Harris smiled a bit at her plain cuteness. It was quaint. That was until he saw the ekans. He backed away from counter a bit nervously.

Ekans was poisonous and had fangs. They could kill you with a single bite. It was still small but still deadly. What if it bit her what would he do? What if it launched itself at him?

Fear of fear. He hated it when his mind wandered down the wrong path. It left him helpless as he was quickly paralyzed with fear. Come on get a hold of yourself what example would you be setting if you fainted here? Over a tiny ekans. Just breathe.

She was talking try and focus on that. A clipboard, perfect! He gingerly reached out snatching it from the counter while keeping his distance. Focus on it. Don't look to the highly poisonous snake just a few feet from you.

Name, easy, birthday easy. Ekans hissing in the background not easy. He looked up to see the ekans around her neck. Was it going to strangle her? He slouched down fighting the urge to faint. Come on act like a man. The clipboard rested on his knees and his shaking hand wouldn't budge to write anything. Yep there it was darkness; it only a few seconds but he'd passed out. He didn't budge much so he wasn't sure if she could tell.

His eyes rested on the paperwork and he refused to look at her. Just finish the paperwork he told himself. He always felt better after fainting it was like that brief moment had cleared his mind some. He stood back up after he was done only to see her sliding it into a basket with a lid. A sigh of relief crossed his lips.

He had completely missed everything she had said. He scratched the side of his face a bit as she asked if he was ready. Yes and no he thought. He knew a general idea though. Just don't tick anything off and be polite to the Pokemon. So he doesn't get attacked and faint once more. He seriously needed to get over himself.

"Umm, yeah," Harris said walking up to stand beside her. "This will be my first time really experiencing Pokemon." He said nervously. "I wasn't raised around them or anything. Not that I haven't met any. I've painted several but that just means I sat there and watched them. I never really interacted with them. I think they can be really beautiful though. Rapidash, mudsdale, sawsbuck, arcanine, ninetails, oricorio, and a bouquet of lurantis. Are only some of the Pokemon I've had the pleasure of painting."

His nervousness seemed to disappear as he began talking about painting. It always calmed his nerves because he has such a passion for it. Even talking about it got his blood pumping and eager to paint.


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"I do," Harris responded to her inquiry. "I'm not cheap though. Painting is hard work especially if you want great quality. And I never accept anything from myself but great works."

Harris followed her eagerly. He wondered what Pokemon he would meet first. He looked to her torchic with a smile. It was kinda cute maybe he would get one too. He definitely wouldn't mind it.

"The first one huh," he wondered if that was wise. Well she did say if he could convince it. So it's possible they may not get along. He wondered if he'd be allowed to find another if that was the case.

The elevator stopped and Harris's heart nearly beat out of his chest in anticipation. Which was followed by him nearly choking on the hot air that followed. He understood why she hated this place rather quickly. It felt like he was breathing through a straw with as thick as the air was.

He quickly took off his light overcoat. Not that it did much to relieve the heat. He wouldn't become dehydrated would he? If he passed out would she be able to carry him? Not again...always the downward spiral.

He watched her motion to him and took slow steps behind her. It is just the heat don't get worked up. She's a ranger too surely she is prepared for anything just don't worry about it. Trust in her training she surely wouldn't be here if she hadn't passed.

The geyser surprised him into picking up his pace. Practically running into her back as she stopped to check her monitor. He looked to the torkoal a bit surprised. Not exactly what he was imagining but better than a magby. Those bulbous things on its head were rather ugly.

She could be cute with a bit of polish. Maybe a bow around her neck. Yes he could definitely imagine some cute scenarios where he could paint the torkoal.

"Ahh, no," Harris said coming to from his imagination. "I'm afraid I don't understand a word. She is a cute thing though. I definitely wouldn't mind taking her home to paint." He smiled a bit and crouched down. 

"It's nice to meet you," he said to the torkoal now that he was pretty much face to face with it.


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Harris listened as the ranger translated for him. None of it was particularly wrong. He had not interest in battling others. While attacks could be wow inducing and beautiful there was really no point in using them against others. If he wanted to battle he would have become a trainer instead.

"She is very much correct. Battling is not really my scene," Harris said in agreement.

