Author's Note: I have uploaded this story before, but I left it unfinished, and it was pretty sloppy. So I have edited through, and hopefully improved it somewhat! I hope you enjoy x
Jane sat alone in her room, staring absentminded out of the window at the stunning views of Asgard. She allowed her gaze to wander, drinking in the sights of this alien world. Children played just as they did on Earth, and adults laughed at their antiques. But beside them warriors sparred, unnatural blue sparks flying between their weapons. Among those practicing, she saw Sif, incredibly elegant, her limbs flying at such great speed, but extending and contracting more beautifully than any Earth-bound ballerina. Thor's own sight was focused on that same dancing warrior. Jane let a sigh escape her lips, her eyes on the embellished floor. Since Thor had declined the throne offered him by his father, he had behaved as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. She was happy for him, truly, but they no longer shared the intense intimacy that had carried their relationship.
Last night there had been a feast, one of many, and she had attended, draped in finery, her spirits high despite worries for her future. She had taken the prised seat on Thor's right, but Sif had held the opposite chair. Thor was a gentleman and a friend, but the whole night he made no attempt to touch Jane. She wasn't going to deny that it wounded her, but at the same time, she had no urge to reach out to him either. She saw the sideways glances, the fleeting eye contact, the gentle blushes that Sif shared with Thor, and rather than inciting a jealous swell, it merely made her curious as to how the story would pan out.
Thor had of course walked her home that night, but she had turned away from his dutiful kiss.
"I'm sorry," she said as his eyebrows curled to a frown.
"Why are you sorry, Jane?" She struggled to force the words from her throat, the ones that would set him free. It wasn't that she didn't love him, because she was certain she did. But they had spent very little time together, and when they were confronted with weeks of the uninterrupted pleasure of each other's company, the sparks that had sizzled between them had died down. Maybe it was not meant to be; maybe the fate he spoke of was one of friendship instead.
All of this raced through her mind, but refused to form into words. His strong hands cupped hers, and she raised her eyes to his. They were filled with such warmth and understanding. It was that look, that comforting gesture, which opened the floodgates of her mind. She found the words, letting them pour forth, and they spent what turned out to be a happy night discussing all they had been through, cementing their friendship.
So if she had felt so much relief last night at the truth being revealed, why were tears now falling to the tiles beneath her feet?
Her head was pressed against Thor's shoulder, the two of them stood next to Odin, at the head of a meagre crowd. The format of Loki's funeral was the same as Frigga's, but he had nowhere near as many supporters. She turned to look up at Thor, but suddenly she was alone. The boat was still nearby, and she knelt, peering into its shadowy depths. She could just make out Loki's face, his eyes wide open, grinning up at her. She began to scream.
The bags under her eyes deepened with every passing day, and Thor's concern grew. He visited her in her chambers often, but she was clearly flagging, and he was scared of tiring her out further. She refused to tell him why she couldn't sleep.
He had taken her to Asgard so they could spend time together, and she so desperately wanted to see his world, but now she just spent all her time curled up at the window, barely even looking out. He was beginning to wonder if there was something seriously wrong with her, some grave illness. She kept claiming it was simply lack of sleep, but after a week of her lacklustre gaze, he refused to take no for an answer, almost carrying her to his father.
The moment Jane laid eyes on Odin she began shivering, a terrible feeling sinking within her. She couldn't work out why, but there was something unnatural, something wrong with him. She met his eyes, and they were cool and distant. His words were filled with warmth, but those eyes. They betrayed his detachment, his superiority. Thor held her close, his warmth comforting her, but she could not stop her shuddering. She didn't hear a word that Odin said, but gathered later from Thor that he diagnosed it as exhaustion, and suggested that maybe it was time she returned to Earth. She didn't have the energy to argue.
As soon as she was back on Earth, the terrible feeling that had gripped her since seeing Odin disappeared. Thor remained that night to ensure she was okay, and she slept for thirteen hours. She woke refreshed, so much more like her old self, and Thor was overjoyed at her transformation. They arranged that he would collect her in two months time, just after Christmas, and she would come to Asgard again.
Jane tapped her fingers against the table, staring frustrated at the screen lying on the table in front of her.
'It's been doing that for days, and there's no sign of him. Now how about you come outside?' Darcy said, her tone infuriatingly patronising. Jane took a deep breath in, and let it out in a slow whoosh. Darcy wasn't infuriating. Thor was. And this damn thing! She picked it up and shoved it into her bag.
