At first this chapter would not write itself, but I rather like the way it turned out.

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters, and the rest belongs to Marvel.

Chapter 4 – Loki

Kiera turned over in her bed as sunlight streamed through the windows. She heard a knock at the door and groaned, yanking the sheets hard over her head. She wanted to shout at Mrs. Wilson to leave her alone and let her sleep a little longer. It wasn't as if the other kids at school would miss her if she did not come to school that day. The knocking grew louder. Finally Kiera heard the door open.

"Fine, I'm up, I'm up!" Kiera moaned, expecting to see a disapproving Mrs. Wilson or one of the other kids standing over her ready to poke her in the eye.

"And good morning to you as well, Miss Kiera."

Kiera opened her eyes and could not believe what she was seeing. Standing in her room was Niva, holding fresh towels. Kiera blinked, stunned. It had not all been a dream. She was still in Asgard. This was real.

"I'm so sorry," Kiera apologized, flinging the sheets off herself and sitting up quickly. "I'm sorry, I thought - "

"Oh, but of course it will take you time to adjust to life here." Niva placed the towels down on Kiera's bedside table. "Not to worry, dear. I only hope you feel welcome. This is your home now, after all."

Kiera smiled back at Niva.

"I will draw you a bath," Niva said, retreating to the bathroom.

"Wait," Kiera stopped her. "You're supposed to be working with me, not for me."

"Dear, it is your first day, and you are yet a child. You have experienced much suffering. Please allow me to care for you." With a kind smile, Niva disappeared into the bathroom.

Kiera sat on the bed for a moment, not knowing what to say. She wondered how many people around the palace already knew about her past. Niva's last statement suggested she knew, which made sense, but Kiera sincerely hoped nobody else did. She was already looked upon as a foreigner from Midgard, but she wanted to start over with a new life. If everybody in Asgard knew about her past, there was a chance the same rejection she had received in Midgard could happen here.

However, Niva knew, and she was in the adjacent washroom getting a warm bath ready for Kiera. She had not been afraid of Kiera, looked with judgment upon her, or even pitied her. The gesture was simple, but it touched Kiera deeply. It was almost like having a mother again.

Kiera was drawn out of her thoughts by the faint smell of smoke. She searched for the source and to her dismay noticed that the beautiful blue sheets of her bed had started ablaze.

"No no no no no no!" Kiera leaped off the bed, grabbed her pillow, and began beating the flames with it, cursing under her breath. She had started many of these small fires before, but destroying the few possessions she had been given her first full day in Asgard hardly seemed a proper repayment for the royal family's kindness.

"My dear, what has happened?" Niva rushed out of the bathroom and at once began to help Kiera put out the flames. Fortunately it was a small fire, but a good portion of the bedskirt was charred black.

Kiera stared dejectedly at the mess. "I'm so sorry. Once I earn enough money, I'll buy another set of sheets."

"Oh, you will do no such thing," said Niva. "I am actually quite impressed. I have heard of people who could start fires by magic, but I have never had the honor of meeting such a person. It is a pleasure to know they are not all wicked."

"So there are more people like me?"

"So I have heard. Apparently it is not a very common gift. Oh, my word! The bathtub!" Niva rushed into the bathroom, followed closely by Kiera. Both found the bathroom flooded with water.

"Oh, Odin, forgive me," Niva cried, turning the faucet on the tub. She sighed deeply. "Well, this has certainly been an exciting morning, has it not?"

Kiera laughed. "We'd better not cause any more natural disasters or they'll have us thrown out."

Now they were both laughing. Kiera had never known a person could be so positive. Niva could turn even the dreariest moments into something pleasant. Even if her lessons went terribly wrong, Kiera would always have Niva to make it all right again.

Kiera managed to set at least twelve more small fires to her quarters and to other assorted areas of the palace in the week prior to her lessons. She had begun shadowing Niva, learning the duties of a servant to the royal family of Asgard. She had not seen much of the princes, but had now learned how to tidy their rooms properly. She found that not much work ever needed to be done in Loki's room. He kept his books on the shelf, made his own bed, and there was never any clothing on the floor. This surprised Kiera. She had always thought of royalty as feeling entitled and too important to be bothered with such trifles as cleaning one's room. That coupled with the fact that he was a boy about the same age as Kiera made her guess that he would not find the task something he needed to do.

