The elder son of Odin watched as his brother was escorted to the base of the throne, his hands cuffed and mouth concealed. Silence reigned throughout the throne room as Loki calmly passed the hundreds of citizens gazing in fear. He did not acknowledge them, nor anyone. He kept his emerald glare fixed straight ahead. Thor felt the knot in his stomach tighten as Loki eyed the All-Father. His expression seemed to lightly say, "See what I've become thanks to you?"

It sickened Thor to death seeing his beloved younger brother like this. How could he not have seen the pain and internal hatred festering over the years? How could he not have known? He would have done everything in his power to reverse his brother's suffering, if only he had known. If only Loki had told him. Though perhaps that would be just wishful thinking. Loki was always one to keep to himself, clearly.

Loki now stood before the All-Father, Thor at his side. The guards escorting the Dark Prince genuflected respectfully before their king, and Loki glared.

A single stamp of Odin's stamp resounded out, the crowd straightened and Thor watched as his father stepped forward, looking down upon his adopted son.

Thor shifted the weight on his feet as the All-Father began, "Loki Odinson-"

Loki immediately cringed at the name. Even to Odin himself, the words came out somewhat hesitantly.

"What you have done...and who you have betrayed, through your cruelness and insolence, you have failed to recognize what it right and just."

Loki lowered his head, examining the manacles refraining him from using his magic to a certain extent. Thor knew what Loki could be capable of if it weren't for those magic dampeners. They were what was keeping him in his place at the moment.

"You have committed a shameful series of crimes, consisting of treason, murder and attempted suicide..."

Thor flinched at the word as Loki so much as disregarded it all together. The images of a shattered bridge, a black hole and a dark haired figure slowly falling into nothingness suddenly engulfed Thor's mind. His breathing became ragged and heavier.

I could have done it, father! I could have done it! For you! For all of us...

No, Loki.

Sudden heat began to swell behind Thor's eyes and he forced the thoughts away.

Odin continued, "In addition, you have exposed the innocent and vulnerable realm of Midgard to the horror and desolation of celestial warfare. As punishment for these offenses, you will be sentenced to the dungeons of Svartalfheim's prison until I further announce it."

The knot in Thor's stomach slightly loosened. Is that it then? A few months in prison and then he is free to do as he pleases? It cannot be.

Thor turned to face his mother. Her face still held as much concern and disappointment as his had.

So there's more...

"During you imprisonment, however..."

Green eyes flickered. It was clear Loki hadn't been expecting much else.

Thor's breathing became heavier again and he felt a cold sweat trickle down his spine. There were many penalties the All-Father could pronounce on Loki. Be it banishment, as he had done to Thor, humiliation, the removal of certain privileges, or even the removal of...

Thor shuddered.

No.

He wouldn't dare.

He couldn't!

...Could he?

Thor's blue eyes widened.

"You are to be detached from your magical abilities."

Thor abruptly wakes to the lingering screams of horrified citizens due to Loki's attack on the guards in a feeble attempt to escape.

Gasping in deep, harsh breaths, the Golden Prince gazes at the darkened ceiling of his bedchambers with blurred vision. He hesitantly raises his fingertips to his cheeks.

Wet.

For a fleeting moment as he rubs the back of his hand across his dampened face, he pretends he is only wiping away sweat and not freshly fallen tears. Though what is the use of pretending when they are so real? Just as his dreams are. Yet dreams are now more like memories for Thor. Dark, painful memories.

It is not the first he's dreamt of his brother, nor the last. He thinks of Loki day in and day out. From the second he wakes to the rays from the rising of the sun, to the moment his mind slowly falls into unconsciousness in the dark of night. He doesn't recall the last time he had dreams of anything else besides that of his brother.

His dear, little brother. Once so cherished and close to his heart. Now gone, betrayed, forgotten it seems, by his own people. His own family.

Loki...

Unexpectedly, memories begin to spill throughout Thor's mind. A smile, a laugh, warmth and comfort. Almost as if the capsule containing every memory of his brother suddenly sprung a leak.

When Loki had frightening dreams as a child and would seek Thor's presence for comfort in the middle of the night...

The time they were still children and decided to venture out of the palace grounds without any consent. The trouble they got into and the things they saw...

Or the first time the two entered battle together. How they fought endlessly side by side...

"But never doubt that I love you..."

Despite it all, the memories gradually begin to shift in the opposite direction. A tear, a desperate cry, pain and sorrow and...

"I remember a shadow..."

Thor shuts his eyes tight. He wishes he hadn't been so blind. He wishes for it all to go away.

"Living in the shade of your greatness..."

But it doesn't. The memories refuse to disappear. Little by little, they slowly increase their intensity.

"I'm not your brother. I never was..."

Each and every word stings and burns and rips at Thor's heart. His body aches from the tension and he finds it difficult to loosen the grip of his clenched fists.

"I've looked forward to this day as long as you have..."

The memories tousle and turn from happiness and comfort to sorrow and pain. But which is he to follow? It's too much.

Thor flinches as he recalls being locked in the glass cage.

"The humans think us immortal. Shall we test that?"

The moment Loki pressed that switch, and then he too, was falling, presumed to not survive.

Flashbacks swarm throughout his mind, penetrating every inch of his brain eventually leaving him with nothing but the images and voices of the desolate past. It's too much.

Then he recalls kind green eyes gazing down upon him as he swore the oaths of the Crowning Ceremony. But was the sincerity real?

"I was being sincere."

"You are incapable of sincerity!"

"Am I?"

A small laugh, "Yes!"

Warm, sticky liquid begins to ooze out of Thor's palms and he raises one to hover above his face. Four bloody fingernail indents mar his hand. It's just too much.

Thor slowly places his hand back to hide beneath the silk sheets of his bed, failing to be mindful of the blood stains that will without doubt remain.

Intermittently, his mind decides to calm and regain it's composer. The overwhelming thoughts eventually begin to dissipate. He drags in a deep, ragged breath and closes his eyes, savoring the silence.

Just as the worst seems to be over, a sudden image, a familiar yet distant image, emerges unbidden in Thor's mind. He can't be sure when or where he had seen it. It seems like so long ago - perhaps because it was. But it's there, and it does not go away.

He sees Loki... and he's smiling. Just smiling. A genuine, heartwarming smile.

Not the nasty smirk or menacing grin in which he normally put to use for concealing the hurt and anguish he usually felt.

Only to be seen is goodness, and gentleness... and love.

Things that will likely cease to exist any longer once Loki's magic is removed from him.

It's only a matter of time now.

Thor instantly shoots up from his pillow, rips off the silk sheets that blanket his body and heads for his wardrobe. He pulls out his armor and hastily fastens it to his garments. Just before he storms out the door, he snatches Mjolnir with a bloodied hand.

I'm coming, brother.