shrike

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park

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shrike

POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 0:39:58 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]he keeps seeing himself standing there, half-buzzed, watching the taillights of the cab blur down the street. and it turns and he keeps staring, and remus clears his throat, and he keeps staring. and he's thinking a million things at once, mostly about how he can't hold his liquor like he thought. and could she hold her liquor? or was she just as tipsy as he was? and why didn't he want to get in the cab with her? should he have gotten in the cab with her?

he drops his weights, rolls his arms. and then he slouches forward, hangs his elbows over his knees. he rubs his cheek against the towel strewn across his neck, over his shoulders.

remus pulls him up; his own fur is matted with sweat from the light sparring he'd been doing with another rocket grunt's pokemon.

it's later that day when he's thumbing through jobs on the notice board, as he's looking through his shit, thinking he outta give david at least a couple more days to scrounge up the money (at least give him a chance), that he realizes that he's got a few days off and could probably spend some time to himself.

and then he blinks, flicks the screen of his pda and types in her name. and there she is, with all her accolades, everything public that rocket has on her. and her file is incredible and he's laughing at himself for expecting anything but.

mission partner required for current listing: james morris, currently missing. has dirt on rocket. make sure his family finds him dead.

he's clicking accept before he has the werewithal to consider otherwise. he's accepted, naturally, and the mission details pull up immediately.

so the next day he's standing at the base of mt. pyre, remus at his side, smoking a cigarette while he waits.

x x x
@bean2

[newclass=.augpost]font:10px calibri;[/newclass]
[newclass=.augpost i]color:#716075;[/newclass]
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 0:58:41 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","grabod"]

[attr="class","gra"]

[attr="class","grawords"]

[attr="class","gratag"]
@tag

Eden's days had been blissfully uneventful until she had arrived home with the car.
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Her father had not been happy.
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So when she got a request that her mission partner spot had been filled, she was fully expecting to cancel it.
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Instead, her face broke into a pleasantly surprised smile when she found out who had taken up the mission with her. It had been a few days since the whiskey, since the cab.
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Since she wonders why he didn't get in the cab.
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The next day arrives, and after some pretty intensive self-care the night before, Eden is feeling and looking presentable enough to join him on the mission. She arrives to find him standing there, smoking a cigarette.
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And even though she's tired, and hurting, and so very broken...
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She smiles.
[break][break]
"Hey."

[attr="class","grapokes"]

[newclass=.grabod] background: #2e2e2e; width:300px; margin: 0 auto; [/newclass]

[newclass=.gra] margin-top: 40px; width: 300px; text-align: justify; font-family: 'roboto'; background-image:url(https://i.ibb.co/2gq2C65/black-thread.png); padding-right:50px; background-color: #2e2e2e; border-radius: 1px;[/newclass]

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[newclass=.grawords b] color: #765D75; font-size: 13px; [/newclass]

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[newclass=.gratag] padding: 0px; text-align: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: -20px; [/newclass]
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:17:14 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]she's there in one piece. and it's not quite night yet, but the twilight is suiting. he'd been worried, that he'd imagined some of that night, about the weird static in the air--because that's what late nights do. they warp and twist and relay as grainy videotapes, reminiscent of something warm, something that wasn't what it was.

but he sees her and she smiles at him and he kind of laughs a little, thinking about that night when she'd come in like a noibat out of hell, demanding he follow her.

he exhales and then grinds his cig under his heel.

"princess," he says in greeting, brow raised teasingly. "you ready to make sure a missing man stays missing?"

x x x
@bean2

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:21:46 GMT

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[attr="class","gratag"]
@augustus

Eden was sure he would be in an upset mood - but when he looks up and actually laughs, she breathes a laugh of herself and nods.
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"Ready as one can be." She answers casually and strolls closer, sticking her hands in her pockets as she looks up at the wild terrain they're about to tackle.
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Her sides ache already.
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"So, you guys got home safe." She grins and looks over, nodding towards Remus. "Nice to see you again." And she means it - she had enjoyed their company. "Let's get started, then." Eden taps the toes of her hiking boots to make sure they're on sturdily enough, before heading towards the path that would lead them upwards.

