Pokémon: Shadows of Dawn (RP Thread)

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    Cordelia took a long drink of her water, relishing in the icy coolness. Behind her, groups of people filed rapidly out of the presentation hall, chatting rather loudly. She took that as a sign that they had enjoyed the presentation, which made her smile. She screwed on the cap to her water bottles and then turned, disappearing into the depths of backstage. Cordelia walked a little way, then closed her eyes as she pushed open the door outside. The warm Alolan sun touched her face, and though she found it delightful, she had learned her first day at the conference that walking out of a dark room into the blinding sun was not a wise decision.

    Cordelia headed around the front of the building to watch the hustle ad bustle. This was certainly not her first time at a Platinum Conference, but they never ceased to amaze her. Out front, along a pathway lined with palm trees and brightly blooming hibiscus plants, stalls were lined up with the shopkeepers shouting their wares to all the people walking up and down the path. And there were a lot of Conference goers this year. Cordelia wondered in part if that was not because the conference was in a destination vacation spot this year.

    The tall, brown-haired woman began weaving her way through the crowd, somewhat distinguishable from the other people by account of the white lab coat she wore. She dodged barkers who tried to get her to come and view their often Pokémon related wares, striding purposefully forward. In the distance, she could see the skyscrapers towering over Heahea City. She had wanted to check the city out, being that the conference was just on the outskirts, but she hadn’t been able to go since she’d arrived there two days before the opening ceremony. She’d just been too busy with all of the presentations.

    Cordelia’s stomach rumbled, and she placed a hand over it, wincing. She was absolutely starving after the morning presentation she’d given, and as such, she was searching out a food stall like a Munchlax for its lunch.


    Meanwhile, on the other side of the festival grounds, Zayne Kerrigan was standing in the shadows of a palm tree, having retreated from the sun relatively quickly that morning. The heat of the islands had already been a challenge for him.

    The red-head was alternating between examining a map he held loosely in his hands and watching a stall across the way. The map obviously depicted the Alola region, and his brown eyes were skimming it lightly despite the fact that, to the average on-looker, he did not seem like the sight-seeing type. Alternatively, the stall he was watching showcased a wide display of what the storekeeper claimed to be Lunar Wings. Zayne knew they were fake on sight (he was wearing an actual Lunar Wing under his shirt), but it appeared like most of the visitors of the conference had never been to Sinnoh or seen a real one before, and didn’t know any better. So, essentially, he was watching an old man scam people out of their money.

    Zayne shifted his weight back and forth, taking care not to knock over the backpack he had propped against the tree beside him. He had been formally invited to the Platinum Conference to compete in their top-level battle bracket. There were lots of types of battle going on, from entry-level to invitation-only. Double, Singles, Triples…. The list went on and on. Zayne had been invited to participate in one of the higher-level brackets, no doubt from his time competing at the Lily of the Valley Conference. However, despite the honor, the invitation had left him somewhat bitter. He was in a top-bracket but had been denied entry to the highest: the champion’s bracket. It was extremely disappointing, but he knew why too; he’d never beaten a champion.

    Sighing, Zayne reached down and picked up the fruity ice drink beside him, taking a sip of it. He would get his chance someday. But he knew for the present he would need to continue to hone his battle skills. And right now, that meant winning his current tournament. Zayne slushed the drink around thoughtfully. Battles had already been going on for the first four days, but his bracket was beginning tomorrow. He was, of course, excited to battle the opponents he’d been facing. Briefly, he entertained the idea of getting some more practice in. Lots of trainers had been battling informally around the conference site since it had started. He doubted it would be any trouble to find someone to challenge, but the trouble would be finding a worthy opponent.

    Zayne sighed again, shaking his head. Although he didn’t have anything better to do, he was reluctant to leave the shady shelter of his palm tree. It was absolutely too hot, in his opinion.


    Sign-Up Thread:

    Luna was sitting near Zayne, but not too close, Pika watching out for anyone who would come near. Okami was dozing, curled up next to Luna. Yuki had decided that she would stay in her PokeBall, a request Luna was happy to accept. Mizuki and Eren were jumping around, playing together, while Fiona kept weaving in between the two. What could make the female happier than being with her Pokemon?


