Mystery Continent ~ Northern Pines

[windskull]

"Thank you, but I'll pass," he said to Cynthian. "I don't really eat those except for healing. They don't exactly... Agree with my stomach." To punctuate his words, he placed a paw over his gut.

His attention shifted to Mellow. "Mmm, I suppose I can understand that. I'm not a fan of staying around the village myself. Though for... Different reasons than yours."

 

[Disco]

"I'm, uh... Coping. Just trying to restart since I couldn't just stay in Treasure Town. I needed to stay with the team. ...I guess I wanted to prove that I could keep doing this too.", she replied while glancing at the rows that would (hopefully) soon have plants sprouting up from them.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"You have a nice place here, I suppose." Cynthian browsed the rows of earth in the soon to be orchard. "Are you making a garden? I could lend you a rose. I was a florist where I came from."

The truth was that Cynthian had been missing the flower shop since he started being homesick recently. And he couldn't exactly keep showing up at Let's lawn to water her plants every day.

"Though I wish you didn't have to isolate yourself out here like this... but I guess if you weren't out here, I'd have lost to the weather and frozen to death," Cynthian said candidly.

 

[Disco]

"I'm glad I was here too... I can help you get back into the city when you feel up for it.", she replied, then got a thoughtful look as she considered his offer and almost immediately agreed to it with a smile. "Roses would be nice! You're free to add to the garden. Making more space wouldn't be hard. I'd just need to move the roots around a bit and put in more heating. Both of you are welcome to stay here any time you need shelter. Anyone else in Team Spectrum is welcome too."

 

[windskull]

Nip tilted his head. "You and Owen sure are strange charmander. First Owen trades his fire for grass in the fight, and now you're doing... something with all these roots? I've never heard of charmander with such affinities for plants and the earth."

 

[Disco]

Mellow was quiet after that statement. Something about it seemed to bring her down a bit, and the roots seemed to react to it, growing larger and blocking out the outside even more.

"...I get asked that a lot. I guess it does seem unnatural. I could have worked in a foundry, and then I'd be like every other Charmander... But I don't know.", she finally replied in a slightly shaky voice. "I wanted to do something else. Maybe holding on to that kind of dream is really dumb. To be a Charmander that starts a farm and works with plants like this. I mean, it's not like I can suddenly become a grass type, right? I don't even know how Owen does that. ...I kind of envy him for it. Just a little."

She realized she was rambling and stopped short. "Eh- I mean. I just really enjoy making tea. That's all. It makes me happy."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"You wanted to be different, huh?" Cynthian held his tea with a contemplative look. All his life he'd struggled to be just like his peers around him. He couldn't uphold his promise to join the guild with Nora, he didn't stick long with attending expeditions and he even had to receive the rest of his education at home. Eventually, he joined his mother in taking care of the flower shop simply because she told him to. What would he have become in life had things been different?

"I'm happy to hear that it's been working out for you. I'm sure roses will be a great addition to your garden here," Cynthian said as he looked at her with a smile.

 

[Disco]

"It's been working out alright here... I guess because nobody here knows me. If I tried this back at home, though... Especially building an orchard... Everyone would think I was crazy. My parents would probably force me to work with them. Or just tell me I was going to fail. They were even skeptical about me working at a tea shop.", she replied to that, then sighed and attempted to smile back. "Well, I'm glad I'm getting the chance to do this at all. I'm going to do my best to make sure the roses grow nicely."

 

[Adamhuarts]

Especially building an orchard... Everyone would think I was crazy. My parents would probably force me to work with them. Or just tell me I was going to fail. They were even skeptical about me working at a tea shop."

"No offense to your parents, but I think they're the ones crazy for not seeing how good you are at this. I personally think that one's passion is worth respecting. It's regrettable you grew up in an environment that didn't see things that way," Cynthian said with a sigh.

 

[windskull]

"Mhm, I can understand where you're coming from. Oppertunies are... Limited where I'm from. That's why I left." No it wasn't. Not quite at least. There were... Several more factors that he wasn't about to explain.

"Just... Be careful, I suppose," he finally said. "There's breaking free of norms and expectations, but fighting your very nature can be a lot more... Difficult."

 

[Disco]

"I just use what comes natural to me to do this. ...I don't know what power allows me to use Solar Beam or Power Whip, but... I'm happy I'm able too. At least while I'm here. I hope I get to stay here and keep it."

Mellow looked down at her empty teacup and quietly drummed her claws against the side in thought.

