Grounded (Elle and Nora)

[Elliot]

Well this sucked.

Of all the fates in the world, being dragged back to Unova was one that Elliot was dreading the most. Granted, it was preferable to being tortured and threatened any further, but it was always so insufferable of a home to him. Being forced to go back to an overbearing mother who opposed his every effort at being a trainer just wasn't Elliot's idea of a pleasant, and yet here he was waiting for a slow boat to Castelia.

Of course, his father said it was what Elliot had to do. Especially after the horrors that he experienced in Cherrygrove. No matter how much Elliot protested Terran refused to budge on such matters, afraid of what would happen if any other political enemies tried to seize him. For the boy's own health, he wasn't allowed to visit any of the actively-warring regions.

He sighed as he sat at the base of a tree, wondering what he did to deserve such a fate.  Part of him wanted to just accept his fate, give up and return to Unova.  Obviously he was unfit to be a trainer, after all.  Obviously this wartime world was just no good for him.  Obviously the friendly faces he was supposed to meet on his journey all had their own agendas, their cheerful smiles hiding their black hearts.  Maybe surrendering and embracing the dull life of an ordinary citizen was what was best.

However, the wanderlust he felt consumed him still.  The lure of a Pokemon journey that he was robbed of so many years ago was an irresistible siren's song, as was the promise of being away from his home and all the restrictions it brought.  He knew he could learn from his mistake, stay out of trouble, continue pressing on with his beloved Pokemon by his side.  He knew if he went back home they would never be given a chance to prove themselves.  Fanciful notions danced through his head: a master trainer, even stronger than his father ever was.  An explorer who knew every region like the back of his hand, overcoming his crippled leg to climb any mountain and crawl through every cave in his path.  Maybe even a hero who could shield the young and innocent of the war from any struggles that he experienced.

For now, though, he was just a tired boy slumped against a tree, daydreaming and delaying the inevitable.

[elle & nora]

For the first time in a long time, it was Elle who complained. She had said, “It’s too crowded here,” with an almost exasperated on her face. She didn’t like that her little town held as many people as a city. In the years that Nora had known her, this was the one thing that had visibly managed to wear down her patience.

Not that Elle would admit it. Never. Instead she used one of her million and one excuses to leave the central, crowded parts of town. “Let’s climb Mt. Chimney,” she suggested, grabbing Nora’s hand, ready to drag her in the volcano’s direction. Nora pulled back immediately. “No way. They say it’s getting active again.” The last thing she wanted to do was be right up on a volcano when it erupted.

Elle almost looked like she was going to dismiss the other girl’s worries, tell her that the volcano hadn’t erupted in years and years and the entire region was nice and dandy, but she didn’t. Instead, she tried making other suggestions – climbing this or exploring that – which Nora also shot down. Elle was trying to dress up ordinary things and make them sound as exciting as climbing a volcano, which was not Nora’s cup of tea in the first place. “Let’s just walk around, okay? Can you manage to do that?”

That a suggestion had come from Nora’s mouth was another first. Elle was too surprised to say no, so the two ended up walking and walking, with Elle often commenting on things around them, pushing her luck by trying to prompt Nora to join in. She was saying something about… oh, Nora didn’t know! She had only been half-listening at best, more interested in letting her mind and eyes wander, so of course it was Nora who had been the first to spot the boy against the tree. At first, she thought nothing of it, but she caught the expression on his face and thought she recognised it.

“What’s his problem?”

“…the Poff—huh? Who?” Nora nodded in his direction, even though Elle had already spotted him. Without realising, Elle pulled a face as she tried to determine whether the guy was local or not and quickly admitted defeat. “I don’t… let’s find out.”

“Let’s not.”

“Let’s!” Elle’s arm was already firmly hooked around Nora’s before she had finished saying the word, and she easily steered them towards the boy. Nora let herself be pulled along, grateful that Elle would stop playing tour guide now. Hopefully. If Arceus or one of the others were merciful.

“Hello!” Elle chirped. No, really, Nora swore Pinky had chirped. “Are you new here? From up north, right?”

[Elliot]

Warm . . . comfortable . . . even with Elliot's ship due to arrive in just a few hours, he found his eyes growing heavy and his body starting to slack. He had a long journey ahead of him, after all, and the little trance he had lulled himself into was so people. Maybe it would be okay if he sat down and slept for a while . . .

“Hello!”

The nice, safe bubble of daydreaming was popped swiftly, and it took a second or two for Elliot to realize he was being addressed. He looked up to see who they were, wondering if it might have been anyone he knew from back home.

Nope. Just two strange girls, one his age being dragged by an older one. How strange. They looked and sounded friendly enough, though. Even in his melancholy he worked up the energy to give them a warm smile in return. "Hello to you too!

New here? Well . . . kinda. Used to live here a while ago, but haven't been around in ages. Figured while I was here I'd go back. It's very . . . "

Maybe it was just general demographic change, but Lavaridge had changed heavily from what Elliot was used to. The population surged, for instance. The city was fortified and under heavy defense, obviously to keep any undesireables out. The fertile ground had been dedicated in part to farmland, and Elliot knew damn well why. And even in general, the colors seemed duller, the sights seemed less inviting, and the ambient noise had so much less energy. Had the world changed? Had Elliot's views? Everything was so familiar, and yet so foreign at the same time.

