The FALLARBOR Team (PLOT)

"Yes, of course."

She worked deftly, swiftly, and Arthur could not have been be more grateful. First, as she worked, Arthur unclasped the cloak, which was easy enough. It was tossed to the dusty floor as the Dragonite's hands pulled on the freshly loosened armor, the arm guard sporting Kay and Galahad's mega evolution coming off first. Next was the breastplate, followed by the chainmail shirt underneath. The chainmail was tricky, as Arthur had to remove it without moving Lance's torso much. It took grueling minutes of tension, but eventually, he was successful. The heavy mail shirt dropped to the wooden floor with a loud crack, causing Galahad to flinch nearby. He gathered the armor together and placed it in a corner, watching as Arthur continued.

The Dragonite moved down to his trainer's legs, easily slipping off the decent greave and its accompanying boot. The other was the ruined one, and the dragon had to pause before continuing. How was he going to do this, exactly? Frowning, he could do little else but just pry the damn thing off. "Galahad, have a splint ready. Joy, I'll need you to administer it once I set the bone." He didn't need to hear any confirmation from the two, since he knew they heard him. He even could hear Galahad rustling around, tearing something nearby for the splint. Using his powerful hands, he slowly bent the metal open, outright tearing the steel. His hands were barely powerful enough to do it, but he managed. He tugged the greave out of his trainer's leg, then shuffled the metal off before going back to the very ugly wound.

It had been bone he'd spotted earlier. Damn. The break looked relatively clean, though, and that was all the luck he could really ask for at this point. Minding the fact that the bloodflow was now much more open, he grasped the battered leg and manipulated the bone back under the skin and into its proper place. Once finished, he stepped away to let Galahad and Joy finish the work on the leg while he switched back up to the torso. His arms and hands were burning, but Arthur couldn't stop now.

Pulling back the blue and orange clothing Lance wore revealed a thin black tee underneath. Arthur frowned; just how many layers did Lance need to freaking wear in the first place? He ripped the shirt, as it wasn't as cooperative as the outer layers, and hissed at the sight under his breath. Lance's entire chest was black, blue and green, save for a few spots that were just red. Damn. He'd hoped that there wouldn't be broken ribs, but... that was looking like a slim possibility now. "Galahad, grab the med kit off of Dinadan. We're going to need it."

As the Charizard left, Arthur turned to the others. "The splint and bandage should stop the bleeding, and I don't see any other topical lacerations we can deal with. I have a few medications that will help with internal bleeding, but broken ribs have to heal on their own. The leg... we'll just have to hope I set it correctly." He rubbed his aching hands on his sides before looking to the small trainer and her pokemon. "Thank you for your help. I'm... not sure how any of us can repay you."

"Holy shit on a stick,"  The chimp is on her shoulder, staring with wide eyes as Dragonite peels off the armor bit by bit.  Mr. RPG Man is looking less and less like he just stepped out of a fictional story and more and more like a scary reality.  "That's..."

Thankfully Flame opts not to finish that thought, though his large, red-brown eyes don't leave Lance's leg.  "Don't look, all right?"

"Waaaaaaaaay ahead of you,"  She mumbles.  But she doesn't even really need to see it.  She can smell it.  For all a human's sense of smell is shit, she can still smell the blood.

There must be so much of it.

"Galahad, have a splint ready. Joy, I'll need you to administer it once I set the bone."

And then Joy is helping to manipulate the leg, and she gags, turning her body entirely around and walking to the nearest corner, where she sits down, facing the wall.  Flame moves so that he is looking behind her.

Footsteps pad over to her.  Mattimeo and Flame exchange quiet words and then Mattimeo is walking away, back over near the others.

"Galahad, grab the med kit off of Dinadan. We're going to need it."  

Is it over?  Flame nudges her.  She gets up and turns around as Dragonite turns to speak with them.

"The splint and bandage should stop the bleeding, and I don't see any other topical lacerations we can deal with. I have a few medications that will help with internal bleeding, but broken ribs have to heal on their own. The leg... we'll just have to hope I set it correctly."  

Gosh, she hopes he did.

"Thank you for your help. I'm... not sure how any of us can repay you."

"I- you're welcome."  Wow, that sounded kind of stupid.  She must look like a deer in headlights.  Sara-Anne clears her throat and tries to relax.  "My Pokemon are the ones who deserve all the praise though.  They did the work."

"I think I speak for everyone when I say we were happy to help.  As for repaying us, don't mug us?"  He winks.

"I guess now we sit and wait for him to wake up.  Hopefully that won't be too long."

"I- you're welcome." the trainer stuttered out, likely not expecting Arthur to speak to her. He merely gave a kind nod to her, not judging her for her anxiety, as she cleared her throat to continue. "My Pokemon are the ones who deserve all the praise though. They did the work."

"I think I speak for everyone when I say we were happy to help. As for repaying us, don't mug us?" Arthur gave a small light-hearted chuckle, despite his exhaustion, as Galahad returned with the med kit. "Of course," was his simple, albeit distracted reply. The med kit was a reused tackle box, one that Lance always checked and stocked before each mission outside of HQ's safe walls. Eagerly, Arthur took it from his Charizard companion. The Dragonite placed the box gently on the floor and opened it, retrieving a slim, black rubber tube and a capped syringe full of a liquid-- morphine. Thankfully, Lance already had the doses for his weight drawn by a nurse, so Arthur wouldn't have to guess.

"I guess now we sit and wait for him to wake up. Hopefully that won't be too long." Arthur blinked and turned to the trainer in surprise; he hadn't actually thought that they would stay. Galahad must have shared his confusion, as the large fire lizard tilted his head as he looked them over in a new light.

"You're staying?" he asked, genuinely surprised. A soft, exhausted, relieved smile washed over the dragon's face; Arthur could practically feel the gratitude radiating off of Galahad. "That's... really sweet of you. Thank you."

"I didn't expect you to stay with us," Arthur admitted, tugging the rubber tourniquet up Lance's arm and tightening it. For once, Lance would have been grateful for his pasty, translucent skin; it made finding veins that much easier. He handed the needle to Galahad, who was actually familiar with administering medication. Turning back to the trainer and her pokemon, he nodded to them again. "I can only assume you were headed somewhere specific when we detoured you. But if you're staying or not, I still think proper introductions are due." He placed a clawed hand on his own chest and the other to Galahad. "You may call us by our species' names. Our trainer is Lance. We're giving him morphine now, so it may be a good while before he comes to."

"You're staying?"  She turns her head to look at him, maybe a bit too sharply, judging by the swing of her hair. "That's... really sweet of you. Thank you."

"I didn't expect you to stay with us," the dragon adds, turning around to do something with his trainer-- she can't see what, but better not to look just in case.  He hands the syringe off to his friend, and the girl grimaces, turning her head to force herself not to look.

Because otherwise I will.  Despite knowing she can't handle it.  There's a name for that phenomenon, right?  Looking even though you know you shouldn't, like when passing car wrecks on the highway.  

Guess she'll never know what it is, now.  No internet.

