Chapter 1
Loki had always been aware of his differences— his raven-black hair, a physique more slender and agile rather than brawny and robust, and an unquenchable fascination with mastering the art of seidr. In Asgard, the use of magic was often deemed "feminine," even though Odin himself had once wielded seidr.
He doesn’t understand why everyone seems to hate him, he has tried so hard to fit in, he learned how to wield daggers to help him in battle. Yet, despite his efforts, the Warriors Three still regarded him as weaker than them, and Thor, ever the oblivious sibling, dismissed their harsh words as mere jests and playful banter.
Once close as children, Loki and Thor's fraternal bond had waned after Thor's association with the Warriors Three. For the next century, Loki's beloved brother scarcely had time for him. Desperate to regain that closeness, Loki endeavored to befriend the warriors in an attempt to get closer again to his brother and maybe get some new friends.
Fandral was quick to call him names, of liar, coward, the one that hurt the most was ‘ergir’, it came out of nowhere, Loki knows the insult was Fandral’s way of ‘ defending ’ himself, Loki was not dumb he knew the warrior held some sort of attraction towards him but would never admit that, specially when he was infamous for being a womanizer and bedding a man would taint his image.
Matters only worsened when Loki embraced his shapeshifting abilities to take on female forms. Fandral accused him of attempting to seduce, insisting he be content with his male guise.
Meanwhile, Hogun and Volstagg scorned Loki for his use of seidr, branding his magical prowess as mere "tricks" and accusing him of unfair play whenever he employed his powers to assist them.
And then, there was Sif, a woman who held an intense and unrelenting grudge against Loki. He couldn't help but speculate that her animosity stemmed from a time when Thor, who had once been inseparable from Loki, started talking incessantly about his younger brother to her, stoking a jealousy that had festered over the years.
Sif delighted in spreading the most malicious rumors about Loki, claiming he was envious of Thor and harbored ambitions to usurp the position of the first prince.
After enduring relentless insults from the quartet in his brother's presence, with Thor inexplicably laughing along, Loki had eventually given up trying to integrate into their tight-knit group. The hurt expression on his face was met with indifference by Thor, who failed to perceive his little brother's pain as he stormed away. Could he feel hatred for Thor? He is quite the meathead.
But it was Odin who bore the brunt of Loki's discontent. The Allfather consistently disregarded Loki's counsel, never offering him a chance to prove his worth. Odin's attention to Loki was sporadic at best, often dismissive, treating him like an inconvenience. When Odin did take notice, it was typically to berate Loki for not conforming to his expectations of a proper warrior, chastising him for being "effeminate" and weak.
Frigga, however, remained Loki's steadfast source of solace. She listened to him on the most trying of days, ever concerned for his well-being, and patiently taught him the ways of seidr. Trapped as a war bride bound to Odin, she repeatedly attempted to reason with her husband, endeavoring to make Thor understand the depth of Loki's yearning for his brother's companionship.
Frigga had, in her own way, strived to ameliorate her second son's plight. One day, fed up with the mistreatment Loki endured, she decided to unveil a profound truth about his heritage. She disclosed that he was a Jotun, a child abandoned and brought into their home by Odin. His true parents were Jotun, though their identities remained unknown. Loki now comprehended why Frigga had been so insistent on teaching him privately about the Jotun, to ensure he didn't despise his own nature.
Loki, his voice trembling with emotion, questioned, "Should I even still call you ' mother '?"
Frigga held him close, her voice reassuring and tender, "Oh, Loki, I will always be your mother."
Struggling to contain a sob, he asked, "Why are you telling me all of this?"
"I believed you deserved to know, and if you ever wished to reconnect with your true family, perhaps they could provide the love you didn't find here," Frigga explained.
"You loved me," Loki responded. "That was enough for me for centuries." He shifted away, averted his gaze in shame, and then admitted, "But I confess I am curious about my blood family. But If they abandoned me for being a runt..."
"I cannot say for certain if that's the true reason. Odin can be a master of deception when he chooses," Frigga said wearily. "If you wish to journey to Jotunheim, I'm sure you can do so discreetly. You've already mastered the spell to hide yourself from Heimdall's watchful gaze, and you've been teleporting to Alfheim to visit your children. A trip to Jotunheim shouldn't pose a problem."
