victory_road | [closed] March Catch All

Entry tags:

[closed] March Catch All

Who: Team Femblemtroika (Grant, Chip, Dimitri, Sylvain, Claude, Felix, Jinx, Razor, Ashe, Annette, Lysithea - with people going in and out as they please)
What: Please let this group just fall asleep in Olivine for a while with nothing exploding, they beg you
When: March
Where: The Olivine City general area
Rating: T

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They have a trail.

Dimitri can't help but feel so relieved by that, he wants to collapse to the ground from the force of such an emotion. But it's true. They have a lead, a stop where they saw a young woman with a Corsola who stopped her challenge of a battle when she saw how frantic they were, and told them of how a child had gone zooming past her on their Pokemon.

The description had matched Chip perfectly... but they can't go rushing off. It's too dark now, even with their Pokemon's speed, and so Dimitri and Claude start to lower their Pokemon down to earth again. Dimitri isn't really thinking much about any trouble. He'll just get Dean out, start a fire, ask Claude to speak to him a little so that he can go to sleep while Shuck stands guard -

As the gusts of wind from Elshot's wings shakes the trees, some dark shop drops out and explodes.

Elshot still hasn't properly landed yet, but that doesn't matter to Dimitri's sudden surge of fight-or-flight. If there's any good news, it's that he doesn't have far to fall when he leaps off of Elshot's back, managing to hit the ground without any issue or too much stumbling. It's the furthest thing from his mind, honestly, as evident by the wild look in his eye.

His Pidgeot is just as startled - both by the explosion, and his trainer's sudden leap. He lands clumsily, spreading out his wings and flapping them as a threat to accompany his aggressive call.

For a moment, it feels like being back in the war again. Not in anything specific happening, exactly - explosions weren't terribly common back home - but...it feels like having an ambush sprung on them. One moment, everything was quiet and peaceful, and the next Claude has no idea what's happened, whether the people he loves are okay -

"Dimitri!"

For a moment, he thinks his lover is falling, that perhaps he's hurt ~~or worse~~, and his heart leaps to his throat. But then he realizes there's control in the movement, sees Dimitri land on his feet and realizes it was a jump, not a fall, and some of the alarm fades. Some, but not all; he's still not clear what's happening, what the threat is.

Blitz is making an angry, agitated trill; he and Claude happened to be further from...whatever happened, and they're less affected. But now Claude guides him quickly down towards Dimitri, hopping off without even having Blitz land to move to his side. Blitz remains hovering protectively just above and behind them, using his higher vantage point to survey the surroundings better. Noiverns are far better in the air than on the ground in any case.

"Are you okay?" Claude asks Dimitri, urgently.

For a moment, Dimitri doesn't seem to hear Claude. His eye is dilated with adrenaline, teeth bared in a silent snarl, and, with his balance regained, he braces himself for... something. He doesn't know what, only that he has to be braced for something. He's being attacked - someone is going to kill him, or another person, someone he cares about. He can't let that happen.

He can't.

Elshot soon finds the perpetrator, pecking downwards with a sharp noise of disgust, before he turns his head and calls towards Blitz.

It's really only natural to land down at one of the few actually established places on the route, when he and Claude spot Moomoo Farms on the horizons.

Dimitri is... almost not expecting much, although he knows that is the pessimistic part of him speaking up. Still, he can't help it. If they're lucky, someone was outside on the day that Chip passed by the farm, and they can at least help confirm that they passed by this way. That they're still heading towards Olivine City.

What will happen when they reach the city, if they haven't caught up to Chip by then... Dimitri isn't certain. Cities are large, and there are a great many people there to ask about a runaway child. His head is absolutely buzzing with planning ahead as he and Claude step up towards one of the people outside...

Only to be told that a child matching Chip's exact description has been staying at the farm for a short while.

Dimitri's heart is in his throat as the farmhand leads them around, until they're reaching the sound of Growlithe puppies yipping and running around... until they're able to see a familiar form crouched down amongst all of them.

He steps forward, hand at his heart. "Chip?"

Animals have always been Chip's weakness. Cats, dogs, birds, even squirrels darting up trees or into bushes always caught them up for at least one moment. It was part of what made Johto such a paradise for them--not having to be yelled at for offering food to an animal passing by, being able to keep so many fuzzy and feathery friends of their own. So maybe it was inevitable that they would choose to linger around the outskirts of the Moo Moo Farm, that they would sneak in to play with the litters of Growlithe romping around the fields.

