It was too cold out here, to be walking around in only basic men’s kimono and a thin cloak. He probably looked quite the oddball among the regular citizens, with his muddied, patched clothes and dirty face. He’d been travelling nonstop for days, and even now he travelled the city, looking for any kind of odd job that would allow him to work for a hot meal, and perhaps a bath. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d washed with water that wasn’t freezing cold. His Pokémon could use a good long rest, too. But it seemed like finding work would have to wait, when a stranger quite clearly picked him out of the crowd and called him over.

The boy was wary, and didn’t like the look of the man. Upon further inspection he realized the man was as dirty from travel as he, and reluctantly approached with a firm grip on his one Pokeball, hidden in his sleeve. His Absol remained hidden there, though the rest of his Pokémon trailed after him. More than a few people gave him a wide berth, likely due to a combination of his dirtiness and the Pokémon following him. But that was no matter. He had to find someone, somewhere, kind enough to help him out in this city. He had to.

He kept his eyes on the man the entire time he was approaching, the odd collection of Pokémon trailing no more than a step behind him, while the Murkrow rode on his shoulder. “Yes, sir? I’m afraid I must keep moving, what do you need?”

The offer of the job, as well as the moan of pain when the man stood afterwards, had Lan tilting his head quizzically. In that moment he looked a lot like a puppy, confused and dirty. He didn’t say anything at first. His mouth hung open, and he shook his head to clear it. After a few moments, he managed to find his voice. “I- yes? I can help, I guess. As long as you don’t mind most of my Pokémon not having balls.” He’d respond, still a little confused as to why he’d been picked. But damn, this man looked to be in bad shape. He’d have trouble, unless he could convince the man to rest for the night before going anywhere.

“Call me Kaori.” He said, giving a fake name of his own in response to the stranger’s obviously fake name. He didn’t know why he was given a fake name, nor did he really care. Accommodations and food were more than enough reason to go through with this, especially since it was getting colder, and getting harder to find outdoor work he could do. “If I’m going to help you, though, I suggest to rest the night first. You look ready to collapse and as strong as I am for my size I don’t think I can outright carry you. My Pokémon wouldn’t be much help either.”

It was with this that the boy’s Pokémon came crowding over, the poochyena especially taking a great interest in sniffing at the man before he decided he was alright and letting out a soft woof in response. The canine sat, each Pokémon that was out curiously inspecting “Ki” before moving back to give a little room. Lan didn’t need to study the man much, though. He was exhausted and wary, but offering food and temporary shelter in exchange for help, and that was enough to judge the person before him as someone okay for now. If he was wrong later, he was sure Yume would have fun with a little battle.

”Any roof over my head at all, no matter how temporary, is worth sharing even if I have to share.” Lan responded, glancing over at his poochyena and Ki and smiling when he saw that the pup had taken a liking to him. Usually, the small canine wasn’t half so friendly with strangers. It was a good sign. The pain the other man was in was pretty obvious though, so he shooed his Pokémon to make a little space as he contemplated exactly where they could eat. There were a few restaurants he’d tried to beg work from, but one look at his dirty face had had him being brutally rejected. Maybe they wouldn’t kick him out now that he was with a paying customer? It was worth a shot at least.

And then the strange man asked a question he knew was probably coming, how long he’d been alone. How long he’d lived like this. “Three years” was all he replied with, he wouldn’t share too much unless asked. Even now it still stung that the foster homes had been so cruel. He took the elbow offered to him, trying to be gentle but keep a firm grip so the other wouldn’t fall over. His concern mounted the more he watched the other move, it was pretty damn clear to the teenager that he’d have to be badly hurt to move so slowly and painfully. He didn’t comment, though. Unless the man was actually dying it wasn’t his business to interfere with.

Instead, he quietly led the man to the closest of the restaurants he remembered, a small and rather homey place offering Japanese food. As soon as they entered, the owner scowled, looking at Lan like he was nothing more than dirt beneath his shoe. “I told you to get out of here,kid. Don’t need some dirty brat bringing his dirty friend in to scare my customers.” With a roll of his eyes, the teen would ignore the man for a moment as he picked a table out. He didn’t really care why the man thought, his stomach was growling and it was heavy work supporting another human being up stairs. “We’re paying customers this time. By all means, kick us out, but you’ll only lose profit from it.”

”If I think I’m being cheated or taken advantage of I leave. Besides, if people decide they want to hurt me I keep a knife close by.” He responded, defending his reasoning. “You’re a bit too hurt to really do much to harm me, but don’t think I’m not watching you, too. I’ve had enough of people taking advantage of me in my lifetime.” With that, he went silent until they reached the restaurant. The confrontation with the owner afterwards was unpleasant, but he could see Ki getting ready to make a little trouble and decided he may as well join in. “Hmm, I don’t think I’ll need a huge meal, but my Pokémon could use a treat. I think they’re tired of hunting and foraging. What do you think, Yume?” The boy would ask, releasing his Absol right in the middle of the restaurant. She seemed to make a noise of approval, following by echoed noises of excitement from his other four.

