Disclaimer I own Nothing.
Chapter 9 Let's Go Earth Conquering
Saphira didn't wake until the following day, at first; she was confused as to why she was lying in a bed in the healing chambers; then Saphira remembered what happened on the bridge; remembered being hit with Mjolnir and crashing through the wall but wasn't sure what happened after that or how she got here. Saphira heard movement in the chair next to her bed, thinking that it must be Loki; Saphira looked then frowned when she saw Thor sitting there; leaning forward, with his elbows on his knees and head in his hands.
"Where's Loki?" Saphira asked. Thor's head snapped up to look at her; to her surprise, his face was wet as if he had been crying.
"Saphira, how do you feel?" Thor demanded as he stood next to her bed.
"As good as I can after being thrown through a wall," Saphira said.
"I am so sorry." Thor apologize.
"Don't worry about it; I'll live. Besides, I'm sure Loki kicked your ass over it." Saphira said; she frowned when Thor winched at Loki's name. "Where is he anyway? I figured he, not you would be in here moping besides my sickbed."
"Saphira, do you not remember?" Thor asked gently. Saphira frowned at him, confused, then it all came back to her, the battle on the bridge, it broke and Loki falling off saving her.
"Oh, God." Saphira cried, leaning back. "Why couldn't that have been all a terrible dream."
"I'm so sorry, Saphira," Thor said, laying his hand on hers. "I wish I could have saved him."
"Thor, why are you holding my hand?" Saphira demanded, "Loki isn't dead."
"Loki fell off the bridge," Thor explained gently.
"And he was alive when he did." Saphira said, "He's probably out in space floating around trying to figure out how to get back." Saphira went to get out of bed. "We have to go find him, help him."
"No, you are still injured." Thor gently laid Saphira back down; she frowned at him as he lifted her legs and put them back in the bed.
"Thor, you are acting weird." Saphira said, "You are freaking me out."
"Sorry, did not mean to." Thor answered," But neither Loki nor Enid is here to take care of you, so I have to for them."
"What?" Saphira demanded. "I'm an adult, dummy; I take care of myself."
"You hardly ever act like one," Thor told her.
"Hey, " Saphira cried, feeling insulted. Thor ignored her as he covered her back up.
"I know you, and I have hardly ever gotten along, but I still consider you a friend." Thor explained," And the two people I always cared about the most, my brother and your sister, care deeply for you, with Enid stuck on Midgard and Loki..."
"No, " Saphira snapped. "No, don't say it, please, Thor, Loki is not dead, it wouldn't be fair, I just got him back, fate wouldn't be that cruel, I have to believe that, I couldn't handle it if he were."
"I hope you are right, but I fear..." Thor stopped what he was saying and frowned as he watched Saphira push her hair out of her face. Her hand was shaking pretty badly.
"Please, Thor, don't say it, please," Saphira begged. "Loki can't be dead. I won't believe it. I can't believe it."
Thor said nothing as he looked at her with tears of his own; Saphira leaned forward and laid her forehead on her knees and just cried; Thor wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know what to do. So he just laid his hand on her back.
"Okay, Saphira." Thor agreed. "I won't say that about Loki anymore."
After a moment, Saphira straightened her legs out and leaned back in bed. She just sat there wiping her eyes and looking around as if hoping Loki would pop out from somewhere. Thor jumped a little startled when Saphira suddenly screamed out a cry so loud and full of pain; Thor didn't think he would ever get the sound out of his head. Then Saphira laid down on the bed and cried.
Thor was at a loss of what to do, so he was relieved when Frigga came rushing in the room, and right to Saphira's side, she sat next to her on the bed and ran her hand through her hair in a motherly way as she whispered words of comfort. After a moment, Saphira stopped crying.
"It hurts so much," Saphira said. "What does fate have against me? What did Loki and I do? Why won't it let us be happy?"
"Oh, sweetheart," Frigga said. "I wish I knew the answers to those questions."
