Post by Yggy Br00ks on Aug 30, 2023 13:19:49 GMT 9
#s://cdn~discordapp~com/attachments/1028264618818289684/1146083722840506368/kenny~png
Kenny hurtled up the escalator two steps at a time, throwing a cheerful "Sorry!" to someone he'd accidentally jostled. "Haha! I win!" he called from the top, waving down at the blonde girl (clearly his younger sister) glaring at him from further down the steps. She'd gotten stuck behind someone in a full-size Pikachu mascot suit. "No fair," she said when she got to the top, aiming a punch at his stomach. "You got a head start."
He fended her off with some fake karate moves, grinning. "Hiyaaaah! Hey, we should follow that Pikachu. I bet it's headed to where all the cosplay stuff is!"
"Ew, who wants to see a bunch of weebs in cosplay? I'd rather go to the Pokemon Center."
"We're not weebs, we're gamers, it's different. And there's probably other stuff too. Look, it's called the Artist's Corner!" Kenny pointed above their heads to the banner labeling the area. It was decorated with Hydance hexagons and colorful, chibi versions of the UNOVR Guild Leaders. Kenny pointed at the one with the beard. "Hey, look! That one's Chadwick, he's my guild leader!"
"You're in a guild?" Summer asked as they filtered in through the door to where all the artist's booths were set up. "Oh wow! There's a lot!"
The booths were packed. Con attendees streamed through the aisles between them, stopping to chat with the artists and admire the works hanging over their heads. There was everything - spray paint, digital art, even fan-created manga. Kenny stopped to admire one. "Oh hey, it's based on Noonlight!" The artist had really leaned into their own artistic depiction of the Briar Beast- swirls of black ink decorated the pages, standing out as wrong and unnatural. "It looks awesome! You did a really good job!"
"Kenny, your phone's going off."
"Huh? Is it Mom?"
"No, it's the app. It says one of your friends is nearby. orioncayge ?"
"NO WAAAY!" Kenny's shout turned some heads as the high schooler grabbed for the phone, hardly able to take his eyes off the screen. "He's like, one of my best friends! Oh my god, we have to find him." What would Orion be like in real life? Would he be cool? What if he was like, an old guy? Would that be weird? No way, Orion is too cool to be old, Kenny told himself firmly, pushing his way back towards the center aisle.
But as it turned out, it wasn't as easy to find Orion as he'd hoped. The cosplay floor was filled with bandana-wearing copycats punching Porygon plushies. "I'm getting tired," Summer sighed impatiently after Kenny beat a confused retreat from the third lookalike, rubbing the back of his head. "Can we go look for the Painter stamp kiosk already? There's like, a million of this Orion guy."
"Hey, this one looks just like him!" Kenny said, ignoring her. The sixteen-year-old grinned at the man, sticking his hands in his pockets. "But you forgot Orion's bandana! Even I've never seen his forehead. It's like, one of those hidden secrets of the game."
"What is this game? I thought it was supposed to be Pokemon."
"It is! Right, Orion? I mean, mister? Sorry." Kenny addressed the cosplayer, then did a double-take. "Oh man, I'm getting confused. You seriously got his face perfectly."