Chapter Text
It was shocking, Thor thought, that there had been so many changes to Asgard so quickly. According to Sif, they had received a surprising number of trainees from the other realms. Mostly Vanir but some Alfr and even a dwarf from Nidavellir -the underground kingdom of Svartalfheim that so few ever were allowed entrance to. Thor assumed that all of the children that had been granted permission to come to Asgard to train were of some political importance through their parents. Probably his Father was seeking to strengthen the bonds with the other realms. Thor realized, upon looking back, that in his first life Odin had been trying the same thing, although notably on a far more minor scale. Only a few Vanir had ever trained with the Asgardian army -Hogun being the most notable- and just because they lived in Asgard all the time and such had dual citizenship. Asgard certainly hadn't agreed to train so many youngsters from other realms that they required an additional barracks and training grounds before.
The new trainee quarters weren't terribly large -only having enough room for about two dozen youths to bunk- and had their own training grounds right outside that bordered the pastures for the Asgardian war horses. Since the trainees usually had chores within the army stables, it was actually fairly convenient for them.
Thor realized that sometime between wandering through the market and when Sif paused to explain the new training barracks that his brother and Sigyn had disappeared. Part of him wanted to comment on their disappearance, but he resisted the urge if only because he didn't want the others to realize Loki and Sigyn were missing and decide to go looking for them. Thor doubted that they'd wandered somewhere easy to stumble across or that either of the two of them would appreciate it if somehow they did manage to be found.
Aside from additional barracks and training grounds, Sif also took Thor back into the city to show him a few new shops that had popped up within the two years they had been gone. A new butcher's shop that specialized in exotic meats caught Thor's eye, and he had to wonder which of his parents had created an incentive for such a business. Thor was sure that a certain venomous blue lizard was the primary reason any shop would have seal meat as -to Thor's knowledge- there had never been a particular desire for such things among the Asgardian population.
Thor decided to go ahead and introduce himself to the newest butcher in town since he had a feeling Loki would drag him there at some point. Thor was very startled by the owner of the shop as it was a man that towered over all of them and had grey skin like some Svartalfr only in a somewhat lighter complexion than Thor had seen before. It reminded him very much of Gerd's skin albeit with less of a blue undertone and without dynasty lines. His head was shaved completely bare, and every inch of the man was covered in slab-like muscles. Thor couldn't help but wonder if this man was like Gerd and half Jotnar or perhaps half Fjallverr. That would account both for his size and his skin -since Thor couldn't help but think the odds of any full-blooded descendant of Ymir willingly living in Asgard was slim. They wouldn't be terribly comfortable in the Golden Realm, Thor didn't think. Plus, though the butcher -Sigmund- was large he wasn't the towering twenty feet of a true Giant.
Though Sigmund was intimidating, he was polite and seemed almost soft-spoken, although that was hard to judge due to how his voice rumbled like a distant rockslide no matter what. Thor didn't linger in the shop too long, but he did poke around to see just what sort of stock the man had. Aside from seal meat, the shop was filled with various kinds of dangerous beasts from sharks to bilgesnipes to even some sea serpent delicacies -eyes in this case. Thor didn't have any idea who would want to eat sea serpent eyes, but he did find it impressive anyone would go hunting such game. Or, perhaps, whoever had slain the beast hadn't been able to come up with any other use for its eyes.
Sigmund's butcher shop was really the most interesting of the new stores in Asgard as the others included a weaver and a potter. Still, as they wandered Sif made sure to point them out to Thor. The young Thunderer was slightly surprised nobody had seemed to notice Loki and Sigyn missing even after nearly an hour. Then again, perhaps, like Thor, they had just opted to not mention the two lover's vanishing act. Surely, Thor couldn't be the only one to have noticed them making moon eyes at each other the whole time.
With the newest shops explored to the limit of Thor's interest -which was not particularly high- the group of youths wandered off. There wasn't much else to see that had been added to his home, or so Thor initially thought. As they were walking somewhat aimlessly and chattering about all that had happened since they'd last seen each other, Thor noticed an unfamiliar group of people going into Jarnsvidr. "What's going on there?" he asked with a nod of his head.
"Oh, those are the mercenaries," Dagr offered. "Your parents are apparently very annoyed that they're out there, but the craftsmen that they hired to build the barrier insisted on having protection at their work sites."
Thor frowned. "Why? We would protect those that we commissioned..." It wasn't as if Asgard was lacking in the size of its army.
"It was part of their arrangement they would not budge on," Fandral said with a shrug.
"Queen Frigga insisted they stay camped outside of the city, though," Hogun added. "So they have an encampment within Jarnsvidr somewhere."
"It isn't that far in," Sif said. "And supposedly this way they're closer to the sites where the craftsmen are working, and the mercenaries are meant to be protecting, so they are content with that."
"Father said there was an uproar over the contract negotiations," Dagr told Thor as they watched the last few figures disappear under the trees. "It took months, and all of the council was arguing about if they even needed to hire any craftsmen."
