Set in the original region of Arciel, Legends Rising is a route-inspired, but not strictly route-based, Pokemon roleplay. Pick a faction, pick a class, and strike out into the wild to take on the League, master Contest coordination, research the mysteries of Pokemon and Arciel, and much, much more. Will you be a classic trainer? A criminal? A farmer? Choose your destiny on Legends Rising.
After dropping off her bike and sneaking away from her house her tears were dried, and she went on pretending she hadn't just lost her cool- because it was easier than walking the streets of Bass looking like an utter wreck. Small talk was made, jokes, and the duo had ended up at a food truck, where Arietta, who'd by then lost her appetite ordered a small bucket of chips. They'd spent a while walking the streets, looking for something to do- or more... Ara was looking, before deciding the best thing to do was go back to her apartment and just chill...
So, that's how she now found herself holding a bucket of chips in one hand, attempting to steady her sneak-in ladder than lead to her window in the apartment with her other hand. "My windows always open, y'know?" She told Koray idly, attempting to straighten it. "Which is like, an awful idea, but what if somebody like just- pops in to say hi? Or did that rock throwing thingy at the window- aaaah wouldn't it be so cute?" So was rambling again, it's a habit she has when she's upset- an awful one- and if she wasn't crying? She was most definitely going to be rambling.
"Oh- wait you probably already knew that... duh." She shook her head at herself and tested the first step before humming, "You wanna go first? I can pass the food up after you- i've gone up here wayyy too many times- like- it's great- oh- I can pull a bunch of chuutube vids up- or something- once we're done eating though!" Being in that room right now, or hell even having her laptop open was probably the last thing she needed. The still had a bunch of pictures littering her room from years past, and the last thing she needed was the see the face of Gabe right now.
But everything was fine! Koray was here! Koray was great- everything was great, and fine, and perfect. It was great. "Oh- oh! But be quiet, my parents might hear you and you know what they're like-I can hear em now- ohh you got back with Koray? Isn't that wonderful Ara- or- they'd go off about my neck for an hour straight then rush me to a clinic- when i'm obviousssly...uh...well, not too fine but...mm..." She scoffed softly at herself, a hand resting on her hip. They were so out of the know with everything, including her recent heartbreaks and her drama- all they knew is what they saw on the internet. "Arceus- uh- talking so much kinda hurts- here- uh- i'll hold it steady for you, okay?"
By the time they had reached the food truck, Koray was starting to feel his injuries hurt more. Freda could tell for certain and was sticking by his side like glue. That was... something he wasn't about to tell Ara. Not now, not ever. Ara was rambling again and he knew better than to interrupt her. Besides, she was talking enough for the both of them which gave Koray some time to think and rest.
As the question was posed to go first however, Koray hesitated. It was... quite a long ways up to get to her room even when he was feeling 100%. Still, Ara couldn't know that he was hurt. "Sounds good~," Koray chimed, doing his best to smile. Not to mention he wasn't feeling all that hungry these days. At the request to be quiet, Koray rolled his eyes. Like he needed to be told that. Though... the reason behind her not wanting to be spotted with him stung. Was she really that ashamed of him?
The last bit about her parents actually caring about her well being and the bruises on her neck made him cringe. Of course they would be concerned... They had every right to be. Koray didn't let any of these thoughts slipped however and stepped up to the ladder. Thank Arceus she finally stopped talking. It was getting harder and harder to keep a straight face when she just kept pushing all the wrong buttons. It took probably a little longer to make it up to the top where Freda and Rowan immediately came out of their pokeballs. Rowan was clearly concerned but was thankfully out of Ara's sight right then. It gave him time to make sure that Rowan wouldn't give away his injuries while Freda would be in charge of taking the food instead of him. The Absol absolutely refused to have it any other way.
"Ready when you are!" Koray called out as Freda's head popped out of the window. If given half a chance she would prefer to spear Ara but for now, the food was the Absol's goal. Koray wouldn't like it if she speared the miscreant and Freda knew it. Even if the witch was the reason for Koray's suffering.
