Chapter 3
Sif's mouth fell open at the sight of "Loki" carrying a pregnant, pale "Sigyn" into the healing room. Lady Sif was lying on a bed while Healer Eir worked at stitching up a seven inch long gash on her side. Fandral had managed to cut her during sparring practice. Thor had yelled something rude at exactly the right (or wrong) moment, and distracted the female warrior. Sif was convinced that Fandral would never have managed to touch her otherwise.
However, Lady Sif was not mentally prepared to witness a birth, especially not that of Loki's children. All of a sudden, she wanted to be anyplace else.
Eir paused in what she was doing. She stood up, wiping her hands off on a dry cloth as Sigyn tenderly placed Loki on an empty bed. Sif was not critical; she had what amounted to a long scratch.
"It's time," said Sigyn, meeting Eir's eyes.
Eir nodded her dark head, which was piled high with her thick, long braids as usual. She called Vidarr, her best journeyman healer, to finish up with Sif. Eir grinned and sauntered over to the couple. The royals looked vaguely sick and scared.
"This is wonderful," Eir gushed happily. "I haven't delivered a baby in sixty or seventy years. Now I get to deliver two at once!"
Loki scowled at Sif. "I want her to leave."
"What?" Sigyn choked.
"She's hurt," Eir objected.
"What did I do?" Sif blurted.
Loki crossed his arms over his chest. He glared at Sigyn. "I refuse to have these babies in front of Sif."
"Don't be ridiculous," Sigyn said through clenched teeth. "There are more important things going on right now!"
"I don't care," Loki sniffed. "Sif needs to go."
Sif was bewildered. She and Sigyn were friends after a fashion. She couldn't imagine where this hostility was coming from.
Sigyn leaned down and hissed, "Do you want Sif to get suspicious? Stop being so mean."
"Ow!" Loki cried out, clutching his stomach. He looked at Eir. "What in Helheim was that?"
"That, my prince...cess, princess," Eir said, quickly covering her error, "is called a contraction."
"Ow!" Loki repeated as a second contraction rolled over him.
"Damn, I don't like that!" he exclaimed. "How many more of those will there be?"
Sif couldn't help it: she burst out laughing. Sigyn and Loki turned on her.
"Get out!" they shouted together.
The volume of their voices startled Vidarr, who pulled the thread too hard as he stitched the warrior's wound.
"Hey!" Sif yelled, scowling at him. "Watch it, oaf!"
Vidarr muttered an apology.
"Lie back, sweetheart," Sigyn said to Loki.
"I'm afraid to," Loki said, still glaring at Sif. He made himself stop and glanced away.
But Sigyn was persistant and helped him stretch out. Another contraction hit and Loki sat nearly all the way back up.
"Norns, that really hurt!" he cried.
"Can I do anything to help?" Sif asked from where she still lay. Vidarr was just finishing up.
"What will you do? Bleed on us?" Loki snarked.
Sigyn pressed her lips tightly together in order to hold back a laugh. She happened to find her husband extremely funny, sometimes even when he was being mean. Sif, on the other hand, looked confused and like she might start to cry. That made it even funnier. Sigyn had to turn away for a moment. Nerves, she told herself. It was just nerves. She was about to become a mother!
"I'm going to wash up and gather some things I'll need," said Eir. "Try and relax. First babies take a while to be born, so there's plenty of time."
Loki's eyes were wide with fear as he watched Eir leave the room.
"Siggie," he hissed in a whisper.
Sigyn perched on the edge of the bed, determined to ignore Sif. "What is it, darling? Anything you need."
Sif was transfixed by the sweet, considerate way "Loki" was treating his wife. She'd never seen his tender side before.
"I want Mother," he whispered. "I need her to help me. I can't do this."
"Yes, you can, darling. We'll all help you. I'll go get Frigga. No one's told her yet! I won't be a tick!"
In spite of how weird it seemed to the two of them, Sigyn pressed a kiss to Loki's forehead. He watched with shining eyes as she ran out.
"Huh," Sif just had to comment. "He could have used his precious magic. Would've been faster."
Loki glowered evilly at Sif. Sigyn had absolutely zero magic in her. Of course she had to run.
"Shut up, you great cow," Loki growled. Sif was always putting down Loki's magic!
Sif's eyes widened again. It seemed like Sigyn really hated her.
At the very moment Eir returned, Loki emitted a surpressed screech of pain. Eir hurried over to him.
Sigyn tore through the palace corridors as fast as Loki's long legs could carry her. She'd never been so happy! She was going to be a mother and Loki was going to be a father! Well, technically, Loki was going to be a father and a mother...
She was nearly to the queen's rooms when she heard Thor call, "Brother!"
Spinning around, she saw Thor coming toward her. Her eyes were lit up with excitement.
"What's the hurry, Brother?" Thor asked, smiling.
Sigyn beamed at Thor. She really loved her brother-by-marriage. They'd always gotten along so well.
"I'm looking for Mother," she said happily. "Sigyn is having the babies!"
Thor laughed and crushed her to him in a bear hug. He pounded her back.
"Congratulations, Brother! Let us pray the babes take after Sigyn," Thor teased. He let go of her. "Might we go tell Mother together, Baby Brother?"
Sigyn smirked. "As long as you stop calling me Baby Brother, Brother. Let us hurry!"
Loki moaned. He did not like pain of any sort, but this agony was slowly building, getting worse and worse with every second. His body felt like a giant muscle cramp. He had to admit that the only things he knew about childbirth came from books. Nothing he read prepared him for such torture. The babies were trying to tear their way out of his body!
