Aura Dog Day

Old Lucario New Guild
By Iron Valiant-anon

The scruffy, weathered, scarred, and handicapped Lucario, by the name of Turquoise, or Turk, walks through the streets of Capim Town. His footsteps leave an uneven gait as a clanking prosthetic, metal foot and a calloused foot paw trade steps with each other on the dirt and cobbled roads of the Pokemon burg. He idly scratched at the sensitive aura feelers that protruded from beneath the back of the thick red blindfold he wears as both a modesty measure to hide scarred flesh and to protect his deadened, blind eyes. His thick, shaggy, turquoise coat, which is responsible for his namesake, hid marks of scar tissue that never cleanly healed, leaving gnarled, exposed skin that'd be visible if the fur was parted, or viewed from a certain angle. The bandaged stump of his left arm hangs idly by as he holds in his sinuous right arm a lit ornate smoke pipe, which he had placed gingerly into his canine snout, held tight between his lips and fangs. He takes a few puffs of a blend of various seed grass and fruit essences to keep himself calm and grounded. He jostles around his waist to make sure his armored belt and sash are tight, as well as estimating the volume of his drinking gourd with shake, which felt like it was a little over half full.

Pokemon of all sorts run all up and down the streets, tending to their own errands and trials of daily life on the Grass Continent. Some eyes fell on him with accompanying hushed whispers and pointing limbs at the mysterious scarred stranger. Despite his disabilities, he had aura sensor powers worthy of a master to make up for them. He usually knew when he had the metaphorical spotlight on him as well as when to turn the light back on his viewers. The emotions and surface thoughts of the townsfolk glanced off his consciousness and let him know to try and keep to himself, although his curiosity may take the better of him sometimes.

Turk sighed as he continued walking without trying to draw more attention to himself from the citizens of Capim Town. If he started being featured in local rumors as far as the Western coast, he may very well have to sail off the continent. He didn't have that kind of pocket money, much less knowledge of anything beyond the current landmass. He'd be in more dire straits than he has been putting up with for nearly half his life. He needed a place to establish himself to protect against such an outcome. He treks ever onward, hoping no one will actually make an alarm of him. He thought too soon, as two Pokemon soon did accidentally solicit him. It was a Chespin and a Wooper seated outside of a building that was probably some sort of drinking establishment. The pair were enjoying bottles of something that smelled almost cloyingly sweet to Turk's enhanced senses, already mired by the taste of his own smoking. The Grass-type gives an uncomfortable glance towards the ragged and worn-down Pokemon before realizing Turk is likely blind and probably not paying mind.

The Wooper takes brief notice of Chespin looking at the jackal. He perks up with wide eyes filled with wonder and fantasy at Turk's distinct appearance. Tales of adventure and daring filled his little head. Few Pokemon around here walked in so adorned or storied with injuries. "Did you see that? I wonder what happened to him... Hey, Mister Lucario! Are you okay? Did you lose the game?" The small aquatic Pokemon openly remarked with a genuine sense of concern for the wanderer's well-being. Chespin freezes up and turns around, trying to shush the excitable Water-type's commentary toward Turk. He did not like the Lucario's initial vibes at all and simply didn't want to confront or possibly even upset someone like that.

Turk was stopped in his tracks as he flicked a cautious ear in their direction. Did he say, Lose the game? What game is that little Water-type on about? That way of speaking did ring familiar in the depths of his mind, but maybe it was nothing but a bubble of nostalgia rising up. He rubs at the goatee-like extensions of fur on his chin as he takes a few puffs of his pipe to continue and calm his nerves before he gazes back at them. His aura felt every bit of tension in the air coming off the Team Cozy pair as his feelers gently waved behind him. He especially senses the mystical signatures that came off the badges on their bodies. It was the same kind of magic he used to use time and time again when he was part of a guild team himself. "Heh... Hey there, little dudes. Why are you so tense, man? I know I'm probably not the most charming 'mon around... But I try my best, yanno?"

