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It's A Small Multiverse After All; Azure Quarter (eventually) - Steely/Celeste/Ben
Topic Started: Mar 9 2015, 09:13 PM (805 Views)
Steel Cerberus
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The Dog in the Machine
The wind whistled through the battlements in the last remaining tower of Direwolf Stronghold, and Steely could hear it even though she was down in the old underground hall. The wind was reduced to a flimsy breeze down here, which Steely was thankful for. She hadn't walked in any kind of stiff wind yet, and didn't know if her legs could handle it.

(As far as being able to handle things, I can't do that so well these days,) Steely thought distantly, scratching at the paper in front of her. She'd spent most of the morning doodling with a mechanical pencil on a blank piece of paper. As far as art went, she had never been particularly good at it, but it was relaxing to just scribble, half thinking about everything on her mind.

(Raz disappeared as soon as Alex showed up... I guess part of me doesn't blame him for that, but I'm still mad at him. I just wish he'd answer me...) Steely reached for her iShades after the thought crossed her mind, checking to see if she had any new messages. Nothing. The glasses clattered as she tossed them back onto the long table she was sitting at. (Because that'd be one less thing to worry about. I have no idea how I'm going to get Celeste back to Opaddeka.)

Which was a whole other... thing Steely preferred not to think about.

(Here I was thinking that getting rid of myself would keep all of them safer, but nooo. Further proving that they'd all be better off if none of them had met me,) she frowned, making a jagged black scribble on the paper, not paying attention. Only when she realized she'd ripped through the paper did she stop, slumping in the chair and putting her face in her hands.

(Everyone else is fine. You'll get Celeste home. You're the only one who's broken. They're fine. You'll figure it out.) Steely pulled her hands away after she'd repeated that to herself a few times, looking around to make sure nobody had seen. The only person visible was Elora, sprawled out nearby on the stairs in the sun, sleeping. She tried to remember the last time she'd seen Celeste or Alex today... she couldn't remember where either of them had disappeared to, but she wondered if the redhead was still with Daniel. The chandelure completely loved this place; in his past life he'd been an archaeologist, and ruins and fantastic civilizations had been his passion. It was the first time she'd seen the pokemon so happy. Earlier it had seemed like he'd finally roped Celeste into listening to him ramble for hours. Roped wasn't quite the right word for it... Steely knew Celeste would be more than happy to let the pokemon talk her ears off.

(You're being awfully quiet up there, you know,) Steely's eyes flicked up all of a sudden, even though there was nothing there to see. She got back the vague impression of a shrug.

(Believe it or not, I don't always disagree with you,) Kat's voice came from inside their mind, though it sounded like Kat was standing behind her, like it always did. (And I was thinking about something else.)

Steely didn't say anything, instead tilting her head. They looked back at the piece of paper, and Kat pointed out some of the things she'd been scribbling; various swords and a shaky reproduction of their own twin axes. (Regardless of how much we need to get Celeste home, we don't even know where to start. I mean, we could find Ezra or sell our souls to the Gods, but I'd rather not do that one. In the meantime, I imagine it'd tickle her if we got her a sword. You know, a real one.)

The thought made Steely smile a little, blowing the lingering graphite away. Come to think of it... Celeste had been pretty enthusiastic when she'd first seen the castle ruins they lived in now, and Steely suddenly remembered that first time in the simulator. Huh... funny how that worked.

(Though, I don't know if a sword would suit her. She's got that weird scythe of hers... but boy it makes me uneasy.)

(I think it's cool.)

(You would.)

Her phone suddenly started ringing, and she snapped it up quickly, shoving the glasses onto her face. She was disappointed at first, but finished her short conversation and pulled them off again with a frown.

"Huh," Steely said aloud, tilting her head. "Time for me to go play guardsman."

"You should wear your armor!" Elora popped out of her nap as if she hadn't been sleeping at all, which made Steely jump literally out of her chair and collapse ungainly on the ground.

"You were just sleeping!"

The manectric morph laughed, hopping over the table and reaching down to help Steely back to her feet, "What can I say, I'm a light sleeper."



The armorer in Brighthedge had given Steely a helmet so far, with the promise of a full suit, even though Steely had said every time that she couldn't wear it. Still, the helmet was absolutely beautiful; it was forged in the shape of a mightyena head, the top of the face and head flipping up as the visor, with enough room to see between the teeth when it was closed. She seriously debated actually wearing it, but didn't think it would intimidate or impress anyone who had a pet Arceus. The only thing that could compare, in her mind, was bringing one of her own legendaries. Raijin was the obvious choice, even if it wasn't as impressive as the Creator.

(I think he's plenty impressive,) Steely thought with a quiet grumble. Then again, she was very bias towards her giant cat.

(We should bring Asylum too.)

Halfway to reaching for the belt that held her axes on her sides, Steely paused and considered. Asylum was the Zygarde that had hatched from the egg they'd gotten back on Opaddeka, in Black Pass. The same blasted place they'd gotten that terrible chainsaw that had somehow followed them here. On his own, the snake wasn't terribly threatening, but he still reminded her of how they'd gotten a hold of his egg in the first place. Kat adored the legendary, though.

(He's never been to Natura Central, and he's still small enough to hide in our coat.)

He was also still fairly small as far as snake pokemon went, only about two feet long but fairly wide. Steely wondered what he was eating, but Kat seemed fairly sure he was eating the small, feral rattata in the castle. After that, Steely decided that she didn't want to know what he was getting into.

(I... guess so? He's still just a baby, though.)

(Eh, he'll be fine. Just in case we need him for something.)

Steely shook her head, reaching to grab her axe belt and stay balanced at the same time. Elora was wide awake now and watching Steely struggle for a few seconds before she stood up, "Here, let me help."

"I don't need any fucking help, alright?"

The pokemorph jerked away like she'd been burned, frowning like Steely had just kicked a puppy. The blonde immediately felt terrible, struggling for something to say. "Sorry... hey, you can go find Celeste and Daniel for me, huh? Saves me a trip around the castle underground."

"Uh..." Elora tilted her head, but perked up again, "yeah, sure! Watch my stuff for me, will yah?"

Before Steely could even consent, the woman suddenly shrunk and shook out of her already loose shirt and shorts. The suddenly-manectric reached up to paw her scarf down around her neck, and took off into the dark before her discarded clothing had even settled. Steely had to flip her cane around so she could use the handle as a hook, but she picked it up and set it on the bench before going back to struggling with her belt.



"-so you can see that this part of the structure is well over a thousand years old, but highly stable given its design. I'm still reading about the design and construction used by the family that built this castle, but it all seems to be reinforced by bars of metal embedded in the stone," Daniel continued enthusiastically, beaming as much as a metal chandelier can beam. This place was so very fascinating to him, and he hadn't gotten to look at anything this old in quite some time. Even better, it didn't have any scary artefacts hiding anywhere. At least none that he had found yet.

He was also literally beaming; glowing with fire and light, his 'hands' on fire for once even as he gestured around. It was peaceful, but not to the point of being creepy, at least not where they were. It was very dark though, aside from the light from Daniel himself, and whatever Celeste had brought, if anything at all. She'd been offered Steely's oil lantern before they'd gone, even though she was kind of made of fire and everything.

Steely had also looked mildly annoyed at the third or fourth time Celeste had glanced back when they had left, but oh well.

"The only thing disappointing is that it looks like most of the rooms were cleaned out at some point, so there's not a whole lot to see other than the halls themselves," the chandelure stopped, looking at a seam in the wall. It looked like the outline of a door, mostly hidden but the outline was visible with a bit of squinting. Daniel tilted a little as he looked at it. "However, I've never been down this passage. You see, there are many hidden doors and compartments, but I don't know how to access any of them. I think Steely does, but she won't tell. Anyway, she specifically told me not to go down here, so I haven't yet."

He still seemed to look longingly at the indent, like he was hoping there was something interesting down there.

Any further archaeological adventures had to be put on pause because of the sudden scrambling of claws and loud snuffling coming up behind them. The manectric suddenly burst into the ring of light, tail wagging as she sat down right next to Celeste and leaned against her.

"Oh, hello Elora."

The thunder dog barked a few times, first up at Celeste, then over at Daniel. "She said Steely is getting ready to go somewhere. The city, she said."

Looks like he'd have to talk Celeste's ear off at a later time.
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Vulpix Windchimes
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Celeste had a soft smile on her lips as she listened to Daniel speak. She was not nearly as bright and animated as he was at the moment, but there spark of excitement in her eyes as he led her through the castle and chattered on regarding everything he knew about it was hard to deny. The light in her irises glowed and flickered like fire, matching the purple flames that engulfed both her hands and her forearms, only finally stopping at the elbow. She had on only a sleeveless blue shirt to accommodate this, her usual gloves and coat elsewhere. She could have worn them and just used the lantern, but she felt an odd sort of satisfaction in providing her own illumination.

Gods only knew she needed the practice with her abilities, and maybe if she practiced more often she'd discover new tricks without a traumatic episode needing to be involved.

Celeste raised one of her arms when Daniel indicated the hidden door, letting the flickering light illuminate the seam, and peered at it curiously, though it turned to a frown as he told her that Steely had told him not to go down the passage. As he looked at it longingly, she continued to give it that frown. "I don't suppose she's told you why you shouldn't go down it?" She wasn't expecting that Steely had, but the question slipped out on the off-chance that there was an actual known explanation beyond the fact that, even here, she was keeping secrets.

