Author's note: Since a few readers have asked/commented on it, I'll just mention that Frigga is not Vanir, but Aesir. ^^
Having retold his conversation with Frey, Tony intensively hopes that Loki will be able to give him some clear answers regarding whether Frey is telling the truth and whether his offer is genuine or not.
No such luck, however.
"I don't know," Loki says as he turns the medallion over in his hands, studying the runic patterns inscribed in the metal. "If I had still had my powers, I might have been able to tell what kind of magic this has been imbued with, even if it's Vanir in nature, but as it is, I have no way of assessing that."
Damn.
"Isn't there anyone else who could help out, then?" he suggests, despite already knowing the futility of it.
Loki shakes his head. "There are no Vanir sorcerers around here that I'm aware of. And out of the Aesir ones, few but Odin would be skilful enough to decode another form of magic, and I would trust none of them in this."
"Okay, so no way to tell whether the medallion is the real deal or not," Tony comments as he runs a hand through his hair. "But would you trust Frey, then? Or do you think he's only trying to mess things up for you? I mean, this guy is accusing Njord of planning to mind-control me, but maybe that's exactly what this bling will do instead?"
Loki is silent for a while before speaking. "The inscriptions do look like ward runes, but that doesn't necessarily mean there can't be other magic inside as well. I can't tell what this amulet might or might not do." He licks his lips, giving a soft sigh. "As for whether Frey is trustworthy or not… I'm afraid the answer is the same – I don't know."
At that, Tony feels like groaning in frustration and shaking his fist at the sky. "But how would you describe your relation to this guy back in the day? Were you on friendly terms at all or would he have spit in your beer while you were off to take a piss?" Tony asks, hoping to get at least some kind of clue.
Loki looks into the wall behind Tony as if deep in thought, but then shakes his head minutely. "We never associated much. While Frey never acted disdainfully around me unlike some other people, he also never sought my company out. And he's never been one of Thor's close comrades either, again unlike some others who'd never miss a chance to ingratiate themselves with the crown prince and king-to-be. But Frey's family always preferred to keep to themselves, rather than associating much with others." He shrugs. "Maybe it's because they're of Vanir blood, feeling themselves to be apart."
"So is there anything you can tell me about this guy that would be at all useful?" Tony asks in exasperation, frustrated how there is apparently little to nothing to go by. "Is it at least true what he said about you saving his life once?"
At that, Loki nods. "That much is true, yes. It was many years ago in a battle with the Svartalfar. Frey had fallen and was about to get skewered by the enemy captain's sword, but I managed to conjure a protective shield around him in the last minute, so he lived."
Okay, that's good. One point for Trustworthy Frey, then.
"Then again, shield brothers save each others' lives in battle all the time," Loki continues, effectively managing to take away most of that hard-won point. "It's something that comes with the territory and does not incur any life debts, or every warrior would soon find himself hopelessly entangled in a complex web of debts owed both to himself and to others. So the fact that I once saved his life may not truly mean anything to him, regardless of what he claims." A short pause. "Plus, there's also the old incident where I almost forced his sister to marry a frost giant. That did not endear me to her family, to put it mildly."
Yeah, there was that little detail too. "So you think this is just a play to get back at you, then? One that even Frey's whole family might be in on?"
"I wish I could give you a more conclusive answer," Loki replies, looking tired and weary, "but I really can't say."
Tony lets his fingers trail over the strangely cool metal, hating how everything just keeps getting more complicated. "Well, was he right about what he said about this Njord guy having some fairy powers, even if they're really tiny and pitiful?"
"I have never gotten inconclusive evidence for it, but I have long suspected that might be the case," Loki says slowly, rubbing a hand over his eyes. "But if so, Frey's assessment should be correct – his powers could be enough to influence a mortal in such a way, but not one of the immortal races; it takes a fair amount of both power and skill to do that which Njord would be lacking, having not received any formal training. But I don't doubt that he's still angry enough with me to use those powers to my detriment during the audience, if he can."
"And what would happen if we told Thor about all this?" Tony asks, putting forth the obvious for consideration. The idea to just defer judgement to someone else and let the Thunderer handle this crap is really tempting right now, despite Frey's warning not to.
"As Frey said, if there was any truth to it, Njord would get thrown off the council and I don't doubt for a second that he would place the blame on me for that kind of public disgrace. And who knows what kind of meddling he would be willing to engage in to get revenge and make sure there will be no clemency in my judgement, or that the hearing is disrupted in some other way? Njord could make a very dangerous enemy. He holds a lot of political sway in the council, and it wouldn't vanish just because he's been taken off it. His disinclinations against me are already strong enough as they already are without feeding fuel to the fire," Loki answers, not looking happy at the prospect.
Well, that leaves two options – either wear the necklace, or don't. To trust Frey, or not.
He dangles the medallion between his thumb and index finger, watching it swing back and forth. If nothing else, it could serve most excellently as a hypnotist's pendulum.
"So could this bling actually… help doing what Frey is claiming it will protect against?" he asks, hoping Loki can at least give him a conclusive answer to that. "As in, enabling Mr Grudge-of-the-Day to force me to say stuff I don't want to, if he's not powerful enough to do it on his own?"
