The dabbled leaves glistened in the sunlight, the lowest branches still shaded and dark green with moss creeping up the thick tree trunks, though the pokémon within the vicinity were all hunkered down. Refusing to venture far from their homes. There was a family of Hoothoot with their feathers ruffled up to their necks settled in a hole in a nearby tree, but their parents were nowhere to be seen. It worried Yuuta as he'd been in the area for three days. They must have been starving…
The light faded quickly and the boy tilted his head up, the faithful Bayleef beside him following his gaze, and grey clouds had rolled in. No sooner had they blocked out the sun, thunder split through the eerily silent forest. A Furret and her newly evolved young scurried past his set up while the first few drops of rain dotted down against the forest floor with a gentle patter. Bayleef lowered her head back down to protect some of the dry land she was on while blades of long grass brushed past her face in the breeze that came with the thunder and rain. Yuuta pet one hand on her neck and spoke softly, "Don't worry Dumpling, it will pass." He stroked his friend for a few seconds before the rain turned heavy and thunder rumbled across the sky once more, "Come on girl," He twisted his body to unzip the small, triangular prism shaped camo tent behind the pair where he kept all of his gear, pokébelt included, to retrieve the black, red and yellow ball, "Time to return."
Bayleef lifted her head again as the rain rippled against her large leaf and bounced and rolled off in large dew drops. She almost smiled as Yuuta opened the pokéball before she was transferred back inside. It was lonesome without her but she simply wouldn't fit inside the tent that Yuuta crawled into. It was deafening so the 18 year old rummaged inside his rucksack to retrieve his pokégear and headphones but before putting them in he sat on his hand and knees to shut the tents opening in order to keep the rain out and protect his belongings. As he reached up to grab the zip at the top of the tent, he noticed a Noctowl on the branches of the tree not too far away. Its large eyes seemed tired but locked on Yuuta with a piercing fierceness, probably weary of the stranger, but the trainer finished locking himself inside and made no fuss to show he was not a threat to the young that harped for some food.
He lay down inside his sleeping bag with his pokégear in hand and headphones plugged in after pulling his rucksack and pokébelt up to the top of the tent by his head; he hated leaving them near the entrance after a group of Mankey harassed him and stole his weeks' worth of supplies… Lesson learnt. Yuuta tapped into the radio channels to tune into Professor Oak's Pokémon Talk show. He enjoyed hearing about different pokémon and the little details you could easily miss about them, but especially where to find them. He was located in Ilex Forest simply because Professor Oak had recently highlighted a strange phenomenon within the location, but Yuuta hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary, and everyone that had rang up the station had complained that 'nothing happened'. Still, he was willing to wait here longer. He enjoyed making camp in forests and meadows most, as there just seemed to be more life, so he would never complain about that. It was also easier to navigate in his opinion…
'Although many reports came in by trainers trekking through Ilex forest last Thursday, it appears the forest has settled down.' Professor Oak seemed to be tying the events up in a neat bow to prevent more complaints coming through, and Mary quickly added her two cents, 'Please continue to enjoy the land and all of its inhabitants!' From there, they swiftly moved on to discuss other areas and sift through incoming calls from trainers and travellers alike, but Yuuta was somewhat disappointed that they had given up so easily on the Ilex incident, and Professor Oak sounded disheartened too. Apparently a holy-like light had flooded the area and strange echoing sounds could be heard for miles. No one was near enough to the centre to determine the cause, but it was intriguing as the last known incident was many, many years ago. The locals had sent out a search party to investigate the cause and seemed to be worried about trainers in the dense forest, which only made Yuuta more determined to stay put until something came from the whole situation. He flicked through channels and but nothing else grabbed his attention like usual, but between stations he heard twigs snapping, causing him to remove an ear bud. The footsteps grew louder and he grew more worried; not because of safety concerns or anything of that sort, but Yuuta simply didn't like the company of others and didn't want to be found. Still, he reluctantly emerged from his sleeping bag and unzipped the tent.
With his head poked out, he noticed a boy running somewhat lazily and seemingly panting, just several meters from his campsite. Cardio must not have been his best area. Just a couple meters more and he almost doubled over, hands on his knees and taking deep breaths. With the temperature having dropped from the break in humidity, white plumes of breath were visible against the muggy background and Yuuta sighed, a slight furrow creeping into his brows. The other boy decided to rest against a tree trunk and seemed utterly startled when Yuuta's husky voice pierced through the sound of heavy rain, "Hey! Is something wrong?"
His hand was pressed against his heart which pounded inside his chest, eyes like a Deerlings in headlights and his short red hair was claggy against his forehead, "Ah, h-hello!" He shouted back nervously and waved with a crooked, tired smile, "I'm okay!" The boy looked a bit dishevelled and exhausted, almost as if waiting for an invitation to come over.
