Destiny Village ~ Sundae Park

[Chibi Pika]

Starr gave a small snort as Cal retreated back into the ground. Then she turned back to Owen. “Maybe I’ll see you if the team ever gets dragged back together to deal with some other bullshit,” Starr said with a scoff, like it would be a tedious chore.

 

[Namohysip]

"Yeah, maybe," Owen said, either not noticing the feign or choosing not to acknowledge it. "It's definitely going to be a mixed bag. On one hand, I'll get to see all of you again. On the other... it probably means a world needs saving again!" He sighed, rubbing his temples. "...But there are silver linings, huh?"

 

[Chibi Pika]

Silver linings, huh…

“Someone’s always gonna need saving,” Starr replied, waving a hand dismissively. “At least we can actually do something about it. No reason we can’t have fun in the meantime.” Talking about it like this made it feel real. It felt good.

 

[Namohysip]

"Speaking of fun..." Owen trailed off, but then looked left, then right. "I know something we can do that might be fun. It's sort of an idea that I've had but never really... Anyway, d'you want to hear it?" He didn't wait. "Cal's still my opponent. You used to be a human trainer, right? So, what if..." His eyes sparkled with a childlike eagerness.

 

[Chibi Pika]

Starr almost burst out laughing when she realized what Owen was asking. It felt a little weird now, after all these months fighting alongside him and other Pokemon.

…Eh, fuck it. She didn’t have to think too hard about it. They both deserved something simple and nostalgic.

Starr’s face broke into a grin. “Never trained a Charizard before. First time for everything.”

She took the familiar stance behind him and pointed forward, feeling some of that childish excitement for herself.

Simple. Nostalgic. None of that Blacklight shit.

“Next time she pops out, let’s hit her with a Flamethrower!”

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[Adamhuarts]

Leaves danced in the breeze that swept past a lone bench. Cynthian lowered her legs and pressed her bouquets together.

Her gaze held contemplation, layered over the tepid melancholy in her eyes. She was counting the leaves in the tree branches above, committing each to memory.

"Stop feeling so down, idiot," she scolded herself. She cupped her bouquets over her face. She huffed and a small smile found its way to her lips. She didn't know to whom she smiled, or what for, as she sat alone on that bench.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Fancy seein' you here, partner."

Brisa padded around the bench, and after a moment's consideration, took biped form to make better use of the bench. It seemed called-for.

She hadn't seen Cynthian in a while, but today's morning walk was somewhat delayed, and so the sun was high and strong enough for the light-sensitive roserade to feel comfortable. Maybe Brisa would adjust her walks back a bit, to see her friend a few times times before their last day.

"Y'know, the therapists office works plenty with seasonally affected folks," she offered, with a dry grin. "How've y'been keepin', Cynthian?"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Hmm? Oh. Brisa," Cynthian said, her brief moment of alertness placating.

Her red eyes followed Brisa, who morphed shape. She was polite enough to scoot to the side when Brisa took a seat. The Luxray-Zeroara carried a fierce but gentle air around her. Cynthian knew to recognize that feeling after fighting alongside her countless times. It really had been a year since they met, huh...

"Y'know, the therapists office works plenty with seasonally affected folks," she offered, with a dry grin. "How've y'been keepin', Cynthian?"

"Huh, err, I've been keeping... alright," Cynthian answered and shook her head, her trance broken. "I'm not afflicted with any season related ailments." She hoped Brisa hadn't noticed her staring prior.

"What about you?" Cynthian turned her gaze away forward. Keeping a conversation going while her roses left a gloomy incense didn't feel appropriate. She'd much rather push the focus of the conversation to her guest.

"Preparing to hit the colosseum again soon in the coming hours, I presume?" Cynthian flashed a smile and found a comfortable position on the armrest for her elbow.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Didn't y'hear? I live in the Colo these days," joked Brisa, returning the smile. "But yes, I got near-daily matches lined up. I'll be damned if I don't take every last minute fer what it's worth afore we go."

But she'd been making comments like that aplenty to curious 'mon of late. She wanted to know about Cynthian, despite the obvious deflection.

"Are you doin' the same?" she asked, her voice turning serious.

 

[Adamhuarts]

Cynthian flinched at the sudden tone shift in Brisa's voice. For a brief moment - that lasted too long - she remained silent. She sighed. There was no use hiding it. It's better to be upfront about her feelings.

"No... Not really." She held her face in her bouquet, her petals cushioning her head as she sighed into them. "I mean, I still visit Icetales, and I still help Leg with her dolls. I still meet some of the others whenever our paths cross, but..."

Cynthian perked herself upright and laughed. A small laugh devoid of any underlying joy.

"Can you believe it?! I'll be going back to being a boy scared of flames once all of this is over." Cynthian lifted her gaze at the sky. Fluffy white clouds sailed over the ocean blue sky. "It probably won't last long. I'll always be a maiden at heart..." She twirled the black tips of her collar and groaned. "Sorry, I didn't mean to ramble like that."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa nodded. She could relate. Although her fears were mostly about her circumstance, there was something to be said for dreading the loss of your better-developed self, and returning to a more fearful personality.

