I knew from the beginning that they were not my friends, but it did not stop me from hoping I was wrong.

I saw the way the Warriors Three looked at me every time you showed up with me in tow.

"You brought Loki," one of them would say. Not happily, just resigned.

Everyone knew that if you brought me with you to a quest, they would have to accept my presence. No one wanted me there though. They tried to hide it, but it was obvious that none of them wanted me around. Yet, they said nothing because your friendship meant so much to them.

If you were here, you would say I was imagining things and being unfair to our dear friends. Just another one of my imagined slights, but you never saw the way their smiles hardened when I entered a room. You did not see them after you were casted out to Midgard and I was crowned King.

The moment they saw me in the throne, all pretenses of friendship were gone. They were not happy for me. They were not on my side. All they thought was that I was stealing what was rightfully yours and they needed to get you, their beloved friend, back.

I was not surprised by their reaction or later by their betrayal. They never cared about me and now that you were gone, they had no reason to pretend anymore.

If you were here, you would probably tell me that it was my fault. I'm the one who was selfish, resentful and a liar. No wonder they turned their backs on me. No wonder everyone else did.

Who would be friends with someone like that?

Loki frowned when he saw the girl in Hel's Library.

After trying and failing to use his spells, Loki concluded that his magic was far too weak. On the other hand, maybe his old spells required too much from his small body. Which was understandable, since no child was ever allowed to practice magic in Asgard until they proved they could handle the pressure and fatigue that came with it. Loki himself had only started learning in his pre-teens under Frigga's careful guidance and most of those spells were battle oriented.

Nevertheless, he knew there were other realms were children were trained as sorcerers from an early age and not necessarily to become warriors. Some of those children became scholars, healers or simply wanderers. Which meant there were spells that even his small body could perform, he just had to find and learn them.

Thus, Loki returned every day to the Great Library of Hel to search and read new books on alternative sorcery. Moreover, since no one had forbidden him, he usually brought them home too and practiced after binge watching whatever he found interesting on Netflix or after playing his newest videogame.

He had small degrees of success so far. He found a spell to clean his floor, but he couldn't use it properly on his clothes. He also found a spell to fix broken glass, but when he used it on broken plates, they ended up turning into a strange ball of broken china.

He really needed to buy more plates now.

Every time Loki went to Hel's Library, he had been by himself. In two weeks, he had never seen anyone else use it, until now. Which is was why the sight of the young girl sitting at a table, surrounded by old books, surprised him.

"Hello," he said quietly, walking towards her with a book under his arm.

The girl blinked and looked at him impassively through her green eyes. She was about his age, his physical one at least. Her long black hair cascaded down her back gracefully, over her emerald dress. She reminded him of a child version of Hela, if that was even possible.

"Loki," she answered blankly, as if Loki being turned from a fully-grown man into a skinny kid was common knowledge in Hel. Maybe it was.

"I see my reputation precedes me," he answered with a mischievous smile.

The girl looked unimpressed.

"What to do want, Trickster God?"

"Nothing. I was just surprised to see someone else here. Usually, I have the Library all to myself," Loki sat in front of the sullen girl and placed his book in the table.

"There are more tables available," she answered, frowning when he picked one of her tomes and read the title.

"I know. Are you studying Advanced Sorcery?" Loki went on, flipping through the yellowed pages.

"I fail to see how that is of your concern."

"It is not, but I'm trying to find new spells that my new body can withstand," he pointed to his chest. "I did not know that Hela allowed more people into her Library though. I have never seen you before."

The girl sighed and lowered her eyes to the spell book she was reading. "My Mistress values education. All her servants are more than capable sorcerers and warriors. She demands only the best."

"Oh! So you're not one of her dead?"

The girl looked him in the eyes. "I'm one of her handmaidens. I'm a child of Helheim."

