Hey, back again with the next chapter. This one took me a while to get straight in my head so sorry for the delay. Loki has not been cooperating with me much and work had been crazy. I hope to get some work on Chapter 5 done tomorrow and have it up by the end of the week, but as usual I make no promises lol. Only had two notices for this one and no criticism, kinda confusing on that front. But on to the thanks:

CaptainShy
Nessa191

You two rock. I would really like some reviews for this chapter, even if they are bad ones. I just want to know what you guys think and see if this is getting a positive or negative reaction, and if it is negative, what I can do to fix it. Things really pick up in this chapter so I hope you enjoy.

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Strange Dreams and Strange Connections

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The day had passed relatively slowly for the two brothers, the night was no less dull. Loki had long since tired of pestering his brother, tormenting him with all manner of quips and barbs about friends and family and had settled for planning in silence. Thor, for his part, was miles away in his own thoughts, reliving all the happy memories he had of his mother. Many of them featured Loki in some form or another, be it a game they all used to play together, or having stories read to them before bed. It was enough to warm his heart toward his brother, rekindle some of the lost affection he had thought dead.

"Loki, do you remember the stories mother used to tell us?" He turned to his brother, a small smile on his face.

"Of course I do." Loki responded, refusing to turn to face the blonde god.

"Come now, can we not simply converse?" He tried to be lighthearted, ignoring the continued iciness from his adopted sibling.

"Thor, what point is there in our conversing. We know what must be done and have agreed upon a plan of action. There is nothing to do at this point but wait. If you wish to pass the time, might I suggest some quiet reflection?" His tone was final and he capped it off by moving further away and laying down, using his cloak as a pillow as his skin deepened from pale white to blue. Thor knew better than to push his brother further, he would come around when he was ready. Besides, he had a point, they were both tired from the day and could do with a rest. He sighed as he pulled out the spare cloak he'd thought to bring and folded it under his head, ignoring the cold around him as sleep claimed him almost instantly.

They had finally managed to calm Riley enough to get a coherent story out of her, though it had taken every ounce of James' patience. Between the liquor still working its way out of her system and her stubborn refusal to release her anger, it was almost nightfall before she could recount the story without dissolving into either tears of a fit of anger. Turns out that she was simply enjoying herself, dancing around in her sweats and a tank when Loki had come in, invisible according to her and stolen her mother's rune stones out from under her. She kept grumbling about the energy, how it would be contaminated, but James had never understood any of her Pagan stuff. Jane seemed to have a better grasp on it and was working to console her, after she'd repeated the story for the fifth time.

"Rye, focus hun, what exactly did he say he needed them for." James asked, sighing in exasperation.

"How the hell should I know, it's not like he sat here and monologued his whole damn plan to me or anything. He just came in, snatched them, kept me from smashing my face on the floor and then.." She made a sound like wind whooshing away and flipped the front door off. Jane giggled at this, quickly silenced by two sets of angry eyes.

"Sorry, I'm just not used to people flipping off inanimate objects. I take it this is normal for you guys?" She asked, looking between the two. It was weird how they looked almost related when they did that.

"Yes, I like to express myself. Look, James, I don't know anything else alright? I'm sober and exhausted and dirty and in need of a shower. The air bed is in the closet, Jane can take the bed, I'll snag the couch. Let's just all sleep this off like a bad dream and we'll see where we are in the morning alright?" She stood up from the couch, shrugging Jane's arms away and grabbing the ashtray, dumping it in the trashcan as she walked down the hall. She grabbed another pack of cigarettes, a water proof lighter and carried them, along with the ash tray into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

"Well, she seems better." James said, taking a deep breath and wincing as loud rock music began to boom out from around the bathroom door, mingling with the sound of the shower turning on. "At least she's not breaking things anymore." He amended, walking into the kitchen to start cleaning up.

"Is this something that happens often?" Jane asked, walking after him, towel in hand.

