The HQ Team (PLOT)

Steven felt his chest beginning to freeze over as, one by one, people started to leave the room. Eventually the room was empty except for himself, Wallace and--

"So! How're you boys on this lovely morning?" He would not answer her; he wouldn't even look at her. He tensed himself, hoping to hide the trembles that were starting to ripple down his skin as he fixed his eyes on a painting on the opposite wall. He edged away from Wallace, hoping that he wouldn't spot them either.

"You feeling better, Stevie?" Legends, no. Even though he wasn't looking he could feel her eyes staring at him; see the glimmer of her teeth as she grinned. She wouldn't... not now. "You seemed... tense, the last time I saw you."

When was he not tense?! Especially when this vile demon of a woman insisted on making him squirm! His head dipped as he looked down at his shoes, his fingers gripping the cabinet he was leaning on tightly. Should he say something? He wasn't about to say that he was fine when he clearly wasn't, and neither was he going to tell the truth of just how uncomfortable she was making him feel. Why couldn't she go and climb Mt Silver or something and just leave him alone?!

He kept his mouth tightly closed. He wouldn't even give her the pleasure of answering; to try would be to have it backfire spectacularly in his face, making silence his only weapon. If one could even call it a weapon. He could only hope that Wallace would dispel the silence in some way and distract her with bickering before she kept going; he wouldn't put it past her to blurt their little secret at any time.

"So!" Wallace's eyes closed against that hateful pitch. He did not enjoy being alone with Lance's demon protege. "How're you boys on this lovely morning?" She gave them both an eager, devilish grin that Wallace only mockingly returned before allowing it to fall back into a nearly hateful frown. "You feeling better, Stevie? You seemed ... tense, the last time I saw you."

"It's probably all his insides threatening to spill out," Wallace snapped back immediately, always eager to defend Steven against the horrible harpy. "Vomiting is a stressful experience, but a necessary one so the body can get rid of poisons or toxins. I'm surprised you hadn't noticed more people doing it around you."

---

"C'mon, baby, you know how long I can go for," he boasted a little too loudly-- several passerby whipped their heads as they walked by, earning a small chuckle from Karen. Dumb oaf. Dumb drunk oaf. "Don't you try to challenge me, 'cause you know I'll do it!"

"Uh huh," was Karen's confident answer.

Apparently, Sid's Houndoom didn't appreciate all the very, very intimate details and hit the guy with his tail. Good dog. "Hah! Sorry, bud," her fellow Elite Fourist laughed, though the light nature of the reply didn't seem to assuage the Houndoom's chagrin. "I kinda forgot you were here!"

It took a while for Sid to catch up with the sober Karen, though the extra exertion didn't seem to dampen the former's excitement or mood. "Maybe when all this shit is over, yeah? That's what we've gotta be thinkin' about. I have a feeling we'll both need a little pick-me-up after today, eh?"

"Yeah, probably. I still have a rockin' headache, though, thanks to last night." She gave her fellow Dark Master a coy grin as she paused before entering the surveillance room. "We have to watch the videos, ok? God knows I don't want Steven's high-pitched bodyguard shrieking at me."

Clair didn't even try to hide her grin as she watched Steven's face. Oh, how she did enjoy watching them squirm.

"It's probably all his insides threatening to spill out," his pet faggot snapped, always very quick to jump on the bandwagon and throw insults at her whenever he could. "Vomiting is a stressful experience, but a necessary one so the body can get rid of poisons or toxins. I'm surprised you hadn't noticed more people doing it around you."

Hoo boy, he was getting better and better at these. Clair looked straight at him and laughed, sadly shaking her head. "You really are rude, you know. It was a perfectly normal question. Besides, you should be thanking me..." Should she? Should she spill the beans right here and now? She certainly wanted to, just to witness the looks on their faces. "Ah, nevermind. I'm sure you already know. Since you two are practically glued to each other, I'm sure he's told you by now..."

Despite R2's insistence on making Colress go to the cafeteria for lunch earlier that day, the Beheeyem knew that the scientist was now not in any condition to deal with a large crowd. Colress could barely walk, and even idle conversation seemed completely out of his capabilities at the moment. There was also no telling just how many people were aware of what had happened, but R2 didn't want to take any chances there. Colress had been arrested, and people were quick to make assumptions and would be loud with them. As much as Colress needed food, risking his mental health wasn't worth it. Thankfully, since it was lunch time, R2 had a reasonably good idea which hallways would have more traffic and avoided them. The few people they did encounter didn't pay much attention to the pair beyond a questioning or even worried glance, but none of them actually asked since the Beheeyem was obviously already on the case.

When they made it to Colress's door, the scientist shakily reached into his pocket for his keys, and he nearly dropped them once they were out of his pocket. The only reason he didn't was thanks to R2 catching them in a psychic hold. R2 sent him a questioning glance, but Colress insisted, "I-i got it..." He grabbed them again in hand and tried to put the correct one in the door, but it took a lot of effort to actually make the key go in the hole. Despite how sad this looked, R2 didn't want to just take over; Colress had insisted a few times that he needed to do some of these things himself, and R2 had a feeling that if he jumped in too soon, it would only make Colress feel worse. It only took a little longer, but thankfully it wasn't long enough to make R2 reconsider his decision. Once the door was open, the Beheeyem quickly turned on the lights in the mostly bare room. He guided Colress inside and yanked the door shut before releasing the man near the bed. Colress flopped down onto the mattress, and he briefly entertained not even bothering taking off his jacket and shoes before a voice that was painfully reminiscent of his mother's reminded him "No shoes on the bed!" He fumbled with the laces on his shoes for a minute, but he wasn't one for complicated knots in the first place. After placing the shoes neatly next to his bed, he shrugged off the coat and painfully looked at his closet. Finally admitting defeat, he quietly asked, "Could you please hang this up for me?" The Beheeyem quickly complied with the request, and the scientist finally lied down as he tried to get a handle on his racing thoughts.

