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Description

Name: Riley Roux
*

Age: 23
*

Gender: Male
*

Pokemon: Smeargle
*

Height: 5' 8"
*

Bodystyle: Athletic
*

Birthday: October 30th
*

Home Island: Rapture Retreat

~

Personality:

+Friendly +Optimistic +Determined /-Over Thinker -pushover -Paranoid

  Riley is a firm believer there is light in the world, even in the darkest of places. He feels this in his heart and has made the decision to find it or- if he can't find it, be it. With a determination that sometimes teeters on the line of stubbornness, Riley gives all of himself into all aspects of his life. Helping others constantly, nurturing injured Pokemon, and maintaining the balance around him, Riley pushes himself beyond his limits in an attempt the make the world a better place. This type of life style often wears on him, but he's sure to let no one discover this secret, in fear of letting down all those around him. Riley is intensely passionate about the well being of his loved ones, but longs for the day he can find someone to understand the large part of him who wishes to take a break from being the problem solver and rectifier.

~

History:

Riley had a great life as a young boy. He had an ever so gentle and kind Delphox Mother, who worked diligently at the local daycare, and a totally cool Smeargle Father, who spent his days making a difference in the world as a dedicated Park Ranger. Along with his Mother and Father, Riley had a twin brother. His name was Bailey and the two were inseparable.

Although both boys were fairly identical, Bailey was born with Fennekin features while he himself sported the traits of a Smeargle. This was secretly something that Riley was vastly envious of, as soon as he'd grown old enough to understand his twin would one day evolve not once, but twice, while he stayed the same for the rest of his life. He believed he would always be at a disadvantage, but vowed to never let that keep him from being just as capable as Bailey.

The family of four lived happily in their tree top home, located in Frotree City of the Hoenn region. The boys loved the idea of one day becoming a "hero" like their Father and so they spent all day and some nights scurrying about the town rescuing skittys from trees, helping elderly people in need if crossing the many bridges in town, and running errands for busy Mothers. By age ten Riley and Bailey's parents were very proud. The couple had another baby on the way, so they were more than pleased to see their sons growing up to be fine men. The twins were know through the town, and were well on their way to Joining the local Ranger Academy to follow in their Father's footsteps.

Unfortunately this was also the age a great tragedy fell on the soon to be growing family. It had been a particularly hot year and Riley's Father was constantly needed to help put out fires in the forests surrounding the city. After many years on the force, their Smeargle Father had rose to the important role of Head Adviser of all the Rangers in the lands associated with Fortree City. Because of this he was the first person to respond to distress calls reported to the station.

  It had been a week full of calls, minor fires, and late nights when the Smeargle Father was once again roused awake by a buzzing pager on his nightstand. He had been so tired it took five minutes before his very pregnant wife rolled over and lovingly patted his shoulder. Accepting his duty, he'd thanked his beloved and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, before half eyed dressing in his uniform and shutting the door softly behind him.

As he made his way to the front door he found Riley and Bailey sprawled on the couch and recliner sleeping peacefully and couldn't help chuckling. They must have fallen asleep in attempts to catch him if he left for another late night call, so they could beg him to come along.

  Shaking his his head with a warm smile on his lips, he grabbed a couple blankets from a basket by the rocking chair, and tossed one over each of his sons, giving them a peck on the forehead. Bailey didn't even flinch, but before his lips could hit his second sons head, Riley's eyes shot open strained and red as he tried to register where he was. He immediately noticed his Father standing above him and asked;

  "Dad? Are you going?"

His Father nodded calmly and put a finger to his lips to tell his son to lower his voice.

"Can Bailey and I go? Please?" Riley begged in a soft voice as he glimpsed toward his twin.

He smiled a tired smile and shook his head.

"The two of you are still too young. I won't be gone long, I need you here to look after your Momma and the little one."

  "But Dad that's not important like what you do-"

Riley's Father cut him off and laid a hand on his shoulder.

"You're right. In it's own way, it's even more important. You see, the forest has many of us rangers to look after it and care for it. There are multiple people responsible to see to it remaining intact and loved.Our family is like the forest in which we need to make sure it is also cared for and loved."

  Riley wasn't ready to give up just yet.

  "What if Bailey stayed with Momma this time, and I went with you? Besides, it's not like he needs me to do a good job, Bailey's good at everything."

  He didn't sound mad, he was merely observing facts.

  " You a very important asset to this family Riley. While your Mother is kind, she sometimes forgets to be stern. Your brother is strong willed and capable, but he often forgets safety. But you, Riley, you are what hold this family together. You are balanced and have a moral compass that shows you the way in the darkest of places. I need you here to guide them like you always do. Can I trust you to do that for me?"

  Riley's eyes had gone large and wondrous as he contemplated the possibility he could be so influential to his family, and then nodded in a daze.

  "Yes, I can do it Dad." He replied nodding his head vigorously.

  "Good, I'll see you in the morning Riley, Love you."

  And with that he pecked his son on the top of the head before giving him a crinkled eye smile, and headed out the door.

  "Love you too..." Riley whispered.

      That had been the last time Riley would see or talk to his Father. The call he was responding to that night was a fire far more vast than any the City had seen before. The Smeargle Father had been the first one on the scene and the last. It had taken eight hours, every Ranger in the city, and emergency help from the neighboring town to cut off the spreading fire. There was but one single Pokemon, and one single Ranger lost in the infernal blaze. Riley's Father and his courageous Floatzet Blitzen. The two had perished holding back the wild flames from the city until help could arrive. A statue of the two was erected in their precious memory and the town mourned the loss of their treasured Head Ranger and his Pokemon side kick.

Riley was absolutely devastated. Words could not explain his grief and in honor of his Father he made a vow to keep the promise he'd made that night.

