Disclaimer: Thor, Loki and Odin belong to Norse mythology. The rest of the set-up, the Warriors Three and Lady Sif belong to Marvel. I'm just borrowing to - well, have a little bit of fun ... :)

The story's set the day and evening before Thor's coronation (that doesn't happen. It's just a kind of prologue for a much, much longer story. I'll add the rest, bit by bit, when the story's finished. But since this piece can very well stand on its own, I thought I'd upload it right away.

Thor was pacing back and forth. He hated to be kept waiting. But since, in this case, it was his father who kept him waiting, he couldn't very well leave, could he?

He paused to throw a quick glance at Loki who was standing by one of the large windows, gazing at the city below. How did he do it, Thor wondered. How could he always be so – so annoyingly calm?

Loki must have felt his gaze, for he turned his head to look at Thor, eyebrows raised in a silent question.

Thor shook his head and resumed his pacing.

"What's keeping him so long?" he murmured.

"Patience, brother." Loki flashed him a smile. "It must be important or else, he wouldn't keep us waiting."

He returned his attention to the window.

"What are you looking at?"

Thor joined him. He peered out of the window but couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

Loki shrugged.

"Nothing in particular." He clasped his hands on his back and pointed his chin at something. "That is, actually – do you see those two over there?"

"Where?" Thor craned his neck. "Ah. The two on the bench? Yes."

A young couple, obviously deep in conversation. Or busy admiring each other.

"What's so interesting about them?" he asked.

"Nothing, really. I just …"

Loki glanced at Thor.

"I was just wondering –" He paused and actually did look a little embarrassed.

Thor frowned.

"What is it, brother?" He smiled. "Spit it out – I won't bite you."

No, but you might laugh", Loki said.

"Laugh?"

"It is rather silly, I'm afraid."

"Right, I promise I won't laugh", Thor said.

Loki sighed.

"Oh yes, you will. Well – I was wondering – have you ever kissed a girl?" he asked, giving Thor a sideways glance. "I mean – a real kiss?"

"Or course!" Thor looked at his brother in surprise. "Why – haven't you?"

Loki just shrugged.

"Let's just say that my experiences in that field have been – awkward, to put it like that."

He most definitely did look embarrassed now. It took Thor a moment to realize what he was referring to. Then, however, he nodded.

"Ah, yes, the incident with –"

"- the horse, yes", Loki quickly cut him off. "Which was rather off-putting."

Thor did his best to suppress a grin but he knew he couldn't completely keep it off his face. He didn't possess Loki's talent for concealing what he felt.

A flash of annoyance flickered in Loki's eyes. Thor remembered that, back then, when it had been revealed how exactly Loki had obtained Sleipnir, Sif and the Warriors Three had teased him about it to no end. Or course, after a while, Loki had found a way to pay them back and ever since then, that incident hadn't been mentioned again.

Thor patted his brother's shoulder.

"Let's return to your question, shall we? Yes, I have kissed plenty of girls."

"So – what's it like?" Loki asked.

Again, Thor gave his brother a surprised look – only to look straight into his eyes. They were a very particular shade of green. He wondered why he had never noticed before. Maybe because he had never seen them from that close up?

A slight frown appeared on Thor's face. Something was not quite right here. His brother was too close. He couldn't bring himself to move away, though.

"What's it like to kiss?" he repeated, still mesmerized by those green eyes.

He just couldn't look away.

Loki nodded slowly.

"Say, is it anything like this?"

His voice was low and soothing, as if he wanted to stop Thor from turning and running away just by talking to him.

He lifted a hand and gently brushed a strand of Thor's hair out of his face and behind his ear. The hand slid back to Thor's neck, pulling his head forward.

Thor didn't resist. He didn't resist, either, when his brother's lips met his. He was too stunned by what was happening.

He found himself parting his lips, responding to the kiss, slowly and hesitantly at first. But more passionately only a moment later, when his instincts overruled his reason. His heart was pounding in his chest and his mind was spinning as he wrapped his arm around his brother's waist and pulled him close.

This was wrong. He shouldn't be doing this – this was his brother!

But he couldn't stop and a tiny part of him didn't even want to stop but instead, wanted to go on, and not just with kissing.

"What is the meaning of this?" a voice boomed.

Their father's voice. Thor pushed Loki away and spun round, catching his breath.

"Father – I – we –"

Odin glared at them from his single eye. His right hand gripped his spear so tightly that his knuckles were white. His left hand was clenched into a fist. For a moment, Thor thought he would strike them both down with Gungnir's fire.

"Explain yourselves", Odin demanded.

Thor's mind was racing. What to say? How to explain this? He couldn't. He wasn't sure what had happened. Well, he knew what had happened but he didn't know how. He had just kissed his brother and a part of him, a tiny little part had even been willing to take it further than that. How could he explain that?

