The Confectionary Chronicles || HP/SPN

Lollies and Loki- CH25

A/N: Hello everybody, I've been away in Europe on holidays and I apologise for my lack of contact, I'll be going back to reply to comments and I am, as always, grateful for you all taking the time to share your thoughts <3 Please enjoy this new chapter!

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE:

On the day Hermione turned ten, two things happened; first, she met three of Loki's children for the first time (and a pagan goddess too!), and second; the phoenix egg hatched– just not in that order.

The time leading up to September 19th had fallen into a dependable sort of schedule of therapy, high school, jujitsu, runes and magical based studies, with self-studied divination added to the offensive and defensive magic Loki was already teaching her. High school, unfortunately, was both boring and frustratingly simple. Hermione was tempted to sit the tests that would let her move up another year level, but she didn't want to leave Hugo and Muriel behind. Dr. Mia, who she was continuing to work with, supported her decision. Being intellectually stimulated was one thing, but social interactions with her peers was just as, if not more, important to her mental health and well-being.

With how busy she was, Loki didn't whisk her away on spontaneous adventures so much anymore, but he had taken her to New Orleans for Mardi Gras (she really loved time travel, it was amazing), where in the French Quarter of the city she'd managed to get her hands on a box of vintage tarot cards and a set of marked knuckle bones. She'd dressed up in one of the dresses Morgana had given her for the festival itself, with an added elaborate cape of feathers coloured every shade imaginable. It didn't surprise her that Loki enjoyed Mardi Gras, considering how much he lived by the popular slogan used in relation to New Orleans: 'Laissez le bon temps rouler'– "let the good times roll".

On the day of her birthday, Hermione woke up to both her parents having already left for work– they'd left a birthday card on the dining room table, so at least she knew they hadn't forgotten the significance of the date, but Loki? Loki was there, a bright grin already present on his face, and Hermione cared far more about his presence then about her mother and father's absence.

Opening her presents was the first thing she did– her parents had left her a hundred pound note in the card; Hugo and Muriel had gifted her with a new monogrammed book bag and a box of chocolates, both which they'd handed to her all wrapped the previous day for her to open on the morning of her birthday; Uncle Arran and Aunt Iona had sent her a framed photo of her with her cousins and a Charles Dickens novel she hadn't read yet called 'Bleak House'; Jeanie, Ina and Leana had sent her jewellery they'd made from sea-shells, and Angus had sent her a wooden fish he'd carved himself. 

Unsurprisingly, though, Loki's presents were the best. The first gift he gave her was a delicate-looking locket. It was made of gold and oval-shaped, about the size of a fifty pence coin. The face of the locket had a lily engraved on it in elegant swirling lines and when she opened it, she sucked in a shocked breath. On the inside faces of the locket were two small photographs; one was of her, Helena and Sylvianne– it was a moving photograph and they were all laughing together, occasionally looking over and waving, and the other was of her and Ness; it was also a moving photograph and they were hugging each other, Ness picking her up and twirling her around, kissing the top of her curly head.

"Oh," Hermione murmured in a small voice, looking up and giving Loki a tremulous smile. "Thank you," she told him.

"Turns out all you need is to soak the photo in a bit of special potion to make them move," he said lightly, eyes warm like sunshine.

"I didn't even know you took photos of Helena, Sylvianne and I," she admitted quietly, looking back down at the small images.

"I'm pretty good at being sneaky," her god told her. "I thought you'd appreciate them. The rest are in there," he nodded at the second of the three gifts he'd brought. She carefully unwrapped it to find an album with an embossed golden lily on the front of the pressed leather cover, the same delicate design as the face of her locket. Inside the album was picture after picture, of her with Ness, her with her cousins, her with Helena and Sylvianne and her with Loki.