tangorines | Violet City: Inn

"Get off of me! Go, you stupid thing! Go!"

Alois wrenched away the gear from the teddiursa, shoving it as far away from him as he could. He snarled when it tried to cuddle closer to him. It was late, and it wanted to go by to sleep at Alois' side but the boy wanted none of that. He kicked it off of the bed and went back to the gear. His other pokemon surrounded the teddiursa and helped him to his feet. They weren't sure what had gotten into their trainer. They were almost afraid of him. Ladybird and the beedrill tried to corner their teddiursa friend. He had been the last one with the gear. He had seen something happen. While the bug pokémon huddled around the teddiursa, Alois sat upon his bed and stared at the face reflected back in the pokégear. His team glanced at him occasionally, trying to make their suspicious looks less obvious.

Alois couldn't ignore their stares anymore than he could ignore anyone else's. He picked up the clock from the bedside desk and threw it in their direction. Already he was reaching for another item. "Stop looking at me! Don't you have anything better to do than stare and gape at me like dying fish? Look away!"

He fumbled with the gear, his fingers trembling as he made the machine work.

[It's the Midnight Hour, Johto. Normal people are asleep at this time, at least those who hadn't been subjected to various plot related elements of a certain video game. Alois, however, isn't going to the Velvet Room, nor is he announcing the beginning of the end. He's simply broadcasting a message is all. It's the same message each night since the twentieth of March.]

Hoheo taralna rondero tarel... Hoheo taralna rondero tarel... Hoheo taralna rondero tarel...

[It goes on for a half hour, at the same time each night before it suddenly cuts off and nothing fills the gear but silence.

But today, on the thirty-first of March, Alois decides to changes tactics. The broadcast is made in the early hours of the morning, his chant becoming more and more insistent. This time the video is on and Alois, though his eyes are half-cast and his complexion paler than usual, seems not yet defeated. He was not going to stop until he got what he wanted. That much was obvious.]

Hoheo taralna rondero tarel. Hoheo taralna rondero tarel. Hoheo taralna rondero tarel. Hoheo taralna rondero tarel. Hoheo taralna rondero tarel. Hoheo taralna rondero tarel! Hoheo taralna rondero tarel! Hoheo taralna rondero tarel!!

[His voice reaches a feverish pitch before dying altogether. He breathes deeply, steadies himself, and waits with a patience that doesn't seem to be of his own choosing.]

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My apologies Little Earl. Did I wake you from your precious slumber?

[He'll put on a smile, just for Ciel.] Perhaps you'd be willing to help me, from one noble to another?

I wasn't quite asleep, thankfully.

[He sits up a little more and runs a hand through his hair. His eyepatch is gone, and Alois can see the lack of the contract mark. Unfortunately here in Johto the contract is null and void, so there is no mark over his eye. It just looks a pale blue, paler than his other eye, as he is still blind in it.]

What did you have in mind?

Edited 2011-04-01 04:40 (UTC)

[He had been joking with that question but having Ciel be so willing was a prize in its own special way. It wasn't too often that he saw Ciel without his eye patch, that one time withstanding. But it had been wonderful to see the boy (ordinarily without fault) to be so scarred. The lack of a contract in Johto put Ciel on a much more unreachable pedestal. Even here, Ciel managed to be pure.

Alois gritted his teeth and looked away long enough to let the initial burst of anger subside. He shifted the gear from one hand to the other and peered closer into the screen. A small, mocking smile crossed his lips, but the earlier emotion still lingered.]

Nothing too particular. It's not so much a request as it is a question, though I suppose it could become a request, if you would be so kind as to allow it to become one. After all, fulfilling one's request is something one must do.

I know a few who make it their life goals to fill requests - orders, if you'd rather call them that. [He waves his hand, chasing away the notion.] ...A noble of your standing wouldn't take orders would he? But that is not the question - or request I have for you.

[As he spoke, he pulled the gear closer and closer to his body. He seemed to have lost himself as he spoke, unaware of how his voice was beginning to take the low and even tone of someone who was being much too careful of their words. His nose nearly touched the screen when he finally took notice. His smile grew wider as he placed a respectable distance between himself and the gear.]

Ciel, who is traveling with you?

[He watches Alois ramble. From what he's seen and from what's he's heard from Sebastian, it would seem the boy is far from stable. Which does not make him inclined to answer his question. Especially from what he had to say on 'requests' and 'ordrs'. It was a little to close for comfort really. Besides, though Sebastian occasionally had the tendency to be overcautious when it came to Ciel, he did impress upon the boy that he thought Alois was dangerous.]

I do no see how that is of any concern to you.

[He could say that he missed talking to Ciel. As infuriating as the younger boy could be at times, he was really full of surprises. Sometimes there were too many and he often underestimated him, but he enjoyed them nonetheless.]

Oh, but it is! Why would you want to keep such minor information from me? I already know that Lady Chrome and dearest Lizzie are in your company, and your butler as well. I only need to know if one other person is with you.

Violet City: Inn

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