Chapter 2 and a half (Thor and Loki):
Thor:
Thor sat in his bedroom gazing out at the stars and not liking what he saw.
For one, the stars near the mortal planet Earth were in strange positions, so he truly felt his distance from home. But Thor had also noticed what the mortals seemed not to – that the stars shone with danger signs and warnings that something bad was happening. To add to matters, he wasn't sure where Loki had gone.
As he often did when he was worried, Thor glanced at his desk, where a single photograph of Jane Foster, the girl he'd fallen for on his first visit to Earth. Beside the picture were other treasures of slightly less value: a Norse mythology book that actually got a few things right, and a bag of black powder that claimed to be coffee, but didn't taste like the hot drink he remembered.
He bedroom itself looked close of enough to a mortal human teenage boy's room – so Jane had told him – but Thor Odinson was not actually a mortal human teenage boy. He was, in fact, the Norse god of thunder. And he had a big hammer.
His father, Odin, had sent him back to Earth with Loki in order to keep an eye on things and make sure all was well on Earth. All seemed well, but Thor couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to go very wrong.
Where was Loki?
"Loki! I've got you!" Young Thor ran forward towards his brother. Loki's image vanished and the real Loki stepped out of a darkened alcove.
"Must you always fall for that, brother?" he asked in amusement. He smiled up at his big brother, an adorably pleased look on his face.
"Loki, you will be the death of me. And we'll both be sad."
"I could never be," Loki promised. "Forgive me, brother?" he asked, staring up at Thor, who, despite the fairly small age difference, was already much taller. Young Loki was sometimes annoying, but was still amazingly charming and sweet, at least to Thor.
"Always. You are my brother."
Thor frowned at the memory. He loved his brother – well, actually half-brother – but sometimes he got worried, especially after recent events. Loki had sent The Destroyer to Earth to kill Thor, had invited Laufey and the Frost Giants to kill Odin, and had abused the throne of Asgard. Then he had supposedly fallen to his death from the destroyed Bifrost Bridge.
A cold feeling spread through Thor, and he suddenly wondered how he could've been so stupid. If Loki was supposed to be on Earth, wouldn't Odin have mentioned it? He'd been to relieved to see his brother to really think about why Loki was on Earth, but now…
Thor leapt to his feet and hurried towards the door…a little too fast. He smashed right through the door, but decided to deal with it later. On his way out, he called his hammer to his hand.
…
Loki:
"Why will you one day be king, but not me?" Loki gazed at Thor, jealousy stirring him. Jealousy of how Thor actually looked like an Asgardian, rather than dark-haired and pale. Jealousy of how everyone fawned over Thor, while he was always in the shadow of his 'great and powerful' brother.
"I'm older. It's just how it works, I am sorry." Thor put a hand on his shoulder.
Loki clenched his teeth, careful not to let Thor see how bothered he was. Because, most of all, he was jealous of how Thor would get to rule. Loki would be a much better ruler, he felt, because he'd known more than greatness all of his life and knew how to work for that greatness.
"Of course. Forgive me," Loki muttered.
"Cheer up, brother. The festivities will start soon and you would not want to miss out."
The festivities will be starting, all right, Loki thought. And then, finally, he would be king, as he deserved. The humans could do naught but burn, and Thor would finally feel powerless as he watched. Feel powerless, as he deserved.
Perhaps that was harsh, but Loki was not in a forgiving mood. He lifted the spear.
Author's Note: What did you think? I thought I would try and add a little bit of background before going back to the story. It'll be back to Natasha next chapter. Thanks for reading!