A/N: I keep forgetting to add these. I OWN NOTHING. But James of course.

"King Laufy, We have heard some news from our spies inside the kingdom of Asgard" King Laufy turned his head in the direction of the Jotunn in front of him. Asgard, just the mention of that name brought him to remember his utter hatred that lit a burning fire in his core for that kingdom and their brute of leader.

"What news do you have for me?" The frost giant stated, adjusting himself on his ice thorn. The fierce aura of a fearless leader, sipping out of every fiber of his ice-cold, blue skin. His blood-red eyes stared harshly at the young soldier as he awaited his answer.

"The spy from inside the castle has informed us that Odin has fallen into his sleep just before banishing his son Midgard" He retorted back to the king.

"Ohh so the idiot god of thunder is no longer in Asgard huh? Leaving Odin and his kingdom complete vulnerable." He couldn't help the slight enjoyment he received from hearing the news. This was his chance. Ever since he was forced into peace by the idiot of a ruler, Odin, he began to plan his moment for revenge. It couldn't have come at a better time. The king sat comfortable in his throne, an evil smirk spread across his face as he concocted his next move. Finally after a silent moment he glanced over towards his general in command.

"Prepare the troops for an all out attack on Asgard. The tides have changed. Its time to redeem our pride and what is rightfully ours."

The morning when Thor awakened was almost the same as the day before. He found Loki preparing food, he showered and ate breakfast.

But there was something different about that morning also. Loki was different. He wasn't smiling or laughing. His mind seemed to be in some far off distant place, and he looked as if he was in constant pain. He took his time with every movement and look liked he was trying very carefully to hide what he was feeling.

Loki was wearing a rather long sleeve shirt. The sleeves seemed to long for him, as they came up to his finger tips. He was also wearing a scarf that wrapped itself around his entire neck. The house was chilled but not enough to wear such clothing. One last thing that Thor noticed was although Thor remembered Loki hurting his leg, he never once sat down.

Thor wasn't to sure if he was just looking too far into things but he couldn't help the feeling that Loki wasn't in the right state. After breakfast, Thor stood in front of Loki, blocking his access up the stairs.

"Loki my friend, what is troubling you today? You don't seem to be in the right state of mind." Loki glanced away from his face and shrugged his shoulders.

"Tired I guess."

"But you retired earlier then everyone else. Did you not sleep well?"

"I had a couple of nightmares; it made sleeping a bit hard." Well it wasn't a complete lie he thought as he shifted from one leg to another. "Trust me…I'm okay" he looked up at Thor yet he still didn't move from in front of him.

"Though we have not known each other for long you have been nothing but kind to me. You are a friend and I don't like to see people I care about so troubled. So please if you need anything or just want to speak I will be here to help or listen" he said his tone firm, his eyes serious and for a moment Loki a small tingle of hope spread through him, that maybe he could tell Thor what he was dealing with. His lips parted as he glanced into Thor's eyes. The feeling of wanted to say so many words but nothing escaped his lips.

He glanced away as realization hit him. Thor was temporary. He was a guess, he would leave and Loki would be alone again. He appreciated Thor's attempt, but he would rather not have any hope because it would only lead to disappointment.

"Thank you" he smiled half-heartily "I'll try my best to remember that." He turned away from Thor to avoid his gaze. After a moment Loki decided it was time to have a subject change.

"Do you mind helping me with some chorus around the house?" Thor was silent as Loki fiddles with the sleeves of his shirt. After a moment to long he turned to look at the Asgardian. Thor's staring was making his rather uncomfortable.

"I mean you don't have to help me, I can do it myself"

"It would be my pleasure to aid you."

"Good" Loki said quickly trying to avoid the tension filled silence. "I planned on re-arranging some things in my room, follow me" He quickly side-stepped Thor and made his way towards the stairs, slowly and painfully making his way up. Thor soon followed behind. Finally at the top Loki opened the door to his room and moved aside to allow Thor in also. He glanced over at his untidy bed, the thought of what took place only hours ago flooded through his head. He looked away as the feeling of despair and hatred flooded over him. Thor didn't mention anything about last night, so maybe he didn't hear any screaming. The walls were thick but you could never be too sure.

