Asgard

Thor had been waiting outside Jane's room for almost ten minutes when Volla came walking towards him from seemingly nowhere. Thor bowed respectfully as she smiled and bowed her head to acknowledge the God of Thunder. "It has been a long time, Thor" she said stopping to talk to the young prince of Asgard.

"It has", he replied, "Haven't seen you since you sent Sif and I on that wild goose chase to find your amulet in Nidavellir."

"Oh yes, that was quite the adventure for you if I recall. Dwarves were never very good at keeping their hands to themselves" she said chuckling along the way.

Thor looked the you fortune teller over, she had always been a friend to Asgard and its heroes but Heimdall telling him that Odin had been acting differently made Thor want to question her about the meeting and what was going on with Odin's mood.

"I cannot tell you what I told your father" she said as if she were reading his mind, "All I can tell you is that fate is approaching your family at a very high speed. Prepare yourself Odinson, only the ones who love you can save you" she said turning to walk towards the banquet hall where the dinner was to be held.

Thor moved to follow her to continue their conversation when Jane's door opened and she walked out in an elegant golden Asgardian dress. The air seemed to leave Thor's lungs, he stared as she made her way towards him.

Jane could feel her cheeks get hot and red as Thor stared at her, she got all the way up to him before he seemed to snap out of his stupor. "Good evening" he said offering his hand to Jane who smiled as she took it. They began to walk towards Darcy's room since the three of them would be heading to the feast together.

"You look incredible" he complimented as they stopped in front of Darcy's door to wait for her.

"Thank you, you look quite good yourself" she replied noting that the outfit Thor was wearing had no armor and was clearly some kind of Asgardian formal wear.

Thor smiled at her words "Well you are more than worthy of dressing up for" he stated as guards walked by and threw a few stares their way. Darcy's door opened the young former intern turned Shield agent entered the hall and interrupted the couple.

Darcy stopped in her tracks knowing that she had interrupted them "I could go back in if you guys want a little bit more time?" she jokingly asked as Jane turned bright red and Thor simply smiled.

Thor turned and offered his both of his arms to Jane and Darcy who took them as the trio began to walk towards the dining hall where the feast was being held. "So what exactly should we expect tonight?" asked Jane not wanting to embarrass herself in front of Thor's friends and family.

Thor smiled "My parents will be hosting the feast, Sif and the Warriors three will be there as well and will certainly provide quite a bit of entertainment trust me. Many others will be there as well, hopefully you have a good time and my mother will hopefully manage to convince my father to allow you to stay a little longer."

"What do you mean?" Darcy asked.

"My father wants you and Jane sent back to Earth, things are dangerous in the nine realms and while I don't want you in danger, I do want you to at least get a feel for Asgard before you go" he explained.

Odin sat in his chair in the dining hall where Frigga had spent the last hour pestering him about allowing the humans to stay longer on Asgard. He had told her everything he could, how war was imminent and that now is not the time, but as usual his wife was being very convincing.

"Thor wants her to be here with us one day, if war with Jotunheim happens it could be decades before she could come again, and if you send her back to Earth our son might very well decide to go with her" Frigga reasoned with her hand on Odin's.

Odin sighed at this idea, he didn't want to think that Thor would leave Asgard behind over the mortal but there was no time for his young foolishness, "Very well, they may stay one week and not a moment longer, War is coming and there is no place for them in it." He relented prompting a triumphant smile from Frigga.

The servants scurried around the dining hall ensuring that food and drinks were provided everywhere they were needed and that any messes were quickly cleaned up. The guards stood at their posts ever vigilant for attack, Thor approached the doors with Jane and Darcy. Guards opened the doors for them and the three entered the dining to rounding applause from the people lucky enough to have been invited.

Thor raised his hands in appreciation as the applause died down and the laughter and chatter resumed. Darcy looked around and spotted Odin at the head table watching them enter, she needed to speak with him for Fury but also understood that now was probably not the time.

Thor brought the two ladies to the head table where Odin and Frigga were sitting "Father, this is Jane Foster and her friend and intern Darcy Lewis."

"Former intern" whispered Darcy who got a massive elbow in the side from Jane who bowed to Odin.

Odin waved off the bow signaling her to stand straight "I am humbled and honored to be here" stated Jane hoping she was saying the right things to one of the most powerful beings in history.

"Thank you, Lady Foster" stated Odin who had stood showing that he was much bigger standing then he looked sitting down. "I welcome you to Asgard and hope that you and your friend have a good experience here. However, I'm afraid your stay must be kept brief. I will allow you to stay for one week but no longer." Thor smiled brightly at Odin and gave a knowing look to his mother who nodded his direction. "Now please enjoy the rest of the evening and your time here on Asgard." Odin finished speaking and sat back down and looked at his wife for approval.

Soon the three of them were surrounded by crowds of Asgardians and Jane latched on to Thor's arm and lost Darcy who was sucked into the crowd all asking questions about Earth and if it was still as primitive as it was the last time they were there. The questions came at Jane fast and furious until Thor pulled her away and brought her to the Warriors Three, "Jane these are my friends and closest comrades in battle…"

"I met them earlier" Jane stated with a smile realizing that Thor must have been awfully busy to have not talked with his friends unless of course they hadn't mentioned seeing her.