Saphira said nothing; she just laid there a moment, tears running down her face again, then looked at Frigga. "I don't believe he is dead. He is out there somewhere trying to get back to me; I can feel it. He's alive; I know he is."
Frigga looked at Saphira with concern as she rolled over the other way and just stared off into nothing and didn't make another sound, Thor and Frigga looked at each other, and Thor motioned for Frigga to follow him to the other side of the room.
"She keeps saying things like that," Thor explained. "I fear for her sanity."
"She's in shock, I believe," Frigga explained. They both looked toward Saphira, but she showed no signs of hearing them. "People deal with grief in different ways. The girl lying on that bed has loved your brother all her life; she spent many years on Midgard pining for him and never giving up hope he would come for her. And now to have him retaken from her in such a short time. She'll realize the truth when she allows herself; we'll have to be there for her when Saphira does; she'll need the love and comfort. "
"Of course, Mother." Thor answered, "Saphira is Enid's sister. She meant the world to Loki. I'll do what I can to comfort her."
"I know you will." Frigga smiled and gently squeezed Thor's arm.
"How do you know what Saphira did while on Midgard?" Thor asked, frowning.
"Please, son, do you think I would allow the two girls that were the closest to daughters I ever had to go off to another realm without having them looked after?" Frigga demanded. Thor frowned at her a moment.
"Heimdall?" Thor realized.
"Your father might have forbidden anyone from going to see them, but he never said anything about Heimdall keeping an eye on them," Frigga said. Just as Odin, Lady Sif, and The Warriors Three came into the room and over to where Thor and Frigga stood.
"How is she," Odin asks.
"In shock," Frigga answered. "At the moment, she refuses to believe Loki is gone."
"That's not surprising," Odin said; he glanced at Saphira; she was on her back now, with her eyes closed and her arm lying across them. "I've been asking around, and several people agree that she was in on everything with Loki. I hate to do this..."
"Odin, no, the child is grieving," Frigga said.
"I understand that," Odin said. "We are too, But, after everything, after Loki, we can not just let her by with the stuff she did. "
"Odin, can we not be blamed somewhat in this too," Frigga asked gently. "We lied to Loki all his life."
"Lied about what?" Thor demanded, looking between his mother and father.
"We should tell him," Frigga told Odin. He looked to Saphira, who hadn't moved.
"Think it wise for her to hear?" Odin asked.
"She already knows, Loki told her himself," Frigga answered. Odin looked at her in surprise; then, he turned to the others.
"Close the door," Odin demanded. Hogun did as ordered then walked back to them. "What I say does not leave the room, and no question about it." They all agreed, then Odin began to explain. "Toward the end of the war with the Frost Giants, I found a baby jotunn, he was small for a giant, and near death, I took that child home, later found out it was Laufey's son, he had thrown the child out because he was small."
"What does any of this have to do with Loki?" Thor asked.
"The child, your father, is talking about was Loki," Frigga told him.
"What?" Thor demanded.
"He may be adopted, but he was still your brother," Frigga said.
"Loki will always be my brother," Thor said. "It is just surprising."
"Does that mean Loki was a Frost Gaint?" Sif asked.
"Yes," Odin replied.
"No." Saphira suddenly spoke up, they all turned to her.
"I beg your pardon," Odin demanded as Saphira sat up.
"First, you had no right to tell Loki's secret to those four," Saphira said. "Second, Loki is only half jotuun, his mother." She glanced at Frigga, "Sorry, not his mother, but the women who gave birth to Loki wasn't one."
"How do you know this?" Odin demanded.
"Loki and I went to Jotunheim and asked Laufey." Saphira said, "For reasons I still don't know, he confessed, which is why Loki is normal size. He is only half-jotuun. Laufey told him he takes his looks after his biological mother.".
"I once wondered if that was the case," Odin said. There was all quiet for a moment, then Saphira suddenly jumped out of bed.
