A Very Merry Hobo Birthday... To You!

[tsunbird]

Who: A whole lot of losers (this can mean you). Specifically, Ankh, Eiji, probably all of the Senshi, Martin, Elly and Fei. Nozomi? Possibly more Love Lives?? A WHOLE LOT OF LOSERS... I tagged everybody I knew would be here that I knew the canons for. :<
What: Hino Eiji's birthday!!
When: October 22! All day, all night, as long as y'all wanna celebrate this hobo.
Where: Hikawa Shrine.

He was pretty sure Rei had said something about it being Eiji's birthday. He didn't actually care overmuch, since she had come to him with the request that he take Eiji and distract him until a specific time, and given him the idea of making him buy ice cream. Ankh liked ice cream. In fact, it was about his favorite thing. So when it had been suggested that he could force Eiji into buying him some, whilst still fulfilling some kind of request from Rei, it meant he was getting ice cream and having the grumpy Shrine Maiden indebted to him (at least, in his own mind). So while there was the vaguest of concepts in his head that this was a distraction for some kind of celebration in honor of Eiji, he was mostly interested in the fact that he was making the vagrant buy him something.

And so here they were, Ankh dragging Eiji by the sleeve, heading into town.

"You walk too slow, how do you walk this slow? You're taller than I am."

Comments

[faithfulflame]

Rei is definitely present at the party, having arranged for a sizable amount of it. She'd cooked, set up food, and taken care of various other arrangements that included wrangling Ankh into being helpful. And now that the party is in full swing, both she and Deimos are acting as hosts, making sure people have drinks and food and whatever else they need.

When it's clear that things are going smoothly she takes a rest, getting a drink of her own. With a little bit of red wine, barely half a glass, some fine cheeses, and definitely no party hat, she has a seat with the Gardevoir next to her and just observes the gathering.

It's definitely a happy time, and it's wonderful to see Eiji so happy.

[tsunbird]

Ankh wasted almost no time in zeroing in on Rei as she rested, sneaking on over to her and looming beside her.

"You did a pretty good job, organizing all this," he said, remarkably appraising. He still had a handful of (blunted, plastic-toy ended) darts in one hand, periodically looking across the room at Eiji and his hat-turned-target-practice.

[faithfulflame]

Oh she feels you there, Ankh, and if she was in a bad mood she'd probably give you a snippy look...but...

"Thank you. Eiji's birthday is important, so I did the best I could." A pause, and she turns, smiling openly. "Thank you for your help too."

[tsunbird]

"Pffft," he offers, sinking into a crouch and twirling one of the darts through his fingertips. "He's easy to distract and I got ice cream out of the deal." And maybe, just maybe, he enjoyed being part of a birthday party for the guy. He'd never admit to it unless he was dying, to be honest, but he sort of liked the funny little haphazard family he'd been adopted into.

[faithfulflame]

"He is easy to distract, assuredly." Rei snorts and takes a sip of her drink, favoring Ankh with what passes for an upbeat smile. Now that she's gotten used to him, she's really getting to like him well enough. He's rude...but he has his own way of doing things.

"Though, ice cream was an odd choice given the time of year. It's a wonder he didn't figure it out."

[tsunbird]

"Ice cream is never an odd choice, you take that back." Apparently the bird has strong feelings about ice cream. Excuse. Smoothing his figurative feathers, he huffs.

"...but he is pretty easy to distract. It's a wonder he hasn't gotten himself killed." Was that fondness in his tone? Oh shit someone call the presses, Ankh might actually have human emotions in there after all.

[faithfulflame]

"I'm sure it isn't for you...or me. We do tend to have an easier time with cold, I should think." Rei certainly does, at any rate. There's a reason she very often allows her Gengar to ride in her shadow, a sort of symbiotic cooling and heating relationship there.

"And honestly, there are times when I wonder the same thing. He tends to plunge headlong into all sorts of things..." There is a fondness in her voice too, and not one that's intended to call attention to Ankh's well meaning statement. It's obvious the bird cares for him or he'd have flown off in a huff months ago...

