You found out early the next morning why Frigga had been so insistent that you needed to get back to bed. And why she had insisted you needed proper rest. Loki shook and prodded and pestered you awake in the morning. He had to fight through the sleeping potion to get you awake and out of bed. He had to threaten to dump you in a pond outside to wake you up before you finally stood on your own. He steered you to the bathroom and told you that you would feel better after a bath. The hot water did help wash the last of the sleep away.

Loki had left an outfit on the counter outside of the bath for you. You smiled at his thoughtfulness and put on the clothes he had provided. You were surprised that the outfit was was much simpler than yesterday's fancy dress. It was a simple blue tunic and soft black leggings. You ran a bit of magic through your hair to dry it and went to go find your Loki.

He was waiting for you on the couch in his sittingroom reading a book, as per usual. He looked up when you came in and gave you a beaming smile. "Feeling better?" he asked. You nodded; the shower really had helped. He motioned for you to join him on the couch. You kissed him first, but then sat next to him. "Turn around," he told you, taking your shoulders and shifting you so your back was to him. He ran his long thin fingers through your hair and slowly began to braid it, talking as he did. "Mother's potions pack quite punch even for us. I'm not sure she took into account that you're human when she prepared the one for you. I'm glad she was at least not too far off in the preparation. I'll have to let her know she made it a bit too strong for you though. When I was young, I thought it was a punishment for having to be dragged back to bed to have to take one of her sleeping potions. I realized eventually that she intended it as a kindness to make sure I actually got some sleep." You heard the fond smile in his voice. You also didn't mind that he was braiding your hair, it seemed to soothe him and he was surprisingly good at it. You ended up with it braided back away from your face with the rest hanging in loose curls down your back. "We have just enough time to get breakfast before your appointment." He announced when he was finished with your hair.

"What appointment?" you asked, confused. He hadn't told you about any appointments.

He sighed and hesitated, but finally answered when you wouldn't give up. You could stare him into giving up and that was the skill you used not. "I am taking you to see the soul healer," he finally said. He must have sensed your reluctance to go along with that plan. Smart man.

"Loki, I don't need a shrink. I'm fine," you told him heatedly. It wasn't acceptable to openly see psychiatrists on Earth. It showed weakness. At least that's what you'd always believed.

"Darling, I love you dearly, but you are not ok. There is no shame in not being ok. I feel the wounds on your soul and I feel your heart bleeding. If the wounds were on your flesh instead, you would not deny that you must see a healer." His tone was gentle and kind. He was coaxing and you knew you were going to fail. "You might complain about having to stay in the hospital, but you would not deny that you needed to be there," he added with a smirk. Your hatred of the hospital was legendary.

You sighed. "Fine," you finally replied. You didn't have a choice especially since he was right. "But I'm not going to like it," you grumbled instead of laughing. His face fell and he looked sad. You felt bad instantly, he had only been trying to help. "I'm sor-"

"No, darling. You are correct. You will not like it," he said sadly. He pulled you into his arms for his reassurance instead of your. He shook off the mood quickly and stood, pulling you up beside him. "We should go to breakfast before Thor comes looking for us."

You laughed and took his hand. "You could stop Thor with magic," you reminded him, curious as to why he never took that action.

Loki sighed heavily and looked grumpy. "I cannot. There are two reasons: firstly, according to Mother and her many lectures of the years, it is against the rules of fair play in brotherly arguments unless he does something truly offensive; secondly and most importantly, my magic does not work against my brothers," he sounded grumpy. You laughed, but filed that piece of information away.

You had a nice quiet breakfast with Thor and Sif. Odin and Frigga had already eaten and Torun was elsewhere doing toddler things. "Loki, you and Lady Y/N should probably be going soon," Sif reminded him gently when you had dawdled too long at breakfast. You and Loki both looked away from her. You were dawdling and she was ruining our dawdling.

