masanari | [Pokelandia] That one which isn't focused on Masanari

[Pokelandia] That one which isn't focused on Masanari

[ Rin has been on his Pokémon journey for the last five months. It's not exactly the longest journey ever, but for a teenager who didn't exactly have a plan when he set out other than wanting to catch up to his twin brother, with whom he's battled several times and still has a record that shows more losses than wins, it certainly feels like a long one. Certainly long enough for him to train up a reasonably strong team and to get used to things like sleeping outdoors when he's out of towns and cozying up in a Pokémon Center when he was in a town. The life of a trainer was being frugal, especially if you weren't a Pro.

Then again, there's still a lot you can do even without being a full Pro, which is shown by the fact that the teenager, through many hard battles, has probably seen a little more than half the country, hiked over a mountain, and earned three gym badges this far. In comparison to some legendary prodigies he's working at a moderate pace, but then he wasn't really aiming for the League Champion position and he wasn't really necessarily out to be the Best at first.

But he did want to be the Best in his family. But that's a whole other thing he's not really sure how to explain to anyone else. Rin's starter was a cute little Shinx who he began his journey with, and who in the aftermath of their climactic second gym battle actualized into a humanoid as a result of their celebratory bond. That was on of the proudest moments of his life. It's not necessarily rare for trainers to bond with a Pokémon to that extent, but it's also not necessarily common, and that gym leader had ruffled his hair and told him good job. Aside from here, he's caught maybe six or seven other Pokémon, of which three are in the care of the people running the academy he used to go to school in, his connected PC system. One of those Pokémon is Junko.

Junko is a beautiful and somewhat vain (or at least, he sees her as such) Sylveon who he caught after a fierce battle while hiking through a mountain range past a certain City. He wasn't able to fight the gym leader there who was supposedly away on business, but he did shake hands with the leader's son and promise to come battle them again some day. It's been about a month since then, and he's taken to sleeping against her as a pillow (at her suggestion) when they are camping outside, while many of his other pokemon prefer to rest in the comfort of their balls. ~~I leave you to decide how Audrey sleeps~~

And so... one morning, following such a rest-- ]

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Okay, okay, intense might be a better word.

[She waves a hand as if that might dismiss the prior terminology, and then leans over to the bedside table to get the dine-in menu.]

Well, to be honest I don't really feel like going out. But, oh, we could order whatever we want and there's movies and whole series to watch, too! Oh, I wonder if this is one of those rooms with a video game system attached ...

[Except.] All of that might be kind of boring, is there anything you want to try?

[They've been on the road consistently, this is the first time in nearly eight months Veronica's been in an actual room without catching and taking care of Pokemon on her mind, so all those indoor activities seem fun to her! But Koji's got gijinka form and everything, so he might actually want to go out or something?]

Just us, or are you going to let any of the others join?

[ Might as well confirm that before he answers? That said, he looks around the room, to the TV and then back at her. He considers the phone and the menu. ... Wait, he couldn't read. He never needed to learn how to read. He looks away from it, and then focuses back on her face.

She was so warm.

He flexes his fingers again, and then reaches out to touch her cheek. It feels different than it did with a paw ]

Just us. Lucario was really worn out, and Skarmory is just too big.

[Not to mention a little hazardous for the size of the room. But even though he can't read Veronica could just tell him what everything is! Despite her answer it's basically impossible to ignore how often he keeps looking back at her, and before she could ask him if anything was wrong he was touching her face.

She reaches up to put her hand over his. He's so cold that if she didn't know what he was it'd be really concerning!]

[ He liked Skarmory, mostly, so he's actually a little bit sad about that even if he did want to be alone with her. Because... well, how could he not want to be alone with her? After all, he really did like her. There's no way that he couldn't like her, after all he had become a gijinka in her service, just like his mother and father.

...Huh.

He shakes his head, and brushes his hand against her cheek under her own. It's so warm, it's so warm and... And... ]

Let's stay in, sure.

Okay!

[She's secretly grateful that he doesn't want to run around the city, which is already freezing on a normal day but might be particularly blistering tonight with all the snowfall. Great for Koji, probably, but bad for Veronica who was too thin to keep from chilling to her bones in such weather.]

I wonder if they'll let me order champagne.

[They should! She was old enough to be out on her own, and she was seventeen! That's old enough!!!] Do you want to try eating something? The food will be different for you, but it looks like they have easy stuff like burgers and fries, and there's soup, too.

[She's looking at the menu now, still leaning into his touch, with it set off to the side where she can read it well enough.]

[ He's...

Hmmm. ]

I've never really tried any of it before. [ Or hell, he's also never really eaten miltanks or whatever they make the burgers out of. For the most part, he subsisted on plants and fungi, as well as whatever specialized food she got him. Or really, he never drank either. So...

