Private/Closed The Start of a Friendship

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz allowed the rub, as long as it would keep the Quagsire from running off. He winced as a bit of slime trickled down his leg. But the Quagsire seemed to want attention, so he reached down and patted the top of the Quagsire’s head.

“So... Derp Lord... did you and Gible have a good time?”

He was kind of stalling for time, but he also wanted to know as well. Gible continued to grin as he nodded.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

"Quag!" Derp Lord answered happily. He gently thumped his tail on the ground as he was scratched on the head, imitating a dog. The Water-Fish Pokemon closed his eyes as he was scratched.

Kathren saw Star and knew that she had found her missing Quagsire. "Probably found some sort of Pokemon and tried to take them on a swim," she muttered. Star started to lead her to her blue Pokemon as Kathren ran after the bird.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz continued to scratch Derp Lord. However, Gible was getting jealous and started pawing at Renz’s leg. This was awkward for Renz.... he had to squat down, reaching up to scratch the top of Derp Lord’s head, and down to scratch Gible. Gible rolled over, and he was now getting scratched on the tummy.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Derp Lord opened his eyes to see Renz having to reach up to scratch him. Although he loved getting attention, he didn't like to do it to the expense of others, much like his trainer. He batted Renz's arm away with his flipper-like hands.

Kathren followed Star some more. How far away were they? Or was Star messing with her? Well, she was walking, not running, so it would take longer. Kathren nodded. Yes, that was it. She was just walking.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz was surprised when he felt Derp Lord Knick his hand away.

“What’s wrong, Derp Lord? Did I scratch too hard?”

Gible sighed contentedly. The little land shark loved attention... and he had been known to walk up to strangers and ask for pets. Luckily this had only ever happened in the shop, when one or another of the family was around.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Derp Lord shook his head no and pointed at the Gibble. He let out a large "Quag!" as he walked to the water and sat in it. He looked up at Renz and gave a blank stare. He didn't seem aware that his trainer was looking for him. But that was fine. This was Derp Lord. He never really understood what happened around him, unless he was focused on that one thing.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz tried to guess what Derp Lord meant. He sat all the way down and kept an eye on Derp Lord while he pondered.

“Don’t go too far, Derp Lord.”

Gible also walked over to the water. He began to bury himself in the mud again.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren walked up to the boy from the counter. "So you found Derp Lord?" she asked. When Derp Lord heard his trainer, he got up and ran to her, trying to give her a hug. She smiled and opened her arms wide for the hug. They wrapped their arms around each other and Derp Lord gave his trainer huge pats on the back, saying "Quag!" every time it hit. She rolled her eyes and let go of Derp Lord. "Thank you so much. He tends to wander off a lot. He just can't stay focused!" she said. On her last sentince, she started to scratch Derp Lord's head, in which he closed his eyes and looked relaxed.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz smiled as he stood up.

“Yes, he was swimming... he gave me a bit of a scare when he popped out of the water.”

Gible also came out of the mud. He was, of course, covered in mud.

“Buddy... you are gonna need to rinse off.”

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren smiled at the Gibble. "So, does he have a name?" she asked. She thought for a bit before adding, "What is your name?" She just realized that she never got his name. She felt so stupid and tried to hide her embarrassment for forgetting such an important thing. Besides, he did just help her find her Quagsire. Most of the time she never asked due to the fact that she thought that she would never see that person again. She thought the same way now, but she would make an exception just this once due to him helping her out.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz smiled.

“No, I don’t have a nickname for him. I know it’s kinda wierd, but I can’t quite find one either of us like. I’ve heard of people calling them Jet because of their evolutions, but it just doesn’t seem right. So I just call him Gible. And my name’s Renz.”

He held out his hand. It was still a bit slimy from petting Derp Lord, but Renz has forgotten about that. Gible continued to grin, but looked like he wanted Renz to pet him more.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren accepted the handshake. "Kathren. And might I mention that Gible is adorable. Of course, I find most Pokemon adorable, but the statement still stands." She smiled at Gible as Derp Lord patted the little land shark.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

“Thank you! You should say thanks, too, Gible.”

