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roxannarambles · 7 months

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teal mask fixit-fic on the fly part 10

(Current story so far: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 -

Part 5 - Part 6 - Part 7 - Part 8 - Part 9)

After an eventful afternoon, the gang met once more at Ogerpon's den. Despite the fact that the defeated Loyal Three had managed to escape before they could be captured, the kids had obtained all three of the masks and taught Ogerpon's bullies a lesson they were not likely to forget anytime soon, so overall it was a pretty big win in anyone's books.

Ogerpon was as happy as a Clamperl with all of her masks returned. It was likely she had not seem them in a very, very long time, and they were the only things she had left to remind her of her old friend. She spent a long time just touching the masks and smiling.

Even Kieran seemed to be feeling a bit better, seeing how happy Ogerpon was. They all had a little picnic outside of Ogerpon's den, to give her some much-appreciated company. She seemed to love Arven's sandwiches as much as Koraidon did. She was gradually warming up to the others, too, although she still seemed to be attached to Arven the most, hanging on him and looking to him for reassurance.

Kieran was very quiet during most of the picnic, but eventually he spoke up when there was a lull in conversation among the rest of the group.

"I'm glad she has her masks back, but I know it's still going to be tough for her. She's still an outcast from the village."

The others were quiet for a bit; this fact was impossible to deny. Then Carmine waved a hand casually, saying,

"We can visit her on a regular basis! She'll be fine, Kiki."

He sighed.

"I guess . . . but . . . I think it would be better if we could clear her name and tell them all the truth."

"Kiki, believe me, I would love that too, but we can't-- Grandpa said our ancestor tried that and he was persecuted as a heretic!"

"Well maybe he just didn't try hard enough!" Kieran shouted stubbornly, his arms crossed, scowling. He continued, quiter,

"Besides, I don't care if people call me a heretic or whatever, it's not like anyone likes me anyway. I bet I could convince people if I tried hard enough--"

"Kiki, I care, I don't want anyone hating on my little bro! And if anyone is doing that, you better tell me so I can go kick their faces in!"

"She's right, you know," Penny said quietly, from her spot sitting beside Kieran. They both glanced to her.

"Not about the . . . excessive threats of violence, she really should stop doing that-- I mean about nobody believing you. Your town is practically founded on that Ogre story. People grew up with it, it's steeped in your culture and traditions by now. People are attached to the story they know, so simply telling them the truth probably won't make much of a difference at this point."

Kieran's expression fell and he looked glumly to the ground, but Penny wasn't finished.

"You need to change their hearts, not their minds."

He looked hesitantly back up to her.

". . . how do we do that?"

After a thoughtful pause, Penny answered,

"By changing the narrative."

Looking impatient, Carmine asked,

"And what the heck does that mean?"

Penny glanced at the others.

"It means I have an idea."

Later . . .

Daylight was fast fading as the gang rushed about in Kitakami Hall's central building, preparing as quickly as they could.

"Hey, I'm back, I have the costume-- took the seamstress long enough, ugh, I felt like I was standing there forever."

Nemona answered cheerfully,

"Great! Penny should be here in just a bit, she's just going over the script one more time with your grandpa! Then she can try it on."

Carmine set the costume down and griped,

"I still don't see why Ogerpon can't just play the part herself . . ."

Patiently, Juliana told her,

"Carmine, she's still terrified of returning to the village, and considering what happened the last time, can you blame her?"

"Yeah, yeah . . . all right. I guess that makes sense. So how are things going here?"

Nemona gave her a thumbs-up.

"Things are okey-dokey! Thankfully our costumes are nowhere near so complicated since it's mostly just the masks."

Nemona, Juliana and Arven had been trying on the black shawls, which seemed to fit them well enough. Carmine sighed,

"Great. Where's mine?"

"Here you go, right here!" Carmine grabbed the shawl, quickly putting it on, but then she picked up the indigo-colored mask. Indignantly, she said,

"What?! I'm not supposed to be Munkidori!"

Nemona glanced between the others, saying,

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought we already decided it?"

"Heck no, I'm not being the lame-o monkey!"

"Well somebody needs to be Munkidori?"

"Well somebody else can, why don't you be the monkey?"

"Oh, well, I'm gonna be Okidogi!" Nemona said, flexing her arm with a grin.

"Wait, what? I thought I was gonna be Okidogi!" Arven protested.

A little confused, Nemona answered,

"We never said that?"

"Yeah, but I just kinda assumed-- I mean, I'm the guy, isn't it kinda obvious I should be the big strong one?"

Juliana made a rocking-back-and-forth 'ehh' gesture with her hand.

"Oh, c'mon!"

"Sorry, Arven, but I feel like Nemona is better suited for Okidogi."

"You're totally biased though, Juliana!"

"No, that's my unbiased opinon--"

"We could battle for it!" Nemona suggested suddenly.

"No, no way! That isn't fair either, you know that!"

Nemona shrugged, and then after a beat, she said,

"We could arm wrestle for it?"

Arven paused, looking as though he was considering it. Carmine said,

"Look, I don't care who plays Okidogi, just as long as I'm Fezandipiti. Juliana can be the monkey."

Juliana crossed her arms, saying,

"Hey, what-- why? I mean, I don't really care, to be honest, but I feel like you're singling me out here for some reason."

"STOP CHEATING," Arven shouted, while he and Nemona were seated at a nearby table in the midst of arm wrestling. Nemona gasped,

"I'm not?!"

"YOU-- NGH-- HAVE TO BE!"

"She's really not," Juliana said mildly as she watched. Ignoring them, Carmine carried on,

"I dunno, it just makes sense. You come across as a good monkey to me. I mean, it's not like you'd be better at playing Fezandipiti. She was annoying to fight but she was so pretty! And elegant and graceful! And you're just . . . well . . ."

Juliana turned to her, her eyes narrowed.

"I'm just what?"

"I don't know, you're just . . ."

"You'd better think very carefully before finising your sentence, Carmine."

"HrrrraaaaAAAAAAAghhhhhhhh!"

Nemona slammed Arven's hand down with a sudden burst of energy and an incredible amount of yelling. Arven wailed,

"No, no!"

She sprung from her seat and was quickly in Carmine's face.

"Well I for one think Juliana would make an amazing Fezandipiti!"

Although Nemona had said it with a friendly smile, there was an undercurrent of tension in her expression, as though she was daring Carmine to challenge her on the point.

Carmine's eyes shifted away and she muttered,

"Tch, better than me? How?"

Nemona moved to Juliana's side and squeezed her, beaming and saying,

"'Cause she's stunning both inside and out, and-- and she has poise and fuerza y fuego y encanto, and I bet she could encanta la flor lejos de una Flabébé--"

"Ugh, spare me the mushy Paldean dribble, I'm going to be sick."

"You guys do realize that all three of them are the villians of the story anyway? It doesn't really matter who's what," Arven said.

Juliana raised and brow,

"Says the guy who just arm-wrestled to be Okidogi?"

"She's short!" Carmine said suddenly, pointing at Juliana.

"Uh?"

"Munkidori is really short. That's why she should be the monkey."

"Stop trying to make me the monkey!"

"Oh my god, you guys, will you just shut up and--"

The door to the room suddenly opened, Kieran and Penny staring in confusion at whatever they'd walked in on.

"Uh . . . everything okay in here?"

Arven coughed and cleared his throat. Juliana smiled and gave them a thumbs-up.

"Everything's hunkey-dory! We're just trying on our costumes and . . . uh, deciding who plays what."

Anxiously, Penny asked,

"You still haven't done that? We're on in like, five minutes, guys!"

"What? Crap!"

"Okay, okay, ugh. I guess I'll be the stupid monkey . . ."

"No, forget it. You and your annoying girlfriend can play Okidogi and Fezandipiti, I'll be super generous and nice and play Munkidori."

"Wh-whuh, we're-- we're not--"

"Ahaha, we're not girlfriends, Carmine--"

"Sure, whatever you say."

"Wait, if you guys are the Loyal Three, what the heck do I do?"

"I haven't heard any thank-you's yet for my generosity, you know . . ."

"Do we, um, give off a couple vibe?"

"I dunno . . ."

Kieran had been helping Penny put on her costume, but he turned and suddenly said,

"Enough!"

Everyone fell quiet. He sighed, then handed Arven a mask.

"You're playing the other minor roles, Arven, check with grandpa before going on. Thank you for playing Munkidori, sis, and everyone else, make sure you have everything you need. We have to be on stage in just a few minutes. This needs to go well, okay? Ogerpon's entire future hangs in the blanace . . ."

Penny, dressed up in the little green Ogre costume, gave Kieran a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry. It'll go well."

After a pause, she turned.

"All right, you guys heard him, quit standing 'round, let's go, go!"

At the front of Kitakami Hall, the area had been set up to act as a stage, the raised stone floor perfect for the task; they even had a curtain arranged. When word had spread that tonight, on the last night of the Festival of Masks, there was to be an extra-special performance, people had gathered very quickly. The crowd was very boisterous while people chattered, curious and eager for the show.

When the Caretaker came on stage, there was a smattering of shouts and cheers. He raised his hands and smiled; the crowd hushed immediately for him. Then he spoke.

"Hello, my dear friends. I am excited to announce that tonight, Mossui Town has a very special performance. In the past, of course, we've often enjoyed re-enactments of the Loyal Three's heroic deeds. But tonight we are joined by some talented young students that wish to add to that legacy. They have told me that their performance will offer a new perspective. This is all I know, but I trust their show will be memorable."

He waved a hand, finshing,

"On this auspicious day, the same day the Loyal Three have returned to us in the flesh, let us celebrate! Please welcome our friends and enjoy the show!"

The crowd cheered as the Caretaker left the stage. Kieran's grandfather appeared from behind the curtain and shuffled to stand on the far side of the stage. Mossui Town did not have much in the way of technical equiptment but it did have lights, as well as a single microphone and speaker set up for the man. He took up the microphone, his expression quite serious, even somber. The crowd waited, curious.

After a pause, the grandfather began to speak.

"We have told the same story on this stage for generations now. It is a tale celebrated and beloved by all . . . a story we know by heart. Tonight, however, I would like to share with you all . . . a new story. One that has some of the same, familiar faces, but whose roles are changed."