He's at a loss in more ways than one. He looks at the menu, narrows his eyes, and then shakes his head ]

Read it for me? [ A beat ] I'd like to try things.

Alright, well, they have normal drinks: Water, hot and cold teas, sodas, milk. For the alochol there's just moscato and I think that assortment of words is just a wine.

[It's a shame he has no other menu-reader options.] There's a vegetable soup, a mushroom one, chicken and gnocchi - which is really good but usually really heavy, for the record - and minestrone. The entrees are ... Salmon, a bacon cheeseburger, grilled cheese, steak, a quesadilla. Oh! There's a fruit tart on the dessert menu! And cheesecake!

[She is so excited! And also distracted from her original task!]

[ Gurl. Gurl..

His hand lowers form her face, and he moves his finger down to to point at the biggest section on the menu. Which he assumes must be entrees and thus remind her to go to it. That said, it might be something else entirely for all he knows. But seriously, don't ... get off topic ]

[She pouts at him, because now her face feels lonely, but okay, okay, point taken!]

Entree-wise, there are also fish tacos, lasagna, and chicken alfredo. [See there wasn't even that much left on the entree part!] Oh, ribs! I missed the ribs!

[She pauses and then looks at him.] Koji, if I get them you can't judge me.

[Because tiny Veronica will rip into them like a starved animal and it will be vicious, intense, and messy.]

Depends what sort of ribs.

[ Because if it's something stupidly big like... Torpius ribs? He's going to judge her. Was he joking though, or was he serious?! Who even knows, he's not used to talking yet, but he licks his lips, surprised at-

Huh... ]

Normal sized ribs!

[But she might eat a full wrack on her own. But frankly Koji's allowed to judge her if he likes, she just hopes he wouldn't deliberately hurt her feelings! Basically if Veronica wants to do something she'll do it no matter what the approval rating. It's this trait that gets her into the most trouble since no one has been able to verbally tell her to stop working herself to the bone.]

Is anything sticking out to you?

[ What's normal mean... not human, right...? He looks down at his ribs now, as if asking that of himself, but he shakes his head and knows that would be dumb. So he focuses back on the menu he can't read and then looks back up at her face. Finally, he supplies, ]

The mushroom soup and the salmon. [ A beat ] But I want to try fries, too.

A perfect trio, if I may say so! Do you want anything to drink? They have plain water.

[Which might be the most 'normal' thing for a Pokemon to drink, so! She's still eyeing the menu a little bit herself, debating, so he has time.]

[ Hmmmm...

He wants water, but- ]

I don't see you do tea much.

[ His dad liked tea. he's not sure he really got why, but maybe it's a lot better to humans or something. It's sort of a backdoor question he's asking here ]

Oh, that's because I only like a certain kind! It's a brand of Jasmine that is only one one half of the continent, and I ran out of it before you and I met!

[So she can't get any until she moves closer to home, which won't be occurring anytime soon.] Besides, tea is great for relaxing or going to sleep, I don't think it makes a very nice 'every day' drink.

[Her fingers dance over the option, though.] Do you want to try it, though?

[ . . .

. . .

He didn't want to be questioned on that! But he holds her gaze for a long moment, and then finally shakes his head. No, he doesn't really want to. His dad's never tasted good when he licked it up so he doubts this will either as long as she's saying she doesn't really like it. So he'll just have water! Water's fine, who doesn't like chilled water! ]

M'kay! Well, I'm getting sweet tea.

[And she'll dump extra sugar in it if needed. But since it seems that all the necessary food orders are in Veronica leans to get the phone and dial the extension. The final total ends up being: Salmon, a side order of fries, mushroom soup, steak, a quesadilla, cheesecake, one fruit tart, and grilled cheese, water, sweet tea, and alcohol.

It's really way too much food for four people, let alone two.]

[ As she does that, Koji explores a bit more with is body, going to the side of the bed and standing. He... He trips a little, but he catches himself, trying and failing to walk upright around the room, switching to all fours only to find that his spine isn't really meant for that either. His hands are heavy on the floor, and he gets up after a few steps, and putting a hand on the wall for balance, walks the length of the room naked. Once he's back to her, the call is over, and standing there naked before her in all his gijinka glory-

He looks her over again.

She's...

Hmmm. ]

[She keeps her eyes above his waistline by technically looking at his ears, not his eyes.]

Koji, you keep looking at me like you've got an idea stuck in your head.

[The phone goes back on the cradle and Veronica rests against the headboard. She hadn't changed clothes, and her usual outfit is starting to feel gross so she really should change.]

Well, if I'm naked, you should be too.

