If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks...

[coldsong]

It's customary to have a Wake after the subject thereof dies. Even Loki knows that. But this is a special occasion. Ego-death is coming to his alternate, and the idea of letting him go off to perish alone, uncertain he will even be mourned, is too dark a proposition even for a flawed and callous person to contemplate.

That, and this Loki has been in a melancholy mood since speaking to the spirit of Frigga. He anticipates a dark choice of his own, sooner or later, and where the fates will send him after that, he can't know. Maybe oblivion, although even at that rate there may be worse places.

What's important right now is that no one dies unremembered. And honestly, any excuse for mischief a party. The first text rolls out to Harley, an innocent enough invitation to join them for milkshakes. Cricket is next, because it occurs to him that Cricket has plenty of liquor, which is good for a reckless celebration.

Things snowball from there.

As long as they don't destroy too much property, they'll call the night a success.

Comments

He's here to make sure the cafe doesn't burn to the ground

[icebearforpresident]

Ice Bear works at the cafe and normally he's all for people having fun. But there's something wild about the Loki duo, something that keeps the ursine on his guard. Katsuya has already been informed as well.

He's only here to deliver milkshakes and cherries to the table, then calmly walk away. Getting him to stick around might be easier said than done...

[sweetcandygirl]

"Ice Bear..." Harley smiles at seeing the familiar friend. "Do you need any help with serving today?"

[icebearforpresident]

"Ice Bear will not say no to the help." He's pretty chill about the whole thing, but he'll let Harley have some fun first. "Can start in thirty? Ice Bear will let you keep all the tips."

[sweetcandygirl]

"Neat! Thanks Ice Bear." And Harley will gives the Polar Bear a quick kiss on his cheerk.

[icebearforpresident]

Is he blushing? Yes, just a little. Harley always wins him over quite nicely. Ice Bear does feel obligated to get Harley some grub before her shift, however.

"What does Harley want from the kitchen? Ice Bear can whip up something quickly."

[sweetcandygirl]

"How about some of your double-chip brownies?" Harley grins. "With a side of ice cream?"

[icebearforpresident]

"Can do." Ice Bear nods, then steps away to walk towards the kitchen. Good friends always look out for each other, after all.

as he should be

[coldsong]

Loki isn't trying to be overbearing, but he's a lot. Just in general, he's a lot, and tonight he's more a lot than usual. After probably the seventh bowl of cherries, he stands to follow Ice Bear a couple steps and clears his throat for his attention.

He doesn't want to just touch him. That might not end well with a bear.

"Thank you," he says quietly. "Just...no, I won't even try to explain. But this is a much needed relief."

the momma bear of the Nexus lol

[icebearforpresident]

Ice Bear is about to head back to the kitchen, since most people are either filtering out or have already been served. Harley is also making things much easier, so the ursine has time to socialize. He does stop when addressed, blinking with his black beady eyes at Loki. The words need not be said, trickster, he can tell something is amiss.

"Ice Bear is here to serve. Can bring you something other than cherries though. On the house."

[coldsong]

He's been very quiet, patient and stolid, and it's only knowledge of the Nexus that lead Loki to assume he was a talking bear in the first place. Although, really, any kind of bear that bakes and works in a cafe is bound to be unusual by Loki's standards.

Now, though, he's certain that bear or no, this is a perceptive individual, and he nods, smiling lopsidedly.

"I need nothing," he says. "Save your pardon for the mess of cherry stems we seem to be leaving in our wake. But my twin there--" He nods at the other Loki. "Some sort of pretty pastry that he might admire as he eats it? Pretend it's his birthday. And if anything is amiss after we leave, I will square accounts later. On my word as someone who does not wish to be banned from this establishment."

[icebearforpresident]

Ice Bear knows nothing of the lore or history surrounding Loki, just that the black-haired man is another customer who needs taken care of. To be honest, his behavior isn't terrible, thus the ursine hasn't had a need to get upset, especially after Loki's reassuring words.

"Ice Bear has got this." Celebrating a semi-birthday? Easy. Katsuya is bound to have some creative Japanese pastries in the back. The bear steps away for a minute, then comes back to Loki holding a small plate with a cute little cake on it.

"Will this do?"

[coldsong]

Loki has a pretty clear idea of how his actions result in consequences for himself, and that's why he plans to do his drinking away from the Cafe, after everyone's tired of milkshakes and cherries. It has nothing to do with a conscience and everything to do with liking their ice cream.

