Mimir's Well

This story takes place in the undetermined time between The Avengers and Thor 2 - after Loki is brought back to Asgard, but before he appears before Odin at the beginning of Dark World. In this interim period, he is kept in a small holding cell until his trial, and he has nothing to do. Nothing, that is, except sit and contemplate...and ponder... and remember. Through a series of flashbacks, this story shows glimpses and vignettes from Loki and Thor's childhood, their relevance to the men they both became, and the story of one small heroine behind the scenes of much of Loki's life. Material for these flashbacks was heavily influenced by Norse mythology.

The title refers to the well in Norse mythology which was said to be the fount of all knowledge - but at a terrible price. Odin gave up his eye in the stories as payment for looking into the well of Mimir. What price, then, must Loki have paid for his grand and expansive outlook on the universe?

"I would drink from your well, Mimir," he said.
"There is a price to be paid. All who have come here to drink have shrunk from paying that price."
-- Padraic Colum, "The Children of Odin"