It was the fourth summer of their adolescence and Thor and his friends were really starting to feel the effects. Something about the internal changes and those of the weather made them feel more alive, more daring, and more responsive to the world around them. For the most part, it was enjoyable. There were a few embarrassing incidents here and there, but nothing that none of them wouldn't live down.

Thor spent most of his free hours strutting around Asgard, peacocking for all to see. He had a veritable flock of admirers. The same could be said for the others, though their numbers were lessened if only because they did not have his princely status. Loki was occasionally jealous that his brother could so easily draw the attention of others, but inevitably one, sometimes more, of them would do something outrageous, and he was thankful that those who sought his interest tended to be more thoughtful in their approach. He was also thankful that he could stave off the majority of public displays for his affection with simply a cold, dismissive look.

However, he did often find these sorts of things, along with the ordinary business of the castle to be suffocating, so he spent many a summer afternoon basking in the fields just outside the city, where he was rarely disturbed. It gave him a safe haven for practicing him magic, gathering his thoughts, and sorting out his feelings. On more than one occasion, Thor suggested that he take one of his admirers there for some private moments together, but those ideas were quickly dismissed. This place was his. If he wanted to dally with someone else, he simply took them to his chamber or another secret place in the castle.

Thor and their friends often thought that Loki was the most repressed out of their little group. He coolly and haughtily dismissed their attempts to pair him off with this or that maiden and occasionally mocked them for their own conquests. The reality was that he likely had the most experience out of any of them. He could read the emotions of other with relative ease, and was far more comfortable just speaking with those in whom he had an interest than most people his age. By the time the following incident came along, he had had experiences with members of both sexes, and since he had already mastered the ability to shift his own gender, he knew what it was like from both sides.

"Does he always have to walk around half naked?" Fandral complained weakly to Thor one afternoon after watching Loki stroll by. The dark-haired prince had a book tucked under his arm and had already successfully evaded several followers that morning. He was undoubtedly headed to the fields for some peace and quiet to read his book.

"Loki has always been very sensitive to the heat. He is not trying to be lewd. He is simply more comfortable that way," Thor eased.

Fandral grumbled something about Loki doing it in an attempt to even out the number of admirers he had compared to his brother. "Don't your parents mind?"

"I have never heard it mentioned. He has always done this during the heat of the summer. Why is it something that you're concerned with now?" Thor ignorantly pressed.

Fandral blushed ever so lightly. Truth be told, it had never bothered him before, but something had changed. Now seeing the fair prince's exposed skin gave him strange feelings. "It just seems...inappropriate for his station," he managed. "But," he sighed, "it is not my concern." With that, he let it drop. He knew that if anyone would try to be understanding of his feelings, it would be Thor, but he wasn't sure how the blonde prince would react to the idea of him having feelings for his little brother, not that any of them were so little anymore.

Several hours later, Fandral gave into his urge to approach Loki. He had to at least confess his feelings for the other young man, no matter how awkward. While Loki was not the warmest of his companions, he was never known to take others lightly. If he was put on the spot, he would likely become defensive, but if he was not approached publicly, he was usually very willing to at least listen to what others had to say.

Fandral approached the younger prince as unflinchingly as possible. "Loki," he greeted with a friendly smile.

"What trouble has my brother gotten himself into this time?" Loki sighed, not taking his eyes off his book.

The blonde laughed. "Nothing that I am aware of this time."

"Then, not to be too rude, but why are you here?" he distractedly pressed.

"May I sit with you?" he anxiously inquired.

"If you like," he agreed.

Fandral looked at the other young man as he took a seat on the ground a few feet away. His dark hair was combed back but several locks still fell forward over his face as he leaned over his text. His fair skin seemed to almost glow in the bright summer sun, and he was sweating just a little, giving him an almost ethereal sparkle when the light hit him just right. His light cotton pants were rolled up past his knees and his bare feet were stretched out in front of him.

"Is there something I can do for you?" he asked, still not bothering to look up at his friend.

"Loki," Fandral stammered. "I have something I need to tell you."

"Then by all means," he prompted.

Fandral was discouraged that he was still not given his friend's full attention, as the other young man's bright green eyes were still firmly affixed on the pages in his hands. He tried to take comfort in the lack of eye contact, as it would more than likely make what he was about to say just that much more difficult. "Loki, I have...feelings for you that go beyond friendship," he confessed.

"Is that so," the prince barely replied.