[tsunbird]

He nods, because he can't exactly deny the fact that it makes sense that Fire types would have a higher resilience to cold. Or perhaps just a higher desire for cold things. Either way, it meant that ice cream was completely a good choice year-round, and even if she wasn't explicitly agreeing it was a close enough compromise for him to drop the argument.

He watches the dart in his fingers as he twists it between his fingers some more, quiet for a long moment. He catches himself a moment later, realizing how his prior statement could have been read and making a selection of comically irritated sounds.

"It's not that I care, really," he said. "But you probably wouldn't let me stay here if he wasn't here, so it's convenient."

[faithfulflame]

"That," Rei says with a look over her shoulder at him, "Is not true at all."

She leans back in her chair, sipping again from that long-stemmed glass and smiling faintly. It was one of the few times she let herself have alcohol a year, not that her grandfather much cared. Birthday parties and new years even if she was not of any legal age, were when her family rolled out the fancy things and used their wealth for little luxuries, and wine was definitely one of those. It meant, of course, that she didn't really have a strong tolerance, evidenced by the coloring of her cheeks...and it also loosened her up, making her more willing to speak frankly.

"The shrine is open to anyone who needs it, and with you still needing a place, I wouldn't turn you away. That's not what the temple is for. Especially for those with a connection to flame. It'd be wrong, especially with winter coming."

[warriormouse]

One particularly strange sight they might see is Martin chasing around his new Klink and eventually pulling it away from some poor guest's Pokémon who had called Clink out on its grandstanding and complete lack of knowledge regarding machines. Once he has Clink under control, he makes his way over to a quieter part of the party.

"--can't take you anywhere, can I?"

[faithfulflame]

Rei looks up at the sound of the voice, and at the Clink. She's only interacted with a few, but they were...interesting. Odd things, really, like most of the more robotic Pokemon.

"Rambunctious one, isn't it Martin-san?"

[warriormouse]

"No, just very fond of being the smartest person in the room." Martin gives his Klink a look before turning to face Rei. "I may have to replace a few things when I get what backpay I'm owed," he explains. "Clink...was very interested in your radio and I'm not sure if it was broken before he found it or not."

[faithfulflame]

"Oh, that thing only works on a sunny day under a blue moon," Rei answered with a soft laugh. "Technology is so-so at best around here. Phobos is a tinkerer, and she likes to tinker with anything that has shiny components."

[warriormouse]

Clink rattles at Martin ("See, I told you so.") but is ignored. Martin just smiles. "Either way, I'm sorry about that. But the party is going really well! Eiji seems to be enjoying it."

[faithfulflame]

Rei turns her attention to Clink and gives the Pokemon a stern look. "You know, even if something is broken that doesn't mean it isn't any less improper to toy with it. That radio could very well have been the way it was for a reason."

Her lips quirk as she returns her gaze to Martin, laughing softly. "I think he is too. He deserves it, really. He works so hard, and I just...wanted to make sure today was special for him."

[warriormouse]

Clink ignores Rei and goes off to spout some more pseudo-techbabble at whoever will listen. Rude. Martin ignores it.

"And I think you've done a great job at that. Even if Ankh is tossing darts at his head." He neglects to mention that he tossed one himself. It's not important. "Will you need help cleaning up?"

[faithfulflame]

"Ankh...does...that. He's quite an odd boy, all things considered."

Rei takes a sip from her wineglass, chuckling darkly to herself. "I wouldn't say no at all, Martin-san. I'd really appreciate it, in fact."

[allergictoloveletters]

Ami felt incredibly out of place, not because she didn't know how to attend upper-class parties, her mother's insistence on attending finishing school essentially saw to Ami being able to function at any venue. But it was more that Ami had no idea who anyone was and felt out of place going to a birthday party when she didn't know the guest of honor.

