Grass gently sways as the wind blows, announcing a chilly evening is on the way. It seems like the sun is far from setting though, still settled upon the sky and pouring lighting all over the place. Loki turns another page of his book, his back comfortably pressed against the large tree behind him as he reads.
He doesn't hang out in the garden that often, but it is nice to make a change from time to time. It is so quiet here, he feels like nobody could see him, as if no living body could be subtle enough to trouble nature's serenity. But Loki is no living body, he is a god, and he has decided nature was his today's gateway.
However, he senses someone else. A familiar presence he knows well, maybe too well. The young man closes his book before he even hears footsteps, already pulling an annoying expression on his face.
"What do you want, brother?" he hisses, exasperated already.
Just as he has expected, Thor shows up.
"You're always happy to see me, aren't you?" the god of thunder amusedly remarks, taking a seat next to him. "But I haven't come to tease you, not today. Look what I found."
He drops something on the floor in front of them, and it takes Loki a couple seconds to identify what objects those small colourful stains are. His eyes widen as soon as he realises they are their old Nintendo DS consoles.
"Where did you find them?" Loki can't help asking, carefully picking up the blue one that was his. He presses his finger on the back of the DS, making a cartridge pop up. "It still has my Pokemon game in!"
"They were hidden in a drawer in my old room," explains Thor, a little smile glimmering with nostalgia on his lips.
Loki opens the console, slowly running his fingers along the screen and buttons; he hates how vulnerable the memory of Thor and him playing together makes him, but he can't back away. Something inside him still holds on to it, something soft and sensitive that he has subconsciously always tried to bury very deeply.
"Loki," Thor says, breaking the silence that has settled. "Why don't we do it the old way?"
"The old way?" the dark-haired young man slightly furrows his eyebrows, dubious.
"Yes, you and me, Pokemon battle" Thor glances at him, half-smiling, and turns his console on. "The game still works."
Loki rolls his eyes but does the same as his brother, unable to contain a little smile either. "Okay, fine. But you'll regret it."
They quickly get used to the game, rediscovering bits of their childhood along the way. The god of mischief feels a weird feeling of affection as he goes through his Pokemon team — he never thought he would ever see it again.
"Are you ready to lose?" Thor turns to him with an air of defiance.
Loki smirks. "Are you mind-reading? Because the one losing will certainly be you."
As the battle begins, the black-haired prince finds himself turning into a child again. He tries to remember his old tactics, and which type beats which, and even whispers encouraging words to his pokemons, making Thor laugh discreetly. The blonde had missed his brother.
"Take that!" yells Loki as he beats Thor's first pokemon.
A spontaneous smile stretches his lips and he almost executes a jump out of this rush of excitement.
"Don't be this confident, I'm getting revenge!" Thor chuckles, delighted by the young man's attitude.
But the blonde's second pokemon loses its fight as well.
"You got worse at this" Loki scoffs, already triumphant.
"I don't get it," his brother mutters, pressing the buttons of the console harder. "I'm using my strongest pokemons and they're still failing."
Loki's smile gets bigger as an idea blossoms in his mind. Using his magic, he turns into Thor's friend Captain America and casually launches: "Thor, smash."
The look on his brother face, of course, makes him lose all seriousness and the black-haired god, or Steve Rogers, finds himself laughing so hard his stomach begins to hurt. Part of him regrets not having a camera to capture the moment.
"Loki..." groans Thor, crossing his arms.
"Alright," Loki proceeds to get calmer, giving Thor a mocking look. "Your pokemon lost because fire is weak to water, you spoon."
"But still" he pouts, selecting a new pokemon. "Let's see, what is water weak to?"
His face suddenly lights up, a spark of mischief shinning through his blue iris. Anyone could tell him and Loki were brothers.
"Of course. It's weak to..."
Thor dramatically pauses.
"Thunder."
