"How much further?" Thor asked impatiently.

"It's just around the corner, sir." If his brother hadn't been tortured and kidnapped, Thor would have found it funny how the SHIELD agent's voice seemed to be an octave higher when answering to him.

Now, however, the God of Thunder wasn't in gaming mood at all. He was blaming himself for allowing Fury to take Loki without much of a fight. Thor should have known what would happen; he remembered only too well how Fury suggested to torture the truth out of Loki when SHIELD got hold of him for the first time.

Too quickly he agreed to Banner's suggestion to let Fury take his brother into custody. Too eagerly he satisfied himself with the idea that Loki would survive a few days with SHIELD. Too cold-heartedly he let his little brother go.

It was Loki's fault that the SHIELD wanted him, of course. Had he not tried to take over Midgard, no one would have borne any grudge against him. Yet even this idea was slowly shattering in Thor's mind, more he was thinking that it may not have been entirely his brother's idea to attack Midgard.

Why didn't he try to talk about this with Loki?

Imagined slights?

Thor wasn't sure anymore that he was justified to call Loki's slights imagined.

If only he could discuss this with mother or Jane, they would know what to do. Both of them were much better at empathy than Thor had ever been. Yet Thor knew that this was not possible anymore and that he would need to come up with the idea how to be a better brother himself.

And it seemed that he would be thrown in at the deep end right now.

"Heimdall?!" The sight of the gatekeeper standing at the entrance to SHIELD's healing chambers caught Thor off guard.

"Thor." Heimdall nodded only.

"Wait what?" Thor shook his head trying to understand the situation. "What are you doing here?"

"I…" But Heimdall didn't get a chance to finish.

"Is Loki with you? Heimdall, tell me that it was you who came for Loki." Thor's tone was hopeful and pleading now, not a usual combination for the Mighty God.

"He's inside." Heimdall said only, stepping aside to let Thor through.

Upon seeing his little brother, Thor didn't spare a glance towards anyone else and hurried towards the bed. When Fury and the agent tried to follow him into the room, Heimdall blocked the way.

"Let us in." Fury demanded authoritatively.

"Try me." Heimdall retorted, putting his sword from one hand to the other. Glancing at the sword, Fury decided that it may be better not to start a war with yet another armed alien from Asgard. He stayed in the corridor outside the infirmary.

Inconspicuously, he pressed a button on his walkie-talkie, calling for reinforcements. Neither Heimdall nor Banner noticed.

There were sounds around him. Why were there sounds around him? Everything has been so perfectly still until now. No voices, no people, no pain.

The affliction of pain.

The agony from all the injuries shot through Loki like a lightning and he immediately opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was…

"Thor?" Loki's voiced was cracked with sleepiness, pain and confusion.

"Yeah, it's me little brother." Thor smiled sadly.

"What are you…" At the moment, Loki truly came to his senses. "Thor! You can't call me little brother, there are people around." Loki said blushing.

"They are standing outside." Loki didn't bother to check if Thor's words were true, knowing that the movement would cost him unnecessary pain.

"And you are my little brother, why couldn't I call you…ah so I can call you that in private?" Thor's eye sparkled with mischief.

"I didn't say that." Loki articulated very clearly. Then he started to cough.

"Brother, are you alright?" Thor asked, not knowing what to do.

"I am fine." Loki managed to get out in between breaths.

"No, you are not. Don't lie to me."

Loki gave Thor a look suggesting that Thor was a five-year-old who didn't understand anything.

"Why would you ask if I am alright if you knew the answer already?" Loki challenged.

Thor opened his mouth to answer but no sound came out.

"Brother, now is not the time for your games. No lies."

"I am the God of Lies."

"You are the God of Mischief. There is a difference."

"If you say so."

Thor sighed. This was reminding him of their childhood exchanges; only those didn't happen on Midgard in hostile facilities with his brother suffering from numerous injuries.

"Brother, if we want this to work, we need to be honest with each other. Can we try that?" Thor looked at Loki seriously. Loki returned the gaze for a few seconds.

"Yes, we can." The trickster answered finally. Finding no traces of insincerity in Loki's answer, Thor breathed out in relief.

