[attr="class","text"]

Thea closed her eyes, nodding sagely at the sight she had just witnessed when Lut was done.[break][break]

They looked so cool, with a mix of cute and handsome that was intriguing. Thea suppressed a squealing, clearing her throat and nodding again, opening her eyes. "That looks really good. I thought I would need to help you, but you got it right away." She smiled. "Probably it is a Ranger thing to be very good with ties and knots!" Thea giggled, walking around Lut to make sure to see every inch of the gi was alright.[break][break]

With the confirmation that everything was fine, Thea showed a thumb up. "Perfect. As for bun and ponytails... I personally prefer Ponytails, but it is just because I feel cuter on them." She chuckled as she admitted a bit of vanity, even in a Dojo setting. "But either work just fine! As long as they help the hair to not get on the way. It is really bad if you get to do some grapple or ground work with your spar partner and suddenly there is hair getting on their face." Thea frowned.[break][break]

"If you feel the ponytail is still too big, go for a bun though." She added, looking at Lut's fairly long ponytail. But even then, she was sure it would be fine as long as it wasn't free to billow around.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

Thea held back a laugher at Cass' deadpan congratulation, looking at Pic and smiling warmly at him. "You did amazing, Pic. I've never seen someone mastering a Cross Chop so quickly!" Her eyes then shifted to her Primeape. "Good job being a good teacher, Zeus~" She complimented her Pokémon as well, and he oinked, waving his hand in a gesture that showed this was all Pic's credit and effort.[break][break]

Belle's ears perked up, and she approached carefully before hopping on the place she needed to stay for the fur care. Her face turned to Hammy, and she chirped waving her little paw, to catching his attention for him to look at how things would go. The little pawmo watched attentively, twitching one of his ears, but still keeping a safe distance.[break][break]

Meanwhile, Gominha felt like a goddess, striking all types of poses and beaming with charm, looking at Martin and chirping, patting near her in case he wanted to be part of the art too.[break][break]

Gominha gave little to no care about the background at the moment, only wishing to see herself painted by the artist that was so eager and passionate. She was in good hands for her haircare, and she was more than certain she was in good hands for the painting of a portrait she would hang over her bed.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

With the last touches of the cookie dough being done, Thea wrapped the dough to let it cool, letting out a joyful sigh as it seemed that everything was going neat and fine.[break][break]

Her eyes then shifted to the whiteboard, reading Fen's message and pondering about it for a moment, peeking at the two cookie doughs they had. Truly, maybe two types of cookies were fine, and working on cupcakes would be ideal, especially now that they would need to wait things to cool off anyway.[break][break]

Taking the whiteboard, Thea wrote swiftly:[break][break]

I agree, let's go for the cupcakes now. I think we could go for three fillings: Chocolate, Vanilla, and Blueberry. But if you want just two, or think another flavour would be better, let me know.[break][break]

She finished, glancing at Fen for a moment to see der immediate reaction before averting her eyes to not stare and to start organizing things again.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

Thea chuckled at Bella's way to speak about her approach to the Ghost hunting, and while she was chuckling at it, she couldn't help but think in the depths of her mind:[break][break]

This girl. I need to make sure she won't get in trouble. I need protect her.[break][break]

But even deeper in Thea's mind, she was subconsciously calling herself out, as she was no better and got herself into trouble plenty of times. In fact, wasn't she the one that asked her Primeape to punch her face so she could endure it a few weeks ago? Wasn't she trying to endure a Wigglytuff's Singing less than an hour ago? Truly, she couldn't say much without feeling like an hypocrite, so she settled with the idea of sticking around Bella, and having fun with her.[break][break]

Talking about doing reckless stuff... "I-Interrupted me? Uhm—!" Thea's cheeks flared up. How she would explain that? "O-Oh, don't worry about that. I was just going under a training before dinner, haha! It is all fine!" Her eyes averted for a moment, and she cleared her throat, setting down her empty bowl.[break][break]

"Don't worry about hogging my time though. If I'm busy, I will tell. I see your adventures sometimes, and I can't help but feel excited about them... A little spooked too, but that's part of the fun, right?" She smiled slightly, silverlining the scary aspect of the activity. "Together, I'm sure no ghost will stop us! I don't want to see you being spirited away either."[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

Thea's face flared up when the man echoed her reveal. "Y-Yeaaah." It didn't stop her from confirming it, even if her eyes couldn't met the man's, certain that he thought she was ridiculous right now. She cleared her throat, rubbing her nape with eyes still averted until he mentioned helping him out.[break][break]

"Oh, I mean! Of course, anything you need, Mr. Caleb!" She grinned. He had helped her, after all, she couldn't reject helping him out.[break][break]

"So there has been some Pokémons causing havoc... Hmmm..." Thea rubbed her chin. "I can totally help out, it would be bad if someone was passing by and got attacked by them. I was completely unaware of it myself—" Thea shuddered at the thought of those Poison Pokémons showing up exactly when she was fainted.[break][break]

