Post by Lucky Lockewood on Dec 25, 2020 20:58:36 GMT
Lucky Liberius Lockewood
NAME Lucky L. Lockewood | Roman Ferias Holloway | AGE Nineteen |
OCCUPATION Rocket Grunt/Ex School Sports Mascot | HOMETOWN Virbank City, Unova |
GENDER/SEXUALITY Male (he/him) / Questioning | PLAYED BY Bright |
PERSONALITY
POSITIVE TRAITS: • Strong-willed | Kind-hearted • Thick-skinned | Quick-witted • Strong, just in general • Excellent actor • Loyal to a fault | NEGATIVE TRAITS: • Stubborn | Overly Submissive • Doesn't speak | Selectively Mute • Has very limited energy | Suffers from clinical depression • Overbearing | Relies on the Lucky persona to protect himself • Finds it difficult to truly stand up for himself |
LIKES • Meeting new people | Being alone • Piercings (though he's too scared to get one himself) • 'Cute' things • Picking locks • Lucky Lockewood | DISLIKES: • People getting in his way | Having to hurt people • Using Dux in battle • Feeling targeted • Dropping the Lucky facade • Roman Holloway |
personality (written)
Lucky is a playful, mischievous character, emulating only the most entertaining of Unovan sports mascots. Though previously his role was to be just that- a high school sports mascot, in particular -after an alluded to tragic event in his life (which he mimes out differently each time he's asked), he went from his friendly, noble, defender-of-the-weak self to a vengeance-seeking agent of the evil Team Rocket.
Lucky also does not and cannot speak, preferring to either convey his thoughts and emotions through exaggerated miming or (less often) through sign language. He signs in Unovan dialect, for obvious reasons.
...At least, that's him as a character. In reality, Lucky Lockewood is the fictional persona of one Roman Holloway, a too-soft example of a Team Rocket grunt.
Roman, at first glance, is a bit of a threatening presence. With his large size and his general refusal to speak, most people don’t really know what to make of him. Saying he’s threatening isn’t to say he’s a very violent person, though- he’s just big, quiet, and you can never really tell what he’s thinking if you don’t ask. He’s very shy and doesn’t take compliments well, to the point where they honestly make him uncomfortable. He definitely would like for people to like him and treat him nicely, but in practice it’s difficult to process emotionally.
He has a lot of endurance but not a lot of stamina. He’s very good at holding momentum and consistently pushing himself for a surprisingly long time, but this means pushing himself past his limit. In other words, it’s not very difficult to tire him out but what is difficult is getting him to stop going and register any fatigue in the first place. He makes good use of this, especially given his tendency to spook when taken unawares.
He's anxious as all hell, but that doesn't mean he's incapable of goofing off. If you manage to get him just a little bit out of his shell, he’ll show as much. Though he doesn't have much of an individual sense of humor himself, he’s perfectly willing to tag along with any shenanigans you cook up and he’s got a few semi-entertaining tricks up his own sleeve. He can mimic a Donphan's trumpet surprisingly well, and sometimes trumpets and bluff-charges people just for fun to watch them scatter (context depending, of course). As a rule, he enjoys joking around and physical humor...as long as it isn't directly about him.
Though he doesn't come from a criminal background and only really joined Team Rocket after graduating from high school, he still has a lot of experience with picking locks and sneaking into places he shouldn't be. This is out of genuine interest more than anything else, though he had used the skill a couple of times to steal before joining TR. He just enjoys picking locks, and his Solosis similarly enjoys squishing into rooms to unlock doors from the inside and help Roman find somewhere quiet to be.
He created the Lucky facade to protect himself from bullying in school, and he got so used to hiding behind Lucky to protect himself that he rarely drops the facade in front of other people (despite how quickly playing such a bombastic character drains his energy). Because of the nature of Team Rocket's hierarchy, he's developed a sort of in-between state of being in-character- that is, he's decided that when Lucky believes someone to be worthy of respect, he will tone down his flashy behavior.
Lucky also does not and cannot speak, preferring to either convey his thoughts and emotions through exaggerated miming or (less often) through sign language. He signs in Unovan dialect, for obvious reasons.
...At least, that's him as a character. In reality, Lucky Lockewood is the fictional persona of one Roman Holloway, a too-soft example of a Team Rocket grunt.
