Dorm Hall - 3rd Floor

[IFBench]

Journer
Camping under the stars...


Gilded Gaggle of Goofs

#snom-talk​

wingsofachampion: friend?

wingsofachampion: can i ask you something?

Sad Snom: Of course.

wingsofachampion: if something happens to me and gen, can you take care of my team for us?

Sad Snom: What's happening.

wingsofachampion: people and pokemon are going missing here

wingsofachampion: gen's worried we'll be next.

Sad Snom: Can you leave?

Sad Snom: I am asking you for your own safety to leave the island.

Sad Snom: Wings?

Sad Snom: @wingsofachampion

Sad Snom: Wings! Please!

Sad Snom: We can't lose you too!​

 

[Hanafuda]

Seb walked into his dorm, too tired to even change into his pajamas. He went straight to the bed, lying down and looking at the skylight.

“Man, things are getting worse,” he muttered to himself. “Might be just me. I did want a nice vacation with my birds, but with all the kidnapping happening, I don’t feel relaxed at all. Worst of all, I can’t find my phone. Where did it go? Did someone take it? Maybe the kidnapper didn’t want me to contact anyone for help.”

He heard a light chirp to his left, turning to look with shock at the tree.

“Zack?”

Seb found his Pidgeotto laying down on his nest bed, along with his Farfetch’d sitting on the one below.

“Aw, it’s good to see you again!” Seb exclaimed, but he didn’t raise his volume much. He was tired and sleepy. “Wait, is that my phone? You actually took it?” He turned back to look at the skylight, chuckling lightly. “Well, so long as it isn’t damaged. Just watch the battery and charge it when you’re done, please. Good night…”

---

“I knew Seb would be okay,” Jack said with a smile towards his Trainer.

“But it freaked me out when the cops said that we should be in groups,” Zack responded, scrolling through the phone’s screen.

“At least there wasn’t anything too bad happening to us. But we can’t relax yet.”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m checkin’ out these messages that everyone’s been sendin’ to the group lately.”

“You added us to a group chat?”

“Yeah, with the other peeps from the boat. They said we should trust ‘em, so I am. Still don’t trust the cops.”

“Personal bias?”

“Yeah, and also ‘cause they weren’t with us on the boat.”

“I understand.” Jack laid on his side, silent for a few moments in thought.

“All good down there, Jack-o, my guy?” Zack asked, eyes glued on the phone.

“Yeah… Just thinking.”

“‘Bout what?”

“This mystery…”

“Okay…” The Pidgeotto became a bit confused at the short answers. “What exactly?”

“Do you really think I’ll be able to help uncover every answer?” The Farfetch’d bore a worried expression as he spoke, not looking up.

“Say what?”

“I don’t know, but… Maybe I’m not good enough as an investigator?”

“My dude, aren’t you the smart guy here?”

“Yeah, but I know my limits. That’s why I can count on Seb to guide us. Mostly in battle.”

“But what made you say this stuff?”

“Odette… Well, what she said felt kinda like she touched a nerve.”

“Really?”

“After what she said, I thought that we were falling behind on the progress made on the case. That we weren’t finding answers as quickly as everyone else. That’s why I think I might not be good enough as a detective.”

“Ah, don’t sweat it, my guy. That’s why everyone’s workin’ together to find the bad guy.”

“I’m just worried that that Xatu feather I found might be the only clue I got.”

“But it was a big help on findin’ out about that Kalo kid! Why’re ya beatin’ yourself over that?”

“You think I should let everyone do the work? We might just get in their way.”

“Jack-o, please stop sayin’ all that bad stuff. It’s not good for ya.”

Zack laid back on his nest, entering the group chat.

“Yeah,” Jack muttered. He looked back at the Xatu feather, lying on the nightstand below. “I still have to try. Even if it’s something small, it should help.”

 

[HelloYellow17]

“Absolutely not.”


“Spiiiiii?”


“I said no.”


“Spi-spi-espi-spiii!!”


“Brrrri.”


“No way in hell!”


The brothers flinched and angled their ears back at Wes’ suddenly harsh tone. He cursed between clenched teeth and turned away from them to chuck his bag on the bed with a little more force than necessary. He hated raising his voice at them, but what they were proposing was ridiculous. Stupid. Dangerous. He couldn’t believe they were even considering it.


He turned back around and sat heavily on the bed with a frustrated sigh, running his hand through his hair. “Look. I know we didn’t really make any headway today, but that doesn’t mean we just throw caution out the window. We’re not going to split up just to cover more ground. End of story.”


“Esp-esp-spi-spi-spi—” Neo immediately launched into a rant, but Novo quieted him by gently brushing up against the Espeon’s side. He padded up to Wes and placed a paw on his knee, then nodded at Neo, who also came closer to sit at Wes’ feet.


Wes frowned at them both. “What—?”


He was interrupted by a quiet buzzing in his mind, accompanied with flickering images and information, expressed through feelings rather than words. He flinched at first—Neo rarely entered his mind these days, and Wes wasn’t used to the sensation like he once was. But the information presented through Neo’s telepathy quickly overrode his surprise.


The sensation faded, along with the images and emotions. Wes blinked a few times to clear his vision, then looked between the pair with a disbelieving stare.


“You’re joking.”


He knew they weren’t, there was no faking those memories, but it was…a bit to chew on for a moment.


He rubbed at his forehead. “So you’re telling me that waiter Novo was talking to…was…Latios in disguise? Somehow?” And here he had thought he’d seen everything this island had to offer. A habit he really needed to break, apparently.


Novo nodded while Neo yapped and danced about excitedly, then began to chase his own tail. Well, this development sure explained why the two had been so animatedly chatty with each other on the way back to their room.


Wes shook his head slowly. “Well, that’s…something. I guess. And you really think we can trust them?”


“Umb.” Novo’s reply was resolute.


“Well…it’s annoying that he didn’t have much information to share, but I won’t say no to having him on our side.” He gave Novo a sheepish smile. “Sorry for chasing him off. In my defense, there’s no universe where I would have guessed who that guy really was.”


Novo snorted and swatted at Wes’ leg in a playful gesture. He held no hard feelings…but that look was back in his eyes. He rested his chin on Wes’ knee and tried again. “Umbri.”


Wes tensed. “I already said it. No. I don’t care that we apparently have some Legendaries on our side. Whatever’s out there, it’s stronger than they are, otherwise it would have been taken care of by now. And we don’t even know if every Legend here is on our side. My answer won’t change.”


“Spiiii?” Neo paused in his antics to look at Wes, tail held captive in his mouth, and narrowed his eyes. Novo flicked his tail and growled.


“Look, just because Latios is on our side, doesn’t mean we’re all automatically safe!” Wes snapped. “He even said that this…thing, or Pokémon, or whatever it is, is stronger. Neither of you are leaving my sight, and that’s final.”


But it wasn’t final. Wes could see it in the way Neo sniffed and turned his head away, in the way Novo’s tail twitched back and forth. Why were they both so gung-ho all of a sudden…?


Then it clicked. Wes leaned back on his palms with a sigh. “This is about that guy and his Mightyena, isn’t it.”


Neither of them replied, but Novo’s drooping ears and Neo looking to the floor was enough of an answer.


Right…Mitch getting taken was rattling enough for Wes, but Neo and Novo had bonded rather quickly with Mightyena. Of course they would be affected, too…perhaps even more than he had been.


Plus, it might be my fault they were taken. If we hadn’t snooped around that day... Wes’ stomach twisted at the thought. It had been there at the back of his mind all day, eating away at him, but he’d been doing a good job of ignoring the guilty twinges. Until now, anyway.


With a weary huff, he pushed himself off the bed and sat on the floor, a silent invitation that Neo and Novo knew well. They padded over to him, but avoided meeting his eyes.


