[H]idden [U]nemployment

[A-ub--re]

The girl's hoody was dotted with little moth-holes, and covered in places with a fine layer of yellowing dust. The large pocket on its front was beginning to peel off like some kind of patch, and the sleeves were frayed where her fingers had picked nervously at their hems. These frayed sleeves were currently shoved into the peeling pocket, as the auburn headed girl's hands wove around one another in a nervous dance. The rather un-tattered hood was pulled tightly over her face, casting shadows on her freckled skin. The sun above only seemed to amplify the ratty-ness of her hoody, and its faded grey color--along with the slight tan of her exposed ankles.

Underneath her hood the girl's forehead was dotted with a fine sheen of sweat--which stung her staring eyes. Both of her bright green eyes stared out over the pristine lake--missing the debris dotting the white beaches; and trying to lose herself in the calming water. Deep inside her pocket lay what remained of her meager funds--barely enough to buy a soft drink. This wasn't just what remained of the money she had brought for her little excursion to the ranch . .this was what remained; period.

Which was why she had come here. . hoping for a few battles .. hoping for a job. Then again; hoping never worked for her. But--she couldn't just . . .run out of money, and let her and her Pokemon starve.

---

Curled around her back like a blanket, a large yellow dragon also gazed out over the lake--his pumpkin colored eyes belaying annoyance, and more then a bit of frustration. Every few seconds his steady breathing was interrupted by a angered growl from deep inside his throat. In the sandy grass, his ivory claws clenched and opened--as his spade shaped head remained on the lake.
"I can't believe they told us to get out of the damn spa! I should have thrown them in their 'No electric Pokemon" bath, and jumped right in."
"No--no . .it's okay Achilles."
"Shuddup Aub..you think everything is okay!"
The dragon growled back in a deep tenor voice, his ears crackling with sparks.

A calm, accented voice shut them both up:
"Shut up ya fuckin' kangaroo---we dun’ need your dumbass statin’ ta obvious."
A few feet away from the girl and dragon, a small powder blue fish clacked his beak and waved a crescent fin toward the Achilles. The trainer however did not turn toward them; and chose to ignore their bickering--and instead like she had been doing all day, slipped away during the drama.

--

Her Pokemon didn't know about the lack of money--she didn't want them to be angry at her for 'wasting' it all. in fact, in a shaky voice, she had lied o them--and told all of them this was a little vacation. The girl's worn tennishoes slipped in the sand as she headed toward the little fishing hut--where a elderly man, with a nametag and a fishing pole leant against the wall. Taking a shaky breath, the girl calmed her nerves--and strode purposeful before him.

With a yelp--her foot caught a rock, and she landed face down in the warm sand--coming up spitting , little grit particles flying from her mouth. With a fearful glance to her small cluster of Pokemon--the girl let out a relieved sigh. Even from this distant the pair's arguing was audible, and now Achilles was standing--his scaly arms gesticulating wildly. Rising back to her knees, the girl brushed the sand from her face, and clothing before rising back to her feet.

--

The man beside the door hadn't so much as raised a eye at the girl's approach. With another deep breath, the girl started forward--and soon found herself standing in front of the whiskery, white haired old man. A floppy fisherman's hat obscured his eyes from view--but judging by the slackness of his hands, and his quiet snores he was sound asleep.

Maybe she could come back later?

No . . the racetrack had been closed for a race, the adoption center too crowded, but the sun out here made this a perfect place to work. besides her, and the salty old supervisor she saw no one--no crowds.

--

Reaching out a hand, Aubre reached out to gently shake the man's shoulder when a loud splash echoed around the quiet shore.

Whipping around the girl watched as ice blue scales flashed in the midday sun--and murmured quietly; in a rather comical manner:
"Oh, Shit."
That was when the screaming started, and the aqua-phobic fish began to flail about in the water.

" YOU FUCKING YELLOW BASTARD--TRY TO FUCKING DROWN ME WILL YA!? I'll SHA YA PAIN--WHEN I GET OUT IMMA MURDER YOUR ASS!"
With a weak powered water attack, the fish sank below the waves--fear evident in his bright blue eyes.

--

Without a second thought, Aubre began to dash down the beach, her feet pumping like pistons--ignoring the smirk of Achilles; whose fangs glinted in the sun.
"Call me a lazy fat ass--told me I'd sleep with the fishes will he--we'll see who sleeps with em now."
As time passed on, and the fish was only seen as a head popping from the water--even Achilles grew worried.

A splutter occured, as Laan resurfaced--water spruting from his beak, as he let out a moan:
"OH FUCKIN GOD..DAMN IT..I Dun wanna drown lazy ass!"
The dragon scrutinized Laan, and saw real fear reflected in the Caravay's eyes--just as he was tugged under the water.
"useless fish--scared of water."
"L--LAAN!"
Aubre screeched, as the fish disappeared --before striding up to the shoreline. The girl took a step toward the deep dark lake, before stopping.
'Achilles--get him~he's terrified!"
"I can't--send the dumb bird!"
'W-hy- w-hy not?"
"I'll end up killing all the fish if I attack."
Fuck.

Laan's head reemerged from the water---his fins slapping uselessly at the water:
"YA GONNA FUCKIN' DROWN ME YA DAMN KILLEAZE!"
It was only then , that Aubre found herself laughing--it had taken her this long to realize the irony of a drowning fish.
"SHUT YOUR TRAP MOUSE--and GET ME THE FUCK OUTTA HERE!"
With a squeak, the girl nodded, but how?

From behind her, and surprisingly enough from herself--a few giggles still emerged.

The blue fish's words had turned into a inaudible string of curses, and a giant funnel of foamy water.

[ethan]

It was at that moment when a certain pair of travelers rounded a bend in the road and started coming towards the lake with the fisherman's hut. Or they would've had they been actually watching the road instead of looking at clouds as they walked. In fact, neither one of them even seemed to be at least partially aware of their surroundings at all.

The first was obviously human. A man with a fair complexion, relaxed blue eyes, and medium-length silver hair underneath a dark green bandanna. His clothing marked him as one who was used to being outdoors. Hiking boots, khaki cargo shorts with large pockets, a dark green jacket over a white T-shirt, and fingerless black gloves. He was chewing on a toothpick as he walked along with his fingers laced over the back of his head, a bored and lazy expression over his face as he studied the clouds overhead. His name was Ethan Lynch, an Agent of the Pokemon Rangers Pursuit and Capture Division. But most people just called him names like "lazy bum" or "rotten miscreant". Both of which were very true in their own ways.

