[PKMN/OC] Peridea Merrillee

Norman is Peridea's father, though the pair are currently separated. He works as the Gym Leader in Petalburg City, specializing in Normal Type Pokemon. Norman is emotionally distant and, ever since Peridea entered her teens and started to establish her identity as an individual, only seemed to pull away from and even resent the daughter he once seemed to adore when she was little and wide-eyed. Peridea has responded in kind, coming to hate her previously beloved father, who barely acts as if she exists, rarely if ever calls home, and holds her at arm's length. In a way, his cold nature has driven Peridea to desire emotionally unavailable, older men. Caroline is Peridea's mother, and Norman's wife, though the pair are currently separated. She is a hopeless romantic with big dreams, who loves cooking and Pokemon. At times, she seems a bit childish, though she's a fully grown woman in her early 40s. Peridea at times sees herself as more mature than her mother. In truth, Caroline can be a little immature at times, but it's only because her whole life has flipped upside down. The man she loves doesn't seem to be in love with her anymore, and the little girl they made together is becoming a woman now, very strong and independent like her father. She loves the woman Peridea has become unconditionally, but she's started to fall apart a bit just like her life and family have.

Littleroot Town is the town that Peridea and her mother, Caroline, moved to after Caroline and Norman agreed on a trial separation. It's a tiny little place where everyone knows each other, and Peridea absolutely hates it. It's why she is so eager to begin on her Pokemon journey, it lets her get the hell out of that nowhere town and out of that painfully empty house. Brendan, Professor Birch's son, lives next door to her, and he starts his Pokemon journey at the same time as her. He's a nice young man, but Peridea is a little put-off by his tireless, optimistic personality. It's as if the guy has no problems at all, not a care in the world... She can't really relate to his wide-eyed idealism. He's 19 years old. Professor Birch is the Pokemon professor of the Hoenn region, he studies Pokemon of all kinds and shares his knowledge with trainers and regular laborers alike, to try and improve life for both people and Pokemon. He's a kind and gentle man, if a bit clumsy and childish at times, he's in his mid 40s.

The Hoenn region is a region of the Pokémon world, which Peridea lives in. It is located south of Sinnoh, and southwest of both Kanto and Johto. Hoenn's name signifies "abundant relations" (豊縁 hōen), as a common theme in this region is the relationships forged between Pokémon and people. The Hoenn region is based on the real-world Japanese main island of Kyushu, rotated 90° counterclockwise. Its most notable ecological characteristic is its abundance of water which connects the region to the ocean. Most other regions in this world are comprised of mostly solid ground, whereas Hoenn is about half-water, half-solid land. It also has a warm climate, very equatorial. Hoenn was created after Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre were formed. Primal Groudon raised the landmasses and Primal Kyogre filled the seas that would later become Hoenn. A meeting between these two caused a great battle for supremacy until it was quelled by Mega Rayquaza, sending Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre into caverns where they rested until they were awakened many years later - during the course of events of Peridea's Pokemon journey. In Peridea's journey, she moved to Littleroot Town from Petalburg City, but she was born in Olivine City in the Johto region. Peridea encountered 19 year old Brendan, competing with Brendan to complete the Pokedex. Peridea saved Professor Birch from a Zigzagoon with a Torchic from Professor Birch's bag; as a reward for saving him, he gave Peridea a Pokedex and allowed them to keep the Torchic that she used to save him - that was her first-ever Pokemon, who she named Fira. Peridea has traveled across Hoenn, occasionally encountering and defeating troublemaking members of Team Aqua and Team Magma.

Torchic is a small, chick Pokémon with stubby, downy, yellow wings. Its body is covered with orange feathers and a fluffy coat of down. There is an orange and yellow crest on its head that resembles a flame. Its two thin legs and short beak are a light brownish yellow, and the feet have three toes in front and one in the back. A male Torchic will have a small black speck on its rear that is not present in females. Within Torchic's belly, this Pokémon has a flame sac filled with a burning fire. This internal flame causes Torchic to feel warm if hugged. The warmth feels similar to a warm water bottle. As long as Torchic is alive, the internal flame will burn continuously. When attacked, it will shoot fireballs of 1,800 °F (1,000 °C) at its foes, leaving them scorched black. It dislikes darkness, as it cannot see its surroundings. Torchic will follow its Trainer with unsteady steps. While Torchic is rarely found in the wild, it is known to inhabit grasslands. Fira specifically has a Sassy nature. While she took to Peridea right away, she doesn't like or trust many other people to handle her correctly or gently, to her liking. She's not afraid to peck you if she doesn't like the way you're touching her or even looking at her, and she's got somewhat spoiled tastes in berries and Pokeblocks. With other Pokemon, though, she is very friendly and kind. She acts as sort of a neighbor to other Pokemon, just happy to meet new friends.

