Dust and sand exploded from under the Pidgeot when he took flight. The battle had started and he was ready.

The Double Hit slapped him in the face, both heads getting a solid 'whomp' in. He squawked in indignation, much like a big chicken, and a Mirror Move allowed him to try and strike the Doduo back with it's own attack. One slap for each head.

Callie, meanwhile, was watching with a wide eye, adoring seeing how Zac Ramsay was using his pokemon already.

There was a lot of emo shit that could be said about that 'new face' but this is a nice thread. Zac Ramsay would be spared Callie's bullshit for now.

She did raise her good hand to give the mammoth of a man a shake since he seemed inclined. A small nod before she gently ushered her Pidgeot out onto the field.

"Yes please, thank you." She perked up when she saw the Doduo. It always made her happy to see pokemon native to Kanto.

A smile tried to twitch onto her lips when she spotted John Sullivan. Her expressions were always very minor, so the small quirk was a lot for her. It made her happy to see that Doug could smile so open and freely.

"I just came for a little while." It was sweet that Doug was worried about her. She didn't want to impose on the young man, figuring he needed his time. Weren't festivals like this meant for young love?

Idly opening one of her pockets, she shifted so that Doug could see the small nestling of pokeballs inside. When she had first visited, she only had the one she was gifted. Even if they weren't many, she felt accomplished with what she had done so far. "I've been testing my new partners."

"Have you been well?"

redeeming type 3 evo from pc

kakuna > beedrill

beedrill learns twin needle upon evolving

no type 3 evos remaining in pc

The old Champion still had a few battles left in her.

Her next opponent was to be a man named Zac Ramsay. She didn't know too much about him other than he was a gym leader and very famous of his Biome usage. She was interested to see what he could do.

She already had her pokemon for this battle picked out, one of her slightly better trained ones. A Pidgeot groomed his feathers as she waited to meet up with the man.

---

pidgeot - male - tangled feet - feather dance, twister, hurricane, roost, mirror move, tailwind

The Liquidation sent the Ekans sprawling. While Callie had done her best... well, it was still a fact that her pokemon was under-trained for battle. Raising her hand to signal her defeat, she picked her way over to her now-unconcious pokemon and gently leaned over to give him a pet before calling him back into his pokeball.

"Not strong enough." But it was said lightly, a hint of a smile.

Rowan Wrynn

The Pin Missile strikes hard, making the Ekans hiss out in pain. It responds quick, Glareing at the Toxapex. That tended to freeze whoever was coming at him in their tracks.

"You've raised your pokemon very well." Callie says, gentle and almost missed over the sound of the battle, to Rowan Wrynn.

A sparkle in the corner of her eye. Callie raises her hand, a quiet signal, and her Fearow flies down to snatch the Dratini out of the water. It cries and wiggles as it struggles. The Fearow leans down and Plucks at the pokemon before dropping it in front of her trainer's feet.

Callie observes, for a moment, the off pink hue. Yet, it was unmistakable for what it was. Taking out one of her balls, she tosses it at the confused pokemon before it can attack or flee.

CATCHING

Shoved away, the Ekans hissed before hurling up a glob of soiled earth at the other. A Mud Bomb. It was disgusting to watch as his body contracted and the ball traveled inside him, visible through he skin.

He wouldn't go down that easily just yet.

One more.

The strange octopus seemed protective over this stretch of beach, so Callie too her time to go around. She didn't mind a little extra walk. No point in bullying it for no reason.

It watched her the entire time, suspicious.

Only when she was far enough away did it retreat.

PASSING

She pondered the cigarettes.

Callie remembered days with Sebastian Pryde where they would share a smoke after tough battles. It was a nasty habit, one never shown on TV, only when she was stressed out.

She shakes her head and passes them back.

"Johto was kinder to me than expected." Callie didn't have a lot but she had enough. It was mildly suspicious but she wasn't in a place to refuse; let them use her for good publicity.

"You're not the only one having trouble finding work. Turns out they already have a Champion here." It's a joke but the flat countenance doesn't make it seem like one.

The cup is taken with gentle fingers, a small sip kicked back as Callie watches the show. The housing can be talked about later.

A brow raised at the Charja-Cola cans. Hadn't her dad used that stuff to get rust off of his equipment?

The whole display did quirk another small grin on her lips if only for a few moments. John Sullivan was... endearing. There wasn't too many people that Callie was familiar with in Hoenn. If it wouldn't have been presumptuous of her, she wondered if the young man would allow her to impose a bit of her presence on him.

He clearly needed it a bit, judging by the lack of sleep and that he was rust-removing his insides.

"I would like to catch a few pokemon to raise. Maybe explore the region."

It was an old pain. At least she knew what happened to her old pokemon. They weren't suffering. She missed Rattle every day, the Marowak had been her first pokemon when she started her journey and the strongest one she had. Her 'signature' pokemon, who appeared on TV and in commercials with her the rare times she took advertising deals.

It wouldn't be the same without him.

Yet, she was sure that she could raise strong pokemon in his memory.

"I'm glad they have. That you're doing okay, too." At least physically.

Callie would be hard pressed to say they were all okay mentally.

"I saw Sebby the other day."

She smiles, light, before sighing and it melts away. The brief moment of happiness not lasting.

"Remembering people is hard. I don't know who made it out and who didn't."