“Gib?”

The small Dragon/Ground type cocked his head, not quite understanding what his trainer wanted him to do. So instead of saying thank you, he flicked some of the mud on him towards Renz, who leaped back trying to avoid getting mud on his clothes. Gible found this amusing, so he began shaking himself around, spraying mud everywhere.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren, who didn't mind getting muddy at this point, just laughed as the mud flew. She couldn't remember the last time she had fun with someone and their Pokemon before. She always kept everything strictly business. She smiled at Gible. "Aren't you a silly one?" she said with amusement. Derp Lord found a pretty yellow flower and walked over to it to pick it.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Gible stopped shaking and looked at Kathren. He toddled over to her, his mouth open.

“Gyb? Gib Gib Gib.”

Renz walked back over now that Gible had stopped flinging mud around. He just preferred NOT to have to scrub it out later when his mom had him wash his clothes again. He looked at his Pokémon, who still had streaks of mud on him. He would probably have to clean his clothes anyway if he had to clean Gible later. Unless he changed into swim trunks or something.

Renz snapped out of his thoughts of cleaning. There were funner things to be doing than thinking of laundry and Pokémon Cleaning. He smiled at his Pokémon, squatting down closer to the Pokémon’s level and reaching out to pet him again.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren smiled at Gible and giggled. "Do you want me to pet you? If not, to bad. You asked for it when you got this close." She reached down to pet the Gibble, looking like she forgot that Gibbles could have rough skin. However, the way she petted him had her brush the scales down, preventing rough skin damage, if Gibble did have that ability.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Gible grinned happily, always glad of attention. He made noises of enjoyment, grinning at the girl. Renz smiled as well, glad to see his Pokémon happy and feeling pretty cheerful himself. He glanced over at Derp Lord to see what the Quagsire was up to, then turned back to the girl.

“So, Kathren, how did you meet Derp Lord? He seems like such a sweet Pokémon, even though he gets in a lot of mischief.”

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren was about to answer until she heard the word 'mischief'. Derp Lord? Cause mischief? She did not believe it. Sure, he did cause small amounts of trouble, however, it was never intentional. She shook the thought out of her head and just smiled. "I met him while I was completing a bet. I was supposed to catch a Wooper and name it Derp Lord. He came with me willingly, or maybe he was unaware of what was going on, I don't know, and I kept him. By the way, Derp Lord never means any of it, he is just very curious on top of being absent-minded and forgetful."

 

[RenzFlintrock]

“Oh, cool! And sorry, I understand. I guess Gible is kinda the same way sometimes. Well... the curious part anyway.”

Renz was sorry he had accused the Pokémon of mischief-making. He should have know it was just natural curiosity and forgetfulness, or at least been able to guess. He didn’t hold any grudge against Derp Lord for knocking over the Pokeball tray, but now it was almost laughable. He stroked Gible as they conversed, enjoying the pleasant day.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren gave a small giggle. "I think all Pokemon are slightly curious at some point in time." Derp Lord waddled up to her and handed her a yellow flower. She smiled fondly at her Quagsire. "Thanks, Derp Lord." She placed the flower in a pocket in her jacket and then petted Derp Lord while still petting Gibble. She would not choose one over the other.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

“I guess so. Gible is still really just a baby... I mean, he’s been hatched for over a month, but I still can’t battle with him... but yeah, he was extremely curious for a while, and I guess he still is. There’s just less new stuff for him to be curious about.”

Renz watched as Kathren pet both Pokémon at once. It was no mean feat, either, because petting two Pokémon in a way that each liked could be like patting your head while rubbing your belly. It required serious coordination. However, this all depended on if you were petting them different ways. If you were petting them the same way it was not nearly as difficult.