Regardless, that's exactly where they are when the two men take that last turn around the barn to where Chip is attempting (and failing) to dish out the kibble for a very hungry and very over-eager pack of puppies. They've got one arm holding the bag of kibble closed as best they can while the other holds the scoop full of said kibbles over their head while Growlithe bounce and yip all around them. "I gotta--hold on, I gotta put it in the bowl first! Sit!"

But then Dimitri speaks, and his voice hits them like a bat to the chest. They turn to look, panicked as they see both him and Claude (why why why they shouldn't be here why) before stumbling to their feet and attempting to bolt.

Claude had been...well, maybe saying he was letting Dimitri lead the way is a bit generous. When Dimitri's all keyed up at the thought of finally finding Chip and making sure they're safe, and he's got that much of a height advantage on Claude, who goes first isn't exactly up to Claude at all. But if it had been, he would have held back regardless. Not just because Chip and Dimitri are much closer than Claude is to Chip, and so it's only logical and considerate for Dimitri to go first here...but also because Claude had wanted to size things up.

Grant hasn't really communicated much with them on why Chip might have run off. Claude's not sure if that's because Grant doesn't really know himself, whether he's too scattered from Chip's vanishing (and, understandably, too busy prioritizing getting them back) to explain, or if he's actually holding something back from them. What he does know is that even his own legendary curiosity can't bring itself to intrude on a frantic father, or take priority over a missing child. But...well, Claude doesn't seek to know things just because he's nosy. The more information he has, the better and more informed calls he can make. The more he can ensure the success of his endeavors. The better he can deal with people, whether through charm or - if he deems it important enough - manipulation. He's concerned that his not knowing Chip's motives for running off could have consequences here, and so he wants to hang back and assess what he can from observation before he makes any real moves.

When he sees Chip blanch at the sight of them, and turn to run from Dimitri, one of their closest friends...Claude's sure he doesn't know enough about this situation. But also, there's no way they can just let Chip run away, either.

"Chip, wait!" His voice is urgent, even as he hurries forward - he's praying his voice slows or stops the kid, because he doesn't actually want to have to run them down. That's not going to improve...anything. "We just want to talk!"

At least one of them is thinking straight, because Dimitri certainly isn't.

His body acts first, legs pushing him forward while his hand goes down to his belt. He already has Shuck's ball in his hand, tossing it forward - not directly at Chip, but rather in the direction he can see the child trying to make their escape too. There is soon another dog in the area, with Shuck hitting the floor running.

This is nothing surprising, considering Shuck probably shot out of the egg running, and has never decided to stop this particular action. But she's been on high alert the past few days, with Dimitri using her to sniff out Chip's scent and make sure they're on the right track. When she sees, smells, the target she's been looking for this entire time? Shuck's legs practically go flying out form underneath her as she makes the sharp turn around, jaw actually hitting the ground.

This does not stop her whatsoever, and she just bounds about in front of Chip - not landing on top of them, but just, you know, losing her shit in their general frontal vicinity.

This is, predictably, not calming down the Growlithe puppies.

With at least some method of making sure Chip doesn't go running off again, Dimitri's own gait slows, and he lowers himself down onto his knees with his eye already wet and threatening to spill forth tears. Stress and a lack of proper sleep has made it easy for them to gather. "Chip... If I did anything wrong whatsoever, please let me know. All of us - have been so frightened for you..."

Blitz swoops down closer at Elshot's call, and makes a trill of what is...something like exasperation? There's a definite sense of lowering alarm, at least. Two powerful flying types faced with a bug type that has already blown itself up don't really have a whole lot to worry about, at the end of the day.

Claude, meanwhile, senses the shift in mood from the pokémon, even if he's not quite sure why. He hasn't really noticed the singed Pineco yet, partly because it's not currently moving, and partly because it's singed and thus looks like it could easily be something blown up by, or left over from, the explosion, but even without identifying what's happened...he finds himself relaxing, if only marginally. He trusts animal instincts. If Blitz and Elshot seem more annoyed than alarmed, then they probably have a good reason for acting that way.

He reaches out to gently take Dimitri's arm. "Dimitri...I think it's okay. Look at our pokémon." He gets the feeling his lover needs to be...soothed down from fever pitch here. And with no threats immediately presenting themselves, Claude thinks they can afford that.

Nothing is happening.

Dimitri's brain takes that in, even if it's hard to take in anything else. Nothing is happening.

Hard pants puff out from between his teeth as he stares in the direction of their Pokemon, heart pounding against his ribcage. There's noise. Claude. Look at their Pokemon? He's looking, but - that's not important. Body trembling, he finally turns his attention to Claude, and raises a shaking hand. "Claude... You aren't...?" He doesn't dare touch him, fingers a few inches away, scared all over again that he'll hurt him if he tries.

