Third.

[azumods]

ENCOUNTER 3. Snowpoint City is small, cold, and definitely not covered in waist-high snowdrifts. The traveling becomes far easier as soon as you enter the city limits, and the bright orange roof of the Pokémon Center is easy to spot among the white blanketing of snow dusting the ground and the local buildings; it's warm in there, and the attendants inside seem used to this sort of thing - people wandering in bedraggled and cold, unprepared for the weather and the routes leading up to this place - and they'll give you warm, fresh blankets and mugs of warm drinks that steam in your hands. The taste is difficult to place - it's definitely made of berries of some sort, though it doesn't seem to be proper tea or coffee; the point, however, is that it's good at warming you from the inside, and while it doesn't have proper medicinal properties, it'll at least perk you up a bit and make it seem like facing the rest of the day might not be so terrible. Which is fortunate, really, given what's to come. Come mid-afternoon, there's a loud, sharp whistle from the doorway of the Center - it's high and shrill, the sort of thing that's designed to get as much attention as possible, in as little time as possible. It'll stop before it goes on too long, but it's definitely enough to be heard, and the source isn't exactly hard to spot. She's another one that isn't dressed like the other members of Team Galactic, her hair and outfit far different from the usual grunt attire; she seems a bit older than Saturn, her expression harder and more experienced. She's smiling a bit now that she's holding the room, but the expression is strange in that it doesn't reach her eyes, even though those are just as bright and alert as her fellow Commander's were. It's cold. Unwelcoming. And deeply, deeply wrong in a way that's both vaguely similar and completely different to the way the emotionless people here tend to present - it's unfeeling, but in a way that's natural rather than enforced. Dangerous. "So you're the group that left us before I could get to know you properly," she says, and her voice is as cold as the rest of her; it's cordial, perhaps overly so, but there's a firmness to it that heavily implies that she's only being nice because she's expected to be nice. Because maybe if she's nice, this will go nice and easy and nothing will happen. "I'm Commander Jupiter, serving Team Galactic under the orders of Master Cyrus. Sorry I couldn't meet you all properly before; things got a bit hectic. But we can change that now." Her tone implies that that isn't a request.

Comments

[semistableman]

You have no idea what it’s like, having someone else’s will superimposed over your own, forced to do things you would never do on your own.

Spending decades at the beck and call of someone else, forgetting you were ever human to begin with!

Don’t give me that bullshit; death will always be better than unending suffering!

[azumods]

If you're going to be so adamant, I'm sure something can be arranged.

[...this. this is probably not good?]

[semistableman]

I’m not making deals with the likes of you.

[eudaimonikos]

Fairly sure that was a threat, actually.

[Maybe don't?]

[azumods]

Oh, don't worry. It's not a deal on your part.

[you want to scream about death being a preferable option? she will cheerfully make it an option for you. right here. right now. she will fucking murder you in this pokemon center, that is what she is saying here.]

[discutio]

Bucky.

[nope nope NOPE]

I think this is getting a touch out of hand on several sides. Commander, surely you realize that approaching us immediately after a heavily trying journey was perhaps ill timing, so I must ask your patience in our discussions today.

[semistableman]

[Yeah okay he’ll let Ignis shove him out of the way before he tries to attack her with his one arm.]

[discutio]

[he's just gonna put a hand on your shoulder, that's all]

[...both to keep you grounded and so he knows if you're gonna start shit.]

Don't let her provoke you. You'll just be playing into her hands at that point.

[azumods]

[come at her asshole she's got her giant fucking skunk out she will rip off your other arm]

[semistableman]

[Ignis has won out, he actually takes a few steps back, though he looks like he still wants to break things.]

[azumods]

There's a difference between "discussions requiring patience" and hearing him talk about things he has no concept of, and going on about "well, why don't we all just murder each other?" If he wants to solve problems that way, let him.

[discutio]

Now, Commander, that's hardly the dignified approach I've come to expect. At least Saturn made the effort to appear affable in our single encounter.

My point stands in that you've approached at a highly inopportune time, so I would politely request you begin to approach something resembling a point or purpose in this meeting. With all respect, we're not made of limitless time or energy.

