PS: Raquel Phillips

Name: Raquel Phillips
Age: 14 | Birthdate: May 4th | Gender: Female ♀ | Hometown: Castelia City, Unova

Species: Purrloin
Ability: Limber
Nature: Hardy
Summary Characteristic: Highly Curious


Personality
✓ Perceptive, Imaginative, Opportunistic | ✗ Selfish, Bothersome, Restless

"Hello! I'm Raquel. Nice to meet 'ya!"

A highly introspective Pokémon, she is always planning out her actions and analyzing everything around her. Raquel has a very vivid imagination, though this is not to say she sees and approaches the world in a childish manner.

She is one to be lost in thought, and is not very mindful of the current task at hand. Chances are, she's just thinking about the same thing, albeit very, very extensively. She'll be analyzing everything and anything that pops up in her head, and this is the reason why she spaces out every now and then, and why you can find her bumping into things very frequently.

Believing in the saying, "look before you leap," she plans out most, if not every, detail in her life. This kind of thinking is somewhat beneficial, and has saved her from making all sorts of mistakes in the past. Sometimes, though, she gets too excited and over thinks– over plans – to the point that she does it for too long and it becomes far too late for her plan to serve any purpose at all, let alone its intended purpose. She can also be slowpoke because of this. If something exciting isn't happening, she'll do things at a pretty slow pace, getting caught up in trying to make everything perfect.

She is always searching for answers to nearly everything, and she'll be thinking extensively about what has been, what is, and what will be. From questions like whether something was a coincidence or not, whether it was destiny or a matter of cause and effect, who someone is, how someone came to be– to ones like where did the potatoes go, why is that Liepard so tall, or what time her brother would end his shift for the day; really, her questions range from the silliest to the most critical ones. She can find the answers from thinking alone, but if she can't, she'll seek elsewhere.

She is very curious; willing to learn about most subjects. She loves to learn about different cultures and ways of living, and listen to stories, be it fictional or not. She likes to make her reservoir of knowledge as large as possible, and does not fear the unexpected, the unheard of, the unknown. She dislikes being trapped, and can become pretty restless. She tends to follow the rules, but if the rules get in her way she will no longer care for them. She respects and lets others live their life as they wish it to be, and expects others to treat her the same way.

Introspective as she is, Raquel does not dislike companionship or attention at all. She is friendly, kinda laid-back, and believes Pokémon are curious beings, with emotions and personalities that mix and match. While she's not one to strike up a conversation, she'll be willing to talk– and without you realizing it, analyzing every word that comes out of you. If she finds you interesting enough, she will try to be more likable, or do favors, in order to get the information she wants. If you're extremely interesting, she might as well go and stalk you. Though she can be left alone, and still be comfortable, since she can depend on her imagination to make her happy when others cannot. If you were to spy on her while she's alone, you can watch her play pretend and act out interesting– if not weird – scenes, be it based on a real life event, or just something she cooked up in her head.

Raquel is not very judgmental. Yes, she analyzes and interprets others, but rarely settles on an answer quickly. Her experiences with different kinds of folks has taught her that there is more than meets the eye, and it annoys her a little when someone else makes judgment too swiftly. It will certainly take a long, long time, before she finally decides on a person's place in her life. At the same time, she doesn't just trust someone easily, and can sense deception. It's also hard for her to consider someone a friend, as well. When she does start feeling comfortable around someone, she'll be more attentive in conversations with that Pokémon. She can also keep secrets or tell lies, if she has to.

She is pretty thick-skinned, and can handle a lot of criticism and insults. She takes it, and sometimes uses it to better herself. This is partly because she wishes not to get on another Pokémon's bad side, and partly knows such harsh words could be true. Of course, there are times when she loses control and gets offended, but these happen under very specific circumstances. She also can't take much criticism on those she deeply cares about, like her brother, for example. Unless it's obvious to her how much her loved one has messed up, she will not hesitate to lash back at their "aggressor".

