Worry for Naught

It was a cool day on the beach town that a young zangoose began taking her first steps into adventure. She carried her purse over her arm as she moved along, walking from the beach she stayed at a few days after her last talk with Rex.
Clearly, she was as unwelcome here as much as she didn't want to stay anymore. She had her pen pals to find, a new life to find for herself, the zangoose felt free for the first time, no longer feeling pressed under the iron claw of her dad. But this did come with some problems.
She had only one idea where to go - Grassveil was the closest town she could remember, and it had a Guild she could try to join, the trouble was getting there. Doubts creeped into her mind, wondering if she'd be let in. Plus, it's so far away... Even if it was closer to most towns, she wasn't the fittest zangoose. Maybe they'd use that as a reason to deny her entry? That's if she'd even make the trek.
Of course, this worry was hyperbolic self-criticism after the stress recent events brought her, trying to keep her where she was instead of venturing out. She was so use to living with her family to help provide for her that the freedom was almost anxiety inducing.
But she was smart. She could do for herself.
She had to at least try, no matter what.

Sitting on the bench, thinking to herself, she gave a small sigh. "Okay, so... how do I even get to Grassveil?"
She had taken a short break to let her mind wander, and to get her bearings. But this only let her worries fester - she pulled some coins out of her purse, and began to count them.
100 Poke. Not actually a lot given how much Poke tend to actually be worth.
She began putting it back into her purse, hops off the bench, and begins walking, looking down as she continued struggling with the coins until...
"What the-!", she cried out as she bumped into someone, her purse falling as all her journals and money fell out of the bag.
But who did she bump into...?

Yes, Yigo can probably get Rainfront town out of the list. Preferably forever. Although the town looked like an interesting place and the food that they serve there is simply phenomenal, for a roaming ground type there were two big issues. First of all, rains were frequent in the region and second, Yigo was simply not that rich. On his way to Rainfront Yigo had found a small stash of poke thanks to the enigmatic properties of the mystery dungeons yet he could now count the poke he was carrying with him using his pointy claws.

For the record, he has three on each paw and two on each foot.

The Sandshrew had to leave. There was simply not much else for him to do there. From the belt wrapped around his belly, Yigo took out a small ball of fabric. There were still a few seeds left and a single berry for the dark times. It wasn't fantastic but it wasn't bad that. The sandshrew just has to use his resources wisely and-

"What the-!"
"Oof!"

The shove had been more than what Yigo was expecting. Moreover, walking straight instead on all fours reduced his stability significantly which made the accidental bump force Yigo onto the ground while coins, seeds and, surprisingly, a journal either fell to the ground or hit the ground type. Of course, this abuse would not go unpunished! After recovering from the impact, he hopped onto all fours, stared at the offender that happened to be a Zangoose twice his size and more than double his weight and immediately decided to curl in until he resembled a ball and wait until it took anything they wanted. That'll show them.

Julie rubbed her back after taking the fall, uncertain exactly as to what she just bumped into. She looked around at all the stuff and was quite upset with herself as to the accident she just caused. She got up on her back feet to brush herself off before looking down at the circular shaped Pokemon. Light brown with scales, could firm into a ball. She gave a little pout as she began putting stuff back into her purse, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. I should have been more careful." After a moment, having picked up all her journals and not being sure how much Poke he had, she tapped his shell, "Are you okay?"

A couple of taps on his back made Yigo believe that whoever had struck him had something more in mind than a hit and run. Of course, his mother did not raise a fool and taught Yigo well to keep his distance from any unknown danger and assess the situation before proceeding with a plan. With that thought in mind, the ball rolled a few meters away from the Zangoose before returning to his usual stance.

The sandshrew stood on all fours, cocking his head to the side as he saw the face of the normal type. They looked worried. "What was that for?" He asked before looking at some of the items dropped on the street. There were a bunch of coins still lying there along with his seeds "*sigh* yes, I'm fine. Let's get this over with. I don't have much time" With that, he approached the Zangoose carefully before picking his belongings up. A Heal Seed here, a Totter Seed there "...and one, two, three, four, five Poké. I assume that the rest belongs to you" he added as he started to place his money and seeds into his satchel. Nevertheless, the Zangoose definitely was the loser of the trade if they have to gather the rest by themselves. They could really use a paw...

