The HQ Team (PLOT)

"I-if I do that, will you not break it? And give it back to me just the way you got it?"

"Of course, honey," Clair said, raising her eyebrows in mock surprise of him doubting her words. "I'm a woman of my word. I'll take it to the lost property office and you can collect it at the end of the day. They'll take care of it there." Provided it even got there, of course. Who was to say it wouldn't 'accidentally' go missing on its way there?

"But enough. I'm bored of his discussion and I have better things to do than speak to you all day."

"Excuse me?"

"You'd better get to work on this floor. I want to be able to use it as a mirror by the next time I walk down here."

Ma'am?"

"WHAT-- is it?" She turned to the young messenger woman, gritting her teeth as she tried to compose herself. How rude for her to interrupt her fun.

"Can I, um, speak to you for a moment?" She peeked around Clair's shoulder at Wally. "In private?"

Hmph. What could be so important that she had to drag her away from her darling Wally? With a huff, she grabbed the girl's arm and pulled her around the corner, out of earshot of the runt. She folded her arms with a scowl and waited for whatever super-secret news this messenger had.

...Well.

She hadn't expected that.

---

Every step felt like he was trying to walk down a cliff-face without breaking a leg, but Sidney felt that his head was starting to clear. At least he could count on Judas to catch him if he went tumbling down the stairs, but he hoped it wouldn't come to that; a murder and a broken limb were too much to deal with at once.

Fortunately though, he soon spotted Steven and Wallace at the bottom and stumbled his way down to them. "Hey, guys," he said, trying to sound somewhat civil but wincing upon finding out that he still sounded like a Croagunk. He didn't want Steven to get the wrong impression of him. He already knew about his ... habits, of course, but it would've killed Sidney to think that his Champion blamed or held him responsible in some way for what had happened. He'd have to do what he could to make sure that didn't happen.

"Sorry I'm late," he said, reaching the bottom and giving Steven an amicable pat on the shoulder, and reaching out with the other to slap Wallace's back. He began walking down the corridor with them, quite frankly at a loss of what to say to them. How did you even start a conversation in a situation like this?

"I swear to God, when Lance gets back, I'm going to give that ginger shithead a piece of my mind!" Wallace was raging, earning a surprised blink from the Dark-type Trainer. He felt Judas tense beside him, the atmosphere clearly getting to the canine as well. He patted his Pokemon on the head reassuringly before asking, "Did something happen? You sure seem mad about somethin'."

"Of course, honey," she says, raising her eyebrows like my gosh how could you be so unsure as if she weren't Satan incarnite and probably going to smash his poor walkman as soon as she could.

Or keep it.

Or give it away.

Or break parts of it so it just barely works.

"I'm a woman of my word. I'll take it to the lost property office and you can collect it at the end of the day. They'll take care of it there." Yes, see, there it is, a flicker of her true colors behind her eyes, contradicting what her words imply.

God I hate you. He's trembling, and whether in fear or rage he's not sure, but she'd better not destroy his walkman, or... or...

He'll be forced to tell Steven, the very last thing he wants to do.

I don't wanna TATTLE; she'll never let me hear the end of it.

"But enough. I'm bored of his discussion and I have better things to do than speak to you all day."

"Excuse me?"

Oh thank god an interruption.

"You'd better get to work on this floor. I want to be able to use it as a mirror by the next time I walk down here."

God, seriously? Clair had to have heard her.

Ma'am?"

"WHAT-- is it?" Finally, she turns around. He nearly sighs in relief before remembering shce can still hear him. Yeah, that'd be a bad idea.

"Can I, um, speak to you for a moment?" And now she notices him, peering around Clair to spot him before redirecting her gaze to Clair. "In private?"

His shame burns brighter and he can feel it turning his face a brighter color in turn. At least now she'll go the fuck away and give him some sense of peace.  

And she does.

Hopefully she stays away.

Steven said nothing, his head hung low, as Wallace ranted. While it was true that tension had arisen between the regions since the epidemic's onset, which was hardly a surprise when so many people from every country and culture were stuck under one roof - conflict now and again was inevitable. But Lance...Steven knew that his attitude towards him was a lot more than that. He was still plagued by all the awful things that the Kanto Champion had said to him, yet never quite convinced that he was wrong, no matter how many times Wallace dismissed his insults as 'bullshit', as he often did. He knew why Lance despised him and, frankly, probably wouldn't be too fond of himself either if he was somebody else. What good did an emotionally weak Champion do for HQ?

A hand jovially patted him on the shoulder as Sidney turned up, looking more than a little worse for wear. He began to walk with them, questioning Wallace on what he'd been ranting about.

"Nothing too important," he replied quietly, which was true - Lance's attitude problems weren't even worth thinking about given the current situation. At least Lance wasn't running around HQ killing people. "What needs our attention is what has happened here. I'll need you to help us review the security footage, Sidney, and find out when it happened so we can check that day's schedules." He lifted his head long enough to offer him a reassuring smile. He didn't want Sidney to feel responsible for what had happened in any way; that could wait until after they'd found out what had happened. Small steps, one at a time...some pieces of advice apply to all situations.

(I do apologise for the poor quality - I'm not feeling at my best today.)

"Did something happen? You sure seem mad about somethin'." Wallace turned slowly, wide-eyed with rage to Sidney, hands twitching to wring his dumb, drunk neck. Did he not have ears? Was he just too hungover for words to work in his mind? Was Sidney so mind-numbingly oblivious to what was happening with not only his bitchy drinking buddy whore but a full-on goddamn murder investigation? Oooooh, he was really walking a fine fucking line in Wallace's eyes, though Steven seemed too tired to give into fury like Wallace had. The Water-type Leader refused to answer Sidney's stupid fucking question and instead simply fumed beside Steven as they walked and his Champion explained.

"Nothing too important," was Steven's dispirited reply. Wallace had to stop himself from exploding-- Karen's blatant disrespect wasn't "nothing too important", but in the face of a murder, well... It certainly had to take a backseat, and Steven was focusing on the more important problem. As much as Wallace wanted to scream. "What needs our attention is what has happened here. I'll need you to help us review the security footage, Sidney, and find out when it happened so we can check that day's schedules."

