&& . let the RHYTHM take { c o n t r o l } ``

[Hayden]

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[atrb=background, i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/starstruck_insanity/middle3.png] Relax, Ruka! Be nice to the poor little girl! The gentle admonishment sounded almost as if the blond man was amused, and, quite truthfully, he was. It wasn't like the lucario was actually hurting the child. She was just... growling whenever the child tried to pass by them. A flippant hand tapped a long black ear, so gentle his pokemon would hardly feel it, and the growl jerked to a stop. He slipped up off the bench, graceful as a cat, and slipped past the steel-fighting type, bending at the waist to be on eye level with the girl, who looked about ready to cry. Don't worry little one, it's alright. She won't hurt you. This, paired with a charismatic, reassuring smile left her with only a quivering lip until Belle decided enough was enough. The delcatty promptly rammed her claws into the lucario's foot with a growl to watch her manners, then trotted over to the girl, giving her a gently lick, then nudging her on past so she wouldn't have to deal with Ruka's overprotective nature any longer. The girl scampered off and Carter straightened again. He didn't give Ruka any warning before he stuck her back in her pokeball; after all, she'd been warned. She was to behave herself, especially around children, or she wouldn't be allowed out. She'd tried, he knew that, but she clearly hadn't tried hard enough. So, left with only his mother's delcatty out, five pokemon in pokeballs, and the terrible syndrome of boredom, he set off. He was down in that town, for now. And so, he slipped down the road and off onto the not-so-well-trod path that happened to be not trod at all. The grass was easily up to his knees, higher in most spots, and it was difficult enough to keep track of Arabelle. He knew she wouldn't get lost, none of his pokemon would, they'd been together far too long for that, but it often made him wonder why he bothered to walk through the taller grass at all. The answer, of course, was why not? It was there, and so he chose that path instead. Simple as that. Of course, to some it would not be simple at all. But, that was a topic for another time. Especially since something had just reflected sunlight in that tree over there. The young adult was instantly distracted, and he darted over, faster than it would have been believed possible considering the height of hte grass and before Belle had a chance to yowl out an indignant, annoyed "Deeeeelll!"(which, of course, meant, "Car-teeeer!" or "What are you doing now?"), he was swinging up into the tree and onto the branch and peering around for it. And there it was. Nothing special. Just a piece of ribbon. But it had a metallic sheen to it and he instantly grinned. He grabbed it and leaped down, pausing to tie it around Belle's neck until he found a better place to put it. And, naturally, his pokemon just sighed and shook her head. For a grown man, she had to deal with him as if he was a child far too much. She was getting too old for this.

[Yumi]

"Ah! Hang in there, Pidgeotto!" She called, brows down in worry. Worry towards losing, and for her beloved bird. The Pidgeotto tried to get his feet, but just couldn't make it back up. It fell down onto its side, exhausted. "Ah! Pidgeotto, return!" She called, holding its pokeball out. "You did your best, baby, thanks..." She muttered lowly, clicking it to her strap and reaching for another. What could she use against her older sister's Raichu?

The crowd roared in anticipation of the match. "This is quite a match up folks! Miss Yumi Kururugi is down to her last pokemon! What will she choose?" The announcer's voice beamed through the mircophone, and echoed throughout the stadium. Yumi picked another pokeball from her strap without hesitation, kissed it, and threw it. "Let's go, Smoothie!" The older sister gave a haughty laugh, "Your flareon? You're too obvious, baby sister... just like Suichi!"

"And she has chosen a flareon! Let the match, begin!" "Raichu, start off with a thunderbolt!" "Rai...!" Raichu's cheeks sparked, before the electric attack was released. Yumi had to think quick; she knew how powerful a Raichu could be... especially her sister's. "Quick, Smoothie, dig!" "Flare!" The fire eeveelution swifty dug into the dirt of the ground, disappearing from sight...

