exeggutorhead | IC Inbox

what

shit ill be right there im at the circus

[It's a good thing he was costuming and not rehearsing, because that means at least he isn't in a leotard when he comes in on Lucky, the Houndoom skidding through the glass doors fast enough that he very nearly ran right into them instead. Envy jumps off of Lucky's back without paying any attention to the disapproving stare of the nurse behind the counter, just looking for Heather. He goes straight for her the moment he spots her.]

I'm here! What happened? Where's Henry?

_{[When he comes bursting into the Pokemon Center, Heather is slouched in one of the lobby seats with her face in her hands. In the seat next to her, a tiny golden Riolu is sitting with his legs straight out, tiny paws clenched into fists at his sides, ears pinned back, and snout pointed straight down. Tears are dripping off of his pointed black nose. Henry's being tended to by the nurses and they hadn't particularly wanted a crying Pokemon to be in there distracting them, so they'd politely but firmly asked Heather to wait outside.]

[At the sound of Envy's voice, Heather lifts her head to look at him. Her eyes are perfectly dry, but tired as hell.]}

There you are-- he's-- the doctors are looking at him.

He got knocked around pretty bad. I think he might have a concussion.

_{[And he'd definitely gotten some teeth chipped.]}

[Wolf's crying is worrying, but honestly not nearly as much as if she had been crying. Her weary look is bad enough, he doesn't know what he'd do if this was bad enough to have made her actually cry.]

Do you--what happened?

He was just going out to take pictures, how did he get knocked around by anything? The biggest things in that park are those baby deer!

_{[Fortunately for everybody involved, this isn't really the kind of thing that moves Heather to tears.]

[She is, however, still pretty fuckin' upset.]

[Shaking her head, she drops it back into one hand, gesturing helplessly with the other.]}

He-- I wasn't able to get a whole lot out of him, but he-- Walter was there, he was in the park because he was going to meet me, and I didn't know Henry was gonna be in the park too or else I'dve taken a freaking raincheck, and I guess they saw each other, and Henry just-- attacked him.

_{[Beside her, Wolf lets out a very violent sniff.]

[She sighs, sagging further into her hand.]}

I don't think he fought back.

I think it was just like that night he ran into him on the street.

But this time, his Pokemon...

[Envy's face goes through a whole range of emotions as she talks. From immediate rage when Walter's name is first brought up because he'd said he wouldn't do anything and how could Envy have just believed him, how stupid--to surprise when it turns out that Henry had done the attacking, horror at the idea of how much damage a Pokemon attacking a person could have done...]

[Envy turns and sits down on the bench right next to her, heavily, arms down on his knees while he just tries to process all of this.]

How bad is it?

Pretty bad.

Not like... catastrophic, but... concussion, like I said... think he might've knocked a tooth out... his leg's pretty fucked up too.

_{[She heaves a long, deep sigh.]

[A year ago, all they'd had to worry about was Henry running off the roof by accident.]

[Now he's picking fights and getting the snot knocked out of him.]}

Walter Sullivan texted me that Henry was in the park and hurt, but he was long gone by the time I got there.

Fuck.

[Envy's hands tighten into fists and then relax before clenching again. It's an almost helpless gesture--it's not like there's anything he can do, and he hates it.]

D'you think this is because we told him about the Pokemon?

[His voice sounds almost far away to his own ears. There's a lot of things going on in his head right now, not a one of them good and most of them almost frantic, piling on top of each other.]

I-- probably? ... I- I don't know.

_{[She sinks even lower in her seat. She hasn't looked-- or felt for that matter-- this tired in a long time.]}

I didn't tell him that I was going to go meet Walter this time, so he-- he must have just run into him by coincidence.

... I hope it was by coincidence.

[Envy reaches up to put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it lightly, and the contact is as much for him as it is for her.]

[They've been kind of awkward about the physical contact since the other night, but now? That's all been kind of pushed out of his head. There's something worse to be focusing on right now.]

It must've been. He mentioned he was going to take pictures today, he didn't sound like he was going out to get revenge.

He doesn't...hide it very well when he's thinking about Walter. I don't think he was planning it.

_{[It's true. Henry might be quiet, but he's not subtle.]

[She heaves another sigh and lets herself sag forward a little, head resting on the offered arm. Things have been a little awkward, but that's small potatoes compared to their friend being in the hospital.]}

It must've.

I just... that little Cubone, man.

He said it was the Cubone that did all that.

_{[And legit, if Walter had been the one to knock him around, Henry would have been all too happy to lay the blame.]

[At her side, Wolf sniffs again, loudly.]}

I'd believe it. Any Pokemon'd fight back if they thought their trainer was in danger.

Mine have.

[Just not...to that degree. Envy's grip tightens a little more, and he leans his own head against hers.]

Just...fuck. What do we do?

[He's not really expecting an answer from her, but...he just doesn't know. Something has to be done, but what could it even be?]

I don't know.

_{[She really doesn't.]

[It would be so much simpler if Walter had just been a frothing psycho with a chainsaw all along, if he'd shown up at their house to finish his Receiver off. Then they could just collectively trounce him and that would be the end of it.]

[But this has turned into something else entirely and Heather hates it.]

[Is this how everyone around her had felt when she'd gone after Claudia?]}

[It really would have been so much easier. And, if we're being honest, Envy still thinks of this in much less complicated terms than Heather is.]

[But the fact remains that in this particular case, Walter may not have actually done anything--at least, not anything more than he already had back in Henry's world. If he'd been holding up his end and not coming after Henry...Envy lets out a frustrated sigh, making some attempt not to just explode right then and there.]

This is a fucking mess.

You said it.

_{[Another sigh... and then, fuck it. Even if they'd been a little awkward, she needs the company right now. She gives his sleeve a tug and pats the seat on her other side.]}

Sit down, I wanna lean on something.

[She doesn't need to ask him twice, awkwardness or not.]

[He turns to sit next to her, and as he does, moves the hand he's had on her shoulder to have his arm around her shoulders instead, tugging her closer to his side for Optimal Leaning.]

Better?

[He's still tense, and it'll be even easier for her to tell now, but after a few seconds, having her weight against him does get him to relax a little bit.]

_{[She leans without hesitation, sagging against his shoulder and letting her eyes slide shut for a moment. Even aside from the troubling situation at hand, these seats always bring back memories of the time before she'd been able to afford hotel rooms and had slept in Center lobbies just like this one. They're not the greatest memories.]}

Yeah... for some degree of 'better'.

_{[Her shoulders rise and fall in a deep, slow sigh. As hard as it is to relax, there's... literally nothing they can do right now.]}

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