Hey, Miss Murder [LOKI]

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

How Sigyn had managed to get through the last weeks without permanently thinking about this fateful day, she did not know. She had shoved this date into the back of her mind as best as she could. Everything had served as a proper distraction. They had moved, Loki - being on some kind of housearrest - had been with her more than usual and the boys had been craving for attention as well. A lot of decisions had to be made and had yet to be made. In the middle of everything, this date had soon arrived.

Despite Loki's personal way of dealing with Freia, Sigyn's mother still needed to be officially punished. The people of Asgard demanded that and Odin - being the boys' grandfather - wanted it, too. She had been nervous all morning, quite brief and very very shaky. Loki and Sigyn had tried to keep the boys away from all of it, but they had picked up on their mother's mood. Vali had barely left Sigyn's side, held doors and her hand. Narvi had fooled around, trying to make her laugh. But the inevitable soon arrived.

Sigyn was dressed way before their coach had been ready. She had insisted on riding to the palace, but Loki had convinced her to use a carriage. He had probably been right, she was too nervous, to anxious, to tense to ride by herself.
Of course, in the end, Loki had already punished Freia. She was a broken woman, on the verge of turning insane. Still, Odin's support - the realm's support - meant a lot to Sigyn. After all, this might have a huge impact on the boys' life and future. Odin had suffered, too. Frigga had. Sigyn was positive there was only one sentence waiting for her mother and actually, Sigyn looked forward to it with glee.

She had kept her hand wrapped around Loki's, but not said a word, during the whole journey to the palace. Iwaldi had waited for them in the yard, kissed Sigyn, but not forced her to talk, either. Together, they had entered the great hall. The crowd had fallen absolutely silent as the three of them had shown pu. Nobody knew how to approach them, how to react. Now, seconds turned into hours as they were waiting for Odin's verdict. Sigyn's hand found Loki's again. She had never needed his support more than today.

[Loki Laufeyson]

They were like outcasts, watched and studied and stared at as they walked past. Loki hated those looks. They reminded him that he was different, had always been different. Perhaps he should have grown accustomed to such stares by now. Yet somehow they always disgusted him.

The onlookers redirected their gazes as Loki's fell upon them, as if he and his family were diseased and helpless. Loki stifled the urge to tell them all off. What good would that have done? They were here for one reason, and one reason only - to hear Odin sentence Freia to death. Then it all would be done, until the execution itself.

Loki had already dealt Freia his own form of justice, turning her into a decrepit old woman with her life bound to a chamber pot, in an encounter that had effectively taken away her sanity and left her at his mercy. He had not killed her, for he understood that there were fates worse than death. But now the time had come for her to die, and Loki was quite excited, in a strange way, about it.

While Loki was confident about what would happen today, Sigyn seemed nervous. She was quiet, withdrawn. There had been much hand-holding as he tried to give her a bit of silent reassurance. Now, as he, Sigyn, and Iwaldi made their way forward, he intertwined his fingers with Sigyn's.

Odin was seated upon his throne, gazing down at the gathering. Once the trio had made it to the bottom of the aisle, he tapped the great spear Gungnir against the floor, commanding silence - not that anyone had been speaking - and calling the assembly to order. Loki, like the others, took a knee and crossed his arm over his chest, his hand at his heart.

"Bring forth the prisoner," Odin ordered his guards. He had already heard all the testimony he needed; all that was left now was for him to issue his decision in the matter. A decision, Loki felt, that had already been made, so simple was it.

A decision he had been expecting for weeks.

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

Oh, how different perception was. Sigyn did not feel stared at as an outlaw, rather as subject to stares of pity and empathy. No one in this room would have fancied sharing the fate of her womb and boys, especially not bestowed upon her and them by Sigyn's own mother. She felt as though people wanted to express compassion. Compassion she did not want. She would have to figure this out emotionally, but she wouldn't do that with the realm, but with her husband, father and Greta.

Sigyn was not the kind of princess who would prance around her subjects and shake hands all of the time, yet she had always faced them with respect and friendliness. Some people might not fancy her rather reserved approach, but she was not hated throughout the realm. Maybe, people just wanted to support her. Right now, she did not want any of it. What she wanted was hearing her mother being sentenced to death. She wanted to see Freia's face, not the one of a beautiful woman, but of an old, withered person. Bound to a chamber pot.

Her fingers instantly curled around Loki's. She struggled to let go as she bowed and kneeled before Odin, crossing her arm over her chest in the same fashion as Loki. Her mind was elsewhere, the movements not an expression of respect, but studied chains of actions.

They rose as Freia was brought into the room by half a dozen of guards. They were not needed, the woman could not possibly put up a fight. They might only be needed in order to keep her on her feet.

As they stood, Sigyn instantly reached out for Loki's hand. Hers was shaking. She exchanged a gaze with him. He only would be able to read all the anxieties lingering in her gaze, the fear and absolute impatience. This was not enough. She would want to have him much closer as she watched the scenario in front of her, yet it was impossible. They might be known for their displays of affection, but they could not possibly do more than holding hands, not now, not here. Frigga locked her gaze with Sigyn. This kind of sympathy, Sigyn accepted. Actually, she had spent quite a few hours with her mother in law ever since the knowledge about her curse had surfaced. Still, she felt tied to Loki more than ever in this. He alone was her ally, her partner in crime and the one who'd pull her in in the middle of the night, when she woke from yet another nightmare.

Sigyn choked, watching Odin. In fifteen minutes from now, it would be over and she could go home and spend time with her boys.

Boys that finally had their chance to live.

[Loki Laufeyson]

The shaking in Sigyn's hands, and the emotions in her eyes, told Loki everything, and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, but that was all he could do with all the eyes on them at the moment. It would be quite inappropriate to even kiss her, given the mood of the assembly. Besides, they had to appear as strong as possible. He knew what would be said about them later if they failed to do so.

From his perch high up on the throne, Odin watched the pair with compassion. Loki's recent actions had hurt and shamed him, but in this he was quite on their side. He had seen their pain all those years, living without their children, having lost their children so young. He had missed his grandchildren dearly, and was glad to have them back. As a sorcerer himself, he did not entirely believe their story about the children having been brought back when the curse was broken, but he kept that much between himself and Frigga. He had no proof of any wrongdoing on their part, and even if he had, would he have done anything about it?

Alas, he did not agree with Loki's chosen method of punishment for Freia. The young man had gone too far. One need only look at her to see that. She was frail now, on the fringes of sanity. What else should be asked of her? Her crimes had been terrible, yes, but how else should she pay for it? This question had faced Odin for some time, and it had taken careful thought to arrive at what he felt to be the right answer.

His gaze moved from Sigyn and Loki over to Freia and her contingent of guards. "Freia," he said, not addressing her by any of her titles, or her married name, or her status, but only by her first name, "you will soon hear the judgment I have passed on you. Have you anything left to say for yourself?"

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

Theoretically, everyone seemed to be on their side. At least, people claimed to be. No matter whether it was their family or the citizens of Asgard, they all seemed to have compassion and empathy for Loki and Sigyn and the tragic fate of their boys. How much of that was actually real? Genuine? They'd never know, would they?

At least, Sigyn thought the people most affected, namely her family, held true compassion, for they had suffered, too. Odin and Frigga were in love with their grandsons and they had shed painful tears as well. If they were anything like Sigyn, they wanted revenge. Of course, she realized that Odin acted as the ruler of Asgard and a grandfather in pain, but even as a king, he must have realized that there was only one true punishment in the cards for Freia. Sigyn did not doubt that her mother would leave this hall with a death sentence.

Everybody was expecting that.
Sigyn broke out ins weat as Odin raised his voice yet again. Her hands turned damp as she closed them around one of Loki's. She was about to throw all protocol to the wind and just lean against him, but for now, it was just her hands holding his.

"I....deserve....better," Freia's old, fragile voice trembled. The crowd almost roared in shame. Sigyn struggled to keep her eyes open. She had waited for this, she needed this to be over. Incapable of looking anywhere else, she stared at the woman who had given birth to her, raised her with a cold heart and had cursed her. Killed her boys. Given her the worst pain she could have ever endured. But she had endured. They had. And now, they were reunited.
"This needs to pass," Sigyn whispered towards Loki, her voice shaking. "I cannot take it much longer."
However, she was holding her chin up high. Assuming she was devastated and tense was an easy guess, but she did not want to show her mother any weakness. She was a princess of Asgard. She'd stand proudly.

