Joshua Tamashii

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

At her request for the Sun Stone back, Amelia couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Annica before responding.
"I will hand it back once we find the Water Stone. I have no need for a Sun Stone now or in the future, so it won't do me any good." She said, her tone kind and polite, as she wasn't trying to be rude. "Now, another question, this one for you Miss Annica and maybe Miss Leila can help me with this one. Mister Eric said he was out battle at the time of the theft and his pokemon show signs of battle, so this seems to be a good alibi for him and his pokemon. Miss Leila has admitted to causing the earthquake with her Barboach. but chickening out on taking the Water Stone and you mentioned watching her the entire time. Yet no one can confirm that since Miss Leila wasn't looking at you at the time and Mister Eric was away. Now, assuming all you did was indeed watch Miss Leila, what were your pokemon doing at the time?"

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

Amelia almost sighed in relief once her hunch was confirmed and Leila confessed to causing the earthquake with her Barboach. However, that did not answer where the water stone was, as Leila also confessed to chickening out in taking the water stone. So, they still had to figure out who had taken it. Once again, Amelia closed her eyes and tried her best to organize her thoughts again. She mentally went over everything they knew and something occurred to her that she hadn't asked yet. Opening her eyes again, she turned towards Eric.
"You mentioned someone named Amy earlier. Am I to assume that's the girl in the picture you have? If she is, what is her relationship to you and Annica? Why would she be in need of a Water Stone?" She asked him.

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

Amelia sighed before she moved over to the shore to take a seat on some drier land so she could get off her feet. Once she was comfortable, she rubbed her forehead, trying to get her thoughts in place. It was exceptionally frustrating, dealing with people. If this was a Pokémon only problem, it would probably be much easier to resolve. But once people where in the mix, all bets were off, as she just didn't get them as well as Pokémon. Worse of all, she felt like she was miss a piece to puzzle and she just couldn't fathom what it might be.

As she mulled over the problem, she looked around at the three trainers in front of her, Palpitoad, and her pokemon, all of whom stayed close to her. Her eyes fell on Honedge, who was studying her intently, and she took a deep breath to calm herself. She knew Honedge was still judging her and she needed she was worthy of it's respect. She was going to see this through, no matter how long it took. Once you give your word to do something, you had to finish it, no matter the results.

Amelia closed her eyes and went through everything that had been said and presented to her. She even took the time to scan each of the pokemon they had presented with her Pokedex to check what information the device might give her on them. Several thoughts ran through her head and she picked one or two to pursue before getting back up and moving back over to everyone. She then turned her attention to the Backpacker and ask a very simple question.
"What moves does your Barboach know?" She asked. She found it odd that only Leila didn't bring up the earthquake. On top of that, Barboach was a Water/Ground type and she knew Ground-type pokemon had access to several moves that involved phenomena similar to earthquakes. Route 1, as far as she could tell, never had such disasters naturally. So, maybe a pokemon had caused it.

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

"Yes, Murkrow does have an advantage against my pokemon. However, it's only one pokemon against six. Even if it knocked out one or two of them, it isn't likely to knock out all six. You also have Fletchling but it will only have an advantage against so many of them. As for your Barboach, it might know those moves but I got Phantump and Pumpkaboo who can resist all of them. Thus, I have an advantage against you on that account." Amelia said to Annica and Leila respectively, keeping her tone even and polite despite not being a fan of her pokemon being looked down on. "As I said, I don't want to resort to violence if we can avoid it. But something one of you said isn't sitting right with Palpitoad. They're sensitive to vibrations. They could sense that once of you might be lying. So, where were you pokemon during the time of the earthquake?"

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

Amelia listened to the other girls speak before glancing at Palpitoad once it began acting upset. She reached down and gently patted the pokemon on it's head, letting it know she understood with the simple motion, hoping it would calm down. Once she was sure it wouldn't try to wash everyone away, she looked back at Annica and Leila, a frown on her face.
"Those aren't very convincing statements. Neither of you are giving much information, unlike your friend here, and that's not really helping either of you look less guilty." She said before reaching for her pokeballs. Deciding that a little display might be in order, she tossed them all up into the air, releasing her army of ghosts, Phantump coming out with a large shower of sparkles because of it's shiny nature, who all floated to position behind her, save Litwick who landed on her head. Glancing around, she motioned to Shuppet, who floated over curiously, glancing around at the situation. "This here is Shuppet. Shuppet knows a move called Knock Off. I don't want to resort of violence and possibly harming your pokemon, but if we can't get to the bottom of this through testimony, we might have to resort to such measures. So, will either of you give me more details?"

