Lasrever

Pokémon: Start

---

Abigail was going to continue her conversation with Lucky when the door swung open, revealing a Professor who looked pretty, uh, scruffy. A look of disbelief crossed Abigail's face as she realised that it seemed as though she'd actually just slept in. Not that Abigail could really talk on that front, but she didn't have a job or anything, so that was totally different. Or at least a little.

She was pretty surprised to find out that creepy suit guy was one of the Elite Four. Still kinda creepy though, if she was honest about it. But she was still glad she hadn't said anything to him, despite her initial feelings. Not some low-ranked grunt from Team Virtue, that was for sure! Looking at Jacques, she kind of wondered if all high-level trainers were like that. Will I have to get a hat or something?

As much as Abigail wanted to be one of the first in, she didn't actually register the invitation for a few seconds, by which time a few people had already entered the lab before she could. Pouting a little, she followed the group and the professor into the lab. There'd be enough Pokemon there for everyone anyway, so it wasn't like she'd be held back or anything, she just really wanted to see everything in the lab! It was so new and exciting that she just couldn't wait!

Once she got in, she was too busy looking around the lab like a kid in a candy shop to pay that much attention to the professor, although as soon as getting her Pokemon was mentioned Abigail's attention went right back to her. She definitely hadn't forgotten the reason for spending all that time outside the lab.

She rushed forward as soon as they were given the go-ahead, grabbing her Pokedex and switching it on, her face lighting up as the screen switched on. Finally, she was getting to go on a journey! This was so cool. So, so cool.

'Take these and go make your own journey, just as you like it~!'

Looking up at Professor Kalmia, Abigail's face probably could've lit up a cave with how brightly she was smiling. This was always what the girl had dreamed of, getting a Pokemon and setting out into the world. Step one on her course to being a hero, so she was going to remember it forever!

"Thank you so much, professor! I'm gonna make the most of this, count on it!" she cried out cheerfully, although in her excitement her voice went a little squeaky. Checking the Pokedex, she read the entry for her new partner, mumbling it under her breath as the words appeared on the screen.

- You've obtained Wooper! -

Pokédex Entry #194 – Wooper, the Water Fish Pokémon. It lives in cold water, sleeping on the bottom and seeking food by the shore when it's cold. When walking above water, wild Woopers cover their bodies with a slimy, poisonous film that keeps them from dehydrating. It's slightly dull-witted.

- Would you like to give Wooper a nickname? -

Abigail thought it over, looking at the pokemon's picture on the screen. Hmm, what did that look like to her? Maybe she could name it something watery, or something that sounded really cool and powerful. After thinking it over for a second, she decided on a name that was neither of those things, but just felt right for some reason. It started with the same letter anyway so that counted as a good reason in her books.

She tossed the pokeball into the air, and her new partner appeared, a slightly dopey-looking smile on his face. "Winston! It's so great to meet you, I'm Abigail!" she was about to hug the Wooper, but then remembered what the pokedex said about poison. Maybe that wasn't the best decision for her health. Although, he was adorable. In a little bit of a compromise, she knelt down to the Wooper's level in order to greet him.

The pokemon in question looked at her blankly, antennae twitching in excitement as he let out a happy sounding cry. At least, Abigail thought it sounded pretty happy. It was hard to tell, since the pokemon's expression didn't seem to be changing at all. He was smiling, though, so that was a good sign. His tail wagged lazily from side to side.

"So, you ready to start a real journey, Winston?" she asked. After about ten seconds of waiting, the Pokemon nodded, to which Abigail let out a thrilled cheer. It was obvious exactly how excited the girl was about this.

Looking around the lab, all of the pokemon were really cool, but as far as Abigail was concerned, none of them compared to Winston. He was the best, clearly, because he was her starter! That made him a future hero in training, just like her, so he was totally the best! No matter what the future would throw at them, they would face it down together! She was feeling really inspired, like she could take on the world!

Winston faceplanted on the lab floor and shuffled along to his trainer. Okay, that one was a little less inspiring. They could work on it.

---

POKEMON

WINSTON

Wooper (♂)
Level: 5

Moves:

• Water Gun
• Tail Whip
• Mud Sport

Ability: Water Absorb (Healed by water-type moves)

Held Item: N/A

BAG

Items:

• 1x Potion
• Pokedex

Pokédollars: 500p

RWBY: Brilliant Horizon

Mauve Vinho

Industrial District, 21:18

Mauve was not having a good time with this. Finding herself stuck in one of the darkest, filthiest alleyways in the whole industrial district really didn't do wonders for her mood. A tactical decision, for sure, but not the most pleasant one - even if her appearance screamed 'huntress', it didn't stop a few particularly dimwitted thieves from thinking they could snatch a few coins. Needless to say, they'd very quickly reconsidered that theory.

