victory_road | [voice]

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[voice]

Well, I can't say I'm happy about this whole thing... But I guess the timing could've been worse. Although having a woman who's probably younger than me claim to be my mother, that kind of weirded me out. [A snicker with a bit of a snort to it, as the woman's tired annoyance gives way to begrudging fondness.] She'd have to be a lot more overbearing than that to compare...

I'll give this place some credit for the guidebook. 'Cause if a realm's gonna pull you into it, or whatever happened here, the least it can do is give you an instruction manual. But commanding the, uh, Pokey-mon we team up with feels a little weird, at least to me. I'd rather be fighting alongside them-- Although I guess without any of my magic now, that's not an option anyway. Ugh. Alright, Owl Lady, don't get caught up in that...

[After that muttered aside and a deep breath, she's sounding better - if not a bit strained.]

Might as well introduce myself. We're all weirdos to a realm we don't belong in here, right? I'm Eda Clawthorne. It's not my first time traveling like this, but it's definitely the only time I really had no say in it... And it's just the pits. What do you guys do around here to deal with all that?

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[Well that voice sounded familiar. It went through him like a shot, and though it wasn't seen yet he stared at his PokeGear, and when she said her name and confirmed everything, all but DOVE at it.]

Eda?!!

[What follows next is a loud CLATTERBANGSCRUFFLE as Hunter also abruptly... drops the PokeGear. The speaker pops a bit while he snatches it back up, there's some muffled fiddling noises, then the video clicks on.

Sort of. He's got his thumb over the camera so there's not much visual yet, but he's trying okay? This is a hell of a thing right now.]

Eda! It's- it's Hun- [Wait does she even remember his real name? Actually no did she know it in the first place he can't recall] The Gold- no, Hunter. I-is it really you? The Owl Lady??

[He knew only one Eda Clawthorne but hey, who knew who was out there in the multiverse?]

Edited 2023-04-01 03:51 (UTC)

Kid?

[The single-word-question is accompanied by Eda clicking on her video feed, looking on with confusion and concern from a spot along Route 29.

She doesn't know the Golden Guard by name. Well, Luz might've mentioned it when she was explaining all she'd seen inside the Emperor's mind? But there was a ton of information she got around it if that was the case. But that voice of his is... Distinct. She'd recognize it anywhere.

The last time she'd seen him, he was a terrified mess, and Eda had been told why. That part, that stuck with her; far too troubling to forget. To say the kid had a decision to make back then would be an understatement, but judging by the fact that he's calling himself Hunter? That he didn't even finish saying his title, much less start off using it? She thinks he made the right choice. It can't have been easy.]

Yeah, kid. Hunter. Yeah, it's me-- Are you okay?

[There's a muttered-to-one-side "What? Oh, oh yeah" before the PokeGear shifts. There's a vision of an outdoor plaza of a sort, the ocean in the background and then, once he gets it propped up properly and steps back-

Whoa.]

I- Yeah...! Yeah, I think so. [Uneasy laugh, then he clears his throat. Off to one side a Lopunny leans into the frame, then sniffs experimentally. Hunter just nudges her backward like one might a nosy dog.] I've- been here a while. Uh. Twice now, I guess, technically. You...

[He looks her up and down, what he can see on the video anyway.]

...haven't seen the Day of Unity yet, have you.

[True, he hadn't seen Eda at all personally that day, so if she has any drastic changes, physically, he wouldn't know them. But there's something about her cavalier attitude she'd displayed right off the bat, her lack of mentioning anything serious of the sort, and well... If she had known what the Day of Unity would bring, somehow he doubted her first questions would've been about Pokemon or, here, him for that matter.]

Edited 2023-04-01 04:22 (UTC)

That's good.

[She sounds slightly unconvinced, though. He was not that scarred the last time she saw him, and whether that happened here or back in the Demon Realm, Eda wouldn't call it okay. She furrows her brow, but the expression shifts entirely to one of concerned shock when he asks about the Day of Unity.
The time difference doesn't throw her off too much - honestly, the fluffy bunny is almost more of a surprise, with how unlike a Demon it is - but she needs to know. Even if maybe she'll regret asking.]

A couple days before it. So we couldn't stop it?

