2024-03-04: Worry Seed

Log: Worry Seed
Cast: Chase, Damian Tamaoka
Where: Viridian City - Emerald Way
Date: March 04, 2024
Summary: Damian and Chase run into each other in a Pokemon Center and discuss their fears and find some comfort in their shared concerns. Also, Purri provides some unintentional inspiration to Phwee.

=======================<* Viridian City - Emerald Way *>========================

Viridian City is a city of many importances; it is the major commerce and logistics hub within the Emerald Cape province, providing primary access to the western reaches of the Kanto region. It's of no surprise, then, that it sports an expansive and well-developed commercial district, with Market Way providing a wide variety of shops and goods for all walks of life. Lush and adorned with nature, Viridian's residents enjoy a spacious and relaxed environment, with most living in medium-density apartment blocks three to four stories high. The market is most recently memorably featured in the hit single by sensational Nedean-pop band 2BA, "I'm on the Road to Viridian City."

BGM: Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee & Pikachu! - Pewter City - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGrGjO5F6ZM

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Chase now had a social media account. One might think that this would be a perfect opportunity to write the words he cannot say, sharing whatever thoughts he has -- be they idle, profound, or even vulnerable -- on his social media and connect with the world.

Perhaps unsurprising in retrospect, he uses it to mostly post pictures of Pokemon. Wild ones or his own. They're not expert photography by any stretch of the imagination, except that his Pikachu is terrifyingly, adorably photogenic. Of course she is. She's a Pikachu. They're just like that, and his is particularly fond of attention.

But at least 'zappypursuit' responds to others, especially private messages or chats. Sometimes. Usually with emotes. It's better than nothing. A bit of back and forth and being in the same area leads to knowing he and 'miaw' will be in the same area.

Chase is already at the Pokemon Center, seated with his legs squished up against himself as he carefully handles a red, gemstone orb. A small lunchbox of Poke Puffs and Poffins is waiting, untouched, on the nearby table. Half are deep violet and pink, and the other half are a navy-blue with violet -- reminisce of Purrloin and shiny Purrloin respectively.

Pikachu sits right beside him, holding his phone with her tiny paws and the earbuds in her own long ears as she gently head bangs along to her personal playlist. (Chase does not have his own playlist listed, if anywhere were to check. Go figure.) Faintly, aggressive drumming and growling vocals can be heard.

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Damian is a little variable about posting to PokeLive. Some days he's active, some days he doesn't talk as much. He's usually not sharing specifically about himself and how he's doing, but he will share cool things he's seen, or talk about his pokemon. (Most notable semi-recent update: His Wurmple evolved into a Silcoon! He was very excited for her and posted an extremely happy selfie of the two of them together.)

But there's also definitely quite a few of Purri, too, naturally. (But he will readily agree that Phwee is also very cute.)

Damian, under the handle 'Miaw509', seems to have a bit easier of a time communicating online. (Small wonder, considering he doesn't have to worry about stutters.) But he's also pretty accepting and accommodating of the propensity for zappypursuits to speak in emoji, often replying in kind when possible.

Damian himself looks a bit tired as he walks into the Pokemon Center, dressed in his usual hoody and shorts. Purri is strolling beside him, though once she spots Phwee and Chase she nudges Damian's leg. "Purr, purrloin."

Damian looks, and he smiles as he sees his friend, walking over. "H-hey, Chase. How goes?" He squints and looks at the gemstone orb. "Whoa... what's that...?"

Purrloin walks up to Phwee and peers at her curiously, tilting her head. "Purrloin?" What is she listening to?

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee's ears shoot up, tail alert, as Purri approaches. "Piii pikachu!" she greets, even though, presumably, she might be having trouble hearing herself. She plucks out one earbud to offer to Purri in excitement. (Is Chase going to allow this? Chase is absolutely going to allow this, he's not even going to register this as anything to be grossed out about.) How Purri might feel about this offer has everything to do with how Purri might feel about heavy metal.