Alas, Google, I knew him well.  It well.  Whatever.

Her thoughts have officially stopped making sense.

"I can only assume you were headed somewhere specific when we detoured you."

Sara-Anne doesn't even need to turn her head to know everyone is looking at Flame.  He continues to be nonchalant on her shoulder, like a cat that doesn't give a shit when called out on being a little shit.

Well, he is a little shit.  Her little shit.  She rubs the side of his head fondly.

"But if you're staying or not, I still think proper introductions are due." The dragon gestures to himself and then to his friend. "You may call us by our species' names. Our trainer is Lance. We're giving him morphine now, so it may be a good while before he comes to."

"Morphine?"  Flame tilts his head.  "That's the stuff that makes you loopy, right?  The stuff Matthew got all nutty on when he got hit by a bus that one time?"

"That'd be the stuff, yup."

"Didn't he have trouble like, stringing coherent sentences together on that stuff?"

"I'm not sure if that was the medicine or the concussion."  She'd been too disraught to really listen to much of the medical stuff.  Maybe she should have.  It sure would have come in handy in today's times.

"Well, regardless, Lance will probably be in a very good mood when he wakes up.  Until then, we need to be reasonably quiet and let him sleep."  Sara-Anne and the other two nod their understanding.

"There's actually no place in particular we need to go, so we'd be happy to stay and make sure he feels better.  Arlene will probably circle around a bit and make sure there's nothing nasty hiding nearby, and then return.  So if there's tapping at the door, that's her."

For a moment, Arthur was concerned that the others would realize who they were and who their trainer was. After all, it wouldn't be the first time someone had decided robbing or killing Lance, the Champion of Johto, would be entertaining or a fruitful venture. But, as he should have known, the name was seemingly lost on them all. "Morphine?" the little Chimchar repeated as Galahad rose, finished with administering the medication. "That's the stuff that makes you loopy, right? The stuff Matthew got all nutty on when he got hit by a bus that one time?"

Arthur was surprised with the monkey's candor, but the stoic Lucario didn't seem to mind the details being divulged. "That'd be the stuff, yup."

"Didn't he have trouble like, stringing coherent sentences together on that stuff?"

"I'm not sure if that was the medicine or the concussion." Arthur allowed a smile to grace his otherwise exhausted features; this lot was surely animated and genuine. It was nice, for once, to not have to be so guarded. To be around normal people again.

"Well, regardless, Lance will probably be in a very good mood when he wakes up. Until then, we need to be reasonably quiet and let him sleep." Arthur and Galahad couldn't help but share a chuckle at the statement; seeing their stoic, stern trainer as a loopy mess would certainly be entertaining enough.

"There's actually no place in particular we need to go, so we'd be happy to stay and make sure he feels better. Arlene will probably circle around a bit and make sure there's nothing nasty hiding nearby, and then return. So if there's tapping at the door, that's her."

"You still deserve our thanks. All of you. The morphine will hopefully keep him under for a while, so I'll tend to my other teammates while he's asleep." He gently took the other pokeballs and nodded to Sara and her pokemon as he left the house, calling Tyrantrum with him. Galahad looked to the others and gave a soft smile.

"You'll probably want to stay inside. My teammates are big and... pretty grouchy," he admitted.


It took hours for things to finally wind down. Arthur, with Dinadan's help, managed to heal the rest of his comrades, including a very ornery Gyarados. It was exhausting work, exacerbated by the fact that Arthur was already running on fumes from the extensive fight earlier that morning. About to collapse, Arthur reentered the house to find Galahad sleeping with his head propped against Lance's chair, his large chin resting on an arm with the rest of his body curled around itself. Depositing the pokeballs back to the pile of things he'd retrieved them from, Arthur picked a corner of the living room and sank down, eyes closed and ready to pass out.

The noise of the heavy dragon giving up on fighting his exhaustion prompted Lance's eyes to flutter sluggishly open, his head lifting slightly as his vision slowly cleared from messy brown blurs. His body throbbed dully, but what amazed him more was how little he cared. He felt the warm pressure of something on his arm, smiling fondly when he turned to see Galahad's dumb sleepy face staring up at him. He rubbed the dragon's snout, then looked around himself in what was almost a drunken daze. Spotting the trainer from earlier, he looked around again and pointed at the ceiling. "Nice place you got."

"You still deserve our thanks. All of you. The morphine will hopefully keep him under for a while, so I'll tend to my other teammates while he's asleep." The nod makes her smile.  Approval.  That's... that's always nice.

And teammates means Pokemon!  Maybe she'll see some new ones!?  She takes a step for the door, but the Charizard's voice stops her.

"You'll probably want to stay inside. My teammates are big and... pretty grouchy."

"Grouchy?" she wonders aloud, but doesn't pry further, though her hands tugging at one another betrays her anxiety.  "Well, uh, okay we... we won't go outside then.  I'd like to rest here anyway."

"Maybe we can meet them later when they're feeling better and not so grumpy."  Her chimp pats the side of her head.

"Right now I'd imagine they're in pain and worried.  Later is better."

Joy strokes Lance's hair with a nod before sitting with her back to the chair to keep watch.

And so now, to wait.

This could be a while.


Throughout the hours that go by, Sara-Anne makes little effort to talk, recognizing that the team needs peace and quiet in order to take stock of the damage and tend to it.  When Arlene returns the cloud dragon sits behind her, allowing her to lay against her and doze off.  

"Nice place you got."

"O-oh, no this isn't mine.  We're just borrowing it right now, same as you."  She glances around.  Flame is on her lap, now awake, yawning and staring around with a sleepy, confused face.  Mattimeo and Joy are by the windows, keeping watch.  "How- how do you feel?  You were looking pretty bad earlier..."

But right now he looks nearly drunk.  Well, that's to be expected, right?  Morphine makes you loopy.  Maybe he'll be nicer now?

"O-oh, no this isn't mine. We're just borrowing it right now, same as you." Lance blinked, his foggy mind having a bit of difficulty processing the information. It wasn't long till he just simply stopped trying and let the questions he was sure were in his mind simply drift off into the ether. He turned his attention back to the girl, then her flamey monkey, then to Galahad's giant adorable head resting on the chair armrest. Christ, that was cute. A goofy grin suddenly emerged onto Lance's face as he petted the sleeping fire dragon. Lookit that dumb nose and his stupid widdle sweepy faec-- "How- how do you feel? You were looking pretty bad earlier..."

Lance perked again at the sound of the girl's small fairy voice and nodded thoughtfully at the question. "Me? Oh, I'm.... Pffffft, I'm pretty great. Yeah." He poked his side and shrugged. "Must've already gotten my shot. Wow, I forgot how great morphine was. I hope we have enough of it for... lots of... days." He frowned. Was that the word he wanted? Pfft. Who cared. Words were weird and dumb. He looked around as if trying to find something when his eyes landed on the girl again. "Oh! You, so... What- what was your name again? I don't... I don't think I asked. I think I just... yelled a lot."

"Me? Oh, I'm.... Pffffft, I'm pretty great. Yeah."

