[attr="class","rubyw"]

From the annoyingly abundant to the strange to the actually valuable, Ruby was finding quite a lot down here. She wondered if there were people who did this full-time and if they ever found anything good.

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[attr="class","rubyw"]

Had Ruby tried to dunk Elinor Anderson before? It was hard to keep track of all these strangers. Especially when Ruby didn't really care for much beyond "throw ball, hit target."

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[attr="class","rubyw"]

"I didn't lie! I just didn't mention it, that's all." Ruby sounded awfully defensive for someone who had just lied, even if only by omission. But who had time for technical terms like that? Not Ruby, that was for sure. At least Jade was getting a kick out of Ruby's humiliation. That meant Isaac was safe... for now. Though Ruby did toss him a "Gross" at his suggestion that she bandage him up before tossing her line back in.

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[break]Luckily, Jade easily picked up on Isaac's sarcasm, even if she couldn't physically see that he wasn't bleeding all over the place. "I'm glad you're all right," she said.

[break][break]Isaac's quip about being Ruby's secret earned him a glare from Ruby and a more scandalized look from Jade, but the latter died down when she realized that he was just teasing again. Jade smiled at his description of her brain flying the coop out of sheer boredom. "You must help keep things lively, then," she said.

[break][break]"That's one way to put it," Ruby mumbled just loud enough to be heard. She didn't have the heart to go any further, though. She could have said something about how she had to choose between being bored and being annoyed, but with the things she and Isaac had seen and talked about together, that was harder than it should have been.

[break][break]Jade seemed surprised that she was being addressed again. "Oh, I'm doing well. I'm glad I have the chance to spend time with Ruby like this. Her work keeps her away sometimes. Are you a freelancer like she is?"

[break][break]That was the excuse that Ruby had used since joining Team Rocket: She took up various odd jobs to pay the bills and called it "freelancing" to make it sound more official. Sometimes, those jobs required her to stay out of town for a few days, but they were always worth the cash, and she always tried to make time for Jade or buy her a present afterwards. Jade had gone along with it so far, but sometimes, Ruby wondered if she suspected her work's true nature. She was a smart kid, after all.

[attr="class","rubyw"]

Ruby exhaled sharply in something resembling a sardonic laugh at Isaac's sarcasm. "Yeah." But the direction he took next had Ruby's brow raised. She got that each person had lines they were and weren't willing to cross, Rocket or not, but being against one of the organization's largest operations? In retrospect, she wasn't all that surprised. This was Isaac, after all. But that just raised the question that she spoke aloud: "Why are you even in Rocket? You sound more like one of those vigilante types or something."

[break][break]Was it a personal question? Yeah, definitely. But it wasn't like Isaac hadn't already started probing into Ruby's own past. Fair was fair and all that.

[break][break]"Yeah, sure," she said to Isaac's thanks. She found herself unable to meet his eyes for a moment, unused to being thanked like this. It should have felt nice, but it stung like the prick of a needle in her heart. And she knew why when Isaac spoke again.

[break][break]"Oh, don't give me that shit." Energy returned to Ruby's voice, though it was venomous, angry, something she'd grown more used to than the more intimate tone the conversation had taken on before. It drove her to stand up, not wanting her to keep still as it coursed through her. "You think I'd be here if life worked like that? It fucking doesn't. It was either this or—or being left in the fucking dirt." She stopped herself from mentioning her family. What was left of it, anyway. "So don't give me that 'make your own destiny' bullshit."

[attr="class","rubyw"]

Ruby wasn't going to question why or how there was a perfectly good berry underwater. She was just going to take it and move on to whatever other treasure she could find.

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Ruby thought she recognized the person currently in the seat, but she didn't spend much time thinking about it before just chucking the ball.

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[attr="class","rubyw"]

Oh hey, it was that pink-haired girl luka chêne again. She still apologized for dunking, too! Eh, screw it, Ruby was in a good mood, so she wouldn't make fun of her for it. She just threw the ball, instead.

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[attr="class","rubyw"]

Isaac Merlo was being a better influence on Ruby's sister than Ruby herself when it came to not swearing. How dare he.

[break][break]She grinned at Isaac's comment on her strength. "Jealous?"

[break][break]"Didn't Atlas help you?" Jade asked.

[break][break]"Only a little!" Ruby blushed indignantly as Jade giggled to herself. Atlas took a moment to flex before returning to his trainer's side. Jade had already cast her line again and was patiently waiting for another bite.

[break][break]"So, what, you were scouting underwater for fish?" Ruby asked. "Heh, not your smartest idea with a bunch of hooks dangling around."

[break][break]"You're not hurt, are you?" Jade asked. Ruby was pretty sure he was fine, judging by how nonchalant he was being about being the catch of the day. He was even already casting his line! And joking around about Ruby actually socializing for once. With a deep frown, Ruby cast her own line out into the water.

