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Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jun 23 2009, 11:55 AM

Jay never really considered himself a thinker. He was a doer, and he was actually good at it. There was a knack that he had for doing the right thing at the right time. Whether it was a charmed life or an innate ability to sense the proper way to handle a situation, he didn't know, nor did he care.

That would have required thinking.

However, his current mission was one that required not onlt action, but thought. It had to go off nearly perfectly if he was going to get the result he wanted. It was a risk It was such a risk that it made his insides shake and his hands clench.

It was also exciting. It was risk, and risk was fun.

It's really not too much of a risk, though. If you knew what I knew.

Jay smirked. He'd long gotten used to Hinata's mental points. In the story of his life, she was the color commentary. And he loved her for it. It kept things in perspective.

But he was glad he didn't know what she knew. She had her own risks and surprises, but there were times when being in her head took the fun out of things. She knew it, and she only warned when it was neccessary now a days. As well as Jay knew Hinata, Hinata knew Jay.

It was nearly a symbiotic relationship.

Jay shook his head. The mission. The mission was key, and in this case, more important than anything he'd ever done in his life.

His father had actually given him the idea, though the twinkle in his eye was lost on Jay at the time. He'd made the suggestion after Jay's mother had left in a huff when hearing that no, he was NOT coming home any time soon, and getting no help from Robert.

It was a good idea, and he was just about to act on it.

He made his way carefully to his goal, leaned down, and said, softly, "Hey, Catseye."

It was a tribute to how close their friendship had gotten that she didn't lash out with her claws. It might have been the rest of the past few days. Or the cat ears. He'd even offered to pay to have her teeth capped (they couldn't be ground to points again without breaking the enamel), but she'd turned him down, and even that was more friendly than it could have been.

They only fought about it for ten minutes.

She looked up, smirking. "You really like to risk getting your wings clipped, don't you, BlueJay?"

"What can I say, I like it when it's dangerous. Which reminds me." He swallowed, but put on his best grin. "Sagira Smythe, would you do the honor of joining me for dinner tonight?"

Sagira blinked at him, her eyes widening. "What... like... like a date?"

Jay grinned, and nodded.

Mission Commenced.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jun 25 2009, 03:50 PM

"Owwie!" Ivy squealed in the yard, sticking her throbbing thumb into her mouth and moaning pitifully. "Alpha! No need to be so rough!"

Her brother Mightyena looked bashfully up at her, still lying on his back where she had been scratching his tummy. Beta and Kappa ended their game of chase nearby and came scampering over to see what all the fuss was about. Beta had, of late, tended to remain by Ivy's side even more than usual so she was glad he was taking the opportunity to play when he could. Recently the way he followed her so closely bothered her - normal males liked their independance. She suspected it had something to do with Alpha's evolution but he hadn't confirmed anything for her yet.

"Aw! I'm bleedin'!" Ivy held up her thumb to show her three brothers and frown intently at the blood beading on her skin. "Anyone got a plasty?"

Silence was her reply.

"No plasty? You guys are just no good at giving me first aids!" She announced, patting her hip as she turned, commanding them all to fall into line behind her. "Let's go see if old Saggie has some!"

"Sagira Smythe, would you do the honor of joining me for dinner tonight?"

Ivy's jaw dropped wide open. Jay-man had asked Catlady for a trip out to dindins.... DINDINS!

"What... like... like a date?"

Ivy's eyes bulged in their sockets. Catlady thought it was a date?! Surely not... He nodded! Ivy bent ducked back around the nearest corner, her brothers following suit.

"Looks like he's moving on from the Big Sniffs..." She whispered, motioning for all three to keep quiet. "And we all know what that means, huh?" Her three partners nodded, Beta more vigorously than the other two. "Right! So, we're going to follow them and make sure they don't do anything silly. I mean, really! We don't want old Jay-man doing things the way Beta does, do we? We's got to make sure Catlady sniffs back!"

Alpha and Kappa sniggered while the Electrike's ears drooped with embarrassment. Ivy gathered them around and put on her most serious face.

"This is Operation: Dindins." She informed them, stroking her new Grunt II badge. "Our objective? Help Jay-man give old Saggie the best dindins ever so she can give him a proper Big Sniff!"

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jun 25 2009, 06:02 PM

I can't believe I'm doing this.

Sagira turned to the full-length mirror hanging on the wall.

Goddess, why the hell am I doing this?

She had agreed to go on a... a date, with Jay. Why, she still wasn't sure. Maybe she was possessed. Obviously, whatever sadistic demon had decided to make her decide to date him didn't want to stick around for the actual festivities, so Sagira was stuck.

She had gone out to a store to buy something that she would look half-decent in. She was, after all, going on a date. Apparently, however, she never should have mentioned this to the store clerk, as the woman had gained far too much enjoyment from picking out clothing for Sagira to try on. Unfortunately, the woman was into bright colors and Sagira, obviously, was not.

The woman picked up on this and Sagira eventually ended up with something black.

That was very much to her color taste. Oddly enough, she had never expected to end up wearing a Cheongsam.

A Cheongsam is a body-tight Chinese-style dress. The one that Sagira ended up buying was sleeveless, with a collar that curled up around the back and sides of her neck, fanning outward into a curl at the back and sides, about level with her ears. The dress itself was ankle-length, with a slit up the left side that reached to mid-thigh. While the overall color of the dress was black, it was, contrary to Sagira's first thought, not without a design.

A flower-print she would have discarded immediately. Anything remotely girly, she would have given it back to the clerk with a sneer. Anything pink in nature would have been hard-pressed to avoid being shredded.

Purple came close, but didn't quite reach the level of worthlessness that pink had always managed in her eyes.

The clerk sold her the dress, however, without saying a word. All Sagira had needed to do was turn to the mirror and see the large purple feline that was leaping down the side of the dress.

It was an Espeon; light violet in color, stunning against the black, with dark purple eyes and a red dot in the centre of its forehead. The cat pokemon was in a stance that boasted a landing from a steep jump. Its forepaws were at the base of the dress by Sagira's right ankle. The cat's head, body, and rear legs (prepared for landing) were stretched across Sagira's body in a diagonal rise along the silk of the dress. The feline's forked tail, elegant as any real Espeon, curled around the back of the dress, ending at her mid-back.

Sagira wondered if the clerk was psychic, because her grin upon Sagira's exit from the dressing room said that she knew Sagira had bought the dress. She was hard-pressed not to buy anything related to an Espeon. It was, after all, her favorite pokemon. It always had been - only slightly more loved than a Persian.

Sagira had bought a pair of sharp-heeled sandals. A thin leather strap curled over her foot, just above her toes. A strap on either side of her ankle, rising from the sole, formed into two straps with silver buckles that wrapped around her ankle.

She had dyed her hair again, this time completely black, and styled it into a flare that spread out at the sides, her bangs swept with the rest of her hair and leaving her eyes clear.

Looking at herself in the mirror, however, she suddenly felt ridiculous. She had always imagined dressing up like this, in a style that suited her, and going out on a date with someone that actually wanted to be with her.

But now, she just felt like she was fooling herself; a child playing dress-up. She wasn't good enough to be going out. Not with him. And not looking like this.

Maybe I could tell him I'm feeling ill, she mused.

"Thinking of quitting?"

I am not quitting! She fumed silently for a moment. And what are you doing?! she snapped mentally, looking around the bathroom but not seeing him. I'm trying to get dressed!

"Oh, is that what you're doing?" he asked, sounding surprised. "In that case!"

The door suddenly opened in a rush of wind, and Sagira let out a loud shriek of surprise and anger. "PALADIN!"

"My lady!" he cried, in surprised delight. "You look beautiful!"

"Paladin," she growled warningly, "Get. Out. Now."

He grinned cheekily at her. "Are you wearing some lacy undies 'neath that number?"

The sudden flush of embarrassed anger in Sagira was not unexpected. What was unexpected was how it manifested itself suddenly as an almost physical force, a rush of power bursting outward and slamming the quite startled Paladin out of the bathroom and into the wall beyond.

The anger faded immediately, replaced by concern, and Sagira rushed out of the bathroom, to kneel by her fallen pokemon. Paladin, for his part, was so stunned by the actual occurrence that he simply lay there for a long moment, staring up at her. He wasn't reading her mind, so his lack of reaction to her speaking to him, begging if he was all right, filled her with a vast fear.

It took but a moment for him to feel her rising panic, and he quickly open his mind, scanning hers. He blinked. How lazy of him, to close himself off. He sent a wave of reassurance into her mind - a feeling too deep for words - and he could feel the relief that filled her at the feeling of their minds connecting at the gentle touch.

He smiled. "You know, he's definitely going to love you. Beautiful and savage." He grinned, to assure her of his gentle teasing, though he meant every word as a compliment. "You really are a feline."

Sagira opened her mouth to reply when there was the sound of footsteps on concrete, and she looked up in time to see Jay walk into the room, fiddling with the cuff on his sleeve. "Sagira, are you-" He looked up and stopped talking abruptly. "Absolutely beautiful."

Sagira didn't know why she said it. Really, she swore she didn't know. Maybe she was still possessed. For whatever reason, she stood up straight and looked Jay in the eye, and smiled - not a smirk, but a soft, true, ever-rare smile. "I don't know. You tell me."

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jun 25 2009, 08:37 PM

It wasn't the dress that did it.

Oh, she was beautiful in it, there was no doubt in his mind. But he'd seen her in a form fitting leotard, and while the cheongsam with the lithe espeon curling sensuously around her body fit her in form, function, and fashion, that wasn't what did it.

It was the smile, genuine and sweet, that took his breath away.

"Hold on, I'll tell you when I catch my breath," he whispered, just loud enough to be heard.

Sagira looked down and to the side, letting her hair fall as much as it could to try to hide her blushing. Jay, too, could feel the heat on his face, but for some reason he didn't feel the need to hide it. Not from her.

The moment was awkward, but semi-sweet. And was almost instantly broken when Hinata floated in, took one look at Sagira, and gaped.

You're GORGEOUS!

Paladin floated up next to her. That's what I told her, but she didn't believe me! Then she threw me into the wall!

Ooh, poor baby, said the kirlia, stroking Paladin's green crest. Paladin gave her a narrowed eyed glance, and there was a good reason; Hinata's mental voice was dripping with playful sarcasm.

"She is, isn't she," Jay said, smiling. Sagira looked up and swallowed, but could not muster the ire it would take to demand he stop.

You're not so bad yourself, Hinata said, smiling. She was looking through Paladin's eyes, and though she had thought she was over that crush she'd had as a ralts, she still found her face heating. Paladin looked at her, and as Hinata was looking through his eyes still, she saw a slight blush, but also saw that she was surrounded in a golden aura that had nothing to do with what was actually visible and everything to do with how Paladin saw her. Her tiny blush turned brighter.

"I dunno," Jay said, looking down. "I feel under dressed."

The outfit he wore was one of the few "party suits" he'd brought with him from Sinnoh. It consisted of a charcoal waist length jacket with a broad black collar, a white shirt with a thin black tie, crisp black pants and patent leather shoes to match. The current style was to wear it untucked and loose, but Jay had never gone with the style and kept it neatly pressed and tucked. His hair was shorter than usual, as he'd cut the remaining brown off and spiked it a bit. To Sagira, he looked just fine, but Jay felt now like a slob next to her.

Hinata couldn't resist. She gave Jay a mental image of himself in that dress. Jay glared at her, but she was too busy giggling to notice.

"So, where would you like to go," Jay said with a bow. He could feel the approval coming from Paladin in waves.

"You mean to tell me you asked me out on a date, and didn't have a place in mind?" Sagira's brow arched.

"I did," he admitted finally. "I had a place in mind, but now I think it might be..." He swallowed.

Oh, he has a place in mind, but it has nothing to do with food, wink wink nudge nudge.

Jay turned, slowly, eye twitching. Hinata had adopted a wide eyed innocent look, tilting her head to the side, but Jay was not fooled.

Neither was Paladin. that was vulgar.

Oh, and asking Sagira if she's wearing lacy underthings is the height of polite conversation, Hinata sneered acidly. She was not happy with Paladin, and so refused to use his eyes to see, but through Jaima's she could see Sagira's eyes widen, and felt the heat of a second hand blush.

I... hadn't let him hear me say that.

Dammit, Paladin!

"Chez Chimecho," Sagira broke in, stopping the argument.

"Bless you."

She arched a brow, pressing her lips together to keep the grin off her face. It wouldn't do to encourage him. "Chez... Chimecho. It's a french place in the wealthy district.

Jay's eyes widened. "Wait, I know that place! That's a swanky place!"

Sagira nodded. "And I would like to eat there tonight."

"But... But I hear you have to make reservations a week in advance!" Jay's expression turned frantic.

"Mm. I've heard two weeks." Sagira smiled slightly. She wouldn't admit to her disappointment at his lack of planning. She'd save it for the next tine he screwed up.

"I hear it's expensive."

"Yes, well, you should have thought of th-"

A smartly dressed aqua initiate ducked her head in. "Mr. Lange, your cab is here."

Jay checked his poketch. "Oh, good, we'll make it wqith fifteen minutes to spare." He put his arm out, but Sagira blinked at him, surprised.

"Wait, what?"

Jay grinned, not quite smugly, as there was too much genuine happiness in the smile. "I'd hoped you'd want something fancy," he said, taking her arm gently.

"You made a reservation?"

"Two weeks ago," he admitted.

Sagira almost stopped in the hallway. "What if I'd said no?"

Jay shrugged. "Then I'd just gone to the pizza place."

Sagira was confused, and it showed. Jay smiled, a tinge of worry in his eyes. "You can't mope in a french restaurant, Catseye."

This time, Sagira did smile again. "What if I'd said someplace else," she said as he helped her into the cab. He seemed enraptured by her leg. Which had shown through the slit. She gave him a few seconds longer than she'd have given anyone. "BlueJay," she crooned, half sultry, half pointedly.

He smiled sheepishly. "I made reservations at all the good places."

He climbed into the cab, and gave the driver the desatination. She was still staring at him when he looked at her. "What?" He grinned charmingly. "I like to be prepared!"

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jun 26 2009, 12:19 AM

Sagira was pretty sure that they could have cooked a five-course meal on her face. Not that it would have been all that clean or appetizing, but her face was so heated with a blush that it was a wonder the car wasn't on fire.

They were seated in the back of a cab, sitting quite close together, and on their way to Chez Chimecho.

Chez Chimecho, people! Gasp in awe, damnit!

