#let the lemon enjoy the view lumpy?

[otak-me]

CONSTELLATIONS CHAPTER 5: AQUILA

CONSTELLATIONS INDEX

CHAPTER 4: AQUARIUS

THE WOMAN MOVED out of his field of view, into the kitchen to work on her own pancakes.

Loki picked up his knife and fork hesitantly, his fingers twitching slightly at the aching of his joints.

Once he had lifted a piece to sniff, his stomach screamed at him to just eat it.

He placed it into his mouth hesitantly, doubtful that any poison a mortal could conjure would be strong enough to kill him- a god.

As soon as the fluffy pastry hit his tongue he devoured the first one within seconds, completely forgetting about the toppings. He had realised this when his mouth was increasingly dry after finishing the first pancake, and spread lemon juice over his second pancake, drizzling maple syrup over the top and cutting it up, downing some of the yellow juice to his right.

It had a rounded sweet and tangy taste, which he found to be pleasant, as it melded well with the tastes of the maple syrup.

He downed the second juice, being orange in colour and opaque.

It was bitter and sweet altogether. It tasted citrusy. He liked this also, as the juice calmed the sweetness of the pancake.

Loki finally downed the last one, being a translucent brown juice that’s visage reminded him of the ale back on Asgarðr.

He licked his lips. It was a rounded, sweet juice. Too sweet, almost, as it brought out the sweetness of his meal much more than the other two.

Suddenly, his wolfing down of the meal was halted in motion by the bubbling sound of a quiet chuckle from behind him.

The woman walked into view with a pancake with various toppings on, on a plate in her hands. It was rolled up, so the green-eyed man could not see what exactly the toppings were.

“Is it good?” She hummed whilst sitting down in her plush armchair.

Loki cleared his throat in slight embarrassment at being seen in such a manner, “Yes. I particularly like the orange juice. What is it called?”

The woman licked her lips, then smiled, “Orange juice.”

Loki rolled his eyes, “Yes, I know, but what is it-”

He halted in his speech to process what she had said completely, “… It’s called orange juice?” The woman chuckled, “Yes. The fruit it is derived from is called an ‘Orange’.”

Loki’s face was blank for moment, then he sighed in disbelief, “That is possibly the most uncreative name for a fruit I have ever come across.”

The woman bobbed her head in a nod, licking her lips and containing a grin to a smirk, her eyes lighting up in amusement, “Indeed. It is not one of humanity's finer achievements. And you won't believe what colour the peel of an 'Orange' is!"

Loki quirked his eyebrow, "Let me guess... Orange?" The woman let out a quiet laugh, "Dingdingding! We have a winner! The prize for getting the answer correct is more juice!" The woman stood up, dusting off her knees, "Would you like to claim said juice?" The man nodded, his lips quirking tinily in amusement at her odd antics, "Yes, Orange juice, please."

The woman chuckled, and walked into the kitchen, "Coming right up! Are you enjoying your pancakes toppings?"

The green-eyed fellow hummed in affirmative, "Yes, although I have yet to taste the brown paste, the clear red jam, the cold white cream ball, and the berries."

The woman held back her snickers at his strange visual explanations, pulling the door of the fridge open and getting out the large clear glass jug of opaque, orange liquid. Grabbing out a glass and holding it up, she poured the orange liquid into it, not allowing a droplet to spill.

She put the jug away and brought the glass over to the man on her couch, feet padding on the dark brown-almost black- wooden floors as she approached. She hummed out, "You should try the brown paste with the berries. Here,"

She placed the glass of orange juice on the right of his tray, "Let me show you."

Loki leaned away from her body as she leaned over, her fingertips brushing his hand as she softly pulled the knife from his grasp, causing him to snap his hand away from the contact, unpleasant goosebumps and a bolt of uncomfortable electricity shooting up his spine.

The woman seemed to either not notice his discomfort, or ignore it, as she did not falter in expression or actions, allowing herself to continue on with preparing her favourite type of pancake topping.

Loki felt somewhat grateful that she didn't comment on his obvious drawback, as he would have either been embarrassingly forced to explain his discomfort towards physical contact, or he would have lost his temper and destroyed whatever was holding the woman back from throwing him from her living quarters.

The silver-eyed woman scooped some of the brown paste onto the knife, then spread it over the sweet breakfast pastry, a thick, even coat covering the brown food.

She laid the knife down and picked some pieces of the pink chopped fruit from the bowl, placing them in a pyramid-like formation on the dark brown layer.

Finally, she grabbed the knife again and scooped some of the frozen white cream ball onto the pancake, finally rolling it up with her nimble fingers and folding the bottom end, ensuring that none of the toppings escaped.

She smiled down at Loki, her face lighting up considerably, then held it out for him to grasp, "Try this. It's my favourite way to eat pancakes." Hesitantly, scanning her face for anything at all, he softly pulled the pastry from her hands, making her let out a quiet, "Careful!" as his pinky finger almost let the bottom unfold.