“Okay. All right. Let’s make a deal. A compromise.” They looked up, ears pricked forward. “I’ll let you guys check out different areas, but only if you go together and only to places that are adjacent to where I am. No going to the other side of the island, no going solo, none of that. And if you see the slightest sign of trouble, get the hell out of there. Don’t fight. Don’t get involved or try to be a hero. Just get to safety and watch each others’ backs. Sound good?”


Neo and Novo looked at him, then at each other, then back to Wes. Neo raised his tail high in the air while Novo purred.


“Spi.”


“Brr.”


Wes smiled a little, but it didn’t stay long. “I’ve got one more condition. And it’s not negotiable.” He took a deep breath and just managed to keep the quiver out of his voice. “If we get attacked when we’re all together, the same thing still applies. Don’t fight, only run. Even if it means you have to leave me behind.”


He paused. His Pokémon said nothing, only stared at him, and the room suddenly seemed eerily quiet.


“And if—if something does happen to me, then do everything you can to get out of here, off this island, back to our…proper world or universe or whatever. Don’t look for me, just…just get out and get somewhere safe.” His voice cracked a little on the last word. He hastily cleared his throat in an attempt to cover it up, then sternly looked between the two of them. “Got it?”


Neo flattened his ears, tail drooping to the floor, and he let out a whimper. Novo bared his fangs at his trainer, an angry snarl rising in his throat.


“Those are my conditions, Get angry all you want, I’m not changing them. So take it or leave it.”


“Spi, spi, espi!” Neo cried shrilly. Novo’s rings pulsed as he snarled louder.


“Guys, please, I just—I want you to be—I can’t lose…” Wes couldn’t find the words. The lump forming in his throat made it hard to speak anyway. He swallowed thickly and spoke in barely more than a whisper. “Please, just…humor me. Please.”


His voice cracked again, but this time he didn’t bother to hide it.


The brothers’ protests faded into silence—a heavy, stifling silence, one that wrapped around Wes’ ribs and constricted, making it hard for him to breathe. He curled his shaking hands into fists and glared at the floor, hating this display of fear, of weakness, hating this room and this island and this whole damn situation and his decision to even come here in the first place, all just because he wanted to run away from his problems…from himself…from Rui, not because she’d sent him away but because he was a coward, he was pathetic, he was a failure—


A soft pressure against his side dragged Wes from his spiraling thoughts. Neo was leaning into him, Novo at his other side with a paw on Wes’ leg. With a soft purr, Neo climbed into Wes’ lap and curled up and Novo leaned in and pressed his head into his trainer’s chest.


Wes wrapped his arms around them both, unable to speak, but his thanks was heard and received regardless. How long they stayed there, Wes wasn’t sure, but his legs were starting to cramp up by the time Novo pulled away. Neo sat up and hopped off Wes’ lap with a bright chirp, as if nothing had happened, and immediately started swatting at his brother’s ears. Novo chuffed, taking a second to kick Wes’ cheek before turning to tackle Neo. The Espeon squealed shrilly, and soon the two were grappling on the floor, earlier heaviness lifting considerably.


Wes managed a tiny, if somewhat strained, smile. “Morons.” Fear and pain still lingered in his chest, but it was…manageable again, at least for now.


He stood and went to move his bag from the bed when his phone buzzed, making him jump and curse under his breath. He opened the notification with a frown. Something from the trainer at the Dragons’ Maw, and that he’d gotten Wes’ number from a certain Espeon…


Wes was sure his groan could be heard from even the bottom floor. “Neo, what the hell?”

 

[Sinderella]

In a weird twist of evening plans, Odette found herself laying in bed, flanked by both Enora and Odile. Enora had taken to nuzzling into her right hip, while Odile, still in that human form, had her back to her and was facing the wall. Odette supposed she didn't mind the crowd; the bed was big enough for it anyway.

As she gazed up at the ceiling, she thought about Steven. She sincerely hoped he ate the bar she left for him, and took a hot bath. That alone should do him wonders. And she also hoped he and Aggron could pick up that mess...it looked like they really fought. She hoped they'd make up somehow. She was fairly certain they would.

Then she thought about Wes. How he yelled. How she wanted to deck him in the face for it. How she probably should have done a better job of fighting off her anger instead of full send screaming back at him. All it did was make the situation so much worse. Odile wasn't involuntarily floating around in her system anymore, so she had no excuse to let it run wild like that.

But it was hard when it felt like he was speaking directly to her situation too.

The streak had been going well. She'd managed to get on pretty decent terms with almost everyone she'd met so far, so of course, there always had to be one little blemish, didn't there?

Note to self. Never try to be comforting ever again, she thought. It'd only cause more trouble than it was worth, and she was in enough trouble as it was. Even if she had managed to grow a little more empathetic over the years, she was still the same person. The same easily angered, beacon of absolute bad luck and strife.

The sigh she let out was louder than she anticipated, and she saw Enora perk up in her peripheral vision.


"Are you alright?"


She shrugged, keeping her eyes on the ceiling. "I don't know. I'm not good, but I'm not bad either."

When Enora didn't immediately respond, she decided to keep talking.

"Are you alright?"


Enora lowered her chin down to her paws, pondering the question.

The short answer would most likely be no. She'd been so stressed out the past couple days that she felt like she might break out all over her face. She'd felt her temper rise to heights she previously thought it couldn't get to. And with the overwhelming sense of dread this island now carried, with the constant threat that anybody could be kidnapped at any moment by gods knew who...

But then there was a beacon of light somewhere in that dark. She'd made friends. She'd gotten to watch Odette make friends. She'd gotten to watch Odile learn how to control herself and start to show some emotional understanding for once. And there was Novo, and his little nose kisses...

It was her turn to shrug. "I suppose I'm neutral."


Odette considered the response, before nudging Odile's back. "And you, Grudge? Is there a reason you've insisted on climbing into the bed tonight?"


She was clutching Lululemon to her chest as she slowly turned onto her back as well. She held the rubber chicken up to her face and lightly squeezed it. "̸I̴ ̶w̷a̵s̴ ̸t̶h̸i̸n̵k̶i̴n̷g̴ ̵a̴b̵o̷u̴t̸ ̴i̸t̸,̵"̶ she eventually spoke, "̸a̵n̵d̷ ̵I̷ ̷t̶h̵i̸n̵k̵ ̷i̸t̴ ̶w̶o̴u̸l̷d̷ ̶b̵e̵ ̷s̷a̶f̵e̷r̷ ̵i̶f̶ ̸I̷ ̴w̶a̸s̷ ̴l̸i̶k̸e̶.̸.̶.̶r̸i̴g̵h̴t̸ ̸h̵e̷r̶e̷.̶ ̷J̶u̴s̷t̷ ̷i̵n̷ ̵c̸a̷s̵e̴.̶"

She pursed her lips, trying to work through how she wanted to explain herself. But, the longer they were here, the worse she felt. Not even the sight of those Quagsire, or meeting the Pikachu/Zapdos hybrid was enough to fully keep her away from it. Or meeting Sleet. Or fucking around with the people she didn't like. Those things were good in the moment, but she always went back to feeling...on edge.

She hadn't felt this way in a long time. Not since her brothers and sisters decided they were tired of her being the best out of all of them.

That was the only time she'd felt fear, ever.

But, with what happened in Manaphy's presence. Facing mortality, and Odette risking herself again. And watching Odette be upset over everything. And being worried that somebody might take her again.

Now she knew what the durians were called. Fear. It'd just...been a while.

Gods, loving something was fucking painful, wasn't it? She should hate it. She really should hate it.

But, loving and being worried about Odette felt the best. Better than the best. The durians didn't feel as bad as the love felt good.

