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Post by DataNinja on Jul 24, 2020 9:49:27 GMT
"Oh, the yard's all my sister's doing," she says, as the pair wander back towards the house. She recalls her fox and sauropod, but lets the jellyfish remain out, floating curiously nearby. "She's incredibly good with plants. Didn't really quite know the extent until a year or two ago, though. And I always thought it was some Plate... thing. Experiment. Prototype. Something. She always tried her hardest to just... be normal. I guess for me."
"Anyways," she teases, "I'd better not lose to a lawn."
She leads Theo out to the yard first, because that's where he'd expressed interest. Just walking around in the trees, towards the flowers, then moving out to the back yard. It has a cliffside a while back that overlooks the ocean, the breeze blowing cool sea air towards the pair. Stairs lead down the cliffside to what looks like a dock that's seen better days.
"I used to come here a lot and just... sit and stare out at the ocean, imagine what lay beyond the horizon," Ayah says. "It was always more fun when I was younger. Before I knew that most of the world had been pretty well explored. Never really knew what I wanted to do with myself, so I guess it was kinda just... wanting to run away from that responsibility." She laughs. "I still don't know what I want to do. Hoped this whole... everything would help, it's why I signed up... but weeeelllll, that didn't work as planned, and Orion wanted me to use it to help do some Plate testing..." She sighs.
"You wanted to know about my family," she says, as she starts to lead Theo back inside. "You really know what there is about my sister. She was always there for me, was basically a mother to me, frankly. Always responsible, always did things to keep everything organized... always my role model. So... it makes feelings difficult."
"As much as Orion might like to pretend otherwise, Zach was always more of the father figure in my life. To myself and Solaris. He was the one who helped us when we needed someone to navigate through the adult things in life, or whatever. Orion... I think he liked the image of a family, but he never really cared. Often wasn't really around, instead talking with Julia about things. We were just a... convenience for when he wanted a family, I guess. I never really felt that close to him. Zach was always the one who put us first. And protected us from Lorana."
"That girl is... well, a psychopath. She loved making us miserable whenever she could. Delighted when things were harsh for us. Just wanted to see the world burn, really. Thankfully, she was never around that much... but still enough that we were always on edge. Solaris... she put herself in harm's way sometimes, to protect me. I... had so much hatred for that woman. A selfish, immoral, conniving witch."
"Julia was better. She just... never cared. I understand why, now. We were just foisted upon her and the others. She's just married to her work. Her worst was just... letting Lorana run rampant so long as she got results. And I guess not caring enough to actually provide anything for us when Zach wasn't around, when we were younger. Had to hope Orion was in a good mood for that."
As she's been talking, she's been showing Theo around the house. A sitting room, a library, there's even a piano in one of the rooms... it all gives off a very distinguished air. The guest bedrooms upstairs are simpler, and then when Ayah shows him her room... well, it's definitely far different to the rest of the house. It's a bit of a hodgepodge of themes. The underlying structure of the room looks to be princesses, but there're also hand-drawn maps of different regions (and fictional places) and a globe, a few different belts - white, yellow, orange and green - and a lot of plushies, mostly non-Pokémon. The jellyfish floats to the window on the far side, while Ayah takes a seat on the bed, blushing a bit.
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Post by Robot on Jul 24, 2020 12:33:50 GMT
"Flowers don't make for very good conversation." Theo smiled, his eyes twinkling.
Listening raptly as she took him on the tour of her home, the boy was very quiet, only offering enough to keep the conversation going. Clearly deep in thought as she presented the whole story to him, only sparing the odd glance to Crystal now and then. For a Pokemon it was surprisingly animate. The lack of face was probably what bothered him the most, now that he thought about it. No mouth, no eyes. At least Lone Ranger had the gem and a definitive facing.
When they were settled in Ayah's bedroom, everything else clicked into place. He had been letting the emotions come as they would, and the final one was melancholy. Taking a seat beside her, he slid an arm around her waist, letting attentions wander to all the little details. Head settling on the girl's shoulder, he was quiet for a moment longer. "I... wish I'd had concept of any of that, before I got upset with you. Seen this, too..."
