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Grayson noted the stifled laughter that Dea tried to catch, failing to catch a light smirk of his own in reaction. Yes, well... he could always enforce the statement that he didn't really get out much, but then he might be dragged out to actually experience the world with admittance like that. Best to let the teasing off with a light-hearted shrug, as though saying that it wasn't his fault for the slip-up.

"I will still try my best to remember each and every one of your names," Connie assured as he shook Dea's hand, releasing it after the words left his mouth, "It's not only good business practice, but what sort of friend would I be should I forget another friend's name?" He didn't realize, of course, that saying something like that might make any other feel badly should they do just that on accident. Fortunately, the teenaged tauros took cue with Calanthia's story, snickering, "Well, I suppose there's some leniency. A lot of names in a short period of time, I take it?"

Karma fumbled with the notebook bound by zher arms to zher chest, tiny, pointed ears seeming to droop slightly at the discussion. It just seemed so awkward, to be in the presence of a conversation about memory when the point of the subject wasn't Karma's own poor-quality one. While that in itself was a bit of a relief, the ditto-child was beginning to feel a bit like a busted wheel. That is, until Lucy seemed to be more pointed with her statement as an incognito reassurance. Peering up at the girl with mismatched eyes under a messy mat of blue, the ditto tried to decipher if that was intended. Lucy was smart, though, so it was likely. Karma bit the cover of the bound notebook lightly, smiling before perking back up, "We do all have that happen, don't we?" Some more than others, but it was still normal!

Connie may have been surprised at the barrage of questions not emerging from Dea, but from the young sentret boy instead, but his smile didn't give way to it. "It's alright, there's no problem with being curious; I'm not ashamed!" he laughed, "'Connie' just sounds less proper, don't you think? It makes conversation more friendly; I've found that talking to someone using a nickname creates less stress." Peering at Fluff from behind his counter, he thought the next question was a bit silly, but not uncalled for at all, "Why, I think you could answer that one yourself, too! I'm sure I didn't have much different of an experience as you. Bit different than being a pokémon, that's for sure, and most people treat you that way as well. Lots of confusion, all around. The biggest problem was just learning to live in a city on my own, but I would imagine it's the same for most humans as well." Well... minus the prejudice, but he wasn't about to go into his life history unless they all really wanted to hear that... it wasn't the shortest story, after all.

Well, they all seem to be thoroughly distracted, Arashi noted as he listened, glancing up at Connie as he started talking. A lot. To everyone. He wasn't going to bolt off yet, that would just cause too much of a commotion, but maybe it would be safe to check the surrounding area to see if anyone was still visibly searching for him, if they even took the time to start. Very carefully, the blonde eevee-boy behind the counter peeked out from the side of the counter, a brick wall to the other side. He was fairly certain he wouldn't be spotted unless someone was specifically looking right where he was checking from, his long ears pinned back and away from view.

Connie offered a soft smile, nodding in understanding. It seemed everyone was being rather cautious about how they worded this conversation, but he was unsure as to the specific cause. Was it because they were unsure of how the teen would react to the little interview? It was a possibility, considering how the average tauros tended to be extremely ill-tempered, but he was beginning to question if that was the reason. Aw, he wouldn't get mad, regardless of the reason! His smile remained, in the off-chance he wasn't too far off, "That is an important lesson to learn in life. The tenacity to try is a skill learned, and usually one that pays off. Heh, I'll keep that in mind, thank you." They were really very understanding people! He followed Dea's gaze to where she glanced at the young ditto, finally figuring it probably had something to do with the kid; maybe Connie had better be more careful with the way he worded things like that, if that were the case.

"Ahh," the tall teen acknowledged Mrs. Willows' little story, adding a laugh into the mix, "Then you know exactly where I'm coming from! Well I do hope to do at least as well as you at remembering all of your names, but I can see it won't discourage you if I can't. That's good to know!" Grayson took the opportunity to pat his wife on the shoulder for admitting such a slip-up, snickering at the memory of the haphazard situation recalled. Connie leaned over a bit to get a better look at the maractus that piped up, "Oh, I bet! Was she alright after the fall?" He hadn't even thought to ask! His grin reappeared after the momentary surprise, "Yeah, I suppose we all mess up on it, from time to time. There are just so many people in the world!"

