Scoundrels and heroes

[buson]

Question [closed to Ash]
Alright. It was time Buson (Attila, or even Akira, if you prefer) stopped gleaming information solely through listening in on conversations or second-hand sources. With his partner here, after nearly half a year of separation, he was going to need more precise answers.
But he also didn’t want to go around in disguise. He isn’t trying to trick anyone and if the boy’s still angry (even if it was his fault for ignoring his very charitable warnings until his Pikachu was in serious danger…), so be it.

After asking around for where to find him, Buson approached without preamble, dressed almost exactly the way he did on first arrival. Pants tucked into black boots, belt, blue tank top. No R-emblazoned jacket, a much deeper tan too. Stupid? Risky? Misguided? Probably all of those things and then some, but he didn’t care and approached it with the same gravitas as a mission, which might give the incorrect impression he’d gone back on his word, but he wasn’t visibly causing any trouble…

“Hey.”

Gilterrace and Turnbloom + Snacks and Grudges[open to all]

Searching is hungry work, so Buson could easily be found taking breaks, here and there, slurping udon or loudly crunching chips or whatever’s available, really. Atrocious table manners.

He could be approached alone or found with a bunch of very, very irate wild Electric types gathering unnoticed behind his chosen seat of the moment, looking about ready to ambush him.

Comments

1/2 [closed]

[goingallout]

[Somewhere in Turnbloom City, Ash could be found just outside of a small traditional Ulternian home. And at the moment he's doing his usual routine -- giving his Pokemon a good scrub to keep them in a good mood and in a greater condition. He's currently washing Lucario's fur, and just nearby are Pikachu, Sirfetch'd, Bulbasaur, and Pidgeot who are either watching and waiting for their turn or just lounging around.]

Just a little more, and you'll be squeaky clean soon enough!

[Lucario lets out a soft growl, trying maintain his serious image but does quietly express his delight.]

2/2

[goingallout]

[That's when Pikachu's ears rise up immediately upon hearing Atilla's footsteps, and in a second he takes a defensive stance at the towering man's direction, releasing sparks out of his cheeks aggressively.]

Pipika-chu!

[Ash is immediately alerted when he hears his Pikachu beginning to behave differently. And when he turns around, he freezes for a second. Then his gaze sharpens and furrows his brows as he recognizes the man. It may have been some time ago for Ash, and Atilla may not have bear the Team Rocket symbol on his attire, but he does remember that face.]

...Team Rocket!

[His voice cracks a bit, and it's telling he's now on edge. Especially now that all of his Pokemon are moving to defend their Trainer, although Ash tries to hold Lucario back as the both of them are in a rather vulnerable position.

But that begs the question, what is Atilla up to, standing here out in the open?]

What are you doing here?

[buson]

[Maybe he shouldn't have approached the boy while he was washing his Pokemon... hm.

Regardless, Attila's gaze is hard and unaffected. It's fine if Ash hates him. He supposes, in his mind, he has every right to.]

I came looking for you, Ash. I needed to ask you a question.

... sorry about your Pikachu, earlier, but glad you took my advice. I didn't really wanna hurt you two.

[He meant it! It might not sound very convincing, but it was the truth.]

... and you can stop calling me that. Our Boss ain't here. There's no one to command us. We're no different from you trainers, especially like this.

i realize just now that your post is written in prose oops... my b

[goingallout]

When he heard his name being mentioned, his frown deepened. He could recall that had never given his name to this man before. This only begged the question of how he's able to find out...

And so Ash fell silent, shooting a rather scrutinizing gaze at Atilla as if he were trying to get a better read of him. Even his Pokemon are watching him very warily, either waiting for Ash's command or Atilla's first move. Much like a western showdown in those cowboy movies, the air around them seemed to grow tense as the seconds pass.

"Do you mean that?" he finally spoke up, the tone in his voice was more serious than usual, "...Then you won't do anything bad ever again?"

He watched Atilla, expecting an answer.

[It’s alright! ^^]

[buson]

There was a bit too much vulnerability in that question. Attila sighed, gaze softening.

“Kid…”

He briefly lifted his sunglasses to rub at the bridge of his nose. Honestly… he’d been on his feet nearly all day, asking around, trying to track down this boy.

“I… don’t know. I can’t promise you the future if I don’t even know the answers to the questions I’m about to ask you… about back home.

