A/N: I'm uncontrollably excited today!It's cold! Well... It's Texas cold, which is all I can really hope for at this point in the year, but it's still some version of cold!

Ahem. So, Avengers came out on DVD and Gabrielle Day and I decided to write young Thor and Loki. This is pre-Thor and they're young in this one... We never decided exactly how young, but maybe early teens? The beautifully awkward age where boys think they're already men and just aren't. It's such a fantastic age to write about, especially with two Asgardian princes.

Enjoy!

Part One

Nothing about this set well. It was not just that the idea for the adventure had fallen from the tongues of Calder and Broder - two distant cousins that he had learned very young never to trust for any length - nor even that it was outside the parameters that the Allfather had set for his two sons. The latter was hardly a worry, as they regularly scooted off to their own devices away from their father's overbearing watch, but what worried the younger prince of Asgard the most was the way that Calder and Broder had presented this little escapade. Few details coupled with a vague bit of mystery all reminded Loki of why he no longer trusted their distant relatives that had grown up in the palace along with them. It usually landed him in more than a little trouble. As he followed Thor down the path he felt another protest bubble in his throat.

"If this is such a good idea, why are our most beloved cousins not joining us on this little venture?" Loki asked. It wouldn't do to sound as if he was not interested in going with Thor, no. The last outright protest had left him stuck in the palace, not knowing that Thor had gone off without him until much later. (And it was a good thing he had found out when he did and shown up when he had, or Asgard would be down one prince permanently, thank you very much.)

Thor laughed and turned his face towards the sun, momentarily closing his eyes as he walked. "Because they've already been. How else would they have told us about it?" he replied. The answer always sounded so simple falling from his lips.

"Not fun enough for two trips, then." Loki muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Loki replied with a smile, adjusting the pack on his shoulder.

"We should crest that hill in a moment and see the deep forest." Thor called.

"Excellent." Loki called back. Nothing could possibly go wrong in a deep forest at the foot of a mountain, no.

"Broder said that the caves should be along to the east," the blond said as he surveyed from the top of the hill. He glanced back at his brother who had trailed behind. Loki had stopped, not looking overly happy in the summer heat. "You could have stayed home, you know," Thor chuckled.

"And leave you to it?" the dark haired prince returned. "Never." He stepped forward, gaze roaming across the land below. It was mostly open fields until one reached the forest, and the caves were meant to be just inside and a little to the east, as Thor had said. He had not heard of them before, and that was another bit that made him uneasy. Loki prided himself on having a vast knowledge of... well, everything. If it was written in a book in his father's library he had probably come across it at least once if not more. Maps were not to be left out, and Thor had encouraged that bit of learning when he realized how useful his brother could be in the matter. Odin might notice a missing scroll from the library, especially one that contained the layout of terrain past their limitations, but he could rarely prove their whereabouts if nothing was missing. Loki's mind seemed a safe enough place for the information.

"Calder said there is a jewel buried deep in the cave, guarded by a dragon. I thought we should fetch it and present it to Mother for her birthday," Thor continued on as they started down.

"There are no dragons in this part of Asgard," his brother shot back.

"Are you calling Calder a liar?"

"Well, have you ever seen one? In person?"

Thor stopped, lips turning down in something that might have been a pout if he had been any younger. "I suppose not."

"I didn't think so. If there were a dragon within a day's walking distance, I think we would have seen it."

Thor thought on that a moment. "He's been sleeping!" he announced suddenly, a grin replacing the disgruntled look and he picked up his pace.

Loki sighed. He had thought that the elder prince might be ready to concede that there was little to back up Calder and Broder's story, but Thor's own restlessness was getting the better of him. It had been his excuse when they had left out and it would remain his excuse until they had poked through every tunnel. "It's not like anything is going on at the palace. What is the harm in taking a look?"

A bored Thor was a dangerous Thor, whether they stayed in the palace or went outside of it, or disobeyed their father and wandered into the lands where the princes were not supposed to go. Thor had stopped listening to the speeches their father gave about the dangers lurking beyond his boundaries after the first eight or nine times they heard it.

"It is a peaceful land! You pride yourself on that. We are princes, no one would dare bring harm to us!" Thor would exclaim.

Loki had a mental bet on how many times Thor could get away with saying that before Odin hit him on the head with his staff. It had not happened yet, but it would be soon, he could feel it.

They were soon lost under the cover of trees, their branches growing so high and so thick that the sunlight was faint and in places could not reach the ground at all. Thor kept his back straight and his shoulders squared, but Loki could tell he was less comfortable. He was quite comfortable, as long as he pretended not to notice the way the shadows curled towards him like he was a beckoning force.

"Not much farther." Thor said.

