Two Children Bond over Robbery

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A jigglypuff lay on a patch of grassy ground in the middle of Grassveil, feeling quite sorry for herself for no apparent reason. She stared up at the Sky, with next to nothing to do. Not that she wanted to do anything anyways. Whenever she tried to do something special, things tended to go wrong. And when things went wrong for her, they really went wrong. She didn't want to bother with complicated emotions on this particular day, so instead, she lay on the ground. It was a somewhat hot summer morning, a light breeze fortunately dampening the heat that surely would've been otherwise overbearing.

Alki sighed. Most other kids would be hanging out with someone else, enjoying their day. Darcy had offered, but Alki had insisted that she wanted to be alone. She hated to lie so often to her sister, and Darcy always being so nice to her didn't help matters. She wanted to avoid Darcy for now... She'd talk with Synd'r, and see if she could figure something out, but... her guilt always felt so explosive . She'd been adopted into their family, and she felt like she was betraying them quite often and...

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..." she cried out, loudly at first, attracting a few glares from passersby, before her volume decreased, and she flipped over onto her stomach, facing the ground. Those thoughts made her feel like garbage. She hated feeling like garbage, even if she deserved that feeling... Alki discarded her guild bag and tossed it about a meter away from herself. She didn't care... She just wanted to lay there forever and never get up, and by extension, never have to worry about these complicated things again...

Seeing the jigglypuff shift her gaze away and flatten her ears, Leander considered doubling over on what he had just said and just play dumb the way he had when she had screamed earlier. However, he decided against it as she got up and approached him, the newfound smile on her face telling him he had not messed this up beyond repair just yet.

Her face would start to seem a little distant shortly afterwards, revealing the balloon to be deep in thought. Probably considering whether confirming his suspicions would be a good move or not, the seedot guessed. It wasn't like he had even considered reporting her so far, but he hadn't had the chance to tell her that. He did consider reassuring her that he wouldn't as her thinking time drew out long, but ended up staying quiet and watching her ponder and deflate instead. While he was aware that her species could do that, it was still weird to actually see it in action right before his eyes.

As he was starting to feel a little guilty about making her struggle to answer for so long, the acorn was relieved when she finally managed some words. And even more so by what those words were. It felt less bad to have a fellow thief be the one to witness him stealing. At least now she could not judge him without being a hypocrite. It also meant they had something in common, even if it wasn't the most positive trait in the world to share. Perhaps a friendship between them really was possible?

After her last comment, Leander laughed a little. "That's not what it's all about, though, is it? Looking inconspicious and subtle is much better than looking impressive when you're doing that sort of thing." And if this was what she deemed as "unimpressive", he'd rather have her be unimpressive. That blushy smile could melt hearts. He would definitely have reciprocated it, had he been able to.

But smiles aside, something was on his mind. Was she not a bit young to be a thief? Did her parents know? Perhaps her family was an outlaw family like his had been. He couldn't recall seeing anyone seeming like a parent of hers around any of the previous time he'd met her, though. Just her friends. But still... "Speaking of that, do you operate on your own?" he inquired, trying not to sound as prying by staying somewhat on topic. He knew that outlaw families weren't always as caring as they should be, and he still did not know what had been troubling her earlier. He tried to keep it out of his voice and gaze, but the thought had him worried for her.

Alki's smile and blush deepened as she heard what the Seedot had to say. He wasn't wrong. Quite the contrary, in fact. He was completely right; being subtle, and being inconspicous was just about the best thing you could be as a thief. Alki gave a small nod so as to indicate that she had heard what Leander had to say. At the same time, Alki knew that it wasn't strictly necessary to be a good thief. After all, Synd'r and Vesper were both ten times as capable as she would ever be, and they were so much cooler too... Alki wished she were more like them...

