Anasui's Hallmark Catch-all Post

[dripdrive]

WHO: Anasui and maybe you! (But definitely Shoka, Maya, Flamebringer, Kris, Parvati, Bigby, III, Cedric and Noelle)
WHAT: Assorted quests and anything else involving the Bay's most fashionable bird
WHEN: Throughout December
WHERE: Assorted locations.
WARNINGS: Anasui's general warnings are here and may come up during some threads.

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Contrary to what his cold demeanour and aggressive behaviour may suggest, Anasui adores the holidays. While he never had been close to his parents or had many friends, Anasui enjoyed the merriment, the atmosphere, and the energy people had throughout the season. Christmas was also one of the few celebrations they were allowed to have at the G.D. Prison, and while they couldn't do much for it even getting that extra bit of pudding at dinner was enough.

But this year was different. Sure, the circumstances weren't perfect by any means, and he has to be a psychic ostrich for it, but for the first time in forever, he's celebrating the holidays (Pawlidays?) as a free man.

And as someone who didn't feel like they were dead.

It's a delight to be able to celebrate. He's already gotten his house a Christmas tree with Dolly's help and decorated the hell out of it but the spirit of the season has given Anasui a quiet yet notable energy. So much so that he spends much of his free time out and about throughout the month.

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The Oran tunnels

One of the places Anasui can be found in is the Oran tunnels. Anasui rarely (if ever) visits despite having friends there but he'll drop by a couple of times this month, slowly and meticulously decorating parts of the tunnel. Shoka likely will see him pinning up garland and mounting wreaths, a small, notable smile on his face. On the other hand, Maya will see Anasui outright pulling down her decorations and moving them elsewhere...

The only time that Anasui will be in the tunnels and not decorating is when he's heading off to to help Akechi unravel the mysteries of the bay. Not having anything to bring but himself, Anasui shows up dressed in a festive hat on top of his usual one and a nice, knitted blanket with Pawliday symbols on his back like a shawl. As he walks, he notices the familiar shape of Flamebringer going the same direction he is. Having nothing against him, Anasui walks a little faster to catch up, though he does tilts his head curiously once he's close enough to see him...

"Where'd you get that board from?"

When he's not inside the tunnels, he's making soap nearby them. By the time Kris arrives to work with him, he's already started the fire and is boiling water. He looks up at Kris and nods to them.

"Told you that you're able to help the clinic in some way," he says plainly, in a way that could be considered a greeting.

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At the Archives

Another place you'll likely see Anasui is at the Archives. It's more common to see him there than the Oran Tunnels but rather than having his face in a tome, he's actually sitting down in front of record keepers, ready to share his stories. Parvati likely will see Anasui getting comfortable on a rather nice pillow. He'll give Parvati a small nod in acknowledgement.

"You come to share as well?"

Bigby on the other hand, will find Anasui already spinning his tale. He's already started explaining how he and a guy called Weather Report escaped jail, but he pauses when he sees Bigby.

"Ah... You..." He seems... super embarrassed. Probably because of what happened last time they were here in the Archives. "... Hey."

He will be much less awkward when III or literally anyone else comes in to the Archives. Mostly because he has a deep, wistful expression on his face as he tries to find where to start.

"Have you ever met someone that brought you back to life? Someone who just came into your life and saved your corrupted soul? A human so, so beautiful that you could mistake for an angel?" He doesn't expect a response but he does look towards his unexpected guests.

He's almost certainly about to talk about Jolyne...

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Out in the forest

But the season isn't all fun and games. Noelle's request to look for a strange Deerling still highlights the weird nature of this place. Thankfully, Anasui is in a good enough mood to deal with things... Enough to agree to working again with Cedric, anyway. Anasui nods in acknowledgement to the Murkrow before he looks towards the North towards the Sporest's Troop.

"Intel says it's this way. Let's move quickly before we lose daylight." Maybe he could have used his manners but Anasui isn't a big fan of those. He wants to get moving already...

