Harry took a deep sip from his coffee as he slid into a small booth in the Sea Breeze Café. Sure he could have eaten for free in the Papas Academy cafeteria, but he wanted some privacy this morning. Judging by the dark circles underneath his eyes, it was clear he hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night, and his hands trembled as they retrieved a stack of books from within his backpack. Spreading everything out on the table, the young transfer student quickly checked his notes for the thirteenth time; his eyes growing wider as he realized what he'd stumbled upon.

Two weeks earlier, Harry had first set foot in the Paldea Region. Having transferred into Papas Academy as a second-year student, he was quick to make friends with Ms. Raifort, the history teacher at Papas Academy as well as the cousin of Ms. Lenora, Harry's mentor and friend from Unova. Through a shared interest in Paldean history and their mutual friend, they formed a quick bond. It was through Raifort's class that Harry had learned about an old legend concerning four ancient and super-powerful Pokémon sealed in tombs around the region. It had taken nearly a week of asking, but Harry convinced Raifort to let him borrow her notes on the "Ruinous Quartet" as she called them in class. He hadn't expected to find anything new when a certain piece of information caught his eye. At some point in her studies, she had mentioned rumors of strange 'stakes' that were supposed to be keeping the Pokémon at bay. Cross referencing her 'notes' along with the original legend of the Pokémon, Harry discovered the locations of several of the stakes. Shortly afterwards, he began to notice patterns in how the stakes were placed around the map. As if they were... surrounding something.

Flash forward to today and Harry sat in the café, finalizing his map. If his calculations were correct, he may have finally discovered the lost tombs of the Pokémon of Ruin! He was so engrossed in his work that he almost didn't hear the sound of flapping wings over his shoulder. Looking up, he saw his partner Striker the Rufflet hovering over him; a bag of doughnuts clutched in his talons.

"Huh? Oh, thanks buddy!" Harry smiled as he took the bag, and waving to the lady behind the counter as Striker alighted on his trainer's shoulder. "This is it, Striker," said Harry as he took a hefty bite out of his doughnut. "If I did my math right, and if Ms. Raifort's reputation as an archeologist is half as good as Lenora's, then we may have found some of the most powerful Pokémon ever lost to history!"

"Rufflet!" Striker chirped excitedly on Harry's shoulder. The little eaglet curiously looked down to inspect the map Harry had been furiously drawing upon since last night. Striker had always been a more curious type than others of his species. It was that inquisitive nature that had made him and Harry a perfect match in spite of the reason they'd been brought together in the first place. As Harry put down the finishing touches, he reached back into his bag and produced two leather-bound books; one scarlet and the other violet.

"Let's see... even if the majority of these both focus on the Area Zero expeditions, the authors did offer some footnotes on Paldean history," said Harry as he furously flipped through the books until he found the right pages. "Even if we can open the tombs, these Pokémon were said to have destroyed the first great empire of Paldea... It'd be tough to battle any single one let alone catch them with our current skills..." Striker's crest fell in line with Harry's. Harry had a rudimentary knowledge of competitive battling thanks to his mother, but it had never truly been his passion. Heck, the other two Pokémon he owned were ones he'd just happened to catch on sheer luck, one of which he could rarely even send out from its pokeball... Part of him considered going back and giving his information to Raifort, but she'd just form her own expedition and find the Pokémon for herself. She may not even believe Harry actually located the tombs. The more he thought about it, Harry wanted this to be HIS discovery, but he'd still need to either train himself up or recruit people to join him on his crazy crusade.

By this point, Harry had found himself so lost in thought that he didn't bother to notice a pair of eyes looking at him from one of the back corners of the Sea Breeze Café.

@TheNoCoKid

From the back of the Sea Breeze Cafe, Renata gave a wry smile as she eyed the student hunched over books and papers. Harry Kleinberg, fellow history enthusiast. The chatter permeating the air drowned out his murmurs to his Rufflet, but she had a good idea what he may be studying. Ever since day one, he'd been set on uncovering the truth behind a certain legend - the same legend that piqued her interest.

The Treasures of Ruin. Artifacts brought to life by destructive human emotions, becoming Pokemon powerful enough to fell a kingdom. The story claimed they were sealed away in tombs to this day, which could only be unlocked by pulling stakes hidden across the region. History could be difficult to tell from myth, but it was worth looking into. Ms Raifort seemed to deem it more than a mere folktale, and as much as Harry wanted to take the investigation upon himself, it would give her a much-needed goal. That and if she were the one to make such a breakthrough, nobody would make fun of her again.

