Crunchy Leaves

Kestro looked back and forth as he approached yet another forest. It wasn't Shadowhue, no it was much too bright for that. It wasn't Pecha, this forest looked like it never got the memo about seasons and simply stuck with the colorful Autumn. The Cranidos silently looked over the trees, thinking on his situation.

Kestro was lost. He knew where he must be; Pokemon in Grassveil had spoken about Fallen Leaf Copse before. Rumors aboud about special treasures having been found here. He pondered. He could try to explore the foreign forest. A quick escape was always available for him through using an Escape Orb. Or he could simply turn back now. If what he'd heard was right, Grassveil should be eastward of here.

It was a difficult decision. Kestro hated to admit it, but he knew he was still comparatively weak and inexperienced to most Pokemon he had met. How many times now has he been nearly knocked out or cocky before a companion had to reign him back or rescue him? He'd have to be more cautious, which was difficult for such a proud and head strong Pokemon. So he stood there, watching the leaves fall.

The soft sounds of melodic humming wove themselves around the trees, Russell smiling lightly from his perch near the edge of the forest. He paused in his sketching to glance upon the view from the tree he sat in. The afternoon sunlight still glittered on the surface of the water that surrounded the copse. Glancing from the scenery to the sketch within his notebook, the Mothim nodded to himself. Notebook in hand, Russell pushed off from the tree branch, gliding down towards the water. Landing neatly, he rifled through his bag, searching for the right brush.

A moment later, brush in hand, Russell settled his notebook on the bank. He dipped the brush into the water and with controlled strokes, drew our the colour that he'd added to the sketch earlier.

Although Russell lead quite a leisurely life, he hadn't found the time to sit and draw for a little while now. Instead, his time had been spent on his map making, progressing his dream of mapping the whole world. As great as following his dreams was, it was still good to relax every now and then. And getting in some watercolour practice at the same time certainly didn't hurt.

Russell glanced up to double check the strength of the colour he should be using for the water and blinked as he noticed a Cranidos on the other side of the lake. They were stood near the stepping stones, their gaze focussed towards the forest. They didn't look like a particularly shady fellow. Perhaps they were an explorer?

Kestro grumbled a bit as he kept pondering his dilemma. Turning back would be easy, but then he'd have spent almost an entire day traveling without finding anything. Granted he wasn't obliged to find anything. His caretaker was more than capable of supporting herself and her two adopted Cranidos through her own craft Going forward, though, was risky. He knew nothing of Fallen Leaf Copse other than the rumors of a shrine, strange treasure, and the island's perpetual state of Autumn. Perhaps a quick venture to the edge would help him decide?

Before he could take his first step across the stepping stones, though, he spotted a fair-sized Pokemon emerge from the trees. Kestro barely noticed Pokemon's movements at first, it's orange and black body helping it to blend into the autumnal forest almost perfectly. It was only when it lowered down below the leaves did its large, orange and yellow wings help give it away. Kestro clicked his beak a few times. He didn't recognize this Pokemon, but guessed it to be a bug type from its shape. It began to do something with some paper and a brush it had.

Cautiously Kestro started to cross the stepping stones. Surely a Pokemon who was busying itself with drawing wouldn't attack? Kestro attempted to keep from staring at the Mothim, but as he drew closer he noticed that the bug type had already noticed him, probably before he even began to cross. Kestro wasn't really a Pokemon who could hide. Standing as tall as a human child, with bright blue and rugged grey markings, he stood out in most environments like a sore thumb. Perhaps he could look into a more concealing pallet with the help of dyes, but he doubted his pride would let him do anything more than try to show off even more.

He was almost completely across the stepping stones now, and it had become increasingly difficult not to look at the Mothim. He hoped he wouldn't end up being tackled into the lake. He'd no idea how deep it was, and was not sure how good of a natural swimmer he'd be, having been raised up in a desert.

Russell kept an eye on the Cranidos that stood on the other side of the river but continued on with his drawing. It was always wise to be cautious, but he wouldn't let it get in the way of his day as he could always fly away if the other pokemon happened to be trouble.

Luckily, the Cranidos seemed to be erring more on the cautious side himself, slowly stepping across the stones that lead towards the forest. Russell tried to ignore the Cranidos at first, figuring that it probably saw him as just as much of a potential threat as he saw them as. After a few moments though, the Cranidos's constant glances got the better of him.

