Yeah…I'm only a little sorry for how that last chapter ended. And I'm not going to apologize for this chapter either. But please review! Please! I want to know what you think! (Please?)

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

Chapter 11 – The New King of Asgard

The days that followed were miserable. All of Asgard was thrown into a sort of trance. Everyone was in a state of shock over the sudden bout of Odinsleep that befell their king as well as the banishment of Thor. The servants were more silent than usual, walking around the palace with deadened looks in their eyes. Even Niva was less than her normally cheerful self.

Meanwhile, with Loki on the throne, the people of Asgard were abnormally on edge. Nobody had really liked him to begin with because of his cunning and devious nature and his knack for mischief, but now he was different, more maniacal. Those who attended personally to him feared him. But he was their king now, and they were sworn to obey.

Kiera was not afraid of Loki. She and Niva were still personal attendants to both him and Thor, meaning that they kept Thor's rooms and belongings in order and mostly tended to the needs of their new king. Kiera hoped for a sign of remorse, but Loki remained stoic toward her, barely acknowledging her presence or giving her so much as a second glance. When he did notice her it was only long enough to give her a look of disdain before going back to ignoring her. She wanted a moment alone with him to explain that she truly was not frightened of the fact that he was a Jotun. Frankly she did not care what he was. She still cared about him. But such a moment never seemed to come, especially with the new duties that came with being king of Asgard.

"Jadef," Kiera said one day during her lessons, which were private now. "Did you know Loki was a Frost Giant?"

"I had my suspicions," Jadef replied.

"Suspicions?"

Jadef took a deep breath. "When Odin and Frigga announced the birth of their second child, it seemed that Loki was too…big to be an infant. I thought he might be adopted then, but did not ask. It was not my place to question the life or intentions of the Allfather. Then when Loki took his lessons with me and I saw the types of things he could do with his magic, even from a young age, I noticed that some of his abilities seemed very similar to the magical capabilities of a Jotun. I never asked the queen because I did not feel it was my business and I never told Loki my suspicions because what good would it do? If I was correct it would only make him more of an outsider than he already was to his peers and his people, and if I were incorrect then I would look like a fool. Anyway, it did not matter. Loki was a son of Odin, and he was to be treated as such. I rather liked him."

Kiera noticed Jadef use of the past-tense. "Jadef," she continued, "Do you think he'll ever be…back to the way he was?"

Jadef looked at her sadly. "He is very angry, Kiera. Shortly after he found out about his true parentage he came storming into my study, demanding to know why I did not tell him everything. Frankly, I am surprised his first act as king was not to banish me as Odin did to Thor. I do not know if his anger will subside. Being treated as a subordinate for so long can cause a person to overcompensate when they are given a chance at power. He has been holding in his anger for so long that it will be very hard to overcome now. He feels betrayed and alone. Surely you know what that is like."

Kiera had always guessed that Jadef had been told about her past, but it was still a shock to hear him say anything about it out loud. She stared at her feet. "How long have you known?"

"Known what?"

"You know," Kiera all but whispered. "About what happened in Midgard. About why I came here."

Jadef sighed. "Frigga told me everything before you started your lessons with me. She felt it would be best for me to know as much about you as possible in order to best determine how to proceed with your lessons. I chose not to tell you this because I wanted you to be as open with me as you felt comfortable. I did not want my knowing about your past to hinder your development."

"Okay, so why could I get past all that crap and Loki can't?"

Jadef smiled thoughtfully. "Now that is a deep mystery. Every person reacts to pain and anger differently. I think that the fact that your power is driven by love says a lot about you. You still had hope that things would get better. Loki…I do not know if he has that same hope. It seems to me that he believes things will only get worse, and he is using his abandonment and the way others have treated him as an excuse to retaliate. He refuses to bring Thor back to Asgard because he is afraid that he will once again fall under his shadow. And frankly, he has good reason to think so."