"Eevee... Eve..." Leo cooed his name softly, poking at the cheek of his master. Yumi groaned in response, trying to swat the eevee away. He didn't give up, this time swiping back at her hand. She sat up with a yawn, unable to stay asleep with the pokemon bothering her. Was she dreaming? No way! She was going to beat one of her older siblings once and for all..."What's the matter Leo?" She asked with a yawn, rubbing her eyes. Nope. It had to have been a dream... she didn't have a Pidgeotto with her anymore. She had left it home, with her mom. She blinked a few times when she didn't hear a certain voice. It was a quiet, peaceful, and cool morning... at least it was until...

"SUICHI!!"

She shrieked, scaring Leo into hiding behind Smoothie, the flareon. He left her... AGAIN?! UGH! She was going to give him a peice of her mind! Or so she figured as she began to stuff everything back into her travel bag. She mumbled to herself in anger, unable to help herself.

"Smoothie, return." She clipped her pokeball to the strap on her waist, and swung her bag over her shoulder with ease. Leo patted his way ahead, only going so far to wait for his master. He was pleased, that was for sure; today was his day to be out of the pokeball and walk. As they walked, Yumi quickly brushed through her hair, and put her bandana in it. At least she still ahd all her accessories on. She never took them off last night...

"Suusssshhhiiii!" Yumi wailed as she walked through the grass. Why did he have tease her like this? By letting her oversleep and leaving camp for the next town? Not that she didn't expect this to happen after their argument the night before. Well... at least the next city was only a twenty minute or so walk. No wait a minute... she just CAME from another town the night before setting up camp. Ugh.

"Let's see..." She muttered, stopping to think for a moment with her eevee stopping at her feet. She scratched her head a few times as Leo looked up at her with his confused expression. She normally would've smiled, and oozed out 'awwws' and 'how cute!'s, but she was too deep in thought. 'If the town I'm heading away from was twenty minutes behind me... then how long...

Then... she saw it.

Something shiny, or at least that's what it seemed to be from where she was standing, caught her attention. With wide eyes, she headed towards the tree. Leo followed behind, but it was hard considering he was so tiny in all the grass. Yumi didn't seem to notice, too fixated on the thought of the item of her current desire. What if it was something pretty like a hair tie she could wash and use? A pretty ribbon to tie onto Leo or Smoothie? Or maybe someone lost jewelry?! She could mentally feel her mouth water. Ah, nothing was better than sparkly things! What she didn't expect, however, was some tall figure to run and get it first from the other side of the tree. What the?

"Did you see that Leo? He totally just took my prize and-! Leo?" She blinked a few times. "Leo? Where'd you go?" She turned to search through the grass, her accessories starting to reflect and shine in the sun with each movement. "Eeeeeeevvveeeee!"

[Hayden]

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[atrb=background, i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/starstruck_insanity/middle3.png] Carter heard the voice, eyes tipping up quickly from their original gaze at his pokemon. A gentle hand swept his blond hair behind his ear as he glanced over and spotted the girl who'd spoken and even cut herself off of her own accord. He watched for a moment as she searched through the grass, then placed his hand back on his pokeballs. The puff of purple fur on his pokemon's tail whacked against his hand though, knowing Ruka wouldn't be likely to help like he seemed to ready to believe. Instead, she simply followed the cry on her own, even though she certainly couldn't see over the grass herself. Carter followed her, scooping the eevee up to avoid the poor thing getting a rather stern admonishment from the older, motherly pokemon who would no doubt inform the little creature that it was no good to wander off on his own, and that he should stay put should he get lost, and... well, it would go on quite some time, moving on to life lessons quickly. There would be no acceptance of impatience or a need to go anywhere else. The eevee would have been forced to sit there as long as it took. The delcatty growled at her trainer, who merely glanced down with a raised eyebrow. Honestly, Arabelle. You think mother would have taught you better manners long ago. She snorted, whacking his leg with her claws anyway, leaving him hopping on one leg for a few seconds at the sting, though she'd made sure not to tear skin, just... puncture it nicely. Yes, they had a wonderful relationship. Some abused pokemon; Arabelle abused her trainer instead. Carter didn't quite avoid limping, though he mostly hid it as he held the eevee out. I do believe this may be who you're looking for, miss...? She wasn't getting away until he got her name. She seemed familiar, but... well, he couldn't quite place her. That was fine; he saw lots of people on a regular basis, and if he didn't see them regularly, he was rather prone to forgetting names, or where he'd seen them. A friendly smile had curved onto his face naturally, lips open a bit to reveal the perfect, white teeth most dentists would kill to see in more than a photoshopped picture. Belle appeared by his side now, though, with a purr, where she promptly sat and began licking off the burrs from the grass, though there weren't many. Like his mother, her original trainer, she was a bit of a neat freak; she would be clean whenever possible, or else she would be cranky. She was certainly more of a house pet, but she refused to go in her pokeball out of the towns half the time, so she'd learned to deal with it and he'd learned to ignore her complaints.

