Part 3

Loki slipped back into his life back in London with seeming ease. The cover story was that a member of his wife's family had passed away and he had felt obligated to say his last goodbyes. Grief could explain any odd behaviour he might exhibit as he tried to ignore the possibility of Thor returning.

Maybe he would bring the Destroyer with him in a cruel twist of irony.

Maybe he would bring the All Father with him. Or his friends: Sif and the Warriors Three.

Maybe he would bring Frigga.

Loki hoped for only the last option. He also hoped that Thor wouldn't come at all. That Heimdall couldn't see him. He hoped his magic was still hiding him and his son from the Gatekeeper. The loyal seer would tell Odin everything he learned.

"Is father going to come and visit us?" Nico asked after several days of Loki keeping him close.

"I don't know, little one," Loki told his son.

"Would it be so bad?" Instead of answering, Loki pulled his child into a hug, holding him tightly. Nico clung to him in return. The boy was so innocent. Loki hoped his son stayed that way for a very long time.

"Go and get ready for school," whispered Loki to his son. Somewhat subdued, Nico did as he was told and headed to his room. Loki kissed him goodbye after taking him to school then drove home again on autopilot. He was taking a few more days off. He figured if Thor were going to show up it would be soon, in case Loki bolted. So he was making sure he was alone as much as possible in case things went badly.

No sense in having extra casualties.

Loki opened the door to his home and knew it was judgment day.

He could sense the electrical sparks that always followed his lover. Could feel the charged air and taste the lightning on his tongue.

He found his golden prince in the living room staring at a photo in his hands. It was a picture of Loki and Nico at the child's birthday. Both were smiling, identical green eyes sparkling with mischief. Loki had always thought it a lovely picture.

"What did you call him?" Thor rumbled without turning around. Apparently Loki wasn't the only one who had sensed the presence of another.

"Nicholas," Loki murmured, "I call him Nico."

Thor made a soft noise of acknowledgment.

They remained in silence for several long moments as Thor continued to examined the picture and Loki couldn't tear his gaze off Thor.

"You look happy," Thor finally said, looking up with an unreadable expression on his face as he fixed his gaze on Loki, "Both of you. I can't remember the last time you smiled like that."

Loki didn't say anything.

Thor looked away. "Was living on Asgard so horrible for you? Were you so unhappy?"

Loki bit his lip, trying to decide what to say. Now was not the time to hide things though. Not if they had the chance for a clean slate.

"Not all the time. When I was with you, and it was just the two of us, I was happy. When I was with Frigga, I was happy." Loki said slowly, unable to tear his eyes from the part of Thor's face he could see, "But you could not always be there, neither could Frigga. When I was alone, sometimes I was lonely, other times I didn't mind. When I was forced to interact with others…that was when I was miserable."

"Why?" Thor asked. He didn't sound offended, which surprised Loki. He sounded…resigned. Like he knew what was going to be said, but he had to hear it anyway.

"They made no secret how much they disliked me for a great many things; for my magic, for my position in the royal household, even for my looks. There was always something about me that people didn't like," Loki told him, shifting his eyes away and folding his arms across his chest.

"Were my friends aware of this?" Thor asked, his voice sounded strained and a little dangerous. Allfather help them if they had known, his voice implied.

Loki hesitated, wondering whether he should lie after all, then Thor finally looked him in the eye and he couldn't. He could never lie to Thor.

"They might not have been aware of the others, but they never liked me. I don't know why. Sif, I think, fancied you and didn't like how close we were. Hogun, Fandral and Volstagg didn't like how I wasn't…like them. I wasn't muscular and into fighting and glory. I was into magic. Trickery, they called it." Loki sighed, "Simply put they didn't understand me and didn't like how you kept bringing me along."

Thor nodded slowly, his eyes far away, "How did I never see it before?" he murmured, "I didn't see it until Mother pointed it out to me after you left."

Loki shrugged, "You took it for granted that if you were happy, I was happy, I suppose."

