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Karaoke was the sort of thing Mars hadn’t done in years, the sort of activity he had left behind back during his university days. His freetime was limited, after all, and usually those hours were reserved for the things he enjoyed doing the most.
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And yet, when Serena Malcolm had mentioned he should join her on the karaoke session she had planned for one of her streams, he had agreed without a need to give it much thought. Perhaps he simply liked the idea of doing something like that again, or perhaps it was the fact that they hadn’t really properly spent time together since everything that happened at Slateport Park. He had been busy, she had been busy, and regardless, those weren’t the sort of things they could speak of in front of the camera.
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”Hey. Hope I’m not late.” Setting all those concerns aside, he smiled at her when he arrived, as if only for a moment, together within this small karaoke booth, all of their problems had disappeared.
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A break from it all.

razor-sharp teeth, i bite bullets.

Adjusting the camera one last time to make sure that she'd be able to get a good shot of the stage and the booth, Serena leaned back against her seat with a sigh. It'd been so long since she did one of these she'd forgotten how much work it was. Leaning her head back for a moment she decided to close her eyes. After all, this was considered work too and she'd need a moment to get properly 'in character' before she turned the camera on.

"Hey. Hope I’m not late.” his familiar voice caused her to snap her eyes open and sit up. Mars gave her an easy and warm smile as she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "O-oh, no you're fine!" she said hurriedly. She didn't want him to think she had been waiting for a long time. "I just finished getting everything set up." she added with a smile. "I appreciate you entertaining me and my silly ideas today. It means a lot that you would take time out of your busy schedule for me."

It was true, he had a lot of things on his plate and after their last outing, probably even more stuff on his mind. But he still was here prepared to sing along with her in front of hundreds, maybe even thousands of people online. She scooted over and made room for him on the seat. "Do you need anything. Snacks? Drinks?" she asked as she looked around. "There's uh...a menu here somewhere. I just have to figure out where I put it." she said as she flashed him a sheepish grin.

Martín del Mar ● outfit/disguise ● MISSION: KOUPLE KARAOKE

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He was busy. He always was. Especially as of late. Especially with everything that had happened the last time they met before their speed dating encounter. Especially since now all his mind seems to be focused on is attempting to find answers – to find a solution, to find a way to stop the worst from happening.
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He was exhausted. But, of course he didn’t let it show. Of course nothing about Martín del Mar ever spoke about the burdens he carried or the dreadful thoughts that dwelled in his head. Not even as every ‘you’ spoken rang, still echoing even if much more subdued and quiet after their last encounter with the Guardians, did his smile falter, his amber hues so easily finding those of Serena Malcolm.
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”Sure, a drink would be great. You okay, though? Nervous about streaming again? It has been a while…” It would have made sense that she was nervous, especially given everything that had happened to her in the past few months. With the threat of her identity being revealed, the idea of streaming for so many people could be concerning.
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”You’ll be fine, Serena.” Mars reassured her, a gesture of genuine concern, and then, to lighten up the topic, his next comment came with laugher:
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”Bet they’ll pick some hilarious songs for us.”

razor-sharp teeth, i bite bullets.

Sure, a drink would be great. You okay, though? Nervous about streaming again? It has been a while…” Nervous? Serena paused her search for the menu as she thought about it. Hmm, no the only thing she was nervous about was giving him these chocolates she'd made for him. But perhaps he was picking up on that energy and misunderstood. "Oh...yeah I guess you could say that." She lied as she scratched her cheek. "I just...wanna do well. It's been so long I don't want to let them down, you know?" This wasn't exactly a lie. Her fans meant the world to her and whether they knew it or not, she would need their support and loyalty real real soon.

"You’ll be fine, Serena.” Mars said with a reassuring smile. It took her by surprise for a moment before Serena relaxed and smiled back. "Thanks Mars. Means a lot that you would say that and be here to help me out." She really meant that. A hearty laugh escaped his lips as she found the menu under her jacket. "Bet they’ll pick some hilarious songs for us.”

Serena chuckled herself as she handed the menu over to Mars. "Yeah they're for sure gonna troll us." she giggled before glancing back at her set up. But I'm sure they'll pick some nice ones too." She said with a smile while she thought about it. "Oh and before I forget." she should probably give this to him first before they started the stream.

She reached in her bag and grabbed and blue velvet box tied with a golden bow. Reminiscent of the color palette of the flowers she'd sent him for Palentine's. "I made these for you the other day but never had a moment to actually give them to you. I hope you like them." she said as she quickly held the box out to him.

