Wand?

When it came to Norse mythology, there are few mythical creatures that one would think of. Fenrir, Sleipnir, and Jormungandr were all famous as children of Loki, but there are three other creatures that are linked to the World Tree.

A feather from Hraesvelg, the wise eagle that sits atop Yggdrasil, the hair of Ratatoskr, the squirrel that runs up and down the tree of life, and the heart of Nidhogg, the hungry dragon that dwells in the World Tree's roots and gnaws on them, the items Atreus took out were taken from those mythical creatures. If they weren't good enough as a magical core for a wand made out of the branch, then he had no idea what would be good enough.

"You just need a cord from the heart, right?" Atreus asked. Nicolas nodded, and his eyes glimmered in delight as he stared at the items in front of him. Those were one of a kind ingredients that he really wanted to dissect and find out everything there is about them.

"Just be careful. The heart is supposed to be toxic, so don't let any blood splatter on you."

Nicolas' eyes seemed to shine even brighter at that revelation. Studying a poison of divine nature was something he had never even dreamed of. His hand was already in his pocket, grabbing his most valuable object.

"We were going to cleanse it so that I can eat it, but we never really got the chance."

"Eat it? Why would you eat the heart?" Perenelle asked him as both Flamels looked at him.

"Well, I was always a bit weak, and I used to get sick a lot. Mimir said that eating the heart will help me get stronger."

Weak? The Flamels weren't sure about that since they've seen Atreus move faster than they can react, but obviously, the boy had different standards. They also noted his naming of Mimir. It was the first time Atreus had mentioned someone he knew by name.

"Hm, let's see what I can do about this then," Nicolas turned towards the heart. He pulled his hand out of his pocket, which was holding a faintly glowing red stone. Atreus blinked once, twice, before looking at Perenelle in confusion.

"I told you wands are considered the best focus, but not the only one. Nick is holding his best creation ever, the Philosopher's Stone. For him, there is no better focus to use his magic."

Atreus turned his attention to the faintly glowing stone as Perenelle continued her explanation.

"The Philosopher Stone represents the peak of Alchemy. Every alchemist's dream is to create one. If they have a Philosopher's Stone, they can live a carefree life for as long as they want to. It can produce the Elixir Of Life, which makes the drinker practically immortal, and it can also be used to transform any metal into gold."

"Permanently?" Atreus asked. From what he knew, transfigurations were never permanent. They could last minutes, hours, days, or even months, but it mostly depended on how skilled and powerful the caster was.

"Yes," Perenelle confirmed, and he realized what they had meant by their earlier discussion. The Flamels will never care about money as long as they had the Philosopher's Stone. Repaying them with gold seemed to be redundant, but he had other ways he could pay them back.

Atreus' attention returned to Nicolas, who was focusing on the heart with the stone in hand. Shortly, bubbling black sludge began oozing out of it, forming a toxic ball in the air. Nicolas raised his left hand, and a bookshelf behind him opened up like a door. From within, a large sheet of silvery metal flew out and stopped next to him.

With the Philosopher's Stone, he turned the sheet into a large bowl and softly deposited the toxic sludge within it. Nicolas then sealed it shut, making sure not a single drop goes out of it.

Finally, he extracted the dragon heartstring from the heart with an almost maniacal look in his eyes. Nicolas just couldn't wait to study all of those incredible items and to see what he can do with them.

"I have a project to work on," Nicolas lifted all of them with magic and turned around, leaving the two alone.

"So..." Atreus started, "I'm not exactly human..."

"We've noticed," Perenelle said gently but didn't push him to continue. Patiently she waited for him to do it on his own.

Atreus deflated a bit at that but continued, "I'm half-giant," he started with the easy one.

"Really? You don't look like one," Perenelle said with a surprised chuckle. They had their speculations, but half-giant was never one of them.

"Giants vary in size. They can be larger than a mountain or as small as a human. Mother was a giantess, but we didn't even know until me and father went on a journey together after she passed away. Her dying wish was to scatter her ashes at the highest peak in all the realms."

"What was her name?" Perenelle asked.

"Laufey," Atreus replied, looking in the distance and missing the shocked look in Perenelle's eyes, "and my father is called Kratos."

"I haven't heard of that one," Perenelle muttered, trying to remember any mention of Kratos.

"I'm not surprised," Atreus said and continued his story, "our journey was filled with dangerous encounters, but we got to visit so many different places and saw incredible sights. When we reached the highest peak in all the realms, we discovered a temple created by the giants. There, we found a prophecy about father and me made by them."

"Father wasn't a giant, but they had accepted him as one of them. They had even given him a giant's name, calling him Farbauti. They had given me one as well. In their tongue, my name is..."

"Loki Laufeyson," Perenelle said, and Atreus' body shook. He looked at her with trembling eyes and asked, "You... know me?"

How was that possible? How could she possibly know that name, and what did that mean? Atreus wasn't sure if he wanted to find out. He was scared that the situation with Freya will be repeated once more.

"Of course," Perenelle confirmed with a smile, "you are Atreus, the boy who has been living with us for the past month and finally opened up."

