text;

[shiro2hero]

Keith and Romelle are gone.

I've got their starters. And Keith's Skarmory. If anyone has any of their other pokemon I'd appreciate knowing.

Going to Cianwood City. Missed that badge. Sorry to anyone waiting on the Island.

That's all.

[That's. Really all. That's all he knows how to say about the situation. All he thinks to say without dumping more feelings out.]

[So clearly... it's back on the road.]

Comments

Video;

[schachmeister]

[Oh, that is. Not very great news. Armin didn't get to know Romelle very well, but he's known Keith for about a year now. The fact that he's gone home, and so close on the heels of Angel... it's all pretty unfair, isn't it?

But he is also worried. Not about Keith or Romelle or even Angel. That is nothing he can influence, so he is trying very hard to shut down any thought that strays in that direction. Keep focussing on the productive, so he doesn't overwhelm himself. Rather, it's Shiro he worries about. Shiro has always taken the 'loss' (not that either Romelle or Keith are dead as far as Armin knows) pretty hard, and Armin's got a feeling he'll take Keith going back to their world even harder. They were close. And the worst thing is, he is here on Mt Silver where he cannot keep a direct eye on Shiro. Jean is in jail, so he cannot keep an eye on him either. Maybe Krieg, then? Or one of the rest of his team? He's already feeling like Shiro is going to need it, his mind already racing along in contingency plans and what abouts.

But first things first.

He doesn't use text when contacting Shiro. It's a video call he receives, hoping Shiro will reply in kind. It's harder to hide that way.]

I can't check my PC where I am at, but... how are you doing? Are you... [not okay. That is going to be plain and Armin isn't going to give Shiro the easy luxury of replying with an 'I'm fine'.] Are you managing?

text;

[shiro2hero]

[Unfortunately for Armin's incredible effort... text is what comes back. He knows he's hiding. He knows he's avoiding the issue. He just doesn't know what else to do. Not yet. Except go forward.]

[Which is... exactly what he's going to do.]

I'm fine.

[Goddammit Shiro.]

We're backtracking. To Cianwood. So... we're fine.

Video;

[schachmeister]

[Do you see him frown when he receives that text, Shiro? You will because Armin is leaving his camera on.]

It seems to be that if you were really as fine as you are claiming to be, you wouldn't be hiding behind text.

[Do not try and bullshit him, Shiro. Armin can and will call you out.]

» text

[spacebaloney]

[What does Lance say to this? He and Keith weren't too close, being from different timelines and all, not like they should have been, and he didn't know Romelle from a can of paint. But what he does know is how it feels when a friend goes home. It happened to Hunk and Lance felt like a part of him was missing. A part he couldn't just get up and run somewhere to replace it.

With how close Keith and Shiro were, it's got to be the same feeling.]

shit
i'm sorry

[Don't say you're fine, Shiro. Lance knows how easy it is to say that when it's not.]

» text

[shiro2hero]

It's not your fault.

[Because what else is he supposed to say? What else can he say? He knows what he's not allowed to say, as much as he wants to. That he's fine, that he should be fine, because he's not the one in Romelle's situation. He's not the one sent back to whatever complications he couldn't ask Keith about.]

[He's just the one who couldn't keep them here.]

Just look after the house a while longer. Okay?

Audio

[tookashirototheknee]

Shiro. I'm coming after you.

[No request, no options. He's just determined.]

text; private

[shiro2hero]

I



Don't want to take you away from the observatory. Or

I don't know

Text

[icecastlemadonna]

Oh, Shiro...I'm so sorry.

Is there anything I can do?

[Yuuko knows it's no fun at all to find out that someone you know has disappeared.]

Text

[shiro2hero]

It's not your fault.

[It's sympathy, he knows. But oh well. It's easier just to say. Just to get that out there.]

Tell me how far to Cianwood from Blackthorn?

video;

[notvaljean]

Dammit, Shiro...

[Of all the awful timing... Jean is currently incarcerated and serving hard soft time in Violet.]

Do you need me to send Bertolt to get you? FCAB can be wherever you are by the end of the day. Or if you're still in Blackthorn, you can just go to the cabin and wait for him.

text;

[shiro2hero]

It's fine. I already got moving. To Cianwood.

