Beginner RP: Emmy Kelvin (phidari)

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Non-Battle Post #1

Rain fell in torrents from the skies, to cover the surface of the freshwater Lake Manaph in rippling chaos. The fat drops of water splashed down so close to one another that the lake's surface was in constant eruption into turbulent waves of constructive and destructive interference, resembling nothing more than an ocean in miniature.

A Ranger waited at the very edge of the water, her Gallade at her side. The rain ran down the skin of the impassive Gallade, whose name was Lae; it pattered on the boardwalk that began near where the two were standing; it plastered the Ranger's waist-length braid of black hair to her head, and to her back where the impractical mass of strands was tucked out of the way under her clothing where no one could grab it in a fight. She squirmed with discomfort as the soaking braid sent droplets of chilly moisture down her spine, and considered— for the thousandth time— cutting the whole ridiculous thing off. But... someone she had long since lost had loved her long hair. So Tella Marr decided, as she always did when this consideration entered her mind, that she would keep the stupid stuff: it would remain the one impractical thing she hadn't yet cut away.

Perhaps twenty years of age, Tella was a Kanto native with blue almond-shaped eyes which reflected the dark water of the lake. The Ranger stood with an effortless grace that could fool an ignorant onlooker into believing that she was a dancer... but that same graceful stance would tell a warrior that here was a dangerous foe in her own right, even had she not had a full complement of Poké Balls at her waist. There were six of them: one full-sized and awaiting Lae, while the other five were reduced to cherry-sized capsules and clasped securely into an understated but high-tech black belt that could eject them all at once at the press of a button, if an emergency were to arise.

Tella's clothing was just as understated and hyper-practical— almost combat-ready— as the belt that held the rest of her Pokémon partners. She wore a long-sleeved black windbreaker jacket, zipped up so as to be waterproof (except for that pesky braid leaking moisture past the collar!) with the bulk of some thick article or articles of clothing underneath. A pair of heavy-duty black polyester pants with perfectly fitted patches of Kevlar sewn onto them matched her black Tauros-leather boots, which were also strengthened with circular heavy-plastic reinforcements. On her back was a compact, squarish backpack, its compartments carefully organized and full of gear for any sort of emergency situation.

Tella was waiting for a Trainer named Emmy Kelvin, who was signed up for a brief introductory trip— a "beginner run"— through the Great Lakes region of the National Park. The region was composed of six huge lakes and a myriad of smaller ones— all of them separated by sandbars and connected by a network of rivers— that were home to vast numbers of aquatic Pokémon.

The sound of an approaching vehicle reached the ears of the waiting Ranger and her Pokémon; Tella and Lae both turned to watch it arrive. Tella found herself idly wondering what kind of person this Emmy was. Hopefully she'd be a quiet one: the weather, particularly the bothersome problem of Tella's hair, had the young woman in no mood for chatter.


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 5
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 0
  
  
• Active Effects: Rain
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

The capsule that carried Emmy to the Great Lakes area afforded a stunning view of the National Park. There was just one problem: She couldn't catch anything from in there. She would rather have made her way on foot, but rules were rules--even if she hated them. It felt like forever before the vehicle finally touched down and released her from its confines. The instant Emmy hopped out, eager to stretch her legs and get to catching Pokemon, she became soaked from the rain. If there had been a weather report warning about this, she hadn't seen it.

Emmy paid no mind to the rain. Yes, it was horrible. She'd been out in rain like this before, so she could handle anything--that's what she told herself. In reality, her short blonde hair was matted down, her baggy cargo pants and jacket were plastered to her skin, and her teeth were chattering from the cold. Her backpack was supposed to be waterproof; she hoped it would hold up against the rain. But what kind of Pokemon trainer worried about a little rain or a little cold? When this was all over, she could find a nice dry spot somewhere and have Shadow start a campfire. Right now her Pokemon were safe in their Poke Balls, set into slots in her belt. She hoped they wouldn't mind a little rain; Shadow especially, being a Fire type.

The lakes were beautiful from above, but Emmy preferred the view from the ground. Being here in the thick of nature was just so energizing. She practically bounced up and down--partly from excitement, partly from a need to keep moving to stave off the cold--when she spotted the woman who must have been her ranger. There was no one else around, after all. Emmy went running up to the woman, all smiles.

"Are you the Park Ranger?" Emmy blurted out. Her speaking voice was normally fast; right now it was even faster. She was finally in the National Park, after all! "Hi, I'm Emmy, but you probably knew that. So, I've never done this before but I think I know how it works. I have my supplies and I only get to keep one Pokemon, right?" That wasn't fair. She wanted all of the Pokemon. Without leaving a beat for a response to her question, she continued, "So do we start now?"

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Non-Battle Post #2

The young woman, who had been standing there next to her Gallade the entire time Emmy had been looking around and quite plainly trying to keep warm, looked the girl up and down. It's a wonder she noticed us at all, bouncing up and down like that, the Ranger thought to herself. Tella's dark blue eyes, like twin wells of murky water, sized the young Trainer up. Emmy must be somewhere between the ages of fourteen and sixteen, Tella guessed, and she wasn't really dressed for the weather. Perhaps she'd thought someone would prompt her to wear a coat if there was going to be rain— Tella could see the signs of a somewhat sheltered person who'd always had parents to tell them what to do and how to do it.

The Ranger couldn't relate. The only parental figure she'd had had died when she was thirteen... and it had been an unusual arrangement in the first place. But back to the matter at hand: Tella considered for a moment whether or not she should go out of her way to do something to keep the kid dry, then decided against it: the rain was heavy, but it wasn't particularly cold, so Emmy wouldn't be in danger of hypothermia. Tella wouldn't let anyone come to serious harm on her watch, but for anything short of that she was a great believer in letting people lie in whatever bed they'd made themselves: her days of being a goddamn hero were done.

No trace of Tella's thoughts coloured her voice, though, when she spoke— in a polite but otherwise deadpan tone. "Yes," she said, at least somewhat grateful that she could answer all of Emmy's questions with one syllable. Even better, the girl seemed to have read the instructions and regulations in the pamphlet they'd have given her at the Docks, so Tella wouldn't need to explain the rules. Those rules included Tella's favourite, a guideline that suggested Trainers avoid battling wild Pokémon who don't show curiosity or initiate a battle. "Release a Pokémon, and follow me."

Tella steps out onto the floating, manmade boardwalk, which creaks and sloshes as it settles ever so slightly lower under her weight and that of her Gallade. Lae is following her in perfect lockstep; the Ranger and her Pokémon move as if they're shadows of each other, with even their utterly neutral body language in sync like choreographed dancers. These are two beings who are keenly aware of their own movements, and of each other's.

The boardwalk is composed of a series of lashed-together wooden platforms, with no kind of railing or other barrier preventing Trainers and their Pokémon from interacting with the Pokémon of the lake. The platforms were designed never to dip underneath the water, but to sink close enough to the surface that it was almost like stepping across the lake itself.


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 5
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 2,172
  
  
• Active Effects: Rain
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Emmy may have read the park instructions, but she had no idea how to read her fellow human beings. So she took Tella's terse responses as just a means of getting on with her task more quickly -- if she were irritated by anything, it wasn't going to be Emmy who figured it out. Sheltered was not wrong; she was no homebody, she'd definitely spent her childhood getting into her share of scraps and mishaps, but at the end of the day she'd always had a home to return to and parents to patch her up. She felt her parents were a bit overprotective, but in the end, she didn't have a whole lot to really complain about.

When Tella told her to release a Pokemon, Emmy paused for a moment to think. Neither of the two Pokemon she'd brought with her would be at an advantage in this region full of Water Pokemon, she realized now. But Shadow, her Litten, would be at an especial disadvantage in this driving rain -- a gust of wind pelted her with heavy rain for several seconds, as if to emphasize that point. Mistakes had been made; she should have gone to a different area. But, well, it was too late now.

Emmy chose the other Poke Ball, pulling it off her belt and tossing it into the air. "Come out, Crystal!" The small white Vulpix materialized, trilling as she did so, and her fur was immediately pelted down flat by the rain.

That's when the hail started.

