Summary: Five years were long alone and Jane was tired. The Snap took everything, leaving her with nothing but her thoughts and research that had no use to anyone but herself. But one day, Loki suddenly appears in her home, and against her better judgement, she makes the unexpected decision to nurse the Trickster back to health.

Disclaimer: I don't own Thor/Marvel because if I did I wouldn't have treated my boys so dirty like the Russo Brothers did.

Melancholia, n. Greek
A state of deep wistfulness, misery, and withdrawal.

Melancholia
 04

Jane pulled away from the telescope, turning her gaze towards the night sky. Stars shone brightly above her, the full moon looking down as sounds of life surrounded her. She missed the tranquility of life, she thought to herself, as the quiet chirping of grasshoppers lulled her into calmness. Sometime throughout the night, she had abandoned her research on the table, her computer screen now black.

At this moment, she found peace.

With a pang of nostalgia, Jane sadly looked at the sheets spread all over the table. She no longer studied the discoveries she had made that revolutionized in the world with her Foster Theory. The universe still had so many secrets that she had hoped to discover before her time had ended, so much unknown hidden behind numbers and the science that she loved to decipher. But with the Snap and all, the funding that she once had was gone, shifted towards rebuilding societies all across the world, and it would have been only a matter of time before her own personal funds dried out, unable to continue her research.

And so, seeing the future, she had made the executive decision to go on hiatus until further notice.

Although she had been receiving emails lately that stated that a surplus in funding that the government was willing to put aside for research in all fields of science, it didn't take a genius to know that with the sudden return of so many lives, that money was again out of her reach.

Once, she would have been upset. But now, she nodded her head and moved on.

She was at peace looking at the universe with her small telescope. Stargazing alone gave her great comfort and joy, as it was her home. Looking up at the sparkling lights, knowing that there was life and that she was not crazy, that she hadn't wasted years and years of time and money on something everyone had once thought stupid.

She had left her mark on the world, an impact that future generations would feel.

A sudden yawn escaped Jane, signaling that the night was over for her. Quickly shutting down her computer, she absentmindedly picked up the notes to her research. As quietly as she could, she opened the door to Loki's quiet breathing from the couch, sounding much more even and regular than his first night here two weeks ago.

...Two weeks.

Two weeks since he returned, since everyone returned, and the world was thrown back into chaos. Jane couldn't help but sigh as she placed everything back on her desk, her eyelids heavy with exhaustion.

Loki was doing better, but still healing quite slowly for someone who should have been healing at a faster rate than a human. This was not speculation on her part either; she had seen Thor with injuries while they had dated, and his wounds would be healed in days, although it had depended on the severity of said injuries.

But even so, his brother was simply taking too long to heal for Jane to be comfortable. Yet, she was also able to admit that what mattered most was the simple fact that he was healing, and so, for now, she pushed her worries to the back of her mind and went to bed.

0O0

"How did the guard even know?"

She looked at her hand, frowning at it, before turning to Fandral. "...It was me."

The reaction from her brother's friends was immediate, the sounds of disbelief and outrage ringing throughout the room. "What do you mean?!"

"You heard me," she fully turned to the Warriors Three and Lady Sif, "I told Heimdall to go to my father once we had left for Jotunheim–"

Volstagg tried to move from his seat but flinched from pain, the shoulder injury he sustained during the fight against the Frost Giants preventing him from standing to his full height. "You told him?!"

But with a calmness she forced herself to have, Jane bluntly stated the facts that even they could not deny. "I saved our lives." She continued to fidget with her hands, the memory of the fight and what had occurred with the Frost Giants bothering her to no extent. Yet, it didn't prevent the lies that slid off her tongue easily. "Of course, I had no idea that Father would banish him for what had happened."

Despite the heavy tension in the air, no one could deny that what she had said was true; she had saved their lives by telling her father.

Sif quickly got out of her seat, her hands clasped before her as she faced Jane. "Then you must speak with the AllFather to return your brother to us. He will see reason–"

Jane scoffed at the absurdity. "And what? I love Thor more than any of you could possibly know, but you know what he is." The warrior opened her mouth as if to defend her friend, but Jane allowed her anger towards Thor to slip out, the words coming out of her mouth as sharp as the daggers she wielded. "He's arrogant, reckless, dangerous; you saw how he was today in our fight. Is that what Asgard truly needs from its king? You all know he is not ready, and never was."

