bottlecaplogs | July Catch-All

Entry tags:

July Catch-All

Who: Flowey & Firepaw, Emporio, Lusamine, and others?
What: Quests (Learning Aides, Growing Harvest), maybe some meetings/interactions
Where: Southern forest, the city gardens, around the city
When: Throughout July
Warnings: Pokemon battling (violence/injury), Flowey's trauma (mentions of/themes of depression, depersonalization, guilt, child death, murder)

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

[Flowey had arrived early to the garden to steal some of the plants' nutrient-fortified water. When Lusamine finally arrives, she has a little bandana on her head as if to protect her fur from dirt. He doesn't doubt that if they made embroidered garden gloves for little ferret paws, she would wear them.

He's been avoiding her as much as he can without her catching on, admittedly-- the only thing scarier than a Pokémon who probably wants to kill him is one who wants to love him. But, she finally confronted him in that gentle "I could kill you if you betray me" way of hers and asked if he wanted to garden with her.]

Howdy! I was waiting for you! [He puts on a smile, just for her. It clearly doesn't meet his eyes.] Ready to get started?

[Firepaw and Emporio are all set to leave with the scholar, Tinkaton, when Flowey shows up. As it turns out, Tinkaton was expecting him as her third guard.

The few minutes that follow are filled with rather unprofessional squabbling between Flowey and Firepaw until Emporio gets them to work together. Flowey- while not apologizing to Firepaw for how he acted on Firepaw's bithday- does put on a smile and promise to 'play nice'.

For the little it's worth, he sticks to his word. Firepaw explains to Emporio- quietly, while Flowey tries to keep Tinkaton out of it- what happened, though he leaves out Flowey claiming to be a mass murderer. Flowey notices.

The fog has begun to recede, but Flowey thinks the woods are just as wretched as ever. The sun only manages to shine a few beams through the thick canopy-- it makes him feel like he's back underground. He never thought that odd claustrophobia would ever be comforting.

Just as time begins to slip through their fingers- it's been an hour and they've walked for what feels like a day- Tinkaton solidifies her theory: the paths can't shift when they're being observed. Flowey curses himself for not thinking of that sooner. Soon, they come across some sort of landmark and Tinkaton studies it while Flowey rests.

He's so tired. The benefit of a reset was that it brought him back exactly as he was-- no scars, no aches, no exhaustion. He can't do that now, and he won't let himself lie down in the hospital. He won't end up comatose. Every time he begins to drift off in his dorm, even, he fears he'll never wake up. He doesn't want to wind up like them.

Flowey almost takes the opportunity to talk to Firepaw privately. Almost. He'll probably just mess everything up again even if Firepaw is dumb enough to forgive him. It doesn't matter-- he's waited so long that Tinkaton is ready to go back to town.

Unfortunately, the paths have shifted again, and even Tinkaton's strategy proves ineffective, as if the woods are adapting to them. Fortunately, a helper appears: a Buizel who offers to guide them home.

Yeah, right. Flowey immediately thinks it's too good to be true (what idiot helps someone without expecting a reward? Even he's only doing this to move up in the guild rankings), but the others seem to accept their help, and so he guesses that's what they're doing.

Flowey keeps his grumbling mostly to himself-- at least, until he notices that the Buizel is getting them even more lost. Finally, his patience has worn thin.]

Anyone else notice this moron is just as lost as we are? We passed that tree with the notch twice already. We're going in circles.

[This proves true, despite his brash way of saying it-- the others may notice their own scents or pawprints on the trail. The forest has begun to cover them, but they're still fresh.]

[Perhaps it's attributed to that ommission for now- that lack of mention of...Mass murder, and all that fun stuff. Even if it's as little as 'he doesn't like Dark Heart! He told me not to trust him!', Emporio seems more ponderous than anything.

He also quietly warns Firepaw not to get hissy. Flowey's being rather polite, only fair to do the same.