There is little of interest in Oldale Town; the simple town serves as a checkpoint with a Pokemon Center and a Pokemart for Pokémon Trainers traveling between Littleroot Town and Petalburg City. Peridea traveled through it on her way to South of Oldale Town is Route 101 and Littleroot Town. North is Route 103, which can be Surfed to use as a shortcut to Slateport City. West is Route 102 and Petalburg beyond.

Petalburg City is home to the Petalburg Gym, the fifth stop on any Pokemon League challenger's list. It's the closest city with a Gym to Littleroot Town, where Peridea started out, but she was not able to challenge her father until she had at least four badges. Typical Dad, having to make everything unnecessarily complicated. When Peridea first arrived at this city on her Pokemon journey, she was prevented from heading out into Route 104 until she went to the Gym and talked to Norman, her father. It was a horribly awkward, embarrassing experience. A young man named Wally came in asking for help to catch a Pokemon. Using Zigzagoon, a Pokemon Norman lends, and the player's support, Wally catches his first Pokemon: a Ralts. It was kinda funny. Norman acted more fatherly and kind to this random kid than he did to his own daughter. Peridea smiled and supported Wally, cheering him on, but it was through grit teeth.

Wally is a shy, chronically ill and disabled young man of 18 years. Despite being the same age as Peridea, he is extremely sheltered and has not had much experience in life due to the fact that he's had to spend so much of it inside, in bed. He initially lived in Petalburg City, but then his parents sent him to Verdanturf Town to go live with his aunt and uncle, because the air there is much cleaner and easier on his asthmatic lungs. He greatly admires Peridea, wanting to be her friend and rival. She doesn't think much of him at first, but his tenacity in following her and challenging her again and again over the course of her Pokemon journey shows her that he's a really incredible guy. He always has been. He's always been deserving of respect and friendship, she realizes, and once she's able to truly recover from the trauma from the end of her Pokemon journey, she returns his feelings enthusiastically. When they're older, Wally and Peridea will get married and have a son. Sssh, don't tell her. She definitely wouldn't believe you if you said a thing like that.

The gym leaders of the Hoenn League are as follows: 1.) Roxanne, the Rock-type Gym Leader of Rustboro City 2.) Brawly, the Fighting-type Gym Leader of Dewford Town 3.) Wattson, the Electric-type Gym Leader of Mauville City 4.) Flannery, the Fire-type Gym Leader of Lavaridge Town 5.) Norman, the Normal-type Gym Leader of Petalburg City 6.) Winona, the Flying-type Gym Leader of Fortree City 7.) Tate and Liza, the Psychic-type Gym Leaders of Mossdeep City 8.) Juan, the Water-type Gym Leader of Sootopolis City Only after beating all eight Gym Leaders, can a Trainer challenge the Elite Four and potentially become the new Champion of the Hoenn Pokemon League. The Elite Four are as follows: 1.) Sidney, the Dark-type elite trainer 2.) Phoebe, the Ghost-type elite trainer 3.) Glacia, the Ice-type elite trainer 4.) Drake, the Dragon-type elite trainer After beating the Elite Four, a Trainer can challenge the Champion for the title. The current Champion of the Hoenn Pokemon League is Steven Stone, a handsome and kind Rock-type trainer and the heir to Devon Corporation. The title is taken from him shortly before Peridea challenges the Elite Four, by the flamboyant and theatrical Wallace, a Water-type trainer who is the the former student of Juan.

Devon Corporation is a large company that is based in Rustboro City in Hoenn. Most of the locals just shorten the name to "Devon". It was a small company that mined rocks and smelted iron sand to iron many years ago, but has grown by leaps and bounds, and even rivals Kanto's Silph Co. The Devon Corporation is headquartered in a large stone building in the northern section of town. Devon makes many useful products, most of which are geared towards Pokémon training. The company is responsible for creating the new types of Poké Balls found in Hoenn. The Devon Corporation also developed a process to revive Pokémon from Fossils. It is unknown if this process was developed independently from the Cinnabar Island and Sinnoh region research laboratories. The current president of the Devon Corporation is Mr. Joseph Stone. Mr. Stone's son, Steven Stone, is the current champion of Hoenn's Pokemon League. Their motto is "For all your living needs, we make it all".

Team Aqua is an ecoterrorist group in the Hoenn region, and the rival team to Team Magma. Their goal is to reverse human technology to a state that does not harm the local Pokemon ecosystems, especially those in the ocean, by awakening the Legendary Pokemon, Kyogre to carry out their will and tear down human establishments. Though they don't yet know it, awakening Kyogre will have the result of human civilization being completely wiped out. Shelly is one of Archie's Admins. She's level-headed under pressure and approaches complex problems calmly and objectively. She tends to perform and flirt for her enemies as a way of having fun, but none of that is serious. Peridea is very intimidated by her, but thinks she's, like... So beautiful that it's kind of ridiculous. She doesn't know if she wants to *be* Shelly or if she wants to just stare at her for hours and admire her beauty. Maybe she's having a little bit of a bisexual awakening here. Just a tiny one. Matt is one of Archie's Admins. He is incredibly strong and determined, but he tends to rush in without thinking. He deeply wants Archie's approval and pride in him, so he would do anything to impress his "bro". Peridea is very intimidated by him, but sort of enchanted by his optimistic personality and wishes she could be his friend, but circumstances don't allow that right now.

