victory_road | ANOMALY DETECTED

Um, yes, we are in Jotho as we speak but we’re currently among ruins of an ancient civilization right now. I don’t think that the other regions have ruins like this.

Oh, this is actually my first time being in these ruins but I have been to a city, Violet City, not too far away from here though. A friend told me that this place is called the Ruins of Alph and apparently it used to be a thriving city in ancient times.

He even said that there is this ancient script from the old civilization when I showed him a mirror I found in a Halloween contest and they could be find in here too.

(And yes, this time, he did made sure to read up on the ruins unlike what he kinda did with Mount Mortar. He almost gave Hermione a scare when he told her about traveling to Mount Mortar to evolve Godric partly underprepared.

Meanwhile, Violet happily agrees to a game of tag with Puppy and they proceed to merrily run around with Violet being ‘tagged’ with Roger and Godric following suit, not wanting to miss out on the fun as well.)

[It makes sense that these ruins are unique; Esteban has absolutely never seen anything like them before. He lingers on the letters carved with wide, bulbous eyes along the stones, curiously tracing them with a careful hand. He's never seen a script like these before, and the oddity of them has his eyebrows pinch a bit as he turns, but he wipes the furrow away when he grins at his companion.]

"Wow, so y' have a mirror from an ancient civ'lization? An' the mirror is probably from these ruins?" [Did he catch that right or is he completely off? Either way, it's an intriguing story, and the redhead can't deny being impossibly curious at the idea.]

"What else d'you know about this place?" [He asks eagerly, simply to hear more about Harry. It's nice, it doesn't feel particularly personal to ask from the brand-new-friend, kind-of-stranger besides him, and Esteban always gets impossibly curious about all the people that he meets after all.]

"An' how'd you end up with an ancient mirror art'fact from a contest?" [He adds with an exaggerated gasp.] "I'd be lucky t' get a Fire Stone alone, nevermind fancy stuff like that!"

[Alright, so he's a tiny bit jealous. He'd like it if contests back home offered such a variety of winning prizes.]

"Was it first prize? Who didja use for the contest? Puppy used t' be my main act b'fore he got too big for it." [It's chatter, just little tidbits that he shares freely along with his companion's story as they linger, dragging answers and information alike. He likes learning about people, and it's not this entire Where-am-I, How-did-I-get-here that is going to stop Esteban from making friends!]

[Perched on his shoulder, Punk allows her trainer's good humor returning to give more of her attention to the stranger, stretching her nimble body along Esteban's bicep as she comes close to sniff at Harry's clothes. There's a soft little churr from the pokémon as she settles her tiny paw onto his clothes, tugging at the fabric lightly.]

Well, I was chasing after a Misdreavous inside the basement of the castle the contest was held at, before the contest could be begin, when it phased through a door and I was greeted by a brick wall to the face.

(Oh how embarrassed he must have felt when he tried to walk through the wall and got his nose bruised as the result.)

Actually it wasn’t a first prize reward and more of a basement search find that I found from the Misdreavous chase along with some PokéPuffs, a sleeve of Pokéblocks, some rare candies, and a Toxic Orb. Although a friend of mine won first place in the contest though.

(He then notices that Punk is touching on his clothes as if she wants to check them out. Granted, the clothes he’s wearing does have a black Gengar graphic on his shirt, but she could be doing it to catch his attention.)

Oh hey there, are you trying to let me play with you today?

"Ooh, ouch. Kinda clumsy aren't you?" [Esteban asks, and though there's an edge of a tease, he's also genuinely concerned. Seems to him that Harry gets into quite a few scrapes, with or without meaning to.]

[He winces slightly in sympathy just as Punk reaches her little paw across, and Esteban welcomes the gestures, extending his arm to give her a better perch when his companion invites her. Punk scampers happily down and across the bridge, hopping into the young man's arms as she nuzzles and sniffs at him in curiosity. Esteban is quick to grin as he sees her making friends.]

"She likes t' be held inside hoodies~" [the redhead hints,] "or in hoods. She'll clamber on your shoulders oth'rwise. She's less playful an' more friendly, so she'll probably start guidin' you where she wants t' go once she's settled."

[At least she isn't overly heavy. It's a bit hard to miss when she moves about on her new perch, but her weight isn't difficult to hold.]

