(closed) tell me you've never loved me, tell me it was just a lie

[ikols]

who: loki and billy
what: escapades
when: llllate because NERDING OUT HAS NO CURFEW and neither does thievery
where: sanctum sanctorum
warnings: tba

[ With the sleeves of his shirt smoking and hair singed, a burn stripes down one side of Loki's face from temple to jaw as he barges into the Sanctum at ass o'clock, stripping off his coat to stamp on the blackened parts. Shit. The shadowthread will need reworking. That's going to be time-consuming. His hot vest makes a loud clatter when he dumps the too-warm scalemaille in haste, climbing the stairs as he makes his way toward a working bathroom (not the acid one). By the time he passes multiple doors and makes it to his destination, his eye is stinging and Loki drops to his knees by the sink, elbows hooked over the edge.

When he isn't so dazed he stands and peers into the mirror at the mess several would-be Hel Hounds have made of him, their breath particularly nostalgic from a bird's-eye perspective but never so close up. They weren't purebreds, of course, some moon-twisted Silent Hill remake of Thori, more like split-mouthed hyenas than anything ...

He's glad those jaws never took purchase. He would have totally shredded his coat, never mind his arm.

Making more noise than usual as he goes about washing his wound, disorientated, the godling yelps and curses without any volume control because either Sam is around visiting Stephen and will come by to help or Loki is home alone while the sorcerer is off with his squeeze on a horrendously normal date. Blood drips red onto ceramic, a sheen of blue caught in it when the electric lights shine a certain way.

Above all, Loki sincerely hopes there is some ice cream left in the unchained fridge. ]

Comments

[ikols]

[ His wan smile strengthens when Elliot comes over and Loki coos to the fox, intending to itch behind its ears. ]

Mhm. [ It feels like his bones are vibrating in ways that only Tony's embrace used to stop, now forced to calm that sensation with some intense ignoring without a steadfast lover to keep him tethered to reality. ] What are you reading? You've a great many books assembled.

[wiccant]

( tiny paws settle at loki's chest as elliot moves to press up against him, snout against his neck with another soft yip. billy lifts the book he had been holding, raises it to show it to loki. ) A study into Gerald Gardner's Book of Shadows.

There are a few books on you in the stacks, too. ( which he's leaning over loki to grab for, mug set aside for the moment. ) I found Poetic Edda earlier. And Loki by Mike Vasich. There're a lot of magic books in here--a lot of them don't have titles on the cover, or titles at all. I'm a little hesitant to open them, honestly. Who knows what kind of gremlins Doctor Strange has trapped in here.

[ikols]

[ Smooching that cute snout with pecks to Elliot's whiskers, he cuddles him close while snorting at the list of titles Billy reels off. ]

Ah, those vague and inaccurate accounts. So preferable to a chat on a library floor with the real thing! Billy, if Stephen allows you in here, and especially me, you can bet there's nothing grandiose in terms of evil waiting to pop out of any of these stacks.

[wiccant]

Maybe not evil, but what if I open one up and tribbles start to fall out of it?

( fine then. he moves those specific books into--another pile of books, mildly out of the way and just barely within arm's reach. his fingers instead grab onto an old leather bound, titleless book, and sets it just a bit away from his own mug. )

No one wants to deal with an army of tribbles. --are you sure you're okay?

[ikols]

I know a captain who might like some tribbles ...

[ Jim would push him out of the shuttle if Loki invaded it with fuzzy space-bunnies. ]

I'm good. [ At lying. Yet he's here, not holed up in bed alone and moping, so that says something about how Billy can provoke Loki's social side better than most. ] Pass me one of those horrendously large tomes, maybe I can use one of the spells in them for something handy.

[wiccant]

Do you? Maybe I'll have to sift through these to find the tribble-summoning book, then.

( no, he won't. but billy does grab onto one of the larger, dustier books and sits back in his place, holds that one out to loki before shifting his weight to lean up against his side. his own books can wait, and he's fairly certain he's not going to get any reading done right now, anyway. may as well look over loki's shoulder as he reads instead. )

Maybe later we can sit down and pick apart how inaccurate all the Norse mythology books are.

[ikols]

[ The book on his lap, while fascinatingly decorated within, holds far less of Loki's attention than Billy at his side. With how cold the godling is, Billy is toasty by comparison; not the unnerving firestorm of the Chair or the dogs, rather he is warm and cosy like evenings in Manhattan with the heating turned up and Verity at Loki's side. ]

Wait until someone writes a million books on you, we'll sit down and pore over every single one. All of these books' truths are dependant on the worlds they were taken from.

[wiccant]

Demiurge or not, I'm pretty sure I'll never be famous enough to get as many books as you have. ( it's said lighthearted enough, one hand reaching over to rub at elliot's ears. )

But I'd so sit down and pick them apart, if I was bored enough. Kate and I go through news articles on our down time. Er, did. ( when they were young and stupid and though it was amusing. not nearly comparable to loki's situation, but. ) Does this place have Netflix? We can do that instead.

