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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 4:02:25 GMT

FERNANDO SILPH and cait alfric like this

It was a short walk from his apartment in the Lower District to the cluttered area of the beach he'd taken the assignment for.

() ()

It had been some time since Gan had gotten any exercise, Muk had gone unused in a while as well, so they were on disposal duty. One quick transformation and the Ditto became an Alolan Muk making for two means of breaking down garbage cleanly and without contributing to a landfill.

The chemical heaps that were Muk, (Alolan or Kantonian) could break down anything given enough time, with no damage to the atmosphere, unlike burning.

() () ()

His new fighting trio of little ones; Jūken, Dose and a still unnamed Chimchar, they were on collection duty. Run the beach, tire themselves out and dump any garbage they found into the two Muk.

() () ()

Lastly, the triplets Toxi, Xelly and Lexi were on task to get some sun, and not cry.

Quality time was a must for pokémon their age but they weren't much good at moving on their own so two were put into his backpack as he roamed the beach and the last was being carried by Mommy. Three infants were a lot to handle but neither he nor Cait were new to pokémon training and pokebabies weren't a fraction as needy nor vulnerable as human babies.

He roamed the beach shirtless wearing nothing but his trunks, the backpack, a bracelet and his tech-shades.

His hair tied into a long braid thanks to his better half; he himself quieter than usual.

● tags: cait alfric
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cai

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 4:43:53 GMT

cait crooned lovingly at little lexi, her arms handling the pokemon's chubby form with practiced ease. she was quite fond of the babes that sénon had taken in, often volunteering to take tend and mother the youngest amongst his number. she'd take charge, happily aiding in nurturing them as they navigated infancy.

'look at that face,' she thought, utterly charmed.

she'd taken care to wear long-sleeves and keep her hands covered in gloves - the flesh beneath moistened with a special lotion that prevented the poison of the mon's flesh from potentially irritating her skin. it was a precaution that was well worth it, cait allowed to play and tickle the babe without fear of it's poisoned exterior.

in comparison to him she was more fully dressed, the clothing light and allowing her some comfort in the warmth that permeated the beach.

"i can't get over those little cheeks."

she playfully poked at the pokemon's face, lexi's face crinkling up with delight as they were fawned over. her own entourage remained close to her, aiding in picking up trash - but only on occasion. they appeared far more preoccupied by their own chatter, the trio of females shooting little glances at jūken, dose and chimchar.

"doing alright, baby?"

cait had went from trailing slightly behind the male to taking up a position at his flank. her hand moved to gently pet lexi as she spoke, the action an absent one but still indubitably affectionate.

"something on your mind?"

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 5:45:53 GMT

The shuffling of Toxi and Xelly were to be expected, even babies bickered if they were occupied with enough stimuli. The triplets being not actually from the same litter but rather three separate Toxel he'd come into three separate means during the same weekend; two trades and a capture.

Lexi being the least "secretious" of the three was only one he that he trusted to be in the care of another person.

As the boys ran the beach making a game out of picking up garbage he came up with a game himself; counting the seconds that passed while his brain otherwise misfired on how to talk to Cait.

The internal struggle of Cait vs. Kanto had put a nasty little crack in his psyche and he'd dealt it by not dealing with it. He'd put more effort into saving face with his woman than solving his internal struggle.

To keep himself from pulling away out of sadness and misery he went out of his way not to let it slip that he was still in turmoil.

Their morning escapades were more intense than ever now that he was spending his energy to please her rather than please the both of them. Surely he was doing something right; Cait used to be the one making him sleep-in now she was one sleeping off the morning fatigue while he got on with his day.

As much as he felt like a stud being the one to tire her out, it made him feel hollow that he was using something so special and intimate between them to hide the fact that he wasn't doing well.

Even still it was better than the alternative, if he'd stopped sleeping with her altogether she would have known something was wrong.

Anytime the subject of his well-being was broached he managed to dissipate it smoothly enough but not enough that the subject went away for good. Even now she could probably feel something off with him.

"Maybe we should replace the incinerator at the cabin with a Muk." He turned to face her, walking backwards, his face giving no sign of a frown; only contemplation. It was important not to hide from her when he spoke. "It's a greener solution than burning." Those triangular iris' could see through him if he tried too hard to hide things.

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 6:11:05 GMT

"you have a good point."

and he did - it'd drastically reduce the pollution that came with incinerating their garbage if they shifted toward a far more eco-friendly option.

"i'll see if i can't catch one of two and set something up down the road."

she'd observe as her riolu picked up a banana peel and tossed it at her beau's curiously-colored muk. her gave inevitably returned to the man, her thick brows furrowing lightly in a show of bewilderment. it didn't take a genius to notice that aught was amiss with the male, though he had only truly opened up once. following their trip to the hot spring, there was a subtle shift that she had noticed at a distance.

