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 Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 11:02 am
Ivy
Oh, lovely, he had stopped. She had honestly expected him to just keep walking considering how rude the Pokemon had been last time she'd taken a walk here. At the curt reply Ivy was left floundering for something else to say in regards to the curiousity that had driven her to greet him in the first place. The Glaceon continued to smile though as the seconds ticked by it gradually got more and more awkward and she glanced from side to side in a panic to find some topic of conver-was he okay?
"Why are you slouching like that? Did you hurt your back?" The question escaped her before she could catch it and she pondered briefly if this had been a bad way to take the conversation. Asking a complete stranger about his back problems was rude, he might have been born with a prominent slouch and here she was calling attention to it in public like a fool!
Oh Arceus, why had she bothered this Wartortle at all? The poor guy was just taking a walk and she'd gone and distrupted it out of a selfish need to figure something out. It couldn't get much worse, when a small part of her mind declared that 'foot already in mouth, see if you can't go for doubles'.
"What was that brown thing on your head earlier? It went in your shell."If only they weren't in the middle of the street. She'd have gone and slammed her head against a nearby structure to try and force some of the stupid out.
Someone was hanging out with Uncle Solaris too much.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 11:33 am
 
Steven & Christine
This was more than a little awkward and just a touch invasive.
Oh well, whatever. He wasn't exactly the best conversationalist and it's not like it was some dark secret.
"It's a Sentret. I'm slouching because she's taking up so much room that I can't stand straight."
Normally he wouldn't be able to stand at all, but the Sentret was almost... rubbery? She could squeeze herself quite tightly.
All in all, though, Steven wasn't really quite sure what to think about the girl in front of him.
The Glaceon seemed young, that was obvious. She was probably too young to actually be a Glaceon, but then again Eevee evolution was fickle. Those that grew up in harsh climates often evolved quickly and naturally to cope and evolution stones very rarely held reservations about being used. All the same, her attitude was almost like that of a toddler.
But on the other hand, she didn't look nearly that young. She obviously wasn't just freshly hatched... she had enough age to understand concepts like privacy and anxiety so she certainly wasn't just a little kid. Maybe she didn't get out much...? Or she could just be one of those oblivious types. It was hard to tell.
Well... whatever. If worst came to worst he could just lie and say he had things to do then leave. It was already a welcome break from "what do I do".
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 5:15 pm
Ivy
Oh, so she hadn't been imagining things! A Sentret! And probably a tiny one if it could fit inside his shell with him.
The Glaceon seemed pleased that he'd given her a proper answer and not gotten annoyed. Others before usually took the latter route and the end result left her weepy-eyed for days. Perhaps she was a bit too sensitive at times, but at least she bounced back quickly from any rejection.
Ivy eyed the Wartortle back as he calmly examined her, probably wondering why she had evolved already. She got that a lot really. Ivy had evolved earlier than she should have out of urgency. Pokemon were capable of many things in times of danger, adrenaline started pumping and mind overpowered matter.
Well, that was then and this is now. Back to the topic at hand which was trying to maintain pleasant conversation. Her question had been answered, but she would like to see the Sentret. She'd never seen one in person before but they were really cute in the books she'd read.
"I'm Ivy Eclipse!" She introduced, realizing that she'd been rude not to do so before. Her greeting was quickly added to with a less enthused, "Yes, I'm part of the Royal family of Eclipse." Everytime she gave her name she got the 'Wait, Eclipse?' response which was always followed with the 'The Royal Family?' question.
It was annoying at times and put to her advantage at others. Let's just say she rarely had to pay for icecream anymore.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 5:44 pm
Steven & Christine
Ivy...? Ivy Eclipse? As in the royal family that ruled and all that? And also relative of Solaris?
That explained a lot about the girl. It really, really did.
"My name's Steven."
It was curt and to the point, exactly as he had spoken the last two times. He didn't really seem impressed by the last name... Solaris had made sure of that.
