[Anyone]The High Hopes [Home] of Anne and Kale [?]

[Sarin]

(And another one. *pants* Again, brown is me, pink is Zelda, and normal is Tobi.)

It had been an hour of walking through the trees, the path nowhere in sight, that felt like days, or weeks. She cursed the blisters forming on the bottom of her feet, and blew a lock of damp blonde hair out of her face. It had not yet started to rain, but the humidity was unbearable. Anne's forehead shined with sweat whenever the trees and allowed it. The dark clouds began to increase their size, ready to let all the rain out at any second. The girl stopped walking, famished and faint. She then collapsed, falling unconscious.

Just at that moment, it began to rain--no, pour. It was raining Skitty and Poochyena, and the trees didn't protect them from the downpour much. Within thirty seconds, they were wet and freezing, with the girl still out cold.
But just up ahead, no less than thirty yards, the Merchandise Booth sat, barely visible.

Kale's face was tense as the two walked along. His pace kept him about at the shoulder of Anne, lingering a little bit behind. Since his childhood he had loved hiking and spent hours exploring the area around the farm where he grew up, but that had mostly stopped when he had broken his legs. Then once they had mostly recovered, he either help with the farm work or get kicked out of the house entirely - in no way were his aunt and uncle - his parents - going to let him get any reward for hurting himself. That was what had driven him to finally leave. But it wasn't that he hadn't hiked in a while that was the worst part, it was that the long walk was tiring his knees quickly and he had to keep himself from wincing with each step. He realized that had they decided to go back to the lab he probably wouldn't have made it up the hill; the little food that he had eaten combined with the little rest he'd had made him barely have the strength to keep his knees striding onwards. But if they stopped now he feared that they would never start again, so tired were they that the oncoming rain might wash all their strength away.

His mind didn't register Anne's fainting for a moment. He watched her fall, he stopped and stared, and a second later sheets of water struck his back and he realized what had happened. Chills ran down his spine and he felt like he might never move again, the world around him becoming a wall of rain.

But a shape loomed ahead, and his tired eyes caught sight of it. Maybe they still had a chance. Food, fatigue, he didn't think about that right now - he just wanted what the rain had stolen; warmth and sight.

He bent down and wrapped his arms around Anne, lifting her with a grunt as he staggered, nearly falling over as his knees demanded rest. He stumbled towards the shape ahead, every muscle in him aching, his mind blank but for the thought of reaching it.

After an eternity trapped in ice his hand banged against door, wall, or window - it didn't matter anymore. Many yards behind them, his backpack and Anne's lay, crushed into the ground by the downpour as Kale, too, fought to stand and couldn't think to speak.

It was a dark and stormy night at Nieyana Forest, but the Merchandise Booth was still open, despite the fact no one might come. Lora stood at the counter, a little bored, while she organized some Potions. I hope someone comes... She thought to herself, as she finished with the Potions. Upstairs, all of the other's were sleeping, including her husband, and some of the workers. Lora was an elderly woman, and the owner of this store. She seemed to be in her late seventies, and she was very strong, and had so much stamina. She was always one with a lot of adventure, and she was never tired. Her thoughts suddenly came true, as she heard a bang. Who could that be? She opened the door.

"OH! You look terrible... and that girl looks fainted...Come in!" Lora practically demanded this. She would not let two kids stay freezing in the cold, while she had a bed. She would let them stay over, sleep over, and eat. They looked freezing, and starving. "I will let you two stay the night, and you seem so hungry, so I will get you some dinner as well." She said, as she let them in. She had some tea she was drinking, and it was nice and hot. She would give it to them, and she had some leftover Tauros steak she could give them.

Kale was somewhat surprised by the energetic greeting, but he didn't have the strength to argue - not that he wanted to. They needed food and shelter, and it seemed that luck was on their side for once. He stepped inside, but remained standing in the threshold. Both he and Anne were soaking wet, and he didn't want to wet the inside of what appeared to be not only a merchandise booth but a home as well.

As he was no longer under the torrent of rain, he began to regain feeling. Suddenly he was conscious of the ache in his arms and he gently lowered Anne to the ground, leaning her against the wall as he shut the door behind them. The sound of the rain was almost like drums, sending dirt flying before engulfing it and making the ground run with mud.

He glanced out the window. Though the cascading rain it was impossible to see the backpacks that he'd left lying in the clearing, no doubt as drenched as they were by now. He hoped that they were waterproof; his extra clothes, the map, and all his art supplies were in there, not to mention the half-sandwich. With him he had only Token's Pokéball, his Pokédex, and his Lunars. At least if his supplies were destroyed he'd still have those, but it wasn't much.

He turned away from the window and back to the woman who had let them in. Thought of dinner - food - made his stomach rumble, though it was pretty much inaudible over the force of the rain.

Anne was starting to come back into consciousness, little by little. At first she started to smell something, something delicious. When she finally identified the smell of steak, her sense of taste came to. She couldn't taste much, she could only tell that her throat was dry. Anne started to hear a voice, and blurry though it was, she recognized it as an elderly lady's. The senses of touch and sight came at around the same time, and she realized how cold, wet, and hungry she was. The girl slowly opened her eyes, to see two pairs of legs. She looked up, and there were Kale and an old lady.
"Where am I?" she croaked, not able to move anything other than her mouth and eyes.

