Chapter 6
Loki and Amora - rather, Merlin and Morgana, as they've renamed themselves for the duration of their 'vacation' from Asgard and its stupidity and spitefulness - look around at the stone castle in awe and nostalgia. The last time Amora saw the castle, it was half-destroyed with corpses and injured people strewn everywhere even as people were trying to clean up - and her entire 'education' before that, if it could truly be called as much and not testing and tempering, was irrevocably tainted by the knowledge that Dumbledore wanted her to die.
Loki, meanwhile, hasn't seen the castle at all outside Amora's memories that she's shown him. He's grown up surrounded by splendor, but Asgard doesn't quite compare to this castle filled with magic, Loki finds. He leans over to Amora, who's disguised as someone that could well be his twin sister - if he wasn't also disguised as well, anyway, with blue eyes and straight hair to his shoulders instead of his usual curls - and quietly hisses "Maybe we'll figure out how to make those immortal snakes you suggested." They haven't quite managed it, but hopefully a combination of Runes and Arithmancy - or perhaps just a ritual altogether - is the key they're looking for.
Amora - Morgana - nods, then steps up to the seat as it's her turn…and she says her name is Morgana Lefay, Loki's newest name for her. They gave each other names when they decided to attend Hogwarts for seven years to master Midgardian magic, and Loki ended up being Merlin while Amora was named Morgana.
They thought it would be hilarious to name themselves after powerful Witches and Wizards in history, and picked out some names - surely, the real Merlin and Morgana have already passed through. The Sorting Hat doesn't say anything about the memories it finds, a stunned silence filling her head at them for a moment, before it bellows out "Alright then, RAVENCLAW!" Loki grins, even as Amora sits down facing the Slytherin table - it was a toss-up for Amora, which House she'd go into now.
As opposed to Loki, who is Slytherin enough to out-Slytherin Salazar Slytherin himself. At least the weapons Hela gave them before they went to Hogwarts - a set of Goblin-made daggers infused with Basilisk venom for Loki, and what Amora strongly suspects is Godric Gryffindor's sword from after the final battle at the school - though, disguised and magically rebalanced for her. At least, in this time period, their extra weapons aren't even a little out of place - all the other students have some kind of weapon along with a focus for their magic, being expected to learn how to defend themselves with both magic and weapons just in case something happens.
Given the detail that they trained with Kali and Hela for a while to help Loki deal with Thor's betrayal - they aren't sure how long, time is weird in the Underworld - before coming out on Midgard in this time period, they're probably the deadliest students in the school right now. Actually, Amora's without a doubt the deadliest person in the school by a large margin.
And then it's Loki's turn, and he gets Sorted into Slytherin so fast the hat hadn't even touched his head yet. Amora smirks over at him, clapping her hands with the smuggest 'I knew it!' look on her face he's ever seen on her face.
Loki stares at the book in his hand in…what's he even feeling? Shock? Horror? Denial? Betrayal, perhaps? The blue skin, markings, and red eyes do nothing to make the man look any less recognizable as himself, with the golden horns Odin designed as a helmet for him or the green and gold outfit. And the knife in each hand doesn't do anything to lessen the accuracy.
Amora appears at his side, quietly asking "Loki? What's…oh."
Loki tonelessly asks "Did you know?" Given the depiction the book is open to, it's not particularly difficult to put the context together.
Amora shakes her head, and says "I'd read mythology, but…I'd just assumed that it was made up. I mean, Hela and Fenris are said to be your kids, along with a world-sized snake named Jormungandr and the magical horse we created!" They'd meant to strengthen Slepnir's mother, give her an easier time giving birth - Frigga's personal horse, and a favorite of theirs - they had not meant to give the fetus four extra legs! And that's to say nothing of the Earth story of how that horse came to be!
Loki takes a shuddering breath in, nodding his head - he can see exactly how and why she'd put it down to just another assumption by the mortals with so many inaccuracies riddled through the books she'd read when younger. For instance, the mortals split her into two figures in history - Amora, the most ruthless, seductive magic-user in the Nine Realms, much to the real woman's mortification, and Sigyn, Loki's devoted wife. While Amora Sigyn is not at all promiscuous, prefers a full-body robe to the skimpy clothing Amora's depicted in, they aren't married as of yet like he supposedly is to Sigyn, and once admitted to him she died a virgin and her only kiss was with a too-drunk Cormac McLaggen when she retaliated with via an over-powered Stinging Hex straight to his throat.
So, yes, he can absolutely see how she disregarded everything she ever read about Norse Mythology.
After a moment, Amora takes the book from him and closes it gently, saying "It might not be true, you know."