Gible, although enjoying the petting, was getting hungry. He gently broke away from her and toddled over to Renz. He opened his mouth wide and held it that way, his signal for being hungry. Renz sighed and realized he was ready to eat as well. He hadn’t brought any lunch with him that day, so he would have to go home soon and eat.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren sighed. "Well, I better find something for Derp Lord to eat. It's about that time. He should be asking for food any second now." Derp Lord started pointing at his mouth as it was as wide as he could get it open, which was extremely wide. "And right on schedule. I guess this is goodbye. It was nice talking to you, Renz." Kathren started walking away to find somewhere to eat at, though she could make her own food if she had the ingredients and kitchen.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz said goodbye and headed back to his house. He had to give Gible a bath, and probably start a load of clothes in the washing machine, once he got back, so he took his time. The day passed uneventfully, and the same with the entire next week, and before he knew it, it was festival time. Shaded booths were set up along the streets of Malie City, and the shops were all decorated. It was the Johto festival, a celebration commemorating the day the first settlers from Johto arrived in the city.

The festival always made Renz wonder exactly why the Johtonian Settlers had come there in the first place, but wondering never helped him figure out any solution that could be verified by anyone he knew. Sure, there were plenty of stories, but they were all conflicting, and Renz had come up with a few stories just as probable as most of the ones told during the festival. But, as usual, Renz was free to enjoy the festival just like the previous years. Like he had in years before, he made his way through the bustling streets and into Malie Gardens, which were decorated and filled with games and other events for the duration of the festival. But there was one difference this year: most of Renz's friends were out of town for their journeys. Some of them had returned for the festival, but Renz didn't know that. All he knew for the time being is that he was alone for the time being... well, except for Gible.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren thought that she planned this perfectly. She honestly did not know about the festival until after she came, but that did not matter. She walked down the crowded streets, this time a Shinx skipping behind her. "Where should we go first?" She asked no one in particular. She shook her head and entered Malie Gardens. She smiled at the festivities, even if she did not understand what they were celebrating.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz looked around at the different games in the festival. There were the usual games you’d find at a fair, from throwing darts at balloons, to throwing ping-pong balls into jars that contained different items. There was another version of this game, bowls containing Magikarp, and you were given Pokéballs to toss instead of ping-pong balls. This was a pretty tough game for the prize that was played for, since even if you were lucky or skilled enough to get a Pokéball into one of the fishbowls, there was no guarantee that the Pokéball would hit the Magikarp, and if it did hit it was possible that the Pokémon could break out. Renz has tried in previous years, and always failed.

He knew this year that it wasn’t worth the money, so he went for one of the other tossing games where you could win items. He set Gible down on the counter so he could watch, paid the person two Poké, and received his fifteen ping-pong balls. Gible picked up one of them and investigated it, while Renz looked at the potential prizes and prepared to make his first throw.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren wandered the festival, taking in everything. She swore off fair games, due to the fact they were never fair at all, so she just watched. She made a mental note to find someplace she could get some funnel cake at, her favorite fair food, so then she could eat it and enjoy something she only had during a festival or fair. While she was wandering about, she thought she saw Ren, Ray, Renz? One of those three, with his Gible. She never made an effort to remember names, even if she did ask for them. She decided to watch him play his game before she went to wander around again.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz's first couple of throws had been completely unsuccessful. He threw two more; the second had nearly gone into one containing what looked like a gift card. He threw the others still inside the basket in succession, but with no luck. He sighed, thinking he was out of tries, until he saw that Gible was offering the last one, which he had been playing with. Renz smiled and thanked his partner. He took his aim, threw the final ball, and... failed. He shrugged and picked up Gible, wondering what he should do next.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren looked at Renz, disappointment in her eyes. She walked up to him, wanting to say something, just in case he noticed. "I really thought you would get the last one," she said as she looked at the ground. She found it slightly awkward to talk to someone she only met a few days before and never talked to again. Thunder, her Shinx, chased his tail. He did not notice Kathren moving until she was talking to Renz. He sped over to her, tripping over his big paws as he made it to her. Falling onto her leg. Kathren glaced down and smiled at the Shinx, who shook himself.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz turned around to see who had addressed him. He smiled when he saw who it was.

“Oh, hi! Thanks... so... how are you enjoying the festival?”