It was easy enough to guess what she wanted. She was oddly curious about what had gone into his shell and she seemed quite fascinated when he had said it was a Sentret... probably she thought it was cute or something and she wanted to see it.
Of course, there wasn't anything he could really do about it. He couldn't get the little thing out if he wanted to.
It'd be nice if it had hatched like some species and had been capable of speech right out of the egg, but that proved too convenient.
Nooo, he had to get the mutant Sentret from the random egg a guild master he wasn't even affiliated with had shoved on him.
He kind of hated Solaris, he really did.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 6:07 pm
Ivy
Well this was painfully uncomfortable. Was it even worth seeing the Sentret after all this? She could tell he didn't want to talk and had only replied out of...probably nothing better to do. He wasn't the nicest of Pokemon and she disliked couldn't really think of anything else to say other than, "That's a nice name!" Which was probably one of the lamest things you could ever say as far as conversation topics went. She toyed with other ideas. The weather? Guild business? But none of them seemed to work and she was left awkwardly shuffling her paws on the ground in an attempt to stall for time. He probably thought she was weird. Some Glaceon just walks up to you out of nowhere and want to see your Sentret that lives in your shell. That was weird wasn't it? It was a bit shaming now that she pondered over it. How embarassing. It took every ounce of willpower not to just run off in tears.
She was far too sensitive for this, but she stubbornly stuck it out. She was going to see that Sentret, so may as well just ask about it.
"So what's her name? Your Sentret I mean."
That was a good starting point, she hoped.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 6:41 pm
Steven & Christine
Ivy was very clearly awkward, and Steven didn't really care. But he could still answer the question, at least. Maybe throw her a bone or two.
"Christine. I've named her Christine, for now."
A soft chittering came from Steven's shell in response to the name. Apparently, she knew what she was called.
"I'm still trying to figure out what to do with her."
Steven looked down at his own shell before grunting slightly in pain. Hunching over like this for this long wasn't comfortable and it was starting to hurt, badly.
If he kept it up like this he'd probably get stuck this way or seriously injure himself and have to see a doctor but...
If he did that they'd want him to get out of his shell. But he wouldn't be able to, so they'd have to cut it--
No, no no no. No no... no no, no, no, no. No.
"I don't mind talking to you, but could we go somewhere a bit quieter? She doesn't like the noise but if I don't get her out of there soon I'm going to hurt myself."
It expression was a little pained, which was a much more personal turn from the stoic half-grumpiness he had had before.
It still very clearly read however "If you won't, I don't care, I'm doing it anyways so goodbye."
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 8:01 pm
Ivy
"Little Chrissie~" The Glaceon cooed, approving of the name and adding a touch of her own to it. Names sounded cuter when an 'e' was added to the end in her opinion and since the Sentret was a little girl she deserved to have her cuteness amplified. Ivy is the best name ever shut up
"Wait, you don't want to keep her?" Ivy replied somewhat horrified. "What exactly do you plan to do then?" Which was a stupid question as he'd just told her he didn't know what to do. Though when the Wartortle gave a pained sound she dropped the question entirely, watching on in concern. Now that she took a moment to consider it, Sentret must have sharp claws. Having that inside your shell where you couldn't get to had to be uncomfortable. Especially if little Chrissie, Ivy has now programmed that name in, was moving around so much.
His prompt to relocate was met with a blank stare for a moment before the Glaceon began to glance around in a slight panic to find what would be considered a more quiet location. Her eyes fell on a small alley, wedged between two abandoned buildings off to their right. It looked decent enough. Far away from the hustle and bustle of the street but not so far it'd take ages to get to. The buildings around them would, hopefully, block out some of the sound as well.
