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for outbounds
[ In the end, Ingo's return to his home station doesn't come down to any action of his own at all.
Akari's the one who offers the trip. She doesn't make any promises, but after the work she has put in for the almighty Sinnoh, she insists that it owes her a favor. Ingo spends a few days contemplating it, sitting quietly in his favorite spots on the mountain. Can he really leave? Whatever else he may be missing, he has built a good life here in Hisui. He is happy, most of the time. He could stay, and know exactly what his future tracks look like, and there wouldn't be any problem with that.
But...even after all this time, he still can't quite ignore the gnawing ache in his chest. How much would he regret passing up this offer? Would it not just poison anything he might build here? He has to know. Maybe he'll regret leaving Hisui behind in the end, but at least he'll know.
So he spends some time making his goodbyes. He officially steps down as Warden, and accepts one of Lady Sneasler's elder kittens as a passenger. He bids farewell to the Clan. They let him keep his bracelet, and his tunic - keepsakes, for a one-way trip. The whole time, he cannot help but question himself - is this really right? He's abandoning people that he knows care for him, to return to a complete unknown. Is that selfish of him?
Maybe. Maybe it is. But he still cannot waste the chance. And, suppressing any lingering conflict in his heart, he does.
The flash of light separates him from Akari. He had expected that; though they've agreed to try and find one another again, they did not come from the same home station. Wherever he came from, it is dark and silent. Ingo recognizes the feeling of the cool air on his skin: he's underground. Some sort of tunnel? It's hard to say from here which way is out. So he just starts walking. He hadn't been dressed for travel back then, so how far away from civilization can he really be?
After a little while, something bright and roaring barrels through the tunnel. Ingo hears it coming; he backs away from the tracks and presses himself against the wall, watching the thing pass by with wide eyes. There are people inside. Some seem to be looking back at him.
He keeps closer to the shadows and moves more cautiously after that. Scary... ]
Akari's the one who offers the trip. She doesn't make any promises, but after the work she has put in for the almighty Sinnoh, she insists that it owes her a favor. Ingo spends a few days contemplating it, sitting quietly in his favorite spots on the mountain. Can he really leave? Whatever else he may be missing, he has built a good life here in Hisui. He is happy, most of the time. He could stay, and know exactly what his future tracks look like, and there wouldn't be any problem with that.
But...even after all this time, he still can't quite ignore the gnawing ache in his chest. How much would he regret passing up this offer? Would it not just poison anything he might build here? He has to know. Maybe he'll regret leaving Hisui behind in the end, but at least he'll know.
So he spends some time making his goodbyes. He officially steps down as Warden, and accepts one of Lady Sneasler's elder kittens as a passenger. He bids farewell to the Clan. They let him keep his bracelet, and his tunic - keepsakes, for a one-way trip. The whole time, he cannot help but question himself - is this really right? He's abandoning people that he knows care for him, to return to a complete unknown. Is that selfish of him?
Maybe. Maybe it is. But he still cannot waste the chance. And, suppressing any lingering conflict in his heart, he does.
The flash of light separates him from Akari. He had expected that; though they've agreed to try and find one another again, they did not come from the same home station. Wherever he came from, it is dark and silent. Ingo recognizes the feeling of the cool air on his skin: he's underground. Some sort of tunnel? It's hard to say from here which way is out. So he just starts walking. He hadn't been dressed for travel back then, so how far away from civilization can he really be?
After a little while, something bright and roaring barrels through the tunnel. Ingo hears it coming; he backs away from the tracks and presses himself against the wall, watching the thing pass by with wide eyes. There are people inside. Some seem to be looking back at him.
He keeps closer to the shadows and moves more cautiously after that. Scary... ]
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Ingo accepts both items automatically, then blinks down at the tablet. "Welcome to the Sinnoh Region"...he doesn't flip to any of the other pages, because he very visibly does not know how to work the tablet. Why is it glowing? ]
What is this?
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[ Is that understandable to someone who only seems to remember a pre-industrial tech level? Either way, he's going to scroll through the page they're on, past all the tourist guide-y blurbs on various destinations and locations and pausing when he finds a link to pull up a full map of Sinnoh, which he follows. ]
Where?
[ Knowing won't really do anything, but he still wants to. ]
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Somewhere in this region! [ About halfway down the southwestern side of Mount Coronet. The map isn't detailed enough for more than that. ] Most of the Clan lives up in the Icelands - [ Near Glacepoint City, though Ingo's confused enough by the name to put his finger outside of it. ] - but this is...was my Noble's territory.
[ Her new Warden is one of the young Pearl members whom Ingo took under his wing as Pokemon training began to take off with the newer generation. He was very sorry to leave her, of course, but she belonged in Hisui, and he had never been able to entirely ignore the pull to his home station. Still, his tone is sad for a moment. His eyes drift over the half-familiar map. ]
Jubilife has gotten bigger.
[ Did the port become a whole separate town? ]
the way i had to open up plza to check something
[ Confirms Emmet, though he hums through his thoughts on the rest. Noble? Did Hisui have fiefdoms the way Galar and Kalos and the other old regions over in that particular area of the world used to? Well, maybe that is not important. ]
I think that area has stayed mostly wild. The parts around Mount Coronet, I mean. Most of the settlements, [ he says, checking the map again to confirm the relative lack of much around where Ingo had pointed at— maybe Oreburgh, around the mines and quarry, but otherwise, ] —they look to be mostly along the coasts.
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[ The mountain pass is difficult even for seasoned travelers. Most immigrants arrive through the port, and Ingo can imagine that they would wish to establish more of those if the trend continued. He continues to stare at the map for a moment. ]
...I had known that there might be some...difference in time, or else Dialga would not have needed to help, but...I had not expected anything so significant.