Harris chuckled at Maggie's interjection. She said it wasn't dangerous but in his opinion, the heat alone could be if they remained down here too long. With that in mind, he straightened up to follow the torkoal. His mind began to wander down the road of dehydration again. Nope stop that, Maggie is talking.

"I suppose asking a woman her age is out of the question," Harris chuckled as he walked keeping a slow pace behind the torkoal. His faint joke hiding his disturbed thoughts at the mention of danger.

"I suppose I should ask if you don't mind having kids. I plan on running a breeding farm after all. I won't force you to have kids if you don't want to mind you," Harris paused then went on to explain. "I mainly decided to become a breeder after dropping out of art college. When art becomes nothing but work it loses a lot of meaning. So I figured I'd paint what I want and run a breeding farm to pay the bills." He knew his art would be worth a lot in time. He knew his art would be in galleries across the countries. His painting was just too perfect not to be. The problem was getting places to show his art when he was an unknown name.

"Also do you want me to carry you," Harris said. Maggie said she had been waiting a very long time. So it made him wonder how big the biome was. Crossing the whole thing would be an impressive feat for a torkoal.


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Harris frowned as he listened to the story. The ranger getting choked up over it. It was terrible and he certainly had no intention of doing the same thing. He wasn't greedy or hungry for money. He just needs enough to make a living so he can get his career going.

Once it was up and running the breeding business would be a side project he supposed. He would be making enough money by then to hire stable hands to help out around the farm. Doing it all alone would be difficult otherwise.

"I suppose you could say I know the basics. Food, water enough space to roam. Even I think cages inhuman and they look horrible," Harris said reassuring her.

"Like I said it was only if you want to. Since you don't that is that. I have plenty of space though. I used what I had saved up in college to buy a decent plot of land. So any Pokemon I have will be free to wander it as they will," Harris said but then scratched his head a bit. "I'll have to do some landscaping though. Each Pokemon has a preferred habitat after all. So really it is still in its rough draft stages you could say."

He didn't press the issue about carrying her. Though he had to wonder how dense her shell had to be in order for her to weigh too much. And he assumed it was the shell because by normal means there was no other logical explanation.

"I know running a business like this will be hard work. I would appreciate all the guidance you can give," Harris said looking to the torkoal respectfully. His gaze then went up to the nearby elevator.

He would be glad to get out here and someplace cooler. He then thought of the torkoal this place probably felt comfortable to her. Would the sudden change in temperature make her sick?

"Will the sudden change in climate make her sick," Harris asked Maggie. His voice sounding worried.

Would she get sick and die? He had only just got her. His mind was going too far down the wrong path again. How long would it last? Would she suffer? What if he did something wrong while trying to help her?

Harris vision blurred and he stopped walking. He waited to hear her voice echo in his ears reassuring him and dispelling his worries. Hopefully, before he fainted. He hated how it could happen at a moments notice. He couldn't really explain why either. It was illogical but very real to him. This feeling of dread that made his instincts of flight go haywire and literally had him take a mental flight into darkness for a few seconds or sometimes a few minutes.

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Harris took several deep breaths. Right the pokeball it would probably regulate everything. He had nothing to worry about. And she is a ranger so if such a thing would harm the Pokemon she wouldn't allow it. He really needed to stop this.

Inbreeding was kind of an unsaid taboo even he knew that. Though he would have to study up on the egg groupings. In fact he needed to study up on a lot since this would be his first time needing to know about Pokemon. Pokespeech would be a must.

"Right," Harris said hesitantly taking the ball and bag. He was going to be a breeder and he would accept nothing less of himself in this job than he would as a painter. "I'll make sure that none of my Pokemon end up here. I wouldn't forgive myself for mistreating such beautiful creatures."

He looked to the torkoal thinking about her past. She probably hadn't even been given a name. Just a number to go with her children. He wanted to erase those bad memories.

"Mind if I call you Asta," Harris asked the torkoal. He thought of it as a pretty and simple name. It was something he thought fit her. Though he couldn't quite place why.

He bent over towards her pokeball in hand offering it to her as thought in a sign of friendship. He wasn't sure if she would like to be confined in such a space for long periods or not. He would have to get in the habit of letting her out. He could be scatter brained while he was working so having someone there to help him. It would be a boon even if it is a Pokemon.


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