ENJOY!

Chapter 31

(MEMORY)

Thor's hand slowly closed around the handle of the Mighty Mjölnir. Again he could hear the people cheer. Again he saw his father, mother and brother beam with proud. At last, the power of the hammer, the Mighty Mjölnir was his to wield! His and his alone!

Slowly the young prince lifted the hammer and let it circle through the air. It felt so light, so perfectly balanced and yet no one else could lift it, but himself and his father. Loki had tried every spell he could think of, but the hammer stayed put without fail. Volstagg, known to be the strongest warrior on Asgard, couldn't move it one inch. Sif had tried to lift it too, if only to prove her strength as a female warrior, but Mjölnir just wouldn't cooperate. At one point, she had even allowed Fandral to help, but still no result.

The young prince smiled while walking over to the balcony which looked over Asgard. Although, his smile faded when his eye fell on the Bifröst. There was something going on! Rumours about troubles on Midgard had come to Thor's attention. Yet, no one wanted to tell him what was going on! His parents wouldn't see him and when the young prince had summoned his friends and brother to investigate the matter themselves, Heimdall had stopped them. "Orders from the king!" he had said. Thor scowled. His father had never forbidden him something like this! And whatever it was, he was sure he could take care of it! Especially with the power of Mjölnir at his side! But no! His farther probably thought him too young! And now he was standing here, doing nothing!

With a loud bang, Mjölnir fell to the ground. Thor sighed and let his head rest on his hand, while leaning on the balustrade. He wasn't too young! One day he would show his farther what he was made of! He would show him his strength and courage! He would show him that he had all the makings of a true king!

"Thor!"

Thor turned on his heels. Fandral came rushing in the room. His face was as pale as ice and he was covered in sweat. His normally constant grin had disappeared and made place for an expression of pure fear. Thor opened his mouth to ask what was going on, but the out of breath Asgardian was first.

"You have to come with me! It's Loki! He's ill!"

Thor's eyebrows shot into the air. He'd seen his brother that same afternoon and he'd been in perfect health!

"Ill?" Thor repeated, now also wondering why Fandral was panicking about it. Everybody could have a bad day…

"It's no ordinary poisoning of sorts, Thor!" the Asgardian warrior anxiously explained. "We – Loki, Sif, and I - were just playing around at the armoury… One moment he was fine and the next, he just collapsed! He looked really bad, Thor!"

The young prince felt his stomach shrink to its minimum. All the colour drained from his face. Thor didn't know why, but Fandral's explanation had awoken a feeling of grave panic inside his heart. Without thinking the young prince started running, past Fandral, into the hall, leaving the Mighty Mjölnir behind on the balcony.

"Where is he now?" Thor asked, even though he already knew.

"The infirmary, of course!" Fandral answered while trying to catch up with his friend.

"Why didn't you go to my mother and father!" the prince shouted.

"I did…" Fandral responded. "But they weren't in the throne room. You were closest, so I thought…"

But Thor wasn't listening any more. His parents weren't in the throne room? Then where were they? When Thor had tried to see his parents, to ask them about the matter on Midgard, he been send away from the throne room by an angry looking Lord Argus. But if they weren't there, why did he send him away?

The young prince shook his head. That all didn't matter now!

Finally they reached the infirmary. Thor bust through the doors. His eye immediately fell on Sif, Volstagg and Hogun who were sitting next to a bed on which Loki lay.

The female warrior got to her feet, looking more worried than ever.

"The nurses already examined him. He's not poisoned, hurt, or enchanted."

Thor frowned and softly pushed Sif aside to see his brother for himself. Loki lay motionless on the bed, his clothes and raven hair drenched in sweat, his breathing fast and irregular. It seemed he was suffering from a really, really aggressive fever.

"Than what is it!" he asked without looking up. Sif exchanged a glare with Fandral behind Thor's back.

"They don't have the slightest clue…"she softly answered.

Thor turned around to face his friends. "What do you mean?" he asked harshly. Sif never got a chance to answer. A nurse came rushing towards them.

"My prince, I will have to ask you to empty this bed. We need it for another patient."

Thor looked up in disbelief.

"How dare you!" he shouted. "This is Loki, prince of Asgard. He is your patient too!"

The nurse seemed to grow impatient.

"The prince is in perfect health. There is nothing we can do for him!"

"Perfect health!" Thor repeated. "Look at him! He's dying!"

The nurse hesitated. "My prince, I believe prince Loki is just tired. Now I have to ask you again, please empty the bed. There are other patients who are in more need of medical care."