"Only when she's had a bad break up, or a fight with her brother, or her dad is in town...so yeah, pretty regular." He laughed, wetting a rag under the faucet and beginning to wipe down the counters. Jane followed along behind him, drying and straightening so that the whole kitchen, minus one area with dirty dishes piled in it, was spotless and organized. That was how Riley found it when she came out, once more in sweats and a tank top, hair plaited in a braid down her back.

"Thanks guys, sorry about earlier. I'm better now, promise. So, who's up for a movie and some ice cream?" She held up a copy of "Paul" and watched James break into a grin. Jane just seemed confused and Riley was struck for the first time by the differences in their worlds. "You have no idea what this movie is do you?" She asked, handing the case to Jane.

"Not a clue. Looks good though. Is it funny?" She asked, handing it back and going to the living-room. She settled on the floor in front of the coffee table and smiled, waiting for the other two to get comfortable.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are incredibly easy to get along with? I mean, you are stupid amounts of sweet." Riley said, popping the disc in the player and turning on the TV.

"Yeah well, my parents taught me to be polite and you guys are fun." She smiled back at the woman on the couch, grinning when Riley shoved her feet under James, unseating him and motioning for Jane to join her instead.

"Ladies get the couch. You now that." She grinned, hitting play before James could respond.

Loki couldn't sleep. It was something he had plenty of experience with. Even before all the betrayal and pain, he'd often be kept awake by ideas or theories he couldn't reconcile in his mind, driven from his bed to the vast libraries of the palace, pulled by the knowledge contained in the covers of those books. But his restlessness this night was not caused by his own mind but another. The thoughts were warm, warmer than any mind he'd ever touched and full of energy. It was like touching a stone on the beach at midday, full of potential and heat. It settled in his mind like a pebble in a shoe, pulling his mind to see its presence.

Thor lay facing away from him, soft snores accompanying the rise and fall of his shoulders. Trust the oaf to be able to sleep through anything. It was something Loki had always envied in his brother. He was capable of relaxing almost on command, silencing his mind to peacefulness on a whim. Even now, in the face of abandonment in a new world, he was like a babe asleep in its mother's arms, placid and without a care, having pleasant dreams as well no doubt. He sneered, turning his envy to scorn. Truly, Thor was without thought. He rolled to his back, feeling the snow press in on his cold skin. It wasn't until he rolled on his belt pouch that he realized the source of his original discomfort. There was something incredibly hot in the small sack. It felt like someone had lined the whole bag with boiling water.

He drew the string open, looking inside to see the rune stones he'd taken from Riley, glowing white hot and brilliant as star light. He tried to examine them, reaching a hand into the pouch with the intent of pulling one of the stones out. But the stones had other plans. No sooner had he touched one but it burned his finger as if he'd touched a raw flame. He drew his hand out of the bag with a soft hiss, glaring down at it as though it had meant to do that. It was then he realized that the bag was emitting not only heat, but light as well. It was like a miniature sun was trapped in the bag, shining out in the darkness.

"Interesting" He grinned, grabbing a handful of snow and dropping it down into the bag on top of the runes, following it quickly with his now pale blue fingers, grabbing the first stone he could while they were still relatively cooled from the snow. Once separated from its fellows, the stone dimmed, resembling the light of a stubby candle as opposed to the star light brightness still inside the satin lined velvet and the heat was nowhere near what it had been. It was still warm, but only in so far as a stone would be after having been pressed against a body for several hours. His grin widened, beginning to understand what was happening to the seemingly ordinary stones.

He'd mentioned before that they were of Asgard, a rare mineral that must've fallen to Midgard during the last convergence, but that was not all they were. The element the stones were comprised of was conductive. It had the ability, if left in the same person's care long enough, to transmit that person's thoughts and emotions, directly through the stone. It had been used as a primitive means of tracking and monitoring a spouse or child. Rings were made of the stone and exchanged on the day of marriage or when a child came of age and never removed, thus allowing the couple or parent to know at any point if the child or spouse was well. It had long since become obsolete on his world, being replaced by much more sophisticated methods like direct psychic links. But it was possible that these stones, having been kept in Riley's presence so long, were reacting to her mind.

