007. [Video]

[garbagechild]

<sub>[It's not uncommon for Wrath to be sharing screentime with his Pokemon, but in this case, he looks distinctly irritated about it.]

[Behind him is a Lopunny that's a good foot or so taller than him, clad in a dress that is... DAMN FANCY-LOOKING, ACTUALLY. There's like... frills and ribbons and junk.]

[Wrath glares directly into the camera, appealing to the hypothetical audience to side with him.]</sub>

She wasn't gonna be happy until Mama and I bought her a DRESS.

And she's still not happy!

Why does she like clothes so much?

Pokemon don't even need to wear clothes like people and things that look like people do.

I wish I was a Pokemon, because then I wouldn't need to wear clothes.



<sub>[The Lopunny-- a recent acquisition from the raid he'd performed with Ralph of a wealthy socialite's all-night dinner party, aka Wrath's first Real Mission (tm)-- lets out a huff and taps her long, curved claws impatiently on her arm. She clearly is about as pleased to be paired with Wrath as he is with her.]

[He responds with a huff of his own.]</sub>

Hmph.

Anyway, she's brown.

So her name is Dirty.

_{[The rabbit Pokemon's head whips around, outraged, but Wrath yells right over her angry growl.]}

I DON'T CARE, DIRTY!

Comments

[islandshore]

That's because they are? Socks are designed to keep your feet warm, and they help protect your feet from blisters when you're wearing shoes. That, and they send to soak up a lot of sweat...

[And get stinky, the thought alone which makes him laugh softly to himself.]

That, and clothes provide extra protection. It's not the same as armor, but that's at least one extra layer to protect your skin from the sun, scrapes and bruises, plus people tend to think it's indecent if you start running around in the nude.

[garbagechild]

_{[At that last point, Wrath descends into a thoughtful silence.]}

... Oh. That explains why that guy in the store wanted me to leave that one time.

[islandshore]

[His eyes fly wide open, and he gawks for a moment.]

Wait. You actually went into a store naked?

[Wrath... Wrath, please.

Do pardon his facepalm.]

[garbagechild]

--well, not NAKED!

I still had-- what are they called...

Pants.

... Pantses?

No. Pants.

_{[He's pretty sure it's 'pants'.]}

[islandshore]

[WHEW. Okay, that earns a sigh of relief.]

Good, but most businesses are still picky. No shirt, no shoes, no service.

[He doesn't quite get why. It's not like there's a health issue by walking around barefoot or topless.]

I guess it makes sense for girls, but otherwise, it is kinda silly. Gotta wonder where it all started...

[garbagechild]

Humans are just WEIRD.

I've stopped asking why they do things.

Nobody ever really knows.

[islandshore]

Heh. So if you're not human, what were you before?

[He looks human, but then, doesn't everybody here? Twilight used to be a pony, and the only indicator of her otherworldly appearance is her candy colored hair.]

[garbagechild]

A monster.

_{[He says this rather plainly-- there's no particular sadness or revulsion in his voice. He just states it like a fact.]}

I had plans to be a human someday but then here happened.

[islandshore]

A monster? So are we talking werewolf? Talking slime? Six-headed dinosaur?

[It's said with a soft tone, lacking what normally might carry a snarky edge. It's genuine curiosity; 'monster' is so vague, especially in a world like this.]

And now that you're human, how's it feel?

[garbagechild]

No, my friend Jimmy calls me the Amazing Wolf Boy but I'm not actually related to wolves, and I've only ever had one head. I've been reduced to slime a couple of times, though. It's unpleasant, but not my natural state of matter.

_{[He rattles all this off oddly formally, tapping his chin with one sharp little fingernail.]}

I was a Homunculus.

All Homunculi want to be human, but now that I'm human, it's not really how I expected it to be. ... A lot itchier.

[islandshore]

You mean you never got itchy before? Not even once?

[Geez, was he made of metal? Stone? Did he just not have any nerves? This is crazy.]

Well, hopefully it's not too bad. At least here you won't have to worry about turning into goop.

[garbagechild]

Well sure, but never like THIS. Humans sweat, and burn in the sun, and get bumpy red spots on their skin in weird places, like on the insides of their elbows! Once ONE thing stops itching, something ELSE starts.

It's really weird.

I don't understand how humans don't just scratch themselves everywhere always.

And that's not even getting INTO the whole thing where they have to swallow things for sustenance every few hours! Remembering to eat is hard!

[islandshore]

Really? I never had problems with it, but usually waiting on an empty stomach gets pretty painful.

[And he is used to it, which is another factor, of course.]

As for the itching, well, how often do you bathe? That can make a difference.

[garbagechild]

Bathe?

_{[What is this foreign concept?]}

People squirt me with a hose sometimes.

[islandshore]

Well, water's a start, but you need to do more than that. You need to use soap, scrub off all the dead skin and the dirt... Helps if you wash your hair, too, otherwise it'll get all oily.

[It's complicated, and he's not sure Wrath'll understand it all, but hey. It never hurts to try.]

[garbagechild]

_{[For a moment, Wrath's expression shifts, like he's gone somewhere very far away in his own head.]}

Oh... oh yeah.

I did that once.

I don't like to think about it.

_{[That had been before he'd known what he was.]}

[islandshore]

[That's... odd. So odd that Riku squints, placing a finger over his chin while his brows knit.]

Did something happen? Bad experience?

[Or maybe he's like dogs and just doesn't like getting clean.]

[garbagechild]

The people who gave me one turned out to be enemies.

_{[Another flat statement, although this time he actually does look a little bit upset about it.]}

[islandshore]

...I see. Did they force you into it?

[He's hesitating. This clearly is dipping into personal territory. What if he doesn't want to talk about it?]

[garbagechild]

<sub>[YEP. Fortunately, Wrath... hasn't really developed the same level of secrecy regarding personal traumas that older, more-human people might have.]

[He answers the question matter-of-factly.]</sub>

No, but one of them attacked me right after and chased me all through the town.

He was gonna rip off my limbs.

[islandshore]

What?

[See that? That would be Riku gaping; he even fumbled the 'gear a little.]

Okay, what kind of sick freak would even... Just... Why?

[garbagechild]

<sub>[SORRY RIKU. WRATH'S BACKSTORY IS KIND OF A HORROR SHOW.]

[Completely oblivious to Riku's... perfectly understandable reaction, Wrath shrugs.]</sub>

Well, they were his limbs once. But he gave them up, fair and square. It's not my fault he made that deal. And no one else was gonna be using them...

[islandshore]

[He pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to absorb all this new info.]

So, wait. Your limbs came from someone else? Just... how? Mad science? Magic? This is getting weirder by the second.

[garbagechild]

... Mmmm...

_{[He thinks about it.]}

Both.

_{[Alchemy is pretty much FANCY SCIENCE MAGIC, after all.]}

[islandshore]

Huh. And is that a common occurrence where you're from? Do people just end up with hand-me down body parts?

[It's so surreal. Kinda funny that this would throw him when he's spent so much time in this world.]