Frank in the Study
“What do you mean you’re not going!?”
Darcy sighed, pushing her way through the halls with Grace at her side, slowly making her way to her locker. “I’m not going! That’s what I meant!”
Grace groaned in protest, leaning up against the wall beside Darcy’s locker while her friend worked the combination. “Dude, it’s Halloween. My Mom says I can only go trick-or-treating one more year! And this is it! What could possibly be more important than free candy!?”
Bitterly, Darcy removed her Spanish workbook from her locker. Not only was it a Friday, but it was ‘the’ Friday. The day her and Loki were going to break into Odin’s study. And where was she? At school. Going to Spanish class. “I told you, Grace. I’m busy!”
“You’re always busy,” Grace grumbled. “You’re always with your boyfriend!”
Darcy rolled her eyes. “Loki’s not my boyfriend. He’s my friend who is a boy."
“You turned down freaking Nick Benedict! Why would you do that unless you had a better option?!” Grace reasoned as they shuffled off to the Spanish classroom where Darcy plopped down in her chair moodily.
“He was a bad kisser. He licked my mouth and I only like him as a friend,” Darcy pointed out for the fifty-thousandth time since she had told Nick at soccer practice that she didn’t want to be his girlfriend. Ever since he’d hardly spoken to her.
Grace looked like she wanted to say more, but her words were cut short by their Spanish teacher beginning class.
Darcy was having major problems with school.
She knew more than everyone around her. She wasn’t a genius, but she wasn’t learning any new material either. Her school life would have been insufferable if not for Grace.
Darcy figured, that if she tried hard enough, her teachers and parents would allow her to advance another grade or leave public education in exchange for online courses where she could be more productive in her learning.
However, this idea did not appeal to Darcy. She didn’t want to exchange her boring school life for another equally boring school life. If she had it her way, she would just go live on Asgard and be Loki’s royal advisor or something. That would be productive. She would actually be a part of something important. Doing something. Helping people. Sorting out Inter-Realm war crisis was infinitely more productive than sitting in a classroom writing verb congregations.
“Darcy, sit up please,” Sra. Garcia chided and Darcy did so grumpily.
She’d only been in class ten minutes and they already had to write boring stories in Spanish about what they were doing for Halloween. She thoughtfully decided to let her head flop back onto her desk and attempt sleep again. Just two more hours and the day was over. Then, she and Loki could get down to important things like trespassing in Odin’s study.
Maybe this time, she would just stay in Asgard.
“Darcy! Why don’t you tell us what you’ll be doing for The day of the Dead? Tell your classmates your plans for tonight in the future tense please.” Sra. Garcia requested in an overly polite tone to the half-snoring girl.
Darcy yawned, sitting up and staring at the blank notebook paper before her. “Uh…I think I’m going to just sleep. My Mom is going to pass out candy and my brother has a Halloween party to go to. So, I’m probably going to sit in my room.” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, a trail of drool smearing onto her wrist. “Can I go to the bathroom?”
Sra. Garcia and the entirety of her Introductory Spanish class was staring at her with gaping expressions.
It took Darcy a second to realize what was wrong.
Spanish.
She was fluent in Spanish.
Speaking every language known in Yggdrasil was more of a bother than anyone would know, especially when you don’t pay attention to when someone starts using a different language. Even reading was difficult sometimes.
The other day, her dad asked her to help him set up a new bookshelf for her bedroom because her floor had reached the point where her piles of books were a serious trip hazard. When she took out the instructions to start helping him assemble the pieces, she accidentally read the Japanese bit and then proceeded to explain it to her father in kind.
“Uh…” Darcy cleared her throat, quickly switching back to English. “What? I don’t speak Spanish. Gross. Languages? Pfft. I don’t speak languages. Nasty.”
The class continued to stare and Darcy sighed heavily. It was going to be a very long two hours.
***
Loki sat on Darcy’s bed, staring intently at Jörmungandr and Fenrir as they played on the floor.
He knew his friends well enough to know that something wasn’t right.
Neither Jörmungandr nor Fenrir had ever lacked personality. But somehow, something was different and they had been acting strangely.