"Different.

My name's Elliot, by the way. What are yours?"

[elle & nora]

The delayed reaction made Nora wonder if this guy had been trying to have a snooze. And maybe, she thought, a little bit hopeful, he would tell them to get lost so he could get back to just doing that. But that hope faded as fast as the boy’s daydream bubble had been popped as he smiled and decided to be nice. It wasn’t what she had been hoping for, but at least it had shut Elle up.

“Huh…” Elle wasn’t as talkative as she usually was, and instead was carefully eyeing up this Elliot guy. Lavaridge was tiny compared to the bigger cities in the Hoenn region – or, it was supposed to be – and she had been sure she knew at least the faces of all the locals. She didn’t recognise Elliot’s face and it kind of… bugged her.

Nora felt an awkward silence build and elbowed her friend. She murmured, “He asked you a question, you know.”

“Oh? Oh! Sorry!” Elle was quick to apologise to him. “I was just—I’m Elle, and this is Nora, and—and—” She thought there had been another question and struggled to remember it. “And it is very different around here, isn’t it?” It had come out sounding like a stock phrase, like she said that to everyone, like she hadn’t really been listening and didn’t know what the guy had meant even if she did. For a brief moment, Nora worried that Elle realised this and was going to try and make up for it by listing examples and reprising her role as an annoying tour guide, but Elle managed to hold back.

“How long ago did you live here?” Elle asked, calmer. “Before the… over five years ago?”

[Elliot]

"Much, actually."

How long had it been? Easily a long time ago, considering how different everything seemed. Despite how much Elliot loved and missed Hoenn at his home, he actually hadn't spent too much of his life there. No, he had been moved over to Unova in a hurry for pretty much the majority of his years. To this day he still wasn't sure why the move was so hasty . . . maybe the problems in his parents' marriage were the reason.

"Think it was about 10 years ago. Kinda hard to believe it's really been that long," he admitted, a distant look forming in his eyes as he meditated on this realization. All of the factors leading to his move began swirling about in his head, bringing with them the sad revelation that maybe his childhood wasn't as happy as he thought it was.

He was always pretty bad with faces, wasn't he? Despite these people seeming like Lavaridge natives at all, he could barely recognize them. Of course, it had been over a decade. That'd be enough time for any face to fall into obscurity. The more energetic one seemed to pause, though, as if trying to puzzle out who he was. Maybe they did recognize him after all . . .

Shame. He always hated being recognized.

[elle & nora]

Elle’s eyebrows raised. “That’s a looong time.” She wasn’t sure what surprised her more, that someone would leave such a nice little town in the first place, or that someone would come back to it after so long. It wasn’t exactly the best time to come and visit, and Elle felt that the same could be said for the rest of the region.

“So, how come you’re back now? Did you come with the others?” She asked, still guessing that he had moved here from a less Lux-friendly place with the others. The question itself sounded innocent enough, although there was a look in Elle’s eyes that gave away what she was doing: fishing for some information that would tell her who this guy was.

“Way to be obvious,” Nora whispered. “Are you using your best lure?”

“Shoosh, I'm not talking to you” Elle whispered back, waving her hand dismissively at her friend. She didn’t believe in subtlety when it came to figuring things out, although at least she hadn’t outright asked a more direct question like, “So who are you?” Asking that would take all the fun out of trying to figure out the mystery herself. After all, she already had a face and a name. All she needed now was something to glue them together with an identity.

[Elliot]

That was a weird question. And what others was she talking about? Elle must have thought the boy brought company. And yet how could one wandering the world by his lonesome ever have such company? After all, such desires were why he was hurt in the first place . . .

"Just me by myself, really. About to go home, so I figured I'd spend my last days in Hoenn back where I was born." The distance in his stare continued, as if he wasn't looking at Elle but through her, trying to get one last look at the town he loved so much in his youth.

It bugged him so much. There was something familiar about them, but at the same time they seemed like perfect strangers. Probably just faces he saw once or twice in the past, but who knows? There were a lot of things Elliot was trying to forget.

Of course, since they asked about him, that just opened the door for Elliot to ask in return.  Maybe he'd be able to satiate his own curiosities during their bombardments of questions.

"You guys just passing through too, or do you live here?"

[elle & nora]

It was hard to say whether Elle was bad at fishing, or straight up lucky. Elliot’s response to her question didn’t really reveal the clues she wanted, but instead something else: Lavaridge wasn’t his ‘home’. It took a second for her to process what that meant, another second to feel a little offended that Lavaridge had been so easily replaced, and then Elle felt relieved. If Lavaridge wasn’t really this guy’s home, then she didn’t feel so obliged to know who he was.

Elle’s expression softened. “How nice. And I’m sure you’re not alone – you have Pokemon to keep you company, right?” Anyone who travelled at least borrowed a Pokemon for protection if not for its general usefulness or company. That Elliot here had at least one Pokemon was an easy guess, and, Elle thought, he looked like a Zigzagoon person, didn’t he?

