TWO YEARS AGO, A CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION GOING BY THE NAME TEAM IMUM WRECKED CHAOS ACROSS THE LAND, DAMAGING CITIES AND KILLING THOUSANDS OF CITIZENS. While Imum itself has long since been disbanded, however, the region remains broken: entire towns have been laid to waste and the Association struggles to find homes for those who were lucky enough to survive the attempted genocide. Reconstruction trudges on as usual... but with three factions - the Association, the corporations, and the people - each wishing to take the rebuilding of an entire region down opposite paths, how long will it be before Lyeant's last leg gives out permanently?
03.01
first activity check is currently underway. regardless of your green status, please be sure to check it out and make extra sure your characters make it safe and sound after the eighth of march.
01.28
we're officially re-opened! come check out our event, the pokeathlon forever to enjoy some fresh restart activities. let leap know if there are any skin bugs, and they'll be sorted out accordingly!
Care to hear about our lord and savior Operation: Mindcrime? In all seriousness: Hello, hello! I'm Pharaoh Leap – or just Leap – local head admin and rock opera enthusiast. On the rare chance you catch me in a time when I'm not bawling about characters entirely written into song, you may see me actually doing work around the site, like skinning, making too many characters, and encouraging others to also make too many characters. I only know how to write angst, and in no fewer than six trillion words an app or post, so if you like dying while reading like I like dying while writing, I'm the girl for you. ;o
Howdy guys! The names Astro and I am your resident Brit & Red muse (you'll honestly see me more on him than any of my other characters). I'm a moderator and my main job is to make sure everything is running smoothly so the Admins can focus on other things, you'll often see me within the apps and shops, etc when I'm not on Red. What can I say about myself? Apart from being a Red fanboy I like music and games and yaoi huehue, I honestly never now what to put into these sort of things but ohwell, I'm more of a "ask me and I'll tell" sorta guy. Anyway, from my personally I hope that you enjoy the site and what we produce here but also if you're new, please look around and if you like what you see please consider joining for rad plots that everyone gives! :D
Hey there~ Nano over here! I uh.. Wait, I'm doing this right, right? Bleh. So I'm a moderator over here - fun, fun - who kind of just.. Keeps an eye on everyone. You know, the whole app thing and what not. Uh.. Lets see.. When I'm not doing school work (because I may or may not be trying to be a good student) I'm probably storming up new ideas like events and etc. Or plots. Plots are always good, too. As you can see, I uh.. Have the horrible habit of making way too many characters. I swear, I was tempted with plots, ships and angst. It's like, the holy trinity. Uh.. What else is there about me? Oh, right! Please excuse my obnoxiousness. I'm just really loud in general so don't be surprised if I start screaming as loudly as I can caps. So yeah. Nice meeting you!
tbe: take two! is inspired by, but not associated with nintendo's pokemon franchise. the current skin was created by pharaoh leap using font icons primarily from ion icons and fonts from google fonts. banner art by vav of pixiv. characters, with the exception of canons from the manga, belong to the members who write them, and all posts and templates on site are credited to their respective authors and artists. we claim nothing that is not ours.
All that anger, all that grief and hardship and pain swirled around like a storm inside Edd; feeding on itself and fueling him to keep going. He wanted to keep raving at his attacker, maybe even start up their fight again and get in a few more good licks. He'd been trying to do better and not think about all that had happened and this random asshole had the gall to dig it all up and throw it back in his face? What right did they have, what right did anyone have! Indignation, vengeful and fierce, swelled in his chest in a way that actually sort of distressed him, somewhere in his mind. This wasn't like him, he hated lashing out like this, and yet the catharsis was too much to deny. Squaring up, he prepared himself to launch in again and keep up his furious ranting.[break] And then he looked, really looked, and saw the way his opponent was standing. He saw the flattened ears and tucked tail and eyes that shone with scarcely hidden unshed tears, and all at once the red hot aggression that had been powering him melted away like ice on a stovetop. It was like everything had drained from him, including the vast majority of his energy, and all that remained was guilt and fatigue and; as much as he hated to admit it, a stirring of concern for the other. Especially with how they were going on about family and being ditched and all that.[break] Okay, so he might have gone a little too far.[break][break] Drawing back, Edd let out a sigh that practically deflated him and took a step away from the other, scratching the back of his neck with an exhausted sort of awkwardness. He hadn't intended to care about his attacker, but here we are. [break] "That's, sometimes blood family kinda sucks but that doesn't mean you can't find people who care and think you're worth something. People who don't expect you to kill everything all the time."[break] This couldn't get any weirder if he tried, and he had a strong feeling that this guy wasn't the kind to take sympathy well. Left with little option and even less energy, he simply shrugged the strap of his bag back into place and spoke again, a passive edge lacing into his tone in a way that carried his honesty well.[break] "Look. I don't want to fight you or hurt you or get hurt or, any more of this. Let's just go home and take care of ourselves and eat dinner. I gotta try to straighten my nose out and your head probably needs an ice pack. You're not gonna change my mind and I don't think I'm gonna change yours so, there's really no point to yelling at each other and beating each other up out here. Besides, the cops probably got called by somebody or other and it'd be better for us both to not be here if they roll up, I don't wanna have to give a statement.[break] Sorry for the hitting and the yelling. Let's just go home. Nothing else has to happen out here."
