Wow, I love all of y'all for reviewing, srsly! (Niffer01, I'm so glad you commented on my last chapter title because I was beginning to think no one else even noticed it. But I knew I couldn't be the only one to picture Tim Gunn standing beside Jane, staring at her ruined dress, and telling Loki, "Make it work!") I'm so glad the wedding vows/speeches I came up with didn't seem lame and weird to y'all. I pictured it happening in that huge, HUGE chamber at the beginning of the movie where Thor's aborted coronation took place. Sheesh, just walking down that long-ass aisle had to take an hour…

Anyway, I'm deeply and profoundly glad y'all liked the wedding stuff because it ain't over, people–not yet, oh no, not by a LONG shot. What's the point of winding Loki up if I let him get Taryn alone so soon? Oh, no no no, we must make our God of Mischief suffer before he gets his cookies. *evil leer* Again, specifics (the sword across the threshold and through the pillar, the verse Jane says over the loving-cup) are from the Viking Answer Lady's page. All the other stuff is from me–the sword dance, the blessings, all that crap.

And yes, wedding feasts really DID last for days way back then. It was a mark of the rank of the couple to have the wedding feast last as long as financially possible. For the First Son of Odin himself, the heir to the throne of Asgard? Hoo boy… yeah, that shit ain't ending anytime soon. Also, the reason ancient people drank so much wine was that the water usually wasn't safe for consumption. They mixed water with wine because the alcohol content in the wine killed the cooties so you could drink something without getting hideously ill. Same with mead, and their beer was basically liquid bread–not much alcohol content, lots of nutrients. Kids, pregnant women, young and old and everything in between, all of 'em drank all the damn time, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I can get behind that.

Honey mixed with mead was something special, though. It was only drunk by a newly married couple, who drank it from a shared, two-handled loving-cup daily for one month after the wedding. This is where we get the idea of a honey-moon. I am waiting for this to come up at a pub quiz at some point where this knowledge will be useful to win me free beer. Alas, it has not yet happened, but I have faith.

Now, just for your edification, I want to share one bit of actual, historical fact that I decided not to use here. The wedding guests used to physically carry the bride and groom to their bedchamber, every guest carrying a torch to light the way and scare off any evil spirits or influences from following the new family. Then everyone would stand around the bed and observe the, ahem, shall we say, the ensuing festivities. Apparently they felt free to offer advice on the matter as well. Yeah, well, I can't really see Thor going for that, nor Jane, and thought we wouldn't lose anything by allowing them to do the deed in private. Seriously, I think even Darcy would agree that's taking voyeurism too damn far by half, amirite?

Sheesh, long author's note is long! Time to let you get to the part you actually came here for, but luckily for you, this chapter is long, too. Enjoy, and don't forget to review! I've got a helluva lot more of this written so I am susceptible to persuasion to update sooner if I get lotsa reviews. Not that I'm hinting or anything. Would I do that? *looks innocent*

… why are you all laughing? I could be innocent if I wanted to be!

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It seemed to take forever to leave the huge assembly hall. Outside, a new feasting-hall had been built just for the occasion. Thor led Jane to the door but stopped her before she could enter. Laying the unsheathed sword she'd given him upon the threshold, Thor scooped her up in his arms and carried her inside to the cheers of all around. Then he placed her back on her feet again, retrieved the sword, and surrounded by the watching Æsir, he thrust it into the thick, oaken central pillar with all his might.

The sword went clean through the massive beam, stopping only when the hilt lay flush against the wood.

Loki and Taryn joined in the cheering that greeted this feat of strength. "A test to prove his virility," Loki murmured in Taryn's ear as Odin and Frigga led the way toward the high table.

She laughed and blushed at the feel of his lips on her ear. "Then Jane's not going to be walking too well tomorrow."

"Neither are you," Loki promised, his voice deep with desire.

Taryn gave him a saucy look from the corner of her eye. "What makes you think you won't be the one worn out and limping?" she shot back.

He pressed a hand to his heart. "Promises, promises."

Then they had to pay attention again as Jane carefully filled a large, two-handled cup with mead and honey and brought it to Thor. She presented it to him over the ancient sword of Borr which was laid upon the table before him. Looking into his eyes, Jane recited, "Ale I bring thee, thou oak-of-battle, With strength blended and brightest honor; 'Tis mixed with magic and mighty songs, With goodly spells, and wish-speeding runes."

"That's from the Sigrdrífumál," Taryn murmured, recognizing it, and Loki nodded.

