The year after Jane met Thor, Eric gave her a birthday present. The act itself was abnormal; Eric was incredibly forgetful about certain things in life. In all the years she had known him, he had never remembered her birthday on time. He always made up for his forgetfulness in this area by taking her out to dinner or making other thoughtful gestures. That year in particular, when he presented her with his gift – a small box wrapped in newspaper – Jane had been nothing short of amazed. The gift itself was beyond anything she could have imagined in terms of generosity from her oldest friend. Inside the box was a small silver charm for a necklace. Jane had gently grasped it with two fingers and lifted it for closer inspection. A year ago, she wouldn't have recognized the charm and even if she had, it wouldn't have meant anything. But now... "It's Mjolnir," Erik said unnecessarily. “I, ah, I found him…after he arrived. Thor…” He had taken Jane’s silence for disapproval. In truth, Jane was fighting hard not to burst into tears. It was a thoughtful and compassionate gesture from someone she loved dearly and she knew no other gift would ever compare. Aware that Eric was growing increasingly distraught by her silence, she turned to him and gave him a bright, watery smile. “It’s perfect, Erik. Absolutely perfect. » He never got the chance to respond because she threw herself at him and encircled him in a tight, inescapable embrace. Instead, he patted her back awkwardly, his own eyes a little wet as her tears wet his shirt..x. Once Jane had made the final decision to hide, she had to pack her bags quickly. Obviously, she couldn't take everything, only what could fit in a vehicle... middle of a paper... and a canvas of night sky, unpolluted by city lights in this rural area isolated. The sky was thick with stars whose lights shone and shone with a clear, crisp light. Her trained eyes distinguished constellations and mapped clusters as she drove. She had never in her life seen a night sky as beautiful and pure as the one that appeared every evening here in the north. The stars weren't the only treat for his eyes. In the complete darkness, the Christmas lights of every house she passed on her way twinkled and beckoned to her with a joyful, seasonal charm. A courtyard housed a number of animals made entirely of lights, horses and reindeer prancing among each other. Other homes were dressed with particular attention to color coordination; a large house artfully lit by strands of yellow and blue was so inviting that she slowed her truck down to get a better look.