"How's it okay?! They....I couldn't..." Skids stammered, his words getting jumbled as his mind was just dragged into a darker spot.

As their trainer, you're meant to keep them alive, safe, and happy...you tend to their needs just like your own. Yes they will always be more powerful than a human, but pokemon were living things. He was suppose to protect them, he wanted to protect them...and he couldn't. The Rotom's words were hard to hear, the fuzzy static sound with them barely registered as he just fell deeper into his own mental abyss. That's when a different but familiar voice reached him.

"Hermonie....." Skids muttered, taking in how frail she looked.

It was a startling contrast to the woman he knew, the strong and vibrant woman. Wild like the mightyena's that thrived here, untamed in her own ways. It didn't stop the tears that rolled down his face. How could he never come back and visit? Not just his pokemon but his own friends? What happened to everyone else? All the people he met....were they even around? And now...now he couldn't ever make it up to her...a shaky smile showed on his face as he saw she could still smile.

"Got better at....hiding it at least..." Skids replied; knowing full well she wouldn't respond to him but at the same time, he couldn't help but comment back in regards to his own tears.

He had gotten better at forcing it down, thinking about other things. Focusing on helping his nephew grow up to the person they wanted to be...other things kept happening so he didn't think about it much. When he lost Jokester, it hurt greatly. The first wild pokemon he caught, that he raised...and had so many adventures with...and he lost them because someone was vinditive asshole. He almost recovered; in his mind. But then the elite four challenge came and he lost his starter, his first pokemon..the one that he got to pick from the punch and put so much thought into. Blitz and JOkester were close, and losing them both tore him apart.


His shaky smile faded as he sat there, listening to her words. Get over it....how? He tried to not think about the past, the event...how was he suppose to make amends for it? It was so hard to just keep his thoughts together when it came to it. A slow exhale left him, raising a hand and pushing it against his eyes. Trying to fight back the tears while still trying to focus on Hermonie's words. He pulled his hand away, looking up at her as she sat there. Course, he was surprised to hear the words that she said.

"God...father?" Skids asks, rather surprised by that news.

Sure he took care of his nephew but Billie here was old enough to take care of himself. If this was something she wanted did...did she just not have time to tell him? To send a letter? It's possible given how she looked and since he didn't know her illness, he couldn't rule it out as a factor. Though he tilted his head as he watched her look almost...paranoid? His tears stopped somewhat but his brows narrowed slightly.

"Who could make you afraid....?" Skids questioned quietly.

Billi Marsh

"The whole pack is already here...?" Skids muttered, trying to figure out why the whole pack was already here rather than just a scout.

Did they make a den nearby in order to have better access to the food? Possible but..Mightyena weren't dumb, they would know settling down this close to the farm would give more dangers though. Traps, the farmer and his staff, and the guard pokemon. There would also be competition.

"The fact that the entire pack is already this close is worrying...something else could be going on and they're just using the livestock as quick and easy meals...even more so at the moment.." Skids replied, pausing as the gears in his head turned. "We need more information before we go ahead with confronting the pack, if we just walk toward the spot they're all at, they'll have the advantage. I haven't been in that treeline in years, while this mightyena have a habit of roaming it. They know it better and could easily have ambush spots."

But...at the same time, was something else drive them here? Forest burning maybe? The route got downsized for more farmland? Looking around, the farm still seemed the same size it was when he was younger. But was it? Shaking his head, he sighed.

"What do you suggest? We're working together on this, I voiced my thoughts. I want to hear yours on this." SKids asked.

Noelani Kekoa

As Ariel sang, a small chirp could be heard trying to match the tone. The primarina paused, glaring down at the rock she rested upon and the water around it. However, her harsh gaze landed upon a small form. A piplup, the little penguin gave a smile, unphased by her furious brows. A few blinks left her before she gave a bark at the penguin, trying to get the little pokemon to go away. Skids tilted his head, he couldn't quite see what was going on.

"Ariel? What is it?" Skids asked as he stood up.

The primarina shifted on her spot before diving into the water, she swam quickly to where Skids was and emerged. She pointed at the spot the piplup was at and Skids was able to watch the small starter pokemon swim on over as well. The little guy was following her! Huh!

"Oh come now, that's not worth you fussing about is it?" Skids asked her in confusion, however her sticking her nose up in the air "Okay...maybe you just don't like birds..."

this was...a odd change in Ariel, she was dramatic yes but...this? Skids turned his attention to the small piplup. Taking a seat on the ground to try and make himself look smaller so he didn't scare the fella. And yet, the piplup was unflinching. Staring up at him and tilting their round head. Skids chuckled lightly.

"Hello little fella, did you like her song?" SKids asked.

The small pokemon was quick to nod. Proceeding to fall into chirps as they were trying to copy the sounds that Ariel was making. The other water starter grind her teeth in irritation but Skids returned her to her pokeball, figuring it was best to keep Ariel away from the little fellow. They weren't bad at making their chirps sound like a tune, so Skids attempted to whistle alongside them. Now he wasn't the best at this, but the little pokemon seemed to enjoy the sheer gesture and bounced for joy.