"You look terrible, brother." Thor said in order to focus attention on Loki's injuries.

"I've changed my mind. This honesty really doesn't suit you, Thor." Loki retorted immediately.

"Loki…" Thor raised the voice slightly and his eye met a completely innocent look in his brother's brilliant eyes.

"Don't give me those puppy eyes."

"I am not giving you any eyes."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I am not."

"Yes, you are.

"I am not. Auch." Loki tried to raise himself up on the mattress to get into the same height as Thor but in a blink of an eye he was reminded of his injuries. He let his head fall against the cushion and closed his eyes to block the worst agony out.

"Brother, please." Thor said quietly. "Let me help you."

"As long as you want to help me and not get help for me." Loki murmured but his voice lacked the sarcasm. Thor seemed to notice and let Loki's comment go by.

"What pains you?" Thor asked gently, waiting for his brother to open his eyes.

"Pretty much everything. I need my magic to begin healing myself, but those manacles block it out." Loki gave an important look to his wrists which were being stretched in front of him. Finally, Thor seemed to register them. He also noticed the raw skin all around them.

Thor clenched his teeth.

This was more difficult than he would ever expect. Loki looked a mess. He may have tried to hide it behind his jokes, as he'd always do, but it was obvious that his brother was in significant amount of pain. His face was all bloody and bruised, his breathing was hoarse and the scars around his wrists suggested that he tried to get out of the manacles with violence. Thor couldn't let himself ruminate about what Fury was inflicting upon Loki before he had got here. Not now.

"I am sorry I took so long, Loki." Thor had to let the words out of his guilty conscience.

Loki gave him an exhausted look.

"I am glad you decided to come, Thor." Loki answered only, avoiding his brother's gaze.

"Of course. I told you I would come." Surely Loki remembered Thor saying that he would come for him.

I know fear when I see it. He was terrified; he wouldn't give me any excuse to punish him further. And as he doesn't seem to believe that you would raise a finger to actually get him out of here, what do you think he would choose? Hm? Telling you how I abused him in hope that you care enough to do something about it? Or keep his mouth shut to make sure the torture wouldn't get worse?

Oh no. Fury was right.

"No." Thor said out loud, ignorant to the energy accumulating inside him. His fingers started to sparkle.

"Thor?" Loki whispered insecurely. He looked his big brother in the eye and saw rage mixed with loathing. A shiver ran down the trickster's spine.

Loki's word seemed to bring Thor back to the moment. He eyed his little brother carefully and noticed his pupils widened with fear. He also saw that Loki seemed to be bringing his bound wrists in front of his face in a defensive movement.

Great. Now Loki was also afraid of him.

Loki's moods were chancing so quickly, and he reacted strongly to what seemed to Thor as minor changes very vehemently. Thor remembered mother saying that Loki was a very sensitive and perceptive child. He noticed everything, even what remained hidden to most people.

"Shhh, it's okay brother. I am going to get you out of here." Thor reassured Loki while stopping his arms from moving closer to his face. Loki seemed to lack the strength to fight against Thor, and so he let his arms rest again.

"You are angry." Loki whispered only.

"Yes, but not at you." Thor answered truthfully. Understanding that truth didn't mean only not to lie but also not to hide anything away, he added: "And even if I was angry at you, I would not hit you when you can't defend yourself. You must know that."

To Thor's surprise, Loki seemed to relax and nodded.

"Yes. I know. You didn't hit me on Svartalfheim." Loki whispered.

It took Thor a second to understand what Loki meant but finally, he remembered the incident on the spaceship. Jane was sleeping, Loki provoked him and as usually, Thor decided to end the argument with brute strength. He pushed his brother against the edge of the ship. Loki tried to resist and push him back, but Thor had easily overcome him and pinned him against the ship, ready to strike. He couldn't remember precisely if it was his brother's big scared eyes or the fact that Loki's wrists were bound as they were now what stopped him. Thor was only grateful that he did stop.

"Yes. As in Svartalfheim." He replied only.

"Can you sit up?" Thor added after a moment.

