【ＩＮＴＥＬ ＡＧＥＮＴ】

A grimace crossed his expression at Ted’s strangely choked laugh. Everything.. he hated everything about this man. However, as soon as he started making his way closer, he felt his whole body tense as it was pressed to the wall. The door was right there.. He could forgo whatever order he got just to escape this guy. But then.. why wouldn’t his legs move? Why.. why, why– It was hard to figure if he was furious or absolutely terrified, but he was left frozen in place trembling either way.

He swallowed to remind himself to breathe as the tall, slender man closed the distance between them. His shoulders scrunched as he tried in vain to lean away from him. “W..what are you doing.” His voice broke as he tried to speak, mostly in an attempt to keep his voice from wavering. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the slit ones piercing straight into him.

And then.. he felt Ted’s cold, dry lips brush against his own.

His blood went cold as a chill ran up his spine, somehow paralyzing him further. Every memory he’d been trying to keep locked away of his time in the Rocket labs assaulted his brain all at once and his knees almost felt like they were going to collapse underneath him. His eyes couldn’t focus, and his fingers twitched against the wall behind him. It was like.. everything suddenly stopped working all at once.

Ted was talking but the sound of his voice was quickly being drowned out by the sound of the mankey heart pounding relentlessly in his ears. Despite that though, his words did reach him. Something felt like it ignited inside of him. That cold feeling in his blood faded fast as suddenly it felt like it was boiling beneath his skin instead. His teeth gritted, his fingers curling into fists until his knuckles were white underneath his gloves. Although tears had begun to well in his eyes, the fear had been completely taken over by resentment and a red hot rage.

There was no thinking involved. No what ifs. No wondering what will happen. No fear. Only anger. The moment Ted faced back towards him, he about launched off of that wall towards him. One hand gripped whatever it could of his collar to pull him down a bit, and the other threw as much of his weight into a solid punch straight into that face he hated so much.

There was no fear on his face as he was dragged down to meet Adrian’s eyes. Shock, yes, but not fear, just his wide, snake-like eyes opening yet wider, the slit pupils becoming thinner as the grunt’s fist got closer and closer to his face. The fist collided with his jaw with a satisfying smack, jolting his leering eyes away from Adrian, Ted’s legs buckling underneath him, his body going limp for a moment. He hung there like a doll before righting himself gingerly. 

He took off his misaligned hat slowly, tucking it under his arm as he felt his jaw.

“How mean?” he said, his words even more slurred as his jaw tingled and throbbed in pain. He felt for breakage or dislocation, but all seemed to be well aside from the swelling beginning to start and the bruise beginning to discolour his cheeks. The hat went back atop his head, perfectly straight again, Ted preening his hair into position, entirely ignoring Adrian as if he had ceased to exist in the room. When he finally turned his attention back to the snivelling mess, he seemed utterly unaffected.

“And I had just told you to be careful. I suppose I shall have to postpone my morning meetings. My superiors will be most upset. I shall have to tell them why, of course. I’ll need to head down to medical to check for fractures and request treatment... and I will need to tell them, too, what happened. Goodness, I suppose I will have to write an incident report.” He paused. Ted had been pacing as he spoke, like a tall, unpleasant Mandibuzz over an injured Minccino. He looked at Adrian again, his eyes folded in almost sincere concern. 

If he could read the other’s thoughts, Jay would’ve entirely agreed to the fact that he did push buttons. It’s his bread and butter, and he pushes and pushes and pushes until people reveal themselves without the veil of pretense and having to keep things civil. And all while he pushes, he observes, most times barely emoting, sometimes his lips pinching ad the corners into a tight amused smirk, for what the barest hint of a curve can be considered. 

Surely, he must have pushed the right one, because there was a lapse in the other’s presence, like he went AFK for a bit. …although, all things considered, this guy looked like the type that would bring a laptop to the bathroom just in case he’d be needed on a raid or some shit. 

When the Rocket speaks, however, all amusement disappears, turned into something slightly darker and bitterer. The other barely finishes and Jay flicks through the last empty space in the salt, this time making a point to send some flying a bit higher, see if it can get caught in his collar or bounce off his glasses. 