Not long after that quest is completed though, Anasui will take Noelle aside and ask her quietly if she wants to help him with a quest to... locate moss (She's a grass type, she'd know about these sorts of things, right?). He still doesn't know what Noelle and Kris' deal is but he's glad that Noelle doesn't dismiss him outright when Anasui mentions who requested the moss. He wants to talk to her about things...

When Noelle arrives to their meeting spot, she'll see Anasui listening to a Leafeon. Anasui looks up as soon as he sees Noelle out of the corner of his eye and leaves the Leafeon mid-sentence, though the Pokemon doesn't notice as he's more than happy to talk to himself about the Eevees and Leafeons' storied history with the rock.

"We have a lead on the Mossy Rock - Apparently this guy knows where it is. Ready to go?"

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[OOC: If there's anything/anyone I forgot, please let me know! As always, NPC Pokemon can be controlled by anyone!]

Comments

[dripdrive]

"Sure, sure. Points. I always forget about those." Mostly because Anasui lives with Emporio and doesn't care for housing (especially since Polteageist told him he can't have his own home AND stay with Emporio).

Anasui smirks, unable to help himself as Shoka even admits how nice the holidays are. They didn't call it the most wonderful time of the year for nothing...

"Really now? Not a thing where you're from? Or just never had the chance?" Anasui asks as he psychically moves more garland over to the wall.

[telewarped]

With a roll of her eyes, Shoka starts draping a matching garland of her own across the opposite wall, using her long arms to pin it in a position that mirrors Anasui's chosen placement. She barely knows what she's doing, but maybe if she goes for symmetry, he won't feel compelled to immediately disassemble it all.

"I mean, holidays exist... But where I'm from, Christmas is mostly just for couples. And eating fried chicken, I guess."

Christmas Eve specifically is considered the most romantic day of the year. That never meant much to her before, but now her mind starts to wander. Noelle loves the holiday season, and she said that she likes Shoka, too. Christmas doesn't seem to exist in this world, but if Shoka were to ask her out on that day, would she say yes? Even if she did, for some unfathomable reason, what would they even do? It's not like there are restaurants in the Bay to take her to, or arcades, or illuminations, or movie theaters, or...

[dripdrive]

It should be fine. Symmetry is good! And if Anasui is compelled to take it apart, he'll just have to grit his non-existent teeth and deal.

"Ah... That sounds familiar. I think that's one of the Eastern countries... Japan, right?" Japan is a safe bet, given a lot of the people here. "Will you be celebrating how the locals do? Or finding something to do with a special one?"

[telewarped]

"Lucky guess. I'm from Tokyo. Or my world's version of it, at least..."

She'd learned not long after arriving in the Bay that her Tokyo was not the same as Akechi's. What are the chances of it being the same as Anasui's?

The question that follows immediately takes her mind off that subject. She seems to consider it for a moment as she carefully places a wreath on the wall.

"Well, I'm already decorating how the locals do, aren't I?"

She could leave it at that, and maybe she should. She and Noelle have admitted their feelings to each other, but that was as far as it went, and she certainly hasn't told anyone else what was said that day (though the rest of the Bay was free to speculate and tease them about the way they stared at and lingered near each other afterward—that is to say, even more obviously than they did before). She can't really call Noelle her girlfriend when they haven't even dated... Not yet.

Shoka's eyes are still on the wreath when she adds softly, without really thinking, "... Maybe I'll do both."

[dripdrive]

"Educated guess," Anasui echoes with a small smirk.

He has no idea if his Tokyo is the same as Shoka's, given that he's an American who has never travelled outside of Florida. It would be a funny coincidence but there's no way they can really tell, is there?

Anasui is about to argue that decorating isn't the same as celebrating, or at very least it's only a small part of it, but when he looks up from where he's putting the next bauble, he sees how Shoka lingers. He's not entirely sure if Noelle and Shoka were together or not but has a feeling as a romantic, one that's supported by the softness of the girl's voice.

"Not a terrible idea. As long as you spend time with them, I'm sure they'll be happy... Though I suppose a present and a nice dinner won't hurt either," he says casually as he goes back to work.