But, needless to say, he's expecting a rough go. Rough enough that he hangs back near Tinkaton for a bit in a vain attempt to give the two space.

So much for that though. Once Flowey's grumbling meets his ears... ...well and probably the Buizel's, being honest, hah.

He keeps his voice low, but at least moves close enough that Flowey can hear.]

...I'm pretty sure this Pokemon is trying to get our guard down... ...It probably isn't actually a Buizel either, given where we are...

[Firepaw has been trying his best not to be hissy - he's just failing miserably. It seems like every time Flowey talks, Firepaw is rolling his eyes or muttering something under his breath. It... honestly is making him look worse than Flowey.

And honestly, it almost annoys him more than Flowey has a point. They've been walking for ages, surely they would be back by now if Buizel knew what they were doing.]

Do you think ghost Pokemon can fake otter-smell? They sure stink like one.

["What are you talking about?" The Buizel stops, and gives Firepaw a hard look, before turning a more cheery expression toward Flowey. Although, their tone sounds like a warning. "You have to pass that tree twice to get on the right trail! It's... just a quirk of the forest here, yep!"

Tinkaton seems just as skeptical as everyone else, but it seems she's holding back and letting her bodyguards handle this.]

[Something's definitely fishy. There are no other Buizel in this forest, but it doesn't seem like a Pokemon from Bottlecap Bay, either. And yet, if he contradicts Firepaw, it will start another argument. Flowey did just call him stupid and too easily trusting, after all.

And he was right... well, that's not fair. Firepaw's sense of smell has proven to be a powerful tool. If the smell is correct, then it can't be a ghost. It has to be something else... but certainly not a Buizel. (And besides all that, Flowey wishes he could trust as easily as Firepaw does.)

He whispers back to Emporio.] Tell Tinkaton to stay back. I'm going to try something.

[The team walks a while longer, growing more tired by the minute. That must be the Buizel's plan-- and that gives Flowey an idea.

He pretends to trip.] Whoops! How clumsy of me! [As he falls to the ground, he spits out a Worry Seed that hits Buizel square on.

"Be more careful next time," the Buizel says-- rapidly, its orange fur gives way to black, its two tails turn back into one, the flotation sac turns into a mane. The Illusion has broken, revealing it to be a Zorua. "Did you drop something? I thought I felt..."

When Flowey gets up, he has a smug, wicked grin.] Hee hee. Sorry, kiddo, you're years away from being able to pull a fast one on me. So who are you, really?

[Zorua doesn't panic-- rather, a smile cuts across their own face. "Your worst nightmare."

It moves as if weaving through the shadows themselves. One moment, it's on the path ahead; the next, it's hurtling towards Firepaw with its fangs bared.]

HEY!! WATCH OUT!!

[Flowey leaps with all his might and knocks Firepaw out of the way. He earns himself several Fury Swipes to the face. His shell is scarred; one of his leaves falls to tatters. Zorua follows up with a Knock Off, sending Flowey tumbling into a ditch. The Zorua, now with Flowey's satchel around its neck, smirks at the others.

"Now hand over the research and you won't end up like that idiot!" they demand, preparing with Hone Claws.]

[A quiet nod is what Emporio responds to his friend with. The cubone carefully pulls back with the appearance of simply passing something else on to the tinkaton, his helmet firmly in place.

And then it all goes to shit.]

Firepaw- [He starts, but Flowey's the one who takes the blow. Emporio's expression of worry quickly becomes far more distressed, watching the pieces of the seed fly off.]

FLOWEY!!

[Zorua. Dark type, he knows, because there was so much to compare between Emmet and the form of Zoroark that the subway master knew of. They're being threatened- foolishly perhaps, Tinkaton is Fairy Type, but that's not the point.

The point is, he's rather tired of watching people he cares about get hurt.

~~Or worse~~.

A power is building. Focus Energy, ensuring that whatever he does next, he'll do it well.

