THE TEAL PENDANT
OLIVIA AWAKENS FROM, FOR ONCE, A GOOD DREAM. She finds herself wrapped in Loki’s arms, and a fond smile lights her face. This reminds her tremendously of that dream she had almost half a year ago, when their meetings were still bound by the rules of soulmate dreams.
She hadn’t felt tremendously comfortable like this, at the time, but now she would even call him— strangely cold skin and all— soothing. She supposes the cold skin must be a Frost Giant thing; frost is literally in the name.
She can hardly believe she’s going home today. It’s going to be a hell of a flight, especially since she hasn’t even been on Earth most of her trip. Maybe next time she can just come straight here.
Of course, that’s if there is a next time.
It’ll be hard to make up an excuse for her to come back now. Loki is supposedly dead, and she’s healed. By all accounts, there’s no reason to bring her back, and no reason she should even ask to.
Well, Loki’s clever. He’ll figure something out. Olivia sighs, and then squints.
“How long have you been pretending to be asleep?” she wonders. Loki opens his eyes, a small grin forming on his face.
“Not long,” he claims. She smiles lightly, snuggling into the mattress a little further.
“I don’t wanna get up,” she mumbles, her smile morphing into a little frown. “This bed is really comfy.”
“Stay, then,” Loki suggests, propping his head up with his fist. “We’ll tell everyone you went back. You can stay in my old room, I’ll order it left alone.” She chuckles quietly.
“I can’t do that,” she reminds him. “All my stuff is on Earth; and if I don’t come home, Bruce will go nuts. Thor knows I came here, so if he hears from Bruce I never came back, he’ll come looking, and then the jig’ll be up anyways.” Loki sighs, frowning.
“Have I ever told you that I hate it when you’re right?”
***
“—and then the shark just absolutely gnaws on this man, and it’s really gruesome. So here I am, little 5-year-old Olivia in the silver screen, bawling my eyes out,” she narrates to Loki. “And then what do my parents do not even two years later? They take me to see it again, in 3D this time!” They both chuckle, cringing.
“You must’ve been inconsolable,” Loki muses. She laughs, with a light shrug.
“Probably,” she admits. “Honestly, though, who can blame me?” she shifts as they finally come to a stop, standing in Heimdall’s observatory. Notably, there is no Heimdall. He disappeared a few days ago— probably because he was convicted of treason.
For a long moment, there is nothing but a resounding silence, so thick you could cut it with a knife. She doesn’t really want to go, and he doesn’t really want her to leave.
But fate is cruel, indeed.
“Alright,” she sighs. “Checkout’s at 5, so I really have to go. I’ll, uh, talk to you tonight though?” She looks at him with an intentionally casual expression of interest. He nods, pretending not to see her hands unclench.
“Before you go,” he interjects, immediately capturing her undivided attention, “I… have something for you.” He materializes a small box into his hands. Well, technically he pulls it from— not the point.
“Oh,” she whispers, as he opens it up.
Inside is the most genuinely beautiful pendant that Olivia has ever had the pleasure of setting eyes on. It’s a teal gem inside simple but beautiful golden mounting, with a thin, plain gold chain to hold it against her neck. The gem itself seems to be alive, with some kind of green-tinted shimmer twisting and blooming like ink inside.
“I spent a few days enchanting it,” Loki confesses. “If you concentrate, it will allow you to disappear— though the effect wears off after a minute. It’s just… in case you need a quick escape.” He pulls it out of the case and unclasps it oil offering. Olivia turns around and moves her hair without a second thought.
“It’s perfect,” she reflects quietly, holding onto the pendant part to admire it while Loki clasps the chain. His fingers brush the back of her neck, and for a moment it strikes him that she’s allowing him to put something around her neck while her back is turned.
He drops it quickly once the chain is secured.
She turns back around, letting the pendant fall onto her chest and offering him a slightly subdued smile.
“Thank you,” she says, sincerely. Her fingers lace with his, and she squeezes his hand just briefly. He smiles back, a slightly uncomfortable but sincere half-smile.
“Well, I couldn’t very well let you go back there unprotected,” he dismisses, clearing his throat. “If you won’t be coming back to our healers, than I’d rather make sure you won’t need them.” She nods, and after a brief pause, she lets go of his hand.
“I’ll, um, see you tonight then,” she bids as he starts up the Bifrost. He nods.
“See you tonight,” he agrees. She turns to the portal, and steps through it.
He keeps staring even after it goes dead, almost hoping she’ll just magically reappear.
On Earth, Olivia pulls out her phone, her thumb running over her new pendant as she dials in a number. It rings twice.
“Hey, Mom,” she greets lightly as she walks down the street towards her hotel. “No— yeah, I know. Do you remember when I said that Loki probably won’t be coming for Christmas, seeing as how he was in space jail? Well, I have an update.”