Hello everyone! I tried to upload this earlier, but it appeared that was down because I could not access this website. Fortunately, it's back up now though. I want to thank my new follower, Katerina13 for your review! Thank you for your kind words and insight into how I've written this story so far as it pertains to how we see Loki in the movies. I can't wait to keep writing this story and I thank you for looking forward to what is to come :)
To my daily reviewers: A Wild Clover- I have successfully caused feels, yes! I loved your suggestion and I was actually thinking of doing that later on in the story, but I did it in this chapter! It's possible that it will occur again later on in the story too. Haha! The end of your comment made me laugh- I posted this around 2am and read your comment sometime after 3am and I know what it feels like to draw interesting comparisons late at night. I get weirder than usual after midnight which is when I do most of my writing haha. Thank you for your review :)
Cougar rolypoly bug- Awww :( I feel bad for making you cry! There were points writing the last couple chapters that I felt a bit teary eyed too, but things get better here, I promise! Their childhood is coming to a close, but since Loki isn't quite as dark in Thor as he is in the Avengers, Loki will not remain as he has been the past few chapters. He will at some points, but not entirely. Good question! They would be considered about age 14 by our Midgardian standards. Thank you for your review :)
I should also mention that the next chapter will be the last childhood chapter. With that being said, two updates from now I will start posting the adolescence chapters as I move closer to getting to where the "Thor" movie picks up. I hope you all like this chapter and please review as always!
Training class had just ended and you were in a bad mood because Fandral had been taunting you upon noticing the unorthodox distance between you and Loki. Instead of sitting next to each other, you and Loki were as far apart as possible. This did not go unnoticed by your peers who mostly just shot the both of you weird glances. You did your best to ignore them while Loki met their stares with his own as if he was silently challenging them to say something to him.
"Did you and Loki over there have it out?" Fandral ran up beside you as you unsuccessfully to leave without being noticed.
You sighed, "Go away, Fandral."
"Oooh, you did!" Fandral looked positively gleeful as he announced, "Asgard's perfect best friends had a fight everyone! That's why they aren't speaking to each other!"
Loki stopped in his tracks where he too, was trying to leave with being seen. Loki stood still and did not turn to face anyone.
You, however, expressed your annoyance by pointing a finger in Fandral's face and saying, "Do not speak of that which you have no knowldege of, Fandral."
Fandral laughed and responded, "Everyone knows it. You act like we don't notice the both of you constantly sitting next to each other or whispering. Both of you aren't as invisible as you think you are."
Just as you were about to respond with an angry retort, a force pushed you back as you fell backwards onto the ground and a figure materialized in front of you. Loki had appeared right where you were and he was now grasping the front of Fandral's shirt.
"Have care how you speak, you say that I am incorrect in my perception of my invisibility in your eyes? No," Loki laughed menacingly and then narrowed his eyes at Fandral, "if I were invisible to you, you would not have victimized me. You believe that I am stupid enough to mistake your cruelness for invisibility? Do you?!" Loki asked angrily as he shook Fandral.
Fandral looked absolutely terrified of Loki for the first time in his life. Fandral was stunned speechless as was everyone else including yourself.
"I-I ne-ever sa-a-aid you were stu-upid." Fandral stammered.
Loki laughed again, but there was no mirth in it. "No, but you think plenty else of me. Do not lie, I can easily pry into your mind and spill all of your secrets. You think they are safe, locked inside your head, but you cannot hide your thoughts from me, Fandral."
Now Fandral laughed as he said, "You are insane. You think you can read my mind?"
Loki looked at Fandral blank faced as he said, "Maybe if I laugh it off and act arrogant nobody will know that I'm actually in fear right now. Sound familiar?"
Fandral gasped while Loki laughed as he lowered his voice, "You thought I was making a jest, but now everyone here knows that you are afraid of me."
Those who had seen the beginning of the scene had yet to leave. Sif, Ingrid, Liv, Hogun, Gunner, and Kari were rooted in place. Thor, Volstagg, Ivar, Agmund, and the others had already departed from the area along with Vali. It was similar to the situation Loki had been in; everyone was watching, but no one was reacting.