Thor's room on the other hand took almost four times as long to put in order as his brother's. Scarlet sheets constantly lay strewn on the floor on top of piles of clothing and pieces of armor. There were considerably less books in this room, but whatever books there were lay on every surface other than the bookshelf. Kiera toyed with the idea that Thor had trouble finding people to practice his training with and instead practiced on the inanimate objects in his room. This thought always made Kiera laugh.

Kiera also began eating meals with the servants. Their dining room was considerably smaller than the grand dining hall, but it was comfortable. Niva seemed to be the only palace servant who enjoyed talking or having any sort of fun at all. Perhaps the other servants' jobs were a bit less exciting than imagining Thor battling Frost Giants made of stacks of books in his bedroom. Whatever the reason, they avoided talking at mealtimes and left early, leaving Kiera to converse with Niva about their daily adventures. Kiera did not mind. She was used to being left alone, and it was nice to have a confidant and friend in Niva.

Finally, the day of Kiera's first lessons in magic arrived. She was both excited and extremely nervous. After a quick bite to eat and changing into a new sky blue tunic with a floral detail at the neck she had bought for herself with her earnings, she headed down the corridor in the direction of one of the palace courtyards. She had passed by the courtyard several times earlier in the week and watched as the boys and Sif practiced their newly-learned skills. She was mesmerized by how graceful Sif was when she wielded her sword against practice dummies and occasionally her instructor. Thor and the other boys tried to out-man each other (and impress Sif, probably) by finding excuses to flex their muscles and impale things with their weapons. Loki, however, was often found sitting in the far end of the courtyard reading, repeatedly whipping small daggers at a large shrubbery, or trying to make objects move with a wave of his hand.

Taking a deep breath, Kiera stepped outside into the bright Asgardian sun. The only other person in the courtyard was Loki, getting an early start on his lessons for the day. He was sitting on the ground in the shade, reading an old-looking book. Kiera had been told that he was about her age, but he seemed older somehow. He was wearing the same green tunic as when he had run into her in the corridor, coupled with golden arm and shoulder guards. He absentmindedly brushed a lock of black hair out of his face, completely engrossed in his book. Kiera felt awkward approaching him, but even more awkward standing in the middle of the courtyard not saying anything. Swallowing her nerves, she slowly crossed the courtyard and sat down next to the boy.

"What are you reading?" Kiera asked, not sure of what else to say, or if she should be saying anything. She did not know this kid after all.

Loki did not look up from his book. "Asgardian history."

Kiera smirked, thinking it funny that even alien princes needed to take history lessons. "Could I maybe take a look?"

Loki looked up and studied Kiera for a moment. His eyes were a brilliant green and piercing. Finally, he handed her the book. It was opened to a page with a picture of a frightening looking creature wielding a spear and sneering. She tried to read the passage in the book, but found that it was in a language she could not hope to decipher.

"It's a Jotun, or Frost Giant," Loki said, startling Kiera. "They live in the realm of Jotunheim. Our people have been at war with them on and off for eons. I have been told their eyes glow bright red, though I have never seen one to confirm it."

Kiera continued to stare at the page. The picture was starting to give her the creeps.

"I am sorry for running into you," he said, taking the book back and closing it. "I never got the opportunity to properly apologize."

"Oh," Kiera replied. "It's okay. I'm still in one piece."

Loki gave her a strange look before setting his book down. "Your Midgardian way of speaking is strange."

"Um…thanks."

"I must confess I have never visited Midgard. I have only read about it in books or heard tales of it from my father. What is it like?"

"Well," Kiera was not sure how to respond to this. She did not want to get too deep into her personal experience back in Midgard. "It's a lot less shiny."

She could have been mistaken, but she thought she saw his mouth curve into a small smile. "It is fascinating. My father has told me that some people from your realm worship the people of Asgard as gods."

Kiera laughed. "Gods? Seriously?"

"You find this to be funny?"

"Well, yeah, a little. Don't flatter yourself, I'd never even heard of Asgard until a few days ago."

Kiera realized she had just insulted a prince. A prince that apparently some people back on Earth worshiped. "I'm sorry," she said. "It's just, it's hard to imagine people worshiping you guys, that's all."

"Midgard is not known for magic," Loki said. "I trust that they observed the people from our realm and the things we could do and came to the conclusion that we were beings of a divine nature."

"I guess I could see how they would think that."