"B̴e̸c̶a̸u̸s̶e̸ ̷S̴t̵e̸v̴e̸n̷ ̶g̸o̴t̵ ̷a̴t̶t̴a̸c̴k̴e̶d̵ ̸a̴n̷d̴ ̸h̶e̵'̴s̴ ̶a̵ ̷c̸h̷a̸m̴p̴i̸o̸n̴ ̴t̵o̸o̵,̵ ̴s̶o̷ ̵w̵h̷a̷t̶ ̶i̴f̴ ̵y̵o̸u̵ ̴g̶e̵t̶ ̴a̸t̴t̷a̸c̷k̷e̸d̴ ̷n̸e̶x̸t̷?̶ ̸I̵ ̷t̶h̷i̶n̷k̸ ̷a̷s̴ ̸l̴o̷n̸g̶ ̵a̴s̴ ̷I̴'̸m̸ ̷n̸e̷x̴t̸ ̶t̵o̷ ̶y̴o̴u̴,̴ ̴t̴h̸e̷y̴'̴l̶l̴ ̷b̸e̷ ̸t̷o̷o̷ ̸s̵c̶a̵r̶e̶d̸ ̷t̶o̸ ̶t̶r̴y̵ ̶a̷n̷y̴t̴h̴i̸n̵g̷,̴ ̷b̸e̶c̷a̸u̸s̴e̶ ̷I̴'̸m̸ ̶v̶e̷r̵y̷ ̵s̵c̷a̷r̸y̵.̷"̵


Odette clung to both of their words for a while. Let them run laps in her brain, swished them around in her mouth, let them seep into her nerves. Before long, she raised her good hand to rub her eyes.

"Fuck, guys," she said in an agitated huff. "I'm really sorry."


Enora's ears stiffened. "What for?"


Odette continued to rub her eyes. "I am a walking hub for nefarious bullshit, Enora. I feel like no matter how much we try, something bad always ends up happening to us. And it doesn't help that I run head first into it, and drag you by your ears even when you tell me you don't want me to. I'm not trying to get us hurt, or anybody for that matter, but it can't be helped that if I'm involved, something is always going to go wrong. And you just get yanked along as a result."

Despite what she tried to preach to Steven, what she said to Wes was also true. She was still working on that guilt. And sometimes, it managed to shine through anyway.


Odile sighed that time. She leaned over and rested her cheek on Odette's shoulder. "̵W̷e̷l̶l̸,̶ ̸s̴o̶m̶e̶ ̸o̸f̸ ̸t̶h̵a̷t̸ ̸m̸i̷g̸h̴t̴ ̸b̴e̵ ̶k̷i̸n̸d̵ ̶o̷f̸ ̶m̸y̸ ̴f̸a̶u̴l̷t̵.̶ ̷I̷ ̸d̶o̸n̶'̷t̴ ̵t̸h̷i̴n̴k̵ ̷a̴n̷y̵ ̸b̵a̴d̸ ̸t̵h̴i̴n̷g̷s̸ ̴w̸o̷u̸l̸d̶ ̶h̵a̴v̷e̵ ̷h̵a̶p̸p̶e̷n̵e̸d̶ ̵t̶o̴ ̷y̵o̸u̴ ̷i̵f̸ ̷I̵-̵-̶"̵


Odette reached up and sat her hand on Odile's other cheek. "No. This would be a mere one off if I were born under normal circumstances, even if I were still born with you. Florent could have been a fucking sane person. You weren't the one telling him to start a cult. Likewise, you didn't willingly seek me out."


"̵W̴e̴l̵l̸.̴.̶.̷n̷o̶.̶ ̴B̸u̶t̷ ̵y̵o̶u̷ ̴k̶n̸o̶w̴ ̷I̸ ̵d̴o̷ ̷c̴a̶u̶s̴e̶ ̵b̸a̶d̵ ̸t̵h̴i̵n̸g̵s̶ ̴r̸i̷g̷h̸t̴?̶"̵

Shit, she'd always liked causing bad things. She liked the thrill of it. But now it just didn't sit right with her. At least, in certain situations.


Odette kept shaking her head. "You can. But you're not what's doing this shit to the island. You aren't supreme ruler of the criminal fucking underground. You didn't wake up from your coma and decide you wanted to be pursued by it, either."

She let go of Odile to tuck her arm behind her head, the other resting on Enora's paws. "I am just a risky reckless bitch. I want to help, but I just keep endangering everyone. And stressing you guys out. And not asking how you're doing."

She scoffed after a pause. "I should practice what I preach. Now I'm wallowing in my own self pity here."


It was Enora's turn to sigh.

"I think...you just need to be nicer to yourself."

She stood up and shook off her, before sitting back down closer to Odette's head. "You just assured Odile she wasn't at fault for anything, which is true, so why aren't you showing yourself that kindness? You didn't agree to this trip knowing this would happen. And I know you well enough to be aware that while reckless, you're not stupid. And despite what you tell yourself, you have a good heart. I only worry because I'm--"

She stopped to take a calming breath. Stopping her thoughts from going anywhere bad; where they didn't need to be right now. "I'm me. I worry. I think about things of the past and..."

Her fur bristled. She was quick to shake it off. "If this is about Enigma, I can't stress enough that I'm not mad about that. We saved so many Pokemon and humans alike. I know that's all you're trying to do here as well, and while I will always try to persuade you to take the safer route, I know you just want to help and get to the root of the problem, however that may be. And I'm with you, and always have been."

She then rested her head on Odette's chest, even going as far as to nuzzle her in assurance.

"I'm alright. We've gone through hell and back, and we'll do it again, like ladies."


"̸A̶m̵ ̴I̵ ̷a̶ ̴l̴a̵d̵y̸ ̸n̸o̴w̷?̵ ̴A̸m̵ ̸I̴ ̴a̷ ̷p̷r̷e̸t̷t̶y̶ ̴l̷a̵d̸y̷?̵"̸


"Yes, you can be a pretty lady for now."


Her heart refused to fully rise out of her stomach--and she was certain that it wouldn't for a while--but she could, at least for the moment, say that she felt a little better. And she was confident that she had the best Pokemon on the island. No contest.

She began to scratch Enora behind her ear, her eyes shutting as she did. "I'm glad you're here with me. Both of you."


"̴O̶k̴a̶y̵,̸ ̴I̶ ̸l̵i̸k̶e̸ ̸a̷l̸l̷ ̶o̶f̸ ̵t̸h̵i̷s̸ ̴r̵e̷a̴s̶s̵u̵r̷i̴n̴g̶ ̴t̷a̷l̵k̷,̴ ̷b̷u̸t̷ ̴y̸o̸u̷ ̶k̸n̷o̸w̸ ̷w̵h̶a̸t̸ ̶w̵o̴u̷l̷d̸ ̴r̴e̵a̶l̷l̷y̵ ̸m̵a̶k̸e̴ ̵m̶e̵ ̶f̶e̷e̸l̸ ̴b̵e̷t̸t̶e̴r̸?̴"̷


Her eyes opened again, and she turned her head toward Odile. "What?"


"̷S̷i̵i̵i̴i̵i̷i̸i̷i̴i̴n̴g̵ ̷B̸a̵r̷r̷a̷s̵k̷e̶w̷d̸a̵.̸"̶


She laughed a little. "What, no more rapping?"