With the last word, she walked out, her steps heavier and heavier the further down the hall she went.

Despite being the one to orchestrate the plan, the guilt weighed heavily on her. Her lies would save them, though; it would save them all. Although she tried to believe that jealousy had no role in her actions towards her brother, a part of her knew, and was gleeful that the only obstacle between her and the crown was now banished to Midgard.

But, as much as she was happy that her brother was no longer on Asgard, the truth behind her actions would always be for her alone to know. All she yearned for, despite the lure of the crown, was not to be king but to be seen as her brother's equal. If that meant to be King for as long as she needed to be, then she would fulfill that role.

Perhaps then, Father would acknowledge her.

All she needed was for everyone to see that her brother lacked the preparation for the role of a leader, of a King, and that him sitting on the throne of the Nine Realms would destroy them all.

0O0

Jane awoke with a start, her heart beating in her chest.

The dream.

It...it seemed wrong?

But the more she thought about it, the more it slipped through her fingers until only a fragment of the dream lingered. Not enough to recognize why it felt wrong and out of place, but enough to know that the oddness of it bothered her.

Much to Jane's frustration at the inability to recall her dream, she groaned into the pillow, refusing to move in this uncomfortable position. The only reason she lifted her head up to look out of the window above her was because of how strange she felt.

Something was...off.

Her dream earlier did nothing to help the premonition she felt in the pit of her stomach that was telling her something was not right. Her mind felt out of place as if her body and mental state were not connected. It was impossible, but she swore that her body was reacting slower, almost like she was trudging through mud. The oiliness that tingled up her spine continued to grow, and the sick feeling she had woken up to lingered still, telling her that the nausea she felt stemmed not from her sleep but from a separate cause.

But once these strange thoughts ended, her mind did what it did best and went straight to the hard facts. If something were truly amiss in her home, Loki would have woken up. It was a quaint house to begin with, almost a hundred years old, although remodeled, and the squeaking of the floor could be heard throughout the rooms. Furthermore, with his injuries, he wasn't quiet in his movements, the grace she had witnessed firsthand on Asgard nowhere to be seen. Along with this was his inability to cast magic, much to both of their annoyances, as she was getting the brunt of his irritation at the lack of his magic.

There was only so much two people could deal with a home this small, with nowhere to go, before something blew up.

Figuratively, not literally.

So, finding comfort in the fact that her mind was probably psyching herself out and she just was catching a cold, Jane picked her phone up. Like usual, she saw no messages, no notifications – nothing. She was a lonely girl, with friends she could count on with one hand. But...not for much longer, hopefully. All she needed to know was whether or not Erik and Darcy were okay, that they were alive and well.

Was that so much to ask for?

To answer that question, it was.

Much to her frustration, all of her government contacts refused to tell her anything, and so against her will, she was left in the dark, relying only on what the news was broadcasting.

At the growl of her stomach and dryness of her throat, Jane sighed and began getting ready for the morning.

Within minutes, she was in the kitchen, preparing coffee with Loki's soft snores in the background. Sometime in the past few days, Loki had made some sort of executive decision to sleep on the couch, returning Jane her bed. She had protested at first, but even she was able to see that there was no point in arguing him about it. She lacked the energy to fight Loki on the topic, and so she simply took her room back.

Leaning against the counter as she awaited her favorite bitter drink, Jane took a sip of water from her mug. Yet, with a sudden muffled yelp, she threw her head into the sink and spat it out, the intense bitterness lingering on her tongue.

"What the fuck?" she couldn't help but ask herself, staring at the cup of water in her hands. There was no strange odor, no oddity floating in it either; it was clear and looked just like...water. She didn't hesitate to pour it out, and after a split second, she decided to refill her mug from the tap. She stared at the water with unease, before taking another small sip. At the sharp bitterness she tasted once again, she quickly repeated the process of spitting the water out.

Damn it.

"Everything all right there, Jane?" a voice asked from behind her.

"I'm fine. The water's just a bit weird, that's all."

"Weird?" He cocked an eyebrow, leaning forward onto the island where he sat. "How can water be weird?"