He felt a pang of worry spark the corner of his mind. If they were so hot and bright, she must either be in great danger, or having very bad dreams. He caught his mind wandering toward her, the stone in his hand aiding him in making a link with her, stopping short of connecting. It was foolish of him to be letting his consciousness venture away from his body, especially for one little mortal. But still the interest had been sparked. He would inquire about this further when he saw her again. For now, he sighed and lay back in the snow, tying the bag tight again but keeping one stone in his hand, gripped tight as he felt sleep finally begin to claim him.

Riley thrashed on the couch, the blanket tangling around her feet as her arms reached toward the air. Her mind was far away, in the past, caught in the recollection of someone else's mind. It had been two years since the accident. Two years since she was woken up by a dream of smoke and fire and crushing pressure to the phone call from her father. Two years since she'd had to bury the two most important women in her life. But it would seem that two years was not enough time to lessen the memory of them. Even now, when she was surrounded by the energy of so many different people, the memory of her mother's mind still thrived in her dreams, giving her visions of a giant eighteen wheeler, already ablaze, turning end over end toward her. A pile of cars growing steadily larger, lit by the light of the still burning wreck of the truck off to her right. Pain, lancing and oppressive, holding tight to her chest and keeping her pinned. And her grandmother, seated beside her, clinging to the steering wheel as she tried to pull the shrapnel from her side. Even then, under so much pain and fear, she was shushing her daughter, keeping her calm, keeping her focused on anything but the large piece of metal protruding from her chest.

And then she was awake, sitting up and panting, hand flying to her chest, just where the metal had pierced her mother's heart, pinning her to the seat and sealing her fate. She was shaking, her whole body feeling weak and fragile, like a porcelain doll that had been repaired one too many times. She felt like she would simply fall apart if she was shaken again. She looked around, suddenly not wanting to be alone, desperately wishing the others were awake as tears pricked at her eyes. She hugged her knees to her chest, rocking slowly back against the arm of the couch as she began to sob quietly into the blanket. And that was how sleep claimed her, wrapped in grief and remembered fear.

Across the world, Loki's eyes flew open, his mind struggling to reconnect with his body, reminding himself who he was and where he was, pushing down memories of fire and stabbing pain that didn't belong to him. He hissed as his mind rose to full wakefulness, dropping the stone that had slowly been branding the rune on its surface into his palm. He stuck his hand into a snow bank, groaning softly as it both heightened and alleviated the burning skin. He would have a scar, at least until he could return to Asgard and see a proper healer. But what had those memories been about? He'd never known anyone who died like that and even if he had, they were never bonded. He should not have had access to memories that were not his own.

He looked down at the rune, grimacing softly as he saw the small hole it had melted in the snow where it had fallen. It still steamed slightly, still powered with remembered heat and tension. He tossed some snow over it, letting it sit and cool for a moment before reaching down and grabbing it, keeping it encased in the snowball around it, listening to the hiss of it slowly melting the cold flakes. Why did it react more when he touched it? He had no connection to the mortal, anymore than anyone would have after having spent a night or two in her home. There is no reason her stones should be giving him these memories and feelings.

He started as something cold and wet fell on his hand, a drop of water. But it wasn't water, it was a tear. A single tear shed from his own eye, though he had nothing to shed a tear for. It began to chill and freeze on his skin, turning it to its natural pale blue. What was the meaning of it all? He sighed, wiping the moisture from his hands and putting the rune back into the pouch with the others. He was about to face a terrible enemy and could not afford to have his sleep interrupted again.

Well, there ya go, Chapter 4. Please please PLEASE review so I know what you think and can fix anything that needs fixing! Thanks in advance for feedback and such and I'll see you guys in Chapter 5!