I couldn't sleep. My brain was going a million miles per minute. Loki just said he loved me. No, Loki just said he was in love with me. Those were completely different in meaning.

When I knew for sure that Loki was asleep, I got up. I couldn't stay still and didn't want to wake him up. He had been awake all night last night and needed his sleep before dinner was called. I looked to the floor expecting to see my dress when I realized that Loki took it off with magic.

"Stupid, useful magic." I grumbled in a whisper and ran a hand down my face. I got up from where I sat on the end of the bed and walked to his armoire. I opened it, looking through all his clothes. There was nothing I could wear. Not a single thing. I huffed and closed the doors. When I did, I noticed his robe hooked to the side of the wardrobe. I slipped the silky green material over my arms and tied it around my waist. It was too long, and left nothing to the imagination, but it was good enough for now. I would find a maid, or something and ask for an actual dress later.

I took a breath and slipped out of the room, closing the door as softly as possible. I looked down the hall and luckily saw no one. All I wanted was some fresh air. The walls of the palace seemed too small and too big all at the same time. I just needed some time by myself after months of never being alone. I had always been with someone. Loki, Natasha, Tony, Thor, one of them was always with me.

I turned the corner and saw a group of guards walking my way. I quickly turned around and turned down a different corridor. I kept doing this, walking mindlessly down the halls, avoiding people. It wasn't until I decided that I should go back and get ready for dinner that I realized I was lost.

I bit my lip as I stared at the two paths I could take, not remembering which one was the right one.

"Sammee?" An angelic voice called from behind be. I quickly turned around to see Frigga walking toward me.

"Queen Frigga!" I said in surprise and tried to cover my chest more. "I- Uhm- I went for a walk and got kinda lost." I chuckled nervously. She glanced over my attire with an amused smile.

"Without any clothes?" She asked.

"Right, well, you see Loki kinda used his Harry Potter magic to make them disappear." I looked up to her and realized I probably shouldn't be telling his mother about our sex life. I also realized that she had no clue what Harry Potter was.

"I'm assuming Harry Potter is a Midgardian wizard?" She asked with a lifted brow. I nodded.

"Kinda." I explained. "He's a fictional character from a book. I'm sure you'd like it actually." I told her sheepishly, still very aware that I was in nothing but a thin, silk robe.

"Then I would love to read it someday." Frigga assured me. "But, why don't we go get you some actual clothes before dinner is called, hm?" She asked. I took a deep breath and nodded. She smiled warmly and gestured for me to follow her.

Frigga led me to her quarters and went to her wardrobe to find me a dress.

"Oh, your Majesty, I couldn't possibly wear something of yours." I told her. She turned to me with the same warm smile she always gave me.

"Frigga, dear. Just call me Frigga." She said. "And why not? Do you not like them? I have many different colors." She told me, turning back to her clothes.

"No, that's not it at all." I quickly explained. "They are all beautiful, but they're yours. They are made for a Queen and I am not that." I looked down and started playing with my fingers. I felt very awkward just standing in the middle of her room.

"They are just dresses. What you do, or don't wear doesn't make me any more, or less of a Queen. It is being freely given to you." She told me as she pulled a beautiful dark blue, off the shoulder dress out of the wardrobe. The dress had silver stones on the top. The sleeves were long and opened halfway down the sleeve so my arms could poke out.

"It's... wow." I was at a loss for words.

"If it makes you feel better, I've never worn it. The color is too dark for my liking." She told me. I knew she was lying to make me feel better though.

"Isn't it too much for just a dinner?" I asked with a furrowed brow. Frigga stood and walked over to me.

"Normally, yes, but this dinner is different. All of the palace officials will be there to welcome Loki back to the throne. They will also be acknowledging you and him as a couple." Frigga mentioned. My breath caught at that. Acknowledging us as a couple. It scared me. Frigga must have noticed my hesitation and uneasiness because her smile fell and she set the dress aside. "Sammee?" She asked to get my attention. She placed a warm hand on my shoulder. "Is something wrong?"

