[1] New region, fresh start.

[Quill]

Benjamin Holt, having finally arrived in Lanorae, was ready to get going. The trip over had been long, stressful, and (thanks to the miracle of public transportation) he'd been stuck next to a whiny six-year-old who found it fun to ask Holt every question that came to his mind. Why his mother hadn't intervened... Well, Holt could assume she was annoyed by the child, too. And, after explaining (for the fifth time) why ice floats, he decided to ignore the kid and had done a little (more) research on the region he was bound for.

He was scanning over the list of native starters (Iglora was his current favorite), when something else caught his eye -- there was a small article about eggs... If one so wished, a random pokemon egg could be chosen as a starter, with no guarantee as to what would come out of it. As much as Holt disliked the idea of not being in control, he knew this adventure was as much a personal one as physical. ... And leaving that up to chance... Well, it might teach him that everything has its place, not just the strong. (He still, by no means, was hoping for a Caterpie, but... He supposed, if he got something like that... It would be both a learning experience and a challenge -- something Holt could never pass up.)

So, after spending a night in a small hotel on the outskirts of town, Holt found himself staning outside the Lanorae region lab. It was a nice day, certainly, and he was wearing just a t-shirt (plain grey) and an old pair of jeans. (As much as he wanted to wear his suit, he figured it probably wasn't the best idea, and, besides -- the skies were threatening rain.)

He knocked on the laboratory's door -- a sharp rap or two -- and stood back, waiting. "Hello? I'm here for a starter..."

[Liz]

"I put it there! I swear I did! I mean, I must've, 'cause I remember doing the research and writing it down, so it's only logical I put it there 'cause my own desk is a mess,"

It was almost common knowledge within the walls of the Konika Village Laboratory that whenever Wade Wilson got worried, he was incapable of keeping his mouth shut. So now, the young man was stressing to find his missing data, tearing through the piles and piles of paperwork he had already collected on his desk. Oh, this was useless, this was hopeless, he was going to...

Wade blinked, a confused expression splashed across his face as he aimed his attention at the door. That did sound like someone was knocking on the door. Thank Arceus, he wasn't going crazy after all. ...Well, maybe a little.

His missing data completely forgotten, the twenty-something Aide roughly shoved his paperwork aside (his way of cleaning his desk, probably) and made for the door, a hint of a smile curving his lips as he twisted the handle and opened it. "Hey mate, welcome. Please, come on in. I'm Wade, by the way, Wade Wilson."

Leaving Holt and the invitation to step inside at the door, Wade retreated back to his desk, semi-casually pushing a calculator that was still lying there aside. That done, the Aide sat himself down on top of the desk and scratched the back of his neck. "So, a starter eh? Did you read up on our selection or should I get my folders out?"

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[Quill]

ooc| Congrats on the promotion, Liz. :3

"Hey mate, welcome. Please, come on in. I'm Wade, by the way, Wade Wilson."

Holt followed him into the lab, taking a quick look around before responding.
"Name's Benjamin Holt... I appreciate the help."

The lab was a little different than he'd imagined it -- well, he wasn't really sure what he was expecting to see. Certainly not paperwork, but it made sense for a place with so much to keep track of to keep records of some sort.

"So, a starter eh? Did you read up on our selection or should I get my folders out?"

"Hmm? Oh -- No, I did my research, and I have to say the native starters are quite impressive," he answered, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "However, I read somewhere that this lab has quite the variety of eggs waiting to hatch... And that, if I wanted to take my chances, I could pick one of those as my starter. I'd like to take that route, if that's at all possible."

Holt clasped his hands behind his back and politely waited. He was a little nervous -- what if he'd read wrong, or, almost worse, if he didn't and all they had were Wurmple eggs? -- but certainly wasn't the type to let that show.

[Liz]

OoC// Thanks Quill. ^^

"Benjamin Holt. Nice. A mouthful, no offence, but nice; D'you mind at all if I shorten?" said the Aide after Holt introduced himself. Wade was probably being a bit too polite for his doing; perhaps the now dormant fear of having lost his important data was still getting to him. If so, he managed quite well to hide it: maybe Wade was just having a good day today.

