Asgard
The Day of Thor Odinson's Coronation
Asgard.
The Realm Eternal.
Land of the Aesir, and many other names he was not going to bother remembering, not while there was something more important to do.
Loki turned the page of the grimoire in his hand, while his brother, Thor, the God of Thunder, was getting ready for his coronation to become the King of Asgard.
Which he wasn't ready for, but his advice to their father fell on deaf ears, and Loki merely rolled his shoulders.
Thor was more interested in the glorious part of being a king, the wars, conquests, and slaying the great evil monster at the end of the tale, rather than the tedious paperwork, negotiations, and holding court.
A fault that lay entirely with Odin, and Loki, as always, never cared more than just making sure he had warned them in the first place.
Their father, for all his attempts, could not balance his roles as king and parent; as such, his success in child rearing was nil.
Loki, while better adjusted than his brother in courtly matters, saw himself more as his mother's son, so didn't include himself in that category.
At any rate, he had more important things to do than fix an old man's mistakes.
He could do so with a snap of his fingers, but actions had consequences, and it was high time some caught up to Odin Allfather.
"Brother, feeling ready?" Loki asked, watching as the attendants fussed over Thor.
"I was born ready, you, however, look freshly out of bed," Thor winked, smug while attendants fixed his armor.
Loki rolled his eyes, and with a mere thought, he was washed, changed out of his clothes into something more ceremonial, and looked perfectly ready for the coronation.
Thor's face soured, as he was spending hours to look excellent, only for Loki to do it with a thought, "Unfair."
"You could have learned how to do more than just summon lightning, brother; you just chose not to," Loki teased, all in good fun.
"Let us not get down there again," Thor huffed. It was a discussion that had come up too often, as Loki would always do something incredible with seidr, leaving everyone in awe, and Thor would complain.
Loki would then suggest that Thor should have learned seidr as well, but he would refuse, and the matter would be closed.
"As you wish."
"No matter what happens, you will always be my annoying brother," He patted Thor on the back once the attendants were finished with his royal attire.
Thor chuckled, "Come now, you are going to make me cry."
"And spoil your makeup?"
"What makeup?" Thor was confused, only for a mirror to appear in front of him, showing his face covered in ridiculous-looking paint, a rainbow-colored wig, and a red nose. "Loki!"
"Peace, it is gone now," It was fun to catch Thor unaware like this every now and then.
"You won't do something like this during the coronation, yes?" His brother was somewhat famous for retaliating with pranks that humiliated people.
"I won't."
"Thank you, brother."
—
The coronation was as expected. Thor, with his grand showmanship, stole everyone's hearts, making more than one maiden blush like a tomato, and after Odin Allfather had laid the crown on top of Thor's head, anointing him as the new king, the applause of the crowds could only be matched by the thunder his brother could summon.
Loki clapped, happy at seeing his brother so jovial, and after their hands were sore, the greatest feast in recent memory could begin.
—
Loki's place was right next to Thor's, even though Father and Mother should have been on both sides to support the new king, but Thor had insisted, and here he was, sating his appetite.
Soon, it would be time for gifts.
For a warrior as grand as Thor, there naturally were enough weapons to fill an armory, but alas, nothing for wisdom.
How in line with these witless morons thinking they could solve every problem with a weapon.
"Brother, I know your gift will be the greatest; hence, I left you for last so the people wouldn't feel… inadequate," Thor chuckled, though the enthusiasm wasn't shared by
Loki shook his head.
That was an interesting way for Thor to insult his guests.
"It was actually difficult to find a gift for you. You have a great weapon, and many more of excellent craftsmanship were just gifted. I had considered armor, but found something much more useful for you."
There were thousands of things Loki could have gifted his brother, but he knew what would be necessary the most.
Once life in the palace slowed down as Thor failed in his duties, Loki too would be affected, no matter how much he wished otherwise.
"A ring, brother? Why, people will understand it wrong," Thor jested, eliciting a few chuckles, but Loki's retort sent him and most of the guests into laughter: "Perhaps I should have gifted you a sense of humor."
"Jests aside, put the ring on, and you will see why it is useful," he advised once the guests had quieted down.