"We could have made the barrier ourselves," Astrild said. "My father even presented a plan to do it... it just would have taken decades longer than these craftsmen promised. Father was quite annoyed about that. He says it's impossible how fast everything's come together but you can't deny results. But Father did get the consolation prize of being commissioned by Queen Frigga to construct that massive pen. Well, the door for it."
Thor looked over at Astrild in surprise. "You didn't mention that earlier."
Astrild shrugged. "It's not really that special. He's done things like that before. He made the centerpiece for Idunn's front courtyard too. He was quite proud of that one."
"Oh, yes, that fountain right?" Fandral asked. Astrild nodded. Astrild's Father was far from the most famous craftsman in Asgard, but he had apprenticed under a few Dwarven journeymen for decades in his youth in Vanaheim and had developed quite the skill in making intricate mechanical features. Thor should have realized that the door on Ofnir's pen had been one of the man's creations.
"Just the difference between all the anchor points for the barrier should be taking them ages to transport materials to," Astrild mused. "And yet they've all but completed it in nearly a year. Father was livid."
Thor hummed and thought about that for just a moment. "Your father works alone it would naturally take him longer," he finally said.
"I suppose. Honestly, I think Father was angrier that the one in charge of the operation wouldn't give him the time of day," Astrild said as they started heading back into the city. "He had questions and bits of advice he was willing to give about working in Asgard's wilds, but they wouldn't even meet with him."
"Oh, we heard about that," Dagr commented. Sif nodded in agreement. "Father said that yours and the chief spokesman of the group had a huge row about it. Odin had to step in to get them to stop."
Thor was almost sad to have missed seeing that. Astrild's father was generally easy to get along with and even-tempered. To see him so mad, he was actually having a public argument must have been something else. "Huh, well, I guess that these craftsmen won't be joining any guild then," Thor said. Astrild's father held sway in several guilds in the market including the Stone Carvers and Construct Builders.
Astrild shook his head. "Father would never allow it after that."
"Shot themselves in the foot on that one," Hogun commented. Everyone in the nine realms knew that one of the biggest boons was to be accepted into an Asgardian commerce guild whether that be the merchant's or any of the various crafts. It simply provided too many opportunities and opened many more trade routes. Thor figured these newcomers would very much regret angering a key member of one of the larger Asgardian guilds.
"Their loss," Dagr said casually. "Oh! They refurbished the public bathhouse, Thor. You know the one that we said looked the color of vomit?" The adolescents made their way towards the bathhouse in question to continue showing Thor all the things that had changed. There were still plenty of minor things they hadn't even touched on yet.
After the conclusion of Sif's impromptu tour, Thor realized that dinner was fast approaching and headed back to the palace. Certainly, his brother had returned at some point during the afternoon and just hadn't rejoined them.
Thor was really very surprised when, as he was coming out of his room freshly washed and changed, did he see Loki coming back still dressed in the clothes they'd worn out to the city but with a few added dirt stains and his hair a bit rumpled compared to when he'd left. "Are you just getting back?" he couldn't help but ask.
Loki turned quickly. "What? No," he said far too quickly. His cheeks promptly flushed Thor noted with glee.
"You are!"
"Shut up, Thor!" Loki spat acerbically before rushing into his room and slamming the door closed.
Thor laughed. He had decided earlier to not tease Loki over his blossoming romance but if he was going to act like that Thor simply couldn't resist. Thor went to Loki's door and knocked. "Brother? Brother, don't be embarrassed!"
"I am not embarrassed!" Loki snapped as Thor heard the slamming of several drawers and Loki stomping around far louder than he normally would have.
"No? Well, that's good because it is adorable," Thor said loud enough to be easily heard.
There was a paused and then the door was wrenched open from the other side. "I am not adorable!" Loki hissed. "Say that again, and I'll turn you into a toad!"
"Well, that's not very creative," Thor commented with an unrepentant grin.
Loki narrowed his eyes at Thor. "Then I'll come up with something even more unpleasant to turn you into. How about a worm?" he asked before disappearing back into his room.
"I think Mother would be the most upset with that," Thor replied as he leaned his shoulder against Loki's door frame. "So how did your date go?" he asked.
"It wasn't a date!" came the immediate shout.
Thor's grin only widened. "Oh no? Then why does it look like you were rolling around in the dirt with someone?"
"It does not look that way!" Loki snapped.
"It does," Thor insisted. "Where did you take her anyway?"
"That's none of your business!" Loki's voice echoed as if he were shouting from within the bathroom.
Thor was reasonably sure that none of Loki's spells could actually affect him from that distance, and so he was safe from immediate retribution. Of course, that tended to mean more prolonged consequences later on. But that was a problem for later. Right now, he simply couldn't resist the urge to tease his brother further. "You had best not let Mother hear about this little excursion. She'll decide that you need a talking to about safe courting practices," Thor said, knowing from his first life how terribly awkward that talk was.