Chespin stops chastising his best friend's behavior upon hearing the Fighting/Steel-type address them. He gives an exasperated sigh as he looks like he is stuck in a perpetual state of fight or flight that threatens to paralyze him. He decides to speak up. Something told him he'd only make it worse trying to obfuscate anything with a Lucario of all Pokemon. Once he appeased the canine, he'd hopefully leave them alone. "Oh well, we're just a pair from the Clover Guild here in quaint Capim Town. I'm Chespin; this here is Wooper... And we're Team Cozy! If you need comfort and relaxation, we'll find what's right to make everything, well, cozy. I'm not sure you'd want to join, though. You look like you only just arrived and probably have business elsewhere to attend-"

The Lucario interjects. "Naw. I want to hear more, little guys. Consider me interested, dude. The name's Turquoise, or Turk for short!" Turk strides on up and grabs himself an empty chair from the opposite side of where the pair were seated before plopping down in it, his tail dusting along the ground in anticipation with a smile on his snaggletoothed maw while he offered his right paw towards the Chespin to shake.

Chespin nurses his drink a bit with a scrunched face. He could smell whatever herbal drug concoction the aura dog had been toking on in that pipe; it was acridly sweet yet bitter, and he couldn't possibly imagine how someone could tolerate breathing it in. It was making his time spent drinking unpleasant. With the utmost frigid of receptions, he reciprocated the pawshake like a limp Goldeen before pulling back quickly as if Turk was going to Seismic Toss him through the planet's crust. "Erk... Well! We're a relatively new guild in the area that has a... respectable track record of fulfilling requests and expeditions in the community with a wide variety of... talented individuals. This includes a most generous guild master and-" Wooper leaps in his chair to interrupt. "They're all pretty based and red pilled over there!" There was a long pause as Chespin looked like he was going to wilt on the spot as Wooper let loose another exotic phrase. He begins drinking a bit faster. The Lucario squinted his poor eyes from behind the blindfold in ponderance. Based and... red pilled? Based on what, exactly?

Turk sniffs sharply as if he's clearing his nostrils of whatever unpleasant residue his smoking is causing, scratching at an old, faded scar on the bridge of his nose. "That's cool, man... It sounds like the kind of company I'd like to keep... Mind pointing me the way? I Promise I won't be a bother, dude."

The Chief of Cozy wiped off his chin on his wrist with his brows mildly raised. The sooner he passed the Lucario off to literally anyone else, the better for Wooper and him. Chespin stows the bottle into a bag of similarly accompanying bottles with a light clatter and stands up, motioning for the two to follow. "Ah, well, we have somewhere else to be! We... We'll take you by the front door. I'm sure you can handle yourself from there." He said it with the best formal tone he could in Turk's rather unpleasant presence, as if he were being held hostage.

Turk stands up and accompanies Team Cozy. There was very little dialogue exchanged between the two, to the point where there was clearly an awkward tension as they followed each other from a distance. The Aura Pokemon began to think to himself, Did he really look THAT bad? He never had much time to reflect on his own appearance, as he spent much of his time trying to hide from the folly of his past. On top of that, his disabilities compromised the effectiveness of grooming by requiring him to take care of himself only when he actually felt dirty. His own feelings of discomfort seeped out on invisible waves of aura. Chespin silently glanced toward the Lucario with a hint of an uncomfortable frown, while Wooper looked somewhat sad toward Chespin. The two did their best not to comment on this. Turk quickly reeled in his composure as he toked on his pipe. The negative emotions promptly vanished from the air. Nobody dared speak the rest of the way.