He was blown away by the minimal response. "Is that all you have to say to that? I'm laying myself out here. It's not easy to admit that I might very well be falling in love with one of my best friends."

Loki tried not to laugh. "What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to tell me how you feel about me, how my confession of affection effects you," he nearly pleaded. "At least look at me." He wasn't exactly expecting to be accepted. It was just something he wanted to get off his chest. He all but knew he would be rejected, but he felt the need to have his feeling addressed and acknowledged so that he could deal with them.

"The feelings you have for me are not loving," Loki dismissed as he closed and set down his book.

"It has taken me quite some time to come to terms with these feelings. I know what they are. Now please, tell me, is there any way you could reciprocate? Or am I better off working to rid myself of them?" he nearly raved.

Loki leveled an intense gaze on the young blonde seated only a few feet away. "Fandral, I've seen the way you look at me. The feelings you have are not loving. They are amorous," he stated plainly. There was no judgement in his tone, only the slightest trace of irritation which was all but covered up by an affectionate sort of amusement.

Fandral was aghast and stammered helplessly for several long moments after that, which made Loki smirk. "This isn't funny!" he finally said, nearly yelling.

Loki snickered. "No it's not. Don't think I haven't noticed the way you leer at me sometimes. It's downright indecent," he taunted. "You're lucky Thor's as dense as he is. He might not take kindly to someone so blatantly undressing his little brother in their mind."

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I'm indecent? Look at you! You're practically naked! You parade around in only your pants without a care in the world. Some might say you do so in order to garner extra attention," he accused.

The dark-haired young man smiled. "Now we're getting somewhere, though I would have thought that someone who has had as much relationship experience as you claim to have would be better at managing their physical reactions to certain things," he countered. Then, as if to prove his point, he ran his fingers through his hair and briefly flicked his tongue out to lick his lips.

Fandral swallowed hard in a feeble attempt to push down his reaction to just that little bit of teasing. "You're questioning my experience? You practically run from anyone who shows a serious interest in you," he managed to retort.

"Perhaps those who run enjoy being chased," he mischievously proposed, then before he could get a reply to that, he continued. "And I do not feel the need to flaunt my exploits like the rest of you. I am satisfied for what they are without boasting, and my partners appreciate my discretion."

"Exploits?" Fandral scoffed. "What have you ever done that could be considered an exploit? Especially compared to myself or your brother?"

Loki gave a cocky little grin. "If you admit that your feelings for me are sexual, I might be willing to show you."

Fandral wanted to glare at his friend but was having trouble managing it, so he looked away in shame.

"You've never had feelings for another man before, have you?" Loki pressed curiously.

"No," the blonde weakly replied. "I take it you have?" He tried to sound accusing, but again couldn't manage it.

"Men and women offer different things. I don't see why I should limit myself to just one," he shrugged.

Fandral had never looked at it that way before, though he had also never had need to.

"You find me effeminate," Loki clinically noted.

"I would never-" he tried to defend, but was cut off.

"I don't consider that insulting...unless you think it makes one inferior," he coaxed.

"Oh, no, of course not. As you said, femininity and masculinity both have their strengths. Neither is inherently better," he finally managed to say something remotely eloquent.

Loki smiled in the charming way that he knew made his friend's blood pool in his groin. "Were you aware that I can change my sex at will?"

Again, Fandral was speechless for a long moment while he tried to wrap his mind around what was being said to him. "N-No... I wasn't. Is this a recent development?"

"Somewhat," Loki shrugged, unwilling to admit to just how long he had been working to master that particular skill.

"Why would you..." he trailed off. He didn't want to sound accusing or disparaging because he was still trying to fathom such a feat of sorcery.

Loki gave a sly grin. "It provides an interesting perspective, to say the least. I've also noticed that many women are more comfortable exploring their more sensual side with someone who understands how they feel. Even some of my more reserved partners have become quite adventurous when I show them what I can do," he bragged.

Now Fandral was as jealous as he was excited.

"Is that something you would enjoy? I know that much of the reason you had trouble approaching me was because we are both men," he nearly offered.

"I am now somewhat ashamed to admit that our shared gender was something of an obstacle for me, and while what you just said does sound interesting to say the least, I am attracted to you as you are," he confessed, chancing a quick glance at the other young man's fair chest. "And while you do provoke in me a very physical reaction, we are too good of friends for me to consider the feelings I have for you to be entirely sexual." He sighed. "I suppose you are right. I am enamoured by you. I'm just glad you don't dislike me for it."