Swing and a miss, bud.

The appearance of Shuck in Chip's way does not, in fact, slow their attempts at escape. In fact, if anything this makes it worse as they yell in a panic and try to dodge around Shuck and the puppies. They hit the ground in a tumble, giving DImitri that brief window to make his plea...

...before they've gotten to their feet and take off again, not having heard any of it.

A. 03.08
[The last time Sylvain had made it to the beach, they had been at war. Dedriu had been under siege, and they'd all been scrambling to protect it and save its leader. In all honesty, he hardly remembered the fight -- he hardly remembered many fights in specific details. But he could recall the seaspray. It had smelled good, at least when he could find some place without the smell of smoke and decay. The water had sparkled beneath the warm sun, looking almost green -- outside of the places where it wasn't thick and red with blood.

Olivine's beach is nothing like that. The sun was hardly visible behind the thick veil of clouds. Sylvain has to wear his jacket out -- between the water off the waves and the temperature in the air, it feels almost as cold as Gautier tended to. The water is murky and grey.

But the seaspray was still nice, and he was certain that it would only get better as winter gave way to spring, and spring to summer. And while he was trying to take Jane's advice and focus on one step at a time, he can't help but look forward to it. For the first time in weeks, months perhaps, he felt faintly optimistic.]

B. 03.09
[Realistically, it was too cold to go out into the water. Even if it was slightly warmer than the day prior, Sylvain was still wearing a jacket with his shorts. But as Claude had said time and time again, Faerghans were born with ice in their veins. And he'd been stupid enough to jump in colder water than this.

Not that's he's immediately plunging in. Rather, he has a towel laid out on the beach, and a rather confused looking Pyroar nosing at the sand. Beside him, Inda is hard at work building a sand castle, or at least whatever she seems to consider one.

Slipping off his jacket, he puts it over the Steenee's teeny shoulders. It practically overwhelms her, but she seems to appreciate it anyway. She waits patiently while Sylvain rolls up the sleeves for her, then gets back to work on her sand castle.

Content that Inda was comfortable for the time being, Sylvain turns back to the sea. Without the jacket, his chest is now bare, and he can feel just how damn cold it really is. He doesn't care. He kicks off his shoes and breaks into a sprint, splashing through the water up to his thighs before the sand and rock beneath the surface slow his progress. His teeth are already starting to chatter, but he keeps on until a wave dunks him fully under.

When the surf finally pushes him back to shore, he's laughing.]

Felix still hasn't managed to feel anything less than exhausted by the time they get to Olivine. It isn't that he hasn't been sleeping, it's just that when he's awake, a cloud still seems to hang over everything, and the last few months have been such an intense emotional whirlwind of one kind or another that some nights, he longs for war again. War has plenty of its own stressors, of course, but at least things are simple. There's just Felix and his sword and the enemy, and waking comes as easily as sleeping because there are things to do and battles to fight, and his purpose is clear. There's no room for rumination on feelings when you're just working to survive.

Here, he can't go a day without some strong emotional reaction to something, and it's wearing him out. Sometimes, in his lowest moments, he wishes he could just stop caring. Like he used to wish every day, back at the academy. His life would be so much easier if he could turn his heart off. He never knows what to do with any of this, and nothing he says or does ever seems to make things truly better for anyone.

Certainly not Sylvain.

So when he runs into Dimitri on his way out of the inn on the night they arrive in Olivine, he almost turns around and walks away. Dimitri of all people isn't someone he can talk to without feeling things. Unfortunately, Dimitri notices him before he can leave. And Felix won't be that cruel to him--not anymore.

"...hi."

[Felix isn't a stranger to warmer beaches than the rocky ones Faerghus has, because Fraldarius is quite close to Derdriu by boat and they used to cross the water to visit when he was young. So when he walks onto the beach with his gym bag slung over one shoulder and a thermos in his hand, he's dressed appropriately--swimsuit, a long-sleeved but unbuttoned shirt, sandals, hair piled high atop his head, and of course his sunglasses. He brought his jacket, too, but he isn't wearing it.

He's also accompanied by three Eevees already chasing each other around in the sand, a little Ralts riding on top of his bag, and Varley. He warns them all:]

Stay away from Inda's sand castle unless you plan to help her with it. Don't ruin it with your rowdy nonsense.

[They agree readily and the Eevees are already running off again, while Varley slinks away to go investigate shells. Felix and Pwyll approach Inda instead, and the Ralts crawls off the bag to attempt to help build the castle--would you like some telekinesis to help, Inda? He can do telekinesis, a little...