Lowering his brush and sketchbook, he waved lightly to the stranger with one stubby little arm. He hoped it would be seen as a gesture that he wasn't a threat. After all, if this other pokemon was an explorer, or something of that ilk, perhaps they would have some interesting stories or rumours to share.

Kestro's head raised up as the Mothim waved. His caution quickly began to dissipate, replaced by his usual confidence and newfound curiosity in the bug type. Once on the shore of the island, Kestro immediately turned towards the Mothim, offering up one of his own short arms in a wave as he approached. "Eyo, whacha doing?" the Cranidos called out, his tone relaxed as he neared the Mothim. Now that he was closer, the Rock type noted how close in size he and the Mothim were. He wondered how small it must've been in it's pre-evolved form. He still knew nothing about it other than it being a bug type. Heck, given how well it camouflaged with the forest, Kestro was sure that this Pokemon was a native.

The Rock type was already so comfortable with the bug type that he simply plopped down next to him, lowering his rocky body onto the ground like a nesting bird. Perhaps it was a bit too careless. Other than type, Kestro had no advantage over the Mothim. It was evolved, probably possessed more than just weaker bug type moves, and Kestro didn't even possess an actual rock type attack that could deal serious damage to the Mothim. All those thoughts Kestro had about him needing to be more cautious had simply disappeared from his memory. He'd probably be berating himself later on with hindsight.

Dracorexion carried out 3 launched of one Fallen Leaf Copse :

, ,

Russell: 34 + 5 - Straw Cloak

All caution that the Crandios had been exercising seemed to vanish immediately as Russell waved. The Mothim blinked, a little confused by this development, but decided to roll with it as the other pokemon called out to him. He seemed friendly enough.

"Drawing mostly," the Mothim replied truthfully, holding up his sketchbook with his little hands to show the Cranidos. The drawing was of the edge of the forest, including part of the lake and it's set of stepping stones. It was a little messy in its use of water to draw the colour across the paper, but conveyed the scenery well enough that it was recognisable. Russell tilted his head to the side as the Cranidos just took a seat next to him, completely nonchalant as if they'd known each other for years. With how comfortable the Headbutt pokemon was already acting, Russell couldn't help but want to be open and extend that trust back to him.

"What brings you to the copse?" Russell asked lightly.

Kestro tilted his head at the drawing, looking over the scene the bug type captured on the sketchbook. Kestro was no artist, but he recognized the tranquil scene quite easily. The watery colors almost helped it seem calmer, more fluid, than the actual scene. Kestro grinned, "That's pretty cool," he commented. The Cranidos reached a clawed hand up and scratched his chin as Russell asked for Kestro's reasoning for coming to the copse. Kestro didn't really want to admit that he got lost and stumbled upon it. Instead he gave a light shrug, "Just exploring and wandering about," he said. It was a half-truth at best. Kestro's pride wouldn't let him admit getting lost, but at the same time it wouldn't allow him to outright lie.

The Cranidos soon shifted his bag off of his back, pulling out a pair of berries. He bit into the Sitrus berry in his right claw, holding out an odd purple and yellow berry to the Mothim. "Ganlon berry?" the Cranidos said after swallowing the bite of Sitrus in his mouth.

Energy = 15 (yay berries)

"Thank you!" the Mothim grinned before pulling the sketchbook back towards himself. His art wasn't perfect but he took pride in it nonetheless, so it was nice to be complimented for his work. As the Cranidos briefly explained why he'd come to the copse, Russell took his brush and dipped it back into the water, cleaning the colour from it before he flicked the excess water off of the bristles and tucked it back into his bag.

The Mothim had been about to reply to the Crandios when the Headbutt pokemon had offered him a berry. Not one to say no to a gift, Russell nodded and gently took the offered Ganlon berry with a quick thanks. Twisting it around in one paw, he examined the colour of the berry before he looked back to the pokemon that had given it to him.

"I've not seen this type of berry before," he commented, a tilt of his head and a light flap of his wings giving away his curiosity, "Where did you get it from?"

Solilo carried out 5 launched of one Fallen Leaf Copse :

, , , ,

Kestro tilted his head as he continued to munch at the Sitrus berry in his claws. Another swallow and he answered the Mothim, "Pokemon in Grassveil says it only recently started growing in Pecha Forest. That's where I found it, plus some more berries. One person said that eating it will make you tougher to take down when in a pinch," the Cranidos explained before finishing off his fruit. "Another Pokemon said that he could try making new dyes from it. Not sure what he meant from that, but as soon as he asked where I got it from, he went off to find some more, I guess."

