MT - Collaboration

[Kelyias]

It had been the first time that Raelynn did one of these things. Normally she wasn't one to get swept away in movements, but the talk went through the city of Grovehart and sure enough, she found herself at the Ethos home base, applying to be in their ranks. It had earned good credit from Diana, which she was thankful for. At least she had a friend, sort of, in here too. She'd been quite intimidated by the knowledge needed for things in there, not knowing anything herself about any sort of battling or the like. She didn't own... battle Pokemon. I mean, Bongo knew how to kick someone in the shin, but that wasn't an actual battle. The thought terrified her a little in all honesty, but Bongo knew how to stand his ground and when Raelynn had casually mentioned for the small ... squid like creature to become a proper battler, he was all the more enthusiastic. Much more than he was when she asked him to drum in her songs.

That's how, eventually, she ended up here. In front of a large, pristine white building. It wasn't anything specifically Ethos related, though Diana did nudge her with a sum of credits to go take the course. Something about making medicines? In the long run, she supposed, it would be handy to know these things. Still, she was quite nervous, and as she held Bongo in her arms looking up at the building she couldn't quite muster the courage to step inside just yet.

"What if we fail horribly, Bongo."

The Pokemon in her arms flailed a little with its legs in response.

"I know, we'll never succeed if we don't even try."

She sighed as she translated for the creature. He truly was a 'fuck around and find out' type of Pokemon, while she preferred to at least... y'know... be a bit secure before committing.

--

[Aldarch]

- Sparks didn't often leave his little cave in Wintervale. It's like he was accustom to living underground by now, and the surface was... A struggle. His pale complexion didn't help - in Brookfell the heat often turned him red as a Corphish. Wintervale helped - he was usually covered up in his thick, puffy Parka coat if he ever did venture to the upstairs world. But this was Grovehart. Sparks couldn't get away with layers and layers, it was fairly pleasant and the inner city was much warmer. 

Viggo had assured him that he'd be fine between the warm weather and his unending fear of tangling with the authorities - that and the man had said he wouldn't be partaking in anything eventful where his "man in the chair" would be necessary. Viggo was elsewhere in Grovehart meeting with an acquaintance of a kind, and encouraged Sparks to do something useful with his time. He wasn't much of a Pokemon battler, in fact most of his partners were small, flighty and more bark than bite. There was a reason Sparks was considered a runt when with his clan.

For now Sparks made his way to the training room, and although he might not have had a big puffy hood to hide his ears he had tucked them back into a beanie hat like an inconvenient hair-do. His System emitted a signal to mask his hacked status, ensuring that to others he came across as stable. He looked more like a Pokemon babysitter than anything else. A noibat perched on one shoulder, an Elekid fusion holding on to his other, and a big Grape strapped into a baby carrier on the front - all the while he was following directions on his holopad from his wrist. It was only then that he walked directly into Raelynn, stumbling back a little and screaming. Sparks nearly jumped into action, waving his arms about and flinging the two Pokemon from his shoulders - Ziggz could just fly, put Tang just fell to the ground with a thud and made a noise of complaint. Of course, he'd also yelled a loud "I'M SO SORRY" at Raelynn as well. When Sparks heard the sound of Tang hitting the ground he clicked what he'd done, turning and picking up the Snivy into his arms.-

"Fuck, sorry my guy. Got spooked."

--

[Kelyias]

Raelynn stumbled but luckily caught her footing quickly enough with her tail stabilizing her by propping her up against the floor. She did, however, instinctively drop Bongo who landed on his feet like a feline. 

"Oh-- are you okay??"

She asked, moving over and pressing a hand to the man's shoulder, looking over at his pokemon to see if they had gotten injured either.

"I'm so sorry, I was about to go in but I got too nervous, I shouldn't have blocked the door for anyone else. Are your companions okay? Did they get hurt?"

Raelynn's friendliness was often welcome in Grovehart- so she was oblivious to the fact that he might not be used to someone touching him to see if he was alright. Still, she kept her hand on him until he'd respond-- or at least that was the plan before Bongo marched over and threw his leg back-- causing Raelynn to let go and pick him up just in time before his leg hit Spark's kneecap. She held him in her arms and looked back apologetically.

--

 [Aldarch]

"Uhh--"

- Sparks somewhat froze when Raelynn touched him on the shoulder, looking up at her and blinking a couple of times. He might as well have not heard a word she said, staring at her a little. The gears eventually started turning again, and he held Tang up above his head like Simba to keep him away from the oncoming Bongo. Still holding the Elekid in the air, he looked more and more concerned as he stared at Raelynn.-

"I-- Your head..."

- He pulled a face, but even he was unsure what sort of expression it was. To him, Raelynn looked like she had a head injury and she was bleeding from her forehead.-

"I don't know first aid! Fuck! I can call an ambulance?? Are you okay? I must have hit you pretty hard I'm so sorry--"

--

[Kelyias] 

Raelynn stared off a little in confusion, holding Bongo in one arm while she pressed the other against her head- pulling away and looking at it in confusion when she found nothing. She didn't think she'd hurt her head, but maybe she just didn't realise?

"I'm fine? What--- OHHHH."

It dawned on her then, snapping her fingers together before she grinned.

"These are small scales! Small ones! Itties!"

She explained, reaching up to tap them again. They weren't hard scales- more like soft silky scales that covered her forehead and her scalp- though luckily it hadn't prevented her hair from growing.

"You can touch them if you want to reassure yourself! No blood, pinky promise."

--

[Aldarch]

"Itties..."

- Sparks repeated like he'd never heard the word before, slowly lowering Tang from the sky and lowering him into the ground. A spark moved between the two plug-like protrusions on his head like he was annoyed, but little more. Ziggz came and settle back on Sparks' shoulder when he had the opportunity.-

"No! No.. I'm good. I don't need to touch your head."

- He waved his hands in his defence.-

"Just glad you're not hurt. I've never been to Grovehart... Stuck my nose in the directions a bit much. If not you, then.. Probably a signpost, huh. That might have hurt more - not that I'm saying walking into you is like, less, or--! I dunno' what I'm saying..."

- Sparks cleared his throat, trailing off and pulling up the hologram on his wrist again. Grape chimed in, her fat little tail wiggling in the carrier and raising her arms. The spark of electric on her head brightened up and an electric shock sent through Sparks and his other Pokemon - but he didn't seem phased. Instead he just pat Grape on the head until her spark went out.-

"I know, I know. I think we're here though!"

- He double-took a few times between the hologram and the building Raelynn was too nervous to enter.-

"You're... Here for the training? Right?"

--

[Kelyias]

"Oh yea. Signposts hurt."

Raelynn was quick to agree, nodding absentmindedly, like she'd absolutely know that from experience. Which, I mean, she did. She was an avid daydreamer and would think about scenarios when listening to songs- so her and signposts had become quite well acquainted. She'd looked up at the sound of the carrier wiggling, and looked at Grape with a loud 'awhhh'. Though she was quickly distracted from the topic on hand as Spark's question finally caught up with her.

"Oh! Yea..."

She said again, trailing off as she looked at the building.

"I'm not people anxious or anything but I'm not exactly good at these sort of things. Which, I suppose, is what... the training is for. It's training after all. And Diana said it might do me good in the future to do it-- so I think I should? But--"

Raelynn rambled a little bit to herself, voicing her thoughts instead of thinking about them now that she had another person nearby. Bongo wiggled his feet contently in her arms, not really caring if they went through with it or not.

"Are you here for that too?"

--

[Aldarch]

"Diana?"

- Sparks accidentally questioned out loud, and the moment he did it's like he could feel Viggo looming over his shoulder. Especially after the man had warned him off of talking too much for certain reasons. For a net runner and dealer, he often let conversation get the better of him. It's why he preferred his little tech cave. He shuddered like he felt a poltergeist.-

"Yeah! Yeah. That's it. That's me. That's what I'm here for. Y'see my Pokemon are..."

- He looked down at the array of little buddies he had around him.-

"Not the strongest.. And Grape is just... Grape."

--

[Kelyias]

"Grape. I love that."

She smiled and looked at all his pokemon all around him. She wouldn't have guessed he'd be on his way to some training-- more like... a pokemon park. Her hands moved to lift Bongo up higher into view then as well.

"This is Bongo. He's the opposite. He always gets into fights and my parents won't let me spend all my money on buying the cheaper potions to make sure he's alright."

Raelynn chuckled a little as Bongo stared Sparks down before lowering him again.

"Do yoouuu want to go in together?"

Her tail swished a little from side to side as she looked between him and the building.