Which was when something clicked in her mind. "Wait, are you a ranger or something?" Unless he was some sort of odd-jobber, or someone particularly altruistic, she couldn't think of another reason for him to aim to clear the area.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

Thea's chest felt tight at Eris' words. He was her home? Did it mean she only had him, or something similar? Fate was sure cruel to put these two in such a predicament. By the way she spoke of him, and the way he cared for her, for a tragedy to happen was just a matter of a misstep. One of them angering the evil guys, and it could trigger a situation they would go way too far for each other, and...[break][break]

Her eyes narrowed and closed, pushing away those thoughts.[break][break]

"It is everything. Really, thank you." Thea smiled to Eris, nodding to the little girl. It is everything the girl could do for Thea at the moment, and Thea couldn't be more grateful and happy for the girl's kindness. It was like a glimpse of hope in the middle of despair.[break][break]

Thea opened and closed her fist a few times, and resumed to work. Once again, she tried to fill the little girl's pile a bit more than the usual. "I'm sure he is proud of you, for being so nice." She said. "Having someone kind is one thing, having the heart to do the same acts of kindness is admirable." She tossed a couple shards in. The straps made it easier to work, for sure.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

[attr="class","text"]

Thea could only feel chill running on her spine as they were brought to somewhere else. New places were new bad news for certain, and when the 'punishment' was shown to be a mere 'clean up', Thea felt a vague relief at first... She tried to stay close to her friend and cousin, but the false sense of relief was betrayed by the sounds of something more eerie and dangerous looming.[break][break]

"... Eris! Hey! You, watch out!" She called for Eris Halla, also looking at Isaac Merlo that was possibly going to be the first person she would go for as soon as she noticed the danger, and also at Ettie that was near them before the sudden change of place.[break][break]

"Ack-?!" Before she could reach for Eris, Thea felt the Toxic Chain yanking her, nearly crushing her throat with the abrupt pull and forcing her to fall on her back as she had a coughing fit. "Wh-What the hell..?!" She tugged the Toxic Chain that was tightly wrapped around her neck, struggling to stand before the voice of the Megalopolan caught her attention, with the mention of the Ugly Ward's decision.[break][break]

"Th-They believe—" Thea's face distorted in disgust and anger, not at the Ugly Ward, but at the thrall trying to deceive them. "You are just trying to shove us against each other!" She roared in agreement to Andrea Vaneau 's words, albeit mostly muffled by the mask. Even a dumbass worth of Dummy Ward could put the pieces together, if they were forced to trust or forsake the Weakling Ward, it was only natural the Ugly Ward was forced into some fucked up dilemma as well.[break][break]

Thea's heart sank as she saw Andrea being attacked with a strong kick that has sent her flying, and the worst part was that she couldn't even move to try to check on her, or on any other fellow Wardmates. A sense of guilty and helplessness ran over her mind again. "Eris! Protect yourself, please!" She yelled, pleading as she reached for her cousin and her friend, that were at least within her reach. "Cass, stay on my back, we need to cover each other!" She said to Cassandra Kubrick , feeling her heart rushing as she heard the steps of the Threat approaching. "K-Kay, stick close—"[break][break]

Her eyes darted around, spotting a blur. It was there, it was— "KAY!" Thea called for Knight Naito , noticing who was the next target of the blinded wrath. She didn't waste a second to throw herself in harm's way to protect her cousin, throwing a kick and a body slam against the beast... Which barely did anything aside from averting its attention from her cousin to herself, propmting a retaliation that came in the shape of vines slashing and wrapping around her leg and slamming her against the ground, forcing the air out of her lungs before she was stomped and kicked while still on the ground.[break][break]

She tried to gasp for air, but only a weak cough escaped her lips as she curled, feeling a metallic taste running on her tongue. Words couldn't leave her lips, but she tried to stand as quick as possible, even if she failed at first. She had to protect them, she couldn't let them get hurt![break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

[attr="class","text"]

Thea chuckled at the reserved reaction of the Sprigatito. "It is fine! Each Pokémon has their boundaries, just like us." She wasn't going to reject any future affection from the Pokémon, for sure, but she would leave it for her to decide when she was ready for more pets. [break][break]

As Bella voiced her opinion about Ghosts, Thea could only have a small 'o' on her mouth, impressed. To think so casually of Ghost like that. That's a pro for you. "Even the ones that will spirit you away?" She said with a faint giggle. "You are a brave one, aren't you?" At least in Thea's eyes, it was a bit unthinkable to go for some Ghost hunting by herself. If she recorded correctly, the girl only had her rotom phone on her while chasing Gominha's singing.[break][break]

There was a faint worry for her growing in Thea's chest. Probably the idea of accompanying her in this ghost hunt was a good idea.[break][break]

"We don't need to finish it all in one night. If we do, it is good, if not... Well..." Thea glanced aside. "I can come with you, if you want. Another time." She nodded, going for the last spoon of her stew.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

Thea greeted the small Sylveon with joy, while her Pokémons accepted the greetings and nuzzles from the Sylveon for most of part. Belle in particular, would actually try to greet him in her Minccino way, trying to go for a 'tail shake'. [break][break]

With formalities and greetings done, Thea nodded with a smile to Lut as they voiced they have never wore a gi or tied an obi before. "No worries, I will show you how, first pick up a gi and an obi for you!" She suggested while undressing the top part of her gi, staying only on her baggy black shirt.[break][break]

When Lut had their gi, Thea showed. "Alright, you need to pick the right side of the gi, put over the left side in a V shape." She showed, wearing it herself. "With the obi, you start it by putting its center in front of your gi, wrap around your waist twice, and make two ties like this..."[break][break]

Thea tried to show it slowly, with the two couple ties being complete with a tight knot. "And there it is~ If you get it wrong, I will help you. It is normal to miss a step in your first time, but you get the hang of it quickly." She said.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

As she was almost making the dough be a bit more homogeneous, Thea reached for the chestnuts jar, opening it and starting to carefully sprinkle it around the dough before she started folding things over and over again. That type of dough didn't take as long, considering it was more 'basic', and she didn't need to take her time to slice chocolate bars into pieces, as nuts were already plentifully fragmented and ready to be placed into the cookie dough.[break][break]

Halfway through her work, she glanced Fen a few times, curious about how dee was doing. Seeing dee relaxed like that made Thea herself a relaxed too. Everything was rightfully quiet and peaceful, but she still felt der company.[break][break]

It took a second for Thea to notice Fen was calling for her, and when she got to read the message, she smiled with a thumb up, gesturing to her nearly done dough. Her hand then gently reached for the whiteboard, wiping its message and writing:[break][break]

I'm good, work on your next pastry. I'm looking forward it ✿[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

"True, it is impossible to love you enough." Thea nodded, accepting her friend's words and looking at Pic and Zeus once more, noticing a particular situation unfolding as Cass held poor Pic up and shook him. Thea smiled nervously, resting a hand over her friend's shoulder, rubbing it gently. "Hey now, let the poor thing be~ You don't be mad at a child for having their first steps, right? Even if you don't see, you be happy for them!" She giggled.[break][break]

Thea did understand the frustration though. Gominha taught Belle how to sing, so Thea didn't hear Belle's first singing, which was probably very cute considering she was so tiny at the time.[break][break]

"Well, how about Belle go next then? Hammy is still a bit hesitant, but he got closer to her first, so maybe if he watches her doing it, he won't hesitate next?" Thea suggested.[break][break]

Meanwhile, Gominha looked at Pic, perking up at his reaction and waving her tuft to billow freely. Zeus approached as well, nodding in approval to Gominha before she grinned and winked at him, throwing some charm that made him roll his eyes, almost regretting complimenting. After that, she eagerly followed Pic to where he wanted her to pose, trying to look as cute as possible for the painting.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

[attr="class","text"]

"A Ponyta?" Thea's eyes sparkled. A Rapidash was beautiful and stunning, looking strong and powerful while imposing their presence. But Ponytas were so cute it made Thea's heart melt, their big eyes were mesmerizing and matched their cute timid nature.[break][break]

The mention of a trade sparkled Thea's curiosity. "I've never trade a Pokémon before." She rested a finger over her lips as she pondered about the possibility. It sounded fun to try something, even if it was going to be one of the few times she has done it, or perhaps the only time.[break][break]

"Sounds like a deal! I will let you know if I catch something fun!" Thea grinned, pressing the Espeon's sides softly with her legs to speed up.[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

[attr="class","text"]

Navy's shocked expression made Thea's eyes avert a bit, flushed. "There... There are faster people in the Dojo. It is just that I'm used to run in uneven ground, because I train the forest sometimes, so..." She got used to run somewhere with irregular ground, which meant when it came to an even ground, she found herself having an easier time to do it. Meanwhile, her Pokémons approached Roland, mostly waiting for his instructions.[break][break]

As Navy voiced some of the possibilities that could happen in the war, Thea nodded once, twice. And when it came for the last part, her lips pursed. If neither were possible— "Woah!" She embraced the bedroll, feeling its weight before tossing it over her shoulder. Her only advantage there was that Judo helped her to lift things with a bit more ease. Still, it was heavy, especially if holding for long enough. "So we just start run— Navy?!" Before Thea could finish her question, the man was already darting off, and so she did, following next to him and running as much as she could without plenty of warm up. Which made sense, in a way. Team Rocket wouldn't politely wait her to stretch for ten minutes before chasing her.[break][break]

"Wh-Why the Underboss of the Rockets would chase a teenager girl with a Lugia, is he an overkiller like that?!" Thea's eyes were wide open, but her legs started hurrying more with the mental image of a Lugia chasing her, out for her blood. That bedroll could be anyone, could be Gominha, could be Zeus, could be... Even one of her friends.[break][break]

Grunting out of exertion, she tried to speed up, but it was far from her speed when she was free of weight. Even when she tied weight on her legs to run it felt different, in this spot, her arms weren't free, her balance was wonky, but she needed to keep going![break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE