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The woman who had strolled in had been ripped straight out of the latest fashion magazine over at the upper echelon of Mauville. Usagi had caught herself taking in her full form as she gazed at the many shelves full of pies and pastries. Halloween decorations littered the display cases and countertops in front of Kyrenai. Little ghost decorations hung up with care, with a paper Shuppets dangling just above the counter. Pumpkaboo plushies stood guard over the many sugar infested sweets that lay behind the glass. Usagi blinked once she had realized how it may have came off as her eyes lingered on the woman's form. [break][break]

"That's not the first time I've been told that. I'm told my sweets have a bewitching allure~" Usagi mused, letting out an amused laugh as she moved behind the register while inviting the woman to wander closer an enjoy the view of her selection of dishes and more. "They're all homemade and just out of the oven! If you have any Pokemon, I've got some items that would be perfect for them as well. After all, you can never have too many sweets! At least, that's what I tell myself, anyway." [break][break]

Behind the woman, the freaky statue came to a rest. Unmoving as the material it was made out of, a lone spirit, insignificant to the naked eye stirred. As both women continued to chat, it would come to recognize the woman of red. Without a trace to its form, all it could do was to rest and listen. [break][break]

At the question of what she recommended, Usagi began to collect her thoughts about what items somebody on their first visit to her bakery may have been interested in. A process that was hard to really pin down. Every person's tastes were unique to them, after all! She couldn't start throwing out guesses randomly. The woman tapped her index finger against her temple for a moment in thought. [break][break]

"Well, I've been meaning to find somebody to try my newest product here, if that interested you." Her hands gestured to one of the pies on the counter, covered in a glass sphere. It was shaped like a Pumpkaboo, completely with a cute fangy expression on the front with its orange colored innards able to be seen. "I call it "The Pumpkaboo Party!" It's made of pumpkin and a few other berries that compliments its herbaceous flavor!~ Since it's your first time here, I'll give you a slice on the house. It's something I'm still working on, and I'd hate to just charge you for this." [break][break]

Before Kyrenai could react, Usagi had already slid a slice of the Pumpkaboo Pie onto a plate and offered it for the woman to take. The stuffing laid bar as the scent of the pumpkin flavor sat tantalizing in front of her. The woman smiled at her with an expectant look, hoping to get her opinion on her newest product. [break][break]

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For but a moment, Usagi worried that this wasn't good enough for this man. He thumbs through some of the pages in the binder with an unpleased expression. The silence between them had began to slowly bleed the confidence and second wind from the woman's body. Her fear felt palpable in the air between them. His fingers danced along the pages before falling still. Usagi's heart picked up while she looked at him with a defeated expression. All seemed well for the moment before he thanked her and promptly left. [break][break]

The moment that Cilian had left, the woman let out a breath of relief and put her back against the wall before sliding down. The civilians inside of the bakery had took this moment to leave as quickly as they could, while others were phoning 9-1-1 to report a Rocket attack in Mauville. Usagi's hand went to her pockets and pulled out her cell phone, dialing frantically to an emergency contact. Every ring was another dagger embedding itself into her heart. Another innocent being painfully uprooted. Finally, after a while, somebody picked up. [break][break]

"Hey, it's Yoshimoto. We have an emergency." she said in a serious, rushed tone. "There's been a breach. You need to recall everybody now." she said, the voice on the other end of the phone caused her to worry more. "I don't care how deep they are, if they stay where they are right now, they're going to die! Just send the recall and I'll meet with you this afternoon." One hushed argument on the phone later, Usagi looked down at the mess on her hands. The Buneary rushed over to embrace her, which the woman sighed and went to squeeze her in return. "I know, I know. You were so brave." [break][break]

The remainder of the day was spent with the Mauville authorities and cleaning up the mess she had made. Her stomach wrenched in disgust at her inability to fight back against the man's demands. Desires of getting even and vengeance went through the woman's mind, and Usagi just covered her face in her hands and pouted. She couldn't let this happen again. If there was a next time, she would be able to defend herself at the very least. But how was she going to figure out how to learn how to battle at her age?... [break][break]