She couldn't believe it. Not only were they going to one of the fanciest, most expensive French restaurants on the island, but Jay had been prepared for them to go to the fanciest, most expensive French restaurant on the island. He had, of course, been prepared for a whole line of restaurants, as he claimed.

Oddly enough, Sagira couldn't find reason to doubt him. And it was nice to think that he wanted to... to...

Sagira blushed full circle again and lowered her head, embarrassed. Jay squeezed her hand softly and she looked up to see him smiling at her. Goddess, he had such a nice smile.

When the cab stopped outside of a large, brilliantly-lit square, a valet came over quickly and opened the door. Jay climbed out and then reached out a hand. Startled, she took it and allowed him to help her out of the cab.

It was standing at the edge of a carpeted walk that she got her first look at the restaurant she had always wanted to eat at.

It looked like a palace. Large, at least three stories high, it was painted a golden color that sparkled in the light much like diamonds. Sagira could smell wondrous odors wafting along with soft-played violin music from the entrance.

Sagira felt a soft touch at her side as they walked. On reflex, she told herself, she stepped closer to Jay and felt his arm curl hesitantly around her back. She smiled softly at the feel. It was nice.

There was a man standing at the entrance who bowed to the both of them, before opening the door and ushered them inside with a congenial wave of his arm. Sagira allowed Jay to lead her into the lobby, where he gave their name and they were quickly shown to their table.

Jay pulled her chair out for her, which made her blush deeply, and she quickly sat down. She tried to hide her face, feeling ridiculous. True, she had always wanted to eat here, but they place seemed far too posh for someone like her. Everyone was wearing a suit and ludicrous amounts of jewelry. Sagira spotted a woman who had at least two rings on every finger, and each with some precious gem about the size of a small marble. The only piece of jewelry that Sagira even owned was a thin metal bracelet that her father had bought her, and while it would have easily suited the style, she had opted out of wearing it. She didn't even have her ears pierced!

On top of that, she really wasn't that pretty. As she watched Jay sit down in the chair across from her and offer a small smile, she couldn't understand why he would want to go out with someone like her. She was temperamental, rash, dressed more like a cat than a human, had a keen disregard for rules unless she thought they suited her, and made a habit of insulting him regularly.

What could he possibly see in her?

Oddly enough, for whatever reason, her manifesting psychic powers chose that moment to fluctuate, happily introducing her to the land of colored lines. She was able to see a thickening soft pink line stretching from Jay's chest to her own, and she wasn't dense enough to have to wonder what that meant.

She was, however, dense enough to wonder if it stretched only from her chest to his or if, perhaps, it was a two-way line. Maybe, for whatever insane reason, he felt the same way about her that she felt about him.

Sagira sighed. Someone call the fire department. My face is about to go up in flames.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jun 26 2009, 12:27 PM

"An' that's why I gotta hold off on the next mission, m'kay Crichy?" Ivy urged into the headset, still trailing Sagira through the mall. It had taken all of her courage to actually set foot in that place again but the crowds were smaller - the Catlady had picked the perfect time of day to avoid the rush of crazed shoppers.

"Now now, Ivy." Officer Crichton sighed on the other end of the comm. device. "You know you shouldn't be stalking people anymore. We had a discussion about that, didn't we?"

"I'm not stalking!" Ivy protested, dodging a man with a moving cinnamon bun cart. "Oooh... cinnamon... I'm just following at a distance!"

"Well, be good and make sure you're up early for the mission briefing tomorrow, OK?" Crichton confirmed, his voice carrying the faintest touch of laughter.

"Roger, old Crichy!" Ivy saluted to no-one. "See ya then!"

Ivy threw herself behind a ridiculous indoor fountain as Sagira stopped by a shop window, peering through the glass for a while before reluctantly entering the store. When Ivy saw what she was buying, the smaller girl couldn't help but fish out her own purse and pick something for herself...

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"I's got style, huh?" Ivy grinned, twisting this way and that to get a better view of herself in the restaurant window. A Chimecho (positioned near the entrance to greet patrons) hovered behind her, letting out noises of agreement. "Seems lil ol' Ivy can put on a dress too!"

Clad in a similar style dress to the one Sagira had bought earlier, Ivy had done her very best to fit in. After all, disguise was an integral part to the mission. Her own dress almost reached her knees and was a bright blue colour with an embroidered pattern of her namesake creeping across its entirety in swooping curves that made her look more like a girl than she ever had done in the past.
She had also taken the time to borrow (dogs don't steal) a healthy handful of Victor's hair conditioner while he was on leave and had taken the liberty of his hair straighteners, too. With all of the grease and knots taken out of her locks, Ivy's blonde hair reached to her shoulders. Rather than let it flow freely around her neck (it tickled), Ivy had braided it into a single thick plait that made her almost unrecognisable. Then there had been the make-up... The less said about that the better. In short, she had ended up paying for a nice old lady in the kitchens of the Maw to do it for her - whatever lipstick was, it did NOT taste good.

"Operation: Dindins is a-go!" Ivy grinned at her reflection once more and skittered to the doorway, admitting herself and scampering to a little table for two. Raising a menu to hide herself, she watched as Jay-man and Catlady arrived. "Oooh, Saggia is pretty!" Ivy gasped, her wide eyes peering over the top of the menu. "And Ginge-fringe is looking very tidy!"

The pair were slowly ushered to their seats where Jay pulled out Sagira's chair for ehr to sit. Ivy ticked that off on her list of things male humans had to customarily do to impress female humans.
A Waiter came to ask for a drinks order. Ivy watched as Saigra insisted Jay make the wine selection and immediately left her seat.

"No no!" She muttered to herself, sneaking the order off the waiter's belt and replacing it with a much better wine. The numbers next to the descriptions were bigger and in human society, big numbers meant better wines. It just so happened that the numbers next to the one Jay-man had picked started with a 3 while the one she wanted them to have started with a 9... "Saggie needs the best if she's gonna be giving up the Big Sniffs!"

With real wine now on order for Jay and Sagira's table, Ivy returned to her seat and took up her menu once more, watching the pair like a hawk from her perch in the corner of the restaurant.

*Come on Jay-man! We knows you've already done the Bigs Sniffs, but think with your head - not your tail!*

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jun 26 2009, 04:47 PM

Jay sat and waited for Sagira to return from the powder room, or wherever women went when they had to freshen up. If that's what she was doing. He didn't really see why she'd need to, she looked perfectly fine.

He ordered the wine, a nice rosé called Bandol, chosen both for it's ability to go with almost any type of food, and it's pronunciation. The lower price didn't hurt it, either. His father had also suggested, if getting a wine (and it was almost a necessity, being in a French restaurant), to choose something light. "You don't want her to think you're trying to get her drunk."

Jay had blushed. It wasn't that he wouldn't do that, it's that he wouldn't do that to Sagira. If not for the fact that he truly cared for her, it was the fact that she'd absolutely kill him when she sobered up.

He looked around a bit. He'd never been one for a fancy place like this. His tastes were more toward homier places, but for the first date, he wanted it to be something she'd really want, something she'd love. He'd chosen this place first, and made reservations at the other fancy places just to be certain. He was happy when she'd named this spot. It was one thing that he'd wanted to get just right.

A small girl in a table nearby kept ducking her head behind the menu, and he briefly wondered where her father was.

A feminine voice cleared her throat, and Jay rose from his seat, ready to help Sagira into hers again.

It wasn't Sagira that stood before him. Instead it was a flushed, possibly drunk girl with curly blonde hair and a dress that was cut very, very low.Jay closed his eyes and sighed when he saw the look on her face.

"You're Jay Lange, aren't you," she gushed, giggling. He fought not to roll his eyes.

In Jublife, he was recognizeable. How could he not be? His parents were more famous now than they had been when they were acting, and there were always parties and social events and things that he just had to make an appearance at. They had worked hard not to force him into show business, but it couldn't keep him completely out of the spotlight, especially since he often helped his mother out on films. After a while, people recognized him, and, thinking he could influence his mother's decisions, would approach him. This was an especially popular tactic with girls, and was one of the main reasons that he had a major distaste for what he termed "Bluescreen Bimbos".

Not that he hadn't taken advantage of it in the beginning. But he did get tired of it.

It appeared that he was not the only transplant from Jublife. The girl giggled and bounced a bit, pushing out her chest, and Jay's smile froze. He was quite happy that Sagira had chosen now to freshen up.

He didn't answer her question, but she wasn't discouraged by this. Instead she stepped closer. "I'm a big fan of your mother's work, and your father's! I used to watch Catch as Catch Can as a girl!" She stepped closer again, and Jay sighed. She wasn't going to go away.

"Thanks, I'll pass the compliment on." He smiled a bit and made to sit back down, but the girl reached out and put a hand on his forearm. Jay stopped, tensing a bit, when she stepped forward and pressed her chest to his bicep.

"I want to be an actress very, very badly," she cooed, smiling up at him with what she must have thought was a sultry grin. Jay closed his eyes this time, and she must have been encouraged. "I would do anything to work with your mother."

Jay's eyes snapped open, and he scowled, but the girl simply drew the word out, flashing her tongue between perfect teeth. "An-y-thing."

Jay stared at her for a moment, then reached down and pulled her hand off his forearm. He didn't use force, but he was firm. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet, from which he pulled a card.

"That's a casting agency. My mom uses them sometimes, and sometimes she doesn't. It's a start."

"But-" The girl moved to step forward again, to press against him, and he stepped back.

"Call them. If they like you, they'll recommend you." He looked and saw Sagira, and his heart froze. She was behind the girl, and if she'd had her clawed glove, the girl's dress, and probably back, would be hanging in tatters. Still, he had to deal with this... person first. "If you do get cast by my mom, and you might, she might need, say, a serving wench or a dancer, or something, try not to mention you tried to seduce her son for a part. She hates that as much as I do."

The girl looked shocked and mortified, and Jay indicated behind her. "Now, if you don't mind, my date is here, and I have to apologize for your taking my time away from her."

Posted by: Living Arrow Jun 27 2009, 04:57 AM

"Oh no, ya don't."

Ivy growled from her makeshift hiding place, glaring at the golden-haired she-devil who was attempting to Sniff Jay-man. If ivy had thought Beta had been direct with Calypso, this was ten times worse. No! ELEVEN times! Of all the times for another bitch to be on heat, now was the absolute worst!

Jay-man gave the girl a piece of paper. Was it money? No. It was just an address card... His address card? No. It looked too smart to be for the Jay-man. In any case, Ivy had to act before this girl could cause any more trouble.

The girl grudgingly walked away from Jay-man's table and crossed the restaurant to the bar area where she sat atop a stool and ordered a drink. The whole time, she watched Langie and Saggie with curious, determined eyes. It seemed she was on a misson of her own.

"Wear a disguise, durr?" Ivy rolled her eyes and made her way to the bar area. She spat on her fingers and rubbed her eyes, putting on her most upset-sounding voice and grabbing the girl's skirt in her hands. "Pwease! My mommy went to the bathroom and hasn't come back... help me?"

THe girl looked around for a way out of the situation but finding none resigned herself to aiding the lost little girl and slid from her stool. "Ok, honey. The bathroom is over here, let me take you and we'll find her."
"Um, I don't think your mommy is in here..." The girl said, checking the stalls. "Maybe she's back at your table?" She turned around to find Ivy locking the door behind them.

"If you weren't so Silly then I wouldn't have to do this..." Ivy sighed, advancing on the girl and clenching her fists. "Sorry, but you're just getting in the way and I needed you to leave. Now, I need you to stay in here and not come out. It's very important for my mission..."

"Wha- What are you doing, y'little brat?!" The girl tried to get past Ivy but she effectively blocked her way and pushed her back.

"Can't you tell? I'm in disguise! You really think I'm a little female looking for her mommy? I'm seventeen, Silly." Ivy brandished her Grunt II badge and the girl gasped with horror. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to have to make sure you stay in here and keep quiet...."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Back in the restaurant, a faint crash could be heard accompanied by the sound of a pathetic little scream. The patrons of Chez Chimecho glanced up from their tables only briefly before returning to their meals. It was not uncommon for kitchen staf to drop a plate or two...

A small girl exited the bathroom, her hair a little less tidy than it had been before, but a determined smile decorated her little face. If anyone had been close enough or cared to listen to what she was saying, they would have heard:

"Isn't it silly how much blood looks like wine..."

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jun 28 2009, 12:37 AM

Sagira was no Narcissus, but she took some time to stare at herself in the mirror while she hid in the restroom. The dress was pretty and so was her hairstyle, but she just felt... off. Like she didn't belong. This wasn't her. Staring into the mirror, she saw a person staring back who she didn't recognize, and didn't like.

Her mind wandered over reasons why she was feeling this way. She had never had a problem with her appearance before, but then, she had always dressed for herself and had never cared what other people thought about her tight-fitting uniform. Now, she was dressed up for someone else, and she just... she wasn't sure.

He acted like I was so beautiful, though, she thought, looking again at her reflection, the eye liner highlighting her eyes. Does he really think that? She didn't see it, but... well, she had never been one to put on dresses, even as a child. She had always been ready for an adventure, never a tea party.

Sagira looked down at her hands, adorned with pale violet gloves to hide the hideous scars that marred her flesh. That was probably the reason she doubted herself. No one had ever acted toward her like Jay did. Everyone had always been so cruel, except for Mattie and a scarce few others. Sure, Danny had always liked her, but there had never been a spark there. She had never felt the same, and though she loved Mattie, he didn't feel the same way toward her. She had gotten over her crush on him.

And then Jay walked into the picture, and he seemed to return her feelings.

Seems to, a mocking voice implied.

Sagira growled softly and decided right then and there to see this date through. She wasn't going to back down. Not this time. She was no quitter.

When she returned to the main dining room, she found that Jay had been joined by a big-chested young woman with a smile that told all she intended on her face. Sagira narrowed her eyes and stalked up, intending to tell Jay to shove his date up his ass, when she overheard their conversation.

Jay sounded so uncomfortable that she very nearly laughed. As the girl continued to try and seduce him, however, she felt the humor fade away, replaced by anger, and it was then that Jay looked up and saw her.

He managed to shove the girl off quickly after that, and looked both relieved and worried to see her back. "Sorry about that," he murmured, rubbing his head in nervous embarrassment. "I... really hate it when that happens."

Sagira raised a sardonic eyebrow, allowing him to pull her chair out for her again. "Big-chested blonde bimbos?" she asked, her voice dripping venomous sarcasm. "You don't say, Jaybird?"

