"I'm sorry, I didn't know it was closed," Diane rebuffed, the others still a little disheartened after their morning plans had fallen by the wayside. With a few days to spare until the tournament started, the gang had decided to go exploring around Oreburgh and see what other sights the city had to offer. The nearby mine, what little was open to the public, had quickly lost its luster for the group, so Skye had eagerly suggested a visit to the museum instead.
However, the Lanturn's excitement had quickly vanished upon their discovery of a clutch of construction workers in the midst of repairing a tremendous, gaping hole punched through the side of the building, and an equal number of police officers closing off the surrounding street while they conducted their investigations of the apparent break-in.
And so it was that they found themselves wandering aimlessly around the outskirts of the city, space carved out of the walls of the valley around them, leaving only the upper reaches of the mountains in the distance visible over the copses dotting the plains above them.
"Well, thanks for the tour, I guess," Roisin sighed, looking around at the swathes of boring rock that surrounded them. "I'm sure Laurie'd be thrilled to find out what she's missed out on here," she added.
"Hey, come on," Diane retorted, "I haven't lived here for a while, I don't know what's been going on."
"We could always visit the museum some other time," Skye suggested, trying to soften the mood between the other two. "They'll open it back up eventually once the damage gets repaired, won't they?"
The others gave a simple nod, not that either of them cared that much at the moment, instead allowing themselves to drift into awkward silence for a few moments as they continued to wander along, collectively trying to come up with some kind of plan for the rest of the day.
"Should we get some lunch?" Roisin proposed half-heartedly.
Skye shrugged her shoulders in vague agreement. "I guess so, we've been walking for a while now."
"Ooh, there was a great Paldean place a couple blocks from the Pokémart!" Diane chipped in from behind them with a little more gusto. "It might still be there, I could show you some of the-WAGH!"
Without warning, both Roisin and Skye spun around to find the Gligar hoisted clean into the air, clutched in a vicelike grip by a short and stocky Rampardos, with each arm almost as thick as Diane's waist, each thigh thicker than the rest of their companion, and a crown of spikes atop her head surrounding a vivid red outcrop that looked to have been carved into the shape of an axe blade. A blade which Diane seemed to be struggling to fight herself away from.
"HEY!" Roisin called out, rushing over to break up the unexpected attack as Diane continued flailing in place, but as she drew nearer, she realized that the Gligar didn't actually look like she felt there was any trouble at all.
Diane was, in fact, laughing.
"Mave!" she wheezed in between a fit of giggles, wrapping a claw around one of the protruding spikes to keep herself at a safe distance. "Put me down!"
"Not a chance, Didi!" the Rampardos grinned, squeezing the Gligar even tighter against her powerful yet cushioned figure, at least alleviating a little of the pressure. "I've not seen you in over a year, did you think I was gonna be gentle?"
Before Diane could reply, Mave began swinging her to and fro, the little Gligar being ragdolled from side to side, her screams wavering in time with each rapid, heavy sway of her captor, limbs dangling like loose ribbons from a Sylveon, until her voice dwindled to a faint croak, and the Rampardos finally relented, relinquishing her crushing hold on Diane and lowering her back to the ground. A great gasp came from Diane as she siezed the chance to breathe again, Mave unable to help a chuckle of her own, a wide grin still spread over her face. The Gligar replied with a breathless guffaw of her own, and then stepped forward to take the Rampardos into a much less brutal, and much more heartfelt hug.
"Oh my god, Mave, it's SO GOOD to see you again!" Diane squealed, hopping up and down on the spot for a second before she managed to break away, still holding onto the stronger girl's shoulders. "What was it like in Alola? You've gotta tell me!"
"It's so weird!" Mave answered just as excitedly as Diane had asked her. "It's like everything's the same but everything's different, I don't know how I can-"
"Sorry, what's this all about?" Roisin interrupted the pair, both her and Skye just as baffled by the antics of the newcomer. "One second you're getting thrown around like a pet toy, and the next you're...?"
Diane raised a claw to settle the Staraptor down. "It's fine, Roisin, it's fine!" she assured her, putting an arm around the broad shoulders of the Rampardos as she introduced her to the others. "This is Mave, she was on a battle excursion to Alola last year, we've been friends since forever!"
Roisin looked over at Diane's alleged friend, still grinning away to herself as she pulled Diane up against one meaty hip. "Right, so she's cool, then?" asked the big bird.
"She's not actually trying to hurt you?" Skye added, moving in to join Roisin now that things seemed to be safe.
The Gligar nodded. "No, no, she's great! She's strong as hell, but she really doesn't hurt me that much, honestly. That's Skye," Diane continued, gesturing toward the Lanturn, "she's big into all the spirit and world energy stuff."
"Hi!" Mave greeted the Lanturn, extending her free hand toward her. Skye accepted the handshake with a soft smile, and almost wished she hadn't with how ferocious the Rampardos' grip turned out to be. She got the impression Mave was at least trying to be gentle, but the Lanturn still ended up squeaking a little during the shake, and stretching out her fingers once it had ended.
"And that's Roisin," Diane went on, moving her attention over to the Staraptor. "She's just started battling for serious, and she's fighting in the Oreburgh tournament in a few days!"
The Rampardos' grin seemed to widen at that piece of news, as she turned her gaze up to the much taller bird. "Ooooooh, maybe I'll see you on the field, then!" Mave said, as she offered the same handshake her way. Roisin had to peer down her beak at the Rampardos, taking the handshake firmly, to which Mave seemed to respond by tightening her own grip a little more. Roisin reciprocated with a squeeze of her own, drawing a smirk from her potential opponent in the upcoming tournament.
"You too," Roisin replied curtly as the handshake broke between them after another moment or two. Likewise, she couldn't help rolling her wrist slightly afterwards.
"Oh, we were just gonna get some lunch!" Diane abruptly chimed in, pointing off in one direction along the street. "Do you wanna tag along? You could tell us about Alola while we're there! Oh, and you HAVE to show the others Fruit Salad!"
Roisin and Skye didn't even get a chance to voice their opinion. Diane and Mave were far too eager to catch up after having been continents apart for a whole year, the Staraptor and Lanturn having to follow in their wake of boundless excitement and unending chatter, wondering what on earth their 'Fruit Salad' was.