“Doesn’t fuckin’ listen when bein’ addressed, that’s strike three. ‘M ‘fraid you’re all outta strikes, buddy, so y’all better open those ears real wide.” The side of his hand slams against the table with a bang before he brushes the salt aside in a small pile. He’ll pick up later, or leave a higher tip on the table. Probably both, judging how the waitress at the counter threw him a look before finding something to busy herself with in the backroom and effectively vacating the spot. “Boyo, you’re all outta chances without even tryin’, fuck’s sake you’re bad at this.” 

He purposefully ignores the other’s question: any chance at a proper conversation going the way the Rocket wanted is now lost at sea for good. Jay picks his work phone from his pocket, thumbs through it a little.

“Look, y’wanna talk ‘bout your buddy’s lil’ offense, I get it. But I’m ‘fraid either his report wasn’t complete enough, or your intel’s lackin’, because boy oh boy that was the start of somethin’. Never seen Archie pissed like that. You guys recruitin’ in Hoenn was already somethin’ that needed t’be fixed—” He runs his pointer finger across his throat. “—but when blondie clearly asked where the ‘other Aqua buddies’ were…” 

He laughs a joyless laugh, a foot rising to rest against the edge of the table. 

“You guys got intel, y’all know we got a bit of a rivalry situation goin’ on in here. But your friend’s lil’ faux pas, boy did it do somethin’ big. I ain’t never seen Archie so mad, t’the point of. Y’know. Havin’ a temporary truce with Magma just for a joint upper management meetin’. Just to see if the other team also had some Rocket scum tryin’ t’make Magma their own lil’ breedin’ ground. An’ boy oh boy, was it a ‘surprise’ when we learned our ole dirt-lickin’ buddies had the same issue in the past with some o’ yours.” Leaning back against the booth, Jay pushes his foot a bit more on the table, just to threaten to make it tilt—which it does a few times, the salt slipping a bit towards the Rocket Agent before Jay rights it again with a loud slam. His amused eyebrow quirk has all but disappeared over the last two minutes, replaced by a frown, eyes narrowed and jaw squared. “An’ then your request for this meetin’ comes in at this opportune time, an’ the problem is much bigger than one insistent lil’ fuckface barkin’ up the wrong tree, innit now?” 

Jason Kendall might have thought he was harming Ted’s chances by showering him with grains of salt, but quite to the contrary. As a speck hit him on his hollow cheek, Ted blinked softly, short eyelashes instinctively protecting his eyes from it, despite the goggles protecting him. He didn’t shake, or react to the salt, or even jump at the sound of the fist hitting the table. Instead, he calmly tuned back into the conversation. Goodness, this ape was really trying to shake him, wasn’t he? Trying everything to see what would stick. Perhaps he needed to pay a little more attention.

With only a little sense of urgency, Ted got to his feet, politely stepping aside to avoid Jason Kendall’s theatrics with the table. Throughout the whole tirade, he was utterly emotionless, heels apart in complete indifference.

“Are you quite done?” he asked, softly, politely, as the man finished, giving the air just enough time to rest so as to not be considered snappy. He looked down on Jason Kendall with the airs and graces of dog trainer above a barking Mightyena. 

“Good,” he continued, a little more sharply this time. Mr Kendall had certainly had quite enough time on the soap box. “Unless you are as illiterate as you appear, I’m sure you will have read that our invitation to meeting was exactly to discuss this isolated incident. You have correctly assessed that we have sufficient intel to draw a conclusion from this altercation. I am not here to argue fault, it is with us. However, I must emphasise that this was a lone Agent acting against orders. His mission in Hoenn was merely to collect intel on the current goings-on in the region, not solely concerning yourselves, and yes, to offer positions to interested parties. He was under no circumstances authorised to seek out recruits from within your ranks, or from the ranks of Team Magma, as the largest organised criminal groups of the region.”

He paused long enough to run a black tongue along his lips, and fuss with the phonebook sized pile pf papers resting on his clip board. As he began speaking once again, he doled out stapled papers after stapled papers onto the salt covered table, each volume landing with a slap.

