Little Scriven Cliffside Café

[Tetra]

Seething annoyance surged through him. A familiar tightness in his chest, a knot he couldn't untangle. A buzzing mess of thoughts clouding his mind. His pokeball. She had no right to touch it, to ruin it. First she destroyed his stuff, then she had the nerve to accuse him of not listening and then run away. To judge him for something he couldn't fix-

"You only care about being smug and self-righteous!" Koa suppressed an indignant snarl. He rose to his paws, taking a step after her. "You didn't hear anything I said. And I don't know what you're even talking about, I never said-"

"You're seriously be trying to help a bunch of filthy criminals?"

The blood drained from Koa's face and he jerked short, his stomach turning into a gaping pit. Criminal. The memory of what'd happened before the Gala flooded through him. He'd talked to Laura, yes. And made amends with Sonora as best he could. But Isidora had been there too.

His mouth turned dry. Not so different from what Wes had said to him, and exactly what he hated so much. He'd been so used to the way his world worked, he'd just assumed Sonora was a terrible person back then...

“You’d have fit right in at Snagem, kid. Nasty attitude and pompous ego and all. They’d have loved you.”

See? He was right. The memory of Wes's words still stung him so much... Was that what Isidora felt too? The pit in his stomach grew into a chilling weight that iced out the worst of his frustration. Biting down the rest of his bitterness, he shook himself out of his thoughts and scrambled after Isidora's retreating form.

He managed to catch up to her just outside. "Isidora wait!" His voice hitched slightly. The knot in his chest tighted more somehow, and he tried to swallow. "I'm sorry!" he blurted the words awkwardly, forcing himself to meet her gaze. "About that night, calling you a criminal. I didn't even think back then, I-" He what? Explaining seemed pointless here. His voice quavered slightly as he tried to gather his words. Stupid. Why was it so hard to get right? "I-... I assumed and I shouldn't have said that, and it was wrong and I don't mean it. I mean. I don't know. Maybe I did but not now. That's not what I think about you." Despite the forcefulness, there was clear sincerity.

Still think you're a brat though, a tiny voice in his head said.

 

[JFought]

...and turned when Koa caught her just out front. What was he doing?

Isidora kept her gaze harsh as she listened to his attempt at apology. "Oh, so now you remember." She placed a claw on her belt, unamused. "And you don't think I'm a criminal, you just think I'm a smug judgmental asshole who belongs with the Covenant. Got it."

 

[Tetra]

Koa narrowed his eyes, considering for a moment before speaking with an cool edge to his tone. "Depends. Do you think people deserve to be treated worse for who they were born as? Something they can't change? Can't fix?"

He thought of Silver and Archie. Odette. Of the actually terrible humans and pokemon they knew. How much more quickly would Isidora write them off if she heard their story? He took a step back, gazing at her. "I don't dislike you for being a Sneasel. And if you're not willing to give everyone on this team a fair chance, then yeah. That is what I think."

His gaze settled on the shard of his pokeball she still held. "You can keep it. I'll get another."

 

[JFought]

It stung to hear that question coming out of the body of an electrike. But Koamaru wasn't one. I've thought about it more than you ever have. And yet she couldn't stop an ever-so-slight recoil of guilt when he asked. Why did he have to look like that? It wasn't fair.

Isidora's tail feathers shook, and she crossed her arms. "Of course I don't. You just decided I did because it'd be easier than if I disliked you for being a trainer. That would be something you chose."

She held up the shard. "This shouldn't exist. And if you're going to go around flaunting them in public spaces then you shouldn't have one. Not everyone's gonna think as highly of them as you do." He must've gotten it from that Giovanni guy mentioned over the network, same as the ball from the meeting. She shivered as she recalled the shock of seeing one so suddenly. "And never show one to me ever again."

 

[Tetra]

Koa snorted. "Don't worry, I won't make that mistake again."

He sighed, shaking his head, then pointed at his broken pokeball. "Do you know everything about how those work on every world? Where they came from? If trainers on my world are as evil as you say, and go around imprisoning pokemon on every universe, why would I use one on myself?"

She was still doing it. He rolled his eyes. "Nevermind. Forget it. Hate me for being a trainer then if you want. Just make sure you know what that word means before you judge someone else on this team."

He met her gaze pointedly. "Don't make the same mistake I did."

 

[JFought]

His point about Poké Balls bounced off of Isidora. I'm sure it's easy to screw around with these when you're used to them. He probably sees this all as novel.

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't go comparing us, your reaction was hardly principled. And what did you think would happen when you pulled that stunt? That I'd just agree with you?" She answered that for him with a shake of her head. "I don't care where these came from, I just know what they're used for, unless you're next gonna tell me swords are used for cutting vegetables where you're from. But I'm not wasting my time arguing with you on that when I never expected you to agree."

Having admitted that, a sense of bleakness began to settle in, and she could barely stand to look at him anymore. Her ears folded as she gripped the strap of her bag and turned to leave. "None of us have to like each other, the mission's more important than that. So this is my line in the snow, and I'm not crossing it for you or anyone else."

And with that, Isidora walked away, hoping he wouldn't follow this time. She stared at the wooden shard in her paw with bitter feelings. What a shitty trophy. I need to find somewhere cold...

 

[Tetra]

Isidora's words stung, more than he cared to acknowledge. She hadn't listened to a word he'd said. Didn't care about anyone else. About the team or understanding them. Fine then. He didn't owe her anything anymore.

"Trust me, I don't need someone like you to like me. I'm done wasting time expecting you to listen. I hope for the sake of the mission you listen better to the people here," he forced the words through gritted teeth.

The words felt bitter on his tongue. This wasn't how he meant for things to go... His head drooped. He'd hoped for a moment they could be friends. Or fix things. Like with Sonora and Bellatrix...

As she walked away, he opened his jaws but his mind blanked, and he stared at the ground. What more could he say? She clearly didn't care about apologies or want to believe anything he had to say. Maybe if he gave it time... What had happened to Isidora to turn her so cold?

With a heavy sigh, he turned away as well, ignoring the emptiness in his chest.

It's fine. I don't care. And he almost believed it.

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