For now, though, she had a different plan in mind. With Harry engrossed in his work, she couldn't pass up this opportunity. Good thing she'd bought an iced beverage, the warmth of the non-mountainous lands being something she had yet to grow used to. Sipping the strawberry slushie, she gripped the cup until her fingers started to go numb from the cold. "Shhh, don't let him know I'm here," she whispered to Maera, who looked up from her half-eaten sandwich, wispy tail wagging. Renata stood, the corners of her lips twitching as she crept up behind Harry, hand outstretched.

Of course, no sooner had she brushed her chilled fingertips against the back of his neck than a bark cut through the cafeteria sounds. Maera, completely ignoring Renata's words, bounded up to Harry with a series of playful yaps and pawed at his ankle. Withdrawing her hand, Renata sighed. For some reason, the pranks she tried to pull on Harry never quite worked.

Adam Hayes also went to the Seabreeze Cafe, with Inferno his Charmeleon in tow. You were never going to a piping hot cup of hot chocolate. No way! Inferno also got a treat too. As he sipped his drink, he found Harry and Renata at a table. Harry’s nose was buried in a bunch of books. Typical. Adam never understood the appeal of reading about stuff, when there was a whole wide world to explore! You could be out there actually doing things!

“¡Hola amigo!” Adam exclaimed as he put his hand on the table and leaned against it. “Whatcha doin? You still have your nose in a book, huh? ¿En serio? Don’t you do enough of that in class?” He rolled his eyes. “Whatever… They’re going to announce the treasure hunt soon. Then we can actually be out there doing shit, instead of reading about other people doing shit! This is my year! I’m going to get all 8 badges and become the champion! NO ONE’S GONNA STOP ME!” He excitedly put his fist up in the air.

The Charmeleon mimicked his trainers gestures. “CHAAAARMELEON!”

“That sure as hell beats studying anytime.”

Sam quietly sipped his coffee from his stainless steel thermos as he sat in the schoolyard at Papas Academy. He was stationed behind the flowerbed with his back against the school building. He hoped the tall blue flowering bushes would obscure him enough that people wouldn't notice him. The teen's bag and breakfast from the cafeteria were spread out beside him, and he was slowly making his way through some donut holes and a breakfast sandwich.

Sam had barely been in the region for a month before his enrollment into the school. His body hadn't yet adjusted to this new region, so he had been sleeping poorly. Thankfully a thickly applied layer of eyeliner hid any signs of his tiredness. The teen couldn't say he was incredibly thrilled being pushed into another of his parents' random whims, but Sam was starting to enjoy going to school. Some things he liked, some things he didn't. One of those dislikes were that he wanted to wear his gothic clothes rather than the school uniform. The silver chains, piercings, and pink heart hair clip he was wearing today were pretty much the most he could get away with wearing. Sam would be removing the uniform once he was off campus.

Sam could hear other students chatting and running around beyond his field of vision, but he didn't care much about that. Just breathing in the sweet scent of flowers, his golden eyes watched an enthusiastic pink speck zip around the flowerbed. The teen boy would have remained in his dorm room until class time if it wasn't for his Cutiefly, Manly. Seeing how happy the little pokémon was to be around flowers made the trip worth it. Taking another sip of his drink, Sam tried his best to ignore the presence of others and enjoy his time eating among the flowers.

Though she hadn't been here long, Jordan was already starting to develop a routine at Papas Academy. It began with literally rolling out of bed. Then she would spruce up in the bathroom, change into acceptable clothing for being in public, and zombie-walk to the schoolyard. There she would be able to get AJ and Aguacita out of their balls for a mourning stretch and fly to wake up. Of course, this all happened at a snail's pace and as late as humanly possible. Morning classes were a drag, but she wanted to attend all the best classes she could which would necessitate some sacrifice. With other students meandering the yard she could gradually wake up in the warm outdoors with her companions close by. She released the duo as soon as she was out the door.

"AJ, care to hook me up with a fruit?" she asked from her Tropius. He cooed and shook out his wings before lowering his neck. Her Wattrel leapt and flew lazy circles around the pair as they trudged across the yard looking for a quiet space. By the gardens, Jordan spotted a cozy place by the flowers to start her day, but as she rounded the bushy flora, a hidden student startled her.

