fortune smiled on him, yet again.

lacrimosa had been in briar-bane on a whim, a hope at chance- and it had arrived before him, the same pale-haired trainer he had seen angelo with. kasey. but here, now, a persona. silver-moon. something a bit more fantasy, ethereal.

hopeful.

“silvermoon,” he said, offering a smile. “you’re saint’s friend- i remember you from the convention. i- i’m glad to have found you. do you mind if i ask you some questions?”

something in silver-moon’s face cracked. maybe sympathy. maybe pity. it didn’t matter, truly. they were receptive to him, and that was all that mattered.

he moved to sit, where they gestured, every movement precise, exacting, expending nothing that couldn’t be wasted. he watched silver-moon, the worry creasing their face. “how long have you and saint been friends?” he asked first. something casual. small talk.

a waitress came by, and he quietly ordered tea, eyes never leaving his victim.

lacrimosa listened. he did not interrupt, or interject. he merely listened, looking away only to accept his tea, and sip at it gently.

it felt warm, in his hands. it did nothing to soothe the pain, heartbeat pulsing in the bones of his right hand. soon, soon, soon.

“a few months? that’s quite a while… i’m sorry to hear that you suffered in mistra- but all the same, i’m glad saint was there to offer you aid.”

this, this was the source of his determination, then. why he had offered to walk into mistra, not once- but twice. lacrimosa regarded silver-moon again, careful. studying.

“do you know if he’s doing well, at home?”

and another piece of the puzzle- a struggle at home. a fraught companion… that was something lacrimosa could work with. he blinked, a bit, and gave a soft laugh. “sorry- i guess it sounds pretty strange…” he admitted, looking away. “i… well, this is about the offer i made him, at the convention. it’s a big commitment, and i wanted to be sure that if he accepted- which i don’t want to pressure him into doing, of course- that i take care of everything he needs along the way. even if that’s something as simple as… knowing how good a friend he has.” lacrimosa finished, smiling a bit more.

silver-moon looked away, because that was the goal. “ah, but- you’ve done me a great service, just with that. i… here. let me offer you something, in return. i don’t think i have much by the way of gossip, but…” with a quick motion, he summoned the bulky thing he’d won from the prize counter- a bundle of rainbow feathers, woven into a gleaming cloak.

silver-moon’s eyes lit up. lacrimosa smiled. “please. it’s the least i could do.”

lacrimosa did not let his smile fade, despite the inconvenience of the game’s systems- items could not be gifted, but traded. aggravating. no matter. “that’s alright,” he said, pleasantly, reaching to inspect their character profile. “maybe there’s a pokemon you aren’t as attached to?”

his eyes roved over the lines of creatures. so much potential… “hmm, like this little white one- you’ve got two of them. would you be willing to let me have one?”