Last time...

"Sirius, why would your great great something or other want to give me a Galaxy in a Globe?" Hera wondered, as she held it up to look at in greater detail. "It's beautiful, and I love it, but you can find these in Diagon Alley."

"Not like this one, you can't." Sirius informed her, before commanding the globe. "Earth."

He saw the view in the globe shift, zero in on the planet, and saw Hera's eyes light up in understanding.

"You can explore the galaxy in real time with this. I think she saw you, saw your plan to bring magic back out into the open, and I think she saw two possible futures; one where muggles accept magic and that it can't fix all their problems, and one where they don't. There's a bunch of notes and things I'm still going through from her, and I wanted to read through them all before I gave them to you, but you'll be getting those too at the end of your school year." He continued, and then paused as he saw a dog bone shaped biscuit. "Was that there before?"

Chapter 88

Matt had noticed a pattern throughout the party, and he didn't think anyone else had picked up on it yet. He heard the moment when Fred and George offered up what they called a canary cream to Loki, 'saw' it pop out of existence, only for the same treat to pop back in to existence next to Hera; and it kept happening. He wasn't sure what to do about it, if anything. Hera was his friend, and through her he discovered magic was not only real, but it allowed him some measure of sight along with what he could do because of the acid damage. The twins didn't seem to realize what was happening, but it had turned the party into something filled with even more laughter and joy than it already had been.

He'd asked to spend the night; just the one, as he knew they'd all be spending a more private Christmas later. Though he'd gotten to write to her a lot, he hadn't gotten to spend much time with her, and likely wouldn't get the chance till summer. He had something he wanted to ask her, several somethings now, and he couldn't do that with his dad around. Tony Stark was really cool about it, and had promptly suggested blanket forts and hot chocolate with marshmallows. He just had to wait till they got back up from the lab the man had here, and then he'd ask.

…

"You know he's likely got some kind of heavy question for you, right?" Tony asked, the moment they stepped into his lab. He wondered if soundproofing worked on the kid's ability.

Hera nodded. "Whatever it is, it's sensitive enough that he felt he couldn't ask with his dad around."

"He might not want to tell you even with just me around. So if you have to run off or something, just leave me a note, okay?" Tony asked, to which she nodded in agreement. "Awesome! Now I know Sirius already gave you a motorcycle – Nice choice, by the way! – and it isn't complete yet, but I wanted to show you something."

He brought up the schematics that he'd been working on. Every chance he'd gotten this year, he'd been asking Arthur Weasley questions about the Ford Angela. It had gotten to the point where he'd just invited the man over on his days off so he could pick his brain about it. Tony understood the processes, even if he couldn't do the actual magic part. He absolutely refused not to pay the man, and Arthur had refused payment, which just meant that Tony had had to be super sneaky about it by means of sending it through Gringotts anyway.

The man had been adamant that gas having been in the vehicle at one point wouldn't matter, but that any car would have to be take apart and put back together piece by piece to ensure the charms worked properly. Tony had wondered if the runes could be etched into the metal by others, and then magic added later to prime them, which Arthur had ensured him was possible. The man then proceeded to blow his mind with the most complex mathematical equation he'd ever seen, complete with symbols Tony had never encountered; which is how he'd become somewhat of an expert in arithmancy and runes, thanks to Arthur. Tony had ordered every book he could get his hands on, and studied it to obsession, and then quizzed Arthur about it until Tony was able to rework the equation into something even more complex than what the man had shown him in the first place. Hera was going to get her very own custom built flying car, and it was going to be awesome.

"Tony, this is…You did this?" Hera asked, looking like she was trying to absorb the schematics and mathematical formula at the same time.

"Arthur was a big help." Tony admitted. "I may have tempted him with a job offer he doesn't know about yet."

"How does one get tempted with a job offer they don't know about yet?" Hera questioned, looking at him with incredulity.

"I just…started out asking him all kinds of questions, and then paying him without his knowledge." Tony waved off the look with ease. "He'll see it on his next bank statement."

"…You wouldn't have happened to ask who runs the family's finances?" Hera inquired, and…okay, she had him there.

