I’ll take my throne, lay it on a mountain

[achievementhunter]

Who: Our volunteer mountaineers
What: Two parties split up to scale the mountain from two sides, planning to meet at it’s peak. Shenanigans occur along the way.
When: September 13th to 16th
Where: Group 1: G3, H2, G2 || Group 2: F3, F2, G2
Warnings: Please note any warnings in your subject headers!


Word spreads quickly in a small community such as this. What was originally intended to be a small party turned into something much larger- and on the day Chara planned to leave for the mountain, it’s not one, but two parties that make off for it’s peak.

Group 1, led by Chara, moves off during the early hours of the morning, seeking to search the furthest part of the mountain by following the river upwards. The path is longer and more winding- however, they are unhampered in when they can travel.

Group 2, led by Ardyn, takes off after the sun has set- due to the needs of multiple members to avoid the sun’s harsh glare. Their route takes them up the closest side of the mountain, which provides an easier path- however, they may only travel whilst the sun is set.

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OOC: Welcome to the mountaineering open post! Keep in mind the following;

♆ RNG was happily done blind by our wonderful Guzma mun, with our animals RNG'd by Wade Wilson's! Thank them both for all your misfortune.

♆ Prompts have been provided for each group below! Simply toplevel wherever you wish and treat this like a normal open post!

♆ Since each group will generally be in close contact with one another, consider asking others if you can threadjack here and there; nothing says team-building like being a nosy parker.

Comments

[yallstupid]

[Does he really deserve it, though? No, certainly not that sort of kindness, nor forgiveness. He doesn't deserve good things - they don't come to people like him.

Guzma sits beside her, though there's still a good bit of space between them, and he heaves out a sigh, leaning the back of his head against the cool(ish) rock. Damn, but this is torture. Alolan summers are just as bad as this, only the humidity is rank, too. This is a dry heat, so it's not as bad, but...it isn't great, either.

Ninetales appears and Guzma immediately leans forward, to happily bask in the chilled air she creates around herself, sighing blissfully. Lord but that's nice...like standing in front of the AC or in the meat locker at the supermarket on a hot day. You bet your ass some of the grunts did just that when they had to haul supplies from Malie back to Po Town incognito (ie: without their Team Skull get up...which is sans beanie, bandanna, and necklace, really).]

Mmmh...dang, that thing could freeze me solid right now and I tip my hat to 'er.

[holdmyhand]

[ she looks over at Guzma and smiles happily. He seems content. More content than she's...ever seen him, actually. Relaxing-- and not relaxing like he's gonna go to bed soon, which she doesn't see a lot of anyway. ]

She might, if you ask her to. [ Luna laughs a little, and Nina lets out a soft whine, pawing at the space between Guzma and Luna. It's not enough for her to sit between them, though she seems to want to. Her ice-cold paws touch his arm in soft scratching motions-- it's probably pretty cold. Luna reaches in and give Nina some good scratches. ]

'M glad you're feeling okay! [ Nina watches Luna for a couple seconds, and then just flops onto the small child, which makes a visible chill run up and down Luna's body. Goosebumps pop up on Luna's legs...

A cold pupper. Yup yup. ]

[yallstupid]

[It's not like Guzma to relax, he's usually very wound up by nature, but...well, right now he's hot, sweaty, and exhausted. Allowing himself time to relax isn't going to kill him, but that heat sure might. Lordy, it'd be nothing to pass out from heat stroke or dehydration here, and he takes a swig of water from his canister to help cool off and get back some of what he lost.

And, uh...he was joking about being frozen solid. Guzma looks sideways at Luna then at the fox, narrowing his eyes at them both. Don't get any funny ideas, you two, otherwise you'll both be rolling back down the mountain. Thankfully, the only freeze he feels are those icy paws scratching at his arm, and Guzma shivers, though it's not bad. That feels kinda nice in this blaze...]

Yeah, yeah, hold on y'dang furball...

[He shifts a little, freeing up a teensy bit more space for Nina, though it's really not much as all. Instead, he pats his lap and invites the Ninetales up onto him, though, uh...she seems to be getting very affectionate with her trainer. Oof, better intervene before Luna is the one who's frozen.

He fishes around inside his hoodie, grumbling as he lays it out on his lap. Where is--ah, there we go. Pulling out a baggy of Pokebeans, Guzma finds a white patterned bean and holds it in his palm for Nina.]

C'mere, fuzzy, y'all are gonna make your trainer into a dang Popsicle. Not that I'd mind, though...

[holdmyhand]

[ Nina watches Guzma cautiously. He's patting his lap-- he wants to be laid on? She makes a small noise and simply moves into his lap, as she is a very large small Vulpix, basically. She presses cold paws into his clothing, tucking her tails under his arm-- she's a block of ice. Strangely soft, but also very, very cold. His offering of a pokebean is accepted, and she eats the thing in a few small bites, then lays her head on his arm and watches him.

Luna rubs her arms and laughs. ]

She wants you to pet her...if she's too cold, I can take her back! [ she looks so determined! ] 'm used to her sleeping on me! One time, I woke up and my knees were frozen together!

