Are you hammered?

After yet another hour or so, Nevaeh was about to give up hope of Loki returning. She was once again on the verge of tears, when the sound of hooves approaching made her look back in surprise.

'Loki?' she said hopefully, turning around, only to find a disturbingly handsome young man atop a horse smiling kindly at her. He had shoulder length long, blonde hair, his smile had the ability to shame the sun and his body was so muscular it looked as though he had bricks inside him. Nevaeh sighed and looked away in disappointment.

'Are you lost, mi'lady?' he asked kindly.

'No! And do not call me that!' Nevaeh snapped, looking at him for a moment before turning away her head, 'just go away.'

A Loki in disguise pouted as he watched Nevaeh sitting with her back at him, running a hand through her hair and staring ahead as if he weren't even present here. This was not the response he had been expecting. Loki was slightly taken aback and was staring at her with a puzzled expression over his face.

Moments later, Nevaeh distractedly looked behind her, only to find the young gentlemen exactly where he was; atop his horse. 'What? What are you still doing here?'Nevaeh asked, jumping up in surprise.

'Why, did you hear the sound of hooves departing?'he asked blinking innocently.'I didn't mean to startle you.'

'I didn't notice. I – I was – preoccupied' she muttered.

Loki looked at her amusedly as she sat grumpily on the forest floor while ignoring his differently handsome, transfigured self. He stepped down from his horse to give her a good look. Nevaeh noticed that he must be at least 6 feet 5 inches which was even more than Loki.

He looked at her with concern. 'You seem distracted, Is everything all right? What are you doing so far, all alone, without any armour or a guard? Are you a warrior? Because you certainly don't look like one,' he said in a gruff voice, 'don't take me wrong, your clothes are much too fancy for a warrior,' he added quickly, after watching the indignant look spreading across Nevaeh's face.

'That's cute. Do you want an apple?' she asked him, handing the one she brought back with herself. Loki frowned at her wondering why she felt the need to offer an apple to a clearly well-fed man. 'No thank you. You need it more than I.'

'So, what are you doing out here?'Nevaeh asked him, sitting herself down again.

'I was planning on hunting. I was quite bored at the feast,' he said dreamily, sitting opposite to her and whipping his blonde hair off his face. 'What are you doing out here, all alone?' he asked, his eyes twinkling blue.

'Well, I am not alone! I am waiting for a friend,' Nevaeh said, now barely believing it. She sighed, 'I don't know if he is coming back.'

'Why, you look crestfallen!' he said, sounding disappointed. 'Men should fight over you, and they should be crestfallen for not having you, except the one you choose of course, who will then naturally be the almighty,' he said to her, looking directly in her eyes. Nevaeh blinked at him in silence, unsure of how to respond.

'Your man sounds awful, leaving you in a weary place like this!' he said, sounding disgusted at that very thought.

'Oh! He is not my man!' snorted Nevaeh with a hint of derision. 'He is just a friend.'

'That makes me nothing but glad,' he said, smiling with a hint of satisfaction shining on his face. Nevaeh glanced at him suspiciously, feeling a bit uneasy. She lit a cigarette.

'I like the ladies who smoke, it gives them a certain edge' he smiled coyly.

Nevaeh scoffed. 'First of all, every cigarette I smoke is killing me a little, so the "edge" I occupy is of being dead soon. Secondly, I am not a lady, I am just a youngling, so back off!' she said shifting away from him a little bit on the forest ground. Loki blinked in confusion towards her dismissive attitude, especially when she had been nothing but annoyingly talkative with Loki.

'I apologize if I spoke out of the place. I meant no disrespect' he said, trying to sound genuine. She shrugged it off.

'May I ask what your name is?' he asked with caution.

'Nevaeh,' she answered curtly.

'So, you and your friend were just wandering around here, or did you have a destination in mind?' he asked.

'Bi-frost. That was the destination. My – my way back home' she said, staring off at a distance, and for the first time ever, Loki honestly felt that she was truly missing her home. Her excitement over Asgard and its demons had overshadowed her wish when he was with her before.