He righted his fingering and raised it to his mouth, biting into it and looking back up at her eagerly awaiting face.

He chewed slowly, making the woman tense up in expectancy, "...Well?" She asked, scanning him for a reaction.

He swallowed, then licked his lips, replying, "It is... Very good." A bright smile split the woman's face, taking Loki off-guard a tad, not expecting such an enthusiastic reply to his affirmations.

She fell back onto her hands, completely forgetting about her own meal, her hair now falling completely out of the bun, framing her face in a beautiful waterfall of waves, "I'm glad it is so. Once you're finished I'll help you up and show you to your room."

He paused mid-bite, then pulled back, "...My...Room?"

The woman chuckled, "Yes, your room. You most definitely aren't going to stay on my couch indefinitely, I need it. I have a spare bedroom upstairs that has a nice big bed for you to sleep on,"

She eyed his slightly-uncomfortable form, as he didn't fit very well on the couch as she'd originally thought,

"And I'm sure a bed is much more preferable than that lumpy old thing."

She pointed her chin at the couch he laid on, and he swallowed his mouthful of food, almost at the end of the pastries now, "...Indeed, a bed would be much preferred to this piece of furniture. I appreciate your hospitality, miss-...?"

Her face blanked for a moment, as if waiting for him to continue, then lit up in surprise, "-OH! I haven't introduced myself yet! Valentina Rossiére. I must apologise for my manners, I haven't had a guest in centuries!"

A light-hearted chuckle escaped her chest, bubbling in the air as her eyes twinkled slightly, her face tinging a subtle shade of pink in slight embarrassment.

A tinge of slight amusement crossed Loki's features, and he smiled a tight, brief smile for a moment, before dropping his face back into the regular scowl.

"...Thank you," He spoke after a moment of silence, and Valentina's silver eyes perked up in alert, "You are very welcome, Loki. Are you feeling well enough to walk?"

He licked the chocolate spread from his fingertips, pushing the tray further down his lap, "...Yes, I do believe so." He spoke, despite the fact that his pain had not let up in the slightest, and may have even gotten worse within the time he was awake, but he was too busy eating the scrumptious meal to notice the levels of pain fluctuating.

The silver-eyed woman's eyebrows twitched slightly in return to this reply, and a closed-mouth smile stretched across her lips. Her eyes softened slightly, and she pulled the tray from his lap, once again making him push himself into the couch to shy away from her touch.

She once again, did not react.

The sound of her bare feet squeaking across the floorboards gave Loki an idea of where she was located, the sound of water hitting the trough of the sink notifying him that she was rinsing his dishes.

A couple minutes later, Valentina walked back into the room, smiling slightly at the man on her couch, "Now," she stood next to him, "Let's show you to your room. Up you hop."

The man hesitated, then pulled himself forward, every fibre of his being screaming at him to stop, causing him to grit his teeth in pain.

The woman's eyes trailed after him, observing as he struggled with the tiniest of movements, her eyebrows furrowing slightly, "Why are you not healing yourself?" she spoke to him, midmovement.

He halted in his tracks.

Yes, why wasn't he just healing himself?

His eyebrows furrowed, then he raised his hands to summon the energy that built around his form, but nothing happened.

His eyebrows furrowed even deeper, his eyes widening slightly in confusion as he attempted to summon his magic again, but alas, nothing came.

Loki growled under his breath, he could feel the pent up energy thrumming in this atmosphere, and it was begging him to play, but something was holding him back.

Something thin and cold was preventing him from reaching his magic, it's body wrapping itself around his mind and body, like a cool breeze on a hot spring's day.

His magic was right there!

He hissed out, a deep rumble reverberating in his chest, "I cannot reach my magic. It seems I have been cut off."

Valentina's eyebrows knitted together in disbelief, "...They cut you off?" Loki snarled out, "Yes. They cut me off, the ones who claim to be my 'family' cut off the one thing that I find solace in, they cut me off. Do not make me repeat myself."

Her eyebrows furrowed even deeper, more in concern now that disbelief, "...Let's get you to the room. I'll bandage you up."

She stepped forward, and slipped an arm around his back, making him tense up painfully and unpleasantly, her touch revolting him slightly, but he bit his tongue, holding it back from ruining any sort of civility that the two held toward eachother.

Loki leaned his weight on her form begrudgingly, limping as she slowly walked towards the stairs, dread filling him as he glared at the impending incline he would have to drag his body up.

Once they reached the stairs the woman furrowed her eyebrows in contemplation, scanning his slightly trembling frame in thought.

His green eyes glared down at her, and he hissed, “What?”

Valentina darted her tongue across her lips, and gazed up into his eyes unwaveringly, “Your body isn’t going to be able to handle the stress of climbing the stairs. I will have to carry you.”

CHAPTER 6: ARA

Word count: 1920