CJ beamed at the praise for their Jolteon, though their smile was a little pained. “Yes, she is. Among… other things.” Kinnick was a wild one, that was for sure. She was brutal and fearless and just a little bit vicious.

Their smile fell as Josh relayed his adventures with immigration. “That sucks, I’m sorry,” they said, voice emphathetic and genuine. “I couldn’t imagine being split up from my Pokemon. Kinnick came with me all the way from Sinnoh.” At the mention of their home region, CJ thought back to cold, Snowpoint winters, a delicacy and comfort they may never see again-- not if this stupid dome didn’t go away, or if the region got smashed by a giant meteor. “Where are you from?”

The somber moment was broken by Saber getting accosted by a rogue Lombre, and CJ couldn’t help but laugh, though they tried to keep it contained; it burst out in a sunshiney sound as Josh wiggled back and forth like a Wobbuffeet as his Manectric shook him back and forth. “Sorry, sorry. That was cute.”

Kinnick yowled and CJ turned to see she’d disappeared. A moment later and an Electabuzz came crashing through the undergrowth, head thrown back and hitting the ground with a roll. A frown creased CJ’s features as Kinnick pursued the downed beast, jumping onto its chest and discharging a fierce Thunder at point blank range. It didn’t do a whole lot of damage but the Electabuzz definitely felt it, jerking and shaking in place where Kinnick had it pinned to the ground. CJ tossed a Pokeball off the Pokemon’s saucer-shaped head, and Kinnick brought the item back to her trainer.

“Wow, that’s a lot on your plate,” CJ said, after Josh had finished his introduction and laid down his long list of dreams, “you sound like a busy guy.” CJ ran a hand over Kinnick’s head, and she purred, pressing into their palm. They almost introduced themselves again, then remembered they’d already done that, oops. “We’re just out enjoying the day. But trouble finds us. Or, rather, Kinnick finds trouble.”

The Jolteon mrrrowed with pride.

electric/water
Josh Devlin !
catch attempt electabuzz

☉

CJ has to force themselves to remember to breath. They’ve never been more nervous in their life.

Arms full of Togepi, with the steady presence of Deadlegs the Glaceon by their side, they push into the Gym with their shoulder, trying not to tremble too much. It’s asking a lot of them, right now. First gym challenges are nothing to sneeze at.

“He--,” they try, then pause, realizing they were going to say something very embarrassing. They swallow the nerves and fight against the urge to placate them with humor-- maybe later. “Hello,” they amend, fixing an uneven smile on their face, “CJ Mizikar, here for the gym challenge?”

Greyson Connors

☉

Sharks. Why did it have to be sharks.

CJ looks out at the queen blue sea, her surface serrated and torn by at least twenty, if not more, jagged, angry fins. Nausea swells in their gut.

Sometimes you grow so close to a person that you start to take on pieces of their identity, their wants, and fears. Jeannie had been deathly afraid of the water and all things in it. They’d been friends for so long that CJ was having trouble remembering if the terror squeezing coldly through their veins had been their terror or Jeannie’s.

Distancing yourself from the death of someone you cared for was always bittersweet, but CJ couldn’t help wishing to sweetly leave this trepidation behind.

They squeeze their eyes shut and try to break it down to basic facts: there are too many Sharpedo here. The dome is causing a hazard, and the wild Pokemon are a hazard to themselves and to humans. CJ’s first and foremost job as a ranger is to protect people and Pokemon. The equation is simple-- but CJ has always been shit at math.

They’re still puzzling over the problem when Kinnick yowls a friendly hello (which sounds like a demon yawning, to be honest) and another voice filters in over the sound of the waves.

“Oh,” CJ breathes, as they realize they aren’t alone here (fear can do that to a person, can isolate them)-- and this stranger seems to be much more focused on their directive, “what-- what are you planning on doing?”

It’s an innocent question, like asking the time of day; certainly not because CJ has no idea what to do next and is looking for an answer. Also certainly not because of this stranger is planning on doing anything untoward to the Sharpedo, CJ would be forced to stop them.

ryuuzaki amemiya

☉

CJ dragged their hand through Kinnick’s rough, spiky fur, relishing in the familiar static tingles that traveled up their fingers, making the hair on their forearms stand on end. Kinnick huffed sleepily, burrowing deeper into her spiral, enjoying her sunshine-enriched nap.

Their quiet day seemed to come to an end when another person on a Manectric came up to them, ignoring CJ at first but noticing Kinnick. When they finally did acknowledge CJ, the blonde tipped their chin and smiled.

