Determined to Help, Determined to Fall

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Mission Details:

The Frozen Stream, a rather dull area of the Icy Lands named for the continuously frozen stream that ran through it.  Of course, it wasn't JUST a stream, since streams weren't very big.  The stream flowed into the Descant River, though, so of course it was the most noteworthy feature of the area.  It also happened to be the most fun part of the area.... if one was an Ice-Type, that is.

Sova was a bit excited to be back here, since the only other time he'd ever been to the Frozen Stream was when he was an eevee and it was.... less than fun.  Now, though, he was an Ice-Type with a body so well-adjusted to the cold that he could probably swim in the water under the sheet of ice covering the stream.  The swablu with him probably didn't enjoy the cold nearly as much, but at least a bird could fly over the stream and not risk breaking the ice and falling in.  Though, honestly, he doubted someone as small as Varda could even break the ice with weight alone.

The little bird probably wasn't enjoying being in such a cold place and the glaceon knew it, but he never asked for help.  Varda had offered.  Actually, Varda had insisted.  It wasn't like he was bad company either, the swablu was fairly nice and not annoying.  He even liked to give out compliments, so the glaceon wasn't going to complain.  Sova was just glad he didn't have to put up with someone like William following him.  That gengar agitated him to no end.

"So, how're you feeling?", he asked, rather rhetorically since he knew Varda was probably not enjoying himself.
He looked around for any sign of the stream, but it was currently snowing, which obscured vision a bit.  If the stream was nearby, he couldn't see it.  He could see a few trees though.  He was content with just staying here, but he wanted to get to the stream to practice skating on ice.... and they had a mission to do there, that was important too.

(Ninja Edit - 38 energy)

Sova seemed to completely ignore the swablu for a moment as he walked. His Frost Breath was still going, though it'd slowed down a bit. He still didn't know how to turn it on.... or off. Partly because walking was getting painful and partly because he didn't want Varda to get hurt by the icy mist by trying to follow him, he stopped. "I don't WANT you to go, but I can't see why you'd want to stay.", he finally replied.
Why was the swablu still following him? He'd been given permission to leave.... Did he just want to complete the mission? No.... the way the little bird talked wasn't like someone staying for a mission.

The glaceon lifted one of his paws and turned it over to look at the injury, a large gash on the pad of his paw. It was STILL bleeding, though not quite as bad as before. Both of his paws still burned from the wounds, which made walking difficult. His face was also hurting due to the large cut left by the penguin-pimp-slap. In the end, he decided to lay down for a moment before opening his bag back up and looking in. He was aiming to get something to stop the bleeding, but then he noticed he was staining his bag. He didn't want to stain the items in it too!

Would Varda help him out if he asked? He could PROBABLY do it on his own if necessary, but he really didn't want to have to. No.... it wasn't right of him to ask. He stuck his head into his bag and pulled out a Gold Ribbon before struggling to tie it around one of his injured paws. It hurt both of his paws to have to do this, but he managed to. He then took out his other Gold Ribbon and prepared to do the same thing.

As Varda noticed his friend stopping, he too did the same even though there was still some distance between the two. But he didn't want to bother his friend if he wanted the bird to get away, his eyes worried as they looked at the bleeding Pokémon. What a relief it was to hear that Sova didn't want him to go away, that was believed without a question. Perhaps because he wished it to be true, but he didn't think that Sova was a liar, either! Something still seemed to be bothering the Ice-type Pokémon, but now that the bird was feeling a bit better about this all himself, he could try to do something about that.

He watched as Sova laid down on the ground to treat his wounds. Clearly, the bleeding had to be stopped somehow, but he doubted that neither of them was a nurse. Still, there was something else he had to do first.
"I-I'd stay because we're friends, right?" The Swablu chirped, his tone questioning. He certainly hoped the two of them were friends. He had assumed that they were, but now he was starting to question what Sova was thinking about it, did he feel the same way?

The bird started to waddle closer again, his eyes looking around for something they could use. A leafless tree nearby had something billowing in the gentle wind, tied to its branches. Varda ended up approaching it to notice some ribbon-like things on it, taking them both into his beak and and hurrying over to Sova as fast as he could with his tired, aching muscles.
"Um... Here, I found these..."

