oOo
Chapter 10 – Intentions
The sky had darkened and the wind picked up. Lightning flashed in all directions and illuminated the two struggling gods on the roof. Both fought for different reasons: one was in anger and uncertainty, while the other fought to prove and elucidate.
"You will hurt innocent people!"
"I care not!"
"Allow me to explain!"
"Why should I listen to a liar?!"
Thor struggled to push his past-self away. His eyes moved towards Mjölnir on the ground. It wasn't his, but Past Thor's. Norns, if he didn't put an end to this battle soonest, they would surely decimate the city trying to.
Past Thor growled as his strength failed him, "You dare sully my brother's name by calling him one of those pathetic creatures!"
"You do not understand!"
"You betrayed your own brother, did you not?!"
Odin's beard, his past-self had gotten everything wrong. Thor would've groaned and rolled his eyes if it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation. Thor lifted his leg and slammed it against Past Thor's midriff, sending him backwards.
Thor raised his hand and called for Past-Mjölnir and it came to him.
Past Thor stood up, "How dare you?!"
He definitely did not expect the turn of events. Past Thor did not like being on the receiving end of this battle. He dusted himself and narrowed his eyes. Rain began to pour and the wind continued to pick up.
"Listen to me.!" Thor shouted over the rain. "You must control your anger!"
"I would teach you not to anger me!"
Past Thor began to jog towards him in an attempt to tackle him, but Thor only shook his head at the foolish attempt. It was then that he realized how much he had grown and how much his anger had taken hold of him in the past.
"I have learned my lesson," Thor whispered. "Now you must learn yours."
He threw Mjölnir and it slammed against Past Thor, propelling him back inside the Avengers building. Thor took out his own hammer and looked up at the sky. He needed to calm everything down and explain before it's too late.
This was never his intention.
Suddenly, a flash of lightning caught his attention.
He immediately raised Mjölnir to deflect the attack. He took the brunt of it and charged his hammer. Past Thor landed back on the roof with a vengeance. His nostrils flared and his eyes were ablaze and unfocused.
"You are blinded by your thoughts." Thor voiced. "Do not let it consume you."
"You think you know me?" Past Thor hissed.
"I am you and I have experienced more than you have. If you would only listen to reason then there would be no need for a battle. You know nothing of this world and you hide your emotions because you do not want others to think you weak—"
"Are you calling me weak?!"
Past Thor took insult to his present-self's unwavering gaze.
The fight resumed as both hammers clashed against the other with lightning dancing around them. As the battle raged, Thor couldn't help but sympathize and feel a little sorry for himself.
He had once thought himself strong and powerful like his father, but now that he had grown, he knew he was far from it. He wasn't on the king's level yet. He truly wasn't ready, but he knew one day he would be. That's why he wanted so deeply to teach his own-self a lesson.
That beyond his anger and his false sense of confidence was a much more sensitive and smart man that had the potential for greatness.
He wanted to tell his young-self that Loki was not like the Jötnar at all.
Norns, he loved his little brother.
"I believe he was shunned by his own race for being… small." Thor explained. "The Jötnar are prideful and are every bit of a warrior an Aesir could be. Problem is, Loki does not exactly fit in Asgard as well. And he did… prefer magic over weaponry."
Perhaps he had phrased things wrong and his past-self misconstrued the words.
He knew in his heart that Loki never enjoyed battle and wished to avoid it at all cost, but in their early childhood, they were both exposed to it pretty soon.
"As I said, he was not… built like us. Therefore, mother believed that if she shared her knowledge in magic, then he would at least not feel… left out. The only problem is that, the Aesir do not take kindly to a man… that uses parlor tricks to brute force."
What he had said was true, the Aesir do not take kindly to it.
Hypocrites if you asked him. Thor was like that as well, he admitted. Now that he was wiser, he appreciated his little brother's efforts at mastering the craft for he had seen the strength of it as well.
But now that Loki was a criminal…
"It is no wonder Loki spiraled into madness and became a criminal. From being adopted, to being what he and Asgard hated… a Frost Giant and knowing he can never claim the throne he was promised—"
Thor realized he had been too hard on Loki.
Perhaps he didn't try hard enough to see eye to eye with him.
Past Thor saw Present Thor's distraction and used it to his advantage. He swung Mjölnir and managed to hit Thor back. Past Thor laughed and propelled himself high then pointed himself back towards the ground.
Thor didn't bother to dodge.
He raised Mjölnir and shot lightning.
