Chapter 16
Frigga sits down at Amora's sleeping form next to Loki, the two of them keeping something of a silent vigil over the red-haired woman - Eir's come and gone, left them with more of the purging potion for Amora to take when she awakens as well as a highly detailed list of what she can and can't do for the next two weeks after she awakens - getting out of bed, for instance, is an absolute no-go for the first two days. After that, she'll need help - Loki - to even walk until her magic repairs the damage to her nerves.
Point of fact, Eir said two weeks was a combination of cautious optimism, a prayer for no further complications cropping up, and having spent the last millennium having Amora for a patient and knowing just how much she hates being a patient.
Of course, that timer will only start once she wakes up from collapsing.
Loki runs a hand through Amora's hair for the twentieth time in the past five minutes alone, making her sigh in contentment and smile even in her sleep, and quietly asks "Did you find anything out, mother?"
Frigga nods, and says "I have, Loki. It's not good." Loki nods his head - not to be rude, but he knows that. Absolutely nothing about this situation is good. At his continued silence, Frigga says "I've spoken to Thor, and then one of his friends, Hogun." Loki quickly stiffens in fury, and she quickly says "He was innocent in this, Loki."
"It was Sif, wasn't it?"
After a moment, Frigga nods and says "It appears that way. The guards are investigating as we speak, she's being kept in a Holding cell for the time being."
Right now, the Warriors Three are being questioned extensively, and separately, and her chambers will be searched after that's done. Based on what Thor said, though, the Warriors Three are only guilty of breaking the lockdown and heading to Midgard to bring Thor back in this case.
That's still treason, mind, as Loki had ordered the Bifrost closed until further notice...but it's a far cry from high treason and attempted Regicide. They're still on the hook for the tresspass of Jotunheim and starting a war, but that's another matter altogether.
Loki feels burning hot anger flare up in him for a moment, he wants to rip Sif to shreds with his bare hands, no magic involved - then Amora shifts a little, discomfort flitting across her face, and that anger gets drowned by the combination of fear and despair that was all he knew for the past half a day. He almost lost her, she just vanished and he had no way of finding her. And if he had felt that sense of bereavement with her still missing…
Frigga's hand on his back pulls him from that dark train of thought, and she murmurs "Stay with her, Loki. Right now, Amora needs you more than the investigation does."
Loki nods, then says "I've got one thing left to do as King of Asgard, Mother." Loki snaps his fingers, and the official decree ending Hela's Banishment he'd been working on appears in front of him - with the same spell as the Peace Treaty, no less. He signs it as 'King of Asgard' and smirks just slightly at the flash of light that appears to seal the spell.
The expression falls off his face the moment the scroll disappears though, even spiting Odin by righting the wrongs he's committed just feels so hollow right now.
Thor makes it three days before breaking and going to look for Loki, as he hasn't seen his brother even once since he vanished with Amora - a search of the library, gardens, training grounds, and a straight hour spent pounding on Amora's door later, and he finally seeks out Frigga. He finds her in the war room, looking positively murderous as she stares at a pieced-together cuff of some kind.
Thor swallows for a moment, having never actually seen his mother like this, and asks "Mother? Did something else happen?"
Frigga nods tightly, and says "You could say that, Thor. The guards brought me the results of the search of Sif Mandifarisdottir's chambers." Frigga makes an illusion of what was found for Thor, who blanches once more at the sight of the rest of Amora's leg that got left behind when she Splinched herself Apparating to Loki - what was more damning than anything else about the disturbing piece of evidence was just how well-preserved the piece of Amora's thigh was, thanks to Amora's magic permeating Sif's room. Had it been anyone else's lump of skin and muscle, it would've started to decay in the past three days - as it is, Amora's very being is so saturated with her magic that it would've had to have been physically removed from the palace for several days for the effect to wear off due to the Warding Amora did.
