[attr="class","body"]
it had been an especially spooky season. glitching doppelgangers roamed, sightings going viral online in recent days. was this the drk triad’s backup? it would make sense, that there might be no moment of grand termination. that it might upload in segments, overwriting them incrementally.[break][break]

while unnerving, there was hope to be found in the new development: if the end of the world was an army and not some cosmic guillotine, hoenn surely stood a chance against it.[break][break]

the head scientist was not there to hunt for doppelgangers, however. merely, her walk through the dark was a break from submarine air – a rare occasion. in surrounding woodland, her company was dispersed on their nightly hunt. there was plenty of playing and showing off too.[break][break]

their many dark, bat-shaped silhouettes disturbed leaves here and there to glimpse eris’s glowing akryn before darting away, back into the shadows again. a swarm, one might guess, though a keen eye would notice there were several different species flocked together. though curious, none seemed too eager to pick a fight with eris and her partners.[break][break]

a small distance from where eris searched, lulu walked the trail, lost in her thoughts with the comfort of so many hiding and well-rested allies. little wing fingers clutched onto her shoulder, a noibat riding cozily in the hood of her dark jacket. it eventually tugged on the folds of it to get her attention.[break][break]

she looked, realizing the glow ahead. the familiar features of a teenage girl in chiaroscuro.[break][break]

”eris?”[break][break]

[attr="class","milkycredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]

[attr="class","eris99"]

A MILLION MILES AWAY

[attr="class","eris100"][break]

[attr="class","eris109"]Though the night is long and dark, the unchanging warmth of Reiner by her side keeps her calm and steady. And Arkyn... Dearest little Arkyn is an ever curious soul, cocking his head at the countless bats that swoop by, chirping to perhaps catch their attention and lure them in.[break][break]

The tension in Reiner's body informs her that someone approaches. Tension that is reflected in her own posture as she clutches at his mane. Little does she expect the voice she hears.[break][break]

"Miss Lulu?"[break][break]

This is bad. The League doesn't exactly enjoy her fraternising with the people she once called family. Well, not that they would have appreciated her being out this late either.[break][break]

"What are you doing here?"

[break]

[attr="class","body"]“me?” her brows arched incredulously. it was ridiculous that she be asked that question by the likes of eris halla. “i’m walking my bats. what are you doing here, out in the dark, so close to petalburg?”[break][break]

the tall round ears of the noibat in lulu’s hood poked out above her shoulder. after pulling itself higher to see, it beamed down at eris and her pokemon with bright yellow eyes.[break][break]

lulu’s face was severe. with the arrival of ulysses monroe and his dogs, eris was in more danger than before, especially at the edge of rocket's turf.[break][break]

”you tempt fate far too much.”[break][break]

[attr="class","milkycredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]

[attr="class","eris99"]

A MILLION MILES AWAY

[attr="class","eris100"][break]

[attr="class","eris109"]Her words sting, but no longer cuts as deep as it once did.[break][break]

"This was my home before it was yours." A low, guttural growl emanates from the girl. The Luxray narrowing his eyes at the sheer audacity of this woman.[break][break]

A terse and tense pause, then a quiet sigh.[break][break]

"I'm looking for someone. Then I'll be on my way."

[break]

[attr="class","body"]the defiance in eris's response was somehow unexpected. however, it did nothing to shake off the concerns of the scientist.[break][break]

”this is not my home,” she countered evenly, with thinly veiled bitterness. while on opposing sides, they’d felt a similar loss. her home had been carried in pieces to the depths of sootopolis’s coast, its underground lab destroyed beyond saving.[break][break]

”well, better hope you don’t run into the wrong someone.” she shook her head, glancing around, as though declan walsh might appear out of any of the countless shadows of the night. ”honestly, eris, this is–“[break][break]

she was cut off by a brushing of leaves somewhat nearby, and a cold chill washed over her when she looked up at what was decidedly not a bat, before it disappeared into the dark.[break][break]

”we should both be on our way. we're not alone.”[break][break]

[attr="class","milkycredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]

[attr="class","eris99"]

A MILLION MILES AWAY

[attr="class","eris100"][break]

[attr="class","eris109"]Knowing her luck, Eris probably will end up running into the wrong company. Hell, running into Lulu out here is proof enough. But before she can nod and go her separate way, Reiner tugs on her arm, his lips drawn thin as he narrows his gaze at the dark.[break][break]

"Miss Lulu?"[break][break]

Her eyes light up with both intrigue and hesitance, drawn to the voice that rings out from behind the trees. Blonde hair, carefully tied into two pigtails. That same jacket with that same clover patch that she wears in this very moment. Those same mismatched eyes, red and pink with a scar shaped exactly the same as hers, running across her left eye.[break][break]

"What are you doing here?"

[break]

[attr="class","body"]sensing a threat, lulu's noibat disappeared over her shoulder except for the very tips of its ears. little fingers clutched to the dark fabric of her hood, sending her arms up to loosen it around her throat. her attention was then pulled to a voice that should have come from the girl right next to her.[break][break]

there were two. or, rather, there was one, and something else. but which was which?[break][break]

she looked between the girls, taking a step back. ”where is mesprit?” never mind that she wasn’t supposed to know about it – it didn’t matter at that moment.[break][break]

she brought two fingers to her lips and whistled. though most of her flock lacked proper training, there was at least one in the trees who would answer her call. however, after a rustling of leaves, what emerged from the shadows instead was her own double – running straight for them.[break][break]

"doppelgangers." there was enough warning to duck under the fist that flew in her direction, eliciting a screech from her stowaway as it realized they were under attack. "they're from the cloud, i think!"[break][break][break]

[attr="class","milkycredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]