Summary: Thor and the Avengers decide what to do. Meanwhile, Loki finally wakes.

Chapter 10:

Chapter Text

Thor sat beside his brother's bedside as daylight shimmered on the windows of buildings in the afternoon light. It had been five days since his confrontation between himself and the two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and there had been a tense peace between them. They had asked many questions and had (gently) interrogated Thor about everything, but eventually understood, still reasonably untrustful of Loki.

It was only after a meeting with the whole team that they finally came to a solution on whether or not Loki should be allowed to remain.

"It was the staff," Bruce commented. If it affected us as it did on the S.H.I.E.L.D. carrier, then imagine how it was affecting him."

"He looked...pale, sweaty and sickly when he appeared from the portal." Clint admitted. "He looked, well like someone who's been held captive...and tortured."

"You think his actions are not his own?" Natasha mused. "When I saw Clint...his eyes were blue instead of brown."

Thor nodded solemnly, "Loki's eyes are green. When I confronted him on that hilltop, his eyes were blue as well. I believe...it was the Mind Stone that was controlling him, Clint and the others."

"So now all we have to do is have him give up who was controlling him?" Tony crossed his arms, "That sounds easy."

"And we have to find the secpter." Steve added. "S.H.I.E.L.D. had it when they fell, but if H.Y.D.R.A. infiltrated..."

"We find the staff then," Thor agreed, "and we take back the Mind Stone."

They had agreed that as Loki was mortal now, he would bring no harm to them, and allowed him to stay.

The Thunderer had lived in perpetual fatigue and worry the entire time for his adopted sibling. He wished their mother had been there to tend to his brother with cool cloths and gentle words of comfort as she had when they were children. It was then that the loss of his mother had swept through his consciousness. He had not cried after her death or during her funeral. As the crown prince, he could not outwardly show his grief; it might be taken as perhaps as a weakness. Thor had asked if he could remain in his room, to allow himself the silence to properly mourn her loss.

Loki, more sensitive of the two, had mourned the loss more openly. Thor had noticed when he had gone down to the dungeons, that he found Loki only in a tunic and breeches, amid the broken furniture, no doubt, the result of his anger and grief. The red rimmed eyes and even paler face of his brother had illustrated the deep loss he had felt at Frigga's death. Truly, it had been cruel to not tell him of her passing and funeral after the fact. Thor could never forgive himself, nor his father for such a cruelty, and knew in his heart that perhaps Loki would not either. He would understand if perhaps, they were to go their own ways and never see one another again.

A smile had appeared on Doctor Lei's face earlier in the week when she had told Thor that Loki's fever had abated and pulled the ventilation. The doctor began to wean their patient off sedation, and Thor now waited for him to wake. As the afternoon's long hours lingered on, Thor grew more tired and found himself nodding off.

It was during one of these naps that Thor missed his brother stirring.

Loki could smell an odd, unknown stench from his nostrils. His eyes finally ventured to open, his head swimming as he tried to focus. He took in the countless machines and followed their route down to his own body. Loki coughed, feeling a tube lodged in his nose that wound its way uncomfortably down his throat. He felt the pain in his chest and the ache of unused muscles. Loki could only briefly recall when Thor had explained his body being damaged. There was some recollection of speaking with his father, or rather, with Odin. How long had he been sleeping?

He turned his head slightly and could see Thor's brawny figure in the chair next to the bed, chin resting on his chest. Loki noted the circles under his eyes and felt incredulous that he would exhaust himself for his own sake. But dimly in his memory, Loki recalled Thor rescuing him from Odin's wrath, holding him tightly in his arms, and being by his bedside.

The door slid open and a woman, clad in a healer's white coat, entered the room. Her demeanor was serious, but it was tempered with a kind smile at her patient. Loki vaguely recalled the mortal healer attending to him. He strode to her patient with a pleased smile, and picking up his wrist, took his pulse.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Laufeyson. It's good to see you awake. You've had a rough few days." Doctor Lei spoke quietly, so that she didn't wake the occupant of the chair.

