[INTERMISSION] JANUARY 2 - SWARM! FARMING POKEMON FREE FOR ALL!

[luckydragonsfoot]

[LET'S START THE NEW YEAR WITH A BANG]

In the new year on Alola, the islands are as pleasant as ever. The sun rises upon a relatively warm climate, the tropical air still chilly from the night before. On Akala specifically this is no different- pokemon are allowed out in to the fields at Paniola ranch, and the air is filled with nothing but quiet rustling sounds from the grass and the distinct hum of nincada.

And then-

"HHHEEEEEE...CHAR!"

The SNEEZE is heard.

Flame rises up into the air like a stringshot directly heavenward, a bright bolt that grabs the attention of everything around. And from there-

Oh.

Oh no.

Chaos.

[CHAOS INDEED]

How Leon made it to Paniola Ranch when he was supposed to be going to the Aether Foundation to converse over some details of what he'd done in the recent weeks alongside one of the Fallers is ultimately irrelevant, because it's Leon. It's sort of his thing. What isn't perhaps his thing, is his Charizard getting a nasty case of hayfever and spooking everything around them with a sneeze.

The various herding pokemon of the ranch have gone nanabs. Alongside the native pokemon of the ranch, entire crowds of already skittish creatures who have been wandering out through smaller wormholes from various regions of the world as of late are also set off, fleeing from the tentatively accepted shelters of their would be rescuers in panic. Within hours, they're all over Akala island- clustering in droves, moving place to place whenever they feel threatened again.

Ultimately, one could catch from the mess of course- but the Ranch hands at Akala would really appreciate it if people could just help bring the herds back. They're just scared, and need somewhere safe!

[THE BIG!]

Many of the larger pokemon are finding refuge in the wilds- though more headstrong sorts, like Tauros, are looming angrily on the direct routes, charging at anyone who might be in their way. Roaming in herds, they're inclined to fight first and run away later- which is especially threatening if it's a cluster of miltank using roll out.

Ponyta, their Galaran counterparts, Tauros, Miltank, and even Mudbray are the primary culprits of this nonsense, stampeding about and ruining the roads with their hooves. It's frankly a blessing that their older counterparts where applicable are nowhere to be seen- can you imagine the damage from Mudsdale?

[THE SMALL...]

The smaller ones however...that's where the real chaos hits.

While the larger of pokemon are rushing about through the roads and routes, various 'softer' pokemon have apparently decided that lawns and even rooftops are a better idea. Filling city after city and tromp-ling along between them with pitter pattery hooves, the goat-likes and sheep-likes can be seen bleating their upset and chewing up everyone's flowers.

That, or sunbathing on the roof. The local Jennys are at a complete loss on how to get all of them down given that it's not something they've really dealt with before, and with all the route complications happening elsewhere, they're really stretched thin! Mareep, Skiddo, and Wooloo can all be found throughout the towns at various points over the course of the week or so, until at last the final ones are herded back home.

Eventually.

[AND SO,]

And so, by the end of the week, the Ranch should be full again. Everyone is grateful- from Kiawe's family to the various dog pokemon whose job it was to try and corral all the cute beasties back into place. As thanks for helping out, everyone should get a chance to enjoy some Moomoo milk and cheese- it tastes great with crackers!

Comments

KATSUYA JONOUCHI - OTA

[luckydragonsfoot]

[Bleat Once For Chaos,]

Akala. Katsuya hasn't explored too many of the islands so far, certainly not after his unexpected assignment for Pokemon Law...which he may well have a test to take for. But Akala so far seems great!

Aside for all the pokemon Everywhere they shouldn't be. "Nyh...wh..."

Goats- or something like them. Sheep- or something like them. And something about this feels familiar, the heat burning down upon his head and his back. In the present he leaves so much unprotected- in the past nothing is taken for granted, and loose cloth hides what it can. And his staff is on the ground-

There is a stick at the side, a section of fencing that went down under a few skiddo. He grabs it with a fogged familiarity, spinning it in his hand as Kaseri nickers confusedly at the side.  He doesn't completely know the significance of it all. Is it a past life? Something else? He's had the time, the peace, to think it over and yet only now...

