The Robbin' Hood of Pecha Forest

Perched atop the highest branches of one of Pecha Forest's many short, chubby trees, a lone, hooded figure gazed intensely at the forest floor below, searching silently for his next wealthy target, whom it would be his sworn duty to relief of said wealth. At least, that was how he rationalized it in his mind after getting caught up in this new persona of his. In reality, Cracker had just found a new way to explain his own compulsive need to pickpocket and steal everything in sight. The culprit for his newfound identity was little more that a nursery book for baby Pokemon that he'd stumbled across one day in the woods.

In its pages, which he'd pored over religiously, he learned of the most righteous thief himself, who stole from the rich to give to the poor. It was a philosophy he'd taken to immediately, even going so far as to crudely fashion himself an outfit to match the pictures in the book. However, he neglected to notice the glaring issues with his newly adopted dogma. For starters, the Aipom didn't know anyone who was poor, and in fact had become quite reclusive and withdrawn from other Pokemon as of late. So everything he stole just wound up in his tree-house, gathering dust.

And the very things he stole were often themselves without real value. His compulsive habit had become an outright addiction, to the point where he took anything that wasn't his. The home he'd built amongst the trees was now packed to the ceiling with useless junk, and here he was, out on the prowl again, looking for something else to add to his ever growing collection of garbage. But through it all, he still wore the same excited grin he always had, nigh oblivious to his own isolation-induced mania. Outwardly he hadn't changed a bit, though. It was his moral compass that had lost all direction.

On top of his steady descent into monkey madness, he had yet to realize the dangerous fact that his rampant thievery hadn't gone unnoticed. He'd in fact angered nearly every Pokemon in Pecha Forest. If it weren't for his new, stealthier ways, he would've been engaging in fights by now. And ever the cowardly Aipom, whenever push came to shove, he always retreated in a hurry. For now though, he remained over-confident and in-character. As such, when he thought he spotted movement from a nearby shrub, he boldly leaped from the branch he was standing on and somersaulted expertly through the air, silent and efficient.

His tail snagged the next available branch on his descent and swung him perfectly onto his feet, poised deftly in a crouch as he spied the scene below like a predator. The grin on his face made him look more like a stalker, though.

The girl walked through the well lit Pecha Forest, her ears perking up at every sound they met, her breathing shallow and her footfalls indecisive, as if she were unsure whether she should turn back, walk away, and be done with the whole, unpleasant     business. Most other explorers she'd met at the guild seemed to enjoy trips to Pecha Forest. It was not nearly as intimidating as other mystery dungeons, the berry for which it was named was plentiful in it's woods, and it was all around a very nice, peaceful training ground for the guild’s new recruits.

  Alki jumped at the sound of a twig breaking under her right foot, and she couldn't avoid letting out a curse, fear disguised as anger. She gave herself a couple of seconds to calm her beating heart, glaring at the stick that had given her such a fright. “Stupid Twig…” She mumbled, taking another few seconds to consider her direction.

  The Jigglypuff flattened her ears, a sense of shame washing over her. She was more afraid of Pecha Forest than Darcy was of the Ruined Chateau, or of Cattail Marsh. Alki kicked at a clump of pebbles, watching them scatter away. It was, of course, her fault that she was there in the first place. Even if Darcy insisted she wasn't mad about her drunken episode, well, it still weighed on her. She knew she should make it up to Darcy, and she also knew that their team was short on Pecha Berries.

  Alki had thought she would be willing to come to Pecha Forest if it meant making Darcy happy. Now that she was there, however, she berated herself for not having thought things through. Being so close to her parent's house wasn't right. Suppose they saw her? Alki fiddled with the tail of her bright blue guild bow. She'd just have to hope for the best, find the berries, and get the hell out of there.

  Rustling. The sound of leaves and branches being upset met her ears, and Alki let out another loud curse word. The Jigglypuff began to backtrack away, before reminding herself that it was highly unlikely that either her mother or her father would be present amidst the dark, impenetrable foliage that was present in the top of this tree. If it wasn't her parents, then, it was either a feral, an outlaw, or simply the rare, friendly Pokemon who lived in a mystery dungeon. The latter wasn't impossible, and as for the former two, Alki felt at least somewhat confident she could handle the former two. Wind began to blow, and the bow she wore began to blow with it. “Anyone there?” She called out, waiting for a response from the shadows of the tree.

When the pink, ball-shaped Pokemon came waddling into view, Cracker crouched extra low with his eyes squinted suspiciously. They didn't look rich or confident like the sort of folk his doctrine demanded he persecute. In fact the Jigglypuff seemed rather jumpy, like the poor and defenseless he was 'sworn' to protect. However, despite trying to adhere to his new honor system, he couldn't help eyeing the pack they were carrying. He continued to observe silently until the other Pokemon jumped and swore at a twig on the ground.

Cracker couldn't contain himself, clasping both paws over his mouth to stifle a giggle. In his amusement, the branch shook beneath him and drew the Jigglypuff's attention. Fortunately though, the monkey was already more that prepared for introductions now. With another wild giggle, he sprang backwards off the branch, letting his uncoiling tail swing him through the air twice before flinging himself down towards the forest floor.

"But of course!" he declared gleefully, performing a vertical end-over-end somersault straight to the earth. At the last second he spun upright and struck the ground with the meaty end of his tail, balancing in the air. He struck a pose like he was being judged at a contest, but then said, "For it is I! The Hooded One! Protector of Pecha Forest!"

