Herbs?

[Courtney/Eusine]

Courtney was exhausted. A day of labor--or, in her case, ordering around grunts to do the labor for her--was taxing. She was a bit grouchy, and she was returning to her home in Lavaridge, a quaint, little house that didn't really seem to fit her personality. She walked along with Eris, her Mightyena, by her side. This was mainly so that she could talk to herself and not appear weird to people who may be watching. Even though she was in plainclothes, and really, she shouldn't give second thought to such trivial matters, she decided that she really didn't need anything else to worry about.

"My Groudon! I swear, it's like that can't listen to the simplest of instructions! It's like, I tell 'em to go clean the back room and they say, 'Oh, but Ma'am, it's so hot!' you know, as if I actually care. Obviously, I don't. They're there to work."

Courtney stopped for a moment, contemplating her surroundings. "A herb shop?" She noticed the little store. She always knew there was a building there, but she didn't know what it was exactly. "What's a herb?" In her ignorance, she pronounced the "h" in the word.

Eris appeared equally baffled, and a twinge at her nose made her suddenly repulsed, though Courtney took no notice.

"I'm curious..."

[Wallace / Black]

Wallace breezed out of the herb shop, a packet of ethers in one carefully manicured hand. Bitter as they were, his Milotic rather liked them; a boon in battle, for sure. The heels to his dance shoes clacked against the rocky ground and he frowned in annoyance.

Vain as always, he hadn't bothered to change into more suitable clothes. An air of slight narcissism surrounded him, keeping him cool despite the heat and humidity of the hot springs.

He gave a quick once-over to the girl he'd nearly hit with the door on his way out, and nodded in apology.

"My apologies, dear. I didn't see you there."

[Courtney/Eusine]

Courtney glanced up furiously. She was looking at her feet previously, Eris behind her.

She was like an attack dog, bearing subtle similarities to Lisbeth Salander and the type. Her Mightyena bared her teeth and barked. Courtney put a hand up and the companion was silenced and sat back on her heels.

"Watch it, jackas--hey wait!" Courtney's expression went from irate to interested in a split second. "I know you. You're that League champion, aren'tcha? Sootopolis? Hmph. I've seen you on TV."

She paused for a beat.

"You look like a girl."

[Wallace / Black]

The growling of the Mighteyana and the irately grumbling from the girl flew right over his head; he made to walk right by, head trapped in some cloud or other. At the mention of the League, however, his heels clicked to a standstill.

A fan? Or perhaps someone who remembered him from the news broadcasts. With an outfit as flamboyant as his, he was a difficult persona to forget.

Whichever the case, Wallace stopped. Light conversation never hurt anybody, but ignoring the girl could ruin his reputation. In her eyes, at least, and he was vain enough to collect fans.

"Yes, indeed," he started, but stopped short at her next comment. He looked rather miffed.

"And what, pray tell, gives you that impression?"

[Courtney/Eusine]

She smirked, her lips drawn up on the left side of her face. She was short so she had to tilt her head up just a bit to see him.

"You just do. Some people look wimpy, some look hardcore like me, and you just look feminine."

Eris barked out a frothy laugh. Courtney folded her arms across her chest and watched him carefully. Despite his flamboyant and eye-watering-ly bright appearance, she knew he could cause a bit of trouble for her if he became angry. And if he recognized her as an Admin for one of the most troublesome groups of extremists in Hoenn, she would be totally screwed.

She decided to change the subject just in case. Mostly because Maxie would likely hang her from the ceiling fan by her toes if she was ever caught and/or incarcerated. "Why the hell are you in Lavaridge? Shouldn't someone like you be signing autographs in, like, Lilycove?"

[Wallace / Black]

Wallace fought to maintain his composure, biting back a rather nasty comment - If by hardcore you mean attack puppy, then by all means... - and simply lifted his eyebrows a tad higher.

"An... interesting observation," he said slowly, and kept it at that. This girl seemed more interested in grating at nerves than anything else, and he wasn't one to pick unnecessary fights. How unsightly they were; he could spare a few strands of pride to let this pass. Nevertheless, he brushed absentmindedly at his hair, fixing it back into place as he turned to answer her question. And he wondered where her comment had come from.

"Lilycove might have the grandest department store, but they lack sorely in traditional treatments. The herbs they sell here are the best in the region," he said smoothly, gesturing at the packet he held in his hands. "Bitter, of course, but worth every penny."

He let the corners of his mouth lift slightly at the sight of her confusion. By the looks of her Mighteyana and the wrinkle to its nose, the pair had never encountered the astringent plants before.

