The Fault is in Our Stars (Open)

[Lorelei Virgo]

Whether she wanted it to or not, the stress had begun to swell up within her.

Lorelei's day started off fine. She had been around the academy for a little while now, always using Bradley's map. Even when she picked up a better copy of a school map, she continued to use Bradley's map. She considered it her first gift, and deemed to never let it out of her sight. Perhaps she was just being sentimental or it meant more value to her than even she could understood. It was fine, thought. It made her value something.

As she walk out of her room, she decided to give her Grandpa a call. It had been a while since she had heard his voice, and she had been feeling homesick. There was nothing to it, just go somewhere there was a phone. She had gone to the Pokemon Center, and sure enough, there were phones there. She used a phone and tried to call her Grandpa. She had called him late that afternoon, knowing that he would be there. She called him, listening to the dial-tone. She continued to hear the dial-tone, and got his voice mail. She tried to call him again, only to be left with his voice mail yet again.

Uneasiness stirred in her stomach, and she called her Grandpa's doctor. She asked if her Grandpa was brought in to emergency care, if something had happened to him. The doctor relented to give her information at first, but seeing as she was the only contact listed on the emergency contact and her constant relentlessness for information, they told her what had happened. Miss Virgo, it seems that an hour ago, your Grandfather had an accident, and was brought in by his assistant. He was, according to the assistant, taking care of a new Pokemon before clenching his chest in pain. We are still searching for a cause, but we would like to contact you at this number, should something else happen. We regret to inform you of such news. She hung up the phone, before going to a nurse at the Pokemon Center. If the doctor was to call again, she wanted the nurse to write it down and deliver it to her dorm room. The nurse seemed more than happy to, but before the nurse could try and convince Lorelei to stay, Lorelei had already walked out the door.

Lorelei had been walking...to the point that her feet where beginning to shake. Thoughts began to consume her mind, of things that happened, things that could have been changed. If she had been there, would her father be in a better position? Was it life-threatening? Could it be fixed? And if it could be fixed, how much would it cost? Would she still be able to come to the school? Stress upon stress began to pile onto of her, and the Volcarona was trying her best to cheer her Lorelei up. She tired the usual, nibbling on Lorelei's hair and twirling. But even doing such things did not bring Lorelei out of her stupor. The fire bug disliked it when Lorelei got this way, and it made Nantosuelta stressed as well. But she followed Lorelei, as they went deeper and deeper into the Forest.

When Lorelei's legs collapsed under her, Lorelei looked around her. She was in the Forest...and it was starting to get late. "Why...Why am I here?" Lorelei looked around, pulling out the flashlight that Daxton had given her. She could feel the stress pounding on her head, and she held her head in pain with both of her hands. "Gah! It...It hurts..." She stumbled up, realizing that her legs had become weak. "Have...to find a way out..." She started to stumble towards the trees, trying to mark them and walk a path. Her head throbbed with pain, but she and Nantosuelta had to get out of the forest. Now.

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Word Count: 666
Tags: Nantosuelta
Notes: Lorelei is lost 0.0

[Sascha Bryant]

Today had been...interesting to say the least. Or at least he supposed it had been. Honestly, Sascha wasn't entirely sure as his brain often had a habit of checking out when things weren't interesting - and often without his awareness of it. So if anything boring happened, well, Sascha didn't have much recollection of it nor did he really care to as boring things were just, well, boring. He did remember going for a walk, however...and that in itself was likely a miracle as sometimes his feet took him wherever they wanted without letting the rest of him know. Occasionally even while he was asleep. 


This time, though, he'd been awake, and had actually taken time to enjoy the process of the walk - and the scents and sights that accompanied it. Combees were already bumbling around, a sure sign of the coming spring, and trees that had once held only buds and promises of green were now fully leaved and left only enough space for the sun to dapple the ground lightly through the canopy those branches provided. Oh, Sascha wasn't so deep in the forest that it was dark...and besides, he doubted that here it could get like that - but he was at least pleased that he didn't have to bother wearing sunglasses to shade his light colored eyes. 


Sal tagged along behind him, so overjoyed at being outside that he forgot to be moody for once. He bounded after the backs of his trainer's by now familiar shoes - pausing to roll delightedly in the softness of grass or the leaves that had fallen and turned into something more crumbly and soft than they were during the colder months - and then leaping up to chase once more. He was a growlithe of considerable energy, and it was lucky for him that his Sascha could keep up with him. Heck, sometimes Sal had a hard time keeping up with the human! 


Eventually though, feet would need to rest - and Sascha had no issues taking up residence by a rock just off the main path that he'd taken. Oh, Sascha had no problems getting lost - but he wasn't stupid. Unfamiliar wooded areas like this one still was were dangerous places to be if one didn't know what they were facing. He wasn't about to get eaten by something big, wild and ferocious. No way. Some might think he had a death wish...and maybe they weren't too far off really, but if Sascha were going to die it would be because he saw to it himself. Not because he had the misfortune to get eaten by something large and furry. 


