The darkness strangled him a mere handful of precious seconds, but it was still far too long. He was lost, trapped in a world without sight or sound. Swirling, flying, falling…

And he, the mighty God of Thunder, couldn't seem to break free.

"You know that storm's only going to get worse from here, right?"

"We're almost there, Val. It's fine."

Fine…

"Yeah, well, if I were you, I'd stop off somewhere and wait it out."

"Good thing you're not me, then."

Idiot…

"Thor, I think it's time to…"

"Thor, you need to concentrate on the—"

"Thor! Thor, stop! There's—!"

Loki!

With a jolt, his eyes shot open, his hands reaching out for something—anything.

Something tangible, something stable.

Something real.

"Loki!" His voice was hoarse, though he couldn't for the life of him remember why. He didn't remember screaming; couldn't remember calling out for his brother to hold on.

"Hold on!"

To what, though? What could possibly have helped them—

Loki… A glance to the right revealed his little brother lying limp against the dashboard, eyes closed. How many times had he seen those green eyes close and not reopen?

How many times…?

Shaking his brother's shoulder did nothing but jostle the young prince around. Right, don't do that. Bad idea.

A plan. He needed a plan—

That's when he felt it: the thick, numbing liquid clawing at his feet. His legs. His knees. Climbing faster and faster and—

"Time to go," he told his brother, despite the fact that Loki probably couldn't hear him.

Loki's body sagged forward as Thor fought to unbuckle the straps. Come on! And still, the water continued to rise, merciless in its quest to consume them.

They were waist deep in the inky black pool by the time Thor secured his arm around Loki and scanned the car for an escape route. The front windshield was their best bet, so he didn't hesitate to shatter it with his fist.

"Sorry," he whispered to his brother before flinging them both out of the watery prison.

Under such unexpected weight, the front end of the car dipped beneath the surface, nearly drowning the royals as Thor struggled to stand.

If his head wasn't spinning, he could've flown them both to shore in an instant. If he wasn't dancing along the edge of a complete blackout, he might've been able to fly them all the way home.

If he had just been able to stop and think for one second, he wouldn't have had to flap and flail his way off the sinking vehicle and into the frigid water.

Almost there. The shoreline was so close, barely five feet away, but to Thor's aching limbs, the distance was akin to the full length of the Bifrost. Almost… there…

He was careful to keep Loki's head above water, despite the shallow level of the lake, and when he reached the shore at last, he was careful to lay Loki gently on the grass…

… Before thumping down on his back with a heavy sigh.

And for a single, blessed moment, Thor allowed himself to be still. Breathe. Just breathe…

The heaving of his chest. The roaring of his mind. The only reminders that he was still alive. Still breathing. Still breathing…

Loki!

With a jolt that felt more like a lazy loll of the head, Thor turned toward his brother.

Still. He was far too still, too pale.

Thor's pounding heart was another reminder of life. Another reminder that he needed to do something.

Do something!

Thor reached out, ignoring the thin streams of blood decorating his hand as he shook his brother. "Loki? Loki!"

Nothing.

With the fading of adrenaline came the sharp onslaught of pain. Yet, Thor forced himself to sit up despite it all. Despite the dull aches, despite the blood and the anxiety. Despite the rain biting him in the face without mercy.

"Loki, it's time to get up, okay?" Nothing. "Loki! Come on…"

A quick check on his pulse proved the trickster was still alive, but that's not what had Thor worried. No, he hadn't let himself even entertain the possibility that Loki was dead. Not this time. Not by my hands… Rather, Thor's anxiety stemmed from the fact that he might have to get them both out of there on his own.

Not that he doubted his famed strength and might, but he had wrenched his arm sometime during the crash…

You can do it.

Right.

You have to. You have to fix your mistake.

Shoving down the pain, Thor clenched his fist. My mistake…

Loki had told him to pay attention. Why hadn't he paid attention?

We should've switched. I never should've been driving. Not in this storm. Neither of us should have…

A shiver ran down his spine, a mix of the chilling rain and his own icy guilt. Why didn't you listen?

You never listen! Though this last sounded a bit more like Loki than his own mind. For once, why couldn't you just listen to me?

Why—?

A wet cough served as his only warning before fingers shot out and wrapped around his arm. Cold, trembling fingers that restarted his heart as well as his hope.

"Loki!" Thor scrambled to his knees, hands and eyes searching his brother for injuries. "Are you all right? What hurts? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean—"

"Shut up, Thor," Loki said with another cough and a wince. "Shut up and… and get me out of this storm."

"Right." We're fine. He's fine. We're going to be fine. "Right. Here." Gently, cautiously, Thor helped Loki sit up. "Still good?"

Though Loki nodded, his glassy eyes told a different tale. "Just hurry it up, will you? I'm f-freezing!"

"It's not that cold out here." Even as he said it, Thor could feel his own skin beginning to freeze over. "It's only September. Besides, I thought Frost Giants couldn't get cold—"

"One more word, Thor, and I swear…"

"All right, sorry." Slipping his good arm under Loki's, Thor took a breath and pushed the pain away. He could deal with it later, when they weren't about to drown in thick sheets of rain. "Ready?"