Loki didn't answer but instead tried to push himself up. With his strength diminished and his wrists tied up, he failed miserably.

"Can I help you?" Thor asked. Wisely, he waited for Loki to nod. Then, he gently stretched his arm around his brother's shoulders and holding him tightly, he lifted him into a sitting position. Loki hissed with pain, but he bit his lips before letting any other sounds escape. When he was sitting, Loki swung his legs over the edge of the bed.

The younger god already felt exhausted.

To his surprise, Thor seemed to notice. He sat on the bed next to Loki, his arm still around the trickster's shoulders to make sure that Loki wouldn't lose his balance.

In a moment of weakness, Loki let his head fall against Thor's broad shoulder. Surprised, Thor tensed for a moment. Loki would never seek physical contact with anyone. However, Thor quickly put himself together and with a smile he embraced Loki even tighter and brought him closer. To his further astonishment, the younger god didn't seem to mind. Actually, Loki snuggled closer to his older brother and his warmth.

Neither Thor nor Loki could have remembered the last time they felt so peaceful.

"Little brother?" Thor whispered over Loki's head.

"Yes, Thor?" Loki murmured tiredly.

"We should get you out of those manacles." Thor signed, unwilling to break the embrace.

"I'd never imagine that I could ever say these words, but good idea, Thor." Loki mumbled sleepily. It seemed that the safety and warmth of Thor next to him was making him prone to falling asleep once again. Nothing, though, could ever silence his silver tongue. For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, Thor was grateful for it.

"I should call for Fury." Thor spoke the words carefully. Loki tensed immediately. Then, he started to move away for Thor.

"What are you doing?" Thor said confused.

"Fury can't see us like this. You are the God of Thunder, the saviour of Midgard. I am the God of Mischief, the saviour of Asgard. We have a reputation to uphold." Loki was stopped from moving away from Thor by his brother's unbreaking hug.

"Fury can go to hell." Thor paused. "Heimdall? Could you let Fury in, please?" Hearing those words, Loki tried to desperately get away from his older brother. Thor's embrace was uncompromising though.

"Bloody hell, Thor. Let go of me." When Thor didn't move at all, Loki tried the last resort. "So you are once again using your strength to make me do what you want. Typical." Loki said. A little bit of emotional blackmailing couldn't hurt.

"No, I am using my strength to get you to do what you want to do." Thor said and Loki was surprised that his witless brother managed to formulate such an idea. "Besides, I am not letting Fury anywhere near you without me being by your side." Thor added resolutely and against his will, Loki gave Thor a little, honest smile.

The brotherly moment was interrupted by heavy footsteps and both gods raised their heads to see the Director standing in front of them. It was obvious from Fury's confused expression that he didn't expect to see the Asgardians sitting in a heart-warming hug and smiling at each other.

"Fury, the keys." Thor said only, no trace of warmth audible in his voice.

"We need to discuss the situation, Thor." Fury kept his voice professional and emotionless.

"Good idea. You are never getting anywhere near my brother and you should be glad that I am not smashing your little institution to the ground right now." With the injured Loki right next to him, Thor would not mince the words.

"Loki needs to answer for his crimes. With the threat of Thanos, I have to use any resources available." Fury stated.

"What?" Loki found himself saying. Thor never heard his brother's voice to be so vulnerable.

"What are you saying, Fury? What threat?" Thor was confused now and Loki's tone scared him.

"I will share my piece of information when your brother kindly shares his." Fury took a step towards the brothers. Involuntarily, Loki flinched. Thor, of course, noticed and clenched his fists.

"I am taking Loki to the Stark Tower. You can come to get your answers there. Now, I would have the keys."

Fury looked pensive for a moment. "I will allow you to take Loki out of here, but you are keeping those manacles on. They are preventing him from using his magic and I need a guarantee that he won't try to unleash the hell on Earth again."

"You should have thought about this before you tortured him. He needs his magic to heal." Thor looked at Fury with as much resolution as he could master. "I will not repeat myself again. The keys."

"There are reinforcements coming as we speak. Soon, this place will be flooded with SHIELD agents. My agents. If I want, I can keep both of you, little princesses, here and not even your sparkles will be able to stop me." Fury threatened.