"You are correct, Sister," Loki finally answered. You bid them goodbye and promised to see them later. Loki led you through the palace halls, his arm wrapped around you as you walked. "I'm sorry, love, but this is going to be hell on you. It is important healing, but the process shrinks months and years of emotional and psychological healing into a few hours,"

"That sounds awful," you finally replied, getting scared.

"It will be," he agreed. "But darling, I can feel your soul bleeding from the wounds there." You thought you understood what he meant. You had been raped, had your powers blasted open, and killed two people, all fairly recently. You knew you needed this, much as you hated to admit it.

You entered a room in the healing wing. You stopped short, surprised when you saw Frigga waiting for you. Loki just chuckled at you as he pulled you the rest of the way into the room. "Darling, my Mother is the most gifted healer in the world. You should not be surprised that it is she who will be doing the healing,"

"But she's the Queen," you hissed in his ear while Frigga was laughing at us. Mostly at you you was sure. That was too high an honor for a little earth girl.

Loki rolled his eyes and sighed. "Darling, you forget that you are a princess now that you are my soulbond. It would be an insult for you to be seen by anyone less than the best healer in the realm. Now kindly sit down so Mother can heal you," he steered you into the chair directly in front of Frigga's chair and held you there with his hands on your shoulders.

"Shall we begin, dear?" Frigga asked, holding out her hands palm up. You were scared, but nodded and placed your hands on top of hers. Loki let go of your shoulders when it was clear you was going to behave. An instant later, Frigga and her healing magic were in your mind. She was no-nonsense in her approach to healing. The first thing she did was heal the part of your mind that had gotten blasted away when the blocks on your powers had gotten ripped away. She was able to heal the control centers there when all of the healers at the compound hadn't been able to.

The next hours of healing were hell. You visited all of the memories that were making your soul bleed and worked through your psychological issues with things that had happened, all the way back to the death of your parents. It was years of healing, years of learning to deal with the things you had done, and had been done to you, all condensed into a few long torturous hours. The scars on your soul would always be there, but after the healing, you could live with them and not let them eat you alive.

You and Frigga both blinked back to reality at the same time when the healing spells ended. Loki was waiting for you, reading a book as per usual. He looked up when you moved. "Is it finished?" he asked Frigga. She nodded.

"It is," she replied. She looked tired too, but not nearly as much as you felt. Loki came over to you and offered both of you a hand.

"I have a surprise for my two favorite ladies," he told you both warmly. You both smiled up at him and took his offered hands at nearly the same time. He helped you to our feet, which was necessary as you were both stiff from sitting in the same position for hours. Frigga placed a hand on his arm, apparently used to being escorted by her sons. You took a step back, letting him have the moment with his Mother. He gave you a look, grabbed your hand, and made sure it was on his arm too. "I am escorting both of my favorite ladies," he repeated himself firmly.

You zoned out during the walk, too exhausted from the hours of hell. Thankfully, the walk wasn't long and it ended in a private dining room where Loki had an elegant lunch set out for you. He pulled out Frigga's chair first, and then your. He was looking extra concerned over you. You tried convincing him that you were alright, but stopped before you even started. He would spot the lie. "Do not fear, Y/N. It is perfectly normal to feel fragile after a soul healing. It was also a quite a bit of magic and work, dear. It is also normal to be exhausted. I'm sure Loki has a nice quiet afternoon planned for you," she explained with a smile. You smiled back at her and managed to eat the delicious meal Loki had acquired for you while they chatted and caught up. You tried hard to pay attention to their conversation and join in, but it was so hard when your brain felt like mush and your very soul was sore.

"Thank you for everything today, Mother," Loki told her. "Shall I escort you back to the throne room?" he asked. She smiled at him.

"Anything for you, dear, and it was a pleasure to help your soulbond. I, however, am perfectly capable of returning to the rest of my duties without an escort,"

Loki gave her a look. "Mother..." She held up a hand to stop his protest. He continued anyway. "You raised me to be a gentleman. A gentleman would not leave his mother without an escort," he added. She smiled at him.

