A/N: Oh goodness, first time posting in this fandom. Don't kill me.
Description: Thor and Loki begin acting strangely after Thor's eighth birthday. Frigga is equal parts worried and curious.
Length: 3,525 words
Oneshot
Warnings: None
Thor and Loki had been sneaking about, Frigga was more than aware of this, but chose to act oblivious, curious to see what her sons were up to. The two brothers would wander through the halls, hand in hand, shoulders hunched in a surreptitious manner. Occasionally, when Loki would spot her in the corners of his green eyes, he would lean over to Thor and whisper, and they would both disappear around a corner and out of her sight, on quiet padding feet.
It was around two days after Thor's eighth birthday that that the two had begun acting strangely. It first began with a restless bustling at all hours, first around the two brothers' chambers, then moving into the throne room and dining rooms, and then finally about the halls. When they had noticed that they were attracting attention, they had begun sneaking and that was when Frigga began following them. Sneaky behavior was not unusual for Loki, but for Thor, it was worrying. She had tried to confront them about their behavior, but Loki had proved evasive, and Thor, downright aggressive and defensive, obvious proof that the two were hiding something from her.
Frigga had tried doing a thorough search of both their chambers and found nothing. She had ordered guards to follow them outside of the palace when they went out and she stayed in, but they reported back with nothing. It seemed that their sneaking about truly had no reason, but Frigga would not be fooled. Thor would not have been able to hide something so thoroughly, but Loki, despite only being six years, had grown quite adept at trickery and deception. Despite his skills, however, Loki could never lie to his mother. His weakness was of no use to Frigga though, as she could never find a moment alone with the child. When he wasn't with Thor, he had tutoring, and any other time after that he disappeared.
After the first couple of weeks, Frigga grew less worried and more curious about her sneaky children. She worried that they may be getting themselves into more mischief than usual, but she never heard of any uproar inside our outside the palace walls, so the worry had faded. She began pondering other reasons for their behavior. Perhaps Thor was changing, she thought. Maybe Thor just wished for more privacy than before. He was no less rowdy at the table, or during lessons, but in those quiet times when he and Loki wandered the halls, he adopted his brother's silent and small nature. It was a very strange sight to see. She then turned her thoughts to Loki. Never had Loki spent so much time in Thor's company, at least of his own volition. It was strange to see the child following Thor about the halls and speaking to him in hushed whispers. Stranger still, was Thor's wish to listen to his quiet words.
One day, three weeks after Thor's eighth birthday, Frigga caught Thor carrying a large book from the library to his chambers. He startled when she stumbled across him in the halls, not expecting her to be there, and fumbled to hide the book from his mother. From what she could see, the tome was old and dusty, the cover made of rich brown leather. There were letters engraved on spine of the book in gold, but Thor hid them with his arm before she could catch what they said. She raised an eyebrow at him, a gentle smile quirking her lips as not to alarm him.
"What are you doing, Thor?" She asked sweetly, though there was a hint of sternness in her voice, letting the little god know that she wanted the truth and truth alone.
"N-Nothing, Mother…" Thor said, stumbling back clumsily under the weight of the book. "I was just returning to my chambers to read." He explained, looking down at his feet. A habit he no doubt adopted from Loki in their time spent together in the past weeks.
Frigga stooped down so that she was kneeling in front of her oldest. "Oh? My eldest wishes to read? And of his own will?" She questioned with a note of teasing. "What information does this book hold that is so interesting, that the mighty Thor would take time from training to read it?" She asked. Thor had never been one for reading, opting to go train in the training halls instead. Reading was Loki's hobby. Thor trained his body and Loki trained his mind. Frigga desperately wished the two would find a middle ground, and had urged them to do so, but to no avail. Obviously, there had to be something else about this book that Thor was not telling her.
"It is just an interesting story…" Thor defended, holding the book tighter to his chest, as if to prevent his mother from taking it from him. "It… It tells of battles." He said, looking to the side to avoid his mother's gaze. "Loki said that I might learn from this book."
Frigga raised her eyebrow at her eldest son again. "So Loki suggested that you read this?" She asked kindly. Perhaps that was all their sneaking was. Was Thor ashamed to be getting advice from his younger brother? "May I see it?" She asked, reaching out for it.
Thor stepped back, just out of her reach, hunching over the book for good measure. "N-No… It's embarrassing, Mother. Just battles, you see… I know that you much prefer books about other things." He reasoned, then his eyes lit up with an idea. "Perhaps you should ask Loki about books on magic. I think he has read the entire library's worth of those kinds of books." He said. It was a distraction. He looked past her shoulder and grinned, causing Frigga to follow his gaze. Standing in the hallway behind them was Loki, the little boy shifting nervously from one foot to the other.
"Loki!" Thor shouted, louder than he had been in several weeks when addressing his brother. "I have found the book on battles you suggested I read." He offered the book for the younger boy's inspection. "Mother is looking for something to read too. Perhaps you could take her to the library and find her something?" Thor suggested. Obviously, subtlety was not his strong point as he extenuated the obvious falsities in his sentence. Loki seemed to mirror Frigga's thoughts, as his facial expression morphed from one of nervousness to one of outright displeasure and annoyance.
"If you insist." Loki muttered, making his way over to the two. He offered his hand politely to Frigga. "Shall we go to the library, Mother?" He asked innocently. Without waiting for a reply, Thor rushed off down the hall, stumbling every few steps, his quick movements awkward under the tome's weight.
Frigga stood and called after him. "Thor, wait!" She demanded loudly, her voice echoing through the otherwise empty halls, but at that point, Thor had already turned the corner.
"I cannot hear you, Mother!" Thor called as soon as he disappeared, his voice and footsteps soon fading to be replaced with silence. Frigga felt a little cold hand grab her own. She looked down to see Loki staring back at her, wide green and innocent green eyes pleading.
"Mother?" Loki asked after a few moments of silence. "Do you want to go to the library?" He asked again. He seemed to genuinely want her to accompany him, so she nodded.
"If that is what you want to do, my darling." Frigga answer, gripping Loki's little hand in her own. Loki was a lot smaller than Thor, she noted with fondness. It was only ever apparent if you touched him. Loki always stood so regal and tall, it was hard to tell which brother was smaller unless one really looked.
Loki nodded and led her down the hall in the direction from which Thor had been heading. All the while he spoke. "I found a book yesterday. It had a dark green cover." He explained.
"Did you read it?" Frigga asked. Loki nodded. "What did it contain?" Her youngest son seemed troubled, so she stowed her concerns about Thor for the time being.
"Just magic," Loki said, looking down at his feet, his little hand sagging in her grasp. He took a deep breath. "They were scary spells, Mother."
Frigga nodded her understanding. "Some spells are scary, Loki. You need to be careful which ones you choose to practice." She advised sagely. Loki muttered something, head angled down and looking at his feet. She stopped their walking and knelt next to him. "What did you say, Loki?"
"I said that I love you, Mother." Loki said. Frigga wrapped her arms around Loki's neck in a hug and Loki returned it, hands wrapping around her back.
"I love you too, darling." Frigga replied, running a hand through Loki's tuft of soft black hair. She took advantage of Loki's sudden openness to ask the question she'd been meaning to ask since the sneaking had started. "I'm sorry to ask this of you, Loki, but I must know. Why are you and Thor acting so strangely as of late?" Loki jumped in her grasp, suddenly fidgety.
"O-oh… No particular reason, Mother…" Loki said, fiddling with his fingers.
Frigga held him at arms' length and looked into his eyes. "Are you certain, Loki?" She asked.
Loki deflated at that moment, looking to the side and frowning. "Mo-Mother, Thor will be terribly angry if I tell you." He admitted. "I swear it is nothing bad." He said.
"You promise me, Loki?" Frigga asked severely.
"Yes." Loki nodded firmly. For Frigga, that was enough.
A month later found Loki's birthday fast approaching along with the coldness of winter. Frigga was fussing with Loki, her almost-seven year old to put on his cap, and had Thor pinned by his riding cape with her foot as she shoved the woolen fabric of the cap over Loki's ears.