"The children want to meet you," Loki whispered. "I suppose I'll have to explain their heritage to them at some point."
"We'll address that in due time. For now, I'll send a raven to Laufey to meet us at the gates to discuss this privately. He can be reasonable when he chooses. I'll inform him that it's a matter of utmost confidentiality."
"Will Odin find out about this?" Loki asked with concern.
Frigga gave him an amused look. "No. Don't forget, my son, I'm the one who taught you how to conceal things from him."
Helblindi and Byleistr insisted on accompanying their father. While he was a formidable warrior, they harbored reservations about leaving him alone with two Aesir. What did Frigga, the witch, want with them? Her message had simply conveyed that her conversation concerned their father, and she would bring someone along. They cautioned their father that this might be a trap, but Laufey brushed aside their concerns, appearing oddly at ease.
"I know Frigga," he reassured them. "She's a war bride who holds no affection for Odin. If she desires a private discussion, she must have her reasons. She'd never set a trap willingly."
"Still, she could be coerced by Odin. He's been waiting for a pretext to eliminate the rest of us for years," Byleistr bitterly retorted.
“I agree with brodhir, we shouldn’t even be here, fadir, you didn’t even tell modir we are coming here, what if something happens?” Helblindi voiced his unease.
"Trust me, my sons. I can protect us from a mere sorceress," Laufey assured them.
"Now you offend me, King Laufey," came a female voice from behind them.
Byleistr and Helblindi jumped in startled surprise, their reactions resembling skittish cats. Laufey, on the other hand, turned calmly to regard Frigga, arching an inquisitive brow.
"You did not employ the Bifrost... so Odin truly knows nothing of this," he noted with composed confidence.
Frigga and her companion respectfully bowed before him.
"King Laufey," Frigga addressed him with a wearied expression, "Yes, Odin is unaware of this meeting."
"Why do you seek my father, witch?" Byleistr snarled, earning a desperate glance from his younger brother.
"First, I must ask you something, King Laufey," Queen Frigga began.
"What is it, Queen Frigga?"
"If one of your kind is born a runt, do you abandon them?"
"How dare yo-" Laufey's older children started, but he silenced him with a glare.
"It is frowned upon to abandon a child, runt or not, in our culture, all Jotun children are considered precious," Laufey responded. "However, some among us do, unfortunately, forsake small infants. We often find these babes too late to save them. It became strictly forbidden to abandon a runt child during my rule." He observed the concern etched on the woman's face and frowned. "Why do you ask?"
At first, she didn't respond, making Laufey uneasy about the direction of their conversation. "Frigga, why have you brought up this matter?"
She sighed, massaging her temples. "Odin discovered a babe while you and your kind were at war."
The older Jotun took a sharp breath as his eyes focused on Loki, who was nervously fidgeting under his gaze.
"I raised him as my son. Odin found him abandoned at a temple," she motioned for the man to step forward. "This is Loki."
"The second prince of Asgard is a Jotun?" Helblindi whispered in astonishment, while his brother eyed the man with suspicion.
"I've brought him here to find his true family, to learn about his people," she stated resolutely.
"Why now?" Laufey struggled to ask, doubting the veracity of the claim. If someone from his kind had abandoned a child while he ruled, that person would have to answer for it. The poor boy would be embraced warmly, and if need be, Laufey would personally educate the runt about his people.
"The people of Asgard don't appreciate him. They consider him too... effeminate, given his aptitude for magic, and Odin barely acknowledges his existence," she explained.
"That's atrocious! Why would they even think that? Some of our most formidable mages are male..." Helblindi expressed, clearly offended on Loki's behalf.
"Odin being cruel to his adopted son doesn't exactly shock me," Byleistr muttered under his breath.
Laufey felt as if a hundred years had passed at that moment, and he offered them an empathetic gaze. "I will need to see his true form to determine his family."
Frigga nodded. "Odin placed a spell on him as a baby. I'm afraid I don't know how to break it..."
"No magic is necessary. If I touch his skin, it will naturally dispel the spell," Laufey assured her, extending his hand toward the younger man.