There were murmurings among the crowd.

"Now, I know how very fond of tradition Mossui Town is. There is comfort in the familiar. This I cannot deny. But all that I ask of you tonight . . . is to try to listen."

Finished with his introduction, the curtains drew open.

"A long, long time ago, there was a man and an Ogre from a foreign land . . ."

Kieran and Penny appeared on stage: Kieran dressed in baggy clothes and wearing a wig of long hair pulled into a ponytail, Penny hunched over in her little Ogre costume.

"The pair were the best of friends, inseperable. More than anything, they loved to travel, and they had explored lands far and wide in their lifetime. They had seen many wondrous sights and met many wonderful people. Yet, although the Ogre was still young and spry, age was now catching up to her human companion. They decided to travel one last time, and to settle down for good."

The man and the Ogre walked, hand-in-hand, along the stage, as if hiking through the mountains.

"And so they came to the land of Kitikami. They saw its verdant meadows, its lush woods, and its majestic mountains, and thought there would be no better a place to live. They came to the village, eager to meet its people."

Someone else appeared on stage-- Arven, in his shawl and wearing a carved mask that had a wide, smiling grin and a pale, nondescript face.

"The people of the village, however, were terribly set in their ways and very wary of outsiders. And so when the foreign man and his Ogre companion came to the town, people were frightened by their strange dress, their manner of speaking, and even their faces . . . which seemed so different from what they were used to."

The Man held out a hand in friendship, but 'the villagers' drew back in fear. Arven switched his mask around so that it now had a deep scowl, waving at the travelers to leave.

"The man and the Ogre were used to being welcomed wherever they traveled, and were saddened to be treated this way. Try as they might, the villagers refused to allow them anywhere near the village. Yet, they had grown to love the land they had traveled to, and still wished to call it home. So, they settled in a cave in the mountains. It was a simple, quiet life, and a little lonely, but they were still happy to have each other."

The scene changed, with Arven stooped over a table, a selection of masks upon it.

"The only villager that pitied the two travelers was the village mask maker. He decided he would try to help them, and created for them several masks. So inspired by their plight, the masks ended up being his finest creations-- adored with gems that the foreign man had brought from a distant land."

The scene changed again, now with the Man and the Ogre; they had cloaks over their clothes now, and Kieran wore the Teal Mask, while Penny wore the Cornerstone Mask.

"By wearing these masks, the travelers could hide their true faces and mingle with the villagers. The man an the Ogre were overjoyed, and they thanked the mask maker for his kindness."

Arven was back in his role as 'the villagers,' milling about in jinbei with a candy apple. 'The villagers' admired the Man and the Ogre's masks.

"The travelers began to secretly join the village festival, at a time when wearing masks was not something that seemed out of place. Soon the mysterious pair became the talk of the town, thanks to their brilliant masks. In fact, rumors about them began to spread far and wide."

The actors left the stage as the grandfather intoned,

"But rumors of exquisite, shining masks attract more than just innocent curiosity . . . and a group of greedy Pokemon soon made their way to Kitakami."

Carmine, Juliana, and Nemona arrived on stage, each in their Loyal Three masks. There was some cheering from part of the crowd that awkwardly tapered off into murmurings of confusion.

"There was the crafty Munkidori. He had long yearned for intelligence, but once he gained it, he began to scheme all sorts of ways to steal great riches."

"Mua ha ha ha--" Carmine balled her fists and cackled evilly. The other two nudged and shushed her.

"What? I'm acting--"

"Shh! These are silent roles!"

". . . there was the alluring Fezandipiti. He was once a very dull and forgettable pokemon; but once he became beautiful, he started to use his charms to manipulate others."

Juliana waved her 'wings' as she waltzed across the stage.

"And there was the powerful Okidogi. Once the runt of the litter, he now had incredible strength; but instead of protecting the weak, he used his strength to bully others."

Nemona leered at the crowd-- or at least, she tried to, but it was a bit difficult for her to see through the little cheap plastic mask. Juliana gently re-positioned her so that she was facing the crowd properly.

"These three pokemon worked together, but it would be incorrect to claim them friends; rather, they were temporary allies, eager to backstab the others if the opportunity arose."

Kieran was now on stage, laying on a pile of blankets as if asleep.

"And so the three pokemon snuck into the cave in which the man and the Ogre lived. They found where the masks were kept, and tried to make off with them. But the man happened to be there. . ."

The trio crept up, towards the man. They 'stole' the masks, turning to quickly remove their cheap plastic Loyal Three masks and replacing them with the brilliant, handcarved ones: Carmine with the Wellspring mask, Juliana with the Hearthflame mask, Nemona with the Cornerstone mask. They flaunted about in their new masks, but suddenly, the man gasped and leapt to his feet, awoken by the intruders.

Quickly, the man grabbed an old wood axe and tried to attack his foes. The others surrounded him.

"The man tried to stop the thieves, but he was outnumbered and could not wield the incredible powers that the pokemon could . . ."

The man collapsed, while the Loyal Three pretended to strike him over and over. They then gloated and left the cave behind.

