[PRP] A Seaside Excursion

[Tori Honoo]

He shook his head, looking up at the girl with big eyes. "I dunno, she's pretty tough, but I bet it would be an awesome battle! You should definitely try it!" His enthusiasm sparkled in his eyes as they talked about the dragon masters, and he again nodded hard. "Yeeeaaahhh... He's been gone a long time," the boy said with a small pout. He seriously missed the newcasts and interviews the TV had shown every so often and the talk about Lance when he had been in town. The last time he had been in town--when Jace had seen him!-- had been so long ago...

The idea of battling alongside the Champion made Jace's heart almost stop beating, and his expression could have outshined the sun. "Okay! Deal!!!! I'll be as good as him someday, and then we can train together and take you on!" If Henrietta believed in her own words, Jace Redferd definitely believed in his. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that one day, that would be the case.

He laughed again at the talk of grown ups, and looked over toward his parents as they ever-faithfully watched. "Yeah! My mom is trying to work... she's gotta stay home and take care of me, though, so. I told her she should just stay there and let me go train, but she says pokemon cost money, too." A shrug. "I dunno. One day I'll be champion, so I guess it doesn't matter anyways."  

[Gwennythe]

"He'll be back! He'll come back awesomely! Hey, maybe we could all get to take each other on one day?! Clair, Lance, you and me! It'd be so... so epic! Man, those would be the most awesome battles ever!" Henrietta took the two topics and combined them into the outlandish hopes she held.
She could totally see Gummy, Winglet and a whole host of pokémon, mostly dragon types, all battling it out with each other with incredible power, likely unrealistic even for such strong types.
"You train together and get real good and then we'll totally do that!" She grinned, excited by something, even so far away, not even considering any unlikelihood.

"Ah, yeah... My grandparents got Gummy for me... My parents said he was pretty expensive but I totally know he was worth it! Still, you'll totally get one before you know it and then you'll be training like you've known each other your whole life! It just happens like that when you meet a pokémon who can be a good friend!" The trainer nodded vigorously, agreeing. "Yeah! It totally doesn't matter when you meet your pal as long as you both got the right attitude to win!"  

[Tori Honoo]

Jace smiled brightly, believing every word the girl said. "They'd have to record it and put it on TV and everything! I'll definitely train and be the best ever! And you will too!" he told her, still nodding his head.

He tipped his head, listening again, as Henrietta spoke. "Yeah? That's awesome! He looks like he was totally worth it!" he grinned, appraising gummy again with bright blue eyes. "I'm sure it'll be awesome, whatever kind I get! And the dragon ones, too! We'll be like a big family!" he laughed, throwing his arms open wide and spinning in a circle. "Momma, Dad, and me, and lots of brothers!"  

[Gwennythe]

"Oh man! They would totally have to! And you can bet I will!" She grinned, still agreeing with the future trainer.
"Yeah he totally was! I'm sure too and whenever it happens it'll be so worth the wait to meet them!"
She giggled, then, watching the boy spinning in a circle as he talked about the future.
She couldn't help, though, but raise one finger of objection to interject while she remained amused and enthusiastically happy all the same.

"Or sisters!" She piped up, followed by "And not like a family; actually a family! You're pokémon can easily become part of it!" The spinning did look like fun though.
She watched for a moment or two, then tried spinning around too.

Gummy 'watched' the two humans while they talked, then spun, and then, suddenly, flomped down to sit in the sand. People were spinning; it was probably safer to sit and wait it out.  

[Tori Honoo]

He laughed, then shrugged again. "Yeah, yeah, or sisters..." he sighed dramatically, blowing his hair out of his face. "And yeah, our family is real small right now, but soon we'll have more!"

He watched curiously as Gummy flopped into the sand, then stepped toward him, extending a hand tentatively. "Will he bite?"  

[Gwennythe]

"Lots more!" Henrietta confirmed, happily, as she stopped spinning and, with a similar flompf to Gummy, found herself sitting in the sand too.

Jace's question actually got a moment of hesitation out of the girl, and she looked at the Totodile thoughtfully before replying.

"Yes!" She grinned happily, before explaining. "But it's not like he knows the bite attack or anything, and he's so seriously gentle about that you'd think he's got no teeth! He's 'Gummy' for a reason, after all! Still, he's been really good about not doing it lately, mostly cuz I think he knows it might scare people sometimes!"  