As far as the Zorua is concerned, all it's going to look like is a small, fragile little cubone hanging back with the adult of the group, its unarmed fists balled tight.]

[It takes Firepaw a little too long to realize that the Zorua is using Illusion... but it clicks as soon as their Buizel disguise fades, and he can smell their scent changing to something similar to Emmet's. Unfortunately, being preoccupied with his own thoughts and feelings makes it pretty easy for the attack to take him completely by surprise - he probably would have taken it at full force.]

Hey-

[Flowey knocks Firepaw out of the way, just in time to get hit with an attack, and Firepaw scrambles to get his bearings. The Zorua is likely going to go after Tinkaton, but Flowey is in much more immediate danger. He glances back at Emporio... just for a moment, before deciding that Emporio can definitely handle this, and he needs to make sure Flowey is okay.

With a frustrated little growl, Firepaw dodges past Zorua to reach the edge of the ditch Flowey fell into. Hopefully it's shallow, but it's entirely possible that Flowey has fallen back into the underground tunnels. Not that it's going to change his course of action - either he's hopping into the ditch to pull Flowey back up, or he's fully jumping underground to look for him.

It will be a while before he registers that Flowey protected him, but he did notice.]

[The ditch is short and shallow. Water might have flowed through, once, but now the earth is dry and cracked. Flowey lays face-down in the dirt, unmoving. If Firepaw carries him- like he did the first time they met- he might think that, without all the posturing and grandiosity, Flowey is incredibly light and small. Pathetic, even.

Meanwhile, Tinkaton has swung her hammer in a panic at the approaching Zorua. It flattens the Zorua like a pancake. When Tinkaton lifts her hammer, though, Zorua pops up with the same smug smile on their face. They spit out the shell of the Reviver Seed they filched from Flowey.

"Oh, did you need that?" they call down into the ditch. "Too bad!"

Zorua levels Tinkaton with a Scary Face that makes her step back nervously. She may have a giant hammer, but she's an academic, not a fighter!]

[Firepaw has gone after Flowey. The Tinkaton, despite type advantages and being twice everyone's size at the least, is backing away behind him.

But that's fine.

Emporio inhales, gathering any power he can muster, and doing little more than aiming it.

It comes out looking like Fairy Wind. It hits, like a Normal attack.

And it lowers special attack.]

BACK...OFF! [he shouts, clearly not as scared as anyone would have assumed. That much is obvious when just under the false wind comes a hurtling stone- Fling, dark type though it is, means that stone is flying under as much force as Emporio can muster.

And with Focus Energy being buffed up by natural baseball skills, it turns out that's a lot.]

[Thank StarClan, he doesn't have to be away from the battle for too long. Firepaw grabs Flowey by the shell, and drags him back up to the surface. His thoughts aren't quite as negative as Flowey might assume - all he thinks is that Flowey is light and small, and he's incredibly thankful of how easy it is to help him. It barely takes much effort at all, since Firepaw was already a pretty muscular cat and he's become a fairly high-level Litten.]

Be more careful, fluff-brain.

[He drops Flowey off once they're on solid ground, and thwaps him lightly with his tail before running over to try and help out with the Zorua. Or rather, to launch himself at the Zorua after that rock hits, taking advantage of the momentary disorientation to deliver a Fire Fang bite.]

Edited 2025-07-08 11:28 (UTC)

[Flowey is down for the count. He doesn't even stir as Firepaw thwaps him with his tail. He's still alive, but he's been badly injured. Tinkaton kneels by his side and searches in her satchel for a berry.

Meanwhile, Zorua is reeling from the special-effective attack when a stone hits them like a fastball-- a critical hit, square in the head. A bleeding welt appears on their forehead just as the Fire Fang sinks in, leaving its fur burned and smoking.

"Fine! Want to end up like your stupid little friend?" the Zorua growls. It raises its sharpened claws and attempts to unleash a string of Fury Swipes on Firepaw. Again and again the claws come down in furious desperation. If they don't win this battle, it will all have been for nothing.