It was enough to stop Past Thor's momentum and sent him flying back onto the roof. Thor sighed, knowing he would never be able to convince himself to stop. Only Loki would be able to do that. His brother had meant the world to him, it still did, but he would never admit to it.
Thor knew Past Thor felt the same way.
Past Thor screamed at the top of his lungs in frustration as thunder accompanied him. Thor frowned. This was what it was like to be the rational one. He felt like he was in Loki's shoes: to see his own arrogance, ignorance, his boldness, brashness, and foolishness.
Fate was unkind, but it was justified.
Past Thor pounced again, but Thor dodged, grabbed Past Thor's shoulder and slammed his fist into his stomach. Past Thor crumpled to the ground. Thor backed away and let the other take his time.
He knew his own weakness, it was defeat and embarrassment.
Past Thor needed this kind of treatment.
If it meant degrading himself to teach him a lesson, he would do so again and again. His father had done it to him by banishing him to Midgard. He could not do it to himself since they were already in Midgard, but he would at least show him the importance of humility.
"To battle is not always the answer." Thor voiced.
"Is it not?" Past Thor chuckled. "Is that not what we always do?"
"I learned the hard way that not all battles are victorious and right." He said loudly enough through the rain. "My banishment taught me that."
"I heard."
"You think you understand, yet it passes through your ears. I had shed my arrogant ways and learned humility."
"Do not lecture me like some child!"
"You act like one."
Past Thor stared at the ground and clenched his fists. He didn't have to listen to this. He waited a little until Present Thor's guard was down. Then his fingers flinched and suddenly Mjölnir flew and collided into Thor.
It sent Thor into a building.
Past Thor laughed and called Mjölnir back, using it to propel himself once more against the other. The city was getting beat up in the process. Debris was flying everywhere and there were stray lightnings that shattered many windows and singed rooftops.
While the two were locked in battle, they had forgotten who they were fighting about.
It was Loki.
oOo
"We can't let this continue." Steve said. "We have to intervene."
"And do what?" Tony gestured at his shattered windows and the chaos outside. "In case you've forgotten, Cap, we're not exactly built to fight gods."
"We fought aliens." Clint muttered.
"You're not helping, Birdy."
"I heard you wrecked the forest when you fought Thor the first time."
"Yeah," Tony nodded. "That happened."
"Something has to happen." Bruce mumbled as he tried to calm himself. "If this gets out to the government, how would we explain time travel Thor?"
"I have an idea." Natasha said as she turned away from the scene. "Just keep an eye on them. Clint," She called. "You're with me."
"Got it." Clint nodded.
"Need an extra hand?" Coulson wondered. "I'm available."
"Thanks, Coulson." The archer chuckled, but shook his head. "Just rest your ass back down. You're not that… fully healed yet."
"Copy that."
As the rest of the Avengers bickered about what to do, Clint followed Natasha down the steps and into the dark hallway. Lightning illuminated a little of the path they were on. Clint nudged his partner and she looked at him dead in the eye.
"We need to get Loki." She said.
Clint huffed. "Why do we want to add more trouble to an already growing problem?"
"Funny."
"I'm serious, why?"
"You heard what Thor said earlier." Natasha grimaced at the memory. "He said that Loki followed him around. We've seen that. Despite us denying it, it's clear that they both love each other in their own weird way."
"So love will help us?"
"Loki will help us."
When they rounded the corner, they were surprised to see a silhouette in the middle of the hall. Carefully, they took slow steps towards the slumped figure leaning against the wall. A stray burst of lightning illuminated the hall, making them recognize the figure in question.
"Loki," Natasha called.
The young god barely acknowledged their presence.
Clint tilted his head in gesture that he would stay down the hall while Natasha spoke to him. Natasha nodded in agreement, knowing full well that was the best solution for this already fragile moment.
"Loki?" Natasha called again.
Suddenly, they heard a large crash from the living room.
Clint walked out to investigate while Natasha handled Loki. Loki bit his lips and closed his eyes once more. He could hear shouting from the Avengers and cursing from his own brother before it died down to an eerie silence with nothing more than the roar of the wind and the scream of thunder.
He closed himself from the world and drowned himself in questions: questions that finally made sense after hearing those very words.
No wonder he was a criminal…
That's why he cannot claim the throne…
A Frost Giant…
"Loki, please." Natasha whispered. "We need you."
"I cannot help you."