"Fury." A voice spoke behind the Director who turned around only to see Banner whose face was turning into an unhealthy green colour.

"Let us go." The anger was clear in Banner's voice. Everyone knew that it was only seconds away before he turned into Hulk.

"Okay. Everybody calm down." Fury tried a diplomatic approach. To his relief, Banner's face returned to slightly more natural colour.

"I will let you go but you won't let Loki leave the Stark Tower until the interrogation takes place. Both of you will stay there with the others." Fury said and when he saw Thor nodding, he added: "And one more thing, Thor. If Loki runs away and starts killing people again, you will hunt him down with me." Fury's tone was deadly serious.

"You have my word." Thor answered only.

Not entirely satisfied, Fury reached for the keys and handed them to Thor. Then he diverted his eyes behind the bed on the ground where there was still one of his agents lying unconsciously on the ground.

"Smith!" Fury barked an order. "Take Clark and get him to the other infirmary. Tell others to let them pass." Without another glance at the brothers, Fury left.

Agent Smith hurried inside, clearly nervous to be left alone with three Asgardians and an Avenger who could turn into Hulk at any moment. Quickly, he lifted his colleague up as well as he could and left the infirmary as soon as possible.

When all the hostile forces were gone, Heimdall and Banner moved to stand closer to Thor and Loki. The brothers didn't pay them any attention.

Thor found the right key and gently took Loki's wrists. He put the key into the lock and with a silent click he felt the cuffs open. Softly, he removed the metal from his brother's injured wrists and when it was done, he threw them on the ground.

"All right, brother?" He asked Loki with care. The raven-haired god only nodded. Immediately, he felt his magic returning to him. Despite knowing that it would take a significant amount of time for his injuries to heal, he felt much stronger and less vulnerable with the magic running through his veins once again.

"Let's go." Banner said in a strange voice. Never he saw the Mighty Thor to display so much care and affection for anyone. Slowly, Banner was beginning to understand the depth of the connection that the Asgardian brothers shared.

Thor and Loki both stood up. Loki stumbled but his brother was there to catch him. He put his arm around Loki's waist and without protests, Loki put his own arm around Thor's shoulders. Even though everyone always saw Loki as the smaller brother, their height was more or less the same.

At that moment Fury returned to the infirmary.

"What is it now?" Thor said unable to keep the venom out of his voice.

"I forgot the shackles. They might be of use." Fury replied and went to pick up the manacles. When he was done, he went to stand in front of Loki. The younger god removed his arm from his brother's shoulder but let Thor's arm on his waist to help him balance.

"Anything I can do for you, Director?" Loki said with as much confidence as he could master.

"One step out of line and you are back here, understood?" Fury articulated.

"Fury…" Thor said threating. The Director ignored him.

"I said that I will get the truth out of you and I will. If you even think about betraying us again, you will wish for something…" Fury didn't get a chance to finish the sentence. His vision got blurry from a punch right to his nose. He heard a dull crack and the blood started pouring out of his nostrils.

He thought that he finally must have provoked Thor enough to hit him. However, when his vision cleared, he saw that it wasn't Thor who hit him.

It was Loki.

The God of Mischief was standing in front of the Director with his right fist clenched, ready to strike again. Where the injured god managed to get so much energy for such a blow, Fury didn't know.

"Understood. Anything else, Director?" Loki said coldly and before giving Fury a chance to answer he continued: "No? Excellent. Let's go, brother."

Thor was standing in shock, but Loki's words brought him back. A wide grin appeared on Thor's face. Loki would swear that he saw pride in his brother's remaining eye.

"Yes, let's go." Thor replied only and he and Loki moved past Fury. They went into the corridor and followed the exit signs. They heard that Heimdall and Banner were following them.

"Loki?" Thor said to his little brother whose arm was once again stretched around his shoulders.

"Yes, Thor?"

"Hitting doesn't solve everything."

Despite the circumstances, both brothers laughed.


I hope you enjoyed some brotherly fluff as much as I did!

I just couldn't resist having Loki punching Fury. I thought it was much better than if Thor did it.