(Reboot) Pokemon: Beyond the Tall Grass

Loka raised an eyebrow at Catia's attempt to apologize.

She then smiled at the group. Maybe this little powwow would be helpful in the long run. Cerise certainly was good at figuring people out, and that was very useful. Decoda's music seemed to have a calming effect on people... but what about pokemon? And Catia...

A thoughtful look placed itself on her face as she thought back to Catia's raw power. That could be useful as well....

"...huh? Oh, right. Yeah I'm ready to go."

"...Right." Cerise says with a nod, somewhat understanding the gist of Catia's attempted apology. He looks over at everyone before giving a goofy smile.

"We should probably get Oak's opinion on what happened yesterday first, before moving on." Cerise says as he pulls out his PokeGear. "I was actually just about to call him."

"Sounds like a good idea.  Let's let him know what we've gotten through so far.  It might be useful to for him to check a few things for us while we're doing the field work," Decoda replied, looking around them inconspicuously.  He wanted to make sure no one would overhear of their particular involvement.

"Let's see," he began speaking in a volume lower than normal, counting on his fingers all the Pokemon and people they've had a significant encounter with.  "We ran into Loka, of course, instead of that one other guy that was supposed to be on our journey, but she took his place, so he probably already knows this... then we found Erika, went gambling for a little bit, I got lost in this weirdo secret hideout behind the Corner and found Chimecho, but before that Catia found her Vulpix somewhere, and of course, there was that explosion with the fluffy-haired people-monsters, one of which who "blessed" Catia..."

He paused before finishing his rather simplified rambling, not really bothering for specifics, his eyes up as he struck each of his fingers on one hand with the first digit of his other hand.

"Yeah, I think that's it!  Aside from Catia catching that Rattata and you winning the Goomy~!  THAT should be everything!" he grinned sheepishly, nearly forgetting about the girl's second Pokemon and Cerise's second.

"That's just about all of the major stuff, I think..." Cerise responds, unsure if he had missed anything. Not seeing any holes in Decoda's recap of the previous day, he picks up Goomy's pokeball and returns the young dragon for a rest. He honestly was pretty excited to see how Goomy would handle itself in the field, but that was a test for another time!

Cerise looks at the others as he holds up his PokeGear, making a motion as if to ask if they had anything to add?

Catia instantly frowns upon hearing Decoda's name for Entei and the other avatar's. She holds a finger up to both Cerise and Decoda. "They are not 'fluffy haired people monsters' first of all. They called themselves avatar's. The one that I spoke to was called Entei and the other two were named Raikou and Suicune. None of them were normal either. The closer I got to Entei the more I felt an intense heat radiating off of him. Raikou had static electricity in her hair when she ran her fingers through it and could cause lightning to crackle in the sky if my assumption is correct. I don't know much about Suicune but she was really quiet so I didn't learn very much from her. Both of them were...." She pauses as she tries to think of a word for their reaction to Entei's decision to give his blessing to her. "I think a good word here is shocked? They were shocked that Entei had decided to give me his blessing so it's likely that it wasn't something that he just gave away like a common berry. And ever since he gave his blessing to me my body has felt a bit warmer than usual like I had a fever or something. I've gotten a bit used to it now though so I'm not able to tell as easily as before." She explains, telling the group what she knew about what had happened the other day. She snaps her fingers as she remembers something else that was important. "Oh! It was Entei who had caused those explosions yesterday too. Or....that's what he told me." She said, finishing her explanation.

"You CAN'T expect me to know or remember all that with all the stuff going on yesterday," Decoda said, folding his arms across his chest.  "None of us were close enough to hear any of it, so when Cerise calls the Professor, you can tell him what you just told us."

He didn't mean to sound the way he did, so as per usual, he twitched in surprise, bit his lower lip and held up and open palm to refrain anyone saying anything.

"Ah, pardon my poor phrasing... What I meant was that it's hard to grasp a concept you don't understand.  I would probably get it a little bit better if we saw them again and got some more answers.  And I certainly don't mean to knock your blessing, even if what you're saying sounds like it was hurting more than it was helping," he said more thoughtfully, lowering his hand and replacing his annoyed expression for something a bit more regular.

((OOC: I'm interested in drawing out another scene from this RP, anyone have any ideas they'd love to see pictured, even if it is just a still?))

Catia looked a bit taken aback at Decoda's harsh tone before he rephrased his words. She looked like she felt a bit better when he did so but was still looking uncomfortable when he finished. How could someone so nice be so harsh like that? "O-okay...." She answers timidly.

(OOC: *pokes* Mewby Catia humming with Fox cradled in her arms? owo?)

Loka watched the group go back and forth, not really having much to add to this. She raised an eyebrow as tempers briefly flared then died down just as quick. 

"I think y'all need to take a breath, figure out what yer gonna tell the Professor, then tell him." she said matter-of-factually.

She stretched her arms out above her head then out to the side and walked over to a tele-PC (like a video caller, but can transfer pokemon to different regions if you have someone to hold onto them)

"I'll be makin' a call real quick. I need someone sent over."

