cerozer0

The Pokémon Ranger Association

Sorry mother, sorry father. Sorry, sorry, sorry, but I have to do this.

That one thought, continued over and over inside of Mai's head, from the time she snuck out of the house just hours before to wandering aimlessly through the Route Twelve, all the way to Vermillion City dock, where she had finished her journey out of breath and a bit teary-eyed. That letter she had sent to the PRA was apparently accepted, to both her family's and her own surprise. That's when the argument happened, screams of, 'NO YOU CAN'T GO' which were then cancelled out by an equally loud, 'I WILL, I CAN DO THIS', and this continued on until they reached a stalemate, where Mai was then sent to her room in tears. Mr. and Mrs. Taniyama thought they had won the battle, but they did forget one important detail, and that was Mai's will to become a ranger. She had a ticket for the boat and determination, there was no way her those dumb, overprotective parents were going to hold her back, and so, when she was sure neither of them were around, Mai pulled herself over the wall of the house and ran free.

And now she was here, lying face-first in her cabin's bed, groaning as the boat swayed and lurched underneath. Mai had realized she was experiencing many 'firsts' at this time, including her first time being in a large city, her first time getting on a boat, and her first time experiencing sea sickness. She'd probably be a bit cheerier about all these firsts if she wasn't keeled over with an endless stomach ache and pounding head. After another moment or two of minor silence and a few soft groans, Mai forced herself to sit up, looking rather crossly at the door just a few feet away from the bed. Boredom clutched at her brain, and while she had packed many books and mind games the thought of thinking was a bit too straining right now.

"Perhaps," she spoke out loud, pushing a strand of brown hair behind her ear, "some fresh air will do me good." Her feet dropped from the bed, searching around quickly until she managed to find her simple, slip-on shoes, and then she was up and out of the room, walking with her arms outspread to clutch the corridor walls. Mai knew that the boat wasn't going to capsize, but the constant swaying was making her feel rather cautious, and so she wandered towards the deck, nearly spread-eagle, with a look of pure disdain. And then a noise, loud and unfamiliar, rang out above, and her heart nearly jumped from her chest. Her mind wondered about the reason for such a loud horn, and then she was climbing stairs and suddenly surrounded by salt-filled wind. Mai felt her eyes widen at the sight of clear blue skies and waters, and the smallest of smiles pierced her normally pouty lips.

Mai moved to the front of the ship, trying to keep eye contact on the beauty in front of her so no one approaches her, and stared off longingly into the distance. Wingull cawed high above, flying in massive white flocks, some diving down into the water while others performed some interesting aerial dances. She had remembered reading about Wingull, noting that they made nests on steep sea cliffs and relied on gliding with updrafts caused by the sea. Not very strong Pokemon, but interesting nonetheless. Her attention was then caught by shapes below, and purple eyes locked onto a herd of Mantyke, another water and flying type. They could use their antennae to sense ocean currents, and were adorable. Mai leaned forward against the boat's railing, hair twirling messily behind her head in the sea breeze as she tried to get a better look, a wide smile giving her the look of a younger girl, and then she saw it. Land. Nature Preserve island. Her fingers tightened around the brass railing, lips pursing as worry and excitement churned in her stomach.

"I can do this." she whispered, trying to quell her fear, and then she was turning, the loose fabric of her white sundress swishing around her knees furiously as she nearly sprinted back down to the door-filled corridor. Once out of the wind, though, she felt her stomach begin to ache again, which slowed her fast pace into a steady crawl. No, no, don't stop now.

'We're almost there.

The foghorn chimed again. They had arrived.

---

Within the next thirty minutes, they were docked, and Mai had managed to withhold her need to vomit all the way through. She was now back on the deck, watching with narrowed eyes as people descended down onto a dock via a rail-lacking staircase. Falling off would probably be a bad idea, so she would have to keep her self centered and calm, easy-peasy. Eventually, she was finally back on solid land, and while her legs felt somewhat wobbly Mai herself felt extremely light and ready for anything. The crowd (which Mai tried to stay on the outskirts of) was met by four other people, two girls and two boys, who gave them instructions on the tools that they soon received and then said they would be heading to some vacant bungalows. Mai accepted all the items with a small nod and shoved them into her hastily packed backpack, which included three pill bottles, under clothes, some money, plenty of books, and an ID.

