(ACE) The PALLET Team

"That sounds great," Akamu said, Oliver blushing as a shy, but genuinely pleased smile fought for space on his face as some small, still self conscious piece of him tried to force it down. "And we know a little about farming, but while we wouldn't mind helping you out Kaleo and I can't stay long enough to reap the benefits. We've got someone to find and can't afford to lose time." Though his heart sank a bit--these two were really nice!--yeah, it made sense. They had Jesse to find, after all.

If he had even a single lead on Anne, he'd be moving on, too.

"At best we could stay one more day."

"Good idea, Oliver." Two compliments? Oliver's face grew hotter and he twisted his scarf in his hands with a soft whisper of thanks, head ducked and trying not to smile too much.

"We will apreciate all the help you can give, and thank you for stopping long enough to help." She paused for a moment, Oliver peeking up just in time to see her antennae twitch. "Let's see if there's any bushes in town before we try the woods. Which direction did everyone come from and did you see much of the area before getting here?"

"I came- I came from that direction, I think," he said, pointing to Route 1, voice slow as he did some quick mental math about directions and trying to sort everything out. Between the darkness and fear of that night, and all that had happened since, it was a bit of a muddled mess. Not to mention he didn't travel directly on the route for fear of being in the open, so he was using the trees and just... reached the end of the route. He thought. Jeez, he hoped he was giving her right information.

Oh no what if he wasn't?

"I-it was- it was dark and a l-lot happened so- so I? Might be wrong...?" It was only fair to warn her that he could be totally wrong about this, and he cringed a little. Leaders didn't like wrong answers, but they didn't like indecisive ones, either.

"Good idea, Oliver."

Akamu had to admit it was nice seeing the smile that lit up the small monkey's face despite how he tried to hide it. Oliver, he had to remind himself. Man he had never been great with names. That was always more Kaleo's department even though he rarely spoke. The Chimchar reminded him a lot of his brother so it was easy to like him. "We will apreciate all the help you can give, and thank you for stopping long enough to help." Akamu nodded and offered her a meager smile, not sure what else to add to the conversation. It was just as well the moth seemed somewhat distracted at the moment.

"Let's see if there's any bushes in town before we try the woods. Which direction did everyone come from and did you see much of the area before getting here?" Kaleo looked around and pointed a small hoof at the northern gate of the city. "We came from that way too," he offered after Oliver pointed out the same direction. "But that wasn't long ago. Akamu led us all the way from Vermillion City...We've seen most of the north of the region." Akamu nodded and nuzzled Kaleo's leg as he started to shake, nerves flaring up greatly at the mention of the city where they first encountered the undead. "We can't tell you much about what's left since we don't really remember what it looked like before, but we can try. I do remember some berry bushes but not near the town if that's what you are after."

Oliver's face lit up from the compliments, and Isolde was glad to see the young one in a happier mood. He pointed while explaining, "I came- I came from that direction, I think." To answer the other question, he added, "I-it was- it was dark and a l-lot happened so- so I? Might be wrong...?" She wasn't really expecting a whole lot of detail, and though a little disappointed, she couldn't blame him.

Kaleo spoke up as well, "We came from that way too. But that wasn't long ago. Akamu led us all the way from Vermillion City...We've seen most of the north of the region." While she had no idea where Vermillion city was, it might be useful to ask about that more later. Though she hoped she might not have to keep moving...

Akamu gave a more detailed explanation closer to what she was looking for, "We can't tell you much about what's left since we don't really remember what it looked like before, but we can try. I do remember some berry bushes but not near the town if that's what you are after." She cringed a bit a that since she had been hoping for something closer. Though if they didn't have many other leads, they'd have to go for it.

She gave a small apology since she couldn't add any useful information, "I can't remember much either. I was a little occupied when I stumbled across this area..." She briefly shuddered as she remembered the metal bird pinning her to the ground. Without Sukoshi's help, she wouldn't still be here. With the passing thought of the cat, she had a feeling of melancholy that she had to push away. "I'm not too fond of the woods here, so I would prefer to not go very far out. But if we have to, let's try to stay together."

"We came from that way too. But that wasn't long ago. Akamu led us all the way from Vermillion City...We've seen most of the north of the region." Vermillion, Vermillion...

He remembered that was north, but that was all. Was that the one near the water? He struggled to remember Anne talking about the other cities in the region. She'd glossed over a lot of Kanto because that wasn't where they were going...

"We can't tell you much about what's left since we don't really remember what it looked like before, but we can try. I do remember some berry bushes but not near the town if that's what you are after."

Isolde cringed a bit as Oliver winced. Oh. That... might not be fun to get to. Or remotely easy.

"I can't remember much either. I was a little occupied when I stumbled across this area..." She shuddered. Must be some bad memories- that's right, wasn't something chasing her? Eugh. "I'm not too fond of the woods here, so I would prefer to not go very far out. But if we have to, let's try to stay together."

"Y-yes ma'am. Sounds like a good idea." Considering what was out there, anyway.