Jane scoffed at his question, quickly turning her head around to glare at Loki. "I know you're messing with me, but I don't have the patience to deal with this today." Or with him, she silently said to herself. There was a hint of a smirk on his face that she was really tempted to try and wipe off with a snarky remark, but she held herself back.

"If you say so."

Without a word, she turned back to the coffee she was making. If the water was off, then the coffee wouldn't be drinkable as well. She was frustrated, annoyed, without her coffee, and for some odd reason, something was really off, and as she watched the coffee go down the drain, she began to feel lightheaded, the tingling sensation in her spine growing in intensity.

Mentally cursing to herself, she knew exactly what was happening.

Pain quickly proceeded this realization, and Jane tried her best to seem as if nothing was out of sorts as she tried to place the pot back, but with a sudden burst of pain, a cry left her mouth and the glass pot slipped from her grasp. It shattered and Jane nearly collapsed onto the ground with it, but she grabbed the counter instead, praying that she would be able to hold herself up long enough for the pain to pass.

"...Jane?"

She heard footsteps and then felt Loki behind her, but the moment he placed his palm on her arm she screamed–

She screamed and screamed and screamed–

The pain–

Oh God, the pain–

The room burst with red, so bright that Loki had to shield his eyes, her screaming echoing throughout the house. He was able to look back only when the light subsided, but what he saw–

Jane's eyes were fully black, her body surrounded by a dark red aura that darkened the room. She was floating a few feet in the air before him, painful moans leaving her mouth as her hair swam in the air behind her as well.

Loki took a shaky step back in shock.

...There was no doubt that it was the Aether.

But how? The last he had heard, the stones were no more. She had told him that–

Jane suddenly froze and he only had a second to spare before the chaos surrounding her vanished, along with the strange floating ability that had possessed her. He automatically caught her, but his still injured body failed him and her weight caused him to fall to the ground as well. His body cushioned their impact, though, much to his chagrin. There was no movement from Jane; her eyes were closed and her breathing heavy and even, a stark difference from a minute ago.

"Jane?" Loki gently placed her onto the ground, ignoring the sore pain in his body at the movement. He placed a hand on her shoulder shake her awake, but seeing the lack of response, he frowned. With no other option, he picked her up and carried her to the couch. Once he ensured that she was simply unconscious and that the glass had not hurt her, his mind began to race with what had happened.

He had witnessed everything from the beginning, with her suddenly tensing up and trying to hide her pain. From that moment, he knew something was amiss, but to know that she was holding the Aether once more–

At the thought of the power of the Infinity Stone, Loki felt himself go cold. His mind went back to that day he grabbed the Tesseract in Odin's Treasure Room during Surtur's attack, the glow of blue shining in his face as he pocketed it – the look of betrayal on his Thor's face when his brother realized what he had done. At that moment, he had failed his brother, his people; it was his fault–

Before he fell further into the guilt he kept hidden under the recesses of his mind, he grounded himself by looking at his current situation. For now, talk of the Infinity Stones and the Aether would be pushed aside. Turning towards the kitchen, Loki's eyes went to the glass shards all over the tile floor and the water still running in the sink.

Ah, that's where it began. Jane had said something about the water being strange, hadn't she? Perhaps it started with that?

With quick strides, he avoided the glass on the floor and filled the cup in the sink with the water before quickly drinking it. At the sudden burst of bitterness, Loki flinched but felt no different. He didn't turn bright red nor did he feel a sudden burst of pain.

A heavy sigh left his mouth as he turned his attention to the sharp glass below him. For now, there was nothing more he could do. Once his magic returned he would be able to aid Jane in figuring out what was wrong with her, and how the Aether came to be within her once again, but for now, with his still injured body, the least he could do for her was to clean up the mess she made.

0O0

Everything hurt.

But what was in pain, most of all?

Her soul.

Jane had done it for Asgard, for Mother, for him – her father – only to be betrayed by the man she had hoped most for respect in the end. He completely disregarded the truths she gave him, acting as if she'd be welcomed back with open arms.

She wasn't even Asgardian.

She had always felt like an outsider, but with the acknowledgment of what she truly was, how could she walk the halls of the Palace without feeling betrayal? Her very existence was a torment to the people she had once called her own, so the possibility of feeling comfortable in her own home was taken from her as well.