    However, Hazel had other ideas, rushing around with Illusio in tow. She was visiting multiple stalls while Gray watched, only stopping at stalls he or Aqua were interested in. Soon enough, they spotted Luna and ran over to her, Pika immediately protesting and jumping in front of them. "Oh! How cute, a Pikachu! Oh, its ears are so unique, look!" Hazel cooed. "I wouldn't touch it. It seems to be protecting something, maybe even someone." Gray replied. Okami, hearing the two, awoke and went up to Pika, sensing no danger. She picked him up by the back of his neck like she would do to a Rockruff and went back to Luna, who immediately returned Eren, Mizuki, and Fiona. Hazel immediately started asking questions while Illusio, Gray, and Aqua stood there. Luna seemed uncomfortable with the girl in her face, but she was too shy to protest. "U-uhh..." was all she could manage to say.

    Yukiji had been eating an icecream cone with Delphox, listening as her dearest fire-psychic type brushed her hair and hummed to her. Unlike others, Yukiji could hear the voices of her Pokemon, so Delphox's humming soothed her nerves, stopping any signs of anxiety. Her silence was disrupted by her childhood friend, Inoji, as he held out a bag of popcorn, a cocky smirk on his face. "You should eat more! Festivals only go on for so long." He chimed out, his Weavile poking the fire-type with it's sharp fingers.


    Yukiji gave an annoyed look, eye twitching as she swatted the sharp fingers away. "Stop being annoying, geez.."

    -still working on that darn fancypost xp-


    Dakota

    Dakota had heard about this platinum conference. She never went to one, mainly because of how crowded they usually get. However, she decided to go anyway and despite the fact that this one is exceptionally busy, she didn't find it too bad...so far. Alola seemed almost alien to her, she'd never been somewhere as warm and as tropical as this.

    Odi, her Braviary and first partner, stood restlessly beside her. He also wasn't used to this warm weather, especially because he was covered in thick plumage. He didn't seem to mind too much though and he was excited to see so many people around. "If you're thinking about running off, please don't. I might not be able to find you in this huge crowd," murmured Dakota, who noticed Odi's fidgety behaviour. She moved a little closer to Odi, who was sheltering under the shade of a palm trees. Looking around, she thought she should probably practice a little battling. "Odi, how does a little training sound?" The bird trilled in response, meaning yes, so she randomly selected a pokeball and brought out Duke, an Emolga. "Try not to get too...violent, ok?" Dakota asked, swapping places with Odi and leaned against the small-ish tree. Odi took a fighting stance and Duke ruffled his fur. The two proceeded to spar. Dakota noticed that Odi had trouble trying to land blows on small pokemon, so it obviously wasn't a good idea to put him against such types. Duke was pretty quick and very agile. He found no trouble confusing his opponent and irritating them a little bit.


    (PS sorry if I sound like a beginner it's been a while since I've been in a roleplay)

    Chauntelle Seabrooke was yet another trainer who had been invited to the Platinum Conference, however it seemed that she was here for another reason than to participated in battles. No, she didn't care for those very much. Sure, she would spar with her friends back in Anistar City every now and then, but her interests lied in a more... decorative activity, meant more for pleasure than adrenaline. Chaunti had been invited to the Platinum Conference because of her past performances in Pokemon Contests. Her room back at home was spotted with various ribbons and prizes she had won, and it seemed the people at the head of the Platinum Conference had recognized in standing within the levels of Pokemon performance, as she was now participating for the first time in Pokemon Contests in the Platinum Conference. In fact, her and her team were sat on one of the quieter sides of the festival--as quiet as you could get, anyway--practicing various parts of their routine.


    "Hey Cress, could you use Water Pledge? Asked Chaunti, turning to look at the Greninja who sat quietly beside her. The water-dark type adjusted the Black Glasses that sat on his face and nodded, pushing his way off of the half-wall that the group was sitting on to use the move. He stood for only a moment before he smacked his 'hand' on the ground and, like the magic that it was, a group of three spouts of water was shot into the air. "Good! Fleur, your turn. Fairy Wind, please." Asked Chaunti politely to the timid Floette, who sat comfortably in her trainer's lap. Not wanting to disappoint, the flower-holding 'mon obeyed, allowing Chaunti to gently pick her up and set her in the air. Holding her orange flower close, the tiny Pokemon did as she was told and kicked up the Fairy Wind, careful to not hit Cress as he jumped out of the way. While he did so, the Fairy Wind did what it was supposed to--breaking apart the water into a fine mist colored pink as it floated on the wind. The tiny droplets sparkled in the sunlight, making for a considerably beautiful sight as well as one that helped a few people--whether considered fortunate or unfortunate--cool down from the Alolan heat.


