The next day the Grandmaster woke up relatively soon as for him. He normally lived a nightlife, similarly to a lot of people on Sakaar - he was waking up around noon and went to sleep when it was already dawn.
So as he was slowly getting ready for the new day - dressing up in his robe, drawing himself a righteous line on his chin and over his eyes - he was practically sure that when he'll arrive at the game room, there will be no one around.
Because of that he even decided to eat in his room (though it took him a while to explain to his prisoner with the job what does he want) instead of outside, as he usually did.
But when after an hour he finally ended up getting ready, took his favorite vehicle and headed with it to the game room, his expectations turned out to be fictitious.
There were, in fact, just a few people in there, but among them was sitting and chatting around, someone he would never suspect to be there at this hour - for no favorite ever before has appeared in the game room before him, not a one time.
That person was, because who else could that be, obviously Loki.
Once the Grandmaster saw him, his humor became immediately two times better (which was a lot, because he already was in a good mood before).
The ruler got off his vehicle leaving it next to the door and started to walk in Loki's direction smiling widely.
But the god was so focused on the mob he was talking to - the Grandmaster decided that it's amazing how someone so royal can talk to people that go out of their bedrooms before noon, so freely - and didn't notice him until the old man stopped next by him.
"Tricky Loki." The Grandmaster put his hand on Loki's shoulder in matey gesture. "So good you're already here. I have something to show you."
He didn't have, but he hoped he will come to some idea in a few next minutes. Also, he really wanted to take the god away from the mob.
Loki looked at him with raised eyebrows and only after a moment smiled slightly at him.
"I wished to meet you as soon as possible this morning." He said and the Grandmaster sighed quietly. That was really nice to hear that. "What do you desire to show me?"
The ruler frowned, still having no idea what. The god has already seen his ships, his food, all the tower, there was not a good participant on the Champion Contest and...
Oh! At that moment the Grandmaster came up with so wonderful idea that he simply couldn't have come on any better one.
"I want to show you a game." He started, trying to sound mysterious, but the joy in his voice was too clear for him to succeed.
"A game?" Loki asked with tact and feeling as the Grandmaster is pulling him slightly somewhere, turned back to his interlocutors to say goodbye, but when he did the place they stood in just a moment ago turned out to be empty.
They are all so shy in here, decided the Grandmaster ignoring the confused look on Loki's face and letting go of his arm, only when he felt the god finally going after him to the side of empty couches next to the window.
"Yes, a game." Continued the ruler. "In who will come on a better idea of a game."
Loki blinked a few times clearly not seeing sense in what he just heard. The Grandmaster could be really weird sometimes... well, most of the time.
The old man didn't seem to notice it that much and simply added, once they both sat on the couches, in front of each other.
"You and Darcy Lewis will have to think about the best game that you know and then I'll choose which one I like more." He was kind of improvising, but he knew he is doing it perfectly well and there's no chance Loki will spot it. He needed a moment to think about the prize though.
During that time, Loki cleared his throat and started delicately.
"I'm not quite certain if..."
"Oh, and whoever wins will be cooked a meal by the loser. And the loser will cook a meal for the winner, himself and me." Cut him the Grandmaster in the middle of the sentence with growing enthusiasm.
Loki winced despite himself. That was the most uncool prize he had ever heard of. If he'll lose he'll have to cook and if he wins he'll have to wat what Darcy cooked. Both options seemed scary.
"Well then!" The ruler raised his voice making few people around look at them and gestured on one of the guards. "Call Darcy Lewis!"
The man he turned to nodded his head quickly and immediately ran out of the game room in the direction of the chamber the Midgardian was staying in.
And about a quarter later Darcy really did show up in the game room. She looked surprised and anxious at once unsuccessfully trying to keep neutral expression when she was sitting on the couch - after all choosing to take place next to the ruler instead of the god of mischief.
The Grandmaster smiled at her wide and before she got to start arguing with Loki, he explained to her the reason why he called her there in the first place.
And when he was doing that her face was slowly becoming calmer, but surely not more relaxed. Actually with every word her confusion and inconvenience grew bigger and bigger, but the ruler simply took it for anticipation on the task he granted her.
Only when he was finally done, Darcy slowly nodded her head and answered trying to look honest.
"Great idea, Grandy." She squinted her eyes to see her interlocutor - and Loki as well - better. "So when do we start?"
The Grandmaster smiled with joy, happy that she likes this idea just like Loki - he was sure about that - did.
"Now. Go on with the ideas." The ruler connected his hands and glanced meaningfully at Loki. "You first."
The god pursued his lips and looked at him slightly unsure if he should say what came to his mind. At first, he felt a huge wave of cringe overcoming him when he only started to think about the 'game' the Grandmaster invented. Besides, the prize was more of a threat than the actual price. And that way, this time, maybe the first one in his life, he really didn't want to win. But as the silence prolonged, he finally decided he won't find anything worse than what he already had in mind and said.
"I propose jumps." He actually wasn't sure what was that, but the name was dumb enough for him.
