Hey guys! Sorry for updating so late. As stated before, I'm on vacation. I still am, and I will be for a little less than a week, but I'm still devoted to Fanfiction and I will continue to bring you chapters whenever I can! :D Thanks to all that have reviewed.

Cassy27: Ah man! That's a great idea! I was thinking of doing that, but I wasn't quite sure. So now that you've come up with it on your own, I think I'll do it. :)

Ayy Kaim: Yeah, little Loki could use a Protectress. Poor guy. Haha I love Tony. He's so much fun to do.

IvyLinkin: Thanks! I was worried about doing Loki as a child since his character isn't developed very much in the movie, but I guess that makes it easier since I can develop his character virtually any way I want (within reason).

nickypooh: Yeah, he always has—kid Thor is no different. I'm not sure what the Avengers should think at this point. Like Cassy27 said in her review, it's good if they care about him, yet they should be cautious as well considering he'll be the one to try to take over the realm.

AaylaKit: Hmm…not a bad idea. Not the Sif breaking the artifact part, obviously, because that would mess up Thor and the Avengers. I'm trying to make this so that the actual movies can still happen, so don't worry. Loki won't be trapped there. ;)

S122355: Thanks! I hope I can keep this interesting.

Page Nube Warrior: Thank you!

Tony and Banner stayed in the room for a while so that Loki would be distracted from his lonely, frightened state. The two men weren't entirely sure what to think of him. He seemed innocent enough, and they couldn't help but wonder what went wrong. It wasn't long before that question was answered.

The answer came in the form of Thor, who stepped in cautiously. "Loki?" The kid looked up at him, his gaze hardening. "I wanted to make sure you were all right."

"Why would you even think I was all right?" he demanded. He was growing tired of trying to be polite. He wanted answers, and seeing Thor reminded him of what his future self had said about his parentage. "When, exactly, was your father planning to tell me that I'm Laufey's son?" When Thor didn't reply, he asked, "How old was I when I learned the truth?"

Thor looked reluctant to tell him. "I was on Midgard at the time," he said, "so I know not when the news was given to you. I was cast out for starting another war with Jotunheim, and you were just beginning to suspect that you were not one of us." He hung his head. "From what Father told me, he found you in the weapons vault with the Casket. It was then that he revealed to you who you really are."

"And who am I?" His voice was soft, barely audible.

"You were a baby when you were found. Odin took you in and raised you as he raised me."

"But that's the thing, isn't it? He didn't raise us in the same way, did he?" Thor did not reply. "He always favored you. And now I know why!" Loki felt the first burst of pain, despair, and bitterness spread through him. What was the point in going home now? He didn't even belong on Asgard, so how could he go back?

"They kept it from you for a reason," Thor said. "They didn't want you to feel like this, nor did they want to make you feel different."

"They didn't want me to know why I felt different," Loki corrected him. "I felt different from the beginning. I just…didn't know why. I thought it would fade with time, or…I was being too sensitive. I always convinced myself I was wrong, that we were equals. But I was right all along, wasn't I?"

"Loki, you're ten years old," Thor reminded him. "You shouldn't be burdened with these worries. You should be having fun and playing pranks and causing mischief, like you did when I was raised with you."

Loki's expression was that of a hurt puppy. "But how can I go back? If I went home now, everything would change. I won't be the same person that you were raised with." He would be a more enlightened version of the person Thor was raised with. He would never look at his brother the same way again.

"Well, the cat's out of the bag," Tony remarked.

Banner shot him a glance. That guy's brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell crazy on him. He clearly remembered saying this and wondered if Tony was making a joke out of it.

Thor took a few steps closer. "I do not want you to be bitter, Loki. You must know that Father kept the truth from you to protect you."

"Protect me from what?" Loki brushed a tear out of his eye impatiently. Now was not the time to cry. "This is why I could never be King," he murmured. Thor opened his mouth, then closed it, as if he thought better of saying something. "What? What were you about to say?" He took a few steps forward and pressed his hands against the glass. "It has something to do with the throne. What is it?"

Thor glanced at the Orb. Loki followed his gaze and gasped. There was a picture in it again. "I think it's about to travel," Thor said quietly. He pressed a hand onto a panel to open Loki's cage. "I can't just sit here and let it go without you. Hopefully it will take you home." He gestured for the boy to come forth, which he did. "I hope you return safely, and I regret everything that you have learned today," Thor murmured.

Loki grabbed onto the artifact and gazed into it. He saw his future self, though he wore something different and his hair was shorter and slicked back. He was holding the Casket of Ancient Winters.

He gazed into the ball, watching it go blank once again. He felt a tingling sensation as he looked up to find himself in the weapons vault again. He was not alone, though. He was behind the stand that the Casket sat on. He had a perfect view of Future Loki, though he himself was not in view.

"Stop!" It was Odin's voice, though it was a little more worn than Loki remembered. He watched quietly as his counterpart turned around, his entire form blue, and conversed with his father. He winced every time voices rose and tears formed in his eyes as he listened to his future self's pain.

"It all makes sense now, why you favored Thor all these years, because no matter how much you claim to love me, you could never have a Frost Giant sitting on the throne of Asgard!"