[He winces as if physically struck. He shakes his head, but perks up after a moment.]

W-well- yes and no, I guess? It's hard to explain. Everyone that we know of is still- alive, but man we sure didn't know for a while...

[Then he blinks at an idea coming to him. A quick look around, some muttering of mental math, then he clenches a fist.]

Can you give me like, half an hour? Looks like you're still on Route 29. I can use the city warps and- and meet you! It- might be best explained in person.

[Yes and no...? She can't even imagine what that could mean. She also doesn't know what he means by city warps. But what she does know is that the way he answered that further confirms he's come around to their side, and that's something.]

Kid, if you've got a way to get here fast, that sounds great. But first, you've got to tell me. King, Luz, and Hooty. Are they...?

[He sucks in through his teeth ~~which gets a neat little whistle~~ and then lets out the sigh.]

King is fine, but it's very complicated. Luz is- incredible, she has her Palisman now and everything. And Hooty...

I don't know. I'm sorry. We haven't seen him yet, last time I was there.

Okay... Okay.

[A sigh, one of both relief and worry. Eda would not be surprised if Hooty pulled some stunt to save Lilith that cost him. If she's being totally real, it wouldn't even have to be Lilith. She knows Hooty, as much of a hellspawn annoyance as he is, lives to help. But then, Hunter not having seen him doesn't mean he's gone.

There's nothing she can do to help Hooty right now, to help anyone back home really, so she'll do her best not to dwell on it. And something that helps with that is hearing Luz has her Palisman. Thinking about that brings a soft but proud smile to her face.]

You don't have to tell me how incredible that girl is. I'm glad that she and King are okay.

[Her smile quirks a bit, the pride not at all going away, just shifting, as she regards Hunter. She wonders what he's made it through.]

I'm glad you are, too, Hunter. So, I guess I'll meet you along the road, is that it?

[He seems genuinely surprised by that admission, looking up with a blink. His expression shifts to something a little "bite of a lemon" as he looks off, then he nods.]

Yeah. I'll have to travel onto the route directly but I'll meet you as soon as I can.

I promise.

[Two words which almost came in a squeak of needing to reassure, wanting to be believed, rather than something of confidence.]

[She nods. Maybe she shouldn't trust him so easily, but after he what he went through with Luz, on top of how earnest he's being now? Surely Luz worked some of her friendship magic yet again.]

I know, kid. I'll see you soon.

[And she does what she can to help save time, continuing to walk along the route. She's already been on it for about three days, what's a bit longer? She'll wait on making camp if necessary, and indeed she ends of walking through the night.]

[Hunter for his part gets up as SOON as the connection drops, returning Chocolate and taking off like a jet. He goes from warp to warp to wa- okay hold on gotta sit for a minute -rp to wrrggghhh wait a minute okay hold on he's fine to warp to warp to bushes, to then calling out Pancake and getting on the Null's back midstride. He'd given Eda a time guess of half an hour but he really couldn't tell at all where she was along the route.

He'd have to just keep riding and hope he found her, even if he had to go all night to do it.]

[Eda is starting to get tired, but she's still not stopping. She might, however, need some help seeing, and so sends Luzifer out. She sees well in the dark and she's always on high alert; she'll be a big help to at least make sure they can avoid delays. On she goes, with Luzifer on her outstretched arm. It's not using her staff and Owlbert, but there's an almost familiar feeling all the same.

It's past midnight when something comes bounding towards them, a large creature that seems to have a head made of metal, gleaming in the moonlight.]

[Keeping his sharp eyes peeled he saw the bright eyes of the HootHoot first, then the rest of Eda, lit by the moon. Aware of how frightening Pancake may look charging head on, he called ahead-]

EDA!

[-and then pulled his Pokemon up and aside. Leaping off and only stumbling a little, he spared a few moments even in his rush to pat them appreciatively. Then he approached her, opened his mouth to speak, but only stammered a moment or two, suddenly unsure what to even say.]

Edited 2023-04-01 05:33 (UTC)

[Luzifer is indeed intimidated as the Type: Null nears, and flies up into the nearest tree. Still, she's keeping an eye on things from above, just in case.

