stop and find a way for love

[domeinion]

[1) Overlook Hill]

[It's Feast of the Sail. And, as Alice established a few months back, she's been chasing a theory that weird things happen in Ultern around holidays. So she'll spend a little time investigating! ...by which we mean she's checking out the epicentre of where things happened last year. You might find her flying above Overlook Hill, taking notes while riding Altareon...]

Oh, hello down there! Have you seen anything?

[...or walking... or more likely falling off a ledge and picking herself up, banged up but apparently otherwise fine.]

Not again.

[2) Turnbloom City]

[Otherwise, Alice has come back to Gateway Port and brought out the fortune-telling booth again this year! She's dressed the booth up a little more with (poorly made) paper hearts, and the machines are again labelled "Regular" and "Romance."]

Happy Feast of the Sail! I've updated the fortune algorithm this year and added new options! Just press one of the output buttons if you want your fortune told.

Comments

2

[chloeandeevee]

Chloe and Eevee are walking along when they receive this greeting. They pause to look at the booth.

"You have fortunes from a machine?" Chloe blinks. Well, it's certainly a unique way to do it....

Eevee warbles and reaches to press a button.

"Eevee!" Chloe exclaims. Eevee is reaching to press the Romance button.

[domeinion]

"Oh, yes! I built it myself." Alice smiles. "See, back home, this is the Feast of the Sail, celebrating the god of the future, connection, and communication! And a few side domains like romance and Wi-Fi. So a fortune-telling machine is a fairly common fixture of festivals on this day! Granted, they're usually run by Sail devotees, but we don't have anyone else from my home here other than me."

She lets Eevee press the button, and the machine prints out a fortune. The truth will soon come out, as will the true feelings of someone around you!

[chloeandeevee]

"The god of Wi-Fi?" Chloe blinks. Well, that's certainly unique.

Eevee blinks at the fortune, while Chloe blushes. "Vee?" says Eevee.

"The truth will come out ... I wonder what truth," Chloe mused. "And what person...."

It's probably all nonsense anyway, but who knows. Maybe it's not!

[domeinion]

"It's possible! Fortunes aren't guaranteed, of course, but it's a fun use of time." Alice smiles. "Have you been having a good day? I heard last year that similar holidays happen in other places, too."

[chloeandeevee]

"It is kind of fun," Chloe smiles. "And yeah, we have, thanks. Back home, we have a holiday today called Valentine's Day."

"Eevee-vee!" says Eevee. She loves Valentine's Day! Especially the sweets!

"I hope your day is going well too," Chloe says.

[domeinion]

"For the most part, yes!" Alice claps her hands together. "Nothing dangerous appears to have happened lately, at least. I was investigating earlier just in case. After all, the strangest things have been happening around holidays."

[chloeandeevee]

"That's great," Chloe says. "How weird things keep happening on holidays. Maybe because they figure a lot of people will be gathered together to celebrate?"

[domeinion]

"It's possible." Alice adjusts her glasses. "After all, Celebi came to the summer festival because it wanted to join in the festivities. And that shoal of Malamar presumably targeted Harvesting Bonds because there were a lot of prospective victims..."

[chloeandeevee]

"Yeah...." Chloe shudders at the memory. "Well, hopefully nothing will go wrong today."

2

[red_berry]

Having spent a few months wandering the wilderness, Red has returned to society! (After a meal and a bath in the Pokemon Center, heavily recommended to him by a nurse.)

When he spots Alice, his footsteps speed up slightly as he heads towards her, the only visible indication that he's happy to see her after a long time.

He nods at her, then glances at the machines, and immediately slams the button on the machine labeled "Romance."

[domeinion]

Oh, hello! [Alice smiles and waves at Red.] I was starting to wonder if you'd gotten lost. Then again, I'm sure people think about me when I've spent too long studying or researching...

[The machine, for it, spits out a fortune. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate your love this year, whether you give flowers or a vacuum! ...Provided they WANT a vacuum. Otherwise maybe don't.]

[red_berry]

Lost? Not at all, Red knew exactly where he was the whole time: hanging out in the forests, caves and the ocean around Ultern, avoiding any places that seemed like they had people in them.

He reads the fortune, lips thinning in disappointment, before sighing. If only he had someone to give flowers or a vacuum to...

[domeinion]

Are you all right, Red? Sorry, I didn't mean to disappoint you. It's all just in holiday fun... or at least I'm trying.