Maybe if she weren't a jigglypuff? Maybe if she were a Skitty like Darcy, or a Vulpix like Synd'r, then maybe... Maybe she'd be less upset with herself all the time? Or maybe she'd be cooler to be around, or just more pleasant... Alki wiggled her ears, allowing herself to indulge in this train of thought for just a few seconds. At the very least, she probably wouldn't have been such an easy target when she was a kid if she had been a Vulpix. That would have been nice...

The jigglypuff sighed, setting the bag down so it leaned on her flank before nodding. That is, until she realized that nodding was the complete wrong answer to what Leander was asking. Her eyes widened and smile fell before clarifying.

"A-Ah, no... s-sorry, I d-don't... um... work alone..." Alki said, sitting down beside her bag so as to appear more relaxed. Her hand patted the ground repeatedly, and she wiggled her feet back and forth perhaps a bit too fast for someone who was truly relaxed, but she was, at least, trying her best. How could she be relaxed? Who knew how he'd react to what she was going to say...

"I-I'm... w-well... I-I guess I'm part of a group... y-y'know... of other thieves." She said, her feet wiggling even faster now as her breathing became more shallow. She really needed to calm down... "I-It's... T-The leader's a... a, uh... Vulpix. And t-there's also a R-Roselia, a-and a Petilil... a-and me... B-But, uh, t-that's it for members, r-right now..." She said, her voice quieting as she mentioned herself. Should she really say much more? No... No, she shouldn't... she should change the topic, in fact. The girl looked up at the sky and feigned interest in the same clouds that had been present for the past few... how long, exactly, had it been cloudy?

"N-Nice weather, h-huh?"

Leander, who indeed had assumed that her nod had meant a "yes" to his question, was a little surprised to hear her contradict that answer so fast. She must have been thinking about something again, possibly more hesitance to answer. Perhaps his question had been too prying after all?

He mirrored her as she sat down, letting the ground carry some of his own backpack's weight for him. Like he had feared, it seemed his question had overstepped her boundaries, evident in the nervous little movements she made as she spoke. It felt wrong to interrupt her now that she had started speaking though, so he let her finish, muttering a curt "I see" and tipping his body forward in a nod afterwards.

The jigglypuff then went on to do a topic-jump into talking about the weather. Had the question been intrusive enough to warrant the weather-card? Leander's gaze sunk. "Less so than earlier. The warm sunshine was nice," he replied, playing along while considering just what to do now. While she seemed to want to avoid the topic of her thief group, it felt bad to leave it on that note. Maybe he could say something to make her feel more safe about having divulged that information? The risk of that backfiring wasn't too high... right?

"Hey... I'm not gonna report you or your friends," he began after some silent moments of thought, speaking more quietly and carefully than before. "You're not telling on me, so I'd be kind of a jerk to tell on you, right? So please don't worry..."

He joined her in looking up at the sky, sighing. This would have been a nice spot to lean back and cloudgaze, had his backpack not been in the way. But just talking was fine, even if he was unsure what to say to not scare his conversation partner off. Caring this much about someone and their life right off the bat was not a normal thing to do, and he was aware of that. He was trying not to pelt her with personal questions and intimidate her, but... he had never really been that good at acting normally around cute pokémon. Something about them just made him sparkly-eyed, thrilled and somewhat of an idiot every time. Not to mention what was happening here; he easily grew attached. It felt bad to see her worry about the things she'd said, and he really did not want her to pack up and leave out of fear, so he'd just have to adapt to her comfort zone the best he could.

"It's good to hear that you're not alone, though. It's safer to be in a group where you can work together and look after each other. If that's what you do, anyway..."

Alki nodded back softly as the Seedot spoke about the weather, her feet continuing to wiggle back and forth as she tried her best not to think so hard about what she had just said. If she ended up being responsible for anything that might happen in the future, then... then Alki didn't know what she'd do... What if she had ruined everything? It's not like there were many groups consisting solely of a Roselia, a Vulpix, a Petilil, and a jigglypuff around grassveil... Alki was just about to ask him about the issue, about whether or not he would report her or not, until... he seemed to have guessed what was on her mind.

