Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel. Obviously.

Claimer: I own Evyn Dolrson. Clearly.

Patient L-O

Patient appears to have some form of insecurity, possibly stemming from older sibling, and an unwillingness (reluctance?) to talk about passions (scolded for them?). Doesn't like to make eye-contact. Possible form of anxiety?

There was a knock at the door, causing Evyn to look up from his file.

"Come in," he called and went back to the writing.

Will continue sessions to conform suspicions.

He put his pen down and closed the file, looking up to see Odin walk in. He smiled. "Hello, Allfather," he greeted. "What can I do for you?"

"Did Loki come?" Odin asked, looking around the room.

"He did," Evyn said, raising his eyebrows a bit.

"And what is your impression of him?" Odin asked, gazing down at him.

Evyn hesitated, tilting his head to the side. "Nervous," he said. "But I was expecting that."

"And did you two speak?" Odin asked.

"There was talking involved, yes," he replied, crossing one leg over the other. "You know there is only so much I can tell you, Allfather."

"And do you think he is ill?" Odin said, ignoring the last statement. Evyn sighed.

"At this point, Allfather, I cannot tell," he said. "I've only just met him."

Odin nodded. "I thank you again for coming in at such short notice," he said.

"My pleasure, Allfather," Evyn said, picking up his file and sticking his pen behind his ear. "I'm glad I happened to be on Asgard before the Bifrost collapsed."

"How long do you think it's going to take to cure him?" Odin asked. Evyn raised an eyebrow, walking to the door.

"It depends on the person and the damage done, really," he said. "It's impossible to tell how long it'll take. Sometimes progress may seem like you're going backwards in the process. It's all a normal part of healing."

"Would you prescribe any medications to Loki?" Odin asked.

"Not at the present time, no," Evyn replied. He stopped and turned. "Allfather, I am a healer, not a miracle worker. Sometimes the symptoms of various illnesses never full go away and can only be lessened."

"So Loki may remain the way he is forever?" Odin said, face carefully neutral.

"I didn't say that," Evyn sighed. "As I say, it's impossible to tell. The healing process is unpredictable, especially if the patient is unsure what 'normal' feels like."

Odin nodded. "Very well," he said. "I expect a progress report next month."

"Understood, Your Majesty," Evyn sighed and Odin walked off.

Loki was sitting in the library, cross-legged at the window seat, flipping the pages slowly and drinking up the words.

He'd been there for a while, several books stacked up on either side of him, one stack of books he hadn't read yet, the other of books he'd already read. He was halfway through the fifth book from his original stack when he heard Thor call from somewhere near the entrance "Loki? Brother?"

Loki sighed and continued through the book. Thor found him a few minutes later. "There you are," he said. "You're late for dinner."

Loki didn't look up, pretending to be too absorbed in the book to hear anything else. He flipped the page, blinking.

"Loki?"

"Hmm?" He continued to read.

"You're supposed to be at dinner," Thor repeated. "You're late."

Loki blinked and looked up, frowning. "How long have you been standing there?" He asked, just to piss Thor off. As predicted, Thor huffed.

"Dinner, Loki," he said once more. "You're late."

"Ah." Loki placed a bookmark in his book and closed it. "What time is it?"

"Half past seven," Thor said as they walked to the dining hall. "Father isn't pleased."

Loki didn't bother to say that Odin wasn't his father. Or that he wasn't Thor's brother. They went into the dining room and took their seats, Odin giving them a Look. Loki ignored it and poked at his food for a while.

Dinner was always an awkward affair. He hardly spoke to Odin or Thor as it was and Frigga was the only one he actively recognized as family. Besides that, he was very rarely hungry. Sometimes he didn't eat the rest of the day just so he could eat something at dinner.

This didn't work as expected, seeing as he still wasn't hungry. He ate anyway when Frigga noted he wasn't eating and said that perhaps he should talk to Evyn about it. He rolled his eyes. His thoughts had returned to his first session often the past day.

It wasn't that he didn't like the healer, except perhaps the fact that he smiled too damn much, but more the fact that Loki didn't want to go to the sessions in the first place. Loki had considered going and staying silent the next time, for the whole session, just to see what would happen.

Yes, he thought. That sounds like a good plan. He thought about it until dessert, when he was finally able to excuse himself and go back to the library.

