Rebeca smiled softly as she took in the crowd that was lined up along the parade route. There was a definite change in the air that even she could feel, an excitement that it had been a very long time since she had been a part of. All around her, she hear people talking about what the floats would be like, what Avatars they would see. It had been a long time since she had been close to comfortable in a crowd. Giving Germaine a wave as he went his own way, Rebeca glanced about, looking for a better spot. Stuck at the back of a crowd was no way to watch a parade. Thankfully, there were a large number of portable metal grandstands that outlined the parade route. Making her way over to the rear of one, she eyed the struts that braced the structure. [i][color=crimson]Whelp, sorry bro. Since you can’t climb…[/color][/i] Mihkail gave the structure a glance and rumbled quietly. [i][color=e25822]Unless you feel like carrying me.[/color][/i] Rebeca chuckled. [i][color=crimson]I’ll let you know how everything looks.[/color][/i] She reached up to grab a strut, when a shout from behind her made her pause. “Hey!” Turning, she raised an eyebrow at the police officer that was approaching. “You can’t climb those things, it’s dangerous.” The man sighed and rubbed his forehead. “I know you want to get a good seat, but you’ll have to find a different way.” Rebeca appraised the man with a small grin. He was a fair bit shorter than her, to the point that he was clearly having to look up at her. He apparently thought that she was just another fan. [i][color=crimson]To be fair, he’s right.[/color][/i] The officer was just doing his job, and he did have a pretty impressive mustache. On the other hand, she didn’t much care about rules. Glancing down at the officer’s feet, she made a circle motion with her finger, and matching ring of faint silver light formed in the pavement beneath him. Rotating her hand, she lifted her finger up, and the sizable section lifted up out of the ground, carrying the startled officer with it. It wobbled as he waved his arms to maintain his balance, looking at her with awe as she raised him up to eye level. Rebeca brought her finger to her lips, eyes glowing slightly. “[color=crimson]Shhh.[/color]” The officer stumbled off of the floating chunk of pavement, and she let it drop into the newly made hole. Winking, she turned and started climbing up the back of the grandstand. The officer watched her wordlessly for a moment, then turned and continued on his route. When she reached the top, Rebeca swung her legs over the panel that lined the back of the top row, gripping the end post that stood next to her. A little bit of maneuvering, and Maya was happily perched atop Rebeca’s head, chirring as she took in everything. [i][color=crimson]Well, it’s not the most comfortable of spots, but at least the view is good.[/color] [color=e25822]As long as there’s that.[/color][/i] She grinned at his sardonic remark. - The trio had wound up at around the halfway point of the parade route, so it was a little while before the floats reached them. When they did, though, it was certainly impressive. The memorial float at the front of the procession brought a solemn hush over the crowd. Rebeca had a vague knowledge of the Power Plague, but the village she had come from had been so isolated that there had been little, if any impact. To know that one of the Legendaries had lost their life to it was… sobering, to say the least. Still, parades like this were meant for celebration, not mourning, and the crowd’s excitement soon picked up. A loud cheer went up as the Legendary Birds went by, and Rebeca spotted a man in a rather flamboyant costume atop the Zapdos float, trying and not quite succeeding at dancing, but the crowd cheered and whooped all the same. The next person she spied was little Kaze, standing shyly atop his Suicune float and waving out at the crowd. The sight made Rebeca grin a little. From what little she knew of him, he seemed nice enough, wanted to help people. It figured that he would participate, not wanting to disappoint anyone. The crowd sent up a particularly loud roar when the Hoenn Legendaries started passing by. Rebeca vaguely recalled the bald guy standing atop the Regirock float from the dinner the night before, but he hadn’t said much of anything. The Eon Duo was interesting; they were in an open topped glass enclosure atop a single float, their respective Pokemon arrayed on either side. Inside the enclosure was a tennis court, and the pair were very busy putting on a show, using slight psychic boosts to pull off acrobatic antics as they hammered a ball back and forth between them. Eventually, one of them proved victorious over the other, and they paused their games to turn and wave at the crowd. The cheering only grew louder with the next set of floats. The first bore a sleek, blue Pokemon breaching out of ocean waves, its body decorated with red lines that were very similar to Rebeca’s own. Every so often a piercing cry would split the air. The third was a long, green, serpentine Pokemon that coiled through the sky above its float, supported by poles and guided along a set of tracks. Much like the Kyogre float, every so often a loud, echoing cry would be released. However, it was the second float that Rebeca’s attention was riveted on. A towering red behemoth standing in a pool of lava, surrounded by what looked like crystal spikes, among which jets of flame would erupt, its arms outstretched and teeth bared in a challenge to the world. A roar like thunder would rattle the stands, and the crowd would release an answering roar. Black lines, identical to Rebeca’s own decorated its body. Arrayed around the float were a cadre of fire breathing dancers, garbed in loose, red cloth that bore the same lines, although what they wore didn’t cover very much. As her eyes traveled the length of the giant statue, Rebeca sat in silence. [i][color=crimson]So, that’s me, is it? Or, part of me?