Shioda Yoshiro had not intended to spend her afternoon at a teahouse. She had certainly not anticipated all of this when Amber Lenoir had texted her about signing them up for an event, something about meeting her friends. She had, in fact, been in the midst of a particularly grueling grudge match downtown, which she had thrown to a substantial loss in order to arrive on time to the last-minute request.

Thank Arceus she had an extra set of clothes in the back of the towncar.

But here she was, and Amber was nowhere to be seen.

She could see...the maître d'hôtel in their sharp suit. A Mr. Mime, which she's never been particularly fond of. Is this a competition of some kind? Her brow furrows at the instructions and the revealing of the cloche. Barely looking up from her phone as a series of hasty messages come through, she certainly doesn't clock the arrival of the other guest.

"Voice to text. What do you mean you aren't coming, question mark?" Yoshiro lowers her voice to a rough whisper at the sound of the door. "It's a Kalosian teahouse, Amber, period. What am I going to do with all these little forks, question mark?"

A responding ding.

"Cynthia can f..." the rest trails off in a murmur, it unclear if that has been caught in the voice to text. "Yeah. Yeah. I'll come pick you up for ramen when we're done. Yeah, nine o'clock sounds good, let me know if it runs late." And then, under her breath and to no one in particular, "Let me see if The Fixer is busy."

shioda.y: how do you feel about teahouses

She exhales with a low sound of frustration, informing the maître d'hôtel firmly, "We'll be Team Raincheck. I'll take the boots." And then, assuming what may pass for a pleasant enough smile as the door opens again, turns to say, "You must be Amber's fr-"

Oh.

Oh no.

Georgette Bluebottle , The Fixer + selecting heavy duty boots

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Shioda Yoshiro will never be over the stark dichotomy of The Fixer 's appearance and mannerisms, a fact that not-too-secretly amuses her. The cheeriest and most dependable man she knows, she muses as he and the Abra wave, but also undoubtedly the best gun for hire. Her brows lift subtly at the mention of Georgette Bluebottle , her mind still attempting to wrap around the fact that the ice trainer and Amber Lenoir know each other, and why Georgette doesn't know that-

She doesn't particularly care for the bitter sensation that prickles in her veins right now. Jealousy is not an emotion she is overfamiliar with, and she doesn't know what rankles worse, that she's experiencing it - or that it is Georgette Bluebottle of all people who is evoking it.

"We've known each other since we were children," Yoshiro intones smoothly, attempting to iron out the hint of sharpness at the corners of her words. "Back in Johto. I didn't realize you were acquainted, either."

This doesn't bode well.

"Georgette Bluebottle," she nonetheless informs the armoured man beside them, politely introducing them both. "Georgette, this is Fixer. An old friend of mine."

There are not truly any words for how excruciatingly slowly Shioda Yoshiro blinks at the arrival of a man in full draconid cosplay, clearly uncertain what to think even once he has finished with his monologue. What exactly have you roped me into, Lenoir? is all that she can think, even as she reaches for her belt, unclipping one of the pokeballs there and sending it spinning to a stop with a well-practiced toss.

The brilliant flash of life from therein precedes the arrival of the Doduo it contained, one pair of beady black eyes fixated intensely on the costumed cosplayer, while the other head turns abruptly, looking at Yoshiro as if for confirmation.

She lifts her chin in brief nod of acknowledgement, assuring in a smooth cadence, "You have this, Mio."

With a decisive peep of affirmation, the bird pokemon focuses forward, seeming to bicker betwixt its heads for a few seconds before it puffs up impressively, all its downy feathers lending it a resemblance to a misplaced dandelion blown about by the wind. Diminutive wings beat as fast as they can, it begins to drift gently just above the trembling earth.

+ Using DODUO, Flying/Normal Type.

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