Chapter 10 - She's Unabashedly Nosy...and Sick
“Do you have any sixes?” Acadia asked.
“Go fish,” Noel replied.
Acadia clicked her tongue as she dove her hand into the haphazard card pile scattered around the coffee table. She was careful as she picked up a card because Enora was curled up under the glass, sound asleep.
Odette laughed hoarsely from her spot on the couch. She sniffled as she nuzzled into her blanket, adjusting her head against her pillow. “You’ve been looking for a six this whole game.”
“Noel, there’s no way you haven’t gotten a six by now,” Acadia said.
“I don’t know what to tell you, sis,” he snickered. “Try asking around.”
On either side of him, Ange and Elton sat with their own cards in hand.
“Ask Odette, I bet she has one,” Ange declared.
“I’m trying to take a six specifically from Noel. I’m giving Odette a break because she’s sick,” Acadia announced.
“How thoughtful,” Odette said flatly.
As she spoke, thunder shook the townhouse, and everyone in the living room looked toward the window. It was absolutely pouring outside, and there was no indication that it would let up anytime soon.
“Hope nobody was planning on going anywhere today,” Noel said.
“I was hoping to go for a jog, actually,” Odette said jokingly.
“Right, right. And I'm the Queen of Galar,” Acadia shot back, a half-grin tugging at her lips. “How are you feeling?”
That was a loaded question. Ever since she’d been discharged from the hospital two days ago, she’d had so much on her mind she could barely see straight. Of course, as luck would have it, the hospital cleared her as okay to go home the day she’d arrived, but she contracted a fever that same night. She felt so ill, she couldn’t think about anything but how bad she felt.
Bernard and Marieanne, ever the worrywarts in regard to her health, insisted she stay with them, as Vienna had run out on an emergency research retreat and wouldn't be home quickly enough. So, Odette had spent the last 48 hours in their guest bedroom bed, groaning loudly and sleeping.
“The same,” she answered. “No worse, no better.”
“We’ll take that,” Noel said. “Your turn Ange.”
Before Ange could ask for his card, footsteps sounded from the hallway leading to the kitchen. Marieanne emerged, decked out in a full apron and grasping a thermometer. She was done up with a full face of makeup, even though she didn't have work today, but that wasn't necessarily out of character. She always needed to "look her best," as she insisted.
Solene was at her heels, grasping the handle of a wooden spoon, which happened to be in Isaur’s mouth. As they stopped, Solene glared at Isaur as she wiggled the spoon. The froslass didn’t budge.
“Aaaaaaalright, temperature check time, Swanna,” Marieanne said, stepping around the coffee table and over to the couch. She sat down on the edge of it and stuck the thermometer into Odette’s ear. She held it there until it beeped, then examined the result. A frown crossed her lips, and she exhaled sharply.
“This damn thing won’t break. Still a hundred and two. You poor baby.”
“Maybe soup will help,” Odette suggested, closing her eyes.
Marieanne gave a nod. “Came out to say it should be ready in 30 minutes or so, so I hope you kiddos are hungry.”
“Thaaaaaaanks Mama Marieanne,” Noel and Acadia said in unison.
“Anything for you kids,” she beamed. A thought then occurred to her, and she turned back to Odette. “Oh! By the way, before I forget. Two things. First, where's Loïc? I haven’t seen him all day.”
Ange snickered loudly and had to bury his face in his cards to keep his volume down. Odette sent him a look before rolling her eyes.
“Do you have a vent system?” she asked.
“Yeah, I thought you knew that,” Marieanne said.
Odette didn’t verbally respond. Instead, she just held her hands out to her sides. Luckily, Marieanne understood, and she just huffed.
“Should have guessed. Alright, second thing. Have you seen the kitchen phone? Can't find the stupid thing anywhere."
“Nana, this is the first time I’ve left the guest room in two days,” Odette said.
“Dammit, Bernard," she groaned. "He never puts the phones back. He's in for it after that damn work call.”
Despite her brief bout of aggravation, Marieanne clapped her hands together, then stood up. “Alright, that’s all from me. Don’t let me interrupt your game. I’m gonna go…clean something. Storms like this make me antsy.”
Marieanne made her way back toward the kitchen and motioned for Solene and Isaur to follow. Solene had to yank Isaur along by the spoon, but they all soon disappeared down that hall.
“Shit, they still have a landline? Boomers,” Noel giggled, flipping through his cards.
