A/N: Thank you all for the kind reviews-I'm so glad that you're enjoying the story!

Please note that I lay no claim to a knowledge of physics and that the science discussed in this chapter (and any to follow) is a mix of research and my own fanciful fabrications :)

Jane dug her fingers into the muddy shore as she fought the drag of the river behind her. Gritting her teeth, she gave a series of forceful kicks before she finally managed to claw her way forward onto her elbows, then up to her knees. Loki surfaced behind her, allowing the current to sweep him toward the bank as Jane watched him over her shoulder.

"The physics of this is ridiculous!" she yelled above the roar of water. "Here's land at a perpendicular angle inside a vertical tree trunk! How are we not falling back down by gravity or floating around without it? I mean, if it were—"

"It's magic, Jane," Loki sputtered as he crawled up onto shore beside her. "It's all magic, and there's no explanation for it."

"I doubt that."

"Do you honestly believe that there's a precise calculation for everything?"

"Yeah, I do." Jane inched back toward the water and reached down to wash the grime from her jacket. "Every phenomenon has cause and effect with variables that determine the initial reactants. It's an equation that can be worked out."

Loki slicked back his wet hair, then shifted to adjust his reappearing armor. "What mystery is there in that?"

Jane shrugged. "That's just it. It solves the mystery."

"Rather takes the fun out of it." He threw her a sideways glance. "What kind of world would it be without questions?"

"An enlightened one," Jane replied. "Society moves forward when we find the answers."

"You cannot control what knowledge brings once you obtain it, Jane. Some things should remain unsolved."

Her head shot up in surprise. "So fear of the unknown should keep us from learning?"

Loki's mouth had pressed into a hard, thin line. "I've learned that striving for omniscience brings more pain than it's worth. You should focus more on an experience instead of analyzing it to death."

"Analyzing it to death?" Irritation burned Jane's tongue, and she did not attempt in the least to fight it down. He had more than asked for it now. "What do you know about starting research on a subject no one has even considered? Do you think any of this is easy? Do you think I just stare at the stars and wait for my feelings to tell me why they're there? Try telling that to a research foundation board when you're trying to get a grant renewal." Jane rose to her feet and began to pace furiously. "Not all of us can just shoot around space and experience it like you can, so observations and equations are all that we have! They're not scribbles, they're how we map our discoveries!" She spun on her heel to face him, then immediately froze.

Loki's face had lit up in a genuine smile as he watched her from the lower bank. It was a warm expression Jane had never seen. His eyes had lost their sharp edge, and she nearly jumped when she recognized affection in his gaze. Something pulled hard inside her as she began to walk toward him without even knowing why. She tried to step back, but instead felt another tug as if an invisible cord had been pulled taut between them.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she murmured, entranced.

Then it was gone, shut off like a breaker in a storm. Loki swept past her, taking the rest of the of the hill in long strides. "Just a memory. Let's go."

Following him in silence, she sensed their connection weaken before dissolving entirely. It was as if a radio had lost its signal, leaving behind only monotonous static in its wake. But she had clearly seen his expression: it was so uncharacteristic of him, for she had never thought Loki capable of true warmth toward anyone. Then again, she hadn't spent much time with—she shook the thought from her head. A murderer, and she had been drawn to him! She felt a stab of panic: why was she following him at all, even now? Of all the thoughtless things she had promised Thor she wouldn't do in his absence, this one had to trump them all. To run off sightseeing with his criminal brother instead of waiting safely in Asgard? She thought she was brave in taking him up on his offer, but now the danger had begun to seep in at last.

"This is wrong," Jane muttered under her breath. "What the hell am I doing?"

"Falling behind," Loki answered at her shoulder, and Jane stifled a cry of surprise. He pressed a long hand along the small of her back and pushed her until she fell in step with him. "Keep up, or the last of the daylight will be lost."

"What daylight?" she said hoarsely with a quick glance over her shoulder. Yggdrasil's roaring waters had long disappeared from sight. She had waited too late.

