-Insert Imaginative Title-

[Lee]

"Brr. Good thing I changed into pants." It wasn't the coldest she'd ever been, but she couldn't believe that it wasn't one of the later seasons. She'd thought this would be a wonderful place to get a pokemon, and subsequently train it for a while, but it was so dreary that she just wasn't sure about that any more.

She was finally heading up to get her own pokemon, although she had arrived an hour earlier or so. She'd walked around some, and come to the conclusion that it was a pity she had to go to the "professor's" to get a pokemon. She'd much rather just adopt the kakuna she had seen that was up for such an adoption, but she unfortunately had no money. A side-effect of not even having a part-time job during high school.

Still, she supposed shellder wouldn't be that bad. Or geodude, for that matter. She really didn't have much of a preference for either one of them, but she guessed that having a pokemon that was at home in water was probably a good thing, since this seemed like a very wet place to her. That might have been the thinking generated by a horrible trip on a boat, but it was still a good idea. Maybe it would deign to help her not drown. Or panic.

Well, not drowning was a good start.

So she pretty much had her mind set up from the start that she wanted a shellder. She guessed that she'd adopt the kakuna afterwards, even though it didn't seem like she'd have much money. But she'd lived her entire life without really having a problem with little money, so she guessed she would be fine. How much did training pokemon cost?

Finally she knocked on the door and waited. Since there wasn't anything else to do in this town.

[Nyaa-Neko]

((Beware - I've gone past the point of good modding. Expect a short, badly-written mod post...sowwy...))

Kauri opened it with a yawn. Blinking blearily, she tried to focus on the picture in front of her. "Oi...you here for a starter?"

Behind her, a geodude drew on a piece of paper, oblivious to all around her, and a shellder snoozed. The other two geodude, a male and a female, were jabbering to each other about Kauri behind her back. In addition to the four advertised starters, a seedot munched on some pellets.

[Lee]

(( It burns my eyes! The horror! ...Just kidding, Nyaa. It wasn't bad. XD))

Rii nodded, pasting a cheery smile on her face. When it seemed like Kauri wouldn't notice it in the first place, since she seemed half-asleep, she dropped it, and instead nodded. She decided she liked the professor. She got straight to the point, instead of babbling on and on like some people she had met before.

Since the professor didn't seem to be focusing much, Rii decided a verbal answer would probably not be amiss, and added on to her nod, "Yea. Starter. I was actually wanting a shellder." The artistic geodude was fairly interesting, but she'd be just as bad when it came to water as Rii, and the young woman had actually come to like the idea of having a safety net in the unlikely event she fell into water and risked drowning.

[Nyaa-Neko]

She pointed to the male shellder. "The only one I got left."

The shellder swiveled over to stare at Rii. He spaced out for a minute, then realized somebody actually wanted to interact with him. He edged forward on the table, blinking at Rii and tasting the air around her. There was an air of caution about him, but he didn't back down or attack...

"Well?" Kauri asked with a tired yawn.

[Lee]

OoC: How do shellder move? I've always wondered...I know how clams move, underwater, but I've never figured out how they would move, if they do move, out of it.

BiC:
Rii moved over towards the pokemon, smiling at him. She didn't have fear towards water type pokemon, despite her fear of water...Well, except for large ones like wailmer, or frightening ones like carvanah, and shellder actually kind of looked cute.

"I'll take him, if he doesn't mind going." She didn't know much about pokemon, but she guessed that tagging on some common courtesies wouldn't be bad. She wouldn't much care for anyone just hauling her off, so she figured it was only fair to give the shellder a choice. If he didn't like her, she was pretty certain /one/ of the geodude would, or maybe the seedot.

[Nyaa-Neko]

((I always assumed they kinda wriggle...if they need to move at all...you can carry him, as he weighs 8.8 pounds. Unlike a certain pear-shaped dragon I could mention...))

The shellder stared up at her, wiggling his tongue.

Kauri shrugged. "He's fine with it, as long as you don't try to eat him or whatever. Here's his Pokeball," she said, tossing Rii a red-and-white sphere. She then followed it up by a clunkly, grey, already beat-up-looking metallic object - some sad reject of a handheld computer. "And that's your Pokedex. Pathetic, huh? It's programmed in, like, the worst English you can imagine, but it should get your Pokemon stats and stuff when you plug in your Pokeballs. It usually tells you your account balance for money - you should have 5000 pyen in there to start off wit. Oh, and you can get chips to make it better, and stuff...they're hard to find, though, cuz they're kinda expensive."

She shrugged. "That's about it for here..."

((STATSES TO FOLLOW UP A BAD MOD POST!