Loki said nothing, distracted by what he saw on the ground. A grin curved across his lips as he silently picked up a long, thin reed. Thor, too busy surging ahead with confidence failed to notice the sudden lack of his brother's footfalls behind him. Loki crept as close as he dared then reached out and ran the reed along the length of Thor's spine.

Loki could almost see all the hairs on his neck stand on end and burst out laughing when Thor actually left the ground when he jumped in surprise. "Afraid of the scary forest creatures, Thor?" he asked, laughing.

"Loki," Thor growled, "That isn't funny."

"You're right. It isn't funny. It's hysterical."

The sound of a nearby stream was the only thing that saved Loki from Thor chasing him up a tree. "The caves are near the stream, are they not?" he asked, redirecting his brother's attention.

"Yes," Thor grumbled, blue eyes glaring in such a way that swore he would file his grudge away for later. Thankfully his memory was mostly short lived when it came to grudges against his beloved little brother.

They wove around fallen branches that could have been trees until they reached a slope. The ground sluffed off, giving a fair view of the river that fed into the open mouth of a cave. It was old, ancient, and the rocks looked ready to slip from their place at any time. Loki couldn't help but to feel they were losing their advantage if they were to descend down to the opening. There was something ominous about the hole in the earth, as if it were yawning and would eventually close on anyone that dared trespass.

"Look!" Thor called as he scuttled down the slope without a care. He motioned to a dead tree that had been burned. "I told you there was a dragon! Didn't I tell you, Loki?"

The younger prince shook his head and sighed, picking his way down the slippery hill in a much more gentle fashion. "Looks like it was hit by lightning to me."

"I know lightning, Loki. That's not a lightning strike."

"Not fresh, no, but some few hundred years ago, maybe."

"Those are burned marks!"

"Which could have been left by... Oh, never mind." He let out a frustrated sound, knowing that he was fighting a losing battle. "Shall we go in and get this over with?"

"Where's your sense of adventure, little brother?"

"I have one, you know I do, but..." He stopped, something deep in him murmuring that they should leave now. He lay a hand on his brother's shoulder, gaining his attention, and his voice was much lower as he spoke. "Thor, would you listen to me if I told you we should leave?"

"Perhaps I would if you were not always telling me to leave. Get out of bed, Thor. Get out of the kitchen, Thor. Get out of my library, Thor. Get out of the garden, Thor. Get out of trouble, Thor." Thor said, waving his hands to emphasize his point.

Loki frowned. "I most certainly do not."

Thor looked at him.

"Often." Loki amended. "This time I mean it, Thor. Something...something is not right about this. You know lightning, and that's true. I know this feeling and I cannot believe anything good will come of our poking around here. We could go further east, into that little gypsy village. They should be having some sort of festival this time of year. They always have that mead you like."

Had it been the promise of anything less than a dragon and a jewel for their mother, Loki might have won him. He could always redirect Thor with the promise of good wine. However, even the best wine in the world could not trump the adventure a dragon might bring. Thor shook his head. "Perhaps we shall have time to find their caravan after the cave. Come on, Loki, it will be fun."

"If I had a gold coin for every time you said that I'd be richer than the Allfather." Loki pointed out.

"But you've had fun." Thor said with a grin. His smile faltered. "You do have fun, do you not, brother?"

"I...ah...of course, of course I have fun, Thor. It's just that...usually when you have fun it involves very large things with very pointy teeth." His own thought gave him pause. "So you may be right. There just might be a dragon in that cave."

It would be just his luck.

Thor clapped him on the shoulder. He took a deep breath, enjoying the scent of the trees and the stream and the damp earth. He had to crouch ever so slightly to slip past the opening, which he did and was gone into the cave.

Loki moved to follow, forcing his instincts down for the sake of his brother's enjoyment. He couldn't let him go in there alone, could he? He followed, clutching tightly to the bag at his shoulder. It held a bit of food and water that they had managed to snatch from the kitchens. He had also managed a small flask of wine for their own enjoyment, but that had come from his own rooms, not wanting to risk taking it from under the head cook's nose.

The cave was damp with the stream running into it and refreshing from the heat. The water pooled back a ways, nearly too far for the light to have reached. The bottom seemed to drop out of it, and they could not see the bottom even after Loki had cast a spell that produced a small ball of light that floated helpfully above their heads. It illuminated the whole cave, showing it to be much less than their cousins had promised. The pool was near the back wall, leaving a very small place to explore.

"Not quite big enough for a dragon," Loki murmured as he looked about. Everything seemed well in place for the little cave. It was almost quaint in its smallness, and it should have put his heart at ease. It would have, if Thor had not called from where he was crouched at the back wall.

"Bring that light this way."

"I'm not a torch-bearer," his brother complained, but did as asked.

The light cascaded down the back wall, showing it not to be as solid as previously assumed. There were cracks in it that, upon closer inspection, appeared to be tightly packed rocks that had fallen some time before. "A cave in blocked this passage," Thor announced.

