Life's a Peach

The earlier storm that had raged in the distance was long gone. Even the slight drizzle it left in its wake had ended, and the gray clouds hanging above the forest's canopy had dispersed, letting the rays of sunlight seep in through the leaves. The smell of rain was still quite present, and the green leaves and blades of grass were dotted with little droplets of water, sparkling as the light touched them. Pecha Forest seemed to be quite peaceful in its current state and not many Pokémon were out and about, most likely having stayed in shelter during the rain. It was still so quiet, almost as if every living being was still waiting to see if it was safe to go outside or if the rain would come back again.

Varda didn't have much of a choice. Not knowing where the wind had blown him during the storm, he didn't really have any safe places to hide in, not having found any shelters that would keep his completely dry. Not that it mattered anyways, as the bird Pokémon had already been completely soaked by the time he got to the foreign forest. His usually pristine feathers were ruffled and wet, even having spots of mud and dirt in those spots he was having a hard time reaching himself. Even his head feathers were soaking wet, their new heaviness causing them to be smoothly pressed against his back! The Swablu's belly seemed to be the cleanest, as it was constantly being brushed by the tufts of wet grass underneath as he walked.

He had no time to waste! Even though the wild ride of the storm that taken him from his home and brought him to the forest had left him exhausted, the Pokémon showed no signs of stopping. His wings were too tired for flight, but his little feet pitter-pattered tirelessly through the greenery. Every now and then, Varda stopped, his beady eyes scanning his surroundings in case he finally found something familiar that would tell him where he was and lead him back home. Honestly, he had no idea where he was or what direction he even came from! Most likely, the bird was just walking in circles, anyways...

The Swablu visibly brightened up when his eyes finally managed to see something new, something that just wasn't wet grass, rocks, trees and bushes. He could see a more traveled trail snaking through the forest and the endless sea of green, which was a good sign! Obviously, a road wouldn't be created unless others had walked through this very same spot multiple times. Where the trail went, there would surely be Pokémon! Perhaps even Varda's family! Hopeful and with new-found vigor, the Swablu hurried to the little dirt road, starting to follow it.


Current Energy: 14 (19 base, -5 from entering)

"Well... time to look for new team members." Lance said. His team members have been gone for a month now, so he desided to start fresh and get some new team members. He desided to look in pecha forest, since he would be able to grab some items. He kept walking along a path, waiting for something to happen.

The walk on the path was uneventful – which most likely was a good thing considering Varda. He couldn't have handled dangerous situations too well on his own, so a boring and uneventful walk was quite excellent to him in his current condition. It was a bit easier to walk on the dirt road too, as he didn't have to force his way through the tall grass obstructing his path. Of course, the good thing about the path was also a bad thing about it, too. As it didn't have much grass and was mostly dirt, it had grown a bit muddy in the earlier rain. With no wet grass cleaning him as he walked, the dirt quickly clung onto his white feet and wet belly. The tips of his tail feathers got a nice coat of mud too as the dragged behind the small bird Pokémon!

Some movement up ahead caught the Swablu's attention as he stood up on his toes, trying to make himself taller so he could hopefully see what was approaching him. Walking on the same path but to the opposite direction was some kind of bipedal creature. It wasn't anyone he knew, no one in his flock looked quite like the Pokémon taking a walk in the forest – after all, this one didn't even have wings! Luckily, the other Pokémon was small and didn't look aggressive – though then again, not many looked aggressive to Varda even if they actually were aggressive...

Still, the small bird Pokémon was quite happy to at least see someone! The forest had been so quiet and devoid of others this was, so now he had some hope that he was heading in the right direction! Happily, the Swablu waddled his way closer, looking quite the disheveled mess. His white and fluffy wings were anything but, having stains of grass and dirt just like the rest of the bird. His feathers were ruffled and it did look like he had been out there in the forest for the entire duration of the rain – and had probably rolled around in mud during it, too.

"Hello!" Varda chirped once he had walked close enough to the other Pokémon, seeming quite cheerful considering how bad he was looking,
"Does this road lead home?" He continued, asking innocently as his dark, beady eyes looked up at the strange creature. Somehow, he seemed to expect this other person – a complete stranger – to know where his home was even though he didn't know it himself...

As Lance was walking on the path, a bird pokemon, a very messy one, walked up to him. He heard it say hello, and ask if the path he was walking on was the way home. "Well, that depends on where your home is." Lance said. He looked at the pokemon with a puzzled look. "Why are you so dirty?" He never saw a bird pokemon that dirty. Atually, he has never seen any bird pokemon dirty, since they are always flying or perched on tree branches.

