World Tree MUSH

     Another day in the Alola Region: it's hot, at least more so to some than others. Alola certainly gets its fair share of tourists to witness the majesty of the setting and local wonders. Sometimes, however, the tourists are what catch attention. 

     An absolute oddity compared to the local wildlife browses some of the shops in one of the cities; a wolf-person has a few bags held in one hand by the handles while the same arm cradles a no-handle bag with what might be a few groceries within. with fur that is gray and white, he wears what appears to be a white muscle shirt underneath an unbuttoned red and white floral-printed shirt and some jean-like pants made to accommodate having a tail. The only non-warm weather clothing worn are his big biker-like boots. An eye patch covers his left eye and a shiny pendant hangs down from around his neck. 

     He is currently browsing the wares of a street vendor stall with no attempt to be otherwise subtle: he's not from around here, but his money seems good, so that's what matters. Right? Picking up a cap with some unknown logo on the front, he looks it over as if deciding if it's something worth picking up or if he should pass on it.

    Luke was also exploring the island, so much new stuff to see!. Right now he was just relaxing, moving along the street, flanked by his trusty Electiger, the pair just approaching a random food stand, when they spot the very visible visitor. The first reaction from Luke is surprise, wondering if it was some kind of costume, and simply approaching closer, while the big tiger seems intrigued, since it can tell it is not a human, and moving closer. "Hello."

     With a squint from that right eye, the lupine fellow holds the cap up to the conveniently placed mirror at the street kiosk to get a better look at how it might look when worn. He doesn't actually try it on, however. "Hmm." He turns his head at hearing a voice and sees a some young boy and, at first, doesn't think much of it. "Hey." There's a pause before the stranger holds the cap over to show off the logo. 

     The wolf shifts the weight of the bag in his left arm with a jostle of the contents. From the sound of it, there are some prepackaged things inside more so that nice dense things like fresh produce. Probably snacks. "What's this mean, kid?"

    Luke blinks as, once he gets close enough, he realizes that it's NOT a costume, interesting!. He huffs at being called kid, and pets the big, fluffy beast besides him. Dynamo just tilts it's head, glancing at the wolf, adn the snack bag before turning the gaze to the cap, purring amiably. "I'm a pokemon trainer, I am not a kid anymore." he says, not in an angry tone, just the tone of someone that dislikes being understimated. He glances at the cap for a moment, "I think that's the logo of Sylph co, it's a really big company that makes a lot of stuff, especially pokemon related things."

     Miwa frequently makes trips to the city to pick up supplies and food for herself, and today was one of those days. She would likely be pretty hard to miss as it's not every day you see a Primarina walking around town wearing a backpack. She also has special protective socks on her flippers and tail to protect them from the abrasion of the streets and sidewalks. 

    She was starting to get hungry herself, so she heads for the street vendors, hoping to find a food truck selling something tasty, but before she can find that, she spots Luke and Dynamo, though she's more surprised to see the man he's talking with, easily recognizing Wolf even if it's only the second time she's seen him and it's been a bit since then. She approaches them and offers a wave of a flipper as she gets close. "Alola." She offers in greeting as she smiles up at them.

     At being so informed that this kid is not, in-fact, a kid, the wolven stranger finally takes the time to look around for where his parents are; he takes note of the pokemon next to him, and while it is a strange thing to behold, it's not exactly the first time that he has seen pokemon...or strange alien beings, for that matter, so there's no shock value there. 

     Turning back to the stall to replace the cap -- likely while mentally filing away the name Sylph for later as a business worth inspection -- the bag-laden touristy-looking wolfman eyes Luke over. "Where are your parents? Do they know you're by yourself?" An ear swivels as a greeting is called out, an approach on the wolf's apparent blind side which does not afford immediate recognition of any kind, while that one good purple-colored eye stays very focused on the youth.

Luke Gray seems pleased that Wolf seems to listen and pay him more attention, moving closer still, and after a pause, offers a hand to the stranger. "I'm Luke Gray." he says, "This here is Dynamo, don't worry, he is friendly." even if Wolf didn't seem to really 'react' he knew of worlders were a bit uneasy about pokemon. The big cat sits by Luke, and grooms it's paw and face, offering a nod when introduced. The question gets a smile, "Don't worry, I make sure they know where I am, I call them pretty often." he says, "It's not that rare young people decide to explore the world on their own here." he says, as if repeating something he read somewhere. 
     Miwa's approach gets a friendly wave from the kid, and Dynamo gets up and quickly pads to the Primarina, greeting her with a friendly headbump and brushing against her, perhaps causing some static buildup, and growling a greeting. "Hey Miwa." comes from the kid.

