Hello my lovelies! :) I can't believe how long this chapter is. This is the longest chapter I've EVER written! It's really quite a monster. I can't believe it. And I seriously hope you enjoy! This became such a behemoth… Like, I had four scenes that I wanted to get in here, and scene two just…went crazy! :P But I'm really proud of this one.

Thanks to everyone who's stuck around to read and comment and like the story! I've been working hard on this, but I have another fic going, which took up writing time. That fic actually has deadlines (gasp!) I need to follow, so I wanted to get this chapter out now.

Point of clarification: As it's not really explained in the movies, I'm going with the thought that Jane has no idea who Loki is, besides Thor's brother. I'm going with the assumption that the media never got hold of who the guy was in the green and black and horned helmet, so people would know him by seeing him, but not by name or by association to Thor. So, until Thor tells Jane about his involvement in New York, or until she sees him in person, Jane would have no idea he's the guy who played a part in the attack on New York. So, keep that in mind! :D

I wrote this entire chapter with a very specific mood in mind, and I HIGHLY recommend putting on this song when you read: Mozart's Requiem in D Minor. I like the version conducted by Neville Marriner, which you can find here: watch?v=YaH3zI0bYkM. I also like this video because it doesn't have any commercials in between. But, this song totally sets the tone for this whole chapter. Enjoy! If you want, leave me a comment at the end. I'd love to know what you thought of this.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or dialog that appears from the movie. Not for profit, just for fun. :)

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No one could tell Laric when it had started, but when he arrived for his shift, deep into the night, there was a guttural, keening sound spreading through the dungeon; a wailing that echoed through the halls; a mourning cry. One that all of Asgard longed to make. And it was setting the guards on edge. It was not their way to grieve so openly. It was not their way to grieve at all, those lost in battle. It was an honorable and glorious way to die. But the prince couldn't grieve in private, for this was his privacy. Nor could Loki even claim to be Asgardian; though, a very select few knew that secret. Laric had just come on duty again, but there weren't many in his section of the dungeon, anymore. Most of the prisoners from his area had been wiped out in the earlier battle, and the prince's wing was empty. It felt eerie to walk around down there, like a tomb. No one had told the prince about the Allmother's death, but Laric didn't feel it should come from a stranger. It wasn't right. Yet the prince seemed to know all the same.

There was a muculent, gasping breath, then, "Please!" the plea echoed through the halls. "Let me out," the prince begged. Laric rounded the corner and headed towards the young god's cell. "She needs me!" another scream. As he neared, he could hear the sounds of furniture scraping against the floor, and books being strewn about. When he got to the cell, his heart jumped into his throat. He was greeted with the sight of the young prince with a knife to his throat, once again. Loki had frozen at the sight of himself in a mirror, though. That's a stupid thing to put in a cell, Laric thought, trying to calm down enough to talk the knife out of the prince's hand. I don't have the skills for this, he thought frantically.

"How could you?" Loki whispered to himself, a look of anguish crossing his face as he dropped the dagger. The young guard caught his breath. "You promised!" he cried, pacing closer to the mirror. Laric didn't know what to make of his behavior. "Get out," Loki growled, clutching at his head. "Get out, you monster!" he screeched, staring straight into his own wild eyes before he smashed the glass with one swipe of his hand. Laric watched as the prince flayed the very skin from his bones, surrounding himself in a vortex of powerful seidr and his own screams. Were it not for the containment spell on his cell, half the dungeon might have been destroyed by now.

"Help!" Laric screamed in horror. He started running back towards the entrance to the dungeon. "Somebody help!" he cried out, again. Two more Einherjar came storming into view and Laric came to a halt. "Get Volf," he panted. "Get Eir….. Oh Norns," he moaned, shaking his head. "Maybe…" he paused, considering the gravity of his next statement. "Wake the Allfather," he ordered, trying to erase the memory of skin peeling from muscle. "The prince has gone mad!" he trembled, trying to ignore the steady sound of screaming. As the other guards ran off, Laric scrambled back to the cell, calling the prince's name.

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Thor woke to the sounds of running and metal upon metal; shouts in the hall and whispered conversations. The dark elves have returned for a second attack, he thought. Dressing quickly, he grabbed Mjolnir and threw open the door to his chambers. Things seemed to be in chaos once again and he couldn't determine where everyone was rushing. There were guards racing from the direction of the healing wing, an older guard rushing towards the dungeons, trying to put the rest of his armor on, and still more guards escorting his father in the direction the older guard was headed. Jane poked her head out from the room across the hall, while the Einherjar that guarded its entrance turned to ensure she didn't leave.

"Thor?" she whispered, blearily. He smiled upon seeing her, but steeled his gaze shortly afterward.

"Go back to bed, Jane. I know not what's going on, and you are safer inside," he cautioned, stepping out into the hall and closing his door. He assumed there would be more noise and explosions if the dark elves had returned, but regardless, Jane would be safer where she was. "I will return and let you know what has happened." Jane nodded, still half asleep, and closed the door. The guards turned back around at their posts. "When did all this start?" Thor questioned them. One spoke up, whom he knew. Kyral.

"Only about fifteen minutes ago, Prince Thor," he bowed his head, placing a fist over his heart.

"Is it another dark elf attack?" Thor questioned, continuing to watch the pandemonium in the halls below.

"No," Kyral confirmed. "It appears to be something in the dungeons, though."

Loki, Thor thought, gripping Mjolnir tighter. He had intended to go to his brother in the light of day. Speak about the attack he was already aware of and tell him about their mother. He could barely even think on all that had happened without falling into despair, and he had wanted to be stronger before going to Loki. Loki didn't need a crying mess of an older brother right now. What if someone said something to him? Thor fretted, moving quickly down the stairs leading to his chambers and into the main hall. Who would be so careless…so cruel, even, to say something accidentally, or on purpose? There was more shouting the closer he got to the dungeons. Eir was rushing through the doors to the cells just as Thor spied them. If Eir has been summoned… Thor started to run, now, ignoring the guards calling after him. If Loki was in trouble, he should be there. Finally making it to the entrance, Thor rushed down the stairs to a cacophony of shouting and loud noises, not knowing which direction to turn. Among all of these, he recognized the wailing and screaming of his younger brother. Where have they placed Loki? He saw a guard sitting near the entrance rocking with his head in his hands.

"What is going on," Thor demanded. The young man looked up at his voice, then rose to stand in front of Thor, placing an open palm over his heart. Thor shook his head at the gesture, unsure if he could handle the news of his brother. The closed fist was a sign of fealty, but the open hand one of deep sympathy and shared grief.

"My-my prince," he stammered, unable to meet Thor's eyes. "Prince Loki has gone mad," he puled. Thor clenched his teeth in annoyance.

"Why has Eir been summoned?" he asked, pushing down his grief. "Why has my father been summoned?" The guard looked at him with vacant eyes as another guard stepped towards them. "You." Thor glared over at the other guard. "I saw you rushing to the dungeon earlier, trying to put on the rest of your armor. Why were you summoned so quickly? Where is my brother?" he insisted.

"He is this way, your highness," Volf told him, moving away from Laric. Thor kept a quick pace and Volf gave Laric one backwards glance before moving forward. "I am one of the guards who has been tasked with watching the prince," the older guard explained. "I have watched over the young prince for many centuries and am Laric's superior officer. He simply thought I had more experience with the prince and could be helpful," Volf concluded, bowing to Thor with his fist over his heart.

"What has happened?" Thor asked, continuing to pick out Loki's cries amidst the rushing and shouting of the Einherjar.

"Laric said Prince Loki was deeply distraught, calling to be let out to go to the Queen," he started, as Thor cursed, picking up his pace. "I don't believe anyone told the prince of her death," Volf assured, "but his highness is a powerful seidrmadr, and may have felt the absence of her magic for himself." Thor nodded, trying to control the sudden tears that sprung to his eyes.

"Yes," Thor mourned. "But that still does not explain why Eir and my father are here."

"By the time Laric arrived at Prince Loki's cell, he had moved on to some rather violent self-destruction," Volf summarized, pointedly not going into detail. Thor squeezed his eyes shut and wiped quickly at his face, appreciating the silence from the other man.

"And now?" Thor begged. "Why is there still so much commotion?" Volf was silent for a few more moments, slowing their pace to a halt. He looked Thor in the eyes before speaking.

"The cells aren't really meant to withstand such a powerful and ongoing seidr attack," he reported. "The prince has directed a significant amount of his powers to himself, and to preventing anyone from reaching him. The vortex could easily crumble part of this side of the palace, were the shields to fail. Mostly due to the damage it sustained earlier, during the attack. This would not normally be such a concern," Volf expressed. They could hear Loki's cries a lot louder, now.

Volf and Thor looked in the direction of Loki's cell before Volf continued. "Eir was called to examine the prince's wounds, and the Allfather to speak for what should be done." Volf turned back to Thor. "There is still commotion because we are trying to locate more seidrmadrs to reinforce the palace structure and to evacuate this part of the palace, in case the shields become overwhelmed." Volf bowed again and started towards Loki's cell once more. Thor furrowed his brows, thinking through the implications.

"Why has no one simply asked Loki to stop?" he questioned. They rounded the corner to Loki's prison and Thor's question was answered.

"Mother!" the creature wailed, kneeling on the floor, curling in on itself. The clothes it had were in shreds. "You are my mother," it cried, reaching a hand out to the barrier of the cell. The energy crackled with the hand upon it, but it was hurting the person inside more than breaking the barrier.

"Loki, stop this!" Odin shouted. Thor had never really seen his father using magic like this before, and he watched, stunned, as he wove powerful magics over the already powerful wards on the cell. Odin seemed fueled by anger alone, pushing his exhausted body to keep Loki trapped inside. He appeared to be attempting a second barrier inside the cell so someone could cross through the outer barrier, to get to Loki, without allowing anything to pass out of the cell when the shield was disturbed. Thor couldn't move his eyes off Loki. He could hardly make out his brother in that cell and was even more shocked that he was still moving around. He looked like a piece of meat, a whirlwind of green seidr surrounding him. His magic was out of control.

"My prince, please," Eir entreated. "Just take a step back, your highness, and calm yourself." Eir stepped bravely up to the cell's barrier and stretched her hand out towards Loki's. Eir had taken care of the princes since they were babes. The amount of times Loki had been ill, Eir was almost like a second mother for him. Even with that familiarity, Loki flinched and crawled away from her. He seemed to notice everyone around him for the first time. Loki glanced down at his exposed muscles, the raw red shone brightly and dripped from his body. He looked ashamed that they were seeing him like this. And then, like it was nothing, like his skin was nothing more than pieces of parchment, his flesh returned and knit itself back together, like he had done this many times before.

Once Loki locked eyes with Thor, he wouldn't look away. "Thor!" he shouted, pressing himself up against the cell's barrier. "I can see Mother, Thor," he wept. "Please, brother. She needs me," he whispered. "Please, please just let me go to her," he begged. Tears slipped down Thor's face, knowing he would have to deny Loki this.

"Thor, go," Odin growled, seeing Thor for the first time. He glared back at his son. "You should not have to see this," he told him. "It is unsafe to be here right now." Thor let Mjolnir drop into his hand and he directed a dark look to Odin.

"Yes," Loki cried, crushing his hands harder against the barrier, a fevered look in his eyes. "I know I'm not too late, brother. Just let me out. I don't even care if you torture me later. Please, please…" he stressed. "I don't feel her, Thor. I know Mother needs me," Loki babbled, imploring Thor with his eyes, as he kept trying to crawl through the barrier with his wild seidr.

