19437/Barflys

Barflys
Date of Scene:	06 November 2024
Location:	Some bar somewhere in NYC...
Synopsis:	Remy wanders into a bar with a few others, and ends up meeting one of the Guardians of the Galaxy!
Cast of Characters:	Stirling Winchester, Gabriel Togashi, Remy LeBeau, Mantis

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Stirling Winchester has posed:
Stirling's bar is a pretty typical hole in the wall. The neon signs out front either advertise brands of booze except the big one that says plainly: "BAR". Inside is clean, not particularly well lit. Rock music plays at a volume that doesn't hinder conversation. Most of the furniture is wood, none of it looks expensive.

There's a long wooden bar with Stirling behind it. He's wearing a tucked in black dress shirt, black slacks and leather shoes. The guy is cleaning.

The rest of the establishment is pretty quiet, except for a couple of heavy drinkers with whiskeys in front of them in one of the back booths.

Stirling picks up one of the remotes carefully hidden behind the bar and starts flipping through the channels on one of the TVs. It flips through a bunch of sports stuff before settling, at least temporarily, on some sort of combat sport.

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel ambles into the bar. After taking a moment to look around and taking in the quietness of the bar he makes his way to the bar itself and take a seat on one of the stools, putting the thick, manila envelop he was carrying on the bar and waits for the bartender to acknowledge him.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Wandering in from the outside, Remy slowly slips into the dimly lit bar and pauses for a moment, taking a step to the side as he uses that moment to case the joint. He reaches up, slowly removing the sunglasses from his face as he looks around the bar to note where the people are, and maybe more importantly where the exits are.

     Once established, the Cajun slowly takes a few more steps forwards towards the bar, replacing the sunglasses on his face to cover his eyes, and slips into one of the stools at the bar, near the end closest to the door.

     Once he can get Stirling's attention, he flashes a grin and says in his heavily accented voice, "I'll take a beer and a bourbon when you have a chance, mon ami. No rush."

Stirling Winchester has posed:
When the first fellow, the one with the envelope, makes it up to the bar Stirling hides the remote away again and greets the newcomer, "Yo. I'm Stirling. What can I do for you?" He grabs one of those little napkins and a bowl of pretzels and plants them on the bar while he awaits an order. Remy's arrival is met with a napkin and pretzels as well, "Hey. Name's Stirling. Beer and bourbon on the way."

Stirling goes to pour a beer from the tap, "How are you guys doing today?"

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi pats his envelops and smiles at Stirling. "Well, I'd like a Batalanga, please. And I was also wondering if you need some change?" He angles his envelop so that when he pulls it open a little big Stirling can see the contents but still keeping what's inside hidden from anyone else's casual glance.

Remy LeBeau has posed:

     "Merci, monsieur Stirling," Remy says with a smile as he makes himself comfortable in his stool. A casual glance is given over to Gabriel, and his envelope with a coy little smirk forming on the Cajun's lips.

D Remy looks like he is about to open his mouth and address Gabriel for a moment with an amused look on his face, but ultimately appears to change his mind and remain silent as he waits for his drink as he reaches into the pocket of jeans and slips out a deck of cards. He casually starts to manipulate the cards with his fingers as he bides his time.

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"Batalanga?" Stirling asks before he shrugs his shoulders and glances at the envelope's contents. "Let me see what I can do." He finishes grabbing the Cajun's drinks and sets them down in front of him before turning to prepare the younger guy's cocktail, "This is the fanciest drink I've made since I started working here. Here I am, making two things into one. Like some kind of mixologist."

Remy gets a grin and a friendly, "De rien. Je ne parle pas francais, mais j'essaie de faire semblant."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Once his drink is delivered Gabriel takes a small sip from it. He tries to hide it, but his face and neck show the momentary tension of someone that doesn't normally drink and is fronting. After he recovers he looks over at Remy's deck of cards and asks, "Are you a close-up magic guy?"

Mantis has posed:
The assumed austere, mature vibes that come part and parcel with a bar are threatened when the door opens for an unusual, new arrival. An unusual, otherworldly woman nearly stumbles inside, almost as though forced through the door by the ebb and flow of New York City's foot traffic. After regaining her balance, the woman turns away from the door and slowly looks around with a curious stare.