All this talk of berries was a little awkward for a guy who didn't need to eat. Phobos stayed out of it for the most part, deferring instead to the experience and knowledge of actual corporeal Pokemon who understood matters he didn't; some of what they talked didn't make sense to him. Ships, something called Vermillion City, farming, and that thing Oliver talked about with the "self-sustaining food source"...being anything other than a ghost seems a little unnecessarily complicated. Phobos tries not to think of how not knowing any of these matters is tantamount to being blown away in the wind.

The surprise comes when the two newcomers mention that they can't stay much longer than a day. They had mentioned being on the trail of someone...Jean? Phobos can't recall the name. He's not sure whether these feelings mixing within are disappointment, relief, or both. The pair knew a lot, and Phobos was just starting to warm up to Akamu after a rather unfortunate introduction, but on the other hand, this place didn't seem to like having a lot of creatures gather. Phobos winces-the first mental image following that particular thought was of Shadowmere fleeing. Maybe it's better that they move along before anything else can go wrong.

He suddenly feels less contained, less together, as if the gases that make up his body could drift apart at any second. Phobos thinks of Shadowmere, and that pair Isolde mentioned before Akamu and Kaleo showed up. Why did they leave so suddenly? What drove them away from this place? The old flare resurfaces, the familiar feeling of being watched at all times. Was it...was it because of him? Was Dei watching from the shadows, ripping these Pokemon away to torment him?

Maybe...maybe...maybe Phobos is better off alone again. For the sake of everyone else. His mind envelops the thought; it wouldn't be difficult leaving. All he would have to do is wait until nightfall and slip back into the shadows, as if Phobos had never been there. He could do it as early as tonight, if he wanted to. Nobody could stop him, and why would they? It was as easy as wanting to leave, and doing so.

Does he want to?

"Let's see if there's any bushes in town before we try the woods. Which direction did everyone come from and did you see much of the area before getting here?"

Thank merciful Uxie that by addressing everyone in the group, Isolde has made it to where Phobos can focus on anything other than the mental path he has tread. Unfortunately, the relief is short-lived, because Phobos cannot remember where he came from, not even something as simple as a direction. The others give their answers, which are thankfully vague, but Phobos feels as though everyone is staring at him angrily (even though they're definitely not) when he gives his lame response.

"I don't remember much of where I came from. I usually just stick to shadows, and..."

He almost mentions running from Dei. Instead, the ghost trails off nervously, leaving the sentence unfinished. Phobos' silence is rekindled by the thought of his sibling; when Isolde suggests venturing out only in a group, he merely murmurs some vague noise of agreement. What use a creature that could only float would be to this particular task, Phobos isn't certain.

(sorry for the not so great post, missing so many rounds wasn't great ://)

"I can't remember much either. I was a little occupied when I stumbled across this area..." Her wings fluttered nervously and Kaleo felt bad for the pretty butterfly. Whatever forced her here could not have been pleasant to induce such a reaction. Even the Ghastly wasn't feeling very talkative. Had something bad happened before they got here? "I'm not too fond of the woods here, so I would prefer to not go very far out. But if we have to, let's try to stay together."

"Y-yes ma'am. Sounds like a good idea."

Akamu nodded and hopped up onto his brother's back, the Mudbray chuckling as he felt the padded paws of the pup working their way up to his head. He did this a lot when trying to get a better vantage point or pick out a particular scent. Scenting around a moment he picked up on something sweet and nudged Kaleo to move in a small circular pattern so he could figure out which direction exactly it was coming from. "There may be something in one of the houses down that way," he finally spoke up, pointing a paw further into town. "It's sweet, so it may be berries or it might be some candy. Either way it's food. But if it is berries they should still be able to be planted."

Phobos made a sound of assent while Oliver added, "Y-yes ma'am. Sounds like a good idea." Isolde wasn't sure which direction to start going in, but thankfully the newcomers appeared to have an idea.

Akamu leapt onto Kaleo's back and climbed up to the donkey's head. Isolde simply watched as he sniffed around; eventually Kaleo started moving around. She assumed they knew what they were doing, and hopefully the dog's sensitive nose might pick up on something. After a few moments, Akamu said, "There may be something in one of the houses down that way." He pointed with a paw, and thankfully, it looked like they would be going further into town. "It's sweet, so it may be berries or it might be some candy. Either way it's food. But if it is berries they should still be able to be planted."

She started flying in the direction he pointed in, but the unfamiliar word caught Isolde's attention, "Candy? Is that a human thing?" While Akamu implied that it was a sweet food, she couldn't recall hearing the word before. For all she knew, it could have been something else.

Phobos didn't remember where he came from?

... Did he feel sad about that? What if it wasn't a nice place, like Oliver? If it wasn't, Oliver should be glad he didn't remember. But if it was nice...

... Poor Phobos either way, really...

"There may be something in one of the houses down that way." He pointed, thank Arceus, deeper into town. Yes, Oliver would be just fine with that...

