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Every flower has thorns [Bell]
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 14, 2019 2:58:04 GMT
Carlos might have tried to hide it, but Bell could already see it clear as day. The human wore it on his expression, after all, wondering if he just made a major mistake helping out this 'poor, innocent Floramon being tailed by a strange Andromon'. But that wasn't so much her concern - all that mattered was his answer.
Though as he asked about the assurance, the Floramon only gave a chuckle. "I'm glad you went this route, then: the Andromon's already seen you walking around with me. If my cover ever gets blown, you'll be considered an accomplice to my escape. So really, its in our mutual interest that you just go along with it." Had the Floramon thought that far ahead? She seemed confident enough in her words and tone, roping Carlos right up into her plans.
Heck, even telling anyone else about this, even at the club, might be risky!
"As for why they're after me..." Hearing Dio and Gio board the train, the Floramon hastened her explanation: "Simply put, there are some dangerous plants out here in the Digital World, and at one point, it was my job to cultivate and research them. But, Whitewater eventually decided that such experiments were too risky to carry out, and ended up buying those labs right back from the scientists, and either chemically destroying or burning the plant-life so it wouldn't cause a 'bigger problem'."
The Floramon gave a 'tsk'. "Well. Most of 'em - I didn't stop. Set up my own secret lab, worked out of it for a few months - only to have it discovered. Something broke my proximity alarm, I fled, and when I came back, the entire thing was burned out. So I came back to try and get the material to set up another one... but they must have managed to track something or other back to me."
"And so, here I am." The Floramon shrugged. "Take of it what you will. Just know that I'm in some deep shit, Duke."
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Post by Carlos Rey on Jul 14, 2019 3:49:45 GMT
As the train slowly began moving and Bell shared what she knew with Carlos, the white haired man felt for a moment (even before she started speaking) that he had made a terrible mistake. And sadly, the Floramon's words did little else but to confirm that fact.
"Tch." Even as it dawned on him how dire his situation was, the man couldn't help but to give the Floramon an angry glare. Not only was Bell pretty much roping him into following along with what she wanted, she was pretty much blackmailing him with the fact he had helped her to begin with!
Had she planned this from the start or was it all just a happy coincidence for her? It didn't matter right now, all Carlos could do was let out a defeated sigh as she shared her story with him. If there was any silver lining to this it was learning that "Lily's" crimes were, at least at surface level, relatively mild? Or at least not MK Ultra tier in the morally questionable scale. Did it sound incredibly shady? Hell yes. Was he suspecting there was even more to it than just that? Obviously.
....but he had to play along with her, at least for the moment.
"Well, I guess it could have been worse, I was halfway expecting you to have been doing experiments on live digimon or...something." He shook his head, going crossarmed. Would asking what sort of experimens be pushing his luck too much? At any rate he shot her another glare at her final words, a hint of venom in his tone.
"I think you mean we're in deep shit."
Not long after that the twins finally located the cabin where the tamer and plant were located, and each took the remaining seats quietly. Gio sitting next to the man and Dio (begrudgingly) taking the one next to Bell.
"Well I sure hope you two are comfortable." The imp spat, glancing at the two before focusing on the plant next to him. "Feel free to go now, we did our part."
Carlos merely gave a resigned "tsk".
"Unfortunately Dio, something tells me Lily wants us to stay with her for a bit longer..."
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 14, 2019 4:17:12 GMT
But was there more to it?
It might have been a point worth considering. 'Lily' had already proven herself quite the conniving schemer, and perhaps lying about the situation to Carlos - to put herself in a better light - was just a way of stringing him along. With how deep Carlos was into Lily's schemes, perhaps the tamer thought there was no reason for her to lie at this stage.
Why would she need to, if their fates were already tied together?
"Sheesh, live Digimon? A rookie like me wouldn't be able to keep that sort of thing in line." Well, she had a convincing argument against that much, at least, but she managed a chuckle as Carlos put weight on the word 'we'.
"Fair enough - ah, there you two are." She gave a smile as Gio sat across from her, and Dio sat down on the seat next to him. The Impmon, annoyed, was clearly ready to see this plant go. But as Carlos said otherwise, Bell gave a smirk of her own, even raising one of her flowery hands to brush up against the Impmon's chin. "Oh, c'mon. I know we got off on a rough start, but it was the only thing I could think of on the top of my head." Her tone was apologetic, and her actions rather forward, considering the situation.
"Besides, do you really want to push me away so soon? We haven't even had a chance to have a proper hello."
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Post by Carlos Rey on Jul 14, 2019 5:32:29 GMT
Dio's wide eyed look of disbelief did better at communicating his outrage than any curse could. To hear that they had to be with Lily for longer was bad enough, to see her smirking so smugly about it was even worse.
