Destiny Village ~ Central Crossroads

[Namohysip]

"We're no stranger to that," Zekrom said with a sad smile.

Owen looked away, trying to take another bite. "I can't do that," he murmured. "There's... too much I need to do back home. Too much..."

Zekrom nodded. "I suppose you've talked to the former humans of Cibus," she said to Brisa. "They all have a story to tell. Pita is from the distant past--he doesn't have a human life to return to, really. Bone's... in a similar situation. Thyme, er, well, from the future, and Pine... ah." Zekrom shook her head. "A-anyway, what I mean is, it's a difficult decision to make. But it was one done before... I just do not know if that is within Diyem's power or not."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa nodded, and made a small noise in her throat. "I've come t'know Thyme well enough, and I've had occasion t'meet Pine an' Bone. Not so much Pita. I know the gist. I know their situations are different t'my own."

She frowned, and wondered if it would be acceptable to take more cake. She didn't ask.

"I used t'think my duty to Frontier Town was paramount, but after seein' folks come t'gether on Cibus t'deal with far worse than Treasure Town ever faced in my lifetime, and realisin' that I couldn't live that way forever in any case, I can't help but wonder if I can do more good here, and that there's really nothin' much waitin' fer me back home."

Not like Owen. She glanced at her friend and hoped he knew how proud of him she felt sometimes, shouldering so much.

 

[Namohysip]

Zekrom nodded sadly. "That sounds like a true challenge," she said. "...I don't really know the answer to that one. There's so little I know... Perhaps so little any of us know to think about what the ideal solution would be. It isn't like how Pine used to be, where he could freely travel between them. And from what We've been told, your bodies aren't built to last, oh..." She sighed. "It's very unfortunate."

Owen tilted his head. "How Pine... used to be?"

"A-ah! Well. Nothing, really, it's nothing."

Owen figured there was more to it, but it was private to Pine. Maybe they'd find out later if they asked him.

Zekrom offered more cake, and then said, "Well, Brisa, I suppose if you ever wanted dating advice, I could try some of my lessons I'd given Reshi."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Yer body's gonna fade away whether y'persuade Diyem t'let ya be or not. Better gget the use out of it while y'can. 'Cause it'll die on ya eventually...

She'd have to talk to Pine properly one of these days. She'd been meaning to for awhile. Always too many things to do... And she'd just been planning on taking Owen to the bunker to give him some breathing room. Although he did look like he was enjoying that cake.

"If y'got lessons, I would be glad t'hear 'em, ma'am," replied Brisa. Couldn't hurt, could it? And Zekrom was the closest thing she'd found to an expert. "Colour me pretty clueless, I guess. Closest thing t'real experience I got is readin' pulp romance novels from another world."

She could save more of the heavier stuff for another time, maybe.

 

[Namohysip]

"That sounds lovely," Zekrom said. "Of course! I'd love to give some lessons. I think it'll do some people a lot of good later."

Owen nodded, finishing his slice, and Zekrom offered them another if they wished.

From there, pleasantries continued, and while Owen seemed to have his mind on something else, as he often did. Still, it was a reprieve, especially after seeing everything that they could do to move forward from their team issues the week before. Things were hopeful. And, perhaps this time, they could get everyone going in the right direction...

<><><>​

 

[Fusion]

Damage control wasn't the most fun thing to do, but someone had to do it, and Vix was stuck in the Voidlands until after they saved Maple and Eien.

So... Puddle made sure to grab someone that wouldn't let shit hit the fan. And was strong enough to handle it if shit did hit the fan. And also wasn't currently fighting a god. Or was Bahamut. Because the last thing this make-up needed was Bahamut and Puddle fighting with each other and Puddle wanted to check in with him some other time

"Alright, Owen, thanks for comin' with me for this. I'd have gone by myself, but I didn't wanna ruin this shit even more," the Scraggy Familiar nodded to the dragon. "And that's a nice look. Suits you."

Finding Karat was the first thing they had to do, but perhaps that lucky "run into whoever you're looking for" thing would shine. It's not like they could miss the guy.

