fossilised | Jotunheimr

"I am not ashamed of what I am, and I will not dishonour my Kyn by wearing the skin of the Aesir. Though we may hope for peace one day, I do not think my dam would recover well from knowing I had hidden my heritage to blend in with the All-Father's get."

Loki did, however, finish his words by turning into the giant gryfhawk that he could become and perched himself on Thor's shoulder, though with the size of him, almost as big as the prince himself, it looked ludicrous and a little like the great bird would carry off the prince as prey.

Volstagg gaped aloud at the sight of such a transformation, while Sif and Fandral already had their weapons half up again already before Heimdall admonished them.

"Do not make your crimes worse. Go now to your chambers and await audience."

Immediately weighed down by the giant bird, Thor had to brace himself on the wall. “Can you not become more manageable?” Surely Loki could shrink! He couldn’t possibly carry a giant gryfhawk through the streets of Asgard, paraded in front of the people like that. They had to know he was exiled. They would find the raptor clinging to his shoulder almost impossibly interesting. Considering how it was about to snap his head off of his neck!

Heimdall had Hogun rush to bring the horses to spare Thor the journey back on foot in the meantime, though the Vanir did not appear to want to leave the strange spectical.

A shapeshifter on Jotunheim? It seems inpossible that monsters could be so tapped into Yggdrassil.

The gryfhawk somehow managed to make a sound that was almost a huff of frustration, before he shrunk again into a creature that Thor likely would not recognise as it was native to the shorebound regions of Jotunheim. It was about a foot long and covered in pure white soft fur, with ten stubby little legs and sharp teeth, sinuous and long like a snake crossed with a ferret.

He swarmed down Thor's arm to wrap around his waist like a live belt, much to the chagrin of Sif who found that her fingers itched for the knives at her belt, only Heimdall's presence keeping her in check.

"Thor-- Thor, you must get that thing off you, it has your mind bewitched. See how it coils around you like chains."

“Like a snake,” Thor said…in a way that was not going to make Sif feel any better. Not with the way he was so obviously carrying on by lightly petting a creature he knew to be a person…but he couldn’t help himself. He really just loved snakes. Who could resist giving them a hug? Even if they were covered in fluffy fur? “Sif, cease this. You know nothing. No one on Asgard does. I do not blame you for this, I was as blind as you until I saw the damage done and understood the ways the All-Father had used to gain control of all the Realms.”

Saying such things made Thor turn abruptly to Heimdall. Here was a person, finally, who could give him the answers he so needed.

“You… You knew my sister.”

Well that caused Sif to quiet down, her eyes shifting to look at Heimdall as well, both brows arched exquisitely over her brow. The Guardian of the Bifrost showed little emotion. “I did. And I assisted in sending her to Hel.”

“Hela is not your sister, Thor,” Fandral said before backing that down a little. “Is she?”

“Her taste in bloodshed and power took over your father’s mind,” Heimdall said stone-faced. “It briefly maddened him and he agreed to many things on her behalf. Including the damnation of Jotunheim.”

“Why did he not just return the Casket when he banished her?” Thor demanded.

“For fear that the Jotnar would rise up and he would have to smite them all. But ask this of the All-Father. His reasoning may well be his own.”

It was an odd sensation to be petted, most people knew enough to keep their hands to themselves when confronted with a shapeshifter in another form, only his youngest sibb, Bylestir, regularly petted the feathers or fur that he covered himself in. For Thor to do it felt strangely intimate, and a shiver went through his body.

He had not known whether to expect honest answers, but it seemed the watcher was to be commended for his grasp on the truth. He did not deny that Jotunheim had been decimated unfairly, nor that Odin had been bloodthirsty in doing so. Good. Vindication. Though it still did not excuse the All-Father's actions or his subsequent inaction while Jotunheim slowly decayed over a millennia.

"I can say no more," Heimdall intoned as Hogun returned with the mounts. "These are deep subjects and should be discussed with the King. Go now to him, I will be watching."

