A Fresh(ly baked) Start [Complete]

[Kenna Barnes]

Huh. Kenna had been a little worried she wouldn't be able to find where she would interview with the Rocket Man for her Pokémon--or at least with one of his attendants, which was most likely--given it wasn't exactly a cultural icon like the Lab or the Emissary. 

Once she stepped into the square of the Global Market, though, she wondered if it was possible to miss it. Not that it was huge, nor was the "Rocket Headquarters" sign garish, but... it just had an air of importance, somehow. 

At any rate, Kenna knew where to go, now. She was somewhat early for her appointment, for she'd planned for the need to find the building. Oh, well. 

"Hoy, eh~?" she asked the person behind the counter once she was inside, "Ah hae an appointment, but A'am afraid A'am a wee bit early-- A'am Kenna Barnes. Whaur shoods Ah bide until it's mah time?" She was grinning broadly and leaning over the desk, intending to be friendly--she didn't notice how the gesture could have just as easily come off as intimidating, perhaps even more so given her thick accent. ...How in the world did she maintain that over twenty-five years of living in Port City, anyway? 

[Olive]

The woman behind the desk wasn't even able to answer poor Kenna she was so surprised by her. Luckily the perfect person walked in at the perfect time. He was a gorgeously built man, just a few inches shorter than Kenna. His thin blonde hair was styled into a faded fauxhawk that seemed to match his deep navy suit and earpiece (which was presumably an X-gear), giving him a very authoritative and professional look. Honestly, he did not look like he belonged on this planet at all. He nodded at the attendant and gestured for Kenna to enter the door labeled "Rocket Man."

"Don't worry Aya, this is Kenna," he smiled at the red-haired woman, revealing a set of bright, white teeth. "We have an appointment."

Once they entered the office, which seemed oddly small for such a large figurehead, The Rocket Man offered Kenna a seat in a lavish red chair. He circled around his desk, which seemed a bit old and run-down, then finally sat in a chair of equally confusing quality. "Now first thing's first," he extended his hand to the woman for a shake and smiled as if that trade meant the world to him. "You can just call me Mr. R." His expression went flat as he pressed a button on his earpiece, which revealed a holographic screen that appeared on top of his desk. Hm. Well that was pretty neat. Mr. R pressed a few 'buttons' and Kenna watched as 5 pokeballs seemed to replace the screen.

"Pretty nifty huh? I can't store Pokemon here, so I just get the professor to transfer them over whenever I'm ready to make a deal." He scratched the back of his neck and just barely smiled. "Ya see Kenna, this is my way of welcoming you to the Merchant community." Mr. R then took the five capsules and released them.

"Magby, Slugma, Numel, Torkoal, Klink" He waved his hand toward them. "See, in this area of training, I try to find Pokemon that will better suit your needs rather than your personality. And to put it simply, I chose these five because I believe they will grant great success in the field of blacksmithing," he raised an eyebrow in a playful humor, "or baking." Mr. R also retrieved a pamphlet with several other Pokemon on it. "If you would prefer one of the classic starter Pokemon, you can take a pick from that."

[Kenna Barnes]

Kenna nodded to the newcomer and followed him into the office, looking over her shoulder and calling to the bewildered assistant, "Thank ye, luve!" accompanied by another grin and a friendly wave. 

In the office, she sat down on the offered chair and took a moment to flatten the creases in her dress while her companion rounded his desk. She'd wanted to make a good impression in the meeting, and worn her old, embroidered dress. It wasn't a large improvement to her wardrobe, but the embroidery should at least look nice, right? 

Either way, the next moment she was shaking his hand--"Och, so you're the Rocket Man himself, aye? Ah ne'er kent that ye're sae handsome." Despite her words, Kenna kept her tone light and airy, and her body language remained quite professional. Her legs were crossed at the knee, and Kenna quickly withdrew the hand that had shaken his without much ado, and simply set it by her side while the man in front of her tipped and tapped and worked with his gadgets. 

"Aye," Kenna had responded to his nifty-question, looking legitimately impressed. He went on to the Pokémon, and Kenna grinned even wider, somehow. "Och, it's good tae gab tae someain reasonable, fur ance.
 Ah dunno much abit the other programs, but function trumps fashion any day, in mah books." She blinked, and noticed her hand smoothing another wrinkle in her dress. "...Almost any day." She glanced downward as she put a hand to her mouth and cleared her throat, scanning the pamphlet held in her other hand instead. 

"Can Ah see this'n?" Kenna asked, pointing to the paper. "Pyroll, Ah guess. He looks interestin', but Ah woods loch tae see him--or 'er, as the case main be--in person, if tha's a'right?" She nodded to the Pokémon around the office, and continued, "Nae tae say Ah dornt want any a thems. Eh'd just loch this'n tae be oot while Ah dae th' whole 'are we gonnae mesh' questionin' bit, ye ken?" She shrugged. "Given that aw a these hae th' physical ability tae help me 'roond the shop, th' next order a business seems tae be seein' whose personality works weel wi' mine, seein' as thes'll be a long-term affair."

