It would perhaps never be clear how Erica had ended up in Lumiose City. Of course, the romantic atmosphere and the bright city lights had attracted her, but to end up in the capital city of Kalos despite being from Unova and only having one Pokémon was unusual, to say the least.
However one thing was clear, and it was that Lumiose City in Kalos was exactly where she was. And being the type of girl she was, she was positively thriving. People were more than happy to spend money on the charming and pretty foreign girl making eyes at them from across the various cafes the city had.
Cafe Introversion wasnât her usual spot, and frankly it didnât seem the right place for a bright, extroverted girl looking to catch a strangerâs eye anyway, so ordinarily she would have walked straight past the place without giving it a second glance. Today would no doubt have played out exactly that way, were it not for the rather obnoxious man talking rather loudly by one of the outdoor tables, apparently hitting on the young woman sat there, who had apparently just been trying to read a book by herself.
Erica knew what a girl who wanted attention looked like. It looked rather like the person she saw in the mirror every morning. It did not look like an uncomfortable bookish girl avoiding eye contact with her suitor with a nervous expression.
She turned on the spot and approached the table herself from behind the guy, offering the girl sitting there her brightest smile, as though everything was perfectly normal.
âHey babe, did I keep you waiting long?â She chimed, cutting whatever the guy was saying off without a second thought. Just as it seemed that he was about to say something to Erica herself, she sat down opposite the girl and continued, completely ignoring anything he wanted to say.
âI just couldnât get my nose out of that book you lent me last time, and before I knew it I was running late! You just have to show me some more of that author some time.â
With a loud sound of annoyance, the man backed off, glancing back at them a couple of times as he walked away, apparently put off by the idea of being so completely unimportant as to be ignored.
âHow was that? You gonna be okay now, or do you want me to stick around a little longer just in case?â
On any normal day, Amelie Coeur would have loved to take a few moments to read a book outside Cafe Introversion with a good book in her hand. It was a good way to get away from her librarian work. Not that she didnât enjoy said work, mind you, but she still needed a break every so often.
Unfortunately, this occasionally led to some man passing by taking her solitude as an excuse to vie for her attention. Usually if she just ignored them they ran off, disappointed. This one, however, was...particularly persistent, doing intrusive things like craning his head so he was in her view no matter where she looked, or pushing her book down to get her attention.
She was weighing her options between walking away or Dazzling Gleam-ing his face until he went blind when the man was interrupted mid-sentence by a rather pretty blonde girl who sat down across from her and started talking as if theyâd known each other for ages. No....as if they were dating?
âEr- No no, ma chĂ©rie, I was not waiting too terribly long,â said Amelie, cottoning on to the act and trying not to make it seem like it was an act.  âIâm glad that book I lent you was so good! I can certainly bring more books from him next time - I wasnât sure if you would like his work so I didnât really come prepared...â
Before long, the man left with a huff, disappointed that his mark was supposedly already taken. She resisted the urge to look over her shoulder to see if heâd truly left - if he was still there, it might give the act away and he might try again.
So she let out a sigh of relief when the girl across from her asked for her well-being.
âThat was good!â She said, smiling as she pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose.  âI truly appreciate you doing that for me - he simply would not leave me alone.â She chanced a glance over her shoulder - the man appeared to be gone, but...
âI would not mind you staying a little longer in case he comes back, however,â she said, turning back to face the girl.  âSome of the men in Lumiose can be rather....stubborn.â That, and this girl actually seemed like pleasant company, though she wasnât sure whether she should say that part out loud.