She closed the door, away from the cold for the two. It looked as if the girl was just waking up, unsure of where she was. "Well, you two looked cold and hungry, so I am going to let you two sleep tonight. Does that answer your question? I am getting you two some blankets." She said, as she quickly walked upstairs to get some blankets. She soon made her way down, with two comfortable, warm, blankets. She gave them to Kale, and she went over to pour them some tea.

"Those blankets will keep you very warm. So will this tea." She said, as she got them a cup of tea, along with a plate of Tarous Steak. "Eat up!"

Anne managed to turn the corners of her mouth into a smile. "T-thank you." she said, managing to raise her arms to accept the hot tea. The girl took a little sip, enjoying the warm liquid running down her dry throat. It definately wasn't the nice expensive tea she had at home, but she would have accepted any tea right about now. The girl set the tea down on the ground next to her. Her voice became less cracked, and she could move a bit more. It was as if the tea had restored her.

"Thank you very much." she added, as she was handed the steak. "It looks delicious." Anne picked up her fork and knife, and carefully cut it into bite-sized pieces, moving the fat parts to the side of the plate. She began to eat, making sure she ate slowly, and when she finished, she remembered when her last meal was. The last time I ate was when Kale and I split the sandwhich... The other part is in my...my backpack! she became frantic. "Oh no! Psyduck's Pokéball is in my backpack, and so is everything else! My money, Pokédex, map, and my pajamas! We have to go get it now! Poor Psyduck!" she cried out. The girl tried to stand up, but she couldn't yet, and instead clenched her fork.

"Thank you very much," said Kale softly, dipping his head slightly. She was being so generous to give them such good care... he sipped his tea silently, feeling a little bit of warmth run back into him. And he had to slow himself down with every bite of the steak, lest he eat it too quickly. It was delicious, the first good meal he'd had in a long time - at that moment in time it tasted like the best thing that he'd ever had. Soon enough his plate was clean, and he leaned back against the wall with a sigh, his eyes closed for a moment. It was a nice feeling to be full.

The anxiousness in Anne's voice snapped his eyes opened instantly. Guilt flooded into him - maybe he shouldn't have left the backpacks, he should have tried to carry them. He jumped towards Anne as she struggled to get up, concerned.

He handed her one of the blankets, placing the other one next to her against the wall. "I'll go and get the backpacks," he announced, stepping backwards towards the door. The rain still beat down heavily outside, but since he had left them before he would fetch them to redeem that mistake as best he could. He only hoped that they weren't soaked through - he didn't even want to think about himself going back into the rain.

Anne looked up at Kale with admiration. "Really?" she asked, smiling. She accepted the blanket, putting it over herself. "If you could, that would mean a lot to me." The once snobby girl said gratefully. Her blonde curls were damp around her pale face, blue eyes almost tearing up.
"Be careful..." she murmured. The girl hoped she had brought the waterproof backpack, though she couldn't remember.

Her words did make the thought of going back out into the downpour a bit more bearable, and a moment later he was by an open door. "I'll be back in a moment," he promised, stepping outside.

The overhang didn't shield him for long, and in a moment he was once again surrounded by rain so thick that for a moment it felt like he had dived underwater - luckily, there was much more air about then is usually found beneath the surface of water. Half walking and half swimming (well, waving his arms about, at least), he proceeded to where he hoped the backpacks were - it was hard to see through the rain, and the two blobs that he thought were backpacks could have been rocks for all he knew. Everything looked about the same.

At least he had gone out before completely warming up. It didn't take him long to become numb again, and then it actually wasn't so bad. And though it had seemed an eternity to get from the backpacks to the house, Kale found himself suddenly in front of the backpacks.

Of course, as water was continually falling off the sides of the two packs the outside was soaked, but perhaps the insides might still have some dryness to them. At least Kale could see that no pockets had been left open. He picked up the backpacks and began the walk back - and whether it was because of his longing to return to the warm house or just the fact that the food had given him more energy, the walk back took even less time.

He let the water drip off him for a moment before pushing the door open again and stepping inside, still rather wet. Setting down the two packs, he sat down heavily against the wall, leaning back. The contents of his backpack could wait; enjoying being out of the rain was his first priority.

( Fear the long post. Fear it.)

Lora was very glad they enjoyed their meals, it was lucky she had leftovers. With enough staff, most meals were gone. It was pouring like crazy out, and this reminded her of when that Kat girl had came. I wonder where she is... She thought, as she snapped back to the two. The girl was soaking, and the guy was soaking, and Lora had been wondering why they didn't have bags. It was like when she was a trainer.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry, dear. The pokeball is probably ok." She said, and she watched as Kale came back, dripping wet. "Oh, let me get you a nice towel, and some more tea..." She said, getting a nice warm towel, and more tea. They looked so miserable. "I am going to make your beds, so be ready when I say you can come up!" She said to both of them, as she walked upstairs.