"Congrats on y'r friend bein' first place! What kinda contest did they do?" [Just because Puppy is now too big, doesn't mean Esteban is completely off the contest scene. He loves hearing about all kinds of pokémon shows, and his eagerness is easy to detect in the grin that he sends his companion, the cheer that lifts his voice.]

[Gently, he starts aiming the both of them down a nameless passage, where their rowdier 'mons had slipped to in their game of tag, just to keep up with them a bit. Grumpy follows readily, but he never looks up as he beats his little club onto the nearby wall, providing a soft tak-tak-tak echo as they walk.]

(The teasing doesn’t phase him that much, though he could sense Esteban is clearly concerned with the brick wall run in. Oh him and his insistent urge to poke his nose onto anything he is not supposed to go or look into. But to be fair on present day him, that incident is pale in comparison to the many scary dangerous adventures he had dealt with in his world.)

Maybe in some form. Guess that trouble has a way to finding me so often regardless of where I’m at.

Oh, so she wants to hide inside my hoodie then? Alright, Punk, you can snuggle up in my hoodie all you want. Go right ahead.

She did a spectacular job in retelling a very famous poem with her Pokémon. In the contest, people had to tell spooky stories with their Pokémon but they can’t let them use any Ghost or Dark type moves. Everything else was fair game.

[There is no such thing as a happy pokémon until Punk settles in the crook of Harry's arm, wrapped in a fold of his hoodie. Bliss. Pure bliss.]

[She croons a soft little sound, a part squeak of joy and almost cat-like purr as she settles, quite happily so, her long form tucked over itself in a little roll. Garnet eyes rise to watch curiously as they walk, but for now, Punk is quite content to just sit and enjoy her time all bundled up as she is.]

"That's awesome! Betcha some litwicks flames did numbers on the ambiance!" [he suspects, seeing as it seems to have been spooky-themed. It does sound like fun!]

"How 'bout you? What did you do for the contest?" [he questions eagerly, just as Puppy barrels down the hallway they're in.]

[Esteban dutifully steps off to the side, letting his behemoth of a 'mon trample on the way down the ruins, not even bothering to stop his dog from enjoying the company of other pokémons along with them. It's rare that Puppy gets a chance to go all out, and Esteban is happy for him.]

Oh me, if I did joined the contest? Well, I could’ve made something up to tell and enlist Rowan, my other Decidueye, and my Houndoom to act it out. As long as they can’t use any Ghost or Dark type moves, although Sirius may not like that he can’t Dark Pusle his way to victory.

Rowan, meanwhile, he can understand the contest rules very well enough to go along. Lily here isn’t really interested in doing contests though, she is more interested in of battles than anything else.

Deci! Decidueye, Eye.

"Oh!" [He'd understood that Harry himself participated as well, though it doesn't seem to be the case.]

"Why didn't you participate?" [Curiosity lights his gaze, though he's not prodding as strongly, seeing as he knows not everyone enjoys contests. Esteban himself is... biased. It's part of Alolan culture to dance with fire and pokémons both, and his tools are clicking away at the corner of his backpack whenever he shifts it a little too hard.]

"Oh! You have a houndoom? I've heard they're pretty temp'ramental?" [He asks next.] "I really wanted one when I was a kid, but I got Puppy 'nstead. All the better, t' be honest. He's the best friend I could've asked for!" [There's a chirp of protest from Harry's hoodie, and Punk grows a little heated with her blatant jealousy, but Esteban doesn't deny his words, and she doesn't get agitated enough to spout flames. She burrows closer to Harry instead, eyes closing as if for a nap.]

I didn’t think that I would make the cut in a contest like that. As much as I enjoy seeing other Trainers perform with their Pokémon, I just don’t know if I have what it takes to be a Contest participant.

(A part of Harry did feel rather insecure about performing on stage with his team. He may be a good wand duelist and a good trainer, but he doesn’t think that he is that creative or clever enough like Hermione to pull off a win. He is so way out of his league.)

Yeah, quite the temperamental kind. Sirius can be very stubborn and he and Lily wouldn’t get along most of the time. Maybe it was his attitude that turned her off, but I am trying my best to help him out. I don’t want him to be alienated for having an attitude problem.

At least Puppy is a great friend to have. Your and his friendship actually reminds me a lot of my relation with Rowan and Godric since they are among the first Pokémon I have along with Lily and Violet.

[The redhead nods by his side, lips quirked upwards with his grin as he agrees.]