And then they were walking, deep into the rain-soaked jungle, much to the discontent of her poorly-covered feet, which constantly sunk into deep, muddy pits. Ahead, people whooped and cheered, but Mai couldn't find her voice, and instead of joining the excitement she fell back a bit, watching over everyone with kind, if not shy eyes. Around, life chimed, Pokemon scuttled throughout the trees, and Mai felt her attention turn to the side, noting the many different species under her breath,

"Mankey, Aipom, Butterfree, Poliwag." Purple eyes scanned the leaves, a soft smile curling the corners of her lips.

"I didn't know so many different Pokemon can be found in one place." she whispered, clutching the hem of her white dress with excitement.

A Ranger, I'm going to be a Ranger!

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

Major Ursa said
Don't expect Sakaki to give somebody something out of his pocket every time they have hidden problems, the dude just dealt with quite a few two face and/or stressed businessmen in the past to know if something's up.All day, everyday. They pool in money for a place to stay, or will one of them have a 'beachside place/private island/a resort that owes them' for them to stay in?

I'm sure one of these characters is gonna have a beach house, I mean, most of them seem to be well off money wise, or at least come from pretty decent backgrounds.

tatszico said
Ugh, and the Co-GM gets left in the dust. D; Serves me right for going out last night lol.The pace seems slow so far though, so I'm just going to observe a bit before posting. Not exactly sure what I want Kinzo to do. :p

Throw him into the festivals grounds where Arisu and Megumi and Kuyu are hanging out. It'll be more fun with four people (:

The Pokémon Ranger Association

If you need a website to work on collab posts, try sync.in (typed exactly like that). It's like google docs except simple.

I'll have a post up sometime today, and I can't wait to see who Mai is paired with. Hopefully they won't mind having a sickly weakling on their team. (;

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

Megumi smiled at Arisu's response, finding her anger to be somewhat cute, and then they were up and walking towards the fair grounds. She stepped gingerly through the snow, listening with a blank face as Kuyu's voice became quieter, much different from before. Odd. Freezing cold water seeped into her sneakers, and she blew out another small sigh and shivered. While winter did have it's pristine beauty and calming nights, the cold was something Megumi hated more then men. When it's cold the body sweats less, but when you do it turns you into a human icicle. Breathing heavily is harder, and joints locked and jammed if they weren't used enough. Clothing became layered, adding an uncomfortable heaviness to the girl who always liked to stay light on her feet, animals came out less, and the dojo was always freezing during the colder months so students rarely came. How stupid.

"Ne, Kitabatake-chan..."

Megumi glanced up as the group finally finished their traverse over the mound of snow, listening intently to Kuyu's question. After a moment of thought and remembering that they had indeed taught Kiku at one time she responded quietly,

"Mother is doing... Well. We haven't been getting many students, which has made her somewhat..." Megumi trailed off as she tried to remember the word, "... Agitated. But she's not ill or anything, so there's that." Images of her mother burning food, training for days on end, and crying while visiting the shrine last night replayed over and over in her head, but she shook them away and instead focused on the festivals grounds. Shrines, most empty and still, lined the path that led to a set of stone stairs. Lanterns hung from trees, unlit, awaiting for night to fall so that they may once again light the walkway on last time for the last New Years celebration. Megumi had climbed the stairs in front of them last night, dressed in an ornate kimono, to draw fortunes with her mother and pray for a good new year. Nameless men were setting up a few stands at the moment, selling things like masks and kites and food. Megumi looked expectantly at the two in front of her, awaiting one of them to find something interesting to do.

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

Someone else was around, she could feel it. Nothing exactly dangerous, just another person, and the presence came closer and closer until there was a small shift beside her and the swing to her right was taken by the other person. Megumi stiffened, her eyes locking with her knees, trying to keep her face lax and not-as-scary as others usually find it to be.

"I-It's pretty cold today, huh?"

