Pokémon: Winds of Orlana [Advanced | PG-16 | Started | Not Accepting]

[Shradow]

Daisuke had almost reached the end of the bridge, but suddenly a dark shadow covered him and a large portion of the bridge. He looked up in shock to see an enormous bird Pokémon soaring overhead. Attached to one of its talons was a large metallic orb of some sort. It dropped it not far ahead of Daisuke, at the far end of the bridge. Too enthralled by the sight, it wasn't until there was a rush of air and Daisuke got blown back by a large explosive blast. He was far enough away to take minor damage, but when he looked ahead, the end of the Azure Bridge had been completely decimated.

 

He got up and brushed himself off, looking behind him to find his Munchlax quaking in fear. "It's okay, Munchlax. Take a rest for a bit." Daisuke pulled out his pokéball and returned Munchlax into it. Returning it to his belt, Daisuke noticed that his egg was missing. He looked around desperately for it, finally noticing it dangerously close to the edge of the bridge. A portion of it was sagged from the blast, and the egg was slowly rolling towards the water. "No!" Daisuke rushed towards his egg. He easily scooped it up, but the metal of the bridge creaked under his weight, and it started to cave.

 

The section of the bridge caved in, and Daisuke fell towards the water. Holding his egg with one hand, he managed to grab on to the edge with his free hand. "This isn't good. Someone, help! Anyone!?"

[Saiba Aisu]

GM Post: Ochre Woods

GM Post: Ochre Woods

 

Not hesitating for a moment, Lisa sprang forwards, throwing the full weight of her body against the motionless Jason, tackling him sideways out of harm's way just in time. They landed in a crumpled heap against the ground; barely a second later, the creature thundered past where they had been standing, its tremendous momentum carrying it forwards and directly into the closest tree. There was a painful-sounding crack as the wooden surface of the tree splintered upon contact with the creature's skull, carving a fairly deep indent into it. As the creature struggled furiously to free itself from the tree's grasp, the three companions were able to look at it in closer detail and register some of its characteristics.

 

The creature was fairly large, standing at roughly around four and a half feet tall on all fours, and it wore a glossy pelt of short hair that was colored interchangeably black and white; beneath the fur, they could see its powerful muscles at work as it swiped at the tree angrily with razor claws and a pair of sharp-looking scythes that appeared to extend from its forearms. With a final swipe, the large Pokémon sliced through the tree diagonally, freeing itself from its entanglement. With a sigh of rustling leaves and the groan of wood, the severed tree crashed into the ground with a resounding thud.

 

The black- and white-colored Pokémon turned to face the three companions, its heavy and ragged breathing the only sound that could be heard within the clearing. Looking closer at it, they could see that its face was composed of an overwhelming mix of both badger- and mole-like characteristics, with beady black eyes that were narrowed in anger and a large spiky pink-colored nose that twitched slightly as it regarded them, its muscles tense, prepared to charge them down once more.

 

[spoiler=Wild Pokémon Encounter: Excavade (Please Read)]

 

Wild Pokémon Encounter: Okay Encapturer, Marsuvees Black, and Kuroda Naoki: your characters have stumbled across an extremely angered Excavade which normally protects the Ochre Woods and cares for the other weaker Pokémon who also dwell there. Although Excavade are capable battlers with razor-sharp claws and a pair of deadly scythe-like protrusions from their forearms, they are generally peaceful creatures who dislike unnecessary conflict and prefer to spend their time expanding the massive network of underground tunnels and caverns they instinctively construct around the area where they live. The idea of an Excavade charging down a trio of humans without being provoked is unheard of; nevertheless, it's clear that something or someone has worked this creature into a considerable rage. This means that soft-worded efforts to calm it down or soothe it will be useless, and it will be upon you before you can manage to run away—the only way to survive this encounter is to knock it out in a Pokémon battle.

 

[spoiler=Excavade]

 

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll217/GXCyber_Star/Excavade-1.png' alt='Excavade-1.png'>

 

 

 

[encapturer]

"This is...!"

 

Lisa remembered this Pokemon. She hasn't seen one, but she had planned to catch this one when she was younger, despite the fact that Excavade was supposed to be the guardian of Ochre Woods. And now that she is standing face-to-face against one, she truly knows how foolish she was. Fortunately ,she is now a Pokemon Trainer, with a Pokemon available to battle. Digging deep into her pocket, she pulled out the only Pokeball she had with her.