Was she really that easy to read?

Either way, it came as quite a relief to the girl. She let out a small, nervous laugh, and after it had subsided, she felt quite a bit better. She was safe, then... at least, she probably was. "I-It was that easy for you to guess, huh..." She said, half joking, as she smiled and blushed again, just like earlier. Even if the start of this encounter had been rough (And it had been real rough...), at least things were starting to look up now!

"T-Thank you..." She said softly. After expressing her thanks, she began to fall silent. There was nothing more the girl could really think of to say, and instead, she preferred to look up at the sky, enjoying the weather in earnest. She wasn't a big fan of the sun... Honestly, she wished that it rained more...

Her mind was beginning to think about the details of the weather and of the sky when the Seedot spoke up again. And again, everything he said was true... She did feel significantly safer being with people who she knew were better than her. She didn't feel untalented, but she certainly felt worse, and if she were alone... well, she was probably too cowardly to even try...

"Y-Yeah... I-It certainly makes me feel better. A-And we do look after each other! It's just... w-well, I think I'm just worried about my sister... S-She's a guild member, y'know... And I love her! I really do. It's just... thievery is the only thing I feel I'm good at, so..." The girl trailed off, thinking about Darcy and about the guild, worry beginning to seep back in. She needed to stop... "I-I just don't know what she'd think... O-Or if s-she'd still l-love me, y-y'know... i-if she found out..." She said, suddenly finding herself attempting to justify her earlier attitude to the Seedot. Unnecessary? Perhaps, but all the same, she found the words spewing out with next to no control over what the words actually were.

Alki's little chuckle, as well as the comment on him having been able to guess her thoughts, were relieving to Leander. Reassuring her had been successful, and he had even been rewarded with another wonderful smile. But a new worry had cropped right up, this time regarding her sister's hypothetical reaction to finding out the jigglypuff is a thief.

"While I can't say for sure what your sister would think, I can at least tell you I understand how you feel. My mother's a police officer, and it'd be... well... terrible if she ever found out that I do this. She might even arrest me. So I get it. There are some things you can't even tell family about," he said, looking down at the grass strands between them being tugged at by the now slightly chilly breeze.

It was surprising to find out how much they had in common. And not only in worrying about especially law-obedient family members finding out; Alki had also said that the only thing she felt like she was good at was stealing. Just like him. Well, he was (usually) good at lying too, but that was in the same category of skills as stealing. All in all, they were both some pretty troubled thieves. This wasn't what he had expected to be the case at all. Although she admittedly had seemed shy and somewhat downcast each time he'd met her, he had for some reason assumed that she lived a much more pristine life. He expected less... breaking the law and feeling awful, maybe? It was probably because he'd put her on a pedestal. Not that he didn't still do that, but now she felt much more... alive, he supposed? She wasn't perfect. Not in the way he had assumed, anyway. And to his surprise, he liked it even better this way. It felt less bad to have those flaws when he knew that someone he idolized also had them.

Snapping himself back to the conversation at hand, he looked at Alki, then up to the skies. There was still her current dilemma to tend to, and his first answer had felt insufficient to him.
"But about your sister... I think her opinion would depend on just why you're a thief," he said after having been in silent thought for a few more moments. "You say it's all you're good at, but there must be more to it. You probably didn't start doing it to be mean or anything. Whatever made you start, I'm sure she'll at least have some sympathy for it. Besides, she doesn't know and doesn't need to if you don't want her to. I'm certainly not gonna tell her." Though most of his words had been quite serious, the tone had shifted to a more playful one at the end, complete with a little giggle. Gotta pull up the mood somehow.

Alki nodded, blinking in surprise at the Seedot's revelation that his mom was a police officer. That was an even worse hand than a guild member, wasn't it... at least as a guild member Darcy wouldn't actively be hunting the phantom thieves down, but if a mon' was a police officer , then who really knew what they'd do? She probably would arrest him, wouldn't she? But if Darcy wanted to, she could probably turn a blind eye... not that Alki was sure she would... She'd probably want to bring Alki in for Alki's own sake, or something silly like that...

