Chapter 18: Laissez les bon temps roulez

Loki whirled around at the sound of Tauriel's voice. His eyes narrowed as the figure he saw was not of the slender she-elf, but was the tall guardian of the Bifrost – Heimdall!

Tauriel stepped around Heimdall. "Do you know where we are now?"

Loki ignored her, peering around Heimdall. "You didn't bring Thor along with, did you?"

Heimdall searched the immediate area. "He appears to have not come with us, although how we arrived here, I do not know."

"I'm beginning to wonder myself. At first I thought it was the convergence, but it's messing with time as well as place," Loki replied.

"The convergence occurred over a year ago," Heimdall stated.

"Precisely. When I first woke up, it was right after the convergence, at least from what I could gather from Lady Sif. Now it seems to have moved time forward a year. Of course, that could have happened when I was in Middle Earth," Loki explained.

"Oh," Walter appeared out of the front door of the restaurant. "You found some new friends?" He stared curiously at Tauriel and Heimdall.

"Not new, Tauriel is one of my guards," Thranduil spoke up.

"And Heimdall is also a guard… interesting. I wonder if there is any reason for that?" Loki mused.

"Well, I got us a table, and I'm sure they can find a few chairs to pull up for your guards. Let's go in," Walter gestured towards the door.

~o~O~o~

"Sir?" Jarvis' voice interrupted Tony's reunion with Pepper.

"This better be important," Tony growled, setting down his champagne glass.

"I believe I have located Loki," Jarvis said.

"Really? Where?"

"New Orleans. There has been a charge to your credit card at Pat O'Brien's."

"Great, he's drinking hurricanes," Tony said. He looked at Pepper. "They should be fine, right?"

"In New Orleans? Loki? That sounds like a dangerous combination to me. Toss in a few hurricanes…" Pepper raised her eyebrows as she answered. "Why don't we both go? We can take the jet? I could use a min-vacation."

"If chasing down an Asgardian god is a vacation…" Tony quipped.

"Shall I have the jet readied?" Jarvis asked.

"Yeah, sounds like we're taking a vacation. I wonder if the elf King is still with him. Say, wasn't that song we heard at the Met recently? The Elven King? " Tony started humming a tune.

"I believe you are thinking of 'In the Hall of the Mountain King', from Peer Gynt by Grieg. And yes, we did hear that recently. Excellent performance," Pepper replied. "Come to think of it, that piece does fit this adventure. It was quiet until Loki showed up."

"Hmmm, are we at the end of the song then you think?" Tony asked.

"We can only hope," Pepper grinned. "I'll go pack."

~o~O~o~

"See, I told ya they'd be able to find a few extra seats," Walter said as settled in at their table.

Loki picked up the menu and scanned it. "Interesting, do you have any specific recommendations?"

Their waiter approached. Overhearing Loki, he offered a suggestion. "If I may, I would suggest starting with the Crevettes remoulade or the Ecrevisses Cardinal. Two of my personal favorites."

Loki flipped to the appetizers sections in the menu; reading the description, he nodded. "Any objections?"

"As long as it goes with champagne," Thranduil said, then looked at the waiter. "Do you have champagne?"

"But of course!" The waiter smiled. "Shall I bring that while you decide?"

Walter took charge. "Go ahead with the order for the appetizers. We can decide on the rest while you take care of that. And mind you, only the best for my friends."

"Is that acceptable with everyone?" Loki asked.

"Well, as long as it does not eat me before I eat it, I'm good with it," Tauriel said.

Heimdall simply nodded.

Two hours later, they all leaned back in their seats.

"That was excellent!" Thranduil commented.

"Humans do have a few redeeming features. Apparently cooking is one of them," Loki replied, finishing off his drink.

"Well, I hopes y'all left some room for dessert. Gotta have beignet while you're in Naw'lins," Walter piped up.

"What is a beignet?" Tauriel asked.

Walter just grinned. "You'll see."

They left the restaurant and entered back into the streets of the city. "Lead on, Sir Walter!" Loki exclaimed.

The streets were now packed with revelers for the evening, but they all moved aside for Loki and his group. The sight of Heimdall, brining up the rear, was sufficient for most to not even think about bothering them.

"How comes you both have guards?" Walter asked as they walked down Bourbon Street.

"Technically, Heimdall is not my guard, he is Asgard's," Loki replied.

Two ladies were standing outside one of the bars holding drinks. They took one look at Loki and Thranduil and giggled. "Hello handsome and more handsome!"

Tauriel rolled her eyes. "Not again! Ladies, leave us alone."

"Honey, they belong to you?" The blonde asked.

"No, I mean, yes. I am one of the guards to King Thranduil," Tauriel stepped behind Thranduil.

"King?" The redhead eyed Thranduil. "You can be my king, honey. Come to momma." She latched onto his arm. "I'll show you what it means to be a king."

"You are not my mother," Thranduil stared at the woman.

"Definitely not your mother. Hair color is all wrong," Loki laughed. "She's red and you are so not."

"True," Thranduil gently tried to disengage himself from the woman.

"Honey, you don't know what you're missing," the redhead somehow managed to drape herself over the elf-king. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Come on, I can show you a good time."

Walter whistled sharply. The blonde elbowed him. "What you trying to do? Call the cops?"

"Yeah, now get yourselfs out of here. We don't need none of your kind," he glanced at the men. "Do we?"

"Do we what?"

"Uh, well, these gals… what they want… Ummm… they are…" Walter stammered.

"What he's trying to say, we can show you a good time for a bit of money, got it?" the blonde explained as she pulled the top of her blouse down exposing her breasts. "See, you can have this and more."

"Woo hoo!" a man shouted from a balcony overhead. A strand of beads came flying down, landing on the blonde's head. She grinned up at the guy.

"Interested? If not, looks like he might be," the blonde smiled up at the man on the balcony.

"Come on up, honey!" the guy downed his beer. "I'll show ya a good time, those dudes are stuffed shirts!"

"Well?" the blonde asked.

"Perhaps later," Loki replied with a smirk.

The redhead huffed. "Stuffed shirts is right. Probably gay. Come on, Maeve, let's go check out those boys up there." The two ladies took off.

"Are all residents of this city like that?" Loki asked Walter as they ladies left.

"No, just the hookers, now let's go get them beignets I promised you all," Walter said, as he turned right at the corner.