Yuuta fully opened up the tent and beckoned the other over with his hand before disappearing back inside to grab a towel from his rucksack. It was such a pain helping others out, but he felt obliged really. Meanwhile, the stranger had walked over and was fidgeting with his hands, not really sure what to do with himself. But soon enough he reached the shaded tent and was given the plain white towel, "Use this to dry off and take your shoes off please, then you may come in." It was taken with a thanks, but seemed redundant considering it was still actually pouring down… Either way, he ruffled his hair to shake off the excess water and then patted down his bare arms and legs since he was wearing just a t-shirt and shorts, "You finished?" Yuuta prompted and was handed back the towel before the male crouched and offered up a smile.
"Sorry for the inconvenience," He said quietly as he shuffled in and zipped the pair inside, "I didn't realise it was going to rain today…" His voice tapered off while he sat cross legged; the two took up the majority of the tent obviously designed for one. Although it did seem funny to the redhead because Yuuta's head was almost touching the top of the waterproof tent. As the towel was set aside, he suddenly realised he'd not even introduced himself, "Um, I'm Shin by the way..." Yuuta looked at him, thinking he didn't really 'look' like a Shin, but then again, his own name wasn't really a good reflection either. At least he didn't believe so. Still, he stopped himself from sighing and decided to return the pleasantries.
"My name's Yuuta, I'm surprised anyone is this far out." The taller male remarked, meaning not many people travelled off the foot paths and ended up in the thickest areas of the forest. "What were you doing out there?" He had to speak up a little so as to make himself understandable what with the rain showing no signs of letting up.
Shin continued to smile a bit awkwardly and shrugged his shoulders while Yuuta took in the predicament and assessed the stranger; he had no visible pokémon and no bag, "I was just passing through and got attacked, but I couldn't find my way back to a path. I'm not as prepared for the forest like you," He stated while his eyes looked beyond Yuuta to his rucksack, "I don't have a map to find my way back, and even if I did," He continued with a shy laugh, "I wouldn't know how to read one."
Yuuta offered a smile but felt like he was a bit naïve to have trekked out without confidence in travelling alone. Assuming he was alone, anyway, "Were you with anyone else?" It worried him that someone else might have been caught out in the rain, but Shin quickly shook his head, "I see… Then at least you're out of the rain." He didn't know what to suggest, as yes, he could help him back to a pathway, but he didn't want to be heading away from his camp for a full day's trek.
The redhead nodded and thanked him again for the help, "I don't mind heading back myself once it stops… I really appreciate your hospitality."
"You're welcome… I'll point you in the right direction in that case." Yuuta blinked and looked down at his pokégear which was still playing to itself, "Don't you have a pokégear?" He turned back to focus his attention on the other who looked caught out, which puzzled Yuuta.
Everyone had one, so it was odd that this stranger did not – clearly, as he now looked shifty.
"No, I don't – I was in a hurry leaving, so…" His voice trailed off, but Yuuta refused to break the silence and change the subject, "I left my belongings home, so all I have is my pokémon."
Well, at least he was somewhat normal then, and hadn't headed out with no safety. Yuuta drew in a long breath and slowly sighed, more leaves rustling outside with the wind picking up, but it was nothing too worrying. Still, he looked at Shin and asked what pokémon he had. At least that would be a semi-interesting topic. The smaller boy dug his hand into the deep short pockets and pulled out two small, plain pokéballs, "I have a Poliwhirl, and a Snubble." He didn't sound particularly happy, or interested, but he did smile down at the balls in his hand before returning them to his pocket; not really the safest place for them, but at least he had companions, "What about yourself?" Shin swept some of his locks back off his face and returned his hands to his lap.
"I've got a few pokémon," He turned to grab his belt and dragged it over, pointing to each pokéball, "Bayleef, Eevee, Ambipom, Tauros and Ursaring." Every one of them had a different coloured and styled ball which fascinated Shin, but he refrained from asking too many questions, he didn't want to be a bother after all.
"Wow, you must be a great trainer! I'm 17 but I've only kept pokémon since last year… I don't know much, so I suppose I'm still a beginner." More thunder cut off the younger male, but Yuuta supposed it made sense if he only had two.
"I see…" He didn't really know how else to respond and didn't want to lap up any compliments, "I'm not sure when this rain will stop. It seems to be getting worse…"
Shin nodded quietly, soft spoken despite the rain, "I don't want to be a bother, so I'll leave you be if you even if it doesn't stop."
The taller male thought it unwise, considering how dangerous thunderstorms could be. Especially if lighting struck nearby, "Don't worry. We can wait it out. If there is a break, we can make a simple shelter to see us through. We won't both fit in here after all…" It was cramped enough as it was, and Shina blinked in surprise; this guy seemed to have everything and be prepared for anything. He'd probably of caught pneumonia stuck out in the rain all night knowing his bad luck.
"Only if you're sure, and I can help! Just tell me what to do." Shin smiled and Yuuta nodded lightly, telling him it was fine. He could survive with company for one night surely. A silence fell between the pair as rain continued to hit against the tent and it was soothing, not particularly awkward. It felt like they both preferred their own company, so the silence was actually welcomed…