Ask to Join The Pirates of Kalos

[Nateriety]

Either the new arrival thought highly of herself, or she was trying to make an impression. Either way, Ryan almost felt compelled to say something. He was surprised he'd managed to talk with this group so far without feeling forced or irritated, something that was a rarity in itself, but the urge to speak his mind right now was almost overwhelming.

Even more so when he saw just how Dmitri and his Pokemon had reacted. Now, he barely knew this guy, really. They'd only just met. And, as of so far, they hadn't actually spoken directly to one another. But the way he felt like he needed to prove himself to people almost reminded him of one of his older sisters, Annie, who was quite similar in that mentality. The same was true of the adventurous and upbeat mentality.

So he'd almost let himself retort. The group hadn't seen his supposedly off-putting 'grouchy tendencies' yet, and truly hoped they wouldn't have to all that much. Except maybe for his earlier entrance chasing after Blathers.

But it seemed he didn't have to, since Marcel had beaten him to the punch. Only she had spoken in a much more refined manner. With a lot of passion behind her, too. He hadn't known exactly what to think of her when he first showed up, but the more she spoke, the more and more convinced he became of her integrity. Not many people he'd met in the past had that quality in such spades.

It was worthy of much respect in his eyes. Not the forced respect Marcel had spoken against, but well and true respect.

He kept that thought to himself, though, instead turning his gaze up to the girl standing above the wall with the Ekans around her neck. He still felt the need to speak up, but in a less confrontational manner than he'd planned to beforehand. "And who would you be, exactly, to insinuate you'd be more 'cut for the job'?"

"Squawk! Cut for the job! Squawk!" Blathers repeated loudly with a flap of it's wings.

"Quiet, you," Ryan sighed.

 

[BurbleBurble]

Jack was fairly pleased at Marcel's reaction. A gentleman...he liked that. He scrabbled down a mental note to try and hit it off with her later.

"I'd do all of that, most definitely. There's not much else in Kalos for me to see anyways. Been traveling for a year now about, and when you have no real goal to it, one sees a lot."

There was some girl though, perhaps some type of vagrant herself, that wanted to question the capability of the group, how they weren't good enough to be pirates, but her main target was on the smaller boy and his two Pokemon, and their respect for him. And as the poor lad tried demonstrating his own two Pokemon's..."respect". Sad.
How rude. He thought to himself.

Marcel, however, rushed to his defense, however, making several notable points on 'respect' and how not to be a tool under anyone, be it Pokemon or else. "Wise words, Miss Marcel. Or is it just Marcel? I'd hate to refer to something fine as you in the wrong formality."

Meanwhile, Vul and Chipper (Well, not really in Chipper's case) wanted to join in the conversations of the Pokemon. Vul had a few questions to ask the Ninetales. ''Excuse me? Ms. Ninetales lady? Vanish, was it?" The Vulpix inquired Vanish. "Do you mind if I ask a couple of questions?"

Chipper, however, seemed to just be observing. His eye lazily focused on the Chatot perched on Ryan at the moment. How it copied what the man said. Before it was focused on Tucker and his antics, and the critical girl's Ekans, which was almost like a scarf...or suffocating her. Maybe if she was killed by it, the ghoul could eat her soul. That'd be delicious.

 

[Hisseki]

These people... they're getting defensive over me? We just met, and they... they haven't even complained, or gotten angry like most people... these guys are the best. I can't wait to be part of a crew with them.

Dmitri watched as Marcel, and to a slightly lesser extent, Ryan and Jack, all came to his side and defended him. He fought back tears, not wanting to get super emotional in front of his soon-to-be captain. He simply bent down next to Tucker and Caesar, put his hand on Tucker's head, and his other on Caesar's. "I'm sorry, guys. Honest." He whispered to the two of them.

Tucker, fist bumped Dmitri, then almost instinctively went over to one of the lady Pokemon and tried smooth talking her. This time around, the target was Raika, one of Ryan's Pokemon. "So, this Jack guy is pretty neat, huh Raika?" He said, nudging her playfully with his elbow and smirking.

Caesar stayed put, right where he was, until Dmitri picked him up and put him back on top of his head. "There ya go, Caesar. Just do me a favor. No more hitting, please? Like, do something else to get my attention, please?" He asked, looking up and smiling, to which Caesar nodded.