The second was definitely not a human, but instead was a Pokemon. A Typhlosion, to be exact. Like all others of his kind, he looked a bit like a badger in many ways, though he was much larger than any ordinary badger. His fur ran course and dark from the top of his head to all the way down his back, but was soft and cream-colored around the face, chest, arms, legs, and belly. Curling wisps of smoke occassionally rose from a row of curious red spots lining the back of his neck. He walked beside Ethan on stout hind legs that put him about a foot shorter than his trainer, although the lazy and disinterested expression he looked up at the clouds with mirrored Ethan's almost perfectly.

And who said that Pokemon don't take after their owners?

The sound of a stomach growling was the first thing to break the silence between them. Ethan only seemed to half-notice it, placing a hand on his abdomen without taking his eyes away from the sky. "Oi... Fuego." he muttered to the Typhlosion. "I thought this patrol duty stuff was meant for rookies. Tell me why we're the ones doing this kind of thing again?"

A little eyeroll and a soft growl was Fuego's first response, though it seemed more like that the Typhlosion was muttering something under his breath. Which, considering the circumstances the two were in, probably wasn't all that unusual. Whether or not it was directed at Ethan or at the boredom swallowing them whole was another mystery, though. After that, Fuego briefly glanced at his owner and uttered a bored "Brawr." before looking back up at the sky.

"Oh. Riiiiight... We need the money. " Ethan replied sourly with a sigh trailing his words, his gaze lowering to the ground to kick at a pebble that had dared to stand in his path. Business had been slow for Ethan and his team, in a manner of speaking. Neither he nor the other Rangers had hardly seen hide nor hair of Team Pravus for a long time now, and it was starting to wear on Ethan. He loved downtime as much as the next guy but even the laziest of the Pokemon Rangers had standards he wanted to live up to. After all, what good was a hunter when there was nothing to hunt?

That thought was enough to make the Ranger grit his teeth and angrily shove both his hands into the front pockets of his shorts."Sonuvabitch, we haven't had a good assignment in weeks now. Where the hell are those Pravus bastards and why aren't they doing anything? These cruddy assignments are killing me! Killing me, I tell ya!"

Fuego had been about to nod his agreement when he and Ethan suddenly stopped in their tracks and listened to what seemed to be a ruckus in the near distance. All in all, it wasn't exactly what they had been expecting in this tranquil setting, but neither Fuego nor Ethan seemed to show any obvious signs of danger. Instead, their eyes followed the sounds to a point near the lake shore where they found what was making it. A group of three. Namely, a Statodyle, a human figure in a hoodie, and a...Caravay that was drowning!? What the hell was this!? The only thing either one of them could do was stare at what was happening completely dumbfounded, with their eyebrows twitching and their eyes wider than plates.

"YOU FUCKING YELLOW BASTARD--TRY TO FUCKING DROWN ME WILL YA!? I'll SHA YA PAIN--WHEN I GET OUT IMMA MURDER YOUR ASS!"

"..........."

"............"

"........-snrk-...."

"...-ssssnnnnrrrrrrk-..."

"....snrkHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

And that was when the two of them suddenly collapsed to the ground while clutching their stomachs and started rolling around in hits of howling laughter. One would've almost thought that they had never seen a fish who couldn't swim. Well... Then again, they never really had actually ever seen a fish who couldn't swim before. Especially one that could apparently drown, for that matter.

[A-ub--re]

As the sounds of Ethan and Fuego's conversation drifted over the pristine (formerly serene) lake, Achilles turned to stare at the pair. At this distance, he was able to make out little more then the smoke curling from Fuego's broad back, and the bright silver of Ethan's hair. The growling comments of the Typhlosion caused the dragon to wrinkle his muzzle in confusion--were those even words? Then what little grip his keen ears had on the words of the intruders was interrupted as the drowning fish let out another scream:
"DON'T FUCKING GO DAYDREAMIN’ LIKE A LOVESTRUCK DAME--GET ME THE HELL OUTTA HERE! NOW DAMNNIT!"
Little bubbles popped around the Caravay, as the chuckling fish in the lake--began to gently tug on his fins, and slimy underbelly.
"IF YA DON'T GET ME OUTTA HERE THIS INSTANT YA BASTARD--IMMA RIP OFF YOUR TAIL, AND FORCE IT DOWN YOUR DAMN THROAT!"
Really made you wanna help him didn't it?
"Shut up ya old damn fogey."
This only doubled the Caravay's struggles---and the colorfulness of his language jumped up a notch.

Now the fish circled him like prey, roughly tugging him below the water--before he managed to bat them away with fins. yet--they always returned, and he found himself holding his mouth tightly shut--his scales turning blue, even as his gills began to process the clean water lapping at his sides.

When he--When he got out of this hellhole, Achilles would be scared of drowning alright--specially after he put those big-ass feet of his in cement blocks!
--

Aubre meanwhile followed Achilles eyes as he turned back toward Fuego and friend--her eyes widening.
"Who-- are they, you think?"
"Just some day dreaming fools . ."
The dragon however was tensed as usual, ready to tear the interlopers into bits if they became the least bit threatening. Instead they both seemed to chatter for a moment, before bursting out into echoing peals of laughter.

With narrowed eyes, Achilles surveyed the humor-consumed pair; what the hell did they find so funny?
"MOTHERFUCKAS--! THIS ISN'T FUNNY--WHAT's FUNNY IS WHEN I SHOVE YA FOOT UP YOUR ASS!"
Laan's voice was once again cut off as water flowed into his clacking beak in a foamy wave, and his vision was tinted by the blue of water--and flashing scales of many fish.

Achilles pursed his lips--as he further scrutinized the pair, before proceeding to leisurely stroll over to them--his trainer following behind in a demure fashion.
"Yo,Rocky and Bullwinkle-- ya done splitting a gut; or should we come back later?"
Sarcasm laced his words, along with a little bit of annoyance. Laan's little problem was supposed to be a secret . . not a free ride to the land of laughter.

Aubre poked her hooded head out, from behind Achilles body--who was shielding her from view-- and quietly murmured:
"We could use some help."
The world exploded with vulgarity as Laan listened to the pair walk away--and begin to converse with someone out of view.

Oddly enough . . he ignored the fact that he shouted underwater. . without drowning.

--

After waiting for approximately three seconds, Achilles drew back a ivory-tipped claw, and jabbed it into Ethan's side. smirking as he did so.

-=---

[ethan]

It was then that Ethan's laughing suddenly stopped, and his expression changed from happy to one of the utmost coldness. The blue of his eyes seemed like glacial ice as he peered up at the smirking Statodyle, then narrowed into slits when he glanced downward at the talon jabbing into his side. Or to put it more accurately.... Ethan glanced at the talon he had grabbed around the first knuckle and stopped centimeters before it would've pierced into his flesh. A minor wound probably, but a wound all the same. Given that the Statodyle's talons were about the size of railroad spikes, that is.