[Loki Laufeyson]

Noting the slickness of her hands, Loki gave Sigyn a glance that would have been unreadable to most, but in which she would see nothing but love and concern. Slipping an arm around her waist, he urged her closer, while his other hand was still with hers. His wife needed comforting. Why should he continue to care what the onlookers would think? They were nothing to him, and would speak ill of him anyway. They always seemed to.

When Freia uttered her statement, the crowd went wild, but Loki simply rolled his eyes. Fortunately he had the propriety to hold his tongue. It would be over soon in any case, and his speaking out of turn would not help his and Sigyn's case.

Odin's lips drew into a thin line at her words. "You disgrace yourself, Freia," he said. "You disgrace your once-proud family, and you disgrace the family that called you one of our own, for you gave life to the young woman my son took as his wife." He spoke thus, and yet… he found himself partially agreeing with Freia. She had not deserved the result of the wrath Loki had brought down on her. She had not deserved to be crippled and ridiculed. She should have been brought to face Odin immediately, not made a fool of for Loki's own taste for revenge.

Loki gave no outer response to Sigyn's words. It would not do to have Odin think they were whispering things about Freia. Instead he spoke his thoughts into her mind, as he did have some limited telepathic powers. Soon, my dearest. Be strong just a little while longer. It will be over soon. See how he straightens his posture and leans forward, clutching the arms of the throne. He is about to pass his sentence.

And Loki was right, for Odin leaned forward and looked on Freia, his gaze cold and sure. "For your crimes, Freia, I strip you of your titles and your possessions, and do sentence you to-"

Death, is what Loki heard. There was no pause in Odin's statement, but the way Loki understood it, there was only the one word. A brief moment passed before he realized Odin was still talking, and that Odin had in fact uttered something else entirely.

"-exile on the Isle of Silence, indefinitely, until such time as I allow you to return. You will depart immediately."

What? Loki knew this was no light sentence; he had been banished to the Isle of Silence a few times in his youth. The place was maddening, for there was no sound at all, no song of the birds in the trees, no whisper of wind, and worst of all, no sound of his own voice. The place would only add to Freia's already fragile state. Actually, it was a perfect sentence, if death was not an option.

But death had been an option. Why had Odin not chosen it? Loki's arm fell away from Sigyn, as his confusion slowly turned to fury. He thought he heard the mumble of the crowd behind them, but the sound was meaningless. Odin was in his sights, and Sigyn by his side, and that was what his world consisted of for this strange, baffling moment.

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

Sigyn did not share Loki's telepathic abilities. She could only listen to him in her mind, but she could not respond in the like. But this was enough for her to calm down at least enough to endure this last moment. As a Princess, she had attended a few sentences already. Never before had she been involved like this.

Her stomach clenched as Odin started to speak again. It was just a matter of minutes, maybe even seconds. She knew what was going to come, she just needed to hear it: Death. Death. Death. Death in the worst possible way for a childkiller, for a traitor, for someone who would stop at nothing. Who had stopped at nothing. There was only one way this was going to go and Sigyn was prepared for it. For nothing less.

And then, Odin spoke his sentence. She was about to exhale in relief, having made her mind up so much that she barely heard what Odin had just sentenced.

...exile on the Isle of Silence.........until I allow you to return...

No. Sigyn's arms dropped, so did her jaw. She felt sick instantly. Confusion took over the mood in the hall. Apparently, everybody had expected a death sentence for Freia. What was Odin doing? Trying to show his mercy with this? Proving a point? This was not a fair sentence. Freia had cursed her own daughter, which had led to the death of Sigyn's and Loki's two sons, who happened to be Odin's grandchildren.

...exile...

Before she knew it, Sigyn was gathering her skirts, climbing up the stairs that led to Odin's throne. Abandoning all sense of protocol, she spoke up immediately, in shock, anger and despair. "Odin," Sigyn spoke, adressing him by his name rather than his title, because she wanted to talk to her father-in-law, not her king. "Odin, this is not right. You know this. She killed your grandsons. They were dead. You mourned. You mourned with me and your son. I was there. What are you doing?" The more she talked, the angrier she got. She could be subject to a sentence for approaching the Allfather like this in public, too, but Sigyn did not care. "Have you no heart?", she almost hissed.

Odin would not lightly pass sentences to begin with. He had thought this through. And that was probably the worst aspect of this.

