2024-04-24: Reconsideration
- Cutscene: Reconsideration
- Cast: Anne Aomori, Edgar Chiba
- Where: Vermillion City, Energy Nede
- Date: April 24, 2024 (506 PC)
- Summary: Anne and Edgar meet for a date Edgar's been hoping for for a while. They discuss Sable, their relationship, and research. (Expect flirting, parenthood, and deliciousness.)
As Anne Aomori looks into the mirror, she takes stock of her preparations. Red lips, light shadow at the eyes, a smooth foundation--makeup, check. Her purse on the bed, with her closest Pokemon in their Pokeballs--check. Gray hair loose and voluminous--check. She smoothes out her dress, a crepe fabric number in garnet red, and smiles. She's confident. The cap sleeves emphasize her collarbone; the deep V-neck emphasizes lower. The skirt down to her knees has just enough flare to be interesting. She's not twenty or even thirty anymore... but she thinks the look works well for her.
For Anne, every occasion is worth the proper preparation, be it a battle or a date. In this case, it's a date, and she's in a hotel room on the 20th floor in Vermillion City about to head down to meet the lucky man. Anne turns to the side to and fro, to inspect herself from other angles and, satisfied, moves to the bed to pick up her purse and head for the door. With a click it opens and closes behind her, and she heads to the elevator...
The trip down is uneventful.
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Edgar Chiba glances in a reflective pillar and adjusts his jade-green tie, then runs a hand through his brown hair. He set his look and forgot it long ago, so straightening up and glancing at his suit is about all he needs. Black jacket, white button-up, nice shoes, and his hair is just tousled enough to be 'fun' but not so messy as to be unkempt. It'll do.
He looks around the hotel lobby with absent interest; he sees a couple of people talking on a couch, the receptionist behind the desk, and the elevator. He hasn't been waiting long, but he has been waiting a little. It's like that with Anne, usually. He's never minded that much, and today is no exception. He's not really even paying attention to the people and Pokemon walking across the lobby, until the elevator doors open.
Anne steps out alone, and Edgar finds his expression turning to a pleased grin. She's a vision in red, walking confidently out of the elevator towards him. He can dimly hear the click of her heels on the tile as he turns her way and smiles more widely. "Anne!" Edgar says. "You made it after all. I was beginning to wonder!"
"Oh?" Anne asks back, as she steps the rest of the way into conversational distance. "I arrived exactly when I meant to." She doesn't kiss him, he notices, but she does slide her arm into his. "And now we're off, right? Where are you taking me?"
Edgar chuckles and then says, "You did, huh? Well, we are. Right this way, madam." He gestures towards the door. "I have reservations at Rose de Plage. I think you'll like it."
"You should hope I do," Anne replies with a wink, and follows along on Edgar's arm. She leans against him, touching the side of her head to his shoulder. With a glance at her and a smile, Edgar holds open the door as they reach it, and soon they're outside in the light of the setting sun.
"So," Edgar says, "I had the chance to spend some time with Sable recently. She was in Cinnabar to look into a fossil, of all things, that she found in Mt. Moon."
"For the Pokemon restoration program?" Anne asks.
"Right. You know she's been interested in it a long time." Edgar guides them around the plaza, onto the sidewalk where they'll make their way to the restaurant. "A few of her new friends have apparently found some, too. Anyway, she told me that Ulpi evolved!"
"She texted me a picture, too. He's looking very dashing as a Prinplup."
"Right? But she's really grown up a bit over the past months. You can see it in her eyes. ...Well, not that I'm ready for her to totally grow up yet, right?" A laugh.
Anne sighs. "I know... It was hard enough letting her out, even though she waited longer than a lot of kids. But our little girl is getting older."
"I was worried, too. But she's doing great. Really methodical, reminds me of you that way. And she's making friends. She told me about this one kid she's planning to battle more--that she has some 'disagreements' with him that she thinks they can settle that way. Name of Damian?"
"Hmmmm," Anne reflects, and Edgar looks down to her face as she looks up at him. He can't figure out what's behind that smile.
"Still, it was... nice. I know I didn't live with you two most of the time, but I tried to spend as much time with her as I could. It's a little lonely only looking in from the outside on her life, now. So it was nice to be part of it directly again for a while." He steps around a Psyduck waddling their way on the street. "She's really coming into her own."
"She is," Anne agrees. "I know how you feel. Sometimes I think I should have... Well, anyway. We're here now. I'm glad you got to spend some time with her. I'm a little concerned, personally--she hasn't told me about the Cerulean Gym in a while now. I think she's put the Challenge on hold..."
"You think?" Edgar answers. "Man. That would make sense, I guess--she was hanging out with Visitors, not just Nina. Worries me, though. All that stuff's dangerous. It's one thing to trust her to stay safe on the Journey, it's another to think about all that."
"True," Anne says. "I'm not... thrilled about it. But I wanted her to find her own way. I'll live, as long as she does. The hard part is not getting involved too much."
"You always were extra-protective. ...Not that I minded, but maybe she's taking the opportunity to sort herself out this way," Edgar says. "It's not what I would do... but I'm proud she's thinking of bigger things now that they're showing themselves."
"Really?" Anne wonders. "I'd have expected you to want her to not worry about it. You haven't exactly been the most focused on the big picture."
"I know," Edgar says, "I guess I'm not. But you want your kids to be better than you, right? So if I can help her, I will. ...Though I'm not eager to get out to 'Filgaia' myself either, you know?" With a laugh, he turns the next corner.