13 Years later found Riley and Bailey at age 23 and both capable Ranger's patrolling the very forest their Father had died to protect. They spent their days fulfilling their duties with little time for much else. This left their younger brother Eli, who had been born only a month after the death of their Father, plenty of time to get into trouble. This put a rather large strain on the family, as their Mother was often the one reprimanded for the actions of the young Fennekin boy.

Bailey had little to no patience for the kid as he grew up. Riley was often pulling the two away from each other before they could rip each others heads off. This only broke their Mother's heart as she couldn't stand the sight of her children not getting along, and felt as though she were failing as their parent.

Riley had his work cut out for him as he did his darnedest to be the peace keeper, the mess cleaner, and the voice of reason and wisdom. Each time he got out of work, he was forced to track down Eli and make sure he wasn't up to no good. Although Bailey time and time again said Eli was just a rotten, good for nothing, kid, Riley knew their baby brother lashed out to find the attention he would otherwise not receive. Their Mother still had her long days at the daycare, now more than ever, and the twins were always needed at the park. This left the young kid to entertain himself for hours and one day it went horribly wrong.

It was a usual day for Riley, a full 8 hours spent making rounds in the forest with his twin, and the sun was just sinking beneath the horizon. It was this time Riley would usually seek out the youngest brother and spend some time with him to keep him from destroying the town, but he was worn to the bone tonight. The two had an unusual number of Pokemon in need of rescuing, and Riley had fallen into the deep part of the river at one point when attempting to save a drowning Bulbasaur, who in a panic latched onto him with it's vines and pulled the poor Smeargle Ranger in as well. He had almost drowned after tossing the Pokemon safely to shore as he went over a waterfall and plunged deep into the deadly current below.

Bailey had sent out his Frogadier to dive in after him, and Riley was brought coughing and gasping to the rivers edge where his brother helped to drag him out.

Almost drowned or not though, Riley never broke his promises and still intended to seek out Eli.

"Riley, what are you doing?" Bailey asked giving his still wet twin a look of exasperation. He had turned and was getting ready to head in the opposite direction of home. He replied with a smile but Bailey could see how exhausted he was.

  "I'm gonna go find Eli, I told him we'd catch him a new Pokemon tonight."

  Crossing his arms over his chest Bailey shook his head.

  "You almost died today and your concerned about a little promise like that? Come home Riley, we've got to be in early tomorrow. You need your rest."

  Bailey saw the all too familiar stubborn flash in his twins eye, and held his hand up before a contradiction could be made.

  "Yeah yeah, I know. You wont let him down. I'll go instead, i'm not nearly as tired as you."

  Effectively silenced, Riley's mouth remained slightly open as he gave his brother a confused look. The expression made him appear even more tired as you could see the very hesitant hope in his eyes. Bailey began to feel guilty as he thought about all the nights Riley came home late in the night with their younger brother. He never offered to do so himself because Eli hated him. Or he seemed to at least... Bailey admitted to himself he didn't make much of an effort to make his brother like him, he didn't see the point when the boy was going to cause problems either way.

Riley was always trying though. He never stopped making an effort to do the right thing, even if he had almost recently drowned and was beyond exhausted from spending the past two weeks entertaining the kid until the wee hours of the morning.

  "You- you would go for me?" Riley asked cocking his head to the side slightly, and his twin couldn't help but notice bags under his eyes.

  Bailey waved a hand at him.

  "Quit acting all surprised, I mean he's my brother too. It should't be so odd for me to spend time with him." He scratched the back of his head while resting his other hand on his hip and eyed his twin.

  Riley pondered the offer with much thought as his brow furrowed slightly and he remained quiet. Bailey knew he was weighing the pros and cons in his head and was always impressed he could maintain his constant state of caution, even when dog tired.

  "I don't know Bailey... I think it would maybe be better if I just went."

He seemed to resign himself to yet another late night but his brother wasn't about to let him drive himself further into the ground.

  "Riley." The Braxien twin said with affection and placed his hand on his brother's shoulder.

  He had evolved a few years ago and now stood taller then his Smeargle counterpart.

  "Look at you, you're asleep on your feet. You haven't gone to bed earlier then two in the morning all week. Eli will be fine. Let me go in your place for once."

  Riley looked conflicted.

  "You're right of course, I'm exhausted. But you know how easily Eli is upset... I'll be okay missing a few more hours of sleep, it's alright." He trailed to himself and his gaze drifted to the trees.

  Bailey wasn't sure if his twin was trying to convince himself at this point. He shook his head and smiled.

  "Come here you noble little cookie!"

  Bailey hooked his tired brother around the neck and drug him against him in a head lock.

  "I know you want to take all the glory as the selfless big brother, but you're gonna let me have a piece of it tonight!" He yelled playfully as Riley struggled in the crook of his arm.

  "Stop it, I'm not a cookie." Riley grumbled from his awkward position.

  "Now you listen here brother, your going to go home, shower, and get that cute little Smeargle butt of yours into bed. While you do that, your amazing twin is going to go catch a new Pokemon with our little brother, and then take him for some ice cream. You got that?" He asked and tugged Riley against him a little tighter.

  "Er- Bailey..." He huffed ceasing his attempts at freedom.

  "I- I don't know."

  "Well," The Braxien Ranger said unfazed.

  "I'm not letting you go until you agree. We can stand here all night and then neither of us will go. Does that count as a broken promise?" Bailey chuckled to himself.

  Riley let out a sigh and after a couple moments of silence spoke.

  "You're taking him for ice cream?"

  "Sure, why not? I could go for an Oran berry blast."

  "And you'll help him catch a new Pokemon?"

  "Heck, maybe we'll catch two." Bailey replied and Riley could hear the smile in his voice.

  A few more seconds of silence.

  "Alright." Riley said tightly.

  Bailey smirked and released his brother.

  "Good choice."

  The Smeargle twin rolled his eyes and offered a reluctant smile.

  "Thank you Bailey."