Arietta held the ladder as steadily as she could as Koray made his way up, humming softly and trying to ignore the slight burn in her throat. She'd just be able to chill and relax here, without being stressed out by her parents going off at her making her wish that they stayed away like they did when she was younger, rather than trying to make up for her lack of them in her childhood- it was stupid! They could have brought her along with them to the book tours, to the demonstrations- they could have loved her. But no- no. They dug their own grave. She was brought out of her thoughts and her grip on the ladder by Koray's voice, and peered up only to see the Absol there? Eep- okay. She'd just need... uh...
She shifted and released Calando, who almost instantly was by her side, squeaking and cooing, having been put in his ball right after the ferry. Concern radiating from the alolan raichu. Arietta just smiled at him, moving to grab the chips thatt she'd settled on the ground with one hand. "I'm okay, buddy..." A fairly forced smile, which had the pokemon puffing his cheeks at her. Arietta just sighed gently and followed with, "Keep the ladder steady for me?"
Calando, after watching her a few seconds nodded, using his Psychic abilities and his pays to hold it as well as he could. Arietta then began climbing... or trying to with one-hand, not that she hadn't gone up this ladder time and time again mid-flirt or something. One stepp, another, three- and she was holding steady to raise the chips to the Absol, giving her an awkward grin. "This one, Freda?" She waited a few beats before going down one more to retrieve the rest of the food, pausing to pat Calando before going up once more, handing the food over and then finally: "Incoming!"
She waited for the way to be cleared before slipping in herself, followed by Calando surfing in after her. Arietta instantly moved to her desk, settling the food on there before rushing over to her closet and puling out a stool, settling it next to her spinny-chair. "Aaaand, tada! Chairs fit for kinds- but yeah- like- we could watch movies, or I do have songs for my mini concert I have to review..." As she spoke the girl began taking off her scarf, folding it before placing it on her bed, the already forming bruises looked b.a.d, and were probably just going to get worse and worse. Calando kept staring at her, concerned and slightly afraid, especially after noticing Koray in the room. Kicking off her shoes the girl quickly fell back onto her spinny chair, a sigh leaving her before she picked up a chip. Calando very easily settled right into the girls lap, sending a glare for a moment in Korays direction before letting out a soft squeak. "So... yea- movies? chuutube? music?"
While Freda waited for Ara to climb up, Koray took advantage of the moment of peace and flopped onto the bed. It felt good to just lay there for a moment, at least until he heard Ara's voice talk to Freda. The Absol took the food and tossed it unceremoniously into the room and did the same with the rest of the food. Though she did at least take some care with the more fragile things (only at Koray's behest). Well, at least it gave him some time to recollect himself and at least try and pull himself together. Ara didn't need him falling apart after all. She needed a rock and right now, he was none of those things. So useless.
That got Rowan to look over at him and curl up next to him just as Ara entered the room. Freda took the opportunity to lay down at Koray's feet who promptly sat up as if nothing in the world was wrong. Ah, hmm. It seemed Ara wanted to have him sit in the chair instead? Oh well, he wasn't going to move anymore so she could just deal. The food was already placed on the bed anyway so it was the most logical place for him to choose.
At the suggestions on what to do, Koray sorta shrugged, not really caring one way or the other, "I guess I could try and help you with the music? Your voice hurts, right? I don't have the best voice in the world but it's better than nothing, I guess," out of the three options it sounded like it would be the best thing to keep his mind occupied. There was nothing worse than dwelling on emotions when Koray knew that he could break at any moment.
Or... they wouldn't sit at the desk- that was fine. The girl grabbed her chips and pushed herself closer to the bed, spinning once on the chair before smiling at Koray. Calando let out a whine from her lap at the spinning but didn't say much else. "Yeah, my... throat kinda hurts whenever I talk." A hand moved to press at one of the bruises and she winced, "...But yeah, let me juuust..." She was zipping around the room now, grabbing her food and placing it in one spot, letting her hair loose, grabbing her laptop and putting it on the bed near Koray- she seemed to give it one hesitant look but other than that.
"So i've mainly narrowed down the songs- I just need help with..." She paused, flicking open her laptop and inputting a password before going into a chuutube playlist and pointed out a few of the visible songs. "These three! I need to pick between them and figure out a tune- uh-" She shifted once more across the room on her cheer towards the cupboard and held up a ukelele, "We could do it with a backing, or... I have this- perks of having parents in the industry, I guess?"