"Thor!" Odin bellowed.

Thor dropped Mjolnir to the floor with a loud "bam" and squeezed his eyes shut. "I am sorry, Loki," he choked, the tears flowing freely, now. "I promise you, though, Mother does not need our help," he croaked, looking up at Loki now. "Do not worry for her." Loki shook his head and scrambled away from the barrier.

"No… No, I know it, Thor…" he panicked. Loki sat down, heavily, his eyes wide and fearful, and let the vortex overtake him again. Thor turned away when he could no longer look at the blood spattering the walls.

"Your highness," Volf murmured, placing his hand on Thor's shoulder. "You should go rest. Perhaps the prince will not be so…raw…in the morning," he suggested. Thor looked back one last time to see Odin glaring hard at him.

"Yes," he agreed. "You are right. I will speak with Loki in the morning, then." Volf walked out with Thor, ensuring he made it back to the entrance alright.

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He felt numb. It was hard to accept that this was his life right now. Thor wasn't sure he would have made it back to his chambers if it hadn't been for his promise to Jane. He knocked hollowly on the door, feeling devoid of anything. Jane opened the door to him, saw his face, and simply dragged him into the room with her.

"Thor," she whispered, gripping his arm tightly, and pulling him to her bed. "Come lie down with me," she entreated. "What's going on?"

"Loki is…" Thor felt like there was a frog in his throat for how difficult it was to speak. Jane pushed him down to the bed and sat next to him. Thor looked over at her. "Loki is…..aware that there is something wrong with Mother," he shuddered, placing his elbows on his knees and leaning forward. "Either he knows she is dead, and refuses to believe it, or believes her to be gravely ill and needing his help." Thor dropped his head into his hands, trying to staunch the tears that were already forming.

"Thor," Jane soothed, rubbing his back with one of her small hands.

"And all I could say to him is she no longer needs our help," he lamented. Jane kissed his cheek while Thor continued to break down. "We do not grieve for the dead, Jane," Thor explained. "It is not Asgard's way. We rejoice for those who have died the glorious death. But I cannot seem to bring myself to rejoice Mother's death," he confessed. "And I was ill prepared to see Loki's grief."

"Thor, we all celebrate our loved ones. But it is natural to grieve," she remarked. "At least, on Earth. We have a wake, and a funeral, and it's very sad and we remember the person and grieve their loss. But after we've buried them, there's a reception. I suppose you might see it as a feast, if you will, and this is where we rejoice. We rejoice in the life they lived and the person they were. And if their death were glorious, then we'd rejoice that too." Thor smiled at her attempt to cheer him. "What I'm trying to say," she maintained, "is that grief is natural. You shouldn't feel ashamed for it." Jane rested her head against his arm. "My mom died when I was very young," she murmured. "I don't really remember her much, and I don't remember being sad over her death. But when my father died, well…" Jane ran a hand through Thor's hair, looking down at his face. "Your parents never leave you, Thor. You may always grieve them, a little. You'll be sad about all that they miss in your life. But I think, after time, you mostly rejoice in the memories you made with them. I barely knew your mother, but she seemed like an amazing woman," Jane finished. Thor sat up and looked at the ceiling, his eyes shining with tears.

"She was the most amazing woman of all, Jane," he shared.

"Well, take all those metal-y bits off and climb in this bed with me. You need to rest, and I won't say anything if you want to grieve here in private. And if it helps, I'd love to hear some stories about her." Jane smiled softly at him and moved back towards the pillows. Thor got up and began to remove his armor. He remembered now that he'd left Mjolnir down by Loki's cell. I hope she is more of a reassurance of my love than a taunt of my torture… When he was down to a simple tunic and trousers, he turned to face Jane. She patted the bed beside her, but Thor didn't move.

"I need to speak with you about Loki," he fretted. Jane cocked her head to the side, but remained silent, letting him speak. "But perhaps in the morning," he decided, moving to lay beside her. Jane gathered him into her arms.

"Take tonight for yourself, Thor. It may be a little hypocritical for me to say this, but self-care really is important," she laughed. Thor smiled, resting his forehead on his shoulder.

"I am not sure I fully understand your meaning, Jane, but I thank you for your comfort and concern," he replied.

"Alright, big guy," she joked. "Do you want to sleep a bit or would you like to talk about her?" Jane ran her hands through Thor's hair, and he remembered his mother doing the same thing when he was a child. He could feel the tears spring up anew.

"If you wish to hear of her, I shall tell you, Jane. But you cannot blame me if I fall asleep," he smirked. "You deserve to hear the best of Mother's tales. But I confess I am not at my best to tell them and may eventually be claimed by sleep."

"That's alright." Jane nuzzled his neck, encouraging him to speak. "I'd love to hear more about her, until you need a break."

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When Thor opened the door to Jane's room the next morning, she was just getting up. Thor had woken earlier to go speak with his brother and Jane had promptly fallen back asleep after such a late night. Whatever power was coursing through her system, it was starting to drain a lot of her energy. She didn't want to worry Thor, but she guessed he could partially tell on his own. Jane usually had a hyperactive quality about her, especially when she was trying to figure out something new. The slowness to her movements was uncharacteristic of her. She preferred to be up doing things, not lying in bed. It had taken a lot out of her to keep up with the Queen, on the way to her chambers yesterday. And with the lack of sleep last night, she hadn't had much time to recoup. "I wish I could just lie in bed for the rest of the day," Jane smiled, reaching an arm out to Thor from her place on the bed. Thor gave her a warm smile in return and made to remove his armor.

"Then we should stay in bed a little while longer," he decided, moving to the bed and pulling Jane down heavily to the pillows with him. She laughed and placed her arms around his neck.

"Thor!" she squealed. "I'm sure there are things that must be done today, things we should discuss," she disputed. Thor buried his nose in her hair and took in a calming inhale.

"No," he insisted. "We can talk here, as well as anywhere. I do not require an audience for our talk about Loki. And, as for things to do, you are quite right there, Jane. But there is not much for me to do. I cannot feel well taking a job away from a hardworking citizen. We have master builders and craftsmen to clear the rubble and rebuild the city. We also have plenty of carpenters to build the boats for the dead. Father has insisted on building Mother's boat himself and will not let me help him even a little." Thor sighed. "So, no, there is not much else for me to do today. And I think the people will understand if their prince takes a few hours to recoup before walking among them." He wrapped his arms tighter around Jane. "I would rather be strong and comforting in their midst than sad and uncomfortable. You were right," he shared. "It is important to grieve, and I do not feel shame for doing so when I am with you." Thor's eyes welled up with tears, not the first time this morning, and likely not the last.

After a few minutes of silence, he resumed their conversation. "It was difficult with Loki again. I do not know how to comfort him, and he scarce recognized me this morning," he sobbed.

"Oh Thor," Jane voiced, stroking his cheek. "What happened with him?"

"It is a long tale, Jane," Thor cautioned. Jane ran her fingers through his hair encouragingly.

"Well, we have this bed all day, so, I don't think there's a rush," she joked, leaning in to kiss him. Thor returned her affection with enthusiasm and sighed when they broke apart.

"You're right, of course," he chuckled, wiping some tears from his eyes. "But the story goes back to two years ago, when I said goodbye to you, and promised to return."

Jane was silent, trying to decide what to say. Those two years has been hard on her. For the first time, she'd had real confirmation on her scientific theories when Thor came crashing down on the Bifrost. Hard evidence! She almost couldn't contain her excitement around Thor. But it had morphed into some real feelings. At first, she didn't think anything of it. Thor was a prince. He had a family. There was likely a lot of stuff he had to sort out at home. She'd focused on her own work instead, trying to find a way to make the Einstein-Rosen bridge work and make her own way to Thor. But the longer he was gone, the more she started to feel like she'd dreamed it all up. Her original data had been stolen by SHIELD, there were no other anomalies that happened after Thor left, and everything she worked on seemed to fail in simulations she'd run. If it hadn't been for Darcy and Erik's own accounts of Thor's visit, she may very well have decided it was all a dream.

When Thor came flying in on the television screen, while she was holed away in Austria, things became clearer to her. She, once again, had physical evidence of his existence, and proof of his otherworldly powers. This time, though, there were other aliens that he was fighting. New York was being destroyed! It had been terrible to watch, especially in another country where she was getting subtitled information that didn't always make sense. She had seen someone flying around with the attacking army who had on a horned helmet and wore green and black. Beyond that, she didn't know if he was human or extraterrestrial; with the aliens, or merely observing the fight. The entire battle had been over in an hour or two and, afterward, she never heard a single word from Thor. That was when she went into a bit of a tailspin. Eric was missing, and she worried Darcy a lot. She had felt rejected. Thor hadn't even taken the time for a quick hello. Despite everything she worked on to try and see him again, he didn't even bother with her.

She'd let herself wallow in two years of wasted hopes. She'd allowed herself to stay in bed until she felt like getting up, eat whenever she felt like it, bathe when she felt like it. And when she didn't, she didn't feel bad about it. All in all, it had been a healthy mourning period for her. Two weeks later, she made that rash decision to go on a date with Richard, and things had gone a little crazy from there.

"I worked really hard to try and see you again," she said. "I think you owe me more of an explanation than you were off fighting battles and settling the nine realms or something," she indicated.

"Yes," Thor agreed, catching her hands in his own. "I am truly sorry, Jane. I cannot imagine what you must think of me. To be honest, my biggest hurdle is the difference in time for us." Thor pressed his lips together. "It feels like I saw you so recently," he explained. Jane was surprised at this.

"What?" she pushed. "It's been two years, Thor!"

"Yes." He cleared his throat, feeling uncomfortable. "And it is such a short period of time for me," he confessed. Jane didn't know what to say to that. There were books written about Thor that dated all the way back to the 13th century. Quite honestly, she'd never really considered the difference in feeling time between them. When she continued to stare dumbly at him, Thor continued. "Truly, I did not forget you!" he stressed, squeezing her hands slightly. "It simply did not feel all that long since I had seen you last, and I forget that it is different for you." Thor's neck was flushed, feeling guilty for not realizing sooner how long it would have felt to Jane.

Jane couldn't believe she'd never considered this. Her mind was whirling a mile-a-minute, now. Where's Darcy? I need to make notes on this. How old IS Thor? How short a time does it feel to him? He probably doesn't even know how to work a phone in order to call me. No, no…he could have gotten help with that. Thor dragged her out of her own head before she got too caught up. He tilted her chin up to look at him.

"I'm sorry, Jane." Jane stilled her movements, as he placed his forehead against hers. "There was that, but there was also the issue of the Bifrost. When I came to Midgard, I was cast out of Asgard and sent there using the Bifrost's power. It is how Asgard moves across the realms. Your…" Thor paused, trying to think of the words. "What did you call it?"

"Einstein-Rosen bridge," Jane provided, trying hard to calm her thoughts. There was so much to think about.

"Yes," Thor agreed. "It is also how we got here." This put a wolfish smile on her face.

"Great way to travel!" she burst. "I highly recommend it." Thor laughed and stroked her cheek.

"When I returned to Asgard two years ago, there was a confrontation with my brother which caused me to destroy the Bifrost."

"Wow…" Jane uttered. I'm not sure confrontation is the right word for it, she mused. "So, the area we stood in when we arrived…?"

"Its construction was finished about a week ago," he confirmed. Jane nodded, impressed. "It has been difficult to help maintain peace in the other realms these past two years, but not impossible. Which is why I could not contact you, or return."

