[attr="class","beck"]briefly, he contemplates saying nothing, but the weight becomes too difficult to ignore and the words slip out without much resistance.

"saoirse left."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

Gavin's eyes narrow, his relaxed demeanour shifting sharply into tension.

"You know her?"

[attr="class","beck"]"not well."

tension cuts through the air, overriding brief moments of lightness.

"but well enough."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

As the tension spikes into dangerous territory, the PRESSURE on the room becomes suffocating. Unbearable. Lugia feeds off the ire of its avatar, red eyes glowering from the ocean's gloom.

"How?"

With Lulu Flint on the run from what was essentially the Galarian mafia, Gavin's trust in Theo is challenged by knowledge he's not meant to have.

[attr="class","beck"]what little comfort remains dissipate at the sight of two red eyes. his eyes flick over, causing him to tense in reaction. he almost chokes on a breath.

"she's here, isn't she?"

he wills his gaze back, returning it to merlino.

"in rocket."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

Behind Theo, the door locks.

A slow exhale sees miasma bleed from Gavin's nostrils, Lugia's aggression feeding into his own.

Though his eyes are amber, not red, they reflect the glittering malice of his patron. Gavin remains seated, but there is a threat in the corrupt fog that drifts across the floor. His muscles are tense as if to spring.

"You'd best explain yourself before I run out of patience, Beckett. How do you know that name?"

[attr="class","beck"]"i was interested in doing busines with flint so i looked into her when i first arrived."

he clears his throat, shifts in his seat, but they do little to counter the sudden tension. his eyes trail the miasma as it approaches.

"she covered her tracks well."

but not well enough.

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

"Is that so?"

For all his trust in Beckett, paranoia sees him tense, doubtful. His jaw is clenched.

"I'm sure she did; she was the one who taught me how, after all." Theo's explanation does not seem to have satisfied the underboss, for the miasma continues to follow the path of slow, steady breaths. "Curious, then, that you should arrive in Hoenn so soon after I told Walsh our names."

He had just told Theo about Walsh, as well. The timing was too convenient.

"Is that why you're here? To keep an eye on us?" There's a bitter edge to his tone, anger tempered by a reluctant acceptance. Lugia's PRESSURE only intensifies. "I can assure you there's no need. I've been on my best behaviour."

[attr="class","beck"]"what?"

the accusation blindsides him — it reaches deep and drags something long festered to the surface. venom drenches his words.

"is that what you really think of me?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

Theo's venom is met with Gavin's reproach. He stifles his own anger behind trained obedience, but no amount of acceptance can fully suffocate his despair.

It had been too obvious, hadn't it? Theo had questioned his methods from the start. Your Rocket is soft. Was he probing for signs of weakness? For a potential defector in their midst? And what better way to gain trust than—?

He grinds his teeth against another surge of anguish and looks away.

[attr="class","beck"]"you said you trusted me."

he refuses to relent — fire only growing brighter even in the face of danger.

"were you lying?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

"Don't talk to me about trust."

He looks back to Theo, anger sparking bright before it's smothered once again.

"Think I'd have said shit if I hadn't trusted you?"

But that had been the point, hadn't it? Gain his trust, exploit it. He'd thought that Walsh was trustworthy until the jaws had closed around his throat. Perhaps, he thinks bitterly, he should trust no one at all.

Now, Theo knew of his fears. His uncertainty.

How much of that would go right back to the Rocket boss?

How much danger had he placed himself in?

Idiot.

[attr="class","beck"]anger eats at him, flames licking, and though he knows exactly how to extinguish them he instead gives in, snapping.

"you're a fucking idiot."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn