[At first he's worried he's made a mistake in telling Carly this. Because of course he's going to tell Ryan that. That's the problem. Carly's been nice to him so far, but he doesn't know her well enough to feel totally confident he can trust her.
It's a relief when she doesn't make him answer that before offering her support. Though... wife? That's a thing you can do here? The future continues to blow his mind.]
I have to tell him. We've known each other our entire lives. Even if I wanted to hide it from him he'd know something's up.
[No one knows him better than Ryan, and while historically they haven't always been the best at talking out their problems that's something they've worked on a lot over the past year or so. He's not willing to throw away the progress they've made for the sake of an organisation he didn't even choose to be part of.]
We're still the bad guys. I don't think he'll hate me, but... I don't want Ryan to be disappointed in me, either.
Well it's probably a good thing you messaged- we don't want to put this off after all! I think one very important thing to make clear though is it's nottttt...mmm. It's not really easy to just leave if you wake up with the Rockets?
[Granted Min-Gi could probably get out of it with less issue than say...her, at this point, but.] But another thing to point out, is there are perks to being a cartoon criminal!
...Which is basically what we are, wow. Weird saying that out loud.
Yeah. You're right. He'll get that, right? Like, the best case scenario is I go back to jail. I don't want to do that.
[It doesn't really feel like there are perks, but she's not wrong. Their stipend is very helpful, and it's nice not having to fork out for accommodation when he's not on the road. It just happens to come with a lot of added stress.
Though he is a little offended at being called a cartoon criminal even if that's exactly what he is.]
I know we're not exactly the mob, but we're still better than the ones in cartoons.
I'm going to say this as gently as possible, but our bosses frankly consider the most heinous of crimes to be a really well done heist....so...we're kind of there?
It's honestly really astounding how far what I used for journalism has gone here! Also we do have background music...
[Don't tell Dirk she said this aloud though.]
Ahem- in any case. Best case is jail, that's right. Because it's a two week stay. But the expected case is getting chased down constantly by other grunts- and by misinformed police officers. ...Constantly.
[It's not great! So Carly coughs and ushers them along.] But we're not letting that happen..! One thing in your favor at least, is that it's pretty easy to skirt the quota assignment~ All you need to do is catch pokemon over level 15 at least twice a month!
[That's... mortifying and not something he really wants to accept. If he's going to be a criminal he at least deserves the dignity of being a decently scary criminal. He can't exactly argue with someone who's basically his boss, though.]
I... really don't want that. [Even the idea of constantly having to deal with Rocket Grunts and police officers is giving him anxiety. At the moment he can kind of slip under the radar, and that's not great but it's better than the alternatives.] Catching Pokémon is pretty easy, at least. No one's said anything about it so far.
Just look on the bright side~! It makes us look pretty darn cool when we do better than their 'best'~!
[CARLY]
Ahm- [Well back on topic anyway.] Honestly, they won't say anything about it period either. That whole 'don't ask don't tell' attitude they have on the source of goods comes in pretty handy. As it stands, once you have the foot in the door enough to go for a full time job with them, you don't even have the quota to worry about either!
...but, that's stuff for another time. Right now we need to talk about the best way to talk to your friend, don't we?
[You know those cats who always like to be on whichever side of the door they aren't? That's Min-Gi. He doesn't want to be better criminals than they are, but equally if he is going to commit crimes he doesn't want them to be the kind that people can laugh at.
He makes a non-committed noise. He has enough of a headache trying to work out what to do about Ryan without needing to think too much about his employment with Team Rocket.]
[You can't have this cake in two flavors at once Min-Gi, they'll cancel the other out!!!]
Mmmmm. Well, first we need to know what kind of person your friend is if I'm honest...it really really comes down to how they see a lot of the world. Jolyne was no Rocket, but she did get arrested on false charges where she came from...
So did we. There's a difference between being arrested for something you didn't do and something you did.
[But...]
Ryan wouldn't turn me in if that's what you're worried about. I don't think he'll be happy, but he has my back. We stick with each other, no matter what.
