Mom was rubbing her forehead while my brother and his wife cleared the food from the table. She looked up and gave me a small smile.

"Hi, honey. I didn't know you were joining us for brunch today."

"It looks like it's a good thing I didn't. Are you okay?"

"Something must have gone off," my sister-in-law Sarah replied. "I'm so sorry I didn't notice!"

"Neither did I, so don't feel bad." My brother rubbed her back in comfort.

"Could I have some water, Liam? I'm sure we'll be right as rain in a bit." My brother nodded and moved to fill a glass for my mother. "So, who's the handsome gentleman you've brought with you?" Mom asked, as she waved a hand to indicate behind me.

Reaching back, I took Loki's hand to draw him beside me. "This is my boyfriend, Tod. Tod, this is my mom—Rose, my brother—Liam, and his wife—Sarah."

Loki kissed my mom's hand when she offered it to shake, as well as Sarah's, and then shook Liam's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet all of you. I've been looking forward to meeting Shannon's family."

"Holy shit! Tod Corvus?"

I winced at the ear-drum shattering shriek from my sister. She was coming out of the hallway from the bathroom.

"Hey sis, yeah—" I got no further before she launched herself at him.

Despite my sister hitting him full-on like a freight train, Loki didn't stagger. To his credit, he gave her a quick, polite hug with a pat on the back, and then managed to extract himself from her octopus-like embrace. If I hadn't been so annoyed, I'd have been amused to see her trying to grab him, and his longer reach keeping her at bay. She was barely five feet tall, the same as my mom.

"It's nice to meet you..." Loki looked to me for a name.

"Heather!" she said, still trying to put her hands on him.

"Oh, for fuck sakes." I rolled my eyes. "Still glad you met my family?"

"Heather! Give your sister's boyfriend some space. Act your age!" Mom scolded.

"Wow, it's so great to meet you! I'm such a huge fan. You were amazing in Assassin! When does the next sequel come out?" she gushed, running her hand down his arm, petting him.

"Yes... but a little help, darling?" He asked as he replied politely to her, thanking her for enjoying his work.

I stepped between them, letting Loki duck behind me and to my other side, wrapping his arm around my waist.

"Knock if off, Heather, or we're leaving right now," I told her. "He didn't come here to get mobbed by a crazy fangirl."

She glared at me.

Completely disgusted, but not surprised by her behaviour, I glared back.

"How about we all enjoy a cup of tea in the living room," my brother broke in. Mom added her agreement, leading the way. She took Heather's hand as she went by, tugging her along.

Loki wisely chose a small loveseat with just enough room for the two of us. Sarah poured the tea, while Liam brought each of us a cup. It was my favourite—Earl Grey, with a slice of lemon.

"I take it you are an actor?" Mom asked politely, before directing a disapproving scowl at Heather.

Loki looked to me before answering. "You don't want your family to know the truth about us? You want me to give my mortal identity?"

"I think it's better if they don't know. It won't improve my relationship with them."

"I agree with you, darling. It's better we protect them from the knowledge of immortals and gods." Smiling, he took my hand as he answered my mom. "Yes, I really enjoy it."

"Are you any good? Are you successful?" she asked bluntly.

I groaned, one hand over my face. My mother had no tact whatsoever.

"Oh my god, I am so, so, so very sorry for my family." My mental tone was that of acute embarrassment. Between my sister and my mom, I wanted a hole to open in the ground to swallow me. Why did I introduce Loki to them? He'll think I'm insane.

He laughed as he caught my thoughts and squeezed my hand reassuringly. "I'll let my audience be the judge of that."

Heather snorted. "Mom, he's an A-list actor worth millions. Remember the 'Assassin' movies? That's him." She was sulking in her chair, a petulant look on her face. You would think a woman of forty-one would be more mature, but this was typical behaviour when she didn't get her way.

"Actually, I preferred you in 'Macbeth'. I show clips in my classes," my brother interjected.

"Thank you," Loki perked up, inclining his head and smiling at Liam.

"Not that I don't think your portrayal of Sicarius isn't brilliant. It absolutely is. I'm just a fan of Shakespeare," my brother told him, warming to his topic.

"Liam is a History and English teacher at the high school," I told Loki.

Loki sent my brother a big smile. "A fellow fan of the bard. What's your favourite play?" "I like him," he told me, as he continued his conversation with my brother. "But I have to admit, I don't particularly care for your sister."

"Yeah, we don't get along very well, as you can see, but my brother is great. Really great. Both he and his wife are who I tend to spend time with when I visit here."

As Loki and my brother bonded over Shakespeare, I asked Mom to join me in the kitchen. I waved off Sarah's inquisitive look. Heather was ignoring me, pretending to play with her phone while she took photos of Loki. I winced and warned him, but he'd already noticed and wasn't worried.

"Go talk with your mum. I'm good here, chatting with Liam," he reassured me.

Shutting the French doors between the two rooms for a little privacy, I turned to my mom.

