As Sif had predicted, her actions were frowned upon by every citizen in the realm, or so it seemed. Word of her speaking out in favour of the 'Father of Lies' as Loki had now been dubbed, spread through the kingdom like wild fire. She now feared that she was loathed almost as much as he himself was.

The gossip-mongers seemed to be thriving from her downfall, adding fuel to the fire by speculating on what had driven Asgard's only Lady warrior to turn against her fellow Aesir in such a way.
"She has been bewitched by the wicked Loki!"
That was one of the kinder rumours, as opposed to;
"She is a witch herself and has been in league with him all along!"
Unfortunately for her however, it was this latter view that was favoured by the majority.

Three days had passed since Sif's audience with Odin. She had heard no further news regarding Loki's fate. She longed to ask Thor but did not wish to anger him further.
The situation had indeed created much unease within the house of Odin. Thor appeared to be avoiding her altogether, whereas Balder acted very cagey whenever in her presence.

She began to question her sense of reason again, for surely Thor loved his brother unconditionally? As kin should. So how great an impact had Loki's actions had in order to drive Thor to all but disown him?

Thankfully she found some comfort from Hogun, though grim he was undeniably wise.
"It is the mortal.."
He claimed,
"Thor feels deeply for her, and this is why he now loathes Loki so...He invaded her realm. The realm Thor had sworn an oath to protect."

Volstagg also treated Sif kindly, much to her relief. His light-hearted attitude helped cheer her, and listening to his stories and banter kept her mind occupied.
Fandral was as painfully honest and open as always,
"I still cannot understand what you were thinking!"
He mused, for what seemed like the hundredth time,
"Loki..of all people! How is it possible for you to feel compassion for one such as he?!"

And for the hundredth time, Sif chose to ignore him. She could think of nothing to say in her own defence. How could she possibly begin to explain her actions to others, when she didn't even understand them herself?

Still, however awkward the atmosphere was within the palace....things were about to get worse.

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

That evening as everyone gathered in the banqueting hall, laughter rang out around the table as Volstagg animatedly retold one of his more infamous tales.
Voices suddenly lowered to hushed tones. Sif looked up from the feast of sweet meats, bread and fruit that was piled high upon silver platters, suddenly aware of the silence that had descended.

She caught Hogun's eye, and sensed from his reaction that she ought to look behind her. He didn't have to speak a word, his expression said it all.
Slowly she glanced over her shoulder, and just as she feared...there he was.
Framed in the doorway, arms folded across his chest and his green eyes surveying the merry scene before him.

"Loki!"
Frigga exclaimed from the head of the table.
Odin sat silently at her side, his expression stoic. She rose from her chair and gestured to the table,
"Come join us my son, please eat."

The whispering around the table grew more frantic, and Sif almost felt nervous for Loki. Which was ironic as she could never imagine he himself suffering with an attack of nerves.

At last he spoke; his voice quiet and as articulate as always,
"Thank you no, I am eager to return to my chambers and change my attire before sitting down to dine."

Frigga nodded and smiled gently at him, the fondness in her eyes clear for everyone to see. It was very touching.
And with that Loki excused himself and was gone as quickly and silently as he'd appeared.
The chattering seemed to errupt instantly the moment he left the room. Sif noticed Hogun looking at her quizzically.

"What is it Hogun?"

"You are not eating, and you have paled in colour."
He stated,
"What ails you, Lady Sif?"

His gaze was too scrutinizing, but she managed to force a small laugh.
"Why, Hogun you remind me of my mother. Nothing ails me, I assure you."

Sif knew she was not convincing him, she was fighting hard to convince herself.

Once the meal was over she managed to slip quietly away. She did not feel like joining in with the drinking and singing. Her mood was low. Thor had seemed in high spirits, until Loki had made his brief appearance. After that he drank more deeply and laughed a lot less raucously.
When Sif had approached him, his face darkened further.

"I have no wish to quarrel with you Thor...but you cannot keep avoiding me either!"

The Thunder God took a huge swig from his tankard then answered curtly,
"In order for me not to quarrel with you Sif, I must continue to avoid you.."
He rose to his feet rather unsteadily, somewhat worse for wear from drinking too much mead, then added,
"..for now at least."

Now as she wandered along the decorative hallways; the candle light dancing shadows upon the walls as she passed by, a realisation suddenly occurred to her.
If Loki was now free to roam the palace as he so wished, then clearly the Allfather must have taken her advice!
This pleased her immensely, but her jubilation was soon replaced by yet another concern...
Hadn't Loki claimed to be going to his chambers?
Looking up at the heavy, oak-panelled doors which were before her, she was filled with confusion.
Gripped by the urge to discover the meaning of her incoherent actions, she found herself hammering on the door.

