Pictures of last night ended up online, I'm screwed

[ofmyth]

WHO: Thor (ofmyth), Loki (selfimage), a bunch of booze, and everyone!
WHERE: Safehouse 2.0
WHEN: Late afternoon, evening, night on the 28th.
WHAT: Some people took down the monster, some people kept the group safe, some people snuck off to steal booze. They can all celebrate together.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: This is a post-event mingle! Loki stole a bunch of alcohol and Thor is going to make sure everyone gets some. Debrief, have fun, get wreckt, prepare for tfln the next morning.
Tag your own/check individual threads for specific warnings.

[When Loki hears the news of the Godzilla's demise, it takes a moment to sink in. There were doubts when a handful of the refugees wanted to run out and play hero, especially with their lack of abilities (for those who had them). He expected Thor to come back content on his involvement at best, broken and nursing his own failure, at worst. This? This is better than the best, and it's worthy of celebration. I's hard not to be pleased, hard not to congratulate; it's Thor's victory post the fall of Asgard, and Loki's sure that he's reveling in it.

Then, comes the booze: all different bottle shapes and sizes, some dark with lighter liquid, others opaque filled with something that has a more amber tint. It's unloaded carefully by all of them, messily lined up on the frames of one of the cots..

Thor looks to be almost a different creature than the moping, sullen thing he'd been since they arrived in the safehouse. Getting to his feet he stands taller, shoulders held back, a bright look in his eyes. Loki backs him up, tinking a metal spoon against one of the bottles to get everyone's attention. As Thor speaks he looks around the room, seeking out the eyes of everyone present.]

Seven days ago we were strangers. We were brought into an underground bunker, unsure of who we were and how we had come here. Some were angry, some afraid, others unsure. It's thanks to the aid and kindness of Gaby and El that we survived at all, here in this foreign city. Today, we have proven we will not merely surivive here.

[Thor hasn't met everyone here, but that's ultimately not the point. In his mind they are in this together, for better or worse. There is a 'we' who celebrate together now just as much as there is a 'they' who are responsible for their being here.]

Today we have repaid Gaby her kindness. Today we have protected not only her people here in the safehouse, but the people of the city. Today we have proved our strength to ourselves, to the city, to any who are watching us. Today, we set fear in the heart of our captor. [He seems to relish that last one most of all.]

Seven days ago we had little to celebrate. Today we raise a toast—[Up goes his bottle, held high and triumphant.] To us! To what we have done today! To victory!

[Loki chimes in, shaking the little bottle in his hand.] To New Amsterdam!

[Thor's arm is held high while others raise their drinks, then Thor upends his to drain it in a long pull.]

Comments

[selfimage]

[ it's nice listening to the stories of others, and there's so very many here. it's dry, but he's receptive. she hasn't lost his attention yet.

many things came from space: Kree, Skrulls, Thanos, ancient gods, other realms, etcetera etcetera. it was a big place where oddities by Earth standards became the norm. he had spent time out there with the Young Avengers (and robbing people while playing cards), but never thought much of it—it was just another place to go.

he presses his lips into a thin line and tips his head at her. ]

You got me there. [ amused, he takes another drink. ] But I've seen a lot of things. This? [ there's a shrug that indicates a general what's around them. ] It's not entirely surprising.

[ with a sigh he leans back. ]

And while violating, better than some alternatives.

[strove]

I'd believe that. ["Believe" and not "know"—the latter is far more applicable given what she's known. Clarke doesn't choose to distance herself from that fact. It comes all too naturally. She doesn't even think twice as the words slip out. Once they're out there, though, she debates walking them back and clarifying, but ultimately decides against it.

There's no point.]

I'll have to get you to tell me sometime about the rest of space. Like I said, we were a little limited. [Her return to this over choosing the violation route is very purposeful, however. She takes her drink and downs it. It burns, but she can manage the feeling in her throat.]

Unless you have some particularly interesting stories you can share tonight. Ones that don't involve the V word. [Loki likes to bring things back to a point, and she's noticed as much. So, she does the same, nodding toward her with her intentional poking at "violation" and its role in their conversations so far.]

