Warnings: Major character death.

"You should never have been fool enough to trust me," Loki hissed while the mighty god of thunder writhed on the ground, blue eyes blown wide and his mouth hanging open in shock and pain. Loki thought they were reminiscent of the skies Thor ruled.

"Loki-"

"No! This is my victory, brother, and you will not take that away from me as you always have." He threw the sword to the side, straightening again. With a sneer, he brought his boot down to clamp on Thor's wrist, earning a pained yell. His lips pulled up into a manic grin.

"Look at you, laid out before your weak little brother. What would Father say if he saw you now?" He bent again, the pressure building at the bloody end of Thor's arm. He reached out with his hand, smoothing a strand of blond hair behind his ear and brushing his slim fingers over his cheek in a cheap mockery of affection. "Oh, how far you have fallen…"

He leaned in to press a gentle kiss to Thor's temple before standing and kicking him straight in the chest, casting a spell to bind the thunderer with a mere wave of his hand. Thor's left hand was reaching uselessly toward his hammer and the trickster nearly snorted. Always the idiot. He stepped back and something in Thor's eyes (his beautiful, perfect eyes) cracked, though a relief washed over him as Loki's foot was removed from his wound. Green eyes behind his mask slid upwards to grin at his brother's mortal wench, who looked close to screaming if she were able.

"He's not quite the god you thought now, is he?" he asked in a tone of casualness before turning his attention to Malekith. Loki gave a nod and the elf's lips twitched up in pleasure. With a twisted gesture and a murmuring under his breath, Jane Foster was no more, her dead eyes turned toward her love. He spared the Odinson a look and had to smirk at the sight before him. The crack had grown and oh, how nice it was to finally break him.

"He is yours to do with as you wish," Malekith murmured, letting Jane drop to the dusty ground with a thud.

Loki nodded to him again before coming to kneel before Thor, his hand coming up to cup his jaw again. "Never doubt," he reminded him with a glint in his eyes that suggested otherwise before he was pulling him forward to press their lips together in a harsh kiss. His fingers trailed down to rest above his heart, and with a gentle lick to Thor's still lips, he dug his fingers in to clutch at the beating red heart and he pulled, watching with a satisfaction as those gorgeous blue eyes lost their light.

Thor woke with a start, his hand coming up to his chest as he shot up. Under his palm, he felt a steady beating and he breathed a sigh of relief, looking down to his right hand clutched at his heart. His brows knit together in confusion. From beside him, the bed shifted and a figure sat up, green eyes blinking at him in the dark, confused. Thor froze.

"Thor?" his brother's voice asked quietly, his hand resting on his shoulder. Thor shivered at the contact, realizing for the first time that he was bare.

"Loki?" He was too stunned to shrug the cold hand from his shoulder. Run, his mind tells him, run and never look back. A trap. Somehow, he has you trapped. But then the fingers curled in worry around his shoulder, turning him to face Loki's face in the dark.

"Were you expecting anyone else in your bed?" He seemed to be trying for a teasing manner, a small smile on his lips though it soon faded. "Thor, brother, it was only a dream." His hand slid up to feel the blond's forehead with the back of his hand, pulling it away with a slick sheen of sweat on his skin. "No more than a fevered dream, apparently," he muttered.

Gently, Thor was pushed back down onto the bed. He recognized the furs. They were his own, but this… this was not familiar. Not the fond tone in his brother's voice. Not the concern and love in his eyes. He had grown so used to the hatred and now, it was gone. There was nothing there but concern for his wellbeing, and perhaps a bit of annoyance at being woken up in the middle of the night.

"Sleep, Thor. In the morning, we will take you to the healers and see if they can't do anything about that fever." He molded himself to Thor's side, his arm wrapping cautiously around his waist.

"I…"

"Shh. You can tell me about your scary dream the morning." Thor blinked, his brows furrowing again. After a moment, he carefully returned the embrace and Loki gave a content hum, resting his nose in the crook of the thunderer's neck. "I love you." The words were foreign to Thor's ears. But this was what he had wanted, wasn't it? To have this simplicity back? This was his Loki. This was the Loki he grew up with, the one he had shared countless nights lost in pleasure with, and the Loki he loved more than all the realms.

He relaxed in his brother's comforting hold. "I love you too, brother." Odd on his tongue, but not unpleasant. He let his eyes close again, scooting closer to the cooler body next to him while the memories of the dream slowly dissipated from his mind. Home. He was home.

As he slipped into sleep, he did not feel the light, satisfied smirk against the skin of his neck.

A/N: Based on a tumblr post. Idk what this is you should ignore it. But still, reviews and constructive criticism is always welcome.