Jane sighed and covered her head with a soft blanket.
As much as she adored her work, her research, it was taking it's toll on her. For the past several days strange reading have kept her in front of the computer screens as she desperately tried to make a sense of it. But it was useless.
There was no pattern, no way to figure out what was going on. And it was happening all over the world.
Finally after almost a week of catnaps in her chair, gallons of coffee and few pounds of Pop Tarts, agent Caulson entered the laboratory and literally rolled Jane out while she was sleeping in her chair. The fact she didn't awake, despite the few bumps and an elevator ride, until he shook her when they reached her room was proof she needed a proper rest.
And now, after a long hot shower, she was finally getting it.
But despite the comfortable bed and a warm blanket Jane couldn't sleep. As always, the moment her head hit the pillow, her mind would wander in the direction of an Asguardian prince that visited Earth a year ago.
And then it would instantly move to his brother that couldn't come. That was punished. Jane couldn't help but wonder if his punishment ended by now. If he was free. If Thor would keep his promise and bring him to visit; to teach her things about the other realms. To answer all the questions she asked Thor but received no answers to.
A knock made her sit up. But instead of agent Coulson telling her she's needed back in the lab her intern Darcy peeked in the room.
"You awake boss lady?"
Jane laughed, "I am... for now."
"Okay, good." Darcy entered the room and sat on the bed next to Jane's knees, "I've been thinking... You know how Coulson mentioned the new lab they were setting up in London? Well, I though-"
"How do you know about the lab?" Jane interrupted her friend who didn't suppose to have any knowledge of the SHIELD facility that was being equipped in the capital of UK.
Darcy shrugged, she didn't even look guilty at being caught, "I may have overheard some people talking."
"You eavesdropped? Darcy?" Jane hissed.
"What?"
The astrophysicist couldn't believe her friends could be so reckless sometimes, "The only reason they allowed you in this SHIELD facility is because I gave them my word you would focus exclusively on my work and not poke around."
"You know about the lab." Darcy pointed out.
Jane plopped back on her pillow, "I work for them."
"You work with them. There is a difference." the stubborn intern wasn't giving up and was unknowingly giving her boss a headache, "And why is that lab such a secret anyway?"
Jane didn't understand that either, "Coulson didn't say anything about why. But he did mention a nuclear physicist will work there."
Darcy was silent for few moment before shrugging, "Okay... If anyone asks I know nothing about it. But anyway... are we going there? We should so go there?"
Now Jane stopped being annoyed by her intern and became suspicious, "Why?"
"Why?! Hello! British guys are hot!"
She should have known. Why else would Darcy want to move to a city where it rained so often than for guys?
"If I get an offer... we'll go."
"If I get me a hot British guy you'll be my maid of honor." Darcy instantly added, and Jane pulled the blanked over her face and groaned.
They have been in London for a week and apart from several more strange readings nothing unusual happened. Jane still hoped she would meet a fellow physicist that worked somewhere in the compound, but so far she didn't have that honor.
It was a shame really cause she heard quite a lot about doctor Bruce Banner.
Looking away from the computer screen Jane took the empty coffee mug from her work table and stood up. It was way too early in the morning and she's been awake most of the night; one of the few people in the facility who spent a sleepless night, by the sound of footsteps outside of the door.
Jane yawned and stretched her hands over her head, the blue cup firmly in her grasp.
The grasp that faulted as the computer in front of her started to beep loud enough to inform everyone in vicinity that something was going on.
The astrophysicist ignored the shards of the mug that broke as she dropped it and instead focused solemnly on the screen. The readings were off the charts. It was happening.
Whatever it was.
"Jane?!" Darcy shouted her name as she opened the door and sighed in relief when Jane canceled the alert sound.
"We have to go!" she said before her intern managed to say anything else and grabbed a piece of machinery that Darcy didn't recognize from the table before rushing out of the lab.
Darcy grabbed two jackets from the peg by the door and rushed after her boss. She knew Jane well enough to know the physicist wouldn't remember to grab anything to keep her warm in cold London air.
"Wait up!" she shouted in the attempt to get dressed and run at the same time, "Shouldn't we inform an agent where we're going?"
"No time." Jane gasped and grabbed the blue jacket from Darcy's hand and put it on. Something heavy hit her in the thigh and she looked down to see a small book peaking out of the pocket.
Damn. She realized she forgot to return her book back to the box where she found it after the move to London. It was old and in a bad shape, with pages falling out, but Jane adored it and reread it several times since finding it again. She hoped it won't get damaged or anything.