'Fine. Let's go.' She grunted.
'Yes! At last! The beast awakens!' Jane just rolled her eyes in response.
Half an hour later they were firmly seated in a booth in Starbucks, looking out at the busy streets of London.
'So when are we leaving?' Darcy's question was posed on almost a daily basis.
'I told you, I'm not going anywhere, and as my intern, you have be where I am.' Jane could feel a stubborn note creeping into her voice.
'I'm not directly your intern. Can I go?' Ian piped up.
'Shut up, Intern,' Darcy said affectionately, punching him lightly.
'I'm not giving up,' Jane said. Thor was only three months late. It was fine. And the readings didn't lie. Someone was approaching from another world. It was just taking them longer than normal.
'Hello? Jane? Seriously, since that thing went nuts last week, you haven't heard a word I've said, have you?' Jane snapped back to attention at Darcy's insistent prodding.
'Sorry, no, I've been paying attention,' she replied absentmindedly. She could hear the whir from her bag, and was trying very hard to resist pulling it out. She knew the screen would tell her the exact same thing it had been telling her for days. After the first twenty-four hours she had assumed it was broken. She had diligently taken it completely apart, replaced some slightly worn bits, turned it back on again, only to get the exact same readings.
'Jane! Seriously!'
'I'm sorry! Right, focusing. Here. Starbucks. With interns.'
'So how long are we going to wait around for your guy this time?'
'I told you, we're friends. We talked, it just wasn't working out' Jane said.
'Sure, sure. Whatever you say.' Darcy cocked an eyebrow, not breaking eye contact as she sipped her drink.
Jane loved her to bits, but for once she just wanted someone who wouldn't tease so much. She turned to Ian, trying to ignore Darcy's pointed stares, when a loud, shrill, and annoying ringtone burst from her pocket.
'I've got to change that thing!' she muttered as she scrambled around, trying to find it, flushing slightly under the glare of surrounding customers. London was a strange place; everyone trying to stand out, but embarrassed if they ever managed. 'Private Number' flashed up on her screen.
'Hello?' she shook herself, annoyed at her slightly breathless tone. 'Hello,' she said again, stronger this time. There was no answer, no sound at all on the other end. 'I must've missed it. They'll call back.'
'In the meantime, can we go back to discussing home? You know, A-me-ri-ca?' Darcy practically spelled out the country, like she was talking to a child.
'Look, with these readings, its stupid to leave now. It could be anything!' Jane tried to justify herself.
'How about you wait here for Loverboy, and once he finally arrives, sweeps you off your feet, shows you space, and deposits you back, you can come find me,' Darcy said, chewing at her straw. She raised her eyebrows at Ian, who smiled awkwardly back. He wasn't about to side against his boss's boss.
'Maybe that would actually be good. And you could take Erik home! He won't say it, but I know he's homesick.' She smiled slightly at Darcy's shocked expression. She hadn't expected her to agree. To be honest, Jane didn't even really know why she had. She didn't want to be left alone and waiting in London. Sure, she had spent enough time here to be used to the city, but it was still foreign to her. But maybe what she needed was some alone time.
From the moment she had called Darcy after Thor had left, she felt like she hadn't had a second to herself. There was Christmas, then New Year, and of course, although part of her mind was always on one particular set of readings, there were many other things to be researching. So yes, it would be nice to have some space for a while.
'Seriously? Don't you need us for work? To hold spikey things and run around?'
'No, go. I'm homesick too, but I need to be here when Thor comes.' If she mentally corrected herself. 'There's plenty that I can do on my own.'
And so it was decided; Darcy, Ian and Erik would head back to the US, and she would continue waiting.
One month later, and Jane was in her car, not quite ready to drive away from the airport. They had been sad to leave her behind, but she could tell that they were excited to be going home. She had put on a brave face and smiled through the goodbye.
Alone. She glanced at the screen on the seat beside her, and frowned at the readings. This was a new one, she had built it only last week, but it was telling her the exact same thing. It was unbelievably frustrating.
She jammed the key in, and twisted it, feeling comforted by the engine's purring response. She backed out, and began the slow journey home. Why had Darcy picked rush hour on Friday for them to leave? They had arrived late at the airport too.
She eventually made it home, flopping onto one of the cardboard boxes. Her life was all packed up. It was impractical for her to stay in the flat on her own, so she had found a smaller place, outside of London, and was moving there tomorrow.
