[RAID] PokéCon

[BlackFireKitsune]

((Due to the nature of the first day, we're opening the raid up to anyone who wants to participate! Think of it like a temporary ORP - as long as your character is a registered trainer, they may enter and mingle like everyone else! Days two and three, however, will be restricted to those who have signed up beforehand. So everybody have fun today!))

xxxWord had spread like wildfire throughout Kodo about the first ever Pokémon Convention - or PokéCon, as a growing number of trainers had taken to calling it - sponsored by the Pokémon League. Camphoreon's grand hotel, the very same that once held the fateful PokéBall, now held hundreds of trainers, not just from Kodo but from various other regions as well. They meandered about and maneuvered through crowds as volunteers answered questions and waved attendees to various sections, while vendors tried to gain attention from passing trainers to sell their wares to. The first floor was alive and bustling with activity and energy, with excitement and anticipation for the event itself, for what was to come, and for what it meant. It meant fun for now, but hope for the future. It meant a light against the harsh, foreboding darkness that was Team Rocket.

xxxNow, though, was a time of levity - or at least it was once inside. Trainers filed into the hotel a few at a time, but only after stopping at the entrance to show proper identification and registration. Once inside, attendees were met with a sprawling, expansive room and a myriad of booths arranged in a large half circle around the outskirts, with the large space in the middle left open as space for trainers to walk around in and get to the various booths and tables.

show spoilerhide spoiler

• Booth #1: Knick Knacks
  This booth sells plushies, toys, games, books, stickers, bookmarks, pins, buttons, and various small novelty items. The white tablecloth is almost entirely hidden beneath all of the items on display here. The stuffed animals and plushies are hung by clothespins or small hooks and shelves against the white curtain backdrop and side dividers.
  
  
• Booth #2: Apparel
  T-shirts, hoodies, hats, shoes, headbands, and other apparel items adorn the booth here, aligned neatly along the vertical dividers as well as inside the lightweight glass cases they brought instead of tables.
  
  
• Booth #3: Pokéballs
  Here you will find specialty Pokéballs, capsules, boxes to hold them in, and Pokéball and utility belts. The light red color scheme really makes the merchandise pop!
  
  
• Booth #4: TM’s
  TM's and TM cases are the name of the game at this booth. The dividers are covered with posters and cut-outs of Pokémon using the different moves, and a TV screen consistently plays a video of each move in action.
  
  
• Booth #5: Novelty Foods
  Give your taste buds a treat with these. Buy from a selection of snacks, popcorn, water bottles, candy, gum, and other yummies, almost all of which are Pokémon-themed. Non-perishables are laid out along the table, while water bottles and other refrigerated items sit in a small, glass-fronted cooler on one side of the table.
  
  
• Booth #6: Instruments
  This booth will be music to the ears, for both you and your Pokémon. This vendor is selling a selection of small instruments, including ocarinas, Pokéflutes, harmonicas, whistles, and more. The more inexpensive instruments are displayed up front, laid out on black velvet covering the table, while the more expensive ones are displayed in the back where there's no chance of any accidents by passersby.
  
  
• Booth #7: Pokédexes
  Stop by here, and the attendants will be more than thrilled to show you the latest types and styles in Pokédexes. This booth brought their own velvet trays and display pieces to angle the devices just right for perusing at your pleasure.
  
  
• Booth #8: Pokégear and Pokétech
  A number of screens have been set up for this premium opportunity. Check out new Pokégear, Pokétech, and many of their new and upcoming apps. Attendants are waiting to speak with you, or you can stand back and watch as the flat screens show off everything you can hope to expect.
  
  
• Booth #9: Pokémon Foods
  Poffin ovens, Pokéblock makers and dispensers, and free samples. For the human companions, berries, dried berries, and delicious berry jam are also available for sale.
  
  
• Booth #10: League Informational Materials
  Here you can find info on new Pokémon, as well as information on other regions and their gyms and branches of the Pokémon League. Feel free to pick up your own copies of the new Pokémon League rule books today!
  