They soon reach a towering, cylindrical structure dotted with windows, larger than most in Capim Town. Signs and banners hung outside, denoting that this was in fact the Clover Guild that was spoken of. There was a literal menagerie of Pokemon guild members around the guild house grounds. There is an Alolan Vulpix in a flat cap and vest struggling to drag some bulky burlap sack around the building corner while a Sandshrew assisted with the other end. A small Fletchling stands on top of the sack for the ride, not necessarily contributing due to their small stature. The Vulpix gave the approaching Lucario an unwelcoming glare until he recognized that he was blindfolded. The trio of Pokemon picked up their pace and swiftly vanished out of sight around the building's corner. A Tropius was standing tall with his head craned down to partake in a conversation with several assorted Pokemon that seemed to be engaging in some joyful banter. The Tropius suddenly was displeased while the smaller Pokemon laughed as one of them started jumping toward the fruits hanging from his neck. The large Fruit Pokemon reared back and stamped away in silent indignation, causing mild tremors that caused a few of the offending Pokemon to stumble and fall over.

The newly arriving trio continued walking toward the building until they reached the front doors. A viewing grate was positioned before it on the ground. Chespin spoke up. "Well, here you are! Hrm... Bye then." He dismissed Turk with no more illusion of civility and departed with Wooper in tow, who excitedly said one last quip before disappearing around a building. "Bye! Remember to show them your moves!" Wooper said the last part in as gruff a voice as possible for the Pokemon to utter, as if attempting to do an impression of a character. The jackal scratched his paw through his tuft of mohawk fur as he pondered what the Water-type meant exactly by that.

The Aura Pokemon was left to his own machinations once more. He looked down at the grate and wondered how this was going to work out. He knew the protocol most guilds followed with these grates as he slowly stepped one foot at a time onto the sentry grate. He then waited for the grate sentry to respond to his presence and announce his species as a clearance check. He waited. He then waited some more. Was anyone even there for him?

A voice from a nearby tree addresses him. It was a Corviknight who had watched from the shade with leering red eyes. It had a seemingly chivalrous composure that almost sounded like it was parodying the concept. "Hail there, world-weary samurai hound! No one uses that voyeurism sewer around here! They find it creepy or utterly stupid! You're the master of your own fate in entering and perhaps even joining the ignobl- NOBLE Clover Guild! I am Ser Percival, and I welcome you!" If Turk could show he was raising his brows in mild astonishment and amusement, he would.

The Lucario nodded in approval. "Haha. Alright then, Ser Percy. Name's Turk. I'm going to take a gander inside. Feeling the vibes and all that, I want to see if it's my kind of hangout. I'll probably be seeing you again, dude." Percival nodded and quipped in response before descending back into the tree's thick canopy. "Verily, my dude. Watch yourself in there!"

The Aura Pokemon pushes open the guild doors and beholds himself to what his aura was only initially hinting at. The place was abuzz with activity and some displays of mild chaos. Many emotions and thoughts grazed over his consciousness as the guild talked, argued, laughed, and hassled one another in the lobby. As much as he'd like to lurk and get a feel of the general mood of the place, he was an unknown presence and a very outstanding one compared to most of them. Few Pokemon here bore as an unkempt appearance as his, and even fewer seemed to like to wear clothing or accessories out of the bare minimum needed for guild duty. He looked practically feral or villainous in comparison. Idling around as a newcomer would be blatantly suspicious, to say the least. He couldn't avoid that if he tried, though. He was immediately accosted by an entire change of mood as several Pokemon gave him odd looks varying between interest and distrust. They broke into gossip that was almost deliberately loud enough to pick up on. His ears and aura feelers perked to the commentary as he walked along past them.

"Who's that guy? friend of the guild master or something?" "He looks cringe, ugly, and like a weeb. I hate him already." "Lucario looks like he's smoking that good shit there." "Isn't this a no-smoking guild?" "He sure doesn't give a shit if it is. 420 BLAZE IT, LUCARIO!" "Seriously, another fucking Lucario? The one we already have freaks me out as is!" "Scars, amputation, a blindfold, AND he's a Lucario? I think that checks off at LEAST twelve things on my F-List!"