"No," I quickly said and shook my head. I could tell she didn't believe me before I even looked up at her. "I mean, yes, but I'll figure it out." I dismissed. Frigga grabbed my hand and led me to the chaise then pulled me down to sit beside her.

"If you tell me, I might be able to help." She said. I sighed and bit my lip.

"I don't think it's something you can help with." I told her. Frigga was quiet, allowing me to speak if I wanted to. "Loki told me... that he was in love with me." I said softly and hung my head. After a moment of silence, Frigga spoke.

"Did he expect you to say it back?" She asked. I quickly shook my head.

"No. No, I don't know if he actually wanted me to hear, or not. We were halfway asleep when he said it. But, that's not the problem."

"Then, what is?" Frigga asked gently. I took a deep breath.

"I don't really know." I explained. "Loving someone and being 'in' love with someone are two very different things. I love Loki, I've always loved him, but I don't know if I'm in love with him." I continued. "I've never been in love with anyone before. How do I know?" I asked. "And, we've only known each other for a short amount of time, what if he's confusing his feelings because of his gratitude toward me? What if I fall in love with him and he realizes that it was never love he felt but infatuation?" Once I started rambling my fears, I couldn't stop. Frigga sat and listened to every one. By the end, I was crying.

Frigga sighed gently and wiped my tears from my face, making me look at her in the process.

"Love scares you." She stated. "I am not sure how Midgardians love, but it is very different for Æsir and even more so for Loki with him being Jotunn." Frigga explained. "He would never mistake infatuation for love. It is not something he can do as Jotunn."

I sniffled as I listened.

"Why not?" I asked. She smiled and dropped her hands from my face.

"I don't think that is an appropriate conversation to have with you. It should be Loki, but know that, if he says he is in love with you, he means it." She assured. "How long does it normally take Midgardians to feel feelings of love?" She asked curiously. I smiled sheepishly and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.

"It, Uh, it depends on the person." I told her. "I think it's around three, or four months." Frigga looked surprised for a moment.

"Really?" She asked. I nodded and sniffed again.

"I know it's not that long, but-"

Frigga quickly shook her head.

"No, darling, you've misunderstood. That is a much longer time compared to us." She told me. "If we are ever going to fall in love with someone, it happens within the first few weeks." She explained. "Anything longer would be a waste of time." At her words, I looked down at my lap in sadness.

"It's been much longer than a few weeks for him." I told her. "We met at the battle of New York. At the end of the battle, I got injured and slipped into a coma for three months. Loki came to heal me every night for those three months. It's been about two months since I woke up, so he's known me for... about five months."

Frigga placed a hand over mine which were balled together in my lap.

"I can not speak for him, but I believe he knew." She told me. "Loki likes to over complicate his feelings. I believe he knew and just didn't know what it was he was feeling, much like you at the moment."

I looked up at her and she smiled lovingly.

"He has never been in love. It just took him some time to understand." Frigga said.

I relaxed under her soft touch and turned my hand over in my lap to hold hers. "Now, in regards to how you feel about him, it all comes down to you. Is your love for him different now than when you met him?" Frigga asked. I nodded as I thought.

"Absolutely." I told her.

"Do you think you can live your life without him?" She asked. I didn't need to think about that one, I knew instantly.

"Yes," I told her. "I could, but I don't want to."

Frigga smiled proudly and pat my hand.

"Alright, I think it's time to get you ready now."

Once I was dressed Frigga sat me down at her vanity and applied a bit of makeup to my face. Luckily, the wound on my shoulder was healed enough that it only looked like a raised, pink scar. It still stood out, though.

Frigga added charcoal powder to darken up my eyes, then mixed a bit of water with the dryer powder to make mascara. Once she applied that she opened a little compact container that revealed a rose colored blush.

"I never thanked you for keeping me alive the other day." I commented as she applied the blush to my cheeks.

"That's because you shouldn't have to thank me." She told me as she put the blush away, picking up a small jar and an even smaller brush. I turned and looked at her with confusion written on my features. "I should be the one thanking you, Sammee. You saved me. I just barely returned the favor." Frigga explained. "So, thank you, Sammee. It was a very brave thing, what you did."