It was a well known fact around the palace that the serpent enjoyed exploring and making new friends. Lately, he had been travelling more often. Though he always remained at Loki’s side when he wasn’t preoccupied with meetings, the prince detected something very different about his scaly friend.
Fenrir, Darcy had told him the other day, was also behaving peculiarly. Apparently her dog was eating more and often times she would find him wandering outside her house when she got home from school, even though all the doors had been locked.
The two animals stopped their wrestling game to intently stare at the other, nose to nose.
Gently, as not to disturb their contest, Loki reached out with his magic to search Jörmungandr for any magical oddities.
Sure enough, there was a spark of energy that just nipped at Loki’s magic as he investigated. He gasped, withdrawing his magic.
He had suspected that Jörmungandr was no longer just a snake. But he had not been given reason to believe that the Infinite Serpent had somehow managed to come by such powerful magic. It was apparent that he had not been born with it, as Loki remembered testing him several times for any abnormal tendencies.
No, whatever this energy was, Jörmungandr did not simply come by it naturally. He would have obtained it from somewhere. In fact, it was very similar to the type of heightened magical aptitude seen in mortals after eating one of Idunn’s…
“Jörmungandr? Fenrir?” Loki questioned in near-teasing accusation. “What have you been up to as of late?”
The snake’s response was a very dog-like chortle as he and Fenrir quit their shenanigans to lick Loki’s face.
“Your affections will get you nowhere. So where have you been? Hm? Is Darcy in on it?” he asked again, not truly expecting an answer.
Jörmungandr made a sound halfway between a hiss and a bark at Darcy’s name and whined a little. Loki smiled at this. He understood the snake’s sentiment of missing their friend. Loki found himself generally despising Asgard without Darcy. Lord Erlend was making his life miserable at council meetings. Odin’s return had at least guaranteed that the constant battering of his and Thor’s titles were subdued to the occasional heated retort.
Nevertheless, it seemed that Erlend’s main priority was to get armies on Vanaheim. Surprisingly enough, Odin was not rejecting all of his ideas. As a matter of fact, the Allfather had hardly spoken since awaking from the Odinsleep. Loki admired his patience and tried to mimic it exactly. After the entire summer of listening to Erlend’s complaints and whining speeches, he found it all too easy to sit by and listen to everything being said. He spoke only when necessary and took notes on what he felt was important.
Recent developments in their tedious Internal Affairs meetings led Loki to believe there was a slight possibility of having delegates sent over to Vanaheim for scout missions. Loki deeply detested this idea. Sending scouts over would be more of a threat than anything.
The ceaseless ineptitude of the council members was continuing to grind at Loki’s nerves.
Any plans to infiltrate their desired territory in Vanaheim would result in failure. At the moment, that particular tribe was warring with another civilization of Vanir. At any instant, the leadership of Vanaheim could change and the alliances between the Nine Realms could alter. The last thing Asgard needed was to push the Vanir away at a time so near to potential war.
Not to mention the Light Elves were still indecisive. Loki believed that soon, Asgardian representatives would need to be sent over in order to persuade them into a treaty.
Jörmungandr licked his nose once more, bringing his prince friend back into the present moment.
Loki offered him a small smile, “It is 3:20 now. Darcy will be home in five minutes.”
Another nose lick.
Loki tapped his fingers on the table pensively, his mind wandering back to Jörmungandr and Fenrir’s abilities. How did they come by them? An apple would be the obvious answer, but how? Could they do magic? Could they use the portals?
Sighing, Loki stood, letting Jörmungandr wrap himself a couple times around his waist. He had slowed in his growth as of late and Loki wondered if he was to stop growing soon. However, with heightened magical abilities, he truly did not know the extent of what Jörmungandr could do.
For the moment, Loki did not see that the magic was causing his friends any harm. But, if it did in the future, he would rectify the situation immediately.
Loki rolled his shoulders, feeling more relaxed in Darcy’s room in his tunic and pants than he felt in any other place. Perhaps it was the feeling that he was closer to Darcy. She made everything in his life more interesting, but she also gave him a certain security. He did not have to worry about acting like a Prince around her. He could tease and jeer. He could hug her without any other reason but the desire to be closer to her.
Of course, in certain situations, he did act like a prince around Darcy, but only because she deserved it.