"But Mother, I do not like wearing this! It ruffles my hair so." Loki complained, pulling the offending article off his head for the fifth time that morning. It caused his already curly hair to fluff up and gather around his ears.
Thor struggled against his riding cape, unclipping it and bolting for the door before being jerked back by Frigga's hand in the fabric of his shirt. "I will not wear the overcoat, Mother! It is embarrassing." Thor argued.
Frigga huffed. "If you are to go out you will wear your hat, Loki and Thor, you will wear your coat." She insisted. "It is bad enough that the servant had to call me here to take control of you two." She scolded. "I will not have two sick, as well as rowdy children in this house." She said.
Loki sighed, taking the scolding for what it was and returning the cap to its rightful place on his head, tucking his hair into it to keep it tame. Thor was more stubborn, however, now trying to wrestle his shirt over his head. "I won't get sick. I'll be fine!" He insisted.
"No, Thor." Frigga said sternly, turning her attention fully to her oldest son. "You will wear your coat, your cape and your cap and you will not complain, nor will you give the servants any trouble. Have I made myself clear?" She asked, looking Thor in the eyes. Thor scrunched up his nose, but nodded in defeat.
"Yes, Mother." Thor answered sadly, at that point pulling on all the mentioned items.
"Where do you plan to go today?" Frigga asked as the two brothers made their way out of the room.
"We will just be about." Thor said evasively.
"You needn't worry yourself." Loki added, when Frigga wrinkled her nose, an expression very reminiscent of Thor's early one.
"Fine, fine, but if anything happens, you return and you let someone know. Immediately." She looked at Loki when she said this. "No lies, Loki."
Loki looked guiltily down at his feet, a pink blush brushing his usually pale cheeks. Last time he and Thor had gone out, they had tried riding horses, which resulted in Loki falling off and injuring himself badly and not telling anyone. Thor eventually gave in when Odin interrogated them about Loki's strange behavior, but it was still troubling that Loki felt the need to lie about his injuries.
As the two exited the room, Frigga caught Thor whispering something into his brother's ear and followed them at a distance down the hall to eavesdrop.
"But there are no flowers during winter, Loki." Thor seemed to insist. Loki shook his head and smiled.
"You will see, Thor. Just trust me." He assured in an easy whisper.
They returned that evening with a bag bursting full of something, but neither of them would tell Frigga what it was.
Loki's birthday came and went in a rush of festivities similar to Thor's. Where Thor received weapons, Loki received books in equal measure. They had a feast, a winter festival similar to the one they held for Thor in the summer and then by the end of the week, Loki had turned seven years old.
When winter was at its coldest, the two boys locked themselves up in Loki's chambers and didn't come out for several hours at a time during the day. If Frigga put her ear up to the door, she could hear Thor's frustrated whining and Loki's firm scolding or encouragement.
"That looks good, Thor." She heard Loki say encouragingly one evening. "See? It's just like fighting, you just have to keep trying."
"It is so boring." Thor complained. "How do you keep your mind from wandering?" He asked.
"You just have to focus." Loki said firmly.
Just before Frigga removed her ear from the door, the slight energy of a spell performed curled the ends of her hair.
After a week of their reclusive behavior, Frigga's birthday was then approaching, about a month away and Odin had busied himself with preparing festivities. At a time when their father had not been around, Thor and Loki asked if Frigga would meet them in one of the common rooms. She agreed and had one prepared for the time the two children specified, and then settled herself there and waited. There was a warm fire in the hearth, and candles lit up around the room to provide light and gentle atmosphere. She soon heard the sound of the door opening and her two children marching in, Loki with his usual nervousness and Thor with a confident grin.
They had that same bag, though it was not as full as the last time she'd seen it and they carried it carefully, setting it on the floor as if it might shatter. Thor pulled something out of the bag and hid it behind his back. "Your birthday is soon, isn't it Mother?" Thor asked bashfully. When Frigga nodded, he continued. "I was having trouble deciding what I wished to give you, but I could not think of anything…" He pulled what looked like a small bouquet from behind his back and held it out to her. "I have seen father give you flowers before, but they always wilt. I had Loki teach me to make these." He said, presenting her the bouquet.
