Welcome to my latest fanfic which I've been planning for months. I happy I can finally post it. Enjoy and review. It is also available on AO3.

Midgard was quite fascinating to Loki. He'd heard many tales about the planet and its inhabitants. Midgardians were an enigma to him. Their inhabitants fought about silly things such as skin color, place of origin, and ideas that they call religions. You'd think after spending millions of years together they would accept everyone as one of their own. Yet they call those with features different from their own inferior and treat them like dogs. No wonder they think themselves as the only ones in the universe. If they saw anyone from Jotunheim, their heads might explode from wonder. Their countries are constantly at war with one another. They had just wrapped up what they called the World War. Many of its countries were in shambles. Even the most powerful were suffering under economic crisis. Midgard and its people were a sad sight for the other realms. The only positive thing Loki could think of about it was it's recent boom in advancement of different sciences. It was still well behind everyone else, but they were improving.

Other than the main and obvious characteristics, if they were to stand side by side, one would not easily tell the difference between an Asgardian and a Midgardian. It was like that for a lot of other aliens too that they shared features with. All of them were more powerful than Midgardians. Xandarians and Spartoi were stronger and more durable than Midgard's inhabitants. Asgardians were way above them all. One of the main things the other three humanoids shared were short lifespans. Compared to an Asgardian, the normal passing age for the other three would be equivalent to an Æir toddler. And that's before they eat the golden apples of Idunn.

As much as he wanted to see Midgard with his own eyes, Odin had banned any Asgardian from traveling or attempting to travel there without his permission. The penalty for breaking the law was a hundred-year sentence in an Asgardian prison. Even though he was his son, Loki knew that he would receive a punishment just not one that's as harsh. Besides Heimdall was required to alert Odin if any Æir tried to travel there. So it wasn't like he could use the Bifrost.

Loki did know another way into Midgard though.

Flashback

Thor, Loki, Sif, and the future Warriors Three were playing a game of hide and seek in the seaside cliffs. It was Thor's turn to count and the others quickly scattered to find hiding places among the rocks and waves. Loki scaled and weaved between the stones around him. He looked for a cave to hide in as he climbed up the cliff. He spotted one a few yards above him. He reached for the ledge above him, when he suddenly lost his footing on the stone. His body attempted to brace itself against the wall of rock. Instead he fell into a small, dark alcove. Confused, Loki got up and went to the entrance of the cave. He stuck his head out and looked around. To his surprise, it looked as if his head was stuck in the rock he saw before. He realized he'd fallen into a portal his mother would always tell him about. He had always thought it was just a bedtime story. Loki quickly decided that he would hide in the alcove. Thor wouldn't find him for a while, or maybe not at all for that matter, so he could explore to find the portal and see where it goes.

Loki walked farther back into the alcove. The farther he went, the darker it got. So dark to a point he had to use a wall to guide him. He considered using a simple light spell his mother had taught him, but Frigga told him he could only practice spells in her presence for the time being.

Mother's not here now, so it'll be fine if I do a simple light to show me the way. Besides, I'd rather not run into something in here.

A sphere of light appeared in his hands. He cupped his hands around it to form a passageway to concentrate the light in one area. Loki walked with a quicker pace now that he could see where he was going.

He had went almost quarter of a mile from the mouth of the alcove when he saw a light other than his own. His excitement and adrenaline immediately spiked. Giddy from his newfound discovery, Loki broke out in a run towards it. It got closer and closer until he inconveniently tripped over a rock. He flew through the air and fell onto the hard floor, scraping his face on the stone. His hand instinctively reached up to his face and felt a familiar, warm liquid on his cheek. Loki wiped the blood onto one of the walls of the cave before getting back unto his feet. He looked back to see what caused him to stumble. To his surprise and luck, he'd fallen across a small ravine. Looking into it, he discovered that he couldn't even see the bottom.

Thank orns, the dead All Fathers are watching over me. Even when I directly disobey their law they still send me favor. I could've fallen in. Died alone. My broken body never found while my family and the kingdom mourns for their lost prince.

