Camping in the mountains during the winter was a test of one's resourcefulness, will, and knowledge. The cold could break a person in moments and survival required expert-level judgment of the weather and local resources. Even the most experienced explorers could be knocked flat by the deadly combination of the wild and the cold.

At least, that's what Dom kept telling himself as he trudged wearily back towards Fallarbor Town, his tent and supplies packed in his rucksack. He'd made it a few days, sure, but without a Fire-type in his party, it was inevitable that the chill would send him packing eventually. Aurora wandered along behind him, happy to be out in her element.

"At least one of us is enjoying this," he said, smiling despite himself. It was always nice when he could let his Pokemon exist in the environments they were made for.

A splash of red against the snow caught his attention immediately. There in the path was a Delibird struggling with an oversized sack. Dom hesitated for a moment before he realized there was a person talking to the Delibird. It seemed the little Pokemon was hell-bent on delivering its presents itself.

"They can be kinda protective," Dom said, approaching the pair with a wave. "They usually carry around food and don't mind sharing if you're in trouble. But poachers and whatnot will try to steal everything the little guy has." He grinned. "Ah, sorry, name's Dominic, I'm a Ranger. This here," he jerked a thumb to the Abomasnow behind him, who waved cheerfully, "is Aurora."

He knelt down next to the Delibird, who fixed him with a sharp glare. "Hey, buddy, if you don't want help carrying that, maybe we can walk with you?" The Delibird looked Dom up and down disdainfully before waving a blunt wing in his face. Dom raised his hands. "Well, I'm walkin' that way anyway, I'm sure you won't mind the company." He was sure he saw the Delibird roll its eyes as it struggled against the weight of the bag again. But, hey, the little guy made it another... two feet.

@romeo

Dom nodded as Romeo offered his own name. He shrugged his coat into place, smiling gently while Romeo offered the Delibird help. "They're surprisingly tough little things," he said. "A lot of folks will count them out because of their size, but they've got fight in them. You have to, to be able to survive in the places they do." Steep cliffs bearing crude nests, howling gales, snowstorms, and an ever-present scarcity of food. With all that stacked against them, it was a wonder Delibird had such a reputation for generosity. Or, maybe, it was their dogged fight for survival that gave them that in the first place.

"Oh, you're a Ranger, too?" Dom looked sheepish for a moment. "Sorry, I was probably telling you a bunch of stuff you already knew." He chewed his lip, mentally ticking off the Delibird facts that rattled around in his mind. He'd been called a know-it-all more than once, and he didn't want to annoy his new friend. It was a good thing he'd become comfortable with silence.

Just then, a woman appeared around a bend in the path. Dom saw her hesitate as she caught sight of the Delibird lugging its bag oh-so-slowly up the path. The Delibird's entourage, though, was hard to miss. Dom gave her a friendly wave, Aurora mimicking him. The woman's lips drew into a stiff smile as she gave the group a nod in wordless greeting and continued past them.

"I've been a Ranger for a few years now, actually," Dom said, not bothering to watch after the woman as she walked. "Did some volunteer work with the Rangers when I was a kid, got hired pretty much right out of school. But I just moved to Hoenn, so that means I've gotta work my way up from Cadet again. I don't mind it, though; the work is what I like." He shrugged as if to say what can you do? A lateral move hadn't been in the cards, but it was worth it for a fresh start. And the scenery in Hoenn had been beautiful so far. The Delibird struggled against its burden, inching its way down the path as if it had forgotten it had company there at all. Dom couldn't help but grin as he watched it. Spirit was right. "What made you decide to be a Ranger?"

@romeo

Dom rubbed the back of his neck with a gloved hand, blushing despite himself. He was so used to people's eyes glazing over as soon as he started prattling on about Pokemon. It was nice to hear someone appreciated what he knew. At least for now.

His jaw nearly drops. "A model? That's amazing." It makes sense, he's handsome. But he couldn't say that part out loud. "A muse? Is that like... your inspiration?" Dom's eyes started to glitter. "There's so much beautiful nature here. You'll probably end up out in the wilderness a lot. I'm sure you'll find exactly what you're looking for." He hadn't been in the region long, sure, but he'd already seen such gorgeous sights. The sunrise over Mt. Chimney, sprawling forests and grasslands, the falls within the cave west of here.

He was so entranced by his own memories of beautiful scenery, he almost missed that Romeo's face had turned serious, his brows knit. Dom frowned. He hadn't quite followed Romeo's eyeline, but he could feel the shift in tone. He eyed the Delibird, still making its determined little steps down the path. Dom was pretty sure the Pokemon Center was just around the next corner, in fact. At the Delibird's pace, they'd be there in, oh, another couple of days or so.

Dom couldn't help but hesitate when Romeo asked about notable places in Hoenn. He ran a hand through his curly green hair, chewing his lip. "Well there's... Meteor Falls that's pretty close to here. You can find Lunatone and Solrock in there sometimes." He stared intently at the Delibird as he was talking, worried that if he looked at Romeo he'd realize his new friend was annoyed.

A sudden flash of red and metallic zap was enough to pull his attention away from the Delibird. He whirled just in time to see the woman who had passed them before release her Houndoom onto the path. Dom hissed a curse under his breath as he rapidly signaled to Aurora with his hands. The Abomasnow rumbled as she turned, but she was too slow. A Flamethrower engulfed her, flames crackling as they hit her. A fine Mist began to pour out from around her.

Dominic was already off his feet, diving bodily towards Romeo with the intent to put himself between the man and any stray embers that might come his way.

@romeo

The Mist spread out in a makeshift barrier between them and their assailant. Dom blinked through it, wishing that hadn't been Aurora's first instinct. She couldn't help it, he knew; she was defensive first and foremost, and fire was a recipe for disaster for her. Through the haze, the occasional spout of flame blossomed and died away, a rich red and orange flower against a satin backdrop.

Brushing stray embers from his coat, Dom glanced over his shoulder to make sure Romeo was okay. He nodded to the other man, scrambled to his feet, and darted for Aurora. She was in a bad way, he could tell from here, as was to be expected after taking a direct hit like that. Dom approached as quickly as he dared—she couldn't hear him, and the pain and fear associated with a surprise attack would only serve to make her jumpy. He reached up to touch her arm, surprised when she didn't swing it at him. Instead, she gave a low rumbling growl and looked at him pleadingly. He nodded and in a flash of red, she was safely in her Pokeball.

That red light was just enough of a giveaway for the Houndoom, though, who unleashed another Flamethrower in their direction. Luckily, it seemed to be Confused, and the flames passed more or less harmlessly. In one smooth movement, Dom slipped Aurora's Pokeball onto his belt and grabbed another. Bathed in red light, Dom's Noivern was released. He cried, stretching his wings.

"North! Keep him safe!" North followed Dom's pointing finger and screeched in agreement. Though it wouldn't be a problem for him, the hazy battlefield was only going to impede his Vulpix ally, North decided. In a few flaps, the Mist was gone, leaving the shaken Houndoom standing front and center.

It was just as the last wisps of fog trailed off that Dom turned and caught sight of the suspicious woman making a beeline for the Delibird. For a beat, the two locked eyes.

"Oh hell no." Dom bolted, and the suspicious woman followed suit. By sheer luck, he happened to be closer to the gift-laden Delibird, who still seemed completely oblivious to the situation. Mid-stride, Dom leaned down and scooped up the Pokemon. The Pokemon plus its gifts were heavier than he had expected, and for a moment the ground threatened to rise up to meet him. But he regained his composure, tucked the Delibird unceremoniously under one arm, and booked it for the Pokemon Center. The Delibird squealed in indignation, slapping a blunt wing against Dom's chest as he ran. "Sorry, sorry, sorry! I'm helping, I swear!"

@romeo

North was used to calling the shots on his own, so when he suddenly found himself alone with the Houndoom, he wasn't concerned. No, as his eyes refocused on his opponent, a glint appeared there. The Houndoom bared its teeth, shaking off the remaining confusion. Before it could prepare another attack, the Noivern swooped. The purple waves of Dragon Pulse crashed into the Houndoom, sending it sprawling with a yelp.

For Dominic's part, he simply ran. He didn't look behind him to see whether the woman was following. It wasn't until he heard Romeo offer to help that he even realized the lithe man was running alongside him. Dom flashed a panic-tinged grin but shook his head. "Too late..." he gasped, "Already... momentum..." That damn bird's bag was heavy. Glancing back, he saw the wall of flames that now separated them from the would-be thief. Still, Dom didn't slow.

As he rounded a corner, the Pokemon Center came into view, glittering with ornaments and holiday lights. Only then did he allow himself to lessen his speed—no sense running all three of them face-first into the door of the Pokemon Center, was there? He pulled up just at the door and set the Delibird down in front of it.

"All yours, little guy," he said, still breathing hard, and patted the Pokemon on the back. The Delibird peered up at him with one squinted, serious eye. Dom glanced back to see if the poacher had regained her composure. No sign of her yet. "Any time now." The Delibird let out a little quark and bopped Dom right on his face. It quacked and grumbled, giving him a thorough tongue-lashing. Dom simply knelt in front of it, murmuring the occasional apology whenever seemed appropriate. When the Delibird was satisfied, it turned to Romeo, looked him up and down, then solemnly patted him on the leg. With one more disapproving grunt at Dom, it turned and toddled into the Pokemon Center.

Dom breathed a sigh of relief before looking up to Romeo, beaming. "We did it!"

@romeo

With a soft keening, North flited his way over to the out-of-breath pair. The Houndoom was, distinctly, nowhere to be seen. North shoved his head under Dominic's arm, and the man pet him almost without realizing what he was doing. The Noivern certainly didn't mind.

"We made a great team," he said, grinning. His attention turned to Romeo's Vulpix. "And you were amazing! Way to handle yourself, little lady." This hadn't been a bad time, what with it being his first run-in with a poacher in Hoenn. They were relatively common in Kanto, but it had still been some months since he'd dealt with one face-to-face. And with a partner, no less! He grinned up at Romeo again. He honestly hadn't even realized he'd thrown himself between the model and the fire, but he wasn't going to admit that. Instead, he blushed and said, "It's really no problem. I didn't even get singed!"

His smile faded somewhat as Romeo dug around in his pocket. Dom pulled his feet under him, content to sit cross-legged on the ground as he watched the other scribble on a piece of paper. He couldn't help but think that Romeo's laugh reminded him of bells. Romeo offered up the paper and Dom's face went bright red. He took it gingerly, as if he might break it, and stammered for a moment.

"Y-yeah, Meteor Falls. It'll be beautiful."

@romeo