"C'mon Sal. We're gonna have a snack, 'kay?" He grinned a bit at the smaller pokemon, and plopped down by the rock to lean up against it - before digging through his back pack to pull out a couple of sandwiches, and a few various tidbits for the growlithe to enjoy while he ate. He was about to take his first bite when he saw the girl stumble out of the trees, looking wild-eyed and dazed. Sascha's eyes widened slightly, head tilting to the side curiously before he finally spoke. "Hey! You! Girl!" He even stood up to wave a hand vigorously at her to make sure her attention was grabbed. "You all right? You look like you've ever seen someone get murdered, or were almost murdered yourself..." He frowned a bit, though not exactly in concern as he didn't even know who the girl was. "And what the hell were you doing over in that direction? There isn't even any path over there I don't think..." 

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Word Count: 612
Notes: Salamander (AKA Sal, Growlithe)
Tags/Mentions: Lorelei 
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[Lorelei Virgo]

She felt like she had been walking for a while. Time had never really been a factor for her, and with the throbbing she had felt, it had made her dazed. This was one of the times when she really thought of her ability as more of a "Curse" than anything else. Sure, it mean she had to be calm and she embraced situations where she felt calm and safe. But the second she had a bit of difference, the moment she felt threatened by said change, things went haywire in her brain. She had troubles eating, sleeping, even functioning right when she was in such a state of mind. However, the pressure was starting to lift as she tried to alleviate such pain with words of encouragement. It's alright, the nurses will take care of him. He'll be alright: worry about the money later, and focus on just your Grandpa and yourself. He'll make it through. She started to go through her mantra, taking deep breaths.

What she hadn't anticipated was hearing someone else's voice. It was also someone she didn't know. Her mind was still in a haze, and her instinct was to fight him. How dare he call me Girl...I'm not a girl, I'm Lorelei...It was her first instinct, but Nantosuelta stopped in front of Lorelei, bring Lorelei back to realizing she was not in the right mind right now. Her Volcarona knew it, and Lorelei began to brush her Volcarona's fur, glad to have her Pokemon around. She turned completely towards whoever was calling her, her Pokemon alongside her.

He asked if she was alright. Her other hand was rubbing the side of her head. "To be honest...No, I am not alright. No, I neither saw someone get murdered nor was I almost murdered myself. I was...just feeling a lot of stress and found myself here." Nantosuelta seemed to click happily that Lorelei was a bit calmer now, and began to nibble on the ends of her hair. She would have to remind herself to give Nantosuelta extra leaves and a cookie next time they ate.

He seemed to frown a bit. Was it out of concern? She studied his face a bit, but it did not appear to be concern. It just looked like...a frown. She looks at her flashlight, her fingers seeming to fiddle with it in her grip. "There isn't a path over there. Honestly...I barely remember how I got over there. I remember being in the Pokemon center, waiting to hear about my Grandpa...I get a throbbing headache, and I'm here, lost. Although...I won't lie when I say it's a relief to see you here."

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Word Count: 451
Tags: Sascha, Nantosuelta
Notes: Destress: %50

[Ylva Mandara]

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    Ylva was walking easily around the darkening forest with her heavy Aggron walking behind her. She wasn't disturbed by the heavy and loud footsteps following behind her, but it certainly startled several Pokemon who were laying down to nest. That happened quite often and she finally got used to Spike whining up at Lariat to stop walking so heavily. Ylva knew that Spike would eventually get used to the sound of his "partner in crime" but that would take a while, hopefully when he became a Kakuna, it would finally stop..... buuut.. that was just a rough assumption made by someone who had never handled anything other than Steel, Ground, Rock and Fighting types...

    Lariat's bright blue eyes followed other Pokemon around the woods and peered into the darkness, allowing him to see slightly further ahead than his master. He stopped his master with his arm, which caused her to look at him and silence her talking with Spike. With a powerful roar, he alerted the two humans he saw in the distance of their presence, while at the same time, letting Ylva know that there were humans and other Pokemon ahead.

    Ylva paused in her steps and climbed onto Lariat's shoulders, patting him to tell him to move on ahead and approach the others. "Hey.. you guys alright out here?" Her voice was loud and not very well held back. Being a miner, she was used to dealing with some slightly deaf people and having to communicate from far away with other people. So loud voices were what everyone wanted when working where she lived. She reached up and tucked Spike into her hood some more and gave Lariat one last pat to stop and let her down off of his shoulders. Hopping down, she observed and took in what details she could of these two people. "Oh.. uh.. you guys.. weren't going to... you want me to leave?" Ylva automatically assumed that they were dating and maybe they were out here for a reason.