[Tori Honoo]

Following Henrietta's lead, Jace, too, found himself sitting in the sand, his hand still halfway extended toward Gummy.

At her delayed response, he pulled back his hand, looking a little frightened. However, the expression quickly faded, and he nodded, though his brow furrowed quizzically. "Huh, I guess that makes sense... They're supposed to have super strong jaws, you know! Totodiles, I mean. I bet if he wanted to, he could bite real hard!"  

[Gwennythe]

"Totally! He'll learn 'bite' one day, too, and it'll be /so/ powerful! But he doesn't wanna hurt anyone! No way he'd bite anyone good hard at all!" Henrietta grinned proudly, while Gummy sat, stock still, in the sound, watching the pair of them.
A little stream of water dripped from his muzzle, washing some of the beard off.
"Hey! What were you gonna build?" The girl pointed out the bucket and spade the boy had been carrying earlier.  

[Tori Honoo]

"That's good! Hurting people would be bad...Well, unless they're bad guys," he amended, though he still clearly didn't like the idea of anyone ever getting hurt. He looked again at Gummy, and smiled brightly to him, still amused and delighted by its very presence.

He turned his attention back to Henrietta quickly though. "Oh yeah! I was gonna build a sandcastle, and maybe a sand Salamence!" It would be hard, but he was one hundred and ten percent sure he could handle it! "You want to help?"  

[Gwennythe]

"Yeah! Like Rockets!" Henrietta responded, with a firm nod; after what Team Rocket members had done in Kanto, she fully agreed that 'bad guys' deserved to actually get bitten.

Gummy was as aware as ever of the people around him, and his surroundings- and showed it in the same, rather lackluster, way he always did; content to sit and stare, occasionally moving his jaws or his tail.

"Oh cool! We can totally help! Sure! That sounds so cool!" She grinned "Gummy's a water type, too, so he can help us keep the sand moist while we build them really awesomely big!" Memories of crumbly bits of sandcastles and going from ocean to castle in so many trips to fill a moat popped into her head; she was sure the Totodile could at least help them with that.  

[Tori Honoo]

Jace tilted his head, his brow furrowed. "Rockets? Yeah, I would hope he would. I hope He never has to though. Did you know they steal pokemon!?" he asked, his eyes wide. He couldn't even believe it. Not for a minute. How could people be so mean?

He brightened again as she agreed to help him, and pushed himself up to his feet again, grabbing for his pail and shovel. "Oh yeah!!! Let's do it! Want to help, too, Gummy?"  

[Gwennythe]

"Yeah! I dunno; I totally think he could take on a whole team of Rockets and I met some once! They are really mean! We scared 'em off though!" Henrietta probably forgot, herself, that she was lying a bit.

Gummy stood up and wagged his tail back and forth.
It could have been a response to Jace's question, or it could have been because Henrietta got up when Jace did.
Henrietta chose to interpret it as the former.
"That's totally a yes! So where shall we build? I left my stuff just over there!" She pointed to where her shoes and bag sat, not far away at all. "I guess we better be kinda near your parents right?"  

[Tori Honoo]

Jace's jaw dropped. "What?!" he exclaimed, staring at her. "You met some? And got away?!?" Now he had to know.

With this new information in mind, he shook his head a little to recover from the initial shock, but nodded and pointed as she did. "Oh, that's not too far away... what about that empty spot in the middle?" he asked, indicating a place not to far from his parents or where she had set up her things.  

[Gwennythe]

"Yeah! Me an' a group of trainers were in Kanto for a competition and they totally jumped us after we'd all been battling fiercely so we were totally worn out! But we fought 'em off anyway!" Henrietta didn't really tell it quite right, of course.
"Yeah, but it was them that got away!" She finished, airily, and then looked out to the space the boy indicated.
She gave a thumbs up.
"There looks good!"  

[Tori Honoo]

Jace stared at the girl in childish awe for a few minutes before speaking up again. "That's so COOL! Man, you trainer guys are awesome! ....and girls," he added, his cheeks turning red. She was awesome.... One day he'd be just like that, and help fight Team Rocket--but only if he had to. Cause trying to find them, or even just running into them sounded scary.

With a bright smile, he led the way toward the spot where he planned to build his castle, and kneeled in the sand. "Okay! What's first?"