Poppin' Arms Guild ~ Main Lobby

[RJR Basimilus]

"Weeell, think about it this way," Seyka said idly, "There's still something going around about a spy or whatever right? So if she really did escape, it would be better to conceal that fact- at your expense that is."

The Skarmory smiled. "There's always time for a little fun after all."

 

[Namohysip]

"Conceal... the fact that Sword escaped? But she's--how can I do that? What if she tries to prank someone other than me?"

"Erm, if I could speak up," called one of the guards--a Slaking, one of the strongest in the Guild, apparently. "I didn't see even a single ember, if this is a Charmander..."

 

[Phoenixsong]

They should've been back from the library a good while before now, but Araun had insisted on the "scenic route" to "keep spirits up". That was a funny way to spell "I've got to know whether Pasta Plaza actually has any good pasta!", and not a very helpful way either considering Skara didn't even eat pasta. And now it was late, and Skara was tired, and all the reading she had to do on the Tree of Life was going to have to wait until tomorrow, and— hm.

She wasn't even sure how late it actually was, but surely it was late enough that Poppin' Arms' lobby shouldn't have been busy. But there they were, in full view as soon as her familiar had padded up to the door: Bahamut's noisy familiar, and that quirky skarmory that seemed to spend most of his time alone outside, and... Shield? Hm indeed.

"Sword? Sword is here?!" Araun barked, ears perking up as soon as he heard the lucario speak, fluffy tail suddenly off at a mile a minute. "Fuck yeah, that's amazing! I knew that Giovanni fucker couldn't keep her down for long! Where is she? I bet I can help find her!" He pushed through the door, nose to the tile and snuffling loudly, heedless of the skarmory's comment about keeping it under wraps.

"I don't... I don't see anything, Araun," Skara sighed. She even had a decent vantage point for once, perched on top of the stack of borrowed books as she was. "Shield... I know it's been hard, everything that's going on, but... are you sure that you don't just need some rest after all this? We're still working on figuring out how to rescue her—" those who were left "—and I'm sure we'll figure it out soon. You can take it easy, really."

 

[Ambyssin]

"You'll have to excuse the aura dog." Esper floated up to Slaking and leaned on his shoulder. "He got really close to that big ass light dragon. I think it made him a bit not right in the head." He spun his nubby hand around the side of his temple.

 

[RJR Basimilus]

"Eh?" Seyka looked at Esper and Skara, a small voice in the back of his head running through names. "I mean, it makes sense that he might be out of it, but isn't due diligence at least a good thing to consider?"

The Skarmory rubbed his head with a wing. "Wouldn't it be nice if it was true too?"

 

[Namohysip]

"I know what I saw," Shield said, and then motioned to his sensors. "These don't lie. Sword was here, she--do you really not see her, right there?" He pointed at the air between Esper and Skara. "...And then she disappears..."

Slaking's frown deepened. "Shield, do you want to visit the infirmary?"

"I am feeling fine," Shield spat.

 

[Phoenixsong]

"I want it to be true!" Araun said, still sounding entirely too chipper for the hour. Skara just sighed. That probably had been tactless, hadn't it. She supposed there was a reason she hadn't spent much time around the grieving members of the team.

"I'm sorry, Shield, but I genuinely don't think any of us can see her," she said, shaking her head as best her shell would allow. "When and where did your, uh, sensors first notice her, then? Is there any sign of her besides visuals or your sensors? Clawprints or something where she might've walked, things like that?" She was too tired for this, but she supposed it did behoove her to at least try.

 

[Namohysip]

"I... sensed her. That was all. I sensed her presence." Shield looked left, like he thought he'd seen something in the corner of his vision. Nothing was there. "But this is the first time I've seen her. It was just tonight. This... she's there. She has to be, she escaped Giovanni!" Shield laughed a little. "Maybe Joule really did finish them off."

 

[Ambyssin]

"Err... I thought Mr. Godfather had some screwed up mew, not a charmander?" Esper poked his forehead. "You really think she could not only escape but break free of all that blacklight and Eternatus energy?"