"You bastard." Saphira screamed, "This is all your fault if you hadn't lied to Loki if you hadn't kept the truth from him, and if you hadn't favored Thor over Loki all his life, if you had just treated him as if he was your son, he would be here with us, with me now, happy." She glared at Sif and the others. "You four are at fault too; if you just kept your noses out of Loki's business, none of that fight on the bridge would have happened. I don't understand why you had to have Thor here so badly; Loki wasn't doing anything to you."
"We are not the one Loki died to save," Odin said. "You are; therefore, Loki's death lies on your shoulders, not ours."
"You son of bitch." Saphira cried. She rushed forward, trying to attack Odin, but Thor grabbed her and pulled her back, and Saphira struggled to get out of his grip.
"Loki was a better King than you will ever be," Saphira told Odin. "He was a true gentleman, a hero, a great person, and he was lost because you are a shitty King and a poor excuse for a father."
"Watch the way you speak to me, girl," Odin demanded. "You might be grieving, but I am your King, the Allfather, protector of these nine realms, and I demand respect."
"That's something you'll never get from me," Saphira said, looking at him with such hate on her face; it was scary.
"Saphira." Frigga stepped forward and put her hand on Saphira's shoulders.
"Father, please, Saphira just woke from her head wound and is in mourning," Thor explained. "She does not know what she is saying"
"My injury and grief are not speaking." Saphira said, "I am, and I'm telling only the truth, you know it, as well as I do." Odin and Saphira stared at each other a moment; the room was quiet. No one spoke for what seemed like forever.
"I believe you have shown you are well enough to be taken to the dungeons now," Odin said. "Which is the reason these four are with me."
"No," Thor said. He went to step forward; Frigga grabbed his arm and held him back.
"I was told you aided Loki in his quest to take over Asgard, assisted in the murder of King Laufey of Jotunhiem, then went on to try and destroy Jotunhiem ." Odin thundered. "Do you deny those charges?"
Saphira looked Odin right in the eye; she had no regret, shame, or fear shown on her face as she said one simple word. "No." He looked surprised by her answer.
"So be it then," Odin said. "Saphira, daughter of Bard, you have been charged with treason and aiding in the attempt to kill an entire race of beings. Do you have anything you want to say to defend yourself, anything at all?"
"Loki didn't deserve all the grief he got from everyone," Saphira told him. "He deserved better."
"Very well, Bardsdottir, Lady Sif, and The Warriors Three will escort you to the dungeons where you will stay; when the Bifrost gets repaired, you will get exiled back to Midgard," Odin told her. "And from this day forward, you are no longer a citizen of Asgard."
Saphira hated to admit it, but that last part stung; she had to flee her home once, but to be told she would no longer be considered an Asgardian, actually hurt, hurt a lot. But Saphira refused to show it.
"Father, " Thor began; Odin silenced him with a look.
"It's okay," Saphira said; Thor looked at her with a frown. "I'll be fine. I won't be locked up long anyway." Sif came forward and put the shackles on Saphira's wrist and ankles. They led Saphira toward the door, but she stopped, turned, and looked Odin in the eyes.
"I do not believe Loki is dead," Saphira told him. "But if it were within my power, you would be."
"Alright, let's go," Hogun said, pulling one of the chains, jerking Saphira forward; she stumbled a little.
"Easy," Thor warned as he stepped forward to go with them. Nobody dared object to him doing so, as he took Saphira's arm gently and led her out of the room, and stayed by her side as they made their journey to the dungeons, the walk there felt like an eternity for Saphira, as tears rolled down her face, she kept her head held high and looked anyone in the eyes they passed, she wasn't going to shame away, she wasn't ashamed of standing by Loki's side, she would do it all again in a heartbeat. She did not give a damn what anyone thought of her.
When they finally made it to the dungeons. Thor dismissed the other four, who, after some hesitation, left after throwing looks of warning toward Saphira as Thor undid her shackles.