He did laugh at that, which made her smile, and the tension went out of the situation. "My parents seem even more famous now that the show's over."

Sagira smiled. "I can imagine they probably got tons of fanmail, asking them to put the show back on the air." She laughed lightly. "I know they at least got one letter."

Jay looked at her in surprise. "You-?"

She grinned. "Come on, BlueJay - the only character cooler than Montgomery Leppenhouser is Weavile, and you know I'm right!"

The waiter came back not a moment after that, burdened with a bottle of wine. He poured them each a glass and Sagira, not noticing Jay's look of surprise, picked up the glass and allowed a smile to come to her face at the familiar smell. "Either you did your research," she commented, "or you're just very good." She took a sip of the blush wine, savoring the thick taste it coated her tongue with. "Château de Chasselas is my favorite."

Whatever Jay had been planning to say the waiter was forgotten at that moment, and he nodded. "Good," he said. The waiter took their orders - Jay with the Psyduck A l'Orange, and Sagira with the Seaking Nicoise - and left them with the bottle of wine as he purposefully moved back to the kitchens.

Neither Sagira nor Jay noticed the familiar stranger of a young girl, watching them from afar.

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jun 29 2009, 01:54 PM

If the wine had already been there, Sagira would have been drenched when Jay saw the bottle.

Well, I'm pretty quick, I'd have turned my head. But that waiter'd be soaked.

Jay distinctly remembered ordering Bandol, not the Chateau de Chasselas. He also distinctly remembered the Chateau de Chasselas costing three times as much as the Bandol.

Of course, after Sagira had said that Chateau de Chassekas was her favorite, any and all protest died before he could voice it. But he was going to hear about it when his parents got the credit card bill!

-----

Thank you for helping me with my headpaint, Paladin, Hinata thought shyly.

The pleasure is mine, Lady Hinata. Paladin's mental voice was a soft tenor, and melodious.

As his telekinetic power brushed the paint on her head crest, as soft as a caress, she could feel a distinctive heat in her cheeks, a very familiar sensation of late. But Jay was taking his chance. It was time for Hinata to take hers.

Siryn watched as the manly, handsome, strong kirlia applied paint to the other, scrawny, blind little harpy. He was marking her with black, like her heart, and the little witch seemed to like it.

Well, life was short and that was proven when new trainer man Master had almost died! He was taking steps to be with the one he wanted. Siryn needed to take steps to be with the one she wanted.

And no one would get in her way!

I hope Sir Jay is being as polite to Lady Sagira as I am to you.

Hinata floated closer to Paladin, orienting herself so that he could see her eyes, then putting on a smile she'd "seen" on television. Paladin? Not every girl wants a guy to be polite...

Siryn's eyes narrowed. It might be too late...

-----

"You like Weavile?" Jay's face showed slow shock, but that was rapidly giving way to a smile, slightly crooked. All genuine, and hot enough to set Sagira's eyebrows ablaze.

Not that she noticed, no sireebob, ice water would be great right now, where is the waiter with the ice water?!

"Who doesn't like Weavile?" She wrinkled her nose a bit, savoring another sip of wine.

"I can name you several, but no one in my house!" Jay laughed lightly. "Me, he's OK, but I liked The Ariados better."

Sagira shook her head, pursing her lips. "Weavile, Monty, Crobatman, and then maybe The Ariados."

Jay grinned. "I'll give you Crobatman, he's awesome, and Weavile is really cool I admit. But The Ariados is leaps and bounds-"

"Bad pun!"

"- over the others," Jay finished with a laugh. "I mean, he's a normal guy. He hasn't been doing it for ages like Weavile."

"And what about Monty?" Sagira's eyes sparkled, and Jay was silent as he looked into her eyes. She was about to call his attention back to thew conversation whe he spoke.

"Monty's cool, but I just can't look at him and not see my Dad." He shrugged. "Maybe the remake will change that."

"Remake?!" Both Jay and Sagira looked around to see if her outburst had disturbed anyone, and Jay was laughing openly when she turned back to him. "They're doing a remake?"

Jay's eyes shone. "Whoops. I said to much..."

"Don't you dare hold out on me now! Is it them? Is it a movie or a series? Jay!"

Jay simply grinned. "No, but they're involved, yes, and maybe." She opened her mouth, but Jay raised his finger. "Later," he laughed. "Away from prying ears. Promise."

Sagira sat back, eyes narrowed, but capitulated. "So," she said slowly. "What do you have planned after dinner?"

"I dunno," Jay said, patting his breast pocket. "Feel like watching a movie..? I hear Weavile is pretty good."

Posted by: Living Arrow Jun 29 2009, 04:23 PM

"No madam, we don't serve 'treats'..."

Ivy grumbled into her menu as the snobby waitor stood over her with open disdain on his face. She had kept him waiting there for some time now as she got him to read each and every line on the damned document - including the preface about the restaurant's history. The pickled Magcargo in garlic butter had made her shoot lemonade through her nose with laughter which she had had to cleverly disguise as a coughing fit to try and maintain her cover.

*Don't get Silly now, Ivy!!!* She had thought while dabbing quickly at her nose with her napkin.

"No treats... no meats... what do ya got?" Ivy pulled a face up at the server, no convinced they were in a restaurant at all. They were meant to serve but she'd never heard of the things he had read to her... well, all apart for the complimentary bread.

"We do serve meats..." The waiter hissed through his teeth with annoyance. "Like I said, there is Tauros Veal-"

"What's a vee-yuhl?" Ivy frowned, raising an eyebrow at him. "I's never heard of it before... Is it related to a Seel?"

"No..." The waiter grit his teeth angrily. "It is meat from a baby Tauros..."

"You. Eat. Babies...?" Ivy stared at him with wide eyes. A long pause passed between them, the only sound coming from the waiter's eye as it twitched maniacally. He was about to offer a response when Ivy slapped the menu shut and passed it to him with a wink. "Fried up chippies and a bizkit!" She announced.

"A side order of french fries followed by the chocolate charlotte fingers..." The waiter hurriedly scribbled a note and stalked off, muttering something about eating petulant children rather than babies... Ivy watched him go, completely satisfied with her selection.

"Okies! Now to make sure the food for old Jay-man and Catlady is just right!"

And with that, she plopped off her seat and trotted to the kitchens...

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jun 29 2009, 10:15 PM

Jay and Sagira talked for a while longer about the differences and advantages of various superheroes. While Jay preferred The Ariados above all, and Sagira was highly obsessed with Weavile, they both seemed to equally agree that Crobatman was the second-coolest superhero in the world.

It wasn't long after they switched conversation topics that the waiter returned with their meal. Sagira mouth actually began to water at the smell of the fish. It had been a long time since she'd had anything fancy to eat, and this looked brilliant. Jay's meal, too, looked delicious, and she thought that if she ever came here again, she might have to try the psyduck a l'orange.

"Everything is satisfactory, oui?" the waiter asked, pouring them each another glass of wine.

"Oui," Jay answered, surprising Sagira with his knowledge of French. "Merci, monsieur."

The waiter gave a small bow of his head, before leaving them to return to the kitchens.

Sagira gave Jay a smile as she picked up her fork. "This smells amazing," she admitted.

Jay nodded in agreement. "I've never eaten here before, but I heard that their food has never been a disappointment."

"It doesn't look like it," she said, cutting up her fish. It was so tender that it simply fell apart - just the way she always liked her fish. "So, where did you learn to speak French?"

Jay gave a lopsided grin. "Well, I had to play a small part in one of the TV shows my parents directed. He was this French immigrant, so I had to learn to speak in a French accent, and a few phrases. I just ended up taking classes until I became fluent. It's easier if you understand exactly what you're saying." He smirked. "Before I knew a whole lot of French, I ended up calling my dad a shit-monkey."

Sagira snorted in a very unlady-like manner, and tried covering it up with a cough, being as they were in such a fancy place. She couldn't contain her grin, however, and he smiled back at her. "I don't imagine he appreciated that too much?" she asked.

Jay shook his head. "No, but Amber thought it was pretty funny."

Sagira chuckled. "You are... definitely something, JayBird," Sagira said, laughing. Shaking her head with a smile on her face, she speared a piece of fish. As soon as she put it in her mouth, she choked and started coughing, causing Jay to look up in concern.

Luckily, the waiter had brought a pitcher of water with the meal, and Sagira quickly down and entire glass. Gasping, she looked at her fish in something akin to fear. "Did they marinate this in sea water?" she asked softly. "I think there's more salt on this than in the Atlantic."

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jun 30 2009, 12:22 AM

Jay had been raising his fork to his mouth when she'd gasped, but he'd stopped, looking at her in panic, swallowing thickly as she'd swallowed her water.

If he'd simply stopped there, he might have saved himself a shock. Instead, as an automatic reaction, his fork continued it's path, taking the speared duck smothered in an orange colored sauce into his mouth.

Within seconds it was as if a fire had started in his mouth. He reached for his own glass, pouring from the pitcher shakily and gulping the water down. There was no thought in his mind that he looked foolish in front of his beautiful, sophisticated date, the girl who, though she had had a similar experience still managed not to spill a quarter of her glass down her front.

He gasped, and felt the anger rising, a brief, split second flash of pure rage before he mastered it, rendering a potential inferno to no longer than a lightning bolt.

"Garçon!" He'd raised his hand and snapped, his voice coming out crisply. He looked at the table, not up at the people around him, and certainly not at Sagira. He was blushing, in shame and disgrace, and somebody, but not him, was going to pay for it.

The waiter stepped forward, curious but not yet afraid. Perhaps he thought that two teenagers couldn't possibly understand the tastes that they were experiencing, and were, instead, mistakenly believing that this was another McGolduck, or Kentucky Fried Farfetch'd, or, heaven forbid, Long Kamon Silver's.

Instead, what he got was a slightly wide eyed young lady looking at her dish in horror, and a red faced young man who looked vaguely familiar, fixing him with a cold gaze.

"I'd like," he said, enunciating each word slowly, "for you to taste my date's dish, please."

"Jay, it's all r-"

"No," Jay said, with deliberate calm. It reminded her of the night in the alley, when her "husband Monty" came to her rescue, except that he wasn't trying to be jovial. "It isn't all right. Garçon, le poisson, s'il vous plait."

The waiter bowed his head politely, as his job required him, and picked up the desert fork. Despite the years of etiquette training screaming in his head against the use of this particular fork for this particular food, he speared a piece of seaking and lifted it to his mouth.

Only even more years of discipline kept him from spitting the fish out, grabbing the pitcher, and downing it's contents.

"Mon dieu!" He wasn't even French, only spoke enough to get through the menu and make orders for the chef, but it seemed right at the moment. He looked at the fish, he understood why the girl looked frightened.

"Would you like to try the Psyduck?" The cold voice brought him back to the present, and he saw the fowl on the end of a fork, dripping with an orange sauce. He could smell the pepper on it from where it hung under his nose.

"I'll... get the manager."

Jay said nothing, simply seethed in his chair. A glimpse at Sagira, her mouth flexing in an obvious frown, brought the shame back, and he sighed as he waited.

"The waiter has informed me of the problem. We will be most happy to exchange the mea--"

Jay stood, slowly. "Exchange..? Sir, what do people usually come here for?" His voice was no longer the cool, quiet hiss, but was loud enough to be heard at surrounding tables.

The manager looked around nervously, then said, quietly, "um.. they usually bring people for... special occ-"

"I can't HEAR you."

The manager swallowed, and then spoke up. "They... bring people for special occassions. Birthdays, anniversaries-"

"Dates?"

"Yes. Yes sir."

Jay's face went cold. "That is why I came here. And my date's dinner, and my dinner, have been ruined. My night has gone from being a wonderful experience to a complete disaster, and only my date's attitude is keeping it from being the worst night of my life. So what makes you think we want to spend any more time here?"

"I will prepare your che-" The waiter was stopped by a finger pointed at the tip of his nose. He hadn't even seen the hand move.

"If you say anything about a check, there won't be anyone left in this place that won't hear about this."

The manager looked at the finger, then looked at the table. "But... the wine..."

"Consider it a consolation for ruining our first date."

In the end, they exited, having not paid for the meal, when Jay sighed, swallowing thickly. "Sorry about this.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jun 30 2009, 04:01 PM

Ivy remained in her seat, a thoughtful frown playing across her brow as she popped another french fry into her mouth. She chewed slowly and methodically, watched the events unravel before her like a rug being spun on an automated loom. All of the tiny threads of intention and coincidence pulled together to form the complicated situation that managed to form itself in Chez Chimecho.

"Seems dindins didn't go too well..." She muttered to herself while continuing to eat at her own calm pace. She had watched the way her attmept at "extra seasoning" had turned sour (no pun intended) but yet managed to reign in her ambitious nature and maintaineed her calm and her disguise.

"The foods might not have been the right way they wanted but it looks like Jay-man has proven himself to be a mature male human - all commanding and manly!" Ivy rolled more fries into her mouth and peered after the couple as they exited the restaurant and began to move away.

Ivy sighed. She had rather been looking forward to a nice meal - one of the very few perks of her mission - and was sad to see that Jay-man and Catlady had ruined it for her. She had needs, too!

"S'all going according to plan..." Ivy lied to herself, already trying to come up with more ideas that would grant the Lange a Big Sniff from the Smythe. "If Jay-man rescues Catlady more then maybe she will like to feel protected... Ya, right!" Ivy laughed to herself, rewarding her with a few glances from patrons at nearby tables.

"Miss?" The grumpy waiter returned from before and took her empty plate. "How was everything?"

Ivy grinned. "'Liscious!" She confirmed, patting her belly. "Time for bizkits!"

"No no, this table is reserved in five minutes, I'm afraid you have to leave now. I can wrap up your desert, if you wish?"

"No look here, misser!" Ivy began, but an odd noise from across the restaurant caught her ears. It sounded like crying... like...

"That's her! She's the one who did it!" An accusing finger pointed across the room, directly at Ivy. The finger had a soggy piece of toilet paper hanging from it and was attached to a blood and poop-stained arm, slashed dress and battered face that looked like it had lost a fight with a truck.

"Oh, CATNIP!" Ivy cursed, flinging loose notes and coins at the waiter and darting for the door, springing into the darkness with many voices shouting after her. She ignored them as best she could, searching for Jay and Sagira. After all, Operation: Dindins was far from over!

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 2 2009, 12:53 AM

Sagira thought she handled herself remarkably well, considering the circumstances.