Then you know it's a fuzzy fuzzy line when it comes to people who did commit a crime too!~ Jail's a mess, and so is crime. But that's beside the point. I'd sure hope he won't turn you in, but that isn't quite what I mean. It's more...
...Well, think of it this way. How would you feel if, without any real warning, you suddenly got 'We need to talk', from him in a text? [She asks- lowering her voice to a comically dark tone for 'we need to talk' specifically, just to sell her point.]
[He heart drops even thinking about getting a text like that from Ryan. Ryan tends to come right out with it when he drops things on him without warning, forgoing any of the preamble of "we need to talk", but he gets her point.]
[How is he supposed to tell him he's a criminal without setting a gloomy tone? It's not like there's any way to frame this as a good thing.]
Maybe I should get him something. Or I could take him somewhere nice. Obviously I can't tell him out in public, but maybe when we get back to wherever we end up staying?
Hmmmm, we definitely don't want to make it too nice, that could make him suspect something's weird- especially if you wouldn't normally do that.
In person is probably your best bet for bringing it up, buttttttt if you want someone like me around to help out, then we need to figure out how that is happening.
I can be in the same city, but not be right at the building. So if you do decide you need me around, you can just give a call and I'll be right over~!
...But otherwise...honestly, you're the only one who knows your friend as good as you do. You just have to...trust that they know you that well too, and it'll be alright. Okay?
[Carly's more right than she probably realises. There's no one out there who knows Ryan like he does. The problem is that Min-Gi's current situation is so distinctly unlike him that it's hard to guess how Ryan will react.
Carly's solution is suitably reassuring, though. It gives him space to talk to Ryan without feeling like he's totally alone.]
That sounds good. I'll let you know where we are when I decide to tell him.
[He does sound genuinely relieved by this solution. He still has to do the hard part and actually tell him, but it's nice to have some kind of safety net in place.]
voice; backdated to 21st!
Date: 2022-11-24 05:21 pm (UTC)[Min, why are you whispering? You aren't even in the same region yet.
Sorry, Carly. This is probably extremely weird to receive out of the blue.]
no subject
Date: 2022-11-26 02:41 pm (UTC)...Why is that a problem..?
no subject
Date: 2022-11-26 03:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 10:15 am (UTC)Because I can definitely help support you through that~! I mean I had to tell my wife at some point you know! ...Before we got married, specifically.
And there's obviously a difference there, but friends are important...
[...Also. Also.]
...Also I feel like you could do worse than Rocket, crimewise, we're really not that 'hardcore' if you think about it.
no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 01:07 pm (UTC)but he doesn't know her well enough to feel totally confident he can trust her.
It's a relief when she doesn't make him answer that before offering her support. Though... wife? That's a thing you can do here? The future continues to blow his mind.]
I have to tell him. We've known each other our entire lives. Even if I wanted to hide it from him he'd know something's up.
[No one knows him better than Ryan, and while historically they haven't always been the best at talking out their problems that's something they've worked on a lot over the past year or so. He's not willing to throw away the progress they've made for the sake of an organisation he didn't even choose to be part of.]
We're still the bad guys. I don't think he'll hate me, but... I don't want Ryan to be disappointed in me, either.
[He's let him down enough.]
no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 01:25 pm (UTC)Well it's probably a good thing you messaged- we don't want to put this off after all! I think one very important thing to make clear though is it's nottttt...mmm. It's not really easy to just leave if you wake up with the Rockets?
[Granted Min-Gi could probably get out of it with less issue than say...her, at this point, but.] But another thing to point out, is there are perks to being a cartoon criminal!
...Which is basically what we are, wow. Weird saying that out loud.
no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 01:56 pm (UTC)[It doesn't really feel like there are perks, but she's not wrong. Their stipend is very helpful, and it's nice not having to fork out for accommodation when he's not on the road. It just happens to come with a lot of added stress.
Though he is a little offended at being called a cartoon criminal even if that's exactly what he is.]
I know we're not exactly the mob, but we're still better than the ones in cartoons.
[They are not.]
no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 02:07 pm (UTC)It's honestly really astounding how far what I used for journalism has gone here! Also we do have background music...