But nothing could have prepared him for her...advances?
"H-hey!" Was all the imp could really muster as the Floramon got a bit too close for comfort, even going as far as to gently place one of her flower like hands on his chin. Perhaps it was her choice of words, her tone, her hand, or all at the same time, but it didn't take long for the imp's face to go from his usual white to a rosey red tone.
Wanting to push her away? Maybe so, but Dio instead did the next best thing, quickly backing away as much as he could withouth falling from his seat, keeping away from Bell's flower hands as if they were laced with poison.
"I-I'd rather we keep it formal! The Dark Lord is not too big on "proper hellos"." He stammered, trying to compose himself as he did his best to ignore the amused look his brother was giving him. Dio was always such a joy to see when around plants. "Why should we stay with you? You're clearly trouble."
Carlos just...shook his head at such a display. Lily might as well had been a super mega sovereign for all the good Dio was going to do against her. "I'd appreciate if you didn't embarrass my partner to death, as fun as I'm sure that must be." He quipped, looking at the window to his side for a moment, taking in the scenery as he wondered to himself how far would this digimon take them.
"So...once we're far from the city where to next?"
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 14, 2019 18:11:28 GMT
Ah, yes - 'Lily' managed to get right under Dio's skin, that annoyed expression quickly turning to a flustered one as he inched away from the Floramon. Rather than act off-put by the action, or even directly respond to that first point, she simply raised a hand to her chin and gave a chuckle, keeping her gaze settled on the Impmon.
"Oh, Dark Lord? My, aren't you a cute one." Her tone was more direct this time, but for the moment, she decided to leave Dio alone, simply leaning back into her chair. But why should they let her stay with them? "Unfortunately I'm going to need to ride out this cover a bit longer. But don't worry, I won't try and get in the way of you three... so long as you don't try and shove me in any more ice cream bags."
She just returned a short nod to Carlos' comments about the Impmon, considering her response of 'where to next'. Really? "Oh, I'm just along for the ride for now. If I decide the next movement, it might get too easy to track me. Nah, I need to build up this 'Lily' a bit, make it a bit more convincing." The way she said it was so casual - as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do.
... So she was a freeloader, then? "But, really, don't let me tell you what to do, guys."
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Post by Carlos Rey on Jul 14, 2019 22:35:03 GMT
Indeed it could be remarkably easy to get under Dio's skin, one just needed to find the right words and attitude and every wall the so called Dark Lord built around him would come crashing down to reveal the easily flustered kid hiding behind.
"Tch...m not cute..." was all Dio could manage to say, or rather whisper hopefully too quietly for Bell to be able to hear it, alongside something about an icecream bag and the ocean? As for the younger brother he kept on looking at the scene, before tugging at the man's sleeve with a curious glance.
"Why is Dio so red? Is he going to digivolve?" Was he trying to tease his brother? Or was he genuenly ignorant? Hard to say.
Carlos decided to give his already flustered partner a breather and focused his attention on the next most important thing: where to next? As it turned out, Lily didn't have any set place in mind just yet and was more than glad to go along with them. Which at least beated being dragged to a secret lab somewhere, so Carlos couldn't complain.
"Right. We were thinking of going to Terminus for a bit, unless you want to avoid big cities in which case I guess we could find us another place on the outskirts or something..." He pondered, just as the black scaled lizard talked once again.
"Whitewater? But I thought we were going back to Shibuya..." Gio commented, confusion in his eyes, which only became more noticeable as both his brother and tamer let out an annoyed sigh in almost perfect unison, the imp even going as far as facepalming.
"Goddamnit, Gio..."
The last thing they needed was to give the plant a reason to go to the human world of all places! Or worse still, their apparment...
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 14, 2019 23:07:43 GMT
Well, as fun as it would be to pick poor Dio apart for the rest of the afternoon, Bell just decided to let it ride, not answering Gio's question and letting the Impmon mutter off to himself, trying to piece together whatever sensibility he had left. The Floramon seemed content to just let it ride, and heard Carlos' suggestion. Back to Terminus?
"So long as its not Whitewater I don't really care. They don't have a reason to think that I'd be going there as its not really a place big on funding research." Simple enough, but her interest was redrawn as Gio mentioned going back to Shibuya.
As in, Japan. At that, the Floramon felt an internal grin, but actually managed to keep her expression rather neutral, simply resting her chin on the back of her hand as she thought about it.
"Might be a bit difficult, but if you don't mind, I think that would work too. Letting a few days pass on this side might make the trail cold enough for me to figure something else on this side. You have a loft or apartment out to yourself, or something?"