Using his tail as a springboard, Cracker threw himself up into the air again, back-flipping skillfully onto a low-hanging branch to point an accusatory paw at the Jigglypuff. "And you! Who might you be? Are you friend or foe? Have you come to steal from the poor, too? Answer me, travelleeeeer!" he demanded dramatically.

A chipper voice floated down from the tree’s canopy, an Aipom did a rather impressive, if flashy, show of agility as he descended, striking a pose as he landed, like he was impressing a panel of judges. The only judge, however, was the young jigglypuff, who seemed equal parts frightened and impressed of this new Pokemon. Ferals most certainly didn’t behave like this, however, and his tone of voice made her feel reasonably confident that she wasn’t in any serious danger, so she stood her ground and glared at the newcomer, pretending that her display of nerves and antics hadn’t just happened. Nothing unusual or weird about a jigglypuff cursing at sticks. Certainly not!

“Um… alright.” She mumbled, taking in the strange sight as best she could. This Aipom’s method of conversing was, least to say, strange, and his questions hit remarkably close to home. She’d never even seen an Aipom before! Let alone this one…

“I don’t steal from anyone, thank you very much!” She said, doing her best to hide her insecurity with snobbishness. Why was it that, as soon as she had met Synd’r, so many more people she met seemed oh-so interested in thievery? “I’m from the guild, you see, hooded one,” Alki said, her voice laced with sarcasm. Perhaps she was simply on edge from the fact she could probably make her way to her old house from here, she was that close. Not that she’d ever want to. “I’ve just come to pick Pecha berries, is all. And you DO know that stealing from anyone is a crime, right? And that it’s… well, sorta my job?”

   Alki was fully aware of just hypocritical she was being. Usually, it would bother her, but irritation, fear, anger, and a touch of impatience were more than enough to change things. She just wanted to find the berries she’d promised Darcy and leave. Why did this guy have to choose her?! The Jigglypuff glared at the Pokemon in front of her, wondering where her sudden confrontational attitude came from. This wasn’t like her. She didn’t care. “So. What’s your name?” She asked, making sure her innocent question betrayed her current emotional state.

As the Jigglypuff was making her rebuttal, Cracker continued to stare her down in-between shifty looks left and right. Almost like he was expecting an ambush. It was pretty odd for a Pokemon to be wandering around all by themselves, after all. Unless they were up to no good...

Of course, he had no basis for that assumption, but it hardly mattered. He wasn't trying to talk himself out of being bad. The rationalization was crude, and he was already reaching for an excuse to begin with. Unfortunately, as committed as he was to his new role, he still had issues with attention span. So listening to the Pokemon explain herself was difficult. It certainly didn't help that she had a tone, either. Kind of like she wasn't taking him seriously.

When he was eventually asked for his real name, the Aipom bounced into the air and plopped down on the branch. His tail wrapped around the tree limb once and came to settle in front of him, the fingers of his tail-hand gripping his chin in contemplation.

"Hmmm-hm-hm-hmmm... Curious. So you're a thief that doesn't steal? How delightfully contradictory!" he declared exuberantly, jumping down from his higher perch to take up residence on a large rock near the Jigglypuff. "You must be like me, then. A purveyor of justice! Taking the law into your own two paws! As a vigilante!"

The animated Aipom bounced up and down with endless, pent up energy, making dramatic gestures as he spoke, his eyes shimmering with an obviously hyped up interpretation of his own ambitions. Cracker oozed optimism, but the true nature of his mental state remained to be seen. After all, he was wearing leaves as clothing. And now, in a complete turn around, he seemed to have suddenly decided the stranger before him was now his partner in crime.

"You can call me Cracker!" he said in proper introduction, extending his tail-hand as if he expected the Jigglypuff to shake the bizarre appendage. "Maybe we could team up! I can help yah find those Pecha berries, and in exchange... you could help me with something..." His final remark was unfortunately made somewhat ominous thanks his ever present grin.

“O-Oh. Well, no, I actually...” Alki mumbled, her eyes widening, tone disappearing, and cheeks flushing as she suddenly realized her error. A slip of the tongue, or maybe her tongue simply hadn’t slipped enough, but she’d left out a rather important piece of information. It was her job to arrest him, but now this Aipom believed her to be a thief! He wasn’t wrong, of course, but that was information that only a select few Pokemon in the whole world were privy to, and an Aipom she just met, who lived in the forest, who did… whatever it was he was doing with those leaves… that was certainly not someone she wanted to trust with the Phantom Thieve’s secret.

“I sorta meant that...”  Alki trailed off, any fighting spirit she’d had before was gone. All that was left in its place was hesitation and, strangely enough, embarrassment. The more things changed, the more they stayed the same… Alki looked around at the forest, well-lit and appealing, but even so, much more threatening than Shadowhue Forest, or Icicle woods. Alki didn’t know what this so called thief in front of her was capable of. She certainly didn’t know if he was as passive as her, or shared her ideology. And could anyone blame her if he thought he was just a bit annoying? The way he just went on, and on about things that didn’t really matter. What the hell even is a vigilante? Or a purveyor?

Alki forced her expression to harden again, even if panic was going through her mind. That meeting with Goro had been so long ago, but she could still remember the fight itself with clarity. Alki’s left hand curved behind her, as if grabbing something falling behind her. The sun was in front of her, but the trees blocked the light from hurting her eyes. Trees, however,  did not block shadow. She curved her hand behind her back such that the Aipom couldn’t see what she was grabbing. Her own shadow. It wasn’t as if she was good at using her hidden power, but she knew fear. She was the one who’d cursed at a stick not five minutes ago because of fear. Fear could be potent. And shadows were scary. But she wouldn’t fight unless he started something.

