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[mrdr]

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@avocadoiuvenis | college au

[mrdr]

Matt Murdock? [ The question is punctuated by a brief slide and tap of Stephen's fingers over the table that Matt is currently sat at, but he doesn't yet sit, waiting for confirmation like polite people should. He's heard of the guy, of course -- Stephen is nothing if not aware of the more interesting names around the university -- and a blind pre-law student is definitely the sort to pop up on his radar. He'd been surprised to see the ad for a reader put up by him on the on-line bulletin board, but had supposed it as good a time as any to get to know the man behind the name. (And if he'll be perfectly honest, the man is a little cute.) ] Hi. I'm Stephen Strange, [ with a reputation of his own, he's sure -- the full ride scholarship kid who overloads on units and holds the only tutorial sessions for science classes that absolutely guarantee As ] I messaged you two days ago? It's nice to meet you. Can I sit down?

[avocadoiuvenis]

[ He's been listening to the quiet but deliberate approach, suspicion already aroused that this is the student who'd answered his ad. Or rather, one of the students, but so far Matt hasn't had a lot of luck finding anyone who's actually serious about the job. Most of those responding have either been under the misconception that it was a veiled personal ad, or it turned out they were looking for easy money and weren't that into the idea of actually, you know, reading to him.

The name was familiar to him, not a student from his own intended field, but one well known around the study circles. Matt wonders how Strange intends to find time in his schedule for something like this. ]

Nice to meet you, too. Please. [ He gestures toward a chair and removes the earbud he'd been using to listen to a lecture he'd recorded. ] I admit I was surprised to have a med student message me. Trying to get yourself down to only two hours of sleep a night?

[mrdr]

Actually, this'll only get me down to six. [ Stephen sits across Matt for the whole conversational aspect of it, not really caring if Matt can't strictly see him. The messenger bag on his shoulder is gently lowered to the floor, and then he laces his fingers together and rests the heels of his palm on the top of the table. ] And -- you know, it's still just pre-med. I appreciate the concern, though. That already makes you one of my favourite employers. Or [ he waves a hand ] potential employers. I don't mean to be presumptuous.

[avocadoiuvenis]

[ The casual...not arrogance, but self-assuredness, he supposes, is already endearing. Matt grins, closing his laptop and pushing it to the side so he can focus on the man sitting across from him. ]

I think you absolutely meant to be presumptuous, but that's okay. You're already my favorite applicant.

[ And not only because Stephen is so far also the only competent one. He has a pleasant voice, and calm demeanor. Probably useful traits for a doctor. ]

So tell me why you're interested in the job, beyond the fact that it pays.

[mrdr]

[ I just wanted to meet you sounds too much like a come on. Stephen tilts his head, brows furrowing. ] Is "I like the sound of my voice" too arrogant to say? [ He dismisses that with a brief chuckle. ] No, I [ leaning in with a bit more ease, he looks into the shades across from him ] already do a lot of reading out loud for my tutorial students. You know: portions of textbooks, relevant academic papers, the whole shebang. It's just nice to think I'll have someone I'll be sure is actually listening for once. [ His fingers rub against each other ever so slightly. ] And I'm guessing there aren't audio books for everything, much less any of the unpublished works we have in the university. A damn shame, really. I'd say the papers the law department churns out aren't half-bad.

[mrdr]

[ Stephen isn't foolish enough to construct portals in broad daylight, so he pops up in a thin strip of land between two buildings and jogs the rest of the way to the bakeshop.

With the way the world's changed, nobody seems to be staring at Mantis too much. The crowd walks around her like they would anyone else.

Stephen, however, taps her on the shoulder. Surely she'll recognise him even without the cloak and tunic. ]

I almost didn't believe you were here. [ His mouth twitches just a bit. ] But I'm happy to be proven wrong.

[sensing]

[ nobody seems to be staring at mantis too much, but with the way she's been staring at the cupcake display in the window, she probably wouldn't have noticed anyway. which also means stephen's tap startles her enough to bump her forehead against the glass. ]

Did you think I was lying? [ said plainly, as if she would be the type to lie. it's a little strange (ha) seeing him without his cloak buddy, but there's no one else she knows who has that calm, if sometimes vaguely exasperated, sort of voice and still manages to sound patient. ] Hi, Stephen.

[mrdr]

[ A nod. ] Mantis.

Trust me, it was less me thinking you were lying and more... [ His head tilts, lips pressed together. ] Hm. I didn't think you'd be coming to Earth any time soon.