She was awfully energetic now, for some reason, and flung herself back over to the bed, putting the Ukelele to the side. Once more she gestured to the songs and raised an eyebrow, "Soo.....?" the songs were circles, broken and pretty face, all vaguely different- as far as you're aware there doesn't seem to be a themme.
As Ara admitted that her throat hurt, Koray looked a little worried. Well, that was mainly why he'd suggested the songs in the first place. If it would help Ara, then that's what he wanted to do. Right? That... that was why he was here in the first place. Holding Rowan close, Koray watched as Ara zipped around the room getting her laptop and other things. The hesitation in her eyes wasn't missed by him in the slightest, but Koray was certainly hurting way too much to even think about trying anything. He wanted to reassure her that it was ok but... that would just lead to more questions and the whole point was to distract her from what happened right?
Taking a deep breath, Koray focused on what Ara was telling him about the songs. Right, that seemed easy enough and it meant that he didn't have to do a whole lot except for sing, right? Moving anytime soon just wasn't going to happen so this seemed the most logical choice. The options between having a backtrack or the ukulele earned a soft smile from Koray, "I think the ukulele would be better for now, let me look at the songs first though," he mused, pulling the laptop closer to him.
It looked like these were cover songs she was working on...and at least the first one he read hit him pretty hard. A deep breath would be taken as Koray tried to ignore the knifing pain that shot through him. How many times had he felt like that? Could he even do this... This is for her... I have to try... No matter how hard it would be to try and sing these songs. Well, it had been his idea to do the songs. The... second song wasn't much better. Are all the songs like this? What did I just agree to...? The last song... Arceus, it felt like he'd been punched in the gut. Okay... deep breath, he could do this. I have to do this.
"These songs seem nice, um," Right, deep breath. I can do this. "You're doing cover songs, right? Which one do you want to start with?" As long as it wasn't Pretty Face... he might be fine. This was fine.
Ahhh, her trusty Ukelele. Given to her as a peace offering by her dad and taught a total number of two times before he got distracted by other things. Arietta moved to pop a chip in her mouth, nodding absently as he said the instrument would be better- she wasn't a pro or even halfway decent but she knew chords, so that was probably enough. Swallowing the chip, and coughing at the sharp feeling as it scraped past her throat she shook her head a little, "Kay, we'll go with the ukelele!" she smiled then, a hand going up to brush at the side of her neck. Calando took that as opportunity to hover on over and flop into her side, head nuzzling slightly and letting out a coo, he felt helpless, he could only watch when Liz tried to hurt his trainer.
She could only patiently munch on her chips as Koray looked over the songs, peeking at the screen ever once and a while to see what song he was looking at. As he finally commented she couldn't help but smile a little, good, he at least liked the songs! One was about your fans being merely strangers to you while your fans ifolise you and it being difficult to brake the barrier, while another was about a repetitive cycle and the other one finding somebody content with being true to themselves.
"Yeah, i'm doing cover songs!" But... she didn't really know what to pick. Ara tilted her head a little, brow furrowing. "...hmm..." a glance to Calando, hey, he could help! She raised her hand with three fingers up, and Calando blinked at her curiously. "Cal! Which song- poke the finger!" she waggled her fingers at Cal, who let out a squeak and pawed at her hand, indirectly hitting the middle finger she was holding up, and Arietta smiled.
"Calando's chosen Broken, lemmme just, uh..." She paused, grabbing her phone and leaving Koray with the laptop before searching up some chords and shifting slightly, "It's playable on the Ukelele I think- whenever you wanna go over it, just go over it however sounds best and if it doesn't work then just stop."
Somehow, Koray managed to force the trepidation he felt with the songs that were chosen. It seemed that Calando would be the one to play roulette with the song they were going to sing. Please not Pretty Face. That was his only wish right then and there. Thankfully, it ended up being Broken which was... alright, it was better. There was no way he could sing it as fast as the original however. Slowing it down would be a lot better. At least the lyrics were right in front of him. I can do this. Even if it hurt so much to think about singing something that resonated with him.
