Cori was not having a good time. In theory, she loved the work they did. They got to travel, be independent, help people in need… in practice though, it was sometimes a much different story. Like two weeks ago when they got a phony call from some punk teenagers who thought they could ambush Cori and Nathan and try to filch their supplies. Or the week before that when they'd arrived on the scene only to see their competitors already there with a triumphant glint in their eyes and fresh money in their pockets. Or today.

Today sucked.

"Oh yeah," she muttered, more to herself than to her partner, "I really feel like we're making a difference. Especially when it means trekking through some backwater bog." Though there was acid dripping from her words, Cori was often an excess of bark and very little bite (unless you somehow got in the way of their work – then there was no saving you). Her anger was spurred on from impatience and annoyance more than any actual resentment. When the time came, she'd no doubt dote upon their client like she always did, even if this proved to simply be a false alarm.

Cori gritted her teeth as she fought to lift her legs from the marsh with every step. She was a small thing, and every time she placed her foot, the water rose well up her calf. She'd had the sense to bring only the most disposable clothes, though even those were perhaps too chic for this route (Cori had standards). Boots, a pair of shorts, and a well-made pink blouse. They were all covered in mud. She was tired, dirty, hungry for some actual food, and every time she stepped, the twigs and leaves buried in the silt felt like insect legs against her skin.

She placed her foot again, more forcefully than was wise, and gave a little yelp when the marsh all but ate her leg. Stuck up to her thigh, she grabbed onto Nathan's shirt on reflex, almost bringing the poor boy toppling down with her, but found her balance before it came to that. Cori skewed her face up as she tried to lift her leg. But the weight of the water and silt was clamped down around her, making escape impossible. When she tried using her other, awkwardly bent leg, to push herself up, that one only slipped further into the mud.

She turned her head slowly to glare up at Nathan.

"This kid better need saving."

With a huff, Cori glanced around, looking for something to latch onto for support. The only thing within reach (besides her poor partner) was an old, rotting tree. She reached out and curled her fingers tentatively around a branch, only to have it break off when she pulled. Cori sighed, and took the branch in both hands, testing it. It was a pale, dirty thing, but aside from the rotten stump, it seemed sturdy enough. Cori stabbed it into the mud, and braced herself as she tried to pull her leg up. She grunted from the effort, as the pressure seemed to make her leg twenty pounds heavier. But after pulling and pulling (and nearly losing her balance a few times) her leg slowly started to rise. The mud kicked up, ruining whatever visibility she had. This was likely why she didn't see the quagsire clamped onto her leg until its head was out of the water.

Cori screamed and nearly fell backwards. The pokemon, content to hang onto her leg, practically swallowing her foot whole, didn't react. Yanking the branch from the water, she swung as hard as she could. It smacked the side of the quagsire's head, the rotten wood shattering on impact. A shock wave vibrated down the quagsire's body and its mouth opened. Without even a change in expression, it sank back to the bottom of the swamp, lazy bubbles floating up to the surface. There was a red mark around her leg where she'd been bitten that would no doubt morph into a bruise in an hour. Cori was frozen for a moment as she just looked from her leg to the water and back again.

"That's it! We're teleporting." She reached to her belt, where her pokeballs hung. She was done with this stupid route. If wild pokemon freaked out and decided to attack, then sure. Cori was ready to do some damage. Anything to get this job over with.

Cori shot a glare at Nathan as he laughed, her grip tightening around the shattered stump that remained of her branch. One good what to the head, that was all it would take… But in the next moment they were dropped in front of the crumbling mansion. That kid had better be here. Cori just wanted to finish this job and get home to wash the mud from her skin. Tossing the branch to the side, she dusted her hands off and started walking forward. Her leg throbbed whenever she put weight on it where that stupid quagsire had all but inhaled her foot. She hissed a bit at the unexpected pain the first time, but gritted her teeth and pushed through it after that.

"I really hope this kid's here," she said, her sour mood cooling a bit now that they were out of the mud. They had work to do. Plus, this old building had always given Cori the creeps. The wooden floor creaked with every step, the wind whistled through the frame and made it always sound like there was something else inside, and the light flickered through the cracked windows, always tricking the eyes.

"Jaspor," she called out along with her partner. But there was no response. Careful to stick close to Nathan, she crept through the house. The first few rooms on the ground floor were empty save for crumbling furniture and years' worth of dust. Every now and then a loose floor board bent just a little too much, or squeaked a little too loudly, causing Cori to jump and quickly move to another area. "Jaspor!" she called again.

Cori and Nathan moved on to the last door on the level to check before it was timing to climb the staircase. The door was already open, slightly ajar like most others in the mansion. Reaching out, she pushed it open, and it swung wide with a creek, the hinges grinding on each other. A shiver ran down her spine, but she stepped forward.

"Hello?" She froze when she saw a gaping hole in the middle of the room, the floor splintered and crumbling around the edges.

"H…hello?"

Cori's eyes widened at the sound of a faint, fragile voice coming from the hole. She turned up to look at Nathan before hurrying forward. Running to the edge of the hole, she stopped closer than was wise and bent down to peer through.

"Jaspor!" And indeed, in the shadows of the basement sat a young boy in a yellow shirt, a trusty zigzagoon curled around him. "Jaspor, your mom called us, we're here to help you," she called down to him. Worry was written clear on her face, her previous bad mood forgotten. "Are you ok? are you hurt?" Jaspor squinted up at them before turning back to look at himself, as though he had to take stock of everything.

"My… I fell. I think I broke my leg or something." His voice quavered with every word, and upon closer inspection they could see tear tracks cutting lines down his dusty face.

Cori looked back up at Nathan before continuing, "We're gonna get you home, alright?" Then she pulled out a pokeball and in a flash of red light her spritzee appeared. "See what you can do," she said, pointing down at Jaspor "He said his leg might be broken, but there could be other things too." The pokemon bobbed in understanding before fluttering down to the boy. "We'll be right down, ok Jaspor?" she called as the protective zigzagoon stood between its trainer and the foreign pokemon. "Enif will stay and help you until we get there."