𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗕𝗢𝗬 (awcrap) wrote in wtnvgame, @ 2021-07-01 14:20:00 |
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Entry tags: | !action/thread/log, ₴inactive player: chele, ₴inactive player: rae, ₴inactive: hellboy, ₴inactive: mantis |
ʟᴏɢ » hellboy + mantis
It was no secret, Peter’s love for music and it was the first idea that came to her mind. Quietly, she walked in and started looking through the rows of records. A blank expression appeared on her face, she really should have checked to see the names of singers that Peter liked so much, she couldn’t remember any names, just random lyrics and the tunes of different songs. Her favorite, Groot had shown her, the anthem of a man named Mr. Blue Sky. Mantis chuckled, humans had funny names sometimes.
Hellboy had detoured to the record store before his shift at work. The SPCA was probably his favorite place in Night Vale - apart from his own apartment because it was now full of cats and thankfully without killer vines. But the music was… meh. Definitely something he and Barton didn’t see eye to eye on but hey, no one was perfect.
Surprisingly the kids at the record store didn’t really bother him all that much - though it helped that he had basically staked it out for a few days before deciding he could probably walk in without much trouble.
Upon turning around, clutching a few sleeves of choice, Hellboy noticed Mantis standing nearby. He froze momentarily - wondering why she seemed so familiar, or if she was going to run screaming. “Uh.. Hey,” he said quietly with an uncertain smile.
Mantis turned her head and immediately smiled. Not that she recognized him, but after much practice, smiling at a stranger was the best greeting. Unless that person seemed hostile or threatened her in any way, then she gives him her best intimidating look.
“Hello!” She greeted him brightly. “Did you want to look here?” Pointing to the stack she was standing in front of. “I am not sure what I am looking for and I do not want to be in your way.”
“Oh uh, no…” he replied, moderately confused that she seemed wholly unphased by his appearance. Granted, she kind of had antennae and didn’t really fit the description of any species he recognized. Hellboy let his shoulders ease somewhat. “You’re fine.” he reassured her.
He paused before glancing at the paper she was holding. “Am I in your way?” he countered. “Or do you need help at all looking?” It was a nice gesture, even if he didn’t work there and wasn’t an expert in the least.
“Not at all!” Mantis replied happily. “Yes, I might need help. I have a friend here and he’s been very kind to me. I think it is hard for him not to have all of us together and I am told that buying a gift for a friend means you appreciate them.”
She cautiously looked at him, hoping that she got that right. There were still moments where Mantis wasn’t quite sure what the proper custom was amongst people of Earth.
Hellboy wracked his brain a bit as to whether or not she was some kind of alien or maybe even a subterranean species. Otherworldly, regardless. “It’s hard to go wrong with gifts,” he reassured her. Even if it was very possible to go very wrong with gifts. But music was pretty safe unless you went for the really experimental stuff.
“I’d be glad to help you find your gift, I’m Red,” he told her before holding out his non-stone hand for her. “So what kind of music is your friend into?”
Mantis was very pleased that she was on the right track, and she proceeded to give a little bounce of excitement in response.
“My name is Mantis.” Then paused when she recognized his name. “Oh! Friend Red! You told me to try nachos and the ruth baby candy bar.” Now she was a tad more excited to meet her new friend in person.
“I know he likes Cat Stevens and I am reminded that is a name and not the animal, but I think the animal cat is much cuter.”
Hellboy’s eyebrows raised in realization when she said her name; his tail twitching happily. “I thought that was you!” he said, matching her excitement but quickly forcing himself to calm a bit. “Did you like them or were they misses? You gotta try the birthday cake pancakes in this place,” he insisted, unable to help himself.
He gave a nod of understanding, Cat Stevens wasn’t really his type of music, but he could kind of come up with a few other good suggestions along those lines. That is, until she mentioned actual cats and his jaw went a little slack. “I love cats,” Hellboy said with the utmost seriousness. “I’ve got four of them. No! Five. I just brought one home the other day from the shelter. I got a job since we last talked,” he told her quickly. Typically Hellboy was a little more reserved, certainly more stoic - but he had enjoyed talking to Mantis and it was great to finally meet her in person.
