Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel. Obviously.
Claimer: I own Madam Ivra. Clearly.
The city was, as always, rather crowded. But it was how Thor liked it, he thought, pulling his hood over his head. The unfortunate thing about being the one who left the palace more often was that he was more recognizable. This wasn't usually a problem; Thor knew that the citizens of Asgard liked to see him. But today, he wanted to melt into the crowds, unnoticed.
Granted, that was more Loki's style, but Thor avoided the marketplace and made his way well enough, heading towards one of the few bookshops he knew around the city.
The shop was rather small, he thought, opening the door and hearing a bell jingle to announce his entrance. He had seen Loki come in here once or twice when he had joined him and the Warriors on an outing, but Thor had never taken the time to actually to inside the store.
Books lined the walls and there were tables with various magical instruments making odd noises, some of them puffing colored smoke or steam. There were herbs hanging from the ceiling and a cat was resting under the window. Thor blinked and looked around, surprised. No wonder Loki likes this shop, he thought to himself. It's exactly his style.
His eyes settled on the elderly lady sitting behind the counter, eyebrows raised at him. "Greetings," she said. "What can I do for you, friend?"
Thor smiled and lowered his hood. "I am here looking for a gift," he said as her eyebrows raised even higher.
"Well, well, this is a surprise," she said. "Welcome, Prince Thor. And how is your brother?"
"He is..." Thor hesitated. "Not at his best."
"Ah, that is unfortunate news," she said, shaking her head. "I haven't seen him in here for quite some time. I was beginning to worry." She tilted her head at Thor, eyes narrowing. "So, you're here for a gift?"
"I am," Thor replied. "But am unsure of what he might enjoy."
The old lady gave an exasperated sigh, shaking her head as she stood. "You're in luck, Highness," she said, browsing the shelves, flicking a hand, telling him to follow her into the back. "As it so happens, I've been saving something for him," she said. "Only a few copies were ever made and I've never seen one in perfect condition. It's expensive, mind, but worth it."
Thor followed her and peered over her shoulder. She waved a hand at one of the higher shelves and a brown package floated down to her and onto the table. She unwrapped it and Thor was met with a black leather book with faded gold lettering, barely legible.
"What is it?" He asked, unimpressed. She old woman sighed.
"Did no one ever teach you not to judge a book by its over?" She scolded lightly, but smiled, waving her hand so she cover lifted. Inside were illustrations, some of them faded, but beautiful nonetheless.
"It's a book of tales," she explained. "Very old tales from all over the Nine. As I say, only a few were ever made. I was lucky that the person who brought it in hadn't a clue to its worth," she added, giving Thor a smug smile.
"And is it for sale?" Thor asked. She hummed, tilting her head. "I'll tell you what," she said, waving a hand so the book closed, the wrappings coming back on. "Loki's a good customer. He's always been kind and offers help to the people around here. Sometimes he buys something, sometimes he doesn't," she said. "But I've never met a more avid reader. Doubt I ever will again. Now, this book is all but priceless," she said, patting the wrappings. "But he's a good negotiator. Bring Loki back with you and we'll see if we can't haggle a price."
"But I still need something to bring to him!" Thor replied, huffing. "You said you were saving it for him," he then added.
"And I am," she said, crossing her arms. "But last I checked, you're not Loki. Come," she said and brought him back to the front of the shop. She took out a piece of paper and wrote on it. "Give this to Loki," she said, folding it and placing it on the table. "There are few in the Nine who'll respect a book like that, and I consider him to be one of them."
Thor accepted the note, tucking it safely in his pocket. "Madam," he said, looking up at her. "Do you consider my brother to be good?"
The woman looked at him, blinked, then threw back her head and cackled, falling back into her chair. Thor stood, dumbfounded until the woman quieted, still snorting, hand over her mouth.
"Go up to anyone on this street," she said, waving a hand. "This street and the next over. Ask anyone the same thing. There are few who would say otherwise and they are fools, your Highness. Is Loki a good man? My dear Prince, Loki is too good for this or any world."
"High praise indeed," Thor said, smiling. "I always thought so too, but somehow he seems to think otherwise."
The woman rolled her eyes. "No one has less of an opinion of us than ourselves," she said. She bent over a display of what looked like stone marbles behind the counter. She took one out, placing it in Thor's hand and curling his fingers over it, patting his knuckles. "Give Loki this," she said. "Perhaps it will remind him that there are those in Asgard who are loyal to him."
