became more frequent as they slowly discarded the rest of their clothing and then Loki pulled her back onto the bed again.

“Georgiana, you are so beautiful,” he told her, softly, “and I am honoured to be the first person to see you like this.”

“Loki, you will be the only person to ever see me like this,” Georgiana reminded him, although she was flattered by the compliment.

“Well, yes,” Loki agreed, causing her to giggle as he brushed her hair out of her eyes, “but I’m so proud that you’re mine and no one else’s.”

Georgiana raised her eyes to his. “And I’m proud that you’re mine too, Loki. And, well, I don’t claim to know much about what men look like without their clothes on, but...you are gorgeous.”

Loki smiled as her eyes traced over his body. “So, you like what you see, then?”

“Yes,” Georgiana agreed with a smile and then, looking slightly nervous, she added “M-may I touch you?”

“Darling, of course,” Loki breathed. “You don’t need to ask permission now.”

Hesitantly, Georgiana leaned forwards, laying her hands against his chest and then leaned up to kiss him. Even the feel of her hands against his bare skin did things to him that he couldn’t describe. Slowly, Loki wrapped his arms around her waist, stroking her gently, and then pushed her gently down onto the mattress, wrapping her in a tight, loving embrace. Their touches rapidly became more intimate and soon they were both moaning softly with pleasure.

“Oh, Loki...” Georgiana gasped, her knees trembling. “That feels wonderful...” Then, unable to restrain herself any longer, she pressed herself against him, lining him up with her entrance. “Please...”

Loki broke away from kissing her for a moment to look into her eyes. “Are you absolutely certain that you’re ready?”

She nodded. “Yes, Loki. I want you.”

“I want you too, Georgiana,” Loki murmured, leaning down to kiss her sweet spot again. “But you need to tell me if I’m hurting you.”

Georgiana nodded again, although she was still feeling slightly nervous. She had heard of it hurting before and even though she knew that Loki would never mean to hurt her, she was a little afraid of their first time doing just that. She stiffened slightly as he began to push into her and then a small yelp escaped her. “No, that is hurting,” she stammered.

Loki quickly withdrew from her, his eyes wide with alarm at having hurt her. “Are you alright?” he asked, urgently.

She nodded. “Yes, I think...I just need a minute.” Mentally she willed herself to calm down and then, taking a deep breath, she nodded again. “Yes, I’m alright now.”

“Are you sure?” Loki asked. “You’re very tense.”

“No, really, I’m alright,” Georgiana insisted, but a second later pain rippled through her again and she let out a gasp. Again, Loki withdrew from her and she winced. “I’m sorry, I’m really alright.”

Loki shook his head. “I can’t do this if you’re in pain, Georgiana. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“No, Loki, please,” Georgiana begged. “I need you.”

“What you need is to relax,” Loki corrected her, gently. He laid a hand on her thigh, gently. “What it is it that scares you, the pain?”

“Yes,” Georgiana whispered, closed her eyes tightly. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Loki soothed her, “but you need to stop worrying, otherwise it’s bound to hurt. Focus on something that isn’t painful.”

Georgiana felt her body relax as he began to stroke soft circles across her thighs. “Please, Loki,” she whispered again.

“Alright,” Loki murmured, “I’m going to try again.”

This time when he entered her, Georgiana felt her body arch slightly and her eyes fly open in surprise, but what she didn’t feel was any pain. “Oh...” she murmured, softly.

“Is that hurting?” Loki asked.

“No, that feels...nice,” Georgiana realised. Loki laughed, he couldn’t help himself. “What?” Georgiana asked, indignantly, swatting at him.

“Sorry,” Loki replied, sobering up, “but that does sound like too much of an innocent description for what we’re doing.”

“Well, it does,” Georgiana insisted, trying to work out how best to describe it to him. “I mean, it’s not hurting, it feels...comfortable.”

Loki breathed out. “Good,” he murmured. “I don’t want you in any more pain.”

“Oh, Hel!” Loki muttered, sitting up in annoyance. He had been thinking about Georgiana too much and now look what had happened. What a time to get a hard-on, right in front of the one person in the world he just knew would mock. “Damn,” he muttered, willing it to go away, but it was no good. Thinking about that first time with Georgiana had aroused him too much. He was going to have to take care of it.

Much to his further irritation, Thor awoke abruptly as he sat up and wriggled from underneath their makeshift tent. “Where are you going?” he asked, sleepily.

“To relieve my bladder,” Loki lied, scrabbling to his feet and thankful that the dark hid his true intention from Thor’s eyes. “I’ll be right back.”

It didn’t take long to sort out, after all his mind was on Georgiana the entire time and he had had sexual relations with her so many times before that he didn’t even need to imagine it anymore, but it did take a little longer than what he had told Thor he had to do would have done. Still, he had a lie ready anyway as he made his way back to the tent, still somewhat annoyed that this had happened at such a time.

“You were a while,” Thor commented as Loki lay down beside him again and turned over onto his side so that they didn’t have to look at one another.

“I heard something,” Loki replied. “Thought it might be a human. Turned out to be a deer.”

“Oh.” Thor was silent for a second and then said “For a moment there I wondered if you’d been...you know...”

Loki shuddered. “Don’t be disgusting.”

“Hm,” was Thor’s only reply, a non-committal sound, and presently Loki heard him snoring again. Closing his own tired eyes, he found himself praying for the first time in his life that he wouldn’t have any dreams about Georgiana, or at least none that would guarantee to arouse him any further.