Sorry…the world of "Thor" has now been exposed to my terribleness at updating in a timely manner. *facedesks* But I just got a really good idea for chapter 2 of this fic, and since I have my laptop here with me…*shrugs, grinning* And plus, "THE AVENGERS" CAME OUT! *fangirl squeal* I went to see it last night, and IT WAS AMAZING! Best! Movie! Ever! :D The scene toward the beginning where Thor and Loki are talking gave me some good inspiration, so some of this may seem a little similar to that. ;P I don't own "Thor" or anything. Now onto chapter 2 of Not Quite Eye to Eye (finally)!

Loki watched, still in silence. Everything he'd done…everything that had happened to separate them…nothing could change those. Nothing could change any of it. His hands were clenched into tight fists, forcing himself to keep the pain locked away. Now wasn't the time for pain. Now was simply a time for observation, for pinpointing weakness.

He knew a battle with Thor was coming again. He was going to be prepared for it. Even if no one else knew it was coming—no one else bothered to search for proof he was alive—that was something he would take advantage of. He wouldn't be caught off guard. Nothing—not even the small part of him that wanted to think of Thor as his brother still—would stop him this time.

The water flowing from Thor's eyes had mostly stopped, but he still wiped away what was there. "Brother," he whispered, his hand resting on the stone. With Loki gone, this was the only place—the only thing—connecting him to his lost brother. "I'm sorry…"

"You're sorry now?" The words shot out of Loki's mouth. His eyes widened instantly, and he took a step back, even as Thor turned.

Blue eyes went wide, shock, surprise, regret, and a hint of hopefulness merging in them. "Loki?"

A thin, bitter smile crossed Loki's lips. "Hello, Thor," he said coldly, looking at him out of the corner of his eye. "You didn't expect me to be gone forever now, did you?"

"Brother…" Thor spoke almost too softly, the tone stabbing through Loki worse than any blade. He started to reach out to Loki, but the trickster god pulled away.

"Don't call me that, Thor." He turned away, covering the pain like he'd done so many times before. "I'm not your brother any more than I'm an Asgardian."

"How did you get back to Asgard?"

"A break in the Bifrost is nothing to stop my magic. You should know that, at least." Loki's voice was quiet, but the stillness around them made hearing him no trouble. Walking forward and laying a hand on the stone, he scowled, reading the words. "Quite the memorial," he said, quiet sarcasm dripping from the words, his voice still soft and cool. "I should only expect more from Odin when it comes to his own son."

"Loki…"

"Quiet," Loki snapped. "Don't pretend otherwise. You know the truth—about what I am." His voice almost, but didn't quite, break on the word 'what'. "And Odin will never stand to acknowledge taking in a Frost Giant." Bitterness filled his voice.

"Father did only what he thought was best," Thor said softly, his eyes tortured as he watched the man he'd been raised to know as his brother.

"'What he thought was best'," Loki mocked. "Refusing to tell me the truth. Tell me, brother, arrogant and foolish as you are, do you honestly believe that?"

"He didn't want you to feel different." Thor knew. He understood why the All-Father had such a hard time with Loki. Odin was tormented by Loki's true parentage more than anyone, but he tried to treat Loki no different than any of the others. No different than Thor.

"Well, he certainly failed at that," Loki hissed, stepping deliberately around Thor without taking his eyes off of the stone. Thor watched him silently, never looking away from his brother. "The All-Father is a cowardly fool, Thor. You've known that all along, but now you refuse to acknowledge it."

"Our father is wiser than either of us will ever be."

"Your father," Loki corrected bitterly. "You claim that, but you question his judgment the same way you always have. Odin is content to stay hidden away here in Asgard, but you…" A new glimmer lit his eyes. "…you have even less reason now to hide away like a good little prince. You have that woman on Earth that you want to see again."

Automatically, Thor tensed slightly. "Jane has nothing to do with any of this. Leave Earth out of your grudges against our father and me."

"It's too late for that." Loki was smiling now, a cold, bitterly humorless smile. "They're preparing for war. They've seen our power. They're afraid of us." He looked Thor in the eye. "As well they should be."

"They shouldn't have any reason to fear us, brother."

"Stop calling me that!" Loki wanted to yell the words, but he held back, keeping his voice quiet. "You and I are not brothers."

"Loki, please—"

"You've seen that Odin has no love of Jotuns. What makes you believe that he would think any different of me?"

"Because you are his son!"

"I have never been Odin's son!" Loki spat, whirling on Thor. "That is something that has always been meant only for you! He may claim it, but Odin has never seen me as anything more than a stolen relic from Jotunheim! After he decided that I wasn't a means of 'achieving peace' between Asgard and Jotunheim, I was worthless to him." His voice was softer now, sharp enough that they cut his own heart. He hated it. "Everything I did was to prove to Father that I was your equal."

"You called him 'Father'." Thor spoke the words quietly, almost not daring to hope. Hearing that one word from Loki, there was a small chance that there was still hope. He knew what Loki truly wanted. All their lives, Thor had been Odin's favorite; both of them knew it, just like Loki was Frigga's favorite. It had never really bothered Thor, but he knew Loki longed for Odin to be as proud of him as he was of Thor, just once. That was why Loki had started all of this in the first place.

Loki stiffened. He hadn't meant to refer to Odin as 'Father'. He didn't want to admit that he still wanted to think of them as his family. He couldn't admit that. Not to Thor. Not when another battle was coming. He couldn't show any weakness to Thor. "The All-Father has never loved anyone the same way he cares about you, Odinson," Loki said coldly.

"You bear that name, too, brother." Thor hated the tone in Loki's voice, like he was so separate from everything they'd been through together. Their entire lives, the two of them had been closer than any of the gods, but now…

"Only the name." Loki gave a small, bitter smile. "And now, not even that."

*sigh* That's probably not a good place to cut off, but I'm running out of computer time, and I REALLY want to update this. I'll try to update a lot faster this time than last time! In the meantime, please review! Also, if you get a chance, please check out my Avengers one-shot, If Anyone Would Know. I just uploaded it, so reviews for that one are appreciated, too. ;) Adios for now!