As promised, this chapie is a bit longer ;) Enjoy! x

Chapter 4

Loki couldn't believe his luck. He quickly made his way through the crowd and hid himself behind some trees. There he watched the crowd fall apart. Jane Foster was still standing in the middle of the road, trying to get a grip on what just had happened. Perfect! At the side of the road the shop keeper tried to get on his feet again, but Loki was not interested in him. He kept a close eye on Jane while she slowly made her way for a bench at the other side of the path, rubbing her arm confusedly.

Loki slowly opened the bottle of Coca Cola and tasted the brown fluid. A sprinkling sensation spread threw his whole mouth. The young king looked surprised at the bottle. Even though he wouldn't easily admit it, this Midgardian drink was rather good.

Suddenly Jane got up from the bench and left. Loki screwed the cap back on the bottle, changed his appearance into that of an old man and left his hiding place to follow Thor's girlfriend. He made sure to keep some distance between himself and Jane. Especially after what just had happened, she would be more paranoia.

Five minutes later Jane slowed down near a small playground. Loki who was walking in front of her now, pretending to admire the flowers, heard her talk to herself.

"Smile, Jany! Otherwise Thor's gonna be worried and nobody likes a worried Thor…" she said softly.
"Nothing happened. It was just a stupid freak! Smile Jany!"

Loki shook his head. Pathetic! He turned around and saw Jane forcing a smile on her face before entering the playground. Loki followed her to the back of the playground. There he found a small swing. There were only two people. All the other kids were romping on the climbing frame or were playing stuff like hide and seek. Jane walked towards the tall, big man behind the swing and kissed him softly on the cheek. The man smiled and kissed her back.
Loki almost needed to puke! Oh please… he thought while sitting down on a bench halfway the playground. Still, for the first time in five years he saw his brother again. He had to admit he was surprised. Thor was wearing a green shirt, a pair of blue jeans and a pair of white sneakers. Not only did he look… normal. Loki was certain Thor had gained some weight… just a little…

But the most interesting person on the sight was the little girl on the swing. Loki couldn't keep his eyes of here. She was beautiful indeed. Frigga had long, blond hair and bright blue eyes. She was laughing and yelling louder every time her father pushed her again. Higher and higher. She wanted higher and higher. And every time she cried in excitement, Frigga showed her beautiful smile and Loki found himself smiling.
For the first time ever he finally saw his …well… niece! Somewhere deep inside a sudden feeling took over his heart. Was that… jealousy? Loki shook his head in confusion. No! he couldn't give anything about the daughter of his arrogant brother and that woman who got his mother killed ! He left the bench and disappeared between the trees again. It was time to put his plan in motion.

The young king walked closer towards the couple, making sure he stayed out of their view. Now Loki was standing so close, he could follow the conversation.

Jane Foster looked lovingly at her happy, little daughter.
"Thor, darling, let her play with the other kids, please…", she said with a friendly voice. "It won't hurt her…"

But Thor shook his head and a serious frown appeared on his handsome face.
"I'm sorry, Jane, but that's not safe!"

Jane sighed and let go of her husband's shoulder.
"Oh, come on! They're only kids! And by the way, scientific research shows us that interaction with peers is necessary in the education of a young child!" Jane added with a meaningful grin.

"Of course… because scientific research is always right…" Thor answered sarcastically while pushing his daughter again.

Jane's smile disappeared and made place for a rather angry scowl. She crossed her arms before her chested and answered: "I'm not saying that! You always put words in my mou…"

Jane couldn't finish her little speech because Thor interrupted her by kissing her right on the mouth. Jane quickly backed away, blushing when she did.
"Thor!" she whispered. "People are watching!"

Thor grinned again and put his arm around Jane.
"Are they?" he whispered back in her ear. Jane hit her husband playfully in the stomach.

Loki, who had seen everything from his hideout between the trees felt sick. Oh please… he thought again. Can they be anymore disgusting?
Anyway, he had to put his plan in motion. Loki concentrated and changed himself into Odin. Again he found himself carrying that ridicules sceptre, but since the Allfather always seemed to carry it around wherever he went, he had to keep it close for a little while longer. Now he only had to wait for the right moment to appear.

