Yes, I'll meet you coming back when the universe has expanded

[azumods]

[Mars' chains had faded away as soon as the chains on Palkia had shattered, that unnatural red glow leaving her eyes; she doesn't stumble, to her credit, and seems to be trying to resist the urge to flinch or anything, but she's...not precisely looking too hot, either. Not like she's going to faint or anything, just like she's been through A Lot.

Jupiter is staying near her for the time being; ultimately, she's the one that addresses you.]

You guys can stay here if you want. Or don't, I don't care enough to insist. But we've got food and beds that probably beat the Center's, at least.

We'll be around, either way. Since I doubt you guys are just going to leave us alone after all that. Do what you want.


[OOC: Consider this a log to cover both any afterparty whatnot you want to get up to, as well as something to carry over into Sunday! Both Jupiter and Mars will be available for NPC threads on this particular log, should they be desired.]

Comments

[eudaimonikos]

[That was a weird experience, huh?

It all got a little emotional for Michael towards the end, so perhaps it's no surprise when he bows out of the base immediately afterwards. At least he's not so worked up that he'll run out without letting people know he's going. Anyone who follows him will find him ushering all those ghosts he collected back out of the Pokemon Center. They disperse slowly as he waves them on, looking sort of like a long and angular mother duck. He retrieves his belongings while he's there, and a few other things as well. Maybe it was just because of Saturn, but that last Galactic Base did not have a wide range of foodstuffs.

On his way back, he pops into the residences along his route as well. He doesn't know any of these people, so it's not exactly a visit. Really he just yells:]

Hey, the space thing's fixed!

[Before heading out. Tonight just reminded him of the last night he visited Liam, to let him know about time. That's all.

Back in the base, he gets some dinner from whatever Camilla made and repairs to the kitchen himself. He'll be making chocolate-chip cookies again - no experimentation this time, just whatever version of the recipe he seems to have settled on. He goes around to bring them to people when he's finished.]

Here, have some sugar. I didn't put anything weird in these ones.

[Half the group seems beat. That's not unusual, but they seem a lot worse off than even that shitty confrontation warranted. Maybe he should catch up with Team Right Stairs at some point?

Mars and Jupiter will be offered some cookies too:]

Veganism is a Saturn thing, right? Not a Galactic thing?

[That done, he'll settle into one corner with all his Pokemon. Gaston's rhinestones could do with some fixing, and you may also catch him having a quiet conversation with Jane Doe. Michael never really told her about Jupiter's role in how they met. At some point he falls asleep there, resting back against the coiled bulk of his Milotic. That's probably not going to do him any favors in the morning.]

[azumods]

[...Oh, what is. This, um.

Jupiter is sitting on the floor in one of the side rooms; she seems to have gotten over curling around herself and putting her head down for now, so for the time being she's just kind of...honestly, she's taken her hair out of the styling she's usually got it in, letting it spill down her shoulders and shaking it out a little. The effect is a little weird, and she's still not even trying to pretend she's got her shit together, but you know what, she's here, and the question actually gets her to laugh a bit, briefly.]

Definitely a Saturn thing. If it were a Team Galactic thing, I would have quit by now.

[eudaimonikos]

You didn't seem like the type. But who knows, most of us are weird about eating Pokemon meat.

[He offers her a plate with the remaining cookies on it. Just take however many, apparently.]

I don't even know what the eggs I put in these came from.

[azumods]

[She'll take some, don't worry.]

Because I figure you won't freak out over knowing, they came from Starly. Murkrow eggs will work too, but they're not so much stuff that's there to be bought, you just kind of find those since they're everywhere.

[She shrugs.]

Eating Pokémon isn't really a big deal unless you make it one. Saturn is weird about it, and Master Cyrus is weird about it, but that's a personal thing.

[eudaimonikos]

Huh. I was picturing something larger.

[Starly's not a huge bird. But Pokemon eggs seem like a weird fucking thing anyway.]

I don't care about eating them in general. Almost ate my Milotic, when he was a Feebas. I just - thought he looked a little diseased. [also pathetic and sad] But the animals where most of us are from aren't as intelligent as Pokemon, and most humans don't slaughter their own meat anymore. I get why the others have feelings about it.

[azumods]

[Hm.]