Thor lifted the cup to his father. "To Odin!" he cried, then drank before returning the cup to Jane.

"To Frigga!" she said, likewise raising the cup to the goddess, and drank as well.

"Now they're legally married," Loki whispered in Taryn's ear. "It's not official until they share the honeyed mead."

They joined the rest of the crowd in cheering as Thor kissed his new wife soundly. Then everyone converged on the long tables as the feast began. Taryn claimed a seat at the high table between Frigga and Loki, while Jane sat across from her between Thor and Odin. The petite brunette caught Taryn's eye and, grinning, shot a meaningful look between Taryn and Loki. "You're next!" she mouthed. Loki glanced down quickly to catch her reaction and was relieved to see her instant grin. She looked up at him and leaned against his shoulder with clear affection.

After that, hundreds of servants descended upon the hall, bearing platter after platter of food. Sigyn walked around the high table, filling the goblets of these most honored guests with wine as the platters circulated. Loki claimed the best of everything for Taryn as the trays went past and only stopped when she laughingly covered his hand with her own. "I'm not Thor at Thrym's house, you know," she said, looking down at the enormous quantity of food on her trencher.

Loki laughed and selected a slice of a apple from the assortment he'd claimed for her. "The Æsir like a woman with a healthy appetite, although perhaps not quite that healthy," he agreed, holding the slice up but pulling it back when she tried to take it from his fingers. "No, my lady. I will feed you."

Taryn held his gaze as she took a bite of the fruit. Her eyes lit up with wonder as the bright, sweet flavor burst over her tongue. "Wow," she breathed after she swallowed. "No wonder you didn't like the apples on Earth. That's amazing!"

"It is one of Idunna's golden apples," Loki told her, sliding the rest of the slice between her lips, and her dark eyes widened further in surprise. The magical apples, eaten daily, were the source of the Æsir's immortality. They were very, very carefully guarded–glancing down the table, Taryn saw that neither Darcy nor Selvig had been honored with so much as a single bite. But Loki had placed multiple slices upon her own trencher. She looked back up and met his smile. "Odin made you one of us," he explained, lifting another golden slice for her. "The treasures of Asgard are yours for the taking."

Taryn kissed his fingertips before taking another bite. "I already have Asgard's greatest treasure," she murmured, holding his gaze with all her love in her eyes.

Across from Loki and Taryn, Thor and Jane were engaged in similar play. Thor fed his bride tidbits from the trencher they shared and gave her sips of honeyed mead from the two-handled vessel, which Thor told Jane was called a loving-cup. She, in turn, fed him and teased him unmercifully about the amount he ate and drank at the feast.

Taryn also held up bites for Loki, then yelped when he nipped at her fingers. "Hey, watch it!"

He grinned wickedly at her. "You're the only thing I'm hungry for," he growled, tightening his arm around her waist.

Taryn blushed crimson and kicked him beneath the table. He retaliated by catching her knee with a lightning-fast grab, pulling her leg across his thigh, and trapping it there. The intimate position was hidden by the golden tablecloth, but she still blushed as she tried to pull her leg back. It was useless. Instead, she settled for glaring at him. "Your mother is sitting right next to me!" she hissed. "Behave!"

Loki bent and nuzzled her ear. "My mother thoroughly approves," he told her smugly. "Just look at her."

Against her better judgment, Taryn did so. Frigga met her gaze with a knowing smile that only made Taryn blush hotter. Darcy laughed at her and called out, "Turnin' pretty red there, Taryn. Got a little mischief goin' on under the table or something, huh?"

Then Darcy jumped with a yelp and Taryn smiled sweetly. "Whoops, did I accidentally kick you?"

The brunette glared. "Not so accidentally, I bet," she growled, but when Sif and the Warriors laughed, she joined in.

Despite the camaraderie and laughter, still a rarity for him in Asgard, Loki chafed for this feast to end. The warm weight of Taryn's leg over his and the teasing brushes of her lips and tongue on his fingers as he fed her delicacies had him almost shaking with the force of his desire for her, and he couldn't do a damned thing about it. No one, not even the Second Prince of Asgard, could leave until Thor and Jane did so. The newly married couple must be both the first to enter and the first to leave this place. To leave before them would not only be unconscionably rude–wars were fought for less–but it would also invite the spirits of bad luck, ill-omen, and disaster upon his brother and his new wife. And that was something Loki would never do.

