A drink. (CLOSED-FLASHBACK-)

A small silhouette could be seen moving in the darkness of the night, which would usually be brightly illuminated with the lamp poles that were in abundance, placed by the road which he took today. But no - today of all days he would have the luck to walk down the street where the majority of lights were off. Energy saving... or so they said.
Loki was wearing his winter coat and a hat native only to Drachma - "shapka-ushanka". It was a high fur hat with two "ears" made out of fur as well - they were used to cover a man's ears and cheeks, so that they would feel no cold, but Drachma's winters were far more than a "shapka" could handle.

So now the young alchemist walked down a street without light, his vision was hindered not only by the darkness, but by the cold strong wind and his own hat. He couldn't see the fine young woman that came out of a nearby building and accidentally bumped into her, while going at almost his highest speed.

"Hiiiyaah!" - a loud shriek pierced the street and echoed off the walls. But it wasn't the woman's cry - but the man's. The woman was taller than him, so he fell backwards the instant he hit her. He tried to stand up and began abruptly excusing himself. - "Oh, I'm so sorry! I just couldn't see! It wasn't on purpose!"

Loki didn't know who he bumped into, and right now his imagination drew a group of thugs - and he hit one of them! He was so dead - SO DEAD! His panic grew as he tried to find the one he hit and help them get up, he couldn't see that well and tried to grab the one he hit by their hand and help them get up. All this while he was trying to get up as well.

When Loki heard a woman's voice he somehow calmed down a bit, only to realize he grabbed the woman's ankles, instead of hands, and tried to help her stand up this way. Of course he wasn't using enough force to make the woman fall, but the very situation.... it wasn't much to Loki's dislike, but still - they were out on the street. The young alchemist thanked the Heavens that it was dark, and other people wouldn't be able to see what happened clearly. His brain worked with amazing speed, and a solution came straight up.
Loki released his grip and took the woman's or the girl's hand.

"Oh, thank you so much! You are so kind and helping - while I was simply a nuisance. Can I maybe, somehow, perhaps make amends?" - Loki understood that the phrase "treat you to dinner" was too much. This was the best way to say it. And all in all - it was a good way to make the woman think of a way to gain something out of the situation, rather than focusing her attention on the though of him grabbing her ankles in such a manner, even though it was an accident.

Loki now stood up and looked at the woman, after fixing his hat so that he could see her. She was beautiful, tall and had a very good body. She also wore some rather light clothes, that only made her look even better. He could see that she was a Drachman - just like him. Although he was less used to cold that all the others he knew.

"Oh, but of course. It will be my pleasure to treat you to something. And don't worry - I have it all covered, desu ne?" - Loki smiled and thanked his lucky star that he still had half the pay from his last job. The Drachman government would pay with a lot of money for a well done job.... and not only the government. Anyway - right now he had some cash on him and planned to go to the bar where he usually hanged out. Usually meant for the last 3 times, since he never stayed at one place for long. But perhaps it was time for a change of scenery. Loki smiled at the woman again and spoke:

"I know of this bar nearby - it was opened a few weeks ago, and I heard a lot of good things about it. I'll lead the way, desu ne?" - the young man smiled again and set off to his destination. Right now he was feeling a lot better - there wasn't a problem and his little trick worked - now all that was left is to actually treat the woman and then get on with his business. But then Loki thought of the situation - he became rather intrigued by the woman's "expensive tastes" and perhaps he would be able to have some fun at the bar.
Not a thought of some kind of advance towards the woman crossed Loki's mind. He needed no such thing - for all in this life was fleeting and short-lived... romance included.
Loki's thoughts wandered away to the subject named "true love". Perhaps someone delusional enough thought of this concept, but Loki never agreed with it. Then Loki got surprised at himself - why was he even thinking about these things? Perhaps there was something about this woman... even if she wasn't exactly his type. They looked a little weird together - he was heavily clothed and smaller in height and she wore light clothes and was taller than him.
The alchemist turned his head to the side and glanced at the woman, then asked her:

"Might I know your name? Mine is Loki. Nice to meet you, by the way, desu ne?"

