Chapter Text
Loki receives Thor’s letter while he is in Las Vegas.
He owns a flat there, one of many properties he occupies in Midgard. Whenever Loki is in a gambling mood, he comes to Vegas, watching - and secretly manipulating - the players there. He has evil fun witnessing how the mortals win and how they lose their money, and more often the latter.
He sits in his living room, a glass of whisky in his hand, when Thor’s message manifests right in front of him. Loki raises his eyebrows, wondering briefly how Thor got the skills to work such magic. Probably with Frigga’s help.
Loki recognizes Thor’s handwriting immediately. The messy style, the edgy letters. Besides, he can feel that Thor is the sender, even before he has read a single line. It’s as if Thor’s arrogance and his overwhelming physical presence ooze through the heavy paper.
Quickly, Loki’s eyes travel over the sheet.
Dear brother,
Loki snorts when he reads that form of address, as if they would still be brothers after all.
I know that you don’t want to meet me, not when I am simply asking you.
Loki grins. At least that Thor understood.
But I have a challenge for you.
The tingling sensation inside Loki tells him that Thor found his weak spot and he immediately hates himself for it.
I’ll wait for you at a place somewhere in Midgard. I only give you three hints to find it. I will be there in 24 hours from now on. Are you able to solve my riddle?
Loki clenches his fists. There, Thor got him. He feels a wave of anger rushing through him. Of course he would solve Thor’s riddle, dumb as it is going to be. But what should he do then? Should he show up at that place to prove to Thor that he is cleverer than him - again? Or should he stay away from him, which would probably be for the better. He really doesn’t want to meet Thor but he also doesn’t want to give him the triumph of not unraveling his so-called mystery.
Undecidedly, Loki continues to read the hints.
Where everything ends and everything begins.
Here, Zero is the most important number.
I’ll wait for you where the green light flashes.
Loki sighs and shakes his head in disappointment. Just as expected, he not even needed a second to solve Thor’s riddle.
"Where everything ends and everything begins" - Thor loves Midgard, Loki knows that quite well. And that certain place is crucial for the mortals.
"Here, Zero is the most important number." It’s the zero meridian in Great Britain.
"I’ll wait for you where the green light flashes." The exact place Thor mentioned is the Observatory in Greenwich, where a green laser marks the zero meridian.
Loki gazes at his watch. It’s 4 pm and he still has 23 hours and 58 minutes left to meet Thor - or to bring as much distance between them as possible.
***
In the end, Loki doesn’t really know why he teleports himself to his house in London. He’s probably bored, trying to find some distraction in mocking Thor. He’s aware which strings he has to pull to push Thor into every direction he wants him to be. Maybe this little game is even going to be fun.
Loki’s house in London is big and secluded, and he loves being there. The English weather is just what he needs, there’s never too much sun, never too much warmth outside.
He strolls through his garden, checking on the plants there, especially the roses. He grows them since several years now. And he likes their thorns even more than their blossoms. Although he has to admit that he adores the red roses, their color looking like blood.
Loki gazes at his watch again. He still has almost two hours to travel to Greenwich. Casually, he returns to his well-furnished house, entering his bedroom with the walk-in closet. There, he decides for a black suit and a black shirt that accentuates his pale skin.
Content with himself, Loki takes a look in the mirror, brushing some black strands out of his forehead. He’s in a great mood today, London always has that effect on him. Thor probably isn’t going to be happy about his teasing, but that is nothing Loki would even care about. Thor called for him and therefore he has to take everything Loki gives him, it’s as simple as that.
***
Thor arrives early in Greenwich, of course he does. Loki watches him for long minutes in amusement, hidden from the gazes of everybody else through his magic. Thor walks up and down a small path, clearly nervous. Loki can literally read his thoughts. Was my riddle too complicated? Does he even want to meet me? What if he doesn’t show up?
For the third time, Thor turns directions, blond hair loosely framing his face. Through a short moment, Loki feels the urge to touch that strand of hair, but he shakes the thought away quickly. He’s not here for sentimental reasons.
Finally, Loki closes his eyes and manifests himself right behind Thor, whispering "boo!" into his ear. He chuckles when Thor flinches and turns around. If he’s angry that Loki surprised him, he doesn’t let show it.
"Brother!" Thor exclaims and Loki screws up his face to show him that he is not pleased with that fond address. Thor doesn’t care however, tugging Loki into a tight embrace. "I knew that you would be here!" Thor adds while Loki rolls his eyes.
"Of course I am. Your riddle was ridiculous, to say the least. I would have done better," Loki says.
Thor smiles at him broadly. "That’s great," he states, "because it is your time to give me a riddle."
Loki swallows annoyed because he didn’t see this coming. "You would never be able to solve my riddles," he teases his brother.
"I’ll prove you wrong," Thor simply replies and Loki doesn’t know if he should hate or admire him for his unshakable self-confidence.
***
Without asking, Thor marches into the direction of the Observatory. "Did you ever visit this place?" he asks Loki, as if they were some kind of tourists.
"I solved your riddle, I can leave now," Loki replies sternly.
"Oh no," Thor returns, "the rules are different."
Fresh rage surges through Loki. "Since when are you making the rules? Oh, I forgot, you are the ruler of the family. I’m terribly sorry but…"
"Would you for once listen to me?" Thor asks, strengthening his shoulders. He is still as muscular as ever, Loki realizes before he has to look away. "Let’s make a deal," Thor hastily continues before Loki could interrupt him. "We’ll send each other riddles and when the receiver can solve it, we spend the day together."
"For how many hours?" Loki retorts, much to his own surprise.
"Twelve," Thor suggests with a huge grin.
"Six at most!" Loki gives back, his tongue quicker than his mind.
"Done deal," Thor states, apparently deeply satisfied.
Loki sighs, angry about himself and the entire situation. "Fine then," he hisses, "you have five hours left today."
***
Thor takes Loki to London after they visited the Observatory. Loki doesn’t give away a single hint that he knows England’s capital better than Thor, that he lives here most of the time. He doesn’t talk very much at all, he just walks behind Thor while he guides him to Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, the river Thames.
One hour before their appointment would finally end, Loki has enough. "I’m not a damn sightseer," he says dangerously quiet. "If you want to experience London as it really is, I’ll take you to another place."
Thor is clearly surprised, making big eyes at Loki. "You were here before?" he asks dumbstruck.
Loki bites on his tongue and simply nods. "Yes, I were."
He works some magic, a rather easy spell, and out of the blue, they are in the Docklands, in a pub tourists seldom find. Loki visits that pub whenever he has to flee all the trickery around, all the lies. When he needs some honesty because he is tired. Tired of everything and most of all, tired of life.
"Oh… wow," Thor stammers, probably more impressed by Loki’s teleporting skills than by their surrounding, when he finds himself sitting on a wooden stool in the pub.
Loki orders two pints of beer, but he doesn’t drink from his, leaving it to Thor to finish for both of them. He doesn’t want to get Thor drunk in the first place, he just cannot stand his cheerful mood any longer. Not with him feeling a familiar sadness creeping into his every bone.
The second Thor empties his beer, taking the last sip and wiping away a droplet from his soft, soft mouth, Loki closes his eyes and whispers another magic formula in a desperate tone.
A moment later, he is gone.