"How did you make it to Earth and back, then," she asked. "You were there for the battle in New York! I saw you on TV!"

"Yes," Thor admitted. "I was there for my brother, whom had been presumed dead for nearly two years." Thor closed his eyes, trying to shut out the painful memories. "Heimdall was able to amass enough energy to send me to Midgard, when news reached us that Loki was there. After the battle, I did not have much time before needing to leave for home. I did try to get in touch with you, but the Man of Iron said you were unlisted and SHIELD mentioned they had "scrambled" your phone for some reason. I did not really know what either of those things meant, and became too worried about Loki to find out. I did not mean to offend. I simply had a lot on my mind with Loki," he sighed.

"I knew something funny was going on with my phone…" Jane grumbled. She took a deep breath, trying to let go of her feelings of abandonment. "Well, I'm glad I understand a little more about what went on." When he didn't continue, she prodded him a bit. "How did you make it home, then?"

"We used the power of the tesseract to travel to Asgard." Jane gasped.

"The crazy blue cube that SHIELD wouldn't tell me about?" she guessed. Thor laughed at her description and moved to lay on his back. She let him have his space, but stayed facing him on her side.

"It is not just a cube," he grinned, turning his head to look at her. "I'm not sure, but I think it may be a similar relic to the Aether. Mother told me a little of Loki's reactions to these items, and it seems the Aether has a pull on him much like the tesseract."

Jane's mind was alight with questions again. How, exactly, are these relics formed? Can they be destroyed? How distinctive is the energy signal they let out? Can we track it? How many are there? Why did they get formed? What was their original purpose? Are they meant to interact with each other? How does the power work? Are there lasting effects from using these items? After a few minutes had passed, Jane noticed Thor was holding one of her hands again, rubbing his thumb in soothing circles.

"I wish I had more answers for you right now, Jane," he lamented, when he noticed her attention returning to him. "Unfortunately, you know about as much as I do on these relics. I am worried about what kind of lasting effect the Aether could have on you." Jane pursed her lips, debating.

"OK," she decided, "we are saving this discussion for another day." She almost couldn't believe the words had come out of her mouth. However, she'd already had two mini-geek outs and without anyone to go through the process with her, she was certain she'd lose any progress she made. Especially with how tired the Aether made her. "I am dying to know more and study these things like crazy, as I'm sure you have guessed…" Thor smiled sadly. He wished Jane did not have to study these relics at all. "But your story is important to me, Thor." Jane tried to remember what originally started their conversation. "What happened with Loki? If the bridge was broken, how did he end up on Earth?" Thor shouldn't have been surprised on the quick change of subject, but he wasn't entirely prepared for it.

"Yes, well…" Thor rubbed his hands over his face, gearing up for another long talk. "Shortly after I returned to Asgard, I found Loki, speaking all these confusing accusations. He said we weren't brothers. That he only wanted to be my equal. I didn't understand when these things became untrue…" His lower lips twitched as a few tears slipped from his eyes. This night was one of his biggest regrets. "I wasn't here when Loki learned he was adopted. When he was told he wasn't even Asgardian; that his heritage is of an enemy race to Asgard, and the very one I attacked that got me banished in the first place." Jane looked up at him wide-eyed.

"Oh, Thor." He nodded.

"And while I was banished, he was forced to deal with all this and to take the throne in my father's absence. He had fallen into a healing sleep, sort of like what you would refer to as a coma, I believe." Jane nodded her understanding, willing him to continue. "And we fought!" Thor balled his hands up, angry with how he had reacted back then. "We fought as we have always fought." He threw his arms out in front of him. "Like brothers, bickering to come out on top. But this time, the stakes weren't just between us, Jane. Loki used the more destructive capabilities of the Bifrost on another realm," he explained.

"He left the bridge open?" she gasped. Thor was surprised of her knowledge of how the Bifrost worked, but not terribly. Jane was the most intelligent Midgardian he'd ever met, and her thirst for knowledge was unparalleled, aside from his brother. He smiled with great affection.

"Yes. It ripped apart Jotunheim, the realm of the frost giants, and I was forced to break the observatory from the bridge to stop its powers." He closed his eyes, waiting until he felt a little more under control before opening them again.

Jane lay there in shock. She couldn't imagine what would provoke someone to unleash that kind of destructive power against another planet. Destroy all the inhabitants on it. She wanted to ask about it, but the moment passed too quickly.

"At the time, I did not realize how serious our fight was to him, and I was easily provoked." Thor decided he didn't need to mention what they fought about. Not that it was inconsequential; just that Thor didn't think Loki really meant anything by his words but to provoke him. "I should not have let my anger lead me in this. But I did not know!" Thor took a deep breath, staring at the ceiling. It shamed him to think of how he treated Loki before he fell from the Bifrost. But he hadn't realized how different that fight was. "I did not know that that fight was not like all the rest," he whispered. Jane moved closer to his side and curled herself around him, trying to give him more comfort. "No, Jane…" He looked down at her. "You should not comfort me so," he agonized. "Loki is my little brother, and I let him fall off the bridge and into the Void. I should have seen the signs. I should not have been so angry." Jane dug a knuckle into his side until he jumped in surprise.

"Stop that!" she bossed. "He may be your brother, but it's not your job to ensure he makes good life decisions. It's not your job to make sure he cares for himself." Thor wanted to protest, but Jane held up a hand. "No, Thor. You need to accept this. You are not responsible for other people's feelings. You aren't in charge of what goes on inside Loki's mind, so the things he says and the actions he takes are his own. It's not your fault."

"Jane," Thor shook his head. "I knew something was wrong with Loki and I let him provoke me into fighting him anyways. Your brother does not declare 'I'm not your brother, I never was,' for no reason." Jane glared at him for continuing to berate himself, but remained quiet. This wasn't an argument she'd win in a few minutes. Thor needed to come to it on his own. "If the Bifrost destruction hadn't been looming over our heads, I would not have acted the same way. If there had just been more time, I would have taken Loki away from there, made sure he was safe, before destroying the Bifrost."

Jane sat up to look at him. "That is not your fault, Thor! You did what you had to do to keep an entire planet from being destroyed. It was Loki's choice to be there, to start up that destruction himself, and Loki's choice to provoke you," she grumped.

Thor's eyes flashed with anger as he sat up next to her. "He was out of his mind, Jane!" he bellowed. "He may deny it quite frequently, but I know my brother. He was not himself when I came back."

"It was still his ch-"

"No!" he denied. Thor got off the bed to pace around the room. "I'm not sure how in control my brother was for his decisions that night. How much was his choice and how much was the madness he fights," he rambled, seeming to talk to himself. "There comes a point where you just know… You're not talking to the person you love, but fighting with the darkness that consumes them sometimes."

Jane sighed, rubbing her temples. "I feel like we're talking about something different, Thor," Jane replied. Thor stopped pacing and stared at her with a haunted expression. It always troubled him to think of Loki's dark days. It was an enemy he never knew how to fight; an unwelcome ghost that hung around his brother and would attack at random. "You gotta give me a little more to go on, here," she pleaded. Thor looked away from her, then, the last statement not reaching his ears.

"If you want to know the honest truth, the truth that no one in my family wanted to acknowledge, I think Loki tried to kill himself that night. When I didn't strike him down, like he hoped, he let himself fall into the Void," Thor confessed.

Jane stared at him, a bit slack-jawed. It felt like a pretty big leap to say Loki struggled with a mental illness, but she didn't know how else to interpret Thor's words. And while she felt it shouldn't excuse his brother's actions, it did explain more about Thor's fierce protectiveness over him. She sighed and hunched over. "Thor…" He turned to look at her crumpled form and rushed over to her.

"What's wrong? Is it the Aether? Are you OK?" he worried, on overdrive. Jane looked up at him.

"No," she lied, shaking her head and smirking. "It's you! This is a lot for me to try and catch up on." Thor laughed with great relief.

"I told you!" he professed, hugging her to him. "You said the bed wasn't going anywhere," he sobbed. Jane wrapped him in her arms.

"I know I said it was all the info, but I am a little tired," she admitted. "Let's take a nap," Jane coaxed. "I think we both need it." She let him go from the hug and looked up at him again. "Agreed?" Thor gave her a watery smile.

"Agreed."

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Thor opened the door to Loki's room. It was dark, though it was the middle of the day. "Loki?" he called. There wasn't an answer, but Thor could hear someone shifting on the bed inside the room. "Brother, are you awake?" he inquired. Thor walked into the room and shut the door behind him. "I am coming in, brother." Loki groaned from the bed. When Thor made it over to the side of the bed, he saw his brother blinking his eyes awake, still bleary and half-asleep.

"Thor?" he grumbled. "Why are you here?" Loki rubbed his temples with his hands, trying to dispel a headache.

"Are you well, Loki? I waited at the stables for nearly an hour," Thor queried.

"What?" Loki sat up quickly in bed. "Wh-what time is it?" he stammered, instantly feeling guilty.

"It is a few hours from the mid-day meal," Thor replied, sitting beside Loki on the bed. Loki looked over at him

"I am sorry, Thor," he mumbled. "I had a late night and overslept," he lied. "I did not know it was so late." Thor ruffled his hair, but pushed him back down on the bed.

"Loki, in truth, I asked you to go riding with me today because I have been worried about you," he revealed. "Please, do not worry about missing it. I just want to spend time with you." Loki curled up on his side, facing away from Thor. Please, talk to me, brother, Thor pleaded to himself. His mother had coached Thor about things that were not helpful to say to Loki. Things that Thor would have carelessly blurted out to his brother if he had not known. Upon Loki's own request, neither he nor his mother mentioned anything to Odin. Whatever Loki was going through, he said he did not want their father to look down upon him any more than he already did. Which Thor thought was incredibly harsh for Loki to think about their father, and his own self. But Thor did not say that. He knew not to say that.

Thor leaned back against the headboard and made himself comfortable next to the younger prince. "When did you start feeling like this?" Thor asked him, unsure if he would get a response. Loki seemed to curl in on himself even more and covered his face with his hands.

"Thor…" he trailed off. Thor put a hand on Loki's shoulder, willing his brother to relax. Loki took a deep breath and wiped at his eyes. He looked straight ahead of him. "I haven't felt this way in many years," he whispered. "And, honestly, I don't know how you even knew about this," he griped.

"I know because I care for you, brother. You are important to me," Thor pressed. "Your life is important to me, Loki." He drew in a shaky breath. Loki turned over to look at him, his eyes wide.

"Brother," the younger quavered. Loki took one of Thor's hands into his own squeezed it affectionately. "Stop," he choked. "You needn't worry so much about me."

"You are not alone in this," Thor declared, placing his free hand over Loki's. Loki closed his eyes and swallowed against the lump in his throat.

"I just feel so heavy. Some days it is scarce easy to breathe. Like Asgard itself is suffocating me. And I just get pulled under and can't get up from the bed," Loki explained.

"Have you thought about going to see Eir?" Thor asked, while Loki scoffed, pulling his hands away from Thor's. "She has known us all our lives, brother. It is not weakness to take care of yourself," he argued. Loki pulled a deep breath into his lungs before moving to sit beside Thor. He scowled.

"Thor, do you have any idea how it feels to constantly feel like the ill weakling in Asgard? I'm not sure I know anyone who has been to Eir as often as I have," he spat, softly. Thor had to calm himself before he responded. He knew Loki's dark days could be bad, but he had forgotten just how nasty his brother could be to himself, like this. It had been nearly 300 years since his last struggle. Feeling more under control, he tried to cheer Loki up a little.

