Ninety-nine Baskets of Pecha

What a nice afternoon it was. The air was cool in the shade of the trees, even though the sun was still high in the sky. Sofie had a basket of berries in tow as she walked quietly along the path back to Grassveil. She was ready to join the guild, team or not. So far she had battled an outlaw on her own and met a few new faces. That was enough for her to believe that she was able.
"Confidence is key," she said softly to reassure herself. Since she knew she needed confidence, she would do her best to make sure she had a bunch. Even though joining the guild would be exciting and all, she wished she could have at least met a few pokemon so that she would be with faces she knew. She let out a sigh but kept her head held high. Sofie wouldn't let that prevent her from following her mother's footsteps. This mareep was now a few steps closer to making it and being the best explorer there ever was.

Div'et looked towards the sun. It was just peaking over the invisible halfway mark in the sky. The fallen leaves scattered along the overgrown path made a satisfying crunch. It was the warm time of the year, and in Div'et's opinion the most pleasurable. The treetops rustled in the wind, sending more leaves falling to the ground.
It was a bit unsettling for Div'et, being alone in Pecha Forest. Most of the pokemon living here we're docile, some not. He wished he wasn't alone, just for extra assurance. Div'et wasn't the greatest at battle, and he knew it. He didn't want to battle, but some pokemon are too aggressive for reason.

After some time of continuing down the path, Div'et heard something. It was quiet, but it sounded like someone was near him. He wondered who it was, or what it was. Hopefully peaceful. Curiosity getting the better of him, he walked towards the noises general direction. Soon, Div'et heard what sounded like footsteps.

"Hello? Is someone there?"

Suddenly out of the blue she heard a sound. It was faint, but surely the voice of someone. She heard it coming from behind and turned towards the stranger. From there, she could make out the shape and eventually in detail, a sandshrew. The polite thing would be to respond and he sounded friendly enough, so she answered back.
"Yes, there is indeed someone there. And if by there you mean here then that would be me," she said in her weird way of talking. Curiosity did kill the cat, but she wasn't a cat and so Sofie decided to walk towards the fellow. If she was lucky, maybe he too was heading for the guild and wouldn't mind her tagging along.

Div'et heard the noise respond. A few moments after, the noise turned out to be a Mareep. The Mareep didn't look like a threat. Relieved that the Mareep did not seem dangerous, he walked closer to her. Div'et noticed that she was holding a basket of something, Pecha berries. The scent of the berries was magnificent, stronger than the lingering smell throughout the forest.

"Hello there! Sorry if I snuck up on you. What brings you out here anyways?" Div'et said to the Mareep.

Even though she had gotten this close to him, Sofie kept the berries close and held the handle of the basket with a firm grip. She didn't want to be such an easy target if this pokemon was a berry addict like the one she had met before.
"Oh. I like to come to the forest a couple times in the week to pick the pecha berries. They're very sweet and delicious you know. By the way, I'm Sofie but I'd prefer if you'd call me Soft." she said, introducing herself.

"Soft it is. I'm Div'et, but you can call me Div for simplicity. Do you know where Grassveil town is? I'm headed that way." Div'et asked. Div'et reasoned that if she came to the forest frequently, than she would probably know the way to Grassveil.

Perhaps he could make it there by sunset, if Soft knew where it is. Div'et hoped he would not have to set up a camp. The thought of being in a dangerous forest, alone in the night was a scary one. He had only camped once, and that was with his father and brother. It wasn't the greatest experience, as Div'et loathed night.

"Well if we keep following this path, we'll make it there in no time," she said with a smile. She knew this forest like the back of her paw-hand-thing and it pleased her to be able to help someone. "Do you happen to be going to the guild too?" She had almost forgotten to ask.

"Why yes, I am!" Div'et said proudly. It was a nice coincidence that they both we're headed to the Grassveil guild. Now he wouldn't have to worry about walking alone. "So, I take it you are as well going to sign up to become a guild member?" Div'et said, while a gust of wind passed through the forest. The wind swept up the leaves from the path and forest floor, the fallen foliage quickly settling afterwards.

"That's great, and yes I am! Would you be willing to team up with me? I've been looking for someone to join me on my journeys. The thing is, I haven't been able to find anybody. But I thought since you were going to the guild also, then we could stick together." Sofie was absolutely ecstatic by now. She had possibly found a new team mate after so long. She didn't even notice the quick gust of wind as it bounced right off her thick pelt and didn't disturb anything but the leaves and fallen foliage on the ground.

Div'et thought about it for a moment. It was somewhat all of a sudden, but he would need a partner to explore with. Soft was nice, and it wasn't like he had any other options. "Well, you don't need to look any further. I would gladly form a team with you! Now all we need to do is get to the guild. Do you know how much farther it is?" He asked. Div'et was excited. He was finally going to become a explorer, with a new found friend.

This was absolutely great news, and Sofie was as excited as a bee who had found a field of flowers. "We should be there pretty soon, it's just beyond that turn over there." she replied, flicking her tail in the direction of where the path bent.

"Excellent. So, Soft, what made you want to be a explorer?" Div'et said. He watched Soft flick her tail at the upcomign bend in the road. Div'et couldn't wait to get out of this forest. Partly because he didn't like the feeling that him and Soft could be being watched at any moment. He wondered what Grassveil would be like. He heard from the explorers that would pass through his town about it. Now he would finally be able to see what it's like.

"Well my mom used to always tell me about her adventures and how she was once a great member of the guild herself. She always wanted me to do even better than her and would always remind me of how it would make her proud if I joined. So, I am doing just that. I want to make her proud. and have my name known by everyone in town! So uh...what about you?" she said, beginning to walk. It would be faster to multitask and talk while walking.

"Fascinating. Me and you have similar goals! I too wish to one day become famous. Discovering ancient treasure, finding undiscovered lands, it's all so exciting! I would get to do all of those things if I became a guild member. And, I can help people along the way. Sure, I won't get instant fame, but I'm willing to be patient." Div'et said while matching the pace that Soft was walking at.

"That is very similar! What a coincidence, who knew we were so compatible? We're going to be the best team ever and I'm sure of it!" She continued. It truly was a great surprise, she'd never expect to find someone who was practically an exact match. Sofie certainely had a great amount of confidence now.