Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun approached the throne to see Loki seated upon it, so engrossed in the book he held in one hand, Gungnir, the spear of the king in the other, that he at first failed to register their presence. Though they had witnessed Loki's impromptu coronation, had heard him take the oath, and knew well that they were now the subjects of a new king, they were unaccustomed to the sight of Loki seated in that exalted position. Had it been Thor, the sight would not have been so jarring as they had for quite some time expected him to be the one to succeed his father.

The Warriors Three glanced at each other questioningly, Loki appearing to be ignoring them before they knelt in deference to their new king, placing an arm across their chest as they did so and bowing their heads.

"As I suspected…" Loki said out loud, referencing the story as he snapped the book shut, the three men before him unsure whether he was speaking to them or himself.

"My king..." said Fandral as the tome vanished from Loki's hand before he peered down at the three from the throne.

"As much as I enjoy the sight of you groveling before me...and I most certainly do…" Loki said with a satisfied grin, recalling the many times since his childhood he had been teased and chided by the three now paying homage to him, "We have important matters to discuss," Loki said as he rose and stepped down from the throne, The Warriors Three rising to their feet as Loki walked past them carrying Gungnir, the three turning to dutifully follow their new king.

*****************************

"Will she be alright? She looked so tired," Verda asked Sif as the two women exited Odin's chambers, entering the corridor.

"It is far from the first time she has sat vigil during his rest. She is strong. She will endure," Sif assured Verda.

"There is so much I have to learn. I have no idea what I am expected to do," Verda confessed.

"The most important duty of the Queen is to support her King."

"I'd like to visit the gardens, unless Loki has forbidden it."

"He charged me to remain by your side. He said nothing of restricting your movements."

"You don't mind, do you?" Verda asked.

"It is my duty to accompany you wherever you wish to go, my Queen," Sif said as Verda glanced over at her with an expression of discomfort, "You are now the Queen of Asgard. You must accustom yourself to it."

"You're right," Verda acquiesced with a sigh, a moment of silence passing between the two before Verda continued, "Loki has told me of your feelings for Thor...if he had in time come to return them and had ascended the throne as was Odin's wish, would you have been pleased to become queen?"

"I'm not sure 'pleased' would be the correct word. I would have willingly performed the duties that Asgard and my King expected of me, just as I have always done."

"But would you not have had to sacrifice your life as a warrior?"

"Eventually, for a time, at least. That does not mean I would have ceased to be a warrior. It would not have changed who I am. The king as well must make sacrifices."

"What sacrifices?" Verda asked.

It did not appear to her as if Loki had been forced to give up or fundamentally change anything about himself since taking the oath, at least not to the extent Sif would have been expected to were she to have become Asgard's queen. It hardly seemed fair in Verda's view, especially for someone in Sif's position, who had worked so hard to earn her place.

"How much of your time did you spend before all of this considering the welfare of Asgard, that of the realms? Did you much worry over any of it?" Sif asked.

"Not much. I suppose I assumed all would be well. I was concerned with my own affairs."

"For a king, Asgard and the realms are his affairs, his only affairs. Everything he does, every decision he makes he must have their wellbeing as his primary consideration, even in what would for anyone else be considered private matters. The king must swear to cast aside all selfish ambition, to pledge himself only to the good of the realms. That is why others that call Asgard and the realms home have the freedom to concern themselves with other things, to pursue their own pleasures and ambitions, freedoms that Loki will never again enjoy. It will be quite an adjustment for a man such as himself," Sif explained.

"You do not believe he is up to the task?"

"I did not say that, only that it may be more difficult for him than it would have been--" Sif broke off, pausing for a moment, "You are now my queen. I must ask your permission to say what it is I wish to say," Sif informed Verda.

"You need never ask my permission to be honest with me whether it is in regards to myself or Loki. I want to be told the truth, always. It will serve neither myself nor Asgard to coddle me."

"Spoken like a true queen," Sif said to Verda, appearing somewhat surprised by Verda's words and the confidence in which she had spoken them considering what Sif had witnessed and taken as Verda's seeming complete devotion to Loki, fearing Verda would not wish to hear anything that might be taken as criticism of him, "Though Thor was far from stupid, if it had come down only to intellect, Loki would have been the clear choice to succeed Odin. Yet despite his intelligence, he has always had many blind spots. He is very good at spotting flaws and weaknesses in others but not in himself. That is another of your duties as queen, to make him aware of them, to right him when he may err. It may be the duty that takes up the greatest amount of your time," Sif said as the two reached what was now the King and Queen's chambers, Verda wishing to change out of Sif's clothing, the einherjar standing sentry at the door opening them for the two women.

