Loki stood in the doorway and watched Jane dress herself. He looked at her, but he didn't really see her. "I'm sorry," he blurted out suddenly and focused on her. He hated apologizing, it was a weakness. He didn't want to love, it was a weakness also. Except Loki had found himself loving Jane, and he had finally accepted how that would change his life, even if he still found it hard to voice how much he cared. Jane understood his feelings, she understood his difficulty in expressing them, and she was okay with that.

Loki had made peace with his feelings for her and had privately gloated that he had something, someone, that would care about him without expectations or reason. She was his, and he'd decided long before that she would stay that way. Her health and safety was his priority.

That's why when Eir had told him what had awakened the latent aether within her he'd stumbled back slightly and stared at her, knowing that pain and shock had shown in his eyes. Him, it was him. Magic had served him so well his entire life, and now it had reawakened the nightmare within Jane.

It was his magic the aether was drawn to, his dark magic. It had moved within her body, swirling in her eyes. And when he'd touched her skin it flowed to the point of contact. In a fit of anger he'd lashed out unknowingly with his magic, wanting to fight it, and succeeded in pushing it back down into it's dormant state. But she'd screamed and collapsed in his arms as a result. He hadn't hated himself so much since the death of his mother.

She turned and looked at him, her face slightly pale and drawn. "It's not your fault."

"Don't say that," he said and pushed off the door sill. "It's always my fault."

"Loki…"

"Everything that I touch is tainted. If it wasn't for me-."

"You didn't put the aether there!" She exclaimed loudly. "It wasn't your curiosity that drew me to get infected. And even if it wasn't your magic to awaken it, someday it would have happened, you have to know that!" Jane sighed and closed the distance between them. "I don't blame you, so don't blame yourself. If it wasn't for you I'd still be fighting it. You helped me."

Her hand touched his arm and he glanced down at it, grateful for the distraction. Finally, he looked up. "I'll find a way to get it out of you." She smiled softly up at him and Loki sighed. Unable to punish himself any longer, because he was selfish above all things, he slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against him.