She just didn’t want to respond to him, it was as simple as that. Wren was able to hold her for short amounts of time, which was good, but beyond that she bit and scratched him and cried. Maybe he fidgeted too much for her and it scared her, which he could understand.[break][break]

“I don’t think you will, though,” he replied as a small frown shadowed his expression. Levy never seemed to believe in himself the way Wren did. It hurt his heart a little. Levy was quiet, but thoughtful and grounding. There was a lot of merit he didn’t seem to think he had. Something he’d said or did must’ve done the trick though, because a moment later Levy was agreeing.[break][break]

“Yeah? I’m glad! I really think you’ll do great,” Wren answered and despite the tension still twisting in his stomach, he beamed when Levy agreed. Though it faltered somewhat at the question. “Well…nothing for sure. She’s real good at ignoring. And also so serious, a lot of cutesy stuff doesn’t work well.” Maybe something formal that could have a cute nickname would be good. All eevee were cute as heck, there was no way around it no matter how feral one was.[break][break]

“Plus, it should be your choice!” He said so, though he knew full well how Levy’s track record with naming pokemon was. It had been similar when he’d given Vee to Levy. “Sometimes I call her Minerva and think she reacts, but I think I’m just imagining it.”[break][break]

He shouldn’t put the other thing off though, right? Slowly, Wren sat back in his seat, and his hands withdrew as he reached for his cup again to take a long drink of his boba. Looking down, he fidgeted with the straw stuck through the lid. Unable to keep still. “I do have something else to tell you, though. I just…don’t want you to hate me for it.” He balked, suddenly. “Oh! But please don’t think I was trying to sweeten you up with the eevee, I was gonna ask you to care for her anyway!”

[break][break]

+ Levy Alinsky | cuties :c

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Okay, if you say so..” Wren found himself reluctant to let go of his hold on Levy’s hand. Would it be so bad to just hang out like that? He didn’t think so. But it felt…different. Or it had been as of late. When they were younger he’d never had any problem with that contact between them. He’d held Levy’s hands and hugged him, and all sorts of affectionate stuff. Wren had never been shy about touch, not with anyone, really. It had always felt so natural with Levy, though. Maybe because it was an unspoken need for Lev, who had been skittish and a little wild when Wren had first met him.[break][break]

Now, though, there was a shift in how it felt to hold his hand. Wren had never been hyper conscious about it. Why was he suddenly so aware of it now? Even more so how it made him feel, and from there what it made him think he’d like to do beyond that. He was glad that he was leading and Levy was unable to see his face because heat had lifted to his cheeks furiously at the thought alone. That was not good. He had no place thinking such things, and so he was certain that the change wasn’t between them but in his own head. This was his problem. And he wasn’t about to make Levy uncomfortable with…all that.[break][break]

Maybe if he stopped to think about it for long enough, he’d also recognize the fear of rejection, but Wren decided in the moment to also blame the strange twinge of emotion on the buzz from the alcohol he’d already consumed. “Good good good,” he chirped with a laugh (forced?) as they finally reached the kitchen. There was no reason to hold on any longer, so he regretfully let go as he beelined for the litany of bottles scattered across the island bar in the middle of the room. “They made this big cauldron of…well, they’re calling it witch’s brew, but I think it’s really just a bunch of different smirnoff flavors dumped together.”

[break][break]

+ Levy Alinsky | m: a little party never hurt nobody | he’s NOT ALLOWED TO DIE!!

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

He was definitely still learning the importance of building connections. Not that he’d necessarily ever considered doing so to be a difficult thing—he was naturally social and outgoing. But there was definitely an added weight and gravitas that came with building ties for work rather than just simply making friends. Though he liked to do both, if he could manage. “I’ll keep that in mind for sure!” And really, he appreciated any advice he could get.[break][break]

“That’s true!” Juno looked up at him with a twitch of her ears as Wren grinned down. “Thank you’ll manage to get nice and big, Junie?” The eevee trilled in response, clearly thinking as much. But that’s also Juno’s personality—always confident, even for such a small little thing. “Yeah, that works for me. Fair point.” In all honesty, Wren hadn’t realized they’d wandered so far down the route, but he hadn’t been timing it. They’d just been moseying along, enjoying the lazy morning.[break][break]

