Flowers, space dimensions - none of these things held merit in Felix's mind. They were needless inquires that didn't concern him, and so, he often forgot of their existence. It wasn't until missions like these fell onto his lap that he was forcibly dragged by the collar to remember just how fucked up Hoenn had gotten.

Felix kept close to the flower woman as she slowly approached the entrance of the forest, eyes focused on scouting out any danger. Thanks to the woman's hair of gold, he wasn't too concerned with her disappearing, but that didn't dissolve the possibility of a mischievous ghost interrupting their mission. "No." He replied, tone both bored and flat. Again, he didn't care much about the objective of her mission. All that mattered was her and that seed's safety-- beyond that was above his paygrade.

With Mars (KROOKODILE) stationed to her left and Barnaby (Porygon-z) to her right, both scanning the area with their trainer, the woman was reasonably kept safe.

For now..

- INert porygon-z and Krookodile sprite l8er

Elisabeth Fiorelli

Branches swooped over the group, long and protective, like arms forbidding their entry. Its ominous nature brought back memories of the camping trips he'd take with his father, way back when world still bared some fangs.

"You have to make me proud," He always reminded his son. "Do what I couldn't." Felix's own stoicism was ironic, considering how much he loathed his own father's lack of warmth towards him and his mother. But it was only natural-- his path had already been tethered too tightly to the one his father had created for him. Straying from it would be comparable to straying from the self-image he had already grown to know.

Felix froze in place, a panicky voice beckoning his attention. Elisabeth? Barnaby released staticy sharp beeps, while Mars charged towards the woman, a tinge of confusion evident in his glare. But, before either he or Felix could reach the woman, a thick wave of green mist swept the area, blanketing everything within it.

"Elisabeth!" The man roared, heart thundering in his chest.

Thud.

Looking to his left, he noticed a shadow of a figure fall further into the mist.

Thud.

Then, to his right, another figure sunk deeper into the smog of green.

"Elisabeth! Elisa...be.."


A curtain of darkness clouded his eyes as, he too, allowed the mist to swallow him whole.

Elisabeth Fiorelli

TRIGGER WARNING: EMOTIONAL PHYSICAL PARETENAL ABUSE 


It first started with a wave of shivers overtaking his body, then a headache, followed by a ball of heat raveling up in his stomach. What happened after the mist came? And Elisabeth, was she okay? These thoughts mixed and mashed in his head, pounding against the front of his skull with rough, painful strokes.

Slowly, Felix readjusted his position, lifting himself back onto his knees. He stayed there for a moment, allowing time for the dizziness to subside. Maybe if he just closed his eyes...

SPOILER: Click to show

"Pull the trigger, Felix." A gruff voice breathed into his ear, hot and stern. There was no compassion, or warmth behind each word, only the dead stale taste of disappointment.

Felix's joints locked into place as he shakily lifted his eyelids, horror laced between every breath he took. When his vision returned to him, all he could see was white.

"Pull the fucking trigger."

"I-I don't want to," He heard himself weep between ragged breaths. Below, struggling beneath the muzzle of a rifle, was a mewling vulpix (alolan). Its eyes begged for its release, but whenever it neared escaping, the muzzle only dug deeper into her stomach, evoking an even louder yelp than before.

As his father continued to pelt insults at him, demanding he pull the trigger, Felix could feel an increasing heat around his hands, until eventually, he realized it had been his father binding his hands onto the rifle with his own. "Please dad, I-I don't wanna kill it!" He continued to plea, voice high-pitched and panicky.

But the larger hands, that were wrapped around his, only tightened their grip.

And the gruff voice's spats of outrage only grew louder.

"You're such a disappointment."

"Pull the fucking trigger or I'll leave your ass out here."

"I didn't raise a fucking pussy."

Felix was now flailing beneath his father's strength, the grip tightening to the point of eliciting a yelp from the boy. "Stop, dad, your hurting me!" He sobbed, "You're hurting me, you're hurting, hurting me!" He struggled beneath the man's grasp, twisting and wiggling his body in hopes of creating enough room to escape, but again, his father only strengthened his control.

Eventually, he could hear a soft sigh above his wails, then a "Fine."

Eyes squeezed closed, he felt his finger squeeze back the trigger, then thunderous, resonant sound.

When his eyes opened again, the formerly pale landscape regained color and Felix realized where he was: petalburg woods, tasked with guarding a Elisabeth Fiorelli . One shakey breath and he was back on his feet, eyes pointedly searching for the spindle of gold he had arrived with.

Eventually, he found her cradling her head, not too far from where he had fallen himself. He offered her a hand to reach out to. With a deadpan expression, he responded as dutifully as ever, "I'm fine."

The only difference was the single stray trail of tears that sat at the center of his cheeks.

Elisabeth Fiorelli

A Hex, huh?

Her explanation offered a raft of stability for his teetering mind, however, it wasn't enough to wash away the spectral hands he felt creeping over his shoulder. Hand clasped around gloved hand, Felix helped Elisabeth off the ground, though that was the only comfort he could offer.

