Despite his misgivings, Loki really had no choice but to go where Heimdall suggested- about a mile out of the largest grouping of jötunn.
When he arrived a strong wind was blowing and he just sighed, knowing that it should have felt biting from the cold, but it didn't. It just felt like a strong wind.
Loki had used his magic to shrink the casket so that he could carry it and not have it be obvious, and could easily produce it on demand. Still, he once again checked that it was still in his pocket, partly nervous that he might have forgotten, partly as a delaying tactic.
It was, in fact, still there. The trickster of Asgard sighed to himself before making his way towards the camp that was set up there. A mile wasn't a terribly long walk, but he still wished he had brought a horse to make it quicker.
As he approached it, he saw that a wall of ice surrounded the camp- not the best defenses, but, Loki reasoned, if they wanted the ability to expand this certainly made that easier. Some ways down the wall was a gate, with guards posted on either side. That would be his destination.
He rubbed his face with one hand, trying to ignore that even the texture felt foreign to him, praying that he could do this.
"I can, I've dealt with far worse," he reminded himself out loud, straightening up and approaching the gate.
It was no surprise that the guards immediately looked at him with suspicion. They shared a look before one spoke, "Asgardian, your pathetic attempts at illusion will not deceive us."
Loki smiled at them, "I do not disown that I was raised in Asgard, but this is not an illusion. I am Loki, adoptive son of Odin and birth son of Laufey." Another shared look. The trickster frowned as he thought about the actual circumstances that had led to him being taken to Asgard. Quietly, mostly to himself, "Perhaps 'accidentally kidnapped' would be a more accurate description."
"Laufey did have a son before the war who went missing," the other guard said, "But what proof do you have that you are that son?"
"Nothing beyond the Allfather's word."
"You shouldn't rely on that getting you too far here. What do you want?" the first guard said.
Right, he had come here for a purpose. "I wish to speak to whoever is in charge."
The guards laughed before the first spoke again, "No one is in charge- we're trying to rebuild after that attack from Asgard, this is not the time for power struggles."
"No one?" he tried to get his head around this idea. He'd ask questions later. Instead, he decided to go for the theatrical, stepping back and summoning the casket into his hands, "I wish to return the Casket of Ancient Winters- who would you suggest I talk to?"
This got their attention. The two guards both reached out to touch the casket to ensure it was real, and after immediately withdrew and began speaking hushed to themselves. For all Loki's straining to hear something, he couldn't understand much. After a few moments, the guards turned back to him and this time the second spoke harshly, "What do you want in exchange?"
"A slightly clearer conscience," Loki said truthfully and humbly, "I wish to help fix what I have done- that is all."
Anger flashed in their eyes as they realized what he meant by this. If they knew the full story, they likely would have attempted to strike him down. Not all of the Jötunn kept up with politics, few knew more than who was the leader of the other worlds. A small handful had known that Loki had brought Laufey to Asgard, and after their entire planet was attacked, it became difficult for word to get out, assuming any who knew had survived. Most who had heard that Laufey was dead assumed it had happened in the attack on Jötunnheim, an accidental casualty rather than a well-devised assassination.
One of the two guards turned to within the camp and motioned to another jötunn. The guards explained the situation in the same hushed tones they had used before, the third jötunn regarding Loki with disgust during it. Afterwards he nodded, and rushed off.
"We'll send out messengers to the other camps across Jötunnheim and call a meeting to decide what to do," the guard grinned unpleasantly, "With both the casket and you." Loki swallowed nervously, and nodded. "The meeting will likely be tonight, possibly tomorrow morning."
"What are you going to do with me until then?" he asked.
"Nothing," the other guard spat, "As long as you don't try to get in. Leave. Don't return until sunset."
The trickster was smart enough to know not to argue with this. He bowed to them saying, "Thank you, I will see you then," before returning the casket to his pocket and walking away.
After he'd gotten sufficiently far from the camp he looked up at the sky, "Heimdall, I truly hope that you're getting as much joy out of this as I expect you would."
Unfortunately for Heimdall, he did not get to witness that particular event. After ensuring that Loki had arrived safely and was heading in the right general direction, the lovesick thunder god had begged Heimdall to turn his eyes to Earth and Jane.
Normally Thor was content with the occasional general update that she was all right, she hadn't given up her search for him, and all of her files had indeed been returned to her. But with two people he cared for on completely different worlds, he now yearned to know more about her life and her research.
"The next time you go to Earth, you should consider looking into what they call 'Norse Mythology'," Heimdall advised him. Part of Jane's research now included studying the lore and trying to tease apart what was true and what was embellished, while fitting it into her data. As a result, Heimdall got to see exactly what the humans had written about the Norse Gods. Some of it was accurate, some of it was humorous, and some of it was just bizarre.
Thor raised his eyebrows, "Oh? Is that what the mortals wrote about us from the days when we still visited Earth?"
Heimdall nodded solemnly before smiling, "Of course, they made some mistakes. Apparently they regarded me as "the whitest of all Gods"."