Loki shakes his head, saying "Not this time, Amora. I…I just know. It's true…" His mind keeps gathering evidence as to why the book is somehow correct, even when he himself never knew. How he used to overheat during Asgard's brutal summers, before meeting Amora. How he's never been as big or as strong as Thor, no matter how hard he tried to catch up. His natural affinity for Seidr, something the most talented Frost Giants are known to use…even how he doesn't look like most other Asgardians, with his dark hair and pale skin.
How Odin's always withheld his affection for him, constantly praising Thor for the most minute of accomplishments. How he's always punished Loki harsher for lesser 'crimes' while Thor barely gets a slap on the wrist most of the time. How he's only ever distant towards him at best, never even acknowledging that any magical accomplishments have been made, much less that Loki's the one that made them.
Is this why he's never approved of Amora? Because he knew she might tell him? Or because he knew she wouldn't care, would accept him no matter what?
Amora takes the book from his hands, and quietly says "Well, I suppose there's one way to find out for sure." Loki nods, and Amora takes his hand and says "C'mon, not here. Let's go to the Room of Requirement for this."
Once they're safely hidden away from the rest of the school, Amora cups Loki's face with both her hands and says "No matter what, Loki, whatever we find out today won't change anything."
Loki chuckles despairingly, and says "Easy to say that now, Amora."
Amora gives him a frown, and asks "What would have actually changed? Nothing, we'll just know something new about you is all." She closes her eyes and concentrates before Loki can respond, and finds something she hadn't ever noticed before. Some of Odin's magic, disguised by Loki's own power near-perfectly after he tied it to Loki's innate magic.
After a moment, she says "Hold still, Loki, this might tingle a bit." It's the oddest sensation Loki's ever known, and that includes mixing his magic with Amora's and entering the Underworld for the first time. Cold suddenly spreads through Loki's body, and when Amora opens her eyes her breath catches in her throat. "Oh," she breathes out after a moment, "you look…beautiful."
Loki blinks, then asks "What now?" That was…not the first thing that came to his mind when seeing a Frost Giant's image. And then, when Amora starts tracing stuff on his face - the marks that are undoubtedly there, if he had to guess - he unfreezes and jerks backwards suddenly, saying "Don't touch me!"
Amora frowns, asking "What? L-"
He shakes his head frantically, saying "No, I don't want to freeze you!"
Amora gets an odd look on her face for a moment, then says "You won't. You'd never hurt me."
"Not on purpose, no! But-"
Amora cuts him off, suddenly putting one of his hands on her arm, and saying "Even if you do freeze me by accident, Loki, that's all it would be. An accident. And I'd just melt the ice, heal my arm, and that would be that." What's a little bit of frostbite between best friends as close as them? All the shit she went through in her previous life left her well-prepared to deal with Asgard's ridiculous bigotry, and the Dursleys ensured pain is her oldest friend. She could never hold an accident against him, could never even think about letting him pull away in an attempt to protect her.
Loki stares at her as if she's spontaneously grown a second head for a moment, then jerks forward suddenly. Amora jumps, and it takes all her willpower and self-control not to fall back on her battle-hardened reflexes born of the first war she went through and honed through all the battles she's been in since coming to Asgard…and then she feels Loki's arms wrap around her shakily.
After a moment of blank shock, Amora puts her arms around Loki in return - despite her centuries on Asgard now, she's not used to people giving her physical affection. Loki and Frigga are the only two people who would, and both of them are royalty - they must act in a certain way when they're around anyone else, even something as simple as a hand on another person's arm or shoulder would be considered so far beyond acceptable that it would cause a scandal. And, everyone else on Asgard? Terrified of her, the soldiers even moreso. Sif is the only one stupid enough to antagonize her, and has it set in her thick head that they're rivals despite just how little Amora actually cares about it.
After a few minutes, Loki's silent sobs that she'll never tell anyone about die down and he pulls back - the first thing she notices is the frost tracks going down Loki's face, looks like a Frost Giant's tears freeze even as they keep crying. The second is that he's still shaking, trembling like a leaf in a strong breeze. Taking both of them by surprise, Amora steps forward and puts her arms back around him. She's…not afraid of him, not worried about whether he'll freeze her by accident. It's an almost foreign concept to Loki, so he turns his head and buries his face in her hair instead of saying anything.
Right up until Amora turns her head to say something to him, and her mouth accidentally hits his.
Both of them freeze in shock, and stay frozen when they feel lines etching themselves onto their shoulders. When Amora pries Loki's hand away from his shoulder to take a look at what's wrong, she sees…a phrase, written in Parselscript. A phrase they share now, a solemn vow they made one another whem Amora accidentally shared her immortality with him - through thick and thin, times fair or foul, combat or court, we'll guard each other forever.