 

"Jason! Josh!" Lisa called out, while she enlarged her Pokeball. She took a step back in order to create some space for the battle, when she felt something round at her feet. Glancing down, there were three Pokeballs scatter on the ground nearby. The one at her feet had a small leaf symbol, with another marked with a drop of water nearby. There was one behind her, near where she tackled Jason, labeled with a small flame. While she was originally going to tell them to get away to safety, she had a change of heart.

 

"There are Pokeballs on the ground, probably fell out of the bag. Looks like they have Pokemon in them." She tossed the one in her hand, releasing the Floatern inside. The gray bird stretched its wings a bit once released, but instantly became airborne once it recognized the raging Excavade. "I don't know if I can defeat it myself, but we may be able to together if you use one of the Pokemon there!" These were supposed to be theirs, anyway, and I can battle alongside them! Lisa thought. The upcoming battle was making her excited, despite the current danger.

 

"Floatern, think you can distract him for a bit?" she called out, with Floatern responding by flying around the foe, dodging its strikes as needed. She turned her neck back to face Jason and Josh. "Now's the chance!"

[Guest Tainted Black]

Josh dove for the Pokeball behind Lisa, with the flame, while calling out. "Alright!" he said, as he thought "What else can I do?" When his hand wrapped around the small sphere, and he hit the button to make it grow, and threw it out. "Go, whoever!" He called as the ball hit the ground, and Wulfyr popped out. He resisted the urge to act like a giddy schoolboy, and thought for a moment. "Wulfyr... what moves does it know again? Bah! What does it know! I forgot!". As he lamented, he tried to remember, yet it stated just out of reach, until it hit him! "What do all fire startes learn, except Cyndaquil? SCRATCH!" he continued, out loud. "Wulfyr, use scratch on that Excavade!"

[Azure Flame Kite]

As Jayden sprinted to the bridge, his ears happened to pick up someone calling for help. Focusing in on the noise, he dashed to the edge of the destroyed bridge, where he figured the noise was coming from, and saw a hand. Getting down to his knees, he looked down to see the face of a young man not much younger than him looking like he was about to fall. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that he was holding a large egg that was preventing him from pulling himself up. Jayden quickly grasped the younger teen's forearm and began to pull. "Hang...on!" his voice strained from the effort, and he began to feel his arm hurting. Then he began to feel himself gradually begin to slip as well. 'Not good!' he thought in desperation before getting an idea; a crazy idea, but a fairly good one. "Hold on tight!" he exclaimed, beginning to swing his arm back and forth, planning to use build up enough momentum to swing the boy back onto the bridge.

[Saiba Aisu]

GM Post: Ochre Woods

GM Post: Ochre Woods

 

[spoiler=GM Post: Ochre Woods]

 

The Excavade growled in growing frustration as Lisa's Floatern wheeled about its head quickly in a complex and graceful pattern, snapping angrily at the seagull-like Pokémon with fierce jaws as it passed. For this reason, the badger-mole Pokémon was distracted from Josh's Wulfyr's attack; with a canine growl that split into an eerie howl, Wulfyr leaped forward and onto Excavade's back, raking the creature's white- and black-colored fur with sharp claws. Excavade roared with anger at the sensation but did not seem to be unduly hurt—ignoring Floatern's diversionary tactics for a moment, it exploded onto its legs and began to buck wildly, trampling the ground underneath it and sending Wulfyr flying from his perch upon its back with a yelp.

 

The red-colored wolf Pokémon sprawled into the ground, raising a small cloud of dust in its wake; however, once the dust cleared, it only seemed shaken rather than injured from the fall, growling and howling its challenge defiantly to Excavade. The badger-mole Pokémon roared once more and exploded forwards on all fours in a heavy rush, its right forearm extended in a deadly swipe towards Wulfyr, its claws and the sharp-edged scythe on its arm whistling as they flew through the air in a terrible blow with all of Excavade's considerable weight behind it.

 

[Aesirson]

Jason just got up from the ground and saw that Wulfyr and Floatern was fighting the Excavade. Jason quickly darted towards the closest Pokéball, picked it up and clicked the button that made it grow within his hand. He looked at the Excavade with a determined look.