Celeste had begun to get very, very sick of secrets, both keeping them and having them kept from her.

The sudden sounds of an approaching dog put any thoughts on the topic aside for the moment, however, and Celeste lifted her arm slightly as Elora came into view and sat down next to her. Said arm's flames extinguished as Celeste let out a chuckle, and she reached down with the now safe, and now pleasantly warm, hand to gently scratch at the crest on the manectric morph's head, paying particular attention to the spot behind where most canine pokemon would have a visible outer ear. "Hey, Lori," she said with a smile, though when she was barked at it changed to a look of curiosity. Luckily, Daniel could translate.

"The city?" Her petting hand retracted for the moment as she considered this. "I guess I should go get my coat and gloves, then," she decided. There was no questioning of why Steely was going to the city, nor did she wait for any explicit confirmation that the reason Elora was here was because Steely wanted them to come with her. Because she was going with her, simple as that.
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Steel Cerberus
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The Dog in the Machine
"Well... no," Daniel admitted hesitantly, like he had a faint inkling that Celeste wouldn't like the answer. "Though, I'm not entirely sure if she even knows how to open it. I've never seen her do it."

Which was true... it was also true that Steely tended to disappear into the depths of the castle for hours on end sometimes, and he could never find her. And he heard voices sometimes, which scared him right back to the surface.

Fortunately Elora came along, and the chandelure hoped that was the end of that. But... well. Really. He knew it wasn't going to be.

The manectric sniffed at Celeste's hand curious before she started getting scritched behind the ear, her tongue flopping out of her mouth and leaning against Celeste even more. Woman or dog, she really had no shame and no hesitation. She liked what she liked, and she liked scritches. After the translation went around, she hopped back to her feet and bobbed her head, tail a furiously wagging blur in the dim light.

"I haven't been any further than this, so I should go back up and get my journal," Daniel bobbed in place, looking back at the secret seam, then at the two ladies, "Shall we, then?"

The two pokemon lead the human back to the main chamber, where Steely had finally gotten her belt and the sheathed axes on. Despite what she'd been thinking earlier, she was actually wearing the helmet and the padded shoulder and neckpiece that went under it. The snarling mightyena head snapped around at the sound of footsteps, and she scrambled to pull the thing off before they got a really good look.

"Ack, sorry!" Steely sputtered once she finally got it out, setting the helm down on the table in a hurry and reaching to pull the padded hood piece off with the rest. She ran a hand through her hair to push it all back again. "You didn't have to come up. I just wanted her to let you know I was headed out. I gotta go play Royal Guard for the king and queen for a little while... wrangle up someone who owns a-" she stopped, though looked confused about it, like someone else had put their hand over her mouth.

(Do we really want to tell her it's an Arceus?)

(...no. Ugh.) Steely shook her head, looking up and pretending to be annoyed.

"Fffff, some days I swear. Uh. A legendary! They like to meet people who have legendaries for whatever reason," she shrugged. It was a good strategy, to be fair. Befriend the most powerful so they won't be a problem later. She rested her free hand on one of her axes, the other supporting her with her cane.

"You don't have to come. I'm going to use Bec to get over there, and ride Raijin though the city."

Elora huffed and grabbed her clothes in her mouth, scampering out of the way so she could shift back and get dressed again. At least her undergarments morphed with her, otherwise that would be awkward. Because boy, she really felt no shame.
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Oh, it wasn't even close to the end of it.

But puppies made a pretty good distraction, even when those puppies were human half the time. Elora's enthusiasm, just like Daniel's excitement over showing her the castle earlier, was infectious, even though Celeste's body language was still more subdued as they made their way back. Her arm lit up with fire again as they walked to better see where she was going, and then both of them extinguished when she could start to see light again beyond that generated by the flames.

Celeste found herself rather surprised to see a snarling mightyena helmet upon entering the main chamber, and while momentarily startled by it, she found her gaze following it as it was pulled off and put on the table, looking vaguely fascinated by its existence. That ended upon being told why Steely was going to the city, the little interruption, obviously from Kat, earning a slightly-quirked brow. A Legendary? Well, she could certainly see the sense in wanting to have a chat with anyone with the power to acquire an Avatar. However, it was the insistence that she didn't need to come that caused Celeste to put on a flat, deadpan expression that asked if Steely really expected her to stay put.

She stepped over to fetch her coat from the chair she'd haphazardly tossed her it onto earlier in the day and started to put it on, politely ignoring the shapeshifting canine currently in her underwear and dressing herself. "I'm coming," she said, in that calm, firm, brook-no-arguments tone she usually reserved for telling big toothy monsters what to do. "I'll ride Mica." The golden dog normally wouldn't be able to keep up with Raijin, but she knew that the Legendary cat wasn't going to be able to reach anything near top speed inside of a city. "Should I bring my scythe?" Celeste added, nodding to indicate Steely's axes as the reason she was asking.
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Steel Cerberus
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The Dog in the Machine
(...she is really not putting up with your shit anymore, is she?)

(Apparently not,) Steely smiled sheepishly at Celeste's look, frowning when she went to go get her coat. On some level... Steely expected this treatment. It was the exact same thing both Raziel and Windy had done when they'd found out she was alive too. Steely really, really didn't want to put up with it again, and felt a brief flare of anger that she had to bite her tongue to keep from saying anything she would regret later.

"Do you want to come too?" Steely looked to Elora as she pulled her shirt over her head.

The were-mane tilted her head, "Ah... to Central, yeah, but I think I'll split off from there. I should go check and see if I have any jobs waiting."

"Ah... oh yeah, right." It took Steely a second to remember that the morph didn't really have a set kind of a job; she did anything that needed to be done. A lot of courier work really, but she liked it. She got to fetch a lot. At least that was what Steely thought of it. Steely looked to Celeste at her question, and considered.

"Hm... you know what, sure. Hey, if you want, you can wear this thing too," she scooped up the helm and padding, and handed it to the redhead with a grin. "I imagine it'll be a little big on you, but with your coat it should look pretty awesome even if you don't have any other armor. And, you can be a cool mightyena knight.

"I don't like wearing it because... well, it throws my balance off too much,"
Steely looked away.
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Celeste fished her gloves out of her coat pockets and slid them over her hands as Steely spoke to Elora, though she glanced over with a mix of curiosity and thoughtfulness upon the mention of Elora's jobs. She realized that she needed to find some employment of her own, soon. Tempest had let her take a temporary job in her store in Ironwald after she'd initially landed there, but if she was going to be sticking around here instead of Ironwald she'd need a new source of income. All of her berry trees were long gone, not having followed her to Natura, and she wasn't sure if the crops would have been worth enough money to sustain her here anyway, as she was still trying to figure out how many things were different.

Being handed the helmet put an end to those thoughts, however, and she stared at it in surprise, though she couldn't hide the way her eyes lit up at the idea of looking like a mightyena knight. Steely had said exactly the right thing to awaken the giddy little girl inside of her who'd, once upon a time, loved fantasy stories and dreamed of being the hero riding into battle. Part of her knew it was a bit ridiculous to be that excited, especially since a helmet alone wasn't going to make her look 'knightly' despite what Steely said, but at that moment, she did not care in the slightest.

Steely's mention of why she didn't like wearing it herself, however, was sobering, and Celeste frowned as she looked away. Now, she wasn't as sure if she wanted to wear it, but she also didn't want Steely to think that admitting such things was going to dampen Celeste's mood and make her treat her differently. That was a good way to get her to not want to admit to them, and Steely clamming up was the opposite of what Celeste wanted. And would Steely have really made that offer if seeing Celeste in the helmet was going to bother her?

With that thought in mind, Celeste tucked the helm and padding under her arm as best she could, then reached out with her free hand to put it on Steely's shoulder with a smile. "If you really think I can pull off the 'knight' look, I guess I can try it on. Thanks, Steely." She didn't go sticking it on her head right away, though, and instead she withdrew her hand and took a step back. "Let me just go grab the scythe." The weapon was hiding away in her base, as she was accustomed to having her weaponry in her room and it was a tradition she had no intention of ending any time soon.

Celeste didn't dawdle at all regarding seeking out her node where it'd been set up. It was an incredibly sparse living space, as Celeste hadn't had much to go filling it with--the fact that she even had a secret base at all in the first place was thanks to Steely--and its most notable feature was that she'd gotten it to mimic the 'classic' style of base regarding the appearance of the walls and floor, which basically meant that it looked like it was part of the castle, while still retaining the extras that came from the current model. Its second most notable feature was the existence of a weapon rack, which looked oddly bare with its single inhabitant.

When Celeste stepped back into the main room again, she had her gloved hand curled around the black handle of her scythe, and she was peering out between the snarling fangs of the mightyena helmet, which was indeed a bit big on her but didn't seem to be hindering her any. "So, uh, how's it look?"
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Steel Cerberus
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The Dog in the Machine
Steely seemed to perk back up again when Celeste took the helm out of her hand. Though she would never admit it, Steely hated seeing the thing sit around unused. Granted, prosthetic legs or not, Steely had no idea what purpose it would serve her, but a lot of work and care had obviously gone into its creation. She looked back at Celeste with a little smile when the redhead put her hand on her shoulder.

"Well, no harm in trying, and besides, not every day you get to try on an actual helmet like that, huh?" she grinned, nodding when Celeste pulled away to go grab her own weapon. Steely happened to look over at Elora, who who was scratching her chin and looking thoughtful.