    "That was great!" Cheered Chaunti, allowing the Floette to settle back down on Chaunti's lap. "I think that's enough for now. Let's go see what else is happening around here, hm?" No protests erupted from her team. Fishing their Pokeballs from her back, Chaunti hit the buttons on the spheres, putting first Fleur and then Icarus, who was doing lazy circled above them, into their Pokeballs. She didn't bother with Titan--he went everywhere with her--but as she attempted to return Cress to his ball, he smacked it out of her hand, giving a indignant huff before looking away. "Why do you have to be so stubborn?" Mumbled Chaunti, however didn't fight with her Pokemon. She shoved his ball back into the bag and simply nodded. "Right, lets go. Common, Titan!" The lounging Houndoom let out a yawn as he picked his head up from his paws, looking tired and a little annoyed that his nap was interrupted, however did outwardly complain. Instead, he jumped off the half-wall as Chaunti got up, staying obedient as ever the the trio headed for the main area. Thankfully, Chaunti didn't have any performances scheduled for today--trainers who were of the Hyper Rank were performing tomorrow--so she had the rest of the day to take it easy and explore.

    Zayne’s sharp brown orbs flicked to his left at the sound of a voice that cut through the rest of the crowd. He had noticed a while ago that some girl with blue hair had taken up residence in the shade over there as well, and that she had a whole gaggle of Pokémon along with her. Nothing impressive really; the only ones of note were a blue-colored Ninetails that he identified as one of those regional variants he had heard about, and an orange wolf-like Pokémon he didn’t know the name of. Past that were a handful of other Pokémon he could care less about, but the commotion that had drawn his attention seemed to be over the blue-haired girl’s Pikachu. There was another girl there now, talking to the blue-haired girl (he thought she was gushing about the Pikachu), as well as a boy. The blue-haired girl appeared to be uncomfortable, but that’s as much as Zayne gathered. He lost interest in the scene fairly quickly and went back to his map and ice-drink-thingy (he felt like the fruity ice was his favorite part of Alola so far).

    Zayne’s interest was grabbed, however, by the sight of a Braviary and an Emolga sparring with each other several yards down the path from where he stood. Interested now, he lowered the map in front of his face slightly, to get a better view. As he did, he realized there were a lot of Pokémon along this particular path; two in particular caught his attention, a Delphox and a Greninja, both standing with female trainers. He focused on both the Delphox and the Greninja individually for a few moments, almost as if he was trying to measure the strength of each one. Whether or not he was noticeable in his analyzing, he didn’t know or care. Apparently, he didn’t find what he was looking for in either of the two Pokémon, because he lost interest in them as well and went back to watching the Braviary and the Emolga as he took another drink of his ice.


    (OOC: You were just fine Senrova!)

    Gray had eventually had enough and dragged Hazel away. "C'mon, sis, we have to practice for the battles." he said, obviously irritated. "But Graaaay!" Hazel tried to protest. Illusio and Aqua gave each other a look as if to say 'here we go again...'


    Luna sighed in relief. "Let's go wander." she said softly, returning Okami. Pika perched himself on her shoulder as she began to walk around, eventually bumping into Chaunti. "I-I'm sorry..." the female quickly apologized, Pika shaking his head. "Yes Pika, I know... I need to watch where I'm going..." she said. "Pika."

    (aw thank you)


    Dakota's eyes shifted from her pokemon to other people. She took notice of a girl with a Greninja and Floette using moves with each other. Mesmerised by the visuals water pledge and fairy wind created, she continued to stare. Meanwhile, Odi was attempting steel wing on the slippery Emolga when he felt his back-neck feathers ruffle. He turned his head and saw a brown-eyed male staring at him. The bird lost a little confidence in his sparing and suddenly felt a blow to the head. Duke striked Odi with a quick aerial ace. "Dang, Odi you're getting butt-kicked by Duke? Is there something wrong?" Dakota asked, seeing that Odi seemed disturbed. Odi shrugged and faced the Emolga again. Duke launched an electro ball his way and Odi deflected it with a steel wing, sending it back to Duke who successfully dodged it. "Better."