"Heh... Y'know, I think I might have an idea..."

[To The Tune Of The Sheep's Song]

He moves not with force but with whistling- short and simple bursts to start, attracting the attentions of various Pokemon and drawing them near. And then without looking to make sure they follow (he knows they follow), to make sure that the others com (he knows they come), he moves. Steadily. Street by street, whistling with his ponyta at one side and his stick (his staff) in hand at the other.

Whistling constantly, because if you show that you know the way, then the herd will follow.

And astoundingly it's working. The herd Grows. Four. Eight. Sixteen- like a pied piper, the mareep, the wooloo, the skiddo-

They all follow, because inexplicably, he Knows what he's doing.

[They Followed Me Home (Can I Keep Them?)]

"Nyhhh...you two?" A pair of pokemon- the ones who came first- are not going to the paddock. "How come you ain't..."

It's a Skiddo, and a Wooloo. Both bleat at him, and Katsuya scratches his head.

"Y..yeesh...'s Wicke gonna be alrigh' w' tha'..."

sheep song

[blue_ice]

Well. This is just Kaiba's luck. Right when he finally begins a Grand Trial, everything on the island gets turned upside down. Pokémon stampede in every direction, and when you're trying to urge a gentle old Stoutland to sniff for treasure...that about makes it impossible for the poor dog.

A very disgruntled Kaiba realizes that the chaos needs to stop before he can continue his trial. He's sitting atop a giant shepherding dog...that should help, right? It would if he had any idea what he was doing. Clearly he needed to find someone who did and ask for advice.

That's when he hears the whistling, followed by the steps of Pokémon walking in time with their shepherd. There's a glimmer of progress being made here, and it's absolutely in Kaiba's best interests for it to continue, so he urges Stoutland forward.

"How can I---Jonouchi?"

That sure is Kaiba a few paces away, wearing his silvery-blue ride uniform and helmet, sitting atop a giant dog. His jaw drops as he registers the familiar blond head. Since when does he farm?

Re: sheep song

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Nyh? Oh- Kaiba..!"

So comes the call, Katsuya only barely pausing until he's actually near the other. He moves with an eerie familiarity for the herding field- waving that stick of his a time or two to make sure that the crowd slows up but stays put.

The blond grins, stick over his shoulder. "Nice digs..! I didn' know tha' y' could ride a dog here though! Whatcha doin' up there?"

[blue_ice]

Kaiba looks a little flustered, a little irritated....but he takes a breath to calm himself. Like it or not, he needs Jonouchi's help.

"I'm supposed to be on my Grand Trial. I was tasked with exploring the island for treasure with Stoutland," he started, patting the great dog's head. "But when Pokémon are stampeding in every direction, he can't track properly. So it appears the only way I'll finish my trial is if I help you. As, apparently, you have a gift with farm animals."

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Grand trial..." ....Oh! "Oh, those thing's th' Kahuna here are in charge of righ'? Yeah, I dunno what it is, but somethin' must've gotten 'm all riled...goats an' th' like get each other worked up so 'f y' scare one than th' rest j...uh..."

G...gift huh...

"Aha-" quick act like it isn't weird- "Nyh- It ain'...tha' much 'f a deal..." He laughs nervously, scratching his head as he looks away. Ahem.

Right it's totally weird and it gets more weird the more that he thinks about drawing off vague space out dreams on purpose uhhhh-

"It ain' tha' hard anyway, jus' gotta keep cool. What's y' trial abou'?"

[blue_ice]

Kaiba steered Stoutland to walk on the opposite side from Kaseri, still intently watching Jou's work.

"Kahuna Olivia wants me to get in touch with nature, but I'm not sure this is what she had in mind."

He holds his head higher as he rides, hoping that projecting some of his usual presence will help.