At this rate, if no one causes any real trouble, all they've done is bring in an excessive amount of business for one evening. That's not a bad thing.

He waits where he is for Ice Bear's return, breaking into a smile when he sees what he's brought. "...that's charming! Is it your handiwork?"

[outpostcook]

Kinner looks up. Well, this must've been the polar bear he'd been told about. But he's delivering milkshakes and shows no interest in eating people, so Kinner cautiously looks up from the milkshake and says a shaky hello.

"Howdy there. Ice Bear, I take it?"

[icebearforpresident]

Ice Bear is moving about the cafe rather quickly, delivering and taking orders with ease, thanks to having Katsuya and Harley helping. So he manages to slow down enough for Kinner to actually catch him at a not-crazy time. Standing pretty in his usual chef hat and apron, he's already reaching for a notepad in the apron pocket.

"Yes. Ice Bear is Ice Bear. What can Ice Bear get for you?"

[outpostcook]

"Well...let me see..."

Kinner wishes some of the other men from Big Magnet were here, just so he could see their jaws drop. He's having a conversation with a polar bear who knows English and serves food. Not only that, there's absolutely no risk of Kinner being eaten by said polar bear. The Nexus is a remarkable place, he thinks as he decides on a potential order.

"What is there on offer other than milkshakes? I don't want to fill up on them."

[icebearforpresident]

"Ice Bear can make anything."

There's no overconfidence oozing from Ice Bear, still holding fast to his stoic nature. But behind those beady eyes, there's a passionate cook who's up for whatever challenges come his way. He's been spending a lot of time training on cooking lately.

"Name it. Ice Bear will not back down from a challenge."

[outpostcook]

"You know..."

Kinner thinks. It's not every day a friendly talking polar bear who's also an expert cook offers to make something for him. He considers what he'd like carefully before deciding.

"I'll have a couple hamburgers, if you can do that. I'm guessing you can."

[icebearforpresident]

"Hamburgers. Got it."

A simple meal with lots of complex pieces. Ice Bear takes out his notepad, ready to jot the the specifics.

"Temperature? Toppings?"

He's gonna need a little bit of additional information before this order can get taken back to the kitchen.

[outpostcook]

"Medium rare, with bacon and cheese if possible."

Kinnner's both hungry and feeling vindictive towards the Thing. It's a meaningless gesture, but a hamburger, he feels, would reestablish his spot as top of the food chain.

That'll teach cows, even alien ones, to eat humans.

"Which drinks are on offer?"

[alittlehinky]

That sure is a bear. A big, white, fuzzy bear, like Cricket hasn't ever seen outside of a picture book.

He's seen plenty of black bears, but they're smaller. And they look more timid, and they don't cook, as far as he's aware. Ice Bear may catch the young man staring at him, but the look on his face isn't fear. It's more of a 'he's so fluffy I'm gonna DIE' kind of expression.

[icebearforpresident]

Cricket's expression wouldn't be the first nor last time someone thought Ice Bear was cute. As he walks past Cricket's table, he pauses, readjusting the water pitcher is his fuzzy paws.

"...Can Ice Bear get you anything?" He figures the staring is because Ice Bear has accidentally forgotten to take his order.

[alittlehinky]

"O-oh!" Cricket seems kind of surprised to be spoken to, although whether that's because he's not used to talking bears or whether he's just a little shy sometimes, himself, is hard to say.

"No, sir, sorry! Just...I ain't never seen a white bear before. Didn't mean to stare. There was black bears where I came from but they're smaller."

Much smaller.

[icebearforpresident]

"Polar bear. Ice Bear's fur is a nice shade of white though."

He takes Cricket's statement as a compliment, not minding the staring comment, since it's better than receiving a negative complaint. Many newcomers are always giving Ice Bear the surprised treatment, so he's used to it.

"Also have panda and grizzly bears." Ice Bear looks over to a table when his two older brother, Grizz and Panda, are happily playing a video game together. Neither of them seem scary either. "Ice Bear is main cook here. Pleasure to meet you."

[alittlehinky]

Cricket is quick to recover from his timidity, particularly since he was admiring how fluffy and white Ice Bear is from the beginning. He breaks into a warm smile and stands up to offer a handshake.

"Ice Bear. Nice to meet you, sir. I'm Cricket."

He glances over his shoulder and only seems more pleased by the sight of the other two bears. He wouldn't want to disturb their gaming, but talking bears strike him as all around delightful.

"Ain't never seen any kind of bears except black bears," he nods. "Do a lot of bears cook where you're from or are you, uh, unusual?"