A.N: Hello again! I'm back with another chapter. I want to mention a few things before we start. So, at the moment, I have a brief idea as to where I want this story to go. I mainly want to build on the story I've started and then go from there. When I get to the time line in which the movies would start (Thor, The Avengers) I will be interpreting them differently to fit what I've written. However, it will generally be the same. (Not sure if this makes sense at all, but...ya). Also!...I'm thinking about uploading a chapter every Friday. If I miss a Friday, I'll definitely upload the following Tuesday. Well... that's about it! Thank you for reading!
As they waited, they were silent. They had nothing to say to each. This was a time to mourn those who were lost in battle and had sacrifice their lives to protect those around them. To protect those at home. To protect the nine realms. They gave this moment of silence to the deceased, or at least tried to...
…...From afar, however, they could hear the wailing of a small child...
Odin and Tyr look at each other with bewildered expressions. From afar, the crying of a babe could be heard in the distance. No one should be out this far from the main part of Jotunheim, especially after a war. Especially not a child.
The crying wouldn't stop. It seemed as if hours had passed by, but in reality it had only been about fifteen minutes. But it had been a long fifteen minutes. Its cry seemed to echo off the icy walls and shoot directly into their eardrums. By this time the wailing had gotten onto Tyr's last nerve.
"That's it! I'm finding that infuriating, little creature and cutting its throat!", he started after the sound, while the remaining warriors stood there confused; unsure of whether they should follow their general or stay with the All-father.
Odin spoke calmly," Leave it be, Tyr. We mustn't shed anymore blood," Odin had never been bother by violence. But after this war, he couldn't stand the thought of it.
Tyr must not have heard him because he continued to follow the bawling infant. Odin started after Tyr, and the other warriors followed him. He turned around to face them, "You stay here and wait for Heimdall."
They all nodded and turned back to their previous place. Heimdall was supposed to have taken them back by now.
When Odin finally reached Tyr, he placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Tyr, we mustn't kill anymore. Thousands of lives have been lost in these past months. Haven't you seen enough death?", Odin spoke with a softness that hadn't been heard from the king in ages.
Tyr looked back over his shoulder to the other warriors, "I have indeed seen a great deal of death, but all these repulsive creatures deserve to be slaughtered! They've harmed and killed more lives then should have been allowed! And now you want to me spare this one's life? Why? So it can wreak havoc when it gets older? You owe it to your people and the people of the realms to-" He was cut off abruptly by a rumbling deep within the ground.
"Heimdall will be ready for us soon, Tyr. We must go. Now." Odin spoke with a sternness in his voice that no one dared go against. Except Tyr, of course.
"I'm doing it, All-father. I will not let that thing live another moment." Tyr stalked toward the frozen, domed cave where the sound seemed to come from. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small dagger.
Odin had had enough, "Stop Tyr. You will not go a step further, or you can plan on staying here." He glared at Tyr's back. Tyr stopped dead in his tracks.
"You don't mean that," he said.
"But I do. You will not be returning to Asgard if you dare kill that child. Turn around. Let us go now."
When Tyr turned back around to face Odin, his face was a tomato-red from frustration, "Fine. As you wish, All-father." They was much sarcasm laced within his voice. But then he gave an unsympathetic chuckle, "Let it freeze to death, by all means." He stalked past Odin toward the warriors, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Fine Tyr. Give me the damn dagger. I'll put an end to its misery myself." Odin held out his hand and waited for the hilt of the dagger to be placed in his palm. Odin kept a calm look upon his face, hoping Tyr wouldn't be skeptical.
Tyr turned and looked back at him with suspicion, "You want end its miserable life? Not a moment ago you wanted to spare it. Why the sudden change?"
Odin took a deep breathe before answering, "You've made your point. It has no reason to keep breathing. I want to be the one to do it, however. Please return back to the others, and if Heimdall sends for you, go without me. I'll be there shortly."
Tyr made no effort to go against the All-father anymore than he had. He knew he had crossed many boundaries in the previous moments, and hoped Odin wouldn't punish him or even exile him to Jotunheim of all places. Tyr tossed the dagger to Odin and strode off.