Well. He winced internally. There could still be plenty of nasty things in town. His stomach twisted at the memory of Sukoshi taken from them. What if more of those were around?

But they were far more likely to be in the forest, even during the day. The dead tended to seek shelter during the day, but the forest provided a bit more shade. They were more likely to be roaming around in there, even at this time of day...

Yeah, he'd much rather take the town. Although, it wasn't his decision to make.

"It's sweet, so it may be berries or it might be some candy. Either way it's food. But if it is berries they should still be able to be planted."

ALready in motion in the direction the pup pointed, Isolde paused and looked back at him. "Candy? Is that a human thing?"

Oliver's face lit up. "Oh, yes! Humans combine ingredients to make foods that taste really, really sweet. Different kinds of those sweet foods have different names; one of them is candy. Candy can come in lots of different forms, but if it didn't smell rotten, it's probably the kind of candies that last for years and years; they call them 'hard candies.' You suck on them and they get smaller and smaller as they turn to liquid inside your mouth."

Oh man, when had he last had a hard candy? He found some early in the epidemic but that was back when he was near big cities, something he resolved to stop doing that one time he was almost eaten.

Phobos can't keep himself from observing the teamwork between the two newcomers; it's too interesting to watch how they coordinate even without the use of words. Even though Phobos knows their method of 'talking' via touch would be impossible for him (unless he wanted to accidentally hurt someone, which sounds awful), he dwells for a few moments on what it'd be like to understand someone perfectly without ever once uttering a word.

"There may be something in one of the houses down that way," Akamu points out, quite literally. It doesn't look like they'd have to leave the relative safety of the human buildings, but Phobos wonders how the canine can tell where something is from so far away. "It's sweet, so it may be berries or it might be some candy. Either way it's food. But if it is berries they should still be able to be planted."

Candy? "What's candy?"

"Candy? Is that a human thing?"

Phobos somehow keeps forgetting he's not the only one in unfamiliar territory. It isn't like Phobos has never heard of the word sweet before, and despite not knowing its origins, he at least knows it means "good", so logically speaking candy can't be a bad thing. Still, he wants to know more details.

Luckily, they have someone there who is shockingly well-versed in all things related to humans. Oliver looks rather excited as he begins to explain the mysteries of 'candy', and Phobos becomes absorbed in every word. Really, would humans ever stop being fascinating?

"Oh, yes! Humans combine ingredients to make foods that taste really, really sweet. Different kinds of those sweet foods have different names; one of them is candy. Candy can come in lots of different forms, but if it didn't smell rotten, it's probably the kind of candies that last for years and years; they call them 'hard candies.' You suck on them and they get smaller and smaller as they turn to liquid inside your mouth."

He has no clue what an ingredient is in this context, but Phobos still can't believe humans could make stuff like this. The only problem is that he wouldn't be able to enjoy candy. Food is pretty much useless to him, and Phobos doesn't want to know what would happen if that liquid candy mixed in with his mist. Of course, this doesn't dilute his awe even a little bit.

"Wow. You know so much about humans," Phobos says, impressed by the extent of his companion's knowledge. Despite how nervous he is, Oliver always seems to have an answer. "What does candy look like?"

"What's candy?"

"Candy? Is that a human thing?"

Akamu froze, a nervous expression plastered across his muzzle. He had totally forgotten two of these guys were wild Pokemon and had zero clue how to explain candy. What did he compare it to? How do you describe something they had no frame of reference for? "Uh..."

"Oh, yes! Humans combine ingredients to make foods that taste really, really sweet. Different kinds of those sweet foods have different names; one of them is candy. Candy can come in lots of different forms, but if it didn't smell rotten, it's probably the kind of candies that last for years and years; they call them 'hard candies.' You suck on them and they get smaller and smaller as they turn to liquid inside your mouth."

Oh thank heavens the monkey jumped in. Relief overcame him as he hopped down off of Kaleo's head and he nodded along with Oliver's explanation. "Wow. You know so much about humans," Phobos replies making Akamu giggle. Most trainer Pokemon knew this stuff but he wasn't going to embarrass the ghost by pointing it out. Heck he barely knew the kid so he could have impressed them with knowledge about anything before the candy to get that response which would make him the embarrassed one. Yep. Better to keep quiet. "What does candy look like?"

"Well, usually it is wrapped in this little sheet of paper or plastic to keep it clean and from going bad too quick. Don't eat that part though or you'll get sick." Akamu was surprised to hear Kaleo offer a response to the question, especially such a long one, and pat the small Mudbray's hoof with his paw. Kaleo smiled down at the small pup and continued to try and help out the sweet monkey with his description of candy. "They even make some special for Pokemon out of berries sometimes. Those are really tasty."

Isolde almost felt foolish when Akamu appeared to blank at the question, but Oliver filled in the void with an enthusiastic fervor, "Oh, yes! Humans combine ingredients to make foods that taste really, really sweet. Different kinds of those sweet foods have different names; one of them is candy. Candy can come in lots of different forms, but if it didn't smell rotten, it's probably the kind of candies that last for years and years; they call them 'hard candies.' You suck on them and they get smaller and smaller as they turn to liquid inside your mouth." She was admittedly impressed at all the knowledge the young Pokemon had about humans.

