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It wasn't for several long years that an old thought of mine had reared its face once again and I had done nothing but reflected on the similarities between Loki and a rare occurrence in Asgard.
When I had this thought the first time, I had been young in both mind and body, teetering dangerously between barely being adolescent and the maturity expected from me now. I was not the only one expected of such a thing but I was the only one who had thrown away silk dresses for a warrior's armor. I, whose title began with Lady and ended with Warrior of the Realm Eternal, remember clearly how this thought had formed in my mind.
I remember the cool breeze lifting my long hair up and how it danced in the wind as I danced in my own way. I remember the way my opponent swiftly ducked out of the way of each violent swing of my wooden training sword. I remember Loki and the thought I had believed with every fiber of my being as the truest thought I had ever had...
I watched him with an intense determination in my eyes as he moved gracefully out of the way but quickly approached with his own attacks. I moved quickly with a block and the sound of blunt wooden swords echoed before we broke away for another approach.
And then it began to rain. We didn't halt in our fight as rain fell from the sky and drenched us to our very cores. We used in our own way to try to get the upper hand. We fought for so long, refusing to let the other beat us until finally Thor had to drag Loki and I away from the rain so we wouldn't catch a cold.
I stood underneath the awning as a thought passed through my mind when the sky light up and thunder shook the ground beneath me.
Thor was the Prince of Thunder, this was fairly obvious. He made his presence known to all like thunder in a rain storm.
But Loki...
Loki was like lightning. He was quick, there one moment and gone the next. He twisted and turned in unpredictable patterns. Sometimes, he branched out into multiple Loki's. He was flashy and bright but it was all for show. And like the myth lightning has, he never struck the same place twice as far as I've noticed.
But it was not lightning that scared the little ones. It was the booming thunder that shook the ground beneath them. Indeed, thunder was a powerful thing but lightning was just as powerful. Yet, no one feared lightning. They had no reason to. Lightning only gave them pause as they watched it for brief moments. It was thunder that stole the show and lightning was outside lighting up the sky to draw people's attention back to it, away from the thunder.
I looked away from the storm and headed back toward my chambers to dry off.
I would say nothing of my thought for many years. It faded due to time and other important matters. Loki's return to Asgard only resurfaced the forgotten thought as rain fell from the sky upon his return.
I stare at him now, protected behind the glass around him but also trapped within it. I say nothing for the longest time but I simply stare. There are many things I wish to say to him. Many things I wish to yell and scream and rant to him about the things he's done. I hear the distant sound of rain pattering, of thunder rumbling and- Briefly, my head turns toward the small window at the end of the hall as it lights up outside- the lightning appears.
"How does it feel, Sif?" He asks from behind the glass. "To know you will never be the one beside him? That you will be cast aside, forgotten, and abandoned by the man you so desire, Lady Sif?"
He always did bring the attention back to him. I think for a moment before turning my head back toward him. "It'll be an interesting storm, don't you think?" I ask him, ignoring his attempt to slight me with his words. "We do get so few of them." Thunder rumbled loud enough to reach the prisons. "But you know what I like best about them?"
"Clearly, you prefer the thunder." Loki said swiftly.
"How could I like something that's not even there to see?" I ask and he was silent for once. "No, I rather like lightning instead. It's very flashy. Kind of like how an old friend of mine used to be before his jealousy and hatred got the best of him."
Loki turned from me. "Leave." He said simply but his tone of voice conveyed so much more. He was angry and hurt. He still thought people were supposed to do as he commanded but I did not listen.
I stepped toward the glass, toward the man I had known that had changed so much in such short time. Loki remained frozen on the other side of the glass. I watched him for quite some time before turning and leaving as I left Loki alone with his thoughts. I looked back briefly to see him use his magic. The objects close to him went flying away from him violently but his back remained facing me. He said nothing but I couldn't help myself and stopped briefly once more. "It may have been hard to tell when Thunder and Lightning are so close to each other but my eyes never did stare at Thunder." I murmured loud enough for him to hear. "I always liked Lightning but it was only there for brief moments that I never got the chance to stare at it for long." I turned once again and walked away from Loki.
The thoughts remain each and every time I see a storm after that. It doesn't matter whether it was on Asgard or another realm. I ignore the thunder's powerful booms and briefly watch the sky for signs of lightning.