Looking at her brother's eyes, seeing the anger but underneath, the love he still had for her, added to the flames of anger and rage that burned hotly in Jane's chest. How could he look at her like this, after treating her the way he did for hundreds of years? He had no right - how dare he. Yet, he continued to cry out for her, his pleads to continue hanging on ringing in her ears, but with one look at the AllFather's eye, she knew that it was time.

She let go.

Closing her eyes, she fell into the cold embrace of the cosmos.

0O0

Jane shot up from her position on the couch, her eyes wide with terror and confusion, Loki sitting on the chair adjacent to her with a book in hand.

"What happened?" was the first question to leave her mouth, not remembering anything past the pain. "What happened when I blacked out?"

Loki, despite the lack of his magic, felt the lie slip off his tongue flawlessly. "You dropped your pot, shattering it across the floor. Luckily for you, I had caught you before you fell and injured yourself." Closing the novel in his hand, he leaned forward, his eyes boring into her. "You've been asleep for about twenty-four hours, but I am truly glad to see that you are doing fine." She opened her mouth to speak but he held a hand up, silencing her. "But I believe that the roles we are playing should be reversed – that I should be the one to ask the questions instead. What was it that I witnessed, Jane? Better yet, do you even know what it is that happened to you?"

There was a look of nervousness that Jane did well to hide at his question, but Loki, being who he was, was able to quickly discern the anxiety that she was feeling. She opened her mouth but quickly closed it, looking away from his eyes. "I…" With a deep breath seconds later, she shuffled around until she faced Loki.

She took a minute to decide whether she should tell him, but something about keeping the pain to herself had her wanting to just...let it all go. She had kept it from people for the past five years, and she was way past her limit. She was tired, she was scared, and she just wanted to tell someone. even if they didn't have the answer she was looking for.

"I get these weird bouts of pain. I don't know how and why, but...they started when the stones were destroyed." She sniffed before quickly dragged a hand across her eyes. "...It doesn't take a genius to connect the dots," she whispered towards the end.

There was a heavy silence between them, until Loki said, "The stones, you had said that they were destroyed, but what do you mean by that? As far as I was concerned, the Infinity Stones were told to be indestructible. They are the sole reason why life exists in the cosmos; it's impossible to destroy them without somehow dooming the entirety of the Universe."

She waved her hand with a shrug. "That was what I was told by the Avengers, that Thanos destroyed them."

The name left her mouth before she could stop herself, realizing immediately the impact of what would happen if she said it – Jane saw the change in Loki happen before her very eyes. While he always hid what he truly thought behind a well-created mask that prevented her from truly trusting the god, there was still life in it, a sense of mischief, she would say, that lurked behind his green eyes. But at the mere mention of the Titan, his face turned emotionless, no hint of anything, his eyes more dead than alive. His voice was tight and she could tell he was forcing himself to act as if it didn't bother him when truly, it did.

That, also, did not take a genius to figure out.

"...Loki," she began, a frown on her lips, "I know–"

He interrupted her by nonchalantly pointing behind her, his eyes dark and voice restrained. "There's a creature in your yard."

"...A what?" Despite knowing that he was forcibly changing the subject, she whipped her head around anyway, only for a gasp to leave her mouth. He was right, a dog stood in her backyard.

It was just...sitting there.

Tongue out.

Jane turned back around, staring at Loki. He was looking at her once again, but she knew that the moment to talk about what happened had passed, and the problem at hand now was the fact that there was a large dog just...sitting in her backyard, with no owner in sight.

A sound of frustration left her mouth before she stood up, ignoring the soreness in her legs. "This conversation isn't over, Loki," she said, her voice quiet but clear enough for the god to hear. He simply responded with a shrug before standing up alongside her, watching the dog.

"Of course it's not."

With a nod, Jane went to the glass sliding door that led to the back of her home. As she unlocked it, she heard the excited yelp from the animal as it wagged its tail at every one of her movements, no matter how slight.

There was just one problem.

She...she was not a dog person.

Hell, she just wasn't an animal person in general. They disliked her as much as she disliked them. Up until now, the feelings were always mutual and she was happy with that.

To say she wasn't scared of a large dog was an understatement, but what else was she supposed to do? Leave it outside when the weather called for rain later tonight? She may not like the animal but she wasn't a cruel person.

