Chapter Twenty – Day 115

If Jane had found any part of her stay on Asgard unpleasant before, it was only a shadow in comparison to the utter hell she was in right now. A normal, boring, mind-numbingly dull life working 9-to-5 with zero knowledge of the possibilities of the universe would be preferable to the torment of her current situation.

She was pretty sure she was dying.

With a groan at the melodramatically bleak thought, Jane sank back to rest her weight on her heels, her hands gripping the seat of the toilet-like device with all of the strength she had left. She was tempted to rest her head against the cool porcelain, but all she could do was stare at the clot of blood slowly suffusing the water in the bowl. The swirling spread of it captivated her attention, a momentary distraction from her gloom.

Over the past few weeks, Jane had started to become used to the random droplets of blood that liked to drip from her nose. It had not taken her long to realize that it only happened whenever she tried something new with her magic. With the cause determined, she had set aside her concern over it, deeming it irrelevant. What did a little blood matter when she was learning to do things no human had ever done? There was no point in worrying Loki over something that neither of them could control, so she had taken to performing all first attempts on her own. But with that sickening mass staring at her, maybe it was time to rethink that strategy.

A drop of water hit the surface with a plink, finally snapping Jane out of her daze. A small puddle had started to form around her, rivulets of water giving in to gravity as they dripped from her skin. Her coughing fit had come on too suddenly for her to have time to dry off, barely escaping the confines of her bathtub before the spasm had hit. Her knees ached from where they had slammed into the floor.

A violent shiver racked her whole body, nearly upsetting her balance. Realizing that she was still naked and absolutely freezing, Jane stretched as far as she could to reach the enormous, fluffy towel she had set out for herself. It was too far away; damn this bathroom for being so unnecessarily big. With a grunt of effort, Jane slid her hips sideways off of her heels to sit on the marble tiles, lowering her upper body to the floor as well. Stretching again, her fingers managed to snag the edge of the towel, and she dragged it toward herself. Already feeling out of breath, she wrapped the oversized cloth around herself as best she could to provide a slight barrier between her, the cold floor, and the quickly chilling air. She was so going to regret this in the morning, but her eyes slipped shut anyway. Sleep was such a precious commodity these days that she would take it even if it meant passing out on wet stone.

It was far too early for Loki's taste, especially since he was up for such an irritating reason. The sun had yet to crest the horizon; even the birds were still sleeping in their nests. But late last evening, Odin had commanded that he join Sif and Hogun on a visit to Vanaheim in an attempt to peacefully settle a dispute between two warring villages. It seemed rather beneath him to interfere in this inconsequential fight, and the Vanir relied too heavily upon Asgard to handle their troubles in his opinion, yet he accepted the mission regardless. Refusing would have done no good, and if he resolved the issue quickly enough, he might make it back in time to spend at least part of the week with Jane. Too much of his time these days was being sacrificed to his duties and plotting around Thor's coronation; he refused to let that completely obliterate their already-reduced training schedule.

He was on his way to her room to inform her of the change in plans. He did not bother to knock; if she was still asleep, he would not disturb her rest. The nightmares induced by the Infinity Stones still tormented her, and he had been unable to help her overcome them. It was yet another reminder of how hard he would have to fight to ensure her safety, even from her own mind.

The lights were on in the room, but he did not see the girl anywhere. "Jane?" he called out curiously, expecting to hear a response from either of her side rooms. At the continued silence, he pushed open the door to her dressing room, but it was empty. He hesitated outside the door to the bathing room; for as little as he generally cared for others' need for privacy, with her it felt like it would be a terrible breach of her trust to go in. And yet, he was starting to feel an uneasy swell of concern.

All thoughts of modesty flew from his head as the door drifted open under the pressure of his hand and revealed an unmoving sprawl of pale flesh atop the even paler floor. "Jane!" he cried again in terror, rushing to crouch by her side. Flecks of blood marred the white stone near her head. His hands hurriedly brushed aside her damp hair from where it clung to her neck to find her pulse.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

It pounded steadily against his fingertips. His head drooped at the sudden flood of sheer relief. He had overreacted, that was all. He had not lost her yet.

"Loki?"

Her crackly voice brought his head back up, and he found himself drowning in her caramel eyes. He had thought he had gotten past the feelings of guilt over her health that had plagued him ever since their first visit to Midgard, but apparently he had only placed a cover over the well of it that dug inconceivably far into his conscience.

Removing his fingers from her neck, Loki took a moment to erect a calm façade for her sake. "Jane, would you mind explaining why you decided to take a nap on the floor with only a towel for comfort?" He flinched inwardly at his own snippy words; his nerves were still a bit too raw for this.

