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 Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 10:38 pm
Her hand stilled on his hat, her head lifting toward him at his question as she frowned. "Guide Pokemon?" She asked in curiosity. "Well... No, I guess I don't need you to elaborate, the name is self explanatory. I've never thought to ask any of the Pokemon I've met if they wanted to be my... guide I guess? I've never really though I needed one. And, really, this is the first time I've been separated from Luca since I lost my parents so, normally I have him to protect me." She hummed in thought. "So, yes, with Luca I didn't need anyone else. He took care of me since I was really, really little. I'm not sure from how old, I don't even know how old I am now, he found me in the woods-" Oh, did she say that? Why did she keep saying things that made her sound weird or made her or Luca sound really bad? Normally she was really good at just not talking to other humans at all! What was it about this particular human that was so easy to talk to? And so honestly at that?
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Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 10:55 pm
Osmond hummed in response for the first half of her words. It was understandable, after all. If she thought she didn't need one, that was fine, but his own budding concern -- simply on the basis as a civil servant and he had to put the safety of the public first -- felt the urging need to have her get one. Before he could press the matter, she mentioned something peculiar that piqued his attention.
Woods?
"Did you just say... woods?" He blinked at his own inquiry. Osmond wasn't one to pry, but the question leapt to his throat before he had a chance to contain it. "And you don't know how old you are? That's... That's heavy." He scratched at the area by his jowl again with an awkward, pensive look to his face. "My apologies for bringing it up. You needn't speak more of it if you don't want to. But this Luca person -- your adoptive parent I'm guessing? Are they near? I'd, at least, like to let them know where you are. I've figured I've kept you longer than you needed to be. My other questions were of suspicious dealings. You, um, I got an awkward feeling from you earlier. Thought you had some kind of connection to any of the crime syndicates terrorizing this land." He bowed his head. "My apologies again. The precinct has been on high alert lately due to some, errr, supposed mutiny amongst our ranks. So they told us to be weary of anyone or anything out of the ordinary."
Strawberry Gumi Bunnyx I have to head to bed now. I'll type up a reply for you in the morning if you make one after this~
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Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2015 12:18 am
She listened curiously to his explanation of why he had so suddenly become suspicious of her, and she couldn't help but exclaim, startled. "Crime syndicates!? You thought I-..?" She blinked in bewilderment, before bringing a hand up to her mouth quickly to stifle her giggles. "I- I'm so-... So sorry." She giggled out, taking a moment to get control of herself. Her cheeks were flushed again, but this time from the effort of holding back her amusement, and there was a wide smile on her lips as she finally lowered her hand. "Forgive me Osmond... I've caused you so much trouble. The least I can do is give you an explanation. But... I'm told it's an odd story." She frowned softly, a hint of hurt in her expression. "I've shared the story before but... Well, they thought I was too odd to associate with any longer." Luca had warned her against trying to make human friends when she was in her younger teens... The other girl had said quite mean things to her after discovering her father was a Lucario and she lived in the woods. Still. She was older now, and not so easily hurt. At least, she told herself so... "I don't really remember it. I was too young, or maybe I just wanted to forget. But Luca says he found me curled up under a tree in deep forest outside Hearthome City. It's in the Sinnoh region. He considered leaving me there, but I was so small, and I just kept sobbing about fire... Apparently my home, and possibly my original parents had all gone up in a fire. Whether they did or didn't doesn't really matter anymore." She said thoughtfully. "In the end Luca decided to take me and raise me in the forests with him... But, Luca, he's a Lucario, you see. And the forest doesn't always have what a human needs." She bit her lip, a habit of nervousness or shame as she turned her face back down toward the table. "So if I really needed something, like new shoes, he'd go into town and steal them..." She was silent a moment, beginning to trace the gold of his hat again. "When I wasn't quite so small...Ten maybe? He took me with him, he worried about leaving me alone in the forest. But by then Officer's had noticed the theft for quite a while and spread the word around about my father. And... That weren't... They weren't like you. They attacked him, and tried to catch him. And they hurt me, when I tried to stop them..." She frowned, ducking her head lower. " Luca got really angry... We ended up getting away. We didn't go back to towns for a very long time. Not until I was old enough to work small jobs for small things I needed. Everything else I can forage for." Slowly, she raise her dulled blue eyes back up toward him. " When you said you were an officer... I was.. I was afraid.. of you.. " "Because humans have never been good... Because Officers have been worse... Because Luca and I were separated when we got to Zatao.. our boat shipwrecked when we were nearly to the island... I woke up on the beach near Katarina and... And now Luca's not here to protect me." She slightly spun his hat nervously on the table, sinking a little lower in her chair. "You're... You're not going to.. arrest me are you..? I never took more than what I really needed, Osmond, I swear and it was such a long time ago..." She said uncertainly.