The metal fang missing from one of Amora's metal snakes and the fragments of the suppression cuff are equally damning for Sif, though. One of the fangs of Amora's Hallow-Snakes, as she and Loki call them, is missing, and it's not something that will just come loose. It has to be unlocked via Amora's magic, it wouldn't just fall off somewhere...and, even if it could, it wouldn't have ended up in Sif's private, separate bedroom when Amora stuck to the living quarters of the personal rooms. As for the cuff, it was designed to suppress the magic of anyone wearing it - which would be why they couldn't find her via any tracking spell. Perhaps it was a way to keep her from simply Apparating away, it was most likely much more malicious than that, but whatever the case it failed when Amora melted a hole into it and her magic burst free.
Nobody even wants to guess why she might've had a chain on her wall in her bedroom, though. Especially not Thor, not after what Luna Lovegood revealed down on Midgard.
It's as if life wants Loki to be the one to question Sif, really. Sif is just lucky Loki has basically locked and Warded himself in his Quarters with Amora until she wakes up - she hasn't woken up yet, despite every spell Loki casts saying she's got no brain damage.
Nerve damage, yes, but not brain damage - best even Eir can tell, her magic has put her in a coma while it repairs the damage she suffered. Of course, given the detail that Loki refuses to let Amora be moved to the Healing Room, they can't say for certain.
Frigga doesn't blame him, people go in and out of the Healing Room every hour and if Sif has any accomplices they could pose as a new attendant or servant.
After a moment, Frigga says "I'll be questioning Sif soon, Thor. If she's guilty…not even Odin would be able to get her out of this trouble of hers." Not that there's any real question of if at this point - Frigga, however, wants to know why her daughter-in-law was poisoned and left to suffer for hours on end where nobody would think to look for her. Loki will eventually want an explanation as well, and Stars help Sif if it's more of her usual petty, jealous spite because nobody else will be able to.
Thor nods, asking "What charges does she face?"
Frigga purses her lips, saying "Currently, Attempted Regicide is the worst of them. Should Amora die, no matter the detail that she'll come back to life, it'll be Regicide. Aside from that, High Treason, Treason, Crimes Against Peace, and another count of Treason. Those last two are from trespassing on Jotunheim and starting a war with them, and the Warriors Three face them as well."
Thor gapes at his mother, asking "Regicide?! but it was Amora she attacked…" And, as far as he knows, Loki was the King of Asgard. Just what happened while he was gone?!?!
Frigga gives him a highly disappointed look, and deadpans "They got married, Thor. The first thing Loki did upon becoming king was propose to Amora."
Thor keeps his jaw from unhinging, but just barely - of all the things he thought Loki would do if he was king of Asgard…that wasn't one of them. In hindsight, it should've been. Neither Loki nor Amora have ever seemed particularly interested in the Throne...or Court, for that matter. If the small, near-silent exchanges they'd hold during the various functions Amora would attend are anything to go by, they were keeping themselves entertained via...he's not sure what, commentary and jokes perhaps.
After a long moment spent processing the detail that his brother is married now - and didn't tell him - Thor says "I was actually looking for Loki, Mother. Do you know where he is? Amora isn't answering, and she's the only other person I could think of when the Library failed."
Frigga stills for a moment, looking as though she's seriously debating whether or not to tell him, then finally says "That would be because Amora isn't in her quarters, Thor. And, even if she were, she's currently incapable of answering any kind of summons. The poison did extensive damage to her internally, and it seems her magic has put her in a coma while she heals. As to Loki's whereabouts, he's currently still with her. I don't recommend seeking him out, though - until she awakens, Loki will be…" Stressed, strung out, ready to attack anything and anyone that's not her or Eir, it varies from moment to moment.
Fandral would lose his mouth and possibly his manhood, for instance, were he to set Loki off right now.
Thor runs a hand through his hair, saying "Mother, I…I need to see Loki. Speak to him…apologize."
Frigga raises an eyebrow, asking "What for?" There's no donkey ears prompting an apology this time, no well-deserved punishment meted out…unless Thor really has grown up some over the course of Odin's punishment.
