Disclaimer: I do now own Thor, nor the Avengers.

Chapter 5 – The Real Work Begins

The next month went by very fast as the real work began. Heimdall gave them frequent updates of Thanos' movements courtesy of Loki who was proving himself indeed on their side. Just as Loki knew of a way to block himself from the Gatekeeper's all seeing eye, so too did Thanos, and it was only thanks to Loki's magic countering Thanos' that Heimdall was able to see the Mad Titan at all. Knowing he now had two Infinity Stones – Loki having done his job and convinced Thanos of his loyalty by handing over the Reality Stone – and that he was now coming to Earth and Asgard for the others, the pressure was on to prepare for war. Asgard's still diminished army was joined for training by soldiers from Vanaheim, Alfheim, Nornheim and several other worlds that were under Asgard's protection. Soldiers from Earth were noticeably absent in this congregation, and though they lamented the untrusting nature of humans – they had issued an invitation that was denied – they took solace in the fact that the Avengers had issued a warning to the planet of what was coming and were preparing for battle themselves. They had debated long and hard about issuing a warning to Earth's governments, knowing that they were likely to fold in on themselves, protecting their countries at the expense of others instead of coming together to fight Thanos. They knew there was every chance that those same governments would then try and take control of the Avengers again and make demands of them as they seemed to be the only ones capable of fighting the coming threat. All of this proved true, but even so, forewarned was forearmed and if it saved lives then they would deal with the bullshit that followed. Besides, nothing ever got done quickly when it came to international affairs as countries had to agree with each other to get things done, so they were quite confident that the battle would take place before the world's governments could do anything to truly piss them off.

On Asgard, training continued with Thor at the head, while Jane joined Shuri in the scientific part of the preparations. Shuri's calculations were rarely wrong and this time was no different, so after only a few attempts did they find the correct formula to adapt the Wakandan Princess' inventions for use with Asgardian Vibranium. The result was even better then they expected. The cloth shields they started with proved so strong that it took a fair bit of Thor's lightning to crack it. No standard, or even low powered, attack would breach these shields, which would protect any bystanders from the crossfire; only someone in the direct line of attack would have to worry, and they would be far from defenseless. Like the shields, Shuri had adapted many of her weapons as well and Asgard's metalsmiths were hard at work producing them once Shuri and Jane had gotten the formulas right. That had been three weeks ago before Jane's final check up, or rather final official check up, before she was due to give birth, and before her husband went crazy. Thor never missed one of her appointments with the healers and a minor comment from one of them saying they would have to keep a bit closer watch over her this last month had him picnicking. The healer had said it simply because up until recently she had been human and while thanks to Thor's great-great-grandfather they knew it was entirely possible – and were mostly certain it was safe – for a newly turned Aesir to carry a full blooded Aesir without problem, they were being cautious as none alive today had been alive back then to confirm without doubt. Thor had heard this and had taken it to mean that Jane and his child were at risk and had confined her to bed rest. Or tried to at least, for Jane wouldn't stand for it.

"Please go rest." Thor begged his wife as he trailed after her as she made her way down to the room in the palace that Shuri had converted into her lab.

"No." She replied shortly, her patience quickly waning as it had these last several days since the appointment with the healer.

"Jane-" He cut off as they passed by a group of Asgardians who stopped to bow to their King and Queen, though otherwise gave them a wide berth given the look in their Queen's eyes. "Jane please!"

"I'm fine, Thor." They arrived at the lab and Jane went over to look at the latest schematics while Shuri and the other scholars working on this project pretended not to listen in.

"Jane you must rest!" She growled instead, shooting him a death look. His worry had been endearing at first, though after a few hours when it became clear that he was not going to calm down it quickly became annoying. Even so, Jane had tried to placate him, knowing he loved her and their child so much that the thought of them in danger was literally driving him mad. She had spent nearly two full days in bed to placate him before putting her foot down; knowing of his concern or not, there was only so far she would let this go. Still he had been relentless and unless something that literally no one but he could do pulled him away, Thor now spent his days following his wife around, much to her chagrin. "Jane please-" She stopped dead and took a deep calming breath, though it did little good, as her patience with him was now gone. She could feel the energy crackling at her fingertips, and luckily for Thor, another saw it as well.

