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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 18, 2013 18:15:43 GMT -5
A warm spring sunlight had graced Celadon City that day. There was not a cloud in the sky, and the slight breezes, though cool, were not abrasive. The down town streets smelled like greasy food from the stands that dotted nearly every corner and the streets were swarmed with people.
Despite the good weather, Charlie tended to keep to the shadowy allies. It was a null point, really; her objective was to avoid people, and with her incredibly plain appearance- baggy jeans, a t-shirt, a large inconspicuous hoodie, and a baseball cap that shadowed her pale face -she could blend in perfectly, unnoticed by anyone looking for something or someone specific. She didn't know where she was going, but it didn't really matter as long as it wasn't home.
A soft mew behind her alerted her to the sound of a welcome companion. She smiled and looked over her shoulder. A lithe meowth with a slight limp that hardly took away from her natural grace hurried to her side and rubbed against her leg, purring softly. Charlie knelt and stroked her. Though she was not a pokeon person, she did not mind this feline's company. As long as the creature did not bother her- which she never did -she was happy to have her tag along.
She rose and continued down the ally, emerging onto a crowded street. With a cautious look in both directions she emerged onto the street and casually started down it in one direction, and the meowth sunk back into the shadows of the ally.
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Post by Atticus on Mar 18, 2013 18:43:12 GMT -5
Max ran down the street, keeping his face down and clutching the jacket as he ran. He'd thrown it over his shoulders and kept a firm grip on the sleeves so it maybe wasn't that apparent that he'd just stolen it.
Well, if the people cloaked in black chasing after him weren't enough of a clue. Returning the jacket would only hurt his pride and get him at trouble at this point, so the tan-skinned boy had no choice but to haul ass as fast as he could.
He hurtled past people on the sidewalk, bumping shoulders with most as he went. It would be stupid to just keep running in one direction; if there was one thing he'd learned from his upbringing, it was to zig-zag.
Lucky for him, further he went, the more crowded the streets were. Delighted, but also afraid of getting stuck himself, he somehow managed to pick up his pace even just slightly. With his line of vision directed diagonally at the ground, however, he couldn't help as he spilled through the people and eventually clashed against someone with very pale skin.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 18, 2013 18:51:36 GMT -5
She had hardly emerged onto the street when she was blindsided by someone. With a surprised grunt she was knocked to the ground. She caught herself with one hand and kept her hat from falling off her head with the other. Wide-eyed and disoriented she looked up at the person who had just knocked her over.
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Post by Atticus on Mar 18, 2013 19:04:56 GMT -5
Max had thrown out his arms and landed with his palms against the pavement, looming over the person he'd collided into. Light eyes wide for a few moments, he couldn't help but look over who he was on top of. It had a very feminine face but had short hair from the looks of it and a baseball cap. But Max wasn't going to spend all day awkward trying to figure out if her person he'd landed on was a male or female...
And then it hit him. He furrowed his brows at Charlie and without a word, threw himself off of her and grabbed his jacket, taking off again.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 18, 2013 19:09:13 GMT -5
Charlie sat up, watching him run off with an offended frown. She looked ahead again, and her eyes widened as she saw the brutish men running toward her. In a moment of panic she jumped up and followed Max, unsure if the men were after her or him, but either way wanting to put distance between her and the men.
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Post by Atticus on Mar 18, 2013 19:20:06 GMT -5
Max checked over his shoulder to see that the men were still in hot pursuit and now the girl was hot on his heels. He groaned but barely had the breath to do so, instead squeezing his eyes shut and beginning to sprint.
Near the end of the town, he quickly spun into an alley way, clutching his chest and heaving. He knew it was dangerous to be loud and still for that matter, so he ran towards the dead end of the narrow passage and, tying the sleeves of the jacket around his neck, began to scale a fire escape like a child on junglegym equipment, only nimbler.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 18, 2013 19:35:50 GMT -5
Charlie skidded to a halt as she saw the boy take a flying leap onto the wall. She looked back, too late to realize that the men were closing in, and she let out a terrified gasp as she was grabbed by the arms. One of them men shook her roughly. "Where is he going!?" he demanded.
"I don't know!" she cried. "Let me go, that hurts!"
"Tell us where the boy with the jacket went!" the the man snarled.
"I said I don't know!"