"Thor..." Fandral looked whey-faced at the idea that Hel's guardian was actually a banished Aesir royal, but he was stopped from saying anything else by Volstagg, who just put a hand on his arm and then bowed his head respectfully to Thor.

It was rare that Odin and the All-Mother took a private audience. There were no servants, no vassals and no advisors waiting for the group that rode through the city, ignoring the calls for Prince Thor and the cheers for his return home. Loki, from his position as a belt, would get a good view of the glittering, golden capital. This was the opposite of his home Realm, the day to his night, the prosperity to his decline. This would be his if he managed to get his way, if he could get to Thor through that idiot demeanor of his. The throne room was nothing short of marvelous, better than even the city itself, though the All-Father and All-Mother seemed so small as compared to Laufey and Farbauti at the head of their kingdom.

Frigga waited, impatiently it seemed, as five strode into the throne room, Thor first, Sif directly behind him to his left, and the other three bringing up the rear. It was how they always came, her son and his fast friends, especially when they were in trouble.

“Where is the foreign prince?” Odin asked, as if he did not know, and his queen took the step forward she’d been wanting to do since they arrived and spoke in a tongue like the ice itself, a language Thor had grown used to, to the snake around his middle. “Child of L:aufey, you are safe here.”

Asgard was both awe-inspiring and disgusting to Loki's eyes. The opulence, when he had seen people in the streets that obviously had little, was disgraceful. But there were colours here that he had never even imagined, such verdant greens, such brilliant golds, it was like being in Valhalla itself.

Oh, what he could do for his people with even a tenth of this wealth and power.

He flowed down to the ground when Queen Frigga spoke to him and assumed his natural form. It was strange to stand here, for the first time, in a room built for his proportions. He was as tall as Thor, if not so muscled, and so he was finally in a place where everything had been built with his height in mind. It was strange, very strange.

"My dam will know I am missing before long, he would not have allowed me to wander with the Odinson without eyes on me, if I am not returned within a short time, I fear war will be inevitable. It may be anyway. Your son knows precious little, and charged into Utgard without hesitation. That you, with such power and position, should raise this ignorant pup and allow him to be so unready at his majority, is a damning show on the blood of Odin's House."

Not the wisest, perhaps, to insult his hosts, but he was a son of Laufey and he would not cower before the man who had broken his homeland. He would stand tall, proud, and speak as actually befit a child of royalty.

“Your spirit is exciting, but in this case, you would do well to temper that the smallest bit,” Frigga warned Loki, almost feeling the ire from Odin as he narrowed one eye. Of course he could speak the Jotun tongue, or at least understand it. He required some magic to align his vocal cords directly, though the All-Mother’s magic was innate and without seeming limit.

She offered her hand to Loki, not for him to kiss, but to take. She wished to discuss many things with him, out of earshot of the men and Sif. Her gossamer gowns were soft, a gray-speckles flourish of silks somewhat akin to the snow of her own Realm. It cast a lovely blueish glow upon her skin.

”Walk with me? You will miss nothing of the reprimand. You will likely hear it on the balcony. My son can not hold his temper and enjoys very much to shout.”

Thor, still feeling protective, opened and shut his mouth at his mother butting in on his-- Err.. Guide. “Mother—”

“We will speak soon, Thor. I would rather speak with the lady Loki.” She had no problem with the binary gender of the Jotnar.

Loki did not trust this realm or any in it. Much as Thor had here, he had been raised with histories and tales of the brutality and untrustworthiness of the Aesir. But he had little choice, he was alone here in Odin All-Father's court, and if he wished to live to see any of his plans take form then he would need to play their game.

More than that, now that he was here, he could feel it. Hear it. The Casket called to him in whispered song, a siren's plea to come and find her, to feel her power as he had always been intended for. It took effort to focus on Frigga as he followed her out to the balcony, still within sight of Thor and the others.

"You speak our tongue fairly well, All-Mother, though with an accent I have not heard before. Tell me what you wish to speak with me about?"

“I am not a new student to your language, though I fear that I might augment my throat to allow me better able to speak it.” Sighs and whispers and the crackling of snow on branches was not easy to emulate. “I merely wish to warn you about my son, out of the range of my husband’s hearing. I have been watching you both.”