"Should I just follow you and help funnel them?"

[luckydragonsfoot]

For now, not much work is being done. ...For now. The pokemon watch with eager expectation however, clearly ready to 'follow the leader'.

"Nyh? You wanna come along? Mnn... ...well, I dunno 'f your guy's a herdin' sort, but 'f y' figure they'll keep calm then I'd say walkin' along th' side is best," Katsuya suggests. "Make 'm feel safe, y'know?"

No, Katsuya. Only actual trained herders and farmers know. What the heck.

[blue_ice]

Kaiba nods and moves into position. Stoutland seems comfortable with this role, the big dog softly calling out to the scared Pokémon as he walks.

"Where are we taking them?"

BEEP BEEP THESE ARE SHEEP - I mean Sheep's Song

[devilish_chrysanthemum]

"Hi!"

Is that a talking Wooloo - oh wait no it's an adorable little girl holding a Wooloo over her head. She doesn't appear to be struggling with the weight and the Wooloo looks like it's enjoying itself.

"This is Cozy! She likes your song! And I'm Phym!"

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Nyh-!" Oh heck! ...Well good on the kid, but-

"Song?" Oh. "Oh, heh! The whistlin' huh? I guess it's sorta a song...hey, you wanna walk 'n talk, I don' think these guys should be stayin' around here too long," he decides quick, trying not to just brush the kid off. "...Uh- nice t' meetcha, Cozy an' Phym!"

[devilish_chrysanthemum]

Cozy 'mehs' at him happily as Phym continues to walk alongside, chattering cheerfully.

"Cozy is from Galar! We went to Galar for a while, and that's where we met Miss Liddel, and she's really nice!"

[luckydragonsfoot]

"Oh- Galar?" Katsuya blinks, and while he doesn't look back, he's suddenly hyper aware of the fact that there's lots of wooloo in this flock. "Th' heck are all these guys doin' here then?"

[devilish_chrysanthemum]

Cozy bobs up and down as Phym shrugs.

"Dunno!"

Very helpful, Phym. A+.

[luckydragonsfoot]

...

Hahaaaa... "Hahhhh...guess tha' figures huh..." You're doing great kid,

"Well, wherever these guys came from, we gotta put 'm somewhere! You taggin' along?"

sheep, song,,,

[improvking]

The Ring-Spirit's been looking for Jonouchi! ...Sorta.

See, after having some time to stew over how dare anyone interact with his stuff, he decided that he wanted an explanation and set off to hunt Jonouchi down. Except then he realized that he had no idea where to look. Aloha isn't Domino, and the Spirit couldn't check with the Ring either, not now that there is no Ring... so. He. well, he tried wandering aimlessly for a while, but it started to feel like a waste of effort before long. So. Technically, he's just been sitting here on someone's porch, with a magazine open on his lap. He doesn't know or care what the magazine's about, the mimikyu sitting on his head is the one reading the thing.

He's noticed the sudden incursion of farm-pokemon. They've been giving him a wide berth since the mimikyu scolded one for trying to eat her magazine, but the creatures are everywhere today, what's with that?

Then he hears the whistling... someone's collecting the creatures, about time. The goatherd-whistling is familiar enough that - wait. How did he identify... that... OK! He'd registered it as familiar, but the instant he actually pays attention to th sound, that is. That's an Egyptian goatherd. Ancient Egyptian, the Thief-King's the one who found it familiar. The Ring-Spirit looks around for the source and - fuckin. it's Jonouchi.

So of course the Ring-Spirit stands and stalks over, outraged. "What is wrong wi'd 'ou??" Explain your increasing weirdness!

He's. He's still holding the magazine open for the mimikyu. who is sitting on his head.

[luckydragonsfoot]

Ah,

Caught, again!

Mid whistle even, it's all very odd. Katsuya frowns as the spirit stalks over however, not especially pleased to see the one who sent him spiralling into misery the other day. Or at least, terror. Something.