As for Eda, well, this Pokemon looks like it'd fit in pretty well back on the Boiling Isles, so she's not scared. But seeing Hunter in person, that's-- That's a whole different beast than talking to him over the Pokegear. This feels much more real, and thus, much more awkward. From what she knows from Luz, and Amity, Hunter is a very trouble kid who's always trying his best, but... Eda, herself, still doesn't know him.

She watches him stammer for a moment, then takes a few steps up to him and puts her hands on his shoulders. Another pause, and then - though it's sort of forced - out come a couple snorts of laughter.]

Boy, how weird is all of this? [She smiles shakily, then adds in a softer, more earnest tone:] It'll be okay, Hunter.

[When Eda puts her hands on him, she's going to notice that he immediately tenses up, and it doesn't relax even when she laughs and speaks. His expression is all kinds of jumbled up, and it's not quite his journey over the warps that was causing his pale pallor.

For a moment he struggles over what to say to her. He wants to explode, first off. Will it? WILL IT?! Belos is still out there, the Collector has all their friends, Flapjack is dead, they were trapped in the human realm for weeks, and she doesn't KNOW all that! Where would he even begin?? How could he begin? There's too much to tell her and it all wants to come out and once and they're just stuck here, despite reassurances he's gotten that everything will wait for them back home, it still doesn't stop his thoughts from constantly ruminating on- everything, from about his trip into Belos's mind onward.

What his reaction in all but literally trickles in as a tremble goes through him, then his face screws up. Sure he doesn't know Eda at all, hell Luz didn't even tell him many stories about her for all their time in the human realm; she didn't want to talk, clearly, and he didn't want to press. But Eda is here, and she's real, and she's a piece of the Boiling Isles even as unfamiliar as she is, and he never forgot her reaching her hand out to him after returning from the mindscape-

So there's one, two hitches of breath and he buries himself in her, wrapping his arms around her tight. Oh Titan but it's been so much...! And it's hardly a moment or two before Pancake, still out, comes over and carefully rests the side of their mask against Hunter's back, sensing his upset.]

Edited 2023-04-01 05:50 (UTC)

[Eda doesn't know if it will really all be okay. She's been told time is staying still back home, but what's waiting back home is a whole mess, for her and it sounds like for him too. Things aren't over yet, clearly. But she isn't feeding Hunter a lie, because the way she sees it, right now it is okay. And as long as he's here, and she's here to look out for him - because not doing so simply isn't an option, for many reasons - it will stay okay.

The hug takes her by surprise. In fact, that might be an understatement. Sure, she can understand-- He's just a kid who's already dealt with far too much. Being reassured can go a long way. But it's still quite the shock, and heartbreaking in its own way.

At first, Eda simply puts a hand on Hunter's head. She wants to be here for him, she's going to look out for him, but this is still awkward for her. Not because of the whole Golden Guard thing, even, just because it's letting people in, and she went so long not doing that. But when Hunter just continues to hold on to her... No, he's getting a hug back.]

[Just as before, he tenses up when she first hugs him back, not that the earlier tension ever completely went out of him. He's not used to affection quite like this, from peers or from adults, but he allows it of himself in this moment. He lingers, then pulls back, swiping at his eyes self-consciously. When he speaks his voice is thick, and to distract himself he rubs the crest of his partner, who is still standing close.]

...Yeah. It- will be. [Is he feeding himself a lie? Maybe. But maybe it'll help him tamp down the feeling he's made a fool of himself already, and that maybe he shouldn't feel ashamed about that, and maybe he should've just let her be it was all too complicated...] ...Th-thanks.

Don't worry about it, kid.

[A phrase that means a few things, here, of course. She glances up into the tree branches at her Luzifer, who seems to be realizing the other Pokemon is no threat... And thus, getting curious. She smiles and lifts her arm for the Hoothoot to perch on.]

Alright, that's enough hiding. Get down here, you little goofball.

[Happy to have something else to concentrate on, Hunter watches the Hoothoot, stepping back a bit to give the Pokemon room to fly down. As he does so he idly rests a hand on Pancake's helmet, who closes their eyes and leans into it.]

Ohh, a Hoothoot. [A faint, short chuckle, his tone almost fond.] Why am I not surprised...

[He considers a moment, then glances at her.]