As mentioned earlier, Raquel dislikes getting on a person's bad side. As much as she can endure both physical and verbal abuse, she'd rather be safe than sorry, and not botch up a relationship. However, she often fails in this regard due to her inconsiderate nature. This is not to say she lives to please; she has her limits and knows what they are. If you ask too big a thing from her, she will walk away and you would only give her the impression of someone who takes others for granted. It's a win-win situation for her, so to speak.

If there's one thing she has no realization of, it's that she's rather selfish. She does have innocent, good intentions– she believes in gathering and interpreting knowledge for the good of others. It's just that she does it too much her information may be no longer relevant. If she finds out that she is really harming someone, she will stop looking for information from them, and try to repay her dues instead. She also does care for the welfare of others, though it hardly shows because she's off doing things for herself.

While it's true she's analytical and aware, there is still a childish side to her. She's not that much of an optimist, but she still tries to see the glass half full, and the smile on she often wears on her face is [pretty much] genuine. She's secretly hopes for the best, and tries to take any opportunity offered to her.


History

As fun and exciting as it was, Castelia City had its big share of shady folks, philandering spouses, cunning pickpockets, burglars, and con artists; with most of them hanging around in its slums and dark alleys.

Raquel's parents did their best to protect her from the city's darkest. They believed that the city's streets were much too dangerous for their youngest child to grow up on. She was not allowed to go outside without their tight supervision, nor was she allowed to play with anyone in the neighborhood. It was annoying, really; to be staying indoors when there was such peculiar Pokémon outside. She attempted to sneak out of the house on a few occasions. While her attempts succeeded, she always got caught in the end, and took heavy punishment for it.

This is not to say she was miserable. Every night, her mother read amazing, exciting books to her and her brother before they went to sleep. Each story was unique, interesting, extraordinary. Each tale had its own twists and turns, its expectations and surprises. Every night was a new adventure waiting to unfold. "Mommy," she'd point at the picture of a Smeargle, painting the night sky, "look at it! Look!" She'd pull her brother's sleeve, and point at the picture of a plane, flying high above, "Look at the plane! Isn't it pretty?" She wished it would never end. Well, it did– with the sounds of her mother's lullaby.

Though it wasn't the end of her day. She faked falling asleep, and when her mother was out of the room, she'd sneak out of bed. Raquel would crawl away, climb the shelf, slam her face against the windowpane, and have a taste of the city's night life. On Monday, it'd be eccentric inventors, hosting a small convention. On Tuesday, it was burglars, ever so light on their feet, running from the law. On Wednesday, there would be some ice cream addicted freak, blackmailing others into buying them Casteliacones. It was pretty painful not to be part of the action, but hey. It was something.

School was quite the escape. She enjoyed reading about all kinds of things, and exercising her mind, thus she did well academically. However, she chose to spend her time reading books and observing her surroundings, rather than socializing with the other students at her school. Partly because she found books much better friends than annoying, whiny brats who were only interesting in the way they had different scream patterns– and partly because she didn't know how.

Then again, why did it matter? By then, she had begun to depend on her mind, her thoughts, her imagination. From watching someone else's mistakes, she learned to look before she leaped. She gave things a second, third, and fourth thought. And she was alone, she just stare at whatever was in front of her, and imagine something funny or exciting happening instead. Whatever it was she was doing, it worked.

Her parents wanted the best for their children. They worked hard, and rose up through the ranks. But with each promotion, her parents had less time to spend with her and her older brother. By the time she was 9, their work, for a better word, took them away. It meant she was no longer under their supervision and control.

It was around this time she started to get to know and talk to her older brother more. Because their parents didn't have the time to raise them at home, nor were their parents okay with a nanny, her brother took the role of her guardian. They had begun doing, well, everything together. From going to school, to bumping into walls, from eating meals, to cleaning the house. Being with her brother– Oliver, was it? – helped her build basic social skills. They may not have had the same causes or perspectives, but somehow, the two became the closest of friends.