"You know, you are the lord of this island. It'd make sense for you to have quite a few knights, wouldn't it?"

"Heh... if I was a lord, it would make sense," Steely sighed. She had long given up on discouraging the weremon's imagination, since nothing she said got through to Lori. There was no way to prove if any of the nonsense she talked about was true, and even if it was...

Steely shook her head, and went to poke her head out the stairs to yell for Bec and Raijin.

When Celeste came out, she'd see Steely scratching Bec behind the ears with her free hand, and Lori making sure she had everything she needed in her little bag. The pair of them looked over when Celeste came out; Elora grinned and clapped cheerfully, while Steely just grinned... a bit proudly really. "Aw, you look so great! Now we just need to get you the rest of the armor!"

"Mmm... she's not wrong," Steely adjusted her grip on her cane, and hobbled around Celeste to get a better look. No doubt it would have looked a lot better with full armor, but the armorer had made the helmet in his spare time anyway. "You know what, you keep that. It'd sit around on my table otherwise, and... iunno. It sort of suits you somehow."

(And her eyes kind of seem to glow a little bit, huh?)

(...yeah.) Steely shook her head. By now, Bec had trotted over and was sniffing at the helmet too, the faint humming coming off of his body audible even to Celeste in the helmet.

Elora looked around while Bec was curiously inspecting the helmet for himself. "Was Raijin not around?"

"He's... not close. I gotta kinda call him I guess," Steely leaned against Bec and closed her eyes, staying very quiet for a short time. She looked up after a second, taking a deep breath and opening her eyes. For a split second when she looked up, her eyes were most definitely red, though it was gone like it never happened when she blinked and shook her head.

"Alright, he was closer than I thought he was. They're over at the lake, I imagine it'll only take them a few minutes to get over here," she patted Bec's neck.
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Celeste flushed slightly at the clapping and grinning her appearance earned, though it was paired with an excited gleam in her eyes that would not be suppressed by embarrassment, even as she chuckled nervously at the idea of wearing a full set of armour. Being scrutinized was awkward--she'd requested the opinion, though, so she could hardly really complain--but there was no denying the glee she felt at being told that she looked good in the helmet, especially when Steely agreed with Elora. The invitation to keep it made her frown a bit briefly, feeling conflicted. While she adored it, it still wasn't made for her, and the idea of keeping it for herself just didn't seem right, even if it wouldn't get much use with its intended owner.

There was also something that felt a little strange about potentially dressing up as a mightyena on a more regular basis. She loved mightyena, but they didn't quite...resonate with her the same way certain species of pokemon did. She had no idea how to voice this, however, in a way that she felt would actually make sense.

That was around when Bec came over to investigate, and, as previously established, puppies were wonderful distractions, so Celeste simply didn't answer at that moment. She reached over to pet his neck and shoulder with her free hand, giving a faint giggle at his sniffing and the faint humming he gave off. "Hey, Bec. You like it too, boy?" she half-cooed. He was an odd one, even by their standards, but Celeste liked him. She wasn't distracted by him quite enough to not notice Steely's eyes change colour when she called Raijin, but she already knew that her friend's link with her Legendary pokemon was a bit unusual, thanks to a certain electric dragon, and so didn't outwardly react, at least until something occurred to her.

"Oh, right, should probably do that too," she said, almost a bit sheepish as she moved away from Bec and headed for the stairs. Before she actually opened her mouth, however, another thought entered her mind. If she was going to dress up like this for today, it'd do to fully look the part, now wouldn't it? And if there was one thing people associated with Direwolf Island that she knew plenty about, it was their historical mount of choice. That was why she inhaled and, instead of calling Mica as she'd originally planned, she bellowed, "NOIRE!"

The huge mightyena was not exactly the smoothest or swiftest ride in the world, but she generally didn't fail to leave an impression.
Edited by Vulpix Windchimes, Mar 25 2015, 08:25 PM.
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Steel Cerberus
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The Dog in the Machine
Becquerel didn't answer verbally, which was good because Steely looked nervous for about half a second, but the white dog bobbed his snout in agreement. Steely scratched up Bec's neck and onto his shoulder, tilting her head a little when Celeste mentioned going to find her mount. There was no rush... well mostly. They'd been very vague at mentioning specifics, and Steely got the feeling that if she missed their target, that she'd have to track them down herself.

She turned and was about to say as much to Celeste, but paused when she heard the redhead switch gears and call a different pokemon.

"Ohhh cool, they'll match," Elora looked up from zipping up her bag. The morph was already very familiar with all of Celeste's pokemon, and had kind of fangirled a little over Noire. ("Oh my gosh YOU HAVE ONE TOO.") Steely frowned quietly to herself... matching...

Steely snapped her fingers suddenly. "Fff- be right back," she turned and hobbled towards her base, pushing the button and disappearing inside.

When she came back, she had on a white, long-sleeved shirt and black pants, with a familiar yellow and black striped sleeveless coat over one arm. Lori frowned at her for a few seconds, but realization crossed her face after a few seconds. "I didn't know you had a coat like that. It looks nice."

"I'd kinda forgotten about it, really," Steely leaned against the table so she could have both hands free to shake the coat out, coughing a little at the puff of dust. After whacking a bit more dust off with her hand, she pulled it on and dug around in the pockets until she managed to find the purple scarf that went with it.

"Figure we both may as well match our mounts, even if it is too warm in the city to really be wearing this," Steely shrugged as she put the scarf around her neck so the ends came out the back. "Look as intimidating as possible, I guess."

Though, speaking of intimidating things, she looked around. Not at person-level, but at the floor. "We never called- oh!"

They hobbled towards a bit of softly glowing green under the table, and was about to crouch to try and reach under, but origin of the light poked his head out. It was a tiny Zygarde, or at least tiny by Zygarde standards at only five feet, looking up at them and softly glowing green. She flipped her cane around and held it down for him, letting him wrap around the handle and be picked up that way. "There's my little buddy," Kat cooed, pulling the snake off of her cane and letting him wrap around her forearm instead. He wiggled around and got up to her shoulder, perching there in a jumble of coils and looking around.

With her newest Legendary thus wrangled, she headed over by Celeste to wait for their mounts to show up. It wouldn't take Raijin much longer, she thought. They'd only been a hundred miles away, or something like that. Then when the two got here, they could head out. Elora looked like she was ready, having just packed up her base too.
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Celeste watched Steely with confusion as she headed for her base, but her face lit up with recognition when she returned in the coat. "You still have it!" she said, unable to hide the bit of excitement at the familiar outfit. Seeing something from home, even if it was something that belonged to someone else instead of herself, was often bittersweet, but, at the moment, the sweet outweighed the bitter by far. "It does look really good on you," she added with a nod, mentally noting that she'd have to get used to the feeling of nodding with a helmet on. The outfit also definitely would make Steely look all the more imposing on the Raijin's back, of that Celeste was sure.

But thoughts of her favourite resident Legendary were put on hold as a different one entered the picture, and Celeste momentarily froze as Kat drew attention to a green glow and Asylum slithered into view, but she exhaled and relaxed most of the tension away as Kat cooed over him and he settled himself on her shoulder. He was just a baby, after all. He didn't have massive venomous fangs and a bladed tail, and wouldn't even when he was fully grown. There was no reason to be bothered by him and, for the most part, Celeste wasn't, not like with most snakes, but he still made her skin crawl just a tiny bit.

As Kat wandered over with him, Celeste gave a small smile, but didn't coo over the little snake or try to touch him. Instead, she just gave a simple and friendly, "Hey Asylum. Coming along for the trip?"

A distraction from the little serpent nearby, however, came in the form of the sound of paws and Noire soon poked her head into the room. She paused, eying Elora with a bit of caution--being fangirled over in the past had made her more uncomfortable than anything and not the biggest fan of the extroverted morph--as a couple more dark shapes squeezed past her to step into view. Lucky immediately scampered over to Celeste with a soft hiss, prompting her to lean down with a chuckle. "Well, hey, Lucky." He immediately latched onto her arm with his forelimbs without even seeming to pay her helmet any mind, and as she stood up again he arranged himself so that he was clinging to the material of the back of her coat to peer over her shoulder. "What brings you here?"

Shilo, on the other hand, walked over whilst staring at Celeste with an expression that was difficult to read, par for the course when it came to the dark weavile, though whatever she was going to say on the matter took a back seat to answering the question. "We were curious as to why you had called Noire and requested to follow her." Noire nodded her head to confirm this as she finally stepped fully into view herself.

Celeste had thought as much, and she smiled. "Oh, we're heading to Natural Central, to find someone with a Legendary," she explained, and watched as Shilo's ears visibly perked. They were less expressive than her single feathered ear had been in her sneasel stage, but watching them was still a good way to better read her.

"Is that why you are dressed as a mightyena?" she inquired, and Celeste chuckled a bit.

"Uh, yeah. It's Steely's," she said, momentarily having forgotten the offer to keep the helmet and the fact that she hadn't properly declined it yet. "Just figured...Mightyena helmet, mightyena mount...It'd look imposing."

Shilo considered this, glancing from her human companion to Noire and back again, and then gave a small nod. "I understand. If your intention is to be imposing, may I accompany you?"