With a hesitant step, Jane went forward, surprised to find that Loki was following behind her.

Despite an echo of pain, she ignored it and took another step forward, slight hesitation following her moves. It was a big dog, a malamute, she'd guess, judging by its size and its similarities to a husky. "Hi there, you big boy," she said, her voice rising an octave. Even she wasn't immune to the baby speak that everyone did in the presence of a dog, it seemed. "What's your name?"

She was only about a foot away.

She could do this.

But Jane cried out when the dog, with a sudden bark, ran–past her.

Whirling around, she could only watch in slow motion as it jumped onto...Loki. The man was caught off guard at the tackle and in a picture worthy moment – God, she wished she had her phone on her – he fell to the ground as the dog began its assault. It wouldn't stop licking his face, its tail wagging uncontrollably.

"Get off me, you infernal beast!"

Jane was failing miserably in stifling her laughs and the glare that Loki had managed to slip to her was the last straw. She burst out laughing, her voice ringing throughout the open yard as she nearly tripped over her own feet. By the time she put herself together and grabbed the collar that hung off of the dog to pull it off of Loki, her stomach was in pain as tears streamed down her face.

It was just too funny, and Jane hadn't laughed like that in so long.

"Okay there big boy, calm down." Her smile wouldn't leave her face as she got the boy to sit down, his tail still wagging. "What's your name?" She was still slightly afraid, but after that amazing show between him and Loki, most of her fear had disappeared. Gently, she pet his face before looking at the name tag on the collar, only to frown. "Huh, Fenrir." The dog's ears perked at his name, which Jane watched with a smile. "That's weird, it says you live here."

"Fenrir?" Loki pulled himself off the ground, dusting his clothes off from the dog's attack on him. "That's the creature's name?"

"Well, his previous owners must have been big Norse fans," she teased. "...We need to figure out what to do with him now, though."

"We?"

Raising an eyebrow, Jane stood up and turned around. "Well, you're living here at the moment, aren't you?"

"I–" Loki's shocked expression quickly returned to his typical apathetic look, although it surprised Jane nonetheless. "Fine."

She jumped at the sudden wet nose that touched her palm, whirling around to Fenrir. "Oh my god, that scared me," she whispered quickly, not seeing the nearly nonexistent smile that appeared on Loki's face.

"What are you going to do, then, with Fenrir?"

"I…" Jane looked at Loki, then the dog, then back to Loki. "I guess we're taking him to the vet?"

She quickly led the dog into the car, with no help from Loki, and as a result, she decided to make the man come with her, one reason for spite. Besides, after seeing that John hadn't recognized Loki, she felt as if it was safe enough for him to go with her into the town. Besides, in a basic outfit of a hoodie – with a turtleneck underneath to hide his neck – and black jeans, he blended in well enough.

Emphasis on, well enough.

He still managed to give off an aura that somehow drew people to him, and with his accent that was identical to the British, she knew he'd draw attention. He was bound to, especially in a small town where the international community was slim to nonexistent.

But she also believed that staying cooped up in her house was not a good idea, as even she could see he was starting to become tired of her tiny home.

"You're coming with me, I hope you know that," she said – more like demanded – as she shoved the black jeans into his hands. "You need to get out of the house."

Loki stared at the jeans in his hands before turning to her, narrowing his eyes. "What are you playing at?" He did not trust her, not at this very moment.

"Nothing." She smiled. "We're leaving in five."

The drive to the vet was fairly a short one, yet with Loki and Fenrir, it felt much longer than what it needed to be. She nearly drove them into a tree when Fenrir tried jumping into the front of the car and had wanted to slap Loki for his offhanded comments of her driving. What the hell did he know about driving a vehicle? She didn't need to hear his snarky remarks, not right now.

Jane could have cried with joy when they finally reached the parking lot alive. Quickly parking her car and jumping out, she walked into the vet a few seconds later, an intense grip on Fenrir's collar. She tried to seem oblivious to the stares and whispers of the women working at the reception when they noticed Loki but was failing, and she could feel the irritation beginning to build up.

From what, though, she wasn't quite sure.

Luckily, her wait wasn't long, as, in a matter of minutes, a woman in a scrubs called out, "Ms. Foster?"

