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Aila did not wish to squander her first day off - a thing, she gathered from overheard conversations, that was a rare treasure to be cherished and used to its fullest extent - but somehow she found herself back in Camphoreon, wandering about the familiar city with boredom gnawing away at her.

The girl's meandering gait brought her to a large park, a place she had oftened practiced with Fleur in the past. She approached a tree with bark cut and peeling away: the target she had used in honing the Bulbasaur's skill with Razor Leaf. A sense of nostalgia washed over her, and she walked around the tree, gazing up into its branches with a small hand trailing along its gnarled surface. Her path was interrupted by the sight of a man and a Raichu practicing some form of martial arts a short distance away. Instinctively she hid herself behind the tree, peering out to watch their unknowing performance.

The two were elegant in their motions, like dancers. Aila practiced a number of different styles of gymnastics, but she would never consider her own garish movements - as much as she attempted to add grace to them - worthy of being viewed by others as entertainment. She found herself enchanted as she watched, almost unblinkingly so.

A slight disappointment gripped her as the Raichu surrendered in his efforts to mimic his assumed trainer. Their duet had been wonderful, though, and Aila was looking forward to the man's solo performance. A certain curiosity tugged at her as she studied his posture, and she wondered if it was within her capacity to imitate it. She took a step back and somewhat further into the tree's cover before rising to a single leg and folding her hands in front of her. She stumbled forward, however, before she could complete the pose, catching herself on the tree. Her cheeks and ears burned in mortification.

Aila was appalled by the violent reaction with which she was greeted. For one, she had not even been aware that the Raichu had seen her. What impudence that it would behave so rudely completely unwarranted!

...Or so she thought in an attempt to drown out the embarrassing possibility that she had been seen in her clumsiness. How utterly unbecoming.

She hesitated on how to react when she was called to. As a member of Team Rocket, and a trainee at that, she felt it may be unwise to indiscriminately present herself to others, even if she had no intent of betraying her alliance. Finally she opted to hide herself, and with all the stealth and nimbleness of the successful young jewel thief she had formerly been, she quietly ascended the tree and roosted amongst its leaves.

A breath of relief passed her lips when Aila realized she was in the clear, and she adjusted her position in order to more comfortably wait for the pair to depart. She leaned forward just slightly too far, however, and the pokeball clipped to the ribbon on her chest was nudged out of place and went plummeting to the ground. The release trigger was pressed by the impact, and a brief flash of light found Fleur freed just as the man mentioned food.

Food, now there was a concept! There was an idea! There was a novelty that the Bulbasaur could get behind one hundred percent! Uttering a few happy and excited sounds, she bounded over to the man with all the speed her short legs could muster.

Aila could only watch in wide-eyed horror.

"Trainer"? Fleur had one of those. She was just over there, in that- WHOA FOOD. The sudden presentation of the pokeblocks pushed aside all thoughts of the Bulbasaur's human. Fleur's expression could be likened to that of a destitute old man who, after decades of unwavering faith, was in his final moments rewarded with an audience with his god. Gingerly, graciously, she leaned forward to accept the offering.

Aila retrieved a band and a pin from her hair, fashioning it into a kind of miniature slingshot as dark locks settled around her neck and shoulders. The weapon was anything but deadly, but the impact, she hoped, would at least provide enough of a distraction to facilitate her swift escape if she deemed it necessary. For the time being she merely took careful aim and waited for any sign that this man would do harm against her Bulbasaur.

What was he doing? How dare he lay a hand on Fleur? The band was drawn taut, and Aila glared, ready to fire at the first indication the seed pokemon was in pain or danger. The man's gesture, though, seemed innocent enough. The girl made a mental note to check Fleur for any signs of bugging before returning to the base. She remained in position despite the fact that the first threat had passed - there was still no telling what this stranger's intent was.

Fleur, meanwhile, was completely oblivious to the tension that could have visibly dripped from the tree's branches. Here was a man with food! Food that tasted good without ketchup! She wasn't completely sure what he was talking about, but if it meant more food, Fleur was on board yesterday! She started in ecstatic circles at his feet, Aila continuing to scrutinize the trio's activity from her perch.

She was so easily won over, that Bulbasaur... Surely she wouldn't do something as foolish as to leave at that man's side...?

Aila had been concentrating on the man who dared touch her Fleur and had not noticed the Raichu disappear. Instinct guided her at the sudden cry behind her: Fluidly, she whipped around, tightened the band as far as she was able, took aim, and released. The pin went sailing to its mark, she did not care to wait and see if she had hit or missed; the former thief quickly relocated to a higher branch. It was from there that she was finally able to identify the thing as the Raichu.

The sudden movement had caused a commotion of rustling leaves, alongside the Raichu's triumphant cry, that did not go unnoticed by Fleur. She then remembered that her trainer was within that tree and immediately went to its base, staring up into the branches with a distressed "saauurrrr!" Vines arched out from her bulb in preparation to attack if she decided it necessary to defend her human.