All In All

Kirito nodded a bit. "I will. It's a delicate situation, but there's not much to be done about it. Just have to do what I can..."

~~~~~

Kaede pulled back from the hug, shrugging slightly. "It's just never worked out. At all. Kaori was only born because I wanted a child so badly I went the artificial route... which I suppose is good for her in some ways. She never felt as if she was abandoned by her father, because technically speaking she never had one... which was fine, I was more than happy to play both roles for my daughter..." She smiled sadly, her mood rapidly plummeting, as it always did when conversation turned to Kaori.

Emanulle frowned a bit, he hated seeing Kaede like this and the fact she smiled some times with Michru around meant it was a step back. It truly couldn't be helped and he could understand on some level, given he was a single parent himself. "It does seem neither of us have had any luck in the romantic department. I..we'll I honestly can't say too much about Kaori on some things, but I can say she's in the middle of something. When she's done, she'll be back..but when she does return she'll need your help. Help I think only you'll be able to give her. It's not much but I want you to at least she still cares about you."

Kaede was silent for a moment, before turning more fully toward him. "Emanulle... you won't tell me what is going on, because it would be betraying Kaori's trust, correct?"

Emanulle hated not being able to tell her, he cared about Kaede a lot already but Kaori at the same time so it put him into a bit of a spot. But if he did say anything besides not trusting him anymore it might make Kaori clam up more in general.

"..Yes. I'm sorry, I really wish I could say, but if I do Kaori likely just won't stop trusting me but retreating back into her shell even more. It's something she feels she needs to do, but once she's done she'll come back; and when that happens she'll need you."

Kaede paused, and took a deep breath. "I understand... then please, I want you to pass along a message to her, if you can."

Emanulle could guess what it might be, but he had no idea of knowing. "Go ahead."

* *

Adell could honestly say he was nervous about talking to his sisters but after things with Ignis he knew it was something that needed to be done. So when he had some down time he requested to talk to them in private in his own room. He had a idea of what he was going to say, but fact was this had never been a good point for him.

Kaede took Emanulle's hands in hers, looking him in the eye with a determined look on her face. "I want her to know that I will always be here for her, no matter what she needs. And if I don't see her again until she's done whatever it is she's trying to do, that's fine. I'll still be here to make her her favorite foods and congratulate her on a job well done. Because I know how persistent my daughter can be. Whatever she's trying to do, she WILL succeed, come hell or high water. I believe in her, so even if it's only in spirit, she has my support... but she's definitely grounded when she comes home."

~~~~~

Kyouko and Mami were a little nervous themselves. Kyouko more than Mami, really. Mami was sure that there wasn't some sort of problem, while Kyouko was paranoid that Adell was upset with them or something. When they walked in, or when Mami gently pushed Kyouko in with her, Mami took a seat and forced Kyouko to join her.

He didn't know why, but Emanulle felt a bit more warm when Kaede took his hands.

Or he did at least subconsciously. It was probably too late to do anything about it if he was honest with himself, if it was what he thought it was.

"I promise, I'll pass it on the next time I see her. You have my word." He really hoped this threat was dealt with so Kaori could go back with her mother and live a normal life. The quicker they could all put this behind them, the better.

* *

Adell..really wasn't good at these sorts of things. He knew he needed to be honest about things like Ignis said and go from there but fact remained he had never been in a relationship. At all. His mind hadn't been there at the time and later on due to Perene being Perene his state of mind hadn't allowed for one. Though, besides a few like Monica he hadn't ran into a lot of candidates far as that was concerned.

Mami was her usual self, Kyouko was nervous as he was able to tell right away. She acted tough but she really did wear her heart on her sleeve and was surprisingly vunerable at times. For strangers she didn't care but a harsh word from a loved one could hurt her more then any normal wound.

What am I doing?

Naturally, his inner self had all the answers to that but he found it oddly quite. As usual.

"Thanks for being here."

After a slight moment of awkwardness he just went straight from the heart. "I'm..not really good at this sort of thing but here it goes. The thing is..I like the both of you a lot. As in..um more then just the normal way. While I'm not the best, with this sort of thing, I do notice stuff. You two are the same towards me, I think. But..I really don't want to hurt either of you."

Oh man, that was lame. Leave it to me to fight monsters but be nervous and tripping over my words over this.