With a wild hiss a cream-colored blur sped through her peripheral vision, and with a loud cry she was released. The Moewth that folllowed her had attacked one of the man and startled the other when she launched herself at the man's face and Scratched his face.
Taking advantage of the opportunity she kicked the other man in the shin and ripped her arm free. She sped down the alley and started up the fire escape, though not nearly as nimbly as the boy ahead of her. She felt the rickety structure bow under her and looked down to see one of the goons backing away from it warily. It would not hold his weight. Her heart soared with hope of an escape after all.
As she reached the top the Meowth was once again at her side, and with a sigh of relief she put her hands on her knees and took a moment to catch her breath. As she did she surveyed her surroundings.
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Post by Atticus on Mar 18, 2013 19:42:49 GMT -5
Max finally had time to catch his breath on top of the building, his lungs demanding more air than he could possibly take per intake. His ribs and sides hurt from the effort and he was positive he'd somehow managed to twist his ankle when he fell over the girl.
He sat down and rubbed his ankle, wincing. When he heard footsteps on the opposite side of the rooftop, however, he sprung up and whirled around. To his surprise, however, it was just the girl and her Meowth. "Wh... What?" he managed between gasps, clutching his side and relaxing only slightly.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 18, 2013 19:48:42 GMT -5
Unaware of his attempts to talk to her, Charlie peered over the edge of the building nervously. To her surprise, the goons were gone. That only made her heart thrum faster; she would rather know where they were than hope they weren't getting closer. She looked back up, a feeling of dread creeping through her being. They were after him, the boy on the other side of the roof, and they were after her now, too, because they thought she was connected to him. Who knew what they would do if they caught up to her? What had he even don? She didn't know who was more dangerous: him or them, but at the moment, he seemed to pose the smaller threat.
That did not, however, make her want to approach him. She stood, rigid, still catching her breath as she stared back at him nervously. The Meowth at her side stood by her side, tail twitching slowly.
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Post by Atticus on Mar 18, 2013 20:01:30 GMT -5
Max's brows furrowed but his heavy breathing failed to cease. "Gees... man," he tried to say, his throat hot, "what... do you... want?" He straightened his back and threw back his head, as if it would help him get more oxygen into his system. He was wary of this stranger but had no where else to go. What worried him more, was if the brutish fellows were still after him.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 19, 2013 16:21:03 GMT -5
The statement made Charlie flush with indignation. "I don't want anything," she said flatly. "You bumped into me and now those thugs are after me, too!" She sighed, took a moment to gather herself, and in a more level voice she asked, "What did you do anyway?"
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Post by Atticus on Mar 19, 2013 16:57:54 GMT -5
Max looked at the jacket that he now possessed. He had grabbed it for his mother, as winters in their run-down, little home, usually couldn't go ignored. Neither he or his parent had any warm, fluffy Pokémon to cuddle with either and their heating was rather broken and went on the fritz more often than it warmed their household.
"This," he said, holding up the jacket which was crinkled up in his hand. "I don't know why they're all over me anyway, it's just a jacket."
He probably couldn't go home now, though. Whether he disposed of the jacket or not now was entirely irrelevant. He was a wanted man, and the cloth he'd taken was too "important" that if found in his mother's possession... He didn't want to even imagine what they'd do to her. The effort he'd gone through to acquire it assured himself that he was keeping it. He put it on and looked at the ground from the edge of the roof.
Max felt bad he likely couldn't even swing by his house to tell his mother he was off, avoiding capture over a stupid jacket that he had initially grabbed for her. "It was your fault for getting in my way and running after me," he said stubbornly.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 20, 2013 15:36:35 GMT -5
Charlie's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You ran into me," she said indignantly, though her tone still did not match her hostile expression. "This is your fault."
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Post by Atticus on Mar 20, 2013 15:40:59 GMT -5
"Whatever," he shrugged monotonously, averting his attention to the metal pipe that traveled from the gutter to the ground. He grabbed it with both hands and swung his body over, thankful that he was light and the chute was sturdy. He began to shimmy his way down, raising his brows at the other person on the roof before his face disappeared from visibility.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Mar 20, 2013 15:43:38 GMT -5
Charlie watched him go incredulously. She hurried forward, eyed the gutter, and then turned away with a dismissive "Nope." Down the fire escape and around the side of the building and she found where the gutter ended. Of course, the Meowth was on her heels; the creature could have easily taken the place of her shadow.
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