Frigga, who had had enough of the awkward behaviour of her parents, jumped from the swing while it was still in the air and ran off to a deserted sandpit.

"Frigga! Wait!", Thor called out. He stretched out his arm, ready to stop his daughter, but Jane stopped him.

"Thor, really, let her be. It 's only a sandpit. Thrust me, I'm sure that Central Park made sure there aren't any man eating monsters hiding in their sandpits… This is Earth, not pointy-evil-elf-planet!"

"Svartalfheim…", Thor corrected her without taking his eyes of Frigga who had started filling a little bucket with sand.

"Gesundheit!" Jane answered sarcastically. She took Thor's face in her hands and forced him to look at her.
"Really, Thor, you're the last one I expected to be such a worried father!"

"I agree with Jane Foster, my son!" a low voice suddenly sounded over the playground. Thor and Jane looked up bewilderedly. They both reorganized the voice, but never expected to hear it here, off all places. Thor's eyes grew big.

"Father?" he said with disbelief. Jane, who realised how close she was standing to Thor, not to mention the fact that Odin probably had witnessed everything that had happened during the last minutes, quickly let go of Thor's face and took a step back.

A huge smile covered Thor's face. He stepped forward and bowed his head.
"Father! What brings you here?"

Loki smiled in exactly the same way Odin always used to.
"Heimdall told me about my beautiful grandchild and now, after all these years, I want to see and meet her…"

Thor looked at his father in amazement. Jane looked at the Allfather feeling more ashamed than ever!

"I wanted to come sooner, but I think that she wouldn't have understood…" Loki continued, now looking past Thor at the little girl who was playing in the sandpit without noticing what was going on.

"Of course father…" Thor finally answered.

Loki smiled and looked at Jane.
"Don't be ashamed, Jane Foster. It's my son who should be ashamed of himself…" he said friendly. Jane managed to smile, but she couldn't find her voice to speak. Loki didn't pay attention to her and turned to Thor again, a rather serious expression covering Odin's face.

"Didn't I brought you up showing you the dangers of the real world, my son? It made you strong and a true leader…"

Thor smiled and raised his eyebrows.
"If you're here to ask me again to take the throne, my answer hasn't changed, father."

Loki tried to make Odin look surprised, but it seemed the Allfather wasn't really capable of doing that.
"It was worth trying anyway…but enough about us, my son…" he continued. Loki turned back to Jane and took her hand.
"I believe I need to congratulate you both with your marriage…Welcome to the family Jane Foster!" the young king said while softly kissing Jane's hand in the same way Thor had done the first time they met.

Jane didn't know what to say, so she grinned rather stupidly and stuttered:
"Thank you, sir…, I mean Sire! I mean Odin… Allf.."

Loki smiled reassuring.
"No need to be nervous miss… You make my son happy, that is something I did not accomplish…"

"Father…", Thor started, but Loki interrupted him.

"Not another word! Enough talking. I want to see my grandchild!" he said in excitement. Thor and Jane glanced at each other. They didn't need any words to understand each other… Why not?

"We named her Frigga, father…", Thor explained while escorting Loki towards the sandpit.

A sudden sad look appeared on Loki's face. He didn't need to fake his grieve for Frigga's death.
"An excellent name… I am sure she is a beautiful as her grandmother…"

Thor and Loki walked in silence until they reached the sandpit. Frigga didn't notice their presence and kept playing happily in the sand while singing a funny song. Again Loki felt a familiar pain in his heart, but he ignored it.

The young girl was busy building something. Next to her Loki could see a pile of little puppets, all starring to the sky with an empty glare in their black eyes.

"Frigga, sweetheart," Thor started nervously, "there's someone I would like you to meet…"

The young girl turned around while brushing her long, golden hair out of her face using her in sand covered hands. Her eyes first met Thor's before she fixed on the old, weird looking man next to her father. Behind the two men she saw her mother casting meaningful looks. Frigga clapped her hands together to get rid of the sand and tried to smile.

"Good day sir….", she said silently. Thor smiled.

"Frigga, remember the stories mummy and I used to tell you?"

Loki smirked. Mummy… he thought in disgust. No one seemed to notice his behaviour.

