Old Game Inboxes.

[shoplifter]

 

(OLD INBOX FOR RIVERVIEW AND DEERINGTON)

Comments

[shoplifter]

[She looks at it, to him, to it, to him.

Her frown deepens, but she reaches out to take the toy, seemingly appeased--





No, wait, she then slams the door in his face.







............. Ah.

Yes.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ He's not particularly surprised, so Loki will wait a few minutes more but no longer than that. ]

[shoplifter]

[..........................................................

Maldición.

She opens the door just when Loki's prepared to leave, this time moving to take up the doorway instead of peering.]

You both tricked me.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki pauses, as he tries to find the right words. Playing tricks is a part of who he is. He's not keen on apologizing for it, but he understands, as well, the weight of a lie. It's why he has avoided lying to Laura. ]

Yes. We are tricksters. But we told you the truth immediately.

[ A pause. ]

I know the world is frightening when people do not always say what they mean.

[shoplifter]

After you frightened me.

[She doesn't mean to say it outright, that she was afraid. But it slips out effortlessly and she's left to just push through and say what is on the cuff of her sleeve, albeit with a grim and serious expression.]

The world is frightening because there are people who pretend to help and be kind, just before they put you in cages and say they own you. Explain how such a thing is a funny trick.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki tilts his head. ]

I am not a good person. I have never pretended otherwise. To me, it is a trick because it shows me that people will believe easily in what I say and not what I do.

[ As they have always done. Never mind that Loki never engaged in treachery before. He was "jealous" of Thor. He "wanted" the throne. Label upon label was pushed upon him. ]

Do you believe I would have hurt you?

[ Because that is what this boils down to. If she did believe it, then there's nothing Loki can do. Truth matters little in the face of that. ]

[shoplifter]

... I believe anyone can hurt anyone else.

[She stares at him with a guarded expression.]

I've hurt people; they were not good people, either.

They wanted to take me and put me to sleep. They hurt me for a long time.

[The question is, would Loki find a reason to do the same? She's not sure.

She needs to be able to trust him from scratch. It's not easy, for a damaged child.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ He can't deny that. He's been hurt by people who cared as much as people who didn't. He exhales softly. ]

Then it comes down to whether you want to or not, pequeña gamberra. I cannot say it is a good choice to trust me.

[ His smile is bitter. ]

I am a monster, after all. So I will abide by your wishes.

[shoplifter]

I am a monster, too. Being a monster has nothing to do with trust. That is an excuse.

[Plainly, but with certainty, undaunted by the thought.

They're monsters; it's as simple as breathing to say. So what?]

If I cannot trust you, then I can't ask if you will hurt me on purpose, because it could be a lie.

[dothelokimotion]

At the very least, I can say I did not intend to hurt you.

[shoplifter]

Would you ever do it? On purpose.

[That's the important part. Her voice is lower when she adds:]

... Friends do not hurt each other on purpose.

[dothelokimotion]

[ It doesn't take long to come with his answer. He is no longer the person to hurt people deliberately nor does he hold any interest to. His life has other meaning now, one not bound by others. ]

No. Not on purpose.

[shoplifter]

[She looks down and away -- clearly not ready to let go of her feelings on the matter entirely. She's still mad, you know. At you and Taako. It was a mean trick, and she had been scared of having lost two... friends. And gained two enemies.

But...]

... I might punch you if you make me very mad.

But just a punch. I get angry sometimes.

[She glances up at him.]

I'm not a very good person either. Just...

[A pause, as she pets the horse.]

... Do not ever mean it.

[dothelokimotion]

[ His lips curve slightly at that. ]

That is fair. It is important that when we go too far, there should be someone to stop us. I, for one, wouldn't mind a punch or two.

[ Loki isn't one for ruffling hair and invading personal space, but he extends his hand all the same. Sometimes, offering contact is important. ]

I find being good is a high bar. One many cannot achieve. It is better to try and do some instead.

[ Loki's motives will always be selfish, maybe even terrible to most, but he cares in his own way. ]

[shoplifter]

[Well, he's at least given her full range for punching. She listens with some uncertainty in her turned-away stare, making that mental note -- some good. She gives the hand a long and particularly thought-fueled stare, and then shakes her head.]

... Not like that. You make a fist.

[She holds up a hand, making a fist proper.]

Like this.

[If he decides to humor her, she'll bump their fists together.

Cisco showed her.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki watches the fist-bump curiously. ]

Surely that does not constitute a punch.

[shoplifter]

It is a fist-bump. Friends do it, especially when they say 'good job'.

[And there's something kind about the fact that people will fistbump with her, someone whose knuckles are so dangerous. It makes her feel a little like she belongs.]

... I am still mad.

But I won't stab you.

[you had your concerns on that one right]

[dothelokimotion]

You're entitled to your anger. I certainly won't fault you for it.

And a little stabbing is fine as well. I'm very, very durable.

[shoplifter]

... I only stab people to protect myself. Or my friends.

[Or when she's angry and hurts herself, but that is -- that hasn't been as frequent. She's been learning... what is and isn't as appropriate as a response. She runs a hand on the door frame.]

I've stabbed a lot of people.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Probably not the best time to bring up that he stabbed Thor for him as a child. ]

Of that, I have no doubt.

Do you regret it?

[shoplifter]

... Sometimes.

I had to kill them, or they would have killed me and -- used my body for more bad things.

They were... evil people, but they were... people.

[Dad had said it -- all the same. It was something she had to learn to cope with. Either way, this admittance at least clarifies the reason behind her anger, a small token from an awkward situation.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ There is a weight in one's actions. Loki understands that much. There is a casual violence in him, volcanic and deadly, but Loki is also a person with strict control. He has lost himself and found himself in equal measure. His rationality wavers, but it is not gone. He may never see the value in a life or the value of lives, but he has no difficulty grasping the ethics. ]

Yes. Lives are lives, long or short.

But killing is not something I do indiscriminately.

[ That much is true. Loki has killed and will kill again, most likely, but he doesn't do it for kicks or tricks. Especially in Riverview, where he knows he walks a fine line. ]

[shoplifter]

... Good.

[She fidgets with the horse in her hands, trying to decide what to do with this leftover anger -- his wariness, prickling like needles in her hands. She wishes she knew how to handle these sorts of situations; she feels, as always, woefully out of her element. So she focuses on something she loves, instead -- horses. Of course.]

What's its name?

[dothelokimotion]

[ His lips curve faintly. ]

That's up to you.

[shoplifter]

I'll call him Loki Jr.

[She did not miss a beat, of course, straight-faced as ever.]