#v. i need my golden crown of sorrow. ( queen of vanaheim au )

[victoriousfidelity]

When word first reaches Vanaheim of the events on Asgard - Thor's interrupted coronation and banishment, Odin's incapacitation, Loki's ascension and swift descent into what the Realms are calling madness - Sigyn feels her blood run cold.

Her advisors call for her to use this unrest to their advantage, and their Queen can see their point, but she'd called Asgard home for such a long time, considered Thor to be her friend... And had been betrothed to Loki, before her life's path had diverted from the one they had planned to walk together.

It's that last fact which burns in her mind as she travels to Asgard to meet with Odin.

The two monarchs bargain and debate over Vanaheim's fealty to him as Allfather for hours, and it is clear from the off that Odin expected this to be easy. But Sigyn is not cowed by him, and she has always been a shrewd diplomat and a confident negotiator. Now that she is Queen of Vanaheim - now she has things that he needs - her confidence in facing him is a thing to behold.

In the end, terms are agreed. In exchange for the people of Vanaheim continuing to recognise the Allfather's authority over even that of their own Queen, they will receive an increased presence during inter-Realm diplomatic discussions which concern them. In exchange for their assistance in rebuilding the Bifröst, the Vanir will receive aid in defending their Realm's eastern border, which has been beset by marauders in the aftermath of the bridge's destruction.

Sigyn's final term is a personal one, but is framed as a benevolent act to relieve the Allfather of one of his more pressing issues. Odin cannot allow Loki to retain his status in Asgard after what he did, but Frigga will not condone consigning her son to a life locked away as the Æsir's shameful secret. Sigyn offers them an alternative, one hinging upon the fact that her betrothal to Loki was never formally dissolved.

And Odin accepts it.

Without the Bifröst, travel between Asgard and the other Realms is reliant upon Odin wielding old, complex magic. One of the outcomes of this is that it means that the time between the decision being made and her actually returning to Vanaheim with Loki is incredibly brief - which means she doesn't have time to speak to him, before it happens.

He is not coming with us as our prisoner, she insists to the advisors who accompanied her to Asgard, and she is thankful that none of them question her.

Not only have her advisors known her for her whole life, but she is also acutely aware that the fact that they know Loki is likely working in her favour here. They remember the young Prince who was adored by their second Princess, and Sigyn is relieved that they understand her decision now.

There are other titles which she has possessed since long before she held the title of Queen, and the Goddess of Fidelity won't abandon someone she loved - someone she loves.

Rooms are prepared for Loki - the very rooms he used to stay in when he visited Queen Freyja's halls when he was younger. He is not heavily guarded, and no restrictions are placed upon his power. Sigyn trusts him, even after all this time. Even now.

And from a less sentimental perspective: he is injured and (she presumes) still mentally reeling from everything that has happened to him. He's hardly in much of a state to cause any serious trouble.

A few hours after their arrival in Vanaheim, Sigyn finally manages to extricate herself from discussions with her advisors. She needs to speak to him, alone, and it can't wait any longer. She regrets having had to make him wait at all.

When she comes to stand outside the door to the rooms he has been placed in, she hesitates. She doesn't feel like a Queen, now. She just feels like a girl who has loved somebody for almost her entire life, and is trying to find a way to help them.

Sigyn raises her hand, and knocks on the closed door. Her voice is gentle, just loud enough to be heard.

"Loki? It's Sigyn." No titles, just her name. "May I come in?"

surprise(ish) starter for @emeraldxphoenix

[victoriousfidelity]

@aidanwilde sent: 🎵🎵 i want TWO. gimme one that you associate with sig and one for sigaidan lol for every 🎵 i get i'll post a song i associate with my muse. | accepting.