"They wounded the man gravely and left with their stolen masks."

The man struggled back to his bed, unfolding the blanket to reveal something beneath.

"But the man had saved one of the masks, kept in a place the thieves did not know of. He took solace in the fact that at least his dear companion would still have one mask to use."

The man then tried to stand, but collapsed back to the ground. He tried again and failed, and opted to crawl instead, dragging his body painfully.

"The man left the cave, perhaps in search of the Ogre. Several hours later, when the Ogre returned to the cave . . ."

The Ogre arrived, walking to the spot and looking around, distraught.

"She found her beloved home in ruin. All that was left were the signs of a struggle and a teal mask."

On her knees, she cradled the Teal Mask as if it were the only thing she had left of her companion. She seemed to cry for a while.

Then she squeezed a fist.

She put the mask on and leapt to her feet, pulling a cudgel from the ground and brandishing it.

"The Ogre donned the mask and rushed to the village!"

She rushed to the other side of the stage, where the Loyal Three were gathered, showing off their masks to a fawning Arven, 'the villagers.' She raised her weapon and charged, startling the trio.

"She found the greedy pokemon there with the stolen masks and fought them, crying out for her friend."

The group pretended to fight. It was not a well-choreographed battle, by any means; they certainly didn't have time to prepare any of that. But what it lacked in skill it made up for in enthusiasum, the teens chasing each other around, Penny waving her cudgel wildly, Nemona throwing pretend punches and Juliana and Carmine trying to make things generally as chaotic as possible. Eventually each of the Loyal Three, in turn, died very dramatically on the floor. Arven watched it all in horror.

"The Ogre defeated them. The villagers, of course, had no idea what was happening or why. All they saw was the raging Ogre. And they felt great fear."

They put out a few red boards set up like the little roof of a memorial, which Arven stood over in mourning.

"The villagers thought the three Pokemon must have tried to protect the village from the Ogre. To honor their sacrifice, they gave them the name-- the Loyal Three-- and interrred them with care."

The Loyal Three masks were placed carefully on the memorial.

"And so the greedy pokemon perished for their cruelty and their crimes. But they were worshipped by the villagers as heroes."

The stage lights cut out, leaving only a single spotlight pointed upon the Ogre, trudging along slowly.

". . . wounded and weak, the Ogre returned to her cave . . ."

She limped until eventually stopping and dropping to her knees, removing the mask. She gazed at it and slumped. The light grew dim and dimmer, and her shoulders shook as if she were sobbing.

". . . alone, and with great sadness."

The spotlight faded out, and the curtains closed.

There was a long pause. The crowd began to mutter amongst themselves, sounding very unsure.

Then, from behind the curtain, Kieran returned to the stage. He was no longer in costume. His grandfather came up to pass the microphone over to him; he gave his grandson a reassuring pat on his shoulders and smiled before leaving the stage.

Kieran faced the crowd alone. He took a nervous breath, his hands trembling. The audience continued to whisper and mutter, confused, curious.

Finally, Kieran mustered his courage and spoke.

"Th-the story you've just heard tonight . . . is a true one. It is a story that has been passed down in my family by word of mouth for generations. The true version of events . . . all those years ago."

He paused, and the audience began to rile, people speaking out and questioning; the Caretaker in the front row looked very confused and at a loss. Kieran swallowed nervously and tried to ignore them. "It's not an easy story to hear, I know-- and it's not what we're used to. It's not a story of heroes triumphant over evil. It's a sad story, very sad. And it doesn't paint Mossui Town in a very good light."

He took a shaky breath and continued,

"But it's important. Because of Mossui Town, the man and the Ogre were shunned and forced to live alone. Because we were so scared of outsiders and scared of anyone who was a little bit different. And when the man and the Ogre were in trouble, nobody was around to help them. When the greedy three pokemon attacked, they had to face them alone."

Some people in the audience began to shout-- "The Loyal Three aren't greedy, they're heroes!" "Lies!" "What is this?!"

Kieran looked panicked, on the verge of the audience turning on him entirely. But he raised his voice and answered,

"I know how much you all love the Loyal Three, but listen! Things aren't always as we first assume them to be. You've all heard one version of events, but you never heard it from the Ogre's point of view. Try to look at it from her perspective! All she wanted to do was live her life and be herself. And people were scared of her and hated her for it!"

The audience quieted a little, shifting into whispers and mutters again, uncertain. From the front of the crowd, the Caretaker spoke up.

"I-I must say, this has all come as quite a surprise . . . a-and I commend you kids for presenting such an interesting new interpretation. I do confess of course that with a story so old, there is no way to know for certain what did go on, exactly, back then. But I am . . . curious. Is there really any harm in continuing our folklore? Regardless as to what really happened in the past. It is such a beloved part of Mossui Town, after all. Surely you see that, Kieran."

Kieran's eyes sharpened. His voice took on a tone of pure conviction.

"Yes. There is harm. The harm that was done to Ogerpon. The harm that is still being done. Because she is still alive, and she is still living in that cave in the mountains, all alone."

The Caretaker's eyes widened. There were shocked whispers among the crowd again.