[ He hadn't considered that enough time may have passed to render the world unrecognizable. ]
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[ he offers, then falls silent for lack of what else to say, toying restlessly at the cuffs of his sleeves. Well. There is one other thing that came to mind.
But 'do you want to go back?' maybe, probably. Not any good. No answer that anyone wants to hear right now.
(Their Pokemon, too, hover a little at the change in mood. Eelektross in particular presses in against Emmet's side and his shoulders, quietly buzzing an insistent sound.) ]
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Ah! Please, do not concern yourself with it!
[ That was probably insensitive, wasn't it? Oh, dear...he folds his arms behind his back and turns his gaze deliberately away from the tablet and its map. ]
How, ah...how long has it been, for you? [ Oh no. That wasn't any better, was it. ]
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[ He's being vague about it, but he knows exactly how long it's been. Hard to forget something like that, after all.
But he also huffs out a breath, rolling his eyes at the brush off. ]
Also. Too late. Concerning myself with it now. What can I do to make things easier?
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[ Ingo knows precisely how long it was - hard not to, when it's all he actually remembers. But we're not sharing that, apparently! As to the question, he glances around uncertainly. ]
Oh, well, I'm...not sure? This is...alright, I think...
[ For once, he's not even trying to be polite. There's just so much, he hasn't really formulated any specific requests. The interior of their home is easier, anyway, there's nothing especially loud or bright about it. The way the lamps hum like an electric-type is a little annoying, but he expects he'll just have to get used to it. ]
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Later. Tomorrow probably, if Ingo is still here. He will call out. They will understand. ]
Okay. But just let me know if anything comes up. Modern Unova is probably, definitely verrrry different from Hisui.
So! Where to next on the house tour?
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[ This question probably doesn't sound strange to a modern Unovan, but to a member of the Pearl Clan a few centuries ago, it would be at the very least indelicate. Ingo immediately balks and clarifies: ]
I do not need to see it! I just would not want to invade your space by mistake!
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I can show you it. I do not mind.
[ ... has he tidied up in there the last few days, or is his bed a rumpled and unmade mess... oh well. ]
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[ He sounds a bit surprised. Even understanding that norms are probably different here, it still feels sort of odd. But then, even in the Pearl Clan, maybe it isn't really that strange; they're close family. It's only Ingo who sees it like...this. ]
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[ —Ow, okay, Eelektross apparently disapproves of the offer, judging by the prickle of static and hum in his bones. Emmet bats a little at Mercury's head fin in mock annoyance even as he marks down a mental note somewhere to do more research on Hisui, maybe. ]
This way.
[ Further down the hall he'd directed Ingo towards earlier are other doors. One leads to an office-slash-Pokemon room; another, which Emmet will guide them to, crack open slightly to peer through first, then swing open fully with a small huff of breath leads quite obviously to his room. He immediately makes to start straightening out some of the things on his own desk before starting on his (not as bad as it could be) bed. ]
Not usually this messy. I have not been here much the last few days.
[ Woken by the commotion, a slightly darker than normal yellow spider creeps her way out from under the bed to join the rest of the gaggle of Pokemon, chittering a soft, questioning greeting. Perhaps notably, she doesn't seem to have any of the typical hallmarks of a Pokemon accustomed to regular battle. ]
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Have you been traveling?
[ Ingo peers down at the spider, while Gliscor chirps back. ]
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[ In other words he's been leaving early and staying late and spending Minimal time at home.
Another chitter in response to the chirp. A lot of new faces...? But oh! Also, the return of...
Galvantula sort of, kind of, lifts her thorax and front legs a little bit? Up? ]
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Ah, well, I am sorry if I put you further off-schedule!
[ He knows that's not exactly something to apologize for, he's just...not sure what to say. His arrival will almost certainly make a great deal more work! ]
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... Ingo. You do not have to apologize for that. I am Emmet and I would deal with endless amounts of busywork if it meant that you were— if it means that you are—
[ His fingers flex a little, his grip on the edge of the blanket he's holding tightening and relaxing again in repetitive little motions as his sentence breaks off with a shudder. Ah, not now. The way Ingo has been conducting himself, it is clear that this is awkward and strange enough for him already without having to deal with Emmet's mess on top of that. He should not be adding to his troubles. So! So.
He mouths the words first, trying them out before straightening his posture and glancing back over. ]
... sorry about that. Where were we?
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Of course it's a lot. Too much, probably. That doesn't mean it's a bad thing; good things can be overwhelming too! Ingo may well feel that way later, if he can stop himself from feeling lost and ill-at-ease. But that's his own problem. He should...see if he can pull the brakes a bit for Emmet. ]
...who is this?
[ The spider, that is! ]
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[ Galvantula's pedipalps wiggle a little bit as she dangles in Ingo's hold. That's her! No Joltik follow her out from underneath the bed, but who's to say if there's any around or not. ]
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Do you often have eggs?
[ He's surprised - that's highly unusual by Hisuian standards! Only Wardens have any regular experience, so far as he knows, and even then not all of them. ]
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[ And these Joltik make excellent starters for anyone who might deserve them, thank you very much.
Nevermind the ones he has just hanging around. ]
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[ A point of commonality! That feels encouraging! ]
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[ So that means it's from Hisui, right? An ancient Sneasel egg! Wonder of it means it might learn things the modern ones don't; it's always interesting to see how the same species differs across places and times— apparently Galvantula in some other regions can't get Cross Poison, for example, and some of them do get Camouflage!
(He has no idea.) ]
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[ Of course it's sad to think about her. Even more so now that Ingo knows she's certainly dead. But it's...fine. He made his decision, and now he has to stand by it, that's all. ]
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