Loki hesitantly took his hand, his skin turning blue, revealing the distinctive markings. He breathed a sigh of relief, unexpectedly feeling as though he had found his true self. Before, it had been like he was trapped inside a body that didn't belong to him. He hadn't even realized how difficult it was to breathe in his Aesir form until now; he felt lighter, and the sensation of his skin tearing apart was gone.
As he noticed the silence in the room, Loki looked at the Jotun's faces, finding them filled with horror. Laufey withdrew his hand as if it had been burned, his gaze locked onto Loki as if he saw a ghost.
"What sorcery is this?!" Byleistr pointed his sword at them in anger.
Frigga positioned herself protectively in front of her son.
"I don't understand. What's happening?" Loki asked, his confusion evident.
"Those markings on your body... they're identical to ours," Helblindi said softly, almost in disbelief.
Loki's eyes widened at that, he was the son of the king?!
"Enough with your tricks! Is this some cruel jest, witch?" Byleistr protested angrily.
"Enough, Byleistr!" His father admonished, his tone stern.
“Fadir! You can’t believe this, that would mean…that she lied to us, modir would never-!”
“But it seems she has,” Laufey snarls angrily. “I will have words with you modir later, for now, I think you are scaring you little brother, Byleistr”
Byleistr flinched, glancing at Loki who seems lost and afraid, he was so small, a runt, he never has seen one since it was rare for his kind to produce children ever since Odin took the Casket, Loki's size was akin to the few children born in Jotunheim, but he was fully developed, evident in the size of his horns, curling back just like theirs.
"Sorry..." Byleistr mumbled awkwardly.
Helblindi seemed calmer than his brother. He was disappointed and saddened that his mother had lied, but the joy of seeing his little brother alive, even after hundreds of years, outweighed his other emotions.
"Will Queen Farbauti harm him?" Frigga inquired, trying to temper the anger in her voice.
"She might," Laufey stated with certainty. "But I won't allow it. Give me some time, and please don't take this the wrong way, my son. I'm glad to see you alive, but I must deal with your mother before allowing you to stay here." His voice softened as he approached Loki and gently caressed his cheek. Loki startled at the touch, but Laufeys didn't object, understanding that the poor boy hadn't received as much affection as he should have.
"Give me a few days, and send me a raven again. I'll meet you here at the same time."
Frigga nodded and took her son's hand in her own, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Of course, King Laufey. Thank you for your hospitality. We shall leave for now."
"I'm the one who should be thanking you. We would have never known... thanks for bringing my son back to me," Laufey said, his eyes filled with emotion.
"I admit I didn't expect him to be your son," Frigga confessed. "But I'm glad he will be loved, at least by his father."
"By me too!" Helblindi declared firmly. "When he comes back, he can teach me all he knows about seidr! I always wanted to be a mage" He smiled kindly at his little brother, who shyly returned the gesture.
Byleistr remained silent, likely too angry to say anything that wouldn't offend everyone.
"Thank you," Loki said softly, earning a gentle look from Laufey.
He then shapeshifted back into his Aesir form, this time in his female form, and noticed the curious but nonjudgmental looks from the Jotun. Frigga, who was still holding his hand, caressed the back of it with her thumb.
In the blink of an eye, they found themselves back in Asgard, standing within her mother's private chambers. Frigga had forewarned the guards that she would be spending quality time with her son and urged them not to disturb her. To ensure their privacy, she had also cast a protective spell that barred anyone from entering.
Frigga gazed at her daughter, assessing her well-being.
"Loki, how are you feeling, my dear?"
"Conflicted, Mother. I... I can't shake the feeling of being abandoned, but my biological father appears to be kind. And my middle brother as well. I'm not so sure about my older brother; he may blame me for whatever Laufey chooses to do to Farbauti..."
"If he does blame you, he will be acting foolishly," she assured, planting a gentle kiss on her daughter's forehead. "I'll send another raven in a few days. Odin rarely pays us much heed, so we can slip away whenever necessary."
"Thank you, Mother," Loki expressed her gratitude and embraced Frigga. "For everything."
"Anything for you, my love," Frigga replied with a warm smile.