  Said Ranger merely held his fist up which Riley smiled softly at, and lightly tapped his own fist against twice.

"See ya at home cookie." Bailey winked before jogging in the direction his brother had been trying to go.

  "Ha ha." Riley called dryly after him and was rewarded with a chuckle.

Later at home the tired Ranger had skipped dinner in favor of a hot shower and then kissed his Mom on the cheek before turning in for the first early night of sleep he'd had in- Well, he couldn't remember the last time he'd been able to go to bed before midnight. With an overwhelming feeling of gratefulness, Riley settled beneath his covers and shut his eyes. He was out like a light, but only 15 minutes later there was a quick rap on the door.

  He was so deep asleep by then he didn't even flinch and Bailey had to poke his head in to see if he was even in the room. After seeing how totally out his brother was, Bailey felt even more guilty about what he was about to do.

  Approaching his twin quietly, he put a light hand on Riley's shoulder and murmured his name. He let out a soft groan but remained asleep.

  "Riley." Bailey said a tad louder.

  The Smeargle twin started this time and his eyes blinked open red and heavy. He looked up searching for whoever was there and settled on his brother with a half coherent stare.

  "Bailey. What is it?" He asked immediately seeing the expression on his twin's face and sitting up.

  "I'm really sorry Riley..." Bailey had started and then proceeded to tell the Smeargle Ranger about how he had showed up to meet Eli at his usual place, but was not excepted with open arms. The exact opposite actually as Eli had been furious to be met by Bailey instead of Riley. He told him how he had explained Riley was exhausted and so he'd come in his place but Eli wanted nothing to do with him. Even after he'd mentioned the ice cream, their younger brother was furious and took off with no explanation as to where he was going or what he was going to do.

  "I really didn't want to wake you, but he was pretty mad and I have a feeling he will be up to no good. With all the incidents we've had with him this month, i'm worried the towns people will finally retaliate if he does one more thing..."

Riley nodded and then rose from his bed to find some clothes.

  "You're right, they said as much when he knocked the head off that statue in the center of town last week. We'd better find him before he gets himself into more trouble than he can handle. What places have you checked?"

  Bailey scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

  "Ah, nowhere yet... I didn't have the slightest idea where to begin searching, but I knew you would so I came straight here."

  Riley nodded again as he tugged his t-shirt over his head before sliding on a long sleeved shirt instead.

  "Start with the bridge near Route 120. I'll check out the berry fields and the Daycare as soon as I finish getting dressed. we'll meet at Dad's statue whether we find him or not. If we haven't, we'll go from there."

  With their plan in place, Bailey immediately released his Herdier from his ball and they were off to find Eli.

Riley wasted no time and sent out his Purrloin Felis to tag along. If they were to stop their younger brother from causing anymore trouble, then they needed to leave now.

Luckily adrenaline was coursing through his body at this point, and it was greatly appreciated as he ran toward his destination. He would check the berry fields first since they were not only closest, but a place Riley often caught Eli stealing fruit from with a delighted smirk. The kid just got a kick out of pulling one over on the grouchy old man who grew the berries.

  Riley arrived there out of breath and was disappointing to find nothing. With a tired sigh and an apologetic look to Felis, the two changed directions and ran off toward the Daycare their Mother worked at. He wasn't sure why exactly, but this was another place Riley often found his brother.

As they approached the building, Riley felt a sinking feeling in his gut. He could smell smoke and he was nearly certain it wasn't someones camping fire. Sensing his owners unease, Felis let out a 'Mrreh!' and trotted a little faster.

  The duo almost ran smack into a frazzled Fennekin boy who was panting wide eyed.

  "Riley!" He had yelled startled and then turned to look over his shoulder with fear before turning back.

  The elder brother wasted no time and got straight to the point.

  "What did you do Eli? Don't utter a lie or so help me-"

  Eli cut him off with a frantic wave of his hands.

  "Kill me later Ri, the Daycare is on fire, we need to rescue the Pokemon inside!"

  "WHAT?!" Riley screamed and even Felis jumped.

  "No time! Come on!"

  Eli took off in the direction he'd come and Riley was immediately on his heels.

   "You caught the Daycare on fire Eli? I know you've damaged stuff before, but never like this! How could you?" He demanded.
  "I didn't mean to!" Eli yelled back angrily, but fear and guilt were evident in his tone.

  Riley couldn't keep the obvious doubt from his voice.

"Didn't mean to?"

  "I just wanted to burn down the sign." He muttered and swiped a forearm across his cheek to wipe away some tears Riley suspected.

  "I was really mad you didn't come tonight so I wasn't paying attention and when I used my ember I missed and set the Daycare on fire."

  Riley shook his head in dismay.

  "Oh Eli..." He said quietly and then any other thought was cut short as the cries of trapped Pokemon met them.

  The three reached the burning building seconds later and Riley was horrified to see flames engulfing the entire left corner of the Daycare.

Riley shot his arm out halting Eli from going any further.

  "Stop." He said and turned to his younger brother with a serious frown.

  Eli looked up to him confused.

  "Take Felis and go get Bailey. He's at Dad's statue in the park. Do not go anywhere else. Get him and come right back here. Run as fast as you can- no, faster." Riley said and for once Eli obeyed without a single question. He disappeared with Felis by his side in seconds.

  Not wanting to risk his own Pokemon unnecessarily, Riley tossed his Pokeballs into the grass far from the building and steeled his nerves. Of course he hadn't brought a water type with him, that would have made life too easy. He knew Bailey would have his Frogadier since he never left home without him, so at least he had that going for him.

He stripped off his Ranger jacket and with only his long sleeve shirt remaining, ran to the building and shouldered through the wooden door.

Once inside he was overcome with an intense heat and began coughing violently as smoke billowed out the door and into his face. He covered his mouth in the crook of his arm and looked around.