'The bi-frost site!' he said boomingly. 'It is not far from here! I can take you there within minutes.' Nevaeh scoffed. 'I can't come with you! I told you I am waiting for a friend!' she snapped.

'The friend you are not even sure is coming back?' he asked laughingly. 'How long have you been waiting here?'

'About five hours, give or take an eternity,' Nevaeh said smugly.

He was about to say something but closed his mouth quickly. Nevaeh raised a questioning eyebrow. 'You look thirsty, we should at the least fetch you some water,' he said.

Nevaeh was indeed thirsty, but was also a bit sceptical of him.

'How would I know you wouldn't kidnap me?' she asked, getting up from the ground with him quickly doing the same.

'If I wanted to kidnap you, don't you think I would've done it by now? You are minuscule! He laughed and took the lead towards his horse.

'She is pretty,' Nevaeh said stroking the horse. 'By the way, what's your name?' she asked quickly, recalling that she never even bothered to ask him that. He got on his horse and smiled at her from above.

'My name is Thor, Son of Odin. Prince of Asgard' he said, puffing out his chest and offering her a hand.

Nevaeh gasped, 'Oh – my – God!' coming to a sudden realisation.

Thor shook his head humbly, 'Oh no! Please call me Thor. I insist, my lady' he said modestly, bowing his head a little.

'I have heard so much about you,' she giggled.

'So, what you have heard about me is funny or mocks me?' Thor asked suddenly in a lion like voice and held what seemed like an unnecessarily over-sized hammer tightly in the air by his hand.

'Umm – No – Not at all' she said eyeing the dressy tool with caution.

'Did your friend tell you this? What is his name, anyway?' he asked,clearly irritated.

'Yeah, let's just leave.' Nevaeh quickly sat behind him atop the horse.

Loki was smiling to himself as he rode the horse; she had agreed to move away from her isolated patch, and she could easily agree to more. Loki indeed wanted Nevaeh to have some water after all her unnecessary tear shedding, and that gave him the opportunity to take her ahead on her journey.

They rode along the trees and Thor's long, blonde hair was whipping in the air behind him. Nevaeh thought it as best to leave Loki's name out of this. The look Thor gave when he assumed that someone was being disrespectful towards him, gave her a shiver. What if he hunted Loki down and decapitated him for that? She was on a different planet. She had no idea what the rules were!

They soon reached a river side. Nevaeh quickly got down from the horse without uttering a word, and trotted towards the river's edge to store water in her bottle.

'Let's go! I am done!' she said as soon as she was done, only to find Thor settled comfortably on the grass. He was indeed disturbingly handsome, thought Nevaeh.

'Why are you chilling? Let's move! Lo—'she paused.

Thor smiled, 'What's the hurry? Your friend abandoned you for five hours, and you can't rest in a blissful place for a minute? That's absurd!'

Nevaeh sighed, settling on the grass. It was indeed beautiful; the river and the scenery, a mountain was close by which was looking as peaceful as the time she had met the mermaid. The hill Loki had pointed at was only a few miles away and was clearly visible from this patch near the river.

'How long have you known this friend?'

'About two days. Why?' she asked and Loki tried his best to look genuinely perplexed.

'I don't want to say anything upsetting, but it seems like your friend isn't coming back. Why don't you continue your journey with me? The bi-frost site isn't far from here,' Thor said.

Nevaeh decided to give it a thought. It was kind of Thor to offer his assistance and it was more than tempting to leave with him; all she wanted was to reach her home. Loki didn't even tell her where he was going, let alone inform her about his return. They were on a journey, A.K.A in the middle of nowhere, yet he suddenly "forgot something" Also, they had walked all the way, but Thor has a horse and she could reach the bi-frost in no time! She longed for her home and looked at Thor, who was intently looking at her. Nevaeh sighed, 'I don't know, man. I barely know you—'

'The same thing can be said about your lost friend,' Thor nodded wisely. 'If I were in your place, I would have left the place within minutes!' Thor said, clicking his tongue disapprovingly, 'You were foolish to wait for so long for someone you barely know. Time is precious. Was he a villager? A mortal? A warrior? A guard?' asked Thor.