    Hazel grinned. "Hey Gray! Let's go over there!" she cheerfully said. "All the way over there? Knowing you, you could run that far in an instant." the boy replied. As soon as he finished, his sister was already off. Gray sighed as she bumped into yet another person, who just so happened to be Zayne. "Oops! Sorry!" Illusio huffed at the female's carelessness. Gray went over as well, Aqua on his shoulders like a scarf. "Sorry about my sister, this is her first time at a Platinum Conference, and she had too much sugar earlier.

    "A lot of these kids have staring problems.." Muttered Yukiji as she took her friend's hand that he extended, standing up slowly to adjust her long blonde hair, yellow eyes scanning the area. "When do the Contests and Battles start? I could enjoy both of them." She muttered softly, watching as a blue flash appeared off of her belt, her Sylveon landing at her feet to wrap the ribbons around Yukiji's arm affectionately, letting out a soft squeal of excitement. Delphox stood up slowly, red eyes shifting to her trainer then the trainer with the map, tugging on Yukiji's arm.

    Battle him? Or that trainer who is showing off? Surely, you wouldn't mind making friends?

    Delphox's soft, elegant voice rang in Yukiji's head, making the blonde shake her head. "What's the use of making friends with the people who I will defeat? It's useless." She muttered, eye twitching when Sylveon spoke.

    Or a booooyfriend? Or a girlfriend, whatever you prefer.

    "A-Absolutely not. Romance is useless! I just need to win this battle competition and go home to Anistar City again." She spoke, tone soft but stern.

    Chaunti's gaze traveled through the crowd, skimming the signs to the various stalls and shops set up along the edges of the festival. "Hm... what to look at first..." Murmured the teen, her hands gripping one strap to her bag. Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt a soft tug on the bottom of her sleeve. She looked down at Titan, who was looking at her with pitiful eyes before motioning with his muzzle towards a stand that had an enticing smell about it. It was labeled 'malasada'. Chaunti had heard of those--an Alola-region original.


    "You want one, huh?" Laughed Chaunti, letting her eyes drift back over to the food stand. For a moment, she considered going over herself and getting one for everyone, including Icarus and Fleur, however she couldn't bring herself to. What if I say something wrong or offensive? What if I drop them or look stupid while getting them? And just like that, she psyched herself out of getting anything. Instead, she crouched down, putting her bag on the ground as she shuffled through it. Titan let out a whimper and rested his head on her leg--whether out of concern for her or simple laziness. A few moments in her bag and she was out, ₽1750 in her hand. Quietly, she handed it over to TItan, who took it in his mouth slowly with a sympathetic glance at his trainer. He was used to this by now--Chaunti rarely approached cashiers on her own and often had Titan to it.


    Still grateful that she was allowing him to get the food, Titan was off, weaving though the crowd as best as he could. Chaunti watched him careful, however she glanced over to see a judgmental look from Cress. "Yeah, I know..." Sighed Chaunti, looking back over to Titan, who had put his paws up on the stall counter with a wagging tail, the money she had given to him sitting between his paws as he panted at a confused-looking stall keeper. However, the man didn't complain and put five big-looking malasadas into two different bags. Titan gratefully took both in his mouth, however once they were off the counter, he struggled to hold both at the same time. "Could you help him, Cress?" The Greninja visible rolled his eyes behind his black glasses, but didn't disobey his trainer. Reluctantly, the water type made his way through the crowd towards the Houndoom, exchanging a few unknown words before taking the bigger of the two bags from the dog-like 'mon.