Turk started to piece together the Wooper's peculiar speech earlier. Either there's a human seeding this place with memes and ideas from Earth's culture, or he's come across the largest congregation of humans in the entire Pokemon World. Either theory would take more than a moment to properly assess, but he wanted to first establish himself with the guild master. To the Lucario, everything was looking a whole lot like it was high school all over again with how everyone acted. He hailed to the Cyndaquil, who was the last to speak in the volley of banter aimed toward him., who seemed to want to get acquainted with him with a wave as he walked over. The Fire-type perked up his head wide-eyed and cowered almost as if he were expecting to get pummeled by the battered aura dog that suddenly approached him. "Wait! I was just joking; I didn't mean anything by any of what I said. Please don't hurt me! The nurse said, If I come back today, she'll peel me like a fruit, and not in the kinky way either!" The jackal stopped before him and took a puff of his pipe. "First of all, little dude, you have a type of advantage over me. I don't need more burn scars than I already have. Second of all, I'm not looking for trouble, especially in the middle of a guild with more than enough Pokemon to take me down if something did start. Third of all, I just wanted to ask where I could find your guild master, bro. Fourth of all, ...What's an F-List?"

Cyndaquil stood stiff with anxiety for a moment in fear before deflating into a relaxed loaf-like shape. He wipes the sweat off his brow and lets out an awkward chuckle of relief. "Never mind that last question! The guild master, right... His name is Lliam. He's a Meowstic. He wears a fancy black getup and is typically very reserved, and I guess he's nice if you're also nice. You can't miss him. His office is on the third floor, next to the landing for Pokemon who can fly. ...Can I please go now, officer?"

Turk dismissed himself from the Pokemon to go climb the spiraling staircase that centered the structure. Even in his disparaging state, he could climb uneven surfaces like this with relative ease. The calm was short-lived, as suddenly there was an uproar from above as footsteps came stomping down.

"OUT OF THE WAY, FAGGOTS! WE ARE 'MON ON A MISSION!" A trio of smaller Pokemon were haphazardly racing down the stairs, giggling and screaming unintelligible things like they were from a special education classroom. Just as the Fighting/Steel-type figured, it was exactly like high school again. The Lucario tensed all his muscles, his body shimmering with aura. He springs into the air, digging the digits of his arm and legs into the central pillar of the building as he swiftly evades the three who run by below him without even so much as noticing. One of them, a Tyrogue, slipped off the staircase and hit the ground below with a crash. There was a pause before a voice groaned from below. "Ow, guys, I did the thing again!" There was some snickering. "Good job, football head." "JOHN MADDEN!" They all regrouped and left in a chorus of laughter and screeching, just as fast as they arrived.

The Aura Pokemon sighs as he slides back onto the stairs and climbs the rest of the way. "Some real characters are around here. I'm really going to have a time trying to make heads or tails of it, even with aura." The Lucario mutters to himself upon reaching the 3rd floor proper. His senses suddenly picked up something familiar yet distinctly different. It resembled aspects of his own being but was also not. The doors to a landing that overlooked part of the town and the ocean were open, letting in a breeze that ruffled the wisps of his shaggy fur and the fabrics of his attire. It was already late afternoon, and the sky was tinting toward orange hues. There stood what looked like a rare female Lucario, with piercing yellow eyes, and what looked like the absence or reduction of the iconic spikes found on the species. Turk couldn't easily distinguish this, much less be one to judge his own appearance as unusual for many reasons. She was periodically motioning at something on the horizon and making light conversation as if someone were with her.

The male Lucario's curiousity overwhelmed him, and he stayed by the stairs while he focused a bit harder, taking steady puffs of his pipe while he channeled his aura. His blind eyes glow a light blue through the fabric of his blindfold, and his aura feeler hovers behind him to enhance his awareness. He saw an apparition of shadows waving like heat in a desert beside the opposing Lucario. It had a vaguely bipedal appearance but otherwise was mostly featureless. Suddenly, the phantom turned toward him as if it immediately caught wind of him spying on them; it had a blank, gaunt face, absent of anything easily resembling eyes or a mouth. It did not resemble any Pokemon Turk was familiar with. It gave the impression of trying to stare daggers at him as a fierce aura of their own emanated. The spirit lunged toward him without making a sound, uninhibited by any surface or obstacle, until it hovered before him, observing in silence.

