The night before...

A Skwovet approached the berry tree in the middle of the night, its cheeks already stuffed with berries. As it saw the nearly ripe berries hanging from the tree, it could not overcome its greedy stomach. After all, it had a rough day and deserved some extra sweets. It bounded toward the foot of the trunk, but its paw barely touched the bark before it disappeared. The last thing it saw before having its neck snapped by ravenous talons was the tree growing smaller and smaller, its body being lifted high into the sky.

Babayaga was the ultimate bodyguard. He never slept, he needed very little to eat, and he was completely psychotic. He defended his charges without mercy, executing anything that came too close. If it was too big to kill in one slash, he did his best to maim it. His bloodlust was insatiable, and Oscar could always rely on him to keep garden-based assets safe.

The next day came, and in a few hours Oscar would be arriving to collect the berries. Babayaga did not relent just because his task was nearly finished; he patrolled from high above incessant devotion. Thus when CASPIAN LEVESQUE appeared to perform a little harmless skullduggery, Babayaga would strike at him like any other intruder.

When Babayaga swooped down to attack, he was aiming for Caspian's eyes. He planned to skewered them, rendering the would-be thief blind and full of regret. However he aimed too high and ended up pulling him by his hair instead. A foolish mistake, he vowed to not make another. A flew in a wide arc, landing within the shadow of the tree. He glared toward Caspian, slowly raising one of his wings in a threatening manner. Babayaga was allowing the human one chance, if he continued his pursuit of delicious berries the faithful decidueye would not hesitate to rip him to shreds.

The human did not heed Babayaga's warning, and insisted on approaching the tree. Surely Babayaga could spare just a few berries for this persistent trainer. Right?

WRONG!

Babayaga would sooner die then let a single berry escape the tree's branches, at least not without retribution! His wing was already outstretched, so unbeknownst to the interloper Babayaga was already prepared to strike. With his other wing he pulled backward, emulating the form of an archer priming their bow. A shadowy arrow would appear at the tip of his outstretched wing, and Babayaga would loose it toward the intruder.

It would miss, likely to the intruder's relief. Ah but this was a trap! If the trainer was not careful, he would fail to notice the Spirit Shackle emerging from the arrow. Perhaps he would further fail to notice these ghostly chains attempting to wrap around his legs and hold him in place. Babayaga shrieked with a vengeful rage, his eyes manic with bloodlust. This human would pay for his insolence, if his snare was successful Babayaga planned to torment this whelp until he begged for mercy! 

---20 Minutes Earlier---

Oscar was spending the morning at a Mauville cafe, sipping a latte while aimlessly looking over his social media. He was rather groggy, and really wished he could ditch work today to sleep in. Alas, that was just wishful longing. At the very least though, he could unwind a bit before heading to the office. Suddenly his mindless scrolling was interrupted by an alarm. It was a reminder to pick up his berries, which he had entirely forgotten about.

Oscar nearly choked on his beverage as the memory came flooding back to him. "Fuck shit I need to hurry!" He leapt from the table and hurried out the door. He pulled out a pokeball, releasing his Salamence onto the Mauville sidewalk. He jumped onto its back, ignoring the bewildered cries of angry pedestrians. As they took to the skies, Oscar could not help but wonder how Babayaga faired during his watch. Hopefully he did not get into any trouble...

CASPIAN LEVESQUE

Babayaga leered down at his prey, waiting patiently for him to realize his predicament. As the human discovered the shackle, the look on his face made Babayaga soar. Hypothetically, he was not currently flying. With the human realizing how doomed he was, Babayaga resolved to finish this foolishness here and now.

He screamed, his face contorting into an expression of pure rage and bloodlust. There would be no mercy in his attack, Babayaga intended to rip this robber limb from limb--and he wanted the human to know it. The hunter's screech was unceasing as he leapt from the tree toward his target. With his talons outstretched, his aim would be to wretch the human's neck.

He would never connect. There was a flash of light, and suddenly Babayaga was gone. With his disappearance the Spirit Shackle would fade, and the human would be free to move once more. If Caspian looked around he would quickly find Oscar, holding a pokeball and looking annoyed. "I thought vermin were taking my berries, I never considered a fuckin' trainer would go for it. Would not have left this little psychopath here if I did."

Oscar did not feel bad per say, after all this guy totally looked like he was gonna swipe his berries. However not even a thief deserved to be put up with Babayaga. Oscar tilted his head, sighing heavily as he pondered what to do. Eventually he shrugged, there was no use holding a grudge. Pissing off Babayaga was punishment enough. Oscar tilted his head, "Are you alright? You look hungry----maybe you should take a few berries."

Oscar's eyes were blank, looking between the thief and the tree to help indicate what the thief should do.

CASPIAN LEVESQUE 

Baba Yaga's would-be victim seemed rattled, causing Oscar to grimace. This could take more than just some free berries to sweep under the rug. Oscar sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Um--yeah Baba's mine. I kinda trained him to be my garden guard. Pure killer instinct, distinct lack of empathy, and an unshakable sense of loyalty. Makes for the perfect watch...owl. He's not supposed to attack humans though, you must have really pissed him off."

Oscar looked past the stranger to the tree, thanks to Baba Yaga it was in pristine condition. Just his luck that this rando got in the way then, how was Oscar going to keep him quiet. Oscar's mind first went to money, but then again this guy could be a thief--so perhaps he had more negotiation power than he thought.

Oscar decided to play toward that, shrugging before folding his arms. "Alright here's my deal. I'll let you get outta here with some berries, no questions asked. You don't talk about nearly getting ripped apart by a bird, I won't say nothing about you intruding on private property, we all go back to our lives happy. Sound good?"

Oscar put his hand out to seal the deal with a shake, should the stranger accept.

CASPIAN LEVESQUE