  
• Booth #11: Travel Information
  Stay alert! Stay safe! Get your brochures and booklets here on how to have a safe journey in Kodo. Also, make sure you look into reading our public information on that ring of dangerous crooks known as Team Rocket. We have the easy-to-carry guides on what to do and who to call should you find yourself in a situation involving those fiends. For more in-depth information, be sure to attend the Q&A panel the League will be holding later today in one of the larger conference rooms.

xxxOff to one side stood a large entryway to a hall, and not farther than a simple walk down this curving hallway is hidden a small food court, with signs pointing in that direction along the way to ensure hungry convention-goers can find it easily. There's a reason it's hidden away in the back - while fancy enough in its own right, it isn't nearly as up-scale as the front and majority of the insides of the hotel, and was obviously included not for fancy balls or its regular wealthy guests, but for events such as this, with a plethora of attendees who may or may not be able to afford the much more expensive, gourmet meals in the restaurants upstairs.

xxxPast the parallel line of counters and down a small set of stairs with just a few steps was a large room, full of tables and chairs upon which to consume whatever food you've procured for yourself - or brought from home! It's much quieter and more peaceful in here, and offers a perfect place for a brief respite from all the bustling activity and eager crowds of trainers in the hotel's convention center.

show spoilerhide spoiler

• Burgers
  Burgers and fries here! Vegetarian and vegan options are also available for those who would prefer them.
  
  
• Seafood
  While baked and fried fish (and fries) are available here, in one half, in the other is a plethora of sushi options, with a number of them shaped like various fish Pokémon.
  
  
• Pizzeria
  You guessed it - get all your pizza needs filled here! While the standard cheese and pepperoni pizzas are available, they also have a few other topping options, as well as calzones and various types of pastas and sauces for them. Breadsticks are available as well!
  
  
• Sandwiches
  Subs, sandwiches, soups, and salads! Alliteration and choices abound in this section, with the employees fully capable of making any sandwich or salad exactly how you want it. Soups, not so much, but they do have several different ones to choose from.
  
  
• Desserts
  A variety of cookies, ice creams, ice cream sandwiches, milkshakes, brownies (with ice cream!), and fudge can be found here.

((Today is all about you guys! Have fun, wander around, buy stuff and stuff your faces with tasty treats, hang out with friends or go make new ones, and check out booths to your heart's content! A plethora of attendants and vendors eagerly await your character's attention!

A quick note: It'll make things easier for everyone if you could put in bold at the top of your post, where your character is (like which booth, or none) and who they're addressing (other characters or NPC's), so something like: Booth #5; Henrietta, Akira or something similar. Alright, have at it, and have fun!))  

[TRHQ Harvard]

Quote:

A memo to the members of Team Rocket who have been approved to attend the Pokémon Convention being held in Camphoreon:

Thank you for your contribution to this mission. The League has attempted to take precautions against us at this convention, beginning with the admittance of registered Pokémon League Trainers only. With this memo, you have been issued a registered Trainer license and Pokédex, if you were not in possession of one previously. These IDs will grant you access to the event. You may mingle with the public and browse the various booths to gain information, but do not take unnecessary actions that could indicate Team Rocket's presence.

Later in the afternoon, there is an informational panel scheduled. This panel will feature several League representatives, primarily addressing the issue of Team Rocket. Attend the panel, listen to what they are telling the public, and include the information in your mission report upon your return.

Signed,
Elite Agent Harvard
Security

In Harvard’s office, a fellow Elite was looking over a copy of the memo in his hands. The assigned Rockets for the task had already been driven off-base, having received their memo copies much earlier in the morning. “You’re really not going? Wow... You sure? This seems like the sort of thing you would normally be jumping all over.”

Harvard zipped up a narrow binder and stowed it in a very plain and basic backpack of varying grays. “Normally, yes,” Harvard replied distractedly, now scrolling through a few last things on her silver PDA. “Unfortunately, I have prior obligations elsewhere for today. I will simply need to trust those of us going to have the sense to keep their heads low and return with halfway decent reports.” She was still irked about that ridiculous Ditto screwing things up the last time.

Finished with the PDA, she tucked the device away in a front pouch. She shouldered the bag and rounded the desk. After reconfirming a few key details with her peer, who would be overseeing things until her return, Harvard departed for the garage.

-----

After receiving the memo and claiming their temporary trainer registrations, the assigned Rockets - Agent Faleen, Grunts Izaya and Inigo, as well as a handful of others - had been piled into a single unassuming van driven by the recently promoted Elite Claire, instructed to wear casual attire and to leave their Rocket-emblazoned gear (and weapons, if they had any) either back on base or in the van for the time being. The trainer Pokédexes could be used for communication betwixt themselves for the time being in case anything went wrong, but using the standard Rocket gear, Claire had said on the way to Camphoreon, was simply too risky in such a situation. They absolutely could not risk being discovered at the convention - a hard look from the rear-view mirror was given pointedly at Izaya moreso than Faleen - due to the sheer amount of trainers running around. There were roughly ten Rockets total, with anywhere between twenty to fifty times that many trainers in attendance.