"Were you on duty last night?" Wallace asked, his arms folded over his chest as he walked in time with Steven. "Do you know who was? That'd also be a pretty tremendous help."

((Skip - Clair is hurrying down to the police station; I'll have her catch up to the others next round. Sidney agrees to help however he can and tells Wallace that no, he wasn't on duty, but he'd done his routine checks of the lab the previous evening and had left it in capable hands.))

Steven was barely listening to Wallace and Sidney as they conversed, far too submerged in his own thoughts to give them much heed. He reached the door to the police station and paused, summoning his strength. After a heavy sigh, he pushed the door open and walked into the reception area.

A nearby officer noticed him and approached, looking stern. "Mr Stone," he said, shaking the Champion's hand. "Seems we have quite the situation here..."

"I'll say...We'll need to work on finding a lead."

We're holding Colress in the interrogation room," said the officer. "He's the one who discovered the body. I believe they're going to question him shortly."

Steven nodded slowly. Colress? The scientist, he'd noticed, had developed quite the friendship with Wally. He wondered how the boy would take all this... "The HQ leaders need to be present for that. May I?"

"Of course." The officer stepped aside and Steven tried to look as clam as possible as he walked into the interrogation room, where Colress was pacing nervously.

"Hello, Colress." Steven held the door open for the others and stepped inside, holding out a hand for the scientist to shake. "We're here to listen to the questioning." He looked at him then, sympathy blooming inside of him. How terrible it must've been to discover something like that. "How are you holding up?"

((Please inform me if anything needs to be edited.))

They walked in silence for the rest of the way, Sidney's lackadaisical replies only furthering Wallace's rage. But the last thing he wanted was to stress Steven further, so he did the only thing he could to-- shut his trap. The trio reached the police station soon enough, an officer striding to them to greet them.

"Mr Stone," he began, his voice stern as he shook Steven's hand. "Seems we have quite the situation here..."

Wallace's eyes danced between the two men as they spoke. "I'll say...We'll need to work on finding a lead."

"We're holding Colress in the interrogation room," the officer replied, raising Wallace's horror. Wait... the suspect they were interrogating was Wally's scientist friend? That man is half my weight and shier than a little Joltik. How could he have killed anyone? "He's the one who discovered the body. I believe they're going to question him shortly."

Wallace looked up to Steven, worry clearly etched over his own face as he watched his Champion react to the news. "The HQ leaders need to be present for that. May I?"

"Of course." The officer stepped aside for them and they all piled in. Karen was already inside, tinkering with the CD of the security tapes as she leaned against the corner of the room opposite Colress. She hadn't been there long, but neither had she bothered striking up a conversation with the man.

"Hello, Colress." His voice was even, thank goodness. Wallace and Karen exchanged a small glance of animosity between themselves as Steven settled down. "We're here to listen to the questioning. How are you holding up?"

The loud clapping of Clair's boots echoed through the corridors as she rushed to the Police Station. Just ... what the fuck?! How did this happen? And why the hell did it have to be when Lance was out? She was really not in the mood to deal with such bullshit today.

It wasn't long until she burst her way into the station's reception, ignoring the guard as he attempted to greet her and marched into the interrogation room. The only face she was happy to see was Karen's; the rest could go to hell.

"All right, what the fuck?" she demanded, slamming the door behind her. She glared around at everyone in there, tossing back her ponytail. "I had much better things to do today other than stand around in here with you ... people." Hands on her hips, she turned to Colress. "Was it you, then? I take it that's why you're in here."

"Well, he's the one who found the body," said a voice from behind her, and she turned to spot Sidney leaning against a filing cabinet, his Houndoom coiled protectively around his legs, likely to catch the poor dude if he fell over; he looked more than a little worse for wear. "That's why we're here; gonna sort this shit out."

"Oh. Well," Clair began importantly, "I'm here now, so let's get started. I don't want to be in here longer than I need to be."

Sidney lifted a hand with obvious effort and flailed it towards the door. "We gotta wait for the guy. The ... questioner, err--"

"Interrogator," Clair finished for him. Honestly, he knew that he'd been with Karen last night but damn. How many gallons did they drink exactly? He looked as though he was about to keel over. "So I guess we wait, then." She hoisted herself up onto the table, crossed her legs and began to casually examine her nails. She couldn't let them know that she was actually pretty damn nervous about this ... where the hell was Lance and his magical powers of handling everything when she needed them?

After what felt like hours, someone finally entered the room. Colress snapped his head toward the door to see who it was, and he found he didn't immediately recognize the blue haired woman who entered. He knew she was someone important, but all he knew off hand was that she wasn't from Unova. She didn't speak to him; instead going to the far corner of the room and tinkered with a CD. What's on there? His best guess would be surveillance footage, but who knows what they could be bringing to accuse him with. Since she had completely ignored him, and he was far too nervous to attempt a conversation, he continued his pacing until the door opened again. This time there was a small crowd at the door, and the presence of so many people halted his steps as he stared at them as if he was a Deerling in the headlights.

The one who opened the door this time, Colress immediately recognized as Steven Stone, Wally's friend and the Hoenn Champion. The champion held his hand out in invitation for a handshake, "Hello, Colress." He wasn't sure if the man recognized him because of Wally or if Steven had gotten his name from one of the guards. Colress brought up his still handcuffed hands and tried to shake the other's hand; it was awkward, but he was not going to suggest that someone remove the handcuffs, and he didn't want to seem rude when the other was being so polite. Steven then explained, "We're here to listen to the questioning." Oh... so they aren't the ones running the interrogation? He wasn't sure if that was more comforting or worrisome; There were so many people in here, and they were all likely the higher ups of HQ. He's already here for potential murder, and that association was likely already souring their opinion of him. Then there was the possibility that they'd dig into his past... They wouldn't want anything to do with him if they found out. Apparently his anxiety was apparent to Steven, for then he asked, "How are you holding up?"