"Yeah, n-no kidding," Alki said, laughing a bit, even though the prospect of Darcy ever finding out was anything but funny. It'd ruin her life, probably... she wouldn't have a home, and she'd quite possibly lose her sister... Not that it would ever come to that! She was sure... It couldn't... She wouldn't let it.

The jigglypuff let the wind push her over, such that she was now lying on her side, gazing at the people going about their day. She lazily thought about how long they might have been there, and how much of a roller coaster the conversation had been throughout. Now she was simply thinking about what the future might hold for her, and she couldn't help but wonder what the future might hold for Leander as well. Her worries were probably his worries too... With family, and with thievery... Getting caught, and what would possibly happen if he did get caught... She couldn't possibly be the only one worrying!  The thought had clearly crossed his mind before... and now that she knew that she wasn't the only one suffering from those thoughts, it made her feel a bit better about herself. Not about the possibility of getting caught, that still caused her stomach to churn with vivid images of herself behind bars, but... at least those thoughts themselves weren't abnormal. That was nice. Maybe she'd ask Synd'r about it later...

The girl was gently pushed away from her thoughts by the Seedot's voice again: chiming in with some more thoughts about her problem. She listened silently, ears wiggling as she let herself think about what he had to say. Again, he wasn't really wrong... she supposed purpose mattered. Someone who was only in it to get rich was way different than someone who gave their spoils to people who needed it...

"A-ah... w-well... I started cause..." Alki paused, unsure of how much detail she wanted to specify. In the end, she decided that there wasn't too big of a reason to hold much back. Leander already knew everything important anyways. "I-I'm technically adopted, y'see, and my m-mom... s-she's hurt, and she needs medicine, but... i-it's expensive, right? And... I-I wanna help... Help pay for it. I wanted to do it through the guild at first, but..." She paused, hesitating, and changed her mind. She didn't need to go into specifics there. Her failed attempts at being a good guild member were still a sore spot for Alki. "...It didn't work out. S-So I'm stealing now... c-cause I'm good at it, a-and the money I make... I take it back there..."

"A-And we're all kinda like that! V-ve... U-Uh... t-the Roselia, s-she started for a really similar reason, I-I think, a-and the Vulpix... Um, s-she wants to look out for us c-cause... w-well, she knows what she's doing, a-and... um... t-the Petilil does it to help out her f-friend c-cause... w-well... h-her friend's relying on her..." Alki paused, suddenly finding herself wanting to justify her actions even more. Do it completely! She wanted to make absolutely sure that Leander knew that they weren't just petty crooks... that they weren't evil. "A-And we all make sure to s-steal from people w-who... y-y'know... deserve it, a-and... who are mean... I-I don't think it's that different from b-being a guild member, i-it's just... t-the bad guys are less obvious, y-y'know?" Alki said, finally finishing her explanation-slash-rant.

It had been a lot. Especially for her. The jigglypuff punctuated her final words with a small, nervous laugh, hoping she hadn't said too much or made an especially large fool out of herself. It's not like she wasn't used to it, but still...

"See? I knew you'd have a good reason," he commented as the fairy had finished explaining her own reasons for resorting to theft. She had not seemed like the selfish type at all, but it was good to know that his hunch was right nonetheless. And hopefully, having her say it out loud like this would help her calm down about the whole sister thing. Whoever that sister was, she wouldn't be merciless enough to not at least hear her out about it, right? Especially if the thieving had been for their mother's sake...