He couldn't hold his father's gaze any longer and looked down at his boots. Fortunately, he didn't have to explain anything at all.

"It was just a joke, father", Loki said with a small, apologetic smile. "Don't be cross."

"A joke?" Odin repeated, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Loki nodded.

"To unsettle Thor", he explained. "And also – well, you see, I was rather curious why all those fair maidens in the Realm Eternal seem to want nothing more than to be kissed by my dear brother."

The smile turned into a smirk.

"I guess I see why, now."

Odin frowned at Loki, still looking suspicious. Loki held his father's gaze, though, unlike Thor, and finally, Odin sighed and shook his head.

"You will never learn, Loki, will you? If someone else had walked in on you –"

Loki shrugged.

"To be honest, I didn't think about that."

"It is a mystery to me how someone as smart as you can, at the same time, be so thoughtless", Odin said.

Loki cast his gaze down and assumed a properly chastised expression but Thor could see his eyes were still twinkling.

"Very well, then."

Odin turned away from them and gestured for them to follow him.

As soon as he had his back turned to them, Loki looked up and winked at Thor.

Thor grinned.

His brother's quick wit had once more got them out of a tight spot. He couldn't help wondering, though, whether what Loki had told their father was really the truth. Would Loki really kiss him just out of curiousity? Well – maybe. With Loki, anything was possible.

The evening found Thor standing before the huge gilded double-doors to his brother's chambers, trying to make up his mind whether to knock or not. He raised his hand – and dropped it again.

The right wing of the door opened just a crack wide. Thor smiled. Loki's way of bidding him to enter. He pushed it open and stepped into his brother's chambers.

As so often, the only source of light was a fire in the fireplace that had almost burned down to embers.

"Loki?" Thor asked, closing the door behind him.

The large room was filled with shadows and his eyes needed time to adjust to the gloom.

"Over here."

Thor followed his brother's voice outside on the balcony. Loki half turned to him. He didn't say anything but that wasn't necessary. The question was evident in his eyes.

"Won't you join us, brother?" Thor asked. "We're celebrating. Sif, me and the other three."

Celebrating his big day tomorrow. His ascension to the throne of Asgard.

"Maybe in a moment", Loki said.

"What are you looking at?" Thor craned his neck but could only see the lights of the city down below.

"Nothing in particular, brother."

Thor frowned.

"Didn't we already have this conversation?" he asked. "This afternoon, when we were waiting for father?"

Loki laughed softly.

"I do apologize for – startling you the way I did."

Thor grinned.

"I'll forgive you if you tell me why you really did it", he said.

Loki raised his eyebrows.

"You think I lied to father?"

"No, I know you lied. So – the truth."

Thor smiled but there was this small fluttering feeling in the pit of his stomach. Did he really want the truth? What if it was something he didn't want to know? The way Loki had kissed him. The way he himself had reacted …

"A bet", Loki said. "With Fandral and Volstagg. We were all a little drunk and they dared me to kiss you – properly, Fandral said. And in front of father."

Thor laughed, partly in relief as he would admit only to himself. A bet. Perfectly harmless, then.

"Well, you beat them, then", he said, clapping his brother on the shoulder.

"And they will pay for making me kiss you", Loki said. "Your beard may suit you very well but it itches something terrible."

"Wha- why, you –"

Thor tried to playfully punch his brother but Loki dodged the blow and stepped around him.

He smiled but then, grew serious again.

"I also apologize for – well, you see, I had to make you want to kiss me because if you hadn't, you just would have pushed me away. I'm afraid I overdid it a little …"

"Ah, I see."

That, to Thor, explained a lot. Loki looked like he was really sorry for that part. Well, one never knew with him. Whether he was being honest or just pretending. This time, though, Thor was quite sure he actually meant it.

"If you ever do that again, little brother, I will have to hit you really hard", he said with a grin.

"If you can get me, that is", Loki pointed out.

He strode back to the door.

"Come, let's join the others", he said back over his shoulder. "Before they start to think there might be something to the rumours."

"What rumours?"

Thor turned to follow him but was slowed down because he kept bumping into furniture.

"Loki! What rumours?"

"What are you looking at?"

Thor looked up when he heard the question. It had been directed at his brother who was sitting over on the stone balustrade with his knees drawn up. Fandral had joined him. It was him who had asked.

Thor knew his brother's answer before he heard it and grinned.

"Nothing in particular."

Loki cast a quick glance at Thor, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

"Well – don't lose your balance", Fandral said. "It's a long way down."

He peered over Loki's shoulder.

"Lose my balance?"

Loki frowned up at Fandral.