 

[windskull]

"I don't know if I'd want to stay here but... it's certainly better than going back to my world."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"As fun and dangerous as this journey has been, I'm still not sure if I have the conviction to keep doing this. I feel that I am better off staying at home than remaining here," Cynthian said. He proceeded to gulp down the last of his tea and placed the cup down with a clink. Unsurprisingly, he hadn't touched the Aspear berry slices at all.

"I'll be heading back into Destiny Village now... or just go all the way back to Treasure Town." Cynthian was aware that he still needed to do something about the weather outside. If only there was a solution. He turned around and scanned the room over until his eyes fell on the sunny orb sitting right beneath the ceiling.

"Yeah, I suppose that could work. See you guys around then." Cynthian waved his farewell and then he left shortly after.

 

[Disco]

Mellow blinked, then got up and went after Cynthian, but briefly turned to Nip.

"Thanks for coming over. You can stay if you want, but I understand if you leave. I just need to go with him to make sure he gets to where he wants to go safely-"

She waved a goodbye, then walked out into the cold with the Roselia.

 

[windskull]

"Just stay safe," Nip said as he stood up. This forest seems safe enough, but the bushes can conceal danger. You never know what hungry pokemon might be lurking out there." And neither the gentle Mellow nor Cynthian seemed equipped to handle a hungry attacker.

"I'll be close by most of the time," Nip added, addressing Mellow specifically. "If you ever need anything, give me a shout and I'll see if I can help."

With that, he took off at a jog, disappearing back into the underbrush.

<><><>​

 

[TheGOAT]

An hour’s hike north of the city, Astrid chased a ghost.

This was how it usually went. Her afternoons would usually be consumed by the surrounding countryside, and the northern pines had piqued her interest in particular. These trees smelled like what nature was supposed to smell like, according to her nose. All of it was untouched land—dry, crisp, seasoned with life while also barren and peaceful. Perfect fodder for her imagination. Perfect to sprint across and pretend she didn’t care about anything.

On that note, it was one-hundred-and-ten-percent better than her dorm room, where she’d yet to feel comfortable at all. And—it was kinda funny—she wondered if all of this would fix it. Coming out here for this reason, seeking this kind of help…

—!

Astrid looked up just in time to see her target come into view briefly before swooping out of sight. Rustling in the distance spurred her paws forward at a greater pace than before, shoving through spruce branches and running along clearings until reaching her target.

It took her three minutes to find him. Pine needles flung off of Astrid as she skid to a stop.

“Truffle,” she panted.

 

[Namohysip]

"Ah, Astrid!" Truffle hopped and pivoted in midair, facing Astrid with a ghostly gust of wind surrounding him. "A pleasure. Though, it's quite odd to have someone else take a similar afternoon walk. It's usually one meant for winged individuals, and you, well..."

 

[TheGOAT]

“Ha… hah. It’s been quite a walk.” Astrid inhaled through her nose, then out through her mouth. In, and out. Damn, why did Truffle have to fly so fast?

“I followed you actually. I wanted to ask you about Radiance.” Her feet shifted. “Because…”

Astrid reminded herself why she’d sought out Truffle. They all had their specialities and quirks, but he was gentle and approachable and someone she’d grown fond of even if they’d never had a full conversation. He was known a protector of sorts, after all. He was under control. His powers were stable. How did he do it?

“…I’d like to s—I’d like to suppress it, somehow,” she admitted.

Why was that so difficult to say?

“S-so that I don’t hurt my friends. And, um. Yeah.”

 

[Namohysip]

Truffle listened and waited patiently for her to finally get the request out. He had a feeling, of course, after her performance in battle and how much she had tried to fight alongside them all. She was one of the most effective battlers, but it came at a cost--the sheer power caused her Radiance to overflow several times, hadn't it?

"Suppress," Truffle said. "I'm afraid that your body and mine are very different. Not only are you a creature of darkness, but your aura itself is unstable. To suppress and control your Radiance is a completely different beast than my own. Volatile by nature. Even if I were to teach you, it will probably still be very difficult in the heat of battle."

 

[TheGOAT]

Volatile?

She was volatile?

Astrid swallowed. Her gaze had drifted to her paws below. “…I thought it wouldn’t be that easy, yeah.”

This body wasn’t so similar to her body back home after all. After the things she’d seen, Astrid couldn’t find it in herself to be surprised.

“—But I still want to try. Truffle, I know I can get the hang of this. Maybe if I can gain some sort of, I don’t know, tolerance level for my Radiance, I can use more of it without going too far.”

Her eyes showed her exhaustion. She’d been fretting over this for a while now. “Will you teach me?”