"She has been living up there all this time, shunned and hated for nothing. And so I am here to finally clear her name. And to ask you all to do something. Please . . ." His voice trembled a little and he swallowed, starting again,

"Please try to look past your fears and your hate. Try to look at the real Ogre. To . . . welcome her, into our village. Please. Think of how scared you might be if you were up in the mountains, alone all this time. All she wants . . . all she wants are some friends. Just like any of us do."

The crowd was somber and quiet after Kieran's plea. A little awkwardly, Kieran turned and parted the curtain behind him, just a little bit. He gestured to someone off-stage, as if asking them to join him. All around was silent expectation.

Then, very shyly, a little figure dressed in green came out on stage. She wore the Teal Mask and fidgeted nervously. Kieran reached out and took her hand. Then he looked to the crowd.

At first, people just whispered and stared; Kieran could see many anxious and ambivilant faces. His stomach twisted in knots, fearing that all of their efforts would be for nothing.

But then, somewhere near the back of the crowd, a clear voice called:

"We love you, Ogerpon!"

And right after that, some children cried out,

"Yeah! You were so brave and cool!"

Expressions shifted and changed, and others were emboldened.

"We're sorry, Ogerpon!"

"You can come visit me if you come to the village!"

"We love you too!"

"Please let Mossui Town make things up to you."

"You were both very brave!"

As people continued to shout their support, Kieran felt the awful anxiety release its stranglehold on him; relief flooded in, instead. He squeezed the Ogre's hand and smiled at her.

Then people began to applaud. It was hesitant and scattered at first, then grew louder and louder, until soon it was positively thundrous.

Kieran looked back to the Ogre and gestured, tilting his head a little, his expression gentle-- asking her something. She gave a small nod.

Then she reached up to her mask and removed it, peeking out warily at the throngs of people. Her bright, starry eyes blinking in the stage lights.

There were cheers. A smile overcame Ogerpon, as brillaint and shining as the gems on her mask. Their hands still clasped, Kieran and Ogerpon took a bow.

Eventually, the curtains parted and everyone else came on stage to join them and bow as well. Strangely, Nemona was missing at first, but she appeared from somewhere in the audience and scrambled up on stage to take her place among them. When Kieran cast her a puzzled look, she just grinned and said,

"Sorry, was busy sowing some seeds of rebellion."

It suddenly connected in Kieran's mind why that first person to shout out their support for Ogerpon had sounded so familiar. He gave her a wide, grateful smile.

All around them, people cheered.

Later . . .

The final night of the Festival of Masks for that year was one to remember. The entire town had turned out for it, and the energy among them was unlike it ever had been before. The celebrations lasted for hours, with Ogerpon as the guest of honor. All of the love was wonderful, although the shy Ogerpon did find it a little overwhelming after a while. Kieran bought her a plastic Ogre mask to wear and a shawl, so that she could continue to enjoy the festival but without all the intense focus, since she blended in with all the other festivalgoers. There was a distinct irony in this, to be sure, but they knew once people had calmed a little, she would be able to go about like normal again.

And Kieran suspected that's really all she ever really wanted. To go about like normal and just have the chance to live her life among others. Which is what they and the rest of the gang did that night.

It was nice, just fooling about. Carmine challenged Nemona to a rematch at Ogre Ousting (very recently rebranded to Greedy Greedent Grabbing), and when she managed to beat her personal best and Nemona, she was elated. Surprisingly, she didn't gloat over her victory this time, though-- not much, at least. Instead she awkwardly told Nemona that it was a good match; Nemona beamed at her and shook her hand, agreeing that it was.

They all went to a face-painter after that, which was fun; everyone's cheeks decorated in whatever silly requests they gave the painter. Ogerpon loved the little stars that were painted on her. Next they went on some rides, like the Tilt-a-Whirl and the Octillary Ride, although Penny avoided those. Kieran and Ogerpon opted to stay off them as well; the others convinced them to try the Bumper Cars, though, since in theory they were a lot less pukey. In practice they were not nearly as calm as Kieran had hoped, mainly because Nemona, Juliana and Carmine made it their personal mission to run people down and ram them as hard as they could, friend or foe alike. After that, the group wanted to do the Ferris Wheel. Kieran was reluctant, because he was a bit anxious of heights and in the past his sister would tease him by rocking the compartment violently back and forth when they rode. Carmine swore she wouldn't do it this time but he didn't believe her, and they eventually solved the problem because Kieran, Penny, Arven and Ogerpon rode in a seperate bucket. It was surprisingly a very peaceful and enjoyable to ride when someone wasn't swinging it back and forth.

There were some impromptu doubles pokemon matches taking place in the central courtyard, so they enjoyed watching that for a time. Some of them even joined in when invited to. Kieran shied away from battling himself, but he watched Carmine and Juliana team up in one battle, and then Nemona and Penny pair up in another.

After that, the gang broke off to wander about and do their own thing. Kieran ended up with Penny and Ogerpon, watching some jugglers, then wandering the vendor booths. Ogerpon was drawn to a booth that was selling sparklers, so Kieran bought the three of them some. When Kieran lit Ogerpon's sparkler (telling her to be careful), she gazed at the little sparks of fire and giggled, waving it about. It was probably pretty tame compared to most pokemon moves, but she enjoyed it anyway.

