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"Yeah. We were. Turns out though, when I wanted out of Rocket, he had a problem with that. We had an... altercation, and I left. Then he tried to kill me near Dewford a year ago, I got back in Rocket, and well. We're good now."

[break][break]Even for Naia there was so much to take in. She merely thought it was a distance issue that strained a friendship but now it seemed so much more than that. If he would have told her months ago, no, hours ago, Naia too would have been shocked about the mention of Jay trying to kill him, but that seems to be the norm in Rocket.

[break][break]But seeing the shift in his demeanor and face was more than worth the conversation change.

[break][break]"God... alright, so. There I am, getting lunch with an old friend of mine. They bail on me, whatever. I catch ISAAC MERLO getting some groceries, right? Best friend, we're homies. Then all of a sudden, I see this skinny guy near him."

[break][break]While he spoke, Naia took this as an opportunity to just sit there and listen and it was also the best time for her to focus on actually drinking her shake then letting it melt on the table. It was truly a wonder, the more matter of fact kind of way he was speaking before had completely disappeared and he was far more animated; it was such a change that Naia was beginning to wonder if this is what his true colours were actually.

[break][break]"Idunno what came over me, but I want to make sushi for the duo. We go to my place, and I make food for the two, and uh-"

[break][break]Her attention was completely on him, even lingering on his bright cheeks and the nervous way he touched his face. It was such a vastly different reaction then she had ever seen, especially when it came to her mother talking about how she came to meet Naia's Father. It felt more surgical than this.. Naia's head would tilt as she tried to find the word.. fluff?

[break][break]"It's where my Scorbunny hatched. Sunny's birthday. I saw Kep's own Raboot, and figured hey, it's near Halloween, let's go trick or treat. And he comes in this cute Dr. Victor Frankenstein outfit with his Raboot as the monster. Kep and I kiss under a streetlight. Rest is history."

[break][break]There was already a lot of backstory, names being thrown about and the most confusing part to Naia was that just because they had similar Pokémon that they kissed. It wasn't like her and Ashley were going to kiss because they had different kind of Zoruas, so maybe there was something more fundamental she was missing. Maybe it was the cuteness he keeps mentioning, or the fact that she and him weren't flowers as he had described before.

[break][break]Still he seemed really happy none the less, and while Naia was trying to digest it all his voice pulled her back. Isaac was also a named that got mentioned a lot too, though since he isn't saying that he was cute she can't imagine that this was a three way relationship.

[break][break]"What about you? Any romance?"

[break][break]Instantly he'd see her furrow her brows. This was awkward, she didn't know if she should lie or not about this. It wasn't a special story, it wasn't like his escapades with Halloween costumes and-- She bit down on her straw, her face getting visibly darker before she'd let it go and take in a breath.

[break][break]"Uhm... So-Sort of.."

[break][break]She didn't want to lie to him, it was far harder to lie to someone than it was to tell the truth. But what did she say? That she talked about fake dating someone to appease her mother and his? That he was Remiel Calcifet who is practically a target for Rocket? Or-- her ears would slowly start to glow when she recalled the embarrassing way they met, her hands gripping onto the cup for any form of support.

[break][break]"I-I've been on.. a lot of dates before. My mother likes to set me up on.. blind dates with potential suitors. There is no.. uh.. It's just awkward a lot of the time.."

[break][break]She dreaded them honestly, they were always days of her getting degraded and berated by her mother, forcing her to pretend to be someone else and still having the dates turn out horrible. At some point Naia just gave up trying for them, and just found ways to subtly ruin it, well.. until--

[break][break]"W-W-Well.. I guess.. I'm engaged now, just to stop the dates.. My mother is starting to get really pushy about.. me getting married and stuff. S-She's uh.. really invested in this relationship too.. so.. uh.."

[break][break]What was she saying? Where was she going with his? Her head was spinning trying to find ways to beat around the bush and avoid certain topics. She needed to find a way to end the subject.

[break][break]"Th-There really wasn't any like.. kiss - kisses like yours I guess."

[break][break]Why did she say that?