"Be honest…half those times you really just wanted to spend time with Eir," he smiled, pulling the younger man in for a noogie when Loki laughed. Loki pushed him off and shoved Thor playfully afterward, smirking back at him. "I don't think you're weak, Loki," Thor told him. "You should know that," he stressed. "I think you're so strong. You fight an enemy that no one can see, and no one knows of its existence but you. But the fight is long, and everyone gets tired of fighting, even I." Thor fiddled with the hem of his tunic and looked over to the young prince. He hadn't opened up to his brother like this in a long time. Thor placed a hand upon his chest. "I am the one who feels weak, Loki." His eyes welled up with tears, but he wiped them away, defiantly, on the back of his other hand. "You always have my back in every fight, brother, and I cannot seem to follow you in this fight." Thor stared down at his hands. "I feel so ashamed. It is only when you are so overcome from your fighting that I notice you have needed my help. What kind of brother does that make me?" he whispered, afraid of Loki's response. He gazed up at Loki, then, to see him crying, looking up at the ceiling. Thor could not recall the last time he had seen his brother in such a state. He grabbed Loki's hands in alarm. "Please, Loki. Tell me what I can do. Tell me how to fight by your side in this, please." Loki was smiling, Thor finally noticed. He wasn't looking at Thor, and the tears still fell down his face, but Thor's words had cheered him.

"Am I the only one to know you can be so eloquent with your words?" he laughed, coughing at his own joke. "It is enough," Loki rasped, clearing his throat, "to know your thoughts, Thor. They armor me against this 'unseen foe,' as you so prettily put it." He huffed out another laugh and looked over at Thor. "You are a fine brother," Loki hushed, almost too soft for Thor to hear. The older prince pulled Loki to him for a hug, squeezing tightly. Loki struggled to get out of his grasp. "Enough, you sentimental oaf," he sputtered. Thor laughed and ruffled his hair once again, letting him go.

"Fine," he conceded, as Loki elbowed him in the side. When his laughter stopped, he looked over to Loki once more. He knew there was something his brother wanted to say, but he didn't want to push him. Loki liked to come to things in his own time. After a few minutes passed, Loki huffed and crossed his arms petulantly.

"What if we both went to see Eir?" he hedged. "We can say we want to make sure we are both in good health this decade." Loki played with his hands, blushing a bit. He wasn't used to being so vulnerable, nor asking for help from others. It made him uncomfortable. But Thor was right. It was tiring to fight whatever this was every day. It always felt immensely better to stay in bed just a little longer; to indulge the dark thoughts that came.

Thor grinned as he watched his brother. He had picked up their mother's habit of fiddling with her hands when she was nervous. Thor had begun to worry that he was picking up his father's habit of nonsensical grumbling. "I think it a fine idea," Thor agreed. "Very responsible for princes to look after their health, don't you think?" Loki smiled, finding comfort from Thor's support. It was a great relief for him.

"Yes, I quite agree," he remarked. "Thank you, Thor," he mumbled.

"Thank you! Not only do you ensure I am being responsible for my own wellbeing, you do me the honor of helping you manage yours. I am glad of it. I may not understand exactly how you feel, but I will always help you, if I can." Loki smiled and opened the heavy curtains in his room with a flick of his hand. They both squinted momentarily at the bright light that streamed in, and Loki swung his legs off the side of the bed to get up.

"Yes, yes," he trilled. "That is enough sentiment for me, brother." Loki put his hands on his hips and fixed Thor with a stare. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to get ready for the remainder of the day." He gestured to his wild hair and the sleep clothes he still wore. His body still felt heavy moving around, but lighter than he had felt the day before. Thor smiled.

"I'll have some food brought up and wait for you in our shared sitting room, then," Thor told him. Loki sighed, but nodded in affirmation.

"Now go and let me bathe in peace," he commanded.

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Thor awoke with a start. He had dreamed of one of the most honest conversations he'd had with his brother, though it was 100 years in the past, now. Jane watched from beside him, hoping he felt a little better than he did before.

"Hey," she drawled, patting his arm affectionately, but tiredly. Thor took a few deep breaths to anchor himself before turning his head to face Jane.

"How do you fare, Jane?" he asked. "Was your sleep restorative?"

"Yeah, yeah," she deferred. "How about you?"

"I dreamed of a nice memory, though it was also sad. I admit, I am beginning to understand just a small bit why it was so hard for Loki to get out of bed, at times." Jane gave his hand a small squeeze of encouragement. Before she could ask about it, though, Thor spoke again. "You know I went to see him this morning." He brought her hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss on her knuckles, starting intently into her eyes.

"Yeah," she breathed. "You were upset…" Thor sighed, thinking back on his morning.

"I felt it important to share of mother's death with him. Join him in his grief, maybe. Help him get control of his magic again so we could release him… To say goodbye to Mother, to heal properly…" Thor squeezed his eyes shut before staring up at the ceiling. "It is all so backwards!" he cursed, hitting his fists against the mattress. "Always with his damnable pride!" Jane shifted beside him, not knowing what to say.

"Thor," she started, clearing her throat. "I can't pretend to know what's going on with you and Loki. In fact, the little we've gone through so far has been riddled with history that, I'm sure, runs far longer and deeper than I've been alive." She placed a hand on Thor's arm. "So, I'm going to need you to back up a bit." She wasn't happy about it. She wanted to keep up with Thor; wanted to listen to what was wrong in the here and now. But Jane knew there was more she needed to understand before she could make sense of what was going on, and she wasn't at her sharpest. This ridiculous parasite that coursed through her veins and sloshed around in her brain was wearing thin on her patience.

"It is the Aether, is it not?" Thor observed, startling Jane.

"What? No…" she laughed, pushing Thor's arm gently. Thor did not laugh with her, but looked over at her again.

"I will pretend, if you wish it, Jane, but I know it affects you most severely." Thor crossed his hands on his stomach as Jane pulled away from him. When she said nothing, after several minutes, Thor understood her silence. She does not even wish to speak its name, he guessed, sadly. Oh, Jane… he lamented. So he continued speaking about Loki. "There is much more I could tell you, but in truth, the next part I still do not fully understand."

"Just…wait," Jane replied softly. Thor turned to look over at her again. "So, I want to make sure I understand before we move on. Correct me if I'm wrong, here. So, your brother, Loki, is adopted, from an entirely different race, and didn't find out until two years ago." Thor nodded. "Then, he had some kind of mental break? and started destroying the realm he was from?" Thor gave her one of those nods that meant 'I guess you could put it that way, yes…' She let it go, because her description was good enough for her. "And he has some kind of mental illness? And it may have been a recent occurrence?" she questioned. Thor looked confused, now.

"Ah, I think this is perhaps a description particular to Midgard. What do you mean when you say mental illness? Asgard does not have this." Thor frowned.

"You mentioned a madness that Loki fights…a darkness that falls over him? That you sometimes feel his decisions are driven by the madness, and not by what you might call his…rational self?" Thor considered her words for a few moments.

"Yes. Loki has had these dark days on and off for many, many centuries. It is not a particularly new occurrence. Mother was always most distraught. He asked us to never tell our father…" Thor trailed off. Jane noticed he did not comment on how he felt about these periods. "I think he felt ashamed of it, though Mother and I, nor Eir, ever entertained the idea. But I have not met another Asgardian to have such an affliction, or at least openly struggle with it, much less discuss it."

Jane patted his arm placatingly. There probably were cases, but it was unlikely to be something brought up to a prince. If Loki felt ashamed, it's more likely that others on Asgard felt the same and never talked about it. It could have been a great opportunity for him, she thought. A prince being a champion for mental health… All that research they could have benefitted from, she despaired.

"Well, on Earth, we call this a mental illness. It's something that should be monitored and treated, just like any other sickness. And it's nothing to be ashamed of, but there's a lot of stigma around it, unfortunately. The name is pretty simple. It's an illness that exists only in your mind, which, I'm sure you've experienced, makes it difficult to treat." Thor nodded. "But there's loads of research that's done every year, new treatments that exist, better care for those afflicted. It's quite common, and quite varied on Earth, and sadly, on the rise." Thor was surprised to hear how common these illnesses were. That there was more than one type, even! It had been hard for Loki, and harder still for Eir to help. If they had known of the wealth of information on Midgard, perhaps it would have made a difference… But Midgard changes so quickly, Thor thought. It's likely that when we thought to look elsewhere, there was nothing to see. "I mean, I don't want to pry and have you break Loki's confidences with you," Jane interjected. "I just wanted to make sure I understood."

"Yes, I should perhaps consider how much I share about this," Thor sighed, combing a hand through his hair. "For as much as I shared with him, Loki never seemed particularly comfortable sharing overmuch…"

"OK," Jane agreed. "Basic picture, Loki fights off mental demons. Something likely stirred the pot when he found out he was adopted, he seemed to act more affected than usual when you returned, and…chose…to fall from the Bifrost site?" The corner of Thor's lip twitched, thinking about this cold telling of the facts. You could put it that way, but he would not.

"I mean…when I broke the observatory from the bridge, both of us were flung over the side. I had hold of one end of Gungnir, my father's staff, at the time, and Loki held to the other end. Father ended up catching my ankle, and, for reasons that are his own, Loki fell into the Void instead of being raised back up to the bridge with me."

"Ok…ok….." Jane struggled a bit. "For reasons that are his own, ok." She drew her lips into a fine line before speaking again. "No, I'm sorry. How do you justify trying to kill an entire race?" It still didn't make sense to her.

"I do not know," Thor retorted. "The reasons are his own…" Jane sat there for a few minutes, trying to find another way to get Thor to talk about this. She suspected he had a good idea why his brother decided to open the bridge on another realm, but he didn't want to share it.

"Did you consider what those reasons might have been?" she poked. Thor frowned.

"Yes," he yielded, with a deep sigh. "There was much speculation." Jane groaned, internally. She had to fight him, now, for any bit of information on this. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Can you share some with me?"

"Why does it matter?" Thor was getting upset with her questioning.

"I'm sorry?" Jane gawked.

"Why does it matter his reasoning for doing it?" he growled, sitting up.

Did those words just come out of his mouth? she wondered, slowing pulling herself up to sit against the headboard. "Are you serious?" Thor covered his face and shook his head.

"I will not get into this with you, Jane," he sighed, removing his hands and giving her a baleful look. "It is too shameful to think about." Jane clenched her teeth and held her pointer finger up.

"No, you wanted me to understand," she argued. "There's something going on with Loki, and this is important. Now stop being a baby and tell me what these 'speculations' were!" she demanded. Before he realized what he was doing, Thor had called Mjolnir to his hand. He gripped the leather tightly.

"I do not know his reasons!" he shouted.

"No! You choose not to know," she argued, throwing her hands in the air. "Your mentally ill, adopted brother went psycho two years ago, tried to commit genocide, and flung himself into space, where he was presumed dead until a few short weeks ago, and you don't want to know why. Am I caught up?" Thor scowled and fixed her with a vindictive glare. His expression was a hard 'no.' "Good. I'm going for a walk." She stormed from the room and when the guards made to keep her inside, she blew up. "Don't you dare fucking touch me!" she raged, pushing past them. The doors remained open. If anyone had any thoughts about the crown prince lounging in the bed of another woman, they kept it to themselves.