[Courtney/Eusine]

Courtney smiled at Wallace's pained expression. It was all too familiar to her. Pacifists. She didn't think there was anything lamer than a pacifist. Because what's the fun in letting people walk all over you? Or being nice? Courtney used to be nice...or rather, not as "rough around the edges" as she was now. It never got her anywhere though. She believed that her introduction into Magma had changed her for the better, toughened her up.

She watched him play with his hair and bit back giggles. "You know, safe for the perm and the lady hips, you're not bad-lookin'. Just funny-lookin'."

She went on. "Herbs, though?" Once again she pronounced the "h" sound. "What are they? Like, supplements? Eris looks about ready to rip this place to shreds. You wanna enlighten me?"

She shifted her weight to one hip and rested a hand there. This time she didn't give him a "tell me or I'll hurt you" face. It was more a "Well, I never did go to Trainer School" face.

[Wallace / Black]

A shadow of annoyance passed briefly over Wallace's face at the second glancing hit to his ego. Lady hips? Really now. That was rather uncalled for. The following compliment - if it could be called that - did nothing for his mood. Funny looking indeed.

His feathers a bit rumpled, he preened harder than every, adjusting his hat and clicking his heels to rid his shoes of dust. It was a bit of a reflex, but more of a self-control mechanism. Arceus knew he could read as well as the cattiest diva, but a sharp tongue had done him no favors in the past. High-minded officials had no tolerance for insults, of course, and as a teenager he had seen no need to mince words. He'd learned after he hit his 20's, but it seemed this grungy little lady had yet to even step into the classroom, if her pronunciation was anything to judge by.

"'erbs, my dear," he chided, emphasizing the silent "H." "Leave the H out, or hint at it, if you must."

He reached into the packet and pulled out an Energy Root. It was gnarled and knotted like a piece of old driftwood, and a pungent odor split the air as soon as it left the packaging.

"And this, if you must know, is an excellent example. An Energy Root. It'as as effective as a Hyper Potion, but cheaper, more bitter, and all natural, unlike those steroid-infested concoctions the Marts would have you buy," he said, smirking slightly. Neither the girl nor her pokemon seemed please with the scent at all.

[Courtney/Eusine]

"Urbs?" Courtney repeated. "That's so stupid! Why put an 'h' there if you're not gonna use it?!"

She turned up her nose at the sight of the energy root. "Ugh."

And then...the smell of it.

Eris snarled and readied herself to pounce. Courtney exclaimed, "That's disgusting!" in outrage.

Holding her nose, Courtney recalled Eris to her Pokeball.

"I guess I shouldn't let her attack strangers, but still! Why the hell would you give it to a Pokemon? Geez! You might as well let them eat their own tail for all the good that's gonna do! I'm pretty sure I would kill my trainer for force-feedin' me that!"

She wrinkled her nose at his smile.

"So gross..."

[Wallace / Black]

Wallace clucked at her clumsy pronunciation and gingerly returned the Energy Root to its package, though the scent still lingered in the air. He wrinkled his nose; even after years of patronage to the store, the smell still got to him a bit. It'd linger on his fingers for the rest of the day, now.

"While you and I and even your Mightyena might find it repulsive, there are some Pokemon who do appreciate it," he said. "My Milotic is rather fond of bitter things. It's all to do with their natures, you know.

Your Mightyena is probably of a Naughty nature, if she hates them so much." He eyed the pokeball in her fist, eyebrows still raised in amusement.

The girl cared for her pokemon, he'd give her that. And she'd kept it from mauling him, too. Always a plus.

[Courtney/Eusine]

"Must be something wrong with your Milotic then," Courtney muttered, unable to control herself.

She pulled at the ends of her hair, suddenly concerned about split ends or singed pieces. She didn't think he had recognized her from a few inconveniently placed Wanted posters around Mosdeep and Sootopolis, and maybe Slateport as well. So far, so good.

"Yeah, she's Naughty. What of it?" Courtney challenged, with a smirk. "She just knows what's good. Kinda like me. Heh."

She wondered if this man was a utterly clueless as he seemed.

[Wallace / Black]

He gave the girl a look, just short of smug. "As I said, it's all a matter of taste," he said, tacking a silent Of which you are rather lacking. She wouldn't know a 'good' thing if it latched itself to her nose.

Even before being crowned Champion, he'd always been a rather self-righteous prick. Not that he'd admit it, oh no.

"Put her through a Contest sometime. Then we'll talk," he said, and turned, waving a hand leisurely in the air in goodbye. "Perhaps then you'll have turned to the same page as me."

Really, he could have put that a bit more nicely. Water users were meant to love flow and avoid conflict, but obviously whoever made that stereotype had never taken a good look at the ocean. Or river rapids. Or say, a waterfall.

Wallace cast one last look over at the girl, letting his features make the full transformation to 'smug, overbearing narcissist.'