He was also having a bit of trouble figuring out what to say. He was slightly distracted by the Shinx. He bent squared down and stretched out his hand for the electric type to sniff.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Thunder crouched and pretended to stalk Renz's hand. He pounced, claws sheathed. Thunder tried to bat Renz's hand playfully, showing just how young he was. Kathren smiled. "It's fine. Still haven't found that funnel cake yet. I would ask how you're doing, but right now you're a toy for Thunder." She gave a small chuckle.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Renz flinched slightly as Thunder pounced at his hand, but quickly realized that the Shinx was just playing. He let the Shinx play with his hand while he continued to talk to Kathren.

"Thunder... that's a good name for a Shinx. And as far as funnel cake goes, I think the vendor should be on the other side of the lake. That's where they were last year, I think..."

Meanwhile, Gible had been watching Thunder playing with Renz's hand. Seeing that his trainer didn't seem to mind, he began trying to bat at Renz's hand. However, his arms were too short, and Gible solved that problem by putting Renz's hand in his mouth. Renz winced slightly, looked down at his Pokemon, and gently disengaged the Gible.

"Ow. Don't do that, Gible."

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren smiled at Gible. "I think he just wants to play, like Thunder. And thanks, I think it'll fit well when he's a Luxray as well. I mean, when you say thunder, you think of something powerful, right?" She gave a snort of laughter. Thunder continued playing with Renz's hand, purring as he did so. He was only a kitten, so he found amusement in small things.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

"Yeah, I know he just wants to play but it doesn't stop his teeth from being sharp... at least Thunder isn't using his claws. And yeah, I can see that for a Luxray as well."

Gible was looking curiously at Renz, slightly hurt by his tone. Renz tried to pet Thunder, although the way the feline was playing complicated matters. Renz liked the small blue cat, and he had a feeling it might be fun if Thunder met his mom's partner Pokemon, Missy. The Espeon could be a bit... well, aristocratic? sometimes, but he felt sure she would get along great with Thunder.

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Thunder stopped batting Renz's hand so that he could be petted. He liked all forms of positive attention. He purred more as he rubbed his body against Renz's leg, much like a house cat would. Kathren shook her head. "Come here Gible. Thunder is an attention thief, so don't mind him. Besides, I think I can pet you, little guy." She smiled as she knelt down, beckoning for the baby dragon to come to her.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Gible immediately moved over to Kathren. He, like Thunder, loved attention, and if Renz wasn’t giving it to him he’d be glad to get it from the nice girl. Renz was still petting the Shinx, thinking of the stories his mom had told him about when she was around his age and had gotten her first Pokémon. He turned his attention back to the cat, rubbing around the ears, and laughing slightly at Kathren’s words.

“Hey, once the attention-fest is over, do you wanna look for that funnel cake?”

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren petted Gible in a way she would not get hurt and smiled up at Renz. "Sounds like a plan. Funnel cake is my favorite fair-food. Least favorite and borderline hate is corndogs. I get sick every time I eat one." She shuddered at the thought and felt slightly sick from thinking of them as well. She looked back down at Gible and smiled at the little thing. Thunder closed his eyes when Renz scratched behind his ears, relaxing and nearly falling asleep.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

Gible loved the pets, and his smile broadened. He didn’t really have much of a tail, but it was wagging slightly. Renz continued to rub Thunder as he talked.

“Okay then, avoid the corn dogs. I actually don’t really remember how they taste very well. I have an intolerance to gluten, or rather wheat, barley, and rye, so I don’t eat a lot of bready foods.”

 

[ThePlayfulFox]

Kathren did not know what to say. "Oh, wow, that's awful. Um, at least you aren't allergic to dairy." She gave GIble a quick scratch before she stopped and stood up. "We better get going, don't want to miss out on that funnel cake!' She smiled then stopped. "Can you eat funnel cake?" Thunder rolled over to his belly so that it can be scratched.

 

[RenzFlintrock]

“Yeah, it would be pretty bad.”

Renz grinned slightly. He gave Thunder a rub on the belly and stood up as well. Gible closed his eyes at the scratches and reopened them when Kathren stood up.

“Nope, funnel cake has gluten. But I’m used to it, four years of watching other people eat food you can’t does that. It’s honestly not that bad, there are a lot of alternatives, like rice noodles or specialty gluten free breads.”