"You can get away if you like?" Thor said. "You can hit me over the head, or I can forget to close the cell." Saphira rolled her eyes.
"And where would I go?" Saphira demanded. "You broke the Bifrost."
Thor said nothing to defend himself, and Saphira turned and stepped into the cell; she turned back to Thor.
"Thanks for the offer, though; that was sweet," Saphira told him.
"I'll come with you to Midgard when you go." Thor declared," So, I can be with Enid if she will forgive me, that is."
"She'll forgive you," Saphira told him. "Enid is good that way."
"Thank you," Thor said; he pressed a button on the wall and the force field that keeps the prisoners in the cell lit up. "And I am sorry about everything, breaking the Bifrost, hitting you with Mjolnir, trapping Enid on Midgard, you getting locked up here, and...and not being able to save Loki."
"He's not dead," Saphira told him. "Once he can, he'll be back and break me out of here, and you'll be going to Midgard alone."
"Do you truly believe that?" Thor asked.
"Yes," Saphira answered.
"I hope you are right." Thor said, turning to leave, "I'll come back and visit later."
Saphira said nothing, and after a moment, Thor walked away. The moment his footsteps faded in the background, Saphira fell to her knees, then laid right there on the floor of her cell, laid her head on her arm, and cried.
Saphira lost track of time after just a few weeks in her cell; she had no idea how long she had been in there; all Saphira knows was it had been long enough to cry out of tears, to lose a lot of weight from barely eating anything, long enough that Saphira wasn't sleeping, her hair was a tangled mess, and she barely spoke, not to Frigga when she visited Saphira three times a day to bring her yet another meal that went untouched, or books and board games, so Saphira had something to do; Saphira barely spoke to Thor when he visited, not even when she taught him to play chess. Though she accidentally put Thor in a depressed mood one day, when she brought up Loki's birthday must have passed by now, and he missed it.
Even though Saphira had told Thor she would be fine locked up, Saphira was anything but, after the first day of being in this cell, Saphira was ready to get out; she never did well being locked up, she had always been restless, unable to sit still, ever having to have something to do or somewhere to go, somebody like that did not do well locked up in a small cell; Saphira was at her breaking point, getting closer and closer to going over the edge. If it hadn't been for one thing, one thought that kept Saphira clinging on to hope; then she probably would have gone over the edge. And that was the hope and belief that Loki would show up any day now to break her out.
It was night. However, Saphira had no way of knowing the time; Frigga had brought her dinner and sat with her while she made sure Saphira ate at least some of it, that was probably about four hours ago, the prison dungeons mainly were silent, there weren't many prisoners besides her there, and none anywhere near her cell, and they were most likely asleep, the only sounds Saphira heard where a causal laugh or voice from a guard or the sound of their metal armor clicking together as they did their rounds checking on the prisoners.
It could be too silent in this freaking place, from the lack of prisoners and the way most guards walked around silent. Then there was one prisoner when it got too quiet, in here would shout and yell. He was a few cells down from hers and would scream about how he was innocent.
Saphira took a break from her usual pacing around and was lying on her side facing the wall. The pillow under her head and blanket that was over her belonged to Loki; few days after being locked up, she was able to talk Thor into taken them from Loki's bed and bringing them to her; they smelled like him and was somewhat of a comfort to her. The other thing that was comfort was making things grow, and now Saphira's cell was full of morning glories growing out of the ground and up the glass and other flowers growing all over.
Saphira groaned and threw the covers over her head, and tried to sleep. When she couldn't, she tossed the covers aside, got up, and begun to pace around the cell. God, she would do anything to get out of this cell, at least for an hour; she needed fresh air, needed to go outside. It was almost suffocating in here. And tonight was just too quiet; even the loud prisoner hadn't said a word. Saphira always hated it when there was no noise. It didn't feel natural.
Saphira dropped down to the floor, leaned against the wall, brought her knees up to her chest, and hugged them. Saphira lay her face on her knees and begun rocking back and forth.
