farawayplace | [in which the rich brat has to work for the first time in his life, probably]

While waiting, Gold turns to re-read the flyer Trip put up, and almost misses when Trip finally does speak up.

"Icarus?" he asks, looking back at Trip. "Or... Ma?" Wait, Ma? Gold blinks, wondering if he actually heard that right. He can't help it, he's bursting into laughter. "You- you want me to call you Ma? Like a mom?!" he manages between laughs. "If- if you wanna be my mom - haha - the spot is open and all, but," and he actually can't talk anymore through his laughter. Sorry, Trip, there's probably a deep reason behind that name, but it's too damn funny!

That backfired! That backfired so badly! How did anything he say manage to make Gold laugh?!

Indignant, huffy, even further humiliated.

“You…!”

Potential customer or employer, Trip!! Can’t be too rude!

Arms crossed and fuming, turning his nose up.

“For your information, ma as in mu! Absence. I gave it a lot of thought, I knew I should’ve gone with mu, that’d be easier for a…”

Kantonian...? No, he just assumed that's what Gold was, because he looked a lot like Ash.

"Sorry... I actually have no idea which region you're from or what language you'd find more familiar."

Kind of a stiff, stubborn pride buckling a bit under the weight of a needed apology. He really was trying his best to behave!!

Gold's laughter slowly trails off into just a few occasional giggles. Man, Trip - or Icarus - was fun! He reminded him of Silver in some ways.

"I'm from Johto!" he informs Trip cheerfully. "I dunno anything about mu or whatever, but Ma means either demon or mom as far as I know! But those two are basically the same thing to me." He shrugs with a lopsided smile, before brushing that subject aside.

"So, are you from Unova too, Icarus?"

"Geez!"

Trip couldn't help wincing at the joke at Gold's own expense and couldn't help feeling sorry for the guy.

"... yeah. Nuvema town, specifically. She isn't here, is she? Your mom."

As far as he knew, people seemed to arrive here independently, but it was worth asking.

"Same as the other Trip then." But he blinks at the concern, momentarily taken aback, but then lets out a well-practiced fake laugh. "It's not that big of a deal!" he lies. "But yeah, she's not here. Why? You wanna become my new mom for real?"

He's making another joke to deflect. But it feels nice to be able to joke about his mom so easily, with no worry of her popping up anywhere.

"Quit it!" Trip said, crossing his arms, looking offended. "I'm a man, I can't be your mom! It's just, if she were..."

Trip slowly realized there wasn't anything he could have done if she were, and went quiet.

He couldn't help himself right now, much less someone else...

"Yeah, of course you can't," Gold says simply, expression turning serious quite suddenly. Even his posture straightens. He's not in the mood for manly posturing, if that's what Trip's doing. "If she was here, what would you do? Fight her? That's nice of you, but don't worry about it. I'm doing fine."

That's Gold's way of trying to dissuade Trip from attempting it, without admitting he's afraid or implying Trip would lose. He knows saying those could easily have the opposite effect.

~~Unfortunately, posturing is a good chunk of what Trip does.~~

He can't even promise that much. Even if he's talking a big game, he'd be just as scared, even if he couldn't tell that Gold was too. He can't stand up to his own, would he even be able to stand up to anyone else's?

He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked off to the side, gloomily.

"... glad she isn't. You're a trainer now, too, right?"

A slight, unvoiced worry that he'd have to go back to her if he ever did find a way back to his world.

Gold blinks in surprise at the question.

"Too?" he asks, not sure what other trainer Trip is referring to. "Well, yeah, but... Oh, are you a Pokemon Trainer too? That's great." The little Trip loves Pokemon after all, so it's nice to see he's grown up to become a trainer.

It never even occurs to Gold that Trip might assume his mom was a Pokemon Trainer.

~~If only Trip voiced that worry, he might get an answer!~~

Trip nodded. "Yeah, I am. Made it to the league on my first journey..."

Still looking down, but now with a little wry smile. "Lost in the first round, though."

"So... even if you go back, you can just stay on the road and not have to go back home, right? Or is she keeping tabs on you?"

He didn't quite think that she was a Pokemon trainer, but he was wondering if it was possible for him to avoid her!

"Really? Wow, that's great!" Gold claps, genuinely happy for him. Little Trip's gotten so far! ...He's absolutely not going to say that out loud, but it is hard to not think of the little guy when he sees the bigger Trip.

"Oh, nah, I'm never going back there again. I've got another place I can return to after my journey's over," he says, a bit of a soft smile reaching his eyes. "And I dunno if she really cares enough to keep track of me. So I'm fine!"

Fine except the constant, irrational fear that she'll show up anyway, that is.

Edited (posted too soon) 2022-12-30 21:22 (UTC)

Clapping? What is he, five? Trip felt like it should be something he'd feel patronized and condescended to for, but... he rarely ever got praise and hearing someone be happy for him like that... and it was someone who did know him, or at least, a younger him...

Rather than annoyed, he felt touched?

Someone congratulated him... someone applauded his efforts, not just his accomplishments or his being a prodigy, even though he hadn't even been all that successful, but did he even really deserve this praise?