“I’m not a thief,” She said, fear from her location, and fear from her screw-up in speech combining to make her voice sound genuinely angry, no feigning required. “I’m a guild member from Team...” She trailed off. Team Friendship Alliance. Couldn’t Darcy change the name? That name was… it was cute, but not a good team name. Not if they wanted to be taken seriously, anyways. “The point is, you better explain yourself. You’re not on any outlaw posters, as far as I can remember, but like I said. Stealing is against the law… and you’ve admitted it yourself.”

The words felt sour in Alki’s mouth. Against the law. Alki’d broken that same law. Actually, more than once. What business did she have talking of it? Law. Well… if she was going to stay in the guild, this was the sort of thing she’d have to deal with, wasn’t it? The fearful, jigglypuff glared at the Aipom before her. He was much bigger than her. Bluffing was rather effective though, and even if she looked decidedly non-intimidating, she hoped her voice could get the point across.

“Go on, talk. Don’t run. Guild-members are fast, even if some of us don’t look like it.” Of course, she said nothing of a fight. And if he started it? Well… she’d be the one at a disadvantage. Not to mention she was lying through her teeth. She had absolutely nothing to make up for her lack of speed. But he didn’t know that, did he? Maybe she knew Rollout. Or Agility, or something… she’d read Jigglypuff could even learn teleport. She’d have to look into that. Alki glared at the Aipom, angrier, and more fearful than she felt as if she’d ever been before.

Of course, that wasn’t a high bar now, was it? She never angered. It was usually just sadness with her, and even if the anger now was more powerful than it had ever been before, she’d  be lying if she said it didn’t feel good. She wasn’t a total wimp anymore. Not like when she had run away from this very forest… Alki bit her lip, the ever-lurking weight of the possibility of meeting her parents returning. Would they be attracted by a fight, if they heard it? Or away… Alki had seen them as a lot of things. Cowards wasn’t one of them. She refocused on the Aipom, as best she could, anyways. Focus on this fight. She’d  dug herself into this hole already. No use worrying about what else could climb into her hole...

As the Jigglypuff began stammering in response to his offer, Cracker continue to sit on the rock like a purple statue, his tail-hand still held out. It wasn't until Alki managed to correct herself and state clearly that she wasn't a thief, that the Aipom's tail grudgingly retracted. He tilted his head in confusion then, his smile dropping slightly. He was certain he'd judged the pink ball correctly, but she continued to explain that she was in a guild. And furthermore that Cracker, as the outlaw he'd apparently claimed to be, should answer for his crimes.

But if any of these revelations worried or upset him, he didn't show it. Instead, his grin perked up again and he let out a small, manic giggle. Leaning back on his rump, his tail curled around to support him so he could kick his feet out and really envelope himself in mirth. When he rolled back onto his feet again though, he looked almost ready to pounce the little Jigglepuff. Instead though, he leaned far forward, grabbing the rock with his tail so he wouldn't fall flat on his face as he loomed over the smaller Pokemon.

"But I'm not a thief, either!" he blurted out loud, absolutely tickled pink. Pulling himself back onto the rock, he paced around on it energetically as he continued, "Thieves are bad, they take things other Pokemon need to survive; like the rich robbing the poor! And they can get away with it, because... because of the laws! Laws that protect the greedy and powerful! But! Buuut, that's where I come in! See?! I'm the great equalizer!!"

Cracker came closer again, stopping shy of Alki only because of the rock's sheer edge. He looked down at her, perhaps seeming even more menacing now than before. Or at least crazy thanks to his rambling. He couldn't help staring at her pack again, the desire to pickpocket and leave this puppet of the system behind growing stronger. He had to fight to resist the urge, but luckily his own curiosity served as a suitable distraction.

"So if you're from the guild, where's your badge, hm?" he asked pointedly, suddenly turning the tables on the Jigglypuff. "How do I know you're not just a thug trying to intimidate me? Lot of unsavory types around here. I should know; it's my job to keep 'em in line!"

In all his talk so far, Cracker had yet to notice the Jigglypuff preparing for an attack. Her restraint thus far was admirable, but now that the Aipom had run out of things to talk about, his eyes fell on her again, and he finally began to recognize the subtle, offensive stance. Cracker couldn't help instinctively assuming a more defensive posture, but he wasn't as inconspicuous about it. In fact, his tail blatantly raised up behind him, tense and twitching warily.

As effective as he could be at using his wily appendage as a weapon, he had no idea what the Jigglypuff was capable of. All he knew for certain was that he'd clearly overstayed his welcome. So perhaps it was time to excuse himself before things got ugly.

Trying to hide his own nervousness, the Aipom began to ramble again, looking about in a shifty manner that always kept Alki in his peripherals. "Guild members, they're not... super rich, are they? I mean... they get rewards for missions, but that's not really wealth, is it? Oh, but being part of the guild gives them power, doesn't it? Power they could abuse... maybe..." he mumbled to himself.

It almost sounded like Cracker was trying to justify something. In fact it sounded exactly like he was attempting to convince himself that he was the morally superior party here. And it must've been working, because more and more the Aipom was eyeing Alki up and down now. As if he was sizing her up for a fight. He still didn't make the first move though.