"Sooo, what are ya? Never really seen a Pokemon like you before," the Cranidos asked. He also wondered what the Mothim might've evolved from. He at least assumed he was evolved, given Kestro's limited knowledge on bug Pokemon. One thing he found a lot had in common was that when they finally grew wings, that was their final evolution. Beedrill, Butterfree, Beautifly, Volcarona, and a few others he'd seen fluttering about in Grassveil all shared this trait. They also evolved fast, excluding Volcarona, as far as he knew. Still, he'd never heard of a Mothim. Those bright yellow and orange wings coupled with the black and white body was completely foreign to him. Maybe it was a bug and fire type like Volcarona? Those colors seemed to match for a fire type, but then again they were near perfect camouflage for this dungeon, so maybe it changed colors with the seasons or its environment?

Of all the forests surrounding Grassveil town, this one was by far Alki's favorite. Pecha Forest had a lot of bad memories associated with it, and as a result, it was probably the one she feared travelling to the most. Even after some rather... unpleasant times in other mystery dungeons, Pecha Forest had to top her list of 'Most feared' dungeons. Shadowhue forest wasn't quite as bad, although it was still a place that Alki wouldn't really travel to of her own volition. Fallen Leaf Copse was one of the few that she would.

Of course, the Pokemon in the forest were still rather scary to her. Doubtlessly, a good number of them would know some kind of poison type attack, and fragile as she was, even a normal move that hit her was rather painful; let alone one that was super effective. Alki hadn't experienced even the former in quite some time, and she didn't intend to ever again. That was why she'd learned teleport! So she could... escape, should any threat arise!

Alki soon stumbled upon a river, that seemed to be winding away for quite a while. Alki walked alongside it, rather leisurely (What did she have to worry about?). The sound of the river was quite soothing, just the rushing of water, with occasional splashes from the river reaching her fur. She walked alongside it, almost in a trance, until she heard the faint sound of voices. Up ahead, a Mothim and a rather familiar looking Cranidos seemed to be conversing. Alki wondered what she was going to do, until an idea popped into her head. She'd sneak up on them!

It'd be good practice anyways! If she could get her teleport under an even better control, then surely she'd be able to impress her Phantom Friends quite a bit! With a large dopey smile on her face, Alki hid behind a nearby grove of bushes, watching them... waiting... (Well, honestly, more like psyching herself up...) Until finally! The moment, and...

Bloop. She felt herself moving, rapidly, almost instantaneously, straight behind the duo, before striking a small pose, grinning widely.

"HIYA!" She cried out, as loudly as she could manage.

The Mothim flipped a page in his sketchbook, whipping a set of coloured drawing implements from his bag as he did so and sketching down the berry’s shape, colours and name. He hovered the berry in mid-air as he drew, positioning it to his liking with his psychic power. “Sounds like it could come in handy,” he commented.

As Russell finished up his rough sketch of the berry, the Cranidos asked what he was. Russell grinned and spread his wings wide, putting his tiny arms on his hips as well as he could as a bug.
“I’m a Mothim!” he grinned, clearly proud of his species, “Grew up from a Burmy and now I have these cool wings!” He flapped his orange wings, drawing attention to them as he spoke of them. Even though they were his wings, he still had moments where he couldn’t help but grin at their existence. He’d spent so long confined to the ground as a Burmy, but now he could fly.

It was during his posing that something from behind him called out loudly.  Russell jumped, instinctively taking off from the ground in surprise and flying a few paces back from where the sound had come from. Examining it now, he could see that it was a Jigglypuff, but he remained on edge, raising a small paw to his chest as he breathed to calm himself. He wasn’t even sure what the other pokemon had said, just that it was incredibly loud and completely out of nowhere.

How did they even get behind him without him noticing in the first place?

Kestro's head tolted as he watched the Mothim set the berry afloat in the air and begin to draw it. Some sort of psychic move or ability? Moves like those always amazed and baffled the rock type. He only had physical moves, and doubted his species learned many, if any at all, non-physical moves that he saw so many other Pokemon use. Even then psychic moves stood out among the rest. Their power seemed to come from nowhere, or from some force that Kestro couldn't really comprehend.