Shellder
Gender: male
Level: 5
Nickname: you choose
Ability: Shell Armor - oncoming attacks cannot critically hit
Attacks: Tackle, Withdraw, Bubblebeam
Personality: A bit slow, gets bored easily, and a bit cautious with new things. However, he's a nice guy underneath the lack of things to say, and is a very loyal friend once he gets to know you. He's a bit spacey, though, and sometimes has to be repeatedly told to pay attention...like to attacking things on a battlefield. Sometimes, you know, they're just really not that interesting...

Nya. -_-))

[Lee]

"Eat him?" For a moment she looked as spacey as her newly obtained shellder had first appeared. Rii barely caught the pokeball, and missed the "pokedex" altogether, wincing as it clattered across the floor. She hurriedly picked it up, but couldn't see any damage. Not that that would have been an easy feat, considering how bad it had looked before. Pressing a few buttons confirmed that it worked well enough. She got stats and she knew how much money she had-She hoped enough for that kakuna. She really needed to hurry over there, there actually seemed to be a fairly large group of new-come trainers in the little shack-village.

"Oh-I uh, probably won't get any chips for a while then..." Picking up the shellder-which reminded her that she really needed to think of a name for him, though she figured she could do that on her way to the adoption center. "Um, thank you then."

Carrying him was really the only sane way to travel when he wasn't in his pokeball, and there wasn't a nice source of water nearby (which she hoped to avoid any large sources of such stuff), since shellder were slower than slugma and torkoal on land. At least, she assumed that. They didn't have legs after all...They didn't even have a sluggish body like a slugma. How would they hope to move quickly? So that was what she did as she backed out of the "lab" and shut the door behind her with her foot, readjusting her new pokemon as she did so, so that one hand was free.

On her way to the adoption shack-Or what she hoped was the adoption shack-she tried to come up with a name for her new partner. "Um. I can't keep calling you Shellder. It really isn't practical, especially if we're surrounded by them. Shellder live at beaches right?" She'd seen plenty of them at Fucshia, though granted she had never really spent much time at the beach. "So, I ought to come up with a name, right?"

If she had been hoping for a reply, she was disappointed. The spacey look had come onto his face again, and she had to repeat the question four times before he blinking into understanding and finally made a noise that she supposed meant yes. "Alright then, um..." She thought about it for a while, since she really didn't have experience naming things. She didn't want something overrated-like naming him after an attack, or something associated with his species. "Jack!" Before her slow companion could even comprehend it she waved it off, "Nah, nevermind."

By the time she had reached the door to the shack she believed was the adoption shack, she had gone over many other names. Including Bob, Yariel, Gangrene (that one had been vehemently thrown away by both, when they remembered what it was), and Choco. Knocking on the door to the shack, she continued to try and come up with a name, and thought she had come up with one. Likely she would look like a madwoman when the door opened, as she smiled and chattered on to the slow shellder.

"I got the perfect name, Azrag! It's defiantly unique, I mean, have you ever heard that before? And I can just call you Az for short-" Which she thought she might have to do alot to get his attention, since she had to repeat what she had just said after poking his shell to get his attention, "-So don't you think it's a good name?"

Az made the noise she now associated with 'yes' so she smiled happily.

OoC: It wasn't that bad...

Ahahaha. Azrag is so the last name of one of my friends. We were having fun in science and writing everyones name backwards. Which mean I was Yrf, he was Azrag, one of my other friends was Reicrem and onwards...

[Nyaa-Neko]

((Fry, Garza, Mercier? ))

A teenager opened the door with a yawn - he, like the still-young Kauri, hadn't gotten much sleep. However, his reason was a bit different...he, as a typical teenage insomniac, spent the night playing a video game. It was a popular trainer simulation taking place in far-off Sinnoh, and he had already reached the second gym...after starting the game around midnight.

"What?" he mumbled, rubbing his eyes. Why couldn't he have just slept in? It wasn't as if the plusle and kakuna needed to be watched all the time...

[Lee]

((Yup.))

Rii smiled slightly, "I was wondering if you still had that kakuna." She crossed her fingers on her free hand behind her back, while Az drifted off into a daydream in her arms. She was beginning to think about returning him to his pokeball soon-She wasn't completely out of shape, but she just didn't think it was practical to carry something that weighed around nine pounds. Her arm would fall off.

He could daydream in his pokeball just as easily.

[MorriganFearn]

"Yeah," the teen yawned, "we still got him. Have you got the money?" Even while tired a true Miteinjanese would concentrate on the most important thing in life, having money. However, basic human decency did reassert itself after a minute: "You did read the sign right? He's a bit -- wounded. Wonderful fella, but he might not be the greatest battling pokemon."