[Yumi]

"Leo! Where are you?" Yumi demanded as she searched. She didn't exactly get on her hands and knees to look. She bent over, or crouched down multiple times, and pushed grass out of her way to see. "Eeeeevvvee!" "Are you playing a game with me? Stay in one spot so I can find you!" She sighed a bit through her nose. Yup. The moment she couldn't find him, she knew he was playing around with her. Normally, she would've played along; but she was a little worried that playing in tall grass wasn't a good idea. He was still just a baby (especially in her eyes), and what if some mean wild pokemon came along?

"Eeeeeve!" Leo called to her again. This was fun! He loved playing with his "eve" (what he called Yumi), and to him, this was all just a game. He didn't know the dangers of tall grass. He opened his mouth to call her again, but was caught by surprise. With a yelp, he wiggled a bit in the man's grip. "Eevee!? Eve! Eve!" "Leo! I'm not playing games!" She growled, frustrated with this game already.

She stood up straight with a blink. Oops. She completely forgotten that there was someone else and his pokemon in range. The guy she'd claim stole her shiney prize, but that wasn't on her mind at the moment. Her green eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas. "Ah! You found him! Thank you, sir!" She turned to make a B-line for him and retrieve her eevee from him. "No more walking in tall grass for you, Leo! You'll ride on my shoulder or in your ball from now on! It's dangerous to be a baby in tall grass by yourself!" She scolded, waving her finger in his face. Leo's ears drooped, and he gave her his cutest expression he could. "Eevee..."

Yumi shook her head multiple times as she held her arms out for him. "Uh-uh! You're not off the hook because you're cute!" The girl tilted her head to the side upon seeing the guy. While she'd been bothering with her eevee, he'd been nothing but a voice to her. He seemed... familiar. Where did she see him before? Kanto? No... that wasn't it. Maybe it spent a night at her family's bed and breakfast! Maybe not...

"Thank you again, sir!" She beamed, grinning.

[Hayden]

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[atrb=background, i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/starstruck_insanity/middle3.png] He laughed softly, a light, airy sound that suited the man rather well considering his lighter clothing and generally fair appearance. It wasn't really at her, more so at her rather exuberant behavior. So few people were so open these days, it was refreshing change. He noticed her watch him for a moment, confirming that he did know her somehow, he must, for she recognized him as well. Yet, clearly, she hadn't caught his unasked question of her name. Well, he could fix that. He stuck out his slender hand, hardly rigid at all. His handshakes had never been particularly firm, more loose, gentle. His father had always complained he was too feminine, but it was rather something Carter was proud of. He was who he was, he wasn't going to change that to please someone who hated him anyway. Just Carter's fine, and it's really no problem at all. It's not like I've anywhere to be. Del... The cat-like pokemon sounded unconvinced at his assumption he had nowhere to be. Probably because it was a sort of lie; he should be at his gym, waiting for trainers there. But that was far too boring, and the trainers there were keep competitors busy until he could get back, while someone else would give him a call. Then, it was a quick flight back on Siren to Olivine, a battle, then to start his wandering again. However, he caught the hint and his non-offered hand found its way to the back of his neck, a sheepish grin on his face. Well, I suppose I do, but it's far more interesting out here, as Arabelle fails to take into account. He avoided the claw swipe this time, a quick dance of the feet. He didn't give her a choice before he tapped her pokeball and with a beam of red light she was back inside. It was adjusted so that it locked for this very reason, and he slid the lock into place before she had a chance to get out again. She's also a bit of an old grump.

