(Disclaimer: The author and co-author don't own Thor or the characters of the movie.)

Thor:

Matters Concerning Kings and Queens

Chapter 2:

A Tale of the Past and an Old Tradition

"Once, mankind accepted a simple truth, that they were not alone in this universe. Some worlds man believed to be home to their gods. Others, they knew to fear. From a realm of cold and darkness came the Frost Giants, threatening to plunge the mortal world into a new ice age. But humanity would not face this threat alone. Our armies drove the Frost Giants back into the heart of their own world. The cost was great. In the end, their king fell. And the source of their power was taken from them. With the last great war ended, we withdrew from the other worlds and returned home to the Realm Eternal, Asgard. Here we remain as a beacon of hope, shining out across the stars. And though we have fallen into man's myths and legends, it was Asgard and its warriors that brought peace to the universe." Odin Allfather, King of Asgard, led his sons and the daughters of his greatest ally through the weapons' vault of Asgard and told them of times of old. "But the day will come," he directed this to his sons, "when one of you will have to defend that peace." Then talking to the young ladies, "And maybe one of you as well." Thor's and Loki's heads just barely reached their Father's shoulders.

"Do the Frost Giants still live?" Loki and Inari asked in union as Thor and Mina stared at them. Loki and Inari at this point in time were the same height, while Kaminari was slightly taller than Thor.

"When I'm king," Thor said with his hand over his heart and an almost smug look upon his face and Loki looking at him with disdain, "I'll hunt the monsters down and slay them all!" He pretended to be killing the "monsters" and received a small snort from the princesses who were trying to hide their laughter. "Just as you did, Father." Kaminari rolled her eyes and whispered something to her sister, making her laugh a little too loudly and quickly hide her face as Thor shot her a dirty look.

"A wise king, or queen, never seeks out war." Odin spoke as he made eye contact with each of them. "But he, or she, must always be ready for it." They watched as the Allfather walked past them on his way back to the rest of the palace, before the boys shared a look and rushed to catch up to him and take his hands. The girls just watched them before following at a slower pace, easily showing the grace they had been taught.

"I'm ready, Father." Thor said.

"So am I," said Loki.

"Only one of you can ascend to the throne." Odin stated after squeezing both his sons' hands. "But both of you were born to be kings."

"Yeah, right," Mina muttered to herself as she slowed to walk at the back of the group.

Always in the shadows never in the light; Inari, the troublemaker, the mischievous one, the one no one wanted; she sighed, adjusting her green robes, pulling them tighter around herself as a sudden gust of wind blew, chilling her to the bone. She was waiting outside the palace, near the stables, for him to appear. She didn't have to wait long before he materialized, "Inari, you came." He said with a smile.

She smiled back, "Of course I came." She let out a small giggle, "What have you summoned me for, my dear friend?"

"To offer a bit of fun, really, to ruin our siblings' day," he smiled, mischievously, as he looked down at her; he was much taller than her now.

A gleeful smirk graced her lips as she replied, "Alright, Loki, tell me more."

Mina, now a woman, was pacing in front of the doors that lead into the throne room of the palace; her family, her Mother – the Queen, her Father – the King, and her little sister awaited her inside. Mina couldn't believe that two full months had passed since she was sent to Midgard for her test. For the final part of her test, she would need to greet her family as if they were strangers, then and only then could she treat them as family and they her; she would also have to speak and act as if she were a modern mortal of Midgard.

"Madam?" a guard tried to grasp her attention, "It is time." Mina took a deep breath before nodding her head and heading in the direction of the large, double doors. They looked and moved sideways like any traditional styled Japanese paper doors, but were made of metal and fabric so strong any creature would have trouble breaking through. As the doors opened, Mina swept some of her long, ebony hair over her shoulder. A sigh escaped her as she made the long trek to the throne that stood at the far side of the huge room that appeared to be made of gold. A beautiful, deep purple carpet stretched to the length of the room, but not the width; it was wide enough for three people to walk side-by-side.

Extra – Asgard, not long after the talk with the Allfather.

Mina looked around with a wariness not often seen in such a young person. She was hoping to avoid a certain someone. Why had her mother decided that she and her sister were to stay at the palace in Asgard? It was a beautiful place, she would and could easily admit, but she couldn't stand that arrogant, stupid, hot headed, and above all too eager to fight blond haired prince. He annoyed her and she truly wanted nothing to do with him, but if she wasn't mistaken, she'd say that he had a crush on her… and that bothered her more than she would ever admit.

Not seeing the blond, Mina moved on, looking for her little sister or the dark haired prince. Kaminari heard someone calling her name; she looked around until she caught sight of Inari and Loki standing together at the end of the hallway to her left. Mina smiled and quickly made her way over to them without running. "Nari-chan, Loki-kun, may I… may I join you?" she blushed, embarrassed, as she paused before finishing her question and then quickly taking great interest in her sandal clad feet and the golden-brown colored tiles of the floor.

"Sure, I don't see why not." Loki said.

"You're not going to be acting like you were earlier, I hope, are you?" Nari asked and narrowed her eyes in warning.

Kaminari looked like she wanted to say something quite nasty but seemed to think better of it, seeing as she said, "I don't plan to act like Thor if that's what you're implying." Then as if it had just occurred to her said, "No offence intended, Loki-kun."

Loki looked slightly amused as he replied, "None taken."

Mina and Nari shared a quick look before asking in synch, "Want to play a trick on someone?"

(A/N: I hope you like this extra.)