Everything else-- his expression, his touch, his silence-- was left remote, hollowed. It'd take more than decorative words to flicker the light back on inside him. Unlike Elisabeth, who flaunted the prowess of her mind, Felix's was far frailer, far weaker than hers. What he saw wasn't just an illusion contrived from a handful of mischievous spirits; it was real.

"Let's go then." Cold and sharp, his tone mirrored that of his father's, a whip cracking in the air.

Elisabeth Fiorelli

Felix was observant in the more practical sense.  Anything of insignificance was buried out of his sight, and unlike his companion, the hidden intricacies behind the whys of their situation were beyond his level of care or comprehension. Rather, his attention was pinned to surveying the area for potential dangers, as the faster they completed their mission the faster he could return home.

Mars and Barnaby had found their way back to the duo and swiftly returned to their positions. Unlike the trainers, they hadn't been attacked with any mental inflictions and there weren't any physical signs of damage done to them. They were, for the most part, just confused.

Hands intertwined, the group continued to venture further into the jaws of the forest, eventually reaching a peculiar white lily blossoming from the ground. As Elisabeth released his hand to go examine the small flower, Felix's attention was caught by a familiar thunderous, resonant sound.

A gunshot.

"We have to--" Before his sharp directives could be given out, he noticed that the thimble of gold had escaped his line of sight yet again. Even Barnaby and Mars, who were once left at his sides, had vanished into thin air.

Another gunshot set off across the forest. It sounded closer this time.

Felix's hand immediately flew to his holster, fingers gripping the handle of defense that was tucked to his right. With the pistole brought close to his chest, the man crept forward, eyes vigilant for any signs of movement. Further and further he went, following the occasional sounds of bullets whizzing through the trees. Eventually, as he drew closer, he could distinctly hear the familiar hefty sounds of heavy breathing.

Not again...

Teeth gritted behind his tight lips, Felix's heart began to pound against his chest and buried images began to flash across his mind. Whenever he tried to shoo away these thoughts, the images only became more and more vivid, depicting memories better left discarded and burnt to a crisp.

Move, he told himself, shoot the fucker.

But his legs felt like sandbags locked in place. No mattered how many times he mentally whipped himself to move forward, they remained in place. It was as if his body was begging him to remain ignorant to the shooter's identity - screaming the dangers of stealing even the quickest glimpse of his face. These howls of caution could only delay his movements for so long. When the breaths grew louder, closer, Felix knew there was no escaping confrontation. So, with a steady breath, he spun around the tree he was hiding behind, gun aimed directly for the shooter's head.

For Elisabeth Fiorelli 's head.

Elisabeth Fiorelli

Felix's shoulders heaved up and down as his senses spiraled into a frenzy of mixed emotions. With deep breaths puffing out from his mouth, the animalistic man responded to the woman's reminders with a single step forward, then another.

Each heavy footstep strung the pair closer together, and eventually, there was no more than a couple of feet left between her and the muzzle.

"What are you doing here," He spat out, voice low and gravely. It'd been years since he last saw that face - that same menacing face that emotionally whipped the shit outta him.

"I heard you took August Gallagher in," Despite the power behind his voice, only Felix could make it out over the deafening silence the other's heard. The man's eyebrows were lifted to his hairline and his lips laid in a disparaging line. "How's that [insert a random bad term] doing, eh?"

Like a switch, Felix's emotions flipped in on itself. His vision became stained in a blur of reds and his grip on the gun tightened til his knuckles grew white. "Take his name out of your fucking mouth."

"Why? You gonna finally put a bullet in my head? Yea right. You've got shit for guts, boy. There's no changing that."

Click.

The gun was cocked. His finger laid steadily on the trigger. All he needed to do was squeeze it, like he's done plenty of times already.

Felix's eyebrows twitched downward as an enraged, yet pained expression, etched itself into the features of his face. His eyes, inflamed with contempt, narrowed down at the man.

"...Sorry."

BANG BANG

--

As the dust settled beneath the moonlight, four silhouettes were left behind for the spirits to ridicule: an untouched Elisabeth Fiorelli , a porygon named Barnaby, and a Gallade laying on top of his trainer.

Elisabeth Fiorelli

When one's world seems to flip in on itself, the solid ground becomes a sanctuary. Firm and real-- it was the first thing that began to bridge Felix's consciousness back to reality. The second thing was his Gallade's firm grip around his arms, then the vine's.

Head hung low, eyes darkened, the apprehended bodyguard was forced to sit up and face the woman he had just shot at. Though, the gravity of the situation hadn't settled immediately. It took a moment of mental gymnastics and slow breathing for his mind to revert back to reality, but even when it did, his mouth remained closed and his head didn't dare to move.

Shame clogged his throat and guilt shackled down his neck-- how could he have done that? Confuse her with....

"Elisabeth Fiorelli ," He breathed, voice low and gravely. "You're Elisabeth Fiorelli ."

@tag