But there was more. After school, she'd join Oliver in what she called his "frescapades": his social adventures in the city. She loved not only spending time with "Ols'", but meeting all the various, interesting 'mons Castelia City was known for having. The Purrloin would grab her pencil and notebook, and take notes on the Pokémon they'd meet. The ones outside were a hundred times more fun than ones in school. She began to analyze those notes, and interpret... well, everything. Soon, this habit spread to every aspect of her life.

More often than not, halfway during their "frescapades", Raquel snuck off to take an even closer look at city life. She'd observe life in the slums, watching families sharing what little resources they had. She'd observe the life of the wealthy, watching lavish events taking place. She would study the lives of others, and learned how deceptive, how selfish, how ill-intended someone could be. From cheating spouses, to abusive parents, from scandals, to family problems. Pickpockets and con artists, burglars and masterminds, a lot of them only did what they did because of corrupt leaders ruining their chances of a good life. It was a huge reality check, and it shifted her view of the world forever. Of course, she'd rejoin her brother before he'd notice her absence.

One day, she unintentionally got separated from Oliver (which was probably her fault). After searching for a while, she found herself in front of the city's library. Deciding it would be best to rest somewhere where it was [to a degree] safe and sound, she entered. For some odd reason, she rarely went here. It was amazing to be surrounded by all those thick, juicy books... After a few steps in, she lost her control and began to read to her heart's content. The stories were much, much more intriguing and beautiful than the ones she had listened to as a little kid.

She could barely contain her excitement, and let out a loud squeal or two. Ah, yes. As fun as it was to be in the action herself, it was still nice to read another's account of events, another's story. "By all things good such as Casteliacones," she snickered, this Romantic Comedy was excellent, " these are... uh...." She moved on to the next book, one about important events that happened in the last century, "Phenomenal? Wonderful? Eh." She let out a sigh. "I wonder if I could make others happy," she flipped a page or two, "just like these authors and journalists do with me...." Suddenly, the sound of multiple footsteps was heard from outside the library. Her ears perking up, she went out to investigate.

A gang of young thieves were running from a furious Meganium. "Heh, this guy wants his vegetables back," curiosity piqued to an all-time high, she followed. The thieves took many sharp turns, and jumped over many fences. The old Pokémon gave up– but not Raquel.

Being young had its perks. One of them was the stamina and flexibility required to follow thieves to their hide out. "Ooh," she listened in on dirty jokes, assignments and intricate schemes. Yes, yes, yes. This was cunning, action... adventure at its finest. "Gah!" she was lifted up by one of the members– apparently, she had been making squealing noises, "let me go!" She was turned upside down; the gang was trying to rid her of her current possessions. All that fell was a little notebook, a pen, some coins, and a few cupcakes. "Take the money, just don't kill, or even hurt me," she grabbed the things she cared for at the moment. "And if you're hungry, you can have those cupcakes," she shuddered, "they're delicious, and they can fill your belly."

After, a few minutes of scarfing down cupcakes, the thieves promised to let her go under the conditions that she: 1) didn't turn them in, and 2) showed them where she bought those cupcakes. Not willing to hand over her new "subjects", she agreed, and showed them the bakery where these, "cupcakes from heaven", were made.

"'Mons should know how cunning some can be," she wrote down a note on the whereabouts of the gang's hideout. "... that, they should," she stopped, and it came to her. Not that she was wondering about it, but she knew it. She knew she wanted to be a writer, or a journalist, or maybe both. She knew she had stories to tell.

The two siblings began to visit the library often. Her brother would grab these books on engineering, and study the subject diligently. Huh, okay. So he wanted to design transportation. Right. Good. Not that she had much to hide, she was quiet about her own objectives. She'd bring notebooks for them both, and enjoy him practicing flute at home. She began to ask her brother's "friends" questions about their lives, their ways, their beliefs. She observed them, noticed them trick and manipulate others into doing work for them, or giving them things– including Oliver. Strangely enough, this didn't bother her at all.

