Test Drive #4

[felldenmods]

Welcome to the January test drive! We're so excited to have you with us!

A few things of note:

✦ Test drive threads can be considered game-canon if you choose. They're essentially in a shared dreamscape and take place between your character leaving their world and arriving in the audience hall with their faction leader.
✦ Reserves will open at 12:01 AM UTC on February 1st, and continue to be until 11:59 PM UTC on February 7th. This is to reserve a character, not an application slot.
✦ Applications will open at 12:01 AM UTC on the 8th, and remain open until 11:59 PM UTC on the 15th, or until all application slots have been filled. Once Activity Check ends, we will have an application slot number available on the application page. The IC & OOC intro logs will be posted two days later.
✦ We have added a Suitability section to the application. Check it out! We will be requiring this going forward as it not only helps players see if their character is a good fit for the game but it lets the mod team gather some ideas about direction for your character!
✦ Questions? We have a FAQ that's chock full of good information! If they are test drive specific, we have a top level thread below that allows for OOC questions to be posted.
✦ The network is available to use! No matter where your character is, their compass arrived on their person. Please feel free to include a network post in your top-levels! Once opened, the compass will display instructions on use, such as using voice-commands to activate it. Usernames are your characters first name or their most common nickname.
✦ Below will be a header for OOC questions as well as a request for Death or its Attendants if you risk placing a coin in their offering bowl.
✦ As in December, a secondary blessing will be available in February to those that tag others on the TDM!

All set? Perfect! Welcome to Fellden.

AS THE MOON RISES. You’ll find yourself just outside the Temple gates, which will be locked if you try to open them. A little rude, keeping you out after bringing you all this way, and the more you try to look up at the Temple structure the more insistent guards become in pushing you down the pathway to somewhere else. The thing is, you can hear a lot of commotion in the distance, and smoke rising from the center of a district; you may want to check that out. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire! Except the smoke is not at all something to be concerned over. Instead, people are gathered near a large bonfire in the decorated city square, drinking and carousing, singing songs of celebration; Moon saviors have arrived! War winners! The residents of the city laugh and sing and dance in pairs throughout the square, grateful for those who have come to aid them. Their merriment doesn’t dwindle as the sun begins to set on the horizon, twin moons rising in its place. When you (and other new arrivals) are finally noticed by the revelers, do not expect to be left alone! Chrysanthemums will be offered as brooches or corsages, food and drink placed into your hands, while live musicians play loud enough for the dead to hear — for this is a celebration dedicated to them. Several were lost in the battle held the previous weeks, and the Priestess has decreed a time of mourning through revelry. Spirits must be kept up, even in these dark times. You’ll be invited to dance, to drinking games, and offered food and flowers and other items of value. Some may cry when they look into your face, thanking you for becoming their champions during this long and exhaustive war. Hopefully you’re here to enjoy the festivities despite the pall that may hang over the town. Sneaking off is just fine, too, but don’t expect to be let go of quietly; the people of the Moon Temple are so happy to see you! Enjoy the celebration while it lasts long into the night. If you do manage to leave, a helpful citizen of the Temple will inform you of the nearby transport mirrors that will take you anywhere on the map, one of which they will provide to you.

THE SETTING STARS. You'll find upon your arrival that the castle is not accepting visitors as they prepare the interior for a solemn remembrance of those lost. Guards at the door will instead direct you to the center of the city where most of Starfolk have gathered to say their goodbyes and reminisce of memories past. Venturing there, you'll be greeted either by those who are serving food and drink from nearby taverns, or those with drawn faces tired from battle. Or perhaps you're a late arrival and the worst of the exhaustion has left the city, now imbued with laughter and happier memories! Those loyal to the Court of Stars greet the newcomers with guarded gratitude in their eyes and wary hesitance. How many more of these Otherworlders will betray them, they wonder out loud. If you try and take a seat with a party or three, chances are the conversation will halt as soon as you grow near, and the longer you stay the more uncomfortable the gathered people become. Trust is not easily gained in the Court of Stars; broken now as it is, the natives of this world fear the worst for their Emperor. Will you help us, or will you hurt us, they ask, wanting to believe they still have a chance at surviving this exhaustive war. Whether you choose to remain for the remembrance or wander off, one thing is certain: things must turn around for the Stars soon. If you do manage to sneak off, a hopeful citizen of the Court will inform you of the nearby transport mirrors that will take you anywhere on the map, one of which they will provide to you.