[Lee]

"Yea, I have the money-and yea, I read the sign. I've got Az here to battle though, and I'm really just here for a short vacation before college. So battling isn't the first thing I'm worried about." Taking out Az's pokeball she returned the pokemon to it-Somehow, his weight seemed to increase the longer she held him, and she wouldn't have been surprised if he'd been up to fifteen pounds by the time she had returned him. "I'm not really familiar with the money system around here-how do I pay you?" Her money was all in the bank after all-all she had was a little beat up device that told her how much was in there.

[MorriganFearn]

"You've got some checks, right? Just make one out," the teen said after a minute. It was too early in he morning to think clearly. Finally he had remembered how they dealt with money. "If you don't have any trot over to the bank to get a checkbook. I'll hold the kakuna for you," he promised.

[Lee]

"Checks...Right." Sure, now that she thought about it, that was the only workable way to use money. Really, her brain had to be rotting or something, if she couldn't come up with a conclusion like that. "Well...Alright. I'll be right back." He had promised to hold the kakuna...and if he was going to do that, she didn't mind running off to find the bank.

Of course, she thought she remembered a sign in front of that particular shack. She wasn't the best at picking out such objects-they just seemed to melt into the background-but that one she remembered. The more she thought about it, the more she was sure she had seen one.

By the time she had become certain of this, she had already made it to the bank, having been walking at a brisk walk. Frankly, there just wasn't much need to run, considering this was such a...little place. That article had certainly gotten most things wrong. She wondered if it was possible to sue for lying-But then, had it really lied? Certainly there was some nice wild foliage around here, and if anything it the island was certainly unmarred by human touch-to the point of abandoning the few humans here to eke out an existence she didn't envy at all.

Well, she could understand the whole wanting to get trainers here. And thus, money. She still thought she ought to have found a different mini-region though. Oh well, things weren't going badly, she wasn't broke yet (though how long that would last she wasn't sure. She wasn't good with money), and she had a prospective kakuna up for grabs.

Nevermind the possibility of it being injured in some way. Kakuna were cool, even if they didn't rate at the top of her favorite list. They were close.

By the time this thought process had finished, she had managed to part the bank with a checkbook, a rather boring one with only a little caterpie print up in the right corner, and other wise blank paper with black ink.

Thus her brisk walk brought her back to the house, where she hoped the teenager that had opened the door would be more awake. Since he wasn't standing outside the door (why would he be, anyways? She could have been gone for quite a while, if she hadn't remembered that sign), she knocked again.

((Yea, if the checkbook cost anything, just tell me what. I didn't want to make this thread drag on forever. XD So I just made her go super-fast. XD

Yea, I can't remember if checkbooks cost. I don't have one, and I probably won't for a while yet. So...Yea.))

[MorriganFearn]

((On Miteinjan checkbooks come with bank accounts ^^.))

The boy was now sipping a mug of tea as he opened the door. Smiling tiredly he ushered Rii inside the cottage. A plusle looked at Rii from the top of a book case, and chittered friendlily at her. The boy cleared his throat and something dropped from the rafters on a long string after a few moments.

"Right, here you go. He's a bit shy, but kind enough," the boy said, holding a pokeball to the kakuna's body, and returning him. "He'll be 1250 pyen, please."

~ ~ ~

We spin the wheel and see that ... Rii has won some stats. Not the grand prize of a date with breeder boy, but it's high up there. <laughspazledie>

Kakuna
Gender: male
Level: 7
Attacks: Pwnsome Harden
Special Ability: Shed Skin - there is a chance that this pokemon will heal itself of status ailments by shedding it's skin.
Notes: This kakuna was attacked by a flying type while evolving, and retained some minor wounds. It took him awhile to recover, and it is unknown if there will be permanent damage once he evolves.
Personality: Shy bookworm.

[Lee]

Rii was adept enough at writing out the check, and had soon dropped the checkbook back in her bag and handed the slip of paper to the teenager. It wouldn't be easy to train the kakuna-But she didn't really care about training him anyways, as she had mentioned before. Az was easily able to do that, and who knew? Maybe they'd run into something the kakuna could beat.

Admittedly, that didn't seem likely, what with only knowing harden and all. It was a good try though.