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"That's fine with me. The better equipped we are, the better off we'll be at the meeting,"

[break][break]There was a noticeable shift, a little mix of relief as well as content showed on Naia's face as she smiled a bit. While she wasn't amazing at using a firearm, she at least knew how to hit someone, something that really only will get better with more practice and on field training rather than aiming at a still piece of paper.

[break][break]"Our client lives just down this side street in the apartment on the corner."

[break][break]Naia would follow where he was pointing at, a small hint of a sigh leaving her lips as she was washed over with a tiny sense of relief. Thank god it wasn't the same place as before, if they kept going to same building it was going to be really hard to explain why someone with her specific appearance keeps showing up and people disappearing.

[break][break]Then again, maybe she can just pay off the security.

[break][break]Strangely enough she never really show up to this side of town unless it was approaching night, be it because she was rushed over for emergency operations, or she did some shady meetings. There was an odd sense of curiosity to see what this side of town looked like when it was more populated, or better yet, more awake. Maybe she should visit in a few days.

[break][break]"So, Naia, how long have you been working with our company?"

[break][break]She had been in her own world for a bit, looking out at the streets when his voice reeled her back in. Her brows furrowing slightly as she racked how on earth she was supposed to answer this in code.

[break][break]"I.. have always been.. a huge supporter for as long as I remember. My mother is an investor, after all. So, it was.. a turn of good fortune when I.. was hired a few months ago."

[break][break]Security cameras never bothered Naia, in a weird way it had just been apart of her norm, she had learned to just ignore their existence just like how people barely pay attention to what colour of brick buildings had.

[break][break]"How about you?"

[break][break]As she asked she remember how other people have felt, and looked a little bit concerned as she gave into her curiosity.

[break][break]"How have.. you enjoyed working here?"


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"Is that so? A native of the Hoenn land."

[break][break]Naia never interacted much with people and it was a bit of a naïve assumption that most people would just be from Hoenn, so whenever people so flatly pointed it out like that it always grounded her back into reality. The world really was just bigger than her city, bigger than her country infact.

[break][break]"Perhaps the next time we meet, I'll invite you to Lilycove. I am more familiar with that city than this one at the very least. I may take you up on that offer, it's always handy having someone who is smarter than me around. Keeps me from getting myself in to much trouble."

[break][break]At first she was just going to comment on his first statement, but when he spoke up again it completely threw her in for a loop. someone who is smarter than him? Surely he must have been mistaken, perhaps he really thought he was talking to her mother instead of her disappointment of a daughter. Never once has Naia ever consider herself smarter and if this wasn't a business venture she would have corrected him right away.

[break][break]"Yo-You flatter me, but I'm sure you'd be fine even without me.. I just thought I'd help from one person to another. As for your offer.."

[break][break]She paused for a moment looking off to the side, and as her eyes caught a glimpse of the waiter coming towards them, she'd stand up a bit more straight and return her gaze to him.

[break][break]"If I ever get more vacation time... that's be great."

[break][break]While Amor was ordering his food, Naia quickly skimmed the list they had offered. In all honesty she didn't have much of an appetite, so something heavy like a steak wouldn't have been food for her stomach and she surely wasn't going to order any of their seafood after she she had seen earlier. So instead she went for a far plainer choice, picking a soup but making sure to order some bread over their table, after all how couldn't you just eat soup without dipping some bread in it.

[break][break]As for a drink she asked for a coffee and a water, something she could drink for pleasure and something she could just mindlessly sip on if she needed some time to think. It was far easier to fill in awkward silence or space in a conversation if you'd in the middle of drinking or eating, so this worked in her favor.

[break][break]"So tell me more about this company of yours. I was able to get some details over the phone, but I always prefer to hear such things in person."

[break][break]"Sure.."

[break][break]"Besides it is up to you to sell me on investing on it."

[break][break]She sounded slightly hesitant, specifically because she assumed he already knew so much on the company in the first place, but the majority of her hesitancy would dissipate whenever he mentioned about selling him on it. That much made sense, and in reality they wouldn't be sitting here having a conversation if he wasn't already sold one way or another. It was just a matter on how she was going to do this. While she digested his request, her hand reached for her glass and gave it a light tap with her nail.