[Energy: 16-5=11]

As the other Pokémon asked where Varda's home was, the bird just blinked slowly as he kept looking up, keeping eye contact. It was a good question indeed – one that he couldn't even answer himself! Perhaps the Swablu had wanted someone else to know for him instead, like they usually did. His predicament was a bit more difficult than he had originally though.
"...I don't know," he replied after a moment's silence, still oddly chipper about it. While most would say – and probably be right – that it was going to be impossible to find anything if you didn't know where to look, such a thought didn't seem to cross Varda's mind. To him, the world was a much smaller place than it really was. His home had to be somewhere, so he would just have to look everywhere until he found it, of course! Surely it would be close.

"Oh!" The Swablu exclaimed as he raised his voice a bit after being asked about his dirty state, almost like he had just stumbled upon an epiphany. Looking down at himself, he noticed the condition of his feathers and all the stains ruining their smooth, uniform color. Apparently the bird hadn't even realized how dirty he was right now, so the other Pokémon had at least helped him to notice that. He had been rather preoccupied with other things, so something so trivial was quite easy to miss... But he clearly understood it now.

"Perhaps... Hm, well, the ground was very wet and muddy during the rain," Varda pondered, trying to find the answer to the question he also was quite curious to figure out,
"And I did bump into things, so maybe that's how it happened!" The dark eyes of the bird Pokémon almost seemed to light up as he came to a conclusion that made sense to him, opening his wings excitedly as the explained. Just as quickly as the fluffy wings had been spread, they closed and folded neatly against his sides and back once more.
"Where does this road lead to, then?"

"Well," Lance started, "The way you are headed leads to grassveil town. The way I'm headed... I don't know where that leads to." He look a little worried about the pokemon. "So you have no idea where your home is..." But when he thought about it, he didn't know where his home was either. But he left his home knowing that he may never come back. Since this pokemon was asking where his home was, he must of been forced away from his home. He looked at the pokemon, wondering what he was planning to do. "Ok, so you don't know where your home is, nor do you know where you are currently. So what do you plan to do next?"

"Grassveil Town," Varda repeated after the Pokémon, tasting the word in his mouth. No, he shook his head. It didn't sound familiar to him, so it surely couldn't be his home. Turning around, he looked back in the direction he had just come from. The other Pokémon was heading towards there, but he didn't seem to know what was in that direction. Maybe his home would be in that direction, because it couldn't be Grassveil Town? Or maybe he should head into the town, as towns were bound to have many Pokémon living in them? If he met someone familiar, they might know where his home was! Or maybe his family was already looking for him and went to check this Grassveil Town out right away!

The decision was hard and the Swablu couldn't really decide. He turned his gaze back towards the dog-like Pokémon. The Pokémon had been right, Varda had no idea where his home was – and he also had no idea where he was, either. He was as lost as one could be, not even being sure what he was supposed to do when his current plan was questioned.
"Um, um," he pondered, glancing from side to side as he tried to decide,
"I should keep looking! I'm sure I will get home eventually, I just have to follow this road," the bird chirped cheerfully. It was barely a decision, as obviously he couldn't just give up... But it seemed to be enough to the Swablu, happy to have some kind of goal. Even though the goal he just got was identical to the one he had just a moment ago.

"Why are you following a path when you don't know where it goes?" Varda didn't waste any time asking, being innocent enough to assume that it wouldn't be something the other Pokémon didn't want to talk about. It was a bit odd to follow strange roads, but he was doing the same thing himself! Of course, the Swablu was lost and looking for something, so perhaps that was different? Or maybe it was the same? He didn't know anymore, but it would make sense.
"Are you looking for something?"

"Well, I am looking for something." He reached into his bag and pulled out an explorer badge. He proceeded to show the badge to the Swablu. "I am the leader of a team named team mythical. Two of my team members left, so I'm looking for new ones." He desided to also show the Swablu where he was. He pulled out a map out of his bag and also showed that to the Swablu. "You are currently here." He pointed to Pecha forest. "And grassveil town is over there" He then pointed to a small town on the map. He put the map and the badge away. He wondered where the Swablu was going stay. Then he had an idea. "You will need someone to help you, and you also will need somewhere to stay. I have somewhere to stay, and I can help you find your home. I think it would be best for you to join my team. What do you think?" He smiled at the Swablu, hoping that he would accept his invintation.