Of course, she was still having a much better day than the man who was lying on the ground in front of her. He was a wreck, entirely her doing. Normally she'd at least be a little more subtle in her methods - such a brutal interrogation didn't appeal to her at all, and the action left a bad taste in her mouth. Sadly, she didn't have the luxury of being nice about this one.

She'd been tracking these guys for quite a while, for lack of any better leads to follow. At least, none that wouldn't require her to bow her head and take orders from some self-proclaimed governor or leader. Finding the terrorist cell had been at least a decent breakthrough, but she'd gotten word of their plans being put into action sooner than expected, and had had to abandon the subtle approach.

Hence the man whimpering on the ground in front of her about the sewers. Why he was reacting quite so badly, she had no idea. He'd broken fairly quickly, which was a blessing, but had gotten himself into such a state that she couldn't get any more exact directions as to his comrades' location than 'in the sewers'. For a supposedly hardened terrorist, it was kind of pathetic.

Anyway, she'd gotten the information that she needed, and knocked him out with a pistol whip to the head that would probably leave quite a mark. As she headed off to the nearest sewer entrance, the cold look on her face kept anyone from approaching her.

She paused, and tapped out a quick couple of messages on her scroll. The first was to alert the authorities of the man's identity and location for pickup - the only thing she really had a duty to do as a huntress. The second was less necessary, but asked for medical attention to be provided to the poor specimen. Not that she'd admit to asking for that one, but it eased her conscience a little to know he'd be looked after.

With that, she headed off into the night. Or, more specifically, to the nearest sewer entrance.

---

The Sewers

And so, she'd found herself roaming the sewers beneath the city. Today was just one unpleasant location after another, wasn't it? It was the nature of dealing with the sort of scum that would kill for no more than proving a political point, she supposed. If they didn't flinch at killing hundreds, a few bad smells weren't going to deter them. It was a shame, since this made searching the area a much less enjoyable experience that it otherwise might have been.

She'd been down there for around half an hour, maybe a little more. It certainly hadn't been long enough to find much, seeing as it was necessary to be cautious. Besides, she didn't have much information to go on, anyway. It was unlikely that they'd be operating in one of the sewer tunnels, so there had to be some kind of room around here for their main operation. She was just struggling to find it at the moment.

She stayed as quiet as she possibly could while she moved. It didn't seem like the best of plans to go around attracting the terrorists' attention. If they were well trained enough, it was possible that they could overwhelm her through sheer force of numbers if nothing else.

Time was of the essence, though, so she moved quickly, light on her feet as she searched for any sign of the cell. It hadn't been the easiest of searches, though, given the quality of intelligence with which she'd been provided. 'The sewers' wasn't the most exact set of directions she'd ever been given, so she'd had no real choice but to wander around, listening closely for signs of life and trying to ignore what she was stepping through.

The sacrifices I make for this job, she thought, a smirk crossing her face, before she paused , adjusting her grip on her gladius and quietly muttering under her breath. "What was that?"

She swore she'd heard someone speak, but it came from a distance behind her - she'd checked that area before. Which meant that there was someone, or maybe more than one someone, entering the sewers as well. There was something about the voice that was speaking that seemed almost familiar to Mauve, as though she vaguely recognised it from somewhere, but she couldn't pin it down. Whoever it was, they had to just be entering the sewers, if her memory was right.

Recalling a job that she'd seen on offer from the military police, Mauve's expression took on a look of profound irritation. The conclusion she reached about who these people were made sense, but it was no less annoying for that fact. Hunters or huntresses that had leaped at the offer to take orders from some officer, no doubt with a reward at stake. Of course. Self-important commanders and the dogs they've hired to do their dirty work. They do have a habit of interfering.

Well, interference or not, Mauve fully intended to track down these terrorists and show them exactly what a real huntress was capable of. Whoever the people entering the sewers were, they'd just need to catch up with her if they wanted to give it a shot. For now, she sped up her walking pace a little. There was no point in encountering anyone until she had to. Saying that, she remained a little wary of the new presence.

She thought that she could hear a few other noises, this time. Coming from a direction she hadn't ventured in quite yet. Twirling her gladius in her hand, she couldn't help but anticipate the fight that was no doubt soon to come, feeling the deadly calm that made her such an effective huntress settle over her. Mauve was ready to fight whoever, or whatever planned to get in her way. She was tempted to light up her path with her semblance, but felt it best to stay in the dark for now and keep the element of surprise on her side.