"Did you ever say anything?" Thor looked uncertain as he stared at Loki, "Did you ever try to tell me something and I ignored it?"

"No," Loki shook his head, "I learnt early on that I had to fight my own battles. Odin told me once that a true warrior of Asgard didn't complain about petty squabbles." He snorted as he realized the irony. "I never was an Asgardian warrior though, no matter how much he pretended."

"Mother told me of your true heritage," Thor murmured, offering a small smile when Loki shot him a sharp glance, "I was surprised and then horrified, not at you, but at my own actions. I attacked Jotunheim, your kin, in a childish bid for glory."

Loki shook his head, "It doesn't matter. You did not know. And I find that I feel no kinship towards them, or they towards me apparently. Or did you forget how the attack on this planet came about?"

Thor looked slightly relieved at Loki's words but still guilty. Learning humility had finally gifted him the ability to see the consequences of his actions, to feel their ramifications. It brought a smile to Loki's lips, to see his former lover so grown into his true glory.

"You will not come back to Asgard with me?" the question was so sudden it caught Loki by surprise.

"Not at this time," Loki said slowly. Thor's face was disappointed but not surprised or judging.

"I am sorry," he rumbled. He turned back to the photo, "Tell me about him?"

Loki smiled a real smile and settled in to discuss one of his favourite topics, his son.

Thor listened intently, asking questions and enquiring about both Nico's life and Loki's on Midgard. It warmed Loki's heart to hear such interest coming from his golden prince.

"Can I meet him?" the question wasn't nearly as surprising as the other and Loki was surprised at how happy it made him.

"Yes," a simple one-word answer that lit up the prince's face and made Loki fall in love with him even more.

Nico bounded into the house with all the energy of youth and excitement combined with whatever sugary treats Rachel had snuck him on the way home.

He skidded to a halt in the doorway when he spotted the stranger sitting on the couch beside Loki. Drinking in the appearance of the new man.

"Who are you?" he asked curiously.

"Nico, this is your father," Loki told his son gently, gesturing for his son to move forward and into his arms.

Nico shuffled forward, suddenly shy, without taking his green eyes off Thor's face. "Hi," he whispered.

"Hello, Nico," Thor rumbled, deep voice even deeper than normal with his nerves and emotion.

"You're my father?" Nico asked, just like Loki, wanting to clarify the facts.

"I am," Thor replied with an attempt at a smile. It looked shaky and nervous but warm.

"Mama said you're a prince on another planet," Nico said, challenging his sire.

"That's true, I'm the crown prince of Asgard. What has your mother told you about Asgard?" Thor asked, glancing between Loki and Nico.

"Mother said it was a beautiful place," Nico replied, looking to Loki for clarification before turning back to Thor, "Will I get to see it one day?"

Loki's heart clenched at the question. He didn't want to deprive his child of part of his heritage. It was bad enough he would never know Jotunheim, though it certainly wasn't a bad thing that he would never know the hatred of the Frost Giants.

"If you wish," Thor replied, looking pleased, almost bursting with joy.

Nico nodded with a small smile, "I would. Mum says it's pretty and shiny. I'd like to see that. He says the gardens of the palace are beautiful too."

"I would be honoured to show you some day," Thor said with a more genuine smile.

"Are you going to stay with us now?" Nico asked, just like his sire, blurting out a question to startle everyone else.

Thor blinked and hesitated before looking to Loki for help. Loki squeezed Nico's shoulders to get his son's attention; "Thor has a lot of responsibilities back in Asgard, Nico. He can't leave very often or for very long."

Nico frowned, "So can't we go with him?"

Now it was Loki's turn to look at Thor for help.

Thor heaved a breath and reached out to touch Nico's hand, gripping it firmly but gently. Loki admired the moment, the first time Thor touched his firstborn son, and vowed to treasure the memory.

"I hope one day, that you and your mother will stay with me in Asgard," Thor said carefully, "But for now that cannot happen."

Nico looked disappointed and on the verge of throwing a fit so Loki distracted him by asking him about his day at school. Nico still frowned but the pout disappeared as he began chatting about his day's adventures.