And this might be where Loki’s plans would have fallen apart if not for the smile of the All-Mother.

“He is difficult on his best days. Impossible on his worst. I hope you may guide him, as is your role? Towards being the All-Father we all need. For the sake of your Realm. For the sake of Vanaheim. For all of the Realms, my dear. I have dreamed about you many times. I have seen you as my child. And perhaps that will be possible again, by proxy.”

There was something about her that resonated with Loki, as if he knew on a soul-deep level that she could be trusted, something that reminded him of his sire. But he was no barn to fall blindly into partnership with a Vanir he had just met, especially not one married to Odin Kynkiller.

He hesitated before he spoke, choosing his words with care.

"I cannot deny that I would like to know Thor better, and I do not fear his difficult nature, but you speak of futures that would be fraught with difficulty. Even had the All-Father's daughter tricked him into the war and harming our people, the decision to allow our realm to suffer for a thousand years is his and has no defence. I may only be one Jotnar on your soil, but I am here where none of my forebears have stood for thousands of years, and I do it as the representative of my people. Return what has been stolen from us, and then talks of a future that might be peaceful for us both can begin."

A bold move, but how could he not? Thor was a prize, yes, but he was nothing without the return of the Casket.

“That is our intention,” Frigga said, back to All-Speak. She did not doubt her ability to communicate in the tongue of Jotunheim, but she wanted to be fully clear here. “Though you will of course understand that there are factions that would seek war. We must know your heart before we can gift you hat which will save your people so that it will indeed be used to save your people and not out of retaliation.”

She was pushing it with Loki, who was but a child a few centuries younger than her own son. She knew that harsher realities could breed both excess of maturity and resentment and she needed to know which came first.

“Thor’s heart caused him to rush to Utgard. He seeks not only war, but also peace. You protected him from many things. Including your brother. I did not hear the words you said, having only viewed the incident briefly, but by tone... well we should not feel the need to lie to one another, yes? Not when we both are children of Yggdrasil. I will be recommending that Thor return to Jotunheim with you to continue his lessons. And I would ask that you reflect on the ruler you need to be so that the Casket will bring peace to all Realms.”

Loki smiled, razor sharp, and raised his own voice to match hers in the All-Speak so that they could be heard clearly. His tone of voice was carefully light, not angry or bitter, but making a clear point.

"You must forgive me, All-Mother, I fear our customs are different. Where I come from, a child is taught not to steal, and to apologise for the wrongs they have done, so that forgiveness may come and the incident forgotten. Not to pretend that something stolen can be gifted back with conditions, as though the one who rightfully owns it does not have claim to it, and not offer a word of apology."

He held her gaze with his own, blood red eyes firm and proud, though not twisted with the bitter anger that other versions of himself had possessed. Here he was just refusing to bend to what he knew was wrong.

"I tell you this now, not because I desire revenge, but because I desire peace. There will never be peace if Asgard does not own what it has done. Jotunheim has suffered wrongly, been harmed wrongly, and been maligned to the other realms wrongly for far too long. We deserve justice. Laufey-King may be ruler of a broken realm, but he is still a King, and he will not grovel for scraps. If there is ever to be a chance of peace, Odin All-Father must acknowledge before all the realms his crimes, beg forgiveness, and return what has been stolen. No conditions, no skirting around such things. There are those who will want revenge, yes, but many of us just long for peace and a return to prosperity in our realm. We can have that, and a friendship between our peoples, but it must be done right."

“I will say this kindly because you are young and because you have lived only in a world wanting of hope. You have yet to learn the art of politics and that is what this is. I say this not to be unkind but to help you understand that nothing is fair. It is impossible for there to be genuine balance.”

She did not care for Loki’s tone and she did not feel much fondness for him other than her dreams portraying those feelings and for her desire to connect to others who could tap into the blood of the world tree.

“The price your people paid will never be apologised for. Your dam understands this. He also understands that the Casket is a price that will be paid not for you and not for your people, but for the fealty Jotunheim will show to Asgard as all Realms do. Do not be cross at this. Or school your face not to show it.”

