Poppin' Arms ~ Dorms

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Aid should be given freely, not coerced," said Luz, quickly. "And if yer gonna use power, y'shouldn't get to compel it from others without gettin' yer paws dirty."

She surprised herself with the ease of her conviction. She . . . believed what she was saying, automatically, although she'd never really given it consideration before. Interesting.

 

[Virgil134]

Pleo shifted uneasily at Kate and Luz's responses. It's not like they were wrong, but he also knew things weren't quite as black and white.

"I mean... yeah, what they did was bad," the young Lugia admitted. "But I don't think the Empire is trying to be mean. They’re just very desperate and end up being mean because of it. Cabot knew how miserable I felt at the palace, so after I had escaped he tried to convince his captain to stop hunting me, which did work. If everyone in the Empire was bad then Nagant surely wouldn't have listened to him, right?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

The folks in Frontier Town were 'mean', and it wasn't out of desperation. If things became fine in the Empire, would its authorities and armed forces stop being 'mean'? No. Entrapping a thinking person and using them for protection was wrong. ...Stars, where was she getting this? From the stories she was made of? ...Or from knowing Brisa?

Well, it wasn't like any of those thoughts were helpful to offer up when the lil' fella was just defending his host's heart.

"Guess yer cranidos pal is a real decent fella," said Luz. "Folks desperate enough to get mean need folks like that to keep 'em decent."

She scratched the back of her neck.

"Alright, shall we keep on?"

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

The folks in Frontier Town were 'mean', and it wasn't out of desperation. If things became fine in the Empire, would its authorities and armed forces stop being 'mean'? No. Entrapping a thinking person and using them for protection was wrong. ...Stars, where was she getting this? From the stories she was made of? ...Or from knowing Brisa?

Well, it wasn't like any of those thoughts were helpful to offer up when the lil' fella was just defending his host's heart.

"Guess yer cranidos pal is a real decent fella," said Luz. "Folks desperate enough to get mean need folks like that to keep 'em decent."

She scratched the back of her neck.

"Alright, shall we keep on?"

Kate thought to herself of what she remembered seeing of Cabot when he was still around. He'd always come off as this starry-eyed idealist type, not the sort of 'mon who'd have a claw involved with trying to kidnap a god. Though with everything that Pleo had offered up in his defense, it did make him sound like he wasn't a bad 'mon...

"Hrm, I'm still not sold about his buddies, but Cabot himself sounds like he turned out alright," Kate said back to Pleo, before grabbing her cup in pausing in realization.

"Oh yeah, the way this game works is the loser kicks off the next round," she explained. "So everyone shake their dice, take a quick peek under your cups to see what you got, and start the betting, Pleo."

 

[Virgil134]

"Okay!"

Pleo rolled his dice, prompting Kate and Luz to follow suit. The Lugia looked under his cup, a bit more careful this time to make sure it wouldn't fall over, before thinking about what bet to make.

"I'm betting... three threes?" he began, before perking up. "No wait! four threes. I'm betting four threes!"

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Kate raise a brow at Pleo, giving a dubious frown over his seeming trouble settling on a bet. Did he not notice a wild die at first? Either way, he clearly thought there were a decent number of threes among them...

"I'll see your bet and bet four fours."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Luz grinned to herself. Kate was actually analysing Pleo's play like it meant anything much. Delightful.

"Five fours, y'all," she drawled, stretching out. This was so inconsequential. It was perfect.

 

[Virgil134]

Pleo mulled over Luz's bet for a moment. Would it make sense for him to bet more? After all, the last time he'd bet that there were six threes he lost...

"I... challenge you, Luz!"

He paused a moment, before looking back at Kate.

"That's what I'm supposed to say, right?"

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

"That's right. So let's see those dice, everyone."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Here we go! I got two of 'em. Let's see yers."

 

[Virgil134]

Pleo lifted his cup to reveal his dice as Kate and Luz did the same. The Lugia counted the amount of fours and one for a moment, only for his eyes to widen as he realized...

"Oh! I won!" he cheered.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"So what's yer question, partner? Shoot."

 

[Virgil134]

Pleo paused and put a wing to his mouth as he thought about what to ask. He didn't know Luz that well, meaning there were lots of different things he could ask her to get to know her better. Though... since Kate asked him something about his world earlier...

"What's the coolest thing the other you back home has ever done?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Luz laughed, and this time it really sounded forced. Oh, just the coolest thing the mythical person she resembled had ever done? Okay!

"Well, it's all folklore, y'know?" she said, her huge smile flickering with embarassment. "So it's not like I can corroborate any of it. Bound t'be exagerated in th'tellin' an' retellin'. But I do got a favourite tale that's just about plausible. Ahem. Zeraora Luz, th'Wanderin' Light, is said to have once outrun a thunderstorm to warn folks of its comin'."