The woman is unusual for sure. She's clearly an adult, but her large, expressive eyes suggest a childlike innocence. Her hands are gently held together at her waist as her fingers worry against each other. She steps into the light, revealing just how otherworldly she might be, with her inky black eyes and antennae. Anyone keeping up with the news would recognize her from various reports regarding the Galactus situatuation, as Lois Lane broke the story that an alien group called the Guardians of the Galaxy have come to assist Earth. She is Mantis.

Mantis walks further from the door, slowly, carefully, and places both of her hands on the bar surface. An eternity seems to pass while she stares forward with a blank, almost sad expression on her face. Finally, she speaks.

"Magic?" she wonders in her ethereal, almost singsongy way. Her antennae perk as she leans in to watch Remy's cards.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy looks at Stirling and laughs after a second with a shake of his head, "Well coulda fooled me, ami." The Cajun tips his head towards Stirling as he brings the bourbon up to this lips to take a sip, following it up with a sip from the beer.

     The Cajun looks over to Mantis and gives the alien a charming smile, not seemingly to shocked or surprised at her otherworldly appearance. "Oui, chere. Magic, or at least something that seems close too, non?"

     He looks over at Gabriel and chuckles with a little shake of his head, "I guess you could say that at times I do a bit of magic with the cards? But maybe not in the way you think? Unless you consider bluffing your way to winning a heavy pot only holding a unsuited 3 and 6 real magic?"

     He fans the cards with one hand then collapses them again before expertly cutting them and restacking multiple times one handed, "Me, I just call it skill."

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"You're so close to an amazing pickup line right now," Stirling says to Gabriel with a soft chuckle as he looks between the two men, shaking his head a little bit.

Mantis' entrance gets a wave from Stirling, whose head tilts to the side as he studies the new patron. The veteran's expression changes to one of excitement, "Welcome in! I'm Stirling, if you need anything just let me know." He goes to get the little napkin and bowl of pretzels for the newcomer.

Looking to Remy, Stirling nods, "I just how to say just enough to get myself into trouble, I like to think. More than one fist fight in the Vieux Carre will back me up."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi sips his drink again, right in time to almost choke on it as he can't help but laugh at Sterling's comment. After forcing the drink down and catching his breath he gives Remy a doubting look, "Come on. You can't tell me you handle cards like that and you don't know even one trick." His smile grows into a grin as he adds, "The lady is clearly interested in a little magic show." while motining to Mantis with his free hand.

Mantis has posed:
Mantis looks up from the cards and finds Remy LeBeau's charming smile waiting for her. She returns it with an awkward approximation of a smile, something she has practiced previously because she was told it's what she should do to get people to like her. She shows Remy both sets of teeth, holding that expression for several long seconds before closing her mouth and looking down at the cards again.

Her smile begins to fade as the cards are collapsed, but Gabriel's encouragement inspires Mantis to nod her head a little. "Yes, I am interested in a little magic show," she tells Remy, using Gabriel's words as her own.

The next distraction comes as Stirling welcomes her and asks if she needs something.

"Need something?" Mantis wonders softly, tilting her head in Stirling's direction. "What should I need?"

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy chuckles again and reaches up to remove his sunglasses and hook them in the collar of his shirt, exposing his black sclarea with red irised eyes. "What I do with the cards when not playing poker ain't no trick, ami. I'm pretty sure that nobody in here is keen to see that kind of display. It's loud."

     He lifts his bourbon to his lips and takes a sip, following it up with a beer chaser as he turns to looks over at Mantis with a chuckle, "I'm afraid the only magic trick I know with the cards is to make them disappear, but as I said, it's not all that much of a trick, mon chere."

     Remy grins over at Stirling and nods, "I can say that about a lot of different things, ami. Know just enough to get myself into trouble...something I tend to find myself in more often than not it seems."

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"Real quick, does anyone mind if I try out the pickup line our friend here didn't realize he invented?" Stirling asks with a friendly gesture towards Gabriel. "It's too good not to try it out."

"That depends on what you like," the bartender tells Mantis with a grin. "Do you have an alcohol preference? A particular flavor you like? You look like you might like a Cuba Libre."

Remy is given a chuckle, "Trouble might be my middle name."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi holds out his hand to Remy and asks,"Can I try then? I know at least one." With his other hand he pushes his envelop a little towards Stirling and says,"Put her drinkn on my bill. And whatpick-up line are you talking about? If it works I want a trademark!"

