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Sif slammed both booted feet into Loki's chest plate. Loki fell backwards and Sif rode his body to the ground. She knelt on his chest holding her spear out behind her with her right hand, while she braced her left just under Loki's throat.

A small smirk twisted her lips as triumph flared in her eyes. She had never beat Loki before. Other than Thor, she had never seen anyone beat Loki. Had she a knife in the left hand that rested under his throat Loki would have been dead.

Overconfidence flared through her and she leaned down close to him so only the two of them would hear her words. "Tell me, what is going on between you and that elf slave," she growled. The others may have been fooled by Loki's pursuit of Lady Sitka, but she saw how Loki looked at the slave.

The others teased Loki about Kenna, perhaps unkindly, but still in jest. No doubt from their perspectives it was all in good fun. To Loki, it felt as though Sif were threatening her.

Loki felt his rage surge through him like a wild fire. It boiled and churned demanding release. And for once, the god of chaos did nothing to stop it. He reached up faster than she could track and grabbed her armor with both hands. He threw her off of him as though she weighed nothing. Sif rolled with the momentum instead of fighting it and came up on her feet in a crouch, spear still in hand.

Loki's anger seethed within him as he had never felt it before. Kenna nearly died defending Asgard. She continued to be punished every moment for a past that she had no control over, any more than she could control being an elf. The injustice of it was like poison in his blood. Power surged through him. His pulse was pounding in his ears so loudly he could think of nothing but destroying that which threatened what was his.

A cruel, sensual chuckle echo through his head and he swung back around to face Sif, his eyes narrowing menacingly as though she were it's source.

Sif's eyes widened in alarm. "Loki-" she called in a warning voice. She had never seen the prince like this. Loki was always in control, perhaps a bit guarded, but never once in all their centuries together had she witnessed the rage that now burned in his green eyes. It was truly frightening.

Loki slung a hand towards her, flicking off three daggers and charging her all in the same moment. Sif dodged the first dagger, batted the second away with her spear, but the third thudded against her chest plate, just over her heart. She went cold as perhaps for the very first time she actually feared the younger prince. Had she not been wearing armor she would have been dead.

"Loki!" She yelled, hoping to shock him into realizing what was happening.

The others around them turned and seemed to realize there was something happening. As Loki charged her she swung her spear at him trying to time it just right. He was faster than her, always had been, and she would only get one shot at this. She whipped the spear towards him, hoping it would slow him down. She was off by only a fraction of a second, but it was enough to give Loki the advantage. Loki kicked the spear aside easily, moving so fast he might as well have teleported.

The woman's cruel laugh came again. It was maddening. He had to stop it. He backhanded the woman in front of him, pouring his power into the blow and she flew away from him, her head cracking against a stone pillar.

Thor thundered towards his brother and grabbed him from behind. He slung Loki against the wall with all his strength. Loki grunted, absorbing the impact across the back of his shoulder blades. He rebounded up, ready to strike again. His power swirled through him and he held his hands out, letting it pool primitively in his palms. He had no coherent thought, no plan, nothing but to strike out, to find some release for the storm of emotions that were raging inside of him.

"Brother!" Thor's voice barely cut through Loki's pounding rage.

Thor's face was a mask of confusion as Loki continued to fight him. Thor backhanded him, Loki's head snapped to the side but he didn't stop. It barely slowed him down as he kicked out, catching Thor by surprise and sending him skidding across the training yard. Thor gripped his side as pain flared across his ribs.

He threw himself to his feet. "Loki," he said again but it was obvious his brother was beyond reason. Loki was never like this. In all the years they had trained together Loki had never injured one of them, not even by accident. Thor lifted his eyes to meet Volstagg's on Loki's other side. Thor held up three fingers and Volstagg nodded to show he understood.

Thor counted to three and charged his brother. Thor landed on top of Loki, using his body to pin his chest to the ground. "Loki, think!" Thor yelled in his ear. Volstagg appeared a second behind Thor, pinning Loki's legs. Thor kept Loki's arms down hoping to prevent his brother from doing magic.