The concern behind the question gave him pause; why would anyone care about how he was doing? He was being held for murder. The worry appeared genuine, however, and he couldn't deny that. The only animosity in the room didn't appear directed at him; wherever Wallace was glaring wasn't obvious, but even Colress's self loathing couldn't construe it as being directed at him. He wasn't sure what to make of it, but he was certain that any empathy towards him was going to dry up as quickly as it did with the officer. As for answering Steven, he didn't think lying would do him any favors, but half of his problems were things he was't ready to talk about yet. Something held his tongue from spilling all of his sins then and there, and it probably had everything to do with his worry for his remaining Pokemon, his desire to find a cure, and his friendship with Wally. He'd lose all of those things if he gave it up here, and despite how much he felt he didn't deserve them, he couldn't let go just yet. They'd have to find out from somewhere else. He finally spoke shakily, "Not very well, honestly."

Any further conversation was halted by the loud entrance of another blue haired female. This one he recognized as Clair due to her affiliation with Lance. She slammed the door behind her and glared at the room, "All right, what the fuck?" He flinched at the loud sound, and he unconciously shied away from her. She continued speaking with utter disdain, which he had expected more of from everyone else, but she was directing this towards the whole room, "I had much better things to do today other than stand around in here with you ... people." Afterwards, she turned to face him directly and asked, "Was it you, then? I take it that's why you're in here." Even though he had been expecting people to throw that theory around easily, it still hurt to hear someone actually say it, and he couldn't help but flinch at the accusation.

Before Colress could speak to defend himself, the man with the strange purplish hair spoke up, "Well, he's the one who found the body. That's why we're here; gonna sort this shit out." Something about the man's stance against the filing cabinets and the Houndoom curled around him gave Colress the impression that he wasn't having a good day either, and Colress couldn't help but envy the fact that he had his own Pokemon to give him support. Once again, his mind started fretting over his Pokemon and their welfare, but his mind latched onto the fact that he wasn't being immediately accused. He didn't know what they had on him, but they obviously didn't have anything incriminating. Yet.

As if taking control, Clair stated, "Oh. Well. I'm here now, so let's get started. I don't want to be in here longer than I need to be." She spoke with such importance that he wasn't sure if she was the actual leader of this interrogation or what. I can guarantee I don't want to be here either, but we're stuck now, aren't we? He certainly hadn't planned to find a frozen body in the sample freezer, and it fall on top of him. He just wanted to have a normal day where he did his usual things and live quietly. Was that really too much to ask for? The answer to that question is yes. It always has been, and likely always will be. He waited for her or someone to finally start the questions.

The man with the Houndoom spoke up again, perhaps to placate Clair's impatience, "We gotta wait for the guy. The ... questioner, err--" Wow, the man was not doing so well, and despite Colress having the short end of the stick in this situation, he felt really bad for him. It was likely the Houndoom's doing that he was even upright at the moment. Colress wasn't sure if he was sick or something else, but he clearly shouldn't be here in that condition. Concern lined his features as he continued trying to figure out what was wrong with him. There was one other possibility, and he wasn't sure if that was better or worse right now. It was possible the man was dealing with a hangover.

Clair found the word the purple haired man was reaching for, "Interrogator," and proceeded to pull herself up onto the table to sit. "So I guess we wait, then." She said this with a near enviable nonchalance, and Colress wished he could be as carefree about this situation. But with his life and/or continued living at HQ on the line, nothing could relax him. The walls felt like they were closing in, again, and there were so many people. He didn't know what to say, or if his voice would even be welcome in the current company. The chair looked tempting at this point, but with Clair on the table, he felt a strong aversion to being in that general area. Instead, he shifted his weight from one leg to the other, and his hands started fidgeting with each other. His heart rate was picking up again, and the tension was building.

Colress had barely answered when the door swung open again and Steven's least favourite person in the world at that moment stomped in. "All right, what the fuck?" Clair snarled, slamming the door with a bang that shook the walls. She looked more... irritated than anything. How typical of her to be more concerned about herself than the poor soul who'd been killed, or the obviously frightened man accused of doing the deed. After all, he was innocent until proven guilty, and frankly, he didn't look capable of harming a fly, much less a human being.

"I had much better things to do today other than stand around in here with you... people. Was it you, then? she barked at Colress as the scientist flinched. "I take it that's why you're in here."

Steven wanted to answer; to stand up to this vile excuse of a woman, but couldn't. He just wanted to phase through the floor. A shiver ran down his back as he looked at her, standing so confidently with her hands on her hips.

It was bad enough that his secret being exposed was inevitable. He knew it was not a matter of if, but when, that would happen. If she should become irritated with him enough, she could just come out with it right here- in front of all of these people, oh Legends-!

He shuddered visibly as he shrank against the wall.

Thankfully, Sidney stepped in to explain that Colress was merely the one who found the body from his slumped position in the corner. Steven wouldn't have been surprised if he'd have just keeled over. He flailed his hand towards the door and mumbled, "We gotta wait for the guy. The ... questioner, err--" Steven felt his face flush in embarrassment; for one of his own Elite Four to be in this state... he hoped that it wouldn't be held against him.

But it probably would be. Perhaps rightfully so. He really would have to do something about Sidney.

"So I guess we wait, then," Clair said, settling herself down comfortably on the table. How... how could she be so nonchalant? It was almost as though she didn't give a hoot and just wanted to get it over with so she could go and inject more of her misery into people's lives. Steven tried to glare at her, but felt the phantom hands on him again, her poisonous touch sliding down his skin. He suddenly felt very sick and clutched at Wallace's arm.

How had he let this viper reel him in like that! More than a thousand people to make this mistake with and he had chosen her? God, he was an idiot. How could he do this!?

... He knew exactly how. Weakness. She had pretended to care. He was too tempted with the promise to play make-believe, to pretend he was a normal person, feeling normal things for a beautiful woman, that the world was exactly as it ought to be.

What was he going to do...?