[red_berry]

"Ah... Mm," Red says with a nod. He's fine. He didn't mean to make Alice feel bad, it's not her fault the machine gave him a bad fortune.

"Just... single," he says with a shrug. It's just his luck that he ended up returning to civilization on Palentine's Day...

Maybe he should tie this fortune up somewhere to help it come true, like they do in Johto. Or was that to prevent a bad fortune from coming true? He can't recall. Oh well, it's a tradition anyway. Red starts looking around for somewhere he could tie the fortune to.

[domeinion]

[She rubs the back of her head and smiles.] Sorry about that. Well, I hope someone you like does show up soon, since it's important to you. Things have been kind of quiet since you've been gone.

[red_berry]

Red nods in agreement, he also hopes somebody his type will show up. And prefefably somebody who'd also like him back...

He raises an eyebrow. Quiet?

"...Still is," he jokes with a serious face. He knows he's not adding much noise here.

He spots a nearby pinwheel and decides to try and tie his fortune into its stick.

[domeinion]

[Alice thinks this over and tilts her head.] Oh, like tying the bad-luck fortunes to trees? That makes sense. There's no shortage of pinwheels in this city, after all.

2

[unchcsen]

Fortune-telling!? I love fortune-telling!

[Volo's voice can be heard from a fair distance away as he rushes towards the booth. If he has to wait his turn, he'll pace excitedly, trying to crane his neck to see what fortunes other people are getting. Just in case anyone gets one about meeting Arceus, you know...because that one's his, and they must have got it by mistake, so -

But when he gets to the booth, there are two options. He looks almost upset by this.

How cruel, if one must choose between love and everything else!

He looks at Alice with a sad frown.]

Can I only choose one?

[domeinion]

[Alice waves with a smile. At the question, she looks up and shakes her head.]

No, you can get both if you want! I just wanted to make sure people could more easily get what they wanted. Do you want to try?

[unchcsen]

Oh, how wonderful! How generous! Yes, I should like to...

[But which one to choose first...? Volo thinks he already knows his general fortune - let's not ask why he's here looking for it to be validated, in that case... - but his future love life remains a mystery...]

We shall see about matters of the heart first, then!

[Machines are still a strange thing to him, so he pushes the 'romance' button with an uneasy hand...]

[domeinion]

[The machine responds by printing out a fortune slip. Work to understand yourself and what you really want, and then the person on your mind may notice your efforts!]

Happy Feast of the Sail! Well, that's what the holiday is where I'm from. I find different people have similar celebrations elsewhere, not always with the trading or fortune elements.

[unchcsen]

[Volo's response to his fortune is a delighted gasp. The only person on his mind is in a completely different time and place, and even if he could get back there somehow, their relationship turned frosty a long time ago. As far as he knows, she still wouldn't return his affections.

But he trusts this fortune-telling machine! And he did always tell himself that things will be different, when he finally achieves his destiny. When I meet Arceus, then she'll think differently of me. Isn't that basically what the fortune says? More or less?]

Well, I shall certainly do that!

[He folds up his printed fortune and pockets it carefully. He's itching to press that other button, but he's also keen to know what kind of celebration this might be.]

Feast of the Sail? I wish you a happy one, too! But I'm afraid I don't know of it. What does it celebrate, exactly? Is it in reverence of a particular deity, or...?

[domeinion]

It is, but one that doesn't seem to be known outside of the dimensions I've already been to or seen. I'm not sure why when everybody here seems to know everyone but the fossil gods. Well, aside from the stories of Ho-Oh and Shi-Sah here. Ho-Oh in another form is fairly well known, I think, but...

[unchcsen]

Dimensions, plural...? You sound very well-travelled! Yes, I have heard of Ho-Oh. I was not aware that it had more than one form, but...I know such things to be true of other great Pokémon.

[He's thinking of Giratina, and that thought brings his gaze back to the machine, with its unpressed 'regular' button. He reaches out to tap it, hoping that he doesn't seem too eager.]

I wonder what this one will say...

[domeinion]

[That prints out Make your move when you know it's the right moment! As for Alice, she nods and adjusts her glasses.]

It's a long story on my part, the kind that usually makes heads begin to spin. But yes, that aside. Ho-Oh's Ulternian form is that bird you'll see on all the old art and carvings around, from what I'm told. Shi-Sah is the other Pokémon that's usually depicted with it. They appear to have a history in this region together.