Phoenix Wing: New Dawn

Joshua Tamashii

Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Lunarlord34 @BlackMaiden @Zarkun

Joshua at least at the decency to wince and look a bit regretful about his actions when Amaya scolded him.
"Sorry. You know I don't mean to worry you. I try to avoid it but I guess I'm just a bit too much of an idiot at times." He said to her once there was a pause in the conversation, having listened to what James and Cody had to say as well, lowering his head. "How about I make it up to you? I think... maybe one-thousand jewels of ice cream, your choice of flavors at the parlor of your choice? Does that sound like it'll help? We can go to any city you want as well."

Turning to Cody, he looked thoughtful as he examined his fellow guild member.
"I do have to agree with Amaya and James on this one. I understand the need to train and try and better yourself. But you do need to just take some time and relax. If you just focus on training, you'll eventually hit a rut and unless you take the time to relax and do some reflection, you'll likely get frustrated and make no progress." He said, remembering his time in the East when Kirin had been training him. He had experienced many, many ruts back then. "That being said, I do think you have a good idea in observing your betters. All martial arts training starts with the art of imitation. If you can't mimic the basics shown to you, you'll never get anywhere.

That being said, after a bit of relaxing, would you like to do some training together? I'm a swordsman too you know. At the very least, having someone to spar with can often times be better then training alone. On top of that, I can help you stop yourself from training too much, which will help these two relax and not worry as much."

Amelia Averyonna

Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Zarkun @MarshiestMallow

"Well then..." Amelia said, looking around the guildhall before spotting Penny and shouting to her. "Thank you for the chocolates Penny!"

With her thanks given, Amelia turned back to Damian before looking thoughtful.
"Not much has really happened that I know of. I've mostly been trying to figure out the location of the at least one of the remaining two Riders. I only got Styx and Acheron to find yet. But, sadly, it's taking more time then I imagined. I suspect their locations where exceptionally well hidden due to their powers.

Other then that, Mama and Papa are at some sort of meeting with Master Jack, but I don't know what that's about. I don't know where Sam is though. I should probably go looking for her, make sure she's not in trouble. Maybe she's out playing with Elyse or something though. But if she's not, I can only hope she's okay and then she isn't hurt or anything.

Pyrrha Arvanitas

Dragon Fang Guild Hall
@Zarkun

Indeed, Pyrrha was not a fan of money being spent on her but at the mention of going to Hargeon, her eyes lit up a bit as she turned towards Jake.
"Really?! We can go to Hargeon?! Can we go to one of those restaurants by the ocean! I can only imagine how fresh the fish must be at those places. If we get there when the sun is setting, I bet it'll look so beautiful as well!" She said excitedly before catching herself. Her cheeks quickly grew red as she looked away and spoke in a more subdued tone. "B-but I guess any restaurant there would do. I don't really got anything fancy to wear to places like that so I would look... really out of place."

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

Amelia nodded as Eric gave his testimony in regards to what he and his pokemon had been doing at the time of the earthquake. She also doubted that Surskuit and Ledyba had tried to take the Water Stone. With their trainer taking the time and effort into making them stronger, they would probably be too tired to try and risk stealing the Stone in question. Kneeling down a bit, she gently petted both of the bug types.
"You two must be putting in a lot of effort. Make sure your trainer doesn't push you too hard though." She said to them gently before standing back up and turning to Annica and Leila. "What about you two? Were either of your pokemon out of your sight after the Earthquake occurred?"

Pokémon: Start

@PlatinumSkink

Amelia listened to the three trainers as they all gave their testimonies and then presented their pokemon and possessions. By the testimonies and the previous conversation between them alone, it seemed unlikely that either one of the three trainers had taken the Water Stone. Regardless, when presented with the items, she carefully sorted through them, taking particularly long with the pile of pretty stones incase the Stone in question had somehow been mixed up in it.