"On the contrary, he has always been very aware of them, painfully so. The day we met as children, it was he I heard crying in the forest. He would go there to release his pain, his anguish as he wished no one to think him weak. He could not be Thor, he could only be himself. He was so different from the picture others had in their heads of what a Prince of Asgard, what a King of Asgard, should be. All he wanted was to be seen as Thor's equal, to feel that he was equally valued," Verda explained.

"I admit I was often unkind to him," Sif replied, not having expected such a revelation and never having considered it, shame coloring her tone.

"If given a fair chance to prove himself, he will do so." said Verda.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"You may not have wished to be queen, but I would say you are doing quite well."

"I don't say what I do because I am queen. I say it because I know the man he truly is, that he has always been behind the mask he has long worn," Verda was silent for a moment as if pondering a question, "The danger we face is great. We can use all the help we can get. There is something I must try. I'm not certain it will work. I would not usually ask you to keep a secret from your king, but I must do so now."

*****************************

"You would betray your own queen?" Fandral asked, aghast, Volstagg and Hogun appearing equally confounded.

"I will do what I must," Loki said as he stood behind what had been Odin's desk in what had been Odin's study, now his own as king.

"She would never forgive you," Volstagg said as he nervously stroked his beard, discomforted by the scheme Loki had just outlined after enlightening them to all that he had learned on Midgard and the danger they faced.

"If she is willing, why not allow her to fight?" Hogun asked.

"I know what I would become if she were to fall," Loki turned his back to the three, crossing his arms and bowing his head, "When others yearned for my brother's attention and affection, she longed for mine. Unless you are aware of another of which the same can be said, I believe that makes her quite extraordinary, even more so than any relic my father has stored away in the vault."

"Like them you would lock her away?" asked Volstagg.

*****************************

"Randolph is no more," Yerrick said to the woman in the sky blue gown, her long copper hair flowing down her back who stood before a small bar, pouring herself a drink in the windowless room that shared the same cold, gray walls as the others in the compound, yet the decor, the tapestries and the canopied bed gave it a palatial air.

"Good," Lorelei said, pouring a second drink, holding it out to Yerrick, "You have done well. You will be rewarded."

Yerrick took the drink Lorelei offered, using his other hand to remove the mask, revealing his face. Loki lifted the glass to his lips. Setting it down along with the mask onto the bar, he took Lorelei's glass from her hand and placed it on the bar as well before taking her in his arms.

*****************************

Verda and Sif approached the pool in the gardens, the same by which Odin had previously sat. Verda stood by it, gazing down at her reflection. Holding out her hand, the bag containing the Norn Stones appeared within it.

"I'm not sure about this," Sif said warily, recalling the state in which they had discovered Loki in the hotel.

"I'm not asking them to show me anything."

"If anything happens to you it will be me that will be for the axe," Sif said.

Sif watched nervously as Verda in her gown waded into the water of the still and crystal clear pool a few steps before turning around and lowering herself to float on her back for a moment before going under.

*****************************

Verda walked the familiar path through New Asgard, sea water dripping from her hair and gown, as if in a state of shock after her experience, so out of sorts she didn't think of using her magic to dry herself. Those she passed looked at her curiously, both due to her state and the Asgardian gown she wore which, though Asgardian themselves, they had not seen worn by another Asgardian for some time. Finally reaching the door of the familiar abode, Verda stood for a moment, wet and shivering, before taking a breath and preparing herself, extending her arm, her fist closed around the stones, knocking on the door.

"Just a moment…" the familiar voice called out as she remembered having heard so many times before.

Verda braced herself as the knob turned and the door swung open. Thor stood before her, his hair that had once been cut short on Sakkar growing out, reaching his shoulders, his body not yet ravaged by drink. He looked at her with surprise and concern.

"Verda…? Why are you-"

Before he could finish, Verda threw herself at Thor, wrapping her arms around him, the sea water that soaked her gown now soaking through Thor's clothing as she clung to him.

