Chapter Text
When they woke up, they were back in Loki’s chambers. He’d transported them just before he fell asleep. Sitting up, Loki realized they’d slept through the night, which made him smile. It’d been a long time since he was happy waking up in Asgard.
Charlie slowly roused, blinking her eyes open as the sunlight of the morning streamed in. “Good morning, my love,” she said softly as she caught sight of Loki’s smiling face.
“Morning,” he greeted softly. “How did you sleep?”
“Perfectly,” she answered as she stretched a bit before slowly sitting up. “I always do next to you.”
Loki turned to her and noticed a bruise on her side, furrowing his brow. “Are you hurt?”
“What?” she asked, following his eyes. “Oh… I guess we were a little more rough than I realized.”
“I hurt you,” he murmured.
“Loki,” she said softly, “you didn’t… we were being very physical. Who knows when that happened.”
He frowned and turned back towards the view out his window. “I should have noticed. Should have realized.”
“Baby,” Charlie coaxed, moving onto her knees so she could crawl up beside him. “I like it when you’re rough with me. This is bound to happen.”
He cast his eyes downward and took a deep breath. “I still feel guilty.”
She leaned in and kissed his forehead softly a few times. “I’m not in any pain. I promise.”
Loki let her be affectionate, though his heart still churned. Could the monster in him have wanted to hurt her?
“Talk to me,” she prompted softly. “Don’t get lost in your head.”
Huffing softly, he looked over his shoulder at her. “You know me well.”
She offered him a gentle smile. “I do know you. And I know you can go to dark places in that head of yours.”
“I can,” he agreed. “It just… happens.”
“What’s worrying you?” she asked softly, taking his head in her hands gently.
“If the… if the monster in me wanted to hurt you,” he whispered, refusing to look at her.
Charlie closed her eyes and held him against her. “There is no monster… I don’t believe there’s one in there.”
“There is,” he countered.
“Then let me see it,” she argued. “Let me decide if it’s a monster.”
“I don’t want you to think of me any differently…”
“How could I?” she asked him, kneeling in front of him with his head in her hands. “I love you, Loki. Let me prove to you how much.”
“I don’t want to scare you…” he whispered.
“I won’t be scared,” she told him softly. “You’re still you. No matter what you look like.”
Loki met her eyes as his own turned red, though the hue to his skin stayed the same. “I’m not so sure.”
Charlie frowned softly as she stroked her fingers through his hair. “We’re going to be together forever, Loki… you should let me in,” she coached.
With a sigh, Loki stood. Once he thought he was a safe distance, he let his natural skin take over, removing the look of an æsir. His skin turned blue, covered in ridges and whorls. As he turned to her, his eyes were a vibrant red.
She watched patiently, her eyes taking in the distinct change. But no fear or disgust filled her expression. Slowly, she climbed off of the bed and took a few steps towards him. “Can I touch you?” she asked patiently.
Loki swallowed thickly, wishing that he could hide away. “If… if you want to…”
She approached him, her expression open and accepting. As she reached him, she slowly reached out and rested her hand on his face, turning his head so he’d look down at her. “Loki,” she coached softly, “I still see you.”
“How?” He asked, feeling tears well in his eyes.
A gentle smile crossed her expression as she wiped her fingers beneath his eyes to catch tears that might try to fall. “Because you’re still my Loki… I can still see you.”
“Charlie…”
“What, baby?” she asked him sweetly, her hand caressing his face.
“I… I don’t deserve you,” he whispered, resting his hands on her hips over the simple slip he’d conjured for her. “But I’m forever grateful that you’re mine.”
“You do deserve me. You deserve everything,” she told him surely. “You’ve been treated unfairly, my love.”
Loki let her hands explore his bare chest, feeling the raised lines and patterns on his skin. “You’ve rendered me speechless,” he whispered.
Nothing about his appearance made her back away from him. Gently, her fingers traced the scarred skin and she turned her eyes up to look into his. “I love you,” she told him sweetly.
