How Many S***head Teams Am I Going To Meet?

[Josh Dragomir]

Josh nodded his head at his response. "That's fine" he said. "It's nearing lunch time for my team, so you and Auxru can feel free to join us" he said with a smile. He watched as he would ask his Lucario if he was interested in eating as well, and it seemed to be up for it. It was a shame his other Pokemon weren't able to join, but their eats were mineral-based, so they likely got a square meal when they felt like it anyway. No big. Of course, Josh himself was wary of Daxton, though he didn't show any signs of it. Something didn't seem right to him, though he kept his opinions on that to himself for the time being.

The Pikachu would nod to the Lucario's words. "It sounds like a friend would be good for him" Lightning agreed. "Everyone needs that person to watch their back. It's a cold and lonely world out there, and the more friends you've got, the better" he said. To his question, he nodded. "You bet I am!" he agreed.

Josh chuckled a bit as he returned his Pokemon, sans Lightning, to their Pokeballs for the time being. "Alright, there's a good place just below the trees, outside of town. That's where I was planning the picnic" he said as he started walking.

[Deleted]

            Daxton nodded his head and followed the kid down the hill silently, his Lucario walking to him just to walk next to him. They were still close enough though to where Auxru could keep up his conversation with Lightning. "There's always a nice spot to sit when it's away from crowded areas" He spoke almost sarcastically, looking around at the Pokemon running away from them. He had all his Pokemon following behind him, even the large Steelix who occasionally made too much noise for anyone to be comfortable. All was well though when Auxru, the Lucario, would turn around and give a harsh bark at him to stop being so loud.

            Between the rough barks to the Steelix, Lucario spoke in a good tone to the Pikachu. "I'm still hoping this works out.. but I feel a strange aura coming from your master as well. Neither one fully trusts the other."

[Josh Dragomir]

Josh nodded his head as the blonde walked down the hill, with Lightning walking alongside him, but still in range to speak to the Lucario without disturbing the conversation of the Trainers. Josh noticed that the man hadn't bothered to put his Pokemon back in their Pokeballs for the walk there... No wonder the wild pokemon were running, there was so many big Pokemon, no wonder they'd been spooked. Josh would bring his Pokemon back out when they got there of course,but had kept them in their balls for now in order to keep from crowding the area on their way to the spot.

"I'm not surprised" the Pikachu responded. "Where we came from, we couldn't really trust anyone either. There were these people that posed as members of our society and led the humans to hordes of the threat that plagued our land. They were working with the enemy, slaves, husks... Spies. I've seen those sorts just decide to throw their own Pokemon to them to be killed, usually in the same time as they manage to lead a human there to be devoured as well, along with their own Pokemon. But you never knew whether they were a human or a spy. You couldn't trust anyone, that was what my Trainer was taught. He doesn't forget easily... It hasn't been an easy transition to Hoenn" he admitted. "He's very slow to trust people, hopefully your Trainer doesn't take it personal"

They would eventually find a spot, and Josh would lay out a picnic blanket from his pack for them to sit on while they ate, and then started bringing out the Pokemon food. Josh would give a nod to Lightning to click Josh's Pokeballs while he was doing that, bringing out his team once again. Meanwhile, Josh would bring out food for the humans, along with Poke Food that corresponded to the type of Pokemon they were for. He would even slide over a bowl of food extra for Lucario as well, having had some spare from when he had learned to make Pokemon food for Izumi's Riolu.

Josh smiled over at the Lucario and nodded. "No worries, on the house. I made it myself specifically for Riolu and Lucario" he explained. "A friend of mine owns one, so I ended up learning how to make some for your species so I could help her with learning how to herself"

[Deleted]

            Daxton walked behind the kid, a scowl on his face now, deep in thought. This was just great, why was he trying to be friends with this hippie punk? Any other day, he'd be taking his right foot and stomping his face into the mud! He had to keep up the act though. Running off suddenly would look bad, and besides, he still didn't know if he could trust this kid or not. So with a simple nod, the man sat down on the grass, next to the blanket. All of his Pokemon though, were off in the distance, rough housing some. Using a sharp glare, he was able to quiet them and call them over to him. Watching them, they sat behind him, the large Steelix curling up behind him.
            The Lucario gave a nod of appreciation to the owner and started eating at the Poke-food, looking up at Lightning with a nod. "My master... he's never trusted anyone but the humans he works with. I hope that he doesn't take this personal as well.. also.. your master doesn't seem to like mine at all. I'm sorry, but that's what I feel."

