[FIN] Of Books and Memories

[BlackFireKitsune]

Inigo suddenly sighed heavily before he slumped onto the book he had been reading, and Leilani lifted her head up from her position near to the chair he sat in, large gold eyes filled with concern. "Niuumm...?" The grunt merely reached a hand blindly out to pat her on the head, staying like that for a few minutes before he released another sigh and pushed himself to sit back up. There was a very obvious bruise surrounding his left eye, the remains of the recent confrontation with his father, but it wasn't that on which he dwelt. His mind instead was focused entirely on the box his mother had given him right before that, of what was inside it and what it all meant.

Thinking about it so much though only threatened to make tears fall again, so he reluctantly pushed the topic aside and tried again to focus on the book in front of him, reading the same line for the fourth time in a row. At least it was about flowers...  

[Gwennythe]

*Patpat patpat patpat patpat*
The noise of four tiny little feet carrying a Chikorita, at top Chikorita trotting speed, toward the human and Meganium pair might be heard moments before the Chikorita himself could be glimpsed emerging from the shelves, then under a table.
"Cheee!" The younger grass-type called, perhaps recognising the pair, and certainly calling a greeting, in a happy tone that cut rather against the gloomy picture of man and book.

His departure must have been quite sudden for his trainer, occurring, probably, while she'd been distracting in hunting out some book herself.
Tambrey, a concerned frown on her face, poked her head around the shelves a few seconds later, alerted by the excited 'chee' noise, to see who Treestar had rushed off to bother now.
Hugging a book to herself, she, after seeing just who her pokémon had bee-lined for, adopted a friendly smile instead, walking over there herself.
She stopped short, for just a second, upon noticing the bruise, then, with just a bit of concern in her greeting smile, took the last few steps.
"Um. Hi. Sorry. He's still... well, he's still him. He does this. Hi."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Leilani turned her head to look for the source of the approaching sound, and crooned happily at the sight of the Chikorita. "Niuuuuum!" The large grass-type snaked her head around to gently press her forehead to that of the smaller preevolution.

Inigo turned to look as well, inwardly grateful for the welcome distraction - in the form of an adorable grass-type too. He reached down to pat the Chikorita gently before he aimed a smile up at Tambrey from his spot in the chair, his arms now folded over the open book on the table for the sole reason of supporting his upper body. "Hey Tambrey," he offered, then chuckled, "and don't worry about him, he's fine. Leilani thinks so too."

The Meganium crooned happily in agreement.

The grunt looked back up at the girl again before asking, "So what's up?" Distractions yesss.  

[Gwennythe]

"Reee!" Treestar giggled out as the larger pokémon can down to greet him like that. His leaf waggled back and forth and there was clearly a happy grin beneath his closed eyes.

They opened again, as he felt Inigo pat him, to direct a pleased little chirp in his direction too.
Yes, he remembered these two and was very happy to see them again.

Tambrey, noting the eye, ran a little debate with herself inside her own head.
There was an injury, she was concerned, but, as a Rocket, such things should be expected to be uncommon... Would asking about it be weird? Then, of course, given that it was, in fact, a rather noticeable black eye, there was every chance it would something he wouldn't want to be asked about.
She blinked, smiling still, as Inigo slightly solved the problem for her.
"Oh. Um. Research." She held the book she was carrying out for him to see. "I kind 'f... got a reading list. Trying t' see if I can help some of mine, including him," She nodded at the little grass type who seemed to have decided to try and sit beside the Meganium "to evolve... Um. How are you?" She hadn't sat down yet, in case he wasn't looking for company.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

When Treestar wiggled his leaf, Leilani flicked her long gold antennae forward and crooned again before she nuzzled the top of his head. Leilani was always happy to see her friends again, especially if they were grass-types and in her line.

Inigo's green eyes shifted to the book in Tambrey's hands as she held it out, and he studied the cover briefly. "Ohh, reading up on pokemon, huh?" That was something he hadn't done in a while. Quite a while, actually. His eyes moved again from the book to Tambrey, then down to Treestar and Leilani, then back up to the fellow grunt and he gave her a lop-sided smile. "Ahh, que bien. I hope it helps," he said honestly as he reached a hand over to meaningfully pat the spot on the table in front of an empty chair. From the grass-type's behavior and from Tambrey's posture, he judged it wouldn't be a quick conversation, so she might as well make herself comfortable.

The question, though casual, gave him pause. "Ah," he hesitated as he ran that same hand through his hair, then replied a little evasively, "I've been better." He didn't elaborate, although if she asked, he would tell her.  

[Gwennythe]

There was another happy squeak and then, Treestar was looking up, eyes exploring the Meganium's flower with interest.

Tambrey took the gesture and, after setting her book down, sat down, nodding. "Someone recommended a few books and I figured that a few of them would prob'ly be in here..."

The feeling of evasiveness gave her pause, but the fact he'd answered in such a way at all encouraged her at the same time.

"Hm. Well. All I've got t' do today is search out books and read until shift this evening, so.. If y' wanted to talk about that, I don't mind listening. And, um, as long as you're okay with it, it looks like Treestar's kind of... decided we're stopping here for a while anyway?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Leilani saw him studying the flower that circled her neck, so she wiggled it to see what he'd do.

"Ah, yeah, we do have quite a few books in here, don't we?" He mused with a half-smile as he glanced around the base's library briefly, then focused on Tambrey again. An uncertain hesitance seeped into his expression at her prompting, and he was unsure if he should explain everything just like that - or what to explain, if not everything. "Well, uh," man this wasn't any kind of distraction, "I don't want to dump anything on you," Inigo said as he dipped his head and dropped his gaze. He wouldn't seek out anyone to dump his emotional problems on, but he wouldn't withhold an explanation if they wanted to know.  

