Banishments and Loss

"Thor please!" Kona begged as she was dragged to the Bifrost entrance, stumbling through bits of ice, grimacing as she realized it was fallen Frost Giants, their remains she was being shoved through as Thor let go of her to stride forward, "Just listen!"

"To what?" Thor roared, turning to her, Mjolnir in one hand, Gungnir in the other, "More lies?!"

"They aren't lies Thor," she pleaded with him, "All Loki and I did was try to stop you making a mistake."

"In being king," Thor glared at her, "You thought my birthright a mistake!?"

"Thor!" she nearly stomped her foot at this.

For all he'd changed…he was still unwilling to listen. But she knew why, she knew that in his heart he truly thought their actions a sign of betrayal. He had been told the 'truth' or what he thought was the truth by Sif and the Warriors Three, what else needed there to be said? Nothing would sway his mind. He trusted those four far more than he would ever trust her, for her love of Loki, or Loki for the sting of betrayal, to have his brother stab him in the back as he thought Loki had. Mjolnir believed Thor to be a worthy king by that point, and, from Thor's point of view, all she and Loki could say to defend themselves would be lies.

This was not him acting rash, this was not him rushing into something, and this was not him being manipulated. This was a Thor who had been told 'the fact's or what he thought to be them, one who had time to process everything, and one who had seemed to have walked in on his brother about to betray their father. She knew that he had heard her, he'd heard her say that 'they'd done it' and to Thor it meant it had been a plan all along. Thor had, in his mind, come to a decision. He had deemed them traitors and, as such, was enacting the fitting punishment.

For her at least.

She was merely a subject in Thor's eyes, Loki…she truly feared for his punishment, being Thor's brother, that 'betrayal' would be far closer to home. And she knew, while she still could, she need to try and get through to him, she needed him to realize that, no matter what, Loki had NEVER betrayed him. She didn't care how he saw her, she refused to let him turn Loki into the villain when he was the opposite.

"We thought you ascending the throne when you did would be the fall of Asgard," she shouted, "We only halted it, so you could have time to grow into the king you were meant to be!" she shook her head in his general direction, though she was shaking, she could hear the anger in his moves as he made his way up the steps of the controls, "You cannot deny you have become better than when you left!"

But Thor was silent.

She let out a shuddering breath, when THOR of all people went silent…it was beyond anger, when he was silent...it was dangerous and now...right now...he was king, "Thor…what are you doing?"

She flinched, hearing the controls of the Bifrost activate, "For your crimes against Asgard...I banish you Kona."

"NO!" she heard someone shout in the distance, her head snapped to the side as she heard hoofbeats, heard Loki's voice, but then someone grabbed her arm and shoved her.

She stumbled forward, able to hear the roar of the open Bifrost behind her, not even needing to see the light of it to feel its intensity on her back. She panted, her heart racing as she felt tears in her eyes...there was nothing she could do. There was no way to avoid this. She couldn't see and she could already feel the power of the Bifrost behind her trying to suck her in...

"I strip you of your title, of your position in the House of Odin," Thor cried, "I strip you of your immortality," she didn't need to see to know he was glaring at her, "And I strip you of your memories!"

She gasped, feeling something cold strike her chest, the cold turning to a burning flame as it engulfed her...the same power throwing her back, into the Bifrost, her senses cutting off as she was knocked out.

~8~

"THOR NO!" Loki leapt off his horse before it even came to a stop, rushing forward, trying to reach Kona. He could see it, he could see Thor at the controls of the Bifrost, Heimdall's sword in them…holding Gungnir in his hands, aimed at Kona.

He could hear the proclamation of the king, he could see how scared Kona looked, knowing what was coming but unable to see it.

"KONA!" he reached for her as Thor fired Gungnir at her, and he knew…the power of the king would strip every single memory of Asgard from her, every memory of her entire life would be erased, every...every memory of HIM as she fell through the portal…he had only just reached it, ready to throw himself into it after her…when the Bifrost closed.

He rammed himself into the wall from the force of his run, unable to stop, panting and shaking more from what had just happened than the pain of crashing into the wall, "No…" he shook his head, his hands curling into fists, before he pounded on the wall, "No! NO!" he spun around, glaring at Thor, "Bring her back!" he demanded of his brother.

