Just Another Day... [for trickster_loki]

[on_holy_ground]

It seemed that the rash of late summer/early fall weddings over the past month was finally at an end, and Darius could finally spend some time looking into ways to repair the damage to St. Julien's after Hsu's most recent visit. Some of what had been destroyed was irreplaceable and would simply have to be written off and replaced with something different. Other things, such as the confessional, would have to be rebuilt from scratch. And still other things would have to be repaired, such as the cracked alter.

So Darius was currently standing in the chapel, taking notes on what needed to be done where, and estimating how much the repairs and replacements would end up costing the church.

[OOC: Although the thread with Hsu is ongoing, I figure most of the damage is done, but I didn't get too specific just in case. ;) Also I know Cassandra wants to talk with Darius, and we were waiting for the thread with Hsu to be mostly finished. I figure that their conversation will be backdated to before the insident in this post, so no worries about what's about to happen. Oh, and Jaye? If Hsu still wants to be involved in this plotline, feel free to e-mail either me or Loki!mun and we'll come up with something. *EG* Anyone else that's interested in playing with a rather different version of Darius, or that has questions, just e-mail me. Let the fun begin. :D]

Comments

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki wandered into the church, looking about curiously. He raised his --currently almost more brown than red-- eyebrows at the monk. Yes, that's the deity with a makeoever. We got bored.

"What happened here?"

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius' glanced up at the voice, and his brow furrowed slightly, as he didn't quite recognize the gentleman asking the question. However, there was something very familiar about the eyes.

Ah yes, Loki. No one else had eyes quite that color of green.

"A bit of vandelism."

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki snorted, "A bit?"

Master of understatement, the man was. But then, he'd always been so.

And then he just shrugged, "Not in the mood for a game, then?"

Master of the double meaning, this one is. And triples, too.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

"It could have been worse."

Granted, not a lot worse, but still.

Darius then recalled that he had made plans to play chess with Loki before all the weddings started happening. Glancing at his notes, he decided that perhaps a break was in order.

"Perhaps one game..."

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki smiled, "One game, then." With a twist.

"You finish up in here or put on a pot of tea or somesuch, I'll go take care of the board."

And before Darius can have a chance to respond, Loki's gone off into the other room.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius looked after the God as he went towards the rectory, then sighed softly to himself and checked over his figures one more time. Finally, he took the notes with him as he headed back as well.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

When Darius entered, Loki had the table, board, and pieces all set up. He commented cheerfully, "We should play the full contact version sometime."

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius set the notes on his desk, then walked over to sit down on the white side of the board. "Fill contact is a bit bloody for my tastes these days, Loki, as you well know."

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki smiled over the black pieces on his side of the board at Darius. "Unfortunately. Guess I'll just have to make do."

"And that would make it your move, father."

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius nodded, studying the board for a long moment, even though no moves had yet been made. He had long ago learned that the opening position could often be the difference between winning and losing.

Finally, he picked up the center pawn on his right and moved it forward two spaces.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki, for all his impatience in other areas of his life, didn't begrudge Darius his time to think about his opening move.

For his own turn, Loki took a few moments to consider the board and the implications of Darius' opening move. Finally, his lips twitched slightly with some form of concealed amusement and he shifted one of his pawns forward, mirroring Darius' move.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius nodded slightly, having more or less expected the counter, and he spent a ew more minutes studying the board before moving his right hand bishop diagonally until it was two spaces to the left of the pawn.

"Do I want to know why you've changed your appearance yet again?"

Being as how it had been a fairly common occurance over the centuries.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki shrugged and made his move more quickly this time.

Airily, "oh, figured it was time for a change. In general. You know how it goes."

He paused and looked about the church with a significant glance. The furnishings probably haven't changed here in a century or so, after all. "Then again, maybe not."

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius noted the glance, but didn't let it bother him all that much as he went back to studying the board. His brows furrowed slightly as he went over possible moves in his mind, looking ahead in the game. Finally, he made his move and waited to see what Loki would do next.

"Some change more easily than others."

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki nodded, studying the layout of the board. "Indeed. Those some tend to need a little extra push." He says as he makes a more agressive move on the board.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius narrows his eyes slightly, staring intently at the board for a long moment as he tries to decide how to counter the move. One the one hand, he could take a defensive stance and surround his king in order to make it harder to get too. On the other hand, he could go on the offensive and risk having the piece out in the open, but have a better chance of taking his enemy's king first.

In the end, he decides to go offensive, and he moves his queen to take Loki's rook.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Truthfully, it was much too early -- in Loki's estimation -- in this game to be seriously ready for checkmate, but...it was telling for him to see Darius' reaction.

Loki might be smirking. Just an eensy bit. And mutters something about sacrificing a small bit for the overall strategy.

And he next moves one of his knights to take one of Darius' pawns.

Not exactly tit for tat, but it'll do, for the moment.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius' brow furrows a bit more, and he leans a bit to almost hover over the table as he looks at the pieces on the board. Something just isn't quite right, but he's not sure exactly what it might be.

After a moment, he moves a pawn and takes one of Loki's pawns.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki looks intently at the board, then shot Darius the cat that ate the canary grin he was so good at as he pulled one of his bishops into play. "You realise," he asked with raised eyebrows, "that I will have you in check within three moves?"

Though, oddly enough, as the board currently stood, he was straight out lying.

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius sat back a minute, frowning as he looks over the board. He's not missing anything, he's sure of it, so the God must be lying about his forces and where his strengths lie.

Glancing up at his opponent, Darius simply snorts. "I can see the board as well as you can, and you are full of it."

He then makes his move, putting one of Loki's knights in jeopardy.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki gave Darius a look that suggested full of it? Doesn't sound like a very priestly thing to say to me without ever having to say a word.

Instead, he smiled down at the board, moving to defend his knight, "Obviously, I see something you don't."

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius paid no heed to the suggested look, and took another of Loki's pawns.

"Some people see things that simply do not exist except in their minds."

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

"Indeed," he nodded as he took one of Darius' knights, "and some people never see what's right in front of them."

He paused, tilted his head, "well, untill it's too late, anyway."

[on-holy-ground.livejournal.com]

Darius made a low sound in his throat. It may have been a growl.

After several moments of deliberation, he took one of Loki's bishops.

[trickster-loki.livejournal.com]

Loki waved a finger at Darius. "Temper temper."

Though, considering the way the board lay, it was Loki who ought to be growling.

He thought for several long moments, drawing out the move, testing Darius' patience before finally nudging one of his pawns forward.