"Allfather!" Sif quickly came over and began pulling him away. "You are needed on the training ground immediately."

"Not now, Sif!" He insisted, trying to pull away, but she wouldn't let him.

"Indeed now. Allfather or not, you will not like the consequences if you try and evade me." His protests continued but Sif was relentless and eventually their voices died down as she dragged him far away. When they could no longer be heard Jane all but threw herself into the nearest chair and doubled over, hitting her head on the nearby desk.

"He cares a great deal for you." Said Shuri comfortingly.

"I know. That's why I haven't killed him yet." Her voice was muffled as she had yet to raise her head. Ayo and Teela chuckled alongside Shuri, though the Princess had another question.

"Was that…on your hand I mean…" Jane turned her head and looked up at Shuri, nodding. "Wow. You'll have to explain that one to me."

"One day." Jane agreed, sitting up properly. "But not now. Annoying as hell or not, he's not wrong that I should rest. I am quite exhausted, so lets get this over with so I can take a nap." She said, pulling the schematics towards her. Three hours later napping his how Thor found her. Sif had had a long talk with him, much to their friends' amusement, and though he couldn't stop the worry by any means, he's had it pounded into his head today that he was being unreasonable. Watching his wife sleep, her hand resting over where their child grew, Thor couldn't help but smile. He didn't know how long he'd been standing there when Jane's brow furrowed and a frown graced her previously peaceful face. This was not the first time this had happened and Thor knew exactly what was wrong, so he went over to her side and placed his hands beside hers, gently rubbing her belly, whispering softly, and soothing the child within.

"Thank you." Jane spoke sleepily and Thor was not at all surprised that their child's kicking had woken her up.

"I'm sorry, Jane." He apologized immediately and it was her turn to smile softly.

"I know you're just worried about us." She said. "That doesn't mean that I'm going to cater to your every panic attack."

"No, I would hope not." He replied with a laugh. "No matter how much not doing so frustrates me." Jane reached down and pulled Thor properly onto the bed and snuggled into his side. They lay there like that for a time, neither saying a word, just when Jane felt herself about to drift off again Thor spoke. "Tomorrow I will send for your father, Erik and Darcy." Jane's eyes shot open and she smiled brightly.

"Really?" Thor nodded.

"It is overdue. I should have sent for them at least a couple weeks ago, the healer says you can go into labour at any time now."

"We were busy." She could tell that he felt a bit guilty, having promised her lots of time with her father and friends – family – as she neared the end of her pregnancy. "You know, preparing for war and all."

"True." He was glad to see that she wasn't angry with him. "But I still should have sent for them. Maybe they could have gotten you to listen to me and rest more. At least Darcy would have been on my side. And probably your father as well." A punch to the arm shut him up.

-/-

The following day Jane was practically bouncing on her feet as she, Thor and their friends waited for Heimdall to open the Bifrost. Hogun had been sent to retrieve her father, Erik and Darcy and they were supposed to have returned by now, though Jane was not really surprised that they were late. They hadn't given them any warning, and while her dad and Erik would drop everything – no doubt having been ready and waiting for such a summons for at least the last month – Darcy would have forgotten entirely and would no doubt be trashing her apartment trying to pack. Finally Heimdall turned away from where he'd been gazing down on Earth and he went to the centre of the Bifrost inserting his sword and opening the gateway between worlds. Moments later Hogun appeared quickly followed by the three others who stumbled after him, one falling flat on her bum.

"Ow…" Darcy moaned.

"Daddy! Erik, Darcy!" Jane cried, prying herself away from Thor and rushing towards them. Her father was ready for her and caught her without issue, making sure she didn't impact too harshly.

"Hi sweetie." He murmured, holding her close. When he'd had his fill, Jane turned to hug Erik and Darcy, the latter gasping loudly.

"Woah! Look at you, you're huge!" Jane knew she should be annoyed but couldn't find it in herself to be; she had missed Darcy like crazy.

"I missed you too, Darcy." She said, wrapping the younger woman in a hug.

"Of course I missed you." Darcy mumbled in a rare moment of seriousness. When they pulled apart Thor came over for his greetings before Jane made the introductions to everyone else.