It wasn't long until the door opened once more and a burly, middle-aged man walked in, looking around at them all sternly. He didn't say a word as he plodded his way around the desk and sat down, rotating a stack of papers in his large hands.

"Right...let's get this started, shall we?"

Wallace heard her before he saw her. The clack of her heeled boots made him cringe and caused his anger to spike back up. Of course she had to be here. His eyes went to Steven, watching him as Clair brazenly burst through the door. Oh, how he wished he could slap that attitude right off of her fucking face. "All right, what the fuck?" she barked out, the authority in her voice only succeeding in making Wallace seethe more. The only reason she was in charge was because of her relationship with Lance and it was infuriating. "I had much better things to do today other than stand around in here with you ... people." The Water-Master couldn't contain his upper lip curling as she turned to address the terrified scientist. "Was it you, then? I take it that's why you're in here."

Yeah. He needed to hit her. Needed. But of course, he'd likely be starting a war or something if he did, so he did the only thing he could: bit his tongue so he couldn't verbally assault her. Thankfully, Sidney spoke up; a miracle considering he could barely stand. "Well, he's the one who found the body. That's why we're here; gonna sort this shit out."

"Oh. Well," Clair began importantly. "I'm here now, so let's get started. I don't want to be in here longer than I need to be."

Sidney lifted a hand with obvious effort and flailed it towards the door. Karen snickered a little at his failings. He was adorable when he was trashed. "We gotta wait for the guy. The ... questioner, err--"

"Interrogator," Clair corrected him. "So I guess we wait, then." She casually hopped onto the table to look over her nails and Wallace was seeing red. Karen moved from her spot to stand beside Sidney, scratching a little at the back of his bald head. But as silence settled on the group, the interrogator finally walked in, gruff and no-nonsense.

"Right...let's get this started, shall we?"

Wallace heaved a sharp breath of relief. "Thank God."

Karen strode forward, the CD in hand. "Here's the security tapes. I didn't see anything on them, but that's probably because I fast-forwarded through most of it." At the silence that followed, she shrugged. "Not like I was given a lot of time to look over it."

"I see..." the man spoke evenly, taking the CD from her hand and placing it on the stack of papers. Dr. Ganon, let me alleviate any fears you may have. I'm not here to accuse you of anything. I just need you to walk us through what happened the previous evening and the following morning, when you found the body."

Sidney's mood immediately elevated when Karen strode over to stand next to him, and happy greeted her with a pinch of that beautiful ass. But at that moment the interrogator walked in, a real no-nonsense looking guy. Sidney covertly kept his hand resting on Karen's round, voluptuous cheeks as the man sat himself down on the desk, which Clair slid herself off of and stood off to the side, her arms grumpily folded.

"Sit down, then," she snapped at Colress, gesturing to the chair.

Sidney had to suppress a moan of disappointment when Karen left his side to deliver the CD, leaving his palm sad and empty. "Here's the security tapes. I didn't see anything on them, but that's probably because I fast-forwarded through most of it," she said, pausing in the awkward silence that followed. "Not like I was given a lot of time to look over it."

"I'll take care of that later, baby," Sidney said. Hey, if it meant he could get away with sitting down for a few hours while this absolute beast of a hangover wore off, he was down for it.

"I see," said the interrogator, placing the disk atop his stack of paper before turning his attention to Colress. "Dr. Ganon, let me alleviate any fears you may have. I'm not here to accuse you of anything. I just need you to walk us through what happened the previous evening and the following morning, when you found the body."

"Yeah man, it's cool. We're all on your side." The poor guy looked as though he could need that extra bit of reassurance, because it certainly didn't look as though Clair or Karen were going to give it to him. That was just the way the pair of vixens were, of course, but Sidney did genuinely feel sorry for Colress. He knew that he himself would've likely freaked out if a body fell out of the freezer while he was getting ice cream or something.

Colress did not believe it could be possible for the silence to become more uncomfortable, but even he could sense the tension rising in the room. Was this all because of Clair's presence? The added unease did nothing for him, and he stopped all lines of thought to control his breathing. He shut his eyes as he took a deep breath to calm his racing mind and heart, and soon the awkward silence was broken by someone else opening the door. His eyes opened to the sight of a man, likely his interrogator, walking in with a stack of papers in his hands. In a no nonsense tone, he questioned, "Right...let's get this started, shall we?" Colress nodded in agreement; his face barely hiding the anxiety the whole situation was causing. He attempted a nervous smile, but it was definitely more of a grimace.

Clair slid off the table and snapped at him while gesturing at the chair, "Sit down, then." Too afraid to potentially tick her off, he quickly weaved through the people and sat down. It was going to happen soon; they were going to accuse him of the murder, and he wasn't sure if he could convince them otherwise. They were probably digging up whatever information they could on him now... and he wouldn't be surprised if there was something with his name on it connecting him to Plasma. He had no idea how they would have missed something like that the first time, but he hadn't complained. He had had no intentions of doing something foolish that would bring the law's eyes on him, and for a while, he hadn't had the intention of staying alive long enough for them to really register him. His thoughts went back to his Pokemon, especially R2, for they had done everything they could to keep him going, and now all their efforts were to be in vain. His thoughts continued to consume him, and he barely registered Karen's words beyond "saw nothing," and that did no favors for him.

Apparently his inner turmoil and fear were obvious on his face, for the interrogator caught his attention and attempted to calm him, " Dr. Gannon, let me alleviate any fears you may have. I'm not here to accuse you of anything. I just need you to walk us through what happened the previous evening and the following morning, when you found the body." Unfortunately, the words rang hollow in his ears, and though he appreciated the attempt, he already felt as if he was convicted. If they didn't see anything on the cameras, then they would likely place the blame  on him. He was, after all, probably the last person to see Dr. James alive, and if his past was figured out, what better way to kill two birds with one stone? The man who's name still escaped him also tried to comfort him, "Yeah man, it's cool. We're all on your side." As much as he wanted to believe that, he couldn't allow his hopes to climb; doing that would only lead to much more pain when it was false.

