farawayplace | You heard of April Fools, get ready for-

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!event,
mingle post

You heard of April Fools, get ready for-

The reverse of that.

*image vaguely related

Silly white lies? No, none of that will be coming out of anyone's mouths today. Instead, anyone you meet and talk to you be shocked to realize you're incapable of lying. Staying silent may be an option--or is it? For whatever reason, it's really hard to keep your words in today.

You just might be spouting the first thing that comes out of your mind!

What another, peaceful day in Ultern it is!

...what do you mean that it's not? Well, things have been mostly peaceful for a while anyway. Some chaos is always in order! (Apologies to any Domeists in our midst).

(🌺You thought there'd be no April Fools event?! Surprise! It's true, this is reverse-April Fools. Please enjoy, and don't forget about the OOC plotting post!🌺)

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"Oh okay, I guess I kinda get that and kinda don't. I guess I couldn't have left if it wasn't for mom letting me." Gold stops himself from saying anything more on the subject, firmly closing his mouth. He doesn't feel like dwelling on that anymore.

"Meh, Elm probably wouldn't even remember me. I'll just ignore him or pretend I don't know him if he shows up, so you do that too," Gold says petulantly. "Who's Guzma? Actually I don't care, I'm just thinking out loud too so you can ignore that."

Gold nods to the talk about dads, but something about the way Elio talks has him feeling kind of defensive over his dad.

"I like my dad, okay? He's not like yours, I do like thinking about him, even if it's hard, and I miss him. So don't think I hate him or anything," he says with an annoyed edge to his voice. "Just thought you should know that!"

He goes back to smiling like it was nothing when they talk about cooking though.

"Yeah, you should! I probably can't teach you since I think I got some weird cooking habits. I dunno what's normal until people stare at me like I said something weird. So get somebody else to teach you!"

"That's not really what I meant but whatever," Gold says, staring flatly at Elio. The blushing and stammering is weird, and Gold doesn't understand what's up, but it looks like Elio's embarrassed, so Gold keeps any comments to himself and pretends it's not happening.

"Orange Archipelago? Never heard of it," Gold says. "Umbar, what about you?"

"Me neither," a tinny, smooth male voice comes from the Pokeballs on Gold's waist. Gold shows no reaction and offers no explanation to that. He hasn't forgotten Elio's never heard Umbar talk in human language before, he just thinks it's fun to spring Umbar on people unexpectedly. (Umbar thinks it's fun too.)

"Huh, I guess Orange Archipelago doesn't exist in our world then," Gold says casually.

Gold holds on to Elio tightly at first, tensed up, but quickly forgets his fear and watches the scenery go by in awe. He's never ridden a Pokemon this fast before.

"It was...a bit like that for me too." He hated to admit it out loud. His chest still felt tight, even if it's been over a year for him now. "But that's okay. We got to leave that behind, right? Yeah..."

He'll let that subject drop too as he thought back on Elm.

"I really don't even know what that guy looks like now that I think about it...so if I did meet him I guess I wouldn't know until he said his name." When Gold questioned about Guzma it made Elio smile. "I don't mind. Guzma's someone I knew back in Alola! I like him, he's nice. Although I don't think he'd like hearing me say that to anyone, so let's just have that be our secret."

Thinking about Guzma brought a grin to Elio's face. Not that it lasts when Gold became prickly about his own Dad. Elio couldn't help but stiffen, but he managed to keep up his own smile not wanting to outwardly show how that had just effected him.

"I wasn't trying to say that you did--I was just saying, I don't really care about mine. That's all! Sorry. I don't want to talk about family, actually. It gives me the worst feeling in the world even if it's supposed to be nice."

He was glad to move on from that. Yeah cooking, cooking was a safe subject absolutely not related at all!!! Except--

"I wouldn't know what's weird or not either when it comes to cooking. She made my food, and I had to eat it no matter what it was, or how it tasted because I should be really grateful-" He paused not wanting to think about it further. Instead he'd rather think about Selene again even if it made him feel weird, but not in a bad way.

At Gold's stare Elio could only laugh, and add a hasty, "--sorrrry! It just slipped, I just think about her when I think about the night that's all!"

When Umbar spoke up, Elio didn't seem startled or surprised, given the tales he's heard from his friend. Instead, he nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, no one in Alola seemed to know about some of the places I mentioned like the Orange Archipelago. I guess it just doesn't exist in a lot of the other worlds." He doesn't think to elaborate further than that.

As Nebby sets off, Elio let his own thoughts go. The salty breeze that whipped past them felt great. As did the scenary that seemingly blurred by. It wasn't long until they finally reached at the foot of Overlook Hill. He'll pat Nebby, signalling his Pokemon to slow down.

"We're here! How about we walk the rest of the way?"

"Lioli?" Nebby rumbles out questioningly. From the purr he gave, it was clear he wanted to walk around a little more with the two.

"Ahaha, of course you can walk with us too, Nebby."

"Yeah... it's in the past, I hope," Gold mutters. For him, it's been less than a year, even counting the months spent in Ultern. It's hard to say it's in the past while under a truth effect.

"Oh, I guess you wouldn't, huh. Well, if he shows up and says who he is, smile and walk away! Or something like that," Gold laughs. Hearing about Guzma has him smiling too. "Oh, that kinda friend. Maybe he's kinda like Silver."

"Alright. Sorry. I knew you weren't talking about my dad but I sorta... Nevermind, let's not talk about family any more," Gold looks away, feeling guilty. Seems like dads are a sore spot for both of them, but in different ways.

Except not talking about family is hard when talking about cooking.

"Wow, she cooked for you so much you never learned to cook? Must've b-" And Gold slams his mouth shut, covering it with his hand. He could tell what was coming out wasn't nice. He'd been thinking something along the lines of how he would've liked to have that food, even if it was bad, but that was obviously the worst thing he could say. Gold shakes his head, still covering his mouth.

"Okay," Gold says, still just staring blankly. He hasn't seen Elio flustered like that before so it's a bit odd, and he doesn't know what to say about it, so he just moves on.

Gold is a bit disappointed by the lack of reaction to Umbar, but whatever.

"Yeah, makes sense," Gold says, not thinking about that enough to realize Elio just implied he's been in two worlds before arriving in Ultern. Umbar notices, but doesn't say anything, just makes a mental note.

"Ugh, we're walking the hard part of the journey?" Gold grumbles, grabbing on to Nebby's fur. "I don't wanna. I'm staying up here on Nebby's back."

But he knows the sights up the hill are worth climbing up. Even here, at the foot, the scenery's already great. Gold hasn't been here since last year's autumn. Though the weather in Ultern doesn't seem to change much over the year, the place seems a bit different.

"Wow, there's more flowers than last time I came here." He doesn't intend to say it out loud, but it's the least offending thing the truth effect's made him say, so he doesn't mind.

Elio glanced over to Gold with a look of worry. While he wasn't quite sure he heard him right--he hoped that things were in the past for Gold.

"I guess I could just do that! I sorta did that a lot in Alola, haha. That probably made some people angrier but it was easier to just leave." He admitted, and at the mention of a "silver", he's curious. "Is Silver your friend from back home? Also I don't know if Guzma's a friend but I like him plenty. He'd probably laugh it off if I told him that."

Not talking about family? Not a problem is what Elio would be saying if he didn't still think about family even as they dropped the touchy topic on Fathers. Unfortunately, the other topic of Mothers seemed to hang just as awkwardly. Elio pointedly looked away. He felt the tip of his fingers feeling cold, and tingly.

"I couldn't do anything she didn't like." He tried to keep his tone as neutral as he could. It was impossible to however with the truth effect taking over him. "I wish--no, please. I don't want to talk about this either. Why do I have to keep thinking about her? She's not here."

He'd rather think of happier things, from Nebby's soft fur. The salty breeze, to-

"...I'm just trying to live the way I want. That's all." He uttered, hoping for the wind to just carry his words away.

"Hmm." Elio tapped his chin a top Nebby. "What do you think, Nebby?" he looked down to Nebby.

"Lilionnn!" Nebby replied cheerfully. Elio laughed, ruffling Nebby's fur with both hands. He's hopping off of the Sunne Pokemon with practiced ease, before stretching out his arms.

"Okay, you can stay on top of Nebby." Elio nodded, before taking the lead. "Let's head on up you two!"

Where was Elio getting all this energy from? It's a mystery. Regardless, he walks with Nebby moving along his side. The newly blossoming flowers gently swayed along the wind.

"The flowers are nice." He glanced over to Gold, grinning. "I bet the view up ahead is even prettier now that it's spring!"

"If people get mad, that's their problem," Gold says smugly. "Oh, Silver? He's my best friend and my rival." Gold face clearly brightens when he says Silver's name. "He's great. He's grumpy and funny and he stole a Pokemon from Elm. -Oops!" Gold slaps a hand over his mouth. "Uh, pretend you didn't hear that. A-anyway! Tell me more about Guzma!"

The subject of mothers is tough for them both, and Gold cringes guiltily when he sees what his words did to Elio.

"I know, right. It's not fair," he says with a heavy heart, and reaches over to pat Elio on the shoulder. "Sorry. We're both gonna be free from now on. Let's not talk about them. Let's not even think about them. Let's think about-" He struggles to think of something to say that wouldn't have either of them thinking about their parents, so they wouldn't be tempted to talk about them either. "-Hobbies! I'm thinking of starting a plushie collection!"

"Yay!" Gold cheers atop Nebby, and pats his fur. "Alright, I'm counting on you Nebby!"

