Thread: The Trainer-Only Nightclub: No Pokemon Allowed!!

"I'd love to." He said in response to her invitation. "Word of mouth says all kinds of friendly and not-so-friendly ghosts and spectres still haunt that place, am i right?" He chuckled, raising an eyebrow as his smile transformed into a smirk. His gaze softens once again. "How's everyone? August, Chef Bedivere, Aislyn, lil' Lilliana ... Minerva?"

Keith, Coselle, Okiku, Blaze, Cele, Hyrem, Connor, Alice - "You only guess that I am right? Of course I am right! You need to loosen up..." Coselle sways her hips as she walks around Keith facing him with a seductive smirk before smoothly turning to sit on his lap. A relatively petite young lady despite her intimidating presence, she has little trouble claiming her new spot, wrapping one arm around her lover to conceal her burned hand as she calls over the bartender with the other.

"Another Rawst Berry shake for me, and an Ivysaur for the gentleman, if you would, please. We need to get this man to relax, hmmm...?" Coselle runs her scarred fingers through his hair, hoping that her feminine wiles will help him to forget... or maybe help herself forget. "Forget your worry, won't you? Do I have to whip it out of you again?" Coselle chuckles darkly as she says this. "I say we change the subject, and talk about something more... interesting. Oh! I know! Perhaps we should all discuss the research coming out about those newly discovered Pokemon... Oh, I would simply die for a Fennekin, wouldn't youuu?" Coselle smirks. "Hopefully if I had one, it would not be a spoiled brat like another fiery fox Pokemon I know..."

Marion, Duke - Marion seems excited by Duke's positive response to her invitation, and laughs as he mentions the rumors of her Secret Base being haunted. "Normally, it is indeed haunted, but the place has been exorcised for the evening... August suggested that they all go on a camping trip in a woodland area she's flown by many times, and from what I understand, they are having a great time so far. Of course, Bedivere seems to keep finding dead bodies in the woods, but that's pretty normal for him. Apparently, they have all been delicious. I have no idea how he does it..." Balmund then asks her about how her Pokemon are doing, and Marion smiles in response. "Oh, very well. Bedivere and Liliana are the same as they ever were. Of course, August has really done will taking over after Minerva... Well, you know." Marion sighs. "She's been keeping a low profile after the whole incident, but from what I understand, she is not doing so bad herself. Evading the authorities has been tough on her. As much as I try to explain to them that it was a mistake, they still want to take her in for behavioral modification since she has prior offenses." Marion shrugs. "My sister has been keeping me company in her absence. Not sure if you've met her yet... Her name's Coselle. Apparently, she and Keith really hit it off when she first got here. I know that he is in love with her like crazy... She tries to play it off like he's just a hopeless admirer and that she's merely tolerating him, but I know my sister." Marion laughs mischievously. "She gets so defensive about him... Methinks the lady doth protest too much, hehe." Marion smiles. "Ah, but enough about Cosie... How have you and your team been doing? Are they all well? How is Durandal, and little Seath? Oh, I really hope August and I can come and visit them soon... She talks about them every day, you know... or so Bedivere tells me." Marion grins, resting her head on Duke's shoulder. "It sucks, you know, missing someone..."

Keith, Coselle, Okiku, Blaze, Cele, Hyrem, Connor, Alice: Keith couldn't help but genuinely smile as Coselle objected to Keith merely guessing that she was right, and asserted that she was right. "Yes, definitely, I need to loosen up," Keith agreed as Coselle sat on his lap. This grin only widened as she ran her fingers through his hair. As Coselle suggested a change of subject, Keith found himself ready to go along with it. Coselle brought up something that had been all over the news recently- the discovery of new Pokemon. Keith nodded as she stated that she would love a Fennekin. "I saw those, yeah... Fennekin is cute, no doubt, but what I'd really like is a Chespin. Haven't decided how I feel about Froakie, yet, though. It looks like it's kind of an odd Pokemon... but too odd for me, or not odd enough?"

