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"I thought if anyone would understand, it would be you. You saw him, you fought him. It's a nightmare to have him in power." Býlesitr turned away from Loki.

"I do understand. Býlesitr, please. Hear me." Loki said, desperately trying to level with his sibling.

"You know he's going to do ill. Why should we just wait for him to commit his next war crime?" Býlesitr's voice broke, and Loki could see a shimmer from tears building in his eyes.

"We shouldn't." Loki put a hand on each of Býlesitr's shoulders and looked up to meet his eyes. "The ǫ́ssr need to learn. Thor, at least. He's surrounded by advising voices and I think he's listening to them more."

Býlesitr pulled away from Loki, and crossed his arms.

"If—if you want me to say we'll go to war if they do for an unjust reason, yes. Sure. We'll fight in the defense of the next people who offend them through some accidental slight or draw their ire. When you finish your training, we'll fight these fights side by side if we have to, but I'd prefer a world with more allies who will heed us."

"Who's inline for the throne after Thor?" Býlesitr leaned in. "I'm sure our forces could deal with one mad princeling."

Loki blinked at him and had a moment of fear and one of gratitude as he remembered who actually commanded Jötunheimr's clandestine forces. Býlesitr had time to temper his refreshed hatred for the ǫ́ssr before he came into any power.

"Let's think about that for a moment. Talk ourselves into it, talk ourselves out of it." Loki said carefully.

"You sound like Laufey." Býlesitr said neutrally.

"You kill Thor, or someone in our intelligence forces does. Everything goes smoothly and we do not leave a trace, or… perhaps we frame one of them. What will the ǫ́ssr do?"

Loki's chambers felt as they always did when he returned; awkwardly tidy from the rulers' house staff and a hair too warm for his taste. Notes had piled up on his desk. He spread them out to see if any had seals that he cared for. A couple of friends had written, some had left him letters of welcome.

He placed Lævateinn on its own on a shelf, then on second thought, shifted it to a hidden place. This would prevent any staff from thinking it was some forgotten scrap of wood as opposed to, well, he did not want the staff to think anything of it, really. He placed Rán's water near it and his thoughts drifted to the eldjötnar. He squeezed his eyes shut.

He should have asked if there were others.

He should have asked if there were others like him.

Loki felt like a fool. He knew the tales about vindþursa, jötunar with exceptional hold over the winds, that all chose to join the wind. No one had ever met one, or seen one become the wind. Some myths told him which mountains had been built of bergrisar, but Loki had never visited them. The two he'd seen from a distance were truly towering, but there was no knowing if they were transformed into myth because of their tremendous size or if they were tremendous because of their origin. He knew myth after myth, he had always reveled in the stories of things like him, but by the time people told the tales, they were so far from what he was that he had no sense of sameness with them.

He decided to start with a jötunar he knew was real, Rán, and sent a request to the library for books detailing them. If that had any basis in reality, he could look at other books by the same author and glean more information about what had been.

Loki considered walking out to the mountains and imploring them to speak with him, or do whatever it is ancient mountains that once were living jötunar do, but he had no desire to leave the core of his home.

Laufey and Fárbauti were holding public hours in court. The citizens came to voice a myriad of problems with overwhelming volume. Loki found them as they exited and Fárbauti lifted him off his feet without thinking. They hugged and Fárbauti made a soft growl.

"I missed you, you fiery little thing." Fárbauti said as he tried to make Loki finally being home feel real. Loki always felt fragile and child-like in his arms, and wouldn't tolerate being picked up very often, but Fárbauti was always tempted to scoop him. Fárbauti set him down.

"Please, update me. Is there word from other cities? Realms?" Loki kept pace with them, walking briskly to match their lengthier strolls.

"Of course." Laufey said. "Not a day without."

"Give me the highlights." Loki implored them. "I feel utterly disconnected."

Laufey took a deep breath. "Earth continues to advance its technology, no one has breached out realm, and I needn't tell you how Asgard fares."

"The dwarves offered us some forged pieces if we'll given them ice made from the casket to help them cool… what was it?" Laufey said, glancing at his mate.

"Swords. Weapons, when they make them. It's a crucial step and you could stand to know something about weapon making." Fárbauti said, looking unimpressed. Loki kept out of it, as their bickering was something of a pastime for them.

"Have you heard anything about the elves that attacked Asgard?" Loki asked.

"What?" Laufey stopped. "When was this?"

"We were attacked during our travels." Loki said, exasperated. "There was a single elf, dark elf."

Fárbauti's face was set with an expression of concern. "We've heard nothing."

"Asgard must be keeping it to itself then." Loki said. "Typical Odin. They were an assassin, a powerful one, but misinformed, I think. No one in their right mind would send a single magic user against two, and, um, Thor."

The two elder jötunar exchanged a stiff look of concern.

"Where's this assassin now?" Fárbauti asked.

"I haven't heard." He said lamely. That was yet another question he'd forgotten, but for Thor this time.

Fárbauti stared at Loki in shock for a moment, and then forced his gaze away.

"It's been a difficult few weeks." Laufey said, offering a distraction.

"Yes." Said Fárbauti, curtly.

"Yes." Said Loki.

Laufey cleared his throat. "Anyhow, I've been speaking to the architects about what to rebuild before the worst of winter comes…"

Asgard

"Your balance is shit." Sif said, wrinkling her nose. "What's your excuse today?"

Thor huffed and reset his posture.

"Had a lot on my mind this week." He muttered.

"And yesterday, the day before." Sif said with a shrug. "Last week."

"I've been waiting on our word from our spies about the dark elves' court." Thor set down his sword. "Heimdall hasn't been able to see in there for over a hundred years, and I fear the worst for our spies serving there."

Sif raised an eyebrow. "So you're just waiting?"

"Can't exactly barge down to their realm, after how poorly that went last time." Thor said with faint humor and a jerky shrug. "But with, you know…"

"Mhm."

"Wish they'd just stay in their own damned realm. Heimdall saw them down on Earth among humans a few years ago, up to no good, no doubt. I recall them claiming that they were trying to trade with the natives." Thor shook his head. "It was fairly nonsensical. Several of them are still in the prisons, I think."

"Odin has a cell down there for all the wrong doers there'll ever be." Sif mused. "Just likes putting problems in boxes."

"I would have put our prisoner down there if the elf hadn't escaped before the guard reached him. Loki bound him, said it was more than any man or sorcerer could escape by himself." Thor's brow knitted together. "I hope they've gotten the hell out of the realm by now."

"Any new dwarves in the area?" Sif asked. "They've got plenty of those Svartálfaheimr these days."

"Hilarious." Thor said dryly.