It's not supposed to be this way. Was it? Was it supposed to hurt whenever he was with a friend? Because Ara was a friend, nothing more. Even if he was a secret. Even if she made him feel like she was ashamed of him. All this secrecy was trying and... right, don't think about that right now. The song. They were trying to figure out how to sing the song. Clearing his throat, Koray started to sing, his voice starting out quiet, but with so much feeling that it almost ached to sing. His chest tightened as he sang the lyrics slowly, almost as if it were a love ballad.
Only once the song was finished, did Koray even dare to look up at Ara. He didn't speak, he couldn't. Not after that. Do you hear me, Ara? Do my feelings matter to you? The unspoken question hung in the air. Hopefully he wouldn't be asked to repeat the song. Once was bad enough.
Arietta smiled as he accepted her song offer, and Calando was quick to all but shift closer to her, pressing into her side as if to attempt to peer at her phone screen, a soft squeak leaving him. Arietta hummed, moving to gently run a hand over Calando's head and giggling at the small buzz of electricity she felt before resting the phone next to her and grabbing her ukelele. She didn't... really know the cords but she could wing it, easily! Ukelele you just had to do like a 4-chord thing, and with Broken if she played it carefully it... might be able to keep pace?
Koray began singing and she was quick to gently strum along, humming ever so softly and ignoring the slight shooting pain through her throat, instead gulping and sticking to her playing. Koray was a good singer, she knew this. He helped her with... a few songs when they were together, mainly random things she jotted down to practice her voice, since she wasn't exactly a songwriter... but still she had to keep herself from melting at the spot at the soung of his voice, like she once did. He was holding back, quiet, gentle, a soft rumble of melancholy that tied the whole thing together.
The song was supposed to be about mutual understanding between two people and pain and stuff, something like that but... it sounded really really sad how she sung it. Almost in a daze, even when he stopped singing she was quietly strumming on the ukelele, not wanting silence and just... trying to reign her thoughts in. She wore what could only be described at a troubled expression, trying to arrange her thoughts before finally putting the Ukelele down.
"U-Uhm... You were good...." It was said softer than she usually spoke, and she moved to grab another chip, ignoring how the temperature to it had become colder and munching down. Inbetween a bit she managed to shift once more, so she was facing Koray, and trying not to let her eyes betrayed her she smiled. "The arrangement was... harrowing. It's like the sorta thing my mum would tell her patients to sing to get out their feelings or something, like ohhhh sing this honey it'll make you feel so much better- like if you're feeling super angry you'd throw down to a screamo song, or really sad you'd go down emo lane-"
Realizing she was rambling once more she took in a breath, awkwardly laughing once more and instead trailing her gaze around the room. Pictures of her friends, her past partners, memories she couldn't let go of littered her room, unchanging. But unlike the last time she had been here with Koray it felt... weird. Arietta was on edge, she was sad, she wasn't feeling right. Her head ached, her throat ached, her parents could come up at any second and eat her alive... and... she was sitting here with Koray.
"So, my point is- do you think I should go with, uh- that... arrangement?" That wasn't the point at all, of what she was saying before, and he probably knew it. She moved to swing her feet a little and Calando seemed to take that as an opportunity to shift and rest his head on her lap, nuzzling gently, practically radiating concern. Arietta found herself taking a deep breath, forcing her smile further. "...it's not really pop-rocky, is it? I could always go, like, tune it a bit, but, it's a good remix- uh- I don't... it's good- the way you sung was good, because, of course it was- you've always been able to sing really good and like lull people into- and- so like what i'm trying to get at is..."
She coughed suddenly and winced.. yeah... yeah talking a lot made her throat just... hurt. A lot, and she was sure her injuries were much more visible now, but she was stubbourn, and as if she wasn't feeling the pain she took a breath, and continued. "Is like... uh... I think I need a more upbeat arrangement..."