Speaking of whom, Odin still has yet to awaken - Frigga's tempted to have Thor watch over Odin, except Amora Warded the entire palace so well nobody's getting in there even if they bring a battering ram. Plus, she's got a spell up to tell her when he stirs - and she can't decide whether she wants him to be at Sif's trial, or to wake up after the fact and have to be told his favorite potential wife for Thor is now most definitely off the table.
Thor sighs, running a hand through his hair, and says "Everything. It would take too long to explain, but…"
Seeing Thor won't take no for an answer or back down, Frigga groans then says "I see. Take this," she makes a pendant appear in her hand, "it'll keep you from being affected by the wards Loki put up on his door. And Thor?" At his look, she adds "Be nice. Loki is going to take everything as an attack - not on himself, but on Amora. So, my advice? Not one bad word about anything. Understand?"
Thor quickly nods, putting the pendant on over his head and running towards Loki's door. And then he runs back, hugs Frigga, and presses a kiss to her cheek in thanks before taking off again.
When Thor gets to Loki's door, the first thing he sees is the note attached to the door by a knife buried up to the hilt. 'Unless you're mother or Healer Eir, do not touch this door.' Thor really doesn't want to know why that is, especially with the very obvious green and gold glow on the door.
As soon as he knocks, the green and gold energy swarms him, running up his arm in the form of massive green snakes that wrap around him before disappearing when it gets to the pendant around his neck. It takes Thor a solid minute to be sure his heart isn't going to make an escape attempt straight out of his chest, because that was absolutely terrifying. He can't remember a single reason why magic is so mocked when it can scare the shit out of people like that, he really can't.
Thankfully, the door is no longer glowing when he takes a look at it once more. This time, when Thor hesitantly pokes at the wood, nothing happens. "Oh," Thor breathes out in relief, "thank the Stars." He doesn't think he can handle another terrifying experience of a snake constricting around him once more - he likes snakes, he really does, but if Loki was trying to scare him out of that he halfway succeeded right there.
He quickly knocks on the door again, and then again…and then just resorts to continuously knocking until Loki finally opens the door with a borderline murderous look on his face and a knife in his hand. A look that doesn't get much better when he recognizes who's been knocking away at his door, though at least the knife disappears.
After a moment, Loki coldly asks "What, Thor? What could you possibly want?"
After a moment, Thor asks "Would you believe me if I said I wanted to talk?"
"No." Loki slams the door in Thor's face...only to find Thor wedged his foot in the doorway at the last moment.
Thor thanks the Stars his boots are armored, because that would've hurt otherwise, only to gulp as Loki yanks the door open and he's faced with glowing green eyes and magic starting to arc off his brother's frame. Before Loki can put him through a wall, Thor quickly takes the opportunity to duck directly under Loki's arm and into his quarters.
Loki snarls "Get out, Thor! Don't you think you've done enough?! You wouldn't help me if my own life depended on it, much less Amora's, so GET OUT!" Thor flinches at that, Amora's said that before, more like hissed at him in the middle of arguments about Loki...but he hadn't known Loki thought that to. Did Amora convince him of that, or...oh. Right...the Drinking Incident.
Loki starts glowing brightly, magic gathering in his palms, and Thor's sure he's about to be obliterated right up until there's a rustling sound from Loki's bed in the next room. Loki's at the bed in an instant, fury replaced by something fragile as he kneels down next to...is that Amora? Upon closer inspection, Thor near-silently making his way into the next room, yes, that is Amora Sigyn - unconscious, face covered in sweat, and looking sicker than he's ever seen her before, but definitely her.
Well, Thor thinks, that explains why she didn't answer.
Amora tosses and turns, expression scrunched up as she curls up as if to protect herself and says "Uncle, I swear, his hair just turned blue, I didn't do anything...I'll be good, 'm not a freak..."
Thor's mouth goes dry from sheer horror, but he can't force out some kind of question no matter how much he wants to.