"If you could grow as you've done on Cibus, you can do it again back home," she told her friend, gently. "Folks keep tellin' me, that what matters the most to us here could well stick out the return home."

Cynthian responded to reason, usually, but seeing the roserade so forlorn called for something beyond assurances. Some levity, perhaps?

"Hey. Tell ya what. Let's make a pact t'gether, to make up fer lost memories once we're back home. If I can learn some goddamn self respect again, you can learn t'be a gal again. How about it?"

She offered her paw, and smirked playfully.

 

[Adamhuarts]

Cynthian looked back at Brisa, and then at the outstretched paw, then back at the feline again. A small part of her whispered doubt to her mind, but she uprooted those seeds before they could even sprout.

Sure, she felt uncertainty about being able to live up to the pact. However, it was not one she needed to fulfill alone. She awkwardly shifted her bouquet to Brisa's paw. How fortunate her ability wasn't poison point.

"Very well then, let fate have it that we'll once again bloom to our best selves," Cynthian said, then returned a playful smile. "Partner"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Fuck yeah," agreed Brisa, carefully shaking Cynthian by the petals.

It was good to see a friend smile, when you were the one who'd brought them a little cheer.

"So. What d'you expect you'll get up to once you're home, if you can be a li'l bolder than y'were before?"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"If I can be bolder huh?" Cynthian crossed her legs and tapped her chin with a vine as she thought it over.

"Well for starters, I owe Mama Zahra an apology as well as a thank you for putting up with a troublesome and feeble Roselia like I was..." Cynthian lowered her eyes. "I must once more work in earnest to overcome the past that haunted me." She swerved a somewhat sad gaze at Brisa, though her smile remained.

"I won't have Icetales, or you to help me through that journey next time." Cynthian pressed her bouquet to her chest and inhaled deeply. "But, I'll do my best!"

Now that she was done talking, she gave Brisa an expectant look. Her eyes glimmered with the curiosity of a child eager to learn what came next in the campfire story.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa chuckled at Cynthian's earnest turn. "Glad t'hear it, and good luck t'ya. As fer myself..." She sniffed, and smirked skyward. "I'm gonna go on a goddamn adventure. Visit someplace I've never been. Meet people that don't know the first thing about me. Win a real fight. Kiss a girl. Be happy."

Yeah. She'd be goddamn happy, some way, somehow.

 

[Adamhuarts]

Cynthian nodded idly while she listened to the plans Brisa laid out. She cupped a bouquet over her lips and stifled a giggle at the 'kiss a girl' part. Her friend was ever the romantic. It never stopped surprising Cynthian she's the one who got in a relationship first.

"Those are all very good plans. I think they're exciting," Cynthian said, her voice almost a soft whisper. She tilted her head the other way with a small smile. A goddamn adventure huh? Will such a thing bring the Roserade happiness too? Perhaps...

"You know what, I want to do all of those things too." Her cheeks warmed as her thoughts painted pictures in her mind. "A big adventure in strange new places and meeting all kinds of mon..." She brought her flowers together and exhaled a dreamy sigh. "I need to pick a place to start from. My world is much like this one. Humor me with suggestions, will you?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa laughed, delighted by such a positive reaction. Cynthian just needed something to look forward to, huh. Who knew?

"Well, even after all this time I'm no expert on the whole of this world, but I seen a few places worth visitin'. If you don't got intercontinental travel available t'requisition, then some places that might suit yer disposition are Apple Woods, Mystifying Forest, maybe Luminous Springs? But if y'want a real treat, one of the real marvellous sights of this world, if it exists in yers, is the Fogbound Lake. It's raised on a high plateau, and at night, volbeat and illumise fill the air with light an' spectacle. Y'gotta see it."

Brisa smiled warmly at Cynthian, hoping she'd follow through in her life to come. "Maybe if you're tenacious enough, y'could even make yer way to some of the places we've been in this world. The Tree of Life. The Hidden Land. The goddamn Worldcore, why not."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Oh yes, absolutely. It is sure to be an adventure I'll not forget in this life," Cynthian said with a chuckle. The mention of Mystifying Forest - where she grew up in - was a surprise. Then again Cynthian had never taken the time to fully explore it, nor the ancient dungeon that lay in there. Was Brisa somehow aware of that? How curious.

"I know what I must do now." The burden that weighed on her chest had grumbled to fine grains. Beneath their dusty remains, an adventurous spirit firmly took root. Cynthian slid off the bench, held her arms behind her and gave Brisa a smile.

"Why don't we begin our adventure together right now? We can explore Destiny Village one more time," Cynthian said with a playful tilt of her head. "What say you?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa flowed off the bench and into luxray form. "Sounds good. I still ain't been everywhere here, y'know? City's a big place."

She shook her mane into shape and leaned down to offer Cynthian a spot on her shoulders. (The roserade had the shortest goddamn legs, was the thing...)

"Where d'ya wanna go first, my friend?"

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