Loki and Jane talked weekly throughout Loki's second year at university. Jane's project seemed to be advancing a lot more rapidly with Loki's help, so much so that she even promised to include his name on the paper she planned to write on Einstein-rosen bridges. One day, however, she called him but didn't want to talk about her paper.

"I was just thinking, Alden," and she sounded quite nervous, "If you'd like to come to America, to New Mexico, and meet me? You could stay as long as you like and I'm sure we could progress so much more if we were in the same room. You could see all the equipment instead of just guessing what it does. I think it'd be fun."

She paused.

"What do you think?"

Loki's mind worked faster than the average human's and, while he was a cautious person, his brain formulated an answer before he'd really thought about it.

"I think that would be wonderful, Jane," he replied, smiling.

He heard a squeal on the other end and Jane tell the other person, likely Darcy, to calm down.

"I'm so glad!" Jane said breathlessly. "I'm afraid I don't have a spare room but there's a motel in town, or you could take the sofa? I mean, I could take the sofa myself..."

She laughed nervously.

"The sofa is fine, Jane," Loki reassured her. "I'm sure it's better than my bed at the moment."

She laughed again.

"I'm really happy you said yes," she said. "I'll send you the dates I'm available."

Loki set the phone down and felt a rush of warmth. Was this what it was like to have friends? Actual friends? Not people like the Warriors Three and Sif who were only there for Thor. From all he'd seen, humans were a lot better than Asgardians.

*

Jane met Loki at the airport in New Mexico and then drove him to her house.

"It's not much," she gabbled shyly, pulling into her road, "but it's home."

"Stop worrying, Jane," he smiled. "Home for you is home for me."

He didn't know what made him say it but it made Jane blush profusely and focus intensively on parking in front of her house.

"Welcome to New Mexico," she said when she opened the door.

"Jane, you're back!" Cried a female voice, presumably Darcy.

"Who let you in?" Jane asked, forgetting briefly about Loki as she walked into the kitchen.

Loki followed her regardless and was greeted by the sight of a young woman who was probably a year or two younger than Jane and thereby a few years older than Loki, or how old Loki was pretending to be.

The woman shrugged but then caught sight of Loki. Her mouth dropped open.

"Jane, you never told me he was handsome!" She exclaimed, giving him an appraising look.

Loki merely stood there, frankly quite used to the attention from when he was a prince. He hadn't often been told he was handsome but he supposed tall and thin usually constituted handsome on earth. On the contrary, Loki's slim build had often been a source of disappointment on Asgard.

"Alden Walker, pleasure to meet you," he said instead, smiling.

Darcy squealed and Loki was proved correct about the earlier squeal on the phone.

"I'm Darcy Lewis," she replied excitedly.

"Darcy," Jane said in a warning voice.

"Alright, alright, I'll back away from the hot guy!" Darcy declared, moving back but not ceasing to ogle the fine figure before her.

"Ignore her," Jane said in a tired voice, "She's... prone to dramatics."

"I am not!"

"Want to see some science?" Jane asked, ignoring her colleague.

Loki followed her lead in dismissing Darcy but got the impression that it wouldn't bother her in the slightest. She didn't like someone who was easily dissuaded.

*

Loki spent a bit more than a week with Jane in New Mexico. It was clear to Loki, extremely clear, that both Darcy and Jane, especially Darcy, found him attractive. However Jane seemed like both the shy and respectful type and Darcy, although her favourite pastime appeared to be ogling, was perfectly happy staying single. But, despite that distraction, Loki's stay had been a pleasant, even enjoyable, one and he felt that he and Jane had come a long way. He'd even met Erik Selvig, a man who had worked with Jane's father and a world-renowned astrophysicist whom Loki had heard of multiple times in his astronomical pursuits.

"You've got some good ideas, Walker," Selvig said to him one day. "You could always transfer to Culver University; we'd be happy to have you."

"I'm sorry, Sir, but I'm not actually studying Astrophysics, let alone Theoretical Astrophysics," Loki replied apologetically.

Selvig was taken aback.

"You're not? Does Jane know? I thought you were undertaking an undergraduate degree in Astrophysics!"

Loki felt a tiny bit bad for leading them on but the trickster in him still enjoyed the act of deceiving people.

"I am actually reading Classics and History," he told the professor. "Astronomy is only a hobby of mine. I joined a society to expand my knowledge of cosmology."

Selvig shook his head, amused. He reminded Loki of Professor Evans.

"Well, you definitely are the most extraordinary man I've ever met," he stated, and held out his hand.

Loki shook it.

"It's been a pleasure to meet you, Sir."

*

"How did it go with Erik?" Jane asked as she cooked dinner on their last night.

"I bet he was giving Loki the 'talk'," Darcy said slyly.

Jane choked.

"Darcy!"

Loki, who was still not totally acquainted with human banter, remained silent on the matter.

"He wasn't, was he?" Jane asked suddenly, looking a mixture of scared and curious.

"He was talking to me about astrophysics," Loki replied, unsure of whether it was the correct answer.

Darcy laughed.

"Oops."

"Darcy, you swine."

Darcy laughed first, then Jane, and Loki soon joined in. The sensation of laughter, whether or not he knew why, was a nice and sadly forgotten feeling for Loki.

When he left the next morning, it was bittersweet. Loki felt a connection to the place. New Mexico was where he'd fallen to earth and been treated in hospital, and the residence of Jane and his new acquaintances. Perhaps earth really was better than he'd thought.

*****

A.N. Thank you for reading! Do you like Loki and Jane's friendship?