"First pokémons 're special," [he mentions, even if Punk doesn't quite like it. He doesn't really have the words to elaborate on that though, and so he quietens for a moment, letting the tak-tak-tak of his little cubone accompany them on their meanderings.]

"An' there's nothin' Sirius an' Lily agree on?" [the tall man prods curiously,] "like snacks or bein' competitive? My 'xperience's pretty limited with diff'rent 'mons, but 'f they have somethin' in common, maybe y' c'ld aim t' get them to work together usin' that?"

[But this is far out of Esteban's depths, and he doesn't know how to help more. He shrugs an easy shoulder as he explains.]

"At least, that's how I'd go 'bout it. But I'm not a trainer, so." [Grain of salt and all that. Actually--]

"How hard 's it as a trainer?" [he asks, because clearly, Harry has a full team of six, and he probably works hard to keep all of his pokémons into shape. It's a question he'd never thought to ask before, but now that he gets a chance to, he's curious as to what he might learn from his new friend.]

Hm, I guess that they do enjoy being competitive, like to relax under the sun, and enjoy some of the same snacks. But that’s all I can think of that at this time.

(He is pretty sure that he must be blanking out on some things at the moment. Thankfully Sirius hasn’t come out of his Pokéball, otherwise the Houndoom would have argued with Lily on the spot and Harry has to break up the fight between the two before it goes downhill.)

It is not that easy, I can say that. Currently, most of my team have high enough levels to compete in Gym Battles, but I have faced Trainers and Pokémon stronger than me and my team and there were times that I had to lose some fights.

Running into wild Pokémon is also a thing as well: some Pokémon can be a bit, um, scary to deal with, especially at night. And travelling around Jotho can be a bit tiring at times but that’s nothing bad compared to having to dealing with the weather changes when camping outside hostels, guest houses and Pokémon Centres. They can be a nightmare to deal with.

[Hun. He hadn't even considered that.]

"D'you have t' carry y'r camping gear everywhere?" [He probably does, doesn't he?]

"I'm from Alola, so 't's a bunch of small islands. The bigger ones c'n take a few days trip to cross, but most 'f them don't, so the Pokécenters 're always nearby. Most I've camped out was lookin' for Grumpy," [He nods at the little gremlin ahead of them, his diminutive club rattling along the walls as they walk.] "An' it was all clear skies for a week. The stars were gorgeous that high on the mountain!"

[Puppy takes that moment to leap back onto their path, tail wagging in his excitement, as he dances, quick paws thudding on the ground. Esteban has a split-second to go] "Brace y'rself!" [just before a gargantuan head slams, with relative gentleness, into Harry's chest, causing a squeak of protest from Punk still tucked inside his hoodie.]

[Esteban has an arm stretched out to help the teenager endure the assault, as Puppy nudges and moves around the two trainers with the heavy pressure of a giant dog claiming affection just before he runs off again, returning to his game of tag. There's a snicker that escapes the redhead as his starter bounds away again, relazing after the attack.]

"See? Yours 're so much better b'haved." [He laughs again, unable to contain it. He can't even say he's sorry, when it came from such an obvious delight.]

Um yeah, I actually have my camping gear in the event I might go to other towns and cities in the region. I might have packed them in my rucksack just to check out Route 40 before I was dropped into the ruins.

Oh you came in from Alola? I have heard a lot of the region from many locals who visited it before. It must be a lot of fun going island hopping between - OOF!

(Soon Harry gets a surprise jump snuggle by Puppy’s overeagerness while Punk gets pretty annoyed by it. Godric would sometime do this from time to time but even he tries not to give his Trainer a scare by leaping at him too suddenly. Still he didn’t got mad at him in the slightest.)

Hehehe, to be fair: Godric does jump on me sometimes out of affection too though he tries to restrain himself from putting too much of his body weight to accidentally knock on me. He has a tendency to underestimate his powers sometimes, especially when he was a Growlithe.

[There's another snicker from his companion, the threat now moving away.]

"I prob'bly play 'bit too rough with him," [he readily agrees, even if there is absolutely no sign of guilt into his grin, summer-eyes narrowed in his obvious happiness.] "Was he just-- not realisin' what his size was? Godric, I mean." [Curiosity comes to replace that hint of mischief, his head shifting to the side as Esteban considers what his friend might mean. He can vaguely recall being small and his father breaking him away from Puppy, scolding them both when they got too rough.]

[It's... not a lesson that stuck. Not to him, and not to Puppy. Unfortunate.]