“She’s more of her own than anyone else’s, but, yeah.” They tugged lovingly on Kinnick’s ear, and she worke up with a disgruntled, sleepy yowl, swatting and their hand and yawning.

Then she was up like a shot, rushing into the nearby undergrowth where the woods curved close to the water. There was a disgruntled squeaking, then the characteristic zap and smell of ozone that usually accompanied Kinnick’s Electric-type attacks; then, a heavy sliding noise, as she backed out of the woods, dragging a very ticked off looking Ampharos by the tail. It kept shocking her, to no avail, and its arms were too short to hit her, so it swiped angrily at the empty air.

Kinnick dragged it back and dropped it with a happy huff, a proud look on her face. CJ frowned, bopping the Ampharos with a Pokeball before it could hop up and really get mad.

“I’m CJ,” they introduced, turning back to the stranger, right elbow over right knee. “What’s your name?”

electric/water
Josh Devlin !
catch attempt ampharos

☉

CJ’s sleep is fitful, if it comes at all. Not a stranger to snoozing under the stars, their mind is just too whirlwind-like, a broken blender of anxiety and hope and wonder, to find rest. They have vague recollections of dozing, but distinctly remember seeing the sun peek out over the horizon-- so they’re up and alert when Zinnia calls for waking, backpack strapped on, buzzing with the lingering jitters of a night of intermittent sleep.
[break][break]
The collection of pink Pokemon poking at the remnants of their night of camping could put a Victoria’s Secret campaign to shame.
[break][break]
It’s, erm. Pink.
[break][break]
CJ laughs during the silence that follows. Unfortunately.
[break][break]
Zinnia lays out the back-cover summary of Why Pinkan Island is Pink and for all CJ wishes to delve into the meat of the matter-- namely, the genetics and science of what’s going on here-- they reel that in because, above all, they have a deep and abiding respect for nature. Plus, they did their time as a Ranger in Snowpoint, and they understand how tiring it can be dealing with tourists.
[break][break]
They eat their rations and properly dispose of everything before releasing Norrigal (in keeping with the color scheme) before falling in the queue to follow Zinnia into the heart of the island. Everything is pink. CJ has the image of a strawberry Starburst in their head. Like the entire island is made out of a forbidden snacc.
[break][break]
They’re distracted by the thought of unlawful consumption when they hear their name cheerily called through the air; they turn a sharp about-face, hands on backpack straps. Norrigal rubs lazily over the backs of their calves, wrapping around their ankles.
[break][break]
“That’s a-me, CJ-o,” they say, excited at being recognized and failing to be ashamed of their corniness. They hurry to stand beside Eva, only sort of tripping over Norrigal on the way.
[break][break]
“Can you go help clear the path?” they asked their Espeon, who yawns, disinterested, before stalking off to assist in lifting debris out of the road with her psychic abilities. While Norrigal is doing that, they go about collecting supplies to help Eva rebuild nests.
[break][break]
“I have some bandage material we could probably use for securing the nests, if we need to tie anything to a branch, or something,” they say, gathering some thinner twigs that are spry and bendable. “Too bad we don’t have any old tissue boxes.”

[break][break]

KJeU_A7H

[break][break]

+ (wearing) [break]
tl;dr they're here ig. their espeon is helping clear out the ponyta path while CJ is assisting Eva Morales and Toshiaki Macallan assemble and replace nests.

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

There was a crush of bodies clogging Route 118 as happy summer Hoennians flocked to this place with the best of both worlds: campers setting up tents in the forest and coming down to the beach for some surf and sun, swimming, laughing, cooking, and drinking together.

It was a beautiful show of unity, one that CJ was happy to be apart from: they floated on the outskirts, toes in the water, fishing pole at their side, watching children splash around in innertubes and parents pass out open cans of beer on pontoons.

Beside them, Kinnick was curled into a little ball, slumbering peaceful in the early afternoon sun.

electric/water
open !

