Thalia was oft a frequenter of locales like this, though rarely solo. Whether it was wining and dining potential clients for expedition funds or swapping stories with her rowdy and raucous crew, she knew her way around a good many bars.

But with most of the Dawnhunters still in Paldea, and the rest of them scattered to the winds hunting monsters and chasing relics, all she had in Hoenn was little, old her.

Well. And her family. But she’d die before she went to them seeking companionship.

She was no stranger to drinking alone. But it wasn’t nearly as fun as drinking together. And she was in the mood to make new friends.

Double-fisting zombies she slid into the open seat of a corner booth-- she’d targeted them by the color of their hair-- and gave its sole occupant her friendliest smile.

“You all right? You look like you’re about to jump out of your skin. No one’s going to bite you.” She drank from her glass, wrinkling her nose at the sweetness-- much more so than she’s typically used to. “Unless you want them to, of course.”

[attr="class","mintag"] emerson whitlock

Someone slid into the booth across from him and jarred him from his line of thought. Immediately, all of his notions of progress fell out of his head as red crept across his skin to match his hair. And hers too, actually.[break][break]

“Uh, er,” he stammered, fingers curling tighter around the glass he was nursing. “Yeah, um, I’m fine.” Why was his voice so squeaky?[break][break]

His focus remained on the contents of his drink, but snapped up at her last comment, “Oh! No thank you, no biting.” She didn’t mean that literally– of course she didn’t. Well, maybe in another way, which was why an added shade of red deepened across his cheeks.[break][break]

In his awkward pause, he tried to busy himself with downing half the zombie in one go. But it was so sweet it made his nose wrinkle and his face twist as he swallowed it down. Why him?[break][break]

“Why me?” Blurted out as soon as the thought crossed his mind. The woman across from him was pretty– she could probably hold the attention and interest of other people way, way cooler than him. She looked exciting, adventurous. Just from a quick glance.[break][break]

Emerson looked like he sat at home alone all day when given the chance.[break][break]

Which, true.

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[attr="class","ooc"] thalia black | bar crawl / burning maw [break]


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

The individual across from her struggled with their words like they were slippery, gripping their drink glass fit with white knuckles fit to shatter it. “You don’t look fine,” Thalia said, frank, with a twist of humor.

Elbow on the table, jaw in her palm, she smiled, hoping to disarm them. “No biting,” she parroted, entwined in a sigh, as though it was the most boring thing in the world.

Thalia would love to say she didn’t enjoy toying with people but that would be a lie.

“Your hair,” she said simply, twining a piece of hers around one finger. “We stick together.”

She does down one of hers in one go, her own nose wrinkling at the sweetness, a mirror image of their new ‘friend’.

“I can go if you want. But I can’t guarantee someone scarier isn’t going to steal this seat after me.” She pushes her empty glass to the side for a server to grab. “My name is Thalia. Yours?”

[attr="class","mintag"] emerson whitlock

Someone slid into the booth across from him and jarred him from his line of thought. Immediately, all of his notions of progress fell out of his head as red crept across his skin to match his hair. And hers too, actually.[break][break]

Heat flared in their face as her remark landed. They’re bad at this, and this only proved it. “Ah, er..I’m. Well-” Em’s jaw snapped shut after trying and failing to stammer something out. “Shy.” And honestly, it was a surprise someone felt like he’d be a decent tablemate.[break][break]

Emerson glanced down, his finger pulling through strands of his own red hair. “Fair point…” He hadn’t thought of that, though it didn’t make much sense to him. Still, it was a good enough reason as any to have pinpointed him given the fact that he didn’t think he stood out from the crowd all that much.[break][break]

“Not used to sweet stuff like this,” he managed to not fumble his words as he spoke, noting the similar twist in her expression as she downs her drink. Of course, he didn’t knock his own back in the same way – and judging from her reaction, he can’t say he’s inclined to.[break][break]

He was quick to shake his head, though, at the offer. “No! Uh, no. It’s fine. I don’t mind. I’m just…” he shrugged, glance a touch helpless, though he tried for a smile that might have looked slightly like a grimace in reality, “...awkward.”[break][break]

With a short huff, he takes a longer pull from his glass. An attempt to toughen himself up to socializing. “I’m Emerson. Are you from Rustboro?”