Her fish was so salty that it was surely as dry as sand. The water had contained a faint, barely noticeable metallic flavor, as though it had been drawn from a tap rather than a filtered pump. The waiter had been condescending at first, obviously assuming they were as ignorant as their ages implied. The manager had been presumptuous. And Jay had been bossy, demanding, and downright hot.

Sagira had held her emotions in as best she could, however. She was quite pleased with herself. She had almost lost it when Jay glanced over at her, but he'd looked away sighing in time enough for her to get herself under control.

As he led her out of the restaurant, however, she felt her control slipping, and finally, she released the emotions that had been too-long contained.

And burst out laughing.

Jay stopped and looked at her in surprise. She was certain that she looked less than ladylike, bent over at the waist, hands on her knees, roaring with open laughter. She couldn't help it, though. It was all to damn funny!

Obviously, Jay wasn't of the same mind, as he had a serious expression on his face when she regained control of herself, and he looked almost as though he regretted doing this. "I... don't see what's so funny," he muttered. He didn't sound mad. Almost... depressed.

"The way you handled that," Sagira said, "was quite familiar." He gave her a funny look. "You know, JayBird, you may look like your dad and I'll give you that." She grinned. "But you argue like your mother, and I don't think anyone will ever have the balls to lie to you about that." She flashed her one of her cocky grins, winked, and then turned her attention to the road, waving. "TAXI!"

Five minutes later had them cruising down the road in the back of a golden taxi cab. Jay still had a confused, somewhat nervous look on his face. Sagira, who had been grinning before, now had her mouth in a contemplative frown. She'd been wondering something for a while and Jay's look of regret was making her wish she had asked it earlier. She wasn't quite sure how to bring it up, though.

She had told the driver to take them through the drive through of the McGolduck near the movie theatre. He'd been reluctant, as that wasn't a common practice of cab driver's, but she'd offered to buy him a coffee and he didn't seem adverse to the idea of caffeine. They were still a good ten minutes away from the McGolduck, however, and from there only five to the movie theatre. There wouldn't really be a better time to ask this, in case he wanted to... back out. Sagira didn't think she'd blame him.

"Jay," she said softly. He lifted his head to look at her, but Sagira wouldn't meet his eyes. She was staring down at her hands, worried but determined not to show it.

"Yeah, Sagira?"

"I... I wanted to ask you..." She licked her lips. "Not that I don't like that we're going out for dinner and a movie, but..." She didn't see Jay's eyes widen at the implications of her sentence, or how he looked resigned, but sad. "Why... you could have any girl you wanted, Jay. They fall over themselves... and each other to get to you - like that girl in the restaurant." She swallowed thickly, turning to look out the window at the passing cars. "I'm... nothing special. I'm moody, and temperamental, and more cat-like than human. I jump to conclusions, and I'm not half as pretty as half the people walking down the street, so why... why me? BlueJay?" She dared a look at him and caught sight of an emotionless mask that made her cringe. She looked down at her hands. "I just... don't understand why you'd waste your time," she whispered.

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 2 2009, 02:48 AM

Jay had never felt so mortified in all of his life. The perfect dinner he had imagined, the one he had taken such deliberate steps to ensure it was exactly what she would want, and it was ruined. And Sagira's face kept twitching. Whatever it was that made her drink half of the pitcher must have been awful.

Or, instead of fooling himself, it could be that she was regretting this date, and just wanted to go back to base and forget the night.

Then she laughed.

It wasn't just that she was laughing, however, it was that she was laughing in such an unrestrained way. She was bent over, braying, and it was...

It was cute. But also a little frustrating.

"I don't see what's so funny," Jay said, hearing the hopelessness in his voice with a slight inner cringe.

She smiled at him. A grin, but not the one she gave to their opponents, or even their comrades. Her eyes sparkled brightly, and there was a hint of affection in her voice. She compared him to his parents, and while he usually got annoyed by that, this time it was obvious that it wasn't meant to put him down.

She called the taxi, and they were off, to, it turned out, McGolduck's. That brought his melancholy right back. And not a little confusion.

Here she was, this vision of confidence and beauty, her lithe body squeezed delightfully into a dress that was both classy and sensuous. She had left the cat eye contacts out, which allowed the deep blue of her eyes to shine, and, as when he'd first seen them, he kept finding himself swimming in them like the deep pools they represented.

This vision was going through the McGolduck's drive thru, and it was, in a manner of speaking, Jay's fault.

Now she was frowning again, her eyes going back and forth. Trying to figure out how to cut the night short, he figured, or at least to tell him that she thought they should keep themselves to just being partners and not get entangled in a relationship.

That, he thought, was the problem with girls with minds of their own. They had minds of their own, and if they didn't want something, there would be no talking them into it.

"Jay..."

Here it comes.

"Yeah, Sagira?" He wanted to look at her, but he didn't have the guts. She was trying to let him down easy, and after tonight, he didn't blame her.

And then she did something that surprised him. She asked him why he would want to take out a girl like her. Before he could answer, or rather ask why he wouldn't want to take out a girl like her, she began to run through a list, an evidently well practiced list, of why he could do better.

It made him sad. She had no idea how completely wrong she was. Someone, or maybe a lot of someones, had held a warped mirror up to her and convinced her that the twisted image was the real her.

Some of what she'd said was true. She was more cat than human sometimes, and she was moody, and temperamental, and she had jumped to her fair share of conclusions, but for everything she pointed out, he wanted to interrupt and tell her how each and everything she pointed out either wasn't true or simply wasn't so bad.

It was when she said that she wasn't pretty that nearly broke his heart. He hated them then, the people that convinced her that she was lower than she was. He wanted them hurt, and, as he had done for most of his life, the emotions drained to his projected mask of calm.

She cringed looking at him, but Jay reached over and took her hand. For a moment, all he did was hold her hand, stroking the back of it along a groove he knew to be an old scar. She still hadn't told him what had caused it, but it wasn't important. What was important was the fact that she didn't see herself how he saw her, and he needed to tell her. Which meant he needed to find the exact right words.

Despite the initial distraction of her trying to pull away, he managed to find something that might work.

"You're right about one thing. I could have anyone I want." She tried to pull away again, but he held on, gently. "I could have let that girl talk me into going home with her. I could have stayed in Jublife and had a hundred of those girls." He looked up at her. "But they... a hundred of them isn't worth one of you, Sagira."

She blinked at him, confused, her brow furrowing. He thought he saw, hoped he saw, a glimmer, the tiniest spark, of hope in her eyes. "Yeah, OK, sometimes you're moody. Sometimes you jump to conclusions." He looked in her eyes, either not aware that she was beginning to scowl, or confident enough in his point to not pay attention. "I don't care, Sagira. I... I've seen you. The you that doesn't come out for anyone, that hides, and I like that. I even like the you I can see. Boy... do I like the you I can see..." He smiled, and she scowled.

"Do you always judge by what you see, BlueJay?" She ducked her head down, and once again tried to extract her hand, but he held on still, and she either wouldn't break his fingers to get him to let go, or she just hadn't gotten that mad yet.

"No, Sagira," Jay started, then stopped himself before an argument started. "No. It's not just what I see, and that's the point. You're a beautiful girl, sure, but it's what's inside you that I've really gotten to know. It's who you are, not how you look..." He licked his lips. If there was a time to say it, it was now. "Sagira... Sagira, I-"

There was a screech of tires and a resounding crash, and both of their heads snapped forward to see a rather large pile up in the road ahead.

"Ah, yeah," said the driver. "There's gon' be a bit of a delay, yanno what I'm sayin'?"

"You're kiddin' me," Jay sighed, flopping back a bit.

"Don' worry about it!" The cabbie had turned on his blinker. "I know another route. Should be at the McGolduck's asap, yanno?"

Jay nodded, watching the cars slow, most of the lanes blocked, but some of them just rubbernecking. As the cabbie moved down a side street, Sagira looked at him.

"You what?"

"Huh? Jay blinked at her, wide eyed.

"You started to say something."

He opened his mouth, but the moment had passed. "I want you to have a good time, and try to remember that I don't see you the way you think I do. If you can do that..." He shrugged, smiling, a challenge, but also a genuine smile as well. "If you can do that, then maybe you'll see what I see."

Posted by: Living Arrow Jul 2 2009, 11:41 AM

"Oh, holy poop on a stick!" Ivy moaned, watching Jay-man and Catlady bundle into one of those public cars that smelled of sweat and urine. She had once taken a trip in such a vehicle and had ended up on her hands and knees on the sidewalk at the end of the journey, reaquainting herself with breakfast.

"Well, now what am I gonna do?" She huffed, pouting angrily and stomping her foot. "Theys just wants me to fail this mission - that's what it is. Just cos I'm all promoted and they's still little nooblets. I's gonna complete this mission and get old Saggie to sniff Jay-man if it's the last thing I do!"

"Hey! That's her!" A cry came from behind. Ivy's head snapped about to find the girl she assaulted and a bunch of burly gentlemen heading in her direction.

"Hey! That's not her!" Ivy shouted back at them, turned on her heel, and ran.

As the car stealing her mission sped away from her and the angry men rushed towards, Ivy decided that despite her impressive running speed there were better ways to get around than by foot. Well, not by her feet anyway.

"Alpha! Gimme a Grumpiggyback!" She giggled, leaping into the air even as her Mightyena brother materialised under her legs. She landed on his shoulders with a laugh of delight and dug her heels in. With a startled yelp, Alpha dashed into the road and after the twin red lights of the taxi.

Ivy clung dearly to the lustrous fur of her Mightyena's hackles, allowing the night air to stream through her tidy hair and ripple her shiny little dress. It felt good to feel that caress on her skin - like the gently lapping waters up at Montague Peak. Thinking of that place reminded her of Victor and she wondered how he was faring back at the Maw without her. She hoped he wasn't being all silly and staying indoors on his own again.

"Faster, Alpha!" She called to her partner, willing him to pour every ounce of energy he had left into running but he was inevitably slowing... or was the taxi speeding up?... Ivy couldn't tell. In any case, Alpha didn't seem particularly tired - just unwilling. "Come on!" She kicked harder and he barked back angrily. She smacked him on the head. "BAD ALPHA! RUN FASTER!"

Obviously not appreciating the way he was being treated, Alpha slowed to a trot and stopped altogether with a petulant whine. Ivy sagged in her furry seat. When Alpha was being stubborn she couldn't get him to do a thing - she blamed it on him being the youngest of the litter. She was about ready to give up and run herself when she spotted movement up ahead... could it be...

"Oooh, Alpha? Lookit! Can you see that?" She pointed through the dark to where a lithe Pokemon was washing itself under a streetlamp. It looked up as Ivy spoke, its proud purple face questioning. "Geddit."

If there was one thing that Alpha liked most to do in the world it was chase cats. True, Victor's Aurum was a cat but it didn't seem the sort to put up much of a chase. That Glameow, however, did. With a howl, Alpha was off again.

"Weeee!" Ivy laughed as Alpha chased the Glameow into the road and in the direction of the fleeing taxi. Surprisingly, the Glameow was especially fast and Alpha had to go flat-out to keep up with it. They hurtled through the streets like the shadows of arrows in flight, pelting towards their destination. That destination was getting closer and closer...

"Uh-oh!" Ivy gasped as they overtook the taxi. Her little head bobbed past the window as they went and she briefly got a view inside of Sagira and Jay, holding hands and looking at each other.

"Yoohoo! They's holding the hands!" Ivy laughed, involuntarily kicking Alpha again. He yelped from the kick and ran off course, straight into the intersection where traffic was mid-flow. The wild Glameow sprang high up onto the top of a nearby van and disappeared into the night. Ivy and Alpha, however, continued straight towards a truck...

*-*-*-*-*-*

"What... happened?" Ivy muttered, rubbing her head. She hadn't fallen far or particularly hard. In fact, she had merely fallen off Alpha's back. The truck that had been headed their way, however, was on its side and its driver crawling slowly from the window.

"Oops!" Ivy rolled her eyes. "He shoulda looked where he was going, huh?"

She turned around and searched for Sagira's taxi. It was turning away... "Alpha!" She called and in moments the pursuit was resumed.

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 4 2009, 11:38 PM

The detour didn't take nearly as long as it felt. The ride was spent in almost total silence. After the interruption of the accident, Jay didn't seem to feel as though he should continue with what he had been saying. Sagira, for her part, wasn't sure how to react to what he had said, and what he might have been going to say. She spent the ride thinking.

He'd complimented her. He'd complimented her in a way that no one else had ever bothered. He'd told her that she was beautiful. He'd compared her to other people in a manner that was off-casting, as though no one else mattered and he needn't waste his time, but no one else ever would. His manner was... almost uncomfortable for her.

Almost.

On some level, she had to admit, she liked hearing that he liked her, that he thought she was beautiful, and that he liked her for her, and not for someone she pretended to be. He didn't beat around the bush, but told her flat-out that she was right, he could have anyone he wanted, and as she thought about it, she was sure he could. He was an actor, the son of two famous actors/directors, and probably more wealthy than she even realized. He had but to ask for a woman and he would be handed ten.

All big-busted and empty-headed - everything that Sagira worked so hard not to be.

Oh, she had met those girls. Her town was full of them. Girls who said they wanted to be top-dog trainers, but squealed and ran away at the sight of a spinarak. Sagira wasn't a huge fan of spiders, herself, but she was one to follow up on her word. She didn't pretend to be tough if she wasn't.

Okay, that was a lie. She'd often had to pretend to be stronger than she felt, but she wasn't a sissy. She worked hard to get where she was. She listened, she read, and she learned as much as she could. She wasn't a genius, but she was smart. She had, after all, helped Professor Oak out in his lab every now and then, and she knew her way around pokemon. She also knew her way around a fight.

Sure, she dressed in a form-fitting outfit most of the time, but she did so for movement, not for the reactions she got from men and women alike. Her manner was one that'd she had or adopted over the years, but she didn't do anything to make people drool over her. She didn't wear mass amounts of makeup and laugh at something that wasn't funny in the least. She was true to herself, and fuck anyone else that tried to make her into a drone.

But, she would admit, she had become something of a victim to others. Oh, she was well aware that she still bore the mental and emotional scars of years of abuse from her peers. She probably didn't even know the extent of the damage done, but she doubted herself quite frequently. She wasn't all that pretty. She dressed in black almost all of the time, her hair was a flat mess, she was pale, and she had scars on her hands that would never heal. She had a temper and was too often too quick to jump to the defensive. She was working on it around Jay, but... these things took time, and she didn't know where he got his patience.