Loki did not answer, but pressed on until they reached what appeared to be edge of the hollow trunk. The same bright blue and purple lights streaked before them in racing lines like vibrant strings on an instrument. Jane fought back the urge to reach out and pluck them, unsure if they would sting as they had upon their entrance to the great tree.

The question that broke the silence nearly made her jump. "Do you see that fissure?" Loki asked.

"I can't," Jane began, her hands gesturing aimlessly. "I can't do this."

He glanced at the wall, then back at her. "The passage is not too narrow for you."

"Oh. Well, I actually meant that…" She trailed off as she saw the frustration suddenly flare up in his eyes.

He knew why she truly hesitated and still he asked. "Meant what?"

Get a hold of yourself, Jane, she thought, her mind racing. You left a note for Thor, so he'll find you if something goes wrong. Well, he'll probably find you anyway once he realizes you left with just a 'guide.' You might even still be alive by then, but then-

"Jane." Loki's voice was sharp with irritation.

"Yeah, I'm good," she replied quickly with what she hoped was a reassuring smile. She broke away from him and began moving toward the section of wall he had indicated. "Just nerves, but I'm good now. So, um, this is the fissure, right?" The neon lights snapped around the craggy edges like frayed power lines, sending a constant shower of sparks across the entrance.

"Yggdrasil wasn't always like this, was it?" she asked softly, though secretly pleased that she had gotten the name right this time.

Loki was once again at her side, though his habit of crossing distance so quickly and soundlessly was beginning to unsettle her. "I needed a way out, and so I created one."

"How many times have you come this way?"

"I can't remember."

Jane stepped through the hewn gash and felt her boots catch the grip of rough bark. The walls fell away with the darkness, and her vision was suddenly filled with the great branches of Yggdrasil stretching out to the colorful galaxies far away. She paused to consider the branch beneath her feet, at least three feet in diameter by her estimate, before she carefully bent to sit and let her feet dangle off the side. Below, above, and around was the vast expanse of space. Jane gasped as her gaze took each new angle in turn, and was surprised that oxygen continued to find her lungs where no atmosphere should exist. Out beyond her reach the heavens were splashed about like paint on a pallet of deep blue. Looking down, she found the bark of Yggdrasil transparent beneath her hands and she watched as golds and greens joined the other colors that lashed out beneath the surface like fingers of lightning trapped in glass. The huge branches finally narrowed to end in great clusters of silvered leaves that blew about in a windless void. She nearly lost her balance when the tree shifted forward as its boughs lifted and swayed, the shining leaves reflecting the stars that seemed to brush across the crown of the World Tree. Tears sprang unbidden to her eyes, and Jane let out a watery laugh as she fought back the emotion that had suddenly overcome her.

"The tree is ash," Loki remarked behind her, "Though unlike any that carry that name on Midgard."

"I've never seen anything so beautiful," she breathed as she finally managed to compose herself. "How is this even possible?"

"Magic, I suppose."

Jane looked up to see him smiling, though not at her. His eyes were different again, younger, and more boyish as he watched the galaxies whirl about them with an air of old familiarity: his was the look of coming home. Silence stretched between them for a moment or an eternity, Jane did not care; she could look out from this place forever.

"Up," Loki said finally, digging a boot into her thigh. "You are dawdling. Now, follow the path and jump off where it ends."

Jane threw him a incredulous look as she got to her feet, but found her legs obeying long before her brain could reason out his order. The walk was a matter of two dozen strides before the branch dropped off and below—Jane drew in another sharp breath as she leaned forward. A wide, shimmering circle bloomed out from beneath the bough's end, its borders rippling out like a silver shoreline. In its center, as if through flowing glass, appeared rolling fields of green accented by forests of autumn trees. She turned to find Loki following close behind.

"This is the same as the convergence back in London!" she cried excitedly, then paused as she realized he had not been there. "They were in the sky, like tears in the clouds, you should have seen it! The realms, are they all around the World Tree like this? Just portals floating around?"

"Mostly," he replied as he stepped forward. "Now go."

Jane looked over the edge. "I won't be falling thousands of feet, will I?"