Atreus couldn't describe how he felt after hearing her words. There was a slight shift, a change in the way he viewed Perenelle, and he decided to tell her everything. Atreus initially planned on revealing just a bit, but she already knew his giant's name. He might as well tell her everything, so he started from the beginning.

"When I was younger, I was a sickly child. I was bedridden most of the time, and mother always stayed by my side. She..."

"... I used to hate him for that. He rarely returned to our house and never stayed for more than a day. I thought he just didn't care for us, but later found out he was learning how to control his curse..."

"...after we cremated mother, we were supposed to start our journey. Father ordered me to hunt as a test of my skill and to see if I'm ready, and we ended up encountering a troll. We killed it, but I... kinda lost myself in my rage. He then told me I'm not ready, and I got mad at him. I thought it was his fault since he had never trained me..."

"...I didn't see them fight, but I felt it while hiding in the basement. The earth shook as if a massive earthquake was happening. I don't think I had ever been so scared. When father returned, he looked tired but uninjured. We resumed our journey since our home was no longer safe, and I got to see the result of their fight. The entire landscape had changed! Mountains were toppled, and there was a massive valley in front of our house!"

"...we ended up meeting Brok and his beast of burden. His skin was blue because he had Argyria from blacksmithing silver metals with his bare hands..."

"...I didn't know the boar was her friend! We ended up helping her heal it, and she brought us over to her home. She lived in a house that was attached to the belly of a turtle!"

"... which ended up summoning Jormungandr! The World Serpent was massive, and it spoke to me in an ancient language that even I had trouble understanding..."

On and on, he went, telling Perenelle about his story. She patiently listened and noted the difference between his story and the Norse myths. Atreus was nothing like the trickster god Loki. He was kind and good-natured, unlike the chaos causing god of mischief. Atreus didn't get to finish his story since it was a long one, but he planned on telling her the rest.

"So, would you prefer to be called Atreus or Loki?" Perenelle asked as she placed plates on the table. They had moved over to the kitchen and even prepared something to eat while Atreus had been telling his story.

"Atreus, I think. No one has really called me Loki. It was always Atreus or boy," he replied with a chuckle.

Perenelle nodded, and the two ate their meal in silence. She was processing everything she learned about Atreus while he was trying to understand what he was feeling. It was like a weight had been lifted off his chest, and he felt... content. Atreus finished quickly since his meal was smaller than the ones he had gotten used to, but it was because he had something else he wanted to eat.

"Your name is just Atreus, right?" Perenelle asked him before he left.

"Yes," he nodded.

"In our world, people usually have at least two, a first, personal name and a surname."

"Okay..."

"Would you accept our surname? To be called Atreus Flamel?" Perenelle asked with her gentle smile.

Atreus watched her for a moment, studying her genuine expression. Even after finding out that his heritage, she still looked at him the same way. He nodded and walked over to her, giving her a hug. It just felt like the right thing to do.

"Yes, I would like that," Atreus said before leaving the kitchen. Perenelle watched him go with a quiver in her eyes. He didn't fully understand what taking their surname meant, and she didn't plan on telling him. Instead, she would show him through her actions.

When Atreus entered his room, he took out the now cleansed dragon heart. He stared at it, mustering up his courage as it faintly pulsated in his hands. Mimir had said that it will be useful for him, and he trusted the man. After all, he was known as the smartest man alive. Or so he claimed.

"I might as well get on with it," he said and took a bite out of it. Immediately he regretted the decision. The taste was awful and foul, and he quickly chewed it into small enough pieces for him to swallow.

"That was disgusting!" Atreus exclaimed while coughing and doing his best not to puke. That was just one bite, and although he wanted to just throw it away, he continued.

When he gulped down the last of the heart, his whole body felt on fire as pain assaulted him. Everything hurt. It felt like tiny ants were biting his entire body with incredible power. Atreus wanted to scream, but he kept his mouth shut with gritted teeth. He dropped on his bed and curled into a ball as he kept repeating in his mind, "I will be better, I will be greater."

Next thing he knew, Atreus woke up to the sound of someone knocking on his door. A foul and disgusting smell assaulted his nostrils, and he gagged, barely resisting the urge to puke. He stood up with his clothes sticking tight to him. They were drenched in some kind of ooze.

"Atreus?" Perenelle asked and opened the door.

"What in..." She had the same reaction as him after smelling the air in the room. Perenelle quickly waved her hands after seeing his situation. Atreus felt a wave of magic wash over him as his clothes dried up and got cleaned in a second. She then repeated the same to the bed before cleansing the air in the room.

"Thanks!" Atreus quickly said now that he didn't feel the urge to puke.

"What happened?" Perenelle asked in concern.

"Well, I ate the dragon heart before falling asleep," Atreus didn't mention the pain since he didn't want to worry her.

"You should've told me," Perenelle studied him up and down. He was a bit taller, and his shoulders were a bit wider. His icy-blue eyes had a shine to them that wasn't there before, and the scar on his left cheek looked more prominent. Other than that, he looked exactly the same.

"How are you feeling?"

"Good, great even! I don't think I've ever felt like this before," Atreus replied. He felt more powerful than ever, and his senses seemed sharper.