Mantis has posed:
Mantis' disappointment about the lack of magic tricks is expressed with a sudden drooping of her antennae. She lowers her eyes, just for a moment, before her attention is captured by some other distraction offered by this strange, new place.

"Alcohol preference?" Mantis repeats, blinking her inky, black eyes at Stirling's question. Her gaze shifts to Gabriel and his announcement that her drinking would be on his bill. The dots connect.

"Oh, this is a bar!" Mantis exclaims excitedly. The happiness that comes from figuring this place out can only last so long before her smile fades. "...This is a bar...?" she repeats, inflection now rising to make it sound like a question. Mantis looks around, apparently unimpressed.

"This is not like any bar I have ever seen..." she mutters to herself.

But, being a bar, she knows what to do now. Mantis's hands gently come together on top of the bar, fingers tangled as she worries her way through this moment, anxious about what to do, how to do it, and when. After several seconds of this, Mantis raises one of her hands.

"I would like what the disappointing magician is having," Mantis announces.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     "Knock yourself out," the Cajun chuckles to Stirling with a shrug as he asks about trying out a pickup line. "I'd like to hear what was invented, you never know when it might come in handy." Remy lifts the bourbon to his lips for another sip, chasing it with the beer again as he turns to look at Mantis with a chuckle as she calls him a disappointing magician, "So, chere, you obviously aren't from around here. What's your story?"

     The Cajun turns his attention to Gabriel when he asks for the cards and shrugs a shoulder as he sets the cards down onto the bar and slides them the other man's way. "Sure, ami. Why not. Let's see what you got."

Stirling Winchester has posed:
Looking around the bar for a moment, Stirling takes a deep breath and leans in towards Remy. A smile slowly appears as he says, "I can tell you're a magician." His eyebrows bounce up and down a couple of times, "Because I am enchanted." Then he stands up straight again and looks between Gabriel and Remy. "How was that?"

Mantis is watched curiously as she digests information about Stirling's establishment, "Beer and bourbon, coming right up."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel takes the deck from Remy and starts shuffling it. Not quite Remy level fancy but credibly enough. As he shuffles he starts to give an explenations, mostly focusing on Mantis. "Ok, when I offer you the deck I want you to pick a card. When you have your card make sur eto show it to everyone EXCEPT me." After a snort of laughter in reaction to Stirling's line, he give the deck a last shuffle he fans out the deck and offers it to Mantis so she can pick a car, using the classic line, "Pick a card, any card."

Mantis has posed:
Stirling's pregnant pause before delivering his pick-up line draws some curiosity out of Mantis. She looks across the bar as her antennae sway in the emotional current of the moment, but she doesn't comment on the exchange or her unique way of perceiving it. Instead, she does what she's told and cautiously reaches out to pluck a card out of Gabriel's fan. As instructed, Mantis is careful to turn the card so its face is visible to Stirling and Remy before she looks down at it herself.

Something about it makes her laugh, but she doesn't explain.

"I am Mantis," she answers Remy, leaving it at that as though expecting that it should be enough. When it becomes clear that it isn't enough, her expression sours a little. "Oh, I knew that Lois Lane was a phony. No one reads what she writes in her diary. I knew that was stupid!" Mantis mutters, frowning a little as she leans into her sudden shift of emotion. It's only a brief one.

She's still holding that card and, apparently, still waiting for the bourbon and beer.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     The Cajun looks at Stirling as he drops the line on him stoically. After a moment Remy laughs lightly and shakes his head, "It has merit. I'll have to try that out sometime. With the right set up and delivery I can see that getting a smile, god knows I have certainly heard worse."

     Remy turns to look at Gabriel and his card trick, his red-irised eyes focused on the man and the cards, more on the cards and the man's hands. When the trick is performed, Remy just slips on a knowing smile and nods quietly to himself with a chuckle. "That's good. Nice hand work."