"Dad, Erik, Darcy, you remember Lady Sif, Volstagg and Fandral." The three Asgardians who had not gone to Earth to fetch them waved hello. "This is Heimdall. He's the Gatekeeper, and Guardian of the Bifrost."

"Welcome to Asgard." He said in his deep baritone voice.

"And this is Princess Shuri of Wakanda, and her guards Ayo and Teela."

"Wakanda? I'm pretty sure that's on Earth." Said Darcy. Jane rolled her eyes.

"It is. Shuri is here helping out." She left it at that not wanting to go into detail about exactly what that help was just yet.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Said Shuri, her eyes sparkling in amusement. She had not missed that her new, mature, and mostly serious friend had cried 'daddy' when her father had appeared. Jane either missed, or simply didn't care about, the look Shuri sent her; she was far too excited.

"Come. Let me show you Asgard." Grabbing her father's hand she led the way out of the Bifrost and onto the bridge. A skiff awaited them, Thor having refused to let Jane walk from the palace as she once would have, though she ignored it now, talking animatedly with her father and Erik about the rainbow bridge as they walked.

"All these years later and I still have no idea what they're talking about." Darcy said, looping her arm through Thor's as they followed close behind.

"Even I only understand half of what Jane is saying once she gets talking about science." Thor admitted readily. As they passed the skiff he told the pilot to follow close behind. No matter that Jane wished to walk now, he knew they'd not even make it half way back before she grew too tired to continue on foot. Feeling Dary's arm tighten on his he turned to look at her and saw her eyes widen and mouth hanging open, having gotten her first true glimpse of Asgard.

"Ok…wow." Was all she managed to say and Thor laughed. They continued to walk as they went, Shuri joining in the conversation, until Thor's prediction came true and they took the skiff the rest of the way back. As they disembarked and made their way through the palace Richard, Erik and Darcy were reminded that Jane was now a Queen. Asgardians stopped in the halls to bow as she passed, many murmuring 'My Queen' or 'Your Majesty'. They had known, of course, that she was now a Queen, but on her brief visit to Earth it had only been Sif, Hogun, Volstagg and Fandral who had shown any kind of obeisance to her, while here it was everyone and it really hit home that their daughter and friend was truly a ruling monarch. The three were shown to their rooms and given Asgardian clothing, much to Darcy's delight; she may not be a shopaholic or fashionista, but getting to wear such clothes was something she could certainly get excited about. A feast had been planned for that evening to welcome the family of Asgard's Queen, and welcomed they were, not one person was rude, condescending or in anyway unwelcoming to the humans. They were all quite popular actually, every courtier wanting to get to know them for varying reasons whether it be general curiosity, a genuine desire to know the family of one who had become a friend, or a selfish interest in knowing ones so close to the throne. They saw quickly what Jane meant about Asgard being like living in a very advanced past. The technology and inclusiveness were impossible to miss and were relatively new concepts on Earth, while at the same time there were still those vying for the favour of the King and Queen as people had in centuries passed. The feast was well underway, though far from over, when Jane stood suddenly alongside Darcy, Sif and Shuri. Everyone stood when their Queen did, the feast coming to a halt, though it resumed when the four left under the pretence of going to gossip. Most courtiers accepted this excuse, believing that while their Queen was very intelligent and wise, she was still a woman and so prone to such things. It was an image Jane purposefully didn't refute for it had it's advantages, exactly like now. Those who knew her, however, were not fooled.

"Do you know what's going on?" Erik asked and Thor shook his head.

"They are plotting something, I have no doubt." He seemed unconcerned and so Erik and Richard returned to their conversations, expecting the girls to return shortly. An hour passed without their return and Thor was beginning to worry. He had thought that Jane had merely had to use the bathroom – this being a very common occurrence this late in her pregnancy – and she'd dragged the girls along for some plotting, of what he wasn't entirely sure, though he expected it to be something to do with her research or how best Sif could torture him in their next training session. He had expected her to have returned by now and was about to go in search of her when someone arrived with the answer.

"My King." He was surprised to see it was the midwife who addressed him and his worry rose.

"What is it, what's happened?" He asked none too quietly, drawing the attention of his father-in-law and friends who sat nearby.

"The Queen is in labour, my King."

"WHAT?!"