So excited to finally bring you the conclusion of Brothers of Fortune! A shout out to dreambear43, radix, Susan Drakian, Kichi, TonaLog1978, MuffinRamsey, wintersmith, saraberry, Roberta Lozano, emilia . lozano . el, IWouldHaveFoundYou, Junia Grey, and the unnamed guests for reviewing the last chapter! I freaking love you guys! Also, a huge thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed, and reviewed this story over the past (almost) 2 years! It feels surreal that this is finally done, and I truly hope that you've enjoyed the ride.

A quick note on Loki/Jane's mortality: They are mortal in the sense that they will not live for thousands of years, however, they both still have their magic which will extend their lifespan past that of the average mortal. I would think they might get 200-300 years or so, which is plenty of time to live, travel the realms, and be happy together. Immortality is overrated anyways. Hope this clears up any and all confusion on their lifespans.

Without further ado, I give you the final chapter/epilogue! Read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 26: The Adventure of a Lifetime

Earth

Jane scribbled furiously on her notepad, the walls of Erik's cabin seeming to close in on her by the second. Outside, snow came down in relentless flurries, effectively keeping her indoors, when she really just needed to disappear into the trees.

Erik's cabin is mine, she scribbled in handwriting so bad that she doubted even Darcy could read it. I don't remember him dying. Lab outside is mine. Where did it come from?

She had a stack of items on the bed with her that seemed relevant. A dagger, a necklace made of metal that looked like nothing she'd ever seen before, and a note she had found just today from someone named Loki that spoke of a sad parting and a desperate love. However passionate their relationship might have been, the letter made it sound as though he was no longer living. She had intended to google him, since she doubted many people out there carried the name Loki… unless it was an alias of some kind, but she couldn't seem to find her laptop.

"Great," she groaned as she continued to scribble on the notepad, deciding to stick with what was right in front of her and go from there. Strange marking on my wrist, she noted. Where did it come from? Not a normal scar. And the last one that had been bothering her for weeks. Who is he? Was he the one who left her the note? Was he Loki?

She'd seen him in her dreams, and found herself drawing him in her spare time. He was handsome, tall with raven hair, and green eyes that took her breath away. She got distracted thinking, and found herself doodling once again. She drew his eyes, erased them, and drew them again when she felt they were spaced appropriately.

"Jane?" Darcy interrupted as she opened the door. "Come eat with us. Steve made pancakes. You'll love them."

"Don't feel like it," Jane groaned as she tossed her pillow at Darcy's form in the doorway. The younger girl caught it, and threw it back, barely missing the astrophysicist.

"Don't make me drag you out of there," Darcy threatened. "I will do it, Jane Foster. Don't test me."

Jane sighed, and slid off the bed, padding after Darcy into the kitchen. Darcy didn't lie about the pancakes. They smelled heavenly. Steve and Bucky, who she had discovered were Darcy's "boyfriends" were already at the table. They shoveled pancakes onto their plates with gusto, and smiled at her when she entered the kitchen.

She sat down and Darcy threw some food on her plate, encouraging her to eat. Jane took a few bites, but her mind was elsewhere. The others were halfway through their plates, when Jane found the courage to speak.

"When are you going to tell me what happened?" she asked, the question having plagued her for weeks now. "Why can I not remember anything from the last three years? What really happened to Erik? The doctors said he was killed in a car accident, but it doesn't feel right. And who is Loki? I found a note from him in one of my pockets."

She could see the fear and indecision on Darcy's face, and the younger girl looked away from her for a moment. "You're not ready for all of that yet," she finally said. "And I can't tell you everything anyways. It's not my place."

"Darcy, it's been weeks!" Jane argued. "I'm ready! I deserve to know!" She felt tears cloud her vision. "What's happened to me?"

"Jane," Darcy cautioned, her voice calm, but carrying a warning. "You're freaking out right now. You need to stop."

"How do you expect me to not freak out! I'm literally missing three years of my life, and everyone's just acting like that's fine!"