"I might feel less intimidated, I think. Totally cool if you don't want to, obviously!! Don't feel pressured!"

--

[Aldarch]

"... I don't think he likes me one bit."

- Sparks nearly recoiled at the look he received from Bongo. Grape responded in turn by blowing a raspberry very loudly at the other Pokemon. With a tap on his belt the Noibat returned to it's Pokeball, leaving only Tang and Grape.-

"Together?"

- He poked himself in the chest, his beanie moving a little with the perk of his ears, but he was quick to pull it back down with a flush.-

"I can do that. I... Don't think the friend I came with would mind. He's meeting somebody. I've got time to kill - I mean, I was doing the thing anyway, the training thing, but.. Y'know what I mean."

- Sparks waved a hand.-

"We'll miss it if I don't shut up."

--

[Kelyias]

"Hehe... it's just his face, don't worry."

Raelynn was quick to dismiss any worries. She smiled happily at the acceptance of heading in together and perked up.

"Perfect! Let's go!"

The Skeledirged fused woman leaned down to put Bongo on the floor and go ahead into the building now with no second thoughts. The building had big, open revolving doors along with the usual normal door to the side for those who couldn't get past the revolving one. Bongo ran after her, sticking close by her legs now that he had been left to his own devices. 

The inside of the building wasn't too busy, though there were bright holo signs directing any people there for the training to follow that specific path. The rest, Raelynn presumed, was probably for more Nera examinations. She'd heard that they'd done physical exams here, too- though hadn't mustered the courage to go for that yet.

Looking to her TD for the time, she waved Sparks to hurry up along.

--

[Aldarch]

- Sparks followed Raelynn inside, making sure Tang was ahead and stepping around him as he was used to by now. He was nervous being anywhere that wasn't his safety bubble, especially being unable to Pokemon battle to defend himself. He had his fists and that was about it - but hopefully he wasn't needing to fist fight anyone in a lab.

He mildly jogged to catch up to Raelynn, looking over her TD subtly to look at the time.-

" So you're... "

- Sparks looked his new friend up and down, mostly her feet and her hands.-

" Permanent, right...? Sorry! It's... Personal to some people, I know! I'm just curious... Promise. It looks pretty cool though." 

--

[Kelyias]

Raelynn was pulled from her device as she looked at Sparks, moving her hand out of the way to look down at her own feet. Oh yea. She wasn't wearing a suppressor.

"Oh, yea!"

She beamed a smile over at him- canceling out of her TD as she turned to face him.

"It just happened while I was singing one day. Look!"

Clearing her throat a little, she opened her mouth to let out a singsong note- nothing of any importance or loudness, just a 'lalala' basically, and a small little firey bird appeared at her fingertip. She held it out for Sparks to see- though taking care not to get too close in case he was wary of the fire.

"I've read that these appear on the pokemon I'm fused with, too. But more as a permanent partner, spirit, sort of thing? I'm not too sure since I've never actually met one of those yet-- Mine isn't- though. But I can control it when it's out."

Raelynn was happily showing off her fusion, letting the bird fly around a little around them before it perched on her finger again.

"I set a lot of things on fire by accident when I first found out."

--

[Aldarch]

"Huh..."

- Sparks nearly went cross-eyed looking at the odd fire bird presented to him, shaking his head after.-

"Yeah, usually you can tell.. The Pokemon. I had no idea. But! I guess I'm kinda' pleased someone else had issues! Not-- that I'm happy you had issues-- not like that!"

- He waved his hands, again.-

"Y'see I'm a Tech-y. But electric fusion. I busted... A loooot of stuff. But now it works out pretty well, actually. These guys don't shock me at all anymore."

- Sparks gave an earnest smile. It didn't last very long, his TD flickered and a warning flashed over his eyes.-

"AH-- We're late! We need to go!"

--

[Kelyias]

Raelynn gasped and basically reached forward, grabbing Sparks' hand and dashing with him to follow the signs. It wasn't far at all, just a couple of turns- until she saw the door at the end of the hallway open. At least-- until it started to close.

"Wait!!!"

She yelled out, waving her free arm. The person looked over and didn't close the door- but didn't wait either. When she'd finally pulled Sparks along to a stop she looked back for Bongo and Tang. Bongo joined her side as they walked in to-- what could only really be construed as a classroom with several tables. Each table had two people sat together conversing, and a large electrical device in front of them. There was no instructor or the like, or at least there didn't appear to be.