They milled around the festival like that, going nowhere in particular, just enjoying the atmosphere. Kieran couldn't stop looking at Ogerpon and smiling, feeling so light everytime he saw the joy in her eyes. When he'd done it for perhaps the 50th time that night, Penny chuckled.

"She has you to thank, you know."

Kieran glanced up, caught off guard. Penny was smiling at him. He glanced away, his face warming. He insisted,

"Thanks to all of you. Everyone helped her out so much tonight."

He hesitated and added,

"Especially, um, y-you. It was your idea, after all, the play and everything."

Penny shook her head.

"You're giving me too much credit. It was my genius idea, true, but your grandpa and you really brought it to life. And there's no way I could have convinced the entire town the way you did. It was honestly pretty badass."

Kieran blushed and he fidgeted with the tie on his jinbei.

"That's-- um-- I-I-- t-thank you."

Ogerpon chirped and suddenly dashed ahead. Kieran's eyes widened and he rushed after her.

"Ogerpon, don't go too far, you'll get lost!"

Penny and Kieran chased after her into the path of food vendors. Eventually she came to stop in front of a table, and Kieran realized why she'd dashed ahead-- she must have heard a familiar voice. At the table, Arven and Carmine sat, with plates of cheap fair food as they talked.

". . . so turns out, he'd gotten himself lost and his phone was dead-- not that it'd help much anyway, reception is pretty much nonexistant out there-- middle of the night, out in the Timeless Woods. I had to go back and find him."

"Wow."

"Yeah. Pretty scary, right? I bet a cityboy like you would be helpless out there like that. But I was--"

"Wait, he didn't have a map or a compass or anything?"

". . . no? He was just using his phone."

"Oh, man, that's kinda risky for a big hike like that. You should have at least some basic fallbacks."

"Yeah, he didn't have anything with him, just his phone and some water and his pokemon, I think." "Wait, seriously?! That's not a great plan. I hope he doesn't still go out like that? Y'know, if you need suggestions on some great gear, there's a great little compass I bought that's lasted me for years. Oh, and I know it's a little dorky, but a headlamp is so much better than a flashhlight. Here, I can show you, gimme a sec."

After Arven pulled a little strapped light from his pack, he saw Carmine was staring at him. She asked,

"Who are you?"

He blinked,

"Huh? What do you mean?"

She gave a short laugh and shook her head.

"Why do you even have that with you? And why do you know all this, I thought you came from Naranja Academy?"

Arven shrugged,

"Yeah, so? I also went backpacking across pretty much all of Paldea, so . . . wait, did you think Paldea was nothing but cities?"

"No! I just thought . . . I-I dunno, Naranja's in a big city, I figured it's all you guys know."

She looked a little embarassed admitting it. Arven chuckled,

"Hah. No, not really. Most of us have actually been out in the wilds a lot, during our independent study program. They pretty much just turn us loose for a few months. They say it's a chance to get hands-on experience and see the world or whatever."

Carmine's gaze shifted away. She said,

"That's . . . actually pretty cool."

Arven nodded.

"Yep! So I spent the time traveling all over, hunting down some rare herbs with powerful medicinal effects and defeating gigantic Titan pokemon! With some help with Juliana, that is. We had to go all over, in the mountains, the deserts, the forests, all kinds of terrain."

Carmine looked thoughtful for a moment. She glanced to the big bag sitting on the ground by Arven's feet.

"That still doesn't explain why you have all that stuff with you now, though. It looks like you could fit a house in there!"

"H-hey, it's not that big! It's useful, I thought we might wanna go backpacking in Kitikami!"

"So you have a sleeping bag in there, what else?"

"Just basic gear. Ummm . . . some cooking supplies, clothes, a tarp, stakes, rope, duct tape, an axe, hmm, some repels, matches, tiolet paper, soap, binoculars--"

"That sounds like a crapton."

"And water and food of course. Hey, what are you doing, no snooping!"

Carmine pulled something from his bag.

"What's this?"

Arven grabbed it back from her, answering defensively,

"It's a garlic press."

Carmine cackled,

"A garlic press?!"

"What's so funny?"

"Only basic supplies, huh?"

"There's nothing wrong with being prepared! You never know when you might-- oh, hey there, little buddy!"

Arven leaned down to talk to the pokemon who had suddenly appeared and tugged at his pant-leg.

"How are you enjoying the Festival? I hope you're not running around all on your own . . ."

"She's not," Kieran said, as he and Penny caught up to them. Arven greeted,

"Oh, hey! We were just talking about you a bit ago."

After Kieran's worried expression, Arven added,

"Nothing bad! Carmine was just telling me about your hiking adventures in the Timeless Woods."

Kieran grumbled,

"Aw, man . . . sis, why do you tell that story to everyone . . ."

"What? It's a good story!"

"For you, it is. Not for me."

"You gonna finish that?" Penny asked, sitting down at their table and pointing to Arven's leftover nachos. He made a face.

"Heck no, they're all yours."

"Sweet."

Arven shook his head when she began to eat them with gusto.