Things were changing, about her and for her, and she didn't fully understand them. Sometimes she didn't have the patience to deal with herself or this new level of perception that she was gaining with the realization of at least some of her psychic abilities. At points it was too much for her, but dealing with her? Sagira sighed.

Her hand still tingled a little from where he had been rubbing his fingers over what she knew to be an old scar. She'd always hated people seeing her scars, much less touching them, but she didn't mind so much with Jay. He didn't dwell on it. He saw something in her that went deeper than her looks - he'd admitted that himself. It was something that most people didn't even bother with, or perhaps couldn't achieve. Mattie could, of course, but he was essentially in the same boat as Sagira - they were both shunned by the same people, the same way, just for different reasons. But Jay was an outsider to this idea. He would be welcome anywhere - separate, maybe, but welcome - because of his fame and his parents, or just one or the other. He was the type of person that Sagira had always seen overlooking her as nothing of interest, but here he was... with her.

Sagira smiled softly. His words lingered in her head. Even now, the details were fading - the exact phrasing, the feeling of her hand in his - but the meaning remained, crystal clear in her mind. He... he liked her.

She didn't know what he had been about to say to her, and she did want to know, but for the moment... he liked her, and that was enough.

Smiling softly, Sagira chanced a glance at Jay. He was looking out of his window, seeming to be pointedly avoiding her eyes, perhaps out of embarrassment. Or maybe he was watching her in the reflection in the window. She didn't know, and it didn't matter.

Sagira shifted slightly and then leaned against Jay. She felt him tense in surprise and move to look at her swiftly, but she ignored him, not even looking at his face to see if he was startled or annoyed. She simply leaned against him softly and closed her eyes, hmming contentedly.

Yes. This was enough.

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 6 2009, 06:42 AM

She was leaning against him, and after his initial reaction, his next one was to be annoyed. With himself, for suspecting anything bad. He had wanted this level of familiarity. He had hoped it would happen here, on this date, after everything they'd been through.

They deserved it. Her more than him, maybe, because the more he learned about her, in bits and pieces and fits and starts, the more impressed he became with her ability to survive. But, in the long run, they deserved a little bit of happiness.

He slid his arm around her, careful as could be, and was rewarded again with another hum of satisfaction. It made the events of the night so far completely worth it.

And if nothing else went wrong, maybe he could finish what he started to say before.

-----

Siryn knows. Being a ghost is not about being tough or being strong. Being a ghost is about being clever. And Siryn is clever.

Siryn does not know why Siryn hates the Hinata so much. Siryn does know that the Paladin is smart and handsome (and a little girly) and that the Paladin likes the Hinata, so maybe the Hinata is in Siryn's way and has earned her wrath.

Maybe Siryn is a little insane. Months of near starvation can drive a pokemon crobatty...

Siryn knows that she can't fight this feeling anymore. Siryn has forgotten what she started fighting for.

Siryn has a tune stuck in her head!

Siryn's old home, where she wasa hated and hunted and starved has something in it, in the desk of the pompous big butt. Siryn feels drawn to what is in the purple box, a stone that has darkness in it. Siryn is both wanting and afraid of the change it will bring her.

Siryn bets that the same change will happen for the Paladin with the stone in the blue and gold box...

Siryn will give the Paladin the purple box and keep the blue and gold box.

Then maybe the Paladin will love Siryn...

-----

"I dunno, Catseye," Jay said with a frown. "You sure you want a Filet o' Magikarp?" His nose wrinkled. "Magikarp's kinda tasteless..."

"I'm sure, BlueJay," Sagira said with a smile. "I prefer fish."

Jay shrugged, smirking in good humor. "Suit yourself." He leaned out the window and called to the speaker, "I'd like a filet o' Magikarp, a grilled Delibird Ranch Club, a Tauren Royale with cheese, two medium sodas and a large coffee."

"Do you want fries with that?" Came a tired voice from the speaker.

"Yes, I want fries with that," Jay said, mimicking a popular cartoon character, a child with an oblong head, "and if you forget my fries, you shall rue the day! Rue, I say!"

Sagira pulled Jay back into the car, doing her best to scowl but unable to hide the twinkle of amusement in her eyes. The rest of the process passed with little incident, and they spent the trip to the theatre eating their dinners and drinking their drinks in companiable silence.

Before long, Jay and Sagira were sitting in a darkened theatre, waiting for Weavile's story to unfold on the screen.

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 6 2009, 12:37 PM

Now that they sat in the darkness of a theatre, Sagira allowed the grin to take control of her face as she thought back to their stop at McGolducks. She had needed to fight her smile for the entire ride, though it had helped once they'd received their food. So much easier to blame a grin on how awesome a magikarp filet was. How Jay could think the sandwich dry was beyond her. She'd always preferred the fish, and had rarely ever ordered anything else when she and her father went there.

But the fries were on her mind.

Ah, the fries. Delicious though they were, it was Jay's manner of ordering that had nearly had her in hysterical laughter. She wondered sometimes if he didn't know more about her than she thought. Much of his words or actions compliments her likes or her feelings. They were going to the Weavile movie (for which tickets had been sold out for a week, mind you), and Sagira loved Weavile (truly, it bordered on obsession. Hugh Jackman better never show his face in her presence. She was liable to pounce on him like a cat on... well, yeah).

Back to the fries. Sagira was addicted to Family Guy. Addicted. It was her cinematic drug (right up there with drooling over XMen). She'd never fully understood what was so amusing about having a pet pokemon with no powers. Sure, Brian could talk, but so could psychic types, for the most part. He wasn't even an actual pokemon - just something that the directors made up. Personally, she thought he could have been some sort of psychic or dark type, to make things more interesting. Have some sort of power where he shot beams of intelligence at everyone. After all, he was the smartest character in the whole Griffin household; his only competitor in the area of intelligence being Stewie.

Ah, Stewie. The football-headed sadist-child that Jay had chosen to mimic. The child that, for some reason, wanted to murder his mother. And talked to his stuffed teddiursa that, in his daydreams, had the body of David Hasslehoff. That was actually rather disturbing. She shook herself out of the imagery. No need to contemplate hidden messages promoting pedophilia in a show that was already wrong on so many levels. Funny, yes, but done in poor taste half the time. Ah well.

Seriously, though, when Jay had demanded of the employee that she would rue the day if she forgot his fries, Sagira actually thought the cab driver was going to slam on the gas just to avoid having his passenger insult the employee while he was playing chauffeur. Sagira had pulled him back into the car, and she had truly needed to fight with herself. The same words kept echoing around in her mind and it took all of her self-control to come from yelling, "Shut up! Shut up, damn you!" in a dual-mock of Stewie Griffin. Of course, Sagira had never been able to pull off voices other than the occasional accent (she did a very good Romanian, next to her thick Londoner), and she didn't want to encourage Jay. He might do something Family Guy-ish once they got to the window.

Of course, they needn't have worry - Sagira was sure the girl's face was still read from laughter when they got to the window.

Sitting in the darkness of the theatre, Sagira wore a rather large grin. By instinct, she had fought Jay for the armrest, and won. She always won. Of course, she wasn't sure if she had taken the prize this time because of her mad-skills (okay, so she was really happy), or because he was trying to be a gentlemen.

Well, screw that.

Reaching over, Sagira grabbed his left hand with her right and, entwining their fingers, set them both on the armrest. Was she blushing? Oh, hell yes, but it was dark, no one could see, and she was holding the hand of a boy - man - who was rightly hotter than any other man in the universe.

Yes, Hugh Jackman - Weavile - we love you, but not even you match up. Go stab something with your claws and have a manly cry. We'll wait.

As Sagira sat there, grinning to herself, the advertisements that had been playing finally came to a close, and the movie began.

Funny. Even as the brute of a kickass X-Men-to-be came on the screen, Sagira found that nothing stole her concentration as much as the feeling of Jay's hand in hers.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jul 6 2009, 04:24 PM

Theft wasn't a stranger that Ivy had caution to let into her life. No. Theft was one of her best friends. Ever since she had been a pup, thievery had been a key partner in her fight for survival and the fact that she had decided to remain friends with her old comrade meant that she was always partial to a five-finger discount or two.

"C'mon!" Ivy protested at the ticket kiosk. "I needs ta get into Weavile! It's important, Silly!!!"

The spotty clerk at the front desk sucked chips out of his brace and squinted at the girl squealing at him. He had no time for those with no ticket. He had no time for those with no money. He especially had no time for those who had neither of the above.

"If you don't have a ticket, you're not coming in."

"Gimme a ticket then!"

"There are no more tickets left."

"Then just let me in and I'll sit on the floor!"

"We don't sell tickets for the floor."

"Never said I wanted to buy one, did I? Just gimme!"

"We can't just give out tickets. You've got to pay."

"How about a fist full of fives!?" Ivy roared, throwing herself through the tiny square hole in the counter with all her might. Miraculously her tiny lithe form was able to slither through with ease and before the clerk knew it, two fists, a foot and a full set of teeth were abusing his body with rabid ferocity.

Ivy dusted of her hands on her blood-spattered dress and trotted into the cinema complex, searching for the room where Catlady and Jay-man would have gone. She whistled a merry tune as she sauntered past a bunch of teenagers who worked there - obviously not caring if patrons had a ticket or not. That was the way it should be! At least these greasy pimple-heads weren't so silly!

"Now, Saggie likes action movies..." Ivy tapped her lip slowly, frowning at the large electronic announcement board that highlighted the current movies. She blinked a few times. "Silly me! I can'ts read! But good ol' Beta can help out!"

The Electrike flashed from his ball as Ivy clicked it open and asked him to find Sagira with his super-sensitive Odor Sleuth. After a few intakes of breath, the puppy was plodding directly towrads a room where the poster outside displayed a man with long sharp claws.

"Oooo Saggie like the clawz! Well, done Beta! Back in bally!"



Frederick Jones was a simple man. His life had been calm and without drastic event, slowly driving him towards the end of his life on autopilot. He was content to live that way - happy that the few years before his retirement had led him to a job he loved. Fitting the movies to their reels was not only easy but it meant he could watch all the latest releases for free. He was a very happy man. That was, hoever, until a certain little girl entered his life. Well, the film room above the auditorium, anyway.

"Hey, Silly!" Ivy grinned, her little hands balling into fists. "I need you to sleep so I can keep an eye on Jay and Sagira with no interruptions, mkay? Their date needs to be perfect."

Frederick didn't have time to voice his support for the little girl's plan. It seemed she didn't want to hear his warm opinions in helping couples get together. Nor did she want to hear how he could help her by showing her how to control the lighting. No. Instead, she wanted to take the empty movie reel case and use it as an oddly-shapped baseball bat. Frederick barely had time to whimper as the metallic disk came down...

"No interruptions..." Ivy's cold voice muttered over the old man's body as she stepped over it and squinted out of the small viewing window to find her favourite couple sitting down near the center of the room. "I'll make it perfect... You'll see..."

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 7 2009, 03:28 PM

Despite the fact that he was still quite young, Jay Lange had gone through quite a few firsts in his life. None of them, perhaps, were as exciting as later firsts would be, and some of them were more exciting than most people saw in a lifetime. From his first experience being away from home to his first (and hopefully last) gunshot wound, a lot of those firsts came from Noverus itself.

This was not Jay's first date, nor was it his first time holding hands with a girl. What it was for Jay was the first time he had felt nervous holding a girl's hand.

She'd made a production of getting the armrest between them, which he'd half heartedly tried for. In truth, he usually made good with the outside rest, when he was with his family. The only people who fought for the arm rest were his parents, and they made a game out of it.

He hadn't thought Sagira was the type for games, so when he let her win (and it wasn't all letting; The girl had a bony elbow!), she surprised him by grabbing his hand and resting both their arms firmly on the armrest.

Was he blushing? Probably, if the heat on his face was any indication, he was near glowing. But he didn't care. Sagira was holding his hand, and it was like the sudden drop on a roller coaster. The good time you endure the long, clacking climb to the top for. Her hand was warm in his, even through the lavender gloves, and he knew she was the best looking girl in the theatre; She'd attracted enough wonton stares, and he was still a product of Jublife. His smug smile as they walked into the theatre was proof enough of that.

And now the movie was starting, and he sat back, determined to relax, holding firmly to Sagira's hand.

-----

He is here.

There are times when not being able to talk is a detriment. Not just talk, but communicate at all, even with my fellow creatures. Some have grown to tolerate me here, but most simply walk away, disgusted or bored when I try to communicate with them.

But he is here. I've found him again.

He found me first, of course. There's no doubting that, because I couldn't have found him in my predicament. But he seemed drawn to me.

I didn't know what he was, but now I do. I saw what he did, and there is no denying it.

He's here, but he doesn't know I am. And I will keep him safe until he's ready. Ready to learn, and ready to train.

-----

The first half of the movie was everything he'd hoped it would be. Oh, not many enjoyed Weavile's backstory, and he'd heard and read all too much pining for the "old" days, when no one knew Weavile's past, and he was simply a mysterious guy who could heal and had huge metal claws ripping from his forearms. But Jay didn't care much about back story. So long as he could see Weavile tear through some things, he was happy.

(He did agree with his father about how they'd massacred the Dark Ho-oh saga in the third movie, but overall it was still better than, say, the Daredevil movie.)

He and Sagira were thoroughly enjoying themselves, until the movie came to a sudden and complete halt.

The projector's light still shone from the back, but was now a blinding white with no film to filter through. The audience sat, stunned, some blinking, others beginning to complain. The complaints came more frequently and louder as nothing was done to rectify the situation. Then a man in a dark blue and red homemade costume stood up, extending both arms with a loud, primal scream.

"You want a piece of me, Bub," he snarled in a poor impression of the actor, pointing in Jay's direction. He closed his eyes, moaning. If he could, if it wouldn't make him lose face, he'd have sunk in his seat.

A larger guy stood up behind Sagira. "Come and get me, whelp!" Jay looked up, blinking. The man was dressed in a dark overcoat and shirt, his hair a rough approximation of Absol's, Weavile's longtime nemesis. Jay turned back around and rolled his eyes.

"You have got to be kidding me."

Sagira, too, had looked up and was also facing forward as the two continued to harangue each other from across the theatre. Nearest the wanna be absol, a smirking blonde fellow stood and said "Ladies and Gentlemen, Magma proudly presents the Weavile players!