"So, Loki, how've you been?" Evyn said, smiling when Loki walked in. Loki didn't reply and sat on the sofa.

Evyn's eyes followed him. "Tea?" He offered. Loki shook his head and crossed his arms, leaning back.

"Alright then," he said and served himself a cup. Loki noticed that he took sugar, no cream. Evyn then sat down and said "So are we not talking today?"

Loki turned his head to stare at the wall instead, refusing to answer.

"Loki, is there something wrong?"

Nothing.

Evyn sighed and waited while Loki continued to say nothing, but turned his head to look at the floor again.

"Would you like to play a few games of hnefatafl?"

Loki turned his eyes up to look at the man through his eyelashes, frowning slightly. Evyn stood. "I have a board somewhere... Ah, here it is." He took out a board and a sack of pieces, spilling them out to set up the board. "So? Do you want to play?"

Loki hesitated before gathering up the rest of the red pieces and setting them up. Evyn smiled. "Alright, you move first."

The game went on in silence, Loki winning the first round. They played twice more, Loki winning two out of three games. By the time they were finished, the time was up. Loki put the pieces back into the sack and Evyn thanked him.

"I'll see you on Wednesday," he said and Loki nodded, leaving the room and heading out to the gardens like he had last time.

What the Hel was that? Loki wondered, wandering the paths, looking at the flowers. He hadn't played hnefatafl in a long time, since Thor had gotten sick of losing. It was confusing; the man had asked him how he'd felt during the first session, but hadn't brought it up at all. They'd remained in silence, save for Evyn muttering under his breath and congratulating Loki on his wins. He hadn't pressured Loki into talking, something which never happened when he decided not to talk to people.

Thor would have bothered him about it the entire day.

Loki looked up to see Frigga kneeling in the grass, gardening. He walked towards her and she looked up, smiling. "Hello, Loki," she said.

He sat down next to her. "What are you planting?" He asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Oh, nothing," she said, brushing the dirt off her hands. "I was picking some flowers for my study, they do brighten a room, and I noticed some weeds." She indicated the pile next to her and Loki saw the white blooms. "Would you like them?" She asked. "I know sometimes you do..." She trailed off, looking at him.

"I'll take them," he said. She smiled again and handed them to him. He pocketed them and said "Would you like help?"

"If you're offering," she said, winking. "Perhaps we should hire more gardeners..."

"I can do it," Loki said, bending over to help.

"Sweet of you," Frigga said. "Alright, you may have the job if you so desire. May I ask why?"

Loki shrugged. "Something to do," he replied. Frigga smiled and nudged his shoulder a little.

"Loki...?"

Loki hummed, not looking up from his book. Thor stood there, chewing on his lip. "Would you... I'm leaving the palace for the day."

"Good for you," Loki said. "So why are you here?"

Thor hesitated. "Would you... like to come with me?" He asked.

"Why?" Loki asked. Thor shrugged.

"You haven't left the palace in a number of days now?" He paused, then added "And Mother thinks it would be good for you."

Loki looked up. "Are you asking because Mother told you to bring me along?"

"No!" Thor said, eyes widening as he waved his hands. "No, no, I'm asking because I want you to come!"

"...Why?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow. Thor huffed.

"Because I haven't spent time with you in a while!" Thor said. "Is it wrong of me to want to spend time with my brother?"

"Mm." Loki looked back at his book. "No."

"Not even to the bookstores?" Thor asked, sitting next to him.

"Since when do you like bookstores?" Loki said, looking back up at him.

"I don't," Thor admitted. "But you do."

Loki sighed, rubbing his eyes.This was why he had been avoiding Thor in the first place, usually leaving a room when he walked in. "No, Thor," he said. "I'm not interested."

Thor opened his mouth to protest, but Loki collected his books and walked off. "Fine, fine," Thor muttered. "I'll go by myself."

Notes:

The game Evyn and Loki played is a version of a game called "tafl." You can find a wikipedia page about it here and a video of someone playing hneftafl here. I want to thank PeaceHeather for telling me what the game was when I noticed it in her amazing ongoing fanfiction "Grievance" which can be found here. It's very good and I highly recommend it. (Let me know if the links don't work and I'll PM you.)

Thank you also to everyone who reviewed/followed/favorited!