She is a bitter human being. Pain, distrust and a broken heart bleeds through every word. Once upon a time, she had been inspired to stand alongside those legendary Pokemon on the pedestal she put them on. Once upon a time, she had wished, begged, dreamed of being close to and seeing one of the dragon deities with her own two eyes.

But things had changed. She had changed, and not necessarily for the better.

From her standpoint, she and Roman had been chasing ghosts- and now he had died because of it. Because of them.

"No."

But she wants to, even despite the twist in her stomach. Her brows twitch to betray her fear and her indecision, even though she tries so hard to be a statue.

Feather-light fingers, rough from calloused hands and lack of care brush against the woman's cheek. Absently, as if distracted by warm feelings and lead astray by Illeana's fountain of knowledge and undiverted attention, she hangs on. The distance between them doesn't lessen, as Remi lets her fingertips brush silver hair.

And although Illie whispers, her words are loud and clear, close enough, nearly, for her to feel them against her own.

Hunger flits across her conflicted expression, and those secrets the woman keeps trapped behind perfect teeth become prominent. She flashes them so easily, a cry for attention even if it is subtle. The fact that she hasn't pulled away, hasn't shown fear or distinct unease.

"You aren't afraid, are you? One of god's chosen, and yet you're here, alone, unprotected."

Or was it that she wanted to be caught? Remi narrows her eyes, dragging her attention away from Illeana's lips.

illeana reyes

☉

Remi leans forward, cigarette pressed between chapped lips to wait for her to light it. When he does, she'd lean back into her seat and pull a long drag. The smoke spills out of her nose long before she exhales, and she masks her cough with a sip of her drink.

His question has prompted her intentional bated breath. Her lungs burn and she keeps her expression guarded, pinched. With a swallow, she licks her lips and dangles the cigarette over a nearby ash tray.

"I really like money."

But that isn't really what he's asking, she knows. The rumor train is fast and efficient, and she exhales a sigh before continuing.

"And I'm here for answers."

mission: recruitment act. 1

THEO BECKETT

☉

"'Tis the season, man. We want to blend in, and everyone loves Delibirds during the holidays."

Sure, maybe she was being a bit silly and making a shitty joke. But as long as their buyers got their shit, she could laugh all she wanted at her stupid holiday theme.

"Good man."

She winks, amused by his release of control. They hit the road, and fortunately it is a short trip. They very easily blend in, given the time of day and the mail-man credentials she carries and hands out to Oscar. Their fake identification for working at their local Delibird Delivery mail drop was convincing enough.

Chances are no one would bat an eye anyway.

What they really had to watch out for was aggressive wild Pokemon or hurly burly idiots looking to make a quick buck on selling the next fancy Applin phone online. Some people just couldn't stay jolly for the holiday.

"Your head of intel's a handsy bastard, but it hasn't been too bad."

She smirks again as their feet hit the metal floor of the warehouse. Their walk here is short and sweet, and with a few more turns and a secret discreet back door entrance, they'd make it to their highly illegal arms deal.

oscar clayton

☉

Remi's smile only grows in devilish intent the closer he gets. He leans against the bar beside her, nurses his drink, stares straight past her and into the sea of broke beggars desperate to make back their wasted fortune.

"Care to join me for a game?"

She takes a slow sip of her drink, peering at him carefully over the lip of her glass. Though he shows little to no interest in her or her idle conversation, she does not appear discouraged. Why?

Because he's perfect.

He could easily be the pawn to protect herself: the queen.

mission: rigged gacha rolls

Felix Gallagher

☉

I have to do... what now?

Momentarily, Remi's expression of relaxed amusement slips into something irritable and exhausted. She'd really much rather get paid and leave the lady to her erratic excitement in peace. Not that she wasn't mildly curious as to what her deal was with the Slowpoke and Slowking and whatnot, but..

The woman directs her attention to what she calls a devolution stone, and requests she bring it over. In a flash of light, a Slowking appears, claws clicking against the metal floor. Remi snatches up the stone, tossing it up and down in her hand before handing it over to Evelyn.

"If you've got some weird kinks, lady, I'm afraid I'm probably not interested."

Evelyn Vespera

☉

"Zip up your coat, woman, you'll freeze to death."

Her expression is a total 'what the fuck?' as she pulls her gaze abruptly away from the woman's chest and turtle-neck covered collar. Some people's kids, man, so fully prepared to strip in front of strangers.

But instead of putting it back on, she drapes it over her Garchomp's arm and steps away. Double what the fuck.

"Yo, Katja, just wondering but, has the cold fogged up your brain? Put your damn coat on. Also, need I remind you that dragons aren't suited for the cold. Especially one like him."