Despite her tough talk, Alki found herself hoping that the Aipom would run away. After all, her purpose when she had entered this mystery dungeon was not to fight. Certainly, it wasn’t to fight an outlaw! No, she’d learned that she sucked at fighting. Sucked a lot. It would have come as a relief, then, for Cracker to turn around and leave. She’d have pretended to care, sure, but that would’ve improved her thus far crappy day just a bit.

Instead, he now loomed over her, his impressive size - compared to her, anyways, - very effective when it came to intimidation. He certainly didn’t seem intimidated of her, anyways. Try as she might, the jigglypuff couldn’t help but shake. Just a bit. Could anyone really blame her? He was twice her height, and she had no clue whether she could actually hold her own. Things had not worked out too well for her when she’d fought Goro, had it? Darcy wasn’t there either. On the flip side of the coin, she was evolved now. Whatever benefit that might give her. She also knew a couple more moves. Maybe…

No. If she could keep things peaceful, then she would. But the way he was looking down at her did not inspire much confidence in the small explorer. He seemed scary, not to mention a bit insane. Well, more accurately, he seemed scary because of the insanity. Alki backed up a few paces, making no attempts to be subtle about anything anymore. He wasn’t trying to be. So why should she?

“Equalizer, huh...” Alki mumbled, realizing she hadn’t said anything while this Aipom rambled. To be fair, he hadn’t exactly given her too much of a chance. Besides, did she really need to say anything? He’d admitted , openly, to being a thief. Just like her… the jigglypuff looked up at Cracker, but any remorse she might have felt was gone as he prepared himself for a fight as well. She’d been subtle, at least. He made no effort, so neither would she. Alki used her own shadow to form what looked like a small knife. She hoped that would seem at least somewhat intimidating to the Aipom. It wasn’t actually a weapon… it was hard to keep a shadow solid for so long. It seemed like it though. Unless the shadow actually touched him, then he’d notice. But if that didn’t happen, he wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, would he?

“Guild badge?” Alki mumbled, reaching into her bag without breaking eye contact with the aipom. She should really organize her bag. It made it hard to find things… there. The pin on the badge pricked her limb, and Alki felt a small sting on the tip of her hand. She drew out the badge, placing it on the ground before her, backing up just a bit. The shiny badge lay on the dirt floor, decidedly out of place amidst the shrubbery and shadows of the forest. “There it is. Satisfied?” She said, trying hard to recover from her earlier fear.

The Aipom now seemed to be rambling again. Money and power. What did the two have to do each other? Cracker really was strange, wasn’t he? Money and power, guild members, did they have it? Did they not? Alki listened in, despite attempting to look tough, she couldn’t help but cock her head in curiosity. What was he on about?

“I’m not rich, if that’s what you’re wondering...” Alki took another step back, away from the clearly unhinged Aipom. This wasn't right. She’d never met anyone who talked like this, and now, presented with such a strange pokemon, Alki truly had no idea as to what to say. His sudden shifts between joyous exclamations and shifty, quiet murmuring offset the jigglypuff, and she had no clue as to how to avoid the fight that seemed so close to erupting. What to say? The answer might have come to Darcy. She was good with words. Not Alki… the jigglypuff reviewed the moves she knew. She could use Shadows, Sing, burn… no, not in a forest. That’d be bad for everyone. She could disable his move, and she could copy it.

It was better than what she’d had in the marsh, anyways.

“Look,” She said, pointing her not-quite-a-knife at the guild badge on the forest floor. “I’m proven, see? You mentioned that you’re not a thief. How about you prove it too?” A smirk appeared on the jigglypuff’s face. Sure, fighting was scary. It was dangerous. But if she brought an outlaw in , then she could show off to Darcy. She wasn’t really that pathetic, not like the high-ranking glaceon had said… the smirk disappeared as soon as it appeared. Perhaps it would be best if she simply focused on the fight, and not on the past. Not on what Darcy would think if she lost, that’s for sure. Then again… she stood a chance, didn’t she?

It was, apparently, a risk that Alki was willing to take. “Like I said,” Alki mumbled after a moment’s pause. She tried her best to sound scary, but her heart was no longer in it. It was in her throat, pumping so hard she could feel the blood in her face, coursing through her whole, small, fragile body. “If you can’t prove you’re not a thief, then I’m going to have to take you in. I came to pick Pecha Berries. If you can give me some proof, then I guess I can let bygones be bygones.” Was she saying the right words? She certainly hoped so. “But you’re not leaving without my permission, you hear?” Alki went through the moves she knew again, over and over. Hidden Power, Flamethrower, Sing, Copycat, Disable. Hidden Power, Flamethrower, Sing, Copycat, Disable.  Don’t fight up close. Hidden Power, Flamethrower, Sing, Copycat, Disable. Alki’s eyes widened in fear, suddenly wishing she could take back everything she’d just said, apologize, go pick Pecha berries, leave. The hole was dug - or was it a grave? Hopefully, only a figurative one. - And now, the jigglypuff had no option but to stick to her fighting words.

Even though she suddenly wished she could be anywhere but there.

Even as he was pacing about, lost in his own thoughts and trying to rationalize his own impulse to swipe everything he saw, Cracker continued to observe the little Jigglypuff closely. As such, he saw Alki quite clearly produce a small dagger. The monkey squinted at it, keeping it in his peripherals. The weapon certainly looked real enough, like it was made of blackened steel, but there was the faintest flicker to it. Almost as if it wasn't really there.

