driftfleet | Any merry little thought

Who: Mantis and Everyone Else

Broadcast: Yes

Action: Iskaulit

When: Today

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He's not particularly beautiful nor is he particularly graceful, but a man can always dream and that is why Mantis is wearing ice skates. It really does not look nearly as difficult as it is, and yet he is having quite a hard time moving more than a few feet from the wall of the rink. Maybe it's the lack of friction or the awkwardness of being lifted a good extra inch off the ground than usual, but Mantis slips and slides with all the grace of a minutes old faun. Each time his legs come out from under him, his whole body lifts ever so slightly off of the ice until he's safely leaning on the wall. Slowly, very slowly, he'll make it all the way around. An Olympic sport though it may be, ice skating is also a perfectly legitimate hobby to get into.

Video

After a grand time finding out that he lacks in certain graces, the bruised ego needs a chance to recover. As such, he turns on the video feed of his communicator while getting the skates off. His toes are getting a good rubbing, but he's also humming quietly to himself.

"I don't know how they do it. Even standing in those shoes is a pain. I might soak my feet tonight if they keep hurting."

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Victor is beyond pleased that Mantis wants to try the skating. He has on his own skates and is on the ice with Mantis, though his own movements are graceful and beautiful. He makes it seems almost effortless without meaning too.

"Do you want some support? I could offer it, then you wouldn't have to keep a hand on the wall." He seems very patient with Mantis and sincerely interested in helping him feel more secure. He just isn't insisting that Mantis touch him outright. He doesn't want to invade the man's personal space.

"Some rinks have practice supports people can use on the ice, we could look into making some but in the mean time, I'm here."

Fake it til you make it. He was never much of a functioning adult, but he will at least try and look like one.

He makes a noise at the offer of support and slowly shakes his head. "Not much for touching, but I appreciate the concern. I'm almost up to a good meter or two without the risk of falling. Progress is being made."

His arms are up at his sides to make sure, though. He is no fool. "Do they really have support structures? We can space them along the wall at intervals. Little pockets of safety for people like me."

Victor isn't going to try to touch then, since Mantis has so clearly stated his level of comfort. He even slides a bit further back, just a hair, to give him a bit more space.

"That would be a good idea. As would having ones that you can bring on the ice with you. To help you stay upright."

Then, after a moment, "We should probably give lessons on how to fall safely too."

It's exceedingly polite and Mantis appreciates it immensely. That kind of physical closeness takes him a while to work up to, even when he likes the person.

"Like ski poles?" He looks down at his feet. "I don't think I'm that bad, but it is something to consider. Everyone needs a way to feel safe."

He makes it a fair distance of cautious steps before his balance gives out a little. Flailing arms manage to keep him mostly upright. Nervous laughter comes from behind the mask.

"Falling safely. Usually when you hear that, it's ballet or gymnastics. The right way to throw your leg out when you slip."

"This is very similar to ballet and gymnastics," Victor points out. "In fact, many skaters take those as well to keep their limbs limber. The only difference is that we have an extremely hard and unforgiving surface to fall onto."

"I should have learned more about the physics of ice when I was still young enough to care." And hey, he's making more progress! His knees aren't shaking quite as much as when he first got on the ice. "The little grooves on the front of the skate are very useful. They are the pivot point for doing those spins, aren't they?"

Victor nodded. "I could show you some of those, once you feel more comfortable staying upright." He considers Mantis's form. "Maybe not for a while..."

"A while." He can't help the bit of strain that comes to his voice. It's embarrassing to be this bad at anything with how old he's gotten, but he can't stop. "No skill worth learning is easy to pick up quickly. I will make this work."

Edited 2018-01-11 01:53 (UTC)

"That's a healthy way to think of it. There's no shame in taking the time you need to be better at something." Victor offered, trying to be encouraging. "The shame comes in when you give up before you ever give yourself a chance."

"You tend to learn that kind of thing on your own. I wasn't allowed to give up when I was younger; not while learning how to use my powers." He starts to glide, automatically standing straighter as momentum carried him along. "That said...this is kind of fun. If you don't mind the risk of falling. I should thank Yuri for talking me into this."

Yuri zoomed over to him.

"Mantis! You came!" he skates next to him slowly and looks at him. "Have you ever skated before? Hold on to the side. Or take my hand. It's okay. Just go slow." he grinned so wide he threatened to split his whole face wide open.

"I'm so glad someone came, I love this place so much, isn't it great? The smell, the cold, the ice. Oh, Mantis, you'll get the hang of it."

How dare you? Glide so easily? On this ice?

Yuri's chipper attitude and ease of skating is so different from the fear he had shown planet-side that Mantis has to take a few seconds to confirm that he is indeed looking at the same person. Some people are just happier in their elements and Yuri would probably be at home in an igloo somewhere.

"It's a lot more difficult than I had thought. The consequence of watching Olympic level professionals." He sighs. "I will make this work. It's only hard because I've never done it before."

Any merry little thought

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This is so late omg sorry

It's all good, boo. We got this. :V