Author's Note: Gabriel's chosen fall from grace and how he takes his place among the Norse pantheon and how they (don't) take well to this new "god". Basically, how he became Loki in the first place. I assume Lucifer was called Lucifiel in this and a few other fics. Just something I've always assumed. I might be totally wrong. /shrug. This fic is about Gabe anyway.

Trickster's Beginning

Bickering. They were always fighting. His beloved brothers. Gabriel would go insane one of these days just listening to them fight and argue, the SAME DAMN POINTS over and over again. Especially Lucifiel and Michael. How they were arguing over whether or not humans were better.

Raphael kept his distance when these two fought, but he still managed to put in a good work for Michael here and there though. Raphael was Michael's bitch. He was always a bitch and would be until he died (Gabriel had no idea at the time how right he was).

Gabriel snorted, drawing the attention of his brothers, who must have thought he was finally going to join in and take a side. No, he was just laughing at his own thoughts.

"Shut up, all of you. Dad made humans to be better. He said so. Shouldn't THAT be the end of it? I'm not on anyone's side, but damn, DAD made them to be BETTER and Luci is sitting there saying they're not when our Father says they are? Are you nuts, Luci?"

Lucifiel was a far more powerful angel than Gabriel, but at this point, Gabe didn't care about goading his more powerful elder brother.

"You tread a thin line, little brother. Goading me as you are. I know you like your little jokes. I hope this is one of them. Can't you see? Humans are flawed! Sinful! They gave into sin the minute it was presented to them!"

Gabriel sighed. He couldn't do it. Not anymore. He wouldn't watch his brothers fight and, possibly, kill each other later. He walked to the edge of the plane of endless white on which they stood and looked down at humanity.

Warriors. Fighting, battling, calling out to their false gods for deliverance. Sometimes, these false gods answered. A woman on a flaming boar road through the field, picking up the fallen women, renaming them Valkyries and taking them back to her home in "Asgard" whatever that was. The women were overjoyed.

As were the men who were brought by gods called Odin and Thor to a place called Valhalla.

This was…odd. And intriguing. Very intriguing. He glanced back at his brothers, they were no longer paying him any attention.

He hesitated a bit, then stepped off the plane.

Pain, agony…ugh…did he fall then? Give up his Grace? No, that was still intact. So, Father was okay with this.

"Are you well, brother? We saw you fall from the sky and immediately sent warriors to fetch you."

The voice came from a man with dark hair, and golden, nearly glowing, skin.

"My name is Baldur. I'm the one who saved you. Well, picked you out of the sand anyway. You're a hardy fellow. Are you from Asgard, Jotunheim? Another of the Nine Realms?"

Gabriel rubbed his head. He had a migraine and this Baldur talked too much. Still, he couldn't let his 'rescuer' go unnoticed.

"Aye…aye. I'm from…Jotunheim. My uhm, mother was Jotun and my father was an Asgardian. I don't know their names. My…uh…my name is…uhm…" He tried to think really fast. Normally he was good at that, but not right now. He couldn't say Gabriel. His brothers would find him too easily. He mumbled something incoherently and got to his feet.

Baldur cocked his head. "Loki? Is that what you said? Your name is Loki? Well, then, hello, Loki. Welcome to Asgard. There will be some who won't be thrilled with your Jotun heritage, but you can't please everyone, can you?" Baldur grinned at this, as if he had had experience.

Gabriel sighed. Loki would do. Even though it had come from random mutterings. "Uh, yeah, Loki. I uhm, hit my head pretty hard. Was having some trouble. Thanks for your help, Baldur. So, what now?"

Baldur smiled and took Gabriel's hands in his own, yanking him closer and putting an arm around him.

"NOW we go and see the All-Father. Odin. My father. Father of well, ALL the gods, really. He IS the All-Father."

Gabriel wondered briefly whether his own father had taken to hiding as this Odin fellow and sincerely hoped not, because his cover would be blown to smithereens.

