Hermione woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. That was the best sleep she had gotten since Frigga's funeral. Almost immediately after she got out of bed, her stomach growled. Hermione got dressed and went down to the kitchens to get something to eat. After the funeral, the staff had returned to the castle. Everyone was busy getting back into the swing of the things.

Once she arrived at the kitchens, the staff smiled at her and went back to work. "Hello, Ms. Granger. What can I do for you?" One of the staff asked. "I just came down to get something to eat," she replied, a small smile on her face. "Of course. What would you like?"

"Fruit is fine." Hermione picked out an orange from the bowl of fruit and went on her way, after thanking the staff, of course.

Hermione strolled quietly through the hall. She decided to wait to peel the orange until she was in her room. As she approached the door to her room, a guard came up to her. He bowed before speaking. "Ms. Granger, the king requested me to deliver this letter to you." He handed her the letter and went his own way. Hermione looked at the letter questioningly before walking into her room, shutting the door behind her.

She set the letter down on the desk in the room and peeled the orange she had gotten from the kitchen. The juice from the orange made her hands sticky and she had to wash her hands after she finished eating it. Hermione disposed of the peel and washed her hands thoroughly before walking out of the bathroom. Her eyes shifted back to the letter on the desk.

Sighing, she walked over to the desk and picked up the letter. Her eyes stayed glued on her name, written by Odin's hand. She pursed her lips and turned the letter over to open it. Hermione pulled the letter out, placing the envelope back on the desk. Hermione paced back and forth in her room as she read the letter.

'Ms. Granger, I am sure that you are wondering why I am writing to you. I can say now that my intentions for writing this are pure. I am simply requesting your presence this afternoon to have tea with me in Frigga's special spot in the garden. If you know not where that is, my son, Thor, can escort you. I do hope you will accept my invitation. ~Odin'

Hermione took a deep breath after reading the letter and placed it on the desk. She walked over to her bed and sat down at the end of it before laying down, staring at the ceiling. She wasn't sure if she would accept or not, but part of her felt like she had no choice. It was surprising that Odin even requested that she join him for to tea, to say the least. Hermione let out a breath and sat up on her elbows. She gently bit the inside of her cheek, losing herself in thought.

Perhaps Odin wanted to talk to Hermione because she had gotten close to Frigga, or maybe Hermione reminded Odin of a younger Frigga. She faintly remembered hearing that Frigga and Odin had known each other since their early years. Whatever the reason was for Odin's request, Hermione knew she couldn't refuse. Her mind was made up.

...

It wasn't long after Hermione started reading a book that Loki knocked on the door. Hermione got up and opened the door for him, allowing him into the room. She shut the door behind Loki before returning to the bed and picking up her book to continue reading.

"It's a nice day out, is it not?" Loki asked, walking over to the window and staring out at the scenery.

"I suppose," Hermione replied with her shrug, her eyes staying glued to the page she was currently reading. She wasn't really paying attention to Loki, not that he seemed to notice or care. In fact, he found it rather soothing, the quiet. The air around them was light and pure, and Loki knew that the dismal mood of the realm had faded and everyone was at peace. Loki's eyes shifted to the desk at his right, noticing the letter from Odin. "What is this?" He asked, his fingers brushing against the skin of the paper. He slowly picked it up, moving it closer to his face so he could read the words of Odin.

Hermione looked up from her book to see what Loki was talking about. "Oh," she breathed out, eyes shifting back to the page of her book. "Just a letter from Odin. He requested me to have tea with him this evening, that's it. It's nothing special, really." She shook her head, paying no mind to the expression on Loki's face. He placed the letter back on the desk and crossed his arms, his focus now entirely on Hermione.

"And do you plan on accepting his... invitation?" The way look said that last word made Hermione's stomach drop. Slowly, her eyes shifted over to him. He looked at her intensely, his jaw clenched tightly.

"I don't really think I have a choice. He is the king, after all." Hermione shrugged once again and reached for her bookmark, placing it between the pages she was reading. "How bad could it be, Loki? It's just tea. I admit, it is a bit strange that he would request to have tea, but I'm sure he has only good intentions." Loki didn't seem to believe it, and Hermione honestly didn't believe her words either, but given everything that had gone on recently, she didn't see why Odin would have anything bad planned.

"You always have a choice, Hermione, but this time, I'm making the choice for you," Loki said, uncrossing his arms and clasping his hands behind his back. His gaze was intense as he looked down at the witch. Loki had taken a step closer to her, not realizing he had done so. "You will NOT be having tea with Odin. Not this evening and not ever."

"That's really not for you to decide, Loki," Hermione said more harshly than she had wanted to. Loki seemed unfazed by her tone, perhaps knowing she hadn't meant to sound so defensive. "I know you still have your feelings about Odin, but you've done enough to prove to him that you're not the man you used to be. You're better than that and if I can see it, he can see it, too."

"That's easy for you to say," Loki grumbled. "You have both of your eyes. The old fool can barely see out of the one he still has." Loki had a frown on his face, but it quickly turned into a smile when he heard Hermione's laughing at his words. "Loki, that's not nice." Her voice got quieter as she leaned towards him. "No matter how true it may be." Loki couldn't help the smirk that appeared on his face. Still, he was upset that Hermione still planned on having tea with Odin.

"Perhaps I should go with you," Loki suggested, though he had a feeling that Hermione would say no to that, and he was right. "Loki, it's alright. It'll be fine. I'm not worried, and you shouldn't be either. It's one evening. It'll pass by quicker than you think."