“I love you,” he replied as he watched her. His stomach tensed as she gently followed a swirl. “All uh… all Jonas have raised lines and patterns along their skin… it can help identify others.”
“They’re beautiful,” she told him wistfully. “Intricate patterns…”
“Thank you,” he replied softly.
She turned her eyes back up to his once more and smiled up at him. “Will you kiss me?” she asked him tenderly.
“L-like this?”
Charlie nodded patiently. “Like this.”
Loki took a breath. “If… if you want to.”
She smiled softly as she reached up and cradled his face. Slowly, she rose up on her toes and found his lips in a sweet kiss.
He kissed her back, hands on her hips, letting her lead.
She kissed him a second time, deepening the kiss as she did. She angled her head and caressed his cheek with her hand.
The action made Loki tighten his grip on her, opening his mouth to her. When she pulled away, he watched as vapor left her mouth. “Too cold?”
“No, just interesting,” she replied with a smile. “I’ve never kissed anyone so cold before.”
“I’m not hurting you am I?” He asked.
Charlie shook her head. “No, though I couldn’t have kissed you for too much longer, I think,” she observed. “My lungs were getting cold.”
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said softly.
“You won’t,” she assured him. “You won’t let yourself.”
“I’m glad you’re confident in me.”
“Do you not feel confident in you?” she asked curiously, angling her head.
Loki shook his head as his skin slowly bled to a normal tone once more. “Not about that…”
“You’re just worried. You don’t need to be,” Charlie told him. “I have all of the faith in the world in you. You would never hurt me intentionally.”
“I never want to,” he assured.
“I know, baby,” she told him surely, cradling his cheek with her hand. “And you won’t.”
He took a breath and rested his head on her shoulder. “Now you’ve seen me…”
“And nothing bad happened,” Charlie remarked, resting her hand on the back of Loki’s head.
“This time,” he said softly.
She sighed softly and nodded, turning her head to press a kiss against his temple. “This time. But I trust you, my love.”
“I trust you too,” he told her.
She smiled sweetly and kissed his temple again. “We’ll figure out all we need to, together,” she told him.
Loki kissed her forehead as he wrapped his arms around her. “I need to speak with Odin.”
Charlie furrowed her brows. “Why?”
“I want to know about the issue with Jotunheim,” he answered.
She nodded in understanding. “You want to resolve it…” she observed.
“I do,” he nodded. “I also want to know how safe we really are.”
“That would be good to know,” she agreed with a gentle nod. “If we have to find somewhere else to be… then I suppose we should start looking.”
“Exactly,” he nodded. Loki flashed a brilliant green before it dimmed, revealing his more formal Asgardian clothing.
Charlie reached up to brush his hair back behind his ear before she leaned in to kiss his cheek. “I’ll be here whenever you’re finished with your father.”
At the sound of the word, Loki barely tensed, though it didn’t show on his face. “Feel free to explore. See the gardens. You don’t have to stay cooped up in here.”
“I will,” she told him, caressing the side of his face gently. “I’m not cooped up, my love. I promise I’ll leave the room.”
He bent to kiss her sweetly, lingering a few moments. “I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you more,” she replied with a small, knowing smirk.
He chuckled before bending to kiss her again. “I won’t be gone too long. Till lunch at the most.”
“I’ll see you when you’re finished,” she told him sweetly, swatting him away from her.
Loki laughed and nodded before he turned and left the room. He knew exactly where his father would be.
~~~~
“Loki, my boy,” Odin greeted. “What brings you to my company?”
“I wanted to speak with you,” Loki answered as he closed the door to Odin’s office behind him.
Odin gestured to the seat across from his desk. “Please.”
Loki nodded and stepped forward. “I didn’t know if you were holding court, but I wanted to come.”
“I’m happy to hold court with you,” Odin replied. “You seem… troubled. Tell me why.”
“I’m worried about my safety and Charlie’s,” Loki answered as he rested his hands on the back of the chair.