[In his hood, Punk huffs and squeaks as she shimmers to return to the comfort Puppy had so rudely interrupted, her small body providing a gentle warmth where she is pressed up against Harry's ribs.]

Yeah, he is already a big boy now. Before he evolved, as a Hisuian Growlithe, I used to carry him in my arms and his pounces were much smaller whenever he tried to leap at me to snuggle with me. Nowadays he kinda forgets sometimes that he is no longer a Growlithe. His leaps can be strong enough to knock a table over.

(Yep typically Godric antics. Harry has gotten used to that in months. His silly goofy fire rock doggo is so funny in a cheeky way and there is nothing much to change that.)

"Ooooh!" [That makes sense. Puppy evolved years and years ago, so he'd since gotten used to his size. And although he'd never learned to play nice, he is, at this point, well aware of his size, if not his strength at least.]

"Yeah, you did mention y' got Godric recently, right?" [And if he'd evolved quickly, all the more reason for his dog's antics. He's starting to make sense out of it all!... Maybe.

[Another snicker shares his amusement with his companion, before the redhead stops near his tiny ground pokémon, peering curiously at the cubone who remained staunchly there, at the corner of a half-crumbling wall. He pauses there for now, curious as to what Grumpy had decided was not going to get him moving again, but he doesn't see anything of note. So, back to the matter at hand!]

"So, Sirus an' Lily don't get 'long, Godric doesn't know his own size; what 'bout Roger?" [He asks eagerly, simply because he can. He's never known a single trainer who would decline talking about their pokémons, unless it was an incredibly rare one, and even then. It's nice to learn about them too, in this sort of friendly conversation; and Esteban has no intention of being a trainer himself, so getting a glimpse of that life through Harry is interesting in itself.]

Actually, I had Godric in a region called Hisui months ago when I first came here but he only has this form for just around a month or so. In fact I spent some months just travelling to Mount Mortar just to evolve him in there since I can’t just evolve him in a non mountainous terrain.

Oh Roger? He came to me when he and his brethren came surfing all various water forms a few months back. I was in Cherrygrove with another person at the time so we did talked about catching a Pikachu line member. This line of Pikachus and Raichus turn out to be good surfers and they don’t let life stresses to ruin their fun. Managed to catch him with food since he is pretty docile like his brothers and sisters.

And I think that he is very protective of his surfboard quite a lot. Trust me, he will get mad if someone tries to steal it from him.

[Esteban had never heard of growlithes evolving in mountains only. But then, Godric is so clearly different than Puppy that he's not too surprised, it's just unexpected. And then there's the mention of surfing Pikachus, and Esteban has to take a double glance.]

"Like. On their tails?" [He'd never heard of a Pikachu surfing-- but there is Raichu, and he shouldn't be so surprised? But it still sounds odd to him, that they learn before their tail is even big enough to support their weight. But then Harry mentions the surfboard, and Esteban absolutely does not know how to react to that.]

[A pikachu... with a surfboard.]

[Alright. This might as well happen. Esteban's grin grows wide across his cheeks again as he nods, and goes to step around little Grumpy, who responds by promptly smashing his little club onto the redhead's foot.]

"OUCH! Grumpy?!?" [He calls out loudly, only for the little monster to snort out a puff of breath, and toss his tiny club ahead of them. The floor cracks and churns, and the crumbled wall shifts around a rather round stone, lifting into arms and legs and a small head that looks rather miffed at being awoken. Esteban looks far too flabberghasted to react right away, foot still pulsing in the protest from the violence.]

Huh, what just happened right - Whoa!

(Harry gasps in shock when he sees what Esteban is also seeing. Grumpy has woken up a creature, one he has never seen before, and he too couldn’t move a muscle as he tries to comprehend what he is seeing.)

Oh Merlin. I haven’t seen anything like this beofore. Is that a Pokémon?

"I think?!" [There's a vicious hiss from Harry's hoodie, and Punk pops out onto all fours, tufts of fire streaking through her fur in her fury. She's quick, and snarling, bounding ahead between her trainer and the monster, even though Esteban calls back to her.]

"Punk! Get back! That's not somethin' you can fight well!" [His worry makes his voice squeeze. At a glance, he'd say it's something either rock or ground-type, with how sturdy the stone hands look, but she ignores him, spitting out flames at the strange pokemon and standing her ground with determination. Esteban has to bite back a curse as he bounces to grab her back, but she simply darts around his hand. Scurries underneath the legs of the monster.]