MARKETS OF THE COAST. The coastal city of Kyst is abuzz with an extra amount of people who sought refuge here during the attack on the Moon Temple. Some calm had finally started to settle but now the foundation has once more been shaken. Newcomers will be welcomed with smiling faces from merchants as they look to try to sell their wares. Tavern owners and barkeeps will beckon with the promise of warm food and delightful drinks, a place by the fire, and information to help you find your bearings. The air is rife with the scent of the coastline, fishermen bringing in their haul from the day. Perhaps if you pay enough attention, you'll hear or smell something you recognize from your home; as Fellden is the beginning of all worlds, it wouldn't be an impossible likelihood! Those looking for something more exciting will find closer to the northern border of Kyst a rather curious bi-pedal cat bouncing on its back legs. It flags you down with a wave of its paw, asking excitedly if you'd like to flex your claws into a juicy quest. You're just the hunter for the job! Purr-fect in every way! Out in the wild lands there's a great beast in a deep river, and it's bothering all the people who live in the nearby town! They can't get fresh water or fish for their meals; it's furr-ightening! If you agree to help, the cat will explain that the creature is a Nokken that has been luring many a brave fisher to their untimely death. It must be removed either by force or by convincing it to leave! Help them, Hero-wan Kenobi, you're their meownly hope!

BEYOND THE CITIES. In the distance from Kyst, a large forest looms, the Gods Wood imposing even from this distance. Should you travel there, everyone you encounter will urge you to be respectful while within the forest. There, people can be found visiting intricately decorated shrines, and leaving offerings for their passed. If you catch their eye, they will beg of you to pay respects as well, and press a gold coin into your palm. Offer a wish or a happy memory to who you miss and place the coin into Death's offering bowl and there's a chance someone will be there to speak with you. Be mindful of your actions though; those that show disrespect will be forcibly removed from the Gods Wood by the trees. If the forest is too intimidating, Terebellum is open for semester registration, and the grounds are even more regal with a light dusting of snow all around. Students of all branches of magic can be found exploring the campus and practicing their craft. If you're lucky, perhaps you can find a teacher who will explain what is offered here at the University. But ah, there's a catch! Tuition is extremely expensive, so you must impress your faction leaders if you wish to widen your breadth of knowledge within these walls!

Comments

[coagulant]

[Louis, on the other hand, is the king of frowns, as his facial lines just dig a bit deeper down his face. thankfully, he'll never age so frown lines won't be a thing he needs to worry about. the beauty of staying 20 forever.]

She... was a human once.

[he's very much in the camp of "maybe this is a bad thing to talk about" judging by his intonation and demeanor.]

"Queen" was more of an ideological name rather than an appointment of duty or nobility. But I suppose you're right, it does have a certain level of defiance attached to the nomenclature.

[sup, you can call him mr. "I hide my feelings behind extreme rationalizations" Amamiya]

[mirrortide]

[it's honestly the saddest thing.]

No? Why would it be a metaphor?

[Please be kind, she's still very bad at humans, and Steven is NOT here to bridge the unfortunate gap.]

[irondad]

( Tony doesn't let her hand go until they're through the portal and on the road into the Temple city, pulling Pepper close against the cold wind that greets them on the other side.

By the time they reach the tailors, it's properly gusting, but he's there to help her off once he's dismounted and tied the horse, hands up to catch her if need be.

Once inside, they're set upon by shop assistants, who take Tony's cloak, his furs and gloves, and turn to politely relieve Pepper of her cloak. That attempt, needless to say, goes waved off. Introductions follow, to the owner, Ylva, and her younger brother Ari.

