Small Town Festivities (Andrew)

[Andrew]

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Andrew was still obsessing over how cold Darryl was when Sandy began to speak. “You have no idea! I’m always terrified that I’ll forget to check up on her. She can’t help over-thinking things.” He continued to brush the snow from the shrew as they walked. “She’s really great though. It’s a shame most of my other Pokémon demand so much attention. I always feel as if I’m leaving her out.”

Sandy’s comment on the snow got Andrew thinking. “We don’t actually get much snow back home. There have only been reasonable amounts of snowfall once or twice. I kind of like it but I guess that’s really just because it’s sort of new to me.” Even though he could feel the cold, Andrew’s hands were much warmer than Darryl seemed to be. They looked slightly paler than usual but at least they weren’t after changing to a shade of blue or purple. Hopefully this warmth would spread to the ground-type in a while.

He began to slow down as Sandy began to look through her bag. His eyes followed the ball as she hurled it into the distance. “Remind me not to throw a ball while you’re around.” Andrew laughed, impressed by how far it had gone. He watched again as the Mightyena raced after it. He’d really hate to be running from a Pokémon of her size and speed. He was being as careful as he could with his comments on Hotaru. Any Mightyena references, joking or not, had the potential to make Sandy feel uncomfortable.

“<<What the hell does she eat?>>” Glint was sure that the Joshua kid must have been experimenting with a few things at that care class. Either way, now that she and Darryl were out of the way, he was delighted that he and Berry were finally alone. Hopefully, he’d get all of her attention now. Although he didn’t like the dark, Glint was putting up with it while Berry was around. There’d be fireworks soon anyway so that would hopefully brighten things up a bit.

As they walked, Andrew noticed that Sandy had gone awfully quiet. He was unsure as to whether or not he should fill the silence. She looked like she thinking about something and he didn’t want to interrupt her. Maybe she was just trying to remember the quickest way to get there. As she moved a bit closer, Andrew began to wonder if she was okay. As he began to look around to see if he could help, Sandy explained why she’d been so silent. “Oh, no problem! I was just trying to figure out if I’d been here before.”

Andrew gazed over at where Hotaru was standing. Nothing around here looked very familiar but perhaps that was because of the snow. He followed Sandy’s example and fixed his eyes on the town below. He was surprised he’d never been to this place before. Glint groaned as Berry made her way over to Hotaru. He’d missed his chance again. The Squirtle noticed that his trainer seemed to be captivated by something and climbed over to where he stood. He had to admit that the town looked pretty cool.

Andrew turned back as he heard Sandy’s voice. He wondered if he’d been too obvious trying to avoid bringing up Hotaru. At least he’d get an explanation now though. “Emm...oh, I see! I guess that’s understandable. Well hopefully, Hotaru can help put those bad memories to rest. She seems like a lot of fun.” he mentioned as he glanced over at the canine. This conversation was a little awkward but Andrew was happy that Sandy felt comfortable enough to bring it up in the first place. Andrew began to nudge Glint with his leg as he realised he wasn’t joining in with Berry and Hotaru.
“<<Alright dude, I’m going! Don’t hurt yourself!>>” he said as he stormed off and made his way over to the others.

“I guess this place is pretty nostalgic.” Andrew admitted as Sandy questioned him. “This is the first place I visited in Johto and it feels like it’s been ages since I was last here! It could be the festival and the fact that the town is covered in snow, but everything looks different.” Andrew looked up at the sky. This really was the perfect place to watch the fireworks. If he was ever back in New Bark Town for the festival again, he’d definitely have to stop here.

Andrew moved over beside Sandy so he wouldn’t be blocking her view. As he did so, he noticed that Darryl had rested her head against Sandy’s arm. The Sandshrew seemed to feel secure around her. Becoming aware of the orange cloth around the Pokémon’s neck once again, he began to think. Now that he thought about it, Sandy had been really kind to her. She’d picked her up to make sure she was okay and even rushed inside to get her food when her dispenser had been jammed. The more he thought about it, the more he realised that Darryl might be happier under Sandy’s ownership.

“Hey Sandy, this is a really random question but would you be interested in training Darryl? As in, becoming her permanent trainer?” He was sort of hesitant to speak but he knew that Darryl would happily agree to this, even if she did have trouble making up her mind. “I’ve only barely had a chance to bond with her before today, and I can already see that she feels calmer when you’re here. There’s no pressure to take her, of course! You do already have a huge number of Pokémon to train!” He looked down at Darryl. Although, she hadn’t moved, Andrew could tell that she was listening carefully to the conversation.

[Kataya]

Sandy Katayko

Not wrappin' this in ribbons...

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Sandy seemed pleased that at least somebody thought it was nostalgic, because whenever she was around here, it reminded her of how many chores her mother would have saved up for her when she arrived back at the house. But of course everything looked different. This place was normally just a boring old small town, despite being a place where everyone started their journies.Her mind shifted for a moment, remembering when she had acted as one of Elm's assistants. She had met a lot of aspiring trainers in the time that she was working in the lab, and maybe Andrew had been one of them. But, there were so many, she failed to remember if she had ever seen his face before. He did start earlier than her, after all.

"Good to know..." she mumbled, mostly to herself. When he moved to stand beside her, Sandy felt Darryl rest her head against her arm. She smiled at the shrew, but also seemed to realize something else as she looked at Andrew momentarilly, who seemed to be deep in thought or something.

He's pretty close. But why does that make me feel slightly nervous? She shook her head as if to shake the thought and then sighed, her breath showing in the form of a white mist. It made her shiver, thinking about how cold it was again. That was when she realized that Andrew was speaking to her.

"D-Darryl? I couldn't possibly...I mean, she's yours a-and I'm sure that she'd be better if you...if you..." she trailed off, becoming silent for a moment, covering her mouth with her hand. She calmed herself and looked back at him.

"I would like to train her, but only if you're sure you're okay with it." She answered, picking Darryl up from Andrew's arms to look at her. Hotaru poked the back of Sandy's leg with her nose, causing the girl to bite her tongue to avoid screaming from the unexpected contact. She had thought it was something else. Looking at Darryl, she smiled and placed her on Hotaru's back.

"You'll be much warmer with all her fur." Sandy promised as Hotaru carried Darryl over to join the other Pokemon. Facing Andrew again, she smiled, clearly more overjoyed about Darryl than she allowed herself to show. Seeming to forget about the thought she had before, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, figuring out how much warmer he turned out to be than she was as well, though that was a passing thought.

"Really, thank you. I'm sure if I work hard with her, she'll be even more awesome." She released him, but stayed close to him, not giving him an explination, since 'You're warm, I'm cold.' seemed a little bit creepy to her at least. She had that weirder feeling again though, the one she had beforehand.

"Andrew, I feel kind of..." A pop sounded in the air, causing her to stop and a blush to deepen on her face. What exactly had she been about to say? She hadn't even realized where she was going with that. Berry, who had been easedropping, sighed heavily.

<<Damn it. Just when I thought she was getting somewhere.>> She mentioned to Glint, annoyance clear across her features. The fireworks popped and crackled as they spread themselves across the night sky, leaving Sandy to simply watch them, which satisfied her enough. Hopefully, he wouldn't ask her what she had been about to say later, because she didn't even know.

Berry sat beside Glint with a simple glance back at Sandy and Andrew every once in a while.

<<Humans are idiots when it comes to crap like this.>> she huffed, not noticing the snort Hotaru gave.

<<So are turtles named Berry.>> she barked.

<<Oh shut up!>>

<<Hehe..>> With out another word, Berry turned back to the fireworks, her arms crossed as Hotaru re-adjusted herse;f. careful of Darryl, to sit behind the Squirtles.

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Shouldn't have to give a reason why...

[Andrew]

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Andrew had no recollection of meeting Sandy at the New Bark Town lab so the chances that they’d met there were pretty slim. After all, he had only quickly stopped by, having received a starter already from Professor Oak before he had left Kanto. As he sat down beside her, Andrew detected that Sandy was nervous about something. He was tempted to ask her but persuaded himself otherwise in case it was something too personal. They’d already spoken about her fear of Mightyena which she kept from most people. He didn’t want to intrude on her thoughts too much.

When he offered the girl ownership of the Sandshrew, Andrew was a little startled by her reaction. He felt a little embarrassed when she rejected initially but luckily, she was quick to clarify what she had meant. “I’d love for you to take care of her, and I know by her that this is what she wants too!” Andrew insisted, allowing Sandy to take the ground-type from his arms. He smiled as Sandy placed her on Hotaru. It would be good for her to interact with Sandy’s Pokémon. Hopefully if she got to know them now, they’d look out for her.

Andrew laughed shyly as he accepted Sandy’s hug. He was blushing slightly, though he hoped Sandy wouldn’t notice. She began to say something but the fireworks started up, cutting her off. Andrew wasn’t sure whether or not he should ask her to continue. After all, she’d brought him up here to see the fireworks. It didn’t really make sense to talk through them. Besides, even if he tried, she probably wasn’t going to hear him anyway.

The fireworks really looked amazing. Andrew could safely say he had never seen anything like them before. The different shapes and colours really resembled a lot of his favourite Pokémon. Spending time with Sandy was a lot of fun. She knew so many things that he didn’t. As much as Andrew would have loved for them to travel together, it would probably slow both of them down. They’d have to compete with each other to battle wild Pokémon whenever one appeared or to challenge a gym leader first. So because of that, meeting up now and then seemed like the better option.

