The Butterfly effect

Loki watched with some amusement, in full Trickster mode, as Goose gently but firmly wrapped Anthony around her paw.

Not that the man objected... or actually seemed aware of what was happening, even if everyone else did. The consensus seemed to be that Anthony needed some sort of a keeper anyway.

And yes, that was JARVIS primary task, but as great as the AI was, he was still one of Anthony's creations, and as such, did somewhat lack agency if Sir decided to override the voice of caution... Which he did with alarming regularity, if what the AI had confided about Sir's *previous life* was true.

After a lifetime of running behind Thor to haul his blond ass out from one disaster of his own making onto the next, Loki could certainly commiserate. Not that Anthony was as callous and oblivious as Thor was, but anyway you sliced it, JARVIS didn't have the agency to stop his creator to be stupidly reckless at times.

Try to take Goose agency away from her, and your future was likely to be filled with tentacles and the nastiest pocket dimension the Flerken was lugging around. And that was if she was feeling merciful... Which, let's face it, was not the Flerken way.

Speaking of Flerken way, Goose was putting on a little weight these days, and the Trickster suspected it had little to do with an over abundance of treats and gold nuggets, and more about a Flerken in the family way.

He knew better than to ask another species about their reproducive process (because, rude... and in this precise case, potentially risky), but he'd read a little on the subject when he managed to tour the galaxy a bit, and Goose was spending quite a lot of time at the Sarkitty shelter in the tower. There were more Starkitty shelters around town, but this one being in Manhattan, they were the most likely to get adopted by rich people. So, quite a lot of pure breeds and the cutest markings, one has to cater to their customers, after all.

Not that it made much difference: Flerkens were known to play genetic legos with their litters, to extract and mix the characteristics they wanted in their youngs.

That implied multiple, if carefully selected partners, and Goose had been awfully busy collecting samples lately, apparently.

In a way, Goose nesting was a reassuring prospect. Yes, like all felines, Flerkens had quite a Darwinian take on rearing youngs, on the tune of "You get a head start and then you're on your own", but she was not likely to have Flerkins if she was worried about Thanos. If anything, when Loki broached the subject, she seemed more irritated than afraid. Wich was... Good?

Well, at least neither the death cat nor Anthony tried to brush the subject under the carpet, the way Odin did.

But to his surprise, the Trickster had learned that the nine realms were not actually how he thought they were. Not by a long shot.

He'd contacted his mother. Anthony had been quite insistent about that, saying there was more to it than Loki knew now. He'd been highly dubious about that, still angry about her seconding Odin's lies... But he had to admit she'd been his only sort of reliable support at court, even if a limited one.

Odin only used him, and Thor, for all his talk about brotherly love, was more often than not stabbing him metaphorically in the back.

And then had the gall to look surprised when Loki actually stabbed him in the back.

The idiot.

In any case, yes, Anthony had been right: Loki had the means to contact Frigga if he wanted to. He'd usually kept in touch with his mother when he went on a trip, if only to be forwarned if Thor or Odin were looking for him for some idiotic "quest" or some crap job nobody wanted to do. Unpleasant but failing to show up reaped worse consequences... As he'd learned the hard way.

Anyway, Frigga had been very happy when Loki stopped blocking her attempts at contacting him. She'd been exceptionally cryptic, though. It took Loki quite a few moments to understand she wanted him to visit her brother on Alfheim.

The least you could say is that it had been a revelation.

His uncle had welcomed him with open arms. Loki was even subjected to a hug, which almost sent him into shock.

Also prompted him to a rare bout of honesty.

"You do know I'm not really your nephew, don't you?"

Frey frowned slightly, which was as angry as Loki had seen him in a long time. After all, he was the one who taught him to master (and hide) his emotions when Loki was still a child. Some of the more useful lessons he'd ever gotten.

"My sister considers you her son, Loki. That is enough for me. But even if she didn't, the connections between the Vanir royal household and Jotunheim ruling class means we're still related, if in a more distant fashion. You're actually *still* related to Odin, since that monster is half Jotun himself."

And the surprises kept coming.

"You never so much as hinted..."

"How I truly felt about my brother in law? As much as it pains me to admit, Odin IS a master manipulator and you were rabidly loyal to him from a very young age. Frigga and I tried to mitigate that as much as we could... but it was not much. Not enough, at any rate... I do suppose that has changed quite a bit lately."

Well, Frey certainly got THAT right but...