Sova stayed silent for a moment before answering. It wasn't that he didn't consider Varda a friend. He just.... didn't want to burden the little bird with his friendship. Such a kind soul had no business being around someone like him, the swablu deserved better. But who was he to say what was best for someone else? He figured if Varda wanted to be his friend, still, he was in no place to object. When the bird came back with some bands that this place conveniently has a ton of, he directed his gaze towards his friend and gave a slight smile.

"Thanks. I've already tied my paws up, but.... I could really use one of those for my head. Wanna help me with that?", he asked, rubbing one of his ribbon-tied paws against the wound coming down from his ear to the side of his mouth. That empoleon sure did hit hard.... Apparently it really WAS muscle, not fat.
"And yes, we're friends.", he finally admitted.

He got back to his feet, testing the ties on his bandaging. His paws still hurt of course, but the ribbons were staying tied and mitigating the bleeding. In all honesty, he should have stayed put for a while, but he still had a mission to do. It was then that he remembered.... Varda had been hit by a Hyper Beam! Surely, the little bird was tired. Even if he wanted to push himself, he couldn't ask Varda to do the same....

Varda seemed to brighten up when he noticed Sova's smile, smiling himself as well. Maybe things would be fine. The fox-like Pokémon had already tied some ribbons on his paws to try to stop the blood from flowing out, but there still was that nasty gash on the side of his face. Sova said as much, and the little bird nodded in acceptance, dropping the little ribbon things he had found on the pure white snow. He inspected the wound for a while as he tried to decide the best way to tackle it, it was bleeding quite a lot and he wasn't sure how much one little piece of cloth could take... So he played it safe and first folded the other band he had found as something to act like a sponge and absorb the blood.

"Oh! That... That's good! I'm happy," the Swablu chirped as Sova agreed that the two were friends, very happy but still visibly quite exhausted, unable to show his true appreciation and bounce around like usual. He took the folded piece of cloth and held it in one foot as he looked at his friend.
"Could you lower your head a bit," he asked, holding the makeshift sponge as high as he could. With another foot he grabbed the remaining ribbon and used it to secure the other in place over the bleeding wound, using his feet, wings and beak to try to complete such a complicated task. In the end, he looked quite happy with the results.

"...You probably shouldn't open your jaw much," Varda ended up admitting, feeling that it might cause the improvised gauze to come loose. But he had hoped that the two would rest for a while, not having expected Sova to get back on his paws right away!
"Um, do you think you should be moving yet...?" The little bird chirped quite carefully, unsure if they should be moving yet. Sova's paws had taken quite the beating and they had to be very sore by now,
"I don't think we should fight anymore..."

Sova glanced over to his fluffy little friend as he considered the suggestion to not fight any more. It was clear Varda was worn to a frazzle, but he wanted to keep going and if someone else tried to look down to him, he wasn't going to hesitate to fight again. He had to explain this and be honest.... but it was hard. Partly because of the handiwork of the swablu with the gauze and partly because he felt bad in doing so.

"Sorry, Varda.... but I won't stop fighting. My whole life, others have looked down on me. I've vowed to never let it happen again, no matter how much pain I have to take.", he explained, his voice quiet due to both his sadness at reminiscing all of the reasons he had to fight and of course, the gauze forcing him not to open his mouth too wide.
He spoke once more mere moments after in an attempt to change the topic before Varda could have time to pity him, or perhaps criticize him. "But hey, just because that's me doesn't mean that's gotta be you. I can see you're tired. Hop on, I'm used to carrying others. Might as well be a gogoat.", he offered, wanting to at least allow Varda to rest on his back. He had carried much heavier things before, so he was fairly certain he could handle something as light as a swablu with ease.

Varda kept waddling after Sova, tired... But in this case, it might have been luck that his friend was injured and tired as well, unable to run very easily himself. The two of them had to be a sorry sight, both disheveled, hurt and tired. And yet the continued. Were they stupid or was it endurance? It was difficult to say. The Swablu had to get a bit closer to his friend as the fox started to speak rather quietly and he did want to hear what it was. Sova didn't want to stop fighting, offering a piece of his past for the bird to think of, to explain what had made him what he was. Varda stayed quiet and let his friend finish, not wanting to talk over him... But it did make him think.