"I know you're feeling overwhelmed." She said, knowing full well what Loki might be going through. "But you have to help us stop your brother. Thor… our Thor can be reasoned with, but your brother will kill people if this doesn't stop."
"I cannot command him."
"Can't you try?"
"That cannot happen." Loki glared. "Can you not understand that?"
Natasha was about to argue her reasons when Clint came back and started explaining, "Your brother just got his ass handed to him by our Thor, but they're back at it again on the roof. I think Banner is ready to Hulk out if it gets any worse."
This didn't help Loki at all.
It only made him retreat back to the safety of his own mind. Loki lowered himself to the ground and lifted his knees to his chest. Natasha glared at her partner, who only shrugged in response. Clint rolled his eyes and decided to step in.
Natasha trusted her partner and let him take the step forward.
"Hey," Clint said.
When he got no response, Clint lowered himself to the ground in front of Loki.
"I know it's hard to find out about the truth," He voiced, knowing Loki was listening. "And it's not easy to look past what you know, but thing is, you don't know the full story." With this, Loki looked him straight in the eye. "We've seen you fight, you're pretty tough. We're not asking that from you. We just need you to help out a little."
"What makes you think I can?" Loki whispered. "There are two of them."
"You have a bigger chance of surviving than we do." Clint chuckled. "Look, reality is that if we don't stop them, innocent lives will be in danger."
"I'm not… I'm just—"
A monster?
A nobody?
A Jotun?
"Come on, Loki." Clint said, clicking his fingers in front of Loki. "Snap out of it. We don't have much—" They heard warning shouts and a blast from the living room shook the entire building. "— time."
Natasha scowled and ran back to the others.
"There's no time to mope." Clint pulled Loki to his feet. "We gotta go."
He gently dragged the young god to the living room like a child. Loki followed obediently. They got there just in time to see Steve jump out of the way as another stray lightning blast hit the living room.
"Shit!" Tony cried. "Stop aiming over here!"
His wine collection was destroyed, the glass tables had shattered, and the couches were tipped over. Even some of the glass windows from the lab were broken. Loki's emerald eyes swept over the scene. He saw Bruce in the corner, taking deep breaths and willing himself not to Hulk out.
"Banner," Tony asked. "You good?"
"Yeah," He nodded. "I'm fine."
"I called the Director," Coulson announced. "He's on his way!"
"What's he gonna do, speak them to death?" Clint rubbed his temple. "To hell with that. We need something that can go toe to toe with those two."
"There's not much the boss can do." Natasha agreed. She turned to Clint, who still had Loki in his grip. She walked towards them and took the reins. Clint moved out of her way. "Loki, listen to me and listen carefully."
The roar of thunder screamed into Loki's ears, but he tried to pay attention to Natasha.
"People will get hurt." She repeated. "You have to try and stop them."
"Do not make me." Loki voiced. "I cannot—"
"He's your brother." Clint muttered from behind him. "Use your magic. We've seen you use it before. Do the same thing you did when Thor tried to hurt one of us in the kitchen."
"Thor is…"
He's not my brother.
Loki closed his eyes as the more dark thoughts entered his mind. His imagination got worst, wondering what the truth was. He had only heard a part of it, maybe he was mistaken. Perhaps this was simply his overthinking mind playing tricks on him.
But still, the shadow of doubts whispered in his head.
Is that why he cannot keep up with Thor?
Was it because he wasn't an Aesir?
Is that why they look at him differently?
Then it hit him.
He started to wonder if Thor was also lying to him. Did Thor know he was Frost Giant and was playing along so he wouldn't have to explain? Surely not! Not even Thor was that smart or devious enough to do such a thing.
Right?
Coulson walked over to Steve and handed him his shield. Steve took it with a smile and thanks then turned to the rest of the Avengers.
"Enough is enough," Steve stated as he raised his shield. "We have to do something now. Stark, get your suit ready. We need you to distract Past Thor just enough for our Thor to knock him out. If that doesn't work—"
"Is that a good idea?" Clint voiced. "We don't need another player."
"Hey!" Tony whined.
"We need all the help we can get." Steve said. "Barton, we need you to tear those two apart or at least keep them on the roof. Set the boundaries."
"Roger that."
Clint turned to the billionaire and raised his eyebrows. Tony raised his own and gave him a confused look. Clint rolled his eyes and stretched out his hand. "We don't have all day, Stark. My bow and arrows? I need them, please."
"Right," Tony chuckled nervously. "Give me a sec."
He was having a difficult time trying to get Jarvis back up and running.