Lan climbed into the booth on the other side of the man, who he was already growing to like. Smirking a little, he ordered a big bowl of ramen for himself, with a random drink on the side, and as many smaller dishes as he could for his Pokémon. The only excessive thing he thought to get himself was a side of vegetable tempura, which he hadn’t had in years. Hell, he hadn’t had Japanese since he was a kid. None of the foster homes let him have it, and he hadn’t been able to afford it on the streets. Now that there was someone to pay for his food... he sure didn’t mind splurging a little. And besides, it would be funny to watch the owner serve his Pokémon their food on the floor of his restaurant.

“I don’t care that he’s rude, really. Most of the restaurant owners in this area have already kicked me out of their shops, at least this guy is only being rude. Rude I can deal with.” He eventually said, closing his eyes momentarily. While not the most comfortable seat in the world, it felt wonderful to sit down for a bit, and he visibly relaxed into the leather. Nothing could beat a warm meal after weeks of scraps and whatever random things he found foraging in the wilds. Ah, he could almost get used to this arrangement. Assuming this guy really was being sincere, that was.

The brief lull in their conversation was enough to allow Lan to get comfortable, and for his Murkrow to decide that now would be an excellent time to pick through the boy’s hair in the most obvious display of grooming possible. His other Pokémon seemed eager enough to meet Ki’s, Yume bending down to sniff at the igglybuff and the young poochyena letting out the high pitched yap of an excited puppy. He was quickly doing laps near the table, barking and wagging his stubby little tail at the Litten. Lan winced at the volume of the barks but allowed it, knowing that the annoyance was just another thing to teach this guy a lesson. Lan himself ended up looking down at the Ralts that approached him, reaching down with one hand to pat the little creature on the head. Cute.

Then Ki pulled out the card that made the owner’s eyes widen and had him hurrying to serve them after a brief warning from the man. Lan didn’t know what made the card special, having not had a credit card of his own before, but he recognized that it wasn’t something just anybody would have from the owner’s reaction to it. While he raised an eyebrow, he didn’t say anything about the card, more interested in the little Ralts who’d rapidly burrowed into his side for cuddles. It made him smile to see such a friendly little Pokémon.

And then aki spoke again and the silence was broken. He sighed, agreeing with the older’s grumbling but not voicing it out loud. “Unfortunately, it’s the way people are. For every kind person there is a greedy, pompous one like this man here. While that type is annoying, they’re also the kind who are very easily messed with or provoked.” He said, grinning a bright but somewhat impish smile. “After all, people like those are usually insecure about something else.”

Yume seemed perfectly content to allow the “pets”, shifting to a more comfortable position and purring at the igglybuff on her head. Motherly as always, the bigger Pokémon simply watched the others play. The poochyena, as young as the Litten, was happy to let the cat Pokémon chase him. His tail was wagging hard, and anybody could see how excited the puppy was. The other three of Alan’s simply watched, the Pawniard’s blades and the sneasel’s claws too sharp to really play roughly.

Lan himself allowed the Ralts to snuggle closer, cooing gently at the little thing for a bit before looking up when “Ki” started talking. He nodded along to his words, not wanting to interrupt the rant, though he did pay close attention to the words. Rocket? Desperate? Sounded like this man hadn’t exactly had the easiest life, either. Unfortunately, Lan didn’t really have a response to that, and went quiet until Ki spoke of wanting to change things. “The only ones who can’t make change are the ones who say they can’t, and refuse to try. You are one person, yes, but you can easily make a change. After all, you picked the most obviously homeless and alone teenager off the street to help, didn’t you? You could’ve asked anybody, but chose me. That little bit of kindness is enough to prove that you can make a difference for some, even if it’s small.”

After that little speech, the young man quieted again, their drinks having come. His was some odd soda he’d never seen before... what on earth was Ramune? And why was there a marble stuck in the top of it? Staring intensely at the bottle as if it could give him answers, the boy bit his lip and attempted to figure out how exactly he was meant to open it. Why had he ordered randomly, again? He already didn’t like this.

Until Ki smiled, Lan hadn’t relaxed, having partially risen from his seat at some point. Embarrassed, he sank back down to the leather and focused on letting Ki talk, trying to figure out how to open the damned soda as he did. Well, until the man called him 10. That got an indignant response out of him. “I’m 19! I know I’m short okay?!” The boy nearly snapped, though he quickly clammed up when Ki talked again. This time, he pondered hard, noting that Ki had said husband instead of wife.

Maybe they were more alike than Lan had thought. Sighing, he looked at the man. “I hope he’s out there somewhere, you seem like you really love him. I couldn’t imagine losing a partner. Not that I’ve ever had one, but it seems... nice. I’ve always wondered what it’s like to have a boyfriend of my own. But even if he’s not, protecting the place you both loved... I’m sure he’d be proud. I know I would...” he said, voice soft as he finally managed to open the Ramune.

“In some ways I envy you. You have someone you love, a place you can call home, and money. But I suppose in other ways I don’t, especially your injuries. Not because you’re hurt, but because I’d hate the lack of freedom and mobility.” He said, and was about to say more but was interrupted by a waiter arriving with their food. Switching focuses at the drop of a hat, the boy eagerly grabbed his ramen once his Pokémon had had their food distributed correctly. Man, he was starving.