ratherbelocky | .001 Δ [Video/Action for Cherrygrove]

[The feed flips on to show a man holding a brush in one hand and a young Shinx in his lap. Both of them appear to have been freshly bathed, with the damp Shinx swaddled in one of Cherrygrove Inn's warm, fluffy towels. When all of her wriggling and protesting comes to naught, she just lies there in her towel burrito and seethes. York, on the other hand, has found that shops in this world do, apparently, sell hair product for humans, and he couldn't be happier. He's fixed his hair for the first time in days. Life is wonderful.

Not that vanity's necessarily the reason he hasn't introduced himself to the PokéConnect community at large yet. It's just. You know. Coincidence.]

Good morning, people. And Pokémon, too, of course, can't forget you guys. For those of you I haven't spoken to yet, I'm York, I'm one of your more recent unwitting transplants to sunny Johto. Or, well, partially cloudy Johto, anyway. How about that weather, huh?

[The temperature has dropped literally twenty degrees in the five days since he got here, oh my god, why. Being caught out on the road in yesterday's rainstorm sucked. Now he's warm and dry and comfortable in a clean shirt a couple sizes too big for him (and he's not exactly a small man). Really, what could be better than being alive here and now?

He rubs the Shinx's fur drier, unwraps her, and then holds her still before she can escape so he can brush the tangles out. She mewls fussily, but his hands are steady, and eventually she relaxes--if mutinously--into the attention. He chuckles a little.]

But okay, I'm not actually here to make small talk. I got a question for you folks.

[He turns the PokéGear with the back of his brush to show another Pokémon, an Elgyem, bundled up in a blanket on the bed, fast asleep.]

Can someone tell me more about Psychic Pokémon? [He goes back to brushing.] I get that they read minds--Delta Two there communicates with me all the time--but she doesn't use words so it's hard to get more...complicated ideas across, sometimes. I was wondering, can you train them to talk? Or do other things? These guys are obviously a lot more intelligent than the animals back on my Earth, so I guess you could say I'm curious about what they can do.

[The Shinx's eyes are half-closed now as York brushes away. Someone's a sleepy baby.]

'Preciate your time. Over and out.

((Action also available for Cherrygrove, where he can be found at the inn or browsing the PokéMart stock.))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's not so bad. Cryo helps for the real long jumps, but mostly we had training in between missions anyway.

Cryo is where they freeze you, right? How doesn't that kill you?

I don't really understand the science part of it, I just know that it works.

...Usually.

... do I want to ask?

Nothing's perfect.

[That's... now he's reminded that he just came from a time in his world where he's pretty sure he just killed his best friend. Thinking about death has him bummed out now.]

I know.

[Aw, man. What did he do? Why is this planet full of sad kids? Fuck, where's North when you need him to be the world's nicest not-dad, York isn't cut out for this nurturing stuff, he doesn't even know what he said.]

...Well, nobody's perfect, either. Even the military scientists who design those things. Error...'S just one of those things that make us human.

['Makes us human'?]

I wasn't human till I got here. But I know I've made a lot of mistakes. That's normal, right? Even animals make mistakes.

[Belle nudges her trainers leg. No being sad. Roxas looks down and smiles at her.]

As long as you don't repeat them, everything works out.

'Wasn't human till...'

[Oh man, is this like the bird kid again?]

Huh, okay. That explains a couple things. So this place just makes people human?

It does?

[Is this why people won't tell him some things? That's rude.]

Yeah. It made my friend Naminé human, just like me. Tobias, too.[Wait, was he supposed to not mention Tobias?]

[Nah, people don't tell Roxas things because he's young. So young. Such a smol.]

Right, Tobias. I talked to him, he seems like a good kid. He a friend of yours, too?

Yeah. He's the one who gave me my Rufflet as a birthday present. I'm glad Saix went to him when I left here. He's an expert on birds!

[He's not that small.]

[He's pretty small compared to big old space Marines.]

What about Naminé? I don't think I've met her yet.

[He knows way too many tall people....]

We're from the same world. She's just like me. We're... twins.

[It's easier to say that then explain the whole Nobodies from the same heart thing.]

Ohh, huh.

[York nods as if he has any idea what he's talking about.]

My good friend, he's a twin, too.

[Empress, bored, climbs out of York's arms to drape herself along his shoulders and watch Vivi and Belle from her new, higher vantage point. York steadies her gently with one hand.]

You get along with her? Your sister, I mean.

I don't meet a lot of twins.

[Like Belle cares about vantage points. Being down on the ground makes it easier to protect her trainer and little mouse friend.]

Yeah. She's in Kanto right now with some friends. I'd... go be with her, but I want to see all of Johto. So I'm hoping she comes here so I can see her again.

[Fine by Empress. Clearly it just means she reigns supreme over all the light touches.]

Yeah. I know the feeling.

[York's voice is gentler, a bit.]

Sometimes, when you wait, things have a way of coming back to you when you least expect them.

[The shadows is where the party's at!

Roxas doesn't really know how to respond to that. What he wanted was his friends from home. And they weren't real in the first place.]

... do you need help picking anything out for you or your Pokémon?

[Well, that sure is a change of topic. But York doesn't press the matter.]

A girl told me I could teach my Pokémon how to read. I'm looking for a good kids' book to surprise my starter with when she wakes up from her nap.

Reading? You can do that?

[That sounds like a good idea. Roxas looks around.]

I think that stuff is a few aisles over.

Apparently so, yeah. Some of 'em even text.

[He glances around--he does have a higher vantage point than Roxas, at least--and then nods.]

All right, thanks, kid, I can probably take it from here. Roxas, yeah?

[Just to make sure he's got it before he takes off.]

... I hope mine don't.

[There'd be awkward messages to apologize for.

Roxas nods with a smile.]

Yep. I'll probably see you around when you get to Goldenrod.

[Guess who knows a shortcut there. Alas, he waves and goes back to trying to find decent snacks.]

.001 Δ [Video/Action for Cherrygrove]

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