Kiera sighed. "So, how can I get him to understand that I get it? He won't talk to me. He won't even look at me." She found herself getting choked up, and felt stupid crying in front of Jadef.

Jadef smiled. "So you do love him? You really love him?"

Kiera's eyes began welling up with tears, and she felt her hands tingle with magic. Frustration overwhelmed her, and she began hurling fireball after fireball into the fireplace, which roared to life with magical flames. Finally, when she was exhausted, she buried her face in her hands and cried. She was surprised when Jadef walked over and embraced her.

"It will be alright."

That was all he had to say for Kiera to realize that this was the closest to a father she had ever had. She wept into his cloak, heartbroken.

The next morning there was a knock on Kiera's door. She groaned and rolled over. When the knocking persisted, she reluctantly left her bed and opened the door. She was surprised to see Sif there.

"Kiera, I need to talk to you. May I come in?"

"Sure," Kiera said, yawning. She opened the door a little wider to allow Sif inside. "What's up?"

Sif glanced toward the ceiling before realizing that it was Midgardian slang and not an actual question. "I was wondering if you could talk to Loki."

Kiera was skeptical. "About…?"

"About bringing Thor back from banishment."

Kiera sat on the bed. "Sif, I don't think he'll ever do that."

Sif began to pace the room, deep in thought. "Kiera, you are the only one who has any sway with him. You are his closest friend. He might listen to reason if you talk to him."

"That's the problem, he won't talk to me. Sif, I have tried talking to him, but he won't acknowledge my presence. He would never even entertain the thought of letting Thor back into Asgard. Being the king has gone to his head."

Sif stopped pacing and bit her lip before continuing. "Kiera, we think he might have been the one who let the Jotuns in on Thor's coronation day."

Kiera stood up. "What?"

"We were discussing it after Thor was banished and it all makes sense. He is always the one causing mischief, and he has always been jealous of Thor. What better way to disrupt Thor's crowning achievement – no pun intended – than by letting Jotuns in to ruin it?"

"But he would never do something that reckless," Kiera said, knowing in her heart that this was a statement of denial. "And how would they get in without Heimdall seeing it?"

"We do not know," Sif replied. "But Loki is very skilled at concealment. I think he is advanced enough in his magic to allow them inside Asgard without even Heimdall being aware of it."

Kiera bit her lip in thought. "You don't think he let them in to try to force Thor to do something stupid, do you?"

"I do not know. I do not think he would try to get Thor banished, if that is what you mean. Loki does love Thor, but he is deeply jealous of him. My theory is that Loki tried to cause Thor to do something rash so Odin could see that he was not ready to be king. Which worked all too well."

"Do you think Thor was ready? To be king, I mean?"

"I do," Sif said, sinking into a chair. "He was not as ready as he believed himself to be. But he is a good man, an even greater warrior…he has much to learn, but I believe he was – is – capable of ruling Asgard."

"He would need a little help in the compassion department," Kiera said. "Not to mention empathy, personal limitation…"

"Yes, but what king doesn't?" Sif stood again, unable to contain her restlessness. "He is not perfect, but he could be a great king."

Sif walked over to Kiera and put her hand on her shoulder. "All I am asking is that you try talking to Loki. Please. The rest of us have already tried and have gotten nowhere with him. You are the only one who could possibly make him listen."

"Sif, I really don't think it'll make a difference."

"Would you at least consider trying?"

Kiera thought for a moment before reluctantly nodding her head. Sif gave her a small smile of gratitude. "I did try, you know. I did not wish for it to be like this, but I warned you something like this could happen."

Kiera nodded. "I know. Maybe I should have listened."

"I understand why you didn't. You see the good in people. That is not a bad thing."

"Maybe it is."

Sif patted Kiera's shoulder reassuringly before turning and leaving the room.

