Blood and Roses [open]

The city was alive with sound.

Streamers hung with bells were strung across every building, from rooftop to rooftop, balcony to balcony, filling the city with a light ringing with every stirring breeze. Music filtered in through the streets, the back alleys, into every home and every business, a distant din in the city limits that grew and grew as a procession of floats made their way down the main road. A marching band led the parade, with floats for a Pokémon of every type, dancers performing for the throngs of people packed into the sidewalks, with a Flora Ranger on every corner. They left a river of flowers and confetti behind wherever they went.

"We celebrate today to commemorate an anniversary," a soft voice spoke over the cacophony, crackling over the speaker systems in every part of the city. Edward Rose stood at a pedestal in front of the capitol building as the procession made their way through. There had to be a hundred different mics and cameras in his face. "Over twenty years ago, our expedition landed here on Eden Island and swore to build a paradise..."

The speech droned on and on. Ellen stood on someone else's balcony, leaning against the railing, watching a blimp glide through fluffy white clouds with a red banner streaming from its tail. It read 'HEAVEN ON EARTH' in white looping letters.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing on my patio?!"

"Eek!" She didn't dare look behind her. Ellen vaulted over the rail, right into the mass of people just below. "EXCUSE ME!"

It was...Beautiful. Theodore couldn't help but be amazed at the mass of people that gathered. He was used to a large city, but a festival like this? It was unheard off - the only time Opelucid was even close to being this excited was when a big trainer would come to fight the local gym leader.

He weaved between the crowds of people, doing his best not to step on any toes as he glanced every once in a while at the Pokeball on his waist. Part of him wished Clover could see this sight, but his young Deerling wasn't very old and seemed to have trouble with crowds of people - she hated being in her Pokeball but she would almost jump into it if there was every more then three people that she didn't know at once around her. 

The sound of a voice crackled in the air - somebody going on about the history of the islands. For a second, Theodore found himself interested but as it went on, he started to tune it out more and more. Instead, he found himself wondering what he should do. It was hard enough to navigate though the crowds, how was he even suppose to find something to do? He sighed softly as he continued forward, dodging as nimbly as he could between people as he decided to keep taking in the wonderful site of this mass gathering as long as he could.

Amber eyes watched the numerous people in the parade go by. The different pokemon balloons, and floats with various people highly decorated for this gathering of people just to show off the joy and love they had for the islands. Those that weren't able to be apart of the parade show their support by cheering and enjoying the bright display from the side lines.

As soon someone began to speak Samuel's attention was pulled away from the joyful distraction to the speaker as he talked about the islands' history. Now that he was slightly more interested it. A smile was on his face as he turned away from the parade and looked to the sky as he tried to listen to the speaker. His hands were shoved in his pockets and Error, his porygon 2, floated slightly above his head and slightly behind, watching it's trainers every move. Only to begin to follow as it's trainer walked away from the crowd gathered at the edge of the road, and to a more open spot. Unaware of the person that just jumped into the crowd of people near by.

A boy sat under the shade of a balcony, on a bench planted below it amongst a row of identical seats that stretched along the street, looking up and down at the book in his hand, amber eyes full of frustration. He hadn't sat there for very long. every few minutes he would uncross his legs and move over to another bench, another seat under the silhouette of a balcony, and he would look up and down and up and down.

He was following the parade. Before him was a crowd of people, their heads obstructing much of the parade's view. He didn't care about them. He was always a bit claustrophobic and the outer part of the sidewalk, the area closest to the houses, offered the least amount of people in his way. Besides, what he was interested in towered above everyone else's heads: A Pikachu balloon, round and pudgy as most real life Pikachu, connected by thin strings and holding red balloons of its own. It floated happily and the boy sketched it in his book. Every time it moved past him, he'd move down the line to another bench, making sure to get the shading right, every little feature on its rotund face.

The balloon passed him again. The boy sighed and stood, and began his advance towards another bench. That was when a girl dropped in front of him, as if from heaven, practically landing on him. Her hand clipped his shoulder. His own reached up to rub it, the sketchbook grasped at his side.

"What...?" This was all he said, lowly and hardly audible. The Pikachu float sauntered along slowly, the zigzag tail high in the air.

Last year's anniversary was much like the one being held this year. Symphonies heralded the grand debut as people flooded the streets like water, pushing their way through to claim the best seats to watch the parade, a never-ending kaleidoscope of vibrant colors shining in each and every direction as though they were beacons of lights. Bustling waves of sound coming from every individual possible, some boasting about their latest achievements in the Flora Challenge and others yet spreading juicy gossip on the latest news regarding the academy they may have attended. At the first signs of the rising golden half-disk in the horizon and maybe even earlier, there were early-birds who had already set up camp on the side-walks. The commemoration of Flora springing to life was a very celebrated one, and for good reason. It was the closest to Heaven that one could get in this world and rightfully so. A paradise, a utopia, a garden of Eden in every aspect possible.