These terrorists were going to get exactly what they deserved for planning to hurt the people of Remnant. That was why Mauve had started monitoring them in the first place, and her mission remained the same. Protecting the everyday citizens was the most important part of this. Messing with the plans of some military commander was just going to be a little bit of a bonus.

RWBY: Brilliant Horizon

@Spoopy Scary I probably should have said this earlier, but Mauve isn't actually going to be at any of the meetings to start with, so no-one has to wait for me right now! I've discussed it with @Zugzwang, so she'll make her entrance once the first round of posts is over :)

Pokémon: Start

Abigail glanced over at the strange kid-watcher guy again. Maybe he was one of those team Virtue guys? She wasn't sure whether that was better or worse than her original suspicions. At least he didn't seem to be kidnapping anyone or anything. Shrugging, she turned back to reply to... what was his name again? It definitely started with an L, she remembered that much, but... Wow, maybe she really was scatterbrained. You learned something new every day.

Anyways, she didn't want to be rude and ignore his question or anything. So, she decided it was best to answer him anyway, and besides that, it was a chance to talk about pokemon! Why wouldn't she want to? After all, if she didn't like pokemon then why else would she have even applied for the pokedex? Her eyes were shining as she spoke to Lucian. "I dunno. I really like electric-types, though. They're so cool and fast and tough and exciting and..." This went on for roughly a full minute before she needed to breathe.

Seeing as she didn't actually remember his name properly, Abigail went for the next best thing - making something up and pretending she just liked nicknames. It had worked for her before! Not well, but there was only so much you could ask for, right? "I'll take pretty much any Pokemon, though. As long as it can keep up with me, you know? So, how about you, uh... Lucky? What kind of pokemon are you hoping for?" Yeah, that worked. She looked cheerfully up at 'Lucky', and asked a second question. "And what do you think's keeping the professor for so long?"

Persona 4 - Black Carnival

Tomomi Katayama

Tomomi just sighed, shaking her head. "Sure, I get it. Or at least I get that I don't get it, and that I probably won't for a while. I'm the type that learns from experience, you know?"

Clasping her hands behind her back, she laughed. "Point is, I think I'm gonna stop asking questions. Unless there's anything super important you want me to know, I think I'll just try and figure things out." she looked around at the shadow people. Her expression wasn't visible because of the mask, but the way she carried herself it seemed as though she genuinely wasn't afraid of them despite the warnings. If anything, she just seemed curious.

The only idea that she was worried about was of running into her own shadow-person in here. As for the rest, she wasn't bothered. Whether that was an indication of bravery or stupidity remained to be seen.

Persona 4 - Black Carnival

Tomomi Katayama

Tomomi shook her head in irritation. "Listen, there's not normal, and then there's freaky carnival dream world full of constant laughter, shadow people, and inedible food not normal. Do you blame me for being a little curious?"

She was pacing around, clearly getting restless and wanting to run off ahead. Luckily, even Tomomi had the sense to remember Michael's earlier advice, although she was getting more reckless about straying the more time went on. It certainly didn't stop her from moving in circles around him like an anxious toddler, or from running her mouth.

"So, other than my stunning talent, incredible personality and striking good looks - you guys'll have to take my word for that one with this mask on - I don't see what I could help this Ring Master guy with. Don't get me wrong, this is cool and all, but if he's got enough power to make this world however he wants, can't he sort out his own problems?" she looked over her shoulder at Michael with a little chuckle.

Pokémon: Start

Abigail looked down at herself. Now that he mentioned it, she really was kind of a mess, huh? With an embarrassed laugh, she looked up at him. "You're kinda observant, huh? Yeah, I sort of slept in a little. Guess I didn't need to rush as much as I did."

Smiling, she introduced herself in return. "Oh, and I'm Abigail! Nice meeting you, Lucas." she looked around the area. It seemed like a few more people had turned up. Some of them looked, kind of normal, but some of them seemed a bit weird. "Looks like I wasn't the only late one, though. Besides, if the professor's not here yet, that pretty much means I'm early anyway. I'm pretty sure that's the rules."

One of the people that looked especially strange was the man in the suit at the end of the path. It felt like he was... Watching them, almost. Now, Abigail was a kind and accepting person - as a future hero, she had to be. It sucked to have someone think they knew you from just the way you looked. In fact, she'd go as far as to say that she gave every single person a chance.