"Thor!"
Thor didn't bother trying to stifle his laughter, knowing that Loki would realize he was laughing even if he didn't hear it. Suddenly, Thor went flying across the hallway and slammed hard against the other wall. He managed to get his hands up to protect his face from becoming entirely crushed, but his forehead slammed into the stone particularly hard. After hitting the wall, he fell down to the ground flat on his back. Thor groaned in pain and rubbed the spot with his hand. No doubt that would leave a knot later but he knew he'd probably deserved it.
After a moment, Thor heard the door to Loki's room open. He quickly spun around to face his brother. Loki was standing there red-faced but in clean clothes more appropriate for dinner. Instantly, Thor recoiled and found himself with his back to the wall he'd just introduced to his forehead. Loki's hands were clenched into fists and Thor could almost see his death approaching. Thor quickly held up his hands defensively, "Now, Brother, it was all in good fun..."
"Oh really?" Loki asked in a dangerous sounding tone. "Well, how's this for 'good fun'?" Green light curled around Loki's hands and Thor couldn't help but yelp and scramble to his feet. The entire hallway seemed to glow venomous green as Thor darted towards the dining hall. "Get back here, Thor!"
"Not a chance!" Thor yelled back before taking a corner so sharply that he skidded slightly and nearly stumbled. A few guards posted in the hall looked utterly bewildered, but Thor didn't pay them any attention. He was far too busy running for his life to care what they thought.
A bolt of green light rustled his hair and Thor swerved a bit too hard on instinct. His boot slid on the polished floor, and with a cry of surprise and a bit of frustration, Thor tumbled into a suit of armor. The bits and pieces of ancient heavy plated metal would no doubt leave bruises all over where they crashed against the young Prince. This particular style of shielding was never used anymore due to how heavy and inflexible it was, and so being buried in it was very uncomfortable.
Thor had barely started pushing bits and pieces off of himself when the whole mass of him and the armor was wrapped in tendrils of green and gold. Thor cursed and tried to struggle out of the pile. Unfortunately, he couldn't manage to do so before all the pieces of golden plates floated up and reformed around him like a giant puzzle. He shouted for Loki to stop even as the loud clanks of the metal pieces slotting into place echoed through the hall. Finally, the metal helm, which was -unusually for Asgard- a full face mask, slammed over top of his own head and narrowed his vision to two narrow slits. "Loki!"
Loki's face appeared in Thor's vision with a perfectly pleasant smile. "Yes, Brother?"
"Let me out!" Thor demanded as he struggled and failed to move his arms and legs. He should have been able to knock the armor apart again without any trouble, but it was like trying to move a mountain with his pinky. The armor didn't so much as shift as he struggled more and more fervently. "Loki! What did you do?"
"Why nothing, Brother," Loki said innocently. "I simply cleaned up your mess is all."
Thor scowled even though Loki couldn't see it and then noticed that he still saw green magic seeping through the seams of the armor. "Loki! Stop that! Let me out!"
"I would, Thor, truly," Loki lied. "But I'd be late for dinner." And with that Loki walked off leaving Thor trapped in the statue-like encasement of metal.
Thor growled in frustration and struggled some more. Perhaps given some distance, he'd be able to overpower whatever spell Loki had used. Range was a crucial factor in how strong spells were, he knew. The metal still didn't shift, and Thor let his head fall back against the inside of the helmet. Being stuck inside the armor was already quite uncomfortable. Thor couldn't move much because it was designed for someone of a slighter build than he was. Someone more of Loki's proportions would be more comfortable. Not helping matters at all was that Thor wasn't tall enough to actually stand in the plate mail. Instead, he was forced to hang there uncomfortably as the armor pinched and dug into him.
After a moment or two, another face came into Thor's minimal view. Judging by the edges of a golden helm on the man's face, Thor assumed this was the guard that he'd run past earlier. "Are you alright, my Prince?" the guard asked.
"Uncomfortable... but unharmed," Thor answered as he tried to tug his arm again.
"I will attempt to get you free," the guard said. Thor was only able to see part of what he was doing but judging from where his arms were, he assumed the guard had grabbed the front of the breastplate. The man began tugging at the armor, quickly beginning to grunt with the effort of trying to rip it off.
Thor tried squirming at the same time, but despite how hard they worked, they couldn't make the armor so much as budge. At one point the golden clad Einherjar even put his foot to the plate to try and pry a part off so that Thor could get out. Thor was beginning to think that he'd be stuck in the armor all night and miss breakfast when he heard heels on the stone floor. The guard clearly heard them as well as he quickly straightened and put his closed fist over his heart. "Majesty."
"I take it my son is in there?" Frigga asked, sounding far too amused for Thor's liking.
"Mother! Loki has spelled it shut!" Thor called.
The Einherjar stepped back and then Frigga was in front of Thor's makeshift prison. "Yes, he mentioned," Frigga said. "You really should not tease your brother so, Thor."