Felix crouches in the sand, watching the two of them for a moment. This, this is nice and simple. Like when he and Glenn were children building their own sand castles on Derdriu's beaches, and Glenn loved to find weird little sea creatures to pull out of the water and scare Felix with. Or when sometimes Ingrid would join them and the three of them would chase each other around in the surf (and inevitably a large wave would come in and sweep Felix out into the water and Glenn would have to come and get him and Ingrid made him feel better by sparring with him with their little wooden swords.

Felix would never say the beach was his favorite place (he still sort of hates sand and the ocean isn't much better), but it's not so bad, either.

He looks up at the sound of Sylvain's laughter and stands, heading over there. By the time he gets there, he's smirking and holding out the thermos of tea.]

An ice bear swim already? Should have known you were just waiting for an excuse.

[He nods toward the thermos.] It's bergamot. I found it in the box of tea.

[Inda casts a wary glance toward the visitors, but only because she's worked so hard so far. Thankfully, the Eevees stay away, and Varley seems more content with searching for something else. The only Pokemon that comes near is Pwyll and... Well, he seems polite enough. She scoots to the side, bundling up Sylvain's jacket around her as she does. She makes room for the little Ralts beside her.

Closer to the water, Sylvain opens his eyes. His hair is in his face, making it hard to see, but he'd know Felix's silhouette anywhere. He reaches up toward the Thermos and takes it. He sets it aside carefully, before grabbing hold of Felix's hand again and attempting to pull him down for a big, wet hug.]

I was wondering when you'd get here, Fe.

Gah--!

[By now, there's no way Felix should be surprised by this, and yet. He stumbles and falls over into Sylvain's lap--which also happens to be squarely in the surf.]

Sylvain! You're freezing, get off me, you oaf!

[He tries to scramble away and shove the other man back into the wet sand, although even if he manages it, he doesn't go far, still sitting--because why not, at this point.]

Ugh, and now I'm freezing.

Edited 2021-03-10 06:22 (UTC)

[While the sky may be gray, Olivine itself does not seem particularly inclined to hold itself in similar conditions. People and their Pokemon still bustle along the streets, and there are the occasional stalls that are cropped up along other places - especially near the beach, which has always been one of Olivine's biggest attractions.]

[One of those people and his Pokemon should be familiar to Sylvain, because he breaks away from the sidewalk to head right towards him. Dimitri raises his hand, Dean the Emboar and Silkie the Indeedee behind him.]

Sylvain! Admiring the ocean?

Frankly, a part of Dimitri wants to just lay down on his inn bed, and sleep for perhaps a week. Ever since Valentines, far too much has been happening, and he thinks he would rather like it all to stop for a while, even if sleep is a temporary fix more than anything.

But Olivine is a beautiful city, and seeing it there had... reminded him of things he wanted to do. Promised he had kept. So he had ducked out to glance at some stalls set up near the oceanfront, although not as many as will likely appear during the summer, and he's been letting himself drift through the various stores. Right now, he's mainly waiting for Elshot, who he'd sent off almost the second they had arrived in town. The inn will be a good place to wait for that, he thinks...

Except there's Felix there, when he arrives, and Dimitri doesn't miss the awkwardness that falls over him for a brief moment. He hesitates, glad that he put Silkie away in her ball beforehand. "Hello, Felix," he says quietly. "Were you going for a walk?"

"Something like that."

If he's honest, Felix doesn't really know where he's going. He just had to get out of the room for a while. He was at Sylvain's side the whole trip from Ecruteak, but they didn't really talk all that much; and now that Inda's spending all her time with Sylvain again, Felix has felt weirdly lonely in a way he shouldn't.

At least Pwyll, perched on his shoulder, isn't going anywhere.

"What are you doing out here?"

[Post top levels for shenanigans as you see fit.]

[She's out the door as soon as she finishes her letter for Dimitri, and tells Elshot to go on ahead - the warps will ensure she beats the Pidgeot to Olivine, but he doesn't have to worry about her. Jane's...kind of been on the edge of her seat and ready to head out as soon as she got the OK from this merry band of individuals to help with vaccine things. It doesn't take too terribly long to warp to Olivine City, even though she's a little dizzy from taking two warps in a row, and it's not hard to find the inn and ask where certain individuals might be staying, she's a friend and would like to visit, and also, do you have a room available?

