In Her Image: a Pokémon RP

[Evrant-Knight]

Caleb raised his hands in surrender as Remy's Primeape, Zangoose, and Sneasel all turned to face him, each readying an attack against him. "Easy fellas, Caleb is on our side." Remy said, which seemed to put his Pokémon at ease. "Heh, thanks man. I'm not exactly a Fighting-type specialist so training him hasn't been easy, and his species' temperament doesn't help much. I'm more into Dark-types myself." Remy soon motioned to his team to head upstairs. "So... What's your stance in all this? I meant what I said about continuing to help Looker and the IP with whatever they need."

"First off, it was my pleasure Remy, being a trainer of a part fighting myself, I have a general idea of what moves to teach them; as for me personally, I don't have a particular type preference, much prefer a more diverse range. And as to what I think, I believe we should help Looker and the International Police in bringing justice to these villains. What they did to those Pokémon, its both objectionably and morally wrong, no one should twist the hearts and minds of Pokémon for their own diabolical ends. The sooner we put a stop to their plans the better. I say we prove Silver wrong." Caleb said with a fiery determination in his voice.

 

[Anayna]

Spoiler: OOC

This post is overly long and completely self-indulgent. It does not relate to any other character in the RP, and is pretty damn boring too, so I'm just using this opportunity to tell you that you are free to skip this wall of text. Oy.

There was something inside him that hurt. It was a cold lump in the deepest pit of his chest, an unknowable entity that ate at him. No infant mind should know it, for how could it possibly understand it? He was guided by instinct, reason having not yet taken its hold. To contemplate its nature was beyond his underdeveloped mind, and yet by some cruel whim of nature it was the birth right of his kind. It was loneliness made palpable and it hurt.

He didn't know how he had gotten here. This place was cold and dark, empty yet somehow full of snickering whispers just beyond the edge of hearing. He had faint memories of a body that should have been warm, should have been alive, but was cold and still. He remembered putting on a mask. Where had it come from? He couldn't remember. He only knew that it eased the hurting. It alleviated the chill of the loneliness. It could never dismiss it, however. It could only keep it at bay.

The Lonely Pokémon cried out. It hurt. His birthright hurt. It was not the pain of being alone. It was the pain of being alone in bad company. That's when He came. First appearing as a tiny figure He towered above him as He picked him up and for the first time he knew the warmth of another being. It was feeling sunlight for the first time. It soothed him in a way the mask never could. The mask spoke of endurance, a promise that the pain could be held at bay. This figure's presence offered hope that someday the pain would be gone altogether.

He chose the latter, and trusted in the guidance of the figure.

________________________________________________________________________________

Cubone opened his eyes as Rupert put down the empty bottle of Revive. They were back in their room at the Sleeping Sunkern. For a second the Kanto trainer looked like the huge figure Cubone dimly remembered, the figure who had saved him. Then he saw him for what he was: just Rupert. Insecure, responsibility shirking Rupert. The Ground-type looked away from him and surveyed the room. The lighting was dim, but he could see Pineco sleeping on top of a wooden closet. The window was wide open and every now and then faint cries from Hoothoot and Haunter could be heard from outside. The rain was still pouring.

"Hey, buddy. How you feeling?"

Rupert tried to sound consoling, like this was the aftermath of any other battle. Cubone wouldn't have bought the act even if Rupert wasn't a terrible actor. They both knew that this was different. Everything was different now. Cubone had been forced to take charge in the battle, as he had done so often before. But this time he had done so after Rupert for the first time, just a day earlier at that, had promised to take pokémon training seriously. Additionally, this was the first time Cubone's resentment towards Rupert had been brought out in the open. He had hidden it well these past years, the task made considerably easier by continuously wearing a mask.

"L-let me get a potion out. We'll get you right as rain again, just you see..."

"Cu".

Cubone just waved his hand in dismissal and sat up. He would be fine after a good night's sleep and said so.

"W-well, if you're sure... Just take it easy, alright?"

Cubone didn't respond and an awkward silence fell between them. Even sitting there together on the floor it felt like the two were separated by a wide gulf. Their relationship had never felt like this before. It had always relied on a very specific dynamic between the two. Rupert needed to know that Cubone was always there for him when he fell, and Cubone needed to know that despite his failures Rupert could improve. Nothing was certain now. Rupert had failed to improve and Cubone had revealed that he was tired of standing up for his trainer. They could never go back to the way things were.

Predictably, Rupert broke under the weight of the silence and started blathering.

"Cubone, I-I'm so sorry. I just froze. T-the shouting, the people running, the ground s-shaking... I just couldn't. I'm sorry. I know that I said I would... do better, but... It was too much. A-and... I didn't know. I didn't know that you... felt that way."

Rupert started choking up. He didn't know how to say this next part, but he knew that it needed to be said. Cubone had carried the team for years, an unreasonable burden to place on such small shoulders. No matter how much the two cared for one another they had been stuck in what Rupert now recognized as a near-abusive relationship. Cubone bailed Rupert out whenever he faltered, and got nothing in return but the slim hope that Rupert would some day improve. Of course some resentment would build up in the Ground-type.

"I'm sorry for disappointing you... so often. A-and I understand if... if things can't be the same anymore. B-but I..."

"Cubone."

Cubone's soft utterance was barely noticeable, but it stopped Rupert before he started crying. Did he just say what Rupert thought he said?

*Sniff* "W-wait, what did...? I think I heard you wrong."

"Cuh-bone."

Rupert hadn't heard him wrong. Cubone had just quietly apologized to him, and was still staring into the floor. The rain suddenly seemed a lot louder. After a moment of stunned silence Rupert managed to speak a breathless question.

"What...? What do you mean? What do you have to apologize for?"

Cubone kept up his attempt to drill holes into the floor with his stare, as he spoke in cries that his trainer could understand. He made it clear that he never wanted Rupert to know about his growing bitterness, because he never wanted to hurt him.

Faced with this bit of information Rupert simply broke down. To have one's own first pokémon hide its emotional pain so as not to inconvenience him; it was too much to bear. Rupert drew his hand over his face and needed a few minutes to collect himself. In that time Cubone just sat opposite him, completely still. The only things that could be heard were the few guttural sounds from Rupert that he was unable to suppress, the ever present rain, and the occasional cries from Hoothoot and Haunter outside. The Ghost-type was definitely teasing the easily spooked Hoothoot.

"It's okay, Cubone," Rupert finally said when he had recovered. "It's okay. It's all going to be okay. We're leaving. We're going back to Lavender Town. We... we can't deal with this while running errands for Mr Looker. We'll go home and we'll set things right. The others will understand..."

"CUH!"

At this Cubone finally looked up. He made it clear in no uncertain terms that this would not be the case. They were going with the others and they were going to stop Eres & Co., nay, they were going to crush them.

"Cu... Cubone, are you sure? W-we don't have to do this. I think we need to... fix this before..."

Cubone spoke up again, letting his trainer know that nothing was going to be 'fixed' by them running home. The only way to set things right was by getting stronger, both of them. They needed this journey. He hadn't given up on Rupert yet. Adversity was going to teach him, teach them both, how to rely on the other. It was the only way they were going to grow as a team.
Rupert looked nervous at the prospect, but he conceded. They were going to help Looker in his mission.

