On Punching Gods and Absentee Dads

Enigmaris

Chapter 48: Untitled Raven Game

Summary:

It's a beautiful day in Asgard, and you are a horrible raven.

Notes:

the angst last week was strong. Here's some good sturdy fluff.

Chapter Text

The sun was shining brightly down in the realm of eternal summer.

Harry flexed his wings a bit as he landed inside the raven enclosure.

Below him Thor was carefully opening the doors that would allow any and all ravens to leave or enter as they wished. Normally the doors were opened during certain times of the day and the ravens were allowed to fly around Asgard. This was done to ensure that incoming ships wouldn't hit any of the poor birds. And so that none of the mischievous birds would cause trouble at a solemn event.

Around Harry all of the ravens were chittering amongst each other. Harry could vaguely understand them. It was odd, he didn't yet understand all of the bird body language which was a big part of how they communicated. Despite his lack of understanding he could still sort of get what they were saying to each other. It wasn't as easy as parseltongue was but then again Harry had no idea how parseltongue even worked since he was pretty sure snakes didn't have ears.

"Ready nephew?" Thor asked.

Harry bobbed his head in agreement, then he looked over at the other birds. They were all looking in interest at the new interloper and the familiar sight of the crown prince. Harry carefully tried to call out to them, he cawed out, not too loud but loud enough to be heard.

Come play. Mischief.

That got them interested, even if he was obviously a being pretending to be a raven, the birds were still more than interested in his offer than they were suspicious of it. Harry motioned for them to leave the room and so they did. The ravens took flight and Harry followed right after. The plan was simple, cause some chaos and lead his dad on a wild goose chase, or rather a wild raven chase. Harry explained all of that to the flying ravens in what was essentially raven baby talk and the ravens all agreed to help.

So, they all flew into the town and began causing mischief. Birds landed on people, stole gold coins and lunch right of aesir hands. An entire conspiracy of ravens was wreaking havoc through the royal city. Harry himself was flying through groups and offering advice to make things more chaotic. It was actually quite fun. Ravens didn't know about war or horcruxes or prophecies. They knew a lot about flying and being a nuisance and Harry felt like he had a lot to learn from them.

Especially with how things had been lately.

The rest of the time at the Burrow had been spent with Harry taking off the weight he'd been carrying. He talked with his dad a few more times, Harry knew it was hard for his dad to talk about it. To imagine that Harry might die. But Harry needed to know what would happen if he did. It wasn't so much funeral arrangements as it was, how his dad would act and what Harry wanted to happen.

Harry wanted his dad to stay with Remus and Sirius, he wanted his dad not to do what he did the first time. Harry also wanted to make sure that the things Harry had started would be finished, the unification of Hogwarts and the like. He wanted Ron and Hermione to continue training (if they wanted) in Asgard because they had made friends with the other trainees and Harry wanted the people he loved to…well be together. He wanted them to have as many opportunities to be happy as possible really.

Harry had spent a majority of his life alone. From the age of 1 to 11 he'd been on his own without any support at all. From 11 to 15 he'd been semi-supported by his friends with the majority of the adults in his life failing to provide him with the help he'd needed and deserved. He hadn't yet even lived for a year in hic current reality and it was so painfully clear to him that he never wanted any of his loved ones to live the life he'd had. And if he wasn't going to be there to provide that love and support they would have to do it for each other.

The conversations with his dad (and Ron!) had helped Harry greatly and he felt much lighter than he had before going to the Burrow, even if it hadn't necessarily been a happy time, it had been somewhat healing. Life was not perfect. He was still carrying around the weight of the horcrux, but he wasn't as worried about the future as he had been. He felt like he could breathe.

And now Harry was able to… well have fun.

He and Thor had been planning this prank for a while and for much of the planning Thor had been more excited than Harry had been, but Harry felt energized in Asgard. Right now his dad believed that Harry was still on earth spending a last few hours with the Weasleys while his dad had traveled to Asgard to get a few things together. Thor had snuck him up with the help of Heimdall and now it was time for an excellent prank.

It didn't take long for Thor to lure Loki out of the palace and into the city. Thor explained to Loki that the ravens had escaped and were now damaging the Christmas decorations.

Which to be fair they were.

Eating the berries off of the mistletoe (although it wasn't actually mistletoe but something far more edible) and pulling down wreaths made up of branches and decorated with what looked to be miniature weapons. Nothing that wouldn't be easily fixable of course but it would be serious enough for his dad to come down in a hurry.

