"Who are you, says the guy who just strolled in here like he owns the place and threw his jacket at me." A jacket that she has obligingly decided to shrug on, if only to stop him from blushing like a schoolboy as she shifts on the couch to face him. Seriously, Callan Young was rapidly proving way less suave off-stage than on. Pity.

"Last time I checked, this was Elinor's apartment, not yours." And maybe she could have chosen something less antagonistic to say to a man whose band poster was hanging on her bedroom wall back home, but that ship had already sailed. Besides, if he didn't know who she was, if Elinor hadn't thought to mention her dear baby sister (unsurprising, really. forgetting about family members was an Anderson family specialty) then Autumn wasn't about to pass up the chance to have a little fun.

"Wait, didn't Ellie tell you? Ouch, this is a pretty terrible way to find out that you've been replaced, huh? My condolences." And before he can respond to the first unlikely blow, a quick follow-up distraction. "Hey, aren't you the lead singer of Teravolt?" 

The change in subject sets Autumn on edge. Without giving it much thought, she moves her legs from the coffee table, slips off her shoes, and tucks her knees in close the way she used to when they were little and something was bothering her. 

Sock feet pressed solidly against the couch cushion beneath her, she glances over at Minh, watches as her sister coddles the bagon as though it were a child. Where was that instinct when Autumn had been small, and alone, and wishing more than anything that her big sister would spend some time with her instead of studying all the time, and then working all the time, and then leaving?

"Duh. Why else would I be here?" Not for a friendly  family reunion, that's for sure. After her earlier reception, the bitterness can't be helped.

"I assume you have no objections?" It may be phrased like a question, but Autumn's tone says that it's anything but. She's doing this, plain and simple. And not only is she doing this, but she's going to excel at it, so if this is about to turn into words of wisdom about never giving up or sisterly advice about how to best the gyms that Elinor has already beaten, then Elinor can keep her conversation to herself. Autumn doesn't need advice, least of all from her absentee sister. 

                                     Elinor Anderson

How? How was it possible to have this many channels and nothing to watch? Fine, she could take a hint, it was probably best that Autumn get back to looking through the list of apartments that the owner of Howling at the Moon had slipped her the other night anyway.

A little snooping online now could save her a headache and a whole lot of legwork, which was for the best, because there was zero chance of her touring anything dingy or in desperate need of repair, she wasn't that hard up. Or, she wouldn't be, provided she could drive Elinor well enough up the wall to get her to agree to keep her moving out all hush-hush so that their parent's money kept rolling in from month to month.

Autumn set the remote back on the coffee table and turned her attention back to her laptop and its half-dozen of open tabs. 'Let's see how reliable mr. tall, dark, and helpful really is.' Not that Autumn had a reason to suspect that Zev would screw her over, not when she'd been perfectly courteous and paid for top shelf. If nothing else, that last bit would have him interested in keeping her local. Too many people sprung for the cheap stuff. No accounting for taste, but what could you do?

The first place didn't look terrible and it was close to Howling, in case she decided to make it her local. The second place, on the other hand, looked like it was laid out by someone with zero sense of flow or privacy, it wasn't terrible, per say, just a whole lot less ideal than apartment number one. And almost half the price but, hopefully, money wouldn't be an issue.

The sound of the front door opening stopped Autumn in her tracks. 'What the hell?' Elinor shouldn't be back for several hours. Quickly closing her laptop, Autumn picked the remote back up. One random channel with nothing in particular on it coming right up! And, sure, she might get a lecture for sitting around in her underwear, but so be it.

Portia was curled up in her lap purring away and she was not fucking moving just because Elinor had some thing about propriety in common spaces or some equally prude shit. "Yes, I am in my underwear in your living room and, no, I'm not putting on pants. We're too high up for the neighbors to notice anyway," she began before Elinor had even reached the room. Not that she'd care if the neighbors could see her, a loose black tank and lace panties weren't exactly racy unless you were too old to do anything about them or to vanilla to be considered interesting.

How are they supposed to bridge the silence that settles between them, as awkward and ill-fitting as the word family, as sisters? Autumn probably should have given that some consideration before she called Elinor's bluff. Or at least before Elinor had decided not to back down and settled on the couch beside her, deciding to keep what little peace remained between them, to forestall the inevitable. Was it an olive branch or a challenge? A means by which to move forward, or a trap?

Autumn considers her sister for a moment. Considers all the myriad possibilities that settle between them in the silence. Considers the heaviness of it, and can't help feeling that this is a mistake, because she doesn't want to ask about Elinor's day, not really. She doesn't care about the day to day minutae of helping to run a region, or what duties she'd tied herself to over the years, each pulling her further, and further, and further away.

The old resentment is there in her like a stone - dirty, and heavy, and angry, and everything in her wants to hurl that stone at Elinor, to level accusation after accusation. It wouldn't be the first time. It would, however, be the first time that Elinor had been around to hear any of it, and maybe that's what keeps the words lodged firmly in her throat, a lump that she can't quite swallow around. 

Elinor's not talking either. Of course she's not, what could they possibly have to say to each other after all these years? 

It's not until Minh arrives that the silence is broken. Not until the bagon hops up onto Elinor's lap and she smiles at it like there's a single thing in the Arceus damned world that she might actually care about that the words free themselves.

"Is that a smile I spy? What do you know, you're not made of stone after all. Who'd have guessed?" The words are as much as a barb on the outside as they had been within, mostly because they aren't the right words. They aren't what she wants to say, but that doesn't matter. What Autumn wants never has. 

"So, what do you think dinner's gonna be?" she adds, a bit too hurried to be anything more than deflection, a smoothing out of the moment that doesn't belong and, much like Elinor herself, probably won't stick around anyway. 

