[Mingle-Log] Only non-alcoholic beverages in the punch bowl...

[adminfury]

[This is an open mingle log. You do not have to be part of the community to post in this thread. Consider it a test-drive of sorts to get your voice or meet new characters!]



SHIELD Academy
Open House
Everyone is congregated in the spacious auditorium of the SHIELD Academy. The noise level is probably a decibel below deafening and the lights are probably a little dimmer than what might seem normal for this time in the evening, but it doesn't seem to bother anyone as they just carry on. There are banners strewn about welcoming all first years to a new chapter in their lives while others welcome the others back for another year at the Academy. Refreshments are served up on stage while other tables set up around the massive room are home to pamphlets and flyers for clubs and classes. Special electives and advertisements for training sessions are also littered amongst the tables.

Make a few friends, find old ones, look into clubs that catch your interest. This is open house for all returning students and prospective students, so hang out, hit up others and just mingle!

Comments

[wellgloved]

"I suppose I was being obvious," Elsa admitted sheepishly, pulling her shoulders up for a moment. It was difficult not to shrink into herself but she had years of putting on a brave face, standing at her parents' side in public.

"I'm Elsa," she added, looking around before offering Loki a tiny smile im greeting. "I thought it was a bit too late to transfer here, but they insisted that it was alright."

[mischiefandlies]

"At the risk of sounding terribly cliché, it's never to late, Miss Elsa." Loki smiled pleasantly. He really could be this charming boy when he wanted to be. "You needn't be so timid around here. We are all a bit different and we are all very accepting of others' differences. That's the beauty of this school."

[wellgloved]

Elsa looked down at her open palms before returning them to their default position, folded over her skirt. "I'm starting to gather that," she admitted, "but I still worry. I've never really been able to use my powers in front of anyone, or, well, I've tried not to do so."

[mischiefandlies]

Loki watched her curiously for a moment. He wondered just what her power could be that was so awful. So, he did what he does when he's curious about something. "What could be so dreadful that you feel you should have to hide it from the world?" He held a hand out to her, palm up, offering to allow her to place hers in his. "Come. Let's step into the courtyard. Give me a small display and I shall do you the same courtesy."

[wellgloved]

Every fiber of herself warned her not to do a thing and as she lifted her hand, she hesitated before placing it in his palm. Contact was difficult still.

"I - I suppose I can do that," Elsa decided. Her problem had always been control and it hadn't improved after years of suppression.

[mischiefandlies]

Loki's half-gloved fingers wrapped around her hand lightly. He brought it up to politely kiss the top of her hand then began leading her out to the courtyard. "If you fear loss of control, I can contain whatever damage may occur until you are able to pull your power back." Really, he didn't know what to expect, but he'd found that when he could conjure and maintain a barrier, it could hold under a sufficient amount of force.

"You will never learn to master it if you fear it. Fear allows your powers to claim you. If the raven feared the fall, it would never learn to fly."

[wellgloved]

The kiss brought a blush to her cheeks, easily embarrassed and unused to the attention. Especially male attention, as innocent as that kiss might be. It's nothing.

"If you're certain you can contain it. I've caused too much damage," she confessed, following him uncertainly with a few glances over her shoulder. She had never taken her gloves off since she was very little. The thought worried her and she worried for the others, but if she could find something to ground herself...

Just a little show is what he wanted to see, that's all. She could do this.

[mischiefandlies]

The blush had been a welcome surprise, but he had more decency than to bring attention to it. At least for now. Perhaps playful goading could be had after they were better acquainted.

He walked them out into the courtyard. Oddly enough, none of the staff tried to stop them or usher them back inside. It was almost as if they went unseen in plain sight. That might have something to do with Loki, or it might just be that they weren't being so strict seeing as school hadn't officially started yet. When they came to a stop, he held out his other hand and muttered a foreign word under his breath. A bright green, glowing mass shimmered into existence above his hand then rose higher, casting artificial light enough to illuminate the entire courtyard. At the same time, his typical graphic tee, designer jeans, and boots changed in a ripple of the same green magic. It shifted him into his Asgardian attire, complete with the golden horned crown.