Thor realized he has never once entered Loki's room. His walls were all white expect for one that was a dark shade of green. His bed set and furniture were s leather black and his bed sheets matched the deep green on his wall. On one wall was a rather large window and on the wall closet to the door was an equally large black book shelf. The room must have been the largest in the house.

"Your room is quite elegant" Thor stated as he run his fingers over the spines of the many books, his eyes gazing over each printed title. "I would love if one day you would travel to Asgard with me. The library in the palace is incredible, books as far as the eyes could see" he ranted, picking up a book and flipping aimlessly thought the pages.

That sounded like an amazing dream to Loki, one he knew would never happen. For all he knew, Thor was a dream also, one that would soon vanish, and all his sweet empty promises vanishing with him. So he held on to nothing. He kept himself detached.

"Sounds nice" he mumbled a response as he made his way towards Thor's sides and put his hands on one of his books. "I'm moving the book shelve closer to the dresser, it's pretty heavy and I can move it myself." I'm also burning my favorite sheets because I official hate looking at them, he thought to himself.

"Why are you moving it closer to the dresser?" Thor asked placing the book back into place.

"It's to near the door, so it gets damaged when someone isn't being careful." Thor nodded moving to the side of the bookshelf.

"Just tell me when to stop." Loki nodded signaling for Thor to begin pushing. He must have underestimated the heaviness of the bookshelf because when he pressed forward he did so with much more strength then what was needed. The shelf rocked a bit causes some of Loki's books to fall to the ground.

"I'm sorry" Thor said quickly as he bent over to pick up a few of his books.

"It's no problem really" Loki claimed as he bent down slowly to aid Thor. Suddenly Loki heard Thor gasped from behind him, and he quickly turned his head to see what had happened. He looked at Thor's and saw a range of emotions pass though is handsome face, from anger to confusion, to worry, and all of it were focused on Loki.

"What happened?" Loki's voice matched the panic in Thor's eyes. Slowly following his gaze, his breath caught in his throat when he finally noticed what Thor was staring at. His sweater had risen and one of the fresh bruises on his hip and lower back was now fully exposed. The purplish, green and black bruise looked absolutely sickly and painful against his pale white skin.

His heart sank as he quickly pulled down his sweater, knowing full well that it was too late. Thor already saw it. His brain went into over drive as he tried to come up with a reasonable excuse.

"It's not as bad as it looks" he lied quickly.

"Loki" Thor mumbled, he too was at a lost of words, still in shock. "What…happened?" he whispered as he rose, moving closer to Loki who in turned moved backwards.

He tried his best to smile but his heart was pounding so fast he could barely process any thoughts.

"It's nothing" Loki lied once more. "I told you I'm clumsy I ran into something that's all." His words were rushed and sounded far less convincing then he would have hoped.

"Loki that isn't nothing, that's a serious injury" Thor once again moved forward reaching out towards Loki, who in turn to another step back moving out of Thor's grasp.

"Thor, I'm serious, its nothing to worry about I bruise easily, it looks worst then it actually is."He spilled his voice more firm then before. Quickly he went around Thor and carefully picked up the remaining books. Thor just continued to stare, worrying thoughts passing though his mind. Loki just smiled back in return.

"Trust me, its nothing I can't handle. I promise" turning around he made his way towards to the door in hopes of diminishing any father conversation on the topic.

"Loki… wait" Thor called out, cutting his way in front of Loki.

"Thor" Loki said getting a bit frustrated. "Its really nothi—" Just as he began to speak he was cut off by a large pair of warm arms wrapping themselves around his smaller frame. His breathe hitched at the sudden contact and he waited for the pain to set it. But nothing came; in fact the hug was gentle, almost pleasant.

