*Drinking Contest - For Logan*

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*Just as he'd said, Victor was waiting outside his tent at sunset, a couple of bottles of whiskey already lying on the grass beside him; he'd brought them with him from their previous camp, having bought them from the town where they'd made their day trip. Or maybe it wasn't even whiskey, he couldn't read the labels on the bottles properly since

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*To say that Logan was not looking forward to this would be an understatement. Victor always did this - always goaded him into things that Logan didn't want to do. Logan knew it, knew Victor was doing it, but he usually fell for it anyway. He was too damn stubborn to back down. At least he was feeling better than he had the previous day - probably about as good as he could feel, without the healing factor. He'd drunk ridiculous amounts of water, and eaten a decent amount as well. All in all, he was about as ready for this as he'd ever be. And he was still screwed.

Walking up to Victor's tent, he saw his brother sitting there, with not one, but several bottles of some drink or another. Trust Victor not to do things halfway. Logan would have said something, but thought better of it, merely raising an eyebrow at Victor ever so slightly. He didn't sit down right away, not yet ready to commit himself to going through with the drinking contest.*

Sure you wanna do this?

*He knew what the answer would be, of course. But he had to try - for both their sakes.*

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What, you want to chicken out already, before we've even started?

*He laughed at that, picking up one of the bottles as Logan approached and wrenching off the lid, raising it to his lips and taking a thirsty swig before wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand. Shit, this stuff really burned the back of your throat when it went down, and it had one hell of a kick. He'd never really noticed that before.*

Don't be a pussy, Jimmy.

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I'm here, ain't I?

*That was it, then. Victor was intent on going through with this, and Logan couldn't stop it. He sat down, opened a bottle for himself, and took a good gulp. His stomach protested a little as the alcohol hit, seeming to remember what had happened before, but it soon settled again.*

How do we do this? The first to pass out loses?

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Sounds like a plan to me. You always were the first one to get sick when we were little.

*He meant before their mutations had kicked in, of course. But that didn't stop him hoping that somehow that trait would have carried on into adulthood, that even now, Logan would prove to have the weaker constitution and would be the first to fall. With hos brother's superior healing ability taken out of the equation, it would be a chance to prove that he could be the stronger one after all.*

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That was over a hundred years ago, Victor.

*See? This was exactly why Logan had got himself into this mess in the first place. Victor never let him forget anything - never. He'd be mentioning Gettysburg next! Annoyed, Logan took another swig. He wasn't out to rush things, and he wouldn't, but that was the only next move he could make. If this was the game Victor wanted to play, he would play it.*

Try to keep up.

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*Laughing, Victor raised the bottle to his lips again, the heady fumes of the potent alcohol making him gag before he'd even taken another swig; he took another long draught, though, the liquid starting to feel like fire in his belly, making him feel warm all over, as if he were glowing. He'd been drunk before, since his slower healing factor had meant that his body hadn't processed alcohol as quickly as Logan's had, but he'd never been affected this much and so quickly.*

Me? Try and keep up? That's a good one. Remember saying that to you enough times before. Like in Dieppe!

*Of course Victor would bring up the past. He always had and he always would. Any little thing that he could use against Logan to try and make himself feel better, he'd remember and use it. He'd always felt slightly inferior to his brother, even though Logan never once made out that he was better than Victor was; true, Logan's healing factor was more advanced than Victor's, but he'd never once use that to make out he was superior to his older brother. But Victor had always felt that way, and it made him bitter.*

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*Meanwhile, Logan was beginning to feel nice and warm as well. Being better prepared this time, he paid more attention to what was happening to him. There was definitely no blaming things on the heat of the campfire. It was odd, enjoying how he was feeling, yet knowing where it would lead. This wasn't bad - though he reminded himself that standing up would not be a good idea. He was not going to let Victor see him stumbling. For the most part, though, Logan felt very relaxed, and that in itself was a small miracle.*

And in Saigon?