[Yumi]

Yumi blinked a few times as Leo settled himself on her shoulder. Why was he laughing? Was there something on her face? She couldn't resist reaching into her pockets for a compact mirror to check. Leo nuzzled his cheek against hers, almost as if comfirming that there was nothing there. Still... it didn't hurt to check. She pulled out her mirror and did a quick check. She saw nothing wrong. Clicking it closed, she sighed a breathe of relief. But still... it made her want to know what he laughed about.

"Yumi Kururugi!" She replied happily, smiling. "Though most just call me Yu. You're pick~!" Before Yumi had the chance to shake his hand, he withdrew it. Oh well. He seemed really nice. Really polite, too. A big change from Suichi... not that he was rude or anything. He was normally well mannered... just not to her at all times. Especially at times like this, when he would abandon her because of a silly spat. Heck, Yumi couldn't even remember what they were fighting about to begin with anymore.

"I see. I suppose being out here IS more interesting than being indoors or trapped somewhere." She replied with a small nod. It was the truth. Though she had only been away from home for roughly a month, she had to admit, she liked it out here better. She loved her family, and their buisness was great, but it just wasn't her way of spending time. Besides, she'd rather be out searching for something shiny than taking care of trainers (though battling them had always been fun). "Aww. She sounds like my mom's Umbreon. A grump."

Her mind began to wander once more as she stared at his face. Where had she seen this guy!? She knew she had seen him sometime when she'd come back from Kanto, so that region was completely out of the question. Actually, she could recall seeing him a couple times. They were just passing by glances and such. But... where else could she have seen him...?

[Hayden]

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[atrb=background, i664.photobucket.com/albums/vv2/starstruck_insanity/middle3.png] I personally blame it on her never battling and relieving all that pent up anger. He replied with a chuckle, very much glad he'd put Belle away before making that comment. Last time, she'd nearly killed him. Or, at least, tried to. Thor had been out of his pokeball. Perhaps the only time he was eternally grateful to the steelix. He loved the beast, sure, but he was rather inconvenient at most times. Despite the experience different, the small cat pokemon had been no match for the giant lump of steel with eyes and movement capabilities. It was at that moment he felt the buzzing of his phone in his pocket and scowled slightly. He enjoyed the gym, fine, but... could he not get a whole week off? Honestly? Was that too much to ask? With a sigh, though, he picked it up, holding out a finger for her to wait a moment. Castle. ... A week's notice? Really? Who goes to a gym to inform the leader he'll be challenging in a week? ... Well, yes, apparently this guy, obviously, but why did you have to call me today? I clearly don't need to be there for a week. Honestly, you take this whole thing way too seriously. .... It was at this point Carter held the phone away from his ear as the trainer he'd left in charge ranted about how irresponsible he was, and how immature and blah, blah, blah, blah. After a few seconds, Carter just shrugged and hung up. Not like the kid could do anything about it, and Carter didn't care if he got cut loose from the position of gym leader. Though, he would miss having a big room to full with gold, silver, gemstones, jewels, and so on. He'd just have to build a really big house somewhere to replace it. Sorry. He has no idea how to relax, have a little fun. Clearly. He smiled apologetically, phone call completely forgotten about already. Without a reminder, he'd probably even forget to return home for that challenger. Oh well. The kid could deal. The gym challenge wasn't all it was cracked up to be anyway. He should know. He'd taken all of them and he had a nice collection of shiny badges to prove it.

[Yumi]

His words snapped her away from her train of thoughts. It had been on the tip of her tongue, too! Darn it! "So, she's just one of the house pet type of pokemon, huh?" She laughed lightly, patting Leo on the head a few times. She fell silent when he answered his phone. All that served to do was make her mind wander... AGAIN. She could never stay focused for long. What would Suichi do if she didn't show up in the next town at all? At this point, she was considering taking another route to another place. 'Yeah... make you worry... and then when I get home later, I can tell Mom how many times you abandoned me! It's payback Sushi!'