Marion explains how everyone else has been doing so far, and they have, for the most part, done pretty much the same as always. Minerva has been gone missing however, and in her absence, August took over her role. Though understandable, Duke couldn't help relating a bit as he found himself being troubled by the authorities due to his Seviper's antics. A bunch of hypocrites, that's what they are. Taming wild monsters and having them fight one another is perfectly fine, and excusable by their more than willing disposition to do battle with amongst themselves, but when it came to people being harmed, then actions for a "threat to society" must be taken. Fortunately, Duke never had to do much other than have a few talks and sign a few papers, but he had wondered just how much would it take for them to try and take her in by force if anything of the sort were to happen. Similarly, taking Minerva into custody would be no easy feat if she had not chosen to go into hiding, though Duke had heard the syndicate had specialized agents in order to deal with Champion level threats. Perhaps Minerva had taken the wiser decision after all, and Duke only hoped she would do well wherever she is. Even behind the scenes, he was sure she would likely watch over Marion.

Just as Minerva had left, Marion's sister, Coselle, had appeared to fill the void. Duke could only wonder what exactly was she like. She had apparently gone hard into a relationsip with Keith, a Poison-type specialist Duke never really had the chance to meet either, but Duke felt glad for him. He figured any man who got so involved with a member of Marion's family would have to be a lucky man. Then again, he also knew that more often than not, one sibling was definitely not like the other.

Marion then asks Balmund about his own team. August must've truly been missing them like mad, and he knew the same was for the Salamence, who would often stare for hours into the horizon, fighting the urge of leaving on his own to meet with his beloved once again. Marion rests her head on his shoulders, commenting on how much it sucked to miss someone, and Duke had to agree, for he knew the feeling very well. "Yeah, I know." he says, after a inhaling and exhaling deeply. He pauses for a bit before moving on. "Wanna take a seat?" He asks, though leading anyways to one of the lounge sofas barely a few steps away. His legs were thankful for the chance of a breather. "Everyone's fine." He started off with a smile. "Narsil is still recovering because of the wreck caused at the party, but he looks healthy, and still very much his jolly self. Chris has been acting somewhat weird. I don't know how to explain it. 'Calm' and 'Good', I'd guess. Anyways, there's a new member in the family, so everyone's warming up to the little one, and I mean that quite literally; I hatched a Larvesta from a rare egg I got sent in."

"Regarding Durandal and Seath, I can tell Duran misses August real bad, it's starting to affect him in fact, though Seath makes up for it. He's a very special one, you know? Born white like snow, and call me crazy, but I think he learned how to read ... on his own. He's also very talented at anything else he does. Durandal is never away when I train him, and he does his best to pass on his knowledge when I'm away. The rest of the guys are good to him too, and even Chris has been surprisingly gentle in teaching him." He paused again. "But you know, I've been thinking of this for a while, and I think you should keep him. He needs his mother, and I'm sure she needs him too."

Keith, Coselle, Okiku, Blaze, Cele, Hyrem, Connor, Alice : Keith weighs in on Coselle's new topic of conversation, identifying his favorite of the newly discovered Pokemon to be the grass type, Chespin, despite the cuteness of Fennekin. Coselle smirks at this. "Glad to see I'll have the type advantage," she teases. Keith then says that he has not developed an opinion yet on Froakie, undecided on whether the blue frog was too strange or not strange enough. Coselle smirks. "I would say not strange enough. You are truly one of the strangest people I have ever met, Keith. It's subtle, but it's there... Just incredible amounts of weirdness. You're a damn weirdo, and that's the truth of the matter." Coselle chuckles a bit, handing the trainer his Ivysaur as the drinks arrive. Taking her own Rawst berry shake, she sips more slowly this time, dangling the Rawst Berry garnish over Keith's mouth casually in offering. "I know Marion likes that weird little frog. Loves the little bubble-glasses perched on his face. Thinks he'll evolve to be a very scholarly Pokemon. HAH!"

