"I mean, I run a team of effective agents," Silas said scratching his neck, "And I've developed a form of kickboxing based around Lucario moves."

~Also you have a metal fist and you carry weapons.~

"Shush... so yeah if you like I could try teaching you some self defense."

Ballonlea

<Well, if you're offering then.. Yeah I wouldn't mind that.>

off the shits

"I'll see what we can do," Silas said, "But first, maybe we should finish up here... and get the scarf off you at some point."

Velvet Room

-It becomes clearer that the two Magnemite are wearing hats, one saying "O-Y-O-O" and the other saying "X-M-R-N"-

X-M-R-N!Mite: -Electrifying Ian's cell bars- Quiet, Inmate I-C, you'll have your questions answered soon enough!

O-Y-O-O!Mite: -More calmly, but with a slightly condescending undertone- You should be more patient.

Igor: Now, now Caroline and Justine.

-To the three-

The Velvet Room changes its form to suit the needs of its current guests, and you three are among those in need of rehabilitation. Of course, Richard and Pentigan have already alluded as to what that entails through your separate meetings with them.

Challenge Beach

Rakshasa: -Looking out at the beach- <I don't understand how just looking out at the beach is supposed to help me get stronger?>

-To Rakshasa-

Well, that's what Mustard said, so we're doing it. And avoiding those damned Sharpedo.

Edited by rmctagg09 on Apr 18th 2021 at 5:34:04 AM

Eating a Vanilluxe will give you frostbite.

Velvet Prison Blues

-Ian jumps back upon X-M-R-N!Mite electrifying the bars.-

Me: -startled- Eep! Rehabilitation? Pentigan and Richard? How do you know about them?

♪Show me the wisdom of the world... Tell me the secrets of the heart... and the sweet~ mysteries~ of love~...

Velvet Room

Kim: "...I believe I know what he is referring to in regards to 'rehabilitation'. Also, who is Richard?"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Velvet Jail

Star: -Tilts heard as she reads the Magnemite's hats- ...Oxymoron? And....yeah. Something about changing the hearts of the corrupt. How that rehabilitates us is beyond me, but...

Star: -To Kim- Oh, you both are J-team, I guess. That's Tagg's name.

Circhester

-Cuddles hops off her lap and onto Kim-

Star: Oh...

Velvet Room

Kim: (facepalms) "How could I have missed it?"

Circhester

(Cuddles notices.)

Cuddles: (frantic) <O-oh no! Nonononononono—! I-it's okay! Please don't cry! Do you want me to give you another hug?>

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Velvet Prison

Star: Pretty sure like half the group goes by nicknames anyway, Including me so it's not something to beat yourself up over.

Circhester

Star: You're free to hug her, it's just... I was actually starting to get comfortable—

Velvet Room

Kim: "Okay. Good."

Circhester

Cuddles: (sinks) <Oh... now I feel bad...>

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Circhester

Star: Umm....It's ok! Anyway, about that interview! Feel free to start asking questions whenever!

Circhester

Braker: "Indeed." (He turns to Walter and hands him his phone.) "Walter, we'll be going live soon."

(Walter nods, takes the phone, and starts setting up the camera. Braker, meanwhile, turns to face Kim.)

Braker: "Would you like to be interviewed as well?"

Kim: "Oh, certainly."

Braker: "Very well, then." (He turns to Walter.) "Walter, are we good?"

Walter: (nods) <We are.>

Braker: "Very well. We go live in 5... 4... 3... 2..."

(And the interview begins broadcasting live on Twitch.)

LIVE FROM CIRCHESTER— TWITCH STREAM— THE INTERVIEWS

(Braker grabs the microphone as a news theme begins playing, and Walter, having set up the camera, runs back on the screen.)

Braker: "Good afternoon, ladies, gentlemen, non-binaries, trans people, Pokemon, and everyone who may be tuning in. I'm Leonard Braker, and these are my co-anchors— and Pokemon— Walter the Wobbuffet and Cuddles the Galvantula. I'm here live from Circhester with a ton of breaking news— but I'll get to that later. For now, I have here with me a special guest." (beat) "Actually, two special guests, but this first one right here is Star, a Pokemon Trainer and J-Team member from..." (He turns to face Star.) "I'm sorry, where are you from?"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Circhester, Interview time!

Star: O-oh! Um, right. I'm from Pastoria City, Sinnoh! Hi. -she waves-

LIVE INTERVIEW FROM CIRCHESTER

Braker: "Ah, yes. Of course. Pastoria City. Okay. Good. Delighted to be talking to you, Star. My first question for you is— how many Pokemon do you have?"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Circhester

Star: ...Right now, or in general? Right now, I have 7. I have quite a few Pokémon waiting form me back home, though.

