The Heights of Londo [IC 2: Bolted]

[Ceralune]

Genevieve stands by, a little lost as the others talk about this "scroll." It sounds like a TM, yet it looks completely different and seems much more complicated than the technology she saw at the Goldenrod Department Store. And if the name of the pokemon technique is any indication, they probably do serve a similar function. Thank goodness TMs don't require bothersome things like preparing ingredients...

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods. "It sounds like a really interesting move. I'll have to keep those scrolls in mind, they might have moves I've never seen on them." A bit frustrated with her sudden artistic issues, Alyssa stuffs her sketch pad away in her bag (which takes some effort as she's holding Luna still) and just taps her sketching pencil against her leg. Luna looks at the scroll with some interest from Alyssa's arms, but in the end seems a bit more subdued about the scroll than everyone else present, mostly just eyeing it curiously.

As her thoughts begin turning at what Hidden Power might lie in Luna, Alyssa has a sudden flash of inspiration and turns to the others, speaking quickly. "Oh, I thought of something. Bibi!" After a short pause she then adds, "Bibi is someone I heard about who might be able to help us with the traveling. She's said to be a good person to travel with, so she'd probably be a good bet to ask to come with us."

[Hazuki]

"No. Some are as simple as describing a technique." Misru answers Leah. "This one has been translated into a simple rune-based language from before we gained a more advanced understanding of witchcraft. It's all too crude, but I suppose simplicity is what Lord Bastille was going for."

When Linne expresses her desire for one, Sass smiles up at Misru. "You're gonna make a copy, right?"

"Not with one hand." Misru replies, pointedly, and Sass releases her wrist. She quickly retrieves a quill, a scrap of parchment, and a black quill. She scribbles normal, understandable words onto it, then steps forward to pass it to Linne. She fixes her eyes on the hooded girl as she waits for her to take it.

[Comissar]

Leah nods at Misru's explanation, shifting her bag strap slightly as she did. It sounded like something that might be interesting to look into, though she might struggle to find the time to research it while on the road. She glanced over to Alyssa as the older girl remembered a potential guide. She found herself nodding again.

"Umm, sounds good. Do you think she'd be ok going as far as, uh, as far as Thundercrag?"

[Ceralune]

At the mention of a potential guide, Genevieve perks up. "Where can we find this... 'Bibi?' And when do you want to ask her?"

[Merilan]

"Ohh...." Linne didn't really think anything was out of place, though she accepted it and bowed her head. "Thank you, miss Misru!" She looked at the scroll, then -- then held it out for Zeta, bright and charmingly. "Here you go, Zeta!"

Zeta paused and stared back at her trainer, tilting her head.

[Hazuki]

Misru's stare shifts from studious to concerned. "You have to read and follow the instructions." She informs Linne, flatly.

[Merilan]

Linne paused and looked around embarrassedly, before pulling the scroll open to try to squint and read it. Hopefully, the very basic level of reading comprehension she has will be enough...

[Ceralune]

Genevieve's not sure why they're spending so much time scrutinizing this scroll, but it's starting to become slightly irritating. Not buying into the whole "witchcraft" idea (preparing ingredients sounds an awful lot like cooking, and cooking and rituals are not the same thing), she finally takes the scroll from Linne, hoping that the sooner they get this over with, the sooner they can move onto more important things. Like finding this Bibi person.

"Here, Linne, I can read it for you."

[Hazuki]

The parchment reads...

Make four points in the ground, each for a cardinal direction. Dry earth can be dug into, grassland marked with rocks, and so forth.
Connect the points to form a diamond shape, large enough to contain your Pokemon.
Mark the center of the diamond with the rune representing your Pokemon's Type and Temperament.
Gather: A sliver of soap, fresh ash, a hair (Or other easily-shedable part of your Pokemon), and the petals of their favorite flower.
Mix these with half a waterskin's worth of water, until the ingredients are indistinguishable.
Have your Pokemon sit at the center of the diamond.
Lightly douse the inner part of the diamond with the mixture, using a leaf or other flat tool.
Have your Pokemon spend a night of rest in the center of the diamond.

At the bottom of the parchment are a series of runes, the first set denoting Types, and the second set describing basic personality traits, like "Mischievous" and "Adamant".

[Ceralune]

As she finishes reading, Genevieve's eyebrow raises in a skeptical look. Spend a night of rest in the center of the diamond? No no no, absolutely not. It's dirty outside! Aware that everyone else seems to be buying into this supposed "witchcraft," though, she swallows her comments and hands the parchment back to Linne.

[Merilan]

Linne perked up with cheer as she said, "That doesn't sound too hard. Should we try doing that sometime, Zeta?" The Fennekin happily yipped in turn with a nod.

[Hazuki]

"Wait, you can't read?" Sass asks, eyeing Linne with wide eyes. Naturally, Yrael joins in. "How come? Even I can read!"

[Merilan]

Linne's cheer disappeared again as she stepped back, squeezing Zeta a little bit tighter. "Um, well, Linne has lived in the forest for the last ten years...." She nervously glanced left and right, then at Leah again.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve casts a shocked glance Linne's way. "Wait... you've been living in the forests? For that long, without your mother?!" She regards the girl uncertainly, not wanting to believe it but admitting to herself that it would explain a lot. I just thought her reading comprehension was a little behind. I never imagined anything like this! Well it's comforting to know that illiteracy isn't the norm here; Linne is clearly just a special case.

[AncientSpark]

Lina gasps and puts her hands over her mouth. "Aw, that ain't right! No one should be livin' out on there own." Unlike the others, though, that was not as surprising to Lina, after she thought about it. There were a lot of tales of strange things out in the wild, even before the war and it made sense that someone would have learned to subsist off the land with the help of other Pokemon. Still, she reached out and ruffled Linne's hair. "That must mean yer pretty tough though! I betcha wrestle some wild Pokemon every once in a while."

[Merilan]

Linne seemed embarrassed to admit it, still, shying her eyes away, but squints at Lina's ruffling of her hair, which sends her hood tumbling back a little bit. "O-oh, thank you," she answered honestly. "Yes, Linne had to wrestle a Pancham once!" A pause. "Um, Linne lost, but we made friends afterwards, so it was okay."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve mentally shakes her head at what she's hearing. And to think, I thought my mother was a real "wild-child" when she was my age just because she grew up on a farm. Do people turn out okay when they've lived in the woods like that for that long? She fixes Linne with a stare as she thinks this, before remembering that's rude and looking away quickly. Well, she's nice enough. Hopefully we can find her mother quickly once we get to Thundercrag and she can help her daughter.

With that thought, she turns to the others. "So... now that we've got this, uh, 'ritual' copied, should we go find this Bibi?"

[Comissar]

Leah finds herself frowning as Genevieve finishes reading out the ritual, wondering how the method teaches a pokémon a new move. Maybe it was like putting in energy..? Her contemplation is broken, and she finds herself fidgeting uncomfortably, as the others react to Linne's youth of isolation. When the older girl glances at her, she returns the look with what she hopes is a reassuring smile.

She looks over to Genevieve and nods at her, "Umm, yes, that, uh, that sounds like a good idea." Turning to look at Alyssa, she asked, "Umm, which way do we, uh, do we need to go?"

[Hazuki]

The party makes their goodbyes once Alyssa agrees to show them the way to Bibi's, leaving Misru and Sass standing outside the gates of Bastille Manor.

"...I'm leaving now." They can just about hear Misru inform Sass, followed by the sound of Sass blowing a raspberry at her.

They make their way on yet another long walk for Genevieve, as well as Lynx at her heels, going through the gates and down to the dirt-path outskirts of Bastille Town, where ships are moored, wooden houses converge on one another, and the distinct scent of fish is pervasive. Compared to inside the walls, the people could best be described as "In need of a quick wash", as not even one person goes without dirtied boots. The sound of gambling can be heard around a few corners, the clutter of dice and cheers of victory, and a handful of fishing poles can be seen by the Severed River itself - pulling up Water Pokemon, taking their berries, and throwing them back to the water.

Eventually, they spot the ruddy red hut that sits by the river, and easily spot the woman who must be Bibi. She's about 6'2, with a similar lanky, muscular build to Ser Alonne, but clad in a tunic, leggings and boots, rather than expertly-crafted leather armor. Her curly pink hair is tied up behind her head, exposing a face that rather resembles the rest of her bare skin. And that looks like she's had a vigorous romance with an armory. She seems to have more scar tissue than actual skin, and they come in enough wonderful shapes and sizes to provide a solid puzzle for even the most learned Pokemon Professor.

She sits on a crate, outside her hut, and seems to be stuffing a backpack with items that are spread in a circle all around her. There also seems to be some kind of Pokemon perched on her head, with gaunt blue tentacles wrapped around her chin and a white, helmet-like protrusion that rather resembles a helmet. Its pallid black eyes blink slowly as she goes through the array of tools laid out before her.

[Ceralune]

As Alyssa leads them further away from Bastille Manor, Genevieve casts a concerned glance at Lynx out of worry that Moffit wouldn't approve of leading it such a great distance from her cottage. I didn't think this Bibi would live this far away... hopefully Lynx is okay with the long walk. In a rare moment of consideration, she asks, "You doing alright there, Lynx?" just in case.

As they wander into more and more dismal conditions, the concern for Lynx soon extends to being concern for herself as well. Yeesh... maybe Linne had the right idea living in the forests after all, if this is the alternative. She ignores the yells of rowdiness coming from what seems to be a gambling hut (if the way that the yells were simultaneously exuberant and disappointed was any indication) as best as she can. Goldenrod's game corner might be a little sketchy, but at least it's clean... and largely soundproof, she thinks to herself, implying a bit of superiority to the Johto way that gambling is done. The sight of the fishermen taking berries from Water Pokemon before releasing them is puzzling. Well, that's hardly an efficient way to go about berry harvesting.

As the tall figure of a deformed (in Genevieve's humble opinion) woman comes into sight, Genevieve balks a bit as Alyssa seems to lead them directly towards her hut.

THAT'S Bibi?!

[Merilan]

Linne didn't seem to be terribly bothered with the smell -- her entire late childhood and teenage years had been spent in the forest, after all, and whatever scents and stinks that brought with it. "Ohh... wow, what's that Pokemon on her head...?" She tilted her head, wondering just how many battles she'd seen in her life. Linne already felt intimidated by the one she'd gotten caught up in, thinking of poor ser Volim for a moment.

[Comissar]

Leah follows along on the walk with little in the way of commentary. After the week of walking it took to get to Bastille, a walk down to the town outskirts felt brief in comparison. Her nose wrinkled slightly at the smell of fish, the pervasiveness of it a little stronger than she'd been anticipating. The state of the people around the outskirts didn't bother her too much, though she did find herself hugging her arms in front of herself to make sure she didn't accidentally brush up against any of them. When they do reach Bibi's hut, she fights the urge to openly stare at the woman's heavily scarred face, allowing herself to be distracted from it by Linne's question.

Glancing up at the pokémon clinging to the woman's head, she replied, "Umm... I'm, uh, not sure... One second."

Reaching into her bag, she retrieved her pokédex and aimed it at the squid-like pokémon. After a brief beep to positively identify it, she read out from the screen "Umm... It's an, uh, an Inkay."

Glancing over to Alyssa as she put her pokédex away again, she hesitantly approached the woman, giving her an uncertain wave. "Umm... Hi..?"

[Hazuki]

The woman blinks as Leah's voice disturbs her tool-organization. She pulls herself up to her full height, a calloused hand braced against a crate, and looks over the group with a squint. The Inkay on her head flexes its back tentacles.

"Hello." She intones. "I'm Bibi."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa lets herself get a bit preoccupied trying to figure out how exactly to get to Bibi's house based on everything she could remember. As it turns out hearsay only gets one so far, and Alyssa finds herself terrible at remembering exact directions, but she does get everyone there safe and sound and in a reasonable time frame by following her gut.

The new Pokemon surprises Alyssa, distracting her for a moment as she considers what it might be. She leans over Leah's shoulder as she checks her Pokedex, noting that hers is a bit different than Leah's. In fact Leah taking out hers reminds Alyssa that she should probably make sure her Pokedex is somewhere safe since it was kind of technically a gift, but she puts that thought away for later as Bibi stands to introduce herself.

Alyssa takes a moment to taken in Bibi, as she does everyone she meets, and then gives a polite bow. Given what she'd heard, she's not as surprised as the rest of them, although reality is certainly different than word of mouth. She smiles as she begins. "Hello Bibi, my name's Alyssa." She then points to each person in turn, introducing them: "These are Leah, Linne, Genevieve, and Lina." Besides Leah being first, her order is almost entirely random, and she ends up pointing around herself awkwardly. Then she turns back to Bibi, her eyes trying to stay focused on her face as much as possible. "I had heard from a good friend you were a good traveler and we were looking for someone a bit more...professional to travel with us? We had planned to go to Thundercrag and didn't feel safe going on our own."

[Merilan]

Linne looked up at the Inkay for a bit longer, before admonishing herself and telling herself it might be rude. "Hi! My name is Linne!"

[Hazuki]

Bibi nods as Alyssa lists of her companions, and at Linne's added greeting, then whips to her feet and tosses a handful of her tools into the pack beside her. "Alright. Lessay...a thousand to get you there." She slings her pack over a nicked shoulder and looms over the rest of the group. "This here's Ibib." She says, and the circles on the Inkay's helmet briefly light up. "What about your little ones?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa takes a moment to do some mental calculations, then quickly nods. "I think that sounds good." She turns to everyone else. "1000 sound good to you all? Do you have the grant or do I, Leah?"

Luna waves at Ibib as Bibi points her out, and Alyssa lifts Luna a little bit higher up so her face is more visible. "This is Luna!" Luna gives a sort of calm happy grin at Ibib and Bibi, quite happy to not have to move herself. "She and I have known each other for a long time. It's nice to meet you both."

[Hazuki]

Bibi holds her hands out, as though to accept Luna.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve's not quite able to stop herself from staring, though the question about the group's pokemon snaps her out of her shock as she thinks, I'm not sure I want Damien anywhere near Bibi... "Ahh, yes, 1000 is good. I don't mind chipping in, since I'm benefiting from it too."

Pulling out Damien's pokeball, she clicks the button and he appears in her arms. "This one's name is Damien." She keeps her arms tight around him, though, as if she's not going to let him go to the scary-looking lady. Damien looks at the lady in front of him with a tilted head. "Vee?"

[Merilan]

"One-thousand..." Linne mused to herself, rummaging through her bag for a moment, thinking about how she exchanged valuables with the courier earlier. Then looked up at the group, holding out what looks like a basic Pokeball. "This bauble is worth about two hundred, right? Linne can give her share--"

She paused and stared at Genevieve, eyes turning to what could be white circles. "Eh? Eeh? Where'd Damien come out of, just now?? Was he hiding??"

[Ceralune]

Genevieve is somewhat startled by Linne's question, though there's no gasp of shock as she finally can attribute these strange quirks to Linne's unusual upbringing. Or lack thereof.

"Ahh... this pokeball can be used to hold pokemon. Trainers often use them as a convenient way to carry their pokemon around. It's supposed to be very comfortable as well. See? This is Damien's pokeball." She holds up the capsule-like device in her hand so that Linne can see it.

"It kind of looks like the thing you're holding, but... well, I'm not really sure what it is you're holding."

[Merilan]

"I--is it really comfortable...?" Linne doesn't sound like she quite believes it, tilting her head. "H-hmm..." A pause, as she asks the next most obvious question (maybe): "Can Linne get into it with Zeta at night, like, um, a tent?"

[Ceralune]

"I-I mean... according to Silph, it is. Though I've never seen a pokemon complain about it either, so, I'm thinking they're probably right? Genevieve sweatdrops at Linne's next question. "Pretty sure they're for pokemon only."

[Comissar]

Leah gives a quick bob of her head as Alyssa introduces her. At the older girl's question, she opens up her bag with a faint frown. Rifling through her belongings, she quickly comes across the coin bag Lord Bastille provided her, the pouch nestled against the carefully wrapped fossil. "I've got it here." Her gaze shifted to Bibi, giving her a questioning look, "Umm, did you, uh, did you want paying now..?"

At her feet, Saura approached Bibi with cautious interest, looking up at the woman as Luna greeted her.

[Hazuki]

Bibi looks at Genevieve's death-grip on Damien and reaches out to scratch him pleasingly at his neck ruff. The foreigner will notice a faint, sweet berry scent as the woman's criss-crossed fingers pet the Eevee. "Not seen one like him before."

