Pairing/Character(s): Thor, Loki, Odin, Frigga, Heimdall
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Summary: What happens after Loki lets go?
Disclaimer: Thor and all accompanying characters are copyrighted to Marvel.
Thor's wail of anguish is going to haunt him for the rest of his life. It's going to haunt him in his dreams, in his Odinsleep, turning it into a veritable nightmare - the pain, the despair, the… torment of this wail, the pure, raw edge of it pierces his ears. Loki, no. No, Loki.
He has just lost a son, he'll be damned if he loses another. Odin pulls Thor up with his strength, but as soon as he's on the Bifrost, Thor lashes out at him. Gibberish comes from his mouth, enraged snarls and screams, and his fists take huge swings at him, punching, pushing, hitting wherever he can.
"Thor! Calm down! Calm down!" Odin grabs his wrists and realizes he's past reasoning, past understanding; Thor struggles in his father's strong grasp and his breathing is ragged and uneven. Finally, he does seem to calm down, his chest heaving and shoulders shaking, so much strength, barely under control. Odin waits, his hands still on Thor's wrists, before he finally releases his grip. "We go inside," he says. "Your mother..."
It takes only a split second to understand. He's almost too late, as Thor turns around and all but jumps off of the Bifrost, if it weren't for Odin holding him at his belt. The snarling starts again, incomprehensible screams and shouts, anger and despair as Thor tries to throw himself off of the Bifrost, after Loki, after his brother.
"Heimdall! Heimdall, help me!" For the first time in his life, Odin sounds scared. He has faced wars, destruction, death and sadness - but he has never seen such torment and despair, and while his heart is breaking for both his sons, he steadies himself, he steels himself, for he is King.
The All-Seer joins him and pulls Thor back from the edge of the broken bridge. He goes berserk, lashing out all his fury on the Watcher and the All-Father. It takes the both of them to subdue Thor and bring him back to the palace, while the wormhole closes itself irrevocably.
When he wakes up, Frigga is next to his side, her fingers carefully stroking his cheek.
"How are you feeling?" she asks.
"Loki," he immediately breathes. "Where is he?"
"We can't see him," she answers. Her voice is thick. "He's... gone."
"No."
She doesn't speak. Just a tender stroke of her finger, but the look in her eyes speak volumes. Thor sees the grief, the sadness, mirroring his own - and he also sees the definitive acceptance of his mother. Loki is gone.
"You're not allowed to be outside for a while," Frigga says. Thor nods, even if jumping off of the Bifrost won't bring Loki back. If he jumped off now, he wouldn't end up in the same place as Loki - if anyone could ever survive a black hole like that, a destroyed universe folding up in itself. His brother has survived, Thor is sure of it - he's not like a Midgardian, who break their brittle bones so easily, who get drunk after one pint of beer and grow old, frail and fragile.
"I understand, Mother," he says and he puts his large hand over hers. Frigga lowers her head, her golden curls shifting over her shoulder. "What..." he asks softly, "...what will happen now?"
"We mourn," she says. "We all mourn."