... Should he be poking his side like that?

"Must've already gotten my shot. Wow, I forgot how great morphine was. I hope we have enough of it for... lots of... days."

"I... hope you do too."

"Oh! You, so... What- what was your name again? I don't... I don't think I asked. I think I just... yelled a lot."

"You- you did," she admits, "but that's okay.  You were just scared; I understand.  I'm Sara-Anne.  Your Pokemon said your name is Lance; it's very nice to meet you."

"I'm Flame!"  The monkey crawls up her body and settles on her shoulder, giving Lance a wave.

"Mattimeo."  He gives him a respectful bow.  "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm Joy."  The Gardevoir sitting directly next to the chair, arms around her knees, smiles up at him.  "What Mattimeo said.  I'm glad to see you're feeling better."

"And I'm Arlene," the cloud dragon coos, lifting herself to her feet behind her human and walking over to investigate the redhead.  She lowers her long neck to smell his hair, burying her face in it.

"Uh.  I can- I can move her.  If you want."  Sara-Anne eyes Arlene nervously as she begins to preen his hair, cooing softly like a dove.

"You- you did," the trainer admitted, causing Lance's face to fall a little. Aww. Well, at least he remembered things correctly when he crashed. That was always a plus.  "but that's okay.  You were just scared; I understand.  I'm Sara-Anne.  Your Pokemon said your name is Lance; it's very nice to meet you." The smile returned once she introduced herself, and he nodded to her, albeit a bit enthusiastically.

"I'm Flame!" The little Chim... chimney... chimchoo... Uh oh. What were those called? Chi... Cha... Chamchims? Shit. The... fire-butt monkey -HA, he's a flaming ass- crawled up his trainer to sit on her shoulder, where he waved. Lance waved back, mirroring the friendliness. Man, morphine was great. He hadn't felt this great in years.

"Mattimeo." Oh! He knew this one! Lucario. YEAH. He grinned at the triumph in his mind, unaware of the fact that the others remained oblivious to his own inner conversation regarding species' names. He nodded to the Lucario -heh heh heh- and waved at him as well. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm Joy." The sudden voice to his side caused him to jump a little in surprise, but fear did not accompany it. He knew this one too! He quickly settled back in his chair and waved to the Gardevoir as well. "What Mattimeo said. I'm glad to see you're feeling better." "Me too," was his earnest reply.

"And I'm Arlene." Lance finally spotted the giant Altaria nestled behind the small girl and his eyes lit up like a child's. Oh, he hadn't seen an Altaria that big in... Jeez, when was the last time he went to Dragon's Den? Uh... Ah, fuck it, numbers were too hard. The cloud dragon floated over to him as his own arms instinctively stretched out to the former. She dipped her head into his hair and began preening while his hands gently petted her long, soft neck.

"Uh. I can- I can move her. If you want." Lance dismissed Sara-Anne's concern with the wave of a hand, which quickly returned to the giant Altaria. He started quietly giggling at the gentle nips and pokes on his scalp, his face turned into a wide, goofy grin.

"Oh, no, no, no, she's fine," he reassured happily. Galahad's eyes sleepily blinked open at the sound of his trainer's voice, only mildly surprised to find an Altaria in Lance's hair. Well... it would have happened eventually. "I love dragons."

"If that wasn't already obvious," the Charizard sleepily added, his sentiment punctuated with a yawn. Lance looked to his old friend, face still equipped with a grand, childish grin.

"She's in my hair," he whispered in between giggles, to which Galahad could only quietly shake his head. Oh, Lance was going to be so embarrassed. Once, you know, he stopped being high as a kite.

"Lance is a dragon tamer," Galahad explained, turning to the others. His tone was fond, warm, as he spoke. "Ever since he was a little kid, he had a sort of... gift... with bonding with Dragon Pokémon. He can speak with us without a comm, he can command and quell those he doesn't train. Wild ones, Dragons owned by different trainers, just about any of them. Of course, it doesn't always work. It's not like he hypnotizes them or anything." He looked back down to his trainer, who was currently humming with the Altaria. "He just... gains our trust and respect very quickly. It's like... we're drawn to him. I've never experienced anything like it with another human."

"Oh, no, no, no, she's fine," She smiles at the goofy grin on his face.  There's no way he doesn't mean that, not with that smile.  "I love dragons."

"If that wasn't already obvious."  Her eyes move to the Charizard, and Flame loses it when the man begins to giggle, unable to hold back his own snickers.

"She's in my hair."

Okay, Christ, that's super cute.

"Lance is a dragon tamer," The Charizard turns to address them now, and Sara-Anne leans forward a little. "Ever since he was a little kid, he had a sort of... gift... with bonding with Dragon Pokémon. He can speak with us without a comm, he can command and quell those he doesn't train. Wild ones, Dragons owned by different trainers, just about any of them. Of course, it doesn't always work. It's not like he hypnotizes them or anything."

Arlene has begun humming to the human, and Lance is humming back.  The cloud dragon is chirping inbetween notes, nuzzling him, encouraging his enthusiasm.

"He just... gains our trust and respect very quickly. It's like... we're drawn to him. I've never experienced anything like it with another human."

"That's so cool."  Her voice is hushed with awe and there are practically stars in her eyes.

"Have you been taming dragons since you were little?"  Flame is bouncing a bit now.  "I mean, if you have this sort of thing where you just attract dragons to you, I'm betting that's something you could do since you were a kid, which is super awesome, by the way!"

"We've gotten to see plenty of dragons, but not all of them."  She fixes her skirt a little, smiling at fond memories.  "Mostly the Gibble line, but that's what happens when you're a Sinnoh native."

"We've seen some Haxorus though; rememeber that?  That was a hard one.  We only won that battle because of Joy."

"Mmmm.  My fairy."  She smiles at her girl, who blushes.  "But let's not forget it was Matti who won us the fight against that Goodra.  Or Flame against that two headed thing whose species name I forget.  Starts with a Z?

Anyway you guys are all great and we should shush and let the man speak."

"That's so cool," The Altaria's trainer nearly swooned, her eyes wide with wonderment. Lance couldn't help the grin on his face growing with pride. Fuck yeah, it was cool. He continued to hum at the Altaria, hands on her neck and floofy feathers. Man, that would be just the greatest pillow.

"Have you been taming dragons since you were little?" The Chimmy-cham-cham thingy asked. "I mean, if you have this sort of thing where you just attract dragons to you, I'm betting that's something you could do since you were a kid, which is super awesome, by the way!"

"We've gotten to see plenty of dragons, but not all of them." Lance's rapt attention was diverted to the Gardevoir, who looked to be fondly reminiscing. Aww. "Mostly the Gible line, but that's what happens when you're a Sinnoh native." Lance's eyes brightened. "I love Gible! With their little chompy faces." He giggled at the thought of the little land sharks; he hadn't worked with many, but he'd always admired them. He hugged the Altaria closer and put his cheek on her long, sturdy neck, matching the vibrations and humming in tune with her. Vibrations were fun.