Marion, Duke - Marion follows Duke as he offers for her to take a seat; collapsing beside him, the true weight of her fatigue and the toll that the remnants of her illness was taking on her energy levels made itself more thoroughly known. Despite her exhaustion, however, she still felt strangely vivacious, as if she could still dance the night away despite the heaviness that had settled in her limbs. Be that as it may, a rest was more than welcome. Balmund goes on to explain that his own team was doing quite well; jolly Nars was still the same as always, though still in recovery from the party. Marion had a feeling that it would take a lot more than a wild party to knock the good-natured spirit out of that Gabite, and was glad to hear that she was right about that. As for Chris, Marion could definitely understand how "calm" and "good" would be strange adjectives to use for the hot-tempered Seviper. Though mellowing out would normally be a good thing (at least to the people who lived around such a fiery personality) hearing that a temperament as strong as Orchrist's was calming down was somewhat concerning to Marion. Was she sick? Depressed? Was she truly learning to control her temper? Hard to say, but Marion found it difficult to hide her concern. "Acting strange, huh... Do you know why? Is she okay?" Even if the Seviper had tried to frighten her on more than one occasion (though unsuccessfully), the young ghost-type trainer couldn't help but care for Balmund's Seviper. After all, she was so much like another powerful, volatile female that was so important in Marion's life.

Marion grins at the mention of Balmund's new Larvesta. "Such gorgeous creatures... From what I hear, they love to engage in jolly co-operation with their trainers." Marion giggles a bit. "Congratulations on hatching one! Larvesta are very rare, indeed... I ended up with a Gastly from my own rare egg, but Coselle insisted that I trade it to 'her friend.'" Marion makes a gesture to emphasize quotation marks around the word "friend", smirking as she does. "I hear that he and Keith are doing very well. What did you decide to name your Larvesta?" Marion tilts her head in curiosity.

The subject changes to Durandal and Seath, the husband and son of August (respectively). As Marion suspected, Durandal seemed just as affected by their distance as August was, though Seath had been helping to heal the longing. The whole team seemed to be rallying together to teach him the ways of the world; even Chris treated the baby with a surprising level of tenderness. Born the purest white, the little dragon apparently has developed a surprising taste for knowledge, including the ability to learn how to read. Of course, being born abnormally pale and with a strange thirst for knowledge was something Marion herself could relate to, and she finds herself wishing even more that she could meet August's baby boy. Just as she is about to ask Duke when she can bring August for a visit, the dragon tamer surprises her by saying that it is Marion who should be keeping the baby, reasoning that Seath needs his mother, and that August needed him too.

Certainly, Marion could not argue with August's melancholy about the separation between herself and her child... August was never one to cry, and yet Marion knew how many tears she shed when pining for her beloved son and his father. It broke Marion's heart, but she was unsure how to remedy the situation.

"Duke, I'm honored that you would entrust me with such a precious baby, and it is true that August is his rightful mother... but Seath needs more than just a mother. He needs his father, too... and he needs a knowledgeable and capable trainer. You have the distinction of being a dragon tamer, and you have a number of powerful, well-trained dragons by your side. Your experience with dragons far surpasses mine. The only dragon I have ever trained is August... and that was with piles of manuals and plenty of mistakes along the way." Marion pauses. "That said... I do know how much August would like to get to know her son. But would it be fair to separate him from Durandal? It doesn't seem fair that they cannot raise their child together..." Marion shakes her head in frustration at the entire situation. Of course, she knew she could not blame Duke, as he more than likely shared in Durandal's pain just as Marion shared in August's.[/color]

Keith, Coselle, Okiku, Blaze, Cele, Hyrem, Connor, Alice: "Ah, but who's to say just yet that you'd have the type advantage?" Keith grinned. "They haven't said anything about secondary types. Chespin vaguely reminds me of Nuzleaf, which is Grass and Dark, and from what I've heard, Fennekin could potentially be part Psychic. So if that's true, then a match between the two could go either way." As Coselle called him strange, far from being offended, Keith chuckled. "It's been said," he replied simply as their drinks arrived. Coselle handed Keith his drink, which lasted all of three seconds before the Poison-type trainer casually drained his glass in one go. Keith then noticed Coselle casually dangling the Rawst Berry that came with her shake over Keith's mouth. Moving his head slightly, Keith took the berry between his teeth and ate it as Coselle remarked on how Marion liked Froakie, and believed that it would evolve into a scholarly Pokemon.

"I'm guessing you don't think so," Keith remarked as Coselle gave a short laugh following that statement. "What do you think Froakie will be like when it's fully evolved, then? I can picture Chespin looking kinda like this Sandslash/Sceptile combination sort of thing. And Fennekin, I can easily imagine it looking something like Ninetales when fully evolved," he added, thinking to himself that had he never heard of or seen a Vulpix, he would think Fennekin was supposed to evolve into Ninetales.

