Knock, knock!

Vali's head started pounding. The previous night of over indulgence wasn't such a good idea in hindsight. The sun was beaming through his curtains, blinding him and hampering his mood even further. He rolled over in his bed and glanced at the clock, showing just past noon.

Knock, knock!

"Oh, for fuck's sake..." Vali grunted and whipped the blanket off of his body, with a few swift kicks to help it get off completely. That damn thing always loved wrapping itself around his feet. Vali didn't feel like tripping over himself this morning, his head was pounding hard enough without a concussion mixed in.

Knock, knock, knock!

"I'm coming, ya wanker!" Vali screamed. He stepped over the blanket that somehow landed on the floor and made his way to the front door. He grabbed a clearly dirty shirt along the way and draped it over himself as he neared the door. He had to be at least a little bit decent...

Vali swung the door open, immediately resting his right arm on the doorframe as his other arm held his shirt firm against his chest. He stared at the person standing in front of him and quickly realized it was the local mailman.

"Oh, you..." Vali sighed. "Made me rush out of bed at this ungodly hour to sign for something, I assume?" Vali's question was answered as he noticed the envelope and signature slip in the mailman's hand. He grabbed the slip and scribbled his name, barely legible. He tucked the slip into the mailman's pocket and snatched the envelope. He tipped his imaginary hat and slammed the door.

"The nerve of that fuckin' guy, I swear..." Vali scoffed. He walked over to his couch and sat down. He was leaning forward, with his elbows resting on the edge of his knees and the envelope centered in his hands. There was no return address on the envelope. It was a little creepy, but nothing new to Vali with his lifestyle. He tore the envelope open and pulled out the contents, a couple pages that looked like invoices.

He skimmed over the documents, assuming it was trash or something he could delegate to Rooer to handle. During his skimming, Vali took special note of a few words and phrases;

Ford dealership. Cherry red 1932 Phaeton. Axe lodged into hood. Driver's side doors vandalized and keyed. Sugar in fuel tank.

Ah, fuck. Vali finally realized what this was. It was an invoice for the damages Baldr's car sustained while under Vali's care. This confused him. Vali thought he was taking the best care of that car. He tried cutting the ornament off the hood, assuming it was like a toenail that needed occasional clippings. He noticed there was mud on the side of the car, so he attempted to clean it off with his own key. Then, finally, he wanted to make the car sweeter so he emptied a bag of sugar in the gas tank. What's so wrong about that?

Vali sighed. He skimmed some more and found the grand total of the repair costs at the bottom of the page. He threw the paper onto the floor in a fit of rage. He burst out into a hysterical laugh, followed by incoherent ramblings. Next thing he knew, his window was shattered and there was a stool missing from his kitchen. Shit, another bill to pay...

"Fuck it." Vali downed half a bottle of his favorite whiskey without taking a breath. It was never too early to start drinking for Vali. He opened his front door and walked outside. There was the stool, surrounded by glass shards on the sidewalk. He shrugged, sighed and kept walking. Destination? Helheim HQ.

"Baldr!" Vali screamed the very moment he opened the door to the HQ. "Come out, you bitch!" Vali turned to the right and Baldr was standing right there. "Oh. Yeah, I saw you. Shut up."

Vali reached into his back pocket and pulled out the invoice he received in the mail. He held it up a couple inches away from Baldr's face.

"Can you tell me why you're charging me for all the love and affection I gave to that car? I treated it like I would treat my own child!" Vali sulked, obviously being genuine for once in his life.

Baldr looked over at Vali, stifling the urge to cough, or maybe even vomit. When was the last time the man had taken a shower? He reeked of whiskey and another smell he wasn’t quite able to place, but whatever it was certainly wasn’t pleasant. He snatched the invoice from Vali’s hand, looking it over.

Love and affection?

Baldr eyed Vali, trying to take a gauge of his mental state, while trying to contain a bubbling anger rising in himself. How to react?

YOU CARVED HAHAHA I’M NOT YOUR BITCH INTO THE SIDE.

He shook his head, not really meaning to scream, this time. Nevertheless, he felt his volume rising once again.

YOU DROVE AN AXE THROUGH THE DAMNED HOOD.

Baldr reached for Vali, who was now cackling like a mad man, avoiding his grasping hands, Vali was always good at evasion when he was motivated.

You know what. Fuck it, not worth it. I’ll cover the damned invoice. Cleaning up after you, like always.

He rumbled the invoice up, and tossed it directly at Vali, before making his way to his office to write the check. Before he made it there however, he noticed Vali’s office door was cracked open. He could hear the red-headed monster still running rampant downstairs, no doubt still laughing in childish enjoyment as escaping his grasp, and an evil grin creeped across Baldr’s lips. He pushed his way into Vali’s office and locked the door behind him, grabbing a chair to prop underneath the handle, just in case Vali made his way up before he was finished. He looked around the room, remarkably clean for someone of Vali’s reputation, well that was going to change.

Baldr grabbed the large bookshelf beside the door, full of sure to be priceless antiques that Vali had likely stolen, and drove it directly to the floor. He then pulled out the switch-blade his father had left him, and carved a giant X into the beautiful ornate rug in front of his desk. He stood up and had a look around the place, trying to find anything that would get through to his brother. It was then that he spotted a cabinet full of Vali’s favorite whiskey. Noticing one had been opened, he grabbed it and emptied the rest into his stomach in a few gulps, before proceeding to fill it with urine, mixing it with some whiskey from another open bottle so that it was just as full as before. To ensure it was the next one to be drank from, he hid the rest of the bottles in a crate behind the cabinet. He could never damage whiskey; it was too dear to his heart.

He wasn’t finished there however, as he made his way over to Vali’s desk, to his surprise seeing a photo of himself, with Vali and their father on the right hand side, and a photo of a beautiful dog on the left. He thought to himself “aww I guess Vali does have a heart.” And then smiled a bit to himself, but he wasn’t there for family bonding. He opened Vali’s desk and proceeded to shove his finger down his throat until he began to vomit, filling the desk to the brim before closing it, as though nothing had changed, and then wiped his mouth off on his priceless chair. As one last act of vengeance, he grabbed his switchblade once more and began to carve into Vali’s desk, stopping once the desk read “Don’t Try Me Bitch ~B”. Satisfied with his actions, he moved the chair, and cracked the door just as it was before, making his way to his office to send off the invoice so that his precious Ford could finally be repaired.