The presence of the boy, Loki, as he called himself, was a thorn in Heimdall's side.

He knew very well that his visit to the All-Father would not bring anything good.

But even in the uncertainty that the boy brought with him, the god could still see in some parallels that Ragnarök could have a good end for himself.

Yet no matter how he did it, if he himself wanted to survive, Odin had to die.

Everything inside him loathed this.

He had been born to serve Asgard, the king of kings. That was his destiny.

Odin was Asgard and Asgard was Odin. So if he ever wanted to live a life of self-determination then he had to discard everything he had laid for all those years before.

And all that for only a simple human.

As soon as he remembered that your existence was mortal, he also realised that the time for which he would sacrifice everything was limited.

In the end, his decision lay between a few decades of happiness and an infinity of stability.

It was strange, but only a few days ago he would have chosen the latter without hesitation.

But now he was uncertain, undecided. He had never doubted before, neither about what would happen nor about himself, because he knew exactly what had to be done to achieve the desired result.

But now he was at odds.

On one hand, there was his mind that insisted on logic and the old familiar habits.

On the other hand, there was this unknown desire inside him. The desire to finally be with someone. He was longing for company. Possibly even love.

He had to pull a face grimly at the thought.

Never would he have admitted it, but it was exactly what Heimdall ultimately craved. He wanted a spouse, just as his useless brother Thor had had for thousands of years.

Even if the world ended, even after Ragnarok, Sif would be by Thor's side. Secretly, Heimdall envied the God of Thunder for this.

Finally his chance had come. All he had to do was sacrifice the existence he had known since birth.

"What are you making such a face about again?", an old voice suddenly asked with amusement.

Torn from his thoughts, Heimdall looked up.

The Allfather greeted him with a slightly mocking yet annoyed expression.

Heimdall looked around in confusion.

He had not noticed that he had reached the great lodge together with Loki.

All at once voices flooded his head. Laughter mingled in his ears.

Once again the familiar headache nestled in the top of his skull.

Ever since he had been blessed with the gift of foresight and mind-reading, these pains had been his constant companion.

Only in your company was everything quiet and he could feel the sweetness that came with a life without pain.

"All-father.", Heimdall bowed to Odin. "You have... a guest."

Disgruntled, he glanced over his shoulder at the boy who was staring with curiosity in his eyes at the ceiling where a candlestick hung.

A raven sat between the flames of the candles.

Heimdall frowned in confusion.

Normally the Allfather used his ravens for espionage.

However in the great lodge there was no reason to do so. The most exciting thing that happened were brawls after a drinking bout.

He had stopped sending out his ravens an incredibly long time ago.

So why had he started again?

All at once Heimdall felt discord towards his father.

Never before had he doubted him. But at that moment there was not a single doubt that something was wrong.

Odin, however, did not seem to notice his son's penetrating gaze. His full attention was on the young one.

"Loki.", he said and immediately gifted him a smile. "You came. I am so honoured. I see, you've already met Heimdall. He reads minds for me."

As he said so, the Allfather locked eyes with his son.

A moment of awakened silence spread.

But inside, Heimdall was raging.

The thoughts of the All-Father flooded his head. He could feel what he felt.

There was suspicion.

Caution.

Why did his own father distrust him?

After all he had done to prove his loyalty why was he so tense in his presence?

It was not a stranger he was facing. Everything he felt at the sight of Heimdall should have been for the intruder, Loki.

Instead, Odin was as nervous at the sight of his own flesh and blood as if he were in the presence of a giant.

Immediately Heimdall knew that something was wrong. The Allfather was hiding something from him.

But his thoughts were too confused to find out exactly what it was. All he could think was that Odin had found out something he was not supposed to know.

Suddenly a cold shiver chased down his spine. All the hairs stood up on the back of his neck.

No, it couldn't be. It mustn't be.

Immediately your name popped into his head.

"What about you?", Odin suddenly asked with an impatient expression on his old face.

"Hm?", Heimdall was unable to bring a proper word to his lips.

"You are still here."

"Of course I am. This is my home.", his pink gaze fell on the boy. "Besides, he's wrong, Allfather. He means to betray you."

Unimpressed, Odin gestured.

"Of course he wants to betray me, Heimdall. I have given him no reason to trust me. Not yet."

Anger tugged at the nerves of the god of foresight.

With a low growl, he pressed his lips into a thin line and frowned. But he kept his emotions calm.

This was not a good place to argue with the king of the gods. Besides, he was afraid of what might happen if he objected for the first time.

So he clenched his hands into fists, furrowed his brows grimly and bowed in farewell.

Yet, as he turned to leave he could not help but meet the Jötnar's gaze one last time.

His thoughts flooded Heimdall's head.

The young intruder feared the Allfather. He worried about how cruel and deceitful he could be.

How strange it was that the son could relate to the stranger's feelings.