Celeste glanced at the sableye currently adhered to her back, having little doubt that he desired to come along as well, and merely gave a shrug. "I don't see why not." Some people did find dark types especially intimidating, and given that she was going to be carrying a black and red scythe around, it did seem thematically appropriate to have them along.
Edited by Vulpix Windchimes, Jul 25 2015, 04:43 PM.
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The Dog in the Machine
Steely had looked a tad sheepish at Celeste being so happy about her coat, but fortunately the snake distracted them. Else, Steely may have said something stupid, like 'I actually still have a lot of my stuff'. It was true, but... well, not the smartest thing to point out.

Asylum coiled a loop around the blonde's neck, the rest of his coils gripping her shoulder as he sat placidly and looked around. His body was smooth and scaled, the glowing green-white hexagon that was his eyeless eyeball was a curved armor plate, really the only indication that it was an eye instead of another scale. The snake flicked his tongue at Celeste, as if in answer, but the Legendary didn't speak. Regardless, Kat rubbed his soft neck gently with a finger, "You'll talk someday, little buddy."

Lori had her hands buried in Bec's neck fur and was giving him a good scratching when Noire showed up, and she kept doing what she was doing even when the black dog crept in. The morph was pretty used to some folks not appreciating her outgoing nature, and it didn't bother her at all. The last thing she wanted was to make the giant dog uncomfortable.

Steely watched the lot of them trickle in, eyes flickering briefly red as she looked up and tried to find her giant cat. Oh good, he was just getting in. And he brought his siblings too, not that they'd be coming. It would be good for the two to keep an eye on the place, since Alex was off exploring somewhere, Elora was coming with them, Raziel was just gone (grumble grumble), Windy was also off exploring (or getting lost on purpose, Steely was never sure which), and then... Steely frowned and counted the node lights for their bases and realized they were short one.

(...haven't seen Vi in a while. Wonder where he is,) Steely hobbled over to get her phone/sunglasses, knowing that at least their little mage friend would respond to a text if she sent one. (Should also prolly tell Alex where I'm going... for what it's worth anyway.)

Sighing Steely didn't notice her own trio of legendaries finally wander onto the scene, leaping down the stone staircase in a single bound and sliding to a stop on the smooth floor. Raijin looked around, bright-eyed and excited as he always was. Upon spotting Celeste with the helmet, his eyes narrowed and he prowled over, daintily sniffing the metal helm. It seemed to pass his inspection, because he started rubbing his face against it and purring. Hello!

Steely's head jerked up when she heard his rumble, "Ayy, there's my boy." The big cat trotted over, pressing his neck to her head and purring loudly right into her skull. He did that a lot lately, actually, but neither of them said anything about it. She wrapped one arm around his neck and buried her face in his fur, pulling away after a second. "Alright, enough of that. I'll let you back out in a few minutes."

Okay, Raijin pressed his nose to the luxury ball Steely produced, and disappeared into its depths. She considered bringing other pokemon... but no, the cat and the snake would be good enough. (Besides, even if Arceus-person ends up hostile, can't imagine it'd be a good idea to fight an Arceus in the middle of town.)

Steely looked at Celeste and her pokemon, very abruptly remembering that she was coming too. (...fuck's fucking sake, I need to tell Celeste. Ffff.)

Instead, she beckoned Bec over and buried a hand in his fur, "Shall we?"

The dog's teleportation didn't seem to have any limits, so Celeste didn't have to withdraw any of her pokemon, but Raijin didn't like the green/white noise-like sensation of Bec's particular brand of teleportation. Steely didn't blame him, but she didn't really have much choice these days.

Bec waited for everyone to get situated, twisting his head around until everyone had a hold. And then, just like that, they were in Natura Central. It was temperate but humid, unlike the Direwolf area which had been cold and snowy. By the magic of science, there were machines posted on the buildings around town to make the climate pretty steady all year round, but Steely still regretted her choice in clothing after a few seconds.

Elora bounded away from them, unaffected by anything and everything, "Bye, see you guys later, bye!" And just as quickly, she was gone.

"I wish I still had that level of enthusiasm," Steely grumbled, to herself but somewhat forgetful that Celeste was right there and everything. She withdrew the big teleporting nonsense-dog into his white and green storage sphere, pocketing it and letting out Raijin again. Without even a command shared between them, he hunkered low on the ground so Steely could awkwardly scramble up onto the saddle, having to take a second to secure her dead-weight hanging legs in the stirrups with a few extra straps.

The big cat stood, and Steely closed her eyes with a deep breath, letting it out and opening her eyes at the same time. Suddenly, it was like the old Steely was back. The one who punched a zombie feraligatr in the face, picked fights with immortals and tamed six legendary pokemon. She sat up straight in Raijin's saddle, squinting off down the street where the Lab was visible in the distance.

"Well... I was told that they'd be heading to the lab soon... shall we go see?" Steely put her sunglasses on and stopped squinting, looking to see if Celeste was ready to go.

(Ah... fuck it, I can't do it. Guess I'll just deal with the surprise when she sees it's an Arceus.)
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Noire had made a point to move over to a less occupied part of the room as other interactions went on, which was fortunate, since that gave her a comfortable distance from the landing spot of the incoming trio of Legendary pokemon. Shilo politely stepped away from Celeste when Raijin approached, allowing the large cat his inspection, and watched everything with her usual stoic calm. Celeste, for her part, smiled brightly, and she giggled when he began to purr and reached up to gently scratch along his jaw with a cheery, "Hey, Raijin." Lucky simply peered at the massive pokemon, unafraid but content to simply cling to Celeste's coat.

But Raijin's appearance meant that it was time to go, and she nodded at Steely's prompting, stepping closer. She fished a pokeball out of a pocket of her coat to recall Noire, as she had no fondness for instantaneous travel in general--she was no fan of being in her pokeball either, but it was the lesser of evils--and then placed a hand on Bec's side, the one not busy gripping her scythe. Shilo walked over and placed a paw on one of Bec's legs, then looked up expectantly. Lucky simply continued to cling to Celeste's coat. "Ready."

And then they were Natura Central. Shilo stood very still for a moment, her ears slightly flattened, and then took a deep breath and returned to her normal expression. Lucky let out a soft, wordless hiss. It seemed that Bec had two more pokemon who weren't so keen on his method of travel. Celeste however, for her part, looked completely fine, both with the temperature and with the teleportation and all of its green/white noise. Go figure. "Bye, Lori!" she called, hoping that she'd managed to be heard before their friend was gone, and she quietly frowned at Steely, briefly, before busying herself with preparing...and trying not to think about the fact that were in the middle of Natura Central and thus there were more than a few people who had stopped to gawk at them, as tended to happen when two armed people with large pokemon suddenly appeared places.

Noire appeared in a burst of light, and Celeste let her take in her surroundings before she climbed up on the large canine's back. Shilo joined her a moment later with a graceful leap, settling herself behind her human companion, and Lucky finally let go to scurry down and sit between Celeste and Noire's neck. One hand buried in Noire's fur, the other holding her weapon, Celeste turned her mount so that she could look to her friend...

And, for a brief moment, Celeste went deathly still. A memory flickered in her mind, of standing in a foggy valley as an army marched toward them, the hiss of an energy barrier above them that had been the only thing standing between them and their enemy's superior firepower. Of being terrified from the last time she'd stood against the same foe, but remaining at Steely's side, because she was Black Tesla now and she would stand by her leader, her friend, no matter what. Then Steely spoke, and the memory was chased away, replaced by reality again, years and a world away from that old battle.

Celeste straightened on Noire's back, and she nodded before looking off into the distance herself, the metal of the snarling mightyena helmet and the blade of her scythe gleaming under the sunlight. It all came together to give her a look of grim determination. "Yeah, let's go," she agreed, though she would wait for Steely to take the lead before she signaled Noire to move.
Edited by Vulpix Windchimes, Aug 13 2015, 07:45 PM.
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There was indeed a fair amount of staring going on, especially once Raijin came on the scene. A respectful distance was kept from the large wolf and legendary, not to mention their riders. Though more of the attention was on Raijin in specific. Well known or not, I doubt most of the common folks have seen him much, if at all in the case of your average individual. On the other hand, and more importantly, it seems that Steely's information was a little out of date. A quick check at the lab would reveal that the person they were looking for had already been and gone earlier in the day. MUCH earlier. Like crack of dawn early. Apparently someone had wanted to try to avoid crowds as much as possible.

So much for easy that way. On the other hand, some of the snatches of conversation from a few of the people around, they weren't completely successful at avoiding all the crowds. Comments along the lines of 'two in one day, what are the odds?' (with likely pointing out that sending a royal guard out was only logical in response) gave a pretty good idea that people had seen the legendary in question at some point today. The lab also had the information that he had been headed for the Docks as far as they were aware.

Yay for directions!

On the way, however, a small crowd of teenagers might attract a bit of attention. One of the guys was staring at Raijin with rather overt fascination while his pal was tugging frantically at his sleeve. "Dude, don't even start the stupid questions. The last one nearly took you apart, let's just go..."

"I wasn't going to ask stupid questions..." A few of the others were shooting covert looks of curiosity, combined with nervousness, as they hovered near the two arguers. Either way, it appeared that the trail of gawkers would probably also provide an easy way to trail this Avatar owner...