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Post by Carlos Rey on Jul 17, 2019 23:17:43 GMT
As expected, Lily took notice of Gio's casual mention of the human world and seemed more than content with the idea of crashing at the trio's place for the time being while things died down. And of course, none of them seemed particularly thrilled, specially not Dio.
"As a matter of fact I do mind." He spat, glaring daggers at the Floramon, before sighing and crossing his arms again. "...but you kinda seem to have a noose tied to our necks if we don't cooperate, so something tells me I have no say in this."
Carlos rolled his eyes. This was going to be a long week, wasn't it?
"Yeah, a small apparment downtown. Nothing too fancy but if it can fit me and two brothers I'm sure it can fit one more if we try."
Almost as if on cue it would seem the train was slowing down little by little. The man looked out the window only to be met by the sight of a large city getting closer and closer. Terminus. Their trip was almost at an end, and yet he was anything but happy to go back home with their new acquaintance.
Something Gio clearly took notice of as he looked back and forth between man and imp, before chiming in with a cheery tone.
"Aw come on guys, it'll be fun! Just like that sleepover we had at Talia's. Right Lily?" As usual, it seemed the slightly dimwitted Blackguilmon didn't quite grasp the subtleties of what was going on.
Or maybe he did, and just really wanted to cheer his family up.
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 17, 2019 23:39:40 GMT
Everything was set, it seemed - except for one small objection raised by the Impmon. Floramon looked on at Dio, tilting her head to feign disappointment - but the moment he relented, that smile was right back on her face. "Heh... I won't try and get in your way too much hun. Well. Unless you want me to."
Yes, Carlos. This was definitely going to be a long week.
An apartment was definitely fine in Bell's books, so long as she had a source of light to tan herself in. So she just gave it a nod without too much more explanation, which worked as they were about to roll right into the station. Gio had the right cheery attitude, the Floramon returning a pleasant chuckle.
"Well, that's one way to put it! Well, I'm just following along, for now." She gave a shrug, and would stand up, stretching out her back.
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Post by Carlos Rey on Jul 29, 2019 2:05:06 GMT
Dio could do little else than scowl and loudly tsk at Bell's visible enjoyment, the imp putting even more distance between himself and the plant while still trying to stay on the seat, which was...easier said than done, to be honest. "Keep to yourself and I'll do the same. We should hopefully not have problems that way."
Gio meanwhile turned to Bell with an innocent grin. "I'm sure we'll have to share beds though, so if Dio doesn't want to you can share mine!"
Dio's eyes widened at the guilmon's words, his face glowing a faint red once again. Clearly, the thought of himself having to share a bedroom, or even a bed with Bell was just settling in. And he didn't seem too thrilled about it.
At any rate the trio would eventually leave the train and, provided they weren't stopped by any other of Bell's "friends", would make their way to the center of Terminus, where the man would bring out his digivice and open a small portal with the push of a button, before turning to Bell.
"Alright, I hope you have a holosuit cause if you don't we're going to have to figure a way for you to blend in, can't really open a gate into my living room so we're gonna have to do a bit more of walking on the other side."
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Jul 29, 2019 2:35:14 GMT
"My, how considerate, Gio... but I'm sure we can find something agreeable."
The Floramon managed a smile, but honestly, she wasn't too keen on the idea of sharing a bed with the larger Guilmon. That said, she didn't miss that slight blush on Dio's face, managing to hide a chuckle of her own as those thoughts slipped through Dio's head. "Don't worry. I wouldn't dream of causing you any unnecessary trouble, Dio."
Eventually, the three of them would exit the train, all the way out in Terminus. Just as the Floramon predicted, there was no-one here waiting for them. Perhaps they thought that she was still hiding out somewhere in Whitewater - heck, perhaps they were now looking for 'Duke', the mysterious white haired trainer last seen with a suspicious Floramon. Regardless, Carlos brought up what Bell considered to be a relatively mundane point. A holosuit?
"Its not my usual agenda to go visiting the human world, to be honest, so I've never bothered to get one. Still, slipping around without being seen's all I been doing in Whitewater for the past few days. I'll stick by close enough, then all you need to do is leave your window open or something like that."
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Post by Carlos Rey on Aug 17, 2019 5:33:39 GMT
"Somehow I seriously doubt that..." Was all the imp replied to the floramon with a "tsk", already suspecting that she was getting a kick out of messing with him. Meanwhile Gio simply grinned happily at her in response: Even if his brother didn't want to share a bed with her, he didn't mind sharing...probably because he seemed blissfully unaware of how uncomfortable it could be to share a bed with someoune as large as him...then again he didn't seem to mind sleeping pretty much anywhere so to say his definition of comfortable was questionable would be putting it mildly.