[selfimage]

[ there's a horror awaiting him back in Asgard, and circumstances, manufactured of his own making as much as not, were dire. time was something he did not have plenty of, so this was a welcome detour from his home.

there's a little hm that quirks a little smile across his face. he still looks like he's up to something. ]

That depends on what you're willing to believe.

[ he sounds a little challenging, but a little wistful all the same. ]

[strove]

[Clarke's eyebrows lift just before she reaches over to grab his hand. Her fingertips are warm, but more than that, there's the blue surge of color in her chest, combined with the hazy emotions caused by the alcohol. More than usual, her guilt is less prominent, replaced with fondness and interest. That's not to say that the guilt isn't there. Touching him at all ignites it in her, but not strong enough to make her stop.]

As things stand, I think I have to be far more open-minded than I was when I came to on that bus. [She doesn't let go yet, as holding someone's hand isn't the biggest burden for someone like Clarke.]

[selfimage]

[ this is not the first time that this has happened so deliberately, nor does he figure it will be the last. it serves as a gate for both their emotions, muddled and hazy from alcohol. where Clarke is curious, Loki is elated from their [Thor's] victory, yet still cautious. his fingers twitch in hers, as if he's not used to being touched.

he looks like he's measuring something, but he doesn't let go. ]

I'm holding you to that. [ he waves the bottle with an easy gesture of his other hand. ] Let's see ... my last time in space ... I was playing in an intergalactic poker game. I had to win a key to unlock a box that had a sword in it, for a good measure.

[strove]

Poker. [Fine, they're going to hold hands. Clarke doesn't seem to have a problem with it.]

Are humans credited with poker in your world? Or aliens? Or am I thinking intergalactic in the wrong terms, and you're simplifying the name of the game so I can process it?

[A sly smile blooms. Clarke realizes she just went into full pedant mode and only came out the other side after posing the question.]

I said I was open minded. I didn't say I wouldn't ask questions.

[selfimage]

[ fine, shut up Clarke. this is hand holding and he's only just a little, tiny, tiny, bit uncomfortable with constant physical contact from someone who's not Thor or someone he's not intent on invading their personal space. this is called being kind of stubborn.

Clarke opens the dam to questions and Loki takes a drink. ]

I suppose I'll have to manage. [ there's a sort of feigned distaste that doesn't seem real at all, coupled with the way that his gesture of drawing back the bottle is a little too exaggerated. his bright eyes are half-lidded and he hums as if he's searching for the answer to her questions, even when he already has them. ]

It's the latter rather than the two formers—it was some game with cards and pictures and honestly? [ he pauses and looks amused with himself. ] I learned only enough to cheat. That key to that sword in that box was very important, you see, my mother was quite clear on that.

... Though I can't say I didn't enjoy the looks on the faces of the eclectic bunch of intergalactic alien criminals when they caught me. They were mad.

[ and from his own mix of emotions, he was proud of making them mad. ]

[strove]

[That pride washes over her and she drinks it up, smiling even more widely. There is the sense that holding his hand like this offers some level of discomfort, but she doesn't let go. That gives her some pride—knowing that she has found a place where the needle can poke right back into Loki's side.

It's not surprising that he would feel pride over that. It makes her think of Murphy in a way, and how much he and Loki might get along or might be each other's worst enemies, depending on the circumstances. Murphy bought into "whatever the hell we want" for very specific reasons that are now clearer to her, whereas Bellamy pushed it for other reasons. Something tells her that if Loki were less mature and more like a defiant teenager, he would've been causing trouble for her. A lot of it, actually.

What was survival when they had freedom? And what was wrong with making one lead into the other?

These days, it's hard to say.]

I assume you retrieved the sword. And that your mother knew you'd do it while pissing them off. Yes?

[selfimage]

[ it's not the worst of it, not the deep existential trauma that he keeps buried beneath everything. his discomfort stems from troubled family, and a lifetime of evil deeds. Asgardians were never too good at being affectionate.

he likes his tricks and his schemes, he likes games and he likes to play by rules that he dictates. where Thor had his hammer, Loki had his tricks. ]

My mother didn't care how I got it, as long as it was retrieved. [ he gives an exaggerated sigh. ] She plays the tasteful politics, and I get my hands dirty.