There were other tales that by some measures were more impressive, but . . . Luz liked this one better. So it was the one she told.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Kate blinked back at the Zeraora Shade. She'd heard stories of other Legendaries moving fast enough to outrun a thunderstorm before, but thunderstorms just kept going without a break. The Sneasel tilted her ear puzzledly, as there were a couple ways to interpret Luz's boast, though she wasn't sure which one was her intent...

"Eh? For a particular town or the like?" she asked. "Or do you mean to say she outran it and warned Pokémon along the way the entire time the storm was moving?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Yeah, th'former. New settlement of civilised folks what didn't understand the local climate yet. Natives and wilders knew to take shelter in nature, greenhorn townies not so much. The Wanderin' Light got to 'em in time to help batten down the hatches an' make safe their homes."

Luz smirked to herself, hiding it with a paw. It might not have been her achievement, but it was still the kind of thing she'd do, and she was allowed to like that about herself.

"Some tellings say she held th'storm at bay fer an hour to buy time, but that part don't date back far enough in written records, so Brisa always reckoned that was some revisionist bullshit."

Brisa.

She flinched.

"Uh, pardon my language there. Jus' the word she used."

 

[Virgil134]

"Oh! So you're a Protector back home then?" Pleo chirped. "Just like me!"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

She wasn't anything back home, it wasn't her home, she was a native of Cibus, why did he talk like this—

"Eh, I don't exactly . . . exist, back home. The 'real' Luz might not look all that much like me, or talk like me, or act like me. I'm based on stories an' Brisa's fantasies. I ain't got any memories of bein' Luz. Just memories of Brisa thinkin' 'bout her."

And thinking about what she wanted to be. And by extension, what she wanted Luz to be.

...Oh, this was hard. She could just punch this problem. Or laugh it off.

She did her best to shrug in a nonchalant way. She managed 'awkwardly'.

"I dunno about 'Protector', neither, but Luz sure did a lotta protectin' folks if the legends are anythin' to go by."

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

She wasn't anything back home, it wasn't her home, she was a native of Cibus, why did he talk like this—

"Eh, I don't exactly . . . exist, back home. The 'real' Luz might not look all that much like me, or talk like me, or act like me. I'm based on stories an' Brisa's fantasies. I ain't got any memories of bein' Luz. Just memories of Brisa thinkin' 'bout her."

Kate blinked and realized that if Luz was built around stories Brisa had heard of her, then it sure seemed like the Luxio only ever had happy stories in mind about Luz. Back home, Legendaries from Edialeigh were viewed with dread by most Pokémon in Varhyde and supposedly the reverse was true as well. Even the Legendaries locally didn't have universally happy stories about them. 'Good, but not safe' was how she'd heard them described at times, and there were certainly times in the past where 'good' had wound up scarring the land for years to come.

Perhaps it was a matter of perspective, or Brisa just hadn't heard any stories about Luz that would run counter to her almost idyllic portrayal of her. While it was hard for her to imagine based off the Luz she'd gotten to know, if Diyem had called someone else from Brisa's world, perhaps the shade in front of her would be a completely different 'mon entirely.

"Hrm, well I hope that those stories aren't too far from the truth," the Sneasel said. "Even if she was a little coy about it, she seemed to really look up to you."

And thinking about what she wanted to be. And by extension, what she wanted Luz to be.

...Oh, this was hard. She could just punch this problem. Or laugh it off.

She did her best to shrug in a nonchalant way. She managed 'awkwardly'.

"I dunno about 'Protector', neither, but Luz sure did a lotta protectin' folks if the legends are anythin' to go by."

"Is that true of every shade like you two?" she asked. "Since Pleo always refers to himself as a 'Protector,' so... does that mean he really does go around sticking up for other 'mons? Or is that just how Cabot saw him?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

She seemed to really look up to you.

"Fuck's sake, Luz, will you have a lil' decorum? Everythin' ain't a game. I need you to get yer act t'gether."

"Aw, y'think so?" said Luz, feeling something in her chest. "She didn't let on around me, that's fer sure. Anyway, even if the details vary, the real Luz is credited with a lotta real good. That's pretty unusual fer a legendary pokémon in Brisa's world. Ain't many 'Protectors' among 'em."

Her voice kept steady. Her head spun. Had she been worth looking up to while Brisa was around?

"This is the toughest fight we've ever gone into, an' we know that up front. Luz, I'm dependin' on you. If I'm put outta commission, you gotta do what you can fer the rest of the team. Keep 'em on target. Keep tryin' to save Joule. I'm trustin' you to do that. To make the right calls."

She rather felt she was the one looking up to Brisa.