Dressed to the 9's: The Loki Adventures, #9

By Dawn Blair

Some days are just not worth getting out of bed.

For Loki, Norse god of Mischief, today happens to be one of those days. He woke up as a woman. Not surprising. It happens sometimes.
But why today?
Top it off with Jason bringing bad news. Now Loki wishes he'd never woken up from his dreamless sleep.
Some days are like that. Might as well get dressed to the nines and conquer the world.
Will looking fashionable solve Jason's newest problems, or will it just make things worse as Midgard sees a new side of Loki?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Morning Sky Studios
• Release date: Dec 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215102558

Dawn Blair

Come take an adventure with your multi-dimensional, time-traveling tour guide, Dawn Blair. Telling stories of noble hearts and fantastic places, Dawn enjoys creating stories full of action, fantasy, quests, and maybe a touch of technology.  For as long as she can remember, she's been telling stories, starting with tales of cats and dogs. No one ever dared to ask her to "imagine" something because it would send her creativity spinning. One fateful day, her grandmother, certainly tired of listening to the endless prater, sat Dawn down at a typewriter and told her to write the story out.  Growing up on a ranch in rural Nevada, she had plenty of time and space to let her imagination roam free. When she wasn't out playing or working in the alfalfa fields or swimming at the pool, she was at home typing away at her novels.  Dawn moved to Idaho and, after a second fateful day where an instructor taught her to see as an artist, her life expanded to include other creative endeavors: painting, illustrating, animating, and photography in addition to writing. They all became mediums for the way she could share stories. Soon, she had won numerous awards for writing, painting, and photography, as well as gaining readers and collectors worldwide. All while raising her two fantastic boys as a single mom.  Dawn decided to start recording audiobooks. Knowing nothing about the process, she began learning and transformed a simple home setup into a home studio, a sequence marked by a third fateful day in her life when she decided to quit dabbling and get serious. Dawn aims for improving her audio with each narrative tale she completes. Still in Idaho, Dawn spends every moment she can exploring strange worlds, seeking out brave lives and magical civilizations. She wants to touch your life with magic, open your mind, and make sure you will never be the same again. Let her show you the sights. Let's be on our way, shall we? Sign up for your adventures at: www.dawnblair.com

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

Morning in this part of the world eases through the fabric of Midgard. Spinning of the planet, rotation of sun, swirling of the galaxy through the universe – the movement all sings along a vibrational line which is the song of this realm. Slight ripples in the fluctuating tide nudges me from my relaxed, dreamless, sleep.

Sunlight streams through the part between heavy curtains covering the windows and cast the room in shades of raw and burnt sienna. The room feels very earthy. Appropriate, I suppose for Midgard.

I stretch between the bed’s silk sheets. The faint glow on my clock reveals that it is almost seven. Six fifty-three, to be exact. The days are getting longer, morning light coming earlier, bringing warmth which I felt on me now.

I expand out again over the bed again, straightening arms and legs, and regret that Jason, my personal assistant, will be coming through my front door at any moment to rouse me for another day. I’d much rather curl back up on my side and let myself drift back to the vibrations of this realm where everything fades away.

It is in this moment that I note that my body doesn’t feel quite normal. My pajamas feel tight where they shouldn’t and loose in places where I wonder if they will stay on.

Yes, I wear pajamas to bed. One never knows when Thor will oaf his way into Midgard and try to rouse me to go with him for a drink. Or another god will pop in for a visit. They have no sense of time on Midgard. Neither do the Oracles. Bronwyn has been known to call at all hours of the day and night as well with one mission or another. It’s just easier to be wearing something than to not and have someone else play magic against you.

This is different.

I feel smaller and more delicate. It’s when I hold up my hand that I realize what is going on.

This is one of those days when I’ve woken up as a woman.

I am Loki of Midgard and sometimes my life can get a little awkward. This is one of those moments.

At least my nails are already painted in a beautiful dark raspberry shade. So glad I went for the manicure before I changed back the last time. If I recall correctly, Chanel made the color and I thought it would be great to go with the bag I’d just purchased from Gucci. I still hadn’t found the perfect pair of shoes though. Black goes with everything, the nail technician had said with aplomb that I couldn’t believe. There went her tip.

I stare up at the ceiling in its soft caramel color and wonder how this happened.