     Miwa nods at Luke's greeting and gives Dynamo a gentle pat on the back with her flipper. She could handle a little static charge, and knew it was just part of Dynamo being an electric type. "Hey Luke, how are you? Also somehow surprising to see you here Wolf, though I'm not sure why it feels that way. Anyway Luke is right, many young trainers start their journey at the age of ten or eleven, accompanied only by their first Pokemon. Their parents are usually consensual in the process, though I have heard stories of some who's parents forbid them to go, who left anyway." She offers, to add to what Luke said, then blushes a bit as her stomach growls.

     The name Miwa, however, is one that the wolf has heard before. Now, at the time of meeting Miwa and her friend, he was unaware of what she was and may have shown a little more surprise and interest if her friend wasn't some kind of magically controlled suit or armor or something. It wasn't the only time such a name has come under his attention, though. In fact, a forwarded recording and accompanying story regarding some issues around Miwa and family drama were part of what has brought him around. While not strictly on business, it might be said such a visit is one method of learning about a place and its inhabitants and politics. 

     It's actually a good thing that Luke decides to be open about his contact with his folks, as Wolf would have immediately said something about it (at the expense of coming off like a grumpy old man), but he still seems to disapprove of the notion. Kids wandering the streets on their own, with protection or not, is a good thing how? 

     Miwa backs up such claims on friendly approach to the young man and his pet and Wolf can see that it is, in fact, the same creature from before. "You aren't picking pockets to keep yourself fed, are you?" Wolf asks of Luke with a glance between Luke and Miwa, a pause on Miwa and then to Dynamo with a squint, before settling his gaze on the boy once more.

Luke keeps his focus back on Wolf, watching him curiously, and smiling, even if his offer to shake hands was ignored, "What's your name?" he asks curiously, after all, he offered his own. The motion of him being a pickpocket or a thief gets a frown from him, "Of course not, I get money from pokemon battles and the league." he says. "You don't need that much money when you usually camp around, rather than sleep in hotels and stuff." he says softly. He finally looks back at Miwa, "So you two met already?" he asks. Meanwhile, Dynamo just purrs at the petting, the big round thing a sucker for that, but still keeps an eye on Wolf.

     Miwa nods to Luke's question about her having met Wolf before. "Briefly, I sort of accompanied a friend in meeting him on business matters. She does chuckle a bit as Wolf's wondering of how Luke could be supporting himself without parents quickly goes to theft, but Luke answers for himself. She doesn't really have much more to add to the current stage of the conversation, so she starts looking around for food.

     The next stall over is selling waffles, so she orders a couple for herself with pinap berries and whipped cream topping. She then balances on her tail and holds a fork between the little digits of her flipper, and eats while Wolf and Luke continue talking.

     The tall wolf-person shakes his head a bit, although it's more like a matter of minor disbelief over something disapproving. His mouth hangs just slightly open, some sharp teeth showing, and his brow furrows a bit. It sounds like a job of some sort, but, to Wolf, Luke looks entirely too young to have to worry about that kind of thing. He shifts the bag in his arm again with a rustling from the bags hanging by the handles from his hand. While he finds the independence and motivation and confidence all admirable, the very notion of leaving home so early just doesn't sit well with him. It likely never will. His not shaking hands wasn't being over macho or rude; the culture shock, on some levels, is pretty harsh. "Right. Well. Just visit them often, at least." 

     A hot exhalation is pushed free from the stranger's elongated mouth. He really shouldn't stand in the sun for too long. He can take it, but if he starts panting he'll probably get funny looks. Again. He gestures to some sort of eatery place with outside dining underneath some shade relatively nearby, although it appears to be themed -- he doesn't quite understand the nature of the theme, but it has shade and they probably serve drinks. It's better than buying lemonade from a vending machine. 

     "I'm going sit over there and take a break, kiddos. And it's Wolf. Wolf O'Donnell. And-" And he then notices that Miwa has stepped aside to go order food from a stall already. "Yeah, we met on...business. Nothing somebody your age should be interested in. You two, er, three come have a seat and tell me about this area?" Should be fine to take waffle snacks over, right? For Wolf, the jury is still out on if this Dynamo talks like Miwa does, but it certainly makes all of those other pokemon around a little more suspect.