For the moment the crisis was averted.

Thor stayed with them for three more days before he went home. Loki allowed the golden prince into his bed because he really couldn't resist the Asgardian. It wasn't romantic or life affirming but it was familiar and Loki revelled in the affectionate touches, the words and pleasure evoked by the Thunderer's touch.

Loki thought he could let Thor stay with him for a few days and remain unchanged when the prince was inevitably called back home.

He was wrong.

The moment Thor had vanished; Loki had felt like a piece of himself had gone with him. It hurt. He realized he wasn't nearly as over his old lover as he had thought. With Thor gone it was as if the light had gone from his world again. He hated his dependence on another.

Nico sulked as well, wanting his father to stay. He might be smart for his age, but no child could ever truly understand why his parents weren't living together like the rest of the world seemed to be.

With Nico's obvious upset over Thor's absence, Loki made a hard decision he was pretty sure he was going to regret. However for his son, he would do anything.

He was going to go back to Asgard.

Thor was delighted when he heard of Loki's decision. He promised that this time, things would be different, that Loki would be happy. Loki wasn't so sure, but he was going to give it a chance.

He gave up his job and loaned all his furniture and possessions out to whoever wanted it. He claimed to want a change of scenery and was heading back to America to visit his wife's family.

His friends, few that they were, accepted it and told him to keep in touch. Loki would at first but then slowly he would draw away. It would be easier to make a clean break but if he truly needed to leave Asgard again, he wanted to have some sort of support network waiting for him.

Maybe things had changed while he was gone though, maybe he could find himself a nice little niche in Asgard and settle there without too much fuss.

He could only hope.

"Mother is looking forward to seeing you again," Thor told him as he led Loki to where the Bifrost would touch down, "She says she misses your talks and is anxious to meet her first grandchild."

Loki shot Thor a fond but strained smile. Thor seemed certain that everything would be all right.

Nico was bouncing with excitement and nerves.

"Can you show me your horse? Mama says it's a big white horse. Will you teach me how to ride? Can you teach me how to swing a sword? Mama says you're good at fighting, can you show me?"

On and on the questions went. Nico was taking the opportunity to get to know his father and Loki couldn't begrudge him.

Thor laughed at his son's multitude of fast questions and did his best to answer them which left Loki with nothing to do but prepare himself. Heimdall would pick them up soon. They would be welcomed in the Watchtower by the Royal Guard and then chaperoned to the palace where Frigga and Odin were waiting in the grand hall for their arrival. Or so Thor said. Loki hoped it was true, but was half suspecting a group of guards would try and take him to the dungeons instead.

The whoosh of the portal opening struck Loki out of his thoughts and he looked up in time to see the vast lights around him before he was transported to Heimdall's tower, where he looked over the Nine Realms.

"Welcome home, Prince Thor, Prince Loki, Prince Nicholas," Heimdall greeted them, surprisingly warm instead of his usual stoic persona.

Thor greeted his friend with a warm and manly hug. Nico hid behind Loki and peeked up at the giant man in golden armour, a massive sword in his hands.

Loki was surprised when Heimdall stepped around Thor and greeted Loki with a hug as well. Rarely had the Asgardian seer acted so soft with anyone. Usually he was cool, calm and collected. Loki stiffened in the embrace for a moment before succumbing. It felt nice, familiar, though Heimdall hadn't hugged him since he was a very small child.

After releasing Loki, Heimdall went down on one knee so he was more at eye level to Nico. With wide eyes, Nico stared as the seer leant forwards and bowed, with one arm clasped over his heart in the traditional way of Asgardian society.

Nico looked to Loki who nodded at his son, then the young prince returned the bow. It was somewhat stiff and short but Heimdall seemed pleased.

"I am pleased to finally meet you in person, young prince," Heimdall murmured, "I look forward to seeing you again."

Nico nodded his head shyly and Heimdall stood, moving away. The Royal Guard stepped in and Thor helped Loki and Nico up onto Loki's old horse.

