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From the first dawn which allowed Loki to be, he's been causing mischief. Being a royal prince of Asgard brought him a lot of scrutiny, even as a kid only 567 years old.
"Now, Prince Loki, you mustn't feint so much. It's a good tactic in battle, but in drawn out fights, you'll be figured out quickly." Loki's new trainer spoke.
Swordsmanship training sessions were a fairly new addition to his routine. His prowess in the theoretical and intellectual fields had quickly been recognised, and been stoked to strengthen the flame into a fire quite early. His tactics already complemented his brother's battle wits, and led their petty adventures to fulfillment.
However Loki tested different weapons, though, he never could seem to find a perfect fit. They were all too heavy, or too long, and generally uncomfortable for Loki to carry out his unique strategies. The only weapon he could stick with were daggers, but they weren't used as the primary tool in battles, and he henceforth had to master a different weapon.
Loki ducked under another swing at his head. He tried not to show he was panting already, having been in this one round for about half an hour and unable to get any good hit in. Thor, who had all his classes separately, being at different proficiency levels in various subjects, would be getting done for the day.
An hour later, Loki retired from his lessons, getting one good hit in but trading it for several ones on his person, and getting further tips from his mentor.
---
Predictably enough, Thor was found in his suite, lounging on Loki's bed.
"Brother, you look tired." He observed impassively.
"So do you. The numbers finally rattle something inside your thick skull yet?
I've told you many a times to not enter my room when unoccupied." Loki complained without heat.
"Unfortunately not. Norns, why can't we just let it be and specialise in what we like? You do the complex calculations all the time without getting a headache."
Loki took off his royal armor, immediately pulling on his robes over his underclothes. He joined Thor on the bed, making it bounce a little.
"I'm guessing you have something in mind..." Loki allowed.
"Sif and Fandral are here. They finished with their classes early. We can go out to the garden, and look for that guard who was telling us about the rabbit that made its way into the stalls during the feast!"
"I don't quite understand your obsession with that one mystery, and I think I'll pass. I'm going to look for Mother."
"But brother! You know how Father is always telling us that the lives of the Asgardians is the life of Asgard. He insists we learn them ourselves."
"I'm quite aware, brother. And you know that I spend plenty of time amongst the people."
That much was true. Loki's shapeshifting ability, which although not yet perfect, allowed him to blend in with the life on Asgard, as long as he was not carefully evaluated. All the time that Loki didn't spend at the royal palace was spent as a bird, or a maiden, in the streets and, on occasion amongst the wildlife, of Asgard.
It was during these escapades that Loki found peace in the hectic life of a prince. He hid himself among the fish in the river, and let himself drift along, or posed as a traveller buying Asgardian grapes and nuts. It might seem overboard, but drifting along with nature allowed Loki many lessons and memorable incidents as well.
"You've been seeing Mother a lot lately. Have you been getting extra classes?" Thor inquired, suspicious.
"Oh, it's not that. There's just this rather interesting lore of Vanaheim that I need confirmation of. The library leaves much of it in suspense!"
That was, in fact, not the case. Not entirely a lie, though. There was an intriguing tale about some fairies enchanting trees to move and take root in auspicious households. But he had already seen his mother for that.
He wasn't always very forthcoming about his escapades either, knowing that if he let Thor know he was going out into the wild, he'd stop at nothing to tag along. There was this endearing but incessant quality about Thor's protectiveness. And Loki will deny any claim that he needs it.
---
Having gotten rid of his brother, Loki left the palace grounds undetected by the guards. On reaching the dirt trail, he transformed into a raven and went deep into the forest, the foliage thickening as he soared farther up the montane forest.
He settled by the brook where he intended to spend his afternoon reading. He transformed back into himself, and found a dry well-shaded spot under an age-old tree.
Just as he was about to go fishing around in his pocket dimension, and retrieve a good book, some bushes caught his eye. The wind blowed them inwards into the stone wall behind them, the air wooshing and reverberating behind.
Overcome by curiosity, he abandoned any thoughts of a peaceful afternoon, and went to investigate. What he found was a cozy little cave shaded except for small openings in its leafy roof that let sunlight in. Whimsically, he utilised his seidr to more extenuating purposes than previously intended.
...
The end result was a grand room hoisted into the air by sprouting branches and seidr. It was breathtaking in its form, woven together in the form of entangled branches with plucky leaves, a steady ground with flexible walls. It was a true work of architecture. It even had a delicately molded table and resting chair.
This was surely what Midgardians called a tree-house.
---
Loki found in himself the wish to visit his creative work again and again. Soon enough, it became habitual for him to reside there more often than his room. He brought many of his belongings along to his tree-house. Perhaps it was the secret that was exciting for him to keep, something the other royals didn't know. Or perhaps it was the simple zeal of being closer to nature.
He never told anyone about his hideout, but he was sure Heimdall knew about it, and had informed the King and Queen of the same. Since no one had yet intervened in his excursions, he decided that it was no hinderance in the life of a prince.