Leaning on Baldur most of the way, he was eventually led to a bridge, shimmering with all the colors in existence. Baldur leaned over and whispered to him.

"This is the Rainbow Bridge. It connects all the Nine Realms. Its guardian god, Heimdall, stands always vigilant. It'll take a little smooth talking to get you in, but I think I can manage."

Gabriel personally thought Baldur couldn't manage to spell a really long word, but kept his mouth shut. He knew nothing of this culture, this people.

After Baldur came back from talking to the tall, imposing, dark guardian, Heimdall, he grabbed Loki's arm and dragged him into the realm of Asgard.

Gabriel gasped. A shining palace stood at the center of the realm, trees undying flourished, apples as golden as the gates of Heaven hanging from them. WAS this not truly Heaven? Or the Garden? No place as lovely as this could exist without Father's knowledge!

No! Gabriel shook his vehemently. He was NOT going back just to listen to his brothers argue. This place…it was wonderful. Beautiful. Baldur was boring, but it didn't look like everything here would be. He realized he had a wide smile on his face. It was mirrored by Baldur's own smile.

"Beautiful, isn't it? Asgard! My father lives in the palace. I'll take you to meet him. He's never denied me a thing!"

Like a puppy dog, Baldur grabbed hold of Gabriel and almost bounced his way to the gleaming palace. Gabriel noticed they had no wall surrounding their palace, as most castles were fortified with. He would bring this up with the All-Father if he got the chance.

Being dragged along by Baldur was almost like being dragged by a horse. The man never stopped once. If Gabriel hadn't been an archangel, he'd have been flopping along like a dead fish or gasping for breath. As it was, he was miraculously, as least in Baldur's eyes, keeping up with him easily.

Once they reached the palace and entered, others hailed Baldur and greeted him. Several by throwing sharp objects at him, which just bounced off. What magic is this, Gabriel thought, I'll have to find the secret to this!

Baldur stopped before a large throne, upon which a man and woman were seated. No, this man wasn't Gabriel's Father. He didn't have the Light. Still…he was imposing. He had only one eye, the other covered by a dark eye patch. The woman was queenly and beautiful. She, too, looked imposing. Baldur's parents, he realized.

"Mother, Father, this is Loki! He's half Jotun, half Aesir! I saved him from dying of heatstroke in the sand where the most recent battle took place!"

The woman gave Baldur a small smile, but the man was giving Gabriel an odd look.

"Well, Loki? Is what my son says true? You're half Jotun."

Gabriel realized this race didn't like the Jotun. He should have just said he was an Asgardian who'd lost his memory. He started thinking fast.

"Aye. Half Jotun, but also half Aesir. I don't remember anything beyond what happened after Baldur found me. But trust me, I will give you no trouble! If I do, surely the All-Father of the gods could easily dispatch one such as I!"

Not likely, since I'm an archangel, thought Gabriel. But he just let Odin think this. Odin continued to eye him, eventually turning to Frigga to converse silently with her. Gabriel could easily have overheard them, but decided it was best not to. Eventually, Odin and Frigga turned back to him.

Odin spoke first. "Very well. You have a place among the Aesir, Loki of Jotunheim. I want you to prove your worth to us first. You must have noticed, we have no wall. Heimdall just let a mason and his horse through the gates to Asgard."

Frigga spoke second. "Convince this mason to build a wall to encompass all of Asgard. As an Aesir, surely your own protection should come first."

Gabriel sighed. Somehow, he just KNEW this mason-wall bit was going to end badly or embarrass him somehow, but…anything was better than listening to his brothers argue.

The newly-minted Loki bowed before his king and queen. "As you command, your majesties. I'll do my best with the mason and his horse. You'll have a wall as gleaming as this palace!"

Loki set off in search of the mason Frigga had spoken of. This was surely to be less boring than listening to Michael and Lucifiel fight any day!