Chase lifts his hand in a wave and drops his knees to sit cross-legged on the sofa so he's not so scrunched as to seem unavailable. He remembers being scolded about that once before, probably, before filtering it out. First, he nudges the treat box nearer Damian in an offering, then looks to the red orb.

He gets his Pokedex.

Staryu. Star Shape Pokemon. As long as the center section is unharmed, this Pokemon can grow back fully even if it is chopped to bits.

He frowns as the device electronically offers the description. He shrugs at Damian helplessly, and Phwee, finally noticing this, nudges his phone back into him. "Chachu. Chaaachu."

(The music is still going in the background.)

Chase puts together a message in his note app, as usual, and flips it back again.

<found it near cerulean lake>
<dont know how it got hurt so bad>
<can guess>

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri's ears flick a little as that earbud is pulled out and offered, and she catches a little bit more of the music. It doesn't sound like anything she or Damian's ever listened to before, but... after a moment of consideration she takes the earbud and puts it in her ear. Her tail swishes slowly as she listens. She's not headbanging to it like Phwee is, but she does at least seem to be giving it some consideration.

Damian blinks as Chase offers the lunchbox, opening it, and then lighting up in delight. "O-oh! I-it's..." He smiles to Chase. "A-are these P-Purrloina and sh-shiny Purrloin colors?" He doesn't even wait for the answer before he picks it up and lowers it down for Purri to take a look at. "L-look!"

Purrl had been considering the music, but her attention immediately shifts as Damian goes to shower her something. "Puuuuu~" she exclaims, her tail swishing happily behind her.

The boy looks to Chase again. "D-did you... did you make these...? I-I wish I had something for you..."

The conversation takes a turn as Chase reveals, via pokefex, what the 'gem' is.

A Staryu.

His eyes go wide, and he sets the box down, leaning in to get a closer look. His voice is hushed in a mixture of sadness and horror. "O-o-oh no..."

Damian squints as he reads the message, and remembering how Chase chose to communicate last time, pulls his own phone out to reciprocate in kind.

<that's terrible.>
<how could anyone do such a thing?>
<is... there anything Nurse Joy can do for them?>

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee watches Purri with intense expectation. Listen, Purri. Embrace, Purri. Feel the emotions in your heart, Purri!! It's her favorite band: Monster House.

When Damian takes to the box with such delight, Chase realizes he doesn't know where to look or how to react to that. It ends up being a lot of blankness and a small nod, in the end. Then an awkward shake of his head when Damian mentions bringing something. It's not really about anything like that...

But he smiles seeing Purri so happy about it. With the subject changed from music, Phwee removes her own earbuds and stuffs them ungracefully back into Chase's bag. She's helping clean up!

She waves at the Staryu core. "Piiika pika...?" It does not answer.

Chase sits up a little straighter at the text before messaging back.

<dont know>
<10wm could have done it>
<and never even noticed>

That's who Chase thinks must have been responsible in some way. After Mt. Moon, after Pewter City... How many Pokemon get caught in their destruction?

<done what they can>
<says time is needed now>
<feels like there should be more>

More specifically... Chase feels like he should be able to do more while the world gets upended.

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri pulls the earbud out and offers it back to Phwee. "Puuu, purr. Purrloin." Interesting, intense. A lot different than what she's used to. She'd have to listen to it some more to decide if she really liked it or not.

Damian's gushing over the treats, but eventually realizes he's overwhelming Chase and takes a metaphorical (and literal) half-step back, to give the other boy some space and to calm himself down. "S-sorry, um..." He works on typing out a quick reply.



<but ive made poke puffs and curry and sandwiches too>

He shows the message to Chase, but smiles a little when Chase smiles.

Purri also pads closer to the Staryu core and gives it an encouragiung, "Purr purr, loin!"

Damian looks crestfallen (as does Purri), at the suggestion that the Ten Wise Men did it. He nods sadly.