Whenever he came back to the palace barely in time for dinner because he lost track of time, his parents didn't inquire about his whereabouts. His mother, instead, shared a fond look with Father, and her eyes glinted in humour as if hiding some great secret. His father only looked troubled in response, eventually sighing in resignation.
His brother, though, was none the wiser about Loki's excursions. In fact, he only grew more confused with time for the lack of excuse for Loki'd absences during major parts of the day.
"Sif, Sif! Listen to me! I know something's going on."
"Thor, you can never help but feel lost whenever it comes to Loki."
"Yes! But it's never been so significant as this. I barely see Loki around these days," Thor, for his credit, was observant despite his reputation of being oblivious, "I bet Mother and Father know what's going on, but no one will tell me."
"I'm sure it's nothing."
"But what if it's not? What if Loki's in trouble? You know how often he can get himself into those situations."
"Oh Thor, I know you worry. But we all know Loki is smart enough to ask for help when he needs it." Fandral answered as he entered the discussion as well.
As it goes, Thor's perplexity never really went away. He didn't know how to ask his brother without being gutted for being nosy, and his quiet hysteria only grew with his worry.
---
It was late at night when Thor was wakened up by an eerie feeling. No one was usually awake at this hour, except for the palace guards, and on occasion, his father, and some ministers.
Thor worked his mind to figure out why his subconscious decided to take a pass at sleep. It was then when he heard footsteps rushing outside his door.
He had heard recent rumours about active burglers who'd been traversing through Asgard. The thought that any would have had the audacity to enter the royal palace infuriated him.
Thor slipped out of his bed as quietly as possible, and took hold of his sword.
The hallways were empty as Thor navigated them, looking for any signs of an intruder. He turned the corner just as some guards walked by on their nightly patrols. He thought about informing them to his suspicions, but decided against it for he didn't want to be caught out of bed at this hour.
As he made his way away, Thor glimpsed a figure morphing and appearing in a human figure at a shaded distance.
Unbidden, a horrific thought caught him. What if these burglers had been tormenting his brother? They seemed to travel the royal halls easily, as if they'd been there before, and avoided the guards skillfully.
With a renewed fury, Thor made after the cloaked figure.
"Stop there, intruder! You've nowhere to go!" Thor yelled out.
Startled, the figure started to run. Thor gave it chase and they ended up running throughout the palace. Having found themselves at a loss, the figure ended up at the throne room.
"Now, surrender yourself!"
The cloaked figure hesitated a little. But Thor's impatience won out, and he lunged for the figure. The figure panicked and squeaked as it dodged. Thor didn't give it time to recuperate as he continuously slashed with his sword.
The figure gave little fight, and was soon enough pinned down by Thor, breathing heavily. In a bout of anger, the figure suddenly pushed Thor back, and, taken off guard by the sudden power and resistance, stumbled into Hliðskjálf.
They both paused.
The figure recovered first, and took their shock to wrestle the cloak off. Thor gaped as Loki, dishevelled, appeared from within.
"What in Helheim are you doing up at this hour?" Thor asked incredulously, at the futility of his agitation.
"Me?! What are you doing? Why'd you attack me?" Loki yelled back in frustration.
"You're dressed up in a dark cloak in the middle of the night. I thought you were an intruder! What else was I supposed to do? Why'd you run?"
"You came at me with a sword!"
"You didn't answer my question. Why were you entering the palace so late?" Come to think of it, Loki did seem to be in a hurry to leave dinner.
"...don't tell on me to Mother."
"Of course I'm telling on you! What were you doing out so late? You've been missing a lot these days, brother."
"..."
They both realised at the same time that Thor was still leaning on Hliðskjálf. Thor immediately jumped back as if the throne was searing his skin. Perhaps it was.
Asgard's throne was the supreme seat that overlooked the Nine Realms. Only the most powerful and deserving candidates could touch it, let alone sit on it, without being shred from the defiance by the throne. Thor and Loki might be the princes in line for the throne, but they were far from ruling the Nine Realms as of now. They both looked at Thor's hand in concern, just short of smoking, and Thor hissed as he poked the tender skin. It was in fine time that he pulled away.
They both couldn't make their escape, though, before Odin strode into the throne room looking furious, having been alerted of the throne's defenses being breached.
He stopped when he saw them, though. He looked confused for a moment, looked at the throne, at Thor's hand, and at their dishevelled appearences, and let out a prolonged sigh.
---
They both got away with it, in the end. But not without earning some extra time at their respective worst trainings. Odin simply accepted the experience as one of many to come; Frigga smiled in amusement at the tale of their antics; and Loki had to assist the kitchens for staying out so late at his tree-house. His excuses for forgetting his book at the tree-house, and having accidently fallen asleep there itself, didn't help him.
Thor eventually got an answer for his worry, too:
"Brother. Brother, you never explained to me where you've been these days."
"...fine. I'll take you with me tomorrow. You have to promise not to follow me with your merry band every day, though." Loki sighed in defeat.
"Of course not, brother!"
Loki knew that was a lie.