Hellfire

One last Time

The trickster slowly opened his eyes as raindrops trickled down his cheeks. He gazed upon surrounding treetops and a sky calm and grey as night was closing in. A dull ache imbedded itself deep in his head, his muscles strained, his hands cold. He moved his fingers, feeling the soft prickle of grass against his skin as dirt collected under his fingernails.

He blinked as he tried to orientate himself, tried to figure out what had happened. He remembered standing on the streets of New York, surrounded by his friends, an arm wrapped around his waist. Steve. Cold eyes were staring at him, showing no emotion. Thor. There was a blast, a blinding flash of light.

And after that...

Loki groaned, forcing himself to sit up. He winced as he tried to move his left arm, a sharp and intense pain flaring up his shoulder. He stared; eyes wide as he saw his severely damaged skin.

There were bruises on his upper arm the shape of a hand, his skin littered with burn marks, moving like the roots of a tree. The pattern of lightning.

The god gritted his teeth, trying not to put any strain on his arm as he stood up. He felt lightheaded, his vision blurring as he staggered on his feet. He took a moment to take a deep and calming breath, breathing in through his nose, capturing the oxygen in his lungs for a few seconds, and gently breathing out through his mouth. He opened his eyes again and looked around.

He appeared to be in an open space, a field of grass surrounded by trees. Panic started to take over as he still had no idea where he was. "Steve?" he tried to shout, his voice barely audible as wind moved through the trees, rattling branches and leaves. "Steve?!"

A cold hand slithered from behind him, moving its way over his chest.

Loki froze, barely daring to breath.

"How cruel fate can be..."

Thor's voice was heavy, an empty whisper in the raven's ear as the blond held him close against his chest, his arms wrapped around his waist.

"Thor," Loki swallowed, not even daring to look back. "Let me go."

"Many times has she taken you away from me. It has always... always been such a fight." The blond muttered as he rested his head upon his younger brother's shoulder. "It is so... grueling." A weary smile formed on his face, inhaling the trickster's scent as one hand crawled towards his brother's throat. "I say; no more. You and I will return to the Asgardian Palace where I will shield you from all those who even dare to lay their eye on you. We will pretend that this never happened, Loki."

Loki shivered as he felt Thor's fingers move like snakes around his throat, "Thor, where have you taken us?"

"We will be home soon," The blond muttered. "Which is all that matters."

"Is this-?" The raven's voice wavered as panic slowly seeped into his heart. "Is this Asgard?"

"Soon," Thor repeated lethargically. Whether he did not hear Loki or simply choose not to answer remained unclear. "I will never let you go, Loki. I will never let you leave me again."

Tears melded with raindrops hitting the trickster's face as he felt Thor's hands roam over his body. He could hear his brother's voice somewhere in the distance yet could not comprehend his words. He felt one hand moving down his back, the other resting upon his shoulder as his brother gently lay him in the grass.

"I have grown so weary of your cries and tantrums." The blond straddled the trickster's lap, holding his wrists as he weakly tried to push him away. "You know I would do anything for you, Loki. You only need to listen to me."