Solitary Setbacks

energy:

Cattail Marsh was not a pretty scene. It was hardly a tourist attraction and it was most assuredly not a popular hotspot. The air was muggy, humid and uncomfortable, the flatlands were mushy and heavy, and the waters that flooded the flatlands were rife with muck and grime, to say nothing of the many bug, poison, and water Pokemon that made their homes there. The dungeon itself was merely a passageway to the infinitely more deadly Misty Mire, harsher swamplands that were home to much more dangerous Pokemon. Cattail Marsh was the sort of dungeon you went to only if you had to go there for something.

Goro the Croagunk called it home. Croagunk themselves were not an uncommon sight in the swamplands, but ones that weren't feral certainly were. Goro himself made his home in the Marsh not because the conditions were particularly favorable, but because how little traffick the area saw. If anything could be said about Goro the Croagunk, then it would be that he valued his privacy. A mercenary by occupation and a hermit by nature, the Marsh was a natural sanctuary for him. After setting off on his own, he'd stumbled into the Marsh on his way to Rainfront Town, and had instantly fell in love with the desolate population and unpleasant environment.

Only one or two ferals been pokin' 'round here today. Good 'ta see they're learnin' their place. Goro liked to spend his time in the Marsh patrolling his territory, a stretch of swamp deep within the dungeon that he claimed for himself. There wasn't anything particularly special about his flatlands, other than an abandoned run-down shack perched up on a gloomy embankment of water. It was dour and damaged, with heavy cracks in the aged wood, empty windows and a missing door-- he loved it. Goro counted himself very fortunate to have found it, and immediately set about beating back any and all feral Pokemon in the area, establishing the area very firmly as his.

Which is what he was doing now. The Croagunk prowled through the swamplands back to his hovel with a satisfied air about him, having discovered only a few Pokemon still lingering in the area. They were learning quickly not to come anywhere near his residence, lest they find themselves on the wrong end of a harsh beating.

ooc:

[Energy: 18 - 15 = 3]

The marshes were not a pleasant place to be, and Alki knew this more than anyone. Even though the relative silence and stillness of the marshes were somewhat pleasant, everything else about it, from the icky water to the mud that now caked the bottom of her spherical body, to the unpleasant smells, to the ever-present threat of a Poison type feral coming out and attacking her. That would be bad for anyone, but for a fairy like her, it would be even more-so.

Alki shivered. She felt awfully tired. And quite cold. What was she doing there again? She couldn't quite remember. She shook her head and continued to bounce forwards, unsure of where she was going. The marshland was kind of scary, even if they were quiet. She looked around, but nothing seemed right.

She was lost.

Although something did catch her eye. There was a house, run down, practically falling apart, but nonetheless, a house. Maybe it was dry? Alki smiled at the thought, looking down at the gross muck that she was covered with from bouncing across the marshlands. But the house was so close! And despite it's... shabby appearance, it could still give her a bit of shelter until she could remember why she was travelling the marshlands. She bounced towards the house, slowly at first, but getting faster with each bounce. Splash! Splash! Splash!

Maybe it was warmer inside? Maybe it had a bed! Alki giggled at the thought, her eyes gleaming with excitement. She'd be fine! She wouldn't have to deal with any Poison types in the house...

Splash! Splash! Splash!

Reflexively, Goro immediately ducked down, crouched low to the ground before he registered what the sound was. Something else was here with him-- not something too bright, considering the loud sound of water shifting around-- and it was very, very close to his home. Dimly, it occurred to him to perhaps get out of plain sight and take cover in the waters or behind the tree lines in case it was an enemy, but he dismissed the thought as soon as it came. Most weaker ferals were too simplistic to try anything more strategic than charging an opponent, and the sound came from at least several yards away. And if the Cattail Marsh attracted anything, it was travelers-- mostly Explorers-- on their way to the infinitely more dangerous (and resourceful) Misty Mire. It was perhaps unfortunate that one of them made it this deep into Cattail Marsh without finding the entrance to the Mire, but not necessarily suspicious.