Thor wanted to shout something back, he was filled with rage, but Sif stopped him.

"Thor, maybe she's right…"

He female warrior pointed at the rest of the patients. Only then, Thor noticed the incredible amount of wounded warriors. They were literary everywhere. On the beds, at the door, on the floor. The infirmary was packed with patients. Another nurse was dragging a badly wounded warrior to Loki's bed. The nurse they'd been talking too earlier offered to help them to get Loki out of the bed, but for some reason, Thor didn't want anyone but himself to touch his brother. Carefully he lifted Loki's body from the bed and carried his brother to an empty corner of the room. There he lay down Loki's body. Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun took a seat as well. Sif set down too and softly put Loki's head on her lap. She carefully wiped some raven locks from his sweaty face.

"Where do all these warriors come from?" she asked in a broken whisper.

Thor shook his head. Now he was absolutely certain. There was something going on and by the looks of it, something really bad! But again, the young prince couldn't keep his thoughts on the subject. He looked down on his brother, feeling more and more worried every second.

"Fandral!" he suddenly started. "I want you, Volstagg and Hogun to try to find the king and queen!"

Fandral obviously wanted to object, but he knew better than to argue with the prince of Asgard, so he nodded and left with Volstagg and Hogun in his wake.

"Are you sure you didn't do anything rash…" Thor asked Sif. The female warrior shook her head while looking up from Loki's face.

"I swear, Thor. We were just playing around. Fandral, Volstagg and I were just trying to teach Loki some sword moves and Loki was trying to trick us with magic… the usual. He seemed all right! And then… he just collapsed!"

Thor nodded vaguely. He could here that Sif was terrified of what had happened and what would come. Something that didn't happen very often.

The young prince started to feel sick. He was nervous. Really nervous. Something had just struck him. His parents didn't seem to be around. Not on Asgard at least. That meant that the care of Asgard fell on Loki and him, but since Loki wasn't capable of doing anything, he was all alone. All alone! His brother was dying, his friends didn't know what to do… He was the one who was supposed to come up with a solution! For the first time ever, Thor wasn't so sure about his qualities any more. Strength and power wasn't going to help him out this time. He needed wits! He needed Loki, but right know his brother needed him too!

"We better take him to his chambers. There nothing they can do for him here…"

Sif nodded and let Thor pick up his brother again. Loki seemed to be getting worse with every step they took. When they finally had reached Loki's chambers, the mischievous prince was gasping for breath. Thor put him on the bed. What was he supposed to do! Thor looked up at Sif. He knew his fear was visible in his eyes. His little brother was dying!

Sif frowned passionately. She was really scared herself, but understood that Thor was even more terrified.

"Don't worry…" she said. "I am sure everything will be fine…"

Thor nodded while fixing his attention back on Loki. He didn't believe a word it!

Please Loki… he thought. Please wake up and tell me what to do…

Without warning, the doors of Loki's room suddenly bust open. Frigga and Odin came rushing in, followed by the Warriors Three.

Frigga had tears streaming down her face and Odin had an almost creepy worried expression on his face. Sif immediately walked away from the bed, giving the king and queen all the place they needed.

"Oh Loki...!" Frigga shouted through her tears. "I should have realised!"

The worried mother set down next to Loki and took his hand while putting her hand on her son's sweaty forehead. Odin walked to the other side of the bed.

Thor had never seen his parents this vulnerable. His mother was crying, his farther was completely ignoring him with more worry on his face than Thor thought possible.

Odin let his hand float over Loki's body.

"Thor, step aside!" he ordered his son. The young prince looked up in surprise, but obeyed. Odin set down and opened his hands above Loki's head, with the palms facing the ceiling.

"No!" Frigga suddenly shouted. "You are not going to use Dark Energy on our son!"

"Frigga, we have to hurry! This is the best way!"

"It is not! And you know it! Dark Energy caused this in the first place! You do not know what the effect might be! No! We are doing this my way!"

"Frigga…" Odin tried but one look from his Queen made him shut his mouth.

"What is going on!" Thor shouted. "Mother, what happened to Loki!?"

"Not now, sweetheart!" Frigga answered shortly while trying to stop crying to focus on Loki.

"But mother… Where were.."

"Your mother said: not now!, Thor!" Odin roared over his son's voice. The prince of Asgard stumbled back. His farther seemed furious with him.

"Now leave!" Odin continued. "All of you leave this room at once!"