It's at this point that she notices Saura at her feet, and stares back. "Whenever." She answers Leah. "What's your name?"

[Comissar]

Leah rubs at the back of her neck as Bibi addresses Saura, the Bulbasaur looking up and giving a "Saur!" in greeting.

"Umm, her name's, uh, Saura." Feeling more might be needed, and remembering the unfamiliarity many natives had with the pokémon, she added, "She's a, uh, a Bulbasaur."

[tgva8889]

With a consenting nod from Luna, Alyssa lets Bibi hold Luna for a moment. Luna seems to enjoy the experience and seems to take everything in stride. She smiles kindly at Bibi. "Anything we should get before we leave? I know I don't have a lot of food with me."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve blinks, looking at Bibi in a somewhat surprised manner at the gentle motion. Damien chirps and briefly nuzzles the hand petting him. "Ahh, w-we came from pretty far away."

At Alyssa's mention of last-minute preparations, Genevieve perks up. Hmm, I was planning on picking up a weapon of some kind to protect myself with... but will that be necessary with Bibi around? She shoots the scarred woman a glance, not fully convinced yet. ... Maybe it wouldn't hurt to at least take a look at what the prices are....

"Umm, I was planning on looking for something else to defend myself with. I'm not really sure what you have here in the way of self-defense, though. Other than pokemon, of course."

[Merilan]

Linne didn't seem very convinced, nodding quietly as she put the pokeball back onto her bag. She looked at Zeta for a moment, and the Fennekin made a face. "Linne doesn't think Zeta wants to stay in a pokeball," she expressed. She looked towards the group and smiled, saying, "Linne has a lot of experience gathering fruits and food from the forests, so she'll be able to help on the road..."

[Hazuki]

Bibi finishes petting Damien with a final ruffle of his fur and holds Luna comfortably against her bosom. It seems she could quite comfortable hold the pink Pokemon in one hand. "Good name." She nods at Saura. "Don't need much for a walk. Don't need a weapon, either, long as we don't enter the Den." She answers Alyssa and Genevieve simultaneously.

[Ceralune]

"Uhh, if you say so." Somehow Bibi's claim doesn't reassure Genevieve, but at this point, to buy a weapon would be to go directly against what the odd-looking woman has said. And Genevieve has had enough of strange women being angry with her.

"Shall we get going, then?" No reason to stay here longer than I have to!

[Comissar]

Leah can't help but grin at the validation of the name she'd given her Bulbasaur. Her grin fades a little as talk turns to leaving immediately. "Umm, I think we should, uh, we should definitely get some food. Umm, but I think I'm ready to go otherwise." She frowned to herself as she ran off a mental checklist, "Oh! Umm, I need to let my, uh, let my mum know, too."

Reaching into her bag to retrieve her pokégear, Leah dialled her mother after stepping a short distance away from the group. Letting her gaze wander, she waited idly for the call to connect, her fingers drumming against her arm the only sign of her mild impatience at the slow connection. On hearing her mother's voice, she started speaking as soon as she could so as to pre-empt any questions, "Hey mum, umm, just wanted to let you know we've found a guide now. She seems to know the way pretty well, and she's given us a good price too. Umm, I, uh, I don't know how good the coverage will be once I leave Bastille. Umm, I'll try and message you when I can, but it might not be that often."

[Hazuki]

There's a beat on the other end of the line. "...did you just talk really quickly to avoid me asking any questions?" Leah's mother asks.

Bibi looks to Leah with a raised eyebrow, though it's hard to tell whether it creases her forehead or not.

[Comissar]

Leah winces slightly, fingers tightening around her arm as she replied, "... No..?"

[Hazuki]

The sound of a ticking mind fills Leah's ear. "...well, I'm glad you've found somebody to guide you. Remember not to leave your Pokegear on silent, just in case."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa shrugs at Bibi's comment, then her mind picks up something else she mentioned. "The Den? Why might we go there?" Luna, meanwhile, makes a small happy cry and then points at Alyssa with a few cries as if to indicate she'd like to go back to her.

As Leah starts to speak on her Pokegear, Alyssa tries her best not to intrude on her conversation, though she does pick up a bit on her speed. She gives a small smile at the thought, her thoughts drifting to her own brother, but it's a short thought.

[Hazuki]

"We wouldn't." Bibi answers all enigmatic-like, then carefully hands Luna back to Alyssa.

[Comissar]

Leah gives a relieved nod of her head, a grin forming as the new trip became more real, "I will, yes. Umm, remember to leave it off silent, that is. Thankyou!"

Leah waited a moment to let her mother say her goodbyes before hanging up. Turning back to the rest of the group, she smiled, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she did. "Umm, I'm ready to get started when you are."

[Hazuki]

"Goodbye, Leah." The girl's mother ends the call and Bibi does a headcount before striding down the dirt street. Ibib slowly turns on her head, its tentacles wrapping around her chin, so its big black eyes watch the group as she leads them. Getting out of the outskirts proves remarkably quicker with her at the head of the group, as they're soon passing the opposite side of Bastille Town and out of its looming walls. She gets a few odd looks, and one or two people greeting her as she passes, but the group goes undisturbed as they begin their journey.

It starts on the road, where a few other travelers can be seen walking ahead, and Bibi leads the group at a firm pace through the slightly uncomfortable heat. Their surroundings don't change a great deal, with hilly terrain and plains beyond dominating their line of sight, with a few clusters of trees and smaller rivers branching alongside them. A few stomachs are left rumbling, as Bibi leads them right around another town until well into the night - with Ibib providing a particularly bright source of light for the group.

Even as they move off of the paved roads, they encounter remarkably few Pokemon, up until Bibi leads them to a small pond surrounded by tall grass and a few tall rocks that provide perfect shelter. Even then, all they see is a few ripples in the water, and a campfire is soon made to provide them warmth for the night. She leaves and returns after half an hour, with a fresh wound on her arm that is swiftly bandaged up with leaves and resources from her pack, and a large collection of berries, fruits, nuts, and leaves that Linne helps make into a reasonably tasty meal.

Bibi splits watch duty - which is mandatory - between herself, Linne, and Genevieve, and wakes up anyone who isn't ready at the crack of dawn for further trekking. It's all off-road, so tougher on the group's legs, but Bibi's stamina seems endless. She relents in letting them rest when they find shade, and helpfully informs the group they'll be able to spend the night in town. As the sun starts to set, the terrain around them shifts to be muchrockier and with a gradual increase of foliage. Their guide leads them on winding routes, until they reach a clearing that provides the first hint of civilization they've seen all day.

Namely, a cluster of buildings that sit in the far distance, just about visible thanks to torches alight around what are apparently walls. "Licia." Bibi informs the group, as she approaches the center of the clearing and a particularly large tree that dominates the center of it. The grass is well-trodden, and marked with a few pegs that have been firmly hammered into the ground. Thick ropes are connected to the pegs, and wrap all around the tree from every angle, binding its branches and trunk, with a few rugged leather clasps that hold the bindings shut. The scarred woman looks the tree up and down, then looks to the group. "And this is a tree."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve can suddenly feel the odd stares they get walking back through Bastille with Bibi at the head of their group. She remarks to herself how the situation has done a full 180 - those she was weirded out by on the walk here are now probably thinking of her as strange by association. She thinks she doesn't like that she has noticed this.

While Genevieve doesn't have any complaints about the pace (If I can go through hour after hour of rigorous dance rehearsal, I can handle a brisk walk away from Bastille), she fingers the collar of her coat at the heat, then takes it off altogether and carries it. As they go around the town, she faintly wishes to protest, but decides against it - less interaction with Bibi is better.

The wild pokemon they encounter, albeit briefly, are the only thing interesting about the walk - despite having never caught a wild pokemon herself, Genevieve recalls fond memories of walks to Goldenrod, and the pokemon she saw on her way to and from the busy city. She finds herself both intrigued by the curious eyes that they pass by, yet also a little nervous to get close to them, since she doesn't know how they'd react.

It seems Genevieve is feeling particularly nostalgic tonight. As they approach the pond and set up camp, she's immediately reminded of the pond outside the Bell Tower in Ecruteak. And it makes her feel a little more homesick. As Bibi returns with food, even she is excited to see the odd woman, and she cheers as Bibi and Linne prepare dinner for the group. The scenery is so peaceful that she almost doesn't complain when she has to do watch duty. Almost.

Still, she does as she's told, watching their surroundings and feeling oddly peaceful. This place is like the opposite of Castelia... so quiet and still. It really encourages you... not to think. Which actually feels kind of nice.

As Bibi wakes up everyone, Genevieve stifles a yawn from having taken the last watch. The good news: she doesn't need to be woken up. The bad news: she hasn't slept in a few hours, and they have another long, harder walk ahead of them. The terrain is difficult even for the fit teenager, and she finds her eyes lighting up whenever they find leafy trees or outcropped rocks to provide them with shade, and herself breathing a sigh of relief as Bibi confirms they will be staying in a town for the night.

The sight of the town, Licia, is a welcome one. Though, as Bibi ventures over to the tree in the middle of the clearing and states the obvious, Genevieve sweatdrops. I mean... even I could have told you that.

[Merilan]

Linne didn't seem to be too bothered by the heat -- in fact, a slightly cold, breezy wind seemed to always be around the robed, hooded girl, and she hummed along with her tune with Zeta prancing along as they headed off. She didn't seem terribly bothered by the walk either, definitely having the constitution and endurance of someone who, as she says, has been around for long enough in the forest, though not as practiced as someone like Bibi. She was fine to watch over the group and help make camp as Bibi went off to collect and forage, even though she had survival skills of her own that could've better been used there.

At the crack of dawn, Linne was alert and awake enough -- short, restful naps seemed more of her mode of rest -- and by the time they reached town, she gazed over towards the village with great interest. "Wow..."

[tgva8889]

As they seem to increase to their main speed, Alyssa pulls Luna into her Pokeball, opting not to have to worry about the Cleffa or where she might wander off to.

Alyssa is surprisingly chipper about the entire experience of trekking. She's not much of a traveler, sure, and clearly not built or prepared for long hard travel, but nevertheless her energy seems surprisingly high the whole way. She often stays near Bibi, taking twice as many steps as she does to keep up. Not much comes out of her mouth besides pants, but her hands seem to be constantly moving about, shielding her eyes to look into the distance or crossing her pad with a new sketch of some Pokemon or some scene or something. Most of them she later shakes her head and scratches out, but a few she smiles and keeps, especially one of Bibi herself and a few of the rest of the party.

When Bibi returns with a wound, Alyssa offers to give it a look, taking out a first aid kit that she always carries on her. While the food is being prepared, Alyssa mostly watches the Pokemon in the distance, looking at the reflection of the moon in the lake. She seems a bit distant and in her own head, fiddling with her sketchbook and drawing a strange, crescent-like shape a few times, though she always seems to erase it. Once they've eaten, she takes some time to finish and perfect a few sketches by the firelight, particularly the ones from the battle the previous day. She manages to make two or three that she's proud of, leaving the rest for another day. Her energy seems to fade quickly after that, and she's out like a light shortly after she curls into her sleeping bag.

Alyssa wakes up on her own the next day, though she's rather groggy. Despite her heavy breathing, Alyssa still smiles the entire way, pointing wordlessly to anything interesting she takes notice of in the distance or any small thing nearby that she finds interesting.. Her energy is much lower, however, and she seems to have a bit of trouble keeping up with the pace at some points. Though she never falls too far behind, she does seem to move much slower than the previous day.

At the sight of Licia, Alyssa pants hard. She takes a few moments to catch her breath, then says, "Ah, glad to...see it." As Bibi points to the tree, Alyssa moves a bit closer to it and examines it closely. "What...kind of tree...is it?"

[Hazuki]

"Hard and bendy." Bibi answers, as she looks over the ropes that bind the tree. "Leaves are too rough for binding, hard to clean." She gives one of the pegs a light kick. "Tied down."

[AncientSpark]

While Lina seems to have little trouble with the heat (having a hat helps, plus she has spent long hours out in the sun before), she does lag a bit as they group starts to reach Licia. It is probably because she spent the first half of the trek playing about, looking at all the landscape like an overexcited kid and chasing Zephyr around. She sometimes even chased off into side paths and had to run even faster than the rest of the group to keep up with the insanely fast pace that Bibi was setting up.

She is a little glad when the group finally stops for the night, but that opportunity for rest is a little disturbed when Lina seemed to not have much of a set duty. After a moment of sitting next to the fire, she starts to pester everyone to see if she can help with anything which usually meant hauling stuff around like kindling for the fire. In the few moments that she does finally sit still, she mostly takes her time to watch the others and their Pokemon do their thing with enough interest to at least not let her thoughts drift to the town she just left. If Lina was a bit more mindful, she might have realized that they were a pretty long way from Bastille, from home, but she nevertheless sleeps peacefully.

As dawn rises, she only needs minimal prodding to awaken, before she helps Bibi awaken the others. Having learned her lesson from yesterday, she curbs her enthusiastic wondering for the day, instead following Bibi more closely and with Zephyr in her arms so he does not run off. But, once Bibi does mention something, she takes a couple of hops up the slope to have a closer look.

”Is it an interestin’ tree? Like, is it used for somethin’?” Lina prods some of the branches, trying her best not to break any benches.

[Comissar]

Leah found the pace Bibi set to be wearying. Though she'd endured the journey to Bastille with Alea, they had travelled at their own pace, albeit without many breaks. Following Bibi's lead took more of a toll on her, and continuing to walk through the dark in particular came as a surprise, though she did her best to keep her complaints to a minimum. More positively, it was nice to be back in the wild and seeing all the different plants and scenery. She was also pleasantly surprised that Bibi chose not to enlist her to keep watch. Instead, Leah spent a little time in the evening entertaining Sable by showing him how to work her pokédex, though she does need to warn him away from trying to pry it open a few times.

The following morning, she finds herself unwilling to start moving in the morning, having to be unceremoniously roused by Bibi. The luxuries of a mere two nights in Bastille already all but forgotten, she spent the morning's walk with stiff legs and arms following the night's uncomfortable rest. It's with relief that she sees the signs of civilisation again on the second night of travel. Looking forward to not needing to sleep on the floor for two nights running, she approaches the walls of Licia, only to slow to a stop when she overhears the discussion about the tree.

Walking over to it, she looked up at the branches, the top of the tree lost to the night sky. Without looking to the others, she said "It's an Ashe..." She reached out, gently touching the trunk with her gloved fingertips, "They're fruit trees, though I've not ever tried one of them. They're meant to have medicinal properties, too..."

[Hazuki]

"Let's go." Bibu says, then turns to leave the clearing.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve takes one last look at the now-identified Ashe tree, then follows Bibi to wherever she's going. With any luck, she's leading us to an inn. Pity they don't have Pokemon Centers in Londo... I heard they let you stay for free. Well, you're here for another 11 months, 3 weeks. Get used to it.

Remembering her objective of truly experiencing Londo, Genevieve tentatively asks, "So... what is there to do here, exactly?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa takes a small sketch of the tree, though it doesn't really look much like the tree to anyone who looks at it. "I wonder why it's tied down..." She tries to find a recently-fallen leaf if she can and gives it a sniff to investigate if it's something she's familiar with medically.

As Bibi moves on, Alyssa turns and hurries a bit to catch up, shoving her sketch pad and pencil into her bag as she goes.

[Merilan]

Linne headed along with Bibi to peer down towards the town, and check what she could see just with her eyes alone. "This is exciting, huh, Zeta...?"

[Comissar]

Leah glances over to Bibi as she tells the group to keep moving. Shouldering her bag, she followed their guide, giving a shrug at Alyssa. "I don't know. Maybe, umm, maybe it's a local custom..?"

She gives Genevieve a questioning look as they continue toward the settlement. "Umm, what is it you want to do?"

[Hazuki]

The group rapidly approaches Licia, thanks mostly to Bibi's long stride and the fact that their only light source is perched on her head. But, as they do, they see that the streets of Licia are filling out quite a bit, with torches alight every few paces and many of its denizens gathered outside. The center of the village seems to be decorated with some sort of pillar, covered with something that ruffles in the night wind.

[Ceralune]

"Well, I don't know. But we're already here, aren't we? Walked for two days to get here. If anything's going on, might as well check it out after all of this effort." Seeing so many people gathered outside, Genevieve adds, "Aaaand that looks like something going on to me. Bibi, do you know?"

[Hazuki]

"They have a ritual about this time of year." Bibi turns to look at Genevieve as she answers. "Haven't gone to it."

[Hazuki]

Bibi continues the trek across the grounds around Licia until the group arrives at the gate, where they're greeted by the presence of a lone individual. Short, but broad-shouldered, they're clad in leather armor studded with metal - a particularly uncommon sight in Londo, due to its scarcity. They have a polearm in their hand, along with a blade at their belt, and they take one long look at the group before letting them through the gates.

The architecture of Licia is a few steps away from that of Bastille, with homes that sit close to the ground where the flat ceilings are supported by stout pillars of Ashe. Not a sound comes from within the homes, although they are lit by paper lanterns that hang from the eaves and cast the surroundings in a pale glow. It seems the bulk of activity is in the center of Licia, where cloaked people can be seen gathered around a pillar at the center of town, and a curtain of steam hangs in the air.

As the group gets closer, the scents of tea and spice teases at their noses, but all they hear is the whistle of the wind. An older gentleman slips out of the crowd and covers anyone without a cloak with one - they all smell faintly of dust, and drag at some of the group's heels, but he's slipped away before questions can be asked. Bibi manages to find a slightly elevated spot at the edge of the town center, on made so by a hill, as the villagers gather in silence around the pillar.

It is now evident that the pillar is covered in small strips of cloth, each bearing small markings and tied together with string, as well as dyed different colors. At the top of the pillar, a particularly ornate talisman of black and gold is hung, while a circle of candles is at the bottom. One by one, a few children light the candles with a torch, and then it's doused in a bucket of water.

A minute stretches on until a faint light glimmers on the horizon, and a shape starts to approach. Glowing faintly in the darkness, there can be seen a small loop of bead-covered string that hangs from a large stone talisman that is ornamented with a pair of pink gems. At the bottom of the loop hangs a collection of small talismans that weigh the floating shape down. It levitates towards the pillar as the villagers look on in wonder, then finally settles at the top.

Its string unhooks, then loops around the talisman at the top of the pillar before closing again. A pink glow slowly emerges from the Pokemon, burning brighter and brighter as it flows down the talismans attached to the pillar, which is soon covered entirely. It pulses there for a few moments before crawling back to the Pokemon itself, until it finishes coalescing in the talisman that had been perched at the top.

The Pokemon lets out a long, beautiful cry as it floats away from the pillar once more, leaving it covered in the colorless talismans that remain. The villagers then start to approach the pillar, taking one talisman each that they burn in the circle of candles before seeking out one of the tables of tea that surround the village center. The silence has passed.

The Pokemon is a Londo Klefki.

[Ceralune]

The cloak that is settled onto Genevieve's shoulders is not a welcome one, and she tries to give the dusty old thing back, but the man scurries off too quickly for her to protest. Resigned, she leaves it on her shoulders.

However, once they reach the small clearing and get a better view of what's taking place, Genevieve realizes with a start that they must be witnessing some kind of sacred ceremony. She's spent the past four years studying under the Kimono Sisters - she knows one when she sees one. While the sentiment is unknown to her, she knows better than to complain about any of it anymore. People take these kinds of things seriously.

The pokemon that appears is a surprise, and Genevieve feels like it's vaguely similar to something she's seen before, but she can't quite place it. Regardless, the sight is a beautiful one to behold, and she finds herself feeling like she's just witnessed something special as it completes its ritual. She can feel herself getting a little caught up in the moment, even, a part of her wishing she could be down there collecting a talisman as well. She's not entirely sure how to explain it.

"What... was that pokemon, Bibi? And what is this ceremony for?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa notes the guard's armor, and her stance seems to almost naturally shift, her back straighter and her arms a bit more pulled in. She gives a small polite bow to the guard as she passes.

As the cloak falls over her, Alyssa tries to find the old man to offer respect but seems a bit perturbed when he is gone. After a few moments, she coughs a bit, then a bit more, but otherwise she seems to take the cloak in stride. She walks in silence behind Bibi, her heavy breathing passed with the change of atmosphere around them.

Alyssa can't help herself as the Pokemon appears; she sketches the scene with a sort of flow and ease, not knowing exactly what she's watching but totally enraptured. Her hand moves almost on its own, her eyes fixed on the strange Pokemon as floats above the pillar and its glow spreads. By the time the Pokemon gives its final cry, Alyssa has created a perfect framework of the scene, though she puts her pad away without even looking at it. A smile creeps along her face as the noise picks up.

Presuming the Pokemon is still there and no one else has done it yet, Alyssa digs in her bag for her Pokedex and aims it at the Pokemon. As far as she could remember, it certainly wasn't something she'd seen before, but it was something she was interested in finding for herself one day. Certainly whatever move it had used was unique in some way, and she'd love to be able to perfect her sketch.

[Comissar]

Leah tilts her head at Genevieve's response, but doesn't say anything further. She does nod to herself a little at Bibi's reply, however, and finds herself wondering what the villagers might be intending to do. She soon finds out as the group approaches the town. After a worryingly long inspection by the guard, it was with some relief that she entered the village proper. Her relief soon found itself transformed into an uncomfortable curiosity, however, as the eerie silence of the settlement pounded at her ears. Leah flinched as a cloak is unexpectedly draped over her, and she finds herself drifting closer to Alyssa as they walk for the comfort her friend's presence brings.

As the ritual itself begins, she finds herself watching in fascination as the Klefki drifts in. The ethereal spectacle entrances her from start to finish, and the pokémon's cry sends a shiver through her as it floats away again. The spell is broken as Genevieve asks her question. Trying to work out if she could still see it drifting away, she replied, " Umm, it was a Klefki, though, uh, it looked nothing like the ones in, uh, in the pokédex." She glances back over to Genevieve, then gives Bibi a questioning look as well, "Umm, I think it might be a, uh, a native subspecies..?"

[Merilan]

Linne seemed like she was a bit more at home with the rather more tribal atmosphere they were presented with; the scents of tea and spices felt a bit more homey to the forest, the scent of nature and leaves even gathered for consumption. She looked interestedly at Alyssa as she drew, commenting, "Wow... you're a really good artist, Alyssa!"

[tgva8889]

As Leah comments Alyssa stops taking out her Pokedex. "Oh, that's cool. I didn't know the same Pokemon looked different in different places. I wonder how rare that Pokemon is..."

Alyssa turns as Linne comments on her art with a startled look which quickly fades to a smile. "Oh! Yeah, I've been drawing and painting for a while. It's something I've always loved, so I learned how to do it for a while. I was teaching art in the manor before everything that happened."

[AncientSpark]

"A native subspecies? Y'mean that Pokemon look different all over?" Lina says, trying to get a look at the Pokedex by leaning around Leah. The ritual did not seem to interest her too much, since even though she was not too comfortable with magic, most rituals were there as symbolic and until she saw something weird going on, there was no reason for her to assume any other. But, she was always interested in learning more about other Pokemon. "Wonder why that is? I mean, it ain't that cold or warm 'round here and I don' think it's that strange 'round Londo."

[Hazuki]

Bibi shrugs at Genevive's question, then once more at Leah's implied one. She reaches out and taps one of the nearest villagers on the shoulder. After he's come down form a jump, she speaks. "What's that about?" She nods at the tree.

"Ah, Serah, it's the Fortune Harvest." His eyes flick up to Ibib on her head, and is quiet even as she continues staring at him. "Oh, you want more...That, there," He half-turns to point at the pillar. "You see, we that's where we put our charms, and then we light the candles, and then the nimbus comes. Soaks up all the luck, so she can spread it around, keep that tree from walking, you know, and now we're burning the charms." He coughs. "Only got bad luck left in 'em, now."

[Merilan]

"Can we burn our own charms, for good luck?" Linne found herself asking, curious about the village's customs.

[Hazuki]

The man blinks as Linne speaks up, then leans over to look at her. "I mean, yes. Next year, if you've got a charm, and come here when the nimbus is due. Else you're burning up the good and the bad."

[Comissar]

Leah nods as both Lina and Alyssa react to the news of how different regions could contain variations on pokémon, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she did. "Umm, yeah, it's, uh, more common than you think. I think it's easiest to see for, uh, for bug and grass types. They can have different, uh, different colourations. I think it's because of the different environments they're from."

She listens curiously to the man's description of what the ceremony was for. The idea sounded interesting. Though the concept of an object holding luck did seem a little unusual, she could see where the superstition behind the ritual must have come from.

[Merilan]

Linne sounded a bit disappointed, hanging her head. "Oh... okay. It would have been fun to be part of a festival, but... next time!" She pumped her hands enthusiastically.

[Hazuki]

"Your enthusiasm is noted, Serah." The man tells Linne with a smile.

"We want to stay." Bibi interrupts. "Where is the inn?" Ibib narrows its eyes at the man.

"Oh, er, it's just behind Maisie..." The man licks his lips. "The red hair, blue pots," And points across the town center. "There. The Corvy Cove'll set you up."

"Come on." Ibib turns on Bibi's head to look at the group, then the woman starts to lead them through the crowd of nattering cloak-clad villagers.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve feels tempted to roll her eyes as the man launches into his brief explanation of the meaning behind the ceremony, but holds herself back, finding the lingering ambiance more infectious than she'd like to admit. I thought we left behind the luck-craze in Bastille? Well, I guess there is a bright side... if that kind of superstition can create something this beautiful.

She raises an eyebrow at "Ibib" as it turns around to look at the group. That thing's been perched on her head almost this entire time... does Bibi sleep like that too? Not sure what to make of the strange habit, and almost wanting to observe the next time she has to take watch (but trying to convince herself not to because, umm, staring at people while they're sleeping is rude), she follows after Bibi.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa listens carefully to the man's explanation of the festival. Though she hadn't heard of this one in particular, she'd seen local festivals like it before. While they were usually similar in what they wished for or why they were done, the particulars were always exciting to see and learn about. She knew her brother would have liked to be there.

The thought was fleeting, gone when Leah started explaining regional differences. That was something she'd never heard before, but as she thought about it, she found herself nodding. "Kind of like how people who grow in up different places often look a little different?"

As Bibi heads off, Alyssa follows behind, giving the man who helped them a polite bow of thanks. She gives the pillar a small look of awe before she turns to Bibi, trying to keep up with her pace through the crowd.

[Comissar]

Leah offered the man a quick bob of her head in thanks as she hurried after Bibi. She nodded again at Alyssa's response, "Yeah, it's something like that. Umm, sometimes a different appearance will help it survive in the wild, like camouflage. And, uh..." Her ears heat up as she continues, "And sometimes it'll be what's found more attractive. Usually it's, uh, it's a bit of both for pokémon but, uh, but for people, survival in the wild's not really a, uh, a problem these days." She shrugs her shoulders self-consciously, frowning as the unfamiliar weight of the cloak distracts her from her train of thought.

Giving Bibi a questioning look, she asked, "Umm, do we, uh, do we need to give these back to someone..?"

[Hazuki]

"Nobody's asked." Bibi answers Leah. After following in the wake of the lean woman, the group finds themselves outside a building that bears a mural of people and Pokemon sheltered from the rain. Some parts have faded, while others are particularly bright. There's a woman about the age of Leah's mother outside, her hair messily tied up as she tends to the tea. "We'd like a room. And beds."

Maisie blinks up at Bibi, then looks over the girls, and slowly takes a sip of her tea. "Of course." She smiles and retrieves a ring of keys from her pockets. "You can take beds from the other rooms. Let's say two hundred, for the pleasure? And you'll get breakfast of course." She graciously accepts the pouch of coins that Bibi tosses to her. "Would you like somebody to help move...?"

"No." Bibi answers.

"I thought, with the..." Maisie gestures over at Bibi's arms, and is suddenly silenced by a bowl of tea at her lips. "Would you and your daughters like anything for the night?" She asks, after a long sip.

"Do you?" Bibi turns to look at the group, and Maisie offers a wary nod at Ibib, who is now facing her.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve watches Leah's response with a neutral face, wondering for not the first time why the girl stuttered so dang much when she spoke. I thought maybe it was because we were all mostly new people just meeting each other for the first time. But she seems to always trip over her words. Why is that? We're not that scary... well... okay, Bibi's kind of unnerving. Her gaze moves back to the bizarre woman as she approaches the counter to speak to the innkeeper.

The idea of being Bibi's daughter is ludicrous at best, and downright insane at worst. Genevieve openly balks as the innkeeper mentions it so casually. As Bibi addresses the group, she shakes herself a bit and closes her mouth. "Ahh, well..." A hot bath to soak in would be nice, a massage, 3-course dinner... The thought of suggesting all of this to someone like Bibi, though, is nuts. Even to Genevieve. And so, in the end, she merely mentions, "I don't think we had dinner yet," with a slight pout on her face.

[Comissar]

Leah blinks in confusion as Maise mistakes Bibi as being the group's collective mother. Glancing at their guide, then giving Alyssa a questioning look, she mentally shrugged as Bibi asked if they were wanting anything. She nodded at Genevieve's suggestion. "Umm, yeah. Some dinner sounds good if, uh, if it wouldn't be too much trouble."

[Hazuki]

Maisie gives the group a concerned frown, then nods as it's replaced by a practiced smile. "There is leftover stew and bread in the kitchen. Help yourselves."

"I'll get the beds." Bibi informs the group, then opens the door to the inn. The inside is covered in sturdy, simple furniture that is decorated with painted stone decorations. There's a particularly nice tower of multicolored pebbles, almost perfectly round, that dominates the center of a table. Bibi heads up the stairs and leaves the group to find the kitchen, whose shelves are stacked with plates, and a large pot sits beside an open hatch. Judging by the rich scents, and the sharp contrast to the tea from outside, that's where the stew is bubbling away.

Also, scurrying about the floor of the kitchen, around the island covered in cutting boards and jars marked with the names of spices, is a grey ball of fluff. It would almost me imperceptible in the light of the paper lantern above, especially given how it ignores the group's arrival.

[AncientSpark]

"Yay, food!" Lina cheers at the prospect of having some newly cooked food and she rushes up the stairs at the sight of the cupboard. She goes so fast that she almost trips over the fluffball scurrying around; she barely catches herself on a nearby table after some arm flailing.

"Wha...'Ey, sorry 'bout that, little fella!" She kneels down and pokes the fluffball, momentarily distracted from her prior quest of finding food.

[Hazuki]

The fluffball unfurls, although that doesn't make much of a difference to the sheer fuzz density. A pair of large black eyes look up at Lina, then the Pokemon hops up to the counter and whaps her in the face with a soft paw.

[Merilan]

Linne followed a little late behind the group, hurrying from where she was examining the festival to come to the inn. "Ohh, I'll help Bibi with the beds!" She looked to the others, then hurried along to go make herself be helpful, bounding up the stairs. Zeta stared up at her master, and then to the rest of the group, where she padded along and stood next to Leah, apparently more interested in dinner than helping.

[Hazuki]

Linne bounds up the stairs to find that Bibi has already entered one of the sturdy doors and is about to haul a low-hanging bed. Her muscles, and scar tissue, ripple as she hoists it over her her shoulder in one fell swoop. Ibib has a pale glow to it, as it wraps up the pillow in the sheets, then levitates the sheets beside them.

[Comissar]

Leah makes her way through to the kitchen, slowing her pace as she notices the collection of pebbles. She frowns lightly as her eyes play over the stones. Her curiosity is disrupted as Lina all but trips over the fluffy pokémon innocently resting within. She opens a couple of cupboards in search of plates, reaching down a half dozen so that everyone could eat. At her feet, Saura ambled in, drawn in equal parts by Leah's lead and the enticing smells. The Bulbasaur gives a friendly "Saur." in greeting as the fluffball jumps on the table, tilting her head as it rebuked Lina.

As Leah turned back to put the plates on the table, she managed to stop herself from tripping over the waiting Zeta. "Oh!" She glanced up, trying to spot Linne, before looking back to Zeta as she stepped around the Fennekin, "Didn't want to go with Linne?"

[Ceralune]

At the mention of food, Genevieve perks up. Stew and bread aren't a great meal, but food is food. I'll take what I can get after that trek. She follows those who go to the kitchen, and her eyes light up at the wonderful aroma coming from the pot. She quickly helps Leah with the plates, then grabs a bowl and ladles stew into it eagerly. Finding loaves of bread nearby, she neatly cuts off a slice of bread at the cutting board, and brings her food to a place at the table, neatly setting the bowl onto the plate.

"Well? Shall we?" She asks the group, silently wondering to herself how they could be paying the pokemon more mind at a time like this. Though that does remind her to set aside a little for Damien, and she releases him from his pokeball and breaks off a chunk of bread to put on her plate for him.

Come to think of it, I don't remember that little gray fuzzball being with us before... "Is that one of yours?" she asks Lina, who seems to be playing with it.