    Once Cress and Titan joined her at her side, Chaunti walked with them and found a place to sit, settling down in the shade of the palm trees most trainers seemed to be relaxing under. As she did, she dug through her bag, pulling out the two now-occupied Pokeballs to let Icarus and Fleur out. Icarus found a place beside Titan immediately, letting a few curious squawks at the bag, while Fleur settled down in the folds of the bandanna Chaunti wore. While Titan had already torn apart the other bag that he had been holding and began scarfing down one of the malasadas it had contained while Icarus pecked more subtlety at his, Cress handed the bigger bag to her. Giving him a nod in thank you, Chaunti reached into the bag and passed one of the malasadas to Cress before reaching in to take the the other two out. She set one down on the ground for Fleur, however it was gone before she could get to it. Titan, who had apparently found his new favorite food, jumped over Chaunti to snag the treat in his mouth, swallowing it in a few bites.


    This was quite upsetting to Fleur, who let out a few distressed cries as the malasada that was meant for her was taken by Titan. Tears beaded at the edges of the small Pokemon's eyes, her voice high as she let out a few cries in lament for her lost snack. Titan lowered his head in tail in guilt, knowing exactly what he had done. His demeanor quickly changed though, as Cress had moved to put a half-eaten malasada in place of the now-eaten one. Titan hastily leaned down to eat it, but Cress stopped him, a webbed hand catching the band around his neck that help his mega stone. Titan let out a whimper and let his body fall down into a laying position, his nose not far from his wanted item. Fleur seemed to give a few happy cries towards Cress before floating down to take small bites from the malasada. "Didn't like it much, did you?" Inquired Chaunti, looking up at Cress, who just shrugged. Rolling her eyes, Chaunti looked back towards Titan and said flatly, "You can have what Fleur doesn't eat." This seemed to satisfied the Houndoom, still helped by Cress as he flopped lazily onto his side. Happy with the peace, Chaunti started to eat her own malasada, surprised by the enchanting flavor.

    Luna seemed nervous as she wandered around, aimlessly. She decided to go practice for more contests, and went to a place clear of crowds. She sent out Yuki and nodded to Pika, who jumped down from her shoulder. "Yuki, use Ice Beam! Pika, use Iron Tail on the ice!" she said, feeling a lot more confident in her skills as a Trainer and what someone had taught her about contests. Since she didn't like the idea of Pokemon being hurt, she more often took part in contests. She watched in awe of the new technique as the ice ball Yuki had created from Ice Beam shattered into crystals from Pika's Iron Tail. She had never used these two together before! Pika and Yuki gave their approval. "Nine!" "Pikapi!"


    Hazel and Gray: Waiting for a reply from Mer~

    Zayne started, confused for a second. He could've sworn that the Braviary had somehow visibly reacted to his watching, like it had become slightly unsure of itself. Zayne shook his head, not quite positive if that was the case. Though he snorted, turning away. What kind of Pokemon got stage fright? He made to turn slightly, as if to check on his surroundings, and as he did so a girl abrupt bumped into him. He started and flinched at the unexpected contact, his map fell to the ground, and his hand jerked back which caused his much beloved fruit-ice to splash all over the front of his torso.

    There was a heartbeat or two of silence as Zayne stared somewhat mournfully at his now-wet-shirt. Whether he was more upset about having the freezing drink spilled on him, or the fact that said wonderful drink was now gone, it was hard to tell. The moment passed though, and Zayne's head snapped up. Immediately, he fixed a wicked glare on the perpetrator, barely registering her apology, or the words spoken by her male companion.

    Fortunately, before he could stark speaking, a breeze picked up and snatched his fallen map, which he noticed almost immediately. In a single fluid motion, he pulled a Pokeball from his belt and threw it (aggressively) into the air. As he did so, he snarled, "Go get that!" and the Staraptor that appeared from the Pokeball promptly did so, chasing after the loose bit of paper with strong, constant beats of its wings.

    Zayne snapped back around then, his gaze raking back to the girl and her companion. He had calmed down significantly in the last few seconds, and was now clear-headed enough to recognize that the two looked similar enough to be brother and sister. It took him a moment or two, but he recalled what the boy had said when the girl had first run into him. "Eat less sugar then?" he suggested in a barely controlled voice. "And actually look before you step?" he hissed, grinding his teeth. Visibly, however, it seemed that he was relaxing further and further by the second, evidenced by the tension draining out of his shoulders.


