Somehow, Keenan ended up in Fallarbor town. He had no idea how. His destination was Rustboro, how did he end up here? Sighing, he checked in at a hotel. He'll leave tomorrow, after resupplying. There was a gravesite here, for the Ultra Beast war. He went to pay his respects. Despite not having been involved or anything of the like, it was still good to do. What he didn't expect was seeing a familiar face. He walked up beside the guy, and put the flowers he had next to the memorial, joining many others. The blonde folded his hands and gave a short prayer. He didn't personally knew anyone that was a part of the war or anything.

Despite being something of a pretty boy, and absolutely a dunce when it came to directions for the most part, he did have a good head on his shoulders. "I know many others disagree with me, but it wasn't your fault. How could you have known something like that was going to happen while you were away, and likely on an emergency considering you didn't get permission first? It's dumb that people kept blaming you for not being there. And not even let you explain why you weren't there. I know we just met and all...but I hope that you know that not everyone agrees with that crap." Keenan gave a tentative glance down at Derek, giving what he would hope would be a comforting squeeze on the shoulder, and started to walk off.

Lifting his head to stare blankly out at the memorial, Derek's 'sight' only encompassed the thoughts circulating the dark recess of his mind. What it must have been like to go through all that. It made him feel awful. The war-torn region was quick to recover as best it could, but these memorials would always serve as a reminder.

And though it was better that way, they still plagued Derek's mind.

"It's not that you're wrong." He started, looking over to Keenan after he wandered off.

"But being the leader of a gym means being the leader of the city it belongs to, as well as the region." Before the incident, Derek could easily say he saw himself as such. But after all that happened...

"And I couldn't save anything. Even if I have a 'good' excuse. I still did nothing." If the battles had taken place in Petalburg... He probably wouldn't have returned to Hoenn.

"While I appreciate what you said, it doesn't change the fact." Gradually shifting his weight to get back up on his feet, Derek moves over to Keenan so that they can get started with the patrol. "The only thing I can do is try to show people I am here now."

And that frustrated Derek, let alone how much pressure he was putting on himself for the sake of a promise he'd made back home - for the second, and last time.

---

Keenan Toral | 2/5

Keenan shook his head. "That doesn't make a difference. You're a person. Kind of hard to be in two places at once. Kind of hard to do anything when you're miles away. All of those people that criticized you still should go to hell. That's the fact." And not whatever facts that Derek believed in. Though he was right in that last statement. "Now that last one is true...you are here now. But calm down and stop putting so much pressure on yourself. You can't do everything, but you can't be at your best when you're like this." And he'd gladly prove it with a battle if he had to. Still, surely there was more reason for coming here beyond just paying respects and moping about. Though Kee didn't know what. He was ready to just leave the memorial and gravesite and go back exploring the city.

DEREK HOFFMAN

"But that's the point. I chose not to be here." It was evident they didn't, in this instance, see eye to eye. While Derek tended to be more optimistic, this was personal - on both ends. He had to go back to Johto, but he also had a duty to Hoenn and it's people.

Emphasis on had...

"Sorry." It was obvious Keenan didn't seem to do much better being forced to confront such notions. And Derek didn't blame him. He couldn't. "I just felt like I owed you an explanation for leaving the way I did last time."

But maybe he didn't owe him anything. Moving on ahead, Derek tended to one of the sites by wiping away the filth obstructing the epitaph it bared on it's surface. "I don't like talking about all of it. Obviously. But I tried to." Moving to the next one, he peered over at Keenan to see his progress with a few passing words. "Thing is, it's not something I wish to be forgiven for. I just want me and everyone else to forget."

---

Keenan Toral | MISSION 3/5

"Shit hit the fan at the same time that you weren't here, gone to take care of an emergency. That can happen to literally anyone. Even the champion. But even I can tell that we're likely not going to see eye to eye on that..." Sometimes, it wasn't worth arguing with a wall. At the apology though, he actually made to try to slap Derek. Hard. Hopefully, he'd actually hit him. "Stop that. You don't owe me anything. Not even an apology. I'm just a dumb teenager fresh out of high school going on an adventure to take on the world at the moment."

Derek didn't even really owe him an explanation. This clearly weighed heavily on the man's mind. Apparent by the way the guy was cleaning the memorials nicely. While Kee was still contemplating his own reply, the next comment struck him. "This clearly still weighs heavily on your mind. Truth be told, I didn't even recognize you at first. With what Rocket pulled recently though...I think you can safely say that you've been forgotten about by and large by the public. And I barely even remember you and what people were saying already. Anyways, I get the feeling it'll forever be with you until you feel like you've paid your so called debt. I just...look, don't let it consume you. If you need someone to vent to...or feel like you're heading in a situation where you need backup...don't hesitate to get me. I'll watch your back. Now give me your phone so I can give you my contact info."

And he was serious about that. Unlike some people, Kee took care of his friends. Not that Derek was a friend...yet. But he wanted to be friends with the guy. "Now, there's more to you than that mess and to being a gym leader, ex or otherwise. Surely you have some hobbies. I noticed you had a pretty varied team back there too...what kind of Pokemon do you like..." Kee was just doing some minor tidying up of flowers and little mementos left by loved ones.

DEREK HOFFMAN

Forfeiting his phone at the request that came off as more of a demand, Derek kept quiet while he mulled it over. But it didn't take root the way Keenan would've hoped. Instead he just went ahead and answered the question. "I train all kinds, but my preference is steel type pokemon."

The other was ground type, but after the funeral in Johto, that changed. "Fairy types too." Although these thoughts detracted from his dour mood, they only invited more depressing notions. It was like he couldn't win.

"But I don't really take the trainer thing as serious anymore. I'm a ranger now." Earning badges was a luxury— something to entertain the wild aspirations he and another had when they were both little. Until it seemed likely for them to come about, they were nothing more than that.

Working faster out of pseudo frustration but also a mind that had been rid of some of it's baggage, Derek made quick work of the column he'd been cleaning up. There were still more that needed tidied up, though, which was why he decided to bring out Jonesy.

"Mind using your water to clean off this headstone?" His Sobble, eager to please, quickly began spraying down the granite with a pressurized jet using it's water gun.

---

Keenan Toral | 4/5

Kee made a thoughtful "hmm" sound at the answer. "My little brother adores steel and ghost types. So he'll likely get along quite well with you. Although...being a ranger is, in my opinion, more serious than being a run the mill trainer like me. If anything, it puts more pressure into being an accomplished trainer. Being a trainer is more like a doorway to many different paths. Part of why I went on a bit of a journey and hope to earn some gym badges..." And perhaps discover which path he wanted to take. The capture of Sootopolis City sure was a surprise. He did notice that Derek brought out his Sobble and had him rinse off the granite.

Kee took out a pokeball, and opened it. Out came Spheal. "Hey, mind doing some rinsing for me?" Nodding, or its version of one, the round seal Pokemon used its own Water Gun to clean off the granite. He did some more little things as well, but otherwise tried to keep something going. "What do you do on your free time?" He wanted to get to know Derek a bit..but maybe the mood just wasn't there to talk too much. It was almost giving even Keenan a bit of a loss.

DEREK HOFFMAN

"Not a whole lot." It was all Derek could manage to say to the latest question. "Like you said, it's a bit more serious. Even though I wasn't a casual trainer, as a ranger I don't got the freedom of choosing when I do something. Gotta be on-call, wake up early. That sort of thing." Wrapping up the last bit of work with Jonesy helping alongside him, Derek stood up and back to get a good look at the site now that it'd been touched up.

Not bad.

"Good luck getting those badges, by the way. It's hard to get an audience with them in the arena. Not impossible, though." With everything that'd been happening in the region as of late, Derek couldn't blame them.

"I'd suggest John Sullivan. I managed to get his badge during the Hoenn star tournament even though I lost. Kinda made me knuckle down on my training." Their mega-evolved Centiskorch made easy work of his Metagross. But now that he had some mega stones of his own, Derek had begun to consider challenging them to a rematch—to prove he deserved it. "Or maybe you already had a gym in mind?"

---

Keenan Toral | 5/5

Keenan almost made a face about the lack of free time. His suspicions were confirmed that it is a bit more serious. Being on call constantly, and waking up early...yeah, that wasn't Keenan at all. Maybe he was a bit of a free spirit or maybe he needed to grow up. As he finished up with his own part of the memorial, he listened to Derek's comments. He was finding that out the hard way. Though he did find it odd that a gym leader gave a badge during a tournament. "Unfortunately, I'm finding that out the hard way, after double checking waiting lists, I couldn't believe how hard it was to get in for a challenge. I started out in Littleroot, so I thought Rustboro would be my first gym. Only...well, they were full. Same with the Petalburg one that opened up again with a new leader. And everywhere else. I'm...a little disheartened. But at the same time, it does give me time to train up my Pokemon, and explore a bit more. I'll keep checking though, and try to punch in whenever I can."

Patience wasn't his strong suite. That went to Ace. And maybe he just wanted to enjoy life a bit more than normal. Who knows...

DEREK HOFFMAN