4.0 Dedicated to its Members and Fans of Pokemon A Pokemon Sandbox RP
Pokémon Dubstep (ft. Lindsey Stirling)
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elcome Adventurer to EPOCH! A Pokemon Sandbox Rp set in the original region of Nue. Everything you need to know will be in the Guidebook and PokeDex 101!
EPOCH uses the Manga and is built on the Original ideas suggested by our members.
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RULES
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EPOCH is PG-13. Proboards’ Terms of Service:
Sex; When you get under the clothes, fade to black.
Violence; Do not go into extreme nauseating detail.
Cursing; This is so fucking allowed, but don't go overboard.
Suggestive Content; In avatars, signatures and templates can attract the wrong kind of attention. So be careful.
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Sept 25, 2013 18:54:09 GMT -5
Lucas Courtwater 690
The location for Lucas’s transfer wasn’t set, yet, but that wasn’t much of an issue for Jeremiah. Maybe they’d head off to some region he’d never been before? Unova was a pretty modern and beautiful place from what he’d heard. Lucas would definitely like it, and Nimbasa City would be like a home away from home for sure. Or maybe they could head to Hoenn and Jeremiah could show Lucas some of the cities he travelled through briefly when he managed to escape the system. It could be the early head start to traveling the world he’d been planning to do some day! The idea was slowly starting to brighten up Jeremiah’s mood… He continued to nod along to the information, relaxing back in his seat.
The future seemed bright for a few moments, before Lucas shut off the sun. He needed him to stay here? Jeremiah’s expression went from calm to an almost pained look. He bit his tongue to keep from cutting Lucas off as the other gave his reasoning, but this time it was all almost going right over his head. Jeremiah had spent the past four days just trying to track Lucas down, and now he was going to be separated from him for an indefinite amount of time? What if something happened to Lucas, again? What if the blond got into some sort of trouble and needed him, but he was too far away to get there in time? Jeremiah was already starting to shake his head as Lucas even tacked on the part about Irene.
“But!” Jeremiah blurted out, before falling silent and gritting his teeth. Lucas wasn’t looking at him, something he was grateful for moment ago, but now it bothered him. He knew his friend was swayed by emotions relatively easy, and with the pout and pleading gaze Jeremiah locked on him, he was sure he’d get his way. “I don’t want to stay here and play baby sitter for your girlfriend!” he snapped, like a child throwing a fit. “I know what’s going on, sure, but you’re the brains, not me, and… I—I don’t want to stay here if you’re not here!” he declared, finally giving up on his begging gaze to glare down at the ground. He was throwing a fit like a child now, but after nearly punching a hole in the wall, this was better in comparison to what he could possibly be doing in reaction.
The only reason Jeremiah didn’t leave town long ago was simply the fact Lucas was here. In all honesty, the other boy was Jeremiah’s only tie to this place. Every other connection was loose and fragile, or already broken. He could blow off the world and go wherever he wanted without a moment’s hesitation if he didn’t have Lucas to think about. Now he was being told that his only connection to this world was leaving and he had to stay? Jeremiah was, quite frankly, upset. He couldn’t protect his friend, he couldn’t stop him from getting hurt, so this surely must be his punishment or something. The selfish desire to stay with his friend briefly blinded him to the reasons behind Lucas’s order to stay put. It didn’t settle in easily at first but as he thought over it, he could understand why he was being told to come. He opened his mouth to argue it, again, before shutting his mouth and shaking his head.
Lucas was right, and Jerry hated it. He had to stay and he had to fix this or Lucas may never be able to come back. He had to carry on in his friend’s position, but could he really do it? Jeremiah tensed up in his seat, gripping the edge of it as he made a silent retreat from the argument. He could give any reason to go with Lucas that could be easily trumped by his friend’s ability to reason with him. Years of bickering with each other had made this frustratingly evident. He kicked off the ground carefully to spin so his back was to Lucas as he continued his silent inner tantrum.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Sept 25, 2013 19:52:03 GMT -5
keep your secrets
"I don’t want to stay here and play baby sitter for your girlfriend! I know what’s going on, sure, but you're the brains, not me, and…I—I don't want to stay here if you're not here!”
Lucas cringed, turning a little away from Jerry's direction and tucking his chin slightly, looking down. In Jerry's place, he wouldn't have wanted to stay either, but he just didn't see any other way. Shane could probably handle things, too, but that would mean filling him in on what had happened and Lucas just didn't have time and . . . Jerry might have summed it up to playing baby-sitter, but when it came down to it if these people - this thing - was really coming after him, then they might choose to do it by going through the people he cared most about. And . . . and he just didn't trust anyone else with protecting her but Jerry.
The fact was that Lucas didn't want to leave at all - what he was asking of Jerry was too much, anyway. His friend had gotten involved simply because the two of them did everything together, and now Lucas was going to leave and drop all these responsibilities on him that he had never asked for. It wasn't fair - to him or anyone else involved. Or to his mother, who probably hadn't slept in four days, or to Irene, who for all they knew had a target on her back right now . . . But if he stayed . . .
Lucas squeezed his eyes shut, this time ignoring the IV and the other monitor wires and pressing a hand over his eyes and brow. One of the devices beeped softly in brief protest before settling down again.
There was no way to make it right. If he left, he was leaving Jerry with a hotbed of gang activity caused by invisible monsters to try to handle on his own. And if he stayed, there was a pretty good chance that he would become one of them.
"I'm sorry," he said, hand moving down to squeeze the bridge of his nose, eyes still closed. "I know . . . what I'm asking you to do for me isn't right, but . . . I don't know what else to do, Jerry. If I stay, I don't think I'm going to be able to fight that thing off much longer. But we can't just drop everything and run, or more people are going to . . ."
His hand fell back into his lap, and he stared down at it. He chuckled softly.
"The brains? I have no idea what I'm doing."
It was pathetic, it was no excuse, but it was the truth. He looked over at Jerry, who had rolled away from the bed. His back was to him now, and Lucas briefly wondered if his friend had just finally had enough of this - before quickly dismissing the thought. Jeremiah could be furious at him, and he had every right to be, but Lucas knew that they would be alright in the end. They would figure something out. They would have to.
His eyes flickered up in the direction of the clock, again, and then he tried to listen for activity out in the hall, but couldn't make out anything beyond the soft hum of the machines.
Whichever interruption came first, they were running out of time, and they were hardly any close to anything than when they had started out.
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Oct 4, 2013 22:09:56 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 693
With his back to Lucas, Jeremiah tried to calm down and gather himself. The days were catching up to him, the exhaustion, the frustrations. The built up stress was shoved down, but it kept leaking as the conversation went on. At this point, he was almost ready to give up on these investigations altogether, close the case and move on. Sometimes ignorance was bliss, and Jeremiah wished he was pretty damn ignorant right now. Lucas and he had done everything together, though. Even if they weren’t right next to each other, there was just always that knowledge that the other was nearby to give support. Lucas playing sports, being in plays, running for student council… Jeremiah was always finding a way to get himself involved.
He didn’t want to blame Lucas for this, though. If anything, it was a combined effort and if Lucas got punished for it, Jeremiah would demand he share the burden. He was angry, though. Angry with Interpol, infuriated by the Pokémon that had harmed his friend, ticked off that Lucas was in the hospital, enraged that his friend would be sent away… Jeremiah Burton was just pissed off with the world today. The cranky redhead tried to calm down, though. All of his anger boiled under the surface and was directed at a trash can in the dimly lit room with a glare. A cold stare, a gaze he didn’t have often. It seemed like nothing would pull him back from trying to murder this trash can with his gaze alone when Lucas finally began speaking.
He apologized. Lucas Courtwater apologized, and Jerry physically cringed. It was the words alone from his friend that started to change that anger. It was funny how emotions were so easily moved at times and Jeremiah’s anger was quickly getting redirected at himself. He let himself lash out at Lucas, who didn’t even know what to do himself. Jerry’s mind shot around for the words to say to fix this, he looked for the escape route in this situation, the way to make it end now, but there was no short cut. There were only the long painful paths fate had left for the two and neither one was appealing.
Jerry fell silent after his friend’s speech, head fallen and body coming over with a dull ache. He held his head as he just weakly shook it back and forth in a silent denial of his friend’s apology. There were those blasted tears in his eye, again. He didn’t bother with them, though. He just let it be, and this time allowed himself to calm down a bit before he’d finally respond. Once he managed to put the anger into a tightly closed bottle and wiped off his face, Jeremiah took a deep breath. Kicking from the ground, this time he leisurely turned back to Lucas to see the other was once more looking at the clock. Jeremiah glanced to it with a dulled gaze, before he simply turned his sight back to his bedridden friend.
“… Hey, you have a better idea than me” he lightly joked, before his gaze drifted to the floor. There was another brief moment of silence, before Jeremiah gave a slow nod and turned a small smile to his friend. “… Don’t worry anymore, alright? I’ll handle it” he finally complied, though inwardly he loathed the idea. No, no more snapping, he had to be strong for his friend. Throwing his arms behind his head and lounging back in his seat, he chuckled a bit. “You need a vacation anyways, man. You’ve always been horribly pale, it’s about time you went out and got a nice tan. Can’t let that pretty face start getting zits and wrinkles from stress, either” he taunted, sniffing a bit as he glanced up towards the clock. “I’ll keep Campaign subtle and Irene safe and distracted with my charms” he jested and closed his eyes, ready to just fall asleep in his chair. “Getting close to time for your meds or somethin’? You keep looking at the clock…” he questioned in an attempt to start pushing the subject to something else.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Oct 5, 2013 16:00:29 GMT -5
keep your secrets
“… Hey, you have a better idea than me?”
Lucas looked back to him, again simultaneously relieved and troubled by the brightened mood. Jeremiah's gaze dropped to the floor for a moment, and Lucas looked down as well. He was always grateful for Jerry having his back, but, he just worried that his friend was still putting too much on himself. He couldn't stop Jerry from feeling guilty, he knew, but being the cause of that guilt felt like Lucas was failing him somehow.
“… Don’t worry anymore, alright? I'll handle it.” Lucas nodded almost imperceptibly - given the circumstances, the agreement on Jerry's part really didn't feel like a victory. He watched the redhead settling back in his seat, and made another effort to relax, sinking back against the pillow, gaze toward the ceiling. “You need a vacation anyways, man. You’ve always been horribly pale, it’s about time you went out and got a nice tan. Can’t let that pretty face start getting zits and wrinkles from stress, either. I’ll keep Campaign subtle and Irene safe and distracted with my charms."