[Josh Dragomir]

Josh noticed the scowl from the corner of his eye. To be honest, he was kind of hurt. Had he offended the man in some way? Sure, he didn't trust him, like he had a difficult time trusting anyone, but he wondered what he had done wrong, if anything. A frown crossed his lips but slowly faded away as he finished setting up the food for the people and Pokemon. He noticed the man had decided to sit on the grass instead, and tilted his head a bit, though didn't mention it. If that was what he wanted, so be it.

Grilled cheese sandwiches were the first course for the people meal, and some were set aside for any of the Pokemon who ate their food and wanted some as well. Josh had made sure it was safe for Pokemon to eat, and it had of course been successful. He'd made them himself, after all, he wouldn't bring them with him if he hadn't made sure they were good for people and Pokemon to eat.

He watched as the man shot the roughousing mineral eaters a look before they came beside him. Josh smiled a bit and took one of the sandwiches on the plate set aside for the people, looking around as his Pokemon were all busy eating.

Lightning meanwhile, would, between bites, look over at the Lucario and nod. "My trainer doesn't dislike anyone that easily. While I doubt he trusts him, as usual for him, he has no reason to dislike or hate yours. I'm sure he'd be happy to have a friend, if your Trainer ever gave him the chance. Of course, he's not one of the... People he works with, so I suppose that's a long shot" the Pikachu said, his ears flopping a bit. "I just hope he doesn't find a way to make my Trainer mad. While it's not easy, the consequences are... Well, what you'd expect from someone who's spent his entire life fighting to stay alive"

[Deleted]

            Daxton stared at his shoe for a while, tilting his head occasionally he looked at the burn marks on the side from where lava popped up onto him when he walked through the bases every now and then. Growling at his shoe some, he got a small, playful zap from the Magneton behind him and all was even better when the large Bastiodon laid down behind him, laying curled around Daxton, he'd make an occasional Bastiodon noise and look up at his master. The man looked at the boy, talking to his Lucario. That dog-like Pokemon was just too trusting in Daxton's opinion... maybe cause Auxru could feel the auras of people and Pokemon. Oh well though, if he could come to trust this boy, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

            Auxru gave a happy nod to the trainer, nomming on the food while turning to Lightning, the Pikachu, again. "I hear you there. Fighting for our lives as well as other people lives suck as  well. We all became military Pokemon with our master until he got kicked out." He turned his head towards Daxton then looked back to Lightning, with his ears perked. Swallowing, he chirped out some. "I think my master's aura is changing to your master's favor. He's starting to trust him."

[Josh Dragomir]

As Josh casually ate, he relaxed a bit. While he didn't trust Daxton fully, there was no reason to be incredibly tense the whole time. If there was trouble, his Pokemon would be at his side, he knew that. He trusted them. For now, hopefully he could trust Daxton. His shoulders seemed to lower a bit, signifying the blonde was starting to relax and settle down. He looked over at Lightning and smiled a bit. The Pikachu seemed happy conversing with the Lucario. He knew, in his heart, that there were no bad Pokemon... Only bad Trainers. But this one seemed well taken care of. The guy couldn't be so bad, right?

Lightning nodded, but tilted his head curiously. "Kicked out?" The Pikachu inquired. He had no idea what organization this Trainer might have been in before that he might have been kicked out of... Was it why he was so gruff? He looked over at the Trainers when Lucario brought their behaviors to attention. "Notice my Trainer's shoulders are slumping a bit. His guard isn't up as much as usual" he pointed out. "It might be the same there"

Josh looked over at Daxton and finally decided to ask the question that had been bothering him. "What do you do for a living?" he asked curiously.

[Deleted]

            He looked up at the question and shrugged his shoulders some. "I'm a construction worker. I do the big buildings you see in cities." Leaning back against his Bastiodon, Granite, he relaxed some more. What's the harm in this boy? If he tries to harm Daxton or they get into a fight, he could just hop onto Steelix and be in the next town over without even thinking about it. He seemed to be relaxing to, and that wasn't all to bad, maybe Daxton could find a human that he could trust for once, one that wouldn't stab him in the back.

