Chapter 19
"Why did I go along with this?" Loki gave Sif his most pathetic look from his position sprawled on a bench.
"Because you were bored of pretending to be asleep. Budge up and make room for a lady to sit."
"Nope, can't move. Too tired."
"Oh really." She pounced, tickling him. He squeaked (oh how she'd missed that squeak, she'd had such fun trying to get it out of him when they were children) and automatically tried to squirm away, half falling off the bench with a yelp of pain.
She immediately stopped, mortified, and kneeled next to him. "Oh crud. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that." She put a hand on his shoulder when he didn't respond immediately. "You alright? Do I need to get the healer? I'm so sorry."
"Ow." He took a deep breath and his position relaxed a little bit, but he remained sitting on the grass rather than returning to the bench. "No. I'll be okay. Jarred my leg pretty hard. You jerk."
"Whoops." Sif blushed, suddenly realizing just how close they were. Their faces less than a foot apart, a silky strand of his hair brushing against her hand where it lay on his shoulder. Gosh that was really silky. Her girly side was jealous. A man had no right to so casually wear looks for which most maidens would have killed. Ivory skin, silky hair, apparent ability to eat absolutely anything without gaining weight. And those eyes! He looked up and they locked eyes by accident for a moment, and all she could think about was how unusual a shade of green they were and how long his lashes were. He blushed too and they both looked away. What the hell was that? He was supposed to be the enemy. Never mind that she was starting to think that maybe he wasn't. She still needed to be on her guard with him, because she didn't quite know what to think of him. She should not be noticing how pretty a man he was.
Loki's thoughts were just as conflicted. He knew that the weird teenage almost-romance between Sif and Thor was over and had been for years, but he didn't remember those years so it was hard to wrap his mind around it not even remotely existing anymore. It felt weird to notice her in this way, but she was looking at him very appreciatively and he had to admit she wasn't unattractive. He liked that she was strong and didn't hide herself behind layers upon layers of petticoats and makeup and frills. She didn't need or expect to be treated like she was delicate, but was still unmistakably female in form. He wondered if that was why the thing with Thor had ended. Had he pressured her, even accidentally, to be like the other ladies at court? Loki was sure Sif wouldn't have taken too well to that.
They both stared awkwardly at the grass for a minute before the silence got too much for Loki.
"Tell me a story." He declared. "I don't like this… hole in time. I want to know of the adventures we had. The times we caught Fandral with his pants off."
That drew a laugh. "There are too many of the latter to count. I'm sure he's bedded every woman in the capitol besides the queen and myself by this point."
"Man-whore." His tone was affectionate. "Tell me a story."
"Hmmm." She leaned against the bench. "Your memories cut off just before your 18th birthday, right?" He nodded. "Well, your party was interesting. Someone had the bright idea of trying to throw you a surprise party. It was actually pretty fun once you got over the shock and we put out the decorations you accidentally set on fire…"