"Shh," Loki murmurs, one hand brushing some hair out of her face before resting there, "my Enchantress, no more nightmares for you." A wisp of green and gold emerges from his palm, not that Thor can see it, and enters her head - Amora relaxes instantly, expression turning peaceful as Loki's spell changes her fever dream. Loki fusses over her for another moment, wiping the sweat from her forehead and replacing a cloth on her neck, and Thor puts a hand on his shoulder because he doesn't have a clue what else to do.
As it turns out, that wasn't the right thing to do - Loki whirls on him at once, green eyes literally glowing in the darkened room, and he yells "Just get out, Thor! GET OUT! Can you not see what your latest idiocy has caused, or do you just truly not give a single damn about anyone but yourself?!" Thor opens his mouth to say 'yes I do, my Soulmate made me start actively doing as much down on Earth' but Loki continues on saying "If it weren't for your truly brilliant idea, Thor, to go to Jotunheim and reignite a war, thereby getting yourself banished, Amora and I wouldn't have been working ourselves to the bone trying to fix your mess, she would've been able to fight off the ambush, and she'd be merely sleeping right now instead of fighting off a fever, the poison still in her system, and whatever else it did to her in the hours she was missing! Unless Sif has one truly ironclad alibi with about a hundred witnesses that can all place her on the other side of the city when Amora was attacked, it's almost certain she's the one that ambushed and poisoned her. Sif's the only one that hates Amora so irrationally, when Amora honestly couldn't give two shits about Sif and what she thinks - which, of course, is just the most grievous crime to have ever been committed in that nightmare of a woman's eye!"
Thor waits a solid three minutes as Loki rants and rages at him, from being furious about Sif to threatening to put him through the wall if he doesn't get out, and when Loki finally winds down he quickly says "I'm sorry, Brother. Truly."
Loki snorts inelegantly, turning away to brush at Amora's hair again - as if she might disappear once more if he looks away for too long - and says "Don't expect me to believe that, Thor. Any of it."
Thor spins Loki around and says "No, I am. Truly, Loki, there aren't enough words to describe-"
Loki knocks his hands off his shoulders, saying "Just don't, Thor. I don't know what you think your usual empty words will do, but they won't un-poison Amora and they certainly won't get your precious Sif out of trouble this time." He's done getting his hopes up that Thor will, somehow or other, return to being the brother he remembers from back when Amora had first arrived on Asgard only to have them smashed by Mjolnir time and again. Every time he so much as thinks Thor's getting better, he goes and does something utterly ridiculous that he won't let anyone but Amora know hurts him more than anything else.
Thor frowns, and says "First off, Sif isn't my precious anything, Loki. Second-"
"What are you even apologizing for, then? Hm? Going and restarting a war? Getting yourself banished and leaving us to do the cleanup as usual?" Loki scoffs at his expression, and gives Thor's hands on him a jolt of magic to make him release him, saying "As expected. Words and nothing more. Get out, Thor."
"Everything."
Loki turns to glance at Thor for a moment, then shakes his head and says "You're a terrible liar, Thor. You cannot actually expect me to believe that."
Thor says "It's true-"
"You've never said even one good thing about Amora in the millennia she's been on Asgard. Not one. You only mock and degrade her because she can do magic and you've never bothered to understand it."
Loki turns back to Amora, a clear dismissal if he's ever seen one, and Thor says the first thing that pops into his head. "She was there for you."
Loki eventually turns back to give him a confused look after a minute, asking "What?"
"Amora. She was there for you, even when I wasn't. She never failed to defend you against others, no matter who they were." Including - no, especially - him, one of the people in all of Asgard that should've had Loki's back no matter what. It took him this long to figure that out, but he's going to make up for everything if it takes him the rest of his life to do so.
Loki's expression has barely turned to a belated understanding when Thor takes the non-hostile expression as an opportunity to pull him into a bone-crushing hug, saying "I'm sorry it's taken me this long to get my head out of my rear end, I'm sorry I've treated the both of you so terribly when you never should've been, I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, I'm sorry I caused this whole mess, I'm sorry. I'll never be able to say it enough, Loki, but I'm so sorry."