Darcy deserved the whole Nine Realms.
At ease, Loki searched Darcy’s newly installed bookshelves that now housed the entirety of their collection. There were five shelves in total and they took up an entire wall. Darcy’s desk had been moved to sit next to the window, though her bed stayed against the far wall of the room.
Finally, he came across the last shelf in the left corner of the room. He pulled on the book titled, ‘Hammer Etiquette’ to reveal a magical hiding space he created for Darcy to keep their more secretive things. Originally, Darcy’s main space for concealing things was to shove them behind her books. Loki gave her this new magical cubby as a birthday present. He invented the spell specifically for her. The space would expand to hold whatever she needed, whether it be a book or a herd of bilgesnipe.
Inside of it now was only the map of Yggdrasil and the Galaxy beyond.
He took it out, admiring the work of it once more. After they had the papers completely together, Loki had spelled them into place and shrunk the map to they could lay it out on Darcy’s bed and read it with magnifying glasses. Well, Darcy needed a magnifying glass; Loki did not as he was Asgardian.
Settling down on her bed, he began to look over the map once more for some kind of pattern. The problem was that language was too fluid. Words change meanings and sentences break structures more often than they make them. What he hoped to find in the Allfather’s study was a translator of sorts. Something that would allow him and Darcy to comprehend the unknown text and learn of its origins.
Downstairs, he heard the front door open and quick footsteps hurry through the house. Fenrir’s ears perked up and Jörmungandr rushed to the door just in time for Darcy to hurry in. Her mother shouted up the stairs, “Darcy! You can’t spend your life in your room! Grace really wants you to go trick-or-treating!”
She sighed, happily cuddling Jörmungandr while bitterly yelling down at her Mother. “Mom! I’m too old to go trick-or-treating! I have homework to do!”
Loki nearly snorted at her lie. Darcy never did her homework. Darcy’s mom was silent for a moment and Darcy waited anxiously for her reply. “Alright! Fine. But if I get another call from the school saying that you’re failing due to missing assignments--!”
“Thanks Mom!” Darcy yelled, closing her door with a huge grin plastered on her face.
Eagerly, she hurried over to her bed and plopped down between Loki and Fenrir while Jörmungandr settled on her lap. Her head settled on his shoulder and her hair tickled his cheek. Loki took her hand without hesitation and they were silent for a long moment, enjoying each other’s presence they had missed in the past week.
“Loki?”
“Yes Darcy?”
She turned to snuggle her face against his shirt sleeve. “Can we just spend the weekend on Asgard?”
Loki could not contain the excitement that bubbled inside him at that thought. How many times had he imagined staying up all night in Asgard’s archives with Darcy at his side? Or in his room, studying the night away? “Of course. You will be a most honored guest.”
“Awesome,” she breathed, sitting up so she could reach for her magnifying glass that she kept on her bedside table. “When do we leave?”
Loki habitually smoothed back his hair, “I suggest we wait an hour at least. We will search through my father’s study after he has taken to his chambers for the evening.”
Yawning tiredly, Darcy read over what she could of the map. “Okay. Sounds good.”
Loki frowned at his friend in concern. Typically she was more excited than this. “Are you feeling alright Darcy?”
She shrugged. Setting down her magnifying glass and pushing settling the map onto the floor. “I’m just really exhausted. I got sent to the principal’s office today.”
Loki situated himself so that he was sitting behind her and quickly conjured her hair brush. “Again?”
She nodded as he began to brush out her hair, relaxing the knots with smooth, even strokes. “Yeah. My teachers are all mad at me because I don’t do my homework. But then they had me do a whole bunch of tests and they think I’m smart now.”
He finished tying her braid and huffed. “Darcy, you are one of the smartest people I know. And I know myself. That is saying quite a bit.”
She shoved his shoulder lightly. “Okay, I am smart. But they want me to write essays and take tests. I don’t want to be that kind of smart. I don’t like doing those things.”
Loki motioned for her to continue, engrossed in her words. Darcy rarely spoke on her feelings towards school, other than her outward hatred for it. He had yet to hear entirely why.