Marion couldn't help feeling concern for Duke's Seviper as he mentioned her odd behavioral change. Normally, mellowing out would be considered a good thing, but this sudden change on a Pokémon that was once so fiery seemed so strange, that one couldn't help but wonder if something is amiss. "The frustrating thing is that I honestly don't have a clue. Physically, she's as healthy as she can be; very much in her prime. I think it started shortly after Seath was brought home. I feel her a bit distant and lost in thought now, and though I have a gut feeling of what it could be, I'm not quite sure what i can do about it. But I'll figure something out." He said, before moving on to talk a bit more about his Larvesta since Marion had asked about his name.

"His name? That would be Solaire. Fitting, isn't it? Quite a personality too. You could say he brings a bit more light to the whole squad. A bit quirky too. I've always found it curious how he stares at the rising sun every single morning, raising his little forelegs as if wanting to hug it. Simply adorable. His body's too hot to the touch though, it's almost like touching fire. I feel he's just too young to control it yet. I'm taking special precautions around him lest he ends up burning my entire base. To be honest, I'm a bit unsure about how to raise such a rare Pokémon. Not so much as with Kerrigan, with whom I'm literally completely in the blind, but the info out there is still kinda limited, and the rules of raising dragons don't quite apply to him. I only hope I don't make too many mistakes, but hey, you did awesome with August, so I guess this can't turn out so bad for me too."

Back to the conversation regarding Durandal and August, Balmund had offered her to take custody of the little Dratini, though she surprisingly rejected the offer. Though she knew from first hand experience just how much August needed to really meet her soon, she also admitted that Seath also needed his Father, and a good environment in which to grow in. It seemed so unfair that they couldn't raise them together. "Well goodness girl, at this rate I'll be forced to move in to your place in order to settle this issue once and for all. I would be okay with that." He laughed trying to lighten the mood, though a big part of him honestly meant what he said, and he made no effort to deny it. "Well how about this? There's a a Pokémon only Tree Grove around these parts, and I'd say Durandal, August and Seath deserve a family vacation together, just the three of them, until their heart's content. Hm?"

Keith, Coselle, Okiku, Blaze, Cele, Hyrem, Connor, Alice: ((I'll wait for the others to respond for now.))

Marion, Duke: Marion nods knowingly the moment Duke mentions that Orchrist's odd behavior began when Seath was brought home. "She is in her prime, yes... I imagine this would be around the time that she would be looking for a mate and having babies of her own if she were in the wild, correct?" The ghostly trainer pauses. "Y'know, now that I think about it... August was acting similarly before she met Duran. She's always been calm, so the change was a bit more subtle, but it was definitely there. It was... a sort of quiet longing. I never really knew what to do about it at the time, but looking back on it, I think that may have been the explanation." Marion smirks playfully. "Hey, Duke... between you and me, d'you think Sothe is ready to be a dad yet?"

Marion is fascinated by the description of Solaire, Duke's brand new Larvesta. "That does sound adorable... Almost like he sees the sun as a parent or something. Very sweet." Duke then describes how he is taking special care around this baby so as to prevent fires from breaking out in his base, and with such scarce information out on this rare Pokemon, it has been difficult at times to figure out what was best for the fiery bug-type. Marion blushes a bit at his praise for her training of Dragonite, giggling a bit. "Thanks... Well, I'm no expert in any type other than ghost. Even so, I do have some experience with fire types. I found Aislyn in the wild, so she already had some control over her internal body temperature when I found her, but Gwyn was another story. He has a constant flame going as part of his anatomy, so one always has to be careful when giving him hugs. I had to teach him early to mind his flame, since if he accidentally scraped something with it, it could easily start a fire. He can control the flame better now than when he was younger, but perhaps if he met Solaire, he might be able to help him learn how to regulate his internal fires. If nothing else, the two might get along." Marion laughs a bit. "Of course, I really can't take much credit for his internal control; it was something he learned largely on his own with time. The same may be true for Solaire."