As Odin watch Tyr walk back to the other, he himself turned on his heel and strode toward the icy cave. He pocketed the dagger, and spoke in a hushed voice, "Heimdall, let them leave without me."
As he approached the entrance of the ice cave, he noticed two things: the babe's cries had turned into quiet whimpers and hiccups, and there was not a single soul inside the cave that he could see. It was completely void of life, except for his and the babe's.
The cave was massive. Every step he took he could hear an echo that lasted enough to be noticeable. He quickly scanned the area of the cave for the babe. After minutes of walking aimlessly in the cave, he soon felt as if he had been hearing things. Then again, Tyr had certainly heard the crying, as well as the rest of the warriors.
The child's quiet whimpers where the only things that prevented him from getting lost in the maze of ice walls. At some points, the child wouldn't make a noise, and he immediately thought the child had finally worn itself out and died. In a sadistic way, he had hoped that was the case. He hated the thought of a child in so much distress, even a Jotun's child.
As he walked he came to a small, circular area. It seemed colder in this part of the cave. The child's whimpers started up once more, and he followed the sounds. As he came closer the cries, they came more urgent, louder.
He finally found the tiny babe. But what he found he was not expecting. As he had suspected, the child was of Jotun descent. It was smaller than what a Jotun infants should be; more the size of a mortal child. The babe had medium-blue skin, with raised markings across it's forehead and chest. It was shaking fiercely from the cold, for Jotun infants are not immune to the cold as older Jotuns are. It's tiny nose and ears were tipped in a darker shade of blue, indicating it had been out here for some time.
Odin hadn't been paying much attention to anything surrounding him or the babe. When he looked up from the child, his heart suck to his feet. He was in the middle of the circle. The infant was in the center of that circle, surrounded by cravings in the ice. And in the crevasses of those cravings, was blood.
Although he didn't know what the all of cravings meant, it wasn't too hard to decipher. Some of them he could understand, like "to the gods" and "the kismet of Jotunheim". Sacrificial runes no doubt. Most likely in hopes of bringing good luck to win the war. But if one had been prepare to give up their child to the gods, they wouldn't have used just any Jotun child. Not even a hundred children. They would have used a child of greatness. A prince or princess. Laufey's child.
Odin's eyes reverted back to the child. It was still shaking and giving small hiccups as it stared intensely at Odin, seeming to expect him to do something perhaps. The babe's bottom lip started to quiver, indicating it was going to start crying again. Odin immediately did what he thought would calm the babe; he picked it up.
As soon as he did, he regretted it. He had completely disregarded the fact that it's skin could potentially burn him. But the burn never came. However, the child's bleary eyes changed. And so did its skin. The infant turned from blue skin and blood red eyes to pale skin and emerald green eyes.
Odin was mesmerized by this sudden transformation. He hadn't done anything to alter the appearance of the child. Perhaps it possessed magic. But how could a newborn have enough magic to change its form? It was unbelievable.
The child had finally calmed down some, and had already started to drift off to sleep in Odin arms. But it was still shivering from the cold, biting air. Odin took off one of the furs he had been wearing and wrapped the child in it. The child's breathing slowed into a deep sleep, all the while keeping its pale skin..
After several moments of watching the child sleep peacefully and safely in his arms, Odin was overwhelmed with a wave of emotion. He had never been the emotional type, nor should he be. He was the king of a realm. The last thing he needed was being looked at as weak or sensitive; unfit to rule the most powerful realms known. But in this moment when it was only him and this abandoned child, he couldn't help but feel deep despair. This innocent child was left to die in the bitter cold; left to die alone. To suffer for who knows how long before it just gave up on trying to live. It angered him so much. He thought of his own son, and knew he would never sentence his child to death in hopes of gaining good fortune. It was senseless. It was despicable.
In that instant, he knew what he was going to do. He didn't need to think on it, or even consider the risks of it. He knew deep in his heart that this was the right thing to do. He started back to the entrance of the cave, and walked back toward were he was before he had heard the child's desperate cries. He hadn't realized it at the time, but he had been in the cave with the child for at least a couple of hours. Tyr and the warriors had left, as he had told them to do so. They were home, and soon he would be too. Home to his wife. To his son. He called upon Heimdall to take him back to Asgard. Not moments latter, he was in the observatory, the child still tucked warmly beneath furs in his arms.
