#Pls don't feel like you have to match my length!! i just rlly like to set the scene lmao

[maxskulline]

Plotted starter with @mononezu

Max is used to the endlessness of things. The relentless rain of Po Town, chipping away at the softened, red bricks of their houses until it could pour freely through the holes it left in its wake, has bothered her on very few occasions. You cannot be spoiled for choice when you’re a survivor - and Max has mastered survival to near perfection. She is adaptable, and because she’s adaptable she can be ignorant to the endless snow of Chirchester, or the way her fingers ache in the cold whenever a gig has come to an end. 

Sometimes she even finds comfort in those endless, vast things. Her life changed too rapidly, too drastically, and now she needs to take a breath and figure out where the road will take her next. 

Music’s always been a life line and from the moment Max had picked up a guitar, she finally felt like she had found something to claim her own. Entirely hers, something no one could take from her - a skill. A talent, even, because it takes more than handling an instrument to understand music on a deeper level. It speaks to her in a language Max can grasp, and it fills her mind with melodies and tunes and rhythms. At first she grew very frustrated that she couldn’t match a single word to these sounds, but once she taught herself how to read and how to write, the last piece of her puzzle fell in place as well. It was a ponderous start - her very first, self-written songs sounded clumsy and unfinished, like raw and unpolished ore. But they were hers. She made the songs with the damaged pieces of her heart and she loved them even if no one ever got to hear them. 

The songs Max plays on the streets of Chirchester are more refined. A handpicked choice of 7 songs, upbeat and melancholic and angry, lyrics that resonate with other people, too - that’s why the crowd is picking up with every time Max sets up in the Center of this snow-kissed town. Word spreads fast in such a small town, but she really isn’t doing it for the clout or for the money. This? It is hers. She’d play even if no one paid for it.

And so another gig comes to an end tonight. Heavy snowclouds cast a pink hue across the glittering roof-tops, a sunset many tourists happily brace the cold for. She bows her head when the gathering crowd claps, and thanks everyone personally if they come forward to fill Mr. Rimes’ hat with Pokédollars. But, when she raises her head she will find that tonight’s going to turn out a little different - because she’s almost face to face with the duly familiar coordination of black and white and hot pink, colours that freeze her in place for more than one reason. Black and white is a combination Max has not moved on from yet, the resemblance is too close. 

If her cheeks were flushed due to icy temperatures before, they’re positively feverish now. This face, towering over the crowd - she recognizes it. He’s among the very few Max had bothered to ask about when he showed up on the TV. There’s not much she knows, only that he is one of Galar’s Gym leaders and that he throws out some pretty sick tunes. Latter’s the only part Max cares about, but seeing him a few feet ahead, a looming shadow among a blur of pastel and white - and, frankly, the skinniest giant she’s ever seen - feels a little surreal. Still, Max throws him a smile, because she’s honoured to know he’s stopped for her music. 

Once she’s all packed up and Mr Rime warming up in his Pokéball, Max, who notices that Piers hasn’t moved on and almost looks like he’s waiting for her, breathes in her courage through a cigarette. With the guitar shouldered and her scarf wrapped back in place, the girl marches forward, finishes her cig and shoves her freezing hands back into the deep pockets of the yellow coat. 

           “I’d say I’m a fan of your music if I didn’t know you’re hearin’ that all of the time, probably. Thanks for stoppin’ by, though. It means a lot.” 

[yomiurinikei]

Hi hi! i love your blog and your posts on SDRA2 ;;-;; I was wondering if you have any Nikei and Sora general friendship headcanons? ((it's okay if you don't have much))

waaaa ur so sweet! unfortunately i.. really hit a block with this one, so i’m really sorry for the length + formatting is a bit different bc im writing this out on my laptop

~*~ Sora + Nikei

•they become friends bc sora reads through tons of nikeis interviews in a attempt to get her memories back

•she becomes rlly interested in the stories, and nikei is hella excited when he learns shes been reading them, and that they were good enough to catch her interest

•hi pls dont take this the wrong way anyone im super nervous abt saying this but. yoruko and sora are “just friends” ty linuj. nikei and sora are friends. nikei and yoruko dont like each other. sora is vv nervous

•“sora honey i respect u and ur choices but he/she just isnt a good influence on u :(” -yoruko/nikei

•they wind up becoming friends through sora. who wouldve guessed

•tfw u befriend ur crushes worst enemy and they become closer than u and ur crush

•linuj doesnt exist, this is my city and it has consistent character traits. if anyone so much as looks at sora in a way that makes her feel uncomfortable, nikei is ready to throw hands, pose as soras bf, make them uncomfortable right back, or cheer her on as she wrecks their shit, whatever it is she needs

•anti mikado gang - they have matching jackets covered in custom pins/patches/whatever thats just. endorsing anti-mikado crimes

•gay kids who invite u to come sit with them and make fun of kyle and brad while they drink their iced coffee. 

•ur terrified to approach them and when they call u over one day to come sit with them, ur terrified. they explain that someone was looking at u weird, and sora makes a point of talking abt how excited she is to spend the day with u while nikei quickly uses his journalist powers to learn more abt the suspicious person

•24/7 calling one another. just always on the phone

•sora likes to stay up while nikei works on a article, not necessarily talking to him, just facetiming while she watches netflix and he works

•“ik that if i pester u abt it you’ll just lie and say ur going to bed, so at least let me sit here with u and help when u get writers block” “oka- hey what are u watching”

•cue nikei coming over at 1 am to watch netflix, article completely forgotten. sora  is proud of herself, she wasnt sure if that tactic would work

•they have a playlist thats,, hours long, spans multiple genres, and has been screamed/sung to many times before

•if this is like. post killing game, everyone lives + no age twist, they’re power duo no one was expecting

•“hey how come u two are friends?

nikei, dramatically: opposites attract. both visually, and in spirit are we yin and yang. a protagonist and a mastermind. that whole chapter 4 thing. mlm/wlw solidarity. yes.

sora: also ur a fucking edgelord and im not

nikei: yes exactl- HEY