Lifeaftr IC Inbox

[yallstupid]

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[catpiper]

[Did you know Ren rhymes with Rengret as in 'guzma rengrets ever meeting this terrible raccoon'

In late december, he'll find this nice piece of work near the door of his shack with a couple flower crowns for him and Luna underneath.]

[yallstupid]

[...Mother of Mew, that's precious.

Guzma isn't an early riser by design, but he's come to get up at least not as close to noon, to harvest goods and food, train his pokemon, and work on fixing up their home. It's around that time that he finds the little gift left out on their doorstep, and the picture pretty much clinches who would be darned enough to think he'd wear a flower crown on his head like some weird fairy-type.

...Ugh, he'll remember this, and takes the two crowns inside to lay on his and Luna's hammocks apiece. Maybe he can loosen his and make it into more of a lei, so he can wear it and not look totally foolish. Aah...that little brat, he's red in the face and huffing, already scheming on what to give her in return.

He has an idea, but it'll take a while to get.]

1/4

[catpiper]

[She's not a freaking tsundere like some people, but she's a busy goblin with many graffiti appointments on her roster. So instead of waiting for him, he'll find another drawing on the side of his house with some very clear instructions on what to do with the present underneath.]

3/30 irock, early morning

[catpiper]

[There's no property defacement today!! Lucky boi!! No, it's just the sound of an overly awake and excited girl on the special treasure rock.]

Can your hear my voice? It's me-it's Ren!

[yallstupid]

[Dear lord, why? Why do people think Guzma is a morning person in any definition of the term? I'm sorry, but this boy is nocturnal and though he's gotten better about waking up before noon, it's still in the early hours of the morning.

There's a low grumbling on the line, ashift of blankets and a very large, slow-moving body as Guzma reaches under his pillow for his rock-phone...thing.]

What? [He sounds half-awake, and kind of irritated.]

[catpiper]

[If any part of her dumb brain could register his annoyance, it's clearly overwhelmed from her excitement at this incredible little treasure. It's really his voice. It feels like he's next to her, no matter how far away he must be.]

The sun's awake. It looks like your special treasure.

[AKA, it's yellow.

Hang up on her!!!]

[yallstupid]

Mh...huh? [He rubs his face, squints his eyes. There's low light filtering in from where windows used to be in his dingy (but far better than it was!) shack he shares with luna. Mother of Mew, if must be just after daybreak. Ren, what the fuck.] Kid...it's early.

Do..d-do you need, mmh--something? [Does he have to beat anyone up? Is this an emergency?? Because fuck, he loves you, but not at this hour.]

[catpiper]

[Take back the necklace and she'll stop calling him-it's that simple.

Until then, enjoy random ungodly hour phone calls. And no, she has no reason for establishing this rocknection outside of an early morning whim to-]

I wanted to hear your voice. I thought about you in my heart and then the treasure made your voice come out.

[yallstupid]

[Guzma grumbles, his head falling back against his pillow as he yawns and puts a hand over his eyes. He's groggy, and probably won't remember much of this conversation at all, but at least he heard that, and frowns. It's sweet, she's sweet, and he can't be too mad anymore.

Goddamnit.]

Mhmm... [He sighs, not much of a conversationalist at this hour. Sorry, Ren, but he's starting to doze off again.]

[catpiper]

[The sun's awake Guzma. It's his day, all day, and island life is waiting for him. Ren's not going to relinquish her grip on his LIFE. Wake up!!!

The short sigh and the resounding silence afterwards makes her shake the rock?? Then she hits it with the palm of her hand, because that was an effective means of making treasure work back in her world and it stands to reason it would be the same here.]

Guzma?

[And again, a bit louder-]

Do you want to play tag?

istone late sept

[catpiper]

[Dragons?? Water?? Nah fam, it's whatever. She's got something so important to say during this lonely summer night.]

Hey, hey!

[yallstupid]

[Thankfully, Ren has learned that late night is when Guzma actually is relatively awake - it's early mornings that he's grouchy and sleeping. Truly, the Skull Boss is a night owl at heart. And, to be perfectly honest, sleeping when the island has been literally and figuratively on fire has been...

Rough.]

Mm--whuff ith it? [He speaks through a mouthful of...probably food. Probably. Looks like Guzma made himself a small bite before bed.]

