Chapter Three: A Brother's Embrace
He couldn't believe it.
His home—gone—all because of a sister he didn't know existed.
Hela appeared out of nowhere and ruined his life. Part of him wanted to blame his father for Hela's mess and for keeping such an important issue secret from his sons. Thor shouldn't be surprised anymore; Odin tended to keep secrets from his children, many of which had ruined several relationships and lives.
In hindsight, he realized Odin probably failed as a father.
Growing up, he had considered his father a shining role model for all young boys—admiring and wishing to become just like the late All-Father. Now, all admiration and respect strained at the thought of all the horrid things Odin did.
First, Odin messed up so badly with Loki that it caused the youngest son to attempt suicide and drove him mad enough to attack Midgard out of revenge.
Then, moments before dying, Odin revealed Hela's existence who also hated her father and vowed to claim her birthright on the throne.
Sighing, Thor stared at himself in the mirror and ran a hand through his short hair. His brain couldn't quite keep up with processing the events of the past week.
A week? It couldn't be merely a week, could it?
Norns, what a week. It had started happily—and slightly upsetting—when he discovered Loki hadn't died on Svartalfheim. Then, one thing led to another, and he lost his father, his hammer, and his hair, gained a bloodthirsty sister, fought his friend on a madman's trash-filled planet, and lost his childhood home and his brother—probably—again.
Must his siblings always have a lust for the throne? The comparison between Hela and Loki rather startled him. Besides the obvious dark hair, thin and pale figures, and a preference for black, green, and murder, those two were frighteningly similar. And Thor couldn't shake the feeling he had met her before, albeit in much different circumstances.
Never before had Thor felt so alone and confused until now. All feelings of betrayal and anger originated from his father's lies—and then Loki, learning from Odin's deception—led him to believe. Those lies led to hundreds dying on Midgard, the Warriors Three getting murdered, countless Asgardians slaughtered, and the destruction of Asgard itself.
Thor, in a major understatement, was entirely done with all of it.
He needed a break, but the Norns seemed hellbent on throwing him every obstacle to see if he could overcome them.
Touching the eyepatch on his ruined eye, Thor realized he looked just like his father. Blue eyes, golden hair, an eyepatch—nobody could dispute his relation to Odin and Frigga.
Believing Hela descended from Odin made less sense than Loki being the All-Father's son. Perhaps Odin had adopted her, too, because, if anything, Hela more closely resembled Loki. Both of them had dark hair and green eyes, although Thor noticed Hela had more gray in hers compared to Loki's pure green.
They shared similar body types, facial features, and pale skin. Physical appearances aside, they also had the same air around them—overly confident to mask something darker hidden underneath.
Picking up a bottle of some alcoholic beverage, Thor twisted the bottle stopper out of the glass container. A drink would help him focus, or more likely, make him forget about all his problems.
The brown liquid splashed into the crystal clear glass, and once to his liking, Thor slowly took a sip. Too numb to care about something as trivial as alcohol, he didn't register the burning sensation as the alcohol slid down his throat.
Appreciating the bitter taste on his tongue, Thor caught his reflection in the mirror. A lone, sad eye stared back at him. He looked like a mess, and he couldn't blame his single eye adjusting to working alone now. Pure exhaustion showed clear as day on his face from the drastic changes in the past week finally manifesting.
He hadn't quite gotten used to his short hair yet. Loki would probably tease him about it eventually.
The thought of his brother reminded Thor he had no idea where Loki went. Of course, Thor knew he shouldn't place his entire trust in the man he once assumed would always stand by his side. Loki might never return, even if some part of Thor still clung to the hope they would reunite as brothers again.
He wished he could go back and retract what he said in the elevator on Sakaar. He didn't actually want Loki to leave, but he couldn't control his brother's wild tendencies. Thor knew thinking they could finally achieve happiness together would be futile.
If anything, if Loki found someplace safe to live happily ever after, then Thor would accept it. As much as it hurt to not see Loki again, Thor knew it probably would happen. His words on Sakaar, while mean, were still true. Their paths had diverged a long time ago, and Thor learned from experience that expecting anything else would leave him in more emotional pain. More often than not, the truth hurt especially since he had grown accustomed to the lies.
Touching his eyepatch again with slightly trembling fingers, Thor stared sadly at himself, assessing the damage Hela had done. He had time to clean up once they traveled far enough away from the wreckage, and now he just wanted a nap.
However, a sudden flicker of green reflecting in the mirror caught his attention. Dismissing it as a trick of his single eye still figuring out how to work on its own, Thor messed around with the diamond bottle stopper on the table, not thinking anything at all.
"It suits you," a familiar voice said from behind him.
Startled, Thor turned around to see his eye did not play tricks on him. Or maybe it did since Loki stood in front of him, dressed in his battle armour—not a scratch on his pale face.
He's probably using an illusion to fix his appearance, Thor assumed. Loki tended to fuss about his looks more than any man Thor had ever met, and he'd seen Loki use his magic to disguise any blemishes plenty of times before.
The glimmer didn't hide Loki's tired expression as he gave Thor a small smile.
Thor smiled in return, tossing the diamond stopper back and forth in his hands.