Splash! Splash! Splash!

Still, if Goro was anything, it was paranoid. I am not about 'ta let some happy-go-lucky Explorer brat get the jump on me. Striding purposefully through the muck, the Croagunk rounded back to the direction of the disturbance, rather than towards his shack. Not that they're too far away, the tourist. He'd tail the intruder, gauge their intentions... and if he didn't like what he saw?

Well. Explorers were very far away from home, this deep in the Cattail Marsh. A harsh lesson wouldn't go remiss in this situation. Maybe they'd think twice about marching this deep into a Dungeon without consideration when they woke up in the swamp tomorrow morning sore after some discipline. He wasn't too worried about his shack, at any rate. The wood was practically rotting and the hovel was almost falling in on itself. Too small for any kind of furniture aside from a small chest and a deteriorated straw bed. Still, it was dry, and he had a few old scratchy blankets thrown about. Good enough for shelter.

The closer she got to the house, the more excited she became. She felt a bit light-headed, a rest would help with that! And besides, it didn’t seem as though anyone was around. At least for the time being, she’d be safe. She stopped bouncing and broke into a run the last few meters, before finding herself on solid, wooden ground. The gross combination of Mud and water was really starting to bother her… she tried to clean herself up as much as she could before heading inside. She didn’t mind being a bit dirty, but really, it was a bit excessive. Just how large was the marsh?
 
She paused before she entered the house. It wasn’t particularly cold, but still, she found herself shivering. Something didn’t feel right, but as she scanned her surroundings, the only thing she saw was marshlands, but there didn’t seem to be any other Pokemon in sight. She just wasn’t used to being without Darcy, was all. That had to be it. She shook her head before heading inside. Drying off and staying warm was the most important thing at the moment.
 
The first thing she noticed as she went inside was that the house was perhaps even more run-down on the inside than the outside. There was a chest leaning against a wall, and a straw bed that seemed almost broken. And used. Was she wrong? What if someone was living there; should she leave? No, it was clearly abandoned… if someone was living there, surely they’d take better care of their home? She looked around once more, just to make sure there was nothing she’d missed.
 

A stack of blankets were resting in the corner of the room. She bounced over to them. She shivered. “I-I’m just c-cold and wet, t-that’s all...” She muttered to herself. She grabbed one blanket to clean herself up with, and wrapped herself in the other two. They were a bit itchy and not at all like the blankets at the guild, but t-they’d have to do… she began to close her eyes, she felt awfully tired. She just hoped that she was right, and there wasn’t anybody living there...

I ain't even gonna try to guess what that thing is. What Goro found was a disgustingly cute little ball of... fluff. He'd traveled far and wide himself and seen many different kinds of Pokémon, including a few different "baby" Pokémon, but never had he seen something so picturesquely innocent.

He saw a Jumpluff, once. It was made of cotton, but at least that kind of made sense. It got around by floating, and when the wind picked up they could fly pretty quick. On the other hand, Goro couldn't even attempt to guess as to why this thing had to be so... bouncy. And pink. Befuddled, the poison-fighting hybrid continued to tail his quarry, pausing appropriately when the balloon-like Pokémon stopped in front of his shack and took one last survey of the swamplands--as if it was worried about being followed, after bouncing through the waters like that--crouching low in the muck so as to avoid detection. Credit where credit was due; even if this tourist traipsed through the swamp waters like a Spoink on a sugar-high, at least it had some semblance of manners. Goro watched as the spry little thing attempted to clean itself of swamp muck and mud, before bouncing right through the door-less doorway like it owned the place. Well, now.

'Spose I could march in there and smack the little twit around. Lil' thing like that probably can't put up much of a fight, that's for sure. Goro crawled onto the patch of dry land his shack rested on, quietly contemplating what to do with his self-invited guest. He felt a tendril of cruel amusement as he gave thought to this new predicament. A very quiet croak uttered out of him reflexively, most likely drowned out by the sounds of nature in the swamp, but perhaps detectable to a Pokémon listening hard enough or possessing gifted hearing. Or I can wait out here for the little bugger and beat some answers out of it when it comes out.

