Thor stood outside the great hall waiting to make his entrance for the coronation. Silently his younger brother sidled up next to him.
"Nervous brother?" Loki enquired.
Thor let out a confident laugh. "Have you ever known me to be nervous?" He replied.
"hmmm Well there was the time in Nornheim …" Loki replied after thinking for a moment.
"That was not nerves brother, that was the rage of battle!" Thor interrupted.
"Ah, I see." Loki replied unconvinced.
"How else could I have fought my way through a hundred warriors and pulled us out alive?" Thor defended.
"Uh, as I recall I was the one who availed us in smoke to ease our escape." Loki pointed out.
Thor began to laugh good-naturedly. "Yes, some do battle, others just do tricks."
Loki let out a slightly offended "Ahh" before turning to a servant who had come with a goblet of wine for Thor. Not able to let a chance to show off his "tricks" slip, Loki turned the wine into snakes with a simple flick of his wrist. The servant quickly dropped the goblet and gave Loki an uneasy stare. Loki chuckled quietly to himself as Thor began to scold him.
"Loki, now that was just a waste of good wine."
"Oh, its just a bit of fun, right my friend?" he replied while looking at the unnerved servant. Loki waved his hand and the snakes disappeared. The servant quickly ducked his head and left the two princes.
Loki let out a small "hmm." He was notorious for his mischievous behavior, and this incident was certainly not the first time a palace servant had been at the receiving end of one of his harmless pranks. In all honesty they were harmless. No one had ever been hurt, and he certainly didn't intend for any harm to come to his unsuspecting victims. There was little to amuse Loki in the palace so his tricks provided an outlet for his boredom, and in a childish way, they allowed him to gain some attention.
Thor stood beside Loki chuckling at his little brother's antics when a soldier appeared and handed him his helm. Thor took the silver helmet in his hand and stared at it for a moment.
Loki, noticing his brother's contemplative gaze, decided to break the tension. "ooooh Nice feathers."
Thor chuckled slightly, grateful for his brother's decision to lighten the mood. "You don't really want to start this again do you, cow?"
"I was being sincere!" Loki replied with a mock look of shock on his face.
"You are incapable of sincerity."
"Am I?"
"Yes." Thor retorted before turning away from his brother.
Loki took a moment to organize his thoughts before addressing Thor. "I've looked forward to this day as long as you have. You're my brother and my friend."
Thor looked back at Loki and smiled. He knew his younger sibling was notorious for his ability to lie, but Thor could sense that Loki was truly speaking from the heart this time.
Loki tried to sort out the best way to address his conflicting feelings before continuing his speech. "Sometimes I'm envious, but never doubt that I love you." He concluded simply.
The brothers stood staring at one another for a moment then Thor placed his hand on Loki's shoulder.
"Thank you."
Loki smiled back at his brother and decided that he had had enough of this serious talk. "Now give us a kiss…" he teased with a gleam in his eyes.
Thor lightly slapped Loki's helm and laughed. "Stop!" He warned in the same teasing manner.
The brothers' laughter was soon interrupted by a female's voice.
"Oh my! What a sight this is. Tell me, how came the princes of Asgard to be so jovial before the coronation? I thought that the wine was not to be served till after the big event." The voice teased.
The brothers turned around to the sight of a girl standing at the far end of the corridor.
"Sigyn!" they both practically yelled before running down the corridor to greet her.
Sigyn ran to meet the two princes halfway as fast as her restrictive gown would allow her.
While giggling she threw her arms around Loki first, and then Thor. Thor lifted her in the air and spun her around a couple of times before setting her on her feet once more.
"Tell me sister how did you come here?" Thor enquired.
"By the Bifrost as I always have." She teased while pulling back slightly from her eldest half-brother so she could better see Loki too.
Loki rolled his eyes and pressed her further. "You know Thor does not refer to your means of transportation, but to how you were allowed to be here. You have not lived in Alfheim a full ten years yet, and I didn't believe you were allowed to come visiting during your sojourns there."
Sigyn's eyes sparkled blue with excitement. "Tis true, but Sylvath was invited to the coronation…"
"So all you had to do was bat your eyes to convince him you should be allowed to come as well." Loki finished.
"As strict a father as Sylvath can be, even he is not immune to the charms of a daughter." She replied playing along with Loki's jest.
Loki began to laugh lightly at his younger half-sister's expense. It was true that when she wished to Sigyn could put on a mask of pure innocence that would melt even the coldest Frost Giant's heart.
"I do not know why you are so amused Loki, it is a trick I learned from you." She teased.
Loki merely rolled his eyes, and Thor addressed Sigyn.
"I am glad you could be here sister!"
"I would not have missed it for all of the Nine Realms." She assured him.
"You must hurry into the hall and take a place next to mother before the ceremony begins." Thor encouraged.
Sigyn shook her head a little and smiled. "I am not dressed appropriately for such an important event. I just arrived and did not have time to change out of my travelling gown." She said while indicating her dress.
Loki and Thor looked her over wondering what she could be talking about. Sigyn was wearing a glimmering wine red gown in the style of the Light Elves. It hugged her torso tightly, but became fuller around mid-thigh. The straps seemed to be merely for show since they hung loosely off her shoulders. The red in the dress brought out the red undertones of her dirty blonde-hair, which she had kept halfway back today. The white ornate markings that travelled up her right hand and arm all the way to her collarbone were completely visible, as were the ones next to her right eye. These beautiful curved lines were a reminder of her Light Elf bloodlines. While the brothers couldn't see anything out of place in her attire, they knew arguing with their stubborn half-sister would be pointless.
"So you have taken all the trouble to get here, but you will not be witnessing the ceremony?" Loki asked in an unbelieving tone.
"Do not be ridiculous Loki, of course I will be watching."
"From where might I ask?" Thor asked curiously.
"From our spot." She replied with a smile.
"Surely you don't mean the rafters where we used to spy on the court from?" Loki asked.
"What other spot do we have?"
"Someone will see you up there and demand you get down." Thor pointed out.
"Nonsense, no one will even notice I am there."
"And how do you plan on managing that?" Loki asked in an amused tone.
"Magic." Sigyn stated before shooting her brothers a mischievous smirk. She turned and left the corridor to find her and her half-brothers' secret spot.
The brothers shook their heads at Sigyn's retreating figure and then took their places at the other end of the corridor once more. After a moment of silence Thor finally spoke up.
"So really, how do I look?" He asked after fixing his gaze back on his helm.
Loki looked over and inwardly sighed. "Like a king." He took a deep breath to clear his thoughts of envy and then spoke once more. "It's time…"
Thor took a moment before responding. "You go ahead."
Loki looked at Thor in slight concern, and Thor met his brother's gaze.
"You go ahead." Thor needed a minute to himself before his triumphant moment. "I'll be along, go on."
Loki paused a second more and then gave his brother a small smile before making his way into the grand hall. Thor stood there a little longer, and after taking a breath to calm his nerves, he entered the great hall.