As Russell proudly proclaimed his species and love of his wings, Kestro grinned. Burmy, huh? Mestro knew of that Pokemon. There was one from his Oasis village. It had a rock and sand covering, which made him think it was a ground type. "So what happened to yo-" he was cut off when a familiar Jigglypuff popped in out of nowhere. Kestro wasn't able to really react at first, being mid-sentence and all. Perhaos that was for the best, as he was able to stay laid down and comfortable. He did click his beak a few times in annoyance, but otherwise stayed where he was.

"Alki? How ya doin'? Where's Darcy?" Kestro asked. He still didn't know much about the Jigglypuff and was a bit surlrised to not see her with her Skitty sister.

It turned out that the Cranidos was, in fact,s omeone pretty familiar to her. She'd met him not long ago in another one of these forests. He was alright, but she didn't know much about him. And he wasn't who interested her right that moment anyways. She'd gotten the Mothim! He had gotten startled by her, flying up, away from her. Right this moment he was staring down at her, a paw on his chest, so she had legitimately snuck up on him! At the thought of this, Alki's smile grew even wider as her eyes narrowed in delight.

"BAHAHAHAHA" She laughed out, not even registering what it was that Kestro had said. She fell over forward, still giggling, before rolling onto her back and pointing up at the Mothim, her smile still evidently wide. "I got you! Surprise!" She said, grinning quite widely, and returning to her giggling. It hadn't even occurred to her that this action might not be looked upon with fondness.  But whatever... she had used it successfully! That was enough for her.

Fresh from being drenched with mud from the marshes and sprinting like a mad man to avoid Stantler stampedes, it was only natural that one would want some reprieve from chaos for a time. Likewise, it was only natural that after dealing with such that Deimos had decided to immediately return home to the land of perpetual Autumn. It would have been nice, to lie down, read through one of the library books and generally enjoy some peace and quiet.

It was with this fantasy in mind that Deimos pushed through the brush and treeline, aiming to close in on the old stepping stones that he'd grown accustomed to hopping across on every visit. Unfortunately however, His hopes were soon dashed as he broke through the treeline, the stones in clear view, along with a duo conversing on the forest's edge. A sudden cry pierced the air, eliciting a heavy sigh from the now disappointed Disaster Pokemon, before a soft chuckle from the bug type's reaction. That had got to be the boss, no doubt about it. Carefully picking up his makeshift bag with his jaw, Deimos advanced on the stones, hopping across with relative ease. It get's a heck of a lot easier to not fall in once you've done it a few times.

Upon reaching the shore, Deimos gently set the bag down before looking back in his boss's direction. He could make out a third individual now, one who apparently had broken down into laughter, it's words making it clear that the Pokemon was the one who made the noise earlier. Carefully pulling his bag along, the Absol moved up behind his boss, though he wasn't trying to be stealthy. Giving Russel a heart attack did not sound like a good way to treat your Co-workers. "You okay boss?" He spoke, intending to announce his presence without giving someone a heart attack. Hard for the boss to run the scouts if he's gone after all.

Russell couldn't help the flush of embarrassment as the Jigglypuff outright laughed at his reaction, literally rolling on the floor with how funny she had found it. He was honestly glad that his reaction was so swift, as it meant that he'd hopefully be fine if someone with actual malicious intent did similarly. However, the Jigglypuff was lucky that his instant reaction had been flight rather than to attack the unknown as the entire situation could have been a bit more of a disaster had that been the case.

"Y-you should be careful of scaring pokemon like that!" He replied to the Jigglypuff, still blushing but his tone firm and serious, "Especially near a dungeon. Someone else might react more harshly and harm you!" He wasn't sure of the Jigglypuff's age, but her reaction to her actions made her appear to be quite young. Maybe even a child. If so, hopefully Russell could remind her to be more conscious of her actions in future. Not everyone in the forest was as friendly as him or the Cranidos he'd been conversing with.

Russell was acutely aware that he'd pretty much just lectured a stranger, though. And probably dampened their mood to boot. He landed gently on the bank of the copse, glancing back as he heard footsteps and nodding to Deimos as he arrived and asked if he was okay.

The Mothim turned his attention back to the Jigglypuff. Alki? He thought that was what the Cranidos had called her. Scratching gently at his chin he continued in a quieter, calmer tone, "Sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."