Karma almost blushed at the conversation, fidgeting slightly in place. It wasn't a reaction out of embarrassment any longer, however, but out of a blustering happiness. Zhe nodded vigorously as Lucy spoke to the ditto, a smile splaying zher face, but tried to keep zher voice toned low so as not to interrupt the immediate conversation, "Thank you all so much! I'm sorry I can be a bit of a downer about it, but I'll lighten up and try to remember everyone as well!" Lucy was so brave, Karma wondered if zhe would be able to build zher own confidence levels to such a height as well.

Connie snapped his fingers in reaction to Fluffernutter's statements, laughing, "Ah, Fluff? Yep, it works! That should be much easier to remember!" While he was unfamiliar what it would be like to have a trainer past being a pokémon, he was glad to hear that the young boy was able to keep his and the added help. "Good! I'm sure having the help of friends and family like that helped you out a great deal in adjusting. If I could ask, if it's not too much of a tangent... what was that like?" he nudged, hoping to not overstep his bounds, especially after Eilam mentioned that he also had a previous home. He wasn't disappointed, his question came purely out of curiosity -- in much the same way as Fluff's questions tumbled out moments before. It seemed the sentret-child had a vague parallel to Connie's own history, if only a little.

Arashi sighed, spotting nothing of the humans that had chased him off from the grocer's in the street. Truthfully, he didn't really expect to see anything, but he was getting bored with all this chatter, being able to do nothing but sit around and wait. He hated idle conversation, it was so incessantly meaningless... Eyes growing wide, the eevee-child immediately found himself hiding back around the corner as he found himself being glanced at, scooting closer to the back of Connie's stand. Karma's own eyes had grown in surprise, and the ditto jumped when zhe realized zhe wasn't seeing things. Lightly, zhe tugged on Lucinda's sleeve and pointed to where Arashi had once been peeking out from, "There... There's someone back there!" Zhe seemed worried, and the tenseness in zher voice conveyed that fear.

Connie nodded, agreeing with Dea's assessment on trying, "Oh most definitely. Nothing would get done in the world if everyone gave up when they failed the first time!" Of course, this was coming from someone who was rather bull-headed; Connie wasn't one to know when continuous failure equated an impossibility. "You think it means we care?" he asked, thinking on it a moment, "Well... that's one good way of putting it. Huh, never really thought about that." Curiosity, likewise, could be considered a form of caring, after all.

The teenaged tauros grinned, finding Mrs. Willows' technique for remembering names to be a good -- if sometimes difficult -- way of instigating memory, "That's true, and that oftentimes works for me as well." Connie didn't necessarily have a very faulty memory, for he tried his hardest to remember the names of friends and reoccurring customers, but the worry was always still there.

It was difficult not to laugh at how candidly Calanthia relayed Serenity's mishap with the floor in the past, finding it probably wiser not to make light of someone's misfortune -- especially when they were in the conversation themselves! "Well it's good to know she didn't injure anything worse! Pride can always be regained," he stated, the hint of a snicker still evident but not plainly heard.

Karma was feeling much more confident about zher predicament now, especially with Lucy's coaxing. "Thank you, I would greatly enjoy that!" the ditto responded excitedly, "I will try not to let it get me down. I think I'm doing really good so far, but it's still pretty bad." There was a sheepish grin at that, but zhe was more determined than ever to get things functioning properly, especially when there were so many good people to help out where needed.

Hmm, maybe Connie shouldn't have brought up Fluff's old home like that. It still seemed to be a pretty sore subject for the little guy, despite now having been taken under the caring tutelage of Dea and her entourage. Change was a difficult progression, and could be even worse depending on the individual. "Well you were very brave and strong to go through that ordeal and still hold onto what makes you you," the teen offered, "I think you've got the right frame of mind for it. I don't think it ever really stops hurting, but you learn to live with it. Might even make you stronger in the end." He wasn't trying to be callous about it, but was speaking more from experience, or possibly hopeful optimism, "Just keep taking life by the horns, so to speak, and you should be just fine!" Hearing Eilam try to comfort the sentret-child and Dea simultaneously, Connie chanced a glance at the woman in the wheelchair and noted the expression she was attempting to hide. He smiled at her, "You seem to be raising quite a few tough cookies there. They seem to be really happy where they are."

Karma was very tempted to scoot behind Lucinda to hide, but didn't want to be seen as a coward among everything else that was happening. Besides, if whatever was behind the counter really was dangerous, zhe had to make sure zher friend stayed safe! Hands clasped around the shoulder bag's strap as zhe stood hesitantly steadfast. Connie picked up on the encounter and glanced down at a frazzled and irritated eevee-boy. He sighed and waved a hand to Lucy and Karma, "He's just shy, don't mind him. He's kind of playing... 'cops and robbers,' so to speak, and is hiding from the authorities." It wasn't technically lying, as Arashi hadn't actually stolen anything this time, so Connie highly doubted anyone was actually looking for him, "He's harmless."

