post-Halloween [for Jane]

[almightythor]

Thor was no stranger to intimacy. In Asgard, he'd had his fair share of lovers and had never been shy about pursuing his latest fancy but things had changed since he met Jane Foster some two years ago. He had become more serious and, as he got involved in the protection of Midgard, more serious about the task set before him and the responsibility that came along with it. He had matured, for better or worse.

But in his desire to protect Jane and to keep from hurting her when he was inevitably called away for duty, he had forgotten how to enjoy himself with her. He had nothing but mere scraps of affection here and there over the past months and while their time in the hotel had drawn them closer, he had yet to actually make a real overture to her. Part of him was afraid that if the relationship were tested, it would come out wanting and Jane would find someone else who suited her better. Thor could be arrogant but beneath that arrogance was a very real insecurity.

None of it seemed to matter tonight. He had been skeptical about the scrap of cloth she insisted was this Tarzan costume and her own gown was bright yellow and full of frills that not even Asgardian clothing seemed to have. It was much different than Jane's usual dress and while he liked it, he thought he liked her normal clothes much more. (He was especially fond of jeans but that was another story for another time.) Still, she looked beautiful and he'd asked her to come away with him to somewhere more private and intimate; they'd decided on her room instead of his.

"I still think I am the butt of a joke in this costume even though some of the others recognized what I was meant to be. I think everyone in that entire party stared at me at some point."

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[almightythor]

Thor leaned in and pressed a kiss against her neck before moving back to the pins in her hair, letting it down and combing through it with his fingers to smooth it. Her hair was glossy and smooth, soft beneath his fingers, and he found he couldn't stop touching it.

"It has been a long time," Thor said softly, hand sliding down her back and around to her waist. "But I still remember how this should go. May I touch you?"

[separateworlds]

"If you don't touch me, I think I might explode," Jane replied with a tense little laugh, and found herself leaning back against the warm expanse of his chest, biting against the clarification she desperately wanted to ask for, of whether he meant a long time for her or for him, which wasn't at all the same thing.

[almightythor]

Thor laughed and slid his arm all the way around her, holding her back against his chest while he brushed the fingers of his other hand along her cheek and down her neck and shoulder. It was slow and patient, two things he had never been very good at, and he hoped to slow the moment down and make it last longer than it would normally.

If anyone could manage to make that happen it would be Jane; there was nobody else in the nine realms who had the aptitude for space and time the way she did. She understood the universe in ways he could only touch the surface of and had a strength he would never have.

"Do not be tense," he murmured. "Relax, Jane. This time is ours and ours alone."

[separateworlds]

"God, I just… I feel like I've been waiting for this half my life," Jane admitted, not caring if that made her sound desperate. She was desperate, nearly two years without sex just waiting for this man to show up again and put his hands on her.

"I wore out like four vibrators waiting for you," she added, and then, "You won't know what that means. Just- Just don't stop touching me," imploring, her eager hands sliding over Thor's forearms as she rocked back against him.

[almightythor]

"Is that more than the usual amount?" Thor laughed warmly and cupped her breast, thumb brushing against her nipple in a light, fleeting touch. "And I will never stop touching you until you ask it of me."

"I am sorry you waited so long for me. I will try to make it worth your while, if I can?"

[separateworlds]

Dropping her head back against Thor's chest, Jane let out a slow, shuddering breath. "You better," she managed, and opened her eyes to look up at him, at the strong line of his jaw and the pale blue of his eyes.

Oh, shit. She was so far gone, and it was stupid, so stupid, because he was a god and what was she? The entire span of her life was barely a blip to him, and here she was, in love like an utter idiot.

"Please don't leave me again," she said before she could stop herself, and turned in the circle of his embrace to face him, her eyes wide open now and clear. "If we do this and you go again, I don't think- I can't take it. I can't do it again."

[almightythor]

"I do not know what the future holds for us," Thor said, voice tinged with regret. Would that he could see past his own existence and divine the future, to know he could make this promise to her and not break it. He could not but he could be as earnest as possible now.

"But I will try, Jane. I will try. If that is not enough of a promise for you, we don't have to go any further but it is the best promise I can give without fear of breaking my word involuntarily."

[separateworlds]

"Just… not two years, okay? Two weeks, even two months I can take. But not another two years. Not without any word, that's not fair."

He was important to so many more people on so many more worlds than just her; nobody knew that as well as she did, not after New York, not after everything. Asking too much of him wasn't fair on her part, but leaving her hanging for years at a time wasn't fair on his. He had to get that, didn't he? She didn't have that long, not as a mortal.