Roman, at first glance, is a bit of a threatening presence. With his large size and his general refusal to speak, most people don’t really know what to make of him. Saying he’s threatening isn’t to say he’s a very violent person, though- he’s just big, quiet, and you can never really tell what he’s thinking if you don’t ask. He’s very shy and doesn’t take compliments well, to the point where they honestly make him uncomfortable. He definitely would like for people to like him and treat him nicely, but in practice it’s difficult to process emotionally.
He has a lot of endurance but not a lot of stamina. He’s very good at holding momentum and consistently pushing himself for a surprisingly long time, but this means pushing himself past his limit. In other words, it’s not very difficult to tire him out but what is difficult is getting him to stop going and register any fatigue in the first place. He makes good use of this, especially given his tendency to spook when taken unawares.
He's anxious as all hell, but that doesn't mean he's incapable of goofing off. If you manage to get him just a little bit out of his shell, he’ll show as much. Though he doesn't have much of an individual sense of humor himself, he’s perfectly willing to tag along with any shenanigans you cook up and he’s got a few semi-entertaining tricks up his own sleeve. He can mimic a Donphan's trumpet surprisingly well, and sometimes trumpets and bluff-charges people just for fun to watch them scatter (context depending, of course). As a rule, he enjoys joking around and physical humor...as long as it isn't directly about him.
Though he doesn't come from a criminal background and only really joined Team Rocket after graduating from high school, he still has a lot of experience with picking locks and sneaking into places he shouldn't be. This is out of genuine interest more than anything else, though he had used the skill a couple of times to steal before joining TR. He just enjoys picking locks, and his Solosis similarly enjoys squishing into rooms to unlock doors from the inside and help Roman find somewhere quiet to be.
He created the Lucky facade to protect himself from bullying in school, and he got so used to hiding behind Lucky to protect himself that he rarely drops the facade in front of other people (despite how quickly playing such a bombastic character drains his energy). Because of the nature of Team Rocket's hierarchy, he's developed a sort of in-between state of being in-character- that is, he's decided that when Lucky believes someone to be worthy of respect, he will tone down his flashy behavior.
POKEMON
Name: The Inquisitive Lorem Dux, Bearer of a Thousand Burdens
Species: Solosis | Gender: Male | Ability: Magic Guard | Level: 5
Moves: Secret Power (EM) - Psywave - Reflect
Personality: Dux, first and foremost, is extremely attached to Roman (and Lucky, by extension). Why? Because sometime after Roman's depression diagnosis, he was introduced to him as both a therapy 'mon and a hardy companion. Solosis aren't very high-maintenance, after all, and that in addition to their intelligence and access to telepathy means that Dux was the perfect companion for a struggling teenager...and the perfect partner in crime for said struggling teenager's then and future exploits.
Dux enjoys squeezing into tight spaces, and frequently uses his malleable body to squish past doors that Lucky can't lockpick in order to unlock them from the inside.
Species: *random* | Gender: *random* | Ability: *random* | Level: 5
Moves: *random*
Name: The Inquisitive Lorem Dux, Bearer of a Thousand Burdens
Species: Solosis | Gender: Male | Ability: Magic Guard | Level: 5
Moves: Secret Power (EM) - Psywave - Reflect
Personality: Dux, first and foremost, is extremely attached to Roman (and Lucky, by extension). Why? Because sometime after Roman's depression diagnosis, he was introduced to him as both a therapy 'mon and a hardy companion. Solosis aren't very high-maintenance, after all, and that in addition to their intelligence and access to telepathy means that Dux was the perfect companion for a struggling teenager...and the perfect partner in crime for said struggling teenager's then and future exploits.
Dux enjoys squeezing into tight spaces, and frequently uses his malleable body to squish past doors that Lucky can't lockpick in order to unlock them from the inside.
Species: *random* | Gender: *random* | Ability: *random* | Level: 5
Moves: *random*
APPEARANCE
Lucky Lockewood is a very large lad, standing at 6'0"- plus a little more, when you factor in the mascot head -and weighing in at 310 lbs. His size, however, conceals an unexpected level of energy and zest. Pretty much every movement he makes is excitable and exaggerated, expressive in a way that can be read from miles away. Sometimes, it’s enough to make you question how he has the energy to keep it up. After all- there has to be someone in there, right?
Casually, he's usually seen with a darkly-colored windbreaker with neon accents over a white t-shirt, ratty blue jeans, and old, scuffed up sneakers. He also wears black fingerless leather gloves. Looking at his outfit, it's kind of plain to see that the objective is to cover up as much skin as possible- really, the only visible patch of skin aside from his fingers is his neck, revealing a very pale skin tone.