"All of our Pokemon under one roof... It'd be hectic and crazy for sure, but also a lot of fun... Personally, I like the idea, too." Marion grins at the thought. "That said... I would want to talk about it with my Pokemon first before even considering such a big move. It's their home too, after all." Duke then suggests that if Marion will not take Seath, that August come to the Tree Grove and reunite with Durandal and Seath there. Marion's eyes light up at the idea, and she claps her hands together, grinning widely. "That's a perfect idea! The Tree Grove is a beautiful area, and I'm certain that August would love it there... Of course, she'd go to the damn Toxic Marsh if it meant seeing her baby." Marion smiles. "I can send her over there first thing tomorrow morning, if you'd like. Oh, she'll be so happy!! Do you think I should surprise her?" Marion nearly bearhugs Duke in her excitement, though being such a petit young woman, the bearhug is more of a Teddiursahug. "This is such a great idea! It means so much to me and August."

Marion suggests Chris's change in attitude might be related to a longing for offspring; an idea that had definitely crossed Duke's mind. She then playfully wonders if Sothe would be ready to be a dad yet, forcing a chuckle out of him. "Sothe doesn't seem to be ready of taking care of even a Skitty, much less fathering a child. He messes around too much. That said, I know they try. They try a lot. It's just nothing ever happens. If I had to put my finger on it, I'd say that's what caused her to grow more bitter and aggressive towards him with each passing month. I have a feeling she blames him for it, though the problem might not be with him alone..."

Back on the topic of Solaire, Marion shares once having similar issues with her own Litwick, which permanently went on about with a lit candle fire on his head. The fiery Ghost-type had managed to learn ow to control with time, and chances are, all that Solaire needed was a bit of maturity to handle it himself too. That being said, it would be nice if both got to meet each other, and Duke too had the feeling that they might become fast friends. A jovial and rash Larvesta, and a silent Litwick with a knack for shadow mimicry ... it should be an interesting pairing, no doubt. "Yeah, I can see it already. Gwyn and Solaire, sharing their souls with each other as they kindle a bonfire. I'm sure Solaire will learn a lot form him, though who knows, the experience might be mutual~"

Further down the line of conversation, even if Duke originally meant his comment of moving in as somewhat of a joke for caution's sake, Marion too seems to like the idea, and Duke nods with a curious grin as she remarks commenting it with his Pokémon. Sakura would probably utterly loathe even the thought of sharing the same roof as Chris, but for the most part he could see their entire squads getting along very well. It would be one crazy and fun mix up for sure. She also seems really excited about Duke's idea of having August, Durandal and Seath meet up at the Tree Grove, and he was glad too for he knew how much it meant for them all. She hugs Duke in excitement with a strong teddybear hug, and he holds her likewise, flashing his teeth in a wide smile as they separated. Happiness and excitement was such a contagious thing, and his own mixed with hers produced a grin on his face the likes that are sure to leave permanent marked wrinkles several years down the road. "You're welcome." He said, before joking a bit more. "Though you know, you sure we gon' manage to even wake up early after tonight? For them, I wouldn't mind a few extra bloated bags below my eye sockets if it means their happiness however. Lets make this a surprise for them, it's gonna really make their day, I bet!"

Marion laughs at Duke's assessment of his Sceptile's capabilities as a father (or lack thereof), and goes on to explain that despite the fact that Sothe and Orchrist were constantly attempting to satiate their carnal appetites, a child had not yet resulted from the union. The frustration from this lack of success seemed to be making Chris more and more irritated toward Sothe, who she blamed for the repeated failures, though Duke suspected that the blame did not lay entirely with Sothe. Marion thinks for a moment before responding; "It may be that they need to be taken to that Breeding Centre where we took August and Duran when they were ready to conceive... Granted, we made that decision on the basis that they needed an indestructible, dragon-proof room for their lovemaking, which only the Centre could provide..." Marion chuckles a bit. "I am told that Pokemon in captivity have difficulty breeding when compared to their wild counterparts. You raised Orchrist from an egg, correct? I mean, the Centre does all sorts of Pokemon fertility treatments, which can be helpful... but, of course, they have massive restrictions on which Pokemon can breed. The attendants have to be certain that the parents are experienced and well-trained enough to have a baby, and I'm sure you remember how intense they were when scrutinizing August and Durandal."