Then Dmitri and Caesar's attention was diverted to the wall girl. He hadn't noticed until now, but there was a Pokemon around her neck, and Ekans. Ekans and Sevipers made several appearances in his parents' books, and never before were they portrayed as calm creatures. They were almost always either part of a difficult trial, or part of an antagonist's army. This made him tense up, but because it was so calm, he took no immediate action. Caesar was shocked by this. When he was much younger, he had a story read to him about a mean old lady and her Furfrou. For the next couple of months, Dmitri was scared of any Furfrou within his range of sight, so the fact that he didn't immediately cower in fear behind someone showed both just how much he was willing to trust someone, and just how much we was willing to do, or not do, to impress someone. Rather than hitting him, Caesar pulled a chunk of his hair a little to try and divert his focus, and hopefully make him stop being so tense. After all, it was entirely possible that he would have to spend a long time on a boat with this Ekans, and he would have to learn how to be near it sooner or later. Caesar chose the 'sooner' option for him.

"Ow!... Well, it wasn't hitting, I'll give you that." Dmitri muttered, loosening up a little.

 

[AgrarianAtlas]

This fellow was certainly turning out to be quite the sweet-talker, the kind of person who Marcel herself would often turn into, yet still loved to compete with. They'd be bound for some good back-and-forth talk later, if she had to guess.

"Miss Marcel..." the captain pondered, "bonus points for alliteration, but I would just prefer the simpler "Marcel." Although, I'd have no genuine qualms over any name you might give me. I've been referred to as many things in my lifetime. There's one in particular, in fact, that perhaps has been thrown around this city a time or two again?" She had mixed feelings over using the old crew's name after their falling out, but until she thought of something better, she'd have to deal with using the same name for both her crew and her boat.

"Captain Silvikitte I've been called. Apparently no one thought all that far ahead. My crew, Silvikitte, resides in a boat, called Silvikitte, and are led by me, you guessed it, Silvikitte." She sighed at the absurdity of it. "Unsurprisingly, we ought to change the name sooner or later."

Her attention shifted back to the girl on the wall. Maybe, just maybe, if there were such a thing as fate or destiny, she was supposed to be included in it as well? Looking her over for real this time, she definitely was in need of a good meal, and the accommodations of a pirate ship were definitely better than what she had available to her now. Besides, the girl had pointed out a fair observation, maybe from a blunter perspective, but a statement she was well and allowed to make nonetheless. How bad could someone who took care of such a small and gentle Ekans truly be anyways?

Marcel took a step closer to her, in a way not unlike how a person approaches a wild Pokemon.

"Tell me, I don't suppose you have any interest in boats too?"

 

[Ariados twice]

"'Yes. I suppose you could ask me some questions.'" Vanish responded to Vul's question. Night saw how the Vulpix held himself. He must come from quite an impressive lineage thought Night. Skyqueen warily looked at Chipper. She had heard about Dusclops', but had never seen one personally. She decided to be somewhat cautious, just in case anything happened.

 

[mizzmitz]

Pepper stared blankly at Dmitri, who was clearly struggling to assert himself. She hadn't expected him to actually take any notice of what she said. Out of nowhere, Monty began emitting a low hiss that was inaudible to the others below her. At first, Pepper panicked and loosely gripped his tail. However, she stopped once she realised it was due to the Clauncher shooting dagger eyes in their direction.

'Calm down will you? We're all the way up here. He can't do anything.' she murmured to the snake pokemon in an effort to reassure him. Her efforts were in vain as it seemed that everyone down below suddenly had a bone to pick with her, agitating him further. First was Marcel, who seemed to be evaluating her appearance. Typical. Not only that, but she was preaching and speeching about respect, scams, tools, force and God knows what else.

'What an odd pirate.' Pepper thought to herself. She had always understood them to be shifty, greedy, somewhat uncaring, and began considering the possibility that perhaps even Marcel wasn't an actual pirate. Her thinking session was cut short when Ryan began questioning her as well.

'Well gee, I'm just a tramp. Why are any of you taking what I say this seriously? You're an odd bunch.' Pepper told them, puzzled. For a group of people who just met they were certainly quick to defend each other, and while it was definitely strange, Pepper began to feel more drawn to them.