The mascot head itself resembles an off-model Phanpy, with soft purple fabric layered over paper mache and some only slightly darker-colored bands on the trunk and ears' edges. It has two very large, flimsy ears, painted on eye shines, and slightly lopsided eyes. Sometimes, if Lucky moves his head too fast or shakes it in any way, it’ll rattle like a pill bottle, though on other occasions the same actions will mysteriously yield no sound.
Inside the head, there are a few layers of foam padding, with holes cut through almost like little pockets.
Roman, unsurprisingly, is much different from his persona in demeanor, and this reflects in how he carries himself. While Lucky is confident and proud with his shoulders set back and his back straight, Roman is shy, withdrawn and slouched. Even when not in the Lucky persona Roman rarely removes the mascot head, as he's extremely insecure about his physical appearance. That, in reality, is why there's so little distinction outfit-wise between him and Lucky- it's easier for him to deal with his self-loathing by thinking of his body as somebody else's.
If you actually manage to get him to take the mascot head off (which is less difficult than he wishes it were) then you'd be greeted by the sight of a round face with slightly chubby cheeks and sad brown eyes. Though he takes care of himself enough to keep his scruffy brown hair cut short, stubble still lines his jaw and chin. There's some logic to this- his hair needs to be short to fit in the mascot head. Meanwhile, nobody's going to see his stubble anyway, so...why bother working up the motivation to shave?
A long time ago, he cut a pocket into the inside of the mascot head's foam padding and began using it to keep his bottle of medication safe and hidden (as well as anything small enough and important enough to hide). This is a practice he still keeps up to this day, and the source of the rattling that sounds out whenever he moves.
This is both out of habit and out of necessity- though it's not a foolproof reminder and his schedule of taking his medication is still shaky at best, hearing its rattling whenever he puts the head on in the mornings usually reminds him to take his pills before he goes about his day.
He removes the pills for stealth purposes whenever he's sent out on potentially illegal activity. Funnily enough, the pill bottle itself seems to act almost like a bell on a Skitty's collar- without the sound of its rattling, Roman is almost frighteningly sneaky.
Casually, he's usually seen with a darkly-colored windbreaker with neon accents over a white t-shirt, ratty blue jeans, and old, scuffed up sneakers. He also wears black fingerless leather gloves. Looking at his outfit, it's kind of plain to see that the objective is to cover up as much skin as possible- really, the only visible patch of skin aside from his fingers is his neck, revealing a very pale skin tone.
The mascot head itself resembles an off-model Phanpy, with soft purple fabric layered over paper mache and some only slightly darker-colored bands on the trunk and ears' edges. It has two very large, flimsy ears, painted on eye shines, and slightly lopsided eyes. Sometimes, if Lucky moves his head too fast or shakes it in any way, it’ll rattle like a pill bottle, though on other occasions the same actions will mysteriously yield no sound.
Inside the head, there are a few layers of foam padding, with holes cut through almost like little pockets.
Roman, unsurprisingly, is much different from his persona in demeanor, and this reflects in how he carries himself. While Lucky is confident and proud with his shoulders set back and his back straight, Roman is shy, withdrawn and slouched. Even when not in the Lucky persona Roman rarely removes the mascot head, as he's extremely insecure about his physical appearance. That, in reality, is why there's so little distinction outfit-wise between him and Lucky- it's easier for him to deal with his self-loathing by thinking of his body as somebody else's.
If you actually manage to get him to take the mascot head off (which is less difficult than he wishes it were) then you'd be greeted by the sight of a round face with slightly chubby cheeks and sad brown eyes. Though he takes care of himself enough to keep his scruffy brown hair cut short, stubble still lines his jaw and chin. There's some logic to this- his hair needs to be short to fit in the mascot head. Meanwhile, nobody's going to see his stubble anyway, so...why bother working up the motivation to shave?
A long time ago, he cut a pocket into the inside of the mascot head's foam padding and began using it to keep his bottle of medication safe and hidden (as well as anything small enough and important enough to hide). This is a practice he still keeps up to this day, and the source of the rattling that sounds out whenever he moves.
This is both out of habit and out of necessity- though it's not a foolproof reminder and his schedule of taking his medication is still shaky at best, hearing its rattling whenever he puts the head on in the mornings usually reminds him to take his pills before he goes about his day.
He removes the pills for stealth purposes whenever he's sent out on potentially illegal activity. Funnily enough, the pill bottle itself seems to act almost like a bell on a Skitty's collar- without the sound of its rattling, Roman is almost frighteningly sneaky.