Kind and patient, Ylva won't hear a word of business until an assistant brings Pepper a warm robe, with hot tea for both of her customers, urging them further into the shop and onto the settee closer to the fire. This should be familiar territory, as the walls around them are full of fabric of every name and color, and past the peek of curtain beyond, there's the rim of a tailor's dais, where he knows there's mirrors and a retinue of more assistants waiting to pounce.

Pepper needs...everything, pretty much, a winter wardrobe and all its accoutrements, so much it might seem overwhelming. Ylva is undaunted, however, and all too soon has to take Pepper away for measurements. )

I'll be right here, ( he promises her brightly, hiding his restlessness all too well. )

[euphemism]

"I don't think I know enough to know where to begin." She looks out over the assembled crowd and their party, mulling over her options. Might as well start with the obvious: "Have you seen others like me? Tieflings. Horns, tails, attractive shades of blue through red."

If there are no others it means that she's either in very big trouble (because they're all dead or driven off) or she can cause a little trouble. If they don't know what she is, all the better, hmm?

[terraria]

[ Worse then amnesia, then, and he didn't know that was possible. Yet the claim brings some confusion, his wings wrapping around him once more for warmth.

Of all people, he felt the least emblematic of what magic had to offer, given how he used it. ]

Both...? From my understanding - and I shall make clear that while I can cast spells normally, I wouldn't call myself a mage proper but it's the best word we have - mages are born with an affinity to a magic. It is akin to being born with talent, however. It will only take you so far. A mage must study and learn their magic to handle it properly and truly shine.

Those without a natural gift for magic can learn it, however. It takes dedication and work, but one with magical talent that's too lazy to work at it will always be worse than someone with no magical talent who trains vigorously.

Mmmm... I think magic must seem boring, put that way. It's not very different from many other things.

[vegvisir]

[Thor's good humor has been rare these last few months, coming in fleeting glimmers that find themselves chased away far too quickly to be able to find a true foothold more often than not, but with the stranger's words Thor finds himself letting loose the sort of loud, full, warm-bellied laugh he hasn't heard from himself in far too long.] If he had his way, no one would dare disagree.

[There are no words, no vocabulary in any language across the universe, to express how deeply Thor misses his Loki. For all their differences, all of their troubles and misunderstandings, it's an undeniable fact that life is more bleak without Loki's wild chaos to set it alight. No matter how often they'd crashed together and rebounded apart, their paths long since diverged despite his best efforts, Thor never truly believed he would have to face a world without his brother in it. That this stranger could give him even one blessed moment to remember Loki with bright joy instead of the dark sorrow he's been plagued by? It's a gift Thor could never be rich enough to repay in kind.

But when he turns to say as much, the achingly familiar flash and flicker of golden green magic leaves any words he meant to part with dying upon his tongue.

It's a cruel trick. It must be, he's nearly convinced of it, because the sight being revealed before his eyes could have no other explanation. Loki was dead. Thor had watched him draw his last breath, had his dreams haunted time and time again by the echoing crack of Loki's neck giving out under Thanos' grip before the life drained from his eyes, and no plea, no amount of desperate bargaining with any God that would listen, could change the cold finality Thor found when he cradled his brother's broken body to himself one last time.

And yet here he stands before Thor all the same, laying a pathway of easy mockery and flippant criticisms between them as if nothing has changed, and Thor has to resist the urge to irrational urge to hold his breath as if one wrong move would see the illusion in front of him dissolve to nothing. He looks nothing like Thor's last memories of him. Gone are his battle-ruined leathers. Gone is the soot and the blood from the pale angles of his face, the blood bursts in eyes that are no longer glassy, empty shells of their former selves, and Thor feels his own eyes stinging with the violent surge of emotion that swells inside of him to see Loki looking so whole. So alive.

So much of Thor's life has been ruled by it, directed by the strength of his fury or halted by cloying weight of grief, and it would be so easy to drown under the maelstrom of shame and joy and regret and relief that threatens to grow beyond his control the longer he finds himself frozen in place before the man in front of him. He can't parse the entirety of Loki's words over the rushing in his ears, wouldn't be able to find his voice to respond even if he could, and Thor is only distantly aware of the tremors rolling through his body as he lifts an unsteady hand to Loki's face as though caught in a trance.

