"We're not facing the fire!"

[Espeon]

Risha had to calm her breath. Breathe in, breathe out. It was no time to be upset or to fall apart. Her adopted family had sent her on her way to train a Pokemon, not to become some fearful little child!

Yeah right.

With that thought, she grabbed the handle to the lab's door and opened, calling out, "Hello?! I'd like to speak to Professor Cherry!"

A Pokemon. For real this time, Risha was going to walk out of this lab an "offical" Pokemon trainer. She only had to ignore the Pokemon that could breathe fire at the moment, just look away...

She's considered fully her choices to train. Though she was upset there weren't an water Pokemon she really liked, there were the grass and bug types. There was Wurmple, which would eventually evolve into Dustox or Beautifly-either one, it would become a fly weak to fire, fragile to the flames. Like her.

[Admin]

Professor Cherry, the wild-looking old man, came skidding around the corner, looking somewhat frantic. An Ekans was wrapped around his leg, another of the snake pokemon following him.

"Uh, yes, hold on a moment, please!" He called breathlessly, running past her (amazingly fast, for a man of his age) as he tried to pull the snake off of his ankle. Prying it off and tossing it into a nearby cage, he stopped, panting. He leaned on the wall, catching his breath. The other Ekans, however, promptly tackled him, hissing happily. He groaned, and, opening the door to the snake pen, gently shoved that poisonous reptile in as well.

He caught his breath again, then purposefully strut back over to his guest. "Ahem, yes. Sorry about those two Ekans. I assume that you are a starting trainer, here for a pokemon to accompany you on your grand journey. My name is Professor Cherry, and you are...?" He asked in a dignified english accent, bowing to her slightly.

[Espeon]

"Uhm..." Risha paused, staring at the man that had just wrangled two Ekans, then came back to her unruffled and perfectly fine. "Yeah... I'd like a starter Pokemon, please. My name is Risha Aridel of New Sanguan, you may have heard about it."

Her voice turned a bit stony at that, and refused to say anything more on the subject. She was ready to do a lot more speaking to this man than to anyone else than she had for a long while, and it might as well have started with a direct hit to her background.

She touched her necklace, as if asking it for support, "I was only wondering if... there are any Pokemon that haven't made it to your list, the one that my... adopted family got. Because I don't want to make a choice without knowing everything I could choose from."

[Admin]

"Ah, yes, I seem to have heard a bit about that..." He tilted his head thoughtfully, studying her for a moment. Cherry then blinked, straightening his posture again. "There are many pokemon here, and most of them you can start with. The ones on that list are just recommended, since not every child who comes to me has a background with working with pokemon."
Sighing, he cast a glance over toward the pen with the pair of snakes. They were hissing gently at him, staring at him longingly. "Any chance you would be interested in an Ekans?" Professor Cherry asked, a bit less formal than he had been so far.

[Espeon]

(Heh, let's see a hand count: How many people were expecting Risha to ask for a Horsea? xP)

Risha was holding her breath when Professor Cherry spoke, and finally said, "No, I... don't think I want an Ekans. Unless... well, I was thinking of a Pokemon that I wanted to train already. Do you have a... Horsea?" Her calm facade was gone, and in its place was a desperate look, her eyes going wide and watery.

[Admin]

The Professor tilted his head very slightly, as if thinking. "Well..." he started slowly. "We usually don't offer Horsea, as they are a bit rare around these parts...but, surprisingly, I currently have one fit to be a starter in my posession."

He studied her again, and then blinked slowly. "Such a rare pokemon around here...I cannot just give you one without knowing how qualified you are. I may help any and all aspiring trainers who come to my doorstep, but my first priority will be and always has been the care of the pokemon here."

[Espeon]

"Ah, I understand." Risha said briskly, nodding her head. Her pleading look dissapeared, and the facade was back, though her hazel eyes were searching Cherry's face as she added, "May I do something to prove that I am worthy of training such a rare Pokemon?"

Though she'd never had a Pokemon of her own, Risha had watched her parents battle, and oftened enjoyed mimicking their style when she was a little girl. If Professor Cherry wanted to challenge her to a battle, well, he wouldn't have to teach her everything over again.

[Naolin]

"If you wish, I will ask you a series of questions concerning Horsea. If you get them all right, I will recognize your capability of owning such a rare Pokemon." said the Professor as he straightened his tie.

[Espeon]

"Sounds fair enough." Risha responded, wondering what kinds of questions that the Professor could possibly ask a girl like her. She knew some things about Horsea, but not that many things...

[Naolin]

"Very well then. First, what does Horsea eat? Second, what does it do to evade danger? Third, what type is it? And your final question, why do you think you deserve it?"
(Heh, sorry Swellow, but even though I know you're not a noob, I still have to ask you stuff when it comes to the rare ones. It's standard procedure.)

