"Heel, boy! heel! Sit! Down! Argh!"

Kyle found himself trying to run away from his Electrike, who chased him as he pointlessly released electricity in an area around him. Energetic and sprightly as ever, the trainer just did not have the energy to deal with its daily shenanigans and would rather just return him back to his ball. It was always the easy way out when dealing with painfully independent Pokemon that do not care about their trainers. Unfortunately, it was something that he couldn't do unless necessary.

He was told that spending time with his Pokemon outside its ball was the best way to ensure that it bonds with him and follow his command, or some bullshit like that. Kyle did not read the whole article about it anyways and had lightly skimmed the details, but he was sure that it was the main gist of it. Still, it did not seem to be fruitful as results show, though he figured it just might have been him being impatient.

"There, there! See, friend."

Getting tired from avoiding an electricity-induced hug from the canine, Kyle had opted to pass the misfortune to some other unfortunate victim and pointed to the first living being his eyes had set upon on. A lone Shinx on a bench was the target, which the Electrike had acknowledged right away. Diverting its attention away from his trainer to its fellow Electric-type, he charged at full speed and tried to pounce at the blue-furred feline, electricity still discharging haphazardly at its fur.

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His Electrike had welcomed the tackle with a smile, with the play time he had wanted finally going into fruition. He let himself get bowled over, before adjusting his position to wrestle. He gave playful nips on the Shinx's ear as one curious pup would do, though recognizing that it was a playmate, not much force was brought with each bite.

Nervously watching the Electrike's display of attention, Kyle sighed in relief in between his panting with his hand clutching for his chest, feeling the rapid palpitations of his heart as he finally managed to slow down and get a rest from dealing with his own Pokemon. Having a scapegoat when he needed one was convenient, with having the said scapegoat enjoy the torment that he had passed onto it making the whole situation much better. At least he'd have no grievances about it later.

His eyes went to what he assumed to be the Shinx's trainer. Younger than him, but definitely not taller. Good, he thought. He tried to stop gasping for air as he approached him, though the effects of the workout that his Electrike gave him still certainly showed. "Yeah.Too energetic if you ask me." He paused, before continuing with a tone as serious as he can bring it. "Wanna trade him for your Shinx?"

He was kidding, of course. Though he hated him, he still considered his Electrike to be precious. He got him as a gift after all, and it would certainly be rude to give him away to a random stranger he just met. He figured someone young as the child wouldn't be too happy with giving away his own Pokemon either.

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"That sucks. That was your one chance of getting a disaster puppy."

That was the expected outcome anyways, to which Kyle did not have much problems accepting. That wasn't as expressive as a reaction he'd expect from a child though, but he can live with that. While the compromise he had brought up was sweet and all, Kyle did not have any interest in trying to set up play dates with his Electrike. If Kyle couldn't land dates, so should his Electrike. "My boy really needs to grow up, but sure, yeah, if we meet up again."

"Ah. Kyle by the way. Yeah, call me that."

Kyle could not give a definite answer for the following question though as he'd have to explain why he was all the way out here. "I, uh, live at Chōji. Can't really say it's nearby." It wasn't a short trip too without utilizing any convenient transportation either. Hopefully, he won't badger for more inquiries about his need to be here. One way of avoiding getting questioned, though, was to ask the questions himself, which he decided to do.

"Why're you here anyways? This place doesn't seem exciting enough." Then again, he was easily entertained as a child. He wasn't sure if it was the case for Souji as well.

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"Heh, I hope so. He only calms down for food and sleep, and luckily, whenever he tires himself out."

He hated that he was stuck with such a Pokemon whose personality often clashes with his rather carefree nature. Being forced to take care of him was a pain, and finding subjects to which he can throw his Electrike at to temporarily relieve him of his duty was become some kind of reprieve for him lately. It wasn't like he had any other choice though, nor did he severely disliked having the said Pokemon around.

"I miss having dreams and aspirations," he'd blurt out.

He always used the excuse that he wanted to challenge the gyms ever since he had graduated from high school to avoid the pressure of higher education, though he was pretty sure it won't last long since he wasn't giving them results. Just as he was stuck with the Electrike, he figured his parents were stuck with him, and so he didn't worry much. He knows he should though, since he didn't want to reach the age of thirty without accomplishing anything worthwhile.

"Oh, if you're trying to learn the basics, do you want to spar with my Electrike? I get to tire him out sooner and you get to, uh, try battling stuff, yeah? It's a win-win." Hearing that he was into Pokemon training did made things easier for him to say the words. They were in a smaller city too, and a Pokemon Center is most probably just a few minutes worth of walk for them. "He uses Electric-type moves almost exclusively, so your Shinx should be able to handle him," he added.

If he declined, that's fine too.

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If this wasn't a kid he was talking to, he'd assume that it probably was one of them self-righteous jerks. The problem was that he felt that Souji's words were sincere. He seemed like an earnest and serious kind anyways, especially with a more realistic ambition of 'wanting to study Pokemon' instead of the usual dreams of becoming a champion, like every other kid he knows wants to do.

"Do you know how sarcasm works? Cause that was one. If you need a better explanation, it means I wasn't serious. No need to apologize." He tried to take the mocking undertones away from the way he spoke, though as usual, it just came out as a deadpan remark. "Do you always care this much about people you just met? That's dangerous." On a more serious note, he does have nothing to strive for, though he decided against mentioning it. He didn't want to hear pity from anyone anyways.

He wasn't sure how long it was since his last battle with another trainer. Kyle wasn't the competitive kind anyways and could go on with his life without trying to prove he's the best at something. He supposed this was an entirely different situation though, as it felt more like practice for Souji instead of an actual battle. Yeah, he can roll with this.

"First thing you do is control your Pokemon."

Just as Kyle spoke, his Electrike, who moved opposite to the Shinx as they separated, started to accumulate energy on its fur. Sparks flew they formed, giving the green canine a soft glow even under the rays of the sun. Charge was a safe way to start a fight, though the boost in special defense wouldn't be too useful against a more physical opponent such as a Shinx.

He started scratching the back of his head, half embarrassed with the show despite expecting the outcome before it even happened. He even called it. "...which I apparently can't do because my Electrike does what he wants..."

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He hadn't been in an official trainer battle in a long while, mostly thanks to him staying home and not pursuing a career in competitive battling. He figured he wouldn't be the best anyways, and so ruled out being successful in such field if he did go for it. The rest of his friends either traveled away for a journey or were taking higher education, leaving him with no playmates to battle with. It wasn't like he was interested in it anyways, and so he was indifferent to it.

Kyle had expected a physical attack from the Shinx, and so the Bite was no surprise for him. His Electrike, however, still seemed to be amused from the Charge he did and paid no mind to the opposing Electric-type until it had reached him. A yelp sounded from him as he tried to shake off the Shinx from his shoulder, which eventually got punctured by the Bite.

"Discharge."

As hard-headed his Electrike could be, the simple word got him to obey immediately. A burst of electricity went out from his Electrike's fur, with the previous move boosting its power even more. It would be resisted by the Shinx, though that did not mean that it wouldn't hurt. Had it been night, Kyle was pretty sure that the attack would be blindingly bright. He'd worry about it reaching Souji too, but at least his Electrike was still pretty low leveled and thus, cannot do much damage with its attacks anyways.

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