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The early morning light rose across the horizon of Mauville, though sole inhabitant inside of one of Mauville's finest bakeries had already begun to set up the current offerings for today. Usagi had been erasing the previous days' orders and such from the blackboard above the counter. Caramel was sweeping and cleaning the guest area as Sherbert the Milcery hovered over by the many ovens in use, keeping a watchful eye on the baked goods present. "Careful, Sherry. Last time you got too close, I had to spend 2 hours making enough cream for your to keep solid again." By the time that the morning rush had come, Usagi had already completed the initial batch of breakfast pastries and such. [break][break]

Regulars came and went, with all the conversations that one would expect. Usagi greeted each and every one with their usual orders. Pleasantries aside, it was a comfortable, stable life so far. The frantic, busy woman who had once been at the top of the Kanton Refuge Alliance had long since mellowed out to enjoy the benefits of a quieter career. A part of her had grown somewhat bored of a life at times, but it was a nice problem to have, considering where she had been during the intial wave of Kanton refugees. [break][break]

During one of the slower parts of the day, while working on finishing packing the next mixed berry pie in the oven, Usagi's eyes went up to the shelf above her, staring at the many trinkets above them. The most prominent being a framed picture of herself and a little boy beside her, bearing an incredible resemblance to her. Her little bundle of joy was nice and far away from this conflict, residing at his grandparents' for the time being off in Unova. She would have followed had she the money or ability to. Besides the bakery, her work helping her previous workplace made it rather important she be present at times. Still, Usagi let out a sigh as she missed her dear child. [break][break]

The woman continued to go about her day while beside the framed portrait was a strange, clay-like statue that rested beside it. Roughly the size of a carton of milk, it was shaped akin to a deformed, humanoid figure bearing the armor of a warrior. The details were intricate and made with precise hand of an artisian, as had been given as a gift to her from one of the elderly couples she had help find a new life in Hoenn during her tenure as the head of the K.R.A. The husband, who had regularly ventured into some kind of world beyond Hoenn, had found such beautiful earth to form the statue and began to sell them. Usagi had always been unnerved by it, but held onto it as a reminder of what her work was for. [break][break]

Although from time to time, she could have sworn she heard a strange voice coming from inside of it when closing during the night. [break][break]

It was the beginning of the afternoon when the business was booming once again. Usagi had finished cleaning up after working on another order of scones for her avian friend to deliver when the door opened again. The mother hurried back to the storefront with a smile at the woman walking inside. "Good afternoon! How may I help you, miss?"

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Her gambit to try and negotiate the release of all of the people inside of the bakery wasn't going as well as Usagi would think. Cilian denied the request but at least promised no harm would come to them if they didn't try anything rash. To prove his point, one person with their phone caught would experience the joy of having a Luxray's canine sink inside of their arm. The echo of the phone hitting the floor rang across the silence between them all while the woman stood in place. The panic was settling in again, and this was as good as the deal was going to get. [break][break]

She hated being this powerless. Her Pokemon weren't exactly trained for battling in any capacity. The Lopunny had been in perhaps 2 fights in its life, tops, and the Corvisquire and Milcery currently hiding underneath the counter had nary a lick of damage to them in their existence so far. It put her at a disadvantage while Usagi continued to stand on the razor's edge here. She could take a stand against Cilian, throw hands in her first real fight and risk everything. Or she could cower and fall into place, just as what had happened to her people as many years ago. Her fists balled underneath the countertops, cursing herself for her own inabilities before giving a dejected exhale. "Fine, I'll give you names." [break][break]

Usagi moved to the rightmost wall near the turn that led to the emergency exit, though she moved some decorations out of the way and press on the lower edge of the wall, near the countertop. The wall gave away and revealed a hidden cubby, where a spiral binder rested inside. After putting everything back in its place, she set it down for the Rocket to observe. Flipping through pages, he could see entire documents about the Kantons that Usagi had helped. Entire pages of people who had kept in contact, payments rendered for services to leave Kanto or even Hoenn, services of people who facilitated these services, and numerous other discoveries inside dating back years ago. But the most up to date document had a date of about 5 years ago. [break][break]