Circhester

Braker: "Okay... and... which Pokemon is your starter?"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

-watching a certain stream on her phone-

Megan: aaaaa she did so good! ^♥^

Pippy: <Oh, she looks a little nervous, poor thing…>

Megan: Huh?

Pippy: <Nothing!>

Vee: <Does anyone else fin' that Cufant a bit...unsettlin'?>

Megan: Did you see how she sent them out and her Pokémon just—went? :D

Pippy: -nodnod sagely- <Preloaded tactics. Dramatic. Effective, apparently!>

Megan: No no, it's like—

-flapping her balled hands excitedly in front of her- They're in sync, you can tell that—gosh.

-someone clears their throat-

Logan: Now, I believe we were having a conversation? :P

Megan: You were watching too! Don't get your dramatic line into my person enjoyment.

Logan: Don't let my dramatic entry spoil appreciating your girlfriend. ^_^

-while she splutters^* Logan: -amending, graciously- gal pal of ambiguous provenance,, they snicker and pull out...an Ultra Ball-

Megan: owo what's this?

...if it's a hint to get more team members before we go much further, I...I know. ^^;

Logan: Nah, don't let me pressure you into relationships you're not ready for. With that specifically in mind…

-tossing the ball up once, catching it- ...did you hear about my old nemesis showing up?

Megan: Oh, the...little spike ball?

Pippy: <Ironspine!>

Vee: <Doctor Spikyspine. The Ph D stan's for "pernicious hate designer". Doctorate at doomsday academy. Graduated full scorch marks.>

Logan:

Megan: I've been excited to meet her! You've told me so much about—wait, yeah, no, I saw it on the news. ^^; Geez...

-blink- ...say, why didn't you call me in, anyhow? It's kind of why I'm here.

Logan: -staring her down- Did I think you could healthily provide help against a lightning storm the size of a city.

Megan: I-it could happen!

Vee: .3

Megan: -glancing at her- ...okay point taken no hurty moving on,

Vee: .c

Logan: -shrug- Everyone else was there anyhow, and the J-Team besides. At some point adding more factors provides diminishing returns in what I can manage.

Pippy: <Practical.>

Logan: I try to be, yeah. Speaking of, back to the main tangent—

-cutting Megan off as she opens her mouth- —before we distract each other into another feedback loop—

-and Vee- —hold the quips—

Addie: -murmur, to Pippy- <That's why you're my favorite.>

Pippy: ^v^

Logan: -tossing the Ball- —meet Frank.

-yeah, hello Arctovish-

Megan: .

Pippy: <,>

Vee: <...>

Vee: <Hey, new pal!> ^w

Frank: <Be not alarmed, I am aware my visage is not the comeliest.> vv;

Megan: U-um, no, no, that is—hi…? ^_^

Logan: Cutting this off at the pass, yes, they were created with what I would say are at least moderate health concerns, mostly consisting of their head being sewn on backwards—

Vee: -purr- <If you ever need someone t' beat the shit outta her, just say the word.>

Logan: —not contesting that—

Addie: <—mind control—>

Logan: —under investigation, our relationship has progressed this far with the understanding that either of us will smack the other upside the head before—

Frank: <I would rather you not.>

Logan: Alright.

Vee: <Okay.>

Logan: —and I am not a Trainer.

Megan: …? :?

Frank: <What the beloved nemesis of the progenitor who spawned me as [Athena] from her beautifully twisted skull means to convey with this air:>

-jaw clacking- <They in their true calling remain unqualified for my care!> v^-^v

Logan: ...well,

Frank: <They have their deft little hands full keeping her in check full-time, handful that she is! Between such circumstances and their tragically else-allocated proficiencies, I have given my gracious assent to their natural proclivities: seeking a experienced specialist in the field of aquatic health and betterment, most fair!>

Logan: -hands open, palms up- If you're up for it.

-a pause, full of side glances and pondering-

Vee: <I'm down.> |.3

Pippy: <I…>

-he pauses; Vee encourages him with a timeworn "go on" sort of headtilt-

Pippy: <I'd like to have an, er, a conversation with you first, if you wouldn't mind, Frank? It's been awhile since we've welcomed someone new into our bunch, it'd be nice to have all the personalities in line for once.> ^v^;

Megan: Y-yeah, that.