"That'll be me!" Jane struggled to keep Fenrir controlled in the small room, and she shot a frustrated scowl at her third companion. "Are you just going to stand there and watch me struggle? You could be helping me!" Loki had his typical smirk on his face, a shrug clearly his answer to her question. She growled in frustration before leading Fenrir inside the other room – more like he led her – with Loki behind her.

"So, what seems to be the problem with your dog here today?"

"Um, well–" She yelped when the dog suddenly shot forward, ripping himself out of her grasp to jump onto the doctor. She ran to stop him but froze when she watched the vet's eyes widened, breaking out in a smile. The doctor knelt to the ground and allowed the dog to greet her, small quiet sounds of giggling breaking through the dog's happy cries.

"Oh my god, Fenrir!"

Jane watched, dumbfounded, as Fenrir then rolled onto its back while whining, his tail moving at a million miles per hour. "You, uh, know him?" she couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah – I mean, yes, of course." Caroline, the doctor, said, standing up. She was trying to return to the professionalism she had presented earlier, despite Fenrir nudging at her with his nose. "He was Mr. Campbell's previous dog before he went missing during the uh, snap."

"...Oh," Jane breathed out, her eyes going back to the malamute. She knew the name, Mr. Campbell, because he was the former house owner of where she lived now. "That's why he was in our yard. But–"

"Mr. Campbell was on a walk with him when he disappeared," she answered her unspoken question. "That might be why it took Fenrir a while to get back to the house; you're living in his home now, as I can see in the information you've given us."

With a sad smile, she nodded her head. "After he passed, I moved in."

"Just in case…" Caroline, once she got herself together, turned to the counter and brought out a scanner, moving it behind Fenrir's neck. In a quick second, it beeped and she hummed in response. "Yup, this is Fenrir, alright."

Jane looked at Loki, who watched with disinterest, before turning her attention back to the woman. He was clearly going to be of no use. "Um, well, this sounds kinda bad but, what now?"

Surprise lit up in Caroline's eyes at the question. "You don't plan on taking him in?"

"Uh, not really?"

A frown quickly appeared on her face. "Well...as much as I'd love to have Fenrir, I don't have the time to give the poor boy – none of us here do. We'll take him from you if you want, but the only thing we'd be able to do is to bring him to the shelter."

"...The shelter."

"They'll keep him for a week before either transferring him to another shelter or...euthanizing him."

She felt her body go cold at the mention of euthanization. She looked at Fenrir, who was hopelessly wagging his tail, his blue eyes bright and his tongue hanging out of his mouth. A quiet, woof, left his mouth when their eyes met, his tail wagging increasing tenfold.

Jane made a decision.

"And if that's the plan of action, I'm going to require some signatures from you–"

"I'll keep him," Jane interrupted, her voice firm and mind made up.

She may have been terrified of dogs, but looking at Fenrir at this moment? This dog was nothing but a sweetheart, no evil bone in its body. He was pure kindness and Jane knew that if she took in Fenrir, maybe her life wouldn't be so bad. Sure, she sucked at taking care of herself, but with a dog like him?

...Maybe she'd heal from her own pain too.

"Are you sure, Jane?" Turning around at the sudden question, Loki was looking at her, his eyes, like always, betraying nothing of what he was thinking at that moment.

"Yeah, I am." Turning to Caroline, she smiled. "Where do I sign?"

Half an hour later, Jane sat in her car, Fenrir in the backseat while Loki sat beside her. She had her phone out, a list of what she would need to buy at the local pet store on her screen. Because she had nothing in her home to take care of a dog, she'd have to get everything, from a leash to a bed.

Damn, Jane could feel her wallet crying at how much she was going to have to spend today.

"Stop sticking your nose in my neck," Loki growled out, whipping his head to turn to the dog. Jane could tell that he hoped to intimidate the dog into submission, but the dog was kind of...stupid? Well, it seemed more like he didn't really care.

Jane wasn't too sure.

Quickly realizing that Fenrir wouldn't listen to him, Loki instead wiped his neck, sneering at the drool he was trying to clean off. Jane looked up once, resisting the urge to laugh at what she saw. Loki was continuing to shoot daggers at the dog with his eyes, but Fenrir seemed to really like the god and instead was doing exactly what Loki told him not to do.