Jay and Sagira looked at each other, eyes widening. Jay's jaw was clenched. Things couldn't possibly get worse.

And that was when 'Absol' yanked Sagira up by her arm.

Jay stood quickly, even as Sagira spun, sending a splay palmed slap to her captor's face. There was little doubt that she was attacking on instinct, her fingers flexed as if the claws she usually wore were on her hands. The man, as it stood, was stunned, and moved to grab her again. Jay's own hand shot out and struck the man in the wrist, and he barked in pain.

"Interfering with a Magma function, eh?" The man grinned, looking more like Absol than he had while play acting with the fake Weavile. "Maybe we should take you to the Thumb..."

Jay's eyes darted side to side. With Sagira in the fancy dress, there wasn't much that could happen, and of course none of their teams were with them. He could see a dozen openings he could take if he were alone, but there was no way he'd abandon Sagira, even if he wasn't interested in her romantically. So he did the one thing he could think to do, as long a shot as it was.

"Is that Hugh Jackman?!" he cried, pointing over the large Magma's shoulder.

The man spun, and Jay blinked. "Really?"

Sagira was not one to look a gift girafarig in the mouths, however. She pulled Jay to the opening created, and they dashed to the doors. Both were so intent on escaping, they did not see the blurs coming from either side toward the Magma ersatz actors.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jul 8 2009, 04:06 PM

Ivy liked movies. She liked them a lot. Ever since she had learned how to break into the local theatre in Lilycove, she had managed to sneak in to see so many different types of movie that she didn't think there were any sorts left for her to try. Action was one of her big favourites along with comedy. Period dramas, however, were on her "Hate List". She lounged in the filming booth, watching the Weavile movie with wide-eyed awe as the story unraveled. Well, until the film reel itself unraveled, anyway.

"Balls!" Ivy cursed, grabbing at the flapping film as it ended and white light poured onto the screen below. Immediately, moans and shout began to emanated from the viewing room and Ivy panicked. With now idea what film was meant to go where and what way around it should be, she did the only reasonable thing... She ran...

"Oooh, silly Ivy!" She muttered to herself, charged out of the film room and back into the foyer where she raced for the movie theatre in which Sagira and Jay were sitting. She would have to hide somewhere in the dark and continue surveillance before anyone realised she had been the one to put the old man down....

She slipped into the darkened room full of comfy seats and slid into a darkened aisle several rows back from the dating pair. That was when Magma decided to show. One of them announced their presence while another grabbed Sagira by the arm. A third, dressed up like it was halloween, began to close in from nearby.

Ivy tensed and growled angrily.

*Get off her!*

A timely distraction provided by Jay gave the pair enough time and room to slip by the Magma members and rush towards the door. That was when Ivy sprang into action. Her Pokeball was clicked open silently and her attack was only commanded once the couple were safely out of the room.

"KYLARIAN CANI-FANG COMBO!" She roared as she pitched Beta right at the dark-clad fool. She zipped and dashed and flipped all around the Magma, hurling and catching the ferocious Electrike as his Thunder Fang ripped and sliced into the human's flesh. She caught Beta on his final attack and jumped atop the seats, scanning for her next target... But the other two were down already... A dark figure dashed after Jay and Sagira, its bipedal form darrting through the shadows before Ivy could get a proper look at it.

"Hey, that kid set her Pokemon on that dude!"
"Oh my God! He's bleeding!"
"Someone call an ambulance!"

"Good moves Beta!" Ivy congratulated her partner as they fled the movie theatre. "We've got to focus - Magma could really spoil this mission if we aren't careful!"

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 10 2009, 12:29 AM

It was pouring.

That was the first thing that Sagira noticed when they burst out of the theatre, the swinging doors flung open wide to expel them like some great monster that decided they tasted horrible and wanted a refund.

The second thing she noticed was that she was laughing.

She hadn't realized it, to be entirely truthful, which was odd. Usually, she was far more perceptive than that. Of course, she wasn't quite sure why she was laughing.

They were running down the middle of the street (which was a dangerous hobby, even if the street was empty), the rain coming down in sheets to soak them thoroughly, their hands clasped together tightly.

This was the last thing that Sagira realized, though she didn't know how she could have failed to notice before. She was in the lead (how, with those shoes, she had no idea), pulling Jay behind her, her hand squeezing his tightly - not painfully so, but noticeably. His hand was so warm and firm in hers.

And she was still laughing.

Maybe it was a hysterical laugh? It didn't feel hysterical. Yes, they had just been confronted by at least three Magma members, two of which may have been drunk, but that was besides the point. Usually, this didn't bother Sagira, but she was... defenseless. What a horrid word.

Her pokemon were all at the hotel and she was clawless.

But no, the laugh didn't sound hysterical. She had no churning need to look behind her to see if they were being followed. She wasn't worried, frightened, or prepared for a fight. She was oddly... content.

She realized suddenly that she was having fun. Despite the ruined movie and the pouring rain, she had no desire to pull her hand out of Jay's grip or stop either her laughter or her running, no longer retreating now as simply... running in the rain. Such an innocent act. She felt suddenly... normal.

How strange.

She caught Jay looking at her, eyeing her reaction and then the dress. "Let's get out of this rain," he said. He sounded disappointed. He must have really wanted to see the ending of that movie. Sagira smiled inwardly. Maybe she'd have to get some tickets and take him out next time.

And she realized, of course, that she wanted to go out with him again. And yes, again, after that.

They dashed to a nearby coffee shop open all hours. They stepped onto the linoleum and Sagira cursed her shoes when she slipped on the rainwater. Jay caught her (of course he would), and she resisted the urge to blush profusely. "Okay, that was embarrassing," she muttered.

Jay mumbled something and Sagira turned to him. "Sorry, Jay, what?"

"I'm sor-"

"Hi, welcome to The Croconaw Coffee Shop!" a cheery waitress supplied, interrupting Jay and calling their attention. "What can I get for you today?"

The girl didn't seem perturbed about them dripping all over the floor, so Sagira decided that sitting down in the little cafe area, with a cup of hot coffee and the music in the background sounded lovely.

The two ordered their coffees and went to sit down, to wait out the rain and any dangerous, possibly-drunken Magma members that might come looking for them when they were done seeking out Hugh Jackman.

Sagira stifled a giggle, forcing her expression to a neutral stance. It was hard, though. She was just having so much fun!

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 12 2009, 08:10 PM

Jay stared broodingly into his coffee. His was, in truth, more hot chocolate than coffee by the time he ordered it the way he liked it, but it still counted, and it was still there, just waiting to be brooded into. He looked up, once, as Sagira sipped noisily at her cup (an accident, judging by her blush), and tried to smile. Too much, however, had gone wrong. She had deserved a better date, a real date, and everything had just turned into a fiasco.

It was almost like some outside force was ruining the date for them.

She reached out and touched his hand, and he looked up at her, blinking. There was a genuine smile on her face, soft, and small, but there, right along the concern in her eyes.

"What's wrong, BlueJay?" Her voice softened, noticably, at the nickname she had for him, and her hand squeezed his lightly.

"It's nothing, Catseye," he began, and her expression, though no less fond, hardened a bit.

"Are you actually going to lie to me, tonight," she said, an edge of pure steel in her otherwise honey voice. Jay's shoulders slumped.

"Ok. Fine. I wanted tonight to go better than this." He motioned to his jacket, thoroughly soaked. His mouth twisted just thinking of her dress. It was probably ruined.

"You wanted it to be perfect," she said, not a question. It was almost an accusation.

"Not perfect," Jay placated, then looked out the window. "Just... As wonderful as my date is."

The silence stretched on, Jay peering out the window, Sagira peering at him, a look of near wonder and a hint of incredulity on her blushing face. The only sounds for a short time were that of the rain, and Phil Collins in the background.

"This Love, This Heart, These Arms To Hold,"

Sagira squeezed his hand again. The table they were at was tiny, barely large enough to hold their coffees, let alone put any distance between them. Jay looked up and met her eyes.

"To You, So Tight, I Won't Let Go,"

Sagira slowly leaned forward, smiling as her eyes slowly closed. Jay's eyes closed as well.

"Can This Be Real, Or Just Some Dream That Can't Come True..."

-----

Hinata was content. She and Paladin were resting on a couch in a common room area, Paladin's head in Hinata's lap, her hand stroking his hair. They were in a mindscape together. Here, she could see and he could hear. Here, they were as human as they felt. As human as their respective trainers treated them.

"This is nice," Hinata cooed.

"Mmm," Paladin said, agreeing. "I wonder how Milady and her Knight fare."

Hinata's voice was near pouty. "He's brooding, but I don't think it's because of Sagira."

Paladin looked up at her. "I envy your your range."

Hinata smiled down. "When you're blind, you compensate with your other senses. Besides, you could do it, too. Simply follow your link to her."

"Wouldn't that be an invasion," Paladin asked, torn. Hinata had an answer ready.

"We're pokémon! We protect our trainers! It's your duty, Sir Paladin," she said with a giggle.

Despite the cautionary look he gave her, he did indeed open up to Sagira. He instantly wished he hadn't. "Oh!"

Hinata wasted no time checking on Jay. "Yes! Good going Jay!" She giggled again, then cast a sly look at Paladin. "Want to see what the fuss is about..?"

Paladin's eyes widened, but he nodded, slowly. Hinata licked her lips, leaning down as he leaned up.

A twinge through both links stopped them short.

"Oh, come ON!" Hinata stood, breaking the mental illusion and seeing the room they were really in. Her face was cloudy with anger.

We must go to them, Paladin said, a growl in his mental voice signalling he, too, was not happy.

They didn't tell us where they were going!

Paladin smiled, a smile a lot like Sagira's when she was itching for a fight. Then I get to show you something, too, tonight.

He took her hand, guided her, and they both disappeared from the room.

-----

They had been so close. SO CLOSE! And then the goons from the theatre had barged in, complaining loudly about the ones who'd gotten away.

Then 'Weavile', still supporting his bleeding buddy, pointed at Jay and Sagira. "But THOSE two won't get away!"

Jay's hand slammed on the table. "That's. IT!" He stood, dropping a foot back into a stance that made no mistake what he intended. "Which of you is first?"

The sound of six pokéballs snapping open gave him pause. "Well, mankeyfucker."

Two other pops sounded in front of him, and Hinata, with fresh body paint on her crest and Paladin sea blue eyes glowing were between their trainers and the attackers

It is impolite to interrupt a Lady on an evening out, snarled Paladin, mentally projecting to their foes.

Come on, boys, cooed Hinata, also projecting. Let's dance!

The kirlia looked at the grouping of pokémon, normal and fire types, looked at each other, and disappeared. It was only a second before they reappeared, Hinata with her hand on a perturbed Siryn, and Paladin letting Calypso gently down to the floor.

You could have waited for Siryn to go with you the first time, fussed the ghost.

"Siryn," Jay commanded, "Screech!"

Siryn grinned, opened her mouth, and screeched at the opposing pokémon. The battle was joined.

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 15 2009, 12:48 AM

Paladin was decidedly unhappy.

He had been about to show his love to Hinata, to show her how he truly felt about her, when they were interrupted, quite rudely. Now, he wasn't mad at either Sagira or her would-be-knight, Jay, no. He was very displeased with their attackers, who both interrupted he and Hinata, as well as Jay and Sagira.

And, of course, anyone who dared to attack his friend was in for an unpleasant experience.

Three fire-type and three normal-type pokemon stood in opposition against them.

A magmar, torkoal, and numel would be the main focus of Hinata and Paladin, since Calypso's fire attacks wouldn't do as much damage against them. She would, instead, focus her attention upon the vigoroth and aipom. Siryn would no doubt dart back and forth, working on every pokemon at once, though perhaps she could draw the ditto's focus onto her. It wouldn't do to have it mimic the form of either Paladin or Hinata.

Though, he wondered idly if the ditto would also be forced to mimic his deafness, or Hinata's blindness? That might be something to keep in mind at a later time.

For the moment, however...

"Paladin, you're on the magmar! Psychic!"

"Would you be amused if I told you I knew you were going to say that?"

Though she didn't say anything in reply, Paladin was pretty sure that Sagira had smiled at that. He darted forward swiftly and focused his attention upon the large, humanoid fire creature. Opening his eyes wide, he lowered the shields that he and his type-brethren held wrapped tightly around their minds. His innate mental abilities, rather than being forced outward, needed only to be released. Like water held behind a dam that was suddenly removed, the waves of psychic power exploded outward, slamming in a concentrated force against the magmar and sending the pokemon staggering back.

Distantly, Paladin could hear Sagira call for Calypso to use her flamethrower attack against the vigoroth, but he was already busy casting a confusion attack on the magmar, and then letting his mind craft the illusion that allowed him to appear as two separate pokemon. Double-team, they called it - the humans. It was a move that had been born by evolution, used long ago as a defense mechanism, allowing time for a swift escape from danger. Now, he used it as an attempt to draw the magmar's attention, while he attacked from an unseen side. He lowered his shields again, blasting the magmar with another confusion attack.

The magmar pulled back a fist and slammed it forward in a fire punch attack. Paladin's eyes widened, and he abruptly disappeared.

Paladin had his suspicions that being sucked through a straw would be more comfortable than teleporting. He felt as if the air itself was condensing into a physical force and pressing against him from all sides, while he was being pulled from one place to another. He couldn't physically move, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't see or speak... he wondered, if he traveled too long a distance, would he reappear as a soulless corpse somewhere, having suffocated along the way?

Just as he thought that he was going to die, he reappeared on the other side of the magmar, facing its back. Paladin staggered suddenly, though he wasn't dizzy, simply disoriented. He could breathe fine, but he had the sudden desire to wheeze for air, like he had been drowning and someone had pulled him out of the water, away from death.

He was sure that, halfway across the room in her own battle, Hinata could feel his fear, rolling off of him in waves of diress, but he didn't have time to worry about himself. He needed to end this battle, for Sagira!

He let down his shields, and unleashed another psychic attack.

Posted by: Living Arrow Jul 15 2009, 02:30 PM

"Whys is everyone wanting to spoil my mission, huh?" Ivy ranted from the rooftop, watching the battle rage below through the windows of the coffee shop between her favourite couple and the Magma scum that had ruined the moment at the movies. Ivy's eye twitched... Her neck itched and her hands were sweating... Emotions were bubbling up in her that simply could not be held in. Magma were continuously stepping into her life and hurting those who she was sent to protect...

"If they don't back of soon... I.... might... LOSE IT!!!"