At the suggestion, Wren pulled a funny sort of grimace. “Good idea.” He definitely wasn’t looking for a repeat of the stomach lurching nausea he’d experienced after his ride on the arcanine. No fault to Braver, of course. He’d just not been expecting the side effects on his stomach. Wren hummed in thought then, not at all minding Josh taking over with the jolteon. He looked over the rest, and then stepped toward the sylveon who had been so sweet to Juno. “Wanna work with me for a bit?” he asked, grinning widely as he offered a hand.


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin | m: bond bridge

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Wren’s eyes widened and his expression brightened with the connections. “Oh, really? That’s so cool!” He laughed, a hand lifting to run through his hair. “Guess that goes to show how beneficial networking can be.” Especially among the ranger stations from city to city, town to town. All across the region.[break][break]

“Sure! I wouldn’t mind that.” In all honesty, he hadn’t ridden since their mission. It was almost a little daunting, though he’d considered getting the hang of it with his recently evolved gogoat. It was a steep reminder of his mistakes during that chase, but maybe without it being so high stakes, things wouldn’t go so bad? He was at least willing to try.[break][break]

He perked up at the suggestion. “Oh, that’s a good point! I hadn’t thought about that.” Josh wasn’t wrong. Though he had some ideas about Juno’s eventual evolution, Wren hadn’t landed on anything for sure. It should definitely match her big personality, though. He knew that much. When given the attention, Juno turned to Pinky to bat at the ribbon-like tendrils—leaving Inky alone and giving him a break.[break][break]

Absently, he smoothed over the fur at the top of the eevee’s head he was holding. “So, uh, do you have a preference for uh, who’s good to ride..?” Still slightly unsure of himself, as always.

[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin | m: bond bridge

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“Well, no one can ever claim you’re not determined!” Wren replied, smiling a bit at Josh’s determination to see the Silph Cup through. Wren, despite his own high enthusiasm, probably would’ve felt pretty down after something like what the other had gone through. “Oh, yes! I’m heading out to do more training with ollie morales in Evergrande soon, but that would be cool! It’s nice having some familiar faces to team up with.”[break][break]

At the simple rebuff, Wren shook his head. “It’s fine, that makes sense.” Wren shrugged, offering him a lighthearted smile, “It’s understandable.” At the sudden change in topic, Wren tilted his head. He definitely didn’t blame Josh for not wanting to linger on such a serious subject, so he rolled with it. “Oh, I’m not headed anywhere in particular—probably just back toward Slateport later.” Wren laughed as he nodded in agreement, looking down at the eevee. “That’d be nice, if you’ve got the time. Juno does get excited easily.” She was still wiggling, hopping around the larger Pokémon in playful provocation.[break][break]

Wren bent to scoop up the other eevee, however, and she tucked into his arm shyly. At least she would allow him to hold her, even if she wasn’t all that trusting. “You’re not quite ready yet, though, huh?” Even though he’d been working to rehab her before handing her off to his best friend, she still wasn’t quite quick enough on three legs yet as she would have been on four. But baby steps, right?

[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin | m: bond bridge

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sending over

Levy Alinsky

☉

MINERVA (SZ EEVEE) ♀ ANTICIPATION take down, swift, baby-doll eyes, swift, double kick [x]

Wren hadn’t really considered that the gift would maybe make Levy uneasy–whether he had sorta stressful news to share too. In his mind, it made sense. This eevee did not seem to want to bond with him no matter what he did. Even though he’d helped the little creature from worse harm. She had been sort of out of it when he’d captured her to free her from the trap she’d been stuck in, at the cost of her leg, of course. But they didn’t know that it would come to that after. It didn’t matter–she’d decided that she didn’t trust him unless Juno was there. She did, at least, like Juno.[break][break]

All the same, he didn’t want the eevee to be miserable in his care. And he didn’t know how to explain it beyond a gut feeling, but giving her to Levy just seemed like the right call. That said, he was too busy thinking about that, and how he had to say he was leaving for Evergrande afterward to consider that his weird vibes had an effect on his best friend.[break][break]

