***

Tasha sat at the table across from Loki, quietly pushing food around her plate as Odin and Frigga spoke to one another. Thor was trying to make conversation with her, but she didn't know what to say, so she would just nod.

Loki hated seeing the girl so uncomfortable. She looked sad, and she definitely didn't want to be there in that moment. He decided to screw around with Thor to see if that would cheer her up.

Using his magic, Loki made the god of thunder spill his soup on himself. Thor cursed as he looked at himself but everyone stopped when they heard laughing.

Tasha had covered her mouth with her hand, but she couldn't help the giggles from escaping her mouth. Frigga and Odin smiled.

"So she does have a laugh." Odin smiled at the young girl.

When Tasha had quit giggling like a child, she took a sip of the drink to her left. She made a disgusted face, setting the glass back down before taking a big gulp of water.

Loki, why don't you escort Tasha to her room?
***
Tasha and Loki walked silently through the halls until they came upon a garden. Tasha was in awe at how beautiful it was, and Loki decided to take the long way through rather than around.

"That was you, wasn't it?" Tasha glanced over at him with a smile.

"I don't know what you mean." Loki replied with a sly smile.

"Uh huh." Tasha replied, shaking her head with a smile. "What other things can you do?"

Loki hummed for a moment, holding his hand out to her. "Many things."

Tasha blushed but let him take her hand. In a single moment they were no longer in the garden but in a library.

"How — " Tasha shook her head in disbelief as she looked around the room. "You're amazing!"

Loki smiled at the girl, rubbing the top of her head to tease her. "Perhaps I can teach you someday."

•••

Days had passed since Odin had found Tasha, and she was inseparable from Thor and Loki. From dawn till dusk she was with them both, but when dusk would arrive, she would spend time solely with Loki. She felt safe with him, among other things she wouldn't dare speak of. Instead she kept the thoughts to herself, instead preferring to enjoy Loki's company and listen to him as he spoke.

"Mother says she thinks your ready to remember..."

"I don't know if I want to remember." Tasha replied honestly. "I'm happy. I don't want that to go away, but..."

"But there's an emptiness you can't fill until you know the truth." Loki answered for her.

Tasha nodded. "What if Odin sends me away?"

"Why on earth would he do something such as that?"

"Well, I don't know! I can't even remember last week. What if I'm just a peasant or something?"

"Well, for one, I don't care if you were a princess or a peasant." Loki gently rested his hand on her shoulder. "My father loves you as his own, as does Mother. You've been here a mere few days and already you've become part of our lives. I don't believe any of us would see you go."

Tasha smiled at him, her nerves slowly calming. "I hope you are right."

•••

"Are you ready?"

Tasha stood with Frigga by her side, Loki across from them. She warily looked at them both before nodding. "Yes."

"Magic this strong is nearly impossible to reverse completely. We will do what we can, but ultimately the chances of you remembering everything is very low."

Tasha nodded at Frigga. "Okay. What do I need to do?"

"Take Loki's hands."

Loki grabbed onto her hands, pulling her so she was only a few inches from him. He smirked at her when he noticed her flushed face. "Are you blushing, darling?"

"Loki, don't be cruel." Frigga shook her head, and she couldn't help but smile at seeing her son fawning over someone as good as Tasha.

"I would never be cruel to someone as lovely as Tasha, mother." Loki had a sly smile on his face as Tasha quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Do you usually flirt with every girl you see?"

"Only you, darling."

"You two are like fire and ice." Frigga began moving her hands over their locked ones. "You may feel quite woozy afterwards."

"Don't worry, I'll catch her if she falls."

"Before or after I hit the pavement?" Tasha quipped.

"You got a tongue on you, Tasha." Loki smirked as he began pushing his magic into her body.

"Takes one to know one, Silver Tongue." She teased, wobbling a bit but Loki's grip steadied her. "I feel... really warm? Is that supposed to happen?"

Frigga was quiet as she looked at me. "Loki, do you —"

"Yes, I see it."

"What are you two — woah..." Before Tasha could ask what was wrong, she fell against Loki, gripping onto his top tightly to keep herself upright. She had her eyes squeezed shut as the memories flashed in a single moment.

"Tasha?"

Slowly she opened her eyes as she felt cold hands on her face. Her eyes met green as Loki pressed his hand to her forehead. "You were burning up. How are you feeling?"

"I... I feel tired but I think I'm alright." Tasha slowly pulled away from Loki, slightly disorientated.

"Now, it may take time for the memories to make sense as usually they are simple fragments of moments and not full memories. Loki will keep an eye on you while we wait for your memories to come back."

Tasha nodded, not looking either of them in the eye as her and Loki left towards her chambers. "You know you don't have to baby me, right? I can get my room just fine on my own."

