In The Shadows | Loki

ANTICIPATE A LONG WAIT

Loki~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        When I wake up, it only takes a few seconds to realize that I'm in one of the healers recover pods. The shimmer of golden light that separated me from the room told me that, but I couldn't remember why I was-
        Ophelia.
        I sit up quickly, breaking small golden barrier with my movement. Angry voices suddenly cut off, and as my eyes scan the mostly bare room. To my left, another pod is activated, and I can see Ophelia inside. She's unconscious, her chest raising and lowering slightly. At the end of her bed, I see my mother and Odin, both of whom have turned my direction 
        "Loki-" My mother whispers, quickly walking towards me. 
        "What did you do?" I ask quietly, my voice hoarse. Odin doesn't say a word, and I feel my anger grow. "What did you do?" I ask louder, quickly getting out of the pod, moving towards him. Before I can get close, my mother puts a hand on my shoulder, forcing me to stop. 
        "Give him a second to explain, my son. Please." She murmurs, keeping her voice low. The urge to keep walking, to keep demanding answers, it's high, and Odin knows it. Behind me, I hear the doors open, but I don't turn around at Thor's surprised exclamation as I simply wait. Odin lets out a long sigh before reaching into his cloak, and what he produces makes my heart stutter in my chest. 
        "That's not possible." There's a single bite taken from the golden apple in his hand. "The records say they were all destroyed millennia ago. No one has seen-" 
        "It doesn't matter where I got it, Loki. What matters is that she took a bite." He looks down at Ophelia with a small frown. "Which took no small amount of convincing. She does not trust anything."
        "She does not trust you." I fire back. There is a long stretch of silence, where Odin does not dare say a word. "What was that pain?" 
        "I don't know. I don't know how Midgardians react to these things. There are no records of the apples, there are no records of pain. It is that simple. " He replies in an even voice. He was not worried about the state of her. 
        "When will she wake?" Odin simply raises an eyebrow. "Do you even know if she will wake up?" I ask, knowing that he can hear the rage in my voice. 
        "Her body, soul, and mind are being made new. Are being remade better. With the amount of damage she already had," He spares her a single glance, "anticipate a long wait." I can only watch as Odin turns and leaves the room, clearly not caring. The tall doors shut behind him with a resounding boom. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        Three days pass. 
        For three days I do not leave her side.
        For three days she remains unconscious, oblivious to the world around her. I watch as the small scars littering her arms, legs, torso begin to vanish, the larger scars recede so, so slowly. 
        Thor keeps me company occasionally. So does my mother. I'm brought food, leaving only to clean myself, coming straight back to her side the second I could. As per my father's orders, guards stayed near me, keeping an eye on what I was doing. It was an unfortunate circumstance for them, as I wasn't doing much. 
        The healers came in occasionally, checking up on Ophelia without doing anything to help. I wasn't sure what they could do, with so many unknowns about that apple. 
        Even mother was unsure about where he got it from. The apples were known about only from tales of old, tales of Gods and Goddesses who traveled across the realms, giving apples of immortality to those they saw as worthy. But many millennia ago, long before Odin's grandfather was born, the apples, and the goddess with them, vanished. Destroyed. Now, somehow, my father had one, and no one was aware of where he got it from. It hadn't been in the vaults, I had been down there often enough that I would have seen it. 
        On day four, Thor announces that he'll be leaving on a shirt journey to update the others. During Thor's absence, Odin stops by once, looks over Ophelia, and leaves again. It was almost as if he checked in purely to make sure that she was still unconscious. 
        When Thor returns on day seven, he looks more frustrated than he did before. Out of the corner of my eye I watch as he sets his hammer down and takes the spare chair that mother had vacated a few hours before 
        "She looks better." Thor comments. Better wasn't the right word. Healthier, maybe. More intact. All if her small scars had vanished, the larger scars reduced to thin lines that were shortening and vanishing. Slowest of all were those three long scars that ran down her face. It was almost as if they were resisting the magic, but failing all the same. 
        "She's still unconscious, brother." I reply, not bothering to hide the frustration in my voice. "She hasn't moved, hasn't stirred." Thor is quiet at that, at least for a few moments. 
        "The team was not exactly pleased with my news." Thor changes the subject. "Even after I explained what the apple does." 
        "I'm not surprised. I'm not pleased with the situation, and I also know what that apple does." I shoot back. "At least they don't have to sit here and worry that Odin did something worse to her." Thor's frown deepens. 
        "Odin wouldn't purposefully hurt you-"
        "You and I both know that isn't true, Thor." I snap, standing up and walking around to the front of Ophelia's pod. 
        "He wouldn't try to kill  you, Loki." Thor amends. "I don't believe he's capable of that, nor do I believe that Mother would allow it. He would not try to kill you. He still loves you." I scoff at that, shaking my head.
        "What about a coma? That would not affect me, clearly." Thor sighs at that, slowly standing. 
        "I am sorry you no longer have any faith in father." Thor murmurs. I don't say a word, because I have nothing to say to that. I wait for Thor to leave before retaking my seat, reaching through the thin layer of golden light to take Ophelia's hand. 
        On day fifteen, I watch as Ophelia's eyes open.