 

[RJR Basimilus]

Seyka looked around impassively. "If she's not answering you, then I don't know. If there was a reason, any reason at all why... Sword would do this, then let us know."

The Skarmory nodded. "But since everyone seems to be so fond of parts and pieces, what if it's just a part of her, you know like a postcard. 'Hey, just letting you know I'm alright, catch you later.' Or something like that."

He looked at Esper. "He's got a fair point too. I wouldn't know though."

 

[Phoenixsong]

Skara didn't really understand the whole mew-charizard-charmander thing that Sword had going on, either, and figured it'd be best if Shield explained. Maybe it'd clear things up for her, too.

"I dunno..." Araun finally stopped his incessant snuffling around the lobby's corners and laid down, but his tail continued drumming against the wall. "I think your first idea makes sense!" The growlithe familiar nodded at Seyka. "What if there are still spies, or even if Giovanni doesn't know yet that she's escaped because he's still recovering from getting blasted into next fuckin' week? She should be careful if that's the case! Maybe she's hiding out to keep everybody else safe, or to get ready for her next big cool plan! Maybe she's gotta focus on that but she just wanted to give you a hint that she was okay." He turned his grin to Shield.

Sword's escape still didn't seem terribly likely to Skara, to be honest, but maybe there was a way to at least get him to calm down. "You... you make it sound like it's normal for her to pull your leg," she tried finally. "But presumably she stops joking around when she's ready, right? If she really is free, then I'd guess she'd show herself properly at some point. Maybe even sooner if you stop chasing her around. From what I remember of her before, it sounds like she gets pouty when she gets ignored."

 

[Namohysip]

"I... m-maybe." Shield looked away, now uncertain. Slaking, nearby, looked even less certain, but said nothing to comment. "But she felt so real. I know I can sense her. She's... she's been around, right?" But then, looking to their questions, he explained, "Sword was born as a Charmander. But in reality, she was a reincarnation of Mew, just like Nutmeg of this world. But unlike Nutmeg, who saved the world and split herself off so a new Mew could properly be born... Sword never did that. She is still Mew and Sword; a new Mew had never been born. The world had been destroyed before that could happen..."

 

[RJR Basimilus]

"Mmm, well no one knows what to do now then, huh?" Seyka sighed. "Compromise then, why don't we wait?"

The Skarmory looked at Shield. "If you still feel her later later, tell us. If you stop feeling her, tell us. If anything happens to change what you feel, what you know, what you are certain of, tell us. That way, our chances are slightly better."

"Chances of what, you might ask," Seyka added, "I guess we'll just have to find out."

 

[Namohysip]

Shield squinted, then looked to the others. "Do you... have a translation for that?"

"I think he means, wait and see if things happen later," Slaking explained. "Maybe this was a fluke, or maybe she's trying to send you a new message later."

"Right... a message later." He glanced off. "Maybe..."

 

[Ambyssin]

"If you're her best buddy, then you should do something that only the two of you really know about it," Esper suggested. "Like a secret password or a secret handshake or talking about a moment the two of you specifically remember or that time your teacher caught you two making out under a classroom desk or--"

Esper's suggestions made progressively less sense.

 

[RJR Basimilus]

"Do what you want," Seyka said. "If you want to chase shadows all night, then I'm sure at least some of us around here would support you."

"What I meant mostly though, was to keep us in the loop. You might call it- an information economy!" The Skarmory smiled. "Or maybe more of informational indentured servitude, since we're not giving you any information back. You're the only one who can tell us what's going on, so you have to do all the work."

"Another question then if we're passing the time. Is she avoiding you? Can you touch her? Consider what this guy is saying too." He gestured at Esper.

 

[Phoenixsong]

"Iiiiii think," Skara said hastily, glancing warily at Seyka, "that keeping us updated if you continue to sense her is a good idea. I don't know if you have any 'secret codes' or anything, and I won't ask, but maybe there'll be a pattern to what she's doing all the same. I don't know much about how aura-sensing works, but if you say something has changed, we don't have any reason not to believe that something has changed. I just don't know if trying to force things is a good idea, I guess?"