“Here, in Ultern, at least, I don’t wanna hurt nobody. They’re kind to me. I can get by without hurting anyone. I can make an honest living here. There’s no boss for me t’answer to. I got no mission to carry out. The way we met, I didn’t even know I was in Ultern, I was just carrying out orders. I thought I was still in Johto. I had a target. Those other Pokemon weren’t part’a the equation to begin with, I just thought the Professor’d like to study them, since I’d never seen Pichu like that before.”

Attila sighed, a little frustrated. Was there any meaning in explaining all of these difficult concepts to a child who couldn’t fathom how low adults might stoop just to make a living? But Attila was honest by nature and if answering Ash’s questions could earn his trust enough to answer his, he could stand to tell him these things.

“And if it’s about what I said before, yeah. Glad you and your Pokemon are okay. Surprise, kid, us crooks are still people. I have a heart. it’s just a job t’me. I don’t actually hurt people for fun. It’d be something if you did somethin’ to deserve it, but you just stumbled into the wrong place last time. I let you go because it’s got nothin’ to do with you.”

He still seemed to honestly see little difference between trainers Rocket agents, outside of perhaps scale of operation and sometimes cruelty of methods, but overall… he believed they weren’t too inherently different.

[goingallout]

Once Atilla had given his answers, Ash raised his brow and does not respond right away. Instead, he shifted his focus on his Lucario whose fur is still soaked in soap bubbles. There was another bout of awkward silence as Ash rinsed the soap off from his Pokemon. Once he's done with his work, as he dries Lucario with a towel, Ash spoke up once again.

"Must be hard having to act like the bad guy every time, huh?"

Unbeknownst to Atilla, Ash had been processing everything that he had said to him this whole time. Although much of Team Rocket's actions still didn't sit right with him, hearing Atilla's story was a bit of an eye-opener for him. Something about it seemed... genuine. Like it came from the heart.

"Y'know, you may be a loud, hulky jerkface who works for Team Rocket..." his expression softened, "...But, I want to believe that you can be a better person than before."

He crossed his arms.

"...So what d'you want to ask me about?"

It would've seemed like Ash had forgiven the man who spat death threats at him long ago. Because it does sound like Atilla's really working hard to do better. Ash does believe in second chances anyway, so he may as well give one to Atilla too. Even though some of his Pokemon shot concerned looks at Ash, most especially Pikachu.

[… their dynamic is unexpectedly cute, even if the situation’s still scary]

[buson]

Attila wondered if all the things he said made Ash shut him out. He wondered if he had to divulge more to get the answers he needed. He didn’t mind, this was important to him and important to Bashou, so he didn’t mind humiliating himself. He didn’t mind begging if he had too… he didn’t mind… he didn’t really have many limits. but when Ash finally spoke, he realized he’d already gotten through to him.

At the question, ironic as it might’ve been, Attila gave a little lopsided smile.

“Yeah. Wouldn’t recommend it, if you could get paid doin’ anythin’ else, unless you got no heart and already hate yourself—in that case, you could make elite or executive, easy!”

Jerkface, huh? Attila blinked at the childish insult, but smiled more broadly after that.
“Sorry for bein’ a jerkface… yeah, I wanna believe that too.”

He felt relieved, the tension leaving his shoulders.

“I just want to know what it was like when you went back home. Mind if I sit down? I wanna hear everything. Because I wanna know what might happen to me an’ my friends if we ever go back. If it’ll scare your ‘lil buddies over there, glarin’ daggers at me, I can stay standing over here. If it makes ‘em feel better—” he jerked a thumb in the general direction behind him. “There are wild Electric types from that day still followin’ me around. They’ll attack me if I do anythin’. Evie convinced ‘em to delay it, usually, they just attack me when they see me.”

Should he explain that part too? He rubbed the back of his head.
“The… uh, talking Eevee who kicked my a—sorry, beat me after you ran away. Those Pokemon you wanted to free that day all got loose. I’ve become quite famous among the Electric types here… in a bad way.”

Evie’s not the only one, but Ash didn’t need to know the string of humiliating defeat.

[goingallout]

So he just only wanted to hear about home. Though Ash was surprised to hear that Atilla knew about Evie, and now wondered if Evie's the one who talked about him to the now former Rocket. Upon his Pokemon being mentioned, Ash glanced at them for a moment before turning around.

