Jane eased the skimmer out of the wormhole and into regular sub-light speed so smoothly that the rickety extender braces on the old ship didn't even creak. She smiled. Even after decades of navigating the far reaches of the galaxy either with a small crew or no crew at all, it still gave her little geeky heart a thrill to see a new planet looming up on her viewscreen.
This year was Loki's pick, and as usual, he had chosen a tiny, out of the way gem somewhere they could be completely alone. Even though this moon orbited one of the largest gas giants in the Argolis cluster, it was uncharted save by probe and completely uninhabited.
The moon looked green as an emerald from her fast-approaching ship, veined through with streaks of lapis. Loki had told her it was a second Eden (however much he sniffed at the idea of such a primitive myth), home to one of the largest rainforests in the entire Alpha quadrant.
She adjusted the angle of approach and ran a preliminary scan of the atmosphere. It was oxygen rich, high in humidity and correspondingly high in temperature, and…ooh. She winced. Nearly 75% of the planet's surface was experiencing precipitation at that very moment.
Jane had a cat's natural aversion to rain, but as Loki was well-aware of that, she had a sneaking suspicion this climate was part of his clever plan.
If the weather was bad, Jane was the first one to suggest holing up indoors until it improved. On this vacation, he clearly meant to have her all to himself.
Well, she could hardly blame him. Last year, she'd picked the upper-atmosphere observatories of Kelas IX for their rendezvous. Afterwards, Loki had complained he'd barely seen her except for a few hurried dinners…and such was hardly in the spirit of their birthday get-togethers.
She had to grant him that. The point of flying some forty-seven light years away from Earth was so that she could get away from the ambassador's post and he could take a break from his research; but it was also so that they could enjoy some time together.
Eternity was eternity—and Jane hadn't yet learned to think of 5,000 years as anything shorter than forever—but that didn't mean they could spend months apart without feeling it.
Jane left the ship on half automatic on the drop through the atmosphere, just keeping her eyes on the controls in case of any unexpected wind sheer. But the ride was smooth and uneventful; she only took the controls to manage the finer details of setting the skimmer down on the broad patch of earth Loki had cleared for it.
When she saw the bare patch, she nearly laughed. Having purposely left Earth early to surprise him, she still didn't manage to catch him napping. A little cottage, hastily but elegantly constructed from Loki's magic, was tucked just off the landing site. Its bright windows cast a warm yellow light into the encroaching darkness of the jungle beyond.
Jane set the skimmer down with a graceless thump, but her hands were suddenly shaking and her heart was beating with girlish eagerness. It had been three months since she'd seen him last.
Quickly, she ducked into the tiny pilot's bathroom and gave herself a quick once-over. The crow's feet were creeping back around her eyes, and there was a touch of silver dusting each of her temples, but for all that…
She stuck her tongue out at the reflection. For all that, she looked damn good for two-hundred and nine!
Of course, Loki would never let himself go no matter his age—and tomorrow was his one thousand, two hundred and eighty-third birthday—but he didn't have to try and wrangle respect from the United Nations. Jane had eaten her first apple of Idunn at their wedding ceremony when she was twenty-eight. Her face hadn't lost its childish roundness, and her voice was still high and fragile.
No one listened to a girl like that. Despite his youthful appearance, Loki had various ways of commanding respect…but the last time he'd tried that on Earth it hadn't worked out well for anyone.
Jane was a far better choice as Asgard's envoy on Midgard. She just let herself age into the post.
She paused to consider, eyes lingering on the gray in her hair. It would only take about fifteen minutes to brew a cup of tea with the slices of dried apple that would restore her youth, but she couldn't wait that long.
Loki was waiting.
Scooping up the wrapped present and her go-bag, she trotted down the gangplank as it descended.
Loki—casual in his most stripped-down look of linen tunic and pants—met her with outspread arms and an even wider grin. Jane let her bag and box drop and ran straight to him, jumping to wrap her legs around his waist.
Had anyone asked her thirty minutes ago whether or not she missed Loki, Jane would have answered with a matter-of-fact: of course, I missed him. I love my husband.
Now, feeling his lips nuzzle the sensitive spot below her ear and nudge towards her mouth, she wondered how in heaven she had managed without him for so long.
No longer. She turned her head to meet his lips and savored the warmth and welcome of his kiss. Welcome. That was the word. No matter how long she had been gone from him and he from her, one kiss was all it took to put them right back together.
The months between might not have happened; she was back home.
When Loki moved to pull back, Jane caught his lower lip between her teeth and tugged, gently.
"Trying to draw first blood, dearest?"
"Just getting a head start," she teased. "After all, the two of us—together—in a cabin in the woods in the middle of nowhere? That's just asking for trouble."
"I hate to disagree with you, Ambassador, but I can recall many such secluded vacations that have given nothing but pleasure to us both."
His smile was sinful, and Jane felt the joke wither on her lips. A deep shudder shivered through her skin; she remembered them too.
"Why," she leaned closer and kissed him again, slowly. "I believe you might be right."
She unwrapped her legs and slid to the ground, moving instead to tuck her head under his chin.
"I missed you, Jane," his arms came around her and pressed her tightly to his chest. She smiled against the soft cloth of his tunic.
"So there were no comely fire giantesses to help you pass the lonely hours? No one you could sweep off into the sulfur caves or lava tunnels? It's been all work and no play for Loki on Muspelheim?"
His grumble rolled like thunder in his chest. "Since," he began, in a much put-upon tone, "fire giants are composed of malleable magma, and since I spend most of my spare time trying to find a more manageable clime to base my research, the answer to your first two questions is a decided no."
"Poor Loki," she stifled a laugh. "Doing the All-Father's dirty work is hard."
"On more than one of us, it seems," and his fingers were gently stroking her long hair. "I see someone has been neglecting her regular cup of tea."
"Oh," she took his fingers and brought them to her lips, "does it bother you? I found out pretty quickly that no one wanted to take advice from a girl in her twenties. It's hard for humans to accept me as an immortal being if I don't show at least a few signs of my age."
"It means nothing to me," he said, "as you would be beautiful no matter your years."
"Idle flatterer," she scoffed.
He did not dispute that. "But be careful. If you age too much and require a fresh apple, we will have to petition him again. And you know how he dislikes waste."
And how much of a waste he considers me, she agreed silently. The subject of Odin was still a delicate one between them. "I'll be careful," she promised.
Jane had been careful. Careful to tie up every loose end with Thor before she'd moved on with his brother, and that had gone well. Thor had given them his enthusiastic blessing; whatever made Loki happy made Thor pleased as a puppy. Even Frigga had been happy for them both, though unable to blunt her husband's pointed opinion about a mortal marrying into the royal family.
It was a strange position to be in; Odin did not think Loki worthy of Asgard's throne, but he thought him worth far more than Jane. He had also never forgiven her for romancing one son before settling on the other.
Not for the first time and certainly not for the last, Jane thought: you have no idea how to judge the idea of worth, All-Father. And you never will.
"Let's forget about all that," she brushed it aside with a final hug and stepped back, "I have something for you and I can't wait to see you open it."
She turned and bent to retrieve her bag and the box with his present.
"It may have to wait," he said, voice curiously strained. Jane looked over her shoulder to see his gaze fastened firmly on her backside.
Straightening back up, she played idly with the laces on her blouse, watching his eyes dilate at the sliver of skin they revealed. "And what makes you think," she sauntered forward, "that I'm not the thing to unwrap?"
Catching her wrist, he all but dragged her to him.
Against his hungry lips, she whispered, "Happy birthday."
If he made any reply, she didn't hear it.