She poked Odette's shoulder lightly. "̴B̴a̶r̸r̶a̵s̷k̷e̵w̸d̶a̷.̸ ̸I̶ ̵l̸i̶k̶e̵ ̵t̷h̶e̸ ̸s̸o̴u̶n̴d̴ ̶y̷o̵u̵r̴ ̶v̷o̵i̵c̷e̶ ̸m̶a̸k̸e̷s̸ ̷w̸h̵e̷n̴ ̷y̶o̴u̶ ̴d̸o̶ ̵t̸h̶e̶ ̸h̸i̸g̶h̶ ̶n̶o̴t̴e̸s̸.̷ I̷'̸l̸l̵ ̸d̸o̴ ̵t̸h̸e̵ ̸g̴u̸i̵t̸a̵r̸ ̴n̸o̶i̸s̷e̵s̶.̷"̷

Odile sat up quickly and began to sing the opening guitar riff, using Lululemon as a guitar as she did.


Odette laughed again, watching her with light amusement. She supposed she hadn't used her a voice in a few days, and was overdue.

"SO, this ain't the end, I saw you again," she sang between giggles, "today. I had to turn my heart away."

It wasn't too hard of a song. She wondered why Odile liked this one in particular for it's high notes, in comparison to the other ones Odette had under her belt. But, she wouldn't question it. She felt like Odile was more interested in playing the air guitar anyway and just needed somebody to accompany her.

"You're lying so low in the weeds, I bet you gonna ambush me," she went on. She didn't care too much about her volume as she went up into her head voice. This was supposed to be a bonding moment, so noise complaints could suck it.

"You'd have me down, down, down, on my knees, now wouldn't you?" She silently praised herself for her vibrato on those words. Odile even paused to clap before the phrase even ended, but it gave them a perfect opportunity for the three of them to look at each other in anticipation. They held the paused for far longer than the actual song did, but none of them really gave a fuck.

"BAR̶R̸A̸SKEWDA," they all sang simultaneously.

 

[IFBench]

Oh, Coleane knew this song! Writeer had shown her it once! Helped her recover from that one trainer who insisted that she join their team, and kept following her. That...had put in a sour mood, until Writeer cheered her up with this song!

She began swaying her neck in time with the rhythm, a smile on her face, as memories flowed through her head. Her being too miserable to even fly, until she heard the tunes of this song, nearly perfectly encapsulating what she was feeling.

Gen quietly hummed along. While he wasn't really a fan of the song, he saw how happy it was making his trainer. It wouldn't hurt to join in a bit.

 

[Sinderella]

Odette stopped dead in her tracks as she kicked the door open to her room. Had she known that she was going to have party, she would have straightened up more. Made the bed, put her clothes away instead of throwing it all onto a chair and the floor next to the dresser, cleared all of her skincare off the bathroom counter. Maybe torn the pictures of her livelihood off the wall over her bed; that was getting a little personal. Still, the sight of Guzma and Clovis's faces, and her other Pokemon teammates, and her human friends all did wonders for her mood. Even hanging on the wall, in paper form, the familiarity of all their faces calmed her down, and gods knew she needed to be calm right now.

With a deep sigh, she kicked her jazz shoes aside and motioned those behind her to follow her in. "Entre," she called back. "Make yourselves at home. Just try not to break any of my shit."


"̶L̴u̴l̶u̶l̸e̸m̶o̵n̶,̴ ̸S̸h̷a̷r̷p̸e̸d̸o̷,̸ ̸I̴'̸m̵ ̴h̵o̷o̴o̵o̵o̸o̴o̸o̴o̷m̴e̶,̸"̵ Odile screeched as she bolted straight for the bed. She catapulted herself into the sheets, and after a few seconds of wrestling with the blankets, she managed to tuck both her new rubber chicken and her Sharpedo plushie into the crooks of her arms, before completely rolling herself up in the blankets.


"̶L̶o̵o̷k̴,̵ ̷I̸'̶m̶ ̵a̷ ̷f̷u̵c̷k̵i̴n̴'̶ ̶C̵a̵s̶c̶o̷o̷n̶.̷"̴


Meanwhile, Enora took to immediately rushing over to the balcony window and closing the blinds. No need to risk any undesireable parties peeking in while they were speaking. They were on the third floor, but still, it'd be easy for a Hoopa to float up here. However, she did make sure the door was able to be opened quickly, just in case a quick getaway needed to be made. When she was done, she took to sitting down on the rug next to the bed. Plenty of room for her new friends to sit near her if they wanted to.

"A Cascoon indeed," she replied to Odile.


Odette did what she could to quickly straighten up, clearing off the chair she'd turned into a hamper and shoving what she could into open drawers and pushing them shut. "My laundry goes out the damn window when shit hits the fan, I guess," she muttered to herself. When she was sure everything looked mostly put together and mostly safe for the time being, she dug into her bag and withdrew the bottle again, being careful so as to not drop it. After staring at it for a beat, she sent a quick look to Wes.

"You can let them out now. I think we're good."

@HelloYellow17 @Dragonfree @Panoramic_Vacuum @Shiny Phantump @Negrek @Seren @Flyg0n

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Gladion and Hazel made for the lounge once he'd heard Odette had news, but they were on their way out for what he presumed was the meeting in Odette's room, so the two of them joined the group headed there instead.

Hazel took a moment to inspect Odette's room. "Wow, you have so many things in here. Gladion, we should have more things in out room! Look, there's pictures of people here. Some of them even have the same colour of hair as me! Why don't we have anything like this? They could watch over us at night."

Gladion sighed, visibly exhausted in a way Hazel wasn't. "And what if I don't want to have Guzma watching me while I sleep?"

"But..."

"Hazel, stop. Not a good time."

A dejected look crossed Hazel's face. "Does this mean we're not sleeping over again this time?"

"Yes. It does."

 

[Seren]

The walk to the dorms, while quick, did little to ease Kimiko's anxiety. They had a large party, between the half dozen humans plus all their 'mons - the scouts, May and Gladion, had joined them as they moved. Kimiko hung around at the back of the group as they walked, playing "mom friend" and trying to keep an eye on everyone, as well as continuing to lookout for anyone they didn't want to see, since Olivia had taken to interacting with Neo and Enora again. Despite telling herself it was fine, Xavian and Orzo were likely still eating, she couldn't help looking over her shoulder every ten seconds. They hadn't seen Amara in a few days, nor Victor, and for the moment, she wanted to keep it that way.

At least moving around made her feel like she was doing something now. Sitting around playing lookout and talking to Steven was nice, but the circumstances had prevented her from ever really relaxing. And when the squad returned, their insistence on keeping silent - while logical - only offered more questions than answers, and she was eager to get to the dorms and learn what they'd discovered. At the very least, it turned out Odile had indeed snatched the prison bottle; Kimiko had almost shouted "Way to go, Odile!" but caught herself; with the way Odette had reacted, she figured her friend wouldn't appreciate her encouraging the demon 'mon. She did get a chuckle out of it, though, and offered a quick thumbs up when Odette wasn't looking.

Odette's room had looked messier than she remembered last night. Then again, it had been late and darker than it was now, and there were more people and pokemon crowded inside, too. Kimiko found herself sitting on the bed, hands behind her to keep her propped up (making sure not to bother Cascoon!Odile and her toys) as she looked around at Odette's photos. Perhaps not super polite, but she couldn't help but be curious, especially when she spotted a photo of her new friend's pokemon team. It seemed, in addition to the Eon, they also shared another team member... Suddenly, she wondered if Alex had ever found Lucy.

As Olivia flopped down on the rug beside Enora (who had the brains to close the curtains), chirping at Neo all the while, Gladion responded to something his partner had said, and Kimiko couldn't supress her giggle. He was right, though; not a good time. They were here for a reason, and they needed to get down to business.

Thankfully, Odette seemed to be in the same mindset, addressing Wes. She also turned to Wes with burning curiosity. They'd confirmed the presence that Olivia detected; they found something - no, someone - in the room. And she was dying to know who or what it was.

