He needs to blow off steam.

Anger has never been an emotion he's embraced — it reminds him of an upbringing he'd rather forget. It reminds him of Rocket in the early days.

Yet since becoming an avatar, he's found it harder to control the spikes in his emotions. Fingertips quiver with the need for release, and Gavin doesn't need to be told twice about the junked-up cars used as 'practice' for the tournament.

The girl is vaguely familiar. Rocket.

A sharp flick of his wrist releases another Corviknight onto the field, this one radiating with malice as it DRILLS its beak into the car's roof and begins to PECK at the opening. Another cracked capsule reveals an Alolan Sandslash with darkened spines that immediate leaps to take out FRUSTRATIONS on the warping metal.

Gavin nods to siobhan burke, curt.

hC6Oj89T [1/5]

Siobhan glances to the side, just in time to see the man appear and pull out another raven. he nods to her after the assault his Pokemon makes. it is much more damaging than her own. to be expected, she supposes. the woman was terribly new to this whole thing. she orders another attack on the vehicle from her two Pokemon.

moonblast and drill peck were thrown at it. whether it was effective or not, she didn't care. as long as they could train and hone their skills... that is what mattered most to her for her partners. Siobhan says nothing to the man, who she registers is another Rocket. someone much higher in status than she is.

zKJolfdF
Cillian Quinn
2/5

She doesn't greet him, which suits Gavin just fine.

He watches her Pokemon with vague interest, amber eyes trained on the Corviknight in particular. Bulkier than his own, whose AERIAL AUTOTOMIZE sees it shed feathers to hurl like projectiles toward the vehicle.

Sandslash rakes its claws along the hood with a sound like nails on a chalkboard. Gavin's face scrunches in displeasure.

Miasma swirls around the car, bolstering his shadow Pokemon.

"What's your name?"

He finally turns to the girl, having failed to come up with it on his own.

_O3NBgdG [2/5]

"Siobhan."

she sounds it out expertly, having used it all her life after all. he asked and he received an answer. his own beasts were impressive, but that is what you get for being around as long as he had been. she assumed anyway. he handled the orders with expertise suiting a veteran.

"and you?" she would ask him. give and take, this whole fumbling conversation, in the end. it was all give and take. Siobhan did not mind the lack of conversation though "your Pokémon are very well trained." she adds in for his benefit.

kz23p8Vg

"Siobhan," he repeats.

There's something in the way he says it — a hint of familiarity in the way his lips wrap around the words. She's from Galar, he assumes, like him; though it's impossible to tell from Gavin's carefully doctored accent.

"Oh, you don't know. I apologize."

Presumptuous, perhaps, to assume his reputation in Rocket would always precede him.

"Gavin Merlino." He provides his full name for the context. "I focus special attention on my shadow Pokemon, so I'm glad it shows."

He casts a fond look toward them as Sandslash batters the car with a BLIZZARD and Corviknight prepares itself with IRON DEFENSE.

kGlawd7v [3/5]

"I tend not to pay attention to prestige" Siobhan would reply to his bafflement. however subtle it had been, she noticed Gavin seemed to be surprised she didn't know of him "it makes first impressions more... natural. yes." her eyes turn from his features to look at his Pokémon once more, quietly admiring their power.

she nods. "it does" the woman confirms "one day, I should hope my pair become as equally strong..." though they were already very strong, Siobhan had leagues to go before she could be counted among the top tier. Moonblast and Steel Wing were given in reply, perhaps Lorelei and Poe were flustered by their weaker attacks?

cute. they were jealous of the attention the others received. "you will have to tell me some tales, Gavin Merlino. I bet you have some." she adds.

FqztNGHa
4/5

"Natural, perhaps, but dangerous if you don't know the temperament of the one you're talking to." There's an edge to his tone, something sharp as the canines that flash with his smirk. "But you've nothing to fear from me."

Not yet, his trailing tone implies.

"With practice, even the weakest Pokemon become strong. Yours show promise already. See the luster of Corviknight's feathers, the shine on the metal? The way it holds its wings?" His lip quirks. "They are a favourite of mine. Yours is a strong specimen."

Gavin's Corviknight dives toward the car, slamming into it with a POWER TRIP.

Sandslash lashes out in FRUSTRATION.

"That would depend on what sort of tales interest you." His eyes gleam. "Do you know who I am now, that I've given you my name?"

qrhiIjF7 [4/5]

"I do not fear danger."

she says this simply, moving on and almost dismissing it. his tone is a veiled warning, but she does not care to be warned. the fact was, he was no danger to her at the moment. an asset and nothing more. his Pokémon were more important than his presence, effectively finishing the car off while her own assisted them.

"he may be a fine specimen, but he has more training to do before he is considered strong enough to take others on" Siobhan would say with a point. others equaled League folk. she may be indebted to Rocket but she was not going to risk her partners' lives on silly faction wars. not yet. not until they were ready.

and she would be the judge of when.

"I don't personally care who you are" she would say to him honestly. Siobhan would recall her Pokémon after they damaged the car enough "yet you are important to our mutual benefactors" but not to me "the only thing that matters to me, Gavin Merlino, is that you are effective, swift of hand and strong enough to back up your actions."

she shrugs as she pockets the spheres. "you have given me no reason to think anything but that; so I look forward to working with you in the future. as for stories; pick one that would shock me." she lifted a pale hand to wave the Underboss off as she walks away. there was no use declaring his rank in the open like that so she would feint indifference.

or was it real? one could never tell.

B2uFc3Zz 5/5

"Hm. Foolish."

He states his opinion just as simply, devoid of sneering mockery.

'I don't personally care who you are.'

He arches a brow.

"You should." He cants his head. "If you did, you'd know my strength."

Miasma swirls and dissipates as the car's roof collapses under his Corviknight's vicious assault. Gavin palms both of their capsules and returns them as Siobhan makes her exit.

Shocking, hm? He had plenty of those.

upvbUNQ6 [5/5]