To Loki's amusement, she then rips the sleeve straight off her own shirt to reveal her own shoulder - and, there it is, the very same phrase. Loki stares at the Parsel Runes for a moment, mostly hidden on his own arm with the runic markings all Jotuns have, complexion slowly returning to his usual pale skin and green eyes…and then he lunges forward, taking Amora by surprise as he kisses her for real this time. It's messy and sloppy, desperate and fueled by need and it makes Amora see stars even as she's sure her lips are starting to bruise.
Hela watches from the Underworld with Hades, then shakes her head in exasperation. "Well," she says after a long time, "guess that solves that mess. Hades, it's not funny."
"Yes," Hades gasps, "yes it is, Hels! What are the chances?!"
Hela rolls her eyes, saying "Astronomical. I'm aware."
"She's now your sister-in-law!"
"I know that to, Hades!"
Hades gets a shit-eating grin for a moment, then asks "Can you imagine the look on Odin's face?"
Hela laughs despite herself - Odin's never truly approved of Loki and Amora's friendship, having expected Loki to follow Thor's footsteps and become a Warrior instead of a Sorcerer. And now, he'll have to resign himself to Amora being around literally forever, considering she's not only immortal but now has a very good reason to never leave Asgard unless Loki goes with her.
"Can you imagine the look on Sif's face? She's the one that wants to marry Thor so badly!"
And that's what has Hela rolling in hysterics, the very thought of Sif having to deal with Amora endlessly. And the two snakes they create, which they actually name Jormangundr and Seleana for shits and giggles. Because naming an immortal snake the very name that was passed down as the possible end of the world, in their opinion, was hilarious.
Amora and Loki look up from the one-and-a-half loveseat they're using in the Room of Requirement, having commandeered it to practice Loki's Jotun abilities, when Hela emerges from the shadows with a complicated expression on her face. After a moment, she resignedly says "So, you found out."
Loki nods, asking "Hela, did you...did you know?" Did his older sister, who's always shown up whenever he needs her help - or who Amora can get with a wave of her hand, if need be - know about this centuries-long lie? Amora's been helping as much as she can, knowing a thing or two about what an identity crisis is like, but did Hela know?
Hela sighs, running a hand through her hair, and says "Not at first, no. I was Banished to the Underworld before Odin even married Frigga, you see - frankly, I think his sudden turnaround on the conquest was Frigga's condition to marry him, in hindsight. Not that he ever told me as much. But, shortly after Amora woke up, Frigga asked to speak with me privately - she told me everything, every single thing. Odin forbade her from telling you, Eir as well. The rest of Asgard, even Heimdall, is unaware of your Jotun heritage...half-Jotun, now."
Loki tilts his head to the side, asking "Half?"
Hela nods her head, saying "We couldn't force Odin to tell you the truth, even Frigga doesn't know why he took you from Jotunheim all that time ago. Possibly to break Laufey altogether, if I know the man at all. But we could force some truth into the lie he's been feeding you all your life, even if we couldn't tell you about that either. Frigga agreed to donate some blood for a modified Blood Adoption Potion in secret. It made you half-Asgardian, right under Odin's nose."
Loki takes a shuddering breath in, saying "So...I'm mother's son, then." Not Odin's, Frigga's son. It shouldn't be this relieving that he doesn't actually share any blood with Odin, right? Or maybe it's that nobody can take away his relation to Frigga, his mother, the woman that raised him and has always supported him?
Hela nods, saying "You are, always have been. Even before the potion, you were her son. And my brother, even if I'm not good at showing my care for you." That they all pin squarely on Odin - Hela's entire identity was being Odin's Executioner, his weapon of destruction. He trained her personally to be the single deadliest person on all of Asgard, made her the leader of the Einherjar, and started the glorious conquest of the Nine Realms. He made sure she had no time for or experience in anything like care. The closest thing she knew of it was all the people she killed, she did it all for him - not for her King, but for her Father. And then, when she couldn't understand why he'd just one day decide to end the war, suddenly switch to peace - like nobody else would've been able to either, an entire generation of people raised to believe in the glory that awaited them once Asgard's Kingdom had expanded to cover all the known realms - he threw her away after taking everything from her. Her identity, her status as Heir to the throne, even her place in history - as he so lovingly told her right before Banishing her for what he meant to be forever.
She was completely broken when she arrived in the Underworld, it's no wonder why Kali has a dummy that looks like Odin that she practices her knifework on.
Stars, they all hate Odin, moreso with each manipulation of his they find or have to explain to someone else.
Loki launches himself at Hela, wrapping his arms around her and struggling not to cry once again, a fight he loses when Hela puts her arms around him carefully and starts singing Frigga's lullaby. He'll...he'll be alright. Eventually. Maybe not for a while, but he will be alright with all of this.
His family, his real family, will make sure of it.