With Pokemon clashing in the doorway, Ivy rushed along the street atop Alpha's back - a shadow of a ghost that sped through the night on silent paws. The cool air rippled through her slowly untangling hair but did nothing to chill the flames that ignited her soul.
From where Jay and Sagira stood, the Magma furthest back in the open doorway seemed to be picked up and swallowed by the night, his cry of "woooarh!" turning into a blood-curdling scream in the darkness.

Ivy removed her thumbs from the Magma's eyes and panted slowly... Everything was under control... The mission was still on track...



Kappa, hidden behind a dustbin in the street had his orders to help the batle discretely from a distance. Well-timed water gun attacks flew in through the open door to hit into the backs of the Numel and Torkoal, hissing off their hot bodies as its effective power struck them down. Within milliseconds, Jay and Sagira's Pokemon were on the offensive once more...


Alpha's large form padded from the night, his eyes glowing wetly. Concern dwelled in those pools - concern that his sister was actually losing control rather taking hold of it. Fear and anger rolled off her in waves, almost choking him as her scent filled his flaring nostrils. She had never gone this far while battling another human being... she had never had anyone other than him to care for... Where her misplaced feelings bringing this disturbing change about in her?

"Trike..." Beta emerged from the gloom next to the Mightyena, both of them watching as Ivy dragged the Magma's body into an alleyway.

Alpha growled low and nodded. His adopted brother of storms was right. It was about time they spoke up and stopped their Prime from losing herself to her wild emotions. If they did not then the results would be catastrophic... Regretfully turning his back on Ivy, Alpha turned from the battle and ran out into the night, his destination already in mind. Without Mother there to calm Ivy, there was only one that had been able to treat her in the way that she needed...

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 15 2009, 09:14 PM

Hinata, secretly, loved to battle. The more she did it, the more she felt like she wasn't just a poor blind kirlia anymore. She was powerful, and strong, and an object to fear.

Especially when she was angry. Which was right now. These three, with their stupid costumes and their stupid hair and their stupid being stupid-ness, had interrupted something she had wanted for a long time, and something she'd only felt she wanted for a long time. Jay was going to be happy, and Hinata was going to be kisses. So she was really, really mad at them.

"Hinata, the tor-," Jay stopped, blinking, then pointed another way. "The num- what the duece?" Both of the fire/ground pokemon had fallen in a steaming mass. The aipom evidently felt that Hinata was to blame; she could feel it's animosity as it leapt at her, tail first. Hinata popped out of existance in front of it and reappeared behinding it, giggling with a joyful "lililililili!"

She loved teleporting, she'd have to properly and thoroughly thank Paladin for the lesson.

She felt Paladin releasing his power, felt that he knew it was not a build-and-expel, like it might be for lesser psychics, (Hey!) but a releasing of energies already at their peak. It was quaint that he envisioned it as a lowering of a shield. To her, however, it was slightly different.

To her, it was a parting of floodgates.

The aipom reeled under the attack, and Hinata spared a thought for her companions. Siryn was having fun, the cutie, and Calypso, annoyed in her haughty way, was haranguing the vigaroth furiously. Paladin was...

He 'ported to dodge a gout of flame, and Hinata could feel his panic, breathless, heart pounding panic that drive her breath away as well. Visions floated through her mind; dark rushing water, around her, crushing her as it pulled her away. She could see, in this vision, but her points of reference for the sights were vicarious. An arm, hauling him (wait, him..?) Out of the water, wrapping him in a towel. His head feeling like it was still in the water, sounds muffled and fading. And finally a large, red headed man sneering in contempt. S/he could no longer hear his words, but s/he could feel his thoughts and put meaning to the shapes his mouth and tongue made.

Pathetic.

It all took a second, after which the aipom shrieked as it launched itself to attack, before it was grabbed in a telekinetic fist and thrown out the door, through a window in the next building, and dashed against a wall.

Hinata didn't do sad well. But anger she was a master of.

She turned to the magmar and hit it with a psychic blast just as Paladin did. As they fought, together, she sent Paladin a vision off her own. Of being blind, but loved by a loyal trainer. Caught by his own friend as she fell. Of him, in a placid lake, bobbing because of a black, white, green, and red Hinata shaped lifevest.

You're not alone anymore, My Paladin...

-----

Siryn thinks you are so slow
you are a sucky ditto
changing into Siryn, you're out of luck,
you're nothing but a weakling muk!

Siryn swopped around the ditto, not allowing it a long enough look to copy her properly. It was working, except for one thing.

It was eying Hinata.

This would not do. So Siryn began to sing, but she couldn't sing like a jigglypuff. Not yet. Instead, she sang like a snide, stuck up human child, and teased the ditto.

It made a face (how one could tell, Siryn didn't know) and oozed after her. Finally, she stopped and stuck her tongue out at the ditto, blowing a raspberry.

The Ditto scowled (Siryn thought it was a scowl, anyway) and concentrated. The ghost had stopped. Whatever fell under it's eyes was his shape for a while...

She had disappeared, and he was transforming..! into... into...

A hamburger.

Siryn cackled. See! DUMB!

It was then that she felt the fear, the utter terror, coming from two directions. She turned and saw Paladin, shaking a little, ashamed, sweating, but fighting on, joined by Hinata, who was trying to comfort him. She hurt for him. She'd *fed* from that, and wanted to cry now. She had hurt Paladin, somehow... she just knew it!

Let Siryn help..! she wailed plaintively. She wanted to help Hinata make him feel not-bad.

And Hinata let her.

Siryn turned to the vigaroth and, with happy tears in her eyes, began to screech it's defenses down.

-----

Jay knew it was a matter of time. Once the pokémon were bested, Magma had a tendency to use fists. Well, that was fine. Jay wanted to take out a little anger right now, anyway.

Like clockwork, the man dressed as Absol charged, roaring. A small part of Jay admired the man's dedication; He was charging in a close approximation of the character he was trying to portray. However, the rest of Jay, the part that had been eager to kiss Sagira, that had wanted the date to be perfect for her, launched a fist into the man's chin so hard that it stopped, then reversed his momentum.

He turned and saw Sagira looking at him, unaware of 'Weavile' rising behind her, claws up to slash into her.

For a split second, he forgot that they were fake. For a split second, he could only see the possibility of Sagira's bloody death.

"LOOK OUT!" He cried, thrusting a hand forward to push the man, even though he was feet away and out of reach.

There was a bright blue flash, and the man catapulted over a table into a wall.

Sagira's eyes widened and she looked from the man to Jay. "What... what did you JUST DO?!"

"I don't know..!" Jay turned away from Sagira, thrusting his hand forward experimentally, but nothing happened.

Sagira looked around, calming her breathing. Then she turned to Jay, puzzled.

"BlueJay..."

"I toldja, Catseye, I don't know," Jay said, a little shakily.

"No... where's the other one..? There were three of them, weren't there..?"

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 18 2009, 09:01 PM

Sagira was still a bit flustered by Jay's... what was it? Telekinesis? Wind control? Jedi prowess? Did he train under Qui-Gon Jinn and simply fail to mention that? Was he Obi-Wan Kenobi reincarnated? Could a fictional character be reincarnated?

Despite her puzzlement and growing concern, Sagira hid her emotions and sought out the third man that she knew had been here moments before. Hinata, Paladin, Siryn, and Calypso were finishing off the lingering enemy pokemon as Sagira scanned the room, but she couldn't find the third Magma.

Sagira let out a soft growl, her eyes narrowing. "I don't like loose ends," she hissed between her teeth.

With a sigh, she turned to Jay. "So, JayBird, do we sit down and finish our coffee, or would you like to join me in a little hunting trip?" She flashed him a devilish grin, forgetting that her teeth were filed down. Old habits do die hard.

With Calypso taking care of the last standing pokemon, Paladin floated over to Hinata's side. Gently, he took her hand in his own. She turned her blind eyes to face his direction, but instead of letting her stand their in the dark, he opened his senses to her. Not just his six senses of smell, touch, taste, sight, sound, and psychic awareness, but also his emotions.

He let her feel his utter gratitude at not only what she had said, but simply for her presence. He let her feel his happiness at being with her, at being her friend, and of knowing that he had friends. He let her feel every good emotions that curled through his body like happy, purring Persians, slinking through his veins and leaving behind furballs of delight.

Okay, that was a horrible, inappropriate metaphor, but he didn't want to waste anymore brain power on trying to think of a good one. He wanted to spend his time telling - or showing - Hinata how he felt. His emotions ranged all over the place, from happiness to gratitude to love, and he let her feel it all. He smiled softly at all, knowing she couldn't see it but also knowing that she could feel it.

Softly, he leaned his forehead against hers and smiled. "Thank you."

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 20 2009, 03:34 PM

"hunt," growled Jay, sighing. "I've got enough adrenaline in me to rival a dozen cups of coffee." He reached for Sagira's hand, but did not take it. The night wasn't going remotely as planned, was, in fact, going opposite to the desire he had, and he was afraid if he was beset by a wave of anger, he'd end up squeezing her hand too tightly.

The pair went outside, scanning, nearly back to back as they looked up and down the street. Jay found that if he thought about it, really hard, he could just sense Sagira behind him, facing away, scanning the alley. He attributed it to being used to living with psychics, both pokémon and human.

It was Sagira who found him, the cocky blonde that had announced the play acting in the theatre as a planned event. He was face down in a pile of garbage, and looked as if he had been savaged by a rampaging meowth. Sagira bent down, reaching for him, but pulled back when he breathed in slowly. He was, at least, alive.

"Probably hit his head before he got inside," Jay muttered, but even he had misgivings. Sagira stood, the cheongsam falling back over the one exposed leg her crouch had caused, and nodded once. "We should leave. When they wake up, they'll still want a fight."

Jay stepped to the curb and hailed a taxi, a yellow minivan version of which pulled over. He was surprised when there was already someone in the backseat.

"You don' mind sharin' a fare, do ya? We're all booked, see, 'causea the movie bein' out early." The cabbie looked at them expectantly. Sagira rolled her eyes, but shrugged, and Jay let her into the cab, mentally calling for Hinata.

"'Ey," the cabbie said when the four pokemon appeared. "No pokes allowed outside them pokieballs. I don' want no fightin', an' I don't want no vulpix pee in my cab!"

Calypso looked affronted, but Hinata giggled. Don't worry, Jay. We'll take them back home... do try to stay out of trouble.

With some slight hesitation from Paladin, the two popped out of sight, carrying Calypso and Siryn with them.

Sagira was sitting stiffly in the seat, which was turned to face the other seat, presumably so that passengers who were together could talk to each other. Her eyes were hard and wary, and Jay looked at her, then at the passengers.

There, in a black suit, was the young dark haired man they had battled in the Aqua building while they tried to clear their names. Next to him, in a forest green spaghetti strap dress, was the short, bespectacled girl who'd been his partner that day.

Kyle and Misty.

Misty's mouth was open in an O, that was just beginning to widen into a genuine grin. Kyle looked up through his bangs, sighed, looked out the window, and muttered, "awkward..."

"Jay," Sagira hissed, motioning the fact that they were once again without pokémon. Jay nodded, jaw clenching. Misty, however, seemed to have no intent to fight, especially after hearing Sagira call Jay by name.

"You are! I thought you might be, but I couldn't tell when we first met!" She giggled. "Kyle, that's Jay Lange!"

"Who," sneered the young man, and Misty smacked him, lightly, on the arm.

"That's Robert and Samantha Lange's son, goofball!" Kyle seemed interested now, sitting up straighter. Jay fought a groan. Fans of Catch as Catch Can, it seemed.

Misty was staring at him, glossy eyed, and Sagira reached over and took his hand, causing Jay to blink at her. Misty's fervor faded a bit, but not completely. She smirked, a happy, I know something about you smirk that Jay had learned to dread.

"So," she said, drawing the word out. "Happy Birthday!"

Kyle blinked as Jay paled and Sagira shot him an accusing, almost hurt look. "What? How can you possibly know that?"

Misty rolled her eyes, beaming. "It's only on his fansite!"

Jay's mouth fell open. "I have a frickin' fansite?!"

Sagira's eyes narrowed. "It's your birthday?!"

Misty's eyes widened. "You didn't tell her?"

Kyle just slumped back, looking out the window again, but this time he was smirking. "Awkward."

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 22 2009, 12:12 AM

Sagira had always had a temper. It was "just part of her charm," her father had always said. Usually, her temper led to her being pissed off at people who didn't do what she thought that they should. Right now, she was beyond pissed; she was seething.

It was Jay's birthday, and he hadn't told her. It was his birthday, and he was taking her out to dinner and the movies and coffee, when she should be treating him. Worse, though, was the fact that she had to learn that this was his birthday from a complete stranger!

Well, no, not a complete stranger, but close enough.

He should have told her!

Thinking about it was only pissing her off more, and Sagira was sitting tensely in the seat, her teeth clenched tightly together, pointedly not looking at Jay. She could see his regret, worry, embarrassment, rolling off of him in colored waving lines. She ignored him.

"So, what're you two doing?" Misty asked, either oblivious to the tension or very good at pretending not to notice.

"Heading back to our hotel," Sagira said, trying not to sound as pissed off as she was. Considering that she was speaking through clenched teeth, she didn't think she managed too well.

"So did you go out for your birthday, Jay?" Misty asked, turning to him.

Jay, looking decidedly uncomfortable, made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat. "We went out," he admitted.

Misty gave Sagira a sympathetic look, before shaking her head at Jay. "You were stupid not to tell her, Jay. Anyone could have figured it out if they just looked at your fansite."

Jay groaned. "I can't believe I have a fansite!"

It would have been funny, had Sagira not been so pissed off. She had, of course, been on the fansite of Monty Leppenhouser. Not Robert Lange, of course, since he was an awesome actor, but still separate from his character, Monty. She had seen links to the website of Robert and Samantha's son, but had never looked. That being the reason why she had never known that Jay was the son of her two favorite actors.

It would have been funny, and in some corner of her mind, she was laughing, but she mad at Jay. Very mad. And she wanted to remember that she was mad. Angry. Pissed.

The taxi pulled off to the side of the road, the door sliding open.

"Well, this is our stop," Misty said. Kyle stood up and climbed out of the van, but Misty turned to Sagira. "Linda got demoted big time after Dawson got arrested and skipped out on us. We've been working on our own for a while." She smiled and handed her a slip of paper. "Call me sometime, all right? We should get together."