The silence in the yard was deafening as everyone held their breath to see what trick Loki would pull next. They all flinched as someone behind them started slow clapping. The other's looked up see General Torik striding down the stairs to the training yard.

Loki was panting, his chest struggling to rise under his brother's weight.

"There it is," Torik said smiling. "There's that warrior's spirit you've been missing all these years," Torik seemed entirely pleased as though he had somehow orchestrated the entire training session. "You finally let go of that iron clad control and turned the monster loose."

Torik's words went over Loki like cold water. Monster. Loki exhaled and teleported himself ten feet behind them. Thor and Volstagg landed on the ground in an unceremonious heap as Loki literally disappeared out from beneath them.

Instead of his usual expression of disgust when Loki used his magic, Torik was still smiling as Loki rematerialized. "You just needed to let that rage out," he said laughing. "Well done boy."

Loki glanced over to where Sif still lay in the dirt. Hogun was crouching beside her. She had managed to sit up, but she was watching Loki. Her face was pinched with rage, but behind that there was real fear in her eyes. Blood was dripping from her temple and mixed in with the dirt.

Loki looked away in shame. He had completely lost control. He could have easily killed Sif if his brother hadn't intervened. Phantom tingles of the power he had wielded sparked between his fingers. He tightened his hands into fists as he fought to push it down. To bury it.

Torik was right about one thing, he was a monster.

He turned back to the general and lifted his chin. "I am not your boy," he ground out the words. "I am your prince, and it would do you well to remember it," Loki snarled and he whirled away and stalked back towards the palace.

His heart was thundering in his ears and his hands were shaking as fear choked him. He didn't understand what was happening to him. He stalked across the polished marble floors of the palace towards the library. He needed time alone to think. Every servant he passed shirked at the sight of him.

He flung the door closed behind him and there was a squeak of surprise from across the room. His head snapped up, his eyes falling on Kenna. She was standing beside his desk, her posture strangely rigid. A slight blush of embarrassment colored her cheeks when she saw it was just him.

Loki couldn't even look at her. Shame was burning through him over what he had just done to Sif, and she was one of Asgard's most accomplished warriors. He couldn't trust himself. He wouldn't risk Kenna.

"Loki-" she started to say. She frowned at the look on his face. "Loki what happened?" She asked, concern etched in her midnight eyes as she took a step towards him.

Loki took the step back and his shoulders hit the door. Hurt and worry flared in Kenna's eyes but she didn't move again.

I-" he started to say and he looked down at his fidgeting hands. He frowned when he noticed the blood on his fingers. He frowned. Not fully remembering what transpired before he lost control in training. That didn't happen to him. It happened to Thor and Fandral and Volstagg, but he never lost his control or his temper. The magic surging through him was a responsibility, if he lost control people got hurt. He thought again of Sif and shame burned through him. If Thor hadn't been there...

"Loki?" Kenna was suddenly beside him. She had moved so silently he hadn't noticed. Her hand touched his forearm tentatively as her inky eyes stared up at him, burning with concern and absolute trust. She trusted him and no one knew she was here. With the collar on her ability to defend herself was completely contained. If something happened...he pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes as the phantom tingles of power threaten to dance between his fingers once more. He was not in control.

"Leave," Loki ordered, keeping his hands pressed against his eyes.

"But Loki-" Kenna began. Something was wrong. Loki was behaving strangely, his skin was sallow and slick with sweat and there was blood on his hands. "Are you-?" She started to ask.

"I said go!" Loki snarled dropping his hands and taking a menacing step towards Kenna.

Kenna's eyes widened and she stumbled backwards over her feet to get away from him. For a fleeting second she could have sworn she saw a magenta flash of power in his eyes, but then it was gone. There was nothing but Loki's blazing forest green eyes.