But then again, this was the Purrloin who started sneaking off at night, to watch crimes take place, to study the mind of thieves– her "top subject", apparently–, and to learn their secrets. It was very hard at first; being stealthy was way harder than it looked. Rarely did she get away without being caught. At first, most 'mons felt that she was a threat, that she would hand them over and help the police. Some 'mons felt she would be useful for information on other thieves and gangs. But slowly, she became stealthy enough to watch and listen in from not too far a distance. After months and months of observation, she learned how to survive the streets, not get your behind kicked, and well, not get killed.

On uneventful nights, she'd just wander the streets and get a glimpse of the lively side of the night. Bands playing, bar patrons gossiping, couples dancing and the usual ice cream freak, it was light-hearted. It was beautiful.

But some were still annoyed with her, and two thieves in particular really, really wanted to get her off their backs. In exchange for her agreeing to leave them alone, and not turn them in, they taught her two useful moves: "Role Play" and "Seed Bomb". Because of her meddling, she gained herself a [little] reputation as the [extremely] annoying aspiring journalist.

It was much, much fun. Her childhood dream was finally a reality. For a time, she believed that this was how she'd live the rest of life. But like all dreamers, she had no idea fate had other plans.

A huge bank heist scheme was to be pulled off in about a month or two. She couldn't believe it! A bank heist! She'd seen the common house burglary, the usual shop robbery, the ordinary con trick– but she never watched a bank heist before. Lady Luck was on her side when she snooped on a meeting of a band of thieves– without getting caught.

The same day she found about the heist, was the same day she found her brother running to and fro from the city park and their house. Apparently there a prestigious university was accepting applications for a special scholarship program. If he was accepted– and she believed that he would – it meant that she would be virtually alone. She didn't mind being alone. No, not at all. But something was still bothering her. "I always know what he's up to," she slumped down on her chair, "but he doesn't know what I... Gah...." To him, she was a mild little girl who always did the right thing. And it was funny how wrong he was.

how much she deceived her brother. He was a sweetheart who did his best to make her safe and happy, and she was here, planning to watch a serious crime take place. Even if she enjoyed what she did, she felt guilty that the annoyingly gullible Meowth never knew what went on every night. She shook her head, "I'm a horrible sister."

Day after day, night after night, she tried removing such thoughts by researching miscellaneous subjects at the library. But her efforts to forget the facts– the truth, were futile. It was unlikely that he would be pleased to know, well, all of this. And with the guilt building up, she was scared that she would have to tell him the [rather] shocking truth. "But I've been doing this for a few years," she tried to calm herself down, "and besides, it's not like I've done anything wrong."

The night of the heist was coming very soon, and she began to prepare herself. She packed a little purse with a notebook, a pen, a biscuit, and an Oran Berry. She found herself the perfect spot to watch the whole crime take place– a rooftop of some seafood shop. It was close to the docks, a place her brother begun to frequent. Watching all those ships come and go, Raquel had yet again something to think about. Castelia City was very big, but the whole world itself was much bigger. Great as it was to live in such a fantastic place such as Castelia... All those ships seemed to beckon her, their horns would call out her name. The rest of world was right there, waiting to be explored, waiting for its secrets to be uncovered. "Darn," she gazed at the ocean.

But enough of that; the night had finally come. Strangely enough, her brother was not yet home. This was worrying, yes, but she virtually had no choice. She was not going to miss this big event. Not at all.

It all seemed to happen so fast. Blinding flashes of light. Loud explosions. The heist... it was taking place at long last. Before she knew it, the thieves were making their escape. Stunned by the amount of skill and stealth pulled off, she let the thieves get too ahead of her. "Darnit," she tried using Pursuit, but those thieves... her thieves, were going too fast. "You can't give up," she had urged herself to keep running. Turns were made, fences were leaped, and tunnels were ventured. Her heart swelled with joy, and for a moment she felt invincible.