'He is a decent guy, so I am thinking just a normal one, or did you say mortal? He was – pretty shy, didn't say much about himself,' she said.

'Shy? What do you mean – shy?' asked a bewildered Thor, as though there were no shy men on Asgard, while Loki heavily wondered when the hell did he came off as shy in front of her.

'I mean—'she paused, 'What matters is that he cared, you know! When I first arrived here, there was fire everywhere and he kind of took me away from the chaos, offered to show the way, and was – kind.' Loki felt pleased even though he was the causal factor that led to the fire. She continued, 'I even broke one of his belongings as soon as I stepped foot here, and by the looks of it, it was a pretty expensive alien thing, and yet he never said anything about that – not even mentioned it once. If I were in his place, I would've nagged him till he died!' Nevaeh said looking at him, clearly expecting a response.

'Sure, sure,' said Thor, frowning at her. 'I am not quite sure I understand.' Loki wanted to hear more nice things about him, and he waited for her to spill more.

'I don't expect you to understand. You are – royalty. Anyway, it's getting pretty late. We should head back.' Nevaeh said, starting to get up and Thor quickly stopped her by gesturing his arm.

'Head back? The bi-frost site is a mere twenty minutes ride away from here. I can get you there in fifteen, with all my riding skills.' Thor smiled intelligently.

Nevaeh scoffed. 'I can't come with you! What if Lo – what if my friend comes back and I am not there?' she asked frowningly, when Thor scoffed even more dramatically than her.

'And what if he never comes back?' he asked gravely.

Nevaeh shook her head. 'He promised me he will be back!'

Thor was looking at her with mild confusion. 'You are merely taking the word of a stranger who abandoned you hours ago! He didn't even tell you how long he would be gone! Then why are you staying back for him?' he asked. 'What do you want from him?' Nevaeh again shook her head.

'You don't understand! He told me specifically to stay right there! He told me he would be back and if he doesn't come back then that could mean only one thing; he is in danger, because other than that, there is no valid reason for why he wouldn't return! Trust me – I did the math! REPEATEDLY!' bellowed Nevaeh.

Thor stood up in frustration. 'What makes you so sure? You said so yourself, you barely know him!' he said, raising his eyebrows.

Nevaeh sighed. 'I said I know him since two days. I never said I barely know him. Look, Thor, when – when I first saw him – he looked a bit lost, which was ironic because I was literally lost for where I had landed – and he was the first thing I saw as soon as I crashed out the portal—'she was interrupted by a bewildered Thor, who mumbled 'Lost?' 'But how in the universe can that make you sure of him returning right now?' Thor asked quickly.

'Why the hell are you so goddamn interested in all this?' asked Nevaeh sharply.

'Because I think you are being foolish for waiting! Didn't you feel foolish after waiting for five hours in solitude?' he asked gravely.

Nevaeh stared at him in silence for a few seconds before shaking her head in a glum manner. 'Let me put this in the words you might understand, your highness. Thank you for fetching me the water, and I am grateful for thy services. Kindly escort me back to my previous location atop your blessed horse, or I will kill you,' Nevaeh said, looking politely at a stunned Thor.

She stood up and started walking towards the horse as he slowly got up to do the same. Loki wondered how powerful Nevaeh really is to dare threaten a mighty prince who was thrice her size. He looked suspiciously at her, but silently climbed on the horse, and they started heading back.

Nevaeh's head was filled with questions and alternate versions of explanations for the same. Her brain might suggest anything, but her mind couldn't contemplate the fact that Loki intentionally abandoned her after everything they have been through. Nevaeh was feeling positive that Loki might have returned by the time they reach back in the forest.

'There has to be an iron clad explanation, there better be!' she mumbled fumingly.

They reached Nevaeh's 'place of abandonment' and Thor over shot while Nevaeh was busy in her thoughts. 'Hey, you missed it! Go back!' she yelled. He quickly turned back his horse. This was worse because she hadn't spotted Loki anywhere on their way.

