Thank you for taking the time to read my Loki x Jane pairing! To be clear, I do not own Marvel. And I have to thank my dear friend Sarah (xosairbearxo) for assisting me with this and motivating me to writing it and a shout out to VeronicaRage for helping me with the Title (I suck at Titles). Enjoy!

PS: I do not own Marvel or its characters. Merely having fun with them.

Rebirth

Prologue

It has been done.

Loki smiled at himself behind Odin's face. Placing the Allfather back into his sleep and deceiving Thor was just the beginning of his plans to take over the throne. He felt victorious and effectively triumphant. After a long and taxing day of manipulating his former friends and family, Loki took his leave to Odin's chambers where he would now spend the majority of his time plotting and scheming for his next annexations. When he arrived, he set the staff of Gungnir down against the gilded walls and ambled his way towards the bedside mirror, dissolving himself of his father's façade and his heavy armor of gold and green; left wearing nothing but loosely fitting dark green slacks. He stood in front of the mirror, grabbing it from both sides, and getting a good look at the nasty gash he had received earlier when fighting Maliketh's bodyguard. It had left a blackened and grotesque scar at the center of his abdomen. Loki tried to keep himself from remembering that deceitful moment when Thor cradled him in his arms in the middle of the rugged terrain of Svartalfheim. There he watched his younger brother die, and Loki gave him his last words.

"I didn't do it for him," Loki had struggled to speak his last breaths with heartfelt desperation.

Loki knew it was wrong of him, but selfishly manipulating Thor had to be done in order to take back what he had lost. Loki hated the pain in Thor's eyes as he lay dying. After hearing Thor speak of him honorably when the mischief god wore Odin's face, Loki couldn't help but feel a heavy ache in his heart for what he had done. He couldn't allow himself to break; he wanted power, and that required sacrifices.

I am burdened with glorious purpose… This was Loki's ever whispering mantra to himself.

And what a hefty burden the God carried. Loki's faith in himself kept his plans in motion, even if it meant betraying his brother yet again, not to mention the other added enemies he'd be destined to encounter soon enough. The hurt and pain Loki was feeling was weighing heavy on him, causing him to second-guess himself. His pain turned quickly into anger - anger which caused him to lash out. Loki curled his fingers into a fist and swung it violently towards the mirror, causing it to shatter into a million sharp pieces onto the floor. He pulled his hand away, seeing splinters of glass protruding from his knuckles and watched as drops of blood dripped to his feet. With a little magic he cleared his wounds away, but the remains of what was left of the mirror were scattered across the floor below him. He tightened his jaw in the horror of his rage and let out a deafening scream. Thor had forgiven him for everything he had done, and Loki had done unforgivable acts of treason and inexcusable betrayal, which stained his name. Loki couldn't help but hurt and feel. He needed a distraction.

Loki thought specifically of what he could do to distract himself from his laden heart that was tormenting his thoughts. Maybe a visit to one of the nine realms would give him insight into what he could plan next; what his next move could be. Being cooped up in the towers of Asgard bore no amusement for him. Loki was the God of Mischief, after all. He paced back and forth, listing off the realms one by one, until one familiar realm stopped him instantly and teased his tongue: Midgard. It had dawned on Loki that he had always been a bit curious to know how Midgard had moved on since his departure from his last invasion. However, Loki was unsure what exactly he would go there to do… until he came across a not-so-distant memory, back when he had confronted Thor before the New York incident occurred.

Loki began remembering the earlier promise he gave to Thor; when they first butted heads and about paying his mortal woman a visit - Ms. Jane Foster. However, that promise he had made had hostile intentions. To be truly honest with himself, Loki didn't hate Thor, so it didn't seem necessary to seek revenge on him anymore unless given a reason. Thor had suffered enough of Loki's antics; surely harming those he cared for was no longer needed. Of course, it was odd that Loki suddenly found himself thinking about Jane Foster. Since fighting alongside his brother and Jane while confronting Maliketh, Loki had developed a bit of a slight admiration for her. Witnessing her act as a host to the Aether was something of a marvel to him. He hadn't thought much of humans before New York; most of them seemed to be nothing but a flock of sheep to him - "mewling quims", he recalled defining them before - but since then he had been surprised at how resilient and intelligent they had become, developing into powerful and talented beings he had taken for granted. Even Loki could admit he was wrong about a few of them, and among them was Jane. She was especially different, and he couldn't help but wonder how such a small and diminutive human could house such an ominously withstanding and unpredictable power. Loki had experienced power like this first hand while wielding the Scepter and the Tesseract, thinking it was the one source of power in the universe that could grant him his desires to rule. But when seeing the Aether face to face, and flowing coursing through her veins was something else entirely; nothing like the Tesseract, but surly just as powerful, if not more so.