"How about that?" She asked, though the Ice Type had already turned towards them with the obvious intent to lead the way. She honestly wanted to help and if she got to see the Sentret in the process that was an added perk. Pokemon hurting was not something she enjoyed witnessing at all. Maybe he'd be in a better mood sans Chrissie in his shell too.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 8:17 pm
Steven & Christine
"Yeah, that'd be fine."
A quiet alley hadn't exactly been his ideal choice, but close was good too. Close meant less walking. If it was quiet enough, that would be nice.
Steven did his awkward, hunched walk into the alleyway a bit behind Ivy and took a quick look and listen.
This would... this would be quiet enough right? Most of the noise was being filtered out and no one was passing by.
God, he hoped it would be quiet enough.
Steven gave his shell a few light taps around his stomach. It was a bit of a trick he'd learned... If she heard something hitting the shell and she was willing to come out, she would. She would always come to investigate whatever was tapping against her abode. It was the only way he knew to get her out of there, but it wouldn't work when she was scared or asleep.
Steven made a series of slightly pained expressions as a quiet shuffling came from the inside of his shell. Very suddenly, his back straightened out and his neck came right up and back. A second later, a pair of ears and eyes shot out of the shell before emitting a shocked squeak. Christine quickly did a full turn sending her fluffy little tail outside of the shell before the rest of her body disappeared back inside.
Steven tapped the shell again a few times a little more harshly.
"Come on, get out of there. Even if you want back in I'm not hunching over, get out."
Hesitantly, the tail went back inside of the shell as the Sentret turned back upwards. Her little fingers took hold of the neck of Steven's shell and out, ever-so-slowly, came her ears and eyes.
Very quietly, yet enthusiastically came the young girls voice from the shell.
"Hi!"
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 8:34 pm
Ivy
Ivy took her time walking, after ever prancing step she paused to wait for the shuffling Wartortle to catch up before continuing her teetering little dance to the quiet alley that lay before them.
Trotting slowly past the buildings and watching the ground warily for any broken glass, the Glaceon turned to face the water type once more as he began to tap on his shell. It took her a moment to realize he was trying to coax the Sentret out, but when the tiny creature appeared just to dive back in her heart sunk.
Aw, she didn't get to see it that well. That tail looked so fluffy though, surely the rest of the Pokemon was just as plush and adorable. Sigh. Despair.
Oh, but wait! He was trying again it seemed and Ivy shifted closer to see without really realizing she might be invading his personal space. As the tail flicked back out of sight her golden eyes widened. Oh!
Two long brown ears popped out of the rim of the shell and a pair of bright eyes peered back at her. How cute~!
The pitched little voice greeting her shocked the Glaceon into a silence for a moment before she responded with an equally enthused "Hi!" of her own. By that point she was practically leaning against the Wartortle to peer at the tiny Pokemon dwelling in his shell. How could he ever want to get rid of her? She was too precious!
"Why don't you know what to do with her? Keep her, she's adorable~" As she spoke she raised a leg and flexed the toes of her paw in a tiny wave at the Sentret.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 9:20 pm
Steven & Christine
This place is no longer safe! ABANDON SHIP, ABANDON SHIP!
Christine seemed to dislike the fact that her sanctuary of inside-Steven's-shell had been invaded and chose instead to bolt out. She ran up Steven's face (much to his surprise) and after a moment she had taken her old perch on the back of his head back. Her body was laid against the back of Steven's head as her toes skirted the top of his shell and her arms held her in place.
She looked straight forward at Ivy and, though a little shy, spoke again in an identical tone. It was almost as if she had a tape player for a voice.
"Hi!"
Steven rubbed the front of his face lightly, but otherwise didn't seem to take much notice of the Sentret's actions.
"I'm not really sure I can keep her."
If Ivy was astute enough to notice, she would see that Steven kept his head very still as he spoke. Normally, one moved their head in small ways as they spoke, but Steven's stayed still.
"I mostly do mercenary work and treasure hunts. If I try to keep her it means I either have to take her into the wilds with me or I have to leave her on her own."