☉

An overwhelming surge of pleasure makes CJ’s gut twist up and their heart miss a beat as the excitement writes itself across Eva Morales’s face. “Yeah, see ya,” they say, lifting their glass in a brief farewell to the professor, before settling in to let the smile linger while leaning against the railing of the ship.
[break][break]
Never one to be attentive to a single thing for a long period of time CJ felt their eyes drawing to the horizon and the ocean around them; they watched Locke Jamison, whom they felt like they should recognize but couldn’t quite place, interact with their Lapras, and it brought a small smile to their face.
[break][break]
They weren’t particularly fond of the ocean, what with having absorbed some of Jeannie’s latent thalassophobia, but they couldn’t deny the lure and appeal, either. They let their head tip back slightly in the sea breeze, lulled by the lift and fall of the boat on the waves, looking for shapes in the water below.
[break][break]
With the corners of the sky tinged coral like a faded picture, the sea turned dusky, the dark ocean mirroring the gloom of night as it threatened to emerge. The water here is never still, churned and stirred by the perilous presence of distant whirlpools and turbulent ocean currents, but the ship’s captain does a good job of mitigating the dangers and getting them close to shore.
[break][break]
And what a shore it is; CJ is distantly reminded of Jurassic Park as the massive cliffs of the island face emerge; towering structures of brownstone and granite, stained and worn by wind and water. As the ship docks, CJ feels like they’ve gone back in time, and they get flashes of a different movie (Kong: Skull Island, to be exact) when they take their place in the disembarking queue, having crumpled their cup and placed it in the recycling bin like a good environmental soldier.
[break][break]
They have a backpack of essentials-- extra clothes for weather-related hazards, clean undies, tablet toothpaste, and then their first aid-cum-crash kit, stuffed with vials of epinephrine, packets of VetSpon, suture and sterile needles, and a number of other items for use in an emergency. It never hurts to be prepared.
[break][break]
They fall in line quietly with the rest of the explorers, hiking boots crunching on the fragments of granite as the sand rises and turns into a walking path, slicing up through the cliffs. The echo of the wind and waves is near deafening, even as they leave the sea behind. But the startling pink hues that cover near every corner are as far a cry from desolate, lonely island as CJ can imagine; it looks like a sakura convention threw up everywhere, and as the rocks give way and the area becomes forest, the variation in color becomes more apparent.
[break][break]
“It’s a candy forest,” CJ murmurs, torn between wanting to reach out and touch everything and minding their P’s and Q’s (leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures). Speaking of pictures, CJ fishes their phone out to try and take one and finds it inoperable. Their mouth presses into a thin line of disapproval, but somewhere deep in their gut they feel almost vindicated.
[break][break]
“Yep, definitely Skull Island. Coulda seen that coming.” Not for the first time, they wonder, if their continuous comparison of real life to pop culture was a telling take on just how much pop culture they imbibed.
[break][break]
The group presses into a clearing, staggered here and there with small buildings. It looks like a summer-camp. They’re met with a less than welcoming introduction to Ranger Zinnia who, to her credit, does not look like either a summer-camp counselor, or a serial killer, which CJ definitely expected. CJ follows Zinnia’s gaze up into the sky, where the glorious sunset is made paler by the presence of such vibrant flora; they’re left with the characteristic summer-camp warning of Do Not Wander, and then it is up to them to find a place to bunk for the night.
[break][break]
CJ immediately becomes a sweating ball of anxiety, a long history of being picked last for stuff and things emerging to the forefront of their memory. Outwardly, though, they stick to their Key Life Plan of fake it ‘till you make it; portray an extrinsic example of cool and nonplussed and people will get the impression that you are actually cool.
[break][break]
Still, they were torn between following the rules like a good little ranger and sneaking out to explore the island-- and possibly get grievously wounded or ruin the trip for everyone in the process. It was a hard decision.
[break][break]
People start pairing off immediately and CJ is forcing themselves to remember to breath and not panic. Still, real recognizes real, and they notice a few other stragglers seemingly having a rough time meshing, like Johanna Joy, though their hopes are dashed when she gets snapped up by angelo vestri, whom, again, CJ recognizes but doesn’t, at the same time.
[break][break]
Pretending to be looking at the surroundings, they make their way over to the fire, a slow mosey that directly contrasts the rapid beating of their heart. Holy shit, they’re going to be only person without a bunkmate. Why does this matter so much? It doesn’t, it doesn’t, it doesn’t--
[break][break]
“Monsters, probably,” they remark offhand to Remiel Calcifet, whom they overhear talking. They flash the dark-haired stranger a grin. “Or, like, the trees eat us. Something macabre like that.” BARNABY FINCH helpfully suggests that it’s a safety measure, which makes the most sense, but, “C’mon, where’s the fun in that?” Their tone is a jaunty lilt, as they steal a seat, elbow on a knee and chin in hand. “Safety is boring.”


[break][break]

+ (wearing) [break]
this is just a big word diarrhea because i love describing scenery. anyway, CJ has anxiety, realizes their phone isn't working which is not surprising, and is chilling by the fire talking to Remiel Calcifet, luka chêne, BARNABY FINCH, and whomstever else came up [break]
still no bunkmate nickisadge

[attr="class","pokeclass"]