Poppin' Arms ~ Dorm Lounge

[Virgil134]

Cabot opened his mouth to speak, only to catch himself and pause.

"I..."

He fumbled for words for a moment. On the one hand, it shouldn't matter if Diyem had succeeded or not, right? What he did was just as awful either way, and it wouldn't make sense to give it more of a pass just because someone happened to stop him. On the other hand, would Diyem really have been the person he knew if he had succeeded?

"... If Diyem had destroyed his world, he wouldn't be the same right? He wouldn't be able to think rationally like he can now, or regret his actions or try to make up for them... So, if he'd be a completely different person, I never would have befriended him, meaning I'd feel very different about him."

 

[Namohysip]

Shield listened quietly, nodding. Cabot modified the question's premise. That was all he really needed to know... He was not ready to answer something like that. And it was fair, really. He couldn't. Not without going against what he had already said.

"Right," Shield said, nodding. "I suppose that's all I need to know. But I think in the end, the intent matters quite a bit when judging someone's actions for destroying a world. I don't know if your leader can shake something like that so easily." He strode toward the room's exit. "I'll see you later. I'll help where I can... but be careful about what you take at face value."

And with that, he left.

 

[Virgil134]

"Right, see you. Though we'll get Sword back, since she's our friend too. I promise!"

Cabot stared silently as Shield continued to exit the room, and turned his attention back to his drink when the Lucario had left completely. While it made sense not to take everything at face value, it didn't apply here, right? He knew Diyem and there's no way he was lying to him and the others. Besides, Diyem would be able to sense any doubts, and he couldn't do that to his friend after rescuing him! There would surely be no shortage of 'mons here that would mistrust Diyem, and he was gonna need a friend who believed in him more than ever once they got him back. Some positivity to balance out all the negativity he'd surely pick up on...

With that in mind, Cabot finished his drink and left the lounge. He, Pleo, and some of the others had a Team Rocket base to scout after all.

<><><>​

 

[Chibi Pika]

Starr didn't stop moving until she'd dragged Brisa up from the holding cells and into the lounge on the main floor. It was a bizarre contrast, going from the stark, sterile environment down in the basement to the relaxed, casual air in the lounge. She'd half-expected Brisa to put up more of a fight, but they'd made it without too much fuss. Starr finally released Brisa and then settled onto one of the beanbag chairs, giving her a hard look.

"You ready to fucking chill?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

What the fuck did she mean by that? Did she have a fucking problem with what Brisa had said? ...no, there had to be more to what Starr was saying.

"...I don't get it," Brisa replied, making a point of adjusting her bandana. "I was standing up fer us. Fer you. What did I say that was so wrong you had to– to drag me by the wild rag halfway through the buildin'?"

 

[Chibi Pika]

Starr groaned exasperatedly, letting herself sink further back in the chair. "I'm not saying you were wrong, I just mean..." She paused, shaking her head. "I mean who gives a shit what he thinks, alright? You're stressing me out just watching you get all worked up over this." She massaged her temples.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Ah, fuck, I..." She stared at the floor and thrashed her tail. "I'm mighty sorry fer that, Starr. I just– He's fuckin' wrong, and I didn't wanna back down without sayin' my piece. I've done that enough times."

 

[Chibi Pika]

Starr sat up a bit, glancing away. "You looked like you were two seconds away from losing it," she muttered. Then she met Brisa's eye again. "Seriously, are you okay?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"I wasn't gonna lose it, have some faith in my sense, willya... But like, tell me what you wouldn't give to kick his ass." She shook her head and sighed. "I don't know if I am okay. I think mostly I'm just angry. I've just been so goddamn angry, just, all the time."

 

[Chibi Pika]

"I've noticed," Starr said dryly. But then a second later she realized how that sounded and shook her head. "Look, I know it's been one disaster after another lately, but you can't keep taking it all like some kind of personal failure or whatever the hell. It's not your job to handle everything." For just a moment, the frustration in her voice broke, letting concern through.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"I know it's not, I know there's too much shit fer any one person, but I guess I just... ✋︎ ♑︎□︎⧫︎⧫︎♋︎ ♎︎□︎ ♏︎❖︎♏︎❒︎⍓︎⧫︎♒︎♓︎■︎🕯︎ ✋︎ ♍︎♋︎■︎📪︎ 🕯︎♍︎♋︎◆︎⬧︎♏︎ ⬥︎♏︎🕯︎❒︎♏︎ □︎■︎ ⧫︎♒︎♏︎ ❒︎□︎◻︎♏︎⬧︎ ♋︎■︎♎︎ ♋︎■︎⍓︎⧫︎♒︎♓︎■︎🕯︎ ●︎♏︎⬧︎⬧︎ ❍︎♓︎♑︎♒︎⧫︎ ❍︎♏︎♋︎■︎◻︎✂︎

Starr was looking at her in complete bafflement. Something was wrong. Brisa tilted her head quizzically.