She was very stern, but also kind in her way.

“Retribution will come not through Odin but by his son.”

Loki had been training to be a King for a long time, and he knew that he was not ready, because he did not have it in him to bow and give fealty to a man that had destroyed so much and refused to apologise for it. Why would he not do that, and why would the All-Mother look at him as though he had asked for the moon?

Some small words, some measure taken to show that they knew that there had been fault and there was regret. Was that so much to ask?

"It is a shame," he said, much more quietly but with great feeling. "That the lessons you are teaching the Odinson, is that if he sits atop the golden dias, all owe him fealty and his mistakes will go unchallenged. I will school my face, if it brings back to my people what will save our land, but I had hoped to be friends. It seems that was a childish hope."

It partially amused and partially saddened Frigga that Loki could not see the larger picture. She was not Aesir, she was not of Asgard, but her people had bent their knees in supplication many, many moons before the bloodshed started because they understood the importance of a centralized ruling class and because their pride laid more in their lives being maintained than in being free. There had been freedom under Asgard reign and Odin had ushered in the most prosperity and stability that any had seen before. His father had been more a monster than the young Borson has been.

“Do not dangle friendship as though it is worth more than your life and the lives of your people. As you will surely come to know, there is no such thing as a ruler without temperance or without the ability to bend to his people. Odin does not wield power. And Thor will not wield power either. It is the will of the collective that keep them in charge. It would take a very small fraction of Asgard to make a change in leadership. But that said, offer your friendship to Thor. He, as all Aesir, think with their hearts. A change to his heart can lead to much. I’m sure you have seen this. In a small span of time, he has come to see your people for what they are and not for what he had been taught.”

Frigga‘s smile was almost sweet, but also manipulative.

“As was my intention when I suggested his banishment.” Thor was the gift, not the Casket. Thor was the means to all of Jotunheim’s end if Loki ceased feeling the need for apology and saw what Frigga had done for what it truly was. After all, Asgard itself would need to be changed. And that would start with one headstrong Prince.

Loki might not have noted that Frigga meant her son for a gift yet, but he would realise it when he had a few moments of silence to order his thoughts. He was too much on the back foot as it was now, he had not expected to find himself in Asgard surrounded by the enemy of his people, and he found it unfortunately hard to think with this heat pressing on him from all sides.

How did they handle it?

At least he did not continue to argue, though neither did he bend his neck in supplication to her words. He only stood beside her and tilted his head to hear better what was happening in the throne room. Odin stood before his son, feeling weary and heartsore and ashamed, though he didn't show it, he only stood implacable and proud.

"You have questions, my son. Ask now, or keep them to yourself for good. I will not ask your friends to leave, they may hear this so they don't attempt any further foolish 'rescue' attempts, and so that they may reflect on it while they conduct their punishment."

Oh, Thor had many questions, all of which came pouring out as accusations, rousing and so very angry. Frigga had been right to predict that they would hear all that happened within the main hall, though they stood on the balcony beyond it and out of earshot themselves.

“I have a sister, an older sister, who was banished after my birth but I do not remember. I can remember nearly nothing from my childhood other than a cave and a woman and a winged horse— You said you brought me to the palace soon after my birth for my mother had fallen in battle. Another lie. I was not brought to the palace until you were in need again of an heir, just as you choose to have my brothers live elsewhere—”

Beside Loki, Frigga arched her eyebrows. She’d never heard Thor speak much of his half brothers. He’d adored Vidar as a boy, though his brother went to farm in the mountains, uninterested in court life. He despired her eldest, Tyr, mostly out of jealousy, for his closeness with Sif. Hermod was reclusive. And Baldur…Baldur was still a boy himself, living with her parents and Hermod on Vanaheim. Thor rarely asked after either. To hear him speak now about her own brood did touch her heart. She loved Thor as her own, though he did displace her offspring as heir, but she knew he was not hers and that could not help but cloud their relationship ever so slightly.