Stirling Winchester has posed:
Booze appears before Mantis as Stirling sneakily slides some glasses in even as he glances at the card in question, nodding once he's memorized it. As the lady with the antennae goes off on Lois Lane, Stirling frowns and tilts his head at an angle, "What does Lois Lane have to do with anything?" Then he pulls his cell phone out and starts swiping at the screen, "Mantis. Lois Lane." He holds his phone up, "I feel like the internet will figure this one out for us. Lane's a pretty famous journalist, after all."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
As Mantis shows off her card Gabriel keeps fidgeting with the deck and, to be safe, he looks up at the ceiling. Once Mantis has shown her card to everyone that's interested he holds up the squared off deck to her and says, "OK! Now just slide your card, without letting me see what it is, into the middle of the deck. "Lois Lane? Isn't she a reporter for some paper in Metropolis? Not a lot of people in NYC read newspapers from over there."

Mantis has posed:
Mantis slides the card back into the deck just in time for her pair of drinks to arrive in front of her. She stares down at each of them, first the beer and then the bourbon, eyeing them with equal parts curiosity and suspicion, but doesn't immediately try either of them.

With sudden interest in what she's saying about Lois Lane, Mantis' antennae rise with anticipation. "Oh..." she begins.

"She asked Rocket and I questions about ourselves in Wakanda and she wrote our answers down in her diary. She said people read it, but Rocket said that was stupid and I think he was right," Mantis explains.

Finally, Mantis bends down and places her nose right up against the top of the beer and sniffs it curiously. She makes a face and leans over to do the same to the bourbon. Her expression sours.

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi hides the deck behind his back then waits until Mantis finishes processing the drinks. Once she's finished smelling them he says, "Now I'm going to find your card without looking." He looks up a the ceiling again and makes a show out of shifting his eyes and mumbling, "this one? No. How about this one? Nah, Aha! Here it is!" Pulling the deck back around he fans it for Mantis again and says, "See tht upside down card? Pull it and it'll be your card!"

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"Yeah, says here she's with the Daily Planet," Stirling says, reading off of his phone. There's a pause, "I thought the Daily Planet was in New York. It was the one with the editor that's racist against Spider-Man, right?" He scans the room for confirmation.

"Anyway, its behind a paywall, I think. Lois Lane's interview, that is. But you are on the internet, Mantis," The bartender looks at Mantis and smiles, "I recommend taking a tiny sip of the little one, then a less tiny sip of the big one to wash it down. Be really careful, the little one has a very high alcohol content."

Mantis has posed:
"I don't know," Mantis answers Stirling, totally oblivious to the Daily Planet, who works there, or their supposed position on spider men.

Instead, Mantis watches as Gabriel hikes up the drama of the card trick. She's the perfect audience, completely dialed in to the performance and, more importantly, the performer. Her antennae stiffen as Gabriel explains that he's going to find the card without looking. Her eyes light up with the first 'this one?' but fade just as quickly when Gabriel decides that it's not her card. Each of these moments produces a moment of awe followed by a moment of disappointment, just as intended.

Finally, when it's time for Mantis to check the upside-down card, she blinks her inky black eyes a couple of times, apparently unsure of something, before slowly reaching out to take it. She slides the card out from the others and stares down at it. Finally, Mantis flips it over and nearly shrieks.

Unsure of what else to do, Mantis claps her hands together very rapidly for several seconds. "I liked it very much," she tells Gabriel, nodding her head to really affirm it.

When Stirling gives her instructions for how to handle the drinks, Mantis bends forward again to sniff the drinks one more time. She hesitates a beat before opening her mouth and tapping the tip of her tongue against the top of the bourbon exactly two times. Mantis blinks, considers something, and reaches out to take it with both hands. And then, against Stirling's instructions, Mantis places her lips around the glass, tilts her head back, and takes it all in a single gulp.

As predicted, it doesn't go well.

Mantis places the glass back down on the bar, eyes wide, eyebrows hiked, and antennae stiff. Her mouth hangs open and, without warning, exhales a thin cloud of steam as her alien physiology processes the alcohol. Once the steam is all gone, Mantis closes her mouth, hesitates again, and then slides the glass back across the bar.

"I would like more," she tells him.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Watching Gabriel, Remy just chuckles to himself as he watches the card trick and nods. "Nice, well done." The Cajun offers his hand over to shake Gabriel's hand and then get his cards back. "Maybe I'll have to get you to teach me that one so I have at least one trick in my repertoire."