Before Loki's thoughts could drift elsewhere, he then remembered that first moment he met Thor's little scientist. Before he could even give her a polite introduction, expecting her to act coy, she laid a nice firm fist into his jaw, and he knew right then and there that he revered her strength & courage while standing up to a God like him. Considering everything he had done to her home, she was upfront about her feelings towards him, but not as intimidating as she intended her blow to emulate. However, through the course of their mission, Loki hadn't anticipated how much of an influence she was having on him during what little time they had spent together, until the three of them confronted Maliketh. Loki could replay the entire scenario as clear as day. He had her in his grasp once as he acted out the plan to bring Maliketh down.

Despite the Aether flowing through her veins, she struggled, but it did not wean him away from her like it had with the others that had attempted to intervene. He posed as a traitor for just a moment, dragging her frail body like a rag doll, but holding onto her tight, enjoying his little show while feeling effortlessly confident in himself as always. This intrigued Loki secretively, and the moment that Jane was out of his grasp was the moment he begun to see her differently. He had wanted nothing more than to knock Maliketh into oblivion while the Dark Elf King had Jane floating in midair, with the Aether being extracted from her body. The Accursed had no interest in her at all; the Aether's power was Maliketh's true desire. As much as Loki wanted to eradicate the Dark Elf, he knew he couldn't jeopardize the strategy that both he and Thor had in store. It was a delicate plan, but so was Jane. She was so small and powerless at Maliketh's hand, but to interfere would've cost them their lives.

Stick to the plan, Loki… He had recited to himself as he watched Jane levitate, exposed and vulnerable.

With the Aether perfectly exposed and in clear view, they had attempted to destroy it. Loki remembered only being too determined to then shield Jane from the blast. He suddenly felt the need and desire to protect her. Loki had almost fallen completely on top of her after colliding with her frail body, nearly touching her face with his. His heart had begun beating wildly with adrenaline as his hand unintentionally grabbed her by the waist; at that moment, he thought it was the rush of the attack, but her piercing brown eyes had locked onto his then, and Loki looked effortlessly hypnotized. Jane was clearly in shock, but something else had surfaced in her expression - confusion, relief, gratefulness? Loki didn't know. All he could do in that brief moment was stare into her big brown eyes. The moment was instantaneously short, and he shook the thought immediately as he propped himself higher, hovering above Jane and seeing if their plan had worked.

His reverie faded then, and now he was left looking back at that moment, practically being driven insane over it. Ever since he met Jane - when she first threw her fist against his face - he decided he would never allow harm to come to her as long as he'd know her. She put up a fight amongst the Asgardian immortals and the Dark Elves, which was more than commendable and rather intriguing to him. Now she was back on Midgard, as safe as any human could be, he supposed, but something was nagging him. He couldn't steer away from his curiosity to wonder if she truly was safe. Thor would seek out Heimdall nearly every day to ask about Jane's safety, and since Maliketh's visit to Earth, she had been – but Loki didn't have that luxury and now he somehow felt the need to see for himself.

Don't be ridiculous, Loki; she's just a mortal woman; nothing worth your time. So she's got a bit of a backbone; you're a God and she an impotent woman.

He shook his head as if to rid him of his discouraging thoughts of Jane, pacing back and forth and trying to think of something else he cared to do. Now that she plagued his mind, it was of no use. Was this the affect she had on immortal men; on Thor? Or was there something else altered about her? He was aware of the unique abilities that a few Midgardians possessed, and he wondered for a good long moment. Could she be more than a mere human? It was then he decided that he wanted to pay her a visit – find out for himself - but he just wasn't sure how. After everything that had happened, how could he even show his face? She watched him die, just as Thor had. He would have to be discreet and unnoticed. He couldn't risk her seeing him and then telling S.H.I.E.L.D - or even Thor - for that matter. And if that were to happen, his plans would be effectively ruined. All his efforts would be in vain if he sought her out and made himself known; but Loki was selfish in his own way and couldn't help his undying need to see her.

What is wrong with me? Get a hold of yourself!

He was growing irritated with his thoughts of Jane; how she was making him feel and how much he had to try and shove them aside. He felt so alone and going to visit Jane seemed to be the only way to fill the gaping hole that was causing his heart to ache. If he was going to visit her, he would need to leave a decoy of Odin behind, a distraction to Thor and his friends to allow him to visit Midgard without suspicions, and somehow shield himself from Heimdall so that he could slip through the Bifrost undetected like he had countless times before.

Doing this would take intricate planning and a good deal of time, but he was impatient now. Loki then thought about taking his chances and just going for it. It's not like they'd be expecting him or his mischief when, as far as they were concerned, he was dead. Loki then wondered if maybe Thor suspected on some level that his little brother was alive, seeing as how this wasn't the first time he had "died" and then unexpectedly returned. But Loki had his plans already in motion. He couldn't risk failing again. All of this "realm conquering" business was beginning to be more problematic than it was worth, it seemed. Loki wanted to go on his own spontaneous adventure, and going to Midgard to see Jane seemed worthwhile enough.