If someone had told Jane five years ago that she'd be sitting in her car with the God of Mischief next to her in regular human clothes and a large Malamute in her backseat, she would have called that person psychotic and tased them, thanks to Darcy's insistence of carrying one of those weapons around. Yet, seeing Loki interacting with Fenrir warmed her heart because deep down, these past few weeks had been rough for them both. Being with him chipped away at the walls she had built, as she saw just how badly he was hurting. She recognized the pain he was hiding because it was as if she had been looking in a mirror after the incident with Aether; the eye bags that had appeared under her eyes, the terrifying dreams that woke her up in the middle of the night with her heart racing because she thought she was going to die – all the terrible feelings and emotions she had gone through, Loki was going through the exact thing, even worse.

For her, it was a stark reminder that she was small and for some reason, the Aether hadn't killed her.

There was a coincidence to the emergence of her restless sleeping and nightmares once again with Loki's appearance in her life. She knew that there was a relation between one another, she wasn't dumb.

But with Fenrir now, she couldn't help but think, maybe he'll help Loki heal. Maybe even help both of us.

But at this thought, Jane had a feeling akin to whiplash as she forced herself forward, her eyes hardening at the disloyal thoughts in her mind.

What was she thinking? Loki was not her friend. Although she was helping him by allowing him to heal and get better at her place, that didn't warrant her to become friendly with the man.

She repeated this in her mind as she started up the car, but despite denying it, she recognized that if Loki continued to stay with her, there would be no going back to the way she thought before.

0O0

Jane had been unloading the car after her shopping trip for Fenrir when she heard another car in her driveway. Quickly setting down the dog food, she waved at the newcomer, who was coming her way up the long driveway.

"John!" she greeted, a smile on her face. "What's the occasion?"

Her neighbor grinned in response, lifting his phone up. "You'd know if you checked your phone."

She sheepishly grinned, rubbing her arm as she said, "You should know by now that I'm no good with technology. I barely use my phone as it is."

"So I see." He took a quick look at the dog food by her feet, the question clear on his face.

"Oh, well, long story short, I got a dog." Jane picked up the dog food, and at the rustling of the bag, said dog ran out from the door on her porch.

Yet, Fenrir did something so unexpected, she dropped the bag. Thankfully, it didn't burst open on the road, but she could have cared less at that moment.

Fenrir suddenly did a one-eighty in his mood, his tail suddenly raised and unmoving, his hackles raised. His body was low, yet as he moved back and forth restlessly, several feet away from Jane, his lips snarled as he began growling and snapping at them.

But she noticed quickly that all of the dog's aggression was directed towards the man in front of her, and not at her at all.

"Jane, what–"

Loki stopped at the door, his words caught in his mouth at John, but once he saw Fenrir acting the way he was, he didn't hesitate in grabbing the dog's collar and pulling him away back into the house. Thankful at his interruption, she didn't notice Loki's eyes lingering on John with a suspicious glint in his own eyes.

"Sorry about that, I don't really know what happened. He was so friendly with everyone else today." She hefted the dog food up once more, turning back to John. "Anyways, what's up?"

John had an unreadable emotion in his eyes before he laughed uncomfortably. "I was going to ask if you wanted to get some dinner, but I see you're busy. Um, another time?"

"Yeah, sure." She watched him back away, a weird sensation in her spine. "Bye?"

Once John left, Jane ignored this uncomfortable and awkward encounter and went into the house. Once she walked in, Fenrir tried jumping on her, a completely different dog again. There was no sign of aggression or anger like he had displayed earlier.

She was still fearful of him, as he was a large dog, and after seeing the way he had just interacted with John made her question whether or not it was a good idea, after all, to adopt him.

"That was weird."

"...Was that your neighbor? The one that came by a few weeks ago?" Loki asked, sitting at the counter and ignoring her comment.

"Yeah, John." Jane began sorting the items she bought today as she continued talking. "That was strange though; Fenrir was fine earlier with everybody else that petted him."

"Something's off about that man," he bluntly stated, looking at their new housemate before turning his green eyes to her. "I recognized him."

At that statement, she couldn't help but scoff. As if, she thought but didn't voice aloud. Instead, she said, "I highly doubt you'd recognize him. He's from New Jersey – grew up there his whole life before moving here."

"But a life can be fabricated quite easily, Jane. I'm telling you, something is not right with him."