Meanwhile elsewhere, down the shore a short ways from the docks at a rather rocky beach, Ben sighed tiredly. He kept rubbing his forehead and trying not to look like he needed the support of the pokemon he was leaning against. The silence between the pair was relatively companionable, but all the people and the staring and everything had taken its toll on Ben's Aura senses. He kept the hood on the hoodie he'd worn up over his head. Between the wind and all the attention, he didn't really want to be looked at any more than necessary. It didn't necessarily make him any less visible, but it at least gave a slight assist in being somewhat more anonymous for the moment. He wished he could release Jax as well, but Okami was causing enough of a stir. Best to let that die down a little before showing off a pure white arcanine around here.

Are people really always that rude?

It seemed that the young arceus was through with the silence for now, and Ben tried not to wince at the question. Once they'd finished with the visit to the Lab, Okami had requested to see the city for itself, and the blind trainer hadn't had the heart to refuse the young Avatar. Even worried as he was of the predictable reactions of passerby, he couldn't shelter the young arceus forever. The lab visit had taken a little longer than he'd hoped, and besides, Ben had been hoping to not have Okami out when he'd left, like he hadn't had it out when he entered.

And so they had endured more than their fair share of whispering, pointing, and staring after them. That was bad enough, but it had come to a head when a small crowd of more courageous observers had decided to more openly display their curiosity.

"How did you get it?" "How long have you had it?" "Is that as big as its going to get?" "Is it smart? Can it talk?"

Okami had quietly put up with it right until that last pair of impertinent questions. Ben had been trying to answer a few of the others as quickly as possible so that they could continue on, when those two popped up, startling him into silence. That had given the arceus time to raise its head in dignified effrontery and snap, I beg your pardon, but I can speak perfectly well, thank you. And comprehend far more than you ever will, judging by your ignorant questions. It had at least shut the questioners up in a hurry and gotten them a somewhat stunned and respectful distance for the rest of their travels.

Word traveled fast. But that didn't answer Okami's question. Ben sighed after the silence started to stretch out unbearably long, reaching out to rest a hand on the avatar's forhead and rub it apologetically. "Some people are, yes. Especially those that haven't learned better yet." The gaggle of questioners had to have been in their late teens at most. The age many people think they're immortal.

Well then, hopefully they learned better. The nerve... Ben didn't have a reply to that, letting it go silent again, except for the wind.

Out by the shore of the vast lake, it was cooler, thanks to that near-constant breeze that always came off such bodies of water. In some ways, it reminded him a little of the lake on the Ranch. It was nice for a time, but then the silence just let the homesickness and loneliness gnaw away at the fringes of what little peace he had found. Ben rummaged around for something to say, anything at all, grasping at straws to distract himself again. “I'm really starting to wonder what we're doing here...”

Looking for Celeste, I thought. Ben started as Okami replied instantly, having meant it more rhetorically. The arceus raised its head, shifting its feet as it looked out over the water. Well, unless you mean right here at this particular spot. In which case, I think you're trying to avoid people, it added after a moment of thought.

“...” The blind trainer stifled a sigh and pulled his hand back, shoving them both into his pockets as he pulled away from Okami. The Avatar's observations were a little too uncannily accurate for him right now. “I don't know what I meant, really. I just...”

You are not sure what to do next, are you? Ben winced a little. Sometimes he forgot how astute the Avatar could be despite its youth and inexperience. I do not have any advice to offer, either. I wish I did.

“Oh?” Ben straightened up, tilting his head slightly as the young arceus moved a few paces down toward the water.

Well, yes. You are not the only one that would like to see her again, after all.

“I didn't know you cared, Okami.” Ben followed his Avatar, reaching out to run fingers through the fine white fur on the Avatar's shoulder, pleased that the pokemon didn't move away from the repeated contact. Progress was being made.

She is important to you, Benjamin Summers.

“I wish you wouldn't call me that all the time,” Ben sighed, moving his hand down to scratch the Avatar's back between its shoulder blades. Okami shifted a little closer, a slightly blissful expression flitting across its bland features. Ben scratched a bit harder, idly noting that that the arceus seemed to have put on a major spurt of growth since they'd arrived. Okami's shoulders were even with his chest at this point. Certainly not near full growth yet, but also not the waist-height the Avatar's back had been until recently.

It is who you are, but if you are that bothered by it, I will try.

“Maybe, but that doesn't mean you need to use the whole of it all the time. Just Ben is fine.” The blind trainer hesitated a moment, then added with a sigh, “Or if you really have to, Benjamin. But, I appreciate the effort, Okami. And don't feel like you have to like someone just because I do.”

I wouldn't presume to do so. She makes the most delicious cookies, too. Ben blinked, then smiled faintly at that. For all its apparent maturity at times, the arceus was still a bit of a kid. He followed Okami for a ways, wading out into the chilly water as the Avatar led him to a large boulder for him to climb atop, leaving the young arceus to trot out over the lake, hopping over a few waves for fun.

Ben settled down, raising one knee to rest his arm and head on as he sat, for all appearances watching his Avatar play on the water. He had to start this search in earnest soon, but he didn't even know where to begin. There also apparently was the King and Queen for him to meet at some point, but he didn't want to do that until he got his bearings again. One step at a time...
Edited by Darth Eevee, Aug 27 2015, 07:24 PM.
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The Dog in the Machine
Raijin trembled, electricity coursing through and over his entire body. Steely could tell that he wanted to run, even though they were in the city. Not to escape the stares or prove anything, but just because he loved it so much. He also knew that it made Steely happy. She rested a hand on his neck, through the cape of clouds that she was sitting in, feeling the static prickle her skin. They shared the same feelings on the matter, but...

"Gently love, we can't leave Celeste behind."

The giant cat growled, crouching down, every muscle rippling with static, but he hopped out of the crouch and into a trot instead of a full tilt run. Steely could feel his disappointment, and she shared the sentiment, but there was always time later.

As far as all the staring and murmuring went, Steely had gotten used to it a long time ago. Even in Opaddeka, she'd tried to keep her legendaries somewhat secret, but given that utter catastrophe seemed to happen on a regular basis, it didn't exactly work out. Now at least she had some degree of authority to go with it. Or something.

(Not like I have my Guard badge on me or anythi- oh wait,) she suddenly started groping around in her pockets, having just indiscriminately grabbed things out of her other coat. Eventually she pulled out a white glove, embroidered on the back with a simple stylized crown and silhouettes of Zekrom and Reshiram. Steely had been confused when she'd first gotten it, instead of some other kind of badge, but Elora had explained. ("Eh, it's just a tradition thing. Who you serve goes on your hand, because your hands belong to them. Who you are goes here," she'd tapped her chest, over her heart, "Because family lives in the heart.") A week or so later, the morph had shown up and handed Steely a metal pin adorned with a stylized picture of three snarling dog heads... to which Steely had given Lori a look and just shoved it in a pocket. Now, though, she found herself thinking of it again as she tugged her fingerless black glove off of her right hand.

Steely didn't realize that they'd stopped a while ago, Raijin poking his head into the Lab and talking to the receptionist. It wasn't Malcom, sadly, but they had no problem talking to the big cat and pointing back out the door.

Steeeeely, they've already been and left. Apparently they went to the docks?

"What?" Steely jerked her head up to see Raijin looking over his shoulder at her, and what he said sunk in. She crammed her fingerless glove in her pocket and pulled on the other one. "Well, we have to find this person or else I'll be the one in trouble, so over to the docks then I guess."

That was more than good enough for the giant cat, who smiled with all his teeth, and trotted down the street.

"You know," Steely looked over to Celeste, tugging on the glove to adjust and flexing her hand. "You don't have to come with me; I don't know how long I'm going to be running around..."

(She is gonna get so pissed at you.)

On some level, Steely knew that, but she still felt like she had to try.

The water was on the far edge of the city, and the Lab was located more towards the center, so Raijin picked up the pace towards the outer rim. Fast enough that he didn't leave Noire behind, but not really good for holding a conversation. So behind her darkened lenses, Steely frowned and pulled up the texting function, (Gonna have words with my missing psychic.)

(Or at least try to.)

Raijin slowed back to a trot when they reached the beach, passing by the industrial piers to the less built-up areas where the beaches spread out into the shallow waters, facing the giant lakes that surrounded the city. At some point Steely had stopped her grouchy frowning, and by now she was looking around again. Finally, she straightened up tall as she could, spotting a bit of white and gold splashing among the waves.

(...man, I should stop delaying the inevitable.)

"I uh. Kind of..."
Steely watched the hooded trainer on the rock and the young god instead of looking at Celeste. "Forgot to mention that it's an Arceus."

They were close enough at this point, though Raijin stopped short of the tide and the wet sand. He didn't mind it, but this wasn't the time. Before the redhead and the blonde could talk anymore, the whole cat seemed to inflate, and Steely realized what he was doing just before he did it. "Not too loud!" she hissed before he could roar. He still did, but it wasn't the 'booming thunder' sort of full-voice roar that he was capable of. It wouldn't do anyone any good if they couldn't hear each other.

Hello! the legendary cat said cheerfully. We have come to collect you! Please do not resist, as bad things will happen.

Steely took a second to sigh to herself, resisting the urge to put her face in her hands. What a lovely way to get started.
Edited by Steel Cerberus, Aug 16 2015, 03:42 PM.
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Celeste was much less used to being stared at, which made it something of a relief that the crowds were far more occupied with Steely and Raijin than they were with her and her own collection of pokemon. Noire trotted along beside Raijin, but a step or two behind him, making Celeste look like the faceless follower of the Royal Guard next to her, a comforting bit of anonymity that she was now very grateful for. Even though the people were keeping a respectful distance, Celeste ended up having Noire trot a small semi-circle as Raijin peeked into the Lab to chat with the receptionist, just to further discourage anyone from getting too close, well-meaning or no.

