Pairing: Loki/Jane; Thor/Sif; Darcy/OC

Rating: M

Description: A development pops up. Will Loki and Jane be able to handle it?

Chapter 4

As he stared down the door in frustration, the blonde considered the ramifications of knocking down the barrier between himself and the owners of the home that he stood in front of. While such an act had its positive points, it was the threat of bodily harm and exasperated glares from his friend and his wife that caused Fandral to let out a weary sigh as he moved to lean against the welcoming white brick that stood as an outer wall. He knew as he peered out toward the cars passing by that his presence was not expected; the Allfather requesting the member of the Warriors Three to accompany both his son and daughter-in-law to the BiFrost and Asgard. While such an opportunity to assist the Allfather was desired, Fandral wondered if it would have been better for anyone else connected to the family. Glancing at the infuriating black door with its silver door knocker, a was about to turn around to return his attention on summoning either the Prince or his wife before the aforementioned door opened suddenly; the Prince standing in the threshold with an annoyed grimace.

"Your Highness!," Fandral exclaimed before sketching out an elegant bow; a smile of relief adorning his face before he stood to better address the dark haired Prince. "Good morning, good morning! I am here to escort both you and the Lady Jane to As–" a loud, passionate moan echoing from the upstairs greeted his ears as his blonde eyebrows rose up in surprise, "Loki, is something amiss?"

The double eyed Fandral in pure annoyance only to shift toward a mischievous smirk as the pleasure filled sounds continued to fill the house. Whomever had designed its structure had made certain that any and all sounds would be able to successfully echo throughout the house itself. The sounds only grew in earnest; his name being part of each as the God upstairs began to lose focus on maintaining his double; the noticeable struggle growing steadily as the lustful sounds originating from upstairs reached its highest peak only to decrease just as quickly.

Embarrassment as well as amusement flooded Fandral's senses; the blonde wondering if he should have made his presence known at a later time. At first he had wanted to continue his line of questions with the Prince, but as he took in the recognizable waver and shimmy of the double in front of him, he shook his head with a faint chuckle. The relationship between the former Ms. Foster and his friend truly did seem something one would only read about; the love the two of them had for each other having been easily spotted during their visits to Asgard. Recalling when the Prince and his new bride would be caught wandering the gardens of Asgard; their hands locked securely between the two of them as Loki pointed out various species of plants and flowers that he had taken the time to plant, Fandral had to excuse himself as quickly as possible as he caught the two newlyweds busying themselves with each other. The sight of his friend making his way down from the upstairs pulled the blonde away from the memory; the double in front of him fading away as the Prince approached him.

"You are the real one, I hope?," Fandral inquired; his lips quirking up slightly in an amused smirk.

Shaking his head briefly, the dark haired Prince moved toward a forgotten lamp that had been left on from the night before. Reaching for the chain that was attached to the mechanism that turned the lamp on and off, he gave the silver chain a slight yank as the room became a bit dimmer. "Why are you here, Fandral?"

"Your father asked me to escort you and the Lady Jane to Asgard. Given that I've been growing bored assisting with tonight's party to announce Thor's engagement to Sif, I figured a much needed trip would liven things up. How lucky of me to be greeted by..-" he paused as he considered the best way to explain his reaction to the sounds that he had heard coming from upstairs, he shook his head before continuing, "the sounds of your name throughout the house. For goodness sake, I could hear it outside!"

Loki could not resist smiling as he had been the direct cause of why his lovely wife had been moaning as loud as Fandral mentioned. Choosing to turn the conversation away from Jane's voice and the pull she had on him, "Make yourself comfortable, Fandral. I just need to gather a few necessities and my wife and I will be down shortly." With that, he turned around and headed back to their bedroom.

The sounds of both her husband's voice as well as Fandral's greeted Jane's ears as she finished getting dressed; her left bare foot disappearing underneath a grey sock. Realizing that both she and Loki were going to be gone for a few months as he was Thor's best man; a tradition that Tony Stark had mentioned to Thor during one of his many visits, Jane reached for her mobile device that was attached to her wall charger. Unlocking the phone with her password, Jane was greeted with notifications from both Darcy as well as the period calendar that had been recommended to her by Darcy. Opting for Darcy's notifications first, she soon read in surprise that her brunette intern had sent her photos of baby clothes for her on-the-way baby. Smiling slightly at Darcy's expressions in each of the photos, Jane's mind wandered back to the calendar as she recalled the fact that her period had been a no show for the entirety of this month. Chewing on her bottom lip anxiously, she forced her thoughts away from the numerous reasons as to why her period was late, Jane switched back to Darcy's messages to ask if she'd be willing to get the mail as well as water the plants periodically. As the message was sent to Darcy, Jane rested her left hand along her lower abdomen as she considered the loudest possibility: pregnancy. In the beginning of her marriage to Loki, the two of them had decided they wanted to wait to become parents as they were in between houses and Jane was needed to assist S.H.I.E.L.D with various issues while Loki spent time going to and from Asgard. Now as she contemplated the idea of becoming a mother, she could not help but feel a mix of joy as well as anxiety. Before Loki, she never considered the idea of having a baby; too lost in understanding the stars and so on. Still, like almost everything where Loki was concerned, her life had changed and grown in ways she had not expected whatsoever. Letting out a worried sigh, she knew she was going to need to purchase a pregnancy test and considered when the best time to do so would be when her phone beeped at her as Darcy's message came through.

