victory_road | it's been so long between the words we spoke {OPEN}

[Ever tried to chase a Dorito man with a bento box? That's Hunk right now, trying to catch up to Shiro with a quick packed lunch so that he can power up after his run. But he has to stop and pant every once in a while. This means he rounds a corner with his bento box in tow well after Shiro's had his trauma thrown at him.]

Whoa! Okay, so. What's happening now?

[Hunk blurts, tensing up and looking around them frantically.] So, Shiro, I brought you food. Is this normal? Should I just give you your food and go? Or- What's happening here?

[We're sorry Hunk. We swear the pokemon world is better than this... most of the time. But today? Today is apparently the day to sit on your butt and gawk at a bunch of faceless ghosts.]

[For a heartbeat, he's sure Hunk is one of the ghosts, and almost recoils from the poor guy for a minute.]

I... I don't - they just... appeared. I don't know them.

[He doesn't think so, anyway. He can't see any faces. They're just shapes. Ghostly, looming shapes. No words, no voices.]

Yeeeeaaaah, it's pretty creepy. [He'd heard creepy stuff happened but he thought he'd have to wait for pumpkin season for this kind of nonsense.]

Hey man, let's not be here, okay? Let's go home.

[Well, calling it 'home' is still kind of strange for him. But he doesn't want Shiro out here alone with whatever is happening. He awkwardly holds out his free hand to get him to come over, hoping these things won't follow him.]

[At least, he thinks, somewhere in the jumbled up fear response in his brain - at least Hunk sees them too. He's not hallucinating. In some weird way, that's comforting.]

Home. Yeah - Yeah... let's. Get off the beach.

[He takes the offered hand, hauling himself to his feet on legs that feel weirdly like jello.] Thank you. [Honestly, he'd probably have kept his butt in the sand if it weren't for the help.]

Shiro... did you recognize any of those people? [Because they seemed pretty unrecognizable to Hunk. Those did certainly look like generic Galra prisoner wear though.]

[Benefits of being a big guy? He can easily keep Shiro upright, arm around his back and heave him off in the direction of the house. Even if he's still kind of awkwardly holding the bento lunch.]

We don't gotta talk about it. I'm just worried about what's going on. [As he is very new, and doesn't realize the frequency of unstable things.]

No.

[The answer comes out immediately. And not out of avoidance, either. He genuinely does not recognize any of those ghostly figures watching them. The outfits... sure. It's impossible not to recognize that part.]

[Hunk is very solid - very real. And very appreciated. Grounding.]

I tossed a fish back in the water - suddenly... this happened.

[He's trying to explain without making it sound too insane. It feels insane. Even for this world.]

[Whoever, whatever they are? They definitely hit Shiro hard. He wishes he could tell what was going on, but mostly he just wants to get him where he can think clearly. He looks behind him to see if the whatever-they-ares are following them.]

I'd say that the fish affected you, except it's getting me too. And that doesn't make sense.

[But he's in a world of magical cute creatures so whatever else makes sense.]

Maybe it's old stress coming back for some reason. No clue why we'd be seeing people in prisoner uniforms in happy cute animal no death world.

I've never seen them before. The fish... Whatever they are, they're new.

[And they're not friendly, apparently. The ghosts, though, they stay standing there. They surround the house in stony silence. Their gazes accusingly following their progress through the windows - though they all still lack facial features.]

This hasn't ever happened before. [Hallucinations, sure. Bad dreams, sure. But not this.] Maybe - maybe we need to defeat the pokemon that caused it?

Well, if you threw the fish back in the water, then maybe you can't defeat it now. Maybe we can go looking for it?

[Oh, oh he hates that. Their not!gazes following him, causing the hair on the back of his neck to stand up. He lets go of Shiro when they're safely inside, going on a mission to close every curtain where he can, hoping that ghosts don't know how to use doors.]

Maybe some of your pokemon can help hunt for it, though. We could go looking once you've got your bearings. I think with ones as strong as yours, it'd be an easy win.

[Just finding it after the fish rescue might be a little tricky.]

Maybe...

[But that would mean going back outside. Back around those things. Those ghosts. A few of his pokemon catch on to what Hunk is doing, and start mimicking him - his Meowth, Umbreon and Litleo specifically. Though... Litleo does bat at the curtains more than help.]

That's a plan. Right. [He should have figured that out. He could get Europa the Spheal out there looking - she's a water type, she could do it.] Hunk?

[He's sunk onto the edge of the sofa, pressing his face to his hands.]

Thank you. I'm - it's not usually this weird, here.

[He's in the middle of making sure the kitchen is thoroughly ghost proofed when Shiro says that.]

Shiro, I mean, I like that you're happy, but we were all weird. Things were hard, and I never thought less of you for it. I don't think any less of you for it.

[And he doesn't tell him, but he knows any one of them would have fought specifically for him in a heartbeat.] You don't have to be strong for everyone all the time, even in a place like this. I'd be more concerned if you weren't bothered by a bunch of faceless ghosts.

...Oh, right. I made you lunch. [He weakly offers him the bento box, as the whole thing has now become an afterthought to a very perplexing afternoon.]

Hah. We were, huh?

[That actually manages to get a little smile out of him. They're all still a little weird, though, aren't they? But the amusement ended up fizzling out. He leans forward, elbows on his knees.]

