Rocky Road ~ House of Brisa, Dave, Koa, and Owen

[Namohysip]

Near the middle of the street of houses was a medium-sized home suited for accommodating Pokemon that were reasonably large, but nothing larger-than-life. This made things mildly cramped for Wishkeeper, but otherwise more than suitable for the residences who ultimately decided to settle there. Like all of the houses in Rocky Road, it came with four basic rooms. There was a living room that had basic seating on one side and kitchen equipment on the other; further back, down a very short hall, was the bedroom equipped with four beds that were easy to configure and slide around; between them was a storage closet spacious enough for quite a few items and perhaps even Pokemon who needed some time alone; and finally, the restroom in the back corner.

<><><>​

Owen stretched his neck, making several cracks, as he looked over their handiwork. "Well," he said, turning to the others with a broad smile. "That's everything! We're all moved in!"

And without an ounce of hesitation, he leapt backwards, flipping through the air with a bit of updraft, and flopped onto his bed, stretching his limbs and curling his toes, making a deep, satisfied growling noise.

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa trotted over to his own bed and let out a relieved sigh as he sat down. Finally. Having to move houses right after arriving was annoying enough, but having to move in with two mon he barely knew made him a little uneasy. Owen, a Charizard, and Dave, a Mightyena. Truthfully, he'd only agreed to come since Brisa was with them.

Although Brisa seemed to like Dave, which was a good sign, and Owen. So they couldn't be bad.

At least he'd been able to decorate his area. A couple posters hung there. One of Ho-Oh flying across the sky, trailing a rainbow, and one of the Sinnoh deities, as he knew them.

"Finally," he said in agreement. He pretend to be busy studying the room, not sure how else to make conversation at the moment.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave looked around critically. He'd been hoping the new, larger housing meant they could at least have separate rooms and stop living like a bunch of college students, especially after Brisa'd suddenly introduced them to her battling student who needed accommodation, who was apparently a goddamn human fourteen-year-old in the form of an Electrike. Even aside from feeling like some kind of fucking creep (oh, God, he was going to have to tell Mia to please for the love of all things holy not talk to Nate about their new roommate), did any fourteen-year-old boy actually want to share a bedroom with a bunch of random adults? When he was a teenager he'd definitely been a fan of privacy, but the actual Pokémon here seemed to think this was totally normal. At least Owen looked happy as a clam. And Mia, of course, had absolutely no sense that this was weird, and was currently opening and closing everyone's drawers. Hopefully she was just testing out the way everything worked without her having hands.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen curled around the bed and nestled his snout into the material, making several snorting and puffing noises. "It's even flame-proof," he said, voice muffled by the fabric. He poked his eyes out from the lumps of bed and looked at Dave. "Everything alright?" he asked as his tail thumped once, happily. "...Oh! If you're looking for dividers, I think I put those in the storage room. It'll be pretty convenient, because then I won't need a flame veil anymore. You can be in a properly dark room!"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa shook her mane and huffed. "Yeah, I could do with havin' some privacy. Else I'd go back to sleepin' on the goddamn rooftop, like back in Treasure Town." She scratched at her cheek. "Guess familiars don't get their own space, huh. That seem right t'you? I guess they rest okay in their stones, but..."

Where was Luz, anyway? Brisa hadn't heard from her in longer than usual. Actually, things had been a little strange since the Voidlands...

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa perked up. Dividers? That sounded useful. He couldn't help but already feel that the room felt crowded, between Dave, Owen and brisa, plus a familiar (who he vaguely knew of as Mia, Dave's familiar).

"Maybe the familiars can stay in the living room area or something?" He paused and frowned. "I mean, if they want their own space."

 

[Namohysip]

"Maybe the familiars can stay in the living room area or something?"

"Maybe we can set up some space for them, too," Owen said. "This is a pretty big room, I think. They might have been expecting Pokemon around my size for everyone..." Owen shrugged. "Cal doesn't like sleeping alone, so we'll be sharing our space. I think we can figure something out for the rest of you."

"Yeah, I could do with havin' some privacy."

That reminded Owen... "By the way..." He hesitated. "I, uh. I was talking with Wishkeeper a little while ago, and I think there's something you guys should know about... me. And, you know, my Perceive, and stuff... now that I'm fully evolved and all that..." He shifted his weight in his bed, avoiding eye contact.

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa nodded. That sounded right. His gaze shifted to his own Shade, wondering what lay inside. It could still help him in fights appa
rently, but it had yet to take a form. What would his even look like-?

And, you know, my Perceive, and stuff... now that I'm fully evolved and all that..."

His Perceive? Right, someone had mentioned the gist of it. Somehow Owen had a talent for reading opponents. Or something like that, he still didn't really get it. Owen seemed uncomfortable somehow though. "Oh yeah uh... your Perceive. How's that work, anyway? You can like... tell how strong someone is, right?"

 

[Dragonfree]

"Dividers. Yeah. That's... better, I guess." By a bit.

"I sleep in my stone," Mia said, in her usual tone. "It doesn't matter where you put it."

Figured. Dave glanced up at Koa's posters. Big fan of legendaries, wasn't he.

That reminded Owen... "By the way..." He hesitated. "I, uh. I was talking with Wishkeeper a little while ago, and I think there's something you guys should know about... me. And, you know, my Perceive, and stuff... now that I'm fully evolved and all that..." He shifted his weight in his bed, avoiding eye contact.

Dave raised an eyebrow. "What?"

 

[Namohysip]

Owen looked between them all, particularly at Brisa, who was listening attentively. He wondered how much Brisa had already figured out, and if she was just tolerating it because she knew him.

Better late than never, he supposed. It was bad enough keeping this such a secret...