That night, Kiera took a deep breath and walked the corridors to Loki's room. She had tried and failed for a long time to come up with an excuse to visit him. Finally, she decided that it was best to just do it. The worst that could happen was that he would tell her to get lost, which was the common response these days anyway. When she reached his door, she froze, unable to think of anything intelligent to say. Before she could turn around and chicken out she knocked on his door. There was no answer, and Kiera felt somewhat relieved that she could put off this conversation a little longer. She turned to leave and crashed into something behind her, falling to the ground.

She opened her eyes and saw black leather boots before her. Her stomach dropped as she slowly looked up at Loki towering over her, staring daggers. She sat there, too stunned to move.

"Do you need something?" The look of dislike did not leave his face.

Kiera hastily stood up and smoothed out her dress. "Um, I was just dropping by to…uh…see if you needed anything."

"I am perfectly fine, thank you. Now, if you would excuse me," he said, pushing past her and turning the knob on his door.

"Loki, wait!" Kiera shouted, throwing herself in front of the door, filled with a sudden determination. "Please just talk to me!"

"There is nothing to say."

"Why?" Kiera demanded. "Why do you suddenly have nothing to say to me? I don't understand how we can go from…what happened the other night to not speaking to each other. You being a Frost Giant doesn't change anything."

"How can you possibly say that? I do not need your pity, Kiera. Now please leave." Loki tried to push past her again, but Kiera stood her ground.

"It's not pity! I don't think you understand how friendship works, Loki. You don't stop being friends with someone just because you find out they're…blue."

For an instant the warmth Kiera remembered so well returned to his eyes. But then it was quickly squashed by the chill that had replaced it since Thor's banishment.

"Loki, stop and think for a minute. You're acting like everyone around you hates you when they actually don't. But the way you're treating people is making them hate you really fast. You don't have to be one of those kings that rules with absolute power and stomps all over the people around them. Maybe if you let Thor come back and you work things out, everything could - "

Loki turned to her, eyes flashing. "You would have me bring Thor back after what he did? You would have him rule Asgard? Send us off to war? Is that what you want?"

"That's not what I said. I was only suggesting - "

"Maybe war with Jotunheim is not such a bad idea after all," Loki shouted, angrily. "Maybe Thor was right. Bringing Jotunheim to its knees once and for all would show the people of Asgard what a true ruler can do for them."

"Loki, wait, I was not telling you to start a war, I only wanted to - "

Suddenly, heavy footfall interrupted the conversation. A guard appeared, striding toward Loki with purpose. He stopped and announced, "Sir, Sif and the Warriors Three are missing."

Loki's eyes narrowed. "They have gone to bring Thor back. Their treason will be punished." He shot one more scathing look toward Kiera before storming down the corridor, leaving her stunned and more confused than ever.

A sharp rapping at her door woke Kiera in the middle of the night. Then her door swung open.

"Oh, what could possibly be so important that you have to wake me up, Niva?" Kiera said, throwing her covers off her face. "Does his royal sulkiness need a foot massage or something?"

She stopped short when she saw that Niva was followed by Jadef. Both had that look in their eyes that suggested Kiera was about to hear very bad news.

"What's going on?"

Jadef paced the room while Niva sat on the edge of Kiera's bed. "Kiera, there's something we need to tell you."

"I gathered that much. What's wrong?"

Niva opened her mouth to speak, but the words stuck in her throat. She looked over her shoulder to Jadef for help.

"Kiera," Jadef said, his voice sad, "last night, Loki sent the Destroyer to Midgard to kill Thor. The attempt was unsuccessful, and Heimdall was able to bring Thor back to Asgard."

"But that's great! Everything can go back to normal then."

Jadef shook his head. "Kiera, I do not think anyone knew how deep Loki's jealously toward Thor actually was. He tried to use the Bifrost to destroy Jotunheim. Thor tried to stop him, and – Kiera, I – I know how much he means to you - "

"Jadef, what happened?"

Jadef sat down on the bed beside Niva. "Kiera," he said grimly. "Loki is dead."

2013 EDIT: Conversations a bit more fleshed out. I hope this chapter flows better now. It was pretty choppy before.