Remember the old ways, young ones.

I am the Volva, the Seer, the Speaker of Truths, the Teller of Tales, and the Giver of Prophecies. I see Past, Present, and Future, and truths that only my sisters know.

Without the past, how can one learn for the future? Without prophecy, how will we hope? Without guides, we cry out into the universe, looking for a sign without the burning truths of the Volva to speak for it.

Though the Volvas are diminished, we are not gone. And we will not be forgotten. It is as the Universe wills it.

The threads of fate align, young ones. Pay heed and listen.

There are some days when it feels like nothing can go wrong, full of joyful bliss as everything clicks together perfectly, tumbling through perfect execution as if it had been perfectly planned.

This was not one of those days.

Loki had woken up late for the morning hunt, rushing to the stables without breakfast to try and catch up with his brother. Thor liked to ride forward without him anyways, leaving him trying to catch up like a child, as he did when racing against Thor on foot. Usually he was able to catch up quickly, however, with a late start, he reached the party only moments before they took down their prey. Thor had laughed, Fandral joining with him, Lady Sif shook her head, and Lord Forseti, who usually accompanied the hunting parties, sighed loudly. Hurt, Loki sullenly rode behind them as they laughed and chattered about inane things.

Things continued to feel….off. The Council meeting, which circled around lunch, was unusually strident, with members nearly coming to blows over trivial items, such as the menu for next week's luncheon. Their voices seemed almost muffled, as Loki couldn't seem to focus properly. Faces, voices, and actions around the table seemed almost as distant as a dream. As Loki tried to bring forward his attention, the only person he could truly discern was the immovable, almost statuesque form of his father.

As much as he tried to scrutinize Odin's face, he could never truly tell what his father was thinking. He'd attempted many times, particularly to anticipate his moods, but was continually surprised at what would break from his father's stoic demeanor.

Shaking his head, as if to ward off exhaustion, Loki returned to his chambers. He tapped his fingers on his leg as he tried to think of what he could do to stave off this...oddness. Read? Ugh, no, too boring. Go spar? Even though it might wake him up, it might not be a good idea if he was feeling off.

Loki's mind began to drift as he began noticing strange details about his chambers: the sharp edges of a desk, the texture of cushions, the gold filigree…

His reverie was sharply interrupted by harsh banging on his door. As he suspected, when he popped it open, he was greeted by the smiling face of his brother.

"Good afternoon!" Thor's voice was chipper as he pushed against the door.

Loki tried hard to keep it barely open. "What...is it...brother?"

"What are you doing?" asked Thor.

Oh, no. Thor was bored.

Loki strained, but had to let go of the door, which slammed open. Thor stumbled a bit, then caught himself, laughing.

Loki shook his head, not able to ward off a little grin. "Really, nothing. I've been feeling...strange all day."

Thor snorted. "You were just a little late this morning! I had to reassure Lord Forseti that you'd be along." He sauntered over to a side table, selecting a plum and biting vigorously into it. Loki tried to hide the annoyance - Loki loved plums, and Thor tended to eat his before they were ripe.

"Oh, he actually cared if I came?" Loki said wryly.

This seemed to take Thor off-guard. "Well, yes."

That off-feeling suddenly began to feel worse. It felt as though Asgard itself were tilting sideways - even Thor seemed to tumble with it, as Loki felt like he went flying out the window, beyond the bay, into the void itself. It sounded as though the universe was screaming wordlessly, as though a cry rang through his very soul. It seemed like there was an infinite amount of time between every heartbeat, until the cold spell of entropy seemed to overtake him.

As his senses returned, he slowly ran his hand over the cool, familiar tile. His brother gave a groan, and Loki opened his eyes to see Thor also picking himself up off the floor. His plum was, oddly, on the other side of the room.

Loki tried to get his attention. "Brother?"

Thor shook his head, then focused on Loki. "What was that, an attack?" His voice was tense.

"You felt it too?" Loki asked, puzzled, and began getting up. He slipped, however, as his hand was in something wet. Holding it up, he saw it was black with ink.

Ink was streaked across the floor, leading to a piece of paper. Thor ran over, rescuing it before more ink could soak into it.