[The urge to apologize again is pretty strong. No matter how much Hunk says it's okay to be uneasy. Even when he can't fully recognize the figures. Maybe that's bothering him the most. Has he forgotten so much...]

Still I - thank you. For helping, back there. I really do appreciate - [Oh. There's food. And he blinks, that mildly spiraling train of thought immediately cut off.] You did? [Is he smiling?]

[He's smiling. And accepting the box.] You did. Thank you...

[It looks to Hunk like poor Shiro still has that need to have it together all the time. Even with everything he went through. It's probably easier here. He might have loosened up enough to venture away from the monochrome life but Hunk has a habit of worrying about his friends.]

Well if I'm going to be around I'm going to feed you, you can always count on that.

[Once he's sure that there aren't any lookyloos in spectral form, he sits beside of Shiro.]

We should probably watch the news and see if it's just us. Or check the network or something. Maybe we can figure out what's wrong. I don't really want to go out and mess with ghosts if there's nothing we can do about it right now.

[He looks over at Hunk, and, miraculously, grins. It lightens up the lines in his face, greatly. They'd faded with his time here, but weird nonsense like this? Brings them back out again. He'll open up the box in a second. He has to smile for now.]

We've really missed you. Not just for that - I mean. Just in general.

[Little moments of thoughtfulness like this? They're a strong reminder of how big of a heart Hunk has. He's really been missed.]

If you want to check the news, I can start scrolling the network.

Alright. I'm going to go and check.

[He turns on the TV, turns it up just loud enough to hear while he's making some tea because, let's be real? That's a very 'oh we're gonna need some tea' situation happening. Anything to calm the nerves, right?]

[He's glad he can be here for this, even if he's sure in a world like this one? Someone would have been there for him. But it's nice to hear. That the things he does for them does make a difference, even if it's a small comfort in difficult times. Sure, he can fight? But this little stuff means so much more for him to do.]

What's your last memory of me? Not from me being here, but from before you came here. I know it's been a while, but I just need to check.

[Shiro, meanwhile, does as he said he would, flipping open the 'gear to check the network. Browsing the entries while he snacks on the offered lunch. Sure enough - a lot of people posting about seeing familiar faces. And not always in a good way. They seem like they're seeing ghosts from the past... which ... doesn't bode all that well for the faceless spirits outside.]

[Not well at all.]

[He puts a hold on the browsing for a moment, to answer the question, pushing his hand through his hair.]

Lance, Pidge and I were going to go pick up Slav. [Did his eye just twitch.] We split up from you and Keith - you guys had your own mission. It was then. When we left.

[And it had been years ago, for him.]

Right. Well... I think those ghost might have been people you knew when you were held captive by the Galra. Or as much as you remember of them.

[Here comes the wierd question that he needs to ask.]

I don't think you should be alone if your head's getting messed with. If I have to go out or something and Lance and Pidge aren't here, do you have a boyfriend or something we can call?

[That hits him like a bucket of ice water. Everything clicks into place. Shiro goes very still where he sits, swallowing against the sudden tightness in his throat. Well - it makes sense, doesn't it? The outfits. The faces he can't see.]

[A shaky exhale, and he sets both the food and the 'gear down. To rub his hands over his face.]

You're... yeah. Yeah, I can see that now. [Why are there so many of them?] This world's not pulling any punches today, huh?

[Steady, move forward. Make a plan.] There's all the pokemon here. You -

[do you have a boyfriend or something]

[ WHO TATTLED??? ]

[Well, at least the sudden fluster means Shiro's brain is forcibly redirected off the Trauma Tracks, and into a better territory!]

[He clears his throat.]

I uh. Yeah. Yeah, I do.

But he's doing the gym circuit. [Why is this so embarrassing.] Not sure where he is exactly right now.

[Shiro, you've been living casually in a place for years. Hunk might be overwhelmed by the awkwardness of Shiro living such an average life sometimes but that Shiro would have found someone by now seems very likely.]

Let's still try to keep you from being alone. Who is it?

[Surely he could be contactable through pokegear.]

[Oh Hunk, if only you knew the Long Saga about this whole thing... On the other hand, it's probably good for your health that you don't.]

His name is Byleth. Byleth Eisner.

[Do not gush about him, Shiro, do not. Rein it in.]

[Wow, Shiro does look really happy to have someone. He vastly underestimated the need there.]

I'll contact him with the pokegear if it really looks like you need it. And need it by my standards, not yours.

[Because Shiro would probably deny any problems to his dying breath if he could be allowed to get away with it, though he doesn't know if that situation has improved any while being in a place with, theoretically, less problems.]

[It's been a Journey to get there. But he is - honestly - pretty happy with the current state of his personal life.]

Hah - fair enough. But... hopefully it doesn't come to that. [A shake of his head.] I'd like you guys to meet him on better terms than a haunted beach.

You say that like 90% of the people we've met in the past three years [in his time anyway] hasn't been because someone needed help.

Does it sound like there's a way to make it stop? Or do we just keep the curtains pulled and yell 'occupied!' if we hear the doorknob jiggle unsolicited?

[Because if there's not an exit strategy he doesn't really want to hang out with ghosts. Or risk finding some of his own. Especially since there's only really a couple of ghosts that can happen for him.]

it's been so long between the words we spoke {OPEN}

AT THE HOUSE

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Fell down an art hole!

No worries at all!!

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1/2

2/3 i lied

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