Odette twirled her empty glock around her index finger, staring up at the skylight mindlessly as her ears fixed on Enora lightly snoring next to her. She found that no matter how much she tried, she couldn't fall asleep. Whether it was from the events of the day, or the talk she had with Steven, or the light squeak of the perch Odile was swinging on as she downed a bag of saltwater taffy, it was hard to tell. Sometimes she really hated being such a light sleeper.
Maybe, subconsciously, she was nervous. She'd brought the stupid gun along with no real intention of ever having to take it out, and yet here she was. Feeling like she might actually need it. If there was a chance other trainers had been taken out of their rooms, who's to say any of them were safe...
Of course, that was why Odile planned to stay up all night. The 'mon didn't need to sleep much anyway, and she was dead set on playing guard. A psychic type would be a walk in the park for her, so she didn't appear phased by the idea in the slightest. It allowed Enora to breathe a sigh of relief, because as much as she had initially wanted to contribute to the watch, she wasn't an Eon cut out for staying up much past midnight. She was out like a light before the clock even struck 1am.
Odette had wished she could have done the same. Sleep might have saved her from her full head. Or, perhaps not. Night terrors were still a thing.
Was she just fucked? Probably.
She caught the gun in her palm and thumbed the trigger. The cartridge for it lay just within arms reach on her night stand, so worst case scenario, she could just reach over and load up. With two very powerful Pokemon surrounding her, she probably wouldn't need to even if a threat did arrive. But, she'd learned the hard way that it was often better safe than sorry.
She groaned. "Fuck me," she said in an almost inaudible whisper.
A full mind didn't make for good sleep. She felt like she needed to drain it out somehow. However, Odette didn't want to rouse Enora, and Odile had talked enough about her feelings today. Clovis and Guzma were most likely sleeping by now, and they were worried about her as it was. She couldn't call any of her 'mon without waking them either, and she didn't want to send Loic on a frenzy.
Noel, maybe? His sleep schedule was a little harder to follow nowadays, so she wasn't sure. Acadia would have been a good choice, but she was never in bed later than 10pm. If Noemie wasn't sleeping, she was out partying. Basille was dealing with choreographing a tour right now, and Claude was like her--not one for the feeling discussion. He'd surely listen, but she didn't want to put him through that right now, no matter how much he insisted. She was in a weird mood as it was, and didn't want to make herself feel worse.
Hau was either sleeping or high off his ass, and neither were good prospects for having a meaningful conversation. Plumeria was also undoubtedly asleep, and Gladion...
should be sleeping. Lillie was automatically out. Bless her soul, but she'd pop if she heard even an inkling of the shit going on inside Odette's head.
Vienna and Bernard were options. But they were also very worried about her going on this trip; more than Clovis and Guzma had been. She didn't want to stir that. Marieanne might have been able to keep cool, but she needed her beauty rest...
This would have been so much easier if she didn't care about anybody's sleep, good gods.
Then, she made it to the last name on her roster, and she immediately wondered why she didn't think of him first.
She reached over to the night stand and grabbed her phone, flicking through her passcode and pulling up her messages. She navigated to his name, high up on her list.
Armel.
Are you awake?
His response came mere minutes later.
Mmhm. Call me.
It was nice having a sibling; one who didn't ask any questions. He picked up on the first ring.
"You know, Peach, you really shouldn't be up this late," Armel said in a mockingly stern voice.
"Speak for yourself, Apple."
"How's your trip?" he asked. "Does it look just like Alola, like I
swore it would?"
Odette rolled her eyes. "No, I actually think it's nicer." In some ways. Not all.
She heard him chuckle, and it sounded like he turned the page of something. "How do you feel? Have you had to partake in any battles yet?"
She pursed her lips as she adjusted her blanket. "One. But with Enora. I haven't had a desire to power Odile up just yet."
"Mm, that's good. You're best to conserve your energy, anyway," he said reassuringly. "But I assume that's not why you wanted to talk."
She exhaled slowly through her teeth. Where could she even start?
"Feeling
reminiscent. Mind full."
Armel was silent for a while. No page turning, nothing rustling. Eventually, though, he sighed.
"If I'm being honest, I've found myself in the same boat," he said. "You know how
spotty my memory tends to be, and yet...those bits and pieces come around at the worst times."
She nodded hard. She knew he couldn't see it, but she didn't care. "Truly."
Another sigh from him. "Well, we can sit on the line and be uncomfortable together, or I can indulge you in a long and very drawn out dissertation about how much I hate these new sketching pencils I just got."
It took a second, but Odette soon chuckled. "Are you going to
remember a whole dissertation?"
"Peach, I might be the amnesiac of our duo, but rest assured that things
do stick."
Odette chuckled once more and settled back into her pillow, suddenly feeling a little less alone. "I'll let you talk my ear off about pencils if you let me explain the difference between contemporary and jazz dance for you
again."