"Did you really see me being able to talk Molly into letting her husband go for an intensive muggle career otherwise? She barely tolerates his obsession as it is. I give him a job offer that's all in? He'll consult the wife, who will steer him away from it with all the patience of someone who has endured the same argument multiple times without seeing the fruits of labour, assuming there isn't any just like there never is." Tony countered. "She can't argue with money, and evidence, though I suppose the money is the evidence."

"How do you think she'll feel about being worked around?" Hera reposed. Tony instantly felt guilty. "I get it. I do. It's not like I'm not guilty of the same, what with how I chose to interpret the Vow I made. She digs her heels in, and then her argument is the only one. His collection of plugs and things is relegated to the garage."

"So…What do you think about the car?" He asked, feeling nervous now. She hadn't said anything about it yet.

"Tony, I know you want me to be excited about the car, especially because that means you get to teach me how to drive in this country, and I am, but…Tony…this?" Hera gestures to the equations and things he and Arthur had built up together, looking back at him, and it's only now that he can see how in awe she is. "This is the beginnings of a BiFröst."

...

While she left Tony to absorb the fact that he'd written out the bare bones beginnings of a BiFröst with the help of Arthur Weasley, and she did have to specify that it was the absolute bare bones of it when he started crowing in happiness, she went back upstairs. They weren't going to be doing anything more than flying cars with the way the equation was set up, but Tony's eyes lit up at the challenge. She'd tell him about the Galaxy in a Globe later, and the two could decide what to do then. While she knew what she was doing was allowing a greater use of magic to be seen while giving a plausible reason to excuse it so that more people wouldn't have to be obliviated, thus allowing wixen to be more visible in the world, she was aware that organizations like SHIELD and Hydra wouldn't allow for such blatant shows of power without a show of force of their own. She should have thought of what it could mean if her original plan didn't work.

"So, Tony might be skipping out on the blanket forts and hot chocolate for a bit. I kind of sparked some kind of creative binge, I think." Hera declared once she saw Matt. "I vote we start without him. Oh, before I forget. Dobby?"

Dobby popped into the room, covered nearly head to toe in a green and red ensemble. "Harry Potter Miss! Was there something yous is needing?"

"No, I just wanted to give these to you. I don't know what everyone needs, but you and Winky do. There's specific gifts in there for the two of you. If you want to ease their worries about having the holidays off, tell them that they have to clean any mess they make, and then throw a rave or something. I'm told they're huge parties, and make the biggest messes." Hera stated, handing Dobby a shrunken box. She knew he'd be able to undo the charm, and hoped this made it more manageable. "Happy holidays, Dobby."

"Happy Holidays, Harry Potter." Dobby whispered, giving her the fiercest hug he could before disappearing.

"So that was Dobby?" Matt asked, having never met him before, though he'd heard stories. "Why does he call you 'Harry' Potter?"

"I have no bloody idea."

…

"So…What's wrong?" Hera inquired, once they'd settled into their blanket forts with hot chocolate in homey mugs, surprising him. "Tony thought you might want to talk to me, said you looked like you had a lot on your mind."

"I…Okay, two things, but one just sort of hit me today, and if I don't ask about it now I might explode." Matt admitted, deciding to go for broke. It would allow him to test his theory, at any rate. "Why didn't you tell me you're really Loki?"

Instantly, Hera's heart rate increased, and she stopped breathing. Okay, so that was what panic looked like. He had not expected that. Granted, he wasn't sure what he'd been expecting. It wasn't like he thought she'd attack him or anything, but a secret like that was huge!

"Look, I don't care. It's actually kind of cool, and I have so many questions, but I figured I should let you know I knew." Matt continued, hoping to explain. "It didn't seem right to keep that from you when you're probably hiding it for good reason."

"Matt, I'm not…It's not that…" She began, but crumpled instead. "How?"

"I heard Fred and George make an offering to Loki. It happened a lot. Each time they did an offering, it appeared near you, and then chaos happened." Matt explained. "I know what I saw."