[break][break]"And before you launch into a premeditated PokePedia page lecture on your company. Don't. I can get all the information I want at my leisure, I want something more than that. Are you up to the task?"

[break][break]That much made her laugh a bit. A slight chuckle, but at least a genuine one. If anything they both agreed those were definitely the worse, she hated having to sit there and talk about stuff they could have easily just looked up. It wasted her time and energy, and in the end they wouldn't pay much attention so it wasted their time too.

[break][break]"Don't worry about that.."

[break][break]Even though he was staring at her with full attention, Naia couldn't help but have her eye contact waver. She did try her best to hide it with drinking a glass of water, but in all honesty talking people was just too much, there were far more information one needed to pay attention be it from their hidden meanings behind words, or their body language that she just couldn't keep up with.

[break][break]"Well, I'll try to keep it quick and simple then.."

[break][break]But despite that insecurity she knew she didn't have to worry about confidence when it came to talking about her mother's company. It's been drilled in her so many times after all.

[break][break]"I'm sure as an investor you have to be extremely careful in who you invest because of how companies normally operate, the downfall or a competitor, means profit for yourself. However, our company works the exact opposite, instead we profit by cooperating with other companies."

[break][break]Naia would take a light sip from her water, not wanting to get a dry mouth from walking to much.

[break][break]"Meaning.. investors like you who have multi companies to look after, investing in us is the same as investing in your other projects. There is the security of not having to go through multiple channels with subpar results as well as having an a piece of an assets that would never die out."

[break][break]How many times have she heard such a spiel before, however the difference is that she'd never be able to invoke the creative enthusiasm her mother acted out. But maybe she had been talking to much.. maybe he wanted to ask some questions.

[break][break]"I hope that was a bit helpful.. but if not I can always give you my mother.. uh.. motivational speech."

[break][break]Maybe inserting a bit of a joke at the end would help her feel a bit less awkward about it all. This time her taking a lot longer to drink her water in hopes that maybe he'd take that opportunity to fill in the silence himself.


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"Purr.."

[break][break]A soft little noise escaped the pokemon when he was picked up, nothing like an actual purr a cat would make, but instead just the word itself. It had no reason to be surprised by such a thing, since to Jude this wasn't the first time it had seen something like this. As for the Zweilous, they probably had no idea that their master was laying down and sleeping.

[break][break]Instead they were stuck in their own little world, the two headed beat now content that they have devoured all of the food and were magically healed up from their little scuffle. Satisfied they'd drop down into a sit, their front and back feet pulling into and underneath their form as they waited for more orders. It was pretty silent, and curious to see if they were left alone they begun to stretch and search around with their heads from their nice little spot in the corner.

[break][break]BAM!

[break][break]One of the heads would smack into the wall when it swung over too fast, giving a rather disgruntle growl and bark towards the attacker. But obviously it would never get a response back. As for the other side, Espurr was fairly content to be held again, it's body was completely limp as it trusted to be handled appropriately to keep itself up. Much like it's owner, energy and resources were recruited to be held for other important things, one of which was lightly patting it's paws on Isaac's arm.

[break][break]It was a rather rhythmic pat, when one hand went down the other would go up, if Isaac felt the need to really look into it he'd probably notice that it kept it to the exact second. One minute, then two, one would think that perhaps it was counting up but very soon Isaac would notice that it was actually counting down. Once five minutes was approaching, the little Espurr would stop it's tapping tilting it's head up at Isaac first.

[break][break]It didn't know if it was going to end up effecting him seeing how close he was, but it had a mission it needed to complete and Naia could deal with the consequences. Turning back over to face Naia, Isaac would see it's little ears press further down onto its head, the little Pokémon doing it's very best to hold itself back as much as possible before it's paws would reach out towards her. It needed a short moment or two to really concentrate on the level of physic energy it was going to blast to her, little tiny sparkles forming in it's paws before it launched towards her in a pulse.