"It's probably all his insides threatening to spill out." As usual, Wallace jumped straight in there with a nasty snarl. While Steven did appreciate his friend's willingness to defend him, he immediately regretted his earlier wish that Wallace would start bickering to distract the dragon tamer.

Although he fully shared Wallace's sentiments about her being an awful person, sometimes wished he didn't act so eager to antagonize her. A woman like Clair was unpredictable; she could get her revenge in a variety of ways, and at any time. He didn't want to see her hurt Wallace. And especially not because Wallace stood up for him. He didn't deserve that.

"Vomiting is a stressful experience, but a necessary one so the body can get rid of poisons or toxins. I'm surprised you hadn't noticed more people doing it around you."

But she just laughed at him, completely unfazed, and shook her head. "You really are rude, you know. It was a perfectly normal question. Besides, you should be thanking me..." What was she getting at here? Thanking her for what? For--? "Ah, nevermind. I'm sure you already know. Since you two are practically glued to each other, I'm sure he's told you by now..."

Why would Wallace ever thank her for what they did that vile little--!

Calm down. Calm down.

She was enjoying this far too much; Steven just wanted to swipe that nasty smirk straight off her face. But he had to do something; she was so dangerously close to telling Wallace about what had happened. Knowing Clair, she'd be happy to do just that just to watch what happened afterwards. Steven was surprised she hadn't pulled out a bucket of popcorn yet.

"MAYBE," he began, a little too loudly. He cleared his throat and lowered his voice. "Maybe we should go for some lunch before we carry on the investigation." Even though eating was probably the last thing on earth he should attempt today, what with the somersaults his stomach was doing. "Goodness knows we need an hour to clear our heads..."

Don't ask, he silently begged his friend. That was all Clair needed to start running her mouth. Please, please don't ask.

[[skipping Karen]]


The snide laugh that Clair belched forth only succeeded in making Wallace's own frown deepen. Disgusting harpy. "You really are rude, you know. It was a perfectly normal question. Besides, you should be thanking me..." Pfft. Right. Like he should be thanking cancer or this damn plague. They're just so fucking thoughtful, after all. She seemed to consider something as her words trailed, earning a small inclination of his own brow. What, was she working on some other disgusting comment? "Ah, nevermind. I'm sure you already know. Since you two are practically glued to each other, I'm sure he's told you by now..."

The comment would have been innocuous to Wallace; after all, he barely ever took Clair's words to heart or even thought she was ever telling the truth. But Steven's reaction gave her words weight. "MAYBE," he started a little too loud and abruptly for Wallace's liking. Sure, the man was on edge around Clair, but if Clair had something on him... "Maybe we should go for some lunch before we carry on the investigation." Wallace eyed his friend a moment; he had barely been up for breakfast. While Wallace would be intensely relieved to hear Steven's appetite was actually back, something nagged at the back of his mind. Something with obnoxious blue hair and a stupid fuck-off grin. "Goodness knows we need an hour to clear our heads..."

Oh, Steven... What did you do?

With Clair there, there wasn't anything Wallace could or wanted to do. He had no desire to pick Steven apart while she watched. Oh no, he wouldn't give her the satisfaction. However, there was no chance he was forgetting this. He gave a curt nod and gently grasped Steven's arm. "You're absolutely right, Steven. We should go and get something to eat while the others are looking through the tapes. We won't be able to do anything for the investigation until they're done." He gave a seething, hateful glare to Clair as he pulled Steven toward the door. "See you then, I guess." He took no time to pull Steven away and out the door after him, wanting nothing more than to get his best friend away from that fermenting trash fire.

"MAYBE," Steven bellowed, barely a second after she'd spoken, "Maybe we should go for some lunch before we carry on the investigation." Aww. Clair found it so pitifully sad for poor Stevie trying so obviously hard to avoid the conversation that he was destined to have at some point. Judging by Wallace's expression, this wasn't something he was about to let go. Clair wished she could sit at the same table as them in the canteen, just to listen. "Goodness knows we need an hour to clear our heads..."

"You're absolutely right, Steven. We should go and get something to eat while the others are looking through the tapes. We won't be able to do anything for the investigation until they're done." Wallace was already starting to drag his friend out of the room, casting a nasty glare at her as he left. Clair stuck her tongue out at him. "See you then, I guess."

"Bye bye, boys," she called cheerfully as the door closed, leaving her alone in the room. She thought of last night, of how easy it was; she remembered Steven dashing off to the bathroom at the sight of her that morning; she conjured up the image of Wallace's face when he inevitably found out the truth.

And she laughed and laughed.

Steven didn't need Wallace to keep dragging him; he tore out of that room like a mad Tauros, and wasted no time in making his way back to the staircase.

"I am actually hungry now," he babbled to Wallace. "Which I'm sure you'll be glad to hear. I hope they've done that wonderful stew again, you know, the one from last week? That was delicious."

What the heck was he even talking about? If anything, he was making it even more obvious that he was trying to distract Wallace by talking about... stews, of all things. Ugh. Maybe he should start up a fascinating discussion about paperclips next.

"I bet Wally is there by now," he went on, rounding the corner to the next floor. Yes, Wally. That was a far better subject to bring up. Where could he go with that? It took less than a second to think of something. "I'm not sure if we should tell him what's happened... I'd hate to scare him."

(I will come back and edit in my image and text color later)

[[Can't say much else other than Wallace agreed to go. He won't ask Steven stuff until after the time skip. So skip, please omo]]

"Yeah, probably. I still have a rockin' headache, though, thanks to last night," Karen said, stopping outside of the surveillance room with a grin. They couldn't have picked a worse night for one of their binges, considering what had happened the next day. "We have to watch the videos, ok? God knows I don't want Steven's high-pitched bodyguard shrieking at me."