Loki felt his throat go dry. So this was how he was supposed to discover the truth. He stood up and stepped cautiously from behind the stand. His counterpart's back was to him, but his father's was not. For a few moments, the two of them locked gazes as the elder sank to the ground. Loki's eyes widened as he realized what was happening here. The Future Odin was going into Odinsleep. He took a few steps toward the pair, but he knew that there was nothing he could do. I wonder what he is thinking. He had seen something flicker in the All-Father's face when their eyes had met.

"Guards! Guards, please, help!"

Loki shrank away as several guards rushed in to help Odin up. He held still, hoping that the guards would not see him. They did not. They walked out with the All-Father, leaving the future Loki kneeling where he was, stunned. He soon sank into a sitting position and put his head in his hands. Loki felt the need to go over and comfort…himself.

"I'm a monster," Future Loki whispered. "How could this be? Why didn't he tell me?"

Loki walked up the steps and sat beside his counterpart, who started in surprise. Green eyes met green eyes for several moments. Loki lifted a hand at the same time that his future self did, and they both rested their chins on their raised hands. They quickly pulled away from that position, as if realizing how creepy it was that they were mirroring each other. The irony of the situation was that they pulled back at the exact same time, their expressions reflecting identical sheepishness.

"Now I know I've gone crazy," Future Loki murmured, "if I'm seeing myself as a child sitting right next to me. What more could this day bring?"

"You're definitely not crazy," Loki said, holding the artifact. "I kind of…travelled here by accident. I'm not supposed to be here."

"You saw the whole thing, then, didn't you?" Loki nodded. "Good. You need to know this." His voice was shaking. "Perhaps it is best for you to understand who you are before you reach the point that I have. There's nothing worse than realizing that you have been living in lies your entire life. At least you are young."

"So this is how old I'm supposed to be when I learn the truth," Loki said. "Why would he keep it from you? Or from us, I guess."

"I don't know." He stood up. There was intense pain in his eyes and face. "I must go to my father. You can come along if you'd like."

Loki stood up as well, feeling more at home now that he was on Asgard. He knew this place so well from his ten years spent on it. The numbness from overhearing the conversation made it hard to feel any sense of comfort at this point, though. He kept quiet as his counterpart led him to the room where Odin was resting. It was hard for him to look upon this man and realize that he was not his father.

Queen Frigga was at his bedside. She looked up when they entered. "Loki," she whispered, motioning for the future Loki to sit. She did not see the younger Loki standing beside him.

"Mother…" Loki whispered.

She started and looked directly at Loki's future self. "That's strange. I thought I just heard your voice as a child." She looked quite exasperated. "Loki, why would you even think of playing a trick right now?"

"No, Mother," Loki said, rushing up to her. "He's not doing anything."

Frigga gasped and put a hand over her heart. "How—how did you get here?" she stammered.

Loki didn't reply. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly. "I know you're not from my time, but I've missed you so much…"

She stroked his hair gently. "You shouldn't be here," she murmured softly. "This is too much for you to take in. I would never wish this upon any son of mine. Seeing your father like this…" She looked up at the older Loki. "Does he know?"

"Yes, I know," Loki responded for himself. Frigga pulled him close and he listened as mother and son discussed the situation. He listened intently to his mother's answer when Future Loki asked her why the All-Father had lied. Her explanation was similar to the future Thor's.

They kept it from you for a reason, Thor had said. They didn't want you to feel like this, nor did they want to make you feel different.

Loki sat still in Frigga's lap, as he had done so many times as a younger child. He felt secure when he was with her. His lovely mother had hardly aged at all. He watched as guards filed in and presented the future Loki with Gungnir, the King's spear.

This was what Thor was hesitant to talk about, he realized. When I said that I could never be King, he remembered this moment. So, wait…I do become King, then?

"Asgard is yours," the Queen said. "Make your father proud."

The future Loki stared at the spear for a long time, and then his expression became grim and determined. The younger Loki had a feeling that he would make a very responsible King. If he remembered correctly, then Thor was banished. The future god of thunder had revealed it himself. You're going to end up on a cage on Midgard, he silently told the Loki standing before him. What would happen if he actually revealed this? Would it change the future? He suddenly wondered if anything he did would change the future.

As he contemplated this, a picture formed in the Orb. He saw his future self once again, wearing Asgardian armor. He didn't want to leave his mother, but as soon as he looked up, he was on the Bifrost. Or what was left of it anyway. The All-Father was on it as well, holding Thor by the leg. Upon closer examination, he realized that his counterpart was dangling over an abyss, holding onto a spear in Thor's hand.

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

Loki rushed toward them, feeling a sense of dread pulling at his heart. Something terrible was going to happen; he could feel it.

"No, Loki," Odin whispered.

Loki stopped in his tracks. Wait. Did he just say no? No to what?

"Loki, no…" Thor gasped, seeming to see something seconds before it happened.

"No," Loki whispered, watching his counterpart's grip loosen. He rushed forward. "No!" he cried. "Don't do it!" It was too late. He already knew that he would be too late. All he could do was watch numbly as the future form of himself fell into an abyss. He could hear Thor crying out and Odin whispering something inaudible. Then, out of complete shock and horror, young Loki fainted.

Disclaimer: I do not own Thor, the Avengers, or any quotes I used from either of the two.

AN: Notice that I used a quote from a deleted scene in which Loki becomes King (said quote being "Asgard is yours. Make your father proud.") I believe that it should have been kept, so I used it as a reference for the story. What did you think? I have a general idea of where I want to go next, but if you guys have better ideas, let's hear them! :D