Loki pressed Jane firmly against him as he turned and braced her against the wall he had been standing beside. He broke a slight smile as their lips parted again. He lowered his lips to her ear and whispered, "Well, Jane Foster, you never cease to surprise me."

Jane held onto Loki's body as tightly as she could and wrapped her legs around his waist to double down on the wager she was placing on him. "Thanks, I think," she muttered.

"So to what am I to owe this honor?"

She could hear the mischief positively dripping from every word he spoke. For a brief instant, she wondered if she should regret her decision until she caught a glimpse of The Grandmaster coming towards them.

"I'm trying to avoid The Grandmaster. He has plans involving me that I would really rather not be a part of," She answered just for Loki to hear.

Loki raised his eyes to meet hers and smiled casually, "You too?"

Jane's eyes widened slightly, "You mean..he wants you too?"

He nodded, "And I find myself rather disinterested in his plans."

"What are we going to do?" She asked, hoping Loki couldn't hear the fear and anxiety in her voice.

"We?" Loki questioned as he licked his lower lip while staring at her mouth, "Jane Foster, whatever are you proposing?"

Jane opened her mouth slightly to try to formulate a reply but instead found herself silenced by Loki's kiss.

"Well, I see two of my favorite kittens found each other," The Grandmaster announced as if it were knowledge everyone should have, "Kind of looks like you two even know each other."

Loki slowly ended the kiss he had bestowed upon Jane and winked at her. Her heart leapt in her chest. Had she jumped from the frying pan into the fire by hoping she could trust Loki?

Loki rather languidly spoke without looking at the Grandmaster, as if he could not tear his eyes away from Jane, "Actually, we're betrothed."

Jane bit her bottom lip while keeping her eyes locked on him. She hoped she looked unsurprised by his addition to their mutual deceit as she caressed his cheek and smiled, "We would have already been wed if someone hadn't thought it a good idea to fake his death."

"Now that's a story probably worth hearing," The Grandmaster mused, "So I guess you two are in for one hell of a reunion."

"You have no idea," Jane's heart was beating so fast she wasn't sure if she had actually spoken the words aloud.

The Grandmaster studied the two for a moment as he scratched a spot behind his ear, "We will just get you two married off tomorrow. Totally my treat," He grinned lasciviously.

"Grandmaster, you are too kind," Loki began to speak, hoping to offer some reason to get themselves out of the pit he and Jane had dug themselves into.

"Nonsense. It's a good reason to celebrate. You crazy kids get to celebrate your union and the rest of us get to celebrate that we aren't married. It's a win win," The Grandmaster turned his attention to Topaz, "Make all the usual arrangements."

Jane and Loki continued to stare into the each other's eyes before the Grandmaster addressed them once more, "I feel you two might only be interested in each other and that just won't do here tonight. So..."

The Grandmaster let his words drop off as he regarded them closely. He paused for an awkward moment before sighing, "Topaz, show these two out so they can get on with their reunion. But you two...be sure to save plenty for the wedding night, huh?" He wiggled his eyebrows in innuendo before he left them to join another group nearby.

"Come with me," Topaz declared before turning on her her and beginning to walk away.

Loki lowered Jane onto her feet and allowed her to steady herself for a moment before he took her hand in his and followed The Grandmaster's servant. Topaz led them through the crowd and behind the largest of sofas in the room to a private passage.

"The wedding will be at omidday tomorrow. We will collect you mid morning for preparations," Topaz spoke as she opened the door, "Be ready."

"Of course," Loki smiled as he tucked Jane against him and passed through the door. Immediately, the door slammed down behind them.

Jane turned to Loki and started to speak but he cut her off with an unexpected kiss as he backed her against the now closed door. She clutched his shoulders as he lifted her to his height.

He released her lips and whispered, "He's still watching."

"How?" She breathes her reply.

"Magic," The word spoken so softly she might have missed it if she hadn't anticipated what his reply would have been. Loki eased his hands from her waist along her hips to her thighs and swiftly wrapped her legs around his waist.

"What are you.."

"Relax, Jane," Loki pressed himself tightly against her, "It'll be easier for you that way."

"What will be easier?" She asked as she breathed against his lips.

"My taking you, of course," He finished the statement against her lips as his mouth began devouring hers.

Jane couldn't breathe. She only half managed to try to make a garbled reply against his demanding lips and tongue. It only mildly registered that the air seemed to lighten and then press into her harshly and lighten again.

Loki broke his lips away from hers abruptly and grinned, "To my room."

Jane finally looked around and noticed their location had changed. She looked back at him in confusion.

"Teleportation," He answered her unspoken question as he lowered her to her feet. When she had her balance, he moved away from her, "Even The Grandmaster cannot see what happens in here. It may be he only place we are safe for now."

Jane looked around his room and then saw the window with an amazing view of Sakaar, "Why?"

"More magic," Loki answered as he sat on one of the sofas, "Just how did you end up on Sakaar?"

"Lab accident," She replied with a heavy sigh, "We were successful creating and sustaining a workable Einstein-Rosen bridge."

"So how exactly did that deposit you here? Would you not want to pick a point in space you knew? Asgard, for instance," Loki frowned as he spoke of his home.