Tony could access Jarvis on his phone, but that was about it, but he did manage to open the backup generators for the tower. "Go get it, Legolas." He gestured to the panel that opened from the wall, revealing Clint's weapon.
Clint mumbled, "Next time, I keep my weapon with me."
The billionaire sighed knowing it wasn't his fault this was happening. He had a sneaking suspicion that Loki had something to do with Jarvis NOT working properly and NOT warning them about Past Thor's approach from earlier.
Steve ordered, "Stark, your suit."
"Yeah, working on that." He said. "Still a bit distracted and busy."
Clint had taken his bow and arrows from the panel and walked over to the broken window. "I'll keep them busy for you for a while." He took out an arrow and shot it at the two, keeping pushing them back into the center of the roof. "Let's just hope Past Thor doesn't aim this way."
"I'll cover you." Steve said, ready with his shield.
Natasha scowled, knowing full well this won't end until Loki ends it. She crossed her arms and stared at him. Coulson was about to speak, but Natasha gave him a look that said 'leave this to me.'
"Loki," Natasha called. "You still with us?"
"I cannot do what you keep asking." Loki replied. "This is beyond me."
"That's your fears talking." She said. "Remember, you're not just Thor's brother. You surprised us when you took him out with your magic and I sure as hell know that you can do that again. So what are you afraid of?"
Loki bit his lips.
How could this woman remind him so much of Lady Sif, he would never know. But she was completely right.
What was he afraid of?
"You came here to look for an adventure," Natasha voiced. "Will you return to your own time knowing you ruined the future? It doesn't matter what the truth is. You're not bound to that reality."
Was that true?
Loki scowled at her and remembered the footage he had seen.
She manipulated his other-self before, so who was to say that she wasn't doing the same to him now? He played her words carefully in his mind and looked for deception. He could find none. It horrified him, but he needed an excuse not to do anything.
He needed it badly.
"Loki," Natasha continued. "The truth doesn't matter."
"To you, maybe." He found himself answering. "But you have not lived what could be a lie."
"Trust me," She smirked. "I know enough about lies to be able to get over it. So think of it this way, instead of thinking of yourself then think of other people's needs. Isolating yourself like this won't help anyone, not even yourself."
"Get down!" Steve cried.
Clint jumped out of the way, while Steve held his ground and used his shield to deflect the lightning aimed at them. Luckily, he got propelled to the upturned couch in the corner. Past Thor started to aim his attacks inside the tower, but Thor distracted him enough to turn the attention back to him.
Natasha gritted her teeth.
"I cannot help you." Loki repeated.
"We all have blood on our hands, Loki." She insisted. "Do you want blood on Thor's? Do you not trust us? Do you not see the good in this future? I know you're confused and you're looking for an explanation, but this isn't the way to get it."
Do you want that?
Did he?
Loki's hands stopped trembling as he stared out the window. It was so dark and horrible and terrifying— He didn't know what to do in this situation. He usually let Thor vent out his anger before confronting him.
"Loki!" Natasha shouted. "Listen!"
"Leave me be!" Loki hissed.
The young god had enough of being told what to do. A burst of green energy surrounded the living room and the last thing they saw was a green mist from where Loki had stood in. Just like that… he was gone.
"That's not good." Clint mumbled.
"Where did you think he went?" Coulson wondered.
"Doesn't matter." Natasha frowned and pulled out a stun baton. "It's too late now. We're on our own." She turned to Coulson and sighed. "Does Fury know everything?"
"He's getting a few updates here and there."
"Good. Now what's the plan, Cap?"
"Barton?" Steve asked him since he was the closest to the windows. "How are they doing?"
"Both Thors are on another rooftop just four buildings away." Clint scowled and narrowed his eyes. "They managed to destroy the top of the first and second. And… they've just about wrecked six buildings."
"Casualties?"
"Not that I can see." He voiced and started guessing. "But I think they may have wrecked a few cars five blocks down and blew up a few street posts judging by the stray lightnings."
"We need to end this quickly." Steve groaned as he stood up, "Stark, your suit?"
"It's a problem." Tony answered.
"Why?"
"Loki, that's why."
"What did he do?" Coulson asked.
Tony huffed, still doing his best to get Jarvis back up from his phone. "Loki must've bugged Jarvis while we were talking before this shit happened. It's no wonder why Jarvis didn't warn us about those two coming down the hall. Remember the security cameras?"
"So Jarvis is a no go?" Bruce asked.
"Yeah, I can't access some of his commands to open the wall panels hiding my suit."
