Snippet #2516102

A seemingly young trainer with not but a map, some supplies and all the bravery her mini skirt could hide approached one of the larger entrances to the caverns. A yamask followed in her wake. To the pokemon watching it would appear as if the yamask was speaking but no words were coming out, but to Valorie she heard him as clear as day in plain English. His voice always sounded as if it were a mere echo, a slightly haunting reminder of the nature of his existence.

"Hey, you know that man said -not- to go in there right? Deadly heat, burns, toxic air? Are any of those registering in that pretty little head of yours?" Shu asked his partner, the skirt to whose shadow he bound himself. Valorie just sort of turned her gaze upon Shu and gave him a look that said she understood, declining to comment. She knew by now that he was only being rude because he wanted to grab her attention, and in that sense his efforts backfired. Shu wasn't having any of it.

The ghost moved in front of Valorie, getting rather up in her face and causing her to stop abruptly. "Hey--You remember how you said I should have more of a say in what we do and where we go? Well here's my request: Let's -not- go in there!" he remarked. The request stung like a betrayal, but once again a part of Valorie knew better. The short woman locked eyes with Shu and a shudder seemed to run through the ghost pokemon as her magically glowing eyes pacified him.

Holding an argument with her was difficult without the assistance of a blindfold. It was so easy to just... stop caring about even the most serious of topics when one looked into those eyes. Her irises swam with the appearance of an aurora, a hint of the power that dwelled beneath them.

"...I could go alone, I suppose." Valorie replied thoughtfully. She knew Shu wasn't protesting for his own sake.

Valorie smiled at Shu and reached out to gently yet firmly grasp the temporarily pacified pokemon's mask; it was the only part of him she could reliably handle. Pulling the mask into a hug, she displayed her best carefree smile. "Uh--" Shu started, pulling away slightly. He did not get far however before he had to stop and consider the implications of what his partner had said.

"What I'd really like though is if we could go together; I need you." she assured the other in a mildly affectionate tone. A moment of silence would pass where Shu did his best to avoid having his judgement clouded by those supernatural eyes of hers be before...

"Fine." Shu relented, not entirely convinced. Valorie hadn't given him a great deal of options. The short woman released Shu's mask and nodded at him in silent thanks before making her way onwards.

...The sight of a translucent wavering in the air was her first clue she'd found the right place. With mild caution Valorie approached the fissure that was the entrance to Magma Catacombs. As she leaned over the opening her face was immediately assaulted with a foul smell and her eyes forced shut by the sudden blast of heat that wafted past her. She pulled back and began coughing, her body not appreciating the toxic fumes.

After a moment's recovery she looked up to find Shu watching her quietly and beckoned him with her eyes. Valorie reached out and the two of them drifted together, Shu's mask finding it's place upon her face. For a moment she was overcome by symbiosis; a flood of new information, sensory and emotional, threatened to tear the bond apart before it even began. The strain upon her mind was enough to cause her to lose her balance momentarily. The moment passed however; understanding, respect, acceptance, focus and a little bit of compromise all went into stabilizing their bond. A rush of relief passed through Valorie as the two of their souls joined together like two pieces of a puzzle and reacted powerfully, filling her with strength and millenniums worth of wisdom.

Reaching into her satchel the newly masked Valorie produced a second pokeball, priming it and tossing it to the ground without concern. From it emerged a doublade whose hilts Valorie immediately reached out to grasp. It felt as if she'd just stuck her finger in an electric socket, a rather sharp pain shooting up into her chest as the two blade's seemingly decorative clothes suddenly reached up and wrapped her arms. The cursed blade's grip tightened and for a moment Valorie felt the tug of it's presence upon her soul, attempting to devour her very essence. This was however quickly blocked by Shu, decidedly unwilling. This was normal. Doublade's species generally didn't like being handled and had developed this predatory reaction to take advantage of those who would try. It was certainly one of the harder pokemon to symbiosis with, or perhaps yamask were simply one of the easiest; perhaps both were true!

As Valorie regained her sense of stability and self she moved over to the fissure again and began to lower herself into the catacombs.

The fumes and heat no longer threatened her.