Young Asgardians

6

"I'll go check on Thor," Bruce said, walking out in the direction of Thor's room. Loki pulls the book twice his size back into his lap in an effort to ignore all that just happened. He tries not to cry, but then again he's two, so he doesn't hold out for long. Steve quickly picks the toddler up and lets him cry as he bounces him in his arms around the room. This is different from all the other times the boy has burst into tears because now it's silent. Just tears rolling down his face and hiccuping; shoving his face into Steve's shoulder.

Bruce finds Thor back in his room with his head in his hands. As he gets closer, he can hear sniffling, and it momentarily shocks him because he's never seen Thor cry. Couldn't have imagined it until now.

"Hey buddy, can I come in?" Bruce asked as he gently knocks on the open door to get Thor attention. Thor lifted his head and nodded slowly, wiping his wet eyes with the back of his hand.

"Do you want to talk about what just happened. It might make you feel better to tell me your side of the story," Bruce offered. Thor smiled lightly and went on to tell Bruce of how he'd taken Jane to Asgard and how his mother had been killed by a Dark Elf before he and Loki had gone to fight the elves resulting in Loki's death. Or so Thor thought.

Bruce didn't say anything right away; analysing everything Thor just told him. "I'm not saying what he did was right but maybe try and look at this from his point of view. And remember that your brother loves you," Bruce says. Thor pouts, understanding that Bruce is right, but he's still angry. By the time they get back, Natasha and Tony are also in the room again, and Steve's almost got dinner finished.

Loki was sat on the couch wrapped in a banket, sippy cup in hand as he watched a movie. He was still sniffling, but the crying had stopped. Thor cautiously climbed onto the couch next to his brother, "I hate that you did what you did, but I think I can understand, maybe, why you did it," Thor said, carefully watching Loki's expression.

"I also promise to never leave you behind for as long as I live ever again," Thor declared. Loki smiled softly before lifting the blanket for Thor to crawl under next to him. They sat pressed together for the rest of the movie, and until dinner was ready.

For the rest of the night, the two were inseparable as always, going back and forth between games of their choosing with the toys Odin had given them. Bedtime was difficult, but Natasha could see Loki was tired and knew it was better to wait for him to come to her. Thor wasn't as hard and was changing into his pj's after the promise of pancakes for breakfast.

To everyone's surprise, Loki managed to sleep through the whole night. Tony's theory is that the charm crafted by their mother had something to do with it.

Natasha, not unlike every morning, was the first up and was surprised to see Loki already up and stacking blocks by himself. He's so quiet that Natasha almost doesn't notice him. "Nightmare?" she asks. He looks up and shakes his head, not looking confused by her presence. She nods and goes to start a pot of coffee.

It not long before Thor and Steve are also awake. Thor sits at the bar and watches Steve cook the pancakes he was promised with interest. Loki is sitting on an ottoman reading a book that doesn't seem to be in English. Clint and Tony are going back and forth over an episode of Black Mirror over probably nothing, and Natasha and Bruce are drinking coffee on either side of Thor at the bar. Everything is as it should be.

Loki suddenly takes his eyes away from the book in his lap and holds his hand out towards the coffee table. Pale green light shimmers from his hand and encases the decorative bowl placed on the table. Clint and Tony are the only ones who see this and watch in shock as the dish turns into a grey mouse.

"Why did you do that?" Clint asked distrustfully. Loki looks up at the two and shrugs.

"Practice."

The fact that Loki was using magic so freely made Clint nervous. Last time he checked, he didn't like this kind of magic. Tony and Bruce, on the other hand, looked nothing less than intrigued.

"We have a toddler that can create life!" Tony cheered as the mouse scurried off the table.

"You don't own him," Natasha corrected, catching the mouse before leaving to let it outside. Clint couldn't stop starring at Loki and wondering how much magic he really had; what he could still do with it. Bruce and Tony immediately took the opportunity to ask the boy any and all questions about the "rules" of magic. What they just witnessed shouldn't be possible.

Soon enough, Steve had started serving up plates of pancakes, momentarily taking the focus off Loki. Thor was already shovelling in forkfuls as Tony lifted Loki into his highchair.

"Steve, have you always been this domestic? It's very convenient." Tony teased, taking a plate of pancakes with him before disappearing for probably the rest of the day. Loki smiled as Steve sat next to him and wiped the syrup off his face and hands when he was done. After breakfast, Thor sat on the floor as Loki meticulously braided his hair back, away from his face. It was something they only allowed each other and their parents to do. Loki's magic had been forgotten for now.

That night after a well-deserved rest day, the tower shook with a familiar glow. It creaked and groaned under the immense power of the Bifrost and in its wake stood a woman.