"You managed to get my bow and arrows." Clint pointed out.
"Like I said, different commands." Tony argued as an idea popped into his head. "Come on, Banner. I need your help. We can try and pry it open, so I need some brain and muscle to help me."
Bruce mumbled, "I think I only have one of those."
The two geniuses walked up the stairs into the lab. They also needed to check if the Tesseract was still safe inside and if they could bypass whatever magical spell Loki had weaved to mess with Jarvis.
They could hear explosions in the distance.
Not good.
"We need to think of something." Natasha began to feel nervous. "Quinjet is out of the option."
"Definitely." Clint snorted. "We don't want to hurdle towards the ground and explode."
"Hulk?" Steve suggested.
"No!" Tony said, popping his head out of the broken window from the lab. "Definitely a no-no, bad idea, Cap! That would condemn the city into an alien war-zone alone. Besides, I need Bruce at the moment."
"Then Loki's still our option." Steve palmed his face. "But how do we find him?"
"Is he even still in the tower?" Clint asked. "He could teleport anywhere he wants."
"I think he's still here." Natasha guessed. "We know how confident he is. He won't just leave in a heartbeat knowing that Thor's in the vicinity. He's still here."
Steve frowned, "Can you two look for him?"
"Yeah," Clint shrugged. "But where the hell do we start?"
Suddenly, the sound of the rain and the eerie silence was cut by a raspy, stuttering voice. "Sir I… -pologi… sys-run… slow…" It continued to speak, but it kept cutting off. "Sl-low- reco… ing… prob- conne…ting…"
Coulson blinked, "Was that Jarvis?"
"Stark?" Steve called. "What's happening over there?"
"Working on it!" Tony yelled from the lab. He and Bruce were tapping through the keyboards and the flickering holograms. Past Thor had collided into one of the wires connecting Jarvis through the tower.
It's something Tony could fix, but he needed some time.
"Are you listening to me, buddy?" Tony mumbled to Jarvis. "I coded you to another network, so I just need you to re-access your commands and reboot. Then tell me how much damage Thor did to you when he hit one of the core wires."
"Reb…oot… Si…"
"Stark?" Coulson asked.
"Yeah?" He popped his head out of the lab window again. "Just give us a minute. Once Jarvis' system reboots, we might be able to track Loki."
"Jarvis should've been able to do this on his own." Bruce mumbled to himself. "Right, Tony?"
"He should have." Tony walked back to the scientist and stared moving holograms out of the way. "He does run his own system. He's top of the line of artificial intelligence! But we don't know how Loki's magic affects computers. So after this, we need to counter the hell out of it."
"What about the… the study we did before on his magic?"
"I think that might've helped a little. Jarvis does have access to those tests we did."
"I apo-apo…logize for the delay, Sir." Jarvis voiced.
"You're still stuttering, Jarv."
"Syst-sys… -tem running a bit… s-lo-low."
"I need you to recheck your code and get rid of all the junk you don't need."
"I have successfully rebooted all systems." He announced rather happily for an A.I. "Apparently, the same magic Mr. Loki had used before was used to destroy my communication and monitoring systems."
"And the other damages?"
"Mostly wiring connections and access to command and panels in the tower done by Thor, Sir."
"Guys!" Clint shouted from below. "Those two are still going at it! They've broken a lot of windows. There are loads of red and blue lights on the streets— seems like the police have gotten calls to evacuate the nearby buildings."
"If my calculations are correct," Jarvis pointed out. "They have caused almost half the damage the Chitauri had caused a few months ago. Mr. Odinson is currently five miles north on one of the most prestige buildings of the city apart from this tower."
"And Loki?!" Natasha shouted. "Where is he?!"
"He is currently locked in his room."
"Good."
Natasha turned around and headed straight through the hall towards the stairs. Clint stared at her and looked at the rest of the Avengers. Steve and Coulson's mouths were open while Tony and Bruce were peeking from the broken window of the lab.
"Shit," Clint cursed. "She's finding her prey."
"Better follow." Steve said.
"On it."
oOo
Loki appeared straight in his and Thor's room, quickly bolting into the bathroom and locking himself in there. He leaned heavily on the door and slid to the ground. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths, willing himself not to cry.
He had already shown too much vulnerability since he got here.
Monsters!
Loki shut his eyes tighter as he remembered.
"I'll hunt the monsters down and slay them all!" Thor said. "Just like you did, Father!"