"When I just was a child, no larger than 12" Thor began, still holding onto Loki "I really wanted to go on a mission with my father. So I trained non stop to make myself strong enough that he could take me. One day, after practicing for months, I went up to my father and asked if I could accompany him on his mission he following day. His partners laughed at me, saying I was too young and inexperienced, and my father agreed with them. I was so hurt and embarrassed and angry, I stormed out and ran into the woods near the palace. I came across a Bilgesnipe, which are these huge, scaly, beasts with big antlers on Asgard. I tried to defeat the beast, only to be horribly injured and bruise. I was terribly ashamed when the guards found me in my state. While healing in my bed chambers my mother came and sat besides me and hugged me. That's all she did was hug me and it made me feel so much better. It made me feel safe and warm and when I asked her about it she informed me that

"Sometimes when a person is hurt, all you could do is offer them a hug. To show them they will always find comfort, love and safety in your arms. And when your mouth has no words of reassurance, a hug can offer thousands." Thor paused, pulling Loki closer, embracing him firmer but still gently.

"I hope I am performing this correctly. I hope you can hear my words." He whispered as he snuggled his face into the crook of Loki's neck, which was still covered in the scarf.

His resolved cracked just enough that Loki allowed himself to melt into Thor's embrace. His heart fluttered and his breath hitched when he felt Thor softly squeeze him. He only knew Thor for a few days, yet he made Loki drop his defense dramatically. He sighed softly as he buried his face into Thor's shirt.

He was unexpectedly flooded with a wave of emotion, threatening to topple him over. He wanted to tell this random stranger the truth. To spill his guts. He also wanted to tell Thor to never let him go, to never leave him, because he did feel safe in his arms, he didn't feel alone. But nothing escape his lips, he had to use all his power to fight back the tears threaten to spill over. Slowly his hands came up and wrapped themselves around Thor's larger frame, clutching him, face still buried in his shirt.

"I'm sorry…"he whispered into the shirt. "I'll be more careful next time…" those words cutting deep for Loki as familiar memories flushed back into his head. Those were the last words he said to the only other people who were as kind to him as Thor was. "I'll be more careful" he whimpered once again softly into his chest. He couldn't help it, his eyes over flooded and his tears began to form dampened spots on Thor's shirt. He wrapped his arms fully around Thor, pulling him closer, if that was even physically possible. There was no weirdness, or awkwardness, it felt nice to be in his arms.

They stood there, in that place until Loki finally could regain his composure. His arms softly loosened their grip around Thor, but remained in their place.

"Thank you" Loki mumbled pulling his face slightly away from Thor's. "I guess I really needed that." He placed his hands on the front of Thor's chest, his fingers lightly touching the wet spots on his shirt.

"I'm sorry, I wet your shirt with my tears..." he said softly. Thor shrugged, pulling Loki into a final hug before reluctantly letting go.

"It's okay" He smiled brightly, panting a soft kiss on Loki's forehead, which in turn caused Loki's face to flush red.

"Wha ... what was that for" He stuttered looking at up at Thor. He shrugged and smiled once more.

"I just felt like it was needed." Loki couldn't help but chuckle this time.

"You're an idiot" He said teasingly, secretly praying that the fluttering in his heart would stop.

The rest of the evening Loki seemed to return back to his normal self, joking and laughing along with Thor. After he prepared dinner and they ate together Thor decided to retire to his bed room early. After showering and changing he laid in his bed and looked up at the ceiling. The silence of the house allowed him time to think.

He wondered what was going on in Asgard now. He wondered if friends were looking for him or if his mother was worried about him. He even thought about his father, and secretly wondered if he was worried about him also. It's been a couple if days since he has been away from Asgard, and though he missed his home terribly a small part of him could wait until he went back.

Being on Midgard has made him see things a bit differently. He didn't have servants or helpers to aid him in whatever he needed. No one knew who he was or his status, this was a life he was not accustomed to but he didn't mind it. He actually liked be here, being on Midgard, with Loki.

Loki he thought, closing his eyes as the image of his smiling face flickered under his eyelid. It was strange, there was something about Loki that makes Thor feel weird. During the hug earlier today, he didn't want to let go. If he could he would have remained like that forever. It seemed as if Loki fit perfectly in his arms, like he was meant to be there. Thor could still feel his warmth, and how he started trembling ever so lightly when he began to cry.

He didn't know what brought him to tears but he felt like it wasn't the right time to ask about. But knowing that Loki allowed Thor to see even a bit of what was hurting him inside was enough for him. He has only known this man for a couple of days yet there was this strong connection he couldn't help but feel when Loki was near. His heart quivered at their contact, and he couldn't help the smile that slowly made its way across his face.