With a somewhat tired sigh, he continued to gather the coins that were left on the ground into a small pile of coins in front of him "Wow... that's... a lot of Poké..." he looked up and saw them with some notebooks. They must be something smart and not a thug after all "Mmm... what are those?" Time was of the essence, Yigo didn't lie to the normal type but there must surely be enough time to discover what those books were before it started to rain again, right? What if they were story books? What if the ferret cat decided to read them to the young Yigo? It was too good of a chance to pass.

This sandshrew was quite a character. He didn't seem mean, more just impatient and uncaring. Anyone would be annoyed by this, but Julie did feel kinda bad.
She noticed he took up only 5 or so pieces of Poke... Now she felt bad she was looking down on herself earlier from how poor she seemed. But now was not the time to feel bad, she took in a deep breath to level herself, "Uh... Yeah, sorry. Just wasn't paying attention at all - too busy messing with my purse I guess. I'm alright, the important thing is if you're okay. Her voice came off as kinda low, and almost monotone.

After a moment, she noticed him helping her clean up the Poke which she began putting into a purse pocket like she initially planned.
"N- not really, can't buy much with it honestly," she said as she put the final coins in, and the sandshrew took note of her books, "Oh, those are my journals. I write and draw, store notes in them, stuff like that. Uh... why are you in such a rush?"
She had picked up on his impatience and wasn't sure how to take it, but as she began putting her books up she figured that maybe they'd want to look at some of their stuff, keeping a red composition book with what looked like letters stored inside, out of the bag for a moment.

The Zangoose had finally finished picking up their stuff, storing the coins into their purse yet their books remained in Yigo's view. Did that mean that they were going to tell the sandshrew kid a story? It'd better be because Yigo sat on his haunches and had his tail wagging excitedly, expecting to know more about those journals the ferret cat was carrying. Nevertheless, that might have a cost. He'd have to answer their questions.

"Uh? Uhm... I just wanted to avoid the rain, I guess. If I move fast enough I'll be able to forget about this... sea and downpour" The words were a bit cold and full of disdain. It hadn't rained that much lately, but the spark in Yigo's eyes dimmed when mentioning the water. It was truly a sad adversary since it would always be able to find you and there wasn't much to do about it "At least Grassveil is drier and you can hide from the cold... What about you? Who are you? Can I see the pictures? Please, please! I'll be nice, I swear!" The journals had him mesmerised and stuck in place. So much so that he had forgotten why he was in a rush even after explaining it mere seconds ago as the glitter in his eyes shone with renewed light. At that point, the sandshrew was just bouncing on his place and in front of the normal type. There was no escape!

...Unless you walk around him.

She couldn't do that to the ground-type. Even if they seemed a little brash, they were just a kid - it was understandable.
She took the red journal, opening it carefully so that her letters wouldn't fall out. She maneuvered them around papers, uncovering the first page.
She stepped to the side of him, and turned the book to face him.
The picture seemed rather cute, being of a chubby teddiursa, like a little teddy bear. Below it was written the name, "James".
"I drew this picture a while ago - I met this guy a few years ago and we became good friends. I know I'm born the best artist, but what do you think?", she explained, looking at the paper.
The next picture was a map of an island, labeled after various seasons: Winter Wonderland, Spring Savannah, Summer Seashore, and Autumn Alpines.
"I've been planning out writing a story, I at least got the setting down", she explained.
She continued flipping through pages, showing more stuff, mostly drawings of Pokemon she's met, one being a perspective drawing of a dock inside a cave at night.
"You said you're going to Grassveil? So am I, I'm gonna try and get work with the guild."

The Zangoose had opened the red book, looking at its content before getting by Yigo's side and allowed him to see what was in its pages. The first thing he saw was a picture of a pokemon. "Teddiursa! It is really pretty! Buuut... I guess that he was about to hibernate, hehe!" Yigo exclaimed, raising his paw almost as if he wanted to touch the drawing

The next thing he was shown was a map. At first, confusion took over Yigo as he couldn't identify what it was since he could barely even read simple words. Such a foreign abstract concept...