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

When the impromptu group arrived at Odette's room, Steven hung by the door, hesitant to cross the unspoken threshold of privacy that came with entering someone's living space. Everyone else seemed happy to make themselves at home, though, with Kimiko even flopping down on Odette's bed with Odile. Steven gave a subtle once-over of the room, content to remain by Aggron's side after his partner squeezed through the very average-sized doorway.

The place was in a bit of disarray, the lived-in kind, which was refreshing after the starkness of Xavian's room and the destruction in his own. Mentally he winced, knowing Odette had seen said-destruction for herself, though he chalked it up as being fair given that he was standing in her bedroom now, politely ignoring the scattered clothes, plushies on the bed, and photos of what had to be significant others the walls.

But despite his unease at intruding on Odette's private quarters, it was miles better for his nerves than hanging around the lounge waiting for Xavian to reappear and catch them all in the act.

He remained standing next to Aggron when Odette finished her hurried organizing and turned to Wes expectantly. For the moment, he held in the myriad of questions that he had and crossed his arms, waiting to see who this mysterious "friend" could possibly be.

 

[HelloYellow17]

Wes felt a prickle of anxiety at all the eyes fixated on him. He fidgeted again, and attempted to cover it with a small cough into his fist. “Right. So. Here goes.”

He opened up his coat slightly and made eye contact with Hoopa, who nodded. Then he pulled his coat back and let the little ghost out into the open.

@Flyg0n

 

[Negrek]

Nate had to smirk when Odile revealed she'd snagged the prison bottle, whether she'd been supposed to or not. He couldn't say whether that was quick thinking or just a natural inclination to be a little shit, but he wasn't going to argue with it. They might not have a clue how to use the damn thing, but at least there was some chance they'd figure that out before everything went to hell. Maybe the girl with the espeon (had Steven said her name was... Kim?) could find a book on it or some shit.

His relief couldn't last long, though. It was a tense walk over to Odette's dorm, with Wes very clearly hiding something and, worse, that kid with the ninetales showing up. Nate tried to keep as many people as possible between them, and barely registered the state of Odette's room, making a beeline for a quiet corner where he'd have a good view of what everyone else was doing. Mightyena flopped down by his feet with a sigh, obviously exhausted. Nate could only hope she'd be able to get some rest tonight before whatever the hell the morning would bring.

All eyes were on Wes. Obviously not where the guy wanted to be. With a nervous cough, he opened up his coat and released... a hoopa?

Nate stared, mind racing. Orzo still had to be at the dinner, right? Unless he'd done the ring thing and returned to the room for some reason, but... Who he hell else would it be? Nate couldn't imagine Wes would go and stuff that Golden King fucker under his coat. Unless this was all some kind of trick to make them lower their guards?

"Who the hell is this?" he asked harshly.

Also... how the hell had Wes kept the guy under his coat this whole time? Hoopa wasn't that small a pokémon. Nate eyed the other trainer askance. What the hell else did he have under there?

 

[Sinderella]

"Wow, you have so many things in here. Gladion, we should have more things in out room! Look, there's pictures of people here. Some of them even have the same colour of hair as me! Why don't we have anything like this? They could watch over us at night."

"Us Kalosians don't really know the concept of 'packing light'," she explained sheepishly. "Especially not for what was supposed to be a two week vacation."

"And what if I don't want to have Guzma watching me while I sleep?"

She did, however, laugh at the statement Gladion made. "To be fair, he normally doesn't do the watching. He's usually the first one to fall asleep between the three of us and he sleeps like a fucking--"


Upon catching herself, she cleared her throat. Of course, it was Gladion who had made that comment. Clearly he'd be weirded out by a picture of her world's Guzma on her wall.

"Actually, forget I said anything."


"̷H̶a̶,̴"̷ Odile said. She then wriggled herself out of the blanket to cup her hands over her mouth. "̶S̷I̸I̵I̵I̴I̸I̷I̴I̴I̶I̵I̷I̶I̵I̶I̴I̴I̸I̷I̶I̴I̷I̷I̴I̸M̶P̶.̴"̴


Enora sucked her teeth as she lightly smacked Odile on the arm with one of her ribbons.

Wes felt a prickle of anxiety at all the eyes fixated on him. He fidgeted again, and attempted to cover it with a small cough into his fist.

He opened up his coat slightly and made eye contact with Hoopa, who nodded. Then he pulled his coat back and let the little ghost out into the open.

"Who the hell is this?" he asked harshly.

Odette wanted to respond to Odile's light ribbing, but she didn't have much time before Wes made the big reveal. Of course, revealing another Hoopa to a group currently being tormented by one probably wasn't going to pull the most positive reactions, and sure enough, Mitch was the one to open his mouth first with a less than welcoming tone.

She decided to take the matters of explanation into her own hands, because she could practically see the anxiety pouring off of Wes.

"This is...Hoopa," she began. "The Hoopa. The good Hoopa, more like. I assume."

She held up the bottle and gestured to it. "We found them locked in here. Mitch and Mightyena," she said, pointing to the duo, "actually got a key from Clink that opened the box this bottle was in. Said box was in a hidden compartment in Orzo's room. Orzo caught this Hoopa and trapped them in the bottle. For years. They don't even know who Xavian is."

Her shoulder's deflated as she lowered the bottle. "Orzo is the Golden King. Hoopa here confirmed that. Odile and Neo eve found the dyes that he's been using to color himself to match...Hoopa, I guess."

For a second, she eyed Hoopa, sending them something of a warm look to assure she'd make the group understand what was happening here. "Wes had the idea to bring them to the infirmary, but we can't risk bringing them into a public place here. We decided to bring them back to my room, because they need medical attention, and I have a goddamned pharmacy in my closet."


Holding up her finger, she turned toward the closet. 'Which, by the way..."

She was quick in her step as she made her way over to it, throwing the doors open as soon as she was close enough and beginning to dig through the duffle bag sitting on one of the shelves. Rifling through a series of bottles, backup burn creams, backup lancets...

"Maybe not the least reckless idea to bring them back to the dorms, all things considered," she continued as she dug around. "But for the moment, a private quarters with an extra exit might be the safest bet. We figured we could keep them here and just...take turns helping out with keeping watch. Until we can come up with a way to confront Orzo. I'd wanted to be cautious about the approach, but according to what Hoopa said..."

Her words trailed off as she withdrew the small bottle of pain killers Nurse Joy had given her during her overnight stay in the infirmary after the Manaphy incident. She nodded triumphantly, before zipping the duffle closed and kicking the closet doors shut.

"...Orzo's only getting stronger. So at this point, we're on a time crunch. We've got to get on his ass as soon as humanly possible," she said. She returned to Hoopa and presented them with the bottle.

"These are just some painkillers I got for a burn, but the medicine here is absolutely nuts...so maybe it'll help you get back up to snuff. A little bit, hopefully. If not, perhaps my Sylveon partner can help some more. But that's all I have for now."

 

[Negrek]

Odette was quick with an explanation, and to patch the hoopa up a bit, too. It certainly looked a lot rougher than the hoopa that had gone to dinner with Xavian's gang. You could almost imagine it had been poisoned.

Nate didn't find the explanation itself all that reassuring, though. "Never even met Xavian. But then... the guy's just been hanging out with Evil Bastard King for years and he ain't never noticed?" It wasn't like the rich guy was all that smart, clearly, but who could possibly be that fucking dense? "Not to mention that the Golden King supposedly super fucking hated friendship and shit. How the fuck could he hang out around Xander for years without stabbing him in the face even once? Like every other word out of that guy's mouth is 'friend.'"

The more he thought about it, the less sense any of it made. "And how the hell did Clink get that key, then? Did they know about the bottle? And Xander? Like, if Orzo's supposed to be this Golden King guy who's been fucking with everything--" He broke off when Mightyena pawed at his leg. "What? You're on that train, too?"

