She had not exactly expected to get into the ranger business in any way, but here she was. Though, honestly, she had mostly been helping out sometimes when it seemed like she could. But she would never consider herself one of them, nonetheless. When the going got too tough, she did not get too close to the danger. And she was not one who wanted to take orders much, either, even though she knew how helpful that was for a big organization.
[break][break]
Hence, she had never thought about joining. Which made it somewhat embarrassing to be considered an asset by them. Not that she was one who shied from the spotlight – she had grown up in that. But she just felt like there were probably a lot of young rangers much more deserving of praise. Or an invitation to a dining area like this by one of the higher ups. Not that she had known that he was one when helping out before. Nor had she looked to rise up any ladders or the like.
[break][break]
Eve just did what she did. And she had almost declined the offer because of that. Yet, she knew that she would just feel bad about that in the end, so ultimately, she had still come back to the establishment. She had been here before, after all. Just in a much less formal environment. This time, she had decided against some kind of gala dress and instead gone for a blazer, shirt and skirt combination that would almost peg her for an office lady. But she could never shake her more exotic looks still, so that was not really working for her either.
[break][break]
Still, when she came she was a bit more stiff than usual – at least in the first moment, before she saw the Pokemon on the table. Eve did not complain about the one that then went onto the other person’s head. Instead, she immediately eyed it curiously. “What is that? It looks so cute. Is that what makes this smell?” Her questions came unusually quick and direct. Something she soon caught herself for and coughed lightly. “I mean…good evening, Ranger Devlin.”


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Had she even called him by that name? She could not remember. Eve was just about always formal when on jobs, keeping things professional. Even when it was not her chosen profession, she knew that it was that of others. It was just common courtesy to meet them on that level.
[break][break]
On the flipside, she tended to not get mad when people she knew just casually used her name like that. She only disliked it when her mother used that in a certain way, or strangers acted way too casually with her. “Being formal isn’t all that bad if you ask me,” she replied, though she was mostly focused on the little grassy one.
[break][break]
It did smell nice, after all. Though that certainly wasn’t everything about it that intrigued her. “A Shaymin. Interesting. Maybe one day I will find one, too.” He had framed it like quite an adventure to acquire one, but she figured that he was overselling that. Everyone was, after all. Hence, she gave a brief chuckle. “Though you would not believe just what I learned to believe since coming to Hoenn. You could tell me you found it in a hidden cave in an active volcano and I’d only doubt it since this is definitely not a fire type.”


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“I will stick with this salad for today,” she replied, pointing at the item in the menu. While not a vegetarian, she had always had healthy eating habits drilled into her from a young age. Plus, she felt like eating light. Though the thought occurred to her that ordering a vegetable-based dish in front of a plant-like Pokemon might be a bit off. Then again, these types never had issues with other Pokemon eating plants, so she figured that this would be fine, too.
[break][break]
For now though, she took her sparkling water and sipped a bit from it while the Gym Leader recounted the events of a fateful meeting. It did sound a bit outlandish, sure, but she took it at face value. This man was probably not prone to making up stories to make himself look good or anything like that. He at least meant what he was saying, she figured. “That does sound quite impressive. I would have liked to have seen that bridge to the heavens too. That’s the kind of imagery that any artist would want to evoker with their music, after all. Well, my kind of music at least.” [break][break]
She chuckled gently at that notion. Generalizing would have been too presumptuous. A lot of artists favoured other styles of music, after all. And even she liked songs that got her heart pumping at times too, quite different from the serene image that these words conjured up. “Then again, I think not getting directly involved in wards is healthier for me in general. Even if that means not being able to impress heavenly onlookers to want to join me.” Still though, she sighed a little. A Pokemon like this would certainly be nice to befriend, if nothing else.


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Honesty is the most valuable of currencies, after all. Mincing is for when you cannot afford it,” she replied casually, twisting one of her mother’s most-used proverbs on its head in the process. They had never been on one page in that regard. Which was one of the reasons as to why she was still in Hoenn, even though she had started to pick up proper work again.
[break][break]
Then again, what was proper, anyway? Helping the rangers had usually meant helping actual people. Singing was much less impactful. Though she would not completely dismiss it either. That would be ignoring the kind words a certain stranger had imparted on her, after all. She would not strictly call it ‘wisdom’ per se, but it was probably close.
[break][break]
It certainly was closer than that sudden outburst. She had not expected that. “Ah, sporting events. Frankly, the one thing I still have not quite managed to grasp. I did sing at one once, but that had been a personal favour….” She noted, briefly drifting off into fond memories. “Though I did like the atmosphere, live. Never really got into watching it though. No matter how good the screen is, it just never seems like I can follow what is going on too well. Maybe not enough investment…” Eve really did not want to talk down on the other’s fancy, so she was struggling to hold a conversation in that regard without coming across as too disingenuous.


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Ah, so he was getting to business already. She could not fault him. Eve put down her fork briefly, cleaning her hands before going after a specific Pokeball in her handbag. “I did bring it. I do not have that kind of grand adventure backstory for it, though. An old acquaintance gave it to me and I cannot really get along with it, frankly.”
[break][break]
She briefly shrugged, softly. “I think it is a matter of temperament more than anything. But it would likely be very useful for ranger duties. It seems fairly versatile and strong, though definitely not the kind of ride I would be looking for myself,” Evette noted, nodding to herself as she put the ball down. Honestly, this was the kind of thing that the green-haired lady would have liked, but she herself preferred smoother, more stable rides if she was being completely honest.


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Eve accepted the other ball, once more surprised as to how easy this all was. Probably because she was most used to high-society dealings where even getting a straight answer out of someone was quite a rarity. Something as simple as a trade was rather uncommon to her. Mostly because she had rarely done so during her travels.
[break][break]
Still though, she was glad for it. That little one had seemed to fit her a lot better than the big wing, after all. She was briefly lost in though as she stabbed her salad once more. Hence she felt an odd surprise when he pulled her back into things with a comment she could not quite work with yet. “21? Oh,” she replied, only now realizing that he had returned to mostly focusing on that game. Some people might have been annoyed by him shifting his attention away so quickly, but she did not mind much. “I am not going to pretend to understand the game. But I get what you mean about closer games. Even I know that those are a lot more interesting and….exhilerating.”


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“I am not exactly that popular,” she replied, jokingly. It hadn’t been long since she restarted doing proper shows, after all. And, frankly, her original content was still lacking. That muse she had been searching for all over the place, it still eluded her. But at least she was doing slow and steady work instead.

[break][break]
But then again, she could find what she was looking for right after this meal. Life was full of opportunities. And now she had someone else to potentially share these opportunities with. “Though I am always glad to see someone in the crowd that I know. Most artists are, even when it doesn’t seem like it.” She nodded and waved at him going. Given that she was not quite finished yet she did not want to keep him any longer, but also not appear rushed. They were both adults enough to not get offended by something like that. It was a decent enough meeting already after all, no reason to push things into one direction or another.


[break][break]

+ Josh Devlin

[attr="class","pokeclass"]