Loki blinked and looked at her closely. Everyone in the Nine Realms had heard tales about the infamous Helheim Children, but very few had actually seen one. Hela's subjects varied from her Valkyries, a monstrous Hel-Hound named Garm that guarded the entrance to Hel to some of the dead who pledged loyalty to her for some reason. Then, there were the Helheim Children, mysterious beings that were born on Helheim, a place of death. Needless to say that most people feared these children. How could they not when these children were born in a place where everything else was dead?

"You don't look like a soul eating ghoul. You don't even have fangs or claws," Loki said. "Our Skald exaggerated his encounter, as usual. I knew that fang he brought from his battle looked fake."

The girl shrugged. "I am sorry to disappoint you."

"You're not disappointing. You look normal. Normal is fine. I am actually glad you do not have fangs or claws! I would not be able to defend myself if you tried to eat my soul."

"Is there a point to this conversation, Trickster?" she asked as she continued to read. "Or are you simply trying to foil my studies?"

Loki kept smiling and tried to be as pleasant as he could. As weak as he currently was, he needed every ally he could get. A Helheim Child who happened to be both a mage and one of Hela's handmaidens could be a very useful source of info on the Nine Realms as well as other spells. She seemed very serious and she already didn't trust him, but he was up to the challenge. He was a charmer after all.

Loki leaned back against his chair. "I just wanted to talk, that's all. It is nice to know another mage. Maybe we can help each other out. I know many helpful spells. We could trade information."

"I doubt it."

"I mean it. I can teach you Asgardian spells and bring you food from Midgard. Good food like pastries, ice cream or milkshakes… and you could teach me some spells."

"No, thank you," she answered, flipping through the pages.

Okay… Maybe this will be harder than I thought.

"Funny how we never met before," he continued. "I've been in Helheim many times and I never saw you. Do you use the Library often? We could be study partners."

"I usually study on my chambers, but today the Palace is too noisy for my liking," she continued reading as she talked. "I thought I could find silence and solitude in Hel's Great Library. Apparently I was mistaken."

Loki ignored her annoyance with his presence. "Helheim is noisy? Now there's something I never thought I would hear. What happened? Are the dead throwing a party? Or did another idiot warrior try to break into the Palace again?"

"Asgard is making a public announcement to all Realms except Midgard," the girl told him. "The All-Father has been found alive and well."

Loki's smile died on his lips.

"I see… It is a great day for Asgard then, no doubt they must be celebrating."

"It is. King Thor invited all Realms to the festivities. He seemed very pleased alongside his mortal bride."

Loki bit his lower lip. "Bride? They're engaged?"

"King Thor has just announced it. It will be a controversial marriage to say the least, but no one would criticize King Thor after his heroic actions during the fight against the Mad Titan. He's being hailed as the Bravest of All Kings and is beloved by all."

Loki picked up his book and stood up. "I got to go. I guess I'll see you later… ah… what is your name?"

The girl finally looked up. "Leah."

"Leah…" Loki remembered the tale of the other child Loki he had helped and his friend Leah. Maybe she was his world's version of that Leah, or maybe it was just a coincidence. "I'll see you later, Leah. Don't forget my proposal!"

After Loki left the library through the portal, Leah sighed.

"Idiot."

Loki dropped the book on the ground as the portal closed behind him.

"Clean!" he said as he waved towards the ketchup on the floor. In a second, the red condiment was gone.

Then he kicked the book across the living room.

Someone was going to find Odin eventually, he already knew that the moment he hid the All-Father's unconscious body. It had taken him all his self-control not to kill the comatose old bastard. Loki had actually pressed Gungnir against Odin's chest, ready to stab him through the heart. It would have been so easy to kill him and he had wanted it so much that his chest ached. He could have killed the old man, burned the body into ashes and no one would ever know. However, at the last second, his hand wavered and Gungnir fell on the ground with a clash.

Loki knew that the moment he killed Odin, there would be no coming back. As much as he hated the old man, he knew his death would only hurt Loki more. It would plague till the end of his days, it would give Thor and everyone in Asgard the motivation they needed to finish him off.