"That's everything I have." Usagi said, her eyes going back up to Cilian. "From when I started the organization to when I stepped down to retire. Anything else isn't with me." [break][break]

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The threat of involving her own flesh and blood was enough to get Usagi to comply with his demands, at least not to lash out against her or the store any further. The mother glared at the Rocket but said nothing as he spoke about what he was after. Not after some poor customer raises a hand to try and summon help, only to be thoroughly punished. Usagi winced at the sound of their blows against the poor man, though tried to keep her composure.[break][break]

Somehow, it was even more de-humanizing in person as it had been in her thoughts all those years ago.[break][break]

"Co-conspirators?" Usagi asked incredulously as her temper flared for a moment. "Those people have names, families, histories, things they left behind only to face destitution here thanks to Rocket, and you'll just sweep that under the rug to call them thugs?" Her mouth opened to fully let her feelings be known, though the Noivern and Luxray were a good enough factor for her to shelf the train of thought.[break][break]

Usagi frowned, thrown against a wall and given a choice. It was either her family or her fellow countrymen. Either decision was likely going to have ramifications that followed with them. She couldn't let anything happen to her son, but it meant sacrificing the livelihoods of other people in the field or even back at their homes. Her gut tied itself in knots at what her base instinct was to do. Usagi looked back Up at Cilian with a pained expression.[break][break]

"Fine, I'll tell you." She said, "but every customer here gets to leave first unharmed. Once they get to safety, I'll tell you everything."

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She watched him as the gears began to turn in her head. His face was familiar, one that she had likely seen some time ago, but why? Usgai narrowed her eyes while thinking back to the times back at her workplace where there were people of interest to keep an eye out for. Across the wall of infamy and kept separate from everything else, dotted along the list of names that posed an extreme risk, there was the man’s face. Her face sunk in horror at what had just stepped in front of her doorstep. [break][break]

Cilian Quinn, Avatar, Underboss, a walking cataclysm that threatened to pull anybody close by him into certain doom. [break][break]

"Is that what this is? Some time of long term revenge I had coming?" Usagi asked, though doubted that it was targeted because of some legitimate reason. "Or are you j-just here for intimidation?" A younger, healthier version of herself likely could have dealt with him no problem, even with her inexperienced Pokémon, but she wasn't exactly a field agent either. Those years of stress eating and retirement had resulted in a bit of a mom body. [break][break]

His gaze turned to the picture on the wall of her son. Suddenly, all that fear in her body revolted in a single moment. Her motherly instincts kicked in as she stood back up in full. "He's none of your concern right now." The woman hissed at him through a temporary bitterness. "You're after me, not him." His question was definitely one she had considered before. Her little boy had taken up the importance in her life, but was it the only reason? [break][break]

"Times change." Usagi was somewhat somber with the other man and gazed at the other customers, some frozen in place and others having escaped. "I didn't want him involved in my work, and he deserved a mom to grow up with. I thought I had tied up loose ends before I left." She had kept an eye on the organization while retired, pleased with what it had accomplished though a part of her did wonder if she should have ever left. [break][break]

The adrenaline of him involving her son was slowly withering away, leaving the anxious and uneasy form of Usagi to come down from her high. "What do you want? Money? Revenge?"

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Usagi had been through a lot in life, in terms of her professional life and being uprooted from her home and having to be vulnerable to the dredges of society. These experiences had been frightening at first, but nothing ever did keep her calm in moments like these. It was supposed to be a normal kind of day at work. Serving the people of Mauville with her child at school and not a care in the world. Caramel was busy serving customers as the titular namesake of the cafe, with the Corvisquire resting on a perch by the window. [break][break]