[ his comment makes her bring her knees up to her chest and watch him. ]

Well, I'd mind a whole lot! We've got more exploring to do, after we rest!! [ MOUNTAINS TO EXPLORE!! OCEANS TO TRAVEL!! THINGS TO SEE!!!!!!!

She looks somewhat pouty. >:C ]

[yallstupid]

[Guzma shivers, feeling goosebumps leap up onto skin, lifting his arm to keep away from those tails - yikes but she is freezing. He wanted to keep cool, but this is a little much, and he's better suited for the heat than he is for extreme cold like this. You try to do a nice thing, keeping a kid from getting frozen by her pokemon...ha, nice guys really do finish last.

He lets out a shaky breath, a cool puff of air, and he's shivering. Yikes, yikes, yikes, this is too much. Too much cold. His teeth are practically chattering as he grunts, glowering at Luna. Too cold? Pfft! What do you take him for? Th-This...awful. Yes, it's awful, but he's now been called out, so like an idiot, Guzma endures.]

Y-Y-Yeah, well th-that's because you're a d-d-dummy... [He's too cold to come up with anything witty, but Guzma concedes and gives the Ninetales a slow and careful pet, smoothing that soft, chilly fur on her head down and scratching behind an ear. He can't do it for long, considering the tips of his fingers start o get numb, but--] Do...d-do y'all ever s-stop?! Y'all just...j-just gotta relax....someday...

[Hell, he can't. Guzma wrenches his arm away from Nina, rubbing them furiously to try and get some goddamn blood going to them to try and warm him. How can she actually stand letting that thing sleep on her?!]

[holdmyhand]

[ Luna belts out a loud, childish laugh and gives Nina a small pull toward her lap. Luna sets the bag between them-- the sack has just enough padding (and layers) between them that Nina can lay happily against her legs.

It just takes experience. Also, waking up to your knees being frozen solid is absolutely not a great way to wake up, which Luna decides to not detail for Guzma's amusement. You learn pretty fast that while brief cuddles are fine, anything longer than a minute is usually where the line has to be drawn...he tried to hold her for longer than that. Luna laughs again. He's ridiculous. More than she gave him initial credit for-- he's human. She would never have seen this side of him if she were still on her island adventure back home. He'd still be big, bad Guzma-- which he is, still...but now he just feels a little more...

...like a friend? Question mark?? She fumbles for a weird smile. Are they friends? This kind of feels like a conversation she'd be having with a friend. He sits next to her, rubbing his arm quickly to try and get the heat back into it, and she leans against the cooling rock to try and follow his advice. Relax? When has there ever been time? Since she got to this island, it's been 50/50 between explore and chores...there's fun thrown into the mix, and the people who came here with them are nice, but the last time she relaxed was a quick stop at her house before she went to Ultra Space back home.

She stops. There's a little feeling in the back of her throat that she swallows down. It's like wanting to cry, and needing to breathe at the same time.

...homesick. A little bit. But it'll pass, probably! She sucks in a big breath and lets it out. Y'can't help anyone if you have problems of your own. And, she thinks to herself, surely she's not the only one who misses where they came from. Maybe in this situation, she's just gotta stay positive. No worries. They'll get there someday.

Nina pushes her head against Luna's leg through the bag, and Luna peeks down with a tiny smile. ]

Doin' okay? [ Nina affirms with some sort of content noise, and Luna strokes the fur on her neck. ]

I wonder how much further we're gonna go? This is a pretty big island!

[yallstupid]

[Guzma shoots Luna an icy (this time, perhaps a bit too literally) glare when she laughs at him, but he doesn't protest taking the fox away from him again. There's pleasantly chilled, and then there's downright freezing, and Guzma has passed the latter portion entirely. He can't deal...he honestly cannot deal with cold climates, he's not wired to. The only chill he's ever felt is the cool rain of Po Town and the cold climate around the base of Lanakila - where some ice types like Vulpix and Sandshrew makes their dens.

He grunts when Nina is pulled off, shivering and rubbing his arms as he tries to warm up again. No lie, an ice type in this climate is useful as heck, and ice in general is great to have (he's toyed with the idea of wishing up an ice box, actually, to store fish and meat), but...no more cuddles. No more. Not from him. He breathes out, still a puff of air, and glances sidelong at the brat as she stares at him.]

What? You got a weird look on your face.

[Friends? No, definitely not. Guzma would contest that for months to come still, though they're also not enemies anymore, either. Rivals? Closer, but not...quite there. It's complicated, and he's not sure he cares enough to try and find a meaning for their awkward relationship. They're here and not about to kill each other, that's all that matters. Come what may, he's hard enough to take it, be it bliss of pain.

Speaking of, he sees the shift in Luna's mood, slightly, and his follows suite - though it's more confused and a little surprised. Did he actually upset her with his backtalk? He never had before, and they sass one another all the time. He leans forward a little, screwing up his face as he weighs whether he should apologize or not. He didn't do anything - she was laughing at him first! Her and her snow fox!!]

Tch, probably a few more miles, we just headed out... Doubt we gonna make it to the top in one day, so keep up your strength, brat, and hydrate as best y'can. Y'ready to keep moving?

[Break over, it seems like. The heat is atrocious, yes, but they can't dawdle and waste time for too long. If they want to get to the top, they have to keep going, keep enduring. It sucks, oh boy does it suck, but they're come this far.]