Once they were at the station and Bell gave them the rundown of how she'd follow them home Carlos couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow at her, but soon shrugged as he got his digivice out. "Suit yourself. Try not to get seen back home or you're on your own." He plainly stated, not so much as a threat but rather a fact. He was not going to let her drag them all down on both worlds. After some short tinkering with the buttons of his device a small portal would open. It was just big enough for them to get inside of one at the time, and a dark, empty alleyway was visible on the other side. With another short press of a button the two digimon's form changed into that of two white haired boys, after which they all walked through the portal.
On the other side the man would wait for the Floramon to cross throuh the gate as well, and as soon as she did he'd say in a hushed tone, "Our place is around eight blocks from here. It's getting late so you shouldn't have much problem hiding in the shadows." So unless Bell had any objections he'd start the walk back home, both twins following after him, Dio every so often looking behind him just to keep tabs on the plant at every moment.
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Aug 17, 2019 18:00:27 GMT
Ah, the human world. The air was more pungent and the streets lit by unnatural light as the sun started to set - something that the Floramon was sensitive to, but she could at least deal for the time being. Stepping out into that alley, Bell would give a nod as Carlos gave his instruction.
"Eight blocks... not a problem." She'd give a nod as Carlos and Dio gave their lead, and the Floramon would follow a few lengths behind, keeping her eyes open for any other people or any other cars. And the first chance she saw, she'd use her stamen to reach and climb up on top of a fire escape, following alongside the rest of them on the rooftops.
Eight blocks, near the end of the evening. All Bell really had to do was keep her nose down and follow. Though, perhaps she should have asked if Carlos shared the place with anyone else...
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Post by Carlos Rey on Aug 22, 2019 2:44:45 GMT
While it certainly wasn't a long walk back home for Carlos it felt like a small eternity passed between they stepped out of the train station and made their way to Shibuya's residential district, always concerned something or someone would pop out at any second in search for the suspicious Floramon or her accomplices but no such thing ever happened, and they reached the appartment building without much of an issue. Once in the front door the man would open it and wait for the twins to go inside first, after which he would stay outside keeping the door open, begrudginly waiting for the Floramon to quickly slink into his place.
What she would find inside the appartment? Nothing really that spectacular really: a clean and tidy living room with a big couch (where the now holosuit-less twins were resting at) and some small zabuton cushions on the floor and next to a small table, a small TV sitting comfortably in a desk close to said table. Next to the living room a simple and small kitchen with an adequately small fridge, oven and other usual kitchen appliances. As for the other side of the living room? A hallway with two doors, one leading to the bathroom and the other one to the bedroom. All in all nothing to write home about really, just a decently sized appartment for a single person...and a small but cozy one for three.
Or four, this time around!
"Welcome to the jungle, Lily." The man would drily quip once she made her way inside, closing the door behind her before heading into the kitchen. "Gotta take care of dinner, so make yourself at home I guess."
As for the twins? Well once he saw she was inside Gio would quickly shift to one side of the couch while pushing Dio to the other, leaving a free space right in the middle of the two. He then would pat said spot with one claw as he smiled at the plant. Was he expecting her to sit between the two of them?
"There's room for one more, Lily!"
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Post by Bell the Floramon on Aug 22, 2019 22:43:04 GMT
Thankfully, there was no issues for the Floramon following ahead. Traffic this late at night was light enough, and her method of travel put her far out of the way of any wary eyes. Carlos would only be holding that door open for about ten seconds before the Floramon would round the corner, stepping right on inside as the door clicked and locked behind her.
It was about as she expected - a standard one bedroom apartment - and she'd return a nod to Carlos. "Much obliged, Duke. I'll try and stay out of your hair as much as I can." She would give a nod as Carlos walked off, before looking to scope out a space for herself. Perhaps she could move one of the mats to be more in line with the sunbeam - oh, a spot on the couch? Bell gave a blink as Gio offered her a seat, and after a moment's consideration, she gave a nod.
"Well, aren't you just the neighborly one, Gio!" She smiled, playing right into the dinosaur's giddiness as she climbed up onto the chair, sitting next to Dio. And perhaps the Impmon would have thought that the Floramon would try and lead her on by her nonexistent finger...
... But the expected teasing didn't come. Instead, the Floramon gave a long breath, and leaned back into the cushion of the couch, finally able to relax. Come to think of it, after being on the run for so long, when was the last time she slept? Had a proper bite to eat? Heck, when was the last time she'd been able to do any of her own work? The fake smile on her face faded, if only for a minute as she tried to take it all in.
"Forcing myself onto a tamer's team to be a glorified squatter... this is what its come down to, huh?" She mumbled that, shaking her head as she re-composed herself. Or, well, tried to.
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