[[oh no/sorry for asking you to come up with rudimentary personalities for all of these x''3;;;; I just realized I couldn't really justify having her take pyroll when there were four perfectly-good fire types right there x'3]]

[Olive]

Mr. R nodded. He pressed the button on his X-gear three times and spoke, "Send over the Pyroll please." In just a few moments, the pokeball appeared and the businessman allowed it to join the others. The Rocket Man nodded at the Pokemon to suggest that they continue.

Slugma slowly began to make its way towards Kenna, its face seemed to drag, just like its body. "Klingkling!" Klink shouted happily as it passed up the lava slug and began to wizz around the trainer. It stopped directly in front of Kenna after the third revolution, and stared with a hopeful smile. Out of nowhere, Magby popped up and grabbed the Klink. "Magorah!" A poof of smoke whisped from its mouth as it too gave Kenna a huge grin.

Torkoal and Numel had yet to move from the back of the room. Numel honestly looked like it was half asleep and didn't really make much of an attempt to be all cutsie like the other two. Torkoal was also very laid back in its approach, simply giving a little "Tork," and a nod. Slugma's still not there yet.

Pyroll, upon release, stretched out its long arms and yawned. Its eyes blinked curiously as it noticed Kenna. For a moment, it analyzed the others, then curled up into its shell and rolled right to the chair. A tiny 'kunk' sound was made when the shell hit. The Pokemon then uncurled itself and tugged on Kenna's dress. It looked up at her, eyes wide with curiosity, "Piya?"

Slugma's almost there, but its still really excited about this!

[Kenna Barnes]

Kenna cast a critical eye across the assorted Pokémon in front of and around her. "Klink, Ah don't 'hink you'd want much tae gang wi' me, 'less you'd loch me tae wark oan ye myself, which Ah kin' ay doobt." ...It's probably a good thing Kenna was talking to Pokémon, who tended to be better with languages than humans. That's how that worked, right? Because at this rate, the people around her were likely to need a Kenna-to-English Dictionary. 

Then, turning her attention to the Magby holding the Klink, Kenna continued, "Ah 'preciate yoor gie-up-an'-gang, bairn. But mah warkshop's a toogh place, an' Ah dornt tolerate any tom-fool'ry, sae Ah think ye micht be happier wi' mair ay a free spirit, aye?" She wasn't even trying to tone down her accent at this point, was she? Oi. 

"Oan th' other hain," she said, glancing across the room at the Torkoal and the Numel, "Ah dae need someain wi' th' energy tae keep up wi' me. Aa'm sure yoo're braw Pokémon but Ah think we'd gie oan each other's nerves somethin' fierce."

For the first time in all of this, Kenna's face drew itself into a clear emotional state, though the knitted brows conflicted with her smile as to exactly which emotion that was. "Och, arenae ye sic' a bonnie wee body!" Whatever it was Kenna said, she said to the Slugma. "Ah dornt hink Ah can tak' ye wi' me, thocht." Okay, there, the smile fell and her face was clearly upset. "But again, Ah s'pose keepin' up wi' me is an issue. An', there's th' fact 'at yoo're sae adorable, Ah want tae hug ye! Aa'm nae stranger tae burns, but Ah dornt think e'en Ah coods brae 'at." 

That left only one Pokémon. "Aa'm sure you'll make braw partners, some day," she said to the rest of them, then turned to Mr. R. "Thank ye f'r lettin' me see them aw. Ah'll be takin' th' Pyroll, 'en." 

It seemed Kenna was (probably?) back to attempting to tone down her accent...?

[Olive]

With a nod the Rocket Man withdrew all of the Pokemon and handed Kenna the Pyroll's pokeball. He seemed to understand her really well. Pretty amazing (not because it took an outside presence a good fifteen minutes to decipher it of course) considering how thick her accent was. Suppose businessmen had to have some intense skill in the language department to be successful.

"And to help you get started, I have informed the various store owners to give you a 50% discount on your first two key items and two other items." A faint but genuine smile crossed his face. Rocket Man extended his hand to finish the deal. "If you have any questions about business and our economy, please feel free to call me. If you ever buy an X-gear just tell the clerk that you're one of my advisees and they will give you my number."

With a final bow he went to open the door. "Good luck with your brand Kenna."

[Kenna Barnes]

"Thank ye kindly, sair," Kenna said with a slight bow in return. "Ah dunnae kinn--eh, know that is--that Ah'll be seein' ye again, but it was a pleasure meetin' ye." She took his hand and shook it heartily, then turned around and left.

Once she was outside, Kenna released the Pyroll from its Pokéball. "Ah hae a guid feelin' abit ye, mah wee bairn." Pyroll looked up at her and squeaked, cocking its head. "Weel, onieway, it's time tae gie back tae me shop, mebbe wi' a gonnae-no tae th' general stair while we're at it, och aye?" And with that, they were off.

SPOILER: Click to show

Thank you kindly, sir.
I don't know [interjection] that I'll be seeing you again, but it was a pleasure meeting you.
I have a good feeling about you, my little kid/baby/etc.
Well, anyway, it's time to get back to my shop, maybe with a stop to the general store while we're at it, yes?

[end thread]