Author's Introduction: This story contains mention of self-harm, depression and other material which may be considered distressing. (Such as rape, slash and other sexual themes in later chapters.) For the record, there will NOT be Thor/Loki anywhere in this story. If that's your cup of tea, they are platonic brothers here, feel free to move along with no hurt feelings. (Or stay and read things into the story. I don't judge.) If you are here for angst, hurt/comfort and a crazily over-protective older brother- welcome! Have a seat and enjoy the show! (As always, I own NOTHING!)
Thor's eyes were wild as he held onto his brother. Desperate, crazed – the eyes of a man on the brink. But Loki's did not return his gaze. He seemed to be staring into nothingness. At that moment, his usually sparkling eyes were empty, even dead. And then he did the unthinkable – he let go, his expression remaining perfectly impassive even as he did so. Thor screamed with all his might as he lunged forward almost casting himself off the bifrost as he desperately grabbed ahold of his brother.
(Scene change)
Thor was enraged. He could not believe how incredibly stupid the serving girl who cowered before him was. "What. Is. WRONG. With. You?" he shouted mere inches from her face before smashing his fist into the wall above her head. The girl screamed and ran. Thor turned his head quickly and would have followed her, if his mother had not turned the corner to face her son at that moment.
"Thor" Frigga began. The single word was a scolding. "Why are you terrorizing that poor child?"
Thor could not meet his mother's gaze. He did not wish to have this discussion, for his mother worried enough, without him adding to her fears. "She was incredibly careless, mother."
"An interesting accusation coming from you, Thor" was the suspicious reply. "And what, do tell, was the evidence of this carelessness?"
"That is unimportant." Thor replied as dismissively as he could. "I have taken care of the situation. She will not repeat the same mistake." Thor silently added in his head, 'Not that she will be given the opportunity.'
"Yes, you took care of the situation. Scared the child witless and put your fist through a palace wall. Now, you are my son and as your mother, I demand to know what the poor girl did to be accused of carelessness by you."
"She…gave Loki a knife with his meal." Thor replied in a shaking voice.
Frigga's eyes widened and her eyebrows shot up.
"Do not worry, mother. He is fine now. I personally bandaged his wounds." Thor attempted to reassure her.
"Did….did he say anything?" she asked in a whisper.
"N-no." Thor replied. Technically, it was the truth.
Frigga nodded. "Thor, I think it would be best if you and your brother traveled to Midgard for a time. Too many here know of his troubles and fear him for them. He cannot heal here."
Thor wondered for a moment if worry about her son had temporarily shaken his mother's wits. "But mother, the bi-frost has been destroyed. We cannot leave Asgard."
"Loki knows of ways that others do not." Frigga replied calmly. "Thor, you are to meet me at Loki's quarters at dawn with whatever you believe you will need to take. Frigga nodded sternly and turned quickly. As she left, Thor saw her raise a hand to her face, as if to wipe away tears.
(Scene change)
Thor had gathered a few items he believed would not be too conspicuous on Midgard and then headed to Loki's room where he had been sleeping every night since…the incident.
When he entered the room, he spotted Loki on the bed, as expected. Loki did not move unless Thor guided him…. "Or unless some stupid servant girl left him a knife of all things." Thor thought, glaring at the wall for a moment.
"Hello, Loki. I'm going to take a look at your injuries. Is that acceptable?" Thor asked as he sat on the bed next to his brother. As usual, Loki did not respond. Thor sighed and took that as cooperation and proceeded to unwrap the bandages. The blood had dried, luckily without soaking through the bandages first. Thor wiped them with a wet cloth gently and whispered quietly as he did. "These are all lies, Loki. Every word – lies. No one should have given you such false hoods. I swear to you, brother. You are clever and brave and wise and you…you are my brother. Do not believe these lies. Do not."
Loki's face showed no indication that he even knew who Thor was.
(Scene change)
As the sun was just spreading its light across the sky, Thor was awoken by a knocking at the door. He opened his eyes groggily and looked to his right to see if Loki had awoken. His green eyes were open, but showed no sign of activity beyond. Thor climbed out of the bed and made his way to the door to let his mother in.
"Good morning, Thor" the queen said with a weak smile and a nod before strolling over to the bed and sitting next to her younger son.
"Good morning, Loki. Did you sleep well, my son?" She asked as she stroked his dark hair gently. She had enjoyed comforting her son in this small way when he was young, but he never allowed it, except for after nightmares and certainly never in front of his brother.
Loki merely starred into the distance.
"Loki, dear child…." the care-worn mother tried to begin, but trailed off with a sigh. She breathed heavily for a moment before looking back up to her son with determination set in her eyes. "Loki, I need you to do something for me. Thor is in desperate trouble. It is of immediate importance that you take him to Midgard, but you cannot use the bi-frost. You must take the secret ways. Can you do that for your brother… to protect Thor…?"
Thor looked up quickly upon hearing this and gave his mother a questioning, perhaps even disapproving stare.
Without even sitting up in the bed or taking his eyes off the wall, Loki uttered his first words in months. "For Thor."
Frigga smiled sadly and tears pooled in her eyes. Leaning down, she kissed the top of her youngest's head before standing and motioning for Thor to join her outside the bedroom door.
"Mother…" Thor attempted, but was cut off by a gentle wave of the queen's hand.
"I know you disapprove of my methods, but I did not lie. Would you say that your brother is in trouble?"
Thor nodded as understanding sunk in. "And my brother's trouble is my own."
Frigga nodded. "Precisely. Take good care of your brother, Thor. Protect him. It will be difficult for both of you, but together you can overcome this."
