Thor had always expected Frost Giants to be… well… taller.

However, the king of the Frost Giants stood between two Asgardian guards, dressed in traditional Jotun clothes (If you could call the loincloth and weird henna markings clothes) was rather… short.

He seemed extremely bored with all the proceedings, and Thor was very interested in him. He couldn't stop himself from staring. Jotnar had not been seen in the halls of Asgard for generations. But here he was. Loki, son of Laufey, king of the Frost Giants.

"Good evening, your majesty." He drawled, arms folded in boredom.

"King Loki." Thor straightened a little, so as to make a better impression. "What can I do for you, today?"

Loki stepped forward, the golden bangles on his arms jangling slightly as he dropped an Asgardian salute. "Your father, the Allfather Odin took from our treasures. We wish for our possessions to be returned."

The Casket. When Thor had been coronated, he'd known they'd petition for it, some time or another, but he hadn't expected the king to come in person. "A reasonable request. However, my father took the Casket from you, because your people were misusing it. How would I know you would not wage war with it, again?"

"I suppose I could give you my word." Loki shrugged. "But the oath of one king means nothing to his successor. Unless you wish for us to add to our coronation oaths."

"Wouldn't be unwelcome." Thor quipped, but Loki simply stared, entirely unamused, his ruby red eyes glittering coldly. (Get it? Coldly? Yeah, okay… Thor's mental puns weren't the best.)

"Would it suffice?"

Thor sighed, and did a quick mental calculation. Loki was a Frost Giant, after all… And they were notoriously tricky, and prone to using loopholes. "No, I don't think so." He hummed. "Is there anything else you want from me?"

The temperature in the room dipped slightly, as Loki's expression darkened. "Your Highness, I pray you reconsider. Jotunheim is dying without her heart, and my father is not me."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Thor wondered, slightly intimidated.

"His mistakes are not mine." Loki glared. "I wish to have the Casket to keep my people from extinction. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Yes, but, see, how do I know that's all you'll use it for?" Thor raised an eyebrow.

The Jotun opened his mouth in dumbfound shock. "How dare you?" He breathed. "Is my word insufficient? Oh, or is it because I'm Jotun?" He took a step forward, and, even though he was in Thor's own throne room, unarmed, surrounded by Einherjar, Thor couldn't help but scoot backwards subconsciously.

"Do you think I'd come begging for the heart from your golden realm if I wasn't desperate? I've tried everything, but even the ground beneath our feet betrays us." Loki basically spat. Warily, the Einherjar drew their swords, but Thor held up a hand to stop them.

"I meant no offense, King Loki." Thor apologized. "I'm sorry. However, your people have a very bad reputation in our eyes, for your father's warlike tendencies, and I need to know we can trust you."

Loki stared at the Thunderer for quite a long time, his face an impassive mask. "How?" He finally demanded. "And how quickly?"

Thor was quiet, considering. "Perhaps, we could get to know each other a bit better, and form a better relationship. That way we could trust one another."

Incredulity basically dripped from Loki's face. "You want to be friends with me?" He blurted.

Thor shrugged. It would be interesting. And he had always been interested in other realm's cultures, and, well… it was lonely at the top. "Why not?"

Loki rolled his eyes, the hidden message of "This guy's totally cuckoo" Spelled all over his face. "Fine." He gritted out. "How shall I become your… friend?"

"Well…" Thor tapped his fingers on the armrest of his throne. "I'm having a feast, tonight. Would you like to come?"

Loki's jaw dropped to the floor. And with good reason, a Jotun invited to an Asgardian feast was unheard of. All the more reason for Thor to change that. "I beg your pardon…" Loki breathed. "I must have misheard you; I thought you invited me to your feast."

"That's because I invited you to my feast." Thor grinned cheerfully. "bring as many of your friends as you like. I look forward to seeing you there. Have you any questions?"

Loki suddenly bore a close resemblance to a fish, the way he opened and closed his mouth in utter shock. "I… I…" He stammered, at a loss for words. "What should I wear?"

Loki fidgeted with a lock of his hair, hastily braiding and unbraiding it, as he paced in circles in the guest bedroom of the Asgardian palace. "It's unbelievable, brother." He addressed the younger, but far taller giant, who sprawled comfortably across the giant-sized couch. "I don't believe there's a single instance in history."

"Mm-Hm…"

"Definitely not as long as anyone can remember. Surely, he has something to gain from this."

"Surely…"

"But what? He told me it was so that I could have the Casket back. But it must be some elaborate ruse…"

"Must be…"

"But risking the terror of all the assembled guests? We're monsters to them!"

"Right…"

"And the real trouble is…" Loki paused. "Are you even paying attention?"

"Uh-huh…"

"BYLA!"

Bylestir jumped, startled, and finally peered up over the edge of the book. "What? I'm listening! It hasn't happened before in history… go on."

Loki narrowed his eyes. "I said that five minutes ago."

"Well, why am I supposed to listen to you, when all you do is pace a hole in the floor, and go over the same old things over and over? I don't care that historically, no one's been invited to an Asgardian party. Historically, no small has ever been king, and you're doing fantastically at that! You're just good at making history. Why would I intervene?"

"Thanks…" Loki sighed, unable to keep a smile from his face. Bylestir always knew how to cheer him up, even if it was simply well-placed flattery. "But the Odinson's up to something. I know it."

Bylestir shrugged and turned a page. "Burn that bridge when you get to it, as the Asgardians would say."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "I believe the term is 'cross the bridge when you get to it'."

"Ah, but burning's far more dramatic, you see."

Loki rolled his eyes, and struggled up onto the seat next to his brother. "You're hopeless."

"Maybe." Bylestir glanced up smugly. "But at least I'm not boring. Like some people I know."