He wasn't given a chance to reply, as Sova quickly changed the subject and offered to carry the little bird. Perhaps normally, the bird would have accepted. He was quite small and light, and he was extremely tired... But this time, he fluffed up his feathers and stuck out his chest.
"I'm fine! Besides, you shouldn't be carrying any extra weight with your paws," he chirped as he put on his brave and strong face, rather difficult to buy seeing what a little innocent mug he had.

"...Everyone looks down on me too. I mean, I am very small, so they have to," Varda suddenly started after some silence on his part, still waddling slowly alongside Sova and his eyes were facing forward,
"My mother always said that some Pokémon need to let off some steam when they feel bad. Sometimes they do that to others. It's not right and it's not fun... But if you hit them because of that, they'll have a real reason to be mad at you," he continued with quiet, breathy chirps. It was strange to talk of his family after such a long time of not seeing them. He hoped they were fine.
"A true leader is supposed to hold their head high and take it no matter what, she says. It's a sign of true strength, not taking things personally but only raising your wing when the rest are in trouble. There might be some truth to that! You should see my father and my brother, they just have to walk in when something is happening and everyone just stops..."

Sova listened to the swablu's attempts to change his point of view. He couldn't help but chuckle quietly at the bird's point of view. It was kind of cute, so innocent.... so naive. Perhaps right, too, but that didn't mean he was going to agree. He had chosen his own path long before now and he needed to follow it. It was what drove him, what motivated him. He waited a moment before responding, as he wanted to be very careful about what he said. He didn't want to hurt Varda's feelings, after all.

"I'm not a leader. I'm not the bigger person. I'm not good at getting others to like me, I'm not good at staying calm, I'm not even good at being SANE. And about how some let off steam when they feel bad.... wanna know a secret? I ALWAYS feel bad. I can't even sleep without being woken up by nightmares. This is....", he paused for a moment as his voice began to shake, showing he kind of wanted to cry.
He'd never really thought about things like this in detail. He just kept moving, kept swinging, kept living. He never stopped to think about why, even though deep down, he knew.

"This is literally all I have, these bloody paws. Do you really wanna ask me to take that away, the last thing in my life that makes it worth living?",he finished, hoping the swablu would understand what he meant. He stopped and turned to Varda with not a look of anger, but more of sadness, as he waited for the little bird's answer.

Varda looked down as the other Pokémon voiced his negativity, listening quietly. It was quite harsh, he wasn't really used to dealing with subjects like these or helping Pokémon with this kind of issues... It certainly felt like there was nothing he could do. But if there was one thing he was sure of? Sova had a completely different view of himself than the bird! He didn't even know what to make of that, was it possible that a person could be so blind to what they were that they could not notice it, even if it was obvious to everyone else?

The little footsteps continued to walk over the snow's surface, delicate as always. His shoulders felt heavy and it wasn't just because of exhaustion or the pain of being hit by a Hyper Beam. Sova stopped, asking him a question he clearly wanted an answer for. The Swablu looked at the other Pokémon, a bit puzzled, but he did try to think about it.
"I think... You can always have more if you want. I-If you want, then I can be there for you!" Varda chirped, his worldview naïve and simple, but he was trying to demonstrate it by showing how easy it could be. If Sova wanted more, if he wanted a reason or a friend or some way to not feel bad... He just had to tell the little bird and he would be there by his side.

"I think you're strong and nice. And kind. When you don't hit others because they told us to leave. You are in the Guild after all, we are here to risk ourselves to help someone else!" He added, looking a bit brighter as he smiled happily. What they were doing was ultimately selfless. They did it because someone else couldn't.

Sova sighed, the bird having pretty much completely ignored his question in favor of trying to give a neutral answer. Why was it so hard for others to say "yes" or "no"? However, it was then made clear to him that Varda didn't really know much about him and probably didn't want to know. So he'd hold off on that if he could, at least for now. He'd spare the bird the unpleasant and lengthy details of his life's story. They had a mission to do, after all. That took priority.