But damn it all, Thor was taking forever to finish his feasting and take Jane away! The couple drank to the bottom of the loving-cup and it was refilled, then refilled again. The dishes went from meats and vegetables to fruits and sweets as the sun began to sink in the west, but still Thor showed any signs of slowing as he decimated the feast. Darcy and Selvig teased Jane about Thor's massive appetite, wondering aloud if it extended to other things than food. A bard stood up and recited a saga for the assembled company as yet more food was brought in. By the end of the long tale, Taryn had given up resisting leaning on Loki. The soft scent of her hair flavored his every breath and he ached with wanting her. Taryn had been entranced by the saga and launched into a spirited discussion with Volstagg about the differences between the one she'd learned and the one the bard had just recited. Even when Selvig, the wine and mead getting the better of him, stole a cluster of grapes from Taryn's plate and Loki offered to set his head on fire for the theft, no one seemed to feel the slightest urge to leave the feasting table.

Damn it all, was Thor planning to stay here indefinitely?

Finally Loki gathered his magic and prodded his brother's mind. Aren't you ready to take your bride away yet?

Thor looked up and gave Loki an amused look. Why the rush, brother? he teased back in the same way.

Loki glared. You know very well why, he growled mentally. I haven't seen my lady for three months, and we cannot leave until you do. The night is full-dark and past the midnight hour. Shouldn't you be taking your wife to bed?

Thor laughed aloud and Loki knew he hadn't kept the desperation from his mental plea. Jane looked at her new husband with an amused frown, wondering what he was laughing at, but Taryn, having experienced Loki's mental communication before, glanced up and raised an eyebrow at him, clearly suspicious.

Suddenly Odin stood. "It is far past time for sitting. I command music and dancing!" he proclaimed, and Loki's groan was lost amid the sudden scraping of wooden benches and tables as the central clearing was expanded to make room.

Jane's amusement at her husband turned to panic. "Dancing? You never said there was going to be dancing!" she cried to Thor, clutching his arm in both hands.

He smiled indulgently down at her. "Of course there's dancing, my love!" he boomed, grinning. "How could it be a proper celebration without–"

"I can't dance!" Jane wailed, nothing but terror on her face. "I'm going to look like an idiot!"

Loki reached over the table and caught her hand. "This, too, is easily remedied, sister," he said soothingly. She turned desperate eyes on him and he smiled. "Relax and take a deep breath," he told her, and when she did, he murmured a soft word and tapped her forehead. A gentle splash of green sank beneath her skin.

Jane's breath rushed out and her eyes widened. "Whoa," she breathed in awe. "I can dance."

Thor stood and beamed at Loki. "Thank you, brother," he said as he drew Jane into his arms. Then he winked. "In return, I will attend to that matter you requested as soon as possible."

Loki sighed with relief and put his arm back around Taryn. "That would be most appreciated, brother," he said, and he wasn't even offended when Thor laughed at his clear anxiousness.

The dancing went on for a long time, however. Loki and Taryn didn't dance much, though–unlike Jane, she knew the dances, but claimed her feet ached from spending so long in heels. And honestly, he was more than content just to hold her, talk, and watch the rest of the guests whirling about the floor. The wine and mead flowed freely and the dancers became rowdier, until finally Thor charged over and grabbed Loki by the arm while Jane collapsed breathlessly beside Taryn.

"Up, brother, up!" Thor demanded, not giving Loki a chance to refuse as he pulled his brother bodily off the bench. "You will join in the sword-dance with us!"

Loki gave Taryn a helpless look as Thor dragged him off the bench. But there was no help for him there–she only nodded eagerly. "Yes, I want to see that, too!"

"Traitor," he accused, and Thor wrapped an arm around his neck in a gesture that was half hug, half headlock.

"Yes, show your lady how well you move," Thor challenged, and before Loki could protest again, he was dragged off to the center of the hall where Asgard's warriors were dancing in a complex pattern of stomping feet and whirling swords.

Sif scooted down the bench, past the places vacated by Volstagg and Hogun until she sat beside Darcy, across from Taryn. "You should know that Loki never acts like this," she told the redhead without preamble.

"Like what?" she asked, clearly taken aback.

"He is usually the most secretive of lovers," Sif explained, studying her face closely as she spoke. "Public displays of affection have always sent him running. Yet ever since you arrived on the Bifrost Bridge, he has not given the slightest notice to anything but you. Everyone can see how he feels for you."

Taryn blushed and smiled. Her dark eyes sparkled with affection as she watched Loki dance beside his brother, his grace unmatched by any other warrior out there. "I'm very lucky," she said simply.

