lucetilogs | Luceti Valley

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Luceti Valley - The First Log

Who: Everyone
What: The start of a new experiment... or is it?
When: August 2nd - August 6th
Where: Luceti itself
Summary: Luceti has become an idyllic and peaceful 50s-esque village. The first few days are just business as usual, right?
Rating: Varies with thread. Please move explicit stuff to appointments post with appropriate warnings.

August 1st had seemed like an ordinary day in Luceti. But late in the evening, for those night owls who had not turned in yet, they were witness to strange fluctuations in the barrier. Beautiful, really, almost like Luceti had received its own 'Northern Lights', even though it seemed to come from the far east, across the ocean. This ominous light show lasted for all of fifteen minutes before it ceased all together. Skimming the ocean waters, a horde of cultists entered Luceti, cloaked by darkness. Upon reaching the entrance to the tunnels, their leader stepped inside and was followed one by one by his fellow cultists. When the last had entered, the tunnel entrance closed. Across the mountains, the entrance to the tunnels in the village did the same.

Midnight passed without incident, but by three in the morning, the change suddenly came. Minds were altered, forms were changed, and buildings sprang from nowhere.

Much later, on August 2nd, morning settled on a changed village, the new mayor made his way to his mansion with his pair of adorable dobermans at either side of him. The sun shined bright. It was a good day to be a Lucetian.

Note: There will be a stand alone log for the homecoming dance. There will be another log for the second stage of the event.

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"Mmm, a little bit," she said, leaning her shoulder against the file cabinet and facing him. "Considering what happened last night."

He turned to face her, leaning similarly. "Oh? Why?"

Then he reached out one hand to very lightly touch her wrist, drawing a line across her skin.

Marie drew in a sharp breath at his touch. She wasn't sure why her reaction was so strong, but it felt like he'd just traced fire across her skin. She wanted him to touch her again.

"Well," she said, licking her suddenly dry lips, "I did punch you. In the face. That doesn't usually get a request for seconds."

He caught that sharp breath, liking the sound of it. "I'm not asking you to punch me in the face again," he pointed out. "I'm asking for dinner." He reached out again, this time his fingers finding her hand, an invitation in the touch.

"That's a good point," Marie teased gently. She let her fingers wrap around his for a brief, thrilling moment. "No wonder they pay you the big bucks."

She forced herself to drop his hand. Speaking of money, that kind of thing was certainly inappropriate. And since she was standing here, looking up at him like a moonstruck highschooler, that had to stop too.

Marie turned and started walking back to her desk. "I don't get off from work until late."

"I'm all ideas and no substance. It's quite sad." He laughed. And then watched her walk away with appreciation. "I work strange hours myself. I'd be happy to put off dinner until late. Where would you like to go? My treat, of course."

His treat. Of course.

Marie was tempted. She wouldn't lie and say that she wasn't tempted. But she barely paused, sitting down and picking up the next stack of papers, "I know a nice little diner off of 8th."

It was still Hightown, but the prices were something she could afford. And they had waffles at all hours. Marie wasn't sure why, but she felt like she could really go for some waffles right now.

Of course, she also wanted to see his reaction to her suggestion, so she flicked her eyes up at him as she shuffled through papers.

Loki nodded. "I'm familiar with that diner. What time? And shall I pick you up?"

Marie glanced down at Tony's calendar. "I should be able to manage eight o'clock."

She looked back up at him and said, "I'll meet you there at around 8:15. If I'm not there after that, it means something came up at work. I'll try to call the diner to let you know."

...wow, did she really just say all that? When did her meter for 'this is insane' stop functioning? Why was she doing this?

"Agreed. I shall be there promptly."

And he rarely bothered to be places on time unless he had a good reason.

Loki headed back over to his chair, though he paused before sitting down. "If you have any other filing, speak now before I sit."

She smiled at him a little, "No more filing until I finish entering these reports. You're safe to sit, if you still want to wait for Mr. Stark."