Of course, the Aipom for all his observation, wasn't going to take a chance. Not only had his plans for a quick job gone out the window, but now it seemed this tiny, adorable little Pokemon was gearing up for a fight. Which might not have been so bad, if not for the guild badge that she inevitably showed him. He watched with eager eyes as she dug it out of her bag, hoping to see what else she might be hiding in there, but when he saw that shiny emblem and it's pretty little wings, he fell in love with it, and suddenly nothing else mattered.

He stared longingly as Alki dropped the badge onto the ground, leaving it to sit there as an open invitation for Cracker, whom nodded his satisfaction quite emphatically. The Aipom was so absorbed by the sight of the beautiful little trinket, that he barely heard the Jigglypuff's comment about her lack of wealth. As if that really meant anything with her most prized possession just sitting right in front of him. It certainly looked very real.

Unfortunately, the fact it was genuine meant that what Alki had to say next carried a lot more clout. The second she demanded he provide proof of his own innocence, he perked up worriedly. He'd already assumed a blatantly defensive posture, but now he looked a little nervous, eyeing the trees overhead for a quick escape. His silence only encouraged the Jigglypuff to push the issue, the smaller Pokemon threatening to take him to the authorities. Unless he could prove himself.

Sure, no problem. How hard could that be...? Such a pretty badge... All he had to do was show her the kind of work he did. So pretty, so special... The many ways in which he dedicated himself to making Pecha forest a nicer, safer place to be. I wanna touch it... Easy-peasy; and then he wouldn't have to be arrested and charged as an outlaw!

Cracker finally met Alki's gaze after she'd finished warning him not to flee. He was still grinning quite broadly, but it was an expression that seemed to be fixed in place. For several long seconds he didn't move, sitting on the rock like a statue with his tail poised in the air beside him. Then suddenly the dexterous appendage flew forward, snatching up the proffered badge with lightning reflexes. Simultaneously, the monkey launched himself from the rock, up into the trees overhead.

With badge in tow, he snagged the nearest branch and planted himself on his feet to leap to the next tree. All the while he gave in to an insane, simian screech of joy, claiming his prize from the bulbous digits of his tail's hand. Gleefully, he rubbed the item against his cheek, giggling and chittering.

"It's so preeeetty!" he cried, practically embracing the thing as he danced on the spot, "I want it, I want it!"

They seemed to be at an impasse, Alki waiting expectantly, even tapping her foot as she awaited a response, the Aipom in front of her still flitting his eyes about, as if he were trying to look suspicious, and in the midst of it all stood the guild badge. Her guild badge. She’d never taken much time to actually look at it. It was just sort of hers, but now that it was lain out in front of her, she couldn’t help but admire it. The shiny token seemed to reflect sunlight just so, rays of light bouncing off it and back up into the trees. It’s shape was well defined, and the small, round, shiny thing made her feel just a touch of pride in herself. She belonged to it. Darcy did too, both of them belonged. A small smile appeared on the jigglypuff’s face as she gave herself up to her thoughts, the situation at hand momentarily foreign to her.

Something seemed to catch in the air, and everything felt very still, awkward. Alki lifted her gaze to meet the Aipom. The devilish grin that seemed to be plastered on his face took Alki by surprise, even if she’d already seen this same face before. Didn’t this guy have ANY other expression? Why was he glaring at her? A fight? Alki brandished her faux-weapon with as much sincerity as she could muster, completely missing the fact that the Aipom wasn’t interested in her at all. No, it was the guild badge he was interested.

Her guild badge.

“Shithead!” She found herself yelling out, as she dove in vain for her badge. Who she was cursing at, she wasn’t sure. But it seemed rather painfully obvious to the crude, pink balloon that someone who promised their best friend they’d make up previous bad behavior, and then proceeding to lose their guild badge and getting beat up by some random Pokemon could be classified as a shithead.

Of course, a badge stealer could be classified as a shithead too.

She yelled the insult again as she half-rolled, half-pushed herself to her feet. The Aipom seemed to be rather happy with his recent success, the Pokemon chittering in glee as it danced with her guild badge. She’d said she wouldn’t start a fight, but the situation certainly seemed to call for it. She wasn’t about to lose her guild badge in her old home, certainly not to someone like this. How was she supposed to explain that to Darcy?

Parents be damned, she wasn’t about to disappoint Darcy again.

The girl prepared her Hidden Power, hoping that she could get something off of it. He wasn’t too far away, she could probably reach him. She hoped. No other move she had would do the job. He seemed rather entertained with her badge, actually. The jigglypuff began to creep forward, hoping she could close some distance, and make the attack easier on herself.

He was high up. Suppose she knocked him off balance? He needed the tail to latch onto a branch, right?

She had to act soon, anyways, or else she wasn’t getting anything back. Alki took a deep breath, before launching the shadow she’d been wielding forward, hoping to use it like a whip.

There was no crack like she had hoped, nor was she able to keep the shadow, what with her losing control rather quickly after the blow, the shadow dissolving in her hand, going Arceus-knew-where. But there was a blow. And that was the primary goal. It seemed decently powerful, too. Nothing to write home about, but it had been an attack . Alki’s ears perked up in pride, despite the rather bad situation she found herself in. If it was powerful enough to knock him off balance, however, remained to be seen. Although she certainly hoped so. It certainly felt powerful enough to her. Although, she thought to herself, I’m not exactly a natural talent at anything. So, seeing as she couldn’t exactly climb the tree herself, she waited to see how the situation would pan out. She bit her lower lip as she waited to see her handiwork.