She didn’t say that. Not everyone liked being associated with Zigzagoon. Instead, she answered his question. “I live here. This has always been my home.” The one thing she was confident would never change. “But Nora here is actually from Fo—”

“I’m from somewhere else,” Nora cut in. Even if she hadn’t been back in years, she didn’t want strangers to know where she was from. It just felt safer to have them know as little as possible. Her eyes narrowed; the more she looked at him, the familiar his face seemed.

“Don’t mind her. She just thinks she’s cool when she acts mysterious.” Elle wiggled her fingers at the word, and laughed at herself for having done that in the first place. Nora rolled her eyes at her friend and looked back at Elliot.

“Do me a favour and take her with you.”

[Elliot]

"Oh, definitely! Maggie went wandering around for a bit while I was napping. She hasn't seen Lavaridge since she was first hatched, so I figured giving her a chance to see the town would be a good opportunity."

Of course he had his other Pokemon with him, but they lacked the same attachment to the town. A passing familiarity maybe, or maybe just name recognition. But for him and Maggie . . . it was something else. Maybe not his home anymore, but certainly a town they held close to their hearts.

Apparently only one of the girls was from Lavaridge. No wonder they weren't the most familiar. Of course, what Elle was about to say left very little to the imagination. Fortree, he figured. Easily one of the most beautiful towns in Hoenn, and one of the most untouched by the war. Or maybe she meant Fallarbor, but Elliot didn't even want to think about Fallarbor. Not after all of the newspaper articles he saw about that.

"Mystery, huh? That's cool. Won't keeping pushing questions, then," he responded, smiling respectfully. He knew firsthand how awful it was to have boundaries invaded: he would definitely be showing his new acquaintances more respect than that.

[elle & nora]

And just like that, as soon as Elliot mentioned an egg hatching, Elle was convinced that he was good, one of them. Them, not really meaning Lux, but anyone who was just generally nice. Raising a Pokemon from an egg almost guaranteed automatic entry. (Mean people just didn’t hatch eggs or talk about their Pokemon like that). “Aww, you’ve had her since she was an egg? That is so cute.” And as cute as it would have been to imagine baby Mudkips everywhere, baby Zigzagoons were just as cute, and were even fluffier. “I wish I had had my boy since he was an egg, or any of my Pokemon.

I heard they pick up random things. Is that true? And if you’re lucky they pick up rare items?”

As fun as it would have been to maybe embarrass her and point out that Maggie’s species hadn’t been mentioned, Nora didn’t say anything. Elliot had already promised to not ask her anything – something Elle had never been nice enough to offer – and not only would it feel rude to do just that to him, ask him the obvious, it would meant that, if it were true, she’d have sunk lower than the enemy.

Besides, she could be wrong. When you thought of some nasty, horrible Nox leader’s son, this scrawny little guy wasn’t the type of person to come to mind.

[Elliot]

Huh. Elliot hadn't thought Marshtomps were known for that. Although it did make sense with how good she was at finding things . . .

"Can't say I've heard that one before. Describes her pretty well, though!" Fortunately enough, he saw a teal shape on the horizon. A smile spread across his face as he turned back to Elle and Nora. "Think you'll be able to meet her really soon!"

The scarf-clad Marshtomp approached, waving to her trainer before stopping curiously. She looked the people Elliot was around up and down, particular focusing on the silent one in the back. While the pinkette was eagerly chatting with Maggie's trainer, the other one was just kind of standing there standoffishly. Who were they, anyway?

Elliot was quick to answer. "There she is! This is Maggie, my first and best friend. Maggie, these are Elle and Nora. Say hi!"

The Marhstomp waved, comforted now that she knew Elliot trusted them.

[elle & nora]

That was the first warning sign – how could someone not have heard that Zigzagoon were good at finding things? That was one of the best things about them, and everyone knew it. So, of course she sounded surprised when she echoed, “You haven’t?”

The shape on the horizon was the next warning sign – it was neither furry nor brown nor striped. All too soon she realised that this Maggie was not a Zigzagoon, but something else entirely, and Elle felt silly for having made an assumption in the first place. (Of course, that wasn’t to say there was no Zigzagoon at all…)

Elle waved to it enthusiastically, despite the disappointment that this Pokemon was not a brown, striped and zigzagging. “Hey Maggie, it’s nice to meet you. You’re a cute little… uh.” Elle looked to Elliot for clarification. She knew what a Mudkip was, but the name of its evolved form eluded her. They were rare, after all.

Nora shifted uncomfortably and eyed up the Marshtomp, not about to wave back at it. In her head she was sizing it up against her own Pokemon. Fiver could take the Marshtomp on, she told herself. Definitely. “It’s not cute. It’s dorky, just like its trainer.” Nora didn’t grin or smile at her own wit, her face stayed irritatingly judgenmental as she stared down Elliot, trying to make up her mind. How much would she dislike this guy?

(ooc: i tried to make this more interesting, failed, and decided to bring an insult to the table instead >>