Treasure Town ~ Woodland Outskirts

[Phoenixsong]

Skara wormed back down the trunk, fumbled in her pack for a jar—definitely best not to leave town without one at this point—and hurried over to where the sneasel had the shade pinned. "In here!" she said, offering the open container.

 

[Cresselia92]

Icetales stared uneasily at the flailing shadow in Nip’s paws. So, that was a Shug…? It definitely didn’t look like sugar! Nor like… anything powdery, either.

Hmm… I shall refer to it as an encephalosite, as in “encephalon’ and ‘parasite’.

Then, he blinked when his fellow Ice-type asked for something to keep that thing in and the small insect carried the jar in her mandibles. Why did he want that? Did he want to study that creature?

Well, observing plagues from up close could help find the cures, so…

“Hmm… Shouldn’t we incapacitate that creature, first of all? We certainly do not want it to flee and cause more grievances,” suggested Icetales. “Perhaps cloaking the borders and sides of the jar with frost could help keep it quieter. That creature looks fluid to me, which means that it might be more susceptible to low temperatures.”

 

[Namohysip]

Thankfully, the team was able to jar the Shade with ease, and Karat grunted in approval once he realized the Rattata in question was now unconscious, but breathing--and fat, but perhaps that was a good thing for such a creature.

"...Thank you," he muttered, pulling his hood over his head again. "I didn't expect such a useless pest to be such a problem, even to me..."

The Shade hissed and flailed about in the jar, but could do little else.

 

[windskull]

Nip stared at the angry little critter, glad to not have it in his hands anymore. "No problem, it's what we're here for," he said to Karat. Then, under his breath, he mumbled. "I think." Shaking his head, he turned to Soda. "Will you be taking this one. Or is someone here taking it back to put with Dave's?"

 

[Namohysip]

"Can I keep it?" Owen asked. "I--I've been trying to help Dave with his a little, you know, just getting berries and stuff if Dave ever wants to feed him or anything, but, um... you know, Dave has that one, so..."

Soda gave Owen an incredulous look, then rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Do what you want. My mission's complete so I'm gonna fuck around at home."

 

[windskull]

"I mean, I don't mind," Nip said, taking the jar before passing it to Owen. "Just uh. Maybe make sure everyone knows about it, I guess?"

 

[Namohysip]

"I'll take good care of it!" Owen nodded assuredly.

Soda was already gone, and Karat had disappeared, wanting nothing to do with them... even if he did, slightly, appreciate their help.

Their mission over, the team was able to return to their normal tasks.

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[Shiny Phantump]

Ever since Celeste had seen Tendon and his strange bloodred eyes, he’d been wondering something. He’d had bigger things to worry about with Icetales, and then with Diyem, but now it seemed he had time to ask about it.

Cynthian was here, why not ask him.

“Hello, Cynthian. Erm, I have an odd question. What colour are my eyes?”

 

[Adamhuarts]

Cynthian leapt up in shock, pulling the dirt up along with his roots. "Wah! Celeste? How did you know I was here?"

He had even camouflaged himself by rooting himself next to a thorny shrub, but Celeste had either smelled his roses or just... easily spotted the black and white flowers among the bright and smaller yellow flowers of the shrub he was hiding next to.

Cynthian looked down at his legs and saw his roots still wriggling like worms from his waist. A shade of red swept up his cheeks as he hurriedly retreated his roots back inside his body.

"Sorry you had to witness that. I didn't know you were nearby. What brings you out here to the woods?" Cynthian asked with a nervous smile.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“I’m just a bit worried about something. Tendon, the other Absol we met, has intimidating bloodred eyes. I’m worried that, if Diyem made this body like the normal Absol here, then... Well... I’m worried I have frightening bloodred eyes, too! I don’t like the idea of people seeing me like that, so I didn’t want to go through the square.”

 

[Adamhuarts]

Okay, so he wasn't saying anything about his roots. That was good. Cynthian sighed in relief and walked out to face him properly.

After listening to what Celeste had to say, Cynthian tilted his head in mild confusion. He didn't quite understand what Celeste meant. No one would see an elegant Absol and be scared. They'd been a revered species for centuries, back home at least.

"Frightening? I think not. Your eyes are a brilliant shade of crimson if you ask me," Cynthian said trying to assure him.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Celeste sighed. Though Cynthian may have been trying to be positive, it was as he feared. “Thank you? I do wish I could’ve kept my natural eye colour, though.

“Should I ask what you were doing here as well? How was the bush?”

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Oh, I was here to be alone with my thoughts after... learning who Diyem actually is. Being around all the shrubs and plants helps keep me calm, I guess? I'm not really sure how to explain." Cynthian lowered his eyes and curled up his petals, then he looked back up at Celeste again.

"Wait, what do you mean by natural color? Your eyes weren't always red?"

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Ah, Diyem. It made sense that some of his teammates weren’t too happy about that revelation. Celeste himself felt th-

Don’t think about it. Don’t think about it. You’ll only stress yourself out.

“No, in my real body, my eyes are a nice shade of blue instead.”

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Really? I wish Diyem had preserved that part of you. Between you and me, Blue is my favorite color after green. It is certainly weird because Diyem left Icetales with his silvery fur coat for instance. You'd think giving an Absol blue eyes would've been much easier to do," Cynthian said with a frown, then he shook his head and looked off at the foliage.

"Do you really think mons would find you frightening for having red eyes? Well... I can't really blame you. I used to dip my flowers into red and blue paint so I can appear as a normal roselia to others."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“If only I could dip my irises in blue paint...”

 

[Adamhuarts]

"What? No! Don't do that," Cynthian said, flailing his arms. He didn't know whether to laugh or be worried, so he just smiled awkwardly while he tried thinking about what to say next.

"Might I suggest contact lenses? They're not the same as your original eyes, but I'm sure they'll make you feel more at ease," Cynthian said, lightly patting Celeste's leg. He would've given him a shoulder pat if he wasn't so much shorter than Celeste.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“Contact... lenses? I... That... Would that work? What is a contact lens?”

 

[Adamhuarts]

"See, they're these thin circular crystals that you can place over your eyes. They're more often used for mons with declining eyesight, BUT they also come in varieties purely for decorative purposes," Cynthian explained with a focused look.

"I knew someone in my hometown who liked to dress as other pokemon from comics and such, and he used contact lenses since his eyes were black in coloration. It's been a while since I talked to him. Heard he moved to Shimmer City a few months ago though." Cynthian trotted up in front of Celeste and swung his flowers enthusiastically. "We should go to the marketplace and see if we can get you some right now, don't you think? Contact lenses, of course, not cosplay."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Celeste had no idea what cause-play was, and the idea of putting crystals on his eyes sounded painful, but if Cynthian said it worked, he was willing to try it.

“Sure. Marketplace it is.”

The two headed to the marketplace.

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