He had already murdered his birth father in a vain attempt to prove himself as a son of Odin. Killing his adoptive father would be his final step into becoming a true monster.

Therefore, he spared Odin, not for the old man but for himself, and kept him hidden under hundreds of incantations. He didn't expect Thor to find him this soon though.

Now, Asgard had their All-Father back. They had Thor as their beloved King and Thor was finally going to wed the mortal he loved. Everyone got their happy ending and Loki…

Loki was left behind.

The boy sniffed and wiped the tears running down his cheeks as he walked towards his bedroom and laid down on his bed, his face against the pillow.

It wasn't fair.

They had all moved on. Everyone had moved on while Loki was left behind like a bad memory they wished to forget. He didn't matter to anyone.

Everyone leaves you, Loki.

He pulled the covers over his head and cried, cursing every tear he shed on his fake happy family and promising this would be the last time he cried over them.

He knew he was lying to himself.

Hours later, Loki had finally recomposed himself. He washed his face, put on clean and fresh clothes and left the apartment.

Loki had always detested hot weather and New York was hot and damp during the summer. Not hot enough to really bother him, but it was still unpleasant. He had to feel sorry for the mortals whose bodies could barely handle the heat. People became angrier when was hot, they lost their temper easily as their faces reddened and sweat ran down their armpits and back in a disgusting demonstration of their mortality.

They wouldn't last five minutes on Muspelheim's fiery pits and rivers of lava. Loki had actually fainted after spending two days in there while Thor and the others had managed to defeat several demons. He should have known that he was different after that. He had always hated hot temperatures but never felt cold in his life. Funny how fire spells were his specialty though.

After eating a hamburger in a nearby MacDonald's, Loki went straight to the public Library. It was too hot for him to enjoy a walk and the sweaty, angry mortals were annoying him.

The library was small, but it had air conditioning, silence and plenty of books for him to read without anyone bothering him.

The first time he went there, a man was shocked to see him read the Game of Thrones book and tried to convince him to read something more appropriate for his "age". Fortunately, before Loki could do something stupid like tossing him across the room, the librarian intervened.

"Leave the kid alone, Hank. I'm glad he's reading books, instead of just watching the show," the woman said.

"A little kid shouldn't be reading this, Mrs. Cantor," the man went on.

"If he gets traumatized, I'll personally take the books away from him."

After that, the librarian brought him all the books from the Song of Ice and Fire series and left him alone to read. She never questioned what he read and even suggested several books that he could like. She also never pressured him to tell her where his parents were or why he was by himself in the library.

Loki made a mental check to spare her life once he got his powers back. One day, when he got his own castle and his own Library, he could make her his librarian and pay her with gold and books.

"You can take the books to your house if you want," she told him after he stayed reading until the Library closed. "You just need a Library Card."

When Loki agreed, she handed him a plastic card and a black pen. Since she was watching him, he wrote the first two names that popped into his head. By the time he really thought about them, Mrs. Cantor was already reading the card.

"Ikol Magpie? Now there's an unusual name," she said grinning. "Your parents must be very creative."

"It's Norwegian," he answered quickly, smiling innocently.

The following day, he returned to the library under a glamour and pretended to be his mother in other to sign the card. He had tried to find a spell to erase her memory of the name, but those were still too advanced for him. Fortunately, Mrs. Cantor never showed any signs of suspicion. He later realized she was used to strange names when he saw her talk to other kids whose names varied from Tequila to Pilot. New York was a strange place.

Ikol was the name of the other Loki he had encountered, but it was also his name backwards. It was so obvious that probably no one would ever believe they were the same person.

It felt a bit comforting to use another version of his name instead of a fake one for a change. Plus, it was just for the library. No one else had to know.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Cantor."

Mrs. Cantor spotted him as soon as he entered the library and nodded approvingly at the Hunger Games book he was returning.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Magpie. I see you've finished the book."

Loki shrugged. "It was a short story."