"Thanks." She flashed a smile at him, then at the plusle. She really was cute, but Rii defiantly wasn't going to go and get her too. Az and the kakuna-whom she still needed to name-would be plenty for a while now. Anyways, she could care for a possibly 'damaged' kakuna/beedrill (if it ever evolved, which it might, though doing so by /not/ battling would certainly take far longer than if he did battle. In fact, she was certain it wouldn't be until long after this trip was over and she had returned home.), but plusle were a different matter. For one, she seemed far more active, and for another she didn't really care to be accidentally shocked by an electric pokemon with a shaky history. And if she was in the adoption center...Well, she probably had a shaky history.

Well, on the bright side she could finally head over to Fog Path. After she spoke with the kakuna so he wouldn't be completely ignorant of who she was, and so that she could come up with a name for him. "Well, bye."

She didn't want to annoy anyone by hanging around in their house, and anyways, it was awkward standing there. It wasn't like they had anything to say, now did they?

So she left. She stopped outside a little shack first-not because of the free item thing, since she didn't see the lady anywhere, but rather because it was the perfect place to sit down and release the kakuna. As soon as he was out, he didn't move, and she couldn't tell if he was staring at her or not.

Whether he was or not, it was probably a good idea to talk to him, so she did. "Hey. I'm Rii-I'm supposed to be your trainer, but if you don't want to battle you don't have to. We have Az to protect us-You should meet him. He's a bit spacey, though, so if he doesn't pay any attention to you, don't worry too much." Letting the shellder out she grinned as he actually looked at the kakuna. He muttered something, but even if she had heard him fully, he was speaking pokemon. Not human. So it didn't matter.

"Az, this is-Well, he doesn't have a name yet." Placing her elbows on her knees, she propped her head in her hands as she sat cross-legged on the side of the path. "How about Buea? I like that name." Smiling she took the fact that he didn't show any sign of hating it as a sign that he didn't mind it. "Alright then, Buea. This is Az, and I'm Rii. It's nice to meet you."

(( Blech. I got distracted making a yahoo avatar that inspired a plot in my head. Now I'm going to go make a roleplay at neopets, because I don't know if many people would be interested in it here, and anyways I can work kinks out there and it won't take more than a day. XD I'll still be here though...

Oh, Beau is pronounce Bow. Like bow tie.))

[MorriganFearn]

((I know ^^. I read way too much 19th century Engish literature not to know the word. ^^))

The little old lady of the cottage was dozing in her rocking chair. However, eventually she snorted awake from her death-like sleep, dimly hearing the voices. She tottered over to her mountain of items and picked something out, before tottering out of her house, and to the edge of the porch that Rii was using.

"Do...want?" she asked slowly.

[Lee]

((I only know it because of a boy at school. XD I haven't run across it in anything I read yet.))

Rii blinked and looked up, startled. "Oh! Um, I don't know...Are you sure I should?" She didn't want to take something the lady might need after all. She looked senile to Rii, and since she couldn't see what it was, she didn't know if it was something the woman might need or not.

Beau would have disappeared, except he didn't have any way too. He couldn't exactly disapear into the rafters, since there weren't any, after all. First a complete stranger came and took him away from the house just when he was getting comfortable, she didn't seem to have any books or seem to be a booky type of person, and after telling him that Rii had an odd idea of names, Az-since he hadn't offered another name-had spaced out just like Rii had warned. Now there was ANOTHER stranger, and Beau found her even creepier than Rii.

[MorriganFearn]

((Pride and Prejudice. Read it. It's funny, and Lydia doesn't stop talking about her beaus. ^^))

"Here," the old lady whispered, holding out a rare candy. "Take. For ... kakuna."

((Blerg. I technically followed the 3 sentence rule <glances around nervously>. Meh. The old lady, and I, we don't get along when I try to channel her into my writing.))

[Lee]

((I'll try and find it. ^^
Ahahaha. The old lady needs a name. And that /is/ three sentences. Admittedly short ones, but they are three.))

Rii stared at her some more, "Um...If you're sure." Hesitantly she took it-She didn't seem to have any pokemon with her after all, and Rii doubted she was going to eat the candy. Rii didn't even think it was a good idea to eat rare candy, unless you were a pokemon. "Um, thank you. Thank you very much." She withdrew Az, and scooped a surprised Beau into her arms, anxious to get away from the old lady. Anxious, but not quite so much as Beau.

It was bad when the old lady had come close enough to touch. It was worse when she gave Rii something for /him/. She was a stranger! Why would she give him something, and anyways, why would she want to? What was he supposed to do, now that she had given him something? It would only be polite, but he was so shy that he had become petrified of the old lady, and his only response was to use a harden attack in his fright.

Rii decided that this place was decidedly creepy, and therefore it was defiantly time to leave. Next time she wanted to stop and meet a new pokemon of hers, it would be out on a route where no one could scare her.

((-finally prances off to Fog Path-))