Lucas shot him a look at the pretty comment - could he not get one break from that? - and then rolled his eyes. If Jerry was in any way going to be distracting Irene, "charms" was probably not the word for it. It was probably going to take all of Jerry's questionable avoidance skills just to keep from telling her the whole story the second she leveled one of her looks at him.
Ugh, what is Irene gonna think . . . ?
“Getting close to time for your meds or somethin’? You keep looking at the clock…”
Lucas looked at him, eyes widening slightly, then glanced at the clock and back. They way the conversation had gone so far, he had almost thought he might not have to explain the rest of what was going on. At least, not yet, and not in so many words. He had already said a few things that may have tipped him off about it, and he figured Jerry was avoiding the the subject. But no. He hadn't caught on, and another waves of exhaustion went through him as Lucas realized he still wasn't done layering on the bad news.
"Jerry . . ." He took a breath - they just needed to get through all of this and move on. If they just sat around feeling sorry, they wouldn't get anything planned and, dammit, he was tired, and there was no way to hide it. He spoke evenly again, almost nonchalant, speech broken up more by his exhaustion than reluctance. ". . . It's the real reason I'm leaving. I'm not going to tell Interpol anything about this . . . but whatever that thing did to me in the alley-" he turned just slightly from Jerry "-is still happening. Every few hours . . . I don't know if It's just looking for me, or really trying to finish . . . but I get this headache, and I can barely think. It's been happening a lot less, but if it keeps happening, I . . . I'm no use to anyone while I'm here, Jerry. I'm either stuck like this, or . . . I guess It wins. So, I'm leaving." He shrugged slightly. "I've been keeping track of how long between headaches. Nothing else to do. It's been over five hours since the last one."
And again, it sounded like insanity to him, more than a little pathetic and so completely not what he wanted to have to talk about at that moment. But, it was the truth, which was really all he had to give.
"Jerry, don't . . ." He looked back at his friend, smiling weakly. He didn't know what he was trying to say. Don't be upset anymore? Don't blame yourself for this? "Besides, if I stayed I'd be at this hospital longer . . . and they keep trying to make me eat the food."
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Oct 20, 2013 0:24:13 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 702 WORDS
The sight of Lucas’s eyes widening at the question did not sit well with Jeremiah at all. Lucas was just checking the time for the next medical dose, right? There wasn’t something else he missed over the past four days, right? Maybe Lucas was doing that thing where he worried too much? He did do that a lot. Still, the way the question wasn’t answered immediately once more unsettled Jeremiah. The longer the silence went on, the more it unnerved him. He had to stay calm, though. He snapped twice, and that was two times too many. Lucas needed calm and level headed Jeremiah, not… Not a disaster. It was going to take an almost admirable amount of self-control, but judging by the moment of silence following the words, Jerry braced himself.
His name was mentioned and he merely closed his eyes and sank back in his chair. He was ready for this, right? More of this bad news, this terrible tale to add onto his friend's troubles. Maybe this was something he could fix, something he could actually go out and handle right away. While the world was crumbling around them, Jeremiah Burton wasn't going to sit back and let the last of the pieces fall. Swallowing his nerves, Jeremiah merely watched Lucas carefully as the other finally got around to explaining what had been happening. As he predicted, the news was another part of their world falling to the ground.
While Lucas talked, he watched his friend begin to turn away and slowly a part of him felt compelled to reach out. Leaning forward in his seat, Jeremiah carefully set his hand on top of the blankets over Lucas's arm. He didn't move to actually grip his arm, but his hand slowly curled to tightly grip the sheet over his arm. He knew what Lucas was talking about, the feeling of this thing still trying to take his friend away. It had to be those psychic pulses he'd been feeling for days, the odd strong waves of psychic power that have been spreading over the city. If he could, he'd stop them. If he could, he'd block them and spare his friend from these pains, but Jeremiah never learned that. All he did was sharpen his senses, but he couldn't use his mind to throw pokeballs, read thoughts, look into the future, or the past... He felt so useless, knowing all the things that he could do if he'd been stronger, better, if he'd just...
His hand was practically trembling as it stayed on top of Lucas's arm. Control, he had to control himself. Control, control, control. Jeremiah kept his head down, hiding his face in the darkness of the room for a moment as he worked to regather himself. When his name was uttered with the beginning's of the request to calm, Jeremiah fought more urgently to shove it all down. He slowly shook his head and used his other hand to just hold his head as he processed this all. He was about to break when Lucas suddenly cracked a pathetic joke. He didn't immediately react to the words, other then becoming rather still in his seat. Silence filled the room once more, before Jeremiah took a deep breath and heaved a huge sigh.
The hand clutching the sheets slowly uncurled itself and gave the blond's arm a pat. “Oh dear, hospital food” he chuckled softly, before he finally began to raise his head back up. He gave a slightly crooked smile to Lucas and retracted his hand from the other's arm. “I'm sure you can handle a week or two without your fancy-smancy meals” he lightly teased, before winking, or blinking, at his friend. “Tell ya what, I'll sneak some snacks in here for ya. You look so skinny, I think you can afford to build up some fat. You might be going to Snowpoint for all we know” he tacked on with a little laugh, trying his best to follow his best friend's flow and bring light back to the situation. Even as he started to get back to his cheery personality, though, the information he'd gathered today still weighed heavily on him in his mind.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Oct 20, 2013 11:35:06 GMT -5
So give me all you've got, I can take it.
We walked alone in your city lights.
Silence hung between them again.
He could have apologized a thousand more times, if he thought it would do any good, or even begin to make up for all of this. He had never meant to put the two of them here. Looking down at Jerry's hand, white knuckled and shaking - all he could think of was how wrong it was. Jerry having to feel all of, while he sat there almost numb. It wasn't that Lucas didn't care what happened to himself - but it had become something like a distant problem, buried beneath all the others. He could deal with himself later, but it was Jerry and everyone else that had to go through this, now. And as much as he hated thinking about it, Jerry was the one it hit the most, because . . .
When they had first run into Dorothy, Lucas had been so happy. Jerry finally had someone else, he had family. But that had been a cruel joke, and now it was just him, again. That rarely acknowledged truth that Lucas was nearly all the redhead had in the world.
Most people would probably go through life never having this kind of friendship. Jerry felt everything. Felt Lucas' own pain more than he did himself. And as horrible as that could be, as much simmering anger that stirred inside him watching his friend on the edge, ultimately it gave him comfort. Because as long as they were both still breathing, they wouldn't be alone.
Jeremiah patted his arm. Lucas' eyes went back up and saw the strained smile back on his friend's face.
“Oh dear, hospital food. I'm sure you can handle a week or two without your fancy-smancy meals."
Lucas swallowed. They could do this.
"I eat the same stuff you do," he protested weakly. Because if he wasn't cooking for the two of them, he was paying for their meals out. Everything the doctors gave him was bland and heavy and smelled wrong, and he couldn't stomach it.
“Tell ya what," Jerry told him, "I'll sneak some snacks in here for ya. You look so skinny, I think you can afford to build up some fat. You might be going to Snowpoint for all we know.”
He allowed his nose to wrinkle at the skinny comment. He had tried to put more weight on - and had, a little, in muscle, but not that it actually showed. He didn't have the metabolism for it. And now he was just losing it all again in the hospital, anyway.
He was letting himself be distracted. It wasn't that difficult, and for a little while it was nice not to have to think so hard. ". . . Snowpoint," he wondered vaguely, kind of liking the idea, before backtracking a little. Some normal food would be nice, even though he had his doubts that he would be all that hungry.
"Uh . . . Well . . . my wallet's in that cabinet over there?" He stopped a moment. Would they even let Jerry in again? This time couldn't have been easy, with all the security. Plus, Jerry needed to get some rest himself, not go running all over town . . . but still, he kinda wished he could be there. They wouldn't be seeing each other for a while, especially after the deposition. He would have no control over where he was sent or he who he was allowed to see after that. "Maybe, I don't know . . . you could go to that place on Westmoore and get us lunch? If you can come back again tomorrow, anyway. You don't have to." He knew if they didn't let him in Jerry would just cause a scene, and Jerry didn't look like he was in any state to be fighting off orderlies. Maybe Mom would be able to get him back in, like she had that evening. He was pretty sure she was at least the reason they hadn't made Jerry leave already.
jeremiah
675
NOTES
Yes, Lulu. Your mum's sitting outside the hospital room smiling homicidally at anyone who comes too close.
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Oct 22, 2013 16:51:41 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 485 WORDS
Hearing Lucas’s simple protest didn’t change his mind about offering a meal. If anything, it encouraged Jeremiah’s smile to become bit stronger, more natural. He even let out a small chuckle when he saw the other’s nose wrinkle up. Teasing and picking on a friend while they were under the weather always provided mixed responses, but Jeremiah didn’t care. He could tell he was helping Lucas get his mind off of the previous matters already. Things could settle down, now. They could pretend, for a little while longer, that they were just a normal couple of friends happy with their lives. No crazy cousin, no crazy uncle, no crazy psychic pulses, no… No crazy.
Withdrawing his hand and settling back in his chair, Jeremiah smiled when the other repeated the word ‘Snowpoint’. Honestly, Jeremiah had a feeling his friend would love that city. The beautiful snow and wilderness would be a nice break and contrast from Saffron City. He could already see the blond just dropping to the ground without warning to make a snow angel. Even if he didn’t go there, Jeremiah inwardly noted it might be a fun idea to drag him up north someday. As he mused over the world and the places they could go, he blinked a few times at Lucas’s mention of a wallet.
Holding his hands up, Jeremiah seemed to fan away the words that told him the location of the funds. “No, no, I’ll cover it” he assured, flashing a charming grin. “Don’t worry your pretty little head, your buddy Jerry’ll take care of ya” he joked, before pausing to listen to Lucas go on. He quirked a brow and stopped fanning the air. Letting one hand fall to his lap, Jeremiah used his other to jab his thumb over his shoulder to point back towards the door. “Dude, after how long your mom worked just to let me get in here today, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna be able to come by everyday” he confirmed with a glance over his shoulder. It was almost as if he was afraid that just mentioning the woman would somehow summon her into the room.