"No."

"Do you know where we'll land?"

"No."

"So we could end up-"

With one swift movement, Loki lunged forward and his arm shot out to wrap around her waist as he drew her roughly to his side. One final push against Yggdrasil thrust them forward and down as they dove into the atmosphere of Álfheim.

Jane opened her eyes to a sea of diamonds.

Water seemed to rush around and over her head as she fought to hold her breath against the shock of impact. She kicked as hard as she could, the glimmering surroundings nearly blinding her as she moved upward. Suddenly, she was jerked back and found herself descending again. Strong roots, she reasoned, must have wrapped themselves around her ankle, but she abandoned this as she realized it was consciously pulling her farther into the depths. As she struggled to free herself, the waves created by her frantic movements sent the silvered water away in bursts of light. Another set of claws immediately latched upon her other leg and swung her to the side as she felt heat rise from below. The need for air began to burn her lungs, but even the adrenaline racing through her limbs was not enough to propel her toward the surface. The water had turned deep red with flashes of gold that swirled around her like bloodied silver before pulsing away in fiery hues.

I did not come here to die, a voice snarled in her mind. Jane reached down and unsheathed Loki's dagger, then began hacking furiously at the thing beneath her feet. The blade struck something solid and she forced it deeper, sawing the sinews like rope as sparks flew out and were extinguished. Her right ankle was released just as she ran out of air, and her lungs breathed the surrounding atmosphere deeply before she could think to stop. She had not meant to drown, but she conceded her body the inevitable now. Liquid rushed into her lungs, then out again as Jane's eyes widened in shock. She sucked in another breath, and then let it out as if the glinting water were air itself. She had not meant to drown, and by some miracle…

Another tug jerked her leg down and she cried out as the fingers burned their grip onto her leg. Grasping her weapon in a tight fist, she swung it down with the hilt angling toward her feet, effectively slicing through the second tendril with greater ease than the first. The coil released her and she kicked away with the last of her frenzied energy. The water lightened and became silver once more and she nearly sighed in relief as she felt the surface within reach.

She did not notice the shadow that hovered to her left.

It shot out and gripped her arm before Jane buried a dagger blade deep into its armored flesh without another thought. It jerked away in a swath of bubbles, leaving the knife in Jane's grip as she finally surfaced to the warm night air.

Her ears were instantly met with the choked yelling of a foreign tongue, and Jane recognized Loki's voice amidst his sputtered curses.

"You wretched woman!" Loki snarled as he splashed clumsily toward her with one arm. "Is this how you repay my offer of aid?"

Still slow from her own weariness, Jane had no time to think before he was on her, fingers clawing the back of her head as his thumbs pressed deep into the hollow of her neck. Her own hands came up in an effort to pry him away, her mouth gaping as she struggled to breathe beneath his grip. She slipped down below the surface and tasted blood, his blood, she realized. The shock of her mistake did not stop her from threatening it again if it meant saving herself. She raised the point of the dagger against his abdomen.

"I didn't know," she gasped, her mouth filling again with the glimmering water. "Let me explain."

Harder pressure from the steel in Jane's hand convinced Loki to release her, leaving her treading water alone as she gulped the air into her lungs.

"I didn't know it was you," she growled, still sputtering. "I had to cut myself free and then—"

"Free from what?" Loki's sneering tone was mingled with pain as he fixed her with a black look.

"I don't know, roots? Something grabbed my legs and dragged me down and I couldn't—" She pushed a hand through her tangled hair, flustered. "And then you grabbed me, so I…" A glance at his face galled her into silence, and she turned and began paddling toward the near shoreline. She barely noticed that neither her hair nor her body was wet.

"So you stabbed me."

Jane didn't answer him until she had laid a number of strokes between them. "What was I supposed to do?"

"You were supposed to look!"

"Right, like I was going to stop and see who was trying to get me!" she shouted over her shoulder. A series of uneven splashes behind her was enough evidence of his quick, if not cumbersome, pursuit. A thought flitted through her mind: How badly had she hurt him?