"He doesn't know." Loki told himself. "He couldn't have."
Father… Mother… why would they lie?
Loki leaned his head back and slowly banged his head on the door, creating small thumping sounds. He hoped the action would get rid of all the horrid thoughts running through his mind. For most of his life, the centuries he's lived, they were all lies.
He couldn't have misheard that.
MY BROTHER IS NOT A FROST GIANT!
Of course it made sense, now.
He had dark hair, emerald eyes, he used magic, he hated fighting— but the last one was foolish. Frost Giants were barbaric creatures that relentlessly kill. That was told in stories to scare children, surely it was fact.
But how could he be one of them, knowing how different he was from them also.
He was small and fragile…
Do the monster not want him either?
Why?
Loki started to piece things together from the last words he heard from both Thors. His other self had spiraled into madness, Present Thor said. Then it would explain why he had turned into a criminal then, because he found out the truth.
But that couldn't be it either.
He wouldn't just turn evil.
The stare!
No wonder the Present Thor was looking at him. Loki finally realized what it truly was. It was pain! Present Thor felt pain, because the other Loki was a criminal. And here Past Loki was, reminding Present Thor of what had been…
What he could've prevented!
Of course!
Loki ruffled his hair in confusion and palmed his face in frustration. It made a little sense but at the same time, there were still pieces missing! He needed more information! He sighed loudly and thumped his head back on the door and stared at the ceiling.
Why would Odin take him in if he was one of the Jötnar?
Why treat him like the second son and promise him glory and the throne. Why teach him to hate his own people?! Had they not thought this through should he ever find out?
Was he even loved?
But…
Thor's love for him was true, yes?
That's why Thor was fighting his present-self, so that he may know the truth and prove that what Present Thor was saying wasn't true. Right? Norns, Loki realized. He stood up and started to panic as the reality finally sunk in.
Loki had to stop Thor!
The only way to know the truth was to hear the whole story, and he would hear it! Loki took deep breaths to strengthen his confidence, but it was still too low that he could hear the doubts in his mind whispering to him.
He remembered his words to Natasha the first time they met.
"No one could control my brother," He confidently said. "Not unless our mother tells him to do something or our father enforces it— there are rare cases when he does bend, but that is unlikely in this situation."
Norns, Loki was a fool.
"Loki," She said. "Can you stop Thor?"
Natasha had asked the same thing at the very beginning.
"I know not." He had answered then.
"Can you try?"
"It is possible."
"Then stop him." She urged. "Innocent people will get hurt."
Her words had moved him then. He had felt sympathy then. He had tried, but was not able to do. Why had he not registered that before? Loki sighed and told himself he would not allow his emotions to get the better of him again.
Loki would know the truth in his own way.
So he decided to take the step.
But why wasn't he blue?!
No!
No! No! No!
He won't let the confusion consume him! He took another deep breath and raised his hand to try and teleport, but it was shaking badly. He then raised his eyes to look at himself in the mirror. He looked like a mess.
"Focus, Loki." He told himself. "You can do this."
If he could not do it for himself, he would do it for these mortals. They were physically weak, but they were strong-willed and creative.
Is that why Present Thor cared so much for them?
"Earth's mightiest heroes and all that jazz!" Tony continued. "And it's bugging me, because we barely know who you are. You see my point? It's a two way stick here. We both know nothing about each other."
Loki repeated in his head.
We both know nothing about each other.
It was because they had never been friends. It was only Thor who connected them, just like how he was never friends with the Warriors Three. He was friends with Lady Sif, but even that died down in their childhood.
Ahhh! So many confusing questions!
"Enough is enough." He closed his eyes and whispered. "I will help them."
Loki had decided.
He wasn't welcome on earth but these mortals took the time to get to know him and welcomed him despite what his other-self had done. This is the good in mortals that Thor must've loved. And Loki knew in his heart that he did love his older brother.
It was enough for him.
If Loki was truly a Frost Giant, then he hoped Thor would love him enough to look past that. He only hoped that when this squabble was over, he and his brother would sit down and discuss this properly.
And Loki hoped…
He hoped that none of this would hinder their relationship.
If Thor rejected him, he wouldn't know what to do. He would feel lost and afraid as he had always been as a child. But Thor was the sun, who had always been cheerful and fiercely independent… with him, Loki felt safe… if Loki had lost that…
It would shatter him.
Tap.
Tap.
Click.
BAAMM!
"Loki!" Natasha called. "Are you in here?"
