#lokitober

Read it here as well.

It had been a few months, close to five now, since the extent of Loki's situation had come to light and he made the move to live with them. Harald was once again gone, away on one of his diplomatic missions. He had wanted nothing more than to stay with them and be with his sons, to help fix this mess they had found themselves in, but he still had a country to run, connections to make, a dream to see into fruition. Besides, Ida had assured him she was more than capable of taking care of their boys on her own until he made his return.

And truthfully, things had been going good. Loki was settling in… Ida wouldn't say well, but he was settling in. The road was still rough and bumpy, but as the days went by he grew more and more comfortable in the home he had been invited into, and the tension bled from his shoulders with each passing hour they all spent together. He was lashing out a lot less than he used to. No longer did he feel the need to terrorize the townspeople, instead keeping his distance from them. And them, from him, but that was a problem for another day.

He was also spending less of his time in the Underworld, only going to speak and play with those animal friends of his on occasion. Not to mention, the boys were finally getting used to each other enough to not fight every chance they could - only every other chance. Loki had even began playing with Hajrudin and his friends amicably.

Yes, things were going well.

So why was it that Ida was suddenly wide awake in her bed.

She stared up at the ceiling in the darkness, squinting her eyes uselessly as she worked through why she might be awake, fingers absentmindedly tapping against her own sternum while she ran through her mental list. She wasn't in pain, nor was she feeling poorly in any way. There were no funny smells or noises that she noticed. She didn't sense any haki, and she didn't have a bad feeling, just the feeling that she should be awake right now. Like she needed to get up and do something, but what, she didn't know just yet. 

She pushed her covers aside and stood, bare feet making contact with the cold ground. The autumn air as she moved through her room was cool enough to raise gooseflesh along her arms, but just pleasant enough that she felt no need to grab a covering to keep herself warm. Her nightgown swayed against her ankles, the fabric making a rustling sound in the near total silence of the night. She heard only the sound of the wind whistling past the house and the chirp of a few crickets as she softly pushed her bedroom door open and began searching through the house for what could have possibly woken her. The moonlight shining in through the windows was bright enough to guide her way.

Kitchen and dining room clear, sitting room clear, Hajrudin sleeping safely in bed and not running a fever, Loki-

Loki's bed was empty. The sheets were rumpled and his quilt was half hanging off of the bed, as if he had thrown it off violently. A glass of water was knocked over on the tiny bedside table, still dripping onto the floor with a quiet plip plip plip sound. His wolf plush, which she had gifted him a few months ago, was against the wall, limp on the floor; it had evidently also been tossed. 

She furrowed her brow and bit her lip. A nightmare, if she had to guess. That just left the question of where her boy ran off to if he wasn't in the house. She really hoped it wasn't the Underworld. She would really prefer not running the risk of getting eaten by Loki's monster friends in her efforts to bring him home.

She walked to the front door and pushed it open, peaking her head out into the cold night. It was enough to make her shiver and nearly retreat to grab a robe to wrap herself in, but then she spotted Loki sitting against the tree in their front yard. He was curled up tight, legs pulled to his chest and head buried in his knees, which he had his arms wrapped tightly around. His shoulders were shaking, jostling up and down in a way that could only suggest tears. Not for the first time, and certainly not the last, Ida's heart ached for him.

The idea of seeking warmer clothes left her mind entirely as she stepped onto the wooden porch and closed the door softly behind her before making her way over to Loki. The grass was cold, soft, and damp beneath her feet and her breath misted before her. She rubbed her arms for warmth. 

When she reached him, she let her soft voice whisper into the night, “Loki, sweetheart, what are you doing out here?”

The shaking in his shoulders halted and he sniffled loudly. He wiped a wrist across his unbandaged, but tightly closed, eyes and turned his head to the side so she couldn't see his face. His hair, down from its usual style like her own was, hung around his knees as he did so.

“None of your business, hag.” He muttered with not even half of his usual gusto. He sounded tired, sad.