"Mmm. I bet the two of them could go on grand adventures together, as well..." Marion dreams of Gwyn and Solaire making their way through golden castles, fiery ruins and venomous swamps. Both creatures were vaguely torchlike, which made them perfect companions for exploring. Duke comments that Solaire would have a lot to learn from Gwyn, but that the little Litwick may learn a thing or two from Solaire, as well. "Learning is always a two-way street, isn't it? Solaire may be young, but I imagine Gwyn would have a lot to learn from his point of view."

Marion's happiness seems to spread to Duke, who flashes her a smile as they finally separate from their embrace. When Duke mentions waking up early, Marion feigns confusion. "Waking up...? Wait, we're going to sleep tonight? I didn't think that would be a possibility at this point..." Marion smirks with a hint of fire in her gaze; though she was not the type to act overly and heavily seductive, the slight hints and soft implications in her smile and her posture spoke volumes. She chuckles a bit, brushing some stray hair from her face back behind her shoulders. "I don't mind sacrificing my beauty sleep, either. They deserve a nice surprise. August is an early riser, so I know she will be awake and alert, even if I'm dragging myself to the Tree Grove, haha~" Marion realizes at the end of her laugh that her throat is feeling rather dry and scratching; with all the dancing and excitement that had been going on, she hadn't bothered to even think of rehydrating.

"Say, Duke... Would you like me to get you something to drink from the bar? I have to admit, I'm feeling rather parched..."

"I remember," Duke said as Marion to the time both August and Durandal had been taken to the Breeding Center. Perhaps she was right, and a visit to the centre could help out with their fertility issues. That said, Sothe has indeed been slacking off lately, almost deliberately. It was almost like he had made up his mind that he wasn't getting any stronger than he already was, and in turn, that indeed made him a poor companion for Chris. Perhaps her frustrations weren't unjustified, though if that was the case, Duke did have to question his own ability to bring out the best on his Sceptile. "Who knows? Maybe a miracle will happen~"

Marion then later ups Duke's joke about managing to fend off sleep in the morning by feigning ignorance at the idea of even going to sleep in the first place, the look on her eyes and her smile making a slight seductive implication which begged the rhetorical question of 'Why wouldn't you?' A classy form of a nudge, nudge and a wink, wink. Duke chuckles as she does, the mischievous look on his face implying an understanding of the words behind her gestures. She then asks if he would like her to get him a drink, a question which instantly made him aware of his own thirst.

"Me too. By all means, let me get them for you." He got up at once. Like calling shotgun, he knew by habit that standing up first meant he got to do the deed. "What would you want me to get for you? A classic Manhattan? Or perhaps a Rusty Nail, which a little birdie once told you love so much? Or perhaps, something completely different?"

"A miracle, huh..." Marion chuckles a bit, though she can sense that behind Duke's joking tone, there was genuine concern over the situation. After all, getting Sothe motivated to train to Lv.100, particularly when the result would be his inevitable fatherhood, was not a likely scenario given what she imagined to be his current state of mind. From Minerva's description of him, Marion pictured Sothe as a quintessential bachelor of sorts; certainly not a bad sort of fellow, but very much in the mindset of a free Sceptile, unburdened by the chains of responsibility. Children would probably look more like shackles than miracles to him, but Marion withheld judgment. For all she knew, there may be a part of Sothe that did want to become a father... Perhaps he would develop those desires with time.

Duke catches on quickly to the hidden meaning behind her comments, but finds himself recognizing his own thirst when she mentions wanting a drink. Ever the gentlemen, he offers to get them for her instead; Marion smiles at the act of chivalry, immediately thanking the dragon tamer. At the mention of the Rusty Nail, an odd mixture of delight and curiosity sparks in her eyes. "Actually, I would like a Rusty Nail, please... That little birdie of yours is no liar." Marion is intrigued by the bit of knowledge Duke had about her. It had been such a long time since she had ordered her favorite drink, and her last had been in the Bar, many months ago... She was surprised that Duke would remember that little detail about her, but clearly impressed. "Tell them light on the Drambuie, though... Don't want it too sweet." Marion smirks. "I like it with a bit of a bite."