Loki joined him, holding out his hand so as not to get ink on his clothes. "What is it?" he asked.

Thor shook his head. "It's barely legible."

Loki took the paper. It was his own handwriting, large and extraordinarily sloppy, as though written with great haste.

"Remember the old ways, Children of Time."

That was all. Loki shook his head. "I don't remember writing this."

"Is it your handwriting?" asked Thor, staring at the splash of ink on the floor.

"Yes. But did you...did you feel…like the universe was…" Loki struggled to put his experience into words. They didn't do it justice, and he couldn't truly describe the feeling. Perhaps he could later, with a little introspection.

Thor glanced at him with almost a keen look in his eye. "Like the universe was saying something."

Loki relaxed. "Yes. Like you were falling out of Asgard."

Nodding, Thor went over to the balcony, looking out over the city. "I think if Asgard had taken a hit there'd be more pandemonium." He paused. "I wonder what old ways that paper means."

Loki tried to focus on the feeling he'd been having, but it was gone - replaced instead by a deep dread. "Thor?"

His brother looked back at him. "Yes?"

"Were you feeling strange earlier this morning?"

Thor shrugged. "A little, but I wasn't worried about it."

Then why didn't you say anything, Loki retorted mentally and shook his head, annoyed, laying out the paper on his desk to dry.

"What do you think it means?" he asked tentatively.

Thor looked at him sharply. "I thought you might know better, and…" He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "...if this is a trick, it's a very bad one."

Loki couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Trust me, if it was me, it'd have been more entertaining." He paused, thinking. "I don't know what this means. If I wrote this…it must've been important." Looking back at his brother, he returned to that fear that had begun to take hold in his gut. "Do you have a - a distressing feeling now?"

Thor tried to smile, but he looked distressed. "Yes. It's like...something is going to happen. Something big." He looked away briefly. "Loki…I don't know what happened, but…"

When one is a sibling, there can be many messages easily inferred through body language and tone. This was what Thor was saying: "I don't know what this is, but we can't tell other people about it, I don't want Mother to worry or Father to find out because that makes me sound vulnerable and I'm the crown prince." Well, at least, that's what Loki inferred.

"Don't worry," Loki said. "But I'd like to at least ask Mother about this 'Children of Time' phrase; I can work it in without mentioning what happened."

Thor nodded. "Let me know what you find out."

"I've never heard of it," said Queen Frigga firmly.

Loki frowned. Mother was familiar with a fair amount of history and magical lore - generally his primary source for this type of information. "The phrase isn't even...familiar? Perhaps it's a fragment…"

"No, it's not familiar, Loki," Frigga said, her voice taking on an authoritative tone. "Where did you hear it?"

"Just out in public," Loki said, the lie slipping easily off his lips.

Frigga frowned. "Well, think nothing of it," she said before leaving abruptly.

Loki blinked, trying to make sense of the short conversation as he turned to go find his brother. Thor was in his usual spot - the sparring courtyard - for the evening. Usually Thor would continue despite noticing his brother, but with the events of the day before, Thor stopped, motioning for Fandral to practice without him.

"Anything?" Thor asked, folding his sweaty arms.

"No, but…" Loki hesitated. "Mother was rather adamant about her ignorance."

Thor squinted. "What made you notice?"

Loki shook his head. "It was like she didn't want to speak about it."

"You think she knows about it, then?"

"Perhaps. If she does, she doesn't want to talk about it, so…"

Thor pursed his lips, frowning. "We'll need to find out on our own, then."

Loki sighed. "I'm afraid so." Thor looked at Loki hard, and Loki knew exactly what it meant. "And I'll go find out."

Thor broke out in a grin. "Thanks, brother," he said, patting Loki's arm.

As advanced as Asgard was, the digitization of paper records was still an ongoing process, given the glut of paper records kept over thousands of years by fastidious Asgardians. Although their databases were extensive, Loki found his phrase frustratingly elusive. After a few days of fruitless research, Loki realized with a sinking feeling that he was going to have to make a trip down to the Archives.