Loki's hands were shaking as he fought to contain his power. He hadn't struggled for control like this since he was young, but his emotions were out of control. She made his emotions out of control. He felt as though he were being pulled in a thousand different directions and he had no control over anything in his life. He was ashamed of what had happened in the training yard. He lost control of himself and of his power. It had taken Thor to pull him back so he wouldn't hurt anyone else. Kenna was far more fragile than any Asgardian warrior, and the memory of fear on Sif's face was enough to make him sick to his stomach. He couldn't be around Kenna when he was like this and he certainly couldn't let her feel what he was feeling. He would loose her forever if she knew what he was capable of.

And so Loki lifted his chin, narrowed his eyes and uttered the words he knew would ensure Kenna left him and didn't come back. "Your prince," the word was like breaking glass. "Has given you an order, slave. I suggest you obey it," he growled with the same menace he had used to threaten Magdol back in Alfheim.

Kenna's eyes widened in shock. There was a second, one fleeting second, where he could have sworn he saw the same look of temper Kenna had when she wasn't locked away by the collar. But then it was gone, Kenna wasn't really there and her face was filled with fear. She stumbled over her own feet in an attempt to flee the room. The door slammed shut behind her and Loki was finally alone.

He strode to the door and threw his wards across its surface with such force he was amazed he didn't split the wood. Then he turned and slid his back down until he sat with his back against the door and hung his head as he fought what was happening to him.

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There was something wrong with Loki. He had scared her. Scared her on purpose and Kenna wasn't sure what to do about it. She fled back to the garden without thought. Once she was inside her small shed she swiped the angry tears off her cheeks as she paced back and forth in front of the cold hearth. Loki needed her. Or if not her he needed something. He was not himself. Something was very wrong with him. Loki had striven to not scare her since they had first become...

Kenna sighed and collapsed back onto her bench, hanging her head. She didn't even know what to call them other than the hateful words he had spit at her. Prince and Slave. Somehow, in the midst of everything she had allowed herself to forget that. She couldn't be upset he had simply saw fit to remind her.

She grimaced and shifted the collar at her neck. She lost time then, and when she startled back to reality the bells were ringing and there were dried tears in her cheeks.

It was dinner time and Kenna walked mindlessly down to the kitchens. She hadn't eaten all that day and she half hoped the cook would send her back to the library with a tray so she would have an excuse to check on him. The cook however simply ignored her as she always did when there wasn't extra work to be done. Kenna waited patiently in line for her turn.

The maids were gossiping as usual as they stood in line together. "And then it took Prince Thor and all The Warriors Three to stop him."

Kenna was only half listening as she picked up a plate and shuffled towards the large pot containing the evening's meal.

The first maid to speak continued regardless of whether anyone responded to her words. "Lady Sif was taken to the healers, she barely escaped with her life."

"I heard it was one of his pranks gone bad, bound to happen," the cook interjected.

Kenna stiffened as she realized they were talking about Loki.

"Nay," the first maid said. "William was down attending to the general and he said the Prince was completely out of control. Said he was like an animal," she added, sounding far too pleased at Loki's misfortune.

Kenna dropped her bowl on the table in front of her and fled the kitchen. She thought she heard some muttering behind her but she ignored it as she practically ran back to the library.

Something had happened, Loki had lost control and hurt someone. Him sending her away suddenly made a twisted sort of sense. He had been overprotective of her since the beginning. They didn't know what the possible side effects were of him channeling that amount power. It had changed her, it stood to reason it could have changed him as well.

She grabbed the door handle and twisted, but the door wouldn't open. The lock wasn't engaged but the door wouldn't budge. She gave it a rough jerk but it held fast. She got nothing for her trouble but an overwhelming urge to leave. Loki had put the wards back up. She reached up and tugged at the collar. Loki needed her.

She felt something then, a fleeting rush of anguish. Loki.

She gasped as heat flared through the collar, but it didn't take the memory. She had somehow, despite wearing the collar, felt Loki for a fleeting second and he was in pain.

She pounded her fist against the wood frantically. "Loki!" She called loudly, not caring as her voice echoed through the guilded hall.

There was no answer. She pounded until her hand began to throb. She thought about Loki and tried to force herself to be able to feel him once more. And again, for only a moment she was able to feel the magic of his wards as it crawled along her skin. Then it was gone and she dropped to her knees as she fought the pain of the collar. She shuddered and tightened her fists as the collar burned away her magic.