Another pause. "My room's a bit like this too... walls littered in posters of desert scenery and movie posters from Spaghetti westerns. Mom sounds a bit like your sister, doing what's best and trying to be supportive, but we never clicked the way I thought me and Pa would. I can feel your sense of adventure here, it's... palpable. If you save anything with the choice you've gotta make, save that."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 24, 2020 16:46:22 GMT
"It's fine," Ayah says. "You have to work with what you're given in life. And that's never going to be all the knowledge. I didn't even have concept of everything until coming back home..."
"I'd rather save people than things," she says. "That's the important thing. I have people I love, friends I care about... if I have to give up something for that... I guess it's worth it. The hard part is just... figuring out what to do if the people are divided. What then? I don't know..."
She falls back onto the bed with a solid 'floomph,' before asking, "...why do you have pictures of westerns about food. It seems kinda strange. What's the appeal?"
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Post by Robot on Jul 24, 2020 17:25:26 GMT
"Much as I'm skittish 'bout the idea, guess you'll just have to wait and see how you feel when the time comes. Go with your gut, that... feeling inside of you that directs you sometimes not your actual stomach. Magine that would lead you to chocolate or something." He broke into a small tickle of laughter.
"Oh... they're not about food, it's just a production term, because the shows themselves weren't actually produced by people in the west at all. Even though they're really popular in Unova, many of them star actors, use crews, or directors from Kalos. I guess spaghetti is a common staple food around there." Cheeks reddening a little, he folded his hands in his lap but didn't lay back beside her. Didn't feel right, being on a girl's bed like this without her parents knowing. Chivalrous thing to do would be to get up and leave. Just like in one of his Unovan Spaghetti Westerns, but he wouldn't. He needed her company too much for that right now.
"The movies themselves weren't... nothing too special, but... it gave me male role models to look up to. People that did what was right, and honest, even if it wasn't necessarily what the law wanted or expected of them. Men that took comfort in a quiet night under the stars, and a warm fire. The open wilderness. It really... played off of my sense of adventure, and a desire for some kind of inner peace. Stoicism, I guess. Dad was never there, and that was the kind of man I wanted to be."
Looking at his slender fingers, and pale skin for a moment, he folded his hands in his lap. "By... the way I used to look at things, I'm more and more a woman in spirit as time goes on. Crying easily, emotional and passionate, empathic, pretty by someone's standards I'm sure. Not... bad traits, just... foreign. Been asking myself often, 'Who am I', 'What am I?'... End of it all, guess I'm just Theo. Unique, even if the name doesn't seem to suit this face."
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Post by seraphflonne on Jul 24, 2020 18:15:06 GMT
Kai let's out a wince at the question. He may not know much about the whole incident, but he had heard plenty about one project. He took a second to think about his words, listening to what Ruby added as he did, before giving her a nod. "That sounds about right, but there's more they did than that"
"Aether's public goal was helping Pokemon, which was rather broad but they made sanctuary's as well as had agents in the field looking out for Pokemon's well being. They even made an artificial island to have a Pokemon Reserve, Course it was revealed that this was all a front for other operations they had, most of which were handled on said island. There was a lot of things going on when they went down, the weird Pokemon appearing, the league being established, just... a whole lot pf stuff happened at once. I don't know too much about it all, but I know a bit about one experiment..."
He pauses again, his face turning sullen. "So it was called, Type:Null, and I suppose the best way to put it is they were made with... cells from all the Types of Pokemon. It was created to be able to freely shift between types, or something like that, but couldn't handle it and went berserk. I think my Mom also mentioned they had limiters on to help with their system, but I have no clue what that meant."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 24, 2020 18:26:06 GMT
Ayah laughs at the chocolate comment. "I don't love it that much to always want it..." she mock-complains. "Sometimes you just need some variety."
"Ohhhh, I see," she says, when he explains the westerns. "Huh, that's really interesting. Neat, though. Something that makes perfect sense, but is also completely nonsensical if you don't know the exact thing." She giggles. "I like it. It's a good term."
"I... I get the lack of role models. It was always awkward, comparing myself to any other kid, and their parents. None of the actual adults in my life were really like that. Kinda isolated me. Never felt like I belonged. I found refuge there in that same sense of adventure. Imagining going to a place where none of that mattered, where it was just your deeds that people judged you on. Finding people there. And... well, I guess I did, she grins, "even if the adventure wasn't as far as I thought it'd be."