Once again, she was addressed by Marcel 'Tell me, I don't suppose you have any interest in boats too?'

'If boats come with food and showers.' Pepper replied in her usual blunt fashion, patting Monty on the head.

 

[Nateriety]

"I'll admit you're right about the 'odd bunch' bit," Ryan replied to the girl on the wall. "I only called you out on it because, well, it's a little soon to be judging everyone's capabilities. I mean, I have no intention of telling you that you're not right for this piracy business. The whole 'don't judge a book by its cover thing'."

After his response, it seemed Marcel stepped forward once more, this time to offer the new arrival the same question she'd offered the rest of them earlier.

And it seemed the girl high up on the wall was up for it, provided fitting accommodations were involved.

Ryan supposed he couldn't blame her. Getting a better look at her, her appearance would suggest she wasn't having the best time of whatever environment she currently thrived in. He decided he'd just let Marcel talk it out with her for now. The pirate captain seemed much better at conversing with people.

Having been too focused on watching the humans speak, Raika didn't notice that Tucker had approached her until the Quilladin asked her about the one named Jack, followed by nudging her with his elbow. She wasn't quite sure how she felt about Tucker getting so close-up, but she didn't want to respond poorly. "Well, it would appear that he does carry himself quite proudly. I don't suppose he, or any of the others, could be any sort of bad."

"Mmmmm!" Blathers shivered playfully on Ryan's shoulder, gazing down on Tucker with curious eyes.

Ryan, having noticed the presence of the Quilladin, tapped Blathers on the beak. "Don't cause any trouble. I know you're dying to inspect, but I'd rather not cause another scene. I'll let you get closer when I'm convinced you've calmed down."

"Calmed down! Squawk!" Blathers repeated, as per usual, but otherwise didn't move. It seemed he understood.

 

[Hisseki]

Tucker was unsure whether or not this conversation was working, but he continued anyways, despite the warning glares from Caesar. He leaned on Raika, raising his eyebrows like he always does. "Yea, you're right," he said to her, "and Ryan is pretty neat, ain't he? Seems like a pretty cool guy, if you ask me, and he's got some pretty great Pokemon."

Caesar shook his head and started to ignore him again, almost cringing at the Quilladin's overuse of the word 'pretty'. Meanwhile, Dmitri was covering his ears at the unexpected, yet loud, squawking of Ryan's Chatot. Just as he was about to say something, Caesar pulled his hair, causing him to stop. "I know what you're doing is supposed to be for the better, but maybe try to make it less... painful?" He asked his Clauncher, rubbing his head.

Dmitri took a good look at those surrounding him. These people were going to be his crew, his real friends. He hadn't had actual, genuine friends since... since Zoe. He looked down at his feet, and Caesar, rather than pulling his hair, poked his forehead lightly in an attempt to gather his attention. "Yeah, Caesar? What's up, other than you." Dmitri jested, having been successfully distracted from thinking of his sister.

Caesar, in response, pointed around him at each individual person, Dmitri's gaze following his claw. For whatever reason, he pointed at Ambrosia and her Sableye last of all, and for the longest amount of time. Caesar saw something in Orion that was much like his own personality, but the two never really talked to each other yet. Contrary to his normal course of actions, Caesar waved at Orion before moving on to another person. Dmitri found this to be strange, but he didn't question it.

Everyone here... they're gonna be my friends. I'll make sure it stays that way, bet on it! Dmitri thought, fist pumping the air.

 

[Il Fantasma]

Ambrosia giggled happily to herself as she watched everyone talk about becoming a pirate, whether they were good enough or not, and other things. "Y'know?" she asked nobody in particular, staring at the wall the girl and her Ekans appeared over, "I think we'll all make a great team!"

Picking up her Electric/Flying-Type, who had reached up to her, she noticed Caesar's pointing and wave at Orion, who waved back, an ever-so-small smile present on his face. The Sableye's unusual smile was contagious, making her smile along with him. It was good to know her rather cranky caretaker was also friendly towards others, even if it was a select few.

