[Semi-open] But you'll never see the price it costs- the scars collected all their lives

[mtsilver_conquor]

Who: Eva + YOU!
What Nightmares and breaking points.
Where 3C, Kitchen, Game Car, and Quite Car.
When Night Egret 26
Warnings PTSD mentions, mentioned past death, blatant talk of what a realistic pokemon world's like.


Cabin 3C (Closed to Cabinmates- tag as you please thread.)
"NO-!" That is very much a strangled yell as Eva sits bolt upright, eyes wide as her heart pounds in her ears. "Not real-"

Because it's not. She knows what's happened. Nightmare. But that doesn't magically make the fact she's sweety go away, nor stop the ragged breaths, or the glances at cabin mates to check that yes, it was simply a rather bloody dream. They're still alive. Misa. Nerdanel. Feanor. Princess in his pokeball. They're alive. That means Peter. Kaito. Little One. Kaiba. The rest of the train.

The friends she's made and those she thinks of as family. They are alive and not dead or dying or hurt or hostages or or or-

This isn't Lavender Tower. Not Silph Co. This isn't that hysterical, blood and tear-stained night Fluffy came into her possession-

Hands clench blankets -sleeping bag- and knuckles go white. "There's blankets under me. Not rock..."

She curls up and tries to keep the sob from escaping. She really, really does. But she does anyway because under everything? she's scared and terrified and her mum isn't a teleport away.


OPEN: Kitchen or Game Car
a/ Kitchen
Somehow she manages to abscond to the kitchen.

Tea is good. Tea is the best at soothing nightmare shaken nerves, even if it's gone cold, and she's not really drinking it so much as she is staring at it, face blank and hollow. For all of Eva's optimism and generally sunny personality, she has been through hell and back and it shows.

She hates it.

Mostly, Eva's not sure how to handle this because her support network isn't here, and there are parts - many, many, many parts- of her world she's not comfortable with talking about with people who wouldn't understand.

"Four, grant me strength..."

b/ Game's Car
At some point, she leaves the kitchen with a thermos of tea, grabs one of the cloaks she burrowed (stole) from the aborted mission, and retreats into a beanbag. Princess is curled up on her lap, and Eva looks- Lost.

Lost, unsure. Not at all like her normal self. The quiet confidence she carries herself with is shattered for now. But, that doesn't stop her from trying to put a smile on her face should anyone approach her.

"Hey. Couldn't sleep too?"


Quiet carriage (Closed to Garret)
Eventually, though, Eva retreats to one of the quiet cabins, where she curls up in on herself. She has... a lot to think about. She'd been more open this night about the brutality of her world than she'd like.

She's not sure how to deal with it.

Thankfully, there's no more tears, but it doesn't mean she can't get lost in thoughts. Enough so that she jerks when the door opens. "Uh - Oh. Garret-san?"

She tried to offer him a smile, but honestly? she just looks tired. Tired and drained.

Comments

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Yes...?" Eva blinks back, more baffled than anything. "She is sort of fluffy when she poofs up."

Well, fuzzy, but details. "She's... not as murderous... now, though?"

[unfavorableinstigation]

"Oh."

Well, that makes sense...

"Surprised you didn't call Princess that, then."

Gender aside, it also seemed apt for him.

"But, more importantly, you did help her, after all of that."

That nightmare. That trauma. That pain.

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Had he been Timid, I would have."

There's a brief smile, but then her glaze goes hollow. "Yeah... But that's my world and they died because they went after a pokemon they shouldn't have. It happens."

She's far, far to numb to know how flippant that sounds. "Pokemon aren't toys or weapons and we catch and train, but at the end of the day... they are monsters and Fluffy isn't even that bad if you really think about it."

/references How To Kill A Mockingbird, for the Feels.

[unfavorableinstigation]

It takes Nita a moment to realize what that means, and she grins. "Yeah, he does seem to like being considered royalty better."

Inasmuch as Pokemon could communicate that sort of thing, anyway.

She nods, smile fading. It doesn't sound all that flippant - there were some kinds of beings you just didn't mess with, not if you had any common sense.

"Not many are, really, once you get to know them."

[mtsilver_conquor]

Eva snickers a little because it's true.

"True. I miss them. My team. Princess is good, but he's not Helmutt or 'Nona or Tanknator or Deefa or Goopy or Banki or Lele or Roro.."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita whistles lowly as she lists them off - but then, if she's thinking of the Pokemon as Eva's friends, then it's not as if Nita's one to talk.

"... You got that Joltik, Bitsy, from the train, though, right? Do you think they could come back that way?"

Would it even be the right thing to do?

"If you wanted to, and needed the points, I'd be glad to lend a hand."

[mtsilver_conquor]

"'Nona and Helmutt might, though feeding Helmutt would be... a pain. The train would probably murder me for Goopy's Stench though."

She's 23 and yet manages to pout like she's two and her fave toy's been taken away.

"Tanknator and Deefa wouldn't fit. Banki's get far too many Questions. Lele might and Roro's my phone."

That's a pokemon. Yeah. That's A Thing.