"You guys get inside and help out Granny Yui, I'll go talk to him." He gestured at his Pokemon to stand down, to which everyone reluctantly obeyed. And as each one of his Pokemon entered into the house, only two remained wanting to be by Ash's side instead -- his Lucario and Pikachu. And as he looked into their eyes, he knew couldn't force them to leave him and Atilla alone, so he decided to let them be.

"Well if any of those Electric-types you mentioned show up, we can try to talk to them instead. I think you owe them a big apology, and just running away won't solve things y'know."

Ash then looked around until he spotted two wicker chairs not too far from where they are.

"Why don't we sit down and talk over there?"

Snacks

[radleyslittleevie]

Evie comes on the scene and looks in concern. "Um ... a lot of Pokemon are mad at you...."

[buson]

"... again?!" Attila said, nearly dropping his meal, but he quickly gathered it up to escape, narrowly missing getinting shocked by the whole bunch, their electricity hitting the ground instead.
"Thanks, I owe you one!"

The Electric types looked dismayed.
{Aren't you that heroic Eevee?!}
{Yeah, you were on our side, why are you helping him?!}

[radleyslittleevie]

"I'd like everyone to get along!" Evie says. "He's not hurting anyone now. I've been watching him!"

[buson]

Attila stopped in his tracks, even if it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. He was still a somewhat safe distance away, but they could still send a bolt his way… still, he turned to look back over his shoulder at them. He was touched and a little curious about their conversation. Maybe not running away here could help resolve all of this…

{How can you be so sure? We’ve been watching him today and he’s looking for that human boy with the Pikachu, Ash…}
{Yeah! That human boy tried to stop him before, sending his Pikachu to stop him. He fought bravely, but us Electric types are no match for his weapon. It hurt Pikachu badly and this man told the boy to run away or his Pikachu will die.}
{He also called Pikachu a dumb beast, are too sure he doesn’t think you’re one too?}
{You don’t think he’s looking for them for a friendly chat, do you?}

Attila couldn’t understand a thing, so he only stood there, with his food going cold, watching curiously.

[radleyslittleevie]

Evie listens, frowning, her tail swishing. It didn't sound good, but ...

"I'll ask him why he's looking," she says. "I'm still not sure what to make of him, but he was actually nice last time and encouraged me about finding Radley. And you can keep watching too, and if he tries to hurt anyone, then you can protect them! But if he doesn't hurt anyone, you don't have to hurt him."

[buson]

They looked like they'd rather attack him now, but they exchanged looks, then nodded.

{We couldn't have defeated him without your help...}
{We'd be cowards to attack him while our heroine says not to.}
{For your sake, we'll let him go peacefully. But we will continue to watch and ifvhe does wrong, we'll make sure he pays.}

Attila noticed the other Pokemon turn quiet, losing their aggressive stances; more than that, he was moved by Evie's words, unable to speak.

He quietly knelt down, close to the ground, and set his bowl down too.

"... can't thank you enough, for giving me another chance. If you want, you can have the rest'a my udon. I'm not looking for trouble. If it's about that boy, Ash... it's because I heard he left Ultern and came back. I wanted to ask questions, for my friend's sake."

[radleyslittleevie]

Evie beams. "Thank you! That is the nicest solution."

She looks up in surprise when he comes over and offers his food. "You don't have to do that, but that's really nice! Thank you!" She starts eating some. "I've been wondering more about what it was like to go home and come back too! That would be wonderful if he's seen your friend!" Maybe he would have seen Radley too....

[buson]

Attila stayed quiet, realizing Evie misunderstood the situation. His friend is here now, this isn’t the new friend he made, but his old partner… Evie probably wouldn’t like to hear about his old friend from Team Rocket again, so he didn’t correct her.

“It’s good food, gives you plenty of energy.”

“I actually wanted to ask what it was like, if anyone else’d notice the absence, whether he remembered being here or not… stuff like that.”

Gilterrace

[ulternnpc]

"Ulsai!" Anemone upon spotting Attila will rush forward, with her island sandals clicking as she rushed up to him. "I see what you're doing there."

She's leaning close before laughing. Beaming widely, Anemone soon held up the basket in front of Attila.