Everyone was free to see who she was calling if they wanted to watch. On the screen, it showed a basic map of Kanto and a phone wire connecting it to another region.

" 'Ello? Is Gran there? I needa speak with her."

She had a point, Decoda thought to himself, very much bothered by his own words.  In embarrassment and frustration, he turned around completely and walked away from the group, slowing his steps, appearing as if he was pacing.  It took a minute before he collected himself and strode back over to Cerise and Catia, looking anywhere but directly at them.  In a lower tone than before, he spoke again.

"I suggest all he needs to know is that we're alive, still have our Pokemon, and found a mysterious group of avatars.  Anything else might not be so important to him," he said, relaxing his tense muscles and slouched his posture.

He nodded to Loka when she mentioned she had to make a call, and at first didn't bother looking over at her screen.  Then when she mentioned "Gran", he became interested and found her communicating with someone from another region.

'Gran?  She talkin' about her 'grandparents?'  I didn't know she had any,' he thought, slightly peering over at her.

Catia looked at Cerise. "I have to talk to the professor later anyway so....can you give me a minute with Decoda?" She asked Cerise rather rhetorically before walking over to Decoda and gently grabbing his hand. "Come with me for a second will you?" She asks him, leading him outside to talk to him privately.

The red head broke his gaze from eying the map screen showing both the Kanto region and another landmass he didn't recognize.

"Sure?" he said, questioningly, letting her take the lead away from the other two.  When he heard the sound of the door shut behind them outside, he looked back to her.

"Did I do something wrong?  Sorry, if what I said hurt your feelings or offended you," he said, partially rushing to conclusions, thinking that it concerned his comments towards the avatars.  Would he be right in apologizing, though?  What did she want from him?

Catia smiles awkwardly when he apologizes for his comment about the avatar's before she shakes her head. "It's not that. It's....your temper." She says, averting his gaze. "I know I'm really not one to say anything but....you kinda scare me when you get angry like that. I can see that Chimecho and Mudkip probably feel the same way. If I had had Fox in my arms when you yelled before she probably would be scared of you. And....I was too....a little bit...." She admits, still avoiding his gaze.

Genuinely shocked by her pointing out his temper, Decoda's eyes widened at Catia's behavior towards him.  This temper she felt scared everyone was likely nothing compared to Loka's, recalling the heat literally leaving her body, but it hadn't always been this way for him.  When Decoda was younger, he couldn't think of time where he screamed or lashed out like that.  This was definitely a new thing. He could easily blame a lot of things for making him rage like he did (being a growing teenager with spastic emotions, being homesick, being tired, and everything else in between), but decided against it, inhaling deeply to prep his response.

"It's... It's something I need to work on," he admitted, rubbing one of his arms with his other hand.  "And it's been here only for a short time, but I don't think it'll be a crippling part of our journey."

He continued, shrugging and looking directly at her, "I suppose communication would work best here, if it really does become an issue.  If I ever start feeling like I'm about to burst, for whatever reason, can I talk to you about it?  I mean, sure I can talk to Loka and Cerise, but I'd wanna hear from you, too.  We're a team, so we should always go back and forth, right?  Like if you have any advice on how to channel it... my anger, I mean."

He paused and waited for a response.

Shrugging, Cerise and Chespin walk over to a nearby table and sit at it. Placing his PokeGear on the table and taking out his Pokedex, he flips to Goomy's entry and examines more information on the dragon before reviewing its moveset and abilities. They were just what he had suspected, and Goomy should have great synergy with Chespin in double battles. The only problem he'd have now would be in ice-type Pokemon...

A strange feeling overcomes Cerise momentarily, like he had forgotten something... Just on the tip of his tongue... He narrowed his eyes, trying to remember. After a few moments of concentration, he finally decided to let it go, not recalling any relevant memories. Ah well, maybe it would come to him later? Putting away both PokeGear and Pokedex, Cerise leans back on his chair, now bored as he waited for the others.

Catia smiles and giggles slightly. "You're asking me for advice on channeling your anger? I personally just find the biggest inanimate object I can and rip through it with my fists." She bashfully averts Decoda's gaze. "But....it sounds to me like you'd value my opinion more than the other's. Is that true?" She asks, subconsciously playing one of her cat and mouse games with him. She hadn't meant to do such a thing, but there was just something about the musician that she liked. She'd never had a friend like him before, one that could and would gladly perform and sing with her when the others would just throw rocks or taunt her while she was singing. In truth, she was more like Loka then she would ever realize, preferring singing and relaxing in the company of other Pokemon rather than people.

"I've heard of such tactics before," he replied, nodding along.  One of his old Gym Trainer friends would use his Geodude as a boxing buddy to help vent his frustrations.  Decoda was much too careful of hurting his own Pokemon do think about doing such things, but maybe if he had a stress ball of sorts it might be manageable.