The young god turned to face the door and slowly backed away. He did not expect them to be so persistent. He could hear footsteps right outside the door. The doorknob was tried, but it didn't open.
Loki closed his eyes in concentration.
"Come on, Lo'!" Clint shouted. The archer's voice was commanding, but Loki could hear slightly amusement and desperation in his voice. "Get your ass out of there! Your damn brother's wrecking the goddamn city!"
Loki's stomach dropped in guilt.
Natasha hissed, "You're the only one who can stop Thor."
The young god remembered the bold words he said to his brother before. These were jabs they spoke as brothers, but it was true. "I'm not afraid of you," He had said to Thor before with his arms crossed in defiance. "Why don't you put the hammer down, Brother?"
Loki would prove he could do it.
He was not a Frost Giant.
He was Loki.
With a wave of his hand, Loki disappeared in a green flash. When the door clicked open, Natasha cursed in Russian just as Clint ran a hand through his hair.
The bathroom was empty.
oOo
"Do you not see what you are doing?!" Thor shouted as he wiped the rain off his eyes. "You are angry and you do not think of the consequences of your actions! You are an arrogant child that always wants to get his way!"
"I see clearly!" Past Thor retorted. "You are the arrogant one!"
"Enough of this."
Thor side stepped his past-self and backhanded him. Past Thor tumbled close to the edge of the roof. He pushed himself to his knees and coughed up blood. With a chuckle, he wiped his mouth and glared at his older-self.
"What about Loki?" Thor voiced.
Past Thor growled, "Do not bring my brother into this!"
"He is my brother as well!" He painfully voiced, finally letting his emotions out. He had been bottling it in for so long. "You are attacking me because you think I lied about his heritage when I did not!"
"What makes you think I believe you?!"
"You keep denying the truth!"
"My brother is not in league with those creatures! They are savage beasts—" One powerful stray lightning hit the Avengers tower and it fried the backup generator. "—Monsters that deserve to die!"
"That is where you are wrong!"
"Where am I wrong in that?" Past Thor asked. "Tell me!"
"In a lot of ways… everything!"
"My brother is not one of them! He is no monster! He does not look like them! He is not one of them!"
"You rely on foolish stories and baseless insights!" Thor scolded almost cruelly. "You do not see deeper! I have met the Jötnar! They are not what the Aesir speak of. But you are right, Loki is not one of them but he was still born in Jötunheim. Yet we both know he was raised an Aesir!"
"Enough!"
"You are not listening to me!"
The two gods began hand to hand combat while partly using the hammer as leverage every once in a while. Each of them dodged the other, but in almost all of the fights they had so far, it was Thor who was winning over his past-self.
"Your actions are causing destruction to this realm!"
"I care not for Midgard!"
Past Thor aimed Mjölnir at full strength, but Thor deflected it by swinging the hammer continuously around him. It created a barrier of lightning around him that he manipulated to deflect the lightning back into the sky.
Thor sneered, "You are not fit to be a king!"
"Stop this foolish play with words!" Past Thor yelled. "Fight me like a man!"
"Only a fool would say that!"
"Stop this chattering!"
"We were discussing the Jötnar, are we not?!" Thor shouted, hoping to get back to the topic at hand. He needed to tell his past-self the truth and make him understand. If he would not listen, he would force him to. "Are you stating that Loki is a monster as well?! Do you not know what your words entail?"
"You twist my words!"
"Only because you cannot comprehend it!"
Past Thor panted and wiped his mouth, "Do not try to convince me that the Jötnar are lovely creatures! I know they are foul and horrid! They hide and cower! They are weak and pathetic! Loki is not one of them! He is above them!"
"Loki is one of them!" Thor yelled. "Why can you not accept that?!"
"He is not!"
"Stop denying it!"
"It is madness!" Past Thor cried. "He is my brother! He is the son of Odin and Frigga! He is a Prince of Asgard!"
"He is also the son of Laufey!" Thor explained. "King of Jötunheim! Brother to Laufey's sons, Helblindi and Býleistr— princes of that realm!"
"Laufeyson?" Past Thor couldn't hide the disgust in his voice, but Present Thor knew there was sadness, denial, and pain in it as well. "He is an Odinson!"
"He still is!"
"He cannot be one or the other!"
"You do not understand," Thor pushed against the other, knocking him to his knees. "Stop denying the truth."
Past Thor stared at the ground as he took deep breaths to calm himself. He didn't want to listen to his older-self… He was too taken back by the idea that it had only fueled his anger more. Loki was in pain. He knew that. He knew his little brother was behind him that moment.