"Says you!" the boy snapped, realizing right away that that was a particularly stupid thing to have said first in an encounter with an unknown crowd of people. Ugh, never mind that, he'd just roll with it... Jumping to his feet, the child poked his head above the counter, careful to scan the streets once more for any trouble before his eyes went back to those in front of him. His short fur bristled slightly, finding it all a bit unnerving but carrying on with his more aloof air. Maybe he really should just play along... "You blew my cover!" he barked, taking a few quick steps backward, as though afraid that they were going to grab him. Karma was... confused; zhe really didn't know what to think about all this, and took a carefully sideways look to Lucy for guidance. Connie appeared he was trying not to look amused.

Dea had an interesting take on how one showed they cared, and Connie could see how the narrowed options she gave could work in many a situation, even when one played with the meaning of the definitions. He tilted his head a bit as he thought about it, giving a slow nod, "I'd argue that trying and not ever giving up is a better show of it, but I can see how letting something go is sometimes the better option in a situation." He laughed at that, "But then again, that's what you get for being a tauros. Being bull-headed is in the name, so I often forget about that!" Oh the puns...

Grayson agreed with the notions being made, especially when so many people were adding in their own insight into the matter. "And there's no failure in trying if you need to ask for help, either. Sometimes the extra manpower is what is needed for success, and there's nothing wrong with that," the scientist added, something he's had to keep in mind and often forgot himself.

Connie snickered at Callie's response as well, as a manner of agreeing from experience, "Some have a difficult time ever cutting back on the pride, as a matter of fact. Sometimes that sort of injury can do a person good!" Though a sore ego could also be more painful for those around the one trying to regain their pride...

Arashi seemed to scoff at Lucy's words, causing Karma to flinch in response, "Ha, I don't think you guys can hurt me!" No, it was more he was afraid that they would lock him up... but that was beside the point. He thought about that, flicking his tail a bit in thought before he cleared his throat, "Though I do apologize if I seemed rude to you, that wasn't my intention." He also didn't want to come across as being arrogant, considering he hated it when others acted in such a way towards him. The eevee-child was more used to individuals leaping into battle when they encountered him, but this group seemed all but harmless... He hazarded a guess, which came off more blunt than he had been anticipating, "You guys don't really battle, do you?"

Karma perked at that idea, gripping zher notebook closer and shaking zher head fervently in response. "Never had a need to!" the ditto quickly stumbled over the words. Did pokémon often battle? That wasn't just some strange tall tale?

At Fluffernutter's response, Arashi's gaze seemed to narrow, "You know, I'm right here... You could just ask me." It didn't occur to the eevee that maybe the sentret was just more comfortable talking to Connie than to this child-out-of-nowhere, especially where attitude was concerned. "I'm not scared, I just didn't want to talk," he stated flatly, "I don't get scared." He also apparently wasn't going to touch that question about family. It wasn't exactly a traditional one...

Connie almost rolled his eyes at that, as entertained as he was with the philosophy he was observing, "Manners, Arashi. Manners." Did the eevee-boy even know what those were..?

"Heh, really?" Connie asked Dea once she reaffirmed her knowledge of stubbornness based on previous exposure to tauros. In all honesty, it actually worried him to hear that, considering she didn't look to be very suited to farm work. Then again, such assumptions were merely based off of Connie's own previous lifestyle, but he knew what the average tauros was like, and Connie himself was far from average. He tipped forward slightly in interest, "How do you handle them? They are always so violent, I didn't take you for the type to try it!" She seemed so delicate, especially when confined to her wheelchair. Of course, this probably sounded really silly, coming from a teenaged tauros, but his friendly demeanor was caused by some rather unique variables. Laughing at how Mrs. Willows recalled an event from years past, he asked, "You let it inside?" That wasn't something he expected to hear, either! Tauros were quite large!

Connie gave a slightly solemn nod of agreement to Calanthia's explanation of what she had discovered upon interacting with another whose excessive pride had been injured. "Seems that's how it always happens with them, unfortunately. Just got to hope that they can also listen, but one is not always so lucky," the teen added with a slight sigh; it seemed they were in the midst of one at the moment, too, unfortunately. With the knowledge of how large a full-grown, healthy tauros could be, Connie laughed, "Glad to hear you had a back door, I would have been worried you'd have had to use a window!"

