An innocent hum reverberates through the twilight of Amethyst Cave, tangling itself around Ava's weary presence with a strange sense of ease. "Mhng mhM M Mms~"
"Your humming is relaxing but unnerving!" The trainer shouts as their boots crush the gravel beneath their feet. The humming person makes a shocked noise before swiftly turning around and snapping a photo of Ava. The flash of the camera initiates a simultaneous burst of colors from multiple crystals around the cavern- like the inside of a kaleidoscope. Great! Just fucking great!
"Say cheese!" The tall milk chocolate female smiles from behind her polaroid before taking a brief pause. She taps her index finger against her chin and continues in a soft tone"Wait I think I was supposed to say that before firing away…"
… You, from Venam's fight.
The milk chocolate girl laughs in the obscured sunlight. "Oh well~. That aside, I suppose you're in my memory banks now!" Her voice carries above the two cascades that sandwich the two. "Guess what?"
Ava looks at the dark but glossy indigo gem pendant the girl is wearing. "What?"
The joyful spirit crosses her arms across her chest, letting her sleeves hang. "You've been randomly selected for the…" She lets the suspense grow. "Fun Games!"
Ava arches a brow. "That seems nice but I really need t-" Ava gets cut off as the spirit's sapphire blue eyes glow with an earthy yellow
"And your prize for winning will be entry into Sheridan Village!" The earthy yellow light starts to emanate from her entire body. "Let the Games Begin!" with a playful clap everything goes white.
Nononono… NO! I CAN'T DEAL WITH ANOTHER RIFT RIGHT NOW! The trainer jolts to their feet, expecting to see a deranged landscape but is instead met with a tranquil scenery. The usual murky, bloody scene was now powdery and natural; the smell of decay now replaced with a delicate fruity smell tinged with a citrus undertone.
"Hey! Over here!" The jovial spirit calls out from behind Ava, waving her hand enthusiastically. Ava takes a step on the freshly swept path, their wide eyes speak for how dumbfounded they were. "Welcome! The first game we'll play today is…!"
Letting the suspense build, the spirit dances behind three boulders as they swap around. "Find the pebble! Or evolite in this case. Break which one you think it's hiding away in!"
"Alright…?" Ava warily raises a clenched fist, their coral eyes dart between the 'cute ebony' [1]and the human sized boulders.
Please don't have anything jump out… Ava sharply inhales before smashing the rock, feeling their anger be absorbed on contact.
The psychic casually tosses an evolite casually into rubble. "Oh hey you chose right! You found that shifty evolite." Her sapphire blue eyes glimmer with a sense of satisfaction. "I guess that's game number one over!"
Strange one she is… Ava waves off the sense of caution from earlier, walking down the paved path.
The ebony stands behind three 'trees', two small trees and one human shaped tree that keeps moving. She enthusiastically claps her hands. "Okaayyyy, so game number 2." She giggles, waggling her index finger in front of Ava. "This one is going to be quite the doozy"
Ava deliberately looks away from the giggling tree. "Oh I bet…" Yea, she's a goofier Melia.
"Aww don't give up before you try!" The girl laughs. "I'm sure you could find the fake tree… I think." A snicker comes from the right-most tree.
Ava glances at it, readjusting the purple print of the yellow jacket. And it brings a warm feeling to my chest… The adolescent closely inspects each tree, from the left most tree until the right-most 'Tree'
"Photosynthesis… Doing tree things…" The girl in the tree costume mumbles aloud; her jovial smile shows no intent of hiding.
"Got ya!" Ava plucks the green helmet off her head, making her dissolve into fog pink and lavender dust.
"Awww~ man! I didn't expect you to get both of them done so quickly!" The girl quickly tags Ava before sprinting off into the distance. "One last game!"
Ava chuckles. "That's not fair you gotta tell me first!" Then chases after the jovial psychic, only to see her standing on a pontoon.
The girl's melodic humming flows in the breeze like it was being played on speaker. "Before our next game begins, I've been wondering…" The ebony pauses, the sparkle in her eyes goes out for a short while then resumes.. "H-... Have you enjoyed your time with these games?"
Ava takes a moment's pause, turning their attention towards the mostly cloudy still sky. "I don't know… I- hmm." The trainer's thoughts conflict with each other for some reason. They look back at the spirit's awaiting eyes. "I guess I kinda did. Yeah, I enjoyed these games. Shame I don't know the hostess's name."
Nim laughs. "The name's Nim! I'm a traveling gal with a ton of vitality and spirit! We're going to be besties okay?" Nim takes out a Hisuan Ball before shoving that back into her pocket and taking out a modern pokeball. "I won't take a 'no' for an answer!"
"WaitWaitWait! Can we not fight right now? I just don't feel like I'm in the right headspace."
Nim blinks slowly; stunned by Ava's declination. "Oh, ok… cool… Confession time!" Her eyes dart between Ava and the tree. "I-... I wanted to help you guys with that Zetta guy but I just couldn't." Nim crumples into herself, all the while exhaling a deep rooted breath. "I know that ren guy gave you the whole speech and everything. But I thought I'd pitch in and spread happiness or somethin'."
Ava sits down in the tree's shade and starts rubbing Nim's shoulder tenderly. "Which you did well."
"It's just-! The world sucks; a lot. I've been through some of its horrors myself!" Her breathing quickens; not an easily noticeable amount, but enough to still notice. "I was traveling with someone for a while, but we had to separate eventually. LookwhatI'mtryingtosayis[2]-" a warm feeling on her cheek disrupts Nims thoughts.
Ava gives Nim a small peck on her cheek. "I know that, and the world is not what's bothering me." Ava's lukewarm voice swiftly mimicked the sense of fresh applepie. "I promise you after I nab my badge from Sheridan, we can fight. And you'll get more than a small glimpse at who I truly am. Ok?"
"Y-yeah." Nim, entrapped by the trainer's gaze, stutters. Her milky brown cheeks rosie pink and her eyes taken a back but not offended. "Anyway~ I'm going to send you back now!"
[1] This is not meant to be objectifying this is simply a call back to Venam's fight. In the old version of the game you'd get a small cut scene that introduces her after beating Venam.
[2] Look what I’m trying to say is