Wolf and riders alike turned to look when Raijin stated that they were too late, however, and a frown came over Celeste's face as a pang of guilt hit her. Had her insistence on coming along and her own preparations slowed Steely down and caused them to miss their window? She certainly didn't want her friend to get in trouble because of her. With that thought lingering in her mind, her nudging for Noire to follow Raijin was just a hint more insistent than the previous on had been. However, despite that thought, Steely's next words caused Celeste to turn her head and look at her, her green eyes briefly flickering with light.

"I'm coming," she said for the second time that day, her tone more snappish this time, rather than simply firm. She urged Noire to pick up the pace, and, despite the situation, found herself enjoying as both mounts sped up and they were able to simply ride for a while on their way to the dock. Celeste loved to ride, after all, even though she'd done so less often after gaining her wings. Noire wasn't fast, not like her arcanine, or like Ares, but their current speed still helped soothe her irritation, enough that she was relatively calm when they finally slowed again and decided to make sure to apologize to Steely for her tone when this was over.

Then came the next curve ball, when Celeste followed Steely's gaze and heard the word 'arceus.' Nigh-instantly, she went stiff and a jab of homesickness struck her solidly in the gut as she stared out at the shape of the youngster in the water, unable to tear her eyes away. This one looked bigger than the little arceus she'd known, but her emotions didn't care anything for such details, and she could feel the hand buried in Noire's fur start to tremble as she hissed, "How do you forget tha--" That was the moment that Raijin was preparing to roar, and even though his roar was quieter than it could have been, Noire's ears pinned back and she side-stepped away from him with a small, wordless, huffing woof.

Celeste looked at Raijin at his choice of 'greeting,' but said nothing. Her gaze soon drifted back out to the water, and she tried to swallow the lump in her throat. She was all the more grateful for the helmet now, for the guise of being grim, humourless extra muscle, to hide the fact that she felt like she was going to be ill. Shilo, leaving Celeste and Lucky on Noire's back, leaped down to land in the sand. The feeling of her paws sinking into it slightly was bittersweet, but she ignored that for the moment. "You will not be harmed without reason," she added, in what was something of an attempt to soften the threat, though her default voice tone was largely unhelpful. However, she found herself a bit distracted, and her eyes were gleaming yellow as she stared out at the hooded figure. Something felt...strange, here, to her.
Edited by Vulpix Windchimes, Aug 27 2015, 07:00 PM.
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Okami actually trotted atop the lake most of the time, leaping over the incoming waves like they were hurdles. Occasionally he'd stop dead to let one of the crests crash against his legs before leaping up to prance over the surface again. While he couldn't actually skywalk like the true Arceus could, apparently he could at least walk on water. Neither of the two immediately noticed the new arrivals to the scene, preoccupied as they were.

Raijin's roaring on the other hand... well that was noticed. Just a little. Okami's head jerked up and around, much like a startled deer, to stare at Raijin and Noire. The avatar made no other movement in reaction, though something flickered in the depths of its eyes after a moment, listening to Raijin and Shilo's words calmly. Oh, hello... he broke off to look over at the results of the other reaction to the sudden roaring and stuff.

The hooded figure on the rock had initially stifled a yip of surprise as he tumbled instinctively away from the sudden hostile-sounding noise. The yelp escaped a moment later, however, as he was abruptly reminded that while the rock was big enough to sit on, it wasn't necessarily big enough to be doing acrobatic tumbling routines atop. This resulted in him disappearing behind the rock while all the speaking was going on and as a result, missing most of it himself. Ben growled several unintelligible, uncomplimentary words about inconsiderate people and their ilk as he straightened up. He'd managed to mostly land on his feet, but that didn't stop him from being three quarters soaked from the landing.

The arceus trotted back over to the rock, turning its gaze back to Raijin as it joined its guardian. I think we...

"I don't care. I am not in the mood to deal with..." Ben growled snappishly at his Avatar, though keeping his voice down as he tried to wring his sleeve out.

The blind trainer blinked a moment later as the Avatar spoke again, and he had the distinct impression he was the only one that would be able to hear these words. I think that unless I'm terribly mistaken, that's Steely and Raijin wanting to 'collect us' apparently... Okami trailed off as the blind trainer stiffened at the two names, head snapping to focus in the general direction of the rest of the beach's occupants. They were a bit far for his Aura senses to get a read of automatically, but it wouldn't be hard to get a feel for them if he tried. But, it wasn't even possible...

"But... that's..." Ben couldn't continue further past those two soft, strangled words, trying to make sense past the rising welter of conflicting emotions. Disbelief, shock, hope... but higher than all that, a sense of outrage, frustration, and betrayal. 'Collect us? When she's the one that abandoned...'

"No." He jerked his thoughts off that rail with an effort, though he wasn't sure if the word was a rejection of talking with them or of the incredible claim the Avatar had just made of their identity. It wouldn't take a lot to prove that Okami was wrong, either, just a bit of focus and... no. Ben winced away from that thought, pulling within himself as much as possible. Not right now; he just couldn't deal with people, let alone that particular one if it actually was her. Which it couldn't be. Ben turned away, one hand going to his pocket, feeling for Ross' pokeball. Steely or not, Raijin or a random raikou, it wasn't likely they'd be able to simply follow his portal right away, or even know where he'd gone to...

Don't... she's not alone. The trainer froze again at those quiet words in his head, then shook his head violently. It couldn't be possible that it was really even Steely, so he wouldn't know anyone else present either. No false hope. And even if it really was Steely, somehow, despite the impossibility of that... he didn't even want to try to sort that out. When you wanted to punch someone in the face and hug them at the same time and couldn't figure out which one was right, it wasn't something he was ready to deal with on top of all the other complications in his life right now. Steely wasn't who he had wanted to find...

I... I beg your pardon, but I think he's rather upset with you right now and doesn't want to talk to you. The young arceus looked over at Raijin as it spoke, a bit abashedly, the usage of 'you' seeming a bit oddly specific to the pair of them in implication. Ben bit back several scathing comments that came to his mind to add to that. It wasn't going to help and he really didn't want to get into a fight of any sort, either. He just wanted to be left alone right now.

Okami turned its attention onto the other human on the massive mightyena. There was something... the Avatar's gaze swept up to the sableye a moment, then away. Perhaps... perhaps your companions might... Okami paused, taking a few steps away from its trainer, head lowering down to focus on the weavile abruptly. She had spoken as well. Spoken in the human tongue, not pokemon. The red eyes flickered again, as it took one more step forward, head cocking inquisitively to the side a moment. I... know you, too, don't I? Okami spoke entirely to the dark type this time, but jerked its head away before Shilo could answer to stare into the face of the snarling mightyena mask. I really think we should... Okami turned its head to look back toward its trainer.

"Not right now," Ben snapped back, cutting the arceus off again in frustration. He waded a few steps away, then stopped, suddenly not certain how to get to shore without heading towards their uninvited company. "Just leave me alone. Please!" Ben hadn't meant to raise the volume any from his earlier quiet words, but his frustrations had begun to get the better of him, though he managed to keep from shouting any of that.

Okami jerked back slightly at the vehemence in the statement, then heaved a sigh of frustration, looking away. Despite the situation, the godlet didn't move to join anyone, standing somewhere between its trainer and the pair on the shore. The red gaze never wavered from the riders when it spoke again, not bothering to modulate its own projections. Benjamin...
Edited by Darth Eevee, Aug 29 2015, 07:50 AM.
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(Maybe next time I tell you not to come, you'll actually listen to me. I only say that for your own fucking good, you know.)

Just before they had taken off to the docks, Asylum had disappeared into Steely's coat, likely retiring to an inner pocket where he wouldn't be seen and couldn't fall off. From a distance, it was hard to tell exactly what he was anyway. He poked his snout out right after Raijin roared, bright green tongue flicking in the air. Steely reached up and stroked his snout to try and sooth her angered nerves.

Raijin sighed and made a face as the Arceus' trainer fell off the rock and into the water. He hadn't been that loud. The cat had been serious about the 'bad things' part of what he said, despite Shilo trying to make it seem less threatening. Still, like the little Arceus and Shilo, Raijin felt something weird about the whole situation. Still, when the little God effectively rejected them, Raijin closed the distance to the edge of the water and lifted a paw over it, crawling with electricity.

That's a shame.

"Not yet, you," Steely hissed, leaning down next to his face. It was fortunately enough that the thunder beast stopped the light show and put his paw down again with a huff. He never got to have any fun. No wonder nobody took him seriously.

The blonde very suddenly frowned as she looked out at the pair, looking irritated on a level that Steely rarely got to. Well... hm. Either her sudden realization was right and she had to take drastic measures, or she was wrong and would simply look like an idiot. Though, really... when did Kat ever need an excuse to be abrasive. She cupped her hands to her mouth and bellowed, "Celeste is right fucking here! Stop being stupid and get your dumb ass over here!"

(...that was a little much.)