You know, if- you ever want another one, I've got one myself. His uh- his name's Edbert.

[And then he looks away, as if ashamed to even admit that whole thing, on the cusp of saying "You know what nevermind."]

[That was not what Eda expected to hear - oh, she saw the light crack about her having a Hoothoot coming a mile away, sure, but the nickname Hunter's given his own... Oh man, this kid is going to be the death of her just as much as the others, huh? She smiles at Hunter.]

I don't know about taking a creature from you if you two have a connection, plus I gotta say... I like you having a Hoothoot, too. [A wink.] Especially one with such a great name.

Why don't you keep Edbert, at least for now. I mean, Hoothoot Trainer Coven doesn't quite have the same ring to it as Bad Girl Coven, but it's something, right?

[And bam. Just like that, this is absolutely her kid now.]

Edited 2023-04-01 23:11 (UTC)

[Oh of course she wouldn't want it, that was absolutely so DUMB of him. And for a moment there was a flash of shame that colored his face and had him glancing off.

Then he heard something else, looking back up at her. That... sounded like some kind of acceptance, didn't it? And he didn't understand why, not when she didn't know him from, well, any other faceless Coven Scout- hell he'd been the worst of them, and still felt like he was working that off, even without being home. But here she was drawing him in, and maybe it was only because of the loose association with Luz, though he doubted she knew how deep that actually went.

But maybe... It was because he was a piece of the Boiling Isles, too. He could live with that.]

Hahh, maybe not. [Oh-!] But... Owl Coven might work?

[Okay that was no grand leap from Owl House but-]

Of course! Can't believe I didn't think of that one. [Eda laughs, snorting a bit.] Owl Coven, that's perfect.

[If they were still at the Boiling Isles, the similarity to Owl House might be too on the nose, yeah. But here it feels like a wonderful acknowledgment.

She sighs, tired, as she ruffles and then smooths down Luzifer's feathers.]

Look, kid... If you were traveling here for a few hours straight, you gotta be pretty wiped by now. I need to hear what happened, but if you want to rest first, that's okay.

[Hunter recognizes this decision puts him at a crossroads. Sure he's tired, but he could easily keep going! And Eda wants to know what happened- needs to know what happened. But at the same time, the thought of trying to describe everything feels like it puts 50 pounds of weight on his bones, making it the last thing he wants to do. But but, he should tell her, he owes it to her, for teaching Luz, for trying to save them, for all the bad times he caused her.

But after a good couple of minutes of harried thought, eyes darting back and forth, sentences almost starting and then falling away, he was no closer to making a decision on that front. So instead he glanced up at her, without raising his head, and half-shrugged. However Eda wanted to read that would be up to her.]

[Eda can't be sure what's going on in Hunter's head, but it seems pretty clear to her that the kid's overwhelmed... And that he's been through more than maybe she even thought.

Yeah, she needs to know what happened, but she doesn't need to know right away. From what she's been told, it's all in holding back home right now anyway. Hunter is here and now, and he needs her support more than she needs the information. Eda nods with a small and sympathetic smile.]

Don't worry about it now. I'm gonna set up camp, kid. [Town doesn't look too far off by now, but honestly, another night of camping just feels like the better option. No more walking to tire them out, no people around to add to the overwhelmed feelings.] And when we do talk, we'll take it a little at a time, okay?

[At her answer though, he honestly didn't seem quite happy, but couldn't quite put his finger on why. However as she goes to start setting up camp, he takes a couple steps forward.]

W-wait! I wanna help-!

[The Pokeball flash is easy to see in the darkness, and Hunter freezes mid-step. Already knowing who it was, he was already speaking as he turned around, indeed meeting his Lopunny face-to-face.]

No it's- it's fine, alright?? [He gestured with both hands.] I promise I'm not overdoing anything, and besides we have to set up camp one way or another. Okay?

[A little strained on that last word; then he sighed, sweeping a hand back through his hair, very aware Eda must be staring at all this.]

...I just- need to do this part. It'll be fine. [Chocolate's face scrunches up a bit.] H-hey at least I've gotten plenty of practice at it by now, right...?

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[voice]

[Voi- Vide- Something]

[video]

[Video]

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