Saying that, this guy was clearly a complete and utter weirdo.

What kind of fully grown adult stood around watching kids in their free time? Abigail was pretty sure that could get you arrested. She looked back at Lucian. "Is it just me, or is that guy staring at all of us? It's creeping me out."

RWBY: Brilliant Horizon

The first one's a job from Beacon/Ozpin, so there's no way Mauve would take it, and the third one's about symbolism and honour, which means she'd probably laugh at the idea of her being involved in it for various reasons.

I think the second mission's the only one she'd take.

Edit: Actually, I'm not 100% on how that'd be either. I've got some ideas, though.

Persona 4 - Black Carnival

Tomomi Katayama

Okay, this was pretty strange, she had to admit. Not that the rest of this wasn't, but the whole carnival full of creepy shadow people was really reaching the threshold of what was okay. She was kind of surprised that there were other people here - guess it really wasn't in her head after all - but found herself curious to know who the people behind the masks were. They all seemed to be guys, and a particularly timid-sounding one was the first to speak up.

It had taken her longer than it should have to realise that she was wearing the stuff she'd fallen asleep in, although it made sense. A horrifying thought rushed through her mind, and she muttered under her breath as she followed Michael. Sure is lucky I don't sleep naked. That coulda been a little awkward."

After listening to Michael's speech, Tomomi decided to stick a little closer, although she was a little creeped out by the guy's chuckling. "Seriously? You choose that to laugh about? Man, you're just a comedian and a half, Mikey." she grumbled. Looking around at the carnival, she shrugged.

"Anyway, is that laughter from your boss? Or did he just add it to make things feel more authentic? Have to say, looks like he's a fan of carnivals. Don't know what else I'd expect from a guy called the Ring Master, mind you." her tone exuded confidence, and she was eager to meet this mysterious Ring Master. Whatever was going on, this whole place kind of seemed like an adventure.

Pokémon: Start

Abigail had fallen asleep pretty late last night. It wasn't her fault, there'd been a marathon of her favourite movie series on the TV, alright? What was a girl supposed to do, not stay up until 3AM watching badly-acted, overdone, cheesy action movies? Apparently so, but that just wasn't a life worth living. Still, it made getting up in the morning pretty painful. Luckily, Abigail knew exactly how to deal with the ear-piercing sound of her alarm clock going off. After all, a hero always had a plan!

In this case, the plan was to forget about it completely until it stopped going off. It wasn't working quite as well as she'd hoped. Why'd she even set an alarm anyway? It wasn't as though she was ever busy. Did she have some sort of appointment or something? Abigail paused for a minute before the realisation struck her.

Oh yeah, I'm supposed to get a Pokemon today, huh?

Wait. I'm supposed to get a Pokemon today. Like, right now. And I'm still here.

With a noise that was half panic, half excitement, Abigail started getting ready, not even paying that much attention to what she was putting on, which resulted in her looking a little like she'd been attacked by a clothing store. Luckily she'd at least had the forethought to pack her bag, which she quickly put over her shoulder before running downstairs. A more accurate description would be tumbling, but she felt like giving herself a little more credit than that.

Her parents had already left for work, but she quickly scribbled a note for them. Essentially saying that she'd gone off on that Pokemon journey that they'd been so against her doing, with an accompanying cartoon of a stick figure skipping away into the sunset. Once she was satisfied with her drawing, she set off towards the lab.

It didn't take her too long to get there, since she'd heard enough about the place from Luke. Once she reached the lab, she headed in, noticing a few people were gathered there. With an almost unbelievably cheerful smile, Abigail greeted everyone. "Hey, are all of you guys here to meet the professor too? I can't believe she's not here yet, I thought I was so late, and then-" she decided to stop herself before she talked for too long. "Um, I mean hi. Sorry." she smiled, looking a little embarrassed.

She paused, taking a few moments to actually look at the other people who'd gathered there. A redheaded girl, a broody-looking one who seemed kinda weird, a pink-haired girl and a guy with a headband. It was a collection, that was for sure. Abigail decided that they seemed like nice enough people. Or at least not serial killers or anything.

Figuring that she didn't want to interrupt any more conversation than she already had, she looked around the area, spotting a guy who was standing a little further away from the lab than anyone else. He was dressed kinda fancy, with dark clothes, and he seemed to be looking at everyone else in the group. With all the grace and subtlety of a charging Tauros, she yelled out to him. "Hey, are you here to see the professor too? Or do you just like to stand around random places looking all mysterious and stuff?"