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Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2015 5:20 am
The story sounded almost incredulous to his ears. It reminded him of the peculiar front page stories sometimes printed on fad magazines -- Man with Magickarp for Head and Woman Marries Girafarig and has Twins were just of the kooky titles that popped into his head upon the telling of Aura's history. He wanted not to believe her; to instead wait a moment, take in the punch line, and realize he was on candid camera.
That Aura wasn't blind, that a Lucario hadn't raised this young woman since her parents and home went up in flames, that the Fighting-type stole from places to provide her a living, that she was now separated from him come a shipwrecked vessel... He wanted to believe he wasn't, but after an unspoken moment, nothing happened. The world and its events didn't cease, there wasn't any disjointed laughter, loud, airy noise, or banner that read, "You've been tricked!" in red and blue lettering. There was simply him -- an aged officer -- sitting with a girl young enough to have started making a living of her own in a fairly empty cafe whose quietness was pierced by the sound of a humming air conditioner.
The ice cubes in Osmond's drink clinked again and, as if signaled by it, he took a swig. A long drink, just to break his held gaze with Aura for just that second, just to take it everything she said, and when the words settled a bit like the soda in his stomach, he slid the glassware back onto the table; draining half of its contents.
"You don't need to apologize," Osmond told her after a beat. "I'm not... going to arrest you. If what you said was true, and... and I'm not sure why, but I do believe you, you don't have to worry. I have no reason to. I should be the one apologizing to you, honestly." He showed her a smile that probably went unseen; a small peak of white gleaming from the lop-sided parting of his lips. "The past is in the past and so on... Aura." He straightened his spine against the backrest of the cafe's seat. "There's not much I can do in my position, I am simply that, an officer, but it is my duty to protect and I take the oath quite seriously. So, let me help you somehow. I-I, to be honest, I'm not sure how, but you've been met with an unfortunate fate, and there are only so many hands out there willing to provide help to those already down on their luck. Let me set you up at a hotel or something, give a little something to start as well, and when you're well and good making it by on your own, then you can pay me back. I'll even check up on you from time to time. If you're willing, I mean."
His father would've laughed at him right now. "You're too kind, son," the man would say. "She'd probably think you're hitting on her!"
Osmond harrumphed inwardly at the thought. Shut it, dad. He scolded the image of his cackling father with a slight frown. You're in the ground. Go back there and stay.
"I mean," Osmond spoke up again. "I too know the pain of growing up without a parental figure. It's hard sometimes. My own father was a cop -- gunned down during a raid of a Rocket base when I was a young boy. Kind of ironic that I stepped into his line of work too, but I realized he did it not because it almost seemed to run in my family veins, but because it was just the Willis inclination." He thinned his lips into a half-smile. "My family's all driven to help people, y'know?"
