Night was heralded by a growing buzz near Slateport beach, daylight giving way to artifical globules set up amongst tents and festival stalls. Chatter and laughter filled the narrow streets, as did the sizzling of delicious snacks that waffled and mingled with the salty, tangy ocean air. And as the populace was slowly drawn into the festival proper, Skyler found herself spat out of it.

A mess of untamed golden curls caught the last bits of sunlight as the ship captain stepped into the beach. She was missing a flip-flop (which was quickly ammended when she got rid of the remaining one) and her sense of dignity - but what else was new? At least she'd gotten a rum bottle out of it.

She wasn't, technically, a lifeguard anymore. But she'd been tasked with making sure nobody stupidly drowned themselves after having one too many drinks. An easy job, considering the other things she did for a living. Also, it was an opportunity to meet one of her husband's old friends.

Speaking of...

"Francie, right? Angelo's friend?" The question was punctuated by a lopsided grin, just barely straddling the line between cheerful and uncivilized. She reached a scarred hand out for a handshake. "Skyler Dross, ship captain. You're with me tonight."

The task had been vague enough. Keep an eye on the shore, make sure everything ran smoothly. But the thought of walking up and down the beach all night filled Skyler with a twitchy sort of restlessness. So she opted to interpret the orders she'd been given her own way.

"So, shall we?" Motioning with her chin, Skyler pointed towards a speedboat moored nearby.

francie myrtle

☉

"that's me! francie."

quickly, she returned the lopsided smile with a bright and cheerful one of her own. she was like the sunrise and the sunset, altogether, meshed with the warmth of a sunflower field.

"it's so nice to meet you, like, i was super nervous cause you're flawless, still am a little intimidated by you."

her foot's in her mouth and she can't move forward, just stuck there, until skyler beckoned her with a tilt of her jaw and thankfully she takes the hint. she nods and eagerly follows skyler wherever she wants to take francie.

"oh, are we going out to sea?" she didn't mind, made obvious by how she kept her smile in place. "are there like, safety procedures or something i should abide by or...?"

life jackets and stuff is what she meant, but y'know.

skyler dross

mission link

Skyler's first reaction to the bundle of sunshine that met her was, admittedly, underwhelming - if only because she was too surprised for it to be anything else. A slow blink was quickly followed by the startled disbelief that this person was, in fact, Angelo's (her pain in the butt of a husband) friend. How?

"Who's been telling you stories? Wasn't Angelo." The thought of him describing her as flawless, of all things, nearly had her snorting in amusement. But she clasped Francie's hand in her own and gave it a solid, reassuring squeeze regardless. "Pleasure to meet you, Francie. I take it you've sailed before?" 

The mention of safety procedures did bring about a bark of laughter. "Don't drown, sunbeam, and you'll do fine." Stepping into the boat like one who's done this countless times before, Skyler turned around briefly to give Francie a hand, should she need it.

"Ah, right." 

Some shuffling would reveal what appeared to be several slabs of honeyed meat skewered on sticks. Under the distant festival lights, its surface reflected gold. "Here you go. Figured we'd need to eat at some point - and drink."

The bottle of rum she'd earned at the festival soon joins them.

francie myrtle

☉

the hand shake was firm, the help up was appreciated. francie nodded at being inquired about having sailed before, even adding in, "i even went mantine surfing in alola, what a ride."

then, she's in the boat and skyler's showing her delicious food and alcohol. being that she's nothing short of a girl who tries to make her best decisions all the time due to a lack of self-confidence in herself, she pointedly ignores the alcohol exists and instead beams brightly at the food.

"oh my gosh! that's super thoughtful, wow. and i like, didn't bring anything but my badge and pokémon..."

suddenly she's thinking about desserts that would have paired well.

"next time, i can bring a cheesecake or something."

leave it to francie to be determined to make a better impression the more she saw a person.

skyler dross

The purr of The Mariner 2's engine was like music to her ears. A slight vibration travelled through the boat's deck as Skyler leapt onto the railing, leaning precariously between boat and docks to expertly untie the knots which kept them moored to land.

This close to shore the waves were gentle and kind, but Skyler could already feel a nightly wind kicking up. Thankfully, their mission wouldn't have them wander away from the coastline.

"Feel free to take as many as you like, sunbeam." Amusement glinted off of a surface of silver as the captain hopped back into the deck proper. "Those should be enough to last us a whole night - though I wouldn't say no to a cheesecake next time."

After all, cake and booze sounded like a good time.

On the way to the helm, Skyler popped one of treats into her mouth, biting into the succulent flesh with a hum of appreciation. "You should sit on the side of the boat or," she said, motioning at the control panel in front of her, "stay close. Hold onto something." 

Or someone.

The last piece of meat is thrown onto the dark surface of the ocean. A Lapras snout briefly breaks through the water to chomp down on it before it disappears back under with a satisfied burst of bubbles.

And without any further warning, The Mariner 2 jolts forward to speed over shallow waves.

francie myrtle

☉