Even though Cracker had become instantly obsessed with his new prize, he hadn't completely forgotten about the Pokemon he'd just taken it from. However, he wasn't entirely concerned about it, either. His impression of her told him she wasn't a considerable threat. Certainly nothing like those in the past who'd made child's play of his prankery and soundly beaten him for his efforts. No, this encounter was very different. He could feel it.

It was unclear exactly what he was feeling towards Alki though. On one paw, she appeared to be a fellow thief for justice, but on the other, the Jigglypuff seemed intent on arresting such Pokemon. Was she just a spy, meant to lure in vigilantes and bring them to the authorities? If so, then she didn't deserve the badge she was so eager to toss in the dirt. Why would a guild member do that anyway, unless... Oh... Maybe she wasn't really a member. Maybe she stole the badge from someone else instead, and was claiming it as hers now.

How sneaky and conniving! A Pokemon after his own heart! No way, she couldn't be that clever and convincing. She was clearly acting the part of a guild member, for all her bumbling, but she'd disrespected her own badge too. Which was unforgivable in the Aipom's mind. After all, he had sought so long and hard to be accepted into the guild; he never got accepted of course, but if he had, he would've worn his badge with pride. Not hide it in some pack, like the Jigglypuff had been doing.

So for better or worse, Cracker had become convinced that Alki didn't deserve the badge. However, at the same time, the Jigglypuff had suddenly made her move to get it back. The Aipom realized he was being attacked just a little too late, screeching in surprise as a flailing whip of dark energy came hurdling towards him. Luckily for Cracker, his agility was more instinctual than conscious, as he nimbly dodged the first lash of the whip, however, the shadowy thread proceeded to strike the branch in his absence, wrapping around the limb and promptly exploding.

Another screech followed the Aipom as he stumbled off the weakened branch, his tail automatically grasping the crumbling support for one last ditch swing to throw him into another tree. As splinters of wood hit the forest floor, and the wounded branch sagged in defeat, Cracker landed safely on a new perch, wide-eyed and shocked. He'd been more terrified about landing on the ground than he had been about being attacked, but that was still a little too close for comfort.

"C-careful you crazy Mon! You almost hurt the Precious!" he cried, clutching the badge to his face and rubbing it against his cheek. "It-it's okay, little one. I won't let that mean ol' pink balloon hurt you anymore...! Shhh..." he hushed the inanimate object, cradling it in his arms like it was a baby.

Alki had never been much of a fighter. She could count the number of actual fights she had been in on one hand, and that one fight had been rather inconclusive anyways. There was no great joy to fighting for her, not like some of her friends. She wasn’t a natural, and in fact, most of the time, a fight left her feeling more than a bit frightened. There was nothing new in Pecha Forest for her. This Aipom had her more frightened than usual, and she certainly hadn’t become anymore skilled since last time.

For once, however, she saw a bit of what mons like Goro saw in fighting. Pride began to bubble up in her, as she saw the result of her attack. She’d lost control of it, and that showed that there was room to grow. But she’d used Hidden Power as an attack . In an actual fight! And it had worked! Alki giggled, laughing innocently as the Aipom berated her for almost damaging the badge. Her badge. Why was he acting like it was his?

Whatever. She’d take it back one way or another. The Aipom’s half-crazed words wouldn’t change that. She’d just have to figure out how…

He was in a tree. He certainly seemed to like trees. Maybe she could take those away from him! She did know Flamethrower, after all, and trees were flammable. It would be easy!

... And Dangerous too, she reminded herself. Her mind thought back to the mission she’d done with Darcy… how long ago was that?  But Plusle and Minun had lived in a tree house. A flammable tree house, and she didn’t know who else might be living in the forest. She couldn’t exactly control, well, any of her moves well. And she didn’t intend on starting a forest fire just to get her badge back.

She looked back at the crazy Pokemon, cradling her badge like it was some sort of baby. Holding it. Alki searched for another patch of shadow she could make her own. She didn’t need nearly as much, just a small little thing she could throw at him… He really liked her badge, didn’t he? He’d hate to drop it, but Sing made him have to cover his ears… and if she could throw something at him too, if only to catch him off guard, then maybe he’d be forced to drop it.

“Closing time… One last call for alcohol, so finish your whiskey and beer..” She began, stepping closer to him as she began to use Sing. She hoped he’d still be interested in her badge, more than anything, and she especially hoped he wouldn’t notice the shadow she hid behind her back, again. “Closing time… You don’t have to go home but you can’t.” Aim for the Aipom. “Stay.” This would work, right? “Here.”

Alki launched into the chorus of a song she’d heard somewhere in Grassveil -- Where? She couldn’t quite say. -- as she threw the small patch of shadow at the Aipom above. Even if it did hit him, it probably wouldn’t do a whole lot of damage. She just wanted her badge back. Was that too much to ask for? It wasn’t fair that he got to play around in the tree… as she continued her song, she waited with marked impatience to see whether her hastily thought plan had any success whatsoever.

Mada carried out 1 launched of one Pecha Forest :

Mada carried out 1 launched of one Pecha Forest :

(OOC: Sorry for a bit of a lame/shorter post, wanted to get it out before I started procrastinating more.)