"She is a traitor to the House of Odin and she deserves her fate," Thor stood strong against him, standing with Mjolnir in one hand, Gungnir in the other, having cast aside Heimdall's sword onto the Bifrost Bridge so that Loki wouldn't be able to reverse it.

"Where is she?" he stormed up to Thor, "Where did you send her?!"

"A place she can no longer harm Asgard," Thor's own eyes narrowed at him.

"SHE wasn't the one harming it!" he spat, "YOU were. She SAW it Thor, she saw the destruction your reign would have brought upon our home."

Thor shoved him back, "Lies! Is that what you convinced her would happen brother? Did you use your magic to create a false vision? To gain her trust in your endeavor to turn Asgard over to the Jotuns?!"

Loki shook his head, feeling anger rise in him at how…WRONG…Thor was about it, about ALL of it. And heartbroken to know that his brother would never listen to or hear the truth from him. He had always been mischievous, but Thor was talking about him doing something FAR worse, something that…if Thor had truly considered them brothers…he would NEVER think him capable of.

He looked around, needing something to get through to him, something to prove his loyalty to Thor, to show him that it was never his plan to allow the Jotuns to rule Asgard OR to be king either. And then he saw it…Heimdall's sword but…it wouldn't be enough. The sword was meant to open and close the Bifrost, but only with someone controlling it, he'd have to be standing there with it, holding it in place for what his frantic mind was thinking to work.

But there was one other thing that could be used…Gungnir.

He took a breath and ran at his brother, knowing from years of training alongside him that he would swing with Mjolnir first. He ducked under the swing, grabbing Gungnir and turning, twisting to throw Thor over his shoulder, down the steps of the controls. He ran for them, sliding Gungnir into the controls, opening them all the way…

Setting them for Jotunheim.

Thor groaned and looked up as the Bifrost activated, the power unlike anything he'd seen before as it built, built so strong and so quickly that frost started to escape from the controls, freezing the entire base in an enormous chunk of ice. Loki pulled Gungnir out of the controls, watching as the energy built up higher, becoming tree-like in the ice that formed out of it, the power of the Bifrost ripping away…hitting Jotunheim.

"You can't stop it," Loki whispered as he stared at what he'd done, as he watched the Bifrost continue to grow in power, knowing, right at that very moment, the energy of it was hitting the Frost Giant Realm, tearing it to pieces, "The Bifrost will build until it rips Jotunheim apart."

Thor stood up and tried to break through the ice with Mjolnir, but Loki quickly sent him flying back with a small blast of Gungnir.

"Why have you done this?!" Thor demanded, actually feeling a bit…conflicted. Why would Loki be destroying the allies he'd made in his quest to be king?

Loki shook his head, how did he tell his brother that it was all for HIM? To prove to him that he wasn't trying to allow the Frost Giants to rule, that the brutes were NOT his people, that they were NOT his allies…he was standing there, destroying their home, so that his brother would see where his allegiance lied. And yet still he questioned it.

"To prove to you that I am on your side," Loki shouted, "To prove to father that I am a worthy son. When he wakes, I will have saved his life, I will have destroyed that race of monsters, and I will be a true prince of Asgard!" he let out a breath, panting as he faced down his brother, "I am on ASGARD's side, I will always be. Everything I do, I do for my home!" he shook his head, his voice growing soft, "Everything Kona and I have done has been for Asgard, and you banished her!"

"You can't kill an entire race!" Thor yelled.

"Why not?" he shook his head, feeling tears in his eyes, it killed him to do this, to do what Kona had seen Thor doing in her vision, but if it would prove to him where his loyalties lied, if it would show Thor that he had NOT betrayed him…maybe it would bring her back, "If it proves to you that I am on your side?" he swallowed hard, trying another method, Thor thought they betrayed him. He knew that Kona would try to convince him otherwise, tell him WHY they'd not taking him away from Earth, their hopes to better him…if he could just…show Thor how much he'd changed, how much he KNEW his brother had changed, "What is this newfound love for the Frost Giants?" he called, trying to remind him of the way he'd nearly slaughtered them before yet NOW he was trying to save them, "You, who'd have killed them all with your bare hands!"