[It's small, and a little slow, but Esteban still winces when the rock fist smashes onto the ground where she'd been standing just a moment ago, her little flames now lighting the hallway further ahead of them. The rocks there are stirring as well, and Esteban winces as Grumpy huffs and puffs and scurries ahead to join Punk as well. And Esteban's never been the smartest person in the room.]

"Damn it!" [He snarls as he dives after his wayward pokemons, leaping over a rolling fist and darting in the fray. The pokemons they face aren't all that tall, coming up to maybe half his size, but the three of them are more than a threat that Esteban knows how to deal with. Two of them turn towards his smaller pokemons, while the third turns to Harry, glowing eyes set in stone. Its fist is slow as it reaches for the wizard, but its shadow reaches wider, flickering on the wall before it slams out towards him.]

Oh great. Just what I needed: more chaos.

(Before Harry can say another word, Godric comes in roaring, shooting fires at the rocky Pokémon coming after his Trainer and Esteban. Sure, the Hisuian Arcanine can be very silly at times, but he is no dummy in the battlefield. Especially when his Trainer and friends are in harm’s way.

Lily even joins in by shooting plenty Magical Leaves at the Pokémon before one of them could hurt Harry. Damn, where is his magic when he needed it the most?)

Lily, Godric? You guys want to fight these things off?

Deci, Decidueye! Arc, Arcanine! Nine.

[The rotund monster doesn't seem that phased by the fires, yellow eyes twinkling in the dim because of the flames. But the leaves have it stumble back, heavy footed and clumsy. It tramples, then surges, dancing shadows reaching wide to slam against Lily's side.]

[Behind it, another monster has Esteban trapped at the foot of the wall, his two squirming 'mons trapped in each of his arms as he tries to hold them back from the creature. The second turns, distracted by the fight, and steps along to help its heavily injured teammate, charging with heavy footfalls towards the wizard.]

Deci!

(Uh oh Lily isn’t fast enough to react when the round stone monster hits her on the side, causing her to stumble a bit. Roger, having heard of the chaos going on, comes in charging fast as he summons a red surfboard and begins to ride a wave of water, aiming straight for the monster who is charging after his Trainer. Wait, how is this Pikachu able to surf?!?

Anyway, the surfing Pikachu realizes that he can’t use his Electric moves at the thing early on, so hence why he chooses to do Surf. Plus he would try to give Lily enough time to recover and get back to the fight. Godric then goes after that same rock Pokémon by using Crunch to inflict some injuries at it. Hopefully their efforts will be able to save their friends on time.)

[The wave crashes in a torrent above the small pokemons, water splashing across the rubble of ages past. Wounded and strained, one of the goletts falls to its knees and crumbles, spirit retreating into its core as the monster cannot withstand the assault. The other, caught in the wave, wobbles against the current and flinches, unable to quite stand and make a move both at the same time.]

[In the corner, Esteban shouts a] "thanks!" [as he uses the distraction, hops out of the way of the wave with both his pokemon caught under and arm each. The golett that had chased him, distracted by the wave-- turns to face the new threat instead, slowed in its progress by the current that still rip through the small hallways.]

[Behind Harry, Puppy growls and barks a threat, unable to act with so many monsters packed in so small a hallway. He seeks a reassurance from the wizard, eyes straining for the dark passage where he had last seen Esteban in, but a diamond-shaped ear flicking to listen to the young man that had been accompanying him, as he lets out a muted whine.]

Hey, it is going to be alright, Puppy. We just need to find your Trainer and the others and get out of here as fast as we can.

(Harry is trying his best to reassure Puppy throughout the chaos in the hallway and, quite honestly, he has lost count of what’s going on in here. Meanwhile Lily is able to get up once again and she throws several Magical Leaves and Leaf Blades at the remaining Golett while Roger assists her with Surf on his surfboard.

Godric then chases after another of the Golett by using Bite on it while letting out a fierce roar. And yes, it is kinda loud for anyone’s ears for the moment, just pardon Godric right now.)

ANOMALY DETECTED

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I'm back! A bit earlier than I thought!

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Can be a pokemon battle, if you want. Or it can just leave quietly.

Battle it

ok~

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(Oh God I am so sorry, my health have thrown a wrench into my tagging.)

It's all good! No stress! Rest up if you need it!

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