"Sure," Sagira said tersely, slipping the paper with Misty's phone number into her purse with the intention of forgetting to call. "Have a good night."

Misty smiled as she climbed out of the van. "You too," she said. The door slid shut behind her and Sagira gave the driver the name of their hotel. Then, she sat back in the seat and, still glaring, continued to ignore her very-much-in-trouble date.

Posted by: Hungry Hungry Houndoom Jul 22 2009, 02:39 PM

Clack clack clack clack clack...

The cabbie had been most apologetic when the van had stopped no where near the hotel they were using as a base, steaming from under the hood. Jay sat back as Sagira lurched out of the cab, walking as quickly as she could in her heels on the wet ground.

"Ya gotcher hands full with that one, buddy," the cabbie chuckled. Jay sighed, unable to even work up a glare. Besides, he didn't like to glare at people for being right. He paid the man and followed Sagira as quickly as he could.

When he finally caught up, however, he had no idea what to say. He was trying to stay calm as he'd always been taught, trained, even, but something about seeing Sagira seething mad made his blood boil. And not always an angry boil.

But wasn't it his business who he told what? Who cared if he celebrated his birthday with his... Whatever Sagira was to him? Who cared if he decided he wanted a quiet, fun evening that he was willing to pay for, as long as it was what he wanted? What right did she have to get angry.

"Why do you always hide things from me..?" It was Sagira speaking, in the whip-crack voice that excited him and filled him with dreas. Her eyes were blazing as she wheeled, somehow managing to keep her balance. He couldn't help it, however. He opened his mouth to retort.

Just as the calm came over him. His training kicked in. He sighed and bowed his head. "I don't get why this is a big deal, Sagira-"

"Because," she hissed, "it's your Birthday. Because I had to hear it was your Birthday from someone I barely know, one of the enemy, no less!"

"She's not that bad," Jay mumbled, and Sagira looked at him.

"She's Magma, Lange," she snarled. "And that's not the point! What's so hard about saying, 'my Birthday's coming up'?"

"I just..." Jay sighed, but Sagira was not to be placated by melodrama.

"You just didn't trust me."

"No," Jay said, his brow furrowing. "It's not that-"

"Then what?" Her glare wasn't even levelled at him. She was looking away, and that was what finally set him off.

"EVERYBODY knows it's my birthday back home! EVERYONE! I can't get away from it! And there's this... this... HUGE party, and all these people, who... and there's reporters and people I don't even know there, and they're all 'happy birthday, Jay!' And I don't know them and so I'm saying 'gee, thanks Frank!' 'No, it's Steve, hahaha!' 'Gee, thanks Billy,' and no one gets that I don't want to be there, they just keep on going because, yay, we're celebrating a director's kid's birthday! I just wanted to spend a QUIET, FUN evening with someone I'd rather be with more than ANYTHING, and here I've gone and pissed her off... how? BY AVOIDING MY BIRTHDAY!... just... just kill me now." He sat heavily on the bench and bent forward, rubbing the back of his neck roughly.

Sagira wasn't moved. "Oh, you poor little rich boy."

Jay groaned, but Sagira wasn't finished. "I remember Birthdays, before my father was taken. They were nice. After? Most of the time it was Mother and I. No one else wanted to go to the girl who's father left her's house. Sometimes I'd see Mattie, but not often. And no one, no one bothered to tell me or invite me to anything as important as a birthday...So spare me! You had people crawling over themselves to be associated with you..." She trailed off, jaw clenching angrily, and sat at the opposite end of the bench. "It's like I don't even matter."

'You- you don't matter..? Arceus, Sagira, you're...' Jaima sighed. 'You are the only person I wanted to spend today with. Well... you and my family. I just... it... it gets out... and I... I forgot you're not the kind to go... I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." It had hit him, then. He had lumped her in with the rest of the Bluescreen Bombshells, despite knowing that she was head and shoulder beyond them.

Jay sighed. He was mortified. Sure, he'd had bad times, but it was a party once a year, and then it was OK. Once again, life in Jubilife wasn't as horrible as he could have had, and once again he hurt for her sake more than he ever could for his own.

"I don't... understand." She sighed, the anger finally drained from her. "No one ever cared when my birthday was other than my family. Why would you keep it a secret from people if they cared?"

He slipped off the seat and moved in front of Sagira, squatting so he could see her face beyond her hair. He turned to face her fully. "Because only three people in my life have ever *really* cared about me. Everyone else is... they're faking it. And..." Shame poured from his features, spilling into his lap as he looked down. "I forgot that now there's four." She looked at him, then, eyes bright. "I'm sorry, Catseye. You deserve better." He looked her in the eye. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."

She reached out hesitantly to touch his face, then pulled her hand back. "I... Don't hide stuff from me, okay?" she asked, her voice quiet. "I want to know... everything... about you. Everything," she whispered.

Jay looked into her eyes, and he did reach out, wiping her cheek with the back of his forefinger knuckle. "OK. Ask me, and the truth is yours."

Sagira bit her lip. "Anything..?"

If Jay had not looked her dead in the eye, she wouldn't have believed it, but he did, and something came through to her: conviction. Determination... And something very very strong that she'd forgotten the name of. "Anything."

Her eyes said it all, and that he wasn't a natural telepath didn't keep him from reading it as if it were words on a page. Stupid Jay. She already knew when his birthday was. What did he think she was going to ask? ... what did she want to know? She straightened, fidgeting a little and looked him in the eye. "If... If I asked you to k-kiss me, would you..?"

Jay smiled, the weight in his chest rising so fast he almost floated away. "You don't even have to ask. Just... let me know you want to..."

She moved a little closer, and he did as well.

And that's when it happened...

Posted by: Living Arrow Jul 22 2009, 03:53 PM

Ivy didn’t understand what she was doing, really. Well, she knew very well what acts she was committing – they were ruthlessly planned and perfectly executed. What she didn’t understand was the associated consequences that came with her actions. For example, she didn’t understand that no matter who you were - faction, rank or otherwise – pressing the broken edge of a roof tile to a young boy’s throat was a felony and probably worthy of some sort of incarceration.

“Do’s it.” Ivy hissed, her arms and legs wrapped around the boy’s torso like a Seviper ensnaring her prey.

The boy whimpered, tears streaming down his face as wide eyes silently pleaded for his little Oddish to flee. The tiny grass type, also just a baby, watched on in horror as the wild human wearing a dress threatened her friend with a sharpened stone weapon. Ivy had found the child walking on his own near to the hotel where Sagira and Jay had stopped and as soon as she saw the small grass Pokemon, she knew what the mission needed. Without it, the mission would fail. This would be the final detail…

“Bui!” Kappa pleaded from a distance, waving to Ivy for her to let the child go but his calls went unacknowledged.
“Trike!” Beta also urged, scared to jump into action and separate the humans lest Ivy cut the boy by accident.

“Do’s it or I cut ‘is neck open!” Ivy hissed again, pressing the shard deeper. The boy emitted another strangled whimper and the Oddish immediately leapt into action. It jumped high into the air, spinning as it rose and firing off hundreds of tiny pink petals that swirled into the evening air and began to fall, fluttering like a shattered mirror of mother nature down and over the couple below. One sat on a bench, the other leaned forward… and forward…

Firm pressure wrapped around Ivy’s wrists and pulled her quickly away from the child before she had time to think about reacting. Strong arms clamped the girl’s arms and legs close to her body as she was lifted clear from the ground and the boy rolled free, weeping openly and running to his Pokemon. Adults moved in to comfort him, clad in blue uniforms while the immense unseen force restrained Ivy utterly and completely.

Of course, Ivy kicked and snarled and thrashed herself into a frenzy, ultimate intent on completing the mission. Making sure that Sagira was happy. She had to! She HAD to!!!

“Shhh, quiet little one.” Officer Crichton’s bumblebee drone hummed into her ear. “It’s time to come home…”

Posted by: Umbrae Calamitas Jul 22 2009, 11:53 PM

Sagira's anger didn't last long once Jay began talking. Sure, at first she stayed pissed at him, but that was mostly because she wanted to be mad. Once he started to explain, though she didn't understand, her anger began to fade, because he seemed to think he had done nothing wrong. Maybe he hadn't. Maybe Sagira had just been fooling herself and she only wanted him to like her enough to trust her. Maybe she was nothing more than something good to look at, like a crystal figurine on a shelf. Pretty, looks expensive, and sits there gathering dust.

But she didn't get it, because he wasn't talking like he didn't care what she thought. He kept ranting about big parties and how he hated them, but why? She never had anyone celebrate her birthday except her parents, and Mattie when he could come, but sometimes it was safer if he didn't. The others left him alone if they thought he didn't care about Sagira, either. Sure, he sent a present through the mail every year, but it wasn't the same. Birthdays were nice, if a little lonely, for Sagira since she was young, but once her dad left, there was hardly any reason to celebrate them.

If Jay had people who cared, who wanted to celebrate his birthday with him, then why did he hide it? Sagira would have given almost anything to have friends. Anything.

But she wasn't just another face to him, he said. And his eyes... those electric eyes held such truth, such conviction, that she couldn't doubt him.

So when he said she could ask anything, she asked for the one thing that she had been terrified to give him.

Her kiss was death in her dreams. Her kiss killed him. If she initiated the touch of their lips, his heart failed every time. But if she asked... if he kissed her, that would be different. That would be all right. He would still be alive...

She leaned forward on the bench and he leaned forward to meet her. Her eyes slipped closed and everything she had ever wanted was about to come true, and then a familiar sent on the wind caught her attention.

Her eyes snapped open and she had just enough time to see the petals dancing on the wind and think Goddess damn the world, before she sneezed.

Sagira jerked back on the bench, Jay looking at her, startled. She sneezed again, brought her hands up to her mouth, and sneezed again. She felt the tingling in her throat, the clogging of her nose, the itching in her eyes, and she would have sworn as fluently and colorfully as she knew how if she wasn't too busy sneezing.

Someone's pokemon had used petal dance. The extremely beautiful, very colorful grass-type move that Sagira was completely and utterly allergic to.

"Fuck," Sagira managed to snarl, before between the sneezing and the sniffling of her clogged nose, she couldn't speak.

Posted by: Master Houndoom Jul 23 2009, 12:56 PM

Jay had almost no warning. A scent of flowers, rustling of petals, and Sagira's sudden intake of breath. Their lips had been a millimeter apart when she did it; She sneezed, right in his face.

Jay fell backwards with a cry, and very nearly yelled when he saw Sagira sneezing harshly, overcome by whatever allergen was in the air. He didn't have to look far. Some grass pokémon has sprayed petals into the air. Judging by their light green color, it wasn't one of the more colorful ones.

Sagira looked at Jay on the ground, managed to grind out, "Fuck," and fell into another cascade of sneezes and sniffles, overcome momentarily.

Jay began to laugh. He put his head back and roared with laughter, causing Sagira to look at him, scowling and drippy.

"DOT," she yelled, coughing as her roughened throat caught her words, "FUDDY!"

Jay didn't say anything, just stood, grinning and chuckling, and handed Sagira a very slightly wrinkled and rain damp handkerchief. She took it with a harsh snap, and he led her down the street again, trying to hold in his chuckles and not succeeding.

"It's dot fuddy, Jhay," she bit out, a little better able to speak now that she was outside of the immediate effect of the vegetation storm.

"It kinda is, Catseye," Jay sighed, still smiling. "After the whole night, it's just... the perfect ending." The words were said with strong irony, but Jay then surprised Sagira. "Now that I'm not dwelling on how the night isn't going right, I have to admit... this has been the best birthday I've had since I was ten."

Sagira was curious. "What happened when you were ten..?"

"I realized all the people at my big huge parties weren't there for me, they were there to impress mom." He looked at her, then winked. "Kinda dragged the party down."

Sagira looked at him, brow furrowing, but could say nothing, as a new fit of sneezes racked her.

When they finally got to the hotel-base, Jay waited outside as Sagira washed her face, both to get rid of the pollen and to, hopefully, clean up a bit. When she came out, her makeup had been washed off, but her face was scrubbed and no longer puffy. She was clearing her throat, and her voice was kind of scratchy, but she seemed much better. She was, under her breath, hissing something about "fuck all oddish", but Jay chose to ignore it.

"May I walk you home, madame?"

Sagira stopped short, surprised. "You didn't have to wait," she said, in a tone that was meant to be annoyed but somehow came out too soft and too grateful.

"Yeah, well, since I already went through the trouble of setting up my own birthday present, I figured I'd see it through." He smiled at her. "Besides, who wouldn't want to spend time with this beautiful face.

She'd have snorted at him, but she realized he was motioning at her and not himself, and blushed instead. Oddly, she didn't want him to die in a fire for making her blush.

They walked to her room, conveniently next to his, and she opened the door. The radio had been left on, since Jay had walked in during the commotion of her accidental tossing of Paladin, and the taxi had arrived. In the confusion, she had left it on.

"Thank you," Jay said, softly, taking hold of one of her hands (gloveless since she was washing her face) and stroking it lightly. His face was turned down. "You made the night..."

"Bearable?"

"Better. Wonderful." He smiled shyly up at her, and her heart pounded. He seemed unwilling to finish what they had started at the bench. She was pondering how to show him that she wanted to when the radio's song changed.

"Imagine that," Sagira whispered, stepping closer to Jay. He blinked at her, and she smiled, flushing again and not caring. "They're playing our song."

Jay took the hint. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. The surge of electricity between them did not spend itself at once, but floated to and fro from one heart to the other, leaving them breathless when they finally parted.

"Wow," Jay whispered, smiling slowly. Sagira smiled back, and instead of ducking into her room, as she intended, she stepped forward for another kiss.

-----

It was fifteen minutes before Jay entered his own room, dancing on air, knowing he'd be unable to sleep. He ignored Videl, who only got up to dance with him and did not need active participation to do it, and Hinata was safe with Paladin, and Siryn slept in her pokéball. It wasn't until he spun and happened to see it on his bed that he saw the package. It was wrapped in plain white paper and a dark blue ribbon, one that, oddly, had been accented with a nearly-black purple ribbon intertwined. On his birthday usually, his family would give him a white package with a blue ribbon, and he'd know it was from them.

He opened it, and was surprised to find two luxury balls nestled in dark foam inside the box. A plain piece of paper was resting on top of them, and Jay recognized his mothers neat, thin handwriting.



Scrawled underneath, in blocky writing, and pink ink, was Amber's handwriting.



Jay sat on the bed, torn between laughing again and crying. "Oh, man, I'm gonna die!"