Yes. Yes, you're all going to be gently bothered by Jane Crocker for a few days. It's done out of concern, I promise. She'll provide plenty of water and orange juice to anyone who seems very fatigued, willing to make tea on request, and happy to do food runs or even make some nice warm soup if the innkeepers don't mind letting her fiddle in their kitchen. The Pokemon she brings are those she trusts to be most helpful when it comes to assisting others: Dinah, Deva, Dart, August, and Peter all have humanoid bodies and are reliable when it comes to following instructions, while Bettina is always good to have around should they need another flyer. Any of these Pokemon are available for interactions and can be denoted by the light blue bandanas Jane has decided to give them to wear.

There are people she wants to speak to specifically - Dimitri to give him her response letter; Grant to discuss potentially helping Chip out with their issues and then Chip if Grant agrees, because she's worried; Sylvain to get some ideas going for a project he has in mind. Other than that, please feel free to talk to her, complain about how you're feeling at her, or ask who the heck she is and why has she barged in to give you soup. Y'all feel crummy and she's here to help!]

[As soon as he realizes Jane is here, Grant starts looking for a chance to talk to her properly - more than just a passing "oh, hi, thank you for coming" as they're both rushing around. He finally finds it in a moment where they're both grabbing more refreshments for those suffering the consequences of getting vaccinated for the first time ever.]

Hey! Thank you so much for coming over-- I'm sorry I didn't call and let you know what was going on.

Oh, it's fine! I, uh - I heard there was a lot going on that might've complicated that, anyway.

[Which, you know, is something she'd like to address, so just going to glance around real quick...]

Grant, do you mind if I ask you something?

[Out of the whole group, Dimitri is one of the most eager to get his shots done with. That there is just... a thing you can do that can make your body more resilient to disease? No magic involved at all? That's fantastic to him. And also vitally important.]

[As someone who knows plague was a recent memory in Faerghus, well, this is unsurprising.]

[Still, while he had thought he had mentally prepared himself for the idea of maybe being a little down in the weather for this kind of thing.... It's something else entirely to actually experience it.]

A - Giant Bird Time

[....So Dimitri has managed to slip out of his room. Considering this is not normally a man known for stealth, that's kind of impressive.]

[At least it's easy enough to find him. He doesn't go far, instead standing right outside in the small landing pad area behind the inn for large flying types to arrive at. There, he's brought out Elshot, and is clumsily trying to wrap a bit of string around what appears to be a letter.]

[....He is doing his best, god bless his soul]

No... No, I can do this, Elshot. I have done this many times.

[The Pidgeot just cocks his head to the side sympathetically. Buddy...]

B - Reassurance All The Time

[At some point, Dimitri is herded back to bed in his secret rattata pajamas, by a combination of babysitters and pokemon who are basically fulfilling the same function. He's feeling pretty feverish, so it's not too hard to just... make him stay in bed.]

[Ideally, he should dose it off.]

[What he ends up doing is looking blearily up at anyone near him - whether they're there to help him eat, cool his hot skin, or anything else - and ask a simple question.]

Do you like me?

C - Rat Pajamas Strike Back

[So the thing about having a fever is that your body gets super hot.]

[Dimitri's favorite pair of pajamas are a Christmas gift from Grant, navy blue flannel pajamas with a secret little rattata sewed on the inside front pocket.]

[This is, perhaps, a problem.]

[It is a problem that is shown most when one finds Dimitri sitting on the floor, back against the side of his bed, and his pajamas top just.... halfway up off of his body, fingers loosely curled in the front while the rest of it is bunched up around his shoulders and just completely obscuring his head.]

[He's not moving. Did he fall asleep like this...?]

D - Wildcard

[Do whatever you like with this sad sick man]

"Ah... I'm waiting for Elshot to return." Dimitri shifts, sensing there's something more Felix isn't saying. But if he pushes on the matter... He doesn't want to ruin anything between them. It was still not that long ago that he was able to reunite with Felix to begin with...

"I have been writing letters to Jane, and forgot to send one before we left Ecruteak." For.... obvious reasons. "I also wanted to write something to Kazuki, and send him something as well." Dimitri glances back to the city. "They have interesting foods here, so... I wanted him to enjoy some of it. There's something nice about writing letters..."

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Page 1 of 26

[closed] March Catch All

the first of march - claude and dimitri get to deal with an exploding shithead pokemon

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March 2 - Child Found

Dimitri and Claude tackle an 11 year old

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Olivine Time

Felix & Dimitri | March 8, evening

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A

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March 9 - 12 : Medieval fantasy idiots and a wolf boy get their shots

March 9th-12th, Jane Crocker OTA

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ota

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