As Emmy and Crystal made their way to the bridge to follow after Tella, a small chunk of ice hit Emmy right in the face. "Ah... right, Crystal has Snow Warning," Emmy realized belatedly. She had known this before -- it had come in handy for her before -- but the ferociousness of the rain had made her forget it briefly. Emmy held her arms up to shield her head, and she ran. Crystal went a bit slower, barely keeping up with Emmy; she held her head and tails down, looking a little abashed at what she had wrought.

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Non-Battle Post #3

Tella winced as a wave of cold emerged from the Poké Ball with Crystal, and the driving rain within about a fifty-metre radius began to freeze in midair— pelting down in thin, elongated half-frozen hailstones that plummeted from above to strike like a storm of tiny, blunt pins. Tella's skin seemed oddly resistant to the miniature daggers: an observant onlooker would notice her eyes changing colour slowly from deep blue to a lighter shade of startling cyan as she exerted her hidden psychic talents to harden her skin against the storm. Crystal was equally impervious to the icy, water-coated needles, which shattered harmlessly due to the sudden expansion when her even colder skin and fur forced them to freeze the rest of the way. Lae and Emmy were not so lucky: tiny pinpricks, only about one in ten large enough to even bleed, began to pepper their arms and legs.

Tella glanced at Lae, who understood immediately what it was she wanted. The Gallade closed his eyes for a moment as he and Tella both came to a brief stop: imperceptibly at first, and then unmistakably after a few moments, the hail striking Lae and Emmy began to lessen and disappear as Lae's psychic power nudged each tiny spear gently aside fifty metres above. Tella's Gallade wouldn't be able to battle as long as he maintained the protection, but he shouldn't need to— defending Emmy was her own Pokémon's job until and unless the young Trainer's well-being was in danger.

Standing outside of these two little bubbles of hail-free space, Tella jerked her head onward to indicate that Emmy should continue to follow her, then began to walk again.

Underneath one of the platforms, awakened and intrigued by the change of the quality of the raindrops on the boardwalk, then the muffled tapping of approaching footsteps on the floating wood, a small creature uncurled from where it had been asleep clinging to its round floating tail.

"...Rill?" the water mouse chirped as the footsteps went over top of it, pushing its shelter most of the way underwater. It swam downward, then propelled itself back up around the edge of the floating wood, bursting out of the water to land on the boardwalk just behind a set of very strange Pokémon of a kind it had never seen before! Three of them stood on two feet, and they were very tall. One seemed much more approachable: a little four-legged fox about one and a half times Azurill's size— how interesting!

"Azu! Azurill!" Azurill wanted to say hello in the way its instincts told it: a battle!


Current Encounter: Azurill

Azurill: 100%
Crystal: 100%
[HAIL-0]


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 5
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 4,047
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Emmy could handle the hail. Really, she could! She'd been caught by Crystal's ability in the past, and she'd dealt with it, and she'd patched herself up. But she wasn't about to complain about Tella's Gallade shielding her from the hard little chunks of ice. (Or whatever they were; they were ice, right? Emmy hadn't paid the best attention in science class.) Of course Crystal didn't need the protection; she was an Ice type. In fact she seemed to flourish all the more in the hail.

But didn't it bother Tella? Emmy opened her mouth to say something, but before she could get more than a syllable out, Tella was gesturing for Emmy to follow her. She frowned in confusion, only to perk up when she heard the trilling of a Pokemon.

Emmy and Crystal stopped, then turned toward the round little Pokemon. Emmy grinned, clenching her fists with excitement. "Here we go! First battle of the day!"

Crystal wasn't quite as enthusiastic; she didn't mind battling per se, and especially not against an opponent like this Azurill that was eager for the fight. She just didn't mind not battling, too. But they had come here for a reason. So the Vulpix hunched down, ready to pounce at her trainer's command.

"Careful, don't fall off the bridge," Emmy warned. Could Crystal swim? It had never come up -- she hadn't had the Pokemon for long. "Hit it with Ice Shard!"

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Battle Post #1

Azurill squeaked out an excited little tune as the newcomers to Lake Manaph turned to face her and readied themselves for battle! She was excited to show off a new move she had taught herself! It was exciting, because it involved bouncing and going really fast!!

The blue water mouse began to jump up and down atop her rubbery flotation device of a tail, flying higher with each bounce as though it were a trampoline; however, she didn't expect the blinding speed with which Crystal formed a jagged shard of ice out of the ambient moisture and launched it at her: it struck true, discombobulating her balance right before her last bounce!

