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Following behind the Audino, the duo soon came upon a man surrounded by other pokemon. From what he could see, the reason they were surrounding him was because he was giving them treats. The scene was enough to make him smile. It was always nice seeing Pokémon so cared for.
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As the man turned towards him, his smile dimmed a bit, uncomfortable with the attention focused on him, but was still there. “Y-Yeah, that’s right,” he acknowledged, focusing his attention on the Pokémon around him, more so he didn’t have to meet the other man’s gaze than anything else. However, that didn’t mean he still wasn’t aware of what was going on around him.
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When Prophet was offered a treat, she glanced at Beckett first before taking a red one after receiving a nod from her owner. She seemed wary of Thomas but seemed to trust Beckett enough that she would try one of the treats.
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After making sure she wouldn’t cause any problems, Beck turned his attention to Thomas. “It-It might not look it n-now but I’ve had trouble with Prophet. That’s wh-why I wanted help, well-well that and the fact I’m wanting to be a pr-proper trainer,” he explained, fiddling with his hands.[break] Thomas Benoit

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It wasn’t like Beckett didn’t know his line of thinking was bad. He knew that thinking the way he did wasn’t the best way of going about things. That it spoke a great deal about insecurities. However, growing up the way he did made it hard for him to shake that way of thinking. Not that he would tell Josh that, even if he was more than willing to share private information about himself.
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It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the gym leader, because he definitely did. Even though he hadn’t known the older male long, he trusted him. But then again, he tended to trust others too easily. Being able to open up didn’t really have anything to do with trust but everything to do with fear. And fear was exactly what led to so many of his insecurities and made him struggle with how others may feel regarding certain things.
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He wasn’t fooled enough to think he was the only one to struggle with insecurities, but the fact the gym leader once struggled with his own insecurities was definitely a surprise. Josh just seemed so confident; it was something he admired about the older male. In a way, the gym leader’s confidence reminded him of his friend, though his supposed confidence wasn’t something one was born with but something one gained over time.
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“It’ll take time for me to not take mistakes to heart and not to feel I’m meeting someone down every time I make a mistake,” he commented, looking away. It would also take awhile for him to not feel he would get punished for every mistake. That even more scars wouldn’t be added to his collection of scars.
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At first he continued to stare down at his clasped hands, though by the time Josh had finished speaking, he was looking up but still wasn’t making eye contact. “I know it’s impossible to go through life without making mistakes and that making mistakes can be a good learning experience. But I still have these feelings; I’m just not sure how to get past it,” he admitted, fiddling with the long sleeves of his shirt.[break] Josh Devlin

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He was about to give into his desire to pet the Pokémon when something seemed to catch the attention of the Pokémon, and she moved away from him. Before he decided what to do, the woman spoke up again, and it took everything in him not to wince. Yeah, it really wasn’t good that they were both lost.
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“S-Sorry I’m not always the best with directions,” he mumbled, looking away. It was why he often used the map on his phone. He might not always be the best with directions when it came to himself, but he could read a map. Unfortunately, he had forgotten his phone at home.
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Mentally shaking himself, he nodded. Hopefully they could get their bearings soon. Speaking of perhaps they could look up where exactly they were, that was if the teen had a phone on her. He was just about to ask when she let out an exclamation and hurried after her Pokémon.
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He didn’t immediately follow, only following after her near fall. “Are you okay?” he asked once he had caught up.
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While he awaited her response, he took the time to look around. Seeing a shimmering in the tunnel ahead of them, he squinted as if that would make whatever they were seeing easier to see.
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“Should we...” he trailed off awkwardly, gesturing in the direction the shimmering was coming from.[break] Cassandra Kubrick

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Being a Pokémon lover, he was sorely tempted to give the woman’s Pokémon some pets. It took reminding himself that it wasn’t his Pokémon for him to hold off on doing just that; instead, he just settled for a wave to show he was harmless. The young woman speaking up after he had initially spoken would draw his attention back to the woman.
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“Me-Meteor Falls, unfortunately I only kn-know that because I’ve been since be-before th-the sun went down,” he admitted apologetically. He felt really bad that he couldn’t give her mother more than that, especially since she admitted to being loose as well. That was unfortunate.
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Snapping out of his thoughts, he could help but look around fearfully as she admitted to finding the place creepy. Before he could give his input on that, he blanched when she mentioned seeing ghostly dragon types. Swallowing nervously, he looked in the direction he figured she was looking in.
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“Wh-Wh-What’s going on?” he asked fearfully, his hand drifting to his pokeballs. Clearly, he saw the same thing she was seeing.[break] Cassandra Kubrick

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Well, he knew he was at Meteor Falls, but other than that, he wasn’t a hundred percent sure where he was. Usually he would just use Sora to fly them up to get their bearings, but night had long since fallen. Calling his friend was also out since he had forgotten his phone back at their place, something he was sure to get a lecture about from his friend when he got back.
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Oh well, he supposed he would just try and figure his way out of here somehow; however, before he could get far, he heard. Nervous, he looked around before spotting two shapes a bit away from him, and one was getting closer. Once it was close enough, he noticed the shape resembled a Pokémon and, after looking again, realized the other shape looked human.
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Not wanting to spook anyone, he spoke up. “H-Hello,” he called out, going for a simple greeting.[break] Cassandra Kubrick