"Eh. Wallace is all right," Sidney said, holding the door open for her. "He is kinda loud though ... not to mention he needs to chill. I bet if we could get a few beers down his neck, he'd be a riot!"

The three of them filed into the small square room lined with flickering television screens on all of the walls. Sidney pulled over one of the chairs next to the largest TV and sat down, patting his thighs for Karen to sit on. "Might as well get nice and close, eh?" he grinned. "A small, dark room and plenty of time on our hands. Anything could happen."

Judas snorted from the other side of the room and sat down by the door, his tail curled around his paws.

"He won't mind watching," he added, barking with laughter at his Pokemon's horrified expression.

Steven's legs moved faster than they had in a long time, carrying him up the steps in long, quick strides. Anything to get as far away from Clair and the police station as possible in record time.

He couldn't have been happier to see the cafeteria and all the people that were starting to file their way in there. He inhaled the smells of lunch and grabbed himself a tray; any Clair-free environment was enough to lift his moods today.

But as wonderful as Clair's temporary absence was, there was still the matter of the investigation. That wasn't quite so easy to ignore. He grabbed a sandwich from the refrigerator, the events of the last hour spiraling around in his mind like a giant whirlpool.

He moved further along the buffet, filling his tray, and looked up at all the people in the room. Any one of these could be the vermin who killed that poor man and started this whole drama. Who were they? Why had they done it? And the most important question of all: would they strike again?

But Steven had to have faith, as difficult as it was, in Sidney and Karen, trusting that they would come to them with answers in time, and they could apprehend the killer and restore HQ to the safe haven it was supposed to be.

For now, all they could do was wait.

((There will now be a timeskip to the following morning, if everybody could implement that in their posts. Thank you.))

Wallace sighed as he took in a long breath, staring down the long, wide shimmering blanket of water set out before him. He readjusted his goggles and swimming cap before stepping onto the short platform at the head of the pool. His arms stretched down to his toes, his legs bent and locked, and then he dove in.

The sensation of the cool water, the pure focus of his body's actions and rhythm gave him tranquility. The madness and disaster that had haunted yesterday were now forgotten as Wallace cut through the water. As he swam, he caught flashes of his pokemon swimming around him, his Milotic steadily keeping pace with him underneath. He reached the other side and did a kickoff, rocketing himself back toward the end where he'd jumped in.

This continued for a short while before he tagged the wall for a final time and then erupted out of the water with a deep gasp. His lungs and muscles screamed for reprieve, leaving him to gently tread water as his pokemon gathered. "You're getting faster," Siren commented once Wallace placed the Poke Comm earpiece back in. "But your endurance is still kind of terrible."

"Thanks... Siren..." he managed between gasps. "I... a... appre... ciate... the... optimism..."

"'Optimism' indeed," Rothbart sneered from his perch on the edge. "You're beginning to plateau. Your progress has been less and less each month. Soon you'll simply regress and then how will you beat the other swimmer--" He took a moment to look out at the empty pool, then returned his spiteful gaze down to Wallace. "Oh. Right. No one else is here. Meaning you're doing all this work for... what, exactly?"

"Because I... like swimming..." Wallace quipped back at the swan."Ass."

"And I like eating fish. Doesn't mean I should spend all my free doing that."

Siren cast the swan a judgemental glance and quirked an eyebrow. "Could have fooled me."

"Oh my God." Wallace pulled himself out of the pool as the two bickered, unwilling and unable to quell their argument. They had never gotten along and the Water master hadn't actively tried to get them to do so in a long time. It was just easier to make sure they didn't actually come to blows. After quickly drying himself off and changing, he collected his pokemon and began his trek to the cafeteria, leaving Siren out for the walk.

"Sometimes I wish you would get rid of that horrible bird," Siren muttered angrily as he slithered alongside his trainer. "No, not sometimes. All the time. He's the worst."

"Eh, me too," Wallace chuckled. He'd found the bird just before the Epidemic, so their relationship began strained. "But he's part of the family. You're going to have to just deal with it."

"Absolutely not. You're just going to have to deal with that."

Wallace chuckled. "I do love the sound of vitriol in the morning."

---

"KAREN."

The named woman awoke with a start and a snort, half her face contoured to the many squares of a keyboard. She looked around for the source of the voice, soon spotting Slick glowering at her from above the computer monitor. She inhaled and sleepily stretched, groaning a little from the strain. "Shit, I fell asleep."

"You did, you really did," Slick snapped angrily as he moved from behind the monitor. "You and that skin-headed moron both."

Karen rolled her eyes. "Can you blame me? We looked at that footage for HOURS and found diddly shit. We were fucking bored and tired and you wouldn't let us fuck so we fell asleep. Is that so hard to believe?"

It was Slick's turn to roll his own eyes. "That's the sad thing-- it's not. And you DID find something--"

"-'Diddly shit' doesn't count-"

"--you found the blip. You need to tell Steven and the others."

"Why, so he can cry over it?" She gave a yawn and leaned back in her chair, scowling at her pokemon. "He'll be as interested in it as I am."

"It's SOMETHING. An electric pokemon could have shorted out the footage. There's like four missing minutes. We need to tell someone."

Karen groaned and placed her hand on Slick's face before pushing back on him. "Ugh, fine. To shut you up."

Sidney hadn't even remembered dozing off the night before. One moment he and Karen had been protesting to Slick about letting them have a quick fuck-break and the next, he must've literally just passed out. Who could blame them? They'd sat in that dark little room staring at a screen all afternoon, with barely a result to show for it.