But it was too late to slow her momentum as she landed on the tall side-first: Azurill launched skyward with a startled "ZURI??", her tail flying upward along with her. The Bounce technique had been effective at one thing: getting her ridiculously high in the air! She was so high up that she couldn't even be seen, obscured by the driving needles of hail that continued to pour out of the sky...

There was absolutely no telling in what location Azurill would come down... but at this point it seemed unlikely that that location would be 'on target.'

Current Encounter: Azurill

Azurill: 81.90% [Bouncing] (Used Bounce; hurt by Hail)
Crystal: 100% (Used Ice Shard)
[HAIL-1]


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 5,405
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Well, that certainly was a move. Emmy and Crystal stared up after the Azurill, wondering where it could have gone. While Emmy had a dumbfounded look on her face, Crystal's gaze was intent, piercing, trying to calculate.

Attack or defend? Emmy's mind reeled as she tried to figure out what to do. Could Crystal even hit a target she couldn't see? "Um, um-- Use Safeguard," she ordered, "but as soon as it comes back into view, use Powder Snow on it!"

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Battle Post #2

Crystal stared up into the needle-spewing grey sky, trying to peer through the hail and determine where the wild Pokémon would land. At Emmy's command, she broke off her calculations to shake her fur, shaking off a shower of hail fragments as well as a cloud of shimmering motes of light. The tiny pinpoints of brightness drifted for a moment before coalescing, weaving themselves into a shimmering veil that came to rest on Crystal's back and wrap around her body, almost like an immaterial cape made of light.

It was at that moment that Azurill landed. The wild Pokémon certainly had not come down on-target... But out of sheer, dumb luck the attack had an effect! As the little mouse Pokémon slammed down on the very edge of the platform— thankfully rubbery tail first, sustaining no injury— one of the planks that made up the platform's surface tore loose from the lashings holding it down: where Azurill hit, it toppled downward, almost touching the water... And the other end of the long plank of wood, on which Crystal just happened to be standing, leapt violently upward like a see-saw!

One moment, Crystal was just completing her Safeguard move and generating an intensification of her aura of cold in preparation for her upcoming Powder Snow attack; the next, the confused Vulpix was flying five metres up through the air and out over the water! She had time to whip her tails around and right herself in midair, but not enough time to turn her fall into a proper dive: she bellyflopped somewhat painfully into the water, and immediately began a doggy-paddle-style swim back to the safety of the floating platform.

Azurill, just as astonished as Crystal that the failed Bounce technique had even done anything, nevertheless kept her wits about her and rushed to take advantage of her success! Leaping off of the platform, the little Pokémon began to swim with surprising speed in Crystal's direction; instead of striking directly, though, Azurill veered aside when she reached the spot where the Vulpix was paddling through the water, and began to swim literal circles around her opponent. The circles grew faster and faster, until the water itself began to spin and dip at the centre, producing a Whirlpool behind Crystal that began to suck her back in, preventing her from making it back to the platform!

But Crystal was not completely at Azurill's mercy: the waves of cold that were still emanating from her body— the aura of freezing air which she had been intensifying in order to use her now-abandoned Powder Snow attack— were beginning to freeze the water under her: scrambling to avoid getting her legs trapped in the quickly forming ice-floe, Crystal clambered up on top of each patch of ice as it formed, so that after a few seconds she was standing on top of an irregular, unstable raft of ice floating at the centre of the growing Whirlpool. It wasn't ideal, and she was forced to stay very still to balance the buoyant chunk of ice and keep it from turning over... but at least she wasn't being hurt by the Whirlpool!

Now what? Crystal's plaintive look in Emmy's direction seemed to say.


Current Encounter: Azurill

Azurill: 75.65% (Bounce landed; used Whirlpool; hurt by Hail)
Crystal: 89.64% [Safeguard-1] (Used Safeguard; Powder Snow redirected to lake surface!)
[HAIL-2]


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 5,855
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 89.64%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Emmy shrieked when her Pokemon went flying. "Crystal!" she exclaimed, instinctively stepping forward to try and reach for her when she came back down, landing in the water. Crystal was too far away, of course, but that didn't stop Emmy from making the attempt.

