An Outlaw's Shenanigans, an Explorer's Horror

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(Energy - 5)

The Icy Lands were just as cold as Sova remembered them. Actually, it was colder since this time he was much farther in, nearing Mt. Frostmeer. Luckily, the snow wasn't obstructing vision, or he might have gotten lost trying to find it. Why was he even here? He thought about turning around, but the idea was quickly discarded as he was reminded of a voice echoing through his head.

His recent hallucinations brought on by the peak of Black Mist Mountain hadn't lasted with him for more than one day, yet he was still hearing the voice in his head, insulting him, calling him weak. Not because of any drug, but just because he couldn't forget it. The only thing he felt would ease his mind of the voice was to prove it wrong. What better way than risking death to climb a mountain for no sensible reason?

Even though he felt exhausted already just getting there, he didn't let up even for a break. He had to prove to himself that he wasn't weak. Though....proving something that isn't actually true in the first place usually isn't easy.

"William? I heard about him, he's supposedly that Acro guy's friend from what i've heard of. I heard Acro has been trying to move himself to Aileron Guild now though. Quite the amount of rumors flow in the guild, some pokemon just don't know when to keep their mouths shut there," she huffed, showing no reaction to the eevee saying he liked her. She seemed to be reverting back to her snarky ways, but with more friendliness and less prodding for anger. She looked up the sky, still high noon. She went back to walking..."So where we goin' anyways?" she asked.

Sova shrugged and smiled slightly as he looked up and around.  "Dunno.  Don't think I'm ready to head home yet, though....  So, wanna do something fun?  Like....we could play a game.  I'll go for pretty much anything right now to get my mind off....things."  He said, hopeful his suggestion for a game of some kind would be accepted.  Hopefully Mirage didn't plan to just leave.  The newly evolved glaceon REALLY didn't want to be alone now.  Actually, he was starting to worry about the inevitability that he'd eventually have to spend time alone.  At the moment, loneliness seemed absolutely terrifying.

"A game hm?" she responded, "And just what kind of game? Tag? Kick the Baby? Hide-and-go-Seek? I'm pretty sure you're not interested in the kind of games I favor playing, so i'm not going to suggest them."

Mirage took a seat once more, as much as she would like to leave this area at the very least, her new found 'friend' seemed to want to stay. She only just now figured that he might not be affected by the cold anymore, being an ice type. He's able to control his body temperature at will, and could make himself as warm as he needed to be or as cold as he needed to be. She held back her complaints, not being so selfish as to begin complaining now.

Sova shrugged. "Oh I love kick the baby! I'd suggest I spy, but that'd be pretty boring. I spy something white! Is it snow? I think it's snow." He joked. It was difficult to think of a game they'd both be interested in. "Oh, I know a good one! It's called "I never". Basically, you say something you've never done and the other has to say whether or not they've done it. It's a good way to get to know someone and pass the time. If you want, you can say you've never done something that you HAVE done to see if the other has, but you've gotta admit to it too." He suggested. Perhaps Mirage would be unwilling to throw her privacy out the window or would just lie about answers, but at least it was a suggestion.

"Sure," Mirage agreed, "I guess i'll start," she began to think for a moment. What could she begin with that would not be boring? What's something interesting? She could easily lie and make stuff up about herself, but that would be too easy. She spoke up once more, "I never once bought my own food," she started it off. The glaceon knew she was a thief, so no sense in hiding it. She had always had to have someone else buy it, hunt it, or steal it. The people of Grassveil were quite dim about their stores, so it was easy to steal, though they seemed to have been wisening up to her old tricks, she would have to formulate new ones.

"I have, for obvious reasons. Though I stole a few times when I was really young. Guess I didn't really comprehend why I had to follow laws back then." Sova replied. "My turn then....I've never killed an innocent." The thought of Mirage replying "yes" was a bit worrisome, but he wanted to know anyways. That was the point of the game, after all. Learn personal things about each other. But of course doing nothing but learning about each other's morality the whole time would likely get boring, so they'd have to mix it up at some point.

"Neither have I," Mirage responded with ease. She thought once more, thinking of something she had not done that was not obvious was more difficult than she thought.

