Ballad of a Nap

Late afternoon had fallen upon the gentle arms of the forest, where Chiyako the Purrlion was currently lying on a log and relishing unconsciously in her daily slumber. Such was the life of a nocturnal creature like Chiyako, sleeping during most of the day and then only taking short power naps at night. Chiyako found she rather enjoyed mornings, however, and always made a point of getting up to watch the sun rise in that glorious moment of rebirth. The Purrlion was sleeping (by her standards) currently, lounging on her back with her hat covering her face and her belly exposed to a warm ray of afternoon sun filtering in through the canopy above, so that she could do just that. She had also been planning on scavenging around for some breakfast afterwords.

As she lay there sleeping, her stomach made a small growl. It had been a while since she had given up on all her misguided principles, since she had turned to living off the land. It had also been a while since she'd eaten. A small, cool breeze blew through the forest, ruffling the fur on Chiyako's stomach. The nocturnal cat pokemon made an unconscious "meow" of displeasure before rolling over onto her side, her hat drifting off of her face and down onto the forest floor.

(Chiyako the Purrlion - 11 energy)

(Jeff has 11 energy now, which is after subtracting 5 from the "current" energy level in Simple Supply Shortage, 16. At the time of this post, I mean.)

Jeff had just gotten done meeting Joey the Pichu after having run into him while trying to get supplies of his own. Having run into and having a skirmish with a Tangela a few hours prior had really drained the fire-type, so he tried to find a spot where he could sit and rest. Personally he would have liked to get out of Pecha Forest to do so, but it was afternoon, and thus saw no need at the present time. Besides, maybe he'd run into another Pokemon to convince him to sign up as a single guild member first, then recruit new members as he went along. Needless to say, the Charmander was a little lost at the moment, so he decided that now would be a good time to sit down and get his bearings. "This isn't the way out..." He muttered as he sat down, unknowingly about a few feet from the Purrloin that was already napping when he got there.

Chiyako felt a slight rocking as a new, unfamiliar weight plopped itself down on the other side of the log she was sleeping on. The feline sat up abruptly, fearing that she would fall over after the shaking of the log messed with her equilibrium. Once she felt secured again, she reached up to rub the remaining sleep out of her eyes, only to discover her prized denim cap was missing. "Gahh..." she grumbled in surprise and panic, looking around frantically for the item. As she looked around, The Purrlion noticed what had caused the log to shake before. She had now been joined by a unfamiliar Charmander, and while the company was welcome she was in a bit of a tizzy at the moment.

"Umm... excuse me," Chiyako pleaded, "if it's not too much trouble to you, could you help me find my hat? I had it while I was sleeping, but it's up and disapeered... You'll know it when you see it, it's crafted out of a rough, blue material."

The Charmander had noticed the Purrloin as well, and turned to her. "Sure, although I don't know where it would have ended up. I just got here, so." As he looked and looked, he tried to find the hat that the Purrloin was talking about. "It's not around the tree, ma'am." He said as he walked around it. Perhaps the gentle breeze had blown it away? Jeff did not know for sure, but he hoped that the hat would be found soon so he could continue his recharge.

"Thank you for the assistance," Chiyako said as the Charmander joined her in her search, "It's a very important accessory to me. I've had it for as long as I can remember." As she and the Charmander searched, she heard him call her "miss." She snorted a tiny snort, stifling back a few giggles. "There's no need to force yourself to use any unnecessary formality; you can just call me 'Chiyako.' It's a pleasure to meet you." She said as she rounded a nearby tree to see if it had been carried anywhere nearby. As she did, she happened to see a sudden breeze move something behind the log she had been sleeping on. She squeezed behind it and discovered her hat where it had fallen off of her head earlier. "Yes!" the Purrlion exclaimed, holding the hat triumphantly in the air. She slipped it back onto her head gently.

"Thank you for your help, ...erm, I'm sorry, what should I call you?" Chiyako asked, hopping back up onto the top side of the log and taking a seat there.