Martín del Mar ● outfit/disguise ● MISSION: KOUPLE KARAOKE

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He was used to performing, as was her, in ways that were obvious and ways that weren’t. They both wore masks, they both acted in certain ways for the public and for those who didn’t know them well – especially for those who admired them. At this place, at this time, when it was just the two of them and before their attention turned to the camera, there was no need for such performances. At least not most of them.
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”Can’t wait to see you sing something embarrassing.” He teased, smirking while opening the menu to have a look at the offered selection of drinks. His gaze scanned familiar words, but it was soon enough – thanks to her comment – that it found itself drawn to Serena Malcolm once more.
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”Hm?” Mars watched her reach into her bag and retrieve a box of soft velvet. Blue and gold. The familiarity of the palette did not escape him, of course, but he was much more interested in the content of the box.
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She claimed to have made ‘them’. Chocolates, then? It made sense, given the time of the year.
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”You made this for me?” There was a pleased note to his tone, despite the lack of surprise, and when looking at her and carefully taking the box, his smile matched the sentiment. ”Thank you, Serena, that’s really sweet. I can’t wait to give them a try.”

razor-sharp teeth, i bite bullets.

Serena smirked at the thought of embarrassing songs to sing on live. But she figured it would be fine. Both she and her brother, Adrian Malcolm, were blessed with a natural talent for singing. Serena could at least bank on that even if the lyrics were odd.

"You made this for me?” Seeing his surprise when she handed him the box brought a proud feeling to her chest. She nodded as she peered down at her own creation. She was quite proud of herself, she'd be honest. She didn't do too much baking lately, having preferred cooking meals over sweets but, these turned out pretty well if she said so herself.

"Thank you, Serena, that’s really sweet. I can’t wait to give them a try.” His smile was soft and genuine. It made her feel warm inside. Despite all the shitty things that had gone on since she moved here, she was glad to have some friends that could actually brighten up the darkness. "No problem! I just wanted to repay you for all the kindness you've showed me. I'm really grateful to you." She said with a bright smile back at him and a slight flush to her cheeks. "I hope they're to your liking."

She said as she took a seat beside him. Tapping away at her screen and adjusting her outfit once more she glanced over to him with an expectant gaze. "Ready to get this party started?" she grinned. Her fans would eat him alive in the best way possible and she was looking forward to it.

Martín del Mar ● outfit/disguise ● MISSION: KOUPLE KARAOKE

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”I bet they will be.”
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He was thankful, truly and honestly, for as much as Mars was accustomed to receiving gifts, most of those occurred in a professional setting and were only a matter of expected courtesies. This, on the other hand, was something Serena had done out of her own volition for the sake of thanking him. He appreciated it, and a mental note was made to find something to give her in return.
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”Okay, let’s do this.” After a second spared to take a breath and carefully set the box aside where the audience wouldn’t be seeing it (since they would likely come up with silly speculations otherwise), his smile matched hers. A perfect string of pearly whites that spoke of joy and was displayed with full confidence. The sort of smile that could have and perhaps should have belonged in an ad.
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Mars usually only sang for certain people, and he hadn’t done so in quite some time. He had learned to play the guitar as a teenager for the sake of singing to someone he adored and wanted to see smile, and even though he considered himself to be no actual musician, he always found singing to be fun.
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The camera did admittedly add a layer of complexity to it all, but let’s be honest, Mars would always love putting on a show.

razor-sharp teeth, i bite bullets.

Serena beamed at him once he confirmed he was ready and nodded as she reached out towards the camera and the red light flashed signalling they were live. She had two laptops side by side to better help the setup. One she was actually streaming from and the other so that they could monitor chat and what they looked like while they were addressing her fans.

Once the camera was on she easily shifted into her streamer personality, almost as if she hadn't been gone for a while in the first place. "Hi there cuties, been a while huh?" She said with a giggle as she glanced over at the chat. She watched at the chat box on the side suddenly started to scroll faster as the viewer count on the side rose.

Messages like 'Where have you been?!', 'We missed you!', and 'I thought you were dead!', flooded her channels walls and she felt her chest tighten a bit. Not because she was anxious but because she had actually missed doing things like this. "No no, not dead. Just...busy working on a couple projects." she said as she wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.

She paused for a moment to watch and see if they would take the bait and sure enough they did. The chat box spam increased to the point Serena couldn't even catch up anymore. She giggled and pulled her fingers across her lip in a zipper-like manner. "That's all I can say for now though."