Ah, hell. Poor thing was practically shivering on its way in. I'll let it catch some shuteye before I give 'em the boot. Ambling back on his hind legs, Goro rolled the stiffness out of his shoulders before setting about collecting some dry wood from around the area, working on a fire to keep himself warm in the meantime. He was uncaring of the effect it might have on the ferals in the backgrounds--for the most part, they learned to stay away from this stretch of the swamp.

Alki drifted in and out of consciousness. Although she wasn’t quite sure why it was so difficult to fall asleep. Obviously, she was in a very… strange part of the world. Dirty and Muddy and gross, but as far as she could see, relatively safe. So why did she still have that feeling? She didn’t feel as though she were alone, but as far as she could tell, she was. There weren’t any other Pokemon around. So why couldn’t she shake this feeling?
 
She hummed softly to herself. It was a lullaby she remembered hearing, and usually, it calmed her down. Not today, though. There was something eerie and wrong about this place. Why was it so isolated? And why was there still a chest? If it really were abandoned, someone was bound to have taken it by now, either a feral or an explorer. But it was still there, and the bed seemed used…
 
Still. She didn’t want to go back out onto the marshes. At least, not yet. Hopefully she wouldn’t run into the tenant. Just in case, she found herself reviewing what moves she knew. Just in case she had to defend herself.
 
It didn’t make her feel much better.
 
Besides, it was nothing more than a feeling. And she needed some sleep. She couldn’t get it though. She went outside of the house again, and simply sat down, leaning on the doorway. She began to stare off into the distance, thinking about everything--
 


Was that smoke? It seemed like there was a fire somewhere off in the distance… Ferals didn’t build fires, right? Unless they were a fire type, then… maybe? But Alki found it hard to believe there’d be many fire types in the marshes. Maybe it was the person who lived in the house. Had they seen her? She hoped not. She began to bounce towards the fire. Maybe they were friendly. “Hey!” She called out, just in case they’d mistake her for a feral. She really couldn’t be too sure, especially in a place like that. “I-Is that your house?” She asked, as she bounced towards him.

Goro looked up from his hasty work-- a crude, short crowding of dry wood slowly burning away in a small fire-- to see the bouncy little balloon from before making its way toward him. He was surprised to see it bounce back so quickly from the tolls of Cattail Marsh; the ferals here weren't particularly dangerous, but they could swarm you if you weren't fast enough in dispatching them. The waters were generally difficult and disgusting to traverse, the muck and filth sticking to one like a bad stain. Enough elbow grease could usually work out, but he doubted the Pokémon in front of him had an ounce of muscle in its tiny body. He ignored her question silently, poking at his fire with a stick, shifting it around listlessly before raising an eyebrow at the little thing. Looks like it's a baby Pokémon, after all. Well. I'm a crook, but I ain't evil. No sense in beatin' on children. Unless they're annoying.. but this one seems cute enough.

"That was quick. Ya sure yer all rested up? Got a fire here if ya wanna fetch them blankets. You 'kin warm up out here, if ya want." He'd refrain from bullying the little thing, at least until it got on his nerves. If it couldn't shut up when he said so, then that'd be a different story. "I'll stick some more wood on this here fire, and we can watch the fireflies rise up. Ya ever see the Marsh at nighttime? All them Illumise and Volbeat light up real good-- real 'purdy sight."

Alki received an answer, but not quite the one she expected. Still, the Croagunk had pretty much confirmed that it was his house. How would he know that there were blankets otherwise? And he’d also seen her. Otherwise he wouldn’t know that she’d been trying to sleep. There’s no point in hiding anything then. She did feel curious about where this Pokemon came from, though. He talked strangely, it made it difficult to understand him. Why was he living all the way out here? Why not in Grassveil? Or that other town… Rainfront? Both must be better than living all the way out in the marshes alone.