"There's nothing wrong with who you are," Ayah says, grabbing the hand Theo's looking at in her own. "Nothing wrong with being a woman either. I should know, I'm an expert." She giggles briefly before getting more serious. "But, you're right. None of that matters. I loved you how you were, and also how you are now. Let me know if I can make things easier. Or if you want to try out being called something else. My sister has taught me how much names can mean to people."
"Interesting," Ruby says, musing. "I wonder how much oversight something like that actually has over their sub-programs. Devon, I know, just tends to let the researchers run wild, and hope something good comes out of it. That's how we got Fossil Restoration - that was someone's pet project. Someone else collaborated with someone in another region, we learned more about dreams. What benefit does that have? Beats me. But it wouldn't at all surprise me if that happened because one person had one specific idea... and then they just took it as far as they could make it go."
"Especially if they had people working there that were like the people who'd do this stuff," Evelyn says, a brief flare of blue energy appearing as she gesticulates. "As we learned... well, the Space Center had people like that, too. So, uh, every bunch can have some problems, I guess. That... sure is a project, though."
"So... what're you guys wanting to do now?" Ruby asks. "I didn't really plan for this situation."
"I'd like to see if there's a PC connection here, so that I'm not down to just one 'mon. You can never be sure in rural areas, though. Some people like being off the network in these old places. Other than that, I'm easy."
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Post by seraphflonne on Jul 24, 2020 18:50:25 GMT
"I... shouldn't do anything too stressful. That blast or whatever really did a number to me. Wonder if they have a video game system or anything in this place..." Kai gives a shrug as he's not too picky about what he ends up doing as long as it's something he can do without stressing his body.
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 0:20:41 GMT
"I would love for you to make things easier, but I don't have the funniest what you could do." He laughed weakly and finally did flop backwards beside her and stared up at the ceiling. "No one is going to re-imagine themselves in a day, but I was never really one for imagination in the first place. Body and mind are all jumbled up, it is me, it isn't me... magine you're feeling the same way about this stuff with your sister and your parents." He folded his hands over his middle. "Maybe a different name would help... wouldn't want to disrespect the one Ma gave me though..."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 2:01:51 GMT
"Probably smart," Ruby says, nodding. "Blissey eggs are good, but not magic. Resting will do you some good." She pauses. "Do you think water helps your healing, at all? You said you felt better after taking a dip in the ocean by Lilycove, but that just might be, well, a temporary energy thing."
"Uuuuugh," Evelyn groans. "I never want to see another beach again as long as I live at this rate..."
"Yeah, not knowing who you are... I get that," she agrees. "Who knows where I should really be, what I really am."
"I mean... I can't imagine that she'd be too put out," Ayah says, "if it makes you happy. That's... that's what parents want, isn't it? Besides, it's not like you're angry at it. You just... outgrow some things. You put them aside, and have them as happy memories. Like childhood toys, or whatever. That doesn't mean you're disrespecting them, or the people who gave you them."
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 2:14:11 GMT
"Ayah, and Mayah, huh?" A playful smile crept to the corners of his mouth despite the seriousness of the conversation. "Ever think of changing that little rhyme? Or did it never really bother you?" Rubbing his thumb lightly across the knuckles on the opposite hand, he let his thoughts wander.
"What... about... Amaranth. It's probably good for either gender, they're a plant that has these blossoms, lots, and lots of tiny ones that make up cones, stalks, streamers... depends on what kind... almost always in a striking pink, or red... we... we could shorten it to Amara in private, I guess... see how it takes?" Even at the suggestion, he seemed really embarrassed and reluctant to make the attempt.
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 2:22:01 GMT
"Never really bothered me as such, no," she says, shaking her head, which shakes the bed a little. "It's not pronounced the same, after all, despite the closeness. It's 'My-ah.' Not 'May-ah.' And I call her Solaris, anyways. Was more frustrating in school when it was always read 'aye-ah' instead of 'ay-ah,'" she laughs. "One great constant of my life."
"That's a pretty name, Amara," she says, trying it on. "You want that to be a just us alone thing, or... what? What makes you happy?"