...Except that wasn't true. Sidney sat up in the chair he was slumped in, rubbing his face. About five minutes of footage had been inexplicably missing, and that was fishy as fuck. He wouldn't be surprised if the killer had planned for that to happen to cover their tracks. He picked up the notepad where he'd taken notes and tucked it into his pocket - they needed to go and tell Steven and the others.

"Aww, man," Sidney groaned, still massaging his face. "C'mon, babe, Slick's right. We ought to get this to the others." Maybe then while the big shots figured it out, he and Karen would get the break they needed. He wobbled to his feet, hissing as his stiff limbs ached in protest. "Ugh, I feel like I've been tied in a knot."

He looked towards the door to see that Judas was waking up too, raising his head with a yawn. He patted his Houndoom's head as he stretched into a stand.

He's still not really sure how he managed to pretend everything was okay in front of Steven during their lesson later that day, but he's very grateful he didn't find out about the murder until after that lesson. Fussing over Colress was a bit of a mercy; finally, something other than his own fragile self esteem to focus on. He made the man soup, did his best to soothe his fears, put on an old movie to distract them both for a little while, and then sent him to bed early.

Thank god for the backup that is R2D2. He made sure the alien promised to come get him if Colress had any severe nightmares or issues during the night. Given that he's staring at his own ceiling this morning with no memory of being woken up the night before, Col must've managed to sleep through the night.

Kind of surprising, considering the frozen, dead body that freaking fell on him earlier. He can't help but be relieved, though. Looking after his friends is a wonderful outlet... but god, is it a draining one.

Despite having done something good the night before for someone, he feels raw and exhausted.  

"Can we cancel today?" he moans into his pillow. A gentle hand strokes his head, combing his hair with their fingers.

"I'm afraid not, Wally."

"The sun can fuck off," the boy grumbles, dragging himself up and rubbing his eyes as he flips the bird at the offending bright light streaming through his window.

"You say that every morning. I don't think the sun cares." Though the fairy's back is turned as he packs Wally's bag for him, he can tell Orion is smiling; his voice is warm with amusement.

"What can I say; I'm persistent. And annoyed." He grabs blindly for his clothes, eyes still mostly closed, and shuts himself into the bathroom.

Bleh.

It's not until the water of the shower strikes him that he's yanked from the 'ick' zone straight into 'the world is ending' zone.

Oh fuck I forgot- my walkman!

Attempts to track Clair down last night had ended with near tears and a desire to hit something. It's a miracle he'd gotten that under control by the time he went to find Col.

And as he went to sleep last night he resigned himself to the fact that he'd have to go looking for her this morning too, shit, he completely forgot and now everything sucks a thousand times more than it already did.

He started yesterday with a sense of dread and sadness and by the end of the day the world was like 'I see your depression and raise you something to actually be depressed about, goodbye.' Now one of his best friends is a person of interest in a goddamned murder, one of his other best friends is sort of coming apart at the seams, and one of his most precious possessions is in the hands of someone who hates him.

Who he has to seek out. Deliberately. And hope she'll just give him the damned thing back.


He feels like a child being sent to the principal.  

Trying to ignore the dread twisting his guts and threatening to make him vomit, he stares at his shoes as he waits, wondering how long it'll take her to show up. She did just have a murder case thrown in her lap, so she'd have to be in a little early, right? It's his best shot at speaking to her alone, and he has to take it, even if it means he misses breakfast.

He didn't check up on Colress. The guilt decides to tango with the dread and now he thinks he really will throw up.

Jesus, Wally. Breathe. It's not like this is life or death. All you're going to do is ask about the walkman. That's all. Calm the hell down.  

But what if she doesn't-

He focuses on breathing slowly and deeply. Right now, he has to believe she will. Because it's a lot easier than believing he'll have to go talk to Steven about it.

To say yesterday had been a disaster would be an understatement.

Having finally found where he was supposed to be, he was scolded and then handed to what had to be the worst manager on their staff- the same man who yelled at him early that morning.  

The rest of the day was a blur of boredom, monotony, and anxiety. He hated when the manager walked too closely. It felt like a shark stalking him. He wasn't sure he truly appreciated what Corsola must feel like being watched by a Sharpedo until yesterday. He couldn't help but spoil his own that evening with a tiny bit of hot chocolate (hot chocolate this place had hot chocolate) and a little fruit.

Waking up with Fiona on his face was soothing at first. The warm, soft body and gentle breathing nearly convinced him to go back to sleep.  

But then she spoke.

"Hey. You're actually up before your alarm for once. You okay?" Her dark eyes searched his own, which fixed themselves on the ceiling.

"O- oh- just... just f-fine." He managed a shaky smile.  Fiona, however, wasn't that naive. He could feel her look more than he could see it, and he winced.

"It... w- wasn't a good night," he admitted. She nuzzled against his face as she moved to get off him, allowing the professor to sit up. No sooner had he pulled himself out of bed than a squirt of water splashed his face, making him yelp and wave his arms to ward off some unseen attacker.

"Carla!"

"I- uh- water is the best way to wake up in the morning!" The sentient coral bounced a little. He couldn't help but huff a laugh as his hands closed around his glasses and he went into the bathroom to make himself presentable.

"Th- thanks, Carla but- c-can you... p-please don't do that again? I l-like to get my water from the- the sink."

"Okay!" Her bright tone doesn't waver. Ah, Carla. Never change.

Getting ready for the day was easy. Brief shower, comb hair, find his clothes, put on glasses, and done. He gathered up his precious research documents and placed them into his weathered bag, shrugging on his lab coat and slinging the bag over his shoulder.

Today would be different. He wouldn't need to see that awful man today. Everything would be fine.

He fed his other pokemon and bade them goodbye, watching as Pele stole his bed again. With a final wave and a lecture to Sodo to stay in the room this time, he left them to their devises and hurried right to the laboratories.




