Welcome to Gaia! ::

The Calamus Plains were a part of Kodo that Aila had approached without ever properly experiencing. Winter as it was, the midday sunlight, impeded by neither clouds nor trees, was almost spring-like, and the girl enjoyed the duality of the warm grass and the cool earth against her body. She would have been swallowed up by the veritable sea of green were it not for a few key factors giving away her location. Most noticeable were the large Metagross and Venusaur nearby, the latter enjoying the daylight infinitely more than the former. From a further distance, however, one might first note the Golbat and Pidgeotto wheeling in the sky overhead, stretching their wings after spending so much of their travels in their pokeballs. Least apparent, due mostly to their sizes in comparison to the two giants near which they were situated, were a Mismagius and a yellow egg, one keeping watch over the other.

Having completed the task of giving lunch to her large team, Aila had decided to leave the pokemon to enjoy the warm fields, taking a place in a bed of grass nearby to do the same. Caring for the group was a harrowing task when her body was still as weak as it was, and she was verging on slumber in the comfortable sunlight.

With something akin to a warning cry, the Pidgeotto descended and lighted on the ground between his human and these newcomers, keeping an especially close eye on the Absol. The bird's movements brought the attention of all of the group to the newcomers, and Aila sat up carefully, running fingers through her dark hair to dislodge any debris that might have clung there. She watched the pair expectantly, curious of their intent. The sounds the Absol was making implied that it was less of the friendly sort, but it didn't appear to have any plans to run headlong into battle against the opposing five.

"Gui, détendez-vous." The bird huffed but obeyed, standing down from its defensive position. Aila, still seated on the ground, folded her hands in her lap and peered up at the man with scrutinizing rose eyes. He was taller than her, of course - there were few that were not - and well-built. A curious man to find perusing the plains. "Looking for something?" A pokemon, a town, a person - she didn't know what that 'something' might have been, but it seemed odd that one would just wander around in the fields with no goal. Then again, wasn't that what she was doing...?

The Absol's change in demeanor did much to assuage Gui's indignation, though suspicion remained clear in his expression. He was standing down, though, and that was what was most important to Aila. A sharp word could reign him back in if he got any daring ideas anyway. By this time Fleur had lumbered over as well, taking a place at her human's side and watching the stranger with bright-eyed curiosity. She had already reached the conclusion that the man was a friend, but she waited beside her small trainer nonetheless; since evolving from an Ivysaur, the poor grass-type simply wasn't as able to go running off to greet people anymore.

"Taking a break," she replied, her expression remaining impassive, though her tone wasn't particularly unkind. "Or giving them a break, anyway." A slight inclination of her head indicated the pokemon scattered around the area. Sure, all she had to do was sit on top of a Metagross and let it cart her from place to place, but said Metagross - and all of its teammates - got less cooperative without the occasional rest.

She turned towards said Pidgeotto instinctively, the bird returning her gaze with a mild confusion. "Thank you," she said. "He was a fortunate find. He doesn't seem to want to evolve, though." Or couldn't evolve, possibly. Gui was a mystery within a mystery: appeared before her and refused to leave, only responded to French, failed to evolve despite all training... That same mysterious bird continued to stare at the human, expecting an explanation. With a sigh, she translated a summary, "Il a dit que vous êtes unique." Gui inflated slightly with pride. Of course he was unique! More so than the silly humans would ever know! He was a prize, a national treasure! In a just world they would be prostrating themselves, or at least offering treats or something.

The fact that he had asked her name without giving his own did not go unnoticed, but Aila wasn't so stubbornly caught up in form anymore that she would make anything out of it. She moved to stand - perhaps a bit too quickly, as a sharp pain in her side forced her to lean against the nearby Venusaur for support. "Aila," she responded, playing off the stagger as if it hadn't happened. It wasn't as if she needed to appear threatening anyway; the Metagross filled that role for her just fine, if not any of the other pokemon that were equally willing to defend her at the drop of a hat. "Might I ask your own?"

She flushed slightly, more embarrassed by her readability than by the fact that Aulus had noticed her cover-up. She was comfortable enough with speech in acting, but her body language was notedly lackluster. She'd need to practice that when she had the opportunity...

"Yes," she replied, finding no merit in lying about the matter. "I was attacked a while ago," ah, wait, she couldn't very well say that a Ho-Oh had attacked her - that would raise all sorts of questions that she'd be completely unable to answer, "by a Skarmory. Recovery has proven slightly more troublesome than I would have expected." There, safe.

"No, not nice at all." She could agree with that quite readily. The Ho-Oh had been beautiful, right up until its claws were under her skin. Ugh, what a mess that had been. The mention of a Scyther was enough to cause her to raise her shoulders in a slight shudder. Bug-types were insufferable enough on their own, but being attacked by one - that was an altogether unpleasant thought. "Times like that a fire-type is good company," she remarked offhandedly. "Or a bug light." A really big one. Ugh.

"I imagine they probably are. If you wanted to find one..." She stopped to consider the various environments around Kodo, "Maybe in the mountains? Especially the ones further north, I would think." The northernmost range was a bit warmer, and she recalled reading something once about the birds preferring hotter climates... It was possible, of course, that there were simply no Skarmory in Kodo.

"Mm. True." She was glad to have Gui around when that Spinarak started following her about. Birds were plenty effective, certainly. Fire just seemed to be a bit more... resolute. A better embodiment of her innate distaste for all bug-types, too. She nodded at his suggestion - or aloud thought, at any rate - to investigate the matter at a Pokemon Center. That seemed like a reasonable starting point, and probably quicker than sifting through sources at a library as well.

Aulus's question, though directed at his Absol, reminded Aila of her own lunch. She'd meant to eat after seeing to her pokemon but had been thoroughly distracted by the warm sun. How embarrassing. Fortunately there was no way for Aulus to know of this, and so she proceeded normally, "Speaking of, I hope you don't mind if I have a bite myself. Pitre, my bag." The Metagross gave a grunt of understanding and approached, leaning forward slightly so that the pouch resting on its head slid into the trainer's hands. "You're welcome to join, if you like. I won't be offended if you've got other plans, of course."