He didn't know how to respond, his vision seemed to blur with unshed tears, but he kept as stoic an expression as possible and said nothing, lost in thought.

The reply his question brought him back to the conversation, albeit with a small delay as he parsed it and found his voice, somewhat weaker.

"... I'm glad. For your sake, I hope it's true, even if... it probably won't change how it feels. Like you still have to keep moving to avoid being found."

Ah, caught off guard with genuine feelings breaking through the facade you mask yourself with every day? Gold knows exactly how that feels, so he pretends he sees nothing.

Speaking of which, he's struck with some of that with what Trip says. He blinks, scratching the back of his neck and looking away awkwardly.

"I... yeah. I guess."

He really can't bring himself to say anything else on that subject. Spotting the flyer on the wall, he clears his throat before changing the subject.

"So... exorcism? What's that about?"

A change of subject is very welcome, especially as he’s already quite hungry and tired to begin with, so the overwhelming emotions make him feel more drained and tired.

“Yes. You’re one of the first to ask—just the second, actually. My Lampent feeds on spiritual energy, burn it away as fuel, it can also open a portal to the spirit world… although I haven’t tested the latter here. So, if someone’s having trouble with a malicious spirit…”

"Huh, neat. I guess if I see an evil spirit I'll know who to ask."

But more importantly, Trip's looking pretty tired suddenly. And if he's anything like the little Trip - which he probably is - he's not going to just admit he's tired if Gold asks. So Gold's going to have to do this in a roundabout way. Even if it means spending some extra money.

"Hey, I'm kinda hungry. Wanna go grab something to eat with me?" he asks, pointing a thumb at a nearby convenience store.

"Yeah!" he said, so eagerly, his voice jumped an octave higher and the brisk motion of nodding also made him even dizzier.

In case Gold needed any more proof the stoicism was an act, he just got so excited about an excuse (that'll spare his pride) to eat free food, he became light-headed, his vision briefly went black, and he lost balance.

As much as Gold joked about Trip becoming his mom, he's the one with parental instincts, thanks to knowing little Trip. So the second he sees Trip lose his balance, he surges forward on instinct to support him.

"Whoa! Careful there," he says, gently holding Trip from falling with one arm. "Don't trip, Trip. I mean, Icarus." He lets out a small laugh, trying to keep things lighthearted despite his worry. He can tell it wasn't just tripping, he knows the symptoms of hunger himself, but he won't say a thing if Trip won't.

He couldn't complain about being caught, he was too exhausted to even tense up, he really did need the support... he had fully expected to hit the ground, maybe kneeling at best, but Gold kept him steady enough to regain his footing. It took a few seconds longer for his vision to come back.

Yeah, the joke wasn't lost on him, what he did manage to hear of it, anyway.

"... it's fine, I got it."

An awkward little pause, before he whispered a very quiet 'thank you.'

That's so ridiculously worrying, Trip! Gold's heart is aching, wondering how that happy kid ended up in this kind of a shape. He stays calm on the outside, though, and lets go of Trip as soon as he seems like he can stand up himself.

"It's no big deal, man," Gold replies to the thanks with a smile. "Come on, let's go eat."

And he heads to the convenience store, glancing at Trip along the way to make sure he's following and all right.

As an Unovan and a snob, Trip may have never checked out the Kanto-style convenience stores Ultern has, with a variety of meals that can be heated in the store. Gold heads to the counter with the faked confidence of someone pretending he's done this a thousand times before.

"Excuse me! I'll take oden with one of everything!" he says, pointing at the dish in the glass display. The clerk nods with a smile and grabs a cardboard bowl, then starts filling it as Gold requested, which gives Trip some more time to look over his options.

[~~That's just the Trip experience, how did that happy kid end up like this...~~

Right on the money! He hadn't been in here. He genuinely seemed confused and a bit wary of the place, staying close to Gold because he didn't really know what to do and was wondering if things were sanitary or if they might upset his stomach, but also, not really caring, because that smelled good.

Hunger is the best chef, truly.

Trip seemed to pick everything that wasn't fish or meat for his, although he did pause at unfamiliar words.]

What's... konjac?

More worrying behavior... Well, Gold's fine with Trip following close to him, and won't pay it any mind.

"I dunno," Gold replies to the question with a shrug, then addresses the clerk. "Hey, do you know?"

The clerk reads off a product description (konjac flour, water, limewater, seaweed) and assures Trip it's vegan.

"Huh, I woulda thought it's like a mushroom or something," Gold says. "Anyway, you want anything else, Icarus?"

Gold hates spending money, but for Trip's sake, he's willing to spend some more. And if Trip's not going to pick anything else, Gold will get something for him just in case. He's got a weakness for younger kids who need help, and Trip counts for that in his mind, even if he's taller and maybe even older than Gold right now.

2/2

1/2; Trip’s ego sure is getting deflated here, FFF

2/2;

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[glad Gold saw through it! ^o^;; ]

[icon for mental state, he's actually smiling on the outside]

[Gold's so kind! ;~;]

[Gold would claim to be an asshole, but...]

[a caring softie in reality!!]

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