[telewarped]

One of her disguise's ears gives a twitch. Did she say that out loud, too? What is with her today!

"R—right," she mumbles out. "Duh..."

Obviously she'd get Noelle a gift! And... do something else nice for her. But what?

"Ugh... That would be a whole lot easier if we had actual restaurants here..."

Then again... Noelle likes sweets and baking, but she's also a deer. Wouldn't a nice dinner for a deer be a bed of grass and flowers?

(God. She's really, actually, genuinely fallen for a deer, hasn't she? A girl who just so happens to be shaped like a deer now... But also still a deer. But also who cares if she's a deer? This is so stupid—)

"Ah—!"

Her hands, which had started shaking at some point, fumble the glittery bauble in her claws, sending it and several others scattering. But at least nothing breaks?

[dripdrive]

Honestly, it's quite simple. She's in love, which is something Anasui is well-familiar with.

"You can buy back food from stores or you can cook things," Anasui says, looking away as he goes to start hanging up more ornaments. He doesn't have time to hang any though and whips his head back as soon as he hears Shoka yelp.

"Hey, be careful with that," he frowns. Anasui's eyes glow and he uses his psychic powers to grab the ornaments that have rolled further away. "Either focus or leave this to me. We only have so many ornaments assigned to us."

Ah right, he's still Anasui.

[telewarped]

Shoka tries to cover up her embarrassment by grousing, "Yeah, yeah, keep your feathers on. Nothing broke, okay? Sheesh..."

To her credit, she does make an effort to focus. Quickly, she gathers up the ornaments closer to her and starts replacing them along the wall.

"... I'm not much of a chef," she mumbles eventually, apparently still not completely focused. "... Is that how you'd be celebrating, if Jolyne was here?"

[dripdrive]

Anasui doesn't argue when he sees her get back to work but he keeps an eye on her, evidently very aware she's not fully locked-in. He's not that bothered however, the jolly spirit of the season very much possessing Anasui.

"Absolutely," Anasui says, without a hint of shame or embarrassment as he passes the ornaments he caught back to Shoka. "I'd buy something as a backup but I would attempt to make something she'd like. I'd put all in my determination and focus into it and hope my feelings gets across to her pure heart. After that, I'd see what she wants to do, and if things are going well I'd propose to her again."

[telewarped]

As she takes the ornaments and starts placing them, Shoka breathes out a short laugh. That last point definitely isn't on her list for Noelle, but... otherwise, what Anasui describes sounds astonishingly normal, even if he is a little intense about it.

(Come to think of it, he and Jolyne must not have had a chance to go on an actual date, considering the whole prison thing. That's depressing.)

Another flicker of nervousness combined with a bit of curiosity drives her to ask, "And if they aren't going well?"

[dripdrive]

Anasui scowls a little, at first a little offended that she's laughing at his plan, even if she didn't intend on it. However, he relaxes as she asks her question, recognising that Shoka is at least taking him seriously. He stops decorating and he thinks carefully.

(They never did. But the moments they did have meant the world to Anasui, even if most of it involved fighting for their lives.)

"I figure out what's going wrong. Make changes. And worse case scenario, try again another time. I know Jolyne may not easily return my feelings but all I can do is try and get her approval. Love is not just a feeling, it's a conscious choice to try be better for your chosen's sake. You do these things so you can show how you feel. And if you make a mistake, you press on, and hope your pure feelings and determination get through to them."

[telewarped]

"Did you really come up with that just now?"

There's another short laugh. It's clear when she continues on that she is still taking him seriously—she just can't help being a little amused that she's doing just that.

"... It's good advice. Surprisingly." Her focus returns to their decorating. "Thanks, Sui. I'll... keep it in mind."

happy to wrap up if you are!

[dripdrive]

"Of course, I did. Though, it has been something I've been thinking about for a while," Anasui says. She's all that fills his quiet moments (or at least the only thoughts that he wants to have).

"Hmph. I only have practical advice. Whether or not people take it is on them," Anasui nods as he turns back to the wreath and his decorations.

Seems like it's a going to be a nice technically not-Christmas indeed.