Phobos expressed a similar sentiment, "Wow. You know so much about humans." He then asked, "What does candy look like?"

Shockingly, Kaleo was the one to answer that question, "Well, usually it is wrapped in this little sheet of paper or plastic to keep it clean and from going bad too quick. Don't eat that part though or you'll get sick." Akamu had jumped down from his perch on the taller Pokemon's head, and the pair smiled at each other as the donkey continued his explanation, "They even make some special for Pokemon out of berries sometimes. Those are really tasty." Isolde tried to imagine the strange treats, and all she could come up with was wrapped berries. Maybe that wasn't too far off given the second sentence.

"The more I learn about humans, the more I almost wish I had met them," she mused. As they travelled in the direction Akamu had indicated, Isolde occasionally tried to smell for the sweet scent that Akamu had noticed. Eventually, she thought she noticed something that wasn't ash as they paused in front of a much more dilapidated human house. "Is this it?" she asked the puppy.

"Well, usually it is wrapped in this little sheet of paper or plastic to keep it clean and from going bad too quick," Kaleo surprised Oliver by answering. The little chimp smiled as Kaleo continued with his explanation, nodding along. "Don't eat that part though or you'll get sick."

Eeuck, yes. He learned that one the hard way.

"They even make some special for Pokemon out of berries sometimes. Those are really tasty."

Oliver beamed, eyes bright. "Yeah! The Sinnoh speciality was Poffins! Those were more like cakes instead of candies, though..."

Oh, did he ever miss Poffins.

"The more I learn about humans, the more I almost wish I had met them." Oliver's faltering smile fell off almost completely as he nodded and followed after the butterfly, shoulders drooping when their search led them to a much creepier looking house.

"Is this it?" she asked the puppy. Please say no.

Instead of Oliver, it's instead Kaleo who offers Phobos an answer to his question. Phobos hadn't expected that. This entire time, he'd been acting rather standoffish...but hey, Phobos isn't about to turn down another source of interesting human facts, even if it's from a Pokemon he didn't think would talk that much.

"Well, usually it is wrapped in this little sheet of paper or plastic to keep it clean and from going bad too quick. Don't eat that part though or you'll get sick."

The response only leaves Phobos with more to ask about. Paper, plastic? Maybe it didn't matter since ghosts can't really "eat", per se, but that doesn't stop Phobos from wanting to learn more. How come eating this paper and plastic wasn't good for other Pokemon? He would continue nudging the others for information, but they might see it as a waste of time. "You ask too many questions, Phobos," "Please stop talking," that sort of thing. He's heard similar sentiments before, though never in such a polite manner (typically, it was just "shut up").

"They even make some special for Pokemon out of berries sometimes. Those are really tasty."

"Yeah! The Sinnoh speciality was Poffins! Those were more like cakes instead of candies, though..."

Both cake and Poffins are completely foreign words to him. Still, if Oliver's excited while mentioning them, then surely they can't be all that bad? Uxie above, not knowing any of these things is driving Phobos absolutely insane! All the ghost wants is knowledge, yet with every answer given, more and more questions pile upon him in a never-ending cycle. He's learned so much this past day, yet the world has never felt so vast and alien to him before.

"The more I learn about humans, the more I almost wish I had met them."

"Me too."

Phobos once again falls quiet for the remainder of the time spent following Isolde. He'd been unsure of how to follow up with his simple agreement, and decides to simply leave it at that. Eventually, she stops in front of another human place, this one nowhere near as welcoming as their own shelter. It's...well, a little run down, putting it kindly.

"Is this it?"

While a huge part of him wants to explore a new area and discover new things, Phobos has to admit this particular building isn't very inviting. Was that "candy" stuff really inside such a dreary-looking place?

"Yeah! The Sinnoh speciality was Poffins! Those were more like cakes instead of candies, though..." The mention of cake had Akamu's tummy rumbling and he looked away sheepishly. It had been so long since he got any special treats, they used to be really special moments with Jesse whenever they got them. It was a sweetly sad reminder that those days might be gone forever. That didn't mean they couldn't still have Jesse back though, his scent was still out there. They would find him. They had to.

"The more I learn about humans, the more I almost wish I had met them."

"Me too."

Oh, right, these guys didn't even have trainers they were mourning. They were mourning other loved ones and somehow all of them ended up here. Kaleo followed silently as Akamu's nose led them, his own heart weighing heavy with the same thoughts plaguing his smaller companion. Jesse was still out there somewhere and they were all but stuck here until they caught his scent again. It was a scary thought.

Speaking of scary... "Is this it?"

Akamu nodded slowly as he stared at the dilapidated house, cocking his head a bit when the scent continued to elude him. "Yeah...I think so. At least this is the direction it is coming from. It looks really run down to have any food left though so I'm a little confused."