Actually finding them proved to be a challenge, but thanks to some very patient passersby, he reached the area- and stopped in shock.

Police tape roped the area off, officers poking around. What in the world happened here?  

Fiona's nose twitched. "I... don't smell anything."

He was now very glad he put Carla into her ball. The hyperactive rock would not help matters here. "Should... we go inside anyw- way?" Something told him that would be a terrible idea.

"Emmanuel, look." Fiona pointed out an officer coming their way. Elm cleared his throat and straightened, trying not to look too much like a nervous owl.

"Can I help you, sir?"

"Um- yes- a- actually- I was told I'd start working in the labs today? I'm P-professor Elm of Johto?" He held out his hand and after a moment of surprise, she shook it, giving him a smile. He could melt with relief.

"Nice to see you, professor." She let go of his hand and he dropped hers, awkwardness coloring his pale, drawn cheeks. How long had it been since he shook someone's hand? He did it correctly, right? She didn't look offended. "I'm sorry to say that the labs won't be accessible, at least for today. There was a crime and we have to make sure we go through everything here with a fine toothed comb."

"O-oh! I'm s-sorry if I got in- in the way!" Morificaton turned his face a few shades redder. She only shook her head.

"Not at all, professor. But I'm afraid you'll have to find something else to do today."

"O- okay. I can- I can do that. Thank you for your help, officer."

"Hey, Saki!  We need you over here!" Elm spots an officer behind her, waving her over. She looked over her shoulder, spotted him, and held up a finger to him before looking back at Elm.

"Sorry, but I'm going to need to go now. You have a good day now, professor. Maybe try the library?"

"Oh! A library!" He beamed, waving to her as she turns to leave. "That s- sounds like a great idea! Thank you, officer!"

She disappeared into the hallways of the science area. He smiled and walked back the way he came, waving to several police officers on the way back. A library! He was in seventh heaven.

"Em, do... do you know where the library is?"

The joy drained from his face. "Oh."

(I was supposed to go before Wally, but we talked and I'm just going to go after him this time. Next time it'll go in the proper order. :) Also, Colress, feel free to have Elm be in the library by the time your character finds his way there.)

Colress more or less spent the rest of the day in bed, and R2D2 thanked the powers above that Wally dropped by later. Colress had not moved from his position, and the presence of another person at least forced him to react. Since he hadn't eaten, Wally had insisted on making some soup for him before sticking in an old movie to watch. R2 almost cheered when Colress had spoken a little to make comments on what they were watching; as long as he could speak and, even better, make smart remarks, then he wasn't slipping again. However, R2 and Wally agreed that Colress needed rest still, and so Wally left the pair early to their own devices. Before going, Wally had R2 make a promise to come get him if nightmares were bad that night. Once the boy was gone, Colress decided to change into more comfortable clothes to sleep, and he passed out face down. Normally, R2 would sleep in his pokeball, but the day's events worried him enough to stay out for the night. The bed was large enough for R2 to sleep on as well, and he was close enough to notice if Colress lashed out or made sounds that night. When R2 woke up, it was to the sound of Colress' alarm clock beeping obnoxiously followed by a loud thud as it landed on the floor.

Since Colress didn't have his translator on, R2 sent a telepathic message, Missed? Of course he started the day off with a teasing jab. He only hoped Colress would respond in kind.

"Shut up." The groggy crankiness was apparent in Colress' voice, and he scooted closer to the bed's edge to reach the offending object. With his face turned away from the Beheeyem, he didn't notice R2's smile of victory as the alien sat up and stretched. Once the clock's accursed beeping was silenced, Colress sighed heavily as he contemplated actually getting out of bed today. The nightmares had definitely flared, but he had stayed asleep for once. Normally he was more prompt about waking up, but he knew it was highly unlikely that he would even be allowed to work today. The lab, especially his and Henry's portions, would be taped off as the police investigated, and even then, until his name was cleared, he didn't think anyone would be willing to work with him. That last thought weighed a ton, and R2 could feel him sinking further into the mattress as he came up with more and more reasons to not move.

The Beheeyem, however, wasn't having it; he had already let his trainer stay alone in his thoughts for too long, and letting them fester was out of the question. Jabs and teasing were his best ways to know Colress' mood, so he pushed the much larger human as he cheerfully announced, Alright! Wake up, Sleepy!

"I'm not asleep," Colress retorted childishly with his voice still muffled by the pillow.

Coulda fooled me.

"What's the point? It's not like I can really leave the room," Colress sighed again. It was clear that his mood was sinking again.

Even in telepathy, R2's voice was firm, Well, you're going to eat, and while leaving the room is optional for that, we're not staying in here all day.

"Why not? I don't feel like getting stared at and whispered about behind my back today."

Sorry, but that whispering is going to happen whether you're there or not. Besides, you know you didn't do it.

"Yes, but people talk and sometimes take matters into their own hands."

And that's why I'll be right there. No one will be stupid enough to actually do something if I'm there.

"You underestimate what outrage does to the masses."

R2's grim determination was clear, I will stop them. No one will lay a hand on you.

"Please... don't hurt someone over me," the scientist's voice was quiet and almost desperate.

He knew where Colress was going with that, and he decided to completely avoid the topic. I won't have to. I just have to stop them. There is a big difference

Colress' defeated tone alerted R2 to another small victory, "Fine..." The human reached for his glasses on the table and put them on before swinging his legs off the bed and standing. He headed straight to the bathroom to take a shower. A WARM shower, thank you very much. Between yesterday's events and the nightmares, warm water was appreciated and helped him focus on almost anything else as he prepared for the day. When he opened the bathroom door again, R2 was noticeably missing, and he figured that the alien had gone to pick up breakfast for the both of them again. He was grateful that he didn't have to face a bunch of people at once, and he hoped that wherever else R2 dragged him to do would be quiet. He did need to let Magneto and Spock out sometime today, so maybe they could find a quiet corner in an arena or something. He made a mental note to get something for the Metagross to eat. As Colress continued thinking about things he needed to do, he finished his preparations except for one noticeable difference. He wasn't sure if he should put on his lab coat today. It was almost a comfort item, but it would also draw other people's attention...