[/color][/i] Her gaze settled on the small, empty platform that was set in the crown of ridges on the monster’s head. [i][color=crimson]And that’s where everyone here wanted me to stand.[/color][/i] Down below, Mihkail twisted his head to eye his distant sister. [i][color=e25822]You aren’t obligated to go up there.[/color] [color=crimson]I know.[/color][/i] Rebeca rubbed her arm as her gaze fell upon the crowd. [i][color=crimson]It’s just… listen to them.[/color][/i] The roar of the cheering, yelling and whooping was deafening. [i][color=crimson]How much louder would they be if I [u]was[/u] up there?[/color] [color=e25822]Probably much more. Fire does make for a very showy display.[/color][/i] The corner of Rebeca’s mouth twitched. [i][color=crimson]Yeah, I don’t think people want that kind of a show.[/color][/i] Her gaze followed the departing float, and she gave a deep sigh. The rest of the floats passed in relative peace, though Rebeca did get a glimpse of Germaine atop his float. She had to admit, what he used to be did look pretty badass. The little Shaymin girl was pretty cute too. “Dude, did you hear about what Diancie did to the Xerneas float?” Rebeca blinked and looked down. A small cluster of teens beneath her feet, two boys and a girl, were talking excitedly to each other. “Yeah, I heard that she had added some decorations of her own. Apparently he was super pissed about it.” “What, no way. You’re making that up.” “It’s true. My brother has this friend whose roommate is one of the security guards where they were setting up the floats.” Frowning, Rebeca turned her gaze down the parade. [i][color=crimson]There’s no way. The little Pink Princess messing with somebody? Nah.[/color][/i] The sudden burst of lights coming from the approaching Kalos floats, accompanied by a thunderous roar of approval, instantly dashed her thoughts. A cascading aurora had formed around what Rebeca instantly knew to be the Xerneas float; there was no way anyone else would be [u]that[/u] flamboyant about attracting attention. As the float approached, she could make out numerous elegant ice sculptures that now filled every inch of its surface. Of course, none of them was large enough to obscure the figure standing at the very top of the float; in fact, they seemed to be arranged in such a way as to pull one’s attention to that very point. Rebeca had to chuckle. As annoying and worrisome as Tantalus was, she had to admit that he certainly knew how to put his ego on display. The sudden second light show behind it, however, took her breath away. Hundreds of thousands of diamond shards suspended in the sky had created their own luminous aurora, and this one roiled and writhed as though it was alive. At the very center of the light show was a pink float completely decked in diamonds, leaving no doubt who it belonged to. Unlike with the Xerneas float, however, there was no sign of the Pink Princess. The intense activity of the performance meant that she was obviously there, it certainly seemed to fit what little Rebeca knew of the girl, but it was apparent that this light show was not in any way about bringing attention to herself. This is was grandiose entertainment, pure and simple. In any other circumstance, Rebeca would have considered it to be just another gaudy performance by a bunch of attention seekers. And technically, she would be half-right. However, the conversation by the teenagers, all three of which were now staring at the lightshow in utter rapture, cast things in a very different light. [i][color=crimson]She didn’t. Did she?[/color][/i] This wasn’t just a performance. This was a [u]competition[/u]. A grin crossed Rebeca’s face. A grin that disappeared as quickly as it came. A distant boom pulled her attention down the parade route, and a disturbance of some kind was rippling through the crowd. A pit formed in her gut. Something wasn’t right. Standing up, Rebeca lifted Maya off her head and clutched the Shellfish Pokemon to her chest. “[color=crimson]Hey![/color]” she barked at the teens below, causing them to look up at her with startled expressions, “[color=crimson] I think you guys should leave. Now.[/color]” One of the boys, squinting over his crooked nose, started to stand. “S’cuze me? Who do you-“ “[color=crimson]NOW.[/color]” The girl beside him tugged at his shirt sleeve. “Mikey. I-“ She glanced up at Rebeca, taking in the markings across her arms. “I think we should go. Please?” Rebeca paused to glance down the parade route. There was a definite disturbance in the crowd, and it looked like people were running. “[color=crimson]Get underneath the stands. There’s a Rhyhorn there with this Kabuto. Do NOT leave them. Once it’s clear, get inside some place safe.[/color]” She turned and jumped down from the stands, the pavement cracking audibly as she landed beside Mihkail. [i][color=crimson]Take Maya and stay with these guys. One of them has a crooked nose, probably broken at some point. Don’t let them go until it’s clear, and keep them safe. Okay?[/color][/i] Mihkail eyed his sister, then growled. [i][color=e25822]Stay safe, sis.[/color][/i] Laying Maya on his back, Rebeca gave his snout a slight knock, then started pushing through the crowd.