[ but he liked it, to some extent. ]

But that was really it, until my home went out into space, which is another story entirely. [ he cocks his hips, tapping the bottle against his side thoughtfully. ] Maybe you'll get to see the rest of it, one day. Space, that is.

[strove]

Maybe. [Her body language gives off little indication that this is a goal for her. Clarke can see the point in going out to the colonies to get information, but that's only if something points her there. She's far more focused on getting Bellamy and Murphy home. Their people need them.

More specifically, Clarke knows everyone going up to the ring will need Bellamy's leadership, and the longer she's here, the more she worries that they may be left without it.

(Clarke doesn't consider the outcomes where Bellamy not being there would mean that other options remained open.)]

I think your version of space is undoubtedly far more interesting than anything I might experience, especially here.

[selfimage]

[ when you live a long time, there are lots of things to experience. when you're a god, the world becomes smaller in some ways, bigger in others. he had a lot of resources when he pulled that one off, and now he doesn't.

everything seems so much smaller. ]

Oh, who knows? [ he says it a little carelessly. ] You're already an inter-dimensional traveler with the possibility of heading into space. Galactic poker isn't far off.

[ there's a wicked little grin on his face. ]

You could even practice your game.

[strove]

Would you believe it if I said I prefer balancing tricks when it comes to party games? I've never been one for cards. [There was an opportunity here for Clarke to share a piece of information about herself, but it's come and gone. How would Loki take it if he understood her isolation? Truthfully, Clarke still doesn't know how to address how lonely she felt.

And what it nearly drove her to do.]

I have a good poker face, though. When the time calls for it.

[selfimage]

[ perhaps not on the level that Clarke feels it—everyone takes isolation different, but he knows being alone. even when he's surrounded with people, he finds ways of removing himself. he'd have that before the vulnerability. ]

Ah—[ that smile widens. ]—that I wouldn't doubt. Please, spare the poor soul who underestimates you, Clarke.

[ he makes it sound good, but he has a way of making almost everything he says sound good. there's a tone that he uses, weaving words together like they're easy poetry, and letting them flow out again. ]

So, what exactly do you balance? Forks and spoons? Or am I thinking too small?

[strove]

Too big. [Though that wouldn't be a difficult thing to make a game out of on the Ark. They were kids trying to make do with what they had, and what games their parents had passed down through the years.]

We didn't have any coins, but there were small metal circles that were like coins. It was a matter of balancing it, and sending it forward into a cup. If you failed, you drank.

[She smiles in remembrance.]

I always made a point of not failing at something like that.

[selfimage]

[ ah, a drinking game. he's familiar with those. they're not nearly as popular in Asgard as they are in the middle realms. the Asgardians just drank, mostly. occasionally the played games, but the goal was always to drink. ]

Don't tell me you didn't want to drink.

[ but it's a playful barb more than a judgement. ]

[strove]

How much moonshine have you had in your life? [Clarke has had a fair amount, and no matter what, it never seems to get better. But it wasn't like she could find whisky sitting around. Most of it was stored away, hidden for days when they might know their time in space was ending.

And Clarke was too young to be privy to where it was stored.]

[selfimage]

Enough to know that I'm not a fan, but for those who have little to do ...

[ it's not said without bearing in mind some of the poorer choices alcohol that he's buried somewhere in his memories. Asgardians would, and will, always find means of drinking.

even if it's horrible. ]

[strove]

It's less a matter of doing, and more "what" you have. No one chooses that unless they don't have a choice. [Well, generally. She knows it's more of a general statement.]

Though it worked in a pinch. I'd never say otherwise.

[selfimage]

[ there's a bit of a lopsided smile that he offers her, half from the alcohol, and half from the comment. ]

Was it worth the lack of choice? As in, better for a bit of intoxication in the long run than not?

[strove]

Yes. Though you have to understand—most of us didn't know the alternative. Anything better was kept hidden, and I'd only tried something like that once. And my dad made sure to hide it better the next time. [A bottle passed down through the generations. Jake Griffin didn't make a habit of bringing it out, but Clarke was an adventurous kid.]

Either way, up there ... Having a way to ease the pain was good. Very good.