[ Quill'd seemed adamant of never returning, anyway. ]

It's good to see you. [ But because he's not really the sort for pleasantries, he holds a scarred hand her way and jerks his head in the direction he came from. ] Come on. I hope you're not against travelling through portals.

[sensing]

It was a last minute decision. I think we will be leaving tomorrow night.

[ earth has changed too much since quill was taken, and in many ways, mantis understands why he isn't keen on coming back. but there are still things to be sorted out in the wake of everything that happened, partnerships that need to be maintained, and while mantis generally gets along with everyone, sometimes it's nice to be able to do some things for herself too. sometimes, it's nice having the luxury of freedom to do what she wants when she wants to.

there's a nervous little flutter in her stomach and she thinks it's nice to see you too even if she doesn't find the right words to say it. but she does take his hand without hesitation, feeling the drag of raised skin against hers despite the softness of her grip. ]

I have never traveled through portals before, [ stephen's hand is warm and broad, comforting and familiar. she slips her fingers through his to secure her hold should they tremble. ] But I'm excited to try.

[mrdr]

It's about as simple or jarring as stepping from one room to the next. [ Still, he tugs Mantis forward, and as all proper gentlemen should he makes the smooth transition from joined hands to joined arms, the twisted connection loose to leave Mantis room to pull away if she so wished. This was New York, though, and he'd much prefer not to lose her in the hustle and bustle of all the humans walking the street. The mere idea of Mantis being cornered in an alleyway already gives him the beginnings of a headache.

Of course, this makes it ironic that Stephen is walking her into an alleyway himself, but he's found his life the butt of many a cosmic joke the moment he set foot in Kamar-Taj. ]

I would've thought your ship was capable of hyperspace travel by now. [ His arm slips from hers to hold his hand and its sling ring out, and even as it trembles -- as even his second hand trembles when he begins to draw circles with it -- a portal materialises in a ring of sparking lights coloured like fire.

The spacious foyer of the New York Sanctum is seen through the ring; Stephen's arms drop, and he gestures towards it with a sweep of his arm. ] After you.

[mrdr]

You mean eat all the Eggos by yourself?

[verbalized]

I like Eggos [Duh, just her. Come on, Steven.]

[mrdr]

Does Hopper like Eggos?

[verbalized]

he will eat them, but not like me

[mrdr]

Then you have every right to finish them on your own.

Wong finishing all my Eggos -- knowing full well they were mine, when he doesn't nearly like them as much -- is a heinous crime in comparison.

[mrdr]

No.

[ Yes, but that's not the point. ]

It's catchy. Don't you think it's catchy?

[sensing]

[ who hurt u stephen. ]

yes
but it is also very sad
the music is very deceptive.

[mrdr]

It's a human thing to disguise sadness in something else.

[sensing]

[ she thinks about drax, about his dead wife and daughter, the immense expanse of sadness in his soul that he carries with him day after day. she remembers weeping for him because he would not.

she wonders if she would weep for stephen too. ]

i think it may be a universal thing

[mrdr]

No. I'm more disappointed I had to witness it myself.

[fourthwalled]

Now you're just being dramatic!

[mrdr]

You know the saying. "When in Rome"...

[fourthwalled]

WHAT?! I didn't make you dramatic!
You were already there. You prance around in a sentient cape, dude.
I didn't make you do that. You look like Dracula had sex with Aladdin's magic carpet.

Totally dig it though. A+++

[mrdr]

[ In the Sanctum, it's easy to conjure tea, which Stephen does without even a wave of his hands. The tea is in a cup made of a bamboo segment, and warm like it'd been newly poured and left a few seconds to bring it down from burning temperature.

The cup floats a few inches away from Mantis' fingers so she can reach it easily, like an offering. Stephen doesn't look up from his book, but feels a smile threaten to break onto his mouth. ]

Let me know if it tastes okay.

[sensing]

[ she reaches for it carefully, wrapping her hands around the bamboo and letting the warmth seep through her fingers. smelling the mint is enough to wake her up a little more, and the steam does much in soothing her mild headache. it's much nicer than an itchy baby blanket, for sure. ]

Oh, [ it comes out a little like a squeak, making the mistake of taking too fast of a sip. she understands now, the face groot makes whenever he drinks his soup too quickly so he can go back to his video game. ] It tastes okay.

[ she's sitting close enough to him that she see what he's reading, though she doubts she can actually understand the language. she does feel a little like she's imposing, as she often does with people outside of the guardians; social interactions are still a little tricky for her, much less one right after waking up from a night she doesn't really remember too much about. ]

Thank you for letting me stay.