yes it’s time for another ⭐oc ⭐Meet Cal (short for Caliopy), your not-that-friendly Wild Area tour guide!! While she started out as a Fighting-type Gym Leader from Hoenn, she has evolved into Not That!
Lots of info/hcs below!
Cal grew up in Lavaridge, Hoenn, and didn’t move to Galar until after graduation. She was quite popular at her school in Mauville - and was also quite a bully. She had issues with eating and alcohol, both partly encouraged by that popularity. After graduation she realized she had no real friends and no real goals, and even Pokémon didn’t like her much - except for the Shroomish that followed her when she escaped to Petalburg Woods to think.
Though she lived near the desert thanks to growing up in Lavaridge, she’s only tried to explore it once. She was lost for a few days and barely made it out alive. She only survived thanks to a mysterious song that seemed to guide her out… to this day she’s not sure what it was. After recovering, it was then she realized she wanted to be self-sufficient, and to feel that exhilaration of survival in nature again.
She was never the best at anything. Cal has an older sister who was the best at everything, often earning her most of her family’s attention. This was part of the reason why Cal turned to her vices.
Cal is Kabu’s niece. They were never close, but they slowly form a bond when she visits him in Galar for a summer. She immediately falls in love with the Wild Area outside of Motostoke, and, since she has nothing really keeping her in Hoenn, she decides to move to Galar.
Uncle Kabu helps her train as she stays with him in Motostoke and finds her footing after the move. The blatant type disadvantage of her one Shroomish isn’t that helpful, but Uncle Kabu isn’t comfortable letting her into the Wild Area alone since she isn’t that good with Pokémon.
They camp together for a week and Uncle Kabu, recognizing Cal’s love of nature, encourages her to enroll in the dojo on the Isle of Armor to learn how to work with Pokémon and nature in tandem (and so she can make some friends). This is the first time Cal has felt encouragement and support for a strength of hers, so she agrees.
She really comes alive at the dojo and catches a Buneary. She isn’t the best trainer by any means, but she is easily the quickest at learning to navigate the island. Mustard gives her the ‘most improved’ award at the end of their training.
Cal is reinvigorated and feels alive for the first time since her journey in the desert. She starts going to the gym with Uncle Kabu, as she realizes she can be more sufficient if she has more muscle (something she was too scared to have in school, as it could have damaged her reputation). Cue Cal Gets Buff montage.
Now that her thighs and biceps could crush a man’s skull, she and Uncle Kabu take a longer trip through the Wild Area, trekking all the way to Hammerlocke. It’s then that she notices there’s a run-down tour guide facility that has seen better days. She now has the goal to make it Not Suck and can finally stop mooching off of Uncle Kabu.
Wild Area Tours (WAT) was kind of a meme since it was really run down, underfunded, and had a high turnover rate due to poor reviews and poor employee training. When Cal is hired, she works hard to learn from the founder (who is very knowledgeable on the Wild Area but is too old to do tours herself) to make the tours safe, fun, and interesting. Cal found the dream job she didn’t know she wanted!!
She starts building WAT’s reputation (and starts building a savings account), and since WAT is based in Hammerlocke Cal finally moves out of Uncle Kabu’s house. WAT’s growing popularity draws the attention of a certain Hammerlocke Gym Leader, and Cal is unfortunately quite flustered by that fact. Oh shit he’s Hot and strong and funny and wait isn’t this the Raihan?? Like, the famous one?? Shit shit shit shit shit
Cal isn’t that good with Genuine Feelings, especially after being used to being fake to protect herself back in school. It’s tough for her to identify if someone is genuine, so she retaliates by being mean and defensive…. But she’s also trying to overcome that part of her character by being nice, hence, super tsundere…. She’s working on it…. Slowly.
She’s TERRIFIED of heights. Like, to the extent that she can’t fly in the flying taxis whatsoever, and only takes the train, bikes, or walks. Raihan tries to help her overcome that fear by taking her on a ride on Flygon, but it’s not as romantic as he thinks seeing as she’s trying not to puke the entire time. He doesn’t mind the part where she’s clinging to him, though.
Despite the stereotypes and her reputation in school, she’s never actually had her first kiss yes that will change in Galar
Her favorite food is popcorn, but Cal doesn’t really have a sense of taste.
Her love language is touch, which is unfortunately VERY embarrassing for a tsundere. It’s fine. That’s fine. Everything’s fine.