Loki glanced sideways at her, "Mother doesn't want you to be alone. Besides, I thought you enjoyed my company?" He had a teasing smile on his face.

Tasha smiled slightly. "Maybe I do...  I don't mean to be cruel I just — I feel really strange."

Tasha steps came to a halt when they got to her door.

"What do you remember?"

Tasha closed her eyes as she rubbed her forehead. "I remember what my parents look like..." She stepped into her room, allowing Loki to enter behind her. "I think... I think I know why I lost my memories."

"Do you?"

"Mhmm... it was my parents. They said I was too important and I had to live." Her voice trailed off as she sat on the edge of her bed, raising her eyebrows as Loki stood by her door. "Are you in that much of a hurry to get away from me?"

Loki shook his head with a smile. "It's not customary for—"

"Nothing surrounding me is customary. Besides, I doubt your mother intended for you to stand in a corner watching me like a creep."

Loki smirked slightly as he sat beside her. "Are you calling me creepy?"

"Maybe." Tasha teased, pushing his arm playfully. She looked over at him, smiling slightly. "Green looks really good on you."

Loki smiled as she leaned against him. "That's nice of you to say, darling."

"I'm sure you have all the women of the realm wanting your attention." Tasha replied, a hint of jealousy in her voice.

"No, that is Thor. All the women I've met are boring and not at all intelligent. Not to mention utterly irritating."

Tasha smiled at the tone in his voice. "Well, I do hope I'm not boring or irritating."

"You are the opposite of both." He smiled as he glanced over at her.  "In all my years I've never met anyone quite like you. You're different."

Tasha blushed, averting her gaze. "Is that a good thing?"

"It's more than simply good." Loki chuckled. "You should rest, you know. That spell took a lot out of you."

"I'm fine. I'm not tired at all." As soon as she spoke those words she let out a yawn, making Loki laugh.

"You are a terrible liar, my dear." Loki smiled, ruffling her hair. "Lay down. There's no reason for you to stay awake."

"Maybe I'm enjoying spending time with you."

"And perhaps I am enjoying spending time with you." Loki replied with a sly smile. "But what does that have to do with you sleeping? I will still be here tomorrow."

"Yeah, but..." She trailed off with a sigh as she stood, walking over to her vanity. She pushed the brush through her hair to get out any knots, her skin flushing as she felt Loki's eyes on her.

"But what?"

"I feel safe around you..." She admitted with another sigh. "When I'm with you, I know I don't have to worry about anything because you'll protect me..."

Loki stood, slowly making his way to her. "You've had nightmares, haven't you?"

Tasha nodded, setting the brush down before she began to braid her hair. "Every night. I hardly get any sleep. I'm terrified I'm going to fall asleep and I'll wake up and I'll be back in the forest and all of this would be just a dream."

Loki frowned when he heard the fear in her voice. "This is real, I promise you that." He gently rested his hand on her shoulder. "But, if it will make you feel better, I can stay with you..."

"Really? You'd do that for me?" Tasha looked up at him.

"Yes..." Loki replied, getting lost in her eyes as much as he tried not to. He found himself moving his hand from her shoulder, to her waist, pulling her body against his into a tight embrace. "You will never be alone, Tasha. I am here. I will always protect you."

Tasha smiled as she enjoyed his tight embrace. "Thank you, Loki."

Slowly he pulled away from her, shaking his head. "Come on, darling. You look terrible."

"Ouch." Tasha glared playfully and slapped his arm as they moved towards the bed.

"What I mean is you need to sleep. Trust me, you're the most beautiful woman in all the realms." Loki pulled a chair next to her bed, sitting down once Tasha was beneath the blankets.

There was silence for a while as Tasha closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep while Loki began to read, glancing at her every so often. After a few minutes Tasha found herself unable to sleep.

"Hey Loki?"

"Yes, darling?"

"Why are you so nice to me?" She asked as she looked up at him from the bed. "Thor says you're an arse but I've seen little of that behaviour from you."

"I like you. You were so scared when we found you and something made me want to protect you. Besides, I am an arse, just not to you."

"I must be pretty special if I get special treatment from the God of Mischief." Tasha teased, laying her head back down.

"You are." Loki muttered under his breath and it was clear she hadn't heard him.

It took very little time then for her breathing to slow, indicating she was asleep. Loki knee he could leave at any moment, but he didn't want to. He was quite content being there with her. He was tempted to eavesdrop on her dreams, but decided against it. He was glad he had when Tasha began to thrash against the bed. "Tasha?" Loki asked as his book disappeared. He immediately went to her side, putting his hands on her arms to hold her down so she didn't hurt herself. "Tasha! Wake up! It's just a Dream!"

As much as Loki called to her, she wouldn't wake. Loki felt helpless as he watched the poor girl cry out in pain. He was supposed to protect her but how could he protect her from herself? Loki leaned over her, moving one of his hands to her face. "Open up to me, darling... Let me in..."