"I've changed," Thor said.

"Because of us," Loki tried to get through, but Thor remained stoic, remained glaring, the look in his eyes…it showed him that he would never hold his brother's trust again, he had lost him. Everything, all their plans had gone nowhere, yes…Asgard had a worthy king…but he had lost his brother, and he had lost Kona, "And so have I," he nodded.

He had changed in the short time as well. Everything he'd had to endure from the moment Thor was banished, finding out he was a Frost Giant, their father in Odinsleep, becoming king, the distrust of his subjects, tricking the Jotuns, every single thing…it had nearly broken him to do.

Nearly.

But he'd had Kona, she had been with him through it all. She had been his rock, his support, she had been…his Queen. She had been exactly what Frigga was to Odin, she was...everything to him and…now she was gone. And he needed her back. He loved her and Thor had just taken his love away.

If he couldn't get his brother back…he needed to get HER back instead. He looked at the Bifrost…with it set to destroy Jotunheim…he couldn't go after Kona. He had seen the direction the Bifrost had opened in, he knew which Realm she'd been sent to, but…he couldn't risk stopping the Bifrost now. He needed to wait for it to run its course before he attempted moving it, it wouldn't be safe, it couldn't be stopped.

But Thor would try to stop it…and if he did, he'd never be able to get Kona back. He looked at his brother, knowing the only distraction that he could use would be…to fight him.

"Fight me," he challenged, swinging Gungnir at him, forcing Thor to block him, forcing him to fight him, but Thor remained on the defensive, didn't attack back kept trying to get to the controls. "I never wanted the throne," he told his brother, "I only wanted to be your equal!"

"I will not fight you, brother," Thor ducked back from another attack.

"Am I your brother?" Loki shook his head, his jaw tense, "A brother would not think betrayal!" he swung at Thor, "A brother would TRUST!" and again, "A brother wouldn't HARM!" and tried to stab him, becoming more and more angry the longer he went, more hurt as he realized…it wasn't HIM who had betrayed Thor, it was THOR who had betrayed him…by not trusting him, by not believing in his intention, by accepting the words of others over his own testament, "I am not your brother," he told Thor, his voice breaking, he couldn't be Thor's brother if Thor didn't consider him one, "I don't think I ever was. Not to you…"

"Loki, this is madness!" Thor shouted, shoving him back from another attack.

"Is it madness?" Loki asked him, tears appearing in his eyes, he'd said the same to Thor, about destroying Jotunheim earlier, and now he was doing the same. But Thor…Thor had just taken away everything he held dear, if that wasn't enough to drive someone a little mad, he didn't know what else there could be, "Is it? Is it!?" he shook his head, seeing Thor still not understanding him, "What happened to you on Earth that changed you so?" he asked him, "Was it that woman? Jane?"

"How do you know of her?" Thor pointed Mjolnir at him.

"Kona was watching you," Loki nearly shouted, "We both were, until you were ready to come home!" he shook his head, "And you sent her away, you banished her from her home!" he felt the anger filling him again, "You took my love away from me…" he shook his head, "Maybe, when we're finished here I'll pay your beloved a visit myself."

And that was all he had to say…for Thor to earnestly start to fight him. They rushed at each other, both of them fighting harder than they ever had, striking at each other with their weapons, him with Gungnir, Thor with Mjolnir. Their anger and their mutual believes of betrayal knew no bounds as they fought savagely, slamming each other into the walls of the observatory-like structure, knocking each other in the face, striking each other in the chest. One mighty blow against each other send them flying back out of the structure and onto the bridge.

But that still didn't stop them as they fought. Thor rolled onto his feet…only to see a score of Lokis appear around him, trying to trick him, to make it impossible for him to find the real one. He growled and lifted Mjolnir to the sky, lightning striking down as he slammed it down, the effect blasting through all of the Lokis, till only one was thrown backwards onto the bridge, stunned.

Thor strode over to him as he was down, resting Mjolnir on his chest so the man would be unable to move, the hammer unbudging. He turned to the Bifrost, watching as it continued to rip through the darkness, him struggling with the force of the wind rippling off it as the power built.