When she finished with that task, she moved onto the pokemon. Most of them seemed to be damaged from obvious battle, with the Surskit and Ledyba looking especially rough. She felt bad for the two bug-types and hoped that they would be treated soon. The Murkrow was rather suspicious and she remembered Joshua telling her to be careful with anything shiny when around them. They liked to nab such things and hoard them according to him, especially with a Honchkrow was nearby and giving orders. This one belonged to a trainer though, so there likely wasn't a Honchrow involved. Still, out of all of them, it seemed to be the most likely to try and steal the Water Stone.

Straightening herself up again, Amelia took a few seconds to gather her thoughts before a question occurred to her. So, she turned to face Eric before speaking.
"You said there was an earthquake at some point that that caused Palpitoad to leave the stone right? When that happened, did any of you have your pokemon out? Did you take your eyes off them at any point that they might've gone off and done something without you noticing?" She asked the group.

Phoenix Wing: New Dawn

Joshua Tamashii

Magnolia -> Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Lunarlord34 @BlackMaiden @Zarkun

"Hey there James. A pleasure to see you." Joshua said when his senior came over and asked how the job went. Joshua considered it for a bit before shrugging. "It wasn't hard at all. Just some herb gathering. Amaya's nose was very useful once she memorized their scent. Sadly, despite our best efforts, we couldn't find any hints that might help her find her mother despite it being near the area Amaya grew up in."

He then turned to Amaya as she addressed him and the fact that he hadn't returned before her. He smiled at her as he removed his hand from her head, straightening out some of the hair he had messed up as he spoke
"Well, I went to check out that smoke cloud. It was a village that got attacked so I helped out where I could. That took a while. I only managed to get on a train back here just last night. I just got here less then an hour ago. Still, I'm sorry if I worried you." He said, deciding it was best to not mention the fight with the bandits or his injuries. He was definitely hiding the one on his left arm, moving it as little as possible to avoid wincing from the pain.

Joshua then listened to Cody speak but said nothing in return, as the boy seemed more interested in talking to James. He wasn't sure why, but Cody had never seemed to be a big fan of his and even when Joshua tried to be friendly, he often seemed to get brushed off in favor of others. Still, Joshua didn't bare a grudge or anything for it, so he was content to stay and listen for the time being.

Amelia Averyonna

Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Zarkun

"I'm fully aware of how late it is. You know I get rather sleepy some days. It's hard to sleep when you can hear the voices of your contracted spirits bickering all the time. Still, I at least manage to do so most nights. They were just a bit louder then usual last night." Amelia said in a gentle and calm tone, fighting back a yawn as she did so. However, her fatigue vanished as soon as the box of chocolates was slid over to her. She stared at the chocolates and lifted up the box for a second before lowering it and looking at her. "You got this for me? Aren't these very expensive though? You know how I'll feel if I find out they are."

Pyrrha Arvanitas

Dragon Fang Guild Hall
@Zarkun

"Oh come on, you know we don't actually have to go anywhere expensive. I'm fine going somewhere cheap. That being said, I wouldn't mind if you went somewhere a bit more scenic and relaxing to eat. Maybe somewhere along the beach for once, though I guess that would mean a little bit of travel. Besides, there aren't that many expensive places nearby anyway. Better to support the smaller businesses." Pyrrha said, letting her thoughts be known but still looking thoughtful as she tried to think of where they could go in Shirotsume. She had only brought up going somewhere expensive as a joke, not intending Jake to take it seriously at all.

Phoenix Wing: New Dawn

Joshua Tamashii

Magnolia -> Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Lunarlord34 @BlackMaiden

Joshua sighed as he finally got off the train station at Magnolia. He took a second to breath in the now familiar air of the city he was now able to call his home, happy to be back after a mission that had taken longer then expected. It had just been a simple material gathering mission for some doctor hoping to make some medicine. It had been around the area Amaya had grown up so Joshua had invited her along on the off chance they might come across some hint about her mother Aura, though sadly that had not actually occurred.