He expects this to be a lie right up to the moment his fingers meet the sharp rise of Loki's cheek and it's only as Thor feels the firm smoothness of it under his touch rather than the empty air he'd been braced to find does he finally let go the breath locked inside his chest in a great, shuddering exhale. He feels weak, the force of his shock and disbelief and relief nearly enough to bring him to his knees, and there's wetness on his face that Thor is blind to as he drags Loki tightly against himself in a crushing hug, his voice a ruin when he finds the one word he can manage:] Brother.

[summonere]

[ The more uncomfortable others become, the easier it is for that smirk to sit on V's face. Arrogance is how he hides most of his own feelings, and it was hard to tell when he was play-acting and when he was being genuine. It's hard even for him to tell, but his sense of self is rocky. He is only 92 days old, and still finding his identity as a separate being to the half-demon who created him. ]

Now you have a Priestess and an Emperor to contend with.

[ And they were embodiments of something. V is researching it, trying to understand exactly what they are to this world. ]

[notched]

[ Surprise shows on her face for a second, then it closes off into sullenness and sorrow. ]

I don't share my wishes with the gods. You don't know how warped it might become in their voice.

[yinception]

"I have not. Tieflings..." He makes a show of considering the term - or, rather: he thinks it over seriously for .2 seconds before going for the humorous approach instead. That it's more of an inside joke certainly doesn't limit his enjoyment any, and he delivers the statement as deadpan as can be: "I only know Jin Lings. Not as attractive, predominantly yellow in color. No horns or tail, though their attitude is as much like an angry kitten's as a spoiled young lady's."

Satisfied with his gentle(?) roasting of his nephew, he finishes the rest of his drink, immediately depositing the empty cup in the hands of a partying Moon passing by. "Well, it's not as if I've seen every species here. Supposedly this is the origin of all worlds, and hence everything from all the worlds might be found here."

[efficacy]

[ Okay, look. Pepper can't deny he has something of a point. With the first thing at least, and possibly the second one, too. Still, for the moment she remains more wryly amused than anything. ]

Or, if we're really unlucky, both of those things are true.

[ ...It's almost like she's deliberately trying to stoke his paranoia. She isn't, but it could look that way. ]

[euphemism]

Even if she doesn't know the target, Illumination clearly approves of the sass. Yes, good. Whoever or whatever a Jinling is, they deserve a little mockery. Perhaps they're some flavour of tiny djinn?

"Supposedly." She has her doubts about that, please and thank you. "In that case, I've two more questions, if you'd be so good: first, what is there for work around here; and second, what do you wish someone had told you on your first day?"

[efficacy]

Ten thousand years? [ That's... wow. ]

Then why start now, does anyone know? Are they running out of troops of their own to throw at this war?

ahhh hello, I just started watching The Untamed!

[highremembrance]

[ With drink and food in either hand, he seems so much more at ease in this setting than most she has encountered within the wood; perhaps that was what drew her to proffer the coin, thinking that she wouldn't be transferring a burden onto someone who would also be troubled by it. A look of surprise flashes across her face before she sorts it into something more polite at his suggestion that she pocket the offering. ]

Y-You are not here to pay your respects? [ A pause, in which she can't help the smile starting to crook the corner of her mouth. ] Stealing from the house of the gods sounds like a pretty punishable offense.

[ Like mauled-by-bears punishable, or whatever divine retribution counts as the order of the day here. ]

Oh, it's not that. More like... [ She hems a moment, deciding it would be best not to openly declare that, in her world, she and her people consider themselves enemies of God. ] I am not familiar with the practice of worshiping more than one god.

[yinception]

He lets out a soft little 'heh' at her none-too-subtle doubt - but hey, it's not like he can confirm or deny, either. There are a lot of things like that around here, unfortunately. May as well treat it like half a game.

"Work? There's the war, of course. The High Priestess will expect you to get involved sooner rather than later, so you may as well pick a side of war you're good at, and at least pretend to be doing it." He gives her a look up and down. "... Maybe not infiltration. No offense, but you do stand out a bit."