She watched frantically, fully prepared to shuck her backpack off and jump in if she had to. But thankfully Crystal had this. Emmy breathed a sigh of relief. But Crystal wasn't out of the woods -- er, the water yet.

"Hit it with Ice Beam!" She vaguely remembered a physics lesson -- every action has an equal opposite action, something something. There was some boring math formula that went with it. Anyway, hopefully hitting Azurill with a beam attack would propel Vulpix away from that Whirlpool. "Then try and paddle back here!"

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Battle Post #3

The intelligent little fox Pokémon quickly understood what Emmy was asking from her, even if she didn't understand why. Crystal waited until Azurill's spinning arc took the wild Pokémon to the other side of the whirlpool from the platform; then she let loose with a beam of freezing energy that roared forth from her mouth. Still, gentle Crystal didn't want to use such a powerful attack on the little mouse: instead, she aimed directly in front of it, the Ice Beam creating a large chunk of ice that Azurill bumped directly into.

Azurill, her giddy whirlpooling interrupted, blinked away a bit of dizziness and then noticed what her opponent was up to! The obstruction was getting larger, and frozen regions of water were starting to creep outwards from the growing iceberg; if Azurill let this continue, she'd be standing on a frozen expanse of lake! Her response: she sprayed a stream of bubbles, nowhere near as forceful but with great enthusiasm behind them, directly at Crystal, forcing the Vulpix to redirect the Ice Beam slightly to intercept the Bubblebeam attack!

The two Beams warred in midair between the two Pokémon, and it was clear which was going to win out: Crystal's Ice Beam had more force behind it, and was simply a stronger attack: it had the advantage. On the other hand, Crystal had been keeping up her beam longer, and it was clearly the more taxing of the two moves. After a solid ten seconds during which the Ice Beam pushed back Azurill's bubbles until the freezing air was roaring inches from the little mouse's face, Crystal's ability to maintain the Ice Beam gave out...

It had gone on long enough for Crystal to escape, though. As soon as she'd fired the Ice Beam, the Vulpix had noticed that the chunk of ice on which she was standing beginning to climb the shallow incline of the Whirlpool. During the nearly fifteen seconds that she'd used her Ice Beam technique, she had managed to propel herself all the way to the edge of the whirlpool that was nearest Emmy! Marvelling at her Trainer's brilliance, Crystal whirled around and leapt out across the water, her feet freezing the surface into thin ice as they came down. Taking the initiative and using the Quick Attack technique Emmy had taught her, Crystal was moving so quickly and so lightly that each little paw-sized patch of thin ice held her weight for a split second, allowing her to run along the water's surface!

She had forgotten, though, that Azurill was still Bubble Beaming! When the Ice Beam disappeared, the stream of bubbles had shot out in pursuit of Crystal, and now the torrent of bubbles blasted into the back of her head with a thudding, popping feeling like being punched repeatedly. The Bubble Beam drove Crystal through the water's surface, driving her briefly underwater so that she surfaced just as she reached the platform and hit the side of it with a gentle thud that nevertheless sounded like it hurt a bit.

Azurill, a tiny bruise showing up on her forehead where she'd hit the wall of ice, was forced to take a breather and cling to her floatation-device tail after so much Bubble Beaming; the hail continued to fall, peppering her with little wounds. Nevertheless, the little mouse looked to be still in surprisingly good shape, and excited for more fun battling!

Current Encounter: Azurill

Azurill: 59.21% (Used Bubble Beam; then continued to Bubble Beam; hurt by Hail)
Crystal: 80.00% [Safeguard-2] (Used Ice Beam; Quick Attack)
[HAIL-3]


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 6,650
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 80.00%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Emmy darted back and forth on the little plank bridge as Crystal propelled herself away from the whirlpool, and as she went plunging under the surface of the water, and as she hit her head. Ow!

Crystal hadn't hit Azurill directly, which meant Azurill hadn't taken as much damage as it could have. Unfortunately Emmy wasn't the sort of emotionally sensitive trainer who could reassure Crystal that it was okay, that's what potions were for; she was just frustrated about it. "Hey, Crystal, you okay there?" she asked, kneeling down at the edge of the bridge to make sure the Vulpix could make it back up all right. Emmy was an emotional dunce, but she did still care about her Pokemon. "C'mon up. Don't go back in the water if you can avoid it. Use Extrasensory to attack it from here."

