Mantis Shifted Uncomfortably, Her Large, Expressive Eyes Blinking Slowly. "It's Just… Complicated.

"Your emotions say otherwise," Mantis murmured softly, her empathic abilities picking up on his turmoil. "I can alleviate some of your discomfort, if you'd like?" She gently reached out a hand towards Loki's forehead, intending to use her empathic touch to ease his headache. "As for the idiocy of others, unfortunately my powers can't help with that."

Loki didn't realize his hand was on his head until he caught the other looking. "I'm fine. Headache." he dropped it, nodding to the case in front of them. "Because apparently everyone collectively decided to be idiots this week."

"Of course," she replied softly, her eyes radiating warmth and understanding as she offered her hand. "Just stay close to me, and we'll find our way out together." Despite the chaos surrounding them, Mantis remained composed, doing her best to keep them both out of harm's way. As they reached the the hallway, Mantis turned to Cuyler with a gentle smile. "I don't know how many of those suits there are, so we have to be careful, okay?" She bit her lip, glancing down the hall before stepping out, in case there were more suits around the corner. "I wonder what made them go crazy..."

He wasn't skilled in magic or special abilities like that, but he'd grown up around it and there was something about her. He could tell as soon as he was in her presence. Which was why he immediately schooled his thoughts and feelings, putting a feigned, but authentic-looking, smile of appreciation on his face. "Thank you," Cuyler started, nodding at her question. "Yes. I guess i got turned around in the commotion. I'm not familiar with this place, I'm afraid. Lead the way."

She had actually observed that fact, from the many videos she'd watched it seemed that falling over was indeed humorous, although she didn't necessarily see the humor in it. "I've observed similar behaviors among other species during periods of celebration or revelry. It seems that physical comedy holds a universal appeal across many cultures and beings. And I imagine the element of unpredictability adds to the excitement." Perhaps she would have to ask for a demonstration of it at some point.

"Well people find it funny when everyone falls over, and usually this game is played by children or drunk adults." She explained, shrugging. "If you play with a lot of people then the person who gets everyone out would step to the side, making less and less people with each round. That way the game lasts longer cause it goes pretty quick." Ella told the other girl, but wasn't sure how well she was selling it. "It can be pretty fun as long as you don't get hurt!"

Mantis withdrew her hand respectfully as Loki reassured her, a hint of embarrassment washing over her. Had she overstepped? Pulling her hand back, she tucked her hair behind her ear, nodding at his explanation. "Oh, I see... well, please let me know if I can help in any way. As for my powers," she began, her gaze shifting momentarily as she contemplated how best to articulate her abilities. "To put it simply, I'm an empath, I can sense and to an extant manipulate the emotions of others." Mantis knew how that sounded, her face skewed slightly as she searched for a better explanation. "I can feel what others feel, understand their innermost thoughts and desires, and in some cases influence their emotions. Like with Ego, he would often ask me to clear his mind, make it to where he could sleep." Mantis paused, her eyes meeting Loki's with a gentle intensity, glad to finally have the sort of connection she'd been craving her entire life. "And what of you, Loki? What abilities do you possess?"

"Hm?" Loki glanced up when he saw her reach up. "Oh. No." But he put a gentle, genuine smile on his face a moment later. Loki did like her and it wasn't her. He'd been weird with anything like that ever since Thanos. "I'm fine, darling. I think it's going to be ever present, unfortunately. Thanks to the vast majority of people in this tower." He smirked and reached over for his coffee. "What are your powers exactly? I never asked and now I'm curious."

"It's easy, Peter! Just let the music guide you. Feel the rhythm and let your body follow. You don't need to worry about your hands, they'll find their own groove. Trust me, dancing is like tapping into the universe's heartbeat." She extended her hand towards him, a hopeful smile lighting up her face. After a while, dancing on Earth didn't seem all too different than dancing anywhere else in the universe. "Come on, just one dance won't hurt!"

"Look, I'm refusing for your benefit, I swear!" Peter insisted, laughing. "I have no idea what to do out on a dance floor. Like, what do I even do with my hands?"

symbol meme under cut. reblog to participate. only interact with this post if you're a member of variance hq.

emotions

😡 for an angry starter

😄 for a happy starter

😲 for a shocking starter

😭 for a sad starter

🤔 for a confused starter

😶 for an angsty starter

🥰 for a fluffy starter

👻 for a scared starter

💢 to start a fight with my muse

💀 for a jealous starter

🤗 for my muse to comfort yours

plot-themed

👀 my muse catches yours in a shady situation

🔎 our muses find a clue to an investigation

🕵️ my muse helps yours on a mission

🛡️ for my muse to shield your muse from something

⚔️ for our muses to duel / fight

texts

✨ for an excited text

🔥 for a lustful text

💔 for a heartbreaking text

🗣️ for a rude text

☕ for a morning text

💤 for a midnight text

🍺 for a drunk text

muse

📷 for an instagram post

👶 for a throwback instagram post.

🖼️ to see the last pictures taken on my muse’s phone.

🎭 for a gif moodboard of my character ( or a + character name )

🎨 for an aesthetic of my character ( or a + character name )

🎵 for a mini-playlist my character ( or a + character name )

Mantis giggled at Peyton's playful smirk, appreciating her roommate's understanding nature. "Exactly! Taste is the most important," she agreed with a nod. As Luke demanded attention and affectionately rubbed against her arm, Mantis chuckled, scratching the cat behind the ears. "I'm getting you food, don't you worry," she cooed, putting the first pancake to the side and pouring the next one into the pan. She started cutting up the finished pancake for the cats to share, nodding eagerly at the invitation. "I'd love to come to the lab with you!" she exclaimed, enthusiasm bubbling over. Not that she really understood much of what they worked on, but it was fascinating to watch. "What are you working on? Anything you can talk about or is it a secret project? Oh! And when we go to the city, can we get one of those giant pretzels?"

"I can absolutely see that, yes." She looked at Mantis with a smirk, rolling her eyes fondly at the other's antics. Peyton pressed a kiss to the top of Luke's head. "That's all that matters, babes. How it tastes, not how it looks. I don't gotta look at it when I eat it." She let Luke go so he could walk over to Mantis and rub his head against her arm, insistently against her arm, obviously wanting food of his own. "Nah," she replied to her roommate's question, hopping off the counter so she could go and pluck Luke's sister off the bookshelf before she could knock a plant over. Once Leia was secure in her arms, she walked back over to Mantis. "Well, I need to head to the lab and finish something I was working on if you want to tag along. We could head to the city after."

A squeal of delight escaped the tiny alien as she put her hand in his. "Well then, let's go," Mantis giggled in response, leading him to the dance floor. It was nice, to be able to relax like this after weeks of being on edge, even if she wasn't exactly familiar with all of Earth's dancing customs she found the activity to be quite enjoyable. "Sorry if I step on your toes. I'm still learning, but I'll follow your lead as best as I can!"

He laughed and set his glass down, reaching out to take her hand. "Why are you begging me? All you had to say was let's go."

Mantis quickly caught the door before it slammed shut behind her, making sure to ease it closed before tiptoeing over to him. "So, we're playing hide and seek? I love this game!" She found a spot that was out of view should anyone else open the door, hand covering her mouth to stifle her giggles. "Who's it?"

"If you're coming in here, be quiet about it. Because I'm definitely not hiding from a mandatory meeting."