lackingbeauty | ♕ 001 // Action for Route 29

Oh hell-

[He can't keep her from falling back, but he can grab a hold of her and follow her down with him kneeling besides her. Well, he warned her to sit down- Joker gently starts to rub at her back like that will help soothe her.]

Hush now, ain't no reason ta get much of a fright, she won't harm ya any. Just take a breath, yeah? Ariel, stay over there, got it?

[The Dragonite doesn't seem much inclined to move anyway. It just gives an absentminded nod before turning its head to yawn, raising a claw up to its mouth in an almost human-like gesture. Take your time... She's not going anywhere.]

[It's not helping.

The cats she could handle. They didn't help, but she could handle that. They looked like cats, and cats were real. Malformed and odd colored cats, but cats. This was a dragon. It was definitely a dragon and dragons definitely were not real-

It couldn't be real-

Beast had gone pale, not even seeming to notice Joker's hand on her back steadying her, staring at the... what? Thing? Creature? Beast? Dragon? Despite all the things they'd seen in their lives, (dead bodies in dark alleys, the abused, the people they'd had to kill themselves), it seems that she finds this the most terrifying.

Those things they'd seen had been sick, and wrong, but they'd been real things that happen to real people.

Her corset wasn't laced that tight, but it was seeming awfully difficult to breathe, her hearbeat thundering in her ears. Everything in her said she should just run- it was crazy. It was impossible.

Dragons didn't exist...]

[And suddenly, neither did Beast.

Consciously, anyway. The edges of her vision went dark, focus narrowed on the impossible things she was seeing, forgetting to inhale, unsure if she felt like she was going to vomit or just-

Eyes rolled back, and as fast as you could say "pretend it's just a hallucination", Beast had fainted straight away.

... Considering she'd never have been convinced to fly on a dragon, it might have even been for the best.]

[It's a good thing his hand is still at her back, then, even if it is a bit of a trick to keep her from slipping out of his grip. For a moment, Joker just stares and the only thing that comes to mind is-]

Ah, hell.

[He says it absently, his mind fumbling to figure out a course of action now. That's... That's certainly not a good reaction, really, compared to everything else. Actually it's not a good reaction no matter what the occasion. But that... does take away the issue of convincing her to get on the great big bloody thing. Right? Assuming she doesn't wake up in the middle of the flight and panic or fall off...]

[What happens after is a bit of a team effort. The cat pair are finally convinced to be useful instead of lounging around like brats, acting as a cushion for Beast's head as Joker removes his scarf and his cloak. It'll mean he's going to be a bit chilly... But he'd rather she be warm and comfortable on the way there. Maybe it'll help keep her in dreamland a while longer. One can only hope. Angel helps where she can, displaying more of his worry on her face than he himself is on his own. Faintly, a part of him hopes Beast doesn't pick up on that habit of Angel's. More strongly, he hopes that she doesn't get more distressed at Angel's appearance. At least dragons are just large lizards with wings, when you get down to it.]

[There's no real decent way to explain a tiny clown that isn't a person and instead some sort of... beastie. Animal. Something. Fairy?]

[When Beast is all bundled up, Ariel finally takes her. She won't go fast, or be reckless, or drop her so long as Beast stays unconscious. Really, besides the whole fact that she's a dragon, she's a good choice. Joker tries to console himself even as he brings Claw and Fang back to their Pokeballs. He'll be flying with Torch, and Angel will be out just to make sure nothing horrendous happens, so... He should be ready.]

[But he lingers for a moment, even after he sends a message to Jimmy that he'll be heading to Cherrygrove a bit ahead of him. He keeps a hand on Beast's shoulder. She's really here. It's not a dream. Ten months of going through things in this dreamlike world, only Snake to stay with him for any long bit of time, losing Doll and knowing what lay ahead back for them in England... She's here. It's not a dream keeping him up at night.]

[Angel tugs at his pants leg after a while, convinces him to finally get with Torch. Soon enough, the familiar sight of all of Johto beneath them is beneath his feet. It takes some work to keep Torch from charging ahead. Instead, he keeps her and therefor him beneath Ariel... Just in case. You can't be too careful. He keeps looking up at her and Beast the whole couple hours it takes to fly to Cherrygrove. The inn is still open- they always are. They know just as well as the Pokemon Centers that trainers and breeders and other sorts arrive at all times of the day and straight through the night. It's one of the few reliable things in Johto, really. There's always a warm bed waiting for you so long as you have the money... And don't release a hundred bats into the rooms.]