After the song was finished, Koray was thankful that Rowan was there. The Phantump floated down into his arms so naturally. Of course, Rowan knew how hard that song had been to sing. That wasn't a secret. Do you see me? I'm right here... will you choose me? Yet more unspoken questions that Koray would never utter. Deep down, he knew the answers to them. He just never wanted to admit it. It was somehow easier that way. Somehow it was easier to admit those feelings within the confines of a song. That ache that was just screaming to be let out, to be heard and understood.
As Ara started to explain, it took everything within Koray not to admit that those were his emotions, his feelings. That she was right, it was exactly what had happened and choosing an upbeat arrangement wasn't going to help in this case. She was right that it wasn't pop-rocky, that had never really been his style. It was harder to sing at a faster pace and that was another reason he admired Ara. Something like that came naturally. For him at least, it would take more than simply looking at the song once to be able to do a more upbeat rendition.
"That's... really up to you, I guess. You know it's harder for me to sing fast songs right away," Koray explained, managing a slight smirk at the last sentence, "Maybe... a different song would be better?"As long as I don't have to repeat that song... Arceus please, no.
Maybe gettng Koray to sing was a bad, bad idea. Arietta wasn't dumb, sure maybe she was a bit dim-witted at times but she knew Koray, and he couldn't exactly hide the contemplation that swept across his face as she'd rambled about her mum's words, but it was gone in an instant and he was back to being Koray, smirking at her and saying how it was harder for him to do fast songs right away- and he wasn't wrong!
Maybe if these interactions kept up she could forget all about the pulsing of pain in her neck and her head and the echo of thoughts that Arietta desperately shoved back. The white of the ferry wall, the orange of a clawed hand beady eyes- fire. A gulp. Arietta opted to fall back slightly on the bed, Calando taking that chance to fully curl in her lap. Eyes stared at the roof for a moment in brief thought before she managed a, "...as long as it's not downbeat- depressing stuff's gonna make my brain switch back to a few hours ago and I really don't wanna stress out right now." a hand blindly reached for her phone before it was brought over her face and she scrolled through for a moment before landing on another one.
"...actually..." She saw a song and for a brief moment hesitated in showing it to Koray, "I did have others I scraped because I wasn't too sure how to perform them to a slower pace... i'm not too good at the low-energy stuff y'know? But..." She flipped the phone around the show him, a few songs listed. Before You Go, Falling and Sign of The Times. Arietta was probably oblivious to their meaning, and passed her phone to Koray as she began rambling. "They just have such a smooth sound and if I was able to just... nail that and get things like chords and tone right..."
Her head tilted ever so slightly to look at him from where she collapsed on the bed. "Or you can choose one you think can work, there's... a bunch in my playlist I think... uhm- but your voice would work well with most in the cut tunes anyway- all low and soft and..." She cut herslef off with a wind, hand moving to hold at her neck, "...B-But, anyway! I probably can't play for now, feel free to use my laptop to grab a backing track- i'll take mental notes..."
When Ara agreed to choose a different song, Koray smiled, more than a little relieved that he wouldn't have to try and change the song's arrangement. It was hard enough singing it the first time, nevermind trying to fit the arrangement to something more upbeat like Ara was looking for. A soft sigh would be given as Koray tried to think of other songs that might be better to sing. It was hard to think of songs that didn't have some hidden meaning that would count as depression according to Ara's definition.
The suggestion to look at her phone for some more suggestions that Ara hadn't been certain about earned another nod from Koray. Thankfully, it was relatively easy for him to do slower paced songs naturally. It was just a matter of finding the right beat sometimes. Taking the phone from Ara, Koray took a deep breath when he read the lyrics of the other songs she was suggesting. "U-ummm..." Koray murmured, already feeling his stomach tighten at the thought of trying to sing these ones. Lyrically, they were easier to sing but... he wasn't sure he wanted to subject himself to that kind of torment again.
Flipping through the playlist, Koray started to hum the tune to a couple of songs that he recognized before settling on one. Iris. That one looked like it would be easy enough. The laptop would be grabbed thereafter to find a karaoke backtrack of the song. A few clicks away and the song started. It wasn't exactly a slower version of the song, but Koray quickly got the feel for the song, swaying a little to the beat. It was easier to sing like he felt the words were true. They were. His very core cried out to be noticed, to be loved just for being himself and not what others perceived him to be. There was a lot more feeling in his voice this time, nothing like the soft ache there was before.