“I did like them, especially the nachos!” Mantis commented. “I very much like spicy foods, the peppers are delightful!” Her eyes perked at his comment of pancakes. Mantis had no idea what pancakes were but she already liked Red’s suggestions from before. “If you say they are good, I will try them.”
“You have many cats!” She smiled happily. “I would like to see them sometime! They will not bite, right? I tried to pet Rocket and he nearly bit me. He is not a dog, but I am not very good with Terra animals.”
He could totally go for a big bowl of nachos right now…. And honestly, Hellboy willed his stomach not to growl since the topic had switched to food. “You have to syrup each side of the pancake,” he told her, raising his finger in the air to signify how serious he was about it. “Very important.” It was only mildly important - and all a matter of personal taste. Literally.
His tail twitched happily even though he regretted not having pictures of the cats on his phone. Which, had a large splintered crack down the front of it - the second occurrence since he arrived in Night Vale. When it was fixed he’d definitely remedy the pictures of his cats, though. “They’d love to meet you,” Hellboy insisted to Mantis, moving to lean one arm casually on top of the records. “Rocket sounds like a real treat - and he’s from Terra so I’m assuming he belongs to that Quill guy?”
“I will remember.” There were many reasons why Mantis could feel sad in this place. The few things that kept her from missing her friends too much were all the new experiences she was getting to try here on Earth. Not to mention the new friends she was making, it didn’t take away the pain she felt from missing her friends from home, but she had hope that they could still show up.
“Oh no, he does not belong to anyone.” Mantis insisted. “He is our friend, and he’d likely try to shoot anyone that would suggest he belonged to someone.” Mantis laughed at the mere thought of it. “I wish he was here, I know Quill misses him and our other friends.” She looked at her new friend curiously. “Do you have any friends from home here?”
When she spoke of this Rocket character wanting to shoot anyone who suggested he belong to someone, Hellboy couldn’t help but smirk in amusement. “I can understand that,” he nodded lightly. Though he made a mental note to be on the lookout for any gun happy beings named Rocket.
Mantis questioning if any of his friends were here made him hesitate somberly. “Not yet,” he answered with a small amount of hope, despite his better judgment. However, he then felt a little bad for, well, feeling bad - so he paused and looked at her. “But I don’t seem to be doing too bad here,” Hellboy told her with a small smile.
There was another pause, and a gentle shrug of his shoulders. “I’m not usually a social person because of—” Hellboy raised his hand and motioned vaguely to his face. He was good at pretending it didn’t bother him, and brushing things off his shoulders, but his self-esteem suffered on the regular.
Mantis studied his face as he gestured. Her antenna twitched and she stared in confusion. “I do not understand.” There didn’t seem to be anything visibly wrong with Red. “Is it pimples? The visionbox has many people talking about pimples and they are undesired here. You should try Clearasil!” Mantis explained proudly.
Hellboy’s eyes grew a bit larger as his eyebrows skyrocketed. There was just so much to unpack in a couple seconds time. Pimples, visionbox, Clearasil. “Oh! No I meant the—” he started to try to explain what he meant but rather than continue he began to laugh. A goodhearted belly laugh that made him nostalgic for nights at home with Abe and Roger.
“You know what that’s a good idea, I’ll have to try that,” Hellboy told her with a surprisingly easygoing smile. It was clear that Mantis didn’t care what he looked like, nor did she seem to have a prejudice bone in her body. “Thanks Mantis.”
He tapped the top of a stack of records, still smiling. “How about we find something for your friend Quill yeah?”
Mantis watched him and for a moment she wondered if she had missed something. It happened, quite a lot, much to her dismay, but given her upbringing it was going to take time for her to build up her social skills. His smile made her feel much more at ease and she eagerly provided one in return.
“You’re very welcome!” She felt proud to be of use and even more so that her new friend laughed and she was fairly certain he wasn’t laughing to be mean.
She looked back over to the records and gave him an enthusiastic nod. “Yes, please! And then can we see your cat?”
"Yeah absolutely," he insisted genuinely - both surprised and weirdly eager that she seemed to like cats and wanted to meet his. They were still pretty new, and he was learning about all of their personalities yet, but some socialization couldn't hurt. Later on he'd dwell on how easily he agreed to it - and how there wasn't a single speck of hesitation or worry of what she might think. And honestly that wasn't a common occurrence for Hellboy.
"They're gonna love you."