At that moment, R2 came back in with food and forced the scientist to sit down and eat. Once again, Colress couldn't finish the whole plate, but he ate noticeably more than yesterday morning. Maybe he was trying to make up for missing so much of yesterday? Or that was what R2 hoped anyway. When Colress stood up to put the plate away, R2 noticed that he wasn't wearing the lab coat and had to ask, "Going without the coat?"

Colress nervously explained, "I'm... not sure if it would be a good idea..."

"Remember what we talked about earlier?"

Yes... but-"

R2 quickly interrupted, "No buts. We're heading to the Library; it shouldn't be that busy."

"Not going to convince me that it should be empty?" The scientist was not so subtly referencing how they had met Wally in the first place, and how it happened because R2 hadn't checked the library before assuming it was empty.

"It's daytime, and you're never going to let that go are you?"

Colress' answer was merely a cheeky smile as he carefully put his lab coat on before opening the door and gesturing for R2 to go first. R2 responded with a gesture many would consider rude before heading out, and the scientist followed behind him. They had waited until the main morning rush had died out before leaving, so the hallways were thankfully far less crowded than they could be. Colress noticed that a few people did stare, but they kept their mouths shut around him. Most people seemed more concerned about their own businesses and lives, and Colress and R2 were okay with that. No one spoke to the scientist or alien Pokemon during the entire trek to the library, but they were both glad anyway to get to their destination.

The library doors creaked a little as the pair made it inside, and after Colress took a few steps in, he paused as he considered where he wanted to go. What did he feel like reading today? Definitely some form of fiction, and preferably no murder mysteries involved. While those could be fun, recent events were trying to be ignored and not brought up. Nothing immediately jumped out at him, so he settled for browsing the Sci-Fi section until something caught his attention. As he and R2 walked through the sections, Colress thought he saw someone wearing white, and he froze. He hadn't considered one of the scientists coming here today, and if any group knew what was going on, it would be them. For the moment, he hoped that whoever it was hadn't seen him and pressed onward.

Steven was awoken that morning by his Skarmory's sharp beak poking him in the ribs. He groaned, twisting around to reach his communicator on his bedside table, and inserted it into his ear as his bird said, "I thought I'd let you have an extra half hour after yesterday."

"What time is it?" Steven caught a glimpse of his clock and sighed, burrowing down into the covers, unwilling to leave their warmth just yet. "Thank you," he said to his Pokemon, rubbing his already sore head. "But I could've used a week."

Skarmory gave him a sympathetic look before easing off some of the covers with his beak. "Come on," he said as his Trainer growled in protest. "I bet Wallace will be almost finished at the pool by now. You can go and meet him."

"That's true." Steven half-rolled, half-climbed out of bed and staggered off towards the bathroom. "We need to go and see Sidney and Karen today, carry on with the--"

"Breakfast first," Skarmory said firmly, jumping up onto the couch. "Need to get some meat back on those bones."

Steven showered and dressed quickly, and was at the door within twenty minutes. "All right...I'll see you later."

His Pokemon was already dozing back off on the couch, and merely waved a wing at him as he closed the door.

[[skipping Wallace]]


"Aww, man," Karen turned to see her fellow Dark Master trying to rub the sleepiness and soreness from his face. "C'mon, babe, Slick's right. We ought to get this to the others." She clicked her tongue in dismay-- she hated it when everyone around her was being responsible. Made it so much harder for her to ignore her own duties. "Ugh, I feel like I've been tied in a knot."

"Well you weren't, because Slick is a party-pooper," Karen grumbled back while she stretched. "Fine. We'll show them the blip of nothing. And they're gonna ask 'how did this happen', 'what would have caused this', and 'would it be possible for the murder to have happened in that timeframe' and all we're gonna be able to do is shrug and stick our thumbs up our asses." She snatched the CD from the computer and stuck it in its case, glaring at the little innocent metal disk. Piece of shit.

She turned and gave Sidney a hard smack to the back. "Let's go. If I have to suffer, so do you."

Clair was not in a good mood this morning. At all. After yesterdays shenanigans with the dead guy no one cared about and bumping into the fruit bat with his pet rock her evening had gone less than pleasant. She ended up being up half the night fussing with that stupid toy she had taken from the pint-sized nobody in the halls but the stupid thing was too stupid to know it was stupid. Staying up so late had caused her to oversleep and not only miss breakfast but the little bit of coffee she had been able to get was cold sludge with a muffin so stale she could break someone's skull with it. Though that part sounded dandy right about now. She dropped both her "breakfast" and that stupid walkman in the trash on the way to her office so she wouldn't have to deal with either of them any longer.

So here she was. No food, no sleep, no coffee, and on her way to fucking work because some idiot wound up getting himself offed. Who cared? Did anyone know that moron's name before yesterday? No. No they did not. So what did it matter he was gone? Ugh this was just another way for the idiots on this mountain to waste her precious time. As she rounded the corner to the hallway her office was on a familiar mop of green hair stuck out against the pale corridor. 'Speak of the fucking devil.'

She came up behind the small boy slowly, grinning when he proved too lost in his own mind to notice her presence once again and this time without his stupid toy. Just proved her point that the kid was too pathetic to be here, he couldn't even notice his surroundings. Useless little shit. He was standing in front of her door like a fucking doormat and to her that's all he would ever be good for. "Looking for someone?" She asked from behind him in the most sickeningly sweet voice she could muster, waiting for him jump out of his skin.