During the song intermission however, Koray opted to have some fun and started to dance in the room. Forget the ache in his chest that came from his own injury days earlier. Forget what he was feeling just being in the same room as Ara. It was so nice to just dance and feel like he could fly again. To feel like he could breathe. When the music died down again, Koray would slowly come to a stop. Well, not completely. He still moved to the music, still danced, but his voice left him as well, rising and falling with the passion he felt behind those words. I just want you to know who I am... That was the truth, wasn't it. He desperately wanted Ara to know him. But would she ever see him? Truly? More and more, Koray was beginning to doubt that would ever be the case.
By the time the song was done, Koray felt... drained. His chest reminded him just how much of a bad idea dancing had been but he didn't care. He'd needed that. It felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Even if Ara hadn't understood that the song had been the words from his heart, it was enough that he'd said... well, sang them. At least for now.
Arietta stayed laying where she was, gaze curiously watching Koray as he went through each of the songs she offered. She wasn't the best as picking up on other peoples emotions, that much she knew, especially not when she was as drained as she was, but he had this like... uncomfortable look on his face that she couldn't quite place, and Arietta didn't know why. The songs were meant for her to sing at the end of the day and had no relation to any current situation going on, at all! At least, that's what she told herself. Though... at least he did continue through her playlist, and then a backing track was switched on...
Ara flipped herself to lay on her side, towards Koray as she watched him silently. Her eyes lit up a little as she was able to recognise the song, oh! Oh, that was Iris! His voice again was almost... heart-wretching, in a way. Arietta found herself closing her eyes, just so she could focus on his voice more. It was a lovely song- sad, but lovely. And the way he sung it send a slight chill down her spine- this was fine!
There was a dip in the song, a momentary pause in the lyrics for the instrumental to carry on and she opted to open her eyes slightly, only to blink as she realised he was out of his spot?! Ara sat up quickly, pushing herself upright as her gaze flicked arond the room, only to find Koray dancing his lil' heart out. Her breath caught in her throat and she forced it down, a hand moving to rest at her cheek as she simply took in his grace, his movements, he was really going for it, it was... nice. Pretty, even. Solemn, because that's what the song was... and she found a soft smile on her face.
It was another sad song, but... the vibes of this one felt different. Arietta couldn't explain. It was like Koray had entered his own little word, and Arietta, who was supposed to be taking notes on how he sung it, was an audience member of his one-person show. She was... more a dancer then a singer, so conveying emotion through his smoothe movements, a spin, and the facial expressions that went with them was much easier than through lyrics. There was something beckoning her, almost as if the dance and the lyrics were directing her to udnerstand something, but the emotionally drained girl couldn't begin to work through months on unsaid pain. Instead, as his voice came to a halt and his movements ended she clapped gently.
Did she have to speak- yeah. Yeah she did. She couldn't deny there was almost... an awkwardness in the room, or maybe some sort of uncomfortableness, Ara couldn't tell, and she didn't know where it stemmed from- like- the last time they were in this room they were super comfortable! Koray looked spent from all the dancing, and Ara found herself curling her knees to her chest and sitting her chin upon them. "...I'd never thought to include Iris in my set..." She spoke then, voice soft as to not injure her throat further. "But, it is a rather... lovely choice. The way you lyrically demonstrate the emotion of like, misery with a small dab of need- I think it is, is almost theatrical!" Her head tilted ever so slightly, and she continued, "...B-But i'm not a very theatrical singer... I could always try it myself once my throat isn't... wishing me death... but yeah- and they don't allow me to dance, and haunting as your carefree choreography was- like- were you attempting to portray somebody trapped in their own mind, begging to get out?"
Ara blinked at him then, curious eyes attempting to look into his own, "You did a mid-piroette with a relevé, I haven't seen it used too much unless is dances where the like main dancer is supposed to be trapped in some way- but I could be interpreting it wrong!" She shifted then to gently scratch at Calando, who was sleepily pressed once again into her side. "...I probably would have uh- at the first want you to know who I am... stayed more in the single not range before lowering rather then raising the note... but... I think the choice worked good..."
