There was only so much struggling Sam could watch somebody endure before he had to step in and offer his help. This time around, he simply walks over to block the wind so that the candles don't immediately go out upon being lit.

The only reason he had budged was because he had been asked a question, the universal sign that he could get a bit closer. He was still a respectful distance away though.

Sam liked to socially distance himself before it was a thing, given he wasn't trying to help somebody and needed to get into their personal space.

"The old caretaker simply retired. His back was getting progressively worse and if he kept hiking up the mountain then it was going to cause more damage. I've recently taken over for him, as a family favor. He helped my mother and I with the Pokémon Tower over in Kanto from time to time."

Laurence Anderson

Everybody had their own take on what Kanto was like when they were there. Sam couldn't speak for anybody but himself and he was particularly thankful that this man realized that and made the comment personal, not regional.

"I became accustomed to the chaos." The confession came out rather abruptly. But Sam always found himself more brutally honest than tactical when dealing socially.

"but for me personally, no, I suppose they weren't too rough. Things were just starting to finally die down. Though I see now it's simply because it all shifted its attention here."

Hoenn had become quite the busy and chaotic place itself in the last... what, four years?

Laurence Anderson

"The media certainly spins a certain picture of the events."

It was his way of saying he invited the opinion of somebody who may have experienced it all. Or at least some of it. Regions were vast and the media coverage was vague. To have been personally involved and have an inside perspective of the events would be helpful.

To Sam's undying curiosity, anyway.

"The Pokemon Tower was just as many square feet, yes. Though admittedly Mt. Pyre has much more burial ground, since the mountain is so wide and the land is all under the caretaker's name."

Which was now his name. Talk about a bold move.

"Managing it myself has been daunting. And while I have Pokémon stationed here and there to help, with tags to show they are under the caretaker's charge, I still have to physically make my way around the grounds... I need to get something with teleport, make my life a bit more simple."

Laurence Anderson

The idea that he would need an army of pokémon that could learn teleport greatly amused Sam. To the point of him smiling about it. What an interesting venture that would be, but one he was now considering in full.

"The problem with human assistants is compensation. Mt. Pyre is more of a charity than it is an employment. I should send out a notice for volunteer workers, I suppose. But I fear they wouldn't take the job as seriously as I would like them to as volunteers."

Basically, can't fire somebody who isn't hired. Can't tell somebody that he doesn't like that they can't volunteer just because they seem shady.

"I'm also exceptionally picky about who I work with. Back in Kanto, my mother and I strived very hard to make the Pokémon Tower a safe zone for all. Not just the League, and not just Team Rocket."

It was blasphemy at times to say that he didn't take a side, or hold a loyalty to either very strongly. Truth was, his loyalty lied with himself more than anybody else.

"I would like Mt. Pyre to have that same stance. A place where all can come, free of loyalties and alliances, and simply be."

Laurence Anderson

"Exactly."

People who pass on had a side, but in death all is one. Death. At least, that's what Sam believed. Perhaps he was wrong, but one's faction upon no longer living was then death. Though in life there were affiliations, so then did death have factions as well?

"It's a sobering thought, that's for sure."

Then he glanced at the blonde beside him, finally realizing that he hadn't made a proper introduction. To rectify that, he held out his hand for a handshake.

Oldschoool.

"Sam Carter."

@ Laurence Anderson