[It's fine, he's fine. See how fine he is? How he left without saying anything!]

Aren't you still in Violet?

[forsaintcecilia]

[Oh goodness. Kazuki is familiar enough with Shiro to know that this is a Bad Sign.]

I'm sorry, Shiro. Were they friends from your world?

text;

[shiro2hero]

I didn't know Romelle before she got here.


Keith I've

I've known him since he was just a kid

action; YOU CAN'T ESCAPE, SHIRO

[sunspotted]

[ whenever shiro does arrive in cianwood, he'll be approached by a big, fluffy arcanine. she sticks her tongue out with a wide grin and bumps her head against his hand - he may have met her once before, a couple months ago, in blackthorn for bertolt's birthday party as a small growlithe, or more recently in celadon.

marco may have sent lucia odor-sleuthing for the black paladin so he wouldn't miss him when he arrived. which is why marco shows up a moment later, viola the ninetales at his side. ]

Shiro. [ he smiles. ] Fancy meeting you here.

[ this is a lie. he knows exactly why he is looking for shiro. ]

action; CANT CATCH HIM

[shiro2hero]

[For a second, he mistakes the big dog for Heather's Cujo. And part of him hopes -- but it's not the same animal. Still, he reaches out to pat the Arcanine. His expression miles away. Haunter peers slowly out of his shadow, curious -- the ghost keeping a close eye on its trainer.]

[Only to leap up, waving as Marco approaches. Shiro, however, startles. Looking guilty as heck all of the sudden.]

Marco. Hey.

[Excuse him for being more subdued than usual.]

Text

[haveyouseenalittlegirl]

I'm sorry to hear that.

[Also worried. But pretty sure what he'd get in response to asking how he's doing.]

You're going for the badge in Cianwood then?

Text

[shiro2hero]

It isn't your fault.

[Probably not the best answer, but it's the only one he has in him right now.]

Yeah. Bypassed it somehow.

It's the last one I need.

[text]

[fuelthefire]

Everything is skag sacks

Youre gonna pound the gym though

Me and the Pretty Lady are going back to your place

We'll try not to get arrested again

Beach brawls should be fine, right?

[text]

[shiro2hero]

Yeah, Krieg. It is.


Just take care of yourselves.

And yeah. Should be fine. We've




we've got another muscle cat for you now.

[Text]

[maybeitsmabelline]

I'm really really sorry, Shiro.

I hope you have someone close by that can give you a really big hug right now.

And if not just know that I'm sending lots and lots of hugs through my 'gear right now until I can give you them in person okay?

<3 <3 <3 <3!!!!

[Text]

[shiro2hero]

I appreciate that.

I'll be fine. I've got my pokemon with me. They're doing the best they can.

[text]

[pidge_out]

[Pidge is. Bad at this. She's gotten better over time (or she'd like to believe so, anyway), and normally when it comes to Shiro she is better at it. But this... This is hard. She hardly knew Romelle, and while she and Keith hadn't been terribly close friends, they were still friends. Teammates. And she knows all too well how close he and Shiro were, and...

Well. Pidge had lost Matt. She can empathize with this. Putting that empathy into words of comfort? That's a whole other story.

It takes her several attempts to find what she should say. Several "I'm sorry"s and "Are you okay?"s typed out only to be deleted again. But she finally settles on--]

let me know if you need anything, okay?

[text]

[shiro2hero]

[You know, abstractly, he's glad she doesn't bother with the apologies. Glad there's no question of whether or not he's okay. Mostly because he doesn't have those answers. Not for Pidge, not for Jean or Armin or any of the others who are bound to ask.]

[Pidge just forges on.]

[Like he should be doing. Shouldn't he?]

thank you, Pidge

It's good to know you're here

text

[im_a_leg]

[Hunk had known his friends were gone, of course. It hurt, ached in his chest. But he also hoped they were off to better times. Maybe after all the chaos back home was over with, whatever happens there.

He also happens to know that Shiro takes this kind of stuff personally sometimes.]

Hey, man. Do you think we can meet up? This is just ... a lot.

text

[shiro2hero]

["sometimes"? Buddy, more like every time.]

I'm fine.

You don't have to fly all the way here on my account

I'll



I'll come back to the islands once I get this gym handled. Okay? Are you guys all right out there?