He holds on to Nebby when the Pokemon starts to walk, and looks at the flowers. It's a nice view from up here, especially when he doesn't have to walk.

"Yeah, this season's pretty," Gold says. "But summer and autumn are the best seasons. Summer because it's warm and autumn because there's lots of food!"

"Ahaha, that's true." Elio replied, amused. He looked over with a small smile when Gold spoke about Silver. At the mention of Silver having stolen his starter, Elio immediately--"Did Professor Elm even noticed that Pokemon went missing...?"

He'll slap his hand over his mouth as if caught being up past his bed time.

"Uh, no worries. I'll pretend I didn't hear that!" He was quick to reassure before thinking about Guzma. "Speaking of rivals...he's definitely rivals with Professor Kukui. Umm, they're both around the same age I think! I'm not really sure how old they are but...they're way older than the two of us." Elio nodded to himself, while thinking about the two men.

"Also he used to be the boss of Team Skull, but he quit, and had them all disband. They were kind of fun! But I really can't recognize them without their masks..."

Elio was glad that Gold was willing to shove the subject about, well, family in general. At the mention of hobbies--

"I don't know...let's see...trying to complete my Pokedex? It let me make new friends that way--wait!" His eyes lit up. "Photos! Um, they're not the best but I really like taking photos with my Rotom Dex. I've taken a bunch in Alola and here too."

While heading up the path, Elio's taking an obvious, careful step up the hill. Nebby's moving along side at a leisurely pace.

"Eheh, I like the summer too. It's the best time to visit the sea! Plus the last month of winter it gets way too cold to go visit. My first winter in Ultern I ended up catching a cold and it sucked." He made a face. "On top of that there were more Tentacool and Tentacruel in the water so it made it really hard for my Ride Pokemon. I didn't even think to pack a Repel that day, talk about bad luck."

He shivered just remembering the blistering cold, and the not so happy jellyfish Pokemon.

"Anyway, autumn's nice too. The Harvesting Bonds Festival was pretty fun. I definitely ate too much then, but also during the spring too when we went to the Memorial Garden. That's where the graves are and...oh that doesn't sound like a happy thing to talk about, huh?" Elio scratched his head. "I freaked out the first time, I mean. But I did have a lot of fun there too."

"Eventually," Gold says with a harsh sigh. It took Professor Elm way too long to notice... Gold manages not to mention the Pokemon Egg he kind of stole from Elm, but he feels it was justified.

"You talked about Professor Kukui before. He's a bit like Professor Banyan, right?" Based on how Elio's talked about him, anyway. "So Guzma's like, old. I was imagining a teen or something."

"Team Skull? Another team kinda like Team Rocket? Huh, cool," Gold says. His mental image of what Guzma looks like keeps shifting. Now he's imagining somebody Professor Banyan's age, with a suit like a Team Rocket admin, and a masquerade mask?

"Photos? Hey, Trip likes taking photos too!" Gold's face lights up. "Didn't he take some photos of Rose at the cafe? I saw them at the Professor's house. You should go see them, they're pretty good! Anyway, you guys would get along! I think I kinda accidentally sent him after you at the cafe though." Gold's face falls a bit as he remembers that. "He took it like a spy mission even though I just didn't want to talk to you. Sorry."

"I've never visited the sea in winter," Gold says, watching the scenery. "Even though I lived pretty close to the sea, but there was a forest inbetween so it was too dangerous. Especially in winter. But there was a river that lead to the sea near my house, so if I sat at the riverbank I could kinda see the sea in the distance." There's a faraway tone to his voice, as he's lost in memories. "And in spring and autumn when there were no leaves or snow in the trees you could kinda see the glitter of sea behind the forest sometimes."

The thought had Gold's heart aching slightly. Even though he doesn't want to go back, it was still a place that formed his childhood. Maybe... Maybe someday, he'll visit it.

Elio's next words bring him back to Ultern, and he blinks, and smiles as he remembers the Harvesting Bonds Festival.

"Harvesting Bonds Festival was fun. I helped bake pies for it, and set up decorations too. And some friendly Murkrow hung out with me, too! And I met Trip, but not that Trip. A little Trip," he grins. It was thanks to meeting little Trip that he eventually made friends with the older one, so it's one of his fondest memories.

"Wait, there's another festival in the spring?" Gold asks. "Is that gonna be soon? What's it like, do we visit the graves?" He wants to be prepared for it.

Somehow from Gold's response and what he's heard of Elm, Elio wasn't surprised but very visibly disappointed.

"Right--they're kinda similar I think! But Professor Kukui was researching Pokemon moves so he did a lot of risky stuff some times..." he trailed off. "Anyway, yeah! Guzma's old! Way old, and he kinda towers over us but that's normal for grown ups right?"

Elio stopped briefly considering both Team Skull, and Team Rocket.