The Zorua only stops to dodge another hit from Tinkaton's hammer, landing a few feet away and gasping for air. They begins to scan the horizon for getaway routes. If they can disappear into the fog long enough, they can put up another disguise.]

You're not getting away with anything-!

[He can guess what that zorua is thinking. And at the very least, a pokemon like this? He'd rather they apprehend it, than encounter them again. He's in full 'endgame' mode. Charging, grabbing whatever he can off the ground to throw once more.

But something is different this time.

There's no rock, and he isn't thinking about that. Something white comes out from the earth as well, something long and perfectly sized for his hand. Something-

Ah. Tinkaton at least, might recognize this.

This is Bone Rush.

A Ground type move, with potential to hit as many as five times.

It seems Zorua's future is not escape, but fainting, if those connect.]

[Those Fury Swipes awaken something primal in Firepaw - he doesn't know much about Pokemon battles, but he knows plenty about cat fights, and he's happy to trade with a few Fury Swipes of his own. A loud yowl escapes him as he tussles with the Zorua, digging claws in wherever they find purchase and trying his best to pin the miscreant down.

That is, until it's time to dodge out of the way and give Emporio room to attack. The new move doesn't mean much to Firepaw (although he'll be suitably impressed later), but he welcomes the chance to catch his breath, instead standing ready to grab Zorua again if it tries to escape. Not that he'll really need to worry, since the onslaught of Bone Rushes are definitely enough to knock them unconscious.]

...Is it over?

[There's blood streaked through his pelt. He doesn't seem to have noticed it yet - he's still buzzing with adrenaline.]

[Pain. That's his first sensation upon waking up. The berry that Tinkaton fed him brought him back to consciousness, but it hurts enough that he almost wishes he were still asleep. He was talking to someone in his dream-- he can almost just remember it--

Then he looks up in time to see the end of a vicious battle. Clumps of bloody fur are scattered in the grass. Firepaw is shredding Zorua with his claws, and Emporio throws an onslaught of bones that leave it battered and knocked out. The satchel Zorua stole from Flowey clatters to the ground. Half-awake, he reaches to grab it, and then remembers he- again- doesn't have arms.

"Is everyone okay?" Tinkaton asks. She hands her remaining oran berry to Firepaw, then checks to make sure Emporio is okay. "Thank you for protecting me... that miscreant would have stolen my research if it weren't for you three!

Flowey huffs. 'You three', indeed. All he did was get knocked out like some kind of idiot.

His shell is scratched up and he can't feel one of his leaves. He's still alive, so it could be worse. He thought he would have gotten used to pain after dying so many times during his resets, but this body is fresh and offers tons of new ways to hurt. What fun!]

... What happened?

[He remembers being blindsided, and he remembers tumbling down a rocky ditch... someone must have carried him back up, right?]

You really showed that thief... heh. I knew you had it in you. [Is he talking to Emporio? Firepaw? Both of them? Unclear. He can't look either of them in the eye, anyway.]

[In a previous life, Anasui had studied to be a medical student. Before he ended up in prison for... reasons, he had a part-time job where he worked at the hospital and thus was familiar with the hustle and bustle of a clinic. Despite his natural inclination to dismantle things, Anasui was still somewhat interested in going into medicine, which was why he frequently spent time volunteering at the PokeClinic whenever he wasn't grumbling about the Archive's organisation system.

Today, Anasui's been asked to help out with tending to the day patients - people coming in with wounds or illnesses that don't need emergency medical attention. He's stationed in the entrance of the clinic but when Flowey appears, he raises an eyebrow. Whether Flowey is here by choice or because he's been dropped off here for a checkup by someone else, Anasui stares right at the Sunkern.]

What the hell happened to you?

[Unfortunately, despite his experience, Anasui is not known for his bedside manner.]