"Oh, buenos días, sorry if I'm invading your space. I was just looking for someplace out of the way to do some stretching before class. Care to join me? I'll find another spot if you'd prefer though, I'm not a morning person myself so I understand." She smiles at the boy in long black hair, much taller than herself. If he was open to her company, she would totally offer him some of AJ's fruit too; she loved to see the reaction of new people when they tasted it for the first time.

Sunlight filtered in between her curtains, shining on her face as she slowly came into consciousness, but not wanting to wake up, Alyssa simply turned into her side and pulled her covers tighter around her. That was when she started to feel something nuzzled into her check, then a zap of electricity, and her eyes shot wide open, quickly sitting up, only to see her Shinx, Danny, sat in front of her, looking up at her impatiently.

She sighed, rubbing at her eyes. ”Okay, okay, I’ll get up,” she mumbled, thought still didn’t make much of a move. ”It’s not even that-“

Her eyes landed on the clock besides her bed, and- oh. Oh, it was that late. She had slept in again, after a… fairly late night of studying, to be fair. But that was fine, she didn’t have any early classes, and with her Mareep, Rosie, still curled up in the corner of the room, sleeping soundly, it seemed like Danny was the only one who had a problem with it.

Still, she dragged herself out of bed and quickly got ready for the day, pulling on her jacket and spending a few moments convincing her pokémon to get back into their pokéballs before leaving and heading down into the school. She still had a little time to grab breakfast from the cafeteria before they closed up to start with lunch stuff, so she headed there, sitting in the corner as she ate some pastries and doodled in her notebook. The cafeteria was quiet at this time, with most people having come earlier in the day or headed out to another café in the city, though she’d always preferred the quiet so found she didn’t mind all that much. Made it easier to think.

Jean and his pokemon had been sitting in the cafeteria for quite some time now. Jean had gotten up earlier than usual that day, as he couldn't sleep. He hadn't been living in Paldea for too long, having only arrived a month or so prior to the semester starting. As such, he still got a little homesick every now and then, and that's when his culinary hobbies came into play. luckily for him, he did have an assignment in Home Ec that he ould work on to distract himself, while also finding fun new recipes he could bring home once his schoolyears were over.

"All right, how about this one?", Jean said as he was circling another line from his notebook. Ribbit the Frogadier sat on the bench next to him, while Giri the Tatsugiri sat on the desk patiently, observing him as he presented the next item on the meny: Yet another sandwhich. Ribbit seemed kind of tired of the whole situation while Giri was just happy to be fed so many unique sandwhiches. And these sandwhiches were many and unique indeed, as Jean was working on his Home Ec assignment in regard to different sandwhiches and their effects. Apparently, some sandwhiches had special effects for certain pokemon when eaten, and so ar he had only had one such success in his testing, although that might just have been the coffee beans and marshmallow fluff implemented in the recipe now that he thought about it. Regardless, testing out new recipes were one of the funnier hobbies Jean had, and while his pokemon seemed to be tired of it, they also didn't mind being there too much.

"Okay. Last one, you guys", Jean said while breaing off a piece to Ribbit. Giri let out a sad meep and started nibbling on her end of the sandwhich, which rivaled her in size. Ribbit seemed happy about this and chomped down before shrieking immideately in a mixed reaction of dread and horror. That was one of the fun things about including his pokemon in the process: He learned so much about their likes and dislikes in the process, making it more like a bonding-session than schoolwork. However, it seemed Ribbit didn't enjoy sandwhiches with strawberry and cup-ramen. Giri, on the other hand, had somehow already finished her end of the sandwhich and seemed complacent.

Ribbit coughed loudly and chugged down the pitcher of water on the table. Jean looked appologetically around the cafeteria. It was a quiet morning, and most of the people here seemed very tired and not in the mood for dramatic frogs. "I'm sorry everyone" he politely said with a quick bow towards the other people there. Nobody seemed to have an immediate reaction, which was good. So much for impressions.

It had only been a few weeks since Rhea began studying in Paldea but it was long enough to notice the differences between it and Galar. Curries weren't as popular here, for one thing, with the trendy food being big elaborate sandwiches. The areas surrounding Mesagoza seemed a lot more open than her home region too, to an extent only really comparable to the Wild Area. The Pokemon League was different too, although admittedly she knew that Galar was more an exception to how other regions organized things. But the big difference she was really noticing right now, as she sat in a shady area of the schoolyard...

"Uuugh..."