Megumi glanced up at the familiar voice, and turned to look at her co-worker and acquaintance, Fukazawa-san. Her shoulders relaxed and she straightened, a small smile appearing on her lips,

"Yeah... It really is." her voice was light, maybe a bit husky, but not entirely intimidating. The comment about it being cold was very true, especially for one who had been sweating a few minutes before. Megumi dug her red-knuckled hands into the jersey's pockets and sighed, watching as her breath appeared as a white cloud and then quickly vanished. Fukazawa-san was one of the few people that Megumi felt somewhat comfortable around. She seemed cold, but didn't seem to fear her as much as others did. The silence was suddenly peacful, not forced and horrible like before, and Megumi leaned back to stare at the crisp blue sky.

And then it was ruined. That all too familiar voice of a man interrupted the quiet, cold morning, and Megumi glared forward to see Kikuyu Kunazumi-kun, the twin brother of Kiku Kunazumi. While they were nearly identical, Megumi had found that their mannerisms and voices are very distinct, with Kiki being rather cute and shy and Kikuyu being much more outspoken and flirtatious. Megumi obviously liked the shy one better, but all men were scary to her in the end. Kikuyu began rant about the party last night, which Megumi had (gladly) not taken part of, and she blinked as suddenly a finger was jabbed between her eyes, and an angry Kikuyu asked why she hadn't been around last night. Megumi gave a small, uncomfortable grin as he explained that everyone was tipsy and something about a fake murder scene,

"I... I had to spend it with mom and I don't think drinking is-" and then she was interrupted, the conversation changing into something about the festival stalls. Such a fast-paced person, how does anyone keep up?! After a moment of silence, Megumi finally sighed and stood up, standing many centimeters above Kikuyu,

"Why not?" she muttered, running a shaky hand through her short hair.

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

I demand a beach episode

Beach > Pool

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

Cold

Megumi ran through the intricate, tight streets of Fukushima's residential area, wearing her school jersey. Right now, in the freezing cold of New Year's morning, she was exercising. Jogging to be exact, pushing her freezing body through the frigid air on mother's strict orders. It wasn't like this kind of exercise was unusual, in fact, Megumi was often seen jogging in the morning whenever she had time. It was a good way to wake up and keep fit, and so, she ran, deciding that she would spend most of her morning in the park. She was feeling a bit too blue to stay at home, after all, and needed to think some things over. Yesterday, Megumi had decided to take a day off of work to spend New Years with her mother, and despite having fun watching TV and eating cake (which was normally against the house rules), she felt bad for leaving everyone to work. Her shift wasn't until much later, but she felt as though she wasn't work as much as she should.

I'll work extra hard today, yes, that'll help with this depression.

Her mind chimed cheerily, that was, until a soft 'mew' interrupted her focus. Megumi froze, glancing about quickly to find the source of the meow, and then she finally caught sight of a black tail. A cat, black and sleek, stood on the wall beside her, and Megumi felt her body move on it's own, reaching up to give the feline a small scratch behind the ear while her lips formed into a large smile. The cat stared at her for a moment, then bolted, vanishing behind the wall, leaving the tall girl with a look of blank confusion. She waited a moment, thinking that maybe the cat would return, and when it didn't she began jogging again, a loud sigh escaping her lips with a puff of white vapor. Ah well, just one cat won't dampen her mood anymore...

"Ah! It's Kitabatake..."

Megumi froze in the center of a crossroads, staring curiously at two girls her age who stared back with wide, frightened eyes. She rose a hand to wave 'hello' but the girls flinched back, their colorful New Years kimonos shimmering against their small bodies, and Megumi felt her mouth form into a deeper frown,

"Sorr-"

"S-s-sorry! We'll be going, right, Kimi?" the first girl interrupted, her blonde-dyed hair shaking against her head.

"Yeah, sorry! Come on..." the second finished, dark hair pulled into a cute bun. They were both from her school. Kouhai.

And then they were gone, and Megumi felt her eyebrow twitch. What's so scary about her? She felt her hands reach up to play with the skin on her face, running gentle fingers over her flushed cheeks and thin lips pulled into a frown. Dumb, how dumb. Looks are dumb. Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb. Megumi started moving again, walking slowly up the familiar hill that lead to a playground where most of her childhood memories had been spent. Swings, slides, a jungle gym, see-saws, and many other colorful, worn toys and gadgets scattered the plush ground, and Megumi moved silently through the still landscape, taking a seat on the swing set. The cold air chilled her body to the bone, and her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath, and then she was swinging, moving her longs legs slightly back and fourth. Her eyes were dark, face formed into a look of annoyance, and she remained that way, deep in thought, as the morning began to pass.