She made a face, tapping her chin in thought. “Okay, think about it like this: On Asgard, I’m Lady Darcy of Nornheim. My friend is Prince Loki of Asgard. I can use all of my brainpower to help Asgard. I can help Asgard not go to war or stop people from getting killed. I can win in board games to help my friend and stuff like that. I can do things to help people. Or in my room when we’re looking for the Tesseract. I’m working to get somewhere.” She turned to face him, her eyes sharp with the kind of clever intensity he believed to be immortal even without the help of an apple.
“I can’t do that at school. I learn things for grades and I study math so that I can pass into the next math class. Homework is practice that I don’t need. I don’t analyze books in my English class like I would read an Asgardian Politician’s past writings. Do you know what I mean?” She finished, her eyebrows coming together a little bit.
Loki pursed his lips, sympathizing with his friend. As a prince, he was taught and trained for many years on the strict duties of being royalty. But because he and Thor were so close in age, he was also taught how to be a king.
Under normal circumstances, the eldest son would be given the throne when he came of age. However, Frigga had birthed Loki so soon after Thor that they were hardly two Midgardian years apart. Two years, being no more than a blink of an eye for most Aesir, did not seem like enough of a time difference to simply hand Thor the throne without at least considering Loki.
Odin always told them that they were both born to be kings. Loki could only guess that is what he meant.
Training to be King was difficult work. It was long, hard, and for many years, he was given tasks similar to those of Darcy’s homework. But he did it. Not because he wanted to, but because he wanted to help Asgard. If he was going to be King, he wanted to do right by Asgard.
Perhaps Darcy lacked the motivation.
“I understand you Darcy, and I wonder, do you still wish to be president one day?” he asked curiously.
She nodded slowly. “Yeah. I think so.”
He sat up a little taller, “Then think of your education not as some pointless work graded on effort, but rather as a stepping stone. You must learn all that you can now to be a better president later. If you express your sentiments to your instructors, perhaps they will allow you to pursue more political studies.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Huh, you know, I should. I bet Grace would think I was crazy, but whatever. I’ll talk to them on Monday. We don’t start learning government systems till next year, but I’ve already read most of the curriculum and stuff, so I should be good! Oh man, I can see me now! Darcy Lewis. Ms. President.”
Loki listened as she rambled on, her enthusiasm back on track and he found himself, in that moment, extremely proud to be her friend. He was glad to have motivated her. Though a part of him was weary. A great a president he was sure Darcy would be, he could not help but think she belonged on Asgard, outsmarting Aesir and contending with rulers from all over the Nine Realms. He could not imagine Darcy Lewis confined to leading only a small portion of a single realm.
Yawning again, Darcy tossed her body down into her nest of covers, her legs thrown across Loki’s lap. “I’m taking a nap. Why am I so tired? I’m tired all the time. And soccer isn’t helping. My legs are sore.”
Loki chuckled, beginning to massage her calf muscles. “You are in the midst of Midgardian puberty, Darcy; it is only natural that you are tired. Yet, why you must sleep now rather than early in the morning I cannot understand.”
Darcy laughed and sighed in relief as he worked out knots in her legs. “I’m not tired in the morning. I’m tired now.” Her knee jerked a bit when he reached the ticklish arch of her foot. “Where did you learn massage therapy?”
He raised a brow that she couldn’t see because her face was buried in a pillow. “I studied with Eir and spent time learning about the different muscle groups.” He didn’t add that he had done extra research on humans just so he would know how to fix Darcy if she was ever broken.
Darcy hummed in a teasing sort of way, but other than that, they did not talk again. It was afternoon and a sleepy time of day. Jörmungandr and Fenrir nuzzled their way onto the bed, both curling up near Darcy. Even Loki was feeling the effects of their drowsiness and after Darcy had fallen asleep and he had successfully worked the cramps from her legs, he lay down beside his friend and fell into the best sleep he’d had all week.
He didn’t even notice Darcy’s wiggling.
***
“Okay, lemme break down the plan one more time,” Darcy whispered as they dismounted Hel much later that evening.
Loki nearly groaned. She had ‘broken down’ the plan close to fifty times on their ride to the palace.
She continued despite his reluctance. “Step one, infiltrate the study. You zap us in there with magic so we don’t have to sneak past all the guards.”
Loki led her into the palace to find mostly empty halls, as their usual wandering inhabitants had already gone to bed.
