[attr="class","samjermain"]The ginger girl offered a shrug in CASPIAN LEVESQUE’s direction. Copper eyes slid toward his notebook, curious what exactly he was scribbling at. Maybe some bullshit poetry about silver bells? The woman’s snort was disguised by the burning of alcohol. Only after that settled into her stomach did Madeline give him her full attention. “It’s nice to meet you, Doc.” Talk about braggardly—Aubre never used her title. People she liked didn’t start with titles. Still, the bookworm seemed harmless enough.

Though not a huge fan of wine, Madeline took a glass when offered. Her face softened as she turned toward the window. “Not too bad.” Her hands wiped sweat down her jeans. A few snowflakes could be seen in the air outside. It made Madd think of home. “This is the first year it feels like a holiday.” Unsuccessful in his attempts to fix the broken ornament, the Obstagoon resumes his post at his trainer’s side. His normally silly demeanor is shy and demure—a sign of guilt. When the redhead isn’t looking, he slides the shattered crystal beneath a coaster.

The conversation continues until it’s time to unwrap. The Kiss Cam earns red cheeks but no further reaction. She wasn't going to do that dance for some random DJ. She keeps her eyes out for her gift. Only after seeing it being torn into does she turn to her own. Though—as she starts—her posture becomes almost turtle-like. Opening gifts always made her feel like a performing monkey.

Surprised by her own excitement, she quickly tears into the envelope. Yakuza crowds over her, crimson eyes wide with curiosity. He probably thought there was food in here. “Stop crowding me, Yakky.” The little ticket slid to the bar top. Copper eyes blinked. “Huh.” Holding it up to the other bargoers, she asked, “Does anyone know where this is? It's not a sex thing, right?”


Having heard @xenon bitching about that stuff earlier, Yakuza turns to face her. With a toothy grin, he waves the card at her.

Notes

• Yakuza returns and shows @xenon they got her gift
• Madd asks if anyone knows where this club is
• Embarrassed by opening gifts

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]The redhead is quick to shake her head. Then, she pauses—that’s not right. With a bit of self-admonishment she murmurs a desperate, “Yeah, I’m all right.” A bit of levity follows. A distraction. One punctuated by her picking at the top of her stupid costume. It suddenly felt like it was fifty degrees out here. She grins, “Only ghost here is you, John Wayne.” But, noticeably, she doesn’t look in his eyes again.

Yakuza doesn’t notice his trainer’s distress. Hell, this secret was the only thing the badger didn’t know. So, if he had, the Obstagoon would have been just as confused as Navy. Instead, he’s distracted by the punching of the water. After a moment, he joins in. The fish below seem to have fun. A few little ones dart in and out of the pair’s deadly claws.

With a snicker, Yakuza reached over for some of Navy’s bait and dropped it in the water.

“Since April? Damn. Why does that feel like like a lifetime ago?” Which, for her, it had been. Until it’d gone back to just being a few months. That time distortion in Galar still wreaked havoc on her circadian rhythm. Sometimes she still expected to wake up to a teenaged daughter sneaking out the window. As Navy continued, Madd’s smile turned sad. “Yeah. My uncle’s house.” Hell, no matter what she’d done, he always welcomed her with open arms. Aubre McKenna-Settentrione didn’t know how lucky she had it. “I wish it was here.”

The news? The redhead shakes her head. “Nah. My life’s hard enough without worrying about the apocalypse.” For the most part, that stuff didn’t impact her. It wasn’t like she was planning on reenacting Gilligan’s Island or anything. ”But I get why people are scared.” Still, if a god did get pissed off at them, she didn’t think there was jack shit they could do. Probably just piss themselves sooner and fight.

“Well, hopefully it comes next weekend.” The idea of being found in this outfit was way scarier than the murder whale. “I’ve got plans.” She was surprised to find her vision blurred by tears. Maybe that flashback had gotten closer than she thought.

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]MADD X JAREK
The redhead raises a brow at him. You shouldn’t have to. Muscular arms fold across her chest. What was with brats and thinking that doing hard work was fun? After just a decade of it, she’d give her left arm to go back to exams and teenaged taunts. “And kids could work in shirt factories, but we both know how that ended up.” A ton of kids walking around missing arms and legs for a few measly bucks. That kind of shit should have ended ages ago, but somehow having a Pokemon meant child labor laws meant Jack.