Glint was mesmerised by the fireworks and was completely oblivious to the fact that Berry had just sat down next to him. The different colours caused his eyes to glisten. Meanwhile, Darryl clung to Hotaru’s fur as she too watched the display. She’d warmed up to the Mightyena pretty quickly without even noticing. Sandy had clearly raised her well which made the ground-type feel a little more comfortable with the idea of a new trainer.

[Kataya]

Sandy Katayko

Not wrappin' this in ribbons...

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(OOC: I'm really sorry I took so long Andrew! School and stuff! We can wrap this up within your next post if you want!~ >.<)

Each year, the fireworks got prettier than even the year before. Sandy glanced up at Andrew, who seemed to be enjoying the light show himself, then shyly looked away before he could catch her. The last few pops sounded and the sky became a dark color once again, taking on the winterish tint. The only thing that would guide them where they'd need to go would be the moon tonight.

"So what'd you think Andrew?" She questioned, a smile finding a way onto her face. Berry glanced back with a curious expression. Sandy acted like such a kid sometimes, especially when she was excited, and it seemed like even simple things like this could please her greatly at times.

Sandy seemed to realize her turtle was staring at her, and she was faintly aware of the noise of the festival coming to a close down below. The head always talked on the megaphone towards the end. She knew that just up and disappearing wouldn't have been an issue with her friends, well, if Andrew hadn't come with her. Shaking the thought, she smiled kindly again.

"Come on, I'll lead you back to the path." She mentioned, placing a hand on his arm gently and motioning that she wished for him to follow after her. Once Hotaru had taken the lead out front, trotting along proudly with Darryl still on her back, Sandy felt safe enough to move along with Andrew just behind her. She did feel a pang of downheartedness reach her when she realized they'd have to part ways. She liked having Andrew to talk to, but she knew traveling with
him would be impossible. They were both far too busy as it was, being trainers. The thought she had before came back up in her mind, and she shook it off, blushing a neat shade of crimson.

"Hey Andrew, where do you think you'll be headed after all this?" she questioned as they walked back down towards the main part of the route. She could at least figure out what her friend's plans were, right? It didn't hurt to know when they might cross paths again.

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Shouldn't have to give a reason why...

[Andrew]

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The fireworks had successfully held Andrew’s attention up until the very last burst of colour. He’d never seen anything quite like them. He wondered how long it must have taken for Sandy to find a place like this. The massive crowd was out of the way and the view was amazing. “Wow, that was unbelievable! I wouldn’t have even thought of leaving the town for this!” Andrew replied, smiling back at Sandy. Her facial expression suggested that she already knew the answer to her question.

Glint glanced over at his trainer when he saw that Berry was looking at hers. Unlike Sandy, Andrew didn’t catch onto the Squirtle’s stare. However, he did hear the megaphone in the background and quickly realised how late it had gotten. “I wish it wasn’t over. I had a really good time, Sandy. Thanks for sticking around with me. I’ll have to come back again some other time!” Glint smirked to himself, delighted to hear that they’d be back. He really wished that Andrew would arrange to meet up more often.

“Oh great, thanks! I’d probably take twice as long to find my way back on my own!” Andrew laughed. Although he was joking, the statement had a lot of truth in it. Sandy definitely moved at a much quicker pace than him. Every time they met up, he felt even more motivated to work harder. Like Sandy, Andrew was disappointed that he’d be travelling alone again. It was nice to have the company, especially when she was so likeable.

He looked up suddenly as Sandy began to speak; realising that they’d already reached the main path. No wonder she was so far ahead. If he stopped zoning out, maybe he’d move faster too. As his eyes met Sandy’s, he realised he still hadn’t answered her question. “Oh, uh, I guess I’ll just do a bit more training towards the south of the region. I’ll keep in touch and let you know what’s happening! Make sure you let me know how you’re getting on too! Thanks again for everything!”

He offered a hug to Sandy and then nuzzled his old Sandshrew’s head. “I know you won’t cause Sandy any trouble so all I can say is good luck! I’ll definitely see you soon, Darryl! It was great to be able to spend the day with you!” He smiled as the orange fabric caught his eye. “Alright, time to go, Glint. See ya later guys!” He nudged the Squirtle to go and the two headed down the path which would soon take them to Cherrygrove. Andrew would spend the night at the Pokémon Center and then make his way to Violet City in the morning. He had a lot planned for tomorrow after seeing how far Sandy had come.

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[[OOC: No problem, Kat! You’ve waited a lot longer for me to reply on quite a number of occasions. ^^; Sure, it would be cool to get the next thread up and running (whenever you get the time of course – there’s definitely no rush!) I’ll finish things up and archive this. :3]]

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