“For yours and your superior’s perusal, copies of Agent Seraph’s report, my own assessment of the situation--” (this seemed to be the largest of the reports)-- “our supervising Elite Agent’s reports and, I am sure you’re delighted to hear, Executive Petrel’s summarising report, including an exhaustive list of punishments given to Agent Seraph. I think you have wrongfully assumed the worst of this meeting, as if Rocket would come here... picking a fight? No. This is an apology.” A final document was slapped on the table in front of Jason Kendall. Ted leant over him, his hands resting on the flat surface a few feet apart as he stared deeply into his eyes.

“And by way of apology for the misstep of our Agent, we would like to offer you a proposition. For a whole year, Team Rocket will not step foot into Hoenn for the purposes of recruitment, full stop. I am sure you understand why we can’t remove our associates who keep an eye of current events here, but we would be willing to leave best alone for a year whilst we reassess our recruitment process and training. We hope you find this offer satisfactory... unless of course we’ve underestimated Team Aqua’s time and resources, and you would rather start a squabble over something so... petty.”

     He had no reason to trust him and that was fine by him. In this kind of business, reliance on strangers outside of your group could spell trouble.  The way the other man looked at him and spoke made it apparent. Luckily for Rocket, he’d keep full disclosure. 

     ❝ As long as they don’t see my face, I’m sure it’ll be fine. My clinic’s not exactly the easiest to find. ❞ He hands a wave of dismissal, making note of the footsteps nearby. Taking a few steps in a direction, his back facing the other. 

     ❝ When you live in a city as dense as this one, having a business inside a labyrinth of streets as its upsides. Now c’mon. ❞

Making to follow the man, Ted kept his hand at his belt. He didn’t like to have to to trust a stranger, and even less so when he relied on it so much. How frustrating that his pokemon should fail him at a time like this. But where one pokemon failed, another would do the job just fine. It gave Ted confidence, as he followed the man with striding paces, that he seemed so sure that they wouldn’t be followed.

Yet he had no such belief... He pressed his lips into a fine line, unclipping Titanium’s pokeball and releasing the Magneton. It would protect him first from his assailants, second from their prying eyes and lastly, and most importantly, from the man right in front of him.

Oh, he was not impressing her in the slightest. To stare at her chest so openly was almost admirable in how bold it was, but that didn’t stop it from being extremely tactless. Lusamine cleared her throat in the least subtle way possible, disapproval apparent on her face as she glared at him.

She couldn’t be mad at him for long, though. Not once he mentioned Aether’s laboratories during a very specific point in time.

Some sort of feeling bubbled up in her stomach - Not quite fear, not quite anger, but definitely something related to those two emotions. So, when he said he ‘admired her work’, it had meant exactly what she thought it did… If he’d truly read all the articles, then there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that he’d seen the horrid way the media portrayed her. This slimy man was just going to approach her, speak so casually of something he didn’t know shit about, and then just leave?

Absolutely not.

“A shame how it all ended?” She muttered, her voice almost unnaturally flat. Taking a single step forward, Lusamine tilted her head as she smiled at him. “Would you care to explain… What exactly you mean by that…?”

Ted never noticed all of Lusamine’s unspoken cues to get him to stop. Unless he was particularly interested in something, he rarely paid attention to body language and tone. If he were ever, truly, honest with himself, he would say that he was bad at reading signals. Of course, it didn’t matter, because socialising simply wasn’t important in the grand scheme of things, so Ted never bothered to work on it unless there was something to be gained. But what could be gained from the defanged Aether President? 

So when she cleared her throat, spoke flatly and stepped forward, Ted didn’t bother reading them as something worth paying attention to. But at the same time, he wasn’t intent on antagonising the woman. After all, he really was a fan of her work, and whilst she wasn’t currently able to help him, that wasn’t to say that in the future she would never. 

Oho, eager one. The man had gone straight to work figuring out how to run the thing. No explanations necessary!

…maybe they would be a tiny bit less boring than Svern first thought.

The unit that first appeared like a briefcase would, upon unlocking, open up in a manner similar to a laptop. If one were to turn it over and carefully examine the side currently face-down against the table, they could find signs of extendable legs, evidence that the unit could be easily set up and used almost anywhere. The only thing that wasn’t quite right and that made this unit differ from the standard was a detail only Svern’s eye would catch–which was that the casing was indeed plain grey. On a typical unit, the organisation’s (that is Dim Sun’s and not Altru’s) logo would have been printed on it in purple.

