Welcome to Gaia! ::

Xavier walked into the hotel behind the others, his Absol Abigail now walking next to him. He let her out when the sky turned dark. When he entered the hotel, he gave an impressed whistle. "I ain't been in a swanky place like this in a while. We usually camp out or stay in Pokemon Centers. I wonder if they do any special stuff for Pokemon here. If they do, I'll sign 'em up. I gotta be there with 'em, though. Can't be too careful." Abigail just stood next to him and rubbed her head against his leg.

Xavier went to his own room, all of his girls getting released from their PokeBalls to rest and stretch. Xavier relaxed on the cushy bed. "Wow. I ain't never been on a bed like this. How're you gals doin'?"

Safira leaned against the bed, her wings folded forward to rest them."I'm alright. Just feels like it's been forever since we've been able to battle anyone. I'm kinda bored." Of course, Xavier could understand his girls as easily as if they were speaking normally, though he wasn't sure how.

"You're not alone in that sentiment, Safira," Abigail chimed in."Our travels of late have been pretty lackluster."

Phoenix and Lucca were so bored that they were having an arm wrestling match. Seeing this, Xavier laughed a little. To be expected from Fightin'-types, I guess.

Lily and Vivian just went out on the balcony to enjoy the cool night air. The 6 of them treated each other as sisters, and Xavier often referred to them as such.

Fluerette stared at the hotel in wonder alongside Xavier. It was true, she hadn't been to these kind of places either. Not too often, at least. Where she went, she was mostly traveling, and so, slept on the hard ground of the forests or mountains, or stayed with a resident. She never really had that much money to pay for places like these anyway. It looked like Andrew did, though, as he went up to the counter first to check out some rooms. He turned to Fluerette and Xavier and asked if they would rather have separate rooms, or one room altogether. Roserade looked to the ceiling, while Fluerette blushed and looked down at the floor. "I-uh... separate room, please."

After they had all received their rooms, the two guys went upstairs to retire. Fluerette watched them go, bowing quickly to them from the ground floor. "Good night!" she called. After both their doors had shut, she straightened, her posture immediately changing, and she turned to catch up with Roserade, who was already outside, scanning the area with a crucial eye.

"See anything?" she asked, in a tone unlike the one she'd been using to converse with the other two for the entire day. The tone was serious, ringing clearly with authority, yet soft and somewhat gentle at the same time. Roserade looked up at its master, then shook its head.

Fluerette gazed around at the town shaded by night's shadows with cold eyes, searching for something, yet hoping that it wouldn't be there. With a last look, she nodded to Roserade, and they both turned and retired to their own rooms. Fluerette collapsed on the bed, finally acknowledging how numbingly painful her feet were. She never made this much distance in one day; usually, she took things nice and slow, but with both guys' fast, long strides, she wasn't exactly able to go at the pace she wanted.

Roserade walked to the window and stared outside worriedly. Fluerette, sensing what she was doing, gave her an encouraging smile. "They haven't been on our tails in a while."

Roserade pierced her with a stare, her eyes doing all the talking for her. "I do not think they care enough to chase after a mere Galactic 'traitor,' even one as high-ranked as you were. However, I do think that your sister has not given up the chase, and I feel you would rather not encounter her again. Therefore, it pays to be cautious."

Fluerette sighed, then leaned back and stared at the ceiling. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Well, we looked already, and she wasn't there. I would've felt it. Now let's get to bed."

Fluerette woke up early next morning. She had had a very good sleep the night before, thanks to the soft sheets the hotel provided. Fluerette hadn't remembered the last time she slept in a bed as good as this, other than Grandmother Ava's, and that's probably only because she felt at home in Grandmother's house. From the minute she woke, a soft smile caressed her face, and she yawned lightly, stretching in her covers.

Roserade, always an early bird, was already awake. It stood by the window, gazing outside. Looking at the sun as it rose always brightened the Pokemon's mood. Probably because it was a Grass Pokemon, and they all loved the sun. Now, as its master awoke, it looked at Fluerette and nodded solemnly, giving her a formal salute.

Fluerette smiled. "Good morning, Roserade. Had a good sleep? I know I did." She leaped out of bed, her long chocolate-colored hair falling around her. She stretched once more, reaching for the roof, then smiled at Roserade. "What say we go grab a little breakfast? I can't wait to see what yummy things they are serving down there."

After she dressed and placed her beret-of-the day atop her hair, she headed downstairs, a bounce in her step, towards the cafe room. Breakfast items were spread out on a buffet table, and the other hotel guests and a few Pokemon were lined up to grab their choice of breakfast. Fluerette fell in line. She picked a few croissants from a plate, a few muffins for Roserade, some butter, and a glass of milk. Fluerette looked around for any of her comrades, but she couldn't find them in the room. Perhaps they hadn't woke up yet. It was still pretty early. Shrugging, she headed over to a vacant table with 4 seats. She spread a thin slice of butter on a croissant and happily proceeded to eat.