            Auxru nodded and pointed over to Daxton. "My master is relaxing as well. It pleases me to see that, maybe he'll make a real friend." Nodding over again to the Pikachu, his ears flipped some. "Oh, yea... well.. you see.. we used to be in the army, and when Daxton slipped up ONCE... they discharged him. He was doing the right thing, but he was discharged for going against the commander's orders."

[Josh Dragomir]

He nodded a bit, and motioned to the food. "Don't worry, feel free to take as many as you like. It's for everyone" he said, laughing a bit as he noticed he hadn't eaten. "It's not poisoned or nothing. What do you think I am, Team Aqua?"

Of course, that had been a joke. Josh didn't actually know Daxton was a member of Team Magma, nor did he even think it possible. As far as he knew, Team Magma had disbanded long ago. Of course, that woman he met... Mentioning Team Aqua brought his thoughts back to the lake, and Olivia who was apparently salvaging an Aqua machine in order to save the Pokemon there... Which was odd considering they hadn't been hostile when Josh had been in the area not long before the incident. If there had been rampaging Pokemon, word would have reached the nearby town very quickly, and since Josh was staying there at the time to rest before he headed out and just happened to see Olivia getting broken up by water types...

He raised an eyebrow as this detail stuck. He wondered about her sincerity... But that was a story for another time.

"A construction worker, huh?" he finally said. "Interesting job, anything nearby you've had a part in?" he asked, smiling a bit as he munched on the sandwich. He was tempted to go back to town afterword to see anything that Daxton had a hand in... After he found out what he had built of course.

The Pikachu nodded to the Lucario's words. "It's good to see that. Friends are a rare thing in this world. Especially true ones" he said. "My Trainer wouldn't hurt a fly if it didn't cause him any trouble. You make a friend out of him, you have one for life" he explained. "The army? What kind of army?" The Pikachu asked, tilting it's head. He remembered Josh comparing them to run of the mill infantry in their old region... Unwitting soldiers to a war they didn't even start. He remembered his Trainer being upset about that especially.

[Deleted]

            Daxton nearly choked. *Who do you think I am? Team Aqua?* He burst out laughing, laying back against Bastiodon. That pleased him, greatly, to hear that. It was about time someone shot down that blue-balled team. "Nice one." He managed to choke out, his face turning red while he stopped laughing. The man actually had to wipe a tear from his eye, for some reason or another, that was just hilarious to him. "Sorry, I just thought that was pretty funny."

            Auxru swallowed what he had in his mouth and laid back some, looking over, between the two trainers and the Pokemon. "We were in a standard army. We fought off threats to our country and a lot of people die in our lines. We were infantry." His tail curled to his side and his ears perked up some. "It's ok though, our master didn't linger on that at all, he just moved on with it after swearing he would get everyone who's hurt him back... He's very vengeful, after we got kicked out, he grew tired of dealing with people always neglecting him and shunning him."

[Josh Dragomir]

He laughed a bit, joyed to see an actual joyful laugh out of the man for once. A grin spread across the blonde's face. He'd finally struck a chord. A positive one. It made him happy to see that, it seemed Daxton wasn't all gruff and grump after all. He wondered though, was it the crack about Aqua that did it, or was he one that laughed in general to these sorts of things? He'd have to figure it out in time, he supposed. "Funny story, actually. An old Aqua device was found in a lake near Petalburg" he said. "It was causing all the Pokemon in there, even the Milotic, to start acting hostile and attacking anyone who comes around. At least, according to Olivia, who'd gotten her leg broken by a Corphish when I was passing by" he said. "An odd one, she was. She told me on the phone after the situation was over that the machine belonged to Team Aqua and that Norman had sent her to get it out of the lake before it caused serious harm. Prattled on about being entitled to it for some reason, but that part was a bit jumbled" he admitted casually, sighing. "But I doubt it's anything to worry about. Aqua's dead and gone. Good thing too, as much as I like my sunny beaches, it's not all that fun when the whole world is fucking water" he cracked casually with a shrug. "It's odd that even today we're finding their old tech though. And why it picked now to suddenly malfunction and cause trouble..." he mused aloud, partily to himself, part to Daxton.