[break][break]A crude yet effect way of instantly waking Naia up, however it had it's fair share of problems. First and fore most it was the initial pain that threw her into a panic, then followed by the disoriented and dizzy sensation plaguing her mind as it was getting overflooded. Her hand would shoot up to her head, squeezing it tightly as if she was trying to suppress a headache but it wouldn't stay there long since the spinning sensation would eventually overpower everything.

[break][break]And like a toddler who spun around for too long and tried to sit, Naia too eventually ended up rolling out of her seat, catching herself with one hand while the other moved to cover her mouth. Doing her best to fight every urge to not throw up, Naia found herself pressing her hand harder and harder into her mouth, gritting her teeth as she'd lower herself down from her hand to her elbow.

[break][break]After remembering that there were people around, and her Pokémon too she wanted them to know she was doing find, now doing her best to lift them a weak thumb up as the top of her head planted on the ground. Breath, she just needed to take in a few deep breaths, a little bit from her mouth, but all out from her nose. And after a few coughs ended up interrupting it, she'd eventually come back to reality.

[break][break]"Thanks as.. always.."

[break][break]She spoke up the moment her head released her mouth, the last word coming out more like an exhausted sigh rather than a word, as she'd then slowly lift herself into a sit on the floor. Her hands quickly went to wipe away any tears that were building up, her main focus being on the room and the area to see if everything was fine and they were safe.

[break][break]"H-How long was I asleep for..?"


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"I live here,"

[break][break]It wasn't the shortness of his responses, or the tone of his voice that brought about another feeling of uncertainty, but rather the skepticism. While Naia knew she wasn't a savant when it came to reading people, but from how intimately she grew up with it this was one of the few she knew she could pick out nine times out of ten.

[break][break]"Are you going to be fine meeting our client today?"

[break][break]Naia was starting to get a hang of using these roleplay situations and codes for everything, and ironically dealing with clients was something she was just used to in her day to day work. And weirdly enough this mission was starting to feel like she was talking more to her mother than a Beast.

[break][break]"I've.. dealt with clients like this before," This was technically her third mission taking on something like this, but she still believed she had so much more to learn, and he was probably the best person for it. "Though.. I hope to learn more from you." Even though she spoke in a slower cadence, it was more to be cautious of what she said rather than being currently nervous.

[break][break]"Oh, I.. uh, did bring some extra pens and stuff, if that's.. okay with you..?"

[break][break]She was doing her best to come up with the topic, pulling on the strap of her purse while she spoke to gesture where she was hiding her stuff. It probably wasn't noticeable to him but at least to her she could really feel the extra weight both from her firearm and the extra medical supplies stuffed instead. Another reminder that her parents were still working her to the bone by making her their arran dog even into the night.


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With light taps Naia had already moved on from just checking the time to working at some crosswords, using the extra mental stimulation to keep herself awake. But it was because her attention was elsewhere did Aiden have free reign to approach her undetected.

[break][break]"Ayo! Is that for me!?"

[break][break]The abruptness of his voice caused Naia to jolt in her eat, the light grip she had on her phone causing it to lift out of her hands as she'd scramble to catch it again. She wasn't allowed to be given a moment of rest, since after the jumpscare, Naia was suddenly assaulted with the overwhelming situation of getting randomly hugged, and couldn't help but tense up further when he practically whispered in her ear.

[break][break] "Just go along with it, like we're just friends meeting up."

[break][break]She didn't know what kind of things he did with his friends, but Naia was definitely not the type to just hand out physical affection like this. With a sharp inhale, she'd awkwardly give him a light pat on his back, even giving him a strained smile as both ways to try to come off as friendly. Despite how obviously uncomfortable, it wouldn't be entirely uncommon to have introverted friends being paired up or forced to interact with their more extroverted ones, so hopefully this wouldn't have blown any covers.

[break][break]"We should get going! You know how the others are, they don't like waiting."

[break][break]Was this still apart of the roleplay, or was he trying to speak in code about the people they had to meet up with. She was quickly learning that he was far better at this sort of thing that Naia could ever achieve, and with a sigh, she resolved to just give in.

[break][break]"Just give me a second.."