  In no time he could see three small Pokemon crying loudly in the corner and wasted no time scooping up the two Weedles and a Skitty, quickly depositing them outside the door and telling them to run to safety. He made another two trips inside to carry out two large trays of Pokeballs and then pushed through the back door to enter the fenced in area behind the building. There were another eight Pokemon out here and he had to coax and maneuver them one by one quickly through the building, because he couldn't unlock the gate.

The adrenaline had long since dispersed and he was barely able to keep standing. Tears were streaming down his face as the smoke burned his eyes and he wondered rather unhelpfully if his Father had gone through the same thing the night he'd died.

  He had just finished checking the building one last time for any stragglers when he heard Bailey's voice call out to him.

  "I'm here!" He called back but before he could exit, the beam above the doorway finally collapsed, throwing him back and exploding into embers. They showered down on Riley in fiery sparks and a flaming bit of wood hit him in the arm catching his sleeve on fire as well. He yelped in pain and quickly beat out the flames, but not before he had a nasty burn up his forearm.

Suddenly there was a powerful stream of water being blasted at the base of the fire from behind him, and then Riley was being hauled to his feet.

  "Can you walk?" Bailey chimed as he slid an arm around his twins waist and tugged his arm over his shoulder.

  Riley hissed in pain as his brother grabbed his burned arm, but nodded with gritted teeth.

  "Any Pokemon left?" He asked next as he quickly led him toward the back door he'd come through. Just as Riley thought, Bailey's Frogadier was standing outside the doorway and shooting a forceful water blast into the Daycare.

  "No, got them all." Riley managed before he began coughing his lungs up.

  Bailey and Eli managed to help Riley over the fence and away from the building before he could no longer stand and dropped to knees, coughing so hard he couldn't breathe. He began to wish he had drowned in the river earlier this morning, at least that wouldn't have lasted as long as this.

Eventually he began to lose his vision and succumbed to the blackness you found when you couldn't take oxygen into your lungs.

It was a full day later when Riley finally woke and found himself laying in a hospital bed, right arm bandaged, and his twin in a chair beside him looking both completely bored and anxious.

  He had wasted no time finding out the condition of the daycare and asked about the health of all the Pokemon involved. He was pleased to learn there were only a few slight burns to a couple of the Pokemon, but they were otherwise fine. The Daycare on the other hand... Well it hadn't burned to the ground, but was severely damaged and would be closed for months while repairs were made.

Bailey had even worse news than that though, and that's what made Riley's heart sink. In the end Eli had felt so guilty about endangering the Pokemon and almost killing his brother, that he had turned himself in and the Fortree citizens were furious. Rightly so, Riley knew, but it didn't make his heart ache any less.
"They'll determine Eli's punishment tomorrow." Bailey had told him gravely.

  After being prescribed an ointment for his burn and given strict orders to rest, the twins were finally allowed to leave, and headed home to await their younger brothers sentence.

The next day Eli was summoned before a crowd of towns people and bowed his head in shame as he waited for his punishment. No one was more surprised then Riley when they heard what had been decided.

  The Mayor declared either Eli would be punished as an adult and sent to spend the next 15 years in the Hoenn penitentiary or... His older brother Riley could choose to have a felony added to his record... and leave the city forever. The mayor explained he was sick of punishing Eli with no results, but knew these two options would finally put an end to his trouble making. Everyone knew how fond of Riley Eli was, and so it was a wonder they hadn't tried something like this sooner. Riley's eyes were blown wide as he took in the sentence and just as Bailey began to argue, he squeezed his eyes shut and promptly blurted out he accepted the terms without so much as consulting his twin.

  Both his brothers and his Mother had gasped horrified NO!'s and were beside themselves with disbelief.

  It wasn't something that needed thought in Riley's eyes. If there was a way to prevent his baby brother from losing 15 years of his life in a jail cell, then he would choose that route every time. He would do the same for Bailey, his Mother, and even his Father if he were alive. That being said... Riley felt horribly sick.

The Mayor did take the time to tell the Smeargle Ranger how grateful the town was for his services and let him know his presence at the park would be greatly missed. With that said the mayor gave Riley a week to find a new home and then warned he would be escorted from the town.

  It broke Riley's heart that Bailey would not speak to him for six of those seven days. The Braxien twin was so angry with his brother he couldn't even look at him. Eli on the other hand couldn't face him without tearing up and this hurt just as bad. Surprisingly, Riley's Mother was the only one who remained strong and relentlessly searched for a location in need of a Ranger. The only thing causing a problem was finding one that overlooked a felony... On the sixth day she finally got a tip from someone in Slateport City and unearthed an unfamiliar Island named Raccolto. After looking into the location, living arrangements were made and Riley's new life was set to begin thousands of miles away from home. Alone and away from his precious family.

*
Ability:

Moody- He is often reacting intensely to any situation he is in.
*

Moveset:
Swift, Smokescreen, Lovely Kiss, Sketch
*

Job: Park Ranger

*

Dog/Cat Race: Purrloin
*

Dog/Cat’s name: Felis
*

Dog/Cat’s gender: Male
*

Talents:
Cheesy jokes and tricks, Drawing, Wisdom, Creativity, Amateur Astronomy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Likes:
Seafood, People watching, Snow, Routine, All pokemon
LOVES:
Fantasy Books

Dislikes:
Carrots, Forced 'How's the weather?' conversation, Disarray, Being the center of attention
HATES:

Dancing
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Funfacts:

* Named his Purrloin Felis after a cat constellation.
  * Hates when people tease him about his name.
* Misses his family so he doesn't really like when people ask about them.
* Likes to have a few beers with friends, but seems to lose any filter he normally would have if sober.
* Loves to play chess and checkers with anyone who agrees to play.
* Longs to return to his birth place one day, even though it isn't possible.
* Writes to his family instead of calling them, because hearing their voices makes him too homesick.
* He is technically the "younger" twin by 8 minutes.
* Afraid of spider Pokemon.