She could see it now: her twin brother standing there, and waiting for her to catch up. Only she wouldn't, she'd be on her way to another town. Another town where she could get a nice meal, and a nice comfy bed. He'd be standing in the dark, waiting like the worry-wort he was. And she wouldn't dare show up until late the next day. Mwahaha.

With a small, light plotting toned laugh, she started to pat Leo on the head again... a little too hard. He yelped in protest, being the second one to snap her away from her thoughts. "Eve!" She withdrew her hand instantly. "Sorry..." She whispered, pouting. "I didn't mean it..." She missed most of Cater's conversation, being snapped back into reality while the trainer was ranting. Ouch. She sweatdropped, scratching a cheek.

"Sounds like something crawled up his butt and died...?" She gave a nervous laugh. That's when it hit her. She'd only been in one place while in Johto--her home town. He had to have passed through, or something. Maybe he lived there? "Have... you ever passed or been to a bed and breakfast for trainers in Olivine city? It's called Rise and shine."

[Hayden]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,459px,true] Carter had cracked a grin at her comment about Belle being a house pet type and it was definitely true. But, she was more worrisome about him than her fur, so she followed him despite the option of staying at the gym. She was a strange one, that delcatty was. Then, the phone call, and he laughed again at her comment, but didn't agree openly. For all his annoyances, the trainer was useful. He actually cared about learned from Carter, rather than just having the status as a gym trainer like most in his gym. His eyes lit up as she mentioned the bed and breakfast, just a few doors down from his gym, his house just a few more doors down from that. He passed by almost daily during his first years there, when he had trained under Jasmine and before he had gotten bored of waiting for challengers. All the time! Daily, a few years ago. Not so much anymore, but my house isn't too far from there. I run the gym in Olivine, actually; which is where I should be, but am not, clearly. His thumbs slipped into his belt, avoiding the pokeballs so no one got let out, a clearly relaxed position that didn't fully suit him, but didn't seem strange for a man of his appearance to have adopted. I suppose you live there, then?

[Yumi]

Yumi kept a smile on her face, and it glued its self when he laughed at her comment. It was a comment she often said about Suichi... to his face. His words caused her to think again. A few years ago? That was some time after she had come back to the Johto region. She bit down on her lip in thought, trying to keep it from wandering to unnecessary areas at the wrong moment. In which, it normally did. She did recall seeing him pass by multiple times, now that it was all clear. Most of the time she had been cleaning the yard, tending to the garden with her mother, or battling in the yard as training or with the trainers that stayed.

"Yes! My family owns the place, and up until about... 3 weeks ago I've been working there since I came back from a trip in Kanto!" She announced happily, nodding her head. There seemed to be something else; some detail that was escaping her memory, yet she couldn't help, but to wonder what that detail was. "Gym leader?!" HE was the Olivine gym leader?! How could she have lived there all that time, and not known that he was Jasmine's replacement? Gawd, she felt like an idiot. Hitting herself in the head once, she sweatdropped. "I always wanted to challenge you, but I never had the guts to. Eheheheheh..." Especially since her only pokemon on hand with battle experience was Smoothie. Leo had been an egg back then, and Pidgeotto had been stolen by her mother. And as good of an idea a fire type would seem, Yumi knew she would need more than that.

"Ah! You're the guy my sister would wait to pass by everyday! She would ignore her chores and interrupt my work just to watch you walk by! And she wanted me to drop a letter to-!" Yumi's hands fell over her mouth instantly, cutting herself off. Talk about oops. That was Ayame's secret to tell, not hers. Some how... she felt like her older sister would know that she told, and beat her down for it.