Loki smiled again, and then without warning, leaned over and kissed his friend. It was a tentative, almost chaste affection but with an undeniable trace of heat behind it, and while it only lasted a second, it had a rather strong effect on both of them. However, when Fandral didn't start to push back, Loki backed off, a quizzical look on his face.

That look didn't last long, though, because a moment later, Fandral was leaned into him, pressed their lips together, and pulled him close. Loki gave a little gasp when his friend's hand lightly skated across his chest. Then, he felt the other young man's tongue trace the seam of his lower lip. When the attempt was made to deepen their kiss, Loki grabbed Fandral by the shirt collar and pushed him down onto his back. To help prevent protest from that rather abrupt action, he kept their lips pressed together and laid down on top of him for a moment.

Once that advance was accepted, Loki sat up, a somewhat triumphant smirk tugging at his lips as he straddled Fandral's thighs. "I want to make one thing clear," he said, almost all of the amusement dropping from his face as he did.

"Wh-What's that?" the blonde barely replied.

"I don't dress this way to get people's attention. I do it because I find this awful heat genuinely oppressive. I've always spent my summers in as few clothes as possible, and I'm not going to change that simply for the sake of others," he firmly asserted.

"Yes, of course. I didn't mean what I said before. I-" he tried.

"Good," Loki nodded.

"And I did not mean to intrude on your privacy. I know that you come out here to get away from everything. I was just unwilling to approach you anywhere else. I didn't want to embarrass either of us," he managed.

That made Loki smile. "So... If I asked you to leave right now, you would?" he proposed.

Fandral tried to hold in his disappointed frown. "I would."

Loki's smile grew, and he leaned back down to start kissing his friend again. It wasn't long after that they were rolling around on the soft ground, limbs entangled and tongues exploring each other's mouths. Fandral couldn't help feeling they were engaged in some kind of sexy wrestling match, and the thought made him laugh foolishly.

The moment the little bout of bubbling laughter made the blonde falter for a moment. He feared that his strange outburst would disturb or even offend his partner. These fears were eased a second later when Loki started laughing as well. They laughed and wrestled and kissed for what seemed like forever. Loki was surprised that Fandral didn't have even an air of competition about him. During their combat practices, they were often the most evenly matched and fought hard to assert their superiority over one another. It was great fun for both of them, but once Loki was certain that his friend was comfortable, he felt the desire to push him a little more.

While he was on top, he reached down to grab at the other young man's member, which had begun to strain his pants and occasionally pushed against his legs or stomach as they playfully fought. Fandral gasped sharply and flushed deeply, but to Loki's surprise it wasn't out of embarrassment but rather excitement.

"I-Is this how it usually is?" Fandral asked, obviously still unsure of himself.

"There is no usual," Loki confidently asserted. "If there was, then what would be the point?"

"What do you mean what would be the point?" Fandral pressed willfully.

"I mean why would I bother being with different people if they were all the same? That would be boring," he petulantly complained.

Fandral hadn't really thought about it that way.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" Loki asked knowingly as he palmed the other young man's length.

"Yes, this is very enjoyable," Fandral blushingly replied.

"Good." Then Loki started to untie his friend's pants.

It took until his erection was free and being slowly worked by an oddly experienced hand for Fandral to realize that things were moving much faster than he had anticipated. "Wait, Loki," he barely protested.

The dark-haired prince stopped his motions but didn't remove his hand. "What's the matter?" he asked curiously.

Fandral was surprised that his protest was not ill received. "This is all much more than I expected. I am enjoying myself, but..." he tried to explain.

Loki pursed his lips. "I am moving too quickly for you," he sighed. "I'm sorry," he genuinely apologized. "I just thought that after so long of lusting after me, you would like a release at my hand rather than your own," he half-teased, even offering a cheeky wink.

The blonde on his back couldn't believe his ears. "You'd really..." he trailed off.

"I'd do a lot of things for someone who was willing to reciprocate my efforts," the young man with black hair slyly replied.

"I-I don't really know what I'm doing," Fandral lamented. "This is all very new to me."

Loki smirked. "Which is why I am going first. You've always been a rather quick study when it comes to other things, I was hoping this would be no different, and in spite of what I said earlier, the basics of working a man to climax are essentially the same across the board," he advised. "I'm sure I would enjoy you doing to me what you do to yourself," he added with a lusty sparkle dancing in his green eyes.

The very idea made Fandral squirm.

