Laguna liked to come out here to the Misty Timberland a lot. It was fun to explore, finding all kinds of things that had been previously hidden by the mist. It was admittedly hard sometimes to even retrace her steps to escape, but it was definitely fun. Fighting her way out, or experiencing new sights, that's what life was really about. Just seeing what was out there and enjoying the sights.

So when she saw Tuesday in the distance wearing nothing but shorts and a bikini top, she had to admit.

She enjoyed the sight all right.

Pausing to take a sip of her cold bottle of water, she mentally squashed any thoughts to make any verbal comments about it. It wasn't as if she was wearing all that much more, really. She had been showing off her thighs since day one. It would just be silly to comment on it. Besides, it was a video game. Who wouldn't want to play as a pretty girl? Finally stepping out through the fog and into the small clearing by the lake, she began to wave to try and get the attention of a friendly face.

Just in time to see Tuesday jump straight into the freezing cold water. Even she couldn't help but wince at the idea, and yet her laughter was immediately heard as she couldn't stop herself from giggling. "Pretty nice day for a swim, ain't it?"

She was alone for now, her Pokemon still at home in their Pokeballs. Despite having Poke-speed disabled, that didn't stop her from quickly glancing over to it and giving it a wide, gentle smile before returning her attention to it's trainer.

"Just a normal day at the frozen lake beach? What's the occasion?"

Now this was how you got a party started! All the different kinds of music had her excited, quite literally grooving in place even as she watched everyone else take their turns at the Pokepong. Tuesday seemed to be doing alright, with a 4 winning score! Not half bad!

Turns out she wasn't that far behind either. With 2 winning score! And, only 4 buzzed? That seemed so low! It was time to crank that score high, and just get down and have a good time. Stepping back from the game for just a second, she took a moment to glance around at everything going on.

From the Meowth trying to sing along and get her attention, to the challenges from the shield tokens, to more plays at PokePong, it was a blast! She'd politely excuse herself from the game for just a second to grab another cold mug of beer from the keg directly, and down it right then and there! Might as well loosen up and have a little fun! It had been years since she got to drink like this without fear, why not just roll with it?

"Ahh, that hit the spot." Already buzzed, her eyes were wide with excitement as she outright tossed a second mug right at her Cryogonal. He caught it with one of his icy chains, only to tilt looking confused. "S'il vous plaît, tenez ça!" Laguna spoke French in response, simply waving at him with a thankful wave. "Er, hold that please!" She suddenly shouted afterward, unable to help but giggle like a drunken schoolgirl at her own mistake.

Even if she wasn't absolutely wasted yet, she was planning to be. It was time for nothing but kicking back and kicking butt at these games! Critical thinking? Language skills? Memory? What was that?

After all, English wasn't even her native language.

Luckily, Sir Hail was quite the polite Pokemon, even if he didn't quite understand what his trainer was saying at first, he held the mug rather dutifully as they slipped back over towards the PokePong table. Just in time to see Alice! strike the second shield in a row! What a totally #badass moment!

"Alright, uh- Glacia you beautiful Grelaçon you," Laguna spoke as she picked up her Bergmite into her arms, spinning in excitement. "It's time to use ice, I know you love jumping, but Fais-moi confiance."

Glacia absolutely did not understand the last words Laguna said, but she smiled happily anyways! Her eyes were just scanning the entire world, happy to help out no matter what!

"Berg! Berg!"

"That's my gal! Avalanche! Otarlette, Hexagel, Vent Glace!" Laguna shouted, practically tossing Glacia over towards her Brionne. One Pokemon balancing an iceberg on her nose, the other balancing a mug of ale as all kinds of shards of ice flew towards the PokePong board!

WdT|t2bv1d100 1d100 1d100
Bergmite Brionne Cryogonal

This time, it seemed Bergmite's ice-type attack struck true on a grass-type tile! Sure, her other Pokemon missed, but Glacia struck true! "See? I told you to trust me, dear!" Sure enough, she took the two drinks she owed from failing, almost right away, trying to down them as fast as she could. only to not only give herself a bit of a headache but make herself quite a bit dizzy. Her stomach certainly didn't like that, not one bit.

"Woah, Ok, ralentissez, Laguna. Ce n'est pas une compétition pour boire le plus." She spoke solely to herself, trying to keep her balance.

