Was he supposed to be with a league member, getting a tour of route 118? Perhaps.

Had he snuck off after his ever-responsible caretaker went off to go pick up some women she’d seen? Yes. Chances are she was still hitting on them at this moment - probably to no avail.

What was she going to do, admit she lost track of a blind kid she was supposed to watch over like a Staraptor? Wasn’t like he didn’t intend to meet back with her when he was done.

So Hideo walked along the route, tapping along the ground with his cane. Elga, his Elgyem, sat on his shoulder. Not exactly a guide Pokemon like his Lycanroc, but Hideo could just tell where to go with him out. And not like a guide would be useful when he just wanted to wander.

But a quick sniff in the air, and Hideo found himself guided by something else: smoke and cooking food. Someone was making a campfire meal, by his assumption.

So he followed it, until Elga subtly informed him that they’d found the source: a man and his Pokemon.

“Smells nice,” he said, approaching the pair, “Mind if we take a seat? You don’t need to share any with us - we ate a little while ago.”

Chu-e Choi

Pokeballs remaining: 8

"Hmm?" Prince poked at Chu-e to get him out of his daze, pointing to where the boy was approaching. He was quiet until he was up on them, assessing, but mostly just kind of bewildered that some literal child was out here wandering around. A clearly blind one at that. This was either some fancy trap or the kid had nuts of steel- which probably hadn't even dropped yet by the look of him.

Prince, for his part, eagerly hopped up and ran over to take the boy's hand. He chattered softly to himself, the Ralts more than pleased to have another friend and someone else to look after. "If this is 'nice', I'd hate to see what you eat, kid." His voice was gruff but not unkind. "And I ain't gunna let some kid not eat on my watch. Hope you're not allergic to..." A pause as he shuffled in his little bag of trash. "... 'Pokken Punch Crunch oats with real cinnamon pokemon egg melting action. ... What the hell did I buy?"

Shaking his head, he shoved the empty box back into his bag and took out his set of survival bowls to plate his glop up. It did smell nice, he guessed. He handed the first bowl off to Prince, who was still glued to the kid's side, who tried to gently push it into the boy's hands, still chattering away softly.

"I got poke-food, too." A shake and he had poured out some for his ralts and some for the kid's pokemon, too. No one was leaving this camp with empty bellies if he had anything to say about it.

Speaking of, it seemed that the kid wasn't the only thing drawn in by the food. Seeing a chance, a Marill ducked out of the weeds and ran over to try and steal some of the food. It ended up tripping and wasn't exactly subtle; Chu-e rolled his eyes and poured it out a bowl, too. The little mouse pokemon eyed the man before sitting down next to him to chow down. Looks like he made a friend.

"So, I'm Ki. You ain't the type I expect out here. Should I, like, call someone...?"

catching marill

Before he could even get an answer, Hideo heard something approach him. He didn’t tense up at all - he trusted Elga to warn him if it was something dangerous - extending a hand forward. He was met by something small, gentle.  Something babbling to him in Pokemon speak he couldn't understand, but still soothing.

Seemed like he wasn’t going to leave here without eating something. A little snack wouldn’t hurt. “Well, if you insist,” he said, approaching him.

He couldn’t resist snorting a little when the man was bewildered by his own food choice. “Doesn’t sound that bad to me,” he objected. And that little Pokemon holding his hand seemed to insist that he have some, so he could actually tell if he was right or not.

He gently accepted the bowl, taking a seat by the campfire as Elga descended off him. A single button press on his cane, and it receded all the way in, until all that was out was a tiny nub no longer than his index finger. With that pocketed, he started on his meal.

While the Marill completely failed its attempt at stealth, an Arrokuda fared much better; Hideo hadn’t even noticed its approach. But Elga had, and he already caught it in a Psychic attack, the fish’s body enveloped in purple energy, unable to resist.

Hideo was only made aware of its presence when it was forced to brush against the boy. “Oh? You want some too?” A brief flash of confusion from his Elgyem. “It’s ok, Elga. You can share some of your treats with ‘em. You don’t eat much anyways, right?”

There was a brief moment of hesitation - Elga’s hand-buttons flashing as it silently communicated with the Arrokuda - before the energy sheathe disappeared. He offered the other Pokemon some of his Poke-food, who greedily dug into the offered portion.

Hideo shook his free hand when Ki offered to get him help. “Oh, no, it’s fine! I’m actually a trainer! Here, I got my license with me.” A little bit of fumbling through his pockets until he found it, showing it off for the camper to see. “I’m just taking a walk. I know the way back just fine, so no need to call anyone. And I got plenty of Pokemon to help out if I need it.”

If anything, his caretaker would be calling him. Whenever she realized he was missing.

“My name’s Hideo, by the way.” Couldn’t forget his own introduction. “So what’re you out here for, Mr. Ki? Just camping out, or you heading somewhere?”

Chu-e Choi

Pokeballs remaining: 9
Attempt to capture the Arrokuda

Chu-e leaned over and squinted at the trainer card, humming to himself and shrugging it off. The kid's pokemon seemed to be able to handle themselves, judging by how they dealt with that fish. The kid was fine. Given that, he leaned over and shook a few more pieces of food into the bowl the little weird robot pokemon and fish were sharing from, making sure they both had as much as they wanted. It's not like he was paying for any of this himself.

"On my way to Mossadeep. Taking the long way around; through Fortree, then Lilycove, then a boat ride. Nothing too interesting." Which was a lie, and the way he said the last part, soft and kind of guarded, was clear enough. It was also something he wouldn't talk about unless Hideo decided to push.

"Not really looking forward to the walk, honestly. Makes me wish I wasn't afraid of flying and didn't get seasick. Taking a boat from Slateport would have been easier..." That last part was kind of mumbled to himself. He shut himself up by cramming a spoonful of the still hot oats in his mouth. They were so sweet he could feel his teeth rotting and he pulled a face.

The scene of them must have been attracting many hungry pokemon. It was getting colder and with the recent conflicts it was probably harder to find food. A little pincushion pokemon wriggled out of the water and idled over, just politely sat next to the Marill and looked up at him with puppy dog eyes until a piece of food was handed over. This was the easiest way to catch pokemon... ever.

catching pin cushion

Hideo happily picked away at his bowl. Only reason he wasn’t outright inhaling it was that the first bite taught him that it was still hot, and he had to blow on each spoonful afterwards. This kind of cloying taste was exactly the kind of stuff he liked, with a cheeky smile following every (unburning) bite.

Elga, too, ate away at what he was offered, albeit slowly. He took each piece of food individually, lifting it up with psychic energy, looking it over for a moment before pressing it against the space on the bottom of his head. No mouth would open up, but the piece of food would be gone.

The Arrokuda was making much more progress on the bowl.

“Yeah, I can get that. Flying, I can handle, but boats? Gotta keep a bucket with me at all times. Or a bag.” That upward inflection on the last part might make it sound like he was amused by his own seasickness - and he was. “But Mossdeep’s on an island, so you’re gonna have to do one or the other.”

He was talking like it was this guy’s first time here. Hideo was just trying to be helpful, in case he wasn’t aware.

He heard the Arrokuda speak up - as if it were shouting to something behind him. Sure enough, he heard footsteps against dead leaves. Elga didn’t seem to be reacting to it (though he was looking to see what it was), so Hideo waited until whatever it was got close.

It grabbed the back of his sweater, tugging on it. Lightly, just to get his attention. “It’s alright,” Hideo said, not even turning to face it, “You can join us too. I’m sure Elga’s got some more to share.”

The Pokemon let go of his sweater, circling around him and grabbing his hand - shaking it. The Dewott had a wide smile on her face - though the boy wouldn’t notice. She, too, would join in on the bowl of food, the Arrowkuda backing off to let her friend get some.

He could hear another Pokemon approach, further away. Sounded like Ki was dealing with something similar.

“So what’re you going to Mossdeep for anyways? Business?” His first guess for someone who sounded as old as Ki.

Chu-e Choi

Pokeballs remaining: 8
Attempt to capture the Dewott

Ah, more and more pokemon seemed to be just... showing up. The grass rustled and Chu-e could spy many, many eyes peering at them from the shadows of the grass. Looked like he had accidentally volunteered to feed the whole route. Well. He could always buy more pokemon food when he got to Fortree. He just hoped no one lingering in the grass got mad when he would eventually run out. His newest companion was a Psyduck, who practically shoved his whole head into one of the bowls. Charming.

"Boat trip from Lilycove is a lot shorter. I went from Slateport once and thought I was going to die." He shuddered at the reminder. The boat ride from Kalos to Hoenn had been hell and he hadn't wanted to step back on a ship so soon after getting back on dry land. "I guess I also kind of just wanted to take the walk, ya know? The whole... charm of a journey, or some cheesy junk like that."

At the second question, Chu-e hummed and paused to eat some of his oats as he thought of how to answer. "Well, I want to see if my house is still there. I used to live in Mossadeep with my spouse. I got real sick and have been in a hospital in Kalos about... two years? Arthur couldn't visit me much because he used to be the Gym Leader there, too. I just want to go back home, I guess." Since the kid was blind he wouldn't be able to tell, but Chu-e was a sickly man. Scrawny and pallid with deep purple bags under his eyes. Really the type of person who shouldn't be out and about, especially hiking. Many people would also say that about the boy in front of him. They had that in common between them. His story was also very watered down, important details missing to spare the kids; like his husband was actually missing.

"What about you, kid? You live around here?"

catching psyduck!

This little campsite visit was turning into a party.

Elga had finished eating what little he wanted to, stepping away from the bowl and sitting next to Hideo. The space he left was quickly filled in by a new arrival - a Bibarel, who was more than eager to take his fill. Without even asking first.

Hideo just assumed it was one of the Pokemon already present, so he reached over to pet it on the back - meeting with some slightly-damp fur. It did elicit a happy “Biiii~” from it, so it didn’t seem to mind.

“Guess that’s true,” he said, downing another spoonful of oatmeal, “If you ain’t in a rush, taking the scenic route ain’t a bad idea. Plenty of places to go to along the way, people to meet, sights to see.” The last one didn’t exactly apply to him, but that didn’t matter much; he could just experience them with his other sense. “And plenty of Pokemon. As you can tell.”

He had to wonder how many more were coming, or were already watching.

“Sucks that you had to spend so much time away from him. It sounds like you care a lot about him.” Which made sense; they were married. Of course they loved each other. “You must have been sick with something bad if you had to go all the way to Kalos. Hope you’re feeling better now.”

Completely oblivious to Ki’s present condition.

“I don’t live toooo far from here; my family’s over in Slateport.” A decent distance away, but not as far as, say, from here to Mossdeep. “We’ve been pretty lucky. Despite all that’s been going on, we’ve still kept our house, and my parents still have their jobs. Only big changes were my oldest brother and my oldest sister moved out.” Compared to, say, people who lost their entire house, or family members, between Rocket’s invasion and the Ultra Beasts.

He thought to mention those events to him, but held back; he didn’t know if Rocket or those Ultra Beasts got all the way to Mossdeep. It’d be mean to throw him into doubt.

“So what’s Mossdeep like? I hear it’s a pretty big place for science and tech, but I’ve never actually been there before. Is it as mossy as the name makes it sound?”

Chu-e Choi

Pokeballs remaining: 6
Attempt to capture the Bibarel

Chu-e did flush a bit pink, being called out by someone who hadn't even hit puberty yet. Yeah, he had been absolutely wrapped around Arthur's little finger. There was sweetness in his chest that he had never even known he was capable of for the other man. Being able to just sit and spend time with him, comfortable in each other's silence... it had been wonderful. The time without him had been agonizing.

"Slateport is still a pretty good clip... I wonder if we passed each other and didn't even know it. I came from Slateport a few days ago." Would that be silly? The two having passed on the street and not even being aware of it? "Slateport was in real bad shape last time I was in Hoenn. I'm glad everything seems to be doing a lot better." So, he was aware of at least Rocket's takeover.

"Hmm... well, I can't speak for now but I remember Mossadeep being really clean, I guess? Like, uh... cities are always really grungy, even the nice ones. And I lived a super small town growing up, lots of farmland, and it's dirty in a more... natural way, I guess?" This was kind of hard to explain. "But Mossadeep, it didn't have any of that city grime or rural grit. The main parts of the island are really populated, but I lived more on the outskirts. There was an old shrine up the hill from us, I think to worship Celebi? It almost burned down, once. Me, Arthur, and a few of the other locals put it out."

Chu-e was so lost in the memory he didn't notice the Mareep come up and lay down next to him. Pokefood was passed out and around, now by the pokemon themselves since Chu-e had given up the box.

catching mareep

Their newest arrival arrived not from the ground, but by air; the large blue bird landed right on Hideo’s shoulders, the boy struggling to keep upright under its weight. “We’re really popular today, aren’t we?” he joked, though his wavering voice would show he wasn’t exactly enjoying this.

The Cramorant had the attention of all the Pokemon by Hideo, and its attention was on one Pokemon in particular: the Arrokuda, who looked less than pleased. The Cramorant pushed off the boy, towards the Arrokuda, its mouth wide open and ready to gulp the fish up.

It was met with two blasts of water and a beam of psychic energy. The first two pushed it away from its target, but the latter knocked it out of the sky, flat on its back. Before it could get up, it was struck by the now-incensed fish, keeping it down for the foreseeable future.

Before things could get any more violent, Hideo took out a Pokeball, tossing it towards where he heard the bird land.

Back to Ki. “Who knows?” Hideo added, “Slateport’s so busy that we could’ve already passed a dozen times and not know it.” Not to mention Hideo would have little way to know anyone he passed by. Not like his Pokemon would have any reason to remember if they saw him until now. “City’s getting fixed pretty well, though a lot of people still don’t have homes. It sucks, but not much to do other than wait for stuff to get fixed.”

He'd help if he knew anything about construction, and if they'd even let a kid help build homes.

He nodded along as Ki explained just how clean Mossdeep really was, but it was the last thing he mentioned that really got the boy’s attention. “Celebi...that’s the Onion fairy, right? The one that can travel through time?” He recalled that name in his mythology studies. “I hope it wasn’t too mad about its shrine getting burnt! Wouldn’t want you to have to meet a rare Pokemon like that ‘cause you let a place it liked catch fire!”

Plus, he recalled Celebi only appeared during peaceful times. And from what he’d been hearing, the world was less than peaceful right now. Making a peaceful, powerful Pokemon like that appear out of anger was a quick way to disaster.

“Hope I get to meet a Pokemon like that someday. Maybe if I’m lucky, I can even catch one!”

Chu-e Choi

Pokeballs remaining: 5
Attempt to capture the Cramorant