...Was how much brighter and warmer it was here. It could've been worse, she supposed. She could've transfered to somewhere tropical like Alola or something, which would've been utterly unbearable for someone from such a dark and dingy place as Spikemuth, but still... At least her Pokémon seemed to be enjoying the weather, the two of them tossing a Pokéball between each other playfully. Of course, since Mudpie lacked arms she had to keep heading the ball, and Gigantor kept getting hit as it stopped to flex at anyone who passed by, but they seemed to be having fun at least. Good for them. At least no-one was bothering her right now, unlike that poor goth kid nearby.

Even if they were being bothered by a cute tomboy. Not that Rhea had a thing for tomboys or anything (obvious lie). With nothing else to really do right now, she leaned forward a bit to get a better look at what was going on. Just because she was curious, of course, and not because there was a cute tomboy involved (obvious lie). Really, she just wanted to see where this was heading, and it had absolutely nothing to do with a cute tomboy's back being in her line of sight (obvious lie).

...Honest.

Even miles away from the screeching of the farm espathra, Pete's brown eyes still opened at 5:30am. The sun had yet to rise, so Luna the rockruff still lay sleeping on Pete's broad chest. He gently placed a large hand on Luna's back, smiling as he felt her little body rhythmically rise and fall. Now he just had to do his best not to move until she woke up on her own. No point getting up before breakfast was served, anyways.

Pete stared at the ceiling and let his mind wander. Today they were going to announce the Treasure Hunt. He'd not participated properly last year, as his goals were vague, fleeting, and continually changing. He'd worked with Mr. Jacq to develop a more solid plan of attack this year, and Mr. Jacq had directed Pete to Arven after listening to his goals – he wanted to go down the Health track, and discover new therapies to help people and pokemon who are hurt or ill. Arven's records on the subject were scribbled in a notebook already packed away in a backpack near the door. “Herba Mystica” - the only research on them was written centuries ago, with only Arven's recent testimony providing any sort of validation that they were facts. Even the possibility of such miracle cures was worth pursuing. Arven insisted the herbs were gone, but Pete suspected there were still seeds or some other remnants left behind. A lot of stuff at the farm found a way to grow back even after it had been harvested. Also already packed were covered nursery pods, set up with soil based on what he could research about the cave conditions. His siblings had a lot of input and quibbling about what they thought would be best, so the soil pods weren't all the same – it was important to study which of them grew best, so that they could recreate it on a larger scale.

The morning sun slowly started filtering through the window, and Luna finally blinked her eyes open. She shifted and stretched with a long yawn, and then bounded up with an excited bark, instantly ready for the day. Pete chuckled and got himself up to tidy his brown hair and put clothes on – they had a big day ahead.

By the time Pete entered the cafeteria for the second time today, he'd already completed his morning ritual. His breakfast of a four-egg omelette, four slices of toast, bacon, fruit, and tea had just barely sustained him and Luna through weight training, a shower, a walk around Mesagoza, and a half-hearted study attempt at the library. He was way too hungry to study properly, so begrudgingly recalled Luna back into her ball and headed up to the cafeteria. Luna in the cafeteria sometimes attracted disapproving looks and comments from the other students, so Pete took to just sneaking her food to eat afterward. He didn't need to worry about his nacli, as he couldn't eat food anyways on account of not having a mouth.

The cafeteria staff were just starting to serve lunch, which was lucky timing. It was unusually quiet – well, it was a little early for lunch, but maybe people were busy preparing for the Treasure Hunt. Pete grabbed a long sandwich stacked with as many toppings as they allowed him to take. There was a purple-haired girl in the corner finishing off some breakfast pastries and writing something in a notebook, and a blonde boy with a tatsugiri and a tall pokemon that kinda looked like a mix between a golduck and a bellibolt. He chuckled as the blue pokemon screeched and downed a pitcher of water, to the embarrassment of its trainer. He recognized the trainer from classes, but couldn't say he knew him very well. Regardless of his fact, Pete sat beside him and offered a grin at the apology. “No worries,” he said cheerfully and fished out Luna's luxury ball. “You don't mind if I bring my rockruff out too?” If this guy had his own pokemon out, he wouldn't care about somebody else having theirs out, right? It was good logic. Luna appeared in a flash of light onto the table, and sniffed first at the other trainer's sandwich. She turned her nose up at it, but eagerly devoured the chunk that Pete had broken off his own sandwich for her. Pete took a massive bite from the other end, the physics of which was questionable given the sheer size of it. “Name's Pete,” he introduced, mouth still full of sandwich, “and this is Luna.”