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Battle Post #4

Crystal, carefully grabbing Emmy's sodden jacket sleeve in her teeth, gratefully used the offered help to haul herself back up onto the platform. She turned to face Azurill, shaking off a spray of droplets that turned into tiny fragments of ice as they flew through the aura of cold that clung to Crystal like a cape.

Azurill wasn't letting such an interesting opponent get away that easily, though! The little blue mouse Pokémon jetted through the water and, in a single swift motion, dove underneath the surface and emerged launching herself with wild abandon at Crystal.

In midair, Azurill felt the world itself seem to fracture, a perceptual shattering painful enough that she almost blacked out for a moment. Her senses distorted and blended into one another: she could see the sound of the hailstones against the wooden platform, hear the loud and brash smell of the strange two-legged Pokémon who were watching the battle... she could even taste the pristine white of Crystal's fur...!

This last sensation might have been less due to the Extrasensory technique warping Azurill's perceptions, and more because it was at that point that Azurill, hurtling through the air in a course that had been set before Crystal's attack had landed, made a solid face-first impact straight into the startled Vulpix's chest!

The two Pokémon tumbled apart across the floating platform, and began to pick themselves up: it was clear that Azurill was the worse for wear out of the two, and the hail was still pelting her mercilessly; but the little mouse wasn't done yet! She still had fight in her, and she was determined to have a good time regardless of winning or losing this battle!


Current Encounter: Azurill

Azurill: 41.11% (Used Slam, hurt by Hail)
Crystal: 60.35% [Safeguard-3] (Used Extrasensory)
[HAIL-4]


~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 7,436
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 60.35%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x3
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  None yet!

 

Azurill was spunky, and Emmy liked that. For that reason alone, her hand was already digging in one of her bulky pockets for the Park Balls she'd been given.

Was it weakened enough? "Crystal, stay back," Emmy called out. "Counterattack if it comes at you, but let me handle this for now!"

Crystal's ears perked up and she looked up at her trainer curiously. When Emmy finally managed to fish a Park Ball out, though, the little Vulpix understood. She went into defense mode, crouched down low to the wood planks of the bridge in anticipation of an attack. Her legs started to itch with energy, preparing to use Quick Attack to dodge if she had to.

"Park Ball, go!" The exclamation wasn't really necessary. But it was what all the best trainers did when they threw Poke Balls, and Emmy was totally going to be one of the best trainers someday, so she called out the phrase as she took aim and threw a Ball at Azurill.

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Non-Battle Post #4

Emmy hurled the ball at Azurill with a cry of "Park Ball, go!" Off to one side, Tella's eyebrow quirked a little at the theatrics: no one yelled their actions like that in real life. Did kids these days really watch this much TV?

Shout or no shout, the ball was certainly on-target. The little blue mouse— her attention fixed firmly on Crystal— never saw it coming. With a squeak of surprise as the Park Ball bounced off of her head, Azurill seemed to fight the process that was turning her into a silhouette of red light, but only for a few moments: seconds later, she disappeared into the capsule in a swirl of red.

The ball dropped to the floating platform with a dull thunk of metal on wood, then twitched as the Pokémon inside struggled to escape its unfamiliar confines.

...

A second and a half passed; the ball twitched again, more weakly.

...

For a long moment after the second twitch, the ball shuddered violently, and even appeared to crack open a little!

Then it snapped shut again as the ball's inner workings secured Azurill firmly.



Encounter Over! Azurill: Captured!

Tella had a feeling that Emmy would have a tough time fully taming Azurill: certainly she and Crystal had earned a measure of the little mouse's respect in battle, but the battle had been cut off before a clear conclusion. Given how the bold little creature had leaped at the chance to try out (and show off!) her moves, Tella suspected that Azurill would do as Emmy wished for the most part, but would want a rematch sometime in the future.