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Jane was grateful that Thor hadn't followed her after she left the room. She couldn't look at him right now, even if she had almost collapsed against the wall as soon as she withdrew. She leaned against the cold stones for a few minutes, catching her breath, then moved forward at a slow pace. What is too shameful about his brother's reasons for…what? Murder-suicide? Genocide-suicide, when your suicide also is genocide? Jane huffed, trying to think of an earthly equivalent to the situation. There were lots of examples of genocide on Earth. It was terrible how often it happened. The more notable examples she had were the American Indians, the Nazi Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide, and the more recent genocide in Darfur. But most of these involved a group of people inciting an attack. And came from a place of great prejudice. Is this what's so shameful to Thor? The prejudice Asgard held, or perhaps still holds against this other race? She remembered the Rwandan genocides from the news, thinking how neighbors rose up against neighbors simply because they were a different ethnic classification. It was horrible to consider. Thor mentioned they were an enemy to Asgard… Maybe there was a long history of fighting. Maybe the frost giants were the Earth equivalent to the Nazis, and Asgard was the Allied powers. She tried to imagine finding out her father was Adolph Hitler, and she was adopted into Winston Churchill's family. That comparison sent a chill down her spine. This was not an exercise for the weak. OK, I'm an adult whose grown up thinking good ol' Bulldog is my father. Germany is a fierce enemy. They've done unspeakable things to many other countries, and it suddenly comes to light that the leader of Germany is my father, somehow. I hate Germany. I'd want to kill all those Nazi's for what they were doing. If I'd been in the army back then, I'd have easily done it, too. It would have been a point of pride. See how much of a Brit I am? No German blood here. No crazy dictator in my blood at all.

Jane made it to the staircase that overlooked one of the main thoroughfares of the palace. There were a lot of people everywhere, trying to get things ready. She noticed a lot of debris being carted away, and a lot of wood being carried around. The distant sounds of hammering pressed on her nerves. How many people were killed yesterday? she worried. Jane leaned against the sturdy stone railing, gathering her strength to continue down the stairs and into a less stressful part of the palace. She closed her eyes, taking in some deep breaths. What do I do with this information if I learn about it way after the war's over with, though? she wondered. Hitler's long gone, the Nazi's were punished. Suddenly, I find out he was my father.

Jane thought about it for many minutes, trying to put her mind in that situation. I wouldn't just start killing Germans. That wouldn't be right. The whole country wasn't at fault for a particular party's views. Jane opened her eyes and started down the stairs, briefly noticing the two guards who followed her. She mentally scratched off that idea in her head as she made it to the bottom of the staircase. Thor didn't mention anything about his banishment when he was on Earth. She remembered he couldn't lift his weapon, and he apologized to Loki for whatever wrong he didn't know he had committed, but that's all she knew. The only new piece of information came today when he said he was banished for attacking this other realm. She tried to put this into context as she made her way down a random corridor. OK, what if I was with one of my siblings in Germany and they started killing a bunch of Germans in a bar, stating they were all horrible Nazi monsters? Jane thought about that scenario for a moment. I'd be scared because I'm also German. Would my sibling attack me if they found out?

The further down the hall she got, the stronger she could smell something delicious on her path. She kept thinking on the scenario she'd laid out for herself, but decided if she came upon some food, it wouldn't be a bad idea to eat something. OK, Jane, focus! If I went home and my father learned I hadn't killed Germans like my sibling did, would he think I was siding with the Nazis? Jane scoffed, pausing in her movements to catch her breath again. Well, that's ridiculous. I doubt any father would approve a child killing innocent people. Unless he were also a murderer. Also, my sibling would be in jail for doing what they did. I would be seen as the level headed one. She sighed again, feeling like things were getting out of hand. Maybe Thor's right… She thought, moving again towards the food smells. What does it matter, anyways? What's done is done. Despite everything, this thought still didn't' sit right with her.

She tried a new theory. What if I couldn't see Germans as anything else but Nazis? And now that I was one of them, I needed to kill myself with the rest of them? Wouldn't that speak to something wrong in me? Or maybe I was raised to think this way? What if my whole family felt this way about Germans? Her hypothesizing had taken her in the direction of racism, now, and it was a mindset she could never seem to understand. How could there be something inherently wrong with an entire race? It was preposterous. Before she could delve any further, though, she came upon the kitchens. There was a great commotion going on in them, but she decided to peek her head in anyways. She nearly regretted it when several women turned to stare at her.

"Lady Jane," one of them called. Another one came up to her.

"Can we help you with something?" the young girl enquired. Jane smiled, taking stock of herself before answering. She felt a lot calmer from her walk, short though it was, and thought she could handle going back to Thor for round two.

"Yes," she returned. "I wanted to bring some lunch up with me for myself and Prince Thor. Is that possible? You all look terribly busy. I feel bad for intruding." The girl looked at the guards who had followed Jane.

"It's not a problem," she decided. "As long as they carry the trays, it won't put any of us out more than a few minutes," she grinned. Jane looked back to watch the guards straighten behind her, passive in their facial expressions.

"Well, they follow me wherever I go, so I don't see an issue handing them a few trays," she grinned back. One of the guards furrowed his brows for a moment before schooling his features back. The other had given up to coughing to hold back his grin. Jane laughed as the girl rushed off to prepare something for her. She zoned out, thinking back to her fight with Thor. I suppose I can understand how Thor would feel ashamed if Asgard held these racist beliefs against Jotunheim and, in turn, had taught Loki to hate his true nature from a young age. That's actually pretty messed up… Jane was woken from her thoughts by the return of the girl she had been talking with, along with another older woman.

"Here you are, Lady Jane," the older woman said. Jane thanked them as the women passed the trays over to the Einherjar that had been following her around.

"I won't keep you," Jane promised. "I hope your labors are successful!" She waved, as she began to leave. The women waved back as she departed. When she had made it a few paces from the kitchens, she peeked up at one of the trays and stole a piece of cheese she saw on there. She moaned after taking a bite and felt the awkwardness flowing from the men behind her. Blushing, she turned to look at them. "What are your names, by the way?" she asked them, trying to make things more comfortable. The surly guard from earlier said nothing, but the other smiled at her.

"I'm Geir," he supplied. "This is Halvar." Jane smiled back at them.

"Well, thank you for helping me take this back to Thor." Jane finished the piece of cheese she'd taken before a thought came to her. "Can you tell me what Asgard's view is of Jotunheim?" she asked, innocently. Geir was surprised at her question.

"Does Midgard still remember the frost giants' attack?" he puzzled.

"Asgard does not take kindly to invasions and threats to the king," Halvar grumbled. Geir cleared his throat, realizing he was being a bit unprofessional in his actions.

"Yes, that is true. Both of these things happened about two years past," he told Jane.

"Before that, though, it feels like they have always been viewed differently from the other nine realms," Jane played dumb.

"Jotumheim has always been the fiercest of the nine," Halvar declared. "Asgard has fought hard to keep the other realms safe from their nature. Peace has been tentative, at best. If Midgard has indeed forgotten, Asgard was there to fight for them when the frost giants attacked. Your realm has nothing to fear from them."

"Hmm…" Jane nodded, looking ahead. "Thank you."

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Jane panted as she leaned against the wall next to Thor's door. She noticed her chambers were empty, and the door still wide open, so she assumed he had stomped over to his own rooms. For her safety, Jane's room had no windows, no fresh air. Based on the rest of the palace architecture, she assumed this was uncommon, especially for the royal family. It had taken her a lot longer to get back to their rooms than she had thought. Especially having to climb up the stairs, instead of down them. It took her several minutes to feel strong enough to knock on Thor's door. He opened it to Jane's glare. Thor ran his hands through his hair and sighed.

"You seem to know just what to say to set me off, Lady Jane." Thor noticed the two guards who hovered behind Jane with trays of food. "What is this?" Jane pushed past him and entered his room without an invite. "Jane?" He turned to watch her stroll inside, the guards following behind her, uncomfortably. Thor was amused that they feared Jane's small wrath to the impropriety of entering a prince's chambers without permission. When they had set down the trays on a low table in front of the couch that Jane was stewing on, they bowed to Thor and quickly left the rooms. Thor shut the door and stepped further into his chambers, uncertain of Jane's mood.

"Sit, Thor," Jane commanded. He moved towards her. "I thought I was done being angry, but I guess not." He sat near her on a chair, deciding a little distance was safer.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted towards you, Jane," he apologized. "It was terrible of me, and unbecoming of my upbringing." Jane seemed to deflate at that and uncrossed her arms.

"Thor. I'm not your mother," she winced. "You don't need to couch your reactions to things for me. I'm glad you were honest with your feelings! If you find me nagging you about bad manners, well, Darcy has a LOT of stories she can share about me." Thor seemed to relax in his chair. He kicked his heels up to rest on the table.

"I apologize all the same."

"I do too," Jane pouted. "I shouldn't have been so insensitive. But you really should consider Loki's reasons for trying to destroy another realm…" Thor pouted right along with Jane, crossing his arms across his chest. When the stalemate went on for too long, she looked over at the trays the guards had brought up. "I think we need some food before we attempt round two, and I may need to rest some more." Jane picked up one of the trays and ignored Thor's worried gaze.

"Thank you for this, Jane." He picked up his own tray and smiled at what the kitchen had sent for them. "These are some of our favorite things," he smiled. Jane looked over at him as he reminisced. "The meat they gave you is my father's favorite. Boar, cooked the way my grandmother, Queen Bestla, preferred it. The cheese, the bread, the fruit…all things my mother enjoyed with every meal. I think it was mostly because they were easy to share and didn't take as much effort to prepare." He picked up a piece of bread and took a large bite. "Plus, when we were children, Loki would hardly deign to eat anything!" he shared, talking around the food in his mouth. Jane ate another piece of cheese, shaking her head at him. "I now think it largely due to his differing heritage. I do not know what an Asgardian diet is like for a Jotun. But he would eat all of these things. When my mother noticed this, she made sure they were always present at the table. Things that made us happy made her happy." Thor gave Jane a tight smile, trying to keep his emotions under control.

"What about the pastries?" She moved closer to Thor, picking up a piece of fruit to eat, thinking they may have been his favorite on the tray.

"Loki's," Thor chuckled. "He has an incredible sweet tooth, and these are his absolute favorite. And I was never above using that knowledge for a bribe," he grinned. That left the one thing on the platter that Jane would never have guessed was Thor's favorite.

"This leaves the soup as your favorite?" she guessed. Thor's eyes twinkled with mirth.

"Not what you expected to be my favorite, is it?" he prompted. "For me, there is no greater comfort in all the nine than that of a simple, well-made broth." Thor sighed with pleasure, inhaling the steam still coming from the bowl he had. "When I was most sad, or very sick, this is what I would always ask for. And when it was Loki's fault, he would sneak into my room with a bowl of broth and a pastry, because he knew what was my favorite, but also wanted me to know he was making a sacrifice of his own pleasure in favor of mine." Jane felt heartened to be let in on Thor's stories. These were happier memories he held, and less of the troubling grief he was dealing with from Frigga's death and the issues with Loki. She took his hand and gave him a fond smile. "Indeed, Jane, if there were nothing else on this whole platter but a small bowl of broth, you could not find me a more comforted, happy man." He smiled, taking Jane's hand and rubbing his thumb on the back of it in slow circles.

"Thank you for sharing with me." Jane looked down at her platter before staring back at Thor. "I never would have known. I assumed what they gave me was what was easiest to put together." Thor kissed her knuckles before releasing her hand.

