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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 1:34:06 GMT -5
23-year-old Note stuck his hands in his jeans pockets as he looked around the seaside city of Lilycove. He chewed on his lip nervously, and in his pocket, his fingers twitched. "Tch..."
He looked down at Ellie, and his wariness softened. "So.... Tell me again why you picked this city?"
Beside him, Donetello was void of his trainer's reservations. He was not half as repulsed by water as he used to be-- as long as he was not completely submerged in it --and he was far too attentive to the little one standing neatly beside him to pay attention to the beach anyway. Judis and Victoria had faithfully entrusted their eldest daughter in his care. Thea, the little vulpix wearing the bright red bell at his side, had taken a liking to him nearly since the moment she was hatched, and she had been eagerly waiting the day when she was allowed to leave the ranch and adventure with him. She stood wide-eyed, looking out at the first place outside her birthplace that she had ever been. While Don was happy to watch her, he couldn't understand why Note had chosen to bring her on this journey.... not when he had so many other things on his mind.
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 1:48:35 GMT -5
"I think it's beautiful," Ellie replied, glancing up at him with a wide smile. "And my mom was born here! You know, Delilah is her Delcatty's first daughter. I wanted to finally see what it's like over here." The girl looked around at the silvery, stony paths, and the sweet little houses, and wondered how her mother could have ever left. But when she thought about living here herself, she immediately understood. Hoenn was so tranquil, and when you got out of the country, Kantō was not. Knowing her mother, staying in Lilycove would have been the end of her.
The most excitement Lilycove had was their Contest Halls.
Ciara was pressed against Ellie's leg, surveying their surroundings. After taking a moment to drink in the smell of the salty sea, she turned her muzzle towards Don and Thea. She didn't know the two very well, as she stuck mostly to Ellie's electric team, but she figured this vacation would be as good a time as any to get to know them. "(Pretty neat out here, huh?)"
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 1:54:14 GMT -5
"Aah." Her answer, he found, was very assuaging. He wasn't sure why he kept forgetting this. He had asked at least twice before. "Okay. And you want to see the contests, don't you?" he asked, looking at her with raised eyebrows and a little smile.
"(Yeah,)" Thea peeped, looking from the city to the Jolteon. Her eyes shined with excitement. "It's beautiful. And so different!"
Donetello nodded agreement and smiled a bit at the Jolteon. Ellie's electric team was a batch he generally liked to keep his distance from, but Ciara was the exception. He didn't get the sense of arrogance he got from the other electric types; if anything she was a little haughty, but that was certainly not a social obstacle for him anymore. If anything, he had to admit it was the type he seemed to attract.
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 1:59:30 GMT -5
Ellie gave the man a toothy grin and nudged him lightly with her elbow. He could figure out what she wanted to do without her mentioning it, but he couldn't remember a single damn thing she said about her parents, except maybe that Lt. Surge was her father. Typical man.
"Yes, pleeease," she cooed, wrapping her fingers around his wrist and gently pulling him towards one of the largest buildings in the city.
Ciara noticed this motion immediately and began trotting beside her --slowly, though, in the hopes of keeping the conversation going between her and the Fire Pokémon. "(Yeah,)" she agreed enthusiastically. "(I've never seen so much water. I mean, I've been on the edge of Kantō and all, but this is, like... there are just so many boats!)"
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 2:02:54 GMT -5
Note followed readily at her side, and with a little poke from Don's tail, Thea hopped and hurried after them, flanked by the houndoom. She weaved neatly between his legs-- a trait she had seemed to inherit genetically from her mother, to Donetello's chagrin --to trot next to Ciara. "(I've never seen a boat before, they look like big sleeping Pokémon,)" yipped. "(And there's soooo much water! It smells salty. I like it.)" Her eyes shined, and her tails wiggled. "(My brothers and sisters won't even believe when I tell them about this place. It's just too different.)"
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 2:20:10 GMT -5
When the glass doors parted, Ellie was greeted by something she hadn't quite seen before. Once, when Ellie was younger, her father had taken her and her brothers to Johto to see the Pokéathlon, but even that was so much different than what she saw now. There were Pokémon, stylized in jackets, bows, dresses, and other miscellaneous items, contestants in clothing about just as extreme, fans taking pictures, asking for autographs and offering berries. It was so hectic for just the lobby... and Ellie loved it.
With her grip sliding from Note's wrist to his hand, she walked over to the doors to the auditorium. "Good timing!" she smiled, pointing to a board that said the show times. "One's starting in a few. Hopefully we can still find good seats."
Ciara, meanwhile, nodded exuberantly in reply. "(Me too! I've always loved the ocean smell, but back home you can't really catch it in cities and towns so much. Not like here!)" When she caught on that they had entered a building, however, the Jolteon took another moment to check out what was going on. "(Is that Sandshrew wearing a dress...?)"
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 11:37:43 GMT -5
Note looked around bemusedly as he allowed his girlfriend to lead him through the crowded and very busy building. He looked back at the Pokémon, and seeing that their pace had slowed he called, "Stay close, guys."
Thea's eyes widened in awe as she looked around the room. "(What is this place?)" she murmured.
"(A contest hall,)" Donetello muttered. "(Pokémon and their trainers come here to perform for fan prizes.)" He perked up at Note's call and sped up. "(Come on, Thea.)"
Her tails trembled and she trotted after the houndoom, her head held high. As she heard someone call her, however, she turned to come face to face with a camera."Smile!" a man said, and the camera flashed, producing a squeak and a little hop from the vulpix.
Note turned around at the sound of the yelp, and seeing Thea staring at the cameram he stooped and scooped her up. "Can I help you?"
The man smiled and pulled the photo that spat out of the camera. "Beautiful Pokémon, sir, just beautiful!" He chattered. "What contest will it be in?"