[break][break]She needed only just a short moment to gather her stuff, and when she was about to toss the cupholder into the trash, she realized she forgot the treats she left in there.

[break][break]"Oh I--" She cut herself off before she managed to get the word didn't out. If she continued that thought then the whole friend set up would be for naught.. She just needed to think of what Ashley Shepard would say.

[break][break]"I forgot what were your favourites.. so uh, I bought a few. I'll eat whatever's left."

[break][break]She didn't know if she said it right, the embarrassment was beginning to show on her ears as she'd hand over the bag to him, just following his lead to wherever they were going to meet up with these.. friends.


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There were many lessons Naia had learned over her numerous missions, the first, clothing is actually more important than she thought it would ever be. The amount of clothes and money she wasted because she had to throw away and rebuy them due of the damages and stains would cause the average person to faint. That was inevitable, but what isn't is the practicality, she had to look somewhat causal to blend into society, but not too casual so she didn't have the same issue with her and Hitoshi.

[break][break]It was after all that stress and over thinking that she just decided to wear her typical clothes she'd wear on a day to day basis. The only exception is that she'd make sure to custom order some easy click buttons along the side of her skirts, and wear some biker shorts underneath it. To some it may seem indecent but Naia didn't really care as long as she could move in them easily without having to rip it.

[break][break]Then the second, never expect who you're working with to be sane. Dorian had really set the bar for how people of Rocket were like and despite his cool and calm behavior at the beginning, he was incredibly blood thirsty and violent. It didn't mean to discredit some of the nicer members she had met, but perhaps they were supposed to be the far in between rather than the norm.

[break][break]"Hey, you made it, Naia, right? I'm Zev. Pleased to meet you."

[break][break]It was why it came as a pleasant surprise to see another Rocket colleague greet her with with such a friendly smile, it easing her anxiety enough that she'd even offer her own tight lipped smile. Unless she had her business mindset, prolonged eye contact always made her uncomfortable, so while she was finding something else to focus on her gaze landed on his drink. Thank god this time she didn't decided to buy a coffee for him.. That's be another awkward scenario..

[break][break]"A- Yes, It's a pleasure to-- meet you.."

[break][break]The cadence in her speech was interrupted when she offered a hand up to shake his own. It was something that was so second nature of her when seeing people in suits that it threw her off and without so much as a drink in her hand, Naia had to resort to squeezing the strap on her purse to alleviate the nervous energy building up. Not wanting to leave behind any awkward silence afterwards Naia would pick up with a bit of an apprehensive tone, worried he may find it annoying.

[break][break]"I.. I've haven't been here much. ..Outside of our condo. Do you come here often?"


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“Yo, for real? Hell yeah. You’re legit, Whitey.”

[break][break]Naia didn't expect him to seem so happy after such a small suggestion, it almost made her feel pity for him that this wasn't a more common thing, but it also helped appreciate Ashley more. Though the pity she felt was quickly off set by the awkward feeling of his nickname for her, well it wasn't like she offered her name. So this was fine.

[break][break]"Of.. course."

[break][break]It was only a short moment before he begun speaking agian.

[break][break]“Y’know, it ain’t hard to just go for a walk."

[break][break]Naia would raise an eyebrow, she couldn't fathom why it would be hard to go outside in the first place. They both had legs so walking shouldn't be that hard to do.

[break][break]"You get bothered on the street or somethin’? Just throw out your Pokemon, scorch some people to a crisp, they’ll leave ya alone."

[break][break]Ah, another like dorian westcliff . She probably won the lottery, with out of all the missions she's been on only two of them were crazy, and blood thirsty. She almost didn't even want to listen to the rest, the nonsensical sludge would only give her a headache, but then again it's also best to be on their side then have them against you.

[break][break]"Then you can explore the city all you want, easy peasy. Then you’ll know all the best spots to eat! Plus, you’ll never get lost again.”

[break][break]"I feel like.. you'll draw more attention that way. You'll attract more trying to bother you, and you'll have less time to look for the best... food spots."