<my friend Timu was there when pewter got attacked>
<she said it was super scary...>
<... she also found an injured hestrol and got it to pkmncntr>
<dunno if it was also them but its really sad seeing pokemon get hurt>

He reads the second part of the message and nods, fingers flying over his creen as he replies.



As for the topic of more, Damian hesitates. He gets it, he thinks, but... that's an awfully big world out there, and what can one person do? There's only one thing he can think of to say to that.

<yeah>

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee gives a little dance with Purri's assessment, hyping up a future of possibility. "Piii pika! Pipipi pikachu!" She rubs her own little cheeks in circles. Such a happy, chatty little creature, and that's in spite of everything she and Chase have run into so far on their Pokemon journey.

Chase's smile stays, a little softer, reading about Damian's love of poffins and puffs. Them both switching to written communication has Chase responding more fluidly than even he realizes. A small, hidden hack to not having to wait an awkward minute or two for some of Chase's replies...?

<no wonder purrloin looks happy>

There's more to it than that, Chase knows. Her coat is in exceptional condition. Unfortunately, such a beautiful coat is not enough to stir Staryu from this regenerative hibernation.

But Chase's expression dims again when it comes to discussion the recent... incidents on Nede.

<there was a lot of fire>

Spicuuuuuule...!

But Timu. Chase squints at that name, chewing his lip, and then his eyes widen with realization at the connection to Hestrol. That's Timu!

<timu saved me i think>
<healing symbology>

Chase squints. He erases 'symbology' and replaces it with '???'. She healed him, at any rate. He fails to elaborate on the implication that this meant he may have required life saving healing. Then he sighs, fingers failing to produce any text. The visitors are strong... It's... impressive and unsettling all at once.

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri, herself, seems in relatively good spirits too, despite... certain events and situations, and that honestly, taking care of Damian is kind of a full-time job. "Purr, purrloin. Purr loin!" Damian usually listens to stuff that's a lot lighter and perkier, not that Purri minds. When Pikachu rubs her cheeks Purri takes a moment to streeeeeeetch out, and while her pawsies are stretched out in front of her, her claws unsheath for a moment. They're painted a sparkly light purple.

Someone's getting more than just coat brushings.

It can really help to find someone who's of a like mind in how it's most comfortable for you to communicate, huh?

Damian smiles at that comment, looking at Purri.

<she's helped me through a lot>
<she deserves it>

<Phwee always looks happy and excited too! i bet she really cares for you>

He tenses for a moment, looking to Chase when he mentions the fire.

<oh so you were there too...>
<im sorry>

He sees the confusion over the name, and quickly brings up a photo of Timu with her Fuecoco, then shows it to Chase. But he seems to get the connection anyway. (Oh yeah, she did show off the Hestrol, didn't she...?)

'symbology' is presented and erased, and Damian nods.

<think she called it 'prayer magic'??>
<they have different magic and stuff on the other worlds>
<think they have symbology too but the old-school tattoo kind???>

Then, after a moment, when the implication sinks in:

<... glad she was able to help you though>

The visitors are impressive and scary all at once. And they've got giant robots they fight wars with, strange magic and powers... It's a lot to consider.

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee catches sight of those sparkling claws. She blinks, then looks to her own paws with her mouth wide open. A new concept...

(It would be a devastating mistake to allow Chase's Pikachu to be in possession of nail polish, glitter, or glittery nail polish.)

Chase looks up to watch Purri, settling more contentedly where he sits and worrying less about what the rest of him is doing at any moment. His knees bounce a little before stopping to write.

<prof oak was going to give me a pkmn>
<then pikachu chose me instead>

He smiles thinking about it. The odd situation of how they met. How insistent Phwee had been about the whole thing. Like she knew exactly what she was doing.


<or protect it...>

Given, well, she's always pretty happy. She seems to pick up from Chase she is being talked about and looks to him cheerfully, holding up a paw. "Pika?" Chase taps it. She moves it. He taps it again. This 'game' continues a few moments before she hops up and down in contentment. "Piiiika!"

