Sleep Tight
All in Asgard was peaceful. The night sky twinkled, full of the stars and planets of other galaxies. A few Asgardian bugs chirped, and the palace's gold surface shimmered under the purple sky. Everyone was fast asleep except for one little boy, lying awake in his bed, deep in the palace walls. He slid down to the floor, panting and clutching his heart. "Thor." he whispered, nudging his slumbering older brother. Thor moaned in his sleep, swinging his arms in Loki's direction. Loki rubbed a bruised cheek and tried again. "Thor, I've had a nightmare... again." "W-w-what?" the blonde yawned. "A nightmare." "Was it mother again?" He sounded bored, but Loki barely noticed. "No. No." he answered, shivering at the thought. A few nights ago, he'd had a dream that Frigga, his beloved mother, was dead. The very thought terrified him and he never understood why Thor didn't take him seriously. "Can the frost giants get into Asgard?" the shivering boy inquired. Thor sighed and straightened up in his bed. "I'll tell you a story if it makes you go to sleep." "Yes, please do." the black-haired youth whimpered, crawling up and sitting next to his brother. "All right, then." he said, gently as he could in his annoyed state.
"Once upon a time," he began, leaning back on his pillows, "the little people beneath our feet knew we existed so they bowed down and worshiped us. Then the big ugly frost giants came to Midgard. ROAR!" he bellowed, realistically enough to make Loki almost tumble off the bed. "Anyway, the frost giants came to take Midgard from the humans and they all DIED!" He meant to be dramatic, but Loki only asked, "Which side: the frost giants or the humans?" Thor opened his mouth to reply, then scoffed. "How do you mean, which side? The humans died of course! Imagine, mortals being a match for the giants. Ha!" Even Loki laughed a bit at his own foolishness. "But then," said Thor, "a light came from the heavens. Asgard rose up in defiance and fought the frost-" "I know it's awfully rude," Loki interrupted, "but why did we help Midgard?" "-giants back, slaughtered them all in their homeland, took their source of power, and presented it to Asgard as a spoil of war!" "Shouldn't you boys be in bed by now?" called Frigga from the doorway. "It was Loki!" exclaimed Thor immediately. "Oh, but mother please! It was the nightmares again!" "Don't you two worry about explanations. I heard it all from here, and Thor," she said, turning on the boy, "next time, keep the violence to a minimum." She lead Loki back to his bed and gently tucked him in. "Good night, my son." she whispered. She turned to leave, but he grabbed her hand before she could go. "Mother, can the frost giants come to Asgard?" he asked, nervously. "No, sweetheart." "And you're going to stay forever?" "I could never leave you." she answered, then kissed him on the forehead and left. Loki turned over, thinking about what he'd learned tonight. Odin had him the story many times before, but he thought he understood it a little better now, even if Thor's storytelling was a flop. "Thor?" he whispered. "Wha?" He hesitated, words trembling on his lips. "Thank you for the story." The young prince's response was hard to make out, but it sounded something like, "Yea, sure now go to sleep." "One more thing." "Yes?" "You're a bloody awful storyteller." Thor snorted and they both laughed through the night. Did the story stop the nightmares? No. Every night for the rest of his life, Loki had a nightmare, but they didn't matter anymore. Now he could wake up with a smile, even with a dream fresh in his mind, he forced a smile. Because now he knew they would never come true...
Or so he thought.