Mightyena whuffed and nudged his hand with her nose. Well, all right, then. Nate supposed if they'd actually found the actual paints that everyone'd been speculating the kidnapper had to be using hidden in the rich guy's pad, something was clearly up. "Okay, fine. So if we're gonna go after Orzo, we're gonna need all hands on deck. All those legendary pokémon people have been talking with, too. But after that I guess there ain't no point waiting." Truth be told, Nate would love to head over there now, bust Orzo and his crew while they were snarfing their baguettes or whatever the fuck. "Like you said, the fucker's getting stronger all the time. And I don't think we're gonna get a better moment to go after him. Or place. Unless anybody else has got some ideas."

 

[HelloYellow17]

"Who the hell is this?" he asked harshly.

Also... how the hell had Wes kept the guy under his coat this whole time? Hoopa wasn't that small a pokémon. Nate eyed the other trainer askance. What the hell else did he have under there?

Wes was relieved when Odette stepped up to explain things. He really didn’t want to be in the spotlight any longer than he had to be. He didn’t miss the suspicious side-eye from Mitch, however. What, was he that surprised Wes had been able to hide Hoopa under his coat?

He only just managed to hide an amused smirk. It wasn’t like he wore the thing only for sentimental reasons. It had plenty of practical uses.

"Never even met Xavian. But then... the guy's just been hanging out with Evil Bastard King for years and he ain't never noticed?"

"And how the hell did Clink get that key, then? Did they know about the bottle? And Xander? Like, if Orzo's supposed to be this Golden King guy who's been fucking with everything--" He broke off when Mightyena pawed at his leg. "What? You're on that train, too?"

For a guy who liked to stay under the radar, he sure was asking a hell of a lot of questions. Wes had to admit that Mitch had several good points, though. How had Xavian not noticed, all this time? And Clink, too?

He shifted and cleared his throat. “I’m not sure, but I suspect there might be some weird memory altering things going on. You said yourself you don’t really remember anything from when you were taken, right?” He nodded to Mitch. “I don’t think it’s a reach to say that maybe Orzo has been manipulating their heads somehow.”

Wes grimaced slightly at the thought. As if that bastard’s skill set wasn’t unsettling enough already.

He looked to Hoopa. “Do you know anything about that? What exactly happened when he trapped you? Did you know each other before?”

@Flyg0n

 

[Flyg0n]

Hoopa seemed uncomfortable being in the presence of so many people, and kept themself pressed close to Wes as they glanced anxiously around.

"Thank you," they mumbled quietly to Odette as she tended to him.

"N-no. Not really," they said to Wes. "Heard about the legend of the Golden King before though. Then one day I saw Orzo and... I knew. I could feel his evil. His hate. So much of it, all hidden beneath a mask. He had found a prison bottle and he attacked me. Trapped me." Hoopa shivered. "Legend spoke of his skills as a manipulator and a deceiver. We must not wait long to strike."

A small orb of light appeared in the middle of the room, and then qite suddenly, Celebi was there. She didn't seem to notice Hoopa or if she did, she said nothing. Instead her attention seemed focused on the trainers in the room. "You must come with me! Your friends at the Maw are in danger!"

She stuck out a tiny hand. "Take my hand now, and grab your friends."

Hoopa grabbed onto Wes's leg, even as he shook. He would be there... But Hoopa wouldn't run.

And once everyone had grabbed each others hands, there was a flash of light, and the world around them winked out of existence....

 

[Sinderella]

She stuck out a tiny hand. "Take my hand now, and grab your friends."

Hoopa barely had time to explain themselves, before in popped Celebi.

Everyone in the Maw was…in danger? Alfuckingready?

Her eyes blazed, but she said nothing as she threw the fucking bottle into her backpack. Then, without a moment’s hesitation, she pulled her gun from the hidden holster under her waistband. She cocked it, then glared at Celebi.

“Guess it’s now or fucking never.”

As everyone ran to grab Celebi, Odette did the same. However, she saw one person wasn’t moving fast enougj—Steven.

So, she backtracked and grabbed his sleeve.

“Carried you once. I’ll do it again.”

She grabbed hold of Celebi after that.

 

[Seren]

Without an explanation, she began to look around frantically. When her eyes landed on a head of blonde, she took off for it.

"Kimiko! Olivia!" she shouted. Enora and Odile kept at her heels as she went.

A voice called out to her just as she begun to spin around. Her face brightened at the sight of Odette heading their way, with Enora and Odile right behind her.

"Hey!" she called back, her hand high over her head as she waved her friend over.

Then she looked over her shoulder towards Alex. "I swear to god, if you say anything about our height difference, I will drag you back through that portal and shove you into that prison bottle with that insane hoopa." Her tone was joking, and though she was smiling now, her expression still said she was serious. Not that she expected him to say anything, but better safe than sorry. Alex nodded with a smile of his own, just glad his girlfriend still had the energy to be in high spirits.

When Odette finally had gotten close, Kimiko stepped forward to greet her and had to resist the sudden urge to throw her arms around the other girl. She settled for brushing some hair behind her ear instead. "Thank gods you're okay," she said, looking her over to make sure it was actually true. She also spared a glance at the sylveon as Olivia trotted up to her, then at Odile, both of who were still standing strong. "Scared the shit outta me when that portal closed behind you. And then I was half hoping you all would take the rescued people back here to the island instead, but then I saw you left Enora behind and I think I knew then that you were coming right back to the fight, but honestly I was worried that you might end up trapped in there, and-"

"Calm down and breathe," Alex interrupted with a hand on her shoulder. "Care to introduce me to your friends?"

Kimiko blushed in embarrassment, but laughed anyway. "Right, yes!" That's one reason she'd been looking for Odette in the first place, after all. "This is my boyfriend, Alex! Same guy from the photo, remember?"

She heard him mutter under his breath, "You didn't actually show her that one, did you?" She ignored him.

"And this is Thorn, Alex's partner," Kimiko continued, patting the meganium on her head. Thorn paused whatever conversation she'd been in with Olivia and Enora to look up and squeal in greeting. "Alex, this is my multiverse twin, Odette. And her twin here is Odile, legendary pokemon of wrath. And down here is Enora! They all are the reason I'm still sane after this trip. And... I'm afraid I haven't met her friends yet," she added, realizing that Clovis and Guzma were hovering right behind.

Beside her, Alex was looking between Kimiko, Odette, and Odile with his head tilted. Apparently, the 'multiverse twin' declaration had confused him. Or maybe it was because Odile was in her human form. Or maybe it was the 'legendary pokemon of wrath' bit. Or perhaps he was still struggling to comprehend being pulled into the multiverse in the middle of a battle-to-the-death one moment and standing peacefully on a beach the next. There was a lot to unpack there.

Eventually, he shook his head, as if to clear it. "Thanks for watching her back," he said with a nod at Odette. "We were just heading back to the dorms to collect her gear. I assume you all have stuff to pick up, too?"

 

[Sinderella]

When Odette finally had gotten close, Kimiko stepped forward to greet her and had to resist the sudden urge to throw her arms around the other girl. She settled for brushing some hair behind her ear instead. "Thank gods you're okay," she said, looking her over to make sure it was actually true. She also spared a glance at the sylveon as Olivia trotted up to her, then at Odile, both of who were still standing strong. "Scared the shit outta me when that portal closed behind you. And then I was half hoping you all would take the rescued people back here to the island instead, but then I saw you left Enora behind and I think I knew then that you were coming right back to the fight, but honestly I was worried that you might end up trapped in there, and-"

Odette balled her hands into fists to resist from hugging Kimiko outright. No, they probably weren't close enough to warrant a need for hugging...right? They had just defeated a scary mythical together, after spending two weeks trying not to get taken themselves, and bonding over their weirdly similar yet different lives, and--

She really was bad at this. How did she ever manage to make friends back in her world?