When Mrs. Courtwater didn’t manage to manifest in the room upon the uttering of her title, Jeremiah looked back over at Lucas. “So, yeah, I’ll bring you some real food tomorrow” he confirmed and slumped back in his seat. Wrapping his arms over his chest, he closed his eye and sighed. Finally just taking a moment to relax, once more he remembered just how sore and exhausted he was. Emotions had been fueling him before, but now he was just running on fumes. If he could get away with it, he’d just sleep there in the chair. “You want me to grab anything else?” he asked. “Pass a message onto anyone, get that nurse at the front desk’s number?” he joked, cracking a tired grin.
I would almost say Regina is now she who shall not be named to Jeremiah, but then I realized Irene fit the role better.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Oct 22, 2013 23:54:03 GMT -5
So give me all you've got, I can take it.
We walked alone in your city lights.
". . . You'll . . . cover it?"
Lucas' expression was nothing if not skeptical as he looked over at the redhead, a dozen or so arguments already coming to mind - the least of which being that that probably meant someone was going to get to work in the morning and find their wallet short a few bills. Unless Jeremiah decided to be on his best behavior, of course, which somehow didn't sound particularly likely at the moment. And even if he did get together some of his own money, Jerry was already doing enough for him - he didn't need to go out of his way for lunch.
Yet, all the same . . . It was probably just something that Jerry wanted to do, and in the end Lucas didn't argue with him.
“Dude, after how long your mom worked just to let me get in here today, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna be able to come by everyday.” Jerry glanced over his shoulder suddenly, and Lucas followed his gaze over to the door. They waited. Nothing happened. Jerry went on. "So yeah, I'll bring you some real food tomorrow. You want me to get anything else? Pass a message onto anyone, get that nurse at the front desk's number?"
He thought for a moment, trying to remember everything he had been planning before Jerry had arrived. It all seemed like it had happened an impossibly long time ago.
"There is one thing that needs to be done pretty soon," he said. "Um. Talk to Shane. He needs to get the copies of our files out of storage and get them to you to give to my mom. And it has to be the copies, not the original set." The originals were more up to date, and contained some information he didn't want Interpol to have yet. Mostly concerning a few things the gang had done in the last couple of weeks. And the originals mentioned Dorothy - the copies had been stripped of most of the important names. "Tomorrow, if you can talk to him and he can get the keys."
The last six months or so, when it had become clear that someone was hunting the gang, he, Quinn and Shane had started taking extra precautions when it came to the records - primarily making a copy set of the investigation notes and making a show of keeping them in a secure storage unit uptown. As far as he knew the originals were still in a plastic crate somewhere at Quinn's work.
. . . And hopefully, she had moved them again. He had seen bits of that thing's head, which meant it probably had seen his. If It didn't know him front and back already.
No. No point worrying about that right now. There was nothing he could do about it, and there was no time to try to figure out each and every thing that would need to be changed. They could work on that later. Jerry, and Shane, and whoever - they would know what to do.
OK. So, what else?
Pass a message on to anyone . . .?
Lucas cringed. There was, of course, the one thing that he wouldn't have wished on anybody. But there was no one else but Jerry - he wouldn't have the chance to do it himself . . .
"Uh . . . and . . . well, you have to . . . I mean, we have to figure out . . . what to tell Irene."
jeremiah
583
NOTES
"But ultimately you're going to be the one that has to face her first, and for that I apologize."
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Oct 30, 2013 14:35:27 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 668 WORDS
“. . . You’ll… cover it?”
“You heard me” came Jerry’s snappy response before he carried on with his words. Lucas’s beliefs were accurate to say the least when it came to just how Jeremiah planned to cover this meal. It wouldn’t be any sort of grand feast so surely no one would miss a few bills from their pocket, right? Jerry was content with his idea, and Lucas just seemed too exhausted to bother arguing the idea. The fact that that was the case wasn’t exactly something Jeremiah would celebrate, as he wanted his friend to already be hopping back up on his feet and stroll out of this hospital with him. Although, he was happy that at least he could do something that might help make the stay in the hospital a more durable one.
So once he got food approved of, Jeremiah was already moving onto getting his To Do List from his friend. He was secretly hoping Lucas would indulge him on the offer to get the nurse’s number, but as always the joke was just overlooked. Oh well, that’s usually how it would go, and Jeremiah had no issue with that. He merely smiled to himself and nodded at the instructions. “Copies, not originals, got it” he confirmed, and lounged back in his seat as he let his mind briefly mull over the contents of those papers. Files containing information concerning all their research and hard work, they were incredibly important documents as far as the Campaign were aware. Jeremiah wandered for a while why Lucas would want a version without all of the names and parts missing, but it made sense now.
As Lucas thought about other messages he needed to get out there, Jeremiah’s eyes briefly drifted over to the clock. How much longer would it be before his friend suffered again? The exhausted and sore Jerry shook his head slightly the moment that question came to mind. He had to just take advantage of the time the two had left together until Lucas was shipped off. He rubbed his head as he once more registered his dull headache was still there. His hand also hurt from hitting the wall and it was becoming more and more obvious to himself just how miserable he felt physically. He just simply slumped back in the seat and tried to relax to let tense muscles go limp. It wasn’t working very well, unfortunately.