Despite being so distracted from the games, to just walking straight, she overheard something that immediately got her attention. h0lyn3v1l spoke some French! She gasped audibly, immediately slipping over towards his side. Too excited at the prospect of finally speaking with someone who also spoke her language in this game to really think things through, let alone the fact that he said like, two words. Especially if she'd be interrupting anything between him and Yggy Br00ks .

"Oooh, bonjour! Ça fait tellement longtemps que je n'ai pas eu un autre francophone avec qui discuter! Je viens d'avoir un coup, alors voici un verre pour toi, nouvel ami!" She had the genuine widest grin on her face, finally grabbing the perfectly chilled mug from her Cryogonal's chains and trying to hand it over towards h0lyn3v1l . Clearly trying to make him the one to drink for her victory. "Oh, désolé, je devrais dire mon nom d'abord! Regardez-moi, j'oublie mes bonnes manières! Mon nom est Laguna! Quel est le vôtre?"

But that wasn't how the world worked. It wasn't how anything worked. She still had to eat, she still had to sleep, and she still had to take care of herself. No matter how much she wanted to spend all her time with Glacia, her Bergmite, she had responsibilities.

"Alright Abigaelle, it's time to get up. We have work to do." She spoke out loud, piercing the oppressive silence. It had been so long since she even referred to herself by her own name.

Laguna was just a facade. Perhaps one day, she could actually be like her. Confident, witty, energetic, everything she used to be.

The young woman somehow found herself moving into her chair, lifting herself up and out of bed ever so carefully. Somehow, she found herself getting properly dressed and out of her pajamas. It was just another routine. Even as she wheeled herself over towards her kitchenette to grab a cup of coffee and get started on her latest work project... her heart clearly wasn't in it.

All she could think about was her Pokemon. How much better life would be if she had her friends by her side, Marina curled beside her to cuddle in bed, or Glacia simply smiling and brightening her day.

It was almost shameful.

She was in so deep, and she couldn't stop herself if she tried. She picked up her tablet pen, just staring down at her computer, silent. After a few minutes, she sighed and set it back down. She just didn't have the energy.

"C'mon, Abigaelle, Lâche pas la patate." She whispered to herself. Perhaps all she needed to do was a few warm-up drawings. And so she picked up her pen again and got to work doodling the only thing on her mind.

The day began, but no sunlight pierced through the cracks in the blinds of her window. Instead, only the sounds of rain pouring down around echoed throughout the small one-room apartment. A dark, gloomy atmosphere. Cold and wet, it was the precise kind of weather she dreaded. Soon, snow would be upon them and she'd practically be homebound. She used to love the snow. It was so beautiful and unique. How she missed the days when she could go out snowboarding with her friends. These days, the snow just felt so... oppressive. A reminder of times that will never come again, an obstacle to trap her inside over, and over again.

The young woman finally stirred in bed, her mind running a million miles an hour even as she barely moved. Her eyes trained on the ceiling, listening to every single raindrop that poured down.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The repetition was relaxing and calming at first. It helped her forget everything else, for just a moment. Just breathing slowly, in and out. Over and over again. And yet, the soothing sounds couldn't keep her fears from rising to the surface of her thoughts forever.

It was unfair.

That was the only phrase she could really comprehend at the moment. It wasn't fair. Life took her freedom from her, and she fought and she fought and she fought to take it back with every single ounce of her energy. She moved into her own place, got her own job, provided for herself, and didn't need anyone else. She was self-sufficient, she could do whatever she wanted and there wasn't anyone stopping her.

So why wasn't it enough?

Why wasn't she happy?

Being called into the lab, Laguna was admittedly quite curious. It didn't take long to figure out the reasoning for their summoning. The essays! Especially as Ash began to pull out the folders. Almost on instinct, she'd hold up a silent fist towards Sarah Lee to bump. After all, they were the only other person here they had more than a fleeting experience with. Congratulations were in order. Of course, she never could forget orioncayge . He was the guy who gave C0D13 a proper knuckle sandwich before that was even a thing. Power to him.

When handed back her own folder, marked with gold stars, Laguna can't help but laugh and grin widely. It felt good to be praised for her Pokedex entry, that was the one she was the most confident in. Trivia was kind of just won because nobody else bothered to make one, it seemed.

"Glad you enjoyed it, Professor. Oh, before I forget, I uh, made a second trip to the Everworld. As expected, I'll eventually write up another report for you. This time, it was my starter Pokemon you handed me. She's all fine, don't you worry." And with that, her grin would widen just a little bit. "Marina is looking better than ever."