*That time, things hadn't gone quite as Victor would have liked. Oh yes, Logan could play his brother's games, even if he only did it defensively. And if he was holding back a little less because of the alcohol, well, this was all Victor's idea, so he deserved whatever he got.*

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*Victor scowled at that. He remembered Saigon with a horrible dizzying clarity, the bullet that had almost ended his life, not to mention the machete blow that would have been fatal to a normal human. Logan had saved him yet again that time, dragged his limp body to safety where it could rest and heal.*

Why the fuck did you have to go and bring that up for?

*He drank again, necking the strong liquor as if it were water, finding that the alcohol was causing his memories to fuzz a little, helping him to forget. It wasn't an entirely unpleasant feeling.*

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Just saying. Not all your ideas are little pearls of wisdom.

*Logan took another swig or two, making sure he wasn't falling behind. This drinking contest in particular was one of Victor's dumbest, if you asked him, but since Logan was doing this, he was going to do it right. Of course, one could argue that he was dumber than Victor, getting into this contest when he knew it could only end badly, but that was Logan for you. Once he'd made up his mind, there was no changing it.*

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Yeah, because everything you've ever done has been just perfect.

*To his annoyance, though, Victor couldn't think of a single thing off the top of his head that he could call Logan up on right now. Maybe it was the alcohol clouding his memories, but he just couldn't think of a single situation where Logan had made a decision that has messed things up for the both of them. Whilst he was pondering, though, another realisation came to him.*

I can't feel my fingers.

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*Taking another pull from the bottle, Logan started to chuckle and somehow couldn't stop for a while. He really wasn't faring any better than Victor, but the whole thing was so damned funny.*

How about your nose?

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*Frowning -because he didn't see what was so damn funny just then - Victor raised a shaky finger to his nose, tapping it repeatedly.*

No! Wait... maybe that's just because my fingers aren't there. Or are numb, or, whatever. Shit.

*He held the bottle out a short distance in front of him and stared at it, willing it to swim into focus. He'd never had a problem with his eyesight before, and things were beginning to go a little soft-focus around the edges.*

Is my nose still there?

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*Logan pretended to need a close look to answer that question.*

Hate to say it, but... Yeah, it is.

*He chuckled again, nearly choking when he took another swig. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had so much fun.*

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Goddammit.

*The world was starting to tilt and sway a bit, an unexpected side-effect from downing a third of a bottle of some very cheap and very strong liquor in so short a time. It was starting to affect Victor in a big way and he knew about it. There was no way he was going to lose this contest to Logan.*

So... how's things with the others?

*His words were coming out somewhat slurred now, but what he intended to do was lull his brother into a false sense of security by indulging in some friendly talk before he put his plan into motion. And besides, Victor really did want to know about how Logan was getting along with the other squad members. He might have some good information to share.*

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You mean Laura?

*That earned Victor a suspicious glance, before Logan realised that, if Victor had wanted to kill her, he'd be over at her tent now. Or Wade's. Did Victor know about the engagement yet? Logan took another drink, trying to focus on what he could and couldn't say. He couldn't tell Victor about this now. That would be bad.*

She's... fine. Just fine.

*Another swig. Logan really needed to change the subject, so he wouldn't accidentally say anything that would piss Victor off.*

Dom got hurt. She's... healing. And getting bored. *Why did he even bring up Dom? Bad idea. New subject!*

Zero is an asshole.

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*Victor had already lowered his mental barriers a little by this point, opening his mind in preparation for what he was about to do to Logan, and he couldn't help but notice his brother's concern regarding Laura and Wade. Logan was hiding something, he was sure, but he couldn't tell exactly what. He'd have to investigate that later. And as for Dom... all he could pick up about that was confusion.*

Zero?

*He growled, then, his fuzzy mind fixating on something that he'd found out a few days ago. Something that he hadn't yet had the time to follow up. But he sure as hell would, and when he did, he'd make sure it would be damn painful. He began to growl.*

Zero. That son-of-a-bitch! He threatened Nicky!