Varda's floppy head feathers seemed to slightly perk up as the other Pokémon confirmed his earlier guess. So they both were looking for something and that's why they were in the same forest! Perhaps there was something about the forest that sucked inside Pokémon like them? It truly was mysterious. Though the Swablu did seem to be pleased at his deduction skills and actually having guessed correctly, he stayed quiet – though he did seem to radiate some kind of positive energy as he watched the figure in front of him, interested in the rustling sound the other one's bag was producing as the Pokémon dug through it.

"Ooh," Varda cooed as a shiny badge was pulled out of the bag and shown to him, his eyes sparkling. He was concentrating more on it than the explanation he got, but he did hear the other Pokémon well enough to understand. He was looking for team members instead of home! ...Though the bird was unsure what kind of a team it was. Not voicing any of his concerns yet, the Swablu waited for the team leader Pokémon to show him something else when he noticed him reaching for his bag. The map wasn't as shiny as the badge, but the bird still wanted to take a look at it, standing on his toes so he could see better. While he unfortunately didn't find a place that was labeled "Varda's home", he was shown where he was at least. This Pecha Forest was quite close to Grassveil Town, so at least the trip wasn't going to be too long!

"Grassveil Town is close," he even vocally expressed his thoughts as the other Pokémon put away the items he had shown to the Swablu, seemingly quite happy about the fact. He was quite ready to continue his search already, but his new acquaintance seemed to have even more on his mind! Listening closely, the bird blinked a few times, given such hard decisions right off the bat.
"Um, what does a team do?" Varda had to finally ask, unsure what was expected of him if he chose to join this other Pokémon's team. At least he figured that he should know that before he agreed to anything asked by strangers, so that he didn't let them down! While the help was quite tempting as was the offer of a place to stay in... He did have to wonder if that was needed. If his home was right around the corner, was this all necessary...?

"Though I'm not sure if I can," the Swablu's cheerful exterior seemed to darken a bit as he considered the offer,
"When I get back home, I might not have an opportunity to come back," he explained, not sure if a team leader would like it if his team was constantly losing members. Varda was supposed to stay at home and do nothing, so leaving might not be something he could do – which surely would hinder his position as a team member!
"Is it easy to find new member in this forest?" The bird still wondered, going slightly off-topic. He did want to know if there was a reason for the other Pokémon to come to Pecha Forest instead of some other place... Maybe the forest was actually full of Pokémon?

Lance frowned. "I'm not sure that you will find your home that quickly. Besides, you're in no condiction to look for it right now." He looked at all the mud and dirt on the pokemon. "You need to rest and get cleaned up first." He walked over to a tree and found somewhere dry to sit. He looked up at the Swablu. "Come over here and rest, and lets get to know each other more."

Varda blinked, his expression not changing from his oddly cheerful yet oblivious smile he had. It seemed like the other Pokémon thought that it would take him longer to find his home than he thought. He certainly hoped it wasn't so, as surely everyone was already very worried about him! It wasn't good for him to make others worry for no reason, so he had to hurry back. But... Perhaps the Pokémon did have a point. As the Swablu looked at himself, he certainly did need a bath – and fast! Even his feet were starting to feel sore and tired from all the walking, so rest did sound like a good idea, too. He just wasn't sure if he could allow himself to rest now when he had to hurry back home...

The bird Pokémon's eyes followed the blue-furred team leader, not following him until he was actually told to come over to the other. Waddling off the path, Varda walked over to other Pokémon – who had already sat down underneath a tree, finding a spot that had been protected by the leaves and wasn't as wet, it seemed. The Swablu followed the other one's example, allowing his sore feet and body to rest for the first time after the storm. Plopping his behind down on the soft grass, he looked up at the other Pokémon. He had asked some questions and he hadn't gotten an answer to them yet, but maybe this was when the concept of a "team" was going to be explained to him better!

It was a good thing that the air after the storm was so warm. The wind had died down and the sunlight filtering through the leaves was warm, creating spots of warmth on the forest floor. Varda had a habit of getting sick very easily – and now that he was wet, a cold, windy weather definitely wouldn't have been a good thing! He felt how the sun's warmth bathing him was trying to dry his wet feathers... And it felt good.
"Aaah–" the bird let out a long sigh, relieved of finally being able to rest and feel comfortable. While his mind wasn't completely at ease as he was still thinking of his home and his family, he was still able to relax.

