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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 20:18:04 GMT -5
Without mentioning that Herbert von Krolock had been the bearer of this information, somehow, the Met Ball had wormed its way into conversation with Loki and he had seized on it as a glorious opportunity to salvage their entirely - obviously - broken relationship, as well as one to wear Asgardian attire in Midgard, apparently under the impression Teja would desire to see him that way. Perhaps she had, once. It was depressing and emotionally exhausting to recall that once she had desired Loki very much indeed.
There were benefits, of course. Instead of needing to shop with Herbert (to whom she reluctantly kept her promise to call and inform she was going, though she did not say Loki was going to be there too) Loki offered, with a fingertip at her chin and a voice that bordered on cunning, to magic her something most becoming.
'Loki,' she'd warned. 'I'm not going to be your Asgardian princess-'
'No, no, it's not like that at all,' he'd said hastily. 'I promise, you will look lovely, and by the standards of your own culture.'
In their apartment, preparing to be magically whooshed to the event, Loki exited their bedroom in full Asgardian regalia. Her mood so melancholy she was bordering on changing her mind and rudely insisting they stay home, she caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye and turned around abruptly to snap at him. She became speechless. He stood just out of the doorway, watching her with lined eyes through smoky, made up lashes, elaborately cloaked and looking like a Phobs drawing. It took her a moment before she realized she had been staring him up and down in hushed bewilderment, and she felt very shy, very drab, and very mortal all of a sudden. She shook her hair out nervously.
"You're very... It's nice."
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 20:30:05 GMT -5
He smiled wanly, lips barely quirking up at the corners.
"...you too," he said faintly.
He startled very suddenly, blinking, and then pushed his cape aside.
"Oh- yes, I still need to-"
He gestured toward her, fingers spread.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 20:36:04 GMT -5
She thought very suddenly of the vivid transformation in Disney's Cinderella. Walt Disney had once called it his favorite piece of animation in his career, not that she cared about Walt Disney. She felt the clothing on her body shape and change - the pressure of stays or boning at her waist suddenly, the presence of air as the skirt became wide, full or as her shoulders became exposed when they hadn't been before. She knew what the dress was intuitively before she had even looked down at herself, and she couldn't meet his eyes for a moment; her own were welling with tears, and though she fought back an embarrassed smile, she knew it was present on her face; she could feel the heat in her cheeks.
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 20:39:33 GMT -5
He could only briefly look her in the eye before he gestured toward the door, head lowered respectfully, then remembered the entire point of the evening and hurried back to her side.
"Are you ready?"
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 20:42:19 GMT -5
She held onto his arm - the familiar feeling of leather and heavy cloth binding with elegant golden vambraces greeting her hand. He was no beast, not with his glamour on anyway, but he looked the part of the prince well enough. "Give me a moment, please," she said weakly. "There will be so many people there, and... you know i'm not good at that."
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 20:51:09 GMT -5
"Never had the knack myself," he said, with a halfhearted smile.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 20:53:40 GMT -5
She lay her hand over the inverted golden arch over his chest, as though she could feel his heartbeat beneath it. "You've made both of us look so beautiful..."
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 21:02:49 GMT -5
"I haven't seen myself yet, so I'll have to trust you," he said. "Well, brace yourself..."
The air shimmered around them and resolved into the landing of a small marble staircase, with the sounds of a crowd just beyond and around the corner. He held out his arm for her to descend with him and into a hall of bronze and marble statuary.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 21:19:57 GMT -5
The shift from regular NYC apartment noise to the gala gave her a terrible start, and she clung to his arm a little tightly. She felt her hair tickle her collarbone a little bit. She hadn't seen herself in a mirror, but she knew the dress, and what a fussy eye Loki had for details, for beauty - she was sure she looked all right, but suddenly, surrounded by people, she worried she didn't look all right enough. Instead of focusing on that, she looked up at him. The lines of his face were softened into a severe prettiness; he looked pale without being wan tonight, despite the dark makeup and his dark, swept-backward hair. His mouth was pressed into a little line, though, and she wondered suddenly if he really wanted to be here or not.
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 21:38:27 GMT -5
"Try not to draw too much attention to us," he said, leaning toward her and having to keep his chin lifted to avoid hitting her with his gold horns.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 21:42:56 GMT -5
"Why? Someone will see us eventually - the horned god Pan and his girlfriend, the Disney princess."
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 21:47:20 GMT -5
"What's a Pan?" he asked vaguely, glancing up at a large bronze statue of Hermes, which was equally confusing to him but didn't seem to merit an addition to the question.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 21:48:09 GMT -5
"Something one cooks with, darling, didn't you notice?"
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Post by Loki Odinsson on Dec 27, 2014 21:54:15 GMT -5
"I'll look it up later," he conceded, fully used to these kinds of incidents.
Someone in passing tried to address him as Mr. Ashton; he only belatedly remembered to look over his shoulder and nod.
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Post by Teja on Dec 27, 2014 22:00:45 GMT -5
Teja watched him, smile slipping from her face as she did. He was already preparing for Asgard, she realized. He had girded himself for this, knowing it was completely inevitable, and there was nothing she could do to hold him back. Her grip on his elbow tightened as though there was, but it was like he was already slipping away from her.
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