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"Eh? But..."[break][break]

They aren't together anymore. It's probably unhealthy for her to still feel so affected by him. And she's pretty sure that her sudden and entirely unwelcome tears are the reason Remiel is extending this invitation in the first place. Guilt-tripping is never a good look.[break][break]

It would be pathetic of her to accept. Selfish too, probably. But with the end of the world looming, giving in to vices feels much easier.[break][break]

"Well, I..." She sniffs and starts to stand, dusting her knees with one hand and wiping her face with the other. "If Earl Grey wants me to, I guess. I've missed him." She gives the haunted teacup a weak smile, and fondly pokes his porcelain side. She dares not peek at Remiel, but the implication behind her words hangs in the air regardless.[break][break]

---

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His admission pulls a laugh from her. It's not exactly happy, but it's not dripping in hurt or sarcasm either. It just is— a little sound to fill the silence, like the chiming of a bell.[break][break]

But when the Prince seeks to draw away, Luka tightens her grip. Her fingers curl around his when they slacken, and she tries once again to meet his eye under the mask. She still isn't sure what she'll see there, but she wants him to see her. She's finally found enough mettle to confront him, even if it's not directly, and she isn't going to let him escape so easily.[break][break]

"I don't expect anyone to be perfect," she replies loftily. "All I've ever wanted is to be treated kindly...to be happy. To feel loved, and to put that same love back into the world. Maybe that's why I do the things I do."[break][break] A shake of her head sends roseate curls tumbling gracefully over her shoulder.[break][break]

"But I don't know why you do the things you do," she continues, dropping all illusions of pretense between them. "Sometimes I feel like I never really knew you at all."

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- dress & mask

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There are a hundred choices to make. Throw up protection, try to put it to sleep, go all-out with an attack. Each potential decision spirals into a myriad of what-ifs, and trying to assess everything all at once is debilitating.[break][break]

And in the face of imminent danger, overwhelmed by the pressure of everything she should be doing, Luka simply shuts down. Her confidence cracks and crumbles like the rocky walls around them and for a moment, she thinks that if her Pokemon simply abandoned her to save themselves, she wouldn't blame them. In fact, they might just be better off for it.[break][break]

Perhaps this speaks to the bigger problem at hand: she's too busy self-deprecating to screw her head on straight and focus. Who knows what might have become of her had a deus-ex-machina not come charging in on a valiant steed.[break][break]

At first, she thinks that the rumbling sound of hooves is just another part of the cave falling in. When blinding white races past her, she's almost bowled over. It's only thanks to her Sylveon's curling ribbons that she stays upright, though the whiplash is enough to make her head spin.[break][break]

Common sense dictates that this is the perfect opportunity to flee, but Luka's never really possessed it. Instead, she lingers in the cave, bracing against the impact of shifting earth below her feet. She watches the battle unfold before her in stunned silence, too enthralled to move even if she had wanted to. And though she'd like to think she's here to provide backup for her mysterious savior, she has a feeling he doesn't need it. If anything, she'd just be a hinderance.[break][break]

Just watching the battle is enough to leave her breathless, so she can't imagine how it might feel to actually wage it. And when it's finally over Luka slumps to her knees, the sudden loss of adrenaline deflating her like a balloon.[break][break]

"Um!"[break][break]

Her voice feels small and it cracks at the end, like a child. Luka swallows and picks herself off the ground with some help from Bonbon, who squeaks in concern even though her own small body is bruised and aching.[break][break]

"T-thank you, Monsieur," she manages to say"I, um! I-I'm so sorry for the trouble."

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Toffee was made for this.[break][break]

They say that a Togepi's shell is filled with joy, and that when treated kindly, they share that happiness with others. And with luka chêne as his trainer, Togepi has more than enough kindness to go around.[break][break]

The baby egg Pokemon is used to being cuddled and coddled and, on occasion, used as emotional support by the vulnerable or distressed. He toddles around the waiting room at the hospital for exactly that reason, cooing up at children and adults that look in need of a little comfort.[break][break]

His adorable baby babble can bring a smile to even the most distressed of patients, but when they actually hold him? Game over. It's too adorable! He's more than happy to be passed from person to person, being gently squeezed by patients getting their shots and keeping them calm with the joy radiating from his shell.[break][break]

Though after a few hours, his eyes start to blink sleepily, and he looks ready to retreat back into his shell for a nap. He is just a baby, after all.[break][break]

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"That's a very selfish way of thinking."[break][break]

The words are out before she can stop them. And once they float past painted pink lips, there's no taking them back. Luka sucks in a breath but forces herself to maintain eye contact with the prince— for once, she doesn't want to back down.[break][break]

"If you care about someone, really care about them, the least you can do is be honest with them," she continues. Their conversation is taking a turn, a stark contrast to the gentle waltz and glowing lights that bob and weave all around them. But now that she has Remiel here as a captive audience, she can't seem to stop herself.