HISTORY
There is...quite a bit to cover in our dear Roman's life.
So let's keep this compact, shall we?
(Click each chapter title to open.)
So let's keep this compact, shall we?
(Click each chapter title to open.)
{CHAPTER I: The Bullseye of Lockewood High}
Roman was always a shy kid, but it wasn’t really a problem at first. In elementary and middle school he enjoyed a fairly easy go of things on the social front, teased but never really outright bullied by his peers. And hey, why would they? They’d all known each other since kindergarten, and they all knew Roman was a good friend to have - at least, if you needed a partner for a project or help with an assignment. He didn’t have a group he really clicked with, but he sure as hell didn’t have enemies. Even when a good chunk of his friends left on their Pokemon journeys at age 10, he still enjoyed the company of those left behind, easily fitting in amongst the kids he'd known his entire life.
This changed when his family moved cities just before he started going to high school, so they could all be closer to family in Virbank City. His new school, Lockewood High, was a far departure from his old middle school in Opelucid City in a lot of different ways. For one, the administration was worse, and from that came behavioral issues galore from the student populace. Everyone was just generally meaner, and that was taking into account the fact that a majority of the student body knew each other from middle and elementary school. Roman was fresh meat...and a very easy target.
Right away he struggled with the much more hostile environment, trying his best to keep his head down and to keep out of everyone’s way. One day, though, early on in his first year, he was confronted coming out of the boy’s locker room after gym class by a small group of his classmates. To make a long story short, they’d found the mascot suit in the supply closet while looking for places to hide and skip class, and they wanted him to wear it. Because. Ha ha. Put the fat kid in the Phanpy costume, am I right guys? They bullied him into it, had their laughs, and left...but when it came time to take the head off, he couldn’t bring himself to. He just couldn’t stand the thought of looking anyone in the eyes after what had happened. He couldn’t take it.
...So, instead, he wore it home, because gym was the last class of the day. Then, the next day, he wore it the whole day through. Then the next. Then the next. And no matter how much his teachers tried to get him to put it back, he never took it off. So, eventually, a deal was struck where he would reliably show up to sports games as the school's mascot Lucky Lockewood, and in exchange the administration would let him keep the mascot head and even take it home for the duration of his stay.
That’s not the end of it, though, because at the same time as he was getting adjusted to high school, a much more...threatening group of people rose to power. A gang of bullies, if you will. Though they were just teenagers like all of their classmates, they each had a particular set of skills that they brought to the table, and together they used these skills to keep themselves at the top of the high school food chain. Roman, when he couldn’t stay out of their way, was a frequent target, to the point where he’d climb out of classroom windows if he thought he was at risk if he exited to the hallway. Any of the gang member’s names mentioned around him guarantee a sudden panic, especially the names Mitch, Gina, or Kevin - the leader and the enforcers of the gang. Of course, the other two members are terrifying to him in their own ways, but blackmail and seduction was far easier for him to avoid than physical harm.
So, for the next few years of his life, he was not only terrorized by the school’s token gang of bullies but he was similarly bullied or ignored by those around him. Whether they abused him for peer approval or were too intimidated to approach, he didn’t get a lot of positive interaction...and, when he did, it either never lasted or was very conditional.
So, gradually, he began developing the persona of Lucky Lockewood: both to act as a sort of defensive facade and as a way to keep himself motivated. After all, it was fun to develop a character, and adding depth to Lucky- even if excessive, at times -meant he always had something to work on when he couldn't bring himself to do anything else. Besides, many kids called him Lucky or a slew of cruel monikers in the halls, anyway. He honestly wasn't sure if anyone knew his real name.
And so, Roman stopped showing up to school...and Lucky began showing up in his place, carving a niche for himself as the weirdo in the mask who bluff charged at people in the halls and made a fool of himself in front of the cheerleaders during sports events. He even managed to make a friend one summer, when he and his mother took a little trip to Floccessy Town to visit family.
Roman was always a shy kid, but it wasn’t really a problem at first. In elementary and middle school he enjoyed a fairly easy go of things on the social front, teased but never really outright bullied by his peers. And hey, why would they? They’d all known each other since kindergarten, and they all knew Roman was a good friend to have - at least, if you needed a partner for a project or help with an assignment. He didn’t have a group he really clicked with, but he sure as hell didn’t have enemies. Even when a good chunk of his friends left on their Pokemon journeys at age 10, he still enjoyed the company of those left behind, easily fitting in amongst the kids he'd known his entire life.