Acadia lowered her brows and shot him an unamused glance. “I still have a landline.”
“Yeah, well, you’re a boomer in a twenty-something’s body. That’s not necessarily shocking.”
Acadia reeled her hand back and landed a sound smack on Noel’s bare shoulder. He flinched on contact, then began to rub his now-inflamed skin. “Ma’am, do you know what a damn joke is?”
While Odette was in no condition to be bantering at full energy with her friends, it was nice to have them here to keep her company. She had Marieanne and Bernard around, but being that she’d already missed a few days of rehearsal, witnessing the Noel versus Acadia spats made it feel like she wasn’t fully out of the loop.
As she thought about that, she pushed the blanket off her lap and swung her legs to the floor. Cautiously, she stood, allowing herself to regain her balance slowly.
“Oh, going on that jog?” Noel queried.
“Yes, to the bathroom. Unless you want me to pee all over the couch.”
“Well, you’re sick. You can do whatever you want when you’re sick. The world’s your cloyster.”
“I don’t think urinating on a couch is part of that,” Acadia said, cringing.
Odette shook her head before she hobbled her way toward the foyer bathroom. As she finished up her business and tiredly washed her hands, she found herself eyeing her reflection in the mirror. She really took in her pallor complexion and tired eyes.
“Gods, I look like hot garbage,” she said.
Skrtskrtskrtskrtskrtskrtskrt.
She knit her brows together, turning to look over her shoulder for the source of the noise. It sounded distant initially, but the longer she listened, the closer it got. She craned her neck to look up at the ceiling, then the wall, where her gaze caught on a vent grate. Upon seeing it, her shoulders deflated, and she pressed her lips together, forming a knowing expression.
A few seconds after she looked at the grate, it popped open, and Loïc reared his rambunctious fake head.
“Loïc,” she said, sounding stern even with the hoarseness in her voice. “Just because we’re not at home, and I’m sick, doesn’t mean you’re suddenly allowed to crawl in the fucking vents.”
“Kyyuuuu.”
He hopped out of the opening and floated down to the floor. Upon landing, he whipped around to stare up at her. There was something about him that felt different. His eyes were bright, and he was pulsing up and down in his spot. He actually looked rather excited.
“What were you even doing up there?” She felt minutely curious about what had him in such a good mood. Normally, he didn’t get like that unless he smelled pecha.
She began to feel lightheaded from standing, so she decided it’d be a good idea to get down on his level. She slowly sank to the floor and leaned against the cabinet.
“Look,” Loïc chirped.
In a small shadowy wave, his hands manifested. He reached one under his cloak and withdrew none other than the MIA kitchen phone. Odette took one look at it, then glared at him.
“Very funny,” she exhaled. “I hope you know you made Nana mad at Grandpa.”
Loïc quickly shook his head and used one of his hands to press down on the “answer” button.
Instead of a dial tone, like she was expecting to hear, she heard talking. Bernard talking.
Narrowing her eyes, she slowly picked the phone up and held it to her ear.
“I just don’t understand the sudden concern. It-it doesn't make sense to me.”
“There’s a variety of things that have happened that have caused us to become quite worried.”
Clovis.
That was Clovis’s voice.
Her breath hitched, and she cut her gaze back down to Loïc. His fake tail was wagging happily, like that of a gleeful yamper.
"You sneaky sonofabitch," she mouthed at him. And here she'd been, thinking the only things on his mind were berries and hiding the Monopoly pieces around the house.
Loïc jostled his head in response.
An abundance of thanks was in store, but she gestured for him to come over. Loïc didn’t hesitate to scurry up her torso and perch himself on her shoulder to listen in as well.
“Let me get this straight. She decided to research you, and she had a questionable run-in with a blood type. Do those things warrant Virtue Corps’ full eyes and ears?"
"Blood-type?" she mouthed, hoping that would commit the term to her wavering memory. What the hell did that mean? What even was her blood type? She hadn't bothered visiting the doctor for a while before her recent episode and that wasn't something she bothered to commit to memory. O-something, maybe...
That couldn't have been what they were talking about, though. Bernard said it like it was a Pokemon typing. Blood type. It sounded absolutely absurd until she dwelled on it a little more.
Those grotesque Pokemon. All three times she'd seen them summoned, their owners...trainers? Owners? She didn't know what to call it anymore. Their owners always bit their thumbs to draw blood. That seemed to be the thing that powered them up. Or made them spawn altogether?