The other question is a lot harder - so of course he goes for a joke answer first. "You can get even Emperor's Smile here, so don't worry about missing anything from your own world." He's clearly not very invested in telling the joke, not bothering to explain what Emperor's Smile is just yet. He should really consider how that makes him look, all things considered, but he doesn't care.

But okay, okay... A real answer - or an attempt at one. "The information I want is information I still don't have. What the truth is behind this war, who's right and who's wrong..." In a way, it's not so bad to have that puzzle persist: it's definitely interesting. But the lack of prospect of improvement in his near total ignorance does bother him a bit. He wants to do what he believes is right - but how can he do that when he has no idea what the right thing to do is? "So perhaps the answer is: don't hope to find answers anytime soon, for even your respected senior Otherworlders don't have a clue." Just like he doesn't, in spite of being her obviously highly respected senior here.

omigosh, congratulations on your excellent life choice, but also: prepare to be destroyed

[yinception]

It's not stealing if it was never theirs to start. [He shrugs, genuinely not seeing a problem here.] But to answer your question: I am here to pay my respects. To one. [He raises the apple.] And to another.

[He raises the bottle, then decides he'll take the first drink after all. Unplugging it with his teeth, he takes a good swig, making a bit of a face before nodding vehemently in approval. It's not like the types of alcohol he's used to, far sharper and smokier in taste, but it's damn good all the same. He exhales sharply after he swallows, trying to deal with the burn.]

... Well, I was never planning to let him have all of it.

[He grins like a child who's especially proud of himself. What a fine, mature adult he is.]

You only worship one god? [Huh. That's pretty strange - and yet, not the strangest, if he thinks about it.] It's true that small villages would often worship only at a local shrine, but even then, it was understood that there were more gods out there than the one under worship.

Well, the gods here are different from the ones I know, as well.

[efficacy]

[ Preoccupied by the news, Pepper remains silent for the rest of their trek even through the unsettling portal, huddling slightly against Tony's back when the winds pick up. She's fairly positive she can no longer freeze or anything -- shouldn't there be some perks to being turned into a fire monster against your will, after all? -- but the cold gusts are still less than pleasant. She's thankful to finally make it back indoors.

The tailor's shop is both a welcome distraction and a feast for the senses, Pepper's gaze sliding eagerly over the bolts of fabrics in all colors imaginable; from lush velvets to practical cottons and seductive silks. She wouldn't consider herself a fashionista though she pays close attention to her personal sense of style and did some modelling when she was younger-- but this is still a more familiar environment than any other she's yet come across in Fellden. The staff are perfectly welcoming, and observing the interactions over the rim of her tea cup, Pepper gleans Tony spoke the truth earlier; he is clearly well-acquainted with Ylva and the others. The woman in question soon whisks Pepper away so they can begin, but not before she meets Tony's eyes with a hint of a question in them. ]

Alright, [ she nods with a small smile, wishing she could promise they'd be quick, but she can't know if they will. She just knows waiting is not Tony's strongest suit.

But Ylva turns out to be a professional to the bone and about as efficient as Pepper herself, and the CEO delights in making her acquaintance. The measurements are taken in a flash, and between the two of them plus a group of assistants, it takes barely a few minutes to put together a small list of the essentials Pepper needs as soon as possible, Ylva promising to outfit her properly now and have the rest sent to her quarters. Pepper is only too happy to instruct the woman to dispose of the clothes she came in wearing as she receives new ones more compliant with Fellden's style and climate. But when Pepper subtly encroaches the issue of payment, Ylva merely smiles and urges her not to concern herself over that. Though slightly puzzled, Pepper doesn't press the woman further.

It's closer to half hour later when Pepper emerges beyond the curtains and rejoins Tony, clad now in a warm woollen dress a few shades darker than her eyes, fitting her perfectly. ]

Are you going stir-crazy already?

[ She gets no reply before Ylva follows in her wake, stepping up to lay a beautiful dove gray cloak over Pepper's arm, the hood trimmed with what's probably wolf fur, tiny silver moons embroidered along the hem. ]

Oh! [ A little taken aback by this yet another kindness, Pepper runs a hand over the soft material. ] Thank you so much for everything. You've been incredibly accommodating.