Chase was there during the attack. So was Pikachu. His Pikachu, clearly, wears it better. Chase reads 'prayer magic' and frowns thoughtfully. For the first time since the conversation took to test, he goes quiet, finger hovering, and uncertain for a while.

He watches his Pikachu, and he watches Damian's Purrloin. And finally:

<are you scared?>

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri pauses in her stretch as she sees Phwee's look, then follows her gaze to see. Ah, yes. She purrs happily, shifting a little so she can show them off more intentionally. "Purr puur purr! Puuuu~" Damian worked very hard on them for her, and she's very happy with how they turned out.

(She might just be unaware of what a disaster might be in the making here.)

Damian gently places his backpack on the ground and also settles in on the couch, bringing his legs up so he can also sit cross-legged. Normally this would be Purri's cue to get in his lap for brushings or pets, but she's busy showing off her nails to Phwee.

Phwee chose him-- Damian can't help but let out a soft, "Awwww." But then he pauses and taps at his phone screen. But he's still smiling as he types.

<awwww>
<thats really nice!>

Chase wants to make her happy...



Damian giggles a little as he watches Phwee and Chase play their game. He's really glad they have each other, the same way that he's glad he and Purri have each other, too.

He waits as Chase takes his time with the next message. He's patient, fiddling with his phone a little to as Chase considers. (He can wait; Peace takes waaaaaay longer to respond to a message sometimes.)

But then that question comes, and it's Damian's turn to consider. But only for a moment. He's slowly nodding as he types out a reply.

<yeah>
<bout a lot of stuff>
<having Purri helps though>

A beat, then.

<you?>

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee tippy taps back and forth on her hind legs in excitement to get a better look at Purri's claws. "Chaaaaa!" Her own eyes mirror the sparkle... a sparkle of admiration, and a sparkle of inspiration. Possibilities are opening up before this Pikachu's eyes. It's best not to worry about it.

Chase makes sure to shift minutely to allow Damian a space on the sofa. He smiles more brightly at the acknowledgment of it. It's not a story he's told. He never really had to? Or was prompted to. But it's... nice, saying it. Having someone hear it.

But keeping their Pokemon happy... Phwee and Purri, who look after them as much as they're looked after -- if not moreso.

And it's scary.

Damian thinks so, too. Chase swallows. He nods himself, when the question's returned. Almost absently so, but not without truth.

His legs bounce a little as he stares at his screen before he stops himself. His fingers hover a while longer again.

<yeah>

...But thankfully he didn't make Damian wait just to say that. Still, it's a beat of his own before:

<phwee helps too but>

<to survive this>
<or keep me safe>
<it's not fair>

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri smiles as she sees Phwee get so inspired. She loves taking care of her trainer (because he takes excellent care of her, in turn), but it's nice to have something to be proud of him for, too! She purrs happily and turns a little to show that the hindclaws are done, too. "Purrpurr purrloin!" And it's not just fashionable, it also helps protect the nails from being damaged, too.

Damian flashes Chase a grateful smile when he makes some room, and even more at seeing Chase smile when his story acknowledged. It only seems fair to share...

<had Purri since i was little>
<went looking for a pet to help me>
<they were all nice but Purri jumped up into my lap and it felt like she just belonged there>
<weve been together ever since>

He didn't exactly get a 'starter' pokemon, but getting Purri still meant a lot to him, just for different reasojns unrelated to the journey.

Damian notices the way Chase's knees bounce... though he doesn't say anything about it. He gets it, kinda.

Damian reads the message and blinks a few times, like he hadn't thought of that particular concern before... but it's suddenly very pressing, judging by the way his face falls a little. Not just the Ten Wise Men, but... he's in Team Rocket. They've already had to fight trainers once.

What happens when they have to do it again? But how can he not, when he knows one of his best friends is likely to be out there getting hurt?

He has to protect her, too, just like he has to protect his pokemon.