    "Ugh," Cordelia grumbled. Her quest for food, thus far, had been distinctly unsuccessful. However, even as she thought that, her attention was grabbed by a most peculiar sight. If she was not mistaken, a Houndoom was being some kind of food-like item. As she watched, the Pokemon paid and everything, then reported back to who Cordelia could only guess was his trainer. Without hesitation, Cordelia followed the small party (consisting of a girl, a Houndoom, and a Greninja) to where they had taken shelter on the grassy area. She passed a boy who just had his drink dumped on him, but didn't pay him any mind. "Excuse me?" she said abruptly, stopping short in front of the girl with the Houndoom. "But what is that?" she asked, pointing at the food items her team were obviously munching on. "And you're Houndoom, that was absolutely remarkable!" the older woman gushed, looking admiring at the dog-like Pokemon.

    She smiled at the girl, but the smile quickly turned into a grin as a funny thought struck her. She imagined what the Houndoom had just done, only she imagined trying to do the same with Drax. She doubted it would work out as well, and the thought left her giddy. However, another growl of her stomach caused her to zero back in on the treats the girl and her team had. Cordelia had never seen anything like them really, and wondered what they tasted like. Were they edible for people too? It would be quite the downer if now. Of course, she could get some for her own team, but the amount of money she'd have to pay to get enough just for Drax alone.... That thought caused her smile to lessen a bit.

    Chaunti was eating quietly, taking no notice to the commotion going on nearby as she munched on her malasada. However, her peace was disturbed as a woman, seemingly taller and probably older than her, stopped in front of her and asked her what she could only assume was the malasada she was munching on. Chaunti froze in surprise for a moment, her thoughts immediately moving from casual to self-conscious. Her nervousness only grew as she looked up to see a genuine smile grow into a grin on the stranger's face. Did I do something wrong? Do I have something on my face? Chaunti was almost not going to answer, but thankfully her toxic thoughts were parted by a gentle paw on her knee. She looked down to see Titan, still help back a bit by Cress, doing his best to seemingly comfort her, probably noticing the small signs of her anxiety that he had grown to pick out from her simply being awkward.


    Taking a few spare moments to smile and pet him to gather her thoughts, Chaunti looked back up at the stranger and responded. "It's a malasada, I think. I'm not native to here, but that's what I saw on the sign of the stand. It was over there, I think?" She pointed in the generally direction of the stand, however Icarus took this as a sign she wanted him on her arm. The Talonflame, done with his malasada and was now soaking up the warm sun, flapped his way onto her not-ready arm, which faltered under his weight. "You're heavy, Ic!" Muttered Chaunti, waving her arm until the bird got off. However, she turned back to the stranger as she mentioned Titan, her gaze traveling over the woman to Titan, who was still sniffing at the slowly-disappearing half of a malasada that Cress had given Fleur. "Remarkable?" Murmured Chaunti. Yes, she did agree Titan did do many remarkable things, but what exactly had he displayed today that was 'remarkable' other than maybe the occasional performance practice during the morning, though she didn't do much with him considering he's had even more practice than most of his teammates. Wait, was she referring to him comforting her? Did she recognize that she was becoming anxious? Dear Arceus, she hoped not.

    Hazel shrugged. "Sorry, I get kind of hyperactive even without sugar, for no reason at all." she said. "Yeah, that is true. But you get even worse with sugar." Gray replied. "Zor..." Illusio looked at Zayne as if to say 'this happens a lot'. From Gray's shoulders, Aqua sent an apologetic look, the Vaporeon understanding Hazel's craziness and Gray's stubbornness. How these two Pokemon put up with them was pretty much amazing.


    "Alright, let's go get you guys some food." Luna said, smiling at Yuki and Pika. The two Pokemon let out sounds of agreement, and Yuki, not wanting to deal with the crowds, went back into her PokeBall. Pika leaped onto the female's shoulder, and they headed to the malasada stand, as they were their favorite. Since her Pokemon didn't eat much, she'd only have to buy one for each of them. She had her money ready, and she bought seven of them: one for each of them. However, she figured she would keep the other malasadas in her bag until she found a place to sit down and send out each of her Pokemon to eat, so she did just that and kept walking, handing one to Pika and keeping one for herself. She saw Chaunti and Cordelia, and decided that if they talked first, she would reply.

