Author Note: So lets get some quick trigger warnings out the way. Some spoilers for the Doctor Strange end credit scene in this first chapter. There will be a 'kind of' death scene. I don't find it particularly strong on gore myself but my ability to cope with gore is strong. Beware this is eventually going to be a pseudo-incest slash fic, I'm sure if you've gotten this far that's what your here for but I just wanted to reintegrate. I write as I go and don't have a distinctive plan for where I want to take this story expect for my basic outline. But I do have an end game in mind. Therefore, as more becomes published I will add any possible trigger warnings at the top of the chapter. Expect angst, expect some average spelling, grammar, editing and basic word mistakes as I am without a beta. I will also pre-warn that this is something I'm running with while I have the inspiration. I'm not well known for completing fics and I'm back to Uni soon. So no promises of completion.

Some stories have no start and others have no end. Occasionally there are stories which share both fates. It would be hard to state at which exact point it had begun. Had it been that fateful night when the cosmic laws of Asgard had cursed them? Or was it the moment Loki invaded Midgard? Possibly had started the exact minuscule moment in time when Thor witnessed the light extinguish for Loki's eyes just before he had chosen to release his grip on Mjolnir and plummet into the abyss of the universe. Or maybe it was further back in time, on that blisteringly cold night upon Jotunheim when Odin had knowingly stolen the infant child of Laufey, thieving the rightful heir of Jotunheim and falsely naming him Odinson. Perhaps a better fit would be the instant it was all been set into motion, that night millennia foregone, in a time now lost to Midgardian memory; the moment when the Jotunheim military forces dared to step foot on Midgardian territory. Doing so while having the knowledge that this particular planet was under the protection of Asgard. If one where to ask Loki, he would have given the above as an answer and have been as polite as to offer a foul scowl while conveying such information. However, in contrast if one where to ask Thor when it had started he would likely shrug his muscled shoulders, look slightly bewildered at the stupidity of the question and reply matter-of-factly with: "The night of the battle."

And of course, in typical Thor-esque style that wouldn't have been in anyway helpful. There had been numerous battles between the brothers, each slightly more heinous than the last. However, this battle had taken place in New York City. This was their second physical fight to take place in New York, although this battle, unlike the first, was confined to Stark Tower and had accumulated far less collateral damage. Thor had taken his brother back to Midgard after discovering his deception in Asgard. Impersonating their father and allowing Thor to believe Loki dead once more was more of an emotional punishment than Thor could ever begin to explain. Thor should have killed Loki for it, like he had promised to do when he helped him escape the dungeon prisons of Asgard. And yet he couldn't. Thor told himself it was because Loki was the only person who may know where Odin was, and is only hope of finding his father alive. But believing that was growing harder and harder. Loki had 'sentenced' Odin to the same fate their father had once condemned upon Thor. To live upon Midgard. The only issue with finding Oden was that Earth was a rather sizeable planet and that Oden could be just about anywhere upon the blue orb. So, Thor had made his way to Stark Tower to begin the search, with his younger brother in tow. Tony was of course welcoming, but rather reclusive. All Thor knew was that something serious had gone down with Rodgers and every time he tried to approached the subject Stark had found an excuse to disappear into one of his many mechanical labs and would stay hidden away in there for hours on end.

It was three days after Thor had met with Stephen Strange, the sorcerer who supplied a good brew of ale… and tea, not that anyone need know Thor had tried any. Strange had stated his desire to help find Oden, and then promptly left. Supposedly to commence such an activity, but Thor hadn't heard a single peep of him since those three days' past. He supposed three days was a relatively short amount of time and that he needed to continue to be patient if he expected Strange to continue to work peacefully with him.

It had happened on that third day just as Thor was sitting down to a large beer and some silly human movie Natasha had insisted they watch. She had arrived earlier that day and Thor had been so happy to see her that he almost crushed her delicate frame with his hug. He felt like it had been centuries since he had seen her beautiful face. Or any of the Avengers for that matter. However, time had not treated Natasha well. She seemed gaunt and her classic coy smile was missing in action. Thor had asked how she was and if all was well but she had simply acted as if nothing was awry. Thor suspected that this to had something to do with Captain America and what had occurred during his time in Asgard, but he'd had the good grace not to pry. He did however not that Clint was nowhere to be seen and he had pause to wonder after the status of their friendship.

