danny's in the middle of a d&d session when his phone (in his pocket, of course, as he isn't rude) buzzes with a text. it only buzzes for emergencies so, sneakily, danny pulls his phone out to read over the text.[break][break]

"?"[break][break]

is nagi miwa high? drunk? or did sherlock steal his phone?[break][break]

but then another text comes, leaving danny the only choice to reply. his thumb slowly taps at his phone screen while his other hand rolls a d20.[break][break]

critical![break][break]

i'm a prodigy why what's up[break]
    07:53PM ✓

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

as nagi debates the merits of hitting delete for all, his phone lights up.[break][break]

the knot of anxiety in his gut unwinds at danny’s reply. of course he is. nagi snorts, resting his chin on one hand as he types. [break][break]

his next messages come easier.[break][break]

Right, absolutely. Never doubted you for a second[break]
If someone hypothetically had to learn how to battle, how should they start? Asking for a friend[break]
Unless you pulled your prodigious knowledge prodigiously from the ether, in which case, forget I asked[break]
    07:51PM ✓

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

danny's attention is being pulled in two different directions. obviously, he gives more of it to the game than to his friend, but that might soon change.[break][break]

if you doubt me then 1v1 me and i'll prove it :triumph:[break][break]

but uh i would just watch some videos of battles and then learn from them. like if i had a bulbasaur then i'd find videos of bulbasaurs battling and copy them.[break][break]

pr shitty advice but best i can do over text :sadge:[break]
    07:53PM ✓[break][break]

"thirty-six points of piercing damage EAAAAASY."

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

while danny has his attention split between dnd and his adhoc private quora session, nagi is nursing a cup of cold coffee water, his minor crisis of confidence and a hopefully short-lived bout of writer’s block — which means that, until his next impending deadline sends him into a catatonic state of desperate taktaktak-ing, he really has nothing better to do than bother danny, none-the-wiser to the dice-blessed ass-whooping going on at the other end. [break][break]

he ponders his next reply while rearranging his notion bulletpoints in hopes of a breakthrough.[break][break]

ngl, i’d have better chances just coming straight at you with my fists[break]
:monkas:[break]
though that’s… pretty sound advice actually. [break]
    07:54PM ✓[break][break]

is he going to have to scrap the last chapter? he’s definitely going to have to scrap the last chapter. he pulls up a search for litwick battling videos while mourning his late and latest darling.[break][break]

actually [break]
    07:55PM ✓[break][break]

maybe we can talk about this in person sometime?[break][break]

(because they can do that now! it's going to take a while for that to not feel strange.)[break][break]

only if you’re not busy or anything, of course[break]
    07:58PM ✓[break][break]

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

the dungeon master snaps danny's attention back to the game, clearly noticing one of his players being distracted.[break][break]

"oh! i'm just reading my character sheet. carry on."[break][break]

'it's your turn, dingus.'[break][break]

"i gotchu. watch."[break][break]

man rolls a two.[break][break]

bro i keep telling you i'm an actual genius[break][break]

yeah ofc ofc you free in two hours? i gotta wrap up this dnd game. we're getting our ass WHOOPED by this mindflayer[break]
    07:59PM ✓

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

nagi experiences a solemn moment of guilt for being the cause of the breach in table etiquette.[break][break]

yeah, i’m free. is lilycove beach near you? or lmk (AFTER YOUR GAME) where’s good for you[break]
not that i don’t appreciate it, but you can just leave me on read next time! no hard feelings whatsoever[break]
thanks btw. hope you roll some meaty crits[break]
    08:00PM ✓[break][break]

two hours: he can boil some pasta, make some pasta water coffee, and see what he can salvage from the last chapter over dinner.