Her phone blasted out that ridiculous ring tone again, but this time she didn't struggle to dig it out. She took her time, almost certain it would be the same blank call. She answered with a sigh, and let the silence run for a few seconds before hanging up. This happened twice a day. It used to unsettle her, but now she was just resigned to it. She should probably change her number. It was such a faff though. Not worth it to save her a minute of frustration each day.
Somewhere high above the Earth's surface, a man was walking along a faint strip of multi-coloured light. His strides were confident, and he grinned as he heard the human's breath through the small piece in his ear. She always picked up, ever curious, hoping that this time someone would say something. He checked her signal, saw she was still in London, and continued on his trek.
She stood in the empty sitting room of her new place, gazing through the massive French doors to the garden. It was bigger than advertised, and although there were three more flats in the building, she was the only tenant. So really, it had worked out pretty well.
Her phone rang again, and she was relieved to see Darcy's number pop up on the screen. Although, now she thought of it, she hadn't the mysterious phone calls all day. They were conspicuous in their absence.
"Heeeyyy," Darcy's voice had an immediate soothing effect on Jane. "Get online! I wanna see who I'm talking to," and she hung up. Jane rolled her eyes affectionately, and went over to one of her suitcases, rooting around for her laptop.
She opened it up, and within minutes she had Darcy's face on her screen, Ian and Erik awkwardly crammed in either side of her. The sight of them made her grin.
"Soooo, how's the new place? Show me, show me!"
"Have you got the internet working yet?" Ian's stupid question earned an affectionate thump from Darcy.
They talked for the best part of an hour, before a knock on Jane's door made her end the call. She got up, glad to be finally meeting the landlord. As she entered the hallway, the same sinking feeling she'd had when she saw Odin started to pool in her stomach. She rubbed her tummy, frowning slightly, feeling as if she might be sick. The feeling got worse the more she walked, and just before she reached the door, she had to stop.
Her head swirled and she felt herself falling, falling. Grasping for something to cling to, she felt her leg collide with the sideboard. She tried to cry out, but the air had been forced from her body, her lungs collapsing in on themselves. She felt tears streaming down her face, and couldn't stop the silent sobs escaping her throat. The last thing she remembered before she passed out was the sound of the front door opening.
He stepped through the doorway, glancing down coolly at the crumpled woman in front of him. He hadn't expected to have quite such an impact upon her; humans were so much more susceptible than he had assumed. It was a simple piece of magic, invading her dreams, but when she had come across him in his guise as Odin, he hadn't anticipated her violent physical reaction. Apparently the effects were more powerful on Earth.
The plan had been simply to create tension between her and Thor, to eventually separate them. He had been debating many ways of tormenting Thor for how he had wronged him, and Jane had been his obvious weakness. How was he to know that they had already separated by the time he planted the first dream? The nightmares were not simply to deprive her of sleep; the feelings of terror and helplessness were manifested during the dreams, but stayed with her throughout her days on Asgard, weak emotions that were to destroy Thor's admiration of her strength. When he first learned that they had decided to be friends, he was pleased at their split. But when he realised how amicable it was, and how they still cared deeply for each other, he decided that Jane could still play a key role in his revenge.
Upon Jane's return to Earth he knew his influence would be lessened to the point of almost non-existence, and so beyond contact her phone to keep track of her location, he let her be for months, focusing instead on Thor. During is long trek to Midgard he did all he could to make Thor miserable. Ambling through space, walking on his echo of the Bifröst, it was plain to see that his brother was falling for his lifelong friend, Sif. Emotions are at their most intense at the start of a relationship, so he found many ways to manipulate and frustrate Thor. But Sif was stronger than Jane, and it proved more of a challenge than he had anticipated to create a rift between them. His distance didn't help either, and he had to devote much time and effort to maintaining his hold over Asgard. Apparitions of Odin didn't act by themselves. However, through creating battles and skirmishes, he was able to prevent Thor from being able to visit the human. He knew Jane still meant a lot to his sibling, and he knew, platonic as it was, the love they shared was strong enough to cause pain should he harm her.
Physical pain was too easy though. His plan was much more complex. If he could break her and turn her into his creature, it would destroy Thor. His nature was one of jealousy and wroth. To lose something so precious to him, and to his own brother, would be too much to bear. It would be the proof that Loki would always get what he wanted.