He sank back down in the chair and reached for his paper again. "I was serious. It would be a silly waste of time to go all the way back across town and then turn around and come back."

"There are plenty of places to do work on this side of town that aren't my desk," she observed. Then Marie propped her elbow on the desk and her chin on her hand and just unabashedly studied him for a moment. "Do you always annoy women into going on dates with you?"

There was the hint of a smile in her tone.

Loki offered her a crooked smile. "I don't know, do you normally catch the attention of handsome bachelors by punching them?"

"I'm usually ending the attention of handsome bachelors if I punch them," she said, lips twitching in amusement. "Or even the not-so-handsome ones, as the case may be."

Edited 2013-08-05 04:23 (UTC)

"Rude thing you are," he said, amused. "I normally charm ladies."

Marie shrugged, a flicker of a shadow crossing her face. "I've learned you sometimes need to be firm in order to make yourself heard."

Like when you had no parents to protect you, or when you were from the lower class and working among those who thought themselves better than you by right of birth, or when you were a beautiful woman who was interested in advancing, not because of her looks, but because of her work ethic and her contributions to the company.

She shook her head, "Not by reciting Shakespeare on bended knee, I hope."

In her books, that was hardly evidence of charm.

"Hah. That works for some."

He sat back and looked at her for a long moment, before giving her a wry smile. "I wouldn't waste Shakespeare on most of them. Really, by charm I mean be known for having a large bank account and not being overtly insane." He had no illusions about being wanted for himself rather than the family name and fortune. He was the last man of his line, after all.

"Ah," Marie said. As much as the poor-little-rich-person bit could bother her at times, she wasn't blind. Their problems were real problems to them. "No one likes feeling used," she said simply. "I guess you know I'm not going out with you for your bank account."

As if the place she'd picked hadn't communicated that already, Marie took it a step further. "If you really want to break that pattern, I'll pay for my own dinner."

She might just have to order something different than her waffle craving, and having someone else pay would certainly be nicer, but it's not as though eating at that diner would bust her bank account.

Edited 2013-08-05 13:03 (UTC)

He smiled crookedly. "I realized that was what was going on when all the invitations dried up, back when it looked like I might be disowned." Idly, he wondered if she knew about that. It hadn't been the biggest of scandals, since the family had tried to keep it quiet, but the accident had made certain the story had some legs.

"If you were, you'd have picked somewhere that had lobster," Loki drawled. "But I also wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I didn't pay for your dinner, yes? Since it's my annoying invitation." He shrugged. "But if you insist, I'm not in the mood for that kind of fight either. I just want dinner with a beautiful, strong woman who isn't more interested in my name than me. I'll do what it takes to achieve that."

Marie tilted her head slightly when he mentioned being disowned. It wasn't something in her conscious awareness of him, but if she thought back on it, she remembered hearing something about it - old gossip, though. She'd been much younger at the time it had actually happened. And as much as she didn't like it, listening to gossip helped when it came to navigating the waters of this class. It was kind of funny, in a sad way. These people had everything, and they were still just as messed up as the ones who had to struggle for their daily bread.

Either way, she decided not to pursue the reference. His compliment made her smile and Marie straightened back up. "Right now, I might be inclined to fight you on it," she said, humor glinting in her eyes. "That all might change after another day of dealing with entitled aristos. If I were a betting woman, I'd lay money on you getting to pay for my dinner tonight."

Loki grinned. "Oh dear. Now you've put me in the terrible position of having to bet against myself."

Marie began to get back to entering the reports, smiling a little, "Well, fortunately, we're not betting on anything. After all, there aren't any stakes."

"Gracious of you to give me an out." He picked his paper back up. Now that he had his date, he wasn't going to keep bothering her ceaselessly. He did know she had real work to do.

"Thank you," Marie accepted the compliment like it was her due, and continued with her work.

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Luceti Valley - The First Log

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