Thor and Loki stood at the mouth of the alley, staring in disbelief at the disheveled, potbellied vagrant inside.
The gray-bearded old man struggled to rummage through the trash. Suddenly sensing someone watching him, he turned toward the immaculately dressed Thor and Loki and gave them a vacant smile.
"Father, what are you doing here?"
Thor hurried forward and helped the filthy, slightly stooped old man to his feet.
The old man looked at Thor in confusion and hastily drew back his grimy hands, seemingly afraid of dirtying the clothes of the tall, kindhearted man before him.
Thor pulled Odin into his arms instead, his powerful body trembling slightly.
"Father, what happened to you? Come home with me."
Loki watched with mixed emotions. He was no longer the humble second son of Odin whom Brad had met all those years ago. Much had happened since then. After learning the truth about his origins, he had turned against Asgard and repeatedly attempted to conquer Earth or attack Asgard, only for Thor and his comrades on Earth to thwart every scheme.
Strictly speaking, he was now an enemy of Asgard.
That included the two men before him, Thor and Odin. Though they were nominally his brother and father, Loki had once hated them.
Yet when an exhausted Thor had sought him out, hoping his magic could locate the long-missing Odin, Loki had helped him after first subjecting Thor to a vicious round of mockery and ridicule.
Now, seeing Odin stripped of his memories, reduced to scavenging through trash on Earth to survive, Loki wanted to hate him, but could no longer summon any hatred for Odin.
Meanwhile, Odin tried in confusion to break free of Thor's embrace. But without his divine power, how could he resist Thor's strength? After several fruitless attempts,