"I like to hear that," Anne says, and squeezes Edgar's arm with her free hand. She touches her head to his shoulder again as they walk. "In fact it's pretty encouraging. You might say you're scoring some points already."
"I do like scoring," Edgar answers lightly. "But really, I guess that's what it is. It surprised me, too."
Anne laughs faintly, and she's still smiling when she adds more seriously, "I like it. It's a good change, Edgar. It makes me think, too."
"Oh yeah?" Edgar glances at Anne again, pausing their walk. A Machop and his Trainer pass by, nodding. Edgar waves absently.
Anne smiles more widely. "You'll see," she says. "Later. If you play your cards right."
"Then definitely later," he answers, and winks. A little confidence always helped with Anne. And the restaurant is just ahead.
-=-=-
Rose de Plage is an upscale restaurant meant to give off a Kalosian style, and its exterior is perfectly suited to the twilight. But it's the interior that's important to Anne. The dining room happens to be built directly over the ocean, hanging out past the beach and into the water. There's a beautiful view of endless blue water out there, and of the beach stretching out to either side. Sure, there are also a lot of buildings, but they're aesthetically pleasing buildings, and the occasional cruise ship. The tables are violet-clothed, the chairs comfortable with coral-colored cushions. And it's quiet; there are other people here, but their voices never seem to carry.
Some restaurants are also for Pokemon; this one is not. Edgar and Anne are alone at their small table, but for the Pokeballs they each carry. ...Anne does not think Laqui needs to join her for /this/ date.
So Anne picks up her oyster shell, spooning on a little something. "I do love these," she tells Edgar, approval in her voice.
"That's why I suggested the place," Edgar answers with a grin. "I thought you might miss seafood in Viridian. Especially... well."
"Especially oysters? That's true." Anne downs the last in one go and looks into Edgar's green eyes. "And you remembered I like the Kalosian style too." Another point for him, she thinks. She leans forward, elbow on the table and chin propped up by her hand. "And you remembered my favorite wine."
"I find everything about you memorable," Edgar answers, staring back. He smiles, and it's one of those smiles that got her in trouble with him in the first place.
Anne lets out a soft sigh. "Mm." She picks herself back up, where she'd noticed him glancing down her dress, and picks up her wine. "Much as I like hearing about how well you like me," she says, "I am curious how your research is going, too." She swirls the glass in her hand and takes another drink.
"I could talk about that all night. ...But I could talk about my research for a while, too." He picks up his wine too, continuing, "We're very curious about the samples your lab sent us from Filgaia. And we've been looking into them. The similarities between their badlands and the habitats of Takikodus and Erikodus are significant, but the effects of a living planet on the environment is significant--even if it's not living very well. The effects this will have on Pokemon remain to be seen, and of course we don't know the ecosystems we're affecting yet. We need a lot more data."
"Hmmm," Anne answers. "I can certainly try to arrange that. But you say it started with those two Pokemon in particular?"
"It did! Unfortunately the specifics for them have been moved past a bit, but we did find that they can probably still draw on the environment for power despite the lack of Symbological constructs in Filgaia's ecosystems. We can't test this without just releasing them into the environment, but if contact between our worlds continues, well--we might get the chance! We're hoping that this could be the start of a big new avenue of research." Edgar grins. "Maybe that's part of why I'm so fine with Sable wanting to explore more. Because I've got a bit of an itch to learn more, myself. I never thought a worldwide crisis would be so damned interesting."
"It is, isn't it?" Anne muses. "Well, even if I can't assure Sable's safety yet, I can get more data on Filgaia. And it's a wonder, really. I'm concerned about the possibility of the universe falling under their sway, but I can't say the opportunities the shakeup presents aren't enticing. This could be our chance to really change things!"
"Hmm. You know, you're right. The man I used to be would've wondered why we needed to change much in the first place." Edgar sips his wine, as they wait on the rest of their food.
"...Used to be?" Anne prompts. "So you have reconsidered after all."
"Yes," Edgar answers. "...Not just because we used to argue about it. But because I really see opportunities, now. Provided that it isn't all for nothing, of course. I'm still worried about that. I'm not a fighter; there's nothing I can do about problems like ancient superweapons but support those that are."
"I know," Anne says more gently. "But we can't leave it to the Visitors to do it all for us, either."
"I guess not. It'd be convenient if we could, wouldn't it? But then we'd have to think about what happens after that..." Edgar shakes his head. "I know you've got training, have advanced Symbology. Are you thinking of getting involved?"
"I am," Anne says. "...Maybe it's thinking about that that made me want to give you a chance, after all. I'm in for risky behavior."
"I don't love hearing that," Edgar admits. "But I know it's your way. Once it was rampaging Kangaskhan, and now..."
"I know," Anne says. "But like I said. It makes it more important to hang onto what we can, doesn't it? And... what we can grasp for tomorrow, too."
"Tomorrow sounds good," Edgar answers. "I like the sound of grasping tomorrow. ...I'll worry," he admits. "But I've always found your boldness exciting. I guess there's no point in laying in a bet if you're too afraid to lose it."
"Now that's what I like to hear," Anne answers with a laugh. "...I'll be careful, though. And maybe you can give me some more reasons to be..."
Edgar smiles broadly. "Hey, I've been looking for reasons for you to come back for years."
The server comes back with their orders then, placing the still-sizzling plates before each of them. The rare steak filets are high-quality enough, as are the side dishes of potato and asparagus, but the baked Clauncher claws are the real highlight of the meal, cooked red and cracked open to be smothered with butter.
Anne did say to Jessie that she was going to order something expensive.
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