“Step two,” she whispered as they rounded a corner, “You cast that spell that hides us from Heimdall. You can only make it last for five minutes, so we have to make this trip count.”
Loki held up and arm to stop her from hurrying straight into the path of an oncoming guard.
After they passed Darcy whispered even quieter. “Step three, don’t touch anything that isn’t a book because the Allfather’s study could be dangerous.”
They continued down the hall at a normal pace until they were near enough to the study that teleporting them there would have minimal affect on Loki’s magic.
“Step four,” Darcy sniggered, before taking his hand, “Use the code names.”
Loki gave her a disapproving look. “Darcy, we are not using those names.”
She pretended not to hear him, looking off into the distance distractedly. “I’m sorry, did you say something HornPrince?”
“Darcy—“
“SwordQueen didn’t hear you, HornPrince,” she chided, looking around airily.
Loki fought the temptation to roll his eyes and sighed shortly. “I much prefer the eagle codenames.”
“Say something HornPrince?” she asked lightly.
Finally, Loki conceded, giving his friend a withering look. “Ready, SwordQueen.”
“Excellent,” she smiled, taking his arms and pressing her lips tightly together in preparation for them teleporting to Odin’s study.
They arrived and Loki cast the spell the moment their bodies materialized on the floor. Under normal circumstances, he would not go through such drastic measures as to shield him and Darcy from Heimdall. The Gatekeeper would not even acknowledge their presence if he did not cast his gaze upon them. But Loki thought it best to take the extra precaution just in case Heimdall did look for him somewhere.
He supposed it was a risk to his title as a prince to venture to Midgard and pose a mortal girl in the position of an Asgardian High Born. But that was a risk he was willing to take. If caught, he would make it certain that Darcy suffered none of the consequences.
He and Darcy nodded once to each other as they set out in different directions.
The Allfather’s study was a thing of wonder. Most people never saw past his general meeting room. That is where many of his more private conversations took place. But, waiting beyond Odin’s desk, accentuated by golden pillars and vaulted ceilings painted with magic was a wealth of untouched knowledge that only the daring could hope to understand. Loki rarely traveled away from the space a few paces before Odin’s desk, for when he came to visit the Allfather, that was his place.
But now, for the next five minutes, his father’s mysterious temple, filled with books of untold contents, was all his.
He ran to the nearest cluster of shelves, searching them for any book that might remotely help with his and Darcy’s search for the tesseract. Using a few magical incantations, he copied each of the texts and magicked them into his chambers so that the Allfather would not notice any missing books from his collections. He moved quickly and quietly, unsure of where Darcy had wandered off to.
They only had a few minutes left.
***
Darcy was in awe.
She loved the library on Asgard and had decided long ago that it was one of her favorite places.
But Odin’s study?
There was something so unique about it. The walls were marked with the history of Asgard and the floors gleamed with the promise of royal knowledge. The Allfather’s Study was truly a chamber meant for kings.
Well, kings and curious twelve year old mortals.
Gleefully, Darcy skipped down one of the more narrow aisles between bookshelves and searched the spines for helpful material. She was just about to pick a book off the shelf when she heard whispering.
Tiptoeing to the end of the aisle, Darcy peeked around the shelves to catch sight of her eavesdropping victims. She could not see them down that side of the hall, so she suspected they were behind the shelf in front of her. Ever so carefully, Darcy removed one of the books at her eye level to peer at the whispering users of the Allfather’s personal library.
She gasped when she recognized them.
“My Lord, why would we meet in such a place? You have directed that I stay in the capital and promote Nornheim’s quarrel with Vanaheim.” Lord Erlend’s pompous whispers were urgent.
Lord Bjarte’s response was unhurried, yet anxious. “And that was unwise on my part. Your views are too old-fashioned for the Capital, Erlend. I should have realized your restraint was not solid enough to participate in their decision making. Prince Loki has been making a fool out of you and the entire province the moment you opened your mouth in the palace. Not to mention you let that damn girl mouth off to you.”
Darcy’s heart beat a little louder at the mention of her and Loki’s doings. The short burst of pride was met with fear. What was Lord Bjarte doing in the capital? He never came to the capital. He was terrified of—
“Queen Frigga,” Lord Bjarte continued with a sickly sweet whisper, “has requested my presence in the capital. I would be a fool to deny summons from her.”
