Rocky Road ~ House of Dill, Saltriv, Shiron, and Vix

[Adamhuarts]

It had been the quite some time since Cynthian had hung out with Vix, what with her being dead in the void lands for the good part of the previous week. She could've easily asked Diyem to take her to the void lands to find Vix like Icetales did before, but decided against it since she heard Vix was fine.

Not wanting to dwell on missed opportunities, Cynthian made time in her schedule to finally check up on the Chandelure. She brought with her the usual flower basket and some snacks too, courtesy of Petram. It should be a fun time.

She dropped by the door and gave it a few knocks. With this being her first time actually visiting Vix's house, she didn't know what to expect...

 

[Fusion]

"She's already here? B-But I gotta--" Scrafty flinched, looking at the house behind them. For a moment, they thought the house was gonna be a mess and they'd have to clean it up as fast as possible but... no, fortunately. Even with the Lobby Flooder as a bunkmate, the house was pretty much spotless, save one or two pillows or books out of place. "Oh... huh, nevermind. Uh..."

Scrafty gulped, reaching for the door. The house was neat, so there wasn't a reason to be nervous... A shame their body didn't seem to care about that. "Oh for... Alright, fine, breath... In... out..."

After a few more deep breaths, Scrafty opened the door. They greeted Cynthian with a smile and a small wave. "H-Hey, Cynthian! I wasn't expecting you so soon! Come, uh, come in! Heh..." They stepped to the side to let Cynthian in, still smiling, and a bit of wax melting on their face.

Fuck this is embarrassing...

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Did I come at a bad time?" Cynthian asked, blinking. Vix looked different... and out of everything, the thing that surprised her most was that — "You have legs now" she muttered out loud.

"Anyway, yeah I probably shouldn't given you a heads up much earlier. Don't mind if I come in," Cynthian added with a nervous chuckle. She quickly trotted in before turning around with the flower basket raised. "I brought you some flowers. Where should I put them?"

 

[Fusion]

Scrafty choked. They didn't know if Cynthian meant to just say that, but would it really be all that strange to blurt out when your legless friend suddenly has two legs? "Y-Yes, my... I... Yeah, I got legs."

Surprised she didn't just say "Wow you got hips and a tail too."

...Thank gods she didn't.

To change the subject as soon as possible, Scrafty decided to answer one of the other questions laid out to them. "Oh, I'm just... uh..." Scrafty cleared their throat, trying to steel themself. It barely worked. Didn't help once Scrafty got a good look at Cynthian either. Like... "Whoa..."

YOU IDIOT!!!

Scrafty hiccupped, then tried clearing their throat again. "Y-You're fine--" Really fine... "--I'm just a bit on edge, I guess. Gotta stay ready for when we head back to the tree or whatever, right?"

"And thanks for those flowers, I'll just take them for now, don't really have a pot for them. Could plant them in the garden later, the one Saltriv and I look over, usually with Mellow," Scrafty chuckled. "I... kinda feel like I shoulda invited you a few times, thinking back."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Well, we've all been plenty busy the whole time so I can't blame you. At least I'm here now," Cynthian said, smiling.

"I gotta say though, your place looks nice. Who were your roommates again?" Cynthian asked, glancing around to figure out which part of the room belonged to Vix herself.

 

[Fusion]

"Saltriv, Shiron, and Dill. Real nice bunch. Shiron and I read a whole bunch, me and Saltriv garden a lot, and even though I poke fun at him a lot, me and Dill are pretty chill," Scrafty replied, gesturing to the back of the room. There were enough beds for everyone, but none of the space was divided. It was like, just one big room. Each of the beds had things on and around them belonging to who slept on them, but there was one that was pretty much empty aside from some books and tiny wax candles.

"It was Saltriv's idea to have just one space for everyone, which was fine by me since I'm not here often. They said it was like camping every night, and I'm all for that. When I'm here," they went on. "...Believe it or not, that mess on my bed is Puddle's. Totally forgot it could make wax too."

Something didn't sound right... "A-Anyway, what about you? Who're you bunking with?"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Sword, Shield and Skara," Cynthian replied, then she tilted her head when it occurred to her she's the only one in their house whose name didn't start with an S.

"Sword is always up to her shenanigans while Shield keeps her at bay. Skara shows up every now and then, but don't ask me what she's up to these days honestly." Cynthian sat on a bed - one without wax - and stared at the ceiling as she swung her legs. "They're good company."

"How do you pass the time? I'm more than happy to indulge, if it'll make you feel less on edge about stuff that's going on. What do you say?"

 

[Fusion]

About a hundred and one things popped into Scrafty's mind, but none of them were really things they did with other people. Or wanted to, for reasons. "That's a good question, actually. Aside from reading and gardening, I'm usually working at the Guild since S'more... or the fake one, wasn't really there to keep everything in check. If not that, I'm training, writing in one of my journals, or drinking alone." They paused, sitting beside Cynthian. Not too close... Maybe a scooch or two closer.

...Alright I didn't need to add that last bit, makes me sound like a lonely alcoholic...

"B-But that's, like, if I really have nothing else to do, hehe. Basically, I don't do a whole lot, and what I do is usually work."

God how pathetic does that sound..?

Ripping into themself aside, Scrafty gave Cynthian a smile. "Honestly just talking with you is plenty calming. It's nice to not focus on fighting, even though I, uh, also really want to fight something, you know?"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Maybe. I haven't really done much since we got back from the tree. I'm taking it easy till we need to go back."