She was beginning to grow impatient as it seemed to be taking him an inexplicably long time to answer, when at long last one of the doors swung upon.
The sight of an alarmingly underdressed Loki, with hair dripping wet,  clad only in a robe, caught her completely off guard and rendered her temporarily speechless.

Loki however was not embarrassed, merely slightly put-out by having been disturbed.
"Was all that hammering absolutely necessary? For a moment I suspected an angry mob at my door, come to lynch me!"
He exclaimed haughtily, leaning idly against the door frame.

"I, no.....I just....it does not matter, I see I have interrupted you."
She stammered awkwardly, and made to leave but Loki spoke quickly.

"Well you have already interrupted me, mistress. You may as well say what you wished to now you are here, otherwise I have been disturbed for nothing."

He stood aside and held the door open, and cautiously she stepped inside.
It was the first time she had ever been inside his chambers. And what a curious sight to behold; everywhere the eyes fell upon something mysterious and magnificent.
Shelves groaned under the weight of books. A large workbench in the corner was barely visible under the mountain of glass bottles of various colours, no doubt containing potions. Scrolls, ink pots, crystal balls and feathered quills. A number of different shaped crystals hung from the ceiling, highly decorative curtains hung from the canopy around the large ornate bed. Scented oil burned; emitting a thin trail of smoke, whilst the doors which led out on to the balcony were open, the transparent drapes blowing slightly in the breeze, and the sun setting beyond them cast a warm glow across the room.

Her concentration returned with an unforgiving jolt as he proceeded to walk passed her, back to the bathing area which was situated up four deep stairs. His bathing pool, much like her own, was set into the black marble floor. She could not help but notice, though she desperately tried not to, the way in which the thin material of his robe clung to his wet form mercilessly; outlining each defined curve and muscle.

"Loki, I shall go in order to allow you your privacy."

Apparently oblivious to Sif's embarrassment, he simply turned away from her and began to loosen the robe, his deft fingers making easy work of the knot.
She felt her throat constrict as it fell to the floor, and lowered her eyes quickly, silently scolding herself inwardly as she felt the heat rise in her face.
It was not as if she had not seen a naked man before. So why was she quivering like a youngster who had never before set eyes on a male body?

She could hear him splashing the water over himself now. Apprehensively, she looked over to where he now sat, thankfully his lower body immersed by the water.

"Well?"
He asked, looking at her expectantly.

"I....I need to speak with you urgently."
She managed with some effort, her mouth felt incredibly dry.

Loki smirked openly at her,
"Well obviously I had assumed so, otherwise why would you be here?"

Sif did not hide her exasperation, why did he have to make even the simplest of conversations difficult?
"I seek answers for things I do not understand."

Loki closed his eyes and laid back casually, allowing the warmth of the water to sooth his aching joints.
"More answers? I have done all I can to help you already."

Sif could feel her agitation rising, he did not even have the courtesy to look at her whilst she addressed him. He lay there blissfully indifferent to her presence.
"Yes and whatever it is that you've done, I want to know why."

Loki's eyes snapped open.
"Is it not obvious? I tried to help you to understand. To enable you to see what you may have previously missed."

"But what exactly have you done to me Loki?"
She demanded,
"I no longer feel as if I am in control of my own mind or body. For example, I am here right now, but it was not my intention to come!"

Loki frowned, still smiling slightly...much to her irritation.
"But you just said you have come seeking answers, yes? So is that not why you are here?"

"Well, yes but-"
She paused briefly, painfully aware that what she was saying would not make sense to anyone who wasn't actually experiencing it themselves,
"I did not set out to come here...it is only now that I find myself at your door that I have decided to speak with you, so that you might explain the reason for this."

Much to her dismay, even he looked at her as if she had lost her senses.
"Why do you seem to think I am the cause?"

Sif narrowed her eyes at him sceptically.
"Because you yourself admit to having tampered with my mind!"

He chuckled now, as if to himself,
"My dear Lady, that was several days ago. Besides, my simple act of opening your mind would not lead you to be taking leave of your wits."

Sif stared at him in disbelief, resentment growing within her. Yet at the same time her eyes took in the way the light cast an almost celestial glow around him, making him look like an ethereal beauty. Like some fallen angel cast out of the heavens.
He appeared completely oblivious to it, but a battle was raging on within her. She wanted to be on her guard, to be angry at him, yet at the same time she was finding it difficult to remain focused.
Her traitorous mind was assaulted by an unwanted image of his wretched mouth, claiming her own in a forbidden kiss.

"Loki, I demand to know what it is you are doing?!"
She kept her voice and expression as steady as she could, but her inappropriate thoughts made her prickly and on edge.

