Lydia rolled up the long sleeves of her robe and did her best to pull her hair behind her head, lacking anything to tie it down as she went to where Brollem had gestured and hefted one of the planks to be used. The wood was sturdy and surprisingly heavy, but Lydia was far from unknown to physical labor, and hefted it into place before gesturing for Jake to hammer it into position.<br/><br/><span style="color: Gray">"It's quite easy to get pulled into the atmosphere, isn't it?"</span>She mused, her arms hardly quivering as she held the board in place.<span style="color: Gray">"Once you get enough people working everyone wants to start joining in. I'd bring out Kat to assist us if I wasn't afraid she would try to eat the nails." </span>Lydia laughed before her face settled into a warm smile as she looked at the others spread across the camp setting up posts and building like they were. It truly was a wonder how something like this could bring people together, even those who had their differences or rarely worked would likely have been drawn out to aid in the communal effort. Something like this was rarely to be found in a larger city. It reminded her more than a little of home.<br/><br/>The peace of mind, however, was broken by the arrival of the Growlithe. Where was it's trainer? She thought to herself, glancing around for someone who might be watching it as well. Sure enough, a stuttered explanation from Eleyna enlightened her on the situation. So the Growlithe was a pest? Lydia knew enough about that. Plenty of Pokemon could be hardly a step above feral when first captured, and without skilled and consistent training a bad temperament could form lasting poor habits. Brollem knew this better than she did by the look of it, placing an ultimatum on the Pokemon to challenge its pride.<br/><span style="color: Gray">"Seems we'll have a bit of a show tonight."</span>she smiled as she settled in to watch the battle. There was only so much one could learn by oneself, the best way to become a great trainer, or even a good trainer, was to study the attitude, movements, and habits of better trainers. And getting to see a Gym Leader battle without being on the receiving end was a rare treat.<br/>More worrying was Eleyna, Lydia had sensed she was a shyer girl, but if that translated into a timidity in battle, combined with the Growlithe's attitude...<br/><br/>Sure enough, the battle was hardly a contest, but then again it was hardly fair. The Growlithe had indeed been utterly untrained and may as well have been wild for the amount it listened to it's trainer-in-name-only. Lydia cringed a little as she watched, Eleyna was trying to elicit some action or response from the Growlithe, but the Pokemon was having none of it, and the display was more than a little embarrassing to watch. Brollem, as expected, showed a masterful control of his Primeape, directing not only his attacks but his movements with an almost instantaneous response from the Pokemon.<br/><br/>She sighed as the battle came to its swift and predictable conclusion.<span style="color: Gray">"That was a bit hard to watch."</span>She said as she lifted another board in place.<span style="color: Gray">"A Pokemon that won't listen to its trainer is always a sorry sight to see."</span>She felt a twinge of guilt at those words, considering her own rebellious Rufflet. But that bird was still freshly-caught and had been responding to discipline.<span style="color: Gray"> "But a trainer must be like steel. You can bend, but you cannot bow and you cannot break."</span><div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>