Loki hissed out another curse before leveling a snipe at her. "Is this how you travel? On constant edge until you attack your own companions?"

Jane whirled in the water to face him. "Yeah, if that companion is you."

"You still don't trust me."

"Don't act so surprised."

"You must have had a little faith to come this far with me." His voice coiled about her, low and serpentine.

"I didn't come because of you," Jane retorted with a glare. "I trust Thor to find me. In the meantime, I'll take my chances."

Loki's teeth flashed in the moonlight. "Oh? Would that have been the note you left him in the trunk near his bed?" He was swimming closer, but she was too frozen in shock to retreat. "The little key on the pillow was a nice clue, but then Thor would need something really obvious, wouldn't he?"

"Why did you go-" Jane tried to force down the pulse that had begun to hammer in her throat. "What did you do with it?"

"I burned it, you silly woman. I couldn't have you leaving such damning evidence behind."

Jane felt her stomach begin to twist in sour knots. What a fool she had been, a million times over! There were no witnesses left to tell Thor where she had gone, unless Heimdall had sensed it, maybe even seen it from the heights of the Bifrost. Thor had once told her he could see everything. She tamped down this sudden ray of hope before Loki could notice, and instead resumed her slow swim to shore.

"So I'm a hostage now," she remarked flatly over her shoulder.

"You are nothing of the sort. Hostages are taken against their will, and you came willingly."

"What if I change my mind?"

"Why would you wish to do that?"

Jane did not answer, though the silence between them did.

"Leave when you wish, but know you will never find your way back to Asgard," Loki said, biting each word out. "I will not accompany you."

"You'd kill me first." The words were a realization, not a question.

Loki shrugged, though the gesture made him wince with the pain of his injured arm. "Secrets are dangerous things, Jane, and you happen to hold one of mine."

"I didn't even tell Thor you were alive!"

"You might as well have done so, as he would have discovered the fact once he knew where to look."

"You had no right to destroy it. That was my personal note to him!"

"And this is mine to you—" he reached below the surface and unsheathed the dagger from Jane's belt before tracing its point across her chest. "Cross me again, Jane Foster, and Thor will have your very heart to cherish after I cut it out of you."

Jane's breath came in short gasps long after Loki had reached down to reclaim his weapon and sheath. Almost as if in a dream, she felt herself turn and begin swimming as fast as she could toward shore. Her limbs burned as the distance felt interminable, and relief washed over her when she finally felt the sand shift beneath her fingers and the water withdraw behind her. Pulling herself upon a bank for the second time that day, she collapsed in exhaustion as sleep left her senseless.

She left him sleeping, the draw of the woods too potent for her to ignore. The leaves whispered in a windless night, and what could she do but to go see why? She had come to discover secrets and to explore, after all. She breathed deeply, delighting in the pure coolness of the night air. Every aspect of Álfheim seemed infused by light, whether it floated freely on the air or glinted in the abundance of nature about her. She looked to her left and watched breathlessly as the diamond waterfalls refracted moonlight in millions of dazzling facets before crashing into the silver lake.

She glanced over her shoulder at the figure lying near the fire. He was an intriguing companion, knowledgeable beyond her previous judgments and oh so unpredictable in manner. She wondered how he would react to this small adventure of hers. She clutched her notebook firmly in hand and turned away in a whisper of robes. She would find out if he caught her.

She easily found the path, and she stared in awe at the glowing shadows that lurked beneath the trees. Was there no true night in this place? She wandered for what seemed like hours, etching the rolling landscape beyond the forest into her memory. Reaching up, she plucked a leaf from a hovering branch and pressed it gingerly in the binding of her book. It glittered, casting a shifting light across the pages like a fireless torch. She wondered at it: was it an element of the plant's makeup or a trick of the moonlight? She made a note of the observation and sketched the leaf's dagger shape on the same page, but was interrupted by the crack of a twig. She cursed herself silently for taking so long—how much further could she have gotten before he found her?

"Loki?"