We have to figure out what to tell Irene.
Jeremiah finally let out an audible groan of frustration at the very idea of just talking to her. “You mean what I have to tell her” he grumbled, loathing the idea of talking to that woman without Lucas present. You make a few comments, come on a little too strong, and suddenly a biker gang appears and he’s banned for life from a restaurant. Great! It would be simple to say Jeremiah remembered just how he and Lucas met a certain Irene Dayhardt very well. Just thinking about it, Jeremiah’s brow twitched before he brought a hand up to rub his head. “Can we like… not?” he questioned, knowing Lucas would insist they have to. Given the fact they were talking about Irene, not telling her anything was unwise. She’d probably rat him out to the police without Lucas to be there to intervene.
“There was that riot a couple of days ago, we can just tell her you got hurt pretty bad. Your mom got pissed, and sent you off to one of the many Courtwater vacation homes until investigations were over with for some over protective reason” he suggested, looking back at Lucas as he sat up. While before he was filled with rage, Jeremiah at the time being was just irritated. Before anyone jumped the gun, Jeremiah Burton didn’t hate Irene, she didn’t do anything to deserve that. It was simply the fact if left alone together, Jeremiah and Irene’s personalities were a chemical equation for a massive explosion.
Jeremiah doesn't enjoy the idea of talking to your girlfriend-to-be Lulu
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Oct 30, 2013 17:02:58 GMT -5
So give me all you've got, I can take it.
We walked alone in your city lights.
"Can we like . . . not?"
Even though that and the groan were more or less the exact reaction Lucas had expected, he still exhaled and fixed the redhead with a deadpan look. "Sure, Jerry . . . Just don't mention it at all - she probably won't even notice I'm gone." Then he broke into a smile, despite himself, because he did realize how absurd asking Jerry to break news to Irene was - the two of them could barely hold a conversation without it dissolving into insults - but again, there wasn't anyone else. Personality clashes aside, most of the time, it came down to just the three of them. Plus, at least if it came from Jerry, Lucas was pretty sure Irene would trust that the message was from him, and that it wasn't just whatever someone had thought to mention to her.
Jerry relented, of course, sitting back up in his chair. “There was that riot a couple of days ago, we can just tell her you got hurt pretty bad. Your mom got pissed, and sent you off to one of the many Courtwater vacation homes until investigations were over with for some overprotective reason,” he suggested.
Lucas thought for a moment. Eventually, Irene was going to get the whole story. Hopefully it would be because he finally had a good time to tell her, but this was Irene, and there was always a chance she would figure out a lot of it on her own. Probably not some of the worst details, because only he and Jerry knew those, but anything too big to contain between the two of them . . .
He shook his head slightly. "I don't want to lie to her now. There's no point." He pressed his palm to the side of his face briefly, then dropped it. "I mean, there's no way I'm gonna make you tell her anything about . . ." He gestured vaguely to himself, indicating whatever was going on with his head, above all else. ". . . this. That shouldn't be your problem, and she deserves to hear it from me anyway." And he deserved to be the one who had to tell her. ". . . But, yeah . . . Tell her the riot went sideways and I got hurt, but I decided to leave. She's gonna know everything's gone wrong, anyways, without you saying it." A slight shrug. ". . . and, I'll tell her anything she wants to know when I see her again."
What he was worried about more than anything else was that all this was going to make her want to get involved. Like, actually involved - not just hanging around the fringes and spending time with them. She still had a future with the League to look forward to. Honestly, he wanted her as far from this as possible, but at the same time if she wanted some of the truth, now, they owed it to her.
"Tell her there's an investigation, too," he said. "She'll steer clear of it, then."
He looked over at Jerry. The guy was obviously beat, and come to think of it, whatever was crawling over the city to mess with his head was probably getting to his friend's too. He hadn't even thought about that, and it left him inwardly cringing. Of course it was gonna get to Jerry. how could he have forgotten? Add to that the obvious lack of sleep and the handful of injuries he'd gotten from the riot and who knows what . . .
"That's enough of my dirty work, though." he said, smiling. "Don't you want to sleep, or something? You almost look as bad as I do."
jeremiah
616
NOTES
Still kinda want to see Regina eventually swoop in and kidnap him back to the penthouse for a hot meal and other imposed hospitalities.
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Nov 3, 2013 21:55:13 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 504 WORDS
He was relieved to hear that Lucas could supply a sarcastic response, it was a good sign. Even if Jeremiah dreaded the idea of talking to Irene, the small moment of normality they had was enough to make the smallest of chuckles slip out. He returned to his less than eager expression when Lucas began to counter, though. After a moment of thought, his friend would make a point that they couldn’t lie, so this was just going to be a task of leaving out certain specifics. It wouldn’t be lying per say, but just being vague and Jeremiah Burton was pretty good at dancing around these details.
Nodding to Lucas’s gesture, Jeremiah merely listened intently to his friends instructions. He had no issue with the instructions and merely gave a nod. Lucas was much better with talking to Irene, so the red head demonstrated no desire to argue with the fact Lucas wanted to be the one to explain everything. Although, Jerry briefly wondered if she would even believe this. She was always so logical and realistic, Jeremiah wondered if she would even consider the idea. Given it was Lucas who would be talking to her, though, he had a feeling she might give him the benefit of the doubt. Had it been himself, she’d think he was pulling her leg and he slowly shook his head at the fact.
