The Myriad Misadventures of a Midgardian Queen-In-Training || Loki x Reader

Chapter 19

After all that, the bastard doesn't even show up for dinner.

Lady Amara announces that His Majesty had some last minute executive business thrown at him; you'd press her for further details, but you're treading on thin ice with her as it is, and she rushes off right after to help him, leaving the eight of you alone at a meal for the first time. You end up sitting next to Rosa, which makes you nervous at first, but... she's being friendly tonight. Like, really, really nice.

"And I just love your dresses!" she gushes. "Your maid must be the most amazing seamstress."

"Thanks." You take another sip of wine to hide your blush, and your smile. You aren't really sure where this is coming from, but it's a welcome change from the cold stares and passive-aggressive comments of the past few weeks. "Yours, too. I mean, all of the dresses - the whole palace is beautiful."

"It really is. Don't you think, Lady Irina?" She reaches across you to nudge the tall blonde, accidentally knocking one of your utensils on the ground in the process. "Oh, my gosh, I'm so sorry! Excuse me." She motions for a servant. "A new fork, please? For Lady (Y/N)?" You bend over to grab the fallen one, and when you sit back up, your glass is full again. She smiles. "So, you were telling me about your school back home? Any boys?"

"I, um...not really. No. You?"

Something shifts behind her eyes - you think - but it's gone a few seconds later. "Once. But he...it was over before the lottery was announced." She opens the conversation up to the rest of the table. "Ladies?"

Irina shrugs. "Competitions don't leave much time to date."

"My sister was with a guy when the names were announced. She pretended to be jealous for my sake, but..." Sapphire shrugs. "I know she was relieved. I can't blame her; I know I would have been."

It's the saddest thing you've ever heard her say.

"We shouldn't be talking about this," Juliette mutters. "We could get in trouble."

"Why?" Rosa responds. "It's not like any of us is fooling around with anyone while we're here. This is all in the past."

"I...I don't know."

"Listen, can we just be honest a second?" You all turn to look at Li. "Who of us really, truly wanted to end up here?"

It's a dangerous question. You take another gulp of wine; for the first time, you realize that your glass hasn't emptied all evening, and the warm feeling in your stomach is more than just the afterglow of a good meal. But Rosa is gone; the conversation having lapsed into silence, most of the girls have begun to leave. You figure you'll follow suit. When you stand up, you're struck with a sudden dizziness, and you have to grab your chair for support.

It passes after a moment. You should be fine to make it back to your room. Right?

Ha ha, of course not . The stairs are nearly impossible; you'd blame it on Rosa, but you really should have been watching how much you were drinking. You just hadn't thought about it, at the time.

You stumble into yet another door, and murmur an apology. While none of the other doors responded, this one holds you back at arm's length and appraises your droopy eyelids and disheveled clothes. "Lady (Y/N)?"

"Hmph?" You see the door looking at you with a concerned look on its, um, face, a strand of black hair falling forward. "Oh. Your Majesty. You...you aren't a door."

"Did you just come from dinner?"

You nod. A thought comes to mind, and you shove your pointer finger against his chest. "You, sir, are very rude, telling me to not be late, and then you didn't show up. Like, wha' was that?"