The yellow-eyed Lucario turned around and stared back at the blindfolded Pokemon, watching him without so much as a hint of emotion reflected upon her face. She slowly took on a defensive posture, as if expecting Turk to start a confrontation with her. Her own aura expressed feelings of distrust, as if trying to tell him to go away. The scarred Lucario paid no heed to her as he stared down at the ghost. He gently drew a breath and blew smoke from his pipe as he continued to sharply focus his auratic powers with the help of the drug. His paw became enveloped with a sheath of aura and slowly reached out, as if trying to touch the phantasm. There was a force of physical resistance for the briefest moment from the spirit's chest before dissipating, allowing Turk's arm to phase through the ghostly form as if nothing were there. The entity looked alarmed by this interaction and retreated to the female Lucario's side, gazing back at him in a way that seemed to show a combination of fear and hatred towards the unfamiliar Lucario's actions.

The gold-eyed Pokemon runs toward the landing's doors and grips them tightly in her claws before she slams them shut with a bang that echoed through the room, breaking Turk's concentration from the sudden shock of the situation as he stumbled back. The world became less detailed and vivid to him as his mystical powers ceased to be sharply attuned. Emotions of distrust, confusion, and fear continued to resonate through the doors before becoming silent. A voice from an adjacent room on the floor cried out in frustration, causing a chain reaction of remarks. "Keep it quiet out there!" "Your mom is quiet!" "E̶r̸r̵o̸r̴.̵.̸.̶" The last one gave Turk a palpable sense of frustration that bordered on almost terrifying.

The Aura Pokemon rubbed at his blindfold as he tried to ease the ache out of his damaged and tired eyes. "Fuck. What was that all about? ...Problems for later, Turquoise, my cool dude, problems for later. You didn't mean to hurt anyone. You'll just have to apologize and talk it out later... Yeah." He approached a door not far from the one that was just closed. It took him a moment to remember why he was here. "Looking for a Meowstic... My aura did pick something over here during all of that craziness." He stops to pull out his pipe from his mouth. He didn't like to go without smoking for too long, but he figured he should display courtesy to the guild master. He dumped the remainder of its ashes and embers unceremoniously on the floor, quickly smothering it with a stamp of his metal foot in lieu of anything else that could work as an ashtray in the vicinity. He switched to his drinking gourd for a brief moment and uncorked it with his chest spike for a few swigs of the Oran Berry wine within to quench his throat before stowing it again. Turk took a deep breath before he knocked the side of his big spiked paw mitt on the worn wooden door and waited.

A solemn and formal voice comes through. "Doors open; come in." The Lucario stepped on in to see the Meowstic pouring over a number of books, scrolls, and miscellaneous parchments. He looks up at the jackal with a calm demeanor, betrayed by a twinkle of deep interest in his feline eyes. "Oh, hello there. How may I help you?" Turk closes the door behind him and flicks a paw digit over his shoulder like a thumb. "The name's Turquoise, or Turk for short. Nice to meet you! So, uh, man. Everyone down there... They're... they're humans, right?"

The Meowstic returns his focus to the book while conversing. "Well, that's certainly a daring question to open up with, Turquoise. What if they were? Would that be a problem for you?" The aura dog rubs at his neck as he takes a seat. "No, no, it'd be... really awesome and rad, actually." He muttered to himself as he looked around the room, taking in the books and other paraphernalia that were probably important to this Pokemon. "How old is this guild?" Turk asked. Lliam glanced at the blind Aura Pokemon and responded. "The organization itself has been around for a little over half a year or so now. We've had quite the undertaking to get this place established at first, but it's all well and good now."