[Loki Laufeyson]

As Sigyn rushed forward, Loki reached out his hand to stop her, but missed her arm by mere inches as she hurried past. So instead he followed her, long strides keeping him just behind her as she made her way up to the throne. This was highly irregular, and he was sure Sigyn knew it. No one approached Odin this way when he was seated on the throne. Fortunately, Loki noted, while Odin looked mildly surprised for a moment, he did not appear to be angry at Sigyn's actions.

Rather, the Allfather looked at her and listened to her words, so harshly spoken. The expression on his face was a mix of sorrow and resolution. "My dear daughter," he said in a calm, almost tremulous tone, "your sons are restored to you now. They were gone, yes. We all mourned for them. But now they are returned, and we enjoy their presence once more. Everything is as it should be. Why, then, should I end a life? She has already suffered…."

He glanced at Loki, who had been the one to give out that punishment. Anger flared in Loki's eyes. "She has suffered, but I did not kill her. I left that to you! So that you might make an example of her!"

"Keep your voice down, Loki," Odin said, although Loki had hardly raised his voice and no one could quite make out what was being said from where they were anyway. Odin turned to Sigyn. "I have your best interests in mind, my dear. The day may come when you need a mother, even one as vile as yours is at this time. I suspect a turn on the Isle of Silence will change her ways."

Odin settled back into the seat, indicating that the discussion was over. Loki looked almost defeated for a second before he took Sigyn's hand. "Come, my love, let's go," he said, taking her arm gently while still glaring at Odin. They would find some other way to justice.

[Loki Laufeyson]

As Sigyn rushed forward, Loki reached out his hand to stop her, but missed her arm by mere inches as she hurried past. So instead he followed her, long strides keeping him just behind her as she made her way up to the throne. This was highly irregular, and he was sure Sigyn knew it. No one approached Odin this way when he was seated on the throne. Fortunately, Loki noted, while Odin looked mildly surprised for a moment, he did not appear to be angry at Sigyn's actions.

Rather, the Allfather looked at her and listened to her words, so harshly spoken. The expression on his face was a mix of sorrow and resolution. "My dear daughter," he said in a calm, almost tremulous tone, "your sons are restored to you now. They were gone, yes. We all mourned for them. But now they are returned, and we enjoy their presence once more. Everything is as it should be. Why, then, should I end a life? She has already suffered…."

He glanced at Loki, who had been the one to give out that punishment. Anger flared in Loki's eyes. "She has suffered, but I did not kill her. I left that to you! So that you might make an example of her!"

"Keep your voice down, Loki," Odin said, although Loki had hardly raised his voice and no one could quite make out what was being said from where they were anyway. Odin turned to Sigyn. "I have your best interests in mind, my dear. The day may come when you need a mother, even one as vile as yours is at this time. I suspect a turn on the Isle of Silence will change her ways."

Odin settled back into the seat, indicating that the discussion was over. Loki looked almost defeated for a second before he took Sigyn's hand. "Come, my love, let's go," he said, taking her arm gently while still glaring at Odin. They would find some other way to justice.

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Sigyn knew that this was not only irregular, but also considered offence. Moreover, this was very out of character for Sigyn. She had snapped, though. This was about her family, her sons. She would not make any compromises. Every sense of reason vanished as she heard Odin talk. Sigyn was going to entirely lose her temper. She needed this. Odin might not have been her favourite person in the Nine Realms, but they had gotten along. What he was doing now did not make any sense. She wouldn't have that.
"They returned because of Loki's and my doing, not hers," she yelled in frustration, pointing at Freia, "She has not displayed an ounce of regret. She would do it all over again!", Sigyn barked. The crowed was holding their breaths, staring at the scene. Sigyn did not keep her voice down. She could not. By no, breathing had turned into frantic panting. Odin needed to realize that this was not the way it should be. He had sentenced people to death for less. And now, this?

Upon feeling Loki's hand around hers, Sigyn tore free, no hissing at her husband. "NO!"
Turning to Odin once more, she made another step towards the Allfather. "This woman has never been a mother to me. I do not need her. I have another mother. She will die. And it won't be of natural causes." Now, there was some kind of desperate challenge in Sigyn's eyes. She would kill her mother. Right now, she made the resolution to kill her if Odin didn't. No matter the cost. Clearly, Sigyn was not thinking straight. How could she, given what was happening?