He also came to notice the part where she mentioned being in a guild. Admittedly, he had wanted to do that himself a few times, as a way to try and do something good to outweight the evil of his thefts. But he had always refrained from it, telling himself that it'd only go south. As a compulsive thief and liar, as well as somewhat of a weakling battle-wise, it seemed like less than the ideal environment for him. Some of their experienced explorers would likely be on to him pretty soon if he didn't get himself mangled in some hazardous dungeon first. But if those problems had not plagued him, it would have been a great opportunity to do some good.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," he said as Alki finished justifying the thief group's motives as well, and compared it to the guild.

It was a lot like a guild. But it had more differences than the jigglypuff had listed. For one, it would recruit members from a different group of pokémon than your usual guild would. Different skills would be valued, and different flaws accepted. You wouldn't need to be an immaculate citizen or a stalwart survivalist of a dungeon-delver to be welcomed. Vices like being sticky-fingered or lying all the time could be turned to virtues. Now that he gave it some thought, it sounded... pretty good. Ideal, even.

He had to mentally shake himself free of the thought to let go of it. Although tempting, he reminded himself that this was organized crime. And his mother was still a police officer. If these guys operated in Grassveil or anywhere nearby... Eleanore might be assigned to try and catch them. And if she were to succeed, and found him among their ranks... Leander shuddered. But then again... if he were to join, he could finally help others through means he was good enough at for his efforts to matter. Nearly all of what he had been able to do so far were small, insignificant tasks he had sought out because he lacked the skills for anything else. And if they were not unimportant, they always involved placing himself in grave physical danger he could have avoided had he only been stronger. It had been so exhausting, so meaningless. But in a group like this? He'd likely excel. He could make up for all his sudden thefts and troublemaking, and feel accomplished in the process. And he knew he'd be caught someday anyway, so why not make the most out of his time as a free 'mon? The seedot was starting to seriously consider asking his fellow thief more about this group...

"And your friends sound really nice. It must be lovely to work alongside such kind-hearted pokémon..." he said, musing the last part in a dreamily manner. While he felt like he needed a few moments to think this whole thing over before making his choice about asking, his voice sounded like it already knew what he truly wanted to do. The rest of him just needed to catch up and realize it too.

Alki blushed as the Seedot told her that he knew she'd have a good reason. He brought up a good point, though. She did have a good reason, and Darcy surely wouldn't be able to deny that they needed the extra money. And it's not like she was stealing from people that didn't deserve it... Darcy wouldn't arrest her, or at least... not until she got a chance to explain herself. Right? Although that was the worst case scenario of course. The girl would rather not find out first hand... Even if she didn't arrest her immediately, Alki severely doubted she'd approve. And what would happen after that? The warm hugs and heartfelt smiles that Darcy always seemed to be tossing her way... What would happen to those?

Alki laughed nervously, trying to shake the thoughts from her mind. That was the doomsday scenario, and she'd do anything to make sure it didn't come to that... surely that'd be enough. And that was the end of it! Nothing more to be said about it. She shook her head, before refocusing in on the situation at hand. He... agreed with her? Alki stopped her nervous fidgeting and looked at the Seedot in thinly veiled surprise. She was... right? She didn't think anyone would really ever agree with her, even if they were a thief too... Maybe she understood this better than she understood other things? That'd be nice... It was also quite a bit reassuring...

She remained silent as well, blinking as some vaguely reassuring thoughts went through her head. It's not like she'd even done that much, but... being able to tell her side of the story and have someone agree with her? It was a bigger deal than she would've guessed at first. She swayed from side to side, smiling as she kept her happy thoughts to herself, enjoying them for the brief time that they would be there.

The Seedot's comment, however, shook her out of her own pleasant thoughts. Her friends were really nice. And working with them was lovely. She felt safe, and accepted, and she was proud to be a part of this group! She blinked, thinking over how the Seedot had said his little compliment. He seemed kinda... was it jealousy, or envy? Or just... Well... Alki wasn't that good with words, or with other pokemon... Still! It wasn't like she'd have anything to lose if she just asked...

