Thor looks at the blue man with the red eyes calling him his brother. He doesn't understand why the man would think they are related. They look nothing alike. Thor had gotten used to his presence, however. Though Thor was unable to speak he was aware of what was going on around him if only vaguely. He found the man's nightly presence comforting, as well as that of the red haired woman. An old man had come and spent much time with him for a while, but he hasn't seen him in months. He must have given up on him. Thor feels free. For months he had been unable to ask for food or water or to go to the bathroom. He had been unable to move without someone guiding him. He'd been imprisoned inside his own body.
"Thor. Say something else. Anything." Loki begs.
"I'm hungry too, and I really need to use the bathroom." Thor says as he moves his legs. He hadn't been able to move them on his own in so long. His muscles scream with a mixture of pain and relief from the movement. He tries to stand up and falls on the floor in a heap. Loki is there in an instant to help him up.
"Guards!" Loki screams. Two night patrol men come running in. Their eyes go wide at the sight of Thor awake and moving.
"Help us. And then fetch my mother and the healers."
"Yes my King." The men help Thor to his feet. Even these battle hardened men look as though they are about to shed tears of joy. No one speaks on the matter. Loki assists him to the bathroom as the guards flee to fetch the Queen Mother and Lady Eir. Loki lowers Thor down onto the commode. His once massive body has shrunk considerably. He is not the hulking giant he used to be. But he will be again. Loki will make sure of it.
"I thought you were lost to me." Loki says as Thor relieves himself. When he is done they move back into the main area just as Frigga comes sprinting into the room. She all but tackles her children as tears of relief spring from her eyes.
"Is it true? Have you returned to me my son?"
"Are you my mother?" Thor asks. It is only now that Loki realizes something is wrong. Loki and Frigga exchange a look.
"Thor, do you know who I am?" Loki asks him.
"You are the blue man that comes and sleeps next to me every night. I rather enjoy your company. I was lonely when you were not here."
"Blue man? We need to have his eyes checked." Loki says aloud mostly to Frigga. Frigga frowns. Loki still does not know that he is Jotunn and something tells Frigga that Thor is able to see through the camouflage spell hiding Loki's true nature. The timing is awful, but Frigga knows she needs to tell him before the finds out on his own. The healers arrive and Frigga pulls Loki away to give them space to check Thor over.
The healers ask Thor many questions to ascertain the scope of his memory loss.
"Who is the King of Asgard?" Lady Eir starts off with a really basic question. She fully expects Thor to say Odin but his response is a surprise.
"What is Asgard?" Thor answers with another question. Oh dear.
"What is your name?"
"I believe it is Thor, at least several people have called me that."
"Thor what?"
"I don't know, just Thor I guess." Lady Eir continues her questioning. Thor remembers nothing. He has complete amnesia.
"I have finished my assessment. It is obvious he has lost all his memories and to be frank I do not know if they will ever return. His muscles have atrophied and it will take months of training and exercise for him to get back to his former physical glory. He will have to relearn how to walk. He will need to spend as much time with the two of you and his friends as possible. Anything that might restore his memories will be helpful. My King, no one will blame you if you should ignore your duties for a few days. In fact as head healer I am ordering you to do so, for the sake of Thor's mental health."
"Thank you Lady Eir, nobles, councilmen, and peasants all alike cannot object to my absence if I have your leave to do so. I will be glad to have the time to bond with him." He says sincerely.
A large food tray and pitcher of water is brought for Thor which he gulps down eagerly. He eats every morsel of food before letting out an epic belch.
"Pardon me." He says as his eye lids begin to droop. He feels like all the energy is being sucked out of him. Frigga pats her son's back much like she did when he was very small.
"Rest my son. You need it. In the morning I will reacquaint you with world." She leans in and kisses his temple before fluffing his plowing and laying him back. Thor is out like a light in a matter of moments. It is very late now and Loki looks ready for bed as well, but there is something Frigga must do first.
"Loki my son there is something I need to tell you." Frigga says. Loki looks at her expectantly. "But not here."
"Mother, whatever it is, can it not wait?"
"No Loki it can't. Come with me." Loki frowns with concern as he follows her out of the room. They walk all the way back to her chambers and Frigga sits her son, the King of Asgard down for a very hard discussion.
"Loki my son, you know I love you with all my heart." Frigga starts. Loki shoots her a look of impatience. "Loki at the end of the last great war with Jotunnheim your father took the Casket of Ancient Winters and brought it here to Asgard."
"Yes…I know this."
"He took something else from Jotunnheim as well." Frigga says and pauses. "At the end of the great battle Odin was in the great temple and found….he found a baby. It was a runt, small for a Jotunn and had been discarded and left to die. The tribal markings on the child indicated he was Laufey's son, heir to the throne of Jotunnheim."
"Blue man." Loki says now understanding Thor's words. Fresh raw horror slowly envelopes Loki as the truth sinks in.
"We didn't tell you because we never wanted you to feel different. I wanted to tell you for years but your father insisted that we keep it a secret. No one else ever need know if you do not wish it so, except for Thor. I think he can see through the spell that has hidden your true appearance."
"My true appearance." Loki whispers. He jumps up and walks to the nearest mirror. "How? How do I remove it? I want to see what I look like!" Loki demands. Frigga walks over and touches her son. She searches out the spell upon his skin and tugs at it. Creamy milky skin gives way to ice blue. Green eyes are enveloped by red. Tribal lines appear on his face and body. Loki rips off his tunic to see the rest of his body. He's a monster!
"You only tell me this now because I might be found out!" Loki asks rhetorically. He is furious. Now he knows why Odin favored Thor all these years! If circumstances had not played out as they did, Thor would be king now. Loki scowls. Odin is dead. Loki is king now, but he still feels second best. And what about Thor? If the people ever found out that Loki is not Odin's son they'll demand that Thor be crowned king. Loki must make the people see Thor as someone who is still sick and feeble and not able to rule.
"Yes, and because it was long overdue. I know you have a lot to think about, but know that I love you very much, as if you were born of my own body. Your brother has returned to us. After months of heart wrenching grief, you and I have the chance to be happy again. For first time in a long time, the future looks bright. Please do not despair over this new information. It is only a problem if you choose it to be." Frigga says as she lays her hand upon Loki to restore the spell. Loki puts his shirt back on and returns to his chambers. The King's Chambers.
Loki sleeps little the rest of the night. He wishes Odin were here so he could yell and scream at him. He feels like he has been robbed of legitimacy. All would have been well and right in the world if his mother had not landed that bombshell upon him. Loki lost count the number of times he prayed and bargained with the Norns to return his brother to full health. He'd offered gold, he'd offered sacrifices, he'd offered the throne itself, never expecting the Norns to take him up on the offer. The Fates are sadistic bitches. Loki is the King of Asgard and arguably the most powerful being in the nine realms, and he has never felt more insecure in his life.