"You are all afraid of me actually. None of you know what I am going to do next so you all remain where you are in hope that you will not agitate me in any way, causing me to go after you next. Well, truth be told, you have all aggravated me and I could easily teach you all a lesson right now." Loki snarled.
You remained on the ground but shifted uncomfortably at the thought of what Loki would do if he felt like lashing out on someone.
Loki's snarl disappeared as it was replaced with a softer expression. Loki said in a soft voice that didn't correlate with the words he spoke, "Let Fandral be an example."
Fandral's eyes widened as he reached for Loki's hand around his shirt to release his grip, but as he did so Loki's eyes darted toward him as Loki lifted his free hand a few inches from Fandral's chest as a dark blue light emanated from Loki's palm and blasted into Fandral, causing him to fly back through the air and crash into a stone wall. Fandral's body crumpled to the ground as he lay limp. Loki lowered his hand as he looked around at everyone's stunned faces. Loki's eyes looked venomous as he grinned maliciously.
Nobody dared to move and Loki looked pleased by that.
"I hope that you will all learn from this moment and that you will think twice before crossing me." Loki warned the group as he turned his back on them.
As soon as Loki turned around, the others scrambled to Fandral's side which was not unknown to Loki, but he was too concerned by what he saw before him to care what the others were doing.
Lying on the ground visibly in pain, was you. You were clutching your side and inhaling sharply, wincing with each breath you took. You didn't know what happened, you were watching in horror as Loki attacked Fandral with some kind of magic and the next thing you knew, you were also slammed by some powerful force. The force had knocked the wind out of you and pushed you back even further than you already were. Your body did not leave the ground, but instead slid through the dirt. You felt the roughness of the soil against your skin as well as the impact of whatever hit you, but you were too stunned and breathless to scream. You lay on the ground with your eyes tightly shut wishing the pain away. You didn't understand why you felt so awful, but you suspected it had to do with Loki's magic.
Loki raced over to you and stood above you with concern all over his face. You couldn't see Loki because your eyes were still shut, but you had heard footsteps running over to you. You groaned, unable to form a proper sentence. Loki didn't speak, but placed a hand on yours as the he used his magic to transport you both away from the scene before anyone noticed that you had also been hurt.
You felt someone carrying you as you felt yourself drift in and out of consciousness. You didn't feel like you had enough strength to open your eyes so you kept them closed. You hoped that whoever was carrying you would be there when you regained consciousness. The last thought that crossed your mind was that whoever was carrying you was gentle and you wondered if Vali had come back and discovered you on the ground.
Color began to flood into your eyes as you slowly opened your eyes, the darkness receding. You realized that you were in your room and feeling the soft blankets beneath you, you guessed that you were in your bed. You groaned as you tried to lift your head.
"Be careful." a voice urged.
You turned your head to find the source of the voice discovering Loki sitting at your bedside looked drained and worried.
"L-Loki?" you stammered as you stared at him.
"I imagine that you are shocked to see me here." Loki replied.
You quickly backed up against your bed and braced yourself for some type of outburst. Loki's face fell at your actions as he frowned and lowered his head.
"I cannot blame you for recoiling at the sight of me. I would too." Loki said sadly.
You widened your eyes at Loki's words. Loki did not look violent or unstable like had lately, but instead looked penitent and sad. You were not sure what to make of Loki's demeanor because you were waiting for him to explode in a fury of emotions. Steadying your breathing, you stared at Loki as he lifted his head and net your eyes with his own. You could see the pain reflected in the depths of his emerald eyes. Loki's eyes had lost their usual luster and looked clouded over with misery and regret.
"What did you do to me?" you asked.
"I assumed that you would blame me for your predicament, correctly, it pains me to add." Loki said softly as he looked sorrowfully at you.
You simply stared back at Loki, unsure of what to say.
"I want you to know that I did not do this to you on purpose. I am going to attempt to explain what I think happened, please just listen to me for a moment?" Loki asked you.
"Fine, go ahead." You said as you crossed your arms.
Loki took a deep breath as he said, "You and I both know that we were both pretty angry after our fight and while we have not been speaking to each other, that does not mean that I hate you. I was angry at you and I didn't want to speak to you. What you had said further fueled my anger and I decided that I wanted to prove you and everyone else wrong; I wanted to prove that I could handle my own problems. I didn't want to be viewed as weak anymore. I was tired of being a shadow and I no longer wanted to be viewed as a lesser individual. So, I went to the library and retrieved a book on dark magic."