[Merilan]

Zeta nodded and let out a purring noise, apparently feeling a bit hungry, nuzzling herself against Leah's leg.

"Wow..." Linne found herself admiring Ibib's power, looking towards the muscular woman with curiosity. "Ibib is really strong! How does she do that, Bibi?"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa catches Leah's look and gives a visible shrug. Frankly, if it would make things easier in the town she didn't see any reason to correct them. She nods at Genevieve's suggestion, food quickly filling all of her thoughts. The mere mention of the leftovers makes her mouth water enough that Alyssa realizes it had been a bit dry before. Once Bibi finishes speaking Alyssa is already moving, calmly but quickly, towards the theoretical food, dumping her cloak unceremoniously onto one of the chairs.

As they find the food, Alyssa completely ignores the fluffball, focused entirely on getting stew and bread onto a plate and then into her mouth. She seems to find herself seated and eating rather quickly, not having said anything or waited for anyone before she starts. Once she's eaten, she gives a small sigh, then blushes a bit. "Oh, um. Sorry." She slows down a bit and waits for the others to start again before she keeps going.

Noting all the Pokemon around, Alyssa shakes her head and puts a hand to it. "Oh, right." She takes her Pokeball and with a momentary unscrewing released Luna, who shakes her head a bit as she appears, her swirl bobbing around a bit. She gives Saura a wave, then goes to Zeta and gives another wave of greeting, with her complementary smile. Finally, Luna gives the small fluffball a wave and offers a small cry of greeting. Alyssa, meanwhile, pushes a bit of stew and bread to the side of her plate to save.

Once she seems to have gotten a sense of herself again, Alyssa joins the discussion. "I've never seen a Pokemon like that before." The thought of it jogs another thought and she adds, "It's been a while since I've really tried catching any Pokemon. I learned a lot about it when I was younger, but I've spent most of my time in towns or traveling quickly, I didn't really try any of the tricks."

[Hazuki]

Linne

"Psychic." Bibi summarizes. She adjusts her grip on the bed over her shoulder, then marches towards the doorway Linne is standing at and slips through without hitting the girl in the head.

~

And The Rest

The fluffy Pokemon on the table gives Luna a halfhearted wave, gives Lina a stern stare, then hops off of the table to continue sweeping the floor.

[Comissar]

Leah minds out of the way so that the fluffy pokémon can continue its work, seating herself at the table as Genevieve suggests they get started. As Alyssa brings up catching pokémon, she asks "Maybe we could wander around outside town a bit tomorrow? Umm, we're not under any time constraints, right? So, uh, we could stay around here, at least for the morning?"

Because I forget to do these things immediately, pokémon education to identify the fluffy pokémon?

[roll0]

[Ceralune]

Genevieve appears somewhat startled by the idea of going out to look for pokemon, but as she mulls it over more, she decides she actually likes it. I haven't actually gotten to see many of the pokemon here other than those annoying Lilligants... and I already have experience with pokemon, so if I'm to "learn about Londo and find what I'm missing," this is a comfortable place to start. Ohh, and I bet there are species here that are rare in Johto. Imagine coming back to Ecruteak and having pokemon no one else has! It'd definitely make you stand out more.

"That sounds like a great idea! Maybe we could ask the innkeeper for some recommendations of where to search," she suggests, while wiping Damien's mouth. Damien doesn't react, like they've done this quite a few times before, and continues nibbling at the bread once she's done.

[Merilan]

Zeta padded out of the way and paced along with Leah, eventually sitting by an empty seat that she'll expect Linne to come down to.

Linne stepped out of the way in turn, ducking her head a little as she watched Bibi work, then Ibib. "Psy... kick?" she put a finger to her lip, before nodding. There were a couple Pokemon that had similar-looking abilities in the forest, though not very common, but she hadn't put a word to it until now. "How long have you and Ibib been together? Linne and Zeta have been together for ten years!"

[Hazuki]

The Kitchen Crew

Leah easily identifies the fluffball as a Mincinno! This one's a little heavy for its species, who are a particularly clean and sociable Pokemon. They're uncommon in Londo, almost entirely found on the East coast, where they make frequent companions of farmers and servants. The only other Region they can be naturally found in is Unova.

~

Linne

Bibi puts the bed down in another room, already occupied by two beds, and Ibib lowers its bundle onto it. "As long as I remember." She summarizes, then looks over her hands. "Longer than ten years."

[Merilan]

Linne nods a few times and puts her hands behind her back. "It feels good to have a life-long friend..." She puts a hand to her opposing elbow and glances aside. "Linne has never felt lonely because of Zeta. Is it the same way with Ibib?"

[Hazuki]

Bibi takes a moment to look over Linne, while Ibib fixes her with a beady stare, then nods. "Ibib keeps me safe." She slips through the doorway, and back into the room Linne first saw her in. "Ibib likes you."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods as she listens to Leah and Genevieve's suggestions. She pauses to swallow then gives a grin. "Yeah, that sounds good. We can go looking for the whole day if we really want!" With a shrug she takes another bite, then pauses to swallow again before adding, "I haven't tested myself since I was little, I don't know if I still remember how to catch Pokemon the right way." At the thought she digs around in her bag for her sketch pad and flips a bit through it before finding a couple old sketches of figures posed to throw Pokeballs or nets with a bunch of lines and numbers. She traces her finger over the lines with a smile. "I practiced figure drawing with a bunch of how-to guides for catching Pokemon. I was really interested when I was younger. Before..." She trails off at the end of her sentence, tracing the scar on her cheek with her finger.

Luna confident she's made at least one new friend, maneuvers herself over to Alyssa's plate and begins eating the bits of stew and bread left for her. Mostly the bread. Luna really likes bread.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve furrows her brow as Alyssa's motion draws her attention to the scar, which she hadn't noticed before. Scarred cheek... She glances at Leah. Stumbled words. I'm traveling with some strange companions, aren't I? While Genevieve's usually not one to dig into other people's problems, the thought reminds her: she's traveling with these people, at least until Thundercrag, and yet she knows almost nothing about them. Surely I should know something about the people I'm getting into this with, right?

"So... this might be a little random," she starts, pausing briefly after she speaks. "But, since we're all on this little trip together, maybe we should get to know each other a little better?" She looks at the others expectantly. "So...! Tell me about yourself," she asks, arbitrarily deciding to start with Leah.

[Comissar]

Leah grins at Alyssa's enthusiasm, nodding her agreement. "It'd be nice to just spend a day not doing much."

Alyssa's small movement toward her scar as she continues doesn't escape her notice, though she refrains from commenting. She doesn't register Genevieve's glance, but does turn to look at the other girl when she's addressed. Blinking in surprise at the unexpectedly direct question, she felt her ears start to heat up. "Oh! Umm, I'm not, uh, I've not really got all that much that's, uh, that's interesting to say." She finds herself glancing toward Alyssa, then Saura, "Umm, I'm, uh, I'm from Kanto and, uh, and my family moved here a few years ago." Setting her fork down, she rubbed at her shoulder, "Umm... I, uh, I work with the, uh, the Professor when I can and, uh, and that's kind of it..."

[Ceralune]

At that last tidbit, Genevieve's expression turns slightly more curious. Huh, didn't expect that. I know some of the people I've met so far have pokedexes, but she directly works for the professor? Both of the Unovan and Johtoan professors are really well-respected... pretty sure the former has an assistant working for her as well. It's a pretty coveted position.

"Wow, you work for the professor here? What kinds of things do you do?"

[Comissar]

Ears now reddening, Leah nodded an affirmation. "Umm, yeah. I, uh, I mostly just help her out. Umm, it's, uh, it's actually the whole reason I was in Bastille. Umm, Lord Bastille had a fossil he wanted the Professor to, uh, to look at. It's something I'm interested in so, uh, so she sent me." She shrugged self-consciously, "Umm, the Professor's more focused on, uh, on pokémon psychology."

[Ceralune]

"Huh." I don't know what appeal you see in dusty old bones, but to each their own, I suppose. "Well, that's neat. If the pokemon professor here is anywhere near as respected as Professor Elm, then you're in a great position." Genevieve smiles brightly at Leah.

She then turns to Alyssa. "And you draw, right? Why did you start doing that?"

[Merilan]

"Wow, you really think so?" Linne looked to Bibi with bright eyes, nodding a few times in relief and excitement both. She paced after Bibi towards the original room, then looked around to see if they had anything else to do. "Linne is really glad! Linne thinks Ibib is a good friend too!"

[Hazuki]

Linne realizes that there is still something to do, as Bibi hauls the other bed onto her shoulder and Ibib picks up the second set of sheets. "I know so." Bibi replies, as she starts marching towards the door. There's a faint tingling in Linne's mind, and a feeling of...validation flows through her. Like it's not her own, but being given.

[Merilan]

Linne snatched some of the sheets and extra pillows, if present, and hurried along the other two. She paused for a moment as the tingling sensation came to her mind, and she nodded at Ibib. "What do you like to eat, Bibi? I can see if they've prepared some once we're done up here..."

[Hazuki]

"Like to eat?" Bibi asks, as she hauls the bed to the room already occupied by three and puts it down. She waits for Linne to put the sheets down before looking over the room, which is rapidly becoming quite crowded, and mutters to herself. "One more..." And starts to leave the room. "Anything that's not rotten."

[Merilan]

"Hmm... Linne knows how that is. The Forest Guardian is generous, though, she allows Linne to take some of the fruits she grows on her neck!" Linne chimed in as she glanced back... before pausing, tilting her head. "Oh, is Bibi not going to sleep with us...?"

[Hazuki]

"Pokemon find the best stuff." Bibi concurs with Linne, then pauses in the hall at her question. "Guard duty." She helpfully reminds the girl.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa is drawn up from her sketchbook by Genevieve's question, and though she's heard it a few times she listens to Leah's story with her full attention. She gives a few encouraging smiles when Leah glances her way.

Once it seems to be her turn, she gives her typical shrug. As she speaks, her hands move about, illustrating some of her emotions in each part through small hand gestures. "Since I was a kid, I guess. I didn't really get much into fighting or Pokemon like other kids tended to, but I loved art. When I was in the court up north, I learned from a painter who'd been there for a while and found out I was both pretty good at it and really enjoyed it. So I came south to Lancer to learn a bit more, then ended up in Bastille when my schooling ended. I was looking for some luck, and I ended up getting work with the Lord, so I guess it worked out for me." She blushes and puts a hand behind her head. "I've wanted to paint all the things Pokemon can do ever since I saw this one Pokemon." At that she pauses for a moment, flipping through her sketch book to the very beginning. Everyone around can see the first 3 or 4 pages are all the same: bunches of crescent shapes pushed together to look sort of like something that might be a Pokemon, but certainly not a particularly familiar one. "Or, well, it looks better than that for real. I've never seen it again, but it's been my inspiration." She flips back to one she more recently finished, of Lord Bastille's Lopunny delivering an electrified punch. "Pokemon can do all sorts of really awesome stuff, so I've been trying to capture it all in my own way."

[Merilan]

Linne let out a little 'oh...' and frowned, before pumping up, "Then, Linne will take the first guard duty! So that Bibi can sleep on a bed for a bit!"

[Hazuki]

"You don't have to." Bibi tells Linne, as she moves into another room and repeats the bed-gathering process.

[Comissar]

Leah shrugs self-consciously at Genevieve's comments, "Umm, I don't know that she's all that well known yet. Umm, outside of Londo, anyway. And, uh, and I'm only an assistant..."

She trails off as Alyssa replies to Genevieve, listening to the older girl as she talks about the inspiration of her passion. Leaning forward, she found herself smiling softly at the artwork, impressed at how Alyssa had managed to capture the world around her so accurately. The sight of the Lopunny jolted her memory and, giving her friend a quizzical look, she asked "Did you manage to finish that painting you were doing back in Bastille?" Feeling she might need to be more specific, she fidgeted as she continued, "The, uh, the one that was on the easel the night before we left..?"

[Ceralune]

Genevieve listens on as the two start to converse, sitting back and mulling over what she's just heard while eating another spoonful of stew. Seeing that Damien has finished eating while they've chatted, she wipes his mouth one final time and returns him to his pokeball. So I'm traveling with a pokemon professor assistant and an artist. She glances at Lina. And a farm girl. And a girl who can't find her mom. Well, I can see why we hired Bibi now, though I still don't think I'm sure about her.

[Merilan]

Linne furrowed her brow and said, "Maybe not, but... it'd still be nice?" as she walked back towards the hallway, wondering if everyone had gotten dinner started. "Um, Linne will see if everyone's started on food!" She smiled and bounded back down, peering to where everyone'd sat over the table.

Zeta let out a hungry purr as Linne scooped her and sat down at her chair, putting the Fennekin on her lap. "Sorry, sorry, Linne wanted to know Bibi a bit more!" She looked to the others at the table, and then towards the food as she ripped some bread and held it up to the pokemon, letting her eat.

[Hazuki]

Further banging can be heard from upstairs, until it can only be inferred that Bibi is content with furniture re-arranging, and she heads down the stairs. Her steps are rather light, and she soon appears at the doorway. She looks at the food on the table, then crouches down near the Mincinno that's still hastily sweeping corners. She reaches into her belt and retrieves a couple of berries that she rolls into a patch of dust. The Mincinno scurries over, sweeps them of dust, admires the shining skin of the berries, and starts nibbling away.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve nods in acknowledgement of Linne, glad that someone has made an attempt to approach Bibi, but also gladder that is isn't herself. "No worries, we were just chatting. Say, would you be up to a pokemon search tomorrow?" She looks up as Bibi enters the room. "... Er, if that's alright with you, Bibi. Of course," she amends, tilting her head in confusion as Bibi crouches down to the floor and blinking in realization when she realizes that the little gray pokemon is still there.

[Hazuki]

"It's your money. I'll come with you." Bibi's eyes are fixated on the Pokemon. Ibib's are just...browsing.

[tgva8889]

At first Alyssa doesn't quite remember what Leah is referring to, but at the description she blushes and nods. "Oh, um, yeah, I finished it before we left. I was, um, inspired. I think." She closes her sketch pad at the thought. "I think I have it somewhere but, um, I'm not sure where right now." Digging around in her bag she doesn't seem to produce anything, although there is definitely some canvas rolled carefully and wrapped with some kind of paper in there.

She finds herself relieved when Linne and Bibi return from upstairs, letting out a breath she didn't know she'd been keeping in. Alyssa gives a happy smile at Bibi's response. "So early in the morning, then?"

[Hazuki]

"Yes." Bibi says.

[Comissar]

Once again, Leah can't help but grin at Alyssa's reaction. Briefly glancing at the entrance to the room as Bibi came in, she asked "Maybe later, then?" with a smile.

She nods at Alyssa's suggestion to head out early, "Yeah, it won't hurt to start early in the day." She looks over to Bibi, "Umm, do you know what areas might best around here?"

[Hazuki]

"I do." Bibi stands up from her Pokemon-watching and approaches the bowl of stew.

[Comissar]

Leah nods, "Umm, do you know what kinds of pokémon are, uh, are around here? Just so we, uh, know what we're looking for..?"

[Hazuki]

"Tough, fast, bugs, burrowers." Bibi says, now grabbing a loaf of bread in one large hand. "Big birds."

[Merilan]

Linne looked at the rest of the group, then looked to Zeta with a smile. "Do you want to make a new friend, Zeta?" Zeta looked a little bit pensive, and needily burrowed herself into Linne a bit tighter. A pause, then she giggled to say, "Aww, Linne will always love Zeta, even if we have other friends!"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods dumbly to Leah, her mouth opening to say something but then closing without a word.

She listens to Bibi with some curiosity. She pauses a moment to take another bite of food as Bibi talks, then gives a nod. "Sounds like they have all kinds." After considering Bibi's words for a moment, Alyssa asks, "Say, Bibi, do you know where Ibib is from?"

[Hazuki]

Bibi and Ibib stare silently at Alyssa. Eventually, the woman speaks. "I've known Ibib for as long as I can remember."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve goes quiet as they discuss Ibib, mulling over the information Bibi gave and wishing that the woman could have been more... descriptive. But, if she was still being vague after all of that prodding, no point in continuing with that. I wonder what kind of pokemon we'll find... hopefully one that's beautiful and graceful and strong. Though, that does kind of rule out half of the descriptors Bibi gave... ahh, I'm sure it'll be fine."