"Hmm? Oh -- No, I did my research, and I have to say the native starters are quite impressive,"

"Why, thank you," Wade spoke with a grin, "I'd like to say I discovered them, but then I'd get some people riled up at me. Again. And I don't think I need that, certainly not after I lost... Oh bugger."

Bless him, he'd remembered his data. His grin reduced to a somewhat nervous smile by now, the aide pushed his hands into the pockets of his labcoat, listening as Holt continued to speak. Eggs? Eggs... eggs... Oh, eggs! Clicking his fingers as his mind slowly remembered the stunt with the Eggs the laboratory had set up recently, Wade pushed himself back to his feet. "Now that you mention it, we do have a bunch of Eggs we keep... around here somewhere," he mumbled, mostly to himself rather than addressing Holt, "If only I could remember...Hm. Oh yeah! Could you come with me, please?"

Without waiting for any kind of reply, Wade had begun digging around the pockets in his labcoat while approaching a door on the right side of the room, rather triumphantly pulling a set of keys from his pockets which he then used to unlock the door. Once it was opened, hot air was released into the main room of the laboratory and a smaller room lined with shelves from the floor to the very ceiling was revealed.

"We needa keep the Eggs warm, hence the heat," the Aide explained, looking back to check if Holt had followed him, "Sometimes they hatch on their own, sometimes they need a special presence, of a Trainer usually. You can take a little walk around the place, see if one of 'em opens up to you."

OoC// I hope this is alright, I'm not really sure how else to do it, seeing as, Wade giving Holt just some Egg without giving Holt a say seemed a bit...stupid to me.

[/blockquote]

[Quill]

ooc| Naw, it's fine. I'd much rather have a good roleplay than have a random pokemon thrown at poor Ben.

Holt raised an eyebrow as the aide fumbled for... Well, a key, he assumed to some sort of incubator room.

"If only I could remember...Hm. Oh yeah! Could you come with me, please?"

Holt followed, of course, his curiosity piqued by the mysterious door -- and even more so, once it had been opened, by the gust of warm air. He stepped eagerly inside (trying not to look too much like a child in a candy shop, and failing miserably) and glanced around.

"We needa keep the Eggs warm, hence the heat... Sometimes they hatch on their own, sometimes they need a special presence, of a Trainer usually. You can take a little walk around the place, see if one of 'em opens up to you."

"Right, right. I'm surprised the entire room is used. I've only ever seen incubators for one or two eggs -- this is quite interesting. Are these eggs from laboratory pokemon or what?"

Without really waiting for a response, Holt stepped further into the room, peering at the different shelves. (He was looking, currently, at a brownish egg on the second shelf.) He'd never really seen pokemon eggs before. Sure, he'd read about them, probably back in elementary school, but the variety of colors was something he hadn't visualized. (He'd kind of been thinking they were all off-white, though he wasn't sure why.)

[Liz]

"We keep a semi-large number of Eggs, just in case. It'd be hard to provide soon-to-be Trainers if we only had an icubator for two Eggs," Wade said with a nod, following Holt further inside and leaving the door slightly ajar; he hated this bloody heat. Sure, it helped the Eggs, but Wade'd rather have Serenity in here. Nothing seemed to bother than girl...

In response to Holt's question, despite the boy seeming more occupied with watching the Eggs than watching him, Wade nodded. "Some of them are. We usually get the rest from local Breeders, young Pokémon as well as Eggs. And sometimes we indeed use Laboratory Pokémon for breeding purposes. I don't really handle Eggs all that much, though; if Rin'd be here, she'd explain all you want to know and then some,"

Wade then fell silent, and followed Holt into the room. The aides that followed Trainers in this room usually were supposed to look out for any Egg that showed movement, in case the Trainers themselves missed it, being too occupied with looking around. Timing was essential; Pokémon generally reacted better to their new Trainers if they were the first thing the hatchling saw after breaking the shell. So when Wade noticed a royal-blueish egg on one of the top shelves twitch from the corner of his eye, the Aide almost leaped a feet into the air out of surprise.

"I should stop drinking the coffee here..." the male complained softly as he retreated to the door, grabbing the ladder that was prepped to the left of it and gently setting it up against the shelves before he climbed it. The Egg, colored a soft, royal blue, was shaking ever so gently ever since Holt had passed it; obviously this one had responded well to the young man and was about ready to hatch. Carefully, his hands trembling slightly, Wade lifted it from the shelf and stepped down the ladder. "I think I found your Egg, Ben. This one's pretty shaky."