"It is also quite possible that this was what was easiest to put together," he chuckled. "The kitchens are preparing for the feast to honor our dead. Favorite dishes of the royal family over many millennia will be served, along with comfort food from all the towns that lost someone. It is an excellent way for you to get to know all the delicacies Asgard has to offer, though I am sad of the occasion for it." Jane put a comforting hand on his arm before turning back to her food.

"Well, this has been delicious, so far. I didn't realize how hungry I was, earlier." Jane ate more of the fruit and bread before taking a sip of the broth. Thor held his bowl up to Jane's and clinked them together.

"To health," he intoned, giving her a tight-lipped smile. Jane returned a warm one of her own, and took a bigger sip. Thor gulped down half the broth before putting his bowl down, a big, satisfied smile on his face.

"Do you want to speak more of Loki?" Jane tested, finishing the cheese on her tray. Thor rubbed a thumb under one of her eyes.

"I think you need to rest first, Jane," he supplied. Jane rolled her eyes.

"Fine," she agreed, sarcastically.

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Thor stood on the balcony while Jane slept in the darkened rooms behind him. He knew she tired of the ancient power coursing through her and he cursed himself that he knew not how to help. He stared out at the bright and shining landscape of his home feeling more out of place than he ever had before. Before his botched coronation, he felt there could be nowhere else he belonged. His family supported him, stood by him, counseled him. Loki, while troubled, often seemed happy to Thor. His upbringing was full of love and shared happiness. He never wanted for anything, at least, nothing he truly needed. The Asgard before his banishment was a beacon of everlasting satisfaction and represented a time in his life that felt full and fulfilled.

When he was banished, Thor was forced to confront some very real flaws to his character that he had not previously noticed. Further he had needed to consider other realms as his home, as there was no certainty he'd ever see Asgard again. With that fear, he clung to Midgard, perhaps a bit prematurely. The ever-changing realm seemed to accept him just as quickly, though. So much so that Asgard lost a little of her shining brightness in his mind. Then, when he was reunited with his true home, he was rewarded with Loki's madness driving him to plunge into the Void. With Loki gone from Asgard, presumed dead, Asgard seemed to have an ever-present mark of death about her, to Thor. He could not look upon his home without seeing the crazed desperation in Loki's eyes; without considering what drove Loki to let go of Gungnir. The younger prince's face haunted him when he strode through Asgard's halls. He helped quell unrest in the nine realms, selflessly strode to many battlefields. Yet he wasn't able to do anything for the one person who meant more to him than all the countless people he had saved over the last two years.

It had soured the throne for Thor. His skin crawled, thinking of being tied to the realm eternal, to his grandest mistake. Even hearing of Loki's return did nothing to brighten the realm to him. His father was pushing him to take over his burden and Thor didn't know how to refuse. He longed for the simpler days on Midgard and hoped, when Loki was better, he could simply return with Jane for a time. When he spied one of his father's ravens flying through the sky, Thor's eyes darkened with a vision.

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The sky appeared black with an eerie red glow to it, like the Aether, as it lashed out. Loki was before him, helpless and tied up in the dungeon as the Aether ripped itself from Jane and flew to his brother. Loki screamed in protest as his mind was invaded by the ancient power. He pulled and writhed, trying to escape its clutches. And suddenly, he stopped moving. His body went slack, before the chains binding him simply disintegrated. And then, a small smile tugged on his lips as Loki opened his eyes. He stared at Thor, his eyes completely dark, no longer reflecting their vibrant green. His eyes looked dead as he smiled madly at Thor. The Aether seemed to affect Loki differently from Jane, perhaps as he had touched other ancient powers. The cell barriers disintegrated and Loki stood before Thor.

"Odinson." The sound hissed out of his brother's mouth, but it was the Aether that spoke. "You kept such a treasure as this locked away?" The creature before him lifted up Loki's hand and turned it over, seeing the body anew. Thor shook in anger, gripping Mjolnir tight.

"Release my brother," he spat. The power addressed him.

"I can assure you, Thunderer, your brother is quite destroyed. It is my will alone that powers this body." The creature smirked. It placed a hand on Thor's chest. "Such power you have…I could give you such purpose, Odinson," it hissed. Thor raised Mjolnir high above him, calling the lightning to him as the Aether just laughed.

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Thor awoke to Jane shaking him out of a vision. A storm was raging and he was poised to smash Mjolnir into the stone railing of his balcony.

"Thor!" Jane screamed. He stopped his hand and stumbled back, dropping Mjolnir with a deep thud. He backed up into Jane's worried embrace and calmed the storm around them. It had been a few mere minutes' lapse, but Thor could see the damage he'd wrought.

"Jane," he breathed, turning his shocked expression to her.

"What happened?" she questioned, wrapping her arms tighter around him. Thor shuddered.

"It was a vision," he frowned. "The Aether left your body for a stronger host…" Jane rubbed comforting circles on his back, looking up into his face. Thor closed his eyes to the painful memory. "Loki." Jane made a small noise of sympathy as Thor wrapped a hand around the back of her neck and touched their foreheads together. "It destroyed him, though, and simply used his body as its own." Jane clucked, patting his back in a more confident manner.

"Well, we know it doesn't operate that way. Else, it likely would have left my body for yours, by now," she justified to him. "Come inside and dry off. It was just a dream, Thor. I can assure you the Aether still resides firmly within me and we are no closer to finding a way to remove it, save provoking Malekith himself."

"Provoking Malekith?" he replied, amazed. He had not considered manipulating Malekith into removing the Aether from Jane. Thor pulled them swiftly inside and made a glance to the door of his chambers.

"Thor, that was a ridiculous, throwaway comment," she scoffed.

He laughed before turning a serious look in her direction. "Jane, if there's nothing in all of Asgard's library that speaks of how to remove the Aether, then Malekith is likely the last alive to have this knowledge."

"Yes, and we would be handing it over to the enemy." Jane arched her eyebrows like it was obvious. Thor mimicked her look before going off to the bath for a towel to dry himself and another for Jane. She followed closely behind. "Alright, I concede that I've seen you defeat a giant, fire-breathing robot, and an entire invading alien army. You even struck Malekith before he escaped. But I can't imagine he doesn't pose a threat. Your father mentioned an army being needed to defeat him the last time," she pointed out.

"Even if he is a threat, at least we shall take the threat away from Asgard," he reasoned. Jane hummed, considering his last point. It became clear to her that Thor didn't believe Asgard could survive another attack so soon.

"And then what would we do if Malekith has possession of the Aether and escapes?" she whispered. Jane leaned against the doorframe and crossed her arms. "You need to think this through a bit more, Thor." He handed her a towel to dry off and started drying his own body. "Maybe when we're not soaking wet," she mumbled, pulling on the straps of her dress. Thor smiled, shedding some of his wet garments.

"I promise to think this through before we make any final plans," he vowed, moving towards his closet. Jane padded after him again, curious to see what styles Thor preferred to wear. Thor chuckled when he noticed Jane had followed him inside. "Would you like to borrow something?" he asked, only teasing a bit. He knew anything he owned would be quite large on Jane. She ignored him for a moment, just looking around. There were spaces for multiple sets of utilitarian armor. Plenty of shelving for casual breeches, tunics, leggings, and night clothes. On the opposite wall was a glass case containing his full, formal, ceremonial armor. He didn't wear it very often, and the case made sure it was kept protected and tarnish-free. Jane noticed five other areas of clothing in his closet. One clearly full of Midgardian clothing from various eras in its history. Jane went over to it and pulled out a 1920's style formal jacket with tails. She held it up to Thor.

"Did you often make trips to Earth?" Thor smiled wistfully.

"Ah, Loki's coming of age celebration. THAT was a great trip," he smiled. "Whatever time period that was on your planet, it was very opulent and fun. Loki insisted on celebrating in at least five of the nine realms, and we may have brought a few casks of Asgardian spirits to Midgard," Thor laughed. "By the time those six months were up, everyone had their own stories to tell." Jane laughed.

"You were celebrating for six months?" She hung the garment back up.

"Oh, that is not uncommon. My own coming of age celebration was three months long throughout all of Asgard, and two months upon the lovely shores and forests of Alfheim. Full of glorious hunting, sparing, and copious feasts." Jane smiled at how happy his memories were.

"You certainly know how to live full lives." Jane blushed as Thor began removing the rest of his clothes and turned around. Thor avoided her comment. Jane wasn't wrong. Asgardians had a zeal for life and for celebrating the good and the victorious. But it wasn't always an easy life, and it was also full of heavy burdens towards the other realms. And now, heavy burdens towards their own. Rebuilding would take time, and healing from the loss of loved ones would take even longer.

"That may have been the last time I was on Midgard; before you met me, that is," he remarked, casually, pulling a new set of clothes out for himself.

"O-oh," Jane stammered. "Well, I can assure you, a LOT has changed." When he had more clothes on, she glanced over at the other areas in the closet. It looked like each area was for a specific realm. "What are the other clothes in here?" Thor went over to the next stack.

"I have fashions from each of the realms where it's been important to follow the fashions." He pointed to Jane's stack. "Midgard. This before me is for Vanaheim. Simple, hardy fabrics in earth tones, but more casual, sometimes flowing styles." He moved to the next area. "Alfheim. The realm of the light elves. Fashion is one of the more important parts to plan for, when visiting. Their fashion is full of airy, lightweight fabrics, the more it flows, the better. In some cases, very little clothing is worn, depending on the season or the celebration you're attending." Thor picked up a very gauzy pair of pants. "I wore only this to a harvest festival a few centuries back." Jane smirked.

"I'm sure you looked quite fetching." She pulled the towel around herself, getting a little chilled in her wet clothing. Thor moved to stand near her.

"Would you truly like to borrow something?" he asked, concerned. "Or we could cross the hall for a garment of your own." Jane stared up at him.

"I guess…I can borrow something of yours," she faltered. Thor smiled before he walked over to the shelves and pulled out a longer tunic of his. "It's easier, I mean…"

"Of course," he winked at her. "You can change in the bath, or I can leave for you to change in here, if it makes you more comfortable." He handed the tunic over to Jane, before rifling through the old clothes from Midgard for a smaller pair of trousers. He landed on a pair of breeches he'd owned when he was young and held them out to her. "Will these fit?" Jane held them up to her waist.

"I think so," she grinned. Jane walked backwards towards the doorway with the garments. "I'll just…" she pointed in the direction of the bathroom and made a hasty retreat. When Jane rejoined him, fifteen minutes later, Thor was sitting in the main area, brooding over Loki and worrying that Jane had taken ten minutes longer than he felt she should have. The shirt was swimming on her, but the breeches seemed to fit. She came to sit in his lap. "Why the long face?" she prodded, stroking his cheek with one of her hands. Thor wasn't sure he caught the idiom she used, but assumed she meant his facial expression.

"Both you and Loki are ill," he tried explaining. "And I am helpless on both counts." Thor sighed.

"OK, I've eaten a great meal, napped for a bit, and I'm in fresh, dry clothes. Let's talk through what's going on with Loki," she insisted, planning to ignore her own situation, once again. "And you shouldn't feel helpless about me. Your father said this was an ancient power. Not even he knows what to do about it. Anyone would be helpless against it, right now. We'll figure something out." Thor sighed and kissed Jane's forehead.

"Yes," he decided. "We shall figure something out." Truthfully, as soon as Jane had suggested it, he'd already decided to draw her away from Asgard and provoke Malekith into removing the Aether, but he needed more time to think through the plan.

"So, Loki?" she tried again. Thor hugged her to him, lightly.