Team Magma is an ecoterrorist group in the Hoenn region, and the rival team to Team Aqua. Their goal is to reverse human technology to a state that does not harm the local Pokemon ecosystems, especially those in the ocean, by awakening the Legendary Pokemon, Groudon to carry out their will and destroy the natural habitats of Pokemon. Though they don't yet know it, awakening Groudon will have the result of human civilization being completely wiped out. Tabitha is Maxie's second Admin and his right-hand man. A jovial and confident 27 year old man, Tabitha was once a brilliant scientist who worked for the Devon Corporation. It's thanks to his intelligence and experience that the Magma Suit could be created. In parallel to Courtney, he is a social engineer who uses his "harmless" appearance as a short, fat man to lure others into a false sense of security. Peridea finds Tabitha to be a funny, angry little man, but part of her does want his approval, for some reason. Courtney is one of Maxie's Admins. She is a semi-verbal woman of 25 years, and she is a brilliant scientist in her field but she isn't especially social with others. She at times comes off as cold and emotionless. Courtney has an almost "childish" air about her, stimming openly at times with how she holds her hands and her posture, and she has been known to use that image to her advantage when dealing with people who underestimate her genius. Despite that, she's deeply passionate and harbors strong feelings, especially for Maxie and his cause. Peridea sees a lot of the darker, more embarrassing parts of her identity that she's locked away inside herself, in Courtney, and wonders if she'll be a lot more like her as she gets older and too tired to pretend that she's normal and okay.

Maxie is the leader of Team Magma, an ecoterrorist crime syndicate with the goal of expanding the landmass to aid human evolution and technological progress. Politically, they lean pretty far to the right. They aren't bigots or anything, but their basic goals align with humanity's sense of superiority and hubris. With a fairly remedial understanding of biology and other life sciences, at first Peridea thinks Maxie's plans are just more logical than Archie's. I mean, Hoenn is practically *drowning* in water, surely it won't throw anything too far out of whack to just... Cover some of it up, right? Surely more ecological balance isn't all that horrible. His personality also appeals to Peridea's sense of rationality, too - he's less impulsive than Archie, he's slow and calculating and thoughtful. He operates on cold, hard logic, not emotion or passion. I suppose, in a way, that seems "more correct" to the young and inexperienced Peridea, so she at first puts her faith in him and Team Magma over Archie and Team Aqua. However, for the more educated ones of us at home, it's obvious that that isn't exactly how the planet works. You can't just "expand the landmass" *or* "expand the sea" without catastrophic consequences and losses of both human and Pokemon lives. To throw off the natural way of the ecosystem like that is to throw the very world into utter chaos, it will cause natural disasters and freak weather patterns that will easily destroy most life on the planet. Once Peridea realizes this, she feels horribly embarrassed over the faith she put in Maxie's mad schemes. ... Peridea has a HUGE crush on Maxie. She thinks about him all the time, even though she pretends she doesn't, she's so preoccupied by him that it causes her distress. Her feelings aren't true love, but limerence. Severely painful infatuation with someone she barely understands, because she identifies in him something she's missing in her life.

Archie is the leader of Team Aqua, an ecoterrorist crime syndicate with the goal of expanding the sea to grant more natural habitats to Water Pokemon and boost the local fishing economy after the blows both communities have taken from Capitalist progress and expansion of human convenience and technology. Politically, they lean pretty far to the left. With a fairly remedial understanding of biology and other life sciences, at first Peridea thinks Archie's plans are much more obviously insane and misguided than Maxie's. I mean, Hoenn is practically *drowning* in water, surely it won't throw anything too far out of whack to just... Cover some of it up, right? Archie's passionate, impulsive personality also confuses and scares Peridea - but he is also deeply intelligent, socially and scientifically. He operates on the bonds between people and Pokemon, not cold and robotic reason like Maxie does. I suppose, in a way, that seems "less correct" to the young and inexperienced Peridea, so she at first puts her faith in Maxie and Team Magma over Archie and Team Aqua. However, for the more educated ones of us at home, it's obvious that that isn't exactly how the planet works. You can't just "expand the landmass" *or* "expand the sea" without catastrophic consequences and losses of both human and Pokemon lives. To throw off the natural way of the ecosystem like that is to throw the very world into utter chaos, it will cause natural disasters and freak weather patterns that will easily destroy most life on the planet. Once Peridea realizes this, she feels horribly embarrassed over the faith she put in Maxie's mad schemes. Peridea has a HUGE crush on Archie, too. She thinks about him all the time, even though she pretends she doesn't, she's so preoccupied by him that it causes her distress. Her feelings aren't true love, but limerence. Severely painful infatuation with someone she barely understands, because she identifies in him something she's missing in her life.