"We've seen some Haxorus though; rememeber that?  That was a hard one.  We only won that battle because of Joy."

"Mmmm.  My fairy." Lance watched the conversation like a tennis match, eyes bouncing eagerly between the speakers as he continued to hum with the big pillow. Altaria. Same thing. Mmm, more humming. He was barely aware of the others' words as the humming soon filled his head and chest. It was so soothing... "But let's not forget it was Matti who won us the fight against that Goodra. Or Flame against that two headed thing whose species name I forget. Starts with a Z? Anyway you guys are all great and we should shush and let the man speak."

Galahad turned to look at Lance, who only returned the Charizard's stare with his own adoring gaze. Galahad couldn't help himself a chuckle at his trainer's expense and he leaned in a little. "They asked you a question, Lance," he reminded gently, provoking a small look of confusion. "'Have you been taming dragons since you were a kid?'"

Lance popped back up, his eyes wide again with excitement. "Oh, yeah, absolutely!" he answered, his enthusiasm for his trade shining through in every possible way. Galahad's smile grew a little sad at the sight; how long had it been that he saw Lance so legitimately happy? Certainly before the Epidemic, before he imprisoned himself into a life of leadership and servitude. Galahad had always had reservations of Lance presiding directly over so many people. He'd made some good decisions so far, but the strain on him was too obvious, at least to those who'd known him for so long.

"So I grew up in Blackthorn City, yeah, and we're pretty big on dragons there," he began. "Normally, every member is given like a bunch of chances to bond with a dragon pokemon there. There's Magikarp, there's Horsea and there's Dratini. Whenever a new person is born, the parents take the baby and hold it out into the waters of the Dragon's Den and one of those pokemon will come up and bless it. Then, that person and Pokemon will be bound, like... siblings or something. Dratini is rare, so it's the highest honor, right? Apparently, that guy," he pointed to the still sleeping Arthur, "was the one that came to me.

"I remember being able to talk to the Dragons, even the older ones, and that was just the bee's knees. When I grew more, I found most of the Dragons there just wanted to be my friend and that's how I understood it. When I was six, there were two Gyarados in a fight over a mate, and the other elders couldn't get them to stop." He smiled as he reminisced, the fond memory of when he truly discovered his power playing once more in his mind. "I was a dumb kid, so I ran out into the shrine, which was right in the middle of their fight. They were close to demolishing it. I hurried to the roof and there, I just yelled at them to stop... and they did."

"Stopped dead in their tracks, according to the elders," Galahad added proudly. "Not even the Leader of the Conclave had that kind of power to just stop two warring bull Gyarados. Unscathed."

Oh my god, he's just sitting there looking goofy.  Sara-Anne does her best not to giggle as the Charizard has to lean in and prompt him. "They asked you a question, Lance."

And now he looks confused.  That's kind of precious.  

"'Have you been taming dragons since you were a kid?'"

The dragon tamer sits upright again, passion lighting up his whole face.  Sara-Anne can't help but bounce a bit from her seated position on the floor, and Flame makes an audible happy noise. "Oh, yeah, absolutely!"

All her Pokemon's eyes are on him now.  Even Arlene has stopped preening him long enough to listen.

"So I grew up in Blackthorn City, yeah, and we're pretty big on dragons there."

Blackthorne.  Conflicting waves of fondness and grief crash over her, but Sara-Anne keeps it from her face, her smile remaining in place.

"Normally, every member is given like a bunch of chances to bond with a dragon pokemon there. There's Magikarp, there's Horsea and there's Dratini. Whenever a new person is born, the parents take the baby and hold it out into the waters of the Dragon's Den and one of those pokemon will come up and bless it. Then, that person and Pokemon will be bound, like... siblings or something. Dratini is rare, so it's the highest honor, right? Apparently, that guy--" she follows his pointing to Arthur, a more genuine smile taking place of the frozen one at seeing the lump of dragon sleeping peacefully "--was the one that came to me.

"I remember being able to talk to the Dragons, even the older ones, and that was just the bee's knees. When I grew more, I found most of the Dragons there just wanted to be my friend and that's how I understood it. When I was six, there were two Gyarados in a fight over a mate, and the other elders couldn't get them to stop."

Gyarados.  Everyone from every region recognizes that species.  Ferocious and not technically dragons, but counted among their kind for their sheer size and viciousness.  Another pang runs through her.

Thorn.  The gentle red giant.

"I was a dumb kid, so I ran out into the shrine, which was right in the middle of their fight. They were close to demolishing it. I hurried to the roof and there, I just yelled at them to stop... and they did."

"Stopped dead in their tracks, according to the elders," Galahad added proudly. "Not even the Leader of the Conclave had that kind of power to just stop two warring bull Gyarados. Unscathed."

"All kids do stupid things but that takes the cake."  Joy stares at him with large eyes.  "It's a miracle you're alive."

"Or a miracle he has that dragon charming ability; either way that is amazing!"  The chimp is leaning over Sara-Anne's head, grinning.  "It's- it's like being a snake charmer.  But with dragons!"

"Have you met anyone else with that ability?"

"Sounds like it's super rare; probably not."  Mattimeo muses.  "But then again, he probably travels a lot, so maybe?"

"All kids do stupid things but that takes the cake." The Gardevoir commented, earning a confident, goofy laugh from Lance. "It's a miracle you're alive."

"Or a miracle he has that dragon charming ability; either way that is amazing!" The little monkey cried, his enthusiasm matched only by Lance's. "It's- it's like being a snake charmer. But with dragons!"

"Have you met anyone else with that ability?"

"Sounds like it's super rare; probably not." the Lucario mused. "But then again, he probably travels a lot, so maybe?"

"Well," Lance began as he tilted his head to the side and stared up at the ceiling, as if the right words were scrawled on the rafters. "Kind of? Everyone from Blackthorn has a sort of connection with dragons because of that... water... baby... ceremony thing. But as far as straight up talking with them? Not really; I don't think so."

Galahad chuckled. "It's not always a sure thing, though," the Charizard spoke. "There's been quite a few times where it's failed one way or another."

"OH! Like when I tried to get the Hydreigon away from its kill?" Lance laughed, his hands once more going to pet the giant Altaria. "I was a _really_ stupid kid--"

"--Really stupid."

"Shut up! Anyway, there was this girl in, uh... Uh..." He snapped his fingers, trying to recall the name of the city as he stared dumbly down at his exposed belly. Man, that was a lot of colors. "Violet! Yeah, the one with the... uhm... Noodle... Tower. Anyway, so there was this girl and there was a Hydreigon not far in the outskirts. Some big-shot trainer's pokemon. Anyway, I figured I could impress her by taking control of someone else's giant murder-dragon, so that's exactly what I tried to do." He burst out into laughter again, the idiocy of his own hubris simply too much.