"Don't fuss with it or you'll cause another."

"Yes, Mother." Thor teased.

Loki shoved his shoulder. "I mean it. That would be the last thing we needed, a ton of rocks coming down on your head."

"And here I thought you'd be the first to say my head would be the only head that could handle it." Thor said with a smile.

Loki had to smile back, at that. "Well, let us not test that theory. We've explored the cave. Can we visit the gypsies now?"

"I wonder how far back it goes." Thor murmured, mostly to himself. He reached out and pulled a large rock away from the cluster. Nothing moved. Before Loki could say anything, Thor yanked another away. Loki held his breath, but the wall stayed.

"That really isn't wise." Loki said.

"That is what you are here for, my dearest brother. You are to be wise. I am to move rocks." Thor said, hefting a larger one away.

"So sayeth the prophecy of fools." Loki muttered.

A rumble sounded far below them, causing Thor to pause in his excavation efforts. It sounded again, the fine tremor running through the ground below their feet.

"All right. That is quite enough. Let's go, gypsies and wine await us." Loki said, turning around.

Thor reached out and grabbed his arm. "Wait. That was too far below to be these rocks. There must be something beneath." His excitement was growing and he began moving rocks again.

"Thor! Don't be a fool! These rocks are holding the ceiling up! If you take them away, who knows what it will do to the cave?"

"Stop worrying so much," Thor snapped back at him, genuinely sounding irritable. He stopped only when one of the sharper rocks bit into his hand, causing him to pull it close and try to staunch the sudden blood flow.

"Are you quite done?" Loki growled.

"No."

"Damn it, Thor." The dark haired prince reached out, trying to grab at the elder's hand and take a look. "Stop being stubborn. Let me see."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I won't know until you let me have a look!"

"Let it alone!" Thor's voice boomed.

The walls began to tremble this time, the rocks before them shuddering under the strain. They no longer had many of their larger brothers to help hold everything steady, and they began to fall out of place. Small pebbles bouncing down the stack quickly turned into full sized rocks and blue eyes met green.

"Perhaps we should go," Thor managed. "You know, before the whole place comes down."

"Splendid idea. Why didn't I think of that?" his brother muttered.

They leapt up together, but the trembling ground sent them sprawling back down. Rocks fell from overhead and landed dangerously close to the princes of Asgard. Loki let out a small cry as one fell and nearly crushed his hand.

Thor was on his feet again and took just enough time to tug his brother up. They raced towards the opening, but the front end came crashing down with one particularly harsh jolt. "Now what?" Loki cried.

The floor pitched beneath them, sending the brothers sprawling away from each other. Loki braced himself against the wall of the cave and shielded his face as bits of the ceiling rained down on him. He tried to see Thor, but in catching himself his spell had been forgotten, plunging the small room into darkness. More rocks fell, and from somewhere to his left he heard Thor hiss with pain.

"Thor!"

"Loki!"

A large chunk of the ceiling came loose and hit the ground with a resounding thud. After, all was silent. Loki could hear his heart pounding against his ribcage and his blood swirling in his ears and the harshness of his breath as he breathed in the dust of crushed rock and stirred up dirt.

"Thor?" he rasped. He brushed debris off his arms and legs, pushing smaller rocks out of the way. He heard an ominous creak before all fell silent again. Loki licked his lips and tasted copper, and when he touched his face and pulled his hand away his fingers were sticky with blood. "Thor!" he called again. He summoned magic back to his fingertips, the orb forming again to generate light.

The cave was in shambles. The whole front end was completely closed off, rocks piled high and, by the looks of them, unyielding. The rest of the small area was littered with fallen debris, but there was only one rock pile he cared about. It was the one that covered a certain blond. He was pinned from the shoulders down, one arm sprawled out to the side and having apparently been spared. His head was lulled back, eyes closed, and he was entirely too quiet for Loki's comfort.

The younger prince darted forward, ankle finding a stray stone in his haste and he tumbled forward with a cry that was not just from the pain. He sprung up with little care and did not drop again until he made it to his brother's side. "Thor?" he called, voice rising in fear. Trembling hands began to remove the rocks and he could feel warm tears building in his eyes. He knew this was a bad idea. He had known it, and yet he had been a - mostly - willing participant in it.

Thor's tunic was ripped and torn, showing deep and shallow gashes alike. He gave a struggling breath as the trickster continued to work to uncover him. "Brother?" Loki's hands stilled momentarily and moved to his elder sibling's face. Long fingers brushed along his cheekbone, and blue eyes fluttered open.

"Loki?"

It was all that Loki could do not to embrace his brother, but instead he sniffled, feeling the tears begin to fall. "I'm so sorry," he managed.

"Don't be... such a baby," Thor half chuckled, shifting his weight and then regretting it immediately. His jest fell short with the horrified expression that crossed the younger god's face.

