the barrier breaks, sending a shockwave through the earth with a massive burst of energy—she feels it in the air also, the warm blow of hair whipping apart her hair. and in front of her, she watches as large ancient hands clap in front of her, the slow and measured motion betrays its power as dynergy bursts from its palms.

it clears the grassy terrain from the battlefield, leaving the land barren.

of scraping metal and ancient energy, emma prepares herself for the worst. her altaria feels the searing beam through one of its wings. alice screeches in pain, and emma grips tight, clinging tightly to her pokemon.

"come on. let's keep low." she mutters.

she brings her altaria low, enough to settle herself next to a stranger (onyx straub) and his rowlett throwing out an attack. a TAILWIND should give it enough support to help out. and to conveniently hear the answer to the riddle.

"CLAYDOL, huh? sounds about right."

riddle answer: claydol
altaria uses TAILWIND (SUPPORT) on onyx straub
56aYJeLk

altaria (dragon/flying)
moonblast (strike/hinder)
sing (hinder)
tailwind (support/boost)
fire spin (strike/afflict)
sky attack (blast/snipe/hinder)
safeguard (shield)

dark skies and debris, winds so strong that a sandstorm had taken over the immediate area, with the immense body of a registeel as its epicenter. emma stone clings onto her altaria, taking to the skies as to avoid the chaos underneath.

she flew over the shimmering dome of green mist, a grassy terrain in effect—alice wouldn't benefit sadly. but emma was willing to hedge her bets. now that she was home, she was overdue for some more training.

"do you think they'd enjoy a performance?" she asks, bemused. she'd always thought the battlefield could benefit from some music.

"SING for me."

riddle answer: steel
altaria uses SING
oaRTUIVg

altaria (dragon/flying)
moonblast (strike/hinder)
sing (hinder)
tailwind (support/boost)
fire spin (strike/afflict)
sky attack (blast/snipe/hinder)
safeguard (shield)

PURCHASING/REDEEMING

welcome to the poké mart!

2X TM (120 PD)
for ALTARIA
replacing TAKE DOWN with TAILWIND
replacing DRAGON BREATH with FIRE SPIN

TOTAL

do come again!

120 PD

she had always been so endeared to greyson's penchant for nature and gardening. perhaps that's why she had thought herself attracted to him when they were young, having conflated admiration with love. but times have passed. fortunately for them, their friendship remains.

six years had passed. and now standing before his bee farm, she finds the endearment just the same. it's a cute operation; combee and vespiqueen flitting around their hives, and those hives full of honey.

"do you really need my help for this?" she asks. she'd brought her volcarona for the smoke. greyson had plenty of pokemon at his disposal. but she had turned into his assigned 'assistant', to her chagrin. they told her that it'd be the fastest way to rise up the ranks, having started at cadet. and she couldn't argue. there could be worse people to work under.

still, it was good to be back.

Greyson Connors

"alright alice, let's go on the offensive." she says. she lets her altaria out, white wings of cotton and fluff. alice knew the deal; fight and defeat. it had been done hundreds of times before in kalos, and today marks the first in hoenn.

the wilderness provided ample opportunity for training; every target was an opportunity for aim practice, every battle a chance to learn. she was rusty as a trainer, but she still knew the principles: steward, not order. observe and trust.

it's then that her altaria suddenly dives, talons reaching out for a SKY ATTACK. over there, in the distance—a machoke. the attack is well-telegraphed and gives it enough time to react.

but it LEETS at alice, forcing her pull back slightly. her talons miss the pokemon by only a few inches, and a KNOCK OFF sends her reeling. emma watches quietly, a laissez-faire type of trainer. alice flaps her wings, righting herself before a MOONBLAST scorches the pokemon; it's down. emma claps.

"good girl."

taking with Greyson Connors

she knows that ada lives a simple life, one that is much different than hers. to work and go home, to idle until sleep. emma on the other hand, liked to keep busy—partying, socializing, and occasionally, when she get away with it: racing.

she hums, not seeking to reject or confirm ada's assessment of themselves. selfish as it was, it did not matter what they thought, but what emma thought. and she thought they were in the least, amusing. and rather good-looking too. she likes seeing her reflection in their slate-grey eyes, more a iridescent mirror than steel. but as shallow as her motives were, it was a mutually beneficial agreement: time, she thinks, spent in exchange to play a little game. the bark of laughter from ada was a point in her imaginary scoreboard, a won battle in the way she smiles victoriously.

she doesn't heed their invitation for the chair, keeping herself perched on the desk instead. it was much funnier, she thinks, to interfere with their work than to needle them from afar. in truth, it was also a setup for her next performance:

she runs a hand through her hair, gathering it before nudging ada's pen (and hand) aside. "i tell myself a lot of things. for example—"

and in that moment, she decides that the desk would be better as a makeshift bed, laying herself across ada's work. her head barely misses the mouse and the keyboard, but her blond hair splays over them anyways, obstructing ada from their work. now, she looks up at them from below, mischievous glint in her emerald eyes.

"i think you're more than interesting."

adele veronesi

i believe you are not words that should be so casually said. emma doesn't think those words are true, nor their statement of resigned acceptance at her persistent presence. those phrases holde weight, implying trust. but the two of them are more than happy to dilute its meaning with their game.

if she were a less indulgent person, she might have left ada alone as they had originally intended. in honesty, emma hadn't expected them to stay with the league for so long anyhow, considering how demanding the work could be. they were still here even after her return, after six long years in kalos.

she smiles, meeting their eyes from above where they were seated, and takes a sip of her coffee before setting it onto the table. "you don't think you're interesting?" she says. there's a little glitter in her eye, curious and coy, a cat standing at the edge of a cliff, looking down into the void—one misstep and she'd fall.

"please, everyone wants to talk to me." she says confidently. whether or not that was true was up to ada to decide. "feel blessed."

adele veronesi

it's good to see that despite her six years in kalos, that lilycove city hasn't changed much at all. a city filled to the brim with resorts, and all the tourists that stay in them. it's a little slice of paradise, having stood the test of time despite the conflict in the region.

fortunately for emma, her return to hoenn had been quiet; the media had moved on from redeemed troublemakers like her, and she couldn't find the heart to host a renunion party without her mother. but she had eventually made her way into old circles, calling and texting and asking to catch up. there was a slight sense of urgency about it; there was a war coming, and now was the time to forge old connections.

in this sense, this felt a bit like a calm before storm.

and so shopping she went. seeking company, the first person she'd reached out to was annalise henderson. she was someone she'd kept in touch with over the years, their occasional meetings fun but all too short. she remembered anna with a cheery disposition, bright and sunny. but these days, annalise felt more like an icarus, once severely burned and now twice shy.

and while emma was vaguely aware of what had happened it wasn't her job to pry. but it is her responsibility she thinks, to help out a friend when she could.

she flips through the various racks of clothing, the new styles and trends of the season having just been hung up. after a few moments, she holds one up to the ranger; a shapeless neon green dress, lumpy and already starting to wrinkle on the hanger. her lips twist into a wry smile.

"anna...would you wear this?"

annalise henderson

she preens when ada takes the coffee, her gift so willingly accepted. it's a good quality coffee—she needed a pick me up after her expedition, and the cafes in ever grande city were rather trendy to serve their wealthy population. and by the time she'd gotten to headquarters, they coffees had cooled just enough to drink without burning your tongue.

but then she scoffs, scowling at her coffee towards the barest inclination that she missed her brother at all. "psh. i just happen to be here after my missives. he's too busy to pick up anyways." she says before taking a sip. the coffee in her hands is a latte, sweet and fruity. a light bodied coffee with a subtle flavour.

it's from la belle after all.

"and he wouldn't avoid me." she adds. she knows he would not—they are the only family they have left. and now, with the war ahead of them, a missed call could mean death, or perhaps even something worse. but that sentiment is not known to anyone but the stones; their fate not so set.

behind her, a few errand fingers nudge away a few pieces of paper, making space for a palm to lean on.

"would you?"

adele veronesi

all things considered, her brother has had quite a successful life. their father would've been proud; and certainly their mother was, who had lovingly cooed over his accolades. gym leader, champion, councilman. it seemed like there was nothing he couldn't do—he couldn't even stay dead.

meh, whatever.

she wasn't interested in any of that anyways. not really. she'd like the prestige and attention of course, but the lustrous throne of paperwork would probably kill her. alex was always better with words than her. but now that she was back in hoenn, emma finds herself doing more administrative things than she'd like. the large island estate houses what remains of hoenn's morality, with its council members and their elite. she had grown familiar to the halls of carved stone and tall pillars, the powerful pokemon and the notable people of influence.

but behind every king are the kingmakers—the knights and lords and jesters.

what say of adele veronesi?

there's two coffees in her hand. her brother was conveniently not here when she had tried to visit him today. perhaps she was too eager to fulfill the role of annoying sibling when she decided that she wanted to get to know the secretary. but emma described herself an opportunist, and she would hate to let someone go so easily. she finds them easily enough; at their desk. the rumours of the war had the league busy preparing, as had she. but they could spare a minute or so, couldn't they?

"ada right?" she says, with an easy smile. she sits herself on the corner of their desk, right on top of a few papers, and jiggles one of the cups in her hands with a coy smile. "alex isn't here...y'want an extra coffee?"

adele veronesi

emma stone was, and will always be a hoennnian in her heart.

not to say that she didn't miss kalos, or that she hadn't enjoyed her time there—she'd had the time of her life there, actually. a beautiful region, with beautiful cities and beautiful women. the countryside was abundant and prolific; providing the region with an excessive amount of alcohol that she'd eagerly consumed. being deployed to such a place was both a blessing and a curse; six years of military training, and all the while still grieving for the family she'd lost.

in that sense, kalos was perhaps better a place to gaze at rather than make a home. she could never see herself settling in its depths, no matter how pretty. the people were rather shallow and selfish, the climate just a little too cold and the general landscape too boring.

she had missed hoenn's heady air, full of humidity. how the sun beats down on them without mercy; there's no fun without a little danger, after all.

"we're home."

[nospaces]



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