"A-alright, Cubone. You're right. Of course you're right. Nothing's going to change by falling into old routines. We'll do it. And um, thanks. Thanks for giving me a second chance."

The air in the room felt significantly lighter than it had done earlier. The two both knew that they had issues to work out, but Rupert felt unimaginable relief in knowing that Cubone didn't secretly hate him as he had feared. Rupert felt one edge of his mouth lift to form a tired little smile, and thought he saw a similar smirk in Cubone's eyes. He couldn't be sure though. Earlier today he wouldn't have doubted his judgement about these things, but this day had shown him that he didn't know Cubone as well as he thought. He had faith though. They could work this out, surely. He just needed to apply himself...

"HAAAUUUNTER!"

"HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!"

"For goodness' sake, Haunter, stop teasing Hoothoot! Leave her alone, you hear me!?"

While the Kanto trainer stepped over to the window and started yelling into the soaking blackness, Cubone scuttled over to the bed. He needed his rest and they had an early morning. He curled himself up into the fetal position at the headboard. He didn't usually sleep like that, and briefly wondered why it reminded him of something he couldn't quite identify. He felt at bit bad about lying to Rupert. Cubone's apology from earlier hadn't been about hurt feelings, at least not entirely. Cubone had reached a conclusion. He was partially to blame for Rupert's state today. In constantly standing up for him, Cubone had made Rupert weak. How was anyone supposed to grow when someone was always bailing them out of trouble? People grow through adversity and Cubone had robbed Rupert of that opportunity. For that he was truly sorry. Well, no more. Cubone wasn't going to help Rupert anymore if he couldn't help himself. This needed to be done. Cubone missed the man he once thought Rupert to be and was tired of waiting for him to grow into that person. This was sure to work. After all, Cubone had taken on all of Rupert's problems and it had in turn only made him stronger. Right?

As he drifted off to sleep something started hurting inside his chest. It was a feeling he hadn't felt in a long time and yet it was instantly familiar. It wasn't so much that it had been gone altogether; rather, he had just been dulled to its presence. It was alright though. He could handle it. That was the promise of the mask. In facing hardships he would grow hard himself. He would endure.

 

[CJ1145]

"Char! Charmeleon!"

"Whoo... I got it, just, gimme a sec."

Spiegel's cries of encouragement--mixed with a heavy dose of fear--were doing a remarkably poor job of motivating Daria to move another inch from where she was located. This was a problem primarily because of the fact that she was hanging from about halfway up the Radio Tower. The boisterous trainer was beginning to peter out, her breaths coming slowly and heavily as she dangled by one hand. This was her third attempt to scale the remainder of the distance between her and the roof. Her third failure, as well. Even so, Pace's Charmeleon had the utmost confidence in her.

It was gravity he was lacking faith in at the moment.

The rain had grown stronger, battering the backs of trainer and Pokemon alike as they sought some sort of escape from their pickle. Spiegel did his best to keep his tail under his belly, to shield it from the water. They say that if a member of his species were ever to lose their flame, they would die as a result. To tell the truth, Spiegel was no authority on the matter. His tail had never gone out, and after hearing those stories he never intended it to.

Daria clenched her face in a curious grimace as she puzzled out her dilemma. Attempting to throw her body up for one last attempt, she cried "Eureka!" as she found purchase on a bit of weathered brick. Finding positions to set her feet once again, she started ascending the height. She tossed a cheeky grin at her companion as she got moving again. "See! Told ya I just needed a sec--SHIT"

Her speech took a turn for the vulgar as instead of a solid grip her hand slipped on the wet side of the tower. Already in motion, her body had no way to recover. Losing all traction, Daria was flung down, limbs scrambling for anything to touch as Spiegel's screams of terror briefly overrode the sound of the rain. Far below, she could see the ground. But it was coming closer, and quickly. No rope, no wings, and nothing to cushion the impact. This was... bad. Very very bad. But when things seemed unable to worsen... she heard a vaguely familiar voice, high above her.

"GO!"

"VENOMOOOOOOOOOO--"

She felt her momentum jarringly shift as something caught hold of her back and hefted her higher into the sky. For a brief moment she felt her vision darken, only to be jolted right back out of it as she and Spiegel were dropped onto the soaking roof of the Radio Tower. The Pokemon above her, she recognized as a Venomoth, which quickly left and went back to the side of its... was that seriously a trainer?


A young man stood before her, clad in baggy, black clothes that obscured all but his face. A shinobi. His fiery eyes were opened so wide they seemed to be circles, and only the tips of his black hair poked out from beneath his tight-fit hood. A wild grin like her own was slapped on his face, nigh-malicious and eager. He pointed an accusatory finger as she stood, and roared like a wild beast as his visible excitement grew.

"rrrrgh...YYYYYYEEEEEEES! IT HAS BEEN TOO LONG, DARIA PACE, BUT I WOULD RECOGNIZE YOUR FACE ANYWHERE! IT HAS BEEN MANY MONTHS, BUT AT LAST I HAVE FOUND YOU!"

Daria stared curiously at the strange boy for a moment. Her brain chose to kick in then, and reminded her of just who she was looking at. Her expression soured immediately.

"Oh hell..." she whispered. "Not this guy again."

She remembered clearly, now, that day in Viridian Forest where a youth clad in his tacky green catsuit had stood beside his Venonat and bravely challenged her. Bravely, but stupidly.

"You don't mean to say..." she said, hesistantly. "You've been following me this whole time?"

The boy began to sniffle, of all things, turning his head away from her and openly sobbing as steaming tears ran down his cheeks. His Venomoth mimicked the action. "YES! IT IS TRUE, ALL THIS TIME I HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING YOU LIKE YOUR SHADOW! Ever since that day... I have not been able to stop thinking about you. About the traumatizing, humiliating defeat you handed down to me..." He bowed his head, clenching his fists and holding them at his sides. "I had begun to think that maybe I was wrong! That I had gone wrong in my training, that a casual practitioner like you could rap my ears so thoroughly!"

"Who the hell are you calling casual?!"

Ignoring her, the boy struck a pose, thrusting a fist into the air as he seemed ready to throw his vows up to the heavens themselves. "BUT NOW I UNDERSTAND THE VALUABLE LESSON THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO TEACH ME! I HAVE RE-DOUBLED, NO, RE-QUADRUPLED MY TRAINING SINCE THAT DAY! I HAVE FOLLOWED IN YOUR FOOTSTEPS, CHALLENGING THE GREATEST TRAINERS AND STRIKING THEM DOWN, PUSHING BOTH MY PARTNER AND MY OWN BODY TO 1000% OF THEIR LIMITS, ALL IN THE HOPES THAT I MIGHT ONE DAY RAISE MY METTLE BEYOND THE HUMAN LIMIT! TO BECOME THE IDEAL FIGHTING SPIRIT!"

He pointed dramatically at Daria, and placed himself in a fighting stance. "AND NOW MY TRAINING IS COMPLETE! I SHALL TEST MY NEW STRENGTH AGAINST YOU, DARIA PACE, AND THIS TIME I WILL SHOW YOU THE MERIT OF MY IDEAL FIGHTING SPIRIT! READY, VENO-VENO?!'

"VEN VEN!" cried the bug-type, floating in front of his trainer. The opposing party had declared a challenge, one that by custom could not be turned down. Daria rolled her eyes and glanced at Spiegel, who returned the look along with a slight smirk.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"VENVENVENVENVEEEEEEN!"

"Oh, quit your whining." Daria gave her victim a shake by the ankle to shut him up, leaving him a whimpering but more or less quiet prisoner. She held him by his ankle, dangling the shinobi over the side of Radio Tower. To her left, Spiegel was idly doing the same with Veno-Veno, whose wings were currently restricted by its own horrifically botched String Shot. A quick re-appropriation of the string around his claw left the lizard playing a rather sadistic game of Yo-Yo with the terrified creature.

"Now then, my arm's getting pretty tired, creepy stalker guy. So why don'tcha just accept my terms before something happens we'll both regret?"

"Y-YOU HAVE MADE NO DEMANDS!" cried the young man, blubbering out the sentence more than really speaking it.

"Oh, right." Daria stroked her chin with her free hand, considering her options. Coming to a decision she snapped her fingers and said, "All right, we'll do it like this. Ya give me and Spiegel a free ride back to the hotel, and we're square. Deal?"

"D-DEAL!"

"Oh, and... one more thing."

The shinobi suddenly felt the world around him spin as his captor flung him up and caught him coming down by his arms, so he could look her in the eye. A red face full of indignation and rage pressed up against him as she screamed.

[HEADING=2] "STOP FOLLOWING ME!"[/HEADING]

[hr]

Daria clambered back in through the window with her Charmeleon in tow, finding her other Pokemon had already come up to sleep in their usual spots. Outside, she could hear the voice of the shinobi calling even after slamming the window shut on him.

"GOODBYE, DARIA PACE! I SWEAR, OUR NEXT CROSSING OF PATHS WILL BE PURELY COINCIDENTAL!"

Daria barely had the energy to toss off her clothes before slamming into the bed like a wrestler laying the smackdown. She didn't have the energy to deal with folks like him this late at night. She was asleep in a matter of seconds, quietly snoring and joining the symphony of her Pokemon. And up in his spot by the window, Spiegel drifted off with a smile on his face.

 

[JokerboyJordan]

"Like I said, it's none of my business what you do. But face it, no matter how well you were doing on those grunts, there were more, and those officers were far beyond what you could have handled. You got lucky that Silver showed up. There were even more enemies than you ran into. I found a whole group taken out by Silver's Gengar, all on it's own. You could barely handle what was thrown at you."

"That may have been the case back at the stadium, but now that we know just what we're up against, we can work on trying to stop them. We can look for these thugs wherever they are, we've seen their faces, we know their plans. We can work together, to ensure that no more Pokemon become like those poor things at the arena - to be stripped of their entire personality; to be used, like a tool, to further someone's agenda; to have everything they know and love taken away from them. No one, neither Pokemon or person should ever have to endure anything like that. That's why I'm going train with my team to become stronger than those horrible people could ever be."

Sav struggled to stifle a yawn that escaped from her mouth, serving her as a reminder that she was awake at such ludicrous hour.

"First thing tomorrow that is! For now, I think I can speak for both the team and I when I say goodnight, we're off to count some Mareep"

And with a hearty wave and smile, Savannah turned and began to make her way out of the room, only vaguely hearing something that Kayla had said.

"Um. Does anyone know if this place have any spare rooms. I kinda forgot to get one a place to sleep when I got in town today...."

"0h sorry Kay, I got completely carried away back there! Of course you can share with me"

 

[Pappytech]

"Really? That was quite the situation you were just in, man. And by the look of you, it don't look like you're handling it too well, now are you?"

Matt stumbled as the stranger's words rang out, his feet slipping along the rain-soaked pavement. Barely managing to retain his balance, the lad looked back again, his expressionless visage still and immovable. His failure had garnered even more attention then he thought it had, apparently, if even this stranger knew what had happened.

"C'mon now, you made a choice then and there. The question now is whether you're gonna wallow in it for the rest of your life, or get over it and make sure it doesn't happen to you or yours ever again."

[small]"Shut up..."[/small]

The boy's response was quiet, hardly anything more than a whisper. Even if it hadn't been raining, odds are the laid-back trainer wouldn't have picked up on it; with the relentless deluge, there was simply no way he could have possibly heard Matt's words.

"Now come on out of the rain, dude. You'll catch a-"

"SHUT UP!"

There was no way anyone could have missed that one, however, rain or no.

Panting, Matt stared at the stranger with wild, crazed eyes, his once empty expression thrown into complete and utter disarray. Sorrow, fear, relief, desperation, happiness, all were somehow present on the lad's face. It was as though he just couldn't figure out which emotion to show, and had settled on some bizarre mixture of all of them.

When he spoke, Matt's voice was thick, slow, and shaky. His words fell one by one, each and every syllable as heavy as a Snorlax. "Just, please... Shut up. I am so, so sick of everyone telling me what to do, of everyone else knowing exactly what I'm doing wrong at any given moment."

Unconsciously, the youth balled his hands up into fists, his fingernails pressing painfully into his palms, even with his gloves providing a couple layers of protection. "What makes you think that I need you to tell me what to do, huh? What makes you think that I need anyone, huh!? What gives you the right to... to... What gives you right to know how I should have acted!?"

There was a moment of silence before Matt continued, slower, but with just as much emotion. "It wasn't just some impulse decision, you know. I was fully aware of what I was doing; I knew what my actions would result in. And you know what? I would do it again.

"If you know what I did, then you probably know what the situation was, right? Just me and Jack, facing that- that monster. It could take out my team in one hit. One hit. Can you imagine that? Watching the Pokemon you've raised go down just like that, unable to even put up a fight? I... We couldn't win. There was just there no way.

"So I ran. Like a damn coward, with my tail between my legs. I ran, because if I had stayed, he would've taken them from me. He would've taken everyone I cared about."

Matt stared at the stranger with accusation and tears in his eyes. "You think you know what I should have done? You think you know what I did wrong? Fine. Tell me. Tell me that I should have stayed and fought an impossible battle. Tell me that I should have just stood by and let that monster tear apart the rest of my friends, one by one, without doing anything to help them. Tell me that I should have just let him take them. Tell me exactly what I should have done. Can you do that? Can you?"

 

[JdaS]

"You think you know what I should have done? You think you know what I did wrong? Fine. Tell me. Tell me that I should have stayed and fought an impossible battle. Tell me that I should have just stood by and let that monster tear apart the rest of my friends, one by one, without doing anything to help them. Tell me that I should have just let him take them. Tell me exactly what I should have done. Can you do that? Can you?"

As Matt stood there, desperately demanding an answer, the young man on the bench looks on, saddened for a spell before speaking up.

"You did the right thing."

Matt could only find one word to respond with: "...What?"

"You did the right thing. Neither you, nor your Pokémon were up to take on a threat like that. Some might say that other kid was braver, was right in staying, but that's just like, their opinion, man."

"But I... I..."

The wild frevor that had possessed the boy seemed to lessen, and he raised a golved hand to his forehead. "I... I know, I know. But..."

The mystery Trainer let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes for a second before speaking up:

"Lemme tell you a story. It's about this kid. Young, only about 12 years old. He sets out on this big adventure one day with nothing but the Cyndaquil a kind Professor gives him and a backpack full of dreams.

Everything is going smoothly enough until he gets involved in some shady stuff. Turns out there's this group of criminals, serious people, hurting Pokémon for a quick buck. Now, this kid is no coward, he's faced tough opponents before, this can't be that bad, right?

Wrong. He tries defeating the first bad guy, but this guy ain't playing around. Quickly, the kid notices his team isn't up for this and has to make a choice, fight or flight. What do you think he did?"

It didn't take a genius, or even an emotionally stable listener, to guess who the kid in the story was supposed to be. Granted, Matt may not have been the most worldly of trainers, but he was still capable of picking up on obvious hints.

Wait... Criminal organization? Typhlosion? Is he...

But there would be time to finish that thought later. For now, there was a question he had to answer. "I..." the boy began, pausing for a moment to gather his thoughts. Honestly, he wasn't sure which answer to give; had it been any other time he would have picked 'fight', but considering the tone of the story...

"He... He ran?"

The man smiled.


"No, he stayed. See he was brave. He was gonna be the Champ afterall, and Champs don't run. He won, too! After the leader of that operation was down, he ran out of that well as fast as he could. He felt invincible. Like nothing could stop him now. He went to the Pokécentre to get his friends healed. That's when it happened."

As he reached the glorious conclusion, the young Trainer's expression soured.

"One of his Pokémon died. He'd taken a SelfDestruct from a Koffing in full force, but even then, the kid thought he'd just fainted when he recalled him.

Nope. He was gone. The kid broke down. All of his previous confidence had vanished after that one sentence. If he had only backed off... Trained some more. Accepted his defeat that time and hit them hard the next... But it was too late, the damage had been done."

The man looked at Matt, dead serious.

"You did right by your Pokémon back there by ensuring their safety. Now do yourself and them a favor. Get rid of all those negative feelings inside you, train yourself and your friends well, and next time? Give those bastards hell!"

The boy just stood there, staring at his companion with a look of shock scrawled across his visage. That was... That had not been the ending he had expected. Not by a long shot.

Pokemon died, of course they did. They were mortal creatures, after all, just as susceptible to the ravages of time and illness as any other living thing. Not to mention the actions of some of the more carnivorous species... But a Pokemon dying in a battle, between trainers no less? Again, it happened, but the cases were incredibly rare. Going through that kind of tramua, feeling that kind of loss...

How was this man still standing there, with all of that strength?

"I-"

Matt wasn't sure what exactly he should say. He wasn't sure what he could say to a story like that. Offer his condolences? Tell the guy that he was strong? Pointless; what good would either of those do?

'Now do yourself and them a favor.'

Unbidden, a series of familiar images flashed through the youth's mind. A Cyndaquil sniffing curiously around its new home. A Pidgey roosting on his shoulder, its normally keen eyes half-shut. A Gastly frolicking about in the sunlight for the first time.

'Get rid of those negative feelings inside you.'

The heavy weight of the guilt in his gut was still there, Matt was painfully aware of that. He doubted that he'd ever manage to fully remove it, no matter how long or hard he apologized. But lessening it, even if just a little bit? ...Maybe he could do that.

'Train yourself and your friends well, and next time? Give those bastards hell!'

"...I guess that's really the only solution here, isn't it?"

Matt's voice, while certainly not smooth, was at least level. The surge of emotions that had filled his words had decreased dramatically; instead of an amalagation of hate, sorrow, and despair, they carried just the slightest bit of optimisim. "Train as hard as we can? ...Yeah, I think we can do that.

"Listen, I..." Biting his lip, the boy trailed off one last time. "Thank you. You have no idea how much I needed to hear that."

The man's Typhlosion decreased the heat slightly and let out a yawn as the downpour started losing strength.

"Heh. Don't mention it, man. *yawn* Would you look at the time... You really should go. No doubt that red haired stick in the mud expects you to be lined up in front of your inn at dawn..."

Suddenly, the scruffy Trainer's disposition took a turn to the serious.

"I really hope you'd join those other Trainers in helping us, Matt Seras. I have a good feeling about you."

With that, the man stood up and started walking away, Typhlosion in tow.

"See you around Matt!"

"S-see ya."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"First off, it was my pleasure Remy, being a trainer of a part fighting myself, I have a general idea of what moves to teach them; as for me personally, I don't have a particular type preference, much prefer a more diverse range. And as to what I think, I believe we should help Looker and the International Police in bringing justice to these villains. What they did to those Pokémon, its both objectionably and morally wrong, no one should twist the hearts and minds of Pokémon for their own diabolical ends. The sooner we put a stop to their plans the better. I say we prove Silver wrong."

Remy could feel the sheer confidence in every word Caleb had uttered in that sentence. It was good to hear, to be honest. He himself wasn't so sure this was a good idea, him, with his ragtag band of Pokémon, going against a big criminal organization like that...

"I figured you'd say that. I guess we'll find out who else shares our opinion come morning. That said, I think it'd be best if we got some shut eye."

Remy shook Caleb's hand firmly as he wished him good night.

"Good to have you on the "team", Mr. Grey, sleep well."

With that he and Zangoose took their leave, ascending to Remy's room. Primeape was fast asleep on his hammock, snoring like a jackhammer. Sneasel had made himself comfortable on the pillow next to Remy's, while Tentacool slept in the bathtub.
Remy didn't waste time taking off more than his boots and jacket, while Zangoose laid down at the end of the bed.

"Night guys. Tomorrow's gonna be the start of something big."

Remy was right. Starting tomorrow, the lives of this group of Trainers who'd all met completely by accident, would never be the same...

 

[Pappytech]

The downpour seemed to be lessening as Matt made his way back to the inn. What had once been an absolute deluge was now nothing more than a light pattering, and, with the addition of some fully functioning street lights, the night (or early morning, technically) seemed to be a whole lot brighter.

The trainer walked through the almost slumbering Goldenrod, his arms swaying slightly by his sides. It would be a lie to say that he had a spring in his step, but he walked with purpose and a clear destination in mind. Quite the improvement over his previous state, if nothing else.

The Sleeping Sunkern's lobby was all but deserted when Matt finally stepped in out of the rain. There was only the old woman behind the desk to greet him, and it looked like even she had dozed off a while back. Moving quietly, the youth headed up the stairs to his room, carefully and quietly opening and closing the door. He didn't want to wake anyone up, after all.

There were a few flashes of light, and Matt's team were corporal once more. Though his hands were trembling with exhaustion, the boy still did his best to lay out a few bowls of food and impart a few words to his Pokemon before drunkenly struggling to his bed. Odds were he'd be getting hell from his companions tomorrow, but maybe, just maybe... He could handle it.

 

[Redryhno]

Darius and his pokemon stayed at the table long after the rest of the Sunkern's tenants left for bed. Despite their earlier exertions, Daffy and Knuckles apparently still had energy to talk, goof around with each other, and generally make themselves little nuisances as he sat there just thinking about nothing in particular.

The Kanto breeder waited as long as he could for Matt's return from the storm outside. His pipe was refilled at least half a dozen times, the smoke filling the hotel so much he was forced to open a window, which caused a small commotion from Whismur as the wet, cold wind blasted her, causing the Whisper Pokemon to over-balance and fall off the table she was perched upon. Refusing help up from Darius, she stamped over to Numel and leaned her back against his warm hump. Numel simply continued staring at the flames of the fire as they continually died down as the night wore on. Eventually the clouds began parting, and although it was still raining somewhat heavily, Darius could see the moon on its downward path. Deciding to call it quits for the night, hoping the best for their wayward friend, he gathered his pokemon together and ushered them up the stairs.

Although Whismur refused to move from her place in front of the fire, Numel abandoned her once he smelled the pokeblock Darius pulled from his pack. After pursing his lips and standing at the doorway dumbstruck, Darius shook his head and went to his room. Daffy, Knuckles, and after a moment of study, Numel, all fell asleep. Daffy went back into the closet, Knuckles beneath the bed, and the Camel-like pokemon in the middle of the room, eyes still as open as they ever were.

Peeling off his sweat-and-dirt-stained pink shirt, Darius threw his clothing to the ground, too tired to care where it landed before dropping to the bed, falling asleep before his head finished bouncing on the pillow.

 

[Shakomaru]

"Skor..."

"Ow!"

Tom had gotten off to his usual chatty self with the rest of the group. This didn't sit too well with the rest of his team. Aeolus had gotten a glazed look over his eyes, Kalmia was curled up and snoring flames, and you could barely distinguish Trapic from the rock he had been revived from. Kusari decided to pinch Tom again, just to make sure.

"Oww... Ok ok. Well guys, the Team's getting kinda tired, so I think we'll turn in for the night. Night all!"

Tom Recalled his three zonked out teammates, and climbed the stairs to his room, where he released them all again. Kusari jumped off of his shoulder and curled up on the bedside table, Aeolus flopped down onto the floor, and Tom Made sure to first put the food out of reach, and then drifted off into his well-earned sleep.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"I figured you'd say that. I guess we'll find out who else shares our opinion come morning. That said, I think it'd be best if we got some shut eye." Remy said with confidence as he and Caleb shook hands firmly. "Good to have you on the "team", Mr. Grey, sleep well." He then added before heading up the stairs.

"And a goodnight to you as well Remy. Tomorrow is going to be the start of something amazing. I just know it." Caleb said with a confident smile. A few seconds later, he let out a yawn, signalling that he as well should be getting some sleep as well. Climbing up the stairs, he could see that apart from the innkeeper, who looked like she had just fallen asleep herself, and his own team that were sitting by the fire, the lobby was empty.

"Come on guys, best we be getting some sleep now. Need to be wide awake for whats going to happen tomorrow." Caleb said quietly, as Raphael, Raiden, and Sebastian followed him up to their room.

Upon arrival, he let out both Angelique and Auron, with the Flying type clambering up to the wicker chair she had been using as a nest the previous, and was already asleep. Raiden and Sebastian sauntered over to the foot of Caleb's bed, got themselves comfortable, with Sebastian nestled amongst Raiden's fur, and then went to sleep themselves. Raphael sat down in a meditating position, and was soon asleep. All that was left now was Auron, who looked confused.

Ra Ralts? Auron asked as he looked up at Caleb.

"Ah, I see, you don't know where to sleep do you?"

Ral Ral. Auron said as he nodded. Caleb meanwhile had taken off his coat, tie, and sword, hanging them up on the hooks behind the door. His shoes meanwhile, he put them on a spare chair with a towel underneath to dry off from the rain. He then began to think on an answer to the question.

"Hmm. How about you sleep with Raiden and Sebastian for this first night. I'm sure they wouldn't mind. Anyway, goodnight Auron, it is a pleasure to have you on the team, we'll have lots of fun together." Caleb said as he climbed into bed, and fell fast asleep. Auron meanwhile, walked over to Sebastian, and sat down next to him. The little psychic type thought he could hear a small squeak coming from the Eevee as he soon drifted off into slumber.

 

[Anayna]

"Haunter... d-don't make me come out there."

Standing in the open windowsill with one hand holding onto the wall, the other reaching out into the rain and with Hoothoot once again plastered to the side of his head, Rupert wasn't very comfortable with the situation. Haunter was still outside, floating just outside of his trainer's reach. Letting the two out for some fresh air (and some private time away from them) was simple enough, but getting them back in proved somewhat more difficult. Upon reflection, leaving the easily spooked Hoothoot alone with Haunter had been a monumentally dumb decision. Haunter had of course sprung onto the opportunity to scare the daylight out of an impressionable Normal-type half his level.

"Seriously though, pea soup? You covered her in pea soup? W-where did you even find...?"

"Hau hau hau haunter!"

The pouring rain had washed most of it off, but somehow Haunter had drenched the poor Flying-type in the distinctly vomit-like substance. A thick trail of it was snaking down Rupert's head where Hoothoot held onto him. Somewhere in Goldenrod a kitchen was missing its soup. Sigh. Should have never let him see that horror film.

"H-h-h-h-h-hoo... h-hoo..."

"I-It's gonna be okay, girl. We'll wash that stuff right off - don't worry. Haunter, are you coming in or not?"

Even as he posed the question Rupert flailed with his one arm at the Ghost-type who in turn only floated a few inches further away, guffawing in joy all the while. Haunter was well aware that his trainer had a healthy fear of heights and found the whole situation hilarious. This was futile. The only thing Rupert was going to catch here was a cold. Though to be fair the rain was slowly diminishing. One could almost make out more than just a wet, blurry silhouette of the city now.

Speaking of, Rupert's eyes couldn't help but be drawn downward as he noticed a lone figure approaching the inn. Was that... was that Matt? Rupert was immensely relieved to see the Johto trainer alive and well. The last Rupert had seen of him was when he stormed out of the stadium just after Silver entered the scene. Guess the others were right when they said that he'd be back.
Still, there was a something off about him. There was a certain... gravity to his footfalls that Rupert hadn't seen before in the timid trainer. There was almost something downright majestic about the way the young trainer strode through the deluge determinedly. The Kanto trainer couldn't be sure (heck, they had barely spoken to each other before), but he thought that Matt might already have taken a decision regarding Looker's mission.

"HAUNT!"

"AAAAAHH!"

Rupert was smacked out of his thought process and onto his back as Haunter flew right up to his face and made a grimace so exaggerated no solid flesh could replicate it. From there he continued on into the room and faded into a dark corner with a snicker. No doubt he had felt a tad insulted at being ignored when he was up to his antics. Rupert merely lay perfectly quiet on the floor for another minute, commanding his frantically beating heart to be still and silently cursing Haunter. Finally, he got back up and, still with a wide eyed Hoothoot stuck to his head, proceeded on to the bathroom where he brushed his teeth, got rid of his drenched clothes and cleaned the last goop off of the Flying-type.
Big day tomorrow.

 

[JdaS]

And with that, everyone was sound asleep. The city itself would still remain quiet for a couple more hours, before dawn woke the first denizens up into their daily chores. Not all Trainers were fast asleep, however.

In the dark hallway of the floor where Rupert's room was situated, a young man, carrying a heavy bag quietly slid a letter underneath Rupert's door. He stared into space for a moment, before wiping off the tears from his eyes. He then whispered:

"C'mon Mightyena. Let's go..."

Spoiler: To Rupert & the others

Hey lads (and lasses). If you're reading this, then I'm probably halfway to Olivine City to catch the first ship to Sinnoh.
I'm not going to try and give excuses here, I'm weak. All of you have these great big teams of powerful Pokémon, and while I'd trust Mightyena with my life, this is too big for two farm boys like us. In that battle at the stadium, we lost. Mightyena was still reeling from our loss against that breeder lad, and his confidence wasn't at an all time high. If it hadn't been for that red-haired lad and his Magneton, I would've lost him. It's not a risk I'm willing to take a second time...

If you ever pass by Solaceon Town, my farm will always be open for you.

I'm sorry.

Ryan.

PS. It was nice to meet you Rupert. Thanks for helping me navigate this crazy city. If you decide to stay and you fight those guys again, give 'em a good whooping for me too.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A few miles North from Mahogany Town, Eres trudged through the Lake of Rage's thick forest, before stopping at a clearing. He then pulled out a PokéGear and dialed a number on it.

*Beeep*
*Beeeeeep*

"...Yes?" a soft, almost drowsy female voice answered.

"It is me, Eres."

"...I heard of your failure... I am not amused."

"My apologies, Mistress. There were... Some unforeseen complications."

"Yes... Anton informed me of as much. Said a... 'group of children gave you a run for your money'?"

Anton? That no good two timing son of a... "That is not the case, those uppity kids would've gotten theirs if that prick, Silver hadn't come into the equation! Why didn't Stein foresee this? Where the hell was Dante? Isn't he supposed to take care of these bas--"

"ENOUGH!! I did not request your excuses, Eres. Do not defer your failures to other, more competent members of this organization."

"Ghhh... Y-yes Mistress, I'm sorry." Eres took a look at his surroundings before continuing.

"I had to retreat and came out somewhere near Mahogany Town. I'll find Anthony and continue our plan for Joht-"

"You. Will do no such thing."

"Eh?"

"I've given that assignment to Anton. He's proven himself quite capable and no longer answers to you. You and Anthony are to return to me by tomorrow. The International Police is scurrying around us quite diligently as of late. Some people need to disappear and I need you two to do it. Have I made myself clear?"

"...Yes... Mistress..."

"Now come on back dear. It is time we put our true plans in motion and finally realize my goal. Ahhahahahahhhaha!"

END OF CHAPTER I

 

[JdaS]

CHAPTER II: East & West


Snnnnnnneeeeeeeeeaaaah!!

Sneasel yawned as he lazily lay perched on Remy's shoulder as he made his way downstairs, where Susanne and Granny Kerner were already busy putting breakfast on the tables. Noticing the Sinnoh native, Susanne smiled and invited him in.

"Mornin' Remy! Breakfast is almost ready. Heroes like you're gonna need a hearty meal for what you've got ahead of you!"

That was odd. Susanne was never this friendly. Maybe the heroics were working.

Could it be???

Remy rushed towards Susanne in a vicious hurricane of pure love.

"My chére! At last our hearts meet!! I am but a stray leaf in the TYPHOON OF LOVE!!! Please, do take me into your loving embrUGHOOOOGH!!!!!!"

Remy was wrong (as he usually tends to be), and the sizzling hot frying pan Susanne had used to block the would-be Don Juan's advances was all the proof he needed. Heartbroken and sobbing, he took his burns to Sneasel, who proceeded to fix them with his icy breath.

"Oh well, might as well check my mail." He said, no worse for wear and making his way to the PC in the lobby. He logged in and clicked on "Mail".

"Oooh, new mail! Silversong Daycare? Hmmm... Blabla, order, blah, requested Pokémon specs... Bahblah... OH! OHOHOH! Sneasel! We got it!"

Sneasel?

"The Sneasel egg I'd commissioned from that cute girl at the Daycare next to the city! It's there! Waiting for us! We're gonna get you a friend, buddy!"

Sneasel jumped up and down in joy at the prospect of a "little brother" joining the gang. That's when Looker and Silver entered the inn. Sneasel stopped right away and clambered up to his Trainer's shoulder. Silver intimidated the Dark-type for some reason. Looker looked at Remy and spoke up:

"Ah, Mr. Olivier. It seems you are the first to awaken. I assume your presence signals willingness to participate in our efforts then?"

"You'd be right, sir. We were getting kind of stagnant in this city anyway. And this seems important. We wanna help."

Remy looked at Silver. The veteran Trainer merely scoffed and looked elsewhere. Looker, on the other hand, smiled and nodded, motioning Remy to join them in the dining room.

"Very well. Come then, into the dining area. Once the others arrive, we shall partake in some breakfast and then discuss our findings. And the plan."

 

[Shakomaru]

"Oh Tom" Ada whispered. "You're just so perfect!" "Wow, thanks Ada, You're pretty amazing too!" Tom was blushing heavily, and seemed to grow as red as a Charmeleon as she leaned in for a kiss. "But um.. Ada, are you... Always this heavy?"

GATOR!!

Tom's eyes snapped open to see Aeolus sitting on top of him, nearly eye-to-eye with his trainer.

"AAAAAH!"

Seeing that His trainer was awake, the Feraligatr plopped off of the bed and back onto the floor.

"Geez Aeolus, Don't do that! You scared me half to death!"

"Skor..."

"What, did all of you wake up before me?"

"Doom. Houndoom.

"DonDon!"

"Wow.. I was pretty tired out then I guess... Lets go get some food then?"

Jubilantly agreeing to their trainer's suggestion, Tom's team followed him downstairs to the dining hall, where only Remy was sitting. They did pass by Looker and Silver, but judging from the look on the redhead's face, Tom decided that maybe it would be a bad idea to ask for an autograph. He sat down at the same table as Remy with a cheerful "Hello!"

Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to get to know the others a little better... Who knows, maybe we could share some tips!

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Eeeeeveeeeee!! Sebastian yawned as he removed his tail from in front of him, only to spot the new Pokémon, Ralts sitting/standing in front of him, its still soundly asleep with its visible eye still shut. He turned around to notice that the morning sun was slowly rising in the sky, and remembered that his trainer needed to be up an early to be at a meeting with the other humans who were staying here, along with two others that had been here the previous night. Using the still sleeping Raiden to gain some height, Sebastian climbed onto the bed, and sat next to his trainer, and let out a short bark.

Eeeveee! This caused all the others to awake. Raphael suddenly sprung up and brought his arms into a fighting pose, but lowered his guard once he saw what the cause was. Angelique's wings were all a flutter as she became spooked from the disturbance, and tossed an annoyed look at the Normal type when she saw what the problem was; she then flew over and perched herself at the bottom of Caleb's bed.

Rayyy... rai ray Raiden growled as he began to stir from slumber, before shaking himself awake with a few shocks. Sensing a commotion, Auron soon awoke, gently shaking itself awake. Finally, their sleeping trainer couldn't sleep any longer, as he suddenly rose up from out of bed, with a yawn.

"Morning everyone. I trust you all slept well?" Caleb asked, putting a hand over his face to cover up the yawn. All of his team nodded to say yes. He then looked at the clock that was up on the wall, noticing that the time was around 8:00AM.

"Well, I am very glad to hear that. We best get ready for the big day ahead. Let me just make myself more presentable, then we'll head downstairs." Caleb then proceeded to climb out of bed, grab some clothes, and got washed and dressed in the small bathroom attached to the room. A few minutes, he came out looking fresh and new, ready to tackle this big challenge before them. He gathered up his things and headed downstairs, his team following beside him.

"Best I give my family back home a call, no doubt their worried about me after yesterday's events. I should have time to contact them before the meeting with Looker and Silver." Caleb said as he arrived at the video phone, and tapped in the number before letting it ring.

Spoiler: --- Meanwhile In Hoenn - Grey Residence ---

It was the early hours of the morning and the Grey family were getting ready to settle down and eat some breakfast, when the video phone in the kitchen began to ring.

"I'll get it." A mature, female voice called out, Caleb's mother Amelia to be exact as she went over to pick up the phone, and was shocked to see Caleb on the other end.

"Hello mother,-" Was all he could say before his mother burst into a small fit of tears. Both Caleb's father Evan and younger sister Ciel soon joined his overjoyed mother.

"Oh Caleb darling, its so good to see that your out of that arena. We were worried sick yesterday when we saw what was going. Are you hurt? Did those hoodlums do anything to you?" Amelia asked as the tears slowly began to stop.

"On the contrary mother, I gave some of those hoodlums a damn good seeing too; thats to say, me and my team did. Speaking of which, I got a brand new addition to the team. Come on out Auron!" Caleb said, as Auron soon appeared on Caleb's shoulder. At the sight of the little psychic type, Ciel's eyes lit up with joy.

"Oh my god, that is so CUTE!" She said with a wide smile, the look of which caused Auron to hide behind Caleb.

"Easy there Ciel, Auron is still sort of new to seeing people. Think you might have given him a bit of a shock."

"Oh, sorry Auron." Ciel's cheeks blushed, which cause Auron to stand once more in front, gave the excitable human a friendly enough wave.

"There is a reason as to why I called." Caleb said nervously, which his father picked up on.

"What seems to be the matter son?"

"Thing is, its connected to the attack on the arena yesterday, I've decided to offer my services to the International Police, in helping out rooting out these hoodlums, and putting an end to their schemes. Guess my journey has taken an interesting turn, has it not? Never would have thought I would be doing something like this."

"I see." Evan said. "Well then, it appears that your journey has become more important. Nevertheless, we will still support you in anyway we can. And if you happen to be in Hoenn whilst on your mission, do visit home, we'd love to see you face to face, see how stronger you've become."

"Of course father, I shall try to, if my journey points me homeward. I best be going now, we'll be having a meeting to discuss the overall plan. I hope to see you soon."

"As do we my boy." Said Evan with a smile.

"Travel safe Caleb, take good care of your Pokemon." Said Amelia.

"Hope to see you soon big brother. Take care of that Auron, he's so cute." Finally said Ciel, before the call went dead, and an image of a Pokeball appeared on screen.

Caleb breathed a sigh of relief, happy that his family were okay with the situation. He then straightened himself up, and lead his team into the dining room, and saw that breakfast was already being served. Off to one table at the side, he could see both Looker and Silver in talks with one another. The Hoenn native had no desire to speak with Silver for the moment, the words of last night still stung a little. He saw that both Remy and Tom was there also, and took a seat at their table, and poured himself a fresh cup of coffee.

"Morning you two. Get a good nights rest?"

 

[CJ1145]

Chk--hssssssssssssssssss

"Oh, GOD yes!"

For the first time in what had to be days, Daria felt the sensation of hot water on her skin. A shower was a luxury to a Pokemon trainer, and with the knob labeled "H" twisted as far as possible, the young woman intended to wring every ounce of enjoyment from it. Just feeling the water work its way down was enough to melt away the stress. She grabbed the complimentary soap from its little alcove and started scrubbing all the scrapes, bruises and gashes she'd managed to collect over the last few days. It wasn't exactly pleasant, but it was certainly a relief.

Kind of a wonder none of this has gotten infected, come to think of it...

[hr]

Nearly a full half hour later, the sun already beginning to rise over the horizon, she stepped out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel, looking utterly serene. Only Jet was in the room, meditating in the corner. Spiegel, Slagger and Gemini were all present, but had moved into their Pokeballs in preparation for any traveling they'd be doing today. It was best, in their experience, to only keep one Pokemon out at a time outside of special occasions. It tended to get... hectic, otherwise. Her Hitmonlee gave Daria a quiet nod, acknowledging her presence before turning around, opting to spend the rest of his meditation facing the wall while she dressed.

The trainer tossed off her towel, going through her bag as she idly selected an outfit. She wound up in a pair of jeans that were older than her, hand-me-downs from her father and had lost their blue color as a result, settling somewhere around gray. On top, a navy blue t-shirt with the logo for the Indigo League emblazoned on the left side. She let her hair hang so long as it was still wet, and clasped her belt around her waist, Pokeballs ready to toss. Stepping out the door, she waved for Jet to follow her downstairs.

Daria sauntered in with a hearty grin, slamming herself down into a chair, grinning at everyone that had already made it.

"Mornin', everybody! Snow Boy, Tom, Sword Guy, Looker..." She paused as she got to Silver, eyes darting up and down his body as she took in his appearance with a puzzled expression. "Uh... I don't think I remember you. What was your name again?"

Clearly she'd been hit harder on the head than anyone had realized. Jet slouched against the wall, quietly shaking his head.

 

[Redryhno]

Darius woke to the pinpoint accuracy of the sun bright in his face. How it was always like that, he had no idea, but it often annoyed him to wake up like that. His clothes from the day before strewn about the room, he tripped over Numel, who was hidden and still sleeping from beneath the pink shirt. He continued sleeping, even though his trainer/breeder fell face-first into the floor.

A muffled, but still very coherent giggle came from under his bed,"Slaaaaaaaaa-aaaaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa-ssssshhh". The Sandslash did what he could to cover his face with his claws, but somehow continued to do nothing but poke himself in the eye, which elicited a chuckle from Darius, still spread across most of the room, a single leg branched over Numel(who somehow, was still asleep, despite the whole ordeal.)

"Psy?"

Knuckles scrambled out from beneath the bed while Darius stood. Throughout the already eventful morning, the two had failed to notice the sound of water running, and the steam escaping from the door to the bathroom, which Daffy had just walked out of, a towel many sizes too big wrapped around his still sopping body. Dropping the towel to the ground, he simply looked at the three of them, walked to the door out, and left the two, Darius sans clothing of any sort.