     Remy finishes the bourbon and chases it down with more of the beer, watching with amusment how Mantis is trying her bourbon, and then laughing when she asks for more. "Go on, give her another. Put it on my tab."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi bows theatrically on his stool, "Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all week." After a pause to watch the show that is Mantis trying bourbon, hidding a chuckle behind a cough. He offers the deck back to Remy,"Sure. Not a magician by trade so I have no problem spilling the secret."

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
With his free hand Gabriel pushes his glass along the bar so it end up roughly in front of Mantis, "Here, try this. It's called a Batalanga."

Mantis has posed:
Mantis reaches out to take the new, mysteriously named drink. Same as before, she taptaptaps the top of it with her tongue, considers its taste, and then carefully knocks it back in one go. This time, the alien lets out a string of difficult, hacking coughs. She stands up and waves her hands in the air as a signal of her obvious distress. It only goes on for a second or two before the final cough produces the source of her issue: the large lemon slice that was floating along the top of the Batalanga. It sails across the air and lands somewhere unimportant.

Mantis lets out a couple more coughs to clear her throat a little before she weighs in on this drink.

"More of this one too, please," she requests. Mantis hesitates a moment and then turns to face Remy. Her elbow lowers a little so she can support herself against the bartop with it. Her smile is a bit easier than it was a moment ago, free of the natural distress that comes with being Mantis.

"Your eyes are like my eyes," she tells him, realizing that they're mostly black.

That's about the extent of the conversation, though, before Mantis moves away from the bar and throws her hands into the air.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy reaches out and takes the cards from Gabriel, using his hands to give the other gentlemen's a shake in the process with a grin as he retrieves the cards. "Again, very well done. I'm sure that trick is a hit at parties. I need to learn it. I know a few folks that would get a kick out of me doing a card trick or two."

     Once the cards are retrieved, they are slipped into his pocket with a quick little flourish that maybe betrays a bit more skill at slight of hand than he let on, and he grins over at Mantis with a nod, "Oui, chere. You and I do share some similarity in the eyes don't we. If the eyes are windows to the soul, what does that say about us, non?"

     He winks at Mantis playfully with a bit of that Cajun charm added to his smile. "I'd like to think that maybe it just makes us unique, oui? Not many out there like us are there?"

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
And then there were three with similar eyes. As Remy unexpectedly shakes Gabriel's hand the younger man's eyes flash and turn into an exact copy of Remy's. At the same time Gabriel says,"Shit! Nope! Nopenopenope. Not this time." He quickly turns to the bar and lays his head on his arms as if he was going to take a nap but a close observe might be able to notice the ripples happening under his clothing, as if snakes were moving around under there. Gabriel himself just ignores this, breathing deeply with his face hidden in the curl of his arms.

Mantis has posed:
With two drinks behind her, Mantis continues holding both arms high above her head as she sways to an imaginary song. Everything is good and warm and nice with the world. If there's any ounce of distress from the steam or choking out a lemon slice, Mantis isn't showing it. She's just loving the song she's imagining and swaying in sync with it.

What does that say about us, Remy asks. Normally, such a question might earn a smile, a giggle, and a return of the repartee. But, this is Mantis, an alien to this world and, as it happens, a unique creature with a unique way of experiencing interpersonal interactions. She can hear what people say to her, notice their body language, but her most important sense is one that most people just don't have. She can feel the emotions of others.

"Our eyes...don't say anything, but you find me attractive," Mantis answers, totally unfettered by the discomfort that should come from saying something like that. She casually shrugs and reaches out to take her third drink -- the beer.

"But, you are mistaken. Drax tells me that I am hideous," Mantis explains, revealing that unfortunate detail without any embarrassment. She bends down and taptaptaps the top of the beer with her tongue again.

Mantis lifts the glass, apparently ready to take a gulp, but stops before it gets to her mouth. Her antennae stiffen as they pick up the emotional turmoil across the bar. It happens so suddenly and, with a few drinks inside her, Mantis is not ready to protect herself from the slap of panic that reaches her. Mantis lets out a little shriek, almost as though someone struck her, and turns to face the source of the panic: Gabriel.

"Hellooooo," she tries, apparently to offer a distraction, slurring it a little in the process.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Mantis comments, and she makes the Cajun laugh. "Fair enough, chere. I certainly wouldn't all you hideous, so I don't know who this Drax fellow is to call you as such. Maybe he is the mistaken one, non?"