"Jane!" Darcy plopped down in the seat next to her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Breathe," she commanded. "If you think you're really freaking out now, you would really freak out if I told you what happened all at once, because it's out there. But I'll make a deal with you. If you try to stay calm, eat, and function like a normal person –"

"No, Jane," Darcy headed off her argument before she could say a word. "Talking to yourself and walking in circles for hours, without a jacket, in the snow, while you stare at the ground do not count as normal. If you can try to stay calm, I'll tell you tiny bits at a time. Just enough to keep you from freaking out on me. Deal?"

Jane swallowed, and nodded.

"Good," Darcy smiled. "From the beginning then. S.H.I.E.L.D. blackmailed you into working on your Bridge for them, and you were pissed."

"Bridge?" Jane's brows furrowed.

"A space wormhole thing," Darcy shrugged. "It was your baby for years."

"Did I finish it?"

The younger girl nodded. "Yeah. You did."

Jane leaned back, her eyes wide. "So I built a wormhole…" She sat up suddenly, the excitement of discovery begging to be explored. "How did I do it? Do we have the right equipment for me to build another one?"

"Whoa! Easy there. Do you want to hear what I have to say or not?"

"Okay," the astrophysicist conceded. "Sorry. I'm ready now."

"So you were working on this bridge, and you were kidnapped by Bucky, who worked for Hydra at the time."

"Sorry," Bucky said sheepishly from across the table. "It won't happen again, I promise."

"Wait, what?" Jane gasped, fixing her gaze on Darcy's less polished boyfriend. "Why would you kidnap me? Who's Hydra?"

"Relax, Jane," Darcy reminded her. "Buck's a good guy now. He's on our side, but he was brainwashed at the time. Hydra is some evil organization that wanted to rule the world, or whatever it is evil organizations like to do. They kidnapped you, and they injected you with some weird DNA that was slowly killing you. Don't look at me like that," Darcy frowned as Jane stared at her openmouthed. "I told you it was out there."

"You're kidding right?" the astrophysicist asked skeptically.

"Nope. True story. You were dying."

"But I'm not now?"

"Nope."

"What happened? Why am I okay now?" Jane demanded, but Darcy shook her head.

"That's all you get for now," the younger girl decided. "Let that sink in, and I'll tell you the next part later. You're not ready for it yet."

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Not ready yet. The words stung, even when she knew Darcy was only trying to protect her. Jane sat atop her lab in Puente Antiguo, trying to understand, when she felt his presence again. She turned to see a tall man with raven hair dressed in green and gold armor, watching her fondly, with the slightest smirk on his face

"Why do you keep coming here?" Jane asked when he merely watched her. "And why do you always look at me like that?"

"Would you prefer that I look at you in another way?" he asked as he sat down beside her, his height less intimidating in this position.

He was so close that she could feel him pressed against her side, even through their layers of clothing. She felt a pleasant burn through her veins at the contact, and she blushed with embarrassment at her body's automatic response to their closeness.

"I…" she began, her breath leaving her when he turned those sharp, green eyes in her direction. They were endless, and seemed to look right through her. "Who are you?" she whispered, begging him without speaking to tell her the truth.

He opened his mouth to speak, and then he was gone.

Jane woke up in the darkness of the cabin, the gray light of morning shining through the window, and the snow still coming down hard. She wanted to scream. She had been so close this time. He was going to tell her the truth, she could feel it, and then… he'd slipped away.

She felt tears of frustration sting at the corners of her eyes. She would ask him when he came to her in her dreams tonight. She would ask him directly and look him in the eyes when he answered. He wouldn't lie to her or avoid her question, not this time, she would make sure of it.

Bolstered by her decision to confront the man in her dreams, Jane managed to rise from bed with renewed purpose. She dressed with the intention to spend the day in her lab, feeling that the cool, crisp air on her walk would do her some good.

The astrophysicist threw on her coat, and wandered into the cabin's kitchen, where Steve was already awake and cooking breakfast. From the smell, she was wager that he was making eggs and toast. Upon further inspection, she was not disappointed. Several plates of eggs and toast sat on the table, along with four steaming cups of coffee.

"Good morning, Jane," Steve greeted her cheerily. He gave her a genuine smile, and she couldn't help but return the sentiment.

"Hey Steve. Breakfast smells good."

"Help yourself," he encouraged. "Coffee's on the table too."