[coagulant]

[despite the overabundance of haughty smirks, Louis does take a moment to think about that- and the juxtaposition against what happened back in his home world. he's quiet for a moment. when he thinks about it, he knows he owes the Moon Temple his gratitude for accepting him, providing him with blood to survive, and giving him a general direction to head towards... but his goals aren't really aligned to the faction leader's. or, conversely, with the other faction as well.

but he knows the danger, has read the warning signs on the faces of people, listened into conversations he wasn't explicitly invited into. war is war, is war, is war. it's dangerous to pledge allegiance, and doubly so to abstain from doing it.]

I take it that you have your doubts about them.

[it's a small give, but necessary.]

[vegvisir]

If that were the case, I imagine the villagers would have solved this problem themselves long before now.

[It's not that Thor refuses to entertain the possibility of de-escalation without bloodshed. For all that a fair many from his youth may know him as someone eager to land blows first and ask questions later, hard won experience has taught him the benefit of finding the path to least resistance when coming to an understanding is so often just within reach.

But that doesn't mean Thor can't be realistic. Just as often, the only understanding to be found is a shallow grave.] And if it refuses to be reasonable?

[coagulant]

[he understands her-

well, not the gods part. he's pretty sure that if they existed, they've abandoned his world long ago. the Great Collapse that ensued made that entirely evident.]

Giving a wish a form makes it all the more vulnerable.

[at least, in some aspect, he gets it.]

I take it you've had dealing with gods before and it didn't turn out very well. One thing I've discovered since coming here is that nothing operates the same way it did back home. Who knows what this pantheon of beings are capable of.

[he's not paranoid. who said that.]

[coagulant]

It... doesn't really seem that boring to me.

[he takes stock of the conversation, committing the insight to memory. he takes a guess internally, assuming that Aspen belongs to the category of beings from his world that are born with it. he can't tell if it's an off base assumption.]

We revenants have something of a parallel to draw from. Our blood's genetics guide what we're capable of. I guess you could call it a sort of blood magic.

[is that dark magic? god, who knows.

more importantly- he notices Aspen trying to keep warm and he frowns at the sight of it.]

Are you cold?

markets/coast

[puppetgirl]

[ It's almost a breath of fresh air being out by the coast, away from the Court. Even though it's a dreamscape. Better than being in a cramped cell. Although there's an occasional glance in Orchid's direction. The neutral territory is a place for natives and either faction, including others aligned with Stars. Some soldiers scattered among the crowd may recognize the girl from the battle, not too long ago.

Fortunately, there are some who don't treat her with the same wary stare, unaware of her treasonous actions. Such as the cute bi-pedal cat, which kind of reminds her of her favorite kind of stuffed animal. If she can help, then she'll try to help. Accepting the little feline's request has brought her to team up with an unfamiliar woman. Quietly, she clings onto her orange plush cat in her arms, while waiting for Fraux to finish observing her reflection.

Just as the Sky Realm is home to a variety of races, so is the world of Fellden. However, this is a first here she has seen someone possessing the same qualities as a skydweller. An Erune? Or perhaps it's merely a coincidence that this newcomer shares similar traits. Orchid's red eyes are briefly fixed on the pair of fluffy ears, before addressing the woman's question. ]

Mm. I was thinking of pulling them out by force.

[bathrobed]

( Thor certainly looks vaguely ensorcelled, his expression slack and his eyes fixed on Loki as if in the presence of a spectre. It's more than a little worrying: Loki has seen his brother grieving, seen him beaten, seen him banished to Midgard without his powers, but the pain wracking his frame as he stands there before him is nothing short of shocking. )

Thor ...