    Odi continued to spar with Duke but then something immediately caught his eye. He saw a Staraptor chasing a bit of paper. Odi couldn't resist chasing after it. "Odi, NO!" Dakota yelled as the Braviary took off at high speed. It didn't take long for Odi to catch up and snatch the map from the Staraptor. As he was playful, he grasped the map in his beak and did not want to let go. Dakota caught up with Odi and told him, "You better put that down right now mister!" Odi shook his head with a smirk and started jumping around, teasing Dakota with the map just out of reach. Meanwhile, Duke caught up with the others and startled grumbling about the situation.

    The post was edited 1 time, last by senrova ().

    Selena

    Man, Lena had been waiting for this all year! Ever since she had been on the road for the past five years, she caught wind of the beloved Platinum Conference that garnered a lot of attention from those near and far. And now, it’s her turn to be a part of it! In the time being, this had also been her first time in Alola. The place was comfortable, and the towering skyscrapers of the city reminded her of home. Though, she had to admit, it smelled nothing like the city. It was more... natural, persay. She had let out Smalls to let him breath after being cooped in the Pokeball for a couple of days. The Tyranitar was making grumbling noises. “Oh come on, don’t be like that!” she pouted. “I can’t let you out on the airplane! I bet you’d have made the airplane shoot straight for the ground if I did,” she concluded, crossing her arms. It was a little hot, so she had opened up her trench coat. Smalls continues to grumble, but other than that, no complains continued. With that over, her attention was immediately grabbed by a girl chasing her Braviary holding a piece of paper. Her heart pinched a little upon recognizing a Unova Pokémon. Five years didn’t sound like a lot, but five years had went by, and she missed home sometimes.


    She decided to come over greet the Pokémon trainer, with her Tyranitar trailing lazily behind her. “Hey there!” She waved with much gusto. “You with the Braviary! What’s your name?” She donned a beaming smile, as she stopped to a halt when she was near the girl and her Braviary. Conversation was always easy to her. She was from the city, after all.


    Clay

    Clay had always made it a habit to be at the Platinum Conference whenever it was that time of year. The Alola region was practically his home away from home! There was distinct chatter in the air, but he didn’t mind too much. There were shouts of people who were advertising what they sold, and Clay attempted to pretended he didn’t hear them. That was always hard. His Flygon fluttered close by, looking around. “Find anything that caught your eye?” Clay snorted to his pokemon’s searching nature. Snappy responded with a sharp bark, but said no more. He pushed his way past a sea of people until he was where he wanted to be. It was a small, quaint shop that he often visited each time he made it here. The old granny running the shop’s eye sparkles upon seeing him. The old lady greeted him, and they conversed for a short while. This shop was known for selling small bits of meteorites that happen to fall nearby her town. It was practically tradition for him to buy a meteorite from here.


    Sakura

    It has taken her a lot of begging to get her out of Ecruteke City. She had read the local magezine about a place called the Platinum Conference, and she knew she wanted to be a part of it. This will be her first time she gets to be by herself. Well, she didn’t know if that was a good thing or not. She felt a little self conscience walking through the crowd in her strange garb and nearly impossible hairdo. Her Absol must have sensed it, as she pressed its face comfortingly against Sakura. The girl breathed. She admits that she might be a little lost. Okay, she admits, she might be really lost right now. But she was determined not to let it dampen her mood! The absol sighed. There were so many colorful signs, and there were so many people shouting with attempts to sell their wares. She ended up being stopped at least seven times, since she couldn’t find it in herself to say no. The absol began to bark away any potential sellers for the sake of sparing Sakura’s money for more important things.

    AWAKE THE STARS 'CAUSE THEY'RE ALL AROUND YOU —


    Zayne sighed; it was clear that he was no longer angry, though the occasional mournful glance he directed at his damp shirt suggested that perhaps he was indeed heartbroken over the loss of the drink. Crossing his arms, he scowled at both Hazel and Gray, though it alleviated slightly as his eyes fell on the Vaporeon with them. His expression took on an odd countenance, and his eyes glazed over, like perhaps the fish-tailed Pokemon had reminded him of something... or rather, someone. Zayne shook the thoughts away quickly though, and refocused on the humans in front of him. He shifted on his feet; now he wasn't sure what to say. The girl had bumped into him, they had participated in a verbal exchange, and now it was over. Yet, the pair hadn't moved on and Zayne couldn't help but feel that he was obligated to say something to them. They were conversing among themselves about sugar intake, but he still felt as if the words were being directed to him as well. He tried to think up a response. "Interesting," he muttered in a half reply. His crossed arms tightened further against his torso. It was a lame attempt at some conversation, but at least he had tried. What else could he say to a couple of complete strangers? He resisted the urge to glance around and find someone to beeline out of the social interaction; small talk wasn't really his strong suit.

    Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Zayne, his Staraptor, Xerxes, was just about to retrieve said map he had been sent to fetch when, out of nowhere, a Braviary appeared and snatched it right out of the air instead. Xerxes reared back, his wings fluttering frantically in order to keep him aloft in his surprise. Once he'd registered what happened, Xerxes let out a furious cry and dove towards the other winged-perpetrator. The bird Pokemon glanced at the back of Zayne's red head, as if the Staraptor was trying to see if his trainer saw what was going on. When Xerxes realized this was not the case, he immediately began an outraged pursuit of the Braviary. At some point, a girl appeared and began speaking to the other bird, and Xerxes registered that she must be Braviary's trainer, so he began aggressively squawking at her too. Then he turned a withering glare on the Braviary and attempted to snatch the map out of the other flying type's beak, his wings flapping in frantic anger.


    Cordelia froze, coming up short as she registered a myriad of expressions cross the girl's face. Mentally, Cordelia gently scolded herself for being much too enthusiastic, as she tended to be some times. She took a deep breath, then exhaled, smiling gently. "I just found it very cool that your Houndoom completed a whole business transaction for you," Cordelia said in a slow, deliberately kind voice. "I was just thinking that if my Tyrantrum tried to do the same, it would probably be a disaster!" She laughed lightly at her own words, then nodded a thank you. "A malasada?" Cordelia glanced over to where the girl had indicated they'd been purchased. "Oh, that's great!" she said in relief. "I'm absolutely starving!" She grinned again, though was careful to watch out of the corner of her eye to see if the girl would laugh as well. Cordelia hoped she wasn't making the situation awkward or anything, that hadn't been her intention at all.

    "Are you enjoying the conference?' she asked gently.

    Dakota backed away from the Staraptor that approached angrily. "Odi, put that thing down! You're getting us in trouble!" Then she turned to Duke. "You wanna help out, maybe?" So the Emolga responded with a nod and stepped a little closer to the flurry of claws and feathers. 'A-hey! Odi, man, let's stop with the stupidity and maybe be a good sport and give the paper back?' Odi briefly glanced at him while he was fooling around with the Staraptor.

    'You want some action? Here!' Odi threw the map into Duke's hands. Duke was absolutely terrified as he didn't want the map and to be at the mercy of the agitated Staraptor. He threw it back to Odi out of panic and the Braviary took off with it. "Duke, that wasn't helping!" Duke dipped his head in shame as he was criticised by his trainer. Dakota decided to send out her most mature and disciplined pokemon, Butch, who was a Hawlucha. "PLEASE, get that darn piece of paper -whatever it is- from Odi?" Butch obeyed and ran after the mischievous bird.

    Pika looked at Cordelia, as if indicating she was too close. Luna decided to see who Pika was glaring at, and saw it was the girl from before. Not wanting to be rude, she just told Pika to continue eating the malasada and gave a small wave and smile at Cordelia.


    Hazel had unluckily spotted Luna again. "Hey! It's the Pikachu and girl from earlier!" she chirped as she dragged Illusio, Gray, and Aqua behind her. Pika looked really wary of the female and sparked his cheeks a bit. "Hazel, I wouldn't touch him. He looks like he's ready to zap." Gray said to his sister. "Yeah, I know, I'm just so amazed that its ears are like that! It's like no other Pikachu I've ever seen, and its voice is different too!" What Hazel said was correct. Pika had a bit of a slurred voice, and it was a bit deeper, but not too much. And since he spoke a lot, it was quite obvious. Feeling nervous, Luna whipped around and looked at the girl, who she met with face to face. She let out a squeak as Hazel started enthusiastically asking more questions. "Where'd you get that Pikachu? Why does it talk like that? Why are its ears like that?" Luna didn't answer, she just waited for her to stop. Gray kept trying to pull Hazel away, but she was not going to budge until she got some answers!