(no subject)

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

Characters: Ariadne and Gawain
Date/Time: Starting Friday, August 5.
Location: Lincoln, NE
Rating: TBD
Warnings: Potential weapons-grade cuteness
Summary: Ariadne comes to Lincoln for a weekend visit.

After a long flight, the plane finally touched down in the city. The view below hadn't been much to look at once they had gotten over the mountains, but the city itself seemed bustling enough from what she could tell.

Walking into the airport, Ariadne looked for Gawain among the people milling there, both on the upper levels and looking over to the balcony.

Comments

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"Yeah, I suppose. I haven't had a lot of it, but I'll give it a shot," she agreed.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"I think you'll like it," he said. "That's me over there." He pointed to a gold Ford Taurus parked in the lot beyond some steps.

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"All right." Ariadne loaded her luggage into the car and sat down in the passenger's seat. "Lead the way."

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

Gawain smiled at the thought of chauffeuring a lovely lady again. It had been a while.

He drove them out of the airport parking lot down the long road that led to the city proper. As Lincoln's familiar downtown cityscape began to appear, Gawain intoned, "Welcome to Lincoln, the Star City!"

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"Excellent. So... where's this Indian place, then?" she asked as they entered downtown. Ariadne looked curiously at the architecture, much of which had an old industrial look to it.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"It's called Tandoor, and it's south of here, in an area called Williamsburg Village," Gawain responded. They continued to drive east through downtown. On either side of them were tall, vaguely deco buildings that once housed grand department stores but were now the site of smaller shops and bars.

"Well, what do you think so far?" he asked her cheerfully.

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"You've certainly got an eclectic downtown area," she said. "But, interesting. Is it always this hot here in the summer?"

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"It is usually hot and humid in the summer here, but this summer has seemed worse than usual," he said. "That's one of the reasons I like coming to Washington in the summer: dry heat without the humidity."

He reached over and put his hand on top of hers. "Of course now there are other reasons why I like coming to Washington ...."

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

Ariadne blushed.
"Oh, surely it's not just for the company," she said.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

Gawain shrugged, a wide grin on his face. He turned right to head southward toward the restaurant. They passed some green park areas.

He commented, "Visitors to Lincoln remark on how green a city it is. We've got a lot of nice parks here, which is good. As you know, green is a rather important color to me."

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"You do have a lot of trees," she agreed, "Though I'm surprised more haven't gone dormant with this weather."

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"Nebraska trees are tough, just like the people," he said.

Some time passed. They drove across a highway that cut through the middle of the city, and then he pulled into an elegant strip mall area south of the highway. They finally arrived at a small white building at the foot of a green slope.

As he parked the Taurus in front of the restaurant, he said, "Here we are."

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"How quaint. Doesn't look like the sort of place that would serve Indian food," she remarked.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"Oh, believe me, it does," he said as he stepped out of the car. He crossed to the passenger's side and opened the door for her.

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"Aww, thank you," she said, grinning at the gesture. "So, what do you recommend here?"

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"Either the Malai Kofta, which are cottage cheese dumplings in cream, or the Sabzee Kati Kebab, which is basically a vegetable curry in roti bread," he said. "I'm likely to have one of those two."

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"I see." Ariadne glanced over the menu once they were seated, and eventually settled on a form of curried chicken.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

After they had ordered, Gawain sat and gazed at Ariadne across the table. She always looked lovely, but tonight she seemed especially regal in her beauty.

"So ... how does it feel to have been an 'Air' head for our fellow guests?"

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

She chuckled.
"As long as it got things solved, I was happy to help," she said, "What about you? Enjoy being a 'Water' boy for the godlings?"

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"It was an interesting experience," he said. "I had never thought of myself as attached to any one specific Element before, but I seemed to work alright with Water."

He took a sip of said Element from his glass. "Did you get much of a chance to talk to the other godlings?"

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"Mostly with Hades, and a little with Dionysus," she admitted. "How about you?"

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"I spoke with Hades a little, too," he replied. "Interesting chap. Doesn't seem inclined to take the reins of Olympus."

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"No, but he seems to have a plan for it. He seems very straightforward, but he must have some kind of an angle on things. He seems to have done a good job getting the other Greeks behind him. Even Aphrodite has consented to be at his side," Ariadne mused.

[greengawain.insanejournal.com]

"And that takes some talent, undoubtedly," Gawain agreed. "I don't know Aphrodite well, but I get the distinct impression she doesn't side with just anyone."

He ate some spoonfuls of the spicy mulligatawny soup brought before the main meal. "So ... what are your thoughts on this whole competing pantheon business?"

[tangledmaze.insanejournal.com]

"Honestly? I think it's a little ridiculous. Mythology has been just that since the Age of Enlightenment. It has no relevance in a world based on reason and science, and for those who put the greater weight in faith... Well, I don't imagine the Religious Right is going to take too kindly to having their cherished beliefs thrown in their faces," Ariadne said.

"Besides, it isn't like being a reborn princess gets me much in the way of perks."