"Did you have an accident?" Thor asked, leading her through the door into the house, closing it behind him, "I'll be right back," Thor said, disappearing into another room and returning with a blanket, wrapping it around Verda like a cloak, rubbing her hair and her arms with it in an attempt to dry and warm her, "Did someone do this to you?"

Verda shook her head, tears escaping from her eyes. As her shivering subsided somewhat, Thor took her in his arms, as much to continue to warm her as to display affection, looking into her face as if he would find answers there, though she only stared silently back at him. Thor moved his lips to hers, Verda returning the kiss.

"No…" Verda said, suddenly turning her head away and stepping back.

"What is it? What's happened?" Thor stepped forward, gripping her shoulders, for the first time noticing the necklace, lifting the pendant in his hand, "Yggdrasil. I haven't seen you wear this before."

"It was a gift from Loki."

"Loki?"

"You haven't been drinking?" Verda asked, scanning the room, noticing the table was devoid of empty bottles before realizing there had been no taste or scent of alcohol on his breath when he had kissed her, reminded why she had chosen this point in time.

"It's a bit early yet. Would you like one? Ale?" Thor turned towards the kitchen.

"Perhaps something stronger?" Verda asked, aware that beer was not the only alcohol Thor had available.

"Yes...of course...please, sit," Thor said, leaving the room and entering the kitchen as Verda took a seat on the couch, wrapped in the blanket.

Thor returned after a few moments with a glass and a bottle of what appeared to be whisky or bourbon and sat beside her, placing the glass on the table and pouring a drink, setting the bottle down and picking up the glass, handing it to her. It was then Verda realized that her right hand still clutched the stones. She opened it, transferring them to her left hand and taking hold of the glass. Thor eyed her left hand, not only due to the mysterious stones he had caught a glimpse of, but the ring he now noticed on her finger.

"Thank you," Verda said downing the drink in one swallow and reaching for the bottle to pour herself another, Thor grasping her wrist.

"Tell me what's happened."

Verda turned her gaze from the bottle to look at Thor, at the concern in his expression mixed with the underlying pain she remembered had always been there since the day they had first met at the cairn.

"I shouldn't have abandoned you. I'm sorry," Verda said sorrowfully, tears once again welling in her eyes.

"Abandoned me? I don't understand," Thor replied, perplexed.

"Loki needs your help," Verda told him, Thor silent for a moment, processing her statement, more confused than before.

"My brother is beyond my help," Thor answered.

*****************************

As the sun began to set, Loki paced the great room of his chambers, two einherjar standing inside on either side of the door. As the doors were opened by the einherjar stationed outside them, Sif and Verda entered. Loki turned to face them, quickly crossing the distance between them.

"Where have you been?" Loki said, sounding upset yet relieved.

"The gardens. Sif was with me. I didn't mean to worry you," Verda said apologetically, embracing him.

"Do you wish me to remain?" Sif asked.

"No. Thank you, Lady Sif," Loki told her, Sif bowing her head before turning and exiting the chambers, "I thought we might have our evening meal and retire early. We've been neglecting our rest."

Verda then realized how tired Loki appeared to be, fatigue overtaking her as well. She looked to the two einherjar by the door and then the two others standing on either side of the doorway that led to the bedchamber.

"We're now husband and wife and I have yet to have any time alone with you. Perhaps once all of this is over we should follow the tradition that Coulson spoke of."

"A tour of the realms," Loki said, taking Verda in his arms, "to introduce them to the most beautiful queen Asgard has ever known."

"You're laying it on thick. Are you seeking forgiveness for some foul deed I'm not yet aware of?" Verda asked, "Your mother is far lovelier. I once thought if only I was as beautiful as she maybe I wouldn't have been afraid to speak to you fearing you would find me hideous."

"If I had found you hideous I would have left you in the pit," Loki said, grinning.

"No, you wouldn't have," Verda laughed, "Did you really boast about my rescue for a week?" Verda asked.

"Nine days. Sif threatened to beat me if I made it ten."

"Perhaps you should have married Sif. It sounds as if she kept you in line. Is that not a queen's duty?" Verda teased.

"A queen has many duties...one in particular comes to mind. Of course my assistance is required," Loki said as he smiled mischievously.

"I thought you were tired. We have yet to have time to enjoy each other's presence and you talk of adding another's. It's not happening with these others present."

"What would they tell anyone? That the king and queen were fulfilling their duties?"