Saphira kept having flashbacks of being locked up by her father, and she couldn't take it anymore; she wanted, no, need out of here, her hands were constantly shaking lately, and she couldn't sit still. She wished Enid was here; she would help her, know what to do to calm her. Saphira missed her sister as much as she missed Loki; if only she hadn't forgotten to ask Loki to take her to Midgard to get Enid. Yeah, they fought like cats and dogs, but that's what siblings do. Especially when their personalities were so different, Saphira even surprised herself with how much she was missing her sister. Being in here really was getting to her; a part of Saphira regretted coming, wishing she would have talked Loki into staying on Midgard or going somewhere else, instead.
Saphira took a few deep breaths trying to calm herself, then raised her head; the last thing she needed was to have another panic attack; she's had three already since being locked up, one was when Thor was in here, and Saphira was pretty sure she scared the hell out of him.
Suddenly, there was a commotion down the cell block, breaking the silence at first; Saphira thought the guards down that way were getting loud, but as she listened, it wasn't laughing or talking she heard, but people shouting and yelling. What sounded like bodies hitting the floor, metal clinging together. The sound of metal hitting the floor as if people fell. Did someone get into the dungeons and attacked the guards?
The two guards standing outside her cell looked that way with a frown, but before they could do anything, a dagger flew through the air and stuck one of the guards in the neck; he grabbed at it with a gasped then fell to the floor dead, then the other one was blasted out of sight by some blue light. Saphira frowned, stood, then slowly walked forward, but then jumped a little when the one who attacked the guards appeared in front of her cell and grinned in at her as he opened it.
"Loki, " Saphira whispered. His hair had grown out, and he had it slicked back weirdly; he wore an all-leather outfit that was green, black, and gold; looked tired and had dark rings under his eyes, and was holding some weird staff thing, but it was him, her Loki. Saphira had been right all along, he was alive, and he had finally come for her.
"Hello, darling." Loki greeted as he stepped up into her cell; he leaned the weird staff thing up against the wall as he gave her the loving look Loki only ever had for her.
"Loki," Saphira repeated, then rushed forward and threw herself in his arms, nearly knocking Loki down; he laughed as he put his arms around her.
"I missed you too." Loki grinned down at her as they pulled apart but kept their arms around each other.
"You survived?" Saphira stated," I knew you did. I tried to tell everyone; they just thought I was going insane."
"I'm sorry I did not come to get you sooner," Loki said. "But I was unable until now; I'll explain everything to you shortly. We must get out of here first."
Saphira grinned at him. "Okay, but you have to tell me everything. I knew you would break me out of here, and I even dreamed of you one..." Saphira's smile dropped, "Oh God, this isn't another dream, is it?"
"It is not, love," Loki said, pulling her back to him and held her tight. "I am here now, darling; I am alive and with you, and I am going to take you away from here." Loki comforted her, his concern for her growing, he could tell she's lost weight, and he doubted she had gotten much sleep. Not to mention she was shaking slightly. Loki could tell Saphira had not taken being locked in the dungeons well.
"It was so awful being here without you," Saphira told him; she looked up at him and frowned. "But are you okay? You look ill." She laid a shaky hand on his cheek and took her thumb and gently ran it across the black mark under his eye.
"I am fine, darling; no need to worry." Loki smiled and laid his hand on hers and kissed her palm before taking her hand and kissing the back of it too; then he pulled her back to him, and they both stood there hugging each other for a moment.
"Where will we go?" Saphira asked. "And what's with that weird stick thing you had."
"Ah, my new scepter," Loki said, grinning as he pulled away and walked over to pick it up. "It was given to me by a...friend." he walked back over to Saphira.
"Why do you say friend as if he is anything but a friend?" Saphira asked, looking at the scepter in Loki's hand; she ran a finger across the top, then went to touch the glowing part, but Loki quickly stopped her, taken her hand gently in his and holding the scepter away from her.