[Don't tell Dirk she said this aloud though.]
Ahem- in any case. Best case is jail, that's right. Because it's a two week stay. But the expected case is getting chased down constantly by other grunts- and by misinformed police officers. ...Constantly.
[It's not great! So Carly coughs and ushers them along.] But we're not letting that happen..! One thing in your favor at least, is that it's pretty easy to skirt the quota assignment~ All you need to do is catch pokemon over level 15 at least twice a month!
no subject
Date: 2022-11-30 03:34 pm (UTC)[That's... mortifying and not something he really wants to accept. If he's going to be a criminal he at least deserves the dignity of being a decently scary criminal. He can't exactly argue with someone who's basically his boss, though.]
I... really don't want that. [Even the idea of constantly having to deal with Rocket Grunts and police officers is giving him anxiety. At the moment he can kind of slip under the radar, and that's not great but it's better than the alternatives.] Catching Pokémon is pretty easy, at least. No one's said anything about it so far.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-01 03:09 pm (UTC)[CARLY]
Ahm- [Well back on topic anyway.] Honestly, they won't say anything about it period either. That whole 'don't ask don't tell' attitude they have on the source of goods comes in pretty handy. As it stands, once you have the foot in the door enough to go for a full time job with them, you don't even have the quota to worry about either!
...but, that's stuff for another time. Right now we need to talk about the best way to talk to your friend, don't we?
no subject
Date: 2022-12-01 09:44 pm (UTC)He makes a non-committed noise. He has enough of a headache trying to work out what to do about Ryan without needing to think too much about his employment with Team Rocket.]
Yeah. Yeah, we do. How did you do it?
no subject
Date: 2022-12-02 03:14 pm (UTC)Mmmmm. Well, first we need to know what kind of person your friend is if I'm honest...it really really comes down to how they see a lot of the world. Jolyne was no Rocket, but she did get arrested on false charges where she came from...
no subject
Date: 2022-12-02 04:24 pm (UTC)[But...]
Ryan wouldn't turn me in if that's what you're worried about. I don't think he'll be happy, but he has my back. We stick with each other, no matter what.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 03:25 pm (UTC)...Well, think of it this way. How would you feel if, without any real warning, you suddenly got 'We need to talk', from him in a text? [She asks- lowering her voice to a comically dark tone for 'we need to talk' specifically, just to sell her point.]
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 03:32 pm (UTC)...I would freak out.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 03:36 pm (UTC)So we need to decide the best way to approach him without accidentally setting some kind of gloomy tone.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 03:50 pm (UTC)Maybe I should get him something. Or I could take him somewhere nice. Obviously I can't tell him out in public, but maybe when we get back to wherever we end up staying?
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 03:57 pm (UTC)In person is probably your best bet for bringing it up, buttttttt if you want someone like me around to help out, then we need to figure out how that is happening.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 04:09 pm (UTC)[Min, you are not.]
Wait, so you're actually going to be around for it?
[As if this whole thing wasn't nerve-wracking enough already...]
no subject
Date: 2022-12-03 04:14 pm (UTC)If you don't want me there, then I won't~!
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Date: 2022-12-03 04:20 pm (UTC)[He almost wishes someone would tell him so he doesn't have to, but he knows realistically that would just be worse.]
no subject
Date: 2022-12-05 02:59 pm (UTC)I can be in the same city, but not be right at the building. So if you do decide you need me around, you can just give a call and I'll be right over~!
...But otherwise...honestly, you're the only one who knows your friend as good as you do. You just have to...trust that they know you that well too, and it'll be alright. Okay?
no subject
Date: 2022-12-05 03:38 pm (UTC)Carly's solution is suitably reassuring, though. It gives him space to talk to Ryan without feeling like he's totally alone.]
That sounds good. I'll let you know where we are when I decide to tell him.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-07 03:51 pm (UTC)[And, toning herself down a bit-] ...And good luck, okay? You got this~
no subject
Date: 2022-12-08 12:00 am (UTC)[He does sound genuinely relieved by this solution. He still has to do the hard part and actually tell him, but it's nice to have some kind of safety net in place.]