The halls of Asgard were filled with laughter for once after the partially-tipsy group migrated from the depth of the library to roam the palace. The only truly wasted one was the gray-haired scientist, who had enough trouble staying on his feet even with the giggly prophet trying to support him. Loki and Valkyrie were better off, the only indication that they were intoxicated was the occasional stumble from Valkyrie, and the overly-affectionate tendencies of the trickster.

Their only interruption had come from a royal guard, who claimed to have been sent from Odin to find them. However, he had been shut up rather quickly by Naomi, who mustered up as much seriousness as she could manage to tell him to deliver a message for her to the king. The others hadn't much understood what her message meant, only that Naomi wanted Odin to contact some 'Guardians' and ask for their help "killing something." The guard had left with the message- very confused- and the group continued on their merry way.

Though eventually, all good things must come to an end. Bruce began to come off his drunken high, and started crashing hard- to the point where he fell asleep in the middle of the hall, slumping over onto Naomi. Valkyrie too, even showed signs of slowing, beginning to trip over herself frequently, still with a deadpan expression. Realizing that it was time to call it a night, as even the sun was beginning to set, Loki volunteered to carry Bruce over his shoulder- which was a very funny sight for Naomi, who in turn helped to hold up Valkyrie.

After getting directions from some guards who gave them very funny looks, Loki and Naomi were able to find the wing of the palace that Odin had closed off for their stay. A short hallway with two guest bedrooms on either side, the adjacent rooms connected through a shared door. Naomi and Loki decided that he and Valkyrie would room next to each other, as would Naomi and Bruce. Traditionally, they would have separated the hallway by gender, but Naomi brought up the point that someone would need to help Bruce with his inevitably messy hangover in the morning, and neither Valkyrie or Loki would be willing.

Now alone in her ornate bedroom, Naomi prepared for the night, allowing herself a lengthy bath as Asgard had no concept of showers. But the warm water helped distract her from the oncoming headache, and when she finished washing up and changed into a provided nightgown, Naomi felt the most relaxed she had in a while. Even with her hair still drying, she would have climbed into bed had it not been for a knock on her door.

It was Loki, who appeared to have also been preparing for sleep, dressed in a loose-fitting shirt and pants. He seemed tense when she opened the door- his eyes desolate.

"Naomi." He said, clasping his hands in front of him. Naomi raised her eyebrows with a light smile, confused as to what he needed, but still pleased to see the man. "May I come in?" he continued, and Naomi rolled her eyes with a disbelieving smile, holding the door open further.

"Of course." She answered. He nodded curly at her, before entering at a brisk pace. Naomi shut the door behind him, and turned to see that Loki was facing away from her, his head turning as though he was surveying the room before he looked down at the ground, sighing.

"Naomi, I wanted to tell you- right when you woke up. But then you were summoned, and..." He trailed off, his back still to her. Several times, he started to turn as though to face her, but stopped himself and continued to look at her room. A frown creased Naomi's face, she began to grow concerned. "This needs to be private, so forgive me for delaying this conversation." Loki continued.

"Loki." Naomi said softly, reaching out to touch his arm. He deflated at the touch, and finally turned to her. However, his head stayed down, and his hands nervously twitched at his sides until he firmly clasped them together in front of his torso.

"I must apologize, Naomi." Loki whispered, shaking his head. Naomi's eyes widened in surprise, and her mouth parted slightly, as though she wanted to ask what was wrong but couldn't bring herself to. She feared what he would say next. But Loki wouldn't speak, continuously taking in breaths as if to summon the words, but none came. Only once, his eyes darted up, and they locked gazes for a split second. His eyes startled her into action. Loki was in pain.

"Why?" Naomi breathed, and moved forward to wrap her arms around him. But Loki saw what she intended to do, and stepped backward- away from her. She lowered her arms, biting her lip nervously as he finally raised his head and held her stare.

"I thought that you would've known." He insisted, eyes wide and misty as his tone turned desperate. He was trying to get her to understand something, but for some reason couldn't bring himself to say. "You seem to know everything, but I'm afraid that... I have deceived you." He gestured with his hands weakly, energy depleted from the sudden confession. Naomi was confused, and slightly hurt from his unwillingness to touch her.

"What?" She asked, not believing him. There hadn't been a single moment with Loki when Naomi had suspected his character of being false- obviously the man maintained tight control on his inner turmoil, but she had never suspected him of lying to her.

"You-" Loki started, cutting himself off quickly. His eyes darted away, fixing on some point on the wall behind her. His posture was strained, as though Loki were carrying great weight upon his shoulders. He took several breaths, before continuing.

"I'm not good." He insisted, his voice desperate for her to understand even though he refused to look at her. "You think that I am a worthy person, but I am not," he spat, his hands balling into fists at his side. Naomi stood still with disbelief. "I have allowed this...courtship to continue out of selfishness, and for that I am sorry."

The air was silent for several seconds. Naomi stared at Loki with an expression that mirrored his, both of their faces taught with pain. When Naomi abruptly grasped his arms, forcing him to look at her, tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

"I'm not sorry." She said, her voice breathy. Trapping him in her gaze, Naomi moved her hands to cup the sides to his face, pulling him down toward her. Loki's face softened, but his hands did not move to accept her embrace. Frustrated with his failure to understand, Naomi continued, determined to make him see. "You haven't deceived me, Loki, I know what I'm doing.

Slowly, his hands lighted on her waist, and she smiled at the touch, though her eyes had already overflowed with tears.

"I think you're a good person, Loki. I think you're worthy."

Loki's mouth gently wavered into a smile, and he gladly welcomed her touch as she pulled him into a hug, trying to convey her meaning as she held him.

"Okay?" She whispered, burying her face into his shirt. Naomi felt him hesitate, then nod. He sniffled a few times before speaking.

"Okay." He responded.

They held each other for a long time after that, watching the shadows arch across her room as the sun went down. Eventually, they parted silently, and Loki left her room- still distraught, but Naomi thought that he looked more relaxed now, as if some of the weight on his shoulders had dissipated.

She sat on her bed for a few moments, reflecting on what had happened. The next morning, she would wake up to the sound of Bruce Banner emptying his guts into the toilet, and she wouldn't remember at what point in the night she had fallen asleep.