This changed when his family moved cities just before he started going to high school, so they could all be closer to family in Virbank City. His new school, Lockewood High, was a far departure from his old middle school in Opelucid City in a lot of different ways. For one, the administration was worse, and from that came behavioral issues galore from the student populace. Everyone was just generally meaner, and that was taking into account the fact that a majority of the student body knew each other from middle and elementary school. Roman was fresh meat...and a very easy target.
Right away he struggled with the much more hostile environment, trying his best to keep his head down and to keep out of everyone’s way. One day, though, early on in his first year, he was confronted coming out of the boy’s locker room after gym class by a small group of his classmates. To make a long story short, they’d found the mascot suit in the supply closet while looking for places to hide and skip class, and they wanted him to wear it. Because. Ha ha. Put the fat kid in the Phanpy costume, am I right guys? They bullied him into it, had their laughs, and left...but when it came time to take the head off, he couldn’t bring himself to. He just couldn’t stand the thought of looking anyone in the eyes after what had happened. He couldn’t take it.
...So, instead, he wore it home, because gym was the last class of the day. Then, the next day, he wore it the whole day through. Then the next. Then the next. And no matter how much his teachers tried to get him to put it back, he never took it off. So, eventually, a deal was struck where he would reliably show up to sports games as the school's mascot Lucky Lockewood, and in exchange the administration would let him keep the mascot head and even take it home for the duration of his stay.
That’s not the end of it, though, because at the same time as he was getting adjusted to high school, a much more...threatening group of people rose to power. A gang of bullies, if you will. Though they were just teenagers like all of their classmates, they each had a particular set of skills that they brought to the table, and together they used these skills to keep themselves at the top of the high school food chain. Roman, when he couldn’t stay out of their way, was a frequent target, to the point where he’d climb out of classroom windows if he thought he was at risk if he exited to the hallway. Any of the gang member’s names mentioned around him guarantee a sudden panic, especially the names Mitch, Gina, or Kevin - the leader and the enforcers of the gang. Of course, the other two members are terrifying to him in their own ways, but blackmail and seduction was far easier for him to avoid than physical harm.
So, for the next few years of his life, he was not only terrorized by the school’s token gang of bullies but he was similarly bullied or ignored by those around him. Whether they abused him for peer approval or were too intimidated to approach, he didn’t get a lot of positive interaction...and, when he did, it either never lasted or was very conditional.
So, gradually, he began developing the persona of Lucky Lockewood: both to act as a sort of defensive facade and as a way to keep himself motivated. After all, it was fun to develop a character, and adding depth to Lucky- even if excessive, at times -meant he always had something to work on when he couldn't bring himself to do anything else. Besides, many kids called him Lucky or a slew of cruel monikers in the halls, anyway. He honestly wasn't sure if anyone knew his real name.
And so, Roman stopped showing up to school...and Lucky began showing up in his place, carving a niche for himself as the weirdo in the mask who bluff charged at people in the halls and made a fool of himself in front of the cheerleaders during sports events. He even managed to make a friend one summer, when he and his mother took a little trip to Floccessy Town to visit family.
{CHAPTER II: Luca Marfello, or Partners in Crime}
Floccessy Town was a popular location for Lockewood's delinquents to go during breaks to get away from Virbank City, due to its proximity to Virbank and how cheap it was to get to and stay there.
That was precisely why a student named Luca Marfello had gone there that summer: because it was a cheap, easy way to get away from his family til the school year began again.
Luca and Lucky met in the woods around Pledge Grove, and though Luca acted cruelly towards who he saw as a weirdo at best and a potential murderer at worst, Lucky was just too intrigued to let him be. Eventually, over the course of a few weeks and quite a few encounters, Lucky managed to worm his way past Luca's prickly defenses...and, in turn, Luca managed to build enough trust with Roman to finally meet him for real.
From there on out they were close friends, frequently meeting each other outside of school to hang out and spend time together, even going so far as to pool their money together to take short trips around the region during breaks (at least, when neither had prior obligations). With Luca's natural selfishness and skill at being neither seen or heard combined with Roman's surprisingly sneaky skillset, they also engaged in various acts of theft- the biggest of which was stealing an electronic keyboard from Lockewood High's music room in the dead of night.
(Luca was in a garage band and couldn't afford a keyboard of his own. Roman, hearing this, proposed a solution. This was that solution.)