It took a few moments, but eventually Tasha began to calm down, the thrashing stopped as Loki invaded her dream — which was more so a nightmare. He found her on the ground of the forest, sobbing into her knees. "Tasha." Loki spoke softly as he knelt beside her.

"It's all my fault! Everything is my fault!" Tasha cried as she looked at him.

"None of this is real, Tasha. This is just a nightmare. I'm here, okay? I'm right here." Loki slowly reached out to her, and when she allowed him, he wrapped his arms around her, allowing Tasha to sob against his chest. "I'm here. I won't let anything hurt you. I swear this to you."

When Tasha awoke from her nightmare she screamed and cried, pushing Loki away only to have him hold her arms. "Tasha! Tasha, it's alright! It was just a nightmare..."

"I can't sleep. I don't want to go through that again, Loki! I can't! It hurts —" She sobbed.

"Shhh," Loki pulled her against him as he laid down with her, holding her close as he caresses her back. "It was all just a dream, darling. I promised you, remember? I won't let any harm come to you."

Tasha's sobs slowly subsided as her tears died down. Her grip on Loki's shirt slowly faded until her arm was simply draped across his chest. "Please don't leave me, Loki."

"I'm not going anywhere, love." Loki pressed his lips to her head. "I will never leave you, Tasha."

"Don't make promises you can't keep..."

"I will keep each and every promise I make to you." Loki closed his eyes when he felt her breath against his neck, but ignored the warm feeling it gave him as he focussed on helping her sleep.

Using his magic, Loki was able to do a spell that would keep the nightmares away, allowing only good thoughts to be present. It took only a minute until she was fast asleep against his chest.

It was then the door to the room opened. Frigga walked in quickly, shutting the door behind her. She raised her eyebrows when she saw her son lying with Tasha curled into him. Instead of discipline him, she gave him a small smirk as she walked over to the bed. "Was that Tasha screaming?"

"Yes. She was having a nightmare. I was able to pull her out of it and I believe she'll sleep soundly now."

Frigga didn't miss the way Loki gazed down at Tasha, how his eyes were bright for the first time. Ever since they found Tasha, Loki was happier and it was obvious to everyone around. It was easy to see he had a crush on the girl, even if he refused to admit it. "It seems you've been able to help her quite well, Loki."

Loki felt his cheeks heat up as he kept his gaze away from his mother. "What is your point, mother?"

"No point. I am just glad you and her have bonded so well."

"I've known her a mere few days —"

"Don't push her away, Loki." Frigga frowned. "You're allowed to be happy. It's okay to let her in. You two — it's something rarely seen."

"What do you mean?"

"The soulmate bond. It happens very rarely."

"She doesn't have feelings for me. We are simply friends, nothing more."

"So you admit you do have feelings for her?" Frigga replied with a sly smile.

Loki sighed in annoyance. "Mother — ugh — Yes. She's ... I can't explain it. It's like I was missing something my entire life and when I saw her for the first time everything made sense... but I don't want to rush her into anything, especially if she doesn't reciprocate my feelings. I'm content being her friend."

"Whatever you say, my son." Frigga stood, gently caressing Tasha's cheek. "She is fragile, but strong. She needs you. She needs all of us. I fear her memories will not bring much hope to her heart. If her nightmares are this severe, I can only imagine what her memories are like."

"Do you think we shouldn't have removed the spell?"

"It's what she wanted. Besides, regardless of the outcome, she has a family who loves her, no matter what."

Loki smiled. "You and father wish to keep her, don't you?"

Frigga smiled as she gazed down at Tasha. "She's a beautiful girl — with a pure heart. I believe she was meant to come into our lives. And if she will have us, yes, we would like the honour to call her our daughter."

Loki nodded, but then he had a thought. "That would make her my sister."

Frigga laughed. "You've never cared before what others thought of you. But no, everyone can tell you both are the furthest from siblings. Her and Thor? Yes it's quite evident but with you there has been no doubt that there's a spark between the two of you. If you do decide to pursuit a relationship—"

"Mother, I'm very tired." Loki cut her off, not wishing to speak on the matter any further.

"I will let you get some rest then." Frigga smiled as she walked towards the door. "I will allow you to stay with her whenever you like, but do not break my trust, Loki. You're much more responsible than your brother, and I expect you will not do anything inappropriate?"

"Of course not, mother. I'm nothing like Thor." He smirked.

"Whatever you say, my son. Have a good night, and remember I love you."

"Love you too."

Once Frigga left, Loki let out a deep breath, chuckling when he felt Tasha stir in her sleep. "Rest easy, my dear. You have nothing to be afraid of."

***

A/N: Some more flashbacks of happier times!