A smile graced her features again and she moved her arm to pat at her side again, "You hadn't stretched so you're probably sore, I won't make you do another one- we can watch chuutube or-" She ended up letting out a rough sounding cough, her voice agitated it from speaking so much. She quickly ushed a hand over her mouth, taking in a few steadying breaths and ignoring the flash of pain in her throat. Once she was sure she was better she attempted once more a smile, she was fine, wasn't like she almost died today. "...i...hope my parents...didn't hear that..."
It was whispered then, and she used her head to gesture to her laptop with a raised brow. It seemed to dawn on her then that literally anybody else in her position would have gone to the hospital, but right now? That was the last thing or Ari's mind.
Arceus, but Koray had overestimated what his body would allow him to do. His chest hurt far more than he was letting on. Thank goodness he could fake being out of breath versus in pain after that little display. For a moment, Koray hoped that Ara would understand, that she would realize that Iris was his heart's cry. If she could just see him, then everything would be alright, wouldn't it? With a hand on his chest, Koray tried to breathe, taking in a few deep breaths while it seemed Ara struggled to find the words to speak. Did she like it? Would she understand? There were so many questions that Koray wanted to ask... but would he like the answer? That remained to be seen.
The initial comments about his rendition being theatrical earned a softer smile. That was sweet of her to say given that every word of it had been true. If what she was saying was right, then the emotion Koray had been trying to portray had indeed shone through. Whether she would understand that the emotions in the song was what he was feeling... that remained to be seen. So far, Koray wasn't convinced Ara would recognize just how deeply he felt about the words of the song. Her question about portraying someone trapped earned a slight, if almost bitter smile. Trapped? Yes... that was how he felt, wasn't it?
As Ara explained why she believed Koray's dancing was about someone being trapped, he found himself blinking almost in surprise. That was... exactly right but once again, before he could answer she was talking again. The only critique on one of the lines of the song was met with a nod. Yes, he could work on that later but given this had been the first run through of the song, it was pretty good that that was the only thing Ara had found to comment on. Well, at least regarding improving the song. She was the professional after all, not him. It was only after Ara patted the spot next to her that Koray realized he was still standing.
Giving a half laugh, Koray managed a smile and sat down next to her, flopping backwards with a sigh. Ara was right about one thing, he was sore... and tired. That too. A worried frown came and went from his features at hearing that hacking cough. It took everything not to bring up the subject. The following comment had him laughing though, despite how much it hurt his chest, "You have a soundproof room, Ara. If your parents never heard us, then I doubt they'd heard that," Koray laughed, only realizing belatedly exactly what he'd said. Oh... right. He hadn't meant to say that, woops. That was the awkward silence of the century.
The brunette smiled as she watched him practically collapse on the bed, the mattress bouncing slightly before returning to it's usual state. Her throat ached, it pulsed with pain and she was trying her best to breathe through her nose to avoid agitating it too much. She'd absently brought a hand up to rub at the side of her neck, gaze leaving Koray as her attention turned to her laptop- right, chuutube... hmm- eyes flicked back to Koray suddenly as he spoke and her face flared up suddenly in a red tint- oh. oh yeah- right. Music studio, soundproof- she'd told him countless times- mmhm.
It was after she had processed it did a snort leave her, hand moving to cover her mouth as she giggled quietly, but that only irritated her throat more. He was right, at least, her parents never heard anything up here so there's no way they would hear her, even if she was crying out for help in horrendous pain- uh... anyway! She recovered quickly a brought her hand over towards her laptop, bringing it closer to herself and clicking through a few tabs before settling on chuutube and pulling up the first video reccomended, something something cute pokemon memes she wasn't sure. "My parents wouldn't care anyway, even if they did hear something. I've had a ladder to my room for years and they don't give a shit- i'm almost killed on a ferry and it's all fake I love you let me help- i'm sick of it. They didn't care about my yesterday so why should they care now."
After that... She just... idly stared at the screen, putting it between her and Koray, but she wasn't listening, she couldn't. Every few seconds the girl cleared her throat, wincing at herself and her darling Callando had decided enough was enough. A loud cry left him and he all but toddled over and pulled at Arietta's sleeve, sparks dancing off the Alolan Raichu's cheeks. Her attention moved to him and she bit down on her lip, "...Cal?"
