[Video]

[truthdecided]

[An 'unfamiliar' face projects through the Pearls... except if you look closely, it's not that unfamiliar. The shape of the plumes on his head carry the same general silhouette as a certain Rookidee...

But now he's larger, longer, and has a noticeably bigger beak. In fact, he looks far more like a crow than he did before!

And so Akechi fluffs up his feathers a bit and addresses the Pearl at last.]

Greetings. This is Akechi. I realize that this transformation may be a bit alarming, but I thought it best to announce my recent evolution so that no one believes I've disappeared.

This new form is far more suitable, though I wish it hadn't been so overdue. Still, it seems that being put into highly dangerous situations is one way to provoke evolution.

I suppose this does bring up a curious question, though. To evolve, or not to evolve. For me, it was a no brainer, but others may be less enthused about changing their physical forms yet again. Evolution is, after all, irreversible.

So humor me. Do you wish to evolve, or are you content as you are?

Comments

[edgewater]

[ c'mon, akechi! ain't she cute! ]

The hammer's not a part of me, though.

[truthdecided]

Perhaps not, but it seems to be a staple for Tinkatons, much like Cubones are known to wear their 'mother's' skull.

[He chuckles, thinking of Emporio.]

Obviously, you could leave it behind, but it would put you at a disadvantage on quests.

[edgewater]

[ no shit. ]

Yeah, that's why I don't do that. I get the advantage of being armed, why wouldn't I use it?

[truthdecided]

Does it never get heavy? Then again, I imagine it would require great upper body strength to lug around in general...

[edgewater]

It's about 240lbs and I can only feel the amount of weight I need to make sure my attacks are effective. [ or something to that effect. she supposes it helps that all of the weight is concentrated on one end, so it's easier to use it as a reference point when she's wildly swinging herself about. ]

Most things just ain't that heavy to me.

[truthdecided]

It's interesting. Even as a Rookidee, I was capable of lifting surprisingly heavy Pokémon and objects... if I specifically used the move Fly. I'm not entirely sure how that works, however.

[Why is it that specific move? What does that even mean?]

[edgewater]

I wouldn't question the small blessings.

[ a shrug. ] Say, when you drop any feathers, can I have some?

[truthdecided]

...Do you have a particular purpose in mind? I can't imagine they'd be nearly as useful as Corviknight feathers.

[Still, that's not necessarily a no.]

[edgewater]

I just wanna test them out as a material, is all. I can make you some bread and we can call it a trade?

[ a good and fair deal, she thinks. she might even be persuaded to throw in some homemade preserve if he really needs to be buttered up. ]

[truthdecided]

Hmm... That's reasonable enough. I'll see what I can do, though some feathers are already spoken for.

[Because he has a boyfriend, and that boyfriend gets first dibs. Cats do like feathers...]

[edgewater]

I only need a few, I'm not askin' for all of it. Just let me know, yeah?

[truthdecided]

That should be fine. Summer is typically when birds undergo their molt, so I'm sure I'll have feathers aplenty.

I'll just have to find a larger cloak, now that I have more feathers to shed.

[edgewater]

I'm sure Firoza could make you one! [ because she has to shill for her friend always. ] Or a tailor in town. There's a lotta Pokemon interested in accessorising now.

[truthdecided]

True. It's simply a matter of choosing the tailor. Firoza-san is someone I can trust, if nothing else.

[Not that he can't trust the locals, but he does still remember that incident with the scarf...

Though, that was an Impidimp's prank.]

[edgewater]

[ she knows it's because he's young and a touch melodramatic, but man does he talk all funny sometimes. she can't help but giggle a little. ]

You know, most tailors aren't gonna kill you.

[truthdecided]

True, but I have high standards for my attire. ...though, frankly, wearing trousers in this form would look ridiculous, so I've mostly stuck to neckwear.

[Bird bodies were not designed for pants! He will die on that hill.]

[edgewater]

You're too fancy, Akechi. I don't get how you do it. [ how he so stubbornly continues to do it when he's a bird living in a cave! it's... kind of admirable? how much he sticks to that principle, anyway. ]

Can't imagine you'd have a good time pulling your pants up neither.

[truthdecided]

I've learned to manipulate my feathers in surprisingly versatile ways, but it still wouldn't be ideal.

[His beak is more stable, as are his talons, but well... that presents its own share of problems.]

As for my 'fanciness,' I've always had to curate my image due to societal stigmas. It's rather irritating.

he's sooo funny without even trying

[edgewater]

It's not like you need to do that anymore.

[ shrug. she doesn't think she'll ever get it. that world is so far separate from hers that even the time she spent mucking around in byzantine high society made her more confused about most of it. ]

HE REALLY IS. absolute weirdo

[truthdecided]

True, but it's like muscle memory. One does not simply rework their entire way of thinking overnight.

[He heaves a small sigh. He knows he should, despite everything.]

now all of China knows he was an unwanted child

[edgewater]

Yeah, and you gotta put in a lotta effort to unlearn it. [ she knows it well enough! ]

Though, uh. What sort of societal stigmas, exactly? If you don't mind me askin'.