"Why are you here?"
They were the first words Thor heard after over a week of silent hatred from his brother. In that time, Loki had also refused to eat, and Thor had yet to catch him sleeping, even waking in the middle of the night to see Loki glaring at him. He'd still continued to speak to his brother in that time, hoping something he could say would break this shell Loki had surrounded himself with, though Thor had to admit he did it to annoy him as well. This felt like a waste of time, his best efforts did nothing, Loki was determined to despise him no matter what he said, and he had to wonder if he was making things worse by staying. Nevertheless, he'd made a promise to Loki, and himself, and this was where he would remain, whether his brother wanted him to or not.
So when Loki finally spoke, Thor wasn't sure if he was relieved, or worried that things were only going to get worse from here.
"I am here because my brother needs me," Thor answered, pretending to be interested in Mjolnir's strap as he avoided Loki's gaze. "Whether he wants to admit it or not."
"What could I possibly need you for?" Loki spat back, leaning forward as he tested the restraints that kept his arms bound behind his back, gritting his teeth as he tried to pull himself free.
"You are wasting your energy," Thor sighed, finally looking over at the thin, pale man. "They did not put you in bonds fit for a mortal, brother, you will not be able to tear yourself from those."
"Shut up," Loki growled, his cheeks reddening as he exerted himself further, finally gasping for air as he gave up, slumping back against the wall.
"I told you. Stop being so stubborn, you'll hurt yourself," Thor said, reaching out to him to fix the pillow behind him. He'd expected Loki to pull away or curse at him, but his brother allowed him to help, though he did so without thanks, Thor was sure it was likely because he had strained himself in his efforts. "It is better to have me here than be trapped on your own."
Loki looked at him, raising an eyebrow and scoffing.
"Of course you would have that high an opinion of yourself. How could I possibly be miserable, the sainted Thor is here to help me. It does not matter if I have been degraded and humiliated, stripped of my powers and freedom, I have THOR!" Loki's voice raised to a shout as he stared his brother down. "I would rather be alone for a millennia in a room only large enough for me to stand, without sustenance, than spend one more day in this cell with you!"
Thor stared back at him, teeth clenched as he tried to hide his hurt, not wanting Loki to think he could affect him so easily. Loki wasn't a fool, though, and Thor knew he wasn't that good of an actor.
"I am not leaving," Thor stated plainly, his tone low and serious. "I will be here as long as you are."
"I suppose I should just get used to it then, you have spoken, what I want again counts for nothing," Loki snorted, turning away from his brother. If he couldn't escape him, he could at least ignore him. "Stay, make yourself comfortable, impose yourself on my prison…but do not expect me to be grateful. You are why am here, I will not forget that, brother."
Thor didn't try to apologize again, he'd done enough of that in the last few days, and he doubted Loki wanted to hear it. He remained silent, watching his brother's back rising and falling slowly with each breath, his eyes moving to the metal chip in the back of his neck below the new growth of ink coloured hair. Part of him wanted to reach out for the blanket and wrap it around his brother's shoulders, covering the horribly foreign object imbedded in his skin, though he didn't move. The silence was peaceful, he didn't want to break that.
That had gone much better than he'd anticipated, though that didn't mean he was happy with the results either. He needed to do better, somehow.
"You need to eat, brother, you are letting your body suffer," Thor said, sat in front of his brother, holding a bowl of what he was sure was likely stew. The food they provided for Loki was lesser in quality than the food they brought for Thor, though Loki had no interest in either.
"I will eat when my hands are freed, I am not an infant," Loki replied crossly, his legs folded beneath him, not even bothering to open his eyes. The most he would allow Thor to give him was water, and only because one of the mortals had provided a long, thin tube for him to drink through. He refused to let Thor's hands get closer to him than need be.
"They are not going to free your hands, we've discussed this," Thor reminded him, wondering if he could pin Loki down and force feed him. He needed another set of hands for that, though, and so far, no one would volunteer for the job.
One of Loki's eyes opened, glaring.
"No, you prattled on about some ridiculous order the mortals have given against me, I recall not replying to you. That is not a discussion," Loki said, closing his eye once again. "A discussion would imply that both parties were involved in the exchange of ideas."
Over the last few days, Loki had taken to being extremely literal about everything, when he did choose to speak to his brother. Thor was sure he should be more annoyed about being spoken to in such a manner, but it was better than nothing.
"It is not my fault you refused to speak, stop talking to me as if I were a fool," Thor said, bringing the spoon up to his nose, sniffing. He could see why Loki was in no hurry to eat this.