The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

The Pikachu meanwhile, swallowed the food in his mouth and looked over at the Trainers, listening to the story. "Admittedly we were... Well, akin to soldiers in a way. That's what Josh described us as" the Pikachu said, surprisingly calling his Trainer by name. Josh always described himself and Lightning as friends, partners, a brotherhood. There was nothing wrong with it to him. Of course, respectfully he referred to him in respectful instances as his Trainer for the sake of being polite.

[Deleted]

            "If you ask me, the teams are resurfacing. That's how it's piecing together for Team Aqua at least." Daxton relaxed some more, the pain from laughing so hard fading away now. "I failed to bring out another Pokemon of mine, mainly cause I'm protective of her right now. She's still kind of young." Reaching behind him and pulling out a Pokeball he rolled it forward some and a Chimchar popped out. "She's also the only female Pokemon on my team, so the rest of the boys are protective too. Her name is Azar."
            The little Chimchar ran over to Daxton on impulse and immediately climbed into his hood, inspecting the other trainer and his team from a safe distance. Auxru pointed to her and looked at Pikachu. "Don't mind her, she's a little wary of other Pokemon and trainers. She'll warm up eventually, especially if Daxton does." He barked some at Azar and the little Chimchar made an angry noise at him, settling back into their master's hood.

[Josh Dragomir]

"Oh really now?" he inquired, tilting his head. He seemed so sure of himself on that.... But Josh knew, somehow, that Daxton was right. Looking back at everything with the machine and Olivia, it was very likely that Team Aqua are re-surfacing...

Wait, teamS? S? SSSssssss?

Did that mean Team Magma was back as well? He raised an eyebrow at the thought. How could he know this? Josh would usually think this just plain guessing, but the way he spoke, as if he was so sure about it... It was odd. As if Daxton knew more then Josh even realized. He was suspicious, but still, in Daxton he saw a friend. For now, he trusted his friend. He just hoped that trust wasn't taken advantage of. Arceus knew there would be hell to pay if it was.....

He smiled as the Chimchar came out, and immediately showed it'd timid side. "I understand" he said. "I have Pokemon that are the same. But they warm up eventually" he promised. "That Typhlosion over there always hide behind me... Now he stands in broad daylight and isn't afraid of a thing. Fighting for your life in a near-death situation will do that though" he said, smirking a bit. "It's good to meet you, Azar" he greeted politely to the Chimchar with a smile.

"I don't mind her. I've seen worse sorts" the Pikachu said simply. "There's a Mudkip back at the ranch that's... Rather violent. I don't know what the Arceus his former Trainer did to him, but he's just so... Outwardly violent for no reason whatsoever. Just attacks people and Pokemon as if it's instinct"

[Deleted]

            Daxton raised an eyebrow, he may have let too much information on to the boy, but he always had his excuses. As a construction worker, he overheard a lot of things, especially when he wasn't 40 stories or more in the air by his self with a welder. Crossing his arms some, he was obliged to take a sandwich. All thanks to the Chimchar that had to run over, take one and bring it back to him. While he munched on some of it, he tore some off and offered it to her. She took it happily and nibbled on what was given to her. "Yea, really now. Isn't it obvious? But then again, you're new to this region." Looking down, he gave the rest of his sandwich to the Chimchar and took out a water bottle, having that promptly stolen by the monkey. "She just doesn't like strangers. When it comes down to a battle, she's always ready... but I don't let her battle, not yet. Not until my team knows how to watch under their feet."

            Lucario crossed his legs now and leaned forward. "You ever think that it might be because the Mudkip just has a rash nature? I know that Emery, my Metagross in arms has a rash nature. Of course, we have it under control, but when we let him, he becomes very violent and unrelenting." Sitting up straighter, he nodded his head to the Pikachu. "And that Mudkip could become a very valuable member to your guy's team. Powerful as well as capable of becoming a water and ground type."

[Josh Dragomir]

A bit too much, indeed. Obvious, huh? Maybe he should have seen the signs sooner. He nodded a bit and took another bite of his sammich. "I guess we'll just have to keep our eyes and ears open for when they make themselves known" he said calmly. "You never know who could be a member. Who knows? I could be part of Team Aqua" he cracked with a cheeky grin.

The Pikachu shook his head. "Nah, we have Pokemon of that nature. We've had wild and out there ones too. But this guy? He's just so... Creepy, and violent. He could stare right into your soul. You don't know when he's gonna attack or where he's going to come from"