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- dress & mask

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"Shoot. N-no, no, okay, um..."[break][break]

Luka's had her share of bad ideas before, but this might just be one of her worst.[break][break]

Venturing into Granite Cave would be nothing for most trainers. But most trainers also possess basic competence, which Luka finds herself sorely lacking at times. When she's with others she can observe strategies and pick up on team dynamics, and manage to scrape by as a supporter for those more talented than herself. But on her own, things start to fall apart very quickly.[break][break]

"Sugar, use— wait, no, t-that won't work well, will it? Um, Plum! Maybe we should try, erm...sleeping? Hypnosis! N-no, wait, maybe an attack? Hang on..."[break][break]

Mixed messages do nothing but confuse her poor team, who are doing their best to handle things on their own. Luka's Lopunny and Musharna, however, are beginning to look a little worse for wear, and that knowledge only makes their trainer more desperate.[break][break]

All the while, the Aggron that the three are up against is just as angry as when they'd first barged into his territory. The floor of the cave rumbles and stones fall from the ceiling as he continues to give chase, giving the rag-tag group no opportunity to escape.[break][break]

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This conversation is terrible.[break][break]
Stilted and awkward, words stuck together in a facsimile of conversation. They can't talk to each other like they used to, and Luka hates it. She wants to ask him more about what happened back then, she wants to be an angel of comfort like she used to be. But that wouldn't be appropriate now, would it?[break][break]

He says 'we' though, and for a moment her heart skitters in a way she knows it shouldn't. But when he asks about her wellbeing she realizes that the we refers to himself and Earl Gray.[break][break]

Of course it does. Why would he be talking about her?[break][break]

"I come here a lot," she answers, keeping her eyes on the gravestone in front of her. She hasn't yet realized that she's crying, but her voice comes out watery. "And I have Helios with me anyways. I'll be fine."[break][break]

It's as good of a dismissal as anything. But is this really going to be it? The meteor is coming, and this might be the last time they ever see each other. Can he really bear to leave her here, knowing that the world could very well end in just a few short days?[break][break]

He really had meant what he said, she supposes. I never loved you. It certainly feels like that now.[break][break]

---

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He's not entirely wrong.[break][break]
There have been others since him, but they're all just filler. Warm bodies to stave off the loneliness, hands and hearts that she'd tried to reach out to, but that had never reached back in the same way.[break][break]
No one did. Perhaps no one ever would. Luka thinks of all the people she’s given bits of heart to in the past year, and none of them had returned her fervent ardor. None of their hearts ached the same way hers did.[break][break]

There’s only one common denominator amongst all of them: it’s her.[break][break]

She’s simply an unlovable girl.[break][break]
In that regard, Remiel is just one of many, so she doesn't know why she can't forget him. At this point, they've been broken up for about as long as they were together. But love, she supposes, has never been a rational thing.[break][break]

The prince continues speaking before her own sorrowful thoughts get the best of her, and her eyes flit back to his face in surprise. "Is that why—" she stops herself just in time, popping the bubble of hope that dares to rise in her chest.[break][break]

"I think," she says instead, staring at the gilded edges of his mask and trying to imagine the expression he wears underneath it, "That that's not a decision you should make all by yourself, Monsieur."

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- dress & mask

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"Oh..."[break][break]

Luka looks down again, feeling rather chastened by his reply. "I see."[break][break]

She doesn't really know much about the Megalopolan War, much less Remiel's involvement in it. In fact, the more she thinks about it, the more she realizes she really doesn't know that much about the prince.[break][break]

She knows his likes and dislikes, how he takes his tea, and the way his hair tousles in the morning. But his life before they'd met is largely unknown to her. He'd never really talked about it, and she'd never been the type to pry.[break][break]

"I'm sorry," she says, because she is, but also because she thinks she needs to say something else. "I'm sure that wherever they are, they're grateful that you still remember them."[break][break]