As the pickaxe got stuck, Madeline stifled a laugh. It vanished into an arm like a deformed little sneeze. Her Obstagoon, on the other hand, didn’t know the meaning of polite. “Goongogogogo!” He chortled at Jarek as he mimed swinging the axe. He gestured to the teenager as if trying to show Madeline she hadn’t just seen. “Yakky. Stop being a jackass.” An elbow to the ribs shut the badger up for a minute.

“Let me get that for you.” With a grunt and a rocking motion, she tugged the offending tool free. It reminded her of an old story book. For a second, she let the pickaxe hand in the air before she discarded it at the boy’s feet. Guess that makes me Queen of Galar now.

Moving to another boulder, she lifted a hammer. But, just as she lowered it, the rock moved. It looked at her. “Shit!” Madeline stumbled out of the way as the Rhyhorn unfurled from its bull. It wasn’t happy. “HORN!” With a trumpeting sound, it charged forward. Watching as it unleashed a Bulldoze at Jarek and his rat, the redhead winced. Rocketing back to her feet, she reached a hand out, almost as if she could stretch enough to close the distance. “Move!”

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]Spooked by the water demon’s sudden appearance, Yakuza made no move to get up. Instead, he stared suspiciously at all the puddles around him. A few of them left behind by the Vaporeon’s own feet as it broke for the water. As his trainer approached, she laid a hand on his head. A gentle stroke was enough to calm him down. “You guys tagged it, right?” She’d had that done to her by a cop once. The inability to escape wasn’t a feeling the Rocket easily forgot. “I don’t think it could get too far.”

The crystallization of the crocodile made the pair immediately forget about the Vaporeon. “Whoa.” Madd reached for the little crystalline hat, as if expecting it to be a hologram. “You guys always come up with the weirdest stuff.” Her own Pokemon didn’t Mega Evolve or grow to three stories anymore. At least, not after they left Ye Olde Galar. Then, Andrea gave her order. Copper eyes widened. “Wait, what!?” With a look of panic, she shouted out to her oversized fishbowl: “Clear the deck, guys!”

By then, the water had already begun to bubble. For a minute, nothing moved within the water. But, suddenly, the water itself rose into a humped shape. Suddenly, the lake near the shore had points and a finned tail. Still invisible, the Vaporeon’s outline was only visible in the steam. As it locked eyes with Madeline, the creature hissed. “Eon!” It bared broken, yellow teeth. Jumping out of the pot, the fox landed on the shore—the figurative fire.

A ball of Chilling Water rocketed from its mouth in hopes of snuffing out the Fuecoco.

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]Madeline spotted the suspect at about the same time as Andrew. Copper's eyes widened as she lifted a finger for quiet. But, the hunter-for-hire had different ideas, apparently. “Yakky!” As the pair took off, the redhead moved to follow. “Let’s go!” After hours of sitting cross-legged, her legs had fallen asleep. It took a stumbling step or two before she stopped thinking her legs would give out.

“Goon?” Yakuza stared forlornly at his hands. A, freshly cooked more was clutched between his claws. The evidence of earlier snacks coated his fur. Suddenly, he cared a lot less about the phantom fisher guy. All he wanted was to contemplate the flavor complexities of this treat. When she realized he wasn’t following, Madd turned to glare at the regretful badger. “Come on, man! Just eat it!"

With a chomp, the graham cracker disappeared into his needle-filled muzzle. Any response, however, was stymied by a column of blistering hot marshmallows. With the Shadow Tag holding whatever it was in place, the badger made a rush for it. This would be super easy! Like shooting fish in a barrel or whatever human stuff people did. It was his time to shine, baby!

But, as he approached the disturbed area, he found nothing but footprints leading to an empty puddle. The footprints—dog-like—just vanished at the water’s edges. “Obsta?” He stared at Gigi with accusatory eyes. With a frown, he toed the water’s surface. From it, a finned, shadowy shape bursts. Its teeth clamp around his ankle as the scruff Vaporeon locks onto his foot.