[Comissar]

Leah nods at Bibi's description of the surrounding pokémon, frowning as she tried to work out which specific pokémon they might run into. Giving a mental shrug, she focused on finishing her meal. Some things you just had to wait and see. She glanced down at Saura, passing her a bit of food from her plate, and making sure she kept a bit more to one side for Sable later.

[Hazuki]

Dinner goes on like it does in many households, with not many words spoken and a few attendants who refuse to obey proper etiquette. But, the group eventually finishes, and Biib rises to her feet.

"Bedtime."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve nods, partly to herself, at Bibi's statement suggestion. "Yes, we'll need our rest if we're getting up early to go looking for pokemon tomorrow. Where are the rooms?"

[Merilan]

"Upstairs," Linne pointed to the staircase, "Bibi and Ibib moved all the beds to one room already, it's the one on the left!" She petted Zeta to say, "Did you have enough to eat, Zeta?" Upon hearing the affirmative from the Fennekin, she got up and nodded to the group, then headed up the stairs to head to bed.

[Ceralune]

Cramming all of us into one room? Genevieve hesitantly follows Linne up the stairs. "Ahh... okay then. Well, good night."

[AncientSpark]

"Ooh, we're all sleepin' in the same room? It's kinda like it is at home." Lina giggles and skips a few steps up the stairs. "Hope nobody snores though. My dad's worse than an Ursaring when he gets real goin' at midnight."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa is not surprised by Bibi's answer, though her nod and then following silence suggest she was maybe a bit disappointed. Finishing her food before most as she'd started early and ate fast, Alyssa flips through her sketch book and puts some more touches on a variety of sketches, starting a few new ones as she looks around the table. She's actually rather quick and polite about it, glancing up for only a moment and then sketching in detail. Genevieve may catch her glancing up at her a few times as she works, though she never pauses uncomfortably long or seems like she's trying to get her attention. Just scribbling away, sometimes clearing some charcoal away with some sort of wax eraser.

When it comes time for sleep, Alyssa has finished two more sketches pretty proudly, and seems ready to, at the very least, rest her hands. She puts the sketch book away as people are getting up to leave, falling in a bit behind everyone else.

"I don't think I snore. Luna would have told me." Alyssa looks down at Luna who obliviously wipes her face with Alyssa's pants. Thankfully the Cleffa isn't a messy eater.

[Hazuki]

Bibi escorts everyone up to the bedroom, which does prove cramped even with all five beds evenly spaced out. Linne is allowed first watch, as requested, but BIbi just sits on her bed, facing away from her, so it's difficult to tell whether she gets any sleep under the teen's watchful eye. Lina is given the last watch of two hours, and then Bibi is awake again. She arrives at the bedroom again after everyone has gone through the morning rituals (There's a manner of washroom down the hall,w here everyone could clean uo), with a few plates of toasted bread with berry jam and bowls of berries, some held aloft by Ibib's telekinesis.

Bibi lays out the plates in a circle on the floor, then the bowls in the gaps between the plates, then retrieves a large piece of parchment that had been rolled up under her arm. She unrolls it in the center of the circle, then retrieves a piece of chalk from her pack and begins to scribble over what slowly becomes a map. Not a particularly good map, but the group is pretty sure that some things might be trees.

"Lots of rocks, big rocks, burrowers, birds, and bugs." Bibi draws a circle around what looks like a bunch of rocks, not too far from the town. "Water, bare earth, reeds. Furry, fish, and bugs." She draws a circle around what looks like a handful of ponds, a fair walk away from town. "Tall grass, trees. Lurkers, plants, and similar." She draws a circle around a spot back the way they came, then finishes the map by crossing out most of the right side of it.

[Merilan]

Linne kept first watch, perhaps not quite getting the oddity of keeping watch in an inn some others would, and spent most of her time sitting with Zeta. When the morning came, she was diligent to wash herself up and also her companion, though the Fire-based pokemon is a little bit timid and rebellious in the water -- but the deed was eventually done.

In the morning, as Bibi was drawing the map, she munched on a piece of toast and fed some berries to Zeta as she commented, "Linne wouldn't mind having a bird friend... what do you think, Zeta?" Humph. The girl petted the fox and said, "You'll get along fine, Linne promises!"

[Ceralune]

Genevieve scoops berries onto her plate, slipping some to Damien by hand. I'm not sure what I want to go for here... it's been just me and Damien for so long. "Birds... sound graceful. I think I'd be up for that," she murmurs half to herself at Linne's mention of them.

[tgva8889]

After waking and washing up, Alyssa comes into the room to find Bibi drawing her map. After Bibi provides her commentary, Alyssa bends down and tries to make sense of everything. For a moment, she puzzles over the map, her hand on her chin, and nibbles a few berries. Then her eyes light up and she turns to Bibi with a hand. "Do you mind if I add some things?"

Presuming she is allowed, Alyssa then cleans up some of the map, making a bit clearer where the town is, where the roads are, and what exactly each area might be. It's not much, but everything looks slightly nicer and much clearer to look at. She turns to Bibi and points, asking "Is that right?"

As Linne and Genevieve offer their suggestions, Alyssa nods. "I'd be all right with looking for some bird Pokemon. I wonder what kinds are around here..."

Intuition on Bibi to see how well Alyssa understands: [roll0]
Gonna use Perception to see how well Alyssa can place the map in the terrain as they went through: [roll1]

Feel free to suggest other stats I should have rolled instead, but I'ma use these for now.

[Comissar]

Leah gives Lina a worried look as she asks about snoring. "Umm... I, uh, I don't know if I do..." She glances down to Saura, who gives an unhelpful shrug.

Leah prepares for bed with little fanfare, picking one of the beds closer to the wall, with Saura jumping up and lying herself down by her feet. Come the morning, Leah's the last to clean herself up in the washroom, returning to find Bibi starting to draw her makeshift map on the floor. She frowns as she watches their guide complete it, trying to work out how it was put together as she went. She glances over at Genevieve and Linne as they voice their support for hunting for bird pokémon. A grin crosses her face as Alyssa goes to improve on the map. "So, uh, I guess we're going over to the rocks?"

[Hazuki]

Bibi seems to smile once Alyssa has finished fixing up the map to look pretty, although it's difficult to tell through the scars.

"We'll go. Finish breakfast and be awake." Bibi instructs the group. "Lots of hiding places, high ground, difficult terrain." She finishes her breakfast quickly, then heads to the door and waits for the girls to finish getting ready.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa smiles at Bibi in return, glad to see her...happy? She thinks it's happiness. She decides it's happiness, and goes along with that thought.

As Bibi adds her comments, Alyssa nods along, watching her go. Once she's gone, Alyssa sits and looks at the map, a bit deep in thought. She eats slowly, tapping her chin as she stares into the lines, rolling Bibi's words over in her mind. After quite a long time, she gets up and grabs a piece of bread and jams it into her mouth and stuffs her assorted things back into her bag. There's a bounce in her every movement; she seems to hum something under her breath and rocks a bit on her heels. With everything in it's place, Alyssa starts towards the door, then stops suddenly and leans into her bag. Eventually she takes out a Pokeball and a small pole with a weaved net on the end; it looks handmade and personalized, though out of pretty well-crafted materials. Carrying both in her hands, she turns to the group and says "Everybody ready!?"

[Comissar]

Leah nods, sitting herself down to eat some of the breakfast available, Saura helping herself to a few of the berries while she does. She's content to eat quietly, contemplating the day ahead. She was finding herself looking forward to it, the excursion reminding her of the 'adventures' she used to have years ago. A faint smile crossed her lips as she reminisced, glancing down at Saura. Alyssa's sudden burst of movement as she stands and prepares herself shakes Leah out of her reverie. Nodding to herself, she finishes her breakfast and moves over to her bed. Seating herself on the edge of the mattress, she pulls on a pair of sturdy walking boots. Pushing herself to her feet, she slung her bag over her shoulder, opening it to check the contents. On seeing the portable grower, she frowned to herself and shuffled it so that it sat nearer the top. Maybe she could start making use of it? Now was a good chance to hunt for things to plant...

Looking up at Alyssa's question, she smiled and gave an affirmative nod, "Ready."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve finishes up her breakfast, and then collects everyone else's plates (with an "Are you done with this?" and stacks them neatly nearby. Returning Damien to his pokeball, she stands up and quickly slips on her boots, making it to the door before everyone but Bibi while trying to rein in her excitement. Easy now, it's probably going to be dirty and who knows where these pokemon would have been... but... what is it like, getting a new companion who used to be a complete stranger, meeting each other in the heat of battle? Her vision may be a bit rose-tinted, but there's one part of it that truly isn't stretched by the imagination: I'll finally get to do the sort of thing I should have been doing since I came here!

Beaming to herself, she turns back to the others and excitedly declares, "I was born ready," with eyes set in determination.

[Merilan]

Linne smiled at Alyssa and said, "Wow! Linne is still really impressed..." as she cleaned up and improved the map, obviously rather admiring her artistic skills. She got up to help Genevieve with the plates and wash up, before heading back towards the others to nod and pull her cloak and hood up. "Linne is ready!"

Zeta made a skeptical furrowed brow, but then let out a noise to voice her readiness as well.

[Hazuki]

While the girls finish their preparation, Bibi takes the time to return the beds to their proper rooms and rolls up the map. When it's clear that everybody is prepared for their early-morning journey, she leads them through the house and into the "streets" of Licia. The village seems smaller without everybody filling the space, and the early morning casts it in a pale light. A few people can be seen getting to work in the distance, with ropes around their necks or wrists, from which hang talismans much like the ones they burned the night before.

The path they take is to the Northwest and, thanks to Bibi's brisk pace, they arrive at what seems to be the right place after a mercifully short walk. They're treated to the sight of grassland that looks like it's been vulnerable to a raging Geodude party, and none of them could find a proper place to sleep. Rocks of all shapes and sizes cover what few patches of grass there are, with thick and brambly brushes growing at their sides, or else thick vine-like protrusions covering them. The field of rocks stretches out to at least the horizon, where they meet the tips of what must be the Severed Mountains.

"We're here." Bibi says, as she continues to walk into the field of rocks. "Constant vigilance." She reminds the group, as Inkay swivels on her head to look behind. Not much seems to be moving in the dawn light.

Please roll whatever you'd like to, to find Pokemon, and whatever actions you're doing with it.

[Ceralune]

The rocky field is a bit more... rugged than Genevieve would like, and she feels her enthusiasm start to give way to uncertainty. Hmm... how exactly does one go about finding a pokemon, anyways? Partly to prepare for the situation of something jumping out at her, and partly because she could really use a comforting presence, she takes out Damien's pokeball and clicks the button. A moment later, he pops out next to her, on the ground. "Vee?" he seems to ask, tilting his head up at her.

"Careful, Damien. Who knows what kinds of pokemon we'll find here." The reminder is as much for herself as it is for Damien, and Genevieve starts by wandering off a little ways with him at her heels. Well, it'd probably be best if we didn't stick with everyone, right? Fewer people to compete with, she thinks to herself, her old habits from her days at the Ecruteak School of Dance resurfacing.

Birds would be in the sky, right? Not knowing anything about these pokemon's nesting habits, she settles on scanning the sky frequently, while stepping around obstacles in her path. Similarly, Damien follows, though keeps his eyes directly in front of him as craning his neck far back would get sore after a while. Or... maybe if I climbed a tree?

Looking for trees and 'mons.

Perception (Genevieve): [roll0]
Perception (Damien): [roll1]

[tgva8889]

Alyssa is thankful the walk is short, trying her best through her excitement to remain quiet as she moves. Bibi's words jolt her a bit out of her focus and she nods, taking in the landscape for the first time. Though she's tempted to take out her sketch pad, she resists, focusing on looking at the world around her.

Noticing Genevieve release Damien, Alyssa quietly pulls a Pokeball from her belt and with a quick motion releases Luna into the grass. The Cleffa starts to speak but sees Alyssa holding a finger to her mouth and quickly quiets down. Looking into the distance, Alyssa scans the area, her eyes checking for any hidden detail on the landscape which might be alive and moving. As she does, she pulls her net out, extending the collapsible pole out so the entire net is full length. She holds it in both hands, a her empty Pokeballs now attached to her belt.

Luna, meanwhile, offers little help looking for Pokemon, but tries to remain aware of the danger around them in case anything might sneak up on them.

Perception to find Pokemon, it's what we trained for!

Alyssa's Perception: [roll0]
Luna's Perception: [roll1]

[Comissar]

Leah finds herself wondering at Bibi's pace as she hurries to keep up with their guide. Her urgency made a little more sense when there was a definitive destination in mind, less so when they weren't planning to travel for the day. Rather than let it bother her, however, she simply adjusted her bag strap and pressed forward. She finds herself slowing as they start to pass more and more rocks, her eyes caught by the fabric of the boulders and her mind whirring as she wondered what may have lead to the creation of this area. Invariably, her musings were cut short as she realised the rest of the group were pulling ahead, and she had to push forward again.

When they finally arrive at the clearing, Leah sets her bag on the ground, crouching beside it to rifle through for a few moments. Saura paces over, a curious expression on her face as her trainer pulls out the portable grower and a simple pouch. After a moments deliberation, a few pokéballs, Sable's included, follow. Propping her bag on top of one of the ubiquitous boulders, Leah took in her surroundings with a smile. Her smile broadens into a grin as she spotted Alyssa's net, now fully extended. Glancing down at Saura, she commented "Come on, let's see what we can find."

Walking slowly, she follows after Genevieve, eyes roving over the foliage as she hunted for the ideal environment.

Leah's going to start looking for berries! She's going to be using her memory to remember what the best place to find berries would be in this kind of environment, then searching while there to try and turn some up. She's not fussy about what kind she's looking for, though she may be choosy about what she picks.

General Education to remember the environmental preferences - [roll0]

Perception to spot them once she's in the right area - [roll1]

Saura's Perception to help - [roll2]

[Hazuki]

Genevieve unfortunately finds herself distracted as she searches for Pokemon, and Damien even moreso, as their attention is frequently drawn by the nearby Bibi's scavenging. It mostly consists of finding mounds of dirt and fine rocks, then filling up a small pouch, which tends to create a crumbling sound. Then there's the small rocks and roots that keep getting in their way, either alerting Pokemon before they can get to them, or just forcing them to choose between good footing and Pokemon-hunting.

Meanwhile, Alyssa keeps a keen eye out for any Pokemon that might be passing by, and manages to spot a few as she sticks with the group (Under Bibi's firm instructions to not go wandering off). She notices a handful of stout Pokemon that are returning from elsewhere in the morning light, finding homes near the tops of rocks and trees. She notices small indents near the bases of particularly large rocks, where the ground seems unsettled and a little too smooth to be natural. She also manages to spot an errant paw that bumbles past just ahead of the group, whenever they turn a corner through the rocks.

Leah's hunt also goes well, as she spots a few berries that she can identify. She notices that the vibrant green Kebia berries grow on the roots that grow all over the rocky fields, and there are a few good spots where clusters of them remain. They're particularly good for deterring Poison, but they're rather dry. And, on the bushes growing out of the rocks, she notices the shell-like purple skin of the Ganlon Berry, which makes the eater that much tougher for a short time.

[Merilan]

Linne nodded towards the others and said, "Linne will find some apricorns and berries while looking, too!" as she headed along, very much feeling like she's once more in environs that she was used to. She surveyed the area around them in a circular fashion, pacing along with Zeta as she mostly stuck to more vegetative and forested parts of the rocky fields if available, climbing up and canvassing her way around while humming as she does so. As she did so, she kept her eyes open for any signs of Pokemon habitat and any other interesting sights she might find out in this rocky field.

Linne's approach is more Survival-based, scouting the area to find out more about it! [roll0]
Perception as well if needed - [roll1]

[tgva8889]

Alyssa quietly points out her findings to the rest of the group, racking her brain to see if she might know what the Pokemon are herself. Her eye for detail is pretty sharp, and she can relatively easily point out the strange indents in the stone or the Pokemon visible moving in the distance. Though the signs are clearly from Pokemon, she didn't study all the species. She asks out loud, "See that over there?" Not sure exactly what she's seen, she sticks with Bibi's instructions and stays close by. Though she does call Luna back into her Pokeball, as the Cleffa has seem to become a bit too relaxed.

Pokemon Edu roll to see if Alyssa knows these Pokemon she's seen: [roll0]

[Hazuki]

Thanks to a series of vantage points, Linne is able to get a very good idea of the layout of the rocky fields and the kinds of Pokemon that make their home there. It seems that the Northern end plays host to a more violent species of bird Pokemon, who dominate it during the day, while the Southern end they're currently exploring has a more amiable nocturnal species. There are signs of a quick, burrowing bug Pokemon that also occupy the Southern end (Likely to avoid the attention of the Nothern Flying types), and some crossover in the middle where a slow and well-disguised Pokemon feast frequently on berries, with trails of berry juice at hiding spots they've left behind.

There are also signs of a camouflaged Pokemon in the Southern fields, well-hidden and nurtured by the burrowing Bug Pokemon, as there are signs of Electric attacks scorching the rocks, suggesting they protect the Bug Pokemon against the Northern preying birds. And finally, there's evidence of two small, bipedal species of Pokemon that have been trading territories for some time, with one leaving trails of split earth in their path, while the others occupied little nooks and bushes along the outskirts of the fields.

Finally, there seems to have been a disturbance in the environment recently, as she spots evidence of crushed rocks that have sent the bipedal Pokemon scattering and having to fight each other for territory. Whatever it is, it seems to have driven all but the docile camouflaged Pokemon of the center of the fields fleeing, and there are distinct patches of bare earth where once there must have been rocks.

Alyssa is unfortunately unable to identify the Pokemon from the fleeting glimpses that she got of them, although she's confident she'd be able to find them if she's quick enough.

[Merilan]

Linne took notes as she went up and down the area, sitting down on trees and singing to herself and Zeta as she inspected the field around them; she was used to predatory and prey patterns, having been part of the cycle of the forest herself, but what really made her frown was the evidence of recent tampering that had sent the Pokemon away. What kind of disturbance would it have been, Linne wonders -- caused by humans, or perhaps a rampaging flock...?

"Linne thinks... there are strong birds of prey up to the North," she gestures, "And Linne believes there is evidence of birds currently sleeping that'd wake up in the night along the South. There're more bugs on the South end where there aren't as many predators -- but a number of the Pokemon appear to have moved away due to something that crushed the rocks in the centre..."

[Ceralune]

The disturbances from Bibi are mildly irritating, and fully distracting. Genevieve can't help but wonder what the woman is up to, though moreso in a "Why are you doing something so trivial and distracting me from this important thing?" way rather than an "Ohh, that looks interesting" way.

As Alyssa waves everyone over and explains her findings, and Linne describes what she's discovered as well, Genevieve feels a tiny pinprick of annoyance that she herself hasn't made much progress. The desire to succeed at this outweighs her pride, though, and she looks at the others curiously.

"So... chasing after pokemon so far isn't working out for me. How do you maybe... get them to come to you?"

[Merilan]

Linne tilted her head, then thought about what Genevieve was lacking -- and then nodded with a smile. "Well... Pokemon tend to be attracted to food, maybe we can find some of their homes and attract them with some bait! Apricorns and Berries would work great, Linne thinks!"

[Ceralune]

At this, Genevieve brightens. Of course! The way to a person's heart is food... it shouldn't be that different for pokemon, right? "That's great advice, thank you." With that, she and Damien venture off to some of the bushes, to see if she recognizes any of the berries and pick a few.

Let's see... we covered berries in class, didn't we? And the others said something about strong birds of prey, and other nocturnal birds. Where would they nest in a place like this?

To know the berries: General Education: [roll0]
To know who would like these berries, and where these pokemon would nest: Pokemon Education: [roll1]
To still keep an eye out for 'mons: Perception: [roll2]
Damien's Perception: [roll3]

[Merilan]

"Linne will help!" Linne headed off with Genevieve this time -- perhaps, two pairs of eyes would be better than one. Where the pink-haired girl focused on the bushes, Linne looked closer to the trees to fetch anything that looked usable, while on the lookout for pokemon as well. They can gather things first, then Genevieve can help pick out which ones would be the most delectable.

Survival -- for foraging for food this time! [roll0] and Perception - [roll1]

[Comissar]

Leah picks several of the Kebia and Ganlon berries, putting most in her pouch bag. She also takes the time to gather some of the soil, pulling off her gloves to do so. Packing it into the portable grower, she covered the little pot over again without placing any berries within it. She wasn't sure yet which she'd prefer to grow, and the berries wouldn't spoil fast enough that she couldn't decide later. Picking herself up again, she absently wiped her hands on her jeans as she followed Alyssa's gaze. She frowns to herself, doubting that she'd seen anything, though not disbelieving Alyssa's certainty that she had. She listened attentively to Linne as she explained what kinds of pokémon were around them, dutifully following her gestures with her eyes as each area was discussed. As the discussion turns to berries, she glances back at the short trail they'd just followed up.

"Umm, there's a few berries back this way. I, uh, I think some pokémon might like them?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she looked back, "There aren't many types of berries that don't get eaten."

Pokémon education to know which kinds of Pokémon would eat the berries Leah found?

[roll0]

[Hazuki]

Genevieve identifies the berries that Leah has already found, and Linne is able to locate similar bushes and vines that hold more of the colorful treats. Along with Linne's information, Leah is able to guess that the flying Pokemon of the Southern fields are more likely to enjoy Ganlon berries, and the bugs would especially enjoy Kebia berries.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods at what Linne has suggested, and while the others go to collect berries, she tries to use Linne's vantage point and knowledge to see if she can more easily pick out any particular Pokemon off in the distance. She decides to check everywhere Linne mentioned if she can see it. Her knowledge of how the natural world works isn't particularly strong, but she's good at picking out details that don't quite belong and subtle movement that disturbs a still scene, so she figures she might be able to point out something in particular now that she knows what she's looking for.

More, better perception to look specifically for the nocturnal birds to the south, bugs to the south, and predatory birds to the north.

[roll0]

[Hazuki]

"Going deeper means more Pokemon." Bibi warns Alyssa, as they come up to a rock that seems to host a large nook nears its top. "And braver." By getting a foothold on another nearby rock, Alyssa manages to peer into the nook to see a nest and, sitting in it, a Pokemon. With a squat, brown body and large red eyes, it pecks at a berry-laden branch and balances precariously on a single set of talons.

[Merilan]

Linne collected several of the Ganlon and Kebia berries, placing it into a little basket that she'd procured in town as she worked. She looked rather pleased to see different kinds of fruits and vegetables from the ones she was used to back in the forest, smiling as she asked Zeta, "Do you want one?" The Fennekin looked a bit skeptical, sniffing at the Ganlon berries, but then eventually went to go nip on one.

She looked to Genevieve when she was done and said, "Linne managed to get a handful as well! This should help everyone find some wild Pokemon!"

[AncientSpark]

Lina follows suit with taking some of the berries. The second she picks up one, though, Zephyr pops out of her hat and immediately nabs it, swallowing it and squawking loudly, clearly proud of itself.

"Hey, that's for finding new friends, Zephy! It ain' dinner...an' didn' y'just eat like a little while ago?" Lina pouts a bit before nabbing a few other berries. In particular, she makes sure to grab more Ganlon berries, since she was not particularly interested in bugs; bugs were always a problem back home.

Eventually, with about a handful of berries, she climbs up to the south to see if she can find more of these "friends".

Making Perception check to spot nocturnal birds to the south end.

[roll0]

[Comissar]

Leah shifts her grip on her portable grower, glancing between the others, "So, uh, what do you think? Should we try looking for bugs or, uh, or birds..?"

[Merilan]

Linne smiled at Leah to say, "Hmm... well, if you want to find the birds that roam around the daytime, let's do that -- otherwise, let's find the bugs for now and wait til nighttime to find the nocturnals? Finding them one at a time together will probably raise our chances of success! Two pairs of eyes, Mrs. Weber always said."

[Hazuki]

Lina does not succeed in finding the nest of the nocturnal Pokemon.

[tgva8889]

Carefully noting the Pokemon, Alyssa captures the moment in her mind's eye to draw for later. Her mind goes to her net, and she notes the distance between them. Figuring it to be a bit too wide, she creeps away and back to the rest of the group.

Once she's returned to earshot, she whispers, "There's a small round bird Pokemon up there. It looks too small to be totally alone."

Default Pokemon EDU roll to see if Alyssa knows what Pokemon she just saw: [roll0]
If necessary a Stealth roll to avoid being detected by the Pokemon that's totally not a Hoothoot: [roll1]

[Ceralune]

Genevieve shoots Linne a surprised look at her declaration to help, which slowly melts into a small smile. Heh... I guess things are different outside of school. Both in terms of lessons and the people you meet. "That's really nice of you, thank you," she responds, in a moment of true sincerity. The suggestion to work together draws a moment of suspicion, but as Linne has already helped Genevieve out, helping her in return is the right thing to do, of course. "I guess it does make sense to go for what's available at this time of day. Should we try putting these berries out near where the bugs live, then? Maybe find a place in the open that's accessible to them and near their homes? And... if we chop up the berries, maybe they could smell them more easily?"

At Alyssa's news of successfully spotting a pokemon, though, it seems like it might be most prudent to get her settled first. "Ohh... what should we do, then? We don't want it to just fly away..."

Pokemon Education to know where the bugs would live: [roll0]

[tgva8889]

Alyssa gives a shrug. "We could just try to grab it. If I can get close enough, anyways." She pulls up her net. "Though I'm pretty sure if we want to catch it we'll have to fight it a little bit." Turning, Alyssa carefully watches the small space where she saw the bird Pokemon, carefully reaching into her bag to draw out her Pokedex to identify it.

[Hazuki]

Genevieve is unable to pool together her knowledge and come up with where the Bug Pokemon might be resting.

Through her Pokedex, Alyssa learns that this Hoothoot is rather large compared to the rest of its species. It also informs her that Hoothoot are a fairly uncommon Pokemon in Londo, compared to the likes of Murkrow, and rarely found near towns. They have an excellent sense of time, and have rarely been employed by Knights or other commanders to make sure their strategies are timed just so.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa nods at her Pokedex, thankful that she managed to get one. The memory of Doctor Perry makes her smile for a moment before she closes her gadget and returns it to her bag. "If no one wants to, I'll go first. What berries would a Hoothoot like?"

[AncientSpark]

Lina eventually returns to regroup with the rest of the group, a little deflated from her failure to find anything, before noticing the rest of the group sneaking up into the bushes. "Hmhm? Whaddya guys find? A Hoothoot?"

She kneels down and tries to get a better look at it from there, to no avail. "I dunno what kinda berries it likes, but I dunno if I like all this sneakin'. Isn't getting Pokemon all 'bout bein' friendly?"

[Merilan]

Linne nodded at Genevieve and said, "That's a good idea! Some berries are heavier than others and fall from the bushes -- and some bugs that can't fly or crawl up trees might be more attracted to what's already broken on the ground..."

She knelt down by Alyssa's side and peered with a smile, making sure to be quiet. "That's true..." she said to Lina, though pausing to say, "But we should make sure we don't alarm it and cause it to run away before we can make friends with it. Umm, does that... device... say anything about their favorite foods?"

[Comissar]

Leah follows quietly after the others as they spot the Hoothoot. She glances between Alyssa, Lina, and Linne as they ponder what kind of berries the pokémon might like. "Umm, I think probably Ganlon berries. I think, uh, I think their skin might remind them of bug carapaces."

[Hazuki]

"It has berries." Bibi points out, as the Hoothoot continues to munch on its branch of berries. "Can't feed the fed."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa puts her hand to her forehead at Bibi's comment, shaking it at her own silliness. "Right. Of course. Well I guess I can just talk to it then. Maybe I'll take some of the berries just in case, though?" If she can, she'll take one or two of the Ganlon berries Leah mentioned.

She takes a deep breath, then moves back closer to the tree, back to a position where she can see the Hoothoot. Trying to keep her footing, she gives a small whistle, then says, "Hello!" out loud, looking at the small bird Pokemon on its perch.

I think you still use Charm for Pokemon, right?

Charm: [roll0]

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot twists its head round to stare at Alyssa after she whistles. Then it kicks a handful of twigs, mud, and old berries right at her face.

[Merilan]

Linne flinched a little as she watched the Hoothoot react, frowning just a little. "It feels defensive, huh..." She tilted her head and looked to the others, then puffed up as she rose gently from the bush and walked to Alyssa's side, taking a napkin to help wipe the dirt off her face.

"You don't have to be scared of her! She's real nice, Linne can assure you..."

Of course, it isn't like the Pokemon can understand her speech, but perhaps years of talking to Pokemon in the forest have made it a real habit. She looked to Alyssa and said, "Do you want to try again? Linne will help."

Linne will help in a Charm Assisted Skill check!

[Ceralune]

Genevieve frowns at the Hoothoot's reaction, though she supposes she can't blame it for behaving that way. Heck, I have acquaintances whom I would do that to if they just randomly said hello to me, she thinks to herself.

Should she help? Well, she supposes it's better than standing around doing nothing. The sooner this gets done, the sooner she'll get her own chance as well.

"Hey, is there anything I can do to-- eh?" Her offer to help is cut short, however, when Damien starts to step cautiously towards the Hoothoot instead. Damien?

"Vee!" Damien calls out to the Hoothoot in friendly greeting.He looks around for a moment before coming back to Genevieve, and pawing at one of the Ganlon berries she collected earlier. "Ehh? Well, alright..." Still incredibly unsure of what is happening, Genevieve hands one of the berries over to Damien, who collects it in his mouth. He pads back over to where the Hoothoot is, and sets it on the ground before looking up at it with large, honest eyes.

Damien uses the move Baby Doll Eyes to... "lower attack" (and hopefully hostility qq) and also tries to charm the Hoothoot.

Charm (Damien): [roll0]

[Comissar]

Leah nods at Alyssa's request, passing over a couple of Ganlon berries for her to attempt to tempt the Hoothoot with. She starts at the abrupt response to the proffered food, her gaze switching to Alyssa to make sure her friend was ok. Realising dignity was the only potential casualty, Leah fought back a grin at the sight of the leaf litter now covering Alyssa. "Umm, I think, uh, I think it might not be hungry."

When Damien and Linne offer up their help in charming the Hoothoot down, Leah quietly takes a few steps back, giving the others some space to work with, and hopefully not making the bird pokémon feel crowded.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa wipes her hand across her face and gives a cough to push some of the debris away. She looks thankfully to Linne. "That...might be helpful."

She notices Damien and releases Luna again, this time beside her. Luna isn't a lot of help, but it does smile and wave at the Hoothoot in its normal friendly manner. Trying again, Alyssa gives another smile. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you, Hoothoot. I didn't mean to be rude. Perhaps we could try again?"

Assuming Alyssa is allowed, try to Charm the Hoothoot again.

Charm: [roll0]
It says I add half the skill rank of the supporter, Linne, to the check; I suppose that would mean +1 to the total?

[Merilan]

Linne let out a little hum and tried a little melody that she devised on her own in the forest -- she doesn't really know if the birds really enjoyed it, but it was worth a try!

Linne is helping! Really!

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot considers its branch, then considers the array of berries and people gathered at the base of its nest, and makes a hop over to the edge. It spreads its wings open to bask in the attention of so many individuals.

[Comissar]

Leah watched the Hoothoot in the branches as it made its way over to the edge of its nest. Racking her brain as she tried to think of some good advice to give, she glanced over at Alyssa. "Umm, Hoothoot's are solitary normally. Try not to make eye contact with it, it, uh, it might see that as a challenge." Her eyes flickered briefly to the nest, then back to the others, "It's probably wary of us being predators too. Umm, it might take a while, but as long as we just avoid sudden movements, it should, uh, it should come and investigate us."

Glancing up at Leah, Saura seemed prepared to follow her trainer's advice as she lay herself down in the leaf litter.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks to Leah as she speaks, then nods and carefully approaches, making slow movements and keeping her head a bit down to avoid direct eye contact. She gives a curtsy and then lays out some of the berries she'd been given. Then she gives a kinds mile, sure to look a bit above the Hoothoot's eyes. "Would you like to come down? We don't mean any harm." Luna gives a kind and friendly cry, as if to cement her friend's comments.

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot continues to regard Alyssa with coolness, then hops down from its nook and snatches up the bundle of berries in its other set of talons. Then it darts up and hovers so that its face is just a few inches taller than everybody else.

Bibi and Ibib continue to stand vigil over the five teens and their Pokemon fawning over a lone Hoothoot.

[Comissar]

Leah takes a half step back as the Hoothoot hovers in front of them. She glances over to Alyssa, then back to the pokémon again. "Umm, if you, uh, if you want to come with us we can, uh, we can keep giving you berries..?"

She winced at the uncertainty in her voice. A quick glance at Alyssa made her question how her friend managed to sound so welcoming and confident all the time.