Thor turned red as he was brought into a massive hug by Volstagg, "It has been too long Thor" he stated with a big belly laugh. Thor smiled brightly as Fandral and Hogun greeted him similarly and the four began to question each other.

"Oh, have I missed you my friends" Thor stated with a toothy smile.

"Didn't miss us enough to stop by from time to time, or help us defend Asgard from Trolls, or the battle in Niflheim" stated Sif as she approached from behind the group.

"Niflheim?" Thor questioned turning to see the others who were looking rather melancholy.

"Yes, Niflheim…Hela attempted to escape from her prison and we almost completely lost the Valkyries who are now defending her prison with an even smaller force than they already were, all while tensions with Jotunheim have completely broken down to the brink of war" Sif explained as Thor's smile had completely vanished from his face.

"Why did no one come to get me?" he asked.

"Because we shouldn't have had to come and get you…because if you had any care for us or your parents or the people of Asgard whom you have sworn to protect, you would have been here and not vacationing on Earth with some mortal women you've known for less than a blink of an eye" yelled Sif prompting most of the chatter to stop and everyone to stare. Sif had tears welling up in her eyes as she turned and headed for the exit with a not so accidental bump into Jane who was left with embarrassed look and a very uncomfortable feeling.

Thor sighed depressingly as he turned to see Odin looking at him and knowing that Odin did not disagree with Sif. Thor looked at Jane and could see that she was uncomfortable and he took her hand and quickly led her out of the dining hall and back towards her room.

They got to Jane's door and Thor opened it getting Jane in, he heard Sif clear her throat behind him right before he was about to enter. He turned and could see her looking at him without any evidence of the tears that had seemed to be coming in the dining hall. "I'll be in shortly Jane" he told Jane as he closed the door and approached Sif.

"Not finished yet?" asked Thor with a slight angry tone to his voice.

"Did my words hurt you Odinson?" she replied with the same pissed off tone that she had in the dining hall.

"I'm sorry, I haven't been here but I am now" Thor answered hoping to resolve this argument quickly and move on.

"I'm sorry doesn't cut it" she replied raising her voice again "You abandoned your people Thor. You left us, instead of being here to help them the Valkyrie were all but destroyed less than twenty of them remain and even the ones who do are not anywhere near ready to defend the All-Father or Asgard. The attacks by the trolls cost us lives and the Jotuns are already fully prepared for a war against us." Thor sighed in frustration "I hope what you were doing on Earth after letting Loki go was worth all the people who paid the price for it."

"Then you should have come and get me…dragged me home. Send a raven…hell send anything to get my attention" replied Thor as his voice raised up in volume as well. Sif shook her head at Thor's response "What is it?" he shouted.

"We shouldn't have to come get you is the point Thor. You are supposed to be leading us, showing us the right path. You are supposed to be the next King of Asgard, once you are King you cannot just pop off to Earth and leave us defenseless against the darkness. You have to be better Thor, or Asgard will suffer for it" she explained turning to look over the city below the palace.

Thor sighed, she was right, he had abandoned his people to be with Jane and while being with her had been perfect it was not worth the cost of Asgardian lives. "Why didn't Father mention Niflheim to me when I spoke with him earlier?" Thor wondered out loud.

"The situation is under control now, and besides the Jotuns are the number one concern right now" explained Sif.

Thor nodded figuring that was the only explanation he could think of, "Not to mention the Dark Elves pushing onto Earth. I wish to deal with them before the battle with the Jotuns begins" he said getting Sif to turn to him.

"I'm sorry" Sif said knowing that she should not have said those things in such a public place. "It's just been difficult since you left for Earth and when you didn't come home…they just got worse."

"It would seem that way…" Thor thought for a moment "But Asgard is still standing and is still ruled by my father. So, I would say you did a rather nice job."

Sif chuckled at the response and hugged Thor who returned the hug happily. "Do not worry about what you said in there because you are right. I have been gone too long and the people of Asgard need me now more than ever." Thor gave the confident smile that Sif had fallen love with so long ago. "Good night Lady Sif…I shall see you soon and we can figure out what we are going to do to prepare Asgard for what is to come."

Sif nodded and walked away as Thor entered Jane's room and found her standing on the balcony looking into the night sky. Jane thought back to the months Thor had been on Earth with her after fighting his brother. He had said he was going home so many times but every time she would beg him to stay with her, her selfish need to have him around had cost lives and she would need to live with that.

Thor embraced her from behind as his arms and chest seemed to engulf her body, she had come to love the warmth and enjoyed the security of his presence but now she felt nothing but the cold knowledge that people died while she was enjoying his touch and company. "Don't let what Sif said bother you", he whispered into her ear hoping to sooth her guilty conscience, "none of what happened is your fault."

Jane simply stayed quiet as Thor held her and they looked into the sky, so many thoughts were crossing her mind but the most prevalent was "Could she ever be happy in his arms again?"