"Toyed with that idea as well..." Grayson grumbled in response to Connie's added input. That would not have been fun.

Karma jumped slightly as Lucy explained that Dea did use her pokémon to battle other trainers, beginning to feel a bit more nervous. To Karma, battling pokémon seemed a bit strange, and more than a little painful; zhe didn't see the point in it. However, if Lucy knew how to battle, and this other child knew how to battle... would they start doing so? "Don't fight!" the ditto gasped quietly, a futile attempt to diffuse the situation -- it was quickly obvious that Lucy had no intention of doing so. Some of the tension died down in the ditto-child's muscles, but the argument still seemed to be getting out of hand. Zhe bit back the urge to join Fluff in hiding behind his sister.

Arashi seemed to be brushing off most of the conversation, though, particularly because he didn't much care for humans. If anything, he was keeping an eye on the ones that were currently present only to make sure nobody turned him in to the authorities, child protection or law; it made him uneasy. Instead, he merely shrugged in response, "Well you don't have to act so high-and-mighty about it. Obviously you don't understand what it's like to live in the downtown area for a pokémon; random battling becomes second nature. I take it you don't remember what it's like to be a wild pokémon? Oh! Or had you ever been one?" He wasn't actually trying to sound rude, but his lack of polite conversation in years past was evident.

He seemed particularly amused that Lucy thought he was yelling, too, considering he hadn't raised his voice; she was a touchy one! And it seemed the sentret still did not want to acknowledge Arashi by actually talking with him... so the eevee took that as a cue that he didn't have the interest to talk directly to him at all. Instead of getting annoyed at that, though, he seemed to remain more indifferent to it. With the lower-ranking members of opposing street gangs, he tended to get the same flak, but he didn't tend to consider them an immediate threat. He just continued to feign his initial role as 'a kid playing a game.' Sure, let's just call this all a game, he mused, mussing his hair up a bit, "So you the cops or the robbers?"

Connie offered Fluffernutter an apologetic smile, but was unsure if the gesture would reach the frightened boy. Arashi had a quick, sharp tongue, and it seemed the teenager was having difficulty saying anything before the eevee spouted off. "It's okay, there's nothing to apologize for; sounds like it was just a misunderstanding," Connie relayed, quietly interjecting but speaking more directly to the sentret-child, "Don't get scared, I don't think anyone here is going to let anything bad happen, myself included."

Ahh, if that was how it was, then the tauros' strangely loyal demeanor did sound quite apt. Connie nodded in understanding, thinking it over a moment as Deanna described her history with her own tauros before speaking any more. "Well there are different flavors of stubbornness, that's for sure," Connie laughed, "That definitely sounds more like a tauros trait, now that you've explained it. At least it sounds like she had a good heart, even if she didn't think her actions through all that well!" It made sense that the pokémon had been stationed outside, but again Connie had been drawing from personal experience and hadn't realized that it was possible for a bedroom to have a door that led to the outside; that made much more sense!

Grayson looked as though he were slightly embarrassed over the imagery of climbing in through the window, knowing he wasn't the most fit of individuals... he likely would have unceremoniously fallen to the floor on the other side if he had managed to make it all the way inside through the small opening in the wall! Clearing his throat, he mumbled, "Well they got out of there and decided to take a straighter path, if they knew what was best for them!" It seemed a bit like a challenge to the ruffians, but it had more force behind the statement due to his own push to negate his wife's imagination. And likely anyone else's as well.

"That must have been tough to get through, but it looks like you made it out of that ordeal okay!" the teenaged poké-boy cheered. His expression dimmed slightly when he caught on to Callie's implications of Dea's condition, "Ended up in a wheelchair again? So it's a condition that flares up, not one that's permanent?" How strange, he didn't know what would cause such a thing, but was both worried and intrigued.

Arashi tilted his head slightly, a paled form of nodding to indicate understanding. "Ah, thought so," he sighed with a bit of a shrug. It didn't seem like the young hybrid was up to trying to see things from another's perspective. Fair enough, he hated idle chatter anyway, so this turn of events was likely an added bonus. He decided to respond to the connections regardless, as much of a passing comment as it was, "Well, they're similar. One's just about survival while the one your used to is about sport, that's all." He rubbed his nose and flicked a tail, determined not to get irritated by spilling a smirk across his face, "So I take it you're playing good cop, bad cop. Not sure which of you is which, but interrogation over!" The eevee-boy decided to give them the roles if they weren't going to say which part they were playing. Easier to stay incognito this way, and fewer questions that would need to be answered. Win-win.