Sometimes I understand the feelings about stuff - a lot of people here don't really like eating stuff they've raised. If they have a Gyarados, they're probably not going to be too crazy about eating Magikarp if they raised one by hand, you know? That makes sense, I guess.

The most people will really get on you about here is if you're wasteful about it. That's a massive "no." You use everything you can or you don't kill anything at all.

[eudaimonikos]

Not a priority on my Earth, lotta the time.

But no, I understand not eating things you raised. I do now, anyway. This whole thing has really been my first experience with animals, so it took me a little while to see why humans like them.

[azumods]

Well, if they're stupid where you came from, I don't really get what the point is in keeping them.

[eudaimonikos]

People think they're cute. And some of them are smarter than others - dogs, maybe? They're sort of like normal-type Growlithe.

But no, you're right. I wouldn't bother keeping them, either. [Michael flashes back to every single thing he's ever said about humans.] Probably.

[azumods]

[Cute, huh...]

They're supposed to be companions and stuff, too. They can't do that too well if they're stupid.

Mine are more like business partners and stuff, but I also just think they're pretty cool. I have a Golbat, too, and there's nothing about those that isn't great.

[eudaimonikos]

They're supposedly devoted. It's like having a very stupid baby that loves you a lot and jumps up and down when you come home.

[He is not the right person to sell dogs as a concept...]

I like Golbat's mouth. Just - [He gestures.] - this yawning, gaping void. Might've gone after one if I didn't already have a bird.

[azumods]

I like watching them feed. It's brutal.

[...jupiter.]

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael chuckles.]

Can't say I've seen that?

[azumods]

[You'll find Mars in one of the side rooms, where she's hanging out near a window just staring outside. She's fixed her hair at some point and looking a lot calmer than she's been all day. She'll turn when she hears Michael.]

Oh, yeah, Saturn's weird.

[please stop dragging saturn]

I mean, I can see why it's something people do, it's just not something I've ever done.

[And she is looking very intently at the cookies. Hand 'em over, she is here for sweets.]

[eudaimonikos]

[Fucking take 'em]

I get the ideas behind it. A lot of people back home just do it for bragging rights, though.

[azumods]

[Hell yeah, thanks, Michael. She is so here for these cookies.]

Bragging rights, of all things? Why?

[eudaimonikos]

Because it makes them feel like they're a better person than people who aren't vegan. And then they can go out to eat with their friends and say things like "I don't understand how anyone could eat meat", or "I just care too much."

[He lets her take the plate, half so that he can place a hand over his heart dramatically.]

Our afterlife system considers that morally worse than just eating meat to begin with.

[azumods]

[That gets her to laugh.]

I'm not surprised people turn it into something like that, but it's good to hear where you're from that's treated as worse! It sounds like a real pain to deal with!

[eudaimonikos]

Must be. Never had to, myself. Bucky and Saturn are the only ones I've ever been social with, and neither of them made a big stink about it.

[Well, maybe Bucky's vegetarian, but same thing. Michael takes a seat, and also snags a cookie for himself.]

You and Jupiter gonna head right back to see Cyrus, after this?

[azumods]

[She nods at that, but the question gets her to pause.]

...I'm not really sure yet. I've got to talk to Jupiter about that, figure out what we're going to do. I'm definitely going to talk to Master Cyrus about all of this, though.

[SHE'S KINDA GOT TO, AFTER ALL...]

[eudaimonikos]

Yeah. Thought she might have some kind of stuff to wrap up around here.

[He gestures around at the base.]

Were you ever based out of one of these, or are you kinda a field agent?

[azumods]

I go where Master Cyrus tells me.

[...so yeah, field agent.]

[eudaimonikos]

[god why can't you just answer things like a normal person]

Guess it beats riding a desk. Unless you're Saturn, he seems like an indoors guy.

[When in doubt, drag Saturn.]

[azumods]

Oh absolutely. Getting him to go outside is a losing battle.

[mars cannot ever turn down the chance to drag saturn, this is a Fact]

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael chuckles.]

Ah, nerds. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em. I took down a bunch of philosophy books from the library for mine - no idea when I'll get a chance to give them to him, but he'll lose his shit. [He seems pretty pleased with himself at having thought of an appropriate gift.]