Akamu's response was forboding, "Yeah...I think so. At least this is the direction it is coming from. It looks really run down to have any food left though so I'm a little confused." He was sure this was the right direction then. She didn't know enough about humans and their structures to make a judgement call on the matter, but she knew how wild Pokemon acted.

"Someone may have used it as a hiding place for food; sometimes we would stash part of a large haul in trees or in holes. Or maybe there are some bushes we can't see from here..." Isolde mused. She flew forward and tried to see if she smelled the sweet scent that Akamu had noticed. Sadly, the burning smell prevailed, and any hints of sweet were too small to focus on. The human building was half collapsed, so there were plenty of places that something could be stashed in... "We'll look around the outside and see what we can find."

((Feel free to have your bbs find something or chat as they look. Also, she doesn't really know that the building might not be stable enough, so feel free to point that out to her.))

"Yeah...I think so."

Of course. He suppressed a groan. Of course food--not even just food but-! Candy! Food he hadn't had in years!--would be in the spooky building that looked kind of like the setting of any horror movie ever set in an abandoned house.

Well... there wasn't rot, so... at least there shouldn't be any undead lurking inside...

Of course, the burned smell probably still overrode that. Arceus. When would that smell go away? It had to eventually, right? Open, fresh air? By the sea? It couldn't hang around forever.

"At least this is the direction it is coming from. It looks really run down to have any food left though so I'm a little confused."

You're not the only one...

"Someone may have used it as a hiding place for food." Oh! Oh that... that'd be brilliant, actually. At least that explained the thing that otherwise made no sense? "Sometimes we would stash part of a large haul in trees or in holes. Or maybe there are some bushes we can't see from here..." Their leader flew foward a little, maybe to scent the air, but if she smelled anything over the persistant smell of burned houses, she didn't share it with them. Which meant she'd probably found absolutely nothing. "We'll look around the outside and see what we can find."

He cast nervous eyes at the half-collapsed home. Yeah. Outside. That was a lot better than venturing in. He really hoped they wouldn't. Reaching into the badly overgrown shrubs far enough away from the home that they'd avoided being set on fire, he started to prod around inside. His fingers closed around something flat and plastic and, curious, he pulled it out.

A bright red frisbee. Some child or dog pokemon (or maybe just dog) must have lost this a long time ago. He sighed and set it aside. "There might be something in the hedges--bush things--" he added for the sake of their wild pokemon companions "--so I'd give them a poke-through, maybe? If- you think someone would hide anything in them...?"

That might've been a stupid suggestion; if someone did use them as a hiding place for extra food, why would they leave the lost toys and stuff that kids had dropped? Why not just take that stuff out?

(I've tried writing a post for this round and it's just...not working. At all. So I'll skip.)

Akamu was still sniffing at the dilapidated house, the smell of ash and lingering smoke ruining any further chance of tracing the scent to a point of origin, when Isolde began to reply to his earlier statement. "Someone may have used it as a hiding place for food; sometimes we would stash part of a large haul in trees or in holes. Or maybe there are some bushes we can't see from here..." Oh. That was actually really clever. He had no idea wild Pokemon went through that kind of a system, he was used to food always being around. Maybe he could pick up a few new tricks from the wild ones before he and Kaleo had to leave.

"We'll look around the outside and see what we can find."

Kaleo and Akamu nodded, the Mudbray already moving towards Oliver to see if any of the smaller Pokemon needed help, when he chimed in to help with the moth's idea. "There might be something in the hedges--bush things--so I'd give them a poke-through, maybe? If- you think someone would hide anything in them...?" Kaleo smiled. "I can help move some of the broken piles too, in case someone used the part that fell over to bury something."

Akamu looked over to the leaning house and cocked his head in the direction of the slope, eyeing the foundation as he did so. "I'd recommend not kicking over anything yet bud, I don't think this thing is standing on its own power anymore. That broken bit may be the only thing holding this place upright. Searching around out here may be the safest option before we try and actually go inside because honestly the only one who might be safe doing so is our ghost friend over here."

Oliver started looking around in the bushes nearby, and pulled out something bright red and round. Whatever it was, he put it aside, so it probably wasn't something they had been looking for. Whenever humans got involved, she wasn't sure what exactly they would put their edibles in. He added, "There might be something in the hedges--bush things--" He pointed at the bushes, "--so I'd give them a poke-through, maybe? If- you think someone would hide anything in them...?"

"I can help move some of the broken piles too, in case someone used the part that fell over to bury something," Kaleo offered. Isolde brightened at that; that would definitely be useful.

Before he could act on that, Akamu was quick to warn them, "I'd recommend not kicking over anything yet bud, I don't think this thing is standing on its own power anymore. That broken bit may be the only thing holding this place upright. Searching around out here may be the safest option before we try and actually go inside because honestly the only one who might be safe doing so is our ghost friend over here." She glanced over at Phobos. That would be an idea... But she didn't want to make the young ghost do something she didn't want to.

"Yes, for now let's stay outside of the building," she reiterated. If they couldn't find anything, then she might ask Phobos to look around inside. She flew to a different patch of bushes that Oliver wasn't near and started looking through the leaved branches. Finally, she thought she saw something. It looked like a tiny, stunted berry bush that was competing with the larger bush to survive. A faint sweet scent caught her attention as she looked through the leaves of the smaller bush, and she excitedly dug in a little deeper to find a few abnormally small Pecha berries. Some of them smelled ripe, so she picked a few and flew over to the others. "Found these... But they are a bit small. Do you want some?" She offered to the children. She could get some later, or they might find more.

"I can help move some of the broken piles too, in case someone used the part that fell over to bury something," the donkey suggested. Oliver's face lit up. Oh, that would be wonderful!

"I'd recommend not kicking over anything yet bud," Akamu cautioned, "I don't think this thing is standing on its own power anymore. That broken bit may be the only thing holding this place upright. Searching around out here may be the safest option before we try and actually go inside because honestly the only one who might be safe doing so is our ghost friend over here."

He winced at the thought of Phobos going inside that place. Yeah, if anything came down he'd be fine, but still. Wouldn't that be terrifying?

"Yes, for now let's stay outside of the building," Isolde agreed, moving to examine a different part of the hedges. The young monkey returned to picking through his chosen side, carefully poking around, hoping his hands wouldn't find anything unpleasant.

Then again, what could be in here that would be bad? Besides, I dunno, rotten food? Or- oh no wait, what about a trap? If someone had stored their food in here, they might safeguard it, right?

... If they were going through the trouble of safeguarding it, did they have any right to be raiding this place? He withdrew his hand from the bush with a jolt of shock.

We've been working under the idea that everyone here in this town is dead, but if we find something fresh enough to eat around here, then is everyone actually dead? What if there are more survivors here, and we're not scavaging stuff from people who can't use them anymore, but stealing from fellow survivors?

"Found these," Isolde interupted his thoughts with, Oliver jumping nearly out of his skin, "but they are a bit small. Do you want some?"

She held them out to them, Oliver biting his lip.

"H-how do we know any of this is abandoned? If the food caches we find here are good enough to e-eat, someone who made this town their home before us might have hid that there to keep their eggs from being all in one basket..." He eyed the Pecha berries. "Berries on the bush don't mean anyone hid food, but if we find anything that was picked, or if that candy that might be here was obviously stockpiked, w-we should be careful..."

"Yes, for now let's stay outside of the building," Akamu nodded as Isolde agreed to his fear of anything befalling anyone who went outside and began to hunt around. The smoke and ash made sniffing anything out very difficult but he was still picking up something sweet in the area. He just wan't sure if he could place it or not.

Kaleo busied himself by following Oliver around, the monkey's nimble hands and fingers much more suited to hunting than his sturdy, flat hooves. He watched over the smaller creature with a soft smile, occasionally checking over his shoulder or holding a bit of brush out of the way so he could see what the Chimchar was up to. Akamu had gone around to another side of the building to check for a garden when they both heard Isolde claim a find.

"Found these... But they are a bit small. Do you want some?" Akamu strolled up to the moth and sniffed carefully at the small berries in her hand, the sweet scent of before sparking an association. "I think you may have tracked down a source of the scent I caught before. But there has to be more somewhere... I wouldn't pick up on anything so tiny through this smoke on its own. Maybe in the back garden? We could check the other side of the fence."

"H-how do we know any of this is abandoned? If the food caches we find here are good enough to e-eat, someone who made this town their home before us might have hid that there to keep their eggs from being all in one basket..." Kaleo's eyes followed Oliver's gaze and he contemplated what it would mean if someone put those things here on purpose. Was it wrong to take food someone else hid? What if they were..no. No musn't think that way. Akamu would get mad. "Berries on the bush don't mean anyone hid food, but if we find anything that was picked, or if that candy that might be here was obviously stockpiked, w-we should be careful..."

At Oliver's concern Kaleo also bent his large head to take a gander at what was easily recognized as Pecha to the ranch pokemon and snorted a bit when the sweet smell tickled his nose. "They are really small...were they on the ground or on a bush? The bush must be strangled for sunlight and water if they grew this small... Maybe we could replant it? I doubt anyone planted a bush on purpose where it couldn't grow." Akamu was already headed back to the other side of the house to look for a back garden and didn't reply leaving the Mudbray to duck his head shyly. He didn't normally speak so much without his friend around and felt exposed. Where was Akamu getting off to?

"Hey guys, can anyone see over this fence? I think I smell potting soil on this side."

Akamu took a sniff at the berries she carried before saying, "I think you may have tracked down a source of the scent I caught before. But there has to be more somewhere... I wouldn't pick up on anything so tiny through this smoke on its own. Maybe in the back garden? We could check the other side of the fence." He had a good point, but it was good that they had found at least part of what he had been smelling. Maybe it would be easier to find more.