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

just two bros meeting up at lilycove beach at ten pm. nothing weird about it at all. nope. not in the slightest.[break][break]

danny actually shows up a bit early because his party got wiped. in the end, the mindflayer proved too gigamind to defeat, and danny had to make the heroic play of sacrificing himself so the rest of the party can go home early.[break][break]

oh, well. there's always next campaign.[break][break]

where you at NERD[break]
    09:52PM ✓

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

why would it be weird? meeting your bro on a moonlit beach close to midnight for an impromptu crash course in pokemon battling is a bro thing to do. the bro-est! [break][break]

nagi reaches the beach a few minutes later, after caffeinating with the starchiest cup of coffee imaginable. combing his gaze down the coast, it doesn’t take long for his eyes to land on danny’s lanky silhouette in the distance. too tall to miss, even in the dim light. perks of having a tall friend! (the downside is being the short friend.) [break][break]

the soft sand muffles the sound of his approach. nagi waits until he is right behind danny before he hits send. [break][break]

who are you calling nerd, nerd[break]
    09:57PM ✓[break][break]

— and kicks a pile of sand at the back of danny’s legs. his wimpy kicking form results in half the pile sliding into his own sneaker. [break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

danny, too caught up in watching the one wingull flying way above him, misses young nagi's approach before it's too late.[break][break]

his phone bings with a text, and as he reads it, he squints.[break][break]

"what the fuck?"[break][break]

only to have half a pile of sand splash against the back of his legs. he turns, kicking in return without even thinking. his results in a much larger splash than nagi's poor attempt.[break][break]

"how did you get this close without me hearing?"

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

“well — while you were playing dnd, i studied the blade.” [break][break]

if he had actually been studying swords, that time might have been better spent learning how to kick. or how to dodge. following danny’s retaliatory onslaught, nagi has a playpen’s worth of sand lodged in his right shoe. he can feel the grains rattling around his sock when he shakes his foot, like some sort of novelty maraca for people with a strange and specific fetish.[break][break]

he sets his new, uncomfortable musical instrument back down on the ground, hands raised upwards in surrender.[break][break]

“thanks, by the way,” he says, voice dropping from smug to sheepish and tentative, as he worries at the worn hem of his jacket sleeve with his nail. “... sorry for making you come all the way out here this late.”

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

"man, you wish."[break][break]

actually, maybe they both would because being proficient with a sword sounds awesome. imagine all the duels they could do and all the scenes they could reenact.[break][break]

knowing his friend well enough, danny reaches a hand out to slap nagi on his shoulder.[break][break]

"no prob! you can make it up to me with food after this."[break][break]

he looks around them at all the space they have.[break][break]

"so! what would you like to know from the prodigal kid himself?"

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]

"right. no doubt." nagi nods, paying the genius before him his due obeisance. [break][break]

he'll pay him properly with supper later. [break][break]

he thumbs at the catch of his pokeball. despite the wide expanse of empty beach around them, sherlock decides to appear atop of nagi's head anyway, giving danny a small, waxy wave from their comfortable perch. [break][break]

"do you hear about that tea room thing? i joined it. wasn't much help though. not a prodigy, for sure." his finger catches on a loose string on his sleeve, unravelling it further when he tugs absent-mindedly. " — how did you, uh... start gitting gud?"[break][break]

he trails off, mouth twisting in frustration at his own imprecise question, but true to his own words — he doesn't know where to start gitting started, much less gitting gud. [break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] DANNY HALL [break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-litwick"]

danny returns the waxy wave with ease. sherlock's a cutie.[break][break]

"oh yeah. did your team clear it?"[break][break]

a couple of danny's friends had participated in the tea room event. he decided to skip, personally, but only because he was too busy and would likely have failed as well.[break][break]

how did danny start gitting gud? truthfully, only after rocket. but that's not something he can share with nagi.[break][break]

"uhh i don't think there was ever a turning point, if that makes sense? i've always liked watching battles and it helped that my parents gave me a pokemon early on."[break][break]

he remembers his battles with Greyson Connors. they started off weak and each battle progressively became harder and harder.[break][break]

"why are you asking? you tryna' git gud?"

[attr="class","ooc"]nagi miwa[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-dedenne"]