Pieces of Summer Color

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

OOC: Well, until Katsuo gets the main plot going a bit forwards, here's some Moar Willow Shenanigans.

BIC:

The vine screen door to the Eterna gym battleground burst open, and the feeling of the foyer's floor and carpet under the girl's feet soon gave in to the feeling of earth and grass. She took in the scent of the flowers and sighed contently. Eterna City's gym was her home away from home and she couldn't think of a better place to be.

Eterna Gym was a large building which resembled, at its most basic level, a strange cross between a greenhouse and a stadium. From the outside, the walls were overgrown with climbing vines which filtered some of the light that passed into it through panels of reinforced glass — some of them appeared to be older than the building itself was — evidence of growth boosted by grass-type PokéMon.

Walking into the gym would send you into a short foyer which led directly to the battleground. The battleground itself was a marvelous sight — a strange cross of a forest and a meadow. Blankets of flowers and grass surrounded the clearing that was set to be used as the gym's battle arena. Much like a real forest, the battleground teemed with life — grass-types of various sorts roamed the trees and the flowers — some belonging to Gardenia, others belonging to some of the gym's junior trainers. In the outer perimeter of the room there were the typical spectator seats, broken into segments by occasional trees that almost seemed to work as support pillars. In areas where visibility would be disturbed by plants, there were screens that seemed to have been intergrown into the plants, hiding away any trace of plastic and metal. It was a work of real beauty and that is how the denizens of the gym — both human and PokéMon - liked it.

The Breloom, too, seemed to have transformed — it was as if the energetic, fierce, battle-happy mushroom creature was basking in the air of serenity the gym seemed to generate. Kidachi was strange like that - even years ago, when she was a Shroomish, she was an energetic creature - almost a little hyper - with a fighting spirit that could move mountains. But all that melted away when she was surrounded by nature, unless something got her excited. This time, though, there was little that could get her too excited — her adrenaline rush from the battle was starting to fade, and the effects of the poison still coursing through her body, though harmless to her on the long run, was still tiring. She needed a good rest.

"Alright, Kida. Regen time." Willow grinned, returning the Breloom into her PokéBall and crossing the battleground to a doorway on the other side of the field, nestled in an arch of intergrown tree branches, entering the gym's residential wing. A Cell Regeneration Unit, similar to the one found in PokéMon Centers, stood by the entrance, it itself surrounded by roots and branches, leaving only its functional parts and assorted airways open. With a grin, the girl placed Kidachi's PokéBall on the device's tray and activated the sequence. A protective cover slid over the tray and it was swallowed into the machine. There was a sequence of light flashes inside the machine that lasted a little while, and then, the tray emerged from the machine, protective cover sliding away, allowing the girl to take the PokéBall back.

"Good as new." She smiled "And now it's about time I regenerated myself."

~*~

The arch lead into a large common room - a living room of sorts which also had a kitchen built into it. The common room's décor resembled, for the most part, a modernized log cabin, with large windows semi-covered with deep, forest-green curtains, and many potted plants and crystal geodes strewn about. There was a soft, dark green carpet on the hardwood floor and a fireplace that stood unused. Willow always found it quite lovely — she had an appreciation for the almost rustic feel of the room — and the potted plants always made her smile — some of the species reminded her of her hometown of Rustboro, in Hoenn, and the vast expanses of Petalburg forest. As much as she loved Eterna Forest, it just wasn't the same to her.

She left the common room into the corridor that led to the other rooms — some were storage rooms, others were control rooms for the gym's assorted climate control systems and the others served as studies and bedrooms for the gym's staff and junior trainers who weren't native to Eterna. Most of the time, there weren't many of those - and so most of the rooms remained unoccupied.

Willow found her room very quickly — she's been living in the gym for quite a while now, working as one of Gardenia's assistants. Judging matches, testing the mettle of trainers who would challenge the leader — just your run-of-the-mill gym duties. Having always been energetic and an early riser, she tended to head out of the gym in the morning to do some of her own training with her PokéMon. For, you see, Willow's dream — ever since she was a young girl in Rustboro — was to someday be a gym leader, specializing in Grass-types. As she chose to limit herself to one type, she spent much time training her PokéMon to utilize their other skills — and dual-types — to increase their power and diversity. Her morning sparring with Kidachi was one of these things: focusing the Breloom's Fighting-Type powers, as opposed to just the power of her Grass-Type moves. She sparred with her Breloom herself because, for one, she believed that one should train themselves just as much as their PokéMon. Also, she had a certain passion for the adrenaline rush she got from it.

Now that the rush faded, though, she was realizing how she needs to relax her muscles and wash off all the sweat, grass and dirt that covered her after this little exercise. She slashed her key card into her door, and the door clicked open, allowing her entrance into her room.

The room itself was rather standard — not large, but not small either. It had a wardrobe, a desk, shelves, drawers, a chair and a bed, all with a mahogany and forest green theme. The walls were a light mint green. There was a large window. Another door in one of the walls led to her personal bathroom. Stretching, the girl shed her outfit and tossed it into the combination washer/dryer/folder device that was more commonly seen in PokéMon Center rooms — Gardenia managed to acquire some of the devices for her gym. Being a gym leader had its perks.

Willow took a long shower, allowing the water jets to massage the tension out of her muscles. She emerged, stretched thoroughly, dried herself off with a towel and slipped back into her outfit that just finished its laundry cycle. As she emerged from her room into the common room, she wasn't surprised to find it occupied. Gardenia was there — judging by her damp hair and lack of headband and poncho, seemingly freshly awakened and out of a shower herself — and occupying herself with a glass of mint tea. Upon noticing Willow entering the room, the gym leader sent a pleasant smile in her direction.

"Good morning, Willow." She said "Had a good morning sparring session?"

"'Morning, Gardenia. Yeah, as much as can be expected. Your boyfriend sends his love." Willow smirked, eliciting a soft giggle from the leader. "In fact, I believe that his exact wording was that he 'loves you to pieces'."

"He would say something like that." Gardenia seemed to purr for a second before catching herself and blushing slightly. "So, think we'll have a lot of work ahead of us today?"

"Been a bit slow lately." Willow shrugged "Not that I mind, gives me some more time to focus on my own training… You know, those biotopes of yours are a brilliant idea. I don't think I've seen Tsuga this happy ever since she hatched."

"I'm always happy to hear about happy Grass-types." Gardenia seemed to come to life immediately at the mention of Tsuga, her eyes sparkling "And Tsuga looks so beautiful in the snow… I'm still curious to see her in the battlefield, I have a feeling she has a lot of potential."

"Oh, You'll get the chance soon enough." Willow grinned "Ready to start the day?"

"Oh yes." Gardenia grinned as she took the final sip of her mint tea, standing up and donning her headband, adjusting it slightly so it gave her two-colored hair that layered look that she sported normally. She grabbed her poncho off the hook on the wall she often hung it on when she entered the residential section, and threw it over herself, and stepped out of the Archway to the battleground, Willow in tow.

Eterna Gym was open for business.

 

[SineCosineTangent]

Pokecenters were such noisy places in the morning. Even the potential promise of breakfast didn't do much to sway Xyrem's annoyance. Never had she enjoyed the "most important meal of the day", as often enough she wasn't awake early enough for the joys of waffles or pancakes. She shook her head from the trail of reminiscing over past routines.

Times like these, the young girl found her brain all over the place. One minute, she imagined punching one of the small children running about. The next, she was pondering why exactly their parents were letting them free in a place where, at any second, their faces could be punched in by an angry trainer. After that, something about waffles and syrup. Then back to the fact that she hated mornings. Finally, after a few pangs of regret at leaving Oreburgh, Xyrem knew that something had to be done about the insane state of her brain.

"Y'know what? Forget that. I'm going out to find somewhere to meditate. My head is filled with way too much. I'll be taking ‘Vadumee with me. The rest can stay at the center," she ran her hand through her crimson hair, taking care to break a few knots along the way. Damn brushes never did their job. Without waiting for a response, she walked over to the main counter, and waited for Nurse Joy to stop reprimanding one of the children. ‘Finally, someone was doing something about it,' the young girl thought sarcastically. Unlike usual, she made no attempt to stop the cynicism from spreading across her face in a wry grin. After a few minutes, the nurse turned back to Xyrem, the same robotic smile as always pasted across her countenance.

"Hello, do you mind checking these five out?" The trainer pulled out the Pokeballs of most of her team, and placed them on the counter.

"Of course. They should be ready to be picked up within the hour," said the nurse, putting each into a nearby machine, which after receiving them became a conveyor belt, transporting her precious friends to places unknown. Xyrem blinked. Mornings made no sense. Ever.

The early morning Eterna sun enveloped Xyrem as she walked out the front entrance of the Pokecenter, shrouding her in a comfortable warmth. At this time in the morning, the scents in the air had mixed to create some odd hybrid of breakfast and plant life. The redhead shook the scent out of her head, stretched, and pulled out ‘Vadumee's Pokeball. With a quick click of a button, he was out, looking about the streets.

"Good morning, ‘Vadumee," Xyrem greeted, smiling up at her friend. The Blaziken nodded in return, and continued to examine his surroundings. Daytime Eterna was a lot more vibrant than the nighttime city she had entered before. It mostly consisted of beige buildings of brick and mortar, each decorated with towering, flowering vines that curled over the walls and around windows, giving the entire town an earthy, calm feel. Xyrem smiled. Oreburgh really wasn't a plant-friendly place- in fact, the only place she had seen this much greenery was in window boxes or small, personal gardens that some of the denizens of her apartment building kept. However, the vibrant expression of flora, even just what naturally grew on the brick, highly outshone anything that the mining town had grown. The redhead found that the natural beauty of the town was highly rejuvenating, and knew that meditation here would definitely clear out her frantic brain. With a small signal at ‘Vadumee, she began to walk through the streets.

Two of the major sights around Eterna were the statues of Space and Time, situated on a large, green hill just a little distance outside of the city proper. Supposedly, the area had an idyllic feel about it, as if the Legendaries that adorned the statues were keeping the area quiet and safe. To Xyrem, there was no better place to calm herself down. After a few minutes of walking, the concrete of the city sidewalks faded out to a dirt path. A small grove of trees popped up around it, filling the air with the scent of fauna. All around the trainer, the chirps of Starlys could be heard as they greeted the morning sun. As she walked, the path became more and more wooded, as if it was a signpost signaling the end of human civilization. In some parts of the mini forest, she postulated, were probably no different from night to day, in terms of light. Xyrem stopped walking for a second when she noticed that the following parts of the path had been reclaimed by vines and grass.

"Did we take a wrong turn or something? This area seems awfully… natural, I guess," mumbled Xyrem, turning to ‘Vadumee. He had been swatting some of the lower hanging vines out of his face as he walked, and looked down towards his trainer with relative annoyance, as if to reprimand her for having him go through all of the vines for nothing. Knowing she wouldn't get any other answer from the towering Pokemon, she shrugged and continued walking. ‘Vadumee sighed, almost losing confidence that the young girl knew where they were going. However, he put aside all doubt and continued after her, his claws drawn in front of him in order to tear down any plant life that attempted to cross his path. Fire types and grass of any kind never really got along all that well.

The path soon became a bit clearer as the vines curled back into the forest. Sunlight penetrated the upper canopy of the trees, making an oddly spotted pattern of light upon the floor. With a quick turn to ‘Vadumee to brag that she was right (which was accomplished with simply a look), Xyrem concentrated her eyesight on the upcoming break in the foliage. It was pretty damn bright for just a normal break.

Sure enough, the hill was in sight a few seconds later. It really was as beautiful as people claimed. The grass still held the slightest bit of morning dew, which Xyrem noticed sparkling off of the surface of her boots as she headed up the hill. ‘Vadumee was right behind her, picking strands of green out of his yellow-blonde feathers. He was glaring at a particularly long vine when Xyrem signaled him to stop moving. They were almost at the top of the hill, right behind the twin statues. In the shade provided by the mighty ruler of Time, Xyrem sat down and crossed her legs. ‘Vadumee found himself sitting in nearly the same way as his trainer, situated in the shadow of the ruler of Space. The young girl's eyes closed, and the process began.

When she had first learned how to meditate, she would often do so around water. It was easy to block out all opposing thoughts when one was able to focus on a specific sound. Perhaps it would suffice to say that, by focusing on every distinct stream of water, the mind could be quieted. These days, Xyrem didn't need a specific auditory stimulus in order to focus. In fact, sometimes silence worked the best. This day was like no other. At first, her brain refused to quiet down- in fact, it almost seemed to rebel against the idea of quieting at all, and threw even more thoughts into the mix. Her brain always tried this, and Xyrem had gotten used to it. She slowly worked on halting each process, focusing on the gentle chirps of Starlys and the near-silent sound of the wind flowing through the grass. Before long, the usual cacophony of thoughts and feelings in her mind had given way to a calming silence.

Now that her thoughts would no longer interlude, it came time to fully chart out the position of her body. ‘Vadumee, who had long before reached a state of inner quiet, quickly imitated her movements. She quietly extended her arms until they were fully parallel with the ground. In one slow, deliberate, somehow graceful movement, she brought her arms up until her hands were nearly touching above her head. Every sound became insanely clear as Xyrem brought the tips of her fingers together, focusing silently in order to make each one meet its match. As soon as her hands were neatly together above her head, she slowly brought her arms down so that her hands were back in front of her chest. She paused for a minute, taking in the sounds. The grass rustling the foliage and grass. Different Pokemon calls- mostly Burmys, Starlys, and Bidoofs, along with the occasional Cherubi. Distant sounds of civilization seemed all too close, as the gentle din of city life began to reach Xyrem's auditory centers. And, finally, much nearer to her, the gentlest scratch of pencil against paper. None of these sounds registered with any specific name or label- they just all filtered in, and quietly sat in the girl's brain for later sorting. A few more times, she brought her arms out and slowly let her fingers meet, sometimes above her head, sometimes behind her back, and at others directly in front of her. It was done as a body awareness exercise, and, after a few repetitions, it worked. After clearly seeing her own outline in her mind, it was all over.

All it took was ten minutes. During the cooler months, Xyrem had spent a good hour or more a day just letting the world around her pour into her brain from her ears. The hot summer sun often relegated the trainer to a simple half hour or so, and on days like this, she found herself opening her eyes much too early for her own liking. She turned to ‘Vadumee, who was still silently attuning his senses through awareness exercises. Silence prevailed among the two as the redhead waited for her friend to finish. A minute or so later, the Pokemon's eyes gently opened, and ‘Vadumee was visually back in the world. Xyrem turned to him and smiled. The noisy thought party in her mind had been effectively quieted to only one or two stray pieces. It was now that she began to process the previous ten minutes. Normal, normal, norm- well, that's an odd sound. Certainly not natural.

"Well, ‘Vadumee," she said, almost silently, "methinks we aren't alone." The Blaziken nodded, and Xyrem began to run multiple threat assessment routines in her head. The newly clear and calm space did wonders for her logical circuits, as within seconds she had determined that whatever it was probably had no harmful intentions towards her. The young girl stood up, and popped her ankle joints, dispelling any of the stiffness that the meditation might have caused. She walked out of the cool shade that the guardian of Time had provided her, and signaled 'Vadumee once more to follow.

At first, her plan was simply to head back to Eterna, and see what Dai had been up to in her absence. However, both her and 'Vadumee stopped short when they had walked out of the grace of the statues. Nearby on the hill stood a forest-green bipedal creature, the likes of which Xyrem had never seen before. It had a set of leafy wings spread out, almost as if it were soaking in the sunshine. Vines curled down from the back of its head, intertwining with one another and trailing down calmly upon its shoulders. Xyrem noted with interest how the vines that surrounded the creature's tail formed a double helix, a shape she had always been partial to. 'Vadumee was too busy staring down the crystal blades that grew along the creature's arms, wondering if they would pose any threat to him or Xyrem. Said trainer was more entranced by the morning light shining off the crystals that fanned out from the creature's tail. Truly a sight to behold, in her opinion. And so, the two of them stood there, in the morning light, staring at the marvelous creature.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

One of the first things he found out about Eterna City, when he just arrived there - before he even moved in on a more permanent basis - was that he really, really liked that hill.

The view from it was impressive, for one. Its relative out-of-the-wayness was also a factor. Something about it was just inspiring.

And currently, he was doing what he normally did when he felt inspiration hit him. He was sitting, leaning against the statue of the legendary lord of time, and attacking his sketchbook.

It was a hardcover sketchbook, with a forest green binding which had a golden leafy frame. It was currently about half-full - he haven't been drawing as much lately - but after this morning's battle, his creative juices seemed to be flowing at a hyper pace.
He paused for a moment, pondering the exact angle the limb on the creature he was currently drawing (and at the same time, wondering vaguely what creative juices were, what glands secreted them, and what was the exact molecular composition of creativity) - when he felt the slightest shift - a presence of sorts was nearby.

He shoot a look to the Wisteriark, and the creature did a slight twist of its tail vines - only subtly - to inform the trainer his hunch was correct - and that she sensed a presence for a while now.

The trainer turned his head slightly to notice the nature of the presence - and smiled lightly when he noticed the Blaziken and the girl who stood by its side, probably said Blaziken's trainer. Both of them appeared to be staring at the Wisteriark, and the trainer couldn't help but chuckle at the sight - this wasn't the first time. Wisteriarks were not a common sight, even in the region they were indigenous to, and Elysium often got a fascinating array of looks, ranging from admiration, to curiosity, to Holy Arceus and his Almighty Collection Of Fine China, What the hell is this thing?. He was used to it by now.

"Hm, might as well make contact." he thought to himself, shrugging. Turning his eyes to the girl, he smiled a little.

"I take it you've never seen a Wisteriark before?"

 

[SineCosineTangent]

Xyrem's inner monologue, which had been commenting on the subtle nuances of the crystals, was soon interrupted by a male voice. She looked over to find the source of the interruption sitting against the Time guardian's statue, a small smile on his face and a sketchbook in his hand. Hm. That must have been the source of the pencil scratches she had heard.

‘So… that thing is a Wisteriark. Hm. Nice to know.' She smiled slightly, and then nodded.

"Yeah, I guess I make it kind of obvious when I stand here, staring at it like a damn Magikarp, mouth agape and eyes wide open," Xyrem replied, with a small laugh. She always had felt that the mostly useless Pokemon had an odd, soulless stare to it, hence why she often pulled it into similes. ‘Vadumee, however, did not like being compared to a floundering fish, and so nudged his trainer in an annoyed fashion. She turned to him, a bemused expression painting her face.

"I said ‘I'. I wasn't saying you were a Magikarp. Listen, ‘Vadumee, before you nudge." Said fire chicken gently backed off, and continued to judge the relative threat of a crystal armblade to the throat.

"So… where do these Wisteriarks come from? I've never seen one around Sinnoh," Xyrem asked, turning back towards the male. She had already made the assumption that he was the Pokemon's trainer- or something like that.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

The trainer couldn't help but chuckle at the slight interaction between the girl and her Blaziken - he always found the avian anthropomorphs to be one of the more impressive fire-types. He took note of the bird's name - ‘Vadumee - and catalogued it in his internal mental name folder for later use.

Then he heard the trainer's question.

"They're quite rare even where they come from. We're from the Miato Region, Elysium and Me." he smiled, and pointed at the Wisteriark "Elysium being her, of course."

The Wisteriark proceeded to fold her wings and turn to face the trainer and the Blaziken, nodding slightly in greeting, with as much of a smile as her dinosaur-like face, framed by her wisteria-like mane, could allow.

He looked thoughtful for a short moment, before standing up and stretching. "My name is Gad, by the way. May I have the honor of learning yours?"

 

[SineCosineTangent]

‘Hm. Miato. I haven't heard much about that Region,' chimed Xyrem's inner monologue, as she tilted her face in a slight expression of curiosity and interest. She took a quick second to inwardly smile at the Wisteriark's nickname- Elysium seemed such a fitting name for the creature. She watched as Elysium folded her wings back in, and turned to nod in greeting. Both ‘Vadumee and Xyrem returned the nod, almost at the same time. The trainer had a small giggle at the simultaneity of their actions. ‘Vadumee, ever used to them having an odd sense of togetherness after meditation, stood contentedly next to his trainer, taking in the slight breeze that decided to bathe the hill.

The Miato trainer stood and stretched. "My name is Gad, by the way. May I have the honor of learning yours?"

A second ticked by. Xyrem silently compared the formality of Gad's introduction with the insane one she had experienced with Dai, and smiled at how different greetings could be.

"Of course. The name's Xyrem. I believe I've casually used his name, but this is ‘Vadumee," she said, fanning her hand towards the Blaziken, who was now fully engrossed in enjoying the atmosphere. She grinned at the look of bliss on the fire type's face. "We're, of course, from Sinnoh. More specifically, from Oreburgh." A slight blush crossed her face as she mentioned her home city, and she found herself staring at the ground for a second. She then looked up, and quietly willed the blood to go elsewhere. Luckily, it agreed and went about carrying oxygen and nutrients around her body.

"So then, what brings you to Sinnoh?" There was a gleam of curiosity in Xyrem's eyes that she just couldn't hide.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

Xyrem. Unusual name. the trainer thought as the female introduced herself But then, you don't see a lot of people named Gad, either.

He pondered the meaning of the girl's blush as she mentioned her hometown for a moment, but he was not one to make assumptions about people he just met by nature.

"So then, what brings you to Sinnoh?"

"Well." He said "Originally, it was my research. I study PokéMon Biology under Professor Redwood of Jade Town, you see. A while ago she sent me here to investigate some sort of moss she heard about in Eterna Forest - it seems to influence some form of ambient energy related to Grass-Types... And certain other creatures. That's what brought me here originally, at least. I stayed for other reasons."

He closed his eyes and emitted a blissful little sigh, a silly smile coming to his face for a moment, before he paused, snapping slightly into reality. "In any case, I continue my research here. The professor is being very supportive about it all - it gets her more material for the GPDS project. I specialize in grass-types, but some of my research deals with paleo-biology as well. Amazing, the sorts of things that used to live on this planet..."

He blushed, pausing for a moment.

"Oh, but I'm sorry." he said, chuckling nervously "We've only just met and here I go telling you my life story and gushing over, well, science. I, er, tend to do that."

 

[SineCosineTangent]

Xyrem gently nodded along as Gad explained his reasons for coming to Sinnoh. Pokemon biology had always been a distant interest to the bespectacled girl, but it was never anything she attempted to study. Even if she did, she'd probably go into the more medical side of things- become a surgeon for the creatures, or something of the like. After explaining his original reason, he stopped, and mentioned that he had decided to stay for other reasons. The small blissful sigh that quietly escaped him, along with the smile that crossed his face, made Xyrem tilt her head in slight confusion. She shrugged as he seemingly snapped back to the present. After going on a bit more about the research he continued to do in Sinnoh, he paused once more.

"Oh, but I'm sorry." he said, chuckling nervously "We've only just met and here I go telling you my life story and gushing over, well, science. I, er, tend to do that." She grinned in response.

"No problem, I myself am heavily mired in matters of medical science, and although I specialize more in the human facets, Pokemon biology is in no way boring it me. I understand gushing over it," she laughed a bit. ‘Vadumee had turned his attention back to his trainer, and looked from her to the town, as if telling her that there was a slight chance of the Pokecenter exploding if she left Dai alone in it for much longer.

"'Vadumee here has a point. See, I'm not usually one to travel far. For the most part, I always stayed in Oreburgh. The reason I'm out here is because I've decided to start a journey. My traveling companion, Dai, is… well, a little bit wild from time to time. In fact, I met her when she tried to rob me. I know, not the best way of meeting someone," she paused in the middle of her story, wondering exactly why she was telling Gad all of this. "I really do see a good heart in the girl, though. And… well, I guess I owe her for certain actions she took, and for certain things she's said." The blush that crossed Xyrem's cheeks at the flashback of Dai pushing her didn't fade quite as fast as the one before. The young girl shook her head, attempting to flood the emotional outburst with logic- if she didn't quell her mood soon, she'd be skipping all the way back to Eterna. Funny how even a memory had such power over the girl's heart. Thanks to her recent calming experience, she brought her emotional core back into normal parameters.

"Anyway, I'm heading back to Eterna, so that I can grab her from the Pokecenter before she decides to blow it up because she's bored. You're welcome to join if you wish," finished Xyrem, turning towards ‘Vadumee to leave.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

"She sounds like quite the character." Gad chuckled to himself when Xyrem mentioned her travelling companion "I was just about done here anyway, and I do need to return to Eterna myself... So yes, I'd be happy to join you. But first, I'd better put this away..."

And saying such, the trainer unclipped a device that was attached to his belt. It was a sleek-looking device with a clamshell design, small enough to fit into one's pocket but clearly designed to be belt-clipped. It had a data port at the front of it, and flipping it opened revealed a display and a small array of buttons. He manipulated a few of the buttons, then pointed the device's Data Port at the Sketchbook and the Pencil. A radiant blue beam scanned the two items, disintegrating them into data and absorbing them into itself.

"Digital storage device. Very convenient." he smiled, clasping the device back onto his belt. Motioning to Elysium, the Wisteriark made her way from her vantage point on the hill to her trainer's side. Her motions were extremely fluid, and the green and lavender tendrils of her mane swayed softly with her motions.

"Well then, shall we?"

 

[SineCosineTangent]

Xyrem watched in wonder as Gad's sketchbook was pulled into a small device that he had unclipped from his belt.

"Digital storage device. Very convenient," he said with a smile. Convenient indeed. The young girl began to wonder exactly how and where she could get her hands on one of the little machines. A second later, Elysium was at his side, ready to go.
"Well then, shall we?" Xyrem smiled and nodded towards the new pair of travelers joining them. ‘Vadumee was already making his way towards the path, clearly not happy about having to go through the vines once more.

The gentle cool breezes that had accompanied the rising sun began to fall away, leaving the heat of the day to gather around the hill. The small forest path leading back to Eterna, however, was covered by a healthy layer of canopy and therefore was still as cool as it had been when Xyrem had first traveled it. As she walked, she stretched her arms up towards the sky, popping her shoulders as she did when she first woke up, and taking a little bit of time to flex her fingers outward, as if attempting to grasp the sky itself. ‘Vadumee, at any other time, would have joined his trainer in stretching. However, he was deeply engrossed with battling the vines that seemed intent on invading his feathers once more.

After a few minutes of walking, the bunch was standing on the outskirts of Eterna, the city sparking in the morning light. The scents and sounds of human civilization soon streamed their way back into Xyrem's processing centers. ‘Vadumee, who came out of his war on plants slightly scathed, but still functioning, stood happily at her side.

"Well, I guess it's off to the Pokecenter for me," mumbled Xyrem, smiling at the fact that the structure was still standing and, surprisingly enough, not on fire.

 

[Katsuo]

"Y'know what? Forget that. I'm going out to find somewhere to meditate. My head is filled with way too much. I'll be taking ‘Vadumee with me. The rest can stay at the center," she ran her hand through her crimson hair, taking care to break a few knots along the way. Damn brushes never did their job. Without waiting for a response, she walked over to the main counter, and waited for Nurse Joy to stop reprimanding one of the children.

Dai watched Xyrem turn over her pokeballs, which disappeared somewhere on a conveyor belt, and walk out the door. She had never met anyone who meditated before. It was odd. Xyrem was a peculiar girl, but this fact made Dai more comfortable about traveling with her. If Xyrem had her own quirks, then Dai wouldn't have to feel self-conscious about her own.

With hers and Sniper's breakfasts in hand, a couple small packages of cereal and juice, Dai turned towards the exit of the Pokémon Center. Dai had convinced Xyrem that it would be best to eat out in the grass. She found the cheery aura that Nurse Joy gave off was a little more than uncomfortable. Dai rarely spent so much time in Pokémon Centers. If her Pokémon were ever in need of medical assistance she could usually rob the Pokémart or snatch another trainer's bag. She didn't care for the sterile metallic walls and eerily beeping machines. Dai didn't trust the whole atmosphere; her experiences with clinics in her youth instilled a deep foreboding for such places. Her mother's ‘illness' and frequent trips to specific clinics and what it did to Dai and her brother made trusting any medical facility difficult. However, Dai was not about to reveal this particular weakness to anyone, even her new traveling companion. It suddenly occurred to Dai that with Xyrem, whose appearance hinted at very little outdoor activity, this probably wasn't the last Pokémon Center they were to spend the night in. Dai found she no longer had an appetite, so she put her small breakfast in her bag to be consumed when she lost her new found nausea.

Sniper skipped in his usual matter around the Pokémon Center. He stopped and peered menacingly at people and Pokémon every now and then. Most avoided his red-eyed sneer, some going so far as to run to the other side of the Pokémon Center, others returned a serious look. He found it odd that none returned a challenge. After suffering the temptation of the Eterna Gym Sniper was itching for a fight, or at least for something to vandalize or destroy. Sniper spun back to Dai's side. He hopped onto her a back and cooed into her ear, quite bored with the Pokémon Center and eager to get out into the open. Dai smiled up at him, ruffled his fur and continued towards the large mechanical doors. She

Dai stopped in her tracks and peered at the familiar trainer. The slightly withdrawn manner with which he carried himself jogged Dai's memory, and being the rude and extroverted person that she was, Dai quickly pointed him out.

"Hey!" She dragged out the syllable. "You're the guy from the Oreburg gym, the one with the Vaporeon!" She strode up to the shy young man and poked him in the side. "You're not following Xyrem are you?" Dai peered at the young male scrutinizing his features. He was relatively good looking, and his dark locks complimented his feature quite nicely, but this was not the time to wonder at appearances. Dai poked him again in the side, and Sniper growled deep in his throat. She didn't trust that this meeting was coincidence. The young man had had such a peculiar way about him at the gym, the way he had watched Xyrem and Roark. Dai didn't know Xyrem very well, but she knew she should protect Xyrem from potential dangers.

"Well? Answer me." Dai's voice was threatening.

((OOC: Updating is going to be difficult for me from now on. School has started again and my work load has tripled, please be patient with me.))

 

[Belle]

Maybe it was the fact that all the Joy siblings were, essentially, carbon copies of one another. And no matter where you went, you could expect the same smiling face, the same courtesy, and the same seamless service. Like they were cut from the same cloth- and cut in such a way that the stitches and weave of the fabric was exactly the same. Unnaturally so. Their mannerisms and even their voices were identical. It happened with the policewomen too. Two creepy families of women, both of them incredibly easy to become accustomed to. A tiny smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and he could feel it pulling into the beginnings of a smile as his thoughts continued to drown out the cacophony of chatter inhabiting the lobby.

Jolting him from the confines of his mind was the sharp pain that erupted from a single point between two of his lower ribs. The poke jarred at his nerves and sent a shudder up his spine as the tickling sensation caused him to instinctively recoil from the jab, the irritation at having his personal bubble infiltrated pulling his face into a light scowl. Dragging his hand from the polished surface of the counter to rub at the fading sensation, he turned his eyes down towards his sneakers to ensure the vaporeon curled around his ankles would not have her dainty paws smooshed under his heel as he stepped back to survey the attacker. Straightening up to face the person addressing him, he cocked his head to a soft angle and glowered through the curtain of thick hair. Frowning at his obscured vision, he swiped at the choppy cut with his thumb, pulling the longer locks out of his sight before noting how rigid his spine had become.
He wasn't good around girls.
He really, really wasn't.

He'd been taught to be a gentleman, which was easy enough. Chivalry was braided somewhere in his genes. It was just the execution he needed to work on.
Meeting the chilling stare of the young miss as she continued to fire questions and demands at him, he felt a heavy blush rising into his cheeks and turning the soft skin into a rich pink hue. It took the willpower that couldn't restrain the color to keep him from losing the rest of his composure, and he managed to hold the eye contact he had made. Of course, he recognized her immediately, and it wasn't as though that helped at all. In all honesty, it was a coincidence, and in a valiant effort to remain as polite as possible, he decided that explaining this would be the best way to proceed. With luck, it would come out the way he was intending it to.

"Excuse me for being impolite, but I think you're sorely mistaken miss. I ah, really have no idea who you are. And, um, please stop prodding me."
The second time she went in for a jab he pressed himself against the counter to avoid another bout with the tickling sensation, frowning even as he dipped his head and peered at the stranger through his lashes.
Girls were scary.
This one was just about giving him a heart attack.
For a moment, it even crossed his mind to wonder if she was going to bite him.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

The trainer was smiling to himself for no apparent reason - perhaps because he enjoyed this particular forest path immensely. Every once in a while, he gazed at the girl and her Blaziken, and occasionally at his own companion - who twitched a little, shooting the Blaziken a narrow-eyed golden glare - clearly disapproving of the bird's treatment of the random vines which simply parted for her as she walked. But she was a grass-type, and grass-types as a whole tended to take this sort of thing personally. He chuckled slightly, patting the Deep Forest PokeMon's shoulder, looking into her eyes or a moment.

"Ely, dear, plants don't just move out of the way for most species of PokeMon." he chuckled, "I'm sure they'll recover later. And overgrowth isn't necessarily a good thing. There must be balance."

The Wisteriark shrugged, her expression softening somewhat - she could see the logic in the trainer's words, but she couldn't help but feel a little hurt - she was deeply attuned with nature, after all. It was in her blood. Or Chlorophyll.

Soon enough the two found themselves on the outskirts of Eterna. He nodded in acknowledgment at the girl's statement, smiling at her. "Well, this is where we part, then." he chuckled "I have some arrangements to attend to - but who knows, maybe we'll end up meeting again someday. It's been a pleasure, Xyrem."

He nodded at the girl and her Blaziken again, a motion mimicked by the Wisteriark - and the two turned away and walked off into the city itself.

~*~

There a typical scene in romantic movies, where the hero and the heroine run towards each other in slow motion in an endless field full of flowers, leap into each other's arms and twirl, equally in slow motion, while dramatic music plays.

... This would have been similar if in mid-run, the heroine would have decided to give the slow-motion thing a skip and proceed to dash-pounce-tackle-glomp the hero, and instead of dramatic music you'd have the sounds of assorted Grass-type PokeMon with an expression of pure WTF upon their faces (or face equivalents).

Considering who the heroine was, they should have probably seen it coming. She's been known to tackle-glomp THEM too.

"Welcome home." the gym leader known as Gardenia giggled, planting (if you may pardon the pun) a little kiss on his nose. He blushed.

"Good to be here, love." he chuckled, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close for a moment, before the two proceeded to stand up and dust themselves off before any challengers would appear and that would be quite embarrassing.

"Slept well?" he smiled, wrapping an arm around her side.

"As well as can be expected." she smiled back, returning the favor.

"Any challengers yet?" he grinned "Or is it still too early for them? You seem ready and willing."

"Eterna isn't exactly known for morning people, is it?" the gym leader laughed, sending a little wink in the trainer's direction. He blushed, catching the little poke - he wasn't much of a morning person either.

"Oh, shush you." the trainer winked back, lightly poking the gym leader's side. She poked him back. They would have lapsed into tickling each other for a bit, if it wasn't for a little "ahem" that caught their attention.

"Phone call for you, Gad. It's Professor Redwood." Willow said, with a raised eyebrow "And you two are hopeless."

~*~

The face on the screen looked like it belonged to a woman in her late twenties, or early thirties. At most, her mid-thirties. That was because Professor Erin Redwood was rather young for Professor standards. She was the latest in a line of researchers based in Jade Town with the last name of Redwood, and she inherited the title of lead PokeMon researcher for the Miato region from her father. She was a rather attractive woman, with long orangish-red hair and a pair of eyes in a unique shade between blue and green - two more traits that ran in her family. She had a pair of round glasses, and her white lab coat was currently opened, revealing a thick purple shirt of some sort.

"Well, good morning." the Professor chuckled - she had a low-register voice that seemed to radiate deep intelligence.

"Good morning, Professor." Gad smiled warmly - he's come to regard the professor as a close friend, but out of respect for her title he still referred to her as professor. "To what do I owe the pleasure of hearing from you this early?"

"I have the data you requested." the professor smiled back.

"About the bogforest biotope?" Gad grinned, a spark of enthusiasm entering his eyes.

"Bingo." the professor replied "Most everything should be here. Except..."

"Except what?"

"Well, Miato isn't exactly an authority on marshland." The professor furrowed her brow "The data I sent you is related mostly to the sorts of Grass-Types you'd find in that sort of ecosystem, and their ideal living conditions. I got you some of the information about the partially flooded forest areas on some of the islands, but information on those is scarce at best - most of what we have is the research you and Ivy did, actually."

"Hn, I'm sure we could adapt this data somehow. Thank you, professor, you've been a great help." Gad smiled. "As ever."

"You're quite welcome." the professor grinned "I should be thanking you - Your habitats are quite a bit of help to my research, I have to say."

"You should be thanking Gardenia, actually. The idea was hers. I just helped." the trainer blushed softly "She simply wanted to proved her Grass-types with places in which they'll feel at home even if they're used to travelling. She's crazy like that, when it comes to Grass-types. And that's exactly the way I love her."

"You should introduce us properly someday." the professor winked "I'm sure she'd enjoy meeting some Miato-native Grass-types in their natural environment."

"Well, we can't just both abandon the gym." Gad chuckled "But maybe someday."

"Maybe." the professor smiled "Good luck."

"Thanks. You two. I'll keep you informed."

~*~

"Well?" the gym leader shot the trainer a gaze when he walked out of the arched doorway to the residential wing "Anything on the bogforest biotope?"
"A lot of data, certainly, but I need to find a proper swamp and survey it." Gad chuckled "Otherwise it might not be authentic."
"How about the Great Marsh in Pastoria? It sounds like a great location to survey as far as swampland goes - and I heard it even has..." the gym leader paused, floating off into her own personal dreamland "Wild Carnivines..."
"Pastoria, huh? That's quite a distance away, love..." he said, gazing into her eyes, his arms slipping around her waist "I'll be gone for quite a bit."
"I know..." she returned his gaze, her arms wrapping around him as well. "But it'll be worth it. And besides, we could always talk via the PokeGear grid. And I'll be waiting..."

They stood there for a moment, completely oblivious to anything but each other, and as their lips touched...

"Heads up! We've got incoming!" Willow's voice burst into the battleground from the Foyer. As if nothing happened, the Trainer and the Gym Leader split up, taking their positions as assorted grass-types flurried into activity. The first challengers for the day. Gad wondered vaguely who will they be...

 

[Katsuo]

"Excuse me for being impolite, but I think you're sorely mistaken miss. I ah, really have no idea who you are. And, um, please stop prodding me."
The second time she went in for a jab he pressed himself against the counter to avoid another bout with the tickling sensation, frowning even as he dipped his head and peered at the stranger through his lashes.

Dai glared at him, positive that he was lying, but also irked at his apparent spineless nature. She really didn't have anything against liars for they were her fellow employees, so to speak, but it did bother her when somebody didn't stick up for themselves. In Dai's book, if you couldn't stand up for yourself and lack self-respect, you couldn't full well do the same for others.

"Liar," she hissed. Dai shot a look at Sniper and he returned it with a small nod. She dragged the young man roughly by the elbow, and Sniper scooped the small Vaporeon and held onto her tightly. "I'm going to prove that you are a liar and a stalker." The young man looked absolutely horrified and the Vaporeon cried out in protest. The crude trainer sprinted out the Pokémon Center doors and made a sharp turn north, heading up the main street and towards the mysterious statue. Sniper sprinted ahead of Dai and the terrified youth. Even though Dai did her best to become as fast as Sniper, she knew she would never be able to keep up with the Pokémon. Through their pounding footsteps and the pulsating blood in her ears, Dai was able to make out Vaporeon's squeaks and cries.

"Sniper! Be gentle, it's not the Pokémon who's a creep!" Dai called out to her companion. She heard him grunt in reply and saw his pace slow, but the Vaporeon still called out in distress.

Dai skidded around the corner, most likely stretching the material of the unknown youth's shirt, and spotted her companion walking down the steps that lead to the large statue of what Dai assumed was a Pokémon. Xyrem was hard to miss, what with her shock of purple-streaked red hair and the conspicuous six-foot-tall fire bird that seemed permanently glued to her side. The read head was with another trainer, a man, clad in dark greens and a long cloak. Dai had since learned in her short time with Xyrem that the read-head was incredibly perceptive and cautious, so she assumed the man, who wasn't very much older than Xyrem, was most likely trust worthy. However, this was not important. The most pressing matter at hand was the creep Dai was dragging through Eterna.

She roughly shoved the dark-haired young man between her and Xyrem, not letting go of his elbow, though loosening her grip on him. Vaporeon squeaked in Sniper's arms, but seemed a little more relaxed now that her trainer was in view and seemingly unharmed.

"Hey Xyrem! I caught this guy following us at the PokeCenter." She called, shaking the arm that held the frightened young man. "I saw him at the Oreburg gym ogling you and Roark. He claims that it was just a coincidence but I remember his face back in Oreburg and there's no way that this was a coincidence." She finished with an air of superiority, and an image of the unknown trainer's bright pink face etched in her mind's eye.

 

[SineCosineTangent]

‘What a disaster-free day,' Xyrem thought to herself. The sun was shining, ‘Vadumee had almost completed his quest of de-vining himself, Gad had run off to the Gym, and the Pokecenter wasn't exploding in space. With a sigh, the young redhead yawned and stretched, taking in the delicate rays of sun that bombarded her skin with different sorts of UV rays.

"Hey Xyrem!" Well, there goes the peace of the day. Xyrem pulled her hand over her eyes to block out the morning light, and squinted into the distance. First she caught sight of a Weavile, who was quickly approaching her with a Vaporeon cradled in its arms.

‘Oh no. OHHHH NO. She did NOT just take someone's Pokemon.' Xyrem brought her head into her hands and sighed. When she looked up again, she could see Dai dragging along another trainer.

‘Did she… Is she trying to steal a trainer too? I don't think you can take people…' A slight bemused expression replaced the previous one of horror, and the young girl cocked her head to the left. Finally, Dai was in front of her, with a very terrified trainer clutched in her hand.

"I caught this guy following us at the PokeCenter," she said, shaking the young man's arm. Dai must have noticed the expression of confusion on Xyrem's face, and so continued. "I saw him at the Oreburgh Gym ogling you and Roark. He claims that it was just a coincidence, but I remember his face back in Oreburgh and there's no way that this was a coincidence," she finished with an air of superiority. This did not alleviate Xyrem's confusion or worry at all.

"So you see a trainer, that probably just earned a badge from Oreburgh, in Eterna, where there is clearly another Gym… and you assume he's following us?" Xyrem stood still for a second, pondering the girl's logic. Technically, she should be the more paranoid one. In her opinion, she probably would have noticed this particular young man, especially if he was right in the Gym with them.

…Wait. She probably couldn't rely on her logic, or memory, being that she had completely shut down from one embrace. Yet again, she found a blush creeping across her face. Damn blood vessels, being jerks and depositing little erythrocytes where they weren't wanted. She mentally shook off the memory, and the guilty cells began to travel about her body once more. Back to the point at hand. Well, what's the worst that could happen? Dai seemed to have a good head on her shoulders when it came to noticing things.

"Although I guess he could be. So, kid, what brings you here?" Xyrem crossed her arms and shot the trainer a glare that could have probably melted steel, if glares actually were physical attacks. ‘Vadumee stood up taller and crossed his arms, copying his trainer's stance almost perfectly.

 

[Belle]

These girls would be the death of him.
He would certainly suffer a stroke or a heart attack, and die. Right here.
Heh.
As soon as the blonde's grip wavered he snatched his arm away from her, straightening to full height and peering straight ahead, just over the top of the redhead's hair. Knowing full well that both girls were most certainly glaring daggers into his chest and shoulders. Wanting to take a moment to collect his thoughts, he turned his attention towards the newly created crease in his sleeve, turning and twisting at the fabric of the cuffs he had rolled up to his elbows.
What could he have possibly done to deserve this madness?
Maybe it was that one encounter with the creepy hermit. That guy was carrying some seriously bad juju.

Having allowed as much time to pass as was possible before it became suspicious, he sighed lightly and met Xyrem's accusing gaze with sincerity in his watery gray eyes.
"With all due respect, miss, I wasn't 'ogling' you and Roark. We'd just finished a match in the gym, he'd left before me, and neither of us had expected you two to arrive. It's sheer coincidence that we're talking right now. Or rather, that we happened to be in Eterna at the same time." He kept his expression as gentle and apologetic as possible, regardless of the sheet of blush that danced across his cheeks and tickled his ears.

The burning sensation at the back of his neck drew his attention back to the blond positioned behind him, the weavile at her feet still standing with his arms locked aroung the vaporeon's neck. Raising a brow at her as she watched with mild interest, he watched as her bodily structure quite literally melted away, the solid mass of normal bodily structure dripping out of the ice types claws and drenching his front in the process. As soon as a considerable pool had grown in at his clawed feet, it began to run sideways towards the dark haired male, almost as if it were on a slope. Once the puddle was clear of an stray feet, it started to creep off the ground and into the air until it had stretched back into the qudrupedal form it had retained earlier, the vaporeon's bright eyes meeting those of her trainer as she sat obediently at his feet.

"I'm, uh. Sorry about the misunderstanding."

 

[SineCosineTangent]

A few seconds ticked by. Silence prevailed throughout the makeshift group, and the gentle breezes and sounds of the city suddenly became the main attraction. Xyrem continued glaring, although it seemed like the other trainer wasn't meeting her eyes. He verified this by meeting his eyes with hers a second later.

"With all due respect, miss, I wasn't ‘ogling' you and Roark. We'd just finished a match in the gym, he'd left before me, and neither of us had expected you two to arrive. It's sheer coincidence that we're talking right now. Or rather, that we happened to be in Eterna at the same time," he said, in a gentle and sincere tone.

In all honesty, Xyrem had no reason to suspect this guy. She had seen him, yes, and he had looked a little bit nervous, but maybe it was just his personality to be shy. But the male seemed to have formed a blush as he had said his piece, and that in itself was suspicious. She glanced at him incredulously through her dark lashes. Her attention was pulled over to Dai's Weavile, who still had the trainer's Vaporeon tucked into his arms. That is, of course, before it melted out of his grip and into a puddle on the concrete below. A second later, it retook its original form at its trainer's feet.

Wait. What? Xyrem had heard that, when Vaporeon had first been discovered, it had been thought that it had the same molecular make up as water- however, she had never actually seen it used as such. Until that very moment, in fact, she had been highly skeptical of the claim that earlier versions of the PokeDex software had unyieldingly stood by. She blinked, and after letting her own confusion (and, admittedly, amazement) pass, she turned her field of vision back to the dark haired male in front of her.

"I'm, uh. Sorry about the misunderstanding," he finished. Well, his story was believable enough. A lot of trainers seemed to head to Eterna after Oreburgh, as it was the site of the closest Gym.

"Hn. Well, I suppose you're doing the Gym challenge thing, right? I mean, you battled with Roark, and you're here in Eterna. Does that mean you're going to challenge Gardenia as well?" If this young man were just traveling the land for Gym battles, then Dai's previous assumption was highly unfounded. However, if the youth had no intention of fighting in the Eterna Gym, then her intuition had a higher chance of being true. Xyrem let another glare sink into the other trainer, one that didn't carry as much weight as its predecessor, but was still an imposing message on its own.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

OOC: Right you are, folks. While 'charms was busy being dead for aeons, PoSC has been steadily going on elsewhere, and now that 'charms is back, it's high time the RPs were re-synched. So without further ado, here's all that's been happening while you weren't watching.

Belle:

ooc| And, as an added bonus, the reply I owe you folks :V

"I am, yes."
Shifting uneasily from foot to foot, he pulled the pack swinging lazily at his side to a more accessible position, with the bulk of the pack leaning on his knee. Turning his attention away from the young lady and onto the contents of said bag, he rifled around amongst the clothing and foodstuffs until his hand brushed up against the cool metal surface of steel casing. Running his fingers over the surface, he groped around for the familiar engraving that marked it as a container for the tiny trophies he had collected thus far. As soon as the rough detailing scratched across the sensitive skin of his index finger, he clutched at it and tugged it free of the rubble.

Dropping the pack, he resumed the awkward shifting between feet and fumbled with the lid before it snapped open, and he held it out for Xyrem to see, a soft pink flaring up in his cheeks just as the initial flame of modesty had worn off.
It wasn't that he was showing off, but suddenly it felt very much as though he was stroking his own ego in the presence of these already verily irked young women. Taking out the case was just to prove he wasn't lying to them, and confirm that the possibility Xyrem had suggested was true.

"Uh, after Gardenia I still need to make my way to Pastoria and, eventually, Sunyshore. I started backwards, so-to-speak."

From their plush blue settings inside the case, five of the eight colorful badges sparkled happily, glinting madly in the daylight without a single speck of dust to mar the surface. From his hip, the vaporeon stared up at the bottom of the case with a proud gleam in her amber eyes.

SCT:

[OOC: Yay! Pieces is back up again! Thanks Stel .]

"I am, yes." Well, that's one mystery solved. Xyrem shot a quick glance over to Dai, which could best be described as saying, "that's what you get when you jump to conclusions and drag poor, shy trainers down the streets of Eterna, only to learn that they're only here to fight the Gym, like every other poor, shy trainer in the goddamn area". Or, something along those lines. With that, the young man grabbed the pack that had before been peacefully hanging at his side, and, after pulling it a bit more towards himself, began to shift through it.

‘...If his bag is anything like mine, it's going to take him hours to find whatever he's searching for,' Xyrem thought lazily as she watched the bag devour the other trainer's arm. The young redhead had never had a good relationship with organization of any kind. A second or two later, the trainer pulled out a metallic case with a fancy engraved insignia. ‘Probably a badge case,' Xyrem's mind continued, intent on creating an internal narration that was clairvoyant of the blatantly obvious. Sure enough, the male popped open the case and, with a small blush falling over his cheeks again, let Xyrem inspect the contents. Again, her mind decided to chime in. Something about how much that guy seemed to blush. Then again, she'd be just as shy if some insane-looking trainer had stolen her Pokemon and then dragged her off to parts unknown.

Within the case's plush blue settings sat five badges, each reflecting a large amount of sunlight into the young girl's eyes. They clearly were well taken care of, and therefore earned with pride. Her eyes faltered as she scanned over the trainer's Coal Badge, her brain filling with a deep sadness whilst simultaneously casting an odd blush over her cheeks. It then became official: Xyrem's brain had, without a doubt, the oddest combination of emotional processors ever. She was sure that very few people, if any, had experienced the bizarre amalgamation of melancholy and joy that she was, at that very moment, going through.

"Uh, after Gardenia I still need to make my way to Pastoria and, eventually, Sunyshore. I started backwards, so-to-speak." The male's voice quickly broke through Xyrem's stream of thought, and she looked from the case back up to him, face clear of any of the emotional distress that the young girl had once felt. It all seemed legitimate enough.

"You sure keep your badges clean, that's for sure." Xyrem flashed a small smile, as if to attempt to tell the trainer that he was off the hook. As the young girl turned her head back to Dai, a stray glint of light from said badges danced into the periphery of her vision. It was nothing harmful, or even distracting, for that matter. For reasons unknown, all it seemed to do was remind Xyrem of the journey they had ahead of them. The trials and tribulations they would face, the misunderstandings such as the current one that would plague them, the new friends and new Pokemon they would meet, the challenge of actually being awake during the day... When brought together in one thought process, it really seemed nearly overwhelming. The young girl shook her head gently, removing the doubt that had crawled into her mind.

"Dai, you really can't assume that everyone's out to get us. That's more my thing, actually. I guess with this perma-blush of his, it can be a bit suspicious, but he's clearly only here for the Gym." She quickly turned back to the other trainer. "I'm sorry for all of the trouble. By the way, I'm Xyrem, and your captor over there is Dai. Now's one hell of a time for introductions, but better late-and-after-a-daring-daylight-kidnapping than never, I guess."

Belle:

The tiny smile the young lady had flashed him was enough to quell his worries, and the flush faded from his cheeks as he relaxed, tucking the steel case back amidst the bundles of clothing and other necessities. Even going so far as to let his guard down, his shoulders drooped from the rigid positions they had tensed into, which intentional or not, dropped the pack another few inches so it thumped clumsily against the side of his knee. Tugging at the woven strap in a half-hearted attempt to adjust it to a comfortable height, he observed quietly as the young woman turned away, a thousand thoughts racing across her mind as her eyes twinkled in reflection of this fact.

He didn't know anything about this girl, not even her name, but the look on her face was so deeply in thought and filled with consideration of what was undoubtedly her past and wonderings about her future that he could feel the effect of it even tugging at his own mouth, pulling a comfortable smile out of him before he shifted his weight, turning his attention to the vaporeon at his feet that met his gaze with warmth in her chocolate eyes.

"Dai, you really can't assume that everyone's out to get us. That's more my thing, actually. I guess with this perma-blush of his, it can be a bit suspicious, but he's clearly only here for the Gym."
He couldn't help it- at her comment a rosy pink rose into his cheeks as he made an effort to rebuke her words, but upon realizing the effect it had on him unconsciously, he bit his lower lip tenderly and looked away as the bridge of his nose started to flush with red.
Soon after she had addressed her companion, he felt her eyes on him again and met her gaze, only the faintest hues of pinks still visible on his face as he turned curious grey eyes on her.

"I'm sorry for all of the trouble. By the way, I'm Xyrem, and your captor over there is Dai. Now's one hell of a time for introductions, but better late-and-after-a-daring-daylight-kidnapping than never, I guess."
Her apology rekindled the grin on his face and he nodded lightly as she continued, straightening up to his full height and focusing more on suppressing another bout of blush that threatened to taint his cheeks before he held his right hand out to her in friendly gesture, the left one tucked into the back if his hip via the thumb he had curled into one of the many belt loops.

"It's quite alright, I can understand Miss Dai's reasoning. Kind of."
Thinking about what he had said, he took a split second to consider the space above the young lady's head before meeting her eyes again.
"My name is Archer Gray. It's a pleasure, miss."

Rose:
"I'm sorry for all of the trouble. By the way, I'm Xyrem, and your captor over there is Dai. Now's one hell of a time for introductions, but better late-and-after-a-daring-daylight-kidnapping than never, I guess."

"It's quite alright, I can understand Miss Dai's reasoning. Kind of."
Thinking about what he had said, he took a split second to consider the space above the young lady's head before meeting her eyes again.
"My name is Archer Gray. It's a pleasure, miss."

Dai avoided both of their gazes; face red with a combination of indignant anger and embarrassment. She felt an ugly fiery feeling in her gut, the same feeling she got every time she was humiliated.

Sniper reflected her anger. He snarled and glared at Archer Gray. How dare he humiliate her like that? He thought to himself (he could only see Dai's side of the story).

Dust and blades of grass were kicked up as Dai dug the tip of her steel-toed boots into the soft ground violently. She grinded her teeth and wrung her hands. Apologizing was not an option for Dai, she was too proud. The next best thing was to prove that Archer was lying, that he really wasn't going to challenge the Eterna gym. It was totally unnatural to challenge the Pokémon league backwards. It was as if he challenged the champion first.

She turned and gave him a venomous look. "Prove it." She hissed. "Who the hell does the Pokémon league backwards? It's absurd." Dai drew herself to her full height and stared at him, cheeks still flushed red, eyes cold.

Belle:

Whomever it was that coined the phrase "if looks could kill" would have obviously gotten glares similar to the daggers Dai was drilling into his face. Even the weavile at her side was hissing and spitting, giving voice to the fury she kept bottled under her chilling gaze.

Girls like this one were the reason he avoided them. Mood swings were scary.

From the ground, the vaporeon had curled herself around his ankles, back arched with her tail turned towards the pair as she watched the sharp claw pokemon with lazy eyes and mild disinterest.

"I- ah, unusual, yes, but I mean uh.." He started to stammer, unsure of how to go about explaining himself without further provoking the girl.
"It was a location thing really, Snowpoint gym was the closest to where I started from, over in the Resort area."
Where he summoned the ability to speak comprehensively, he didn't know, but he was grateful to drop the stutter.

"If it will put you at ease to come watch the battle, by all means, do come. I uh, I don't mind." He shuffled a little at this point and glanced away as a soft pink stretched over his cheeks again.

"I don't think Miss Gardenia would mind much either.."


ooc| This is sooooooooo short but I wanted to put something up before I went to school tomorrow D:
Sorry guys

 

[Belle]

Frowning as the turtwig's countering strike played out, Archer observed the aggron with concern and hesitation as he wondered what the effects of this powered-up attack would have. Shifting uncomfortably, he pulled the sopping folds of white fabric away from his chest and stomach, noting the suffocating effects it had on his person the more soaked he became. As soon as he caught the flickering gaze of the beast, he quickly and subtly signaled with his hands a bursting effect that he could see Laur taking note of.
----

For a first-stage pokemon like the tiny turtle, its use of Grass Knot really packed a punch and acted against the Aggron big time. Thus making it all the more helpful.

The second bout of lashing grass blades cut deeper into the tough skin than the first had, each laceration stinging and burning with the sensation that accompanied the power boost that had come to the turtwig in the form of its overgrow ability. The more they bit into his hide, the more he felt the stirring in the pit of his stomach growing and tingling at the torn skin and fresh wounds multiplying by the moment. Waiting patiently as the leech seed kicked in and sapped at his remaining will and energy, he felt the swelling in his stomach growing until the point were the attack started to break through the welts and cuts in his skin, similar to the tactic used only minutes ago. Piercing eyes locked onto the opponent before a second flurry of blades and jagged metal points seared through the grass binds and offending blades as they skated across the earth and each other in a mad race to tear into the turtle first. Grunting in discomfort, he glowered from beneath his mask as he struggled to his feet, quivering lightly as he watched the gleaming silver bearing down on the turtwig.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

The Turtwig slammed its feet against the ground, attempting to escape to the safety of the under again, but it was too late. The small grass-type was already exhausted, and even with the healing the Leech Seeds provided, the blades that did impact the Turtwig did the damage the opposing trainer hoped for. The Turtwig collapsed to the ground, utterly spent. The Aggron was clearly on its last legs as well, stubbornly holding on. Somehow.

"Turtwig is unable to battle." Gad announced, raising a red flag.

Gardenia's face showed little emotion as she reached for the Turtwig's PokeBall and returned it. Smiling at the now-minimized ball in her hand she softly uttered the words "You've done all you can, Turtwig. Take a nice rest now."

She then turned her eyes to the trainer - and his nearly-spent Aggron. Then she gazed up at the sky. If her assumptions were correct, the rainstorm wouldn't last much longer. Now that Turtwig was down and out, it was time to strike a decisive final blow that would definitely knock the Aggron out. A super effective move.

She reached for another PokeBall - Roserade's. Her Roserade was still undamaged - and even though that would change as soon as she materialized on the battlefield, she hoped Leech Seed would be sufficient to counter the effects of Stealth Rock.

She cast the Roserade's PokeBall forward, and the creature emerged, landing gracefully on the ground, on the tip of one foot in the manner of a dancer and breaking into a run on the unstable surface, skipping along the ground, evading the surface-breaching rocks to the best of its ability. It could not avoid taking some damage - but nothing that Leech Seed couldn't handle. And now that the rain was still falling...

The Roserade stopped to a halt on an array of rocks that breached the surface, raising its clawed, flower-tipped hands to the sky. Energy began swirling between its hands, a ball of white mist forming between them. Then, as the rain fell, the white ball developed a deep blue hue, growing larger, seeming to draw the falling water around it into orbit. The Roserade kept her focus on the ball, seeming to charge it for longer than it normally would - as the sky was slowly beginning to clear, the unnatural vortexes of the artificial storm created by Rain Dance slowly beginning to fade away. More and more and more water from around was drawn into the sphere until at last, it looked as if the Roserade was holding an enormous, tumbling sphere of water - the essence of the fading rainstorm itself.

Gardenia smirked.

The Roserade sent the orb of water forward, hurtling like an aquatic comet towards the exhausted-looking Iron Armor PokeMon - with the steel type providing no water resistance to the creature's rock-type weakness to water, it was highly doubtful the creature would survive to counter that one.

 

[Belle]

From where he staggered about on the field, the hazy view of the Roserade emerging and taking form doubled and tripled in number until his sight corrected itself, and the shape of the attack it started to charge was manifesting high over its head. A brief glance at the youth behind him, and the aggron could see his cupped hand tracing the line of his throat before splaying out in a wide, open palmed wave when he reached his chin. The motion could have only meant that his trainer intended him to get his Swagger on in a last-ditch means of preparing the next contender for battle. Easy.

The ever-growing sphere of water was less malicious when the beast had a task he could focus on. Feeling the warmth of the steamy outburst welling up within his chest, he pulled his shoulders back as he felt his ribcage rise with the amount of clean air he took in. By the time the grass type released it's finishing blow, he had successfully exhaled a thin layer of smoky gas that settled and washed over the compact earth, easing its way over to the roserade as it tumbled and curled over itself. The opponents blow met its target and sent the aggron hurtling back with such force it dug a new trench across one corner of the field.
The young man murmured to himself as he reached for the appropriate capsule hanging from his belt, fingers tracing over the surface of each sphere as he counted them off.
"Now that one was not my fault."
The tired form of the beast condensed into a streak of red matter before retreating to the confines of the machine in his trainer's hand.

"Now, this may or may not be unwise, but I'd like you to stretch your legs a bit, Quey."
Purring from beside his ankles, the vaporeon slunk onto the field, shoulders rolling as she prowled. Her slow gait was not simply for show, however- as she moved, a violet sparkle seemed to twinkle in her eyes as she gazed dreamily at the looping growths on the ceiling, making various wishes to herself. Physically, she seemed to take on an intoxicating violet hue as she moved, each pore of her body seeping with acid as it streaked along the curves of her body, hardening into a malleable, movable form of armor. Picking her way around the field, she seemed to sniff out a single spot on the ground that she considered ideal, and seated herself ever so gently when she had found it, cocking her ears and twitching her fins when she had settled.

Behind her, Archer turned his gaze onto the gym leader with an expectant look settled in his watery gray eyes.

ooc| LOOK STELLUS I FINISHED IT as a birthday present to myself hurdadurdalur

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

Happy Birthday, Belle. ^^

The Roserade seemed to sense the Aggron's last ditch effort, leaping into the air and releasing a cloud of sweet-smelling pollen from the petals on its arms. The pollen seemed to neutralize the gas - both attacks dissolving harmlessly into each other as the Roserade landed gracefully on the ground a slight distance away.

Soon enough, the opposing trainer made his choice - a Vaporeon, acting in a catlike manner, already activating its Acid Armor attack.

"Interesting choice." Gardenia murmured. Although clearly rather reliant on the notion that Swagger would have worked. Acid Armor makes it harder for physical hits to strike, but it is not physical hits that are Roserade's forte. What's he playing at?

Be that as it may, Vaporeons were not to be underestimated. The rain may have been over, negating whatever advantage it would have given the creature in terms of water moves... But Water-types or not, the creatures were agile, could certainly take hits, and worst of all - had quite an arsenal of Ice-type moves. She would have to finish this quickly.

The Roserade seemed to have the same feeling - it has taken on a Vaporeon or three in its time. It shot the gym leader a questioning look.

Gardenia nodded.

And thus, the Roserade took a battle stance as all over, trees and bushes ignited into a green glow as a sudden wind picked up, taking up the glowing leaves and forming a great vortex around the Roserade - a massive, whirling tornado of glowing leaves, which blasted off directly in the Vaporeon's direction, swooping over it.

Leaf Storm was a dangerous gambit - It was a powerful attack, and it would bypass the Acid Armor - but the very execution of it would have weakened the Roserade's attack power dramatically. In her mind, Gardenia already began to prepare for the worst.

She might need her on the battlefield.

 

[Belle]

As the Roserade began to move, the vaporeon seemed to pace back and forth across a small portion of earth still dark with the rainfall, almost as if it were waiting for the opponent to make its move. By the time the attack had actually been sprung, she had already locked her joints into place and turned herself towards the opposite end of the field, braced for the impending impact that would certainly batter her sturdy body. Staring through the attack and into the eyes of her opponent, the muscles of her shoulders and legs and abdomen shuddered beneath the watery blue pelt as the storm of leaves ripped into her small body, tearing viciously at her skin and digging into her face and legs as she made little effort to avoid the colossus of leaves- she'd learned through experience that the beatings become tolerable when one is not skittering frantically over the field, stumbling and fumbling over one's own feet.

When the calm returned, she shuddered briefly before limping forward a few paces, dragging one of her hind legs behind her and leaving a trail of moisture in the soil beneath her feet. As she prowled, a trail of what looked like something that had once been tiny rivers of saliva and blood trickled down her jaw, oozing out of a particularly nasty split in her lower lip. As of that moment however, they had started to freeze over as a fine mist of chilled moisture spilled from her maw, heavy and thick as she exhaled and let her muscles relax once more. The newly formed streams of tainted ice cracked and tumbled off of her neck and onto the ground below, followed by chunks of frozen drool as she gnashed and gnawed to herself, pushing the excess ice out of her mouth as a misty blue haze gathered around her open jowls. In the short seconds she took to prepare herself, a violet ripple had started to wind its way around her tail and heels, trailing up the rest of her body in a single pulse of warm purple hue that seemed to close up the fresh wounds and soothe over the scrapes and stains made in her fur. A wish come true, it seemed.
Rejuvenated by the recovery, she curled her lips over her teeth as the ice beam steadily growing wrapped her muzzle in its chilly pale blue haze. Turning on her heel, she stared coolly into the face of the Roserade stationed on the other end of the field, and released the store of pent-up energy in a single burst that lanced through the air, tearing over the field towards its target.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

There was very little the Roserade could do, the beam moved too quickly - and with the damage it has already taken, the Ice Beam's effects proved to be exceptionally effective.

Gardenia returned the frozen creature with a little sigh. The Roserade's natural cure would thaw it out, but this round, clearly, belonged to the challenger. She was hoping the battle wouldn't have to come to this - but it looks like it did.

"Well, well." Gardenia said with a nod and a little smirk. "It's been a while since I was pushed to a corner like this - but It's not the end yet. My final PokeMon... Cherisol, Rise!"

The air went still. Then a light wind picked up, and a rain of cherry blossoms descended upon the battlefield.

Something spiraled down from the sky - something that looked vaguely humanoid, though one could not easily tell as it was surrounded by pinkish-purple petal-crests which swirled around it, wrapping around it, obscuring its true form. As the creature touched down, the petal-crests were wrapped around it entirely in what almost looked like a protective cocoon - all that remained visible were two large cherry-red orbs on the creature's shoulders, two smaller ones on its forehead, and the sides of the creature's face - which had a pale yellow hue with an array of dark markings running along its sides. From within the creature's floral shielding, a mass of green, spiny vine-like tendrils dug into the ground, drawing nutrients, stabilizing the creature and the ground around it - And from within this mass, two thick, long and leaf-tipped spiny vines extended, one on each side of the creature's body.

The rain of sakura ended. Gardenia's Cherisol has entered the fray.

From the referee's post, Gad was smiling from ear to ear - When he first arrived at Eterna, the creature on the battlefield was only a Cherubi, and was one of her least powerful PokeMon. With his nurturing and Elysium's help in teaching the creature a certain move, the little PokeMon evolved twice and blossomed into what it was today - a flower borne of Sinnoh and Miato intergrowing.

And if he knew Gardenia, she was going to use endurance for this one.

The orbs on the creature' body began emitting a soft glow. There was a change to the air - a light ripple - and new scents filled the air - the scents of old growth forests. An orb of translucent green mist seemed to enclose the battlefield, the trainers' boxes were just on the edge of the mist - and they could see clearly into it.

It was an illusion - but it was not an illusion. It was like the battlefield was gone and a fantasy forest took its place. It wavered unnaturally along its edges - a projection in the mist - but the trees were as solid as they could be. Even the light had a dimmed, filtered quality to it and had a vague green undertone.

"Sylvan Orb." Gad explained for the benefit of the challenger "A Grass-type move from my homeland. While it is in effect, the power of creatures that may be found in forests increases - grass-types and bug-types become more powerful - much in the manner water-types grow stronger during rain and fire-types grow stronger when the sun blazes brightly."

"What he said. "Gardenia smirked "And it has one other lovely effect... it makes it exceptionally easy to fire a Solarbeam!"

The word 'Solarbeam' was a command directed at Cherisol - and the grass-type obeyed - the ambient energies of the artificial forest shifted as the Cherisol's orbs instantaneously burst into brilliant light, launching four small beams that converged into one destructive beam of focused light, tearing towards the water-type.

Gardenia watched and waited.

OOC: This battle has been brought to you by DBZ Time Aura, where an entire season passes before an attack lands!

 

[Belle]

Still gawping in awe of the foreign creature, and only more so intrigued by the new development on the field, the young trainer tore his attention aware from the artificial (sort of) surroundings and refocused on the increasingly blinding flare of light. Less obvious was the mental note-to-self he made reminding himself to ask the young man which region he hailed from and what kind of voodoo mind tricks they had that he had yet to disclose. However, from his end of the field the vaporeon shrank away from the glare, shielding her eyes beneath a paw as she glanced warily at her trainer, again making no effort to escape the accuracy of her opponent and instead grinding her teeth on a pale white something as she caught the trainers eye long enough to see him trailing his fingers ever so softly up the length of the opposite arm. Comprehending the message he had started to convey, she tucked her head into the crook of her shoulder and braced herself for the impact.

Once again, the beating she took was severe, and she found herself spared only through mere chance and will as she staggered a couple steps forwards, chewing on the Leftovers she had clutched between the rows of teeth and, very subtly, her legs found an old strength and she stumbled upon her second wind, something she knew would only last long enough to follow her last set of orders. Feeling herself beginning to salivate, she unconsciously activated the glands nestled somewhere behind her jaw and grumbled as the fresh fluid dipped over her teeth, oozing a toxic looking substance that seeped through and over her lips, collecting in a pool on the ground before she lunged at the opponent, sprinting with her all and ignoring the sharp pains in her legs and ribs and chest and everything as she snarled and snapped as she loped along, closing the distance between herself and her target at surprising speeds.

ooc} sososososo sorry this is just a quickie Stellus, but I wanted to get something up between assignments just to move this thing along. Also, nuts to your grammar and syntax, this is the third thucking time I`ve tried to edit this on my phone and I`m never ever using this crap internet interface again. (this is of course a lie but you know what shut the hell up tralalalala

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

Drawing energy from the Earth, the Cherisol made no effort to evade the Vaporeon's rush. It stood there, motionless, awaiting the toxic bite...

Or so it seemed. Once the Vaporeon was close enough to make contact, the creature flicked out one of its spiny vine-tendrils, wrapping it around the Vaporeon and lifting it off the ground, tossing it into the air as its second tendril lashed forward to whip the water-type fiercely - a power whip attack. It was a gamble - the attack itself could miss, the Vaporeon could deliver its toxic bite through a vine... But it was a gamble that the gym leader was willing to take.

 

[Belle]

Granted, discovering oneself dangling in the air as opposed to planted solidly on the earthy floor was surprising in and of itself, but the viny extremity that came lashing at her was not so quick that she could not twist herself in such a way that when it made contact she took minimal damage, and even managed to land on her feet with muscles tensed so tightly that she need only feel the sturdy earth beneath her before springing the last few feet aiming to bury the fangs dripping with toxins into the opponent. Having opted to ignore the option of infecting what may be a disposable extremity, she felt her own hind legs dragging with the effort of movement and steadying herself as she took hold of the grass-type counterpart and craned her neck as the toxins poured over the fresh wounds.

ooc short short short short again but I ended up using my phone agaaiiiiin because we always seem to be on the move and not at home ssjfjhdga

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

The Cherisol emitted a high-pitched screech, ripping it roots out from the ground and clambering away, scattering a cloud of green pollen to cure it of the newly-inflicted status ailment before it could do any damage. It did not have the benefit of being ingrained to the ground, and the Sylvan Orb was showing signs of destabilizing.

"I grow weary of this game." Gardenia said, and pointed up to the sky "Let the sun shine and Cherisol's true form be revealed!"

The Cherisol emitted a gleeful little chirp, the tips of its vines glowing white and releasing a beam into the sky.

It was as if the sunlight suddenly intensified, clouds clearing out. The beams of light shattered the illusion of Sylvan Orb, but they also had another effect.

Suddenly, a pair of red eyes snapped open in the midst of the Cherisol's facial markings. The rain of Sakura petals began again as the petals unwrapped and spread out as the creature rose to its feet, vines retracting.

Where the almost cocoon-like thing was now stood a graceful, tall, slender and long-necked humanoid figure. Its pale yellow head was bald save for three very long petal-crests - one of which covered most of its face before, and was now trailing behind it. There were five smaller orbs on the creature's head - not two - the other three were simply obscured.

The head connected to a long, green and slender stem of a neck that terminated in a sepal-like covering of the shoulders and chest, and served as the origin point for more trailing petal crests. there was a third orb on its chest, now revealed. the creature's body was the same yellowish as its face, and its thin, digitigrade legs, which terminated in what almost looked like hooves, had sepal-like coverings on them as well, ones that reached up to the ankles.

It looked fast, graceful, and deadly.

Which is exactly what it was. Cherisol's PosiForme was faster and more powerful by far than its negative form, but its defenses were less powerful. Gardenia truly brought out the Big Guns.

The sun's bright light flowed into the creature's orbs, rapidly focusing them into a concentrated beam of light.

The Solarbeam fired.

 

[Belle]

After making contact and delivering the toxins, the vaporeon slunk away to gnaw quietly at her Leftovers, a familiar violet glint flashing in her soft blue eyes as the Cherisol took time to heal itself and fire a bright flash into the sky, writhing and transforming under the light it had summoned. From the trainer's box on his end of the field, Archer observed the change with intrigue as the heavy petals folded over to reveal the face of the Cherisol. Letting his interest in the creature subside, he turned his gaze onto the vaporeon in the brief moment between the opponent's sun-inspired form settled and when it began to charge its second solarbeam attack. A quick flick of the wrist conveyed his intention to the creature as he turned his gaze to the gym leader, a polite smile curving his lips as she spoke and his heartbeat quickened in response to her words.

Very well, then.

The beam fired soon after, careening across the field towards his partner before colliding in a burst of light. When the light faded and the dust settled, the vaporeon stood crouched behind a plate of ice and earth, arranged in a hexagonal construct to stand protectively over her and take the brunt of the attack for her as, beneath its cover, her body rippled in a wave of violet that closed most of the new wounds and restored her composure. When the last of the attack had subsided, the shield crumbled and fells to the earth in clods as a second attack fired straight through it from the opposite side, crackling and snapping as it left sheets of new ice forming in its wake.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

OOC: Oh for the love of Zod almighty, this WILL take forever. >>; Fien. Epic Hax Combat it is. I will not be brought down by only two PokeMon!

"Dodge it!" Gardenia called, and the Cherisol leapt off the ground, acrobatically dodging the ice beam flying its way, landing a safe distance away on the tips of its slender feet.

It seemed to her that the opposing trainer was relying on his creatures' defenses a bit too much - both the Aggron an Vaporeon were very powerful defensively and could take quite a number of hits - and the Vaporeon, annoyingly enough, had the advantage of healing itself slightly every turn. Cherisol, of course, could heal itself significantly as well - but Gardenia was seriously beginning to tire of drawing the match out. It was time to strike a decisive blow.

"Alright then." Gardenia murmured "If that's the way you want to play it..."

She motioned an upwards movement with her hand

"That's the way we'll play it."

the Orbs were glowing again, but this time, they were glowing even brighter. The Cherisol leapt into the air, taking in even more sunlight than before. Now, even its petal crests were glowing, and soon enough the creature acquired the radiance of a small sun. The creature closed its eyes, allowing the light to flow through its markings as well. Soon enough, there was little more that could be seen of the Cherisol than a glowing white mass of light, and heat.

This was the beginning of a Sol Force attack - normally a moderately powerful move that also instilled confusion - but Gardenia had no intention of executing it as a Sol Force. Rather, she used it for a special form of charge - drawing in more energy than the creature could normally acquire...

And as the Cherisol was exactly above the Vaporeon, Gardenia motioned downward sharply.

And the creature released an attack - but rather than dive-bombing the foe as a Sol Force attack would, the Energy was released in the form of a truly massive Solarbeam - one that would melt through a barrier similar to the one the Vaporeon put up earlier easily, and probably overpower whatever attack the Vaporeon might use to attempt to counter it. She knew there was no chance the creature would take the full force of the attack - something will weaken it before it hits - but she was hoping it was enough to do just the right amount of damage to finally silence the water-type. This particular maneuver took a lot out of Cherisol - but there was only so long that she could draw this battle, anyway. Something had to give sooner or later.

 

[Belle]

ooc| says the guy who decided to use Aromatherapy to get rid of the 'let's make it end quick lol' toxic O:<
way to hax Stellus
way to hax :V

So, the decisive blow was decisive.
After the resounding crack of the impact quieted to a dim rustling of pebbles while the dust quietly settled, the vaporeon lay still for a moment before shifting meekly as she willed herself to her feet, layer upon layer of grit smeared across the gentle face now scoured with determination.
Frowning from his end of the field, the trainer ran his fingers along the row of metallic spheres clipped to his hip before summoning the enraged creature back to her holding place.

"Now now, that's enough of that."

Running his finger along the smooth surface, he smiled kindly down at the capsule as he reattached it to his belt. "You did real good, I should have pushed you a little harder in the beginning, but you did real good. Now, I think we've twittered about quite enough for today, so let's wrap this up quickly, Lucy."

As he spoke, he pulled free the last of his choices and, with a flick of his wrist, enlarged it before hurling it onto the field. When it cracked open, the streak of red matter took to the skies as opposed to settling on the ground like his previous choices. For the first time since the battle had started, he chose a competitor with an actual advantage over the opponent. When the shape began to form and the lingering trail of matter caught up to itself, the mass began to take shape and develop. Wings, sleek body, teeny feet and the crests sprouting off her forehead quickly took shape, and she trilled happily as soon as she caught a whiff of the woody atmosphere. Comfortably gliding to and fro, it only took a brief moment for her to turn sharply and streak across the stage almost as if she were to collide with the opponent, but instead pulled up at the last hairy moment to glide in and plant a messy Sweet Kiss on the opponent before zipping away once more, starting off the last round of the battle straight off the blocks.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

OOC: What can I say, Bellus, Death By Status Ailment is too lame for my tastes. XD But yeah, Cherisol isn't lasting much longer. xD

BIC:

"Well. A PokeMon with a type advantage. How refreshing." Gardenia grinned "Now that's what I've been expecting in a final battle!"

So I finally pushed him to this. she thought to herself I don't think Cherisol can last much longer... this maneuver always leaves her drained, and I don't have the time to shift her to NegaForme and heal up... Guess I have to make due with what I have.

The grass-type rose to its feet shakily, eyes still closed - and appeared almost woozy. As its eyes opened, it seemed to take some time to get its bearings, attempting to sense the Togekiss' movements somehow, but it mind was clouded. Unable to rely on precision aiming, the Cherisol broke off into a blind run, unleashing wave after wave of softly-glowing, multi-colored leaves - leaves that seemed to target their elusive prey as if by magic. Even with Cherisol's impressive attack power, though, it wouldn't do much damage to a flying type - but Gardenia was hoping to at least do SOME damage before the battle was over.

 

[Belle]

A smile broke through the calculating expression on his face as he heard her comment, flushing lightly as he replied.
"So sorry to have kept you waiting then, perhaps I should have pulled her out earlier."

As he spoke, the plane swooped about, seemingly enjoying the freedom as she maneuvered through the airspace, and even twirling about to avoid the majority of the leafy assailants even as the ones that hit home burrowed into her wings and chest. At these she managed a wince or two as the gashes began to weep, but as the gym leader could conclude on her own, the leaves left little impact on the winged wonder. Once the assault showed signs of slowing, the togekiss zipped along the edge of the field, dropping to a height that would have grazed the top of her trainer's six-foot-height. From this altitude, she began to twist her body in a way that whipped up gusts of air, twisting around her sleek body before condensing into a single form that, upon a swift blow from its creator, burst into a thick array of cutting gusts that sliced through the air toward the Cherisol.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

Confused as it was, the Cherisol could not sense the Air Slash attack coming, the super-effective attack connecting and knocking the creature down from its run to the ground, where it rolled unceremoniously to crash against a tree.

There was a moment of stillness - but it was not the end. The Cherisol was confused, heavily damaged - and still exhausted from its attack - but miraculously, still capable of standing up - which it promptly did. Shakily, the Cherisol moved so the tree was behind its back, steadying itself with an array of roots sprouted by its legs. The roots took in some energy, recovering a bit of damage - but not much.

She knows. Gad thought to himself, sending a look to Gardenia. If she's ground-locking the PosiForme, it could on mean that she had no intention of defending anymore. He's seen her do it before - the no-holds-barred take-the-enemy-with-you sort of maneuver.

But what could she do with a weakened, confused Cherisol that had a chance of dishing a fair chunk of damage?

The creature's orbs emitted a new type of glow - a golden glow.

Oh no. She is -not- doing what I think she's doing.

The Cherisol closed its eyes, holding its hands in front of its body, as the orbs' glowing intensified, and a ball of energy was slowly forming and condensing between the Cherisol's hands - a radiant sparkling geodesic sphere of light, increasing slowly but gradually in volume.... Power Gem.

Clever. he thought She's using the tree to make sure there's only one way she can be approached - from the front. With so much power poured into Power Gem, it can act as a shield against ranged attacks. The roots provide extra stability against the likes of whirlwind... And so the only way to attack it is head-on. But attacking head-on would lead it directly into the Power Gem... Which means she wouldn't have to aim the attack and launch it - risking the trajectory distorted by confusion...

"Well. It seems that you have me cornered, Archer Gray." Gardenia smirked "But let us see how you break this stalemate."

 

[Belle]

Musing silently to himself, Archer felt himself smiling as he rocked onto the heels of his feet, drumming his knuckles against the soft skin beneath his chin as his mind whirred at a million miles an hour.
"That's an interesting move you've set up there, Miss. Now I haven't actually used Extremespeed with Lucy too much before this, but for the sake of keeping this interesting what say we throw caution to the wind, hm?"

As he spoke, the pokemon hovered over some distance farther from the opponent than she had been before, eying the Cherisol warily as she waited for the flick of the young man's hand that would cue her movement. When it came, she began her trek back across the field, her movement rapidly quickening until she couldn't be tracked by the naked eye any longer. However, even after she'd vanished, there was no sign of her anywhere near the Cherisol.

"I think the best course of action would be to uproot things here, if you'll excuse the tragically poor pun."

Wincing shamefully at the words he spun, he turned his smoky eyes on the tree and the pokemon still blinking dazedly at the base. Extending a hand towards the towering trunk and motioning at it, it seemed almost as if he were asking it to rise up from the earth. Surprisingly enough, it did just that with a chirpy humming from somewhere behind the wood as the soil clasped by its roots began to churn and tumble in a flurry of violet-blue light, its source becoming apparent as the Togekiss appeared from behind the flora surrounded by a similar shade of light. Riding on the mounds of dirt, the plant shuddered in the air before toppling over and onto the opponent still rooted firmly into the ground as the little plane hovered cautiously over the wreck.

ooc| Drop trees, not bombs :U [/dork]
also shameful pun is shameful, and now I'm off to administer 40 lashes upon myself :|

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

If there was a way to condense pure, unrefined rage just being vaguely suppressed into one look, that would have been the look that Gardenia just shot the trainer.

"It will do you good to remember," she said "That trees are living things. NOT just scenery to be carelessly uprooted. ESPECIALLY in a GRASS-TYPE GYM."

If words could kill, Archer would have probably been very, very dead indeed.

Her expression softened for a moment when she realized that the Cherisol probably did not make it. She returned the creature to its PokeBall, wordlessly, murmuring a soft 'You've done all you could' at the ball - not even waiting for an official declaration.

Then she took a few deep breaths, closing her eyes, ordering her thoughts.

"Well done, Archer Gray. I concede defeat." she finally said, approaching the trainer slowly. Seemingly out of no where, a small metallic badge - green and silver, resembling, vaguely, an array of trees forming a forest - fell into her hand. "You've battled skillfully and most certainly earned this badge."

She handed the trainer the badge with a little smile.

"But mess with my trees again, and I'll feed you to a whole pack of Victreebel. Do I make myself clear?" she said in what almost sounded like a soft growl. Then, she turned away to walk towards the fallen tree - probably to survey the damage.

"It's okay, love. I think it can be replanted." Gad - who was already there - wrapped his arm around her waist. "Some of the root system was damaged but i think some controlled growth could fix it... I'll get right on it with Ely, you get your team restored in the meantime. More challengers might drop on us soon."

"Okay." she said, giving the tree one last look before heading off to the cell restoration machine.

"Silly, crazy woman I fell in love with..." he murmured to himself, wondering if she heard that - but even so, he knew she wouldn't take it personally.

"Alright then, Ely, we've got work to do." He called out, and the Wisteriark responded - she, too, was watching the battle intently from the grounds outside the arena, so she knew what was needed of her.

She emitted a series of subtle notes - quiet like leaves on the wind - but whatever it was, it had an effect - A few Victreebels emerged from the surroundings, taking position behind the tree and reaching out with their long vines, wrapping them around the trunk and pulling as the Wisteriark pushed the tree upwards, her leaf-wing fanning backwards as she did. Soon, the tree was standing upright again.

"Hold on a bit longer, okay?" Gad nodded, and the Victreebels emitted their screechy vocalization. "Elysium, You know what to do."

The Wisteriark nodded, placing her hand against the tree and humming to it softly. Her claws plunged a bit into the bark. A soft, deep forest-green glow encompassed her form, flowing into the tree as he hummed. There was a rustle amidst the tree's roots as suddenly, they changed - it was as if their growth was accelerated and manipulated to plunge deeper into the ground, anchoring the tree further, as damaged roots were growing again. as the Wisteriark stabilized the tree, the trainer shifted the disturbed earth back to surround the roots - to the best of his ability.

The Wisteriark's aura intensified as it now flowed through the grass as well, regrowing whatever vegetation was damaged in the battle. She couldn't help herself.

Finally the aura settled down and the Deep Forest PokeMon withdrew her hand from the tree. The Victreebels retracted their vines, and hopped back into wherever. Again, the tree stood tall and proud. And all was right with the world.

Well, for now, at least. the trainer thought a he rose to his feet, dusting his trenchcoat off. Then, he proceeded to head back into the residential wing of the gym, to wash his hands - and also to see how Gardenia was doing.

 

[Katsuo]

Dai lay in the thick vegetation and let her mind wander. Her interest in the young trainer had vanished as soon as the battle started. She had listened to the battle, not caring who won, for she had been proven wrong. The young trainer, Archer, was, in fact, a trainer hoping to challenge the Gym leader. Sniper had curled into a fetal position and fallen asleep. Dai watched his torso rise and fall with every breath. The artificial light shimmered and glinted off his slate gray fur, refracting little crystals of light on the surrounding foliage. Dai found herself both uncomfortable, and comfortable in this environment. It was pretty and warm, but she had never experienced a place so green and alive. It was unsettling.
She twirled the stem of a flower she had plucked earlier. Trainer, she pulled off a petal. Gym Leader, she pulled off another. The soft yellow petals drifted to the ground, landing softly in the almost fluffy grass.
Trainer. Gym Leader. Trainer. Gym Leader. Trainer. Gym Leader...
Trainer.
The last petal drifted morosely to the ground and Dai lifted the naked stem to her nose and sniffed it. Its scent was gentle and sweet. She lifted her gaze and peered at the trainer and Gym leader from under her long lashes. Her mind was still wandering and too far from her senses to register what they were saying, but she garnered enough to realize that Archer had bested the leader, despite the array of fantastic new Pokémon that Dai had never seen before, if only from the fact that the flower she had plucked indicated that Archer had won.
Dai yawned, sat up, and jabbed a rigid finger into Sniper's resting side. He screeched and leapt to his clawed feet, panting and snarling at the rude awakening. Dai snorted with laughter, which was soon replaced by indignant grunts and curses as Sniper tackled her to the ground. They wrestled for a bit before Sniper managed to pin Dai face down into the soft Earth. She squirmed for a bit, then conceded defeat to her friend. He hopped off her lithely and Dai rose to her feet, dusting off her clothes.
She cocked her hip, placing one hand on her hip, and waited impatiently for Xyrem so they could leave the bright green atmosphere. Her eyes deliberately avoided Archer and the Gym Leader, preferring to pretend they didn't exist rather than admit she had been wrong about Archer. She tapped her foot impatiently, and Sniper mimicked her impatient stance.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

OOC: Figured I'd make a short post here about getting ready to leave, just until Megan gets over her writer's block.

Reclaiming her PokeBalls from the cell-regeneration machine, Gardenia made her way back into the residential wing - she needed to relax a little after this match. It was quite a rush - the opposing trainer was certainly tenacious. It's been a while since she's seen such defenses.

She stretched, gasping for a moment when she felt a pair of arms slip around her waist from behind, but soon relaxing into the embrace with a sound that almost sounded like a purr.

"All this time and you still catch me by surprise." she murmured.
"All this time and you still never learn to expect me." Gad purred softly, planting a gentle kiss on the gym leader's neck. She giggled. "One hell of a battle, huh?"

"You can say that again." Gardenia said, snuggling in. "It's been a while since I could battle no-holds-barred like that... I'm glad that you got to see it before you leave... So, who are you taking along?"

"Obviously taking Ely along." Gad murmured, "Along with Arano and Tethys. Grass, Fire and Water. Trio of Terror. As for the others... I don't know. I guess it depends on whether or not I'll take on a few of the gym leaders along the way to Pastoria. The way there seems to pass through Hearthome. I hear the gym leader there specifies in ghosts... Might need to get one of my other Crystal-types. Or a dark-type."

He felt a little shudder run through the gym leader, and pulled her a little closer to him. For reasons he could never fathom, Gardenia had an odd fear of ghost-types. She's been getting better about it over time, but she still had some kind of odd phobia about them all secretly planning to eat her soul, even though she knew such a thing was impossible. ("They feed on strong emotional energy, you silly thing, not souls." "I know, but that doesn't mean that they don't want to eat my soul. Don't confuse me with the facts.") Silly woman. He loved her to pieces anyway.

They stayed like that for a little while longer, before deciding to head back out into the battleground - in case another challenger came along. This time they walked out with their arms around each other's waists. To heck with protocol, they needed a bit of a cuddle before they said goodbye.

 

[Belle]

ooc| short post is shooooorrrttttt but since everyone is skee-daddling I might throw Archer out of the arena :}

The young Gym Leader's biting words struck him like a blow to the face. Or twelve. As the blood rose into his cheeks and Gardenia finished speaking, it was all he could to do keep himself from toppling over as he gave a stammered apology before slinking quietly back towards the stands, cheeks flushed as he avoided eye contact with either of the young women and busied himself with the various items in his pack.

When he'd settled all his pokeballs into their places on his belt, he reclined against the wall beside it and fiddled with the new badge: wiping it off on his shirt, testing the points against his fingerpads, flicking it to listen for the melody in the reverberating metal...
Quite satisfied with his fiddling, he fished around in his pack for some thing or another, tugging loose items free of the pack until he'd laden his hands with goggles, a wallet, a trainer ID, badge case- into which he promptly popped the new badge into its rightful place- all sorts of goodies.

ooc| doctoroctagonapusblaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrgh

 

[SineCosineTangent]

[OOC: Sorrysorrysorrysorrysorryyyy ;^; I would have done more over break, but I had a death in the family and everything went all explodd-y in space. So here's something to get this baby on the road again o3o]

Xyrem watched the battle with the intensity of a thousand angry lobsters...Or she would have been, if Dai hadn't yanked her from slumber at some ungodly time in the morning. In fact, rather than being anything close to focused, her brain started to float.

First, she looked around her, taking in the surrounding area. The only Gym she was used to was back home, and obviously that was just full of rocks. Pretty rocks, but rocks nonetheless. In a way, it was quite barren. Here, there was lush greenery everywhere. Yes, it was a Grass type Gym, but Xyrem never expected any actual building to be so alive. It seems like the kind of place where, if you were to lay down and drift off, time would cease to pass as you rested.

Completely timeless. Unburdened by the shackles of entropy. That's what this place was. No matter how fierce the battle, the area had its own zen to it.

Her topic of thought quickly switched over to wonder how the other Gyms were. Did they all have their own odd mysticism to them? Or was this just special? Either way, she sat in the stands, nearly oblivious to the battle unfolding just yards away.

‘Vadumee sat at her side, carefully plucking at a blade of grass, peeling tinier and tinier strips away from it, until he could no longer hold the blade to rip it. When he got to that point, he threw it to the ground, and grabbed another one, and the process began anew. Even though the two of them had meditated, they had neglected to actually go through their daily training routine. Xyrem made a mental note to go back to the hill before the day was over, to make use of the gratuitous amount of space around the statues.

Before she could pause her flow of thoughts, the battle was over. She had spent the whole thing just daydreaming away. So much for learning new things. ‘Vadumee stood, stretched, and looked down to his trainer.

Xyrem, rather then noticing the avian fighter's stare, was now focused on Dai, who looked pretty pissed off. A pang of guilt resided in her chest. She was the one that suggested that they followed Archer- and while at the time she assumed that it would put Dai's mind at rest, what it ended up doing was grinding the weight of her previous misconception further and further into her psyche. Xyrem knew from experience- it was definitely one of the worst feelings out there.

The redhead quickly brought herself to her feet, looking quickly to ‘Vadumee in order to give him the signal that it was time to go- not that he needed it, he sensed Dai's impatience simply by her stance. Xyrem motioned her head towards the exit, and began to head over, her partner right behind her. She saw Archer, awkwardly fiddling with his items, and knew that it was bad form not to congratulate a trainer on a tough win, but weighed it against the already strong feelings of ire that Dai had towards the young male.

Feelings aside, it would be wrong not to say something.

"Hey, Archer," Xyrem started, a friendly smile crossing her face, "Nice battle."

She hoped that the pleasantry wouldn't upset her friend too much.

[OOC: Hope this is good~ Thanks for dealing with my silliness, y'all