That was a problem for Emmy to figure out in the future, though, after she had left the Park. For now, Park regulations dictated that Tella hold onto the Park Ball. The Ranger took a swift breath in, then exhaled loudly and made a jerky beckoning gesture with one hand. As if in response, the Park Ball leaped from where it lay— propelled by a mysterious force— and arced through the air into her hand.

"Do you wish to continue, Emmy?" Tella asked, pocketing the ball. "Per Park regulations, this Ball will be returned to you whenever you choose to leave."

~~Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 8,374 —> 0
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 60.35%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x2
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  Azurill (Female, Bold nature)

 

After holding her breath the whole time the Park Ball shook, Emmy let out a whoop and pumped her fist into the air when it finally settled. Her fingers twitched, eager to hold the ball even as Tella took it in hand.

"Do you wish to continue, Emmy?" A flash of disappointment crossed her face. On the one hand, heck yeah, she wanted to see as many Pokemon as she could! On the other hand, that Azurill had put up one heck of a fight. She definitely respected it. Glancing down at Crystal, she saw that the Vulpix was standing by Tella's feet, nose in the air sniffing in the general direction of Azurill's Park Ball even though she was far too short to reach.

Emmy crouched down and gestured to Crystal, who turned and came scampering up to her. "Did you have fun?" she asked; Crystal nodded. The Pokemon glanced in Tella's direction again. Even to someone as inept as Emmy, it was clear: Crystal wanted to see that Azurill again. Maybe battle again? It sure would be nice to have a Pokemon-to-Human translator.

The amount of thought Emmy was putting into answering such a simple question was enough that you could fry an egg if you cracked it on top of her head. "I think I want to keep Azurill," she finally said.

 

Individual RP — Emmy Kelvin — Non-Battle Post #5

Tella blinked. "I suppose that's that, then," she said, a bit of surprise creeping into her tone before she remembered that most people are genuinely bothered by standing around in the rain— well, hail, right now— and Emmy was probably eager to get back to shelter with her successful catch.

The Ranger turned and led the way back to the flying capsule which would take Emmy back to the Docks. There were an assortment of vehicles that transported Trainers across the continent-sized Park, but these were one of the most state-of-the-art and comfortable, equipped with heaters or air conditioning (depending on the temperature outside,) and an assortment of other comforts.

"Enjoy the trip," Tella told the young Trainer, making an effort to sound upbeat this time. The Ranger was starting to think she'd been too silent and professional: kids needed reassurance, or else they started to think you didn't like them... or so she'd been told. It just... it had never really come naturally to her to coddle another human being. Or Pokémon, for that matter, unless that Pokémon had earned it.

"I hope you return," Tella said impulsively as the door of the capsule closed on Emmy and her Ice-type Vulpix. She was unsure if Emmy had even heard her over the sound of the door sealing, and unsure as to exactly what she had meant by saying that. Was it that she had regrets about the short trip? Was she hoping to get a second chance to not frighten the girl off?

Tella sighed at her own folly, and stepped back as the capsule lifted off. What a ridiculous thing to not know how to do: for all her incredible competence at survival and combat and weathering the elements, Tella was still terrible at goodbyes. Even to a complete stranger she had known for perhaps twenty, twenty-five minutes. She'd have to do some more thinking about exactly what her issues with basic human interaction were. Lots more thinking.

And so, Tella Marr was left alone with her thoughts and her Pokémon, while Emmy flew back towards the Docks to register her newly caught Azurill and set out into her bright future.


~~Park Run Concluded by Visitor Request~~

Spoiler

~~Final Park Run Statistics~~

• Trainer Name: Emmy Kelvin
  
  
• Location: Great Lakes
  
  
• Remaining Encounters: 4
  
  
• Characters Written by Trainer (since last encounter): 1,217
  
  
• Active Effects: Hail
  
  
• Pokemon Stats:
  Crystal the Vulpix — Currently out of Poké Ball
  HP: 60.35%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Snow Warning
  Nature: Gentle
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Moonblast
  
  Shadow the Litten
  HP: 100%
  Gender: Female
  Ability: Blaze
  Nature: Impish
  TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: None
  
  
• Total Items:
  Park Ball x2
  Energy Powder x1
  Lava Cookie x1
  Poké Doll x1
  
  
• Total Captured Pokémon:
  Azurill (Female, Bold nature)