Making a charm attempt :smalltongue:

[roll0]

[Ceralune]

As the Hoothoot still insists on carrying on with its "holier-than-thou" attitude, Genevieve begins to frown. She can recall some girls from the school who would get along very well with this Hoothoot... or maybe not so much, since their egos would get in each other's way. With the crowd gathered around the Hoothoot, she's reluctant to add to the attention it's getting, but that Hoothoot really needs to be knocked down a peg or two...

Well, one way to remind someone of where they stand... is to show them just where that is.

"Damien, why don't you do that dance we worked on just before we came here? It looks so pretty, and we haven't yet showed our new friends just what we did before coming to Londo, have we?" As Genevieve suggests this, she winks at the others. If the Hoothoot sees someone else getting more attention than it, maybe it'll get jealous and get off of its high horse. At least, that was all it took for some of those girls to turn a little green...

Hearing his trainer, Damien nods and launches into swift, fluid movements. His tail twists, resulting in a coil-like appearance of his body as he spirals into a series of leaps.

I don't know what rolls this would need.

Guile: [roll0]

Acrobatics (Damien): [roll1]
Athletics (Damien): [roll2]

[Merilan]

Linne blinked and turned her attention from the Hoothoot to Damien, clapping her hands. "Oh-- wow! Genevieve, I didn't know Damien could..." she giggled brighter, and then nodded. "That's so talented!"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks up at the Hoothoot and considers the benefits of giving up this method, so she's quite glad when Genevieve decides to take matters into Damien's paws. Though she turns to watch, she keeps an eye on the Hoothoot, her hand carefully holding the net at the ready. When appropriate she gives small cheers, though always keeps an eye on the Hoothoot and a hand free and ready to quickly grab her net or toss a ball.

Luna, for her part, is quite excited by Damien's dance and does a small, much less graceful, finger dance to the hidden rhythm. She enjoys from a distance, keeping the Hoothoot in her awareness but mostly ignoring it in favor of Damien.

[Comissar]

Leah gives Genevieve and Damien a confused look as the Eevee begins to cavort at their feet. Her confusion only grows as both Linne and Alyssa switch their attention away from the wild pokémon. "Umm..."

She glances uncertainly between the Hoothoot and Damien, trying to work out what her next move should be.

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot watches Damien's display of acrobatic prowess with a tilted head, which puts its crest at the 12 and 3 positions. Once the Eevee is nearing the end of its display, it flaps its wings together, which creates a sound rather like slow clapping.

[Ceralune]

As Damien finishes the dance and lands in an elegant pose with its tail raised high, Genevieve squeals and claps enthusiastically. "Wow, Damien! It's been so long since we worked on that, but you still danced so flawlessly!" In truth, she counted at least 2 missed steps, but it was still brilliant considering that Damien was rusty, and there wasn't even any music. Not to mention, she needs to really sell this to that Hoothoot. "You must be the coolest pokemon in this entire field!" Damien accepts the praise with a bow of his head, and a sunny smile.

The compliments from the others are a salve that helps soothe the wounds from her temporary hiatus from school as well, for even though Genevieve knows deep down that they're partly just trying to play along, it's always nice to be appreciated.

When the Hoothoot even starts clapping, though, Genevieve has to remind herself to keep a straight face. She never expected the Hoothoot to have any appreciation Damien's fine display of skill, and it delights her to the point where she starts speaking to it... almost like she's forgotten that the entity she's talking to is a wild pokemon who can't really make conversation with her. "You know, I think I may have misjudged you. You have an eye for beauty too, don't you?" she asks it. Then, she motions in the Hoothoot closer, like she wants to tell him a secret. However close it is, she speaks loud enough so it can hear. "You see that girl over there? She points subtly towards Alyssa. She's really good at drawing. I'm planning to ask her to draw my Damien later, maybe an image of him while he's dancing. Ohh, it'll be wonderful to have visual proof of Damien's greatness! Especially from such a talented artist," She gushes. Damien, for his part, jumps back into Genevieve's arms, and she hands him a Ganlon berry as a well-deserved reward. Glancing up at the Hoothoot, he chirps in thanks for the applause, but then turns towards Alyssa right after instead of paying more attention to the Hoothoot. He knows how to take the praise gracefully.

Then, Genevieve speaks a little more loudly. "Alyssa? Can you show me some more of your drawings?" Genevieve asks. "Ohh, and I was wondering if you'd draw Damien for me - maybe a picture of him dancing. Wow, I'm so honored that I'm in a position where I can ask you for something like that, being friends and all," she adds as an afterthought, keeping an eye on the Hoothoot as she does.

Guile: [roll0]
Charm: [roll1]

[Hazuki]

There's a thump from the other side of the rock upon which Hoothoot makes its nest. The bird Pokemon turns slowly in the air, Bibi reaches for her belt, and a crack echoes across the fields. The rock crumble into two pieces, which are shoved apart by something imperceptible through the cloud of dust that billows out over the group. There's a loud, high-pitched screech from within the rocks as the squat creature shoves the rocks aside and stomps toward the group.

They can make out a green hide and a long, narrow crest before Bibi throws one of her pouches at the Pokemon - and its eyes are immediately covered by crumbling soil. "Run! Follow Ibib!" The scarred woman instructs the group, as she tosses Ibib at Linne. Ibib catches itself by wrapping its tentacles around the archer's head. It pulls her in one direction, its helmet glowing as a cloud of spores emerge in a purple glow and latch onto the blinded Pokemon.

The Hoothoot flaps its wings wildly, head twisting round and round in a panic.

[Ceralune]

The thump doesn't draw Genevieve's attention at first, so focused is she on this darn bird, but as others slowly look in its direction, she finally does as well. The Larvitar that emerges from the cloud of dust is a surprise. Genevieve remembers seeing these one of these little guys before - on a class field trip to Mount Mortar. She hadn't paid it much mind - its short, squat body meant that it wouldn't be much of a dancer. So, she doesn't remember much about it - but the look on this one's face is easy enough to interpret, and Bibi doesn't have to tell her twice to move. She takes off after Ibib and Linne, not sparing another glance at the confused, disoriented Hoothoot.

[Merilan]

Linne let out a surprised yelp as Ibib lands on her head, stammering, "H-heey, Ibib--" she stumbles clumsily on her feet, but then hurried in the direction the Pokemon wanted her to go. "O-okay, okay!" Zeta growled and stared at the Larvitar, but then hurried away along with her master as well.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks at Genevieve oddly at first, but then switches to nodding along as she speaks. "Oh, yeah, of course! Totally! We'd have to set up a good spot for me to watch, but I'd be totally worth it. I have to give my complete attention when I'm doing a good painting, you know." She gives the Hoothoot a discrete glance, then bends down to give Damien a kind pet. "You're quite the talented pair!"

Not pausing, Alyssa grabs Luna in one arm and begins to move, then notices the confused Hoothoot. Turning to it, she shouts, "Hoothoot! This way, come on!" She makes a wave at it and then points at Linne and Genevieve ahead of her. As she looks back, there's something familiar about the Pokemon approaching, but she can't place the name or why it looks so familiar, instead focused on keeping pace with her friends and saving this bird.

If necessary:

Charm [roll0] the Hoothoot

[Comissar]

Leah still seems a little lost as to what Genevieve's goals are as she continues to fawn over Damien. It's only when Alyssa is brought in that she starts to understand what the Johtoan was trying to do. She gives the Hoothoot a curious look, wondering if it might be swayed by jealousy. Her musings are cut short by the sudden THUD of the rock smashing apart. Eyes widening in alarm, she felt her body tense even as Saura rose to her feet, the Bulbasaur mimicking her stance. She blinks rapidly as the Larvitar emerges, Bibi's words cutting through any hesitation that might have formed in the face of this new arrival.

Chasing after Linne with Saura bounding along by her feet, she threw occasional worried glances over her shoulder, trying to see if they were being chased.

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot needs little more than Alyssa's encouragement to follow the group, in the wake of the powerful Pokemon destroying its nest. It flaps along just behind the group, flapping its tiny wings and hopping off of tall rocks as they flee.

Ibib leads the group through use of Linne's head, guiding her with tugs of its tendrils, and a few Pokemon scatter as they come. Far behind them, they can hear another of the Pokemon's cries, followed by the crack of a boulder. Nothing seems to be chasing them at the moment, but the group has to decide when to stop running.

If you're going to keep running, I'mma need Athletics checks.

[Merilan]

Linne let out a little breath as she whipped her bow out; if this Pokemon was really going to chase them, then it was perhaps going to be better to try to discourage it from doing so. She really didn't like hurting Pokemon, but she knew even from the jungle that some enjoyed fighting, and it could serve to help brush off some excess energy and make them calmer.

She hopped up towards the nearest vantage point that she could see, and turned to draw her bow. "Linne will try to distract it, everyone get somewhere safe!"

She focused... and her eyes shimmered blue for a moment, as she drew the bowstring without an arrow -- but then a thin lance of ice appeared from her fingertips. Focus...

Linne is hopping up to better position where she can find it -- Athletics? [roll0] and if she can still see the Larvitar, she'd like to take a shot at it to distract it.

[Ceralune]

As it seems that the Larvitar isn't following them in pursuit at the moment, Genevieve stops and turns back to see Linne taking position with her bow. Deciding that stealth might indeed be the way to go here, she and Damien take cover behind a particularly tall boulder.

Stealth: [roll0]

[Comissar]

Leah finds her pace starting to slow as the group runs from the Larvitar, her legs feeling heavier as they flee. She was almost grateful when they came to a stop and Linne turned to fight. Almost. She gave the girl from the forest a worried look. "You can't try and fight it on your own! You could get hurt!"

Saura nodded with an affirmative "Saur!", crouching forward and extending a pair of vines from her bud.

As she watched the way they'd come, Leah found her hand hovering over Sable's pokéball as well as she found herself wondering if she'd need them both.

[Hazuki]

Linne stumbles as she climbs up the nearest rock, but manages to catch herself before falling. At the top of the waist-height rock, she can just about catch sight of the Larvitar - as it sinks its teeth into Bibi's arm. It doesn't seem to sink far into the scarred flesh, but the position makes it unlikely that she'll land a shot that doesn't hit Bibi. She seems to gain some control over the fight, as she swings her arm around and slams the Larvitar into one of the nearby rock-halves. It seems like it's not chasing them, while Bibi is distracting it.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve hugs Damien to her chest. Now that she's had a chance to catch her breath, she can't help but feel a little irritation amidst the fear. We were having a fine time looking for pokemon... and now that little savage is interrupting it! How am I supposed to find a new partner if that Larvitar scares everything away? Her cheeks puff out a bit in annoyance, but she releases a breath and finally decides to take a look around. The Hoothoot doesn't seem to have calmed down any, and she's surprised it managed to go in the same direction as everybody else.

Meanwhile, Genevieve wonders what became of Bibi and the Larvitar. Can Bibi even fight that thing? I imagine trying to physically subdue it would be tough... I mean, it broke that boulder in half. And it's practically made of rock itself. What if she goes down? Would we even be able to get her the help she would need? What if... the thing remembers us then, and comes after us next?! The theorizing just makes her more worried, and she stops herself before she goes any further, resolving to think of a way she can help defuse the situation. Damien can't take that thing... a normal type against a rock type? No way. There has to be some other pokemon that's hearing all of this...

Still slightly frazzled, she looks around to see if there's anything (or anyone) nearby that can help. Noticing his trainer's movements, Damien does the same.

Perception: [roll0]
Perception (Damien): [roll1]

[tgva8889]

Alyssa, noticing most of her friends have doubled back, pauses with the rest. Though still near some danger, she looks to the Hoothoot fluttering behind them. "Are you all right?" Once the Hoothoot gives a response, she looks at Leah. "Maybe we can all do something about it together?" Luna puts on a tough face from her arm, and gives a nod of affirmation at Alyssa's words. Noting both Genevieve and Linne have doubled back somewhat, Alyssa follows after them, trying to keep out of notice as she gets into some position where she might be able to help.

Stealth: [roll0]

[Merilan]

Linne's eyes open with alarm as she watched Bibi struggle with the Larvitar, and then she looked up at Ibib to go, "Linne won't let Bibi get hurt any more..."

She waited with her aim focused, until she watched Bibi throw the Larvitar onto the rock-half. She concentrated, and then loosed her ice-arrow at that moment.

Linne will wait until the position changes so she can take a shot. When that's done, she uses Aiming Down the Sights as a shift, then making a Struggle with Freezer to make it Ice-typed.

[roll0] vs AC 5, [roll1] Ice damage!

[Comissar]

Leah nods at Alyssa's suggestion, glancing up at Linne as she holds a steady aim with her bow. Lacking the vantage point Linne has, she's forced to guess at why the Larvitar wasn't pursuing, but 'being delayed by Bibi' did feel most likely. The archer's comment to Ibib all but confirms this. Glancing between Alyssa and Genevieve, she said "I think we should get back to her."

At her feet, Saura tensed herself, ready to sprint back the way they'd come should the others agree.

[Hazuki]

Linne pierces the air with her needle, and it gouges the tossed Larvitar's hide for a moment before shattering entirely. As the creature gets back to its feet, Bibi rapidly retrieves a pickaxe from her pack and slams it into the Pokemon's horn as it charges at her legs. She wrenches it to the side with her pickaxe just before it can send her toppling over, but the tool is now disloged from the Pokemon's mostly-intact horn.

Neither of Genevieve and Damien notice anything moving in their surroundings, despite their best efforts, Alyssa isn't attacked as she tries to sneak towards the scene of the fight.

As it seems like the group is going to try to fight the Pokemon, a faint image suddenly comes to their heads, accompanied by feelings of dread. A looming presence, shrouded in storms and shadows. Linne will recognize the intruding thought from her last conversation with Bibi and Ibib.

[tgva8889]

As they get close, Alyssa sees Bibi fighting the Pokemon up close, trying her best to keep herself calm in the face of the violence. She's seen battling before, and she's even seen people fighting Pokemon, but she can't get the horror out of her mind, a deep darkness that intrudes on her as she watches. She feels an utter fear creep over her. But she swallows deep and whispers to Luna, "Is there anything you can do to help?"

Luna looks up at Alyssa with a bit of fear in her eyes, then steels herself in determination and falls to the ground, moving so she can get within sight of the Larvitar. Then she makes a smile, waves like she normally does, but then does something different; a small heart appears from her and rushes towards the Larvitar, filled with all the cheer and happiness Luna normally seems to exude.

[roll0] vs. AC 2+evasion, if hit -2 ATK combat stages. My presumption was that Luna had to be visible to the Larvitar to use this attack, and that range 6 was closer than wherever Linne is.

[Comissar]

Leah and Saura follow after Alyssa as quickly as they can. Saura almost stumbles, and Leah visibly hesitates as Ibib projects its fearful warning. It takes a few moments for Leah to start moving, her concern for Bibi just about edging out the fears of Ibib. Pushing forward again in spite of the dread pressing in on her, Leah reached the clearing in time to see the aftermath of Linne's shot, wincing at what looked like a painful blow.

Saura joined her at her feet, unfurling her vines again, before glancing up to Leah for instruction. Leah clenched her teeth and nodded, "Try and stop it from hurting her."

Bounding forward, Saura's vine's rushed out from under her bud, lashing at the Larvitar as it struggled with Bibi.


So, I think I'm doing this right, correct me if not.

Before anything else, Initiative's;

Leah - 7
Saura - 8

Then, Saura will be using Vine Whip on the Larvitar from maximum distance (4 meters away);

Accuracy Check (No modifier I believe? Vine Whip has an AC of 2) -

Damage Base is increased from 4 to 6 for STAB, and she adds her Attack stat, meaning it's [Roll]2D6+8+3 (assuming it hits), dealing 2x the damage after defenses for being 2x Super Effective? Assuming this Larvitar is the normal Rock/Ground combo, of course.

[Ceralune]

Genevieve looks at the others doubtfully as they express their wish to help out Bibi. The woman had said to get away, after all, and wouldn't a trained (well, okay, probably self-trained) guide know better than a few girls who were putzing about the wilderness? But then they all leave and, well... Eek, I don't want to be here all alone!

So, Genevieve follows slightly behind them, watching as they call out their pokemon and command them to attack. Slowly, she lowers Damien to the ground to do the same. Okay, this should be easy, Genevieve. You've battled dozens of times before! ... In class, in... controlled conditions... of which this is CERTAINLY not... She cuts herself off before she loses her nerve, telling Damien, "Use Yawn on that Larvitar! ... With any luck, we can put it to sleep and end this whole mess."

Damien obliges, heading closer to the Larvitar if needed.

