Andy Blackadder 

Moana was over in his head. 

He didn't know who the man who he had bought this from was, but he had went ahead and bought it anyways. And why did he need it in the first place? His Pokemon were more than satisfactory for his self-defense, not to mention that they weren't illegal. 

At least he had possessed the sense to cover his face when he went out to purchase it. He didn't want the League looking for him just because he made... well, essentially an impulse purchase. 

He looked at the pistol in his hands, a weapon made to hurt others, and felt a sort of revulsion. Was this the past that he would never be able to fully rid himself of? Was he really the kind of person who went out and bought a gun for absolutely no reason?

He shook his head. He had it now. There was no point dwelling on the past. Unless he was willing to turn the gun (or himself) in, he would be best served moving on and making the best of his situation. God knew any bit of defense was welcome, after the Mauville fiasco.

Sheru clicked her jaws next to him, and he almost felt bad. But it wasn't like he was taking the gun over his Pokemon. It was just an extra precaution.

Then why did he feel so bad about it?

His repetitive musings were interrupted by a flash of something reflective in the shadows. Moana looked down to see... a pair of eyes, staring back at him.

He knew better than to scream, but he nearly leaped three feet into the air at the sight. He aimed his newly acquired pistol at it, but then felt stupid as he realized it was a Gengar. What would a pistol do to a ghost?

Sheru, though, was quick to react as well. Hissing, she brandished her claws, pulling rocks from the earth around her and preparing to fire the Ancient Power at the Gengar that had assailed them, but holding back. The move was simply a threat for the moment, not an attack yet.

Moana's attention, though, was drawn to someone coming, possibly drawn by the commotion. It was a kid.

Who had seen him, another kid, with a gun. Shit.

Could he pass himself off as an adult? Was this kid young enough to get fooled?

He decided not to take the risk. "Hey." He kept a cautious eye on the Gengar, still lurking in the shadows.

Andy Blackadder

The kid called off his Gengar, and Moana did the same with Sheru, gesturing for her to drop it. She complied quite literally, lowering her scythes as the rocks she had pulled from the ground fell back harmlessly.

The kid began to talk about shady business, and no harm done, and Moana felt a terrible rush of shame. God, what did he look like, standing in an abandoned alleyway with a Kabutops and a pistol? Granted, Sheru's intimidating appearance was no fault of either his or her own, but it was still sure to paint a terrifying picture for this poor kid.

"I-- ugh," he said, letting his hand drop to his side. "It's... no shady business. I wasn't really doing... I know this probably looks bad, but I'm not doing anything," he concluded pathetically.

Moana was sort of impressed at the kid's calm reaction. The Gengar's tense expression, though, was a sharp contrast.

And then, all of a sudden, it clicked.

"I-- I know you, don't I," said Moana. "From Mauville."

Why was he bringing this up? If the kid saw him as an adult or something, it would feel like blackmail. Even if not, it would be an unwelcome reminder at best. He should have just walked away from this encounter as soon as he could have, but it was too late for that now.

Or was it? What was stopping him, besides his own paper-thin excuses?

He wouldn't insult this kid's intelligence by telling him what he was going to say originally, which was that he shouldn't have been there. The kid didn't look that old, but he looked old enough that he probably knew that he wasn't supposed to be there.

"I'm glad you're okay," Moana said instead.

Sheru finally fully relaxed behind him.

Andy Blackadder

"That's the one," confirmed Moana as Andy recalled where he'd been. 

And then immediately did a double-take when the kid said that he'd thought he was a girl, right to his face. Well. This kid had guts.

Moana decided he'd just... ignore the comment. Hopefully he wouldn't bring it back up, because Moana had no idea how to reply to something like that. 

"So she did die, then," Moana muttered when the kid brought up the champion. He'd only heard about the lady's position after the whole debacle, and he wouldn't have guessed it. He supposed the aliens wouldn't give a shit about who they flattened. 

And, of course, the inevitable question. Dammit.

"Hell if I know." He shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. He hoped to Arceus the kid would believe him. "Wish I hadn't found it. Wondering if I'm gonna turn it in to the cops."

None of that was false. He'd just carefully left out the truth. Nearby, Sheru had grown bored with the conversation and began to scratch at the ground with her scythe-claws.