[break][break]She was trying to apply logic to something ridiculous, as far as she knew, she might as well been talking to a wall. If rhyme and reason could be applied it would have already been done so. But, she still held that sliver of hope that maybe people just didn't try.

[break][break]"Will.. that be your plan? Just walk up and burn them?"

[break][break]She was asking about the mission, but seeing how badly it could have sounded without that context Naia would lift her hands slightly in front of her. A half ass attempt in pleading him to wait.

[break][break]"I-I mean for.. the mission.."


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Naia at this point had been in a handful of missions, and from those she gotten to meet an array of people range from the good, bad, crazy and kind, but in most if not all, she's been a burden to them. While she had grown since the time she needed to fight and protect herself against that man at the docks, she still wasn't capable enough letting Ashley Shepard get shot, and even if it wasn't in question of her ability prowess Naia was nothing but a nuisance when it came to Isaac Merlo .

[break][break]dorian westcliff may have been insane but she couldn't deny his absurd strength, and while she didn't delude herself into thinking that going to the gym would suddenly her a monster like him, it was at least a start. The thing was... what exactly did people do at the gym. A question she found herself asking herself when she hit the Rocket gym, media and youtube videos showed her she had to use certain equipment but..

[break][break]She never imaged how exhausting this was. A whole hour of getting weird looks whenever she tried to lift weights, especially when she dropped them occasionally and when she did find something simple like jumping jacks or jogging, she'd just end up on the floor two seconds into it. This was far tougher than she had ever imaged, and she was beginning to think it was hopeless till a familiar face came to the rescue.

[break][break]Thinking on it, she hadn't really seen Gerald since their first meeting, and seeing him now in the gym he really seemed to be in his element. It was unanimously agreed that perhaps she should get at least shown the ropes and she was more than happy to agree to having him be her teacher. It was almost poetic to have the person who got her to join to also be the one to help her get better.

[break][break]It was how Naia found herself at their discussed date, dressed up in a T-shirt, shorts, her old runners and a thin jacket sweater to more make her feel comfortable than actual purpose. Most of this she had to find buried at the bottom of her drawers, a hand reaching up to snap her sleeve to find it just barely gave her enough arm space. After this she definitely needed to go shopping.

[break][break]"H-Hello.."

[break][break]Quietly and meekly Naia would call out after she noticed Gerald and made her way to him, both her hands nervously reaching into her pockets and her arms tucked closely to her body. Her Zorua pacing itself around her feet, but proudly giving a yip over at Gerald for it's own greeting.

[break][break]"How.. have you been..?"

[break][break]There was no need for her to act professional, or confident, right now she was able to be herself which was far more awkward. But if she learned anything since their meeting, it's far better to try and make conversation than just awkwardly stand by.


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"Jay and I... yeah, we have. I knew him in the Kanto days."

[break][break]Naia's eyes would light up when she hard him say Jay, the momentary excited causing her to recoil back and turtle slightly. She was just excited that someone else knew about his nickname, she was always so nervous of accidently letting it slip.. especially in front of Jayden.

[break][break]"Best friends back then. Until I left."

[break][break]"B-But.. y-you guys must have been re-really close if he let you call him Jay."

[break][break]There was this twinge of something in her throat when she said that. It felt like mud for a short second, something she really couldn't explain till she thought back on the conversation. It took a second before that feeling was quickly suffocated with the feeling of shame, her hands moving from the table down into her lap hiding the fact she'd grip onto her pant legs. She rarely felt it, but envy was a really gross feeling.

[break][break]"I-i uh- I guess it was hard to stay friends when you separated, huh?"

[break][break]Maybe this wasn't a conversation to have, most people don't like talking about things that they lost. She learned that lesson first hand from her mother.

[break][break]"A-actually you don't have to talk about it. Uh--"

[break][break]What else could they talk about?" Naia was nervous, one of her hands reaching up to her neck to rub it. It was a common tick she had whenever she felt a bit overwhelmed, but soon it'd eventually make it's way to her cup where the other would join soon afterwards. She knew a topic Ashley liked.

[break][break]"H-How did you and.. uh-- Kep.. met?"


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