Loki's smirk grew into a full fledged grin as he leaned back over his friend. He placed his off hand on the ground next to them for support while his other started to work the shaft he was still holding. Just as Fandral's unsure hands acted on instinct by reaching up to grasp at his bare arms and shoulders, he completed the motion by reinitiating their kiss. This time, it was a slow, deep affection. There was urgency but no rushing, and Fandral willingly let Loki take the lead.

Before long, it seemed that his friend would pass out from oxygen deprivation, so he moved away from the blonde's lips to kiss other places.

The feeling of Loki nibbling on his earlobe made a wave of pleasure roll through Fandral. "Loki," he moaned without thinking.

"Mmmm, you have a rather lovely voice," he complimented before running the tip of his tongue along the outer rim, making the body beneath his shudder.

Fandral gave a self-conscious little laugh. "This coming from the silver-tongued devil himself," he joked. "Quite the compliment."

Loki gave a low chuckle as his tongue slithered into his friend's ear, making him buck against his hand. "Say my name when you come undone for me," he requested in a husky whisper, his lips brushing the other young man's ear.

The blonde on his back tried to nod in agreement but just ended up whimpering as he kneaded at his friend's chest and arms. He almost felt helpless like that. He'd all but lost control of his body, and Loki had done little more than fondle his erection and kiss his ear, which apparently was one of his weaker spots.

"You might think it narcissistic, but it brings me great pleasure to hear you acknowledge that I am the one pleasing you," he confessed as he dragged his lips down the side of his friend's neck, stopping momentarily to lightly suck on the thick vein that leapt beneath the skin.

Fandral nodded almost frantically. "I-I will... I'll try," he panted.

Loki smiled upward, his expression full of mischief and wanting. "Though, I suppose if you lose all words, that is a compliment as well." He moved back up from there to nip at the other young man's jaw. "Are you close?"

Fandral nodded again. He was panting rather heavily now in an attempt to hold himself back just a little longer. His hands gripped ineffectually at the body above him, trying and failing to bring him closer once again. He wanted another kiss to finish him off, but Loki held fast above him, those beautiful green eyes watching him carefully. "Ah, Loki, please," he groaned, his fingers tangling in black hair in hopes of gaining some leverage that way.

Loki leaned down just a little further, but not enough to make contact, and locked eyes with his partner as he licked his lips.

That did it. Fandral's eyes rolled, and he moaned the young prince's name once more as he came, spurting cum up onto that wonderfully fair chest for a second before Loki caught the rest in his hand. As he laid back trying to catch his breath, he watched in amazement as Loki tasted some of the fluid in his palm before wiping the rest on the grass beside him, taking a moment after that to clean the few spatters off his chest and stomach as well.

"By the gods, Loki," he groaned in satisfaction. "Thank you."

Loki quirked a half grin. He knew his friend wasn't exaggerating, but he couldn't help feeling that the current outpouring was endorphin induced.

"I mean it," Fandral quickly added, sitting up a little when he saw Loki's expression. "How can I possibly pay you back?" he eagerly proposed. "You said you enjoy reciprocation. I am very willing to try."

The prince's grin spread. "Perhaps you could provide me with physical satisfaction another time," he thoughtfully dismissed. Then, when the other's hopeful expression fell, almost appearing put off if not a little hurt, he amended. "I would like to talk, if that's alright with you."

"Oh, sure," Fandral agreed, tucking himself back into his pants and relacing them. "What about?"

The genuine air to Loki's smile returned. "How long have you been noticing me?"

The blonde blushed. "It sort of snuck up on me. Several months, I guess. I thought you looked especially handsome at the last feast," he praised, "but it didn't really hit me until I started-" he stopped, suddenly very self conscious.

"Started what?" Loki pressed with all the innocence he could muster.

"I hope this doesn't offend you too terribly," he said as he looked away. "I started having fantasies about you. They weren't necessarily intimate at first. Just a bit of flirting, I suppose, but... yeah..."

The young prince watched his friend's guilt ridden expression with fascination. He had never once felt ashamed for lusting after another, of course he had also never pursued anyone that he didn't think would return his affections. "In your last fantasy of me, what happened?" he asked curiously.

Fandral swallowed hard. That was exactly information he preferred not to share, but because he had not been allowed to reciprocate with equal physical affection, he felt compelled to answer. "You..." he trailed off.

"I'm not going to judge you for it," Loki all but promised. "Here, how about this? When I noticed how you were looking at me, I wondered what kinds of sexy faces and sounds I could get you to make," he casually confessed.