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[attr="class","ooc"] thalia black | bar crawl / burning maw [break]


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

They admit to being shy with the same energy as a child getting a tooth pulled out and Thalia can’t help but smile. “Clearly,” she says, not unkindly. Settling in to look out at the crowd around them, she lets her eyes drift. “It was very brave of you to come out on one of the busiest nights of the year, then.”

She spins her own drink and peers down into the miasma of syrup and booze. “Yeah, it’s too sweet for my tastes, too,” she confesses, then shrugs one shoulder.

Mirroring her new companion, she takes a drink. “Nice to meet you, Emerson. And, not originally. I’m from Evergrande. I’ve been away from Hoenn for some time.” Sweet, wonderful, blissfully short time. “Are you a native Hoennite?”

[attr="class","mintag"] emerson whitlock

Emerson’s face flushed brighter as she remarked on his pointing out the obvious. “Right..well I was just coming back from a job, sooo.” Did that count as effort? Maybe for him, but otherwise maybe not. It was something that just about anyone was capable of doing, and in fact, often did.[break][break]

“I might get something new. Would you..want something?” If it wasn’t so sweet, he might chug it down just to loosen up the nerves jumping under his skin. But at least he’s not alone in his tastes.[break][break]

“Likewise.” He should make conversation, right? That would be productive socializing… “Oh, do you like to travel, then?” Em shook his head quickly. “Not at all. I’m from Paldea. M-medali! To be specific...”

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[attr="class","ooc"] thalia black | bar crawl / burning maw [break]


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

One eyebrow arches, freckles bending in the shape of a question. “A job? What do you do for work?”

Not that they’d smacked of unemployed, or anything, but.

She finishes the over-sweetened swill in big gulps. “If you’re offering. I never turn down a free drink.” Dabs daintily at the corner of her mouth with a napkin in stark contrast to the gusto in which she’d chugged her drink. “Next round’s on me, then.”

Her face visibly lights up at the mention of it. Paldea. “Medali.” Her voice is a lovelorn hiss, wistful and longing and missing and passion. “Beautiful country. Right where the land gets hard.” A trek up into the mountains. Cetitans and swarms of Noivern. “What brought you here?” It’s said with the slightest bit of derision, not at Emerson directly, but more at the place around them. The universal hilarity that they should both be stuck at this moment, right now, in this exact location.

[attr="class","mintag"] emerson whitlock

If they were anywhere near a window, he’d point out toward the lot where his obnoxious van sat parked. In all of its Geek Squad-esque glory. Instead, his head tilted, and he reached up to push a stray lock of red behind his ear. “I do a lot of IT consulting and repair. Among other things, but, ummm yeah. Mostly that.”[break][break]

Probably boring, right? She looked adventurous. Totally different vibes than him.[break][break]

Emerson was pretty sure he had all of the flavor and flair of vanilla bean ice cream.[break][break]

“Preference?” he asked as he lifted a hand to flag the bartender. He definitely wasn’t going to repeat the specialty, he knew that much. The sugary sweet still lingered on his tongue, cloying and a little overwhelming. “Sounds good to me.” Finally, he was able to offer her a steadier smile that didn’t reek of social anxiety.[break][break]

It only helped that the mention of his hometown seemed to land well with her. “It is pretty scenic, huh?” the thought of it was almost enough to make him feel homesick. Just for a moment. A small huff of laughter followed her skepticism. “I just…wanted to get away.” He shrugged. “Not from the place, but, well…expectations, I guess.” that was a universal sort of feeling, right?

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[attr="class","ooc"] thalia black | bar crawl / burning maw [break]


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