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Meanwhile, Roland ordered for himself a Poffin made out of Colbur berries. As their orders arrived, Rikku's chocolate eclairs and Roland's berry poffins, the Drapion slowly took the big, meal sized Poffin into one of his hands, biting down on it. As he listened in to her, a bit of a heat crawling up his body again as she grabbed so tightly to his hand. "R-Right...Enjoy the company...S-Sorry, I didn't mean to..." He cleared up his throat a bit, glancing around nervously, it was one thing for him to act like a dork just in front of Rikku, but if he did it in public like this. He seemed to crack his shoulders a bit and simply smiled. "O-Of course. Uhm, well then." He idly began to toy his fingers against hers, wrapping his larger digits in-between her own fingers as she squeezed down on his hand.
"Sorry, I'm just...Not very good at uhm...Conversation." He confessed, frowning a bit at his inability to make a proper talk with Rikku. "So uh...We didn't get to know each other very well, did we? Let's do a little game, shall we? I ask you a question, you ask me a question. We keep going with that until...Well, until we feel like it's been enough, I suppose." He stated, letting out a nervous chuckle. "So uhm...Wh-Why don't you start?"
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Rikku's cheeks began turning visibly red through her fur as she felt Roland squeezing her hand in return, the feeling of his strong hand encasing hers almost protectively making butterflys swirl in her stomach as a giddy smile parted her lips.
"I think getting to know each other is a great idea!" Rikku grinned, excited to get a better understanding of the man she was quickly developing feelings for, before theatrically bringing her hand to her chin in a thoughtful pose. It took a moment, but eventually she decided that it would be best to start off with an easy question, to help ease them into the interesting little game Roland had put forward.
"Alright...so my question is...Why did you join the explorer's guild in the first place?" She asked, keeping his hand in hers, enjoying the warmth of the embrace.
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Roland smiled brightly. "Ah...Of course. Well, it's a bit of a long story so..." He cleared up his throat. "Basically, when I first joined I was just a little Skorupi. I uhm..." He frowned some, scratching the back of his head. "This...Is going to sound a bit silly. But I really just wanted to go all around the world and explore it...I used to do it on my own back then. A little bit of uh...Illegal exploring, you could say." He stated, laughing nervously. "Needless to say, since I was pretty small at the time too, I ended up getting myself into some big trouble with a band of angry Poochienas and their pack leader. I uh...I thought I was gonna die right then and there but then...Flora showed up." He stated, sighing some. "She saved my life...Then uhm..." He coughed, nervous. "Nursed me back to health...Then convinced me to join the Explorer guild afterwards, so that I would actually become stronger and never go out exploring on my own again."
He concluded, nodding his head slightly. "Uhm...What about yourself, dear? What got you to join?" He suddenly blushed a bit. "...Uh. You don't mind me calling you that, do you?"
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As Roland spoke, Rikku's eyes grew wider and wider in amazement, Hes...He's just like me!, He loves exploring! she giggled in her head while she kept silent on the outside, having no intention of interrupting Roland. She couldn't help bringing one hand up to her mouth, however, when he came to the part about thinking he was going to die, she had even been about to interject, but her face dropped the tiniest amount when she head about this 'Flora' character 'Nursing him back to health'. She wasn't entirely sure why considering it was a long time in the past, but Rikku couldn't help being overcome with a jealousy at the thought of another woman 'nursing' Roland.
The jealousy was quickly washed away though when he finished his story and returned the question while adding a much cuter one of his own, the fact he had already began calling her pet names only making the Meowth blush all the more. "I, uhm, no...no I don't mind at all...Hun." She chuckled before humming in thought for a moment as she thought how to best answer his question. before it was best just explaining herself honestly.
"Truthfully? I kind of joined to do exactly the opposite of you." She laughed, "I've always loved going out and exploring by myself, being under the moon at night or exploring some deep cave. I love it, the feeling of doing things for yourself, the adrenaline that comes with being in danger, it's all just so...Invigorating!" Giving his hand another squeeze at this point while smiling up at him, not entirely sure how he was going to take this next part, "But after the virus hit, I wasn't able to leave the cities unless it was with some sort of escort. It was rubbish, I couldn't do anything! So...when I heard the guild was recruiting for expeditions and the like, I instantly jumped on it! I wasn't going to miss the chance of feeling free again, you know? I know it might sound kind of selfish, but I really can't stand being cooped up for so long...and I DO want to help find a cure! I just want to not be locked inside 4 walls while I do it." she said with a raised eyebrow, hoping he wouldn't think any less of her while her ears twitched cautiously on her head while she tried to sense his mood towards her answer.
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Roland laughed nervously at being called hun, nervously scratching the back of his head before she began her own reply, which gets him to focus his entire attention on Rikku. For better or for worse, he didn't really seem to have noticed her drop in mood when he mentioned Flora, but he definitely had his eyes locked on her now as she spoke her turn. Once she was done explaining, he let out a short chuckle and slowly moved both his hands to grab hers, holding tightly, though being a little bit careful not to hurt her or anything.