There was an overwhelming odor of fried food and sweets all mixing with one another, plaguing the atmosphere, but she couldn't judge anyone else when she was guilty of contributing to it herself. Large, over-bloated floats of a motley of Pokemon danced in a stony rhythm within their uniform line, dancers adorned in rich and striking clothing chorusing after. As everything passed by, mics and cameras were shoved into the prized and most renowned face of Edward Rose, the one who led this place into glorious nirvana. From where she was stationed, there was little to no way she could see him, not with the sea of heads obscuring her vision. Marian was only slightly disappointed that her area didn't provide the greatest perspective on the celebration, but that wasn't why she was here in the first place. She couldn't complain.

Focus, focus, she silently chided to herself, smacking both of her hands onto her cheeks as a wake-up call. Rosy pink eyes turned back towards all of the strangers encircling the vicinity, head turned every once in awhile to broaden her range by just a bit. One hand rested on her hips, the other arm hanging limply on the side where her trusted partner was standing firmly with a piercing, aureate glare, scarcely shying from her height by half a foot. His tail whipped and snapped around like lightning, taking caution to keep the four-pointed star away from an unsuspecting faceless human's eyes, and he mimicked her behaviors in his own right, nose bunched up to detect scents in the air.

Marian had been eager to take up the job, to do anything she could to show that she was taking her role as a ranger seriously. Even if it was mostly just keeping watch to make sure everyone was safe during the parade or guiding tourists around the city when they've lost their way in the labyrinth, she wanted to say that she enjoyed the most mundane components of her occupation. Unexpected instances didn't quite have to take place, but it seemed that fortune was smiling down upon her.

Someone above her had barked out a discordant holler, and soon after, a brunette girl had fell from the sky, landing and sprinting away. That was a safety hazard! What was she thinking? She could've gotten hurt, and there were people she could bump into, and even worse, she had leapt from one of the house owner's around. From the sound of it, there was no way they had been acquainted. "Lux, hold the fort for me, alright?" A low rumbling growl followed, and Marian ran in pursuit of the girl.

Passing by, she made sure to weave her way through the crowds, eyes focused intently then. She may or may not have bumped into a few people by accident. Hopefully not.

"Excuse me miss!"

"Pardon. Excuse me. Behind you. Spikes coming through. Sorry."

In a crowd this busy, it was almost darn near impossible to find a good view of the parade, and with every minute that had passed - Briar cursed himself for not dragging himself out of his rooms earlier. Of course, he had to buy lots of food ahead of time. He'd left his seadra in some public pond, his ampharos and arcanine, running around in some grazing fields away from the commotion, and his pidgeot had to be flying around basking in an endless sea of dropped popcorn.

The real party animal stuck with him, sharp barbs just narrowly leaving his arms unscathed, seeming as happy and gleeful as a metallic, death-inducing baby. In truth, Briar didn't mind the odd poke now and then, and it was nice to have some buddy to carry around, but he couldn't promise the safety of everyone else around him.

In the distance below, a large canon went off and the crowd stirred to look, throwing him off his balance and sending him bumping into some other stranger. "Oh, of course - are you alright?" He was quick to start damage control, just in case, wrapping his arms more tightly around his ferroseed.

As Sam walked with his hands in his pocket, he listened to the things going on trying to stay focused on the speaker. He wanted to know this. Maybe it could relate back to something else he knew or further help him in some way. Though his attention was pulled away from the voice as a canon went off causing him to look in the direction of the noise, also startling the minun that slept in the hood of his jacket. Though within that moment someone had bumped into him sending him sidestepping trying to keep his balance and no accidentally do anything to the poor blue rabbit sitting in the hood of his jacket. 

Once he had his balanced, already the person was asking if he was okay. "Yeah I'm fine." He said readjusting his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose, and looking to the person that bumped into him. The minun climbing out of his hood and onto his shoulder to look at where her trainer was looking, while Error floated harmlessly above rocking robotically back and forth. 

Samuel lifted his hand and placed it on the Minun's head which in response rubbed her head against his hand. "Are you okay?" He asked to Briar. The crowd could be dangerous if someone wasn't careful, and the rangers couldn't keep an eye on everything that happened around here.

A gasp escaped the lips of a young girl amongst the outskirts of the crowd. Although the people and Pokémon that passed by her pushed for a closer look at the parade without much apology, a wide, open smile graced her round face as she stared brightly at the colourful march.

There was never such an occasion on the small twin islands Cara called home. The most celebration she had witnessed in her life was the occasional large, or even ginormous catch of fish performed by their esteemed and respected town fishermen. The drinks were always brought out and the whole town gathered to prepare their fine feasts, but nothing was ever to this scale. Bonfires and intimate conversations were always nice and welcomed, but this! This was big, grand, and perhaps the most exciting event of the girl's life!