Her voice sounded small in the wide expanse of woods. She stiffened as footsteps began to crash through the nearby bushes. A tall figure flitted in and out of the light playing in the shade, and she recoiled even as she tried to place his face.

"Who goes there?" A deep, rich voice rumbled toward her as a man approached behind it.

"I might ask you the same."

The man stepped fully onto the path before her, great and shining even in the shadows. "I will suffer your question, my lady, if you would accompany me to my hall."

Curiosity prickled within her. Was he a light elf, one of the inhabitants of this realm? Or even if he wasn't, what else could he show her?

"Agreed."

The sunlight played across her closed eyelids, prodding Jane awake. She stretched and felt the smooth sheets shift beneath her as she sighed at the familiar comfort. The dream of Yggdrasil, of nearly drowning in Álfheim, of exploring the woods had all seemed so real, and yet she seemed to have never left Thor's bed.

She froze as her fingers brushed against a fur throw. Her eyes shot open as she scrambled back against the pillows, her silk gown rustling with the movement. A quick glance about the sunny chamber revealed a palace very different than the one in Asgard. The walls of the room seemed fluted with the twisting trunks of trees as skeins of silver raced upward toward the glassy ceiling that rippled above her. Jane watched entranced as the colors of dawn were distorted across the force field-like dome, and she vaguely wondered what source of energy could be stabilized into such a shape. She felt torn between her wonder at the structure and the burning question as to how she was in nightgown, of all things.

"Good morning, my lady."

Jane yelped in surprise at the unfamiliar, booming voice. Before her stood a tall, ruddy man gilt in pewter and steeled armor, though considerably less than Thor usually wore. A light gray cape was draped across his shoulders and spilled in a diagonal angle across his chest. His face was radiant with a full red beard framing a becoming face and a ready smile. Jane's panic was slightly quelled by the apparent friendliness of her visitor.

"G-good morning," she stammered. "And you would be…?"

"Frey," he frowned, his eyes squinting as if he were trying to understand if she were joking. "I told you of myself last night, Lady Sigyn."

Jane's stomach dropped. "What did you call me?"

"The name you gave yourself upon our meeting."

"When did that happen?" Jane felt the panic rising in her chest, racing hot then chilling in her veins. She had no memory of—wait. That dream. It seemed so foreign, as if she had experienced it through another's eyes, but it could be the only explanation for all—she threw another glance around the room—for all of this. "Was I really wandering around the woods last night?"

"Yes, and you brought this book with you." He placed her black leather notebook on the bed beside her. "You seemed lost, so I offered you my hospitality. At the price of my name, of course."

"Oh God, I was sleepwalking."

Frey's stance shifted as he folded his arms across his chest. "Then you must have walked from the depths of Hel itself, for Lady Sigyn perished long ago."

"I don't know why I said that," Jane laughed nervously. "I must have picked it up in…in Asgard. I guess dreams are weird like that."

"And what is your true name?"

"Jane Foster."

"You are Thor's lady," said Frey, his hazel eyes gleaming as he looked her over. "He often spoke of you. And what would a Midgardian be doing so far from home?"

"Uh, just exploring, really." Jane was heartened by the god's warm smile, and felt her shyness slowly slip away. "You know, Midgard is so dull compared to Álfheim and the other realms, I just needed to get out and see more."

"Is Thor with you?"

"No, I have a…guide from Asgard. I think I lost him last night."

Frey laughed. "And lose you, he did! How he could take his eyes from such a lovely mortal, I cannot imagine. You may stay here until I can find him for you."

Jane's heart leapt to her throat. "Oh, you don't have to do that! I think I could find my way back."

Her host shook his head. "You are injured, my lady."

"Oh, that." Jane winced as she reached down to touch the bandages on her ankles. "It was nothing, really. Probably just scraped it against something when I was swimming."

"Those are burns."

Jane gave a flustered sigh. "There was some kind of flame in the water. It felt like claws of fire that dragged me under. I have no idea what it was."

Frey's face seemed to darken in confusion. "Nothing lives in that lake. And it is not water, but pooled starlight."

"You're saying that I was swimming in light…in liquid form?"