Usually I can feel the change coming upon me a week or so ahead of time, unless it is one of those rare occasions where I trigger the transformation intentionally. I assure you, that is not the case this time. Usually I schedule a vacation, something in the Bahamas where I can sport a cute little bikini and get lots of free drinks from men wanting to pick me up. That’s the way to do it.

Why hadn’t I noticed this time?

Sun. I need a little more of it right now. With a flick of my fingers, the curtains zip to the corners of the room and bow to the welcome light streaming in. I lie in bed awhile longer and look out the window toward the patio just beyond the glass. I can see the early morning highlights on the tree and the grass that surrounds it. I figure I’ll be hearing Jason’ voice at any moment. It’ll shatter my peace.

I wonder what he’ll think of me being a woman. It’ll be his first time seeing me this way since he discovered I was a god. I could always mislead him a bit. That might be worth getting out of bed for. Yes, I’m grinning now.

My phone rings on the stand beside me, but it’s not one of the ringtones announcing Bronwyn calling with a case. I do have to say that I hadn’t had one of those in awhile and I’m beginning to miss them. Maybe I should call Bronwyn up to see if they’ve been handing my cases out to someone else. Perhaps Frey has been paroled to Midgard for some reason and Odin likes him better. It might not be Bronwyn calling, but it is Jason.

Hello, I say.

I’m about to tell him that I’m awake and will be dress shortly when he rudely interrupts my speech.

Loki, it’s Jason. Look, I have a bit of an emergency. I’m going to be late this morning.

How late? I ask. If he’d been listening, really listening, he would have realized that my voice wasn’t quite as it should be.

I don’t know. I’m sorry. I’ve got to go.

The line disconnects before I even have a chance to ask if he’s all right. He might have gotten into an accident. I listen to the fabric of Midgard for a moment. Jason, it would seem, is safe. Nothing has happened to him.

I roll just far enough to put the phone back on the night stand. Unfortunately, I miss and it falls to the carpeted floor below. Aw, it can stay there. I wave my hand dismissively, then pull it back under the sheets with the rest of my feminine body.

Let Jason deal with his emergency.

At least now I can curl up and go back to sleep.

CHAPTER 2

"L oki!"

The sound of my name being shouted wakes me from my slumber. I hear the door shut with a bit more force than Jason usually closes it with. Then his footsteps are thundering on the floor.

In a back part of my mind, I have to wonder if Thor has arrived. Perhaps I heard him shout my name from outside and the thump of my door was him knocking it in. That almost brings me to full alertness. But not quite.

The change obviously took its toll on me.

I have to look down just to be sure I hadn’t imagined it. We both know I hadn’t dreamed it.

Yep, still a woman.

I gather my hair, now black and wavy, and take a look at the tips. No split ends. That’s good.

Loki? Jason calls out again.

I sit up and stretch. It always seems that as a female, I have to stretch more than I do when I’m a male. It is a very sensual way to be in the body.

Jason comes down the hallway and enters my bedroom. I’ve been trying to call—

His reaction when he sees me is priceless. At first, he’s shocked still. His eyes widen. Then he whips around to his right and shades his eyes. I’m sorry, he says quickly before reaching over to knock on the my bathroom door.

It’s just partially closed, so it swings open at his knock.

Loki? he calls almost hopefully.

Hi, over here, I say.

Jason pivots slowly, still not bringing down his hand but tentatively peeking at me anyway. Loki?

I wave my manicured nails.

Oh, my god, Loki, he says. His hand drops and the weight of it seems to pull down his shoulders. Can we not do this? I can’t take this today.

I realize he’s exhausted. Not only is he sooty, but he smells of smoke as well. There are several black smudges on his brown check three-piece suit.

He rubs his hands over his face, peeking at me once more through splayed fingers. I tried calling you. Why didn’t you answer?

I did. I answered when you called.

After that.

Let’s look. I remember that my phone didn’t quite make it onto the night stand. Sweeping the blankets off my legs, I stand and bend over for my phone.

Ah-ha! Jason screams as he spins away and covers his eyes once more.

I glance down to see what has caused quite the reaction. Oh. So I admit that the front of my pajama top is, in my current form, a little low cut. Don’t like women? I ask, totally inappropriately.

I like women, Jason defends. Just not seeing my boss like that.

I put my hand on my tilted hip and give him a wilting look.

Not today. Please, Loki? Please?

With a sigh, I look at my phone to see that he has indeed tried to call me at least three times. There’s only one with a voicemail though. I click it to play.

"Um, Loki, it’s Jason. I’m going to hope