"you've been off lately," she said, arching a brow.

cait let her observation hang in the air, the look in her eye expectant. there was no one here except the couple and their pokemon - which meant their conversation remained entirely private. she adjusted her hold upon the toxel, allowing him full opportunity to speak up. eventually she'd verbally prod at him again, producing a key word.

"is this about kanto? still figuring out what you want to do, sweetheart?"

her tone was light and understanding. the man still had to decide when or if he should leave. she'd not rush his decision, allowing him the time he needed to contemplate his choices and consider their potential consequences.

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 6:54:31 GMT

"Who said anything about Kanto?" His tone was dry, betraying how much emotion the singular word held for him now. He wanted to tell her hadn't thought much about home since the Hot Spring but outright lying to her was a taboo he wouldn't indulge in. ". . ."

Her accusing eyebrows said what her sweet tone wouldn't.

She was giving him an opening to come clean about what ailed him. But who the hell wanted to have that conversation a second time?

It had even been a half year since they met, it was far too soon to reminisce on the beginning of their relationship, and yet, here he was.

He'd made promises; he told her she could trust him, that he wouldn't use her feelings for him to make her compromise her values or what she'd worked for. He literally promised her he wasn't going anywhere. "There's nothing to figure out."

What the hell was he going to do? Hit the shores of Cinnabar and take hostage of the rocket slouches there? Alone? That was what got his team killed the last time. That was how 'Team Rocket' became his trigger in the first place.

He had the balls but not the muscle nor the numbers. Even if he found allies the Rocket infrastructure had to be expansive for them to be competing with League for so long. They probably had a whole squadron of "Sénon Game"s at their disposal. Leaving Cait would wound him to death and going to Kanto would get him killed.

Staying here and letting go of his revenge; letting go of home would be a much slower death.

Wasn't it better to die just once (even a slow death), than to die twice?

What about how she felt? He remembered her at Stone's funeral standing over the coffin as he entered. If he loved her it was his duty as her lover to spare her from that fate. "I can't have everything I want." Jūken stopping before his master to study his aura would find himself getting a brief pat and rub at the base of his right ear as Sénon moved past him. "That's just how it is Cai."

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 11:33:12 GMT

"sénon..."

she was entirely at fault for his inner-conflict. had they not met, he'd likely still be fixated on a goal that involved the liberation of kanto. there would be little need to linger in hoenn, but she had shown her face and entrapped him in a lovely web of her making.

"i'm sorry."

the apology was a genuine one, cat shifting her gaze toward the shifting sands they walked upon at a steady clip. her feet were covered in black sandals, little bits of sand clinging to her painted toes.

"i told you i'd wait for you to come back," she said. "i don't want you to feel like you're forced to be here when your heart's elsewhere."

cait painted a pleasant picture with her words, imagining circumstances that left them split apart in a physical sense.

"we could talk whenever you weren't occupied. it'd be hard at first but we'd get use to it. and then when you came back - "

'if you came back.'

she very nearly cringed, a hint of a grimace causing her facial features to tighten.

" - maybe we could get started on a family. you promised you'd give me a few, remember?"

cait's smile returned with ease, the girl looking back on the amusing conversation they had had.

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POSTED ON Jan 4, 2021 19:21:43 GMT

His little hot springs breakdown unearthed damage that he'd taken nearly two years to bury in recovery from the incident that was his attack on Cinnabar Island. He swept it all under the rug while his body healed and then came to Hoenn to start over.

But what happened before was still in his history; unresolved and festering below the surface. Hoenn's own troubles and Cait's affection and companionship made him forget but when faced with the possibility that he might have to close the book on Kanto while the ink was still wet, ink made from his own blood. . .

"The fact that I had such a profound reaction to the news of you wanting to ushering in change for Hoenn, and what it would mean for me to support you in that endeavor. . ." It exposed an open wound he'd thought at least partially healed. "It speaks volumes about how badly I want to set things right in Kanto." Even potentially to his own demise.

"But I've had to learn a hard lesson that being fool-hearted and righteous won't save me or what I love from real consequences." Another secret he'd kept to himself, a struggle against the nightmarish Ultra Beast and the deaths of a sweeping thirteen of his pokémon.

The Flareon she'd lovingly gifted him, had almost been one of them. How easily he himself could have died against that other-worldly threat put his grudge against Rocket into perspective, he'd merely closed his eyes to that perspective until now.

How many times did he have to lose to get the big picture? Apparently twice or seventeen depending on how the counting was done. He wasn't ready for a third incident, he wasn't ready for an eighteenth death. "I can't go back now, its not worth the losses I'd take." He sat down on a dune of sand, setting the backpack before him and taking Lexi barehanded, ignoring the electrical tingling sensation of holding her.

"One day that might change." Maybe one day he would have the means to see Kanto freed of Rockets corruption, whether that meant rooting them out, killing them all or simply taking control of them policing their ways more in tune with his morals. "I'd need you to be okay with that."