Both sections, once the system was booted up, rewarded the operator with an array of flashing lights; but the controls were all to be found in the lower part. A collection of buttons and silders, some labelled, others not, might either confuse or entrance depending on who you were. The machine also produced a faint whirring sound.

This was the “Miniremo”, the latest technology developed by Altru… or actually, mostly the work of one genius teenager.

The man seemed to know what he was doing, and was definitely interested in the gadget. Although Svern’s current job was to gauge the worth of the would-be investors for Altru, he was more interested in this man’s focus on the machine–from the total lack of hesitation, to getting straight to the topic of its actual function. He merely silently observed the investor until they spoke up about it, at which point he answered emphatically, “Of course it does! Otherwise it wouldn’t be good for much besides looking pretty, would it?”

Just like before, he left the words hanging without offering anything further. He guessed the man might want to test said alleged control, but Svern wasn’t going to bring that up himself.

The machine seemed to be rather software light-- this was unfortunate for a couple of reasons. For one, Ted enjoyed reverse engineering software, breaking through it’s tamper-proofing and learning what made it tick. Whilst he didn’t expect to memorise an entire source code, at the very least he could report back as to how easy it would be to replicated. Secondly, it would be almost impossible for him to gauge any of this without physically taking the machine apart. With such limited display, assigned to lights and switches, it would be impossible to learn the machines ins and outs without taking it apart and examining it back at an appropriately equipped base. 

Ted hummed softly as he took in the machine, sitting back in his chair with a hand on his chin. Unfortunately, this left him with one option-- taking the machine. It was quite a risky thing to simply ask, especially when he had next to no idea who he was dealing with, so far from home. So... he had to be sure the risk was worth it.

After a silence, Ted looked back up to the man, and as Svern had predicted...

“Do you have any pokemon it can be tested on? It seems a sturdy device, but thus far, it’s just a pretty light show. I need unalienable proof that it takes control of pokemon before I can even recommend that my superiors place investment in this device.”

     “Indeed. I would not resort to anything lest I could truly get away with it. So, when do you leave work? Ah, then again, do you ever leave the base? I know some of you have such a… lavish life here and live in whatever offered. Hm. If so? There go my plans!”

     He laughs a little at his own joke but he knows Ted probably doesn’t have his own place. He just appears the type to live in the dorms. Or the sewer system. Aha. He’s laughing again. Damn. 

     “Do not worry. I have no reason to dislike you, truly. I merely enjoy a little back and forth once a while. You are safe from my hands.”

He cocked his head, pauses and then joins in the laughter, loud, obnoxious chokes, intended to quiet Jax’s. 

RULES: Don’t reblog, repost.

► NAME ➭  "Ted Falsey. Agent Nidhogg if you are not in Team Rocket” ► ARE YOU SINGLE? ➭  "Of course.” ► ARE YOU HAPPY? ➭  "... No.” ► ARE YOU ANGRY?  ➭  "Not yet.”  ► ARE YOUR PARENTS STILL MARRIED? ➭  "Of course they are.”

EIGHT FACTS!

► BIRTH PLACE ➭  "Viridian City Hospital." ► HAIR COLOUR ➭  "...Brown? Why does this matter?” ► EYE COLOUR ➭  "Blue! Can you not tell from looking at me?” ► BIRTHDAY ➭  "Hmph. Why? Are you trying to work out my horoscope or give me a nasty surprise? You’ve missed out. Wait until next year.”  ► MOOD ➭  "What mood I am in does not count as a fact. I am perturbed.” ► GENDER ➭  “Male, obviously.” ► SUMMER OR WINTER ➭  "Ugh. I suppose Summer is better for me than Winter, these days.” ► MORNING OR AFTERNOON ➭  "Mornings? I suppose.”

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE!