Shaking off the ordeal, Loki continued on. He arrived at the mouth of the cave and stopped to observe the sight in awe. From all his eyes could see, there was snow and trees. A cold gust of wind blew into the mouth of the cave. Unfazed, Loki stepped out into the wintery world. This must be Midgard. The winters aren't as harsh as they are on Jotunheim. There aren't any mountains around here either. Loki walked around the and observed the wildlife. He saw a lynx silently creeping in the snow and a few birds huddled in the trees. There didn't seem to be any Midgardians around the cave, though he saw smoke in the distance which he believed to be a village. He was tempted to go check it out, but decided he needed to go back to Asgard.

Before leaving, he turned around to the wood to break off a small branch from one of the firs as a souvenir. Loki carefully chose a branch before coming across one that he liked and was small enough to hide in his clothes. He dusted off the snow before snapping it off the tree. A protection spell was placed on it so it would last for a while. He slid it into the inside pocket of his cape that he had secretly sewn on one night. Satisfied he headed back towards the way home.

As he was walking back to the cave, he heard a small whimper behind him. His hand reached for his sheath which held his dagger. He whipped around, knife in hand and came face to face with a small girl. She was dressed in a brown and white long sleeved dress made of some type of animal hide and wore brown boots on her feet. Her face was red from the biting cold whips of the wind which was blowing around her long brown hair. She appeared to be about three or four years-old. Loki looked around for an adult that would be with her, but saw that there was no one but them. He concluded that the little girl was lost. And he couldn't just leave her there.

"Are you lost?" Loki asked her. Thank the orns for All-speak

She nodded her head yes.

He remembered the smoke he saw earlier in the distance. Thankfully it was still there.

"Do you live in a village over there?" he pointed to the direction of the smoke.

She nodded.

"Do you want me to take you there?"

Nod.

Loki sighed. He really needed to get back. He wasn't even supposed to be on Midgard, much less stick around this long. Heimdall would be quick to snitch if his father were to ask where he was if Thor and his friends couldn't find him. But at the same time, he needed to help the little girl get back to her village and out of the cold. Loki made up his mind and helped the girl onto his back. She tightly latched onto his neck and torso, before he began to make the trek to the village. The girl felt like air to him with his enhanced strength and the girl's already light weight. The snow slowed him down a little bit, with some spots deeper than others. Sometimes it would be past his knees. He used trees to help him get through the heavy snow. Luckily, the village wasn't as far as it looked.

Loki arrived in the village about half an hour after finding the girl. From the edge of the settlement, he could see the hustle and chaos which was probably caused by the missing toddler. He'd come as far as he could without having to interact with any of the other humans. He let the little girl slide off of his back and into the snow.

"You're a safe now," he said. "I need you to go find your family. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes," she said quietly.

Loki smiled. He gave her a quick hug before turning around. The little girl ran up to him and grabbed his hand. She pressed something in it before turning around and running back into the village. Loki watched her go and looked on as two adults wrapped her in their arms. He saw her whisper something in her father's ear. Her father looked in his direction before finally meeting his eyes. He began to approach Loki when the boy broke out into a run. Loki didn't need the man asking him questions about who he was or where he came from. He weaved in between the trees and trudged through the snow before he came to the mouth of the cave. He bolted inside and ran through it so fast he practically flew through the air, even clearing the ravine. The familiar Asgardian light soon embraced him once he ran out the cave.

Loki leaned against the cliff wall as he struggled to catch his breath from running so much. He heard his brother and his friends calling his name as they searched for the winner of hide and seek. Sif ended up finding him and called the others over.

"Where were you hiding?" Sif asked curiously.

Loki nervously looked around for a potential fake hiding spot. He spotted a rock with a large enough hole for him to fit in.

"In that rock over there," Loki said.

"There you are," Thor huffed. "We've looked all over for you. Why didn't you answer our calls? It's been almost an hour."

"What's in your hand," asked Hogun.

Loki had completely forgotten about the parting gift the little girl gave him. It was a miracle he didn't drop it while he was running. He unfurled his hand to reveal a twine necklace with a silver band on it.

"Just a little something I found in the tree," Loki smirked. I'll return to Midgard one day. One day.

End of Flashback

That day was here.

Author's Note: One of the fics that i had to write down so I could finish my other one. Got inspiration from another fic called The Littlest Valkyrie on AO3, but it will be totally different.