Loki jumped a little bit as the woman grabbed his hand.... on the inside. On the outside he was calm and cool, and he smiled back at her, when she gave him his charming smile. This... could actually be very interesting... to visit the bar with this lady. But then suddenly...
... he felt killing intent from behind him. He slowly turned his head to see a a pair of guys, near the edge of the road. Their eyes told him that he was going to die. Loki wished it was still that dark alley, from which they came, and few would see this... it also seemed that his new aquaintence was doing her best, or perhaps did this unintentionally, to look very alluring - one would even say irresistible. And while she earned stares of lust - he earned the stares of rage. Oh it was fun is some way, and Loki enjoyed this sensation, and enjoyed the reactions of others. But this could be dangerous.
Loki was starting to have fun, and this would mean he would get a little tricky. His pose and way of walking changed - it became more confident and proud. On his face a look of superiority lasted. Oh this would sooo make some people choke of evny! Loki almost started laughing, but held it in.
He turned his face towards Anna, his facial expression had no hint of pride or anything, he simply smiled a little bit:

"A wonderful name lady Anna, and seeing that you gave me your full name - I must do so as well, desu ne? I am Loki Dragunoff, but of course you should just call me Loki." - he gave her the cutest of his smiles and continued. - "Ah, the bar is just around that corner!" - the lad could already see how the pair would draw attention when they would enter inside. This was jolly good fun!
And right after they made a turn they would see a sign "The Black Cat Bar". A big black feline was lying on top of the sign and to Loki's surprise did not have a snowy back, but perhaps it was the wind's fault.

As they stepped inside, they felt the atmosphere of the bar. It was actually not a big bar and was more of a place to rest than a place of party. Loki's face turned sour for a second:

"Oh... well, not what I expected..." - the usual cheerfulness returned to his voice. - "Well anyway, since we're here - we could as well enjoy the drinks and relax, desu ne?" - Loki looked the bar over. It would seem that only a handful of people were inside right now, and not all of them would notice as Loki and Anna came in. The lighting was a bit dim and the there were few lights, which glowed with a red color and the alchemist had to admit - it actually wasn't that bad in here. And Loki could see from here that there was quite a selection of drinks at the bar.... he only hoped he had enough money.

Loki followed the woman as she came up to the bartender and sat down on a stool nearby. He looked over the cabinets full of different drinks and made an order as well:

"I'd like a glass of scotch whiskey." - he pointed at one of the bottles and the bartender poured the liquid from the bottle into a glass, which he took from below the counter. Loki looked at the glass which now stood before him, then took the glass and gulped down the drink in a second, and did not utter a word for the whole time.

Some people said he "could handle his drink well", but the truth was that he simply wouldn't show it if he was getting drunk or if he had trouble drinking it that way. But, oh boy, it was dangerous for him to get drunk... and he didn't want this bar to get destroyed - so getting drunk was out of the question. He would have to decline even if Anna would try and make him drink, but only time would tell if she would, since Loki didn't know if Anna was the sort of person who wouldn't have fun without being drunk and getting someone else to get drunk as well. Although he didn't think she was that kind of a person, given her sophisticated looks and manners. Especially considering how she looked while she drank her vodka, then again - maybe Loki was just seeing things, since he could just see her profile.
Loki turned his face to Anna again and started to look at her, it was the kind of look that people would call a "stare".

"Hmm, I don't know. You can say I'm interested in you..." - Loki gave the woman a smile. - "I really want to know more about you, cuz you know, there's just something about you - something that gives me this weird feeling." - Loki spoke quietly, moving his lips ever so slightly, but Anastasiya could hear every word very clearly... unlike all others at the bar, who would not be able to hear even a sound coming from Loki's lips. And even the bartender wouldn't hear it, while he was standing just beside them, giving someone else of the patrons their order.
Loki said it in a manner where one could give two or three meanings to his speech, and now he was interested if Anna would see the correct meaning. There was actually something about this person, this woman that made Loki feel very strangely. Usually he could read people very easily, due to him studying people's behaviour for a few years now, but now he could hardly understand the woman's "heart". She showed nothing out of the ordinary in her behaviour... but there was still something. Something Loki couldn't grasp.