Glancing down at the forgotten phone, Jane smiled faintly at Darcy's agreement before setting the device down. It was times like these, Jane mused, that she wished Darcy was there. As much as she valued Loki, she wanted a woman to talk to. Peering down at her still flat abdomen, she found herself wondering if this had been the same reaction her mother had when she found out she was pregnant with Jane. Letting out another sigh, she chuckled humorlessly as she felt her eyes start to sting with the threat of tears. It was, she recognized, times like this when she wished her mom was still around. She had no idea how to be a parent; memories of being part of a mandatory parenting class in high school that resolved in her failing because she had not woken up in time to take care of her crying baby that was, in actuality, a machine that was programmed to cry at random intervals. Taking a deep breath to try to calm the change of mood, Jane brushed both of her hands along her face to wipe away any physical sign of tears. She did not want to alarm Loki; especially as she was not fully certain they were pregnant.

Standing in the hallway, the God of Mischief paused as he listened to the sounds coming from the bedroom. Stepping quietly toward the partly opened door, his eyelids narrowed only to widen in concern as he watched Jane draw her hands to her face. Had she been crying? Thoughts of all varieties filled his mind as he tried to consider the cause of his wife's mood. Frowning to himself, Loki could not think of why she was upset and moved for the only other option that he could think of. As he made his way in, he sat down next to her and placed a hand on her lower back, "Jane, what is it?," he inquired; his voice low and soft with concern for his wife.

Blinking and jerking slightly at the unexpected presence of her husband, Jane forced herself to focus as she stood up and moved to her dresser to start packing. "Is Fandral ready to go?," she answered his question with a question; the idea of bringing up that she was worried they were going to have a baby being a topic that she was not ready to bring up. Much like the coward that she felt she was.

As he watched her get up, Loki sighed as he recognized the fact that she avoiding his question. Given his history of lying, he felt confident in the fact that he knew when someone was doing the same. Standing up, he moved over to Jane and wrapped his arms around her from behind; his lips brushing along the top of her head, "Love, tell me what's wrong."

Both the soothing warmth of his voice as well as the equally warm embrace of his arms around her threatened to tear down her cowardly attempt as she leaned into his arms. Tears threatening to spill as she chuckled, she began to feel more and more that pregnancy was the reason she had missed her period. "Once I know, you'll be the first to know. I promise." Her voice, to her ears, sounded small and scared; much like the thoughts rotating in her mind. "In the meantime, let's pack up what we need. Oh and–" she paused; the need to purchase a pregnancy test blaring in her mind before she continued, "we need to stop at the drug store before we go to Asgard."

The tone of her voice made his heart ache with increased worry as he longed to protect her from whatever was troubling her. But, he also knew that she kept her promises and so he nodded; letting go of her to pack what he needed. "All right. I will notify Fandral when we're finished."

Carrying the heaviest bags down the stairs, Loki reached the bottom step and glanced over at Fandral. "We need to stop at the drug store before we go. Jane is need of something." His wife's footsteps greeted his ears as he heard her moving to stand beside him; the same look of anxiety etching itself on her features.

Peering curiously at the worried woman before glancing at Loki; he saw the similar expression looming in his friend's eyes. Something was definitely amiss between the two of them. "Of course, of course. Lady Jane, may I help you carry anything?," he gestured at the shoulder bag draped over her body.

She shook her head and forced a faint smile to grace her face, "I've got it, thanks."

Sparing a glance at Loki who also looked at Jane with concern, Fandral sighed faintly before nodding. "Let us be off to this 'drug store'!," he exclaimed, feeling mildly awkward at the tension between the couple.

The need to find out whether or not she was pregnant propelled Jane to move ahead of Fandral as she made her way out the door; the sound of her husband's worried sigh greeting her ears. She began to wonder if it was better off to let him know what was going on, but she was worried about the reaction. Parenting was something they had talked about in the past; names of their hypothetical children filling their bedroom one night as they cuddled close. Shaking her head, Jane continued to step forward; a headache beginning to form as she found herself wanting to sleep.

"My friend," Fandral began as he moved to walk with Loki who had stepped over the threshold while watching Jane walk to the drugstore that was, conveniently, at the corner. "Is something wrong with the Lady Jane? She doesn't seem herself."

Casting a glance at Fandral who was one of his oldest friends, Loki focused briefly on both closing and locking the door with his magic. "I do not know, Fandral. When I came into the room, it looked as if she was crying. When I asked her about it, she first refused to tell me." Looking forward, his green eyes focused on his wife who had made her way to the store and disappeared inside. "She, thankfully, did promise that she would tell me once she knew though, in all honesty, that does nothing for me. While she's no longer a mortal, what if she's sick from some malady?," he announced one of the many fears that had presented itself in his mind before he started to walk after her.

Frowning himself at the worry emanating from his friend, Fandral too looked in the direction that Jane had gone to. "Loki, whatever it is, Asgard has the best healers so I insist you focus on getting home. Lady Jane is far too strong to be taken down by any illness. I am sure it's nothing," he said; attempting to soothe his friend's worries. The two of them continued onward as they started to talk about Thor's wedding.

(Well! Not the end, haha. Since I've still been given ideas from this Lokane muse, I might as well keep going! See you all at Chapter 5!)