"I still don't understand..." Frey sighted and indicated they should be seated. Either a long talk or some more shocks in store, then.

"Loki, you do know Frigga and I are both Vanir, don't you?"

"Yes?"

"Then why do you think I'm not the king in Vanaheim, but here?"

That was actually an excellent question, now that he thought about it. Loki had always known his mother as Vanir and his uncle as the Alfheim king, he'd just sort of accepted it... Now, however...

"I'll tell you why: I learned Bor intended to marry Frigga to Odin while standing ankle deep in the rest of my family's blood, that's how.

We were both children at the time, and I'd just watched Bor and his Helspawn personally butcher my whole family. Then Frigga was whisked away to Asgard to become "a good Aesir wife", whatever that meant, and I was deported to Alfheim under the guardianship of the then governor.

We were each other's security: Each of us were told the other life being dependant on our good behavior... In a very real way, we still are. I don't doubt for a second Odin would butcher his wife if he knew what I'd love to do to him one day... And would transform Alfheim in a second Swartalheim if she showed any sign of not being the dutiful Aesir wife she's been masquerading as all those years."

Talk, as the Midgardians would say, being caught between a rock and a hard place. Loki opened his mouth, but Frey raised his hand, stopping him.

"Let me finish first, Loki. I am not enjoying talking about this. You can ask questions later.

When Bor died, the Aesir council pushed for Odin to get married before the coronation, since he had a bride ready anyway. Odin differs from Bor in that he cares about what people (mostly Aesir) say about him. He's no less of a monster than Bor was, but he wants to pass as the "benevolent ruler."

And for the marriage ceremony, it looked better if the bride's brother was an actual monarch and not a hostage.

Odin thought himself very shrewd in offering me the Alfheim throne... I suppose he even expected gratitude."

They both winced.

"So I got my coronation on the low grade. Odin got his wedding and the bride he cheated on from day one and his all important coronation as the "AllFather", and I was sent back here with my aesir minder.

It took me two years to kill him.

All the while playing the obedient puppet king, the grateful pawn to mighty Odin. The funny thing is that after awhile, he really believed it. Not as far as to trust me to have his back into battle... Wich, if I'm fully honest, was not an unfunded suspicion.

But otherwise, I was deemed, if not totally loyal, sufficiently harmless."

"Which you're not... Loyal or harmless, that is." Loki began to smile.

Frey answering smile managed to be both angelic and predatory. Loki started to laugh.

"How?"

"Well, my nephew, you of all people should know the answer: Seidr.

Odin's been betitling it while using it in a very heavy handed way, which is also called talking from both sides of your mouth at the same time. Aesirs used to be competent at magic, but neither Bor nor Odin were actually good at it.

As I said, ham handed and they lacked the patience and the will to learn Seidr usage requires. Since such perfect beings could not have defects..."Frey's tone was quite sarcastic.

"Obviously." Loki could be just as sarcastic

"Siedr was to be at fault. Also, discouraging Seidr usage in boys, especially of the noble class helped prevent competition. Since all realms need magic to function, it was deemed safe to make Seidr the province of the "inferior" sex... And in time, as you well know, all Seidr users, being women or of a different race, were deemed inferior, and thus safe.

It is good to be underestimated, in the long run.

The longer Odin's rule went unchallenged, the sloppier he got... He even began to believe in his own myth. Which is hilarious."

"And in the meantime?"

"In the meantime, the elves had been watching me. They were not overjoyed to find themselves with a king, and from another realm as to that, when they'd always ruled themselves before, but they understood it had not been my idea.

Also, after the dark elves and the Vanirs, everyone was justifiably wary of Odin's line genocidal tendencies. To cut a long story short, when I poisoned my minder, they took notice.

We also struck a deal that is still in play. In Asgard, you got Odin and the Thing... or the rump council. Here, the Elven council still govern, if unofficially, and my main job is to make it palatable to Odin."

Frey stopped. After a few moments, Loki said something. He knew his uncle was much more than a figurehead.

"You're not telling me all."

His uncle smirked.

"Obviously not."

"But still, what you just told me... Aren't you afraid of the consequences? If...." Frey shrugged.

"Gungnir doesn't work that way outside of Asgard, since it was crafted in a time when there was no talk of a realm being above the others.

Heimdall? You know it's very possible to avoid his so-called *all seeing eyes*, but in any case...

Loki, my dear nephew, you broke the bifrost.

Heimdall is blind... And deaf."