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[break]Argh. There really wasn't any getting around this, was there? She tried to keep her deep breath through her nose quiet. "This is my sister, Jade."

[break][break]Jade smiled in Isaac's direction, her clouded eyes not quite meeting his. "It's a pleasure," she said. "I'm afraid Ruby hasn't mentioned you before, though."

[break][break]"We've worked together a few times," Ruby said. She flashed Isaac a look, one that was both a threat and a plea to not talk about the specifics.

[attr="class","rubyw"]

After taking a day to cool down, Ruby hopped on Arachne's back again and dove under the waves. It'd been a mixed bag yesterday, but as long as she didn't find a bunch of discarded Poké Balls again today, she'd be happy with her haul.

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[attr="class","rubyw"]

Of all the things she could be doing right now, Ruby couldn't believe it was fishing.

[break][break]Normally, she wouldn't even consider just sitting on the shore, fishing line dipped in the water, waiting for some oblivious fish to swim up and bite on the hook. But Jade had wanted to fish. Specifically, she'd wanted to fish with Ruby so they could have some quality sister time while Ruby had some time off "work." And dammit, how could Ruby say no to that?

[break][break]The sisters chatted as they waited for something to bite. Ruby sat in a fold-out chair while Jade sat next to her in her wheelchair, its wheels locked and Atlas the Machamp standing by in case something happened. Ruby listened as Jade talked about the books she'd read, the shows and radio dramas she'd listened to, the time she'd spent with her friends, her thoughts about school this coming year, and so on. When Jade probed Ruby for conversation topics, the redhead carefully picked from her recent jobs to avoid anything that sounded too criminal or dangerous and sometimes had to make up details. It wasn't like she could just openly talk about Rocket business. Not with Jade.

[break][break]"Oh!" the younger girl suddenly exclaimed. "I think I got a bite!" Indeed, her rod shook, and the bobber had gone under the water. Ruby watched as she began to reel it in.

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"Got it!" Jade exclaimed when she heard her catch break the surface. "Hmm, it doesn't feel too heavy..." Atlas stepped forward to grab ahold of the line and the Pokémon on it.

[break][break]Ruby laughed. "That is the smallest Huntail I've ever seen!"

[break][break]Atlas placed the eely Pokémon into Jade's outstretched hands so she could feel it. "Oh!" She giggled. "It is quite small, isn't it? Could you put it in the tank, Atlas?" Atlas nodded and placed the indignant Huntail into the large tank the girls had set aside for their catches. The rules said they could only keep one, but they could at least enjoy them for a little while before the end of the event.

[break][break]"Whoa!" Ruby suddenly shouted at a hard tug on her own line. She started to reel it in, only to be met with immense resistance. "Gh, this thing's a fighter!" She grunted as she pulled on the rod, but the force suddenly pulled her out of her chair with a startled cry. Atlas was quick to act, grabbing Ruby's shoulders with two arms and using the others to help her pull on her fishing line. The Machamp's great strength made it much easier to reel in whatever this behemoth was. It didn't feel like a Wailord or anything crazy like that, but it must have been one big, tough fish!

[break][break]"Are you all right?" Jade asked. "What's happening?"

[break][break]"I'm okay! Just got a big, tough one. C'mon, Atlas, pull!"

[break][break]Human and Pokémon tugged at Ruby's command, finally forcing their catch to breach the surface. At first, it just looked like a Mantine. But then, something else rose with it.

[break][break]"Isaac?!" Ruby shouted. "What the fuck, you're not a fish!"

[break][break]"Did... Did you catch a person?" Jade asked. Then, with a mischievous little smile, she added, "Also, language."

[break][break]Atlas chuckled behind Ruby.

[attr="class","rubyw"]

Ruby nodded at Onyx's warning. Nobody had come in or out, huh? So, what, had the whole thing been a trap from the get-go? And were the assailants still waiting inside? Ruby followed Onyx's example and breathed shallowly through her mouth as the stench fully caught up to her. Ugh. Ruby was far from squeamish, but this was something else. She swallowed back bile and forced herself to focus. If she didn't, she'd end up like one of these poor bastards.

[break][break]She took stock of the single-roomed first floor. A third corpse lay behind the front door like a macabre doorstop. Blood was streaked on the walls and even splattered on the ceiling. What the hell had killed these people for that to happen? She held her breath and moved closer to one of the corpses to check their wounds. It almost looked like they'd been slashed open by something thick and sharp. Claws, maybe? Ruby wasn't a pathologist, so she could only vaguely guess.

[break][break]From downstairs, Cerberus heard the thump of the recliner. He perked his ears up and spun toward the source of the sound with a growl, but Ruby had little time to react to the warning. There was a crash, and then a Sandslash all but flew into view and launched itself claws-first at Ruby. Cerberus acted fast, running in front of his trainer and letting out a Roar to knock it back, causing it to tumble to the floor.