The girl glanced down at herself, as if only just realizing where she was and how poorly she was covered. Her voice was still weak as she mumbled, "Oh, I'd hoped I'd get this all cleaned up before…"

He huffed in agitation as she trailed off, pulling the towel more securely around herself. He would not let her ministrations distract him from getting answers. "Before what, Jane? Is this how you prefer to sleep?"

"No, of course not," she uttered meekly. She bit her lip, worrying it between her teeth as she looked back up at him. "I just… I wasn't feeling well, and I didn't want to bother you with it. Then yesterday I tried to break apart some rocks with my power, and my magic went haywire while I was in the tub, and I just kind of fell asleep here."

She looked absolutely pitiful, lying there on the floor with wide eyes and colorless skin, completely vulnerable. A fierce surge of protectiveness gripped his heart in a vise. If he wanted her to trust him and come to him when something was wrong before she pushed herself too far again, he would have to display some form of sentiment.

Sighing, he cupped her cheek to prevent her from looking away. Her skin was as cold as the stone beneath them. "Never trivialize concerns over your health. I would much rather waste a moment fretting over something treatable than come across another scene like this." She nodded silently at him, appearing properly chastised for her obstinately secretive behavior.

Sensing that she was not capable of leaving her position on the floor anytime soon, Loki carefully slid his arms under her shoulders and knees, effortlessly lifting her slight weight. Jane floundered to find grip on his coat from the sudden movement, but for once she did not protest the idea of being carried. One of her hands slipped around the back of his neck, her slim fingers brushing against the ends of his slicked back hair.

Leaving behind the puddle and specks of blood, Loki carried her back into the main room, sitting down on the side of her bed with her still cradled to his chest. This all had been so much easier before he discovered his affection for the girl. But he was stuck with that knowledge now, and a rarely used corner of his heart demanded that he help her with this issue. He murmured hesitantly to her, "If you would like, I could try and feel out what's irritating your magic."

He felt her nod rub against his chest, so he steeled himself for what he was about to do. Though he had prodded her magic many times before, actually sending his own through her was an act that required a great deal of care. Her parasite could become defensive at his invasion, and he did not want to ruin his record of not being shocked by her. Slightly shifting his grip on her to maximize his hands' contact with her bare skin – and trying desperately not to focus on the feel of her, so soft and supple in his grasp – Loki pushed some of his own emerald light into her, blocking out all physical sensations as he searched for the red that had retreated from the surface.

Jane tilted her head up to watch Loki's face as his hands slid into their new positions, her body going on high alert at the almost caressing sensation. His eyes closed as a look of serenity smoothed out his features, completely at odds with the jumble of nerves playing havoc with her insides. Falling asleep in only a towel – granted, it was an incredibly large towel made for someone much taller than her – was possibly either her best idea or worst idea ever. The fog in her mind evaporated as her senses were overwhelmed by Loki's closeness, and her thigh felt like it was on fire beneath his touch. Oh, what sweet, sweet agony.

But that was only the beginning. Ever so slowly, his magic seeped into her skin, its icy coolness gradually sinking in deeper as she melted into him. Her hand slipped from its spot around his neck, drifting down his sternum to rest over his heart as her own magic seemed to relax. It was an ineffable feeling, the way her every muscle loosened as he methodically stroked her red light with his own. Part of her longed to understand it, but the rest of her was perfectly content to just let him continue doing it forever.

As more of the green cascaded into her, a particularly stiff coil of red light around her left lung gave way, and Jane breathed in deeply. Precious oxygen. How had she not realized how tight her breathing had become lately? Her body shuddered at the influx of rich air mixed with Loki's scent. Maybe she had died on the bathroom floor; there was no other reason imaginable for this sudden taste of heaven. With that thought, she curled even more firmly into Loki's chest, needing his solidity to support her.

Far, far too soon, the sensation of Loki's magic began to fade away as it pulled back, causing a soft moan to escape her lips. Reluctantly returning to reality, Jane felt her face flush at her reaction, hoping he had not heard it. It was one thing to admit to herself that she liked him; it would be another beast entirely if he knew it too.

The shoulder she was resting her head against nudged her, a clear indication that he truly was done. Forcing her head to move, she looked up, drawn once again into his grey-green gaze. They really were beautiful eyes, so full of emotion whenever he let down his guard. And right now, they were filled with concern.

Needing to reassure him that she was fine but not at all wanting to ruin the moment, she whispered, "That was amazing. How did you do that?"

It came out a touch breathier than she had intended, but he responded before another flush of embarrassment could overtake her. "It was just a simple trick," he began in a low voice, the concern in his eyes replaced by something she dared not try to name. "I infused some of my power into yours to help it recover."

The explanation was plain enough, and any other time she would have demanded a more in-depth answer, but the way he said it left her entranced. Was it possible that he like liked her too? Oh wow, that was a rather juvenile way to put it, but his face was so close to hers, it would be so easy to lean forward and find out for sure…

Jane squeaked as she suddenly went weightless, her hands grasping spastically at Loki's coat as he abruptly stood and turned around. Just as abruptly, her back hit the mattress, and his quick hands tucked a blanket around her before any wildly inappropriate thoughts could overthrow any sense of levelheadedness she had left.