Loki lets out an honest-to-Stars screech and starts attempting to make Thor let him go…but six days of no sleep and little food seem to rear their ugly head right then, because no magic is used as Loki tries to hit him - there isn't even an attempt at stabbing him, something Thor had braced himself for when he knocked on Loki's door.
After what feels like an hour, Loki seems to just crumble and his screaming is suddenly sobbing as he clings to Thor's armor like he suddenly can't stand on his own. Thor hasn't got a clue what to do, it's been centuries since he's seen Loki cry - he probably went to Amora or their mother, if he's being brutally honest with himself - eventually, he settles on keeping Loki upright and not interrupting beyond humming every now and again.
Thor eventually deciphers that Loki nearly lost Amora, that he had no idea where she was or what had happened - she's so powerful that Loki can always sense her magic even from other Realms, and she just vanished without a trace for hours. It's never happened since the day she was brought to Asgard, he's always been able to find her via her magic - maybe not instantly, but he can get to a general location and then work from there without fail - and she'd arrived on Asgard before suddenly just vanishing. Nothing in his entire life to date, the battles he's participated in or even that time with the Dwarves, has ever managed to scare him so completely…because Amora was always there. Amora always had his back, be it them literally back-to-back in a battlefield or her sensing his magic reacting to him being upset or scared and coming to see what's going on.
And then she was just gone, vanished as if she never existed to begin with - were it not for the signs of a fight in the corridor, it wouldn't have been possible to even figure out where it took place.
Thor waits until Loki's finally run out of words before pulling away just enough to look his brother in the face, and quietly asks "How long has it been since you've slept, Brother? Ate, changed clothes, anything?" The circles under his eyes are dark black, almost the same color as his hair, his body is trembling slightly even now…and Thor's never known Loki to lose it like this. And while he's sure everything that happened to Amora is the main factor in his meltdown…a near-week without sleep couldn't be doing him any favors.
Loki just shakes his head instead of answering - more than enough of an answer - and moves to turn back to Amora saying "I can't. The poison hasn't completely purged from Amora's system, and it's-"
Thor catches Loki just as his legs suddenly give out, and says "Loki, this is the part where I put you into bed and you go to sleep now. It's been three days, and I was Banished for three days…Stars, Loki, if you haven't slept in all that time…" If Loki hasn't slept all this time, he's utterly amazed that his younger brother is on his feet at all.
Loki shakes his head again, gripping Thor's shoulder to try and stand back up, and says "The Ward on the door fell when you started knocking, anyone could-"
Thor shakes his head, trying to judge how fast he can pick his brother up and put him on the rumpled spot he was obviously sitting on when Thor arrived at the door, and says "I'll make sure nothing happens, Brother. You need to sleep, Amora wouldn't want you working yourself to the bone like this. Would she?"
Loki glares at him, exhaustion clear on his face, and snarls "Don't you even dare try to use Amora against me like that." Rather, he tries to - it comes out more exhausted than anything else, especially when a yawn cuts him off halfway through.
Seeing as Loki won't willingly get into bed, Thor picks him up and promptly drops him onto the spot he was on before. Loki would swear on his first set of knives that Thor cast a spell on him if he didn't know for absolute certain that his brother didn't have a drop of magical knowledge in his head, what with the way all the remaining strength he has in him drains away as soon as he's on the mattress.
Amora rolls over to face him, and the last thing Loki manages before sleep claims him is putting an arm over her and holding her close. It accidentally slips the cover down, giving Thor a very clear view of the marks on her shoulder - and Thor promptly facepalms hard enough to make a clap of thunder sound in the room at the realization that Loki and Amora are Soulmates. He knows what a Soulmate mark looks like now, having spent an entire day marveling at his own and memorizing it, and there is no way those markings on her shoulder are anything other than a Soulmate Mark - he may not be able to read it, but he's very willing to bet it's that hissing language the two of them share...something he'd honestly wondered half the time if it was actually a language or if it was some secret centuries-long joke between the two of them.
And now a lot of things make a lot more sense about the two of them…
Wait a minute...Amora's been his sister-in-law all this time?! Why in the world didn't Loki tell him?!?!