"Hm...Never have I once done my job without problems," she spoke. The interpretation of the question could be taken to both ways with Mirage, whether it was hesitance from within or outside problems that prevented her from a successful job. She considered thievery her occupation, it was how she lived. She gave reason for the authorities, it was an Outlaw's Job to give The Force a purpose other than sitting around and signing many many papers after all.

Sova laughed sarcastically. "Hah. Ahah. Hah. I've had about every problem imaginable doing my job. Maybe I should try yours." He joked.

He took a moment to think of another question. "I have never been in love." He was doubtful Mirage's answer would be different, but maybe he'd be surprised. This game was turning out to be harder than he thought. He didn't really have a lot of secrets. He'd just have to think harder if he wanted to keep learning about his new friend.

"Neither have I," she spoke. She did not quite understand love, she had never really been struck by it. To her it was the pathetic swooning over another pokemon until either eventual rejection or acceptance. She thought for a moment, trying to decide what to say before eventually spouting, "Never have I had a normal relationship with family."

She had ever only really interacted with her parents out of her entire family, each interaction was usually calling them stupid and trying to get them to realize their error of their ways while they would try to convince her of her's, when it was clear that her's was actually working.

Mirage flinched when she realized what memories she might have just brought back up for the Glaceon, and looked over to him, hoping he was not too bothered by it. Her guilt taking over and drowning out the voice that told her within to not be guilty, and that he deserved it for forming such a close bond with them.

Sova sighed and looked down. "Yep....I have. Guess I don't any more though." He stayed quiet for a moment, trying not to think about such things. It was his turn, he was supposed to ask a question....

"I've never wanted to be normal." He said. It was a subjective question, but he was not what he considered to be "normal", nor did he want to be. In fact, what he most wanted was to stand out to others. In a good way of course. Though it was beginning to seem like that'd probably never happen.

"I have, been successful until as of late," Mirage huffed. She had been a normal little dark type, lying cheating, stealing, and fitting in to the ways the world wanted her to be in order to survive. Here she was though, befriending someone on the opposite side of the fence. Someone who should be hating her guts and attempting to kill her right now, but no, instead the glaceon was cooperating and being friendly. She guessed he was abnormal like the rest of them, the strange Kirlia, the dumb sneasel, the dim Aipom, and that weird ass Sentret as well. There were a lot of weird pokemon in this area.

Sova tilted his head at the zorua. "Huh....So you just started up with the whole criminal thing recently?" He hadn't known anything about why anyone would consider it normal to be a criminal, so of course he instead figured that Mirage had just recently fallen into being "bad". Not that he could blame her. If her recent life had been anywhere near as rough as his, being "good" probably seemed completely pointless. It was certainly starting to seem pointless to the glaceon, at least.

"What? No, i've been doing this as long as I remember," she blinked, confused. She shook her head, "In case you didn't know, Zorua are Dark Types, it's the only way to live."

Mirage's tail flicked as she followed the Glaceon, the snow crunching beneath her feet and the clouds beginning to crowd in and block out the sun. She shivered, the temperature dropping as the clouds blocked out the warm welcoming sun. Her paws were numb and she figured that the snow was not helping much, as it made the numbness creep up to her legs.

"Huh. So if I chose to evolve into Umbreon instead, I'd be kicked out of the guild and branded an outlaw? If where ever you came from you were treated like that, I'm really sorry, but not everyone's that narrow-minded. Take me for example. I like you just how you are!" Sova said and looked back with a smile, mostly just for reassurance. He definitely wasn't actually happy, for obvious reasons.

The cold was no longer bothering him now that he was a glaceon. He had not even considered how cold his companion may be until he noticed her shivering. Why hadn't she said anything?

"You're one of the weird ones, everyone else in town acts the same as the last," she huffed, "There's a lot of 'weird' ones in this area it seems though. There was even this one idiotic sneasel that said she was in the guild, and a dumbass Kirlia that CHOSE to be an outlaw." Mirage wondered how Akuroma was doing, last time she had seen him, he was in a tutu dancing around like a ballerina and trying to be some bad*ss outlaw and failing miserably at trying to impress her it seemed.