The door broke as Usagi looked over in concern, only to be met with the cold stare of the man before her. She jumped at the sudden sound of glass breaking and the door being kicked open. Her customers did as well, with some freezing in place. Usagi winced at the mention of them wanting her. What in Arceus' name could they have wanted with her. "Y-Yes. I'm the owner here. Do you need anything, or..." The sudden appearance of the Noivern bursting through the front window had caused her to stumble, though not before the BOOMBURST that had flung loose projectiles everywhere. She held her hers up to her face to protect it, being slammed to the back wall with the resulting TAILWIND. [break][break]

"K-Kanto? You're with Rocket then?" The woman didn't fight back, not that she had the ability to anyway. The Milcery hid behind one of the fallen cabinets that had been broken from the powerful winds, while the Buneary stood in place, helpless against the two more powerful foes. It began to bounce back and forth, ready to charge up an attack but her trainer noticed it. Out of worry, she frowned. "Caramel, no! Don't do anything rash." She turned back to Cillian while looking down at the mess he had made. [break][break]

"What do you want from me? I haven't been involved in the Kanto Alliance for years now. I'll give you anything you want, j-just don't hurt me." Above her, a picture of the woman alongside her child hung on the wall by some fortune. His auburn hair was neat and trimmed tidy, wearing the school uniform and carrying a Growlithe in his arms while smiling at the camera. Usagi stood beside him wearing a similar apron and clothing as she wore now.

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"That's a relief! See, sweetie? You'll be safer with me anyway. We'll let the other two get the job down. But you can offer moral support!" The timid looking fairy-type gaze a puzzled look at the Lopunny and Corvisquire at the mention of such things. Maybe it was changing its mind about not fighting, although it was much too delicate and not used to fighting to be of any use. The Milcery let out a soft cry before nodding at its fellow Pokemon on the team with a determined nod. Caramel smiled and gave a gentle nod while Percival tweeted along, readying himself for the task at hand. "That's the spirit! Now let's track down some thieves!" [break][break]

It was at times like these that Usagi had wished she could get her hands on a canine or some type of Pokemon that could track things easily. The Lopunny wasn't exactly experienced with seeing which way the wind could blow. The Corvisquire was in the same boat, and Usagi was fairly certain that Milcery didn't have noses. So Caramel would have to lead the charge here. It took the Lopunny a while to really get them anywhere of note while the other people alongside them continued to search for something until a breakthrough was found. [break][break]

Caramel let out a chirp to notify the others about her find. "Oh? What did you find, bunbun?" She pointed to a large track, one belonging to a Pokemon that clearly wasn't at home in a field such as this. Usagi observed the footprint with curiosity, with her turning to the other woman. "I don't think I recognize a footprint like this. Whatever it is, by the size alone, I don't think it's something native. We may be getting close." [break][break]

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Usagi had been passing by on her way across the Route for a nature walk when the farmer present had encouraged her to help out with a little problem they had been having. The thought of really fighting off predators was a concept that the woman hadn't really prepared for. She barely knew how to order one of her Pokemon to attack something, let along protect! Usagi didn't want to let the poor man down though. So she gathered what little confidence she had and fully agreed to assist in the matter. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad?... [break][break]

She stood beside another woman who had also agreed to help, a blonde haired woman who seemed a tad bit older than her. Her Pokemon look well ready for the task ahead in spades. Usagi looked over at her team in comparison: The Milcery had fled behind her frost splattered apron the moment when called out and the Corvisquire hovered in place but appeared anxious. It was only the Lopunny that looked anywhere near confident in its abilities. "Ah-I'm sure that everything will be alright, Sherbert! You don't have to fight if you don't want to." Her head craned over to the other woman as she introduced herself. [break][break]

"It's wonderful to meet you, Izzy! My name is Usagi." Usagi greeted her with a warm, sing-songy tone, "I apologize that I'm not really experienced with Pokemon battles, but I'll do my best to help out! Right you two!" The Lopunny and Corvisquire let out the answers in agreement, though the Milcery continued to hide away from Iswyn.[break][break]

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pokémon storage system

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items in possession

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garden pokémon info

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pkmn name

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   ♁/♂︎/⚬ ability[break]
   move, move, move,[break] move, move, move

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pokémon for trade

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