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[Quill]

"Some of them are. We usually get the rest from local Breeders, young Pokémon as well as Eggs. And sometimes we indeed use Laboratory Pokémon for breeding purposes..."

Holt nodded, more to himself than Wade, slowly shifting his attention around the room. The aid had mentioned something about eggs sometimes needing a certain 'presence' to hatch -- Holt wasn't so sure if he believed that, and, even if that was how it worked, how would he know if he'd "triggered" anything?

The to-be trainer let his focus slip off that subject -- he didn't really have an answer -- and was gazing up at some of the higher shelves when he noticed Wade moving a ladder out of the corner of his eye. Before Holt could ask what he was doing, the man had pulled down a rich blue-ish egg.

"I think I found your Egg, Ben. This one's pretty shaky."

He couldn't see much movement (oh, wait -- nevermind, he'd seen it twitch a little) and was glad Wade had spotted it.

"Um... Thanks. I don't know much about hatching eggs -- I can't say I've actually even seen one before. Should I... hold it? I've really got no clue here, sorry."

He paused, not wanting to ramble on too much, and stole another glance at the egg that had been pulled down. It was blue -- what pokemon did he know that were blue? Of course, off the top of his head, he couldn't think of any... But that was the fun of picking the egg instead of the preset starter, wasn't it?

[Liz]

"Um... Thanks. I don't know much about hatching eggs -- I can't say I've actually even seen one before. Should I... hold it? I've really got no clue here, sorry."

"No need to apoloize, mate," said Wade with a smile, carefully adjusting the position of his hands around the Egg, making sure he wouldn't drop it. "Baby Pokémon tend to think the first thing they see when they hatch, is their mother. They grow out of it a little when they grow older, but it does help bonding with the Pokémon. Easier that way, you see."

The Egg began shaking more once Wade handed the Egg over to Holt. The blue shell had already started to crack a little near the top, and if one were to listen closely, small excited squeaks sounded from within; the little Pokémon, whatever it was, was probably very anxious to get out. The cracks graduately grew larger, and the squeaks louder, until suddenly, a small, yellowish beak broke through the shell of the Egg.

"Piplup!" the newborn cried, it's beak retreating back into the shell, and a small, azure blue eye becoming visible through the hole in the shell the young Pokémon had left. "Lup!" it cried again, and the Water Type Pokémon began pecking at the shell some more. Wade grinned. Watching Pokémon hatch never got old.

"You can try carefully removing the shell a bit. Just drop it on the floor, I'll clean up later."

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[Quill]

Baby Pokémon tend to think the first thing they see when they hatch, is their mother..."

Holt carefully accepted the egg, mimicking the way he'd seen Wade hold it. It was warm -- he could even feel the baby pokemon's hearbeat -- and twitching almost violently... He could see the first cracks forming as the creature inside struggled to get out. (He could imagine it would be quite the tiring event, and didn't much envy whatever was inside.)

"Wait... So I'll be it's foster mother? Well, I suppose that's how imprinting works."

Yup -- congratulations, mom.

As the beak punched through, Holt found himself smiling (almost sheepishly, but he didn't know why). And then there was that big, blue eye -- Holt couldn't quite put his finger on the name of the pokemon, but, as all Pokémon do, the creature itself soon told him: "Piplup!"

Well. He'd never seen one before, but he knew someone who had an Empoleon -- quite intimidating creatures, actually, but this one... If Holt had been more secure about his masculinity he might have called it 'cute' (and cooed, because it was quite adorable).

"You can try carefully removing the shell a bit. Just drop it on the floor, I'll clean up later."

"Um... Alright -- Cute little bugger, isn't he?"
(Turns out he did it anyway.)

Holt tentatively removed a bit of shell that was pinning the Piplup's wing in an attempt to free the Pokémon to move on its own -- he didn't want to do too much of the work for it.

"Come on, then. You can do it..."

[Liz]

"Wait... So I'll be it's foster /mother/? Well, I suppose that's how imprinting works."

"Yeah, sorry." said Wade, scratching the back of his neck as a rather apologetic smile curved the aide's lips. He then remained silent for a fair bit of time, but it was obvious by the way he was shifting his weight from one foot to the other that he really, REALLY wanted to have something to say. His co-workers didn't call him 'The Mouth' for nothing, after all.

It seemed that, while Holt had given him plenty material for stupid jokes now the young man had called his newly hatching Piplup cute, Wade himself actually seemed as secure about his masculinity as Holt was. The aide flashed a grin, shoving his hands into the pockets of his labcoat. "Yeah, he's cute. Congrats, mum."

Aaand obviously Wade couldn't stop himself from doing that. Though, judging by the smile on his face, he was just being himself; a tad annoying and joking about, well... everything.

The Piplup, meanwhile, seemed to be a determined little fellow. When Holt removed the painful shell that was pinning his wing, the Water type seemed to break through the shell relatively easier than before. Pecking the shell as hard and as much as he could, wanting to get out of there already, it didn't take long for the cracks on the Egg to grow large enough for the young Pokémon to poke his head through. Big, deep blue eyes catching the young man that was looking at him carefully, the Piplup blinked as it took in this strange human-thing. Shortly after, however, the Pokémon seemed to have fully accepted Holt as it's mum.

"Piplup! Piiiip!

Piplup hatched from the Egg! Congratulations!

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Quill]

Holt found his smile widening as the Piplup struggled to free itself -- it was just about all the way out, now; feet clear and everything. Holt had managed to get egg... goo all over his hands, along with bits of eggshell and membrane (lovely, no?), and though it was quite the strange sensation -- he didn't really mind all that much. While Holt wasn't what you'd call a 'people person', he did have quite the soft spot in his heart for pokemon, and if that pokemon happened to be a baby that hatched in his arms, well...

"Yeah, he's cute. Congrats, mum."

Holt smiled -- this came out as more of a grimace, mind you, but it was a smile -- and nodded. And then: The pokemon was completely free of its shell (still a bit damp), peeping happily.

"Ah -- he's... He? - Holt didn't exactly want to lift the creature up to check; for some reason he felt that'd be rude - Um, he's fine to travel? I know most young pokemon are ready to fight almost right after they hatch, but... He won't need any examination?"

ooc| Bleh. Short post. >< I think the writer's block monster jumped me today.

[Liz]

Oh dear Arceus, why had he offered to clean up again? It seemed that Wade had forgotten the actual mess hatchlings brought along with them. The shells he could handle, but the membrane and goo just made him a bit queasy... A little pale around the nose, the aide watched Holt and his newborn Pokémon, tilting his head slightly when the young trainer questioned about the gender of the Piplup he held in his hands.

"Eh, I'm pretty sure it's a boy," he mumbled after a moment of silence. "As for checking him up before you set out, I'd be happy too. We need to get rid of all the membrane and stuff anyway. You can wash him off yourself if you'd like, seeing as he thinks your his parent."

Indeed, the Piplup was tweeting and peeping happily in Holt's hands. The little thing obviously went under the impression that Holt was his mother, (sorry Holt, that's how imprinting works >D) snuggling up in Holt's hands like a small, blue lump of feathers and goo. Not the most comfortable feeling, I can imagine, but hey. Wade, meanwhile, had opened the door of the incubator room again, holding it so Holt could go back into the main room of the Laboratory.

"We'll go clean the little bugger in the bathroom." said the male, gesturing to a door a little up ahead. "After you, Ben."

OoC// You can take control of the Piplup now; I'll post his stats in the next post. ^^

[/blockquote]

[Quill]

ooc| Mmkay.

"Eh, I'm pretty sure it's a boy... as for checking him up before you set out, I'd be happy too..."

Benjamin nodded, noting that Wade looked a little sick -- he'd make sure to step out of the way if he needed to be sick... Because no one likes vomit on their shoes, even if they were falling apart.

The Piplup, now completely free of his egg, was... snuggled up against his chest and staring at him with it's ridiculously huge blue eyes. A little freaked out by the rapt attention the creature was giving him, Holt shifted Piplup so that he could hold him in one arm -- and then wiped his hand off on his shirt. (It was ratty anyway, and Holt was glad he'd decided against wearing the suit.)
So, Piplup cradled in his arms almost like a baby -- well, it was a baby -- shuffled back into the main lobby of the laboratory.

"We'll go clean the little bugger in the bathroom..."

"Right..." Benjamin followed Wade's gesture, grateful that he wasn't left to check the several doors for the bathroom, "Okay then. Let's go."
The last part was more to the Piplup than Wade, of course, but Holt didn't bother making the distinction.

He sauntered over towards the bathroom, not really checking to see if the aide had decided to come with him or not, and pushed the door open with his foot. Now... Would the Piplup mind being put in the sink, or should he be more gentle with the little penguin pokemon? In the end, Holt sat his new Piplup down on the edge of the sink -- the Piplup peeping his uncertainty at being left for a few seconds while Holt went to grab some paper towels -- and wiped most of the mess off.

"That better? Should I turn on the faucet?"

Not waiting for any sort of reply, of course, Holt turned on the 'warm' tap and splashed the pathetic stream that trickled out over Piplup's feet. The pokemon, in turn, cheeped happily -- he was a water type, after all -- and flapped his stubby wings.

[Liz]

It was probably safe to leave Holt and his Piplup alone for a moment. While he had stood there, watching the young man wash his new Pokémon, all kinds of thoughts on things that still needed to be done around the Lab had invaded Wade's mind, leaving the Aide nearly as paranoid as before he had opened the door today.

Muttering curses under his breath, the Aide left the bathroom and Holt in it, disappearing somewhere for a few moments. He had retured with both a stack of towels and a canvas pack in hand, the first obviously intended to dry Holt's new Piplup once the new Trainer had finished washing him. The latter was, most likely, a few neccesary items for Holt's new journey, one that Wade suddenly seemed eager about starting the young man on.

"So, here's some towels for your Piplup, and a Starter Pack we hand out to new Trainers as well," the male said with a nod, carefully placing the towels and starter pack on the edge of the sink, as to not startle the young Piplup. "Aaand... I think that's pretty much it. You're good to go."

[img]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa393.png[/img]
[b]Name:[/b] Your choice.
[b]Gender:[/b] Male.
[b]Level:[/b] 5.
[b]Attacks:[/b] Pound | Growl.
[b]Nature:[/b] Your choice.
[b]Experience:[/b] 0.
[b]Happiness Status:[/b] 0.

[img]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/rsitem004.png[/img] Pokeball x5
[img]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/rsitem013.png[/img] Potion x5
[img]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/rsitem023.png[/img] Full Heal x3
[img]http://pokemonelite2000.com/rsitem294.png[/img] Region Map x1

[ Credits added ]

"So..." said Wade, the somewhat thoughtful look on his face suggesting he had no real idea what to say next, "If there's an questions, any... well, just generally anything, just ask. That's what I'm here for, after all."

OoC// Stupid post, I'm sorry. My muse isn't agreeing with me today. ><

[/blockquote]

[Quill]

Holt was just about done getting all the egg fragments off his new pokemon's damp feathers by the time Wade returned. Holt hadn't really noticed he'd gone anywhere until he did, in fact, come back, and he greeted the man with a half-smile.

"So, here's some towels for your Piplup, and a Starter Pack we hand out to new Trainers as well..."

"Thanks a lot," he said, taking a moment to sling the bag over his shoulder. "You've been quite helpful."

Holt grimaced -- he wasn't too good at smiling, you see -- and returned his attention to the Piplup, who was pecking at the tips of his fingers. "Hey, now, don't do that... I've got some snacks that I brought with me, alright?" Removing his hand from the Piplup's mouth, he grabbed the towel the aide had provided and quickly dried his pokemon, who cheeped loudly in protest. "Yeah, yeah..."

"If there's an questions, any... well, just generally anything, just ask. That's what I'm here for, after all."

"I think I've got the idea down -- find route one, walk around in the grass, challenge some trainers... My sister's told me all about it. Thanks again,' he said, extending his (now clean) hand to shake -- it was an odd custom, now that he thought about it, shaking others' hands -- before he left. He figured if he was going to play polite, he might as well carry it to the end, right?

ooc| I don't think my muse likes me much, either. :3 Don't worry about it.