"Thor!...Loki! Wait for me!" A light chirping girlish voice called through the hall drawing the attention of two young princes as they made their way to the sacred chamber where their Father Odin Allfather of the Cosmos commanded their presence.
Loki, the younger of the two smiled wryly while a look of slight annoyance crossed his marble like face.
"Frea, you shouldn't be here." He chided his younger sister softly as the only daughter of Odin hurried to catch up to him and their other brother, Thor.
Frea held the hems of her long dress gracefully off the ground so she could walk faster and turned a laughing gaze in Loki's direction as she reached his feet.
"Why not? Why can't I go see Papa with you?" She inquired quietly turning her gaze towards her eldest brother. Thor rolled his eyes.
"Because you are only a princess and not in line for the throne so this does not concern you." The young crowned prince explained impatiently as he turned to continue on his way towards the sacred chamber. "Now go away. You'll only be in the way if you come."
Frea frowned and followed after her brothers in spite of what Thor said as they neared the entrance to the relic chamber where their Father awaited the arrival of his two sons.
"Thor, you're mean!" She pouted padding after her brothers as they tried to outrun her. Loki sighed. "But he's right Frea. You are only a princess and you're too weak to ever rule Asgard." He paused in his running and put a cool hand on Frea's shoulder.
"Go back to Mother and I promise after Father lets us go I'll take you riding on Sigyna for a little bit." Thor raised his eyebrows at that.
"Really?" Frea seemed happy yet hesitant to believe her brother's offer. Even at her young age she was well familiar with Loki's reputation as a trickster.
Loki nodded his head. "I don't think that's a good idea, Loki. You know what Mother said the last time you tried to let Frea ride your horse." Thor shook his head.
Loki started to scowl at him.
"Your brother is right, Loki. Frea is too young to ride your horse. Perhaps there's something else you two could offer her instead." A regal sounding booming voice echoed through the corridor catching the three children's attention.
"Papa!" Frea squealed rushing past her brothers to greet her Father who stood waiting at the gate to the sacred chamber.
Loki smirked softly as Frea brushed past him and softly stuck his foot out to tread on the back of her gown causing her to stumble slightly in her haste.
"Ah!" Frea gasped falling into her Father's outstretched arms as the two boys snickered at her predicament.
With all the fierceness of a six year old girl, Frea turned to glower at her smug brothers. "Meanies." She stuck out her tongue. "Just wait till I'm Queen! Then you be sorry!"
"All right. That's enough." Odin stepped in before an argument could break out. "This is no way for the three children of Odin to behave." He spoke the words as a reprimand and it immediately silenced the boys' laughter.
"We're sorry Father. It was only a bit of fun." Loki tried to sound sincere, but there was still a slight grin tugging at the bottom of his lips.
"Yes. Sorry Father." Thor echoed his brother's sentiment sounding more sincere than Loki did, but there was still a flash of defiance in his young eyes.
Odin nodded his acceptance of their apologies and turned to his youngest child. "And you Frea?" He looked at her expectantly. If there was one thing Frea hated the most it was disappointing her Father.
"I'm sorry too Papa." She hung her little head then looked up to meet the Allfather's eyes with a soft cheerful expression on her face. "But, I will be Queen someday. Won't I Papa? Mama said so. She said I can do anything Thor and Loki can." She bubbled missing the slightly irked expressions that crossed her brothers faces at her words.
"You can't! You're only a little girl and can't even ride a horse yet. And besides, even if Father was considering you for the succession, what would you know about being a Queen?" Thor scoffed as he approached his Father's side.
Frea did her best to glare at him. "Mama said I can!" She insisted stomping one of her little feet with indignance.
"She says Papa will let me marry a prince someday and then I will be Queen!" She added, sticking her lower lip out in a childish manner that made Loki laugh a little.
Though she was not yet seven, Frea was already showing herself to be of fierce spirit and quite bright for someone of her age.
Some even joked that she would someday rival her own brothers in wit and strength when was grown into the young woman she would soon be.
Still both boys would laugh and tease her a little every time their sister declared her desire to become a Queen one day. Especially since Asgardian tradition like most other royal traditions made this an impossible feat for her to accomplish.