“Aye, aye, mon Capi-ten” he muttered in a false accent, idly glancing to the clock. A yawn escaped him at that moment and Jeremiah reached up to cover his mouth. The idea of sleeping in that chair was once more tempting and Jeremiah’s temptations seemed to become apparent with Lucas’s next observation. Tilting his head back, Jeremiah’s gaze drifted to his friend’s dull blue eyes and he couldn’t help but smirk slightly at what he heard. ‘You almost look as bad as I do’.
“I’ll take that as a compliment” he lightly teased, given Lucas was always considered the more attractive of the duo. He shrugged and looked back up at the clock. “I’m fine” he assured, inwardly tacking on the fact he’s been in worst condition before He didn’t utter that fact, knowing the look Lucas would be sure to give him in response would only be reminder of bad things from the past. “I can just sleep in the chair if I actually crash” he sighed, settling down in place as if bracing himself to do just that. He looked over at Lucas and offered a tired grin. “Besides, it's not like it’d be the weirdest place I’ve fallen asleep, after all. Need I remind you of the time I accidentally walked into the girl’s locker room at your school?” he questioned. He’d narrowly avoided being tracked down and mauled by a few of the girls’ Pokémon, and ended up sleeping on the top shelf in one of the school’s janitor closets.
“I still say that was totally worth it” he snickered, gazing up at the ceiling, recalling the incident ever-so-fondly.
Pfffft, whenever you want to send her in is good with me.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Nov 3, 2013 23:51:49 GMT -5
So give me all you've got, I can take it.
We walked alone in your city lights.
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Lucas gave another half-hearted eye-roll at that, though the teasing didn't really bother him. It felt normal, and normal was the best luxury at the moment. Besides, between the two of them, whenever there was teasing, or jibes being made, an understanding existed that neither of them meant anything by it. There were things that other people might say, especially about how he looked, that would sting, but coming from Jerry he barely noticed.
No, the thing that bothered him was Jerry glancing up at the clock. Now that was on his mind too, and Lucas struggled to just let that go as one of the many consequences of their situation, and keep his thoughts on lighter subjects.
He was skeptical when Jerry said he was fine, and just about ready to protest when he suggested sleeping right there in the chair. There was no reason for him to have to stay there - Interpol was all over the place on high alert, and the real danger couldn't be stopped by security presence, anyway. What he needed to do was lie down somewhere and start getting some of his strength back -
- but of course Jerry mentioned the locker room incident and Lucas was swiftly and easily distracted yet again.
" . . . Need I remind you of the time I accidentally walked into the girl’s locker room at your school?”
"No, you don't," Lucas replied flatly, thinking that the "accidentally" Jerry had thrown in there was still very much up for debate. "How do you accidentally . . . it has its own wing . . ." he mumbled. And besides all the chaos that came with the incident itself, Jerry had immediately been pegged as "Lulu's friend," and despite evading school authorities, afterwards everyone else still wanted to know what he was doing wandering around school grounds in the first place . . .
“I still say that was totally worth it."
Another flat look was then leveled at the redhead.
They went on like that for another hour or so, the conversation easily flowing from one past misadventure or daring escape to the next, until both teens were having trouble keeping their eyes open. Neither seemed like they wanted to stop, but the night was wearing on and there even seemed to be some movement coming from out in the hall.
"We might have to call it a night," Lucas said, glancing up at the clock and then to the door, before finally setting his gaze at some point on the wall behind Jerry. "Um, hey, really . . . thanks for com-"
And, at that moment, as though summoned by his previous statement, the door swung wide open, and . . .
"Jeremiah, you've kept him up long enough."
Lucas mustered an exhausted smile as his mother swept into the room with her usual enveloping presence and swift step. There was never any doubt to whether Regina Courtwater was in a room or not. It was said people could feel her on a subconscious level, that there was a defined sense of awe or dread, as though she was the source of some primordial fear. Of course, Lucas thought all that was crazy, but it had been said before, so someone must have thought the description fit.
She was at his bedside in what seemed like instantly, looking down her nose at Jerry.
"You will be coming home with me tonight. I won't have you hanging around here under-foot and distracting Lucas - and by the state of you I'd say you better move now, before you collapse and I have to carry you." Lucas smirked - she would do it, too. "Now go wait in the hall. If you're not there when I come out I'll have you hunted down and physically delivered to the penthouse."
Lucas shot his friend a sheepish look, and moved his shoulder slightly in an attempt at a shrug.
Post by Jeremiah Burton on Nov 4, 2013 18:39:06 GMT -5
LUCAS COURTWATER 834 WORDS
“No you don’t”
Oh but he did anyways. Jeremiah smirked at the flat response, knowing Lucas still questioned how his friend managed that stunt. No one really knew whether or not Jeremiah’s wandering into the girl’s locker room was truly an accident, simply given Jeremiah’s nature. He liked to argue it was a fact the building was large and he got lost, but Lucas made a point that there were signs to point people in the right directions. When did Jeremiah ever actually read, though? Real men followed their guts and his gut led him to a worthwhile location. Didn’t exactly have the most ideal ending, but it was still worth it.