<its not fair youre right>


The cursor remains flashing at the end of that line as he considers how to express the feeling he has.



<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee's ears shoot straight up again in excitement. "Pika!" All the claws are done. All claws sparkle. Powerful. Protected. She is in awe, paws at her mouth.

Chase lights up in delight at Damian's return story. His fingers fly into action.

<so she chose you too>

It's the way it should be, Chase thinks. And it's the way it is most of the time, he also thinks. Even when it comes to catching Pokemon in balls and doing battle... they choose their Trainers. So much about how they behave is a test.

...And it all ties back to that fear. The trust they're giving, and what expectations Pokemon may have when they make that choice... The fact they get to choose, and choose to fight. Even Giovanni's Pokemon, who he only sees as tools...

(Giovanni sees everyone as tools. It's not a whole lot better, but it could be a whole lot worse.)


<but 10wm and rocket and new worlds>
<poke puffs arent going to be enough>

Chase looks at the Staryu core in his lap, then to Phwee and Purri, then at Damian for another moment. He tilts his head, as if realizing something.

<this helped though>
<thanks>

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri finishes another long, luxurious stretch and then pads forward to offer Phwee an affectionate nuzzle. "Puuuu~"

Damian grins a bit and nods.

<yeah!>
<they were all super cuddly but>
<with Purri it just clicked>

Plus she was Dark type. That definitely helped.

And, recently, another pokemon very definitively chose him, too. Safely tucked away in the nest ball on his belt.

Giovanni's words... still bother him. He knows Joy looks up to him, and he seemed eager enough to have Damian aboard, even though... well, he wasn't at all sure what he had to offer. And Doctor Aomori seems to respect him, and believe in the future Team Rocket is trying to make. But even given all that...

Those words...

There is a wince when Chase mentions Team Rocket. But none of those are pleasant topics either, so maybe that's understandable.

<yeah...>


But, well... they're really big problems.

There is a tentative smile when Chase says it helped. He nods, with a little more enthusiasm. It felt really comfortable talking this way, too. He wishes he'd thought of it sooner.

<im glad>
<me too>
<youre welcome!>

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Nuzzling! Phwee eagerly nuzzles back in her favorite form of greeting. "Chaaaa!" She loves it so much she turned it into an attack. Not right now though. Now is not friend battle, now is friend snuggle. They're very different! And she is very good at nuzzling: the most rubbery, soft cheek in the whole world. (*Not yet verified.)

Chase notes the claws that Phwee was already admiring. He never imagined anything like painting a Pokemon's nails... Or his own, for that matter. He turns his hands to look at his own fingernails with a blink.

When it comes to Pokemon, Chase is observant. People? Not so much. But right now he's talking to Damian, not around a Damian to mostly pay attention to Purri, like he normally defaults to. He's present in the moment.

So he sees it, that wince. And he frowns, looking from Damian and to Purri and back. Purri chose Damian, like Phwee chose Chase. To imagine them ever separated by a group like Team Rocket is devastating. Damian must worry about things like that, too.

(Nobody tell him.)

<it's hard not to>


Chase heaves a sigh, thumb hovering a moment. His gaze flicks down to the Staryu core.

<im not going to run away>

A promise to himself, as much as an admission of anything. But conviction settles less uneasily after this conversation here.

<met a clefairy that wanted revenge>
<maybe staryu will too>



Chase smiles back at Damian after a brief surprise. Him too. This... isn't so bad. He looks to their Pokemon, then turns his phone to the side and snaps a picture. Satisfied with it, he sends it immediately to Damian:

Phwee and Purri nuzzling. A perfect souvenir of a meeting, if you ask Chase.

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri might not have rubbery cheeks, but she has impeccably soft cheek fur and many, many years of practice giving nuzzles. She purrs delightedly as Phwee reciprocates, approving of the eager reciprocation. The nuzzle transitions into a cheekrub and then a full on siderub as she slowly pads forward to curl up against and around Phwee.