Luke Gray seems to smile as Wolf says that, "I do, don't worry... Mr. O'donnel." he says, "My full name is Luke Gray." he adds, glancing at Miwa already eating and then back at Dynamo, who was just sitting besides teh other pokemon. "Dynamo, come here, I'll get you a snack, just don't bother Miwa while she eats.". The fluffy tiger, that seemed about to 'tap' Miwa's side with a paw, suddenly brings it down adn tries to look innocent, quickly hoping back to Luke's side.
     "I am not really from Alola, but can try my best, any area in particular you wanted to know more?" he says. He moves to sit near the fluffy wolfman, wanting a bit of a break from the sun as well, and gets a soda and waffles for himself. And after Dynamo tried it's best to look sad and cute, waffles for the critter too. "Here." he says, the tiger letting out a 'ger!' and devouring the food.

     Miwa follows Wolf over to the shade and continues eating. She had to admit that it was warm in the sun, and she could only imagine how it must feel when you're covered in fur. "For a drink I recommend pinap juice, it's the best here in Alola, though many say our coffee is really good too, but on a hot day like this, maybe an iced coffee would be nice. As for telling you about this area, I can help with that. I've lived here all my life, even if I did tour around the world for performances. What do you want to know?"

     'Mr. O'Donnell' pulls an unused chair over in which to place his bags in. First goes the large bag from a grocer's and then the smaller bags full of various tat and things from shops and stalls that aren't really worth all that much, but likely make novelty gifts for people. Carefully tucking his tail around to his side while sitting, the decidedly touristy-dressed off-worlder looks around for a serving menu of some sort. 

     "What do they have that passes for coffee around here?" asks Wolf just before Miwa begins making suggestions. Some worlds have a lot more agricultural similarities than others, but it can be difficult to tell at a glance when you aren't from the area. While iced coffee is more a thing his friend and business partner Panther Caluroso would enjoy, it's somewhat wise to order something cold instead of hot and he'd rather not ingest too many natural sugars from what he assumes is a type of fruit juice. "Ah. Well, iced coffee it is, then." 

     After deciding on an order, the wolf leans back in his seat with a sigh. "I don't know where to start. What was about that logo? Sylph? And I heard whispers about some sort of gang? Is it safe to walk the streets at night?"

    Luke is happy with his soda and waffles, and so is Dynamo, licking the plate clean and getting busy grooming his face and paws fastidiously, just purring contently. He decides to handle the Silph co question, at least as far as he can. "It's the biggest technology company in Kanto, and well, it's pretty big all over really. They design a lot of things, like the pokegear and pokeballs and computers and equipment and radio things... they basically do technology things of all sorts." he says. "it's really important."

     Miwa chuckles as Wolf asks about coffee right before she mentions it. "Komala Coffee is the main local variety if you want to try that." She offers with a smile as she takes another bite of her waffles, getting a bite of the pineapple-like fruit with the bite. When Wolf asks about Silph, and the gangs, she first adds to Luke's answer about Silph. 

     "Pokeballs, if you aren't aware, allow for the capture and easy transport of Pokemon. I would also mention that here in Alola, there is another corporation called the Aether Foundation that specializes in Pokemon medical treatment and technology, as well as genetic research. They also sponsor an orphanage right here on the island. Their headquarters is a large artificial island called Aether Paradise, in the center Alolan region." 

     She pauses a moment to order an iced coffee for herself, then moves on to talking about the gangs. "As for the gangs, well, they go by Team Skull. Despite the ominous name, they are usually pretty harmless, mostly causing minor trouble, with the arguably worst thing they often do is try to imped other young trainers who are attempting the Island Challenge.

     Fortunately, an iced coffee is pretty easy to make and quick to deliver. Hopefully it's an actual iced coffee and not just a coffee-flavored sugar drink, but...when in Alola, drink as the Alolans do. Dressed as he is currently it might be difficult to imagine Wolf in leathers and spikes, in a seedy bar, hiring and being hired by rather unsavory types. However, clothing alone can't hide the obvious scars marring his face, arms, and ears. While he may be able to play the tourist card on Luke, Miwa probably knows better. Unless, that is, O'Donnell is actually around for something vacation-like. After all, he has a bunch of bought knickknacks that certain hint as much to that. 

