He already knew who she was, of course, but hearing the confirmation in itself prompted a faintly broadening smile upon his lips. Hues of azure shifted towards the books upon the table she found herself out before he pulled a chair for himself, sitting down.[break][break]

Not that he intended to stay terribly long, of course; he simply figured that him standing for however long may or may not distract the people who likely came along for focus and privacy.[break][break]

”Not much,” he hummed lowly and softly amidst a gentle chuckle, shrugging all the while. ”Just needed to drop a couple books off for my kid, is all~.”[break][break]

He nodded her way, gesturing towards the texts.[break][break]

”And you? Really hope you’re not cramming more studying in…”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

Oddly enough, the scent of books and their pages had been one to be favored in his opinion— and it was due to that very opinion that he never quite minded dropping by the library in the stead of his child. The kid was free to do whatever he pleased, after all (the last thing he wanted to do was take away the social aspects of his life away from home, after all), so after a quick drive, he’d found himself stepping through the front doors with a couple of novels tucked beneath his arm.[break][break]

A quick stop by the front counter had been all that was needed to trade the books back in, and truthfully speaking, he’d intended to keep the visit swift. He found his drifting amidst the tables as he turned towards the entrance again, however, before they glanced among the seats once more upon noting a familiar face.[break][break]

…Or a head, rather.[break]
The person’s face seemed to be as stuffed into texts as ever.[break][break]

”...Mari?” he called out (albeit softly out of consideration of the environment), waving faintly as he tilted his head. ”That you, kid?”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

”...Uh huh~.”[break][break]

A hum left his lips as an air of skepticism enveloped him, all while hues of azure lingered upon her within the aftermath of the words she’d spoken to him. Although a faint smile remained upon his lips, those selfsame eyes of his narrowed faintly as he began to fold his wallet closed once more.[break][break]

He tucked it away before long.[break][break]

”...String Shot nest sounds good, yeah~,” he went on, albeit with a lackluster sense of enthusiasm as an ongoing doubt maintained a hold upon him. He gazed throughout the area, attempting to scope out any other holes and burrows in the distance before adding, ”I can have Fantasma stick around to help if needed while I look for more burrows. That sound good?”

AYAME FUJIWARA [break]
mission: pesky pescetarian

☉

He waited for the response he’d been looking for, grinning once it finally met his ears. A chuckle accompanied the look as he turned his head towards her once more.[break][break]

”...Half an hour, huh~?” he hummed, raising a brow. ”Yeah, that’ll be doable…”[break][break]

He inhaled deeply, briefly straying a gaze from coworkers to the wound upon his arm before resting his hands upon his knees. With a soft, grunting sigh, he lifted himself up once more— though not without giving the woman before him a quick pat upon the shoulder.[break][break]

”Iiiin that case, I’ll check in on my crew,” he started off before gesturing back and forth between the both of them, ”then I’m dragging you out for your break~.”

MARISOL SIMONE [break]
notes

☉

”Hope for the best and prepare for the worst,” he hummed in response, a soft, idle smile lingering upon his lips as he rested his head against hers as she drew herself closer. He shifted his hand along her head, twining his fingers within locks of gold softly whilst resting the back against his palm within a gentle caress. ”Although I’d personally say that maybe a face to face talk isn’t the worst option…”[break][break]

He hummed, briefly quirking his lip in thought and recollection.[break][break]

”...Maybe I’m just a bit hopeful, though~.”[break][break]

As distanced as he preferred to be from larger figures, there were some reputations that preceded them no matter what, after all.[break][break]

And so he simply dwindled upon the matter for a shorter bout of time, eventually closing his eyes as another, more pensive hum left his lips. ”...Don’t worry about it, though~,” he chuckled, only opening his eyes once more upon feeling her shift against him. Although from the corner of his eye, he met her gaze with the same smile he so often donned. ”I was the one that asked, after all— and even if I wasn’t, I don’t mind listening.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]
n o t e s

☉

A soft chuckle broke an otherwise, uncharacteristically stern demeanor, even if for just a moment. A hum of his own met hers in return as he idled upon her later words.[break][break]

”...Yeah. It’s honestly the norm with a lot of parents,” he mused with a lingering smile, shifting to rest a hand against her shoulder once more in a means of adjustment and comfort. He inhaled before sighing absentmindedly. ”Comes from a good place most of the time. …It was just something along the lines of, like…having a lighter mind knowing that the family legacy still belonged to the family~...”[break][break]

He thought on it for a bit longer before leaning further against the cushions behind him, humming a second time.[break][break]

”...Obviously, though, the thing that matters most is doing what resonates with you the most.” His gaze shifted towards her once more, albeit from the edge of his peripheral. ”If it makes you happy, it’s worth it. …Life’s too short to put yourself through the wringer and stress yourself out, after all.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]
n o t e s