Thor nodded, putting the ring on his index finger, and looked nauseous, getting up from his chair. There were worries that Loki had done something inappropriate, but that came to an end as Thor was split into two.
Two Thors stood there, shoulder to shoulder, bewildered, and the original one raised his hand, touching the other on the face.
"Ring of the White Mirror. Whenever you feel that the burden of being king is too great and wish to go on an outing but can't due to your duties, you can leave the copy for that. He is basically your twin," Loki explained before the shocked crowd.
His gift had turned heads and caused quite the commotion, and he ignored it all while finishing his food.
Thor was the one most fascinated and used the ring like a child who had just acquired a toy he didn't know he wanted.
Odin was frowning, perhaps jealous that he didn't have an artifact like the ring to alleviate his workload, but Loki merely smiled innocently.
He didn't care.
—
The feast raged for such a long time, Loki felt that Asgardians as a whole increased their weight by at least half as much.
Like all things, however, it came to an end, and it was time for their new king to work.
And as if to meet his younger brother's expectations, Thor had proved him correct. The paperwork was tedious, long, and absolutely mind-numbing, and with Thor's speed, there was a growing backlog of documents waiting for his approval.
The envoys from the other realms, at least the ones that Asgard had diplomatic relations with, which only included Vanaheim, Alfheim, and Nidavellir, had come to offer their congratulations.
Muspelheim was out since Odin killed—or, as he knew, severely weakened—Surtur; Svartalfheim was a wasteland due to Malekith burning the planet to create a distraction for his escape; Jotunheim just hated Asgard for their loss; his birth family was just waiting for a chance to strike back, which they would not get; and Midgard wasn't even aware of their existence, considering them myths.
Thor had taken it gracefully, his charm easily turning the envoys to friends, at least on the surface.
Allies or not, there were those in positions of power that wanted more of it and used their friendship with the new King of Asgard for it.
Which Thor happily indulged.
Oh well, their father would fix it eventually.
—
"My son."
"Father," Loki nodded, turning back to his book. He knew why the old man was here, as barely months into his reign, the results of Thor's rule were disappointing.
His father was uncharacteristically fidgety. "There is a matter. I was hoping you would help your brother with it."
"Ah, that, no," Loki refused, displacing himself across space and time, disappearing before Odin's befuddled sight, as he knew it was not a mere illusion.
—
Midgard / Earth
Appearing on Earth, and out of Heimdall's sight, Loki found himself a nice, outdoor place to read, clearing the clouds to give the park a little more sunlight.
Ah, this was life.
He too was once a human, long, long ago, but now, he didn't even remember his name, or rather, bother to remember it.
That was a life Loki had left behind, even though he didn't know how he was reborn in this body as a baby but didn't really care.
Now, he could do whatever he wanted without anyone to bother him.
—
Asgard
"This is a disaster." Frigga watched her husband, who had recently woken up from the Odinsleep, only to come face-to-face with the results of his eldest son's lackluster rule as the king.
"I know."
"Then what will you do, husband?"
"I must, unfortunately, take the throne back. Loki was right, Thor is not ready to be the king, and it is my fault." Odin, even after the sleep that should have invigorated him, looked old.
"Thor will not like it, and they will speak after him." Frigga could already imagine the rumors that would be spread concerning her son's lacking abilities as a ruler.
"I am afraid that is our only choice."
"I understand."
—
Spending a couple of weeks on Midgard, sightseeing, playing sports, and enjoying other attractions, Loki returned home to find himself in the middle of a heated argument between his father and brother.
As a supportive brother to Thor, there was only one thing for him to do: summon a chair, conjure popcorn, and watch the drama unfold.
"Had you attended your lessons properly or paid attention while I had you at court, none of these mistakes would have been made," Odin scolded Thor with a thunderous voice, a rarity in their over a millennium of life.
Not the scolding, but the shouting.
His brother was taken aback by the fury behind their father's words but was not going to back down. "Why should I have cared about them when I grew up with tales of your deeds as a warrior and not a king?"
The back-and-forth continued for a while, but fortunately, it did not come to blows.
Soft old man or not, Odin would have smacked Thor around like he was a child, and that would just be embarrassing to watch.
However, Odin did take the throne back, and Thor was all too happy to abdicate, as even with two of him, the work never seemed to end.