He figured that the statement was to draw him into talking, but he had to stop and actually think about what he did yesterday. There wasn't much to tell, really, and that was either going to be helpful, or it was going to hurt him. "I..I'm afraid I don't have much to tell you... R2, my Beheeyem, and I stayed in the lab until..." He paused for a moment to remember specifics. "Six? Something like that? Then he and a friend pulled me out of the lab to eat dinner.... and then I went to bed. Henry was still in the lab when I left, so I'm not sure if he went anywhere else..." He looked towards the interrogator, who motioned for him to continue, "As for this morning... everything was normal... I woke up, got ready, went into work, and.. Well... It's not unheard of for Henry to be late to work... or to not show up at all... So neither I or R2 thought anything about it when he wasn't there for a while... He had mentioned leaving samples in the freezer, so I thought I'd go ahead and write down observations on them so that they wouldn't end up wasted... again. And... that's when I... found him..." His voice started shaking towards the end of his story, the memory violently resurfacing.

"Dr. Gannon," the interrogator began carefully, "let me alleviate any fears you may have. I'm not here to accuse you of anything. I just need you to walk us through what happened the previous evening and the following morning, when you found the body." Steven nodded slowly to himself as he leaned against a table against the wall. At least this man was professional and sensitive; the same could not be said for Clair, who snapped at Colress to sit down.

He just wanted to grab her by the ponytail and fling her out of the nearest window.

"I... I'm afraid I don't have much to tell you," Colress began nervously, and Steven pushed all of his worries aside to listen to every word he said. "R2, my Beheeyem, and I stayed in the lab until... six? Something like that? Then he and a friend pulled me out of the lab to eat dinner... and then I went to bed. Henry was still in the lab when I left, so I'm not sure if he went anywhere else... As for this morning... everything was normal... I woke up, got ready, went into work, and... well... It's not unheard of for Henry to be late to work... or to not show up at all... So neither I or R2 thought anything about it when he wasn't there for a while... He had mentioned leaving samples in the freezer, so I thought I'd go ahead and write down observations on them so that they wouldn't end up wasted... again. And..." He began to tremble again, the little color left in his face draining as his voice shook. "That's when I... found him..."

Steven shuddered as unpleasant visions flashed through his mind; he could only imagine the horror that Colress had felt at that point. And I thought I was having the worst morning possible... When everything was put into retrospect like this, his problems seemed minimal in comparison.

He folded his arms as his mind whirled, pushing aside the emotional aspect in favor of trying to piece together what they had so far. "Did you see anyone acting suspiciously around the lab yesterday?" he asked. "Anybody unfamiliar entering or leaving?"

Once she delivered the CDs to the interrogator, she turned back to stand next to Sid, who remarkably had enough strength despite his massive hangover to feel her up. Not that she minded. It was something to distract her from her own buzzing headache. "Yeah man, it's cool. We're all on your side," her fellow Dark Master chimed in, sounding much more peppy than he looked. The sentiment, though sweet, wasn't entirely true, however. She eyed the back of her friend's head, the blue ponytail swishing a little as she watched the interrogation.

Yeah, speak for yourself, Sid, hon. The sooner we find someone to blame this on, the sooner Clair gets out of this.

Still, Colress began to speak, whether it was because of or despite the comments, Karen had no idea. "I..I'm afraid I don't have much to tell you... R2, my Beheeyem, and I stayed in the lab until..." He paused for a moment to remember specifics. "Six? Something like that? Then he and a friend pulled me out of the lab to eat dinner.... and then I went to bed. Henry was still in the lab when I left, so I'm not sure if he went anywhere else..." He looked towards the interrogator, who motioned for him to continue. Karen watched him awkwardly continue, his voice becoming more and more unstable as he went. That likely wouldn't bode well. "As for this morning... everything was normal... I woke up, got ready, went into work, and.. Well... It's not unheard of for Henry to be late to work... or to not show up at all... So neither I or R2 thought anything about it when he wasn't there for a while... He had mentioned leaving samples in the freezer, so I thought I'd go ahead and write down observations on them so that they wouldn't end up wasted... again. And... that's when I... found him..."

"Did you see anyone acting suspiciously around the lab yesterday?" Steven asked, surprising Karen in actually participating. Guy looked like he was sicker than Sid. "Anybody unfamiliar entering or leaving?"

"Question:" Karen interrupted, raising a hand. "How did the guy die? Like, did he die and then was dragged into the freezer or was he locked into the freezer and then died like that? Do we even have any forensic guys that can look him over besides... you know... him?" She gestured to Colress and Wallace rolled his eyes.

"Could you let the interrogator do his job?" Wallace snapped, clearly done with the whole mess in the first place. "I would rather not go into the grim details when not everyone here has to hear it."

The interrogator cleared his throat loudly, eyeing both Wallace and Karen a moment before continuing. "I would like you to answer Champion Steven's questions, Colress. Did you see anyone around the labs last night or this morning that shouldn't have been there? Anyone at all? Any pokemon you didn't recognize?"

Clair scowled into space as she listened to Colress's reeeeeally long explanation on the events of the previous night. Damn this was boring; she was almost ready to nod off. When he'd finished, Steven was the first to speak up, much to her surprise. Before now, he'd looked as though he just wanted to melt into the floor. "Did you see anyone acting suspiciously around the lab yesterday? Anybody unfamiliar entering or leaving?"

"Question:" Karen quickly said, raising her hand. "How did the guy die? Like, did he die and then was dragged into the freezer or was he locked into the freezer and then died like that? Do we even have any forensic guys that can look him over besides... you know... him?" Clair leaned forward a little then, suddenly interested. She couldn't explain it, but anything morbid like this excited her.

"Could you let the interrogator do his job?" Of course, HQ's resident fruitcake had to butt in and ruin it. Seriously, why was he even here?! "I would rather not go into the grim details when not everyone here has to hear it."

"Does it matter? I mean, we're gonna have to get into that stuff eventually anyway. Besides, honey," she offered Wallace the sweetest smile she could, "it's hardly your call to make, now is it?"