Furrowing her brow, she scratched her cheek pensively. Is that what they were? Is that why she'd never heard of them? Were they just a whole new type?
More importantly, what the hell did they have to do with shinies and running them absolutely ragged? And how long had Bernard known about them?
What did that have to do with the voice she heard?
At that moment, thunder rocked the building again. She cringed at the noise and yanked the phone away from her ear to cover it with her hand. Loïc even darted his hand over, too. When she was sure it had passed, she started listening again.
“If you want my honest opinion? Yes. Given that uncanny resemblance we spoke about before, among the other things, these happenings are just a little too nefarious for us just to let slip by," Clovis had just started speaking.
"And can you confirm it had nothing to do with Enora?"
What?
"Enora was nowhere near her when it happened. Then again, I wasn't close enough to see what happened, either. But, desmocula fled, and she just...fell. Cut her cheek too, I guess?"
"She didn't have a cut on her cheek."
Silence swelled on the line, and it made her nervous. She held her breath, even though she wanted to yell out.
WHAT?
It was eventually broken by Clovis sighing.
"I don't know. I don't know what to tell you right now," he said. "It happened so fast, and we don't have enough information. That's all I have until I can talk to her. Maybe get some of our people to talk to her."
"You told me we wouldn't get to that point if you could prove she wasn't involved in this in the way you thought."
“I really am sorry, Bernard. I honestly thought I had this laid out, but I was wrong."
“I told you she wouldn’t get involved in the trade, not Odette,” Bernard said angrily. “She loves her partners to death, and they love her.”
Yes, tell him that. Let him hear it. The thought managed to break through every other thing rattling around in her head.
“And I see that now,” Clovis replied apologetically. "But now we've uncovered something big--"
"I know it's bigger. I know you can't tell me what it is right now. What I do know is I wish you'd just left her alone."
"And let this fall unnoticed?"
More silence. A very long, drawn-out sigh followed. "No. I know you didn't have a choice. I just--"
"I understand, Bernard," Clovis said.
"She's gone through so much in the last year, and I--"
"You don't need to explain it to me, sir. I get it."
Odette shifted uncomfortably in her spot, saying an internal prayer that that conversation would drop. She felt like she would have to hang up if it didn't.
"Let's start over," Bernard said. "Tell me again, slower this time, what happened leading up to her fainting."
“I had tried to bait something out of her. That was the whole point of my warning in the first place; sow doubt and bait her into admitting what she was actually up to when and if I saw her again. But all I got was that she caught my slip and read into it, just as I feared.”
She narrowed her eyes at nothing. That fucking scoundrel. It was bait? He was baiting her? Well, she supposed she couldn't be too bitter at that. He evidently got a lot more than he bargained for in that conversation, which she decided was enough to sate her pettiness.
“That’s Odette. If she finds something that doesn’t make sense, she’ll look into it herself,” Bernard said, though it sounded more like a warning than a statement. “What does she know? How much about you does she know?"
There wasn’t an immediate answer. Clovis must have been thinking of how to respond. “She was very conservative in telling me that much. And I didn’t press because it would have been risky, and I’ve put myself in a weird spot as it is,” he started. “But it’s like I told you, she’s trying to get to the bottom of the sacrilege and shiny trade issue. She didn’t say why though. However, judging by her verbiage, she knows the connection between the two." He sighed gruffly, sounding aggravated. "See, we wouldn't fucking be here if I weren't such an idiot."
“You just panicked,” Bernard said sympathetically. “It happens to the best of us.”
“I’m not one of ‘us,’ Bernard. We talked about this. I just got a little too...overzealous talking to her.” The annoyance was clear-cut behind his words. “I fucked up."
“And that’s not like you. You’re normally on top of it, but nobody’s perfect. You’re lucky it was so small, and you have the status to combat it if need be.”
A rancorous laugh. “I don’t know what happened. Odette’s just--”
“Off-limits,” Bernard asserted. His words fired like bullets.
Odette bristled. "Odette's just what?" she mouthed as she pulled the phone away from her ear to stare at it incredulously. "Odette's. Just. Fucking. What?"
She exhaled in frustration, masking her intense desire to scream into the phone, and held it back to her ear.
“Right,” Clovis grumbled after what was most likely a long pause. “How is she? I heard that the shock wore off before they even made it to the hospital.”