Notes:
Attempting to befriend

Skids noticed the lombre and for a few moments, considered it. After all, it was a Hoenn species and he never caught one before...but...once again it was probably wasn't something that would work as well as he hoped it would. So he allowed the pokemon to stay put as it listened to the Primarina's song from a safe distance. A wise move on the half grass type's part, it probably witnessed the flying starmie and knew how foolish it was to get near the seal like pokemon.

Notes: Skipping

So their touch was more sensitive? That made sense. The lad's senses were working over time to compensate this was true. Though it still was interesting to him that the touch was stronger. Skids chuckled along with the joke, it was a good one in his mind. Removing his hand from their shoulder, he took a seat on the ground.

"It's always good to have your pokemon with different skills than just typing. Holo is one of my faster pokemon, Salemn is more oldest pokemon and is very strong, he also covers the aerial side of things as well." Skids replied. "Squeeze being good at slowing others down for herself to get in attack or one of your other team members is always a good thing to have. In double battles, this'll prove even more useful."


He was happy to hear these things. It was nice and Skids was getting close to feeling like there might not be much he could teach the lad left to give him. There was one other test he wanted to do.

"A balance is always needed, I'm happy you do your best to do that." Skids said. "You're welcome Hideo. Now, we're going to do another excerise if you're up for it? We'll be using your wild card for this battle."

SKids glanced over his shoulder to the large dragon pokemon, they were looking at Skids and seemed to sigh. Slowly the pokemon rose to it's large feet and started to stretch. Best to let him do that while he let Hideo answer in their own time. Holo rose to her paws and slowly trotted over to Powder Sugar. Someone was gonna have to watch the small thing.

Hideo Kino

The bejeweled water pokemon seemed drawn to the singing pokemon, though Ariel noticed them. She turned her nose up to them. The starmie attempted to gain her attention once more but they soon felt the primarina's tail slapping them. It didn't do any damage to the pokemon, though they were sent flying. Skids watched this and gave a sigh. He thought it was best to leave that poor starmie alone. Broken hearts and bruised egos didn't need to be added onto by trying to catch em.

Notes: Skipping

"I have Salemn but I think a dragon flying around would make the pack suspicious, so I'll let you handle the aerial side of things." Skids said.

"Salemn? You still have that dragon?" Ol Macintosh asked, Skids gave a small nod. "Well look at that, I remember when they were a bagon and jumped off my barn, you were in such a panic over it till I explained that's what they do."

Skids gave a small sigh.

"Yes I remember my lack of knowledge at the time..thank you." Skids replied before looking over to Noelani. "Yep, I'm good to go."

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pokeball and released Holo. The houndoom shook her head and glanced around, tilting her head in confusion. Course, Skids put a hand on her head.

"Just stick close to us but keep an eye out for me, okay?" Skids asked her.

"Alright,I'll leave you lot to it,see you lot soon." Ol Macintosh said before he headed off.

"That man hasn't changed...not sure if that's worrying or a good thing.." Skids muttered to himself when the other was gone.

Noelani Kekoa

"Hm...that's rather interesting." Skids replied. "Thank you, there's been so many pokemon now I can't seem to catch up it feels like."

A light laugh left him though Skids did wonder...how many were there now? And would he even be able to remember them all? He never had the idea to go and catch every single pokemon. Not even back in his teenager years. So with there being so many, Skids felt like maybe he should only focus on the ones he caught. Learn about those ones and leave the rest a mystery?

"I uesed to have a mightyena when I was younger, Jokester certainly fit the dark type part of themself but they tended to be more mischievous. SOmetimes though their aggressive streak came through when he was....pulling pranks on Blitz..." Skids remanised, his voice faltering a little.

Old memories hit hard and Skids had to take a deep breathe as they walked down the stairs to keep himself from getting pulled into the memories. The lower ground floor didn't have much, and Skids was surprised that they would even have the elevator come down this far. He could guess it was so people didn't have to carry the boxes up the stairs or down them but...was it really necessary to cheat some exercise?

"For the size of this building it is...strangely small.." Skids said as he glanced at a partially destroyed box from a pokemon. "Sure, I'll go check at the last room and we can work our way back to each other."

With that, Skids walked down the short hall and reached for the doorknob. The doorknob protested being turned but it wasn't locked, it was stuck it seemed. So it took a few more forceful attempts but he got it to turn the rest of the way. Thus Skids slowly opened the door and peeked into the room.

Noelani Kekoa
Notes: skipping

"True, wild pokemon often initiate a battle without warning because they're doing it for a variety of reasons. Sure some wild pokemon like to fight, but many times they think the trainer is trespassing on their territory or you might be too close to their nest or den. Hunger can factor in as well." Skids explained.

Seeing the raised brow at his words, he tilted his head. Listening to them reply in regards to the loss win thing.

"You can learn just as much with a win or a loss, the whole time you're creating new strategies, hearing new pokemon. Learning potential movesets the other has. You can always learn equally no matter the win or loss status of the battle." Skids attempted to explain. "You have a skill that others don't have, you're able to see things differently. Your hearing is no doubt better than another kid your age, you identified Holo just by her sound and you could tell that she was fast as you could hear her quick movements on the ground. Therefore, you knew to imply different methods."