► ARE YOU IN LOVE? ➭  "Ugh, no.” ► DO YOU BELIEVE IN LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT? ➭  "I-- I object to this question. My belief in love at first sight, or even love does not effect people’s insistence that they might exist.” ► WHO ENDED YOUR LAST RELATIONSHIP? ➭  "Relationship... tssh.” ► HAVE YOU EVER BROKEN SOMEONE’S HEART? ➭ "Probably.” ► ARE YOU AFRAID OF COMMITMENTS? ➭  "Not at all. I am entirely committed to my work, and to Team Rocket.” ► HAVE YOU HUGGED SOMEONE WITHIN THE LAST WEEK? ➭  "No. Ew.” ► HAVE YOU EVER HAD A SECRET ADMIRER? ➭  "It wouldn’t entirely surprise me.” ► HAVE YOU EVER BROKEN YOUR OWN HEART? ➭  "Absolutely not.”

SIX CHOICES!

► LOVE OR LUST ➭  "Ugh. Neither. Neither, but especially not lust.”  ► LEMONADE OR ICED TEA ➭  "Iced tea has the most caffeine in it, but both might lower my core temperature a little too much.” ► CATS OR DOGS ➭  "Neither. Dogs are more obedient, though.” ► A FEW BEST FRIENDS OR MANY REGULAR FRIENDS ➭  Sigh. “I suppose having a tight knit group of individuals who understand me might be nice...” ► WILD NIGHT OUT OR ROMANTIC NIGHT IN ➭  “Neither. But I will stay in, thank you.” ► DAY OR NIGHT  ➭  “Either. They both have their advantages.”

FOUR HAVE YOU EVERS!

► BEEN CAUGHT SNEAKING OUT ➭  "Hmm. I rarely was caught in the act. But Daddy did sometimes catch me after I had strayed a bit.” ► FALLEN DOWN/UP THE STAIRS ➭  "Never. I would never make such a silly mistake.” ► WANTED SOMETHING/SOMEONE SO BADLY IT HURT? ➭  "How would wanting something hurt me? I--... This question is poorly worded.” ► WANTED TO DISAPPEAR ➭  ... No answer given.

 FIVE PREFERENCES!

► SMILE OR EYES ➭  "Another poorly worded question. What am I supposed to do with them? I would quite like my eyes back? Is that an appropriate response?”  ► FAT OR SKINNY ➭  "Largely speaking it is best to have a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9.” ► SHORTER OR TALLER ➭  "Well, I don’t plan on getting any shorter? But I’m afraid my growing days are over.” ► INTELLIGENCE OR ATTRACTION ➭  "I would rather keep my intelligence, thank you.” ► HOOK-UP OR RELATIONSHIP ➭  “N-neither? Unless we count a working relationship?”

 FAMILY!

► DO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY GET ALONG ➭  "I haven’t seen Mommy and Daddy in a couple of years... But they shall forgive me.” ► WOULD YOU SAY YOU HAVE A “MESSED UP LIFE” ➭  “No, I don’t think so.” ► HAVE YOU EVER RUN AWAY FROM HOME ➭  "No, no, not for long periods of time.” ► HAVE YOU EVER GOTTEN KICKED OUT ➭  "Yes.”

FRIENDS!

► DO YOU SECRETLY HATE ONE OF YOUR FRIENDS ➭  "I don’t have friends.” ► DO YOU CONSIDER ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS GOOD FRIENDS ➭ "I don’t have friends.”  ► WHO IS YOUR BEST FRIEND ➭  "I don’t have friends.”  ► WHO KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU ➭  "... Daddy.”

“Well… I know you don’t need. But it might be nicer… “She said very softly. but she did move the tool box closer to him like he asked. She watched moment or two more, before deciding to rush off.

But she wasn’t cone that long, no not at all, She came back with mat, as well as a sealed bottle of water, and the odd little thing set both down near Ted. Did he need it or even want it? No. But she would bring it for him anyway, just in case. Like a puppy fetching something.

She didn’t want him hurting his back or dehydrating.

Finally relieved of the sound, he worked away, fastidiously connecting the part to the mech, joining wires and pipes, bolting it in place and ensuring the thing was securely in, whilst still letting the moving parts... well, move. He hadn’t even noticed that the grunt had gone when he tested the mech to see that the part worked as intended. 

He was jotting notes down when she returned with the things. Without so much as giving her as sideways glance, he spoke.