The blonde's eyes grew wide and he looked at his friend in disbelief. "Really?"

"That's why I didn't kiss you at the end there. I wanted to watch your expression when you peaked," he informed. "It was selflish. I know you wanted to kiss, but I couldn't help myself."

"Oh," Fandral barely replied, now more than a little self-conscious. Then, when he noticed Loki patiently waiting for his confession, he took a deep breath and sighed. "I wondered what your mouth was like," he vaguely replied, hoping that would be enough.

Loki smirked. He sort of had a feeling that was something his friend had thought about. That feeling was confirmed by how readily his kisses were reacted to and the look he got for licking his lips right before the other young man's orgasm. "You know..." he began slyly as he leaned toward his friend again. "Behind these lips are teeth." He gave a playful little snap at the air between them.

Fandral shuddered, but managed to reply anyway. "And behind those a tongue, a silver tongue," he blushingly replied.

"Ooooh," Loki said in a low voice before biting his lip and sitting back. He shook his head in disbelief. Fandral's expression was priceless. The blonde looked like he was about to die from a mixture of arousal, embarrassment, and astonishment. It made him crack up, falling onto his back and clutching his stomach as he laughed.

Fandral shook his head in exasperation and sighed. He wanted to be frustrated or even a bit angry with Loki for teasing him like that, but he knew it was only done out of affection. He sighed again, this time in resignation, but then he noticed something. Loki was hard, his erection straining the thin fabric of his cotton pants. The sight compelled him to action with the hope that if he was rejected, it would not be out of disdain.

Seemingly without warning, the blonde placed his off hand in the middle of the young prince's chest, holding him firmly against the soft, warm ground, while his other grabbed the length protruding from the dark-haired young man's pants.

Loki nearly choked, but before he could say anything, there were a pair of lips crashing down on his. After a moment to recover, he did the only thing he felt he could. He grasped the back of the blonde's neck and deepened the kiss, forcibly penetrating the other's mouth with his tongue. When he was finally able to roll them over so that he was on top, he broke the kiss.

"You don't have to do this," Loki groaned as the hands on his body untied the laces at his hips and pulled down the front of his pants.

"I want to," Fandral insisted.

"Are you sure?" Loki nearly growled, an almost evil sparkle dancing in his eyes.

"Don't question me," the blonde insisted.

"But this might take a bit more than you're willing to do," he threatened.

Fandral scoffed. It felt like the length in his hand was practically bursting already. "You said you wanted reciprocation," he willfully reminded.

Loki tried to scowl but couldn't manage it. "I do, and I'm not saying it to brag. It's actually quite bothersome," he half complained as his hips began to roll against the hand groping him.

"Well, I can't just leave you like this. I have to at least try," the blonde insisted as he sat up. He was going to attempt to assert his dominance again by pushing Loki down onto his back but the feeling of the young prince sitting in his lap was too good to cut short, so he just started kissing him again. He used his mouth to explore all the little curves of the other young man's fair torso that had tempted him so.

He was surprised by the tight little groan Loki gave when he ran his tongue over his nipple, the slightly darker circle of flesh puckering into a little pebble immediately. He couldn't resist giving it a little nip before trying to suck it between his lips. Both of these actions earning him another couple of bucks against his working hand, so he moved to the other, did the same, and was not disappointed.

Fandral's almost innocent exploratory actions were affecting Loki more than he expected. Perhaps this would not take as long as he anticipated. Between the mouth on his chest, the hand on his length, and the warm body between his legs, he actually felt his climax quickly approaching. Had things kept going like that, the might very well have come in a matter of minutes.

The sight and sound of his friend's heaving chest made Fandral break from what he was doing to look up at Loki's face. He saw a beautiful mixture of relaxation and tension. There was a little knit in between his dark eyebrows, and his moist, pink lips were parted just enough to let his sighs of contentment easily escape. He was also sweating quite a bit, more than was to be expected for the effort he was putting forth, but that just served as testament to the young prince's sensitivity to the heat.

When Loki realized he was being stared at, he was both flattered and annoyed. He enjoyed that his friend could look at him with such uninhibited adoration, but stopping to gawk meant that his body was receiving less physical attention. "What's that look for?" he asked, his breathlessness interfering with any scathing he might have been able to manage.

Fandral smirked. He was tempted to lavish praise on his companion, to try to put into words just how amazing he looked and sounded, but it was Loki. The prince had undoubtedly heard it all before and more times than he could count, so he decided to do something different. "I just wasn't expecting you to be so submissive," he taunted, though his tone still spoke of admiration.