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POSTED ON Jan 5, 2021 1:11:55 GMT

Sénon Game likes this

the caveat was deceptively simple and clean cut. he'd remain by her side until forces beyond their control called him back to his homeland. she settled at his side as she considered his tentatively-worded request; that she accept the terms that were set in place.

'this isn't a choice.'

a hint of a frown tugged at the corners of her lips.

'it's just something i have to accept.'

cait envisioned herself in his position and realized she couldn't fault him for the choices he made. she'd do much the same if their positions were switched.

"i'm okay with it," she replied, simply.

she reached for the braid that she had expertly woven into senon's hair, the woman's gaze shifting toward the interlaced strands.

"and i - ... i won't try to change your mind when it's time for you to leave."

cait prayed that he'd simply stay. that he'd be far too preoccupied by the life she'd cultivate for the pair of them to consider his past affiliations. but it was a foolish thought, the female doubtful that she'd have the power to rid him of that single desire.

"..."

she realized that her eyes were stinging as she peered toward the horizon. her riolu was at her side a moment later, the woman blinking in bewilderment as the pokemon pawed at her face - the pad coming away wet.

"stop that, riolu," she admonished, reaching up to rub at her eyes. "just - "

cait turned her gaze toward the man, the look upon her face growing increasingly helpless.

" - i'm afraid that i'll wake up and you'll be gone."

it was a childish fear - and she knew that senon wouldn't perform such a heartless act - but it remained regardless of good reason.

"it's just..."

she squeezed her eyes shut and took a breath, her face growing hot as she felt a surge of emotion overtake her. that pressure in her head was returning swiftly now, causing her vision to blur at the edges.

"you're the only thing that's keeping me grounded. you're the only man i want by my side."

in a few months their emotions had burned brightly - the pair were so in-sync that it felt as though arceus themselves had been responsible for the pairing.

'and perhaps they were.'

"i told you early on how much i wanted this to work. and it is working."

she sucked in another shaky breath.

"my friend stormy. she lost men who she loved dearly. and it's tearing her apart. and i'm so terrified you'll end up just like alexander."

'i have to keep him safe. i have to. he's mine.'

a sharp and hot agony pierced her skull, the headaches that she had initially quarreled with returning in full. cait clutched at her head and dug her fingers into her scalp, biting her tongue harshly until it bled. her young pokemon panicked around her, the woman collapsing onto her side.

"ohgodsohgods," she whined, curling into a tight ball. "it hurts so bad."

Sénon Game

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POSTED ON Jan 5, 2021 3:02:17 GMT

Her concerns were spot-on sitting next to him on the dune the slid his arm behind her back hooking a hand on her ribs which his rubbed at absentmindedly.

Of course what had gone unspoken between them was the fact that she wasn't barred from coming with him. Only that doing so would put her work on hold and put her in more danger than he would be in, which was why he would never suggest it nor allow it. He couldn't control her he hadn't the right to tell her where she could and couldn't live but while their plans for her were unknown only a fool would deliver her unto their arms.

His arms were the only place she was supposed to be.

It didn't make him feel better right away that she was moved to tears at the idea that he would leave. She seemed to treat it as more an eventuality than a possibility. Maybe she saw a freedom fighter in himself whereas he only saw a homesick fool drinking on revenge and trying not get drunk.

It seemed her feelings for him made her believe in his ability, stepping back to look at it objectively she was a girl in love and the person she'd chosen wasn't a liar or abuser. To take that away from her, after what she'd confided in him about missed connections and lost love, it would have been cruel.

He expected a bit of pain and emotions from her when they sat and opened up, she had been so strong about those hurtful possibilities until now but when she seemed to have an anxiety attack, his concerns for Kanto burned away, so fast he was acutely aware of it.

"Cai..." Her body weight fell against the hand hooked around her rib. She complained about a terrible pain that he thought was the pain of losing him, until he saw her holding her head so tight. Was it emotional pain or physical? "Cait!"

Her little ones all seemed to panic in a flurry.

He caught her as she slumped over but not before the ends of her lofty curls hit the sands. If she lost it enough for sand to get in her hair she wasn't in a good way and the shit was quite serious. "Shit!"

She wasn't injured, she was hurting, he couldn't leave her here.

He moved fast, nearly stuffing Lexi into the backpack with her siblings after pulling cait into his lap. He slung the backpack on and picked up his demigodess, carrying her bridal-style. What shit luck, it was the one time he hadn't brought Ranton or Hiei for fast transport.

"All of you!" He yelled to the six runts and the two Muks. "We're done here!" Stamping off planting his feet in the sand with each step of his stride he ran home, forgetting his sandals. "Talk to me Cait, tell me whats happening." The melancholic tone of his uncertainty was gone, he was worried, nervous even but not uncertain and devoid of hesitation.

If Cait was in trouble, nothing else mattered.

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cai

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