Thor laughed at that, shaking his head. Mortals. "I think Loki deserves that title, I can't imagine he could get any paler."
"He can now," Heimdall pointed out. The thunder god's face turned serious at that as he looked out at the expanse beyond what was left of the bifröst. Heimdall decided to change the subject, "You know, some of the things the mortals came up with- apparently you have a wife." Thor looked up in alarm, and Heimdall laughed, "That was Jane's reaction as well. Yes, apparently your wife is the "golden-haired" Sif."
Thor stared at Heimdall for a moment, shaking his head. Sif? He couldn't imagine what gave them that impression. "Have they gotten any details right?"
"They've gotten some," he replied, "They have a basic knowledge of the 9 worlds and the races that live on them. Apparently a lot was changed over the years to keep up with the changing culture."
"I suppose that makes sense," Thor said, shaking his head again at the thought. He looked at Heimdall with concern, "She doesn't really believe that I have a wife, does she?"
"I think it'll be a conversation she intends to have with you the next time you see her," he replied.
Thor shook his head again, annoyed that the mistakes of mortals could cause this. Heimdall smiled, "Just tell her the situation, she'll understand."
The thunder god returned the smile, and nodded, "Thank you, I just wish I could tell her now… that I could have been there when she was finding this out and told her then."
With nothing to do for a good 12 or so hours on a strange, and rather barren, planet, Loki decided to try something. He had seen a bit of what the jötunn were able to do, and without the casket. Seeing as he was one, he should be able to use ice magic on his own as well. He'd just never thought to try it.
He frowned at his hand, the jötunn they had fought were able to turn their hands into a weapon by coating it with sharp ice. He wasn't sure how to do that, but it should be something he could do. It seemed like a basic enough skill.
A basic enough skill that had taken him 6 hours just to start to figure out. He figured out how to get his hand covered in ice, but it was not nearly the impressive weapon he had seen the jötunn use. He remembered how much time had gone into training his magic, even with his proficiency for it. It probably took time to master this.
Loki couldn't help but think that if he asked for help on it, he would be told that this was something any jötunn child could do.
The trickster looked up to the sky, he still had hours until sun down. His stomach grumbled. That's right, he hadn't eaten breakfast and it was probably around or past lunchtime. He glanced around. There certainly wasn't going to be any food scavenged here.
Loki sighed, returning back to working out some ice magic. Maybe he could make enough progress to not feel like a complete disgrace by sunset.
It had been a long time since Loki had last felt grateful to be such an outcast at Asgard, to get all those looks and whispers. Walking through the jötunn camp, he got much the same response, and was much more accustomed to it. Only this was more openly hostile and threatening, seeing as "son of Odin" carried very little weight here. If anything, it probably added to the hostility. The trickster wished he knew more about jötunn culture, if it would be wiser for him to keep his head down or held high. Neither seemed to affect the response he got.
He was led by more guards than he thought were necessary to some sort of 'room'. It was separated from the rest of camp by partial walls of ice, and in it a large group of jötunn were already there. Before they entered, he could hear that there was a heated debate of some sort going on, but the room fell silent as soon as the guards announced his arrival.
Loki smiled and looked around, "Please, don't let me interrupt."
"Do you have the casket?" One of the jötunn nearest him asked.
"To business then," he said to himself, nodding. Again he produced the casket, to mixed responses. Some of the jötunn stepped back, some looked on in disbelief, a handful walked over to touch the casket.
"It's real," one of them announced, disbelief clearly in his voice, the others who had come up to touch the casket confirmed it. Again the room fell silent.
"What do you want for it, Asgardian?" the one who had spoken first asked.
Loki did his best to continue smiling calmly, "Nothing- it is an offering. To help make reparations for what we have done."
The room erupted at this, Loki only managed to follow bits and pieces of various arguments. There was arguing about how to use it, who would be in charge of it, where it should be, what needed to happen first. Arguments about whether or not to trust it, the Asgardians were the reason for their current state. Some even wondered if they could launch an attack on Asgard now that they had the casket back. The trickster instinctively tightened his grip on it, feeling as if his hold on it may be the only thing keeping him alive right now.
At one point an agreement was reached on something- they wanted to continue this conversation without the outsider. Loki was allowed to keep the casket, they needed to decide what to do with it before it became of real value and having it back on Jötunnheim was enough for now. However, he was still quickly and unceremoniously shoved out of the room by the guards that had 'accompanied' him there. Most of them dispersed after that, but apparently one had been instructed to keep watch on him.
Loki looked at them, the casket again put away safely. He sighed as his stomach rumbled, and tried not to wonder when he would next have a chance to eat.
"Hungry?" his guard asked in disdain.
"I'm afraid in the excitement I haven't eaten since midday yesterday," he replied quietly.
The guard sighed, "I suppose we can't let you starve. But if you want anything to eat without causing a giant stir, you'll have to find something more reasonable to wear."
"Oh… good," he managed, trying his best to sound grateful rather than disturbed.
