Tell a kid they're not allowed to go somewhere, and what's the first thing on their mind? Going there. And when that somewhere was a massive tree that sprouted out of nowhere in the middle of a city, one would almost feel compelled to check it out just to find what was there, even if they had to sneak in to get there.

And considering Hideo had the means to just Teleport inside and check the place out courtesy of his Gardevoir, sneaking in wasn't too difficult.

Of course, it couldn't just be a single teleport. With an unfamiliar location like this, they had to be careful where they teleported. It limited them to teleporting step by step, wherever his Gardevoir could see.

And the more pressing issue was they weren't the only ones here; there were apparently groups of people patrolling the area. Hideo didn't know exactly who they were, but overhearing them talking told him they were patrolling for any intruders.

Great.

With a patrol potentially finding them, their little exploration trip had to be accelerated. Hideo had been able to confirm a few things, like there were a lot of fairy and grass Pokemon around here, and it was like a forest spawned around the tree itself. But he wasn't allowed to linger for long.

Their last teleport had been a hurried one; they'd almost been cornered by a patrol, and Hideo's Gardevoir had to bail them out asap. This lead to her having to aimlessly Teleport out, so they could've ended up anywhere.

Where they did end up felt like a grassy field. The grass had to go up to Hideo's knees, and more importantly, there was no patrol around here that they could hear. But that lead to another pressing question; "Where'd you Teleport us this time, Dancer?" Hideo asked. "Did you send us back to camp?"

But all he got was a Telepathic denial. "Well, at least we got time to think now. Just gotta hope we don't run into too many Pokemon in this tall grass-"

"Wha-? You too?"

Hideo jumped at the sudden voice. His Gardevoir got close, ready to Teleport him from the sudden threat - only to lighten her grip when she recognized who it was.

"D-Doug?" Hideo tensed up. This was the first time he met Doug after running away from home...and he was honestly the one person he was the most afraid of meeting again. His parents had to have filled Doug in on what happened and got him to try and bring Hideo back.

But...Doug didn’t sound too angry. Or aggressive. He seemed completely casual about it, as far as Hideo could tell. He had to admit there was the chance that his parents still hadn’t tried getting Doug on board.

Hideo was tense, but he still raised a hand.  He'd have to make sure Doug wasn't after him, but he didn't want to alienate Doug by just running off. “H-hey, Doug,” he said, doing his best to sound calm. “What’re you doing all the way here? I didn’t think you’d be here at the tree...”

He got close to his Gardevoir, speaking low. “We are still in Sootopolis, right?”

The answer he received was the telepathic equivalent of a shrug.

John Sullivan

Treehouse of Life

Let the Second Great Kids' Club Expedition begin!

"Uh, yes?" Doug replied immediately, wondering why Hideo Kino sounded like a ghost had whispered in his ear.

"Hideo. It's a big ass tree and the Rockets don't want me here- of course I would be here."

He was yet to notice Aaron nearby, his attention comandeered by Hideo's weirdness.

Andy Blackadder's arrival was the kind that caught the eye however- not to mention he actually spoke up, drawing a grin over Doug's lips as he turned his eyes towards the youth.

"Can't say I expected ya! Looking for trouble even on crutches? I already respected ya plenty, ya know?"

The hick winked and tipped his straw hat at the other, before cocking his head slightly at the sudden question thrown over his own shoulder.

Then he noticed Aaron Toral.

"Oh. Hey there. Uh... Mighty fancy place this is, eh?"

The Kantonian scratched at the back of his head, looking over Aaron wearily- mostly out of the realization that if the kid had been, say, a Rocket, things might have gone terribly for him from the word go.

Best make sure there were no more surprises nearby...

"Awright everyone, stand still." Doug said as he palmed a Netball. "Get out'ere, Garo."

Doug's by now trademarked Orbeetle appeared on the scene, eyes blinking as he took in the unfamiliar landscape- before his eyes fell on the very familiar Hideo, giving the young boy a mental nudge as hello before turning his gaze towards Andy and nodding amicably.

It gave Aaron an unblinking look.

"Don't stare, that's rude." Doug huffed, reaching over to avert the bug's gaze away from the blonde before bringing his hand up to roll a finger in the air. "Now do yer thing; wanna make sure we ain't boutta get jumped."

The Orbeetle did its thing.

Shortly after...

"Oh hey..." He said, before clapping his hands. "Everyone's here, as it turns out."

Doug grinned.

"Even Eris."

Ruby Walker and Arashi Akiyama received psychic provings from the Orbeetle, something along the lines of 'why are you hiding' going off in their heads.

"Everyone gather up. All of us, if possible?"

His Orbeetle had informed him that the little girl was within their vicinity. Naturally, Doug could not allow his friend to be left out.

"How 'bout we'all go fetch Eris, and uh... Start 'explorin'~?"

---

TAG: Andy Blackadder Hideo Kino Ruby Walker Arashi Akiyama Eris Halla Aedan Quigley Cardamom Bliss @chai Aaron Toral @piper

Hideo remained cautious, not getting any closer to John Sullivan - yet not moving away either. He would've expected Doug to scold him, but Doug seemed much more preoccupied with the tree. Nothing was indicating that Doug was going to haul his ass back home the second he could.

And nothing was saying he wouldn't.

"Yeah, uh, I guess that makes sense," Hideo half-mumbled. Though what definitely caught his attention was the mention of Rockets being here. The inconvenient part about his escape was the time shortly before it, he was completely occupied with his preparations. He'd heard that Sootopolis was the center of a battle between the League and Rocket around the same time he was handling the Groudon, but he was out of the loop beyond that.

"There are Rocket here? I didn't know they had control of the tree. Guess that explains all the patrols around here." And thank goodness none of them found Eris Halla when she said she came here.

Hideo heard a Drifblim pretty much announce the arrival of someone else; Hideo knew that was a ghost-type, and his first guess as to who owned it was immediately validated as Andy Blackadder spoke.

Hearing Andy brought Hideo as much surprise as it did relief; he knew Andy was definitely on his side on his journey. "Hey Andy," he said, waving towards Andy with a slight smile on his face, his voice (and confidence) stabilizing. If anything happened, he at least knew he could rely on Andy for some support. "Well... it's a big tree in the middle of Sootopolis. Who wouldn't want to know what's up?"

Hideo didn't even know there was another person here (Aaron Toral ) until Andy brought them up - and at the same moment, Hideo's attention was taken by his Gardevoir informing him there was someone else familiar here, though not where they could see them. How she knew that baffled him, but he trusted her enough, even if she hadn't detailed who it was.

Then Doug pretty much told him who was here by saying "everyone". His mind immediately went to their group - so that meant Arashi Akiyama and Ruby Walker were here too?

He even mentioned Eris being here, and that they should go find her. Hideo was silent for a moment, thinking it over; if Doug did try something sudden, everyone else was here with them. As long as they were all together, Hideo could let his guard down, even if only a little. "...yeah, let's go look for her," he said.