IT seemed the lad misheard him when he told them what he did in the fight and had asked why he didn't have holo dodge or escape sooner. He set a hand on Hideo's shoulder.

"Squeeeze did perfect in that battle Hideo, she is a good shot this is true. But remember, I intentionally had Holo stay slowed down in that string shot and then get hit. It was a part of my plan that was incoperated in when you got her slowed down." Skids explained. "Yes if i ordered Holo to try and dodge the pin missile, she was at risk of tripping but doing so wouldn't give her any additional damage; besides a wounded pride."

The loud bark came right after those words and Skids laughed lightly, only for Hideo to hear a slight 'ow' from the man as HOlo whacked him with her thin bony tail.

"Yes yes, I know my dear. You'll get a treat for this I promised already." Skids told her as he lightly batted her tail away, allowing for him to return to the subject at hand. "I had her attack Squeeze long range but through a different means, to see if how you and Squeeze would take it. Inferno causes fire to burst out of the ground from underneath a opponent, unlike how Holo's Fire fang and Flamethrower originate from her mouth. You caught onto the two moves, so you opted for long range strategy. So I decided to test how you'd both adapt to a long range fire attack from bellow."

As he spoke, he tapped the ground as if to demonstrate. Since he was tapping it with his fingers, it wasn't as loud as the rumbling inferno but he was just testing a theory.

"My intention wasn't to win this battle Hideo, my intention was to see what you know and what you do with your team. You care greatly for your pokemon, you didn't waste a second with fixing that burn on Squeeze. And Squeeze shows her affection for you very readily and fondly." Skids added. "Since we're treating Squeeze as your starter in this case, this shows how close you are with your pokemon. This shows me that the first pokemon you have, has just as much trust in you and love that Squeeze does for you. Even if they show it differently, I can see how good of a trainer you are and how much heart you put into this. Are you with me so far?"

Hideo Kino

"That's the thing when you meet random trainers on the route,they often don't give you much of a heads up unless they choose to do banter in their speech and mention battle. Often times, they'll caught you off guard." Skids explained.

Still he listened carefully tothe young man's words, glad to see that they were thinking of multiple things they could've done. It was good that they were mentioning this now as they could use that in the future.

"There's nothing wrong with switching out in a fight, more risks get involved but you can still come out on top." Skids replied. "Now in regards to your words on striking first, that doesn't define a battle. It's fully possibly to take control of the fight even if you didn't get the first blow in. Sometimes yes, it makes a fight easier if you strike first but no one should rely on that alone. Doing so can cost you more than the fight. In the end though, never feel like you lose just because you didn't win the fight. You still gain valuable insight and information regarding the pokemon in play and how you can change your strategies to best suit the next encounter or a similiar one."

Was that a lot? Yes. However this was just Skids trying to convey what he wanted to in order to help the lad. They knew so much already and that was something he could see with how he handled Squeeze; a pokemon they were used to commanding in battle.

"I did rely a great deal on Holo's speed, Squeeze almost got her with the cross posion, if she was any slower that would've hit her." Skids added on. "I combined that with her long range attack. The fire fang at the start was to get the ball rolling, see how you would adept to the quick attack as well as to see how Squeeze herself would react. I also choose to not have Holo immediately escape the string shot an thus she took the brunt of Squeeze's pin missle, why do you think that is?"

Skids's voice was gentle the entire time. Holo gave a loud 'hurmph' to his words, causing him to chuckle lightly. She probbaly wasn't too happy with having to deal with that sticky webbing for so long.

"I will have to make it up to you Holo, I know." Skids told the fire dog.

Hideo Kino

"And mightyena are aggressive, so adding that onto if they believe themselves powerful enough, is a dangerous cocktail." Skids added, nodding in agreement with Noel. "I...raised one from a poochyena, that temper gets a good deal worse along with them having a bit too much...confidence.."

There were times that Jokester was a pain due to them thinking they could handle a fight. It caused the mightyena to disobey now an then. HOwever....they were a very loyal pokemon to the 'pack'. So they would do whatever they could to keep the pack strong. Taking out the alpha could make some scatter but..Skids was certain that there was going to be some that remained. Older and more experienced members of the pack possible; or some young hotshots who think they could do something.

"Normally they come out at night, however they've sometimes attacked during the day. I'm positive they might have a look out or something in the treeline, waiting for when I'm not around or busy with one of the other pastures." Ol Macintosh explained. "It's why I asked for someone to be here at this time, since I have to relocate the wooloo in order to work on the fence, they might strike then. So I also need someone to watch em while I work on the fence."

"Reasonable,it's not unlike packs to have members who guard areas of the territory or watch a potential hunting ground for prey." Skids added. "would you be okay with us looking around the area before we start moving the wooloo? Just to familiarize ourselves with the potential routes they'll take?"

"Certainly, a walk about the property's not a bad idea. Just let me know when you're ready, I'll be able to move those wooloo without help."

Skids nodded and looked over to Noelani.

"Sound good to you?" Skids asked.

Noelani Kekoa