[Hayden]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,459px,true] A large grin split his face at her surprise, bowing slightly more as a joke than anything. It was all in good fun, for him. He didn't care whether he won or lost. He was in it for the fun, and the shiny gym badges. Yes, well, my battling skills are to be feared. Greatly. Clearly just joking around still, both by the tone of his voice and the wink he offered. The way his smile went crooked for a moment, twinging his face slightly but not really appearing sly as one might assume from such a description, really didn't help him with the appearance of seriousness. Then she went off on a tangent about his sister, and his grin grew, if that was at all possible. Oh, yes, he was a cocky man. Oh, I'm not surprised at all. At this point, he leaned down, face next to hers, one hand cupping her cheek so gently she probably wouldn't even feel it until it was gone. His smile had faded so that it was smaller, though it never disappeared fully. He whispered his next words softly in her ear. I've been told I'm kinda really handsome, after all, my dear. His hand fell as his lips brushed her cheek and then backed up a step, just in case. After all, he'd been slapped before. He wasn't excited to have that happen again. Yet his smile never faltered.

[Yumi]

Yumi sweatdropped, keeping a hand to her mouth while hitting herself in thr forehead. Stupid Yumi! Stupid...! She's gonna be mad if she finds out! She yelled at herself mentally, while giving an audible whine. She could see it now. Though her older sister was a breeder and normally against violence, she'd still give Yumi a run for her money when angry. The girl whined again, the scenario playing in her head.

First, she'd recieve a whole lecture about how its wrong to tell other's secrets... then she'd see Ayame spreading rumors, or telling all of Yumi's secrets. Like the fact that as a grown woman, she was still scared of the dark and needed Smoothie to cuddle up to to sleep. What would follow once Ayame got her hands on her... wasn't any better. She'd get smacked a few times and chased around with a broom, before Poliwhirl would catch her and gave her a double-slap attack to the rear-end. She might end up sic'ing her Mareep on her next. Yumi had been shocked by the pokemon many times because she made Ayame mad.

Oh boy. The possibilities of what Ayame could and would do to her were practically endless. And the worst of it all... Suichi wouldn't help her. Last time he tried, he got the same punishment from her. It was then he told her she had to deal with Ayame herself. "I don't wanna get shocked or be slapped by them anymore!" She yelled loudly, hands attaching to the sides of her head. What was she going to do?! "Ahh! She's going to get me! She's going to beat me, and sic' her pokemon on me again!"

Only did she stop her worrying when she realized how close Carter had gotten. What in the world was he doing? "Eh?" She got her answer moments later. It was only a brush, a little thing, but it was enough to make her turn red like a fresh ripe apple. Oh no! She could feel it in her cheeks, which made her more embarrassed. Sure, she thought he was good looking, but she usually did so well around good looking guys. Then again, none of them did that. "A-YEEEE!" She flailed her arms, accidentaly hitting against the strap of pokeballs. What came out was a Flareon, blinking in confusion. What was going on...? "Whatcha do that for!?"

[Hayden]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,459px,true] He'd ignored the outburst, naturally. He was used to life not quite making sense. After all, he was the perfectly behaved son, yet his father wanted nothing to do with him. His mother was innocent, an angel, and yet she had to die for some reason. There were many things in life he didn't understand, and doubted he ever would. This was one of them. But then she reacted and he had to stop himself from laughing. His smile deepened a bit out of amusement, though not malicious amusement. It was just difficult not to smile and nearly laugh at such a dramatic reaction. His eyes caught on the flareon for a moment, though not long. He was unconcerned. It had come from a pokeball, after all, and really didn't seem about to attack at any given point in time. He was safe. And he was pretty sure Thor, his steelix, could crush the poor thing if it did decide to take a page out of Belle's rulebook and try to claw him half to death. Sometimes, the big lump of steel was useful. Sometimes. Not often. He did turn his gaze back to her, though, grin returning to a small, albeit vaguely mischievous smile, head tipping slightly to the side. Why not? With such a comment, one would assume that Carter was a player. This, however, would not be a fitting accusation. Yes, he flirted. Yes, he kissed people he hardly knew on the cheek, and was willing to hold their hand or fake a relationship to get them out of trouble (no matter what that took), but stick him in an actual relationship? He stayed true until the you left. He may seem nonchalant about the whole thing, but that didn't mean he had no manners and no loyalties whatsoever. Perhaps a misconception one too many people had; not that he minded. They could think what they wanted, he knew the truth. The right hand corner of his mouth twitch up a bit at this point. Why? Want me to do it again?