Steven's arms slipped into his shell and the Wartortle straightened considerably. Though you couldn't see inside of his shell, it was pretty obvious that he was rubbing his back lightly inside of it.
"If I leave her alone, then that's bad. There's plenty of things that like Sentret for lunch. But if I take her with me, I'm taking her right into combat."
Which was, of course, also bad. "Screwed if I do, screwed if I don't" was Steven's scenario.
"I hadn't originally intended to take care of her to begin with. The egg ended up with me and it hatched before I could give it up to the orphanage."
Meanwhile, Christine simply stayed where she was on the back of his head, completely oblivious to the fact that she was being discussed as a hindrance.
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2011 5:48 pm
Ivy
Ivy blinked in surprise when the Sentret slipped out of the shell to Steven's head. A grin crossed her face at the display. How cute.
"Hi!" The Glaceon replied once again, clearly realizing the Sentret only seemed to know this one word. Well, it was a baby. Vocabulary would come later.
The evolved Eevee listened as the Wartortle explained his situation, noting he had a point. Since he didn't seem to have a partner or anyone around little Chrissie would be alone! On her own she'd be in danger, and even with him she'd be at risk of attack. Single parents must have the worse time trying to make a living, she thought, but a smile quickly took over her distraught expression.
"I-I could watch her." Yes, trust the Glaceon you just met with your newborn child. That was stupid. Ivy seemed to realize such and quickly added, "The guild can watch her you know. Ms. Epitaph is good with kids and we can find a room for you too to stay in. Maybe even a team to take you guys in, they do it all the time." The guild was maybe not the safest place as of right now, but it was better than no place at all.
Ivy was determined to help this cute little Sentret and her 'dad'. Thinking into it though, maybe he didn't want to be a part of the guilds, but that didn't mean he couldn't take advantage of it. A plan slowllllyyy formulated in her head and she bit her bottom lip. That was bad, she'd be breaking some rules but...
"I can have you registered as a 'team', that gives you your own room as well as the guild funding any living expenses and food." The way she said team clearly meant she would be lying. Teams were only permitted to stay in the guilds if they answered the call for assistance and did missions to help keep the place funded, but....what was one little lie? Surely they had enough to cover a single Wartortle and little Sentret.
She'd have to break into the team files and slip in a forged 'team registration' paper. From there it'd be easy to keep her tracks covered.
For a sweet little Glaceon, she had the same scheming mind as her mother.
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2011 8:37 pm
Steven & Christine
"Hi!"
"I--... T--..."
Steven opened and shut his mouth just as he started the words. "I can't do that" and "Thank you, that would be a big help"... he couldn't say either of those things.
He didn't have the money to take care of her. He knew that. And in order to get the money, he would have to put her in harm's way.
"Hi!"
That was something he couldn't do. He couldn't put her in danger, he knew that much. That was out of the question.
And Ivy's offer, as it was, solved everything. He wouldn't need to worry about money or food and he would be able to take the time necessary to raise her. He'd be able to take care of her and, at the very least, raise her enough that she would be able to safely stay on her own if he left her. He would have to be careful to choose safe territories to work in... but it was possible.
"Hi!"
But on the other hand, it was stealing! He was taking from the guild. Steven had a very strong sense for money and more than anything he valued it. Theft wasn't just out of the question, it was heinous. It was completely unethical and it was well beyond his moral boundaries... stealing simply wasn't an option.
"Hi!"
But... he didn't have anyone who could take care of her. He wasn't trusting her to strangers, either. And he couldn't take care of her himself, not while he was working... It was an extremely generous offer, to boot. Even with his morals, it was difficult to consider doing anything but taking it and living an easy life, at least for a while.
"Hi!"
"Two months." He made the statement to himself, more than anyone. He pulled his gaze back to the Glaceon and said it once more, firmly. "Two months. And I'll pay the guild back within the year. I'll find someone to take care of her, or I'll find a new line of work or I'll find a team to join. Put me up for two months and I'll pay the guild back for the food and room within a year."