     Remy arches a brow as Mantis screams and he follows her gaze over as she looks over at Gabriel. Curiously asking in a hushed tone, "You alright, ami? Seems, uh, like you need a bit of help? You know, I know people that might be able to help with...situations?" He shrugs a should slightly and then reaches into his pocket to produce a watch which he holds out to Gabriel to show him before setting it down on the countertop in front of him, "I guess me taking this to offer it back at a later time wasn't a good idea, non?"

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi takes one, final deep breath before sitting back up and smiling weakly at the people near him at the bar. Everything seems to be abck to normal except for one small detail. Where his eyes originally have a normal sclera and a dark, chocolaty brown iris, they're now black with a red iris. He chuckles a little bit when he takes back the watch from Remmy and says, "Unexpected touches can have unexpected consequences." Leaving it at that for the moment he turns his attention to Mantis and returns her "Hellooooo," in almost the exact same tone of voice she used.

Mantis has posed:
"Drax is an idiot," Mantis answers Remy, frowning gently as she remembers her often mistaken buffoon of a friend. The cautious, serene woman who walked into the bar has apparently relaxed a bit, finally speaking her mind to some extent. And, at this moment, Drax and his idiocy is on her mind.

When Gabriel turns towards her with black-and-red eyes, Mantis raises her antennae in gentle surprise. Instead of asking where he got them, the alien hesitates, comments, and moves on.

"You have the same eyes, too," is what she says before reaching out for her third drink, the beer. Same as before, she brings it to her mouth, tilts it back, and empties the glass in a single go. This time, it's a loud, long burp that signals that she emptied the glass.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy laughs again at Mantis and nods, "Well I don't know him but based on the little that I have heard, I have to agree. You most certainly are not hideous." He watches the alien down the beer and let out the belch and chuckles amused.

     He looks back to Gabriel and arches a brow when he sees that the man has his eyes, a slight look of suspicion on his face for a moment as he reaches down to grab his sunglasses, offering them over to Gabriel. "Might want to cover those up, least till they get back to normal...if they do? Don't want people mistaking you for me, that's for sure. Might bring some unwanted attention your way." Odds are it won't, since Remy and Gabe don't look much alike. "You good, ami?"

Gabriel Togashi has posed:
Gabriel Togashi takes the glasses with a gratful nod and puts them on. "taking up his manila envelope he digs into it, pulls out a bunch of ones and fives, leave enough on the bar to pay for his and Mantis' drink and slides about $50 worht over to Remy for the glasses. "Thanks. They should be back to normal in a while. If this doesn't cover the glsses take a walk around Central Park any day. You'll find me there." He gets up and before leaving he lowers the glasses to wink at Mantis. "And the Cajun's right, you're beautiful." Then, without waiting for a response, he leaves the bar.

Mantis has posed:
Normally, the praise might make Mantis uncomfortable, but after three drinks, some of which were particularly strong, it just bounces right off of her. Instead of responding to it, she just cackles happily about something, perhaps a private joke or just something randomly amusing about the situation, and goes back to idle swaying to a song that isn't actually playing. She closes her eyes, raises both hands over her head again, and enjoys herself for reasons unknown.

The reasons are known. It's the alcohol.

"What is a Cajun?" Mantis suddenly thinks to ask, opening her eyes just in time to watch Gabriel leave the bar. Perhaps the answer will never come. Her antennae droop with disappointment. It's not long before she finds something more positive to focus on.

"Giving him your eye covers was very kind," Mantis tells Remy, lowering her arms once she remembers there isn't a song to dance along to.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy watches Gabriel leave the bar, taking the $50 in hand before deciding to just leave it on the bar with a shrug before looking over to Mantis as he takes a sip from his beer. "I'm a Cajun," answers Remy with a smile. "Cajun's are people that live down south in the bayou areas of Louisiana, which is a state that is much further south of New York...and a bit west."

     Remy chuckles and shrugs his shoulder once as he glances back over towards the door, "I'm used to the reaction my eyes get, ain't no reason he has to deal with it. Not everyone finds they way our eyes look pleasant, or at least mine. You not being from around here, maybe you get a pass on it, oui?" He shrugs again and takes another sip of his beer. "Just don't want him finding himself in trouble on my account is all."