Short and sweet, Grandpa, she begged internally. Please, please, please do not elaborate too much. You've done enough; spare me.
“It’s happened before,” Bernard huffed. “She’s had issues with her blood pressure since she was little. Sometimes it dips, and sometimes it gets really bad. Then, it clears up, and she’s sick for a few days afterward.”
She stifled a groan and resisted the urge to bang her already throbbing head against the cabinet. The feeling of embarrassment was building up within her at an alarming rate. Did he really need to know all of this? Did Clovis really need to be made aware of her health problems? If she'd had things her way, she probably would have never told him. It just wasn't a conversation that needed to be had.
“And you said this happens a lot?”
“I said it used to happen a lot,” Bernard recalled. “A couple of times a month when she was younger. Not always to the point where she needed to be hospitalized, but often enough to where it was concerning. It’s not as frequent now, though. This is this first bout in…months, I’d say.”
Gods, she wanted to tell Bernard to shut up. It was bad enough that she'd fainted in front of Clovis, but now he knew the extent of why it happened in the first place. Would something like that be considered a turn-off?
Her thoughts were getting out of hand, sick or not.
Focus.
“Uh huh,” Clovis said tentatively. “Noted.”
Her stomach dropped. Why did he say it like that? What was there to make a note of? "Be careful around this girl, she might pass out on me"? Forget yelling and screaming; she wanted to break the fucking phone.
She didn't really know why she felt so aggravated about the conversation. It wasn't like she had a chance with Clovis in the first place, especially with him thinking she was dating Dorien. Or, maybe he knew she was faking it? Maybe that would be something he asked her about. That had to have been a turn-off, seeing somebody so convincingly act in love when they were very much not...
Fo-cus.
Bernard gave a very gruff sigh. “She’s had enough scrutiny to last her the rest of her life. She doesn’t need anymore.”
“I understand, Chief, but this is out of fear for her safety and not out of a desire to scrutinize her,” Clovis said earnestly. “Thankfully, our hypothesis about her trying to get involved in the trade was wrong, but now, the way things have been playing out, I am extremely concerned, as is everyone else.”
“So then, what’s the next move?” Bernard asked.
“She has questions for me, and I for her,” Clovis said, his tone direct. “I’ll have to reach out sometime after she recovers from her illness to schedule a meeting, but I plan to gauge how much she’s found out and, well...answer her honestly.”
At least she heard straight from the source that she wouldn't get bogus answers when they spoke. That did something to ease her racing brain, if only for now.
“I sound like a broken record. I hate this. I didn't want her involved,” Bernard said darkly.
“It’s a little too late for that,” Clovis said, matching his mood. “She seems to be diving into this on her own accord. At least now, Virtue Corp can back her up if she needs it.”
“I cannot have her getting hurt. Not after--”
“Bernard,” Clovis said, cutting him off again. “You have my word. I will do whatever is in my power to ensure nothing happens to her from here on out. And, I’m sure you know this, but Odette seems quite sharp if you don't mind me being frank,” he said, chuckling as the words came out of his mouth. “Regardless, I will be over her shoulder every step of the way, and if things start to look too risky, we’ll pull her. That’s my promise to you.”
“...make sure Noel’s with her too. It would make me feel better to know she’s not diving into these events alone. I’m sure Noel had something to do with it if she's informed. He’s savvy himself,” Bernard said reluctantly.
Clovis chuckled again. “We’re one step ahead of you on that, sir."
“And...if it can be helped, I don’t want her to know about my involvement thus far. At least, not now,” Bernard added.
“The best I can do is hope she hasn’t dug that deep, then,” Clovis noted half-jokingly.
Odette cringed.
A louder sigh from Bernard. “Right.” He cleared his throat. “Well, my wife’s almost done with dinner, so I should go.”
“Of course. We’ll keep in touch, and I’ll let you know when I plan to reach out to Odette.”
“Please do. Have a good evening, Clovis.”
“You as well, Chief.”
Click.
Odette exhaled the breath she didn’t know she was holding as she hung up. She leaned her head back against the cabinet, holding her hand to her burning forehead.
“What the fuck did I just listen to?” she whispered. “Holy shit.”
“Important,” Loïc said.
With a single nod, Odette half-laughed. She turned her head to look at the mimikyu, whose eyes shone triumphantly.