"We did. We had the wormhole stable, and then we had power fluctuations that caused explosions and," She stopped, "I don't know if anyone else survived. I only had one way out of a burning and exploding building. I jumped through. I guess the explosions knocked off the trajectory," She nibbled her lower lip as he could surmise the rest of her story, "What about you?"

Loki spoke grimly, "Odin is dead."

Jane raised a suspicious eyebrow.

"Not by my hand," He clarified before continuing, "He died with Thor and I in attendance, but not before revealing another family secret. Thor is only the firstborn son of Odin, not his firstborn. Hela, Goddess of Death, had been locked away for centuries and unknown to us. Upon Odin's death, she was released."

"If Odin locked her away..."

"She is formidable and not to be reasoned with," Loki sat forward slightly, "And I do not think even the Mighty Thor could stand a chance against her."

"But..."

"Hela destroyed Mjolnir with one hand," He stayed gravely, "I do not even know if Thor lives."

"And how did you get here?"

"Thor and I were fighting Hela during travel via Bifrost. She was able to eject me."

"And I thought I had problems," She sighed as she sank down onto the sofa beside him, "So what are we going to do next?"

"We?" He raised one eyebrow, "I do believe you started this charade."

"And you played along. You could have shut me down and left me at the Grandmaster's mercy."

"My sense of self preservation outweighed my good sense evidently," Loki rubbed his index finger under his nose in contemplation, "There was something about the way the Grandmaster accepted the news of our nonexistent betrothal. There's more than a simple marriage arrangement involved. I don't know what but I suspect it's something neither one of us will like very much."

"Like what?" She asked with trepidation.

"I suspect it's something he is expected to receive for providing the wedding. He was entirely too willing to accept our ruse."

Jane frowned, "Then what do we do?"

"We enter into this situation with caution."

"You are not seriously suggesting we actually go through with it."

Loki met her eyes, "What other options do we have?"

Jane frowned. He was supposed to be the God of Lies. Why did he have to point out the harsh truth of the situation? She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm her nerves before speaking again, "So we are going to get married. Tomorrow. On this alien planet. Millions and millions of light years from everything I've ever known."

He studied her features for a moment, wondering what she was really harboring behind her musings. Her words had been practically monotone in pitch but there was an emotion playing at the end of every word.

"Are you afraid?" He asked with a bit of mirth in his voice, "Whatever for?"

"It's not fear. Disappointed maybe but not afraid."

"I know your situation wouldn't seem nearly so bad if Thor was here.."

"You think this is about Thor?" Jane looked at him incredulously then broke into laughter, "That would not remotely help my situation."

"I had heard of you two parting ways," Loki's offered, "However it could perhaps make this next part easier."

"Not likely," She shook her head, "Thor and I have nothing in common. Nothing. I discovered very quickly that the God I was pining for was not the man I was with. I had to make the split just to save myself from trying to make things work where they obviously wouldn't," She sighed, "So no. This isn't about me wanting someone else. I just wish I could make the choice for myself."

"Then make the choice now, Jane Foster. Either we do this and have probabilities of remaining unscathed on the other side, or we abandon this plan now and try to find a way to get off this planet."

"How romantic," She rolled her eyes, "It's not that simple."

"Yes it is. Make your choice now. Come to terms with the choice and own it."

Jane and Loki sat silently for a moment before she took his hand in hers and laced her fingers with his, "Okay."

Loki looked down at their joined hands, "You honor me by placing your trust in me."

"You saved my life a couple of times back with the Dark Elves and you just basically agreed to marry me to save me again," She rolled her eyes, "How the hell did the God of Mischief become my personal hero?"

He laughed as he gently squeezed her hand, "I didn't do either one for you."

"Still, turns out you tend to be around when I need saving of some sort," She pushed strands of her hair behind her ear, "That is so messed up."

He raised her hand to his lips and pressed a gentle kiss on her skin, "I will not begin to determine what the Norns are up to, but my sense of self preservation sometimes," he paused, "not often," he paused again as he set his jaw slightly, "but sometimes includes preserving others. Seems our fates are tied together for the moment, Jane Foster. I would not let anything untoward happen to you if it were in my capacity to stop it."

"Wow," She slowly exhaled the word, "That was almost nice."

Loki grinned as he removed his hand from hers and stood, "I am going to see if I can discover what the Grandmaster might be up to with this marriage."

"And I'm just supposed to wait here?" Jane asked as she jumped to her feet, both surprised and angered he would leave her behind.

"We have just had our reunion, have we not?" Loki winked at her teasingly and instantly drawing her memories back to the orgy room, "You need your time to recover if we are to be married tomorrow, little mortal."

Jane's mouth spoke before her brain could stop, "So that's it? I'm supposed to be recovering from our reunion. I'm not that fragile," Her right hand had gone to her hip and her mouth would not shut up despite her brain's protest, "And what in the hell makes you think you'd be in any shape to be in public buddy?! If we were having a big reunion, there is no way you'd be able to leave that bed until morning."

Loki's smile loosened as he closed the distance between them and lowered his face to hers. He whispered a kiss across her lips, "Such fire. I like you Jane Foster." And as he brushed an equally non existent kiss to her lips, he was gone.

"Damn teleportation!" Jane huffed before sinking onto the sofa to wait for Loki's return.