Loki shot him a confused glance and opened his mouth, no doubt to make some snappish retort. Thor left him no time for that, however, and heaved them both to their feet with a burst of strength.

A sharp cry pierced the air, cut off a half-second later by a hiss. Thor couldn't remember opening his mouth, but then again, his head wasn't doing him any favors…

The pain was everywhere. He tried in vain to take stock of injuries, but his brain had other plans and cycled him through a brief, dizzying darkness. Only when his vision finally cleared did he realize the cry hadn't come from him at all.

"Loki…?"

His brother's hold had tightened and Thor found himself gripping Loki with equal force. The connection seemed to be the only thing keeping the prince upright.

"Just—" Loki's breaths came in short gasps that made Thor's own lungs burn for air. "Just give me a minute…"

A minute for what? Thor nodded anyway, taking another quick scan for injuries and coming up with nothing. Nothing he could see, anyway.

"What—?"

"My head," came Loki's pinched reply. "It's just… Just hold on, all right? Give me…" A shuddering breath drowned out his next words and Thor's heart stuttered.

How hard did you hit it? was a stupid question, so Thor bit his tongue.

Because of me. He hit it because of me.

He didn't have time to play the blame game, though, and the second Loki's breathing evened out, Thor readjusted his grip.

"There's a tree over there. Are you ready?"

"To get struck by lightning?" Loki curled his fingers tighter around Thor's shoulder. "Are you completely mad?"

"We need to get out of this rain! I can barely hear myself think! Besides, you can't get struck by lightning when you're with the God of Thunder."

"I don't think that's how it wor—Gah!"

"What?" Thor pulled them to a stop after they'd hardly begun. "Are you all right?"

"Stop worrying about me! Just get us out of this rain!" Thor was certain Loki's nails were going to dig straight through his sweater and into his skin, but he pursed his lips as his brother continued. "Don't stop for anything! Despite what you may hear, don't stop."

The words were cryptic; the tone of voice laced with barely concealed pain. And still, Thor nodded anyway. There would be plenty of time for questions later. Maybe.

His father had always boasted upon his strength, praising his first born not only for his physical abilities, but for his strength of character—his strong will.

But as he stumbled along with his little brother in tow, Thor didn't feel very strong.

His arm burned. You've had worse.

His head spun. You're almost there.

His neck screamed curses upon him. You can fix it later.

And his heart beat faster with each muffled cry from Loki. Your fault. It's your fault.

Yes, he was strong—the strongest avenger—but his will was slowly breaking. The physical pain of not stopping for each moan and hiss rivaled that of all his injuries combined.

Because he could take his own pain, but he couldn't handle his brother's agony. Not when it was his fault… My fault.

Not two seconds after they arrived under the drooping tree's thick layers of leaves, Thor felt Loki's grip go slack. Before he could make a fumbled attempt to catch his brother, Loki had already sprawled himself out on the ground, his back slumped against the gigantic tree trunk.

His hand cradled his forehead.

His left foot lay limply at the oddest of angles.

Heaving a knowing sigh, Thor slid down beside his brother and ran a hand through his soaked blond hair. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Though his eyes were still squeezed shut, Loki's tone was dull, almost casual. The nonchalance was unnerving. "What?"

"About your foot. I could've carried you."

"And robbed me of the very last shreds of my dignity? How does the Valkyrie so often put it…? Ah, hard pass."

"Is it sprained?"

Loki swallowed, his voice flat. "Broken. That's how it feels, at least."

"Oh, Loki…" Thor ran a hand down his face, vaguely registering the gash along the browline of his good eye. That's just my luck, isn't it? "You should've told me."

To his surprise, Loki opened his eyes and tilted his head. "… I thought I could make it."

"I could've helped you."

"But I wanted to make it, I… I made it."

"Yeah. Still…"

"Yeah…" Loki blew out a sigh. "Still."

"At least it's not raining as hard under here," Thor said after a few moments of simply catching his breath.

"You could 'at least' us all the way to Vahalla, Thor. It doesn't change the fact that we're stranded in this storm with nowhere to go!"

"We'll figure something out eventually."

"We don't have that kind of time! We're sitting under the one thing you're not supposed to even go near in a storm!"

"I haven't seen any lightning yet."

"Have you looked? Or were you too busy tumbling off a cliff and into a lake to notice?"

"To be fair, it was more of a pond than a la—"

"It doesn't matter! We need to get out of here, and we need to do it n—Agh!" Loki clutched his head in both hands and sucked in a breath.

Despite the nagging questions building in the back of his mind, Thor let his brother have a minute. A minute of silence. A minute to collect himself. A minute to breathe.

"What else is there?" He asked at last.

Loki's voice was so soft now, Thor had to strain to hear it over the rain pelting against the leaves. "What?"

"Your ankle hurts. What else?"

What more did I do to you, brother? What else has my recklessness broken?

Just when Thor had begun to fear Loki wouldn't answer, the latter opened his eyes again. "My head."

Thor nodded, though the motion sent spikes of pain shooting up and down his neck. "Mine too."