But, up close and personal, the half-water creature looked like a demon. Its abyssal eyes seemed silver in the moonlight. “!?” With a high-pitched squeal, Yakuza began kicking his feet like a dancer in a Celtic line. He fell into the mud seconds later with an audible splash. Then, as quick as it appeared, the Vaporeon vanished.

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]“Thanks.” The redhead takes the cigarette with only the briefest moment of hesitation. She rolls the paper between her fingers. The familiar smell and texture were oddly foreign. At his suggestion to go inside, she debates lighting up right next to him. Maybe trying to blow his smoke serpents apart with hazy rings. It wasn’t like a place like this let you light up inside. But something makes her reconsider the juvenile protest.

Instead, Madeline nods. “Casteliascones, huh?” Copper eyes shift to the door. Again, the cigarette is rolled between her fingers—in the opposite direction of before. Her thumb balances on its filter. “I should probably grab some before roasting the taste buds.” Not wanting to seem like she’s running with her tail between her legs, the girl offers a sloppy salute. “Don’t freeze out here.” Then, and only then, does she dive back into the kaleidoscope of backstabbers and false smiles.

Seeing Yakuza at the boba bar, Madeline heads toward the opposite side of the room. At some point, she drops the cigarette into the same place as her wallet. As she fades from view, the cigarette vanishes into the same mystery space as her wallet. Making a beeline for the bar, the woman drops onto the stool on violet cross’s opposite side. A cursory nod is offered to her, Howard, Makoto, and Amor Rose. While Glasses protested the head scientist’s question, Madd was quick to answer.

“It’s some high-end fishing stuff.” All of it is gotten for the total of zero dollars. “It claims its strong enough to reel in Kyogre itself.” A scoff of disbelief followed. Marketers really pushed it sometimes. With Steven off to poker, the redhead grabbed a bottle of half-empty liquor. Careful not to spill any, she makes a quick line of four shots."Personally, I'd take the cash."

Just in case CASPIAN LEVESQUE or Makoto Kurumi needs a drink as badly as she does.

Notes

• Bids Harcourt a farewell and heads inside
• Heads to the bar for a drink
• Answers Amor's question

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]Yakuza moves to stand beside the Urshifu. With an almost childlike expression, he drops into a kneeling position beside him. A clawed hand gently brushes the top of the waves. Where he grew up, there wasn’t much water to go around. It definitely didn’t look like this. It was rainbow-colored.


When Navy turned toward her, Madeline froze in place. A small gasp erupted as memories rocketed to the surface. A nose like that shattered and bleeding. Her elbow was bruised by the impact. A rough bag is tugged back and forth between them like a dog’s rope toys. Then, of course, there were the eyes. Shit! Shit! Shit! What’s he doing here!? But, then, her mind picked out the differences. No, wait. It’s not him. Chill out, Aubre Junior. The jaw structure was off and so were the cheekbones.

She’d know. That face took center stage in her dream. No, her nightmares. But the panic is short-lived. People looked like each other all the fricking time. It didn’t mean anything.

So, why'd she want to run so badly?

Shaking her head to clear the fog, the redhead turns back toward the water. Goosebumps now cover her arms. “Yeah?” Those same limbs lifted to cross across her chest. “That sucks.” They shift up slightly. But, no matter how she places them, there’s an embarrassing amount of titty on display. However, that earlier panic is making this feeling more apparent. “Is that right?” She humss. “Maybe something’s scaring them off.” Last she heard, this place was crawling with all kinds of weird, ugly, physics-defying weirdoes.

Home for the summer, huh? A small, pensive small appears. A little too old for that, but the idea’s nice. “No sir. I never went.” She was too busy doing stupid shit to piss off her dad. Like joining a terrorist organization and pretending to like pencil dick. “They needed a hand over here, and I thought I’d help.” There’s another shrug. “It’s nicer than my place.” That little pond might have fish, but it also had mud and old crappy trees.

She takes a deep breath of the salty air. “So, you were here last summer too?”