As a sense of normalcy came over them, Jeremiah found himself utterly content with the idea of crashing here. Whether or not it was needed, he didn’t care; he just felt better being there. While his body was in no condition to protect his bedridden friend, it was just the knowledge of seeing Lucas was there, Lucas was, for the most part, okay, that he was fine. He could keep an eye on things, be there for the friend that was always there for him. For a long while, their conversation carried on as if nothing had happened. It was a welcomed feeling of normality that even Jeremiah appreciated.
He had turned the chair around to lean his chest against the back of it, finding the position more comfortable. Plus it offered a better position for sleep. His head rested on the top of it, cradled by his crossed arms, he just simply shut his eye as they went on talking and talking. This was comfortable, and he could make do with it for a few nights, he decided. So, when Lucas said it’d be good to call it a night, he just merely gave a nod in response. It would be just after the nod that something practically tugged at his head and forced him to sit up right once more. Just a second after he’d jolt up, the door would swing open and Jeremiah just knew who it was based off the feeling of the presence alone.
Craning his head to the side, he turned to look at the source, Jerry’s eye rested on just who he was expected. A woman demanding all of his attention just by entering the room alone. Tall and proud, clearly powerful and intelligent, one could tell just by look alone, Regina Courtwater didn’t need to speak, the way she held herself was all one needed to see to understand her. Jerry had no idea how or why, but Regina Courtwater radiated a presence that he’d always be able to lock on, whether he wanted to or not. After years of living with this woman, unlike the usual unnerved feeling that came over the room, Jeremiah was familiar enough with it to dare a playful gest. Although, he knew to never push his luck. Looking up at the woman, he pouted at her. “Aw, c’mon” he whined, like a little boy not wanting to go home after the best slumber party. “Just a little while longer~?” he asked, before yawning. He shifted in his seat to hug the back of it like a koala, legs and arms latching onto it while his eye turned back to Lucas with the same childish pout.
He didn’t look back up at the figure of authority as she gave her orders, with him merely staring at Lucas in the meantime. As the woman would go on, Lucas would smirk and Jeremiah would stick his tongue out at him in retort. Immediately like a lizard the tongue shot back into his mouth and he finally dared to look at the mother bear in the room. He didn’t move for a moment, merely studying her as if thinking for a moment ‘I could totally outrun you’ but he relented. Reluctantly, and with several pops to testify his stiffness, Jeremiah got up. He moved to Lucas’s bedside, and leaned down to playfully bump his knuckles against Lucas’s. “I’ll be back tomorrow, bro. Don’t do anything stupid, alright?” he lightly teased with a little smirk that turned into a warm smile.
After his farewell, Jeremiah started the walk out of the room. The moment he stepped out of the room, it felt like the world suddenly dropped its weight on him. He seemed to just drop out of sight as he fell to the side to drop down in Regina’s seat by the door. Passing nurses would take a moment to glance at him with brief concern, but then carry on. Jeremiah didn’t bother to even look at them as they passed, he was too tired for playing around, he was ready to call it a night. He propped his feet out in front of him, folded his hands over his gut and just sank down while he waited. In his waiting position, he didn’t even realize he’d fallen asleep, he just… Did.
Post by Lucas Courtwater on Nov 4, 2013 19:46:26 GMT -5
So give me all you've got, I can take it.
We walked alone in your city lights.
If there was any adequate representation of how tired Jerry was, it was that he only argued once with Regina before finally pulling himself up out of the chair to the soundtrack of joints popping. Lucas simply took a deep breath, eyes barely open now as the light coming through the open doorway seemed much too bright to bother trying to adjust to. He cracked another smirk as he felt Jerry knuckles bump against his own resting on his chest.
“I’ll be back tomorrow, bro. Don’t do anything stupid, alright?"
"Ha . . . What am I gonna do?" he asked, voice soft and breathless, but cheerful as he finally let his eyes close. ". . . Fall out of bed?"
He didn't hear Jerry's footsteps out of the room, and was only vaguely aware of Regina gently adjusting his pillows and smoothing his hair back with her palm. She took Jerry's seat, and for a moment the room was silent again. The change from the banter of moments ago brought him a little closer to consciousness again, and he inclined his head just slightly in the direction of his mother.
"Do you two have all your plans set, then?" Her voice was either extremely soft, or he was even closer to sleep than he thought.
Some of the guilt came trickling back - of having lied to her this whole time, of having been involved in all this, and of keeping things from her even now. All made worse by the fact that she wasn't angry at all. "I guess . . ." He opened his eyes a little, but her face was in shadows.
"I'm glad he found you." she said, but the words were spoken quietly and seemed to evaporate as she continued, standing and leaning down to kiss his forehead, and it was almost as though she hadn't said them at all. "Try to sleep now. Heloise is going to be right outside all night, and I'll be back early to check on you." He had closed his eyes again; her hand was resting on his head, and for a moment the low and constant throb seemed to disappear. "Your father's going to try to make it back before you go."
Where was he going again? Oh, right, he didn't know that yet . . . Where was Dad? . . .
". . . alright," he said, though he already couldn't remember what he was responding to.
He didn't hear her tell him she loved him, or the sound of the door closing when she left. He was asleep already, dead to the world and sinking under a dark current that he wouldn't remember in the morning.