[Loki Laufeyson]

The situation worsened. As Sigyn began to yell, Odin's expression changed. Now he began to look less understanding and more irritated. Loki saw the look, and knew they were running out of time, and Odin's patience was running low. Now would be the time to quit. Normally, Loki had no problem defying Odin, but this time, he got the feeling that doing so would not end well for them. Not that it ever had ended well for him, but he wanted to spare Sigyn the sort of reaction Odin would give.

Loki saw the danger signs and tried to lead Sigyn away, only to be hissed at for his efforts. If there was one thing Loki absolutely despised, it was being chastised when he was trying to help. He had tried it dozens of times between Thor and Odin, and they had always roared at him to keep his mouth shut. Now for Sigyn to do the same… Loki stepped back for a moment as he considered walking away. Clearly she did not need his help.

Then Sigyn hinted that Freia would die unnaturally. Loki visibly winced. What in Hel was Sigyn doing? Was she trying to get herself imprisoned? That had been a prodigiously bad idea. But she had stood by him through worse moments, so he remained at her side, ready to insist that they go home now. Now, before they made things worse.

"I have made my decision, child," Odin said, a dangerous strength to his voice that had not been there before, when he had tried to be soothing. Now he was angry. Now he would not let her outspokenness and disobedience go unpunished, especially not when the crowd was now beginning to pick up on their argument. "Return to your castle at once. I will send guards to see that you do so. Lady Sigyn, you may serve the remaining portion of your husband's home confinement alongside him."

"That won't be necessary," Loki interjected, immediately after Odin informed them that guards would escort them home, such that they were both talking at the same time. He took Sigyn by the arm, not gently, his grip strong enough that, excluding the use of telekinesis, she would not be able to push him away. Let's go, he said into Sigyn's mind. We must leave now, if we wish to fight another day.

Loki had made up his mind as well. If Sigyn did not go with him now, he would simply teleport them both home, whether she liked it or not. He would not risk losing her to some similar punishment, and neither would he do his plotting from a dungeon cell.

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

As Odin's tone changed, Sigyn's nostrils flared. She was baring her teeth, barely being aware of it. Everything about her suggested that she was ready to fight whatever nemesis would come across her path in this moment, even if it were the Allfather and his ill-suited judgement. There was even a growl coming from the pit of her stomach. All her anger was directed at Odin right now. After all,he was the one who had made an aweful situation worse, when he could have made it better.

Maybe, he didn't want to. Perhaps, this was just another way of torturing his son, of picking on Loki, of making him feel that he was not the Allfather's favourite. Perhaps, Odin had wanted to get back at the God of Mischief for his countless small or big offenses and little tricks. Who knew? If so, he was taking it out on the backs of people that had nothing to do with it.
"Oh, I am sure you have, Allfather. And I am sure it would have been quite different, had you judged the murderess of Thor's children," Sigyn said, her voice being so low that it bordered on sounding like a thread.
And then, Odin did the unspeakable. He put Sigyn on house arrest. There had not been a lot of patience in the Allfather's heart. And a heart like that did not deserve her love. Did not deserve her sons love. None of them did. Neither of them deserved any of them, not Loki, not Narvi, not Vali and not Sigyn. What a huge joke Asgard was, Asgard and its fine ruler, who claimed to be just. It was all about favoritism, about politics. Not about emotions, true affections and family bonds. Ridicoulous. Outrageous. Why had it taken her so long to fully realize this, to feel this?

Sigyn's savior - as so often - was her husband. If not for Loki's tight grip on her arm, she would have continued this fight with Odin, most likely indeed ending up in a cell - one of the better ones, most likely. This time, she didn't fight Loki. This time, she blinked, looked at him and her expression instantly changed. There was a bottomless pit of sorrow shining in her eyes. Regret, affection, pain. Panting, she stepped back, towards Loki, who still had her in his grip.
Another his later, Sigyn turned around and let Loki escort her out of the hall. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Frigga making a fist over her heart. Fools. Actors. All of them.
When they left the great hall, Sigyn started to increase her pace. "I need to go home. I need to go home right now," she said, her voice still shaking with rage.