“Should I anger you, will you cast me out and birng in the next?” Odin did not get a chance to answer, and did not even try to. Thor moved closer with every sentence and he would let his son get it all out. “Why have you covered this all up? Why gift me a hammer that I am supposedly worthy to weild and yet my blood thirsty sister was also found worthy? What am I worthy of? Causing death? Destruction? This is not a glorious battle, Father, this is murder! We are actively murdering children for a slight that was untrue. And not only have you allowed this, but all the Realms know Jotnar as monsters! They have hated me with every breath and have still kept me comfortable and offered me a Guide and guestrights when by all means, I should have been killed for my transgressions. You kept much from us all, Father, and now we all suffer!”

Loki was well pleased with Thor's words. He spoke with passion and conviction, finally challenging the truths that he had been taught all of his life, and he did it with a surprising eloquence that proved he was perhaps not so slow or dull-witted as Loki might have believed, just one who needed to be guided to proper learning. That should be Loki's role, perhaps it still would be if he could keep a handle on his own temper and passions. It was difficult, he was a creature of chaos and fire and mischief at his core, a hard thing to control.

Odin waited until his son had finished his tirade, a mixture of sorrow and pride rising to take its place on his face. Only then did he speak, his voice quiet in comparison to the roar of Thor.

"I was a foolish youth, and I saw in conquest and battle a way to better Asgard's station and wealth. Hela encouraged this, and her power grew along with our atrocities. It was almost too late when I realised how far we had gone, and how little I wanted this to be my legacy. You were my second chance, I wanted to raise you to be a wise king. What was worthy once, was no longer worthy."

He knew that he had made mistakes, but he tried to rectify them.

"I want you to be the King that I have tried to be these last centuries, and better. It is why I have been so hard on you when I see you valuing nothing but might and bloodshed. War is not what our Kingdom should be, and you should not repeat my mistakes."

“Would it not have been better to change me by changing the perception of Jotunheim a millennia ago? Would it not have benefited us all for you to have taught me as a child that the stories of the Jotnar are beasts and feral monsters were untrue?” Thor was trying hard to wrap his head around this. “To keep me from becoming my sister, should you have not taught me of her and of why she was banished?”

“You are wise despite your youth. I should have. Pride kept me from these things. It was the All-Mother that suggested your punishment, Thor, for I was again ready to banish my kin for their mistakes lest they grow up to become insatiable for power and blood.”

Odin’s words struck Thor hard across the mouth and the Thunderer stepped back, footfalls softer than they had been weeks before when he was at full power.

“I have spent my whole life doing nothing but attempting to please you. And you would dismiss me so quickly?” Silly. He knew that already. Why else were Frigga’s children and his brothers kept from Asgard? Odin was wise, no one said otherwise, but he was stupid as well. “I have spent my life as a fool.”

"Hela attempted to please me, you should look to a greater goal and attempt to better Asgard. A King should be a servant to all of his people, and protect those weaker than himself, so that everyone may prosper, not just his own wealth."

Odin leaned forward on Gungnir, looking old and tired. He had put off the Odin-Sleep for too long now, and he should take measures to rest. He could not, though, while this was going on, he needed to make sure that his son was on a better path.

"I am pleased that you have heeded the lessons your mother thought you would learn on Jotunheim, but here is another. We cannot give back the Casket of Ancient Winters without insurance that they will not rise up against us, the Jotnar are powerful and implacable enemies, and a war would bring ruin. It is why I have kept it for so long, I could not risk Laufey turning his mind to revenge."

"Laufey-King," that was Loki, stepping back in from the balcony to address Odin. "My dam, for all he resents you, never fails to give you the respect due to you by speaking your titles. At least remember that he is also a King, All-Father."

“If they were to begin a war, the only people that would lose would be them,” Thor said with anger in his voice. “And they are very well aware of that fact, Father.” Thor was speaking the words that Loki had told him, yes, but he had also seen it for himself. Unless the vast underground of Jotunheim was filled with war machines, there would be little a few units of Asgard couldn’t conquer.

