Hey readers! This one's pretty short, sorry bout that. But I'm anticipating next chapter will be a long one!

I've made a spotify that goes along with this story. I write to this playlist and I think it captures the mood pretty well, if you have a song to suggest feel free to PM me!

spotify:user:thisheartofice:playlist:5reiPoQbDtNUtLTQ5Q7L6B

Hunny xo


Jane had fallen asleep against Loki's chest with her leg draped over his waist. Loki runs his fingers methodically through her short hair, his face stony and eyes fixated on the ceiling. Jane's head rises and falls against his chest in time with his breath.

This wasn't something that Loki had anticipated, not even with the Foresight. Unlike the rest of his abilities, the Foresight isn't something he can control. He wishes he could see what's going to happen next, what will happen to Jane, what will happen to Asgard, and the rest of the realms.

What scares him most, though, is this new ache in his chest. He glances down at Jane and it tightens like a noose around his heart. This is new territory for Loki. To him, there is no greater joy than being 10 steps ahead of everyone in the room. He likes things he can control. These things are predictable, these are safe. But this, this mess he's gotten himself into, it's as unpredictable as the flames that roil beneath Jane's skin. Exploring these emotions is a game with no rules. Loki tries to swallow the knot in his throat. He knows now he's gotten himself in deep with her.

Loki knew he was in trouble when first he met Jane Foster. At first, there was intrigue. He had thought: Could this really be the same mortal he saw in his Foresight? How could that delicate, innocent mortal become something so terrible?

Loki had seen this woman in his dreams through the Foresight. He loved the way she looked at the stars, like she knew all their secrets kept between the folds of darkness, space, and time. He loved her curiosity, her eagerness to learn and understand. She reminded Loki of himself when he was young and when Frigga would take him by the hand through the grand libraries of Asgard. Jane gave Loki hope that, perhaps one day, someone would try to understand him. They are both so much alike, after all. She is a woman of science, and he a man of magic. She, fire. And he, ice. Just two sides of the same coin.

Then he saw the way she looked at Thor, and that made Loki angry. It wasn't jealousy, no, it was helplessness. Thor would never be the man she needed. Thor is and has always been slave to his nature just as much as Jane. And as much as Loki. They were worlds apart, quite literally. Jane would always come second to Thor's moral duties to the Asgard and the realms. Thor had proven that so eloquently when Loki had warned him of Amora. Thor didn't go to Jane, didn't make sure of her safety for himself. No, Thor protected Asgard first. Thor's one and only love will always be Asgard, like the proper little warrior he is.

Loki hated the way that Jane looked at Thor. For a mortal to fall in love with a god, especially Thor, it was like watching a moth dance far too close to the flame. It wasn't fair that she would spend what limited hours she had in her lifespan waiting for a man that wouldn't put her first, that would never put her first. That was when Loki knew he wanted to be that man. A man worthy of Jane's love.

But this? Loki looks down at their entangled bodies. This isn't love.

He's not sure she could ever trust him fully, let alone feel affection. This had been…business. Supply and demand. A transaction. But if that's all she'd give him, Loki would find a way to live on the crumbs of her love.

Jane stirs. Her face wrinkles into a grimace, a frown carving onto her mouth as she sleeps. Loki closes his eyes and slips through the cracks of Jane's mind, her dream-form unconscious of his presence there.


The space is cramped and Loki kneels before a cowering child with her knees pulled to her chest. She buries her face in her hands, sobbing quietly. Muffled sounds echo through the darkness around them.

"They never stop fighting," the girl whimpers. Loki's brow knits together and he listens.

'Is that what you want? You want Jane to grow up without a mother? She needs you!' a pause, 'I need you!'

'I can't. I can't do this anymore…'

Jane's parents.

"They always leave," the child whimpers. She cranes up at Loki, small brown eyes puffy with tears.

"Who does, dear?" Loki asks. The child sniffles, her delicate features a mask of hate, sadness, and despair.

"Everyone I ever love."

The red door beside Loki sings with energy and the dream trembles. The Aether, it's coming.

"Jane," Loki reaches out to the child. Her skin crumbles to ash beneath his fingers, tears sliding down her face.

"Don't leave me," she whimpers. The ringing grows louder, all consuming, the space dissolving into an inferno.

"Jane!" Loki cries, but his voice is lost in the chaos.


Jane surges forward, her hand bracing her racing chest. She glances around the ruined room, eyes wide and darting.

"Is this…" she gulps, unable to finish the question.

"You're awake," Loki says, watching her as she takes a moment to register that this is indeed reality and not her mind.