[catpiper]

I found a present for Goli.

[The most important reason to call this late at night, obviously. Surely Master Trainer Guzma will understand.]

[yallstupid]

For Golisopod? [He swallows hard, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand (like a slob. The islands haven't been exactly great about teaching him otherwise). There's definitely confusion in his voice, and it shows. Most gifts Ren's found have been for him, or trinkets for herself. Something Golisopod would like... Is it a toy? Food?]

Uh--...thanks. I'll swing by, yeah? Best to give it right to 'im. [And he wants to check up on Ren as well. Maybe bring her something to eat. ...Something good to eat.]

[catpiper]

[Think Ren's gonna say something about sloppy eating? Hell no. Commit all the food crimes you desire, Guzma.]

It's okay. I'll come see you, so don't move. I'll tell the cats 'good night, good night' and go to your house.

[yallstupid]

No. [It's said a little more forcefully than he intends, but Guzma knows Ren is...stubborn. And when it involves making others happy, she'll gladly walk into a hole or quicksand or whatever other dangerous situation abounds.] I don't trust what's going on right now to be entirely, uh....fixed, so stay put.

I'll come to you. Where you at?

[catpiper]

You have to be very careful too.

[It's a long trek to make if he's back on the islets, but she'll wait patiently. The thing is, she doesn't answer immediately because she's moving outside of camp boundaries. He won't have to walk as far. She'll stay put once she arrives at-

The pit traps that surround their home. She sits on the edge of her favorite one and about five minutes after he asked Where you at? She finally responds-]

By the pits at my home. I'll wait here.

[catpiper]

[They're getting picked off-that's what it feels like.

One by one, the people she's grown up with, the members of her small family, have vanished. Even she did and maybe it was a mistake that pulled her back to this island. There are others who remain-people she knows and cares about, but that care-

That love-

Is starting to backfire.

And when she sits in this empty shack, staring the remains of Guzma's legacy in this place, knowing that he's back in a world that was waiting for his return, with all the pokemon-all his pokemon-

It still hurts. Stings. Pulls at her chest and her heart as she sits and tries to think of nothing and everything at the same time.

Tries to think about how his voice sounded when he was proud of her-those rare times when he would smile and dance and twirl her in circles and-

Nights she spent huddled up in a blanket, working her way through a glitchy pokedex and asking him every question under the sun and-

There's no pokedex to look at. No one to ask. No one to correct her when she adds to much milk to their limited cocoa mix. There's no voice telling coming through the walls or windows to ask her what she's up to or check on why she's been quiet for so long and-

She waits there for a long time. Wrapping her body tight in the blanket they used to share, even as the sun heats the shack in an uncomfortable way. She waits and waits, flicking bits of food she cooked herself towards the door to see if maybe-

Maybe Goli was still around. Ari. To make sure they weren't looking for their beloved owner who no longer exists.

The evening air makes her drowsy. Her eyes start to close, close, close and she can smell the fish he used to make, hear his gruff voice mutter words she didn't understand and sing to tunes she had never heard before and-

She doesn't want to sleep. Wants to hold this memory as long as she can. Wants to remember the edge his voice took, even when he was mad, and burrow into his arms to stay warm in the night and-

She wants to remember-she wants to keep her brother close. Keep his memory close because it's all she has left.]

let me know if this is okay!!

[z_poweredflower]

[ Time has passed and with it, memories have washed away. The remnants of Mu reach out and pull Lillie back into the dream world. But this place is foreign to the girl that wakes up on the shore. The islands are unfamiliar. They are empty and quiet, bathed in the light of the setting sun.

Lillie startles awake completely alone; no Nebby, no Luna, no Professors, nothing. She scrambles to her feet as the tide comes in, only narrowly avoiding being drenched. This is a lot to take in. She stares out over the water, bewildered by...well, everything. Now what? What is she supposed to do? Where is she supposed to go?

Nebby. She should find Nebby. She doesn't know where to look, but she has to at least try, right? So she makes her way up the shore, stepping around and over driftwood and debris from the ocean, calling out from time to time: ]

Hello? Nebby...? Anyone?