"I couldn't help it," Thor replied instantly. "He made it too easy."
"I'm sure he'll say the same thing when you find a girl you wish to sneak away with," Frigga replied. "But, seeing how you're late to the feast and I'm sure you're getting quite hungry-" Thor nodded inside the helmet even though she couldn't see it "-let me see what I can do."
Frigga lifted a hand and Thor watched as her gold and cherry blossom pink seidr began to stream from her fingertips. "His spell casting is getting quite good. Although I would prefer it if he didn't use you as a test subject so much..." she muttered as the green broke apart and drifted up and away before winking out of existence entirely.
There were perhaps three seconds of stillness before Thor's weight within the armor brought the entire display crashing down again. He groaned as he was again buried and the heavy edges and corners banged into him. Frigga and the Einherjar helped Thor get untangled from the armor, and then, with a wave of her hand, the Queen had the armor back in place -sans any Princes trapped within it. "Thank you, Mother," Thor said as he rubbed a spot high on the back of his shoulder that had been hit several times it felt like.
"You're quite welcome," Frigga said before reaching out to fix some of Thor's disheveled hair. "Now, let's go to the feast. I'm sure you're quite hungry and your brother Baldr will be going back home come the morning."
"Yes, mother," Thor agreed and even permitted her another few moments of trying to fix his hair before ducking away.
When they arrived at the party, the meal was already in full swing with the long tables full of food and many trays of drinks being passed back and forth. A steady stream of new dishes was being brought out of the kitchens, and a massive boar that was close to the size of the Midgardian Savannah creature called a hippo was roasting on a spit in the center of the room. Andhrimnir seemed to be in charge of the roasting as he usually was and was pouring some glaze -that appeared to have an alcoholic component to it if Thor's nose was to be believed- all over the beast's crispy and nearly red skin. Thor didn't hesitate to knock his shoulder into Loki's as he sat down in his seat. "That was not fair, Brother," he accused.
Loki hummed and popped a mushroom stuffed to overflowing with sausage and cheese into his mouth. Thor cast his brother a glare but then his stomach rumbled at all of the delicious smells, and he quickly gave up on the futile effort of trying to make a clearly unrepentant Loki respond. Thor powered through several helpings of all the dishes in front of him before the boar was even cut up and served and still took several thick slices of juicy meat when it was brought by. Loki too was more consumed with eating then chatting although he finished first. Geri and Freki were begging by Loki's feet again, and the Trickster blatantly ignored their mother's scolding to feed the wolves tables scraps.
Food continued to come and go along with tankards full of ales, beers, mead, a few wines, and some juices for the children still considered too young to drink straight alcohol. Of course, very few children that young were still up and at the feast after several hours. Thor had been drinking beer for several decades now as there was no 'drinking age' in Asgard as there was in Midgard. It was simply left to the discretion of the parents when to allow their children to begin tasting and then drinking. Thor had always thought that made much more sense than just giving an arbitrary number where it became 'okay' for someone to imbibe alcohol. He'd never understood it no matter how many times his mortal friends had tried to explain.
Music was playing raucously, but people weren't yet up and dancing when someone very unusual approached the royal table. Thor instantly noticed him because he was a bit shorter than a typical Asgardian with coppery tanned skin and long black hair pulled back from his face with two braids that were wrapped up with strips of leather. A band of blue paint across his eyes only made his black eyes -which were underlined with a thick band of black- seem even darker. His nose seemed just a shade too large but not so much as to make him unattractive. He was wearing a tattered black coat over a breastplate made of a bone white material Thor couldn't place and decorated with little blue carvings. He didn't wear shoes, which was also extremely odd, but he didn't seem to have any concern about possibly stepping on broken crockery or embers from the open fire the boar had roasted on. It was only when he gave a barely respectful half bow to Odin that Thor noticed the multitude of black feathers wove into his hair and decorating the shoulders of his jacket. "Odin. Apologies for the intrusion, I didn't realize you were having a party," the visitor said in a slightly deeper voice than Thor had been expecting.
"You knew full well what you were walking into, Chulyen," Odin replied immediately. "I'm more interested in why you're here. You don't particularly like coming to Asgard."
Chulyen lifted his chin just slightly. "I need Huginn and Muninn," he answered with the faintest of nods towards the two ravens perched on either side of Odin's throne. The two birds in question let out a few caws before flying off the chair to land on the ground in front of Chulyen. Pitch black shadows swept across the whole room like a wing that blocked out the moon for just moment.
When the shadow disappeared again, the two ravens were no longer there and instead two boys that looked about sixteen or seventeen Midgardian years old were kneeling there. Their black hair was mostly short save a single thick lock that was bound on one side of their young faces with leather and several black feathers tucked inside. They were wearing leather vests dyed blue and decorated with feathers along the back, black pants, and no shoes. Crouched down as they were, the two of them seemed like mirror images of each other. "King Chulyen," they murmured. Thor couldn't quite help but glance at Loki to judge his brother's reaction. Loki seemed curious as he watched the scene playing out in front of them. Though Thor had heard rumors about Huginn and Muninn having more magic than was let on he'd never before seen them take a humanoid form. Then again, this didn't seem like magic that Odin would have bestowed, perhaps it came from this Chulyen.