"Anyway, so I command this Hydreigon -me, a scrawny stupid teenager- to pretty much turn on its master and let me ride it. And well, it went about as well as you'd imagine. The dragon snatched me up by one of its face-arms and just flings me straight into a tree. Broke my arm and got a nasty-looking scar from where all those teeth lacerated me." He shifted, looking down at his own torso as he pointed out a long crescent-shaped ridge that went from his armpit, down to his navel and then ended around his hip. "Needless to say, I didn't get that date, heh."

"Well... Kind of? Everyone from Blackthorn has a sort of connection with dragons because of that... water... baby... ceremony thing."

Pfffft, elegant.  Her grin has spread across her whole face now.  

But as far as straight up talking with them? Not really; I don't think so."

"It's not always a sure thing, though," his dragon adds. "There's been quite a few times where it's failed one way or another."

"OH! Like when I tried to get the Hydreigon away from its kill?" Lance laughs and Arlene coos happily as he goes to pet her again, returning the gesture by nuzzling into his hair. "I was a really stupid kid--"

"--Really stupid."

"Shut up! Anyway, there was this girl in, uh... Uh..."  He snaps his fingers, Sara-Anne relating more and more to him despite the age gap.  It's a gesture she's well familiar with. "Violet! Yeah, the one with the... uhm... Noodle... Tower."

"Snrk."  She ducks her head down, shoulders shaking.  Noodle Tower.  Flame is openly giggling now, rolling from her shoulder into her lap.

"Anyway, so there was this girl and there was a Hydreigon not far in the outskirts. Some big-shot trainer's pokemon. Anyway, I figured I could impress her by taking control of someone else's giant murder-dragon, so that's exactly what I tried to do." He starts to laugh and so does she, Flame's laughter now growing louder as the chimp hugs his stomach.

Oh god.  The stupidity of youth.

"Anyway, so I command this Hydreigon -me, a scrawny stupid teenager- to pretty much turn on its master and let me ride it. And well, it went about as well as you'd imagine. The dragon snatched me up by one of its face-arms and just flings me straight into a tree. Broke my arm and got a nasty-looking scar from where all those teeth lacerated me." He shifts a bit to point out the scar, the two quieting and sitting upright, leaning forward to look with wide eyes at the scar. "Needless to say, I didn't get that date, heh."

"Oh... ouch..."  He winces sympathetically in tandem with his human.  "Yikes..."

"Oh dear... I hope there was a hospital nearby..."  

"Yeah that... looks like it did some real damage."

Mattimeo frowns.  No, this won't do.  Time to lift the mood.  "Well, after that, I think they deserve some equal info.  Guys, I'm gonna tell them the fairy grove story."

"Don't tell them the fairy story."

"Gonna tell them the fairy story."  He's grinning.

"You're the woooooooorst," she groans, throwing a pillow at him.  He dodges.

"If you'd like to hear about my girl's genius at work, anyway," the canine adds to Lance and Galahad, ignoring her.

She sticks her tongue out at him.

"Oh... ouch..." Chilly-Chupper-Cham-Char thing grimaced. Lance didn't seem to notice the shift in enthusiasm from his audience as he traced the old scar with a finger, poking a few spots that had changed color from bruising. "Yikes..."

Joy seemed concerned, despite the age of the scar. Galahad blinked in confusion; battle scars and the tales associated with them was generally accepted and celebrated back in Blackthorn. They'd mentioned being from Sinnoh, though-- maybe that wasn't the case there? "Oh dear... I hope there was a hospital nearby..."

"Yeah that... looks like it did some real damage." Lance waved off their concern.

"Nah, it looks worse than it was. My arm was hurt worse, really, since I broke it." He laughed and leaned back in the chair, hands going back toward the Altaria. "Well, that and my pride."

The Lurcario took the pause in the conversation to speak, earning Galahad's and his trainer's attention. "Well, after that, I think they deserve some equal info. Guys, I'm gonna tell them the fairy grove story."

"Don't tell them the fairy story," Sara-Anne quickly protested, though Galahad wasn't entirely sure that it was genuine. A smile quickly spread on his face as he watched the exchange.

"Gonna tell them the fairy story."

"You're the woooooooorst," she groaned, sharing her pokemon's grin. She took the opportunity to throw a pillow at him, which missed.

"If you'd like to hear about my girl's genius at work, anyway," he conceded, earning a new wave of enthusiasm from the Dragon Master.

"Fuck yeah, I would!" Lance exclaimed as he shifted again to get a better vantage point. Galahad paused as he watched his trainer shift and flinch ever-so-slightly; was the morphine starting to wear? The Charizard stared at Lance's expression for a moment in an attempt to gauge his trainer's pain level. But with that giant, stupid grin on his face, he had to concede that now likely wasn't the time to worry. Yet.

"Please tell the fairy story," Galahad added, hunkering down on all fours and curling a little. "I need to know the fairy story."

"Fuck yeah, I would!"  Lance shifts a little.  

"Please tell the fairy story," Galahad added, hunkering down on all fours and curling a little. "I need to know the fairy story."

"You don't need to know the fairy story."  Sara-Anne pouts, aware of her Pokemon beginning to giggle.

"They need to know the fairy story."

"Definitely need to know the fairy story."  He nods, sagely.  

"Absolutely."  

"You all suck."

"On that note!  Okay, so, let's rewind a few years.  She's seventeen, I think.  By this point she's got Flame, ne, a... couple others, and she... just met Joy, I think.  We're on like, Route 209, approaching Solaceon Town, and not sure if you've ever been to Sinnoh, but that's the town with the Daycare.  It's kind of a ranch."

"Betrayal.  Help."  Her words are a deadpan, but she's doing a bad job of hiding her grin.

"She started her journey really late, see, so she'd never been here before.  And there's a lot of Pokemon there at this point in time," he continues onwards, "and she's a pretty excitable kid.  And she loves fairies.  And there's a visitor from Kalos there with his Florges.  A mama Florges.  Whose Flabebe babies are all outside at the time."

"And then, like the fricking genius she is-"

"Et tu, Flambe?"

"-she- wait, Flambe?"

"Well it sounded more Latin than Flame."

"Yeah, okay sure, we'll go with that."  He rolls his eyes.  "So like the genius she is, she hops the fence to go see the Flabebe because 'well the mom isn't around and there are little kids inside the fence so it must be okay!' "

"Truly, the height of genius thinking."

Sara-Anne flips her off, cheerfully.

"She goes running over to this large group of young Flabebe and sits down near some flowers and starts cooing at them, 'cause they're little, and some come over to her, and we're like "get the fuck away from there" but she's not listening-- to her credit she can't understand our words but it's pretty obvious what we mean so she's still a giant idiot."

"So she's playing with them, and then suddenly mama is there.  And mama is not happy.  She's maybe ten feet away and closing the gap, and the area between her hands is starting to glow.  Now at the time we had no idea what that meant but y'know nowadays we realize it was a moonblast."

"And even if we didn't know we could guess it wouldn't end well if we nobody did anything, but we're all frozen.  Except for Joy.  God bless Joy."

"And so, rightfully frightened for my dumb human's life, I run right past the mama and throw myself at her leg-- and I'm still a Ralts so I'm tiny, so what happens is that I basically end up doing a full body cling to her leg.  And then I teleport.  And we land sort of awkwardly because I'm not very good at it."