He laughed again, not bothering to hide his amusement.
He was mocking her, the bastard.
"Oh my, you are in a daze....it is plain for anyone to see that I am bathing."

Sif shot forward up the stairs before she could think better of it.
"Enough! I tire of these games sly one! You have bewitched me and I demand you release me from whatever poisonous spell you have weaved!"

Loki rested his elbows on the edge of the pool behind him, emphasising his smooth, well-defined chest. His chin tilting upwardly at her in defiance.
"I have not done any such thing and perhaps you should be aware of all the facts before you wrongly accuse me."

She folded her arms firmly across her chest,
"What facts do you speak of?"

He appeared to be growing agitated now, as he ran a hand through his wet hair. His expression turning fierce,
"The great Allfather, in all his infinite wisdom, has stripped me of my powers...he claims that my keeping them is not an option if I am to remain in the palace!"
He brought his fist down angrily into the water,
"I would rather be exiled than lose all of my magical abilities!"

Slowly Sif sank to her knees so she was at eye level with him. She could see the frustration he felt and could not help but pity him.
"Loki, you do not mean that-"

"And how would you know?!"
He interjected gruffly, eyes filled with contempt.

At that, she couldn't help but feel wounded. She had sacrificed so much for him. Alone, she had pleaded his case to Odin and faced ridicule from everyone for having done so.
"Loki, if you were to be banished it would only cause you greater harm, you are much safer here in the palace amongst your fellow Aesir."

"But I am not of the Aesir am I Sif? Do not deny that you aren't aware of my true parentage!"
His voice was filled with hatred but she could also detect a hint of shame.

She longed to reach out and touch him, to comfort him, but did not dare.
"Whatever your father was, your mother was an Asgardian, so do not reproach yourself. This was once your home and it is where you belong."

Loki did nothing to hide his irritation,
"That is a pretty speech, tell me, were they the words you used to persuade Odin to allow my return?"

At that Sif jumped to her feet, consumed by anger,
"You do me wrong, Loki. It was I alone that spoke out in your defence, and in doing so I have brought shame upon my family. I am slighted and shunned by those who once respected me......and I did it for you!"

"And why have you done that? Tell me Sif, you're a warrior are you not? So since when did you become a missionary? What will you gain from committing yourself to such a lost cause?"

In all honesty Sif could not even begin to explain to Loki why she had done the things she had done. She was beginning to question her sanity.
His green orbs bored into her intrusively, causing the new emotions she had begun feeling to swirl inside. Such feelings were alien to her, and uneasiness consumed her.

"I do not gain anything....I merely.."
She hesitated, not knowing what to say.
Much to her annoyance she felt the heat returning to her cheeks. A light sweat had broken out on her brow, and she could not allow him to see her so flustered.
"It does not matter. I must go, I cannot speak to you if you are to remain in there-"

"Why?"
He challenged her, in a commanding tone.

"It is, unseemly and...."
Her words trailed off. How could she admit that the sight of him here was just too distracting?

"Unseemly?"
He echoed, raising an elegant eyebrow at her.
"We are far from public view now, Sif. I think we can dispense with protocol for now. Unless of course, you simply don't trust yourself around me?"

"W-what?"

He grinned at her wickedly, looking every bit the devil he was.
"Is my state of undress affecting you in some unexpected way? Is that it?"

"You are insufferable!"
She hissed, stumbling over her own feet in her haste to head for the stairs, then just before she reached the door he called out after her.

"Have I struck a nerve, my Lady?"

"No you have not!"
She lied, though she would rather die than admit such a thing to him. Choosing instead to use her anger as an antidote for the unsettling truth.
"You have offended me, and I find your humour almost as distasteful as your ingratitude!"

"Ingratitude? Pfft! You do not know what your actions have unleashed Sif."

Sif glared back at him over her shoulder,
"My actions have enabled you to remain here in comfort and safety. Not that you appreciate this right now, as you are too blinkered whilst you mourn the loss of your sorcery!"

She proceeded to open the door, but what he said next caused her to halt in her tracks.
"I have not done yet! That is not all! Now, because of your interference the Allfather has declared that I am to be married!"

The shock rendered Sif completely speechless and suddenly it felt as if a lead weight had been deposited into the pit of her stomach.
She stared at him agog, registering the deadly serious look upon his face; proving his sincerity.
In a lowered, almost sombre tone, he continued,
"Apparently becoming a husband will relieve me of all my troubles...he has already begun searching for an appropriate spouse for his troublesome son. I have you to thank for that."

Feeling her chest tighten, she did no other than flee from the room, unable to look back and even neglecting to close the door in her haste.