Navigation had never been his strong suit, especially in places he'd never been before. As he wandered through hallway after hallway, Elm recalled a time, one that felt from a long-ago childhood memory now (but was actually from a point in young adulthood, he supposed), where he had come to this fabulous collection of hotels with his mother to witness what his mother firmly believed would be the crowning of a new champion. He'd nearly missed the match, the young challenger having made their way through the Elite Four and to the Champion's room while he frantically navigated halls that all looked the same. He remembered fretting about disappointing his mother.

Remarkable, how out of all the things that had changed about himself and this place, the hallways still all looked the same and he was still utter garbage at finding his way.  He'd hoped he could find the library by himself, but... as Fiona tried to eye him without him noticing, the sinking feeling of defeat took him over. Had it really been an hour already?

There was no point in continuing this fruitless quest. It was time to ask for help.

And after asking for that help, it still took several kind passersby to help him locate the library. Stepping through the doors made the flush of shame drain out of him in an instant.

It was a little messy. It was clearly improvised with any books that could be salvaged from around the world. It was a bit awkwardly set up.

It's perfect.

When was the last time he'd smelled that- that book smell? Or felt the unique, hushed atmosphere of a library? He could almost forget the circumstances that made the library look slightly out of place!

(The fact that he couldn't remember what this room had once been was definitely a help to that, but whatever.)

Grinning like a child on Christmas morning, he stepped inside and went immediately to the sci-fi section. If this was going to be his first time in years in a nearly-proper library, he was going to celebrate. He nearly laughed as Fiona streaked on ahead; oh, it was so, so good to see her excited, too. The amount of time she spent worrying about them was obscene; she deserved to enjoy herself, too!

And now for the first time in a long while, they could enjoy some pure, simple, entertainment. He couldn't wait.

Rounding the corner of some shelves where he saw his Furret's tail disappear around, he found her standing near some books, sniffing at them. At his footsteps she turned to smile at him, eyes bright.

"Em, look."

He joined her and crouched, a smile breaking across his face at the sight of one of his favorite series. "W- wow! They have-!"

He didn't bother finishing the sentence, grabbing his favorite out of the books and straightening. It wasn't his copy, but...

Oh, the memories.

He was so engrossed he didn't realize there was someone nearby until Fiona made a soft noise.  Looking up from his book, he blinked owlishly at the tall, thin, nervous man who looked like he'd meant to disappear behind some other shelves before being noticed. Something in his posture was frail and frightened, like an abused animal, and Elm's brain immediately bypassed the usual accessment it went through before saying or acting on anything.

"O- oh! I- I'm sorry; did- did you want to look, too?" He steps back away from the books to give the other man room to browse the books as well; realizing he didn't plan for an interaction, he froze for a moment, seeking something more to say to avoid looking like a complete idiot; his eyes caught sight of the book in his hands and off his mouth went. "It's- quite a good series? If you're interested?"

Fiona's body, curled protectively around her human's feet, relaxed, straightening a little to sniff in the newcomer's direction, her species' curiosity taking over. This would be the first time in a while that Emmanuel talked to someone purely for socialization, wouldn't it be? Yes, she's quite sure it was.

Don't you dare ruin this day for him, then.

Wally pulls his coat a little further around himself, his hands moving to hold themselves in front of his chest.  At the last minute he remembers how pathetic this looks and instead folds his arms across his chest.  It's not that much better, but it's something, at least.  

He starts to rock on his heels a little.  Stupid him, forgetting his watch.  Maybe he should've gone back for it after all.  Isn't she supposed to be here by now!?

"Looking for someone?"

He jumps with a small noise akin to an animal being startled, whirling around to find the gross, false smile that matched her gross, falsely sweet voice.  This woman could win the 'punchable face' award.

"Y-yeah, actually; you.  You said I could have my Walkman back yesterday and then I couldn't find you anywhere; can I have it back now?"

The urge to include some less than flattering language in there is strong, very strong, but he resists the urge.  He needs his gift back before he can do anything.  As angry and humiliated as he feels (god his face is hot; he must be very red by now) he has to remember she's got his shit and isn't liable to give it back if he tells her exactly what he thought of that dumbass, obvious question.

When Colress had managed to duck behind a different bookshelf to wait for the other scientist to leave, he didn't notice exactly where he ended up. He immediately picked up the first book on the shelf in an attempt to look busy should the other spot him and follow. R2 saw the picture on the front and couldn't help himself; the Beheeyem started laughing. Colress gave R2 a confused glance, but he opened the book without looking at the cover. He only had to read the blurb on the inside cover before realizing that he was in the worst section possible for him. He hastily put the book back with a little more force than was necessary; his face mildly turning red from the embarrassing content the book held. He should have realized that going blindly into a library could have disastrous results. He now realized why a book that appeared to be about color theory was apparently so popular a few years back, and he wasn't sure if he really needed or wanted to know that.

To add to the embarrassment, his attempt to slip by unnoticed failed completely. A nervous voice stuttered out, "O- oh! I- I'm sorry; did- did you want to look, too?" He heard the other man shift over; the quiet library amplified sounds rather well. Then the other man offered, "It's- quite a good series? If you're interested?" That piqued Colress' interest, but he was a little confused. Wouldn't another scientist immediately recognize him? Then again, he didn't recognize this scientist either; maybe this was someone new? Given how thin the other scientist was, it might not be an incorrect assumption. Regardless, he could not ignore a direct question without being rude,  and he began steeling himself for interaction.  

R2 looked the other scientist and his Furret over, too. He wasn't sure why this stranger would take such an interest in Colress, but he couldn't quite make himself think that the other scientist was a threat. The man had a stutter and almost seemed as nervous of them. The Beheeyem decided to be friendly for now; no need to show off his power to scare people off. When Colress took a few steps away from the shelf to address the other, R2 casually floated next to him. If anything, as a reminder that Colress had someone with him.