[Energy: 28]

The monkey was still cradling his precious, ill-gotten badge, imagining all the ways he might flash his newfound bling to strangers in the future, when the pink ball of air below him began singing what sounded like a silly, out-of-tune song from his uncultured perspective. The fact she was using words he'd never heard before, didn't make it easy to understand the lyrics, either. Still, he clutched his prize a little tighter out of natural suspicion while impolitely remarking on the perceived lack of talent.

"Hehehe, what an awful song! Are yah tryin' to make me feel sorry for you? The notes are all wrong, and its.. really.. totally outta.. tune," he commented mockingly, but already he was beginning to feel light-headed and sleepy all of a sudden. Cracker hadn't realized yet the affect Alki's singing was having on him though, as he continued to babble into an almost standing coma; "You should.. go take.. lessons... from someone.. with real talent. Like... me...!"

As the last few words fell from his groggy lips, the Aipom was entirely unprepared for the condensed burst of dark energy that was flung at his face. His heavy eyelids closed at the crucial moment of impact, but rather than take the full force of the blow to his head, the monkey wobbled on unsteady legs and tipped backwards, swept off his feet by the grazing blast. As he fell however, his tail instinctively wrapped around the branch he'd been standing on, clutching it tightly as the full weight of his body jerked down on it, cracking and weakening the limb.

Despite Alki's best efforts though, he remained just out of reach, dangling upside-down and snoring softly with a comically large snot-bubble protruding from his nose. The badge remained clutched in one of his paws for several long moments before it finally dropped into the grass below him. However, just seconds after the shimmering item plopped onto the forest floor, the rustling of another presence just beyond it quickly revealed a pair of horned felons.

"I swear I heard that purple freak over here. I'd recognize that annoying screech anywhere," Rothgar, a Nidorino, gruffly declared as he entered the clearing just feet from the fallen badge, above which hung a snoozing Cracker.

He came to a sudden, tense stop upon seeing the small Jigglypuff. Meanwhile his partner in crime, a Nidorina named Lily, was following behind him, pushing past as she retorted bitterly, "You better be right, or I'm telling the others it's your fault that chittering buffoon made off with our loo--"

His female counterpart was quickly cut short by a jab to her ribs, which might've inspired her to lash out at the Nidorino for such disrespect, but as she raised her head from sniffing the ground in hopes of picking up their quarry's trail, she immediately spotted the pink ball of fluff in front of them. For a brief moment, the pair of Pokemon looked flustered, but it quickly turned into a shifty bewilderment as they searched the clearing briefly, only to find no others in the immediate vicinity.

Their confusion gradually became suspicion however, as they eyed the singular Pokemon before them while they decided how to fashion an appropriate introduction. Unfortunately, the male took it upon himself to go first, asking none-too-kindly, "What's a poor little thing like you doing out h--!"

It was his turn to be silenced by a decidedly forceful strike from Lily as she slammed her body against his. He grunted sharply, but didn't push the issue as she stepped forward haughtily to amend his inappropriate remark. "Ignore Rothgar, he's got a pathetically one-track mind when it comes to females," she explained, earning a contemptuous snort from her partner as she came to a stop just inches from the discarded badge at her feet, "My name's Lily. Perhaps you could assist us. You see... we're looking for a thief. A criminal whose responsible for swiping food and goods we've been gathering for months. The lives of our fellow Pokemon rely on his capture and the return of our hard-earned supplies. Have you seen him, by chance?"

"He's an Aipom, about this tall," she described, lifting a leg as high as she could to replicate the monkey's stature, "Purple with beady little eyes and a sinister grin. He's probably still wearing some gaudy little hood and blathering on about 'helping the poor' by stealing everything he can get his grubby little mitts on. Calls himself 'The Hooded One'?"

Lumin carried out 10 launched of one Pecha Forest :

, , , , , , , , ,

Alki grinned as she saw the Aipom slowly, stupidly fall for her singing. Did he not realize what was happening? Or did he just not care? Her species was at least semi-famous for their singing, after all, and it was common knowledge that that was a move too! And what other reason would she have for randomly beginning to sing right after calling him a shithead too? No, he wasn't the brightest star in the sky, and Alki decided that someone like that was someone she didn't want anything to do with. She wasn't the greatest mind around either, but at least she had some common sense!

Her grin widened as she saw her attack hit the smug, arrogant Aipom directly in the face. Or... was it direct? Actually, it didn't seem like it. He wasn't going back fast enough. And his tail was still wrapped around the branch. "Damn it..." She said, jumping up as he tried to reach her guild badge, repeating the words over and over again. Even if she stood on the toe of one foot, reaching up as high as she could go... it was just an inch out of reach. If only she were a taller species, or... just not a midget then maybe she could reach it!

After a while of trying, the jigglypuff gave up, crossed her arms and ha-rumphed , intending to leave the Aipom and her badge behind. She could get another one. Maybe. But it was getting tiring thinking up of excuses for Faye... she hesitated before leaving the clearing. Thankfully for her. The badge fell to the ground with a clink behind her, and the Jigglypuff laughed loudly as she ran at top speed towards it. She tackled it on the ground, holding it close to her body. She got it back! It wasn't exactly that she cared much about it. It was more... Well, honestly? She kind of did... she was a thief, but it was still a guild badge! And the guild, at least in her mind, would always be associated with Darcy, and...

