It was getting much harder to keep from smiling. Especially when Idun was so wonderful and sweet and generous and giving and magnanimous and kind-hearted and just plain wonderful wonderful wonderful! It was all Lottie could do not to squeal and hug the Norse goddess, because this was so much fun, and Idun already felt like a friend she'd known for forever, rather than just a few minutes. Lottie adored her.
So there was absolutely no question about who was lighting the fireworks. Shaking her head vigorously, Philotes protested with a passion borne of affection. “Oh, no! you are the one that is so very nice and friendly and amazing. I mean, you just met me, you don't have to share your fireworks with me at all, you could have just said so sorry you're lost, there's a villiage that way, now shoo. But you didn't! You're sharing your wonderful new thing with me, and you're even letting me help. That's so phenomenal! No. No, you're the one that will be lighting them. And that's that.”
Lottie gave a little nod of her head, as a punctuation to her last statement. She wanted it to be firm. Not mean or pushy, but firm. Kindly firm. Lovingly firm. Just a solid and definite kind of firm, so that Idun would know there wasn't a need to argue it further because really, she definitely deserved to light the fireworks. And if it was as fun as Lottie anticipated it would be, well then she would go to China and find a kindly merchant to sell her some of her own. Then she could invite Idun to meet her back here in this field and they could do it again! That was such a brilliant idea, and she was so looking forward to it already, Lottie almost smiled.
Instead, she bit the inside of her cheek to hold back the expression. After a moment, she explained, “I babble. When I get excited or worried or nervous or happy or it's Tuesday. I try not to, I really do, but sometimes I can't help it, even though I try to keep them in the words just come tumbling right out anyway, and and can't always stop it once it's started either. But you just babble right along with me and you're bouncy and so great, and you do it in such a warm and sweet way I just don't see how anybody could not like you. I like you!”
She took half a step back, away from the lantern that held the flame to be used to set things in motion. “I like you, and I want you to light the fireworks. Please.”