[Loki and Val] beach time!

[st_ratagem]

The increasing frequency of sunshine and warmth meant Loki spent slightly more time at the beach than he had before. It was true that he could make (or repair) nets anywhere, and the only one other than himself who was inclined to use them was the girl Moana, but it seemed... appropriate, at times, to work on nets near where they would be used.

Besides, he'd always found the ocean peaceful. Somehow solitude never seemed to turn into loneliness by the sea... or perhaps it did, but the loneliness didn't cut.

Regardless, it was far from unheard of for Loki to disappear from the immediate Inn grounds to go sit on the sandy beach with his projects. Despite the sunny near-summer weather and the increasing heat on the beach, he dressed more or less as he normally did; a long-sleeved buttoned shirt and slacks. His sole concession to the sunny beach was bare feet rather than shoes.

Comments

[st_allionofdoom]

“I could haul one out.” She winked, wholly sincere about the offer. The water looked more and more tempting by the second, and a quick excursion sounded right before they returned to their handiwork.

[st_ratagem]

“After you attempt to drown me?” Both words and tone were light, because Loki was fairly sure that she wasn’t going to genuinely try to drown him. If she made any effort, it would be playful. He surprised himself, though, by actually considering it. “I think I have to pass. I’m not dressed for it, and nudity seems not the thing in public.”

[st_allionofdoom]

"I'll fish you out after." She edged towards the direction of the inn, her dark and airy hair bobbing with each playful step.

[st_ratagem]

Loki stood up, stretching slightly on the way, then moved to her and tipped her chin up slightly so their eye met. “How important is this to you?”

[st_allionofdoom]

Giving it a bit of thought, Valkyrie let her chin settle into Loki's hand. Satisfaction bloomed in her chest and little else mattered more than the fact that the glib man had bothered to ask earnestly at all.

"You could join me in the water or watch me from the shore. Distance doesn't matter much." She replied in kind.

[st_ratagem]

He leaned down to kiss her briefly. "Then I'll watch from shore this time, and join you another time." With time to adjust... yes. And no doubt the sun would get worse. This was still late spring. Deeper in summer he'd appreciate the option of being in the water once in a while.

[st_allionofdoom]

She returned the kiss with another one of her own, brushing a hand over his shoulder as she sauntered towards the water. “Perhaps I’ll catch another member for the Fish Order.” She called over her shoulder.

[st_ratagem]

“Perhaps you will!” Loki settled himself right at the shoreline, so the waves lapped up on his feet, just to make it clear the he did intend to watch her. “Should you catch a predator, we’ll have half an hour of horrified entertainment, several days of fish funerals, and a drastically reduced Fish Order.”

[st_allionofdoom]

Tossing one last grin over her shoulder, Valkyrie was soon swallowed by a wave that rose to meet her as she submersed herself into the lively waters. It carried her out and she made its energy hers, rising and and falling and cutting through the tides with all her strength. She dove down far into the dark depths, hands and feet brushing the seaweed and schools of fish and other creatures that dwelled there.

Did Asgardian waters look like this? She couldn't remember. Somehow, though, she knew they didn't smell at all the same.

Before she knew it, she was back at the shore, gravity's weight settling back down on her and her hair clung to her shoulders and back. She peeled the dark curtain back to see Loki. "There was an animal that looked like a dog crossed with an egg. Too big to fit into the tank."

[st_ratagem]

Watching Valkyrie was always pleasure enough that Loki often had to put effort into being discreet (something he was sure he did only for his comfort, as she didn’t seem the type to mind) but at the moment he’d all but promised to watch. It had to be noted that watching her so clearly enjoying herself added to that pleasure, but not as much as having her back, when she slid out of the water nearby and reordered her hair so she could see.

He laughed and raised a hand, calling a ridiculous illusion of a Thor-like golden retriever dog, but egg-shaped, with no neck, and fins for feet into it. “What, like this?”

[st_allionofdoom]

"Oh Norns." A long-forgotten phrase she'd picked up from exposure to the king himself and she was reeling back with a baffled mixture of amusement and horror. "This one was blue. Looked a little bit less like an abomination."

[st_allionofdoom]

Valkyrie kept a bead on it as she went for the hefty bottle of water still nestled in the sand. “Spotted. White underbelly. Little flippers for its front feet.” She never had much of an appreciation, but she would have considered the original beast rather charming.

[st_ratagem]

Loki added spots and changed the front legs and paws to stubby flippers, then frowned slightly at some niggling recognition. Shorten the muzzle, round the head a little, make the coat thinner and slicker... “Oh, a kópr! A seal. I remember these, actually. Even if it hadn’t been too big for the tank, it would have annihilated the fish. And then demanded more.”

[st_allionofdoom]

“That’s the one.” Valkyrie clapped once, pleased with the mystery solved. Now that the animal was corrected, she was over taken by an urge to reach out and pet it. Beg it for a mount and a swim around on the waves if it were big enough, perhaps.

She missed having a mount.

“Edible?” Switching gears.

[st_ratagem]

“Yes, when there’s nothing better, at least a long time ago and much further north than here. I don’t know if the seals here would be the same beyond appearance.” Almost certainly the ones here wouldn’t need so much fat to keep warm. “They can’t be worse than kæstur hákarl, at least.”

[st_allionofdoom]

“You what?” She settled back down beside her liege.

[st_ratagem]

"Kæstur hákarl. Fermented shark, partially prepared in a shallow grave and then hung for months, only safe to eat once the skin has mostly rotted off." Loki leaned almost absently to kiss her shoulder. "Ancient humans thought that it was an appropriate birthday treat for Thor."

[st_allionofdoom]

Loki’s flare for words was regrettable in this case. Valkyrie’s throat tightened. “Tell me that wasn’t one of your suggestions.”

[st_ratagem]

"It absolutely was not. You know I don't care about food," she did, better than most, "but hákarl is the one exception, in that I actively hate it. If I could have talked the humans out of the association, I would have."

[st_allionofdoom]

Valkyrie suddenly snapped her fingers as she downed another drink. "Stark mentioned it. Suggested it for next year's celebration."

[st_ratagem]

"Shall we kill him? That would be preferable." Or just argue with him for half a year, perhaps.

[st_allionofdoom]

“If you try, I’m obliged to stop you. But you certainly may try.” Valkyrie said lightly. At least a few murder attempts would add some excitement.

[st_ratagem]

"If it's that or fermented shark, I may make the effort. You know Thor would just be charmed by the effort at being 'traditional'." No matter how disgusting and best left to history it was. "Of course, there's always a chance he'll forget on his own."

[st_ratagem]

A very small effort of will turned the horrifying dog-egg-fish sky blue for a second before Loki adjusted that to the more sensible dark blue that an ocean might breed into its predators. After some more consideration, he also merged the back legs with the dog tail to be more like a large thick fin, better for swimming.

It... looked like a different abomination. “You might need to be more descriptive, dearest.”