"What did I do exactly?" I asked. I still didn't know how I took her spot when she was about to be stabbed. She paused for a moment and looked down at me.

"What do you mean? You've never teleported yourself before?" She asked. I quickly shook my head.

"No, I've done that, but how did I take your place? And, how did I break your spell?" I questioned. Frigga nodded her head while she thought.

"I believe your will overpowered the spell I placed on you." She explained. "And you traded places with me when you teleported. It's the law of equal exchange when teleporting living beings." Frigga continued.

"Oh... yeah, that I haven't done before." I told her. "I was never able to teleport live things before."

"First time for everything." Frigga said as she dipped the lip brush into the jar and brought it to my lips. "And, how grateful I am that you figured it out when you did." She smiled at me while applying the dark red substance to my lips. Just as she was done, there was a knock on the door. "Enter." Frigga announced. A petite, shy looking maid opened the door and stood in the doorway with her hands clasped.

"Dinner is called, your Majesty." She said with a slight bow from her head.

"Thank you, Asa. You are dismissed." Frigga told her. Asa curtsied before leaving the room. Frigga turned back to me and placed her hands on my shoulders from behind. I looked up at her in the mirror in front of me.

"Let's go eat, shall we?" She asked with a large smile.

Frigga led me through the palace and to the dining hall. There were two guards stationed on either side of the double doors and when we approached, they opened both doors to allow us in. Frigga nodded to them in thanks while I verbally thanked them, it was a bit of a habit.

As soon as we walked in, all conversation stopped. There were multiple people standing with a drink in their hands while conversing with the small group they'd gathered. When we walked in, all eyes immediately went to us. Everyone acknowledged Frigga out of respect, then turned their eyes to me. They looked me up and down curiously. All the eyes on me made me feel strange. Normally, I was ok with people looking at me. I'd grown up on stages all my life. From pageants, to theater, to joining debate in highschool I never felt quite as uneasy as I did now. But then again, these were very important people. I unconsciously moved closer to Frigga at some of the looks I got. Most of the men and women were just intrigued, but some of the looks were predatory, while others were pure disgust and spite.

I relaxed a little when a familiar figure broke their way from the crowd and started over to us. Frigga stood to the side and smiled knowingly as Loki walked straight to me and wrapped his arm around my waist. His other hand tilted my chin up, so he could kiss me.

"You worried me when I woke up and you were gone." He whispered to me when he broke the kiss.

"I'm sorry, my prince. I only meant to go for a short walk, but got lost." I smiled sheepishly, looking down to the ground.

"I know, mother told me." Loki assured. I looked back up in surprise. He smiled warmly at me before leaning in to kiss my forehead. When he pulled back, he tucked me safely by his side and turned to his mother. "Thank you for taking care of her." He said to Frigga. She smiled back at her son.

"It was no trouble. She was delightful company." Frigga complimented, giving me a wink and making my cheeks heat up.

"That she is." Loki murmured, looking back down at me. My cheeks got even warmer. Before Frigga could dismiss herself and walk away, I elbowed Loki in his side. He still needed to apologize. "Ow," he complained, "what?"

I frowned and silently gestured to Frigga. Loki sighed.

"Now?" He asked. I gave him a pointed look before looking back to Frigga with a smile. She was watching our interaction with amusement. Loki took a breath before clearing his throat and looking back up to his mother. As he did, I looked around the room and spotted Thor laughing loudly with his friends.

"I'm going to go speak with Thor really quick." I told Loki and Frigga, bowing my head as I turned to leave.

"Uh, wait-" Loki protested.

"You can do it on your own, my prince. You don't need your security blanket." I teased as I left him and walked over to Thor.

It was never hard to find Thor. He and his friends were always the loudest group in the room.

"Sammee!" Thor greeted. "You look lovely."

"Thank you." I smiled. "I originally thought it was a bit much, but your mother explained why it was necessary." I told him.