[A nurse at the clinic is physically barring him from running out the door, which is the one thing he wants to do more than anything else. Even after battling Dondozo and being dragged in waterlogged and half-dead, he spat and fussed and fought until they let him rest in his own room with promises to take his medicine and follow up shortly. Which, of course, he never did.

Now he's been nearly shredded to death by a Zorua- his outer shell covered in scratch marks, one of his leaves torn off entirely.] I'm fine. This quack is trying to drum up more patients. I'm not paying you creeps a cent, got it?!

[He is clearly not fine.]

[Lusamine greets him with a grin full of sharp teeth—pleased, apparently, to find him present and accounted for. It feels like she's hardly seen him since their last quest, after all.]

I do hope you weren't waiting for too long—but thank you. [Her eyes briefly search his. If she finds anything there, she keeps it to herself.] Of course. I thought this sort of work would do us both good... Gardening has a way of soothing troubled minds, after all.

[It feels like it's been a very long time since she last gardened with her own hands, but living in the Canopy has made her feel a bit closer to it.

Before they can really get started, however, she pipes up again:]

How have you been healing, since our run-in with Tatsugiri and Dondozo?

[For a moment, Emporio is just stunned. Breathing in, and out, not even comprehending that he's holding...a bone? Is this a bone?

~~There's something wet on it...~~

The cubone shakes his head, and with still shaking hands picks up the satchel to bring back. He needs to snap out of this. They could have been seriously hurt, or worse, and for that matter he was practicing medical work for a reason wasn't he??

With a numb nod toward Tinkaton, he sets the satchel down and looks over Flowey.] I... ...I couldn't... ...n...not again.

[He swallows. Blinks, trying to bring himself back to some sense. It's hard though. Flowey's just a seed by all appearances, but...]

W...where does it hurt most still- I can do something to hold you over until we get to the clinic...

[The clinic wanted to keep him there for a while, which he refused. What is he, a baby? It was just a little bit of drowning.]

Just fine. Resting up. [Best to tell her what she wants to hear.] You really did a number on those creeps.

[She didn't seem happy about it, exactly-- it's like he thought, way back when she froze that Diglett. She did it to protect him. He still remembers the feeling of her coiled around him after he almost drowned, too, somehow still a little warm despite her wet fur.

... He doesn't know what to think.]

Thanks for watching out for me back there. How are you?

As did you.

[She laughs a little—softly, almost self-deprecatingly. She did do a number on them, didn't she? It was hardly ladylike, but what else was she to do, when they were threatening her and her teammates? And she would be lying if she said that she didn't feel gloriously beastlike and powerful in that moment...]

I'm just fine as well, thanks to you and Mx. Siffrin. The both of you suffered far worse injuries than I did... [Her grin becomes more of a grimace as she says this, but she keeps her spirits high.] Considering that, I think it would be best for us to focus on watering and weeding for the time being.

[Weeding is taxing work, of course, but it seems like more manageable work for a Sunkern and Yungoos duo than repairing growboxes.]

[Firepaw is picking up on something from Emporio, although he's struggling to understand exactly what and how to help. There's something similar that he senses in Flowey - a little easier to understand, the frustration of not feeling helpful enough during battle.]

At least we're all still standing.

[His shoulders relax a bit and, not knowing nearly enough to help Flowey, he just leads his weight against Emporio's side in a way that he hopes is comforting and not getting in the way too much. A quiet purr rumbles out of him.]

...You took that hit for me, didn't you, Flowey?

[He's finally cooling down enough to be able to think about what happened.]

[The mention of 'Mx. Siffrin' sours his mood a little, visibly so. He plucks weeds out rather unconventionally: by reaching with his own roots into the soil and tearing the weeds out like that. It's easier for him than lifting a watering can.

He doesn't say anything for a while. It's warm and golden light is filtering down onto the other plants. He used to help his dad in the garden like this. Asgore always liked flowers, and grew a variety of them before he became obsessed with golden ones. He remembers spending forever trying to get all the grass stains out of his fur.]