The Raichu tugged at her again and she could only blink. A frustrated huff left him and he sped over towards her door- uhm? Arietta's eyes flicked to Koray, then back to her pokemon. Calando though, despite being large for his size couldn't reach the doorknob. Arietta needed medication or something, there was no way this was fine, not after what he'd seen.
Koray's chest hurt. Nevermind he was still recovering from an injury as well, dancing certainly hadn't helped. Nor had the emotions that made it feel like his heart was in a vice. It was only belatedly that he realized what was said. At least Ara's reaction had been to giggle but that didn't help the awkwardness regardless. It wasn't until she spoke again that Koray caught on that everything wasn't exactly ok. A brief conversation between him and Rowan would ensue that would lead the Phantump to disappear in search of the medicine they would need.
The video was a good distraction in the meantime, after hearing what Ara had said, Koray didn't have a good response. None of what came to mind would help, not in this situation. Aside from that, his own track record with family wasn't exactly stellar... even if his dad was among the best things to happen to him. He could relate to what Ara was going through in some ways though and that perhaps stung the most. Taking her hand in his, Koray didn't say anything, there wasn't much too say after all. It was just a simple reminder that he was there and that he cared, even if her parents didn't. Absently, Koray had to wonder if the song had made any impression on Ara... from the way she seemed so ready to dismiss it, he didn't think so.
That hurt more than he was willing to admit.
It seemed that Cal had the same thought as Koray had. What was talking Rowan so long? No sooner had the thought crossed his mind when Rowan came back with arms full of medicine and a few other things balanced on his head. The sight was enough to make Koray laugh a little before he slowly stood, relieving Rowan of his burden. Somehow he'd managed to bring a hot cup of tea upstairs without anyone noticing. "Thanks buddy, good job~," Koray hummed, giving the tea and some of the medicine to Ara, palming a couple pills himself when he didn't think she was looking.
"You should take this, it might help. The tea too," Koray explained, settling back on the bed after, swallowing the pills he'd palmed only when Ara wasn't looking. She didn't need to worry about him on top of everything else, never mind that he didn't want to get into talking about who had caused it. That was the last thing she needed right now.
Calando was huffing softly at the door, a soft whine leaving him at his inability to open it. There was a wheeze to Arietta’s voice that unnerved him, a strain. He knew that she was exerting herself, but he had no clue why. Why she couldn’t just rest, why she couldn’t do anything but what she was doing right now. It pained the Alolan Raichu to see Arietta like this, really. His tail flicked from one way to another, and he eventually backed up a few steps- just in time for Rowan to enter, opening the door and closing it behind him and bringing in a wide variety of medicinal goods.
Arietta didn’t laugh at the sight. Her gaze had strayed from Calando to Koray’s hand, staring at their intertwined limbs, scrutinising. There was a lot bouncing around in her head, a lot on her mind. Arietta was a singer, and a dancer. The one thing she could analyse the best out of anything was those two things, and what each movement, each note infliction was supposed to portray. Every few seconds a though bounced around in her head, confused, torn, tired. Pain, but not hers. But Arietta couldn’t comprehend it? How could she when she was terrified? And hurting herself?
How could she even begin to properly understand somebody elses emotions when she could barely comprehend her own- when all her energy was spent trying to forget how she was feeling. Her gaze was foggy for not blinking a long time, Before ever realizing it she was cradling tea close to herself, wanting warmth, wanting comfort, wanting… wanting… she wanted...
A soft hiccup left her, and she put the tea on her nightstand, shaking her head. “…No. I’m.. fine.” A soft breath, strained, left her. She moved to put the laptop properly to the side. “Tea would uh, irritate it more. I’m sure. And- like- everythings good!” A pause. No lying.
A pause.
A breath.
“…Sorta.” A shift again, she popped out the pills and, without saying anything, attempted to down them dry, wincing and fighting back a cough. “…T-There, aha. It’ll be fine in a few hours. Anyway. I've bounced back from worse! I’m glad you’re here, at least.”
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