"Possibly," Loki says. "But on the other hand, while objects meant to facilitate and strengthen magic can make spells more powerful, such objects also tend to be harder to use and control for an inexperienced sorcerer than just plain magic on its own would be."
He looks again at the still swinging medallion. "Any chance this could harm me in any way if I put it on?"
Loki slowly shakes his head. "Few magical artefacts have directly manifested powers; usually they're designed to work under certain circumstances only, such as protecting against specific dangers or threats. And as such, they're not going to have any effect unless you're in the kind of situation that they have been intended for," Loki answers.
Alright then.
"Then let's try this thing out." Before he can think better of it, he slips the string of leather over his head and lets the piece of metal come to a rest against his chest, just below the arc reactor, and then holds his breath.
Nothing happens. There's not even a tingle. He's almost disappointed, but only almost.
"Well, this was anticlimactic," he comments with a raised eyebrow. "Not even a dramatic flash of lightning or pretty sparkle."
Before Loki can give him the 'magic doesn't work like that' that he can see is forming on the god's lips, he continues. "Okay then, so let's assume for a second that Frey is telling the truth but I'm mistrustful enough to show up at court without this thing on, and subsequently gets doused with a spray of magic mind-control pollen. Wouldn't it be, you know, kinda obvious to me afterwards once my brain is clear again that I said stuff I wouldn't have said under normal circumstances?"
"Not necessarily," Loki says. "There are ways to alter perceptions and memories related to what is said under such magic persuasion. You would not think there was anything strange about what you said, but believe it was what you intended to say. The effect will normally wear off eventually and if you think back on it you'll realize you said strange things, but by then you will probably be back in Midgard and it would already be too late. It would be hard to prove there was magic involved as opposed to you just changing your mind and wanting to retract your statement."
"Well, that sucks," Tony mutters. "And I suppose magic doesn't leave, uh, traces that can be seen or tracked somehow?"
"Not that long afterwards, no."
He draws a heavy – very heavy – sigh. "So what do you suggest I do? Wear the amulet and hope Posterboy was being honest with me, or assume he had a hidden agenda and leave it at home?"
Loki looks unhappy. "Well, if you want my opinion, I say wear it. If nothing else, even if the artefact has been imbued with magic that will influence you in an untoward way during the audience, it would be a dangerous plan highly prone to discovery to directly give you such an object. If Frey's intentions were dishonest, he ought to have gone for more subtle means rather than exposing himself like this. A magical item with Vanir magic written all over it would point right back at him and his family, and he knows it."
Fair enough. Then another thought hits him.
"Is Frey on the Council?" If so, he wants to know.
"He stands in occasionally, when the attending members are even in number and need a deciding vote," Loki answers with a small nod. "He is next in line for a permanent position on the Council, once one of the current members dies or is otherwise taken off it."
"Were you ever on it?" Tony can't help but ask.
"No, I was not. And neither was Thor," Loki says. "The seats are reserved for the nobility, not the royal family. The purpose of the Council is to balance the power of the royal family, which already holds claim to the highest position of the King of Asgard."
"Alrighty." He has no idea if it's a good or a bad thing that Frey is on the Council, even if it's only part-time. But if the medallion has a nefarious purpose and Frey plans to make use of it during the audience, Tony will sure be leaving himself wide open if he's wearing the thing.
They continue to discuss their options for a little while longer, back and forth, but soon their arguments are going in circles, limited by the scant information, and Tony's head is starting to pound, not entirely unlike having a stubborn hang-over.
"Yeah, well, guess I have to think this through for a bit," he finally concludes, effectively ending the discussion. "I don't think I can offer a definite 'yay' or 'nay' as it is."
Loki only nods his understanding, and then there is silence.
"So, how about we just continue with the sight-seeing for now?" Tony suggests as the silence has stretched on for a while, desperate to get something else to focus on. Maybe then he'll be able to get some perspective on all this after having lifted his nose up a little from the ground.
"If you wish," Loki says. "There is still much we haven't seen yet."
They continue through the Halls, Tony listening with only half an ear as Loki resumes his story-telling and expositions, a little less animated now that he's no doubt noticing that Tony isn't paying full attention, his brain occupied with other things. But he's a good sport anyway, as he guides them on through vaulted rooms and gilded halls and decorated chambers, each more impressive and breath-taking than the first.
Still, Tony's mind is swirling from all the uncertainties and unknowns. So many risks and dangers, whichever way he decides to play this. Unable to stop himself, he keeps turning the arguments over in his head again and again, weighing the pros and cons, trying to see things from all possible angles, no matter how crocked they might be.
Should he trust Frey or not? Is the guy telling the truth, or lying through his teeth?
He puts his hand into the pocket of his pants, fiddling around with the medallion, the metal still as cool to the touch as before. Weird.
Is it better to be paranoid or gullible? Which would have the worst consequences, if it turns out he made the wrong call? Is there any way to be certain, or is he just guessing here, despite the deep dive analysis of the situation that he's telling himself that he's making?
So many questions, and so few clear answers.
But what in the end tells him to trust Frey is not logic or reason or rationale, but how he was the first one in Asgard save Thor to refer to Loki by his name and not by the word 'slave'.
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