"In all honestly, Jane, I do not know enough of the rest of his tale, but I shall tell you what I do know." Jane rested her head on Thor's shoulder, feeling comforted by his strength and giving him comfort herself. "When Loki fell from the Bifrost, he was captured by someone, somehow. I do not know how, nor who, but he was tortured. Made to believe he was on Asgard and tortured by his own family. It sounded as if it was a daily occurrence, and Loki was missing for nearly a year. His mind was given over to some kind of mind-controlling stone or staff. A weapon. And it was this captor who tortured him that convinced Loki to attack your city of New York." Jane sat up quickly.

"Are you telling me that attack was orchestrated by your own brother?" Jane stared at him wide-eyed. He'd said it so matter-of-factly, she had nearly missed the significance of the information. "Loki led that alien army in New York that caused so much damage and death?"

"In a way, yes…" he whispered, looking down at Jane's lap.

"In a way?" she protested, trying to wriggle out of Thor's grasp. He let her up, feeling a gap growing between them.

"I fought Loki before and during that whole battle, and he was not himself," Thor murmured. "Loki may have made it possible for the Chitauri to get to Midgard, but he was not really their leader. The longer he was away from that staff, the more he came back to himself." Jane was pacing, now, her mind whirling with the new information. In a way, it made sense…especially if the scepter and the tesseract were like the Aether. These relics had no qualms about taking over a host, it seemed. But it was still a shock to know Thor's own brother had made the attack possible.

"He was behind the whole thing…" she blurted. Thor looked up at her with a glare.

"No. Whatever monster held my brother captive was behind the whole thing. Loki was merely dancing to his sick tune." Jane turned around, unable to look at Thor while she processed her thoughts.

Mind controlled to lead an attack on New York? For what? she thought. "No…no…" Jane turned around, glaring at Thor. "I saw footage of him in Germany. He looked pretty in control of himself there. How can you defend his actions? The things he said…"

"I can assure you, my brother has never expressed such words of subjugation before, Jane. There were only fleeting moments where he even seemed to recognize my true personality before backing away from me in terror. He remembers me as some…madman…who tortured him all through our childhood, and delighted in punishing him after his fall." Jane collapsed on the couch, unsure what to say. She leaned back and stuck a pillow over her face, moving her legs up onto the couch. Thor watched her, concerned by her actions.

"This is a lot to take in," she talked into the pillow. The sound was muffled strangely to Thor's ears, causing him to smirk.

"Yes," he agreed. "Indeed, it has been a lot for me, as well. When I learned Loki was not, in fact, dead, I found a stranger in his body, when I'd finally found him. A stranger who occasionally gave me glimpses of my brother, until he was finally dislodged from the control he was under. And even now, he still fights against them. He told me it's like he has two minds. In one, I am as I am. In the other, I am a monster. And even though he no longer carries the scepter, nor holds the tesseract, he still seems to be under their control. I do not know why." Jane removed the pillow in time to watch Thor place his head in his hands.

Jane tried hard to remember Thor's words. The man she'd held such a hatred for had been tortured…brainwashed, even. Acted under some sort of mind control. "Thor…" She reached a hand out to him. He looked up, then moved to sit on the floor near her, holding her hand. Jane put their joined hands up to her cheek. She thought back to Thor's words, and a whole new set of ideas were coming to her. "I just need a little time to accept his involvement in New York." She kissed his hand innocently. "I understand where you're coming from. It's just a lot to justify… And when you do, it creates a whole other set of issues, like where the true mastermind is behind the attack. Why they didn't come themselves? Why they didn't come after the army was defeated. How it was worth it to sacrifice an entire army for their goal. I mean…what was their goal? Was it to attack? Was it to retrieve the objects that Loki had? Was it simply to make it to Earth? There's just…so much unanswered. And Loki is in the middle of all of that. Surely he knows some of these answers." Thor's closed his eyes.

"Yes," he acquiesced. "I have not had the time to talk about it with him, though. It has been a truly busy few days…" Jane nodded her agreement. "And Loki is certainly not well at the moment." Jane ran a hand through his hair, trying to encourage him to keep talking. "I understand that this will be harder for you. I try to imagine how I would feel if Malekith was your brother, acting under someone else's orders, but I just cannot imagine it. It makes me too angry to think." Thor clenched his free hand into a fist and took his head off the couch. Jane scratched his back a bit when he looked away. Thor was right. She wasn't over it, and she was still angry about it, but once she'd processed it all, she imagined she could get through her anger to acceptance and understanding.

"Hey," she called, getting his attention once more. "I'll get there," she promised, willing it to be true. "I just need time to process." Thor nodded, and, removing his hand from Jane's, scrubbed both palms against his eyes. He took a few calming breaths before Jane spoke again. "So, what's going on with him now? I know things have kind of escalated since he's been in the…dungeon? Do you really call it that?" Thor smirked, her curiosity infectious.

"Yes, we call it a dungeon. When Loki and I got back on Asgard, we weren't transported immediately to the palace. Instead, to a stronghold outside the city. We had a long talk on our way back, but he got more and more agitated when he was near the tesseract and things got out of control when I put a magic binding cuff on him." Thor exhaled. "I have since learned never to do that… My mother…" Thor swallowed, letting himself trail off. Jane scooted over on the couch to rest her head on Thor's shoulder, giving his neck a quick kiss. He cleared his throat. "Anyways, there was an ordeal, then the tesseract activated and transported us to the town square, which is where Loki's illusions of torture began. And in that moment, he came to doubt what was real and believed in the lie. Which prompted him to lash out, which pulled him before my father…without me, I might add…and it got ugly. My father refuses to believe that Loki is still in there. He says there is no hope of bringing him back." Thor growled, angry that Loki and Odin were both so bull-headed and unyielding. Neither would give an inch to the other, if it wounded their pride. It hadn't always been that way, but that's how things were, now.

"Which isn't true," Jane said, as a confirmation of understanding. Thor nodded.

"Both Mother and I were able to get through to him. I know there's a lot of healing to be done, but Loki is far from gone. And that is precisely where he should be…in the healing halls, and not in the dungeon."

Jane hummed, remaining neutral, and placed her hands on her stomach. "What happened next?"

Thor put his hands over his eyes, willing himself to stay strong for the rest of the tale. "Mother mentioned something about a return of his dark days. Which doesn't surprise me. All that mental trauma…" Thor shook his head. "But he was healing a little. Until last night." Thor took a sharp inhale of breath. "No one said anything, but Loki knew, somehow. He can feel Mother's absence. And he became unreachable." Jane placed a hand on Thor's cheek, trying to soothe his pain. "My brother has command over a lot of magic, Jane," he explained, his hands starting to shake. "Last night I saw his body devoid of skin and encased in an unbreachable barrier of magic. He was out of control and nearly busted through the cell with his seidr. It could have caused a collapse on that side of the palace with the amount of magic, combined with the damage done by the attack earlier. Not even Eir, the palace healer, who has been like family to Loki, was able to calm him. When he saw me, he begged me to take him to Mother, nearly hurting himself further in the process. Father had me leave before anything was resolved, but he was successful in creating a secondary barrier inside the cell to contain Loki's magic."

Tears fell from Jane's eyes, unbidden, and she rushed to wipe them away before Thor felt them. She could imagine a small amount of the pain Loki was in, and it hit her very close to home with her Father's death. She couldn't imagine how much harder that would have been, though, if she'd been with her father for over a thousand years. It was inconceivable for her. "What happened this morning?" she questioned, remembering how upset Thor had been. Thor sniffed, rubbing a hand under his nose and looking up at the ceiling.

"I planned to share Mother's death with him and make sure he was well enough to attend the funeral. When I got there, I found someone had put the cuffs back on him, which bound Loki's magic. He kept telling me how good he'd be if I would just release him from them. It was so unlike Loki, to see him that way." Thor shuddered. "So I did. Because it wasn't right to do that to him. Mother said those cuffs can drive a magic user insane." Jane gasped.

"Does your father not know this?" Jane frowned. How could a father do that to his own child? she thought, angrily.

"I do not know. I cannot imagine he does not," he scoffed. "It is what makes me so angry about it. Is he trying to prove himself right by driving Loki insane? Or trying to punish that which he already feels is insane and has "taken over" my brother's body? Either way, it is cruel." Jane moved her hand to rub circles on Thor's right arm, feeling such anger at Odin in that moment, but trying hard to keep it to herself. She didn't want to come between Thor and his father any more than she wanted to engage him in conversation after he'd called her a goat. Thor turned his head to give her a small smile. "Thank you for listening, Jane. And working to understand. It is a lot to take in."

Jane snorted. "You're telling me. What happened after you removed the cuffs?"

"For a good forty minutes he just sat there in the cell. I had brought him breakfast and tried to engage him in conversation, but it was like he wasn't even there. And then suddenly he was. He stared me right in the eye for several moments, like he wasn't sure who I was, then he asked where Mother was. Why hadn't she come to see him? If she didn't need help, where was she? My eyes must have betrayed me, because I didn't even get one word out before Loki was backing away from me. Not even a minute later, his seidr had burst all over him again. It wasn't as gruesome as last night, and he seemed almost surprised at what was happenning, but I was still unable to call him back, and I fear he won't be stable enough to attend Mother's funeral." Jane moved her head from Thor's shoulder, and laid back against the pillows.

Her heart gave a painful little squeeze. She couldn't imagine missing her own father's funeral. There wouldn't have been any closure for her. "Thor…he can't miss this. Which is worse? Not attending, or attending in the cuffs that can control his magic?"

Thor exhaled. "Based on what I've seen and what Mother told me, I would say it's better he not attend. As much as it pains me to say it. The less he wears those cuffs the better." Jane pulled Thor's head to hers and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Maybe try one more time," she tried. "If it's too dangerous to bring him, then I suppose, leave it at that. Or, see if he would consent to wearing the cuffs, so he could attend. Maybe go with that?" Thor nodded softly, exhausted from all the emotions he went through today.

"Yes, that is a good plan," he agreed. "I will try once more in the morning. Perhaps the rest of the day without the cuffs on will exhaust his magic enough and bring his senses back to him," Thor hoped. It was unlikely, but he could dream nevertheless. Jane smiled encouragingly.

"Thank you for sharing all of this with me," she professed. Thor moved to get up, but Jane pushed over onto her side and drew him onto the couch. "I know this was hard for you." Thor laid down next to her and placed his arms around Jane.

"I am glad you know it." He kissed her, then, and pulled her body flush against his.

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Jane stood silently, resolutely, next to Thor as they stared out to the edge of Asgard. She felt remorse for the woman who had saved her life, the woman who was beloved by many. It was a hard burden to carry, her short life for centuries of another's. Thor was gripping her hand tightly. He'd been unsuccessful in reaching Loki, once again, and she knew he felt terrible for the loss of his presence. The amount of people who had arrived for the mass funeral was staggering. It seemed nearly all who could attend were there to see the dead off to what Thor had called Valhalla. Jane had never felt more like an outsider; more like it was wrong, even, to be there. The cause for all this death standing among them, even as they lifted the souls of their people to the afterlife. Jane hid her face in Thor's arm as the first boat came into view. Frigga's boat. It was utterly, eerily silent. Only the crackling sound of the roaring flame behind them, and the water lapping against the boats broke through.