Hermione walked closer to him and looked up at him. She got on her tiptoes and placed a small kiss on Loki's cheek. "You don't have to worry so much. I promise everything will be alright. Do you trust me?" She asked, her brown eyes meeting his green ones. Loki, while still feeling off about the whole situation, stared into her eyes, a look of love in his own green hues.

"You know that I do."

"Then you know that you have nothing to worry about."

Loki still wasn't sure that it was a good idea for Hermione to attend this sudden tea party with Odin. He could feel that something wasn't right about all of it. He knew there was no point in arguing with Hermione about it. She was much too stubborn to believe him.

...

A few hours later, Hermione found herself sitting at a table in the gardens, across from Odin. Thor had escorted her, as Odin had mentioned in the letter. It was a very beautiful spot and Hermione could see how Frigga could spend so much time here. It was a shame that she had never gotten to see this place while Frigga was still alive. The two sat in silence for several minutes until Odin finally spoke up.

"So, Ms. Granger. You have been here for quite some time now. Tell me, are you enjoying yourself?" Odin asked. Hermione took another sip of her tea before responding with a small nod. "Of course, your highness. I can definitely say that my time here has been quite eventful."

"I am truly sorry about that," Odin said, followed by a sigh. "Normally, there isn't that much chaos on Asgard. We still don't know who let the Dark Elves in, but we are determined to catch the culprit. I have a feeling that the attack will not be the end of it. However, if we catch this person, perhaps we can stop them before they cause any more trouble." Hermione nodded, listening to his every word. She was still curious as to who had let those creatures into Asgard. It seemed odd to Hermione. Who would betray Asgard? Who would want to kill a bunch of innocent people? Of course, Loki was the first person that came to mind, but she ignored it because she knew that Loki hadn't done it. He was a changed man.

"Let's move onto another topic, shall we?" Odin leaned forward in his chair, resting his elbows on the table. "Do you miss your home?"

Hermione hadn't expected Odin to ask that. It had been awhile since Hermione had even thought about Hogwarts. Her mind started wandering to her friends. She missed them more than ever. It had been so long since she had seen them, but she remembered exactly how they looked, as well as their voices. Odin raised an eyebrow, which drew Hermione's attention. She realized she hadn't spoken for several minutes.

"Sorry, your highness. I got lost in my thoughts."

"Worry not, Ms. Granger," Odin said, raising his hand to silence her. "I understand. You must miss your friends dearly."

Hermione just nodded, her soft curls bouncing with the movement.

"I know not much about them, though from my understanding, many lives were lost during this battle at... Hegwerts?"

"Hogwarts," Hermione corrected. "Yes. Unfortunately, one of my best friends was among those whose lives were taken. I do miss him very much, though I must admit that I haven't thought much about home since I arrived. In the beginning, it was all I could think about, but my mind has since then wandered away from those thoughts do to... well, reasons, I suppose. I've found other ways to keep myself occupied." Odin knew what Hermione meant.

"Loki, of course. I do hope that he has not been too much of a bother. His lineage does cause him to be more animalistic than I would like." Hermione shook her head. "Oh, nothing of the sort. Loki is just fine."

"Surprising," Odin said, a slight hum escaping his lips. "What do you think of Loki?" He asked after a few seconds. "How do you feel about him?" Odin leaned back slightly in his chair, clasping his hands together in front of him. He looked at her intently, like he was trying to figure out what exactly Hermione felt about Loki.

"Well," she began, setting down her cup from which she had just taken a sip from. "Loki has been very kind to me. I think he's charming and sweet. He's certainly not the man he used to be." Hermione couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face. "How do I feel about him? Well, I suppose I see him as a close friend now, someone I can trust. I don't feel like he'd betray me and I'm definitely not afraid of him or uncomfortable around him." Hermione didn't understand why she was telling this to Odin, or why Odin would even care.

"I think that Loki, if given the opportunity, would make a great king. He seems to have accepted his past actions and is not afraid to admit that he's made mistakes."

Odin's eyebrow shot up. "A king? Is that what you think he should be? You think he has the right to play that role?" His voice raised with every word.

Hermione's eyes widened as Odin's voice grew louder. "Has he not yet proven to you that he's changed?" Hermione asked. "Do you not believe that he is a changed man?"

"It matters not whether or not he has changed," Odin said. His hands were balled into fists on the table, but he wore a calm expression on his elderly face. "He is a frost giant. If you knew of their kind's behavior, you would understand why Loki cannot be a king."

Hermione crossed her arms. "It shouldn't matter. He is your so-"

"HE IS NOT MY SON!" Odin yelled, standing up from his chair. Hermione followed, rising from her own seat, hands balled into fire-white fists.

"You raised him as your son! you knew what he was. It wasn't until he learned the truth that you turned him away and cast him out. You made him into the monster you claim he is. All of the horrible feelings he has for you, that's your fault. He believed in you. He believed that you loved him... but you used him and lied to him."

"He is weak," Odin sneered. "He's a fraud. He is nothing."

Hermione did everything in her power to keep from hitting the old fool. Instead, she angrily walked away. Loki had been right. Having tea with Odin had been a bad idea. As she walked down to her room, she avoided talking to people. She was too angry to talk.

When she got back to her room, Loki was waiting for her. His back was turned to her. Hermione sighed and closed the door.

"You disobeyed me," he said quietly, his back still towards you. Hermione just sighed and sat down on her bed. "Why?" Loki turned around to face her, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You were right, Loki. I shouldn't have gone. I'm sorry." Hermione's eyes shifted to the floor. "Odin said some really horrible things, Loki."

"Oh?" Loki raised and eyebrow and walked over to the bed, sitting beside Hermione. "And what did he say, if I might ask?"

Hermione looked over at him, their eyes meeting. Hermione shook her head.

"Nothing true."