Darcy also stared out at the sword-dance, her jaw dropped. "Damn, I'll say so," she breathed. "Look at that man go! Those hips should be illegal and I am seriously and deeply jealous because I could lick him like a tootsie-roll pop." Suddenly she spun around and fixed Taryn with a piercing look. "Dude, you gotta spill the deets. Loki's the God of Mischief–he's gotta be kinky as hell in bed, right?"

Sif crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow. "How is that your business?"

"It's not," Darcy freely admitted, grinning. "But I wanna know. So? What's he into? Bondage, cosplay, edible undies, what?"

Taryn laughed out loud at her audacity. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Darcy groaned and pouted. "No fair! C'mon, you have to share. It's proper wedding etiquette! When guys are gone, the girls dish!" Taryn, grinning wickedly, just took a sip of wine and stayed mum. Darcy growled and turned to Jane next, but the bride raised a hand to cut off whatever embarrassing questions her assistant was about to ask and shook her head emphatically. Taryn thought Darcy might explode. "Sheesh, Jane, not you too! This is so not right."

Sif laughed at her ire. "Sounds like you need to get a man of your own, Darcy."

Darcy rolled her eyes and picked up her goblet. "Yeah, well, it looks like most of the guys around here are pretty solidly taken," she complained. "If I can't have a hot god of my own, at least I could live vicariously through y'all, but oh no, no one's dishing. Bitches."

Taryn put down her goblet and took pity on Darcy. "If you must know, we haven't been together long enough for me to get to know his kinks yet," she admitted, feeling the warmth of her cheeks and knowing she was blushing.

Sif, Jane, and Darcy all gaped at her. She stared back, feeling the blush deepen. "What?" she demanded.

Sif shook her head slowly. "It's just hard to believe, that's all," the warrior said at last. "He's loved you for years. I thought you'd been lovers for a long time."

"Well, I didn't know how he felt until after he… I mean, until just before Thor came for him," Taryn said. Her fingers were tight on her goblet. "We were together for less than a week before he returned to Asgard with Thor."

Now Sif positively gaped at her. "How the hell could you not know? Loki was head over heels! We all saw it!"

"And not everyone's known him for a thousand years," Jane spoke up, earning her a grateful glance from Taryn. She sounded a little drunk, but her flushed face glowed with happiness. "How's she supposed to know how he usually acts?"

"Dude, that sucks like damn," Darcy said, shaking her head and staring at Taryn. "Less than a week of hawt hawt god sex, then three months apart? Seriously, why the hell are you two still even here? If it was me, I'd have dragged Loki's fine ass outta here like six hours ago and we'd be boinking like cracked-out bunnies right now!"

Taryn grinned and rested her chin on her hand as Sif choked. "He really does have a fine ass, doesn't he?" she agreed, staring out over to where the men were still engaged in that fast, sexy, and very dangerous-looking sword-dance.

Darcy craned her neck and then nodded emphatically. "Oh, hell yes." She was practically drooling.

"You two are making me sick," Sif pronounced, which only made them laugh at her.

"You're just jealous," Darcy sing-songed.

"Ha! Been there, done that," Sif shot back with a glare, then looked wide-eyed at Taryn as if she'd just realized what she'd admitted.

But Taryn wasn't a bit surprised. "I'm a professor of Norse mythology, Sif," she said with a laugh. "I'm more than familiar with the Lokasenna."

"It was just once," Sif muttered as she went crimson and Jane laughed. Darcy once again felt like she was the only one present who didn't get it and huffed, but Taryn winked at her.

"It's an ancient prose edda," she explained, "which details a flyting. That's a ritual exchange of insults–sort of like a roast." Darcy nodded to show she understood. "And just like in a roast, nothing is off-limits. Sif got called out for cheating on–" Taryn broke off abruptly, not finishing her sentence.

But the warrior didn't bother to wait for a finish. "I wish I'd killed that mortal for writing that," she said hotly. "Yes, all right, I slept with Loki–once!–but I never slept with Thor. And I was not married to him!"

"Glad to hear it," Jane commented dryly, and they all laughed again.

Fandral suddenly appeared at Darcy's elbow, putting an end to the conversation. "Darcy, may I have this dance?" he asked, bowing and holding a hand out to her.