[almightythor]

"I thought by leaving you behind on earth that I was keeping you safe. Later, in New York, I thought that contacting you would make you a target and would endanger you. I ensured you would be safe and I let you be, hoping that...if being associated with me caused you harm, I would rather be separate and ache for you than have you and lose you."

This was not the conversation he anticipated at this very moment but it was one they sorely needed to have, at least on his own part. "Jane, I care for you more than I have ever cared for any woman and I am sorry. I will try my best not to leave again."

He cupped her face and brushed his thumb beneath her chin, aiming to tip it up a little so he could kiss her. "Do you still wish for this?"

[separateworlds]

"Of course I do," Jane relented, allowing her face to be turned up to his. "I know you have things to do. I get that, and I'm so proud of you. But I'm in love with you, too. You know that, right?" No woman waited two years for a man she wasn't in love with, at least no mortal one, and maybe no immortal one, either.

[almightythor]

They hadn't exchanged the words. Thor knew that he loved her and that there was no replacement for Jane Foster in any of the nine realms but to hear her say it plainly affected him more than he could possibly say.

"I love you, Jane, and anything I've done to protect you has been out of the love I bear for you. I am sorry that leaving has hurt you."

[separateworlds]

The words hit her like a physical blow, briefly stealing her breath, which was silly, wasn't it? She'd said it first, after all, and somehow that had made her feel safe from the impact, like it gave her a buffer against a deeper, more vulnerable feeling. But here she was, dizzy and overwhelmed and at a total loss for an appropriate response.

"Just…" she began, not because she had anything to say, but because words were a comfort, made her feel just a little more grounded. As she looked up into those earnest eyes, though, Jane realized that grounded was so not what she wanted, here.

Without warning, she grasped hold of Thor by the shoulders and bounced quickly up, booted legs wrapping fast around his waist as her mouth hastily crushed against his.

[almightythor]

This was something he could deal better with than words, which he had always been poor at. Kissing her meant no room for mistakes and no clumsy tongue to say the wrong thing at the wrong time and he was grateful Jane had pushed it here instead of wanting to talk more. Thor wound a hand deep into her hair, holding her close as he carried her toward the bed.

It was a good thing Jane was slight or otherwise her sudden movement might have knocked him over.

[separateworlds]

"God, I missed you," Jane said, a breathless pant against his mouth before she resumed their kiss with doubled eagerness, lips and tongue seeking. These past months since their reunion had been uncertain and strained, particularly after Loki's arrival, and every ache, every moment of longing or sorrow from the past two years seemed now to tumble suddenly out of her in a heated rush. She felt half-blind with it.

[almightythor]

Thor had missed her dearly and had hated that his inability to come back to her had been seen as indifference. Far from it. He only sought to keep her safe and come back when he had time to devote to their relationship unfettered by concerns back home. The trouble with that was that a prince of Asgard was never fully done with the work of his kingdom and waiting only served to hurt them both.

"I do love you, Jane Foster. From the moment you struck me down, I think I loved you."

[separateworlds]

The moment was far from comedic, but Jane had to laugh anyway, if only at her own embarrassment. As Thor settled her upon the cool linens, she smiled up at him, abashed.

"I'm sorry that I hit you, but I'm not sorry," she said, and then shook her head with another little laugh. Her heartbeat was still loud in her ears, but the levity felt good. "I'm just glad you were okay. The love is a nice bonus, though."

[almightythor]

"It takes more than that to wound a prince of Asgard," he said, laughing along with her. Thor slid a hand through her hair, letting the strands fall against his fingers.

"Now, what am I going to do with you? Completely brazen and unapologetic. I think you will have to make it up to me, Jane."

[separateworlds]

"Not completely," Jane replied, coy and wheedling as she nuzzled into his hand. "But hitting someone with your car, twice, probably deserves a little something paid back." Leaning up, she kissed the scratchy curve of his bearded chin and then the corner of his mouth. "I don't know if it's very penitent if I'm looking forward to it this much, though," she murmured.

[almightythor]

"No. You're going to have to spend a lot of time atoning if you want to get to that place," Thor said softly. He did not feel like Jane had anything to be sorry for, though. It had been her curiosity and open-minded nature that had allowed for him to survive in Midgard and go on to fight other battles. It had been her courage that touched his heart and made him find his own and be deemed worthy of Mjolnir once more. He owed much to Jane.

"But now? I think the time for talking has passed."