 

[Namohysip]

"Y-yeah, uh, thanks." The gigantic Blacklight Charizard was still having some adjustment issues, not to mention how booming his voice was now. He had to consciously keep it low so it didn't shake nearby plants. He'd yet to show himself to Dave, and he could only wonder if he would just nod and accept it or curse his way out of the house. More importantly, he wasn't sure how he was going to sleep. It was probably going to be capsule time every night... Which, now that Owen thought about it, didn't sound so bad...

"I contacted Karat, so he should be here," Owen said. "You... didn't do that. Were you just hoping to run into him...?"

 

[Fusion]

"You'd be surprised how often randomly bumpin' into someone works out," Puddle muttered, then sighed. "Which... is why I need someone like you for this. I... ain't the brightest, far from it. But I gotta do right, still, in Vix's place. It's been rough pickin' up her pieces, ya know?"

"Neither of us wanna leave bad blood, but... we ain't got a clue on how to fix it proper."

 

[Namohysip]

Owen figured it made sense that Puddle came from Vix. He didn't say that out loud, though.

"Right... Deoxys was badly hurt from that attack..." His flame dimmed. "I don't really know how you can smooth things over without making Vix look even worse or something, but I guess we'll see." Owen perked up and looked left. "There he is."

Karat was leaning against a wall, arms crossed and tail flicking with irritation. He said nothing, but they had his attention.

 

[Fusion]

"Yeah... we'll see."

There he was, someone on the growing list of "disliking Vix," which was nearing the double digits at this very moment. Probably.

Puddle kept its head high, not wanting to show weakness, and walked up to Karat. Maybe it'd be better to pull this bandage off quick, or to build up to an apology with small talk? As Puddle looked up to Karat, however, that obvious irritation coming off of him meant he probably didn't even want to be here. So there was no reason to keep him.

"Karat, I'm Vix's familiar. I'm... sorry, that this all happened. Whatever was goin' on in Vix's mind at the time, she never wanted anyone to get hurt. Especially not Deoxys," Puddle said, shaking its head. "She and I take full responsibility for this, and... if you want our help in away way, I'd do anythin' you ask. So will Vix, when she comes back."

 

[Namohysip]

"When she comes back," Karat repeated. "I don't have the same luxury if Deoxys perishes. I still haven't been able to talk to him. He's... dormant in his core. I don't know what to do about that. Nobody does. How are you going to help with that?"

Owen winced. "Maybe... someone on the team knows a thing or two about Deoxys..."

 

[Fusion]

Nerve hit. Even with Puddle treading as carefully as possible. "We won't let that happen. Team Spectrum has people and Pokemon from all over the place, I'd be surprised if nobody had an idea that would work. Maybe Bahamut, or Diyem himself, but I know at least one of us can help."

"Deoxys will be alright, I swear."

 

[Namohysip]

Karat didn't look like he believed Puddle at all.

"We'll look around for ways to help," Owen assured him. "It's not just Puddle and Vix that are looking out for him--I am, too."

"...What happened with you, anyway?" Karat had to crane his neck to look up at Owen. "Another one of those... Blacklight mutations?"

"Yeah..."

 

[Fusion]

Yeah, Karat had his reasons to still be skeptical. Anyone would. Honestly, deep down, Puddle was skeptical too. But skepticism didn't help save lives, so Puddle forced itself to ignore that feeling.

Huh... Puddle was doing that a lot lately, it realized. Ignoring things. Most feelings.

"If he weren't so cool lookin', I'd be upset over how much taller he got..." Puddle muttered, then shook its head and looked to Karat again. "Again, I'm sorry all this happened to you thanks to Vix. I'll make sure she doesn't pull some shit like this again." The last thing that idiot needs is everyone runnin' against her...

 

[Namohysip]

"I suppose I'll just have to see," Karat replied coldly.

"I'll send you a message if we ever find anything," Owen assured Karat. "Sorry for calling you all the way here."

Karat said nothing.