""Y-Yeah, t-they're really nice... and it is fun, and... w-well, I feel safer, and... Alki's eyes shifted down to the ground, and the grass that waved back and forth lazily with the wind. She began to wiggle her feet nervously again, as her ears twitched, trying to work herself up to ask what she wanted. She took a deep breath, before blurting out, unusually fast for her:

"D-Do you want to join?" She asked bluntly, before falling silent, hiding her face from view out of embarrassment. She shouldn't have said anything...

As Alki spoke more of her friends and further solidified her point of them being good, the acorn listened carefully, wiggling his feet slowly as he looked at her. Although he already believed what she was claiming, hearing her talk about the group was a nice reference to have on the side as he made up his mind on the choice that was to come. Or rather, as he justified what he  already had subconsciously decided that he wanted, but hesitated to allow himself to choose. Them being nice meant that he wouldn't be joining some gang of heinous delinquents, so it wasn't that bad despite it technically still being illegal. He could have joined much worse groups than this one...

Yes, he would have to ask. Even if he were to be turned down, he would have to. If he refrained from it, he'd likely just regret it and think about what could have been for Arceus knows how long after that. It would become just like the guild: another opportunity at turning his life around, given up before it was even given a chance. And he didn't want more of those. So he was going to ask. Now. The moment he could bring himself to speak the word. The very moment...

"D-Do you want to join?"

Aand she'd beaten him to it. His pupils smallened, as he was both surprised and a little dumbfounded that she had been thinking the same thing. Had his mind been so transparent? She had seemed pensive before asking, so she probably knew. As the girl looked away with embarrassment, however, he immediately corrected his surprised look to an equally heartfelt joyful one.

"I-I mean, if you'll have me, then... I'd really like to," the seedot answered, nodding and starting to faintly shiver again. Whether it was out of happiness or nerves, he was not sure. Both, probably. If he was not a criminal before, he was certainly becoming one now, yet... he strongly believed he would get to be a better person as well. It was truly bizarre, but it did not feel as wrong as he had feared it might.

"Guess I've gotta step up my stealing game now, huh? Gotta do better than I did today if I'm working with pros, kakaka!" he added afterwards, sounding much heartier than he had when giving his rather blown-back reply earlier. Even though today had been quite the wild ride, the fluttery excitement he now felt toward the future and the opportunities it entailed made it all worth it.

Alki deflated some more, laughing softly as the Seedot expressed his interest in joining the thieves. It wasn't mean-spirited or anything, she was just happy that this whole emotionally charged situation was over and dealt with. And dealt with well, too! A new friend, hell, even a new teammate had been found, and no one had reported anyone, and both of them seemed to be quite happy, despite the earlier worries and stresses. The jigglypuff stood up, wiggled her ears back and forth and swayed from side to side as she beamed at the Seedot, not even realizing just how wide her smile was.

If she'd have him! Of course she would! He was an awfully nice Mon, and after what had happened, she wouldn't mind at all working with him in the future! She began to nod as she grinned at Leander. "O-Of course I'd have you! Why wouldn't I?" Alki said, still smiling widely as she settled down. She was still thrilled, of course, but she couldn't just be yammering on about the thieves in a place as public as this... The girl took a few seconds to calm herself before nodding again, continuing in a quieter voice.

"I-I mean, y-yeah, but... well... W-we'll watch out for each other, y'know? And... well... I-I'll do my best to help you out, too..." Alki said. It was a promise that might prove difficult to follow up on, given just how... well, green, she was too. But she'd do her best! And... that wasn't that great, but... it was something! She wasn't bad at thieving, like everything else either... "I-I can... U-Um, talk t-to the Vulpix, er..." She paused, hesitating... "W-Well, I guess if y-you're joining, y-you should know their names." She smiled, taking a deep breath and looking around, making sure that no one was around to hear them. "T-The Vulpix's name is Synd'r, and she's the leader, a-and... the Roselia is called Vesper... the Petilil is Cecil, a-and... w-well, I'm Alki!" She said, grinning again.  It was settled then! They'd all have a new teammate, and hopefully, a new friend as well...

