"Why are we going to MIdguard, of all places? Certainly falls lower on the list of sights to see."

Loki raised a brow, "Got any better ideas, Valkyrie? Perhaps you and I should abandon ship and start over in Knowhere? Sounds quaint-"

"No one is abandoning ship," Thor interjected, "Earth is where the Avengers are, and besides, brother, they love us! Revere us, even."

"No, 'brother', they love you. If you do recall, I tried to enslave their population in the name of a certain mad titan, and killed a great many while doing so."

The Valkyrie's interest was piqued, "You worked for Thanos? One of his lackeys-?"

"No, we know now - that wasn't you, it was the mind stone! You were a pawn!" Thor spoke.

"I'm flattered, truly, by that vote of confidence," Loki began, "but I cannot go with you to Earth. It is the best choice for your people to let me go now. And speaking of Thanos, with the Allfather dead, he very well make his next move now."

"All the more reason to have you near! You can understand him-"

"No person of sound mind and good conscience could understand that genocidal maniac-"

"Guess it's a good thing you're neither of those, then." The Valkyrie smirked.

Loki paused. "While you are not wrong, my point still stands. Earth will not have me, and Thanos very well may."

A troubled look passed Thor's face. This was a new expression to Loki - he had seen his brother in thought, but never troubled. The loss of his eye had aged him, and as he brooded, new lines appeared around his mouth and brow. For a moment, Loki saw Odin sitting in his gilded throneroom, but just as quickly the image passed.

"I am your king, no?"

Loki was briefly taken aback. "Yes, you are-"

"Then, as your king, I command you to stay."

Silence filled the room. Even the Valkyrie remained silent, resigned to her new king.

Loki mulled this over. He doubted he could run - with Heimdall loyal to Thor, he stood little chance of ramaining hidden. And to tell Thor he had stolen the Tesseract… honestly he was unsure of what that would entail. On the one hand, Thor could be hot tempered and wiley, but on the other, he had grown wiser and eternally-forgiving. Loki saw no other option.

"Alright, I'll stay."

Thor's shoulders loosened, and the lines in his brow lifted. "Thankyou."

"What shall I do when we get to Earth and noone wants me?"

"The Avengers will have you, I'm sure of it," Thor said with a stubborn nod, "They'll hear what you have to say."

+ + +

Loki was not one to drink. It dulled the mind, and one should never be anything but sharp like a blade's edge. That being said, Loki was a hypocrite, and a tense one at that.

And, thus, he found himself sat at a bar, alone, raiding the Grandmaster's liquor cabinet. Thank the norns the man liked to drink.

The drink he had chosen was strong, honest. It had burned on the way down his throat, and left a trail of warmth and numbness behind. It made his stomach feel heavy, but feet feel light, perfect for this occasion.

It certainly felt like an occasion - he was still in his battle armour, and fresh off the back of a fight. Were this any other time there would be a banquet to celebrate victory and conquest.

This is what Loki told himself as he sat, alone in this room. As he sighed, the noise echoed off every surface, clean and hard, and made its way back into the dark bottle he held.

For once in his life, his secrets felt like a burden. He could feel the energy of the Tesseract surrounding him and wondered if Thanos could feel it too, hot and electric, buzzing like static.

He jumped when the door creaked open, and sank when he saw who had opened it. The Valkyrie. Nameless Valkyrie, Scrapper 142, servant to the king.

"Lackey, have you taken my drink? You're awfully rude for a prince."

"And you, sweet Valkyrie, are awfully rude for a civil servant. I thought the Valkyrior were silent warriors, not noisy drunkards."

She placed her hand on her hip, "And what gave you that impression?"

Loki took a swig. "You know, for a period of time, Thor thought he would become a valkyrie. He was a young boy, but it was perhaps the first and last time he had shut up in a good couple hundred years."

The Valkyrie chuckled despite herself at the image of a small blonde boy stood sternly over a wooden horse.

"Join me? There is more where this came from." Loki gestured to the chair next to his, while the Valkyrie pulled various coloured liquors from under the bar.

"You know, i ought to apologise."

"You don't say…" The was a silence between them. Loki was proud, but liked to think of himslef as gracious. Frigga would have hoped for it.

"I invaded your memory, your mind. That deserves an apology. I am sorry, I was out of line, I just thought you need a push."

She was quiet before she answered. "You were right, I did. Need a push. I hate that you were right, and I sure as Hel want revenge on my part, but you were right. I had forgotten." She took a drink.

"You can get revenge if you truly want it - just touch me and let my seidr do the rest."

"Ah, yes, the mage. Hardly fair, though." Another swig.

"No, it is fair. I won't control what you see, you do that." She pondered this a moment, wondering what dark and scandalous secrets the prince held. It was hard not to want to pry into the mind of the elusive God of Mischief; and with that, her mind was made.

She held out her hand. "Now then, give me my revenge."

Loki took one final, long drink, before placing his hand in hers.

She wished to see his weakest, most honest moments. She wanted to know what he feared, to know what the prince Lackey hid.

She saw blood.

The vision began on a bridge made of iridescent glass. Falling from the bridge - no, allowing himself to fall.

Then there was the void: icy, dark, and endless.

Then there was a rock, an island, with five figures stood upon it - one large, being Thanos, and the others smaller. His children. Ebony Maw and his skeletal fingers, working their way through Loki's mind and body, tearing each fibre apart and re-knitting them again. There was crimson puddled on the floor, rich with the smell of Jotun blood.

She jolted away.

There was a moment of silence between the pair, a mutual recognition of loss, of weakness.

Loki was, for his part, unsure how he felt. He had expected her to look for the most painful memories; perhaps the passing of his mother, or discovery of his heritage. She had instead chosen his loneliest moments - though maybe his loneliness was when he was weakest. Maybe to be alone meant to be vulnerable.

The Valkyrie on the other hand was at a loss. She felt as though a boundary had been overstepped; privy to intimate moments. This had not been her intention, however, she felt they were no longer strangers.

Loki finally broke the silence. "What did you wish to see?"

"You at your weakest."

"Figures," he sighed.

The Valkyrie leant in, speaking lowly, "Your memories are safe with me, Loki."

Though the first time she had spoken his name, she did so reverently. Loki was near shocked by her sincerity, and felt the sobriety of the situation settle on his shoulders.

She lifted from her seat taking her drink with her, presumably to get drunk in her own room.

"Thankyou, Valkyrie." Loki's voice carried through the room to where she stood, slanted.

"You can call me Brynhildr," she stated, before receding.

This was why Loki didn't drink.