“You’re right. Extremely important,” she said. “Gods, I owe you an absurd amount of pecha berries for this.”
“Go fish,” Noel replied.
Acadia clicked her tongue as she dove her hand into the haphazard card pile scattered around the coffee table. She was careful as she picked up a card because Enora was curled up under the glass, sound asleep.
Odette laughed hoarsely from her spot on the couch. She sniffled as she nuzzled into her blanket, adjusting her head against her pillow. “You’ve been looking for a six this whole game.”
“Noel, there’s no way you haven’t gotten a six by now,” Acadia said.
“I don’t know what to tell you, sis,” he snickered. “Try asking around.”
On either side of him, Ange and Elton sat with their own cards in hand.
“Ask Odette, I bet she has one,” Ange declared.
“I’m trying to take a six specifically from Noel. I’m giving Odette a break because she’s sick,” Acadia announced.
“How thoughtful,” Odette said flatly.
As she spoke, thunder shook the townhouse, and everyone in the living room looked toward the window. It was absolutely pouring outside, and there was no indication that it would let up anytime soon.
“Hope nobody was planning on going anywhere today,” Noel said.
“I was hoping to go for a jog, actually,” Odette said jokingly.
“Right, right. And I'm the Queen of Galar,” Acadia shot back, a half-grin tugging at her lips. “How are you feeling?”
That was a loaded question. Ever since she’d been discharged from the hospital two days ago, she’d had so much on her mind she could barely see straight. Of course, as luck would have it, the hospital cleared her as okay to go home the day she’d arrived, but she contracted a fever that same night. She felt so ill, she couldn’t think about anything but how bad she felt.
Bernard and Marieanne, ever the worrywarts in regard to her health, insisted she stay with them, as Vienna had run out on an emergency research retreat and wouldn't be home quickly enough. So, Odette had spent the last 48 hours in their guest bedroom bed, groaning loudly and sleeping.
“The same,” she answered. “No worse, no better.”
“We’ll take that,” Noel said. “Your turn Ange.”
Before Ange could ask for his card, footsteps sounded from the hallway leading to the kitchen. Marieanne emerged, decked out in a full apron and grasping a thermometer. She was done up with a full face of makeup, even though she didn't have work today, but that wasn't necessarily out of character. She always needed to "look her best," as she insisted.
Solene was at her heels, grasping the handle of a wooden spoon, which happened to be in Isaur’s mouth. As they stopped, Solene glared at Isaur as she wiggled the spoon. The froslass didn’t budge.
“Aaaaaaalright, temperature check time, Swanna,” Marieanne said, stepping around the coffee table and over to the couch. She sat down on the edge of it and stuck the thermometer into Odette’s ear. She held it there until it beeped, then examined the result. A frown crossed her lips, and she exhaled sharply.
“This damn thing won’t break. Still a hundred and two. You poor baby.”
“Maybe soup will help,” Odette suggested, closing her eyes.
Marieanne gave a nod. “Came out to say it should be ready in 30 minutes or so, so I hope you kiddos are hungry.”
“Thaaaaaaanks Mama Marieanne,” Noel and Acadia said in unison.
“Anything for you kids,” she beamed. A thought then occurred to her, and she turned back to Odette. “Oh! By the way, before I forget. Two things. First, where's Loïc? I haven’t seen him all day.”
Ange snickered loudly and had to bury his face in his cards to keep his volume down. Odette sent him a look before rolling her eyes.
“Do you have a vent system?” she asked.
“Yeah, I thought you knew that,” Marieanne said.
Odette didn’t verbally respond. Instead, she just held her hands out to her sides. Luckily, Marieanne understood, and she just huffed.
“Should have guessed. Alright, second thing. Have you seen the kitchen phone? Can't find the stupid thing anywhere."
“Nana, this is the first time I’ve left the guest room in two days,” Odette said.
“Dammit, Bernard," she groaned. "He never puts the phones back. He's in for it after that damn work call.”
Despite her brief bout of aggravation, Marieanne clapped her hands together, then stood up. “Alright, that’s all from me. Don’t let me interrupt your game. I’m gonna go…clean something. Storms like this make me antsy.”
Marieanne made her way back toward the kitchen and motioned for Solene and Isaur to follow. Solene had to yank Isaur along by the spoon, but they all soon disappeared down that hall.
“Shit, they still have a landline? Boomers,” Noel giggled, flipping through his cards.