She was more than ready to stomp that faggot down to the ground if he so much as glared at her, but the interrogator caught everyone's attention again with a loud clear of his throat. "I would like you to answer Champion Steven's questions, Colress. Did you see anyone around the labs last night or this morning that shouldn't have been there? Anyone at all? Any pokemon you didn't recognize?"

"Pff. Figures."

Almost as soon as Colress had finished his story, Steven had questions. Yellow eyes nervously flicked over to the Hoenn Champion as he asked, "Did you see anyone acting suspiciously around the lab yesterday? Anybody unfamiliar entering or leaving?" He wasn't sure if he was supposed to answer anyone else's questions, but it made sense to ask about that. He looked away as he tried to remember if there was anything unsual about who came in and out yesterday. He typically worked in near seclusion if Henry wasn't there, and sometimes even if he was there; his nervousness and ghost-like tendencies made it difficult for the other scientists to interact with him. Though this also meant that if someone entered the lab, it normally caught his attention, or at least R2 would notice.

Unfortunately, his thoughts were derailed with the next set of questions from Karen, and he was really unsure if he was supposed to respond or not to either set of inquiries. "Question: How did the guy die? Like, did he die and then was dragged into the freezer or was he locked into the freezer and then died like that? Do we even have any forensic guys that can look him over besides... you know... him?" It seemed like Karen was asking the interrogator her questions, but he didn't want to tick off the officer by speaking out of turn. He certainly didn't know the answers to her questions, and he found himself conflicted. The part of him that had just dealt with a frozen coworker's body falling on him did not want to know the gory details, but the part of him that wanted to know the answer to every question was morbidly curious.

After Wallace and Clair shared some choice words and  made the room more tense, the interrogator snapped everyone's attention to the matter at hand. At the rate this was going, Colress felt his chances of getting out of this sink. They were at each other's throats and wanted this over as soon as possible, and if his luck was going to hold true, then he was likely the only potential suspect. The easiest thing would be to slap this on him, and he knew it. The officer spoke again, "I would like you to answer Champion Steven's questions, Colress. Did you see anyone around the labs last night or this morning that shouldn't have been there? Anyone at all? Any pokemon you didn't recognize?"

"N-not that I know of," Colress answered truthfully. He had to recollect his thoughts before simply speaking them aloud, "H-Henry and I didn't speak much to the other scientists, so we worked in relative seclusion. If anyone opened that door, Henry, R2, and I would notice instantly. I didn't leave the lab very much, so if there was someone wandering around outside, I wouldn't know."

Steven had to muster every ounce of power he had not to talk back to Clair after she so blatantly belittled Wallace in front of them. What a vile woman. As a professional, he wanted to give her a good talking to, but as a best friend he was ready to go to war. He hoped a sharp glare would suffice, and thankfully before Wallace could come up with a counter of his own, the investigator dispelled the growing tension with a loud clearing of his throat. "I would like you to answer Champion Steven's questions, Colress," he said. "Did you see anyone around the labs last night or this morning that shouldn't have been there? Anyone at all? Any pokemon you didn't recognize?" Steven just couldn't hide his grin as he watched Clair sulk away, unhappy to be ignored as usual. Small victories.

"N-not that I know of," Colress answered after a moment of thought, bringing Steven very solidly back to the far more serious topic at hand. "H-Henry and I didn't speak much to the other scientists, so we worked in relative seclusion. If anyone opened that door, Henry, R2, and I would notice instantly. I didn't leave the lab very much, so if there was someone wandering around outside, I wouldn't know."

It sounded as though the labs were in the clear as far as the daylight hours were concerned... Steven cupped his chin as he thought, trying to piece things together. It hadn't been confirmed just how long the body had been there; this could've happened a week ago for all they knew, but he felt that this was a question that would be answered once the autopsy was finished. Besides, as Wallace had said, they weren't there to share the gruesome details. At least not in front of Colress.

Sharing that kind of information in front of a potential suspect was a stupid idea. Which... didn't matter much because Steven's gut screamed that this wasn't their murderer. No, what did matter: Sharing such awful details in front of someone who was clearly handling having found a body very terribly would just serve to upset him further. And there was no need to do that to him.

The investigator sighed, his chair creaking as he leaned back on it. "It looks as though we won't get many answers until we give the security tapes a thorough," he glanced accusingly at Karen, "examination."

"I agree," Steven said, nodding. "Sidney, you said you would take a look at those?" He looked towards his Elite Four leaning in the corner, looking more than worse for wear, and bit his lip. "I can give you a hand, if you like. Always helpful to have a second pair of eyes." That was just in case the poor guy fell asleep on the job but, of course, did not mention that.

Seeing Sidney obviously sick melted a little of the embarrassment and irritation he'd felt earlier. He could reprimand him later.

"N-not that I know of," the skinny scientist stammered out. "H-Henry and I didn't speak much to the other scientists, so we worked in relative seclusion. If anyone opened that door, Henry, R2, and I would notice instantly. I didn't leave the lab very much, so if there was someone wandering around outside, I wouldn't know."

The interrogator sighed. "It looks as though we won't get many answers until we give the security tapes a thorough," he glanced accusingly at Karen, to which she gave back with an indifferent raised eyebrow, "examination."

"I agree," Steven added. "Sidney, you said you would take a look at those?" Wallace pursed his lips a bit; he understood why Steven instinctively went to Sidney instead of Karen, but... even though Wallace also preferred his own region's authority to another region's, especially one led by a tyrant and his bloodmongering cousin, Sidney didn't look well enough to be keeping his eyes open, much less scouring security tapes for tiny, crucial details. "I can give you a hand, if you like. Always helpful to have a second pair of eyes."

Karen scoffed. "Thanks, but no thanks-- it's my job. I'll do it." She snatched the discs back, giving a stale glare to Steven. Wallace caught the look and his own expression soured.

"Maybe if you were always this diligent about 'your job', then we wouldn't have to be scarring our personnel by interrogating them."

"Oh, bite me, you limp-wristed fag."