"I am certain, but I have faith in your control." It was probably somewhat underhanded of him to tell her he had faith in her control, but anything to help her remain strong.

[wellgloved]

Still holding his hand, Elsa took a small step back, eyes widening as she took in the transformation. He made it look so effortless, so clean and natural. Elsa only left messes that could barely be contained.

It was tempting to tell him that he would regret placing any sort of faith in her, but she would try her hardest not to disappoint. Or cause any alarm.

Politely reclaiming her hand, she tugged her suede blue-green gloves, embroidered with the flower of her country. Those went into the pocket of her dress. Concentrating, she closed her eyes and inhaled slowly with her hands a foot apart from each other, a wind building between them, the temperature dropping. Between her fingers, the wind formed condensation, which froze instantly. Opening her eyes, she threw that coldness into the air, letting the snow fall heavily around them.

[mischiefandlies]

Loki had a tendency to leave messes behind as well, but in a slightly different sense. It had nothing to do with losing control of his power and everything to do with losing control of his emotions. But these days, he was in better control of himself. So he stood back and watched her. The way she went about conjuring her power was rather elegant. Quite befitting of the lovely woman using it.

As soon as the snow started falling, Loki held out a hand, watching the snow land on his skin. Since he'd been sent to Midgard, he had only experienced the phenomenon a scarce few times. He didn't find it strange that the flakes didn't melt on his skin. Neither did he find it strange that he was never uncomfortable in the chilly weather.

"This is stunning." He glanced away from the snow gathering in his hand to Elsa. "The only beings I've met with power similar to this are the Jotuns of Jotunheim. And you are far too beautiful to be a Frost Giant." Some of the mortals of Midgard were truly spectacular.

[wellgloved]

What a charmer he was, bringing another blush to her cheeks; she had never put on such a display for anyone ... except her sister, and look where that got her. Anna would insist that it would make people happy, but all Elsa could do was push people further away from her. It was odd to her that her flakes did not melt on him, but judging by his own magic and the way he appreciated her powers...

"Where are you from?" Elsa found herself asking. "I - I've read about Jotunheim and Frost Giants."

When you hole yourself up in your room between lessons and official business, there is a lot of reading to be done. Stories of snow and frost often found their way into her hands and kept her wondering if, perhaps, there could be hope for her yet.

[mischiefandlies]

"So, legends of the Jotuns made their way all the way to Midgard? I'm kind of impressed by that, actually." Well, when it was so common for Asgardians to tell tales of said monsters to their children, of course they would be spread far and wide, he would suppose.

"I'm from a realm called Asgard. You could say I'm a transfer student." He joked with a light laugh. Whatever she might be guessing about his origins or the origins of his magic, the answers he would provide her were likely inaccurate. They wouldn't be intentionally fabricated on his part, but merely the same 'facts' he had been fed his entire life.

"What about you? You aren't some kind of snow fae, are you?" Oh, the fae were known to be lovely, yet dangerous. Somehow, she didn't strike him to be of the dangerous sort. At least not intentionally.

[wellgloved]

"Oh!"

How fascinating. She regarded him in an altered light, a smile pulling at her lips. "I do wonder how you ever could have ended up here, of all places," Elsa mused out loud before hesitating at his question.

"I'm not a snow fae, I don't think. I was born to very human parents in Arendelle, a very small Scandinavian coastal nation. It isn't usually a very popular new item in international journalism, I find, which is why no one really knows about it," she explained quietly. "I was ... born this way, showed powers at a very early age."

[mischiefandlies]

"The short answer? Exiled for our own safety--I'm here with my brother, Thor." The long answer was complicated and he might seem like the 'my life is an open book' sort, but he really was a lot more private than he let on, so he left it at that.