Description

Name: Riley Roux
*

Age: 23
*

Gender: Male
*

Pokemon: Smeargle
*

Height: 5' 8"
*

Bodystyle: Athletic
*

Birthday: October 30th
*

Home Island: Rapture Retreat

~

Personality:

+Friendly +Optimistic +Determined /-Over Thinker -pushover -Paranoid

  Riley is a firm believer there is light in the world, even in the darkest of places. He feels this in his heart and has made the decision to find it or- if he can't find it, be it. With a determination that sometimes teeters on the line of stubbornness, Riley gives all of himself into all aspects of his life. Helping others constantly, nurturing injured Pokemon, and maintaining the balance around him, Riley pushes himself beyond his limits in an attempt the make the world a better place. This type of life style often wears on him, but he's sure to let no one discover this secret, in fear of letting down all those around him. Riley is intensely passionate about the well being of his loved ones, but longs for the day he can find someone to understand the large part of him who wishes to take a break from being the problem solver and rectifier.

~

History:

Riley had a great life as a young boy. He had an ever so gentle and kind Delphox Mother, who worked diligently at the local daycare, and a totally cool Smeargle Father, who spent his days making a difference in the world as a dedicated Park Ranger. Along with his Mother and Father, Riley had a twin brother. His name was Bailey and the two were inseparable.

Although both boys were fairly identical, Bailey was born with Fennekin features while he himself sported the traits of a Smeargle. This was secretly something that Riley was vastly envious of, as soon as he'd grown old enough to understand his twin would one day evolve not once, but twice, while he stayed the same for the rest of his life. He believed he would always be at a disadvantage, but vowed to never let that keep him from being just as capable as Bailey.

The family of four lived happily in their tree top home, located in Frotree City of the Hoenn region. The boys loved the idea of one day becoming a "hero" like their Father and so they spent all day and some nights scurrying about the town rescuing skittys from trees, helping elderly people in need if crossing the many bridges in town, and running errands for busy Mothers. By age ten Riley and Bailey's parents were very proud. The couple had another baby on the way, so they were more than pleased to see their sons growing up to be fine men. The twins were know through the town, and were well on their way to Joining the local Ranger Academy to follow in their Father's footsteps.

Unfortunately this was also the age a great tragedy fell on the soon to be growing family. It had been a particularly hot year and Riley's Father was constantly needed to help put out fires in the forests surrounding the city. After many years on the force, their Smeargle Father had rose to the important role of Head Adviser of all the Rangers in the lands associated with Fortree City. Because of this he was the first person to respond to distress calls reported to the station.

  It had been a week full of calls, minor fires, and late nights when the Smeargle Father was once again roused awake by a buzzing pager on his nightstand. He had been so tired it took five minutes before his very pregnant wife rolled over and lovingly patted his shoulder. Accepting his duty, he'd thanked his beloved and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, before half eyed dressing in his uniform and shutting the door softly behind him.

As he made his way to the front door he found Riley and Bailey sprawled on the couch and recliner sleeping peacefully and couldn't help chuckling. They must have fallen asleep in attempts to catch him if he left for another late night call, so they could beg him to come along.

  Shaking his his head with a warm smile on his lips, he grabbed a couple blankets from a basket by the rocking chair, and tossed one over each of his sons, giving them a peck on the forehead. Bailey didn't even flinch, but before his lips could hit his second sons head, Riley's eyes shot open strained and red as he tried to register where he was. He immediately noticed his Father standing above him and asked;

  "Dad? Are you going?"

His Father nodded calmly and put a finger to his lips to tell his son to lower his voice.

"Can Bailey and I go? Please?" Riley begged in a soft voice as he glimpsed toward his twin.

He smiled a tired smile and shook his head.

"The two of you are still too young. I won't be gone long, I need you here to look after your Momma and the little one."

  "But Dad that's not important like what you do-"

Riley's Father cut him off and laid a hand on his shoulder.

"You're right. In it's own way, it's even more important. You see, the forest has many of us rangers to look after it and care for it. There are multiple people responsible to see to it remaining intact and loved.Our family is like the forest in which we need to make sure it is also cared for and loved."

  Riley wasn't ready to give up just yet.

  "What if Bailey stayed with Momma this time, and I went with you? Besides, it's not like he needs me to do a good job, Bailey's good at everything."

  He didn't sound mad, he was merely observing facts.

  " You a very important asset to this family Riley. While your Mother is kind, she sometimes forgets to be stern. Your brother is strong willed and capable, but he often forgets safety. But you, Riley, you are what hold this family together. You are balanced and have a moral compass that shows you the way in the darkest of places. I need you here to guide them like you always do. Can I trust you to do that for me?"

  Riley's eyes had gone large and wondrous as he contemplated the possibility he could be so influential to his family, and then nodded in a daze.

  "Yes, I can do it Dad." He replied nodding his head vigorously.

  "Good, I'll see you in the morning Riley, Love you."

  And with that he pecked his son on the top of the head before giving him a crinkled eye smile, and headed out the door.

  "Love you too..." Riley whispered.

      That had been the last time Riley would see or talk to his Father. The call he was responding to that night was a fire far more vast than any the City had seen before. The Smeargle Father had been the first one on the scene and the last. It had taken eight hours, every Ranger in the city, and emergency help from the neighboring town to cut off the spreading fire. There was but one single Pokemon, and one single Ranger lost in the infernal blaze. Riley's Father and his courageous Floatzet Blitzen. The two had perished holding back the wild flames from the city until help could arrive. A statue of the two was erected in their precious memory and the town mourned the loss of their treasured Head Ranger and his Pokemon side kick.

Riley was absolutely devastated. Words could not explain his grief and in honor of his Father he made a vow to keep the promise he'd made that night.