Clasping her hands together she nodded. "Right, enough about me. I have a special guest for our special stream today! You all might know him unofficially as one of Hoenn's hottest bachelors," she said as she shot him a wicked grin with a playful glint in her eye. "But he's more commonly known as POG Bank's CEO." She watched as the chat ate up her introduction and continued. "However, I know him as a dear friend." she said as she placed a hand over her chest. "So give me some SeraHype's in the chat and give our guest Mr. Martín del Mar a warm welcome." she said as she clapped and turned towards him with a bright smile.

"Thanks for agreeing to suffer through this karaoke session with me. I hope I won't make your ears bleed too much." She said with an animated pout, ruby red eyes sparkling as she flashed them at him. "Ah, and I promise my cuties will be on their best behavior right?" She said as if she suddenly remembered and squinted at her camera. "You all will be gentle on us right?" she said as she continued to playfully glare at the camera before gesturing that she was watching them.

The chat was divided between lying but promising that they'll be good, our out right just declaring that the pair here weren't ready for what they had planned. "Anything you wanna say before our torture begins?" she asked as she turned towards Mars once more, a soft chuckle escaping her lips.

Martín del Mar ● outfit/disguise ● MISSION: KOUPLE KARAOKE

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This world of theirs was full of magic; of things that occurred without any explanation and defied all logical sense. And yet, even if that hadn’t been the case, there were still plenty of things Mars thought of as magical – things that truly brought him joy when looking at them.
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One of those things, although most would have perhaps never understood it, was watching people do the things they loved. See their passion, their excitement, and all the effort they put into what they prided themselves in. For Serena, much of it was clearly this: streaming for her audience, creating content for them to enjoy, all with the carefully curated persona that was Serena Malcolm.
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That was part of why Mars had always been fond of her, because he knew how passionate she was about her work. Still, even if he knew, seeing it in person was a joy.
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”Torture, huh? Is it too late to have second thoughts about this?” He joked, that much being made clear by the bright and ever so confident smile that illuminated his expression. It was then that he responded her question, and he looked at her while doing so, only to then turn his attention to the camera once more:
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”Ah, but I do want to say that it's an honour to be here, I have always admired Serena's work. So, let’s all have a good time, yeah? Do your worst.”
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Then and only then he winked at the camera, a playful smirk tugging at his lips.
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Better to make this interesting, no? Worth the watch.

razor-sharp teeth, i bite bullets.

Torture, huh? Is it too late to have second thoughts about this?” Mars joked and Serena laughed and nodded. It was over for him the moment he agreed to this little project. But still, while of course they were teasing, she hoped Mars enjoyed his time here. It wasn't often Serena did collaborations on her channel so when she did it was special.

"Ah, but I do want to say that it's an honour to be here, I have always admired Serena's work. So, let’s all have a good time, yeah? Do your worst.” Serena smiled and nodded her head. "Right, let's get down to business then!" with a few quick taps on the keyboard the scene on the stream showed a custom animation she had made for her a while ago for karaoke night's. Once the animation was finished the audience would see the lights in the room they were in had also changed.

"So!" Serena said as she clasped her hands together. "Whether you're new or you've been here for a while, I usually explain the rules of the game before we begin. And since we have a guest with us today that means we're doing 'Partner Versus!'" She said with theatrical jazz hands on the name of the game.

"Partner Versus is a fun competitive take to karaoke. The Seranators will have the opportunity to vote and build our song bank. They'll also be choosing which parts in the songs we get. It's our job to perform the songs as creatively as possible because at the end of each song the Seranators will take a vote and distribute points to us accordingly. Whoever has the most and the end wins. Simple enough right?"

She said as she glanced towards Mars. "The catch this time though is that whenever you hear this sound," she said as she played the sound for him and the stream. "We have to act out whatever appears on this screen." she said as she pointed towards one of the computer's. "For example we might have to act like we're trying to get ants out of our pants while singing the lyrics of the song. Again, whoever's performance is better will be awarded with more points."

Reaching for one of the mics she handed one over to Mars with a bright grin on her face. "Ready when you are."[/font In the meantime the chat had picked their poison. The song that they would be performing would be Señorita but Mars would be singing the female lead's part and Serena would be singing the male lead's part. Off to a great start already. She couldn't wait to see how the random generator would seal their fate in terms of their acting prompts.

Martín del Mar ● outfit/disguise ● MISSION: KOUPLE KARAOKE