Odin sighed and nodded. “Understandably,” he said stoically. “I’m worried about that as well. The Frost Giants are being more aggressive than I’ve seen them in some time.”
“What would cause this?” He asked. “Why now?”
“Your return has stirred them up,” Odin replied. “My hope is that it settles down without anymore attacks. We have raised the security tenfold.”
“I haven’t done anything,” Loki countered.
“Something about you being here has upset them,” Odin said. “We need to understand why. Though I’m not sure they’ll tell us peacefully.”
Loki huffed. “Would they follow us to Midgard?” He asked.
“I don’t know,” Odin advised. “I just worry that if they know where you are, they’ll come for you.”
“I worry the same.”
“And without us there to help protect you,” Odin pointed out. “At least on Asgard, you have our power behind you.”
“I get that… but there’s no way of telling her friends and family where we’ve gone,” he replied.
Odin pursed his lips and sighed. “We could… accompany you to Midgard to give them an explanation,” he reasoned. “Then return.”
Loki furrowed his brow. “You’d do that?”
“Charlie is important to you, and Midgard is important to her. I doubt you’ll let up until her loved ones know where she’s gone,” Odin answered.
“Not likely…”
“That’s the Loki I know,” Odin replied with a faint smirk.
“I haven’t changed,” he countered.
“You’ve changed some,” Odin pointed out. “You’re not the selfish Loki I once believed you were. Your heart… it’s bigger than I knew.”
Loki stood upright and crossed his arms over his chest. “That’s what happens when you find the woman you love.”
“I’m familiar with that myself,” Odin said of Frigga. “I would protect your mother from anything.”
“And I would protect Charlie… no matter the cost.”
“I trust that you would. I’ve seen the love you have for the woman,” Odin replied. “And she is Asgardian now, so she has the protection of our armies.”
Loki nodded, liking that confirmation. “Thank you… it truly means a lot.”
Odin nodded. “I’m growing fond of her. She doesn’t hold her tongue, much like your mother.”
“No,” Loki chuckled. “She speaks her mind.”
“I approve,” Odin smiled. “Alright, so… we’ll go to Midgard. Has she thought about what she’s telling everyone?”
Loki shook his head. “I wanted to surprise her.”
“She’ll like that?” Odin asked. “A surprise trip to Midgard?”?”
“It’s her home,” he shrugged. “Her first home.”
“Then make the plans and we’ll go,” Odin told Loki.
Loki nodded again. “I’ll talk to her this afternoon.”
“Inform us of the plans when you have them,” Odin said, giving his son a sure nod.
“I will.” Loki turned and walked back towards the door. “Any information you can get about what’s going on… I’d like to have.”
“You’ll be the first to know,” Odin offered.
Loki nodded once more before he left Odin’s office. It was the first time everything had not ended in some sort of argument… and he didn’t know how to feel about it.
~~~
Meanwhile, Charlie had made her way to the gardens. She was settled onto an ornate bench, her legs tucked beneath her as she read a book.
“Noche! Get back here!” Frigga called as she quickly walked through the gardens after a young boy when she spotted Charlie. “Sorry dear… have you seen a young boy run past?”
Charlie looked up from her book and offered Frigga a soft smile. “No, I haven’t. Do you need help looking for him?” She offered.
“Possibly… he’s a little scamp, like his cousin.”
“I can help,” Charlie replied, closing her book before she stood up off of the bench. “His name is Noche? What does he look like?”
“He’s small, blonde haired like Thor,” Frigga sighed. “He's my sister's little boy.”
“Alright, I’ll look,” Charlie replied, brushing her fingers back through her long hair before she began to look around. “Noche!” she called, looking behind some topiaries.
As they both looked, Frigga could hear a distant giggle. “Noche if you’re using magic to hide…”
“That’s cheating,” Charlie said with a soft smile, continuing to look around.
“I wonder if he’s hiding with Thor,” she mused. “He was excited to find his big cousins.”
“Where is Thor?” Charlie asked, smoothing her hands over the dress she wore as she walked beside Frigga.
“He was sparring… still could be,” Frigga mused.