Frank: -wiggle- <Such politely phrased request; how can I refuse such behest? Now let's not tarry, my interests and talents I'd rather you aware-y.>

Vee: <Killin' two beans with one bite~!>

Megan: -staring at their jaw- ...bite...-

-Logan gives her a quizzical look; Megan shakes her head-

Megan: Hn. If you're interested, I could dig up these—schema—for—movement and—a-actually, I'll just let you take a look, I'm not sure if I. ^^;

Frank: -eyeing her- <My erstwhile creator did create a suit of functional armour for me as well; it simply never suited me, to be Frank.>

-silence like a burial at sea-

-...which is to say, Vee specifically breaks out cackling-

Vee: -brightly- <Yeah, we're gonna get alon' fine.>

Addie: <Fortunately that armor is smashed to bitty bitty pieces...we kept the less scary parts that Frank pointed out.> :P

-Megan lights up just a tad; Frank chitters eagerly-

-they fall to chattering-

 Stylerscape, Capture Path 

-the link begins to dissolve as a new Vow takes precedence—Logan cranks the sensitivity as high as it will go for a tete-a-tete in abstract, transcribed in verbiage thusly:-

Logan: -contemplative- ...take care of them, won't you?

Frank: <It shall be as you say, my Ranger.>

Logan: -winces-

Frank: -mou- <Art thou opposed?>

Logan: ...Leppa doesn't fall far from the tree, huh?

Frank: <From what I hear tell, in this Region, nary a fruit at that stage.> v^v

-bubbly- <But what knoweth I? I'm scarcely a month of age!>

Logan: -tone final- They'll take care of you, too.

Frank: <I know the Spark of inspiration when I lay eyes upon it, friend!>

-gleeful- <They will do something to me, and that is all that I could have hoped! Dreams forfend!>

Logan: ...mmm. You've got my number if you ever need it.

Frank: <I eagerly await our witty repartee. Now shoo, shoo, I have companions to address.>

Logan: -two-finger salute- Take care, Frank.

Frank: <Send my love to Mother, Logan, in that way she knows best.>

Logan: ...thinly-veiled snark?

Frank: -nodding- <That's the one.>

No mind to think. No will to break.

Circhester

Star: Oh, that'd be June. One sec...

-She recalls Janice, who has totally not been just standing there this whole time and takes out another pokeball. She tosses it into the air, and out pops a Typholosion-

June: <Hello.> -waves-

Star: June's been with me since I was 12. Though, she's not actively part of my Gym team.

June: <Part-time newbie babysitter, more like. :P>

Bars of Iron and Lightning, Room of Velvet

Me: Tagg? Wasn't he the guy from the Final Shell?

♪Show me the wisdom of the world... Tell me the secrets of the heart... and the sweet~ mysteries~ of love~...

Circhester

Braker: "Hello there." (beat) "Aaand what's she like personality-wise?"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Velvet Room

Igor: They are fellow inmates. Now, Ian and Kimberly have already awakened their Personas, their masks to face life's hardships, but Lucy has not yet. Either way, you may need some assistance going forwards, so I will grant that assistance to you. A sub-Persona. Caroline, Justine, if you may?

X-M-R-N!Mite Caroline: Right!

O-Y-O-O!Mite Justine: -Nods before her right magnet glows, and some assorted demons are brought in, writhing in their chains.

Igor: Now... the fusion shall begin.

Eating a Vanilluxe will give you frostbite.

Hammerlocke Stream

-The general mood of the faceless mass that is the stream chat is enraptured. Whether that has been influenced by the subtle hypnotic wiles of the photogenic foxen is up for debate-

Federation Station - Stew

No one has ever been hurt by Extra cooking prep.

-Gale thought out loud as she strode over to her station-

Okay I know what you're about to say but that was NOT his fault.

-She let off a little huff and examined the recipe-

Egh, so bland. I mean, needs must but... Yeah. Well hey, I guess as the saying goes—

-She flourishes, withdrawing a rack of little jars from her bagspace-

The spices must flow~

-Let's get cooking-

It's clearly a case of backroom political albumizing.

Ballonlea Stadium, Field

Bede: So you got through the gym challenge. Looks like you didn't do so well on the questions.

Hoops: It doesn't matter. I'll still win.

Bede: Great, one of these.

Bede walks away and stands in the gym leader's position at one end of the field. Hoops moves to stand opposite him in the challenger's spot. The stadium is mostly quiet at this time in the morning, so the regular cheers that accompany a gym battle are severely muted. The referee steps forwards, rubbing sleep from their eyes.

Announcer: The gym battle between Gym Leader Bede and Challenger Hoops will now begin. Each side will be allowed to use up to four pokemon. Due to the results of their gym puzzle, Challenger Hoops will not be allowed to switch pokemon. Please, send out your pokemon at the same time.

Hoops: Tot, come out!

Bede: Rapidash, present!

The two pokemon, Chatot and Galarian-Rapidash respectively, appear on the field and stare each other down.

Tot: <Ah, the opening gambit. The one that shows the course of the match to the audience.>

Hoops: Tropes don't work here, Tot. This is real life.

