“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” Leisy said, taking the lead. That seemed to happen quite often these days — her taking the lead. While Leisy didn’t exactly feel comfortable being the backbone of the group, she also understood that it was a position that had to be filled in, and she’d do her best to fill the requisites if no one else stepped up.
Returning her Ekans and Purrloin — the two were only freshly won over, if at all, and Leisy didn’t want to take any risks — Leisy released her Fletchinder and Prinplup. The two avian Pokemon — now opposing types, nodded at each other in recognition. Although their forms had changed, their colorings had remained the same, and it was an easy job to deduce which Pokemon they used to be.
“Alright then. Bidein, Naunet, let’s be careful here. We don’t know what we’re going to find, but I want you both prepared,” Leisy said, leading the way into the woods. “Just in case.”
The woods themselves were an inky landscape swirled in shadows punctuated with light from the moon overhead, which shone down brightly, alluringly. Leisy found the vine-covered forest floor a mild challenge to navigate and was relieved that her Prinplup — having grown out of its awkward waddles and constant tripping — was now plodding along fine enough, looking slightly annoyed at how rough the terrain was. On the other hand, her Fletchinder was having little trouble with the terrain; riding on his trainer’s shoulder grew troublesome at times, since she quickened and slowed the pace erratically, thanks to the scattered forest floors.
“Be careful, there’s — Oh,” Leisy said, eyes widening as the small pink Pokemon popped out of the bushes one by one. Happiny she recognized, but the other pink one not so much. “This is a lot of baby Pokemon,” she said, trying not to sidestep them as she attempted to forge her way through the small crowd. “Wonder where their parents are?”
A pair of pink ears peeking out from behind a tree caught Bidein’s attention, and the fire-type nudged its trainer with a wing to get her attention, pointing the hidden Pokemon out with his beak.
“It’s alright — we don’t mean any harm,” Leisy called to the Pokemon. The ears tipped, revealing a pair of curious blue eyes. “Don’t worry — we’re just passing through.”
The pink Pokemon seemed to understand Leisy’s words, emerging from behind the tree in full. A gentle, peachy cream topped with patches of pink, the Pokemon struck Leisy as — well — adorable.
“How cute,” Leisy said admiringly, kneeling down to the Pokemon’s height. “Are you in charge of these baby Pokemon here?”
The wild Pokemon shook its head, curled fur on the sides of its ears swinging around with the motion. Leisy nodded, pulling out her Pokedex and scanning the Pokemon.
Audino, the Hearing Pokémon. Audino can assess a Pokémon's overall physical condition and mood using its ears. Its auditory sense is astounding. It has a radar-like ability to understand its surrounding through slight sounds, and it touches others with the feelers on its ears, using the sound of their heartbeats to tell how they are feeling.
As she read the entry, the fairy-type leaned over, touching its feelers to Leisy’s hand. “Oop,” the trainer said, surprised but relaxed all the same as the Audino closed its eyes. By her side, Naunet had arrived, looking at the fairy-type contemptuously and taking an immediate dislike to the Audino who was now, sadly, cuter than her. Bidein, having deduced that the fairy-type wouldn’t harm his trainer, was now sitting calmly at his perch, watching quietly.
Opening its eyes, the Audino looked at Leisy, its bright blue eyes hopeful. “Audii,” it trilled, voice light. Naunet snapped to her trainer, protest written all over her face.
“Oh,” Leisy said, deducing what the fairy-type just said, “I would love that. Your ability sounds amazing, both as a tool and as a skill, and I wouldn’t mind getting to know the Pokemon behind those ears.”
Retrieving a Great Ball from her bag, Leisy held it out to the Audino. “For you — sorry I don’t have a Pokeball that matches your beautiful colors.”
The Audino shook its head, reaching a hand out and bopping the button on the blue ball gently. A red light emerged from the ball, gathering the fairy-type up and disappearing back into the Great Ball, promptly closing. Not even a single doubt, Leisy thought, smiling gently. What a sweet Pokemon.
“Prin,” Naunet said from beside her, voicing her annoyance.
“Oh shush you,” Leisy said, rubbing the water-type’s head affectionately. “Give up on being cute and accept your status as a strong, respectable Pokemon.”
Rising, Leisy looked around for her friends, weaving through the dancing baby Pokemon to get to them. “We should move on now — find the Cutiefly quickly and get some rest. The Cutiefly must be frightened to be in the woods alone at night, so it’d probably be either with other Pokemon, or hiding. Ella, does your Inkay sense anything — perhaps a lone Pokemon, hiding?”
“Oh, I was finishing up a field report on my Honedge. He’s pretty much the reason I came to Kosei,” Aedre explained, indicating the Pokeball on her belt. “I’m a research assistant, and I’m currently doing some informal field work on Honedge.”
Noticing a familiar boy walking over, Aedre grinned and waved. “Alex! Hey, nice to see that you’re still in one piece,” she joked. When Amber pointed out her Pokemon, Aedre bent down, giving the Pokemon a gentle smile. “Hey there, you’re all very cute. Three rock-types — how are you all getting along?”
Straightening up, Aedre turned to the other trainers. “Fossil Pokemon, huh? Always a fascinating group, although their genetic mysteries have mostly been unlocked now.”
Team:
Pasithea “Thea” ♀ — Togepi (11)
Attacks:Growl, Charm, Metronome, Sweet Kiss
Ability:Serene Grace
Alitis “Little” ♂ — Fletchling (11)
Attacks:Tackle, Growl, Quick Attack
Ability:Gale Wings
Decus “Dee” ♂ — Honedge (6)
Attacks:Tackle, Swords Dance, Fury Cutter
Ability:No Guard
Bag Items:
Pokedex (with Kosei Region Map)
Smart Phone
Credit Card linked to a private account that houses a decent amount of money
Poke Radar
Collapsable Bike with two gears (third for bike ramps, fourth for muddy slopes)
"Perhaps we should turn back," Mistletoe said, looking around at the books. "These webs aren't exactly welcoming, and what are the chances that there's an exit from the library?"
Kenza paused, looking around at the walls intently. It was too dark to tell whether there were webs there, which concerned the hunter. What if there was something waiting there in the darkness, looking for an opening to strike?
"I don't think anything in this castle is particularly safe. Even if we turn back, we'd just have to enter another room, open another door, and face another threat," Kenza said, frowning. "I say we continue on, even if only because we've already entered. If we turn back, we'd waste valuable time. The Wolfwing will no doubt be looking to check up on his prisoners soon."
Mistletoe nodded at Kenza's words. "I don't like it, but let's continue for a bit then," she said. "At the first sign of danger, we'll turn back."
To answer your question, any basic Pokemon that evolves at least once is allowed for a beginning trainer, but in this RP your trainer is not allowed to start with a Pokemon inside a Pokeball. Your trainer has just been given a Pokedex + Pokeball and must catch their first Pokemon, whatever that may be. Feel free to have yours catch a ghost-type (even one that they've known since childhood, if necessary), but your trainer cannot begin the RP with any Pokemon.