[Espeon]

(xD Perfectly all right! And please, call me Horsea here. )

"Okay... a Horsea eats... seaweed?" Risha started, thinking she was especially not-versed in Horsea behavior at the moment, "They evade danger by... using Smokescreen, then swimming away. Oh, one I know, they're the water type! And..."

The last question hit a sore spot. Her lip quivered once, before she relaxed just enough to get out something else, one hand now resting on the red charm on her neck, "Let me tell you a little story for that last question...

"When my parents were still taking challenges, they rarely ever lost a match. There were many water types in that gym by the challengers, and I got to see a great deal of different types. There's only one match that I remember vividly now, and the trainer won the match with only one Pokemon: a Horsea.

"Now, don't get me wrong, I don't want a Horsea just because they can be powerful. After the match, the trainer let me hold his Horsea. She was cute, and moist, and slippery... and just overall adorable, especially for a water type. I was still a bit sad that my parents had lost, but the Horsea cheered me up. Do you want to know what she did?" A girl crossed Risha's face for the first time, "She blew bubbles into my face, the kind that tickle, not hurt. And that's why I want a Horsea. Now why I deserve it, though, because I'll tell you that I... don't. I don't really know much of anything about Horsea. But I'm willing to learn."

[Naolin]

(Heh, sorry. Force of habit. Can't argue with excellence. XD)

A smile spread Professor Cherry's face. This girl was different than the other trainers that came looking for rare Pokemon. She didn't want them for their power, and she had actually said that she didn't deserve one. To not give her one now, after that, would be a huge mistake. "Well, the answer to the first question is moss, but seaweed is close enough. Your answers to the second and third questions are correct, and you do seem to be the type of person who would take care of their Pokemon, so I will give you a Horsea. Just one more thing, what kind of personality do you want?"

[Espeon]

(xDDD;; *blushes* Thanks Naolin!)

Risha's grin widened, and even if she hadn't voiced the words aloud, her sparkling gaze said "Thank you." for her. "...Personality?" The last question startled her slightly, "Well, I'd like a partner I can get along with, whose friendly and sweet, and willing to listen to rants and raves without complaining too much. If that's not too much to ask for, of course."

She knew she was getting a little too hopeful with that request, many trainers she heard of left the lab with Pokemon that would do tempermental things, pull hair, fall asleep in the middle of a battle, all sorts of things. Hopefully her Horsea won't be too much of a problem child...

[Naolin]

(Heh. I don't know if you're like Nyaa-chan, who wanted exactly the opposite of what she requested, or like me, who wanted exactly what I said. Ah well. Easy way to solve that.)

"Well, at the moment we have three Horsea available, so perhaps it would be suitable for you to chose your partner." The Professor led Risha to a tank, and contained within were, as he had said, three Horsea. One was slightly larger then the others, and one was submerged, trying to hide. The third was trying to splash the larger one, and was on the receiving point of a blank stare. "Which one would you like?"

[Espeon]

( I can't say I'm like Neko-san with that, but I'll choose! xD ...Hmmm...)

Risha stepped forward and peeked in at the Horsea, as if she couldn't see them very well from where she had been standing. "I... dunno..." She finally admitted, "Do you mind if I talk to them...?"

(By the way, do the Pokemon here talk? xD)

[Naolin]

(Of course they talk. If they didn't, where would the fun be?)

"Of course you may." replied the Professor. Addressing the Pokemon, he said "Now listen up, you three. This girl will chose one of you to be her partner, so look lively." The large Horsea merely stared, the submerged one began to sink lower, and the splashing one stopped abruptly, looking at the newcomer.

[Espeon]

(xD Yus, that's true.)

"Okay, ummm..." Risha found that she was the recieving end of stares. She shifted uncomfortably, "Well, okay, I'm going to ask you a couple of questions, and please answer truthfully. ...If the Pokemon you absolutely hate is stuck in a burning building, what would you do? Like... save him, let him stay there, something like that?"

[Naolin]

The large Horsea acknowledged Risha with a flicker of his eyes, then replied "I would use Water Gun to put the fire out, but I would dissapear before my rival could be certain of my involvement." The shy Horsea emerged, then said softly "I would try to help, but...I might get scared and run away." So saying, she re-submerged. The happy one blinked, then said "I would save them, of course. But then, if I hated them, I would kick them in the shin and run away."
(Hooray, that's what Pocky did to Jackary. XD)

[Espeon]

Risha was snickering slightly at the end of the last Horsea's comment. But she was gazing the way of the shy Horsea now... the little sea horse looked like she needed a... hug? Following that random thought, she placed her hand in the tank and said, "Um... you, the one hiding, yes you. Please come here."

[Naolin]

If at all possible, the shy one sunk even lower into the water, until the happy one pushed her over to the side. "The new one wants to see you!" he squeaked happily. "M-me?" mumbled the Horsea, casting her eyes downwards.