Well, there wasn’t much of a point in keeping silent. Despite his strange way of speaking, he seemed friendly enough. Y-Yeah, um, I’ll be right back. Let me just get the blankets… She mumbled, a bit embarrassed, but she did as she was told. She glanced at the chest on her way in. What was in it? She considered opening it to find out. Instead, she grabbed the blankets and bounced back through the muck towards the Croagunk.

“Ok… um.... Here they are, I guess. You can have them, if you want. I’m fine...” She mumbled, sitting down near the fire as she set the blankets down besides the Croagunk. That was a lie. But really, she wanted to stay on this Pokemon’s good side. Why antagonize the only not-feral Pokemon she’d seen so far? Thankfully she hadn’t really needed to fight any ferals. “W-Why do you live all the way out here?” She asked, staring at the fire. The way the flames danced and flickered was wonderful. The small crackling noise of the fire was comforting. She’d rather be a fire-type. But no point in wishing for something like that… She continued her question.  I mean, there’s the towns you could live in, and the houses there are much nicer than… erm… they’re really nice. Rainfront isn’t really far from here, I mean, Grassveil is and that’s where I’m from… She trailed off. The fire was really pretty. “What’s your name?”

Goro was pleasantly surprised when the smaller Pokémon immediately bounded up to follow his instructions, instead of whining or complaining. He mulled over his little visitor while she bounced away back to his place, uncaring of what she might find. The little chest he had in there only had a few supplies and foodstuffs, nothing truly valuable or pricey. Food for himself, a few different berries in case he caught an ailment, and some other knick-knacks. All of it was certainly replaceable, and he was definitely not the sort to keep sentimental mementos. What was more important was how he dealt with the balloon Pokémon. He was never good with kids-- and hell, what if it was younger than he thought? He didn't know how long baby Pokémon were... well, babies, but he was sure this kid had people looking for 'em.

He raised his brows when Alki bounced on over and set the blankets next to him-- as if she hadn't been the one shivering and wet when she ran into his place. A short rest probably helped, yes, but he'd be more at ease if the little twit took care of itself. As least while it was here, anyway-- a Rescue Team might bust down his metaphorical front door at any minute, after all. Goro let the smaller Pokémon's voice wash over him as she babbled on, asking different questions here and there and talking about who knows what.

"Yer an awfully curious little thing, aren't ya?" Without waiting for an answer, Goro casually tossed the wad of blankets bodily at the Igglybuff, in one smooth motion. "I didn't need 'em fer me, kid. Bundle up, watch th' fire, n' be quiet."

The Croagunk poked at the fire a little listlessly, glancing at the smaller Pokémon curiously. "I live in th' Marsh 'cos I like the privacy out here. Too many other folks in Rainfront n' Grassveil make me nervous. I'm Goro. What's yer name-- and what're ya doin' this deep in Cattail Marsh, at this time o' night? You lost?"

Alki wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Curious? Her? Maybe a bit, but… a wad a blankets coming her way interrupted her thoughts. She clumsily caught them, making sure they stayed relatively dry, and looked at the Croagunk curiously. They were his blankets, and he’d told her to get them, after all, but they were for her. Not for him. She wrapped one blanket around her, shivered, and then wrapped another one around her. The third one seemed awfully tempting, and she stared at it for a while before deciding to leave it. What if the Croagunk changed his mind?

He told her to be silent. And she was, simply enjoying the fire. It danced for her, and it protected her. Ferals didn’t like fire, right? At least, she would’ve assumed that. Either way, it was beautiful. She outstretched her hands, getting as close to the fire as she dared. She’d ask Darcy about it sometime. Maybe she could learn how to make a fire?