“Sounds like Thor,” Charlie said with a fond smile. “Loki went to go talk to Odin so Noche probably isn’t with him.”
“Odin, hm? I hope that goes well for him.” Frigga turned down a pathway, headed towards the sparring ring.
“So do I,” Charlie agreed with a nod as she followed the other woman. “Their relationship seems like it’s improving… I only hope that continues.”
“So do I, child. They have been at one another for far too long,” Frigga replied.
As they approached the sparring ring, they could hear Thor’s movements and heavy breathing. “Well, Thor’s still here…”
“Tor! Tor!” A small voice yelled.
“Seems we found him,” Frigga sighed. As they rounded the corner, Thor could be seen as he sparred with a trainer. But it was the scene on the edge of the ring that made her smile. Loki stood, wearing dressed down clothing, holding young Noche on his hip, smiling as the boy hollered for his cousin to win.
Charlie stopped and smiled, simply watching Loki with the boy. He was a natural with children, it seemed, as much as he worried about having his own children. Slowly, she began to approach.
Seeing her from across the sparring ring, Loki smiled wider. “Darling…”
Charlie’s smile grew as she approached. “Look at you two,” she said with a grin as she stepped up next to Loki and the young boy. “Want to introduce me?” she asked gently.
Loki nodded. “Noche, this is my betrothed. Charlie.”
“Hi Noche,” she greeted with a gentle smile.
“Hi,” Noche replied before he tucked his head into Loki’s arm. ’s .
“He’s a little shy,” Loki replied. “But he’s a good boy.”
“Shy ain’t bad,” Charlie told Noche softly as she leaned into Loki’s side. “But I promise I won’t bite.”
“Not unless you ask,” Loki whispered, making Charlie slam him in the shoulder.
“Loki…” she scolded playfully, nudging him a bit before she returned her attention to the young boy. “You’re very good at hide and seek, Noche,” she told him truthfully.
The boy turned toward her slightly. “I am?”
“Oh yes,” Charlie replied. “Frigga and I looked for you all over the gardens.”
“Aunt Frigga?” Noche asked.
“Yes,” she affirmed. “You got away from her and did a good job of hiding.”
“Naughty sausage,” Frigga commented as she caught up to them after watching Thor a bit.
Charlie laughed softly and stepped into Loki’s free side. “You aunt’s got you now!”
“You’re lucky you found your cousins,” Frigga stated. “I was trimming flowers and turned and you were gone…”
“Noche, that’s not what you told me,” Loki scolded.
“It’s not good to lie,” Frigga said, shaking her head.
“What did you tell Loki, hmm?” Charlie asked.
“That… aunt Frigga said to find him,” Noche murmured.
“Noche,” Frigga said softly, “I’m charged with caring for you today. You can’t run off.”
“I’m sorry…” the boy murmured.
“Did you just want to play with Loki and Thor?” Charlie asked gently.
Noche nodded. “I wuv my cuzins.”
“And they love you too,” Frigga replied softly. “Loki, are you assuming ownership of the young one?”
Loki chuckled and nodded. “For now, I can.”
“Then I’ll go see to it that dinner is started,” Frigga replied. “Take good care of him and I’ll see all of you at dinner.”
“I will,” Loki assured.
“What do you want to do, Noche?” Charlie asked curiously.
“Play,” Noche answered.
“What would you like to play?” she asked with a gentle chuckle.
Loki smiled. “Noche likes to play warriors, chasing us with a small practice sword.”
“Ooh, that sounds fun,” she replied, offering the young boy an easy smile. “Do you mind if I watch?”
“We can play here in the sparring ring,” Loki added, causing Noche to nod.
“I wanna beat Tor.”
“You want to beat the mighty Thor?” Thor’s voice thundered as he approached the group. “You’ve got to be strong and cunning!”
“I can do tat!” Noche announced.
“Let’s see it then!” Thor encouraged.
“Go, Noche!” Charlie cheered.