Kaede seemed to be searching for something in his eyes, then nodded, pulling back looking somewhat relieved. "Thank you, Emanulle... so long as she knows that, I have hope that everything will be okay..."

~~~~~

For her part... Kyouko looked as if a multitude of emotions were going on with her. Mostly she just looked like her mind had fried itself. Mami's eyes were wide, clear shock on her face. She also looked rather unsure, and she cleared her throat, even as a blush was creeping up. "Um... A-Adell, could... could you perhaps... be a bit more clear in what you are trying to say?" She was pretty sure she knew, and it seemed Kyouko did as well, but she wanted to make absolutely sure.

Adell shifted uncomfortably but he needed to be more clear. "I mean I like both you in the girlfriend type of way. When I realized it, I wasn't really sure what to do or how to approach it. Still don't, I'm just going by ear."

Mami immediately covered her mouth with her hands to cover her gasp of shock, while Kyouko just blinked at him for a moment. "So... so you, uh... you like us in the whole.... 'I want to kiss her' way...? Both of us?"

Adell rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah. But for..uh obvious reasons this was really hard to say but its something I needed to say. I wasn't sure how you would take it or anything.."

Kyouko, without realizing it, mirrored Adell's action of rubbing the back of her head. "Well.. I mean... I'm not... against it, or anything..."

"She means she's happy..." Mami finally spoke, giving Adell a shy smile, even as Kyouko made a sound of annoyance. "And so am I..."

Traveling with Ignis was one of the things Mewtwo could honestly admit he enjoyed. He genuinely liked her company and they got along well enough. The journey they took together he had to admit was probably for both their sake then anything else since both of them had been simply drifting along since they got here.

Life was short and finite, so Mewtwo supposed trying to find some deeper meaning or purpose with sapient life was usually a natural part of it. When he was created he had those questions, and when he began to move on his own, he still had many of them.

Currently they were in Virbank City in Unova, it was on their way during their journey and was home to some to some movie studio and a few famous stars. Mewtwo wasn't too interested in that but if Ignis wanted to go or anywhere else he'd oblige. The only thing he was keeping to himself was the growing physical attraction part, he could fully blame the 'human' form he often stayed in for that.

Ignis had to say, travelling with Mewtwo was interesting. She'd already known that, but it being just the two of them was different. She was known for teasing her travelling companions, particularly Adell and Monica, but Mewtwo had always been pretty unphased by it all. Now, however, she had noticed rather easily that he was not as stoic as he had previously been. On top of that, she was well aware that he was starting to react to her body... something fairly obvious since she had a tendency to walk around half-dressed or even naked when they were out of the public eye.

Personally, she found this hilarious. It seemed that his human form was not merely a disguise. That or Pokemon were rather 'open.' She wasn't sure. For now, she'd leave it be. If it seemed it was actually bothering him, or if he brought it up, then they could talk about it. For now, she was content to amuse herself with his reactions... and she perhaps was teasing him more than before, 'on accident'... it was fun.

Another aspect of things was that she was learning more about the Pokemon world than she had previously been aware of. It was pretty interesting, honestly. Especially here, in this new world they had come to. This wasn't Perene, where everything was so bleak all the time. Things were... nice, here. Of course... Ignis was indeed interested in visiting the movie studio. "All I'm saying, is that it would interesting to see what it's like there. I mean, it's movies specifically starring Pokemon and their trainers, and apparently even the gym leaders from other regions come to star in some of the movies. It seems like a good place to meet some people that could give you more insight into how Pokemon are treated in this world."

Mewtwo didn't have an issue with it, and they weren't doing anything else for that matter so there was no harm in seeing. "Very well. It couldn't hurt to see for ourselves." He had been told to try to be more 'social' and besides his small group he had no interest in it much but again didn't hurt to try.

When they arrived, it turned out the place was a bit on the packed side. "I am curious who these stars are I keep hearing about, apparently they're very popular."

"I can't help but wonder how that might complicate things, then again there are two of you and some of the others which is confusing enough."

Mewtwo was idly looking around, not noticing anything of interest until he saw a large forming crowd to his right. Judging by everything else, that had to be where the signing was taking place but it would be a while before Ignis and Mewtwo could as much get close.

"..Probably about as expected." He mused to himself. "Do you want to wait to meet them or come back a bit later?"

Ignis shrugged. "I'm not one for collecting autographs, so I'd just as soon look around until they are done so we can talk to them, honestly."

"Hm."

That was a bit of a issue, he wasn't entirely sure what to do in this city really. Normally he'd just wander around but for some reason he felt he should do more with Ignis here. Though with enough time passed he could use something to eat, which would work enough for now along with conversation in the mean time.

"There are actually a few people I heard about I want to meet in the Pokemon world but my chances of seeing them aren't the highest. One is Red, though its not his real name and more of a alias is a prime example."

"Well, if you want to meet the big names of the Pokemon world, best place is the Pokemon World Tournament in a few days." A young blonde woman to their left smiled, waving a bit. "Sorry to but in, but I overheard. Is that why you both are here, to meet big names?"

Mewtwo was a bit surprised at the interruption but it was thankful for the bit of advice. "Thank you and yes its one of the reasons we're here. My name is Torias, may I have your name?"

The blonde grinned widely. "I'm Bianca, it's nice to meet you." She shook Mewtwo's hand, then Ignis' as she introduced herself. "Anyway, in a few days, the Pokemon World Tournament will begin in Driftveil City. It's several different tournaments, in different brackets, it's really exciting! Anyway, all the gym leaders from the different regions will be there, along with champions from each league. That includes 'Red', though his real name is Katsu. I'm not actually sure where he got the name 'Red', but... well, it works out I guess! Anyway, if you want to meet people, I can actually help! I'm an assistant to Professor Juniper, and I'm a really good friend of Unova's current champion, Azumi! She's actually here now, I bet I could help you meet her today!" 


Ignis blinked a bit, glancing at Mewtwo. 'Excitable one, isn't she? Still, seems like a sweet kid.'

Mewtwo was a bit amused by the display, he hadn't really seen much of anyone like this at Perene save for a few others back there which usually had a rough time. There was something he admired and envied about the people that continued on despite that world not being the easiest place to live in.

"I don't see why not." Mewtwo said with a faint smile. "I believe I heard that name before, if I have it right they are also a movie star."

Bianca nodded happily. "Yep! She's the one that is here signing autographs, along with her costar for the 'Mystery Doors of the Magical Land' series, Sabrina, the Psychic gym leader from Kanto. It was such a good series! The movies aren't overly long, and they'll be busy for awhile... hmm.. oh, would you two like to go to the directors cut screening of the series? They are playing it in the studio theater as a promotion, and I can get you both in!"