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:29:33 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]this isn't really part of his job description. there's a reason why he's always been able to get by with remus, and remus alone. but now, as he's staring up at the trek they have before them, he thinks about just how useful it would be to have a pokemon that could fly.

of course, he'd much prefer his feet stay on the ground.

remus doesn't seem to mind the hike, especially given their company. he falls into step next to eden and gives her a smile, dipping his head in response when she greets him warmly.

"'course we did. remus keeps me outta trouble." but his stretching smile goes off-kilter for a moment. he recalls the sourness of the night's events, and of what had probably come after the fact. of what might have happened to her.

he flexes his fingers and then clasps the back of his neck to give him something to do, scatter his thoughts.

"remus'll find him before we do. when we get closer, he'll scout on ahead. 'course, if the guy's already dead, there won't be an aura to sense." he shrugs.

x x x
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:35:46 GMT

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@augustus

Glancing up at the trek, Eden sighs deeply and puts her hands on her hips, stretching out her back. She's sore, compression bandages holding everything in place. She's glad she's wearing warmer clothes that cover her up. She smiles back at August as he explains Remus keeps him out of trouble, and raises her eyebrow at the pokemon.
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"Oh. Of course he does." She winks at Remus and walks in tandem with the pokemon's steps, gesturing up the hill. "So, aura-sensing, huh?" Eden looks up at the sky, thinking for a moment. "Does that include emotions?" She asks suddenly, blinking - wondering, mostly, if he can sense that she's hurt.
[break][break]
Eden squints at Remus and raises an eyebrow, lips pursed in a cute little accusatory pout. "Hmmmmm?"

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:44:45 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]it's not something he tends to talk about with other operatives. rockets are loyal to a fault, right? anyone's loyal to a fault?

only a few people on this earth'll die for ya, and they the only ones ya can trust, augs.

remus flinches when she poses the question and he looks to august, touching the black appendages at the side of his head. august translates.

"usually. you'da seen him doin' it, though. 'member when you walked in on my meeting with 'ol david? the glow? his eyes'll get all bright, too.

"usually i got 'im watchin', y'know, 'cause you can never be too careful in our line of work." and then he shrugs, looks kind of sideways. "but i figured you'd, uh, want some privacy. so i asked 'im not to."

x x x
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:52:15 GMT

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@augustus

Eden tenses ever-so-slightly at the admission that Remus could sense it all if he desired - if August desired. She exhales softly and nods, before blinking as August also admits that he had asked Remus to not do his thing. Out of concern for her privacy.
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Her cheeks flush and she looks between the two of them, before holding up her hands. "Ah! It's okay. Whatever helps the mission." She smiles brightly, ignoring her own feelings about it. Maybe it was fine for them to know, anyway... It wasn't like it was a secret. She had spilled all that information when they met the other night.
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She was just a big idiot, apparently.
[break][break]
"Ah, but..." She takes another glance up to the sky, to the top of the mountain. "Do you think it'd be faster to fly?" She asks quietly, looking over to August. "I could take a look..." Her fingers circles in the air. "I brought my dragonair."

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 1:57:57 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]even if he had allowed remus to do so, he wouldn't have been able to dissect the lucario's personal thoughts and feelings on the matter. they understand each other, yes, but there's still a discernible barrier between their abilities to communicate with one another.

they've never needed more than that.

and as though she'd read his mind, she brings up the possibility of flying. he feels his stomach churn, but he doesn't voice his fears.

