The God & The Witch

Child of the Moon

Hermione had done well with avoiding Odin, which was all she had been doing since the incident at Odin's "tea party." Odin seemed to be hanging around more often, wandering through the halls of the palace. It was quite unsettling, actually. With Odin constantly lurking, she felt as if he was planning something against her.

Loki did as much as he could to keep Odin away from Hermione. He spent a lot more time in Hermione's room. She had manipulated the barriers on her doors to allow Loki access, not that he needed it. Loki's abilities exceeded her magic, so there was really no reason for her to do anything to the barriers. Hermione had spent more time in her room since Odin's tea time, not even leaving to get food. Loki took care of that for her, either summoning food out of thin air or physically leaving to get meals for the two of them.

Hermione appreciated it very much, though she had told him it wasn't necessary. Of course, there was no arguing with Loki. So after a single look from Loki, Hermione said no more about it. The two were growing a lot closer now that they were spending more time together. Thor had been bugging Loki about it whenever the two of them crossed paths. Loki tried his best to brush him off, but Thor didn't seem to notice. Hermione hadn't talked to Thor in awhile. She hadn't even seen him since she was always hiding in her room. She wondered if he knew that he was welcome to swing by and chat with her, regardless of what Loki had to say about it. Thor was a good guy with good intentions. She certainly had nothing against him. By now, she had accepted what him and Frigga had believed about her. Besides, she was starting to feel something for Loki. They had become close friends, but Hermione's heart was starting to swell from whatever it was she felt for Loki. He didn't have to know that though. Hermione certainly didn't want him knowing, as she knew he would be very smug about it and just tease her for it. Whatever it was.

Loki came in with a stack of books in his arms. He pushed the door shut gently with the back of his foot before walking over to a table in the room and setting the books on top of it. Hermione was staring out the window, leaning against the wall with her head resting against the wall as well. Loki looked over at her, a curious look on his face. "Is something the matter, Hermione?" He asked, slowly approaching her.

"Yeah. Everything is fine. I'm just thinking," Hermione replied quietly, turning to face him.

Loki raised an eyebrow. "What about?" He asked just as quietly, clasping his hands behind his back. Loki could tell that there was something on Hermione's mind. As they had gotten closer, he had started to notice little things about her. The small lip bite she did when she was concentrating, the way she moved strands of hair behind her ear when she was nervous, as well as how her eyes seemed to roam the surroundings when she was avoiding a topic of conversation.

Her eyes were doing that same thing now, shifting from one corner to the next without landing on Loki. "Nothing important," Hermione said, a slight shrug from her shoulders. She liked to dodge questions as well, which was slightly irritating to Loki. He didn't show it on his face though. Loki was actually very calm and patient. He had his moments, but it was never anything too serious. Nothing that Hermione couldn't handle anyway.

"Hermione," Loki began, taking her chin gently and tilting her head upwards to look into her eyes. "Whatever is on your mind, you can't hide it from me. I am the god of mischief and lies. I always know when there is something you are not telling me. You do not have to hide anything from me, you know that, do you not?" Loki looked deeply into Hermione's eyes and she thought she was going to melt. "Loki, I-"

She pulled away, taking a step back. "I'm fine, really. it's nothing to be worried about. I promise."

Loki didn't believe her and he could tell that he wasn't going to get anything out of Hermione, at least not at the moment. He wanted her to talk to him, but he had learned that Hermione was pretty secretive. He wasn't sure if Hermione trusted him or not. She had told him before that she did, but if that was true, wouldn't she be honest with him and tell him what was on her mind? Loki decided to leave it alone for now. She would tell him when she was ready. He didn't know when that would be, but he hoped that it was soon.