Bekrel knew what he should do - he should charge Edd again, throw out Boulder and risk the attack against himself. Imum didn't have room for the weak,it was only as strong as it's weakest link...and yet, he couldn't find it in him to do more than swipe his tail about and glare, and even then that softened. Edd was right and he hated it, but they'd be there fighting until the cops swung round and picked them both up. Bekrel wasn't keen on prison.[break][break]
Blood family...he refused to acknowledge that. Imum was all that cared for him, he knew that much. With a nod, he took a step back, piling his pokeballs into his bag, once out of sight he'd take off his mask and jacket before pelting it home. For a moment, he looked at Edd's injuries and felt a pang of guilt - but only for a second.[break][break]
"Yeah. Yer right.. sorry 'bout yer face. Still lookin' good though." With that, he took off, taking off and hiding his Imum related symbolism as he ran. He kept thinking about what happened, about Edd. Once he was less shaky on his feet, he did some digging, and it didn't take long to find out where Edd worked and lived. Normally he'd be gathering that kind of information for an attack, instead... he was curious. He gave it a couple days, taking only his half-mask from the fight when he was sure he'd be able to manage just striding on in there. It was a risk, one he wanted to know he was prepared to escape from should it go wrong. It was also a risk he knew he shouldn't be taking.[break][break]
He entered the bakery, avoiding the few pokemon that seemed to be skittering about, looking at the goods available a little awkwardly. Would Edd recognize him..?
The few heartbeats after Edd offered they both leave were some of the most tense in his life to date. If he was truly honest with himself, he knew he probably didn't have a ton of fight left in him; definitely not enough to take on this grunt and their pokemon. One or the other maybe, but paired off against both he'd lose, He was burned out, adrenaline had taken almost everything from him; and the mixture of blood lose and the series of blows to his head had made his world begin to wobble a bit. He would do all he could to protect his pokemon, of course, but in reality his fate almost certainly rested on whatever his opponent chose to do next; which wasn't exactly comforting given their clear penchant for violence.[break] Much to his his relief and surprise, however, the fiery gijinka agreed to back down and turned away, vanishing down the path just as quickly as they'd appeared and leaving only a quick flirt and a very startled and battered man in their wake. Shocked by their willingness to recede and sort of confused by their parting comment, Edd only stared after them for a moment, blinking and mouth agape, before shrugging again and turning to limp his way home. He checked over his shoulder the whole way, half expecting to see them coming up on him for another sneak attack, but the walk was thankfully quiet and peaceful. Though, the same could not be said for the rest of the afternoon; in which Edd had to force his own nose back into place and enlist the help of Toasty and Macaroon for stitching his cheek up again.[break] He wanted to be mad, or bitter, or icy, but he wasn't really anything aside from guilty and tired; so thoroughly spent that he scarcely managed to cram some food down before curling in bed and fading into welcome sleep.[break][break] The next days went by as per usual; easy visits from regular customers and a few first timers too. Business was running well enough that the oven was rarely turned off during shop hours, and everything was fairly calm. Despite the new bandages that patched Edd's face, he was decently happy; glad to be keeping his head above water financially and glad to be helping make some of the townfolk happy. He was busy frosting a fresh batch of poke' puffs when he heard the front door bell chime gently, alerting him that the door had been opened. He lifted his head to smile at the newcomer, at first only noting that it wasn't one of his regulars, but before he could give his standard cheery greeting a cold realization clicked in his mind.[break] That was them, the same grunt from before. How had they found where he lived?? Were they here to hurt him? To burn his little shop down?[break] He swallowed hard, resisting the urge to panic. Maybe they really were just here for a snack, there was no need to start a whole new fight here; and that probably wouldn't be wise to do in his own store anyway. Blinking once or twice, he took a deep breath and decided to keep the same welcoming way he offered to all his patrons. Maybe first impressions weren't everything...?[break] "Uh, hello there! Welcome. If I can help you with anything, let me know and I'll be right with you."[break] And just like that, he returned to icing the poke' puffs, waiting to see the reception of his goodwill.