“Yes,” Erlend agreed, “But why here? Why the Allfather’s study? Surely if we were caught—“
Bjarte scoffed. “It is a game. A game of wit. A game of cleverness. Tell me Erlend, if I were to have a box and inside the box I told you was the most deadly poison in all the Nine Realms. What would you do?”
Erlend’s tone seemed confused as he responded slowly. “I would…open the box?”
“Fair enough.” Bjarte continued, “Now, if I told you that if you were to even set eyes on this poison, it’s magical properties would kill you, would you still open the box?”
“N-no.” Erlend stuttered, unsure of what to say. Darcy wondered if it was an appropriate response to roll her eyes.
Bjarte’s smile was evident in the sharp change in his voice. “There you have it. You see, the poison could not truly kill me lest I give it the opportunity. You see, this entire Capital would not dare intrude upon the Allfather’s precious study. Call it respect. Call it fear. Call it what you like. I know that I do not have it. For if no one enters this room but the Allfather, who has now taken to his chambers for the night, who have I to fear?”
Darcy believed this was a fair point, despite the fact that Heimdall was always watching. But maybe he didn’t look inside the Allfather’s study. Maybe Loki didn’t have to use the spell after all. She pressed herself closer to the shelf, eager to hear why on Asgard Queen Frigga would invite Lord Bjarte to the Allfather’s study late at night.
Just as the whispers started up again, a flash of gold met Darcy’s eye and she whipped around to come face to face with none other than the Queen herself.
Darcy’s heart raced as she searched her mind for an excuse as to why she was in the Allfather’s private rooms and spying on covert political meetings. Frigga only gave her a little grin, a smirk of sorts, and pressed her index finger to her lips before turning the corner to address her guests.
Her heart calmed only a fraction as her mind sped forward. Had Frigga meant for her to stay? Obviously she had. What could this conversation possibly be about that she would want Darcy to hear it? Where was Loki? What--?
“Lord Bjarte, you have arrived.” Her voice was forward and loud compared to their discreet whispers. “And Lord Erlend, you’re here as well. How quaint.”
Both Lords cleared their throats and Darcy watched them shuffle into hasty bows. She caught a glimpse of Lord Bjarte’s beard, finding it as weird as ever it was. “Your Majesty.”
Lord Erlend made to speak first, as Darcy had decided was his way, but Bjarte interrupted him. “Queen Frigga, why have you called me to the Capital?”
She didn’t answer immediately; instead settling into a cozy looking chair nestled between a short side-table and a stack of old tomes. “In time, Lord Bjarte, you will know the answer to that question. But first, I would like you to relieve your man-servant of his position as a participant in the Asgardian council. Send him back to Nornheim where his words are heard and his opinions are better suited.”
Lord Bjarte didn’t miss a beat and Darcy respected his sharpness. “You ask me to control a man who is no more than myself? To release one of Nornheim’s voices in the Capital?”
“Do not play coy with me, Bjarte. The power you have over him is marked upon his life. Send him back to Nornheim, or I shall give him reason to fight your control.” Her glare intensified. “And I know how much you hate losing your things.”
The was a silent exchange between Erlend and Bjarte before the former turned on his heel and exited down the aisle, reuniting with the world outside of Odin’s study. Frigga waited until Bjarte’s heavy breathing quieted to say anything more.
“How fares Nornheim?”
“Well enough.” The Lord’s honeyed words dripped with apparent hatred and Darcy could sense it was fueled by one thing. Fear. She never doubted Lord Bjarte’s fear of Frigga. But never could she have imagined that this would be the effects of his dread. “Now, I must ask again, my Queen, why I am here?”
Frigga sighed, folding her hands in front of her like Loki sometimes did when he was thinking. Though, unlike her experiences with Loki, Darcy did not sense any apprehension in the Queen’s features. “You have been guiding Nornheim in the direction of war with Vanaheim for nearly two years.”