Loki let the boy down and watched Noche dart into the arena towards Thor. “You can take ‘em!”
Charlie chuckled softly as she watched Noche before she leaned into Loki’s side. “You’re good with him,” she told him sweetly.
“Thank you.” Loki replied. “He makes it easy.”
“You have a knack with kids,” she observed. “You must make them at ease.”
“Eh… maybe family. Being surrounded by them can be daunting,” he replied.
Charlie chuckled softly with a nod. “Yes, a crowd of children can be a little intimidating,” she agreed, slipping her hand into his.
“They tend to flock to me or Thor in the markets… and it can be quite much. But I do enjoy them.”
“I like to see it,” she told him warmly. “Makes me wonder… how you’ll be with ours if we have them.”
“Ours?” He asked, turning to focus on her. “Do you want children?”
“I… never thought I’d be able to,” she mused. “I thought I’d be gone before I ever had that possibility. Now, though…”
Loki gave her a soft smile. “It’s on your mind.”
She shrugged softly. “A little,” she answered, turning her eyes out to watch Thor pretend to spar with the young boy.
“We can talk about it,” he replied. “Talk about options.”
She nodded faintly, glancing back up at him. “Okay,” she agreed, smiling softly. “I know the idea makes you a little nervous…”
“Nervous… frightened… I don’t want any child to be like me…”
Charlie closed her eyes and sighed, dropping her forehead to rest it against Loki’s shoulder. “Loki…” she breathed softly.
“What?” He asked.
“I wish… you would stop thinking of yourself as a monster,” she told him gently.
Loki nodded as he watched Thor pretend he’d been stabbed, falling to the dirt. “I’m trying…”
“Please do,” she said quietly. “Loki, I… I want…” She stopped herself, shaking her head. Now wasn’t the time. “Let’s talk about this later this evening…”
“Okay,” he told her.
She returned her attention to Noche, who was now on top of Thor. She clapped as she pushed a smile back onto her face.
“You’ve slain me!” Thor cried.
“Good job, Noche!” Charlie celebrated. “Do you need to go in there and help your brother?” she asked, nudging Loki.
Loki chuckled. “Oh… he can suffer a bit longer.”
Noche jumped on top of Thor and continued to pretend to pummel him. “Do you think your brother wants children?” she asked Loki curiously.
“Oh, yeah. He just hasn’t found his person…”
“He will,” Charlie replied confidently. “He’s just not done having fun yet. I can tell.”
“My brother is all about fun… nothing else,” Loki countered.
“For now,” she nodded in agreement. “But one day he’ll meet the right one and it’ll all be over for him.”
Loki chuckled. “One day.”
“You’ll be a wonderful uncle,” she told him sweetly, nudging him a bit with her hip.
“Of course,” he agreed. “The best.”
Charlie rested her head against his shoulder. “I’m getting chilly. I think I’ll head back to our room to change before dinner,” she told him.
“Sure.” He looked down at her. “Are you alright?”
She nodded with a soft smile. “I’m alright. Maybe a little tired,” she said, standing up on her toes to kiss him. “I’ll see you soon?”
“You will,” he agreed.
“I love you,” she told him sweetly before she turned to make the walk back to their room. She felt a heaviness in her heart… the way Loki saw himself, it made her so sad.
Loki sighed as he watched her go. He knew he’d upset her. But he couldn’t take back what he’d said. He didn’t know how.
Thor pushed himself up off of the ground chuckling. He looked over to Loki and furrowed his brows. “Penny for your thoughts, brother?” he asked as Noche nearly climbed him to get into his arms.
“I upset her,” he sighed, then walked to sit on a bench.
Thor angled his head in confusion. “How?” he asked, shifting the young boy from side to side.
“I told her I had never thought of having children… because of what I am.”
Thor made a face, wrinkling his nose. “The frost giant thing again?” Thor questioned.
Loki sighed. “Yes… why?”
“You always go back to that. You live in fear of it,” Thor pointed out.
“Why do you say it’s in fear?”