Jeff looked embarrassed when she said that formality was not needed. "My bad, I'm just used to calling people formally. Dunno why I do it." He said, chuckling. As Chiyako found her hat, he was able to sigh a sigh of relief, as she had her beloved accessory again. When he heard the Purrloin talking about the hat being a prized possession of hers, he couldn't help but think about the necklace he had that was passed down from generation to generation. And then she brought him back from his 'daydream' when she said "...erm, I'm sorry, what should I call you?". He replied, "Oh, sorry, my name's Jeff. Know it's kind of a weird name, but..." He said, sitting down next to Chiyako.

Chiyako grinned as the Charmander explained his use of the formalities. It was refreshing to see someone using such curt and dignified language, however she knew it wasn't an easy habit to keep up in conversation. She preferred to keep things simple in casual situations, it was typically easier for everyone involved.

"It's very nice to meet you, Jeff," Chiyako nodded politely, "Jeff doesn't seem like a very silly name at all; I like it personally. It's simple and sweet; an easy name to hold on to." She crossed her left leg over her right and leaned her weight onto her left paw, contemplating small thoughts in her head as they came and went. "So," she said after a minute or two, "what brings you to Pecha Forest, Jeff?"

FoxFireAlchemist carried out 10 launched of one Pecha Forest :

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Well, to be honest, Jeff really didn't have an answer to that question. Besides getting some supplies, he really had no reason to be in Pecha Forest. "Well..." He said, quietly. "I guess I came for supplies, and also for some alone time. Contemplation, if you will." He added. "You see, I've not really been all that upbeat about stuff lately because my old non-guild rescue team members and I got 'separated' while we were exploring Shadowhue a few months ago. I, for all I know, was the only one that made it out. And it's just, well, until today I never had the push to try again. A Pichu I met earlier set me straight on some inconsistencies I had in my mind though." He summarized.

Chiyako listened to the other pokemon speak about his troubles in silent, letting him speak his mind freely without getting in the way. She felt very empathetic towards him; towards his loss and his suffering. She hadn't experienced such a tragedy in her own life, so she could only try and fail to imagine the pain that the fire-type was in... which was something she couldn't do without and experience to draw from. She reached over and put a fuzzy paw on his shoulder.

"...I can't even imagine how painful that experience must be for you, Jeff," Chiyako responded after she was sure he was done, avoiding interrupting him. "Your words sound conflicted, but I think that Pichu you met was right in trying to set you back on the path towards your dreams and ambitions. I think the best thing that you can do for yourself right now is do what you are passionate about, do what you're good at, and make the best of what you can. I think you owe it to yourself; you could even do it in memory of the teammates you lost." Chiyako flashed a sad grin at him, "It must be hard... But you can pull through, I'm sure of it."

Chiyako the Purrloin - 5 Energy

The Charmander nodded. This had already been established when Jeff had met Joey earlier in the day, but after all, more motivation is better for everyone, right? "Yeah, you're right. Although I prefer not to think that they're on the other side now, personally I think that they just disbanded or something. I just keep telling myself, 'Who knows? Maybe we'll run into them again someday.' But in all actuality, I think that chance might be slim to none." He replied, choosing his words with the utmost care he could, mainly so that way he would still come across as having been comforted by Chiyako, and in a sense he actually was. But his fear was that he'd come across as not having gotten over it. At any rate, he eased up when the Purrloin grinned at him.

Chiyako noticed the Jeff seemed to have loosened up a bit, putting her more at ease as well. He didn't quite seem to be completely chipper, but at least things seemed to be getting better for him. "All you can really do is hope," Chiyako commented as she leaned over and scooped up a couple of nearby items that had caught her eye. A Pecha Berry, an Apple, and a Watamel Berry, all of which she scooped up and stored away for later. "Say... what would you think of taking a little walk?" Chiyako asked, "You've probably been traveling a while, but... there's a lot to see in the forest beyond one little patch of it."

He nodded in agreement, acknowledging the fact that he had only seen a part of Pecha Forest. "I've seen quite a bit of it, but there's probably still more to see. I was walking through for most of the morning already, so." He replied. He hadn't thought of picking up any items so far, but soon he would need to, so he resolved to pick up any items he encountered along the way from this point forward.