Her eyes flit towards the posy of purple flowers in his hands. In the language of flowers purple is for admiration, success, and royalty. It's not a traditional mourning color, and it piques her interest. But it's not her place to say anything about it, so she doesn't.[break]

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He asks, she answers. That should be it. She's given him a more than ample excuse to move on without being rude, for her demeanor has been far from welcoming. Luka had only come here to pay respects to her Pokemon, after all— she doesn't need to mourn the death of their relationship too.[break][break]

But Remiel surprises her when he bends and adds a flower to the bouquet she'd carefully assembled. The small act of tenderness catches her completely off guard, and for a moment she's almost angry about it. How dare he endear himself to her after everything he's done?[break][break]

Maybe if they were anywhere else, she'd allow herself to snap at him. But this is a place of reverence and respect, and she holds her tongue.[break][break]

"Mmn," she affirms softly. The ones who died after you abandoned me, she wants to add, but remembers herself again. Remiel is a smart man— he can put two and two together without her piling on the guilt. And though that's tempting, the only thing it would do is hurt him. Despite everything that's happened between them, she hasn't lost all of her kindness yet.[break][break]

Silence falls between them once again— but where it had once been easy, it's now tense and uncomfortable. Luka busies herself by looking at Earl Grey instead of the man beside her, and would like to think that the pangs of fondness she feels are extended towards the teacup alone.[break][break]

"Why are you here?" she asks suddenly, breaking the silence with a question of her own. She doesn't mean to sound accusing, but her normally angelic tone carries a slightly bitter note regardless.[break]

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"We're retreating? But—"[break][break]
Words of protest die quickly on her lips. Luka defers quickly to those who know much better than her: Callan Young, John Sullivan and Kazimir Wynter are far more seasoned battlers than she is. And they're right— the four of them are outnumbered, and with Lugia in the mix, it's best to retreat before they suffer any heavy losses.[break][break]

She feels a pang of guilt at having not been able to help more. Perhaps to ease her conscious, she quickly swaps her Musharna for her Clefable, and throws up another wall of Protect to shield their group as they make a hasty escape.[break][break]

Even though the sting of a battle lost follows her, she knows it's still a victory if all of them are alive and unhurt and able to fight another day. Rocket can win the battle, but they haven't won the war; and the fact that the four of them have made it out of this means they all still have a fighting chance. It's not a happy thought, but it still gives her hope— and for now, that's all they have to cling to.[break][break]

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10 MP for assisting another character and/or their Pokemon.[break]
10 MP for referencing another character (must include tag).[break][break]

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Seated near the front, devouring a mountain of salad greens, is Luka Chêne.[break][break]

While others mingle and chat she's merely a pair of eyes and ears, watching and listening to everything intently. For although she'd love to talk with some of her friends in the crowd (Audric Black, paxton concordas and annalise henderson among them) she's here to work, not so socialize.[break][break]

After hearing about the last disastrous meeting between the rangers from ollie morales (and a bit of hearsay from her neighbor paxton concordas), their new PR representative is keen to keep things from devolving like they had before. It's not like she has any real authority, but at the very least she can do her best to do damage control after the fact, should things come to that.[break][break]

She's used to high stress situations like this by now. It can't be any worse than working for MATIAS SILPH...[break][break]

Things start out pleasantly enough at least, right up until Raziel Beckett announces himself as the new head ranger. Luka adds her applause and happy smile to the congratulations, even throwing a wink in the man's direction. He definitely looks sharp in the new jacket she'd had commissioned for him! Now it's time to think about the rest of his uniform...[break][break]

But that can wait, because the murmurs of dissent start up quickly afterwards. Though a sudden change in hierarchy is sure to ruffle some feathers, she wasn't expecting people to be so bold about it. Hadn't they learned from last time?[break][break]

Morale is low. Tension is high. She can't understand why, when things are as dire as they are, this group can't seem to put their differences aside and show a united front in front of the other rangers. Laurence Anderson might have his reasons to oppose the change in leadership, but this is not the place to be voicing that.[break][break]

Petal pink lips purse as she scribbles something down in her notepad, but she's all smiles again to anyone who happens to glance her way. If their leadership can't appear cheerful to everyone else, then she'll have to do it instead! She's hopeful that this is just a blip in what will be an otherwise productive meeting, for there's far more important things to get to.[break][break]

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- ur PR girlie is sitting and judging u all with a cutie lil smile

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