Kale took the towel and tea with a nod of thanks, then stared at the receding Lora with a surprised and bemused expression. She was so eager to help them; bustling around and making sure everything was set as she did. It was reassuring, and... different. Not just different from the last couple of days, since he had started his journey by coming to Moon Forest, but different then anything he'd ever experienced.

As soon as he'd gone from drenched to damp with the help of the towel, he wrapped himself in a blanket. Warmth seemed to start growing in him almost immedietely beneath the thick wrapping, and the drumming of the rain was muted by the sturdy walls. So with Lora seeming more than capable of taking care of everything else, Kale turned to his backpack, casting a glance towards Anne as he hoped that it wasn't too late for their belongings.

(Woo, I wasn't watching the time and I have to go. xD So Kale's backpack's interior will have to wait until tomorrow. *flees*)

Anne nodded, and dragged her backpack over to her. She took a deep breath, and started to open it. The first thing she saw was the shiny Pokéball. When she picked it up, it was completely dry. Yes! I picked the waterproof backpack! she thought, and quickly checked everything to see if it was all dry. The blonde was smiling when she looked up.

"I did pack my waterproof backpack...That's a huge relief!" she exclaimed, and attempted to stand up. The girl finally put her weight on her two wobbly legs, but leaned against the wall for extra support. "Psyduck, go!" she said, and an expression of relief swept onto her face as she saw Psyduck safe and sound. Anne fell to her knees, and hugged the duck Pokémon. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Psyduck just blinked. "Psy?" she asked, confused, but hugged back with its flipper-wings.

[Sarin]

Kale grinned at the happy 'reunion' between Anne and her somewhat befuddled partner. Though Token's pokéball had been safe with him all along, not out in the rain, he felt the urge to release his own partner as well - the barely present press of the ball against his side was nothing compared to the companionship of the Pokémon within. But despite the fact that Ponyta's warmth would be greatly appreciated by the still-soaking Kale, the fire horse was not exactly an indoor Pokémon. And even if it meant he had to wait until the rain stopped, it would make the meeting all the sweeter. His smile renewed itself as the young man realized that though he had only accompanied Token for a day or so, he already could not imagine being separated from him for any great length of time. He wondered if Token felt the same - if not, he held out hopes that time would bring the two closer together.

"The rain's let up," he mentioned, glancing out the window again. He did his best to hold in his sigh. Of course. Of course the rain would cease just after he went out into what seemed a typhoon, to save a waterproof backpack. But at the same time, he was glad he had gone. Wasn't it worth it to see a smile melt away the worry on Anne's face?

However, the morning air still carried a harsh and dreary chill to it, despite the brightness of the sun, and exposed to the incoming breeze Kale shivered slightly in his moist clothes. He drank a bit more of the tea Lora had provided, the hot liquid slowly restoring feeling to his chilled fingers. And the warmth reminded him - he had better check whether his clothes tomorrow would be as soaked as he!

He risked a peek into his backpack. His was certainly not waterproof, but he was pleasantly surprised to find that the contents were very nearly dry, harboring only a slight dampness. He dug out his wallet and made a mental note to keep it on his person in the future, took a quick look at his assorted materials (and sadly dumped a few of the more damaged items in the trash), and zipped the backpack up again tightly.

"Well, that's a relief," he finally said, leaning back against the wall again. The apparent disaster hadn't been too bad, thanks largely to Lora's hospitality - and furthermore he and Anne could buy the supplies they'd need here. Memories of the party of Spearows echoed in his mind, and next time he planned to have a Pokéball prepared. And he wouldn't mind a potion or two just in case, or perhaps an escape rope...
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[Sarin]

(Well, now that Zelda is back I don't need my sucky post any more. =D *goes to edit it*)

[Zelda]

ooc; xD Are we allowed to roleplay again yet? o.o

[Sarin]

(I'm not quite sure. From what I've seen, perhaps roleplays from the previous board can be continued, but new ones aren't starting yet? o-o)

[Zelda]

ooc; Sarin, I'll post with my reply in a minute, but have Anne and Kale found/bought any items yet? xD I'm trying to revive her backpack. x-x;;

[Sarin]

(No, I don't think they've bought any items yet.)

[Zelda]

Anne released Psyduck from their hug and smiled at the yellow duck Pokemon. For once, she didn't care about how she looked or how much money she had. She was just happy her new Pokemon was okay. The girl patted the psychic Pokemon on the head, with a quack from Psyduck.

She almost forgot that Kale and Lora were standing there. Anne remembered that it was all because of Kale that she was here with her Psyduck. If it weren't for him, she'd be out there in the cold--no, she'd have been pecked to death by the Spearow. And if she survived that, then the fainting in the cold, pouring rain. Well, not anymore, according to Kale.

Anne really wanted to hug Kale, and thank him a thousand times, but she thought maybe it'd be awkward. He was like, a whole head taller than her. The girl stood, and turned to face him. She continued to smile, but softened it to a smile of gratitude. "Thank you." she said, and stepped forward. "Hug?"

[Zelda]

ooc; SHOOOT. T.T;; Now that Tobi's gone, we don't have a mod.