No one shot him any derisive looks or disgusted sneers. It was refreshing to see such a lack of animosity but also confusing. Why weren't they frothing at the mouth over Loki's sin? There were no whispers or sideways glances. Loki didn't feel eyes glaring into his back. So far, no one seemed to care that Loki, a male Jotun, had borne the heir of Asgard.

Loki would like to be relieved but he was far too suspicious for that.

Nico was in awe of all that they passed and it was all Loki could do to keep his son in the saddle in front of him. It kept him busy so he was grateful for the distraction and didn't scold his son.

Finally they dismounted and made their way to the palace. Loki held tight to his son's hand and kept close to Thor. No one seemed to be objecting to his appearance but he was still wary. He risked glancing at a few people as he passed them in the halls, one or two of them even smiled at him.

This was going beyond strange and entering into somewhat frightening territory.

And it only got more frightening when he was ushered into the throne room. Instead of the royal couple dressed in their formal wear, armour and immaculate appearance in place, the King and Queen of Asgard wore casual dress. Loki barely recognized Odin out of the golden armour.

The doors shut behind them, leaving Loki alone with the royal family and his son. He held Nico close to him and waited to see what would happen.

Frigga stepped forward first. With a warm smile, familiar and gentle, she held out her arms and embraced Loki in a tight hug. Loki hugged her back but didn't relax fully.

"It has been a long time, my son," Frigga whispered in his ear before moving on to hug Thor.

Leaving Loki to face Odin.

The Allfather of Asgard stepped closer to Loki, his face unreadable as always. Loki tried not to look afraid but he knew how much the King could hurt him and his son, if Odin so chose.

"Loki, I am sorry," said Odin, the words rasped and harsh sounding. His blue eye did not leave Loki's green ones when he spoke. Loki gaped for a moment, caught off guard, before he straightened up and returned the Allfather's intense gaze.

"Are you apologizing as my King or as my father?" Loki asked, his throat clenching on the words, wondering if he was pushing things too far.

"Both." Odin didn't hesitate in answering, he didn't sound grudging at all when he spoke either. "I have failed you as both a King, and as a father. Therefore I must ask your forgiveness for my mistakes in both roles."

Loki stared at Odin, searching for any signs of lies or tricks. Being known for such things in the past, Loki considered himself good at detecting such elements in others. In Odin he saw nothing but sincerity, and that was probably the biggest surprise in a day full of surprises.

"Then, as your son and as your subject, I forgive you…Father."

How could a place he had known for decades have changed over a few short years?

Before arriving in Asgard, Loki would have thought it was impossible to do so. Yet here he was, two weeks into his stay on Asgard and he had begun to work out just how possible it was.

Everyone was different.

Thor was, as before, courteous and loving. He was affectionate with Loki in private just like he always had been, but now he was doing so in public as well. He hugged or just touched Loki in the presence of others; he even kissed Loki sometimes, staking his claim. He was also good with Nico, spending time with him and making sure he was happy and safe. It was…sweet. Something Loki had never truly thought to apply to Asgard's golden prince.

Frigga was as she had always been; a calming presence that protected him from the harshness of others. Only now he didn't need protecting and neither, it seemed, did Nico.

Odin was still King and as such could afford to show favour in public, to either of his sons, but in private Loki no longer felt like he was being held to Thor's standard.

It was refreshing, not having to hold in all the bitterness, because there wasn't any churning his stomach during their evening leisure time.

Thor's friends, instead of grudgingly allowing him to join them, actively sought him out to spend time with him, even without Thor around. Loki had been suspicious at first but it was becoming clear that they genuinely liked to spend time with him. It was fun to spar, to laugh and joke with them all. Nico had warmed to them as well, calling them Aunty Sif and Uncles Volstagg, Hogun and Fandral.

Servants who before had almost hidden from him, now shyly approached him. Citizens smiled at him in greeting like they had always done with Thor.

"Why is everyone so different?" Loki asked Thor one night after Nico had been ushered to bed. Loki and Thor were lying in Thor's bed, now their shared one as everyone seemed to accept that the two were a couple.