 

[Fusion]

Puddle understood that Karat was upset, and why he was upset, and why he didn't trust Puddle... but that coldness still irked the Scraggy. Far more than it should have, considering the circumstances. "Unlike Vix, I like to stick to my word and help people," Puddle said, stern. "I said I'll help Deoxys, so I will."

Before it got any more heated, Puddle paused and sighed. "Sorry to take so much of your time. I... or Owen, will be in touch." It turned down the street to walk away. It had work to do after all. No thanks to someone.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen nodded and let Puddle go, then nodded down at Karat. "Thanks for humoring us," he said. "We'll do everything we can."

"Don't let it distract you from saving the world," Karat muttered.

"Well, if we can't save Deoxys, I don't know what that means for trying to save the world," Owen pointed out.

"Hmph." Karat looked off. "Don't take on more burdens than you need."

In a white flash, Karat disappeared. Owen frowned, pensive, but followed Puddle as well. It didn't take very many paces to catch up with his huge strides. "What's your plan?" Owen asked.

 

[Fusion]

Puddle kept silent, thinking as it walked. What was its plan? Owen wouldn't accept a "wing it" kinda thing... and Puddle had to make sure it didn't neither. Think, Puddle. "...I can't fix somethin' if I don't know what it's made of, so if I ain't got a clue on what Deoxys is, then I ain't got a clue on how to heal 'im. I gotta learn about Deoxys, find out what make 'im tick, then go on from there."

As the two walked further down the street, Puddle let out a sigh, clenching its fists. Anger had built up inside it... or rather, regret. It stopped suddenly, staring down at the ground. "Owen... I'm sorry for Vix. For this bullshit we keep lettin' happen. I know she meant well, and we learned from her gettin' blasted to hell... and I know she caused a stir with her death."

"You can sense all the shit everyone's feelin', and I know that can stress you out, and I'm sorry for that," it went on, looking up at Owen again. The regret remained, but a sense of gratitude tried to fight against it. "...Whatever's goin' through your head, whether you're sorry for us, or disappointed as you should be... Thanks for takin' it easy on us. But... for Vix's sake, I need you to stop that. Goin' easy on her ain't gonna give her the push she needs to change properly." As the regret gave way to gratitude, determination started to rise to push it further down.

"I... can't help her alone. Even if I am... was her. But she might listen to you, and Diyem... Maybe even Bahamut," Puddle chuckled, grimacing. It was so... strange, being this vulnerable. Admitting this weakness... "Which reminds me, my first stop is Bahamut himself. If he doesn't belittle me and Vix until I leave, he might actually be able to help me with this."

 

[Namohysip]

Owen sighed, nodding. "I'll do my part, too," he said. Though, he could only hope that the exchange between Puddle and Bahamut would go well... He had other leads that he could possibly follow, depending on who turned up. "I don't really know if I want to be hard on people in that way, but... maybe I should. I'll see if I can do that."

Thumping his tail thoughtfully--it shook the ground, from Puddle's perspective--he seemed set. "Good luck, uh, Puddle. I'll see you around."

With that, they parted ways, Owen only briefly offering to fly it wherever it needed.

<><><>​

 

[Disco]

It was a pleasant, almost spring-like day in Destiny Village. The sun was shining, the bird Pokémon were singing, and Mellow was making her way down the path towards the guild. Her life had settled into a routine that she couldn't be more happy with; she tended to her plants, worked hard on making her potions and elixirs, and spent most days of the week at the infirmary helping Zinc. Nothing could bring her down! Except, something was. Lately, she had noticed the people she passed by and who would normally greet her when she did had grown distant. Like they were avoiding her. There were rumors spreading that she was being haunted... Or that perhaps she was a ghost in disguise.

It was upsetting, to say the least. Being blamed for some kind of increased paranormal activity... Mellow frowned as she came to a stop. Maybe if she asked Raven to look into it...? But Raven had things she was doing, things she wouldn't share with her. She'd been that way ever since she came back from the Voidlands. The Florizard stopped walking and stood in the middle of the path with a frown. She didn't notice Pokémon walking around her while giving her a wide berth, or the sounds of coins hitting the pavement as they were thrown in her direction.