Isolde was a little confused when Oliver eyed the berries cautiously. Did he think they were poisoned? He finally spoke up and answered her unasked question, "H-how do we know any of this is abandoned? If the food caches we find here are good enough to e-eat, someone who made this town their home before us might have hid that there to keep their eggs from being all in one basket..." She wasn't sure what he was getting at. Wasn't that what she had been saying earlier? Why was he worried about that now? "Berries on the bush don't mean anyone hid food, but if we find anything that was picked, or if that candy that might be here was obviously stockpiled, w-we should be careful..." Oh. That would explain his worries. She had discounted the thought of there being any living staying here long term after the chaos of yesterday afternoon and last night.

Isolde tried to calm Oliver's nerves, "I'm not too sure if we have to worry too much... We made a lot of noise yesterday, and you..." She paused when it suddenly hit her that Oliver was the only one left from their original party. "And the others, were the only ones to show up." That applied to both her rather eventful entrance, the puppy Oliver's exit, when Sukoshi had suddenly vanished, and even earlier when Shadowmere had taken off in terror.

Kaleo commented, "They are really small...were they on the ground or on a bush? The bush must be strangled for sunlight and water if they grew this small... Maybe we could replant it? I doubt anyone planted a bush on purpose where it couldn't grow." After he finished, the donkey looked around nervously and bowed his head. Oh... he was making a good point.

"I found these on a tiny bush fighting with a bigger one for sunlight. It was probably from a seed that was thrown there carelessly," Isolde explained. "If you think we can replant it somewhere better, we can definitely try." Then the plant could flourish and produce better fruit!

"Hey guys, can anyone see over this fence? I think I smell potting soil on this side." Akamu was looking at a strange wooden wall that had points near the top. A fence? Huh. Must be a human contraption to keep things out. Bad luck for humans that flying things could ignore it; good luck for her group that she could. Though that still left the question of what potting soil was. Was it special dirt?

"I can look," Isolde volunteered easily. She asked Oliver, the only other one with hands, "Could you hold these for me?" After she had unloaded her small cargo, she floated over to where Akamu stood. "I'm not sure what exactly potting soil is, but I'll be back in a moment." With that she flew over the top of the fence to see what the strange thing was hiding. A whole section of the place behind the house was blocked off by the fence enclosing it. What she could see was a strange collection of plants. Some with their roots in containers and some that were planted straight into the ground. The containers looked a bit scorched, but the brunt of whatever had taken out the house must have missed this area. "Lots of plants here," she called out. Some of them had flowers that caught her attention, but she wasn't sure what they all were just based on flowers. However, the smell of the fire was greatly reduced, and she could smell something very sweet. She fluttered around before finding it. "There's a really big Pecha berry bush in here too!" She started picking some bigger berries for the children, she could easily get more after they were taken care of. After getting as many as she could reasonably carry, she flew back over the fence and held the berries out for the younger Pokemon to eat.

"I'm not too sure if we have to worry too much..." Isolde soothed. "We made a lot of noise yesterday, and you..."

She paused for a moment and he tilted his head, confused. He what?

"And the others were the only ones to show up."

... That was true.

Wait a moment. Others- others. A hole opened in his chest; he and Isolde were the only ones left of the original group that had gathered here yesterday.

As he struggled not to cry, Kaleo spoke up. "They are really small... were they on the ground or on a bush? The bush must be strangled for sunlight and water if they grew this small... Maybe we could replant it? I doubt anyone planted a bush on purpose where it couldn't grow."

"I found these on a tiny bush fighting with a bigger one for sunlight. It was probably from a seed that was thrown there carelessly," Yeah, that made sense. He nodded, desperate to refocus his attention back on this. Anything but what he had just been dwelling on. "If you think we can replant it somewhere better, we can definitely try."

"Hey guys, can anyone see over this fence? I think I smell potting soil on this side." Akamu, he soon found, had wandered over towards a fence.

"I can look," their leader volunteered. A quick glance at the rest of their group and it was a good thing, yet again, that they had her; she was not only the only one who seemed to be really good at figuring out what to do next, but she had wings.

"Could you hold these for me?" she asked him. He nodded, and accepted the armful of berries, watching her as she floated over to the rock puppy.

"I'm not sure what exactly potting soil is, but I'll be back in a moment."

Before he had time to even open his mouth to answer her question she was over the fence. Even though his nose didn't tell him there was any danger, he found himself holding his breath anyway. The idea that they couldn't see her filled him with an icy trickle of dread that was quickly picking up into a steady flow.

"Lots of plants here," she remarked. The way she made it sound like a novelty cracked through the unrelenting stream of panicky thoughts and pulled a smile from him despite himself. A garden would look pretty weird to a wild pokemon, wouldn't it?

"There's a really big Pecha berry bush in here too!"

An idea struck him.

"I-is it in the ground o-or- a container!?" he called. She appeared moments later and began handing out Pecha berries, but he had no room to accept what she was divvying up among the others; his arms were already full of the berries from earlier.