Queendom - AURORA

The sea waves are my evening gown And the sun on my head is my crown I made this queendom on my own And all the mountains are my throne

Someone Else's Hands - The Coronas

And I'm sorry but now I have to go You know we got too close and I hope you understand That I can't give you all the things you want You know my heart belongs In someone else's hands

[victoriousfidelity]

@emeraldxphoenix said: "By your side is where I'm meant to be." in case you didn't know. | accepting.

She smiles down at them as they lie with their head resting against her abdomen, her fingers idly toying with the end of one of the braids scattered through her husband's long, dark hair. But there's an uncertainty in her gaze that she knows they pick up on purely from the slight upward quirk of their eyebrows, and she sighs. Odin and his delegation's visit is imminent now, and while everything is in order on both practical and political levels, it is the personal aspect which gives Sigyn pause.

She's managed to maintain good diplomatic relations with Asgard for six years, now, in spite of avoiding allowing such visits to take place. Loki's peace of mind took precedence - will always take precedence - and she would never for a moment have even entertained the idea of inviting Odin to the very place she had brought them in order to keep them safe from him. So she's attended any events where the Allfather would likely be present without her husband at her side, and denied him invitations to Vanaheim.

Because she may be a Queen, but she is also a wife.

Loki thrives here, and she's been reluctant to do anything which would jeopardise that. But after a long stretch of time in which they and Frigga had exchanged letters, Sigyn had gently asked whether they'd like to invite their mother to visit - and thank the Norns for Frigga, because when she'd arrived in Vanaheim it was like she immediately, instinctively validated every single choice Loki has made.

It had been exactly what they had needed - what they'd both needed, if she was being honest with herself. She'd always adored the Allmother, and having her support again was nothing short of a relief. That visit, coupled with the fact that Loki is currently high in the Vanir court's favour after thwarting an assassination attempt against their Queen, is what prompted the invitation to be extended to the Asgardian delegation. But she's still nervous; still worried she's risking her family's happiness for the sake of her Realm, and struggling to reassure herself.

"I know that you mean that - and I love you for it... But are you certain?" Sigyn is trying to approach this delicately, not wanting to plant any additional doubts in their mind, or make them think that she doubts their ability to cope with seeing Odin again.

"Even if you are certain now, you can change your mind once they're here; you only have to do what you want to do. I will make your excuses, and I will not have a word said against you in my halls - nor will anyone else." Her hand moves away from their hair, fingertips gently tracing their cheek. "You are far more important than anything else, my love. You know that, don't you?"

[victoriousfidelity]

@emeraldxphoenix asked: "How long are you going to make me wait?" sensual and sexual tension sentence quotes. | accepting.

He's been trying to lure her away from the papers in front of her for the better part of the evening, but it is only once he's standing behind her that she finally relents.

"Norns, you will be the death of me." She mutters, but even as she's feigning annoyance she's leaning back against him as he braces his hands on the arms of the chair she's in, tilting her head up and back in order to meet his gaze.

"Fine, my love, you have my attention. Now, what are you going to do with it?"

[victoriousfidelity]

@emeraldxphoenix said: "When your eyes are on me, I feel like something worth seeing." it's all about the yearning. | accepting.

"Loki..." Sigyn exhales their name, the sound delicate and tender.

It makes her ache, to know the depths of the self-hatred that Loki hides beneath the bravado which they face the rest of the world with. There's a strange contradiction that always wars within her during conversations like this: the knowledge that she is lucky to be trusted enough to see this side of them, and a kind of grief that they cannot see all that she sees in them.

To Sigyn, Loki is... Everything. She adores their quick mind, their sharp wit, even the mischievous tendencies that so often land them in trouble. And in all their forms, they are the most beautiful being she has ever laid eyes upon.

Her life would look so different, had Loki not claimed such a prominent place in it. She wishes she could make them understand that - wishes that could be enough to even begin to change the way they see themselves.

Sigyn closes the small distance between them, her arms winding around them as she presses a kiss to their cheek.

"You are more than worth seeing. You were made to be seen."

[victoriousfidelity]

verse drop, mcu aus.