Bekrel debated just bolting out of there, maybe trying to steal something small and stupid so they could still be doing something bad, rather than rocking up to buy a handful of things to... he wasn't sure what he was trying to achieve, if he was honest. It just felt like he should turn up, buy something. Maybe he wanted to say sorry? He hadn't done that in a long, long time, so he wasn't familiar with etiquette on that. When he was spoken to, he tensed up, head whipping round to look at Edd - who Bekrel assumed hadn't recognized him. Glancing around to make sure nobody else was watching, he pulled the half balaclava out of his bag, holding up to his face for a moment, a sheepish grin slapped across his face after.[break][break]
"This is stick up." After a moment, he frowned. "That...wasn't funny. Sorry." He wasn't best known for his humor. He tucked the balaclava back into his bag as he looked over the baked goods, eventually picking up a box of muffins, a little wary of approaching the counter at fist, eventually biting it and stepping over. He placed the box down to start rooting through his pockets for money, struggling to get into his pocket for a handful of seconds, his fingers raw and red from the last fight he'd been in. Once he did manage to yank it out though, looking up to pay, his eyes caught sight of something wonderful.[break][break]
Mochi. He did his best not to keep glancing at it. "Uh, just these. How much?"{/b]"
Despite his task at hand, Edd kept his ears open for anything, sparing regular quick glances from his work to see what the newcomer was doing. He didn't intend to harass them or kick them out or anything, but that didn't man that he was going to be caught completely off guard if they tried anything. He was still watchful, still wary and ready to very quickly put a stop to it if they should go for his shop or any of the pokemon currently working around it. Mentally he catalogued where everyone was. Macaroon was in the back, Poppyseed was arranging cupcakes on a display plate, Toasty was off minding the oven, Mulberry was with him at the counter, and Jam was... Somewhere. Being Jam. Everyone was accounted for, and everything seemed fine. They really did seem to just be here for a snack.[break] At least until they pulled the mask from their bag, threatening him with a stick up. At once his blood ran cold, eyes going wide as he stared up at them. He had just enough time to process the threat, rearing back to call for Toasty when they dropped the act and admitted it was a joke. He continued to boggle at them for a long moment, blinking once, twice, before exhaling a semi-relieved laugh and relaxing again. Still snickering, he reached over to pet Mulberry and calm him down from where he'd been bracing up to spit acid at the perceived intruder. Down boy.[break][break] "Shit dude, you just about scared the frosting out of me."[break] He chuckled again, seeming to have actually found the joke to be pretty funny once the fear wore off. Smiling, he went back to icing his puffs, grateful that he hadn't squeezed the piping bag in his startle. That would have been a mess and a half.[break] He waited easily for the other to finish their shopping, wrapping up his task in the meantime and calling over Poppyseed to plate the puffs for display as he wiped his hands off. Finally, his customer seemed to make a choice and walked up to the register, where he was casually resting on the counter. He picked up the box as they put it down, checking it for price and murmuring as he did so.[break] "It's good to see you again, didn't think I'd get the chance."[break] He flashed a grin at them, taking note of how hard they stared at the mochi he kept behind the glass in his display case. They hadn't asked for any, were they wanting him to wrap some up..?[break] "Uh, the muffins are eight for the box. Do you want some of that mochi you're eyeballing too? They're one apiece, but if you buy three i'll toss in one for free."
So there weren't pokemon trying to kill him, so Edd mustn't mind his presence too much. He grinned lopsidedly once he had the baker's attention, still confused about what the hell was going on. He was afraid, but not of being hurt or killed. He was afraid of Edd, kind of. How Edd would take his presence, if he'd send Bekrel away, which would have been a valid and reasonable course of action. Instead, he simply started to talk about prices.[break][break]
"Huh? Oh, nah sorry, I can't aff- wait, they're how much?" Bekrel blinked in confusion, holding coins in one hand and notes in the other, looking more than just a little dumbfounded. Were they really that inexpensive? He thought back to every time he'd looked at mochi while out with his parents buying bread, only able to look. It was too expensive, they could barely afford the standard. The time he spent with - his jaw tensed, stopping himself right there. [break][break]
He simply put down a handful of notes. "Is this enough for all of them?"
Moving with practiced ease, Edd grabbed a paper bag from somewhere below the counter and bagged up the muffin box; leaving plenty of space for if his customer made a choice on that mochi. He smiled a little at their surprise on his pricing, standing a little taller all of a sudden.. Ever since he'd set up his little bakery he'd taken an acute pride in making his stuff affordable for the people here. Immediately he nodded his assent, confirming what he'd already said.[break] "Yeah, one apiece! The four for three deal goes for every three you buy, too."[break] Given their surprise at his prices and how much he was ogling the mochi behind the counter, Edd figured the other might be up for buying three to get the free one. The last thing he expected was for them to put down a wad of notes that was clearly too many, in hopes it would cover the goods. For a moment he just stood and blinked at the money, wondering idly how much mochi had to cost other places for them to think this wouldn't be enough, before finally regaining himself and sputtering a response.[break][break] "Uh, Yeah. That'll do it and then some. Hang on lemme do the math here..."[break] Counting under his breath, he glanced over to his stock-a batch of 12, made fresh that morning-and glanced back to the heap of cash in front of him. Slowly he began counting out the cost, staying true to his word and ignoring every fourth one. Okay, that was nine. Seventeen in total. Yeah, this was a heap more than he needed. Nodding and grinning, the baker took the seventeen and slid the remaining notes back over before turning to the mochi and wrapping it to go in the back.[break] "Seventeen in total! I'll have to make some more mochi to keep the stock from just being out, wow. I really hope you like my recipe!"[break] Pleased, he placed the goodies in the back and handed it to his patron with a gentle smile, deciding on a whim to push his luck a bit.[break] "So, since you know so much about where i live and work, do you reckon I can know your name this time, or is that still a secret?"