"Oi, oi... Don't be kickin' a man when he's down, ya overgrown yellow gecko." the Ranger spoke calmly, his eyes meeting with Achilles' unflinchingly. As he spoke, his hand squeezed around the toe's knuckle hard enough to make his fist pop loudly and veins come bulging out of his forearm. How a mere human was strong enough to stop a Statodyle's leg was a mystery, but then again... Ethan wasn't exactly a "mere" human anymore. The old man who had trained him and seen to that. And painfully so.

Ethan glanced to the hooded girl who hid behind the Statodyle. "This guy belong to you? If he does, I'd say you should tell him to back off from ventilating my ribs here." To make his point that much clearer, his hand somehow squeezed Achilles' toe even tighter and started to push his raised foot back little by little, centimeter by centimeter.

At the same time, Fuego had risen to his feet and was glaring up at the Statodyle upon his hind legs. A growl rumbled in the back of the Typhlosion's throat as thicker wisps of smoke streamed out of the spots on his neck. Spots that now glowed red hot with occasional sparks spurting out of them. "Krrrrrrrrr...." he growled warningly to Achilles, narrowed eyes flickering to the girl who supposedly trained him.

[A-ub--re]

The friendly laughter of the two friends abruptly died--and the slightly comforting atmosphere changed into a bitter hell. To Aubre the long drawn out screech of a broken record accompanied the definitive change in Ethan, and his Typhlosion--and the cold emanating from the pair, caused her to stumble backward a few steps. The girl now saw Achilles stray talon clutched by the hobo-like man, veins and muscles easily visible as Ethan began to squeeze. After it dawned on her what was happening, the girl's eyes widened--and she began frantically shaking her head. Horror crept across her features, and if not for the obvious fear, her slack jaw, and bug eyes would be quite humorous. Finally managing to find her voice, the girl timidly commanded:
"Sir--Sir. Wait a minute don--"
If Laan's fear of water invoked violence, then her dragon's dislike of physical contact, started wars.

---

As Achilles talon neared Ethan's side, he focused his bright gaze on Ethan. As the man's eyes turned from humor-filled to ice cold, the dragon's seemed to mirror the change. Like most masculine entities he took the eye narrowing as a challenge, and followed suit--the black slit in his eyes widening, and devouring the black. Sparks leapt down his spine, as his ego attempted to make his fellow man back down--and prove himself superior. Little upstart wanted to laze around, and laugh all day ? No wonder he looked like a Hob---what the hell?

As certain as if he had kicked a brick wall--Achilles prodding foot ground to a halt, his talon hovering about a inch from Ethan's side. Blinking slowly, Achilles turned toward his foot--to see a grimy human hand wrapped tightly about his ivory talon.
"Let go of me now, you touchy feely-bastard, or I'll do a helluva lot more then kick you when you're down!"
The dragon's foot jerked backward, as he tried to remove his talon from the freak's unnatural grasp.
" I AM NOT A GECKO!"
Achilles eyes seemed to be shaking--as his pupil dilated with fear, before contracting with anger. In his current state he was too panicked to shock Ethan--much less ask politely.

As Ethan's grip grew stronger, Achilles let out a yowl--and raised a trident- shaped foot, to stomp on the much smaller man's midsection.
"LETGOLETGOLETGO! NOW!"
A pained roar punctuated his words--all this to help that damn stupid fish! This bastard would end up in the lake with him, a few digits short , if he didn't learn to keep his nasty ass hands to himself. With a snarl, Achilles tail smashed into the ground--sparks running away from it like crawling worms.

In the background, Aubre resembled a bobble head--her faze jumping from Ethan's cool gaze, to her Statodyle's frantic one. This formerly laughing man seemed a little too . . .bipolar . .for her tastes--so with a shivering hand she reached out to gently prod her dragon's back, just as a spark jumped into her finger--numbing it. Instantly, the hand went to the girl's mouth , and she backed away farther.

As Ethan turned to 'advise' her, Aubre let out a quiet squeak:
"He wasn't tr-trying to . .ventilate you-r- "
"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM YOU PARANOID BASTARD--I WAS TRYING TO GET YA OUTTA LAUGH-LAUGH LAND, I DON'T GO AROUND JABBING HOLES IN FOLKS!"
Achilles drowned out whatever his trainer was trying to say with his shouted protest. The dragon's voice a mix between growls, and humorous girly-screams.

This fellow was making him reconsider making him re-consider his 'no holes' policy. the dragon was now hopping on one foot--his thick tail, curling up on the ground to keep him from toppling over. Any other protests were dissolved, as he focused on not looking like a complete, and utter fool.

Once again, Aubre's voice rose into the air, barely audible over Achilles nonsensical shrieks, and the din of her Caravay nearby.
" I am sorry he did . .that--this is just a big misunderstan--"
Aubre began, only to freeze as Fuego turned toward her, instantly her words turned to mush in her mouth.
"Uh--err..ah . . "
The bright sparks of fire, and black smoke caught her attention and held it - - -this fellow looked none to happy.

Half tempted to run, Aubre turned back toward the lake, just as Laan's voice screeched out:
"QUIT THE DAMN SOAP OPERA--AND GET ME THE HELL OUT OF HERE YOU ******* ****** ** ******** **** *** ***"
What he said.

--

Achilles glared right back at Fuego, his orange eyes challenging the Typhlosion, letting a human battle for him? The second his bright eyes slipped to Aubre however, Achilles chest shook with a ear shattering growl.

Bastard better not be looking at her. . she wasn't the one with a problem.
" I'm over here hothead."
The dragon mumbled at Fuego, electrical sparks leaping from between his teeth as he spoke.


--

[ethan]

Ethan's expression only seemed to get much colder when he looked at the Statodyle, a small but annoyed frown curving his mouth. It was almost like he was looking at a punk kid who liked to run his mouth off instead of a large yellow dragon who weighed several hundred pounds. Suffice to say, he was either very sure of himself or he was very stupid. Some in Rangers HQ liked to say that it was a mixture of both, but no one really knew which part was greater.

His grip tightened around Achilles' toe, but just hard enough to make the joint pop a little bit. Just to let that big yellow gecko know that he meant business. His other hand was tense and ready to go should something else happen. ""Oh. You don't, huh?" Ethan deadpanned back to the Statodyle who was in the middle of a hissyfit. "Pardon me if I have a bit trouble believing ya, Sparky. Ya know... Considering you've got claws as big as railroad spikes coming hard at my skin. See where that can offend some people?" This time his toned gained an edge to it. "Now here's the deal. You're going to calm down, gently lower that foot I've got back to the ground, and take a step back. Or I'm going to break it. And then Fuego and I are going to start breaking things you didn't even know you had."