"It is not so bad, Loki," Thor said, a little breathless.

It was not so bad, no, in Loki's estimation it was somewhere between utterly terrifying and catastrophic. Blood pooled over the rocks Thor had fallen on, one of them the weapon that had torn into his skin. They had each suffered various injuries during their escapades, but Loki had not seen him lose blood like this before.

"No. It's...you'll be fine. I'm sure we can..." Loki swallowed thickly, " I am sure we can dig our way out with a little effort. Maybe you should not move until we can figure out how to go about this." Loki pulled off his outer cloak and pressed it against the largest wound. Thor paled and winced but made no sound.

Loki went to study the collapsed entrance, wondering how he could manipulate his magic to move the rocks without causing another avalanche. It couldn't be terribly deep, the room had not been that big to begin with. If it had been at all extensive they both would have been crushed to death. He decided what he would try and turned, only to find that Thor had not only managed to stand, but had made again to the back wall. Loki barely resisted the urge to shriek in frustration.

"Get away from there! Did the last rock knock out your short term memory? Or are you secretly trying to kill me?" Loki growled.

Thor waved a hand in his direction. "Hush. Your girlish fears will bring down the second slide. Look here, there's an opening into the back of the cave now."

"But we don't know if it will lead out," Loki argued and motioned back to where the opening had been. "We know where that leads."

"Yes, it leads to nowhere. If you hadn't noticed, the rocks are blocking our exit."

"What if we tried to swim under the rocks?"

"They're blocking the exit that way too. Look, they're piled over the top of the water." Thor motioned to where rocks peeked up to the surface.

"That doesn't mean there's not a gap somewhere," Loki urged. "Just... let me try."

Thor sighed, leaning heavily against the wall. His eyes shifted from his brother to the waters in question and the second sigh heaved his broad shoulders up and then let them back down again. "If it doesn't work, we'll try my way."

"Agreed." Loki sat heavily and began peeling off his boots. He winced and thin hands briefly went to his left ankle, checking to see how swollen it was. His frown was brief as he shrugged off his vest, leaving him only in tunic and trousers. "I'll come back up if there's a place to go out."

"I'd hope you'd come back up either way," Thor murmured.

The trickster flashed a grin that almost looked natural and eased himself into the water. It was warm, even in the cave and he felt himself continue to slip. Maybe it was deeper than he realized.

Thor slid to the ground, holding his side and waited for Loki to surface. A minute passed, maybe two and the dark haired prince did not return. He would feel bad later that his first thought was that Loki had gotten out and left him in the cave. He quickly realized that was not the more likely of situations. Fear bloomed brighter and more quickly than the blood from his wounds and he jerked forward into the water. He sucked in a deep breath and let his head slip beneath the water.

It was dark, practically black and he thrust a hand out in front of him. His fingers grazed rocks and moss and he could not understand how the pool became so deep. Thor also realized that if it was this dark he might not be able to find Loki and even if he did, he may not find his way back to the top. His fingers brushed fabric and he closed his fist tightly.

He gave a sharp pull and kicked, ignoring the pain the nearly made him swallow water. He was swimming in the opposite direction than he had found Loki. That made sense, really. If Loki were falling he would go down and they needed to go up. Up towards the surface...

Thor felt his strength waning and he realized how badly he needed air. Loki wasn't fighting him, nor was he swiming with him. The younger prince still felt frighteningly limp in his grasp. Blue eyes turned up, looking for one last bit of hope to swim for. He didn't see it, but it hit him all the same.

They broke the surface suddenly, the room left dark without the spell that had gone dim in the mage's absence. The blond prince lashed out with one hand, reaching for anything that he could find. After several attempts he found a rock and tried to take hold. He slipped, nearly losing his grip on his brother, but the second attempt fared better than the first.

By the way that the ground seemed to slope upward, if his quick look served him at all, they were coming up on the other side of the pond. He wasn't sure how they had managed that, but he didn't care at that point. He pulled Loki after him, knees finally giving way and they collapsed together on damp dirt and rocks.
"Come on now," Thor rasped, feeling his injuries taking a toll. His breath was coming in short gasps and he had to keep remind himself to take them. They were better than nothing. "Loki?"

His brother was still, head turned towards him with eyes closed. Thor touched his cheek and then rested his fingers against his mouth and nose. No breath touched his skin and he immediately pushed to his knees and brought his first down against Loki's breastbone. "Loki!"

His little brother's body jerked slightly from the force, but there was no change. Thor grabbed his face with one hand, checking for breath again. There was nothing. His own breathing became ragged, the fear of losing his brother and being alone fighting for the forefront of his thoughts. He pushed it away and brought his fist down again.

TBC

A/N: well of course there's whump... a lot of whump, per the usual. Do I hear any complaints? Didn't think so... :P