He didn't ever think he would fancy a man, but he knew what he felt wasn't some friendly feelings. He has never felt this emotion for anyone before. Not any of the maidens in Asgard, or even Lady Sif. But Loki wasn't his to take. He and James were partners.

Thor didn't like the feeling he got from James. He came home intoxicated ever night, and was nothing but rude towards Loki. He suspected that Loki was lying about the bruise earlier but he didn't want to press him for answers. A strange gut feeling told Thor that James had something to do with it, but he couldn't go off accusing people of things.

He had no authority here, no power, so he couldn't do anything until he knew for sure that his hutch was correct. At the same time, he didn't feel right knowing that if something was indeed going on without his knowledge that he could do nothing about it.

Suddenly Thor hears a loud bang in the kitchen followed by a muffled cry of pain that he soon recognizes as Loki's.

He rushes out the room and down the stairs to see what had happened. To his surprised he finds Loki on the floor, covered in a plate of food, hold on to his side, and his mate standing over him, his back towards Thor. Loki's face was flushed red and distorted into a painful expression.

"Loki !" Thor panicked, rushing over to him, pushing James, not so gently, out of his way. He kneeled down and started moving the bits of food from Loki.

"Thor?" He gasped surprising, only to bring more pain to his side. "I though you went to bed?" When James arrived home Loki had his dinner in his hand ready for James to eat. Without a word of warning or anything James went straight for Loki and struck him with his knee on his ribs, causing Loki to fall over in throbbing pain as he was sure the contact had enough force to break one or two of his ribs.

"Are you alright?" Thor asked paying no mind to Loki's surprised response. He realized he has asked that question a lot since he has been here. Loki nodded his head and smiled painfully Thor.

"Just a small accident" He says "Told you I was clumsy" he tried to chuckle but it coming off as a painful grunt instead. He tried to lift his body off from the ground but the pain was too unbearable. Thor, noticing his struggling, put his arm around Loki and softly lifted him up.

James watches for a while before walking away from them without another look back. Thor feels his angry boiling inside of him.

"Do you not care that your partner is in serious pain now?!" He practically screams his words at James. He grunted and shrugged his shoulders in a careless way, as he turns on the television to block them out.

Thor felt his body began to shake in angry. How dare he just walk off leaving his mate in pain.

"Why you-" Thor began only to be cut of by Loki placing a soft hand on his shoulder.

"Thor" he whispered looking up and trying his best to smile. "Leave it. Please." Suddenly all his angry was gone. Loki's sad smile was one of defeat. As if he could no longer bear to fight on anymore. Thor's heart shattered and all he did was nod.

"If you don't mind, can you help me up to my room?" Loki whispered, holding on desperately to his side.

"Okay" Thor said softly, gently picking up Loki bridal style and walking him up to his room as comfortably as possible. Moving into his bedroom, Thor tenderly placed Loki on his bed and stood back a moment allowing Loki to readjust himself.

"Loki... what happened?" He asked with worried eyes.

"I told you" he smiled softly. "I had an accident. I tripped and my ribs hit the side of the kitchen top. Hurts like hell actually" he tried to laugh but ended up regretting it.

"Loki..."Thor said softly.

"Can you do me one last favor please?" his eyes were looking down and his voice, filled with sadness.

"Anything, Just name your command." Thor said quickly and he kneeled in front of Loki so their face would be on equal level.

"Can I have another hug?" His voice was small, like a child asking his mother for forgiveness. Thor didn't hesitant; he put his arms around Loki and pulled him towards his body. He felt Loki's body tense up before slowly relaxing into Thor hold.

"Thank you..."

End of Chapter 4

AN: Thank you everyone for your amazing and supporting reviews. I'm sorry for my late update. School has started so I've been a bit preoccupied. It's been a rather stressful two weeks, but I'll try to make sure I update more often. Happy Labor day everyone :D I hope everyone is having an amazing day :3 I neglected doing homework to type this chapter. Yay for me! I'm totally screwed tomorrow but it was worth it. Please review and tell me what you think. Next chapter is already in the working. Its going to be a important one. Hint hint.

Please excuse any mistakes, my grammar sucks.

Thank you again for reading, I means a lot :]