The jackal drums his paw on his lap before trying to push a previous question with the guild master. "So they are humans, then?" Lliam shrugs as if trying to dismiss the point entirely. "There you go again. What would it matter to you if they were or weren't? We have all sorts of people from many walks of life living and working here. I'm certain you saw a few along the way. As for you, Turquoise, surely a Lucario such as yourself could have already deduced what you wanted to know on your own without needing to have come to my office." Turk nodded as he pondered the nature of the Clover Guild further. He continued with another question. "What about the weird use of phrases around here? They certainly don't sound typical of many Pokemon." The cat closes the book and pulls out some documents along with a quill from an inkwell. "Many of them have eccentric behavior. They may be crass about it, but they also all bond over it. Were you perhaps familiar with any of it?" Turk slowly nodded to the guild master in admittance as the Constraint Pokemon returned to his work.

The general lack of decorum among most of the members of the guild was very notable. He admitted to himself that a lot of it sounded like internet banter from all of those forums and imageboards he used to frequent, like Something Awful and... 4chan! Suddenly, all the phrases and name of the guild itself made sense in one embarrassing swoop of realization. Turk slapped the right side of his head as he had his epiphany and let out a quiet groan. "Haha... Man, I'm so fucking retarded."

Lliam looked up from his work as the clap echoed through the room. "Hm. Is something the matter?" Turk rewound the conversion to Lliam when he was asking him if he was familiar. "Ah, wait a moment... You're openly asking if I'm familiar with all of this, as if you're saying... Erm... How would you know I'm human and not just seeking them out for some sort of gain or bounty?" The guild master shrugs as he begins reviewing and signing papers. "If you were some sort of human hunter, surely you would have been more subtle about your entire approach to begin with rather than just marching in here to stir up a rather blunt chat with me. It looks like you just came to a realization on your own. I think we should cut to the chase, then. What is this all really about, Turquoise?"

The Lucario rubs the bridge of his snout. The time spent without a smoke was finally getting to him, as every old wound in his body was beginning to ache with the oncoming memories as he found himself stumbling in his thoughts.

"Yeah, sure. I guess I'm looking kind of stupid right now. I'll try to explain as much as I can. Damn, it's a lot to think about, man. It's been a while... Yeah, I'm a human—and I've been around here for quite a while, at least fifteen years, I think? I was summoned, like I assumed every other human was. I became part of a team of explorers known as Team Dynamis, and we worked under the Excadrill Company from Stover City. It is- ...WAS over at the Skyridge Mountains. We chased villains across the world to stop them from starting a disaster with terrifying Pokemon known as Ultra Beasts... We failed. But... the world wasn't destroyed, though! It makes no sense given what we were up against, dude! I'm not sure I'm grateful for surviving it either, yanno? Just take a good look at me... I didn't come out of it unscathed, bro. I don't even know if any of my teammates or friends are alive I never figured any of this shit out... Argh! I spent so much time trying to escape new problems that I never had time to look into my old problems. I doubt I'm ever going back home to where I originally came from. I've been gone so long that I doubt there's anything left for me, shit... But... This is not at all how it usually works in the old stories, is it? A human arrives as a Pokemon, finds trusted friends and allies, they stop a catastrophe, become the heroes of the world, and everyone lives happily ever after."

He cups his forehead and bares his fangs for a moment in a grimace as he speaks in a pained tone. "Agh... Sorry, man. Everything's kind of a... bummer to think about. I'm sure all of this sounds completely unbelievable and fucking insane!"

The Aura Pokemon saw himself as a victim of a twisted fate and, reflecting on it, tended to eat at him. He averts his auratic gaze from Lliam and coils his big bushy talk around himself like the hurt animal he saw himself as. He clutched at his stump around his tail and shook his right foot restlessly in what seemed to be a nervous tic. Turk began to emit a lot of mixed emotions and thoughts on waves of aura: sadness, anger, confusion, and ultimately loneliness. He felt abandoned.