Acadia lowered her brows and shot him an unamused glance. “I still have a landline.”
“Yeah, well, you’re a boomer in a twenty-something’s body. That’s not necessarily shocking.”
Acadia reeled her hand back and landed a sound smack on Noel’s bare shoulder. He flinched on contact, then began to rub his now-inflamed skin. “Ma’am, do you know what a damn joke is?”
While Odette was in no condition to be bantering at full energy with her friends, it was nice to have them here to keep her company. She had Marieanne and Bernard around, but being that she’d already missed a few days of rehearsal, witnessing the Noel versus Acadia spats made it feel like she wasn’t fully out of the loop.
As she thought about that, she pushed the blanket off her lap and swung her legs to the floor. Cautiously, she stood, allowing herself to regain her balance slowly.
“Oh, going on that jog?” Noel queried.
“Yes, to the bathroom. Unless you want me to pee all over the couch.”
“Well, you’re sick. You can do whatever you want when you’re sick. The world’s your cloyster.”
“I don’t think urinating on a couch is part of that,” Acadia said, cringing.
Odette shook her head before she hobbled her way toward the foyer bathroom. As she finished up her business and tiredly washed her hands, she found herself eyeing her reflection in the mirror. She really took in her pallor complexion and tired eyes.
“Gods, I look like hot garbage,” she said.
Skrtskrtskrtskrtskrtskrtskrt.
She knit her brows together, turning to look over her shoulder for the source of the noise. It sounded distant initially, but the longer she listened, the closer it got. She craned her neck to look up at the ceiling, then the wall, where her gaze caught on a vent grate. Upon seeing it, her shoulders deflated, and she pressed her lips together, forming a knowing expression.
A few seconds after she looked at the grate, it popped open, and Loïc reared his rambunctious fake head.
“Loïc,” she said, sounding stern even with the hoarseness in her voice. “Just because we’re not at home, and I’m sick, doesn’t mean you’re suddenly allowed to crawl in the fucking vents.”
“Kyyuuuu.”
He hopped out of the opening and floated down to the floor. Upon landing, he whipped around to stare up at her. There was something about him that felt different. His eyes were bright, and he was pulsing up and down in his spot. He actually looked rather excited.
“What were you even doing up there?” She felt minutely curious about what had him in such a good mood. Normally, he didn’t get like that unless he smelled pecha.
She began to feel lightheaded from standing, so she decided it’d be a good idea to get down on his level. She slowly sank to the floor and leaned against the cabinet.
“Look,” Loïc chirped.
In a small shadowy wave, his hands manifested. He reached one under his cloak and withdrew none other than the MIA kitchen phone. Odette took one look at it, then glared at him.
“Very funny,” she exhaled. “I hope you know you made Nana mad at Grandpa.”
Loïc quickly shook his head and used one of his hands to press down on the “answer” button.
Instead of a dial tone, like she was expecting to hear, she heard talking. Bernard talking.
Narrowing her eyes, she slowly picked the phone up and held it to her ear.
“I just don’t understand the sudden concern. It-it doesn't make sense to me.”
“There’s a variety of things that have happened that have caused us to become quite worried.”
Clovis.
That was Clovis’s voice.
Her breath hitched, and she cut her gaze back down to Loïc. His fake tail was wagging happily, like that of a gleeful yamper.
"You sneaky sonofabitch," she mouthed at him. And here she'd been, thinking the only things on his mind were berries and hiding the Monopoly pieces around the house.
Loïc jostled his head in response.
An abundance of thanks was in store, but she gestured for him to come over. Loïc didn’t hesitate to scurry up her torso and perch himself on her shoulder to listen in as well.
“Let me get this straight. She decided to research you, and she had a questionable run-in with a blood type. Do those things warrant Virtue Corps’ full eyes and ears?"
"Blood-type?" she mouthed, hoping that would commit the term to her wavering memory. What the hell did that mean? What even was her blood type? She hadn't bothered visiting the doctor for a while before her recent episode and that wasn't something she bothered to commit to memory. O-something, maybe...
That couldn't have been what they were talking about, though. Bernard said it like it was a Pokemon typing. Blood type. It sounded absolutely absurd until she dwelled on it a little more.
Those grotesque Pokemon. All three times she'd seen them summoned, their owners...trainers? Owners? She didn't know what to call it anymore. Their owners always bit their thumbs to draw blood. That seemed to be the thing that powered them up. Or made them spawn altogether?