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Word Count: 338

[Sascha Bryant]

Glad he was there, was she? He couldn't help but smirk a bit as he stood - a hand moving to bat away a smudge of dirt from one of the legs of his jeans. "Wait till you get to know me more...then you'll be glad to see me leave." Sascha said, with a bit of a chuckle - though inside he found he did have to agree that the girl was most certainly not 'all right'. In fact, judging from the girl's words alone - it sounded like she was fresh out of the loony bin herself. After all, headaches and blackouts weren't exactly the 'norm'. Certainly the doctors at the institutions he'd been had never said so.


"But anyway..." His voice trailed off, gaze slipping off to the side as Sal suddenly became bristly and began to growl low in his throat at someone approaching from not that far off. Sascha reached out to comfort the surly little growlithe even as his narrowed faintly on what or who had made his Sal feel so prickly. Turned out to be another girl, though this one had more than a firebug with her. This one had an enormous steel type - one that cast enough of a shadow to make him feel like he was sitting in the shade of a big tree.


He squinted up at the thing, trying to determine if it was aggressive and then snorted out loud at what the girl suggested she might be interrupted. "Look, if I was screwing her you would have gotten plenty of notice before hand, 'kay? My partners tend to make a lot of noise." His expression was distinctively impish as he said this, and then - of all things - he winked. "If ya get my drift." Sascha shrugged then. "But as it happens, no, we don't even know each other. Just met actually. Apparently, Gretel here got lost in the woods and was looking for her breadcrumb trail back home..."  

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Word Count: 332
Notes: Sascha / Salamander(AKA Sal - Growlithe)
Tags/Mentions: Lorelei/Nanto, Ylva/Lariat
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[Lorelei Virgo]

There was a small smirk on the guy's face, confusing Lorelei slightly. Apparently, once she knew him more, she wouldn't want to be around him. She blinked and looked at him seriously. "I highly doubt that. You have yet to give me a single reason to dislike you. Believe it or not, but your very presence here in these woods has already helped me...So, for that, I am thankful." She was mostly talking about the fact that she was lost with a somewhat throbbing headache, but it was going away. She probably would have to continue to be lost if he hadn't happen to be on the road and called out to her. She could hear the low growling on the Growlithe by the boy's side, and she looked towards where the animal was growling at.

There, she saw a huge Aggron. "Such a loud voice..." She looked towards the girl. "You don't have to be so loud...And, no, I wasn't alright, but I'm getting better..." Lorelei's gaze turned towards the Aggron. It looked so tall, and she knew it to be a steel-type. She wanted to...pet it, and she smiled at it. "What an amazing Pokemon." She could tell that Nanto wanted to be around the big Pokemon for how curiously Nanto was peering over Lorelei's shoulder. The girl's word's slightly confused her, but the guy seemed more than willing to answer. He curtly said that if they were screwing, that they would be heard. Wait, was that what the girl meant? She waited for him to finish talking before deciding to reply. "I'm sorry, but I have no intention on being his partner, for I have someone else I like and would rather be paired with. However, I have every intention to be this guy's friend." She would then point to him, then put her hand to the side. She took a closer look at the girl. "This...may be a long shot...but you wouldn't happen to be Bradley's sister, would you?"

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Word Count: 338
Tags: Sascha, Sal, Nantosuelta, Ylva, Lariat
Notes: Sorry, I've been a bit busy lately.

[Ylva Mandara]

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    Ylva's face kind of contorted a bit and sighed. "Ooooh.... Well... I guess that's good? That.. I dunno." She shook her head and patted her Steel/Rock type, making him curl his tail and relax some. "Well... I'm sure you know where you two are going?" Listening to the other girl speak some, she frowned. "Well, being loud is a habit." Listening to her impressed tones though, she looked up at Lariat and punched his knee. "Look at that heavy weight, you got another fan."

    Lariat narrowed his eyes at heavy weight and pushed her some with his tail. "I'm not a heavy weight... Ok.... maybe I am.. but what happened to calling me fatty? I kind of liked it better."

    "I'm not calling you fatty cause you're surprisingly losing weight and growing in size. You're heavy weight now..." Ylva chided back at Lariat, earning an over-sized huff of breath in her face, making her bangs flips back.

    The large Aggron stood up straighter and looked at his tail. "Am I really? Score, I'm hot."

    "You picked that up from Bradley.. didn't you?"

    At this point, any normal person would think this strange pair to be crazy. Both started laughing, although Lariat's laugh sounded nothing like a laugh. The weedle in her jacket poked her head out and jabbed at Ylva, making small noises in her ear. "Don't you think you should pay more attention to these strangers?" Asked Spike, looking at her closer.
   
    "Yea, they're even mentioning Bradley now." Lariat noted out to her, making his master make a duh face and turn back towards the other girl.

    "Yep, it's a long shot, but Bradley is my twin brother..... do you know that bum?" Ylva spoke out bum unconsciously. It had to be taken into consideration that since one was practically a genius and the other was a skilled battler.. and much less that the two were twins.. they always picked on each other. But Ylva could never seem to grasp the fact that some people don't get how siblings act. It was a dog eat dog world when she was with him, but neither of them allowed the other to be bullied. That's just how it worked.

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Word Count: 371