"And then I poke my head out of the Pokemon center, yell to get their attention, they come running over, and we hide from the angry mama Florges in the Center for like three days until her trainer comes and takes her back to Kalos with him."  She makes jazz hands  "The end."

"You don't need to know the fairy story." The deadpan of her voice was enough to increase Galahad's grin, his eyes bouncing between the pokemon and their trainer along with their banter.

"They need to know the fairy story."

"Fairy story," Lance agreed, an arm casually hung around the Altaria's neck.

"Definitely need to know the fairy story."

"Fairy story is required material."  

"Absolutely."  

"You all suck."

"On that note!" the Lucario cried, taking control of the floor as the others quieted to listen. "Okay, so, let's rewind a few years.  She's seventeen, I think." Galahad blinked in confusion; was... she older than that now? How? She didn't look more than fourteen or fifteen... Wow. Did not expect that. "By this point she's got Flame, ne, a... couple others, and she... just met Joy, I think. We're on like, Route 209, approaching Solaceon Town, and not sure if you've ever been to Sinnoh, but that's the town with the Daycare. It's kind of a ranch."

Galahad shook his head; while they had been to Sinnoh a few times, it was only ever to the League and Celestic Town. Never really anywhere else. "Betrayal.  Help." Sara-Anne's tone remained the same, but the smile on her face was unmistakable.

"She started her journey really late, see, so she'd never been here before. And there's a lot of Pokemon there at this point in time." Both Galahad and Lance kept quiet, eager for Mattimeo to continue. Out of the corner of the Charizard's eye, he saw Arthur's head rise a little. So he was awake? "and she's a pretty excitable kid. And she loves fairies. And there's a visitor from Kalos there with his Florges.  A mama Florges. Whose Flabebe babies are all outside at the time."

"And then, like the fricking genius she is-"

"Et tu, Flambe?" Sara-Anne interrupted, earning a chuckle from Lance. He hadn't expected a joke like that from a girl so young. Who the hell made Latin Caesar jokes anymore?

"-she- wait, Flambe?"

"Well it sounded more Latin than Flame."

"Yeah, okay sure, we'll go with that." The Lucario rolled his eyes. "So like the genius she is, she hops the fence to go see the Flabebe because 'well the mom isn't around and there are little kids inside the fence so it must be okay!' "

"Truly, the height of genius thinking." In retaliation, Sara-Anne cheerfully flipped off the elegant pokemon, earning another fit of giggles from Lance and Galahad, while Arthur merely listened in the back, a calm smile on his face.

"She goes running over to this large group of young Flabebe and sits down near some flowers and starts cooing at them, 'cause they're little, and some come over to her, and we're like 'get the fuck away from there' but she's not listening-- to her credit she can't understand our words but it's pretty obvious what we mean so she's still a giant idiot."

"So she's playing with them, and then suddenly mama is there. And mama is not happy. She's maybe ten feet away and closing the gap, and the area between her hands is starting to glow.  Now at the time we had no idea what that meant but y'know nowadays we realize it was a moonblast."

"And even if we didn't know we could guess it wouldn't end well if we nobody did anything, but we're all frozen.  Except for Joy. God bless Joy."

"And so, rightfully frightened for my dumb human's life, I run right past the mama and throw myself at her leg-- and I'm still a Ralts so I'm tiny, so what happens is that I basically end up doing a full body cling to her leg.  And then I teleport. And we land sort of awkwardly because I'm not very good at it."

"And then I poke my head out of the Pokemon center, yell to get their attention, they come running over, and we hide from the angry mama Florges in the Center for like three days until her trainer comes and takes her back to Kalos with him." Both dragon and tamer are giggling fiercely as the story comes to a finish, the other trainer sarcastically waving her hands in a gesture known as "jazz hands". "The end."

"So you just..." Lance began, still caught by his giggle episode, "...just were nearly owned by a giant flower mom." Still trapped by the fit of laughter, he leaned completely back in his chair, allowing him to guffaw more freely. He attempted to talk more, but his laughter won out over any sort of coherent syllables.

Arthur took the opportunity to stand and stretch, his placid grin still on his face. He placed a large, taloned hand on his trainer's good arm to make him aware he was now awake, and Lance only beamed up at him. "I'm glad I woke in time to hear your fateful encounter," Arthur spoke warmly, though his volume was soft. He looked to Galahad and gestured to their traveling companions. "Did you tell them about the Hydreigon?"

"Sure did!" Lance answered happily, earning his dragon's attention. Arthur, though still utterly exhausted, couldn't help but chuckle at his trainer's infectious glee. He could personally stand to sleep for at least a week, but he was glad to see that goofy grin on Lance again. Completely worth waking up. Even if Lance's impeccable humor was only because of the morphine.

"How are you feeling?" he asked in a more concerned tone, his eyes traveling to the wrapped leg at the end of the chair. "Are you in pain yet?"

Lance shook his head, paused for a moment to think, then made a "so-so" motion with his hand. "It's not... bad... just uncomfortable, I guess." Arthur nodded and sighed.

"Well... I'm not sure how far apart we need to space the doses for your leg to heal. Let's just see how long you can go between them and hope you don't get addicted."

Lance sighed and frowned a little, his eyes following the large yellow dragon as he went to another part of the room. "Killjoy."

"Pot," Arthur easily tossed back, sitting himself in front of a window. Lance stuck his tongue out at the Dragonite, but instead of pursuing the banter between himself and his dragon, turned to Sara-Anne instead.

"So what now, Miss Sara-Anne?" he asked causally as he patted the arm of the chair, indicating for her to come closer. "Any more stories? Maybe a game?"

"So you just..." He's giggling, what an asswipe.  With his dumb laugh and smile.  Please keep laughing. "...Just were nearly owned by a giant flower mom."

He starts to laugh so hard that words are lost, turning into garbled messes of syllables.

"Hey, in our defense, she was a very scary giant flower mom!"

The Dragonite stands up and approaches, Sara-Anne jolting a bit in surprise before settling, watching as he touches his human's arm. "I'm glad I woke in time to hear your fateful encounter," Oh good, he's in a good mood.  He deserves it after all that stress earlier. "Did you tell them about the Hydreigon?"

"Sure did!" Aww.  That grin is adorable.

"How are you feeling?  Are you in pain yet?"

She frowns when he sort of wiggles his hand a little after having to think about it first. "It's not... bad... just uncomfortable, I guess."

"Well... I'm not sure how far apart we need to space the doses for your leg to heal. Let's just see how long you can go between them and hope you don't get addicted."

"Killjoy."

"Pot." Lance actually sticks his tongue out in retaliation, and Sara-Anne chokes back a giggle, only somewhat successfully.

"So what now, Miss Sara-Anne?"   He pants the arm of the chair, and she draws nearer, grinning. "Any more stories? Maybe a game?"

"A game sounds good.  Unless you can think of another story?"