"Look at you, the Mighty Thor," Loki laid there, shaking his head, just…tired, "What good does your brute strength do you? Do you hear me brother?! There's nothing you can do!"

Loki looked up when the hammer suddenly flew off him, across the bridge to Thor's hand as he began to pound at the bridge with Mjolnir, starting to crack it and he realized...Thor truly had changed, no more did he use mere brute strength...but his mind...and combined they were both frightening assets. He had wanted his brother returned, better than he'd left, more worth of the throne and capable of leading...and now he was.

And he was using it to do the only thing he could to stop the Bifrost.

"What are you doing?!" he shouted, scrambling to his feet, his eyes wide, realizing not just what it would mean for Asgard but for him and Thor as well if he did what he thought his brother was going to do, destroy the bridge, "If you destroy the Bridge, you'll never see her again!" he shook his head, "Please! Thor! I'll never find Kona again if you do this! Please!"

It didn't matter what happened, what differences they, what anger was between them or thoughts of betrayal. He knew what it felt like…to see the one person you loved more than any other torn away from you…and THOR had done it to him. But he was still his brother in heart, he couldn't bear the thought of Thor losing that Jane woman like he had Kona. And if he did this…both women would be lost to them.

He looked over, grabbing Gungnir and running at Thor just as he lifted the hammer one final time…he had just reached him, moving the staff to swing at his head to knock Thor out when the hammer hit the bridge…and there was a fierce explosion that threw them both back as the Bifrost controls fell into oblivion, taking everything at the end of the bridge with it…

The two men flew through the air, flying over the edge of what was left of the bridge…falling down in the darkness below…

When something caught Thor's foot, holding him from his fall, the man himself having grabbed Gungnir, Loki dangling off the end of it, holding tight with one hand. Loki looked up, seeing his brother staring at him…as their father, awoken from Odinsleep, stood at the edge of the bridge, grabbing Thor.

He looked at his father, searching his face for something, for some sign that he didn't forsake him as well like all the others hand, but there was just sorrow…and regret…disappointment that cut into Loki's heart, "I could have done it father," he told him, "I could have done it. For you. For all of us. To prove to you that I'm…"

"No," Odin cut in, his voice thick with emotion, "No, Loki."

Loki let out a breath, looking up at his father, the father he had done everything for, the father that ruled the kingdom had risked everything to protect. What else was there? The Asgardians would never see him as a loyal member of the House of Odin, Odin and Thor thought him a traitor, the Warriors Three and Sif would kill him the next chance they got, and Kona…

He closed his eyes, Kona had been banished, her memories erased, her immortality stripped…

He took a breath and looked up at Thor, tears in his eyes.

"Loki…no," Thor shook his head, seeing the look in them.

Loki just smiled, "Maybe I'll see her again," he whispered to his brother, before he…let go of Gungnir, closing his eyes as he fell into the darkness, into oblivion.

Maybe…maybe he'd see her again, in Valhalla, the only one who had ever had trust and faith in him, the only one who had stood by his side through it all, the one who loved him more than any other.

Maybe, one day.

~8~

Thor stood alone on a balcony one night, the cheers of a banquet for his return drifting to him. He should have been there, but…he couldn't stand to be there, to see everyone happy and celebrating…when his brother had been lost, and the seer, his father's most valuable asset in the protection of their kingdom, banished.

He stared out into the night's sky, looking at the edge of the bridge, the Bifrost and its controls gone, and with it the way to Earth, the way to any of the other Realms. And gone with it, any chance of being able to find Loki, should he still be alive.

He…he hoped his brother was, alive that is. Because…the more he stood there, in the quiet, in the solitude, the more he thought about everything that he and Kona had tried to say to him in the midst of what he thought to be a betrayal…the more he was starting to…doubt.

There were so many things that were plaguing his thoughts, things they'd said, things they'd known, that…that could only have been known if they truly had been protecting Asgard. How had Loki known of Jane? Unless Kona had seen her. And why would Kona be watching him on Earth? He had been banished, all contact with him was forbidden…yet she had broken the laws of Odin to look upon him? Why? She was not fond of him, he was not fond of her, what purpose was there to watch him so? She was not the sort to take pleasure or gloat about his banishment. She wouldn't watch him for her own enjoyment.