Nat had placed a large bowl of popcorn on the table and taken a seat on the other side of the couch, already munching happily away. Thor took the opportunity to attempt to break the ice that had hung in the air since her arrival. 'I appreciate the title, it is important for one to perform their best in battle, dying should be most honourable.'

Nat raised an eyebrow, 'Die Hard will be right up your ally. You'll be yippee ki yay-ing before you know it.'

Thor was highly confused. 'You humans have some odd names for weapons.' Nat's first laugh of the day was interrupted by a high-pitched whooping sound and the mechanical whoosh of medal security doors and blinds unfurling and encompassing Stark Tower. The medal blinds blocked out all natural light and the LED light globe sprang into action illuminating the entire living room. Thor jumped to his feet so fast that is legs bumped the glass coffee table and sent the popcorn and their drinks plummeting to the carpet. Romanoff was just as quick, only far more graceful.

"Loki."

The room was white, startlingly white. It was also, very notably barren. The only object in the room was in the corner against the furthest wall. It was a small sleeping coat which beds linen was equally as white. Loki had been attempting escape for almost a week now. It had been tedious. At times infuriating. Stark had surely tested him this time, but Loki would accomplish this escape. Loki wasn't sure how Stark had managed to achieve such a feat with his Midgardian science, but he had somehow succeeded it tampering with the weight of atoms within the air in this godforsaken room on a molecular level and topped it off with a change in air pressurisation in thirty minute intervals. It had made preforming any magic practically impossible. It was clear this room had been designed to contain Loki and eliminate his magical abilities. But Stark and his hordes of interior architects had made a large oversight. Just because Loki wasn't adapted to performing magic in such a dense and heavy environment, did not mean he couldn't alter and relearn techniques until he finally found the right combinations for his magic to flourish in this hostile environment. Loki had focused all his attempts on relearning a basic charm to unlock deadbolts. He had been clinging to the expectation that Stark had flaunted his typical arrogant temperament and been so certain of his high-tech "Loki Prison" that he had only placed a basic deadlock on the door. The moment Loki felt the bolt slip out of the hole was one of the most incredibly satisfying he had experienced in quite some time. He smirked victoriously to himself and pushed the door open with one single finger. Too easy.

Far too easy. The door had moved less than a millimetre when the movement tripped what Loki could only assume was an alarm system. There was a loud sound of machinery springing into action, a shill whooping filled the Stark Tower compound and bright light-bulbs from above flooded the room and small hallway with a piercing light. Loki simply sighed in frustration. He should have known nothing was ever simple, especially where Midgaurd was concerned. He opened the door wide and stepped through into the hall where he could hear the pounding of feet upon stairwells below and shouts of communication. He figured there was no need to rush, he wouldn't be getting out of this without encountering at least some of those pesky Avengers. He counted it a good day if he had to deal with three or less. Some days he chose not to count his brother among the team of foolhardy Earthlings, as that was like besting a child at a game of chest. Eventually Thor's defeat was always enviable.

Loki fixed a scowl on his face and began to stroll resolutely down the hall at a leisurely pace, his emerald cap billowing behind him.

'Hold it there, Alan Rickman.' A firm voice called as a red metal suit of armour appeared in the foyer which the hall way opened into.

'Was that meant to be a snipe?' Loki asked, eyebrow raise.

'I don't know Professor, you tell me.'

'Always a pleasure, Stark. But alas, I do not have time for your mindless babble tonight. Maybe another time. Say a millennium from now. Same time, same place?'

Stark produced a hallow forced laughed. 'Oh, that was almost witty, you know I don't know whether to give 10 points to Slytherin or deduct.'

'That I get.' His brother voice announced as his overlarge form rounded the corner of what must have been a stairwell. Clearly, an emergency regarding Loki resulted in bypassing the metal box the humans use for travelling between stories of buildings. He wouldn't deny that it pleased slightly that he was regarded so highly of a foe.