“Fear is an emotion triggered by the perception of danger, real or imagined,” Thor said rather impressively. “You believe your Front Giant nature means you’re dangerous.”
“Because they are… I’ve seen it,” he countered.
“But you weren’t raised there. You weren’t raised to be like them,” Thor suggested. “You’re different.”
“I wasn’t raised to respect them or even know about them much either,” he countered.
Thor sighed. “I know. And maybe… that wasn’t fair of Father to teach us. But you could change that with your own child.”
“I would hope too…” Loki raised a brow at his brother. “Do you know something I do not?”
Thor scoffed. “Is that likely?” he asked knowingly.
Loki sighed. “I guess not.”
“You want there to be some magic answer?” Thor asked.
“No… it’s just difficult to get past it…”
“But not impossible,” Thor said in his hopeful way. “For the woman you love? Might be worth it.”
“But… how?”
“You’ll have to figure that out yourself, brother,” Thor told him with a shrug. “I can’t solve that for you.”
Loki sighed. “It makes me feel lost…”
Thor put Noche back down to let him run a bit and walked over to Loki. He placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Charlie is your anchor. Just focus on her.”
“My anchor, yes. Though I fear she might detach from me at any moment. Being here again is… being home. But it’s brought all of those stresses back. On Midgard I was just… me…”
“That woman doesn’t seem to want to detach in any way,” Thor shared. He sighed softly. “You can… always return to Midgard.”
“Odin thinks it’s too risky to stay…” Loki countered. “With the… the giants… angered.”
Thor brushed that off. “Father worries,” he sighed. “You’re planning to go between the two places, aren’t you?”
Loki nodded. “Hopefully.”
“We can keep an eye on the Jotuns, you enjoy your life, Loki.”
“I’m not so sure…” Loki replied quietly.
“Do you not trust us to keep you and your loved one safe?” Thor asked curiously.
Loki sighed as he watched Noche play in the sand of the sparring area. “I didn’t say that… I’m just on edge.”
Thor stood beside his brother, watching the young boy. “Loki… do you want to be a father?” He asked plainly.
“I never thought of it… before. Now… a child with her eyes… her hair…”
Thor smiled fondly. “It would be a beautiful child.”
“It would,” he sighed.
“Just think about it. For Charlie,” Thor suggested.
Loki nodded as he took a large breath. He watched as Noche used his magic to make an area of wet sand so he could build.
Thor lowered himself onto a bench to watch the young boy. “I can’t wait to have one of my own.”
“You’ll have your own army,” Loki chuckled as he sat beside him.
“If I’m lucky,” Thor agreed with a chuckle of his own. “Just need to find a Charlie of my own.”
“You will,” Loki mused. “I’m sure of it.”
“As am I,” Thor said confidently. “Though finding another Charlie… that feels unlikely.”
Loki looked at Thor. “She wouldn’t be another Charlie. She would be something else entirely. Someone perfect for you.”
“I know… I just want the kind of relationship I see the two of you having,”
“You know… she does have friends… back on Midgard…”
Thor chuckled and slapped his large hand on Loki’s back. “Going to hook me up with one, are you?”
“I can ask?” Loki suggested.
“You think a Midgardian could handle me?” Thor smirked.
Loki raised a brow. “If Charlie can handle me… I think someone could handle you.”
The larger man chuckled. “Maybe so. I’m certainly open to the prospect.”
“I’ll ask Charlie,” Loki nodded.
“Thank you,” Thor said appreciatively. He sighed then. “I’ll take Noche back to his mother. I’m heading that way anyway.”
“Okay,” he nodded. “I need to talk to Charlie.”
“You do,” his brother agreed. “Best of luck to you. Just remember, Loki - you’re not a monster. And your child wouldn’t be either.”
Loki swallowed hard. “I’ll try to.”
“Noche, come,” Thor said, standing. He picked up the little boy as he ran to him and offered Loki another smile before walking away.
After calming himself with a couple of breaths, Loki made the trek up through the palace and to his rooms where he knew Charlie would be waiting.