"I totally understand...A little bit too well, honestly. I still used to go exploring solo every now and then. It's nice to be out and about just by yourself sometimes, connect with the places and what not." He stated, slowly rolling his thumbs over your knuckles. "Don't worry though, we will all find the cure, together. And everything will go back to normal after that...Though uhm." He blinked a few times, before smiling. "You're not gonna quit the Guild after the crisis is over, are you? I mean, we could go out exploring sometime too, just the two of us. Just as it's fun to head out alone, it's also fun to go on an expedition with someone, don't you think so?"
"Not that we...Couldn't go on expeditions together now or anything but...Well, for what I have planned, I'd rather if there weren't a bunch of horny other Pokemon out and about." He stated, awkwardly shaking his head around as he spoke. "Ah...But uhm...It was your turn to ask a question, again, no?" He reminded.
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"Exactly!" Rikku gushed as Roland put the words to her exact thoughts for loving exploring on her own while his hands began surpisingly gently caressing her hands with his thumbs, his gentle touch only making her blush even more.
"Haha, don't worry about me leaving any time soon considering I have a pretty great...reason for staying..." she smiled half shyly before pulling his hands up to give them a tender kiss before looking at Roland with a quizzical look, "Oh? And what exactly are you planning? Uhm no wait, that's not my question! Let's see...oh! I know! Do you...have any brothers or sisters?"
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The large drapion couldn't help but let out a chuckle at that, a faint blush barely visible on his cheeks. Well, at least he was softening up a bit. "Siblings? Well...Sort of." He scratched the tip of his nose, figured a better response than that was necessary. "My mother gave birth to me and and another...Well...Dozens of brothers. That's just how Drapions and Skorupi work."
He explained. "A few dozen didn't make it through their first years...But once we were old enough, we all got sent off to live our own life. So...Yeah, I do have brothers and sisters, no idea where they are or what they're doing nowadays though." He stated, shrugging his spiky shoulders. "What about yourself...? Any family to speak of?"
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Frowning at his oddly...uncaring reaction to the fact some of his brothers and sisters had passed away at such a young age, Rikku took it upon herself to show enough emotion for the both of them as a small tear formed in the corner of her eye as he finished speaking, "Oh Roland, I'm...I'm so sorry about your siblings! I didn't know that's what it was like for young Skorupi...I shouldn't have asked..." she mumbled sadly as the large ears on top of hFrowning at his oddly...uncaring reaction to the fact some of his brothers and sisters had passed away at such a young age, Rikku took it upon herself to show enough emotion for the both of them as a small tear formed in the corner of her eye as he finished speaking, "Oh Roland, I'm...I'm so sorry about your siblings! I didn't know that's what it was like for young Skorupi...I...I shouldn't have asked..." she mumbled sadly as the large ears on top of her head drooped slightly.
Her mood began picking up however as she was asked of her own family, something that had always been a source of happiness for Rikku, even in the most desperate of times. "Me? Heh, yea I have two older brothers and a little sister; Jayce is the oldest, then it's tag, then me then little Kayte. Well... I say oldest and youngest but in reality we were all born a few minutes apart. Meowths and litters, you know?" she asked before getting a faraway look in her eyes as the memories of her childhood started coming flooding back before she continued, "we were all pretty close when we were born but it was pretty clear I was the odd one out before too long, while they were all still suckling from mum's teat I was already off getting lost in some tall grass..." chuckling at that though before smiling brightly, "...it used to drive mum mental, she couldn't take her eyes off me for a second without me running off to look at something, haha! It wasn't my fault though! We always used to travel around and there was just so much to look at!
Then there's Jayce and tag. Pair of numbskulls! They used to fight like..._all_ the time. I mean ALL. the. time. Over the most stupid of stuff as well... They're idiots, and they do love each other, but hey, you can't choose your family right?" Rikku chuckled before rolling her eyes, "Then finally there's my little madam of a sister, Kayte. I swear to Arceus she has two modes; Sweet little sister and Mega-bitch overlord! You should seriously see some of the things she's taken a tantrum over! My personal favorite was when Tag accidently ate one...ONE of her Oran berries this one time. You know what she did? Refused to achknowledge his existence for a whole week. Not just not talk to him, no, that was nowhere near enough of a punishment for eating a single Oran berry! She refused to acknowledge he existed any more for an entire week while she treated us better than normal. She only started talking to him again when he bought her a whole new packet!"
Rikku's eyes began tearing up slightly as she continued to talk about her siblings, making her have to let go of Roland's hand for a moment to wipe away a tear, "I...haven't actually seen them since this whole thing broke out...I mean, I've no doubt they're ok...I know they're ok, mum would never let anything happen to those three but...She's not exactly the young Persian she used to be, you know? I just...I worry about them a lot sometimes even though I know there's no need. I know they'll be kept safe, wherever they are." Rikku's voice dropped slightly, betraying the happy demeanour she was putting on as thoughts of her family flooded in, though she quickly sniffed and brightened up her voice once more, "Hmmm, how about something a little less...serious, huh? How about... If you could learn to perform any move that any Pokémon has every performed, what would it be and why?"