Jane did indeed help herself. She grabbed two pieces of toast and was dishing out a few spoonfuls of egg, when her elbow encountered one of the coffee cups, knocking it from the table. She gasped and tried to catch it, barely missing the handle. Suddenly, the coffee cup stopped in mid air and flew into her hands as though she'd simply just picked it up off of the table, the steaming liquid still unbothered.

She blinked, unsure of what had just happened.

"You alright?" she heard Steve ask from his position by the stovetop.

"Yeah…" Jane responded slowly. "I'm good. Thanks for the food."

Before he could engage her in further conversation, Jane left. She sipped on her coffee and began the short trek through the woods to get to her lab. It was cold, and the snow kept coming down, but the crisp air helped her to clear her head. Today especially, she needed it.

Once she had made it safely to her lab, the astrophysicist began to scribble down all she knew on the dry erase board. Several hours later, she was still trying to recall her past. She made herself more coffee, letting the wheels in her head turn. When she realized she remembered nothing and was getting nowhere, she abandoned her study of what she knew to focus on something a little stranger.

Jane ran several tests with various coffee mugs in her lab, trying to repeat the results from earlier. She never even came close, and when she ran out of coffee mugs to break, she was forced to try with other items. Jane was tired of mysteries, and she intended to unravel them until her world made sense again.

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Darcy relaxed in the cabin's living room, drinking coffee. Steve tended the fire, poking the charred wood to keep it blazing. She watched him as he bent over to stoke the fire, her mind sliding into the gutter with ease as she took in the curves of his ass in fitted jeans.

The door to the cabin opened and Bucky shook snow from his hair like a dog. He kicked his boots off, and came over to sit next to Darcy on the living room's couch.

"She's dropping things," he informed her. "Pretty much anything she can get her hands on. Lots of breaking things and cursing today."

Darcy sighed. "I wish I could just tell her everything and save her the trouble of trying to figure it all out."

"She would freak out," Bucky reminded her gently. "She's not ready for the whole truth yet. You said so yourself."

"I know. I just… hate seeing her like this."

Steve turned to face them from his spot by the fire, a frown playing at the corners of his lips. He leaned against the mantle, crossing his arms over his chest. "We need to talk about the business too," he reminded her. "I bought the building in New York to start our restaurant. There's a loft for the three of us upstairs, and a ton of work to do before we can even think about opening the doors."

"I know," Darcy acknowledged, feeling guilt constrict her chest. "And we'll move back soon. We'll do it, I promise."

"When, Darcy?" he pressed gently. "The longer we stay here, the harder it will be to leave. The snow hasn't stopped in a week."

"I can't leave her here. Not like this."

"Then we take her with us," Bucky threw in. "Steve's right, Darcy. We can't stay here forever."

"I know, I know," Darcy groaned, splaying her fingers across the seat of the couch. "She just needs a little more time, and I think she needs to be here. She and Loki lived here after their ceremony. Maybe it will help her get her memories back faster."

"Maybe is questionable," Steve pointed out. "She hasn't made much progress."

Darcy stood up and walked over to Steve. She placed her hands on his shoulders, and her forehead against his. "Please," she begged. "Jane needs me right now. I'm not asking that we stay here forever. Just until she's ready for the truth, and Loki can step in and take over. Once he's here, we'll leave, I promise. Can you do that for me, please?"

Steve sighed, but kissed her forehead tenderly. "Alright," he promised.

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When he came to her this time she was ready. The cabin was snowed in, just as it was in real life, and Jane stood in front of the fire, watching the flames lick at the logs with anticipation.

She felt his presence as he came to stand behind her, feeling his eyes on her as she stood still.

"You're Loki, aren't you?" she asked in lieu of a greeting.

Silence met her question, and she feared for a moment that he had either left or that he would refuse to answer her.

"I am," he rasped, his usually silky voice full of trepidation.

She turned to look at him, and was surprised to see a sort of anxiety on his face. He watched her carefully, his green eyes soft.

"I found a letter from you in my pocket," Jane told him. "It was like nothing I've ever read." She met his eyes with her own, and saw hope there, a shining glimmer of warmth in their depths. "What was I to you before?"

Loki's lips quirked up in a smile. "I think the better question, my Jane," he purred. "Is what weren't you."

He reached for her, and grasped her wrist gently in his hand. Jane gasped as his touch felt like lightning through her veins, a need she didn't know she had awakened. She pulled away, eyes wide, and instantly regretted her actions.