Note: Zetta's ship now compresses itself whenever he/it's on the train. XD

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita chances a grin, this time. "And how many people are we feeding already? ... The smell might be a bigger problem, but that doesn't mean we couldn't find some workaround."

Physical size would be another issue outside of their control, but-

"Poke-phone? Could they live in a different phone, or do they have to come together?"

Re: Note: Zetta's ship now compresses itself whenever he/it's on the train. XD

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Live fish. Helmutt's a kabutopus. They eat fish... marine life." Well, the innards, really, but details.

"More like phone designed to house a specially bred rotom, but they do come together. These rotom can't live outside the shell for long."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita quietly thinks of the amount of boar meat they now have on the train.

"Seafood probably isn't a problem either. And considering we have blood as a food here, it's not all that weird."

The phone-home requires more thought.

"Put the info in for the item AND small animal category? Just in case?"

This was why she volunteered her points.

[mtsilver_conquor]

"True true..."

It's a thought at least, and Eva cocks her head. "This is true, though I think I'd try for Roro first. My phone's got pictures of me and Blue and-"

She misses her boyfriend something chronic.

[unfavorableinstigation]

"Mementos," Nita says softly.

Her own Manual was full of them, even if they hadn't been intended that way. Stored messages, conversations that couldn't be continued here...

"Well, whenever you want to try for it, for Roro, I'll help, okay? You can count on that."

The tea was doubtless cold by now, but it wasn't as important as this.

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Yeah...and masturbation stuff. If he was here, I'd sate the urge but he's not."

As soon as she's said that, Eva literally flushes bright red. She's asexual as all hell yet she does have (stupid, unwanted) needs once in a green moon, but now is so not the time to bring it up.

Especially around a minor.

"Gods. I- I'm sorry, that was inappropriate."

I have no Perfect Icon for this. .-. Sadness.

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita actually freezes when Eva says that, a blush rising on her own face.

Sputtering, she replies, "Ah, n-nevermind, it's n-not a p-p-problem."

Then she laughs, though there's barely sound. "At least you were honest?"

/pats

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Y-Yeah... I...I'm ace, if that means anything. So's my boyfriend- Biology sucks."

She's even redder now, and cold tea or not, she's drinking it in one go.

"Ah- Yes. I'd-I'd like to try and get Roro myself, but if I can't... I... I wouldn't let you keep the 'ball though. I'd need to get a spare before I allowed the science people to look at anything like that."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita's lips quirk into a smile. "On that, we can agree. I don't think I'm asexual, though. Or at least, I don't know."

It's not something she's considered much - she'd only just learned asexuality was a thing barely two months ago, for crying out loud! - but it would explain some things.

That, or heteronormativity was just a hell of a drug. That could be true, too.

"And that's fine. Really, it is. Probably easier to arrange getting a spare here, too, for what it's worth."

[mtsilver_conquor]

Eva nods with an understanding smile -it took her years to figure out, herself-, but she leaves that topic alone for now.

"Probably, but building or even maintaining them is a highly specialized profession, even if they're mostly factory-build these days, and if they break it, they wouldn't be able to put it back together."

She huffs. "I'd rather Roro and my team first, anyway. Then quickheals or at least the berry-fruits."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita nods. Even if she doesn't own any 'balls herself, she can understand the principle of the matter.

"... We could probably grow the berries in the garden - well, greenhouse; I've seen that one be pulled off before."

Morty had made one, in Nautilus. Just another of the consequences of that particular Reality Storm.

"Once we start getting them, anyway." Sustainability is good.

[mtsilver_conquor]

Eva nodes with a hum.

"As long as there's a pot, they can be grown anywhere. The quick ones would probably be best, assuming they're planted as the berry-fruit, and not the seed. We'd have the bush-trees in days, not weeks, and if we use the fruit to make more, we'd have enough up and running within two weeks for the whole train."

Wait. Problem- "The impossible part would be stopping Princess and Bitsy and any other mons from eating them."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita follows along, mentally ticking off the things they'd need to do, then-

"Charlotte might help us there, especially if she hears they're supposed to be ingredients, not just food in their own right!"

[mtsilver_conquor]

Eva nods. "Ingredients for so many things, from salads to soups to drinks- I kill for an oran-obon smoothie- and I think if we get enough oban growing, we could make salves. Not as good as potions or stuff, but it'd be something."

A pause, then. "We'd need to make bags - boxes- to carry the berry-fruits around. No subpace tech here."

Maybe she should look at getting her trainer bag and a spare...?

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita looks once again thoughtful.

"Well, we do have all those empty rucksacks in the Luggage car. We could probably retrofit those or one of the suitcases if it needs to be custom."

The train provides - at least some things!

[mtsilver_conquor]

"We probably could. Though I wonder if I could get a berry bag..."

Something to consider at least.

[unfavorableinstigation]

"Filled with berries, or just by itself?"

This could probably count as a test of the shop system, too - Nita had been theorizing about such a thing a while back.

[mtsilver_conquor]

"Likely just by itself," Eva huffs. "But it'd be useful, though it's not on my most urgent things to get."