(These two are a little much, I swear.)
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Celeste continued to be silent and still, save for the faint shaking of her hand. This arceus spoke with a voice like the one she knew, and while she could argue with herself that that likely meant little, and perhaps all Avatars spoke with the original's voice--she had never had an audience with an original Legendary, after all, nor met multiple Avatars of the same species--it was not helping her attempt to control her emotions and separate her memories from reality. Celeste didn't notice the recognition that flashed across Shilo's face at the voice in her mind, followed by the dark weavile stepping back, very slightly, in shock. That's because the arceus's eyes were on her that moment, and she practically felt the fire leaping into the space behind her irises, causing them to flare bright green in response as she swallowed another lump in her throat.

Her grip tightened on her scythe as it became clear that is was not going to go smoothly, but part of her balked at idea assisting in threatening or harming them, now, and watching Raijin with electricity dancing around his paw made her stomach lurch. As Steely, fortunately, stopped him, she did her best to squash her doubts. She was not going to follow her friend this far and suddenly become dead weight, or an outright liability.

Shilo, meanwhile, placed a paw on the mightyena rider's leg and hissed out a quiet, frantic, "Celeste--" only to be cut off when Kat started shouting and Celeste's head snapped up to stare at her.

Later on, Celeste would not be able to remember how she'd ended up in the water, the details a blur. The scythe hit the ground, abandoned, and, at her trainer's silent direction, Noire lunged into the water with a splash and started to wade out toward the arceus, until she was directly in front of them. Her ears were pinned back and tail held low, making it clear that she did not want to be so close, but she stood firm regardless as Celeste reached up and, hands grasping at the helmet clumsily, pulled away the snarling metal jaws to reveal her true face, eyes still flaring brightly.

"You...?" she said, the soft word as hopeful as it was breathless. She wasn't sure why she felt short of breath, since it was Noire who'd been doing all of the running today, but her soft, but heavy, breaths could be heard nevertheless. In the back of her mind, Celeste knew that she felt different now than she had back home; something in the trip to Natura had changed her, and the fire she had harbored for years was part of her now, etched into her Aura as clearly as a pokemon's typing was. If that even mattered. If she wasn't acting foolishly in the vain hope...

But how vain a hope was it, really? After everything else that had happened?
Edited by Vulpix Windchimes, Sep 18 2015, 05:33 PM.
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Something flickered in the depths of the young arceus' eyes as Celeste's eyes flared green and glowing behind the snarling teeth. It tilted its head to the side a little, as if trying to figure out how to fit the last pieces of a puzzle together. Ben sighed in frustration, one hand reaching up to rub at his temples a moment, trying to stave off a resurgence of his earlier headache before formulating a reply to his charge.

Okami's attention snapped away to the raikou when Raijin spoke, eyes flaring a brilliant red for a moment at the paw's raising. One graceful leap brought it back beside Ben, who reached out instinctively to clutch at the golden bars for balance as the godlet bumped into him. He stiffened as he sensed the ponderous, earthly flare of one of the plates activating in proximity to the Creator's Avatar. Gold flickered, shifting to a brownish-orange, as the plate slid free of a pocket and clicked between the bars over its back. The arceus relaxed fractionally when the other legendary put his paw down, but the plate remained active just in case. It huffed as well, a bit petulantly, but its gaze flitted back to Celeste and Shilo as the weavile hissed something before he could say anything.

And then Kat shouted at them.

Something akin to triumph flickered in the depths of Okami's now-orange eyes, as its trainer spun around to face those on shore. Ben knew there was something else important about what she'd said, but for a moment it was lost in the outrage at the rest of her accusations. What right did Kat have to be calling him stupid? The other person bolted forward into the water, and something was oddly familiar in her aura, and yet it was different...

The nagging feeling was brushed aside to figure out later, as his concentration focused his senses to confirm what he hadn't wanted to yet, not that the unmistakable voice hadn't already done that. “Damnit, Kat...” he growled in irritation, all but ready to shout something he'd regret in his irritation. The only thing that kept him from saying anything more was the feeling that he'd just missed something important and the other recognizable auras in the area nagging at him. Kat had also said something at the start of her shouting.

Noire's acute discomfort resonated as a further distraction, and Ben reached out almost automatically to try to comfort the familiar canine, though he froze as the realization that this was Noire caused all the other facts to click into place. And the voice... Yes. Okami lifted its head regally to look back into Celeste's eyes as it replied to the soft half-questioning word. The Avatar shifted, taking half a step forward and twisting its hindquarters forward and to the side, its orange eyes never leaving Celeste's glowing green ones.

Ben stumbled forward as the movement shoved him into the mightyena, as the Avatar had intended. The fingers of his extended left hand closed automatically in the thick, coarse fur of her shoulder as they came in contact with Noire. Some tiny disconnected piece of his mind idly hoped that the shy dog wouldn't bite in reaction to this. He knew how she felt about unwanted contact, after all, and she was already uneasy because of Okami. Everything else was just numb with shock, his conflicting emotions about Kat and Steely's presence completely forgotten for a moment. It just couldn't be... but it had to be, right?

He let go of Okami with his other hand to push the hood back as he focused on the achingly familiar-yet-different aura on Noire's back. He hadn't yet gotten around to getting a new set of sunglasses after his original pair had been irreparably damaged by the nature of his abrupt introduction to Natura. Another reason he'd preferred the hood up... but his blank gray gaze didn't bother some people.

“...Celeste..?” There was a wealth of uncertainty in his voice, a hesitant sort of fear-tinged hope lacing through the name. Almost afraid to hope, but more afraid to not, but if it wasn't... but it had to be, didn't it?
Edited by Darth Eevee, Sep 19 2015, 03:38 PM.
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In true Kat fashion, the blonde raised her arms up at her sides when Ben whirled to face her. It was something of a 'what?' gesture that Ben couldn't even see anyway.

Then Noire and Celeste rushed into the water, leaving the big cat and his rider dry on the beach. Kat sighed, as if annoyed a little, but just let the encounter progress. She was, at the very least, pretty sure that she was right.

"The gods work in interesting ways," she murmured.

She wasn't sure if it was because they were jaded, or because things like this really did keep happening, but somehow the blonde absolutely wasn't surprised that Ben was here too. (It's like this weird force of the universe trying to make everything right again. Also, this planet seems to just attract weird things. Hey, who knows, maybe our ancestors really are from here? It would make sense.)

Steely was unusually quiet, Kat noticed. She could never explain exactly how it was any different than any other time, but it still just had that feeling.

(We should leave.)

(...what?)

Raijin suddenly took a step backward, looking around as he was suddenly gripped by a strange feeling. (They don't need us around, we're only gonna fuck it up again. Let's go.)

Steely seemed to have somehow gotten a grip on the big cat, because he took another few steps backward. Kat shook her head, torn between violent disagreement and reluctant agreement. Raijin took a few more steps up the beach, but stopped and started to pace instead. He did not want to leave, though he suddenly ached to start running away.
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Now, with the confirmation, with that simple 'yes,' Celeste could allow herself to recognize the gaze, even with eyes shifted in colour from the plate. Had she really been away so long that the little arceus had grown so much? But that thought did not have time to linger, as there was something else to focus on. Noire's head jerked upward and to one side, away from the sudden touch, and her teeth bared in a grimace, but she did not bite, merely shifting away as best she could without either getting her fur pulled out or pulling the offending human off-balance; Celeste stroked her neck gently with one hand to try to ease her stress, but the action seemed to happen of its own accord, the part of her mind occupied with Noire a small, far away part.

Those eyes. The way they looked at her, pointed in her direction but unfocused and unseeing. Windows with the curtains shut. Just like how she remembered. She was trembling anew before he even spoke, but when she heard her name, her eyes squeezed shut for a moment. No crying, no crying, no crying... She dismounted, swinging off of Noire's back and landing in the water with a splash, unconcerned with the soaking of her boots and pant legs. The helmet was still tucked under her arm, the desire to keep it from falling into the water as well and risking rust part of what kept her from immediately latching onto him in a tight hug and not letting go.

"Ben..." Her voice cracked, betraying how close she was to breaking out into sobs, and she took a breath to try to steady it. "You're here...You're...I thought...I thought I'd never..." She'd thought she'd left him behind, that he'd never know where she'd gone, that he'd think she ran away from him intentionally. "I missed you so much..." The complete sentence managed to tumble out, though more quietly, and she continued in that quiet volume, her tone shifting to almost pleading. "Something happened, and I know I...I seem different. Thane said my Aura changed. But it's me...I promise it's me..." He'd sounded so uncertain, that she had to say it, but it was there that her rambling finally wound down and left her staring at him, part of her fearful of being pushed away.

A little face peeked out of Noire's mane at that point, with gem eyes and sharp teeth, and Lucky scampered up to perch on the great mightyena's head and peer down at the two humans. He normally would have hopped down to cling to Celeste's shoulders when she'd dismounted, especially with how emotional she was right now, but he sensed that it wasn't hugs from him that she needed right now. Instead, he looked to the arceus and grinned, quite happy to see more familiar folks after this time and not quite as aware as everyone else exactly how amazing and seemingly-impossible it was.

Shilo, however, was not watching Celeste and Ben. From her place on the shore, she was watching Raijin, her eyes trailing after him as he backed up and paced about, her usual stoic expression being replaced by a small, concerned frown. Now, her and the Legendary would likely not qualify as friends. They had never had any significant interaction, only ever simply in the same place at the same time. That was not out any avoidance on her part, either, as, while respectful of his power, she was not afraid nor awestruck due to what he was. They simply...had little in common, when it came down to it. Except for the one thing, that was important: Back there, and here now, they were part of the same community, regardless of whether the Black Tesla name still applied.