Hurt flashed across his features, almost as though she had struck him, and he withdrew his hand. Jane tried to speak, but before she could say anything he was gone, leaving her flushed and confused.

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Jane spent the next several days in a frenzy of thought. She practically lived in her lab, only going to the cabin to eat. She had a cot laid out for her so she could sleep as long as she liked, in the hopes that she could have further contact with Loki.

She hadn't seen him in her dreams since she'd discerned his identity, and she was beginning to worry she'd made him angry by pulling away like she had. Her dry erase board was completely full of questions and observations. She wanted, no, needed to see him.

Darcy had told her another part of her missing life just the day before. Hydra had hunted her, and she had escaped their clutches with the help of none other than Loki. He had whisked her away, and according to Darcy, she had simply disappeared for months. The younger girl had been unable to tell her what happened during that time, but Jane knew someone who could… if only she hadn't pissed him off.

She sighed, wishing there was some way she could apologize to him.

After a useless day of trying to stop more inanimate objects from falling, Jane bundled up with a dozen blankets and fell asleep on her cot.

This time she didn't recognize her surroundings. She was in a meadow, with flowers of all colors surrounding her, their fragrance delectable. A waterfall and a small body of water sat at the edge of the meadow, teeming with life. Loki lay on his back in the meadow, eyes on the clouds. His green eyes left the clouds to focus on her the moment she appeared.

"Jane," he nodded as he sat up. She could feel the heat rise in her cheeks upon seeing him again, their last encounter still fresh in her mind.

She came to sit next to him, noting the way the anxiety leapt back into his eyes. She bit her bottom lip, and decided on a bolder move than a simple apology for her previous behavior.

Jane reached out and grasped his wrist in her small hands, just as he had done to her the last time they met. She gasped at the feel of his skin on hers, and the tingle of something inside of her awakening. Loki glanced at her in surprise, before the hint of a smile played across his lips.

"You said last time," Jane mumbled, gathering her courage. "You asked me what I wasn't. What do you mean by that?"

Loki turned his arm over in her grasp, revealing a scar that was not identical to hers, but held the same form. He reached for her wrist, and turned it over next to his so that she could compare the scars side by side.

"Rune marks," he explained. "You bear mine, and I bear yours." He ran his forefinger over the mark on his wrist, and Jane could feel the ghost of his touch on her own. She shivered involuntarily.

"What –"

"Magic," he grinned. "It runs through my veins and yours. It's why you can do things you can't explain."

She remembered the coffee cup and her eyes went wide. "Magic!" she exclaimed. "You mean –"

By the time she turned to him, he was gone, and her dream warped into reality once again.

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Days passed, and Jane spent more and more time in her lab. Her dry erase board was so packed with words and ideas, she could no longer make some of them out. She had swiped Darcy's laptop since she couldn't find hers, and googled rune marks, Loki's in particular. She found a perfect match for her scar in an online norse mythology guide.

"Loki of Asgard, god of mischief," she read. "Son of Odin and brother of Thor." Surely it had to be a joke. Norse gods were no more real than urban legends. Her research on rune marks only served to make her more confused. "Binding ceremonies," she skimmed through the information in the norse mythology guide, her confusion growing by the second. "Marriage between two magical beings that cannot be undone. A rune mark is proof of the bond."

"This is ridiculous," Jane growled, as she put the laptop away. "There's no way I'm magically bound to a norse god."

And yet he had mentioned magic. And Darcy had told her she finished her bridge in a life she could no longer remember. Could there be some truth to this ridiculous and impossible riddle?

"Take a deep breath," he instructed her softly. "Relax. You've never been good at that."

Jane felt the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back, the rhythm calming her nerves.

"Call your magic forth," he commanded. "You are its master, and it will do your bidding. Feel it in your veins, and force it into your palms."

Jane closed her eyes and tried to command the living power within her. She imagined it moving through her body and into her palms.

"Excellent, Jane," he praised her, and she opened her eyes to see a green swirling energy dancing between her fingers and over her palms.

She felt his hands beneath hers, her heart skipping a beat and her breath coming up short with the contact. They stayed like that for some time, neither willing to move, as the magic danced around her fingertips.