While the palace had its own library of particularly rare and spectacular books, the Archives were the place with the most comprehensive collection of Asgardian works. While Loki loved to find secrets and arcane bits of lore, they tended to be found in more interesting private collections. He had found the Archives to be a rather dull place with dusty old librarians.

Still, they might be able to help him find what he was looking for.

The Archives were in a large circular building, with pillars supporting a tall roof and tiers of shelves, highlighting the jewel-colored bindings of their denizens. Loki couldn't help but crane his neck like a child, taking in the sheer size of the building.

"Prince Loki!"

Loki snapped back to reality to focus on the older archivist in front of him.

The white-haired woman smiled at him. "It's an honor to see you here. Is there something I can do for you?"

"Ah...yes," Loki said, straightening. A prince does not show his uncertainty. "I'm looking for the origin of a specific phrase…" Subconsciously, he still hesitated before saying it, as though it were a secret. His mother's reaction flitted briefly through his mind.

"What phrase would that be, your highness?"

"Ah - 'Children of Time.'"

The archivist considered this, giving no strong reaction. Probably a good thing. "I'm not familiar with the phrase, but I can ask some of my colleagues. Perhaps they can point you in the right direction." The woman disappeared down a corridor, with a fair amount of time passing before she returned. "Only one of them had a vague recollection of the phrase. They believe it's from a prophecy."

"Oh," Loki said guardedly. That was not a good sign. Prophecies tended, more often than not, to be wrong, full of nonsense, and were so vague they could be interpreted for any situation. "No further idea of where to look?"

"I'm afraid not," the archivist replied with a sympathizing look. "I can show you where the prophecies are and I have some ideas of where to start."

As he expected, the section devoted to prophecies was quite large. The archivist suggested the prophecies of Voluspa to begin, noting that her prophecy of Ragnarok was the most well-known amongst Asgardians. With that, Loki was left to begin researching on his own.

It certainly wasn't going to be an easy task. The prophecies were written in an older form of Asgardian which was just archaic enough to be a headache to read. Loki set about skimming the pages to find the phrase.

It didn't just take days, the search was taking weeks. Loki's absence from the palace had been noticed, and it didn't take long before Loki heard the familiar sound of his mother's footsteps while he was shoulder-deep in books.

He spun an illusion quickly to disguise the books at hand, with barely enough time to look natural as his mother rounded the corner. "There you are!" she said, almost exasperated. "Loki, you've been missing council meetings, and…"

"Yes," he said, trying to catch her off-guard. "I've just been researching some things for a policy proposal."

Frigga hesitated. "You're considering a proposal? That's the first time you've even mentioned the idea."

Loki nodded. "I'd...I'd tell you about it, but I'm researching some history before I put my thoughts together." Hopefully that would adequately explain his extensive absence.

She nodded, glancing at the books, then looking around at the surrounding bookshelves. "I do hope that you're not looking at any of these prophecies for historical guidance," she said absent-mindedly. "They tend to be wrong and full of nonsense than anything else!"

"As you've told me multiple times, Mother," Loki said with a nod and a smile.

Frigga came over and squeezed his arm gently. "I'm glad you're getting more interested in affairs running the Nine Realms," she said softly. "Your father will notice."

"Thank you," Loki said, his heart hurting just a little. He didn't truly wish to lie about this, especially to Frigga. Perhaps...perhaps he should actually consider doing a proposal. Although, the risks of it being rejected or dismissed by his father were fairly high. Loki winced at even the idea of being humiliated so in front of the council.

Probably not a great idea. It'd be easier simply to say he'd changed his mind. As he'd learned, it was often easier to conjure a failure rather than tell the truth. Perhaps it was considered a weakness in Asgardian society, but it furthered his ends nonetheless.

With his mother sufficiently appeased, Loki was left to continue without interruption. As the days went on, he began to consider giving up. Thor seemed to have dismissed the strange incident they'd shared, not bringing it up again, even in confidence. Loki no longer had that strange feeling, simply the lingering, constant feeling of dread. He began shortening his visits to the Archives so that he could begin a more consistent schedule.

It was nothing short of a miracle, then, that in his truncated research sessions, Loki finally happened upon what he was looking for.