"I like Tod. He seems more comfortable and confident in himself, unlike that loser you dated previously," she said bluntly.

"Thanks, Mom. Yes, Tod is fantastic. I like him a lot."

"So what is it? What did you need help with, honey?" she asked.

No easy way to say it, so I just bit the bullet.

"Am I adopted?"

Mom looked startled, blinking a few times. "Well, that wasn't what I was expecting." She took my hands in hers, looking up into my eyes. "Yes, honey, you are. Your dad and I never intended to keep it a secret. We just never seemed to get around to telling you. It didn't seem to be important, as you were ours in every way but blood."

My eyes got hot, filling with tears.

"Darling, do you need me?" A whisper of sensation, like the stroke of fingertips, caressed my cheek.

"No, I'm okay. Keep my family busy while I talk with my mom, please." A phantom kiss on my forehead and his hand gently stroking my hair comforted me.

Mom wrapped me in her arms, and Loki's touch disappeared. "Honey, I'm so sorry I never told you. I really am. It's just, well, I kind of forgot. Because it's never been important to me, it's not something I think about. You know we love you, right?"

"Yes, Mom. I love you, too." My voice was a bit choked up. I hugged her tight, her much shorter frame tucking into my shoulder and chin.

"How did you find out?" she asked when she pulled back to look at me.

"I had some genetic testing done. The results weren't consistent with what you'd told me of our background. What do you know about my birth parents, Mom?"

"I only know a little. Your birth father's name was Dylan Connolly. He said he was a deep-sea fisherman and needed to return to the sea. There was no woman in the picture. He indicated she'd left you with him, but he couldn't take care of you out on the sea. Honestly, honey... he was an odd one."

It hurt to hear my birth parents hadn't wanted me. Mom tightened her arms around me.

"You were such a blessing to us, honey. I'd had a few miscarriages after Heather, but your father and I really wanted more kids. We were overjoyed to bring you into our family."

I couldn't deny the warmth that went through me at her words, so full of love and acceptance. It really seemed they hadn't cared that I hadn't come from them. The idea my mom essentially forgot about it since it was so unimportant to her, it kind of boggled my mind. Loki was right. They wanted me and had chosen me to be part of their family.

"Thanks, Mom. I'm so glad you and Dad raised me. I miss him."

The loss of my father was a well aged ache after so many years. He'd been the one to encourage me to pursue my career in science, to tell me I could achieve whatever I set out to, and help me believe in myself. It had gutted me when he died.

"I miss him, too. He loved you so very much." She wiped the tears from my cheeks. "I'm so glad to have you here. It's been too many months, although I'm aware of how busy you get. I hope the two of you are staying to have Christmas with us?"

Her question surprised me. I'd noticed the fresh snow on the Cascade mountains, as well as the chill in the air outside and automatically adjusted the air temperature around me, but I'd lost track of the days while with Isis. I hadn't realized it must be so close to Christmas already.

"What's the date?" I asked Loki. "I seem to have lost track, and Mom is asking if we can stay for Christmas."

"It's December twenty-third. I'm clear. I don't start filming the next season of Loki until February. We can stay if you want, as long as it's not with your sister." The distaste in his mental tone made me smile.

"Yeah, that would never happen. We'll head to my house and come back Christmas eve."

"Sounds good to me, darling."

"Of course, Mom. Tod and I are both free, and will come back tomorrow evening to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas day with you. I have some things I need to take care of at home in the meantime, since I've been out of the country, so we should head back to the city."

"Great! It'll be so nice to have us all together this holiday." She smiled happily, and I gave her another hug.

We walked back to the living room, and Loki stood.

"It was a real pleasure meeting you," he said, as he shook my brother's hand.

"Likewise!" Liam grinned.

"You aren't staying for Christmas?" Sarah asked me, looking between Loki and I.

"We'll be back tomorrow night, if your guest room is available to us?" I asked.

"Of course! You are always welcome, Shannon." Sarah hugged me and whispered, "I really like Tod. He seems like an intelligent, confident but fun guy. A much better fit for you."

"Thanks Sarah. I agree," I said as I hugged her back.

After a quick hug with my brother, who also whispered, "I like him," I briefly hugged Heather. As usual, it was stilted and awkward.

Heading outside, we waved to them as we walked down the pathway to the tree-lined driveway.

"How did you get here?" I asked Loki once we were far enough away for none of my family to hear me.

"I flew as a raven."

"Do you trust me?" I asked, smiling up at him.

"Implicitly, my love."

I tugged him behind a large cedar to hide us from the house and twined my hands around his neck.

"Hold on to me," I told him with a mischievous smile.

Loki hugged me close, eyes alight with curiosity. Quickly, I wrapped a thick cloud around us and lifted us up on a cushion of air.

His smile widened, and he laughed as we shot up into the sky. "Oh, I like this. I'll let you do all the heavy lifting," he joked, as he let his natural appearance take prominence again.