13 Years later found Riley and Bailey at age 23 and both capable Ranger's patrolling the very forest their Father had died to protect. They spent their days fulfilling their duties with little time for much else. This left their younger brother Eli, who had been born only a month after the death of their Father, plenty of time to get into trouble. This put a rather large strain on the family, as their Mother was often the one reprimanded for the actions of the young Fennekin boy.

Bailey had little to no patience for the kid as he grew up. Riley was often pulling the two away from each other before they could rip each others heads off. This only broke their Mother's heart as she couldn't stand the sight of her children not getting along, and felt as though she were failing as their parent.

Riley had his work cut out for him as he did his darnedest to be the peace keeper, the mess cleaner, and the voice of reason and wisdom. Each time he got out of work, he was forced to track down Eli and make sure he wasn't up to no good. Although Bailey time and time again said Eli was just a rotten, good for nothing, kid, Riley knew their baby brother lashed out to find the attention he would otherwise not receive. Their Mother still had her long days at the daycare, now more than ever, and the twins were always needed at the park. This left the young kid to entertain himself for hours and one day it went horribly wrong.

It was a usual day for Riley, a full 8 hours spent making rounds in the forest with his twin, and the sun was just sinking beneath the horizon. It was this time Riley would usually seek out the youngest brother and spend some time with him to keep him from destroying the town, but he was worn to the bone tonight. The two had an unusual number of Pokemon in need of rescuing, and Riley had fallen into the deep part of the river at one point when attempting to save a drowning Bulbasaur, who in a panic latched onto him with it's vines and pulled the poor Smeargle Ranger in as well. He had almost drowned after tossing the Pokemon safely to shore as he went over a waterfall and plunged deep into the deadly current below.

Bailey had sent out his Frogadier to dive in after him, and Riley was brought coughing and gasping to the rivers edge where his brother helped to drag him out.

Almost drowned or not though, Riley never broke his promises and still intended to seek out Eli.

"Riley, what are you doing?" Bailey asked giving his still wet twin a look of exasperation. He had turned and was getting ready to head in the opposite direction of home. He replied with a smile but Bailey could see how exhausted he was.

  "I'm gonna go find Eli, I told him we'd catch him a new Pokemon tonight."

  Crossing his arms over his chest Bailey shook his head.

  "You almost died today and your concerned about a little promise like that? Come home Riley, we've got to be in early tomorrow. You need your rest."

  Bailey saw the all too familiar stubborn flash in his twins eye, and held his hand up before a contradiction could be made.

  "Yeah yeah, I know. You wont let him down. I'll go instead, i'm not nearly as tired as you."

  Effectively silenced, Riley's mouth remained slightly open as he gave his brother a confused look. The expression made him appear even more tired as you could see the very hesitant hope in his eyes. Bailey began to feel guilty as he thought about all the nights Riley came home late in the night with their younger brother. He never offered to do so himself because Eli hated him. Or he seemed to at least... Bailey admitted to himself he didn't make much of an effort to make his brother like him, he didn't see the point when the boy was going to cause problems either way.

Riley was always trying though. He never stopped making an effort to do the right thing, even if he had almost recently drowned and was beyond exhausted from spending the past two weeks entertaining the kid until the wee hours of the morning.

  "You- you would go for me?" Riley asked cocking his head to the side slightly, and his twin couldn't help but notice bags under his eyes.

  Bailey waved a hand at him.

  "Quit acting all surprised, I mean he's my brother too. It should't be so odd for me to spend time with him." He scratched the back of his head while resting his other hand on his hip and eyed his twin.

  Riley pondered the offer with much thought as his brow furrowed slightly and he remained quiet. Bailey knew he was weighing the pros and cons in his head and was always impressed he could maintain his constant state of caution, even when dog tired.

  "I don't know Bailey... I think it would maybe be better if I just went."

He seemed to resign himself to yet another late night but his brother wasn't about to let him drive himself further into the ground.

  "Riley." The Braxien twin said with affection and placed his hand on his brother's shoulder.

  He had evolved a few years ago and now stood taller then his Smeargle counterpart.

  "Look at you, you're asleep on your feet. You haven't gone to bed earlier then two in the morning all week. Eli will be fine. Let me go in your place for once."

  Riley looked conflicted.

  "You're right of course, I'm exhausted. But you know how easily Eli is upset... I'll be okay missing a few more hours of sleep, it's alright." He trailed to himself and his gaze drifted to the trees.

  Bailey wasn't sure if his twin was trying to convince himself at this point. He shook his head and smiled.

  "Come here you noble little cookie!"

  Bailey hooked his tired brother around the neck and drug him against him in a head lock.

  "I know you want to take all the glory as the selfless big brother, but you're gonna let me have a piece of it tonight!" He yelled playfully as Riley struggled in the crook of his arm.

  "Stop it, I'm not a cookie." Riley grumbled from his awkward position.

  "Now you listen here brother, your going to go home, shower, and get that cute little Smeargle butt of yours into bed. While you do that, your amazing twin is going to go catch a new Pokemon with our little brother, and then take him for some ice cream. You got that?" He asked and tugged Riley against him a little tighter.

  "Er- Bailey..." He huffed ceasing his attempts at freedom.

  "I- I don't know."

  "Well," The Braxien Ranger said unfazed.

  "I'm not letting you go until you agree. We can stand here all night and then neither of us will go. Does that count as a broken promise?" Bailey chuckled to himself.

  Riley let out a sigh and after a couple moments of silence spoke.

  "You're taking him for ice cream?"

  "Sure, why not? I could go for an Oran berry blast."

  "And you'll help him catch a new Pokemon?"

  "Heck, maybe we'll catch two." Bailey replied and Riley could hear the smile in his voice.

  A few more seconds of silence.

  "Alright." Riley said tightly.

  Bailey smirked and released his brother.

  "Good choice."

  The Smeargle twin rolled his eyes and offered a reluctant smile.

  "Thank you Bailey."