—
"You did this, didn't you?" Sif and the Warriors Three, who were following her around like newly hatched ducklings imprinting on the first living being they saw, confronted Loki while he was reading out in the gardens.
"I did what, Sif?" Sif had the irritating habit of accusing him whenever there was trouble, all because he made fools out of them occasionally.
"Thor and King Odin, they fought because of you."
Loki shook his head, clicking his tongue as if chiding a child. "Sif, I cannot believe you think someone as wise as the Allfather could be deceived into fighting his own son."
"That… but…" The Shield Maiden stammered, unable to retort as always.
"But you have nothing to say? I thought so."
"I know it was you, Loki; it always is you."
Loki gave Sif an unimpressed look before waving his hand as if swatting a fly.
—
Turning Sif and the Warriors Three to stone brought its own headaches.
She had always gotten on his nerves, and Loki knew one day, it would end in violence. Now, his father, mother, and brother were screaming about him harming a friend, of whom he definitely wouldn't call Sif one, while seeking a solution.
"Why are you screaming? As soon as I believe they have learned the lesson, I will return them to normal," truly, as if the Allfather had not committed acts worse than just turning irritants to stone.
"How are they supposed to learn a lesson while petrified?" Odin was angry again, as he at least wanted one of his sons to refrain from giving him more headaches.
Loki grinned. "Oh, they might be stone now, but they are aware of everything," which was the perfect punishment in his opinion.
Still as a statue, yet aware of everything around, he would teach them not to get on his nerves again.
That did not go well with his family, and in the interest of stopping their badgering, he released Sif and her lackeys from the little spell.
Honestly, it was such a basic spell, and he was disappointed that the most feared being in the nine realms could not break it.
—
"I could have done worse," He could, in fact, do much, much worse, but right now, Loki saw the prime opportunity for a bit of mischief.
His mother gave him a look that said "don't" but asked what he meant, "Such as?"
"Such as Baldur," A figure in the myths of the humans, he did not actually exist in Asgard, but it gave Loki an idea.
A rather entertaining idea.
"Who is Baldur?" Odin knew several Baldurs, but none that should have anything to do with Loki.
"Lady Sif and the Warriors Three were actually the Warriors Four. He was a friend of ours, one that enjoyed trying to torment me, so I erased him from existence. Now, the only one who remembers him is me." Of course it was a lie, but they didn't need to know that yet.
"Surely you jest, brother." Thor was equally horrified as his parents, because it was hard to tell when Loki was jesting and when he was deadly serious.
He hoped with all his heart that it was the former.
"Perhaps, perhaps not. You have only my word to take on that." The shared look on their faces was definitely amusing.
—
The scare he had given Sif and the Warriors Three was so great, they made a hasty retreat whenever Loki was present.
It was nice to not be disturbed by their constant idiocy.
But now, there was a greater issue.
Barely two months after his coronation, Thor had abdicated the throne, citing that he still had much to learn, and now, Laufey was doing something never seen in history before.
Coming to Asgard, and out of his own volition no less.
Heimdall, useful at times, yet blind as a Vanir mole more often than not, had no advice to offer to Odin.
"Brother, do you know why Laufey is coming to Asgard?" Thor knew of Loki's true parentage and how Odin had adopted him at the end of the war against the Jotnar.
Denial was his first response, under the impression that Loki was making a cruel jest, yet once his brother had revealed his true colors, Thor had not known what to do.
The war against the Jotnar was a bloody affair, and even the mighty armies of Asgard had suffered great losses, leaving many to carry a great hatred in their hearts.
To his shame, Thor had avoided his brother for weeks, unable to reveal the truth, snapping at anyone who tried to make peace between the brothers.
Most of all, he was angry at his father for not telling this secret to him or Loki, who had the right to know.
When he finally made up his mind that Loki was his brother, no matter what, he had gone to apologize and beg for forgiveness, only for his brother to wave a hand, dismissing his concerns, claiming he knew Thor would come to his senses.
"It's just a pest bothering me through Laufey, nothing more." Loki knew who exactly was responsible for this little hiccup and would pay a visit to that mortal soon.
He should have known better than to intrude on this timeline.
—
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