Once the van arrived in the ritzier part of Camphoreon, it pulled to a stop outside the hotel and Claire turned in her seat to address the assembled Rockets. Her purple contacts were gone, revealing hazel eyes, and a medium brown wig had been skillfully affixed over her usual head of black and purple-streaked hair - just in case. "Alright, everyone got the memo, everyone knows that the informational panel this afternoon is the goal and the mission is to get as much info from it as possible. I'm staying out here to act as look-out, and in case any of you need or want to send me any relevant messages or questions that may come up, and I'll let you know if anything out here warrants us leaving before the panel's over. Any questions before we begin?"  

[Gwennythe]

Entrance/ Booth 1

Henrietta had been thrilled to learn about the convention. Though it was in a 'fancy-pants' hotel, it sounded awesome! She had to go!
The wait to get in had been really boring, in her opinion, and the whole checking of IDs and such grated on the youngster's impatience; by the time she had finally been able to show her identification and gain entrance, the girl was literally bouncing up and down with frustration and excitement.
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, lemme in, lemme in!" She mutter-whined to herself, even up to the checking area.
As soon as it was done, she near snatched her Trainer Card back, scooped Gummy into her arms, and was hurrying inside, calling "Thaaanks!" to the staff at the door, but not stopping until she was stood inside.

She had been so excited to get in and now... She wasn't sure where she wanted to go.
Gummy rested there, in her arms, apparently indifferent to everything going on.

"Woooow! Gummy, what should we do first?! I know!" She picked her destination after a moment of gazing around at the booths and found her attention taken by the toys dangling from booth 1 and began to head toward it. "Oh man! Look, there's a you!" She pointed out a dangling Totodile plush, that, of course, looked a lot like a regular, if stubby, Totodile but not that much like Gummy.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Booth 1, Henrietta

"It is a Totodile," came a friendly voice from behind the table as a woman in her early thirties leaned over a bit to get a better look at the young girl that had approached her booth, "though it's not nearly as handsome as your friend there. What's your name, dear, and that of your little friend?"  

[Gwennythe]

Booth 1

"Yeah! It's cute though!" Henrietta grinned at the woman who leaned over. "I'm Henrietta- but you could call me Hen or somethin' if ya want- and this," She lifted the Totodile a little "is Gummy! We're gonna be pokémon champions one day! What's your name?"

Gummy snapped his jaws twice, apparently in response to being introduced. His eyes stared, seemingly at nothing, but in the direction of the Totodile plushie.  

[Rocket Agent Faleen]

This wasn't exactly the time or the mission that Faleen really wanted to go on. the last time she had participated in a League function it had not gone nearly as smoothly as she had hoped, and ended up learning that her identity and function with Team Rocket was known to a group of trainers, that included her sister, Rosie.
Izaya had not escaped it either, having both seen sold out by a now passed team mate.

It was infuriating, but Faleen had managed to gather herself after a time, and as this mission popped up, while she had no interest in going, she couldn't help but think that this would be a perfect opportunity and job for her partner, Though not without stressing the "laying low" portion.

Bless Zoroarks, the magnificent dark beast of untruths. Faleen's had been told what her responsibility were for this mission.
Hazel eyes lifted up to the elite as she turned to face them, listening to her speak though not asking any questions. It seemed fairly simple.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Rosie, Luke

Oh my gosh oh my gosh ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh.

Nicolette had hardly been able to contain her absolute, unabashed excitement for the day and for what it would contain. She wasn't exactly sure of everything it would contain, but she knew she absolutely could not wait. Thus, when her registration had been checked, she all but ran into the hotel. She didn't make it too far, though, as she halted in the middle of the expansive room to stare at everything. There were just so many people, and so many things to look at - so many trainers in their full trainer gear, some with parts of costumes, some with pokemon--

--oh my gosh oh my gosh there were just too many things to see and look at and do and see.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Booth 1, Henrietta

"Pleasure to meet you, Hen," the woman beamed, leaning lightly against the table. "And a pleasure to meet you, Gummy - though I think he's more focused on that Totodile plushie," she noted with a chuckle. "My name's Jessica, and my goodness! I can't believe I'm speaking to two future Pokemon Champs. I'll be rootin' for you the whole way, dear, and good luck!" The woman smiled broadly; she saw such enthusiastic kids every day, and they were all cute as buttons. "Can I help you with anything today hon?"  