This time, she couldn't help but look at Loki and see just how serious he was being and began to feel annoyed. "I've known him for about three years, I think I'm a good judge of character at this point. He isn't bad. It's not your place to say otherwise because you just met him," she defended, her voice hard.

"Jane, You continue to refuse–"

"Because you don't know him!"

"Yes," Loki growled, "I don't, but I have more experience with distinguishing enemies and allies–"

"This conversation about him is over," she snapped, a sudden wave of intense anger rushing through her.

She did not realize that her eyes had just flashed red, a dark tendril lighting up beneath her skin. Loki, on the other hand, did, and immediately closed his mouth at this sight. The Aether had appeared again, but unlike earlier, Jane seemed unaffected by its emergence. Instead, it seemed to be responding to her emotions.

It was rare for him to drop a conversation as he did now, but he prided himself on how observant he was to fine details that most wouldn't notice, and he recognized quickly that pursuing this path with no further evidence against this...John would only be futile, ending badly for them all.

Jane, satisfied with his answer – or lack thereof – went back to unpacking and placing everything for Fenrir away, signaling to the Asgardian that they were done speaking. Whatever camaraderie that had begun developing between them had become undone, and she interacted with the god with cold indifference, similar to how she had been during his first few days here.

He saw this and walked away.

By the time Jane had finished, hours had passed and the sky was dark, and Loki was taking a shower while Fenrir drifted to sleep on his new bed. At the sight of the dog rolling onto his stomach, the astrophysicist couldn't help but quietly laugh, her mood lightening from the earlier conversation.

She turned her attention to the backyard and felt her mood lighten even more. The sky, unlike what the weather had forecasted, was clear, rain clouds nowhere in sight. She threw on a sweater and walked outside, leaving the door open for the cool, spring wind to flush out any negativity in her home.

Jane sat down on the steps that led to the grass, the aged wood creaking under her weight. She leaned slightly forward, her weight resting on her legs as she turned her gaze towards the stars. A heavy sigh left her lips, her heart growing heavy. She had checked her phone earlier and there was still no word from Erik and Darcy, and the news continued to play tragedies that were the outcome of the chaos with the return of so many people.

And for some reason, the argument with Loki continued to play through her mind.

Closing her eyes, she held back the tears she could feel building up, refusing to let them out.

She didn't cry often, but in the span of a few weeks, she had to hold back the tears that threatened to overcome her.

She had acted childishly, she knew that, but something about Loki criticizing John felt wrong. Her neighbor had been nothing but kind to her from the moment she met him, although she could admit now that it was strange at how friendly he was with her from the beginning. But other than that? She truly felt that Loki's distrust was misplaced in John.

...Although, Fenrir's actions today did make her question if her heart was truly in the right place. Didn't they say that dogs had a sixth sense about these kinds of things?

She felt a hand on her shoulder, interrupting her thoughts. She opened her eyes and watched, dumbfounded, as Loki sat down beside her. Jane quickly looked away, though, when he turned his attention to her. The air was tense and awkward, but the quiet pitter-patter of Fenrir's paws behind them was all it took to break the silence between them.

"I'm sorry about earlier," she mumbled, looking down at her shoes. There was a heavy weight leaning against her back, and the fur that tickled her neck made a corner of her mouth to turn up. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."

"Are you apologizing to me?" Loki remarked, an eyebrow raised. "And here I was, being forced to believe that I was in the wrong."

"Oh, just take the apology, will you?" she retorted, trying to seem as if she was annoyed, but they both knew she wasn't.

With a smile, Jane turned her gaze back to the night sky. She couldn't help but feel...content in this very moment, and at the sound of Fenrir's assault on Loki, and the blatant annoyance that he held for the creature beside them, there was only one thought on her mind.

She didn't feel quite alone tonight.

04 – End

A/N: Oof, this was a hefty chapter, a real big boi, should I say, lmfao.

Sorry for the wait, I hope that the amount written here made up for it. I'm seriously hoping that I'm not writing either of them to be OOC, which is the last thing I'd want, so if you do think so please don't hesitate to leave a review saying that.

Also, don't hesitate to review in general – I won't bite, lmfao.

Other than that, thank you so much for your continued support on this story and thank you to those who are new to it. You guys are seriously the best.