IT IS PERFECT, LMK IF MY RESPONSE IS OKAY ALSO

[yallstupid]

[Time certainly has passed. It's been a while since Guzma last saw hide or hair of this place. He still comes and goes after the final event of this world happened, and a new world was born. It's the only way that he can get to see certain people, after all... So, into the dream he goes, for the usual trip - a few days, maybe a week sometimes, off and on. He's kept mostly to himself back in Alola, drifting like he said he would, growing stronger and toughening himself and his Pokemon up at the Battle Tree against those so-called "legends".

He's not expecting to see Lillie here. Last Guzma heard, she took a trip to Kanto to help her psychotic mother after--...all that. Too kind. Too good. Lillie was too much of a good person. Guzma would have let the bitch rot, same for his own father. He owes neither of them anything as far as he's concerned. Blood ties? Old memories? Hah. Those, too, have faded into obscurity. But, he does still remember the girl, and blinks when he spots her on the beach, looking lost and alone. Damn, does she even remember anything at all?]

Li--...kid? [He pushes his sunglasses up and sets them on his brow, pushing back the mess of his undercut.]

ah how i missed the sweet sounds of [death] 1/2

[z_poweredflower]

[ That voice...?

In the moment it takes her to turn and face him, Lillie is hit by all of her lost memories at once. Of her time on the islands, the pain and the laughter and the serenity and the chaos of it all. Her heart swells with memories of Ren and Luna. Of Bugsy and Sunny. Of Guzma. Her mentor, her big brother, her friend. Destruction in human form, razing the forest without realizing he was making room for the new trees to grow. Lillie remembers that she owes him everything, though many of the small instances that built that notion escape her right now.

Why does she feel like a great deal of time has passed? Where has she been? What happened? To her, to him, to everyone?

A moment of shell-shocked silence later, she breaks into a wide smile. ]

ah how i missed the sweet sounds of [death] 2/2

[z_poweredflower]

Guzma?!

[ She has so many questions, but the feeling that she's just been gone for a long time and is just coming home is so strong that all Lillie can do is start running towards him - start closing the gap, catching up. Her footing is clumsy in the wet sand, as if her legs have forgotten the strength island life once gave them. ]

WOW YOU JUST CAME RIGHT FOR MY LIFE

[yallstupid]

[The silence that hangs between them for those tiny moments feels heavy, and Guzma is about to chalk it up to this place taking something else away - of course it would, all those things with the two brats happened before the Storyteller went all out with--...what was it called? The Historian? Whatever the fuck, Guzma doesn't care. It's been so long since the battle was fought and won, and a new world was made - one that allowed people to come and go as they chose, any time they wanted, and even allowed others to visit worlds beyond their own. He didn't expect anyone from then to just...come back here and remember.

But damn if he's not happy she does. He can't stop the quirk of his lips at one corner, the glint of teeth in a barely-there smirk as Guzma takes one large step forward to catch Lillie before she trips and lands face first in the sand. Not a good look for the little princess, after all.]

Dang, don't look so happy to see me, brat. You'll ruin my rep, yo.

knifecats aggressively

[z_poweredflower]

[ 'Ruin his rep' - with who, Lillie has no idea, as she notes the lack of life signs in the surrounding area.

None the less, she hugs him tight when he catches her. Can't stifle a laugh at how stubborn and obstinate he is in comparison to how gentle he can be in these rare moments. Although something is a little strange about the situation, something she can't place for a moment until... ]

You look great! [ Clean and fed and more alive, she means. ] Did you get to go home? Gosh, how long have I been gone?

spritzes with water

[yallstupid]

[It's just in general. Shh, don't question him.

It's always a little odd to get hugs from people; Guzma's grown more used to it over time, especially from the kids he knows, but it's still so damn weird to think anyone would ever want to get close enough to a thug like him. He's a bit startled - just for a second - but picks Lillie up with a snort, carrying her almost effortlessly in the crook of one of his strong arms. She's tiny (compared to a giant like him, anyway), and practically light as a feather. This is nothing.]

Y'aint so bad yourself, pipsqueak. [Guzma clicks his tongue a little, thinking to himself. She doesn't know.] S'been a dang long time, n' I gotta rattle off a lotta what's gone down here, yo... Place is a whole lot diff'rent since y'all left. C'mon, I'll take y'back and explain.

...You wanna walk or this good? [It makes no difference to him, but Lillie may or may not want to be held like a literal princess.]