Kenzo looked around at everyone, particularly the Pokemon. He was seeing if he could remember everyone's name, and he was doing pretty good with that. Doing a little dance in Ambrosia's arms, the Emolga silently congratulated himself on successfully remembering everyone's names.

Ambrosia laughed, secretly very happy with the group she had stumbled upon just a few moments ago.

 

[Ariados twice]

Skyqueen was surprisingly silent. Well okay, maybe a little surprisingly. The Braviary was not spoken to by any other Pokémon, and Skyqueen wasn't exactly one to start a conversation. So she just observed. She found the Chatot named Blathers somewhat annoying, but tolerable. Tucker was weird in general. She didn't know what to think of Caeser and Orion, since they had stayed out of the group's interactions. Night noticed Skyqueen was silent and sighed.

 

[AgrarianAtlas]

"Dear fellows, I believe that all has been settled." The wearied and weathered captain's heart felt lighter than it had in a long time. Those very words raked her mind, the description of her own beating organ as "light," and the absurdity of the cliche forced a smile and chuckle from her lips. It felt nice to meet people again. If this feeling truly was what one might call "cliche," then that petty judgement was a fair and easy price to pay. She wanted to feel like this more often, and as the colorful characters of her new crew assimilated before her eyes, she knew that she'd have the pleasure of doing so, hand-in-hand with new friends.

That was, until the bells rang.

Far off from where they stood, the unmistakable chime of noon was carried with the seawind to the captain's attention, and she visibly paled at the sound.

"Alas, my crew, my fine, fine crew. Bidding you all farewell so soon could bring a tear to my eye, in all genuineness. If there is such a thing as fate, it has decided that you'll all face an assessment of skill after all." From her belt's sheath, she drew a simple rapier, raising it to the air as some sort of triumph. "The directions are simple, but the feat may be anything but: meet with me, before the not-so accommodating authorities of this city do. I won't lie to you, my fellows, if you head to the docks at midnight tonight, you won't find my ship there. Rather, you'll find the beginning of what it will take to find said ship, with myself and my three Pokemon companions aboard. Star of the King, Etoile du Roi, they'll lead you to find me. Til' then, I'm forced to bid you all farewell."

With a salute of impeccable poise, Marcel briefly eyed the horizon, spotting the blue flash of city officials at the bell tower, before holding tight to the rope of the wall's nearby pulley system. Initially meant to transport goods from bottom to top of the wall, she might've feared the feat if she hadn't done this before. This was the nostalgic thrill she'd once had in her youth, and while her complex ways of expression might've made her come off as serious to some, any would learn in due time that she loved to make a good exit. With a simple slash of her weapon, one rope was cut, and the rush of air all around her was almost the feeling of falling as she cascaded lower to the shore. Bundling one fist up in the cloth of her tunic, the captain gripped the other stable rope, letting the friction slow her descent somewhat as she neared the ground.

They could totally do this, Marcel just needed to have faith in them...

Right..?

Truly, they were vagabonds at heart. This free-spirited new crew of hers. They had the will, and they'd find a way.

Not even Marcel could tell whether or not she was lying to herself. There would be dangers. There would be dangers.

Suddenly, her mind snapped back to reality, closing her two fists impossibly tight around the rope, burning through the flimsy cloth and rubbing the skin from her hands. She'd stopped herself only a few feet up from the shore, and the vertigo she'd managed to avoid caught up with her as she dropped down. Her feet met with sand, wiping her newly-bloodied hands on her already-sullied attire with a "tsk." This mental turmoil, or whatever it was, had caused her to fumble. She was safely on the ground, but she knew it couldn't be long until it was more than skinned-up hands. With urgency in her gait, she sought her ship, and quick as ever, the captain was gone.

Still, at midnight, their test would come. Should they arrive at the docks, this new crew would find a lifeboat. It would accommodate them well enough, if a bit cramped. Painted onto the lightly-mossy side was one word, the name of the boat, in white paint: Roi

A white tarp was folded up to cover half of the boat. Richly stocked with lightweight survival necessities, including the oars to grant them momentum, they'd surely manage until they found her. And, even more so, hidden in the folds of the tarp, in the shade provided by the boxes, a lone Treecko napped. Etoile, as he was called, clutching a simple antiquity of Marcel's, a glass bottle stopper, impossibly tight in his slumber.