Thor kneeled in front of his daughter.
"All the stories about Lady Sif and the Worriers Three?"

A big smile appeared on the little girl's face and she nodded.
"Yes! Daddy!" she called out happily.

Daddy… Please! Loki was trying hard not to show any emotion. He was Odin now and Odin always looked like a boring, emotionless, senile liar!

"You remember what I told you about my, our, family?" Thor continued.

Frigga nodded again. She casted a swift look on the old man before her.

"Well then, Frigga, I would like you to meet The Allfather! Odin, King of Asgard and my father", Thor finished. He turned around and looked Loki in the eyes.
"Father, this is Frigga…"

Frigga's eyes grew big. Before anyone could stop her, she ran forward and threw her little arms around Loki's legs. Loki froze. Never, ever, had anyone hugged him, except for his mother, but that was a long, long time ago…

"Grandpa!" The little girl shouted.

Thor who saw his father freeze on spot, understood that Odin wasn't used to this kind of affection. The God of Thunder quickly pulled his daughter away from his father. Frigga looked startled. What had she done wrong?

"I'm sorry, father, she didn't mean…" Thor tried to explain, but Loki who had quickly adapted to the situation, just smiled.

"No need to apologize, my son. I like her enthusiasm. I see she got that from you…"

Thor seemed to relax and turned to his daughter. The little girl didn't know what was going on and was almost crying. Again, Loki took his chance. What better way to gain Thor's trust. He kneeled next to Thor, making sure he didn't do it too fast. He was an old, cracking man after all…
"Don't be frightened, child, you did nothing wrong… do not cry."

Frigga almost seemed convinced so Loki put in his final card.
"If you show me that beautiful smile of yours once more, you can hold my sceptre for a while… I'm sure your father told you all about it's magical powers…" he whispered mysteriously. Frigga smiled and nodded.

"Did you really defeated the whole frost giant's army with it?", the young girl whispered in excitement.
Auw! Frigga had touched a week spot… For a moment Loki almost forgot what he was doing. All he wanted was to wipe that filthy liar, Thor, clean of the earth, but he managed to keep calm.

Loki came closer and snapped his fingers.
"Just like that!" he answered.

Frigga starred at him in trance. Her bright eyes fixed on the golden staff Loki was holding in his right hand. Without further notice Loki handed the sceptre to the little girl. Frigga almost lost grip on the heavy thing, but she just managed to keep it upright. Thor looked at his girl in concern.

"Are you sure it's safe?" he asked cautiously.

Loki got back on his feet and nodded.
"She doesn't know how to use it, so yes, it's entirely safe!"

"All right then…" Thor said silently.

"What happened to you, my son? When you grew up you did not want to do anything else then fighting. Defeating every enemy was your biggest dream!"

Thor smiled at his father.
"I'm sorry, father, but I think that's exactly the problem."

A confused frown appeared on the Allfather's face.

"I grew up, knowing every danger out there. I've seen death and suffering. I've seen what's out there, father. I was there when my own mother died and I saw my brother die while he was protecting me and the women I love…"

Thor waited a few seconds. Deep sorrow spread over his face. Even Loki couldn't help showing a sign of pain. He still blamed Thor for Frigga's death. If he and that stupid old idiot hadn't locked him away, Loki would have been able to save his mother's life. But also the fact that Thor still mourned him, awoke a new feeling inside the young king's chest. It almost felt like… guilt… No! That wasn't possible! Loki ignored it. Meanwhile Thor went on with his story.

"I just don't want all that for her, father. I want her to be happy and safe from danger and my past."

Loki nodded.
"I do not understand you entirely, but I respect your decision, my son. I just want to spent some time with my grandchild, that's all I will ever ask from you."

Thor looked at his daughter. Frigga was running around the sandpit, waving with the golden sceptre.
"Of course, father. I think she already likes you by the way…" he answered.

Loki looked at the child and nodded.
"Well, she does like the sceptre… maybe one day she'll become queen…" Loki cautiously added. He knew he was taking a risk, mentioning Asgard so soon. But on the other hand: if Thor declined the offer now, Loki would be able to cover it up easily.