     "You can buy those ball things at a store or something?" first wonders the middle-aged wanderer aloud before reflecting on the report of this 'Team Skull' with a laugh. "Obvious more than ominous. They sound like a bunch of bored kids." After all, if most trainers wandering around are Luke's age, certainly local authorities wouldn't stand for adults messing around with them. "So, you think they'd bother somebody from out of town?"

Luke Gray is quick to answer that question!. "Yep!, that's pretty much how that works." he says, pointing at dynamo and then holding a pokeball in one hand. "You capture a pokemon in it, and then you can transport the captured pokemon like this.". He presses a button on the small round thing, which grows to full size, and a red beam comes from the opening orb, engulfing the distracted Dynamo and 'sucking' him into the pokeball. A moment later, he releases it in a similar way. "Most trainers carry their pokemon like that, but Dynamo prefers to walk around wiht me."

     Miwa sips at her iced coffee as Luke answers the question about the Pokeballs. Like Wolf's her coffee had no sugar unless asked for, though generally unless specifically requested, there was some cream added to give the drink a softer, smoother flavor. "I have been released by the man who raised me, but I still have a Pokeball, it's back at my home now, and has a custom design with a sapphire for the button in the center, in that way, not exactly the sort you can buy from a normal store. As for Team Skull, I think there might be an adult leading the group, though lead might not be the best way of putting it. Otherwise, they are mostly, as you say, bored teenagers, many of which failed the trial themselves and now seem intent on making sure others share in their failure."

     Wolf folds his arms atop the table and leans forward as he watches the display. The people from his World have some very impressive technology, as well, but this is a very different path of progression. It seems the non-human animals of this World have played a large role in the sociological and technological human developments. "Interesting." It raises a lot of questions that Wolf does not immediately bring up. 

     As Miwa adds to the conversation, Wolf drinks some of the cold beverage before gesturing with a hand at mention of a previous owner. "Right. Kaleo." He turns his head to give Miwa a knowing glance. "I've heard." She can thank her hot-headed human friend for that, or at least the forwarding of information on that recorded conversation and the surrounding details. "What happened to him? In jail for collusion, I imagine?" 

     Wolf then leans back and wonders. "So you have criminal groups dotting the area? Sounds to me like they aren't all harmless bored teenagers." He points at Luke. "Are you sure you're safe out on your own...Gray? I can't say I like the idea of children being vulnerable to or falling in with the wrong groups so young."

Luke Gray appreciates the concern from the wolf person, honestly, "I am a very strong trainer... to be honest, most people here respect pokemon battle rules, and if they don't... I believe my pokemon still are good at taking on people, or getting me out of trouble." he says. "I trained them very hard, I mean... I think unless maybe their leader wanted to get me, I'd be in trouble but otherwise..."

     Miwa nods to Wolf, knowing there is only one way he could know about that, unless Mirage has been talking to him, but she was doubtful on that front. "Right, I was told he's being held locally and I might have to testify at his trial. I do wonder where he'll end up if he's convicted, as there aren't really any permanent prisons on the islands here. Miwa then offers encouragement and agreement that Luke likely didn't have anything to worry about. "I really doubt any of these criminal organizations would go after a trainer like Luke, certainly not with enough force that he'd wouldn't be able to fend them off with his Pokemon. Most of the lower level grunts aren't even as strong as the Gym Leaders that Luke would have had to have beaten to earn his badges."

     With a light swirl of the vessel in which the iced coffee resides, the light tinkling sound of ice bumping around stops only when Wolf sips more of the drink. Notably, he drinks it rather quickly overall and, even at this point, probably has less than a third leftover. "A real scrapper, huh?" The rugged vacationer exhales sharply. "Well, if you're certain. Just be careful if you go visiting other...places." He infers somewhere, anywhere, off-World. "If some group of unruly punks gives you too much trouble, though, just tell your friend here to come get me and I'll find a way to sort it out." 

     He's very serious of face as he states as much, which might make the knowing wonder to just what lengths that would entail. O'Donnell puts his glass down upon the tabletop and leans his chair back onto two legs. "It's a very colorful place, at least. Makes for a good place to rest. Reminds me a lot of Zoness before the great war. Not always my speed, but I can still appreciate that others appreciate it." 

     And, on the matter of Kaleo, Wolf has little interest in the man himself. He found the way the man was open and honest and immediately met with mercilessness and hatred all too predictable. It's why he's not open about personal feelings all that often and why he hardly /ever/ apologizes. No. Wolf's interests in the situation lie elsewhere and unspoken.