"Look.... you may think that now, but there's a lot you don't know about me. Just like there's a lot I don't know about you. But I bet your life would be a bit more pleasant to hear about. From what I know, you have a good family who're still around, you've got friends, everyone likes you and you have what may be the best outlook on life I've ever seen. Not everyone is that fortunate and it's not so simple to change.", he explained.

It made him feel a bit guilty saying these things, as if he was saying Varda was better off than himself. He couldn't say this for sure, he didn't know anything about the swablu, but he figured if he was wrong, he would be corrected. Still, he felt like he was being a bit harsh. He decided to change his tone a bit in the hopes of lightening the mood some. "But it's nice to know someone as nice as you is my friend, at least. Now, how about you let me return the favor and accept that ride?", he offered, still feeling that the swablu shouldn't be walking around. Then again, he had no business walking around either, certainly.

Varda tilted his head a bit when Sova seemed to think that he wasn't everything the bird thought he was. Again he went with that! So negative, thinking that he was bad somehow. But the Swablu didn't think this was the case now. But he took his friend's words to mean that he actually wanted to hear more about his life, and that filled him with joy! Having someone who actually cared about his life and his story, he couldn't say he often had such an honor.
"I guess my life is pretty nice... I can tell you about it!" He chirped so happily, enjoying having someone to talk to. Especially about these things he rarely could talk about.

He liked the compliments too. He liked being nice, he liked when others thought he was nice! Varda chirped and cooed with a smile, but he wasn't sure if he actually liked Sova's offer. Again he wanted him to ride on his back... but Sova was injured too! Still, it was a favor and now it felt wrong to turn it down! The bird was conflicted, but the put on his stern (supposedly so) face and looked at Sova, opening his wings.
"Well... Well alright! But if it feels like you're hurting more, you have to say and stop or I will be... Really angry!" He tried, not very good at being stern and commanding with his little fluffy face and chirpy voice. He tried, though.

Carefully, he flapped his wings enough to get off the ground and on top of Sova's back, trying to land as softly as he could. It was difficult considering how tired he was, but luckily the little Pokémon was very light and not at all heavy to carry. Smaller Pokémon had carried him on their back, even. But those hadn't had their paws hurt before trying to carry him...

Sova couldn't help but chuckle at Varda trying to be all authoritative. It simply wasn't in the little bird's nature to be anything but unconditionally kind, it seemed. But the important part was that Varda was willing to comply and rest, letting him do all the work while his friend relaxed a bit. He had been slightly misleading earlier.... there were a few things he liked other than fighting to the brink of death. One was helping his friends. Anyone who he deemed worthy of being called his friend was someone he wanted to make happy.

"Nice try with the tough guy act, but you're too nice for something like that. Stick to what you're good at.... making others happy.", he replied with a slight smile as the bird hopped on his back. "And don't worry about me, I've carried individuals a lot heavier than you plenty before. You're actually pretty light.", he continued.
It seemed like his mood had completely shifted, but in reality, he'd just gone back to pretending. Though, he did feel a bit better. Just a bit.

The glaceon began walking without wasting another second, being perfectly fine with the extra weight. His paws certainly still hurt, but the sooner they finished this mission, the sooner he could get off his paws for a while and relax. Then he'd probably end up falling asleep, waking up from nightmares and going off on another mission in an attempt to run from the miserable thoughts. Eventually, the nightmares would catch him.... once again.

Varda sat down on Sova's back carefully, keeping an eye on the Pokémon he was currently riding just in case there would be some painful spot he touched accidentally, something that would cause his friend to wince. He didn't want to do that! In fact, if it would suddenly look like Sova was in pain, he would hop off his back right away! But currently, it seemed like the Pokémon was able to hold his weight, so he tucked in his wings and got comfortable, fluffing up his feathers as he tried to warm himself up. The bird felt so cold... Surely, he would be sick by the time they got back to the Guild. The little bird of warmth Varda was able to generate most likely was heating up Sova's back into rather toasty temperatures.