The flowers were multiple colors, but somewhat transparent, as it appeared they were made of crystal. It looked as if Thor had spent a great deal of time and energy crafting the little flowers, making sure each petal had the finest detail. No doubt with Loki's help. Their stems twisted together and then flattened out at the bottom, assuring the eternal bouquet could stand on its own. Frigga accepted them gracefully and with a flourish, gathering the little flowers close to her.
"Do you like them?" Thor asked, looking up at her with his big, expectant blue eyes.
"They're lovely, Thor." Frigga said, causing her son to grin widely. He threw himself into her arms for a hug before pulling away.
"Loki made you something too!" He said, pointing to his brother. "Though it's a lot better than mine." Thor didn't sound jealous or vindictive about this. If anything, he sounded proud.
On cue, Loki reached into the bag and pulled out a beautiful little crystal rabbit. It was small and fit in Loki's cupped hands, white with fur that made it look as if it had been dusted with snow. It had two little green gems for eyes. Loki presented it to her with his eyes firmly looking at his feet.
"I could not make the stones blue." Loki explained. "I believe they would look better if they were blue, but—" He was cut off midsentence by Frigga grabbing him up into a hug, grasping the crystal rabbit in his hands, to protect it from falling.
"It is wonderful." Frigga said. "The eyes are beautiful, Loki. The rabbit reminds me of you." She said, letting the boy go.
"That is what I said!" Thor interjected cheerfully. "See, Loki? I told you mother would love it either way." He said. Loki said nothing, but his cheeks turned pink.
"O-of course. You were right, Thor." Loki agreed.
Frigga took advantage her children's distraction to scoop them both up and into her lap. "These are wonderful gifts, darlings!" She exclaimed, holding her two boys tight. "I will treasure them always, thank you." She said.
Thor grinned again, wide and satisfied, and Frigga even caught Loki giving a small smile. She settled with them in her lap after that, her sons' gifts sat safely onto the nearest table by an attending servant.
"Is this what all your sneaking was about?" Frigga asked, looking over both her sons proudly.
Thor fidgeted in his place on her lap, looking down. "If the others knew I had learned magic, they would laugh." Thor admitted sadly. "So I told Loki to keep it a secret." Loki nodded to the truth of this statement, looking ashamed.
"What others?" Frigga asked, furious. Magic was a noble art and she did not appreciate disrespect towards it.
"The children, in the training halls." Thor said lowly. "They already tease Loki so... I did not want to receive the same treatment."
Frigga looked horrified, turning her full attention to Loki. "Is this true, Loki? Do the others tease you?" She asked worriedly. "Why have neither of you told me until now?"
"It is not a problem, Mother. They would, even if I did not use magic." Loki said, looking at his feet.
"That is not acceptable." Frigga stated. "I will have words with the training halls' masters as soon as I can." She cupped Loki's face in her hands. "They will not bother you any longer, my darling." She stated.
"You needn't worry yourself with it, Mother." Loki said sadly. "I told Thor not to tell you because, as I said, it is not a problem." Loki explained.
"It is a problem. But you needn't worry." Frigga said, tapping Loki on the nose. "I will fix it."
Loki looked down at his feet before looking back up at Frigga. "I love you, Mother." He said earnestly.
"Me too! I love you too, Mother!" Thor shouted. Frigga gathered both of her children in her arms and hugged them tightly.
"I love you too, forever and always." Frigga said softly.
END
(This is an additional A/N, so you can read it if you want and you don't have to spend ten minutes scrolling to get to the actual story.)
So... What did you think? This is my first time writing for Thor, so I'm a bit afraid of the reaction I will get here. Feel free to leave me a review with praise, constructive criticism or concerns, I'd be glad to see that, as it will help me improve my writing. Who knows, I might write more for this fandom.
Uh... Also, I don't know how the 'gods' in the Marvel Thor verse age, so if things seem weird or not strictly canon when it comes to age, that's why. I'm also not sure how old Loki is compared to Thor, but I set them as a year apart for reasons. (Mostly so that it would make sense for both of them to speak relatively clearly) I'm really sorry if this bugs you...
Anyway, I think that's it for me for now. Thank you for reading, and please leave a review to let me know how I did.