"This scepter is a powerful weapon," Loki warned. "Please, be careful when you touch it; it has mind-controlling abilities ." Saphira raised her eyebrow at him. "On second thought, do not touch it."
"What do you need with something like that?" She demanded.
"My friend or, better yet, benefactor gave it to me because he wants me to retrieve a powerful object from Earth called the tesseract, " Loki explained. "Once I get hold of the tesseract, I'll use it to open a portal to allow the army he has given me in, and in return for the tesseract, I get Earth."
"Earth? As in Midgard?" Saphira asked. "What in the realms would you do with a planet?"
"Rule it, of course." Loki grinned. "I made a deal with this...benefactor; he wanted me to go straight to Midgard and start right away, but I was able to get him to let me take a detour first, pick up someone that could help me, after all, what good is a King, without his Queen?"
"You make a good point with that last one." Saphira smiled and wrapped her arms around Loki's waist and kissed him; Loki put his empty arm back around her, holding the one with the scepter out, so it wouldn't accidentally touch Saphira.
"Why do I get the feeling there is not only stuff you are leaving out," Saphira asked. "But you have something else up your sleeve with this whole tesseract thing?" Loki grinned. Saphira could read him like a book.
"I will explain, I promise," Loki told her, letting go of her waist and taking her hand. "So, what do you say, my Queen, would you like to go Earth conquering with me?"
"Go conquer Earth? Mm." Saphira smiled and begun to pretend to be thinking it over, then shrugged. "Why not? I have no plans this week."
Loki laughed as he leaned in to kiss her; Saphira happily returned the kiss. When they pulled apart, Loki asked. "You ready to go, darling?"
"Of course," Saphira said. "But you have to promise me one thing. This portal thingy does not get opened anywhere near Las Vegas, and my sister won't get hurt."
"That's two things, but, I promise, beautiful," Loki said, then sealed it with a kiss; he took her hand and led her to the entrance of the cell; he climbed down, sat the scepter against the wall so he could help Saphira down out of the cell, he then picked it back up and pulled Saphira close to him.
"I promise you will not get hurt either," Loki said. Saphira smiled up at him.
"And I'm not letting anything happen to you," Saphira promised. Loki smiled at her, and with a bright light, they were both gone.
Just seconds later, the dungeon filled with the sounds of running feet as guards led by Odin and Thor came rushing in; they looked around at the devastation around them, guard after guard laying on the ground hurt, few dead, as their armor protected some of them; then Thor ran to Saphira's cell to check on her to find it open and empty; he frowned as he looked around.
"It was her then." Odin said, "Bard's daughter, she somehow escaped and killed these guards and injured the others." He turned to the guards. "Find the girl stop her at all cost."
"No," Thor said, kneeling next to the guard lying outside Saphira's cell. He pulled the dagger out of the guard's neck and looked it over. "It was not Saphira; it was someone breaking her out, most likely off word by now." Thor stood.
"Who would help her break out and would be able to take out a prison full of guards to do so," Fandral demanded.
"Only one person I know of." Thor answered, "Father." he held the dagger out for Odin to see; he looked down at it; it was as familiar to Odin as it had been to Thor because only one person ever made daggers that looked like that appear out of nowhere while in battle, and the only one who would be able to go through a prison full of guards and risk getting caught, to break one woman out.
"Loki," Odin said, taking the dagger from Thor. "This is one of Loki's daggers."
"Saphira was right all along." Thor replied, grinning," My little brother is alive."
AN That Ends the Thor plotline; this is one of my favorite chapters I have written yet.
For anyone wondering, Saphira spent around six months in the dungeons, which is why she was starting to go a little mad, so in my story, Avengers happens in June of 2012. Not sure what is supposed to be in the movie, but I always thought somewhere in Summer since it looks hot out during the battle at the end.
Updates might start slowing down, do not have too much pre-written, and might change some stuff added To it, make the Avengers timeline a little longer than I have it, not sure, though.