Sif and the Warrior Three bowed their heads and quickly made their way out the room. Thor threw his farther an angry glare and slowly followed. Outside Thor made a quick decision. There was no way he was just going to accept this. He was the future ruler of Asgard! He was supposed to know when something was wrong!

As silent as possible, he hid behind a large column next to Loki's door. He could hear his parents inside, but he couldn't understand a word they were saying. The walls were too thick. Thor grumbled. If Loki were here he would simply turn them invisible and sneak in the room.

After what seemed like ages, the door finally opened again. Odin came marching out Loki's chambers. Thor pressed his body against the column, making sure his farther wouldn't see him, but Odin didn't even look. He just walked by, the worried expression still covering his face. Thor had never seen his father like this. The Allfather always seemed so… well… serious. And every now and then, also rather heartless. But now…

Thor swallowed. Was Loki all right? Was he… alive? The young prince didn't have to wait long, for his mother walked out the room as well. Her eyes were red and swollen because of the crying, but she seemed less worried than before. Did that mean Loki was fine?

Thor tried to stay focused. Once his mother would have left the hall, he would go back inside to check up on his brother.

Frigga took a deep breath and rubbed her eyes, until a funny feeling took hold of her. It was a sensation she'd felt many times before, only this time it wasn't Loki who was responsible… A kind, yet mysterious smile appeared on her face.

"Thor, my son, I now you are there…"

Thor bid his lip. He hadn't made a sound! How could she know! There was just no fooling his mother!

Timidly, the young prince left his hiding place. He smiled sheepishly, but his face quickly became serious again.

"Is Loki all right, mother?" he asked. Frigga sighed and turned back to the door while gesturing Thor had to follow. So he did.

Once in the room, mother and son walked over to the bed where Loki lay resting peacefully. He was still covered in sweat and looked extremely pale and tired, but he was breathing normally and seemed alive and well.

"What happened, mother?" Thor asked after a short silence.

"There are some things, my son, that are better kept quiet."

Thor sighed and scowled. He was growing tired of this!

"Mother, I demand to know what happened! You were gone! You and farther! There were at least a hundred wounded warriors at the infirmary! Heimdall wouldn't let me leave! There were rumours about troubles on Midgard! Loki just collapsed! I didn't know what to do!"

Frigga sadly frowned. "My son, believe me…"

"I am the future king of Asgard! How am I supposed to lead and protect the nine realms if I do not know what happens around me and which dangers are lurking in the shadows?" Thor shouted, feeling frustrated. He was not a child any longer! The fact that the Mighty Mjölnir was now in his care should only prove that even more!

Frigga sadly smiled. She was sitting next to Loki's bed and was stroking his head while facing Thor who was still standing in the middle of the room, trying to look confident and strong.

"All right, my son, as you wish, but you have to promise that you will never, ever tell Loki what I will tell you now."

Thor frowned but nodded. Frigga waved her hand through the air. A shimmering shield covered Loki's bed in order to keep any sound from the unconscious prince. You never knew if he was pretending or not…

Frigga took a deep breath. She obviously didn't enjoy telling her son this.

"What you heard was true: there were indeed some grave troubles on Midgard. Matters were getting out of hand and both me and your father were forced to go, to prevent the threads from reaching Asgard."

Thor said down next to his mother. "What threats, mother?" he asked.

"You know that I have learned my magic from the Great Merlin himself…"

"Yes, you told us about his lessons…"

Frigga nodded. "Do you also remember what I've told you about the dangers of magic?"

Thor frowned shortly. "I believe so… Magic cannot be used for bad purposes. Otherwise it will turn against you. It's a basic rule of nature!"

Frigga nodded again, almost proud that Thor remembered her lessons. Most of the time, her son son wasn't exactly 'present' …

"My master, Merlin, had many, many children. Every single one of them was a very powerful and respective wizard or witch. As you know, most of them spend their time on Midgard to help out the Midgardians. Unfortunately, right now, it is not the best time for sorcerers to be on Midgard…"

Thor laughed. "What? The Midgardians are going to kill us?" he asked sarcastically.

Frigga didn't laugh, though, and Thor went quiet.

"Right?" the young prince asked.

"Some of Merlin's children have been careless. There magic became to public. The humans have grown scared of the unknown and magic is something they don't understand. A new religion has replaced ours, in which there is no place for sorcerers and witches."

All colour had drained from Thor's face. "But… but… they… the humans can't kill us. Can they, mother?"