☉

He curled his lips in to stifle a laugh, even if an abrupt, clearly audible snort escaped his being in place of it.[break][break]

He watched as the little hound flew through the air and landed atop the ghost with an odd degree of grace, blinking at it for a moment before shifting his attention to the Gengar that proceeded to ferry it around. The aforementioned creature looked up towards the Yamper for just a moment before raising its arms up towards it (it looked a bit like she was trying to pet it to no avail? Damn stubby arms…) he simply beginning to float around with the electric-type atop her head.[break][break]

The man stared for a little while longer before peering towards the other officer.[break][break]

”...I may or may not have sent Fantasma off to search ahead? Guess she’s back~.”

FIORA HYE-JIN YUN [break]
mission: you're not the one

☉

He shook his head. ”It’s a natural reaction. …So long as it’s dealt with properly, it’s completely understandable.”[break][break]

With a deep, pensive breath, he simply allowed his hand to be pulled aside; allowed his fingers to brush tenderly against her face as she urged his caress. His hand opened as if further encouraging the gesture, resting its fingers softly against her cheek and rubbing along it softly as he rested his head against hers, idly.[break][break]

”...And to be fair, too?” he murmured softly, ”It’s hard to upkeep things when you didn’t exactly ask for it. …I’m sure having the company wasn’t your first choice. Same hunch for your siblings.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]
n o t e s

☉

”Could beg to differ, but hey— whatever makes you feel better, Yun~.”[break][break]

A soft chuckle followed the words post-speech, and with a subtle, yet ever vigilant eye, he cast a gaze upon their surroundings as a hum had been the next thing to leave him. His lips pursed softly in thought.[break][break]

”That’s more or less on the money, though, yeah,” he added on. ”And I mean…technically there are, ‘cause I—”[break][break]

He was cut off by a certain, violet blob of a specter phasing through the floor and giving what, in her eyes, was a hearty greeting to the other officer and her companion.[break][break]

In reality, it was more of a jump scare, but everything is up to interpretation, really.

FIORA HYE-JIN YUN [break]
mission: you're not the one

☉

Even before it was voiced, his intention from the start had been to do some semblance of the thing she’d initially suggested. With the latter suggestion came a faint raise of a brow, however; his lips pursing faintly as a means of instinctive emphasis of surprise, however faint it may have been.[break][break]

A small smile of concerned amusement tugged upon his lips as he eyed her, hues of azure narrowing slightly all the while.[break][break]

”...With all due respect, ma’am,” he began musing, whistling swiftly to garner his Pokemon’s attention, ”the job we were given was basically a catch and escort deal. Grab the stragglers, take ‘em to the nearest center~.”[break][break]

He glanced down towards an array of vacant Pokeballs he’d brought with him, tapping them softly while them before nodding to himself and moving the same hand into his pocket.[break][break]

”As productive as your suggestion is, it’d also probably cause a fair amount of damage in the process, too,” he added, slipping the tips of his fingers around his wallet prior to pulling it into view. ”Not to mention might hurt the Pokemon, might hurt us...”[break][break]

With the same smile he wore then pressed thinly, he flicked the binds of leather open to reveal a badge engraved and adorned with none other than meticulously crafted and pressed sheets of brass, gold, and likely other metals.[break][break]

”...Not to mention that’s not exactly something I can do, let alone want to do~.”

AYAME FUJIWARA [break]
mission: pesky pescetarian

☉

Hearing her words instilled a sense of familiarity within him as they met his ears, prompting a gradual, hefty raise of both shoulders and chest, alike, as he drew a steady breath into his lungs. It remained within for just a moment or two in thought before releasing from his form within a similar manner. He shook his head in further thought and acknowledgment.[break][break]

”...Daph, I’m gonna tell you right now—” he mused with words of an uncharacteristic realist, rather than those of the optimistic dreamer he often was, ”—that’s exactly the kinda stuff that promotes self destruction.”[break][break]

His gaze trailed idly along the wooden planks framing the floors beneath them for a while longer, all while he rubbed her shoulder softly within the midst of words to be gathered. He hummed lowly, brows creasing faintly in pensive reflection.[break][break]

”Going down the whole, like—... The whole, ‘what if?’ rabbit hole? You can’t do that. You just…can’t.” He lifted his head at long last, hooking his arm further around her in order to move his fingers from her shoulder to her chin, softly tapping upon it an attempt to garner attention. ”Sometimes, there could be things that could’ve been done; most of the time, there just…isn’t.”[break][break]

He narrowed his eyes slightly, gazing deep into hers as if searching for confirmation that her attention was his while softly tracing the tips of his fingers along her jaw.[break][break]

”...Things just happen. It hurts, but it’s just…something everyone has to accept.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