She sat down beside him, the cold dew seeping into the bottom of her dress uncomfortably. He was getting taller and taller each day, already reaching almost halfway to her shoulders when they stood beside one another. The kid would outgrow her one-day soon. She carefully and gently laid a hand on his cold, pajama clad back, rubbing slow circles into it. 

At first he tensed up, taking a sharp inhale through his nose. A noise escaped his throat as though he was going to tell her off, but then he relaxed into her touch, leaning into it. A whimper escaped him and he began to cry again.

She made a wounded sound herself and said, “why don't we go back inside, baby?”

Sniffling, Loki nodded with a hiccup and let himself be pulled to his feet by her gentle hands. She kept a hand on one of his shoulders as she guided him up the steps and inside of the house. He turned down the offer of something warm to drink once the door closed behind them, tugging the long strands of his pink hair down in front of his eyes with nervous fingers, so she instead led him to his room.

She fixed the sheets and pulled the quilt back, gesturing for him to lay down, and when he did she pulled it up to his armpits and tucked it around him, making sure he was nice and snug in the covers. Then she retrieved his wolf from the ground and tucked it safely under his arm. She sat down on his bed by his hip. He turned his head away from her, eyes closed with a furrow between his brows.

“Do you want to tell me why you were out there?” She asked and then added. “You won't be in trouble no matter what the reason is.”

“... Couldn't sleep.” He muttered. 

“Did you have a nightmare, sweetie?” She asked. He didn't verbally respond, only giving her a tight nod after a moment of silence. She pondered for a moment before asking. “Was it because your dad's not here?"

"Tch, I don't need the old man around. I'm not a baby." Loki snapped, turning his back fully to her and hiking the blanket up to his tensed shoulders. He squeezed the wolf plush so hard she thought it's head might pop right off.

"Babies aren't the only ones who need help sleeping, you know." She pointed out. "There's no shame in needing a little help from time to time, even with something as simple as falling asleep."

"...What does it matter anyway. He's not here." He said after a moment, shoulders drooping.

"I'm here, though. Is there anything you think I could do to help you sleep?" She asked. He shrugged unhelpfully and stayed quiet. "Do you want me to sing for you?”

He turned to her at that. His eyes were still closed, but his brow was scrunched in confusion. He asked, “Sing for me? For what reason?”

She hummed, “Well, a lullaby always puts Hajrudin right to sleep, and I used to love when my momma would sing me to sleep as a girl. It has a knack for chasing away any of the nasty demons that haunt your dreams.”

Loki considered it for a moment, his face softening in thought. He nodded, more enthusiastically this time. She chuckled softly before moving up to sit beside his pillow. He turned his body towards her and curled up tightly around the plush in his arms, his face pressed into it's soft fur while his horns pressed into her hip.

“Can I pet your hair?” She asked, being met with another enthusiastic nod.

Her right hand planted itself atop his head, her fingers working into the strands to lightly scratch his scalp before carding down through the pink length. She repeated the process as the lullaby left her lips. She sang in a low tone, quiet enough to not wake Hajrudin in the other room but loud enough to carry through Loki's. She closed her eyes and let the song take over.

She sang of a boy, a young warrior who was strong and who was loved. She sang of his friends and his triumphs, his sorrows and his hardships. She sang of distant adventures full of laughter and joy and love, and of weathering the storm when things become hard. She sang of a happy ending.

Her soft voice petted off on a long, low note that lingered even after she was finished. The room was once again silent, Loki fast asleep. His face was slank, relaxed as he visited the land of dreams. There were sticky tear tracks down his cheeks, which she wiped away with gentle thumbs, but he now looked to be at peace.

Ida smiled fondly as she brushed a strand of hair behind his ear and leaned down to press the softest of kisses to the center of his forehead.

“Sleep well, my love ” She muttered into the quiet room as she moved to stand. She fussed with his blankets one more time, properly tucked the plush into his arms, and was off, heading back to her own room to sleep as well.

She slipped back into her sheets and was out like a light the instant her head hit her pillow, a satisfied smile on her face.