generalflirt | ~♥FORTY-FOUR♥~

[Action]

[Shikamaru was on the mission until a few days ago and it rattled him, he could tell. Green's relative showed up recently, but before that they'd been doing a bunch of training... which pushed back his normal training, personal fitness, and ninja stuff with Shikamaru. Gold was gone. He was still trying as he could to avoid Sakura, probably because he still wasn't entirely sure where he stood with her or with ... other parties.

Life was complicated, basically, and he found himself again longing to return to the comparative simplicity of Ikeburkuro. Or maybe just his own ignorance at the time. He thought then that he'd experienced the darkness, and while he didn't want to make light of what happened to Saki or how much the betrayal from Izaya still stung... when it came down to it, he had no idea how dark things could get. None at all. Or so he thought now.

Also, his zappyness had faded from the kidnapping, but Linda's electricity still isn't back up to par. Actually, it's still floundering around... well, frankly, lower than it was when she was born. She was born with a lot of potential, and while she can now pull off the careful stuff they've trained with (Magnet Rise, Flash, etc) she can't even pull off a proper thundershock. He knows she's been looking at the thunderstone in his room more and more, but he can't help but think that would compound the problem. A problem he's been trying until now to keep under wraps as much as possible, for her pride and because of his fear Green'll take her from him over it.

So what was he doing?

Well, him and his Pikachu are getting some exercise. It's not particularly icy today, so they do it outside, running around town and leaping up trashcans and walls to roofs, swinging off lamp posts, and in Linda's case floating some. Basically, parkour/free running as much as is possible in an almost-rural town like this. It's making him miss the urban environment even more, but it does feel nice to show off a little with the stamina and strength which now backs up the balance he's always had. Sure, the both of them mess up now and again, but more often than not (sometimes with some chakra help) they pull off some crazy leaping stunts. What's more, as the day drags on of them doing this, he and his mouse get progressively more in sync as the joy of showing off and doing crazy stuff overrides both of their degrees of shame.

So run into them doing that all over, but mostly centered around the plaza.

That night, he settles in for a meal at Seventh Heaven. He should go home or hang out at the Convenience Store, but he decides he'd rather eat out right now. So him and Linda go in to eat there. He also pulls out his journal and considers something...]

[Written]

So, is anyone planning things for White Day? [Not that he's expecting it, but. There, he's reaching out more]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well, she doesn't have a head. Also! She's known as the "Black Bike" as well, what with that motorcycle and cat suit.

[...wh--]

Are you saying she's literally headless? [how? are we misunderstanding something here??] That seems like a rather unbelievable taste...

You eer heard of a Dullahan, Cilan-san?

Hm...no, I'm afraid I haven't. What are they?

There's a sort of headless spirit of death who rides around holding their head in this arms and collects souls before their passing. It's an old legend from Ireland, and that's what they call a "Dullahan."

Is that so... [Sounds like a headless horseman kind of tale, or like something he'd hear about a ghost Pokemon. But a headless spirit of death is kind of creepy to think about, and if he had been told this story back in Unova, he would have immediately doubted the authenticity of it...mostly due to his fear/denial about spooky supernatural things. But for all he knows, maybe it really is a real legend where Masaomi is from.]

I don't think we have legends about "Dullahans" where I'm from--usually our legends are based on the mythology surrounding rare Pokemon that are considered to have a "legendary" taste above other Pokemon.

What, there's no headless pokemon to speak of?

Well... [There are Pokemon who arguably are nothing more than a head for a body, like Gastly or Exeggcute, but they might not count...otherwise, he's pretty sure there isn't one that doesn't have a head of some kind or especially running around carrying them under their arms...well, except maybe one.]

None come to mind that are simply lacking a head like the Dullahan you described, though it sounds like a story you might hear surrounding the myths behind a few ghost-type Pokemon. Take the Pokemon "Yamask" for example--while they do have heads of their own, they also carry around with them a mask made of stone that are modeled with the appearance of a face on them.

Hoooh, so why would they be carrying around those masks?

[Hrm...] To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. If I recall correctly, according to the Pokedex it's a "Spirit Pokemon" that is usually found wandering the ruins of ancient civilizations, so perhaps they acquired these masks in places like these. Or, are even from ancient times themselves, as the masks, although simplistic in design, may represent a face that they once had in a past life. [To be more exact, the faces are based on when they were a human in a past life, but Ash's dex didn't quite elaborate on that part.]

Either way, they're certainly Pokemon with a mysterious taste, as well as being very attached to those masks--separating one from it's mask can have consequences for the unwitting person who does so, as these Pokemon will do whatever they can to get them back. Attempting to wear them or having one's face too close to it in general is also unwise, as Yamask, using this mask, can also possess and take over the mind and body of the unlucky person who wears it...

[And that last part isn't just spooky speculation, that actually did in fact happen. ~~You get three guesses who got possessed and the first two don't count.~~]

Oh, wow, that's pretty... intense. More than gengar, anyway. [Or at least, more than he knows of gengar. Ghost types, man]

Ah...I'm not as familiar with Gengar as I am with Yamask, as they are Pokemon that primarily reside in places like the Kanto region, but...yes, I'd say "intense" is usually a good word for describing some of the stories surrounding the ghost-type...

[A very accurate word really, considering what most of his own personal experiences with ghost-type Pokemon have been like back in Unova...]

Well, they are ghosts, it speaks for itself. [With another cackle] After all, you can just specter the intensity right in front of you.

[A beat]

Get it?

[...Ahaha.]

Yeah, I get it. [He got it even before you asked. (But really of all the ghost-related humor, that's the one you go with huh...)]

I know, I know. Joke of the year.

~♥FORTY-FOUR♥~

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