"Might I ask why you need Huginn and Muninn?" Odin asked as he leaned forward to rest his elbow on the table.
Chulyen shrugged causing the feathers on his shoulders to rustle like wings. "Something is happening. Something I cannot yet place but strikes me as dangerous for all of us. I am calling back all of mine so that I can better discover what it is that tugs at my mind," he said. "And, if you'll remember, I'm well within my right to do so without giving you any such explanation."
Huginn and Muninn glanced at each other with matching amber eyes before looking back at Odin. Thor found them far too eerily similar. He'd never been able to tell them apart, but he'd always thought that was just because they were both Ravens, and Ravens have no real markings to tell one from another. At least, not any that Thor could discern. Odin sighed and waved his hand. "Very well, but I hope very much that you will not have them for long."
"I cannot imagine it would take more than a few weeks with all mine searching for what is off in the realms," Chulyen replied. "We are quite good at what we do, after all."
"I am very much aware," Odin said. His one eye settled on Huginn and Muninn where they were still kneeling. "Do be careful, I would hate for something to happen to either of you."
The twins inclined their heads slightly before disappearing in a flurry of shadow and dark feathers. When the veritable whirlwind died away, they were nothing but large Ravens again, sitting on either shoulder of Chulyen much like they had on Odin's throne. "As I said, it should not take long and then I will return them to your service," Chulyen said. "Enjoy your feast, Odin King." Chulyen didn't wait for Odin to say anything else and only turned on his bare heel to leave the room with Huginn and Muninn perched on his shoulders.
"Who was that?" Thor asked. He was somewhat surprised that so few other Asgardians seemed to have noticed what just happened and he couldn't help but wonder if perhaps some magic had been involved. Thor didn't know of many people that could have walked right up to the Royal Family's Table and just left again with Odin's Ravens on his shoulders. At the very least it should have gotten some murmuring. Not to mention the Einherjar didn't tend to let strangers just walk up to Odin like that.
"I think that was Raven," Loki murmured back. "Apparently, all the Ravens owe allegiance to him first even if they are the familiars of others. Rumor has it that they first came from the Forest of a Thousand Sorrows, but if they did, they left it so long ago, that nobody can prove it anymore."
Thor frowned as he pondered that. He wasn't very familiar with the more distant realms and dimensions, but if he remembered correctly, there was some nebulous link between the fae people of that forest and the Alfr. Thor also hadn't realized that Huginn and Muninn owed any allegiance to anyone but his father at all. He wasn't entirely sure what to make of that revelation. It certainly threw a new light on all of Thor's past interactions with the birds. Or boys. Whatever they actually were. "Do you think that was serious, Father?" he asked, leaning further over his plate so that he could see Odin better.
Odin picked up his goblet and stared down into the mead for a moment, obviously thinking. Thor waited as patiently as he could for his Father's answer. Odin drained his goblet with one long drink and then set it down again. "Chulyen is not foolish and possesses a minor ability of foresight. If something is bothering him then it is prudent to allow him to investigate it," he finally said. "Whether or not he truly needed Huginn and Muninn to assist him with it or if he was simply overly cautious, I cannot say. He has never been fond of allowing any of his flock to stray so far from him. But since he so rarely recalls them, trying to resist would only cause problems," Odin finally said. "As your Brother said, Huginn and Muninn owe allegiance to Chulyen first, which he delights in reminding me. I will not offend two of my most valued assets simply because Chulyen might not actually need them. But enough of this. Whatever is bothering the Raven is most likely a danger to his own people and not to Asgard. And we are meant to be having a feast not pondering politics."
Thor wasn't surprised at the topic change. If anything he was impressed that his father had shared as much as he had. Thor realized that asking anything else about what just happened wasn't likely to do anything more than annoy his father, so he turned his attention back to the feast. Odin was right, after all, very little that was a worry to other realms and kingdoms was something that could ever be a threat to Asgard.
The feasting in the hall slowly gave way to general revelry. There was a wide array of people at the feast that Thor had never met before. Quite a few Alfr and some Dwarves and some others that Thor assumed were from Vanaheim. "Who are all these people?" Thor finally asked Tyr after he spotted yet another man he'd never seen before in his life.
"Builders mostly," Tyr answered as he grabbed a fresh tankard from a serving woman that walked past. Only some of them are making a showing tonight but since there's still a week or so before the barrier is completed most are probably resting or working.
Thor nodded and made his way over to where Loki was standing by one balcony looking bored out of his mind. "Thinking of causing havoc, Brother?" Thor guessed as he leaned against the wall beside Loki.