Were they paranoid? You betcha. They'd be fools to not be a bit paranoid in their line of work. Most of which consisted of working in treacherous natural environments, finding and then avoiding angry wild Pokemon, and then hunting dangerous Team Pravus or Mewtwo operatives. Some of whom liked to enjoy lacing a Pokemon's claws or talons with potent nerve toxins. One scratch from that and it was "Game Over."

Not that Aubre or Achilles had any inkling of that. Not yet, anyway.

As if to punctuate Ethan's point, another rumbling snarl rose up from the Typhlosion's throat at Achilles. The truly obvious only sign that he was getting angrier was the heat haze that made the air behind him shimmer, along with the embers flowing from the red spots lining the back of his neck. He pounded a fist into an open paw, his glare just daring Achilles to try something funny. The tongues of scarlet flame that were starting to stream from his neck were also making a convincing argument.

"Oi. You in the hood." growled Ethan to the girl who was hidden behind her dragon. The edge had left from his voice, but the icy cold it held still remained. The glare he threw at poor Aubre would've made even an iceberg shiver. "Ya never answered my question. Does this little dandelion dragon belong to you?"

[Feather]

Achilles attempted to return the frown with a toothy-snarl, but even as he began growling, the wrinkles crinkling up his spade-like snout relaxed, before wrinkling in a show of pain.
"I DON'T STICK YOU PEOPLE YOU DUMBASS!"
Achilles snarled between yelps of pain, resisting the urge to whimper as his toe joint (which was about the size of a grape) let out a loud 'pop!'. As Ethan spoke, Achilles somehow found the strength to reply to the paranoid bastard's words:
"Like I want your nasty ass blood on my feet--I do have more control then some child swinging about a SWORD! "
Deep inside his brain, his mind was repeatedly crying out violent things to do to Ethan, just to make him let go.
"besides--Who's the violent one here--"
Another wince as pain flooded across his nerve synapses, but always wishing to be the one with the last word, he finished with:
"You bone-crunching moron--and ..you're little badger would end look like abstract art--glaring at Mouse like that.."
The dragon's pride at first made him resist the urge to behave--and he continued his wild hopping, his free foot digging large furrows of black soil and stray grass into the manicured lawn. Dust flew from his tail, as it lashed to and fro. A fit of shivering started at the crown of his head and worked his way down--as with a sigh, a flurry of sparks descended to the ground, with a noise like a spit, he stopped moving.

Even though his body calm, subtle little signs of rage were quite obvious at a second glance. The pupils of his eyes were still shifting rapidly, the orange in them punctuated by crimson veins. Sweat dripped down his broad chest in a sheet, dripping off the shaking fists clenched at his sides. Achilles breath was a mixture of ragged inhales, and angered exhalations, and a slight shiver still rolled down his back. Occasionally he shifted his free hind-foot, to retain his balance, but other then that is movements were not directly threatening to Ethan.
"Happy Bullwinkle? Now. Let. Go."
Even though he had only been obeying Ethan's order for a few moments--his patience had worn thin. Blood pounded in his ears, as his mind beat a tattoo of violence--tear him up, take his finger off!

No. No. No need to sacrifice his toe--no need to waste good limbs on idiots. Though--it was tempting.

As Fuego began to heat up--Achilles arms reached out in a clenching movement toward the badger.
"First you get over paranoid--and get violent with me, insult my trainer--and now YOU'RE looking at me like a felon?"
Sparks began to fall from the typhlosion's back like rain, flames spurting from the holes around his neck.
"You inviting me to roast marshmallows brawrr -rawr rawr? Persian got ya tongue?"
nearby, Aubre had begun to shake her head; why did he always get so prideful? Frankly, she understood what Ethan was saying . .in fact if she would have fought she would have done the same thing. Sparks began to leap across Achilles back--leaping from his ears like lightning strikes. After a few seconds, a well controlled mane of electricity crackled around his neck.

In his natural language, out of Aubre's understanding, Achilles murmured:
"Stat-o--dy-dy! {Bring it smokey!}"
Something in the girl decided that was wrong, and in a rather frightened tone ordered:
"Enough. Achilles stop it--we're here for Laan . . not for . .not for . . (your ego)"
The dragon outright ignored her, his bright eyes only focused on restoring lost pride.

At Ethan's question, Aubre flinched, answering that was a touchy subject. If she answered it the wrong way, it'd be her receiving the lash of Achilles' tongue, not Ethan.
"Technically . .I . .well . . he's with me--"
The dragon had paused to lsiten to his trainers answer, and nodded.
"Good little Mouse--no human OWNS me."
Obviously, someone owned this wimpy little badger.

The girl's hand began to shake once again, as he eyes riveted to a interesting pebble on the ground. A shaking sigh began her new request:
" . .but his name is Achilles . .si--sir . .can you please let him go . .and just forgive whatever he did .. he meant nothing by it."
"I sure as hell did. Shush up."
Aubre's lips quivered, that Typhlosion would be no easy battle . .and here Achilles went pissing him off--and wasting time for poor Laan.
"I just . .I just . . just . ."
A quick glance at the finger wrapped around her starter's foot, she stopped speaking.

Maybe she'd go try and fish him out--and let Achilles dig his own grave. . she didn't like battling . .especially not fire pokemon.

[ethan]

Okay. This was starting to get a tad ridiculous now. Even for Ethan. Either that Statodyle was too dense to realize the position Ethan had him in, or he had absolutely no control over the things his big fat mouth was saying. The more that gecko talked, the more more Ethan found himself wanting to shut him up the hard way. And judging from the embers and smoke Ethan saw pouring from the spots on Fuego's neck, he could guess that the Typhlosion was having similar thoughts. And rightfully so. If either one of them had to put up with any more of that Statodyle's incessant blathering for much longer, then that big yellow brat was going to be getting one hell of a hotfoot real quick.

"And I thought Commandant Snyder was bad." the Ranger thought to himself. Now there was a blowhard. A pompous prick to end all pompous pricks. A gloryhog who prided himself on taking all credit but doing none of the actual work. "Delegating responsibility" is what that asshole called it. Ethan just called it for what it really was. "Stroking his ego like a prepubescent tween who just discovered masturbation."

The funny thing was that this Statodyle was starting to make ol' Snyder seem like a humanitarian kitten by comparison.

Fancy that.

Nevertheless, "Achilles" (what a joke) had done as Ethan had told him. And like the saying went, "A deal was a deal.", so to speak. Once the dragon had his foot safely back on the ground, and away from his flesh, Ethan (reluctantly) released his grip from Achilles' middle toe and then stiffly stood up from where he lay. Unfortunately, that didn't do anything to improve his foul mood. Or Fuego's.