"… My neck aches… A little."

"So does mine."

"I think…" As if to test his upcoming theory, Loki took a deep breath, then winced. "I cracked a few ribs."

"Oh." Thor ran a careful, probing hand across his chest. "I didn't think about that…"

"And I'm sure I have a few bruises here and there."

"I think I have more than just a few."

"Norns, Thor, this isn't a competition."

"I never said it was."

Silence settled over the two and Thor noticed Loki studying his face.

"Your forehead is bleeding."

Thor nodded. "So is yours."

"We're even, then."

And Thor couldn't help but smirk. "I bet my cut is bigger, though."

This earned him a whack on the arm from Loki, which shouldn't have hurt—normally, it wouldn't have. The whack was light enough, and considering Loki's physical state, it was weak enough.

Yet, Thor couldn't contain his groan as pain reverberated up and down his arm.

"What?" A rare flash of worry took hold of Loki's eyes. Though brief, the expression gave Thor mixed feelings of warmth and guilt. "What is it?"

And for the moment, he would just ignore the slight twinge of panic in his brother's tone. It was probably what Loki would want him to do, anyway.

"My arm. I wrenched it against the steering wheel. It's fine, though." It'll be fine.

"Is it?"

"Yeah…" He would be fine. It wasn't his arm that worried him the most. No, his anxiety bloomed whenever he concentrated on Loki's eyes. He could barely make them out in the darkness, but he'd seen enough to be concerned.

"Do you have your phone on you?"

"Why? Where's yours?" Trust his brother to cling tight to his pettiness at a time like this.

"At the bottom of the lake." Thor held out his hand, trying—and failing—to keep the gruff sense of urgency out of his voice. "Now, give it to me, will you?"

"Why? Are you going to try calling someone? Don't bother, it's probably a water-logged mess right now." Even so, Loki dug the phone out of the sopping pocket of his windbreaker and handed it to Thor. "Bruce claims you can dry it out with a bag of rice, but I believe that particular phone is beyond repair."

"Mmm hmm." All Thor got when he pressed the home button was a cracked, distorted version of that little black and white loading apple. But the screen was just bright enough to suit Thor's purpose and he held it up to his brother's face.

Loki immediately clamped his eyes shut and shrunk away from the light. "What in the Nine are you trying to do? Blind me?"

"It's not bright enough for that." Why he felt the need to explain this, Thor might never know. "Just open your eyes for a second."

"Why?"

"I just need to check something."

"But it's so bright!"

"Loki…"

"Fine!"

Slowly, Loki cracked open one eye, then the other. And Thor's stomach flipped.

"What?" When Loki furrowed his brows, a small river of blood and water trailed down across his eyelid, perfectly framing his dilated pupils. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Thor felt the phone crack slightly as he clenched his fingers around it.

"Thor, stop looking at me like that!"

But he couldn't. He couldn't take his eyes away from his brother's.

Your fault. This is all your fault, oh mightythunder god.

When he reached out to brush a sopping strand of hair off his brother's face, Loki didn't flinch away. Not this time. Instead, his chest began to heave a bit faster.

"Thor…?" The breathy whisper pierced Thor's heart. "What. Is it?"

"I think…" Thor cleared his throat. "Uh, I think you have a concussion."

Loki blinked as he fought to process Thor's words. "Oh."

"Yeah…"

"Oh, great." Loki pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just great."

I'm sorry. It was on the tip of his tongue. He needed to apologize, to make everything right again. Because he'd messed up big time and he had to fix it.

Before he could say anything, however, Loki let out a sigh that trembled a little too much for Thor's liking. "I suppose that means I win, doesn't it?"

"It's not a competition, Loki…"

A flash of lightning banished the darkness for a full second, followed closely by a thunderclap loud enough to impress the even God of Thunder.

"That one was close," Loki remarked quietly, his eyes scanning the sky.

"We need to keep moving."

"Where? We don't even know where we are or which direction to go!"

But Thor was already on his feet. "Away from here."

Pocketing Loki's phone, he offered his brother his good arm. Wary eyes glared back up at him.

"I'm not letting you carry me."

"You can hold onto my shoulders and walk with your good leg. Now, come on!"

"Walk? Hobble, you mean."

"Loki," Thor growled, "come on!"

One short hesitation later, Loki was up and secured to Thor's side.

"See?" Thor tried to keep his voice light. "This'll work. It's just like Get Help."

"Oh, I was perfectly fine with this. I was fine, I was open to the idea, and then you just had to go and say that."

"Well, it's either this or carrying you, so I'm sure you can suffer through it until we find better shelter."

"What? I thought we were going home…"

The concussion, Thor realized with a pang. It's just the concussion talking. But the hopeless little whine that laced Loki's tone had Thor hugging him closer.

"Home's too far away right now. Our best chance is finding some sort of cave, or some place we can wait out this storm."

"… And if we can't?"

Then there goes our best chance.

Thor set his jaw. "Then we'll just have to find another way."

"Another way to what?"

"Survive."

Survive long enough for me to fix this for you.

And I swear, brother, I will fix this for you.

I'll fix everything.