"That's what they were doing?" She mumbled aloud, only to grin a bit sheepishly when he raised an eyebrow at her.

"You were saying?"

"Listen, I was Loki, okay? Was." Hera sighed, and put her hot chocolate to the side. "He did some things, horrific things, but he was given a choice to do better. He took it, and now I exist. I was Loki, but in this life I was born Hera. I grew up as Hera. That's who I am, and it's taken a bit to accept all that's happened, but I am so much more than that other life. Do you understand?"

"Am I gonna need a geas or something? I've been reading up on those." Matt wondered.

"No, the amulet I gave you should act as a protection for your mind as well till you study up on Occlumency. I can tell you everything then, if you want." Hera stated, putting him at ease. "Okay, so now that I've had the shock of the day, what was the original thing you were worried about?"

"I know when people are lying to me. I can see their heartbeat almost." Matt tried to explain, feeling conflicted. "Dad's been lying to me, and I don't know what to do about it."

"What's the lie?"

"He keeps telling me my mom died, and it must be a practiced lie, because his heartbeat hardly changed, but…it still did." Matt admitted. "I want…Can you help me find my mom?"

"Have you told…You haven't told your dad you know he's lying to you." Hera sighed, taking in a deep breath. "Matt, I'm not usually one to play devil's advocate on an adult's behalf, but have you considered that maybe there's a reason he thinks a lie is better than the truth? You don't know what kind of woman she is, if she's dangerous or not. If your mother turned out to be some kind of psychotic killer, would you really want to know?"

Matt thought about it for a moment, and then nodded.

"Alright, well there's a test we can do to see if she really is still alive, but I'll need a drop of your blood to do it; probably would have saved me years of headaches if I'd known about this spell sooner." Hera proposed. "After that, we can decide if we should go looking for her. Tony said if we went anywhere to leave a note, and we're good. I'll only ask this once more, Matt, are you sure you wanna go through with this?"

…

He was, and so Hera brought out a bit of parchment. It really would have saved her years of headaches if she'd known this spell. Then again, blood magic was one of the few areas of magic Loki hadn't pursued as much knowledge in as he normally would have in, particularly because he'd been subtly steered from it by Frigga in an effort to keep him from the All-father's machinations. Really, that hadn't been the best way to go about raising a kid, and though she wished she could save them from it, maybe it would do them well to reap the consequences of their actions for once. She put such thoughts away for now, and focused on the task at hand, only to have Matt stop her for a moment.

"Can you…Can you show me how it works first?" He asked nervously. Fair. She'd want the same.

"Alright, I'll show you using my blood." Hera agreed readily. "Lord only knows what it will show, the culture over there being what it is."

"How does that work anyway, what with you being a heathen god and all?" Matt asked, barely keeping a straight face before the grin took over.

"Matt! What are you? Catholic?" Hera exclaimed in mock askance.

He nodded, still snickering at her.

"More on that atrocious defamation of my character later." She snorted, before taking the needle she'd conjured for this. "I'll prick my finger with this. Don't worry, I'll conjure a new one for you after I vanish this one. Three drops of blood is how the goblins do this, though their tests are usually more for inheritance reasons. The magic the parchment is primed with will soak up the blood, and use it to form words. It'll use my blood to trace the lines of my family. I'm not…I'm not entirely sure what it will show us."

He was about to object, she knew, once she'd said that. She shook her head, however, and forged on. Pricking her finger as she'd described, she let the three drops of blood hit the paper, before absent-mindedly vanishing the needle and bringing a nearby rag to keep on her finger. The less magic she used near this, the better, though vanishing the needle had been necessary. What she was not expecting was for the parchment itself to expand as the blood took to writing out her line.

She saw her name along with her former life, but that was all being written out on his side of the paper. Laufey was still alive, as was Fárbauti, and…Wait…Laufey was Loki's mother?! Oh, Hera had so many questions now. Above her name were her parents and Howard, all names showing up in black, letting her know they were deceased. Her name, as well as Loki's, showed up in green. Tony's name was connected through Howard, and below/almost next to her own was…

"I don't believe it." Hera began snickering. "He's…He's…"

"Who's Tom Riddle?" Matt asked, looking scandalized. "Why is his name below yours?"