Thor wasn't exactly subtle when it came to claiming what he wanted. The love bites and hitch in his step some mornings were testament to that.

"They have all realized how they treated you, how wrong they were," Thor explained, "When Odin awoke from his sleep, he tried to find you, as did I. Mother, if she knew, would not tell us or help us look for you. As time went by, Father's search grew less fervent but still as determined. Mother had been talking to him, telling him why you had left, how you felt like there was no place for you here. Father realized how wrong he had been in deceiving you and trying to control you, to control both of us. It is the first time I have ever seen him cry."

Loki gaped, unable to fathom the image of the almighty Odin crying. The man who was always stoic and strong, who never showed weakness in front of anyone, had cried?

Thor smirked but the expression looked brittle, "Yes, he cried, as did I, that first year we both spent many tears when our searches came up empty."

Loki nodded once, looking away for a moment to process it, and then turned back with a frown, "That does not explain why everyone in the kingdom seems to suddenly see me in a new light."

Thor's face tightened and he looked furious for a moment before reining it in. Thunder rumbled dangerously outside.

"There was a plot brewing, you no longer have to concern yourself with them, but they cast a spell over you that made most everyone dislike something about you. For Sif and the Warriors Three, they grew up knowing you and children are often wary of what is different. The spell twisted this feeling in them and made it into true dislike as you grew. It was only after you left and took the spell with you that everyone started to realise what had happened. Odin ordered an investigation into what was going on and we discovered the traitors. You don't need to know their fate, just know that they can no longer hurt you."

Loki had thought that the knowledge of Odin crying over him would be the biggest shock of the night, but to hear that all of his woes and mistreatment was because of some horrible people…it was beyond shocking.

"Why?" It was the only thing he could think to say.

"Jealousy. Hatred. Not of you exactly but what you could be, what you presented, and what you were to Father. Now, enough of that, time to sleep now, my love."

Loki didn't think he could sleep now, what with so many thoughts whirling in his mind. He was right. He stayed up long after Thor had begun snoring. He stared at the ceiling, trying to piece together what he had learnt and figure out what he was going to do now.

Answers didn't come to him that night, but sleep eventually did.

"This place is awesome, Mum!" Nico cried as he climbed down off his own horse. The grey mare was a gift from Odin and Frigga from the royal stables for Nico's missed birthdays. The actual celebration in a few days would be much grander and Loki was almost afraid to find out what the royal couple had decided to gift their grandchild.

"Did your father take you to the lake, little one?" Loki asked as he accepted the hug from his son.

Nico nodded rapidly, "It was so much fun. Dad took me to where you and he used to jump into the lake. Dad says I'm not big enough to jump from there yet but he let he jump from the shore. The water was so cold."

"It's an ice lake, Nico," Loki informed him, "Of course it was cold." He wondered why it had never affected the glamour Frigga had placed on him to hide his Jotun form. Supposedly cold could destroy it but the ice lake didn't. Perhaps it needed true cold to defeat the glamour, the type only found within the Frost Giant realm.

"Did you get all of your letters written?" Thor asked, coming to walk beside them as they made their way back to the palace from the stables. Nico ran ahead to talk to some of his new friends. He had met some of the children in the palace and was having fun with those his own age.

"I did." Loki sighed, "It hurts to tell them I will not be returning and that I cannot contact them anymore. Rachel will be the most disappointed, I think. I will miss her."

"You would have had to say goodbye anyway, my love," Thor said softly, "Her lifespan is far too different to ours."

"I know. It doesn't make it hurt any less."

Thor nodded his understanding and changed the topic to Nico's coming party.

"Mother has had the seamstress preparing new robes for all of us. I don't know what they look like, she is being very tight lipped about the designs, but she said they would be memorable."

Loki made a face, "That could mean anything from marvellous clothes to terrifyingly identical outfits."

Thor snorted a laugh but nodded in agreement.

"There is something I wanted to ask you, but I think it would be best done in private."