"When what closed behind her?" Clovis asked, alarmed, thus snapping her out of her haze. She blinked rapidly to regain her bearings.

"Calm down and breathe," Alex interrupted with a hand on her shoulder. "Care to introduce me to your friends?"

But, it seemed like Kimiko's friend diffused the situation before it could blow up too badly.

Kimiko blushed in embarrassment, but laughed anyway. "Right, yes!" That's one reason she'd been looking for Odette in the first place, after all. "This is my boyfriend, Alex! Same guy from the photo, remember?"

Grinning, she nodded. "Yeah, I recognized him immediately," she said. "Nice to meet you, Alex," she said, holding her hand out to shake.

"And this is Thorn, Alex's partner," Kimiko continued, patting the meganium on her head. Thorn paused whatever conversation she'd been in with Olivia and Enora to look up and squeal in greeting. "Alex, this is my multiverse twin, Odette. And her twin here is Odile, legendary pokemon of wrath. And down here is Enora! They all are the reason I'm still sane after this trip. And... I'm afraid I haven't met her friends yet," she added, realizing that Clovis and Guzma were hovering right behind.

She kept up her grin as Kimiko introduced her back, resisting the urge to cringe at just how absurd it all sounded, despite it all being true. The multiverse was something.

"̸S̶u̵p̴ ̴b̵i̸t̴c̵h̷,̴"̴ ̸Odile greeted, leaning in toward Alex. "̷T̵h̶a̷n̴k̷s̸ ̷f̸o̷r̷ ̴p̵u̶l̶l̶i̶n̷g̵ ̴u̵p̵,̴ ̶o̷r̷,̸ ̶w̸h̶a̵t̷e̷v̴e̴r̷.̸ ̶Y̴o̶u̴ ̵c̶a̵m̶e̷ ̷a̷t̶ ̷t̷h̶e̵ ̴B̷E̴S̷T̸ ̴t̶i̵m̵e̸,̵ ̷y̶o̶u̶ ̵w̵o̵u̵l̷d̷n̴'̴t̴ ̴b̷e̷l̵i̶e̴v̷e̵ ̵h̴o̵w̵ ̴l̴o̸n̷g̴ ̵I̴ ̷w̷a̶s̵ ̸w̴a̶i̵t̷i̶n̸g̷ ̴t̴o̶ ̷r̵e̸a̶l̸l̴y̷ ̷d̷i̶s̵m̴e̶m̴b̴e̷r̸ ̴s̷o̸m̸e̸b̸o̵d̷y̶,̸ ̶I̴ ̵w̴a̷s̶ ̷g̸e̵t̷t̷i̶n̶g̵ ̸m̶a̴d̶ ̸f̸u̷c̴k̶i̴n̵g̷-̷-̸"̶

"Odile," Odette snapped.

Meanwhile, Enora flashed her tendrils in greeting. "A pleasure to meet you both," she said. "Kimiko and Olivia have been wonderful this whole trying time. Though, I haven't become acquainted with Lucy..." she said dejectedly.

Beside her, Alex was looking between Kimiko, Odette, and Odile with his head tilted. Apparently, the 'multiverse twin' declaration had confused him. Or maybe it was because Odile was in her human form. Or maybe it was the 'legendary pokemon of wrath' bit. Or perhaps he was still struggling to comprehend being pulled into the multiverse in the middle of a battle-to-the-death one moment and standing peacefully on a beach the next. There was a lot to unpack there.

Clovis and Guzma probably looked slightly less confused than Alex did, but still well up there. "Uhhhh, multiverse twin?" Guzma queried. "Y'all don't really look alike though."

Odette quirked a brow. "That doesn't matter. You saw the other Gladion, right?"

"Yeah but it still looked like fuckin' Gladion."

Clovis held up a silencing hand. "Anyway," he said curtly. "I suppose she's...familiar with blood types, and...cult happenings and whatnot, huh?"

Bobbing her head from side to side, Odette shrugged. "Cults, yes. Blood types...no. Similar, but different."

Huffing, she gestured to the two men at her sides. "Kimiko, Alex, these are my boyfriends, Clovis," she said, gesturing to Clovis, "and Guzma," she gestured to Guzma. "And their partners, Love and Golisopod."

"Bonjour," Clovis greeted.

Guzma opened his mouth to say something, but stumbled and frantically gestured toward Clovis. "Uh, yeah. Bonjour," he said, tripping over the accent.

"Ayyoo," Golisopod chirped, snapping his claws.

"A pleasure," Love said evenly, nodding her head once as she came to sit politely next to Enora. "No shortage of our kind here, it seems," she said, eyeing Olivia fondly.

Eventually, he shook his head, as if to clear it. "Thanks for watching her back," he said with a nod at Odette. "We were just heading back to the dorms to collect her gear. I assume you all have stuff to pick up, too?"

"Rest assured, she was looking over my shoulder more than once too," Odette said jokingly.

"As someone should, reckless ass," Guzma scoffed, lightly rubbing his knuckles against the crown of her head. She swatted him off, sucking her teeth.

"Actually, yes, we were just going to pack up her things. Shall we walk together?" Clovis suggested.

"̶Y̸E̸S̴,̴ ̵Y̵E̸S̵,̷ ̶F̶R̶I̶E̵N̸D̶S̶H̷I̸P̶ ̴W̵A̴L̴K̵.̷ ̶T̸H̵A̷T̴'̵S̷ ̵A̷ ̵T̶H̸I̴N̵G̵,̷ ̴R̸I̸G̶H̶T̷?̶"̶ Odle said excitedly.

 

[Seren]

"When what closed behind her?" Clovis asked, alarmed, thus snapping her out of her haze. She blinked rapidly to regain her bearings.

The party had begun to move in the direction of the dorms to collect their things. Tired and lost in her thoughts, Kimiko froze when Clovis spoke; maybe she had gotten a little too excited there for a moment. She cast a glance towards Odette, hoping she hadn't just revealed something she wasn't supposed to... but it's not like Odette would keep her lovers in the dark about what just happened, right? ...Right? Thankfully, Alex was on top of things, for a change. Being the clear, level-headed one wasn't typically his role, at least when he wasn't in battle.

Grinning, she nodded. "Yeah, I recognized him immediately," she said. "Nice to meet you, Alex," she said, holding her hand out to shake.

While his girlfriend recomposed herself, Alex reached out and shook Odette's hand. "Pleasure's mine," he replied. "I've uh, heard a lot about you this last week. Didn't expect to actually meet you, but-"

"̸S̶u̵p̴ ̴b̵i̸t̴c̵h̷,̴"̴ ̸Odile greeted, leaning in toward Alex. "̷T̵h̶a̷n̴k̷s̸ ̷f̸o̷r̷ ̴p̵u̶l̶l̶i̶n̷g̵ ̴u̵p̵,̴ ̶o̷r̷,̸ ̶w̸h̶a̵t̷e̷v̴e̴r̷.̸ ̶Y̴o̶u̴ ̵c̶a̵m̶e̷ ̷a̷t̶ ̷t̷h̶e̵ ̴B̷E̴S̷T̸ ̴t̶i̵m̵e̸,̵ ̷y̶o̶u̶ ̵w̵o̵u̵l̷d̷n̴'̴t̴ ̴b̷e̷l̵i̶e̴v̷e̵ ̵h̴o̵w̵ ̴l̴o̸n̷g̴ ̵I̴ ̷w̷a̶s̵ ̸w̴a̶i̵t̷i̶n̸g̷ ̴t̴o̶ ̷r̵e̸a̶l̸l̴y̷ ̷d̷i̶s̵m̴e̶m̴b̴e̷r̸ ̴s̷o̸m̸e̸b̸o̵d̷y̶,̸ ̶I̴ ̵w̴a̷s̶ ̷g̸e̵t̷t̷i̶n̶g̵ ̸m̶a̴d̶ ̸f̸u̷c̴k̶i̴n̵g̷-̷-̸"̶

"Odile," Odette snapped.