"The sequels are on the shelf if you're interested," she walked towards her desk in where a mother with two twin boys were waiting for her.

Right, today is storytelling day, Loki remembered as he moved as far away from the children's corner as possible.

Hank, the nervous employee that frowned every time he saw Loki read something that wasn't meant for a kindergartener and the most tedious storyteller in the Nine Realms was going to read an insufferable tale to the children who were unlucky enough to be dragged to the library by their parents. Most of these kids feel asleep one third into the story.

Loki picked up Catching Fire from the shelf and sat near the widow. He barely noticed his red-haired neighbor sitting a few rows across from him, holding a math book. When he did, he smiled at her politely.

What was her name again? Vera… No, Verity! That's it.

Verity nodded and buried her head in her book. What was it with girls ignoring him with books today? Maybe he was losing his touch, or maybe it didn't work because they were all kids.

He hadn't seen Verity a lot since he met her mother under his Lucas Serrure guise, but the few times Loki had crossed paths with her on the elevator, she seemed a lot less friendlier. Not that it bothered him. He was not interested in making mortal friends, or any kind of friends for that matter. Acquaintances? Sure. Allies? Possibly. But friends? Absolutely not.

You always knew were you stood with an enemy, but friends…

Friends hurt you. Friends betray you. Friends leave.

About thirty minutes later, and eighty pages into his book, Loki felt someone small move in towards him. A little boy, younger than he was, was standing in front of his table, staring at him with a lopsided smile.

"Hi!" the boy said happily.

Loki looked around, but he couldn't see kid's parents. He probably had wondered off from the reading corner, away from Hank's dull story.

"Whatcha reading? Is that the Hunger Games? Is that Katniss?" he kept asking as he moved closer to Loki. "My big brother likes that book. He likes Katniss too and he watched all the movies but mommy won't let me see them 'cause people die."

"Uh huh…" Loki muttered, burying his head on the book and hoping the kid would leave him alone. He had no such luck.

"I'm Joey and I'm five! What's your name?"

Loki put the book down. Where the Hel were this kid's parents?

"Don't you want to hear the rest of the story with the other kids?" Loki asked.

Joey shock his head and sat right next to him, as if he'd known Loki is entirely life.

"No. That story is boring and everyone is sleeping and mommy is talking to an old lady and won't play with me. Do you wanna play? I know lots of games."

Loki opened his mouth to tell him to get off his table but closed it when he saw Thor staring back at him in the kid's shirt. It wasn't the first time Loki had seen Thor and the other Avengers on Midgardian garments, but he had never seen one up close. It was still a shock to see his not brother's face, especially after he tried so hard to take it out of his mind.

Just staring at it made Loki angry and sad. He wanted to rip that shirt and spit on it before setting it on fire.

"You like my shirt? It's my Thor shirt! Thor is my favorite superhero 'cause he's super strong and he has a super hammer," Joey said happily, pointing towards Thor's left eye. "My big brother Billy likes Thor too, but he likes the Scarlet Witch better. She's cool, but Thor is a lot cooler and she doesn't have a hammer. What's your favorite superhero? Do you like Thor?"

Loki closed his hands into fists. He wanted the kid to shut up about Thor. He wanted him to go away before Loki threw him out the window. He didn't want to stare at Thor's stupid face anymore.

Thor who was now a beloved King. Thor who had won everything.

"I hate Thor!" Loki finally said, sounding as whiny and pitiful as he looked. "I hate him and all his stupid Avengers friends!"

Joey's smiled vanished and he stared at Loki with his wide and innocent brown eyes. "But Thor is a hero. Everybody likes him… he beat up the bad guy."

"I don't!"

"Why?"

"Because I'm the bad guy!" Loki snapped.

In her table, Verity dropped her book.

Hey there! I know it's been a while, but I hope you liked this chapter. I feel like I've introduced too many characters in this chapter, I hope it's not too confusing.

Sorry for the cliffy. In Loki's defense, he was upset and he doesn't think telling the truth to a five year old would matter.