Without a second thought, she jumped forward into the throng. With blazing red locks that bounced in the wind, she raced through any break she could see in mess of people. Trailing behind her with a mouth upturned in a toothy grin was a slate grey kit with red and black accents. The young fox Pokémon yapped happily at his trainer as she bolted towards the edge of the street with a cheeky smile. A man, presumably one of the officials that ran this city, began speaking into a microphone that projected his voice through every speaker that dotted the city's landscape. Although she found herself enjoying the sights too much to full pay attention to the man's words, the speech's general message was easy for her to interpret.

As her green eyes became glued to the sight of the parade, she barely noticed the oncoming stranger who walked perpendicular to her own path. Without knowing it, she barreled straight into the brown haired boy, sending them both onto the hard stone below. She herself was sent somersaulting a few feet away, scaring tourists and city dwellers alike as she tumbled forward until her momentum stopped. The Zorua behind her yelped in surprise and ran towards his owner, concern clouding his bright blue eyes. Cara let out a small hiss of pain and looked down at the now red skin of her knees and hands. Thankfully there was no blood this time, but she knew the sting would come soon.

The girl glanced back at the boy who she had unintentionally crossed paths with. She felt her eyes starting to grow wet. He looked in no better condition than her, and it was all her fault. Jumping to her feet, she quickly bowed her torso and held her scraped hands up together as an apology to Theodore. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't see where I was going!" She shut her eyes tight. Seeing her clumsy mistakes hurt other, innocent people always made her emotional.

A gasp escaped Theodore as he felt something - well, someone - barrel into him, knocking him to the cold pavement. He hit the ground hard, lucky enough not to hit any other people on his way down. He grimaced as on reflex, his hand moving to his waste - relieved to feel the familiar touch of Clover's Pokéball still safely there. Then his eyes grew hard as he stared at the girl that had run into him, frowning sharply at her. "You should b-" he caught himself the moment he saw that she was on the verge of tears as she stood above him, bowing in apology. For a second, he almost seemed...Confused as if he wasn't sure how he should react before he pushed himself up to his feet, checking his hands for cuts. They stung ever so slightly but it didn't bother him that much. After a few seconds, he spoke again. "Its...Fine," he said, his voice still a bit cold but nothing near the hostility it had been a few seconds before. Theodore's gaze was focused on almost anybody but her - he didn't want to see her on the verge of tears. Silence. Finally, three words left his mouth. "Are you okay?"

Shocks shot up her legs as her shoes met the concrete. Ellen hit the ground with an awkward stumble, fighting to keep her balance, her hand shoving into some other kid's shoulder in the thick of it all. She whirled, almost knocking into half a dozen other strangers before coming to a stop, eyes wide, blowing out a small breath. "Hwoaaah...! O-okay, I'm alright, I'm... Ow, okay..." She rubbed at her wrist, turning around again, shooting up a nervous glance to the balcony, and then to the boy with the sketchbook below it.

Oh. Ellen froze where she stood, unsure whether to dip away into the crowd or to unleash a stream of apologies. "Hey, you're alright, right?" She took a few steps forward, brushing at his shoulder, a nervous smile wavering across her face. "Listen, just, uh..."

Don't sue me. Don't tell anyone about this. If anyone asks, you didn't see me. I'm sorry? She could've said any one of those things. It wasn't fitting for a lady of her high birth. Ellen opened her mouth to speak when she heard the voice through the din.

"Excuse me miss!"

Her eyes shot open as wide as dinner plates. She looked over her shoulder to see the ranger pushing through the crowd in hot pursuit. "Eek!" If she got in trouble over something stupid like this, and it got back to her father... Ellen glanced at the boy, then the ranger, then the boy again, and snatched his wrist.

If she disappeared now, he'd help the ranger.

If she dragged him with her, he was an accomplice.

"Just come with me!"

With a surprising strength that didn't fit her, he yanked the boy with the sketchbook away, pressing her shoes against the pavement as she shoved her way through the crowd.

For the last few years, the boy had been very protective of his wrist, the bone bent at the joint. Though he was absentmindedly trying to make it disappear behind his legs, a sudden jerk from the girl's hand brought it out in the open, and even worse, in direct contact with another person. He let out a brief small sound, reminiscent of a chirp, then a longer, deeper sound, reminiscent of a girl trying to sound like a macho man. "Get off me, you psycho!" he said, though he didn't want to struggle too much, to push back and let her feel the abnormally sharp bone under her fingers. He let her take him along, but with many objections. "I'm not done my sketch, idiot!"

It would've been easier to get through if there weren't so many people around with little to no room to breath in between. Or better yet, she should've thought this through more before trying to take on the task and leave her station without notifying any of the other Union members of where she was going.

