We are planning a life together. There is no lie in that statement, and Loki is getting less afraid of it all, but it still feels momentous. She gives a shaky sigh and smiles a little. "I was afraid for a very long time. To afraid to explain what I was afraid of. I'm still getting used to being defended and having that which I feared be gone."

"A word will come to us in time," she says confidently. "But lover or partner will do until something more apt comes along, I think."

But she does understand what he means. That she has made a sudden and profound difference in his outlook, that she has been a touchstone, and what that means to him.

"Mostly cozy," she says with a smile. "I like being held. There is something primal in that physical comfort."

One eye opens, sparkling with mischief. "I think you promised me something earlier, though."