Goro spoke up again, snapping her out of her trance. She supposed it made sense. After all, they were different Pokemon. Even if the marshland was absolutely disgusting, maybe he didn’t see it that way. She shivered. He was right, though. The towns were crowded, and Alki felt nervous in Grassveil at times. But it was safer…

“Umm… I’m A-Alki. It’s… a pleasure.” She mumbled, wondering how to answer the question. She wasn’t lost, exactly. That wasn’t it. She was just wandering. Explorers were supposed to explore, right? And she was an explorer. “W-Well, t-the truth is… Um, I had a bad day. I took a trip to Rainfront… I’m from Grassveil. And I guess I just wandered around for a bit and I found myself here.” She stared at the fire a bit. He was being hospitable and nice, and she was just a stranger. She could at least explain herself properly. “I-I’m from the guild in Grassveil, and… I guess I got into an argument of sorts. Not really. I don’t know how to explain it, but I feel like I let down someone I care about, and I just needed some time off. P-Plus, it’s not like I’m a particularly good or talented Pokemon so… s-she can do without me for a bit. I let her know though, so… no… nobody’s looking for me. Y-You’re probably wondering t-that. I-I mean, I-I’m sorta young but… n-no one’s looking for me.” A tinge of sadness crept into her voice. The whole thing with Morty and Darcy, the way she’d acted… she brought the blankets closer to her eyes, as if she were trying to hide. She stared at the fire, but the comfort wasn’t as absolute as it had been earlier. It was getting darker, maybe the Illumise and Volbeat would come out soon. That’d be a welcome sight. She apologized quietly, staring at the fire while she did so. That was more than he’d asked for.

He kept his attention mostly on the fire in front of him, and occasionally scanning the horizon for any incoming Pokémon, ferals or otherwise. Not because he was uncomfortable with the lonesome kid all wet and cold by herself, in front of his house, no, absolutely not. Really. He listened dutifully as she spoke, her voice quiet and with a tone of melancholy as she explained herself, actually offering up significantly more about herself than he'd asked. Which was fortunate, sure, because Goro had no idea how to talk to a lost little kid. What if she started crying? He snuck a glance at the Igglybuff, noting how she curled up into the blankets almost hiding her eyes, and felt a creeping tendril of worry and responsibility.

Still. All bundled up like that, huddled next to a fire wearing that expression like it was the most fascinating thing she'd ever seen... Maybe she was a little cute.

"Alki, huh? I ain't gonna pry inta' what happened, but... Cattail Marsh is an awful strange place for a girl like yerself to run away 'ta, I think." He loved it, personally. The humidity, muck, and rancid smells weren't particularly grating, and he was practically isolated from the rest of the Rainfront population, aside from the occasional straggler like Alki. And that was to say nothing about the feral Pokémon that he was able to beat on every day, free to fight and hurt as much as he wanted, without any consequences. He hadn't the foggiest idea why a kid would run out to such a place like this, all by themselves.

He had, of course, left his own family to come here, but that was notably different. He was older, and a trained fighter, after all, and he knew well how to fight and battle many other types of Pokémon. This little one looked like she wouldn't hurt a fly. Still, their situations weren't dissimilar. Maybe he could sympathize. "Yer awful lucky ya wound up in this stretch of th' Marsh, though. Th' wild critters know better than 'ta get too close to me or my lil' hovel, but further out it's real easy to get swarmed by 'em if ya ain't quick puttin' em down."

"Then again... yer from the Guild, so. Prob'ly wasn't all luck that ya made it all the way out here." He wasn't about to boot her out, not after that little story. But he wasn't sure how to tell her that-- speak the thought. She should stay for a bit. At least long enough to catch the Firefly Pokémon to rise and light the Marsh up as they did every evening. He could walk her back to Rainfront afterward, or even the border of Grassveil, if she needed him to. If she was from the Guild, though, then she was (probably) strong enough to look after herself. He had a hard time imagining the Pokémon beside him doing anything like fighting, but he'd witnessed stranger things.

Alki blushed, this Croagunk was acting awfully nice, even if he wasn’t entirely right on a couple of things. “W-Well… um, i-it’s awfully nice of you to say that, but the truth is… well, it was sorta luck. I mean, I d-don’t… I c-can’t fight. I d-don’t know any moves, and my parents… well, I never learned anything of the sort.” She mumbled, a light hue of red appearing on her cheeks. It really had been dumb luck she’d made it this far. Not that she’d complain, fighting a feral with the moves she knew didn’t sound like something she’d ever want to experience.

“B-But… I m-mean, at least I’m not totally useless! I-I’m on a team and stuff b-because I c-can heal. Like, I know a move for that… H-Heal Pulse, and I’m proud of it. It’s the only reason I’m on a team, I’m… a bit of a wimp without it. I’d like to fix that, but I… I don’t know. I can’t...” She said, trailing off again. She let out a small laugh, imagining herself even trying to fight. It would  be best to just leave that to Pokemon who actually could fight. She was just a worse Pokemon, naturally, than others…

“I-I know I’m talking a lot… I’m sorry about that.” She mumbled, after a few second’s pause. “I-It’s just… well, I don’t get the chance to really talk about myself a whole lot... ” She said. She opened her mouth to continue, but decided to leave it at that. There wasn’t a whole lot more to say… “So… um, just let me know if I’m going over-board… sorry...”

Coming from anything or anyone else, Goro probably would have scoffed at the little sob story, but somehow when it came from the baby Balloon Pokémon, he couldn't bring himself to think bad about her. He knew the feeling. He'd always been a natural fighter, courtesy of his heritage and hybrid typing, and once he got some training he even became pretty tough. But there were other things he felt the same way about-- he couldn't read or write at all, for example, and he could never imagine himself truly learning. It wasn't rare exactly, for a Pokémon not to be able to, but usually, they only couldn't if they had some sort of disability or natural incapability. Looking at Alki, he could understand that perhaps she could never truly see herself in a battle, due to being... whatever the hell she was. A bouncy little pink balloon.

Goro mused on his thoughts as Alki trailed off, whatever fuel she had to talk about herself so much seemingly dying out. Their problems were similar, but also different. Pokémon in their nature were powerful beings, as even the smallest of them had the capability to grow powerful. It might be more difficult for some, but everyone had some latent potential. There were Pokémon who chose not to fight, but he wasn't sure there were any Pokémon who truly couldn't. Even the Volbeat and Illumise, what most people in Rainfront figured for harmless Firefly Pokémon, could whip up some pretty strong winds and perform some powerful bug moves.

"I'm sure the healin' is all nice, but I ain't ever met a Pokémon that was well n' truly helpless. Ya gotta be able to do somethin'. What's yer kind, anyway?" He was a hell of a lot more comfortable talking about this, than whatever it was that upset her in the first place. Maybe he could take her mind off whatever problems she had back home, and pass along a little advice in the process. If there was one thing he knew, it was violence-- and how to be good at it.

Alki wasn’t sure what to make of the silence after she’d finished her spiel.  Had she gone overboard? Or was Goro just thinking? She pulled the blankets up closer to her eyes again, observing the fire. She didn’t feel brave enough to look at the Croagunk next to her. What would he say, and what was he thinking? She didn’t know, and that was what worried her. What if he didn’t like what she’d said?

She breathed a small sigh of relief when he spoke. They didn’t seem annoyed, really, and they certainly weren’t mad. He almost seemed… happier? Calmer? She wasn’t sure quite what had changed, but she was sure something had changed in his voice, and it was for the better. Alki lowered the blankets, as Goro got more comfortable, so did she. It took her a few seconds to completely decipher what he’d said, but she felt more at ease answering this question. “Well, yeah… I guess I can do some things. I know a couple moves, they don’t actually hurt but… t-they’re useful. Um… I… I know I’m an Igglybuff… r-right now. A-And then I can evolve. I’d be a… J-Jigglypuff? Yeah. That’s it. I think. And… I-I’m a Fairy-Type. Or half fairy-type, anyways. The other half of me is just… n-normal.”

