Cole's expression turned neutral, an extremely rare occurrence to those who know him. The smug snake is usually never seen without a coy smile, Klaus's words affected him deeply. The tone he spoke with next was also rare, serious without a trace of his usual demented sarcasm.

"You never mentioned that detail. You should not have hid it." He paused, hoping to at least catch Klaus's eyes so that the idol can realize how different this was. "It's my job to make your life hard, it's the price you must pay for your success. However it's also my job to take care of you. You are my responsibility. If something like this occurs I can't help if you don't tell me."

He let that hang in the air, tilting his head slightly to the left. "I could rid you of this 'fan', if you'd like."

KLAUS CARTIER

Cole's smile broadened slightly as Klaus took his seat. He did not, in fact, choose the outfit--but he wish he did. It was just so--perfect. It almost made him want to chortle, but he restrained himself just this once.

He did not object to Klaus's demand for coffee, instead putting on a sympathetic expression as he agreed.

"Of course! We're stopping by Starmie's on the way. I can barely function without espresso."

The car began its journey, and as Cole chuckled at his own remark he would return to reading the zine with a flourish. He held it in such a way that Klaus would be able to stare into his own eyes on the cover.

By this point, Klaus should be able to recognize the issue Cole was reading--and thus he should know exactly why his manager had decided to accompany him on this trip. After a minute of silence, Cole would chuckle to himself and shake his head.

"My goodness, popstars these days say the darndest things--sometimes when they're not supposed to." Cole's eyes peered over the zine, hiding his smile and leaving Klaus with only his cold gaze.

"Wouldn't you agree, Ventus?"

KLAUS CARTIER

His boss said his piece, and referred to Cole for further input. Having a much softer voice, Cole happily grabbed the megaphone and aimed it at the gathered thespians. The megaphone crackled as he pulled the 'trigger', and after clearing his throat he would provide his own thoughts.

"This is not your message board or high school production! We are PRIME TIME people, mediocrity will not be tolerated! Shine like a star or burn up trying! Now go see Abby to get organized, double time it we're burning daylight!"

Abby was the name of the stage hand that would set an order for the performers. The performers huddled around her, and began being sorted alphabetically. As the first performer finally took center stage, Cole reached under the table and pulled out a bag of popcorn.

He aimed the bag toward his employer before taking a handful himself. This should be a very entertaining afternoon.

@shelby

Today was a special occasion for the Pokezaar family! They were on the hunt for new members, and at last it was time to cast their net and see what they could catch! Posters had been plastered all across Slateport, message boards had been spammed, radio stations had been broken into, all to advertise Pokezaar's very first Talent Search Extravaganza! All interested parties were to report to the Mooney Community Theater at the crack of dawn! Signs ended when the even ends at five pm, so everyone was free to drop by to participate as long as the theater was open!

Of course the 'theater' was just a vacant warehouse that had been as extravagantly decorated as the budget would allow. It was such a dramatic change that you could hardly tell that they used to can milktank livers here! A raised wooden platform acted as a makeshift stage, with a heavy red curtain held by low bearing pipes acting as a buffer between the audience and the wannabe performers.

The audience consisted of only two individuals seated at a foldable table. One would be the illustrious Mr. Mooney himself, here to personally choose who to invite to the family. Beside him sat Cole Douglas, a recent addition that specialized in make Mr. Mooney's sky-high dreams a reality. As of now that meant finding new blood for the circus, hence this delightful little talent show!

Cole had been serenely nursing a bottle of water, his signature resting smile fluctuating from near-neutral to downright giddy at periodic intervals. Cole was eager to getting this show underway, but it was up to Mr. Mooney to decide when to start. All he had to do was use the megaphone placed in front of him.

@shelby

A limousine would pull up to the Grand Mauvillian Hotel to pick up KLAUS CARTIER, aka the pop idol Ventus. His driver would send him a simple text, notifying him that he was outside and ready. Today Ventus would be holding a surprise performance at the Mauville Aquarium, helping to celebrate the grand opening of their new Paldea exhibit. Klaus had been preparing for this mini-concert for a few weeks now, but nothing could prepare him for what awaited him within the limo.

Sitting in the seats facing away from the driver, Cole had been spending the ride thus far reading through a tween pop culture magazine. Ventus's gleaming face could be found on the cover, advertising an interview held within. Cole had been in fact reading this very interview--over and over and over again. Occasionally he would chuckle to himself, seemingly amused by something only his eyes could see.

Eventually the driver would open one of the doors for Klaus to climb into the backseats, shedding light on an otherwise dim chamber. Cole looked up from the magazine, his smug smile as strong as ever. "Good morning Superstar! I hope you're ready for a busy-busy day!"

Taking with KLAUS CARTIER

Taking with @shelby!

Cole did not enjoy being tricked. Well, no one does but it is especially painful to Cole. His entire career is built on trickery; in order to survive in his world he had to keep track of every possible scheme, scam, and hoax in the universal book of tricks. Counterfeit money is one of the easiest tricks to catch, especially when it came to Poke coins. The modern world has long ago adapted to pointing out fake currency. Yet somehow, someone managed to pull the wool over his eyes--and he was less than enthused.

The perpetrator in question requested to pay back Cole in physical coins, which was the first red flag. Cole's mistake was overconfidence, he allowed this condition because he was certain the fucker would attempt to trick him--and then he could have some fun by showing the poor fool what a poor choice that was. The problem was though--the coins were legitimate. They passed every possible test, there was nothing wrong with them. Impressed, Cole thought the story would end there and he would just roll up the coins and turn them in.

Yet as he brought them to his local POG bank, it would be discovered that all of the Mint Marks on the coins were pushed in instead of poking out. Cole did not even notice. His humiliation and rage was inconceivable, and after clearing everything up with the bank Cole set out to get his revenge.

It was rare for Cole to actually use Rocket assets, after all he joined their ranks more for the operation convenience rather than to actually work with them. Yet this circumstance called for drastic measures. He did not just want the perpetrator to learn a lesson, he wanted to make them hurt. Who better to make that happen then a career criminal. Rocket's roster was sizable, there had to be at least one among them that could accomplish what Cole desired.

Luckily he did not need to look too far; after asking around it became pretty clear that a certain dorian westcliff was the man to turn to when you needed someone to suffer. Cole attempted to contact Dorian through Rocket channels, inviting him to tea at a Slateport cafe. He was not sure if he would show up, but Cole nevertheless patiently waited with tea in hand and a smile on his face.