( It shifts into an uneasy clench of concern when Thor lifts his hand to his cheek. How long has it been, he wonders, since they touched one another in anything vaguely resembling camaraderie? How long has it been since they clasped arms as bothers, embraced as friends, or shared the childish closeness of their youth? Loki can't pinpoint when he decided that comfort was a sign of weakness, nor when he began rejecting Thor's attempts to help him see otherwise, but the touch to his cheek throws into sharp relief just how long it's been since he chose to simply feel. Any other time he'd have leant away from a hug—maybe even swatted at his hand with some sharp quip about keeping his distance—but this time? The intensity of Thor's expression keeps Loki rooted to the spot. Something isn't right. )

For pity's sake, Thor—

( But Loki barely has time to unfold his arms before Thor pulls him into a hug that grinds at his very bones, his cheeks wet with tears and his shoulders shaking with deep tremors of emotion. A frown pinches his brow. Is this what Hela has left behind? Gods, is there even an Asgard left for them to return to? Loki stiffens in his arms as increasingly traumatising worst case scenarios tear across the back of his mind. His plans, his deal with the Emperor, all of it hinges on Asgard being salvageable, and if it isn't ...

... Well, that's something for him to consider in private. It's becoming increasingly apparent that Thor isn't about to let up any time soon: the grip he has on him is tight—far too tight for him to extricate himself from it without resorting to some kind of violence—and the state he's in at the moment? No. Now isn't the time to push. Loki sighs heavily as he settles his arms around Thor's waist in a careful embrace, his lips pressing to a thin line as he feels his heart begin to stutter against his ribs. In truth, watching Thor suffer isn't any fun when he hasn't had a hand in it.

In truth, Loki just wants to make somebody pay. )

Let me guess: you've realised that refusing to visit me during my imprisonment was excessively cold of you.

( He says sardonically, determined to maintain the pretence of his distance. He won't let himself think about how long it's been since he held Thor. He can't let himself think about it, not right now, and so he turns his thoughts to the variety of ways he might be able to rend Hela limb from limb. )

Or has your precious Midgardian finally ended it once and for all? I wouldn't worry, we can always find you another mortal to pine over.

[efficacy]

[ Pepper is so incensed it takes her a moment to catch onto the fact that another person is getting involved in the argument, busy staring down the merchant with her most forbidding of stares that works on 99% of all stubborn representatives of the male gender. She turns a little to include this mysterious third party, the empathetic yes, thank you! in response to the excellent counter dying on her lips.

Stunned astonishment follows, flickering visibly across her face. Is she seeing things? Is this merely a very good lookalike, or is this actually Loki, that Loki that let the Chitauri into New York and tried to take over Earth?

Pepper struggles to regain her wits from the surprise, corralling her galloping thoughts and emotions. She can't fight on two fronts simultaneously, so to speak, so she lets that matter rest for now and focuses on the merchant who's now visibly cowed, figuratively sweating bullets. ]

I don't think that's something you wish to risk. Contrary to popular belief, there is such a thing as bad press.

[ Just look at Justin Hammer after the Expo debacle. The merchant hurries to placate, but Pepper shakes her head a little, lips pressing into an unhappy line for a beat. ]

Maybe I'll come back later, to see if your customer service has turned more equitable to all parties. Good day.

[ It doesn't sound like a well-wishing, despite the words. The merchant takes the hint and tucks tail, retreating to the other end of the long counterspace of the stall to nervously serve another patron. Pepper eyes Loki next. ]

Auspicious timing, Mr...?

[ It's a trap, she wants to see how he'll introduce himself. ]

[sweariff]

[At first, Bigby thinks he's crossed paths with just another Felldenian. The guy looks, talks, and dresses like any other native to this world; soldier is the first thing that comes to mind.

But then Bigby notices the constellation tattoo, inked in dark purple, that marks him as an Otherworlder. That in itself is notably more interesting, but not as much as the guy's attitude. From his experience, warrior types usually fall within one of two categories: boisterous, loud and obnoxious; and moody, ill-tempered, and cold. This guy looks like like he could be the first, but then he had to go and be thoughtful.

Bigby shrugs easily, reaching for the door. He'll take thoughtful any day of the week, forever and ever.]

It's okay. You're going my way anyway, and honestly... [He pushes the door open and holds it.] Between you and me, a measure sounds pretty good right about now.

[He isn't smiling, but his voice gives the impression that he is anyway.]

[merging]

Like... lightsaber fun?

[Because he is always here for lightsaber fun and it definitely shows on his face.]