#ler!octane

Mirage was having a pretty good day. It wasn’t his turn to play in any of the Apex Games today, so he was able to get in an early workout. At least, early to him. He was never an early riser, insisting that he needed his beauty sleep, but he’d started hitting the weights fifteen minutes before noon. He was so pleased with himself that he gave himself (and his holograms) a high-five. 

Then came the fans.

At first, it was just a small crowd of one guy and two girls. They had their phones in hand and were speaking in hushed whispers. They tried not to make it obvious that they were staring at him, but they kept glancing down at their phone and back up at him. Elliott watched them for a bit. His muscles flexed as he did his dumbbell curls, and the whispers got a little bit a louder, mixed in with noticeable swoons. The trickster chuckled to himself and put the dumbbells down. He turned to the small crowd and gave them his trademark grin. 

“Staring’s rude, ya know,” he teased. “A picture would last way longer.”

They squealed, compliments and questions all blending into one as Mirage took some pictures with the fans. For all of the years he’s been competing in the games, he never tired of the fan service. Maybe one of those pics that would definitely pop up on social media spark some new memories for his mom. 

By the time he’d started his stroll down the dropship’s hallway, he’d showered, changed into more comfy clothes, and ate a sandwich he’d picked up on his way back. His eyes were glued to his phone as he liked, reposted, and responded to the comments on his fan page. It was the sound of deep, desperate laughter that made him look up. 

Octane and Seer were there in the corridor. The speedster still had the man pinned down at the waist while he pinched and kneaded over his knees. Obi’s laughter, which was normally composed of calm chuckles, could be heard even at a distance. He was kicking and squirming, making a concerted effort to pull himself free of Octavio’s grasp, but he wouldn’t budge. The weight of his metal legs kept Obi from getting away, and in all honesty, Octavio looked like he was having a blast. 

“Well, well, well. Looks like you two are having fun,” Elliott chuckled. “Guess all of those team-building exercises work after all.”

Octavio was in the midst of honing in on one of Obi’s knees when the trickster spoke up. He visibly brightened and grinned. “Dude, you’ve gotta come try this! Señor Fancypants here is so ticklish.”

Obi was quick to interject. “Abeg, nohohohoho! Help mehehehe, Elliott!”

Elliott stepped closer to the two, humming thoughtfully. “I dunno, looks like you’re in good hands to me. Although, I’d be a pretty bad friend if I didn’t help out, right?”

On the surface, it sounded like Elliott was going to help, but his growing smile told Obi that it wouldn’t be in the way that he meant it. He squirmed with a renewed vigor as the trickster knelt above him. 

“Wahahait! Wait! That is not what I MEHAHAHANT!”

Obi yelled when Ocatvio got a good grip on his leg and, bending it at the knee, scribbled his fingers along the underside of his knee. The artist bucked and laughed even harder. His leg kicked and bucked in the speedster’s hold and he curled in on himself, his cackles echoing throughout the corridor. 

Mirage made a show of stretching and flexing his fingers. Obi felt his presence and hugged his arms around his torso. This made Elliott chuckle. 

“What’re you talkin’ about, buddy? I’m gonna help you,” he smirked. “Oh wait, did you think I wasn’t gonna see this for myself? Damn, sorry. You should’ve been more specific.”

Mirage moved to get Obi’s arms out of the way. It wasn’t easy; Seer was already a nimble individual and his cackling and squirming meant that he wasn’t gonna hold still. Still, Mirage was persistent, and he’d managed to pin one of the man’s arms down to free up one side of his torso.  

“And you know what else?” Elliott continued, giving the man experimental pokes at his sides. Octavio had to ease up on his knees so he could hear what he was saying. “Correct me if I’m wrong, which I’m not, but didn’t you push me off World’s Edge two days ago?”

With Octavio giving him a break on his knees, Obi took the opportunity to catch his breath. The pokes made him jump and chuckle, but it was nowhere near the cackling he was just doing. 

“Wh-Whahat?” Obi breathed. “We were on opposing teams—”

“Right, and there’s totally no hard feelings, buuuut,” he hummed. “That team building thingie Ajay had us do said we should always find ways to bond after the games to uh, ‘keep the good blood flowin’. So!”

Elliott wrestled his other arm down while he was yapping. Now, he could freely poke and prod into the man’s sides, making Obi’s chuckling become more prominent. He grinned. “If this isn’t team building, I dunno what is!”

Octavio snorted. He returned to tickling the underside of Obi’s knee, leading to another shout and frantic laughter. “Heh, works for me.”

The higher Elliott went up on Obi’s sides, the harder he laughed. He twisted from one side to the other, head tilted back as he laughed. 

