without much of a word or greeting, he slides into the seat next to her, dressed as well as her, perhaps even better.

"a negroni, please."

a drink he'd picked up from nina larson.

after fishing out a cigarette, he offers her the pack.

"remi."

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

"Negroni? Interesting."

Remi side-eyes him, though her interest is piqued. Hard not to when the man next to her is eye-candy. High cheekbones, broad shoulders, well-dressed (arguably better than her). And an interesting taste in mixed drinks.

He even offers her his pack of cigarettes.

And her name spelled out on his tongue. She sucks in air and smirks, plucking one out for herself.

"Boss."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

"a friend introduced me. it's an interesting drink."

after the offered cigarette comes a lighter. he holds it up towards her.

boss.

he's done his research, knows what happened to her, and ultimately, why she's here. or at least he thinks he knows.

to be certain, he asks:

"why are you here, remi?"

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

Remi leans forward, cigarette pressed between chapped lips to wait for her to light it. When he does, she'd lean back into her seat and pull a long drag. The smoke spills out of her nose long before she exhales, and she masks her cough with a sip of her drink.

His question has prompted her intentional bated breath. Her lungs burn and she keeps her expression guarded, pinched. With a swallow, she licks her lips and dangles the cigarette over a nearby ash tray.

"I really like money."

But that isn't really what he's asking, she knows. The rumor train is fast and efficient, and she exhales a sigh before continuing.

"And I'm here for answers."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

the lighter's flicked shut, flame extinguished, and it's returned into his pocket. he inhales his cigarette, exhaling moments after as he reaches for his drink.

money seems to be the common theme for the majority of them.

but...

"answers?"

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

She isn't sure if he's feigning ignorance to pry answers out of her, in turn, or if he's genuinely out of the loop. If he is, it's certainly a surprise for her, given how everyone and their mother seemed to know about her and her brother.

In fact, she is so surprised by his question that her drink falls away from her lips and she stares at him for a moment before answering:

"My brother ended up in Hoenn looking for information on avatars and legendary dragons. Seems he found some, and now he's dead. I came here looking for him and got a rude awakening."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

the orange peel remains lodged in place even as he swirls the glass, raising it to his lips moments after.

a sip, and it lowers.

"what awakening might that be?"

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

Remi swallows hard, letting her drink sit in her chest, focusing on it.

"He was murdered, and no one seems to know who did it or why. Everyone is obsessed with Unowns, for some reason, but no one seems to have answers for me outside of more secrets and closed doors."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

the unown obsession had found its way into rocket as well, though their approach is more scientific and less childish.

"i doubt we'd have answers for you either."

a pause.

"but money? an abundance of it."

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

She laughs.

"Oh, I'm aware. Roman was a nobody. The region didn't seem to care he'd gone missing, and he's only interesting now because he was found dead with a legendary next to him."

Remi taps her nail against the edge of her glass.

"I didn't come to Rocket to ask for answers, though they have been somewhat more helpful."

Somewhat, but not completely. The head of intel was a real treat, especially. Just thinking of Killian Decker makes her blood boil.

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

dead with a legendary.

"seems commonplace in hoenn."

either way, he understands her frustrations, her anger, and does his best to sympathize.

"what can you offer us?"

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉

"Is that right? Sounds shit."

She doesn't hide the bitterness in her voice. The drink in her hand is steadily emptying, but the pain she feels is too strong for alcohol to numb.

"Excuse me?"

She snorts, stares at him, and leans back in her chair to size him up.

"Apologies, boss, for boring you."

Remi finishes her drink and squints a bit at the burn.

"I'm a smuggler. I'm pretty good at finding and retrieving rare Pokemon - sometimes other things if the situation calls for it - for the right price."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

her comment about her boring him is lost to the void of silence and indifference. he sips, finishing off the rest of his drink before setting it back down on the counter.

"alright."

he gestures to refill both their drinks.

"tell me about the first time you killed another."

Remi Cassel
mission!

☉