Just as he popped another donut into his mouth, a brunette materialize into view. The girl looking surprised to see him. His honey eyes snapped over to her as he gave her a stony stare. Normally, that was enough to make people back away, but not this girl. She greeted him, apologized, and invited him to join her exercise routine the moment they met. His watching eyes stayed the same as he slowly chewed and swallowed the food. Talkative and friendly, she was giving off outgoing vibes despite her claim of not being a morning person. Honestly, this girl reminded Sam of the people in Alola he bumped into daily. Those cheery types of people were tiring to be around, and he would rather be left alone.

Before Sam could voice such thoughts, his pink Cutiefly stopped dancing around the flowerbed to inspect the new arrivals. Manly started by flying circles around the fruits of the Tropius before fluttering in front of the girl. Staring for a moment, it let out a happy cry. It then preceded to fly laps around her head pausing occasionally to glance back at his trainer. This got an annoyed grunt from Sam as he watched the tiny Pokémon. However, despite the clear disapproval, he didn't look particularly furious at the Pokémon. A sigh escaped, and after taking sip from his silver thermos, the teen's honey-colored eyes shifted to the face of the girl.

"Alola..." Sam began with an Alolan-styled greeting with the accompanying waving-like hand motion. A habit he had gained from living in the Alola region for many years. His rigid and aloof delivery and expression did not match the typical Alola vibe. "Honestly, sounds bothersome," He bluntly admitted as he rubbed the back of his neck. "But I guess I'll give and play along this time." His eyes were definitely locked on his Pokémon when he added that and not the girl who invited him.

The teen then began to gather his remaining food, stored in some plastic storage containers. Not because he was done eating, but so that food wouldn't get soiled and the area was a little tidier. Sam pushed his things against the wall before getting to his feet, and the size difference between them was noticeable. The girl's head barely reached his shoulder it appeared. He crossed his arms as his line vision angled downwards.

"Name's Sam." He firmly and indifferently introduced himself, "That's Manly." With that short introduction out, he didn't say or do anything else. He just stood there and stared at the girl as he waited for a name or something.

As he tried to stay focused, Harry suddenly felt an odd sensation near his right leg. Almost as if... his soul was being drained. Taking a moment to realize he wasn't stuck in his terrible part-time job back home, Harry looked down to see a little white dog Pokémon pawing at his leg. He recognized the dog as one he'd seen around the academy, but he couldn't recall the name. On instinct, he raised his Xtranceiver and pressed a button to activate the pokedex app he'd modified onto it. A holographic screen flared to life above his wrist, identifying the Pokemon as a Greavard. Harry felt a shiver run down his spine when he realized it was a ghost-type.

"Hey there, little guy..." Harry cautiously lowered a hand to the small creature when he heard a sigh over his shoulder. Turning around, he saw a girl standing behind him holding some sort of frozen drink in her hands. It took him a few moments to recognize her as one of his classmates from History. "Oh hello. It's... Renata right? Is this your Greavard?" Before Renata had a chance to reply, the door to the Sea Breeze Café swung open and another classmate - Adam Hayes - stepped in. It was all Harry could do to keep himself from rolling his eyes when Adam walked up to his table. He'd had plenty of experience with wannabe tough guys like Adam back in his home region and today was the last day he wanted one to be getting on his nerves.

"Ugh... Hi, Adam," said Harry as he quickly began to gather up his materials, muttering under his breath as he went, "Why is it when I don't want to be bothered, that's when everyone suddenly shows up?" As he slid the last of his books into his backpack, Harry turned and saw both Adam and Renata staring intently at his map. Specifically, the map where he'd marked out the presumed locations of the four Pokémon of Ruin. Renata's eyes were intently staring at the locations while Adam seemed fixated on where Harry had written out the details of of the four, in particular the spot where he'd underlined "POWERFUL POKEMON".

@TheNoCoKid @Crimson Flame

Just as Renata was about to reply, an all too familiar hyperactive redhead burst in. She tensed, wincing at Adam's snide comments about Harry's studying. "Nothing wrong with reading..." she muttered, the words coming out a little quieter than she'd intended. Although she'd been pleasantly surprised to find out the academy's reputation was deserved, and bullying didn't happen anywhere near as much as it had at her last school, she couldn't help keeping on guard against this type of behaviour, whether directed at her or others. If only she could give confident, witty responses, like how Ryme replied to detractors, instead of continuing to be that wary and closed-off kid.