Damian's been watching Purri and Phwee, of course, but also Chase, in order to read his replies. He blinks a little as he sees Chase inspect his own nails, glances to Purri, and then blushes, for some reason. He looks at his own nails, briefly, trying to disguise it as fidgeting with his phone.

Oh good. All clear. He types a message.

<Purri has been SUPER helpful lately>
<so I wanted to do something nice for her>
<and she picked that>
<so I did that for her>

He looks at Chase's message. He's not going to run away. Damian looks down at this lap, thumbs tapping at the edge of his phone. They move, hoving over a letter for a moment, then move back to the edge of his phone.

He started his Journey by running away, really. He feels like he's run away from a few different things in the past, even...

It'd be nice if he could stop.

<im trying to protect some things i care about, too>

It's true, even if it's omitting some things.

But it has helped, talking with Chase this way, not having to watch his words or deal with the anxiety that inevitably follows.

He smiles as he opens the picture, then siwtches over to PokeLive and opens the upload menu, then shows Chase. He doesn't get it ready to upload a photo, so this isn't asking permission... he's encouraging Chase to do it. (It's his photo, after all!)

And then after that, he opens the camera and switches to the selfie mode, then positions it to capture the two of them. This time he holds it in a way to suggest that, well... he'd like to take a selfie with Chase.

<Pose Tracker> Chase has posed.

Phwee is engulfed in cat and immediately flops into it. The world is soft and she is content. Chase thinks this kind of thing, too, maybe is what they need to stay happy and themselves...

He's less aware of Damian's reaction about the nails, fortunately. Because the longer Chase stares at his own nails, the more he wonders how it feels to have polish on. And the more he thinks about it, the more his cuticles begin to itch. Maybe it would feel okay? Purri likes it. It would reinforce them. So would it feel stronger? Or heavier? ... Now he's got the impulse to chew his nails off and make the psychosomatic sensations stop. Hm. Troubling.

"Chachu?"

Chase snaps out of it. Okay he's fine. Just think about Purri's claws.

<did she pick the color?>
<it's pretty>

But the conversation gets heavier. Chase is as patient with others as he hopes they might be with him. He doesn't know where to look, though. A glance, but then watching the Pokemon again until Damian moves. Once there's a message, he looks at it with a deep breath and a slow, but decisive nod.

It's what they all have to do. Chase isn't sure they get a lot of choice in that. Damian seems to be a lot like him: starting the Journey at exactly the wrong time, and wondering what it'll make them. ...Maybe that's why this helped. They're not alone in that.

He smiles at the PokeLive upload menu and proceeds with the upload. In his way, he does not provide a caption. It speaks for itself!!

With a few blinks he realizes Damian is preparing for a selfie. He gives a nervous glance, but looks back at the camera and makes a V sign with his hand to signal he's posing for it. This will have to do in place of a smile, because Chase does not appear capable of performing one on command.

<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.

Purri lets out a big happy purr as Phwee flops into her cat pile. She is warm and soft, and her tail drapes over Phwee for extra cuddle potential.

Damian is immensely thankful Chase didn't notice. But there's an eager nod as the question is asked.

<she did!>

<im glad you like them!>

<I'm happy with how they came out>

These are, indeed, very worrying times... and they are both just starting their journeys, and there is a lot of uncertainty, but... they're also alike in other ways, too. They both love their pokemon, they both need their pokemon for comfort, they both have their own issues with communicating...

That photo sure does speak for itself!

Damian sees Chase's hesitation. Quietly, he says, "I-it's okay... if you don't want to..." But then Chase makes the V sign and Damian nods. He quickly gets into position, and makes an identical V sign with his free hand, and then snaps the picture. (He does smile, a little bit, but he's trying not to as much as possible, just so Chase doesn't look too out of place in the selfie.)

This one isn't going online right away, but he does tab back into his writing app.

<thanks>

2024-03-04: Worry Seed

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