Thor nodded and looked at the stone. It was pink and seemed to glow. "What is it?" He asked.
"A heart stone," she said. "It has various properties."
Thor nodded and put the stone in with the note. "I thank you, Madam."
"Ivra," she said with a sigh. "Madam Ivra, your Highness."
"Apologies," Thor said, flushing. "Good day, Madam Ivra."
He left the shop, the bells jingling again as the door swung shut.
Thor spent the rest of the day wandering the city, hand in his pocket so as not to lose the stone, thinking about the words the shopkeeper had said to him. Yes, Loki was a good man, he thought. But would she think the same, knowing what Loki had done? Or, rather, what he had tried to do. He sighed and rubbed his eyes.
The crowds were thinning, he noticed, and realized he had wandered into the less-inhabited part of the city. He hadn't come this way in a long time, and hesitated, looking around. This place was usually referred to as "Thieves Square," mostly because pickpockets lurked.
Not many well-to-do people cane down this way at all. Not that Thor was afraid of thieves, he thought, looking around. But it was getting dark and he should probably head back to the—
The stone was gone.
Thor patted his pocket, frowning. Where had it gone? He looked around the square and saw a young man walking off, putting something in his pocket.
Something pink.
"Hey!" Thor said and the man whipped around, eyes wide before he took off, Thor chasing close behind.
Despite what Loki believed, Thor was actually quite a fast runner. The man clearly hadn't expected this and kept turning to see if he as safe.
It wasn't long before Thor cornered him in an alleyway.
The man lifted his hands. "Hey, look," he said. "I don't want trouble."
"Neither do I," Thor said. "However, I'd like that stone back."
"Why? Giving it to a girl?" The man asked, grinning.
"My brother," Thor replied. "I'm giving it to my brother."
"Your brother likes pink?" The thief said, raising an eyebrow. "He must be a priss."
"My brother," Thor said, growling, "is Loki Odinson." He pulled down his hood and held out his hand. "And no, he is not."
The thief's eyes widened. "You— You're Thor Odinson?"
"That would be the logical conclusion, yes," Thor said, approaching, hand still outstretched, wishing he'd thought to bring a weapon of some sorts. "The stone. Now."
And to his surprise, the man began to dig into his pocket, pulling out both the stone and the note. "Look, I'm really sorry," he said, stepping forwards to place both in Thor's hand. "If I'd known you were giving this to Loki... You won't tell him what I said, will you?"
The man looked anxious, wringing his hands together as he stepped back. Thor placed the stone and the note into his breast pocket and looked at the man. "Depends," he said, looking back at the man. "Do you think my brother is a good man?"
"Well, no shit," the man said, raising an eyebrow. "'Course he is. And I'm not saying this because I'm afraid you'll pound me," he added. "He's pretty popular 'round these parts."
"Why?" Thor asked, frowning. The man blinked.
"You don't know?" The man shook his head. "Look, you know how some people call him the Prince of Shadows and all that?"
"Yes," Thor said, wondering where this was going.
"Well, it's true," the man shrugged. "But not because he's bad or anything," he added, backing away from Thor's angry look. "Okay, okay, so people don't like to see thieves and beggars, right?" He explained. "No one really well off comes 'round these bits of Asgard, likes to pretend it doesn't exist. We don't matter, why would we? We walk around unnoticed, kinda like shadows. Well, Loki notices. Hence the name 'Prince of Shadows.'"
Thor's mouth opened. "I never knew," he said. "I always thought it was an insult. Loki always seemed so offended when people called him that."
"Well, duh," the man said, rolling his eyes. "That's the name we gave him. We don't use it as an insult, because we're the ones who actually understand it."
Thor considered. "So I take it you know him personally?" He asked. The man put his hands in his pockets.
"Once or twice, yeah," he said in an offhand way. "I doubt he remembers me."
Thor snorted. "Loki remembers everything," he said. "What is your name?"
The man looked at Thor, tilting his head. "Sigyn," he said at last. Thor frowned.
"That's a woman's name."
The thief smirked. "Is it? Well ain't that a funny thing." And the thief winked, turned, and jumped, grasping a ledge in the wall and vanishing over it.
Thor looked at the place where the thief had disappeared, then turned and made his way back to the palace.
Notes:
I don't have much to say about this chapter. First, I wanted to write something from Thor's POV, but also, it's been a headcanon of mine that though the court/nobles aren't fond of Loki, the rest of Asgard is. The only thing is that nobles don't tend to pay attention to "commoners," so no one really knows this.