"I'm glad to see that you are healing." Lady Sif said, gesturing to my shoulder. I quickly glanced at the new scar.

"Yep, that one was a lot smaller compared to the others though. The one on my thigh and chest are still closing up." I explained.

"But, now you have excellent stories to tell to your friends back on Midgard." Fandral laughed. I chuckled a bit.

"I don't exactly think they'll be happy to see me come back with more scars." I told him.

"Why not? I think they're sexy." Fandral playfully mentioned, making me roll my eyes.

"Fandral, behave. Unless you're willing to fight Loki over your flirtatious comments, I suggest you stop." I told the charmer in a teasing, yet warning, tone. Fandral's smile widened as he picked my hand up and bent over it to kiss my knuckles.

"It would have been worth it to get a lovely lady's attention."

Before he could even stand up straight, there was a dagger to his throat.

"I highly suggest you release her." Loki growled menacingly. Much like on the ship, Fandral released my hand with a smug grin and held his hands up in surrender. I glanced around us to find people staring. It was probably not a good idea for Loki to be seen threatening someone right after being pardoned. I moved to Loki's side and placed a finger on his blade, lowering it from Fandral's neck.

"Loki," I said calmly, "everyone's watching you. It really pains me to say, but you need to be a bit more diplomatic while in front of the important people." I told him. Loki took a deep breath and vanished the dagger, though he was still glaring at Fandral.

"As you wish, Kitten." Loki said before looking down at me warmly. My heart skipped a beat at the phrase. My eyes widened and I was at a loss for words.

"I-Uhm-wha-" I stuttered before taking a deep breath. Loki was just watching me with an amused smirk. "I need a drink." I said and looked away from Loki. I teleported Thor's drink into my hand and immediately downed it.

"Sammee, I don't think that's a good-" Thor started, but stopped himself when he realized I had already finished it. "Well, this should be interesting." He sighed.

I lowered the cup from my lips and cleared my throat at the burn of alcohol.

"Jesus, what was in this?" I asked Thor.

"8,000 year old aged mead." He told me. My eyes widened as I looked back down to the empty cup.

"Well, fuck me." I sighed. Loki pressed up against me from behind and wrapped and arm around my waist.

"Although I commend your drive for sex, I don't believe now is a good time." Loki teasingly said into my ear. I shivered at the low tone of his voice paired with the buzz of alcohol in my veins.

"You know that's not what I meant." I scolded.

A high pitched bell rang before he could respond and everyone turned to the dining tables, moving to claim their seats. There were many different tables, and based on where one stood in the royal court was where they sat. The royal family sat at the head table. This table was center stage and raised on a platform. Next to the royals was a table on each side. I was guessing that was were important palace officials sat. Advisors, head of guard, treasurer, etc. They were still raised on a platform, but it was a lower platform to the royal family. Those three tables were facing a very large circular table where the rest of the guests would sit. These were people who were important to the crown, but didn't live in the palace. Dukes, Marquess, and Earl's sat at the round table.

I turned and pressed the empty ale cup to Loki's chest. When he reached up and grabbed it, I released the cup and went to go find my seat. Before I could get to the table, a server stopped me.

"Lady Sammee, the Alfather has requested you to be sat as guest of honor." The polite woman informed me.

"I-I... what?" I asked stupidly. "Wait, doesn't guest of honor sit at the right hand of the host?" I questioned with wide eyes. The server smiled politely and nodded.

"Yes, my Lady." She replied. "It is a great honor."

"Right..." I said cautiously and turned to look for Loki as she led me to the head table. I wasn't sure what Odin was up to, but I didn't like it. When my eyes caught Loki's, I flashed him a look of panic. He furrowed his brows and dismissed himself from who he got stuck talking to.

"Sammee!" Odin called to me as I walked up to the table. "You look lovely tonight." He complimented. I smiled sheepishly and bowed my head to him.

"Thank you, your Majesty. Queen Frigga was very kind and lent me a dress for the evening." I responded. I wanted to be on my best behavior until I knew what he was planning.