"You all have no tastebuds, I swear. Anyway, don't worry, Kieran. We've all gotten lost at some point, especially when we were younger, it's no big."

"Mmm," Kieran responded, leaning against a neighboring table. Ogerpon was curious about Penny's nachos, so she held one out for her; the pokemon sniffed and then wrinkled her nose and backed away. Arven laughed,

"HAH! At least Ogerpon's on my side!"

"You're just picky, Arven."

"What?! No I'm not! If thinking that artificial orange slime they have the audacity to call cheese is being picky, then I guess I'm--GYAHH!"

They all startled when something went shooting through the air and struck Arven square in the chest. He looked down in shock and brushed large, fluffy flakes of white from his jinbei.

"What the heck--"

Nearby giggling alerted them to the likely origin of the projectile; they all looked up to see Nemona and Juliana lurking nearby, with sneaky grins.

"What is wrong with you two?!"

"What did they even throw at you?"

"I don't-- hey, NO--"

He blocked as Nemona chucked something at him again, which exploded upon impact with his arm.

"Are you weirdos throwing . . . snowballs at me?"

"What?"

Juliana took aim but he sprung from his chair, so they began to run away.

"Get back here!" "Run, run!"

On their way out Juliana threw her snowball, missing her target since she was in such a hurry.

"It's the middle of freaking summer, where did these even come from?!"

Arven chased them off, returning to the table when he'd grown tired of running after them. They spent some time speculating and eventually concluded the two girls either had access to some ice pokemon or were buying shaved ice specifically for the purpose of packing them into snowballs. They came by a few more times to try and annoy Arven further-- accidentally hitting Carmine in the crossfire at one point-- and Arven responded by trying to throw nachos at them (they didn't fly far enough, sadly).

They continued to just hang out until they all noticed some music, which seemed to be coming from the central courtyard. Carmine said it was a performance they usually did on the last night, so they decided to head over there. They wanted to try and find Juliana and Nemona first (well, some of them did, Arven and Carmine just wanted to leave them) and so they split up and attempted to locate the troublemakers.

Kieran and Carmine searched the outer edges of the festival-- eventually Kieran spotted the pair, in their orange and purple jinbei, ambling about together under the lights of the lanterns. When he approached, they seemed absorbed in conversation.

"What? No, you did great, what d'you mean?"

"Well I just felt kinda bad, she seemed really deadset on it."

"Nahhh, she volunteered to be Munkidori! It's fine."

"I guess so. Though I got the feeling she only did that 'cause-- uh."

"Cause what."

"Nothing, nothing."

"What?"

"It's silly, it's-- well, she made that weird comment, um. Thinking we were girlfriends?"

". . . oh."

Kieran backed off a little, feeling suddenly very awkward about interrupting their conversation, and tried to see if he could spot where the others had gone off to so he could perhaps pass the buck. Make somebody else do the awkward thing. That sounded like a better plan.

"Does it bother you?"

"Does what bother me?"

"Just, um. People thinking . . . that. I mean, if it bothers you, we can tell them we aren't--"

"What, no, it doesn't bother me!"

"Oh, okay. Are you sure?"

"Of course! Why would it? Like . . . somebody thinks I'm dating the coolest, most kickass, smartest girl in my school, oh nooooo, how awful, whatever shall I do?"

"Unnngh, c'mon, Jules."

"What?"

"I really wanna know if it bothers you, I'm being serious--"

"I'm being serious too!!"

The two girls stopped walking to pause at an isolated corner of the festival near some benches. To Kieran's relief, he finally spotted Carmine, so he emphatically waved at her to come over. He couldn't hear most of Nemona and Juliana's conversation anymore, although he could see from their body language it was still a rather animated discussion; Juliana apparently trying to convince her friend of something, until an embarassed Nemona hid her face in her hands. Meanwhile, Carmine stomped over to Kieran, looking pretty annoyed. Oh . . . hopefully she wouldn't get into a yelling match again. He shot the others a wary look.

Uh-oh. Juliana had gently pried Nemona's hands away from her face and was holding them now, gazing deep into her friend's eyes and apparently spilling her guts about something really heartfelt and potentially very mushy.

This was gonna be even more awkward now.

Carmine reached Kieran, grumbling,

"Have you found them? Forget this, I'm just gonna--" She suddenly spotted them, then, saying, "--Oh, finally! I've been all over the damn place. HEY--"

Eyes wide, Kieran quickly grabbed Carmine's shoulder and interrupted in a half-whisper,

"W-wait, uh, we-- we should maybe just go, Carmine."

"What? Why?! Why are we whispering?"

He gestured very awkwardly towards the girls-- Juliana holding Nemona's hands and Nemona blushing intensely, their conversation still too quiet to make out.

"I think they're maybe, ummmm, having a moment?"

Carmine briefly assessed the situation and then turned, staring at him and stating,

"Oh my god Kiki are you kidding me I am not going to stand here and wait for these losers to make out."

"W-what? I just meant--"

"If anything I should be getting payback for-- wait, hold up, that gives me an idea. Wait here, make sure they don't go anywhere. I'll be right back."

"What?!"

"I'll be right back!"