Frigga shook her head. "Remember we are not invincible, Thor. We are no gods… Fire can kill us as much as water makes us drown."

Thor swallowed, but forced himself not to show his fear.

Frigga continued.
"More and more sorceress and witches are killed. Some of them were Merlin's children…"

"But they didn't do any harm!" Thor shouted. His mother took his hand and squeezed it.

"Of course not, my precious, but the Midgardians do not see that. Regrettably, Merlin could not understand their ignorance. When his last daughter had died in flames, he completely lost his mind."

Thor gasped in disbelief. "You don't mean to say that…"

Frigga nodded. Her eyes were filling up with tears once more.

"But…" Thor tried. "But Merlin… he loves the humans! More than anyone else!"

"The line between love and hatred is thin and blurred and it is crossed so easily, my son. Even Merlin couldn't take the pain and loneliness and it drove him to… madness."

Thor couldn't believe what he was hearing. Merlin, THE Merlin, the greatest and most powerful wizard Asgard had ever known was gone!

"You understand that we had to stop him. Even though our forces had outnumbered Merlin, they were no match for his dark power. So your farther and me came down. I tried to reason with my master, but it was in vain. He had to be stopped…. And so your father did…"

"But what… what has this to do with Loki?" the terrified prince asked.

Frigga nodded and waited until she was sure Thor was ready to hear the rest.

"Even though your brother doesn't realise it yet, he is really strong when it comes down to magic. Probably even more powerful than me. When the balance of nature is disturb, those who practise magic can feel it. I, myself, felt this too, but not this intense. I should have realised it sooner…"

Thor had the feeling something was missing from his mother's explanation, something was not right, but he was too upset to give to much thought to it.

"So… Merlin is… is…" the young prince stuttered.

"Dead…" Frigga finished as if she also had to convince herself that her master was gone for good.

The room stayed quiet for a couple of minutes with only Loki's steady breathing breaking the silence.

"Thor, my son…" Frigga said after a while, while placing her hand softly under her Thor's chin, forcing him to look at her.

"You have to promise never to tell this to Loki. Merlin has always been his great example and it would kill him to know of this tragedy. It's better if your brother never knows the truth…"

(END MEMORY)

Thor turned silent. He'd just told Jane everything he could remember of that unfaithful day.

Jane didn't know what to think.

"So what Loki said about Merlin, back at the tourist office…"

"All true…" Thor answered. "Except that he thinks Merlin died of old age…"

"How exactly is this going to help with me allowing Frigga to become… well… a witch!"

Thor sighed. "To be honest, I think it would be better for Frigga to be tutored. What happened to her is something… very powerful. And the fact that even Loki doesn't understand it, gives me the creeps."

"Oh, so you're just going to let him experiment on our daughter!"

"I'm going to let him help her, Jane!"

"But you just told me that even the strongest wizard of all time has gone mad! How do we now that won't happen to Loki or… to Frigga…"

"We don't." Thor simply answered. "I told you this because I didn't want you to find out on yourself and blame Loki afterwards for not telling you."

Jane nodded vaguely. And you're afraid to argue with me after last night… she thought.

"Jane…" Thor suddenly started again, sounding almost hesitatingly. "Please promise me you'll never tell Loki this… You see… After my parents had told me who Loki really was, my mother reminded me of that day. Loki's illness had nothing to do with the fact that he practised magic. As a frost giant, he stands closer to the elements, more specifically, ice. Because he's bound to nature like that, he could feel the disturbance like no one else. If Loki finds out that mother was lying to him about his real parentage too, he might loose it as well…"

Jane nodded. She wasn't crazy! Telling Loki he had been living a lie, hadn't turned out so good last time either…

Both parents stayed silent for a while.

"I'm sorry, Thor…" Jane said. "But I'm still not sure…"

Thor sighed and smiled.

"Was he telling the truth?" the worried mother continued. "Has Loki really never used magic for bad purposes before. I mean like… hurting people?"

Thor shook his head. "No…"

"And he never will?"

"Absolutely, Jane! I'm positive! Loki may be the God of Mischief, but he's no idiot. Besides, it would dishonour mother if he would use magic like that. He would never, ever do such a thing!"

Jane sighed and frowned. Thor came closer to her and put his hand softly on her face, forcing her to look at him.

"Believe me, Jane. I am one hundred percent sure that there is not a better tutor in the world to teach Frigga then Loki…"

Thank you all for reading this fic for so long! Hope you liked it!

Please let me know what you think :)

Rumple x