"Okay, typically it would be because I'd had a child of my own, but as you'll see here it's also off to the side and slightly next to mine, so…Let's just say ritualistic human sacrifices are not an ideal way for one to come back from the dead, shall we?" Hera posed. "He used my blood to become what he is now, which will hopeful work out for the better since I tweaked it a bit, but because he did that…He could be considered either my twin or my child. It's why the placement is so weird. Oh, he's going to hate that. I can't wait to tell him. Now you?"

Matt nodded and held out his hand. She conjured a new needle before priming the next piece of parchment to what was needed. Another rag nearby, and she was really glad she'd conjured two of them, was in place as well. Same test as before, though this time there was not the extended network from Matt's name like the one that had come about for her own. His went to his dad and mum, both names in green. It went further back for both names, listing grand parents and great grandparents, and would have continued had Matt not shaken his head. While the other information was fascinating, they needed to stay focused.

"Alright, so she really is alive then." Hera stated, looking at him now. "What do you want to do?"

"I want…Where is she? Can we at least…"

A manipulation of the ink, and it became a map. It wouldn't give them a precise location, but it would give them a place to start the search. She knew without asking that Matt would want to go find her. It's what she would do in his shoes and suddenly faced with the possibility of a mum that lived, but she still looked to him in silent inquiry to be sure. His nod of confirmation was all she needed.

"Hey, Jarvis?" Hera called, looking towards the nearest sensor. "Will you let Tony know Matt and I are heading out for a bit?"

A moment later, Jarvis replied with. "Sir stated that you might want to take in the sights while you're out. The lights this year are superb."

"Sure thing, Jarvis!"

They get ready, coats and shoes, and they're gone. She's wearing a hooded cloak, hoping to hide the blue better, because she needs to focus on the spells she'll be using, and it's not like she doesn't know how to disillusion herself by now. They follow the map till they get to the area it specified, and then it disintegrated in Hera's hands. She knew this was a likely possibility, and pulled out her wand, hoping that the Ministry's trace wouldn't catch her out so far away. It wouldn't do to give Umbridge more ammunition.

"Point me Margaret Murdock née Grace."

Some minutes pass where they're silent, arms linked as they walk in the direction the wand pointed to, and then…

"So, what's it like being a god?"

Hera sighed in mild annoyance. "There is so much wrong with that sentence."

"Come on, Hera." Matt implored. "It's just to pass the time."

Fair, but she still sighed in the hope this conveyed she wasn't happy about the line of questioning.

"First up, I'm not a god. Loki was…is. Merlin, this is already complicated." Hera sighed. "If we're talking definitions, there are two types of gods, I suppose; true divinity, and those with the power levels high enough that they either have a domain given to them or it is one they earn through conditional means. Loki's the second type; I have no experience with the first. Do not ask the kid question. Blatant slander, the lot of it. Me? I just have a crazy high power level, but where I'm still growing up a bit, I can't access it all. I still have to be careful about how much I do access, because I could garner unwanted attention from…the motherland I suppose we'll call it for now. There's a lot that I don't remember of that life, and more I wished I didn't. Out in public, and you ask me this."

"You have a privacy ward up."

Right, he could see magic. Still.

"I just…I don't want you thinking I'm something more than I am. I'm not holy. I have never heard a prayer, despite the twins very obvious devotion to Loki." Hera explained. "When a domain is given, it is supposed to be understood that you are an authority on that thing, meaning that you're someone people go to for advice and the like. You're like a really super powered tutor, a teacher's aide, or an advisor. You serve the people, not the other way around. The Accounts have mostly forgotten this."

The wand made a sharp turn, almost back in the direction they'd left, when Hera sees it.

"This place mean anything to you?" Hera wondered.

"It's the place Dad takes us to sometimes." Matt answered, looking at it more closely. "He said it's likely the closest he's ever going to get to heaven. Why?"

"Because this is where your mother is."