'That was the movie you made me watch last year!' Thor asserted excitedly, a gleam in his eye, clearly proud of himself for remembering. 'Yes, I see it, he does moderately look comparable to that Snake.'

'It's Snap-' Stark started as Romanoff materialised with who, or rather what, he could only assume was The Vision next to her.

'Enough!' Loki hissed, cutting off Stark. 'Had I the good fortune have foreseen this little reunion I would have not bother to attempt escape at all. This is painful. Now step aside or suffer.'

'I'm afraid we're at an impasse.' The spy said as she levelled a hand gun toward his face.

'The quim still mewls. Yes, child. I'm rather afraid we have.' Loki sneered, and if there was a twinkle of excitement in his eye at that moment then Loki couldn't have denied it was the excitement of preparing to best this sorry bunch.

'Loki, I warn you. You are at the end of your tether where I am concerned. Go back to your cell and I shall forget this foolish endeavor.'

'Shall we consider that?' Loki mused, tapping a finger to his chin. 'How about no, oaf?'

'Have it your way then, brother.'

The resulting battle was the kind of battle that is truly beyond description. Had it been described thoroughly and in-depth it would leave a reader dazed. Suffice it to say walls where demolished, glass windows shattered forcing shards of glass and security metal to rain down on the streets of New York, guns fired, lightening summoned, capes tugged rather variously, two bouts of Thor and The Vision exchanging Mjolnir between the pair of them, many instances of Loki summoning spectres to confuse his opponents and many, many insults and blows traded. Oh, and one or two lively mid-battle discussions over whether Loki was worthy of sitting the Throne of Asgard. Overall, Stark's neighbours in the adjacent buildings where considering calling the appropriate authorities to report a domestic depute and the maid would have a fit in the morning when she arrived for work.

It was in the dying moments of the battle, the last few minutes that the unthinkable happened. And that is where Loki and Thor would both agree it had 'officially' started.

Loki's thin battle blade had slipped from his grasp and skidded across the foyer which they were all now fight in. It had come to a stop just inches from Thor's boots. It was important to note that at this point Loki had Natasha in a head lock and was forcing his knee cap into her face again and again. Blood was flowing freely and Natasha was clearly becoming dazed and starting to lose her natural hand-to-hand combat advantage as the blood seeped into her vision. Moments before Tony had been forcibly thrown down an empty elevator shaft which had been destroyed during the fight, the elevator a twisted mess of intertwined melt. At some point in the heat of battle Thor had accidentally taken out the iron suits left hand side propeller, which resulted in Tony spiralling down to shaft when Loki had thrown him down it. Thankfully the cushioning system had deployed, as they had later found out. But Tony had been knocked unconscious by the impact for an unknown amount of time. The Vision was currently preoccupied with making sure the civilians who had stopped and crowed around the base of the build to watch didn't become pulverised by the large pillar which was about to fall through the now broken glass wall to ceiling windows. It very was well known by most of the Avengers that civilians where too curious for their own good, or dumb, as Clint had once put it. Where ever there was an increased risk of danger you would find cranked heads, stiff necks and phones being used to film violence and tragedy.

Nevertheless, that was how it came to be that everyone was far too preoccupied to save Thor from himself, or Loki from Thor. Thor battle autopilot had long since taken become the driving force. He picked up the knife and took four long strides towards the interlocked pair that where Nat and Loki. He smashed a fist into Loki's exposed face which sent his brother backwards. Loki instinctively let go of Nat. She fell to the floor with a groan. Thor instantly closed the space between Loki and himself and grabbed hold of his shoulder to keep him still. He thrust the blade between Loki's rib-cage in one smooth motion. It when hilt deep and settle within his brothers flesh with a sickly gurgling sound. When Loki heard the sound, he gasped and the smallest trickle of blood came trickling from between his lips. The blood was foamy and aerated. Loki raised his left hand to his lips and when his hand came away he stared intently at the foamy red substance which covered two fingers, as if glaring at it may make it disappear. The started expression on his face must have conveyed the gravity of Thor's actions because when Loki's eyes met Thor's he could see his own fear mirrored back.