Quite happy about her confirmation on wanting him to join, Leander giggled. She seemed much more upbeat now than when he had first run into her today, which was also cause for joy. This was the first time he had managed to cheer someone up through robbery. Even if the robbery hadn't done the deed alone. Either way, it was great to witness how this day's topsy turvy had changed her mood for the better.

At her proposal to help each other, the acorn nodded gratefully. While he had operated in a group before, it would likely take some getting used to to start doing it again. Last time hadn't exactly gone stellar either, but this team seemed much more promising. Not to mention more morally sound. "Synd'r, Vesper, Cecíl... and Alki," he repeated quietly, committing those names to memory. His new teammates, were he to be accepted.
"I look forward to meeting everyone." Though he was easily just as excited as her, he too subdued it in his voice to avoid drawing attention to them. He kept reminding himself that the leader would first have to approve of him joining, as to not start cheering or doing a happy-dance or something equally silly and attention-hogging.

Speaking of getting the leader's approval... It occurred to him that they had not arranged some way for him to know whether he was accepted or not. If her talking to Synd'r about this was going to happen a few days into the future, he would be in Rainfront or on his way there when it was decided. And opening and writing letters was... challenging to him, to say the least. If it were to happen earlier than that, it'd be best if he stuck around in Grassveil for a little longer. And in that case, he'd need to start working on some sort of excuse for staying with Eleanore an extra day or two, or find a somewhat comfortable tree. Because there was no way he was telling her that his reason for staying longer was to join a criminal gang. He stood up.

"One question, though... When are you gonna ask Synd'r? I was actually about to leave town for Rainfront, and I'm not sure how I would find out the result from there. Just gotta know whether I need to find a place to stay while I wait or some way to know from afar and whatnot, y'know?"

Alki nodded eagerly, giggling softly in response to Lea's own laughter. She certainly felt a lot better compared to earlier... And that was rare. Usually, if she started the day in a foul mood, she ended it even sadder than when she'd started. Not today though! Today, she'd found a friend, and if Synd'r agreed, then potentially, a future teammate. And that was cause for joy! Arceus knew she needed more friends... Alki scuffed her foot on the ground, her laughter subsiding slightly. "I-I'm sure they'll love to meet you as well!" She said brightly, her smile still prevalent on her face. Lea seemed just as happy as she was...

But his eyes seemed to cloud in thought, and Alki tilted her own head as she pondered over what the problem might be. Had she done anything wrong on her end...? Oh boy... Alki blushed softly at the thought, her face becoming more neutral. Before she could worry herself too much, however, Leander made his thoughts vocal. Leaving for Rainfront...? Oh boy... So this really wasn't going to work, huh? Alki hmmed softly as Leander made his point known.

"I-I mean, I-I'll t-try to ask her as soon as possible, a-and... w-well... I-I'm..." It really shouldn't be that hard to say that she couldn't write... Or read for that matter, but it was. At least for her... "M-My hand-writing is bad, s-so... I-I'll j-just come to R-Rainfront! A-And we can find each other there!" She nodded resolutely, as though this plan had no flaws. Of course, Rainfront was a big town, and it might be difficult for her to find him in such a big town, but... What other option was there? She couldn't think of anything else...

"I-I m-mean, if t-that's alright with you!" She added softly, looking at him with the same bashful, half-smile on her face once more.

One of the Seedot's lower eyelids raised in curiosity as the Jigglypuff hesitated to finish her answer. It slid back down as she explained that her handwriting was bad, but he still found her reasoning a tad odd. It couldn't possibly be that bad, right? Most handwriting was readable with some effort even if it looked messy. However, he refrained from commenting on it. It wasn't like he had gotten any better at opening letters during the past minute, so he still saw no point in pushing for her to write one. It would have been awful if a letter like that was opened by the wrong pokémon somehow, too, so perhaps a letter was a bad idea regardless of their writing and letter-opening skills.