He smiled to the woman, looking at her somewhat predatory features. It was due to lighting of the place, but maybe not only because of that. Either way - he didn't know if he liked Anastasiya Ilona Romanov or not. Well, he understood she was surely not a dull person, and perhaps she was fun to hang out with in the future... for some time.

"Maybe you could lift this mystical veil and show me something interesting, desu ne?" - once again, his words could be interpreted in many ways, but the real meaning was only one. Once again, his words were for her alone. A playful spark shone in his eyes, now very clearly showing his interest and mood.

Loki looked at Anastasiya as she removed her jacket, which revealed all kinds of things for Loki. No matter how indifferent to women Loki actually was, he felt something while looking at the woman. She was truly beautiful, but.... Loki's eyes moved away from her front to her back. The young alchemist held his breath as he saw what features Anna's back had. It was quite horrible, and the sight made him gulp a little. He didn't know if it was to hold back a primal reflex when someone sees something disgusting, or he simply chocked down whatever comment he would have for this.
Perhaps some people would try not to mind this, but Loki didn't like this one bit and had trouble not minding such things. He wanted to see the world in all yellow and blue, where no spots of black or red would be seen. He hated being sad - and right now he was sad. He hated this feeling so much...

As Anna started to speak, he looked at her, watching as an aura of imminent death was approaching. Not that Loki wasn't used to these kind of things, but it was never a pleasant experience for him. Then she changed, telling him she was joking. Either she was that good at acting, or she really was what Loki thought she could be... he knew she wasn't that simple.
He looked at the counter again, while speaking.

"Well... I guess I needed to be more considerate. It's a harsh life, desu ne?" - Loki's mood was ruined, and wouldn't come around in a few hours for sure. What horrible event would cause this? Perhaps a person? A beast? Experiments? Loki could not say, and he instinctively touched the left corner of his lips, where his own scar was, covered by make-up, which hid the stitches. Then he quickly withdrew his fingers, still looking at the counter. He hoped that Anastasiya didn't see that.

Loki finished his drink in one gulp yet again, feeling somewhat down. His mood was ruined.. not because he remembered some past events or because he was reminded of some misfortune he had. He simply could not believe that someone could harm such a lovely lady as Anna. He could bet that even when she was young she was pretty as well.
Loki heard as his companion smashed the counter with the glass she was holding, for a second he thought there would appear a crack in the glass, but it didn't happen. Then she ordered coffee and apologized for "leaving him hanging". This made Loki smile a bit, even though the smile was forced.

"Nothing to worry about. I hope the drinks were to your linking, desu ne?" - Loki smiled once again. Soon... soon it was time to travel to Amestris, he had no reason to stay here and visiting an another country would help him clear his mind. Perhaps there was the place where Loki could escape all the burdens and duties he had. It was almost three years since he left his home and his lone mother to travel the country of Drachma. Her house was on the other side of the city.... but no - she was in the past. And Loki had no desire to visit her, taking all things into account.

"Have you ever been to Amestris, Anna? I would like to travel there someday... can you tell me something about it? If you ever happened to visit it, of course." - Loki hoped that Anastasiya did visit Amestris and even if not - had heard something interesting about it. Lost in his thoughts, he even forgot to add the "desu ne?" part of his speech.

"I see. So it's work, I guess, desu ne?" - Loki smiled to Anastasiya and continued. -"I was going to travel there in a few days actually. I want to see the other countries, see what they're like. I wanna know if the people there are different like they tell us here."
Loki didn't know what made him say this, because he wasn't planning to actually tell anyone about his departure. It was to be secret, but then again... maybe it would be more fun if people knew exactly where he went to. Then the young alchemist fixed his suit and put on his travel coat. Then he ordered an another glass of scotch whiskey. When the bartender served him his drink he grabbed the glass and drank it in his usual way. He smiled once again, this time he was quite sincere with his feelings... just this time.

"Then I guess we shall meet again someday, maybe in Amestris... maybe back here. It's important to take care of yourself anyway, desu ne?" - Loki winked at Anna, put the money on the counter, even adding some tip money without looking, then turned around and walked away, putting his hat on and making his way out the "Black Cat Bar".

He had a long journey ahead of him, one full of exciting and sad things. Sun and snow, friend and foe. But someday... maybe someday he would return home.