Fluerette had finished her first croissant and was spreading butter on her second when Xavier, a Lucario by his side. Lucca, if Fluerette remembered correctly. All his Pokemon had nicknames. He eased himself into the chair across Fluerette, and Lucca took the side beside him. Roserade nodded gravely to Lucca.

Fluerette greeted both of them with a bright smile. Judging by his half-open eyes and the huge yawn he emitted upon sitting down, it was obvious Xavier wasn't a morning person. "Good morning, Mister Xavier. Good morning, Lucca. I slept wonderfully, thank you. How did you fare? Are you going to be eating breakfast soon? Oh, and did you see Mister Dal... I mean Andrew, on the way here?" Roserade rolled her eyes. Her partner tended to rattle off questions like there was no tomorrow.

Andrew had awoken with the first light of day, his Scyther not looking tired at all, but he knew that the boy would welcome the nap. He got up, showered, then dressed and went back out into the room to sit on the bed. He released his Crobat, which immediately went up to the ceiling to roost. He had decided against pulling out the other three, because their combined weight would collapse the floor just by them standing on it.

"All right, you guys, here's the game plan. We're going to find out who's behind the orders from the other day, but in order to do that, we're going to have to beat the tar out of a lot of people. I know you guys won't have a problem with that, just take it easy because dead men tell no tales, you know. I'm still not entirely certain if Team Galactic is still based here, considering that they were routed out of here about five years ago. But that doesn't mean we have to give up, we find out what we can until we find something we need." The half of his team that he had in front of him all gave solemn nods and Andrew returned them.

He got up from the bed and went down to the dining room and saw that Fleurette and Xavier were sitting down to breakfast, so he sat down next to Fleurette. She had just called Xavier "Mr." as well, and then mentioned his own name. Andrew chuckled. "I told her the same thing, man. She's a pretty quick study." He looked their plates of food and chuckled again. "I suppose this continental breakfast is a self-serve, huh?" He stood back up and went over to the buffet table, picking out some fruit and sausage and a biscuit, then sat back down next to the others.

He smiled and took the ribbing because it was expected, even though he was probably awake before the younger man. At the mention of today's activities, Andrew's eyes grew hard and steely, completely serious. "Yeah, our first order of business is to check out the old Team Galactic headquarters. We probably won't find anything because of how long ago they were taken out of this city, but it's worth a look. There's probably some new business in the building, but who knows? We may just find something, you never know who's a current member." He ate his fruit quickly, then put his sausage on the biscuit and ate it. "Any information that will lead us to people running around claiming to be Galactic will be useful."

Xavier chuckled and told Fluerette to refer to him as just 'Xavier,' something Andrew had told her as well. Fluerette smiled sheepishly in reply. Then he went off to grab some breakfast for him and his Lucario. When he returned, he asked Fluerette how old she was. "... not to be rude or anything."

Fluerette blushed. She wondered how old he thought she was. Grandmother Ava had told her before she looked young for her age. Just as she opened her mouth to reply, Andrew came up behind her, teasing her lightly on the formal way she addressed people. He took the seat next to her, but quickly stood up again to grab his own breakfast. When he returned, he started saying how they were going to take a look around Team Galactic's old headquarters. Fluerette nibbled on her croissant silently, eyes firmly on her plate. Roserade shifted position from where she stood.

Xavier grinned, saying how he and his Pokemon were ready for battle. He fist-bumped his Lucario, making Fluerette giggle. He seemed to have an equally close relationship with all his Pokemon; it was a nice thing to watch. Then he requested to bring Fluerette along with him. Although Fluerette was slightly irked that he seemed to speak of Fluerette as if she wasn't powerful enough to stand on her own, she gave him a bright smile. She stood up, plate in her hands. "Well, I don't mind whoever I go with. If we're going right after breakfast, though, I'd better get ready. I just need to fetch my bag from my room. I'll be back in a little bit!"

After she handed her empty plate to one of the workers standing nearby, she walked quickly upstairs to her room. A frown replaced the smile she plastered onto her face. "We may just find something, you never know who's a current member," Andrew had said. Fluerette sighed.

She reached her room. Quickly, she grabbed the sweaters she'd thrown on the bed and stuffed them into her bag. It looked sunny outside, so she didn't think she'd need them for awhile. As she zipped the bag closed, Andrew's words echoed in her mind. "Any information that will lead us to people urnning around claiming to be Galactic will be useful."

She had some information. She couldn't spill, though. She wouldn't. She felt guilty though; Andrew and Xavier were her new teammates. Hiding things from them seemed dirty. Yet, she had a deeper loyalty, to someone else.

As if she knew what her partner was thinking, Roserade touched Fluerette's arm gently, looked into her eyes, and shook her head. She meant to say that it wasn't the time to say anything. They left the room and hurried to meet up with Andrew and Xavier. She flashed them a smile and said, "Done. I am ready whenever you all are." She sat on the edge of the seat, as if expecting to go in a minute. "So, if I remember correctly, the old Galactic headquarters were... Veilstone City?"