When she asked him the next question, he looked away briefly before looking back and responding accordingly.  "I might be, but I can't be unfair with the other two.  If you're all my friends, I have to be equal about it.  Unless the other two unfittingly give me rather dark answers like, 'kill something', your opinion means just as much to me as theirs does~!" he finished, smiling.

Catia was a bag of unpredictable for Decoda.  He really couldn't pin down her style so easily, so he was glad his statement ended with the note of friendship.  He hoped to figure her out the more they traveled together, and maybe even preformed together.

"We, ah, should probably get back inside.  Cerise is probably all tired of looking at his slushy little goo-ball of cute - I mean, Goomy!" he said in a lighter pitched voice, gesturing with his head and thumbs to go back inside.

Catia nods. "Alright then. I'll help you keep your temper under control. But...." She smiles at him. "After we do our performance tonight. I um....I want to try singing with your music. I've never had anyone play music with me before. Much less do it willingly." She adds, smiling before heading back inside to join the others.

As they walked back into the Pokemon Center, Loka was saying goodbye to whoever she was talking to. As she hung up, a pokeball appeared in the tray next to the screen. She picked it up and smiled brightly. Loka then turned to the others as they entered the Center.

"Oh hey. Everythin' a'ight?" she asked.

He certainly hadn't forgotten about the promised performance, though it seemed odd she wanted to try something after the show too.  Well, if it helped her become more comfortable, and thus, be able to make more travel money (and perhaps a little fame for their group), he happily obligated.

"If it'll make you feel better about the whole thing, why not?"

As he returned to Cerise and Loka, he waved at the seated boy and his Pokemon signifying he was all clear for the big call.  Then he looked over at what Loka held.  A new Pokeball?

"It was just fine.  Just an exchange of opinions and such.  Who's in the ball, if you don't mind my asking?" he said with a curious tone.

Loka didn't speak and she tossed the ball into the air. It opened in a flash of light. The light took the shape of a crouched figure. Before the glow faded, the shape pounce on Loka, knocking her to the floor. The shape gained color and revealed itself to be a Luxray! It purred and meowed, licking her face vigorously.

"Haha! I missed ya too!"

By now, he has his face buried in his hands, going over possible battle strategies for Chespin and Goomy. He didn't have too much experience, but he had done pretty decently against Rattata yesterday. Maybe an efficient battle style for his team would be along the line of what he had accomplished before? Maybe he should try finding a Trainer School? He glanced over at the opening doors as Decoda and Catia walked back into the main room. He raises an eyebrow as a certain thought crosses his mind before he dismisses it.

He doesn't get up from the table, mind now focused on the information Catia had just told them about. He wondered briefly why she hadn't mentioned it before? Avatars...? And those names-- Entei, Suicune, and... Raikou? After glancing at both Catia and Loka with her Luxray, Cerise closes his eyes for a moment. It seems these avatars also had powers, though he wasn't sure how these "powers" compared to the "powers" of his own companions?

He opens his eyes again, shifting his position in the chair slightly. It was honestly funny how strong of a fixation he had on the avatars. This strong feeling of devotion and intrigue wasn't something Cerise was familiar with. It's at this time that Chespin forces its way onto Cerise's lap, looking up at the young trainer with a goofy smile.

Catia smiles as she watches Loka's new Pokemon jump all over her and lick her face, making her giggle a little bit. "Who's your new friend there Loka?" She asks as she walks up to her, still smiling from her talk with Decoda.

The red head's blue eyes shone brightly when the feral black and blue Pokemon appeared from the ball and playfully pounced on its trainer.  Now he was certainly convinced that Loka had a special place in her heart for all her Pokemon, and didn't just favor the two canines she had on her constantly.  Not seeing a Luxray before, Decoda whipped out his 'dex from his pocket and scanned the creature.  Apparently, from the given description, it was an Electric type, evolving from something smaller and similar in appearance called a Luxio when it reached level 30.

"That's a pretty cool lookin' Pokemon," he commented, shutting the lid of his device and sliding it back into his pocket, all without breaking glance of the quite adorable reunion.  He finally turned his attention to the other trainer in his seat, the Chespin now climbing over him and smiling.  Never in such a short amount of time did he ever get the feeling that any pair beings were so close in friendship more than these two.

"You okay, Cerise?  You look a little dazed.  Granted, we didn't really get that much sleep last night," Decoda jested as he veered his attention to his comrade.

"...Hm? Oh, um, yeah, I'm fine!" Cerise replies quickly as he snaps out of his musings, his hand now stroking Chespin's head. "Have we decided what we're telling the Professor yet?"

Loka sat up, Luxray now laying on her lap and refusing to get up. He purred audibly as she stroked his mane.

"This 'ere is Sparx. I got 'em when I was stationed in the Sinnoh Region."

Sparx looked up at the group and let out a growl. It wasn't a hostile one; it was almost like he was introducing himself. The large cat finally got up and stretched. Blitz and Sai let themselves out and immediately started wrestling with the long gone friend.

"They've been friends fer a long time."