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 2:29:50 GMT
"Maybe for now. I don't want to make it into some big huge thing for everybody to know. Not before I'm ready... but... I like flowers, and it feels more right then Theodore Weed does these days. It means 'Unfading', Amaranth represent something that retains its traits in the face of time and trouble." Blushing, he scratches behind his ear, and rolls on his side to face away from her. "This is weird..."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 2:41:45 GMT
"Is it any more weird than literally everything else that's happened the last few days?" Ayah asks, laughing. "So, I think this is probably the best time for weird."
She sits up a little, though, and lays a hand on his shoulder. "Let me know, though, Amara, if you need me to stop. Or do anything else. I don't want to hurt you again."
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 2:55:41 GMT
"Right now, having you close and talking open like this is plenty good, thank you Ayah. Loved everything about you, it just weren't a good secret to be keeping and it hurt a bit. Growing pains. Consider it water under the bridge now, n'less you have other big surprises up your sleeve?" Scooting back to be against her, he didn't turn, but by his breathing, the steady relaxation and how he quieted, Amaranth was flagging towards rest.
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 3:04:54 GMT
"Nothing that I know of," Ayah says. "My sister might have more, though," she comments, dryly. "Who knows at this point."
She gets up from the bed after a few moments, stretching. "Feel free to clear off the bed if you want to get more comfortable," Ayah says, gesturing to the mountain of plush at the head of the bed, over the pillows. "I'm just gonna grab some fruit, maybe some crackers. You want anything, or just going to steal from mine when you say no?" She gives a wink and a sly grin.
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 3:13:38 GMT
"I'll ah... show myself to a guest room. Not particularly hungry, and it wouldn't be well mannered to sleep in a lady's bed out of wedlock. Thanks for the talk Ayah, I hope you feel better. Ah know I do."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 3:21:09 GMT
"It's not like we'd be doing anything," Ayah says, rolling her eyes. "Silly Amara. You just seemed like you were comfy there. But if you want to move... well, take your pick. Plenty of rooms. Or a couch if you want that full tv-boyfriend experience," she teases.
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Post by seraphflonne on Jul 25, 2020 5:13:22 GMT
"Uh, I don't think so. I think that was more just me being excited as all get out about it... I know I can uh, put a layer of water on myself that feels soothing, but I don't think that's just any type of water and more just something I... make?" The islander shakes his head at Evelyn, chuckling.
"I gained a new appreciation for water, but I getcha. That said after all this we gotta travel by water again, so we're gonna be seeing plenty of beaches..."
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Post by DataNinja on Jul 25, 2020 6:32:33 GMT
"I know we're going to have to," Evelyn grumbles, "I just don't want to. We've had approximately one good beach experience this trip."
"Eh, figured it was worth a suggestion," Ruby shrugs. "But you absolutely know better than me."
Looking around the house, the group's able to find an older-generation console and some controllers, and can just play games into the evening. Maya makes dinner later, a pasta with vegetables, but she vacates the area and everyone's just able to serve themselves.
The rest of the evening passes uneventfully, everyone retiring to different areas of the house to sleep.
In the morning, the smell of bacon, eggs, and pancakes wafts through the house. Ayah seems to have reached some sort of equilibrium with her sister, as both of them are together making the food.
On the cabinet opposite Amaranth's room, he notices a vase filled with familiar tall, feathery flowers, in a variety of colours. A sticky note with a heart penciled on it is stuck on the vase.
"How'd everyone sleep?" Zach asks, coming in once everyone's downstairs. "Feeling ready to venture into the great unknown? See the mysteries of the universe? Or, well, a bigger peek at them?"
"They've got a PC connection here, too, by the way," Evelyn says. "I was happy about that. Didn't need to fly back to the center to get the rest of my team back."
"We've got healing here, too," Zach says. "Not Center-grade, but, uh, I feel like Ronin might get a few squints at the Center. So we make do with what we have."
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Post by Robot on Jul 25, 2020 9:22:11 GMT
"Morning everyone, and I suppose I am.". Amaranth settles in to enjoy the heartier breakfast, but mostly picks at it, instead favoring the fruits tucked to the side. The sweetness was more agreeable to his palate then salty bacon, or fluffy eggs. He was particularly reserved and soft-spoken that morning.
He had slept well enough, though it hadn't really been in the house per se. A guest bed, then the couch, finally the rear deck overlooking the flowers in the moonlight. "Hopefully this will give you the confidence you need."
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