It had been on the way back that Joshua and Amaya got separated. Joshua had spotted some smoke on the horizon and he had instantly recognized that it was too thick. He had told Amaya to continue back while he went to check it out. While she had resisted separating at first, he had managed to convince her that he would not be long and went to check it out. What he found was a village on fire from a raid and several survivors in need of help. Unable to leave them in such a state, Joshua had helped them put out the flames before learning as much as he could about the bandits that had raided them and going to track them down in order to rescue some hostages they had apparently taken.

The hideout wasn't hard to find but the fight inside had been harder then he had expected. On top of what he knew they would do, which was trying to use the hostages against him and trying to overpower him with sheer numbers, several of the members had some small skill with magic. While the magic itself was nothing dangerous, it had been enough to cause Joshua some trouble and he received more then a few cuts from the other bandits weapons as a result of it.

Regardless, he had come out on top and managed to return to the village, getting some medical treatment for his more serious injuries before returning home. That had been a few days ago. Glancing down at his left arm, he made a fist and winced a bit as pain shot through it. One of the more serious wounds had been a blade through the middle of his left forearm, slipping between the bones. He planned on not mentioning it it Amaya, for he knew she would possibly blame herself somehow, and he hoped Jarvis had some sort of lacrima that would heal it without the risk of permanent problems.

Moving through the town, he made his way to the guild hall and he heard the music before the building was even in sight. He guessed that meant that Damian was back and holding a concert or something of the sort. Regardless, he made his way in without much fanfair and glanced around before he spotted Amaya and Cecilia talking with Cody. Making his way over from behind Amaya, he gently placed his right hand on her head and ruffled her hair.
"Hey there. What did I miss? You been back long?" He asked her before turning to Cody. "Hey there Cody. How have things at the guild been? Anything eventful happen other then... whatever is happening here?"

Amelia Averyonna

Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@Zarkun

Amelia had been enjoying an afternoon nap when the music began pumping through the guild hall. Moaning, the young girl had pulled her pillow over her head to drown out the sound but sadly, it was to no avail. Eventually, Amelia gave up and got out of bed with a groan before leaving her room and heading downstairs to the main guild hall, rubbing her eyes as she came down the stairs, the crystals on her wings swaying with each step.

Glancing around, Amelia spotted the source of the music and sighed as she realized who it was. Among those at the guild, she was probably the only one who had spent time with Damian when he was away from the guild. Apparently, he was to be her guardian of sorts, looking after her when Jamie or Jarvis were too busy with other things. While it had been a bit of a rough start at first, the two had bonded a bit and Amelia now considered the S-Class mage a close friend and confidant. So, rather then interrupt the performance, like she would with anyone else, the girl instead found and empty table and sat down, watching. When she saw Damian at least glance in her direction, she waved at him and gave him a small smile, letting him know she was there without interrupting him. What he did with that information was up to him though. Maybe she should go bother her parents or see how her little sister Sam was doing.

Elyse Griffonbane

Phoenix Wing Guild Hall
@BlackMaiden

It was only when the music began playing that the little girl in Rose's arms, who had been enjoying such a peaceful rest, finally stirred. The entire car ride home and the trip back to their home and back to the guild hall hadn't done it but the volume of Damian's band more then did the trick. With an upset moan, the small child opened the aqua blue eyes before looking around before recognizing where they were. Smiling, she looked around again for someone before frowning and turning towards her mother.
"Mom, where's Dad? Isn't he home yet?" She asked, her tone clearly upset.

Pyrrha Arvanitas

Dragon Fang Guild Hall
@Zarkun

"Jake, you better not lose! If you do, you're treating me out to something expensive tonight!" Pyrrha called out as she watched Jake and Hunter have their little boxing match. The elven maiden was smiling in an amused manner as she watched her boyfriend duke it out with a the dragon slayer. She would've fought Hunter herself but she just didn't feel it today and was more then happy to watch Jake have some fun. The threat of him treating her to an expensive meal was more for her amusement then anything and she was eager to see what such a little threat might do to the fight. Hopefully it wouldn't get out of hand, otherwise she would probably end up having to apologize for egging on the escalation of the fight.