Darcy was against it. Against Jane going to a freaking abandoned warehouse. So what if the scanner said some sort of anomaly is inside? They weren't field agents. They weren't trained and equipped to deal with some alien stuff.
Although, from what she heard, a taser did drop an alien dude from Asgard on his ass.
"Ma'am? What are you doing here?" Darcy heard a man's voice and groaned. A policeman was coming her way. Perfect. Just perfect. If she gets arrested she's blaming everything on Jane.
"Nothing." she answered, "I'm waiting for my friend."
The policeman frowned, "Your friend is inside? This is a heritage site, no one is allowed in the building. I'm going to have to-"
He stopped speaking when Jane stumbled outside. Darcy instantly rushed to her friend and boss. It was obvious something was wrong.
"Jane? Jane, can you hear me? What happened? Are you alright?" Darcy was panicking.
The fact Jane dropped the scanner she was holding and it crashed on the concrete ground, broke into several pieces, and Jane still hadn't acknowledged it or started to freak out for breaking a vital piece of equipment was proof enough for her that something was definitely wrong.
"Ma'am." the policeman approached slowly, thinking the friend was under the influence of narcotics due to her strange behavior, "The two of you will have to come with-"
He is once more interrupted when two things happen simultaneously. A large round anomaly is starting to form on the sky and a burst of strange power coming from Jane throws him off his feet.
Darcy, who stood next to Jane, managed to scramble on her feet and rush to her boss before Jane collapsed. But she didn't manage to prevent it.
"Jane? Come on Jane, don't be dead!"
A shadow fell over Jane and Darcy looked up to yell at the policeman not to bother them but instead of the man in blue uniform she found herself looking at the rather hot guy in a strange armor, red cape and a hammer in his hand.
"Is Jane Foster alright?" he asked and Darcy blinked few times. Damn. Jane described Thor to her but forgot to mention exactly how hot the alien that she zapped was.
"No idea." she finally managed to find her voice, "Something happened. She did something."
"I must take her to Asgard." Thor said and despite Darcy's protest picked Jane up in his arms.
"Why?" was all the intern could ask.
"I fear something happened to Lady Jane when she briefly vanished from Midgard."
"What?!" Darcy shrieked.
"Hey!" they both turned towards the policeman who was now holding a gun and pointing it at Thor, "No one is going anywhere unless it's a police station."
"Go!" a voice called and Thor noticed the Son of Coul approaching with several men dressed in similar fashion, "The sensors read the power burst coming from doctor Foster. We can't deal with that here."
Thor nodded and looked up, "Heimdall, open the Bifrost!"
"Hey!" the policeman's voice echoed through the open area but no one pain attention to him. They were all focused on the circular pattern appearing in the sky before a light blinded them all.
And once it was gone so were Jane and the Asgardian prince.
"Wow..." Darcy muttered.
Jane groaned and opened her eyes, closing them in the next moment when a sharp light only made her headache worse.
She heard footsteps as someone approached the bed she way lying on but she refused to open her eyes to see who it was. Despite the fact that would probably explain why the bed she was on was so soft and the cover over her more gentle then anything he ever felt.
A shadow fell over her face as a warm hand touched her forehead.
"Father?" a voice suddenly called, making Jane jump in freight a bit. But she knew that voice. She heard it before.
"Thor?" she groaned the name of the Asgardian prince.
"Jane, how are you?" she heard his voice as he walked closer to the bed, on the opposite side of where someone was already standing. Since it was away from the light Jane decided to risk it and opened her eyes.
The man she once zapped looked almost the same as he did back then. Only his hair was longer; but his eyes were the same, as was his smile.
"Where am I?" Jane had to know.
"My son brought you to Asgard, Lady Jane." an unknown voice answered and Jane gasped before turning her head away from the prince. And finds herself looking at the king.
"Asgard... why?"
Odin's single blue eye watched the young Midgardian closely.
When his son informed him she vanished from Heimdall's sight he instantly gave Thor permission to go and look for her. With the clear signs the Convergence is imminent it could only mean she went through one of the passages that open at random intervals all over the nine realms.
Considering she is potentially the one who would return his younger son on his previous path and save him... he wasn't willing to risk her life.
But it seemed it already was at risk. A much greater one then he could have anticipated. For he had sensed a power in her the moment he saw her. Lady Jane carried the Aether in her.
And Odin feared it would destroy her.
"You have come across a power I have sealed many centuries ago." Odin answered finally, "A powerful destructive force known as Aether. And you released it from its prison."
"I what?" Jane whispered, mortified she would do such a thing. The fact she didn't know didn't make it any better. Ignorance doesn't made her blameless.