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He was still worried about just entering the others property without being greeted first when an Audino approached him and Prophet. Seeing as the Audino came from further inside the ranch, he relaxed; if the Audino was coming from further inside the ranch, then that probably meant she belonged to the man he had come to see.
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Beckett quickly returned the wave, while Prophet simply seemed to look the Audino over. Apparently seeing the Audino as no threat, she didn’t try and stop her trainer from following the normal type. Instead, Prophet would simply fall into a step behind her trainer.[break] Thomas Benoit

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Yeah, messing up was what he was really scared of. While his friend had repeatedly told him what Val thought was a good form of punishment was wrong, that didn’t mean he wasn’t still worried. He knew for a fact that Josh and Val were nothing alike, but it was hard to shake fears he had for years. Something he had realized when it came to his phobias.
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That was only half of it, though. There was also the fear that a screwup might hurt someone. He would rather not have that happen. It was part of the reason he had struggled so much with the idea of Pokémon battling. However, his willingness to do anything to make his Pokémon happy was helping him get over that.
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“I guess,” he said, still seeming uncertain. Before the older male could ask about the uncertainty, he continued. “I just don’t like making people mad,” he commented, looking away, clearing talking about the part he had mentioned about failing.
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Talking about messing up was hard, so he was relieved when they were able to change the topic. Relaxing, he listened to what the older man had to say with interest. “That’s a lot of different options. It seems video games are quite popular. Though I don’t think anything could be better than books for me,” he told the gym leader.
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Perhaps he would still check out video games. His friend had mentioned liking some after all.[break] Josh Devlin

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The gym challenge. He supposed that made sense. However, he still struggled with the whole idea of battling. Just the thought of hurting anything made his heart clench. On the other hand, he knew all his Pokémon would definitely enjoy themselves if they could let loose, at least for a bit.
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When it came to his own Pokémon, his own personal feelings didn’t matter. At least that’s what he told himself. His friend would claim otherwise before telling him he really should open up about how he was feeling about stuff. Something about not holding it in because, in the end, doing so helped no one.
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“Th-That’s not a bad i-idea; I’m sure my Pokémon wo-would enjoy themselves. I-I’ve never really battled wi-with them be-before,” he admitted. “Even still, I think I’ll t-take you up that off-offer,” he told her as he thought about when that would. Until recently, he would’ve just been able to try for a gym challenge whenever, but that was no longer the case.
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Before he could think too much about Sesi, he would draw his attention to a nearby Drifblim. Eying the partial ghost type with curiosity, he would gesture for the partial ice type to do her thing. The Driftblim luckily didn’t seem interested in attacking though did seem intrigued by Sesi.
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Taking advantage of the Sesi keeping Driftblims attention fixed on herself, he would cautiously move closer. Seeing that his partner was still keeping the Driftblims attention on herself, he would throw a pokeball at the unsuspecting Drifblim.
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Without making sure he had caught the Drifblim he would turn his attention back to the young woman. “Thanks, of c-course it would be easier if I kn-knew where to st-start looking. I’m not gi-giving up though,” he commented. “In the meantime m-my Pokémon are my o-own family,” he said showing he clearly related to her on sentiment of Pokémon being family.[break] Andrea Vaneau

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Ah, reading, there was really nothing like it. In the years since leaving Kanto, he had found a certain joy in reading. It was something he hadn’t been able to partake in when he had lived in Kanto, so at first it had been about trying new things; he just hadn’t expected to take such a liking to reading or the near obsession he would get when it came to certain genres.
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For all these reasons, finding him in a bookstore or library wasn’t out of the ordinary. What was out of the ordinary was that he was alone. Outside of work, he could be seen with his best friend. Not this time though; his friend had stuff to do, so he was all alone.
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It was pretty nerve-wracking if he was being honest with himself. Part of him wanted to turn tail and come again another day. A day when his friend would be able to join him. No, he had to do this.
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Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he looked around. Now where were the mystery books again?
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While scanning his surroundings for any indication on where to go, his eyes fell on a young girl. Maybe she would know. He could get her the book she seemed to be after than ask.
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Taking another deep breath, he moved closer to the young girl, but not too close. He still maintained a bit of distance between them. Plucking the book, she was reaching towards it; off the shelf, he handed it to her.
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“He-Here you go,” he said, looking down at her, though if she were to meet his gaze, he would quickly look away. “Y-You wouldn’t happen t-to kn-know where the mystery books are?”[break] Chrysanthe Kubrick

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“Re-Really?” he asked, his voice a mix of surprise and curiosity. He hasn’t known that. I wouldn’t have guessed that there would’ve been a time where the older male doubted his abilities. He just seemed so confident. “I’m not sure I could do something like that. I wouldn’t even know how to go about doing something like that. I’ve just never had much confidence in myself,” he told the older male, it clear that he didn’t think he had what it took to become more confident.
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Talking about his struggles with confidence was, as one would expect, a bit awkward. He wasn’t really sure how to go about explaining it. Which was why when the conversation moved on to something else, he couldn’t help but be a bit relieved.
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At the mention of video games, he eyed the other with male curiosity. “Video games? That’s that stuff on a screen, right?” he asked, trying to remember what he’d been told about video games. Thinking about it, he realized it wasn’t much. It wasn’t ever something he had ever really been told about; basically, he only had basic knowledge when it came to video games.[break] Josh Devlin

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