Taryn grinned at the brief, calculating look that came over the curvy brunette's face before she smiled and accepted. Fandral was notorious for his womanizing ways, but something told her he'd have his hands full with Darcy. Thor and Loki arrived seconds later, claiming Jane and Taryn, and Sif grabbed Hogun for her own partner.

Taryn smiled up at Loki as he held her a little closer than propriety called for and swept through the crowd with her in a dance very similar to a waltz. "And here I thought you didn't want to dance," Taryn teased.

"There was far too much giggling going on over there," Loki said, narrowing his eyes down at her. "And you, my lady, know entirely too much about the Æsir. Thor and I thought it prudent to break it up before both of us got into trouble."

She laughed. "Good thing, too. We'd just started talking about the Lokasenna."

He groaned and closed his eyes briefly. "You would," he accused.

"Really, if you don't want people to know, you shouldn't let things get written down," she said, no pity at all in her tone, and he groaned again. "But you may be interested to know that I did find out about one important historical inaccuracy regarding Sif and the sons of Odin," she added in her best scholarly tone.

He opened his eyes, looking wary. "Um. I think I'm about to get into trouble again." She laughed, and Loki sighed, smiling. Even talking about that night with Sif and the extremely awkward morning after couldn't keep him from smiling now that Taryn was back in his arms. "Would it do me any good at all to tell you that we were both very drunk and she started it?" he asked a bit hopelessly.

"None," she said, but the light dancing in her eyes took the sting out of her stern tone. "But it would do you some good to tell me that you're all mine now."

Loki bent and nuzzled her ear before murmuring against the sensitive skin, "I am most assuredly all yours now, my lady." He nipped at her earlobe, savoring the shiver of her in his arms, before very reluctantly straightening again and glancing around the hall. Then he suddenly went stiff and whispered, "Damn, I should be over there," and vanished from her embrace.

The music stopped before she could react, and she turned to see Odin and Frigga standing beside the entryway with their hands linked to bar the exit. Thor and Jane stood before them, also hand in hand. "Thor, son of Odin! Jane, wife of Thor! We bless thee now. May thy union be fruitful, steadfast and true!" Frigga cried, speaking first as was her right as Goddess of Marriage and raising her free hand in an open-palmed gesture toward the new couple.

Odin also raised his open hand. "Strength, valor, and honor I bestow upon thee!" he called out. "May thy marriage grow strong and unbending as the great tree of Yggdrasil itself!"

Then Taryn saw Loki behind Thor and Jane, and he likewise raised both his hands, one palm over each of their heads. "Laughter and happiness I wish upon thee and thy lady," he said, adding his own blessing to those given by his parents. "May thy love ever increase!"

Frigga smiled fondly at her youngest son and then raised her own voice again. "Rain down your blessings upon this new family, all present, that they may know the joy their union has brought to all of Asgard!"

And the entire crowd began to shout, all the combined blessings and well-wishes blending into a roar of sound as more flowers–another gift from Loki, Taryn thought–floated down over them, each shedding light like glowing rain. Taryn thought fast before adding her own voice to the cacophony. "May neither of you ever regret this day," she said, remembering the quick glimpses she'd had of Puente Antigua when Thor had brought her to the Bifrost site to travel with the wedding party to Asgard. So much of Jane's life was still on Earth, and Asgard was so very different from anything she'd ever known. "May you both always be glad of your marriage."

When the shouting died away, Odin and Frigga released their hands, clearing the exit for the bride and groom. "Now go make me a grandchild!" Odin boomed, and Thor swept Jane up in his arms.

"With pleasure!" he laughed, and with the ribald cheers of the crowd urging him on, Thor and Jane departed the feast.

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If you're wondering about the Lokasenna, it's an ancient prose edda in which Loki basically roasts the entire Norse pantheon. More than that, he verbally kicks their asses-a lot. They all threaten him to make him shut up, which only makes him come up with worse and worse mockery, until Thor arrives. At that point, Loki basically says, "These other idiots have no balls, but I think you really will hit me, so I'm leaving now." Snort.

The bit Taryn refers to is when Loki takes on Sif, who in Norse mythology actually is the wife of Thor. She brings Loki a goblet of wine (yep, drinking again!) and tells him (paraphrasing), "You can mock all these others, but even you have to admit that I alone of the Æsir am blameless." To which he replies:

That indeed you would be, if you were so,

if you were shy and fierce towards men;

But I alone know, as I think I do know,

your one lover beside Thor,

and that was the wicked Loki.

… yep. Sif really has "been there, done that." And I, my friends, am just as jealous as Darcy!