gotta happen

[betabangs]

Heeeellloooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

[She counts to three, then cups her hands around her mouth again and --]

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellloooooooooooooooooooooooo?

[It's ringing down every hallway. Fuck yeah echoes.]

For a place that's supposed to be a Lab, it's sure is [Deep breath, girl!]

Emmmmmmmmmptyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!

Comments

[savedover]

What do you mean, you're not allowed? [That's... so...





Irritating.]

[betabangs]

[She is ten and she is not allowed to say the D word, Silver. Be patient.]

I'm not allowed. But it's a word that rhymes with lie, sigh, and me-oh-my!

[betabangs]

[A cowl! That's pretty cool.] What's Team Magma? I've only ever heard of Team Rocket, and they were defeated by Red.

[deserthobo]

Team Magma is an team devoted to expanding the land! [It is a very smart and well-thought out plan that could in no way backfire terribly.]

[savedover]

[As an eleven-year-old collectively raised by the equivalent of the mafia, Silver has no idea what Blue is talking about.]

You're speaking nonsense. [He sincerely doubts that she's following a predetermined script-- which is the only situation that makes sense to him why she wouldn't be "allowed" to say a word.

(And yet, all he can think about are words like die, lie, nigh, why, rye, cry, vie, eye...)]

[betabangs]

[Wow, that sounds like a great plan that could never hurt anyone ever!] Why would you want to do that?

[betabangs]

Am not. I'm just not allowed to say it. My mom would've told me so, if I had one.

[deserthobo]

To create homes for Pokemon that have been displaced by humans.

[savedover]

[???]

Well, why aren't you "allowed" to say it?

[betabangs]

That sounds so nice! Team Rocket just wanted to steal them and sell them!

[betabangs]

[She... doesn't know.]

...Good girls don't say words like that? I don't know. I just feel like if I say it, I'll get in trouble.

[deserthobo]

That is terrible. [Team Magma only steals Pokemon..........

Who would be happy and welcome within their team!!]

[savedover]

You're making all of this fuss over an expletive. [Psh, other children raised with a proper moral compass.] Would you write it down?

[He has a good idea of what it is... but now he's curious as what the exact word is.]

[betabangs]

Do you have any paper?

[It is the stupidest thing not to be able to say and since Silver's making a fuss over her making a fuss over it, she's embarrassed.]

[betabangs]

[Do they ask them??]

They're no problem anymore. I heard they were disbanded.

[deserthobo]

[... ... ...

... no comment...]

Ah, really? What a relief! A whole team of Pokemon thieves seems a little scary...

[savedover]

... ... ... ...

[After a moment of long silence, Silver reaches into his front pocket. He pulls out a pen and a battered notebook; its pages are worn and smudged, as if they have often been paged through. Silver quickly flips through pages and pages filled with his sharp handwriting, before ending on a blank page near the very back.]

Use this. Don't look at anything else.

[betabangs]

They won't be coming back, so there's no need to worry. I'm sure Team Magma could handle them too!

[betabangs]

[Telling a kid not to look at something is just begging for her to look at it.

But she'll write it. A lot of things, actually. Die and dead and things of that nature. She's not allowed to say them, so she might as well make a list - neatly titled Things I Can't Say - for him!

And she'll pass it back without looking at anything. She is a good girl.]

[deserthobo]

But of course! We hold our own against our rivals, Team Aqua, very well.

[betabangs]

[Wait, wait. She is a smart ten year old. She can do this...]

They're your rivals, so... Do they want to expand the sea?

[deserthobo]

Yes, that is right. It is a dangerous and misguided idea.

[savedover]

[Silver will take his notebook back, inwardly relieved that Blue obeyed his request to not look at anything else. He quietly reads her list, a small furrow in his brow; it's not what he expected.]

There are worse things than death. [He closes the notebook and returns it to his pockets.] Anyway, you're wrong. This facility is controlled by a bizarre program; we've been brought here for it to research.

[betabangs]

It sounds like it. Is it to help Pokémon displaced by humans too?

[betabangs]

[The limits of her existence (or lack there-of) for her game are astounding.]

So I couldn't get a Pokémon here? [That's a little saddening. She kind of wanted a Squirtle or something...] What's it researching?