  Said Ranger merely held his fist up which Riley smiled softly at, and lightly tapped his own fist against twice.

"See ya at home cookie." Bailey winked before jogging in the direction his brother had been trying to go.

  "Ha ha." Riley called dryly after him and was rewarded with a chuckle.

Later at home the tired Ranger had skipped dinner in favor of a hot shower and then kissed his Mom on the cheek before turning in for the first early night of sleep he'd had in- Well, he couldn't remember the last time he'd been able to go to bed before midnight. With an overwhelming feeling of gratefulness, Riley settled beneath his covers and shut his eyes. He was out like a light, but only 15 minutes later there was a quick rap on the door.

  He was so deep asleep by then he didn't even flinch and Bailey had to poke his head in to see if he was even in the room. After seeing how totally out his brother was, Bailey felt even more guilty about what he was about to do.

  Approaching his twin quietly, he put a light hand on Riley's shoulder and murmured his name. He let out a soft groan but remained asleep.

  "Riley." Bailey said a tad louder.

  The Smeargle twin started this time and his eyes blinked open red and heavy. He looked up searching for whoever was there and settled on his brother with a half coherent stare.

  "Bailey. What is it?" He asked immediately seeing the expression on his twin's face and sitting up.

  "I'm really sorry Riley..." Bailey had started and then proceeded to tell the Smeargle Ranger about how he had showed up to meet Eli at his usual place, but was not excepted with open arms. The exact opposite actually as Eli had been furious to be met by Bailey instead of Riley. He told him how he had explained Riley was exhausted and so he'd come in his place but Eli wanted nothing to do with him. Even after he'd mentioned the ice cream, their younger brother was furious and took off with no explanation as to where he was going or what he was going to do.

  "I really didn't want to wake you, but he was pretty mad and I have a feeling he will be up to no good. With all the incidents we've had with him this month, i'm worried the towns people will finally retaliate if he does one more thing..."

Riley nodded and then rose from his bed to find some clothes.

  "You're right, they said as much when he knocked the head off that statue in the center of town last week. We'd better find him before he gets himself into more trouble than he can handle. What places have you checked?"

  Bailey scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

  "Ah, nowhere yet... I didn't have the slightest idea where to begin searching, but I knew you would so I came straight here."

  Riley nodded again as he tugged his t-shirt over his head before sliding on a long sleeved shirt instead.

  "Start with the bridge near Route 120. I'll check out the berry fields and the Daycare as soon as I finish getting dressed. we'll meet at Dad's statue whether we find him or not. If we haven't, we'll go from there."

  With their plan in place, Bailey immediately released his Herdier from his ball and they were off to find Eli.

Riley wasted no time and sent out his Purrloin Felis to tag along. If they were to stop their younger brother from causing anymore trouble, then they needed to leave now.

Luckily adrenaline was coursing through his body at this point, and it was greatly appreciated as he ran toward his destination. He would check the berry fields first since they were not only closest, but a place Riley often caught Eli stealing fruit from with a delighted smirk. The kid just got a kick out of pulling one over on the grouchy old man who grew the berries.

  Riley arrived there out of breath and was disappointing to find nothing. With a tired sigh and an apologetic look to Felis, the two changed directions and ran off toward the Daycare their Mother worked at. He wasn't sure why exactly, but this was another place Riley often found his brother.

As they approached the building, Riley felt a sinking feeling in his gut. He could smell smoke and he was nearly certain it wasn't someones camping fire. Sensing his owners unease, Felis let out a 'Mrreh!' and trotted a little faster.

  The duo almost ran smack into a frazzled Fennekin boy who was panting wide eyed.

  "Riley!" He had yelled startled and then turned to look over his shoulder with fear before turning back.

  The elder brother wasted no time and got straight to the point.

  "What did you do Eli? Don't utter a lie or so help me-"

  Eli cut him off with a frantic wave of his hands.

  "Kill me later Ri, the Daycare is on fire, we need to rescue the Pokemon inside!"

  "WHAT?!" Riley screamed and even Felis jumped.

  "No time! Come on!"

  Eli took off in the direction he'd come and Riley was immediately on his heels.

   "You caught the Daycare on fire Eli? I know you've damaged stuff before, but never like this! How could you?" He demanded.
  "I didn't mean to!" Eli yelled back angrily, but fear and guilt were evident in his tone.

  Riley couldn't keep the obvious doubt from his voice.

"Didn't mean to?"

  "I just wanted to burn down the sign." He muttered and swiped a forearm across his cheek to wipe away some tears Riley suspected.

  "I was really mad you didn't come tonight so I wasn't paying attention and when I used my ember I missed and set the Daycare on fire."

  Riley shook his head in dismay.

  "Oh Eli..." He said quietly and then any other thought was cut short as the cries of trapped Pokemon met them.

  The three reached the burning building seconds later and Riley was horrified to see flames engulfing the entire left corner of the Daycare.

Riley shot his arm out halting Eli from going any further.

  "Stop." He said and turned to his younger brother with a serious frown.

  Eli looked up to him confused.

  "Take Felis and go get Bailey. He's at Dad's statue in the park. Do not go anywhere else. Get him and come right back here. Run as fast as you can- no, faster." Riley said and for once Eli obeyed without a single question. He disappeared with Felis by his side in seconds.

  Not wanting to risk his own Pokemon unnecessarily, Riley tossed his Pokeballs into the grass far from the building and steeled his nerves. Of course he hadn't brought a water type with him, that would have made life too easy. He knew Bailey would have his Frogadier since he never left home without him, so at least he had that going for him.

He stripped off his Ranger jacket and with only his long sleeve shirt remaining, ran to the building and shouldered through the wooden door.

Once inside he was overcome with an intense heat and began coughing violently as smoke billowed out the door and into his face. He covered his mouth in the crook of his arm and looked around.

