A night at the bar

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

Date: April 2, 2003, evening
Status: Public (Complete)
Setting: The Manor Bar
Summary: Loki invited me for a drink, so here I am... Let's see who else is coming.

Staying in one place for a while had its advantages. Loki was in a surprisingly good mood. Whistling a tune he had  heard at sometime during the past few weeks and that had stuck in his head, he walked into the manor bar. he was hoping his other self would make good on the promise that they'd have a drink or two together. He most definitely wanted to find out a bit more about him. As important it was to know both your friends and enemies inside out - it was certainly even more important to know yourself, if you were planning to end the world.

In the door that lead to the bar, he stopped to see who else was present, if anyone.
 
 

Comments

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

Loki picked up the cards, gave himself a mildly reproachful look before arranging him in an order that appeared to please him.

"Incidents of what sort?" he asked casually.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"Someone not complying with the rules. Trying to kill or harm or whatever a citizen of the village or one of the people here. Anything. I jsut want to know if there's a precendent for what might happen."

He waited to see if the other Loki would start playing a card, then added:

"I'd feel safer if I knew how safe I was from retaliation for escaping," although he was pretty sure that the other one would know it for a half-truth at best.

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

Loki casually threw out a card as if at random. This was the first time, he realised, that he didn't know his own hand.

"Upper Tadfield's fair game, we think," he remarked. "So if you're afraid," a smirk "You'd better not leave Lower Tadfield."

Maybe one shouldn't accuse oneself of cowardice, but on the other hand, Odin certainly would have.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"You need to draw a new one", Loki reminded his other self as he chose a card and casually flipped it on top of the other two.

"You think. So you're not sure? Has anyone ever tried?"

If that one didn't know himself well enough to know he wasn't a coward, then that was his problem. Let them think him weak. That way some of the things he intended to say would appear much less threatening.

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"We did," Loki said deliberately vaguely. "But Adam wasn't here at the time, so ..." He shrugged. "We're pretty sure, anyway."

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

Loki took up a new card and waited for the other one to make his choice.

"How often is he gone? And for how long?"

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

Loki shrugged. "He was gone when I arrived and didn't show up until this morning. If he has regular traveling habits, I haven't had the chance to figure them out."

He casually threw down another card this time picking up a replacement, but not even looking at it.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"But he's here now?" Loki asked, carefully selecting a card, putting it down on the stack and looking at his other self. "Swords," he said as he took a new card and squinted at it as if he didn't like what he saw and hoped that he would be able to change the card if only he concentrated on it hard enough.

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"He's here," Loki confirmed. "Or was, I don't think he lives in the manor, probably has his own place somewhere in town. Nobody really seemed to know when I asked."

This was bad. He had one swords card, but no more. Reducing his hand had been a bad idea while he had no matching pack on him. He had to palm some cards soon, but it was too early in the game. His other self was bound to notice, if some of the fallen cards disappeared.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"Do me a favor and point him out to me when we see him, will you?" Loki asked.

"Are you going to play a card or not?"

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Of course," Loki promised and looked around for Adam, even though he knew he'd left the bar a while before his other self had arrived.

"What? Oh, sorry, almost forgot," he threw down his only swords card and picked up two new ones without looking at them.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"I have a strange way of counting," Loki remarked, putting down a card of Cups that matched the number of the other Sword's, thereby indicating that he had not needed the swords at all, but only requested them on a whim.

I took a new card, wondering if they were playing the same game at all. If so, an additional card on your hand could mean you were going to lose.

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"How so?" Loki asked. Neither of the cards he'd drawn was much use, but one of them was cups, so he threw that down and slipped the other into his sleeve.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"Because I just took two cards," Loki said drily, putting down another one.

"Your turn."

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Well, I guess in that case I should better throw down two as well," Loki said dropping two random cards onto the table and taking one.

"So, I take it you haven't met any of the others in your travels lately?"

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"No, I haven't," Loki confirmed. "I only met mortals who didn't even recgnize our name."

He took a card from the stack, glanced at it and tossed it onto the heap.

"Honestly, I have no idea where they are."

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Well, I have a very vague idea where my versions of hem are," Loki said with a shrug. "And you can't have met a lot of humans, if none of them knew our name. Most have heard of us, though they're not too clear about the details."

He threw the next card out of his wrist in an almost horizontal line and it slid in under the rest of the stack. "Aw, missed."

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"I met a few, but most of them were completely blank where we were concerned," Loki retorted.

"That was a four of coins, wasn't it?" He grinned and put down a seven of coins on top of the stack, drew a fresh card and shoved it at his other self. "You forgot to draw again, you know."

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Actually," Loki claimed. "I'm pretty sure it was swords. And you said I drew too many earlier, remember?"

At least his two of coins fit nicely on top of his seven.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

Putting down another card, loki indicated to the barman to refill his cup.

"You're sure you don't want any mead?" he asked hies other self, still barely able to believe.

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Yes, very sure," Loki confirmed. "I'm sorry if that doesn't provide you with the entertainment you were hoping for."

He took another sip of carrot juice before dropping a random card onto the pile.

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"Ah well," Loki said. "So, does this town offer anything that one can do in the evenings? Or is it just sitting here and drinking and playing cards night after night?"

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"There's a 'disco' near the town center, where the teenagers hang out," Loki explained. "Too noisy to play cards or talk and not quite crowded enough for easy pickpocketing. And then there's the pubs. Mostly regulars drinking beer. They can be quite interesting, if they get over the fact that you're a stranger. This seems to be the only proper bar, though and Belial keeps it stocked with everything you can imagine. Like carrot juice."

[norseloki.livejournal.com]

"Carrot juice." Loki shook his head. "Are you lacing that with something?" He took a sip of his mead, very obviously enjoying the drink.

"Regarding the 'disco', though... Have you grown soft, to dislike a challenge?"

[leucemic-god.livejournal.com]

"Nope," Loki replied with a happy grin. "Fresh and pure is best. And it's healthy, too, can you believe it? Me, liking healthy stuff."

"The disco's full of kids with nothing but their pocket money. Most interesting thing to do there would probably be to turn into a puppy and beg for ear scratches." He laughed. "Or maybe a rat and take a little tour behind the bar? That might be entertaining."