"You did what?" You interjected.
Loki lifted hand, "Please, Aurora, allow me to finish speaking. Then you can ask me what you wish."
"Very well then." You said.
Loki continued, "I began reading the book's contents and found that I picked up on the material rather quickly. I decided that I would use my aptitude for magic to my advantage and that is just what I did today. I used dark magic on Fandral, and unintentionally, on you as well. Before you are overwrought with anxiety, let me tell you that no serious harm has come to either of you. You are not possessed nor are you cursed."
"What do you mean you unintentionally used dark magic on me? How could you hit me with it by accident when you weren't even facing me?" You asked in disbelief.
"I can see that you do not believe me. Dark magic is very complicated to say the least. It requires an enormous amount of control, focus, and skill. While I have an aptitude for magic, I have much to learn in terms of controlling it. Apparently, with dark magic, when you direct it at someone, they must be the only person in your thoughts. If another person is in your mind, they too will be affected by the dark magic. When I was directing my magic at Fandral, as I'm sure you can guess by now, you were on my mind as well."
Loki looked at your stunned expression before he continued, "I was thinking about what transpired between us and how I wanted to apologize to you, but apparently dark magic does not distinguish between benevolent and malevolent thoughts. This is not the position I wanted to be in when I apologized to you for my actions the other night. Now, I am not only apologizing for being a poor friend, but also for hurting you with my own magic. Aurora, my friend," Loki said as he reached for your hand causing you to tense up slightly, "I understand why you are afraid of me. I am terrified of myself now too. I never wanted to hurt you and because I couldn't control the dark magic, you paid the price. I am truly, sincerely sorry for what I have done to you. I have never been so sorry in my entire life. Please, believe me."
You were alarmed at Loki's words because he made it sound like you were dying or something tragic like that.
"I thought you said I was going to be fine?" You asked shakily.
"You are fine, you are just a bit battered by the force that threw you back, but that is all." Loki responded.
"You made it sound like you had just sentenced me to death with your magic, don't be such a drama queen." You said firmly.
Loki fought back a smile and lost as a small grin crept onto his face, a genuine smile, not one of mischief.
"You're not supposed to smile! I'm still mad at you!" You yelled as you started laughing yourself.
"Well, you're doing a poor job of it." Loki chuckled.
"No! Shut up!" You exclaimed as you hit Loki in the arm.
"Owww. I shouldn't have done that." You said as you winced and grabbed your throbbing arm.
Loki's smile faded and was replaced by a firm line and another look of concern. "You really should take it easy and rest."
"I know. Okay Loki, I forgive you." You caved as you stared at your best friend who obviously cared very much about you despite the fight that had occurred between the two of you.
"Really?" Loki asked you as his eyes lit up.
You nodded. "I do. I couldn't stay mad at you forever; I need you in my life. I just wanted you to apologize to me and I'm sorry too. I imagine that you felt betrayed and as lonely as I did."
"I did, but none of that matters now. I forgive you too and I am just happy to have my best friend back." Loki smiled as he looked like he wanted to give you a hug but refrained from doing so because he was afraid of hurting you.
You smiled back, "Just give me a hug, I know you want to. I can take it."
Loki hugged you carefully, but you still winced slightly and as Loki went to pull back you pulled him back in close to you and said, "No, stay. It's a good kind of pain, I can handle it."
"If you say so." Loki said as he continued hugging you but eventually pulled back saying, "I think that I should let you rest now. The healing process will go much faster if you sleep."
"Okay, Loki. I will see you soon." You said.
Loki smiled at you from your doorway, "Sleep well, Aurora."
"Farewell, Loki." You smiled softly as he shut the door behind him.
This time, the door closed softly and did not slam like Loki's door had when the two of you last spoke. You and Loki had finally made amends and though you had gotten hurt by Loki in more ways than one, you were still able to forgive him because you still loved him and cared about him as your friend. You could tell that Loki was truly sorry and you fell asleep happy that you and Loki were finally friends again even though you had never really stopped being friends with him despite your fight.