"Oh um..." he took a look at the offered book in the other man's hands. The title immediately caught his attention; it was from a series he enjoyed. His nervousness started melting away in familiarity, and he said, "Oh! I've read this before. It has been a while though..." He paused as he considered it, "You already picked that one out, though. I'll get a different one." While his nervousness was being hidden by polite niceties, he couldn't help but worry about when the other might finally ask something or recognize him. He couldn't help smiling and waving at the Furret, however; Pokemon were able to make him more at ease.

((I apologize for any errors, I had to borrow a friend's phone for this.))

The pool. Encountering Wallace by the pool was never enjoyable; it meant first encountering the crowd coming from the pool. Many stopped to wave at him, or squeal over him with their friends, or smile in his general direction. Though definitely in no mood to greet the public today, Steven nonetheless returned smiles and pleasant greetings as he tried to dodge his way through the crowd. As it tapered off he found himself wishing for the crowd back. It wasn't so bad, really, and every minute he spent elsewhere was another minute before he had to face Clair again during this investigation.

The investigation... Steven felt his stomach sink. After the horror that was a couple nights ago, the following day had been consumed with only fears of Clair and what she might do with what had transpired the night before. But now, with a fresh day in front of him, more fear had found a way to trickle to the forefront of his mind.

A murder had taken place, here, in their salvaged remains of the human society. It wasn't like murder never happened; in a city of thousands, of course violent crime was going to occur. But for the first time, someone somewhat important had died. A man working towards their cure, one of their deeply valued men of the sciences. And they had almost nothing to show for an entire day of investigation.

Lance would be furious, when he returned. Frankly, he'd be furious anyway, but if they at least had a murderer to show him, he'd probably be placated at least a little.

And even disregarding Lance's wrath, gods that be forbid this was only the start. What if more of their team should die? They can't afford to lose these people; they may be their only hope of curing this epidemic!

At least, Steven reflected, letting out a breath, he could be grateful for one thing. If the murderer had not used a bomb, then it was unlikely they were going to. And that should prevent the mass killing of one of their most important resources, as much as it pained him to consider people as one might objects.

The murdered man had neither family nor friends. This meant no grieving loved ones left behind. Something in his chest stirred at the thought, and the Champion felt sick from wondering if such a fact was for the better or worse.

Gods, what had their world come to, that this is something he should even be wondering?

Calm down, Steven, he scolded himself, stroking an arm for a moment. You've only been out for fifteen minutes; you can't fall apart just yet. At least wait until Clair shows her face.

... All right, that joke to himself was terrible. Even by his standards.

Oh, thank goodness. At last, a green-blue bob of hair. And he didn't look angry, so his secret was still safe. At least he had a little more time before Wallace knew and his opinion of him changed forever. The smile returned to his face, a little more genuine this time.

Enjoy what time you have left, Steven, before everything is different.

He stepped up to his friend; after the disaster that was yesterday, it might be more... prudent, to act something closer to how Wallace remembered him. In an effort to call up times past, he surveyed the other man with a critical eye and observed, with a smile breaking any illusion of seriousness, "I think you have a hair out of place."

Wallace hadn't expected Steven to greet him outside the pool at all; in fact, just seeing the man moving around without being scolded or prompted lit the Water Master's face with pure delight. Of course, as they both closed the gap between them, Wallace's elation gave way to some coyness as Steven smirked, "I think you have a hair out of place."

"Look at you, Mr. Smarty-Pants. Feeling good today?" he teased, though a hand did run through his hair. You know, just in case. Can never be too careful and all of that. His grin didn't waver as he continued to joke, happy that for once, Steven seemed at least similar to the man that had become so mutilated since the plague's beginnings. "Since we're strolling down Memory Lane, why don't I shove you in the pool, just like in the good ol' days?"

"Wallace, don't be such a bitch," Siren jibed, the Milotic's tone obviously teasing. "Besides, you really do have a hair out of place."

"You're a filthy liar and I'm not falling for it."

"Okay, if you say so..."

"So!" Wallace interrupted, clapping his still damp hands together. "What's the special occasion? You going to escort me to breakfast like a proper gentleman?"

His reaction was exactly what she needed this morning. He not only jumped but actually squeaked like the garbage rat he was and it made her plastic smile a little more genuine. He seemed to get a bit huffy about her coming up on him, despite it being entirely his fault for being ignorant, and started acting big to combat the rat squeal from a moment ago. "Y-yeah, actually; you.  You said I could have my Walkman back yesterday and then I couldn't find you anywhere; can I have it back now?"

Her smile fell into one of disgust at the mention of that fucking stupid piece of plastic trash. Which it was now since she threw it away. Trash went in the trash right? Maybe she should just tell him where she 'stored' his worthless little toy and see his crestfallen look. But...no, no that wouldn't be fun. If she told him it was in the garbage the little rat would just go digging in it to fetch it out as soon as he left like the disgusting bottom feeder he was. To hell with him. "I lost it."

A flash of upset crossed the little guttersnipe's face so sharply that a flicker of mayhem appeared behind Clair's eyes, her mind devouring the opportunity. A false smile came back as she put on her best pity act, bringing one hand to her chest as though her heart actually had some feeling in it. "Oh, you poor thing. Maybe lost was too strong a word. See I completely forgot to come back to my office last night after I was called away and I can't seem to remember where I ended up leaving it." She brought her hand up to tap one finger on her chin, a small pout on her face as she pretended to think of a solution to their 'problem.' "Maybe someone took it to the Lost and Found counter in storage for me. I'm sooooo sorry."

She was absolutely eating this up right now, the best breakfast she had in years. Could still use some coffee though.