"Whoop!" one more turn and they were running at the docks. The cool mist and the moist ground felt wonderful. "This is the best—" she gasped. He stood there, taken aback by the sight of her being there, chasing thieves. "Rackiepoo?!" No. No. No. No. No. It wasn't. It couldn't. "Ol—" in her shock, she lost her footing, and fell into the water.

It felt horrible. Most of her movements being limited, the feeling of suffocation alongside immense shame, the sensation of being dragged down... she was trapped. Please, no. Please, she struggled to keep her notes and pen above the water. If there was one thing the water couldn't take away, it was her hard work, her passion, her life. Just as she was about to let up, Oliver managed to reach her and bring her back to shore. He began to ask her questions. But she couldn't. She couldn't. She couldn't. Raquel just shook her head, and tried to keep as warm as she could.

After being questioned by the authorities, she confessed everything. About her double life, about the heist, about how selfish she was. At first, this raised a lot of brows, but some witnesses testified that she was only an onlooker. Seeing that she was pretty much an innocent, crazy weirdo, they let her off the hook.

That was it. It was over. Her adventures had come to an end. Their parents had found out about the incident– and her secret. While they were furious and scared, they couldn't do much about it but chastise the two of them. Knowing that they were okay, they continued to leave the two siblings be. She was devastated that she couldn't continue her city expeditions, but nonetheless had come to accept it.

The two decided to help out with repairing the damages. Damages that could've been prevented had she alerted the police instead of squealing about the heist. The day everything was fixed, she suggested that they go and celebrate with lunch at a quiet café. Later that afternoon, they were arriving home. "Wait a minute," she noticed something slipped halfway beneath the door.

Her brother, in his haste to rest, slipped on two envelopes: a crisp, neat envelope, and an ancient, withered one with a peculiar golden gear seal. He quickly opened the former, and she had to keep him steady because boy, was he excited. It turned out that he was accepted into that program from earlier. Neato. At least one of them was getting to explore, to travel to a far place. "Congratulations," she smiled warmly, and looked down at the curious envelope. "Hmm," she picked it up and stared at it, as if staring would allow her to see its contents. Her brother hugged her, and they decided to read the letter together. She made sure to take great care in opening it, considering how damaged it was. She unfolded the parchment within, "... Holy...."

No, it couldn't be. Could it? Had fate given her another chance? This island, this "Steam", it was unheard of. An obscure myth no one cared about. A mysterious place, waiting for an inquisitive soul to visit its shores, and discover the legend it was. It was inviting in every regard. [Very] Far fetched as it was, she could sense truth in the Stantler's words. Seeing as taking the other route was, well, boring, Raquel decided to pack her belongings and write their parents a letter.

She looked back at her brother, "Ollie, I can't believe it! You and me, both going off on our own adventures," and back to a blank piece of paper, "you get to go to Mauville, and I, to 'Steam'!" She hurriedly wrote down her goodbye, and assurance that she was going to be alright. She slammed her suitcase shut. They sealed and left letters on the dining table, and cleaned the house. The two headed for docks with their things, hand in hand. They scanned the area, and noticed a crowd of Pokémon, carrying their belongings. "Look, Rackie!" Oliver pointed at a brass ship that was heading in their direction. They joined the crowd, and the Devious Pokémon was tiptoeing and jumping as high as she could– why did she have to be so puny? "Hold tight, sis," her brother tightened his grip on her paw. "You might fall in the water again." He helped her get on the ship, and hugged her once more. The moment had finally arrived. She was on board, and ready to go. The time had come to end the first chapter of her life.

"Ols, be sure to write to me," she hugged him tighter. "'Cause I'll be sure to write to you...." She let go, "Ol? The next ferry to Mauville is over there." It was the time to say goodbye to her closest friend. As awesome as it would be to go off on a journey on her own, she knew she would miss him. "Um," he giggled and messed her fur. Oh well, that's that. It was time for only friend to– wait, why wouldn't he leave the ship? "I don't think we'll need letters." Oh. Okay, then.

"In that case," she hugged him tight. "Let's hug longer."

And the next chapter began.