As Harry began gathering up his stationery - not that Renata blamed him, with Adam around - she motioned to her Greavard. "Maera, come on, down." This time, Maera obeyed, earning a rub on the back and a twitch of a smile from Renata. "Buena perrita. Sorry about that just now, Maera gets excited around people, and sometimes drains their life force." Realising too late how creepy this must sound to someone unaccustomed to ghost types, she hastily added, "Not enough to do any major or permanent damage. Between that and her high energy, she just might make you a little run-down." She glanced back at Maera, who sniffed around Adam, restraining herself for now.

Something on the table caught her attention. She turned her head, staring at the large map. Four points stood out, details of powerful Pokemon noted under them. With a twinge of envy that Harry had figured out the locations first, Renata drew closer, making the connection right away. "Would those be... the Treasures of Ruin?"

Quickly tidying up after Ribbits rude reaction to his sandwhich, Jean was then interrupted in his thoughts by someone else. “No worries,”, the guy said. Looking over at him, Jean was almost taken aback by the hulking figure in front of him. The difference in their height was easily made up for in the guys bulk. Large in stature, it almost triggered Jean's fight or flight reflexes, had it not been for his friendly grin and appologetic stature which in turn made him seem strangely approachable.

“You don't mind if I bring my rockruff out too?” he continued while fiching out a.. Luxury Ball? Class!. Out of the sparkly mess came what looked like a Puppy Pokemon. He called it Rockruff. Jean had seen it around school accompanying other students, but hadn't actually been up close to one himself. Seeing a new species of pokemon was interesting, and the pokemon seemed to be a friendly one, quickly getting accustomed to jeans pats. While sniffing the table though, she caugght whiff of Jeans latest culinary masterpiece and made what could only be described as the snobbier version of Ribbits physical reaction from earlier. She then turned to her trainer who had given her a piece of another sandwhich, of which she seemed to enjoy.

“Name's Pete,” he introduced himself as, mouth still full of mystery sandwich, “and this is Luna.”. He gestured to the Rockruff, who in turn wagged her tail politely while chomping down on the sandwhich.

"Ehm.. Charmed." Jean responded with a sort of deadpan tone. Taken aback as he was, Giri reappeared, grumpy that her sandwhich was gone.

"Sure, yes. My name is Jean, and this is Giri", Jean responded, trying to sound friendly while intentionally leaving out his last name. He doubted anyone in Paldea would know of him, even though they might have known about his father. Giri made strange fish-like hissing sounds towards Luna, believing he newcomer would try to steal her sandwhich, as if there was anything left of it to begin with.. Jean quickly snagged her into his arms and began to gently stroke her back, which seemed to calm her down a bit.

"That one there is Ribbit." Jean then continued, nodding towards Ribbit who was standing awkwardly besides him, politely nodding in responce to his introduction. "I'm not sure they're found in Paldea, but he's a Frogadier. We're from Kalos." Jean then continued. "Well.. minus this one". He brushed over Giri's back, calming down her building fishy rage to which she let out a relaxed shirping sound to, immediatly calming her demeanor.

"Hey Sam, I'm Jordan and this is AJ and Aguacita," she said, pointing at the Tropius and Wattrel respectively for introuctions. "Nice to meet you." She smiled and clapped her hands together, "I tend to do a quick set of dynamic stretches to warm up the body and wake up a bit for the day. Don't push yourself or try to stretch further than you feel comfortable, we don't want to drag the nurse out here. So, first is easy; just some arm swings." Jordan lifted her arms and swung them across her body, slowly at first to see if Sam followed suit. He was a bit uncanny, but polite and seemed open to new things, even if he was a little off putting about it. He moved slowly, maybe even too slow to even feel a stretch, but Jordan decided he was moving at least and that would suffice for an impromptu morning workout buddy.

"Cool! You should feel it in your upper arms and shoulder going out, and your back going in." She stopped after maybe a dozen reps and sighed in content. "Moving on, leg swings are great for hips and hamstrings, but we need something to balance with. AJ?" She motioned to him and the Tropius lowered his neck at waist height. Jordan used her left arm to balance while swinging her left leg forwards and backwards. "We can also go across," she said, breathy from exertion, "but it's a bit trickier to balance so we'll stick to simple." She only glanced once at Sam with an encouraging smile, her classmate giving AJ a careful stare. Jordan knew AJ was a gentle giant and she loved him for it.

"Nice, looks like you're getting the hang of it. I'm skipping a few of them, but if you want the whole routine we could meet up again some other morning. Anyway, on to the next." She walked him through a handful more stretches. It felt like he didn't really feel interested so she didn't want to bore him or make him any more uncomfortable than he already was. Really, who walks up to a random classmate and asks to do stretching with them before class? Weird people, that's who. Though her negtive thoughts were disheartening, she put on a smile and sighs at the end of the shortened routine.