  In no time he could see three small Pokemon crying loudly in the corner and wasted no time scooping up the two Weedles and a Skitty, quickly depositing them outside the door and telling them to run to safety. He made another two trips inside to carry out two large trays of Pokeballs and then pushed through the back door to enter the fenced in area behind the building. There were another eight Pokemon out here and he had to coax and maneuver them one by one quickly through the building, because he couldn't unlock the gate.

The adrenaline had long since dispersed and he was barely able to keep standing. Tears were streaming down his face as the smoke burned his eyes and he wondered rather unhelpfully if his Father had gone through the same thing the night he'd died.

  He had just finished checking the building one last time for any stragglers when he heard Bailey's voice call out to him.

  "I'm here!" He called back but before he could exit, the beam above the doorway finally collapsed, throwing him back and exploding into embers. They showered down on Riley in fiery sparks and a flaming bit of wood hit him in the arm catching his sleeve on fire as well. He yelped in pain and quickly beat out the flames, but not before he had a nasty burn up his forearm.

Suddenly there was a powerful stream of water being blasted at the base of the fire from behind him, and then Riley was being hauled to his feet.

  "Can you walk?" Bailey chimed as he slid an arm around his twins waist and tugged his arm over his shoulder.

  Riley hissed in pain as his brother grabbed his burned arm, but nodded with gritted teeth.

  "Any Pokemon left?" He asked next as he quickly led him toward the back door he'd come through. Just as Riley thought, Bailey's Frogadier was standing outside the doorway and shooting a forceful water blast into the Daycare.

  "No, got them all." Riley managed before he began coughing his lungs up.

  Bailey and Eli managed to help Riley over the fence and away from the building before he could no longer stand and dropped to knees, coughing so hard he couldn't breathe. He began to wish he had drowned in the river earlier this morning, at least that wouldn't have lasted as long as this.

Eventually he began to lose his vision and succumbed to the blackness you found when you couldn't take oxygen into your lungs.

It was a full day later when Riley finally woke and found himself laying in a hospital bed, right arm bandaged, and his twin in a chair beside him looking both completely bored and anxious.

  He had wasted no time finding out the condition of the daycare and asked about the health of all the Pokemon involved. He was pleased to learn there were only a few slight burns to a couple of the Pokemon, but they were otherwise fine. The Daycare on the other hand... Well it hadn't burned to the ground, but was severely damaged and would be closed for months while repairs were made.

Bailey had even worse news than that though, and that's what made Riley's heart sink. In the end Eli had felt so guilty about endangering the Pokemon and almost killing his brother, that he had turned himself in and the Fortree citizens were furious. Rightly so, Riley knew, but it didn't make his heart ache any less.
"They'll determine Eli's punishment tomorrow." Bailey had told him gravely.

  After being prescribed an ointment for his burn and given strict orders to rest, the twins were finally allowed to leave, and headed home to await their younger brothers sentence.

The next day Eli was summoned before a crowd of towns people and bowed his head in shame as he waited for his punishment. No one was more surprised then Riley when they heard what had been decided.

  The Mayor declared either Eli would be punished as an adult and sent to spend the next 15 years in the Hoenn penitentiary or... His older brother Riley could choose to have a felony added to his record... and leave the city forever. The mayor explained he was sick of punishing Eli with no results, but knew these two options would finally put an end to his trouble making. Everyone knew how fond of Riley Eli was, and so it was a wonder they hadn't tried something like this sooner. Riley's eyes were blown wide as he took in the sentence and just as Bailey began to argue, he squeezed his eyes shut and promptly blurted out he accepted the terms without so much as consulting his twin.

  Both his brothers and his Mother had gasped horrified NO!'s and were beside themselves with disbelief.

  It wasn't something that needed thought in Riley's eyes. If there was a way to prevent his baby brother from losing 15 years of his life in a jail cell, then he would choose that route every time. He would do the same for Bailey, his Mother, and even his Father if he were alive. That being said... Riley felt horribly sick.

The Mayor did take the time to tell the Smeargle Ranger how grateful the town was for his services and let him know his presence at the park would be greatly missed. With that said the mayor gave Riley a week to find a new home and then warned he would be escorted from the town.

  It broke Riley's heart that Bailey would not speak to him for six of those seven days. The Braxien twin was so angry with his brother he couldn't even look at him. Eli on the other hand couldn't face him without tearing up and this hurt just as bad. Surprisingly, Riley's Mother was the only one who remained strong and relentlessly searched for a location in need of a Ranger. The only thing causing a problem was finding one that overlooked a felony... On the sixth day she finally got a tip from someone in Slateport City and unearthed an unfamiliar Island named Raccolto. After looking into the location, living arrangements were made and Riley's new life was set to begin thousands of miles away from home. Alone and away from his precious family.

*
Ability:

Moody- He is often reacting intensely to any situation he is in.
*

Moveset:
Swift, Smokescreen, Lovely Kiss, Sketch
*

Job: Park Ranger

*

Dog/Cat Race: Purrloin
*

Dog/Cat’s name: Felis
*

Dog/Cat’s gender: Male
*

Talents:
Cheesy jokes and tricks, Drawing, Wisdom, Creativity, Amateur Astronomy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Likes:
Seafood, People watching, Snow, Routine, All pokemon
LOVES:
Fantasy Books

Dislikes:
Carrots, Forced 'How's the weather?' conversation, Disarray, Being the center of attention
HATES:

Dancing
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Funfacts:

* Named his Purrloin Felis after a cat constellation.
  * Hates when people tease him about his name.
* Misses his family so he doesn't really like when people ask about them.
* Likes to have a few beers with friends, but seems to lose any filter he normally would have if sober.
* Loves to play chess and checkers with anyone who agrees to play.
* Longs to return to his birth place one day, even though it isn't possible.
* Writes to his family instead of calling them, because hearing their voices makes him too homesick.
* He is technically the "younger" twin by 8 minutes.
* Afraid of spider Pokemon.