The observatory was quiet and slightly illuminated in gold. Odin hadn't been in the observatory for months, so upon arriving in the large room, it was a wave of relief that had washed over him. He had made it home. He had fortunately not been killed in battle, although he had come back with one eye absent. But he was alive, and soon would be reunited with his wife, his child, and his people.
Heimdall should silently in the center of the observatory, staring out into the opening that led to the void from which he could observe the nine realms. It was quite beautiful; the void. To most, it would seem as though open, black nothingness was nothing too fascinating, but to Heimdall, it was marvelously captivating. Its vast openness and unforeseen enigmas made Heimdall have a sort of fondness for it.
But no one truly knew what hidden within the void. Not even Heimdall himself, for it was completely void of color and sound. No one dared go near the void, fearing if they fell in, they would never see the light of day again. But no one had ever gone into the void to see if their theory was true. There was no need to. It was an obvious observation.
As Odin looked around the observatory, he noticed Heimdall's gazed had turned toward him and the bundle wrapped in his arms. Heimdall was never one to judge. He was never one to ask either. He always kept to himself, which is why Odin had always favored him. He was never distracted from his job with others' lives.
Although this time, Heimdall seemed curious, "Welcome home, All-father. I am delighted to see you in one piece. I hope all went well."
"Thank you, Heimdall. Yes all went well, however we have lost many. I have made a treaty with King Laufey, which is effective. Please report to me if you see any rebels making plans of attack. We do not need another war on our hands." Odin spoke with such tiredness that Heimdall wonder if he collapse right onto the floor.
Heimdall looked straight into Odin's eyes, his golden eyes showing his knowledge of everything spoken and unspoken, "May I advise that you return to your kingdom as quickly as possible. Queen Frigga has been asking about you, worried as to why you hadn't come back with the rest of the warriors." Heimdall stole a glance at the fur that concealed the babe.
Odin spoke gently and with thought, "I shall return as soon as possible. But first, I have matters to speak with you Heimdall. As you have seen, I did not leave Jotunheim alone."
Heimdall took a deep breath before replying, "Yes, my king, I have. But it is not my business as to what your plans are or what you do. You know what's best for this realm."
"But it is your business, Heimdall. You know about this. I need you to not speak of this child, for I do not know what our people would do if they knew an enemy's child was on Asgardian ground. And brought here by their king. That would not go over well with them. I wish to keep this peace not only with neighboring realms, but within our own realm as well." Odin said with a certain urgency lacing his voice. He knew the consequence of his actions could be detrimental to their realm.
Heimdall nodded with understanding and agreement, "I will not speak of this matter to anyone, not even to you my king, unless you ask that of me. But if I may be so bold...what do you plan to do with the child?"
Odin took a few moments before answering honesty, "I am not quite sure Heimdall."
The streets of Asgard were still and vacant. All the warriors were in their homes, either alone or with their wives. Many of them were probably counting down the days until they would see their child and families again. They were wary and disturbed from the horrors that had seen during battle. They had seen countless of their acquaintances and close friends brutally killed. They were relieved that the battle was over. Now all they hoped for was normalcy once again.
Odin walked into the grand hall that had been used for celebrations among their friends and family. But it had been abandoned for months, so the large room lacked warmth. Although it was winter, at this time, the room should have been filled with laughter and the smell of food and glass smashing on the floors followed by men yelling "Another!"
Odin looked through about half of the rooms in search of his queen. Then when he reached Thor's room, he could hear quiet sobs coming from within. He quietly peaked through the crack of the door and spotted his beloved Frigga, sitting on the bed; her face in her hands, crying.
He opened the door a little wider until she notice the movement. She peaked up from her hands and saw her husband. She immediately got off the bed and ran towards him, her arms ready to embrace him. But Odin took a few steps back away from her.
Frigga looked at him, confused. Then she noticed his eye and gave a choked-up sob. She walked a little more slowly over to him, but he still kept his distance from her. She was completely unaware of the child he was holding.