'I-I th-think," Loki sputtered. Thor, who had unconsciously cupped Loki's face in his hands instantly attempted to shush him with "Don't talk. Don't talk. I'll get Stark. We'll fix it. I didn't mean too, I'll fix it.'

'N-no. I think you-you p-punched my lu-ungs.' More blood began to appear and Loki's breathing began to produce a consistent rattling sound with each inhale and exhale. Loki frowned and glanced down at the blade which sill impaled him. He grimaced as he took in the angle on which it was protruding out of his chest. It was a long thin blade. Thor must have miscalculated or slipped when he had stabbed his brother because it defiantly did not go in on a horizontal angle.

'I th-think you pun-punch-punched both.' Loki could feel himself becoming light headed and felt his legs start to give way beneath him, this couldn't be happening. It made no sense, the only thing he had even known to be true when he fought the Avengers was that Thor would never actually try to kill him. He looked desperately at his brother, he wasn't sure whether he was scared or embraced by defeat. Thor could fix it, right? Blond strands of hair clouded his vision and fluttered across his face like a summer breeze. Thor still smelled of Asgardian summers, as he always did. Loki began to wonder if Thor smelt like the summer or if Loki just associated the smell of Thor with summer days, green grass, and warm air. He realised he didn't care, he was just happy it was summer again. He could smell the flowers blooming in his mother's garden, and the air was humid and warm.

'No, you're a clone. You're not him. Stop this, Loki.' Thor shook him hard which made Loki feel extremely tired. He want to stay with the summer breeze, with the smells of summer. His eye began to feel heavy, and he felt as though if he would just close his eyes for just a few seconds and have a small nap and all would be better.

'Loki.' A voice was saying rather persistently. In fact, it was quite annoying. Loki just wished the voice would leave him to sleep and that the arms he was in would stop shaking him so damn hard. Couldn't they see he was just trying to get some sleep?
'No, Loki. No. Don't do this. Don't. Stay. I'm sorry. I' so sorry. Please. Don't go. Wake up.'

'I'm sorry too.' Loki mumbled sleepily, though he could say why. He just knew it was important to tell the voice before he went to sleep.

Thor keep telling himself that this wasn't happening. It was clearly one of Loki's clones, those stupid shadow puppets he liked to summon. It had to be, he'd done this before, he was simply doing it again to hurt Thor. This was just another part in the play that Loki had them all unknowingly acting in, like life-sized marionettes. But Thor could hear a voice in the back of his head whispering maliciously to him that something felt distinctively different to last time. He didn't think there could be a more intense feeling than the one he had experienced that night on Svartalfheim. That night he had truly believed his brother dead. But this felt different, this had the stench of finality. This felt like the world was preparing to implode.

Nat was back on her feet and at Thor's side now, a hand resting on his shoulder, a grim shocked expression masked her face.

'No, Loki. No. Don't do this. Don't. Stay. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Please. Don't go. Wake up.' Thor begged. He could feel the hot tears burning in the corner of his eyes, hazing his vision. He heard a distant sob which was shrill with pain and devastation and yet empty and hollow all at once. He thought that the person that sob had emitted from was the only person in the world who could understand his pain. Later, he would realise it was him, but at the time it had seemed to be on the other side of the room, or possibly the world. Thor kept trying to shake his brother to keep him from closing his eyes, to force his shallow breath to become deep. His hands where slick with a mixture of Natasha and Loki's blood. He stared desperately at Nat, she must have had an answer. But she simply shook her head softy and squeezed his shoulder. Her eyes where filled with what Thor was scared to identify as pity, but in truth it was only great sadness.

'I'm sorry too', The voice was so soft he almost missed it and for a moment he thought he'd imagined it. Two rattling breaths followed and then a final and sickening gurgling sound.

The last thing Thor could remember was screaming at his brother's corpse and beating on his chest with a fist. After that, nothing but darkness.