no_ufo_ending | [Victory Road] Ic Inbox

_{[Heather has learned about A LOT OF THINGS THAT SHE WAS PREVIOUSLY UNAWARE OF in the past forty-eight hours.]

[It's honestly tempting to just put her foot down and not confront any of it at all.]

[But ughghhhh... she has to.]}

Hey, Henry?

_{[She's poking her head into the living room. She looks tired.]}

I need to talk to you.

[Envy and Heather may have already talked (and complained, at least on Envy's part) about their brand new, unanticipated connections to Walter Sullivan, but it had been...difficult to figure out the right time to actually inform Henry.]

[They hadn't wanted to potentially ruin Christmas with the news, or New Years...and it was just a tough thing to figure out how to bring up in the first place. "Hey, guess what, our Pokemon are joining a cult and also guess where all those birds came from!!" is such a bad idea that even the two of them hadn't even considered it.]

[But they can't keep it a secret forever.]

[Envy, for once, stays quiet behind Heather, just looking in over her shoulder--she knows more about this than him, she'd be better at getting this started.]

_{[Henry glances up from using Boo to light one of the many candles slowly melting on top of the television set. He also looks tired but just because the little ghost-type is slowly eating bits of his soul.]}

Yeah?

_{[She takes a second to kind of glance over her shoulder at Envy. They'd both arrived at the conclusion that Henry needed to know about this. But that doesn't make her look forward to it any more. She sighs and turns back to Henry.]}

So I got a message from Walter Sullivan.

It turns out some of my Pokemon have befriended some of his. He found my number while trying to find out who they belonged to.

They've been visiting him for some time now.

[Envy gives Henry a small nod after Heather's finished with her news. They really might as well get it out of the way all at once.]

[Except for the fact that all those Murkrows halfway belong to Walter, they'd both decided that Henry...probably didn't need to know that when they were all over.]

One of mine has been too. I didn't realize it was him when it started, but I figured it out after a couple conversations.

_{[Henry is silent as he listens, his eyes moving slowly from one of his friends to the other as they deliver the news. He tenses up and Boo lets out a little squeak in surprise. Suddenly she can't nibble on his soul. All his energy is now aimed at Heather and Envy like a laser sight in a spy movie and even a soul-sucking ghost can't tug it away.]}

Has he hurt them?

_{[She shakes her head.]}

No.

That's why I didn't notice anything, actually.

_{[If they'd been coming back with mysterious bumps and bruises, she absolutely would have noticed.]}

They're all fine.

Mine either, she's fine too.

If I thought he was hurting her I'd have stopped it myself.

[One way or another. He's choosing his words carefully, though; he sees that look on Henry's face.]

_{[Henry breathes out very slowly through his nose. Had he been outside, he would have looked like a dragon.]}

I'm glad. I don't know why I didn't think he would try to get to us through our Pokemon. I should have thought of them first!

_{[He glances to Boo on his shoulder and cups a hand around her flame.]}

I'm sorry. I'm going to make sure he doesn't try anything else.

--Henry, I already thought of that.

That he might be trying to get to us through the Pokemon, I mean.

_{[She takes a deep breath. It's been awhile since she's had a disagreement with Henry over this-- mostly because it's been awhile since anything happened. She doesn't relish the idea of having another one right now, but this is important.]}

I don't think that's what's happening, though.

Like-- you know me, I can spot that kind of shit a mile away. But he didn't even know they were mine until I told him. They were the ones who went to him, not the other way around.

_{[As for why HER Pokemon had gone to WALTER... well, that's still a rabbithole she's gonna have to go down.]}

And I don't think he had anything to do with mine, she's not interested in him at all. Just his-- Pokemon.

[He almost stumbles, because he's pretty sure that if he says that it's Lyra and Walter's Honchkrow, Henry will be able to put two and two together pretty easily.]

I don't think he even really likes that she keeps going over there.

[At least, not if they keep making more baby birds.]

But not enough to do anything about it.

_{[Henry stews quietly, gently patting the back of Boo's weird candle body.]}

Maybe his Pokemon are looking for someone else to interact with then...

_{[Which places them in a sort of unfair spot, belonging to a MASS MURDERER AND ALL. No wonder the poor things were looking for friends.]}

No idea. I don't know how they first met mine or where it happened, just that they've been playing with each other for awhile. Long enough that it's a little more complicated than just telling our Pokemon they can't see their friends anymore.

_{[She takes a deep breath there, because this is the part that she REALLY hasn't been looking forward to saying.]}

... He told me he's going to leave the Goldenrod area, and that his Pokemon wanted to say goodbye before he goes.

_{[... And she has a feeling it's probably wiser to let Henry react before she confirms that she's going through with it.]}

Yeah it's...a little more tangled than being able to just keep them from seeing each other.

[Envy's not sure he could prevent Lyra from going to see Darkness without literally confining her to the box. Heather's already told him about Walter leaving and the arranged goodbye, and while he doesn't particularly like that it's happening...it's her decision whether she wants to or not. His mouth tightens a little, but he's not going to argue.]

So it won't be that big a deal for much longer, anyway.

[The Murkrows will probably find some way, but again, he's already resigned to that.]

_{[Henry is not an expressions man, but it's obvious that he is Not Pleased with how eager his friends are to roll over for their Pokemon. Then again, his don't tend to make many friends outside of the house since Henry NEVER LEAVES. He can't relate.]}

I can go. I can be there if he tries something. I know how to deal with him.

No.

_{[FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, SHE IS NOT BRINGING HENRY TOWNSHEND WITH HER TO MEET UP WITH WALTER SULLIVAN.]

[Even if peaceful relations weren't the issue at hand here, she'd be more inclined to tell Henry to stay home anyway. He's the one that the cultist was trying to kill, after all.]}

He's been here for maybe five months.

I've been here for seven years.

I have a flaming horse with a spear coming out of her head, a giant crocodile, and a bird that knows freaking close-quarters-combat moves. And I can fight, if it comes down to it.

You have to trust me, Henry.

[Victory Road] Ic Inbox

[Early January, like, January first.]

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