Karma hesitated, "Good cop, bad cop?" The ditto still wasn't sure if zhe really liked this kid's company, but would stick with Lucy and Fluff regardless. Zhe felt safer with the other kids, even if zhe had only just met the sentret. Speaking of which... dual-hued eyes scoured either side of the ditto in an attempt to locate the boy, only to spot him quietly talking with the teenager behind the counter. Catching the caramel-haired child's comment, Karma carefully patted him on the shoulder, "I won't let anything happen, either." Even if zhe didn't really know self-defense, zhe was sure there was something zhe could do to help!

Connie snickered as Karma stepped up to speak zher mind before the teen could, "There you go, you've got yourself support. Don't hesitate to stand up for yourself or your friends if you feel you need to. If nothing else, it'll let the threatening party know where you stand on the matter. There aren't too many people in this town that are truly bad, I should know. They just, ah... take some getting used to." He gave the ignorant eevee a passing glare, but the expression was missed.

Connie chuckled at Dea's recollection of her tauros' behavior, very similar to the average tauros but for the added touch of a sincere loyalty. "Well it sounds like you've got a real friend in that one. It's difficult to determine what can be breakable to a strong enough pokémon, especially when they're not used to the man-made structures of common Gaian life. Or, you know, if something could hold the weight of one more heavy," he added in understanding, amused. Luckily for him, he still had not been full-grown before he had been changed and he had been kept away from the farmers' homestead. While he hadn't experienced the situations that Dea was relaying first-hand, he could definitely see the correlations in what he had grown up knowing as a calf of a tauros. He smiled, "Sounds like a real sweetheart; it can be difficult to come across one so gentle, but yeah... as they say, 'bull in a china shop' can be applied to even the most careful!"

Grayson nodded solemnly, finding gruff agreement with his wife's gentle words. "Violence only begets more violence," he sighed, "And if they weren't to stop early on, there's no telling what sort of trouble those kids could get in to. We've got some good people around here that would be more than willing to show them the correct path..." The words trailed off, intent on staying more optimistic than continuation of the sentence would have allowed.

While Callie's explanation of Dea's illness was absorbed and taken as pure truth, Connie couldn't help but feel confused about it. He hadn't heard of a sickness that would do that to a person, and although he couldn't fathom it and the stress such a thing would cause, it was disconcerting. "Wow... really?" he blinked, then paused for a while before continuing, "Well, I can see why that tauros seemed to click so quickly with your trainer, in that case; sounds like they're both extremely stubborn!" The teen shook his head, knowing it wasn't a laughing matter, "That's frightening, but with how she seems to be holding up and taking the world in stride, she'll get better in no time. She... will get better, right?" He had assumed that, since she had overcome it before, she could do it again; but was that a possibility for a reoccurrence of whatever illness this was?

Color him surprised, Arashi's welling irritation receded a bit with Lucy's comment; she didn't understand completely, but she was at least taking his word on it. That was a start. His smirk came easier at that, more sincere and less forced than it had been, "I was saying how I was playing a game, remember? That's why I was hiding. Have you ever played Cops and Robbers? Or Cowboys and Indians?" Yes, he was determined to keep up with that story. It would make it easier to stick around for the time being regardless, considering he wasn't apt to converse with strangers on any normal day. "Since you didn't tell me which you were, I figured you were the cops!" he barked, grinning impishly.

Karma blinked at Lucy's explanation of what playing 'good cop, bad cop' was, puzzled. "But nobody was being mean..." the ditto stated quietly, wondering if maybe Arashi had thought they were. The naive child didn't think they were, but could it have been misinterpreted that way? Or was that part of the game that the eevee was trying to explain? Karma felt zhe wasn't being a very good player of this game, if that was the case!

Connie smiled, finding the sentret-boy's heart to be in the right, if vulnerable, place. "Yeah, it's sometimes difficult to tell if someone is really bad or if they're just not very good with others! I think the city has much more of the good, though, you just have to keep an open mind. Granted, being too forgiving can have its setbacks, too!" he stated, ending on a sheepish note; he was guilty of showing too much forgiveness at times himself. "I think you've got the right idea, though. Friends and family are keys to happiness, and some people just don't have that crutch to lean on. You can see the benefits of having them, though, and I'm happy to hear that!" Connie nodded, returning the smile with one of his own.