Looks like it's a hit so far, so I shall continue! By the way, I wrote a new fic called Chess Wars in which Thor and Loki play an epic game of chess. It's a one-shot and it's really funny, so I encourage all of you to check it out! :D Anyways, on to the next chapter!

Guest: Thanks for the review and the idea! I wasn't entirely sure where to go until you mentioned the Avengers coming in, which was very helpful.

extraordinary geek: Thanks! Let's hope I can keep it interesting. :)

AaylaKit: YAY you found my new fic!

Cassy27: That's a GREAT IDEA! I haven't figured out a definite plot yet, so I will use that! Thanks! :D So glad you like the portrayal. I figured it'd be a bit of a challenge for me, but I took it on as Loki would: "Challenge accepted."

nickypooh: Glad you like it! I hope I'll be able to keep it interesting.

Guest2: Okay, your wish it my command. :D

Loki stared at his future self, stunned. "You're me?" It kind of made sense, when he thought it through. "But…how?"

Future Loki shrugged. "I'm…not sure. But I know for a fact that you are me as a child. I would know that face anywhere. If I must prove it to you, then so be it." The boy nodded for him to continue. "To start, I know that we have a brother named Thor." Loki was surprised to hear disgust in his counterpart's tone. "Odin, the All-Father, is the King of Asgard. Sif and the Warriors Three are Thor's closest friends, but they never particularly liked us much. I always used to get into trouble." He chuckled. "Such innocent, childish pranks. Like the time I turned Sif's stick into a snake."

Loki's eyes widened. "You are me! That—that just happened." He pressed his hands against the glass. "Tell me about the future!" he said. "What am I like? I mean—what are you like? Why are you in a cage?" He hadn't noticed until that moment that his future self was contained behind glass. "Did someone capture you?"

Future Loki nodded. "You could say that."

"I have so many questions! I guess the most important one would be…" He trailed off, hesitant to ask this. Considering that his counterpart was imprisoned, he figured he knew the answer. He had to make sure, though. "Growing up, you were always the practical one, right? And Thor the idiotic one?"

His future self laughed. "Yes, Thor was always cocky and arrogant."

"And I—you—we—were more practical ones. So, naturally, we would be the best fit to rule Asgard."

A shadow flitted across his counterpart's face. "No," he said softly. "You will not become King of Asgard."

Loki was stunned. "So Thor—"

"I'm not sure," his future self cut in. "As of now, Odin is still King."

"Oh." He may never find out, then. "Is Thor supposed to be King, though?"

"Yes, he was, but his coronation was…postponed…by the arrival of Frost Giants."

Loki stiffened. "Jotuns on Asgard?"

Future Loki nodded, then sighed. "I should not be conversing with you," he said. "Revealing what happens after your lifetime will manipulate the future and possibly affect me. I fear what would happen if you were discovered and imprisoned here. This is not a safe place for either of us right now."

"What realm are we on?" Loki wondered.

"Midgard. They do not take kindly to those who wish to rule them."

"Wait—you're trying to rule them?"

His counterpart turned away. "You wouldn't understand. The complexity behind my actions is too complicated to explain. I know that you are intelligent," he added quickly, "but you couldn't begin to comprehend what has happened."

Loki realized that he had his hands against the glass. He pulled away self-consciously. "So you're a prisoner on Midgard," he whispered. "That's my fate." He gazed sadly at the other Loki. "Is there a way I can avoid this?"

He shrugged. "Come up with a more elaborate plan that I have?" he suggested.

"I don't want to rule Midgard, though," Loki protested. "That's a silly dream."

"It may seem that way," he said, "but it is not impossible. Here, sit down. There's something you need to know that has been kept from you for your entire life." When Loki sat, his counterpart began with a simple question: "Tell me based on your insight alone; how would you compare yourself to Thor based on the All-Father's actions?"

Loki knew the answer immediately, but he decided not to be too upfront about it. "Well…he always did seem to have a preference for Thor. I never really knew why." He did not know why, and he figured that the only reason his counterpart would ask him this question is because he could provide the answer. "I'm guessing that you know."

"Yes."

Loki sat still, ready to listen to what his future self had to say. He had always wondered why his father loved Thor so much more than him. Was it something he had done? Something he was going to do?

