aaron isn’t surprised when he’s informed of a disturbance supposedly linked to bug-types near one of sinnoh’s cities. he’s typically eager to help in anyway he can, anyway─ the elite is rather proud of the fact that he’s depended on as a member of the league. but this particular request has his interest piqued tenfold.
an outbreak of joltik: a pokémon not native to the sinnoh region. he hadn’t been given too much information other than there were hoards sighted along the outskirts of sunnyshore city. far too much for any typical trainer to round up and catch─ which is why aaron’s been called to assist. no bug problem was too big for the bug master! the elite is almost excited. joltik isn’t a pokémon he’s gotten much interaction with, since they weren’t native to sinnoh.
it had him wondering how the little bugs managed to outbreak in the first place.
it’s during his boat ride from the league to sunnyshore that aaron maps out the most possible explanation for what had happened. likely, the bug type got abandoned by a traveling trainer and bred, littering the area with eggs. it twisted his insides to imagine anyone abandoning any pokémon of any kind, but he can’t help but feel more sorry that it was a cute little bug type.
the trip luckily isn’t a long one. he’s docked at sunnyshore before he knows it. as simple as that, the elite opens the GPS on his pokétch, more than ready to tackle the problem head-on.
......and in that moment, a brilliant idea hits him. he’s absolutely BAFFLED he didn’t think of it before! he blames his thoughts wandering about the joltik but quickly pushes them aside. nearly sprinting, aaron takes a small detour towards sunnyshore’s gym. volkner!
who better to take on this little excursion than the electric-type gym leader? joltik was part electric type, so he’d surely come help and be of use. the gym leader needs to get out more, anyway. that much he knows based on what he’s heard of him through the other elites.
aaron steps into volkner’s gym, immediately stating he was there on official business, rather than taking the gym challenge. as an elite, it wasn’t a difficult request to put through. he made his way to volkner’s room and enters without hesitation.
❝ hey, hey! volkner! long time no see! ❞ aaron waves, a huge grin upon his expression. ❝ listen, i got a job for you. er, something i need you to go do with me. you don’t mind closing up the gym early, do you? you’ll seriously wanna get in on this! ❞
finding time off from the league duties is a feat in itself─ finding time off that coordinated with another elite is even MORE difficult. so anytime aaron can snag to spend with any of the other elites is HAPPILY accepted. he enjoys times with all of the elites outside of their typical formalities under their league duties. it’s not that he minds league work─ really! he simply appreciates the casual opportunities, from training to wandering around sinnoh’s various cities.
the latter just so happens to be today’s objective. his companion for the day-? flint. sinnoh’s fire master. aaron appreciates the guy’s energy─ sometimes it feels that he’s the only one that can keep up ( bertha being old- as much as he adores her-, and lucian being too... lucian. ). while aaron would probably prefer a day of training and exploring the wilderness surrounding the league, he doesn’t mind their current location: veilstone city. specifically, the city’s department store.
since they’re in the area anyway, they’ve received a small shopping list from the other league members. aaron voiced the idea to get the shopping out of the way early so they could have the rest of the day to enjoy the city, since that was a rarity. maybe even hit up the game corner. greet some fans ( aaron always adored being in the spotlight ), have a casual battle, or two... anyway they spent the rest of the day, aaron was excited for.
❝ c’mon, flint! let’s go to the top first. ❞ he’d suggested right off the back and now rushes for one of the elevators. aaron rocks on his heels as the elevator makes its way down to the first floor, looking over his shoulder to flint with a grin. once the elevator comes to a stop and opens its door ( aaron’s relieved to see nobody waiting to exit ), the bug expert charges in and holds the doors open for his companion.
eagerly, he presses the button for the top floor and waits.
❝ so- wanna hit the game corner after this? the list isn’t small, and i’ve got spare-- ❞ his babbling is cut off as the elevator groans to a stop, jerking slightly after only moving up a few floors. aaron blinks in confusion, silenced by the sudden turn of events. the elevator’s doors do not open. aaron presses the button to open the doors, but to avail. weird. ❝ what the... ❞
and then the lights go out, shrouding the duo in darkness. aaron turns and squints in flint’s general direction.
❝ oi... flint, what should we do? wanna pry the doors open? ❞ his tone is casual─ their situation hasn’t phased him at all. he assumes it’s the same for flint. ❝ ...flint? ❞
