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[metemmods.insanejournal.com]

Characters: Dionysus and Corruption
Date/Time: Morning of Wednesday, June 13th
Location: A Midwestern breakfast joint
Rating: Depends on how it goes--probably no worse than PG-13, though.
Warnings: Dionysus. And Corruption. You do the math.
Summary: Dio gets a visit from an old "friend."

Ah, it was a beautiful summer day in the midwest. Bound to be another scorcher. The diner was bustling cheerfully with people up to enjoy the day.

As Dionysus sat, waiting for his meal, a certain man took a seat right by him.
"Well, howdy! Been too damn long, friend, too damn long! You remember your old buddy Bob, right?" he said boisterously.

Comments

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

It was unfortunate that Dionysus had just taken his first sip of coffee to scald the glue out of his mouth and the blear out of his eyes, for when he saw the man sitting next to him, he choked on it. After a few minutes of napkins and trying to recover unlabored breathing, he vented a snort that had nothing to do with the coffee.

"Well, I should have expected this. Godhood, orgies, moral cultists-- and now you. It's inevitable, right? I mean, clearly, my quota for weird shit isn't nearly filled this year." He pressed the flat of his hand to the bridge of his nose briefly, and asked "What ARE you doing here, anyway?"

[metemmods.insanejournal.com]

"Awww... Nothin', really," 'Bob' said with a shrug. "Wanted to see how you were. Get an update on your girls."

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"That's a pretty tender subject, there." He looked at "Bob" out of the corner of his eye and asked "You wouldn't have anything to do with all this crazy going around lately, would you?"

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"Me? Naw. What would make you said that?" 'Bob' asked cheerfully.

"So. Tender subject, huh? Since when did you go all tenderhearted?"

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"Call it a hunch," he said. "Anyway, if it's not you, then what is it? Or who?"

He drank his coffee deeply, wishing he had something stronger than cream to slip into it. "Things are a bit... rough, let's say."

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"Bob" just shrugged. "Hard to say."

He did raise an eyebrow at the roughness. "Yeah? Heard you traded up from that pretty little co-ed to that New York bombshell. Good on you, bro."

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"Wasn't exactly a 'trade-up'-- I seem to recall there being death threats involved," he said. "But, hell, you're not hear to listen to my own tale of woe, am I right?"

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"Death threats? Really?" 'Bob' asked, clearly intrigued. "Naw, I gotta hear this one."

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"Yeah, how about not," he sighed. Noticing that "Bob" was still staring at him-- and what was it about that guy's eyes, anyway?-- Dionysus realized that he wasn't going to let it go. "Look, the quick version is, there's a bunch of places I'm not welcome now, and a lot of... folks like me who want to do things to me that make what happened to Pentheus seem like a day at the beach." Trying to avoid those eyes, he muttered "And knowing about New York means that you knew all this already."
Signaling for more coffee, he said "So, now that you know what I've been up to, are you going to return the favor?"

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"Oh, you know. This, that and the other thing," he said, shrugging. "Too damn bad you're not getting along with the others. Real damn shame. At least your little hot-to-trots are on your side, yeah?"

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"The maenads? I'd agree with you, if I knew where they'd gone." Despite his distaste, he looked right into "Bob's" eyes. "And I don't think I'd want to be you if you called them that while they were in earshot."

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"Oh, not just them. Don't you have a Muse? And a certain designer?" 'Bob' asked casually.

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"They aren't mine," Dionysus replied. "I got a brother that's making damn sure of that. But, family drama, what are you gonna do."
He took a sip of his fresh cup of coffee, and said "Anyway, how come you're so interested in my own social life? What ARE you doing here, really? And I don't suppose you've got anything to drink that's a little stronger than coffee..."

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"Nope, sorry," came the cheerful reply, "And, hey, even if your big brother is telling you 'no,' I'm sure the your favorite blondes will still put in a decent word for you. And, of course, there's always your wife. Bet she's pretty lonely with her knight in shining armor gone."

"Bob" shrugged.
"Just checking up on you, like I said. A guy on his own can't be too careful. He needs people to fall back on, and to occasionally return the favor."

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

"And you, uh, got anyone particular in mind for that falling-back-on?" he asked blithely. "You think 'those blondes' are gonna be able to calm down some very pissed-off folks?"

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"Isn't that what they do?" 'Bob' countered. "Get in good with the merboy, and the redhead won't be a problem. She does what he says, almost as eagerly as she follows your brother. Hell, right now he probably has more sway over her than Sunshine-Ass does. Or, y'know, try making new friends. Your group ain't the only one with a pretty blonde in it. The cat's single. So's the black chick."

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

Dionysus was silent for a few moments, pondering as he sipped his coffee. "Well, that's an interesting point," he said at last. "I'll think on what you said. But I do my thinking a lot better when I'm not so thirsty, and when I'm closer to someplace where all the action is going on. You feel me?"

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"They got anyplace open this early?" 'Bob' wondered aloud.

[acratophorus.insanejournal.com]

Despite everything, Dionysus had to chuckle. "Remember who you're talking to-- no matter where you are, someone's always willing to give out some hooch any time of the day. The trick is to find 'em." He nodded once. "Come on-- we'll both get a drink, then I'll head back west, and you... you know, I don't think I really want to know where you're going," he said.

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"You're the expert!" 'Bob' said cheerfully, "What's the first thing you'll do out west, you think?"