help

awake

Loki's back :)

All Loki could see was darkness. It was like he was swimming in black water. Yet he was still able to breathe. Every once in a while, an unintelligible voice could be heard, but that was all. He had no sense of time or direction. He only knew that he must be asleep.

Or at least he hoped he was.

Then he saw it. Through all the darkness, there was a bright light. He quickly swam towards it, hoping it would give him some answers. The closer he got, the quicker he swam until he was a few inches away. He reached his hand out and suddenly hit the ground.

A groan escaped his mouth, and Loki quickly opened his eyes to realize he was on Asgard.

Asgardians walked around him, stopping at the many small stores on both sides of him. He knew exactly where he was, the market. The place where most would go to buy food, clothing, or anything they needed. As a child, his mother would bring him and his brother here so they could see how the citizens lived. Thor had hated it, bored out of his mind, but Loki had actually enjoyed it.

Or at least he did.

He looked around, and his eyes fell on one person. It was himself, only a few decades younger. What the mortals would call a teenager. He realized then he was in one of his memories, and he knew exactly which one. His younger self looked around the market in wonder, like he always had. A boy around his younger self's age and some of his friends went up to younger Loki.

"Are you Prince Loki?" the boy asked.

"Yes," his younger self answered.

"That's what I thought. May I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"I've always wondered about how you feel about doing a woman's job."

"I'm sorry, I don't understand."

"You know magic, right?

"Yes."

"Then you should know magic is only for women. Are you a woman?"

"No."

"You must be. No man practices such a womanly task."

"Magic can be for anyone. And I don't think your mother or nonexistent girlfriend would appreciate your words."

"Shut it, you freak."

"You best stop it now."

"Aw, are you going to call your father? Or better yet, your mother? I don't care who your parents are or who you are. You don't belong here, so how about you go back to your castle and stay there. We don't want you here."

The boy was about to punch his younger self. But the boy's arm stopped midair.

"What are you doing! Let me go, you monster!" the boy said.

His younger self quickly ran away, and Loki followed. Younger Loki stopped behind one of the stores, collapsing to the ground and crying. Loki watched, remembering how he never returned to the market after this day. How he went back to the castle and stayed in his room for days. In a few moments, he'd stand and leave.

But his younger self didn't move. Loki was confused. He should have already left by now. A door opened, and another boy walked out. The boy noticed the younger Loki and walked over to him, kneeling down beside him.