Of course, Roman understood the importance of the band to his friend (even if they weren't getting popular anytime soon). Because of this, when the band planned a trip to Nacrene City to try and gain some popularity in the summer of their 3rd year, Roman- or rather, Lucky, as the other band members weren't quite familiar to him -offered to come along as a roadie and help carry their things.
And that was how Luca stole a billion dollar freak of nature from the storeroom of the Nacrene City museum.
Floccessy Town was a popular location for Lockewood's delinquents to go during breaks to get away from Virbank City, due to its proximity to Virbank and how cheap it was to get to and stay there.
That was precisely why a student named Luca Marfello had gone there that summer: because it was a cheap, easy way to get away from his family til the school year began again.
Luca and Lucky met in the woods around Pledge Grove, and though Luca acted cruelly towards who he saw as a weirdo at best and a potential murderer at worst, Lucky was just too intrigued to let him be. Eventually, over the course of a few weeks and quite a few encounters, Lucky managed to worm his way past Luca's prickly defenses...and, in turn, Luca managed to build enough trust with Roman to finally meet him for real.
From there on out they were close friends, frequently meeting each other outside of school to hang out and spend time together, even going so far as to pool their money together to take short trips around the region during breaks (at least, when neither had prior obligations). With Luca's natural selfishness and skill at being neither seen or heard combined with Roman's surprisingly sneaky skillset, they also engaged in various acts of theft- the biggest of which was stealing an electronic keyboard from Lockewood High's music room in the dead of night.
(Luca was in a garage band and couldn't afford a keyboard of his own. Roman, hearing this, proposed a solution. This was that solution.)
Of course, Roman understood the importance of the band to his friend (even if they weren't getting popular anytime soon). Because of this, when the band planned a trip to Nacrene City to try and gain some popularity in the summer of their 3rd year, Roman- or rather, Lucky, as the other band members weren't quite familiar to him -offered to come along as a roadie and help carry their things.
And that was how Luca stole a billion dollar freak of nature from the storeroom of the Nacrene City museum.
{CHAPTER III: The Billion Dollar Freak of Nature}
That year, a few representatives from Galar had been visiting the region and lending a few of their own Galarian fossils to a temporary exhibit, at Lenora's request. Namely, an Arctozolt and a Dracozolt. Having some cash to spare and some time to kill, Luca happened to check in on the exhibit with one of his bandmates...and his heart of ice ended up absolutely melting for the poor Arctozolt being shown, sniffling and shivering in the warmth of the museum. He stayed until the fossil 'mon were returned to their pokeballs, and lingered for even longer 'til the museum began to close, mapping out the place under the guise of genuine interest in the other exhibits. Then, that night, he began to form a plan.
The band would only be staying in town for a few weeks. After all, room and board was kind of on the pricey side, and they only had enough gigs scheduled for that long anyway, so logically, it would be better for any heists to be conducted just before they left- preferably almost immediately before, in the dark early morning when they planned to leave.
And Luca was determined to save the Arctozolt by himself, not wanting to put any of his bandmates or even Roman in danger. Besides, this was his heist to pull off.
Roman wasn't privy to Luca's schemes or the heist itself. All he really saw was Luca ducking out as they were packing up, then returning thirty minutes later with a pokeball in hand and an uncharacteristically eager want to get moving.
And so they did, and though they all asked Luca about the pokeball all he told them was that he'd befriended a Pokemon during their trip and decided to go catch it before they left. He did not show any of them the Pokemon until they were back home, at which point he finally caught one of his companion Pokemon and passed it off as his Nacrene City catch.
(Luca's reasons for not catching his companions in the first place are his own, and covering them here would be delving into a completely different character's backstory. Just trust me that this makes sense.)
In order to keep this a secret from his family, gain the funds to care for his new secret, and finally escape from his household, Luca would go on to officially join Team Rocket at the age of 16.
Roman would not find out about either secret until later, just after they both graduated high school.
That year, a few representatives from Galar had been visiting the region and lending a few of their own Galarian fossils to a temporary exhibit, at Lenora's request. Namely, an Arctozolt and a Dracozolt. Having some cash to spare and some time to kill, Luca happened to check in on the exhibit with one of his bandmates...and his heart of ice ended up absolutely melting for the poor Arctozolt being shown, sniffling and shivering in the warmth of the museum. He stayed until the fossil 'mon were returned to their pokeballs, and lingered for even longer 'til the museum began to close, mapping out the place under the guise of genuine interest in the other exhibits. Then, that night, he began to form a plan.