Furrowing her brow, she scratched her cheek pensively. Is that what they were? Is that why she'd never heard of them? Were they just a whole new type?
More importantly, what the hell did they have to do with shinies and running them absolutely ragged? And how long had Bernard known about them?
What did that have to do with the voice she heard?
At that moment, thunder rocked the building again. She cringed at the noise and yanked the phone away from her ear to cover it with her hand. Loïc even darted his hand over, too. When she was sure it had passed, she started listening again.
“If you want my honest opinion? Yes. Given that uncanny resemblance we spoke about before, among the other things, these happenings are just a little too nefarious for us just to let slip by," Clovis had just started speaking.
"And can you confirm it had nothing to do with Enora?"
What?
"Enora was nowhere near her when it happened. Then again, I wasn't close enough to see what happened, either. But, desmocula fled, and she just...fell. Cut her cheek too, I guess?"
"She didn't have a cut on her cheek."
Silence swelled on the line, and it made her nervous. She held her breath, even though she wanted to yell out.
WHAT?
It was eventually broken by Clovis sighing.
"I don't know. I don't know what to tell you right now," he said. "It happened so fast, and we don't have enough information. That's all I have until I can talk to her. Maybe get some of our people to talk to her."
"You told me we wouldn't get to that point if you could prove she wasn't involved in this in the way you thought."
“I really am sorry, Bernard. I honestly thought I had this laid out, but I was wrong."
“I told you she wouldn’t get involved in the trade, not Odette,” Bernard said angrily. “She loves her partners to death, and they love her.”
Yes, tell him that. Let him hear it. The thought managed to break through every other thing rattling around in her head.
“And I see that now,” Clovis replied apologetically. "But now we've uncovered something big--"
"I know it's bigger. I know you can't tell me what it is right now. What I do know is I wish you'd just left her alone."
"And let this fall unnoticed?"
More silence. A very long, drawn-out sigh followed. "No. I know you didn't have a choice. I just--"
"I understand, Bernard," Clovis said.
"She's gone through so much in the last year, and I--"
"You don't need to explain it to me, sir. I get it."
Odette shifted uncomfortably in her spot, saying an internal prayer that that conversation would drop. She felt like she would have to hang up if it didn't.
"Let's start over," Bernard said. "Tell me again, slower this time, what happened leading up to her fainting."
“I had tried to bait something out of her. That was the whole point of my warning in the first place; sow doubt and bait her into admitting what she was actually up to when and if I saw her again. But all I got was that she caught my slip and read into it, just as I feared.”
She narrowed her eyes at nothing. That fucking scoundrel. It was bait? He was baiting her? Well, she supposed she couldn't be too bitter at that. He evidently got a lot more than he bargained for in that conversation, which she decided was enough to sate her pettiness.
“That’s Odette. If she finds something that doesn’t make sense, she’ll look into it herself,” Bernard said, though it sounded more like a warning than a statement. “What does she know? How much about you does she know?"
There wasn’t an immediate answer. Clovis must have been thinking of how to respond. “She was very conservative in telling me that much. And I didn’t press because it would have been risky, and I’ve put myself in a weird spot as it is,” he started. “But it’s like I told you, she’s trying to get to the bottom of the sacrilege and shiny trade issue. She didn’t say why though. However, judging by her verbiage, she knows the connection between the two." He sighed gruffly, sounding aggravated. "See, we wouldn't fucking be here if I weren't such an idiot."
“You just panicked,” Bernard said sympathetically. “It happens to the best of us.”
“I’m not one of ‘us,’ Bernard. We talked about this. I just got a little too...overzealous talking to her.” The annoyance was clear-cut behind his words. “I fucked up."
“And that’s not like you. You’re normally on top of it, but nobody’s perfect. You’re lucky it was so small, and you have the status to combat it if need be.”
A rancorous laugh. “I don’t know what happened. Odette’s just--”
“Off-limits,” Bernard asserted. His words fired like bullets.
Odette bristled. "Odette's just what?" she mouthed as she pulled the phone away from her ear to stare at it incredulously. "Odette's. Just. Fucking. What?"
She exhaled in frustration, masking her intense desire to scream into the phone, and held it back to her ear.
“Right,” Clovis grumbled after what was most likely a long pause. “How is she? I heard that the shock wore off before they even made it to the hospital.”