“Thanks,” he said quietly as one cake was pushed his way, and before he blurted out his new and bungled everything (even though he was probably going to anyway,) Wren stabbed a straw into his drink and began to sip as a means of silencing himself. Rather than speak aloud to the question, he nodded seriously, still drinking his tea. Eventually, though, he did have to speak and so he somewhat reluctantly set his cup to the side. “What do you mean you’re not the right person? Sure you are. She doesn’t like me, and I just…I dunno, it just felt right. I think she’ll warm up to you.” Juno, for the time being, settled down next to the other eevee who had her ears flattened low, huddling close in comfort.[break][break]

He sighed, reaching out across the table, both hands settling on one of Levy’s in earnest. “Yes, Lev. I’m sure. It’ll be good.” He bit his lip on the part that continued to be left unsaid. About how it might be helpful when he was away.

[break][break]

+ Levy Alinsky | cuties :c

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“Are you out to train?” he asked curiously as the rest of Josh’s gaggle caught up with them. Juno was quick to investigate, yipping back at the call made by Josh’s espeon. She crouched down, wiggling in play as if she might pounce. His other eevee, however, remained impassive. Sitting nearly behind Wren with a wary air about her. He frowned down slightly. That wouldn’t do..[break][break]

“Yep!” Wren nodded vigorously, “Well, doing my best to anyway. That’s so exciting—I’m sure it’ll come quickly. I don’t see why not, despite the busyness.”[break][break]

Wren balked at the story Josh laid out for him, gold eyes widening into two round moons, as he inhaled—the sound sharp with surprise. An assassination attempt? Was it okay for him to be out here now? Was it safe? It must’ve been…surely. And Wren liked to think the other’s judgement was sound in that regard. With all of these eeveelutions surrounding him like a little entourage, it was likely all the protection Josh needed. He remained quiet until the gym leader had finished. “Woah, that’s a lot to deal with. How are you faring? Surely it won’t go totally cold though..” Wren paused, chewing at his lip in thought, “Is it just that they don’t know, or just an overload of things to do for the pd?”


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin | m: bond bridge

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His head tilted, studying Levy with a slow blink of golden eyes. “Are you sure?” was all he asked in return. Just as Levy had easily called him out the day he’d placed the safari ball in his friend’s hand, Wren was equally capable of sensing an offness in the other. It was probably his fault—Levy didn’t want to be here, and Wren had practically twisted his arm into it. Why was he so selfish? Maybe the few drinks he’d had beforehand were not such a good idea. Rather than mellow him out, he felt the stir of his nerves being heightened.[break][break]

Still, he couldn’t help the broad grin that tugged across his mouth when he managed to coax the tiny smile from Levy.Redness in his face Wren didn’t fully know the reason for. Must have just been because of the compliment, that’s all. “Thanks! Kinda helped that I had this backpack already,” he replied with a dumb giggle, sheepish as he looked down at his toes. Cute, he had no reason to dwell on the word, because after all…it was just the costume. Friends called friends cute all the time. Complimented each other, stuff like that. So Wren had no reason to think heavily on it, but it still made him all warm, fuzzy comfort and gladness diffusing through his chest.[break][break]

Though it also caused an achy little twinge in his heart, too. He was leaving this behind in Slateport. He could reassure Levy all he liked, but it wouldn’t be quite the same over the phone. Wren did know that. It— no, nope! He wasn’t gonna think negatively. In fact, Wren was gonna do the opposite. This was supposed to be fun.[break][break]

He held fast to Levy’s hand—ahead of him so that he could push other partygoers aside so that Levy wouldn’t have to. At some point he’d linked their fingers in a tighter hold, though he wasn’t sure when and wasn’t thinking all that hard about it. “Kitchen!” he called back over his shoulder as the doorway came into view, the brighter light of the space shining through into the dimly (spookily?) lit den packed with people. “Thought a drink would be good.”

[break][break]

+ Levy Alinsky | m: a little party never hurt nobody | he’s NOT ALLOWED TO DIE!!

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