"Maybe I could practice," the Swablu offered with a chirp when his friend thought that his tough guy act wasn't very good. Sometimes Pokémon had to be stern and authoritative, right? It seemed like such a useful skill to have!
"I'm not even sure if you should be carrying yourself... Just say if you start hurting too much, alright?" He dropped the act and was his usual much gentler self, still clearly worried of his friend's well-being and pretty much repeating what he had said earlier in a different tone. In case it would make a difference.

It had stopped snowing. The day was still cold and eventually the day would come to and end as well, but the sun wasn't setting yet. The pair had left early enough to give themselves enough time. It was a good thing too, as it was quite probable that the little bird would freeze to death in the night as the temperatures fell.



((You had some ideas for the Sneasel, so feel free to advance us there when you want!))

(Was just about to do that, actually.)

Sova did his best to look out for a sneasel, but the snow was still obscuring his vision. He listened to Varda's request as he searched, beginning to feel guilty for bringing him along. The kind, innocent little bird had no business being with someone such as him. Varda probably would have preferred to be somewhere pretty and calm like Pecha Forest. Instead, the swablu was here, in the cold, with a violent teammate and powerful enemies. All because the glaceon couldn't get him not to come.

"Too much.... If I pass out, that means I'm hurting too much.", he replied rather nonchalantly. In all honesty, it would have been better for his health in many situations if he had taken dangerous injuries more seriously, but he never did.
There were times where he risked his life when he had no reason to get up and needed rest and surely, there would be more of those times in the future. Something caught his attention as he walked and he stopped for a moment, trying to tell what it was.

It was a dark figure that had revealed its self through the snow. He looked closely to verify.... It was indeed a sneasel. "Well, well. Look what we found.", he muttered as he began walking again.
"Out of curiosity, Varda, how well do you think you can hold onto me?", he questioned, wanting to bolt off towards the sneasel and end this mission quickly.
Maybe if Varda kept wanting to do missions with him, he could choose one to somewhere less unpleasant for a Flying-Type.

Varda let out a surprised and a bit of a worried chirp as Sova seemed to imply that he wouldn't be stopping, no matter how much it hurt, until he passed out from the pain. The bird wasn't having any of that!
"I-I'm pretty sure you have gone too far at that point," he chirped, not accepting his friend putting himself through so much pain with his injured body! What if the injuries weren't still too bad and would heal normally, but if he kept pushing himself... The wounds would become untreatable and follow Sova his whole life?! It seemed like a possibility – one that the Swablu didn't want his friend to go through just because of him.

Sova stopped, saying nothing. The little bird looked at his friend first with a slow blink, but once he noticed the fox scanning their surroundings, he did the same, in the different direction. It seemed like he had managed to see something... And indeed, soon the Pokémon he was riding spoke, his words causing Varda to look where they were heading. A flash of dark could occasionally be seen between the snowy mounds... Was it... Could it be?

"Oh, well, I don't have hands," the Swablu's thoughts were stopped by Sova's question about holding onto him, and wings were rather useless for that. The bird still got up on his feet carefully and inched closer to the the ribbons wrapping around Sova's neck, grabbing it with his little feet as hard as he could.
"Though um, this might work!" He chirped as he held on, growing a bit more serious after a slight moment,
"First we need to figure out if it's the right Pokémon before we go accusing anyone..."


((Guess I really must be a mind reader...))

Sova smirked at the suggestion to check if they had the right pokemon first. "Lets accuse, THEN check. Worst case there is we apologize and let him go if we're wrong.", he suggested.
Before giving Varda a chance to reply, he darted off in the direction of the sneasel. He was slower than he would have liked, given he couldn't safely use Ice Shard with Varda so close to him, but he was at least moving faster than the sneasel.

As they neared the sneasel, it seemed to notice them, turning around and staring for a moment. "Hey, we're with the guild, we've got some questions!", the glaceon spoke up, to which the suspect replied by taking off running in the other direction.
"Yep, that's definitely our guy.", he stated to Varda, seeing that the sneasel fled upon hearing they were from the guild. He pursued of course, but.... it was fast, he couldn't keep up with injured paws, a passenger and no access to Ice Shard.

"....I'm gonna need you to let go for just a minute so I can catch him.", he requested after a moment of trying to catch up, seeing he wasn't going to be able to do it without Ice Shard.

(You're a wizard, Harry)