Hi - the response to the first two chapters has been great - thank you so much. Love hugs and chocolate fudge cake to anyone that has favourited, followed and especially to those that have reviewed...
In the next two chapters we will find out a lot more about what's going on... Remember - reviews make me very happy, and occasionally make me type faster ;)
Enjoy - and let me know what you think. As always I don't have any claim on these characters and I do this purely for the fun of it. MM x
His friends were scattered, and the goblin was dead. Everything had gone to plan. He was safe for now, he thought. Clear of wizarding London, no one would think to find him – or it - here of all places. Cautiously he approached his prize on the table. What was in it that was so valuable ? Treasure, information? His hand advanced, and retreated several times.
No one would know. Just a look... What harm could a look do... If it was truly something – wrong – then he could get rid of it – disappear.
Just a look...
What harm could a look do?
ooo0ooo
Two days after Hermione and Jane had watched the bout in the training yard - at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Professor McGonagall took an owl down to the Bifrost point outside the gates. This message could not wait for the next regular dispatch. Feeling more than a little foolish she looked up... "Mr Heimdall! Err – are you there? I need this owl to go to Asgard. It has an urgent message for – OH!"
The familiar jet of multi coloured light had swooped out of nowhere – there was no sign of the owl.
"Thank you..."
ooo0ooo
Meanwhile, back in Asgard, Hermione was closeted with Lucilla in their laboratory. Hermione had met the Asgardian Potions Maker on her first visit to Asgard for Odin's funeral, and the two women had soon become fast friends. They had started brewing together in a storeroom within the palace shortly after Loki and Hermione's marriage, but following a number of complaints about the terrible smells, and the inevitable minor explosions that tend to occur in a potions lab Thor had finally succumbed to pressure from other members of the court and moved them to a new purpose built venue – at the far end of the orchard, well away from all inhabited areas.
Lucilla, under Hermione's guidance was brewing her first batch of felix felicis. Thor had had an idea that it might be useful in battle situations, and while Hermione had theoretical moral reservations about this, she had read of things in the Great Library that had made her hair stand on end, and she had eventually figured that maybe an unfair advantage might not be such a bad idea. A further complication was that potions used on Aesir tended to have subtly different results to the same potions used on humans, unfortunately the variations were almost impossible to predict, which was causing Hermione and Lucilla more than a little stress.
In addition, Hermione had been working on an antidote to Bilgesnipe venom for the last eight months, after one of the men at arms had nearly died following an accident while out hunting. So far, despite her very best efforts, she had yet to make a breakthrough. On top of all of this research they were brewing huge quantities of Essence of Dittany, Pepper Up Potion, Skele-Gro, Dreamless Sleep Potion and Burn Paste... Asgard's healers were catching on to the idea of potions fast, particularly for military and hunting purposes where a healer may be hours away.
Hermione was bent over an obscure potions text, biting the end of her quill thoughtfully, when the door flew open.
"Loki! For goodness sake! Are you TRYING to blow the place up? You can't just crash into a potions lab..." Hermione's voice tailed off when she saw the Hogwarts owl perched on his arm "... what is that doing here?" The owl, a big barn owl, hooted irritably at her, and waved it's leg, which had a familiar large envelope attached. Hermione took the letter, looking at the official Hogwarts seal on the back.
"I get letters from various people on Earth, but they come up via the Bifrost, once a week." Kreacher – now living happily in semi retirement at the School, was responsible for collecting all of the Asgard mail, and sending it on in a regular dispatch box. To get an additional delivery – how did the owl even get here she thought baffled – was mysterious if not worrying.
"Hermione!"
She looked up surprised.
"Stop trying to read the owl's mind and open it..."
Breaking the seal, she unfolded the thick parchment.. "It is from Professor McGonagall, they've had a visitor". She looked up at Loki. "The Minister for Magic is asking if we could come and see him please. He needs our advice on a certain pressing and highly confidential matter" she looked up at her husband, brows drawn and puzzled. "OUR advice? Why would Kingsley want to see us both. He hasn't even met you."
Loki peered over her shoulder, "Clearly my reputation precedes me. I will have to speak to Thor, but I don't see why we shouldn't pop down to Midgard, it will be nice to see everyone at Hogwarts again."
Hermione leaned back against him, her eyes never leaving the letter in her hand. "Do you want to check with Thor then, before I reply?" Nodding briefly, Loki kissed her briskly on the top of her head, before disappearing into a twist of green smoke.
Lucilla shook her head. "How is this my life?" she mourned. "I was a perfectly ordinary woman, picking a few herbs, brewing the odd potion, minding my own business. Then you wandered in and suddenly I'm brewing liquid luck, and keeping company with a Princess who also happens to be a witch and has an owl to deliver her messages, and a Prince that literally disappears in a puff of smoke."
Hermione laughed, "At least he is sufficiently potions lab trained to know not to materialise INTO the Lab. Don't you remember the time that he forgot and made us both jump so badly that I backed into that batch of veritaserum I'd had brewing for 26 of its 30 days."
Lucilla couldn't stop laughing. "I don't know what was funnier. Your language, or Prince Loki's face when you used that hex on him."
Hermione winced, still laughing. "Oh gods, I'd forgotten that. The Bat Bogie Hex was one of my school friend Ginny Weasley's specialties. Fortunately it didn't take poor Loki long to remove it, I need to remember that he's perfectly capable of doing something much worse to me…."
Lucilla shrieked as a piece of parchment materialised from thin air and wafted down in front of Hermione. The writing, in green ink of course, was completely unmistakable.
Hermione, go ahead and make the arrangements. Would tomorrow morning be satisfactory? We can only be away for three days though. There is a trade delegation from Alfheim that I have to be back for.
And I can still hear you, you know. The bat bogie hex was Not Funny!
Chuckling under her breath, Hermione reached for her quill to reply to Professor McGonagall's letter.
Lucilla looked down ruefully at the shimmering potion at her feet.
"Oh dammit. Not again!"
