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Thor was uncertain, exactly, why his manner of dress seemed to be attracting positive attention of late instead of the usual confusion he was used to experiencing from those not of Asgard. He had long learned that the people of Midgard did not dress in his style and while those comrades-at-arms he knew as the Avengers did not care, the average person had a reaction ranging from laughter to hostility.

But that seemed to have changed. He had spent the morning in New York, enjoying what was certain to be only the start of a slide into autumn and when it began to rain, he had decided to come back to the hotel, yanking open a door that seemed to go into an abandoned building and ending up in the Nexus once more. While in New York, his attire seemed to be amusing to most and while a few told him that "Halloween is in a couple weeks, you're early," or something of that nature, most seemed agreeable.

Thor wasn't sure what Halloween was, exactly, so he hadn't thought much of it until he got a similar comment from the bartender in the hotel. They didn't normally speak much to him other than to say hello and ask what he wanted and he thought the comment strange, especially given New York, so he wondered if anyone could explain it to him. While he was far from shy, he did have some measure of pride and overcoming that pride to ask what seemed a simple question was often a battle within himself. In the end, his desire to know overwhelmed his desire to not look like a fool.

He sought out the library, then, and started looking among the books to see if there was a clue about this Halloween. He assumed it was a festival or holiday of some sort, based on the way it had been used, and he had pulled out a large tome that professed to be a compendium of known holidays around the world. While he wasn't stupid, his talents lay more in the physical and less in the mental and he wished that Jane could just explain it to him instead of him trying to find it in a book. It would take less time and probably be more enjoyable in the end; while he did not always know what she said, he always enjoyed listening to her say it.

He put the book down and put his face in his hands, trying to soothe his wearied eyes.

"If anyone can explain Halloween, I will buy you a round of any drink you desire."

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"Do people dress in the Asgard style, then?"

While he might not normally admit to not knowing something for fear of embarrassing himself, Jane was a different case. She was someone who complimented him in every way - intellectual where he was physical, small where he was large. He could not help but flash her a smile because in spite of the annoyance of not understanding something, he was happy to listen to her explanation of it.

"Some do, yeah," Jane replied, and when she glanced up to see his smile, she instinctively mirrored it with her own. "Technically, people are more likely to dress like Vikings than how you and your friends dress. I don't know if that counts or not. I bet tons of kids will be dressing like Thor this year, though," she added with a coy tug on his lapel.

"Because of New York," Thor asked, smiling a little. While he did not aid the others solely to seek fame and fortune but he could not deny that it felt nice to be admired by the people of Midgard, especially the children.

"I do not seek fame intentionally like Stark does," he pointed out, "But I am not against it."

"Because of New York," Jane agreed, and while a shadow passed over her expression, it was brief and quickly pushed out by a fond smile.

"It would probably be nice to step out the door with my— friend and not be swamped by reporters and fans, but yeah," she said, tucking a bit of hair behind one ear, "I'm not against it, either."

It was amazing what having a famous friend had done for her career, what doors had been opened. Five years ago she might have been bitter about that, but now she was just grateful to finally be taken seriously.

"Friend?" They had not clarified exactly what they were to one another and while Thor certainly considered Jane his friend, he considered her a good deal more than that and was not sure this was the terminology he would have used in this instance.

"I will try to keep the more persistent fans of my glory away. I have found that adoration leads to arrogance I never want to become the arrogant man I was before I met you."

"You were still a little arrogant when you met me, Mighty Thor," Jane reminded him with a smile. "But you've come a long way. I'm proud of you," she added with a slight duck of her head, and hefted the big book onto a side table.

"They're supposed to be having a Halloween party of some kind here at the end of the month. We should go, you could find out firsthand what the holiday's all about," she said, hastily shifting the subject.

"I would love to go," Thor said. He noticed the change in subject but decided that if Jane did not want to follow up on his question, he could not force her to do so. It would come in its own time, or not at all, and he would just have to remain patient.

"Do I just go as myself, then? I hear that's an option that many are taking this year."

"Oh, no way," Jane replied with a smile, shaking her head. "That would be cheating. You have to dress up as someone else, that's the point. I can help you come up with something."

Of course, Jane had never been very good at this. Her most successful Halloween costume had been one of those 'this is my costume' t-shirts with the check-boxes on the front.

"I'm sure you can come up with something appropriate," Thor said, nodding firmly before smiling at her again.

"Are you absolutely certain I can't go as myself? I already have the hammer. It seems terrible to waste it."

"I wouldn't call routinely using it to save mankind and probably all other kinds a waste," Jane pointed out. "I'll be honest, I'm not ruling it out, I'm not exactly an expert on fancy dress obviously, but if I can earn three degrees I think I can probably come up with something more creative for you to wear. You wear that everyday and it's great, it's a good look, but it's still cheating."

"So you are saying I am attractive?" Thor was often earnest, especially where Jane was concerned, but there was always a time and place for levity and he had been grave of late. It would do them both some good if he were lighter of heart.

"Is it the hammer, then? Are you drawn to the weapon over the man?"

Biting back her smile, Jane briefly ducked her head. "Well, it is a very impressive hammer. Can you really blame me?"

She peeked back up at him, trying to play coy and ignore the way her stomach had just flipped right over of its own accord.

"The hammer is no more impressive than the one who wields it," Thor said softly, pushing a little more into her personal space. He tried to be polite and a little more formal with her, owing to his interest in her, but this seemed both intimate and appropriate.

"Will you accompany me to this Halloween feast and let me be your escort? I'll dress however you need me to."

"Yes," Jane replied, and quickly nodded before swaying easily forward into the little space left between them. "Yes," she repeated. "I would love that."

Small hands braced against Thor's chest, she leaned in, lifting on tiptoe with face upturned, seeking his mouth with her own.

Kissing Jane felt right even if he hadn't done it nearly as often as he would have liked. He cupped her cheek with his hand and as the kiss deepened, he slid it into her hair instead.

In this moment, there was no place in the nine realms he would rather be than right here in this moment.