Letter things aside, he was a little surprised to hear her idea on what to do. Having her go to Rainfront to tell him was not an option he had considered. And other than her ever so present stuttering, all about the way she had presented it had made her seem quite confident in her sudden decision, too. But confident or not, sending her all the way there just to give him a simple yes or no felt like asking a bit much, so her follow-up of asking if it was alright with him almost had him laughing some more in sheer surprise.

"Hey, I was just about to ask you if that's really alright. Don't steal my line," he joked. "But if you're fine with it, so am I. Rainfront is kind of far, though, so you don't have to go there if you don't really wanna. I'll find some way to manage even if I gotta stay here and wait." He then closed his eyes the way one would have closed them when smiling, as if to underline that he was fine with whatever she chose. While he did travel between Grassveil and Rainfront a lot himself and was getting used to walking a lot, he was aware that others might find that tiring, and was not about to force someone else to go do it too, even if it would be more convenient for him than having to stay.

Alki swung her arms back and forth, satisfied with her solution. He hadn't called into question her statement regarding her handwriting, which was... Really, that was her main worry. She didn't really want to explain to anyone that she was illiterate, especially since that seemed like something nobody else was. Darcy could read and write, obviously. She was pretty sure the other thieves could as well... Almost all the guild members she'd met could do so too. So that was just her! And even if Leander had been very polite and very nice, she still didn't want to admit such a flaw.

When he agreed to her solution, her smile grew as her ears perked up. So it was settled! Alki'd see him again in Rainfront once Synd'r agreed... And she would! Right? That'd... well, she was very hopeful she would, anyways. Even if she didn't, though, spending time with someone so nice in a place like Rainfront seemed quite agreeable, and she had managed the trip in the past, so it wasn't a big deal at all!

"Y-Yeah! Y-You don't have to bother yourself, I-I'll h-head over as soon as I know! A-And... U-Um... W-Well, I wouldn't just be going there to give you an answer. There's a lot of places I like in Rainfront, like the Inn, and there were a few food places I wanted to visit last time I w-was there, b-but I couldn't. I-If you like, w-we could visit them once I'm over there...?" Alki paused, blushing. It'd be nice to do something like that, that was for sure. Assuming Leander would want to bother more with someone like her... "I-I c-could p-pay, too!" She added, bouncing up with newfound worry. She didn't want to seem like she was forcing him to do something like that...

"B-But, y-yeah... O-Only if you wanna..."

"Of course I wanna!" the Seedot answered enthusiastically. He then closed his eyes and wiggled his body from side to side with glee. "It sounds like it'll be a lot of fun! I haven't visited those places with somebody else before either, so it's about time I did, kaka." It was kind of unbelievable to him that it would be with her, though. He had been so sure she would get the hell away from him once she found out he was a thief, but here they were, planning a friendly city outing... He almost did another wiggle. Oh, but hadn't she offered to pay, too? That wasn't neccessary...

"And you don't have to pay. You said you had to get money for your mother's medicine, didn't you? So you should keep your poké for your family. If anyone should pay, it should be me. I don't have anyone to look after but myself, so it's better that way." He had a fairly simple and inexpensive lifestyle anyway, so it wasn't like he would miss that poké particularly much. Going out and having fun with a friend was definitely a better way to spend it than anything else he could think of to blow it on. Especially when that friend was Alki!

"Besides, being with you is payment enough for me..." he added carefully, not sure where to draw the line for his outward admiration of her. But honestly, not only was she an adorable Jigglypuff, she had also been incredibly nice and forgiving to him and potentially helped him greatly in his search for a way to make up for his misdeeds. How could he possibly contain all of his awe within himself?

"So, then we'll meet in Rainfront sometime soon, and go visit those places together, alright?" he asked after a small pause, both to confirm the plan and try to cut off any chance she had to deny him paying.