"dunno," he says, peering upward. "there'll be a lotta ash up there. could do a loop 'n see if you can at least get us in the right direction?"

x x x
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:04:11 GMT

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[attr="class","grabod"]

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@augustus

Nodding slowly, Eden rubs at her cheek and glances up, before lifting her elbow so she can pluck a pokeball from her belt. "Alright, I can take a peek." She tosses the pokeball and watches as her absolute darling of a dragonair comes out, excited to see her. She pushes her little nose right into Eden's stomach and Eden pretends not to be winded.
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"Hey! Settle down." She scolds, and immediately the dragonair slides away, doing a circle, before settling at a gliding pace beside them. "Can I get on?" Eden gestures to the pokemon's back, and the dragonair lets out a small chirp of approval. "Thank you." Eden shakes a little bit, jumping from foot to foot - a typical dynamic boxing stretch - before getting a running start.
[break][break]
She leaps onto the dragonair's back and catches it's neck, before holding on as she takes off once Eden's settled in a good position. They disappear around the side of the mountain in seconds.

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:29:07 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]he's always considered himself graceful. it's something that comes from combat. balance and poise and being grounded are most important on the field--not who can throw the biggest punch. and yet, he's taken aback at how nimble she is, at how easily she jumps onto the dragonair's back.

and as he watches her go, and then watches her disappear, he realizes just how alone he is.

remus is up ahead, far enough where he can't see him anymore. he blinks, assesses the situation, and decides to keep strolling up the path. the worst thing he could do is make it hard for her to find him, especially if she spies something.

x x x
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:36:08 GMT

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@augustus

Eden does a few quick circles around certain areas that aren't clouded with ash, and squints at the view below her, brushing some hair from her lips as they do a couple of fly-overs.
[break][break]
From up here, it's quite easy to see where little camps have been made on the mountainside... One sticks out in particular, however. A man who seems to be drying some clothes over a steam vent of the mountain.
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Resourceful, she'll give him that.
[break][break]
Rather than take him on herself, she circles around and flies back to where she left August, slowly flying along the path that led up the cliffside, before veering into two separate paths - one looking much looser in sediment than the other. When she sees footprints, she bites her lip. "Shit." She follows the prints.

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:44:56 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]he's heading in that direction, thinking, of all things, about how much ash is going to get tracked into his apartment when he gets home. joining the rest of the dust on his counter tops.

normally, remus would have come back at this point to at least give him some direction. and though he'd asked the lucario to give eden some privacy, he'd have figured the pokemon would have known to use it to find them again.

he's getting out of breath as he climbs. his worker's boots haven't magically transformed into hiking boots either, and so he starts to struggle against some loose terrain.

the grass is slippery from all the ash and he realizes only a bit too late that he'd absentmindedly strayed onto a natural path rather than the manmade trail that winds safely up the mountainside.

and this realization comes almost as soon as he loses purchase for good. his hands come out as he scrabbles for purchase, stomach flopping as suddenly there is nothing underneath him. his feet kick against the rock side and he clings to the slippery, mossy cliffside.

he looks down and sees treetops and dumbly thinks, wow, we climbed this high already?

x x x
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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:51:43 GMT

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@augustus

When Eden finally finds her companion, she can't help the little snort of laughter that escapes her lips. Wow. They were idiots.
[break][break]
"You look a little stuck." She comments, covering her smile with her hand. Eden couldn't really help it - dangerous situations made her disconnect completely.
[break][break]
"Hold on, I've got you." She edges the dragonair closer, sliding into the cliffside easily. Her skin coats with the ash as she slides up beside and under August. "Here, let go and give me your hand. I've got you."
[break][break]
Eden looks up at him earnestly, holding her arms up for him to take to hold onto while he gets his footing on the dragon pokemon.

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POSTED ON Oct 29, 2019 2:55:34 GMT

[attr="class","augpost"]it doesn't really register to him that she might not be able to find him. honestly, he half expects remus to come crashing through the foliage before her.

so consider him startled when suddenly there's a weight behind him and eden telling him to let go, that he's fine, and that she's got him.

"see," he manages breathily as he forces white fingers to unclasp from the gnarled roots he'd tangled them in, "knew you were an angel." he finds his footing and uses the dragonair to boost himself back to up to the cliff's edge.

he takes in a couple of breaths to steel his still-beating heart. and then, awkwardly, because he doesn't know how or what else to say, adds, "thanks."

x x x
@bean2