"Kenna," Frigga's voice was a sharp reprimand.

Kenna blinked up at the Queen through a haze of tears.

"What are you-?" The Queen started to ask, her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out what trouble the strange little elf was causing now. Droplets of sweat were at the slave's temples and she was shaking.

"It's Loki," Kenna said her voice breaking. "I felt..." she cut herself off, knowing she needed to be careful. "Somethings wrong."

Frigga's eyes narrow suspiciously then she froze as fear tore its way through her body. She remembered Sigyn's warning and most importantly her threat. She spun away from the elf and pounded her fist against the door with all her Asgardian strength.

"Loki open this door," she ordered.

When there was no reaction she flattened her hand against the door. She hissed as Loki's power pushed back against hers. She dropped her hand shaking the sting away.

"What happened?" Frigga demanded turning back to Kenna who had pushed herself up to her feet. She was leaning against the wall, panting through the pain. One of her hands was wrapped around the collar trying to hold it away from her skin.

"I don't know," Kenna told her. "But he attacked Sif in training and then I felt-" she stopped again and swallowed. She didn't trust Frigga with her secret. She couldn't. Someone had known enough about her to know she had magic that needed to be contained. She realized then it was just as likely to have been Frigga as Odin.

Frigga made a noise of impatience in the back of her throat. "I'm not strong enough to break his wards," she muttered in exasperation. Her head turned to the elf, her eyes steely with determination. She didn't ask for permission, or wait. Instead she reached out and wrapped a fist around the collar at Kenna's neck. She practically yanked Kenna off her feet as she pulled the tiny slave closer.

Kenna opened her mouth to say something but her breath stopped in her throat as her power was opened up within her. She sucked in a breath and then the pain started.

Frigga pulled the power out of the slave, drawing it into herself with one hand and she laid her palm against the door with the other. The slave cried out as the curse within the collar fought to counteract Frigga's demand for her power. The slave tried to twist away, her actions becoming more frantic, like an animal stuck in a trap, but Frigga held her easily. An elf's strength was nothing compared to an Asgardian. Frigga was surprised how easily the power flowed and it took her mere moments to blow through Loki's wards. She felt his power falter and she pushed through with an extra draw of power. The slave whimpered and went slack in Frigga's grip. She let go of the collar, dropping the slave to the ground as she reached for the door.

Kenna blinked away the blackness that threatened to pull her back under. Everything hurt. She shifted the collar around her neck but even that small motion was too much as nausea rolled her stomach. The Queen knelt in the doorway over a body. It took Kenna another second to realize the body was Loki. Panic surged through her and she shoved herself up to her hands and knees. Black spots edged out her vision and she swayed dangerously.

"Get the healers!" Frigga's voice was panicked and was enough of a push to get Kenna on her feet.

"Now!" Frigga hissed angrily when the slave simply stared at them. The elf turned and darted out of the room almost too fast to track. For once Frigga was thankful for the elf's eerie quickness.

Frigga pulled Loki into her lap. His head collapsed to the side and she was almost too afraid to touch him, too afraid to know. His skin felt so cold, and his chest rose and fell painfully slow. She cupped the side of her son's face and prayed to the ancestors he would live. She pushed her magic into him, trying to find the source of what happened. His skin was sallow and damp with sweat, but there was blood on his hands. When her magic touched him she nearly recoiled as she was pushed back by something she didn't recognize. The magic within him was dark and power and viscous. It was like nothing Frigga had ever felt.

The door was shoved open as Eir and her assistants rushed into the room. Frigga stepped back, allowing them room to work. When she looked up the slave was standing in the doorway. Her hands were white where they gripped the edge of the door.

"Get out," Frigga ordered as a fresh wave of rage ran through her. Whatever had happened to Loki, it had occurred since he began spending time with the slave. Odin had warned her about the slave long ago, but Frigga has insisted. Now they all would pay for her misplaced mercy.

Kenna lifted her eyes off of Loki's prone form to meet the Queen's angry gaze.