Within ten minutes of mischief Harry saw his dad rushing through the streets with a Thor at his heels who was trying desperately not to grin. Harry cawed out a warning to the other ravens who prepared themselves for a fight. A fight that his dad brought with a vengeance. Harry watched as his dad shooed birds away and then forcibly magicked them right back to the enclosure. Harry scattered away from the other ravens who were all flying in different directions trying to avoid getting caught.

Harry was now quite good at flying as a bird. It had taken practice to manage it but he could now angle himself to fly along wind currents and even do a few tricks.

This came in handy because it was Harry's job to keep his dad's attention. So Harry flew forward and darted in front of his dad's face making him sputter.

"I think that's the one who opened the door!" Thor said pointing at Harry's retreating form.

"Oh so that's the trouble maker then?" Loki snarled. "Leave that one to me."

And so the wild goose chase began.

Harry darted through the streets of Asgard, dodging his dad's magical attacks like they were bludgers and staying in his dad's line of sight like he was an elusive snitch. He would land on some poorly stacked crates outside a bakery and wait for his dad to turn a corner. When his dad spotted him and started running towards him, Harry would take off and send the crates tumbling into the street, slowing his dad down. Next Harry would land on the top of a golden fountain and move around forcing his dad to jump into the fountain to try and catch him before Harry flew right out outside of his grasp and far away.

Just out of sight was Thor who had politely asked the ravens to return home and then followed at a distance.

Harry led his dad on this whole chaotic route until they got back to the royal gardens of the palace. Once there Harry landed on a bench and pretended not to notice his dad sneaking up on him. His dad was drenched, his hair had some twigs in it and his tunic was stained with mead from where Harry had forced him into a collision with someone who was drinking a large goblet of it. Harry remained still and pretended to preen one of his wings as his dad cast a spell that would hide him from the sight of a bird.

Harry wasn't a bird though and so he could see through the spell.

His dad carefully padded across the grass, his face desperate to catch Harry and put him back in the enclosure. Harry prepared himself as his dad got a meter away from him.

Harry preened his other wing.

His dad moved forward and lifted up both hands.

Harry ruffled himself and settled comfortably.

His dad pounced.

Harry immediately transformed back right as his dad grabbed him.

"BLERG! IT'S ME!"

"AHH!"

Loki lost his grip on Harry and jumped back in shock while Harry started to giggle. From behind a tree they could both hear Thor start roaring with laughter. His dad was sitting on the grass looking up at Harry, gaping at the boy who couldn't stop laughing at the whole situation.

"What?"

"I got you!" Harry giggled. "You never…even…suspected!"

"Harry how did you…when did this happen?"

Thor had fallen over and was still laughing quite loudly. Harry managed to swallow back his laughs and hold out a hand to help his dad up.

"Remus might have helped."

"Of course." His dad scoffed, before taking his hand and pulling himself up. "Should have seen it coming."

"So…" Harry trailed off for a moment. "Merry Christmas?"

His dad snorted again before stepping forward and pulling him into a hug.

"I can't believe it! My son an animagi!" He said, into Harry's hair. "Good job Starlight, on the magic and on the prank."

"Thor helped, with the prank."

"That much is obvious." Loki said glancing over at the god of thunder who had finally gotten himself under control. Loki sighed and looked up at the sun. "Come on Thor, it's evening and time for dinner! After that we're decorating the tree!"

So together all three princes of Asgard made their way inside. They had a small dinner with Odin and Frigga in the royal wing. Harry spent that time telling his grandparents about the successful prank and how his first semester had gone. It felt incredibly homey, eating good warm food with people who cared and loved him. With family that was his and his alone. Harry knew that the war was still going on, and that Voldemort was on everyone's mind.

But they'd all decided to put those darker matters aside, forcing their minds on the present pocket of happiness they were making together.

Once their stomachs were full, they left the private dining room and went to the sitting room.

The sitting room was a large room with a huge fireplace and plenty of magical amenities. It was the first room that you entered when you went into the private part of the royal wing. It had doors along the walls that led to the three suites and the other parts of the royal wing. The first suite was Odin's and Frigga's, it had their bedroom, another sitting room, a large bathroom, a weaving room for Frigga, and Odin's private office. The second suite was Thor's and it contained a sitting room, a room for Thor's weapons and armor, a bathroom, and a bedroom. The final suite was his dad's that had a private library, a sitting room, a bedroom, and a nice bathroom within it.

