"Hm?" The ranger looks over from checking his holsters, ensuring that he had what was required of him. "Oh, yeah. We can head out." Lacking the quality of zeal she seemed to possess, Derek is unsure of whether he should even try living up to it. Matching that kind of energy would be difficult...

"You seem pretty gung-ho about all this." There is hope the observation doesn't offend, but it can't be helped if it does. "You're not nervous or anything, are you?" Learning what his fellow rangers were like was difficult. They were spread all over the region.

And a lot of them weren't around when their gung-ho attitude was needed most.

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 10 MP for POST (1)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

Remarks about not letting oneself be consumed by their emotions is reassuring, though he could never relate. Does she takes everything this seriously?

It wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it allowed Derek to think about his past. What was once spontaneous for the male ranger has become routine. Risking his own safety (and that of his pokemon) was commonplace and to be expected. It was only others, cheery people like Genny, whose suffering weighed him down at this point.

That's what happened when you could no longer chase your own dreams. You had to fight for those of others, or one might as well not be around to draw breath.

"You think so?" Amused by how she seemed to be observing him, Derek casts his gaze towards the Impidimp eating dirt to avoid the subtle break in his features. Whether she intended or not, it felt like a compliment of sorts.

...Is that good for them?

Thoughts about eating dirt in any context never felt like they panned out well. Regardless, he wasn't going to start lecturing on what was right or wrong with how one allowed their pokemon to behave. There was nothing to suggest he had it figured out anyway...

"I guess these missions just don't matter to me like they used to." After operating alongside the league's powerhouses, and still failing, this sort of thing had no pull on his conscience. "Burdens of tenure, I suppose."

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 20 MP for POST (2)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

"You could say that about a lot of people in Hoenn." But it certainly could be said for Derek, now many years into the life he lead in Hoenn. It wasn't what the ranger expected it to be as of late. Though his every stride matches Genny, he remains quiet in contemplation. For him, this sort of thing was difficult to answer. Too many ways to go about it, although the easiest way to sum things up?

"...But, I suppose it's easier to say that I changed."

His reluctance to overshare or annoy her with needless baggage would be obvious.

"Sometimes you get tired of the status quo. People have always suggested that change starts from within, so..." Should Derek wish for something different, then he had to start becoming something other than what he already was. Exert a different kind of influence.

"Guess it's finally starting to sink in." All the way to the bottom.

His eyes cast themselves over towards Genny, waiting for her to laugh, or be annoyed. Or maybe she'd simply resume her sunny disposition. Might as well take the time to ask her something back in return.

"Have you only ever seen yourself as a ranger?"

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 30 MP for POST (3)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

Listening carefully to it all, Derek can't help but click his teeth at the end. A huff of air as he thinks about his own situation. He can't stand to look at her, nor the Impidimp who reminds him of a young Jonesy any longer. A brisk pace brings him ahead of the girl, noticably agitated hands running along his face and through his hair. Rubbing, wiping, struggling to keep it together in front of a stranger...

"So you're worried about the whole wide world, huh?" The sentiment is one he often courted himself, but it was becoming much too fanciful these days.

Fuck the world.

"You can go ahead and put it first. Doesn't change where it puts you." In the dirt, some day. The lives (and deaths) of the individual were largely inconsequential, and even so, no good deed went unpunished. "But I would worry about saving your pokemon first if I were you." Though he could find himself in everything she said, he rejected it.

"Were you able to avenge them, at least?" Whether it came in the form of more corpses or a sound victory, he'd hoped to hear something positive that came of all these tribulations. That she could stomach such a thing.

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 40 MP for POST (4)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

"Well, start with me if you'd like." Never did he mind being a stepping stone for another to go higher, to reach further. "But it's the world you're trying to prove wrong in the end."

Having noticed her unchecked emotions spill out for a moment, the ranger pauses in quiet for some time as they continue along. Considering the pokemon, the friends she's lost. Maybe she'd be able to see some of them again, like he did with Apollo...

But there was greater pain when these reunions were cut short.

"Wish that I could offer you some clever advice." A hand guides itself, rubbing frustratedly at his temples. "But I'm afraid you'll have to find that somewhere else." Some thing or person that had a better grip on life than his current self. That could offer more than hollow ridicule. Suggest something other than the same old routines.

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 50 MP for POST (5)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

Somehow, as reassuring as it was for someone to call you good... It didn't stick to the wall. After all, he was beginning to wonder if they really were the good guys.

"..."

To him, it feels as if Genny has cemented some recent misconceptions. That those in the league, their dreams... It always seemed to be some self-fulfilling mission.

He believed she could do good, but becoming champion wasn't necessary for it. She imposed that on herself. Welcomed the burden. It was admirable, but also...something else.

"Maybe not as good as I lead on, though." He chuckles.

"You're not so bad yourself. I'm glad we had a chance to work together, even if just this once."

---

tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 60 MP for POST (6)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉

His gaze towards the finish line is interrupted by Genny's hand, which she shoves towards him in hopes of making good on a promise of continued companionship.

Derek stares at the glove for a moment, wondering if they actually would get the chance. One would like to hope so, but his optimism fell short. Even so, he took her hand in earnest.

"Yeah. Me too."

Though due in part to a recent bout in the mists alongside ollie morales, Derek worried that his time with the rangers was coming to a close. "Just do me a favor and take care of yourself. Not exactly a fan of bad news." From there it isn't long until they arrive, and their mission is complete.

Before leaving, he'd offer Genny a chance to train with him, confessing to his time as a gym leader and the six badges he had back home. He was curious as to whether she'd humble herself to the opportunity, or consider it lowly for someone with her vision. He'd wait and see...

END OF THREAD

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tl;dr
- 50 MP for PARTICIPATION
- 70 MP for POST (7)

SUPPLY: DG | Genevieve Cromwell

☉