"Meanie…" Loki grumbled. "Are you coming with me?"

"With you? Where?" Bylestir looked around in confusion.

"To the party, ice-head." Loki rolled his eyes.

"Why?"

"Because I need a private comedian, why do you think?" Loki fondly punched his shoulder, then sobered. "I'd rather not be alone."

Bylestir smirked softly. "I have your back, brother." He assured him. "Even if it's only so that I'm the only one who can stab it."

Thor was cheerful that evening, and every time the doors to the hall opened, he would eagerly look up to see if his new Frost Giant friend was here, yet.

It was almost time for the second course to be served, when he did appear, alongside a larger, more imposing Jotun.

A hush fell over the room, and all eyes turned to the newcomers. All hands went to their owner's weapons.

"Greetings, King Loki!" Thor boomed, waving cheerfully from his seat of honor. Quickly, he jumped up, and strode over to the two of them, beaming ear to ear. "Who's this with you?"

Loki gave a stiff, formal bow. "Allfather, may I introduce my younger brother, Prince Bylestir the Gentle."

"Call me Byla." The prince extended a hand as big as Thor's face for him to shake.

"Is that your official title, on Jotunheim?" Thor asked, shaking Bylestir's hand soundly. "'The Gentle'?"

"Yes." Bylestir answered simply. "Something wrong with that?"

"I would think you would have your title be a little more formidable. I'm King Thor the Thunderer."

Bylestir shrugged. "I don't want to be formidable. I want my people to see me as approachable."

"Then how do you strike fear into the hearts of your foes?" Thor wondered, and the two brothers exchanged a glance. "What foes?"

"You have no foes?" Thor frowned.

"Where would we get foes?" Bylestir shrugged. "If we treat all people with kindness, I don't even know where we would find them."

"Agreed." Thor nodded, a bright smile on his face. "What about you, King Loki? What's your title?"

"King Loki of Jotunheim the fourth." Loki shrugged. "My people haven't decided to give me a nickname."

"Except that his head of council calls him King Loki the Trickster." Bylestir mumbled.

"Hey!" Loki glared at his younger brother. "Don't tell him that!"

"Why not?" Thor smiled. "I like the name."

"He doesn't want you to think he's tricky." Bylestir explained. "That's how tricky he is, that he tricks people into thinking he's not tricky."

"I'm not tricky!" Loki protested indignantly. "Clever, maybe. Astute, perhaps. Mischievous, I'll accept. But tricky? It sounds… dishonest."

"So, it does." Bylestir shrugged cheerfully. "What say you, Allfather?"

"Oh, just call me Thor." Thor waved a hand. "I understand why King Loki doesn't want to be called a trickster. I wouldn't want to be called that, either, to be honest."

"Oh, fine." Bylestir smirked.

Loki, however, pounced. "You want us to call you Thor, yet you don't refer to me by my given name. You want us to trust you, but don't trust us, yourself."

"No!" Thor insisted. "I simply didn't want to overstep my bounds. You didn't say I could refer to you by name."

"Oh…" Loki bit his lip nervously. "Well… you may." There was a moment of awkward silence, before Loki spoke up, again. "I apologize, Allfa- I mean, Thor. I… We simply… I don't want to mess this up."

"You see, without the Casket…" Bylestir spoke up. "We're all doomed. Jotunheim is an older realm than all the others, and the only thing holding it together is that casket. Jotunheim suffers earthquakes, sinkholes, famine, without it."

There was a solemn silence, as Loki and Thor locked eyes. The Thunderer had had no idea what was going on with the icy realm, up until this point, but the two giants' eyes hid no lies.

That was the moment Thor decided. "Then you shall have it back."

"Just like that?" Loki blurted, his face creasing into a wide grin.

"Why not?"

"I thought you didn't trust us." The Trickster narrowed his eyes, but his brother cuffed him lightly on the shoulder. "Don't try to talk him out of giving it back to us."

Thor couldn't help but chuckle. "So, are we friends, now?"

"I suppose so?" Loki seemed likely to faint.

"Well, you're certainly welcome any time you want to stop by Asgard."

Bylestir grinned, as Loki's head reeled. "Likewise."

As soon as the three of them had finished eating, Thor scooted his chair back, and nodded for his new friends to follow him. In silence, they walked through the halls, attracting a lot of stares from the Einherjar. Thor ignored his guards, and led them straight into the vault. As soon as the doors opened, The Jotnar's eyes widened in awe.

"That's the Tesseract." Loki blurted, as the passed the infinity stone. "And the eternal flame, and the skull of Surtur."

"You recognize them?" Thor grinned. "My father went to all sorts of lengths, finding these treasures. Most of them through needless bloodshed and warfare. Although this kingdom was built on the foundations of war, I intend for it to live on through peace. After all, if we're constantly fighting, what happens when we kill everyone?"

"Civil war?" Bylestir suggested.

"Exactly." Thor nodded. "So, it's in out best interest that we make peace."

"You had a wise tutor." Loki noticed.

Thor shook his head. "I had a wise father, but not until very late in his life."

With that, he led the two of them up to the casket. Loki seemed almost shy, suddenly, and fidgeted with a lock of his hair as he stared in awe at the swirling blues inside the frame of the artifact.

"Well?" Thor prompted, offering an encouraging smile. "It's all yours."

"I thought it would be bigger." Loki admitted.

"You're one to talk." Bylestir snickered, but his eyes shone with pride for his big brother.

Hesitantly, Loki grabbed hold of the handles of casket, and lifted it off the stand. "Thank you…" He breathed, eyes shining.

"Of course." Thor nodded. "I look forward to interacting with you in the future. "

TheOnlyHuman.