She looked at him with confusion and anger, "Odin, where have you been?! The messengers had reported that you and the warriors would be returning home. That was hours ago! I have been worried sick that you might have been killed or injured let to die!" She was still quietly weeping as she said this.
Odin gave a comforting smile, one that held much weariness, "I am so sorry, Frigga. I did not mean to cause you any worry while I was away. I was caught up in another important situation that needed my immediate attention." He wasn't sure how she was going to handle this news, and was keen on telling her, afraid of a negative response from his wife.
She had lost all anger, but her confusion remained, "What matter could be more important than coming home to your wife? What has happened?"
Odin slowly walked toward Frigga, while doing so revealed the small, sleeping baby in the fur. She walked closer to see what he was showing her, and when she saw, she gave a breathy gasp. Her brows furrowed together, trying to grasp the reasoning behind Odin holding a mortal baby. Had the Jotuns taken this child from Midgard? They must have. How else did it get there?
She looked up to his face, shaking her head slightly, "Is this a mortal child? Where did you find it? Is this the situation that needed attention?" She asked him softly.
Odin shook his head slowly, which only caused more bewildered Frigga even more, "This was the situation I was resolving. But this child is not a mortal, but of Jotun descent. Possibly Laufey's child." Odin was completely serious in telling Frigga this, which scarred her even more.
Her entire demeanor changed from confusion to dread, "Oh Norns Odin, what have you done? How could you take this child right after a war like this?! What were you-"
Odin cut her off, "You do not understand why this child is with me now. It was about to die in a frozen temple. This child was an offering in hopes of good luck or of winning that damn war. I couldn't let this infant die alone. What other choice did I have?!"
Frigga took a breath to clam her. She looked around the room, trying to collect her thoughts, "Are you sure it's Laufey's child?" She looked at him with pleading eyes.
"They would have sacrificed a child of royal decent. And as far as I could tell from the runes, it's Laufey's heir. Or was."
Frigga glanced at the babe once more giving a small smile, "How did you manage change him into Aesir? He's a quite lovely baby." She came close enough to touch a finger onto the baby's soft cheeks.
Odin looked at with curiosity, "How do you know this child is 'he'?
Frigga laughed quietly, "A mother is always so perceptive when it comes to children. But you haven't answered my question: how did you manage to change him from his Jotun form to Aesir?" Odin nodded, knowing his wife was most likely right, as she always was.
"I did not need to change anything about him, for he did this all himself. He posses much power and magic. Just as you do." He offered a knowing smile. Frigga was the most skilled sorceress in all of Asgard. She was in complete awe of this child already.
"That is amazing. It's not uncommon for child of Aesir descent to have some amount of magic, but this babe has an unfathomable amount of power," She gave the child a beautifully genuine smile; one that only a mother could give ",He is truly extraordinary. And such a gorgeous, lovely face," She looked up at Odin with large, pleading eyes, "May I hold him?"
Odin nodded and promptly, yet gently placed the sleeping babe into her ready arms. The moment the child was in her hold, he opened his tired eyes and starred directly into Frigga's eyes. She held her breath, unsure of what to do. She was afraid of startling him, so she didn't make a move.
The baby's big, emerald green eyes scanned Frigga's face, but then gradually fell back into his deep sleep. Frigga let out a shaky breath, while her eyes started to fill with tears. This little child was perfect. So, so perfect. She already falling in love with him, even within the short time. There was already a strong, unyielding bond between them, and she wanted to kept it that way.
She spoke again, "So when will tell Thor? I mean how should we tell him?"
Odin looked at her with amazement, "You wish to kept this child? To make him part of our family?"
"Without a doubt. I know for a fact that he will bring us much joy to our lives, and ours to his." Frigga's tears started to fall on her cheeks, as she looked down at the peaceful baby resting in her arms.
Odin smiled, "Well, I guess we shall tell Thor the moment he arrives that he has a brother."
So, what do you think? Please leave a review and tell me what I should change or keep or anything! And I want to give all that reviewed, followed, and favorited a HUGE thank you! It means a lot that you took the time to actually read my sad, little story haha... Anyways, like before, if you have any suggestions as to what you'd like to see in this story, please feel free to let me know! And if you have any questions, do ask away! Hope you enjoyed :)