Ah. So, it was all in her imagination. Damn it.

"I really must be going," Loki said calmly as he stood back up fully, the nervous plucking of his fingers against his palm the only sign that anything out of the ordinary had just occurred. "I had only come by to inform you that I will be gone for a few days to Vanaheim, but you truly are the distraction my mother always accuses you of being."

Jane huffed in irritation. "It's not my fault you find my problems interesting. And I would have been fine even if you hadn't come along." Cold and in pain, sure, but she had managed this long without him being her magic masseur.

"That's the thanks I get for saving you from a weeklong recovery?"

She scowled at him, and he only grinned in return, evidently back to his regular self already. Composing his expression, Loki declared sternly, "I will send my mother to look after you while I'm away. I don't want you doing any unsupervised magic until you can stop strangling your parasite."

Strangling? Is that what had happened? How had that happened? She squirmed uneasily beneath the blanket, shuddering at the idea of bringing that pain back on herself from her own actions. It was both exciting and depressing how much she had yet to learn about magic and her own limitations.

Apparently taking her silence for acquiescence, he added teasingly, "And though you wear that towel very well, you may want to change into something more appropriate. The queen does have certain standards, after all."

Her jaw dropped at his words, staring in disbelief as he started to walk away. The jerk was laughing at her! Feeling a momentary surge of energy, Jane propped herself up, tugging the towel free from beneath her. Balling it up, she tossed it as hard as she could while still keeping her blanket tucked up over her chest. It hit the back of his head with a satisfying thwump, and Jane dropped back down onto her elbows for support as she watched him catch the material and turn back toward her with a dramatically slow pivot. It had been impulsive, and she would probably cringe at the memory of it later, but her cheeky grin was firmly in place. If he wanted to end this semi-sweet moment with a joke, then she would be the one to have the last laugh.

The look on his face was priceless, a mixture of alarm, bafflement, and something that could have been that unnamable emotion from before. Taking advantage of his sudden inability to speak, Jane quipped, "Now you don't have to worry about me offending your mother with something inappropriate."

He recovered quickly, a smirk hiding his previous shock. "I'm not sure how things are done on Midgard, but I assure you that nudity does not fall under the definition of 'more appropriate' here." Lobbing the towel back at her bed, he bowed with an excessive flourish and backed out of the room before she could come up with a retort.

Finally alone, Jane gave in to the quivering of her biceps and crashed fully back upon the bed. It had been well worth the effort of staying upright, but she really was tired. The nights of repeated restlessness were taking their toll, and even the relaxed flow of magic returning to her veins did not help her exhaustion. Stretching out her loose limbs, she settled back, hoping vainly for nightmare-free sleep but content with letting her mind wander to more pleasant thoughts for now.

Walking away from that room was possibly the hardest thing Loki had ever had to do. It had to be in the top ten, at the very least. He had nearly turned back three times already, and his steps faltered yet again as his mind circled back to the image of Jane covering herself with nothing but a thin blanket. If fate were trying to distract him from his scheming, it was doing an excellent job.

Despite the strain he was now feeling from her reaction, sending his magic into her had been the right decision. The normally wispy streams of crimson light had hardened into stiff, twisted cords of dull garnet; it was no wonder her body had reacted so poorly. Honestly, had she learned nothing at all these past few months? He would have to remind her of the importance of focusing inward instead of just relying on the brute strength of her power to accomplish her goals. He snorted at the thought; just when he had been thinking she was the opposite of his brother, here she was proving that she could be just as careless as Thor.

He had gradually pulled his power back as her trembling became too distracting for him to concentrate on the delicate work of massaging the rigidness from the beams. Her awe as she stared at him had alleviated his concerns of accidentally doing more harm than good, but it had sucked him in. He craved that adoration, wanted it to be real. But how could it, when she had not even trusted him enough to tell him that she was unwell to begin with? No, he was merely her rescuer in that moment of distress; he did not deserve anything more than her friendship, if even that.

And then, that towel. Oh, sweet Norns above. She may have been the one who was dying, but he was fairly certain she was trying to kill him, too.

Mentally slapping himself, Loki shoved the image aside. He needed to focus. Sif and Hogun were waiting on him, and while they would not dare leave without him, they sure as Hel would be annoying to deal with if he made them wait on him much longer. But he would make it up to them by making these the fastest negotiations in history.

A/N: When I was initially writing this chapter, I had come up with the "she's dying/trying to kill him" line first and then had to write the entire chapter around it, so I hope you enjoyed the rollercoaster Loki & Jane had to go on to get to it haha.