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Roland shook his head. "Hey, don't worry about it. Like I said, it's just how things go for my races, no big deal about it, really." He confessed, shrugging his shoulders. "It never really bothered me or anything, so it's all right." He affirmed patting her head slightly before he reached down to eat more of his poffin while he heard her turn of talking about her family.
When he noticed her beginning to get sad, Roland immediately regretted asking back the question, tilting his head to the side slightly. He took a deep breath, thinking of what to say before, with a big smile, he bumped his fist against your chin. "Hey, don't worry. Like I said, we're gonna solve this thing out...And then I'd love to come by and meet your family, if that'd be okay with you." He laughed. "Gotta congratulate them on raising such a good heroic explorer, huh?"
Upon receiving his next question, however, he rubbed his chin for a bit. "That's...An interesting question." He mumbled, idly rubbing the poffin against his mouth in thought. "I'd love to learn Solar Beam, Flora knows how to pull that thing off and when she does it's just...Scary." He stated, slightly hiding his head in-between his shoulders. "She usually just plays the backline when she goes out in expeditions, but one time I actually saw her use that thing and just...Geez. Urgh, it was horrifying."
He seemed to be lost in his memories for a bit before he turned to Rikku, raising a brow. "...Bit of a weird question but uh...Do you have a place to sleep assigned to you yet? If not...Well...You know...Being the second in command and all...I do have my own room back at the Guild..."
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Rikku listened intently to Roland's answer, though her eyes widened slightly at his choice and the subsequent revelation about how apparently flora knew how to unleash an absolute horror of an attack. I guess looks really can be deceiving... Rikku chuckled to herself before raising an eyebrow at his final question.
"Oh, uhm...I sort of do, actually..." Rikku said slowly before smiling lightly up at her partner, "...Though I've still to unpack any of my stuff! I was literally only there for a few seconds before the whole attack on Claw town happened. So I guess it wouldn't take much effort to move some things over, you know, if you wanted me to?" she grinned while continuing to gently squeeze on his huge hands while her tail decided it wanted in on the touchy feely action aswell as, before Roland knew it, he could suddenly feel the tip of her dexterous tail rubbing his thigh gently under the table, "So...is your room bigger than the standard ones or...? Because I think I could make do with having to share a bed..." Rikku winked before sticking her tongue out and taking a bite of her éclair, rolling her eyes at how good it tasted.
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Roland rubbed his chin slightly in thought. "...Well...I guess it would be fine then..." He cleared up his throat some. "It's not really that much bigger...I mean, it's somewhat larger, but not by much. If it was much bigger I'd have opened up my room for other people to use, we are in kind of a crisis still." He stated, rubbing the tip of his nose. "But it does have a little bit more of space...And a private bathroom, instead of the public ones from the dorms." He chuckled, smiling as you squeezed his hand though he seemed to jump up a bit when your tail went to touch his thigh. "H-Hey...Careful now, I'd rather not embarrass myself when I get up from this chair." He sighed, finishing up his poffin.
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"Ha! You've got absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about, Mister~" Rikku giggled as her tail continued it's work, slowly creeping higher up his thigh unless Roland actually stopped it.
While her tail was remorselessly teasing Roland, Rikku was quietly screaming in her head in excitement. And not just at the fact she was going to be sharing a room with Mr. Hugecock over there, she was getting her own Damn private bathroom! SCORE! she chuckled to herself quietly as she slipped the last of her eclairs into her mouth before giving Roland... the look. "So, uhm...How about we finish up and and you show me where my new bed ...room is, hmmmm?"
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Roland had the final piece of his poffin in his mouth when he heard that question...Which caused him to begin choking, covering up his mouth a bit and giving a few punches to his chest before he finally cleared up his throat. "O-Oh...I guess we're not training then...N-Not that there's anything wrong with that, mind...Just." He took a deep breath, trying to keep his cool and not let himself slip back into his more vulnerable side.
"Y-Yeah, I can do that." He stated, dropping a few pokedollars on the table for the waitress to get the payment before he got up...Luckily the boner he was currently packing wasn't...Well, it wasn't TOO noticeable, as long as you didn't actually look at it...Anyways, he reached out with his hand for you. "So, shall we?"
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Rikku burst into another fit of laughter when Roland began choking on his Poffin, though gave him a small shrug and a tilt of her head when he finally manages to catch his breathe, "Hey, if you want to do that first, I would love too! Just I was thinking we could do a bit of, uhm...stamina training, first!" She said with a wink before standing up and placing her relatively tiny hand in his own massive one and squeezing affectionately. "Lets." she giggled as the two walked out of the cafe hand in hand while her tail danced happily between the two as they headed towards Roland's quarters, chatting idly while no doubt both their minds were going into a frenzy thinking about what was soon going to occur. Rikku's certainly was anyway if the way her nipples were practically cutting through her top were anything to go by.