Short and sweet, Grandpa, she begged internally. Please, please, please do not elaborate too much. You've done enough; spare me.
“It’s happened before,” Bernard huffed. “She’s had issues with her blood pressure since she was little. Sometimes it dips, and sometimes it gets really bad. Then, it clears up, and she’s sick for a few days afterward.”
She stifled a groan and resisted the urge to bang her already throbbing head against the cabinet. The feeling of embarrassment was building up within her at an alarming rate. Did he really need to know all of this? Did Clovis really need to be made aware of her health problems? If she'd had things her way, she probably would have never told him. It just wasn't a conversation that needed to be had.
“And you said this happens a lot?”
“I said it used to happen a lot,” Bernard recalled. “A couple of times a month when she was younger. Not always to the point where she needed to be hospitalized, but often enough to where it was concerning. It’s not as frequent now, though. This is this first bout in…months, I’d say.”
Gods, she wanted to tell Bernard to shut up. It was bad enough that she'd fainted in front of Clovis, but now he knew the extent of why it happened in the first place. Would something like that be considered a turn-off?
Her thoughts were getting out of hand, sick or not.
Focus.
“Uh huh,” Clovis said tentatively. “Noted.”
Her stomach dropped. Why did he say it like that? What was there to make a note of? "Be careful around this girl, she might pass out on me"? Forget yelling and screaming; she wanted to break the fucking phone.
She didn't really know why she felt so aggravated about the conversation. It wasn't like she had a chance with Clovis in the first place, especially with him thinking she was dating Dorien. Or, maybe he knew she was faking it? Maybe that would be something he asked her about. That had to have been a turn-off, seeing somebody so convincingly act in love when they were very much not...
Fo-cus.
Bernard gave a very gruff sigh. “She’s had enough scrutiny to last her the rest of her life. She doesn’t need anymore.”
“I understand, Chief, but this is out of fear for her safety and not out of a desire to scrutinize her,” Clovis said earnestly. “Thankfully, our hypothesis about her trying to get involved in the trade was wrong, but now, the way things have been playing out, I am extremely concerned, as is everyone else.”
“So then, what’s the next move?” Bernard asked.
“She has questions for me, and I for her,” Clovis said, his tone direct. “I’ll have to reach out sometime after she recovers from her illness to schedule a meeting, but I plan to gauge how much she’s found out and, well...answer her honestly.”
At least she heard straight from the source that she wouldn't get bogus answers when they spoke. That did something to ease her racing brain, if only for now.
“I sound like a broken record. I hate this. I didn't want her involved,” Bernard said darkly.
“It’s a little too late for that,” Clovis said, matching his mood. “She seems to be diving into this on her own accord. At least now, Virtue Corp can back her up if she needs it.”
“I cannot have her getting hurt. Not after--”
“Bernard,” Clovis said, cutting him off again. “You have my word. I will do whatever is in my power to ensure nothing happens to her from here on out. And, I’m sure you know this, but Odette seems quite sharp if you don't mind me being frank,” he said, chuckling as the words came out of his mouth. “Regardless, I will be over her shoulder every step of the way, and if things start to look too risky, we’ll pull her. That’s my promise to you.”
“...make sure Noel’s with her too. It would make me feel better to know she’s not diving into these events alone. I’m sure Noel had something to do with it if she's informed. He’s savvy himself,” Bernard said reluctantly.
Clovis chuckled again. “We’re one step ahead of you on that, sir."
“And...if it can be helped, I don’t want her to know about my involvement thus far. At least, not now,” Bernard added.
“The best I can do is hope she hasn’t dug that deep, then,” Clovis noted half-jokingly.
Odette cringed.
A louder sigh from Bernard. “Right.” He cleared his throat. “Well, my wife’s almost done with dinner, so I should go.”
“Of course. We’ll keep in touch, and I’ll let you know when I plan to reach out to Odette.”
“Please do. Have a good evening, Clovis.”
“You as well, Chief.”
Click.
Odette exhaled the breath she didn’t know she was holding as she hung up. She leaned her head back against the cabinet, holding her hand to her burning forehead.
“What the fuck did I just listen to?” she whispered. “Holy shit.”
“Important,” Loïc said.
With a single nod, Odette half-laughed. She turned her head to look at the mimikyu, whose eyes shone triumphantly.
“You’re right. Extremely important,” she said. “Gods, I owe you an absurd amount of pecha berries for this.”
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