His hand is around his once-brother’s throat, fingers slowly tightening enough to perceive the flutter of a pulse beneath Loki’s skin.
“What are you waiting for, brother?” there’s a hint of a tease in Loki’s voice, and his green eyes shimmer with unspoken words that Thor can’t even begin to fathom. “Do it.”
Thor’s fingers tighten a fraction more and he clenches his jaw, battling within himself so as not to rise to the bait Loki has placed oh so clearly in front of him. It’s always difficult with the trickster, because Loki knows him so intimately. He knows exactly where to push and nudge in order to provoke a reaction.
Loki is dangerous, he has told himself that since aligning with the Avengers of Midgard. He is dangerous and he needs to be subdued.
But Loki is his brother. Ties of blood matter not when they have grown and fought side by side since infancy. Theirs is a bond deeper than blood.
The hand curled over his forearm flares blue and Thor hisses in response to the mild chill against his skin. Though he is indeed of the Jotun, Loki is not quite powerful enough to harm him this way. He could slay a mortal easily, but an immortal god has innate defenses against this side of Loki’s true nature.
Thor sighs, parting his lips as Loki slips a cerulean-tinged thumb past them in order to stroke his tongue, coating it with a thin layer of ice which melts instantaneously.
“Oh, Thor,” he whispers, and there is something unaccountably old in his voice now. “Sometimes I wonder if I should fear for your safety when I’m not around.”
“You are not a monster,” Thor bites back defiantly, already fully aware that Loki never truly believes him, no matter how sincere he is.
“But I am,” Loki murmurs in reply, leaning in to place a chaste kiss on the Thunderer’s mouth. “I am more dangerous than all of these insects your mortal friends face in battle put together. You know this.”
Unable to compete with his not-brother’s tongue when Loki is in a mood, Thor settles for silencing the trickster with another kiss, this one far less chaste. And when Loki chuckles against his lips, Thor considers it a victory.
Loki is the Philosopher King 