"What do you mean, lose my balance?"

Suddenly, he jumped to his feet, standing on the balustrade.

"I never lose my balance."

"Loki –" Thor half rose from his chair in alarm. There was something in his brother's voice and eyes that he didn't like.

But it was too late. To prove his point, Loki did a backflip on the balustrade.

"See, I never –"

The rest of it was cut off as he slipped. Eyes wide, he flailed his arms, trying to regain his balance or find something to hold on to. He swayed and Thor hoped he would fall back into the room, flat on his face. They would all laugh about it and be done with it. But Loki didn't. He tipped over backwards. Fandral, standing closest, tried to grab him but he only grabbed thin air.

"Loki!"

Thor jumped up, tipping over his chair, and rushed to the balustrade. Sif and Hogun followed on his heels and even Volstagg dropped his plate and rose.

"Can you see him?" Thor asked Fandral and without waiting for an answer called: "Loki! Can you hear me?"

Nothing. Just silence. A fist of ice seemed to grab his heart. No. No! It couldn't be! Loki couldn't be –

"It's too dark. We need more light."

Sif turned away, waving for Hogun to help her bring torches to the balustrade. Thor nodded. It barely registered with him what Sif had said. He peered out into the dark, desperately trying to see his brother, praying he was only injured and not dead.

Suddenly, a high-pitched shriek made them all jump. It had come from somewhere high above them.

"There!" Fandral pointed at something.

A shadow, barely visible against the dark sky. The shape of a large bird, gliding through the air.

"A hawk", Hogun said.

The bird circled once more before the window, giving another shriek, then it came straight at them. Thor, Hogun and Fandral quickly stepped aside to let it pass. Sif was almost knocked over. She only avoided it by throwing herself to the floor.

The hawk passed Volstagg, making him duck, flew to the fireplace and landed on the tiled floor before it. Its talons had barely touched the tiles when it suddenly started to change. It grew larger and larger, changing its shape, until it was almost man-sized. Then it burst into a cloud of feathers that dissolved into thin grey smoke and there stood – Loki. He was smiling at them and looking rather smug.

For a moment, there was absolute silence. Then, they all started talking at once.

"What did you think –"

"You bloody little –"

"Amazing!"

Thor rushed over to his brother. He seized him by the shoulders and shook him slightly.

"Don't you ever do that again!" he said. "My heart almost stopped when you slipped and fell."

Loki gave him a surprised look.

"But I didn't fall. As I said – I never lose my balance, except on purpose."

Thor let go of him, not sure whether to laugh or scold him for giving them such a fright.

"Please excuse me now." Loki bowed his head at them. "I think I'll retire now."

"What, so early!" Thor protested.

"I better, brother, or I might end up doing something that indeed might make your heart stop."

Loki once more looked at everyone in turn, then turned on his heel and left.

Thor shook his head.

"Well, I guess that was what he meant by making you pay for it", he said, looking at Fandral and Volstagg.

The two exchanged a glance.

"Make us pay?" Fandral asked.

"What for?" Volstagg added.

"The bet."

"What bet?"

Thor frowned. They both looked at him as if they didn't know what he was talking about.

"The bet you three had going", he said. "That he had to kiss me, properly, in front of father."

Fandral shook his head. Volstagg grinned.

"We had no such bet going, Thor."

"Loki!"

Loki laughed softly to himself when he heard his brother howl his name. So he had finally found out there was no bet. A good thing he had made his exit when he did. Thor would have hit him, and hard, if he had still been there. Well, by tomorrow, he would have forgotten about it. Tomorrow was his big day, after all.

Loki grew serious again. Should he really go through with it? He still could change his mind.

But should he? All the time that he had been at his brother's little celebration, all he had heard had been Thor prattling on about how, as soon as he was king, he would smite the frost giants of Jotunheim. Deal with them, once and for all. Fight glorious battles, just like their father had done.

Loki snorted. That fool would start another war. He was by no means ready to be king. But father wouldn't listen. Loki had tried to talk to him, make him see but to no avail. Odin even had seemed a little disappointed at him. So Loki had decided to take matters in his own hands.

A small disturbance, to disrupt tomorrow's ceremony. If father refused to see Thor was barely more than a spoiled brat, then he had to be made to see.

Loki slowed his step.

But had he thought of everything? What could possibly go wrong? They were too few to pose a real threat. Maybe some of the guards would be killed, but better those few than the countless others that would without a doubt die in a new war.

What else? Loki couldn't think of anything. Once they were in the weapons vault, there was no way for them to get out alive again. And then, all he needed to do was to give Thor a slight nudge in the right direction. He knew only too well how his brother would react. Thor was easier to read than a child's reading primer and as predictable as the sun rising every morning.