[Tori Honoo]

Booth 3

Though fully aware that such an endeavor would only bring heartache during the next two busy days when she couldn't attend, Dove found herself presenting her registration and filing into the area with the other trainers, her eyes bright with the excitement already bubbling throughout the crowds, Lovey in her arms.

Once inside, the girl looked around, quickly sweeping the array of booths before deciding to look trough each one, at least until she found something of interest. A specific booth caught her eye quickly, however, and she moved forward to it, her gaze falling over the different merchandise there. She really did need to expand her array of pokeballs... So far, she carried only luxury balls and a love ball.  

[League Trainer Rosie]

Luke, Nicolette


Her registration was checked carefully before they okayed her ID. It wasn't a long time to get there and everything was soon wrapped up, moving the group toward the main hotel room where the convention was being held.

Rosie examined the badge that she had been given prior to entering, punching the laminated paper between her fingers and turning it over to examine the design with the convention logo.
Rosie Ewell, Camphoreon, Kodo.

With a gentle smile she let it drop back down against her chest, where it dangled from a lanyard around her neck.
Rosie had come here with her friends Nicolette and Luke, the youngest girl in the group had taken off to get into the room, Rosie smiled at her enthusiasm as she took in everything it had to offer. Rosie herself was impressed with its size and just how much there was to see!

"So what do you think you want to see first?" Rosie asked the younger trainer as she stepped up next to her, pulling one of the maps out they had handed them at the registration.  

[Gwennythe]

Booth 1
"Thanks Jessica! That's awesome and we'll totally not let you down!" The girl seemed buoyed further by the comments, her ego inflated a little more.
"Yeah; I think he likes it!" Henrietta answered, grinning and semi-snuggling against the Totodile she held before looking back and then up at the plushie that Gummy was, seemingly, looking up at. "I think so! How much is it?"  

[Tori Honoo]

Middle, Nicolette

While the others mingled and found their way toward booths, another trainer, this one one of the youngest there, made his way into the center of the room, almost beside himself and overwhelmed by all the merchandise, people and Pokemon around him. His eyes were huge as he turned to his companion, a charmander that stuck close to his side. While he had been timid and a little intimidated at first by going into the large crowd, he had been excited as his mother dropped him off as she walked to work, and couldn't have been happier as he soaked in the atmosphere. His eyes quickly caught site of a girl, one older than him but clearly just as excited. These times were for making friends, and while he was younger--and she was really pretty, and her friends were showing up-- he made his way over to her, his charmander following beside him, and raised a hand to give a little wave. "Hi!"  

[Catzandbirdz]

Booth 3, Dove

"Greetings!" A young man in his mid-twenties leaned against the red-clad counter, his chin supported casually on the back of one raised hand. His smile was broad and cheerful. "I know an interested eye when I see one. Are you perhaps wishing to learn more about what wares we have to offer today?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Rosie, Luke, Jace

Nicolette's own lanyard bounced lightly as she herself bounced on her toes in her excitement, then she spun in a half-circle to face Rosie, her hands raised to clap together as she beamed at the girl. "I don't know! There's just so much to do, I don't know where to even start!" While Rosie was being calm and logical, looking at a map, Nicolette hardly even registered that such a thing existed.

What did exist, however, was the sudden presence of a child nearby, and she ceased her bouncing (rather embarrassing, now that she was aware of it) to look down at him, and she immediately offered him a warm smile and a small dip of a curtsy. "Well hello there!" She greeted happily, noting how similar he was to her own brother. Roughly the same height, so that meant this boy was probably around ten or eleven... "Oh!" Her hands flew to her cheeks before she bent down to look at the fire-type better. "That is such an adorable pokemon! What is he?" She asked, looking up at the boy - though not up too much, given his small stature. Suddenly she seemed to realize something, and she raised a hand to her chest as her mouth briefly formed a small circle of surprise before it formed into an apologetic smile. "Oh, I apologize - my name is Nicolette. What's yours?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Booth 1, Henrietta

"You better not!" She teased warmly, though obviously didn't sound like she would be upset if she was let down. After giving the plushie in question a very critical, appraising glance, she smiled down at Henrietta and said, "Sorry to say that even future League champs have to pay the same as everybody else - to keep everything fair," she whispered conspiratorially as she briefly leaned over and hid one side of her mouth with a hand, then straightened up and smiled again, "but all our prices are listed right here. That Totodile is in this category -- here." A finger moved up to one of several price lists, the nearest of which happened to hang on the divider near them, and she tapped at a line that said 'small plushies' along with the price. While not terribly expensive, it definitely wasn't cheap, either.