into the wild, we'll bring something back

Genesis had a few reasons to turn to the Birchwild Grove after they decided that they would need more Pokemon to their name than just their new Froakie. It was Route 1, after all, the first route that most new Trainers in the area would start their exploration in, and with wild Pokemon fairly weak, to the point that even those coming straight from the Professor's Lab probably wouldn't end up too overwhelmed. But more than that, there were the stories about fairy rings, about the fairies who were said to haunt those strange mushroom circles, about the odd effects that the Grove could have on people not prepared for otherworldly intervention.

Most of the fairy ring superstition was probably just that, of course. There was a perfectly natural explanation for mushrooms appearing in circles within the forest, even if it was largely ignored in favor of more fanciful explanations. But if even a small fraction of the stories were true, then there would be a lot left to learn from the Grove, notwithstanding its reputation as a sleepy starter location for new Trainers.

Genesis looked closely at the forest floor, searching for signs of either unusual mushroom placements or those who were said to reside in those mushroom circles... and was so focused on this search that it took them a moment to realize that the bush on the edge of the path had just caught fire.

They let out a short cry at the sight, embarrassingly enough, more out of being startled than anything else, but soon enough they regained their composure and stepped closer to the burning bush.

No Fire-types were visible in the vicinity of the bush, no lightning had struck, no flint or lighter was to be found nearby... was this a case of spontaneous combustion, then? That was one of the strange phenomena that had been noted in the Grove, though one that Genesis hadn't paid much attention to until it came to them rather than vice versa.

Genesis leaned in closer to the fire than was perhaps wise, but they didn't mind the stray embers landing on their skin. They had research to do here.

butterfly