"So I packed you a lunch! As they say in Ultern, 'kame kame'! Eat up!"

[buson]

That voice! He noticed the sandals first, but the voice confirmed it, and he turned his head away, as if suddenly uncharacteristically shy.

"Uh, hey."

What does she see?! Does he look suspicious?!

He was sweating bullets, until she laughed and... presented him with a basket?

"Uh, gee, thanks!" he caught hold of it, stunned, but also touched.

People have been treating him a lot more kindly now... it's still taking him some time to get used to. He peeked inside it, although he kept avoiding looking Anemone's way, remembering it might upset Manzana.

[ulternnpc]

"What's a matter?" Anemone's still laughing. "It's like you thought I was here to eat ya!"

Anemone's teasing, completely unaware of Attila's background. Manzana had managed to keep that information away from her. She does notice his sweating and will dig out to pull out a handkerchief--it's just as floral patterned like what Manzana had. She'll hold it out to Attila.

"You're sweating crazy! I got crazy good timing in that case, I also packed a drink in there." She'll point to the basket. Inside Attila will clearly see a pork and egg rice balls, sandwiches and a bottle of cold jasmine tea. "You're lucky since Manzana was determined to bring you lunch but..."

She looked away into the distance as if trying NOT to specifically remember Manzana's kitchen escapades.

[buson]

"... oh, just a little tired, that's all. Been looking for someone all day," Attila said simply. "I get a little on-edge when I'm thinking hard about things."

"Oh, wow, this is a feast!" Attila said, appreciatively, quickly digging in to the riceballs and sandwiches.

Oh, was the one he borrowed that time originally Anemone's? Or do they just have the same taste... he shook his head a little, not wanting the handkerchief, both hands full with different food. Again, atrocious table manners.

Wait, she trailed off.

"... hey. Did somethin' happen to Manzana?" Attila asked, immediately worried, as he accepted the handkerchief, not realizing the fiasco was of a much milder nature.

[ulternnpc]

"Oh? Who are you looking for? Maybe I can help?" Anemone's eyes lit up, clearly pumped. When Attila didn't seem to want to use the handkerchief, she will put it away into her skirt pocket.

At least she didn't seem bothered by the way Attila scarfed down food. Instead she's beaming wide.

"Glad you like it! Ahaha...oh, he's not much of a cook. He's learning, but I get a little worried seeing him hold a knife the way he does." She sighed. Manzana was lucky Anemone wasn't about to tell Attila just how he had also managed to make a chopping block fly off the counter in the middle of trying to slice a tomato. "So! I'm here to save the day, since Manzana's a liiiil' preoccupied in the kitchen."

1/2

[buson]

Oh, good, it's just about his (lack of) cooking skills. Attila sighed in relief, accidentally blowing off a grain of rice that was stuck to his face.

He bent down in his seat to pick it up. "... y'know how they tell kids if they abandon even one grain'a rice, it's gonna chase after them after they die?"

He ate it. As if it wasn't just on the ground. Which people step on. And possibly Pokemon poop on. Brilliant.

"Oh, yeah! He told me. He thinks the bug hates him because he can't cook like you do," Attila offered helpfully (or so he believed.) "But I think maybe she's just broody and wants to nest. How'd that go?"

2/2

[buson]

"... it's a conversation I gotta have man-to-man, but if you know where I can find Ash, that'd be great. Kid with a Pikachu and a cap on, runnin' around in shorts? Comes by the Pokemon Center every now and then."

1/2

[ulternnpc]

"Do they?" Anemone tilted her head. "Oh, that must be an outside thing, huh? I grew up being told to be thankful for what we eat because of the life they give us, and the hard work the Halsers, er, the farmers put into raising the food."

When Attila ate the dropped grain of rice, Anemone didn't mean to stare, but she was most definitely staring. She opened her mouth about to comment but stopped with a smile on her face.

"His bug...Cutiefly? But they get along so well, did he get ina fight with her?" She questioned, genuinely thinking Attila was referring to Cutiefly. The angry snake that is Dunsparce didn't register.

[ulternnpc]

"Hmm? Wait, a child with a cap and Pikachu? That sounds familiar where have I seen someone matching that description before--ah! Yasa!"

Anemone clapped her hands together.

"Granny Yui! She told me there's two young ones staying at her place! One of them sounds like the one you might be looking for!"