 

[Chibi Pika]

Starr ran a paw down the back of her head. "Do you really know? Because the way I see it, ⧫♒♓⬧ ♓⬧ ♏⌧♋♍⧫●⮹ ⬥♒♋⧫ ⮹□◆ ⬧♋♓♎ ⮹□◆ ⬥□◆●♎■🕯⧫ ♎□📪 ♋■♎--" Wait. Fuck. It took Starr a second or two to process the fact that she hadn't gotten a word of the end of what Brisa had said.

Diyem's translation was failing. God fucking damn it why now.

"🖐⬧ ♓⧫ ⬧⧫♓●● ♒♋🞐🞐♏■♓■♑? 👍♋■ ⮹□◆ ◆■♎♏❒⬧⧫♋■♎ 🔾♏ ⮹♏⧫?" Still no sign of any recognition. What the hell was she supposed to do if they couldn't talk?

Starr clenched her teeth, standing up and punting the beanbag away in frustration. She exhaled slowly through her nose and then, at a loss for what else to do, she put a paw on Brisa's shoulder and gripped it tightly, willing her to just... stop.

You don't have to handle everything by yourself, dammit.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

In her exasperation, Brisa made something between a sigh and a muffled scream. Fuck, fuck, the fucking translation failures. Every time they happened, Brisa feared a little stronger that it wouldn't come back. Goddamnit. But Starr's paw on her shoulder was enough not to get lost in those feelings. Even if they couldn't talk to each other, she could trust that the torracat cared for her.

She stared into Starr's eyes and willed herself to understand, willed her friend to understand her.

Anything less than my best ain't good enough, and maybe not even that. But maybe with friends beside me, it can be. With you.

She closed her eyes and leaned forward. Her forehead met Starr's and rested there.

<><><><><>​

 

[Cresselia92]

Huff. Tails wag. Roll on the back. Another huff. Another tails wag. Stare outside of the window.

“How boooring! Why did they have to spoil my fun?” whined Petram, crossing his forepaws. “All I wanted to do was to see what would have happened if I had half of my tails out of the bubble! Like, would they have been a few hours older compared to the others? Would have I four Ninetales’s tails and the others Vulpix’s tails? How sick would that be?”

Petram breathed out a ball of smoke, while his tails took a brighter shade of purple.

“Ugh! What do I do, then? Daddy seems busy trying to figure out what’s happening to his body and wouldn’t tell me anything, and our friends are already busy.” He sighed and rolled back on his belly. “Hmm… should I go make some new friends, maybe?”

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Soul poked their head into the room. "Petram? Can I come in? I wanted someone to talk to."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Soul! There you are!" Ivy's voice resounded from outside before she arrived into the lounge behind Soul.

"Ivy saw you earlier, so Ivy followed. How are you, Soul? Ivy would like to hang out," Ivy said, waving her claw which was now buried inside a black rose flower. She swerved her head and noticed the other vulpix in the room.

"Oh, you must be... Umm... Ivy doesn't know your name. Sorry."

 

[Cresselia92]

“Whu…?”

Petram flicked his ears and stared at the other spectral Vulpix. He beamed a pleased grin and his tails started wagging with more vigor.

“Oh! If it isn’t my favorite sibling!” chirped Petram with glee, before bolting toward Soul and giving them a swift hug. “Of course you can come—”

Then, he perked up when he noticed the… Roselia? Was that a Roselia, hm? Well… she had a rose, and Roselia had roses, yes? Hmm…

“Huh, well, I’m afraid Petram doesn’t know Ivy’s name, either. Sooo… what’s your name?”

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Ivy is Ivy. What is Petram's name?" she asked, tilting her head with her other rose over her chin.

 

[Cresselia92]

“I’m the Invincible Petram, of course! The toughest shadow that cannot be touched by darkness!” cried out Petram with enthusiasm, making his tails flare up with a dramatic kaboom. “Which is kinda ironic because I’m made of dark stuff, but that’s irrelevant.

“So! How about getting some cocoa? I’m invincible and tough, but even I need some sugar!”

 

[Shiny Phantump]

"Cocoa?" Soul was unfamiliar with the concept, but it had sugar and sugar was a good things. "I would be interested in trying some."

Soul was quite happy having friends around. Everything happening was frightenin, but Ivy and Petram were both brave, and that bravery was contagious. It made them feel a little better.