The poor bastard might just freeze out here. Honestly, maybe he needed the coat more than either one of them did. Not that she's willing to part with her own.

After a pause, since Katja has already ducked into the cave, Remi abandons the Garchomp with the faux-fur coat to follow the woman. With an awkward clear of her throat, she finally introduces herself:

"Name's Remi."

katja weiss

☉

Finally.

She had a name. And even better yet, she'd soon realize, was that this Kingsman was a ranger. Unfortunately for the kid, it would look really fucking bad. Her brother, a ranger, murdered in cold blood by another ranger? Made to look like an accident, or a setup, an ambush by people dressed in bizarre clothing?

The woman's eyes flash at Gavin's warning and the reasoning that follows.

"I've heard whispers from loose lips. Do you have something planned if you get your hands on these avatars?"

Cillian Quinn

☉

"You think choking me out, unprovoked, when we were just having a one on one conversation, in the dark, is training? Rocket really is as fucked up as people say."

Not that she really minded. Some people had to get their hands dirty in order to take what they needed. She could get behind that- she just wasn't a fan of being jumped and left unprepared. She rubs at her neck even now, fingers massaging where she could feel bruises preparing to form.

"I'm just saying, I've taken a beating from men more than I ever have women."

The back of her head throbs where his teeth and nose had probably connected with her scalp. But even through the dizziness, she holds fast, fully prepared to lash out if he stepped up again. What he thrusts toward her, however, is not a fist or a foot, but a manilla folder full of paperwork. She blinks, suspicious, before relaxing her posture just slightly to reach forward and take it.

"Why would Rocket have information on him?"

Killian Decker

☉

The woman's gaze overlooks the art of his craft. Frankly, the crinkling paper and the shear of scissors gliding across shimmery trash-to-be does little to hold her attention. It was frivolous and temporary.

People thought evil people wore long trench coats and held concealed weapons, or whatever, but what about the tons and tons of plastic and paper waste every year from wrapped gifts?

Yeah. That's right.

"Just Remi. 'Miss' makes me feel both uncomfortably young and uncomfortably old."

Alexei Ivanov

☉

Dear Father Winter,

The fact that I am even writing this is proof I've lost all sense of realism and sanity, I guess.

I know you're not real.

I know you're a fuckin' made-up children's story mom n' dad came up with to appease me and Roman when we were kids. You gave us hope, we put our faith in you, and you'd supposedly make our dreams come true.

But when I grew up, I realized that that was all a lie. You don't exist, dude. You're just a story. All of those 'dreams' of ours that we were told you had a hand in were just our parents lying to us and giving you all of the credit for their efforts.

You were a delusion I let myself trust and believe in, and it sucks. You suck.

But even still, here I am, confused and alone, looking to you for some semblance of guidance, I guess. This is so goddamn stupid.

Excuse my poor manners and my obliquity, Father Winter, for I have clearly sinned:

I wish, for the sake of my brother, that wherever he is, he is safe now. I wish, too, for insight on what happened to him, and for the strength to overcome this grief that clouds my judgment. I'm beyond material things, I just want to know that I am doing the right thing. I miss him fiercely, but I'm trying.

Please, give me the strength to make him proud.

Remi Cassel

@father winter

☉

Ah, new grunts. Sticklers for rules and regulations, desperate to not fuck up and say the wrong thing. Thus, the keyword phrase.

It is all she can do to stifle her exasperation as she listens to the two chuckleheads recite their lines. She fishes the keys out of the ignition from the passenger side, seeing as her partner had forgotten to do so himself. That was grounds for taking the trip home in the back seat.

"Cut the formalities, kid. No one cares what your name is or what you wanna bee called."

Flippant as ever, she bumps the unnamed man out of the way and takes his place. She glances over the map spread out on the hood of the van and listens carefully to Bee's stream of information.

"Nope. Too easy. You want to blend in, not be caught outside the flow with your pants down. We'll go this route."

With a tap of her finger, she draws his attention to the well-used path. Plenty of people would be on the road alongside them, rather than alone on back streets in the middle of the night.

"Yep. Let's get started."

Remi turns on her heel and sets off for the warehouse, releasing her Pangoro and Beartic to trail along beside her.

BARNABY FINCH

☉

"Mmm.. I do like a man with taste."

She laughs, a low chuckle, before lifting her own drink to her lips.

And, naturally, she eats up the man as he works the buttons on his collar and sleeves. Perhaps she would be more subtle, but the warm thrum of alcohol and confidence keeps her loose and fast.

"Long day at the office?"

The casino noise seems to fade away, and she even waves off a drunken man attempting to be sweet on her. Her attention, for now, appears to be completely on the man with the Old Fashion and his sleeves rolled up.

mission: rigged gacha rolls

Felix Gallagher

☉