[Money he does have, thanks to the Circus in Goldenrod. The big shows always draw in steady crowds, and the smaller stalls and games are always open and thus bring in a decent steady income. In all honesty, he's rather pleased about it. He hopes she'll like it too.]

[Once he gets a room, he's quick to get Beast up to it along with the cat pair. She'd reacted best to them, so they were good, right? They can fit in the room, too, and keep her safe. Not long after, and Jimmy shows up- another good thing because Joker's suddenly worried about her lack of changeable clothes and if she'll be hungry after being startled into fainting.]

[So, after scrawling out a note and sticking it on Jimmy's chest- This is Jims, he's a good lad, just went to get some things- Joker just hurries out and promises himself to be quick.]

[One thing Jimmy enjoyed about flying with his Volcarona was the fact of how warm she always was. It was starting to get colder at night, and he still wasn't used to it being this chilly ever, so it was nice to have something soft and heated to hang on to while she flew high over the land. It was something he'd probably never get tired of, after so long of dreaming of getting to fly someday.

He makes it to Cherrygrove soon enough, the sun having long since set by the time he hops off of the fire moth's back and reaches up to pet the side of her head after the long flight. Perhaps it's a good thing that he returned her and let Buster the Lillipup back out of his ball instead after everything Beast had gone through so far. A giant dragon was one thing; a giant moth that could breathe fire was entirely another.

When Jimmy gets into the inn and figures out what room Joker has booked, he hurries to it with the Lillipup trotting at his heels. He doesn't have a whole lot of time to get a sense of the situation before Joker sticks the note to him and takes off, leaving him standing in the doorway. He takes the note off and scans it briefly before putting it back, exchanging a glance with Buster as he slowly steps into the room.

Hopefully she'll trust the note- or at least take a moment to read the thing, given she wakes up before Joker returns. Jimmy brushes his hair back with his hands and hooks his thumbs in his pockets as he leans up against the wall, keeping an eye on Buster to make sure he doesn't try to hop up onto the bed and potentially frighten Beast when she comes to.]

[Somewhere along the line the faint had turned in to something more like sleep, and being put to bed had aided in her getting some decent shut eye. Simply put, she'd been exhausted from the get go, not having really slept two nights previous, having been spirited away in the dark of the previous one, only for it to be morning suddenly and then waiting up past midnight for Joker's arrival.

But the nightmares set in soon enough. There were dragons... and they killed everyone. Jumbo, Doll, Peter, Wendy, Dagger, Snake and Doc- two dragons, one soft and innocent looking and the other sharper, fiercer, and-

Still mostly asleep, Beast's brow had furrowed and she'd begun to toss and turn.

Before wakefulness began, and with the return of consciousness, the return of the memories of what exactly had happened to her.

Sat bolt up right almost fast enough to get whiplash, inhaled with a sharp gasp, eyes wide.

- Where... ?]

[After being told firmly that he wasn't allowed on the bed, Buster had taken up a spot on the floor nearby to watch Beast as she slept, still curious about the stranger. When she suddenly sat up, he jumped so hard that his nails scraped against the wooden floor, startling Jimmy into jumping as well. The Lillipup hurries past the bed and runs over to Jimmy's legs, hiding behind his ankles with his huge ears pinned as his trainer watches Beast, letting out a shaky sigh with his hand gripping the front of his shirt.]

M..Miss? ...it's okay....everything's okay.

[He hesitates, then remembers the note.]

Joker will be right back.

[Beast was on guard already, and at the movement elsewhere in the room she instinctively reached for the knife she kept beneath her pillow-

Except this wasn't her pillow. Or her bed. Or her tent.

That's right.

Eyes focused, tried to let her brain catch up. Boy. Jim. Jimmy. Something? Dog?

She felt foolish the moment she said it, but at the same time...]

Where's the bloody dragon?

[Jimmy blinks a few times, a bit taken off guard by the question.]

Dragon?

[...Dragon...dragon....oh.]

Oh! You mean Ariel, right? She's probably back with Joker right now.

Shit-

[Cursed under her breath, even as she struggled to extricate herself from the blankets that had gotten tangled about her leg(s), apparently intending to go somewhere. Like right now.]

Where's Joker, then?