Of course, Loki had to interject as he was making his point and Odin turned his single eye towards the creature he had not accounted for in Thor’s punishment. He held a hand for his son to cease speaking, and Thor fell silent. A good subject, no matter how angry, and a good son, did as they were told.

He stepped forward, his stance spread as he used Gungnir as a third leg to keep him majestic and tall. “Laufey-King has used many titles when referencing me. Odin One-Eye. Odin Kynslayer. Odin Realmshaker. Odin Spearthumper. Odin Oathbreaker-- I do not forget that he is King of Jotunheim. Nor that Farbauti-Consort is his mate. I do not forget his three children, Loki Silvertongue, Helbindi Mountainside or Bylister the Wise. All titles are earned. I did mispeak to use his name in familiarity as if we two still dwelled in drinking halls upon occasion and for that, I apologise.”

Odin placed his hand to his chest but he did not bow nor nod.

Loki felt unnerved by being the sole focus of Odin's one-eyed gaze, though he had enough presence of mind to accept that apology with a bow of his own head. Not quite supplication, he was careful about that, but respect and acknowledgement of what had been said.

"Your son speaks truly, there are those who wish for war on Jotunheim, who wish to avenge the deaths that have come both to our land and our people, but they are a minority and Laufey-King does not stand among them. He, and most of our people, know that it will take many millennia of peace, even with the Casket restored to us, to heal what has been broken. We would not survive a war, we do not want a war."

He thought for a moment on whether to say more, but perhaps it would be a show of good faith.

"As for those who might be King when Laufey-King returns to the ice... Bylestir is gentle and seeks peace with all, he would be a friend to all realms that would have him. I am less gentle, but I see the wisdom in peace. I want my people to prosper and take their rightful place among the Nine, not live as outcasts, and that cannot be done through war. Helblindi is the one among us who desires war, but I do not think he would get enough of the vote to become King."

Odin did not state that he was aware of the political climate of all of the Realms he ruled over, but instead, he thanked Loki for the information. Helblindi could not, and Odin doubted that Laufey-King would ever give his blessing to his middle child on his death bed, be allowed to win kingship. He would likely remove his brothers from their Realm to lay in rest with their father and bring a war that would cause Odin (or Thor) to have to wipe Yggdrasil’s branches clean of Jotunheim.

“You are by far the favoured, though Laufey-King is not as old as I and it will be many, many years before any vote needs to be cast.”

Odin turned his eye back towards his son and to the four behind him who knelt reverently, their bodies stiff under their armour in fright and confusion.

“Thor, you have not yet proven your worth nor have you fully understood your punishment. From what happened at the site of Utgard to your disregard for the royal family that has played host to you, you must rectify your actions. I will be returning you and Loki Silvertongue to Jotunheim immediately.” He could see that his son was not angered by this. “Do well to make this Realm proud. Learn to be a better man and a better All-Father than your father is. When your Guide tells you he believes you have done all you can to cherish life, travel to Mjolnir and banish the ice around it. If the hammer finds you worthy, you will once more regain it’s power and may return home. I will give you until the end of this day, at sunset, to make preparations and convince your cohorts to cease your rescue.”

Loki should feel a greater triumph at this, but his head was so fuzzy that he barely registered what the All-Father said. This damnable heat had seeped into his bones and begun to leech the chill from his marrow; if any had told him that this was only a mild spring day here on Asgard, he might not believe them, for this felt hotter than anything even in his wildest imaginations.

He was determined, however, not to show weakness in front of the Aesir and so he simply took a step back with a murmured and polite nonsense to thank the All-Mother and All-Father for their hospitality.

Odin gestured with a rap of Gungnir to the floor that this audience was over. He relied on his son to get through to his companions the validity of this trip and, perhaps, the presence of the Jotnar Fyri would help. He was not so large or convincingly monstrous as the outer appearance of some of his brethren, after all.

Sif was the first to rise, following Thor out of the chambers and turning to him with a pale face. "How can this be?" She sounded almost lost. "How is it that we have been lied to for so long? Tell me truly, Thor, you really do not mind being sent back to that frozen hell?"

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