[azumods]

Saturn couldn't -

[...okay look you have seen saturn, there is no E for Everyone way to explain SATURN COULD NOT FIND HIS ASS WITH BOTH HANDS AND A MAP but the sentiment remains

she is huffy about it

but the sentiment remains]

I'm going to remind you that you aren't the ones in power here. You can make all the polite requests you want, but they aren't going to get anywhere unless I deem it so. Do you understand.

[discutio]

Certainly.

[And he'd even give a pleasant smile in response.]

But it can't be all that entertaining for you to strike at a target that's already rather worn down, can it?

[heritrix]

[You know, there's kind of a difference between being polite and being patronizing so Rin is just going to slide in here:]

She made the same long journey the rest of us did, you know. If anything, we've had more time to recover than she has.

[And then to Jupiter, she adds:] I'm sorry for our behavior. What Bucky said before about this world was out of line.

[divinedescendant]

We understand well the circumstances. We have certainly overstepped ourselves, and you have my apologies, but Ignis is right in that our group still well feels the fresh weight of our journey's trials. I would like the chance to find our common ground in all of this and bring today's discussion to a conclusion so we may all take the time to recuperate and carry on with our respective aims—and I understand well that you must bid to answer our request, but first, it must be made. So, please, if we might request a point to resolve together.

[azumods]

Okay, look. First of all, you are going to cut the oh-so-nice-and-polite-and-would-never-even-dream-of-being-disingenuous crap. I've asked you multiple times what you're doing here, and you have failed to answer every single time. You think I was born yesterday and am willing to believe that you came all the way up here, on a journey that was oh so long and arduous, because you're, what? Sightseeing? Trying to "gather information" in no specific way? You want me to believe you, Miss Prim And Proper, you're going to stop being a condescending brat.

[discutio]

[OKAY CHILDREN THIS IS QUITE ENOUGH not that ignis is much better but still]

Since I doubt you ventured out here solely to make our acquaintance, I might wager we're here for a similar reason to you, Commander.

[divinedescendant]

[eh jupiter can't even dream of being half as fucking awful as gangrel and also hasn't tried to throw her off any cliffs yet so like? this is fine. emmeryn is maybe impressively unfazed, calm and polite as ever.]

I have not lied to you. You seek confirmation on our interest in the lake, yes? The hints of the local legends we have learned are as fine a starting place as we have here to decide our travels. Yes, we are here for Lake Acuity, as you full well already know and as I have said, as much as we are here for anything. We have been taking our intentions and expectations one day at a time.

[ventulus]

[ .....

After hearing her, he turns over to look at Bucky like. Welp. That doesn't sound good. ]

I don't think she's going to be listening in the way you want her to be.

[ .... yeaaaah. What are words. So many reasons why he thinks she wouldn't and he understands his frustation but. She's not a good person, he can definitely tell. ]

Do you want to just stop for a moment?

[semistableman]

[And now everyone knows why he camps outside.]

...you’re right. You ‘n Ignis.

[ventulus]

Yeah...

[ He doesn't figure it had to do with any of that...

Ventus breathes a little breath of relief. He was really worried for a moment there, and yeah, he's not a diplomatic person but like. He doesn't want people to die?

And he knows Bucky is a nice person -- it's clear to him he just went through a lot. ]

...it'll be okay. We'll get through this.

[heritrix]

[Rin leans forward in her seat, setting her drink down and hands poised in a way that suggest she thinks she might need to get up. While she doesn't yet she does lean forward, hissing lowly in Bucky's direction.]

Just because it might be better doesn't mean you should volunteer. Calm down!

[semistableman]

[That seems to get him to snap out of it? Because he’s been going down a dark path in front of people who are practically kids, fuck.]

[heritrix]

[Honestly, she only spoke up because part of what he said resonated with her too much. They're not her own feelings or her memories, but it struck her like the weak spot in a diamond all the same. A spot that hurts so much it makes her angry.

Her knuckles are white from clenching her chair so tightly, and she has to force her body to relax. When she does rise, it's to try and play damage control with Ignis, and apologize on Bucky's behalf. Not so much for this, but everything he said before it.

They can talk about it... No. If they talk about it all, they can talk later.]