"Perhaps you're not so bad after all, brother," Thor said, trying his hardest to focus on the mirage. A part of him knew Loki didn't actually stand in the room with him, just projecting his usual illusions to either say 'I told you so' or announce his departure.
"Maybe not," Loki said in return, shifting on his feet.
"Thank you, Loki," Thor said, grateful Loki thought enough of him to say his goodbyes instead of disappearing off the face of the universe, even if it wasn't in person. Even so, Thor added, "If you were here, I might even give you a hug."
To prove his point, Thor tossed the diamond at Loki, waiting for it to sail through the illusion and hit the wall behind him.
However, Loki's hand whipped upward and easily caught the stopper.
Well, damn!
Unable to stop it, a grin spread across Thor's face.
"I'm here," Loki assured, matching Thor's smile.
Before his brain could catch up, Thor's feet moved on their own, closing the distance between them in a matter of seconds. Loki had moved toward him as well, tossing the diamond onto the small rug.
The two brothers collided in a warm embrace—and it felt like an eternity since they had ever done this. Thor tugged Loki closer and cupped the back of Loki's hand, mindful of his strength to not crush his little brother.
Surprisingly, Loki leaned into the embrace, resting his chin on Thor's shoulder and wrapping his arms around Thor's shoulders. Loki was either exhausted or losing his mind because the younger man would never have let the hug go on for this long.
Yet, neither of them let go. Thor closed his eyes and relished the feeling of Loki finally—finally—coming home. Despite the roughness around the edges, they just fit perfectly in each other's arms.
Thor heaved out a sigh of relief and closed his eye, breathing in the scene of smoke rolling off his brother's clothes. A slight panic flared up at putting Loki so close to Surtur, but it died down as his breathing steadied and he held Loki tighter.
"I'm glad you are here," Thor said into Loki's hair.
Loki stayed silent, no sign of having heard him aside from a slight trembling.
"I'm sorry," Loki eventually whispered, slightly choking on his words. "I'm sorry, Thor. I—"
"It's alright," Thor replied. He let Loki go only to gently grasp Loki by the biceps to hold his younger brother out at arm's length.
The glimmer concealing Loki's true appearance had vanished, showing all signs of bruises, burns, and dirt caked on Loki's body. Tears rolled down Loki's pale cheeks, leaving little lines through the thin layer of dirt on his face. Loki's lower lip quivered slightly as he tried to hold it in.
"It's not alright, Thor," Loki muttered. "Do you know what I have done?"
"It doesn't matter," Thor assured, and he meant it. He would be lying if he said he wasn't still upset at Loki's previous actions, but right now, all that mattered was hoping Loki stayed for good. Tired of the lies and deception, Thor could forgive Loki because he recognized his brother required help.
In the past, Thor tended to brush his brother's feelings aside, choosing to remain ignorant simply because he had no idea how to address them. Such decisions cost them their relationship as brothers, and Thor swore he wouldn't make the same mistakes again. He vowed to take this opportunity to fix their relationship because he couldn't bear the idea of losing his little brother again and having the blame fall entirely on Thor's shoulders.
Loki's decision to return to the Statesman instead of hopping on the nearest ship to travel to wherever he wanted proved to Thor that Loki shared the same idea. It laid the foundation to rebuild their relationship, even if it felt like they started from the bottom.
"You are not angry at me?' Loki asked, his green eyes staring expectantly as if waiting for Thor to yell at him.
And, in his younger years, Thor would have lost his temper and lashed out at Loki, but the past few years forced Thor to realize yelling usually made people fear him—and he didn't want Loki to fear his older brother. The hatred and sadness were already too much.
"I am glad you are safe, brother," Thor said. "Truly, I am happy you are here. I don't know what I would have done on my own. I doubt I would have enough patience to handle the responsibilities as king by myself."
Thor must have said something wrong because Loki's knees gave way and he would have collapsed if Thor hadn't caught him. Gently kneeling on the ground, Thor held onto Loki as Loki clung to Thor's arm. Looking down at his brother, Thor could see the exhaustion etched into the younger's pale face.
"Speaking of being king, you should probably get ready for your coronation," Loki said, quiet and slightly hoarse.
"Not until I know you are alright," Thor said stubbornly. "I want you there."
"I'm fine," Loki shot back and tried to stand. However, his body protested against him and he sat back on the floor.
"You're not fine," Thor countered.
"Maybe not," Loki muttered. He clenched his jaw, struggling to hold something back.
Thor waited patiently for Loki to figure out his inner turmoil. It didn't last very long, just a few minutes, but Loki's resolve diminished completely and he seemed to release all the tension he held in his body.
Loki's mouth opened to speak but no words came out. Instead, Loki wrapped his arms around the back of Thor's neck and cried into Thor's shoulder. Thor, who tried to stop the flood of tears—even though a few slipped out—let Loki cry. Mirroring what their mother used to do, he rubbed small circles up and down Loki's spine.
They must have looked ridiculous—the soon-to-be king holding onto a sobbing delinquent while sitting on the floor of a stolen party ship. Yet, Thor felt at peace, knowing things would turn out alright. His brother had returned, and that was all the hope he needed.