[An irrational fear, perhaps- that if she let him go off somewhere again something bad night happen. Something worse than being stuck in this too-strange, too-foreign place was. But she couldn't let that happen. It was already too much of her fault for her to stand any more.]

[Jimmy doesn't approach Beast, but he does hold up his hands a little, shaking his head.]

Ah- He just went out to pick up a couple things. He'll be right back, okay? ...You should probably stay here until he gets back.

Where the 'ell is 'ere?

[She tore off the blankets finally, swinging first real leg then "ceramic" one out, putting weight on one then the other, a practiced movement before she stood, marching to the window to look outside.]

Cherrygrove City! It's not all that far from New Bark.

[Jimmy answers, his eyes tracking Beast's movements as she makes her way over to the window. Meanwhile, Buster sneaks out a little from behind his trainer's feet, padding softly across the floor over to where Beast is standing, edging over close enough that he can sniff cautiously at her leg.]

A name a someplace real 'd be appreciated.

[She didn't like this. Not these happy go lucky sounding naming towns she'd never heard of, nor the altogether foreign view outside the window.

- Nor the dog sniffing at her leg. Beast looked down and stiffened, stomping her foot to try and startle it back from her.]

An' control yer damn dog!

[Beast is not swayed by cuteness very easily, it seems.]

[The Pokemon yips a little with surprise and scrambles back to Jimmy, claws scrabbling frantically against the floor as he makes haste to get away.]

Hey...

[Jimmy frowns, lifting a foot when Buster hides behind his legs again, ears back as he stares up at Beast from a safe distance.]

These places are real. You wouldn't be in them if they weren't!

An' dragons 'r real, too, then?

[By the higher pitched and more heavily accented her voice was getting, it was apparent that she... well. Wasn't taking it very well.

The last hold out before she'd have to give in and accept it.]

I've been spirited away t'some fantasy land a animals, then?

[Jimmy nods, slowly. He can tell Beast is upset, and overwhelmed by all of this...it's hard, since he's well used to weird animals being the norm back home. Heck, the weirder thing for him was the fact that this place had humans everywhere.]

Yeah. ..but it's gonna be okay, I promise.

[Beast's norm, and the norm in this place, well-

Let's just say they didn't add up.]

An' I can trust ye, surely.

[She might have been kinder- all of their circus had something of a soft spot when it came to children. But the last child they'd trusted had betrayed them, and it made her sharper in response to innocent looks.]

All a this'll jus' be okay, magic like.

[Perhaps Jimmy would have understood, if he knew. For the time being, he leans back against the wall until his shoulders are touching it, feeling Buster shaking a little behind his ankles.]

Look- this place is pretty safe. There are some....pretty weird things here, but they're not going to hurt you. Especially if they're with Joker.

[And from the way Jimmy's talking, it sounds like he trusts the man a great deal.]

It might not be okay now, but it will be. I know it might be a little scary...I've been here a couple months, and stuff happens still that I don't get.

[Really, he's toning down his experience quite a bit...he wasn't scared or disturbed at all when he showed up, but he's also not like most people.]

And there are good people here. People that will talk to you if you're having problems, or there's something that you really don't understand.

[If she's with Joker. Nothing bad would happen if she was with Joker.

She'd believed that once. But now... she wasn't sure anymore.]

That doesn' make this better!

[Grit out, digging in her heels and refusing, one last push of denial, to accept that she might be stuck there, that those weird animals might be real-

That any of it might be real. Fists clenched, and she left the window heading for the door instead/]

I'm goin' out.

[To find Joker. Maybe she still believed after all.]

[Jimmy stiffens, and in a split second decision, he quickly moves from the wall to put himself between Beast and the door.]

Wait! ...Please. Just...please wait until he gets back, okay?

[Beast was not a tall woman- even in heels. But she drew herself up to full height, crossing her arms beneath her breasts and all but glowering down.

- Yeah, this was how she got that reputation at the circus.]

Ye don' move in three seconds an' we're goin' to 'ave a problem.

[Looked like a big problem.]

One...

[Jimmy is rather tall for his age- rather tall- and he stands his ground and lifts his head slightly when Beast starts counting, seemingly intent on staying put.

Joker said to stay, so he's staying, and he's making sure Beast stays too.]

[That height doesn't seem to intimidate Beast either- judging by her facial expression, she's quite confident that she could move him- physically if need be.]

Two.

[NOPE, STILL NOT BUDGING.]

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