Thor stared into his brother's face, disbelieving at first. The tale Loki told was so horrific, so… Terrible, that he found himself hoping against hope that the tale was just another one of Loki's tall tales… Some dramatic story the younger had concocted to attain the attention he so craved. That hope was futile, however, as he could see in Loki's eyes that it was true, he could hear the honest pain in his voice and feel it in the other's trembling form.
The god of thunder's hands clenched into tight fists as rage swelled in his heart, the urge to hunt down the guards that dared hurt his brother in such a deep and terrible way, and make them pay for what they'd done nearly overwhelming him. "Brother.. I am… So sorry… The guards… Is there a way we could trace them… Some way we can find them and I can punish them for what they've done…" he relaxed his hands, cupping Loki's cheek and looking into his eyes.
"No brother… I cannot… We cannot…" Loki closed his eyes, trembling slightly as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him as well. "They are gone.. I attempted to trace them.. But I did not have enough to go on… Its.. Its better we forget it… Let it go…" Loki's voice was low and angry, bitter resent dripping from every syllable. "Let it go until I have convalesced…. Then I will deal with them myself…" he nodded, opening his eyes. "You need not concern yourself Thor… Just.. Go back to sleep… And I will as well… regain my energy." The god of Mischief nodded, laying back on the bed and patting the space beside him.
Thor nodded, then paused, getting an idea. He lay down beside Loki, waiting until he fell back asleep before pulling the smaller, dark haired man against his body, holding him firmly against his body. He rubbed the younger's back gently, humming softly as he had done when a young Loki had joined him in his chambers after a nightmare and slept in his bed.
The thunder god eventually fell asleep as well, his arms forming a protective cage around his brother. In the morning, Loki and Thor were entangled in each other, the younger man's face pressed close to his chest, directly over his heart. Loki woke slowly, the sound of the man's heartbeat making it's way into his dream before he woke. As he stirred, he wondered what the noise was, and why he was so warm, then opened his eyes, looking at Thor groggily before startling.
He sprung back from Thor's body, untangling himself and sitting up in the bed, staring at his adoptive brother. He still felt warm after Thor's arms were no longer around him, and it unnerved him. Loki stretched a bit, testing how sore his body still was, and inspecting the marks which were starting to fade as he regained his healing abilities.
The god of mischief was standing at the window when Thor awoke, staring out of it with a serious expression. His features looked tired, sad and lonely as he stared out at the sunrise, lost in his own thoughts. Thor watched with quiet concern, moving slowly towards his brother, his own brow furrowing in confusion and worry. "Loki…. are you okay?" he asked softly, placing a hand on the other's shoulder. "You can talk to me… Tell what it is you are thinking on…"
Loki's heart jumped at the touch and he felt sick afterwards, whimpering and pulling back from it quickly. He masked the feelings almost immediately, putting on a fiercely angry mask. "No.. Thor… Do not touch me." He growled, backing away from him and glaring with guarded, angry eyes, crossing his arms. "I told you far too much last night, and allowed you to get far too close to me… You shall leave me alone, or at the very least, do not touch me again." he looked away again, returning to the plans he was formulating for what he would do upon leaving Asgard…
Leave Asgard… Yes, that much is obvious… Find somewhere… Somewhere safe… Need to find a home. Asgard is not home. Jotunheim is out of the equation… You have no home Loki… You cannot just decide on a place to call home. It doesn't work like that… Focus on teasing Thor for now… Punishing him… Until you have your energy, that should help…Yes… Now, what more can you do to tease him… Aha… That should work…
That thought process took all of ten seconds, then Loki looked back to Thor. who had been staring at him with raised brows since his outburst. "What?"
Thor huffed, shaking his head. "Brother, you've never shrank away from me before and now you do so and tell me not to touch you? You came to me for help, and I took you in, giving you anything and everything you needed, protecting you from the Allfather and hiding you here, and yet you demand something as ridiculous as that a simple touch not be preformed? You never had a problem with telling me how you felt before, and now you tell me you've revealed too much when you've confided in me?" he crossed his arms, shaking his head. "Loki, you are my brother and-"
"I am not your brother!" Loki yelled, uncrossing his arms and fisting his hands at his sides. "I am not your brother Thor and I never was! How many times do I have to tell-"
"I love you Loki! We grew up as brothers and I will continue to see you as such until the day I die! Can you not see how much I care for you? I would give my life for you in an instant, and yet you continue to deny that relationship!" Thor strode forward, grabbing the smaller man roughly by his shoulders. "You are my brother, whether by blood or not I do not care."
Loki stared up at him as if listening, then swiftly brought his knee up, knocking the wind out of the larger god. He tackled Thor to the ground, straddling his hips and pinning him down by his shoulders. "Do not touch me.. Did you not hear that?" Loki growled, shifting slowly against Thor's hips to try and maximize the weight bearing down on the man's shoulders, as well as to tease him.