Still, Rei had invited her and Ami wasn't really able to say "no" anymore to Rei than she was Usagi or the other girls (except when it came to studying). She looked around, her baby Cottonee, Arber, in her arms since the little fluff ball was to young to leave alone by herself and Aurora a constant by her side. The massive Luxray let out a long purr as she saw the raven-haired priestess long before Ami did.

She came up beside the other girl and offered a small smile.

"You look very nice, Rei-chan." Was she doing a good job in hiding how uncomfortable she felt in such a situation, Rei? She hoped so.

[faithfulflame]

Rei smiled up at Ami, setting down her cup and giving her friend a small smile. She had some idea how the other girl felt, thanks to her keen powers of observation (and maybe a little bit of those psychic talents). Ami wasn't exactly broadcasting that she was uncomfortable, but it wasn't difficult for someone who knew her to guess that she felt out of place.

Patting the chair next to her, she replied, "Thank you. You too, Ami-chan. Why don't you and Aurora join me?" The Cottonee gets a special, appraising look. "And you too, of course."

[allergictoloveletters]

Ami was instantly grateful for such a familiar face and a much more calming situation. She took the offered seat and Aurora preened as her tail swished. She nodded her head to Rei, the regal creature quite content with the attention.

The cottonee let out a long "Neeeee" as she waved her little leafy arms. Sitting meant she could nap, right? She loved napping. Maybe she could get Aurora to nap with her?

"I don't think you've met Arber yet, have you?"

With Ami sitting next to Rei, she was becoming more and more comfortable with the situation. Cottonee's trill helped, since the warm, fluffy puff ball was incredibly cute to watch.

[faithfulflame]

Rei in turn brightened, as did Deimos, when the pair of psychics felt her relax a bit more. The priestess favors the little fluffball with a ready smile, reaching out to brush a finger along a stray wisp of...whatever it was cottonee were made out of.

"I haven't yet, no. She's adorable, though. How long have you been bonded to her?"

Deimos drops out of her chair, the Gardevoir elegantly settling down next to Luxray, happy to let the young women talk and attend to catching up with Pokemon business.

[allergictoloveletters]

"Just a week or so now. Actually, Arber essentially flew into my arms. Cottonees travel wherever the wind takes them and she ended up nearly colliding with me. She was more than content to bond with me, but she's pretty content about everything. She sleeps almost as much as a Snorlax," she laughed as she stroked the drowsy Cottonee in her arms.

"She's still very young so I suspect that she's not used to traveling on the winds yet. When she's a bit older I'll feel more comfortable by her staying at home."

[faithfulflame]

Rei listens to the miniature lecture, happy to just let Ami explain as she always did. It was sweet, as well as educational, and she cannot help but run a palm along Arber's puffiness. She's really, really soft and that's just incredibly adorable.

"That's probably best that you do keep a watch on her. We wouldn't want her blowing away, would we?"

[allergictoloveletters]

"No, most certainly not. And she has a very calming presence, but all my pokemon are relatively calm and good-natured. I've been incredibly fortunate with all the pokemon I've bonded with. Though now that I think about it, Rei, have you met my Cyndaquil? I don't believe I have introduced him to you yet. He's a very sweet pokemon, likes to snuggle next to me. All my pokemon are prone to cuddling."

Aurora let a snort. Not really denying her fondness for it either, but then, she was raised by Ami. She is far more regal, though, than the tiny Cottonee. She flicks her tail over to Rei's pokemon. For as smart as Ami was, it was surprising she didn't seem to notice her inclination for pokemon prone to cuddling.

[faithfulflame]

"No, I don't think I have. Though...actually I don't think you've met Ravi or Sabaeus yet, either. Perhaps some introductions are in order? Especially considering how much cuddling you seem to be doing with them, I know I'd like to meet them."

Deimos smooths a hand along her sides, like she's trying to rearrange a non-existent skirt, and nods at Aurora. She agrees completely. Your trainer is very bright, but sometimes doesn't seem to see the bigger picture, if it pertains to herself. Though, her own isn't that much different, seeming to favor Pokemon that are loyal and enjoy sleeping around her.