He doesn't like admitting it, even only to himself, but Phobos can't be of much help with this food business. That's one problem with being incorporeal, he's not capable of searching through most things. Or holding things. Being a ghost may be amazing, but he's a little bit limited in the presence of so many corporeal Pokemon.

Unfortunately, this all leaves Phobos feeling a little stranded. He's eyeing the unfamiliar object Oliver found, some red thing, wanting to ask what it is and what it's for. Maybe that's a question best saved for later, though? Everyone seems a little focused on everything other than the new item, that questionable-looking building in particular.

But today's his lucky day-Phobos gets mentioned without even needing to speak up first.

"I don't think this thing is standing on its own power anymore. That broken bit may be the only thing holding this place upright. Searching around out here may be the safest option before we try and actually go inside because honestly the only one who might be safe doing so is our ghost friend over here."

Yes, that's right! If the building falls (did humans really live in things that could fall right on them?), Phobos wouldn't be hurt. At least, that's what he assumes the dog is talking about. He's had other things fall on him before, but they all passed through him just like almost everything else did. Finally, someone who understands his ability to phase through objects without needing an explanation! Akamu must really know a lot about ghosts; he wasn't here for Phobos' earlier demonstration, after all.

"Yes, for now let's stay outside of the building."

Phobos can't help but sink a little closer to the ground as he listens. What else is he going to do here if he can't go through objects? He doesn't protest, though. Isolde must know what she's doing; she hasn't let them down so far. With any luck, they'll ask Phobos to put his ability to the test later.

As Isolde flutters off, Phobos chooses to stay close to Oliver. He may not be useful when it came to finding hidden things, but the least he can do is keep an eye out and make sure nothing nasty tried to sneak up on them. Phobos thinks back to those Pokemon they had hidden from, before Akamu and Kaleo showed up. He's not fond of the idea that anyone could waltz right into this place (never mind the fact that's exactly what he did himself).

Soon, Isolde returns with some small...whatever those are, that she offers the other three. It's not like Phobos can do anything with them, so he doesn't ask for any.

It's then that Oliver speaks up. "H-how do we know any of this is abandoned? If the food caches we find here are good enough to e-eat, someone who made this town their home before us might have hid that there to keep their eggs from being all in one basket..."

Phobos thinks over what he's saying, because it's a lot, and food things aren't his forte. Basically, there could be someone else here, and all this stuff they've found might belong to said hypothetical Pokemon? It could be true. Oliver and Isolde were here before him, if anything, they'll be the ones with the best judgment on this. But it's still a pretty big assumption to make...

"Berries on the bush don't mean anyone hid food, but if we find anything that was picked, or if that candy that might be here was obviously stockpiked, w-we should be careful..."

Isolde says something about what happened the other day, though it's pretty vague. Phobos remembers her mentioning another Pokemon that'd been with them, and of course, there was Shadowmere before she ran away. Probably run off thanks to him messing up Hypnosis...why did he have to go and do that? She might still be here if it wasn't for his mistake!

"Hey guys, can anyone see over this fence? I think I smell potting soil on this side."

That shakes him out of his thoughts. What the heck is potting soil? But even that confusion is combatted by his quick realization that he can help. Phobos is about to say: I can go through something like that easily! But Isolde manages to volunteer first, and her flying looks far more effortless than him going through objects. Well, back to floating around. Doing nothing. Yippee.

She calls out something about plants, and Oliver responds, but Phobos doesn't really catch the words. He's hoping they end up asking him to search that building. Not being able to help is...well, it's really lame.


(sorry this post isn't great, I had to catch up on a few rounds. which is why I paraphrased a lot of the dialogue)

As Akamu continued to sniff around the perimeter of the fence he was starting to wonder if anyone heard him when Isolde's voice called out to him, "I can look." Looking over to her as she approached, handing off her parcel of berries to the only creature with arms, he gave a brief nod. "Thanks. There is a really familiar smell over there that I think could be what I was sniffing out earlier."

"I'm not sure what exactly potting soil is, but I'll be back in a moment." Well he could have told her what she was looking for if she had stuck around long enough but before he could she was up and over the garden wall and there was aught to do but wait. And wait. And wait. It seemed the group could feel the tension building as long as Isolde was out of sight to the point even Akamu was getting nervous. Kaleo found himself waiting in the small Rockruff's shadow as he waited for any sign of life behind the fence to show.

"Lots of plants here," her voice called back after what felt like forever. That was what he was hoping for. Potting soil meant potted plants, sometimes planted gardens, but if they were lucky there might be- "There's a really big Pecha berry bush in here too!"

Bullseye!

"I-is it in the ground o-or- a container!?" Isolde was already up and back over the fence with another armload of berries before Oliver could get an answer and Kaleo happily took one to ease the ache in his throat. His nerves always gave him such a dry throat and the sweet, cooling juice of the berry helped immensely and gave him enough recovery to speak. "Oliver has a point. If it is potted we can take it to your own home for you to continue growing it. It isn't much but it would be a start."