Thor smirked. He had had the feeling his father would start talking about Asgard. But he had made his decision a long time ago.
"I am truly sorry, father, but I will stay here on Earth with Jane. Frigga will grow up here. Nevertheless, I keep to my word: If Asgard or any of the nine realm ever need me, I will be there to help!"

Loki pretended to be a bit disappointed. In a way he was, though. He now knew it would be harder to convince Thor into coming to Asgard. But that were problems for later. Maybe if he gained Thor's trust a bit more – through Frigga of course – maybe he could get his brother to open the Bifrost for him in the end.

"It was worth trying…" Loki said with a grin on Odin's face.
"Forget what I said. I am here to get to know my grandchild and to spent some time with my family. You must understand, my son, you are the only family I have left in the whole universe…"

There! A frown of compassion appeared on Thor's face. One step closer again!

"Of course, father", Thor said silently.

Suddenly Jane appeared.
"Thor, darling, can you help me for a moment. I lost my contact over there and I can't find it…", Jane said innocently while throwing meaningful looks at her husband. Loki pretended not to see.

Thor frowned and nodded.
"Father," he started, "would you mind to keep an eye on Frigga, we won't be long…"

Loki turned around and pretended to be surprised.
"Of course! Don't you worry! Go and find your contact-thing…"

Jane didn't wait for anything else. She pulled Thor away from the scene until they disappeared behind a turn.
Loki sighed. That was officially the lamest excuse he'd ever heard in his whole life!

"That was officially the lamest excuse I've heard in my whole life!" Thor shouted between clenched teeth. "You don't even have contacts! What's this all about anyway?"

Jane looked over Thor's shoulder to make sure Odin wouldn't see them.
"I'm sorry!" she whispered. "I couldn't think of anything else. It always works in the movies!"

Thor raised his eyebrows. Jane sighed.
"All right! It's just… couldn't you warn me. That's your dad over there! The same dad who didn't really like me the first time… remember. That wasn't what I would call a good first impression!"

Thor smirked.
"Seriously? You're still making fuss about that? He did and still does like you. He just has his own way of showing it…"

"Maybe, but still, you could have warned me… He scared the hell out of me!"

"I didn't know he was coming! It's not like we got cell phones on Asgard…"

Jane frowned.
"Well, my cell phone worked on pointy-evil-elf planet… no denying that…"

"I'm sorry, but we don't usually have portals between worlds like that… It kind of interferes with the reach…", Thor answered sarcastically. "And by the way, you still haven't told me who Richard is?"

"Who cares!" Jane shouted frustrated. "And then there's another thing: tell me if I'm wrong, but I'm quite sure my daughter is playing with a sceptre that can kill armies on its own!"

Thor smiled and took Jane in his arms.
"That sceptre is completely harmless! Only one who knows how to use it, can use it as a weapon. Don't worry, Frigga is no danger…"

"I hope not…", Jane whispered against Thor's chest. Suddenly she saw something in the corner of her eye. Something shiny was coming their way. Thor looked up in surprise.

"My prince…" a voice sounded.

Loki walked over to the sandpit, to Frigga. She had put down the sceptre and was playing in the sand again. Loki kneeled next to her. Frigga seemed to be working on some kind of… thing. Little piles of sand were spread through the sandpit. For a moment Loki forgot who he was and before he could stop himself, he heard the words coming out of his mouth…

"What is that!" he asked in a really Odin unlikely way.

Frigga looked up from her work. A scowl appeared on her pretty face.
"It's… it's a castle…"she stuttered.

Loki immediately understood he had said something stupid.
"Of course!" he tried. "A castle, can you show me around?" he asked in his most friendly voice he could manage.

A smile formed on Frigga's lips. She picked up a doll from the pile next to here and showed it to Loki.
"This is Daddy! He is the King of the castle!" she said while putting the doll in the sand in front of what should be the door. Loki had to try hard not to rip the doll out of the girl's hands. Thor… king…

Frigga went on. She picked up a second doll. This time it was a woman.
"That's mommy, she's the queen!" the little girl explained. She put the doll next to the first one.
"And this," Frigga said while picking up a little doll with a funny pink dress, "this is me! The princess!" Frigga put the little princess doll with the other two dolls.
"I can play the whole day! And I have lots of friends. They're all princes and princesses and knights! Even the girls can be warriors!" the little girl continued while placing all the other dolls everywhere around the piles of sand.