"I said leave!" Frigga yelled loud enough several of the healers flinched.

Even with the collar in place Kenna could have sworn she felt the Queens seething rage. Kenna didn't hesitate, she turned and ran.

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Odin stood outside the doors to his younger son's chambers and listened as Eir explained to him they had no idea what was wrong. There was nothing they could do to help Loki. Eir held her chin up in the face of her King, but she was wringing her hands as she tried to explain that whatever was happening to the prince was magic based and they could neither identify it nor fix it. It was up to the Prince now to fight for his own survival.

The All Father nodded his thanks to the ancient healer and quietly pushed open the door. His son lay flat on his back on the bed, his chest rising and falling shallowly. Loki's already pale skin looked ghostly against the nearly black hunter green bed clothes. Torches burned around the room, their flickering golden light seeming oddly cheerful in a room so frequently lit by green flames. Odin ran an ancient hand over his tired face. His boy might never wake again.

Frigga sat beside the bed, Loki's pale hand clutched in her's. She looked up at the sound of the door closing quietly behind him. Frigga's tearful gaze met Odin's and she looked back to their son's peaceful face.

Odin walked towards his wife and rested a hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Eir-" he started to say.

"I know what she told you," Frigga's voice was a harsh whisper, as though she were afraid of waking him.

Pain flashed in Odin's good eye and for not the first time in his long life, he cursed the wisdom he had bought. Odin pressed his lips together, he had to make her understand. False hope was not a cruelty he would bestow on one he loved. "He won't wake," Odin said gravely. His voice was steely despite the pain the words caused him.

Frigga's head whipped to Odin, anger and denial snapping in her blue eyes. "She said it's up to him to fight now," she corrected, her chin jutting out defiantly. It was an expression Loki had picked up from his mother and it was painful to see it on Frigga now.

Odin turned away from his wife's gaze, unable to stand seeing when the truth crushed her. Eir had been clear. It was the magic that was killing him. The magic that he had sought himself. The magic that Frigga had first taught him when he was a boy.

He had warned her.

Frigga didn't give him a chance to speak. She made a harsh noise in the back of her throat and turned back to face Loki. "You never had enough faith in him. He's stronger than you know."

Odin turned a tear filled eye back to his wife. "I hope so," he told her honestly. "Because it is his magic that is killing him now. "

Frigga froze for a moment, her eyes widening as the realization of his words hit her. Guilt flickered across Odin's face. He hadn't meant to hurt her with his words, but she needed to understand. She needed to take time to say goodbye.

Frigga very carefully laid Loki's hand on the bed beside him. She stood up and leaned down, kissing his forehead. Then she whirled towards the door and strode out of the room, not bothering to look back to see if Odin was following her. He did. He always would.

As soon as she stepped into the hall two of her handmaidens stepped up close to her awaiting her bidding. She turned to the first. "Bring the slave to my sitting room," she ordered.

The woman curtsied and hurried away. There was no need to ask which slave. All of her handmaidens knew there was only one that had been vexing their mistress the past month. Frigga turned to the second handmaiden as Odin stepped out of the door behind them.

"I need Sigyn," she said.

The handmaiden contained her surprise and her fear. She nodded, willing to do her mistress's bidding without question.

Odin stiffened behind Frigga, but he waited for the handmaiden to curtsey to both of them and leave them before he spoke. "You'd invite that witch back into our home?" Odin challenged, his hands tingling with the desire to be holding a weapon.

Frigga spun back to face Odin her eyes flashing with temper. "I think you'll find there's very little I wouldn't do to protect the life of my son."

Odin stared into his wife's eyes. He recognized the set to her chin and the determination in her eyes. If there was a way to save Loki, he was certain Frigga would find it. He nodded, consenting to whatever she wished.

Frigga nodded back grimly and stalked towards her sitting room. There was much to do and that slave had a lot to answer for.

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So...what do you think?! Does Odin have a heart after all?!

Hope you guys are enjoying the story. Thank you again for all your support, comments, votes, etc. you guys are awesome!!