Moveset


Assist
"The user hurriedly and randomly uses a move among those known by other Pokémon in the party."
- A blue aura shines around Raquel. She then uses a move one of her friends know.
-Note: She has to see her friend use the move before her Assist can use it.

Role Play
"The user mimics the target completely, copying the target's natural Ability."
- Her eyes turn into a magenta shade. She then involuntarily imitates her target's movements for a few moments, before her eyes return back to normal. Her ability is now changed for as long as she believes the battle is over, until she faints, until she decides to flee, or until she switches out for a while.
- She uses this move to get a better feel of her "subject"'s movements and body tricks. Alternatively, when no one is around to see her, she plays pretend and acts out her stories or ideas using her "subject"'s movements.

Seed Bomb
"The user slams a barrage of hard-shelled seeds down on the target from above."
- A yellow-green orb forms in her paw. Next, she leaps high above her target. Midair, the orb turns into several floating seeds, and when she's gained enough altitude, she slams her seeds down at the target _{like a weird ninja}. Aforementioned seeds cause a mild explosion on contact.
- She uses this move to get away from "others".

Pursuit
"An attack move that inflicts double damage if used on a target that is switching out of battle."
- Raquel tenses herself, dashes toward the opponent, and slams herself against them.
- She uses this move to keep up with someone going at a rather fast pace. And when she needs to, she can use it to stop someone on their tracks.
Extras

- She goes by the nicknames "Rackie", "Rac", "Racks", "Kel", "Kels", and "Rackiepoo, the last one used endearingly by her brother.
- She is pretty well off, and rarely deals with financial issues.
- She loathes the water, or liquid in general. She doesn't like the feeling of wetness [all over] at all. She's disliked baths since birth, and still dislikes them now. It'll take some convincing to make her take one. The only place where water feels good, or at least, okay, is in her throat.
- She has code names for her "subjects" when she takes down notes. From time to time, she changes their code names to a new one. She does this in case her notebook ends up in the hands of another, and so that person wouldn't use that information without her permission.
- She is not a very picky Purrloin, and is willing to try various types of foods, for the sake of exploration. And besides, secretive meddling really takes a lot of energy.

- Normally, she walks and runs on two feet. However, when she's chasing, following someone very fast, or using Pursuit, she runs on all four limbs.
- She has a lot of physical endurance, and can take a lot of hits and throws before passing out.
- She does have pretty sensitive hearing, and can be very startled by loud, sudden sounds.
- She rarely uses her real claws, as they hurt when she uses them.
- Her ability, Limber, prevents her from going into total shock, and well, general paralysis, though you can still [easily] give her a scare.
- She's tried to cut things with her seemingly sharp tail. And has failed in the most embarrassing of ways.

- She has funny code names for her "subjects" when she takes down notes. From time to time, she changes their code names to a new one. She does this in case her notebook ends up in the hands of another, and so that person wouldn't use that information without her permission.
- One of her favorite pastimes is reading, which is why she loves books a whole lot. She dislikes seeing them damaged, though she can't do anything about it.
- She writes pretty fast, though her writing isn't very legible.




Heart Chart | In the past year she's met some people, and even made two new friends who share her sense of adventure.
Pet Meme | "Charley" : Espurr : Male - Her first pet, a very young and curious Espurr whose shadow she had followed into the woods.

She arrived on Steam around the time a serious, island-wide crisis had started. During this crisis, Raquel found a secret chamber underground, beneath a huge stone. She had also gotten her left leg hurt, when a Shuppet caused her to slip and slam her leg on a piece of fallen metal.
A year later, she was mind-controlled for a few weeks after attempting to save other people. During this crisis, Raquel had several realizations and is trying to better herself this year.

She's found herself a great hideout: an underground chamber within Pendulum Forest. It's three stories deep, and has several, tall bookshelves. It's not only a place for her to, well, hang out, as it has hundreds of documents, books, artifacts, machines (all of them centuries old) that may hold secrets of the island. She's still cleaning the place up and hasn't studied anything in it yet.