Well, at least he didn't seem to be upset about being dragged out with her. If nothing else, that was a major relief. In fact, he turned out to be a quite pleasant person to talk to. He mentioned often coming out here to collect herbs, which immediately jogged her memory about having heard that there was a member within the ranks of the Rangers who made a living as an herbalist; it seemed it was this man. She knew nothing about herbalism, but she always did find the concept fascinating.

Her attention briefly shifted to the older man's Riolu, a smile crossing her lips. It was a Pokemon she was vaguely familiar with, if only through reputation, seeing as how one of the Gym Leaders in her home region was known for using its evolved form, Lucario. She had to admit, she was pretty cute, especially with the way she was chewing on the mint. It was hard to blame her; she enjoyed fresh mint quite a bit herself; granted, she preferred it cooked or chopped into something, rather than just the herb by itself.

Finally, when the comment and question regarding her career choice came, she blinked. Admittedly, she hadn't thought of it that way, but there was no denying the truth to what he said. She still got a decent number of customers, though it was primarily jobs delivering packages of some sort. For the most part, it went smoothly, but it wasn't without its headaches. Like people assuming she'd deliver illegal packages simply because she isn't directly associated with the League. They were in for a rude surprise.

Either way, after giving some thought to the question, she responded.

"Well, it's not a particularly exciting story...a courier was passing through Snowbelle, and I just so happened to be the one he stopped to ask for directions. After he delivered his package, we talked for a bit, and he told me about all the places he's gone, and all the things he'd gotten to see...all of it sounded really exciting, and it made me want to do the same...though, I suppose I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little desperate to get out from under my parents' thumb..."

She let out a soft sigh, then continued.

"It wasn't that they weren't loving...or that they were bad parents or anything like that...but they were extremely protective of me...I guess one could say I lived a very sheltered life. Apparently, they had a son before me, but he died very young...they would never tell me exactly how it happened, just that there was an accident before I was born..."

She couldn't help but frown at that last part. It was difficult, talking about the death of what would have been her older bother, and feeling nothing. But the simple truth was, because he died before she was even born, it was hard to feel anything. That didn't mean she didn't sympathize with her parents though. Either way, she, on a whim, grabbed a Poke Ball and sent out her Doduo, who began walking alongside her once she realized she wasn't being sent into a battle. She was eager to change the subject.

"Apparently, my father used to be a Breeder...I never knew, to be honest. Both of them were against me becoming a trainer...for a long time, I just assumed they simply didn't like Pokemon. But before I left, he gave me Fleet here...and said he had a feeling this would happen some day, so he bred a Pokemon just for me. Even now, I'm still shocked that my mom and dad agreed to let me leave home...though, they lost their minds when I told them I signed up as a Ranger and would be sent to the branch in Johto..."

Vash Parker