Loki looked at the sandpit. He just had to ask! He couldn't stop himself!
"What about your daddy's brother? Where's he?" Loki asked. Frigga looked confused.

"Brother?" she asked.

Loki immediately understood Thor had never told Frigga about him… Not that he really cared, but why… A few minutes ago he seemed to care about him, but still, he had never mentioned him in any of the stories… And what about the Battle of New York? What did he tell her about that.
Loki had to think quickly.
"No, no, forget what I said. It wasn't even his real brother… just forget about it, child…" he said. Frigga still looked a bit confused.

"My name is Frigga…", she said eventually.

Loki nodded and smiled.
"Of course, Frigga! My apologies…"

The little girl laughed. It remained silent for a moment.

"Where're mummy and daddy?" Frigga asked.

Loki felt sick. This mummy and daddy-stuff was starting to annoy him. He looked around.
"Good question. Let's find out, shall we… Your mother said she had lost her contact, maybe we can help searching!"

Frigga jumped to her feet and handed Loki the sceptre. Together they walked toward the corner facing the rest of the playground.

"Do you have a big castle on Asgard?" Frigga suddenly asked. Loki looked down at the girl hopping next to him.

"Oh yes, I've got a really big one! Almost as big as the one you build today!"

Frigga smiled.
"And are there any princesses?"

Loki's smile faded.
"No, not really, not anymore…", he said quietly.

Frigga frowned.
"Then you need one! Can I be the princess?"

Thor looked up. Before him stood three Asgardian guards. All in shining armour.

"My prince!" the leader repeated.

Before he could say anything else, Thor stepped forward.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. The guards bowed.

"The Captain send us. He wanted to check if our King was all right."

"Your King?" Thor asked. "Didn't he tell you where he was going?"

The guards shook their heads. Thor looked confused.

"My father never leaves like that! He must have told the Captain where he was going…"

The guards looked startled. For a moment they looked at each other. Thor noticed it.
"What?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

"Your father, Sire?" the leader asked.

"Yes my father! The Allfather! Your King!" Thor shouted. Some people started to throw angry glares at them.

"My apologies, my prince, but we are here on behalf of King Loki…"

Thor wanted to answer, but the words got stuck in his throat. He stared at the guards. The three men didn't know what to do. Thor looked at Jane, to make sure she had heard the same thing he did. The expression of disbelief on her face conformed.

"What?" Thor finally said. "Loki died… I was there… I told father…", he stuttered.

The guards looked at their prince in disbelief.
"My prince, the Allfather gave the throne to prince Loki, your brother, five years ago…"

"What? But…" Thor tried, but he couldn't think of anything to say. His thoughts were racing through his head. This couldn't be true! He saw Loki die! His brother had died in his arms! He never made it back to Asgard!

Slowly the pieces found their place. Thor started to understand. It had all been a trick. Loki had tricked him, again!

An enormous joy filled his body, but only to be put aside by the uncontrollable rage that followed. Once again, he had thought his brother dead! And once again he had returned!

"Where is my father now?" he asked in a whisper.

The guard who could detected the rage in his prince's words, answered cautiously.
"No one knows for sure, Sire. He left right after prince Loki had been crowned king. They say he has been traveling the nine reals and beyond ever since…"

Thor nodded and looked at Jane. They didn't need words to express their thought's.

Suddenly Loki, still disguised as Odin, appeared behind Thor.
"We'll see about that…", he said to Frigga, before looking up at the rest.

The guards froze.
"My King!" the leader said before kneeling down.
But it weren't the guards Loki saw first. Thor was staring at him with a weird kind of look in his eyes. A mixture of hatred, sadness, betrayal and so much more.

Loki didn't have to know what had happened. One look at the situation was enough.

Thor suppressed the desire to kill the man in front of him. He couldn't think anymore. He couldn't speak.. the only thing that came out of his mouth was:
"Loki…"

So... What now...

Let me know what you think!

;) x