"I am."

Jane gave him a quizzical look. "But it isn't possible! The very nature of light is intangible because it's an electromagnetic wave of mass-less photons! Well, unless you want to give them relative mass according to their change in velocity, but that's not true mass, and certainly never enough to take on the density of water!"

"I did not realize that you had made such a study of it."

But Jane wasn't listening. "The refracting I get. When the moonlight hit the water…no, you said it was starlight. But then that would mean that light was refracting against itself, when the kind I saw was one that met a surface with a different density. But perhaps if-"

Frey let out a throaty laugh. "It is good to hear another woman who has a knowledge of the sciences. Now, it would be better if you were dressed and joined me at table. You must be famished from your work."

"Sorry, but I think I need to see that lake again."

Frey's red locks bounced as he shook his head, amused. "We will discuss it more in due time, Lady Jane. I believe you will find clothing to your liking in the wardrobe."

Jane swallowed another slice of sweet fruit before staring down at her plate. "Who was she?"

Frey lifted an eyebrow as he lowered the cup from his lips. "She?"

"Sigyn, who was she really?"

Her host leaned back, stroking his beard. "I thought you would have known, for you claimed to be her."

"I was dreaming." Jane shook her head, her brow furrowing. "I keep dreaming about her, and I don't even know who she is."

"She was the betrothed of Loki of Asgard before she perished in fire centuries ago."

Jane shifted uncomfortably. "Did he…kill her?"

"Gods, no!" Frey looked at her incredulously. "It was an unfortunate accident, and one of her own making."

"What was she like?"

Frey considered before taking another draught of mead. "What have your dreams been like?"

"It seems she used the observatory to map the stars, but always wanted to see more. That's all I can remember. It's obvious that I'm just putting myself into my own dreams."

"She was very much like what you described."

"You knew her?"

"I have visited our sister realm many times, especially in council. It was an inevitable meeting."

"And you are—" Jane pointed her fork at him, moving it in circles. "—god of what, exactly?"

"Those on Midgard have given me the realms of earth, sky, and," he grinned, "Fertility."

"Oh, that's really…great." Jane's fork clattered against her plate. "I really shouldn't wear out my welcome."

Frey nodded, still bemused. "You wish to see the Falls again before you return to your guide?"

Jane's eyes lit up. "Do you have a boat?"

"Yes, I have something of the sort."

Physics must not apply to gods, Jane mused as she watched Frey an hour later. From his pocket he had pulled an object no bigger than his hand before tossing it into the lake before them. It had immediately unfolded a thousand times as a great ship constructed itself before her very eyes. The golden planks creaked as they locked together in the shape of a long boat, and Jane looked up to watch as large green sails unfurled above them. It was unlike any ship she had ever seen as it seemed to breathe the very wind that rumbled through its sails in anticipation of a long journey.

Jane couldn't contain her frustration any longer. "How in the world did you do that?"

Frey let out a deep laugh. "You may ask how the dwarves may have done it, for it was fashioned by them."

"I thought this was the realm of the light elves."

Frey shrugged. "They are elusive, even to me, though my halls have been here for ages. They prefer the sanctuary of the woods, and are not keen for conversation or smithing."

"Oh." Jane was staring at the serpentine head that emerged at the bow of the ship. "Does your boat also come with a foldable dock?" she asked with the hint of a smile.

"I'm afraid the dwarves neglected to make me one," said Frey with mock regret. "I must violently protest the next time I am in Nidavellir."

"Well, I guess-" Jane's words were lost to the whirlwind that swept her aboard the magnificent ship. "Okay, and how did you just do that?"

"You ask too many questions, Jane."

"Yeah, that seems to be the general consensus."

Frey smiled. "Welcome aboard Skidbladnir, the greatest of the worlds' ships, capable of taking its carrier anywhere with a favorable wind."

"Wow, um. We can just keep it to a quick trip, if that's okay."