What if she truly HAD been looking in to see how he was faring, if he was…humbling, growing more…mature and kingly?

And Loki…he had thought Loki had betrayed him, had been allowing the Jotuns in to take over Asgard. That was what the Warriors Three and Sif had implied, that was what it appeared to be when he'd heard Jotuns in his father's chambers when he'd been running there, when he'd seen two Jotun bodies in the entrance to the Bifrost. He had thought that Loki betrayed him…his own brother but…the way Loki looked at him. The way he pleaded with him, the way he'd argued…it was not the words of a traitor. Loki had seemed deeply hurt by his cries of betrayal and treachery. His brother was a grand liar, hardly ever sincere but…he'd seen it, he'd seen his brother break upon Kona's banishment, there were no times for lies, there was no way Loki would have been controlled enough to continue to lie to him about what he'd done.

Loki had pleaded with him to believe him, to trust him, had tried to destroy the Jotuns to prove that he was NOT on their side…had he not been?

And if he hadn't, if Kona had been speaking truly…had he just made the greatest error or his life? He already felt terrible, to have not believed his brother but…the evidence, or what he thought was evidence…

He just…didn't know what to think.

Either he had been betrayed, or he had betrayed another…and he just…didn't know.

~8~

It was dark…and everything hurt, it hurt so badly that she gasped, trying to sit up only for stars to explode in her head, making her wince and lie back down, trying to rub her forehead. She opened her eyes and felt the breath leave her as she realized…

She couldn't see.

At all.

There was nothing, only darkness, only black before her. Where was she? What was she doing there? She could hear a beeping, some odd beeping, she felt like she was sitting in a bed of sorts. She started to feel around, moving her legs, they still worked, her arms, yes, but she felt sore, so terribly sore, her limbs like lead. She reached out, her hands knocking into what felt like railings of some sort on the sides of the bed, bruising her knuckles as she crashed into them.

Where was she?!

And then she froze as a much worse question hit her…

WHO was she?

She started to pant, feeling her heart speed up, feeling her head pounding and go light. She could hear the beeping picking up, reaching a frightening rate in time with her own heart beating. She winced feeling things stuck in her arms and tried to rip them out, only to scream out in pain as she felt her skin break. Sharp things, it was something sharp stuck into her arm! She could feel blood leaking through the skin before she frantically reached for her face, feeling more things stuck to her. There was a band of sorts under her nose, it was blowing air into it and she ripped it off. She struggled with her shirt, feeling the flimsy, thin material, there was something on her chest as well. She let out a cry of pain as she ripped the sticky thing off, hearing the beeping turn into a flat note, a long note…

A moment later she heard something open, heard the footsteps of people rushing in, felt hands on her.

"No!" she screamed, struggling to get back, to get away from them, "No let me go! Stop! Please let me go!"

"Calm down!" she heard someone speak, a woman, using gentle tones, soothing volume, like she was whispering to her, "Honey you've got to calm down…you're going to hurt yourself!"

"Let me go!" she tried to get back.

"Ok, ok," the woman murmured and she felt the hands release her.

She panted, taking deep breaths, starting to shake as she curled up, brining her legs up closer, shying as far back as she could in the bed with the railings.

"Are you ok now honey?" the woman asked again, her voice closer, but…calmer.

"Who…who are you?" she stuttered, her entire body shaking in shock.

"I'm a nurse," the woman spoke, "You're in the hospital."

"Hospital?" she shook her head, almost not understanding what the word was.

"Yes, can you tell me your name?"

She bit her lip, swallowing hard, trying to think, trying to remember, "I…I can't…"

"It's ok," she felt the woman place a hand on hers, felt the bed dip on the side as the woman sat near her, "Just…keep calm, it's perfectly normal for some amnesia to set in."

"Am…amnesia?"

"Memory loss."

"What…" she shook her head, "Why would I…why would I have memory loss?"

She was scared, there was…nothing, in her head, nothing at all. It was blank, there was just…her, waking up in that bed, with nothing at all there. No name, no family, no friends, no…school or pets or favorite foods, just…blank.

