Sleep now, trouble

Cold. Biting, chilling, freezing them to the bone. Their thin cloaks only designed for keeping off the sun, not keeping out the snow; were flapping the the knifelike wind. The bleak white landscape of Jötenheïm stretching out in front of them as the five boys trudged on through the knee deep snow.

"Will it ever change?" Volstagg said, looking out at the white expanse before them. It had been the fourth or fifth time he had asked that about the monotonous land.

"Most likely not." Loki said drawing his cloak closer to him, "Seeing that it has been like this for as long as we have been walking and we have been walking for hours"

The other boys chuckled slightly at this, but even they had to admit that they had been walking for an immeasurable amount of time. Loki turned to his brother, a look in his eye that said he was about to ask something. Loki was always asking things these days.

"Is the quest for the sword of Surtur really worth it, brother?"

"Of course it is! It is a noble quest for young warriors prove their metal." Thor stated, thrusting his sword into the cold air.

"And lack of brain cells," Loki muttered under his breath. At this Hogun, who had never liked Thor's younger brother, rolled his eyes. The young trickster God was always saying things like that as if having more brain cells than the lot of them combined somehow made him better than them.

Volstagg groaned, and let himself collapse onto the snow under them. "I am not taking another step."

"You state that as though it would determine Ragnorok or something else earth shattering." Thor said with a smile.

There was splintering sound and the boys looked at each other and began to make a run for it, but did not get very far. In a small mountain of snow, the boys fell through the ice.

"Earth shattering, huh?" Loki said as soon as his dark hear made it's stark contrast against the white snow. Thor glared at him.

"Not a word."

They began to pull themselves out of the snowbank they had unknowingly created. Looking around in awe at the cavernous chamber they were standing in.

"Oh skit!" (A.N this means "oh crap" in Swedish. Since it is the closest to Scandinavian, could get on Google translate, they will sometimes speak this.)

Loki pointed a long finger up to the ceiling, causing everyone to look up. Mouths fell agape at the sight of the sword of Surtur hanging suspended in ice from the ceiling. Suddenly, the ground above them shook an a very recognisable voice rang out above them.

"Loki! Thor! Where are you both?" Odin. Their father had come looking for them. A greying head poked down the hole the boys had fallen through. Said head looked abso-bloody-lutly furious.

"What in Yydrasylls name are you doing down there!" He thundered. Loki, seeing his father this angry, crept behind Thor hoping that his older brother would protect him. Odin, seeing his youngest's expression, softened and extended a rope.

"Climb up boys. We are going home." The warriors three, not wanting to disobey their king, immodestly climbed up the rope and were greeted with hot soup and blankets. The two princes stayed put, neither wanting to face their father's wrath. Loki shivered violently and made a dive for the rope, pulling Thor with him.

"C-c-come on Thor. I'm freezing." His chilled hands grasped the rope but were too weak to climb it, he got halfway up and then was grabbed by Odin's strong arms. He faintly noticed a cup of hot soup being nudged into his hands, his brother's face appeared before him. "When had Thor climbed up?" Loki thought to himself. Thor looked at his father worriedly and motioned to Loki.

"How will he ride if he cannot even get up the rope?" Thor asked, no bite to his tone, only concern for his baby brother. Odin moved to pick Loki up but before doing so, looked to his eldest.

"Are you ok?" Thor nodded, "Loki will ride with me, that way he won't fall." Odin said as he hoisted his child into his arms and infant of him on his stallion.

It didn't take Odin long to begin lecturing. (Only about five minutes, if you were wiling to be picky about it.)

"What were you boys thinking? You could have been killed! Thor, I'm guessing Loki didn't want to come but you needed a sorcerer, so you simply dragged your brother along against his will?" Thor could only nod at his father, eyes cast down in shame. When his father put it that way, it sounded really bad.

"I know you boys only wanted to prove your metal but did you really have to go to Jötünheim to do it? Of all the places to go, you choose Jötünheim?! Still, I suppose that this experience will put you off frozen waste lands for a while?" He said, gazing at Loki.

"Are you ok, trouble?" Odin asked

"I'm ok father, just tired." Loki answered truthfully. Odin pulled him closer to him so that Loki could rest his dark head against his chest. Placing a hand over Loki's eyes, Odin smiled,

"Sova nu, besvär." (Sleep now, trouble.)