"You know she's kinda right, Thor." Loki smirked as he moved from the shadow to stand on Father's other side. "She would make a half decent Queen one day...if Father had her married to one of the other realms' crowned princes that is. Perhaps Prince Arde of Anheim?"
Thor smirked at the idea while Frea's nose wrinkled in disgust.
"Eww! I don't want to marry Prince Arde. He has warts!" Frea raised her chin making Loki laugh at the look on her face. Thor laughed too.
"Why not? He's rich and has a big palace just like Father does. You'd probably get to have bigger rooms than Mother." He sing-songed in mock entice.
Frea shook her head and turned to bury her face in her Father's side, clutching at his robes. "I don't wanna!" She whined, starting to cry when Odin laid a gentle hand on her head.
"Thor Odinson! Loki Odinson!" The loud commanding voice of their Father sharply ended Loki and Thor's joking at the expense of their sister.
"I did not call you here to listen to you mock and berate those weaker than you. It is a poor King who is cruel to those in most need of his protection." He stared severely down at his two sons who immediately lost all jest in their expressions.
"As for you," Odin bent and cupped his youngest child's face in his hand until she turned to look up at him. "It is true that one day you may become Queen to one of the most fortunate of our allying princes in the Cosmos if we should be fortunate enough to make such a match for you."
A slight smile dimpled the girl's cheek at this. "However...this does not give you the right to pridefully gloat on the matter or to judge someone by the way they may appear." The soft chastised expression returned to his daughter's face at this and Odin softened his own expression. "Do you understand, my child?"
Frea bit her lip. "Yes Papa." She spoke quietly fidgeting with the fabric of her dress.
Odin's smiled widened. "Perhaps it would behoove you to hear what I have to say to your brothers as well, young one." He reached down and took the princess's much smaller hand in his own worn wrinkled one.
A single tear trickled down Frea's cheek, but she wiped it away with her free hand before squeezing her Father's hand. "Really Papa?" She asked as if only barely daring to hope.
Odin nodded his head. "Come!" He motioned with his free arm towards his sons before turning to open the gates to the Sacred Chamber.
"Coming Father." Thor nodded his head and after sharing a singular glance with Loki silently followed his Father and sister into the vast dark chamber ahead.
There were weapons there and treasures from nearly every world and every time since the ancient days. All three of the royal children had always loved to hear the many tales behind the capture of each item especially the casket which was said to stand at the very end of the chamber. The one their Father was said to have taken himself from the Frost Giants.
"Long ago," Odin began as he led his children deeper into the chamber. "The frost giants waged a war on the humans of Midgard. Helpless against the power of Jotunheim, one by one humanity began to die out."
"Huh?" Frea gasped. Although she had heard this story before time and time again as her brothers had it still frightened her when the teller of the story told of the human's near decimation.
"Heeding the cry of the people and seeking to reclaim peace for the galaxy, I Odin Allfather of Asgard led our armies to the aid of Midgard bringing Jotunheim to its knees." Odin continued, keeping his grip on his daughter's hand as they neared the glowing blue casket at the end of the little hall.
"In order to end the slaughter and secure peace between the realms again, I offered King Laufey of Jotunheim a truce in which I offered peace and protection between our realms in exchange for the Midgard's livelihood. King Laufey agreed and I sealed the truce by taking the casket of Jotunheim." Odin motioned the glowing blue box that sat on a pedestal surrounded by torchlight.
"Do many Frost Giants still live past the border of Jotunheim?" Loki's soft question broke into quiet as Odin led them up the steps to his prize.
"Oh! Not when I'm King!" Thor bragged boorishly quickly regaining his good humor as he waved his arms around like an excited little monkey. "When I'm King! I'll hunt the monsters down and slay them all!...Just like you did Father!" He beamed hoping to recieve his Father's approval as always.
Frea sighed a little at this, but said nothing as Loki merely stared at their Brother coolly.
"A wise King never goes searching for war..." Odin started as he led Frea from the casket. "But he must always be prepared for it as I was on Midgard." He said though his tone didn't carry a reprimand this time. Frea looked up at her Father a question entering her mind as she looked at the casket.
"Why hasn't Laufey tried to come take his weapon back?" She asked with all the innocence and curiousity of a child. Odin chuckled at her question.