Perenelle smiled at his response and gave him a hug. He didn't know why she did that, but he hugged her back.

"I was wondering if you would like to come with me on a little walk through our greenhouses?" Perenelle asked, and Atreus readily agreed. The only time that he had actually left the house was on their trip to Diagon Alley.

Once they were outside, Atreus immediately noticed something strange. The house was small, no larger than the cottage he used to live in. However, on the inside, the place was absolutely massive. Magic was the only explanation for that.

In front of the house, there was a forest with tall and imposing trees. At first glance, it looked void of animals, but Atreus knew that was far from the truth. He didn't know how, but he was able to sense, or maybe feel would be the more right description, hundreds of animals. It reminded him that he hadn't gone hunting in a long while.

"What is that forest?" Atreus asked her.

"It's a resort for endangered magical creatures. We keep them safe and give them a place to stay. In return, they provide us with materials for potions or Nick's experiments," Perenelle explained.

"I see." Maybe hunting there won't be a good idea.

"Come, let's go to the greenhouses," Perenelle beckoned, and Atreus followed her around the houses. Four large structures, all made of glass, stood there, neatly aligned with each other.

All of the greenhouses had different temperatures inside them, and the two went through them one by one as Perenelle explained to him each plant they passed while tending to them. Atreus knew only a few of them from reading the Herbology books in his room, so he was happy to listen to her. She also seemed to enjoy herself as she tended to each plant with care.

"We finished with those, and now we have two more underground," Perenelle said.

"Underground?"

"Yes, some plants can't grow properly under the sun," Perenelle explained and led him to the front of the greenhouses. She waved her hand, and the ground opened with stairs descending downward. They tended to the plants underground, and Atreus was happy to accompany her.

"It took me a bit longer than usual, and we are a bit late on breakfast, so would you like to help me prepare it?" Perenelle asked as they were leaving the underground greenhouses.

"Sure! I'm actually starving," Atreus admitted, a bit embarrassed by that.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Well, you were seemed to be enjoying yourself taking care of the plants, and I also found it kinda fun," Atreus replied, and Perenelle embraced him with a smile without saying a word. He didn't understand why she did it, but he was really starting to enjoy being hugged.

They quickly prepared their meal and sat down at the kitchen table.

"If you want to become better at controlling your magic, you can try to do simple tasks by only using magic. For example," Perenelle placed her hands on the table away from her meal. Her food then neatly got cut into small pieces, and one of them flew over to her open mouth.

"Or this," a cup of water levitated over to her mouth, and she took a drink without even touching it.

"If you are feeling confident, you can even try this," Perenelle returned the cup on the table, and this time, the water trickled out, right into her mouth.

"Wow!" Atreus was impressed by her display. She made it look so effortless, and he tried copying her. Atreus managed to cut up his food into small pieces and eat it without touching it with his hands. It wasn't as graceful as Perenelle, but it was his first try. Atreus even managed to take a drink from his cup, but he also ended up spilling some water on himself. He didn't bother trying to last thing she showed him after that failure.

"Very good," Perenelle even praised for his effort.

The two then returned to the living room where Atreus continued from he left yesterday. He was in the middle of his story when the bookshelf opened up, and Nicolas walked out.

"I'm done... I think," Nicolas said, lacking the confidence he usually talked with.

"You think?" Perenelle asked, but it was so he could explain to Atreus.

"Follow me," Nicolas said and turned back before he started explaining, "Well, wandmaking is a very delicate process. Usually, it's passed down in certain families, but when you are as old as me, you tend to learn a thing or two, even if you didn't want to. I'm not the best wandmaker, that title goes to Ollivander, but I'm a good one. However, everything I know about wandmaking was of no help with the items you gave me."

The room they entered looked like some kind of workshop and was filled with strange items and trinkets.

"Sooo... I cheated and used the Philosopher's Stone to combine the branch with the feather, hair, and dragon heartstring. And this is what happened," Nicolas pointed at a table in the middle of the room, and on it laid an intricate wooden staff.

"A staff happened. I've racked my brain for the past few hours, trying to understand how, but I have no idea. I tried picking the staff, but it burned my hand. I tried lifting it with magic, but it refused to budge. So, I'm hoping it's going to have a different reaction to you," he said.

"Nicolas!" Perenelle said with narrowed eyes, and he flinched.

"Atreus just needs to try and touch it. Nothing dangerous, honey. I promise," Nicolas said and turned to Atreus. "Just touch it. If you feel like it's going to burn you, pull back. Okay?"

Atreus nodded before reaching out. He touched it with a finger and felt a sense of joy from the staff. It almost felt like it was singing in happiness. That gave him more confidence, and he grabbed it firmly. The sense of joy increased by a magnitude as he lifted the staff of the table.

"Thank you!" Atreus quickly said to Nicolas in gratitude. He was happy that he finally had a focus, a conduit to channel his magic. He would've preferred a wand since all the books were written with one in mind, but... Just as that passed through his mind, the staff in Atreus' hands began shrinking until it was the size of a wand.

"Well," Nicolas said in wonder, "that just happened."