"Go!" He shouted, throwing the Pokéball towards the badger-like Pokémon. When the ball hit the ground, a small Pokémon popped out.

"A Squinky!" Jason said with a smile.

Now what attacks does it know? It doesn't have any claws, but those fins looks like they could launch a good slap!

"Squinky! Use Pound!"

[encapturer]

Alright, that's it... Lisa thought to herself as the Excavade unsuccessfully tried to strike Floatern. She was focused intently on the battle at hand, waiting for an opening to strike. With Josh's Wulfyr joining the fray, she figured the battle would be over soon, especially when Jason brings out his Pokemon.

 

Instead, Lisa found herself stunned when the Excavade shrugged off any damage that may have been caused by Wulfyr's sudden attack. While Wulfyr seemed fine for now, Excavade was charging in to finish it off.

 

Lisa could only call out the only command she thought of in this short period of time. "Floatern, Knock it down!" Floatern, in turn, flew in from the side to intercept Excavade as it ran, not noticing that a Jason's new pokemon was running in to attack as well. As Floatern picked up speed, Lisa's eyes stayed latched onto her Pokemon, praying that would make it in time.

[Zerato_AST]

"Good, good..." Nathaniel said as the woman replied that she was, indeed, alright. He paused for a moment to examine her. Strangely enough, she didn't seem very shaken up, as he had expected her to be. It wasn't sexism - he was merely surprised as he was still slightly weak at the knees and his hearing still hadn't completely returned to normal. In fact, if anything the woman seemed thrilled by the blast, which Nathaniel found understandable - after all, he was just about to check it out before he saw her.

 

"So, do you know what that thing was that caused this? The big bird?" He asked the stranger, his voice back to normal. "I'm Nathaniel, by the way. Nathaniel Sharpe."

[Shradow]

Daisuke was elated that someone had heard his cry for help. He saw a boy about his age, kneeling down to help him. "Don't worry, I don't have a reason to let go." The boy started to swing, trying to build up momentum, most likely. "I hope this plan of yours works." Daisuke looked down at his Pokéball, then his egg. For their sake, more than mine. Daisuke sighed. This hasn't been one of my better days.

[Saiba Aisu]

GM Post: Ochre Woods

GM Post: Ochre Woods

 

[spoiler=GM Post: Ochre Woods]

 

Before Excavade could complete its slashing attack upon Jason's Wulfyr, Floatern barrelled into it sideways in an effective aerial tackle, slowing the badger Pokémon's rampaging charge. Excavade roared as Floatern pecked determinedly at the sensitive area near its neck with its sharp beak; coming to a complete halt and thrashing angrily, it managed to dislodge the seagull Pokémon, who unfurled its wings calmly and took to the sky once more. Before Excavade could gather itself and continue its charge towards Wulfyr, its head was buffeted to the right as Squinky's Pound attack connected.

 

Excavade roared once more in anger, springing to one side with surprising speed and turning in midair to face yet another opponent. Wulfyr took advantage of the moment to dash back over to Josh, while Lisa's Floatern descended slowly and landed on her, its claws gripping her shoulder firmly for balance. The three companions shared a concerned look—even though Excavade had been physically struck by all of three of the Pokémon, it still seemed willing to fight with no end in clear sight. While they had managed to avoid sustaining any serious injury so far, it was only a matter of time before Excavade managed to catch one of their Pokémon with a charging attack or a fierce slash from its deadly scythes, and then it would be all over.

 

Excavade growled lowly in its dark throat, eyes narrowed angrily as they shifted from foe to foe in a wary and calculating manner, its breathing ragged and hoarse as it began to advance slowly towards them with more caution than before, closing the distance between them one step at a time.

 

[encapturer]

Lisa shivered in fear as slowly stepped back as Excavade approached. What can we do... melee attacks are no good, she thought to herself. It's too focused and.... wait a minute.... At that though she stopped backing up, and regained her composure.

 

"We may have a chance," she said quietly, so that Josh and Jason could hear. "If your Pokemon know any ranged attacks, get ready to have them attack. And you guys be ready, too... it might get dangerous."

 

Lisa paused for a moment before starting her attack to allow the other two to get ready, but her eyes stayed on their opponent. "Floatern!" Lisa's pokemon began flying once again at her call. "Use supersonic!" The bird landed in front of his trainer and opened his mouth wide. From the point of view of the trainers and their Pokemon, Floatern's cry was muffled and faint, but Lisa was sure that the attack found its mark, since Excavade was no longer rampaging about.