From there, she'd remain quiet politely as she spoke to the others, only to tilt her head in total confusion as she responded to Bergamot Gristleborg . What kind of paper did she even write? How curious.

The topic of Arceus was touched upon in her paper, and she supposed it was interesting. They as players could prove Arceus, but in the world, there was nothing. An utterly strange predicament they found themselves in. In this world, they were exceptional trainers with potential endless experience, but they were bound by the game itself.

It took her a brief second to remember that Ash was not indeed another real person. It was just a game...

Sometimes, she almost wished she could forget that. It sure would be more fun discovering everything from scratch, like a proper trainer in a new region.

And then... the girl called her a suffrage activist, and Laguna immediately became super confused. "Uh, excuse you? What part of this-" She points to the magical girl attire and twirls a bit in place a bit to let the skirt floof up. "Screams activist to you?" The woman, Bergamot Gristleborg seemed... interesting. Testing Ash's capacity for empathy? She supposed the game would attract all kinds, especially those who might push the NPCs, but it didn't leave a very good taste in her mouth.

Regardless, the idea of a mission certainly intrigued her. "Well, whatever it is you got in mind, you can count on me to give it a shot, Professor. I've returned from the afterlife with my Pokemon twice now, I'd welcome another challenge." Preferably, one that hurt a whole lot less.

She still sometimes felt like her feet were frozen solid. Although, that might be from something else altogether...

The freezing temperatures soaked her to the bone, and the cute little skirt she wore really didn't help matters. Her teeth ached, it was so freezing cold! And yet, she pushed through. What else was she supposed to do, give up?

She had suffered worse pain during her Everworld Trials. This, she could push through. This cold she could handle.

"Ready. Leave the blizzards to me, my tanks can take care of them!" She'd shout back in response, her feet digging into the ground as her Pokemon remained in front. As the ground itself shook and the Glaceon erupted from the ground, Laguna followed suit and leaped into a tree.

Cryogonal could float, but it stood strongly by Bergmite's side, as if protective of the little guy as the ground itself erupted, knocking dirt and rocks and snow all over.

Glaceon used Dig on Glacia and Sir Hail
e6|4SXRR3d50+20

As the massive beast of a Pokemon emerged from the ground below and Sarah Lee 's Pokemon began to strike at the Glaceon proper, Laguna began shouting, pointing her Pokemon's attention at the incoming blizzards. "Alright you two, muster those frozen muscles! It's time to fight back! Stall that storm with anything you got!"

Sir Hail immediately began to whip up a Rapid Spin! Spinning faster and faster to counteract the intense strength of the blizzard about to pour from the Glaceon's lungs!

Cryogonal used Rapid Spin to Disrupt!
1d200+10
Bonuses: Rarity +10

Glacia, meanwhile, had a slightly different strategy. The oncoming blizzard was deadly, but she was never one for sitting idly by. With a twirl, bouncing off the spinning Cryogonal, the Bergmite launched forwards with a powerful High Jump Kick, intending to knock the Glaceon's head away and force them to miss!

Bergmite used High Jump Kick to Disrupt!
1d200+25
Bonuses: Super Effective +20, Rarity +5

Whether they were ready or not, or how effective their defense was, the Blizzard was just moments away from striking.

Glaceon HP: 1250/2000

Laguna could not help but smile incredibly widely at the sight. Swimming at a pool. When was the last time she was able to do this in real life?

Years and years ago, it must have been. Going to a pool now was just such an ordeal. They'd have to have a handicap-accessible pool, and it was often this incredibly silly chair arm thing where she couldn't really swim, or perhaps her just sitting on the edge. But here? There was no reason to dwell on topics like that. Especially when her Brionne was slapping her in the face with her fins to snap her out of it!

"Oh, Marina!" Laguna laughed, finally sliding into the water's edge, her cute frilly swimsuit puffing up a little bit around her. It almost matched the Brionne, even!

"Sorry, sorry. I know. You want to play ball, don't you? Go on! Have fun, my dear!" Meanwhile, Laguna would simply enjoy kicking her legs about for a bit. The cool water just felt too nice to resist.

Immediately, the Brionne clapped in excitement, diving under the water and zooming around with endless energy! Suddenly picking up the beachball that had bounced off Big Bee on its nose, it practically balanced atop the water. Unaware of what kind of game the others were playing, it simply bounced the beachball back towards its source, Tuesday, chirping and clapping all the while!