action; FOREST SHRINE - backdated to Thursday, all day

[stahlflugel]

[Eren has to make time at least once a week for "field trips" outside of Union. The pokémon he bonded needed fresh air, space, and, in Napoleon's case, to hunt for prey. Eren had never visited the Forest shrine, so he figured that today was as good a day as any to visit it. He sets down his bag of snacks, supplies, books, and his Ranger application and warps his Pokémon into the area. From there, they sort of fan out to do their own thing.

Eren sighs, petting Blitz, who sits at his side] How the hell did I end up bonded to so many Pokémon. How.

[He sighs and takes out his application to work on]

[Rosa the Zubat is fluttering through the trees, collecting berries and fruit and occasionally attacking the shit out of some poor weak bug pokémon for its delicious life juice. She's skittish, though, and may hide if approached]

[Victor the Lombre is taking a nap in a patch of sunlight by the shrine. Hey, it was as good a place as any, right? He's also dressed… cutely… He has on a knitted vest and a silky scarf because wow he's super cool]

[Matilda the Scraggy is not so quiet. She's rampaging through the forest and clearing, challenging any Pokémon she comes across to a fight. Any pokémon. She's kind of ridiculous.]

[And of course, Napoleon the Tyrantrum is on the hunt. He's not very subtle, but he's pretty quick, and he makes up for his ungainlyness with big jaws. Of course he misses. Several times. And lets out a roar of frustration!! HE'S HUNGRY, DAMMIT!! Why won't the food hold STILL?!]

[[OOC: kind of a choose your own adventure open action post!]]

Comments

[heartstorage]

Oh...[he lets out a little breath of relief] Good.

[There's a pause before he speaks]

...I don't know why, but a Zubat colony attacked my home. They were so many and they were everywhere. I nearly died...I think I would've if my Enlightened powers hadn't manifested.

But I know Rosa wasn't part of that. Even if she scares me, I promise not to hurt her.

[stahlflugel]

Still... Larvitars aren't really dangerous pokémon, but Tyranitar definitely are. I'm not happy about the possibility of one being in Union, not at all... Unlike Zubats, being terrible monsters is just part of how Tyranitar work. Like Gyarados. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.

[Eren won't be seeing them as anything other than mindless rampage machines any time soon.

He listens to Sora, petting Blitz absently.]

... I'm sorry. That must have been really scary.

... my mom, she.... she died. Was killed. Saw her get crushed by debris and eaten right in front of my eyes. If a Guardsman hadn't dragged me away, I'd be dead, too.

[heartstorage]

[........okay so he won't be telling Eren about Dory the Magikarp anytime soon. Check.]

I hope...that guy's really careful with it then. [he's not sure what to think about the idea of a monster is a monster, but he knows this is probably not the time to argue about it]

[He listens to Eren's story. It hurts to hear...Eren must have suffered a lot. He saw a lot of people die the night of the attack, neighbors and people he's known for years- but not any of his family. He still didn't know what happened to them besides Roxas. Which while it was painful not knowing, maybe it was a blessing too.]

[After a moment, he'll let go of Simba and scoot over to Eren. Once he's close enough, he'll try to give Eren a one arm hug. Because it's not like he has any words that would make anything better. Just...understanding.]

...I'm sorry.

[stahlflugel]

[Eren's only heard of wild Gyarados, man. Not tame ones]

He better be... [he shakes his head and sighs, balling his fists into Blitz's neck ruff.

Sometimes it's better to just not know. Eren wishes he hadn't seen, that's for sure. Because in his nightmares, it's all he sees. There hadn't even been anything to bury.

Eren appreciates the hug, though, and shows it by sort of leaning into it]

Thanks, Sora. I guess we've got more in common than we thought, huh.

[heartstorage]

[It's okay Dory is too forgetful to go on any rampages anyway]

[He's fine with the leaning, doing a little of his own as well. This...really wasn't anything he wanted to have in common with someone. But he can't fully deny that it helps him feel...a little less alone. ]

Yeah...looks like we do.

[He bites his lip a little, thinking of what to say. Maybe a slight subject change, before Eren gets too lost in the past]

Though...I should probably try to get over this whole Zubat thing. It's not like a Ranger can refuse to go into caves.

[stahlflugel]

[it's a terrible thing to share, but somehow it makes it less horrible? Terrible things together are better than terrible things alone.