"Now that's how you start a morning. Oh! And last but not least, Tropius fruit is a national delicacy in Hoenn, or so I tell myself." She chuckled while gently plucking a pair of yellow fruits from her Pokémon. "Want to try one?" She offered one to him before taking a bite of her own.

"Thanks," he nodded and accepted the fruit, breaking off a tiny piece to offer to his Cutiefly perched on his head "It's sweet. It’s not bad." Jordan did a silent celebration in her head. That might be the most she would get out of her stoic companion this morning so she chalked it up as a win.

@Yasha@lotusthevoid

The blonde guy introduced himself as Jean, and his tatsugiri as... did he say “Guiri”? Er, no, must be “Giri”, like “Tatsugiri”. “Hi Giri, heh, that's easy to remember, huh?” Pete joked. Unlike Luna, who was begging at Jean for more pets and attention, Giri didn't look particularly friendly, so Pete didn't try to engage her in the same way. In fact, she seemed pretty territorial over Jean's sandwich. Luna turned curiously at the hissing noises, tipping her head and wagging her tail. She gave a jealous whine as Jean took Giri into his arms, so Pete clicked his tongue at her and offered more of his sandwich, which pacified her.

Pete continued to chew his lunch as Jean moved on to his other pokemon, which he explained was a frogardier. “Cool, hey Ribbit,” Pete greeted. His face twisted into confusion as Jean explained they were from Kalos. That explained why he didn't think twice about what he named his tatsugiri. “Kalos...” He looked like he was thinking really hard about it. “Is that the poffin one? Er, sorry, I'm not good with geography...”

The remainder of the sandwich was devoured in one impossibly large bite. Luna whined sadly, though Pete knew she'd had plenty already, so he chuckled at her. All the reason to have a second lunch a bit later. “So, you excited for the Treasure Hunt?” Pete asked to make conversation. He didn't notice Luna slip away from the table, her nose sniffing aggressively. “Me and my pokemon are gonna try to find these mythical herbs that are supposed to be miracle cures for things. Gonna try to cultivate them. Only problem is they're found in these caves that used to be guarded by giant pokemon – dunno if they still are.”

Luna's nose led her to a bespeckled purple-haired girl eating pastries. She sat on her haunches with her tongue lolling out, staring intently at the girl. To up the ante, she sat up, her front paws dangling, and let out a quiet whine.

As quiet as the whine was, Pete's neck whipped toward Luna and the girl as if she'd yelped. He took in the scene and relaxed. “Luna, if you want dessert, I'll get you dessert,” Pete promised, smiling apologetically at the girl. Luna looked over at her trainer, tempted by the offer, but then looked hopefully back at the purple-haired girl.

"Uh... Pokémon of Ruin?? W-what are those? I certainly wouldn't know," was all Harry managed to get out before he folded up his map and dashed out of the café. Once he was far enough away and his adrenaline died down, he smacked himself on the forehead. "Real smooth, Kleinberg. It's not like you've been studying this for the last two weeks." As if to emphasize his boneheaded nature, Striker suddenly perched on Harry's head and added a peck of his own.

"Ruff! Ruff!" the little bird chirped between pecks.

"Ouch! I get it, Striker!" Harry reached up a hand in a vain attempt to shoo his partner off his head, but to no avail. "Look, I know I said we'll need extra hands if we want to find these Pokémon, but I'm not ready yet." In response, his partner cooed. Striker remembered 'the incident' all too well to know that Harry had trouble when it came to making friends. For Arceus' sake, he likely wouldn't have approached Ms. Raifort were it not for Lenora's recommendation. With a sigh, Harry turned his attention toward Papas Academy. The morning bell would be ringing any minute and students were required to meet on the battle courts for the announcement of the "Treasure Hunt'. As he began to ascend the steps, Harry slid off his backpack and gently placed the map inside. He could worry about finding his travelling companions later.

@LuckyBlackCat@Crimson Flame

Alyssa briefly glanced up as she heard slight commotion going on elsewhere in the cafeteria, though didn't take too much notice, figuring it really wasn't any of her business what others did with their pokemon in here. Although, seeing someone else with their pokemon out, as well as another boy who got his own out afterwards, she... almost wanted to get out her own, as she knew they likely weren't too happy in their pokeballs. At the same time, though, she didn't want to cause any commotion herself, and she knew that Danny would likely cause a commotion. She supposed Rosie would've been fine, but if she got Rosie out, then Danny would want to come out as well, so best to just not, she thought.