"You make it too easy, brother," Loki replied. "Are you actually eating that swill? I wouldn't feed it to a dog."
"No, I'm smelling it, I thought your eyes were closed," Thor dropped the utensil back into the bowl, setting it aside with a mental note to tell Fury that this wasn't acceptable, even if Loki was a prisoner. He was right, Thor wouldn't have fed this to any manner of beast. "The bread does not look as bad."
"I told you, I'm not eating, I would rather waste away," Loki said with an annoyed sigh. "And you thought wrong. Again."
"If your plan is to lose enough weight to slip from your restraints, it is a stupid one. I do not think that they will be so easily fooled to just watch you lose that much mass from your body without thinking to tighten them," Thor said, reaching for his own mall, picking up a piece of potato and popping it in his own mouth. "Besides, even if you did escape from them, you would not make it out of this room."
Both of Loki's eyes opened this time.
"Do you honestly think they can hold me?" he asked, anger in his voice. "Do you think so lowly of me, brother, that this group of insignificant fools can keep me here forever?"
"Forgive me, Loki, but I see no way you can escape this in your current state, I mean no offence to you," Thor said to him, shaking his head slowly. "I think there must come a time when you need to admit you are bested if you want any chance of being released again. If you show you are reformed, perhaps they will grant you lenience."
Thor was certain the look Loki gave him would have killed him instantly had he still possessed his magic.
"I am not a beast for them to break and train," he hissed, shaking in rage. "I will not accept my release as a job well done by their terms, I will take it by mine, or I will let myself die here."
"And they say I am stubborn," Thor snorted, wishing he could grab his brother and shake this nonsense from his head.
"You are, the difference is that at least I pick my battles for good reason, not sheer brutish stupidity!" Loki scoffed. "An example of which being your insistence on being here. When will you realize I do not require, nor want, you here and just leave? What is taking so long? Or have I been too hospitable?"
Wanting to again argue that he was there for Loki's sake, Thor decided against it, pretending to be too involved with his meal to argue reason with his irate brother. There was little he could say to Loki on a good day, much less one like this, to convince him or why Thor was there for him. He didn't believe the Thor when he professed that he loved him, or wanted to be there for him to help him, rather Loki tended to assume that Thor derived some pleasure from watching him in this state. Thor had been horrified at the notion, and had tried his best to deny it, though Loki's mind was firmly made up.
"Of course now you are quiet, when I actually want to hear you speak. It is like you wake every morning and think of new ways to infuriate me," Loki seethed. "If you insist on being quiet, be out of my sight as well!"
"No," Thor replied simply, not looking up from his lunch.
"It was NOT a request!" Loki shouted, uncrossing his legs to kick at his brother, though Thor has been quick enough to move out of reach, which only served to infuriate him further. "You are going to listen to me for once, I do not WANT YOU HERE!"
The chip in his neck was forgotten momentarily as Loki set to unleash a blow of energy against his brother. As he was about to send it, a sharp, agonizing pain shot through his spine from the base of his neck, down the nerve endings of his body like hot lightning, constricting his muscles in a painful spasm. Though it lasted only a second, it felt like hours as Loki constricted as much as he could in his bonds, letting out a wretched, choked scream.
"Loki!" Thor was up in a flash and at his brother's side, unaware of what Loki had attempted, though he was afraid to touch him lest he hurt him further.
"Thor! Brother…!" Loki gasped between desperate breaths, his body shaking as residual energy from the blast coursed through him, the pain unrelenting. "Thor, help me…help me…"
Thor would have thought it to be a trick had Loki not broken down into heaving sobs, falling against his elder brother's shoulder as he wept. He had never seen Loki react like this to anything, so it only took him a moment to figure out what had happened.
"Make it stop…I am sorry, Thor, make it stop…" he begged as his body jumped, blood running from his mouth from the damage his teeth had caused his tongue.
"Loki…" Thor began, though there were no words. He had seen the full extent to what S.H.I.E.L.D. had reduced his brother to, and it horrified him.
Putting his arm around his brother's shoulder, he reached for one of his spare clean shirts to mop up the blood from his face gently, getting his water to help rinse his mouth clear of it. As he began to work to best heal the damage done, he caught a glimpse of Loki's eyes as his younger brother stared up at him, realizing that he recognized those green eyes now. They belonged to the terrified little boy who used to crawl into his bed when he had a nightmare, or when their Father was away and he feared for his safety. He'd wanted so desperately to see a trace of his brother that he knew within this twisted man, though he didn't realize how much it would break his heart when he finally did.
"Loki, do not be afraid, I am here…"