"Always," Loki replied easily. Freki trotted over to them and panted up at Loki pleadingly. "Because we either need to do that or slip out. I'm deathly bored. None of these craftsmen seem in the least interesting. Most don't even seem to do much at all but haul things back and forth to the quarry. I was hoping at least one of them could shed some light on what this barrier involves but all seem to be hopelessly uninformed about it."
"We could go see it ourselves," Thor said impulsively.
Loki's eyes sparkled. "Why, Thor, what a terribly wonderful suggestion," he said. "Although we really must be careful. I doubt Mother and Father have yet lifted their ban about leaving the grounds."
Thor thought about that for a moment before shrugging. "I'm sure we could handle anything out there."
Loki hummed at that. "Well, we'll take Ofnir just to be safe. He could use the exercise anyway."
"We won't be able to sneak a wyvern out of his pen," Thor protested.
"Who said anything about sneaking him out?" Loki replied. "It's called 'a walk,' dear brother. And it's what you do with pets," he said as he started for the nearest set of doors. Freki followed for a few steps but then wandered off to go and beg food from someone else instead. Both him and Geri looked to be focusing on some Alfr lady who looked very caught off guard by two sets of big puppy eyes.
"Not all pets can be walked," Thor argued. "Or should be walked."
Loki waved that concern away as if it were nothing. "Come now, what's the worst that could happen? Ofnir eats some farmer's cow."
"I somehow don't believe that's the worst that could happen," Thor said although he followed along anyway. There weren't many their age at the feast, and they weren't yet expected to make friends with the various delegates and politicians that always attended.
The brothers made their way out to the wyvern's pen without incident, and when they entered, Ofnir was scratching long furrows in the tree he'd been provided. The wyvern stopped as soon as he spotted them and let out a low rumbling noise that sounded ominous, but Thor knew was actually friendly. "Hello, Ofnir," Loki greeted as the lizard unhooked his claws from the lumber and then crossed the enclosure. The spines on Ofnir's tail scraped along the stones of the pen as he walked in his distinctive swaying gait. "Do you want to go out for a bit?"
Ofnir let out another noise and pushed his snout against Loki's chest. Loki smiled widely and rubbed the wyvern along one eye ridge. Ofnir closed his eyes and tilted his head further into Loki's hand. "There's a good boy," Loki cooed as he scratched above Ofnir's eye a little more vigorously. "Let's go for a walk. Hmm?"
Ofnir followed behind Loki and Thor without hesitation. The giant reptile had grown quite used to such walks over their time in Vanaheim and knew that he needed to stay close. Loki had spent months training him to do so with bits of his favorite foods. Thor let his brother pick out where they were going since Ofnir would follow the sorcerer before he followed Thor. Loki made sure to pick the widest paths through the gardens so that the wyvern following behind them didn't tear into the planters or knock anything over as he walked. Ofnir was not the most graceful of creatures on the ground.
As they walked through the gardens, Thor told Loki what he'd missed while he was -not- on his date with Sigyn. Loki hummed and commented on occasion but let Thor do the talking for a good while until they reached the Northern most edge of the royal gardens. Beyond were a few scattered houses before a brief scattering of trees that were cloistered in groups intermixed between rolling foothills that transformed into untamed mountains. Further to the west the trees eventually became a real forest which was separated from the Jarnsvidr only by a river. "Where do you think this barrier is?" Thor asked as Loki climbed over the fence.
"Somewhere in the mountains, I would think," Loki said. "According to accounts from some of the scouts sent out by Bor, there are a large number of gaps and passages through Yggdrasil in mountain caves and crevices. If they want to block them all, it would be best to just put the barrier between us and where those passages are most numerous."
"I wonder why so many paths through Yggdrasil are held in the mountains," Thor mused as he jumped down from the top of the fence to land beside Loki.
Loki shrugged a little and glanced back to see Ofnir using the height off the top of the wall to try flying again. He flapped his wings frantically and tried to adjust his position as he fell, but Ofnir just went straight to the ground with a massive thud to land as a disgruntled pile. He hissed at nothing even as he righted himself and then shook his enormous body, raising his quills off his back and tail before they settled again. "It wasn't nearly tall enough for that, Ofnir," Loki said as the lizard sulkily rejoined them. "And as to the portals to the other realms, there have been dozens of theories as to why they show up where they do but none seem to fit with what we know entirely perfectly and chances are we'll never know. Some mysteries of Yggdrasil are just beyond even us."
"How unsatisfying," Thor commented.
"Oh, it is," Loki agreed fervently.
Loki made a large circle around any houses as they made their way into the foothills. The smatterings of wooded areas here were much less dangerous than Jarnsvidr, and the hills served as decent pasture land for the hearty Asgardian breed of cows and large horses. Families here didn't hesitate to let their children play in these woods and wander off for entire uninterrupted days. Loki allowed Ofnir to walk a bit further apart than he had before as they got some distance from the houses where it was doubtful that they would run into any people.