"I'm sorry to tell you this sweetheart," the woman spoke with a sigh, "But…you were brought in for…attempted self harm."

"I-I-I don't understand," she swallowed, "What does that mean?"

"We think you may have tried to take your own life," the woman told her, and she could hear how delicately she was trying to put it, "There were some boys playing around, ditching school…and they were in an alley by a warehouse. Next thing they knew…you'd fallen right in front of them. From pretty high up probably. But you were lucky dear," the woman squeezed her hand as she looked down, "You didn't break no bones and no one else got hurt. But…the way you landed…it's no wonder you got a bit missing in your head."

She reached up and touched her head, wincing as she felt it tender on one side, but…it felt…wrong. She…she wouldn't have…jumped or fallen or anything. She couldn't remember much but she KNEW she wasn't like that, she couldn't imagine doing something like that. It felt…wrong to think that THAT was the cause of her…amnesia, the woman had said it was called. No…it was something else.

But what?

"Why…" she swallowed, "Why can't I see?" she looked up in the general direction of the woman, "Was…was it from the fall?"

"I'm sorry honey," the woman sighed, "From what the doctors say, from the state of your eyes…it's preexisting. Um…you had it before you fell. You were either born blind or went blind every young."

She nodded slowly to herself, that, at least, sounded a bit more…familiar.

"Listen, sweetheart," the woman spoke again, "I'm going to go get you something to eat, you must be starved right?"

She shook her head, but the woman got up anyway, "Wait…" she called, reaching blindly out, but the woman took her hand again, "I…I remember…I…my name," she frowned, her face scrunching as she closed her eyes, trying to remember it, it was…vague, but…it was coming to her.

"That's good," the woman encouraged, "Just…relax, let it come to you."

"I…my name's…" she blinked rapidly, opening her eyes, "Kona."

"That's a lovely name," the woman told her, "Can you remember a last name?"

She winced, rubbing her head, "N-No..."

"Well that's alright," the woman reassured her, "I'm gonna go get the doctor to examine you then, I'll be back in a minute, ok?"

She nodded, looking down, but calling out when she heard the woman open the door, "Nurse?"

"Yes sweetie?" the woman spoke, but her voice remained at the door, distant.

"Where…where am I?"

"New York."

To be continued...in...Is It Revenge?

A/N: O.O

Poor old Kona :'( Poor sweet Loki :'( Darn you Thor! ...but at least he's having doubts (a bit 'too little, too late' though).

And now...we get the Avengers next! ^-^ I'm VERY excited to look into Loki's mind and explore how he goes from this...to the one we see in the Avengers, IF he'll still be the same 'villain' in it }:) I hope Kona's banishment came as a shock, especially the extra twist to it in terms of this last scene, both in terms of her memories and...where she is ;) I can promise you she will STILL be in the Avengers, quite a big part of it too, but as for how...we'll have to wait and see }:)

On that note, just so you know, I'm going to give a day between the end of this story and the start of the next. So the first chapter of IIR will be up on Tuesday, the 3rd :)

I just want to end by saying thank you guys :) I'm really glad you've enjoyed the story so far and I wanted to thank anyone who's ever read/reviewed/favorited/followed/anything this story :) It really means a lot to me to know that you're liking the story. You guys are just awesome! ^.-^ I hope you enjoyed this last chapter, and I hope you'll enjoy the sequel to this as much as this story :)

Some notes on reviews...

Poor Kona was banished and had her memories stripped from her :'( Wonder what that'll mean for the Avengers }:)

I think, for Thor, it's not quite him being rash so much as...he THINKS he has all the information, from what the Warriors Three and Sif told him and what he walked in on, he thinks he knows and he made a decision about it. I like to think that he made up his mind on Earth that IF Loki had betrayed him, he would do what had to be done and that, seeing Kona and Loki and realizing they'd had something to do with the Frost Giants...he felt that he had all he needed to know, that it was proof Loki had betrayed him :(

I definitely agree, Loki is SO Frigga's son ;) That'll be VERY big in The Dark World ;)

Thor didn't so much toss her from the Bifrost as send her through it :( Can't update twice though lol, I barely manage a chapter of this and a chapter of my DW story a day :)