[Guest Tainted Black]

Josh called out to his fallen starter. "Wulfyr! Get up and use Ember on Excavade!" As he said it, the Wolf-like Pokemon did just that. "It... actually knows ember already? Phew... Glad I took that gamble!" He thought, and watched. This Excavade was tough, and had taken very little damage thus far, despite the attacks. "So, if all of us attacked... and it's not hurt much at all... what can we do? Running isn't wise either..." He mused as he awaited a move fro mthe Badger-mole.

[Aesirson]

"It looked like the Pound attack did some damage, but not enough." Jason looked at Excavade and thought for a moment. It's a digging Pokémon, therefore it most likely is a Ground-type, and as far as Jason's knowledge went, Ground-types are at a disadvantage against Water-types! Jason looked at Squinky, who looked back and nodded at it's new trainer. Jason felt a shock in his chest, like if a bond was created between the trainer and the Pokémon.

"Come on, Squinky! Bubble!" Jason shouted and pointed at Excavade.

Squinky blew it's mouth up and then fired a cascade of bubbles out of it's mouth, going in a straight line towards the badger-like Pokémon.

[Azure Flame Kite]

'So do I...'Jayden thought nervously, he was beginning to slip further and further while Daisuke got higher. Finally, he hurled the younger teen over the edge of the bridge on the side that he was holding the egg on so he would roll over it. Unfortunately, half of his chest was already over the side, so he began to slip faster, even with Cygmini trying to pull him back up by his leg, he was still slipping. Grabbing onto the remains of one of the metal... bars to halt himself, he called over to Daisuke,"Hey, little help here!" Even at that, the bar was slippery, and he couldn't hold on for that much longer.

[Hydra of Ages]

"Good' date=' good..." Nathaniel said as the woman replied that she was, indeed, alright. He paused for a moment to examine her. Strangely enough, she didn't seem very shaken up, as he had expected her to be. It wasn't sexism - he was merely surprised as he was still slightly weak at the knees and his hearing still hadn't completely returned to normal. In fact, if anything the woman seemed thrilled by the blast, which Nathaniel found understandable - after all, he was just about to check it out before he saw her.

 

"So, do you know what that thing was that caused this? The big bird?" He asked the stranger, his voice back to normal. "I'm Nathaniel, by the way. Nathaniel Sharpe."

[/quote']

 

Eri smiled a thin-lipped grin at the man who had evidently missed the massive bird's pass as it released its deadly cargo onto the bridge beneath it. Eri wasn't entirely sure what make of bomb it had been -which wasn't surprising, given that she only had a cursory knowledge of armaments- but it had to be something more potent than even the regular military make, for it to cause such destruction to an elegant and ingeniously made bridge such as what this one had once been.

 

She brushed a thin blond strand of hair away from her face, that had been knocked awry by either the bird's passage or the aftermath of the explosion. She smiled a little, feeling oddly giddy due to the rather exciting event. "Hello Natheniel. You may call me Eri." she said after a second. It occurred to her that offering her last name might not be the best of ideas- still she didn't want to use a pseudonym.

 

"Eri Vogel." she decided after a second, after figuring her second middle name was sufficiently enough removed to be issued safely. She noticed the auburn-headed man examining her for a moment with a slightly pursing of her lips. Had he recognized her? She wouldn't know how -after all, rich as her family was, it was unlikely she'd be recognized outside of the country- but was distracted from this by the loud wailing of alarms adding to the confusing of the chaotic crowd around them.

 

A series of blue cars swarmed on the remainder of the bridge like animals, each dislodging three blue figures- a pair of police officers, dressed in a deep blue uniforms and with oddly similarly styled azure hair, and a single blue creature, either a Wobuffet or similarly-formed Wynaut following behind them.

 

One of them, evidenced by the black trails on her uniform and various badges, walked to the forefront with a megaphone. The only different pokemon in the lot, a smug-looking Medicham, followed behind her.

 

"Please Remain Calm!" she announced from the megaphone at the various persons at the crowd. "Make your way towards the eastern section of the bridge, please, in an orderly and calm fashion! There is nothing to fear, the perpetrator has been successfully detained and prevented!" she claimed.

