SERPENTINE.

ㅤcain would not fault her if she knew what she was thinking of. yes, it is an organ basin, yes it has had organs inside of it, yes it is always sterilized and properly cleaned after every use. it's an unfortunate comparison, but it might not be that much different from the bowl one would throw up into as a kid and then find in the kitchen time and time again. gross, however... something that might recall a memory of childhood just the same. ㅤit is to be expected that a mortuary would carry that kind of smell, wouldn't it ? for someone like cain, it's something she hardly pays any mind to, takes care to minimize it as much as she can for someone that does not find themselves in the parlor more than a couple times in their lives. but alas, wood carries memories, or so they say. ㅤ" you had not asked previously, so i did not think to give it out. " when was the last time people asked for her name ? she cannot say. " it is cain, however. what name should i call you ? " ㅤit's a lull of conversation that she often doesn't fall into. introductions are a routine procedure — a formal introduction to establish some sense of normalcy, followed by the question of the names and how she should refer to the family or friends of the deceased... but to ask just to make conversation is something that she has not done in a long time. ㅤshe puts the water to boil in a kettle, only addressing lucy again once she has nothing left to do but wait. ㅤ" not quite... it's a job like any other, is it not ? would you say that being a mortician is, well, a mysterious job ? "

"well, cain...you can call me lucy. I'm a pretty good pokemon trainer," she volunteers with a smirk, playfully, intentionally vague. here they were, two strangers feeling each other out in the dark--of course lucy would make a sport out of it. she turns her head back to fix cain with that gleaming gaze, waving a dismissive hand. "...but see. trainers are a dime a dozen. they all get their first pokemon, went to some sort of trainer school, and they end up in big cities like these with equally big dreams. it's all the same predictable stories with us."

the last vestiges of alcohol makes lucy talkative, more animated. she can't help herself. she props her chin on her knuckles, tilting her head with a cheeky little grin.

"...but you? you're the first mortician I've ever met, and an interesting one at that. what's your origin story, cain? is it a sense of duty, upholding some family business, or is it some... I don't know, fascination with death or whatever? your profession isn't exactly common, you know?"

[ooc. pictured above me is the logo of Pokemon's most underrated developer, responsible for developing Pokemon games specifically for GameCube/Wii: we're talking Colosseum, XD, and Pokemon Battle Revolution--aka a massive part of my entire Pokemon childhood experience...

And what are they working on now? Well, the Pokemon Company decided to task them with developing/maintaining...Pokemon Cafe Mix.

it's lucy speaks that steven cannot help the flicker of amusement from crossing his face / must muffle it by taking his first sip of the wine he'd brought. quite good, as expected. description of the one responsible for claiming her symbol alone brings a single visage to mind. there's a momentary furrow of the wanderer's brow as he tries to recall any implication of her desire to battle beyond a scope of the day-to-day...

... he knew she had triumphed over wallace, whom had been transparent enough to inform him she'd bested tate & liza as well. two badges, yes... but arguably the two most arduous to obtain for reasons pertaining to both skill with pokemon & tenacity of spirit.

( an unexpected development.)

"well well, lucy... you certainly paint an intriguing picture. i applaud your artistry in conveying the thrill i would have experienced upon witnessing such a fight." the heir's expression falls closer to a pleasant neutrality, but his eyes gain a cold glint which so readily sits within at the prospect of battle. "a run for my money is certainly quite the wager. after all, the only person to ever defeat me is the current champion..."

he sits back in the chair, and reluctantly allows one leg to cross overtop the other for sake of comfort, "... a lifelong win streak upset by a hair once, against a vote of confidence from the frontier's paragon of fortune." the hand which had so lightly held the stem of the wine glass lifts, fingers curling over just enough to poise beneath his chin in a universally contemplative gesture whilst the corner of his thumb's nail catches against the movable gears seated betwixt the ring's bevels & makes them rotate. "certainly an invigorating prospect, i will give you that much."

( but i would be more confident to bet upon her declining such an invitation... )

eyes lift from where they'd fallen to observing the sanguine liquid, meeting lucy's own as her pointed jab streaks through their conversation ... to which steven allows a practised laugh, the pondering legitimacy of his expression lost behind portrayed amusement / met only with honesty in the coming comment, "but please, i have always found badges to be an unreliable measure of skill. after all, any who ever made it to me possessed eight. decent, sure... able to best my elite four? certainly worth a look. but ultimately, no challenge as opposed to what could be assumed by such feats with battling pokemon."

his hand reaches forward, and he takes the wine glass carefully / steadies it against index finger's knuckle with the flat of his thumb. "that being the case, i am quite surprised this mystery challenger was even permitted to enter the frontier as a whole."

steven takes another sip of wine, utilizing the liquid to stave off a legitimate chuckle, all but certain of her identity.

lucy scoffs instinctively, crossing a long leg over as she narrows her eyes, probing steven's imperious (and infuriatingly unreadable) expression for any tells, any cracks in that smug façade. none. no matter how much time passed between his appearances, steven sure had a remarkable talent for getting under the pike queen's skin.

"sure. scott's known to get...overexcited, at times," she muses, deciding to play along with the hypothetical after a sip of admittedly luxurious wine. "but, he's still got standards. nobody is supposed to get in here without eight badges--it's more of a crowd control filter than a skill requirement, really."

lucy nods, smirking. "...I imagine that's why you put up with the current system, too. you start letting any old trainer into ever grande, and I predict sidney doesn't make it a week before quitting."

roxanne cordelia calhoun, hailing from flocessy town in unova. call her 'roxy' or 'c.c.'

currently a flocessy ranch farmhand (based on the rancher/cowgirl trainer class) and professional tauros/bouffalant rider, and has the bumps to show it -> currently learning how to raise and ride mudbray, ponyta and other 'milder' species, sometimes making trips to other regions to do so.

not very book or tech-smart, but she's absolutely jacked, so there's that. speaks with loud confidence and makes loud mistakes. definitely not a city girl and does not deal with water well.

kitt from (pokemon champions) is her older sister--get it? rox and kitt? we tried to get there. roxy, who failed out of school to help on the ranch, jokes that kitt got all the brains in the family. roxy looks up to kitt and her raising talents a lot. aside from kitt, roxy is also a member of the alder fanclub (this is a requirement if you are from flocessy town)

roxy has ridden in nimbasa's big stadium before! it remains one of the best moments of her life. after the rodeo, kitt sent her tickets to a fashion show in the city (courtesy of her boss, caraway.) originally attending as a joke and not expecting anything, roxy saw elesa strut her stuff down the runway and realized that she...might not be straight.