Anytime Harry stayed overnight in Asgard he would use his dad's bed or his couch to sleep on. He'd gotten used to spending time with Frigga or Odin in the sitting room or in his grandparents' suite depending on the day. He was incredibly familiar with the layout of this part of the palace, more than any other, except perhaps the training yards.

Which was why he was so surprised to step into the sitting room to find it had been completely redecorated and there was a new door in the wall. He stumbled and had to be pushed into the room by a very smug Loki. The room looked like something out of a Christmas Movie. There was the most perfect evergreen tree, sitting in a place of prominence in the room. Its top reached all the way to the ceiling which meant it was about 12 feet tall. It filled the room with a wonderful warm scent.

The walls were decorated with mage lights and garland. There were candles placed around the room that smelt like cinnamon.

"Come on Starlight." His dad said. "Go over there."

"The door?"

"It's for you."

"For…me?"

"Normally." Odin said gruffly. "We've a bit more warning time when a new prince is coming, it took much longer than it should have for us to get this in order."

"Get what in order?"

"Your room." Frigga said, as if it was obvious.

"Oh."

He'd never had a room before.

Sure, Tony had given him a guest room while he'd been in the tower but that had been impersonal, just a generic room the same as all the other guest rooms. A temporary solution for Harry while he was there.

This was different. Different from sharing Ron's room or Gryffindor Tower or Dudley's second bedroom.

His dad carefully pushed him and Harry stumbled forward. They ended up right in front of the door. Harry swallowed and reached out, he pulled on the doorknob and let the door fall open. It opened up to a sitting room, just like all the other suite doors did. And just like the other three suites, this sitting room was personalized.

Harry's sitting room was decorated with the color of his magic. The couches were made of soft purple fabric with silver stitching. There were three couches, one for himself and Ron and Hermione. There was a bookshelf on one wall that was filled with books on magical theory as well as bound eddas, stories of Asgard, some that Harry had heard and some there hadn't yet been time to share. One of the shelves was also filled with trinkets that Harry recognized as toys that the other trainees would often play with. The table placed between the couches had a lower shelf that was filled with human games, both muggle and not.

There was also a muggle tv hanging on the wall above the fireplace, a promise for movie nights, something he and his friends had done over the summer and enjoyed.

Harry walked around the room unable to believe his eyes. His family watched him as he carefully touched the couches and the books. Eventually he turned back to look at them.

"Go on." His dad said. "Explore. We'll be waiting for you to decorate the tree when you're done."

Harry appreciated that because he really didn't want to cry happy tears in front of them right then.

The next room was what looked to be a study. There was a desk along one wall that had an assortment of quills and parchment. There were a few bookshelves with all of the books Harry could possibly need for his homework. Along another wall there was an armor stand along with a place for Harry to hang his sword when not in use. There were a few armchairs as well sat near windows, situated just perfectly for comfortable reading. Finally, the room had a balcony, something that the other suites lacked, the glass doors had a stand right next to them that was the perfect size for Harry's broom.

"You can take off from there." His dad said pointing to the balcony. "And fly whenever you'd like."

"Oh."

The bedroom was what Harry expected. A large bed just as comfortable and warm as his dad's with thick blankets the same color as the couches. There were pretty tapestries on the wall, one of which showed Harry's family genealogy. It had a large closet filled with clothing both human and aesir, clothing Harry had never seen before but had obviously been made with him in mind because it was all his size. The bedroom also had a glass window on the ceiling that would let Harry look up at the stars at night from the comfort of his bed.

Finally, there was the bathroom, which was just as luxurious as what the other suites had. A huge in ground bath that would let Harry soak after a long day's training along with all the other amenities that a prince could imagine or desire. As Harry wandered back to the sitting room, he saw his grandmother sitting on one of his couches (his! His!).

"Harry." She said. "What do you think of your room? It was my idea to have it built for you."

"Why?" Harry croaked out. "You know that I'm…I'm…That I might not…There's no point in doing all of this if I'm not going to be here for long."

"Of course, there's a point." Frigga said calmly. "You are my grandson and having a room, a home, is important, no matter how long you may be here for."

"Oh."

"Besides." Frigga said. "This is…this is my way of saying that you should have a little hope."

"Hope?" Harry asked.

"I know what I've seen in my weaves, I know what the prophecy says." Frigga said. "And while I cannot yet see a happy ending, my dear grandson I believe in one. I believe you are going to use this room for many years. I believe that we will have to redecorate it often as you grow. I believe that you will spend your next summer here and that you will be free. I believe it with all of my might, even if I cannot see it, I have faith in it and I hope that you do too."