Jane was excited to see the Falls above the surface without the fear that had paralyzed her the previous evening. She briefly wondered if Loki was looking for her, then quickly threw the thought away. Considering her recent habit of spending time with immortals she didn't know, Frey was by far better company. There was something kind, even charming about his demeanor that invited her trust, though she had no reason to give it. Thor would surely avenge any injury done to her, and everyone around her knew it. Reckless Jane, she admonished herself, counting on the threat of Thor to keep her safe.

Jane found the Night Falls to be just as dazzling during the day, the crystalline waves reflecting the light of Álfheim's second sun like pieces of an immense, shattered mirror. Turning away from the curving bow, she walked back toward Frey, who lay lazily near the side of the boat as he watched her.

"And what is your theory, my lady?"

Jane leaned her back against the thick mast. "That light has no liquid form. More of a fact, really."

"But can light be trapped in a space?"

"It can." Jane pursed her lips, thinking. "So you're saying that starlight has been trapped in the area of this lake?"

"Yes."

"What's keeping it from leaving?"

"The opposite light of Álfheim's suns and moon. It is a heavier light, if you will."

Jane stared at him. "So you're saying that your light has mass that can exert not only energy, but a gravitational force?"

"It is something of a wavelength you have never seen."

She chuckled. "Are you using scientific terms now?"

"I'm learning."

"All right, Mr. Science. What makes the light have a liquid consistency?"

Frey smiled. "The trapped starlight is always fighting itself, which causes an excess of unspent energies that vary in size. Wavelength begets wavelength, much like ocean waves crash against one another, until you are left with pure energy that has no outlet."

Jane was stunned at his grasp of the material, but recovered quickly. "And how does that make it tangible?"

"It doesn't. What you felt while submerged in the lake was not liquid, but the movement of gravity."

"Wow," laughed Jane, pressing a hand to her temples. "That could eventually make sense. Just give me a few hundred years and let me get back to you."

"Your science has yet to discover that it is not the same in all reaches of the universe."

"Sounds pretty unbelievable, but I'm always willing to look into a new theory." Jane flashed him a smile before she turned to lean her elbows on the side of the ship. She stared down longingly at the waves below her. "What I wouldn't give to take some of this lake back with me," she murmured.

Frey rose to his feet behind her. "It is nearly dusk. I believe it would be best if you were to return to your camp, as your companion will be wondering where you went."

During the trip back to shore, Jane furiously sketched the details of the roaring Falls behind them before jotting down every word she could remember of Frey's explanation. The possibilities and impossibilities warred endlessly inside her head, and she was glad when at last she felt Skidbladnir grind into the sandy bank.

"Might I have the pleasure of your company again?" Frey asked as he conjured a second whirlwind to land her gently on shore. "For the purpose of further scientific discussions?"

"I enjoyed the afternoon, thank you," Jane smiled back up at him. "It seems like science is a common interest for all of you."

"It is an endless frontier for us, and there is still so much to learn."

"You've got that right." Jane scrambled up the bank until she felt her boots strike solid soil. She turned back, calling out, "And yeah, if I'm ever in the neighborhood —" she stopped as she briefly glanced around for the ship, but Frey was gone.

He had dropped her off very near to where she remembered crawling ashore the previous night. She had not realized how tired she was, and wondered how much sleep she had really gotten since then. She was in no mood to battle Loki as to her whereabouts, and was pleasantly surprised when she found him absent from the camp he had apparently built last evening. The embers of the fire had long died out, but she recognized their pack of supplies propped against a rocky outcropping, and her…Jane stared. Her clothes? Please tell me I wasn't wandering around the woods in just a blanket. She and Loki had clearly slept on opposite sides of the fire, but Jane was too exhausted to figure out which wool spread had been hers. Snatching up her pile of clothes, she made a makeshift pillow of them and stretched out across the blanket.

She was woken sometime later by the brush of cool glass against her palm. Her eyes flitted open and she saw that a vial had been gently placed in her hand. She squinted at its radiance and her heart leapt as she realized it held the lakelight she had coveted aboard the ship. There was a creak of leather and Jane shifted her focus just in time to see Loki step away from her elbow and disappear into the woods.