[Gwennythe]

Treestar's eyes widened. Ooh! Good! He vaguely knew that he'd be 'growing up' one day into some form like Leilani's and he'd been wondering about the flower- it had to be where Leilani's leaf had gone and he really liked his leaf. That she could wiggle it like that was, as well as being amusing, kind of a relief; he much preferred a part of him that he could move, like his leaf, than a fancy collar.
He attempted an awkward copy of the movement, but all he succeeded in doing, with no flower to wiggle, was to 'vibrate' his neck and head a little oddly and make a very strange noise.

"Um. In my experience that can be either code for not really wanting to talk about something or it can 'testing the water to see if it's safe.'" Tambrey offered gently, unfortunately kind of unaware, for the moment, of water-based phobias certain other grunts might have. "If it's the latter, I can promise I don't mind? I mean, I don't mind if you actually don't want to talk, 'f course, because that's, y'know, your choice and everything but, honestly, don't worry about 'dumping anything on' me... 'M pretty okay with that. Uh. Verbally, I mean." She instantly slightly regretted the bad joke, but sounded sincere where it mattered.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

The Meganium watched this with a brief look of confusion (and a little concern), before she realized what he was trying to do and she laughed. She informed him, beaming down at him and thinking how absolutely adorable he looked.

Inigo directed a sheepish look downward, then blinked when he realized the book was still there, so he closed it and gently pushed it off to the side. Tam had pretty much got him with that - he did kind of want to talk about it, but at the same time, he was concerned about worrying his friends. But she seemed kind of intent about it too, so... "Well," he began uncertainly, folding his arms on the table again, "I, ah, went home for a short.. very short visit a few days ago." A hand raised to run his fingers through his hair, his gaze focused on the table. "And uh, I hadn't been home since I got expelled from the University - in Sandalwood - about two years ago. Joined up pretty much immediately after, so... I don't think my parents were too thrilled when I, ah, left," he finished lamely, his posture having shifted during his explanation so that his hands fidgeted together while his elbows rested on the table to support his weight.  

[Gwennythe]

<> The small grass type piped up happily, then waggled his leaf. He could move that easily enough.

Hrm. Well, she hadn't been expelled but that time frame, and that story was kind of familiar. She nodded, she knew Sandalwood's university.
"So, your family... know then?" She prompted and wondered, aside from seeing the result before her, what that had been like for him all that time.
Tambrey stole a glance at the bruise again and frowned.
"Maybe it's a stupid question but... Y're talking about what did happen, how about; how d'you feel about the things that did as well?" She tried to inject some of a warm smile with her frown.
That, the implication, a parent had hit their child, however old he might be, to cause that bruise irritated something inside, but she was offering to listen to whatever he wanted to tell for now.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Leilani chuckled and beamed down at him, and when he waggled his leaf again, she flopped her antennae forward once more to dangle in front of his face.

"Oh, they don't know that I joined Team Rocket, no," he explained hastily with a shake of his head. "No, they know I got expelled and that I, uh, kind of... had to break back into it to get my pokemon and research back. They kind of came to the house immediately after my expulsion and confiscated everything," he admitted as he rubbed the back of his neck. "So after I got everything back I left then and joined up. All they know is that I got expelled and broke into the University and that there's probably a small chance there still might be a warrant out for my arrest there.." Yeaahhhh... Those probably didn't really go away, he figured.

The phrasing of her second question confused him though, and he tilted his head a bit as he focused his gaze on her again. "What d'you mean?"  

[Gwennythe]

Treestar peered as the antennae dangled in front of him then beamed and attempted to poke toward it with his leaf. <> He explained <>

Ah. That potentially sounded harder.
Thought of as a criminal and yet not known that he was part of this team.
Advantages for someone, one way, moreso disadvantages for himself.
She thought about her own question, as he questioned it.
"Well. How are you feeling about it? I mean. I can imagine, but I might be wrong. I'd rather here about how you are than... impose how I think you are? If that makes sense? I could be talkin' nonsense," She admitted, with an awkward smile "but I don't know, I was wondering if talking about that sort 'f thing would help some as much as talking about what happened."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

She asked gleefully, flipping the antennae back behind her head.

"Oh, oh. Like how I feel about what happened when I visited the other day?" He asked hesitantly, peering over at her curiously to make sure he understood her question.  

[Gwennythe]

<> He didn't really get the concept of 'reading' or 'studying from a book'. <> one of his little front claws traced the carpet slightly <>

"Um." That sounded right. "Yes. Unless you don't know... or even if you don't know... Sorry. That sounds so much less confusing in my head. Um. Just tell me anything that you think it'd help to talk about," She settled on "and I'll try and help if you want me too... It sounds like you're sad about it but... almost like you expected it?"
She tried to untangle her words before she confused herself too much.
"I don't like that they did that." She decided to admit, as if it might explain something, referring to his bruise.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

The Meganium looked confused, then looked up at Tambrey. Her head even raised to look on the table without her getting up from her comfortable spot on the floor, and her antennae twitched when she saw the book. She lowered her head again to smile at Treestar. she explained, and beamed at his compliment before she leaned down to nuzzle the top of his head.

"Oh, okay," he replied, his gaze sliding to the table as he tried to think. He wasn't... against telling her, it was just.. sometimes hard to think about, depending. "Well, yeah, I expected my dad to be upset, but I didn't... I didn't think he'd be that upset," he said with a soft frown. Tambrey's confession made him glance at her briefly before he aimed a remorseful smile at the table and raised a hand to gently cover his eye and the bruise that surrounded it. "Heh, yeah.. I didn't really like it either, but I guess I kind of deserved it, so.."