Instead, she turned back to her notebook, though once again was distracted as she heard a quiet whine besides her. Ah. One of the pokemon - a Rockruff - had approached her table, and seemed very interested in her croissant. The problem with this was that said Rockruff was extremely adorable, and Alyssa really wasn't sure if she could say no to her. That was a problem, of course, because she really did want that croissant.

She glanced up at Rockruff's owner, a taller but friendly-enough looking boy, who seemed to be apologising for his pokemon's behaviour, at least. "Don't worry, uh- it's fine," she said, returning the boy's smile, before breaking off a piece of her croissant and offering it out to the Rockruff. And then, because she now felt bad for feeding someone else's pokemon but not her own, she let Rosie and Danny out of their balls, Rosie curling up on the seat besides her and Danny sitting on the table. Likewise, she offered a little of her breakfast to each of them, and thankfully with the distraction of eating they both behaved well enough.

@TheNoCoKid

Instantly seeing through Harry's denial, Renata gave a light chuckle. "You're a fellow history enthusiast, there's no way you can't know about the Ruinous Quartet. Did you figure out how to find them?" Had he learned the locations of the stakes as well as the tombs? Or was he in the process of doing so? She trailed after him as he rushed out, only to lose sight of him in the crowd milling through the grounds. She didn't even need to check her Rotom phone to know the bell would be ringing soon, the cue for the gathering at the battle courts, where the Treasure Hunt would be announced.

"We might as well make a move," she murmured to Maera, who bounded beside her as she traipsed up the steps. The Treasure Hunt. The thought of it made her nerves buzz with equal measures of excitement and trepidation. What kind of treasure could she expect to gain? A collection of gym badges? A large team of ghost type Pokemon? Or... Could she really hope to uncover the mysteries behind the Treasures of Ruin, even though Harry was ahead of her in that regard?

Silent amidst the chattering students, she sipped her slushie as she waited for the announcement, eyes scanning the already sizeable crowd for Harry. She'd have a few questions to ask him later.

He heard Renata mumble something, and Adam was happy to answer. “We read in class, then we have to come home, and read more for these stupid tests they make us take. I dunno about you, but I’d rather be out there doing shit instead of inside reading about it.” He then lightly punched Renata on the shoulder. “You really should speak up.”

Harry and Renata were talking about nerd stuff. Adam was more interested in the section of the map marked POWERFUL POKEMON. There was something about Pokémon of Ruin or whatever… That sounded cool, but there was really no time to talk about it further. The bell would be ringing soon, and everyone would be headed to school where they would finally announce the treasure hunt. “Race you losers there!” Adam exclaimed before running at top speed. His Charmeleon running by his side.

When he made it, he commanded Inferno to fire off a flamethrower into the sky, thinking he had made it there first.

One hour later...

Harry leaned against the far wall only half paying attention as Director Clavell's voice echoed from the loudreds onstage. "Go wherever you want, travel across Paldea, and find something to treasure!". Mentally, Harry was already plotting out the path to the first vault on his Xtranceiver. He could probably make it in a day and a half if Rotor decided he was willing to cooperate today. Thinking about getting back on that Cyclizar was enough to make Harry shudder. He'd read that Cyclizar was the main method of transport around the Paldea reagion and had counted himself extremely lucky when he found one on its own shortly after arriving. However, Rotor proved he didn't like the idea of being a trainer's Pokémon and would often rebel unless Harry made a peace offering with food. From on top of his trainer's head, Striker cooed protectively. He could sense Harry's cautiousness and saw him fiddling with Rotor's Pokeball. "Rrrr..." Even the small bird wasn't Rotor's biggest fan.

As Clavell's speech was drawing to a close, Harry looked up to see the assembled students break out into cheers and applause. Large groups began to break off and push to get to the exits while other students let out their flying Pokémon and airlifted themselves out of the school. "Welp. Looks like it's time to go, buddy. We'll see how Rotor is feeling once we get to Mezagoza Square" Turning his attention to the crowd in front of him, Harry began making the trek back through the school. Already, he was imagining the praise he'd receive upon finding these four lost Pokémon. Harry was so lost in thought, he didn't notice a pair of eyes following him the whole way down.

@lotusthevoid@Tangy@Skill@Yasha@Crimson Flame@LuckyBlackCat@InnerFlame@Rin@Agunimon