"Excuse me!" the interrogator cried, looking between the two warring people and glowering at them both. He turned to Karen, pointing a parental finger at her. "You wanna do your job, then fine-- I need a rundown of all the people able to access that lab and when the last time their keycards were activated. Sir," he looked back to Colress, "we're done for now. Thank you." He stood and glared at Karen and Sidney. "Be thorough."

"N-not that I know of. H-Henry and I didn't speak much to the other scientists, so we worked in relative seclusion. If anyone opened that door, Henry, R2, and I would notice instantly. I didn't leave the lab very much, so if there was someone wandering around outside, I wouldn't know."

So they were looking through every second of every security tape from the past week, at least. Clair was glad that she wouldn't have to do that; she'd be asleep in minutes.

The interrogator leaned back on his chair. "It looks as though we won't get many answers until we give the security tapes a thorough," he glanced accusingly at Karen, "examination."

"Sidney, you said you would take a look at those?" Steven said, looking over at his half-dead elite fourist in the corner. Clair's tongue poked out of her lip as she gazed at the Champion, her mind beginning to undress him. She squeezed her thighs tighter together. "I can give you a hand, if you like. Always helpful to have a second pair of eyes." Ugh, why'd he have to go and ruin it by being such a goody-goody?

But Sidney flailed his hand and shook his head. "Nah, Stevie, that's all right. Me and Karen got this. You guys focus on what you need to do."

He placed a hand on Judas's back and hoisted himself upright. Clair grinned as she watched him stagger to Karen like an old drunk. Poor 'Stevie', having not only the biggest faggot on the planet but this slob as his only representatives in here. Sure, she liked Sidney; he was a cool guy and pretty good in bed to boot, but apart from the security work that he did alongside Karen, he was pretty damn useless.

"We'll letcha know if we find anything," he said, opening the door for Karen and giving her a firm slap on the ass as she passed through. This guy just did not give a fuck. "Later, and good luck. We'll be in the control room if you need us."

Once they were outside, Sidney slithered a hand around Karen's waist. "You seem tense, baby. Whadda you say we take a two and a half minute break in the janitor's closet afterwards?" Did he really just say that despite their situation? Heck, maybe he was still a little drunk.

The investigator was disappointed in the lack of answers, but he thankfully didn't take it out on Colress. He leaned back as he addressed Karen, "It looks as though we won't get many answers until we give the security tapes a thorough examination." The comment was then followed by squabble between Karen and Wallace that increased the tension in the room. While he was glad that there was no aggression directed towards him, the implication that there was dissension amongst the people investigating the case gave him no comfort. The investigator broke it up with a sharp tone, "Excuse me! You wanna do your job, then fine-- I need a rundown of all the people able to access that lab and when the last time their keycards were activated." Finally addressing Colress, the man says, "Sir, we're done for now. Thank you." He stood up and gave the people responsible for looking through the footage one last order, "Be thorough." Sidney and Karen lef the room at that point, speaking among themselves.

Steven, Wallace, and Claire remained in the room with the investigator, and Colress anxiously waited for something else to happen. The officer had said that they were finished with him, but didn't specify what that entailed for him. Were they going to keep him locked up somewhere? Or were they going to let him out? He highly doubted the second option, since it appeared he was their only lead at the moment, but he wasn't sure where they were going to put him. From only sitting in the interrogation room, his mind was already a frayed mess, and he was feeling weak. He really hoped they'd take off the handcuffs soon, whatever they did. The metal was rubbing his wrists uncomfortably, and his fidgeting was only making it worse. Since it seemed like everyone else was occupied, he asked the officer, "W-well... What happens now?"

(I'm terribly sorry, but please skip me this round.)

"Nah, Stevie, that's all right. Me and Karen got this. You guys focus on what you need to do." Sidney staggered his way to Karen as she watched him with an amused eye; apparently he was still trying to convince his Champion that he was sober or something. From the exceedingly hateful glare Wallace was giving them, Karen doubted poor Sid was succeeding at all. "We'll letcha know if we find anything," he continued, smacking Karen straight on the ass as she passed him to go through the door, earning a small grunt of surprise. She hadn't thought him cognitive enough to smack that hard, but then again, this was Sid. "Later, and good luck. We'll be in the control room if you need us."

To be frank, Karen was ecstatic to be out of the interrogation room. It felt like she was being suffocated in there. A small smile graced her features as a familiar arm snaked around her waist and her own hand patted it as she walked. "You seem tense, baby. Whadda you say we take a two and a half minute break in the janitor's closet afterwards?"

The casual offer made her snort. "Honey, I don't think you can even stand that long, much less anything more complicated," she easily replied, flashing him a grin. "Besides, you know anything less than five isn't worth my time." She gave him a gentle hip check as she pulled ahead of him, eager to get to the control room and get this nightmare over with.

---

"W-well... What happens now?"

Wallace's heart went out to the poor man. It infuriated him that he seemed to be the only one actually angry about it; Steven and the officer himself were more or less sympathetic, but Clair looked as if she were actively enjoying it. Sadistic wretch. He longed for an opportunity to shove her nasty, tacky jumpsuit-ass into the dumpster and lock her in it.

"You're a Person of Interest right now, Doctor," the officer began as he stood to leave. "There's no hard evidence to connect you to the murder for the moment. I'll get minor details from the Champion here and if I need to ask you any more questions, I'll contact you. For now, you're free to go. The lab will be placed off limits while we continue to investigate."

"W-well... What happens now?"

We get the hell out of here and I can carry on with my day, Clair thought grumpily as she slid off the stool she'd been sitting on with a scowl. She had so much to do today; she still had to 'lose' Wally's Walkman.

"You're a Person of Interest right now, Doctor," the officer began as he stood to leave. "There's no hard evidence to connect you to the murder for the moment. I'll get minor details from the Champion here and if I need to ask you any more questions, I'll contact you. For now, you're free to go. The lab will be placed off limits while we continue to investigate."

The Champion? As in, Steven? Just Steven?