[Yumi]

Leo jumped off of Yumi's shoulder as she moved around, landing next to the flareon. He let out a small sigh as they both sat down. "Eevee..." If he had stayed on any longer, he probably would've fallen off, or got thrown somewhere with her flailing arms. Just look what she did, he thought, letting out Smoothie without meaning to. Though he was still considered a baby, he knew full well what his older sister could be like. She hated other people, and the only time she let them get by is when SHE got all the attention.

Smoothie didn't seem to notice Carter at first, too busy blinking at her master. With a tilt of her head, she watched in confusion. "Flare?" What in the world could make her turn so red? That's when she noticed Carter standing there, and turned her head. Leo narrowed his eyes at her. "Eevee, eeve..." He muttered in warning, but it was too late. "Flareon!" The flareon had gotten to her feet and patted over to the gym leader. The only difference now was... she was rubbing her head against his leg!

She didn't hear Carter's "why not?" comment, too fixated on the female pokemon. She continued to flail her arms. "Nyah! What are you doing, Smoothie!?" Yumi shouted, her face still red. However, the pokemon ignored her. "Flare~<3" What was she going to do with the thing? Most of the time Smoothie landed her in trouble for attacking, and others... she just clung onto them if she found them attractive--male or female. Oh boy. Just when she thought the color was draining from face...

"Eh?! W-w-why would you do that?!" The red hue came back, darker than before if that was even possible. "You hardly know me! I hardly know you! We've only seen each other in passing! How would you-why would you-?! Ahhh!" The girl felt like her face was going to explode as she rambled.

[Hayden]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,459px,true] He'd bent to pet the flareon, deeming her (appropriately, in this case) friendly, chuckling softly, that same, light, airy laugh as the first time, as she "flipped". He shook his head in near disbelief when she continued to ramble on and on, stuttering the whole time, almost incomprehensible. He decided it was about time to put an end to that. So, she straightened up, put his hands on her shoulders, leaning so they were eye to eye. Though, he didn't get as close this time. He was trying to calm her down, after all, not freak her out more. Yumi, relax a little, take a deep breath. If you don't you're going to have a heart attack before you're thirty. Learn to live a little. Not everything in life has make sense, and not every question has an answer. The sooner you realize that, the funner it is. Take it from someone who's been there. 'Kay? His smile had almost entirely disappeared by this point, and he appeared... serious. For once. It wasn't a common expression for the young gym leader, but, he had, indeed, "been there". He used to question why his father hated him, why his mother had to go. And it had nearly driven him crazy. He'd distracted himself with battling, but then he'd gotten his last badge, the olivine gym badge, and Jasmine had refused to let him leave. Probably the best thing she'd ever done for him was stop him from walking out that day. He straightened up, letting his hands come off her shoulders, turning his attention back to the flareon while he let Yumi, hopefully, calm down, mind filtering back to that day a bit. He'd been running out of things to stop him from thinking about the questions for awhile. She must have seen it, that slightly crazed look in his eyes, or something. Either way, she'd known. For a reserved woman, she knew exactly how to let everything go, and she'd taken him under her wing before he hurt himself, somehow. He'd probably been on that path. One hand stayed on the flareon's head while the other found the mineral badge in his pocket, clasping his fist around it. It was probably the only one out of all of them that held any meaning at all to him. He shook it off, though, with a slight shake of his head, blond hair in his eyes for a moment before he stood up, flipping the badge like a coin and catching it before placing it in his pocket. C'mon, then. Best teach you how to have a little fun without worrying, before you explode. Except, he was still slightly distracted, despite pretending(and failing) to appear perfectly focused on his supposed task at hand, which she hadn't even asked him to take on. But he'd do it anyway. Time to pass on the torch. No, that was a bit too cliche. The phrase was pushed away instantly, before he had time to accidentally say it out loud.