"Hmm...they don't wear a stuffy uniform like Team Rocket does...but they do have matching looks, and they all wear masks that hides the lower half of their face. Oh, except Guzma didn't! He wore shades up on his head, a gold chain, dark baggy clothes..." He paused trying to think of what else to say about Guzma. "He likes bugs! Oh, oops I didn't mean to blurt that like he's a bug catcher...! I mean, maybe he was at one point."

At the mention of Trip, Elio noted how Gold had lighten up. It was nice talking about friends, or hearing people talk about theirs.

"Oh right, I remember! I guess I should go back to the lab to pick up that photograph. He did go out of his way to make a print for me." He nodded, thinking of the photo Trip had taken of Rose. "He showed me the photo on his camera too, it was nice. Ah--it's okay. At the time I thought you got busy so he took over the order, haha. He wasn't rude to me or anything, and Rose got a nice picture out of it."

It seemed he didn't mind that Trip had went over to size him up essentially. He unfortunately, have dealt with worse.

"I hadn't either until I came here to Ultern." Elio admitted while looking sheepish. He doesn't say any more than that, as he listened to Gold describe New Bark Town to him. It made him think about his first home town, briefly.

"That sounds nice. Where I grew up in Pallet Town, we were surrounded by fields and forests. It wasn't at all close to the sea. Alola had been the first time I got so close to the sea, and touching the sand. Everything was new, and sparkling in my eyes but at the same time it was...so scary. Things were too bright, and wide..." Realizing what he was saying Elio immediately faked a cough.

"Anyway! They're both really nice places! But I think I like the sea more now that I'm so used to being around it."

Elio will begin to listen to Gold's experience of the Harvesting Bonds Festival. It sounded to Elio that he had a good time, and was intrigued at the mention of another Trip.

"Hmm, so you got to meet a little Trip? That's cool! Ultern sure is strange bringing all of us from different places and time..." He'll tap his cheek in thought. As he's doing so Elio's somehow managing to trek up along side Nebby of this very steep hill. He doesn't thinking on the subject long when Gold was curious about the other festivity.

"Oh! It's a holiday, but not exactly a festival? Basically people get together, and remember the dead. Usually that involves cleaning up the grave site and having a picnic there! I never went with Professor Beni, in fact..." he trailed off. "...I don't think, Professor Beni has gone to there. I went with Mr. Chide, you heard of him right? Professor Beni's younger brother."

"Risky stuff? Like what?" Gold asks. He doesn't get why researching moves would naturally lead to something dangerous.

Gold nods at the description. "I guess they're pretty different from Team Rocket, then... Bugs?" He's surprised at the sudden exclamation, but maybe that was the truth effect again. "Bug Catchers are pretty hardcore so I guess that fits," he says, thinking of the Bug Catching Contest back in Johto.

"You should stop by! The Professor's kinda bummed that you haven't been around. I feel like it's my fault so I feel bad." Ah, too much honesty again. Gold makes a face, but decides to just continue talking with a smile like it was nothing. "That's good! Trip was pretty bothered about us not getting along. Next time I see him I guess I should tell him we made up."

"I've never been to Alola, but it's kinda like Ultern in some ways, right? There's beaches, and it's warm, and bright and wide too. Is it scary too- Oof. Sorry, that was the part you didn't want to say, right." Gold looks away, embarrassed.

"Yeah! The sea's nice!" Gold says a bit too forcefully, trying to move on. "It's all blue and wide and it makes me think of travelling with Silver! Oh, that probably doesn't make sense to you. I crossed the sea together with Silver once! It was the first time I was out on the sea! Silver was pretty scared, but I was fine."

"Yeah, I met little Trip before I met older Trip. It was pretty weird! I wonder if Ultern will ever bring another me, too..." Gold trails off, thoughtful. It'd be odd to meet that 'Ethan' guy, or the other 'Gold' he heard about, but it might be fun too.

"Oh, remembering the dead..." Gold goes a bit more serious at that. "Yeah, I've heard of Chide. Wonder if Professor Banyan's got- Ah, forget that, nevermind." He managed to catch himself before finishing the sentence, fortunately. He doesn't want to make up theories about why Banyan wouldn't go, not out loud. Feels too personal. "I guess I don't really got anybody dead to remember!" Gold says instead, moving on from that. "Except maybe the Poke-"

Gold slams his hands against his mouth, eyes wide and shocked. Oh shit. He's not even going to dare to open his mouth again to say anything else, not after what he almost said. He leans forward and just buries his face in Nebby's fur, like that would hide all of him, and hopes Elio won't ask anything about that.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You heard of April Fools, get ready for-

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1/2 since the comment is so long kasjksfj

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1/2 yeah long comment is long

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2/2 me trying to figure out the geography of new bark town

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2/2 sorry this took such a long wait!

1/2 no worries, I was on hiatus anyway!

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