Thor blinked, looking up at him as he registered that he was pinned, then registered the sensation of Loki shifting across his hips, his arse gently rubbing against his crotch. The blonde swallowed nervously, willing himself not to be aroused by the soft, teasing sensation, rolling to the side and easily pinning Loki beneath him, holding the smaller god's wrists above his head. "Loki, stop this.." his face grew serious as he spoke, looking down into Loki's eyes with concern.
Loki merely grinned, then growled, shaking his head. "Do not deign to tell me what to do Thor.. I do what I want!" he bucked his hips, pushing up against Thor's groin hard and rolling to the side, but not before letting out a soft moan at the contact.
Thor froze at the contact, the feeling sending a shiver through his body. No… No that was wrong… Loki was his brother… He flipped them again, grunting softly with the effort and looking down into Loki's eyes as he pinned him once more. "I do not know what has made you so aggravated, but believe me, all I am attempting to do is help you…" he got to his feet, then pulled Loki to his as well. "We shall stop this childish fighting.. before I injure you…"
Or before you get too aroused, hmm? Loki thought to himself and smirked, nodding slowly. "Yes… It was childish, wasn't it…" he sighed, adjusting the clothing he was wearing. "Thor, I tire of being stuck in this room with you… Though I suppose it is of yet, still unsafe for me to be wandering through the palace…" he pouted, wandering to the window and leaning on it, sighing dramatically.
Thor joined him at the window, looking out over Asgard and thinking, then getting an idea. "I know where we can go brother… Do you remember the place we used to go as children, sleeping under the stars, far away from here? When we would go on hunting trips?"
Loki nodded with a small frown, then the side of his mouth twitched, threatening to break out into a smile. "Yes Thor, I remember… What about it?"
"We can go there, until you have regained enough energy to shape shift, and then, we will sneak you past Heimdall to Midgard… There you should be safe from the Allfather." Thor nodded, grinning with pleasure at the idea he'd had, and obviously thought was brilliant.
Loki chuckled, then gave a warm smile, the expression reaching his eyes for the first time in three years. "Yes, Thor… That sounds like a wonderful plan.." he raised a finger to his chin, looking thoughtful. "A couple of things though.. You need to give the others some sort of excuse… a reason for your absence… and could you sneak to my chambers and retrieve some clothing for me? I wish to wear garments that actually fit me…"
Thor nodded and left, going first to Odin and telling him that he was going on a camping trip, and would not be back for some time. He went to Loki's chambers after that, retrieving some of Loki's tight black pants, a black undershirt and one of his leather jackets, carrying the lot quickly back to his room and dumping them on the bed for his brother, who had remained by the window until his return.
Loki walked over to the bed, smirking a little as he stripped nude, feeling Thor's gaze following him as he redressed in his own clothing. He met the blushing blonde's eyes when he was fully dressed, giving a grin and twirling on the spot. "How do I look?"
Thor coughed, shaking his head and looking away, willing himself not to dwell on the mental images that were flooding his mind. He hadn't seen Loki naked since they were young, and now… The man was certainly a sight to behold. He certainly had… grown… Not to mention the sinewy muscles that covered his thin lanky frame… or the sharp collar and hip bones that... No.. No, he's your brother Thor… "You look.." Damn sexy… Gorgeous… Indecently attractive… No!… He's your brother! "…fine brother, you look fine… Now, lets get out of here…" he turned, shaking his head to clear it before grabbing Mjolnir and leading the way outside, looking to make sure no one saw them.
The god of mischief smirked as they walked along, the knowledge that his teasing was working, getting to Thor completely and eating at the older man, making him nearly giddy with pleasure at how well his plan worked. He couldn't help laying a couple patches of black ice along the way though, setting a few little accidents up before his departure.
Thor pulled Loki against his body once they got out to the courtyard, raising the hammer in the air and spinning it before taking off, holding his brother tight as to not drop him. They flew out over the forest, until Thor spotted the clearing and landed carefully, Loki stumbling away from him upon landing.
The brothers set up camp, Loki gathering some food while Thor set up the fire pit, and soon, they were sitting beside I, eating dinner. Loki made sure to tease his brother as much as he could while eating, enjoying his little embarrassed sounds and the way his face would flush as he looked anywhere but at his younger brother. Thor still had no clue Loki was doing this deliberately, and felt even worse for that, thinking of the other's innocence.
Once they'd fallen asleep, there was a short lived period of near silence, the only sounds the crackling fire, and the occasional noise of a passing animal. Then, Loki's screams rang out through the night, as once more he succumbed to the nightmare. Thor immediately was at the younger man's side, holding him down and attempting to wake him, calling his name over and over. "Loki… Loki, brother… Wake up… it is only a dream!"
"No…No…Stay away! S-stop… you cannot… cannot do this… NO!" Loki woke with that yelled word, eyes flying open and staring past Thor into the night.
" Loki… Loki it's alright… Calm down…" Thor attempted, trying to make eye contact, but failing as Loki continued to stare past him. Instead of calming, the raven haired god became more panicked, his eyes widening further as his face assumed a look of complete terror. No… It couldn't be possible… No… "NO!" Loki screamed once more. "Y-you can't…NO!"
