The Variant's Shadow - LokixOC - ONGOING

* 10 Steps Ahead *

Mobius and the judge had been talking for a while already and apparently, it was not as bad as it seemed. No one was screaming, and there was no sign of an ongoing fight. 

“I knew you’d try something.” She looked at the variant sitting next to her outside of Judge Renslayer’s office. 

“Because you always know what I’m doing.” G-16 looked at him and laughed. 

“Because I asked a hunter when you came back. I actually didn’t think you’d really try anything after I explicitly told Mobius that you would.” She noticed the variant looking at her with a puzzled look. “What ?”

“People talk to you ?”

“Yes, because unlike *you*, I’m a decent person. You’re rude, arrogant, and no one likes you.”

“Mobius likes me enough to take me on the field.” G-16 turned her head to face the variant. 

“Lucky for me, your stupidity will assure me that it will never happen again.” He opened his mouth but she cut him off. “And if they ever need your hum… ‘expertise’ again, they’ll take me too. Because I told them you’d try to escape and you were dumb enough to do it.”

“I think I know why people talk to you.” G-16 gave him a questioning look. “It’s because they’re afraid you’ll never stop whining if they don’t.”

She sighed and turned her attention to the wall in front of her. She didn’t want to talk to him anymore. She heard him laughing at her for a few seconds but she didn’t say anything. The variant was probably right, but she didn’t like to be put to the side when she could clearly be useful. 

And because of his little games, Mobius didn’t get her the batteries she needed. And she was almost out of stock.

After a few minutes of silence, Mobius got out of the office and looked at them. 

“You two are unusually quiet.”

“She’s being a child.” “He’s an asshole.” Mobius rolled his  eyes and walked away from the office. The peace and quiet didn’t last long.

Mobius and G-16 were walking down the hall, trying to escape the never ending flow of words coming out of the variant’s mouth. He messed up, and now he was trying to save himself from the pruning. 

“That was your first lesson in catching a Loki. Expect the expected.”

The TVA agents sighed. He kept on talking until Mobius couldn’t take it anymore. 

“What happened to the guy on the elevator who didn’t like to talk ? Remember him?” He turned to G-16 and pointed in her direction. “It feels like I have another one of you now.”

“Completely different. He’s just trying to woo you.” She laughed and followed Mobius when he turned around a corner. He looked back at the variant. 

“You’re here to help me catch the superior version of yourself. That’s it.”

“I’m not sure ‘superior’ is actually quite the right word.” Mobius stopped walking and faced the variant. Knowing what was about to happen, G-16 called the elevator and came back to Mobius’ side. 

“I believed that your need for validation would motivate you to find the killer. Not because you care about the TVA’s mission or being a hero, but because you know this variant is better than you. And you can’t take it.”

G-16 laughed and watched the variant take his most arrogant look. The exact reason why no one liked him. He watched them both as he rearranged Mobius’ tie.