So, looking at my character sheet it says that Yawn cannot miss. I think that means I don't need to roll? But correct me if I'm wrong. ;~; #firstPTUbattle

[Hazuki]

The Larvitar is suddenly subject to a rain of hearts, whips, and a charging furry creature, all of which it manages to avoid as it shakes its head free of disorientation and turns its gaze upon the group. It stares them and their Pokemon down for a moment, then lets out a high-pitched roar. Bibi plunges her boot into its side and sends it stumbling for a few feet before it can charge at Alyssa.

"Stop helping!" Bibi barks at the girls.

Another roar echoes in the distance, much louder than the one that came from the Larvitar, and is accompanied by winds that suddenly spring to life. They whip and tear at the group's clothes, until joined by particles of sand that feel sharp against their skin, obscure their vision, and cast the previously-sunny fields in a haze of gold. The Hoothoot at Alyssa's side starts flapping its wings in a wild panic, as the cries of many other Pokemon can be heard all around them.

A map can be found here (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jM5Zw9Sm1oxoWIqzsEIihZEFjTKOSXiqSekvOr2i44s/edit?usp=sharing). I've had to estimate the group's positions, and let me know if I forgot any one. Ibib is sharing Linne's space.

Green is grass, grey is 1-meter rocks, darker grey is 2-meter high rocks.

The Weather is currently Sandstorm, and everybody loses a tick of HP at the start of their turn, unless they're Ground, Rock, or Steel type.

[Merilan]

Linne shivered and grimaced as she sandstorm kicked up, and then she exclaimed, "Only if you're coming with us, Bibi! You're hurt!"

She focused her efforts on looking around the battlefield - the roars were evident, but she needed to identify dangers that were coming towards the group.

Perception - [roll0]

[Hazuki]

Through the sand, it's difficult for even Linne's eyes to get a good view of whatever's approaching.

"I know what I'm doing!" Bibi snaps at Linne, her vicious yell just about piercing the sound of the sands.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa coughs as the sand fills the air, covering her face with her arm. She mostly ignores Bibi's comments, as the blowing sand and the clear danger focuses her thoughts on the task at hand. "Well this is fantastic." Pulling a Pokeball from her side, she twists it and readies it in her hand. "Luna, maybe try to weaken it directly. If it's weaker I might be able to catch it and we can get out of here." To the Hoothoot, she shouts, "Try to stay down. I'll take care of you, I promise."

Luna nods and, though she's quite slow, when she spots a chance she moves closer to the Pokemon and gives a few claps which seem supernaturally loud given the raging sandstorm. The clapping noise seems to echo into applause for a few moments, then ceases.

Alyssa picks a Pokeball up, and now has one ready.

Luna, on her turn, moves to the nearest space in range, then using Encore.

Accuracy roll: [roll0] vs. AC 2+Status Evade, on hit target is affected by a status based on this roll: [roll1] Enraged

Alyssa loses 6 HP if we round up, 5 if we round down, not sure which we are doing. Remaining HP: 54/59
Luna loses 6 HP if we round up, 5 if we round down, but on her turn. I'll just have that recorded now. Remaining HP: 48/53

[Merilan]

Linne frowned and said, "Then-- then tell us! We can help!" She looked up at Ibib, however difficult that might be, begging the psychic Pokemon to lend its own aid.

[Comissar]

Leah winced, raising her arm and squinting as she tried to protect her face from the sand grains. She felt an icy chill rush through her at the sound of the roar, and she tried to spot where it may have come from. Failing to spot anything through the whirling sand, she yelled out "We can't just leave you behind!"

Bracing herself against the tempestuous weather, Saura lashed out again with her vines in an effort to subdue the Larvitar so that Bibi could flee.

Not actually rolling perception for Leah to try and spot whatever's roaring, but can I make a pokémon education check for her to recognise what is roaring?

Pokémon Education - [roll0] (Assuming I can)

Saura's going to attempt to Vine Whip again. Assuming my previous calculations for to hit and damage were accurate.

To Hit (Base AC of 2) - [roll1]

Damage - [roll2]

(And then an added 2x Damage after defense for 2x Super Effective?)

[Hazuki]

Let's say we round down.

The Hoothoot bobs uneasily at Alyssa's words, and seems to calm down slightly. When Luna's applause hits the Larvitar, all that seems to happen is it gets even angrier.

"Capture it and its parents will attack Licia! Hurt it too much, the same! And they will break you!" Bibi narrows her eyes at Alyssa in particular as she yells, watching the space between the enraged Larvitar and the girls. "Just run, you fools! Do you think I've not survived worse?!"

Ibib seems to agree with what Bibi's saying, as it tugs on Linne's head to turn in the other direction. In the breath after Bibi's words, the minds of the group are filled with images, just like before, but all of them featuring Bibi and Ibib. The images flash in their minds rapidly. The first few feature a very young Bibi, younger than even Sass, without any of the scars that mark her today. Ibib is with her, as their scenery and her condition slowly changes. Bibi gets gashes, bites, bruises and broken bones, at the hands of Pokemon many of them don't recognize at a glance.

Then she starts to get older, the Pokemon attacking her bigger, or more of them. She's a teenager as she ducks and dives among a den of Pyroar, a white-furred Pokemon with a sickle-shaped horn corners her wounded self on a mountaintop, and a twelve-legged Pokemon drags her into crashing waves as poison wracks her system. When she's a young woman, with the scars of her journeys criss-crossing her body, they see her leading a group of children through a forest, their ears covered against the haunting incantations of the haunting Mismagius. She fends off a pair of sparking mandibles, a burn blazing across her stomach, as the cobalt bug pins her against a boulder. They see her tugging open a Mawile's jaws, teeth digging deep into her arms, as she frees the woman it had captured.

Finally, they see Bibi almost as she appears now. She struggles against the rippling power of a Gardevoir, as it tugs at all of her limbs. She shields herself from a flock of black, sharp-beaked Pokemon with the wing of a Tropius, headed straight at a waterfall. The final image they see is of her weaving her way through trees, as a massive Pokemon pursues her through the shadows and raging sands. Everyone will notice the creature's similarity to the Larvitar before them, just before the visions vanish.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa sees the images in her mind. At first she sees Bibi, but as the images near the end and the Pokemon similar to the Larvitar before them appears, in her thoughts the image changes. She sees a small girl throw up her arms as a large, red Pokemon with black stripes swings a claw at her as someone shouts in the distance.

Opening her eyes back to the sand, she switches Pokeballs and calls Luna back, a look of concern on the Cleffa's face as she fades into nothing. Turning to the Hoothoot, she says, "Let's get out of here," and she starts moving away, trying to get clear of the sandstorm. She moves a bit fast given the fact that her visibility isn't great and she's not really the best at keeping track of where she's going in the middle of the woods, but she moves until she gets out of the sandstorm and then just stops.

[Merilan]

Linne made a disappointed noise, before following Alyssa's lead to retreat away from the sandstorm, calling to the others and spreading a momentary burst of powdered ice to mark her spot as she did so. "Everyone, over here!"

[Ceralune]

Genevieve groans inwardly to herself as Bibi snaps at them. Called it. Still, she listens, calling out to Damien, "Damien, come back!" and returning him to his pokeball once he does so. She then follow the others away from the scene of the fight.

[Comissar]

Leah felt a guilty weight settle on her chest as Bibi once again yelled at them for trying to help her, now beginning to doubt that she'd done the right thing. The sinking feeling in her chest only worsened as Ibib once again projected images into her mind. The sight of so many instances of horrendous abuse being endured, combined with the steadily worsening stinging sensation against her own skin, left her eyes watering as she returned fully to her senses. She opens her mouth to try and call out to Bibi, but the words catch in her throat. Glancing and seeing the others turning to run, she swallowed and took Saura's pokéball out, recalling the surprised Bulbasaur.

Turning on her heel, she ran after the other girls, throwing a glance back in worry at Bibi.

Recalling Saura, taking a second tick of damage from the sandstorm (?), then running after the others. Rolling Athletics for it if you need it?

[roll0]

[AncientSpark]

Lina yelps and grips her hat against the wind, sending feathers everywhere as Zephyr underneath her hat starts squwaking at all the noise. With her other hand, she fumbles for her Pokeball and finally presses it to Zephyr, yelling, "Come back, Zephy!" before following the others. "Are all Pokemon battles like this?!"

Lina takes 5 damage from Sandstorm, Zephyr takes 4 before getting recalled. Time to ruuuuun

[tgva8889]

Once everyone is clear, Alyssa waves everyone down, keeping her ears peeled for any signs of Bibi, Ibib, or the roars they heard before getting closer. Whether or not she hears anything, she asks, "Anyone hurt?" ignoring the fact that any exposed skin on her body (besides right around her face) look raw and red, and she flinches a bit as the air blows past. If the Hoothoot is nearby, Alyssa will ask it, "How about you?"

Perception: [roll0]

Alyssa has 49/59 HP
Luna has 43/53 HP, unless Alyssa calling her back before her turn prevented a tick of damage, in which case she has 48/53. I don't know how these mechanics all work. :smalltongue:

[Hazuki]

...who is exposed to the sand takes two more ticks of damage before they get out of the sandstorm.

After a long sprint through the rocky fields, along the route Bibi had suggested before (And through which Ibib's glow provided much-needed guidance with the sandstorm around), the group reach the edge of the storm and the rocky fields themselves. Alyssa can spot Ibib perched on Linne's head, and the roars did seem to get closer for a short while, but then stopped and have increased in distance as they did.

The Hoothoot seems to be panicking a little, even at the edge of the rocky fields and beside Alyssa, as sand has thoroughly riddled its feathers and it struggles to find a stable position to hover in. The group also spots a couple of Spinda bumbling their way out of the fields not far behind them.

[tgva8889]

At the Hoothoot's distress, Alyssa says "Hold on!" Digging around in her bag, she eventually pulls out a small box which opens to reveal a bunch of medical supplies and bandages. "Would you mind letting me give you a look? I learned how to take care of injuries when I was younger."

If the Hoothoot allows, Alyssa will beckon it to the ground and then start calmly and carefully combing through its feathers with small, careful motions, cleaning out the sand and combing the feathers back into place. Though she doesn't know too much about the Pokemon exactly, she knows how to treat pains and wounds and is careful to take care of it as best she can.

Alyssa down to 39/59 HP from two more ticks of damage.

Using the First Aid Kit, which allows a Drain 1 AP action to make a Medical Edu check to heal damage from a target on the Hoothoot, if it consents.
Medical Edu: [roll0]

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot uncertainly consents to Alyssa patching it up, standing on a smaller rock nearby. It stops panicking as she applies salves to its wounds, brushes its feathers clean of sand, and applies a bandage to a particularly sore spot on its wing. By the time she's finished, it has calmed down completely, and regards her with a tilted head. Or, in its case, body.

[Comissar]

Leah casts a worried glance back the way they'd come as she slows to a stop. She winces as she does, her gaze shifting to her exposed arms. Her skin had ended up becoming caked in sand. Gently, she brushed at it with her hand, shifting the sand grains to reveal multitudinous flecks of red all along her skin.

"Ah..."

Leah winced again as she began the slow process of cleaning her arms of debris, eyes watering from the stinging sensation as she did. She glanced back at the way they came again, worry written across her face, "Is she really going to be ok..?"

Leah's currently at 30/50 Health

[Merilan]

Linne didn't seem to mind the scratches and tears at her skin and dress, though she took a moment to pant and take a breath as Zeta came up to her side, similarly injured with a frown. "Linne thinks we should find cover. Where would Bibi want to meet up, Ibib?"

[tgva8889]

As she finishes caring for the Hoothoot, Alyssa gives a smile and puts her hands on her hips in triumph. "All done! Maybe take care with how long you're flying for a few days, but otherwise should be back to normal after one or two days rest." She offers the Hoothoot some of the berries she still has. "You're not such a bad fellow, are you? I'm glad you're doing okay."

At Linne's suggestion, Alyssa looks around for a good place to hide out. "If we can find someplace safe and out of the way that might be best." She gives a look around the immediate area to see if there's anywhere that looks safer than out in the open.

Suppose a Perception: [roll0]
Also I have no idea whether Charm is still necessary to make the Hoothoot like Alyssa more?

[Hazuki]

Alyssa can't see any particularly good hiding spots to wait for Bibi, although a few rocks would provide good cover should the sandstorm continue. Ibib points its glow to the trail that led them to the rocky fields, from Licia.

[Merilan]

Linne looked around as well, but shook her head as she pointed to where Ibib was guiding them. "It's dangerous to stay out here for long, especially when the sun will go down. It may be best to just return to Licia......"

She didn't sound eager, though. Ibib could sense that she wanted to wait for Bibi.

[Ceralune]

As they all finally make it out of the sandstorm, Genevieve's distressed - on at least two levels. Not only is Damien hurt, but she's taken a beating as well, and don't even get her started on her clothes! Something tells me they probably don't have proper washing machines in Licia, she laments to herself. Damien wasn't in the sand long, at least, but she can already foresee a grooming session in his near future, as soon as they all figure out what on earth is going on... and, well, once they find Bibi.

The thought of Bibi reminds her that the scarred woman is probably still fighting that Larvitar and, despite Genevieve's reservations towards her, she feels oddly lost without their (apparently very) trustworthy guide. As Ibib points them in the direction back to Licia, and some of the others subtly express their desire to wait for Bibi, Genevieve finally decides to interject. We didn't listen to Bibi once already, and it turned out she knew better than us. I don't think I'm up for making that mistake again.

"If Ibib is telling us to go back to town, I think we should listen."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa gives a shrug, then turns to the Hoothoot. "Hey, um, so I know that Pokemon back there knocked down your home. I know it's not the same, but would you like to come with us? I feel bad about what happened and I'd like to help if I can."

Let me know if I need to make a Charm check for this.

[Hazuki]

The Hoothoot says nothing, but hops up to stand on Alyssa's shoulder. Aside from the mildly disconcerting appearance of its talons gripping her shoulder, it seems content to stand there for some time.

You don't need to make one. It's considered Friendly to Alyssa.

[tgva8889]

Alyssa smiles at the Hoothoot on her shoulder and gives a small giggle. "I'm happy you're coming." Looking to the others, she says, "I guess we have to hope Bibi catches up to us?" Her voice is calm and collected but she glances back into the sandstorm with a bit of genuine fear.

[Merilan]

Linne frowned softly as she started down the path, but... then said, "Um, Linne will wait, if the rest of you want to head back to Licia first, please feel free..."

[Comissar]

Leah looks torn, not wanting to leave Linne or Bibi behind, but not eager to face whatever was coming to the Larvitar's aid. She glances between Linne and Alyssa, "... I don't want to, uh, to leave you behind too."

[Ceralune]

Genevieve lets out an exasperated sigh as it seems the others intend to stay and wait. "Okay, well... can we at least find somewhere to hide? Maybe go a little further up the path? I take it Bibi will come find us anyways, and I'd rather not still be in the danger zone when I'm pretty sure she will be heading back to Licia."

Perception: [roll0] to see if there's anywhere to hide.

[Hazuki]

Ibib adjusts the grip of its tentacles on Linne's head.

[Merilan]

Linne nodded and reached her hand up to pat Ibib gently, before glancing around and taking in their surroundings. "Mm hmm..." She reached down to pat Zeta, as the Fennekin sighed softly.

I'll help with Perception - [roll0]

[Hazuki]

Neither of the girls spot a spot that stands out.

[Ceralune]

"Well... I guess this part of the path is pretty barren," Genevieve mutters. "Maybe we can wander a little further towards town, at least until we find somewhere to hide? I really think we should defer to those who have more experience doing this... and right now, that is... 'Ibib.'"

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks between everyone as they look around for places to hide. She starts nervously rubbing her arm, and finally just shakes her head. "No, I'm sorry, I, um, I can't stay here. I'm sorry, really sorry." She gives everyone an awkward look for a beat, then starts walking down the path unless anyone stops her.

[Merilan]

Linne turned to Alyssa, before letting out a slight sigh. "Sorry... Linne just wanted to be helpful today and help everyone find new friends--" she paused, and smiled at the Hoothoot, encouraging Alyssa. "Take good care of him, okay? Linne will see you back in town..."

[tgva8889]

Alyssa looks around at the trees and the sandstorm, still nervously rubbing her arm. "It's not that. I just, um, I can't...I mean, I don't want to stay. I'm...I just can't. Be careful." She considers herself for a moment, then grabs Linne in a hug.

[Merilan]

Linne shook her head with a smile, hugging Alyssa back. "No, Linne understands..."