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[paladinlost]

"This is Cecil Harvey. Leave a message, and I'll respond as soon as possible and convenient.



...No, Rosie, I hardly need to say more-"

Comments

[paladinlost]

Yet what is bribery, if not an alternative regimen? Every Pokémon has its price.

[His oven mitts are moon-patterned. The canapés he's bringing are crescent-shaped. Not even dealing with possession again can ruin his theme.]

[tearsofademon]

I dunno, does Strato-Viper have a price that isn't just Cobra showing back up and taking him back, do you think?

[He mostly ignores the inherited Skarmory's attempts to be a nuisance, but they are noticed...

But anyway, now that it's coming outis when Ryner will finally comment on the food---]

Mmm, those smell great!

[dreamsofahero]

I refuse to believe that there are any that are truly incorrigible. Merely extremely difficult.

*he thinks the same thing about people. Whether or not he's right, well, probably depends on one's point of view. But yes, the food does indeed catch his attention!*

They do indeed. And you say you prepared everything yourself?

[paladinlost]

To be fair, retraining a Pokémon initially raised by that man is very possibly beyond the capacities of most people.

[He still remembers good old Cobra Commander. He wishes he didn't.]

Why, thank you very much. But I can hardly claim all the credit. Noelle and Lightbringer helped greatly, while Rosie kept the others out of the kitchen.

[The most important task of all!]

[tearsofademon]

Ahh, well, when you put it that way, seeing as I'm only average at best when it comes to raising Pokemon, maybe he is a lost cause for me after all...

[This is him trying to give himself a tiny bit of credit and not call himself bad at it. An attempt was made?]

That's good, that they were able to help out like that.

[dreamsofahero]

Are you sure you aren't selling your own skills a bit short, there?

*he means both of them*

[paladinlost]

Knowing your limits is important. Stopping Kayne from torturing wild Pidgey is one thing, trying to undo the damage done over years by a particularly twisted individual is another.

[Has Kayne actually stopped torturing Pidgey? Perhaps, or perhaps not.]

Still, I find that introducing difficult Pokémon to new hobbies can help, in certain cases.

[tearsofademon]

New hobbies, huh... Now there's an idea. I wonder how easy it'd be to convince a Skarmory that I'd find him helping out with chores annoying.

[You may have given him a direction to try.]

[dreamsofahero]

You could probably start by simply forbidding him from it whenever there's an opportunity.

*the trick would be being consistent about it, of course*

[paladinlost]

Exploiting his contrarian personality could lead to decent results, yes as long as you pick a chore a large metal bird could safely accomplish. I imagine the most difficult part would be never letting him find out your true intentions, and never allowing the rest of your team to spell it out.

[tearsofademon]

I could probably get Rose on board with it, and she could probably help with keeping the others quiet about it...

[The real question is what sort of chore would work, but there's gotta be something, right?]

...I'm gonna have to think on this one.

[dreamsofahero]

Well, you can think while you eat. And drink.

*since of course Sion's already found something from amongst the wines they've brought that'd go well with Cecil's appetizers*

[paladinlost]

Please do! Otherwise, a few of my Pokémon might decide to consider the food 'leftovers' far too early. They've a gift for sniffing out loopholes.

[He shoots a look at the bottle Sion picked and nods approvingly. Excellent choice!]

[tearsofademon]

You've got a point there.

[Ryner will grab a plate, then. Sion has the wine handled, after all.]

[dreamsofahero]

Your cooking is quite good, by the way, Cecil.

*that's not just pleasantries, either, Sion really does find it quite tasty!*

[paladinlost]

I'm glad to hear it. I've a decade of experience, by now, but every time I meet new chefs I can see how much I still have to learn.

[Even if he never did get tips for preparing rainbow pudding during the party...]

[tearsofademon]

That just makes it more fun, though, right? Never running out of new things to try.

[dreamsofahero]

Says the fellow who would rather nap than do anything productive...

[paladinlost]

Fabul would call every nap a new and productive experience, were she awake.

[She's absolutely dead to the world, though. Turns out Ledian can snore.]

Still, surely a balance between the two can be reached.

[tearsofademon]

I can't help that I have a condition.

[He says that just a tiny bit more dramatically than he strictly needs to...]

She has the right idea, though.

[dreamsofahero]

Yes, yes, it's a wonder you get anything done at all. Perhaps you should follow Cecil's example, instead.

[paladinlost]

Surely there are plenty of productive hobbies that can be attempted while lying down and rest. Knitting, perhaps.