Another sharp pain stabbed him through the gut. He groaned and grasped his belly, squeezing his eyes shut.
Eir had done everything for his comfort. Getting out of the wet nightclothes and cleaned up made him feel marginally better. He was propped up on many pillows and covered in warm blankets. The pain draught had helped, but it was already wearing off. Where were Mother and Sigyn?
Once the latest pain passed, Loki forced his body to relax. When he opened his eyes, Sif was standing there watching him. She had a hand pressed to her bandaged side, covering the bloody slash in her brown tunic. Loki scowled at her.
"Can I do anything?" Sif asked. "Do you need anything at all, Lady Sigyn?"
"Since when do you care?" Loki choked out. He had meant to sound mean, but he was scared and needed his wife. He was on the verge of tears.
"Princess Sigyn, I've always liked you," Sif protested. "We've always gotten long until these past few months. Have I done something to offend you?"
Loki scoffed. "Are you jesting? All you have ever done is torment my husband! Do you think he doesn't tell me things? How you mock his seidr, the way you scorn him, even though his magic has saved you and your little band of idiots dozens of times! Centuries upon centuries of your little put downs, and you think to make up for it now by fetching me a drink of water?"
Sif was mortified. "I---"
"Loki is more powerful than you even without his magic," Loki snapped. "He doesn't need to use his seidr to defeat you or any of your pathetic friends on the training field, and you know it. You've always tried to put a wedge between my brother and...my brother-by-marriage and Loki!"
Loki had nearly blown it by saying, "between my brother and me."
Sif was amazed. She had no idea Sigyn resented her so.
"Your jealousy is pathetic," Loki went on. "Get away from me."
With a stiff nod, Sif turned and headed out the door.
"Lady Sif," Eir called out. She sighed as the warrior disappeared, then gave Loki a stern glare. "She needed to stay here and rest."
"She can...rest in her...quar...quarters," Loki panted as he tried to stave off another contraction. It didn't work.
Eir helped him through it, holding his hand and pressing a cool cloth to his forehead. He gritted his teeth. Once the contraction passed, Eir said, "You're supposed to be Sigyn, remember? Sigyn likes Sif."
Loki scoffed. "She tolerates her. There's a difference."
The queen, Eir, Sigyn and Loki were the only ones who knew that Loki had turned himself female in order to carry the twins for Sigyn.
Eir handed Loki a small vial. "Drink this. It's for the pain."
She didn't have to tell him twice. Just as Loki finished swallowing the foul junk, Thor, Frigga and Sigyn walked in. Loki's heart surged at the sight of Sigyn. Even though she looked like Loki, she was still his beloved wife inside.
"Oh, my dear daughter!" Frigga cried as she walked swiftly to his bedside. "How are you doing?"
She took his hand as Sigyn hurried over. Sigyn hovered behind Eir awkwardly until the healer gave up her place. Thor hung by the entrance nervously. Loki reached out and Sigyn took his hand. Eir gave Sigyn the wet cloth.
"She's doing fine, fret not," said Eir, answering Frigga's question. "Most likely it will be a while. We'll just keep her as comfortable as possible for now."
Eir, Frigga and Sigyn had had months of practice calling Loki by female pronouns in front of other people.
Frigga could see that her son was scared. Fear practically shone from his eyes. But she knew he was mostly concerned for his unborn sons. He'd nearly lost them when Sigyn was hurt.
"What do you need, dear?" Frigga asked, trying to smooth his wild, copper-colored curls.
"Nothing, I'm just glad you're both here," Loki confessed.
He squinted his eyes at his dopey brother, who seemed to be under the delusion that he was going to be allowed to stay for the birth. No way in Hel was that going to happen!
"Thor, brother of my heart," Loki said in a deceptively sweet voice.
The god of thunder perked up and walked over to join the little group. "Yes, sister of my heart? What may I do for you?"
He was stunned when Loki yelled, "Get out! GO! What are you even thinking? Go on! Get out of here!"
Thor's eyes widened in shock. He looked at Sigyn, whom he thought was his brother, but she only laughed at him. Thor grabbed Loki's hand, gave the back of it a kiss, and rushed out faster than Sif had.
"Moron," Loki snarled.
The rest of them snickered at that.
Loki sighed and visibly relaxed. "Now that he's gone, we can get this over with."
"What do you mean?" Frigga asked.
Loki grunted, feeling the start of another contraction. "I mean, now we can get these brats out of me immediately and skip this whole ridiculous labor."
Sigyn's mouth dropped open. She was speechless. She had no idea Loki was planning to do this.
Frigga raised an eyebrow at Eir. "Can we?"
Eir pursed her lips. "Are you asking if we can just...magic the babes here, like when Loki transferred them from Sigyn to himself?"
"Yes."
"Seems like cheating, if you ask me," Eir said with haughty disapproval. "But it would save trauma to the mother and the babies."
"Then what is the problem, Healer?" Loki snapped. "You can't tell me that any woman on any of the Nine Realms wouldn't choose to skip this part if they could."
"So...my children won't be born, they'll simply...appear?" Sigyn asked.
Loki raised an eyebrow at her, silently daring her to argue with him. "Exactly."
"Huh," said Sigyn. "All right."
"Really?"
"It seems silly to put you through Hel for no reason," she said with a shrug.
Loki sighed "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"
Sigyn chuckled. "Yes, you have."
"I'm fine with it, too," grinned the queen. "I can't wait to meet these babies!"