Mantis has posed:
"But, you are still from Terra?" Mantis confirms, eyebrows rising with curiosity. This question just about confirms that Mantis is not of this world. While listening to Remy continue, Mantis cautiously reaches out to take a pretzel from the bowl that Stirling placed in front of her. She brings it up to her eyes for a closer look, turning and moving the pretzel through the air to get a good look at every angle. Mantis frowns a little and then, without further ado, stuffs it into her mouth. She gets through a few chews before spitting it out into her palm. Mantis gags a little, smacking her lips loudly to signal her distaste and then places the little blob of chewed pretzel back into the bowl.

"It would be a strange thing to be in trouble for," Mantis points out as she moves some of the other pretzels in the bowl to hide the chewed up one she returned.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy nods. "I am, or at least as far as I know I am from Earth. Haven't been told otherwise at any rate. I was just born with these eyes." Remy smiles back over to Mantis and he watches her amused as she examens, eats, then spits out the pretzel...the later causing him to chuckle aloud. "Didn't like that, huh? To salty for you?"

     He shrugs again, "Eh, you would be surprised, chere. People get into trouble for all sorts of reasons here on Earth, most of them strange or stupid. So, where are you from anyway? I haven't met many folks from off world."

Mantis has posed:
"It was okay," Mantis lies, frowning a little at the bowl of helpless, innocent pretzels. Their only crime is that they aren't Zargnuts.

She smiles awkwardly up at Remy for a second, shrugs at nothing, and places both of her elbows on the bartop, using them to support her hands, which she uses to support her chin. Her antennae sway gently against the emotional landscape as the alcohol continues to keep the alien loose and free of her troubles. "Terra itself is strange and stupid, but I like it very much!" she exclaims suddenly, totally unapologetic and without hesitation.

Until Remy asks her about herself. Mantis, despite approaching drunkenness to some degree, tenses up. "...Oh..." she breathes. "I....do not know."

The moment doesn't last long. After just a second, Mantis lifts one of her arms and makes a come-here gesture at Remy using her index finger. "But I will tell you a secret that no one else knows," she promises. "Not even my idiot friend, Drax."

The big secret?

"I have a secret brother and he is from here. Like you."

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy grins and nods as he takes the bowl of pretzels with the half-chewed and spit out one, sliding it away towards the far side of the bar so someone else doesn't go fishing and get a surprise.

     "I can't really disagree there. Earth is strange and stupid in a lot of ways," agrees Remy with a nod of his head just before he finishes off his beer. As he motions to bartender for another one, he nods again, "Yeah? Neither do I really. I mean, I'm from Earth, but I never knew my parents. I don't know where I come from either, something else we have in common."

     When she makes the come here gesture, Remy moves over some to be conspiratorial with her, even if it is just in jest. "Oh...a secret..." He gives her a look, "It isn't me, is it? You know, same eyes...don't know where I come from. It could be me!" He winks, jokingly.

Mantis has posed:
The story is certainly more complicated, but there's no easy way to tell someone that your father is a planet and, so, Mantis doesn't. Instead, she just shrugs off Remy's suggestion that they have lots in common since, as it happens, they don't. Mantis has nothing in common with anyone. And so, she shakes her head at Remy, but remains in his periphery. There's something fun about the whimsical way he plays along, but her drunkenness, as brief as it is, is wearing off fast.

"No..." she answers, taking his suggestion as a real one. "...You are not my secret brother."

Mantis stands and moves away from the bar, stumbling a little with those first few steps. "I should go," she admits. "The others may be worried."

Deep down, she knows they're not.

"It was fun to be here at the same time as you and the others," Mantis tells Remy, just about as awkwardly as someone could. "It's terrible that this world is doomed so much." She gives a sympathetic smile before waving her hand to mark her departure.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
     Remy chuckles, knowing full well he isn't her secret brother, and just nods. "Ah well, it would have been nice to have a secret sister out there somewhere! Too bad." He nods, standing as she does when she rises to go. "Alright. You going to be ok getting to wherever it is you need to get to by yourself? Need me to call you a cab or walk you home? Just ot make sure you get there in one piece?"

     Her remarks as she moves to go about the doomed world have him raise his brow ever so slightly as he ponders, but ultimately he nods. "Yeah. Can't say you're wrong..." Remy starts to move for the door as well, holding it open as she goes to leave. "Well it was nice to meet you, Mantis. Stay safe."