Loki doesn't stop her when she withdraws from him. He notices she's careful not to make eye contact with him. Looking anywhere but at him. Loki props himself on his elbows and watches her with a calm intensity in his eyes. Her hair is mussed and lips are bruised. Raw, purple patches splatter her body like splashes of water color paints. There's a bruised handprint on her hip. Loki smirks. He likes her like this. It almost feels like she's his. Jane takes a blanket off the couch and wraps herself in it with a face that gives nothing away. She turns for the stairs, not a word on her lips but Loki can see something brewing behind her eyes. He reclines and waits. Jane stops at the foot of the stairs and half-turns to him.

"That was a game, right?" her voice is hoarse, Loki likes that most of all.

"Game, Foster?" Loki muses. He wonders if she'll correct him, make him call her Jane again. She faces him head on, this time meeting his eyes, a look on her face like she knows what he's thinking. She tightens her hold on the blanket around her.

"A game," she repeats, "To get me to trust you. Make it easier to get into my head."

Loki smirks. So stubborn, if she only knew…

"I can get into your head anytime I want. Sure, compliance is helpful but not necessary. This was just," He gulps, "fun. Pure and simple."

Jane shifts. He can't tell if that's the answer she wanted but it would be enough to keep her from digging. It was an easy enough lie to believe. Would she use her deductive reasoning? Occam's Razor, right? The easiest answer is most often the right one. What's easier for Jane to believe? The lie? That Loki is just here to do Thor's bidding in salvaging what little there was left of Jane Foster. Or the truth?

"Fun." She repeats. "That's all it was?"

Loki furrows his brow and stands, crossing his arms.

"Are you asking me or telling me?"

"The truth is rarely pure and never simple," Jane says, her eyes narrowing. Could she really see through him that easily? Did she know of his true feelings? Or does she think he's still playing a game? Loki's pulse rises to his throat. Loki swallows, his composure cracking.

Then Loki breaks a smile.

"I didn't think Oscar Wilde was your type."

"Don't change the subject, Loki." Jane says, an eerie calmness in her voice. Loki takes a step closer, emerald eyes burning. And here comes the fork in the road: tell Jane the truth, or tell a lie. Either, he's sure, will drive her from him. She'd never accept him, not now at least.

"You want the truth?" Loki draws closer, a wicked grin on his swollen lips. Jane doesn't back away from him, not even when his mouth brush her ear, making a shiver run through her.

"When or rather, if, Thor returns you're going to remember how I made you beg for me," Loki can feel Jane stiffen, "And every night you share with Thor, you're going to remember how I made you scream my name. And that, my dear, is fun."

Loki pulls away to assess the damage he's done, his heart aching beneath his sneering grin. He doesn't want this. He doesn't want to lie anymore. Jane's expression is hardened, the muscles in her jaw clenching.

"Fuck you," she hisses. The smile fades from Loki's lips, his mouth going dry.

"I'm afraid you just did," Loki sticks the last blow with surgical precision. "But don't worry, I'd never tell Thor. Your secret is safe with me."

Jane shakes her head with a humorless smile.

"Blackmail seems beneath you," she pauses, "I thought you were cleverer than that."

"Ah, you see, it's only blackmail if Thor cares. So, Foster, what do you think?" Loki leans back, every inch of him crawling with guilt and self-loathing. "Do you think Thor would even bother to care that I've had my share of you?"

"It's not like I give a shit what he thinks," Jane shrugs. Loki scoffs.

"And what's this now? Doesn't take much for you to forget about the witless oaf, does it?" Loki turns away from Jane. With a crisp snap of his fingers, the room begins to fall in place again. Chairs stand upright, the concave wall puffs back into shape, and other pieces of the broken house pull themselves together again. To finish, a fresh tunic and pair of pants wrap around Loki and just like that it nearly looks like this morning never even happened. Why is she being so persistent? Why does she keep trying to open Pandora's box?

"If you're trying to piss me off, it's working. But I'm not going to blow my lid if that's what you're getting at," Jane growls. Loki chuckles, turning back to Jane.

"Because you're so in control," Loki gestures to the newly made room. Jane crosses her arms.

"I'm working on it."

"Not fast enough, clearly."

"What about you? Was that control?" She points to the floor where they'd been lying not moments before. The muscles in Loki's jaw work over, his gaze icy, and she continues. "You can stand there belittling me but you forget that I know something about you too."

"And what's that?" Loki's heart stutters in his chest. Does she know?

"I know you're not the monster you pretend to be," Jane says, the softness returning to her voice, "You used to be. But you're not that man anymore. So stop using it as your crutch, it's pathetic." Loki laughs.

"You just have me all figured out, don't you Foster," Loki sneers.

"I told you," Jane pauses, taking a step closer to Loki, "it's Jane."

Confusion twists up Loki's insides. He had tried to push Jane away but here she is. He gulps down the knot in his throat, taking pause and collecting himself.

"Well Jane, I suggest you meet me at the Bifrost site this evening," Loki purrs, "If you want any chance of seeing Thor again." He leaves on that bitter note, slamming the front door behind him.


Just a bit of Loki being petty.