Loki's eyebrows knitted, but he coughed wetly and harshly with the lingering effect of illness, his eyes watering. "Please…don't…calm me…Laufeyson…Just…Loki." He paused to inhale "What...do...you...mean?" He rasped in with only short words.

"You've been very sick for almost a week," The doctor explained. She pulled an oblong device no bigger than a stick and hovered it above his patient's forehead, "100.3. You still have a temperature, but it's down from a few days ago. Thor told us your body runs colder, so when your temp spiked to 103, we grew quite concerned. "

Loki just wheezed again, grimacing at the tube snaking down his throat. He tried to move his arms to remove it, but found they were tethered by soft restraints. Wincing, he tried to break free, only to find that he didn't have the strength, nor he magic to assist him in his endeavor.

"You shouldn't move so much, save your energy. Don't worry, the restraints are only there to keep you from pulling out the tubes." The doctor firmly gripped his shoulders. "I will check your vitals and fluids, then you can rest." She pointed to the cannula in her patient's nose, "We'll take that out presently, if you can keep down some liquids, all right? Let's try some water." Pouring some, she held the glass to Loki's lips. Loki drank gratefully, though that exact sentiment did not pass his lips.

Doctor Lei called out as Loki finished some sips of water, "JARVIS?"

Yes Doctor Lei? The smooth robotic tone answered, making Loki jump a little.

"Please tell Doctor Banner that Mr. Lauf-Mr. Loki is awake."

Right away, M'am. Shall I inform Sir and Captain Rogers?

"Might as well." The doctor said, as she finished checking the scars, medical tubes, drainage and I.V.'s. She smiled patiently as Loki looked curiously to the ceiling, stifling a yawn, before hacking again. "That's Tony's-Mr. Stark's A.I. He runs a lot around here, apparently. Let's get that tube out of your nose, you'll rest better without it."

She explained the procedure, then when finished, glanced at her patient with a little trepidation. "Sure you don't want to wake your brother?"

The Asgardian attempted to snort, which made him grimace with pain. "I am over 1,000 years old. I don't need for my-for Thor to hold my hand."

Doctor Lei nodded dimly, but then proceeded with the extraction. At the end of it, Loki hitched coughing filled the room, and fresh agony came to his ribs and lungs. In time it finally died out. After a further few sips of water, Loki sagged limply in his pillow.

"I'm sorry that it's so unpleasant." Doctor Lei consoled. She looked over to Thor, "I'm surprised that h e didn't wake up this whole time."

"He sleeps deeply when exhausted or drunk, and nothing can wake him until he himself wishes to do so." Loki remarked, but something recalled him to a memory from so many years ago. He had gotten drunk and had overslept and while doing so, he had gotten the chance to charm a fair maiden that had rejected the crown prince. He smiled at the memory.

"I'll let you sleep now, Loki. There's a call button on the side of the bed should you need anything," she pointed to a small silver square with a large white button in the center. "Or just call JARVIS. I'll check in on you later. "

When the doctor disappeared into the corridor, Loki sighed and settled back and glanced over to his sleeping brother.

Brother. It was the death of their mother that had brought them back together. In grief, the two estranged siblings had found common ground again. Even though each had their motivations for the events which followed, Loki felt that Thor could at last see him, even if he himself did not wish to acknowledge it. Now that he was a mere mortal now on this forsaken little planet, what did his brother, and that of his Midgardian shield warriors have in store for him? Loki's eyes slid shut as he pondered it, only then realizing that Thor's left hand had been encompassing his right.

"Loki," Thor muttered under his breath, stirring slightly before falling back into sleep, squeezing his brother's hand.

The Trickster felt warmth bubble within him with long absent tenderness. Clutching his brother's hand, Loki too, soon succumbed to slumber.

TBC...