 

Eri chuckled, noting the blatant lie the moment she said it. Still, it had the desired effect, and calmed most of the crowd. She supposed it wasn't a ruse intended to last any longer than it needed, and all it needed was to get people safely off the bridge.

[Shradow]

Daisuke quickly put down his egg in a safe place so as to make sure it was perfectly safe. Then he reached for the Pokéball at his waist and brought out his Munchlax. Each of them grabbed a hand, and easily pulled up the boy. Weary from the experience, Daisuke sat down on a secure part of the bridge, panting. "That was too close." He turned towards the boy. "Thanks for helping me. Are you okay?"

[Saiba Aisu]

GM Post: Ochre Woods

GM Post: Ochre Woods

 

[spoiler=GM Post: Ochre Woods]

 

Unsurprisingly, Floatern's Supersonic attack reached Excavade before the other two, striking it with a shrill barrage of invisible sound that burst from the bird's throat and ruffled its black- and white-colored fur like a passing wind. The badger-mole Pokémon roared and shook its head furiously in an attempt to dispel the confusion and nausea induced by the soundwaves, but it was to no avail. Stumbling blindly, its front legs buckled and it collapsed to the ground upon its knees.

 

Before Excavade could shake off the effects of Supersonic, however, it was struck by a thin tongue of scarlet-orange flame that burst from Wulfyr's mouth; a moment later, a shimmering barrage of bubbles slammed into it with several faint popping noises. After a moment, the three attacks halted; as the fire and bubbles dissolved into steam, Excavade groaned one last time and crashed to the ground with a loud thud, its black eyes finally closed in unconsciousness, free of the intense rage which had previously possessed it.

 

Neither Lisa, Jason, or Josh got much time to celebrate their join victory apart from flashing each other relieved and elated grins; only a handful of seconds after Excavade collapsed to the ground, a loud rustling sound could be heard across from the clearing, above the undergrowth from where the Guardian Pokémon of the Ochre Woods had attacked. The three companions tensed visibly as the thick emerald foliage of one of the tall trees trembled slightly as something shuffled downwards beneath its cover along its branches.

 

There was another rustle as something lowered itself cautiously from the protection of the leaves—looking closer, they were able to identify it as a slender, porcelain-skinned face with high cheekbones, long pink hair in disarray, and fierce gray-blue eyes that flashed from the trio with catlike intensity before relaxing. With a surprisingly graceful movement, the woman lowered herself off the tree branch and leaped nimbly to the ground, where they saw that she was clad in a tattered black blouse and cream-colored skirt and her feet were bare and spattered with dirt.

 

Josh and Jason exchanged a confused look before glancing at Lisa quizzically—they had been sent to locate the renowned Pokémon Researcher Professor Sycamore and rescue her, not this wildcat woman. Perhaps this strange woman knew where Professor Sycamore was to be found?

 

[encapturer]

Lisa almost found herself collapsing to the ground as Excavade fell unconscious. She could not help but grin; the guardian of the the forest had been defeated by her and the two new trainers! Before celebrating, she wanted to collect everything that spilled out of Professor Sycamore's bag, as well as locate her rod. She had no time, though, as the rustling from overhead alerted her.

 

"Another?" Lisa pulled herself up, and Floatern landed on her shoulder. The poor Pokemon was tired; he never had a battle this intense before. If Lisa was paying attention to her Pokemon, she would probably smile, thinking that such an experience was good for both of them. Right now though, her eyes followed the mysterious woman who just dropped in from above.

 

Lisa stared at her in surprise, then bewilderment, then anger. "What... what..... What?!" She marched up to the woman, furious that she didn't actually get to show off her skills while rescuing her. "You... you're in a tree?!" she said, pointing toward the foliage above, causing Floatern to fall off her shoulder. "You skipped giving out Pokemon... to hide out... in a TREE? What were you THINKing?!!" she continued, totally forgetting about the two boys who were watching her tirade.

[Zerato_AST]

"Yeah, right..." said Nathaniel sceptically as he heard the policewoman's statement echoing from the megaphone in her hand. "I doubt they've been so quick as to have caught whoever was powerful enough to control the thing that caused this." He looked disdainfully at the officers in the distance. Watching as others on the bridge followed the orders that were given to them, he turned to join them when he noticed that Eri wasn't moving. "Aren't you coming?" He asked her, his brow furrowed. "There's no chance of finding out anything interesting now that the police are here."