Part of her was starting to wonder whether it might be possible for Sword to send a message of some kind without actually having escaped, whether her mew-powers or familiar-powers or whatever might still enable her to reach out even though she was still held captive. Might not be the best idea to suggest that to Shield in his current state, she guessed—though she wasn't sure how helpful false hope was at the moment, either—but something to consider. Physically present or not, if it was Sword, it wouldn't hurt to find some way to interpret what she was doing...

Araun, meanwhile, had resumed his circuit of the lobby's corners, nose to the floor. Skara had no idea whether he actually thought he'd found a scent. "There's something I don't really get. Sword was like a mew all the times we saw her before, right?" he asked Shield. "But you said now she's like a charmander. Why the fuck would she be different now? Maybe... maybe, if like you said, Nutmeg in this world split into a mew and a charizard.... what if maybe Sword finally did the same thing? What if there's a Mew-Sword with Giovanni or hiding somewhere else or whatever, and Charmander-Sword separated from her and came to see you?" He grinned again, proud of himself for figuring something out; his passenger remained unconvinced that that explained anything relevant at all.

 

[Namohysip]

If you're her best buddy, then you should do something that only the two of you really know about it

Is she avoiding you? Can you touch her?

Nutmeg in this world split into a mew and a charizard.... what if maybe Sword finally did the same thing?

Shield considered all of their theories and questions carefully, and it looked like he was coming down from whatever crazed state he had been in. "I'll... keep that in mind, but--she seems to be avoiding me. I've never touched her. She's practically like a phantom..."

His ears perked up and he glanced to his left.

Curiously, if Araun had investigated there, he might have sensed the smallest hint of a presence there. However, it was so faded that it was hard to tell if it was currently there, or had been there a while ago and left, or anything in between. It had no scent, but it was like a tingle against his core.

"...Right. I'm... going to get some rest. Thank you, I'm sorry, I..." He rubbed his head.

 

[RJR Basimilus]

"Don't be sorry! Just be aware," Seyka said. "It helps to keep your options open."

The Skarmory turned to leave. "Just let everyone know if you find something. It's more fun that way."

 

[Phoenixsong]

"That sounds like a good idea. On account of the hour and all." Quick save, but also not a lie. She'd probably be yawning if that was a thing that beetles could do. "And don't worry about it. We know you were close, and this can't be easy. And the team wants to see Sword safe again, too."

Araun frowned for a moment, scrunched his nose, shook his head. "Hm... yeah. Yeah, and we'll keep looking out as well! Nothing's gonna get past this nose!" He thumped his chest proudly, then frowned again, then brought back his tongue-lolling grin.

The others went their separate ways, the slaking returned to his watch, and the way was finally clear for them to head back to their little room. "C'mon, Araun," Skara said, sounding weary and finally not self-conscious about it. "You've held us up enough. Let's go to sleep; there's plenty of work to do tomorrow."

The growlithe had pressed his nose back to the ground in one particular spot. "I'm pretty sure there's something here, though! Right around here, I know it fuckin' is..."

"I'm sure it'll still be there in the morning."

"Not if a bunch of people tramp all across it first!" he whined, pawing first at his nose and then, for some reason, at the ruff over his chest. "That's how perfectly good smells get fucked up! Or, well, I dunno if it's a smell, really, but—"

Skara sighed. "Is it something we need to do something about right now?"

"Yes— well, I dunno, it's faint, but I swear it's— I thought..."

"Then it's something we can figure out in the morning," the charjabug grumbled. "Or at least let me worry about it in the morning. If you want to stay up all night looking for charmander-or-whatever that aren't there, then you do you. Me, I'd rather not be falling asleep over these books, if you don't mind?"

Araun whined a little, but at last he rolled his eyes, smiled, and carried Skara and her research back to the dorms.

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