But, as much as they both felt like laying the hurt on that stupid gecko, they both knew it was pointless to give Achilles any more attention to feed his ego with. That'd only be like pouring the proverbial gasoline on the also proverbial fire. After taking a deep breath, Fuego threw one last glare at Achilles and then calmed down enough to extinguish the sparks flowing from his neck. Ethan merely looked away from the big yellow brat and walked around him to where Aubre was standing, his hands stuffed casually into his pockets and Fuego bringing up the rear.

And they both completely ignored Achilles like he wasn't even there.

"Anyway..." Ethan sighed irritably while rubbing his nose between two fingers. "I suppose you need help rescuing your....fish... from drowning." There was an obvious and acidic disbelief when Ethan said the word "fish". Fuego didn't seem to be handling the concept any better and stared back and forth between Aubre and poor Laan with a mixture of annoyance, disbelief, and sheer ludicrousness.

[A-ub--re]

Achilles rested his liberated foot back on the ground, watching as his middle toe pulsed like a heart. The scales clustered around it had turned a bright hot-pink. A growl ripped from Achilles mouth as he glowered at Ethan--having to lean over to do it properly.
"Do. not. Touch. Me. Again."
With a snort--and a whip of his trunk like tail, Achilles turned back toward the lake. Away from the other situation the annoying sounds of Laan's screams flooded back in:
"LOOK HERE BANANA-FUCKER--AS SOON AS I GET OUT OF HERE..YOU'LL BE EATING THINGS IT AIN' FUCKING POLITE TO SAY IN FRONT OF MOUSE!"
The encounter with Ethan had done nothing to improve Achilles patience:
"SHUT UP YOU ELDERLY GUPPY FOREW I THROW YOU IN A FISHBOWL! We're coming you impatient little fart!"
"Already went and chucked me in a lake ya bastard--!"
Frankly, Achilles did not wish to help Laan out--no doubt, old fogey would not care that he had started the mini-fight, and instead would hate Achilles for ending it.

The dragon then whirred around to face Ethan, and Fuego--his eyes narrowed to slits. Where was the attack? The witty comebacks? Now paranoia radiated throughout his brain--maybe he had went too far.

But--they had started it! . .grabbing his fuckin' toe like that! If they tried anything--they'd get his toe shoved up their uppity-paranoid asses.

As the pair approached his trainer, Achilles circled around--so his considerable bulk loomed over his trainer. The dragon's legs were spread apart--losing him height, so he could lean over his trainer's shoulder and observe the pair.

Poor Aubre was confused--this pair had went from giggling like school girls, to martial arts masters--and now laid-back tomcats. The younger girl shifted position uncomfortable as they approached, withering under their annoyance--likely left over from Achilles little tirade. Like earlier, her pale hands were back to pulling at the sleeves of her hoody--her eyes back on the ground.
"GET ME THE FUCK OUTTA HERE--BLU--"
Aubre attempted to turn around to observe her fish, to instead find herself staring into the cream-scar across her dragon's chest.

As Ethan spoke, the girl nodded--into Achilles chest, preferring to look at that muscular surface instead of Ethan.
"Yes--sir . . .my fish does need some help. . ."
A pair of rough claws gripped the girl's shoulders, turning her back toward Ethan and Fuego. For a moment, she merely stared, the storm-cloud of a dragon taking over with the whole . .speaking part of the conversation.
"With drowning."
Achilles huffed--how embarassing! Especially when he saw the look on that stupid Typhlosion's face. No one would take him seriously when his best friend was a fish who could nto swim! Or when his trainer was a cringing-mouse, who hid at the slightest sign of danger!

Aubre took a shaky breath, before rattling off her request at a speed that almost made it complete nonsense:
"I was wodnering if maybe you had a water pokemon, that could nab him out of the lake--I would be very much obliged for the . . assistance. I am also sorry Achilles is a complete as--"
A muted growl, and a not-so gentle squeeze caused her toe nd with a gulp.
"Please?"
The request was directed at the ground, and before she had even finished speaking--the girl had turned toward the fishing shed.

If not--she could resort to the fishing pole.

--

Laan could feel water rushing into his lungs, little demons giggling at him as he sank beneath the water.
If they remember me . .I am going to kill Achilles. . .little bastard--after all I did for 'im
A red scaled creature brushed against his tail, causing the sinking fish to lash out--his ribbon like fin sending the Magikarp away with a resounding slap.

It also attracted . . something else.

(This . .is also horrid)

--

---

[ethan]

"You gotta be kidding me." Ethan thought in disbelief, his hand going back to massaging that spot between his eyes. Now he had seen everything. He was sure of it. He hadn't wanted to believe it at first, but there was no way that his eyes were lying to him now. Flopping around in that lake like a goldfish with epilepsy was a Caravay who couldn't swim. Not only that, but he was also drowning. How did that even work, anyway!? Didn't fish normally have gills or something? You know... Those little flaps fish had on their necks that let them breathe underwater?

Apparently not.

After heaving a sigh and letting his hand drop back to his side, Ethan turned his attention back to Aubre and fixed her with another annoyed look. "Asshole? Yeah, I noticed that. But I'll try not to hold it against you." he deadpanned to her, finishing the words that Achilles had cut off from before. It wasn't so much of an insult as it was a simple statement of fact, especially since neither he nor Fuego still refused to even acknowledge Achilles' presence looming over Aubre's shoulder. They both knew he was still there, they both knew he could still hear them, but neither one of them gave two shits about it.

Let the big bad dragon huff and puff and go blow himself.

With that, Ethan simply grunted and withdrew an ordinary Pokeball from the inside of his jacket, pressing the button in the center to open it with a small click. A bright flash of light streamed from the opening and streaked over to a spot on the grass near where Fuego was standing, reforming into a large oval shape that was about as big as a car when it made contact. And then, the light had vanished and a Blastoise now sat occupying that same spot. Or rather... The shell of a Blastoise occupied that same spot. A shell that was snoring, apparently.

As Ethan strode towards the giant shell, he gently rapped a few knuckles on the shell's hard surface near where the Blastoise's head should've been. "Oi, Duke. Wakey Wakey, Eggs and Bakey!" he said loudly near the hole, his voice echoing faintly within the shell's hollow inside.

No response. Just more snoring.

This time Ethan decided to try a different approach. After kneeling on his haunches and steadying himself with one hand on the shell, he leaned his head towards the hole where "Duke's" head should've been and shouted,"RIIIISE AND SHINE, YA BIG BLUE BATTLESHIP! WE GOT WORK TO DO!"

