For Pity

I'm never going back

AN: quick thank you to @IHaveNo_Filter for my cover which she did in her own free time!

There were many reactions which Sigyn was expecting. Immediate rage was one, confusion perhaps, or even to simply walk away. A short bark of humourless laugh was definitely not what Sigyn imagined to the news that Thor's adoptive brother being revealed to be alive. His entire stature of fear had been removed, instead a look of almost disgust had replaced it.

"Loki? Loki with skin as fair as the frost that your consort is spreading? I think not." His tone was somewhat angry, insulted that his very brother would be compared to the beasts he was taught to fear as a child.

Sigyn and her consort, not Loki, stood side by side, still looking at him with completely blank expressions. If only he knew how badly the queen would be impacted when she removed her hand from Loki, and how much she was calming him through this whole ordeal.

Her fingers were tightly laced with the blue creatures, who's eyes were bearing into him yet not in a threatening way, but an almost pleading way. If he looked carefully, he would have seen the same cheekbones which he used to tease as a child, and the small scar above Loki's lip, where Thor played too rough and sent the poor boy crying to his mother, yet they both made up, Loki with one less tooth which thank gods was a child's tooth, rather than an adult one.

Of course, all he could see was the light blue lines, contrasting a dark blue tone which stretched upon his skin. The red eyes kept distracting him, making him almost quake in his boots.

"What do you have to gain from this?" He hissed, trying his best not to simply walk up to the queen and shake her from whatever sick malady had taken over her.

"Nothing, my lord." She was still calm, somehow. Her entire body was relaxed, her beast stood by her side having quarrel with her words. In truth Thor was well aware that this declaration would have no benefit to the queen, and yet the comparison of his brother, his deceased brother, to an ice giant was clouding his judgement.

"Then why do you lie." The giant shot Sigyn a worried look, only to receive a light squeeze of the hand in return.

"I do not." Thor released another short, pained laugh.

"He is dead. Gone. And even if he weren't, my brother is not one of those... those things." His rage had begun to bubble to the top, and even though he had tried so hard to repress it, he found it refused to leave and tried to break through in any way possible. Clawing and climbing up his stomach and settling on his chest.

"I'm sorry good lady, but I find I am unable to stay." He all but growled, turning on his heel and striding out, hammer in tow and heavy footed.

"THOR." He froze, the hairs on the back of his arm and neck stood. He found that even though he felt he had to move forwards, he could not do so. Damn that voice was familiar. It wasn't the queen's voice, which seemed to be quite angry, but was rather that voice that enjoyed shocking him from around the corner as children, or whispered advice and ideas in his ear as an adult.

No way.

He slowly turned towards the giant, which was now walking towards him slowly with the queen in tow. Still connected by interlaced fingers.

"You have a scar on your left hip from where I stabbed you when we were 8," Thor's eyes widened, trying to comprehend what exactly was going on, "and another in your hair, behind your right ear, from when we fought in the ring and I managed to get the upper hand."

The creature had stopped a far enough distance away that if Thor decided he didn't like the conversation and swung his hammer, the creature wouldn't be hit immediately.

"When we were younger, I played a joke on Sif, rendering her bald for a year, and had to go and buy her a wig." They were both still, the only thing in motion was the creatures mouth, speaking in his brother's voice.

Loki took another step forwards, only for Thor to take one backwards. He knew that without Sigyn's reassuring hand and gentle reassurance he would probably not have spoken in the first place, and despite her abilities, every time Thor took a step backwards a little pain shot through his gut, and the knot in his stomach got a little tighter. Gods, Sigyn was going to feel the effects of this later for sure.

"You..." Thor couldn't finish, trying his best to think of something to say to Loki. Loki however was simply ready to get shouted at.

"Is this some sort of a joke? An illusion?" Another pang shot through Loki's gut. He couldn't just accept things could he. He had to think it was false, a simple trick.

"And what purpose would such a trick serve?"

"I DON'T KNOW." Loki flinched back as Thor took an angry step forwards, and as he did so Loki heard the telltale sign of Sigyn drawing her dagger, ready at any moment to use it. Despite being a sorcerer, he found that she rather preferred hand to hand combat, leaving her magic a secret until it was absolutely necessary.

She was right by him, both of them hip to hip however whilst Loki was leaning backwards and glancing warily to the hammer which was still gripped tightly in Thor's hand, Sigyn was slightly ahead with her dagger visibly at her side, a ferocious glare directed to the God of Thunder.

"It can't be true." He whispered, trying again to find some sort of an excuse, or other explanation other than I grew up with an ice giant. Of course, there was no other explanation, for Loki was exactly what he said he was, but Thor couldn't seem to wrap his head around such a blatant truth.

He looked between Sigyn and Loki's hands, and how no frost or burns seemed to be climbing up her skin. Of course it was an illusion, no one could withstand the burns of an angry ice giant.

"Why aren't you hurt?" Sigyn crooked her head in confusion, before looking between their hands and a smile illuminated her face.

"He's not upset." She replied casually, shrugging her shoulders and shooting Loki a little smile of reassurance.

"And when he is?"

"Then I've cast a spell to keep her safe." Loki was looking down upon Sigyn somewhat tenderly, red eyes more comforting than terrifying, at least to her they were. They both looked back to Thor, who's features were still twisted in a mask of confusion.

"If you're Loki, why didn't you come home?" Loki tensed, his hand which was not holding Sigyn's balling into a fist. Sigyn felt his hand which was connected with hers contract a fraction, and she instantly tried to reassure him more. Still, small tendrils of frost spread from his feet, barely making it out of his shadow.

Sigyn turned and looked him in the eyes, hoping to calm him if not by her magic, then simply by comfort. She brought her free hand around his back and pulled him closer to her, rubbing reassuring circles in his back with her thumb.

"You don't have to tell him." She whispered into his ear, just low enough that Thor would have heard none of what she said.

He nodded against her head, trying not to panic despite her soothing touch and calming aurae, and leaned into her touch, finding that he needed to be closer to her in any way possible. Thor all the while was watching the frost on the floor spread slowly, seeking out someone to touch, and yet it seemed to completely avoid Sigyn who was currently the closest person to him out of everyone in the court.

"I'm not going back." Loki said, drawing Thor's attention back to the pair, who were still somewhat within their embrace.

"I'm never going back."