 

[Fusion]

"That's good, yeah. I'd copy that kinda mindset but I'm really into... being strong? Yeah, strong." Scrafty chuckled and flexed an arm, but they didn't seem all that sure about that. "Whatever, I'm just more than glad to have you around."

They hummed to themself for a moment, thoughtful, then asked, "So, what've you been up to? To be entirely honest, I'd have thought you'd be hanging around with your boyt--" Don't. "--friend. Boyfriend. Icetales."

 

[Adamhuarts]

"I was just at his place before coming here actually. That's where the snacks came from," Cynthian said, pointing at the flower basket.

"As much as I love spending time with Icetales, I remember to make time for other friends too," she added as she crossed a leg over the other. Those were merely her honest thoughts.

"If you're looking to get strong, perhaps we could hit the colosseum sometime. It's a good experience if you're interested."

 

[Fusion]

Oh shit, yeah, time for friends. Scrafty really wasn't doing that well, weren't they? Yikes...

"Oh, cool," they nodded, then blinked at Cynthian's offer to battle in the collosseum. "Wait, really? The collosseum? After the last time we went there, I thought you'd hate the place. Then again, it certainly helped you get closer to Icetales, huh?" they chuckled, rubbing their chest.

Ow...

"Anyway, yeah, I'd be down for that. It was only a matter of time before I try my hand at it anyway, right?" Scrafty snickered, puffing their chest out a bit. "Who're we gonna fight against? And with, actually. Not to say we wouldn't wipe the floor with anyone who stood against us, but even with my defense and your offense, we'd get wiped out the second our opponent gets any ground to stand on."

It felt damn near sacrilegious to suggest that they'd need help, but it was the facts. The painful-yet-entirely-true facts.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Hmm, I'm pretty sure you and I will be fine together unless we went up against a legend or something." Cynthian chuckled. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Though just in case, perhaps I'll ask Icetales if he's down for another match."

 

[Fusion]

"Well I was talking about fighting someone strong, the both of going against a mortal or whatever would've been overkill, unless we were fighting one of the heroes," Scrafty hummed, grinning. Cynthian might've had a point, they could be a good team together... but Icetales as backup would be very much appreciated. Tactically, at least.

Worst case scenario, we get blasted the fuck out, Icetales and Cynthian win the fight for us, and they get all lovey-dovey from it. Talk about the definition of a third wheel...

Thoughts aside, Scrafty gave their plant friend a nod. The grin stayed as well, as the perfect front to hide the one tear they shed behind it. "Icetales is definitely sturdy enough to outlast pretty much everyone else we'd wanna have a go at, so why not? He's reliable, too, no doubt about that."

Reliable at snatching any chance we had with anyone we might've had a chance with.

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Out of curiosity, I asked Owen the other day if Sunny, and apparently--"

Owen remarks that Sunny hasn't been seen in fights, but she radiates an aura of mysterious power. She has more vitality than perhaps any mortal Pokemon in all of Cibus, and she seems to have the protection of the cosmos swirling around her. She could, perhaps, use any technique the astral plane can provide...

"I think she'd provide more than enough of a decent challenge. Who knows? Maybe we can score a victory in the colosseum this time," Cynthian said, and then sighed. "Maybe."

 

[Fusion]

Scrafty scratched their chin, thoughtful. "Sunny, huh? Damn... for someone with such a cheery name, it's hard to imagine how impossibly strong she is, especially for another mortal. We will definitely need Icetales help for this for his bulk, but we'd be relying on you for damage, you know that?" Another painful fact to admit, enough for Scrafty to flinch slightly.

Even then, Scrafty looked Cynthian dead in the eye, confident as all hell. "Still, I believe in you, Cynthian, cheesy as that sounds. You're a goddamn powerhouse, and your synergy with Icetales is something to behold. We've got more than enough of a chance with the both of you taking the lead."

It's the only way we'll have a chance against Sunny, I think...

 

[Adamhuarts]

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks," Cynthian said with an ernest smile. "Though you got one thing wrong though."

"It won't just be Icetales and I taking the lead. You and I work together plenty well enough already. We three will form a fortress out there." Cynthian patted Vix on the shoulder, exuding a pleasant scent from her many roses.

 

[Fusion]

"...Yeah." They had to admit, that was an honest attempt at trying to be nice and all friend-like. Probably would have made Vix feel all warm and giddy hearing it. But, in reality, it'd be a stroke of luck for all three of them to still be standing by the end of any fight. For how tough they had gotten, it was almost laughable how often they got taken out in a fight.

However, letting that doom and gloom settle in felt worse than admitting their weakness, so Scrafty forced themself to grin and bear it. No more of that bullshit, they were a proud warrior now. Scrafty held Cynthian's rose hand thing and grinned brighter than before. "Hell yeah! Strong as she is, Sunny doesn't stand a chance in hell of knocking any of us out!"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"That's the spirit! I'll go book the match at the colosseum now. Wanna come with?"

 

[Fusion]

"O-Oh, like, now? Sure, I don't got anything doing. Maybe we could get something to eat after. Turns out, having an actual stomach is a bit different to just burning things," Scrafty chuckled, floating over to the door. "The only place I can think of is X-eye, but it's one of my favorites."

Thinking about spending time with Cynthian and fighting Sunny definitely helped keep Scrafty's mind in check. No more "boo hoo, pity me!" thoughts. Fuck that!

Although, honestly, they'd be lying if they said they were looking forward to seeing how this fight was gonna play out... They would not be surprised if Sunny managed to be the first to knock Icetales out. Actually, that was something to kinda look forward to.

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