[b][u]Aleida and Tidal
Ayero - Ladyl Woods[/b][/u]

As his friend listened to the two newcomers, Tidal turned his glare towards the forest, fins trembling ever so slightly. He had noticed something, or someone, and without wanting to concern her he simply watched and waited. Meanwhile, Aleida listened to Sebastian's plight of loneliness, eyebrows upturning slightly, and with a slight motion she scooped up Tidal and squeezed him tightly with one arm. While she had intended it to be a gesture of love, the squeeze might have been a bit too right as the vaporeon instantly wriggled out of her grasp, returning his glare to the forest. The blonde boy was the next to speak, jabbing his chest with his thumb in an almost forceful way as he announced his name and his pidgeot's name. Seth and Belle. She smiled at the pidgeot cheerily, eyes sparkling with excitement at being able to travel with a new Pokemon, and then simply nodded to Seth, face not faltering. Aleida continued her never breaking attention towards the two men, listening and repeating their names in her head over and over again. Sebastian, Belle, and Seth, Sebastian, Belle, and Seth.

[i]A bird man, a loner, and me. What an odd group.[/i]

"Well, now that we're acquainted, let's head off!" Aleida cheerfully cried, raising her hands high above her head. The fishing rod on her back shook as she turned, the metallic weight at the end of the line swaying dangerously close to her head. She clicked her tongue, calling Tidal's attention, and began leading the crew forward through the woods, keeping her eyes to the sky as she quickly went through what she had heard from town. From the type of creature that was snatching up the kids to her current thoughts on where the children would be hidden, Aleida explained each detail with somewhat vague explanations. As they wandered deeper, the trees grew thicker, but it was still somewhat easy to make out the far off walls of the city and nearby plains where the farmers worked. Ayero forests were nothing compared to the thick pine woods of Lugere, at least, that's what everyone told her, but even now Ladyl Wood was growing darker with each step taken. Shadows skipped through the spaces of light that remained, barely noticed by Aleida, but upon seeing a flash of magenta out of the corner of her eye she froze, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

"I should have said before," her steps slowed, only slightly, as her head turned to make eye contact with the two, "there seems to be some sort of Pokemon in here that I'm worried about. I'm pretty sure they are able to create illu-!" Her voice caught as she was suddenly whipped into the air by a not yet seen force. Her body jerked back as if she were falling and then instantly rose up, foot tangled within a thick rope, and the tree which supported the trap let out a soft groan, obviously unprepared for the added weight. Tidal had been slapped away by Aleida's un-caught foot, and he landed in a heap in a nearby bush, letting out an annoyed whine all the way down. Aleida, after an initial shriek of surprise, became quiet and thoughtful once more, confused eyes glancing about a now upside-down world. She swung from side to side, lips pursed and cheeks flushing ever so slightly as she finally mumbled,

"I think I've been caught~."

Tidal rose slowly, head cocked to the side and lips pulled back in a sneer, but it lowered to a simple, confused poker face when he saw Aleida's concentrated face. Her eyes were closed, lips pursed, and while the blood slowly rushed to her head she thought hard. It was easy to assume that the villagers set this up, probably hoping to catch whatever was plaguing this forest with what seemed to be allusions or hallucinations, and from the creak of the rope and groan of the tree she could also assume it had been set up awhile. There were now two mysteries to solve, the children kidnappings and the magenta-eyed creature in the shadows. The first was for the sake of the families at Ladyl, of course, and the second, well, the second was bore from Aleida's child-like curiosity which could only be quenched by cold hard answers. A headache quickly pulled her from her thoughts, and she finally realized her situations. She let out a small gasp and wiggled, making her body sway harder. With embarrassed eyes she tilted her head towards the two boys, biting her lips until she swore she tasted copper,

"Sorry, sorry. I didn't see the trap. Could you help before Tidal attempts to cut me down." She nodded towards the rearing up vaporeon, who's sharp fangs were gleaming in the half-light, "I really don't trust him to get me down without breaking my neck." Another smile beamed across her face. Boy, was it good to have companions. Aleida allowed her head to drop back down, and as she waited for her freedom she immediately saw an orange light gleam through the leaves. A bird, glowing in the sunlight, flew close to the trees. Something was moving by its talons, a child perhaps? It vanished into the far off branches, and she attempted to follow it with her eyes until another pang of pain threw her head back to its original position. Aleida rose her left hand to the sky as soon as she could, mouth wide as she let out a loud,

"I see it! The bird Pokemon!"