"What's it to you, anyway?"

Ah, yes. Youthful curiosity.

Moana cursed himself for the thought a split second later. He was, for one, nowhere near old enough to say that. Secondly, he was just as curious about things, often, especially if they were as blatantly suspicious as... well, this situation must have looked to the kid. Hell, curiosity wasn't limited to young folks at all.

Whatever the cause was, this kid was not looking like he would be going away at this point. And, well, he had a Gengar. Moana supposed he had reason enough to be brave. He didn't know if Sheru could take such a powerful ghost-type, even with her newly learned Night Slash.

And, well, this kid certainly had a vivid imagination. And didn't shy away at the thought of a stranger getting shot. Wait, duh, he was at Mauville.

Moana shrugged. He knew, of course, that it hadn't been tossed here by some person at all. But that was the story he was going with, so...

"Hell if I know," said Moana. "You'd think a killer would use a Pokemon, after all. There isn't much a weapon can do to a guy that an Aegislash or something couldn't."

And then he said that Moana should've just called the... bobbies? From context, the kid had to mean the cops. Damn Galarian dialect.

But still, he'd given Moana an out. Often, admitting to a lesser evil was an easy way to remove suspicion. It was a trick he'd used plenty in the past.

Looking Andy right in the eyes, Moana said, "What can I say? I was curious." He looked at the gun, and he was sure that his eyes were probably glinting in the dark with interest. "It's not every day you see a toy like this lying around, huh?"

"You ever shot a gun, mate?" asked the kid.

"Not yet," said Moana, and he actually wasn't lying. The gang he'd joined had been pretty big, but not powerful enough to get their hands on illegal weapons without any trouble. There were a few firearms that mostly stayed with people who were higher up, like the head honchos in Po Town and a few of their folks in Malie. They were hard enough to find that they had kept them only in the hands of the higher-ups, and any trusted people who needed them for a job.

And even then, they were mostly for intimidation. Actually shooting someone would be too much trouble with the law and whatnot, but the fear of being shot was often enough. But he'd been curious enough to learn the details from the people who could get their hands on them, even if he hadn't been able to try himself.

Curiosity built up within him, just like it did for Andy. "It's quiet enough here," he said, glancing around and locating a trash can that was empty and abandoned even as far as trash cans went, as if nobody had used it in years. This was a pretty deserted alley, after all.

He raised the gun, and then pushed the button to eject the magazine. He checked for ammunition, as if he didn't already know it'd be full.

"Nice," he said, sliding it back in. He lifted his arms and pointed the barrel at the trash can, and then turned to the kid.

"If someone does show up," he said with a lopsided grin, "they heard a Zigzagoon digging in the trash."

Moana remembered the advice he'd gotten years ago, standing with his feet apart and leaning forward to counteract the recoil.

Then he pulled the trigger.

Andy Blackadder

Andy Blackadder

Dear Arceus, was it loud!

Sheru screeched, startled out of her reverie at the loud report, and Moana yelped and nearly dropped the gun in his surprise. The trash can fell with a clatter.

His idiot brain should've at least realized that the sound would be deafening when the kid pointed out that Zigzagoon didn't make gun noises, which was... absolutely true.

"Fuck," he said, and barely heard himself over the ringing in his ears. It took a moment, but his hearing gradually recovered, though it still hurt. The kid was saying something. ...the middle of Ever Grande?

Moana winced. "It's not really the middle, it's some deserted alley," he protested weakly, but Andy was still right. Moana was a fucking idiot.

"Didn't realize they were that fucking loud," he grumbled under his breath, mortified. He whipped out his phone, which was cheap and outdated but could still access the internet, and searched "nearest gun range." And, nope, no luck. It was seven miles away.

"You're right," agreed Moana. He began walking, hoping the kid would follow as he reached the end of the alley and looked both ways at the road. It wasn't long until a cab appeared, and Moana waved it down.

"Listen," he muttered to the kid, if he was there. "If they ask, you're my brother--" wait, they looked nothing alike. "My friend's brother, and we heard a loud scary noise so we're going back to the hotel where our parents are staying." He looked at him. "Can you lie worth anything?"

Moana liked to think he, at least, was a good enough actor to pull this off. But then, he had also thought he had common sense, until three minutes ago.

Fuck.