"That's fortunate. I hear they're a very tricky sort." He mused but moved right along. "Sounds to me like you're one of the evolutionary mutations, if I were to hazard a guess. This school; it's full of people just like you. Kids who grew up with unique gifts. Many who can't control them. But I think you're doing a pretty good job." Then there were the other kids, fewer in numbers, that weren't human at all. But he didn't need to go into that, either.

[wellgloved]

"Oh, dear." She wondered what dangers were left behind, but doesn't press. Thinking about her parents and leaving home made the snowfall thicken around them, covering the entire courtyard, and Elsa was too distracted to clear the frost.

It goes unsaid that she could be capable of much worse; she supposed he could already deduce that about her.

"Thank you." She bowed her head, instantly slipping into her gloves once more. "I hope this will be good for me."

[mischiefandlies]

Loki wasn't much for contact, really, but when she started to lose control, he reached out to her, touching her arm gently and moving to stand in front of her to draw her gaze. He knew from experience with Billy, if emotions played a part in chaotic loss of control, that finding something to focus on was the best way to rein it back in. He did not notice, however, that when he touched her skin--much colder than ice itself--his own reacted. He was focused on trying to catch her gaze.

He started to tell her to focus, but she seemed to find her ground and slipped her gloves back on. His hand dropped away immediately after, resting at his side. It was very obvious that she was capable of much worse, but he didn't bring it up. She obviously knew that.

"I think it will." He agreed with a smile. Not once had he feared her power, and his calm was probably a clue to that. "It takes time and practice and there are people here who can help you without fearing the damages of your powers, you just have to find them. Or let them find you." He was one of the few that could handle the harsh cold of her magic.

[wellgloved]

Elsa wasn't keen on touch either for several personal reasons, but she had not realize he had even laid an hand on her, far too focused on trying to hone it in. Her mantra told her to remain emotionless but Elsa knew in her heart that she was anything but; she instantly regretted coming here, but there was no turning back.

Though Loki being able to remain near her was something of a comfort. She could not determine the extent of his own powers but it was... nice, feeling as if there was someone who could relate.

"Would you be one of those people?" she asked shyly.

[mischiefandlies]

With the contact broken, and both of them having been too distracted to notice, the blue tinge to his hand faded back to the normal, slightly sun-kissed Asgardian skin. He watched her struggle, reading her expressions ro any sign that meant he would have to cast some kind of counter spell, but so far, this was all just a harmless weather change in the court yard.

"I just might be. I've never found the cold particularly unsettling before." He looked down to his hand and flexed his fingers. "Your skin was cold, but it didn't burn. I think it is safe to assume your winter will be hard pressed to damage my Asgardian skin." Yes, because obviously Thor and Sif should be able to stand up to it too.

"My powers, if they were to get out of hand, the fabric of reality would suffer. You create a winter wonderland, while I could tear apart dimensions." It was fortunate that at his young age, he couldn't channel enough magic for that outcome. But he knew another reality warper that could... He smiled and stepped back for a moment, spreading his arms and muttering a few words in old Norse, a language that existed only in unspoken runes for the last few centuries. With a faint green flash, the snow on the ground vanished as if it had never been there. No evidence to point to her snowy power having been unleashed. Then the light he'd cast to keep the area illuminated went out, his clothing returned to normal, and he staggered, catching himself on a nearby bench. That little spell just about completely drained him after all the magic he'd used tonight.

"I believe that spell is a one-time deal. I will need time to recover before I can pull that off again."

[wellgloved]

Elsa held her breath, watching as the snow instantly disappeared from the courtyard in a flash of green light. It delighted her, but she didn't linger on that for very long, reaching for him, only to pull her hands back once he found a bench to lean against.

"Powers are a blessing and a burden, that's what I've always been told," she explained quietly. "Though for the most part, it just feels like a burden to me."

"Will you be alright? I - I should help you back into the school," she offered after a moment. "That was amazing, what you did, what you can do." She only knew a little bit about Norse mythology - or history, as it were. Magic was real, but seeing it come from someone else made her feel more at ease in settling into this new surrounding.