[ti]private[/ti][C/Shalin] Fae Play

Shalin's reply to Alicia was an string of staccatos impossible for her to understand. She and her Ponyta looked like playthings to Alicia. From her own perspective, Alicia looked like a skyscraper. Hovering over the Mini ailment's tooltip, it seemed the only way to eliminate it would be to leave the forest. At her smaller size, though, it would be too far for her to run!

Unless...

The gears began to turn. Clicking open her Poké Ball containing Flit, the Yanma noisily buzzed, the wind from his wingbeats knocking Shalin to the ground as he landed and lowered them. Recognizing her level, a mounting icon appeared as she stood next to the bug-type, a tiny white saddle now strapped to the end of Flit's wing. As the curious Saria approached, her vines extended, another tiny saddle, this one green, materialized upon the thick end of her vine.

She wouldn't dare... would she?

The whimsical Shalin was serious. Decision paralysis overcame her. She wasn't sure if she would be able to handle both out-of-body experiences. As the fairies' voices continued to goad her, they pressured her into making an impulsive decision. She was closer to being able to do this with Flit than she was with Saria, by virtue of the Bulbasaur taking longer to evolve. That was what fueled the decision to go for the Yanma first.

The tiny seat on Flit's wing was the perfect size for Shalin to sit in. She was glad she had become a fluent Beta Tester so quickly -- she knew what signs to look for with any Pokémon, and could make a saddle appear on one almost anywhere she wanted. Even if it didn't make sense.

Excited to see what her curious dragonfly was capable of, she took her place, grabbing onto the red tip of the Yanma's wing. Feeling them stretch, she held on tight as they fluttered silently in a warm-up that would have left her incredibly disoriented, were it not for her prowess as a Beta Tester.

Then, the storm came.

The telltale buzzing noise became audible as Shalin vanished, turning into a green streak of light on the Yanma's wing as the bug-type hovered not far off the ground. As the wingbeat rate grew, there were moments where the vibrations were in sync with the frame rate. It gave Alicia a good view of a Shalin whose eyes looked like they were taped shut and wearing the widest, most delirious grin she had seen from the glitch hunter, if not from anyone on the server. The motion had to be vomit-inducing, and yet...

She was squealing, looking like she was having the time of her life.

Shalin couldn't hear a word any of the fairy Pokémon were saying. Flit's wings were not only fast, but they were loud, too. Particularly for her. It wasn't just Flit, either; by virtue of sitting on the wing, her body shook fast enough to make noise. Were she to master this for combat, she could unleash truly devastating sonic attacks. For now, she was content to use the strange combination of glitch and talent purely to entertain.

After a few seconds of buzzing wildly, the wing began to slow down, Shalin hollering in her dizziness once it had stopped. "Waaaaaaahooooooo!! What a ride!!" She slid down the wing and stumbled to her feet, one of the sprites quick to occupy the seat she had just vacated. The dragonfly grew excited, curious to see if his guest was just as talented as his trainer was. Out of respect for the new rider, he stretched his wings, silently fluttering them to give the fairy-type a taste of what he could do.

Shalin plopped down on top of a tall mound to get front row seats to the chaos Saria was about to take the brave fairy on. With minimal warning, Saria further extended her vine and began to swing it in circles, its tip flicking sharply every time its speed peaked at the bottom of its loop.

The tiny Pokémon alight Flit's wing was goading the Yanma to go faster, and faster he would buzz. The dragonfly landed on a small mushroom that looked giant to the glitch hunter. At last getting the strength to stand again, she watched gleefully as the wings went from a silent flutter to a noisy shriek, buzzing the passenger with a SUPERSONIC burst. It was so fast that wing and rider looked like they had split into several copies, much like a Pokémon using Double Team.

Her attention was only drawn away from the mesmerizing buzzing by a squeal from the fairy seated on Saria's vine cracker, whirling about and wildly flicking the guest about. She would wait for the sprite to have her fill before Shalin took her place, the Bulbasaur giving the girl the same warm-up before sending a wicked pulse down her vine: the opening motions of a VINE WHIP attack.

Indeed, Shalin couldn't hear anything except the rush of air... except for the moment a nearer part of the vine passed her. She could hear just enough of the Ribombee's cry that it got her attention, though she could not respond. The vine wouldn't give her a chance to.

The lashing was the most odd sensation she had ever experienced, both in touch and in sight. When the vine's coil came undone, a high-pitched snap echoed all around Alicia, Shalin, and the fae, though it wasn't overly loud. Visually, the explorer didn't notice a violent change in perspective; had the whip moved so fast that they had gone in a complete circle in a single frame?

As the vine slowed to a stop with expiring momentum, Shalin looked shaken, but nowhere as close to as hurt as she should have been. Were Beta Testers truly this powerful, their imaginations their limits?

Shalin barely heard Alicia's last remark as she finished catching her breath from the rough ride Saria put her through. Her laugh must have sounded like a fairy's staccato to the full-size Gardener. She was a little woozy, but was still okay. With the Ribombee goading her, though, she wasn't sure how long that would last. This was a once in a lifetime experience, and she wouldn't be one to turn it down.

Once her body stopped feeling like jelly, she touched the fairy-type's wing. It was an excellent shape, the girl already picturing how the saddle would look in such an odd place. Not one to push her luck with the still-wild Pokémon, she instead moved her hand to the still Ribombee's back. "If you're ready, then I am! I never thought I would get to fly on a Pokémon so small in my life!" Provided there were no objections, she would sit between the bug-type's wings. Without reins to control it, though, she would be at the insect's mercy. A mischievous grin appeared on Shalin's face.

"Wanna circle Alicia's head and see what happens?"