[Otaku-sama]

Nyoko continued to chase her Jigglypuff, which was far ahead of her. Maro ran towards the column of dust until he was confronted by a blockade set up by the Peach Town police. Maro simply floated over the blockade, but when Nyoko reached it, she was stopped.

 

"Back away from the bridge miss. There's nothing to see here," the blue haired officer said while putting our her hand in a stop command.

 

"But Maro-chan's gone inside! I need to find him before he gets too far! He'll get himself into trouble when he gets too far!" Nyoko pleaded with the officer to no avail. The officer remained silent. Nyoko tried to run past the officer but was swiftly stopped with an outstretched arm. Nyoko backed off and tried to think of a way to get past. After thinking for a minute, she stuck her finger up in inspiration. She shuffled through her handbag to find her wallet. She took out a big handful of coins and threw them as far as she could towards the officer. The mess of coins made a tinkling sound that attracted the officer. The officer started to collect some of the coins while a bunch of other people gathered around to take part in the change collecting. Nyoko then stealthily snuck past the blockade.

 

Maro had begun exploring the destroyed bridge when he came across two people who were sitting on the bridge, one of them clutching an egg. Maro was about to go greet the new people when he was picked up and hugged from behind with a very strong grip, almost asphixiating him.

 

"Maro-chan! I told you not to go off by yourself like that, especially in a place like this!"

[Aesirson]

"Good job, Squinky!" Jason shouted at his new companion as the small, pink Pokémon ran back to it's new friend. "And now I'm about to catch this guy!" He unattached one of the Pokéballs on his belt and pressed the button to enlarge it, but when he was about to throw it Squinky jumped up and slapped his hand so taht he dropped the ball.

"Squink!" The Pokémon's voice was very... "bubbly".

"Yea, it's the guardian of this forest, I guess it should remain free..."

 

That's when the woman appeared, and Jason thought for a minute.

Maybe that's Sycamore? Nah, probably not...

Then Lisa went on a rampage, and Jason was astonished.

"You mean this really IS Sycamore?"

[Azure Flame Kite]

"Yeah, thanks," Jayden said, sitting up and leaning on his hands. "Anyway, my name's Jayden; Jayden Hunter, nice to meetcha," he extended his hand for Daisuke to shake, when he noticed a Jigglypuff float down from the corner of his eye. Then he noticed a girl around his age crawl past the blockades that he hadn't noticed until now and began to squeeze the life out of the pokemon, calling it 'Maro-chan'... weird. "You do realize that you're choking it, right?" He pointed out in a deadpan fashion, pointing to the suffocating balloon-like pokemon.

[Guest Tainted Black]

Josh stared at Jason, as he opened the Pokeball, facepalmed, and was about to say something when he saw the Squinky stop him. "Well, looks like he chose the right one. That thing will keep him in line, hopefully." He walked over to his new Poemon, and knelt down in front of it. "Hello Wulfyr, I'm Josh. Thanks for helping back there." He began to pet the canine, and it sat there enjoying itself. After a moment, it moved its head and bit Josh. "YOW! What was that for?!" he jumped up and snapped, before remembering yound Pokemon nibbled on things to learn what they were. He got back down and apologized, ruffling the wolf's head.

 

When Lisa said that was Professor Sycamore, he looked between the two females, adjusted his glasses, and asked what was on his mind. "You're kidding me, right?"

[Hydra of Ages]

"Hm?" Eri glanced over at Nathaniel, almost having forgotten he was there. She mildly wondered why he was still speaking to her -after all, she wasn't injured or anything, and she now figured he knew nothing about who she was- but shrugged it off.

 

"No, I suppose there isn't." she said airily, walking towards Peach Town like she had been already before she was disrupted by that magnificent bird. Even know, images of the dark-feathered monstrosity pranced through her mind, and she found to her surprise that she wanted to see it again.

 

How curious, she thought to herself with a wisp of a smile on her lips, as she daintily made her way across the concrete floor of the stub of the bridge back to the mainland of Peach Town. She wasn't alone, as what had to be hundreds of people made there way off at the same time. It was perhaps the first time Eri felt crowded; she tried not to think on it too much.