Loki looked at Thor out of the corner of his eye and saw the serious expression on the Thunderer's face. Rarely did Thor look so concentrated and nervous about something.

"Very well, tonight after Nico has gone to bed?"

"Yes, that would be appropriate."

Loki wanted to press. Now that he was feeling more comfortable in his place in Asgard he wanted to return to his old ways of teasing and mischief. But he knew better than to push Thor when he wanted to keep something secret. It would only end up frustrating him if he fixated, so he focused on his duties instead.

He was back to working with the royal family to better Asgard's relations with other realms. It kept him busy and gave him a purpose rather than focusing on how much in limbo he still was.

What was his future here? Would he be Nico's mother but Thor's brother? Would he be relegated to the prince's former lover when Thor was required to take the throne and marry to produce an heir? Nico was, after all, not born in wedlock so technically he wasn't Thor's heir. Would both Loki and Nico be demoted when Thor took a real wife and had children?

The thoughts made Loki's head swim and his stomach knot so it was best to ignore them. Denial was bliss in this case.

But now Thor wanted to talk. He had learnt that on Midgard, the phrase 'We need to talk', very rarely ended well.

Sadly, the day passed much quicker now that he was dreading the end so before he knew it, he was kissing Nico goodnight and heading to his shared rooms where Thor was waiting.

Taking a deep breath, Loki braced himself and entered the bedroom, only to stop short when he almost stepped on a mass of red at his feet.

He frowned down at the floor, taking a moment to realise that the red was a bunch of rose petals, before he looked up. The flower fragments trailed away from the door towards where Thor stood, dressed in his best finery.

"Loki, my love, my one, the mother of my child and my best friend. You are the light of my life and the reason I am the person I am today it because of you." Thor took a deep breath, looking as nervous as Loki had felt before entering the bedroom. "Loki, I love you. Will you do me the honour of accepting my hand in marriage?"

Loki gaped in shock, unable to comprehend what was going on. His quick mind had stalled and he was left gasping like a fish.

Thor looked more and more desolate as time passed and Loki did no reply. The sad look broke Loki's heart and snapped him out of the shock.

Without a second thought Loki launched himself at his golden lover, smashing their lips together in a passionate kiss that ended with his helpless laughter. Loki's legs were wrapped around Thor's waist, the Thunder God's big arms holding him securely. Loki's arms wrapped around his neck and he kept them there when he pulled from the kiss and pressed their foreheads together.

"Thor, my love, my one, the father of my child and my best friend. You are the storm that soothes my dreams and the rain that washes away my fears." Loki took a deep breath, "Thor, I love you and have done for a very long time. Yes, I will accept you hand in marriage and continue to love you until the day we both die."

Thor pulled away to look at Loki for a long moment then he whooped, his inner barbarian coming out to play, and he laughed loudly with glee. He threw Loki onto their bed before joining him in the immaculate red sheets.

That night thunder rumbled the walls and lightning split the sky. Frigga and Odin smirked to each other when they realised why the storm had suddenly rolled in and went to sleep dreaming of more grandchildren and a coming marriage.

"Happy Birthday, Prince Nico!" the crowd shouted as Nico pranced around in his new robes, showing his new friends the gifts he had been given.

"He looks so happy," Loki whispered to Thor as they watched their son mingle with his peers.

"He does, so does his mother," Thor murmured in reply, brushing his lips against Loki's cheek and looping his arms around his waist. Loki covered Thor's hands and leant into the broad chest behind him. The ring Thor had gifted him was proudly on display for all to see. Their marriage would be official in just a few weeks.

Apparently Frigga had been planning it ever since Loki's return. No one got in the Queen's way when she wanted something.

No one.

So the plans were all set, everything was all but ready.

Everything was falling into place.

They had both suffered and come out better for it. They would no doubt face more obstacles in the future.

But for now, their future was bright and the world was good.

Authors Note: This is the end of the overall story arch for now. I have some ideas for additional chapters and I am open to some suggestions but for the moment this is finished. I hope you enjoyed it.