"And you will not," she agreed. Torun burst into the room.

"Grandma!" she exclaimed, running to meet Frigga. Frigga had gotten up so she could hug the toddler.

"Right on time, Torun," she told her. "See, my escort has arrived. Thank you for lunch, Loki. I will see you and Y/N at dinner tonight," she looked at you more softly, more gently. "Feel better, dear. It will get better, you promise,"

"Thank you, Your Majesty," you replied formally, standing to curtsy to her. You still weren't sure around her. She was so open and friendly, and obviously loved your affect on her son, but she was also still the queen. The moment she and Torun had left on whatever adventure Torun had planned, Loki swept you up in his arms. You didn't even protest, just wrapped your arms around his neck.

"Quiet afternoon, right?" you asked him softly.

"Nice quiet afternoon," he promised. "Just what you need." He carried you to a quiet nook in a garden surrounded by rose bushes. He summoned the book about Hiccup the Viking for you and you sat in the garden together for the afternoon. "How are you feeling?" he asked, hours later.

"Like my brain is mush and my soul is bruised," you replied, snuggling closer to him on the bench you were sitting on.

Loki chuckled. "That sounds about right," he agreed. You stayed there until the bells tolled in the evening. "We have to go to dinner. I swear we will escape as soon as is seemly," Loki promised you. You sighed, but nodded. He held out a hand to you and when you took it, a brief green light of his magic shimmered over you and you were both dressed in formal wear for the dinner. He held out his arm to you in a formal bow. You giggled and placed your hand on his arm, allowing him to escort you to dinner like a princess, forgetting that here, you actually were one.

Dinner was a long, boring affair and lasted way too long. Especially since Odin kept wanting to steal Loki's attention all night and hold him there talking forever and ever. Thor came over to save you. "Brother, stay and catch up with Father. I will escort your soulbond back to your suite safely," he offered. Loki looked over at you and you saw the pure hope in his expression that his father was actually going to give him some proper attention and maybe some praise.

"I'll see you back at our suite after you've caught up with your Father," you replied. You was trying really hard to be as polite as everyone else in this setting. It was hard when you was so exhausted from the healing earlier. Thor offered you a hand. You took it and let him escort you from the room. "Where's Sif and Torun?" you asked him once you were safely out of the dining hall.

"They returned to our suite already. Torun was sleepy. I will let Sif know you were concerned for her safety. She will appreciate the sentiment," he smiled at you.

"You don't have to walk me home," you told him. "I'm perfectly capable of walking back to Loki's suite alone. You should go be with your wife."

He just gave you a look. "Sister, that is not how things are done. My brother entrusted me with your safety. I do not take that lightly. Also you are my sister. Your protection is my duty. And I like you, little imp. You are good for Loki and you make him happy. The least I can do is see you home after the healing you went through today," you smiled up at him, but tugged him to a stop.

"Hold on for a second," you managed to find enough concentration in your mushy brain to use magic to change your outfit from formal wear to Earth pajamas. You couldn't concentrate enough to focus on clothes that would fit in on Asgard, so your magic picked what you knew. Flannel pajama pants and a short sleeved pajama top. "Much better," you commented and took Thor's arm again.

"My brother has given you the gift of his magic, I see," Thor commented.

You nodded. "It came through the soulbond," you explained. You had a feeling your words were slurring. Thor looked concerned. You held up a hand before he could get any ideas. "I don't need you carrying me to bed," you informed him firmly.

He pouted. "You're no fun," he complained, getting a laugh out of you . He walked you all the way to the door of Loki's suite. "Stay in the suite tonight? I would rather not have to find you in the middle of the night again"

"We'll try, but no promises," you stuck your tongue out at him and ducked into the suite while he was still spluttering.

"Lock the door!" he yelled through the closed door. You sighed, but locked the door as you were bid. You curled up on the couch next to the fireplace with your book to wait for Loki to get back.