Kieran watched helplessly as Carmine snuck away and then darted through the fairgrounds, for reasons he could not begin to imagine. He unhappily waited for her return, watching the two blushing girls exchanging tender looks and soft converation, grateful that at least he couldn't overhear.

When Carmine returned, she had a snowball and an evil grin.

"Sis, no!"

"They still don't know we're here, right? Good."

Kieran tugged on Carmine's arm,

"Don't be mean--"

"Fair's fair, they hit me earlier!"

"Y-yeah, but I think they were aiming for Arven."

"That doesn't make it better!"

"Let's just go--"

She pulled away from him,

"You can leave, but I'm getting revenge!"

When they stopped squabbling and turned back, Carmine gave a surprised, indignant squawk; Juliana and Nemona really were making out now. Kieran hoped this meant Carmine would bail, but no, she did not bail. Instead, Carmine took aim and went charging in,

"All right, EAT DIRT, DORKS!!"

Kieran ran after her, calling out a belated warning-- but Carmine's snowball smacked Juliana hard in the back. He winced as both the girls startled and turned around.

"I'm sorry, I tried to stop her," Kieran mumbled, bracing himself for things to turn into a big fight.

But to his surprise, the two girls didn't get mad. They stared at Carmine a few moments, realizing what she'd done, and then they just . . . laughed?

"Hi Carmine."

"Did you actually make a snowball too? That's-- that's dedicated, I gotta respect the dedication."

Carmine paused, looking a bit thrown off. She then huffed and crossed her arms.

"Yeah, well . . . nobody goes around hitting me with snowballs without retribution!"

The two girls exchanged looks with each other, then laughed again-- silly, carefree giggling.

"I mean, that's fair, that's true."

"We did start it and then got super distracted, can't exactly be mad." Carmine sighed. She grumbled,

"Ugh. You two take all the fun out of getting revenge. I'm leaving."

Kieran stopped Carmine, saying,

"But-- we came out here to tell them--"

She groaned,

"Right, forgot. Uh, there's a performance going on in the courtyard, so. If you care, everyone else is over there already."

"Oh! Yeah, sure, let's go."

Carmine looked surprised as the two girls followed them back into the fairgrounds. Juliana asked,

"What's wrong?"

Carmine turned away and replied, with a bit of sass,

"I dunno, guess I'm just surprised you two wouldn't rather be alone."

After a little laugh, Nemona said lightly,

"We're not gonna just abandon our friends tonight, we're not gonna be here for very long, after all. Me n' Jules can see each other anytime."

Juliana nodded and agreed. Carmine frowned,

"Yeah, but . . . you can also see Arven and Penny anytime too, so . . ."

"Yeah, but not you and Kieran!"

Carmine visibly tried to quash her surprise but didn't quite manage it. Self-consciously, she muttered,

"We're, uh . . . we're friends?"

Nemona smiled brightly and laughed,

"Of course!"

She threw an arm over Carmine's shoulders; Carmine stiffened a little, but didn't seem too bothered by it.

"You too, Kieran," Juliana said, causing the boy to smile bashfully at being included.

"Yep, you're stuck with us now, better get used to it."

Carmine groaned and rolled her eyes, but there was a soft smile on her face all the while.

When they arrived at the main courtyard, the musicians were all warmed up and playing some very jaunty music on their fiddles. The atmosphere was delightful, festivalgoers dancing and clapping, some of them with very coordinated dances that Kieran was familiar with, but many others just freestyling and bopping about. Kieran's friends soon joined in, while he opted to remain in the sidelines, just watching.

Before long it seemed like not a single soul was standing still. Children were squealing and laughing, Carmine had joined one of the formal folk dances, Juliana and Nemona were bouncing about together, very goofy and freespirted; Arven was shuffling awkwardly until Juliana and Nemona found him and encouraged him to dance more, so he hammed it up for them and they all laughed.

Kieran was watching it all and smiling, until he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned, finding Penny nodding towards the dance floor in polite invitation.

"O-oh, um, I-I'm not very good," Kieran said, smiling self-consciously.

Penny chuckled.

"Yeah, me too. I actually kinda hate it . . ." She looked around and shrugged, giving him a silly smile.

"Wanna do it anyway?"

Kieran laughed. He was surprised when he answered,

"Okay."

Kieran's heart raced as they joined the others, but he found it wasn't nearly as bad as he'd thought. Nobody was paying them any attention, they were all just dancing and laughing, so he could just sway and move his feet a bit; it actually started to be pretty fun. He closed his eyes and let himself just enjoy the rythm, bouncing on the balls of his feet and doing little twists.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Ogerpon was bopping along on the dancefloor right next to him, her bright eyes full of undiluted joy. She bounded around him in circles and he blushed, realizing she'd picked him out of everyone here to dance with.

Kieran laughed, the world around him celebrating.

And everything finally seemed to be just right.

#pokemon #pokemon s/v #pokemon scarlet/violet #the teal mask #pokemon spoilers #the teal mask fix it fic #almost done!!#only one more part to go! :D #final scene based loosely on some art I saw online hmmmm I need to see if I can relocate it and reblog it #julinemo #(julinemo mostly offscreen)

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