Loki scowled. "What did you say?" he snapped, but the hand so determinedly working his length kept him from doing much more than that.

"Just that you seem to fall into the receiving roll so easily," he replied. He didn't exactly mean what he was saying, but he knew it would get him more of a reaction than being evasive.

"I could have said the same for you just a short time ago," the dark-haired young man insisted.

"That may be so, but I did not spread my legs for you," Fandral boldly pointed out. Actually, between the young prince's current display and the feeling of him wiggling in his lap, he was starting to get excited again and it was making him bold.

Before Loki could reply to that, Fandral lift his hips a little and bounced him in his lap. The feeling made him blush, and his reaction could be felt in the responsive twitching of his cock. His own unguarded reactions made him look away in embarrassment. He didn't necessarily have any problem with their positioning or the suggestions in implied, but he still didn't fully trust his friend to respect his preferences. "I'm not submissive," he insisted after a moment to recover, which was difficult with how hard his cock was being worked.

The mixed reaction he received almost made Fandral falter. "I'm only teasing," he dismissed. "Besides, it's nice to know you'd let me lead."

That put Loki at ease. The slightest trace of a smile even started to tug at the corners of his lips. "Well, ordering people around can get old after a while," he distractedly reasoned. Then, he pulled the blonde's head back to his chest to encourage him to both continue that attention and to stop talking.

Fandral took that cue and had the young prince practically writhing in his lap a short while later, something that pleased him greatly. Loki's soft cries of pleasure were like music to his ears and made him greedy. He sucked harder and even bit the other young man a couple of times to try to make him louder.

Just as he was on the brink, Loki spoke. "I'm very close," he informed between panting breaths.

Fandral nodded and pumped even harder.

"Make sure you catch it, or you'll be a mess," he warned.

The blonde nodded again and caught most of the white fluid a moment later. The bits he missed didn't make enough of a mess to draw anyone's attention. Then, just when he thought the ordeal was over and they were about to enter the awkward after phase where he would have to figure out something to say that could convey his appreciation without sounding too needy, Loki grasped both sides of his face and kissed him firmly on the lips. Frandal quickly wiped his hand on the ground next to him and returned the affection with equal force.

When they finally broke from that, Fandral was short of breath and the way Loki was looking at him made him feel more than little self-conscious of how quickly his length was hardening once again.

"It seems that I am not the only one who is difficult to easily satisfy," Loki teasingly chided as he ran his fingers through the blonde's messy hair and nipped at his right ear.

Fandral shuddered and tried to keep his hips still. "With you, I can't seem to help myself," he confessed and felt Loki smile against his skin in response.

"Are you busy this evening?" the young prince asked.

"Um, no," the blonde barely replied.

Loki's grin grew. "Then perhaps you could make some time for me?" he proposed, sitting back a little.

The other young man groaned softly at the extra pressure in his lap. There was no way he could resist an invitation like that. "What would you like to do?"

The prince gave a cheeky wink as he stood up and started to redress himself. He greatly enjoyed how his friend looked prone between his legs, flushed beyond any reasonable excuse, and eyes sparkling with lustful admiration. "Come to my chambers after dark."

"Your chambers?" Fandral gasped.

"Yes. As thrilling as it is to be intimate with you in the exposure of broad daylight, I would prefer a more private venue to continue these activities," he informed.

The young man still half-reclined on the ground squirmed a little under the prince's intensely piercing gaze. He almost felt pinned by those lovely green eyes as the words spoken to him started to sink in. He hadn't really thought about them fooling around out in the open. It all just sort of happened. Their location seemed secluded enough, but there was nothing stopping someone else from intruding on them. "Yes, of course," he finally replied.

Loki extended a friendly hand and helped him up, giving him a slightly longer hug than he would have otherwise. Then, as they walked back to the city together, he asked. "Am I to acknowledge you as more than my friend?"

The very idea made Fandral's stomach flutter. "I-I don't know. Is that even appropriate? I mean, with your status and all..."

Loki barely kept his smirk in check. He was very pleased that the consideration was for his princely reputation. "Yes, it is very unfortunate that not everyone is as open minded as you," he praised. "Perhaps we should keep things to ourselves for the time being. Have you ever been someone's dirty little secret?" he asked in a naughty voice.

Fandral swallowed hard. "Um, no, I haven't." But just the idea was thrilling to say the least.

Loki just smiled, and the next thing they knew they were racing back to the city.