Voices! Alki stood up quickly, tottering back on her feet as she steadied herself, and brushed the dirt off the thin coat of fur she had before coming face to face with some... rather intimidating individuals. She hugged the badge tightly against her, and wondered what it was they wanted. The Nidorina and Nidorina were large and intimidating and staring down at her, and Alki had no idea what it was they wanted until the Nidorina spoke up, but that didn't make her feel any safer or any more comfortable...

"Erm... Ah..." Alki stammered, looking anywhere but into their eyes. She was all alone, and she didn't quite have the confidence in her teleporting yet to use it consistently so... what if they were outlaws? These dungeons tended to have a lot of them, didn't it?

"Ech... I-I'm Alki... L-Lily." She finally managed to mumble. She didn't really have much of a choice but to trust them!  The Nidorina, the one who seemed like the nicer of the two, mentioned that they were looking for an Aipom, about... well, not very tall, honestly, compared to them, and then that they were... looking for him? What had he been up to? He was still in the tree, and it'd be that easy, but...

Not until she knew more!

"I-I mean... I... I dunno off the top of my head." She mumbled, shifting her gaze away from the pair altogether. "W-What... What exactly did he do? I... I mean. I might be able to help you guys look for him, if... i-if I know what he's doing. Y'know. M-Maybe it'll... j-jog my memory?" She said, before clamming up. It was far too difficult to talk smoothly, not when the person they were looking for was asleep, so close at hand, and... well. He'd been a bit of a meanie, but... Alki was still the only barrier between the Aipom and these two. And who knew what they'd do? All she needed was a bit more information...

"W-What do you guys plan on doing with him? I-If you find him?"

[24 Energy - 5 from Entrance - 18 from Rolls = 1 Energy]

Mada carried out 1 launched of one Pecha Forest :

The Jigglypuff's nervous demeanor had both poison-types looking at each other in instant doubt of her claim. But neither one spoke right away, as they continued to observe the timid, pink fluffball and the immediate surroundings. Nothing screamed to them that the Aipom had been here, or even that Alki, who so kindly offered her name in return, had any business with him, but her behavior was more than enough to make them wary. Unlike Cracker, they were quite familiar with her species' reputation for singing its foes to sleep. And as criminals themselves, they were quite aware of how easily she could knock them out and loot their satchels. So neither Lily or Rothgar were ready to reveal their intent just yet. Instead they opted for an interrogation. However, before they made their move, the Nidorino noticed what Alki was hiding in her hot little mitts.

A guild badge. Rothgar snorted at the sight, signaling to his female counterpart with his eyes and a small nod of his head. The duo were quite skilled at nonverbal communication, having been hatch-mates, so Lily was quick to pick up on his unspoken concern. After spying the faint shimmer of the object clutched to Alki's chest however, she didn't so much as bat an eye at the discovery. Still playing the role of innocent victim to the Aipom's shenanigans, she instead rolled her eyes and approached the Jigglypuff as nonthreateningly as she could. The aim was to get close, to put a quick end to a potential attack if the Pokemon turned out to be a friend of the monkey.

Before she could address the Jigglypuff's suspicious curiosity though, Rothgar, who followed her in a mirrored fashion that almost made it appear as though the two were circling around their prey, offered a snarky comment in response to the puffball's confusion, "Weren't you listening? Or is there cotton in them ears of yours? He's a petty thief..!"

Lily shot a glare towards the impulsive male to shut him up, before he blew the whole thing, then softened the anger in her gaze as it returned to the unsettled fairy-type. With all the charisma her partner lacked, she casually lied about their intentions, "Alki, is it? Well, we plan to do what any law-abiding Pokemon would do. Which is turn him in to the proper authorities. Once we find him that is, and... 'convince' him to return what he stole from us. Food and items that our group need to survive. He swiped nearly all of it, you know. We've got young and old in our troop, that need those supplies to survive out here. You... seem like a fine, upstanding Pokemon yourself. Unless that badge you're hiding isn't yours, of course. One might even consider you an authority who could assist us in tracking down this criminal. So what do say? Will you help us out?"


By now Lily had gotten close enough to sit down beside the Jigglypuff, kindly if not a little worryingly wrapping a foreleg around the little Pokemon in a manner that intended to suggest they were all friends here. Although Rothgar's attitude made that difficult to believe as he continued to glare hard at the fairy-type his companion was cozying up to. She might've been able to hide her intent behind a cleverly constructed persona, but the male was clearly distrusting of Alki from the start, and even more so after her perplexing reply to their queries. It seemed like she was looking for a reason to withhold information, so he was eager to warn her not to.

"I know I heard that freak's obnoxious blathering coming from over here, so yah better not lie to us, either. That badge don't mean yer above the law. So's if we find out yer helping that criminal out, we'll turn you in too, got it?" he growled darkly, much to Lily's obvious displeasure.

"Rothgar, I swear, if you don't shut that bloody mouth of yours, I'll do it for you!" she snapped at the Nidorino, the harshness in her tone making him visibly flinch and divert his gaze to their surroundings. Though she seemed to have some considerable control over him, he clearly wasn't happy about being told off. "Besides, I don't think she'll lie if she actually believes in the authority of that badge she's carrying. Isn't that right... Alki? So please... if you have any information, we'd be ever so grateful."

Even as the interrogation continued, overhead, Cracker still dangled from the weakened branch, fast asleep and undisturbed. However, the longer the conversation went on, the greater the strain the damaged limb was under, creaking ever so softly on the verge of snapping as it brought the Aipom imperceptibly closer to landing on his head in front of all three Pokemon.