Now it was Darius' turn to scramble as he leaped across the room to the door, slamming it shut - as far as he knew - before anyone of the other guests happened by. With that matter settled, he walked into the shower, which was still running, and began to quickly bathe. The water was scalding, and no wonder, seeing as Daffy had failed to turn the cold water on at all. This of course elicited a pained screech once the water pelted certain parts

After the incident that would now be known as the Shower Scream Heard 'Round the Sunkern, Darius dressed, paying special attention to the more tender parts of his body from the recent showering. He packed his dirtied clothes into the part of his pack he kept them in, and retrieved new ones. Today the world would see him in jeans and a white t-shirt, which was tucked into the pants and a second shirt put on over it, this one short-sleeved, gray, with the Boulder badge stitched on the back. He kept it unbuttoned and put his mismatched socks into his boots, one all the colors of known Eeveelutions, the other plain black. His normal amenities he put into his pockets, and packed everything up, he had a feeling they'd be leaving today. Finally, he clipped on his pokeball belt. With all that done, he set out the door after attempting to wake Numel up - which was to no avail - and left him standing in the middle of the room, still seemingly asleep.
[hr]

Meanwhile downstairs, Daffy had already made himself, if not useful, certainly memorable by standing atop a table and dancing. Badly. Upon seeing Darius, a startled squawk followed by a short trip to the ground, towel still clutched in his hands. Wrapping it around himself and walking to Knuckles, he stared up at the larger Pokemon and threw the towel over his head.

"Psyduck!!"

"Sandslash!"

The two began a small chase around the dining area, which abruptly ended with Darius planting himself right in their way, causing Daffy to slide on the floor into him, and Knuckles to stop and stare up at him curiously.

"Now if you two can't play quietly, I'll have to send you both back into the pokeball." His words were cheery, but carried a somewhat haunting undertone, something that was somewhat lost in the effect what with all the patches of reddened skin that covered his body.

Both visibly and audibly gulped, Daffy's much more pronounced from his years of experience and talent with pantomime. Sticking his pipe between his teeth again, he lit it and sat down at the occupied table.

"Uh... I don't think I remember you. What was your name again?"

"Silver I think, Giovanni's - you know, the Rocket one? - son, if I remember the rumors. How ya doing? You tried drowning me yesterday. Unfortunately, you aren't the first."

Darius extended his hand to the officer, the other hand clamped around his pipe.

 

[Anayna]

Rupert's morning was not a particularly pleasant one. It was marred by several disagreeable events. He had scrambled out of bed when he was woken up by what sounded like a banshee. Granted, this banshee had an unusually deep voice, but it still managed to evoke bad memories of the ghosts of Lavender Town. It was only when the screaming devolved into very graphic swears that Rupert's sleep addled brain concluded that there were no apparitions out to get him here. The team had evidently not been woken up by neither Darius' exclamations nor Rupert's stomping as their soft snores could be heard throughout the room. The sole exception was Pineco by virtue of already having been up for the better part of an hour, simply standing at attention at the foot of the bed.
Rupert rewarded him by nearly tripping over him.

"Woah! Oh, m-morning, Pineco. Did you hear... n-never mind. S-sorry about that. You're an early bird, huh?"

"Pin."

If Pineco was fazed by nearly being trodden on he didn't show it, and merely stood up at bit straighter. He was wide awake and alert, ready for orders from his trainer.

"Heh. Well, prepare to be the odd duck out then. Cubone likes his sleep and Haunter's sleep pattern is erratic at best. Huh. Hoothoot is still asleep too. I guess she's nocturnal by nature. I hope she doesn't have too much trouble altering her sleep schedule."

The second disagreeable event to strike young Rupert this morning was finding a complete stranger in the bathroom mirror. He looked awful. Rupert wasn't used to much excitement, but these last few days had really taken their toll on him. What really shocked him wasn't his haggard look though; it was the enormous blue bruise that adorned his abdomen. He hadn't noticed it last night what with the darkness and being so tired and... stuff with Cubone, but it was very prominent and...

"Ouch!"

... pretty sore. For a minute Rupert couldn't quite remember how he had gotten it. So much had happened in such a short span of time. That's when he recalled how he had caught Pineco.

"Oh, right. You used a Tackle on me. Well, I kinda got in the way to be fair... Man, you can really hit hard when you want to, Pineco."

"Cooooooh."

Pineco just stared at the result of his handiwork. The Bagworm Pokémon looked almost a little proud. Rupert tried to get through the morning rituals fast after this. He needed to see Looker soon. After dressing (gingerly due to the bruise) and returning Pineco to his pokéball he left the rest of the still sleeping team in the room. They deserved their rest, and Cubone in particular needed it. It was only when he opened the door that Rupert noticed the letter that he had stepped on.

Thoroughly confused as to who could have left it Rupert opened it and read through it. Then he closed the door and decided to let himself fall against it.

Damn it, Ryan. Whaddaya mean you're "weak"? You're stronger than me. You've turned tail and fled for Mightyena. I nearly did the same, but for no one but myself. How is it that I'm going on this mission and someone like you isn't? Has nothing to do with strength. Even now, I'm not going out of bravery. I'm going because I'm scared. I'm scared to think what a wretch I am if I don't. I need this.

I'm gonna miss you.

When Rupert stepped into the dining area he might as well have been walking around with a cartoon raincloud hanging over his head for how jolly he was. Not even Daffy's antics fazed him. He muttered some low 'good mornings' to whomever cared to listen, and awkwardly sat down among the others.

 

[Pappytech]

[hr]

Slowly and quietly, Matt slid into the dining room. If all of the hustle and bustle was anything to go by, that was where everyone was meeting. Besides, he needed to get something in his gut; skipping dinner last night had not been the best decision.

The conversation spilling forth from the other trainers and officers masked the boy's already silent footsteps as he haltingly made his way towards one of the room's far corners, a fair distance away from the other, more occupied tables. Making a conscious effort to avoid eye-contact with anyone, but especially Silver, Matt began to poke at his cereal, chewing each bland mouthful into a thick paste before finally gulping it down.

Even so isolated from everybody else, the young still trainer still felt exposed, naked almost. A faint tinge of crimson began to flow into his cheeks as he instinctively reached towards his brow, only to stop his hand halfway through the motion. He really needed to get a new hat, and soon...

 

[CJ1145]

Any isolation Matt might've intended to find for himself was shattered into so many pieces when he accidentally locked eyes with Daria. Her eyes instantly lit up recognizing the kid, and in a flash of movement that nobody in the room caught, he was in the seat next to him with an arm around his shoulder. Her blissfully ignorant grin would have painful to Jet if he weren't so used to being around her.

"Hey, Matt! Haven't seen ya since the arena, everybody was worried sick! Where've ya been?"

Daria was oblivious, but even she couldn't miss the uncomfortable look on his face. Puzzled, she asked "And what's with the long face? We won! Or did ya miss that part?"

In a moment of consideration, it occurred to her that he might not be familiar with their newest guest. She pointed him out and mentioned, "Probably haven't met. Matt, this is... is... Looker's partner."

She'd forgotten his name again. Jet turned to Silver and gave a half-shrug. An apology of sorts.