The band would only be staying in town for a few weeks. After all, room and board was kind of on the pricey side, and they only had enough gigs scheduled for that long anyway, so logically, it would be better for any heists to be conducted just before they left- preferably almost immediately before, in the dark early morning when they planned to leave.
And Luca was determined to save the Arctozolt by himself, not wanting to put any of his bandmates or even Roman in danger. Besides, this was his heist to pull off.
Roman wasn't privy to Luca's schemes or the heist itself. All he really saw was Luca ducking out as they were packing up, then returning thirty minutes later with a pokeball in hand and an uncharacteristically eager want to get moving.
And so they did, and though they all asked Luca about the pokeball all he told them was that he'd befriended a Pokemon during their trip and decided to go catch it before they left. He did not show any of them the Pokemon until they were back home, at which point he finally caught one of his companion Pokemon and passed it off as his Nacrene City catch.
(Luca's reasons for not catching his companions in the first place are his own, and covering them here would be delving into a completely different character's backstory. Just trust me that this makes sense.)
In order to keep this a secret from his family, gain the funds to care for his new secret, and finally escape from his household, Luca would go on to officially join Team Rocket at the age of 16.
Roman would not find out about either secret until later, just after they both graduated high school.
{CHAPTER IV: Induction and Opportunity}
When Roman discovered that Luca had the Arctozolt, it ended up being very anticlimactic. That is, he and Luca were on an xtransceiver call and it just...happened to toddle past in the background. Roman brought it up, Luca let out a string of the most colorful swears in his vocabulary, and the line went dead.
After a few dropped calls back and a flurry of panicked messages, they finally agreed together to meet back up in Pledge Grove the next day to hash things out. And...sparing the details of that hours-long encounter, Roman had somehow managed to wring multiple pieces of information out of him, including his involvement with Team Rocket.
...And Roman wanted in. He wanted to help. He wanted very badly to help, because though Luca was trying his best to take care of the Arctozolt it was expensive. For one, he couldn't take it into the Pokemon Center to heal it up because it would flag in the system as a stolen Pokemon, which meant a good chunk of his savings were spent on healing items for the poor thing. Second of all, living with it in the warehouse the Unova branch called a base wasn't sustainable forever. Luca needed to save to get himself a place of his own, for both his and the Arctozolt's good, but with all his expenses saving enough money to do that would take years (not that he told Roman this, not directly).
And...Luca discouraged this. He had no delusions about the morality of being in Team Rocket, and though there was a precedent for theft in regards to Roman he still didn't want to be responsible for Roman getting involved with a literal criminal organization.
Roman still joined, though, finally catching a second Pokemon (a Patrat) and using its training as an excuse for why he spent so much time out of the house. His parents (who, for the record, were perfectly loving and doting parents) accepted this without question, not wanting to interrupt him in case he was working up the nerve to go out as a trainer on his own.
And so, for about a year, Luca and Roman were literally thick as thieves. Roman contributed his earnings to Luca's funds and Luca helped Roman train his Patrat to keep up the illusion that he was building up courage for some sort of journey. And...he was, in theory, because their branch had been informed of new opportunities in Shula more lucrative than in Unova. Though in Unova they'd against all odds managed to actually establish a presence, the tensions from the still-fresh fall of Team Plasma made any actual profit more difficult than it had to be. In comparison, Shula was a land of opportunity.
...So, after his nineteenth birthday, Roman decided to take the opportunity. He used his parents assistance both to get his papers in order and to assure them that he was going on a trainer's journey, and after taking perhaps a bit too long to say goodbye to his parents and his long-time heist partner, he was off.
Luca needed that money, and Roman wasn't going to let anything stop him from helping him get it, not even Luca himself (who was furious at Roman for committing so much). He was going to help.
(...Even if it meant he might not see home for a long time.)
When Roman discovered that Luca had the Arctozolt, it ended up being very anticlimactic. That is, he and Luca were on an xtransceiver call and it just...happened to toddle past in the background. Roman brought it up, Luca let out a string of the most colorful swears in his vocabulary, and the line went dead.
After a few dropped calls back and a flurry of panicked messages, they finally agreed together to meet back up in Pledge Grove the next day to hash things out. And...sparing the details of that hours-long encounter, Roman had somehow managed to wring multiple pieces of information out of him, including his involvement with Team Rocket.