Lady-- I mean, Lusamine. [Will someone like her get mad if he doesn't call her Miss Lusamine or some crap? He hopes she doesn't want him to call her 'mom'.] What was your life like back home? Before you came here?

[Sharp as ever, Lusamine notices the sudden shift in Flowey's mood, but she says nothing about it, choosing to comment only on how clever his weeding method is before starting in on her own work. She allows the silence to settle over them both as she refamiliarizes herself with gardening, with tending to plants with her own hands (or rather paws, now).

There was a time she did this often with Mohn and the children, simply for the joy of it, but in more recent years, care of the vast, lush gardens surrounding the mansion on Aether Paradise had fallen instead to her staff. Still, it all comes back to her easily, even in her new form—albeit not without a distant sting of nostalgia.

Both out of curiosity and to distract herself, she means to ask Flowey what might be on his mind and perhaps convince him to explain his recent, conspicuous absence. To her surprise, he is the first to speak up.

She doesn't mind being called by her first name alone, but the question does give her pause. As she wonders, she takes her time pouring water over the roots of a flower she doesn't know the name of.]

... Why do you ask?

Got it. [Anasui doesn't feel the need to tell Flowey that he doesn't have to pay anything for healthcare. He just stares blankly down at the Sunkern] But you look like shit. And you're not going to be able to heal properly on your own without your leaves. So take your damned medicine or I'll force feed it to you.

Hey... c'mon, I'm fine. [He tries to give Emporio a lopsided smile. He reminds him of himself, the first time he killed someone. Though... for some reason, he wonders if this really is the first time for him.] That oran berry's working its magic. Though if you've got another, I'm down for seconds.

[He turns to Firepaw, his smile fading. He just looks... ashamed? Embarrassed? He doesn't know how he feels. It's all numb at the base, but he can't look him in the eye.] Don't thank me. You're more useful to the team, so I wasn't going to let you get knocked out by a cheap shot like that.

... No. That's not quite it. Actually...

[He casts a glance at Tinkaton. She nods and gives them a little space. With the threat having passed, she busies herself double-checking her research.]

Firepaw, um... I... haha. Geez. I'm not good at this. About what happened... I... I'm s--

[He pauses.]

... I'm soulless.

[He begins to tell a long story. About a young, lonely prince who had a human best friend. About the human's plan to free all the monsters trapped underground. About the human dying. About himself dying. About coming back as a flower. About the tears of joy in his father's eyes, and the way his mother promised she'd never let anything hurt him again, and the underground celebrated all day and all night that the prince was back.

About feeling nothing at all, no matter how hard he tried. And about being able to turn back time, again and again, but never far enough to where it really mattered. Solving everyone's problems, making them all happy, until they stopped feeling real.

And one day, he just wanted to know what would happen. The monster he killed came right back with a reset, none the wiser, but he knew what he had done. A threshold had been crossed, something that he could never undo. But hadn't that been his failing, being too scared to get his hands dirty when it counted?]

I experimented over and over again. I killed everyone. I saved everyone. You can't imagine how it feels. Once you know how someone will react in every situation... that's it. That's all they are.

[He takes a breath, tired from all the talking.]

The fact that they're all alive now. Free, even. It doesn't change what I did. You both must hate me. I wouldn't blame you. After all... even if you still wanted to be my friend, it's not like I can really feel anything about either of you.

... But when I called for help, you were the first person to ever answer, and I wanted that to count for something. [He turns to Emporio.] And you... I think you understood me. [He doesn't say more.]

So even though I can't really mean it, um... sorry for ruining your birthday. I'll never come near either of you after this if you want.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Page 1 of 4

July Catch-All

Quest: Growing Havest

Quest: Learning Aides

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

cw blood mention, violence

no subject

cw: blood + violence

cw: blood + violence

A wild medical appointment appears

no subject

no subject

CW: PTSD implications

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject