While not an early riser, Josh had to make a sacrifice this morning, as he was asked to train some new Rangers. An older man had come to Fortree's HQ to get assistance with raising a Turtwig that had been found in a trash can; the poor thing would have starved had it not been for the good-hearted elder.

The Gym Leader had brought several of his ground-types to help, one of them being Verte, the Flygon he flew to the facility on. The hum of his vibrating wings may have been a bit grating if Scout wasn't familiar with the species. Strangely enough, the Elite didn't hop down from the dragon-type; it was almost like he was more comfortable in the saddle. "Scout, correct? Elite Ranger Devlin or Gym Leader Devlin, but please, call me Josh. What were you able to find out about the Turtwig?" he asked.

"Okay," Scout says, feeling like he's maybe being chided for dropping the honorifics. Sometimes it's hard to tell. He sidles over to the Turtwig's temporary home and begins to transfer dirt from his pockets to the bottom of the cardboard box. It involves a lot of scooping, and small chunks escape his grasp and float to the floor.

He's already told Josh all he knows, really, so Scout doesn't see the point of repeating himself. Wild baby Turtwig. Needs a new home. So he shrugs and points vaguely at the sparsely-detailed intake forms he'd filled out with the old guy sitting on the table.

Josh Devlin

Nothing new. It seemed their grass-type "reject" was a complete unknown. No history or anything. "Lovely," the Elite sighed as he slid off Verte's back to examine the Pokémon for any obvious injuries. "Don't see any cuts or scrapes, at least." He turned toward Scout again. "If you're not familiar with a species from raising it yourself, RangerNet is your best friend." While Torterra could ferry people on its back, it wouldn't be very fast, even under the care of a speed savant like Josh. "There's all kinds of resources for raising every common Pokémon in the world, and even some more well-documented rare ones, like Zeraora."

Were the new Ranger to log in, he would find that the two most important ingredients in making a Turtwig happy and healthy were sunlight and clear water. Josh gave the small Pokémon a pat on the back, the grass-type about facing and snapping at him angrily. "Its back is really dry," Josh noted aloud. "We're gonna need a Pokémon with Rain Dance, and one with Sunny Day. Do you have either?"

The Turtwig seems to enjoy the soft, fresh dirt, and nibbles at a particularly fluffy clump as Josh begins to examine it. Scout can't help a twitch of a smile watching it eat. It doesn't stay docile for long, however, and the smile drops from Scout's face after it snaps at Josh's fingers. Poor thing. It's probably just terrified and overstimulated. You don't need RangerNet to tell you that.

"No," Scout says. "But I don't think we should move it now. It's stressed out."

Josh Devlin

Josh looked confused at Scout's remarks, repeating the knowledge he had gleaned from the Hoenn Rangers' vast resource network. "When Turtwig are really dry like this, they're stressed. You're right about that. They like the soils on their back moist but not wet. That's why I suggested we use both such Pokémon. One to start a rainstorm and one to stop it."

He felt bad for the creature; the grass-type had been subjected to drought-like conditions in the city, especially with it being stuck in a trash can for so long. "The best we can do for it is raise moisture in its body, I feel. Maybe with... a weak water-type attack like Bubble."

Seeing the confusion on Josh's face, Scout frowns. He's probably right about the Turtwig's needs, but logistically... "Not gunna start a rainstorm in here, huh?"

He glances at the table. It's piled high with papers on papers. Not that Scout sees the value in paperwork, necessarily, but he's still been working hard all week, diligently documenting intake requests and regional reports. Tough work for a kid compelled into literacy against his will.

"Bubble seems good." Scout says, and looks to Josh to continue. "I don't gotta water 'mon."


Josh Devlin

A weak water attack like Bubble would keep the effects local. "I was wondering if you had a water Pokémon capable of using Bubble, but it sounds like you don't." The mention of a rainstorm didn't go unnoticed. "If we were outdoors, I would. But I have an idea."

With a sigh, the Champion reached for a Poké Ball on his belt, from it emerging a Samurott whose horn nearly scratched the ceiling. "Fumiko, mind giving it a gentle SOAK?" Josh asked the saddled water-type. With only a nod, the Pokémon opened her mouth, a gentle stream of water flowing from it to the top of the grass-type.

A Samurott appears in a blinding flash of light. Scout takes an instinctive step back as the bulk of the nearly two-hundred pound water type fills their cramped treehouse outpost. The Turtwig, too, seems to cower as it blinks up at the Samurott, intimidated — but that turns slowly to relief as it's watered.

He's the first to admit he normally misses social cues, but the other Ranger isn't exactly hiding his contempt over the fact that Scout... what... doesn't have a water Pokémon? He feels like he could probably just fill up a watering can at the tap and receive the same result from watering the Turtwig the old fashioned way. Show-off.

Impassively, he says, "I got it from here. Gonna keep it under observation for a few hours."


Josh Devlin

As much as Josh had good intentions, his word choice certainly needed work if he wanted to be a truly lovable face of Hoenn. It was part of the reason he was a Gym Leader and not one of the higher-ups. "Glad I could help. If you've got it from here, I'll take my leave and report to Fortree HQ so we both get our check. Somehow, I think we'll wind up working together in the future. See you 'round, Scout!"

With that, the Champion withdrew Fumiko and made his way outside the training grounds. Scout may have been able to hear the hum and buzz of Flygon wings as he flew away.