[ LOGIC.

Maybe there was more going on there, maybe not. Honestly, he's not really fully formed it himself, not sure what he feels for her other than the deep respect and love he's always felt. It's not like, as a Glaceon, he thought to mount her. Not really. But then, he also wasn't always presented with a chance to, just given how fast things have been moving. ]

[Look, if he'd tried to mount her she'd at least understand what he wanted out of her, possibly needed. And while there's some deep examination that should logically stem from her lack of shame at the mere idea, what's more important is that she does not comprehend Koji's logic as a gijinka at all. Does he feel weird if she's wearing clothes and he isn't?? Does he just want to see her naked? Even if it's one or the other would it be wrong of her to question? She wanted him to speak his mind, after all.]

... I have to put something back on when the food gets here.

[What is she doing with her life. Aside from preparing to take her clothes off.]

Oh, right.

[ He stands there, as if expecting to watch her strip? Or maybe he should just let her keep her clothes on while she's waiting for the food. But he dismisses that almost immediately in favor of taking a step to lower their distance ans asking, somewhat blithely, but also pretty insanely, ]

Did you want me to fuck you before today?

[ Well he was... a Glaceon... ]

[Being a Glaceon apparently meant you possessed zero chill about this sort of topic!

Veronica's eyes go wide, and she looks as if an awful secret has been unearthed about her which really might be answer enough.]

I - [Oh god just smack her it would be easier.] I mean? Why are you even asking?! I said I'd take them off!

[She didn't explicitly admit it, of course, but it was deeply implied!]

And how can you even say that so easily?! [Then again for all she knew he ran around banging whatever before he met her and it's not as if Veronica hasn't had the incredibly rare quickie along this journey, so she's not really one to talk. Still, she can't help thinking that the idea might be unnerving to him, which is why she can't admit to it so easily. It's different if a Pokeémon is a gijinka! They can actually, y'know, speak and accurately communicate their feelings!]

[ Why did Koji ask that? Well, the answer's at once complicated and simple. The simple part is that h's been very observant his whole life, often able to read people much better than anyone would expect a little Eevee or later a little Glaceon. In fact, no one knew this, but he had observed the effect of that big ice rock on the local Snover of the mountain (they seemed to revere it in an almost spiritual sense) and he had taken that to assume he might become closer to the ice if he were to battle and train himself around it, almost inducing his own evolution. He had chosen to become a Glaceon in that sense.

He could also tell when Trainers could do with some challenge and harassment and whn they would be overwhelmed to the point it would actually be dangerous to the lives of them and their Pokémon. Junko might have thought his blizzards he made in the mountains were random, but they weren't, he knew what he was doing. Or at least, he did in his own head, it's not like there was no malice whatsoever.

But the point is, he had sensed that lingering from her before now, like when she had said "best friend" now, like she wanted to say something else. He wasn't sure what-- no, his own feelings were mixed and stirring inside of him, In truth, they were the complicated part, like it had always been something he wanted, but he knew also it was strange. Because, as he had discussed with Skarmory (who is an older woman btw) it's not like they could lay eggs and it's not like she falls into the sort of shape that Glaceon typically were attracted to. But them the Pokémon pool of attraction is pretty broad - he once saw an Arbok on his mountain which was very chummy with a local Nidoking, which made them seem mismatched, but the Arbok did have little baby Ekans with it.

So maybe the complicated part was projection.

Koji continues to look into her eyes, but then reaches out and brushes back her hair a little before leaning in to kiss her. ... Lips are weird, by the way. ]

[Kissing her is not an answer to the question so, really, the first thing that crosses her mind is wow, rude! but that's quickly replaced because, yeah, lips are weird and all but they also feel nice. Maybe more for and to her than to Koji, who has a new everything and likely has to except an incredible amount of new stimuli that she's never had to process, but still. While there's no law against human/gijinka relationships it's not something she had ever really imagined for herself. If it was ever something that might happen Veronica figured it would be a bond of friendship, the ultimate camaraderie! But that's not what it is with Koji, not even vaguely, she wouldn't be nearly pushing him backward if that was the case.]

I did. [She can't look him in the eye while she says it, and for a moment Veronica decides its better to go back to kissing before she turns right around and commits to trying to talk again.] Just don't be mad! Or leave!

[There, now he's got his answer for whatever it ends up being worth and even though she's a bit terrified of the aftermath she can't help feeling relieved. It was something she had carried with her for the longest time but it's probably not worth his judgement, and a kiss doesn't mean that it's okay to think about something which might easily cross a moral line.

But, whatever, the best way to figure out lips is to keep on using them, right? So her hands go onto his shoulders, as if that really gives her a meaningful sense of control, here.]

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