He was cut off as the woman's twin - or her pokemon or... demon or something? - leaned in and spoke. He couldn't mask the surprise on his face as he took a step back, away from the sudden closeness. Neither Clovis nor Guzma reacted, however, and Odette reined her back under control simply by calling her name. Was that... normal?

More surprising, he caught Kimiko suppressing a grin. He sent her a curious look, to which she replied, "That's Odile. Don't worry about her, she's harmless." He must have looked unconvinced; she clasped her hands behind her back as she added, "Took me a little while to warm up to her, too, but I trust her. Friends forged in battle and all that, right?" Alex suspected there was more to it than that, but she must be trying to put it into terms he'd understand without launching into a longer explanation. That was fine with him - he'd be insisting on that explanation later, anyway.

Regardless, no one else seemed shocked nor threatened by it. There was no trace of fear in Kimiko's eyes, and given she'd be the first to be on guard under normal circumstances, Alex figured that was enough for him. He again cast a wary look at the twins and tried to relax; he'd not realized how much he'd tensed up. "I, uh... I guess dismembering that evil hoopa wasn't satisfying enough, huh?"

Meanwhile, Enora flashed her tendrils in greeting. "A pleasure to meet you both," she said. "Kimiko and Olivia have been wonderful this whole trying time. Though, I haven't become acquainted with Lucy..." she said dejectedly.

While her human caught up with his mate and her friends, Thorn tried to focus on Olivia's new playmate rather than the battle they'd just been through. It was times like these she missed her smaller body; she had trouble keeping up with Olivia as the espeon bounced around with excitement, but that didn't stop her from trying, too. At least, until she heard a familiar name. "I hope she's been behaving herself," Thorn said to Enora, reaching out a vine to shake one of the sylveon's tendrils, the way her human had shown her. "Nice to meet you, too! Did... did you mention Lucy?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Olivia cried. "Why are you hiding, silly ghost? These are friends!" She turned to the meganium and added, "She was hiding in our room all week. Of course, I could tell she was there but I didn't know it was her! She only came out to help fight. She must be scaaaaared!"

The ghost in question slowly shimmered into existence just above Olivia. "I am not afraid of socialization," she said, sounding exasperated. She looked as though she wanted to say more, but no more words came. Instead, she looked Thorn in the eyes and nodded in greeting. Then she rotated to face the sylveon. "It... is good to meet you. I apologize for my secrecy."

Thorn nodded back, still wary; the ghost was new to the family, and Thorn didn't quite trust her yet; she'd dealt with enough ghosts in her life to know better. And while Olivia did, she was also still young; in some ways, she reminded Thorn of herself shortly after she'd hatched. Thankfully, there was a more neutral party available. Thorn turned back to Enora. "She... helped you fight, did she?"

Clovis held up a silencing hand. "Anyway," he said curtly. "I suppose she's...familiar with blood types, and...cult happenings and whatnot, huh?"

Bobbing her head from side to side, Odette shrugged. "Cults, yes. Blood types...no. Similar, but different."

"Wait, what?" Alex shook his head as though trying to clear up space. "What's this about cults? You didn't tell her about... you-know-what, did you? And what's a blood-type?"

Kimiko sighed heavily. "Yes, I did. That's where the 'twins' thing comes in. We had... similar experiences. It helped to talk about it a bit with someone who... well, went through something like it, too.

"As for blood-types, I'm not certain but I think I'm O-negative," she said with a chuckle as she caught Odile's eye. Alex raised a brow at her, the joke lost on him. Kimiko rolled her eyes at him. "It's a pokemon type, like fire or psychic or electric. Don't think it exists back home, or at least, I've never heard of it. But you've already met one."

Huffing, she gestured to the two men at her sides. "Kimiko, Alex, these are my boyfriends, Clovis," she said, gesturing to Clovis, "and Guzma," she gestured to Guzma. "And their partners, Love and Golisopod."

"Bonjour," Clovis greeted.

Guzma opened his mouth to say something, but stumbled and frantically gestured toward Clovis. "Uh, yeah. Bonjour," he said, tripping over the accent.

Odette spared her from having to explain further. "I've been looking forward to meeting you both all week," Kimiko admitted. "Although, like Alex said... I wasn't really expecting to!"

Alex, likewise, nodded. "Bon... uh... bonj..."

"That's it, use your words..."

Alex glared at her, but only for a moment. "Yeah, hey, pleasure," he said awkwardly instead, offering a salute. Then, as Kimiko began her sarcasm-clapping, he stopped her by taking one of her hands in his and pulling it to their sides, so they turned her attention to the new pokemon, instead.

Kimiko was easily taken by the glaceon. "Love! That's such an adorable name!"

"I've never seen a golisopod in person," said Alex. "Looks tough, too. Up for a battle?"

"Babe, no," Kimiko answered before anyone else could speak up, her voice soft. "Please, can we just... pack our stuff and enjoy the company for a bit? I need some downtime."

"Yeah, okay. I'm sorry. I guess you did just have a hell of a week."

"Ayyoo," Golisopod chirped, snapping his claws.

"A pleasure," Love said evenly, nodding her head once as she came to sit politely next to Enora. "No shortage of our kind here, it seems," she said, eyeing Olivia fondly.

"Wooooowwwwwww!" Olivia exclaimed by way of greeting. "You're so sparkly! Just like Enora but different! I wanna be that elegant, too!"

"There certainly are quite a number of your kin here," Thorn agreed. There had been quite a few darting around that battlefield. "Anyway, it's lovely to meet you both," she added, extending vines to Love and Golisopod.

"Rest assured, she was looking over my shoulder more than once too," Odette said jokingly.

"As someone should, reckless ass," Guzma scoffed, lightly rubbing his knuckles against the crown of her head. She swatted him off, sucking her teeth.

"Actually, yes, we were just going to pack up her things. Shall we walk together?" Clovis suggested.

"̶Y̸E̸S̴,̴ ̵Y̵E̸S̵,̷ ̶F̶R̶I̶E̵N̸D̶S̶H̷I̸P̶ ̴W̵A̴L̴K̵.̷ ̶T̸H̵A̷T̴'̵S̷ ̵A̷ ̵T̶H̸I̴N̵G̵,̷ ̴R̸I̸G̶H̶T̷?̶"̶ Odle said excitedly.

"Can't say I'm surprised," Alex replied, prompting a flush of embarrassed color to surface on his girlfriend's face. "She's got a bit of a 'mom-friend' thing going on. Gods know I've needed on a few occasions, too."

"I can't help it if I worry, after all we've been through," she said, nodding towards Guzma with a grin. "He gets it. You're both so damn rash."

She reached up and threw an arm around Odile's shoulders. "Besides, that's what friends do, right? We look out for each other."

"F-friends, yeah..." Alex answered, a thought forming in his head. "I know everyone else is leaving, but... We beat that giant evil hoopa thing, right? So doesn't that mean the island is safe now? Any reason not to stick around for a bit and get some proper vacation time? If you really wanna build friendships... where is there food in this place?"

"As much as I'd love to... I'm not sure our hosts would appreciate us imposing any more on them," Kimiko said. "They've been through just as much as the rest of us." Still, she shot a glance at Odette anyway.