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Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2015 6:37 am
She couldn't help but give him a soft smile as he spoke, much more calm now that she was assured he would not be arresting her for her past methods of survival. Her head tilted in curiosity at his offer of help. A very large and generous offer, and she slid her hand across the table carefully, sensing out his hand by the movement's of his aura to take it gently. She squeezed his much larger hand with her small one, shaking her head. "I'm sorry about your father... And, you're offer is so generous. Which is why I really can't accept it can I?" She tilted her head down to the table a moment in thought, before 'looking' back to him, smiling brightly. "I really don't want to be more trouble to you than I already have been. And it's not as if I mind the way that I live, though the seeing you again part sounds nice-.. ah.. I mean.. Well, you're a very kind man." She said awkwardly, blushing as she let go of his hand, realizing she'd still been holding it as she said something so embarrassing. The first thing she did when she saw Luca again was going to be to punch him for not helping her learn human interaction... Was she supposed to feel flustered so often!? Clearing her throat she clasped her hands together on the table to keep from playing with his hat or worse, reaching for his warm hand again. She had a sinking feeling she may like being around other people when they were nice like Osmond. So much for avoiding humans. "Besides-... I just. I don't think I could live alone around people. I wouldn't really know how? I don't know how a lot of things work... I've ah... Accidentally broken things before in stores, and just passing through towns makes me nervous. I don't know what living in one would be like."
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Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2015 6:59 am
"I... I-I see..."
Osmond's mind awkwardly narrowed in to the incredibly soft touch of her hand on his. Like a child beholding the sun for the first time feeling its warmth, he let her hand linger and fought an unfocused silence as he tried to will his brain to keep on talking. It was a little disappointing to him that he couldn't be of more help to her, but she had made her choice, and he had no other option but to accept it. As the officer had considered, it was mostly out of the goodness of his surname's will to help her. Not his own psyche, though justifying that was a catch-22 when, in reality, it was.
Clearing his throat and realizing his recent words were incredibly ableist, Osmond said, "Oh, Arceus, s-sorry about that. I didn't mean it in that regard, but I hope you knew... what I meant..."
He used his other hand to tug at his collar, a little reluctant to move his other one lest Aura find that as a signal to withdraw her touch. "I meant to say I understand where you're coming from, considering your background, but I still want to be of help to you. Somehow." Fishing into the pocket of his uniform, Osmond produced a card, and prodded the corner onto the skin of her knuckle. "This probably isn't the best thing to give you, but the precinct's number is on there." He cleared his throat again. "A-and my own. I'd like for you to, at least, contact me in the near future and let me know how you're doing. If you'd like to, in any case."
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Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2015 12:22 am
Smiling gently as she accepted the card from him, she moved to slid it into her bag carefully so that she couldn't lose it. She decided not to mention to him that... well she technically shouldn't be able to read the numbers on it. She would be able to later when she reactivated her aura. She wasn't sure why she hadn't mentioned it to him just yet... Surely him knowing of the power Luca taught her would put him at ease? But she didn't want to push her luck just yet... "No, please I understand. Thank you, so much for everything Osmond." She finally found someone so kind and willing to look past so many things that others found odd about her. A kind man that she easily could see herself becoming friends with. This was worth sticking around the city for. "I'd like to, yes. I'll be sure to call you... It would be nice to check in with you again..." She blushed, biting at her lip. "I mean... Well, as long as it's not a bother." She said shyly. Shifting her bag up to her shoulder, she gets up to her feet and trails her hand along the table to move to his side. Reaching out, her fingers lightly touched against his arm to find him, before she slid them up to his shoulder, squeezing it warmly. "I'm glad I met you, but I should let you get back to work. We'll meet again." One last squeeze, before she brought her free hand up to brush spread fingers across her closed eyes in a pulse of aura, activating her sight. She let go of him and moved to leave, but couldn't help a glance back- oh... Oh, Arceus. She was sat across from that handsome man with such a dark and comforting aura the whole time!? Thank goodness she couldn't see him before or she'd have been a stuttering fool! She quickly fled the cafe before she could embarrass herself by getting too caught up staring at the shade of energy mapping his features. They would meet again... How she would manage to speak to him was another matter entirely now. ~fin
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