Thor's eyes widened. He heard tales of the Asgardian army battling the Dark elves led by Malekith. He knew of the horrors he mad elf brought upon them while wielding the power of Aether.
"Where is it now?" he had to know so he could take Lady Si and Warriors 3 and contain the Aether or destroy it or... anything really before it falls in the wrong hands.
"It is already in Asgard." Odin answered and Thor sighed in relief, thinking they were all safe. But the blood in his veins froze when his father added, "It exists inside Lady Jane. And there is nothing I can do to remove it. Not without causing a power backlash that would destroy us all."
"Who can?" he knew that question would be the next one his son asks. And he knew the answer won't give him any comfort.
"Malekith."
Thor stood up suddenly and moved away from the bed where Jane rested. She watched him quietly as he walked to the window and looked outside. It told her all she needed to know.
It was not good.
"Can I live with... Aether inside of me?" she asked the king.
Odin looked remorseful as he answered, "For now. But eventually... I am sorry, Lady Jane."
Jane didn't know his regret wasn't because he simply didn't want her to suffer and die. She didn't know that over a millennium ago the Asgardian queen foresaw her arrival.
"Can I go back home?"
"I'm afraid not." she had a feeling what the answer would be even before the old king gave it, "A power as such would attract too much attention from the wrong creatures. The Dark elves were defeated long time ago but there is no proof they are all destroyed. Their leader Malekith can wield it like no other, and in his hands it would bring unimaginable destruction the Nine Realms. Both you and the Aether are safer right here."
Jane silently nodded. She could feel the tears threatening to escape and closed her eyes. She was such a fool. Darcy warned her, told her not to go in the damn warehouse. But no, she had to investigate. And look where it brought her. Yes, she was in a different realm, but she could hardly enjoy it. Not when death was possibly right around the corner.
"We should leave Lady Jane to rest." Thor broke the uncomfortable silence, and Odin nodded in agreement.
"This chamber is in family wing so no one will bother you." the king informed her.
"Thank you." Jane responded wondering who could possibly bother her. And why?
The meal that evening was tense.
Thor came to Jane's chamber to escort her to the great hall to dinner, something she was rather reluctant of doing. She suspected everyone would stare at her, make assumptions and judge. And she wasn't wrong.
The tale of who she was and why she was in Asgard spread like wildfire within an hour of her arrival. The first Midgardian in centuries to come to the Realm Eternal.
And she brought Aether with her.
And with it danger.
Thor introduced her to his closest friends; to Warriors 3 and Lady Sif. Something Jane was grateful for because it gave her a chance to ignore the others who tried to get a better look of the mortal in their mists.
And while they observed Jane, she observed the large room they were in. The gold decorations and the large tapestries that showed images of great battles and ever greater victories.
But one thing was missing. One person.
The younger prince of Asgard and Thor's brother.
Loki was no where in sight.
There was only an empty chair on Thor's left that marked the place where he used to sit.
And empty chair like the one on Odin's right that was for his wife and queen.
Jane looked down on her plate and bit her lip. She suddenly felt selfish. Here she was pitying herself when there were others, right here in Asgard, that were also faced with unclear futures.
That feeling followed her for the rest of the evening. That feeling was why she didn't pay close attention to where she was going and opened the wrong door in the royal family wing.
Instead of entering her own room Jane entered the one opposite to it.
It was fairly dark inside, the only source of light a candle on the small table by the window.
And the only occupant silent as a grave, eves as she apologized to intrusion.
Jane closed the door and leaned her head on the cold wood, only moving when she heard a voice call her name.
"Thor." she greeted him when he stopped hew steps away.
"You went to Loki's room." he noticed where she was standing.
She nodded, "I was a bit lost in my own mind... Is he always like this? So... unresponsive?"
The grief in Thor's eyes was clearly visible, "We tried many things. He never even acknowledged our presence in his room. He can not see or speak. But he can hear. He knows we are there. Still, he merely sits there in his personal darkness."
"I'm sorry." she didn't know why she said it, but felt like she needed to.
"Thank you Jane Foster."
After entering the right room Jane noticed her jacket was placed on the foot of the bed. And she noticed the corner of the book peeking out of the pocket.
Jane glanced back towards the door and smiled slightly.
This thing inside her was killing her; she had no idea how much time she had left. But she wanted to do something productive with the time she had left.
So she would read.
To Loki of Asgard.
The first morning in Asgard was like waking up in a fairy tale for Jane. The bright sunlight was shining through the wide windows, bringing light and warmth to the tastefully decorated chamber. The scent of flowers was strong, if she closed her eyes Jane could easily imagine herself on a open field having a lovely picnic.