This time Ethan actually got something. A deep and rumbling grumble was heard coming from deep inside of the shell before a big blue head like a snapping turtle's poked out of the hole and yawned widely. The Blastoise, or "Duke" as Ethan had called him, then smiled sleepily and licked his chops as if to say "Good Morning" and "What's for breakfast?" all at the same time. The fact that it was around 4 o'clock in the afternoon didn't even seem to register in the Blastoise's sleepy mind.

Meanwhile, Ethan sighed a smile and gently patted the top of Duke's head. "All right, up and at 'em. I've got something for ya. Something.... odd." There was a peculiar tone of dread when Ethan said the word "odd". Almost like he was dreading having to show Duke what he had woken him up for. And, truth be told, he really was. Duke was one of the more light-hearted members of the team, but there were just some things that one shouldn't ever have to see. And he was about to show Duke just happened to be one of those things.

Knowing that, Ethan pointed a thumb over his shoulder at the Caravay flopping around in the water like a beached Magikarp. "See that there? Your job is to go catch it and bring it to shore."

Duke looked to the spot where Ethan had pointed. Then, he looked back at Ethan. And then, to the spot once again. And then, back at Ethan once more. "Blastoise?" Duke rumbled to Ethan in utter disbelief. The expression he had was so incredulous that it made him look like he had just seen a baby Miltank with two heads.

"Yup. That's the one."

"Toise."

"No, you're not seeing things."

"Blastoise? Blastoiseblast?"

Ethan only sighed. "Yes, I'm sure. The Caravay belongs to the girl in the hood over there." he pointed to Aubre. "Better hurry up before he drowns. Or something... I dunno."

Another rumbling grumble was Duke's only response as he got to work. A pair of strong and stout arms and legs emerged from the other four holes in his shell, and then he slowly rose up to his hind legs and lumbered over towards the lake's edge where the Caravay pathetically struggled to stay afloat. The water didn't even reach Duke's waist, so he didn't even need to swim at all. Instead, he just reached down and grabbed the Caravay by the dorsal fin and then plopped him over one arm like a fireman carrying a victim from a burning building. Or something to that effect.

A moment later, Duke had set the poor Caravay on the grass beside where Aubre and Achilles were standing and then joined Ethan and Fuego. He also caught the look Fuego had and perked up his ears curiously, and then glanced between him and Achilles. It didn't exactly take him long to put two-and-two together and come to some sort of conclusion about what may have happened. And as much as he hated to admit, in his infinite wisdom and tact, Duke couldn't help but smile a little and chuckle a bit too himself. He was polite enough to do it quietly, though.

[A-ub--re]

Aubre watched Ethan with a frown, her blushing spilling from her nose onto her freckled cheeks. This was already embarrassing--and scary enough, why was he looking at her like that !? Did he think she had asked her fish to go jump in a lake . .or Achilles to make him mad? Frankly, she was terrified of what this guy and his smoking friend would do! Oh why . .couldn't her Pokemon behave?
" .. So--rry. . ."
The girl felt that making excuses to blame her dragon would likely make him more angry at her then anything. A quick glance at the volcanic-patches dotting the Typhlosion's neck, and Aubre took a step back. No doubt this bi-polar guy was already going to barbeque her for attacking her . . .no need to make it worse.

At the word asshole, Achilles growled, unable to resist a few words of his own:
" . . .I am not the only one here ass-wipe."
Lines appeared on Aubre's hoody--as his claws clenched in anger. Snotty little . . .wouldn't even look at him. No matter, if he kept looking at Aubre like that . . he'd rip his face off. The lack of attention was calming him down, but now that they had all their attention on his trainer, the urge to protect her grew.

--

Aubre freaked for a moment as he reached for his Pokeball--was he holding a knife under there? The sigh that spilled out of her mouth as a big, dangerous, likely deadly turtle emerged was amusing in its irony. Water-Pokemon were one of the few things she was not naturally afraid of. Then again, as the sheer size of the creature's shell hit her--little bits of paranoia began to worm back in. In a nervous voice, the girl quietly commented on the situation--glad that Ethan or Fuego were no longer looking at her.
" A Blastoise-- I haven't seen one of those in a while. . "
Well . .it seemed she still wasn't seeing one, or anything but its shell anyway.
"Thank you by the way sir."
As the odd rumbling in the clearing was determined to be snoring--the girl allowed a ghost of a smile to crawl across her face. Shortly after, she felt herself giggling--before murmuring:
" He's so cute . . be a pity to wake him."
Frankly, she did not want a big-bad Blastoise angry at her for interrupting his nap. But. . .he was kind of cute.

As Achilles tightened his grip, and mumbled something rather rude in her ear, the girl stiffened. The smile slipped away as she watched Ethan scuttle around the Blastoise like a bug, turning fearfully toward the lake as the thing refused to wake up.

. . Laan was quiet .. had something bad happened?
--

When Ethan kneeled over, Achilles let out a chuckle--besides it being a embarassing positon, it also brought up images of kicking him in his grass-stained ass.

Aubre merely cocked her head to the side--sighing in relief as Duke poked his head out from his behemoth shell.
" . . ."
Whoa--after all that time spent by herself, it was hard to remember how big some Pokemon were. As Ethan expanded however, the sheer cute factor of the Blastoise licking his chops; disintegrated.

That beak would be good for tearing flesh apart ..

--

As Aubre went into one of her little gore-slideshows, Achilles let out a frustarated sigh:
"Yes--a drowning fish. Don't stand there gawping like a moron--fetch!"
Frankly, the fact that these Pokemon lacked enough sense to speak human was getting on his nerves, due to the fact that Aubre kept tilting her head toward him, waiting for a translation. Luckily, each time she turned away as Ethan answered.

Scaredy Girl was probably just happy it wasn't about murdering her, and feeding her to the fishes.

Aubre, and even Achilles found themselves staring upward as Duke emerged in all of his glory. In a strangled voice, the girl nodded at the Blastoise and stated:
"Thank you as well . ."
Aubre did not become embarrassed much . .but currently her face was the color of bloo--a tomato.

--

As the fish felt himself scooped up, he resisted the urge to smack the fool in the face. The spot on his ddorsal fin, where the brute had tugged was going to be a lump of a bruise in the morning.
"Thanks bub--thought they were gonna fuckin' leave me in there . ."
The words: barely audible, and in all truth--little more then a quiet croak. Shaking his white-scaled body, the fish coughed up a good cup full of water. Without anymore words, surprising for the fish, Laan allowed himself to be carried back to shore like a bag of potatoes.

Both of his eyes closed, the fish plopped down on the sand--particles of sand clinging to his damp scales. The fish didn't seem to be breathing, which caused Aubre's eyes to widen--and a terrified squeak to emerge from her mouth.