“YOUHUHU AHAHARE TWISTING HEHEHR WOHOHRDS!”

Obi protested through his loud laughter. His arms strained in Elliott’s surprisingly strong hold as he tried to bring them back down. 

“Psh, that sounds exactly what she’d say. When I care enough to listen,” Octavio laughed. He looked over his shoulder at Elliott and smirked. “Go higher, amigo. His ribs are crazy ticklish.”

“Oh?”

Elliott repeatedly squeezed the spot just below his rib cage. Obi arched upwards with a wheeze. 

“NOHOHOHOHO! BIHIHIHIHIKO!”

“Huh, well would you look at that,” Mirage chuckled. “We’re more alike than I thought. See? It’s working!”

The trickster then raked his nails in quick scritches along his rib cage, laughing as the man bucked and cackled. Octane was getting bored of tickling his knees, so he got off of his legs and scooted up to his side. “Muévete (Move over), Elliott. I’ll hold his arms.”

Elliott made a big show of acting like he was surprised and flattered. “Why, thank you, Octavio! What a kind and generous offer.”

They swapped places faster than Obi could blink, both in the literal and metaphorical sense. Octane used the weight of his legs to help keep his arms pinned over his head, and Mirage was able to straddle his waist. The trickster resumed tickling his ribs, using the pads of his thumbs to knead over the individual ribs and the spaces between. The fits of laughter came in waves and, not content with staying on the side lines, Octavio prodded into the man’s exposed armpit.

Ler

The Apex Games keep Octane busy, but even he needs to add in some variety so he doesn’t get bored.

As one of the Outland’s resident pranksters, he causes trouble on a pretty regular basis and enjoys having fun with the other Legends. Sometimes that fun incorporates tickling. This is especially true if his target has a more serious/stoic personality. 

“Jeez, it was just a joke. Loosen up amigo.” Cue the speedster prodding at the lee’s torso, especially at the sides or ribs, and grinning when he gets a squeal or a laugh. “Ticklish, huh? Sweet. I was getting bored..”

Octane is mischievous and energetic as a ‘ler. He goes in fast and pokes and squeezes over ticklish spots in seemingly random patterns before doubling down and scribbling over the spots that got his ‘lee laughing. 

He can also be a lil’ shit about it too- if he thinks his friends are moving too slow, he’ll poke at their torso and encourage them to move it, though he can often easily keep up with them even if they make a legitimate attempt to run. “Dios mio, you even walk slow. Hurry up!”

Tickling and pranks become intertwined if he learns that someone’s ticklish. One of his favorite things to do is poking the closest person to his jump pad and laughing as they accidentally launch themselves in the air. It’s funnier if they end up flying off the map. 

He loves a chase. He will even give his ‘lee a head start if he’s feeling cocky, but it’s rare that they ever get away from him.

He also likes to dash in while his lee is doing something else, tickle them, and dash out. He always gets a kick out of it, and his ‘lees are often left exhausted. Getting tickled by him could easily count as a workout. 

Being Octane’s friend and being around him when he’s bored could lead to impromptu tickle attacks. He’ll spring up to his feet and grin, saying, “I’ll give you ten seconds to run.” That’s the closest thing to a warning they’ll get before he jumps into action, and even ten seconds is generous. 

Octane also likes to tickle people if they prank him and/or if they’re starting trouble with him and playfully tease them. His taunts can range from “Thought you were mad at me. What 's so funny?” or “Still got jokes, huh?”

Lee

One of, if not the most ticklish Legend in the Apex Games. Whether that sensitivity comes from his stim usage or not, it doesn’t take much to get him laughing. 

The difficult part is having him stay still long enough to actually be tickled, though. After a few ticklish pokes, he’s gone, and most of the Legends don’t have a chance in catching him. 

He has to be backed into a corner or someone has to get the jump on him to have the highest chance of tickling him. And even then, he has to be held or pinned in some way because he’s very squirmy. If he can get away, he will. 

A  couple of pokes can easily get those frantic giggles out of him. But tickling his underarms will elicit those infectious belly laughs. His tummy is pretty ticklish too, but to a slightly lesser extent. 

He yelps out an even mix of English and Spanglish as he’s being tickled, with a heavier emphasis on Spanish curse words as he squirms and laughs himself silly. 

Since he pranks a lot of the Legends, he’s a prime target for tickling if they can catch him. That doesn’t stop him from instigating pranks though- it’s way too much fun. 

His laughter is much like him: loud and chaotic. It can usually be heard from at least two rooms down on the drop ship. 

He regenerates stamina quickly and can be tickled for longer than most in theory. And, even if his ‘ler has him trapped, he’s still very fidgety and it takes a concerted effort to keep him in place.