Alki sighed. She felt embarrassed even explaining herself. The moves she’d mentioned weren’t good at all. One of them would only be any good if she tricked someone, and that would hardly be a fair fight. The other would take some time to actually work, and in the meantime it wouldn’t be hard to just swat her away. Sing and Sweet Kiss weren’t exactly the moves a good fighter knew. Maybe she should just content herself with healing. It’s not like she’d be good for much more. “I-I mean… n-no matter what I do, I-I’m always gonna be a round, light, bouncy balloon. I-I’m just not made to be useful like that, I guess. I wish I was… everyone I know can fight… I-I can’t...” She said, resigning herself to her uselessness. She simply observed the fire. Fire types could fight fine. Fire would always be useful, but not her. The only things she was good for were singing and healing, and even then, she didn’t ever feel particularly good at either.

Goro furrowed his brow as Alki went on about herself. Fairy-normal hybrid typing wasn't a bad hand to be dealt, really. Most Normal types at least had very decent power and fairies were a very powerful kind of Pokémon, able to check even the indomitable dragon-types. It'd probably be a while before she could do anything like that, but for now, at least it sounded like she was good support to have around. And that was more than a lot of baby Pokémon could offer. "Well... it's true that everyone's got weaknesses ain't fixable. But that's why most Pokémon run around in teams, yeah? So you can git others to cover the weaknesses you can't, n' you 'kin cover theirs.

"Different kinds o' Pokémon are good fer different things, ya know." Goro titled his head as he observed the withdrawn Igglybuff, visibly considering something. He knew fairies were just as susceptible to poison just as grass-types were, but if she really was with the Rescue Guild in Grassveil, she probably wouldn't scare that easily. And she'd made it all the way out here, after all. The Croagunk extended a hand slowly, his fingers carefully pointed towards the fire and nowhere in Alki's general direction, and flexed the veins in his wrist, his face pinched in concentration. Abruptly, a veritable surge of purple-black venom shot forth from the tips of his fingers, spraying the fire resulting in a loud, harsh hissing sound. It was more than he'd expected-- he hadn't done this in some time, after all. The small fire withered against the spraying but fortunately didn't die out.

"Poison-types are real good against grass-types, but ground types shake us up real bad. And psychics are even worse for a Croagunk, like me, since I'm a fighter-type, too. Confuse the hell out of us and set the poison in our veins a'boilin'. That's never gonna change-- I gotta live with that. But in yer case, it's like..." He trailed off uncertainly, not sure how to put it into words. He'd long since felt confiscated by his typing and heritage, ever since he saw other kinds of Pokémon fight. Most other Pokémon were versatile in that they could brawl it out or hang back and use special attacks, but for Croagunks it was a lot different. The closest they had to a keep-away game was the natural poison they stored in their hands, and that only went so far and so long. But for normal-types, that was their strength. "In the same way-- might be that you ain't never gonna be a brawler. 'S better for you, honestly, 'cus you can find other Pokémon 'ta do that stuff for ya n'd they'll do a better job at it-- I'm always gonna be fightin' up close n' personal, so I'm bound to run inta a few Earthquakes before my time's over with. It's all about-- ya know--..."

He leaned forward, studying the fire intensely as he tried organizing his rapid thoughts. In many things, Goro was slow and clumsy, but battling seemed to bring out a fire in him unlike any other. "It's about findin' yer job, best way I 'kin put it. When it comes ta battlin', fairies are good fer puttin' down drakes and fighters and darklings. That's their job. And normals are the jack of all trades, ya know? They 'kin learn a bit of everythin'. Ya need 'ta chase after that, 'cus that's what yer tailored 'ta do."

He nodded a few times after his little rant, leaning back while he sat, focusing on the now slightly-withered fire. His poison hadn't done much to kill it, thankfully, but if he planned on sitting out here with this Igglybuff for much longer, he'd need to fetch some dry wood to feed it. After a moment, he realized that he'd just spoken more just then than he probably had in the past five days, bringing a slightly dark blue hue to his cheeks. He hadn't meant to go off like that-- but there was something about the kid next to him that brought it out from him. He could see a little bit of himself in her, the way she was so down on herself and so resigned to her failures. Unlike him, though, she could work around hers, some.