“You are here to dissuade me then?” Lord Bjarte taunted haughtily, giving a short bark of a laugh. “You send your son to Nornheim to talk us out of battle. He brings in that little pest to humiliate Nornheim—“
“Oh please,” Frigga interrupted. “Nornheim did not need the assistance of Lady Darcy to be humiliated. You were doing a fine job yourself.”
Darcy covered her mouth with her hand to suppress a wave of giggles.
“It is no matter,” Bjarte quipped, ignoring her latest remark. “I will not be discouraged.”
“You are so dramatic.” Frigga picked up a book from beside her, running her fingers over the pages approvingly. “I have not called you here simply to tell you what you cannot do. The Allfather has not consented, nor has he ever consented to your desires for war. Henceforth, war will not happen simply because you wish it.
“I have summoned you here, Lord Bjarte, to tell you that there will be war with Vanaheim.”
The silence was stunning and Darcy’s brain nearly shattered into a million tiny pieces.
A war?
A war.
What?
There couldn’t be a war. She and Loki had fought to avoid a war. What was Frigga doing?
Before Darcy cold drop Queen Frigga as her role model, the conversation started back up again.
“I…beg your pardon.”
“War, Lord Bjarte,” Queen Frigga repeated bitterly. “Oh, believe me, I do not want it. I do not wish for it to happen, yet it must, and it will. But not for some time. I expect four years from now, Vanaheim will request our assistance in vanquishing their most unwelcome tribe. They have recently taken over that little spot of land you Norns craved so dearly and they threaten Vanaheim’s alliance with Alfheim. When that civilization progresses and becomes an issue to the rest of the Vanir, they will ask our assistance.”
Lord Bjarte seemed to find his wits somewhere along the way and spoke in his thick, fluid tone. “And why, Queen Frigga, would Vanaheim call on help from Asgard? Surely their armies are sufficient enough to kill off the unwanted in their midst.”
“You claim to be the cleverest man in Nornheim yet you cannot even think past pride.” Frigga said pitifully and a chill ran through Darcy’s spine. Her words were kind, understanding, and disapproving. Her lack of judgment was more fearful than if she had wrath. In that moment, Darcy shared Lord Bjarte’s fear. It was not because Frigga was cruel or harsh, but rather that she was knowledgeable.
It was plain in the way that she walked and talked that she knew more than anyone and that she was wise enough to run the Nine Realms without anyone at her side. Yet, her discretion kept her power secret. It opened up a world of possibilities that were ever so worthy of being feared.
“Pride.” The Allmother smiled. “The Vanir see past it better than Asgardians. No doubt they could handle the tribes, but strategically, having Asgard fight for them would open up the opportunity for a treaty stronger than our current one and they will avoid any form of civil war.”
Lord Bjarte considered her words for a long moment. “And why are you telling me this? Why here? Why now and not four years from now when Nornheim is of need?”
“The Norns are slow,” the Queen answered sullenly. “They need to be prepared to fight on Vanir soil. They need to be educated on what kind of weapons they will be fighting against and what kind of traps would be in the trees. Asgardians are not used to that territory. They will need to be equipped for it.
“I also expect that you will withdraw your extra delegates from the council meetings and cease your incessant bombarding of the Capital.” She finished with the kind of finality only a mother could give.
“That still does not answer why you have chosen the Allfather’s study for our little get together,” Lord Bjarte questioned suspiciously.
Frigga smiled knowingly, rising from her chair and walking to the end of the aisle. “Well, as they say, you never know who could be listening.”
The Lord stood stunned for a moment longer before Frigga beckoned him forwards. “Come, Lord Bjarte. I will see you to a longship. I would hate to have you stay in the Capital when you detest it so strongly. Perhaps on the way you can tell me of your Hnefatafl game with Lady Darcy….”
Darcy waited until they had left before sinking to her knees by the shelf and thoroughly thinking through the events that had just occurred.
War was starting. Frigga had purposefully gone out of her way to make sure that Darcy knew of Lord Bjarte’s involvement.
Darcy racked her brain, trying to think of why she should be so significant as to have the Queen of Asgard hold a personal meeting in a place where she was bound to hear it.
The answer to her question clicked within seconds and Darcy, still caught up in her shock, ran to go find Loki. If they were going to war in four years, he would probably want to know about it.
“HornPrince to SwordQueen, we have a situation!”