The day ended with little to no incident after that. Neither Loki nor Peeta brought up the fishing incident again, though it clearly had resulted in a bit more animosity on Peeta's part. For the most part, the others didn't really seem to notice, and the camp that Jack had brought them to was safe. A couple mornings later, Jack had gotten bored. He didn't really know what it was he was up do – he just wanted to explore, and that's what he did. He left the safety of camp and ventured a good way into the forest, and his mistake was doing so alone. After all, though the faction that had gotten Katniss imprisoned was left far behind, they were not the only tributes in the woods. Rather, there were more out there also far from friendly. Jack froze, as he heard something in the woods. In a one-on-one battle, Jack probably would have been fine assuming that he knew what was coming, but all too well he knew he was vulnerable to something he cannot see – Pitch had once made that abundantly clear. And when someone came at him from behind, Jack was not in a position to defend himself. Back at camp, from the direction Jack had gone there was a draft of cold air. Obviously it was something of Jack's, as the weather had actually improved a deal. "What was that?" Katniss asked with a frown. "Jack," Prim responded worriedly, as something seemed terribly wrong to everyone – if there was a draft like that, Jack was never far behind, but now there was no sign of him – clearly, he had to use whatever ice powers he'd told them about. Then there came a cannon's fire. "We have to go look for him," Prim told them, apparently very anxious. Katniss and Peeta stood up – neither looked exactly relaxed themselves – and the group carefully went after Jack. They found him, lying on the leaves, a few spikes of ice on the trees about him. Jack had been stabbed in the stomach, with very little time to fight back. Where the tribute had killed him went, they couldn't tell, but Primrose let out a cry and ran over, falling to her knees next to him. The others hung back. "I can't believe this," Katniss stared at him, shaking her head. "We shouldn't have let him go out alone. I thought he'd be able to handle himself, and he's gone." For several long moments, there was silence. Finally, Loki spoke very quietly. "Well… Maybe not quite." This sounded quite tentative, unsure. "…Maybe." "What do you mean?" Katniss looked at him, her voice sharp and somewhat cold. "To say the least," Loki told her, "I have, well… I have connections." "Connections to death," Peeta stated, clearly not taking that seriously. Loki simply ignored him. He took a few steps away, and muttered, "Oh, I can't believe I'm trying this," then rose his voice. "Katniss, Peeta, get Prim away from there. Hold onto her… Assuming this works, you'll have never experienced anything like it and I guarantee you'll fall. So be ready." "What?" Katniss frowned, but complied anyway, pulling a still-crying Primrose to her. "I'd suggest holding onto her," Loki told Katniss. "She's so light she'll go head over heels. Oh, I can't believe I'm going to try this," he said again. Then he looked up when the group had congregated, and, with something of a deep breath, he called, "Heimdall!" After a moment, Loki looked down. "Of course. I'm not surprised that he shouldn't respond-" He was cut off as the world exploded into light and sound of the Bifrost. When they landed, Loki kept his balance but as he had predicted, Katniss, Peeta, and Primrose tripped. Katniss gasped. "What the h-" "I thought it was Thor who was fond of bringing mortals to Asgard," a voice cut her off – that of Heimdall himself, who stepped down off the pedestal he stood upon. "Very funny." Loki didn't sound amused, of course, and immediately made his way toward the exit of the observatory. "Let's go, we haven't got any time to waste." "Wait, why don't you tell me where we are?" Katniss called. "And how we got here? Or who the gold statue is?" Peeta added sharply. "He's Heimdall, this is Asgard, you got here through the Bifrost," Loki explained briskly, only pausing for a moment. "Odin will not be pleased with your presence today," Heimdall warned. "Just today?" Loki asked, seeming to brighten some into a more typical attitude for the god of mischief. "Thor has brought bad news," Heimdall told him. "And apparently, more is to come." "Well, I suppose it's a wonderful thing for him, then, that he is not who I'm here to see," Loki told Heimdall, turning back to leave. The three tributes ran to catch up with him. As they walked along the bridge, after several awe-struck moments, Katniss asked, "Who are we going to see, then?" "My son," Loki told her, drawing ahead. "What?" Peeta asked, but by then, Loki had already drawn ahead of them. ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ By the time they reached the stables, of course, Heimdall had alerted Odin and, by extension, Thor. Of course, Loki making a b-line for the horses was utterly confusing to his companions, but he made no attempt to explain. As he walked toward the barns, he was stopped by several guards, Odin, and Thor. "We have plenty to deal with," Odin told him. "We do not need you to put up with, as well." "Then I shall take Sleipnir and be off," Loki told him. "And what gives you the right-?" Odin began. "I am his – just- give me the horse! I need to visit my daughter!" Loki snapped. "Your daughter?" Thor frowned, looking unsure now of his intentions. "Yes, I need to go to Hel," Loki told him, sounding unusually casual about that. "I'd say," Peeta mumbled. Thor paused then to point Mjolnir at Peeta. "I like that one," he announced. "So does District 12," Katniss told the god of thunder. "Where is this 'District 12?'" Thor asked curiously. "We're here for a horse, not a history lesson," Loki cut in. "And what business do you have with Hel?" Odin redirected the conversation back to what had been mentioned before. "That one," he said, gesturing toward Primrose, "Lost her friend today and somehow I get the feeling that I can get him back. He was murdered," Loki added meaningfully, "by another child, not over 18, not under 7, and had their name drawn from a hat in a fight to the death against some other 35 children by the government." He paused. "You wouldn't let me rule them, and look where it's gotten humanity." Odin didn't respond to that. Rather, he gave an irritated sigh, and said, "If you are to take Sleipnir, you must also take Thor." "They come as a package now?" Loki sneered. "But father, I…" Thor began. "I don't care what you have to do, Thor, I won't leave my horse with Loki," Odin told him. Thor looked as if he wanted to protest a few moments longer, but said nothing. "So be it." ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ "I thought you said we were going to see your son," Katniss said, frowning. Sleipnir had been saddled and bagged with provisions, and a few more horses were supplied for Katniss, Primrose, Thor, and Peeta. Loki turned from where he was finishing tacking Sleipnir up. "We did," he told her before hoisting himself up onto the grey horse without any more clarification. "This guy is shady. I don't trust him… Still," Peeta mumbled to Prim. "And you are right not to," Thor interrupted with a slight nod. "Never trust Loki. He is incapable of sincerity and thrives on lies." "Sounds like you have a problem with him," Peeta observed. "Many years ago, Loki attempted to usurp my father's throne. When that failed, he attempted the same thing on earth," Thor told him. "Those incursions have since fallen into the past, but Loki is still not trusted in Asgard."