"Because my child, King Laufey and I have made a truce as I said before. In exchange for his greatest treasure he has agreed to keep peace between us. Any attempt to take back what was rightfully taken would result in war for both sides and neither King wishes that." He explained as he led his children towards another pedestal where an ancient looking hammer sat engraved with an ancient inscription.
Frea wrinkled her nose at this. "I don't understand, Papa." She murmured in confusion.
Thor snorted at this while Loki stared thoughtfully in Frea's direction. Odin smiled and gently prized his hand from his daughter's grip. Patting her long golden locks, he held out his hands for each of his two sons to take.
"The most important thing for the three of you to understand now is that being a ruler is as much a privilege as it is a right. Misuse that privilege and it could very well be taken from you no matter how powerful you believe yourself to be." Odin motioned to the giant hammer as he led his children back through the corridor.
Thor's eyes gleamed when he saw it.
"The Mjolnir. Meant for one and only one." Odin smiled as he noticed his older son's excitement and gazed up on the old weapon which hadn't seen battle since the dark days of old.
"One day one of you may wield it's power and then only one of you will ascend to the throne as next King of Asgard, though you all have a great capacity to rule." The old King concluded as he continued leading the way out of the relic chamber.
Frea took up her skirts and hurried to catch up with her brothers, encouraged when she heard the AllFather subtly include her in his words.
"Does that mean I could become Asgard's Queen someday too, Papa?" She asked earning a scornful look from her eldest brother.
"Pooh! You're a girl and girls can't rule Asgard! It's the law!" He scoffed earning a slight hurt look from his sister in return. Suddenly the hem of his cloak wrapped itself around his ankle and pulled him off his feet.
"Hey!" Thor cried out as he lost his grip on his Father's hand and fell face first onto the ground. Frea burst out laughing at the scene while Loki standing on his Father's left smirked subtly to himself.
"A wise ruler never quarrels pointlessly with others, Thor Odinson." Odin passed a quiet disapproving look between his three children.
"-but he listens with an open heart and mind in order to make the wisest of decisions for the good of his realm." He tapped his index finger against the side of his head and continued on his way out of the chamber leading his sons with him.
Thor huffed and glared at Loki slightly dusting off his clothes. "You did that on purpose, you fiend." He hissed. Loki tried to feign innocence. "I can't say I know what you're talking about, Brother."
Thor started to respond when he thought better of it and instead followed along purposefully after his Father.
"Thor could be a really good King... if he didn't like fighting so much. And Loki would be a good king if he didn't like tricking so much. Right Papa?" Frea said, looking at her Father with adoring eyes after watching her brothers' entire exchange.
Loki sighed when he heard this while faint amusement flickered across Odin's expression. Thor on stark constrast to his brother was turning a slightly indignant shade of red at his sister's innocent proclamation.
"That they would my child. Both your brothers would make very fine kings indeed." Odin smiled returning his youngest child's smile before acknowledging his sons. "Very good kings." He muttered more to himself than to the children.
Loki turned to meet his older brother's irritated gaze with a smug grin of his own at this and slowly Thor returned the smile with a strained one of his own.
"What about me Papa?" Frea bounced a bit as she ran to keep up with her Father and brothers causing both Loki and Thor to roll their eyes at her childish antics. Odin however lovingly returned his gaze to her.
"You Frea Odinsdottir, would make a very fine Queen and Consort one day." Odin responded sincerely, bending to scoop up his youngest child up into his arms. "Just like your Mama." Frea's eyes lit up at that and the old King lovingly pressed a soft Fatherly kiss to her forehead before gently setting her down by her brothers.
"Now," Odin turned his gaze back towards his sons motioning with a sweep of his arm for them to leave the chamber.
"Run along. All of you. And do not forget what you have learned here today." Odin stared down at his children until they all bowed in understanding and reverence.
"Yes Father." Thor and Loki turned almost as one to leave the chamber and little Frea quickly scampered off after them.
As young as she was, her Father's words comforted her and gave her great hope. She hoped that what he said was true and that one day fate would bring her to take her place on a throne as Queen of her own realm.
I will be as good a Queen as Mama someday, they'll see...Frea vowed silently to herself as she struggled to keep up at her brothers' heels. They'll all see!
(What do you think? Like it? Hate it? This was so much fun to write even though it was a oneshot. I hope you enjoyed it and that you don't think Frea is too much of a brat. I own nothing but Frea.)