After getting down from the horse and marching towards her tree, Nevaeh still couldn't believe that Loki had not returned yet. Thor was still atop the horse and Nevaeh was standing with her back at him, holding back a sob. She looked at Thor, his glowing face shining brighter than anything she had seen, but all she could think of was pummelling him heavily on the ground to channel the anger and frustration rising inside of her.

'Do you see, now? No one is here!' Thor said condescendingly. 'Let me escort you back.'

'Oh, no,' Nevaeh laughed at him. 'This isn't over. Either he returns, or I go to him.'

'You don't even know where he lives!' snapped Thor, but bit his tongue. Thankfully, she was too distracted to notice anything suspicious.

'True, but I am resourceful. I will manage, and I will find him and make him answer,' she gritted her teeth.

Loki's stomach couldn't help but rumble a bit. It was clear by now that she had no intention of leaving Loki behind. Her calm and bright disposition had been replaced by a spark of vengeful fire. He had to act now.

Nevaeh heard trees rustled at a distance. She glanced around suspiciously. 'Did you hear that?'

'Hear what?'

Nevaeh moved towards the direction of the sound. In the afternoon sunlight, she saw a hint of green shine through the corner of her right eye. She briskly moved between the trees and gasped; there was a green sleeve with a golden-border cuff lying near a scrawny bush. She hastily picked it up, horror filling her eyes. It was Loki's gothic sleeve from his odd clothes! She could've even recognized it in her sleep! Her heart filled with dread as she thought what might have happened to him.

'Nevaeh!' called out Thor, 'What is it?' coming down from the horse and towards her, not a hint of expression on his face suggesting that this was all orchestrated by him.

'My friend is in danger! Something happened to him! Oh, I could feel something was out of place!' she yelled and stomped her leg on the floor in anger. He quickly glanced at the tree closest to her, recalling that the last time she was angry, a tree was about to collapse on her head.

He tried to look utterly shocked at this newfound evidence in her hand. HE had one last chance to prove his assumptions right. 'Listen to me, I will leave you at the bi-frost site and then I promise I will find your mortal friend and get him to safety. If your friend has been attacked, you could be too!' said Thor importantly.

'Oh, I don't think so' Nevaeh eyed him threateningly.

'There is nothing you can do about it! I will find him! You have my word, but it is getting dark! Escorting you should be my priority!'Thor bellowed, again waving his hammer in the air.

'You majesty, I am grateful for your help, but I have my own priorities! I can't leave him just like that!' she yelled, with a hint of neurosis, flapping the torn sleeve in front of his face.

'Why? What do you need of him? Tell me! I am Son of Odin, you can trust me! I can fetch whatever it is that you want from him!' he bellowed.

'Are you hammered? Or are my words too complicated to penetrate your thick skull?' she screeched, staring at him in disbelief. He opened his mouth to retort when Nevaeh approached him in a threatening way. 'Listen, Thor! If you are not with me, then you are my enemy! Leave, right now! I don't need your help! I forbid you to follow me, and you are now dismissed!' she bellowed and stormed into the woods. Even though he was disguised as him, Loki was delighted at the sight of someone dismissing his brother.

'Well, you can have my horse! Nevaeh! Take the horse!' he called after her, but she was gone.

Loki transfigured back to his old self, made himself invisible once again, and moved ahead quickly. In his life whenever he has usually assumed something, he had always been right, but not this time. She had proven each one of Loki's assumptions to be wrong.

Nevaeh's only assumption of Loki being in danger compelled him to rethink his next move. Yes, he had abandoned her on purpose to understand her intentions, but he had been so confident regarding his doubts that he never waited to think for a moment about what he would do next if she did stay back! Even when he shape-shifted in Thor, Loki was adamant that Nevaeh would leave with him, and he never once gave it a thought about what to answer her if she stayed. Loki's stomach curled up again.

'Time for improvisation,' whispered Loki, brushing his clothes and marching straight ahead.