To Roam Into the Unknown

Loki followed Thor to his chambers, silently brooding at the insolence of the two guards. Ever aware of Loki's fragile mind, Thor turned to him, just outside his room, placing his hand gently on his shoulder.

"Pay them no mind, brother."

Loki clenched his jaw, fighting to hold back the poisonous words that threatened to escape his lips. "I won't..." he whispered quietly.

Thor stared at him, knowing better, until Loki rolled his eyes. "I won't. Gods, Thor." He shoved past him and into his room.

Thor closed the doors, walking further into his chambers.

Loki stood on the balcony, starting out into the slowly darkening skies. "They will never see me as a true Prince of Asgard." He turned to face Thor, who was awkwardly fidgeting with the leather cuff around his wrist. "And why should they? It's no secret that I'm not one of them. My blue skin would easily give that away." He gripped the stone railing, glaring out into the sky.

"Loki, I know that you have endured terrible revelations recently that would drive even the most sane man to the brink. Your rage was understandable. Even your anger with me. I was..." Thor sighed, searching for the right words. "I know I may not have shown it often or in the best ways, but I have only ever known you as my brother. I will always know you as my brother. I will not allow the events of the last few months to unravel the centuries upon centuries that we have shared together as brothers. Blood or not." He slowly made his way to stand next to Loki.

"Blood or not..." Loki whispered, looking down at his hands.

"Would it have made any difference if I'd told you from the beginning?"

Loki and Thor turned at the sound of Odin's voice. As much as he wanted to be angry with the All-Father, he couldn't ignore the tug at his heart upon seeing him. Thor took three long strides and was standing before him.

"To answer your question, father, yes." Loki replied icily.

Odin sighed. "Father, you are awake earlier than anticipated." Thor replied.

"I felt the pain of my son. And so I awoke." Odin replied, meeting Loki's tired gaze. "Loki, I would ask to speak with you, father to son. That is of course, if you will allow it."

Loki glanced at Thor, who averted his gaze. With an exhausted sigh, he nodded. He was tired. Mentally, physically, emotionally. And he was tired of being angry.

"My chambers, if that pleases you, father." His tongue felt heavy, and he swallowed hard as he suddenly became nervous.

Odin gave an approving nod, stepping to the side as Loki breezed past him.

He didn't wait for Odin to catch up as he walked to his room at the opposite end of the long hallway. He gripped the golden handle and gave the large doors a push. They opened silently with ease, surprising him. He had partly expected them to creak like something from one of Aurora's horror movies. The surprises kept coming as he entered the room. Pale moonlight flooded in through the large open balcony and the sheer green drapes moved softy in the gentle warm breeze.

With a flick of his wrist, the candles around his room flared to life. The room was as it had been when he'd last seen it. The bed with its gold and green blankets and numerous pillows lay untouched. His ceiling high bookshelves were stocked with hundreds of books from all corners of the nine realms. Untouched parchment and dry ink wells sat untouched on his desk. There wasn't the slightest hint of dust on anything. It was as if he'd left for breakfast instead of falling into an abyss and being lost for gods know how long.

"Your mother insisted that it be cleaned daily."

Loki looked up from his desk. Odin stood in the foyer.

Loki gestured to the sofa as he took a seat in the leather chair next to it. "Father."

Odin sat down and gave Loki a weak smile. "It warms my heart to hear you call me that once more."

Loki felt his resolve quake, threatening to crumble. "Well, you are my father...if not by blood." He mumbled, looking down at his hands.

"Loki, I am truly sorry." He said. "For the way I went about everything. I should have told you of your heritage.as soon as you were old enough to comprehend it. Perhaps that would have left you with little doubt of our love for you."

Loki felt his eye twitch and he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Perhaps." He replied.

"I understand if you are still angry with me, but I hope you know that I did what I did as your father." Loki looked up, add if to retort, but Odin cut him off. "If I had acted as your king, the sentence would have been much worse, and no one would have gained anything. I believe that the best punishment is one that everyone learns from. And I can tell by looking at you now, that you have learned much in your time on Midgard."

Loki nodded. "The truth is, I have learned. And I..." His wall crumbled and his voice grew thick with emotion. "...am so tired. Some adolescent part of me allowed myself to be controlled by my anger. And as a final act of defiance against you, I let myself fall into the abyss. I fell and tumbled through time and space for what seemed an eternity, until I was found. Those who found me took me in, promising revenge. They used my anger against me." He stood abruptly and began to pace as Odin sat listening intently.

"They tricked me into believing that the attack on Midgard was what I wanted. That I was capable of proving myself a better king than you. I was a pawn in their game for power." He ran his hands through his hair. "I'm still unsure of what was real and what was fabricated. It wasn't until my rather unfortunate meeting with the hood of a car that the veil was lifted. Perhaps the blunt force to my head undid whatever hold they still had on my mind. And if nothing else, I should thank you."

Odin raised an eyebrow in silent question.

Loki's eyes simmered with unshed tears. "I would never have met Aurora, if not for the punishment you felt the need to bestow upon me."

Odin nodded in understanding. "Your mortal."

Loki nodded. "Yes. But now, because of me she lies in the healing room. A spell the only thing between her and certain death."

"You should not take the blame, Loki. Not all things are are within our control."

"She would not be in that state if not for me, I know this without a doubt."

"Loki you can't-"

"She's pregnantfather. With my child. And they used her to get to me." He snapped, poking his own chest as he spoke the last words.

Odin looked down at the floor and sighed. "I was unaware." He stood and looked Loki in the eyes, placing a gentle hand on his arm. "I trust you to do the honorable thing. She is a good woman."