Either way, it's a good thing Sora changes the subject. Eren tends to get lost in the woods of his own thoughts]

Well... if you want to try and get used to them, Rosa's probably a good candidate for that. She's a big weenie and really sweet. Her only problem is that she's a coward... and she steals things. [Eren rolls his eyes. He'd had to pay for several pieces of fruit already that Rosa ganked from stands around town]

[heartstorage]

[No getting lost in the woods today, Eren. It's full of t-rexes]

[His stomach churns at even the idea of spending with a zubat. But he tries to focus on the personal traits. Maybe if he sees Rosa more as an individual, it'd be a good first step]

Steal things? Like...what?

[stahlflugel]

Food, mostly. Round things. Soft things... [Eren frowns] And a necklace. She swears up and down that she "found it" but I know better. I just told her not to do it again.

[heartstorage]

[He frowns and resists the urge to check on his necklace under his shirt. Since seriously, a zubat stealing that is the last thing he needs ever]

What would a Zubat do with a necklace anyway?

[stahlflugel]

Well... she wears it! She says it makes her feel pretty. [Eren sighs] I have no idea how she even knows that, she doesn't have any eyes.

[heartstorage]

[...]

Or a neck, for that matter. How could she wear it?

[stahlflugel]

She has a neck! [a pause] ... kind of. It's... more like just the part of her body where her head attaches to her body... Um. Her shoulders and a little bit of furry ruff keep it from falling off.

[heartstorage]

[He tries to imagine it. ]

That sounds...pretty ridiculous.

[He almost wants to laugh just visualizing the creature of his nightmares struggling to wear a pearl necklace]

[stahlflugel]

Do you wanna see? It's actually kind of funny.

[heartstorage]

[There's a hesitation as he's reluctant to say yes. But Simba will come close to him, and he'll wrap an arm around his mane. He's gotta start facing this fear sometime, right?]

...Yeah, okay.

[stahlflugel]

[Blitz will actually help, too. He makes a small "yip" noise and sits on Sora's other side. It'll be ok! Blitz has been with Eren for a long time, man; he's good with PTSD brats.

Eren smiles and whistles loudly]

Rosaaaa! {You can come back!}

[there's no sound for a while, then there's a flapping noise. Then there's not. Rosa remembers that the flapping is kind of what set him off last time, so instead, she lands a little further away and crawls through the grass on her wings and short little legs, dragging her twin tails behind her. Eren puts his hands down and scoops her up. She chitters nervously, "looking" at Eren]

It's ok, Rosa. Sora wants to see your necklace.

[the little zubat turns to face Sora. Indeed! She has a very pretty necklace hanging around her shoulders. But her ears are folded back a little and her fur is poofed up. She "looks" again at Eren, as if for reassurance]

[heartstorage]

[Sora will glance over at Blitz gratefully, because yeah. Having two pokemon as buffer does help a lot. The short sound of a flapping makes him wince a little, so Rosa makes the wise choice of moving to the ground. Seeing her crawl on the ground like that, all nervous- it does a lot to ease up any frightening mental images he has of her]

[He can do this, it's just a harmless zubat right? Not like the ones on the island, or in the Iron Mine.]

[He takes a deep breath as he looks at her]

That's...a pretty necklace, Rosa.

[stahlflugel]

[two cuddly, fluffy electric types! What could be better?

Nothing that's what.

One zubat crawling on the ground is much more tolerable than a whole flock, that was for sure. They got their strength in numbers after all. A zubat all alone is pretty weak]

[She perks her ears at him, then lets them droop and offers a little smile, touching the necklace with her thumbclaws. She chirps shyly]

Hehe. She says "thanks". She's real shy. Do you... wanna hold her?

[heartstorage]

[Hold...that?]

Uh-!

[He tries to think. But even reaching out towards Rosa seems like a terrifying prospect, even if she does appear sweeter than than monster]

No, no- that's really okay.

[stahlflugel]

That's fine. [Eren grins and lets Rosa crawl up on her preferred perch; his head] Just sitting here with her around is a good thing, you know.

[heartstorage]

[He eyes her she does so]

Yeah...I guess it's better than running. [Which trust him, may have crossed his mind once or twice]

Maybe next time, I'll try.

[stahlflugel]

No rush, you know? Take it at your own pace, Sora. You don't ever have to like 'em, but we'll at least get you used to them. Then you can spelunk all you want!

[heartstorage]

Spelunking. My lifelong dream.

[Though okay sass aside, he's grateful for the help. ]

Thanks Eren.

[stahlflugel]

Well, maybe the higher ups in the Rangers will understand. I'm sure they will!

[he nods] You're welcome.

[Rosa chirps] {Eren, can I go now? I'm still hungry!!}

{Oh... ah... sure.}

[She glances at Sora, then flaps off in the opposite direction]

[heartstorage]

[He watches Rosa go, giving an awkward wave- before he turns to Eren and furiously shakes his head]

Nuh-uh. There's no way I can let them find out about this.