The brothers had no real idea where the barrier would be constructed but found wandering around the wilds somewhat aimlessly far more entertaining than staying at the feast. Ofnir was amusing himself by leaving huge furrows in various trees that they passed and occasionally terrifying several animals by chasing them a few feet despite not seemingly interested in catching and eating them. The moon was bright in the sky, and the air was still chilly since spring hadn't entirely chased winter away yet. Neither brother minded the cold even though they hadn't brought anything even close to cloaks. The various stars and cosmological formations hung above them like a child's mobile and large enough Thor almost could swear they should be right within reach opposed to hundreds of thousands of light-years away. Thor paused on top of a hill and studied the star formations for several minutes. At first, Loki didn't notice Thor had stopped, but when he did, he too looked up. "What is it?" Loki asked curiously. The sky, as beautiful as it was, didn't look any different to the youngest son of Odin.
"I've missed this view," Thor said. "It's not the same stars as in Vanaheim." Not only that but it was almost the polar opposite of Midgard. Not only were the stars different but Midgard's atmosphere and light pollution blocked most of the more magnificent sights. Thor found the ice caps of Midgard quite remarkable for how much clearer the skies seemed to be there. He'd even found himself going there to think more than once in his previous life -an easy feat when he had Mjolnir to carry him.
Loki hummed at that, and his eyes roamed the sky. "I suppose that's true," he mused. "But Vanaheim's skies have their own charm... more nebulae not as many galaxies. Ah, there is the Hang Tree," Loki said, his eyes picking out the familiar constellation among the sea of stars. Thor's eyes darted back and forth across the sky for a moment until he spotted the familiar crooked line that forked into three branches near the end and had a single star cradled in the curve that represented the noose. Loki and Thor stared up at the sky for another few moments before Ofnir let out a low growl and jumped off the top of the hill, drawing their attention away. "Ofnir, what are you doing?"
A small goat bleated and ran as fast as its stubby legs could manage back towards the nearest house. Ofnir chased it a few feet before stopping to just watch, his tail swiping along the ground and leaving deep gashes in the hill. "I suppose at least he didn't eat it," Thor muttered.
"He's just entertaining himself," Loki said without bothering to conceal his amusement. Thor rolled his eyes but started walking again. Loki chuckled and followed with Ofnir prancing around them as if he were some tiny thing rather than a pachyderm-sized flying lizard. Ofnir's gallivanting caused little tremors in the ground, scaring critters out of their underground homes and just generally being a nuisance. Thor thought it very typical of Loki's spoiled dangerous pet.
They wandered through the foothills of the mountains in a wavering but generally westward direction until they eventually reached a road that most definitely hadn't been there before. The path was made of packed dirt and perhaps twenty feet wide and ran from the mountains down to disappear into the woods off in the distance. "Well, that wasn't there before," Thor commented.
"It must have been made by the builders," Loki mused before starting to follow it.
"It is getting late, Loki," Thor said. "We might want to start heading back before Mother and Father worry."
Loki kept walking. "I don't imagine this road goes much further. We'll see where it ends and then head back," he replied. "I'm rather curious why they need such a huge road."
"I would assume it's because there's a lot of them," Thor said as he jogged a few steps to catch up with Loki.
"One shouldn't assume, Thor," Loki said. Thor rolled his eyes but recognized when it was pointless to try and talk his brother out of something. At the very least the road was large enough that Ofnir was able to follow them easily even when they made their way into the woods. "I imagine they're quarrying rocks from deep in the mountains. We don't use the mountains much anymore."
"That would make sense," Thor agreed. Asgard still had a few gold and precious gem mines in the mountains, but most of the biggest veins of such things had been tapped already. Asgard was, for all it's might, somewhat limited when it came to natural resources. Which was why King Bor had taken to conquering other realms in the first place, Thor supposed. Strong warriors were their most abundant natural resource and replenished, unlike their gold and treasures.
The road through the forest went for much longer than Thor and Loki had guessed it would. The wood was growing darker and wilder the further they walked, and as they crossed a large bridge over a river, Thor realized they must have entered Jarnsvidr proper. "Jarnsvidr is more dangerous at night, and neither of us is armed," he pointed out.
"We have Ofnir, which is like being armed," Loki said.
"Maybe for you, but he doesn't even like me that much."
"He likes you," Loki argued.
Thor gave his brother an exasperated look. "He's tried to eat me before, Loki."
"Only when you're annoying. Really, it is an understandable impulse," Loki replied simply. Thor shoved Loki, who only laughed unrepentantly.
The two Princes continued walking, not terribly worried about coming across anything dangerous or even all that concerned about if their parents were missing them or not. Wandering off and finding trouble was a favorite pastime of both of them, after all. Thor estimated they had followed the road for another half mile before it split. Loki picked the one leading more towards the East and thus, in theory at least, back towards the Palace. The road they were on wasn't straight nor as wide as the main road and even split off again after perhaps three-fourths of a mile further.