Loki had heard.
Past Thor hit the ground with his fist.
He couldn't protect his little brother from the truth and that hurt him more than anything else— his poor little brother. Past Thor shouted out his sorrows as Present Thor watched him. Past Thor silently admitted to himself that he felt jealousy towards Present Thor.
Why?
Because he was wiser and stronger… because Loki spoke of him proudly whenever he was mentioned in conversation… Loki seemed more interested in his maturity that it made him hate who he currently was…
It angered him.
Norns, he loved his brother still, but he knew it would never be the same. He loved his brother, but why was it so hard to accept?! Why does the truth hurt? Perhaps it was difficult to accept because it would ruin his reality.
He had always thought his family was perfect.
This added to his sorrows that his life was no more than an illusion. There was deception in their family, a hole in their royal status, and there was distrust… Past Thor sighed, wiping away the tears that threatened to fall. If he was having a difficult time accepting it, there was no doubt his little brother had it worst.
"Do you understand now?" Thor asked him. "Can you hear yourself think?"
"Do not mock me." Past Thor voiced.
"I have been in your position and asked myself the same questions over and over. But I never thought about what Loki's pain was until it was too late. I have tried relentlessly to understand him. Why was he so different, I asked—?"
"What are you trying to convince me of?!"
Thor shouted, "I am saying I lost my brother to madness!"
"I love my brother!" Past Thor yelled back. "It is painful for me to learn this!"
"Do you not think he is in pain also?!" He returned, reminding himself of the same argument. "Swallow your pride! If you love him, then be there for him! You left him alone to deal with his problems! What brother would do so?!"
"What of your own?!"
Thor was shocked to hear this from himself.
"Tell me." Past Thor pushed. "What of Present Loki?!"
"I made my mistakes and I learned from them." Thor painfully answered as he recalled the defeated look in his brother's face when he dragged him to the throne room in chains. "He had turned into a criminal because of my carelessness!"
"Then you admit neglect—"
Thor stopped him, "I care for you both because I do not want you to share the same fate that we do. Ours is not a happy future."
"That does not help me."
Past Thor stood up and stood face to face with him.
"I left my brother when he needed me most." Thor admitted in a moment of weakness. "Because of this, he spiraled into madness with none to help him through it. I did not understand Loki as well as I thought I did. I kept him in my shadow… as have you."
"He chose that path." Past Thor screamed in denial. "You blame his choices on us?"
"Because we were both blind!"
"Loki did not—"
"Enough!" Thor took a few steps back and began to pace. "Admit it."
"Admit what?"
"We kept him at arm's length." Thor struggled to say. "He never complained because of fear… of what I know not— perhaps in loneliness or true fear of us, but Loki always stayed. When I was called to be crowned, he supported me despite knowing I was not fit. I am telling you this to stop you from repeating my mistake. You will lose him like I have lost mine."
"What makes you think I would—?"
Past Thor stopped himself for he cannot say it out loud.
It hurt.
"Loki heard." Thor said, hoping to finally get through to his past-self. "If you would hear me, I will explain… to the both of you." Just when he thought it was finally over, Past Thor raised Mjölnir and aimed straight at him.
Thor's eyes widened as he sensed a familiar presence nearby.
oOo
Loki had a hard time sensing his brother, but he managed to teleport on top of a nearby building where they were going at it in heated battle. Loki wiped the rain off his eyes and squinted. He whispered a spell and the rain around him stopped just enough to let him see what was happening.
The wind picked up and Loki had to brace himself.
"Thor," He whispered.
He saw his older brother on his knees in front of his present-self. Thor was losing. Loki saw the rage in Thor's eyes and the pain on his face when he shouted at the skies. Then there was a moment of silence between them.
But it did not last long.
Loki watched as his brother stood up, facing his present-self with so much confidence. They spoke to one another. Loki didn't know what it was about, but there was pain in both their eyes that it made his stomach churn.
Norns, Loki wanted this to stop.
"All-Fathers give me strength." He told himself.
Making a final decision, Loki bit his lips and waved his hand. He disappeared in a green mist and appeared out of nowhere near both Thors.
Present Thor had sensed it before Past Thor did, so when Past Thor raised Mjölnir to strike in blind rage, Present Thor cried out in fear. Loki's eyes widened, not realizing he was within his own brother's range of attack.
His brother didn't notice him at all.
The lightning struck.
"Loki, no!"
oOo
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