When Jane woke this time, she sat up on her cot, and stared at her hands. There was nothing out of the ordinary that she could see, but a part of her wondered…

She closed her eyes, imagining the steady rhythm of Loki's chest against her back and letting it calm her. The astrophysicist called forth the magic in her veins, forcing it to her palms.

Green tendrils swirled around her fingertips, and danced over her palms. She laughed, the first real smile she'd had in a long time stretching across her face.

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Jane practiced with her magic when she was awake, and slept so much she was no longer tired. Sometimes she would have normal dreams, but most of the time he was there.

Loki taught her magic, and told her stories of places she'd never been. Sometimes he would touch her gently. It was not intimate enough to make her feel uncomfortable, but occasionally she found herself wishing he would do more, a need for his touch growing inside of her and consuming her like a fire.

She had so many questions for him, most of which she was afraid to ask. If she asked, it would break whatever this was between them, and she didn't want to give him up, not yet anyways.

She wore an emerald green dress that matched his eyes. She stood in front of a mirror in a room she didn't recognize. A four-poster wooden bed with an emerald green comforter sat behind her, furs lined the floor, and a fireplace painted the room in a soft glow. She held the metal necklace she had found on her in her hands, thinking of putting it on with the dress.

"You kept it," Loki remarked from behind her, his voice warm with approval.

Jane turned to look at him, her eyes taking in his handsome face with a new familiarity. "What is it?" she asked. "I've never seen anything like it."

He smirked. "It's Scabrite," he told her proudly. "The strongest metal in all the realms. You don't remember, but I made it for you on our adventures."

"Adventures?"

He laughed. "Yes. I'll tell you about them when the time is right." He gestured to the necklace. "Would you like for me to help you with that?"

She nodded, and he moved to stand directly behind her, reaching over her shoulders, and taking the necklace in his hands.

His fingertips grazed over her shoulders, and she sucked in a sharp breath as a vision of herself in a similar position assaulted her senses. In the vision she was in a cave, and Loki draped the very same necklace against her skin, leaving her breathless with want.

Just as quickly as the vision appeared, it was gone, and Loki finished fastening the necklace on her. She turned to face him as he moved forward, and her chest brushed against his. His hands gripped her elbows gently, and her breath caught in her throat. She looked up to see his green eyes on her, the intensity in their depths triggering yet another vision.

In the vision she stood outside of Erik's cabin, her hands tied to Loki's with ribbons of green and gold, blood staining the snow beneath them. His eyes were unwavering and intense in their gaze as he spoke softly to her.

He stood before her now, the same look in his eyes that he held in her vision. Jane felt her eyes water, and her hands splayed across his chest without her consent. His armor was cool and hard beneath her palms, and she could still feel the rise and fall of his chest beneath the surface.

Jane raised one hand up on instinct, the magic within her begging her to touch him. She pressed her fingertips to the sharp bones in his cheek, and he closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. Her magic burned in her veins, setting her blood on fire with a desire to push it further and see just how far she could go.

"What is this between us?" she barely whispered. "I don't understand."

Loki exhaled slowly, his voice coming out strained. "Can I show you?"

Jane nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Loki placed his thumb and forefinger beneath her chin and lifted it up while he leaned forward. He pressed his lips to hers in a tender caress that made her heart leap and her magic blaze beneath her skin with want.

His lips were soft, and Jane leaned into the kiss, wanting more. Another vision assaulted her senses, and this time she saw the two of them, naked and making love on a bed she didn't recognize. He moved his body methodically, thrusting into her gently and with all the care of practiced lover. She writhed beneath him, her hips rising up to meet his as his name spilled from her lips in passion.

The vision faded away, and the only thing she could focus on was the feel of his lips on hers. When he pulled away, he pressed his forehead against hers, and she could feel their ragged breaths between them.

"Was that –"

"One of my memories," he explained, his voice husky.

"Then we were –"

"Yes."

Lovers. The word caught in her throat before she could say it, the implications staggering. She had thought that maybe that was the case, but to see it with her own eyes… It made it so much more real.

"Loki," she panted, but before she could say anything else he was gone.

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Darcy's phone beeped with an incoming message, and she leapt up from the couch, despite protests from Bucky, who had been comfortable with their previous position.

