2. Exposed.

"I will not fight you, brother!"

He wishes Thor would stop saying that.

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

He wants him to hurt just as much as he is hurting; he's sick of Thor, Thor's virtues, Thor's glory, and Thor's sudden righteousness; Thor left him on his own when the weight of the world was on his shoulders and a rupture in his ––

He won't say heart; he doesn't think it's still there.

(But when he receives the first blow, he knows some small part of it must be. If it wasn't, his chest wouldn't hurt so much.)


3. Innocent.

"This is a child at prayer."

"I could have done it, Father! I could have done it!"

He is aware that his voice sounds too soft and pleading and childlike – pathetic – but he doesn't bother to conceal it; this is the moment.

"For you!"

Odin is still silent, and the longer he stays that way, the bigger the painful lump in Loki's throat becomes.

"For all of us!"

This is it; he gave it his all, he murdered his real father and saved the life of this old man who wrongfully stole him, and he needs to hear him say it.

(Apologize, accept him.)

"No, Loki."


4. Accusation.

On some nights he hears Odin's no replayed incessantly in his mind, forcing him to face the omnipresent subtext screamed at him as the final proof of his most intimate fear. The hate filling him then erases his pain, makes him believe he now finally knows his purpose; it's glorious, and once he achieves it, Father will be sorry he ever gave up on him; sleep then comes more easily.

And sometimes he sees the look on Thor's face he caught falling down into the abyss, and then he cries because in the darkness he's invisible and no-one will know.


Reviews would be fantastic, cause I've no idea if anyone's actually enjoying this? Thanks!