"I feel like I should participate in those discussions as well," she said importantly, throwing a snide look at the silver-haired champ. You're not getting rid of me that easily, sweetheart. "As Lance's second in command, it is important that I get all that information I can so that I can give him an accurate account of what's happened when he returns."

"All right, fine," the investigator said shortly, clearly keen to just get the whole ordeal over with. "If you'll just excuse me for a moment, I'll be back." Straightening his tie, his gathered up his papers and strode out of the room.

"So!" Clair said cheerfully the second the door was closed. "How're you boys on this lovely morning?" A wicked grin stretched across her face as she looked at the nervous champion and his babysitter. Clearly poor ol' Wallace was still oblivious to her and Steven's little adventure in the bedroom last night. "You feeling better, Stevie? You seemed ... tense, the last time I saw you."

---

"Honey, I don't think you can even stand that long, much less anything more complicated," Karen grinned at him. Ooh, this lady underestimated him. As long as he was with her, he could muster every last ounce of his strength to keep her satisfied. What more could he do for such a perfect specimen of a woman? "Besides, you know anything less than five isn't worth my time."

"C'mon, baby, you know how long I can go for," he said just a little too loudly, their conversation earning several alarmed looks from the other people in the reception area. "Don't you try to challenge me, 'cause you know I'll do it!"

A tail thwacked at his side. He looked down at Judas, who looked more than a little embarrassed. "Hah! Sorry, bud," Sidney laughed, patting his hellhound on the head. "I kinda forgot you were here!"

They took a left at the end of the corridor, and Sidney staggered forward until he caught up to Karen. "Maybe when all this shit is over, yeah? That's what we've gotta be thinkin' about. I have a feeling we'll both need a little pick-me-up after today, eh?"

"You're a Person of Interest right now, Doctor," the investigator began. Colress hadn't expected anything less, but the man's next words were ones he honestly hadn't expected. The investigator said, "There's no hard evidence to connect you to the murder for the moment. I'll get minor details from the Champion here and if I need to ask you any more questions, I'll contact you. For now, you're free to go. The lab will be placed off limits while we continue to investigate." Colress's eyes were wide open as he stared in disbelief at the officer. They were going to just let him go? He had thought that they were going to lock him up to make sure he didn't run away. The relief was evident on his face as he processed the information, and he stood to follow the investigator out of the room. He assumed that he or another officer would remove the handcuffs and return his Pokemon outside. Oh thank whatever higher powers existed, his Pokemon would be fine. He wasn't sure whether it was the immense relief was causing his legs to shake, or if that was the exertion his body and mind had gone through finally catching up to him.

They were almost out of the door when Clair said... something. There was something about "Second in command" and "telling Lance," but Colress was so focused on simply making sure he made it out the door that almost anything else took too much effort. The investigator snapped an agreement with whatever she said before going through the door and holding it for Colress to follow. Once he was out of the room, the investigator pulled out a key and remove the handcuffs from Colress's wrists, and Colress's first action was to rub at the places where the cuffs had rubbed a little too harshly. Colress timidly asked, "Officer? Wh-what about my Pokemon?" The man motioned for Colress to follow him, though he paused when he noticed the scientist's unsteady steps. The worried glance the investigator sent Colress was missed, and that further concerned him. The scientist didn't appear to have the strongest constitution, and he had found the dead body of a co-worker. Said dead body had fallen on him. The investigator had been debating if it would be wise to let a person of interest have access to a Pokemon whose species was known for altering memories, but leaving a person in his condition without access to one of their most trusted friends could end in another tragedy.

Colress was afraid that he had angered the officer with his foolish question, and since the man didn't actually answer it, Colress assumed that meant his Pokemon were to be confiscated indefinitely. His heart was heavy as he followed the investigator, and he didn't notice when he had been taken to a waiting area near the exit of the Police area. He was guided to sit in a chair, and the officer ordered him, "I'm going to tell you to go ahead and take the rest of the day off. Wait here, please. We're gonna hand you something before letting you go." Colress's legs almost gave out on him as he took the chair, and though he was curious about why he had been told to wait, his mental state wouldn't allow him to focus. He was so tired, and his body was protesting against the lack of food. Despite this, he really didn't know if he could bother eating... There wasn't going to be an R2 fussing at him to, and Wally was still at work. He didn't know what he would tell the green haired child, and he was heavily considering skipping any meetings today. So lost was he in his running thoughts, he was startled when a different officer called his name and handed him something. When he finally processed what happened, he realized that he was holding three pokeballs, and he thanked the officer profusely.

He put away two of them, and he held up the one that contained R2D2 as he debated whether he should or shouldn't let the Beheeyem out. He knew that if he did, R2 would fuss endlessly over him, and he didn't know if he was willing to deal with that right now. However, it would be unfair to R2 to not let him know Colress was okay and not locked up; the Beheeyem worried enough as it was. There was also the fact that he wasn't even sure he could make it to his own room right now, and R2's Psychic would be much appreciated to ensure he didn't end up on the floor. Despite part of him telling him that he would deserve that, he finally pressed the button to release his friend. As soon as R2 opened his eyes, he practically leapt into Colress's lap to give him a hug. Afterwards, he floated back to inspect Colress, and it was clear that he was worried. "I wanna ask about what happened, but let's get you back to your room first." Colress nodded in agreement; he wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.

The fact that Colress wasn't talking only made R2 more nervous. The last time Colress had gone nonverbal, the scientist had been in a terrible state of mind. Vowing to keep a close eye on him that day and night, R2 then asked, "Can you stand?" Colress had been so shaky earlier, and R2 felt that being interrogated did him no favors. When Colress grimaced and shrugged in response, R2's eyes glowed, and he put Colress's arm around his shoulder. There was a faint outline of blue around the scientist, but when he stood, it was clear that he was still carrying some of his own weight. Simply carrying him would be far too embarrassing, and though it might make more sense, Colress wanted to have a shred of dignity. When Colress had finally fought him on the manner of which he was to be supported a few weeks back, R2 was so happy to see some spine in Colress that he agreed to it rather quickly. After making sure Colress's feet were steady, R2 guided him out of the area of HQ that was the designated police station.