She opened her messages to find two words typed from a number that she'd had so much contact with lately, she had practically memorized it.

The message read simply "She's ready."

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Jane stared at her bed in the cabin, thinking of a memory that Loki had showed her in her dreams. Somewhere in all the time that was missing, they had lived here together as husband and wife. She had seen it, and though she didn't remember, she knew in her heart that it was true.

There had been so much she wanted to ask him, and so much she was afraid to.

A single tear slipped down her cheek at the thought of life she wished she could remember, a life that she knew was well past her now. The note she held in her hand, and the fact that she saw Loki only in her dreams told her all she needed to know. She didn't have to ask, and she didn't think she could bear to hear his answer if she did.

"I wish," she whispered softly in the confines of her room. "I wish so much that you were still alive…"

Outside the wind howled as yet more snow blew in, the lonely sound it made against the log walls seeming to echo the emptiness in her heart.

Soon she would be alone, and she feared that she would go mad in this cabin by herself before winter's end. She longed to ask Darcy to stay, but it wasn't fair to her, especially when the younger girl had already dropped several months of her life to see that Jane settled into her new home.

Her bags had been packed, and Darcy, Bucky, and Steve would all leave first thing in the morning for New York. Jane couldn't ask her to stay, and she wouldn't. She would simply have to find a way to live on her own.

At that moment Darcy, cracked open her door, and poked her head inside. "Hey Jane, I need you to get dressed or we're going to be late," she grinned.

"Huh?"

Darcy's grin grew even wider. "Surprise!" she nearly shouted. "I'm taking you out tonight before I leave."

Jane's brows furrowed in confusion, and she pointed at the window where the snow was still coming down. "Um… Darcy, I love you, but have you looked outside lately?"

The younger girl waved her off as if the weather was of no consequence. "Have you seen Steve and Bucky?" she scoffed. "They're shoveling the drive right now. Should have it done in ten minutes. Now get dressed, and wear something that doesn't scream that you've been locked in a cabin for months."

Jane rolled her eyes, but got ready anyways, choosing her nicest pair of jeans, some warm boots, an emerald green sweater, and a coat. Darcy would probably chastise her for not dressing attractively enough, but for Jane it was a big step up from her sweats and flannel shirts.

Darcy wasn't kidding when she said that Steve and Bucky would have the drive cleared.

Jane marveled at the sheer amount of snow the men had been able to move in such a short time. A wall of snow had been created on either side of the cabin and the drive, but their path was clear. They loaded up in Erik's old Jeep, and Bucky drove them into town, his driving sure, even with the nasty weather.

As they came into the town, Jane noticed with surprise that the roads were clear, and people traveled unimpeded by the weather. The street lamps gave the small town a soft glow, and businesses were open and bustling with customers. It was like she'd entered another world, just in the short drive over.

They parked the Jeep behind one of the tourist shops on town's main street, and the four of them walked down the block, the sidewalks beneath them completely clear, despite the snow that kept falling. It was baffling to Jane, and though she tried to explain the phenomenon with science, she was unable to come up with a plausible excuse.

They stopped in front of a pub on the end of the street, and Jane could hear the excited voices of patrons inside. They cheered, clapped, and whistled, their enthusiasm contagious. Darcy opened the door and ushered Jane in to the busy pub.

People were everywhere, shouting and clapping, even with drinks in their hands. Jane looked to see what they were so excited about, and her heart stopped.

A familiar man stood on top of the bar in the corner. He wore a green tunic, black pants, boots, and an emerald green cloak that billowed out behind him as he moved. He had raven hair that touched his shoulders in soft curls, and sharp, green eyes that fixed on her the moment she walked in the door. He smiled, and Jane felt the magic in her veins burn at his mere presence.

"Loki," she whispered, and though realistically she knew that he couldn't hear her over the roar of the crowd, he nodded at her all the same.

Jane watched in awe as the crowd continued to cheer, and the man she knew from her dreams performed magic tricks that were so astounding she doubted the acts in Vegas could compare.

He made items disappear and reappear with ease, refilled the drinks of every patron in the pub with a snap of his fingers, and even turned himself into a raven.

The crowd went wild as he soared over their heads, and landed back on the bar before taking human form again.

