Streams of sunlight pierced through the branches of the canopy as the mid-afternoon hours were dwindling, the potent brightness presented by that time of day signifying the peak of activity of any and all creatures that the light was cast upon, a height in energy fittingly matched by the zenith of illumination provided to the floor of the forest. It was within this light that the Floatzel was able to make his way around this place as best he could, still needing to be acquainted to dry land fully as opposed to the waters in which he ferried himself to locations both new and old, spent his excess energy in seeking out meals, kept his swimming talents in check, and even slept, all due to his natural abilities and instinctual urge to seek out and remain in water wherever and whenever possible.

He felt comfortable as could be in any sort of water he could find, and yet a second urge that could not be quelled within him spoke louder for him to leave the assured sanctuary of the water and see what else could possibly out there for him to savor. He pondered over this unrest in himself, this nature against the nature his species was known for having, since the day he realized that he had it. He would deduce that the root of the urge to travel outside of where he could exist as his species usually did was forged by the influence of his caretaker, whom he had left only months ago, and would be content with said answer, figuring he had the strength to suppress that urge until he would find a place where he could live stably; a task that the whispering voices of his anxieties spoke of only as an impossibility.

Franz had been reassuring himself since his exploration into the real world began that he would be figuring his life out no matter how strenuous the task would be for him; his travels were supported by the determination that he believed in his cause of finding the best state for his life to be in. Success had already came around in the form of his increasing prowess as a Pokémon, the fact that he was well fed, and the memories of his prior interactions with others he had met along the path he was carving through the world to reach his true life and self. However, not a one of those interactions drew out any trace of an untapped palette of emotions he still had yet to experience.

It all raised a question that was currently of the highest concern in his mind; how was it that he had such determination to reach out and take all that life had to offer him, yet he felt as if the task was pointless to undertake at the same time?

His muzzle was altered into a subtle scowl at himself as he treaded over rock and root, a sharp contrast to his typical behavior of his carefree attitude being comparable to the gentle waters that were already long behind him. He had some solace in the fact he was continuing along his way to that destination that wasn't present on the map of his life despite not being aware of where or what it truly was. It was one of the scarce motivations he had that was at his disposal to keep himself upright while travelling the arduous path to his ideal happiness. His determination in breaking free from this divot in the pathway of his existence was persistent, as was he. The situation was far from hopeless, and Franz could grasp that fact, yet that shadow of himself cast its dark, icy hand onto his shoulder in a grasp of its own throughout the journey he was partaking in.

He recalled a past experience that served as an ideal analogy to the way he was presently feeling. During one of his wide array of nights spent in the wilderness, he was attempting to rest on the forest floor and ended up spotting a duo of red, luminescent eyes that acted as if they scoured each and every atom of any being that was not themselves. Rather than keep his focus to the brilliant stars above him, he had his gaze stay right where that set of hostile eyes had been seen. The morning after, the sunrise was welcomed upon his awakening, yet his mind was unable to take focus away from the stars he had missed the night prior. He knew the present feelings he came to experience fit with the general mood he was in during that night as well as the morning after it, however, his mind refused to carry the lessons that could be learned from such a past experience out from it and into his current life. Thus, the matter couldn't truly settle down within him until enough time passed to the point he could understand it all himself, or another person assisted in altering his perspective.

He hadn't a clue that the owner of those eyes that still managed to glare at him from the past would play a part in doing such a thing as the latter.

The Floatzel, who was still having struggles trying to shift his focus back to his travels at hand, rather than his strenuous thoughts, happened by a dwindling stream, one that had been diminished by time and nature, producing a soft set of trickling sounds while flowing over dense piles of rocks resting at the bottom. There wasn't enough running over the stones to even come close to allowing any type of Pokémon, save for tiny birds, to do so much as wash off in the waters. He let off a quiet exhalation that came on impulse from the sight. Reaching bodies of water was no longer a triumph in and of itself to him. His travels were immediately labelled as meaningless, the destination had no worth, and so, by his logic, the journey to reach it had an identical label.

It only took a turn, one motion to position the sea weasel to wander away with only the detriment of his own mind to accompany him to whatever lied away from this disappointment, this fragment of evidence that he considered another example of him having done so much and still failing regardless repeatedly. It only took a branch in an inopportune place, blended in to the forest floor to the point of invisibility where even those piercing eyes that observed the world in pristine detail and tirelessly worked to never commit an error could not notice it. It only took one tiny snap that seemed to argue the case for him staying in this location to get Franz to look somewhere he'd already been and see what was waiting there for him.

The Floatzel's self-weathered gaze came to discover the pair of eyes, that look of sharp vision that diverted his attention from the beauty of the night sky those many weeks ago, all over again. The only difference is that they now had manifested an owner behind them, a source to the hostility cast over him on that night he recalled as being an analogy to every problem he currently had. Franz immediately found it strange beyond words that the one possessing such a look was wearing an expression that reflected terror at the sight of the Floatzel, the other Pokémon's muscles tensed, not an effort to flee, fight, speak, or complete a single action save for staring at him. The eyes had all power siphoned from them.