"I think the best thing to do is to be completely upfront with you," Future Loki began. "Your father—"

"Loki!" a voice boomed. A tall man with blue eyes, shoulder-length blond hair, and Asgardian armor stormed in. Loki noted the large hammer in his right hand. "What are you filling this boy's head with?"

"The truth, Thor," Loki's counterpart sneered. "Something that your father has kept from him—and me—for years. I feel that he has a right to know."

"How did he get here?" Thor demanded at the same moment that the boy gasped, "Thor?"

"How should I know?" Loki's future self asked, seeming to enjoy irking his brother. "Why don't you ask him? You do not seriously think that I used magic to bring him here. If you did, then you are dafter than I thought."

"Enough of your mockery!" Thor turned on the little boy. He froze a moment, staring into the quasi-innocent eyes of the child version of his brother. "Does this make you realize at all how much wrong you have done?" he whispered. "Look at yourself a moment and tell me what you see."

"Too easy. I see someone who is confused and hungry to learn more about who he is. He knows not of his true parentage, and—"

"My true parentage?" Loki's gaze flickered from Thor to Loki and back again. "What about my true parentage? Are the King and Queen not my mother and father?" When the brothers said nothing, Loki grew frustrated. "Tell me!"

Future Loki's eyes glazed over with memories, as if the boy's last statement had initiated a memory from the past. Thor hesitated, his gaze avoiding both versions of his brother. Silence ensued.

"What is going on here?" a man with an eyepatch demanded, walking in with an air of authority.

Loki clutched the artifact, suddenly afraid it would be taken from him. He turned to the Loki in the cage. "Who's that?" he whispered.

His counterpart blinked as if coming back from a deep sleep. When his eyes fell on the newcomer, he mumbled something inaudible. It appeared that he was not too thrilled to see the guy with the eyepatch.

"Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. What are you doing here, kid? How did you infiltrate my Helicarrier?" He leaned forward, studying Loki with his one brown eye. "Aren't you a little young to be a spy?" he asked.

"You think I'm a spy? Do I look like one?"

"I'll be the one to ask the questions. Answer them promptly and truthfully. Who are you, what are you doing here, and how did you get in here?"

Loki took a breath. "I'm Loki Odinson of Asgard, I do not know what I'm doing here, and I think my arrival is somehow connected to this Asgardian artifact." He stared at it, and then at Fury. "All right, I answered your questions. Now it's time for Loki here to answer mine. So if you would be so kind as to step out, I would much appreciate it."

Fury shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't do that. Under the current circumstances of an impending war, I'm afraid I'm going to have to take you into custody."

Loki's eyes widened. "You can't do that!"

"Come with me. It is time to have your mind wiped."

"But—" Wouldn't I be missed on Asgard? "I won't let you take me." He turned pleading eyes on his future self. "He can't take me. I still have so much I need to know! What is my true parentage? Why did you try to take over Midgard? Why are you even on Midgard?" Fury took his arm and started to pull him out. "Why does Odin favor Thor? Why will I never be king?" The questions flowed from his mouth as he tried to pull against Fury's insistent tugging.

The future Loki let out a sigh. "You are—"

"Don't tell him!" Thor shouted before Loki's counterpart could finish the sentence. "It is better for him not to know."

Loki was almost at the door. His gaze begged for answers. "Please," he whispered.

His future self let out a sigh and stepped closer to the glass. "You want to know the answers to all of those questions?" he asked. Fury pulled harder, trying to get Loki out before his counterpart could finish, but it was too late. "You are a Frost Giant—Laufey's son."

Disclaimer: I do now own Thor or the Avengers.

AN: Looking good thusfar, eh? I'm infamous for my cliffhangers. What can I say? It's fun. XD It's also a good tactic for getting readers interested. If chapters ended on a satisfying note, then people might not feel compelled to continue reading. So, if there are any suggestions, I'll take them. Just remember that this will not be a full-scale fic like Invasion. It's just for kicks and giggles and won't be very more than a few chapters. I don't think so, anyway. Who knows? Maybe this fic will take me in a whole different direction and turn into a full-scale fic. We'll have to wait and see.