...And Roman wanted in. He wanted to help. He wanted very badly to help, because though Luca was trying his best to take care of the Arctozolt it was expensive. For one, he couldn't take it into the Pokemon Center to heal it up because it would flag in the system as a stolen Pokemon, which meant a good chunk of his savings were spent on healing items for the poor thing. Second of all, living with it in the warehouse the Unova branch called a base wasn't sustainable forever. Luca needed to save to get himself a place of his own, for both his and the Arctozolt's good, but with all his expenses saving enough money to do that would take years (not that he told Roman this, not directly).
And...Luca discouraged this. He had no delusions about the morality of being in Team Rocket, and though there was a precedent for theft in regards to Roman he still didn't want to be responsible for Roman getting involved with a literal criminal organization.
Roman still joined, though, finally catching a second Pokemon (a Patrat) and using its training as an excuse for why he spent so much time out of the house. His parents (who, for the record, were perfectly loving and doting parents) accepted this without question, not wanting to interrupt him in case he was working up the nerve to go out as a trainer on his own.
And so, for about a year, Luca and Roman were literally thick as thieves. Roman contributed his earnings to Luca's funds and Luca helped Roman train his Patrat to keep up the illusion that he was building up courage for some sort of journey. And...he was, in theory, because their branch had been informed of new opportunities in Shula more lucrative than in Unova. Though in Unova they'd against all odds managed to actually establish a presence, the tensions from the still-fresh fall of Team Plasma made any actual profit more difficult than it had to be. In comparison, Shula was a land of opportunity.
...So, after his nineteenth birthday, Roman decided to take the opportunity. He used his parents assistance both to get his papers in order and to assure them that he was going on a trainer's journey, and after taking perhaps a bit too long to say goodbye to his parents and his long-time heist partner, he was off.
Luca needed that money, and Roman wasn't going to let anything stop him from helping him get it, not even Luca himself (who was furious at Roman for committing so much). He was going to help.
(...Even if it meant he might not see home for a long time.)
{Extra: Trivia!}
-Lucky's middle name used to be Tiberius, but when Luca was informed of this he told Roman that was stupid and it should be Liberius for alliteration. They legitimately argued over this, and in the end Roman found 'Liberius' so funny that he gave in.
-Roman was diagnosed with depression when he was fairly young, in the 4th grade (about 10 years old). Later, on his 11th birthday, he received Dux as a pet, companion, and emotional support Pokemon, and they've been close ever since.
-Lockewood High didn't permit its students to let their Pokemon out on school grounds, but that didn't stop a lot of the students from letting their Pokemon out during rest hours anyway. Roman kept Dux out during rest hours, passing periods, and before games in the locker room. The football team absolutely adored Dux, for the record.
-Roman used to still show up for football games as the mascot even after graduation, mostly because the faculty realized nobody in the student body or faculty wanted to do it. ...Which means Roman's departure to Shula was a bit of a shock to the high school. It's fine, though, a majority of the student populace thought Lucky was lame, anyhow.
-Lucky's Patrat had evolved into a Watchog before his departure to Shula, and now belongs to Roman's parents, where it's positively spoiled with attention. If it had to pick favorites, it would choose the Holloways over Lucky himself.
-(Specifying Lucky because it never really did got to know Roman out of that persona.)
-Lucky's middle name used to be Tiberius, but when Luca was informed of this he told Roman that was stupid and it should be Liberius for alliteration. They legitimately argued over this, and in the end Roman found 'Liberius' so funny that he gave in.
-Roman was diagnosed with depression when he was fairly young, in the 4th grade (about 10 years old). Later, on his 11th birthday, he received Dux as a pet, companion, and emotional support Pokemon, and they've been close ever since.
-Lockewood High didn't permit its students to let their Pokemon out on school grounds, but that didn't stop a lot of the students from letting their Pokemon out during rest hours anyway. Roman kept Dux out during rest hours, passing periods, and before games in the locker room. The football team absolutely adored Dux, for the record.
-Roman used to still show up for football games as the mascot even after graduation, mostly because the faculty realized nobody in the student body or faculty wanted to do it. ...Which means Roman's departure to Shula was a bit of a shock to the high school. It's fine, though, a majority of the student populace thought Lucky was lame, anyhow.
-Lucky's Patrat had evolved into a Watchog before his departure to Shula, and now belongs to Roman's parents, where it's positively spoiled with attention. If it had to pick favorites, it would choose the Holloways over Lucky himself.
-(Specifying Lucky because it never really did got to know Roman out of that persona.)
aeron of thq