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

I'm gonna have Megumi chill in a park until her shift, if anyone is interested in seeing her and saying hello. uwu And it's quite alright, Hibiki. GMs have to be assertive, and you are doing well at maintaining order for now.

Also, for those in need of inspiration, look up the anime Working!!, it's just like this game.

Let's Have A Bakery type of Roleplay!

Waaah I had a really good post but then I refreshed and now it's gone. I'll have something up soon. ;w;

Kingdom Guild: Golden City

Ash had been waiting a bit too contently for some comments, her posture had become relaxed and her eyes closed as she managed to catch her breath, so arms wrapping around her shoulders was obviously a bit of a surprise. The Asian girl, the pretty one she had caught sight of when entering the courtyard, was giving her some instructions on how to throw cards. However, the way Hitomi had decided on doing so was rather obscene, with body on body and sensually whispers, and Ashling was obviously very, very uncomfortable by this. A deep red had set in her face, and her eyes and mouth were wide open in shock. No one had touched like this since her last "boyfriend"... Her eyes clouded and she squirmed a bit as she was being shown how to throw her cards. Wind zipped forward suddenly, and her eyes finally focused and turned forward to see five cards dig into five different dummies. Did Hitomi throw them? They were different, Ashling realized they weren't playing cards like hers but something else, white with strange characters that she couldn't make out. Words of advice, about using the cards on those unarmored or exposed, and Ashling luckily had enough of a mind to take in the words, that was, until her curiosity was brought in by the cards exploding. Amazing, such interesting weapons! Wide eyes gleamed with admiration and she became unaware that someone was still embracing her from behind... And then pressure and heat suddenly pushed into her back and the girl's breath brushed Ash's ear. Her face turned tomato red once again and she squirmed as uncomfortable words entered her mind and flourished into obscene images. This girl, she was something else. Different from the high-collared girls back home, more like the girls in the front of the brothel, and it made Ashling very very very very confused.

And then the heat of another was gone. Miss Fox had returned to her perch, making ugly gestures at Marian. Shaky hands reached up to hold clutch at her chest, where her heart beat a quickly. How embarrassing, but one shouldn't judge others by their obscene mannerisms. Besides... she had good advice, but was it entirely true or just an excuse to touch her? Ashling finally let out a long sigh, cheeks pink and body suddenly very heavy and tired. That girl, she was just like a fox. Sneaky, beautiful, sly. Images of a black and white fox danced through her mind, entering her Wonderland easily; making a new character to interact with.

'Trusting people is hard enough, but foxes are another story...'

"Despite the crass words, the advice is basically correct,"

Her shoulders jolted as she was pulled from her thoughts, and Ash glanced up to meet eyes with Kenchi. He seemed to have picked up two of her fallen cards, and was explaining how one should aim for the neck or thigh for greater injury, taking note in the shape and how one should stand and throw it. Ash, having calmed down considerably, listened intently to the man's advice and watching his example with genuine interest. Using the cards as a distraction was a good idea as well, and Ashling made a few mental notes to remember this advice.

'What a difference eye contact has on a lesson'

She thought with a small smile, and then Kenichi was bowing and holding forward the other card, obviously expecting her to try once again. The smile widened slightly and she took the card with a nod of the head between two fingers and turned towards the target, copying the other's stance from before almost perfectly. Her eyes wandered then locked, and the normally clear blue became stormy with focus. Then she was uncurling, shifting, flicking, her body moved quickly (if not a bit stiffly) and the card went spinning toward it's target, digging deeply into the yellowish fabric that might have been the collarbone of an actual person. A feeling of excitement washed over her, eyes widened happily, and she turned back to the helpful man, flashing him a rare grin,

"Thank you... Oh!" she blushed suddenly, realizing that she had no idea what his name was, "I'm sorry for not introducing myself. My name's Ashling, Ashling Linwood, or, uh, Wonderland, if we're going by the aliases they gave us." she bowed her head politely, hands folded neatly on her apron, acting like she used to back home at the estate where she worked.