"We... Weee.... phew... we made it..."

Raelynn huffed, leaning over to catch her breath.

--

[Aldarch]

- Sparks spun a few times one they were only-just in their class, looking for Tang only to see him waddling behind at great speed, only just managing to get inside. He took grape from her carrier, settling her down on the ground and returning her to her Pokeball before she had chance to escape. The carrier folded back neatly into a backpack, and Sparks leaned down to pick up Tang in his arms like you would hold a cat. Be now all eyes were definitely on the two latecomers.-

"But at what cost..."

- He almost muttered, finding his way to an empty table so that Raelynn could sit up next to him. Tang hopped off onto the table. He was only little after all.- 

--

[Kelyias]

Raelynn gave an apologetic grin to the people that were now definitely watching them before following behind Sparks and sitting down. Bongo also wiggled, wanting to get up so she pulled the stool next to her a bit closer and sat him on it. He wiggled his legs happily and spun the chair though-- he still couldn't see over the table anyway. On the table were various ingredients and potions, neatly labeled and tightly sealed. The 'Mushrooms' one caught her off guard and she pulled the box closer, opening them to see.. well.. mushrooms. Letting out a little 'huh', as if she was surprised by the sight, she then started to look around to try and see if there was an instructor- the person who'd held the door open was sitting in a student seat. Before she could ask though, a holographic display started in front of each of the tables with a small interface at the bottom so people could pause or rewind if they liked to. On the screen was Blackthorn with another scientist in front of a similar workbench as they were.

Blackthorn- "Hello and good day to you aspiring students! It's a beautiful day to learn, isn't it?"

The holographic Blackthorn chuckled as he reached for his belt and pulled out a Pokeball, releasing a small Politoed/Igglybuff fusion. It had a little bruising and didn't quite seem healthy, but it was happy to see its owner before sitting down and facing the screen.

Blackthorn- "This is Magna, a lovely little Pokemon owned by one of our scientists here. Owning Pokemon comes with a lot of risks and responsibilities. A Pokecenter isn't always around the corner ready to heal your Pokemon, nor will a Pokeball always function. In those cases, you must be prepared to heal and aid your own companions. Today, we'll go over several items and tricks that can help you on your Pokemon journey--"

As the introduction ended and the usages of several potions and medicines started to be explained, Raelynn leaned her head onto her hand. She thought the whole training was going to be more hands-on from the get-go, though she should've... expected some sort of introduction she supposed. When an eternity passed (about 20 minutes) and all the items had been mentioned and explained, Blackthorn finally took in his hands some of the ingredients set on the table.

Blackthorn- "And now onto the part I am sure most, if not all of you, have been waiting for. The making of your own potions! We recommend getting quality ingredients for the best results, and we've laid out some of the ones we use in our own facilities."

The rustling of the other students mimicking Blackthorn was what roused Raelynn out of her disinterest, sitting up finally for the good part.

Blackthorn- "You'll want to grab the flask and break up the following--"

The scientist in the video started working on Blackthorn's instructions, working clearly so that the viewer could see what they were doing. Finely chopping up one of the mushrooms into small diced cubes and mixing up a hyper potion on the side. 

--

[Aldarch]

" I want you to know that I'm only good with two things. Tech, and sandwiches."

- Sparks spoke as he counted on his fingers before Raelynn, looking to the group of odd ingredients.-

"Don't you think his Pokemon looks like a potato though."

- He had leaned in to make the vaguely insulting comment when it came to the fusion in the training video though. Still, he followed the instructions alongside Raelynn to start making the formula needed for the potions.-

--

[Kelyias]

"Really?? I should've chosen a different partner then-- I'm only good with music."

Raelynn whispered back to Sparks, laughing quietly. She was... a little bit... depending on him. She'd tried cooking and baking before, but was more of an 'I don't need measurements I go off of gut feeling' type of baker. Which-- wasn't great. At the mention of the Pokemon however couldn't stop herself letting out a loud snort, earning herself a shush from the people behind her. 

"A potato.."

She sniggered softly, nudging Sparks and turning back to pay attention and try not to laugh again. Her own diced mushrooms turned out to be more... uhh... well... not cube-shaped and Bongo kicked her leg somewhere in the middle when she was about to cut her finger. The interruption was very abrupt but it got Raelynn to pay more attention to her fingers. The video itself had already gone up a couple more steps, putting in the mushrooms into the sludgy hyper potion created by mixing water with finely diced fruits and mushrooms. Raelynn looked at the video and back at her own, first iteration of cut mushrooms before looking behind them to see where the other people were at.

