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According to tradition, once a new King and Queen is crowned, the previous ones depart the realm for a century or two. That gives the new rulers the opportunity to implement any changes they see fit to establish their own rule, without being influenced by their predecessors.
It was no different with Thor and Sif. A few days after their coronation, Odin and Frigga will depart Asgard. They will leave behind a grand legacy, kind words of wisdom... and Loki.
-
The last act Thor had performed as a Prince was to bring Loki back to Asgard for the final time. It had not been what anyone could have expected, though. The Loki he brought back had been destroyed and mangled by his own insanity. Sif could barely recognize a sentient being in him. This Loki had been a snarling beast, without any scrap of sanity. He'd spend his days babbling nonsense to himself or screeching and flinging his magic around in fits. He'd been a danger to others, but most of all to himself. On numerous occasions, Loki had bitten and/or scratched himself till his flesh was an open, bleeding wound. Worse still, they had all been helpless to stop any of it. Medicaments did not work, therapy magic did not work, and restraining him only made his rages worse.
After a time, the healers had discovered that there would never be a cure. The madness hadn't been merely in Loki's mind, where it could be easily treated by a trained mind healer. According to Eir, Loki's brain was the reason for his madness. It had been severely damaged, possibly by his fall through the Void. The damage had spread and grown over time, reaching deep and devastating Loki to his very core. Not even a shadow of who he'd once been remained. All that was left was a snarling lunatic, lips constantly stained with his own blood.
Returning Loki to how he had been before he fell through the Void was impossible. There had been no hope.
Which was not acceptable to Thor. He'd spent weeks in the Library, searching through old books and grimoires until he'd found a different type of hope. A spell older than Bor himself, nearly as ancient as Yggdrasil. It would not restore Loki, but it would give him a second chance at his life. The spell would remove his memories and experiences Loki had had throughout his life. All his vast knowledge of evil and trickery would be lost. The spell would erase Loki as they had come to loathe him and return him to an age in which he had been innocent and pure, too young to know of any evils lurking in the realms. Younger still, even before he'd pulled his first malicious prank. In essence, Loki would be turned into a child.
On Thor's demand and by Odin's decree, the spell had been performed. And the Loki Sif had known was no more.
-
Sif honestly had expected this child Loki to rage and disobey like the madman he'd been. Instead Loki was quiet. Quiet and sad and shy. Frigga claimed that the shyness was something they'd had to train out of him when he'd originally been a child as well. The sadness was the only thing that was new. It made Sif uncomfortable.
She wondered if they'd told him. At the very beginning, after the spell had wrought its changes, the Royal Family had kept this new Loki isolated. Only they'd had access to him, as well as a handful of selected servants. During that time, had they told him the truth? Had they told him of his madness and the damage he'd caused all around the Nine Realms? Or had they filled his head with believable lies to explain why he was still a child while everyone else had grown older? Sif wondered that sometimes, as she watched him. Did he know? Was he confused? Did he understand even a single thing about his situation?
Sif hoped not. This Loki was too little to comprehend such things. No child should have to live with that kind of knowledge weighing them down. It would defeat what Thor was trying to accomplish. Thor's goal was for Loki to be okay again, even if Thor would have to raise him himself. Which was exactly what they had decided to do. Thor had argued that Loki needed different care than their parents, old and set in their ways, could provide. After several hours of presenting his case, he had won that argument. Odin and Frigga agreed to relinquish their rights an duties as parents and permitted Thor to take over.
Thus Loki had become Thor's. And through her marriage to Thor, Loki would become Sif's as well. Which might be a problem. Sif had no clue about child rearing. She'd never even had to interact with children in any meaningful capacity. She had no idea what to feed them, what to do with them, how to speak to them.
It worried her. Once she marries Thor and is crowned Queen of Asgard, she will also receive the honored title of AllMother. How could she be worthy of it if she had no clue what to do with children?
Thor, of course, did not share her worries. He will make a skilled AllFather, he had a knack for children. He always seemed to know what Loki wanted or needed. He knew what to say, and how to play with him. Perhaps Thor simply had a knack for Loki. Either way, Sif had much to learn before she caught up to him.
-
Those were the thoughts that had plagued Sif for months before her wedding. Now, as she stood in front of Thor and all of Asgard during their wedding ceremony, she made a vow. To him and to herself.
“I vow to you, Thor, that I shall earn the title of Wife and Queen by my own actions. I will strive to uphold my honor as Goddess of War, to bring further glory onto Asgard. I also vow to endeavor to be worthy of the title AllMother to the best of my abilities.” He glanced at Loki pointedly, then lifted her chin, back straight with certainty. Sif might not make the best mother. Sif might barely meet the bare requirements of being maternal. But she will try to be a mother to Loki. She will try to work up the correct emotions and responses a mother should have. She glanced at Loki, and pursed her lips. Mothers loved the children in their care, and so shall she.
Thor bestowed a bright smile upon her and squeezed her fingers in gratitude. “I accept your vow.” Thor intoned, just as she had accepted his. Together, they turned to Odin and the wedding ceremony continued.