Announcer: Battle, begin!

Hoops: Okay, Tot, start us off with Echoed Voice!

Tot flies into the air and releases a soundwave towards Rapidash. The opposing pokemon barely reacts and stands firm against the attack.

Bede: Is that it? Use Psycho Cut!

Hoops: Dodge!

Rapidash's horn glows pink and it charges towards Tot, who flies into the air out of range.

Hoops: Echoed Voice!

Tot releases another, noticeably larger soundwave that seems to have some effect this time.

Hoops: Echoed Voice gets stronger -

Bede: - the more times it's used, I know. I've been a gym leader long enough to have seen this before. Stomp!

Rapidash stomps its foot into the ground, damaging the floor of the stadium and setting out cracks in the ground.

Tot: <What was the point of that?>

Hoops: I don't know, but keep your guard up and hit it with Echoed Voice again.

Tot opens his beak and screams, releasing an even larger sound wave that forces Rapidash to its knees.

Bede: Okay, enough of this. Smart Strike!

Rapidash's horn glows silver and he launches towards Tot. Tot tries to fly out of the way, but Rapidash suddenly veers in mid-air and the horn slams into his chest.

Tot: <What was that?>

Hoops: Smart Strike never misses!

Bede: Stomp!

Rapidash, still in the air from the last attack, seems to flip over with help from its Psychic abilities so that it's above Tot before he can even react. Tot receives a blow from the back hooves that sends him flying into the ground.

Hoops: Tot, are you alright? Get up!

Tot: <I'm conscious, but... I can't get up.>

The bird pokemon struggles, but his wings have rocks and dirt on them that was displaced by the Stomp attack earlier.

Hoops: Use Fly and get away!

As Tot gains the extra boost of power that Fly grants, he is able to push the rocks off him. He looks up and sees Rapidash standing over him.

Tot: <Oh.>

Rapidash: Yes. Oh.

Bede: Dazzling Gleam!

Rapidash throws back its head as its horn and mane begin to glow with light that spreads over the stadium. Tot tries to get away, but he is too close and has nowhere to go. He is lifted by the light and slammed down again, unconscious.

Announcer: Chatot is unable to battle. Challenger Hoops is down one pokemon.

Ballonlea

Kim: "Ah, that is fair. In that regard, I shall be headed off to bed." (She turns to face Agnes.) "Thank you very much."

(And with that said, she, Elton, Freddie, Joel, Peechee, and Kaylan all leave.)

THE NEXT MORNING...

(Kim awakens from her bed. By this point all of her Pokemon are safe in their PokeBalls. She blinks for a few moments and looks around, realizing that neither Ian, nor Evelyn, nor Hoops are there. Confused, she blinks— and then sees the note. She picks it up and reads it.)

Kim: "Well. It appears that Hoops is already having their challenge. I can't be too late for that, now can I?"

(And with that said, she runs out of the house- but not before turning back to Evelyn's mother.)

Kim: "Thank you very much for allowing us to stay at your house. I must be going now."

(And she runs off.)

Ballonlea Stadium— The Stands

(Kim eventually makes it to the stands and sees Ian and Evelyn there waiting for her.)

Kim: "Ah, greetings. How is Hoops' battle going?"

(And then she notices that Tot is down, and she sinks a bit.)

Kim: "Oh. Oh dear."

Wyndon

(Kim chuckles a bit.)

Kim: "That's good." (She looks around for a few moments.) "Now... the question is... where's Hoops?"

Velvet Room

Kim: (blinks) "A fusion? New Personas?" (beat) "NEW PERSONAS?!"

Hi, I’m oghond, and I’m a Rushaholic. Sorry if I annoy you unintentionally. 😅

Ballonlea, Evelyn's House

Agnes: You are most welcome, Kim.

The Next Morning...

Agnes: You're welcome to stop by any time!

Ballonlea Stadium, Stands

Evelyn: It's not looking too good for Hoops...

Me: Still, I know they'll do great! HOORAY HOORAY HOOPS! YOU GOT THIS!

Piku-chan: -wearing his two-tone green kimono and waving his fans around- <I BELIEVE IN YOU, HOOPS! DON'T LOSE HOPE! YOU GOT THIS!!>

Wyndon

Me: Hopefully not suffering from transportation inconsistencies like we did... I mean, didn't we start our trip here going by train?

Velvet Room

Me: Fusions? Like... do we get to choose what Sub-Persona comes from the fusion thing, or is that determined for us?

Edited by AnimeboyIanpower on Apr 19th 2021 at 1:00:37 PM

♪Show me the wisdom of the world... Tell me the secrets of the heart... and the sweet~ mysteries~ of love~...