Loki's brow furrowed and Odin smiled. "I had the pleasure of making her rather disembodied acquaintance earlier. Aurora, or rather, her spirit, found herself in my chambers."

Loki felt suddenly lightheaded. "Her...what?"

"Calm yourself. It does not mean she has died, just that the body was too weak to hold onto the soul. And so it escaped for a short while. We had a very long talk during which I informed her of everything."

Loki swallowed hard. "Everything?"

Odin nodded. "She took it rather well. She loves you, perhaps more that you know. I believe this goes without saying, you must fight for her."

Loki smoothed his hair back. "For her, I would do it all over again."

Odin smiled. "Good. That determination will keep you focused and alive. For now, you must rest. The road ahead will not be an easy one." And with that, he bid Loki goodnight and left him to his thoughts.

OoOoOo

"Iðunn and her tree were moved after the misunderstanding, I trust you remember what I am talking about." Thor said, leaning over a map of the nine realms.

"I remember. A simple trick-"

"Gone horribly wrong." Thor interjected.

"I agree, it was rather unfortunate. But in my defense, I did not know of Þjazi's ulterior motives." Loki replied.

"Be that as it may, she and the tree were moved to an unknown location." He pointed to the map. "We know that Jötunheim and Nifelheim are out of the question as they are too cold....and Jötunheim no longer exists." He glanced up at Loki, who starred intently down at the map.

"What if the tree and Iðunn were on Jötunheim?" Jane asked.

Thor and Loki both shook their heads. "The tree is the lifeline of the gods. If the tree or Iðunn were destroyed, we would lose our immortality." Loki explained.

Jane nodded, her mouth forming a silent "oh". She wrapped her shaw around her arms and kissed Thor lightly on the cheek. "I'm going down to have brunch with your mother. I'll see you in a bit?" She asked.

Thor smiled, stroking her cheek. "You will."

Jane squeezed his hand, have Loki a friendly smile and walked out, closing the door gently behind her.

Thor watched the door for a moment with a smile still plastered to his face until Loki cleared his throat.

"She seems to be adapting well." Loki replied.

Thor scratched the back of his head, turning his attention to the map once more. "She is."

"How long has she been here?"

"Just after...just after you were sent to Midgard."

Loki nodded. "Ah. Was it hard to convince her?"

Thor shook his head. "Not as hard as it was to convince father to let her stay."

The two brothers chuckles died down and awkward silence began to creep in.

"Aurora will be alright, Loki. If Jane can adjust, anyone can." Thor said, breaking the silence.

"I didn't even ask if she wanted to come. What if...if she doesn't want to stay?" Loki asked, plopping down into a nearby chair.

"Loki, it's best not to dwell on such things. You know as well as I that if she eats the apple, and she must do so willingly, then she will become immortal. There'd be no place for her on Midgard."

Loki rubbed his face. "Do you think it will work on the baby as well?"

Thor felt slightly unnerved at the role reversal. Loki was always the one to reassure him. Loki was the intellectual one, the calm one. Thor didn't know what to do or say. "I don't know. I would think it would have to. Mother would know." He sat down across from Loki. "I will be retrieving an apple for Jane as well."

Loki looked up at him. "Excellent. Aurora will have a friend." It was a pitiful attempt at humor.

"What is Aurora like?" Thor asked.

Loki stared past him, looking at the blue mid-morning sky. "Like no one I've ever met, in all my years of life. She is a healer, you know."

Thor raised his brow. "I did not."

Loki nodded, smiling at the thought. "I didn't realize it until recently...but I met her the night before I was banished. I sent out a projection of myself to a random location on Midgard, I suppose as a last chance at mischief. She was with a patient and I startled her. Then, when I was injured, she took care of me. I don't know how long I was unconscious...a coma, they call it, but through it all, I could hear her voice. She always played music or sang, and talked to me as if I were awake. She didn't know me, but she defended me. Aurora took me in when I had no where else to go. She treated me as an equal. Introduced me to her friends, taught me how to appreciated Midgardian music and movies-life in general. I think I loved her the moment our eyes met in my hospital room."

"Love has a funny way of changing a man...I knew Jane for a mere three days before my heart had made its decision. Are you ready to be a father?"

Loki chuckled. "I'd sooner be ready to wield Mjolnir and conjure a thunder bolt. The thought terrifies and fascinates me all at once. Is any man ever truly ready to be a father? It's an entirely different responsibility."

"Brother, I have no doubt in my mind that you will make great father."

"I fear Aurora would kick my ass if I were anything less." Loki replied, finding comfort in the Midgardian phrase.

"Jane mentally kicks mine on a daily basis." Thor laughed.

Loki wiped his face and stood. "They will make men of us yet."

Thor smiled and stood, joining Loki once more at the table. "Back to the matter at hand."

"It is unlikely that Iðunn was hidden in Midgard. Leaving us with Vanaheim, Álfheim, Svartalfheim, Muspelheim, and Helheim." Loki said.

"I find it doubtful that the tree would survive in Helheim. But that does narrow it down considerably. I say we start with Álfheim and work our way down." Thor replied, tapping the map with his index finger.

"Perhaps we could cover more ground with the warriors three and Sif?" Loki asked.

"I'm afraid not. The tree is only visible to those who seek its power. Sif and the warriors three would have no use for it and would never find it. I'm afraid it is just you and I, brother." Thor answered, slapping him on the back.

Loki lurched forward and smiled, rubbing his shoulder. "So it would seem. When do we start?"