"And you are among the few Midgardians with a gift for magic?"

"I didn't know any Midgardians had a 'gift for magic.' I didn't even know real magic existed."

"How could you possibly believe that magic did not exist when you could cause such catastrophe?"

Kiera paused, warily. "What did they tell you?"

"Not much, but there was a scorch mark on my bedside table that was not there before your arrival."

Kiera breathed a sigh of relief, smiling as she remembered the panic she had felt after setting a member of the royal family's bedroom on fire three days previously.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I still don't know how that happens. I'll try really hard not to burn down your room."

Now there was a definite smile on Loki's face. "I think it will be fun to finally have someone to study with."

"Except…how am I going to study with you if I can't even read?"

"Most of the books Jadef has had me read have been in more contemporary languages. Asgardians know and study many languages, including those of Midgard. However, if there are books you wish to read that are not in a language you understand, I would be happy to assist you. This book," he picked up his book on Asgardian history, "is written in a quite ancient language. I taught myself how to read it and I can write some as well. If you spend some time working at it you could do the same."

"Thank you," Kiera replied. "Doesn't anybody else study magic?"

"Only what they read in their academic lessons, but Thor and the rest are much more interested in combat and physical prowess. They seem to find learning magic a waste of time when they could be learning swordplay."

"So, who are Sif and the others, in relationship to you? I mean, I'm sure not just anyone gets to train with the princes of Asgard."

"They come from powerful families and are Thor's closest friends." Loki did not elaborate. Kiera noticed his smooth way of speaking turn slightly dark. She remembered the way the others had laughed at him at dinner. Kiera figured this sort of thing must happen often, or he would not have reacted the way he did.

Kiera changed the subject. "So, what kinds of magic can you do?"

"I work mostly in manipulation of materials. I have learned how to move objects without touching them, and just a few weeks ago I learned how to create my own throwing daggers, which will be useful if the 'Warriors Three' ever challenge me to a fight."

"That's so cool! Can you show me?" Kiera said, excitedly.

Loki spent the next several minutes showing Kiera how he conjured tiny daggers slyly in the palm of his hand and then stood up and threw a couple of them with perfect aim at the center of a target across the courtyard. She got the sense that Loki was starved of companionship. Sure, he had his peers, but they were not subtle about their unwillingness to spend any more time with Loki than was necessary. Thor, it seemed, liked Loki, loved him even. But he liked to show off for his friends, which usually left the younger, smaller, and quieter Loki as the unfortunate target. Also, Thor was the firstborn, and in most kingdoms Kiera had heard of, inheriting the throne was usually a cause for jealousy. The way he spoke, Kiera could tell Loki admired his brother. But the animosity and rivalry were definitely present as well.

Kiera sensed movement from the other end of the courtyard. Loki waved his hand and the daggers resting in the target dissolved into a grey mist. Kiera looked up to see Thor striding toward them. He truly was impressive, tall with broad shoulders and impossibly large biceps. His face was not at all hard on the eyes, and his blonde hair was slightly tussled. Kiera could see why the ladies of Asgard fawned over him.

"You are early, brother," Thor addressed Loki.

"And this surprises you?" Loki replied.

Thor smiled. "Never." He extended a hand to his brother, who took it. They shared what Kiera could only describe as an Asgardian bro-hug. Hesitating, Loki turned and awkwardly held out a hand to Kiera to help her to her feet. She took it, not expecting his skin to be as cold as it was on this pleasantly warm day. She stood up, feeling very short next to the boys, who towered over her.

"Hildorr and Jadef should be arriving shortly," Thor bellowed. He turned to Kiera. "Young Midgardian, are you ready for your first day of training?"

At that moment, Thor was distracted by Hogun, Volstagg, Fandral, and Sif, who walked briskly into the courtyard. Kiera raised an eyebrow. "Does he always talk like that?"

Loki rolled his eyes. "Thor has always had a flair for dramatics. But he will learn your name soon enough. Unless you would rather be called 'Young Midgardian' for all eternity."

"Not really, but thanks for the offer."

Loki laughed. "I do not believe I will ever get used to the way you speak."

He and Kiera followed Thor across the courtyard to greet the warriors in training. Kiera smiled, thinking that maybe, just maybe, she had made her first real friend.

2013 EDIT: Not many changes were made to this chapter. I rather liked the original draft.