[Loki Laufeyson]

Even as Odin spoke, both he and Loki noticed the war face Sigyn had put on. Loki realized that this was not the time to fight. He was determined to get out of this without further punishment. It was already growing risky, as now Sigyn was on house arrest with him. One more wrong word, and they would both be arrested for true, and they would have to fight their way through the royal guard. Loki was not in the mood for a battle. He wanted to go home and plot.

Odin's eyes narrowed as Sigyn accused him of favoritism toward Thor, but he said nothing, not at that moment. Clearly Loki had been infecting her with his lies. He should have expected as much, given how close the couple were. He thought he was even beginning to see a bit of Loki in Sigyn. That gave him cause for worry.

But soon the young goddess' expression changed, and she and Loki walked away. With a simple gesture from Odin, a group of guards, six in all, began to surround and follow the couple out. Loki glanced back over his shoulder and saw them. "I know, I know," he said gently to Sigyn, just before the guards caught up with them outside the great hall.

With nothing more than a thought and a small wave of his hand, Loki teleported them home, rather than waste time riding across town. One moment, they were walking in the palace; the net, they were walking into their bedroom, home, alone. immediately Loki embraced her, pulling her tight to him, cradling her head on his shoulder. "It's nothing. It's just another injustice. We'll get through it," he murmured.

[Sigyn Laufeyson]

His ability to teleport them wherever he pleased came most handily right now, for Sigyn was a second short of kicking those guards in the face and run off. Besides, sitting in a coach for half an hour, incapable of moving, was not something that would help the situation at all. If she were asked about her feelings, she would not even know what to reply.

Odin had hurt her feelings so badly that she considered every attempt to redeem himself ill-fated. The Allfather would not apologize to begin with. He considered himself right. Sigyn didn't.
Sigyn held on to Loki for dear life, her face in his neck, her shaking body flush against it. "No. No. This is beyond everything he has ever done, this is the worst thing he has ever done, this is not acceptable. I cannot accept this. I will not accept this. He sentenced people to death for less, why is he holding back now?", Sigyn wondered, her voice still trembling with anger. Still, she held on to Loki, not letting go an inch. "I am going to do it. I am going to kill her. And I will look straight into her eyes as I stab her with my spear. I don't care. I'll kill her.", Sigyn said. She had never felt so determined. Little did she consider how this could affect her life, her sons life, Loki's life. She wanted her mother dead. If Odin did not take care of that, someone else would have.
"We can go to Vanaheim. They are my people. If they learn about this, they might side with me. With us. We'll take the boys to Vanaheim and come back to kill her. They'll take care of us, we'll be safe there."
He had wanted to plot?
Well, Sigyn was doing a good job scheming.
She had spent the first few years of her life in Vanaheim. They were at peace with Asgard, had been for Aeons. Sigyn did not even know whether her guess was right. But not sentencing Freia to death was not sentencing a Vanir-murderess to death. Narvi and Vali were part Vanir, after all. Convincing them of Odin's ill judgement should not be a problem. For it was obvious.

[Loki Laufeyson]

In the safety and solitude of their own home, Loki held Sigyn and listened to her complaints, nodding as she spoke. She was right, but there was nothing either of them could do about it. How could he show her that?

She had loved Odin, Loki knew. So had he. But Odin had hurt Loki on countless occasions in his life, and surely would continue to do so. Such hurt was nothing new for Loki. But it was for Sigyn. How would he get her through it? He had always just set the pain aside, to fester; Sigyn preferred to deal with her pain head-on. That was not advisable.

"Sigyn, please think about this. Killing your mother will be no easy task. You have already threatened her life; Odin will have her guarded well. He may even cast a warding spell, knowing you and I are sorcerers." And perhaps that was for the best, Loki thought, because Odin had had a point about one thing. The loss of one's parents could be a terrible thing, especially when one had grown up with them. Or so Loki imagined. He had killed his biological father, but he had barely known the creature. It was not the same thing.

Besides, Loki did not want to move to Vanaheim. He had nothing against the place, but they had just set up a new life with this new castle, and he was comfortable in it. Asgard may not have been his home, but Vanaheim was even less so.

"Take some time and think about this, my love. Think about how your father would feel. Our children as well." He kissed her cheek. Her words were mighty, but how would she change if she killed her mother just as she said? Would she be the same Sigyn he loved? He feared losing her above just about anything else. He could not lose her.