Prologue: What If
Thor is an only child. Always has been, and always will.
This is why Frigga worries for him.
She loves Thor. She loves her son. But she cannot deny the longing in her heart, for a child that will sit upon her knee and listen with wide eager eyes as she teaches them magic and spells and—
But there is no such child. Thor is battle and violence, wrapped up in a layer of childish ignorance and greed. There is no younger sibling to teach him about the need to protect at all cost, no one to pull him back from the edge and whisper reason in his ears when he is too far gone to listen to his parents (no matter how much he loves them).
Thor has a kingdom that will most certainly be his, friends that will willingly follow him into any battle he so desires, and a weapon that commands the heavens themselves.
But Thor has no reason, no logic, because there is no one there to remind him that he needs it. No joy of childhood, no tricks, and the weight of being the only heir to Asgard's throne falling heavily upon his shoulders. There is no one to compete with him, no one to push him when he falters, and no one he feels the need to protect.
He is lacking, lacking in all the things that give life its light, and he doesn't even realize it.
It is times like those, when Frigga sees the dull gleam of war reflected in his eyes and hears the promises of bloodshed fall from his lips, that she wishes her son had a brother, or a sister. One he could trust without question, one who he could talk to about his troubles, one who would pull him into mischief and trouble simply because they are a mischievous child at heart and—
But in the end, these are only faint wishes and half-hearted dreams, a quiet whisper of what if. After all, Thor is an only child. Now and forever.
Odin watches and despairs.
Oh, it hurts. His loss. What Asgard will lose, most definitely, when Thor takes the throne.
He tries. He tells Thor peace is the answer, not war, but it is useless. So young and Thor already has the gleam of war, of blood, of violence in his blue eyes. Odin's words fall on deaf ears, and all Thor will hear is that Asgard fought, Asgard won. Asgard is the greatest of the Nine Realms.
Never mind he says none of those things. That is all Thor hears and sees, a child dreaming and anticipating his first kill. A child who will feel triumph and savage joy when he finally does so, instead of grief and steel-hard resolution.
Thor is a child who welcomes war with open arms and despises the very notion of peace. That is his son's true nature. Odin knows this better than anybody. He himself was almost the same, and would have been if he had not had Frigga by his side.
On his darker days, he wonders what would be worse. Thor on Asgard's throne, or no king at all.
One might bring Asgard to ruin. The other most certainly will.
Despite this, Odin cannot bring himself to do the unthinkable. Frigga could not survive the loss of another child, and to be frank, neither could he. He is the Allfather, but he is also Thor's father.
On his brighter days, Odin will watch his heir (his son, always) with tired and grieving eyes. His eyes will flicker behind Thor's shoulder, to empty air.
Quietly, ever so quietly, muffled by the never-ending river of his thoughts, he wonders…what if?
But only for a little while. He is a king, after all, and it does not do to dwell on could-have-beens.
From time to time, as his father tells him stories of Asgard's greatest battles, Thor will ever-so-secretly glance to the side and wonder what it would be like if there was someone looking back.
Odin has told him of Baldur, who had died in his mother's womb three days before his scheduled birth. How, on that night, Frigga had been poisoned by an unknown substance mixed in with mistletoe. She had survived the poison…but his unborn brother had not survived the mistletoe.
The thief, the poisoner, the murderer…had never been caught.
This infuriates Thor. Odin is strong and powerful, how could he let him get away? If it were Thor, he would have hunted the man down to the ends of the universe and torn him into a million pieces for poisoning the Queen of Asgard!
And his unborn brother, Thor supposes. But really, he's not sure if he would have liked Baldur. A warrior dying of something as flimsy as mistletoe? Pathetic.
He never says this aloud. He gets the feeling he will only hurt his mother more.
Besides, it's not as though Thor wants a brother. He likes having his family all to himself. Besides, a brother meant another potential heir. And that…Thor just couldn't allow. Not that he has anything to worry about, really. After Baldur's death, Frigga had sworn to never have another child in his memory.
Thor hadn't said a word after he heard this, but privately thought it was a bit much for someone who had died so pathetically.
Still, every once in a while, he will look. Wonder. Dream.
And then he wakes up and forgets about it. Siblings would be troublesome, he thinks, and he's definitely better off without them.
Sometimes, he thinks Odin notices. He will see a sad look in Frigga's eyes as she listens to him describe in great detail the inevitable end of the Frost Giants (by his hand, of course). He hears his friends quietly murmur to themselves, 'Now wouldn't it be nice if someone here had a sliver tongue?'
And sometimes he will look over his shoulder into empty air and wonder.
What if?
Not that it really matters, anyways. He doesn't need anyone but himself. Nor is it important. Thor is an only child, after all.
Alone on Asgard's throne with thousands of warriors at his beck and call, he will carve his name into history with the blood of his enemies.
Long live the King.
A/N: Hiya! Crazy and Lazy here!
Crazy: Nice to meet you!
Lazy: Read the story it's gooooooooood
Crazy: ...That's probably why they're at the bottom of the page...
Lazy: We don't know that! They could be SKIPPERS.
Crazy: OH GOD NOT THE SKIPPERS. *cough* Anyways...Hope you liked it! No, this isn't a oneshot, the next chappie will be up soon.
Lazy: wtf is a chappie. Is it chapstick? I need new chapstick. ANYWHO If you DIDN'T like the story that just means that the brainwashing hasn't kicked in yet. Just wait a bit.
Crazy: What.
Lazy: You heard me. Biatch.
Crazy: ...Right. Anyway, reviews would be lovely, and well appreciated. It may even motivate Lazy! *le gasp* We don't own Thor, or Loki, or anyone really. Dead broke, that's us.
Lazy: Speak for yourself. I've got a few fictional characters chained up in my basement.
Crazy: Yeah, yeah. The Avengers will turn up in about...oh, three good books later, so just wait for it.
Lazy: No really. Didn't you wonder why it took so long for the third season of Sherlock? I kidnapped him.
Crazy: Oh~kay, we're gone. Review, good readers! Loki needs you!