She looked around at all the faces. Odin's solemn mask, a cover for the pain she found in his eyes. The ache on Sif's face at the loss of a fellow shield maiden, a mentor, even. Fandral, more reserved. The laughter put aside, the carefree expression wiped from his face. It was the look of a man who felt he'd let down a nation and Jane wished dearly to see it gone. Volstagg stood formally by his friend, his family further back in the crowd, as he was there in an official capacity. It was hard to read his expression, but there was none of the usual joviality on his face. When the first arrow was loosed upon Frigga's boat, Odin's voice rang out among the throng.

"Lo, There do I see my Father."

Thor stepped further from the crowd, then. "Lo, There do I see my Mother," he boomed. Fandral came to stand beside Thor, watching the line of boats.

"And my brothers."

"And my sisters." Sif stepped up beside Jane and Thor.

"Lo, There do I see the line of my people back to the beginning," rang out from the lips of everyone there. Jane wiped the tears from her eyes, feeling such a closeness emanating from the people.

"Lo, They do call to me," Odin canted.

"They bid me take my place among them in the halls of Valhalla," Volstagg replied, coming to stand in the fore with the other warriors.

"Where thine enemies have been vanquished," Thor cried, lifting Mjolnir high in the air.

"Where the brave shall live forever," the Einherjar all shouted. It seemed to her everyone had a piece to say, that was heartfelt and meaningful for them. Odin hit the ground with Gungnir, a resounding gong passing through the air. Frigga's boat fell from the edge and bright lights floated up towards the sky. Thor had told her this marked the passage of the soul to Valhalla. Many more arrows were loosed, then, the rest of the boats catching fire and heading for the edge of the world. Each time, Odin would knock the ground with his staff, and the souls of the departed would drift towards the stars. It was too beautiful for words. To see a soul travel to live amongst the stars…she could imagine no greater fate.

When the last boat had descended, a mighty roar rang throughout the crowd as globes of light were released. Thor had explained earlier that this was to continue lighting the way for their deceased. Her heart swelled, thinking of all the souls that had joined together in death.

When all the globes were high in the sky, Odin began again. "Nor shall we mourn."

The people answered. "But rejoice," they shouted, "for those who have died the glorious death!" And just as Jane thought it was all over, a sound like drums beat through the crowd. It was the sound of the people stamping their feet upon the ground. The sound of marching, the sound of dancing, the sound of running, a stampede of beating hearts and fierce minds. When the sound became deafening to Jane's ears, Odin struck the ground one final time with Gungnir. The balls of light that had been let loose earlier exploded in the sky, lighting the heavens in thousands of bright bursts of light.

When the sky had darkened once again, Jane found the fires had already been extinguished. A final cry went out into the darkness. "To Valhalla!" And then all was silent again.

The entire ceremony had been incredibly moving for Jane and she found herself thinking how sad it was that Loki had had to miss this. She couldn't have dreamed up a more fitting funeral and Loki would have to live with the knowledge that he'd never get to say goodbye to Frigga. There would be no body to see, no tombstone to visit, no wake. He wouldn't even get to engage with the people tonight to share stories and feast to her honor…and to the honor of all the fallen.

Thor came over and embraced Jane. She noticed Odin had already left, gone to lead the feast. Fandral and Sif stood nearby and Volstagg had left with his family. "This was beautiful, Thor," she told him, stroking his cheek. He grasped her hand.

"Aye. I just wish Loki had been here to witness it all," he sighed.

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He'd been lying on the ground, an illusion of himself reading being portrayed to any who passed by. Loki was exhausted and didn't even have enough energy to move from the floor to the bed. It was a kind of magical exhaustion he wasn't unfamiliar with, but rarely found himself in. When he'd looked around, he'd noticed he was in the dungeon within the palace, but he had no recollection of how he got there. Thor's coronation was supposed to be today and he was in a cell. Not just a cell, but a nicely furnished one that had been completely destroyed. The last twenty minutes, he'd been trying to remember what could have possibly happened to land him there.

The guard who had been part of his rotation since childhood was approaching and Loki got himself to sit up, though it mattered little for the illusion. His illusory self looked over at Volf and put the book down.

"I bear a message from Prince Thor, your highness." He placed a hand over his heart and bowed. Loki was intrigued. Whatever mess he'd gotten into, it clearly hadn't involved Thor, which seemed strange to him. Loki waved a hand for the man to continue. "He wished to bring this message himself, but each time he has tried, he has been unable to deliver it. He wanted you to know that it should come from him."

Even more intriguing, Loki thought. A message Thor couldn't deliver? When has Thor ever been unable to force his way in and speak his mind? Loki rolled his eyes. "Speak, Volf. I would know the words my brother cannot seem to speak himself." Volf seemed hesitant, so Loki's illusion stood up and stalked over to the man. Volf simply sighed at his antics.

"Queen Frigga was killed in the Dark Elf attack three days ago. Prince Thor tried very hard to have you come to the funeral, but your magic was always too out of control to even be able to speak of her death." Volf looked straight into the illusion's face. "I am truly sorry, my prince." Volf placed an open palm over his heart as he knelt down before him.

Loki's illusion was able to mumble "I understand" before the guard said he would leave him in peace and walked away. And with his news delivered, the puzzle pieces all tumbled back together in his mind. He'd cast a memory spell on himself twice, now, in self-preservation. As much as he wished it, he didn't have endless depths to his seidr and using it all up was an easy road to death. When you used up your own magic, it would then draw on your lifeforce and drain the very soul from your body. In an effort to control his seidr, and control his emotions, he'd simply made himself forget. Loki sobbed. That first attempt had been a little hap-hazard. He'd forgotten almost everything in his haste to cast the spell. For a memory spell to stay in effect on its own caster, the caster couldn't become aware of the spell itself, or else it would all unravel. It was only Thor's continued presence that seemed to remove his spell bit-by-bit.

This time around, he'd at least remembered most things. Chosen a time where he was happier than he was now. He'd attempted to circumvent the damage Thanos had done by simply forgetting it. With Volf's news, each little piece started falling into place, and his mind was still a tangled web of reality and fiction. The remorse he felt kept him grounded and pointed out just how real his relationship with Frigga had been. Loki's seidr gave one last burst at the cell barriers, throwing everything in the room into chaos. The books his mother had brought him were utterly destroyed. The furniture she'd placed in the room had been decimated. There were fragments of glass everywhere, and the food that had been brought him lay toppled on the ground. Loki crawled over, slowly, to the pages of the books that were fluttering in the air. With the end of his memory spell, a little energy had returned to him. Not much, but enough to move around a little.

"These were her things!" he raved, grasping at the pages and trying to keep them all together. This is her kindness you destroyed, he thought. Loki slammed a hand on the ground and bent in half. He was more conflicted than ever. When that monster had refused to free him, the first thought his mind had turned to was right back with Thanos, and how he'd burned with rage, wanting revenge from Asgard; wanting to see Thor's psychotic, arrogant face brought low before him; show his kidnapper just what he was capable of. On Midgard, it had seemed a great plan, then steadily and steadily less so. But then Thor had caused him to doubt all anew when they'd arrived in the town square, his mind was still trying to decide where he was at. Thor hadn't been to see him much. There had been little time for healing. So when push came to shove, and he wasn't sure which side to choose, he chose the one that was more self-preserving. If the illusions were correct, he'd get to watch Asgard suffer as he had. If the illusions were wrong, what harm could one monster do against the whole of Asgard? He'd told the creature to take the stairs to the left, and it had ruined everything.

He slammed his fists on the ground over and over, welcoming the pain. His mother was gone; her funeral over with. Another piece of the puzzle fit back together: his memory of what he'd last said to her. Loki let go of the book pages and grabbed whatever was closest to him-a table leg-and threw it against one of the walls. He screamed at the reflections of himself that he saw in the shards of the mirror on the floor. The pages of the books had stained his hands black and he hit them against the wall over and over, trying to bore his way out from the solid wall of the cell. He couldn't stand to be in here with himself any longer. To be surrounded by the love he'd rejected and destroyed. He stood up, for better leverage, but his strength failed him. As Loki's legs buckled, his foot scraped against a shard of glass. He fell hard on his knees before crashing to the ground.

"I'm sorry, Mother," he whispered, as fresh tears tracked down his face. "It seems my actions always have too high a price to pay…" His hands fisted into his hair and he screamed as he pulled. When his voice was hoarse, his screams became laughter. It was suddenly too funny to him, to be in so much pain, and yet not have the compulsion to die. "You found a way to keep me from harming myself after all, mother." He laughed until his laughter became sobbing, once more.

This was the most coherent his thoughts had been in the past three days. He couldn't believe Thor had been to see him three times, trying to tell him of their mother's passing. Loki squeezed his eyes shut and took some deep breaths, trying to rein in his emotions. When he opened his eyes again, he surveyed the room. Almost everything was in pieces. Somehow, there was a box that had been thrown under the bed that remained unscathed. It was curious to him that it had remained in-tact. It took several minutes to crawl his way over to the bed, but once there, he secured the box from underneath and opened the wooden container.

The inside was plain, and only a single object remained inside. Loki recognized it immediately and he quickly shut the lid and pushed the box away. Fresh tears fell down his face, but for the first time since knowing of Frigga's passing, he smiled. The object in the box contained a gift from his mother. It was more of her own happy memories, meant to help Loki sort through his mind. In this moment, he was afraid of what his magic would do to such a gift. When I'm more in control, he decided, feeling the exhaustion overtaking him again. He didn't want to accidentally remove the magic, or destroy the spell she'd placed on it. He would look at it when his mind and body weren't in such turmoil. Her thoughtfulness touched his heart. It was a small replica of the torc he usually wore with his armor. Something he could easily keep with him.

Loki cried out again, feeling destructive. He used his magic to hurl every shard of glass at the cell's energy barrier, watching it disintegrate upon impact. He pulled himself further away from his mother's gift and wrapped his arms around his sides, curling up into a ball. She was always thinking about ways to help and I just threw it back in her face, he berated himself. There was a rustling nearby and Loki looked around, trying to find the source. It sounded like his mother's skirts billowing around her, but it had to be his imagination. "You are dead, Mother," he called out, in case her spirit was somehow here in confusion and hadn't made it to her rightful place in Valhalla. "Please, please don't let me be the reason you are not celebrating in Valhalla." He said it so quietly, afraid that was exactly what was going on. Her presence felt so close, and his heart was squeezing itself inside is chest. "Please," he panted, as he felt a hand in his hair.

'This, too, shall pass,' seemed to echo in his mind as he blacked out.

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OMG….I can't believe this is finally done. :O :O :O Fair warning, it will probably be quite a few months before I pick this back up again. I have a lot of ground to cover with this other fic I'm working on, so I apologize in advance. I'm on Tumblr if you want to keep in touch or see what I'm posting about. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chapter, or if you just want to check in to see where I'm at with writing, you're always welcome! My Tumblr username is the same: Ktspree13. Here's the outline for this chapter. Two more chapters to go!

Day 3:

Prisoners & Kursed brought to dungeon

Loki talks with Frigga: You're not my mother!

Thor & Jane speak about the convergence. Jane meets Frigga.

Dark Elf attack

Frigga fights Malekith. Dies. Thor fights Malekith and Kursed, but they escape.

This chapter: Loki's magic goes haywire, realizing Frigga is dead.

Day 4:

Thor tries to speak with Loki.

This chapter: Jane & Thor speak about Loki, his mother, what to do

Everyone in mourning, preparing bodies for a funeral.

Day 5:

Everything for funeral is prepared by afternoon.

This chapter: Frigga's funeral

Feast for the dead

Day 6:

This chapter: Loki learns definitively of Frigga's death.