He sure does hope this guy doesn't ask to get an explanation because as much as he Kinda has one now, he doesn't Want to. So!

"Th' hell do y' mean, wha's wrong?" he snaps back. "I'm gettin' these pokemon back t'gether, 's a good thing! What abou' you huh? When's your nose gettin' back t'gether!"

1/2

[improvking]

....That. was a sentence. The Spirit pauses to give him a Look. Jonouchi, even your comebacks are weird, what the fuck.

2/2

[improvking]

And outrage switches back on. "'ou know exactly what I mean, this?" gesturing at the herd and... Jonouchi....? "and my souls? Whad. is. wrong. wi. 'ou." As he grinds that out, his voice takes on a ...very mimikyu-like quality, actually,,

[luckydragonsfoot]

Boy, he's sure straight to the point.

"What's wrong w' me is tha' if you ain' careful, I'm gonna be puttin' my foot in y'r face, tha's what!" he growls, finding himself oddly defensive of the 'souls' the spirit is talking about. "Here's an idea- how abou' you tell me what makes 'm all yours first, an maybe then I'll take a minute t' figure out why I'm hearin' 'm, capiche?"

1/?

[improvking]

The warning/threat has the Spirit snarling in response. Threaten him over Kul Elna?! Of all the - how DARE - THAT IS HIS -

2/?

[improvking]

- aaaaand cue a repeat of his components fighting over word choice again, ugh. The headache's worse this time, and he drops the magazine to clutch at his head.

The mimikyu takes offense and swats him with her 'tail' stick. The Ring-Spirit just snarls at her too, knocking her off his head with a sweeping motion. She starts grumbling as she tries to resettle herself a few feet away, and glowers at the Spirit. He doesn't even notice, how rude.

3/?

[improvking]

"They, they - gah - gotta - but WORDS!" The Ring-Spirit is Having A Time. There's an internal screaming match interfering with his rage at an entirely separate person, aren't they all more pissed at the TRESPASSER than fucking word choice?? He can't verbalize it, but he manages to shove the general sentiment of it at his components.

4/5

[improvking]

Who tone the fight down a notch, but do not stop. "Augh! Ff-ssss -" Those two brats are - FINE, the Spirit tables his Jonouchi-directed rage for now, apparently he has to mediate between two ancient toddlers instead.

"There's - yes just - smaller steps - will you focus?" The Ring-Spirit is now just hissing incoherently at himself.

"And - no - for fuck's sa-NO, AGREEMENT, points of AGREEMENT - Items! The Items!" oh huzzah the brats are at least paying attention now "What makes the Items," oh finally they're on board he can get back in sync "they ARE the Items -"

5/5

[improvking]

...and

the.

the Items are gone.

The Ring-Spirit's head goes silent, and the Spirit just. stops. His eyes unfocus in growing horror as he watches logic-dots finally connecting.

holy incoherency batman!

[luckydragonsfoot]

Well at first the anger is expected. He even smirks- after all the hell this guy (admittedly unknowingly) caused him, he deserves it! Asshole.

But then....then it gets weird.

"O...oii..." Really weird. Like possession, he wants to say, or... "...Oi, th' hell's goin on w' you..?" he starts, narrowing his eyes. He's about to act more seriously on the question- maybe grab for the other, try to sort it out. Except then-

They ARE the Items-

Katsuya drops the stick.

Takes a step back, once again.

"Th' hell do you mean, 'are'?" he manages to croak out, eyes wide with growing horror. This time it's not a flashback he's having. It's a proper memory. A real one, from the computerized world, with the chamber of unknown, unspeakable horrors-

'What happened here?' he asked, unable to see what sat in the great stone.

'Tragedy, Merea,' spoke the white spirit.

"Th...There's only seven righ'?" he weakly protests, even forcing a 'smile' to his face as if it could convince himself that it's some cruel joke he's being told. "There were seven, y' can' put... ninety...n..."

He shakes. He keeps shaking, but this time instead of a memory it's just from horror.

"That's why..?"