The night was getting very late by this point, and even Loki seemed to agree that whatever was on this road wasn't worth the time it was taking to reach it. Still, they were deep enough into Jarnsvidr that just walking off the path and cutting across in the shortest line possible back to civilization would be foolish. "Do you think they have a road that leads back to the city?" Loki mused. "I would think they would."
"I did see them earlier going into the woods from a distance, I didn't notice if they were on a path or not, however," Thor said.
"So, our choices are... go all the way back around or continue on and just hope that we're on the road that goes to town. If any go to town at all," Loki surmised. "Neither of those options sound very pleasant if I'm honest."
The two boys thought about that for a few minutes as Ofnir splashed in a nearby creek before settling in to drink from it. "Well, what all is in the woods anyway?" Thor finally asked. "Wolves, bears, the occasional troll or goblin. Nothing we can't handle. And this path is still heading closer to home. Maybe it'll get us close enough that we'll figure out where we are and can find our way back from there."
Loki considered that before sighing and nodding. "Very well, shortest distance it is. And if mother or father ask we most definitely took the long way back because it was safer and that is what took us so long to get back." Thor instantly agreed to the story since he didn't particularly feel like being punished for this excursion either.
The boys only had to hike along for another ten or so minutes when they actually discovered some civilization, albeit not the sort they were expecting. Instead of reaching the edge of Jarnsvidr and seeing farms in the distance, they came across a sudden clearing. A bunch of temporary houses had been set up in the clearing around a central firepit. Several horses were penned in off to the side under a few trees that had been left standing, and the creek that Ofnir had played in earlier seemed to have returned and was flowing past. The entire little settlement seemed quiet this late at night, but one man was acting as a lookout who got up when he noticed them. He looked like a laborer with rough spun and practical clothing, and a heavily muscled frame under suntanned skin. The guard was kind enough to tell them they'd actually stumbled across the camp for those working on the barrier and the mercenaries that protected them from beasts and bandits. Then he pointed them across the clearing to where the road they were on continued and told them that if they followed that road, they'd reach the city.
The Princes thanked him and wasted no time in continuing on -after Loki made sure that Ofnir didn't cause any havoc to the men sleeping in the camp. The road beyond the clearing was still wide enough for the wyvern to travel along without trouble although it had definitely narrowed again. Thor paused about three hundred yards down the path from the camp when he noticed another building tucked back behind several trees. This one was larger and much more beautiful than the others they'd just passed by. There was even what looked to be a small stable behind the house. "Must be whoever's in charge," Loki commented when he saw what had caught his brother's attention.
Thor made a face. "Looks like he's planning on being there a while," he observed. For some reason that really bothered him. Probably because this man had apparently not trusted the Asgardians to be able to protect his men while they worked, which was incredibly insulting.
"Part of his payment perhaps?" Loki suggested. "A bit of land to call his own? Not the best spot for it, though. What fool actually wants to live in Jarnsvidr?" Thor shrugged since he didn't have an answer for that and they continued on.
After longer than either boy wanted, they finally managed to get out of Jarnsvidr again and made a straight line back to the palace. No doubt they'd been missed by now. "Can you sneak us back into the palace?" Thor asked as they made their way through the silent streets of Asgard.
"Yes. Of course, I can," Loki replied, sounding affronted by the question. "We'll just have to be careful about it."
Thor nodded and allowed Loki to retake the lead. As they'd left Jarnsvidr, he'd pulled ahead a little but rushing around now was only going to get them caught for sure. Their first stop, however, was to put Ofnir back in his pen. Ofnir didn't seem to want to go in at first, but Loki managed to cajole the giant lizard inside with promises of fresh seal the next day. Once inside, Ofnir went straight to his cave shelter and flopped down to go to sleep. Loki just shook his head and locked the door with his magic. "Now for us," he muttered as he eyed his and Thor's balconies that were easily in view from Ofnir's cage. "Right, let's go, Thor."
Thor was apprehensive but followed along for lack of any better ideas. Loki didn't head to the balcony like Thor thought he might. Instead, the youngest Prince went straight for the kitchens' entrance to the herb gardens. It wasn't by any means the closest way to get inside the palace, but when Thor saw how empty the kitchens were at this time of night, he supposed it was probably the best one to use when trying to sneak in. What followed after was a terribly nerve-wracking experience where Thor thought every shadow was one of his parents or his brothers coming out to catch them or every noise was ten times louder than it really was. Thor had no gift for stealth, he knew this already. But trying to sneak through the many many halls between the kitchens and his rooms would have proved it invariably to him if he'd had any doubts. Thor was positive that Loki had been laughing at him from how jumpy he was at every little noise, but at least he'd managed to keep the hysterics internal if only for the sake of them not getting caught.
When Thor finally reached his room -miraculously unhurt, uncaught, and unseen-, he was so relieved he flopped face first down in his bed and fell right to sleep. He had only barely thought far enough in advance to kick off his boots and nothing else.