He jumped down, and made his way through the crowd, refilling the drinks of those who held their beers out to him as he walked. He came closer, and Jane could scarcely breathe as he stopped right in front of her.

His green eyes were soft as they met hers, and the magic in her veins danced with delight.

"Your hands, my lady," he drawled, his lips quirking up in a mischievous smirk.

Jane extended her hands, palms up, surprised to see them shaking slightly. The magician placed his hands beneath hers, and curled her fingers over her palms into a fist with his own. The feeling of his hands on hers was electric, and she gasped.

He leaned forward, his lips grazing her ear, and whispered. "Stay after the show, and I will come to you."

He withdrew just as quickly as he had leaned forward, leaving Jane breathless, the feel of his lips on her ear burning through her veins. He removed his hands from her, leaving her wanting, and signaled her to open her fists.

She did, and a tiny hummingbird erupted from the palm of her hand, its iridescent wings moving so fast she could scarcely see anything but the rainbow of color they left behind.

The magician left her and made his way back to the bar, where he continued to amaze the crowd. Jane watched, but her mind was spinning with excitement and nervousness for what was to come, and her eyes were only for the raven-haired man and his crooked smile.

When the show ended and he took his last bow, the crowd went wild, their shouts and cheers most likely heard several blocks over. Jane stayed as he requested, having Darcy bring her a drink for courage.

She was an absolute wreck. She downed the drink and ordered another, taking that one in one quick swig too. She tried to focus on the people around her, or anything to take her mind off of the enigmatic man that been visiting her in her dreams for the last several months.

He was real. He was alive, and she was both relieved and terrified.

She was in the process of trying to calm herself when she felt his presence only a few feet away. She looked up to see the man from her dreams watching her intently as he stepped towards her.

His posture was confident, but his eyes were unsure, as though he feared she would run. She didn't. Jane managed to stay still, barely breathing as he approached her. He gave her a crooked grin, and bowed with a awkward flourish that made her cheeks flush.

"I am Loki Odinson," he introduced himself, as he stood once again at his full, impressive height. "And I have waited a very long time for this moment."

Jane stared at him for a moment, her brain trying to keep up with this wonderful and impossible turn of events. "I'm Jane," she managed to get out, breathless.

He chuckled, and warmth flooded his eyes. "I know who you are, Jane," he grinned. "I know you better than you know yourself."

Tears pricked at her eyes, and she blinked them back. "You're real," she breathed. "You're alive."

"Very much so," he purred, the velvet of his voice making her heart twist with want.

"I thought…" she stumbled over her words. "I didn't know… What happens now?"

Loki grinned, his eyes dancing with mischief. "We leave together," he began slowly. "I show you the life you can't remember, and the universe beyond this realm. We travel, and you see beauty and mystery that will astound you and bring you to tears. I will teach you to control your magic, and there will be nothing you cannot do. And the rest… That will come with time."

Jane bit her bottom lip as she took in his words. "What if I'm not sure of this?" she asked softly. "I can't remember anything beyond what you've shown me in dreams."

His grin flickered into a frown, but his eyes never lost their resolve. "Then I will wait," he promised. "I will come to you day after day, both in your dreams and in your waking hours. I will keep visiting until I win your trust, and then I will give you a life you could only dream of. Come with me, Jane. You won't regret it. Trust me, and I will give you the adventure of a lifetime."

He held out a hand to her, hope in his eyes, and Jane sucked in a sharp breath. She considered for only a moment, before she threw caution to the wind.

"Show me everything," she said as she placed her hand in his.

And in the center of Yggdrasil, the Norns groaned in annoyance as they bound the threads of Jane Foster and Loki Odinson together once again.

The End

So that's it! There's no more. Put your cellphones down and go outside now lol. Hope you all thoroughly enjoyed the story, and I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts, so drop by and leave me a comment! Thank you all so much for your continued support over the last two years! You guys are so amazing, and I love you all! Have a wonderful Christmas (if you celebrate that is). I will be taking a brief reprieve from fanfiction to work on some original writing, as I just published my first novel, but I will return. I don't have any plans for a sequel to Brothers of Fortune, but I might possibly write a few one shots in the BoF universe at a later time. Thank you again for your love and support! Much love!

-Boss