And something in her voice, the conviction in her tone, made Harry feel far better than anything else could. He looked around the sitting room, a room crafted with him in mind, with love. It had been made because even though Frigga knew his chances, she didn't care.

"I'll try." He said.

"Good." She smiled. "Now. Let's go decorate that Midgardian tree and eat far too many sweets."

And that was exactly what they did.

Harry went back into the sitting room where the rest of them were waiting. There was a large plate of his dad's favorite treats, the Asgardian biscuits he snuck to Harry frequently enough back on earth. His dad had boxes full of ornaments as well as strings of lights that Thor was trying to gently detangle. The rest of the night was spent laughing and carefully hanging ornaments and making happy memories together.

His dad and Odin had even set aside their difficulties and had laughed and smiled together as if the past hadn't happened, or at least as if it didn't hurt as much. And that night Harry went to sleep in his own bed, in his own bedroom, looking up at the Aesir night sky with just a bit of hope smoldering in his chest.

Harry woke the next morning bright and early and he felt as if he was much younger than his age. He slowly crept out of his bedroom, walking on soft rich carpet and pushed open the door to the main sitting room to see that the bottom of the perfectly decorated tree had been filled with gifts of all sizes. It reminded him of looking through the doorway of his cupboard to look at the pile of presents left for Dudley.

Except they weren't for Dudley.

They were for him.

Harry didn't have to wait long for the others to wake, mostly because his dad had set a spell to catch anyone trying to open their gifts early that woke him up when Harry got too close to the tree. His dad stumbled out of his room expecting to see Thor and saw Harry instead. He smiled at him.

"Take a seat, I'll wake the others."

It was odd, opening gifts with a family that wanted him. With the Dursleys it had been a bloodbath made up of wrapping paper as Dudley tore into gifts and left a huge mess for Harry to clean up later. At Hogwarts he'd been opening gifts in the dormitory and while that had been fun it didn't hold a candle to sitting around with his family and watching them open gifts and then slowly opening his own.

Harry loved the gifts he'd been given, although there weren't many since most of his gifts had been stored in his room. Still he was given a blanket weaved by Frigga that would ward off bad dreams, one of Odin's old shields, a family heirloom that was an honor to have. Thor gave him a bird stand of all things, with a wink. His dad gave him a wonderful gift, it was a leather bracelet he could wear with a silver pendant, the pendant, when pressed, would display a picture of his family. It was a picture that had been taken when Harry was a baby, it showed his mom holding him and his dad hugging his mom from behind.

Harry loved it.

They spent the rest of the day lounging, Odin and Frigga had to do some work, but for the most part it was a calm day for family. Near the evening, they got dressed and went to the Christmas Feast. It was intense. If Harry had thought the feast after the first Asgardian Quidditch Game was a lot, then it had nothing on this. People had been partying all day, giving each other gifts and drinking and laughing.

What was even more intense was how many people brought him gifts. People he had never met had brought him tokens from their businesses. He was given some delicious bread from a baker, a knife from a blacksmith, a breeder even tried to give him a horse and his dad was able to help him accept the gift while promising him the horse would be taken care of and given a place in the royal stables where it would be fed, brushed and exercised as needed.

Tyr gave him a wrist band. It was made of leather and had a runic pattern pressed into it. Harry had seen some other apprentices wearing something similar but this was much fancier than the fabric ones most apprentices wore.

"It's…well it marks you as my student." He said. "And I want you to wear it when you go back to earth, let the world know how proud of you I am."

"Thank you, Master Tyr." Harry said smiling. "I'll wear it every day."

The hope in his heart grew a bit bigger.

Idunn gave him a book on soul magic, one she'd written herself, as well as an apple. A normal apple.

"I started growing a few normal trees in my grove." She said. "Just like my father, you get to be the first one to taste them."

It was the best apple Harry had ever had.

The other trainees gave him a gift too, something Harry had absolutely not expected. They all pitched together and gifted him an Asgardian good luck charm. A small pendant like piece of metal that you attached to your weapon of choice to give you strength, endurance, and luck during battle. They weren't by any means cheap to buy or easy to get ahold of according to his dad, but the trainees had managed it.

"It's for your final battle." Hemrod said. "In all the great stories the hero has to face the big evil by himself but he has the strength of his shield brothers with him. Take this and our strength will go with you. Even Baldur helped get it so you know we all mean it."

That made Harry giggle before he took in a deep breath and looked at all the other trainees.

"Thank you." He said. "I won't let you down."

And he meant it.