--

Achilles blinked, damn fish had talked tot he Blastoise!
"Old Fart..get up!"
A angered step toward the limp fish.
"Stop playing ar oubnd you fucking idiot."
Another step--this one less quick, and more uncertain.
"I'll give you another bath if you don't get up right now~!"
A swish of a tail across the sand, eyes snapping open, and a glare of contempt.

Like a rocket from launchpad, the Caravay launched himself at Achilles--cannonballing into his chest.

Aubre found herself in a uncomfortable, awkward position as her support fell backward into the sand--a little white blurflying about the dragon.
"BASTARD! DROWN ME WILL YOU!?"
Extricating herself from Achilles legs, the girl limped over to Ethan and Fuego--where she watched in amazement.
--

The dragon lay dazed across the sand, confusion and shock plain on his face. Achilles jaw lay half open--as his eyes stared at the spinning sky. At that moment, a rough tail smashedi nto his muzzle--likely dislocating a tooth in the process, as a tough beak gnawed at a knuckle.
"OWW--OWWWWW!"
"MOTHERFUCKINGBASTARDMESSWITHMEWILLYOU
THINKYOUAREFUNNYERFORTHROWINGMEINAL
AKESPARKYI"LLSHOWYOUHILARIOUS!"
Achilles world swam back into focus as Laan continued his little assault--bruises and pain snapping the world back into focus.
"WHAT THE HE--"
With a devilish gleam in his baby-blue eyes, the Caravay arced above Achilles moving muzzle--took a deep breath . . and . .

Emptied a water gun into the dragon's mouth. Water splashed over the ground, as flecks of blood mixed with the water--as the high-powered stream drove its way into the dragon's windpipe.

Any weakness in the earlier drowning fish disappeared, as Achilles entire body turned into one overgrown--very yellow punching bag.


The fish had not even given him a chance to fight back with sparks, or claws--that was the speed of his assault.


But . .he had warned him.

[ethan]

"Naw, you're welcome." Ethan replied to Aubre. He was now somewhat relaxed now that the Caravay had been rescued, which was visible by his more casual posture and demeanor. "It was no big...deal..." he continued, though his words had mysteriously trailed off into silence when he saw something by the beach.

It was at that moment when Ethan realized he had been wrong earlier. Seeing a fish that couldn't swim wasn't everything one could see. Not even close. However, seeing that same fish tackle a full grown Statodyle to the ground and attack him like the piranha from hell certainly was. Not only that, but the Caravay was winning. Holy Crap. Now Ethan had seen everything. And so had Fuego and Duke.

Their shock had been so great that, quite frankly, neither one of them really knew what to say about it. All they could do was stare at what was happening in slack-jawed amazement as the little Caravay gave the big bad Statodyle the beating of a lifetime. By the time the Caravay was done, Achilles was nothing but a round and bloated yellow water balloon of a dragon.

And... It was quite possibly the absolute most hilarious thing that Ethan, Fuego, or Duke had ever seen in their entire lives. That and considering the places they had been and the things they had seen in their careers as Pokemon Rangers... Well, you get the point.

"..........."

"............"

"................"

"........-snrk-...."

"...-ssssnnnnrrrrrrk-..."

"...-sssssnnnnnnrrrrrrrk-......"

"....snrkHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

"...-snrkRAWRKRAWRAWRAWRAWRAWR!"

"TOISETOISETOISETOISETOISETOISETOISETOISE!!"

They tried to hold it in. They really and truly did. But, in the end, their efforts were all in vain and the trio had soon doubled over in fits of glorious laughter. Even Duke, who was normally too easygoing and relaxed to laugh that hard, was belting out booming guffaws. And Ethan and Fuego were getting dangerously close to falling over on the ground again, which was what started this mess in the first place. The sight of the "great" Achilles rolling around on the beach and like a soggy melon was just too much for them to resist.

YOU try not to laugh when a complete asshole just got his butt handed to him by a fish who couldn't swim!

[A-ub--re]

Ethan's words were only acknowledged with a quick nod, her mind too occupied with the show before her. The girl's eyes flipped graceful loops--as the Caravay leapt from the dragon's chest. Gaining about a yard of air, he graceful flipped over--his ribbon like tail resembling crystal in the sunlight--before diving shoulder first into Achilles purpling chest.
" . . .Yah. Sorry if it was a . .wow . ."
The girl winced as the fish delivered a stinging-slap to Achilles' right cheek. The poor dragon was barely moving, gurgling sounds from deep in his chest the only sign he was still with the living. The dragon's head snapped to the left, as the fish hopped off--dropping into the sand with a quiet 'plop'.

With a slack-jaw the girl kept her eyes fixed on her little fish. It had been quite a time since she had seen him fight . . .and. .wow. Maybe it was time that they stop calling the little guy old. The look plastered on her face was somewhere between downright terror, and amazement. As if to make sure she was not hallucinating, she glanced at the dragon stretched out on the ground, and back to the fish.

Those bags under his eyes were probably lean muscle, and that fin flab? Biceps. As Laan's gruff voice echoed in her ears--the girl flinched.
"Ya gonna stand there gawping--or ya gonna come dust this sand off of me?"
With a tentative step the girl stepped toward Laan, chuckling at herself for being so frightened--he had been her friend for at least three years! Hell, she hadn't done anything bad to him, except when that one nurse tried to give him a bath . . .

Or letting him stay in the lake without wading in herself . . .

The girl's slow movement ground to a halt--as she turned toward the three stooges. The laughter was so overwhelming it was bouncing around her skull, and if it wasn't her dragon, or if she was not afraid of making him mad--she would laugh too. Then again, maybe not. . .

--

Ice blue eyes narrowing, the fish attempted to drag himself onto the grass. The laughter both swelled his ego--and pissed him off.
"See Killez I tol' you ,that I'd show ya something really fuckin' Funny--hope ya learned ya lesson.."
The dragon gurgled something inaudible, before slowly rolling onto his side with a moan.
"Now--will ya assholes quit laughing like a coupla of old biddies, ya shouldn' be so amazed."
Surely they had seen all kinds of uneven match-ups? Yet here they were laughing like they were at some comedy club.

--

As Achilles turned over--Aubre let out a strangled gasp. It looked like someone had splattered dark-colored paint all over him, turning cream into a horrid combination of black, blue, and purple. The dragon's eyes were distant and glossy, and scales littered the ground about him. A few drops of blood added further color to his broken body--making him resemble a 60's seat cover. A horrible gagging like sound echoed about the lake, as the dragon pushed himself up--water and saliva retching from his mouth in a steady stream. With his head facing them, Aubre let out a sympathetic whimper, poor bigmouth.. All things considered, nothing would take more then a day or two to heal. . .hopefully the grudge wouldn’t go much longer.

The sand around him was now a dark bark color--stained by various gore. Shakily pushing himself up, Achilles swayed visibly, before sitting back down. The confusion in his eyes was now muddled with pain, and without another thought, Aubre raced to his side.
" . . .Shh . .shh. .sorry"
As her hand gently grazed his face, Achilles let out a muffled growl--not as injured as he had looked close up. The old flames were slowly rekindling in his eyes, as rage pushed away the pain.
"Damn . .little fish . . .needs to go into a . . retirement home."
Not one to show weakness in front of others , he shot a half-hearted glare at the trio nearby, before Aubre withdrew him into a old dented pokeball.

The Caravay was now resting at the Blastoise's side, his little eyes squinting in the sunlight.
"So .. are we gonna sit around all day and look at the scenery..or do whatever it was we came here to do?"
Err. . .

What had she come here to do again?
" .. .. .. Yah . . we'll do that."
Frankly, she was having a hard time remembering--maybe the nice guy resting by the shed would have a potion for Achilles?
"Did . .you have to go so far . .?"
Aubre murmured to herself, as the little fish mumbled in return:
"I didn' mean to--but it'd do him some good to be reminded of pain . .he's a tough little bahstard--just needs some discipline."
Achilles had tossed him in that lake . . but Laan had went overboard.

Right?

[ethan]

Meanwhile, the trio of Ethan, Fuego, and Duke were still busy laughing it up and having the time of their lives doing so. All at Achilles' expense, of course. Granted, it wasn't the most polite thing to be doing, but that damn yellow gecko had it coming because of that attitude of his from before. Or so Ethan and Fuego liked to think. Duke just thought the site of a big yellow dragon turning into a water balloon was damn funny. Which it was, in a twisted sort of way.

Eventually, their laughter dwindled away into soft giggling and gasps as the three struggled to get their breaths back. Fuego wiped a tear away with a paw while Ethan was still bent over and trying to regain his composure. Duke was still thumping his massive front paws against the belly of his shell and trying really hard to get his laughter back under control. He was failing miserably at it, but hey... At least he was trying, right?

"Ahhh.... Okay, Okay..." Ethan gasped between the occasional giggle or chortle and holding up a hand. He had to take a deep breath before continuing. "I'm fine now. I'll stop, I'll stop now." After that, he finally managed to stand straight and tall but there was still a ghost of a chuckle streaming from the smile on his face. Fuego and Duke did the same after Ethan, though their expressions threatened to burst into fresh fits of giggles at the slightest thing. Kind of like a needle about to pop a balloon full of laughing gas. Both of them had to bite their lips and look away from the Pokeball in Aubre's hand just to hold it all in.

Now that's real discipline.

"Anyway..." Ethan began while sending a reproachful glare at the two jokers yukking it up behind him. The fact that he was just as bad as they were, if not worse, didn't even seem to register with him at all. Turning back to Aubre, he rubbed the back of his neck with a hand and smiled a bit sheepishly. "I suppose I owe you an' the gecko an apology. I know we're all a bit paranoid, but it pays to be that way in our line of work. Never know when a day may be yer very last, know what I mean?" he told her.

His hand dropped from his neck to the inside of his jacket, where he fished out a pair of Super Potions and tossed them to Aubre. "Yer friend could use those more than we can." he finished, his gaze turning to the Caravay laying nearby Duke. "And you were damn impressive. Never seen a Caravay fight that well on land, or any other fish Pokemon for that matter."

[Feather]

The fish was not amused at the continued giggling, and fixed the trio with a icy glare.
"It's not polite to laugh at someone who has fallen."
In fact, it bordered on barbaric--like some native warrior who ate, and danced on his opponents grave. The Caravay waited for Ethan to finish speaking before calmly muttering:
"Thanks ya giggling sunovabitch. Stop smirking like that, you look idiotic"
The tone was that of a old grandfather, scolding a much younger child, but there was a reason he was referred to as 'senior citizen' or 'old fart'. Pursing his beak, the fish turned toward Aubre, and jerked his torso up, his tail arcing up next to him. The fish ended up resembling a u-shape, but even with the odd arching, the girl got the message.

Seconds later, the fish was carefully cradled in his trainer's arms, the sharp-spike of his fin, tilted so it arced over her shoulder. At this height, the fish was able to use his eyes to their full effect, glaring at the trio like insignificant little bugs. As Ethan spoke, the girl listened with rapt attention, and Laan was almost able to mouth along with her perfectly:
"No..consider it our fault . .Achilles was not exactly polite."
It appeared this kind of thing was rather common for Aubre and her little group, or at least Aubre apologizing (even when it was not needed). As to knowing what it was like?
" . .Yah . .I . . do."
Why the hell was she telling this guy that? What if he took her for a enemy? Or tried to kill her? hell--she'd seen what she did to Achilles, half lifted him off the ground! This guy was not someone to be messed with!

While that may come as a surprise to some--paranoia does manifest in different ways. While it made Ethan turn to violence, it was Aubre's own paranoid nature, that made her cower and hide--while constantly second guessing herself. Even though her mind was brimming with distrust, one look at the giggling--and sheepish grin, and she couldn't help but return one of her own.

Shifting Laan from one arm to the other (much to his obvious displeasure), the girl accepted the Super-potion with a gentle grab. Her fingers barely grazed the glass as she pulled it from Ethan's grip--careful of a darting hand, or finger. The second it lay in her palm however, she tilted it toward the sun--looking up through its murky depths, for anything that labeled it as a fake. Deciding that it was a super-potion, she murmured a quick:
"Thank you."
Aubre then turned to the problem of grabbing Achilles pokeball, and found that with a moody fish in one hand (whose tail dragged across her knees), and a potion in another it was rather difficult. With a squawk the girl jumped back, as a slimy tail slipped under her hoody--and popped out Achilles pokeball.

While the fish chatted to Ethan, the girl quickly administered the potions to Achilles--using the grate at the bottom of the Pokeball for such a purpose. Satisfied, she handed both of the empty bottles back to the odd fellow, careful to avoid skin-to-skin contact.

The second she was done--the fish dropped his tail back to a limp mass at his side, and continued what he was saying.
"Well--if ya aren't versatile . .all those dumb ass fish are wallowing piles of useless outta water! Hell--little brat like Killez could eat em for breakfast! "
Pausing and thinking for a moment he continued with:
"Thanks for the damn compliment, been waiting for someone to notice--it's all about experience ..ya nameless bastards."
With each swea word, Aubre shook her head--trying to convey that he meant no offense.

Every so often a wrinkle would crease the Caravay's brow, and after finishing his little motivational speech, he yelled:
"AUBRE, WHO THE HELL IS SNORING?"

Ah yah--the man by the shed, she was supposed to talk to him.