                                     Elinor Anderson

So that's how it's going to be. They're really doing this. Playing pretend.

As to whether or not either of them actually wants to suffer through a tense meal of small talk and an ever growing realization that they know absolutely nothing about one another, that remains to be seen. Autumn sure as hell doesn't, but she's not about to back down now that Elinor has called her bluff.

"Like a real family it is then." A thing she would have killed for when she barely came up to Elinor's chest. Now, not so much. Now, she sees this moment for what it is, an exercise in futility where two grown women, who are better off apart, stubbornly refuse to be the first to show weakness by backing down and turning away.

"Sooooooo." Autumn drags the word out while she thinks, trying to figure out a way to turn this to her advantage. After a moment's consideration, she makes her way over to the couch and settles (wishing it weren't exactly as uncomfortable as it looked), kicking her feet up on the coffee table, shoes and all, just to see if she can get a reaction.

 "I guess this is the part where we get all cozy and I ask you how your day was, huh?" There's something absurd about saying it out loud, about the idea that they might do something normal together after all this time. Autumn pats the spot beside her, raising an eyebrow in question. Daring Elinor to comment on her shoes and ruin the potential of the moment, or settle down next to her and play the game until one of them  snaps and walks away.

                                     Elinor Anderson

Wait, she didn't even bother to do her own decorating? You know what, no, that makes perfect sense. Elinor 'can't be bothered by anything that isn't her duty' Anderson would foist everything off on one of her pokemon, leaving her home absolutely devoid of human touch. And it wasn't like it was the Porygon-Z's fault. Not really. Elinor probably hadn't bothered to mention that comfort was something that most people actually enjoyed, even if she herself seemed determined to avoid it like the plague. Seriously, did she live in her office or something? Autumn could at least hope that that was the case. It'd certainly make all of this easier (or at least more tolerable).

When Elinor all but confirms that she spends most of her time elsewhere, Autumn wonders, for the first time, if maybe this won't be all that bad after all. Elinor's pokemon seem nice enough, even if the councilwoman herself leaves much to be desired, and having a home base right smack in the heart of everything wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. 

"That shouldn't be a problem," Autumn assures her sister when she mentions her pokemon needing to get along with those already present. "My pokemon are great at making friends, unlike some people."

Far be it from Autumn to resist taking yet another dig at her sister. In truth, Autumn knows very little about Elinor's friend circle, or lack thereof, or much about her life at all. It's little more than a baseless assumption, but one that she's hoping will land. It's always better to start off with the upper hand, and she'd had a fantastic start thus far. No reason to back off now. Not when it's clear that Elinor is both uncomfortable with the current situation and unwilling to do anything too drastic about it. 'Check and mate.' 

Elinor's pokemon on the other hand, seem to have a vested interest in breaking the mounting tension between the two sisters, and Autumn sees no reason why she can't take pity on them. And, no, it's not because she feels guilty about making Elinor's Porygon-Z feel bad. Okay...maybe a little. She's no stranger to trying her best and finding out that it's a far cry short of good enough. 

"So," Autumn adds a few beats after the Rotom asks about dinner, "are we going to be taking dinner in the living room like family that can actually stand each other, or do you have a dining room table tucked somewhere clever so we can do this Anderson style?" 

"Price won't be an issue." Which is true enough, if Autumn can find a way to ensure that Elinor's willing to keep quiet about the move when the time comes. Not that her silence on that particular matter ought to be too difficult to secure. 

No one had called ahead to warn Elinor that her sister was coming, and the ever gracious councilwoman had been quick to show Autumn that her graciousness did not, in fact, extend to family members. Or maybe it was just uninvited guests. Either way, Autumn found herself wondering what would happen if the press knew how Elinor treated the people who should have been closest to her. If that might color their perception of her. If maybe, just maybe, she might be able to at pick the the wall of perfection around her sister until the real Elinor Anderson shone through for all to see. If only.

As for the Night Market, Autumn has been meaning to check it out, if only because it's the sort of place that her sister wouldn't be caught dead frequenting. 

"Think you could fix me another drink? Something a bit less sweet this time?" And if he asks what she wants, she just shrugs and says, "surprise me," because unlike Elinor, Autumn thrives on the unexpected.

Zev Harcourt

☉

'I'll show you helpless, you sanctimonious bitch.' Autumn reminds herself that all she has to do is bide her time - it helps a little. She's already got her ammo, just gotta find a good time to fire it. For now, she'll play the part of the precocious younger sister to the hilt. Following the letter of each rule, but never the spirit. Testing each and every one of Elinor's boundaries, not to mention her patience, until she manages to find a place of her own. Whenever that is. 

"Yeah, whatever, I can replace the couch if Caskin rips it to shreds. " Autumn is unconcerned with the potential expense. "Not that it looks like it ever gets used. You think you'll want something more functional, or are you not in the habit of encouraging people to relax in your presence?" Far be it from Autumn to resist the chance to take another dig at her sister, not when this place positively screams 'I entertain company exactly never.'

"I've got four pokemon that need to be let out of their pokeballs periodically." In truth, it was more like three pokemon that didn't care one way or another and one that chose when he was going to go back into his ball and when he wasn't, but Autumn wouldn't be admitting that to Elinor. Besides, if she was going to be seen as an inconvenience anyway, she might as well play the part. 

"That's not going to be a problem is it?" Not that it would stop Autumn from letting them out when Elinor wasn't home if it was. Still, there was no harm in making sure she got her way. "Dad said you'd be able to accommodate us." He hadn't actually said anything of the sort, but Elinor didn't know that, and it sure sounded like something that their oh so considerate father would assume.

Elinor Anderson

☉