"We got Uno, but that's all in the way of games.  No charging station for her video games."  Flame huffs.  "Because apparently the apocalypse must suck even more beyond the danger and there's no electricity."

"I do miss it," Joy sighs as she sorts through the backpack to pull out the card game, "but we are lucky."

"I can't think of any stories right now to tell."  Time to steer this back to happier places before sad can get worse.  "So unless you guys have one, we have Uno that we can play?"  He nudges Joy and she holds up the little box the cards come in.

"A game sounds good. Unless you can think of another story?" Lance blinked as he tried thinking of another anecdote, but his mind was too fogged. Hell, he could barely think of colors. Red, green, uh.... pink, orange, red...

"We got Uno, but that's all in the way of games. No charging station for her video games." The dragon tamer couldn't help but stare wordlessly at the tiny chimney-cham. What the hell was Uno? "Because apparently the apocalypse must suck even more beyond the danger and there's no electricity."

"I do miss it," Joy lamented as she dug through their pack to find something. "but we are lucky."

"I can't think of any stories right now to tell."  Mattimeo admitted. "So unless you guys have one, we have Uno that we can play?" Lance shook his head, but reached out, taking the pack of cards that had just been fished out. He turned the pack over in his hands curiously before handing it to Sara-Anne.

"Nah, I got nothin'," Lance conceded, settling back into his chair. "Don't think I've ever heard of 'Uno' before. How do you play?"

As the others spoke and tittered, Galahad's eyes remained on the gloom that consumed the rest of the house. Mattimeo had said that there was nothing else around, but the Charizard was restless in the knowledge that the rooms beyond the one they were congregated in hadn't been scoured. Glancing to the little monkey, he slowly made his way forward and nudged Flame with his broad nose. "Hey Flame," he whispered, eyes alight with mischief. "Wanna go check out the rest of the house?"

"Nah, I got nothin'. Don't think I've ever heard of 'Uno' before. How do you play?"

"So everyone playing gets seven cards," she begins, dealing two hands.  "There's four colors and nine of each."

Flame lays the rest of the deck face down, then takes the card from the top and lays it face up.  A red two.  "You can only lay a card down if it's got the same color or number, or if it's a wild card, which lets you change the color you can set down"

"And the goal is to get rid of your cards first."

"When you have only one left you're supposed to yell "uno" to signal to the others that you're about to win, but we're not super strict on that rule," Flame adds as he wanders the room, inspecting the dusty mantleplace.  "I mean, we have eyes.  We can see you've only got one left."

"There are cards that reverse the order, skip a turn, make an opponent draw two cards, or make an opponent draw four.  Uno games can be short or last a while.  And they can get rather intense."  

Mattimeo grins.  "Plus if there's only two people playing, the reverse card skips the other person's turn, so you can drive someone crazy if you have more than one by just skipping their turn repeatedly."

Flame hops down from the mantleplace and a gentle nudges catches his attention.  "Hey Flame," the dragon whispers, and Flame looks up at him with eager eyes. "Wanna go check out the rest of the house?"

"Oh hell yes!  They've got enough company; let's go see what we can find!"

Sara-Anne wasted no time in dealing out the likely already shuffled cards into two hands, herself and Lance. "So everyone playing gets seven cards," she began as the dragon tamer focused on her words and the cards. "There's four colors and nine of each." He picked up his small stack of seven and looked at the cards; they were colorful and bright. Quite the opposite of the normal playing cards he usually dealt with.

It seemed the entire team knew how to play. Flame moved next, taking the top card of the face-down deck to reveal a red two. "You can only lay a card down if it's got the same color or number, or if it's a wild card, which lets you change the color you can set down." It was like War, then? You could only play based on what was set down in front of you.

"And the goal is to get rid of your cards first." Sara-Anne added. Lance had to repeat the rules over in his head, as the fog in his mind was still slowing his thoughts. Yet it was lifting, which would be good for his processes and strategy, but... then he'd likely be in an excruciating amount of pain. He nodded his understanding, still staring at his cards.

"When you have only one left you're supposed to yell "uno" to signal to the others that you're about to win, but we're not super strict on that rule," the monkey finished, hopping down from Sara-Anne to explore the room a little bit. "I mean, we have eyes. We can see you've only got one left."

"There are cards that reverse the order, skip a turn, make an opponent draw two cards, or make an opponent draw four. Uno games can be short or last a while. And they can get rather intense." Lance blinked a bit, but nodded. He'd simply have to get used to the game's mechanics.

The dragon tamer didn't miss the wide grin on Mattimeo's face spread. "Plus if there's only two people playing, the reverse card skips the other person's turn, so you can drive someone crazy if you have more than one by just skipping their turn repeatedly."

"I think... I have it," Lance replied slowly, his mind still working to catch up. But his zeal to learn a new game overran the struggle to remember all the rules and he looked up to Sara-Anne, eyes bright. He had always been a competitive man, as this girl was soon about to find out. "But I've found the best way to learn a new game is to play. Who goes first?"

Galahad's smile lengthened as the monkey's enthusiasm matched his own. "Oh hell yes! They've got enough company; let's go see what we can find!" The Charizard nodded enthusiastically, and he trotted forward on all fours to look both ways down the hall. Well, he'd certainly have fun navigating those halls with his giant body. He lowered himself to the ground, offering his neck to Flame.

"The hallways are pretty narrow, you wanna hop on?" The Charizard's grin didn't falter as he watched Flame's reaction. "You can fit right behind my horns; I just don't want to squish you, ahaha."

"I think... I have it.  But I've found the best way to learn a new game is to play. Who goes first?"

"Ummm..." She puases, trying to recall that rule.  "I'm 90% sure it's one of those 'the youngest goes first' games, but I also really don't care, so we can rock-paper-scissors for it if you want."

Joy begins to shuffle the cards.  "It's also a game us Pokemon can easily play, especially with these communication links that lets us use words to communicate with.  So if you want, we can also have another player or two."  

"Technically we could have a lot of people play, but with this being your first game, I recommend no more than maybe four players."  

Joy deals two hands and waits.   "Up to you if you want others to play, Lance."

---

The two fire starters are fast in approaching the hallway.

"The hallways are pretty narrow, you wanna hop on?"  Oh fuck yes?  "You can fit right behind my horns; I just don't want to squish you, ahaha."

"Dude I'd be nuts to pass up an offer like this.  I get to sit on the head of a badass dragon!"  It's but the work of a few quick hops and a moment of climbing before he's perched between his horns, beaming like a cat with all the cream.  "Okay, let's see what we can dig up!"

"Ummm..." Sara-Anne mused, trying to recall. "I'm 90% sure it's one of those 'the youngest goes first' games, but I also really don't care, so we can rock-paper-scissors for it if you want."

Playing a game to determine who goes first in another game? Lance chuckled at the thought and waved it off with a small gesture of his hand. Jow shuffled the cards with expert ease. "It's also a game us Pokemon can easily play, especially with these communication links that lets us use words to communicate with. So if you want, we can also have another player or two."