"Do you... Think I should be taking a bath? I wonder if there is a pond nearby," the Swablu seemed to get sidetracked already as his eyes wandered around their surroundings, seeing if he could find more water to use for cleaning than the little droplets on the grass. The other Pokémon's comment of his messy condition seemed to be on Varda's mind, and it certainly was something he wanted to take care of as soon as he could!

"Taking a bath isn't going to be an option here. There isn't a water source anywhere around here. The best thing to do for now is to wait for the mud to dry up, then dust it off, along with anything else clinging to you. Then you won't be weighed down as much." He lifted the explorer bag off his sholders and put it down next to him. "Now... I will tell you everything I know about a team. My vision of a team is pokemon helping each other to get through dungons. It's all about teamwork on my team. Now, moving on to info about my team. My team is a rookie team. The team name is Mythical, and I stay at grassveil town's guild, leaded by a guildmaster who's name is Faye." Lance smiled when he said her name. She was such a nice, gentle guildmaster. "Well, that's everything that I can remember. Do you have any other questions?"

"Oh," Varda seemed a bit disappointed, turning his gaze downwards. He really was looking towards a bath, too... But if there wasn't a stream running through the forest nearby, it would be quite hard to get properly cleaned. He couldn't help but wonder how long it would take for him to even dry! It was a bit annoying having to stay so dirty, but right now the mud just would have clung to other parts of the bird's body if he tried to brush it off...

The Swablu looked back up and cocked his head to the side as the other Pokémon started to explain his team, his eyes large and curious as he listened. A team was apparently supposed to help other Pokémon, which certainly sounded like a good thing to do! Apparently the leader had decided to stay in the town nearby too, so the two Pokémon would most likely head into the same direction eventually even if they didn't become a team. Varda was still a bit unsure about that, as it all had been so sudden and he didn't know if his family would have approved of that.

"Um, you said that you had other members but a couple of them quit earlier," the bird started as he was asked if he had any other questions,
"How many members do you have left?" he continued, wondering if any potential remaining members would be fine with him joining them. Varda was quite new to these things, after all! He hadn't even ever left his nest for too long, so it was hard to say if he could help anyone properly. That did lead him to his next question...
"What kind of help do others usually need?" The Swablu asked, chirping and curious. Clearly there were many questions behind those dull, dark eyes – it just probably was going to take a while for all of them to surface.

"Oh! I don't even know your name!" Varda suddenly exclaimed, quickly spreading his wings open in surprise as he realized it. He didn't know who – or what – this other Pokémon was! He hadn't seem him – or someone like him – before in his life! Honestly, the idea of asking someone's name or introducing himself hadn't even come to the bird's mind the moment they had met, his thoughts so preoccupied with something else that there was no room to wonder about anything else..
"My name is Varda!" The Swablu chirped happily, flapping his muddy, cotton-like wings before folding them against himself again.

"Well, I have...only me left of my team. But I am planning to add a Ralts called Dawn to the team soon. And some pokemon needs lots of help, while others don't need help at all." Lance smiled. "And my name is Lance, nice to meet you!" He said in a cheerful voice. He looked around for a bit and saw a couple of bushes that might have items. Lance stood up and walked over to the bushes. He turned around and looked at Varda. "I'm going to look for some items, you can stay there if you want." He then looked in one bush, wondering what is inside.

LanceTheDragon carried out 1 launched of one Pecha Forest :

"Ah," Varda tilted his head as he blinked. It certainly made sense for a leader of a team to want more members if he was the only one left! He did have to wonder why the others left – or if it was that easy to just quit if you wanted to? Perhaps it meant that the Swablu could leave just as easily if it wasn't going to work after he got back home? But apparently this other Pokémon already had someone else lined up for his team, so he wasn't going to stay lonely for too long!
"I have never seen a Ralts before," he exclaimed, seeming quite excited. There weren't that many different kinds of Pokémon in the flock he lived in, as they all were more or less required to have wings to keep up.

The bird Pokémon was smiling and quite happy as they got the introductions out of the way, finally having a name for the person he had bumped into in the forest. Lance, it was. He was sure he could remember that, it wasn't too hard. Though it did seem like this Lance managed to see something, as suddenly after a moment of glancing around, he stood up and walked to some bushes nearby. Giving Varda his reason for his actions, the Swablu didn't get up on his feet quite yet.
"Do teams look for items in forests, too?" He went ahead and asked, still not very familiar with the kinds of jobs teams usually got.

"Is it usually dangerous?" The Swablu asked with a smile, keeping his eyes on the other Pokémon,
"Should I help? Can I help?"