A wrong turn at the deli cost me precious minutes and I felt my determination dying away as I tore down the sidewalks, ignoring the odd looks people were branding the side of my face with. It took me a while before I had tracked the two boys down, but there they were, making their way across an intersection, deep in conversation and laughing raucously.
I afforded the opportunity to listen in on the pair of pick-pockets as they paused for a smoke outside the wrought-iron fence of a park that was just a few feet above road-level. Hanging back behind a bus stop bench, I pulled the collar of my shirt up and looked the other way, so as not to draw attention to myself. From where I was standing, I could hear every word.
"So then I tells her she's got to split if she don't like me income-methods, I mean, seriously, at least one of us even has an income. I don't fancy she like the idea of starving in a ramshackle South Dutton flat," the stocky one was saying.
"Give it a rest, mate. You ought to give Angie the boot, she's bleedin' you dry, you blind fool," the leaner one with the beanie rasped.
"Bleedin' me dry? What do you take me for? I kept aside a decent share for me-self, she can't get her grubby paws on it. And I still got all that dough and them IDs from that bimbo on the sidewalk last week. Angie's not getting a single penny outta that."
"Aye, you still owe me half that money, Donny."
"Shove off, I made the grabs!"
From the corner of my eye, I could see them stamping out the amber life from their cigarette butts, pushing their hands into their pockets and turning down a narrow lane.
They're headed to Frostborough, my mind hissed, cut them off at the library.
I ran across the road blindly, narrowly missing being hit by a station wagon, and hit the pavement on the other side, ploughing my feet into the concrete. Frostborough was a little neighbourhood to the east of the town. It was full of seedy sorts and I had specifically asked Mr Delacroix not to send me on deliveries there after being felt up by a piggy-eyed man in a felt hat. Twice. In a single day. I ran past the library and shook off the cold feeling settling into my bones. It was near nightfall, but that wasn't the cause. I saw the pair of them turning into another lane, above which a dented old sign read: "Fr s bor ugh."
The stocky one was thumbing through some notes in a faux-leather wallet. My wallet. He stuffed it into a messenger bag that hung at his hip. It was now or never. I tried to recall what the gym teacher had said about using the elbow for self defense.
In my mind the plan was clear as crystal: I would charge them screaming at the top of my lungs, hoping to startle them. The element of surprise was well at my disposal at this point. Before they could react, I would begin hacking at their necks to strike a nerve that would render them paralyzed. If that didn't work, a quick kick to the crotch certainly would. Then I would claim the bag and my belongings and make my way to the bus, catch the 759 to the quay and snuggle down for an early dinner. There was the matter of my broken down truck, but that could be fixed in a jiffy once I had my wallet. I braced myself, leveling my breathing and widening my stance. A quick run-up. And I'd be sure to use my elbow first, straight to the rib, like my gym teacher had said once. I was just about to break into a run.
"Excuse me, I believe you have something of mine."
The two pick-pockets turned around in search of the voice that addressed them. I turned around too.
Materializing out of thin air just before me was a dark and menacing figure. There was a sharp singing sound and then a white hot beam shot forth, enveloping the two surprised looking boys. In a split second they were gone, vapourised. Nothing was left but a dark sooty mark under the sign that read "Fr s bor ugh."
I felt my knees cave in from the sheer shock of it all.
"Sitting around all day? How absolutely characteristic of you."
I turned to the man with derision in his voice.
"Had fun incinerating things, did you, Loki?"
"More than you can imagine," he answered with a playful glint in his eyes, extending his hand to me.
I glowered up at him, but took his hand and allowed myself to be hoisted to my feet.
"You're awfully clammy, Paton," he said grimly, still wielding his new toy.
"What can I say, strange and lethal weapons of destruction make me nervous in a way you can't imagine."
"Come now, you should be thanking me."
I studied his face. He had been gone no longer than a few hours, but something had changed in him. Something about his eyes was different; their depth had been replaced by a sort of hardness. I dusted my palms and nodded, "Of course. Thank you."
"That's better."
"Thank you for destroying my wallet and my IDs and rendering me non-existent."
Loki rolled his eyes and fished something out from inside his coat and tossed it at me.
"My wallet!" I gasped, examining it. All the bills and cards and coupons were exactly where I had left them - including my exceptionally ugly driver's license photograph.
"When will you ever learn to put your faith in the God of Lies, Paton?" He smirked.
"Haha, very punny."
"Come along, no time to waste."
"Wha-" I watched him whisk away down the pavement. The sceptre in his hand had shrunk to nearly a sixth of its size and fit comfortably in his hand - he could easily conceal it in his sleeve if he chose.
"Hurry up, I'm starving," he called over his shoulder. "You can put that money-pouch of yours to good use."
I stared at his retreating back for a long moment. I resented it. How he could just sweep in and out of my life without so much as a blink of concern. He was making his way rather quickly, and I had to run after him to keep up. How I resented it. Don't be ridiculous, my mind sneered, you know you're glad to just have him back, even for a day.
A/N: Hello! Sorry! Forgive me? I meant to update. But I was going through some things and I'm in a good place now, so I can write (even it's it's 4am and my parents are going to come barelling in with light sabers and buckets of icy water and punish me till I turn 25). I know, wth kind of chapter was this, it's so irrelevant to the main plot. I know. I'm sorry. But it's coming soon, and the tesseract is closer than you think, in fact it's already been in close proximity of both Paton and Loki. Hahaha, have fun trying to decide what I'm talking about. Please PM me if you have feedback? Or just review, that's best :) Cheers all and a happy 2013 to you.