"Um." He looked down at the vulpix bemusedly and then back at him. "She doesn't do contests."
"Oh, that's a shame." He glanced at the picture before handing it to him. "She's a beauty. Maybe consider it." With that he trotted off.
Note looked down at the picture. It was a gorgeous photo: even a little startled, the vulpix looked strong and elegant with shining sharp eyes and a sleek sophisticated stance.
"Huh. Look." Note held the picture out to Ellie.
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 18:39:03 GMT -5
"(Have you been in one before?)" the Jolteon inquired, shifting her smoky, lavender gaze to Donatello. Ciara certainly hadn't. She'd been bred on an elite Eevee farm in Johto, raised with a good nature for the sole task of winning. In fact, her first and only time getting off the farm was when Eleanor took her in.
Her question was just about interrupted by the sound of a camera shutter, and after hearing the accompanying yip, she turned back to Thea immediately. Note came and scooped up the fox, and Ciara took that as an indication to rejoin Ellie's side. With a skip and a bound, the Electric type was back by her owner's heel, looking between her and Note expectantly.
Ellie cocked a brow at her boyfriend, getting on tiptoe to see the photo he was holding. "Well, it's not a bad picture," she mused, patting the man on the shoulder. "There's your first Hoenn momento." She glanced back at the camera man, and when her eyes rejoined Note's, she flashed him a cheeky grin.
"Now come on, I want to find those seats."
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 18:47:30 GMT -5
"Right, yeah. Go on, find seats." Note scurried after the blonde as she headed off again, though his gaze remained primarily on the picture. "Look at that, Thea. Pretty, huh?" He turned the photo to the Vulpix. "That's you. You're so cute."
She stared at the picture in surprise, and the fur on her shouldd prickled excitedly. Her tails wagged, and she wiggled excitedly in his hand.
Don watched the two as he followed and sighed and shook his head. Though he had heard the Jolteon's question, they were not now close enough for him to answer it. He decided to stay silent until they were situated.
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 20:34:38 GMT -5
"Excuse me... excuse me," Ellie continuously muttered, wiggling past bodies as she bee-lined for a pair of seats she'd caught sight of. The contest hall was pretty packed, so she thanks Arceus that not only were there two open seats, but they were right next to each other, as well.
As she plopped down and got comfortable, she sneaked another look at the photo of Thea Note had been given. "You know, creepy camera man wasn't all that wrong about her being adorable. Have you ever considered?" the blonde mused, blinking her wide eyes at him.
Ciara stayed by Ellie's feet, though the wondered if she would get away with shimmying up onto her lap this time. She was pretty gaunt, after all, so...
As she contemplated it, however, she caught sight of a Manectric from the corner of her eye. Ciara was always excited to meet new Electric Pokémon, and something about the way this one carried itself reminded her of Zeus back home.
Leaning towards it in a friendly demeanor, she poked her neck out a bit, trying to get its attention. "(Hello!)"
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 20:43:42 GMT -5
Note silently shadowed Ellie, and as he sat down beside her he set Thea in his lap. She happily settled down between his legs and he did not miss her attentiveness to their conversation.
"I entered Victoria in a contest when she was little," he said slowly. "She got excited when she saw all the glitz around them, but after we did one, she decided she didn't like it anymore." He paused, and added, "She won though. The cute class, I think. Normal rank." He looked at Thea, who was listening with wide-eyed curiosity.
Donetello had a bit more trouble maneuvering the aisles than his companions; he arrived to the seat beside Note and sat by his feet. It didn't leave him a lot of room to move, but as long as he didn't shuffle around, it was not uncomfortably snug. He glanced over at Ciara, but seeing that she had found someone else to talk to he kept silent, and idly watched her instead.
Manectric sat idly by a teenaged trainer, watching the stage boredly. He blinked, and looked toward her. "(Hmm?)"
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 21:06:26 GMT -5
"(My friends and I are here from Kantō!)" she announced in a hushed voice as the lights started to dim. "(I'm Ciara, what's your name?)"
Ellie raised a brow and nodded slowly, intrigued. "Did those teeny-tiny tails get her some extra love from the judges?" She smiled, leaning back into her seat. It seemed like forever ago that Victoria was just a Vulpix, with her jingling little bells and even tinier paws. Now she and Judis had a big litter of their own, and was Ellie not unaware of young Austin sneaking around with that wild Vaporeon. It was like someone had showered her ranch with Luvdisc... She folded her hands across her lap nervously. It wasn't just Tori.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 21:11:13 GMT -5
Manectric looked away from her with a disinterested grunt. "(Kantō. Never heard of it.)"
Don's eyes narrowed at the impolite tone the electric type was taking with Ciara.
Note smiled. "I think they did."
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Post by Atticus on Dec 30, 2014 21:31:10 GMT -5
Ciara's ear twitched, excited to explain her home to the Manectric. "(Oh, it's really cool! I mean, Hoenn is cool, too, but they're so different, you know? Have you been out of the region before?)" She shifted her paws contentedly, blinking at the Electric type in anticipation. Honestly, she never got to talk too much to Pokémon outside of Ellie's Electric Team, so it was especially exciting that this Manectric, too, was Electric.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Dec 30, 2014 21:34:48 GMT -5
"(Mmm.)" Manectric didn't look back at her as she went on energetically. He had effectively disengaged.
"(I don't think he's looking to converse, Ciara,)" Donetello piped up, his tone a bit apologetic. It was frustrating to watch the young lady get so excited, only to be completely ignored. In his younger days, he may have called out the antisocial electric type and made a scene, but, well... simply put, he knew better. Still, he wasn't going to let him continue to disrespect Ciara if he could help it.
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