[ikols]

Nice to know I'll always be your senpai. For the record, I'd say you've been noticed by now.

[ He flips through the vellum pages as one would browse magazine articles. ]

And chill?

[ BA-DUM-PSHHH. ]

[wiccant]

There's no way I can complete with a god. ( especially not one who's been around for as long as loki has been. it's not as if fame has ever been his goal though, so. that's fine. loki can have hundreds of more books than him. the last thing billy needs is hundreds of pages breaking down his life into bits and pieces. )

Add that onto your life goals of things that will probably never happen. Just Netflix.

[ikols]

Tease.

[ Tearing out a spell page, he snaps his fingers and vanishes it back to his bedroom, an illusion brushed over the torn edge with his hand. No one but Billy need ever know! ]

Yeah, I've watched movies with Nico in the lounge, it's in the less strange area of the house. [ Mundane sounds good after the night he's had. ] What do you want to watch?

[wiccant]

( what the hell, loki. no, he doesn't get this book anymore. billy's making a fast grab for the pages as soon as he covers his tracks with illusions. who just rips into books? you monster. )

I haven't decided yet. I figured we could browse until we found something but why are you tearing out pages.

[ikols]

Because I want them and no one else needs to know where I got them. No one will, unless you snitch.

[ Isn't being Loki's friend fun, this is why he sticks to the antihero types like Jason Todd. ]

I thought we were going to spend the whole night browsing for cool spells, [ and stealing them, ] now you want to watch TV?

[wiccant]

You live here! You can't just--rip out spells! You can just take the whole book back if you wanted!

( look being friends with jason todd is a whole other mess of mistakes but also this is now billy's book and he's not letting loki tear out any more pages. )

We're not looking for cool spells if you're going to desecrate the library like this.

[ikols]

But I don't want the whole book. [ It's so much fun to torment-tease Billy this way, a chuckle bubbling up as Loki leans into a shoulder. ] You sound like an old librarian, cheer up. Stephen won't get stuffy at either of us because you won't tell. I trust you.

[wiccant]

I won't tell. Because you're going to stop ripping them up.

( and also that other thing. trust. after everything, it's nice to hear loki laugh. )

I'd rather be an old librarian than a book destroyer.

[ikols]

[ Deadpan, with the straightest face ever, ] I just can't help myself when it comes to crime.

[wiccant]

( raising a hand and shoving it right into loki's face, thank you. )

That's it, you're fired. No more avenging for you.

[ikols]

[ Prepare to have that hand licked in retaliation!! That's what you get. ]

I avenge what I want, William Kaplan!

[ The ghosts of fear are better banished by the horseplay than any brooding could have accomplished, with the fondness he exudes for Billy overwriting bad experiences in the jungle tonight. Here is home, here is safe. ]

[wiccant]

( gross. still, a smile twists up the corners of his mouth as he shifts up onto his knees, moves a hand over to shoo elliot away before he gets stuck in this mess and shoves hard onto loki, tries to push him over into the pile of books to his side. )

Oh, yeah? Then I'll avenge these books. ( by digging his fingers into loki's side. tickle attack. )

[ikols]

Oh, ouch, you shit, these have edges!

[ Wheezing his way through a pitiful mix of laughter and whimpers, he falls down easily with the push as though mortal too. Arms wrap around his sides for protection and he brings up a knee to shove at Billy's hip. ]

Dirty cheating witch, burn you at the stake ... on a steak, with barbecue sauce, over illegally acquired pages!

[wiccant]

( physically speaking--loki has several inches, a lot more muscle, and asgardian strength over billy. if he'd wanted to, he could have easily fought him off, thrown him across a room--whatever. which means all his bickering is just. bickering. lips purse together as if he's fighting hard not to laugh himself but he's not stopping. not even when loki's knee hits against his hip, weight shifting back for a moment before his hands move up to loki's ribcage. )

Now you're threatening to burn them? You're really not helping your case here! Maybe I should shove you into some other edgy books.

[ikols]

I'm very soft and bruise easily, have mercy.

[ Funny because Billy can and has bruised him with a punch in the past, unexpectedly. Rolling around on the floor, he barks out a loud startled laugh as those hands tickle higher and then real effort goes into escaping. ]

Billy, no!

[wiccant]

You're not soft, but I'll show you bruises.

( no, no he won't. not intentionally anyway. this loki is much better; much nicer than the sad, burned loki of just a little while ago. he rolls, and billy's relentless tickles follow, moving up higher. )

I've got two younger brothers back home, remember? Tickle fights are one of my specialties. ( a low, thoughtful hum, fingers digging in hard into his ribs. ) Beg for mercy and swear to stop tearing pages out of books, and maybe I'll stop.

[ikols]

[ It's been a while since anyone tickled Loki and the result is much the same as ever, someone unaccustomed to hands roaming his body without ire, over-sensitive as he gurgles an apology and tries to ball up like a breathless turtle. ]

I, I promise to be good! I swear!

[ Some of those high-pitched squeals are not heard on any battlefield. ]