[break][break]"Good boy," Ruby said. "Now Beat it Up!"

[break][break]Cerberus tilted his head back and let out a howl that gathered dark energy at his snout. It spread out to cover his body like an aura, but pieces of it broke off to wrap around Ruby's Poké Balls. One by one, Ruby's other Pokémon popped out, aimed a single strike at the Sandslash, and were called back into their Balls. It ended with Cerberus charging forward to deliver the final bite.

[break][break]Upstairs, the Haxorus knelt down and then slammed its head into the floor above, breaking through more of the floorboards until a suitably Haxorus-sized hole was created for it to climb through. It couldn't do much in its current position, but it did flash a Scary Face at Onyx and Mephites.

[attr="class","rubyw"]

Though the pun hadn't earned Aurelie any scorn, it'd definitely gotten her a confused look. But that was quickly forgotten in the midst of their planning, especially when Aurelie said she'd give Ruby the knives for free if this worked out. Hell yeah!

[break][break]She chuckled under her breath at Aurelie's comment about just strolling in through the front door. "They probably don't think anyone would use it to break in. Dumbasses."

[break][break]She watched the Magneton do its thing. She wasn't totally sure what that "thing" was, but it eventually made the camera lights flicker and die and the cameras themselves fall still like fainted Pokémon. "Perfect." She crept to the front door alongside her partner in crime, aaaaand it was a padlock. Great. She'd been hoping the lock was electronic so it could be shorted out, too.

[break][break]And then Aurelie asked the million-dollar question.

[break][break]"You don't?" Ruby asked. Shit, she'd assumed that since Aurelie had suggested bringing along the lockpicks that she'd know how to use them. "Fuck it, lemme see."

[break][break]Picking locks hadn't ever been Ruby's area of expertise. She'd always been the muscle, the lookout, the person who took out the guards if things got hairy. But she knew the basics and had watched plenty of locks be picked in her life, so how hard could it be? She grabbed the lockpicking kit they'd brought along and pulled out the tension wrench. Step one was to slide that into the lock and put on a bit of tension, like turning a key. Next... Shit, which one of these tools was she supposed to use? The city rake tool kind of looked like a key, so she'd start there.

[break][break]"Watch for the guards," she whispered before getting to work. She pushed the rake tool into the lock and began to wiggle it back and forth. When she felt the pins start to set, she smirked. Amateur lockpicking 1, League security 0. The lock began to turn, and Ruby nudged the tension wrench to finish the job... but then it stopped turning partway. "Fuck," she hissed before wiggling the rake tool again. "Come on...!" Strike that, League security was actually winning. Crap.

[break][break]As Ruby struggled with the lock, the guards in the back muttered amongst themselves about the call they'd just received. Apparently, the cameras at the front door had shorted out. Naturally, that was a problem. One of the guards agreed to head around to the front to check it out, his trusty Arcanine at his side. As they moved closer, the Arcanine picked up an unfamiliar scent in the air and began to growl.

[break][break]"What is it, girl?" the guard asked. After another low growl, the Arcanine picked up her pace, leaving the guard to jog after her.

[attr="class","rubyw"]

Ruby's face perked up a bit in curious interest while still maintaining its usual neutral frown when Isaac mentioned taking pride in treating his Pokémon well. That was always a gamble with her fellow Rockets, how they felt about and treated their Pokémon partners. Ruby always tried to keep her tough appearance up, but she still tried to treat her Pokémon well. For one, it was practical. A trainer and Pokémon who were in sync tended to perform better, and she didn't have to worry about a disgruntled Pokémon lashing out at her with a devastating Flamethrower or Earthquake or something. But more than that, no matter how much she entrenched herself in the criminal underworld, she didn't think she'd ever be able to let go of how she saw the bonds between people and Pokémon. Not after how she'd seen them change lives.

[break][break]He seemed excited about the idea of visiting a specialized facility until he mentioned the potential screening and, inadvertently, just why he was asking about service Pokémon. The corners of Ruby's mouth twitched down further for a moment. So that's what this was all about. Ruby was pretty used to seeing some fuck-up shit out there, given her upbringing, but it seemed that wasn't the case for Isaac. No wonder he was having nightmares.

[break][break]Ruby didn't plan to pry, but Isaac clearly didn't have the same boundaries about Ruby's own past. "Just... something I used to be interested in, I guess," she said, her voice sinking under her regret. She tried to sound more casual as she continued, even adding a shrug of her shoulders, but that ache still sat in her heart. "So a facility's out. That just leaves finding an egg or capturing a wild one, unless you wanna steal one. Don't think that'd make it a very good partner, though."