"Technically we could have a lot of people play, but with this being your first game, I recommend no more than maybe four players." Mattimeo added as Lance arranged his cards in color order.

"Up to you if you want others to play, Lance." He looked up and grinned a little at the back of Arthur's head.

"Dragonite, you gonna come play or continue to be the ever-vigilant, stoic protector sulking over there in the corner?" Arthur slowly turned his head, eyebrows inclined, to look at his trainer, incredulous expression intact. Lance's competitive grin didn't fade. however, and Arthur simply rolled his eyes.

"Someone needs to keep watch, Lance, however much it pains me to decline watching my esteemed adult trainer get his ass handed to him by a young lady at a children's card game." Lance drew in a breath of mock shock.

"You just don't want to lose either," Lance teased, turning back to Sara-Anne. "Let's have Matti and Joy. More people to help me learn."

---

"Dude I'd be nuts to pass up an offer like this. I get to sit on the head of a badass dragon!" Galahad was thankful for his orange scales, as he was sure he was blushing from the compliment. "Badass"? Really? Sure, he'd gotten plenty of compliments from other trainers that had tried taking Lance on, but Arthur was always the star of the show. Not that Galahad was ever envious, but in his mind, he was always one of the ones overlooked by Lance's fans, and therefore had never considered that he was "badass" in his own right... An odd feeling to be sure, but not unwelcome in the least. It wasn't long of a wait as Flame made his way to the small groove at the back of Galahad's horned head, sitting and settling into the spot. "Okay, let's see what we can dig up!"

"Absolutely!" Galahad was all too eager to comply, keeping himself to all fours and trotting around with his tail high over his head like a scorpion for light. He padded his way down the hall, then peeked around one corner to find yet another hallway, lined with a few doors and ending in a large room cloaked completely in shadow. It was probably a kitchen or something, Galahad had no idea, but the rooms in this hall should get checked out first.

The first door was on his left, skinny and equipped with a large vent on the lower end. "This looks like a water heater closet... Let's keep looking." He passed it, unwilling to chance the door falling on them to just look at an old piece of metal. The next was on his right, larger and looked to maybe lead to a bedroom. He reached up and turned the handle, pleased to find it unlocked and pressed it open. Dust blossomed into the air around them, causing the Charizard to cough a bit as he stretched his tail further forward in a bid to see more of the room's contents. As he did, light and color sparkled back at him from all over the room, as if he'd cracked open the lid to a giant geode. "Wow... What do you think this is...?" He slowly made his way in, more and more light refracting and illuminating the room as his fire lit more surfaces. It was like being in a kaleidoscope.

"Dragonite, you gonna come play or continue to be the ever-vigilant, stoic protector sulking over there in the corner?" Oh god the look that dragon gives his human. Sara-Anne tips her head back and giggles, nearly tipping herself over.

"Someone needs to keep watch, Lance, however much it pains me to decline watching my esteemed adult trainer get his ass handed to him by a young lady at a children's card game."

"You just don't want to lose either," She rights herself as Lance turns back to her, still grinning "Let's have Matti and Joy. More people to help me learn."

"You got it. Guys?" She looks over her shoulder at them, smiling as they come to sit on either side of her.  "Joy, you got the cards?"

"Mmhm." She deals the cards, seven to each. Mattimeo immediately frowns at his own, but remains silent. 

"What? Bad hand?" Joy asks as she overturns the card on the top of the deck. A yellow four.

"First of all there's no such thing since the strategy changes with the card that is down and no one card is stronger than the other except maybe the wild card being the best one. Second of all, no, I wouldn't tell you if I did so there."  

Joy and Sara-Anne exchange looks.

"He has a million of one color only?"
"He has a million of one color only; I'd put money on it."

"You both suck." He punches Sara-Anne in the shoulder, though is careful to hold back. "Lance is the guest; he goes first."

---

"Absolutely!" Galahad lights the way with his tail like a lantern, the chimp watching with wide, eager eyes as they poke about. The water heater is definitely not worth looking at, but when Galahad opens a door that might be a bedroom and a kaleidoscope sparkles back at them, Flame gasps in sheer delight.

Oh my god... it's... wow..."  He laughs, eyes lit up as he reaches up to stroke the side of a glass rose set in its stand as Galahad walks past it.  "They're- it's glass figurines! The whole room is- is full of them!"

It's beautiful.

The most beautiful thing he's seen in a very long time.

"You got it. Guys?" Sara-Anne called to her pokemon, who both came closer to use Lance's chair and lap as a table. He didn't mind, even as the pain in his side and leg started to become steadily more noticeable. He shifted the cards in his hands as Joy gathered the deck in her hands to deal herself and Matti a hand. "Joy, you got the cards?"

"Mmhm." She quickly dealt out the two new hands, her Lucario comrade looking none-too-happy with his own set of cards. His trainer and partner, unfortunately for him, noticed immediately.

"What? Bad hand?" the Gardevoir teased as she flipped over the first card. Yellow Four. Lance glanced to his own and was pleased to see two yellow cards smiling up at him.

"First of all there's no such thing since the strategy changes with the card that is down and no one card is stronger than the other except maybe the wild card being the best one. Second of all, no, I wouldn't tell you if I did so there."

There was a moment of silence as trainer and Gardevoir exchanged a knowing glance, the smirks on their faces too amused.
"He has a million of one color only?"
"He has a million of one color only; I'd put money on it."

"You both suck." The Lucario gently punched his slight Trainer in the arm, earning a grin from Lance. Though he knew he needed to get back to the Plateau, it was good to simply be normal and have normal company. "Lance is the guest; he goes first." He perked at his name, already pulling a card from his hand.

"Just one card at a time, right?" He placed down a yellow Two card, then looked to the others. "Too bad you can't chain them. It'd make the game go by fairly quickly." He paused for a moment, waiting on the others to take their turn when an ache began to complain in his side. Though talking would only aggravate it, Lance decided that engaging himself in both a new game with an accompanying strategy as well as a conversation would be enough to distract him for at least a little while. "So... how long have you been in Hoenn? Judging from your anecdote and pokemon, you're from Sinnoh. What brought you here?" He paused, then looked up to her, remembering that he wasn't leading an investigation and that tact was likely needed. "If it's not too personal."

---

Oh my god... it's... wow..." Flame laughed then, overcome by emotion at seeing such beautiful colors and light. Galahad was near tears; finding this nestled in a house no one really knew about in a time where beauty and art was cast aside for practicality was something the Charizard had never expected. He lifted his body to see the room better and saw a tiny arm extend from the edge of his peripherals. "They're- it's glass figurines! The whole room is- is full of them!"

"They're so beautiful..." It was all Galahad could even think of saying, he was so dumbstruck. He carefully made his way closer to the shelves and racks of figures, carefully picking one up with a taloned hand. He turned it over a moment before recognition hit him. "Flame, they're of Pokemon! This one's a Milotic!" He held it up for the small monkey to see, its deep azure hue warmed by the dim light offered by their gentle fire. Its elegant body was looped and coiled around a gem with glass water splashes surrounding it. "How did people even do this...?"