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]

[attr="class","samjermain"]Even before her cousin was deep-fried, Madd never put much stock in appearances. She knew what her mom looked like without makeup. And, a lot of handsome people were just rats. She wasn’t perfect. Nobody was. Her frame wasn’t exactly feminine. And those arms? Made for an Oranguru. He wasn’t the only one uncomfortable with exposed skin.

The guy’s voice wasn’t too bad either. When he finished, her shoulders lifted in a shrug. “It just means our clocks are broken the same way. Pretty cool.” Seeing the poor guy’s uncomfortable expression, she began to wonder if she’d messed up. Maybe a guy like this could be killed with kindness? Or, at least, by someone trying to be a decent person. The man’s list almost made her snort. “Work’s a tough mistress, huh?”

At the question, the redhead nodded. “I—” Before she could answer, however, a stray volleyballer butted into the awkward distance between them. “Watch it!” With a glare, the former debutante waited for Clumsy Hands to scramble away. After that, she resumed what she’d been saying. “I watch a lot of bad movies. Sometimes I pick up a book or remember I have a bike.” Mostly B-horror movies, especially classic stuff. The worse the color and audio, the better. “And, when I’m feeling crazy, I host bingo at the old folks home.”

Her cheeks flared red. Whatever cool points she racked up really were dwindling by the second. “And, before you laugh, it’s like an MMA fight in there.” A lot of people lost dentures.

TAG
maverick noah ryder

[attr="class","samjermain"]Madeline wasn’t sure why she bothered coming. This party was like all the fancy meet and greets her father dragged her to growing up. It always came with stiff new dresses and rock-hard flats. The middle-class man often displayed her like a piece of meat at a butcher shop. But, for some reason, she thought an anarchist’s ball would be different. Maybe there’d be no divisions and just a ton of comfort. The food would probably be pretty good too.

If she were going to pull the trigger on the leaving Rocket thing finally, maybe it’d be a nice hoorah. A figurative tip of her figurative hat. Dressed in a shapely black dress with lace covering most of her ample cleavage, Madd couldn’t shake a feeling of discomfort. This thing gave big uncanny valley vibes. War criminals were dancing with janitors and wearing stupid Christmas sweaters. People who made a living blowing shit up were browsing the hors-d’oeuvres with the indecision of a child at a dollar store.

The place was gorgeous. But so were her family photos. This was just a tarp strung over a pit of spikes. Realizing she was standing there like a goon, the redhead pushed herself forward a few steps. “Come on, Yakky.” Already four deviled eggs deep, the badger forced himself to follow his trainer to the glimmering tree. “I hope somebody likes fishing.” A claw lifted to gently poke at one of the ornaments. “!?” His eyes widened as a crystal snapped off—this he palms with a panicked expression.

When the woman turns around, he's disappeared into the crowd in search of glue or a garbage can. His red eyes catch on the boba stand. With a swallow, he tiptoes to where Xiura stands and stays in land. This lady seemed pretty. And, he'd never met a mean person drinking boba.

Grinning as she passed by Shred—a former fan—she looked around the room. “Nice tie, quicksilver.” She shouted, her excitement authentic. Not seeing a familiar face, she moved toward a balcony. It’d give her some time to relax. Maybe she could enjoy the view?

Instead, she found Zev Harcourt. Already surrounded by sharks, she figured she might as well go out by Megalodon. Her flat shoes carried her to the edge of the casino. Copper eyes lifted to the horizon. “Not a party guy, huh?” Even when it was just drunken revelry, she’d never been able to enjoy it. She preferred chilling at home. The sight of smoke draws her eyes.

She hasn’t smoked since she got back from alternate Galar. She’s reformed. That shit isn’t any good for her. The redhead takes a deep breath. “Would you be willing to part with one of those?” Her fingers tighten on the banister. “I’ve got five or six bucks on me.” Hopefully, he didn’t actually want it. This dress didn’t exactly have pockets, and she didn't want him to see him rummaging in her cleavage.

Notes

• Yakuza accidentally breaks an ornament when his trainer isn't looking
• Open to interaction
• Yakuza runs off to try and find someone to help him glue it back together
• Tries to hide on the balcony
• Compliments Shred's Meltan on his kicking style
• Asks the Balcony Cryptid for a cigarette

[attr="class","samjerpoke"]