A knock made her sit up in bed, all her lovely daydreams forgotten, "Yes?"
The doors opened slightly and a chambermaid entered carrying a platter willed with several different kinds of fruit, cheese, and bread, "The All-Father ordered breakfast to be delivered to you."
"Thank you." Jane responded with a smile.
The young chambermaid nodded and left her alone again. And Jane hated it. Being alone. Strangely it didn't bother her before, especially during the night when she would gaze in the stars. But right now she craved company.
And she knew there was one other person who was just like her.
So she took her book out of the jacket pocket, placed it on the platter next to a bowl of fruit and decided she should probably change before leaving her room.
A blush spread on Jane's cheeks when she realized she almost went to a prince's room wearing nothing but a nightgown. Not that he would know that. But it would still be improper.
She couldn't help but wonder if there would be a scandal like in the movies Darcy adores.
So after a change into one of the dresses that were left for her Jane finally felt ready to go forward with her plan. She knocked this time, to announce herself, but knew there was no use to wait for a permission to enter.
She found him on the same place where he was last night. On a chair next to a small table, with the burned out candle on top. He didn't move a muscle since last night. Didn't sleep. If his chest didn't move when he breathed she would have suspected he died days ago.
"Hello, I'm Jane Foster... from Earth. I hope you won't mind my company." Jane gently said and placed the platter on the table in front of him, poshing the candle holder back a bit, "I brought breakfast. And a book."
Silence descended on the room as Jane took a seat opposite of the punished prince. She watched him for a bit, hoping to see any sign of acknowledgment from him. But he remained still.
A sigh escaped her before she carefully opened the book she brought along. She was always worried the pages might fall out and she won't be able to find them all again. And it would be a shame because she adored the novel but failed to find a copy of it anywhere. So all she was this old one that once belonged to her mother.
"I doubt you appreciate the intrusion from a complete stranger but I felt you could use the company. I thought I could read a bit... to you. I don't know if you ever rad something written by a... what do yo call us again? Midgardian? It's a good book... I promise."
Loki remained still as the odd woman that his brother once mentioned started to read. She intrigued him by not being put off by his behavior. Not even his father or brother spent more then a few minutes in his company before becoming uncomfortable and excusing themselves. But not this child.
He listened to her soft, melodic voice as she read.
"And why would they be afraid of us, if we treat them well?"
"Because of their fearful and slimy nature." answers the captain, "They are worms, my dear Miss."
Astrid's cheeps blush, "Maybe they are worms because we stomping them."
"No. We are stomping them because they are worms."
Thor was at the verge of panic when he entered Jane's chamber and found it empty. He knew she wouldn't just wonder off. She said so last night after accidentally entering the wrong room.
It was that thought that stopped him raising alert.
That, and the faint sound of Jane's voice. Coming from Loki's room.
She didn't hear him opening the door slightly. She was far too lost in her rant, "That is no way to treat those who are different! It's foolish to have something as banal as skin color separate us!"
Thor remained silent. Watching, listening. Noticing Jane accomplished the impossible. She had Loki's full attention.
His brother may not be able to see the brilliant Midgardian but he was looking in her direction. And he was drinking in her every word.
A wide grin spread on Thor's face as Loki's hand reached for the bowl of fruit on the table and he tried to feel something to eat. Seeing that Jane touched his hand and led it in the right direction. And for her help she received a smile from the young prince.
That was when Thor decided not to bother them and instead he went to the hall alone. A soft smile he noticed on his father's face after explaining why Jane was absent told him Odin agreed.
...Dark hands took the precious burden from her lap... mark faces surrounded her with tired smiles.
And from the top of the marble staircase she is greeted by a sweet and serious voice:
"Welcome to your home, oh white traveler!...
Welcome to your garden, oh-"
"What was that?!" Jane stopped mid-sentence at the sound of a crash somewhere nearby.
Loki suddenly stood up, shocking her. Yes, he's been more animated in the past week since she started to visit him and read, but the biggest motion he did was reaching for food. That was how she knew for sure it was bad.
He only had the time to pull the dagger out of the hidden sheath in his overcoat before the door of his chamber crashed open and several individuals walked in. And while he couldn't see them he could hear them. As well as Jane.
And a shocked gasp that came from her direction told him all he needed to know.
Father did told him days ago she had the Aether in her.
He knew who arrived for it.
But his darkness was replaced with another when, before he even had the chance to react, he was sent flying to the far wall of his room.
And when he finally regained consciousness his room was silent.
Jane was gone.