That was the most he could do. He couldn't harm Christine... she wasn't his flesh or blood, but all the same. But theft was out of the question.
He would take on the room as a debt while he found a way to find some work. When that time came, he would save up and he would clear the debt personally.
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2011 12:23 pm
Ivy
Ivy waited patiently. Truth be told she would have been wary of a Pokemon who agreed quickly to such a thing, but she didn't expect him to refuse either.
It was a difficult decision she could tell. It was nice he didn't want to take advantage of the guilds, but in all honesty they wasted money of the silliest things anyways. Her Uncle especially. Not to mention Ivy had an inkling where this Sentret's egg had come from.
Was he seriously still handing out eggs as rewards? Sure, Pokemon adandoned eggs on the guild steps all the time but they weren't just toys to pass around. It was ridiculous. The guilds owed the Wartortle that much for making him a 'father' out of nowhere.
Her ears flicked with each cheerful little greeting the Sentret spoke and smiled in response as she continued the waiting game.
When he finally spoke she was a bit taken back by the statement but nodded along regardless.
Whatever helped him sleep at night. She'd not have it though, it wasn't much to take care of two Pokemon and chances are things would change before this two months was up anyways.
"Sure, whatever you like." Ivy replied, raising a paw to scratch lightly at her right ear. "Would you like to go there now? I can go ahead and find a room for you and deal with the registration later."The chances she'd be found out were slim to none. Uncle Solaris never checked things, especially not something in the files he'd already reviewed before. If she slipped the paper in then no one would be the wiser.
"Would you like that~?" She cooed, redirecting her attention to the Sentret, "Are you hungry?" The second question could just as easily be meant for Steven as well as she didn't expect Christine to reply with anything other than 'Hi'.
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2011 2:53 pm
Steven & Christine
Well, that was a load off of his mind. No more worrying about money or... anything. It was a relief to say the least.
With Ivy's question and a much freer mind the Wartortle realized just how hungry he was. Deep thought tended to make one neglect the body unintentionally.
A full meal would be a bit much, but getting something light to eat would be good. It was best not to delay too long... the sooner the room was taken care of the better.
"Yeah, actually. I know a nice cafe that's not far from here... a friend of my owns it. It shouldn't be too loud at this time of day."
More importantly, it wouldn't be bad if he could catch Margaret there... he had a good enough of an idea as to what he should do but the advice of a mother was welcome.
Thankfully Sentrets seemed to be a fairly independent species from birth or else Steven likely would have ripped his ears off by now.
"My treat." He tapped a pouch on his belt lightly, half to bring attention to it and half to feel it himself. "I have plenty left over from the guild's little adventure into the forest."
He wasn't really tight on money in the short term just... taking care of a kid wasn't a brief investment.
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2011 8:52 pm
Ivy
Ivy seemed content with the situation now. Who'd have thought that simple curiousity would lead her to helping with an even bigger problem. She was happy she could help, but what were the chances? It seemed fate had a way of smiling on those who needed the assistance.
The Glaceon gave an eager nod at that, lunch sounded nice. She'd not been to a lot of the places here so she had probably never been in the cafe that Steven's friend owned. The prospect of seeing a new place was always nice, she had an adventerous side but knew her limits.
"That sounds lovely!" She pipped up, considering whether to protest on whether or not to allow him to treat her but thinking on it he probably felt annoyed he had to go to the guilds for assistance as it was. That he'd promised to pay them back meant he disliked owing anyone anything and she could, at the very least, let him do this.
"Thank you very much~" After this she'd head back to the guilds and do the paperwork, it'd be easy to forge her uncle's signature and he wouldn't be around. He usually wasn't lately.
Anyways, since she didn't know where they were going she'd allow Steven to lead the way and would follow along in that case...
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