The guild master had to put down what he was doing for a moment as the emotions washed past him, making him shudder as he processed them and the story he was sharing. There were a lot of details that didn't seem to match up with the state of the world as it is. Many of the events and locations either didn't sound real or were missing details. Regardless, this apparent human clearly suffered a lot and needed some help getting himself back together. Lliam cleared his throat and spoke up. "Ah.... Now now. Your story is certainly an incredible one, but I have no reason to dismiss the fact that you've endured and suffered trials. You're clearly very strong, and above all of that, you have to have put up with what you had for so long to even get here. I would hate to see such a formidable-looking individual like yourself bring yourself down like this. Now, I imagine you're looking for a place to stay and work. Surely that's why you came all this way here, and not to pine about your misfortunes to somebody you've just met?"

Turk nods, slowly uncoiling himself from both his own body and vulnerabilities as the emotional emanations fade once he relaxes a little. "Yeah, I've traveled up and down the Grass Continent a crazy bit to end up here. I've been chased by the henchmen of the foes I had thwarted long ago, who probably couldn't stand finding out I was alive after everything that happened between us. Heh, man... I haven't seen any of them in at least five years, though. Either they finally gave up or got done in by something or someone other than me... Hehe. I don't count myself as that lucky, Lliam. You think you can put up with that baggage? I know it sounds like I'm dragging trouble behind me. And quite frankly, I am, man. If it's too much for you and this guild, I'll just get on the next Lapras out of here... Once I can scrounge up the Pokes. I unfortunately have a habit to feed, my dude. These things help keep me level, and sadly, these pipe blends aren't cheap to make." He reached for his pipe again and a small pouch along with it, as if to make a point of the matter. "You'll have to excuse me. I'm clearly losing my mellow from this trip down memory lane."

The Constraint Pokemon titled his head in curiosity about what he was doing with the pipe and satchel. "No, no, it's all fine. Tend to yourself as needed. Now then, you're clearly experienced. We have a few practitioners of aura in the guild that could perhaps benefit from what you know or are capable of. I'm sure someone like you may fit in over time. As for any past problems, I'm almost certain you're hardly the first or last to come to the Clover Guild with issues. I'll keep any more concerning information between the two of us for now, and we'll cross those bridges if we ever arrive to them. As far as I'm concerned, you're already hired; that is, of course, if you accept."

The jackal refills the pipe with the blend from the pouch, using the tip of his chest spike to pack it in. He strikes the edge of the bowl of the pipe against the spike a few times to create sparks until the pipe begins to lightly smoke. He takes a long drag from the pipe before exhaling, leaning back in the chair in visible relief. The Meowstic raised a brow at the audacity of his smoking behavior before resigning to shrug at it as he continued to work at his desk. It was not remotely as bad as the several Fire-types living here, potentially turning the entire building to ash, and it looked like the Lucario desperately needed it. Hopefully something could be done about it, though.

The aura dog pondered for a moment as he smoked. "There's no tests or trials to join? I just say yes?" Lliam shook his head and replied. "None of the sort." The Lucario stood up and approached the cat with with a fanged smile. He presented his only paw for a handshake of affirmation with his pipe grit between his teeth. "Heh... Sign me right up then, Guild Master Lliam! Turquoise is at your and the Clover Guild's service, bro."

Lliam smiles as he reciprocates the gesture. He nods as he begins sorting and creating the correct papers. "I'll set you up with all the necessities like your badge and lodging as soon as possible. We'll get you up to speed in no time. Oh, and as a caveat, I'm going to ask that you take this note I'm making down to the clinic on the ground floor. I'd like you to get a thorough checkup. I just want to make sure you're not hiding any pesky wounds or ailments due to your... very rugged aesthetic."

Turk steadied the pipe in his mouth with his paw before speaking. "There isn't a drug test, is there? Hehe... Because I'll tell you right now... I probably already flunked it."