Thor's voice was desperate as he asked, "Do you even know what this is? How do I protect him from enemies I do not know? From dangers I cannot see? How do I shield him from monsters that live only in his mind and rob him of his words and demons that steal his peace? How does one fight nightmares? If this were an enemy I could face in battle, I would gladly fight with all my might for my brother! But no, I am asked to face that which can only be defeated with wisdom and a magic I do not know! This is a battle that Loki was made to fight and here I stand in his stead and I fear that I will fail him and that is not an option!"
"You are right. That is not an option. So, do not fear it." Frigga replied with a face that Thor had seen countless time before on Lady Sif before battle. "Now, off with you. I cannot bear to say goodbye."
(Scene change)
Thor was a warrior, a son of Odin, a god of old and he was incredibly motion-sick. "Loki, that was…" He paused a moment to catch his breath before continuing. "That was incredible." Turning to survey his surroundings, he quickly recognized the barren landscape of New Mexico. Sand and rocks with scattered cacti dotted the horizon, but luckily there was a dusty road which Thor knew must lead to some civilization.
"Come, brother. We shall find Jane and her companions" Thor announced and grabbed ahold of Loki's hand gently to lead him down the road. It was a familiar gesture for him and it brought back a wave of nostalgia causing him to remember their childhood when they were inseparable – Thor always the protector and Loki the admiring younger brother. Sadly, Thor wondered when the slow change from brothers to enemies had begun and why he hadn't cared enough to notice then.
Loki allowed himself to be led, all the while keeping his eyes glued to the ground as Thor rambled on and on about this and that desperately trying to fill the silence.
By the time they reached town, it was dark and Thor had almost talked himself hoarse. It had taken hours and he hadn't paused once – always jumping from subject to subject hoping that someone would catch his brother's interest and motivate him to say something – anything. Thor sighed and shook his head to clear his thoughts for a moment. He knew he needed to get ahold of Jane or her companions Darcy and Erik so they could direct him to the place where Jane resided. He led Loki around the town looking for something familiar, until he finally stumbled upon a box where a man stood talking. Thor stood beside the man and waited until he finished speaking and then he urgently grabbed the man's arm.
"Excuse me, good sir. But can I use this….machine to contact Jane Foster?" Thor questioned.
"You can use it to call whoever you want- I'm done with it" the older man replied with a shrug as he gave Thor a very questioning look.
"Thank you, good sir!" Thor practically shouted before grabbing Loki and dragging him into the phone box with him. Thor had seen Jane use a similar device before, but he could not recall exactly how it had known who she wanted to contact. Holding the strange machine by the cord, he raised it to his face and loudly so that the he would not be misunderstood he inquired, "Can I speak with Jane Foster? Hello. I need to speak with Jane Foster. Do you know where she is?" The only response was an odd sound which seemed to be emitting from the machine. He placed the device in its resting place again for a moment and thought. Picking it back up and holding it near his face again he shouted even more loudly, "Do you know the maiden Darcy Lewis? May I speak to her? Do you know her companion Erik?"
Growing frustrated, he angrily hung the device in its resting place before thinking for a minute. He then reached down to the base of the machine and tore it up from the floor, leaving it resting against the wall. Walking out of the box, he spied a wide-eyed young maiden who seemed to be waiting to use the machine. Thor led Loki past her and on his way nodded in her direction and advised, "That device is not functional. Perhaps you should find another."
It was dark and Thor knew that he needed to find some shelter quickly. Looking down the street, he spied a vehicle which looked like the one that Darcy had controlled. Leading Loki to the "car" he began to bang on the side and look into the windows hoping to see Darcy hiding in one of the corners. "Darcy? Are you in there?"
"Duuuuuuuuuuude…. What are you doing to my car?" a strangely slow voice asked from behind him. Turning around, Thor saw a young-ish Midgardian with unhealthily red eyes squinting at him.
"This is not your vehicle. This is the car of Darcy Lewis. Do you know where she can be found?" Thor asked strolling closer to the Midgardian.
"I coulda swooooooore that was my car…."came the mumbled replied.
Standing almost two feet over the other man's head, Thor assured him. "That is the vehicle of Darcy Lewis. Do you or do you not know where to find her? Do you know her companion Jane Foster?"
The Midgardian's eyes widened, which Thor was surprised was possible and he answered in a very high-pitched voice as he reached into his pocket. "N-no…. Sorry. But you should have these keys and tell Darcy I'm really really sorry that I took her car."
Thor took the keys and nodded. "Thank you. By the way, do you know the way to a place to partake in companionship and drink? I believe that Erik called it a 'tavern.'
"Yeah, man… You turn right down this road and then you take a left and then there's this huge bar."
(Scene change)
Erik knew that Jane didn't always approve of his drinking habits. Something about his age and his heart condition and some nonsense about "doctor's orders" made her complain every time he wanted to go get a drink and spend some time at the local watering hole. But sometimes a man needed to unwind and this was one of those nights.
Walking up to the front of the bar, he heard a ruckus inside. Shouts and sounds of smashing wood could be heard from inside. Erik suddenly decided that maybe Jane was right when he was stopped in his tracks by a large man flying through the front doors of the bar and a tall blonde man following out the door behind shouting, "And stay out!" Erik blinked and was walking up to the steps to greet Thor when the warrior was joined by a dark-haired man who wore some strange green armor indicating that he must be one of the Asgardians.
Erik sighed. He was definitely going to need a drink.
Author's Note: So, I hope you enjoyed this and that nobody's bored yet. I welcome reviews, comments, favorites, likes and hearts if you want to send some to this story, I will be very proud. I welcome criticism and judgments, unless they are hateful or don't tell me what's wrong. (I.E. I hate this story!) Because if you don't tell me what's wrong, I can't fix it and that makes me sad. Anyway, reviews are love! Thank you!