"Oh no-- I wasn't paying attention to the potion part. Did you catch it?"

She whispered to Sparks, using her hands to gather her mushrooms and put some of them in a little beaker for the potion. Bongo tapped her with his leg again and full-body gestured to put all of it in. 

--

[Aldarch]

" Uhh--"

- Sparks looked down to Raelynn's sad pile of cut mushrooms, but helped her pop it into the solution no less. He'd been trying to catch up the rest while he let her do her own thing, throwing in the fruits and giving it a good whirl around to combine it. After that he followed the next instructions when it came to finalising, and he was rather precise with his work.-

"There! All caught up."

- Sparks slid the potion across to Raelynn then, tapping his head.-

--

[Kelyias]

"Oh thank Arceus, you're a lifesaver."

Raelynn basically signed a cross across her chest and looked over at the potion. She reached over for some more mushrooms and hurriedly chopped them before putting them in as well, and the mixture turned from a bright yellow to a sort of... muted blue. 

Blackthorn- "If you've followed diligently and did as instructed, the potion should now be a nice ocean blue. To test if it is up to snuff, you are free to give it to your Pokemon partner as I'm sure everyone has brought theirs along. A potion such as this at full health won't have much effect, but if the Pokemon has a savory tooth of its own it may be an indicator of how well your potion tastes! The better the taste, the better the effect after all."

The Skeledirged fused woman seemed a bit apprehensive about giving the potion to Bongo, and watched as the scientist on the screen gave it to the Politoed fusion, spraying it on its tongue. It seemed to perk up and do a little dance on the table. 

"What do you think, Bongo? You want to try it?"

Bongo scooted and shuffled a bit to stand up on the chair and nod. Putting a bit of the beaker's solution in a smaller flask and putting the spray cap on. She then swiveled the chair to Bongo and looked him over a little bit before reaching up for the flap and lifting it gently to reveal a small mouth. She sprayed it in, then, and Bongo seemed to think about it before he got a little bit dizzy and stumbled a bit. Raelynn, quick to catch it, snatched Bongo and placed him on her lap instead with a chuckle.

"I might need to practice it a few more times, don't I."

--

[Aldarch]

- Sparks looked mortified as Raelynn revealed where Bongo's little mouth was. He leaned away like he'd seen a ghost, some of the strands of hair on his head standing up with his sudden static. He tried not to make a noise, not wanting to offend the creature and have it try to kneecap him again.-

"A... Are you sure that was the mouth?"

- He slowly sat forward again.-

"I'm sure it'll be fine! A few more goes you'll be a pro."

--

[Kelyias]

"Yes! It's a little beak down there."

She lifted Bongo up horizontally to show, though he wiggled his legs and the beak under him snapped towards Sparks a few times.

"He won't need to struggle with things anymore once he evolves, bless him."

Raelynn put Bongo back down on her lap and gave him a good few pets. She smiled at the reassurance before her attention was caught by the Blackthorn on the recorded screens.

Blackthorn- "Alright! So with that, you have now learned how to create a Max Potion. These will come in handy whenever you're in a pinch, as they'll make your Pokemon feel better no matter how roughed up they are! Next up--"

"Oh, shoot!"

She quickly returned Bongo to his own seat so she could start paying attention.

"Uhh-- ... Sorry I've only just realized I didn't introduce myself! I'm Raelynn! Can I get your contact details after this? In case I need help?"

--

[Aldarch]

"That's... Nice.."

- Sparks shuddered at Bongo as he snapped in return, somewhat holding Tang for comfort. He fumbled a little as the class continued on screen though, looking to Raelynn as she introduced herself. He wasn't entirely sure how he was supposed to introduce himself these days. Sparks vaguely pointed to himself, face contorting in thought.-

"... Sparks?"

- Some kind of introduction.-

"S-sure though..! Just in case we need help."

- He nodded to confirm as he tried to catch up with the instructions. Lucky for Raelynn, Sparks' accuracy with his work was nigh impeccable. He wouldn't even dream of installing cybernetics if it wasn't, at least she was in capable hands for the rest of the class.-