"I can't really turn it off," he said flatly. "So, I'm... just aware of everything. All the time. Even without Wishkeeper around. He helps, though. Like a second set of... not-eyes. But... I just wanted to let you guys know. If you want me to, like... find a way to turn it off, or hide it, or maybe sleep somewhere else at night..." He sighed. "...Koa. You had... it looks like something with a lot of bread and Nanab berries for breakfast. Kinda heavy on the carbs, but... hey, it seems to be agreeing with you."

Owen tittered. "Little tells about muscles tensing, or if you're focusing on your breathing a little harder than usual, or trying to sniff something out..." He glanced at Dave. "Or if you're getting anxious, and all the little movements that go with it..." He glanced at Brisa. "I can sense all of it. I--I try to avoid crowds because it can get overwhelming if I do. But... that's all I wanted to say. Dividers won't help, either. So... yeah..." Owen looked down. "Sorry if that's a dealbreaker, a-and sorry I didn't bring it up until now, either."

 

[Flyg0n]

"...Koa. You had... it looks like something with a lot of bread and Nanab berries for breakfast. Kinda heavy on the carbs, but... hey, it seems to be agreeing with you."

Unease filled Koa and he tensed. Suddenly he felt just a little sick. If Owen could figure something like that out... "How far can your ability go?" he asked, his voice hollow, though he tried his hardest to sound normal. Did it even matter? Owen could probably tell that? He could see how uneasy Koa was, even if he didn't want to be, and he wanted to accept him but just how much did Owen know about him already and-

Koa shook himself, trying to shake himself from his spiral of thoughts. Maybe if he didn't think about anything, Owen couldn't 'perceive' anything? How did that even work?

"Can you... read thoughts?"

Stay calm, relax. It doesn't matter.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen's expression seemed to get even more remorseful, but he shook his head at that. "No, I can't," he said. "I can't read minds. I can't read your spirit or anything like that. It's just your body. Muscles, bones, blood. The... stuff going on in your brain is just too minute for me to detect, if that's even where it all happens. You never know in a world like this. But... the way someone's body reacts can tell a lot. That's why I wanted to let you guys know, a-and I'm sorry that I'm like this."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa relaxed. That was a relief. Mildly. He still wasn't sure how he felt about all that, someone being able to read him like that. Yet... Owen's expression looked so... sad. It reminded him maybe a little, of how he felt. To not be accepted or be worried about what people would think of you. And perhaps, Owen only wanted to be accepted.

You know what that's like.

Koa looked away for a moment, staring at the floor. "I'm glad you told us." He admired that much from Owen, absolutely. To share something like that, a secret he'd probably been keeping for some time.

Coward. You can't bring yourself to be honest. Even in a world where no one knows you.

He looked back up at Owen. "It took courage to be honest like that."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Nothin's really different. This is clarification. It's not news.

Brisa swallowed hard. The demonstration of exactly how invasive the ability was . . . startled her. Just a little. But then, didn't she have something not so different? And were her feelings really affected by this?

"Turns out, the trust that matters is the trust given even when folks know what yer capable of."

"Now that my Perceive is... pretty much always active, Soda won't play cards with me anymore. [...] I'm not allowed to draw from raffles either, since I'd know which thing has the prize..."

"I wish y'could turn it off too, pal."

"I 'ppreciate the heads up, Owen. I figure yer the one who's sufferin' the most from this, and it ain't yer fault what was done t'you. Don't worry 'bout me. I trust ya."

Brisa looked sidelong at Koa and smiled. That was a good kid, right there. With any luck, he'd keep growing into this mission with that same fervour. And a little sense.

That just left . . . Dave.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave really could have done without hearing a description of anyone's stomach contents. "Owen, that's..." He took a deep breath through his nose. "That's fucking disturbing but it's not your fault. Just... keep it to yourself."

Mia was fascinated, though. "Can you read a familiar body, too?" she asked, cocking her head.

 

[Namohysip]

"I'm, uh, still working on th--I mean, no, not really," Owen replied to Mia. "You guys don't have muscles or bones or the things I normally read. So while I know that you're there and moving, the body language isn't something I understand. It's like... if Diyem's translator broke, it's like being able to memorize every single symbol in a book, but not knowing what the words are saying. Not until I find patterns, at least..."

He sighed, looking a little more relieved. His tail flame hummed with relief like a steady campfire. "That's all. I just wanted to get that out there. It's been eating at me..."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Take it easy, partner," drawled Brisa. "Alright. I'll go fetch the dividers."

She pulled her mouth to one side as a thought struck her.

"Y'sure y'can't treat yer Perceive somehow? Dull the edge off it with somethin', fix up some kinda tech to limit it? I'm thinkin' of yer own comfort, less our own."

Might be a good time to mention yer own power. Even if they all knew it was comin'...

 

[Namohysip]

"I'll be looking into it, but the usual way I do it doesn't work," Owen admitted, followed by bringing a hand to the back of one of his horns. With a rather worrying click! the Charizard's pointed horn... came clean off. "...It doesn't turn off. So that's too bad." Click. "But I guess that means I don't have to worry about it being knocked off mid-battle or something."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa blinked and stared at Owen. Now he'd seen it all. "You can remove your horn?" he asked, going slack jawed. Well okay then. That was a thing now. He'd thought after legendaries, fused legendaries, and weird powers he'd seen it all but. Apparently not.

"Anything else I should know?" he asked with a wry grin.

 

[Namohysip]

"Uh..." Owen ran his claws over his cheek. "Well... I can turn Grass? Oh, and I've been trying to develop a new technique, where I can become a tree!" He grinned, looking honest-to-Pop pleased with himself and his apparent practicing.