However, the mention of a story made Yigo more than excited. His mouth became an 'o' upon hearing about the normal type's plans, his eyes becoming brighter before letting out a squeak of satisfaction "Oh? A story?"  it was obvious that this Zangoose had a lot going around. They were a storyteller and an artist. This would be great! However, as fun as the thought of being told a story was, there was a schedule to be met if it can even be called that. Some farewells had to be given sooner or later which made Yigo's expression serious, frowning and looking to the side. His cheeks were getting a bit rosy and he was a bit flustered, looking as if he wanted to resist a temptation but, lo and behold, the two pokemon had the same goal!

"You want to be a guildmember?" His ears twitched as his eyes focused back onto the Zangoose "But that job is hard and tiring. You also have to be really brave! I couldn't even make it past the entrance..." Yigo looked down a bit. He had remembered something. He had met some friends at the guild but, as their career in the guild progressed, they ended up forgetting about him. That memory was a warning. You can't befriend guildsfolk. You will never be as important to them as their job is. He had to accept it and, if the Zangoose was going to join, Yigo would need to keep his distance. Be friendly, show respect, have fun but lower your expectations. That's what Yigo told to himself "There's something that every member must have above anything else... They must have a good heart! You draw too well to be a bad pokemon but... uhm... I would know for sure that you're good if you told me about your story!"

As he was saying that, Yigo hopped onto all fours and trotted in circles for a moment, excited and really happy "But, but... I have to go now. How could you tell me about your story if I have to leave now? Hehe..." The mouse slowly walked the road to the edge of the town, looking back with a cheeky smile. It was a playful invitation. Would this mysterious adventurer follow?

The chubby zangoose chuckled sweetly - this sandshrew was a lot nicer than initial responses showed.
They also really wanted to hear her stories. Hey, at least someone seemed interested.
He was just a kid, but he didn't seem to have any confidence, and she certainly felt she could help with that. Following after the young ground-type as they walked along, inviting them to follow, Julie put the red book in her backpack, then got on all fours as was natural.
"I was about to suggest exactly that," she began with a sweet smile, "and on the way I can tell you about the story I've got planned on the way."

As they walked to the edge of town, she looked to him, "I'm sure you could join the guild if you wanted, don't be so hard on yourself... uh, we never gave our names did we? I'm Julian, though most call me Julie."

Yes! They did take the bait! Yigo could hear the normal type get on all fours before soon finding them by his side. It was hard not to chuckle and even harder so avoiding to say 'Yes!' to oneself. "Oh! So you are a good Pokemon after all!" Yigo was going to be told a story! Would it be a long one? Would it have dragons that soared the skies? Maybe Gogoat-riding knights? Powerful mystics creating the fabled orbs? He couldn't wait!

As he was about to leave the town with the ferret cat following, he felt her gaze when she spoke of the guild and Yigo's own self-confidence. Those words... Actually hurt in a way. Not only that but they also left Yigo without a way out of the topic. His eyes dulled and started to look down instead of ahead.

Yigo didn't want to join the guild, not anymore. Some of the people there left him waiting for something that'd never happen. They had abandoned him causing the young shrew to feel rejected in more ways than one and to ignore Grassveil's guild as an option. Hopefully, the Pokemon by his side did change the topic. He knew their name! "Mister Julie, my name is Yigo"

She didn't mean to upset him, and couldn't help but feel bad that she seemed to ruin his excitement. Guess the guild was a sour topic for them?
"O- oh. That's the name of an old friend and it's... uh, Ms. Julie.", she corrected with with a kind tone, not meaning to sound offended, but feeling a little awkward as a result, "Honest mistake, it's alright, Yigo. What a cute name, by the way~"

From there, they came across a cave. She always heard not to go in... she didn't feel up to it, and knew Yigo probably wouldn't survive in a place so dangerous.
"There has to be another way...", she mumbled, before heading off, deciding to go around the cave rather than through if possible.
They'd arrive in Grassveil quicker than originally exoected...