"I'll remember that." Duke replies with a smirk of his own, a slightly naughty glint on his eyes as he made a mental note about it for later. He heads for the bar, not too far from Coselle and the rest of the group were at, though in the moment, he wasn't paying direct attention to anyone else around him. He calls out for the bartender before making his order. "A Rusty Nail please. Go light on the Drambuie. I'd also like a Cuba Libre. Make it two parts Rum Añejo, one part Lemon Soda, and one part Coke." Though Duke loved all kinds of drinks, he had a habit of starting off a night with one (or two!) effervescent Cuba Libres, mixed half and half and paked with that extra bit of punch resulting from aged rum. He remained apparently calm as he waited for his drinks, though the constant tapping of his foot against the floor revealed an eagerness to return as soon as possible.

Balmund gives Marion a smirk of his own, quickly catching on to the double entendre in Marion's drink order and noting both meanings... one for the drink, and one for later. Deciding on a delectable-sounding Cuba Libre for himself, he gives his order to the Bartender, who gives him a knowing glance, looking briefly toward the lavender-haired lady waiting on the couch and back at him; a bit of a nonverbal pat on the back, before immediately starting on the drinks. Though the capable Bartender moves efficiently when mixing the drinks, Duke cannot help but feel impatient, wanting to get back to Marion as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, Marion sinks into the couch, taking a deep breath in an attempt to process all that had happened to her in the evening thus far. As she removes a comb from her bag and begins brushing her now messy, static-laden hair back into its tame, stylized former self, the questions, which had been drowned out by the music and heat of the moment, were slowly beginning to resurface. Were she and Duke... dating? Was that even the right term? How would her Pokemon react to such news? Hell, how would Orchrist react? The worst she could expect from her own team was Coselle's constant taunting and teasing, as was her right as Marion's sister... but Orchrist was a different story. Minerva had explained after their evening at Duke's Secret Base that Orchrist referred to her trainer as "Daddy," which Minerva had, through fits of cackling, labeled as "de-ci-ded-ly Freud-i-an". Marion thought it oddly sweet, but also knew how utterly livid Orchrist would be upon finding out that she had to share "Daddy's" attention with somebody else... Not good.

Ultimately, Marion shrugs off these thoughts, deciding to leave them for another time. Why waste the night worrying? Better to live in the moment, to let the morning decide her fate. The night was young, and beautifully enigmatic, concealing the secrets of all who join in her revelry. For now, better to focus on getting her hair back in order, even though she knew, more than likely, the strands would still be flying every which way by the end of the night...

As Duke waited for his drinks to be ready, slight specks of doubt started to dot his mind. He had come to meet someone before, many years ago, not too long before he even started journeying far and wide. Back then, he had thought it to be a perfect match. A golden-haired girl with emerald eyes with whom he could share in literally everything. Ah, but young Chris did not think it so, and so, many "accidents" started happening, brought forth by the Seviper's intense feeling of jealousy. As kind hearted as one person could possibly be, it was just a matter of time before one starts having enough. Arguments started popping up ever more often, and Chris seemed to always be at their core. When the time came, he was forced to choose, and his choice broke his heart. Its been a constant struggle ever since. How far did he intended go on with this? Maybe, this wouldn't be a reenactment if his last failure. He wasn't young and inexperienced anymore. He was a seasoned trainer, and Chris too had matured somewhat over the years. Marion had also experience dealing with otherwise rather uncontrollable Pokémon. Maybe this time, it was really meant to be?

His line of thought is cutoff as both drinks made it to the table. Duke smiles, sliding his payment across the table and adding a generous tip to the skilled bartender. The man simply responds with a nod, his facial expression in a way nonverbally saying "Go get her already, tiger." Turning around, he walks back to the couch, handing Marion her drink before taking seat with his own. He looks at her for a solid second before commenting. "You look nice." Not like she didn't before, far from it, but he recognized the effort she put into grooming herself. He takes a long sip off his drink before moving on. "Say Marion, I'm curious, how's Cosie like? Is she your only sibling? What about your family?" He sought to strike conversation, seeking to know more about her. He knew however that talking about family could be a double-edge sword, and was ready to brush it off at a moment's notice. Family is, after all, a very close and sensitive thing, but he cared to know about hers just as much as he cared about his own. What better moment to bring it up than now, while the alcohol is just starting to run through one's body, loosening up those otherwise impossibly tight emotional locks?