And, so, Shilo walked over to the great cat, and gently reached up to brush his leg with a forepaw in an attempt to grasp his attention and make him stop moving for a moment. She allowed her concern to be plainly visible as she asked, softly, "Raijin, what is wrong?"
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((You two are awesome, just saying. Always. <3))

Ben stood there, as taught as stretched wire and all but ready to bolt, as Celeste stared back at him, dismounting. The silence nearly undid him. Short as it may have been, it seemed to last an eternity, an endless moment of agonizing uncertainty. Not being able to be sure it really was her was absolutely unnerving. It should have been obvious, so simple to tell. But something was just different enough in her aura that he couldn't be so sure, and he wasn't sure if he could stand it if it weren't her. To learn that someone else had managed to gain Noire's trust enough to let them ride her, somehow. If it really was Noire, really was Lucky still perched on the massive canine. He knew he should let go of Noire, but he couldn't, or he might have run.

Then she said his name, and the moment ended. The tension slid away, like water off glass, and Ben let out the the breath he hadn't been aware he'd been holding until he wasn't any more. The world didn't feel quite steady as the anxiety fled, taking with it the flood of nervous energy, leaving him feel slightly shaky. His hand dropped from the thick black fur at last, but Celeste stuttered on. Ben stood there and listened, hearing all she said, and what she didn't as well. Recognizing what had changed in her, what had stayed the same. Understanding all her fears and uncertainties as she tried to find the words, since they were so like his own.

But as Lucky peeked out at them, and she tried to reassure him, he moved at last, after having stood still and silent all through her stilted speech. One step forward, and he pulled her into a tight hug, eyes closing as he just breathed in her scent, felt the comfort of her presence at last. “I see that now.” He knew how incongruous that was, coming from him, but it was the only way he could find to say it. “I... I was just afraid that... that you...” He found he couldn't continue for a moment, taking a shaky breath, hugging a little tighter for just a moment. “I thought I'd lost you... I was afraid that I'd never find you... but I couldn't just... I had to try. Without you...”

He stopped himself from finishing that, not wanting to recall other shouting matches between the three of them in the past, not right now. “I love you, Celeste,” he whispered into her hair, instead, wishing this moment would last forever. He'd said it before, on paper, or when not fully coherent with a concussion, but never otherwise. And he should have so much sooner... he didn't want to miss the chance again. “I'll always love you.”

Okami watched the pair, stepping carefully around Noire and a bit toward the shore, eyes flitting over to Kat when she mumbled about the gods, looking almost smug for a moment. The young arceus nodded to Lucky, not really having much for expression to smile back with, but certainly appreciated seeing these familiar faces as well. The young arceus was happy that they had found Celeste again, but it figured now wasn't the time to mention how much it had missed her baking, itself. So it watched Raijin and Shilo curiously, instead.

If it's that incredibly important that we get collected now, you could just say so, and maybe explain why you were ready to try to fry us over it, too. I only said he didn't want to talk to you at the moment, not that we wouldn't come, after all. Okami wasn't certain exactly what else would cause the agitation, itself, really. The pair hadn't seemed to be all that disgusted by mushy stuff in the past, after all, so it couldn't be that. And the notion that they'd run away after all that 'come with us or there'll be trouble' earlier just didn't occur to it at all.
Edited by Darth Eevee, Oct 15 2015, 04:07 PM.
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(same~)


Kat was glancing up and down, from her mount to the pair in the water, not wanting to miss anything but not wanting to lose control of the beast now that he was acting oddly. Well not odd, exactly, she knew what was wrong. Just didn't know what to do about it. Raijin continued pacing, panting as if in some kind of distress. He stopped when Shilo's claw brushed along his leg, and looked down at her with unconcealed surprise, like he'd forgotten she was here. The legendary gave his head an abrupt shake (and didn't notice his rider jump a little and look down at Shilo, also surprised), and leaned his head down to her level.

I am... well, I wanted to go running, but I don't know why. But I don't want to go, I want to stay here, Raijin lifted his sabertoothed head to look back at Celeste and Ben, kneading his claws in the sand.

The blonde scrubbed her face with her hands quickly, replacing her hat and sunglasses when she was done, and squinting back out toward the water. "About fucking time you two," she grumbled, not trying to be heard. After a few seconds, she frowned with unease and shifted as much as she could in the seat, leaning back a little. This got Raijin to take a few steps away again, but he stopped and looked around to see if there was a danger that she saw and he didn't.

But, the human put her hands up in a shrug when Okami spoke, "It's not like we knew it was you guys. Hell, Kat didn't even know she just decided to start yelling. What else is new..." the last part was another personal sort of grumble.

(Hey, my yelling gets results.)
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You guys are wonderful. <3

As soon as the hand grasping at her fur let go, Noire stepped away from Ben, ensuring that she was out of reach just in case he got the bright idea to try that again. Celeste barely noticed, still focused on the man in front of her as she stammered away, her heart pounding painfully as he simply listened. She had that familiar feeling of stumbling in the dark, unable to read whether her fears were justified or if her mind was casting imaginary shadows as it often did.

And then he pulled her close, and it all fell away, a flood of relief chasing the shadows of fear from her heart. Ben was here, was holding her, and she was safe. In that moment, she wasn't a world away from home anymore. Home was here, where she felt safe and whole for the first time in too long. Tears stung at her eyes and as he spoke. She still hadn't dropped the helmet, but her other hand clutched at the material of his hoodie, clinging tightly and almost trying to pull him closer, despite how close she was already being held, as he told her how afraid he'd been. The whisper, however, undid the last of her control over her tears and they rolled down her cheeks freely. "I love you too," she whispered back, "Always."

A little part of her wanted to summon her wings and take off into the sky so that she could swoop and dive and shout her joy of having found him again to the heavens. The rest of her just wanted to stay here and not let the moment end, and, for the time being, that part won out. As her tears slowed and she took in a out a deep breath, however, curiosity prompted her to speak. "How...how did you get here? I'm not even sure what exactly pulled me to Natura..." She suspected regarding what had brought her, but the memories were too incomplete to know for sure; she did her best to suppress the shiver that threatened to run down her spine at what fragments remained and push it aside. That was over now. She was okay. She was safe.

Shilo, meanwhile, continued to look concerned as Raijin reacted to her presence--she had accidentally 'snuck up on' other pokemon before, but this seemed different--and told her what had been going on. She was left perplexed as he turned his attention back to Celeste and Ben, unsure how to react, if a reaction was needed. Her action had seemed to have snapped him out of it, but all the same, she wanted to help if help was still required.

The presence of the young arceus proceeded to be an all-around distraction, however, and Shilo nodded to confirm Steely's words. "We only knew that an Avatar was present and not of your identity or intentions," she elaborated. She would leave sharing information regarding the King and Queen to the being present who was actually employed by them. "And you have grown since we saw you last," she added. The observation was intended as something of a compliment to the young arceus in addition to further explanation, but her tone remained neutral and so how obvious said intention was was debatable.
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Ben held Celeste close, not wanting to ever let go again. He could tell he was shaking a little as he stood there, but it didn't really matter. He had found her again, and they were together, and that was all that mattered, all that had ever really mattered. This time, Celeste's words didn't bring a spate of self recrimination or guilt, just added to the giddy relief and joy of the moment. If only it would last forever, but nothing could.

It was enough that it had happened, however. And nothing could take that away from either of them. And eventually reality had to intrude, at least a little. Ben reluctantly pulled away when Celeste finally spoke again, and his ears reddened slightly at the question. She probably wasn't going to like his answer to that in general, anyhow. That wasn't what made him pause before answering, though. Her own statement about her own arrival was one he wasn't sure how to respond to, because funnily enough, he might actually know more than she did about that, if that was the case.

And that was a little bewildering to contemplate. Luckily Okami was distracted with Steely, Shilo and Raijin at the moment or the young arceus might have made this conversation even more awkward. Tact was not one of its skills. "Well..." Ben freed one hand to run through his hair in that habit he had when speaking of uncomfortable or troubling things. "I, uh... kinda had Ross open a portal and... Okami tried to alter it to follow you..." Ben flushed a bit more, well aware now how stupid it sounded to have tried.

"I had to try something after Okami said that it dreamed you'd been taken by the Lord of Dimensions," Ben added a bit hastily, not really certain it justified it, but needing to explain. And it had seemed like a much faster option than trying to hunt down Giratina himself. He hesitated a moment or two, then decided not to bring up the strange... being that had claimed some credit for helping him land here. "It... wasn't really one of my better ideas, but I've been told that this place attracts dimensional travel or something so I guess that helped..."

Okami moved further away from the three as Noire moved out of touching range, not wanting to bother the big black wolf any more than necessary, and currently more interested in those on the shore anyhow. Well, I suppose all that is true. I received a name as well, actually. At least unless or until something else is more appropriate, I go by Okami now. The Avatar seemed to puff up a little as it related that, continuing to make its way ashore to join the others. Our intentions weren't anything more than trying to find Celeste, really. So now that we have, I don't really know what they will be. We only came here because of the lab, and...

Okami tilted its head abruptly and looked back toward Ben. Oh yes, that reminds me. Katelyn will be happy to hear about this, too, won't she? We probably should at least stop to let her know, right? Ben went rigid with surprise and consternation beside Celeste at that reminder.

"Ffffss..." She was going to gloat, of course...
Edited by Darth Eevee, Nov 7 2015, 07:43 PM.
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