The worse part was that he also had no idea what will he do when the Grandmaster will ask him what is it about, but what he heard from the old man, wasn't a question at all.
"I know that game." The Grandmaster nodded his head wisely. "Very interesting, yes."
Loki sighed with, as the ruler decided, relief, but in reality, it was more like 'damn it, I could have chosen option b' sigh.
"Now you, Darcy Lewis!" The old man turned to the other one of his favorites with expecting sight. The mortal was looking at him for a moment and wondering if her game will be surely worse than Loki's, until speaking up.
"Try not to laugh challenge with memes." She said with as much seriousness as she could.
The Grandmaster himself looked very serious though.
"Oh, I never heard about it. You need to show it to me." He demanded with the pressing tone, leaning a bit too close to Darcy than she felt comfortable with.
The Midgardian slowly started to take her iPhone out of her pocket and when she was doing that, explaining.
"I show you memes and you can't laugh. If you do, you lose." She said and turned on the device, going straight to the gallery.
"Sounds good, whatever memes are." The Grandmaster straightened up a bit but kept looking in Darcy's screen as she was looking for a folder with memes. "Let's play it right now."
Darcy nodded her head murmuring under her breath.
"Memes are funny pictures on the internet."
The Grandmaster made an understanding expression, though he still wasn't sure what the Midgardian meant and Loki glanced at them a bit unconvinced.
The last thing he wanted to do was playing some mortal games. On the other side of the Grandmaster will like it he won't have to eat what Darcy will cook. But he'll have to cook himself.
Damn it, both options were equally bad.
Finally, Darcy dug to the first meme and showed it to the Grandmaster - who evidently didn't understand what was it about - and then to Loki, who only raised an eyebrow on that content.
"And what, did I win?" The ruler asked with anticipation making Darcy sigh.
"We play until the first person laughs." She explained and to avoid further questions quickly showed yet another meme, which caused the Grandmaster to growl a bit and Loki to raise his eyebrow again.
This way, the game was played for a few dozen more rounds, with each passing one the Grandmaster being more on the verge and Loki being more and more cynic about all this fuss.
In reality, Darcy actually knew what to show to the Grandmaster to break him, but that wasn't her goal. Cause it was to break Loki, whose lofty expression she wanted to wipe off his face.
So other memes were being shown and as Darcy was slowly getting out of her assortment, she had to choose memes she wouldn't actually suspect the god to laugh on, more like the Grandmaster to do so.
That's why, as she went to yet another picture, kind of annoyed by Loki's straight face, she didn't have hope at all. The meme she chose was just stupid - there was a picture of the skeleton holding toilet paper and the description over it, 'Your ass napkins, my lord'.
But as she turned the screen in a way the god was able to see it, she needed a lot of self-control not to shout some inapporactive words out loud.
Loki actually laughed. It wasn't a loud laugh, just a snort, short and cut in the middle as the god of mischief realized how dumb was it.
For a moment he hoped no one has noticed, but he wasn't lucky this time.
"You lose!" The Grandmaster almost shouted smiling at him triumphantly.
"I didn't..." Started the god.
"Oh you did, I saw clearly!" Darcy interrupted him with satisfaction, making Loki feel embarrassed and humiliated even more than a moment ago.
"I did not." He said with a serious voice as he could, clearing his throat when he tried to save his reputation. "It was just a thread grunt."
Darcy laughed on him and even the Grandmaster snorted slightly, making Loki look away in shame. That was completely not like he though this game will turn out to be like.
And, to get the attention out of him, he decided to change the topic as fast as he could.
"Who wins then?" He wanted to know.
The Grandmaster squinted his eyes actually starting to wonder about that. It took him a while, in which time Darcy kept glancing at the Asgardian like on the looser and Loki tried his best to ignore it.
"It's a draw." Decided finally the ruler. "It's a draw which means." He smiled to himself. Only then even Darcy forgot about the previous game and glanced at the ruler with anxiety. "We need to play another game to know who won this one."
Darcy pursued her lips and looked upon the ceiling begging for directly any help. But just then she realized something and before the Grandmaster or Loki got to say some super weird and dangerous idea, she spat out as fast as she could without lisping.
"Paper, rock, scissors."
Both Loki and the ruler looked at her questioning - Grandy with interest and the god with reluctance. Darcy didn't wait for anyone to ask what the rules are about. She simply quickly explained them to both of her interlocutors. And, just as she hoped it will be like, the Grandmaster was more than happy to hear about that idea.
"Go on them!" He waved his hands gesturing for Darcy and Loki to move. "Play!"
Loki glared at his competition. She had the worst ideas of the worst ideas.
He unwillingly repeated Darcy's gesture - clenching one fist and putting it on another and with visible disgust started to hit his fist on his palm, while the mortal said 'one, two, three'.
And when the stakes became clear - with Darcy to show stone and Loki to show scissors - the only thing he could think of was that at least he won't be positioned by the clearly unstable mortal.