A frown plastered itself on her lips as she uttered various phrases, alternating between 'excuse me' or please let me through' or any other derivatives of them. Fumbling through the masses of faceless strangers, Marian found little choice but to resort to forcing her way through if she wanted to get over there. Keeping her focus on the brunette girl, she internally let out a silent sigh of relief when it seemed as though the target wasn't going to move anywhere, conversing with a boy who didn't look too much taller than herself. But she couldn't just relax until the job was done, and with the pause in the other girl's position, she concentrated on picking up the pace.

Just as she thought she would be able to make it there in time and talk things out with stunt-girl, they had already fled once again, snatching the young boy with her as well. Wouldn't it have been better to be punished and fess up then instead of running from the authorities and get into even bigger trouble? Reaching towards her belt, her fingers searched for the Holo Caster that should've been clipped there, but all that was grasped was empty air. "No way..." Marian blinked before frantically searching the rest of her pockets and wherever else she could've kept it to no avail. Of all the times she had to forget it, it had to be now.

Either back off and go ask for assistance from the others or continue the chase like a Persian cornering an unlucky Rattata.

She didn't even look back towards her station before resuming where she was before in a staccato rhythm, thundering her way through the horde of bodies. One quick catch of the eye found a less dense spot, and it was enough to use as a shortcut to intercept the unlikely duo in their tracks. "If you don't want to get into anymore trouble, it might be a good idea to stop running away," Marian smiled earnestly, head scarcely tilted to one side. She kept one hand on her hips, the other holding the badge given to all Rangers with the emblem faced towards the two.

"Together, we accomplished what the rest of the world said was impossible, and that's the spirit of the Flora Islands..." The voice resounded throughout the city.

"Hey, don't call me that!" she chirped, shoving her way through the crowd. That wasn't gentlemanly at all! Well, he was coming along, and that was all that mattered for right now. They could lose her this way. Don't catch my face, don't catch my face, don't catch my face...! Ooh, what would her father say?! No, never mind, she'd rather not know. Ellen shouldered past some poor man and sent him spilling to the sidewalk, but she passed with just an apologetic squeak. "You can finish your sketch later! I'll catch you a Smeargle!" Just keep running. "Um, uh..." She fumbled for some sort of excuse. A stream of jumbled words went tumbling out from her mouth. "Parkour is a capital offense! Eden City law code 69 J! Twelve to life! If they catch you, you'll be locked up for aiding and abetting, o-or something!" Right, that worked. "You'll be sketching from a little gray cell until you're an old man! So hurry up!"

Then out of nowhere, they were cornered. "Eeeek!" Teleportation? Flight? Magic portals? How did she cut them off?! Maybe if she got on her knees and started begging... No. She swallowed, stepping back, her hand dropping to the belt at her side where six Premier Balls jangled half-hidden from her waist. That wasn't fitting for a lady either.

Instead, she shoved the boy in front of her and dipped away into the nearest alley, footsteps ringing across the pavement.

"I'm sorry!"

Cara tensed as she sensed the hostility in the boy's voice, but kept her position anyways. He had to know how sorry she was for her mishap. Alf stepped forward and underneath his trainer with an aggressive stance. His short, fluffy tail lashed back and forth until he noticed the confused and startled expression on the boy's face. The Zorua cocked his head and looked at Theodore.

The redhead opened an eye tentatively and noticed her companion sitting with a curious blue gaze. Curiosity striking her, she slowly raised her head just as he spoke. 'Its... Fine.' Her face lightened up at the words, and the way his eyes looked away awkwardly. He wasn't mad after all!

As he asked her if she was okay, she straightened her back and nodded furiously. "T-This is nothing! There's not even a drop of blood!" the girl exclaimed, showing her reddened hands. "But you-" Jogging up to the brunet, she grabbed his hands tight in her's. "Are you okay? I feel so bad! Is there anything I can do to make it up to you? I have some spare Pokédollars, I could buy you a snack?"

Theodore was relieved that she was alright - not that he showed it but tensed up when she suddenly grabbed his hands. His head spun to face her, taking a step back as she quickly went on about how if there was any way to make it up to him or whatnot. It was clear he was surprised by this behavior and even thrown off, his mouth half open as he attempted to gather any sort of response but he just didn't know how to act to this sudden behavior. "I'm fine," he said with a feeble attempt to escape her grip, but it was clear he wasn't make a real attempt in order to avoid hurting her feelings. "Yo-You don't need to do anything to make it up for me." For a second, his shoulders shagged slightly as he tilted his head at her with a soft frown - acting almost completely different then he had a few moments ago. "It was a simple mistake, that is all," he said softly before he paused, seeming to catch himself as he forced himself to frown. "I also don't need any pity from you."