Pepper the Timburr

**Appearance**

Pepper appears as a typical Timburr; it is likely that those who are unfamiliar with or rarely see Timburr in the world may not be able to distinguish her from another of her species upon first glance. She is approximately two feet tall and a little under thirty pounds. Like all Timburr, she carries around a small wooden beam. Hers is well-worn, and resembles a railroad tie on a smaller scale, and is about six inches taller than herself. Most of the time, she carries it under her left arm, but can be seen using it as a type of multi-tool or simply balancing on one end if only for fun.

Her forelock is quite fluffy, curling upwards ever so slightly. If he hair is ever wet, it will simply fall flat in front of her face. It's quite thick and stands all on its own, but she may occasionally smooth it out. She possesses the average build of a Timburr - though she looks soft, she is anything but. Her eyes are a steely gray, and it is difficult to discern her gender simply by looking at her. Her voice would probably give it away, but it isn't high-pitched and, like a Timburr, would be on the deeper end of the average female voice.

Pepper is not opposed to clothing, but tends to dislike feeling trapped. During spring months, she might stick a flower in her hair, but even that may not last long. She can be coaxed into wearing it, but most of the time she just wanders around without any clothing or accessories at all - save the beam, of course.

**Personality**

A first impression of Pepper is not entirely inaccurate. She appears confident, high-energy, and is driven to be useful to others. She's quite extraverted - most of the time, and unafraid to speak her mind and ensure her presence is known. This can make her come across as rude in some situations, but it's not usually intentional. She is always eager to lend a hand, and would probably do it without something in return if only for the sake of being useful. However, she does need to eat, and isn't terribly picky about what form of payment it is. She's been known to help others without pay in certain situations. She may come across as arrogant, but this isn't always true.

Like most Timburr, she's naturally inclined to creating things, and tries to see the forest through the trees. She's a social butterfly and prefers teamwork, but can generally handle herself if she needs to. Pepper is a natural team-player, so long as everyone gets their fair share of work. Being a fighting-type Pokemon, she'd rather show what she's capable of than explain it, and tends to frown upon braggarts and those who can't 'walk the walk' so to speak. She would consider herself to be a good friend; she is naturally loyal and protective, and is prone to showing her affection rather than stating it.

Piper believes in living one's life to the fullest. She's not afraid to eat until she's stuffed, take a plunge into frigid waters, or express her emotions with just about anything. If something angers her, you'll know. If something upsets her, she'll let you know that too. If you've made her proud, she'll be glad to show you. She tends to hate the idea of secrets, but understands on some occasions they can be necessary. She has a few things about her past she will rarely speak of, and is completely oblivious to flirtation for some reason. She judges people by their strength - and believes in different kinds of strength. She also thinks the best way to get to know someone is to spar them!

She has some insecurities of her own! Despite being at a point in which she could evolve, she hesitates in doing so. The itch is there, but there is also fear, too. She has some degree of vanity about her; she finds herself to be cute and approachable whilst a Timburr. She is afraid that, if she were to evolve into a Gurdurr, she would lose those qualities. This may also stem from the fact that she hasn't spent an extensive amount of time with another of her own kind. Pepper is so fearful of evolving that she would only ever do so if forced into a situation in which it was necessary to protect somebody else. The other reason for her refusal to evolve has much to do with her backstory and those she is afraid to leave behind.

Some of Pepper's hobbies include singing out of key or whistling as she travels, making flower wreaths, and cloud watching. This doesn't include her attempts to expend all the energy she has; she likes to climb, spar, swim, and partake in most forms of physical activity if it means getting a good night's sleep. If she can't expend her energy, she'll lay awake all night.

**Current Job**

Pepper is a traveling worker for hire. She's currently looking for a permanent position -somewhere-.

**Relationships**

**Vic** - Her childhood best friend and the person she holds in highest regard. He is believed to have been killed, forcing Pepper to live her life without him and become her own person. His current whereabouts are unknown, and he has been missing for over a decade.

**Backstory**

Pepper was born in a colony of her own kind; primarily Gurdurr and Timburr. They ran their own businesses, particularly helping construct settlements and buildings within them, and just about any form of construction work was their forte. Pepper, at the time, was no exception. Even as a baby, she would follow after her mother, a Gurdurr, and spend time with the other youngsters in her age group. One in particular that caught her eye was Vic. At the time, Pepper was incredibly timid, often hiding behind her mother's legs whenever they encountered a new situation. But Vic was different from the others. He was loud, high-energy, and extraverted - but completely unskilled.

Vic was uncoordinated, but tried anyway. He was a little older than Pepper, but had difficulty making friends. Pepper was enamored with him, especially after he introduced himself. She followed him around like a puppy and helped him with smaller projects they were assigned. Vic, being the general outcast among his peers, found some degree of solace with Pepper. They would go on adventures together when they could, traveling away from the colony's living area and wandering to the edges of their territory. Eventually, their peers did start to accept them, but Vic's skills only improved marginally. To make matters worse, Vic's father was the only Conkeldurr in the colony, the stress of being made leader causing his evolution to trigger several years prior. The amount of pressure then thrust upon Vic was insurmountable, and he began to let Pepper in on just how much he was struggling.

As they aged, their projects and the demands for their skills naturally grew greater, and they were often separated and sent to other locales, assisting with construction projects. Vic spent much of his early teen years with his father, who put all of his effort into helping his son develop the skills needed to run the colony as well as perform basic skills. The time spent away from Pepper increased and she began to pine for him. While she had other friends, none were like Vic. She struggled to make friends, but he was charismatic despite everything. Her crush on him had been obvious for years, though being children Vic had no idea what to do with this information. She'd almost become dependent on him.

When they were both well in their teens, Vic finally found himself with some free time, and the two decided to venture out on an adventure together like old times. Their friendship had been strained with all of Vic's training, but was rekindled almost immediately when they spent time together. Not long later, they were both sent to work on a project, and as it turned out Vic's personal instruction and heavy training from his father had paid off. Pepper and Vic proved to be a great team. However, while constructing a bridge over a rather deep gorge, there was an error in calculation and the bridge snapped beneath their weight. Pepper hit a ledge on one side of the cliff, spared from the worst of it. She managed to use her piece of timber to catch Vic before he fell, but in those split seconds he realized he'd end up pulling her down if he didn't let go - so he released the beam and let himself fall. She watched in horror as he bounced off the side of the cliff and went splashing into the volatile river below.

Pepper and the rest of the crew hurried down to the river to find him, but to no avail. It was Pepper who remained by the river for weeks thereafter, hardly eating or sleeping, prowling the river for several miles and back, scouring for tracks, until winter came. It was like he'd disappeared completely. His family held their own funeral for him, having no alternative - with no proof of his body and no sign of him anywhere. Pepper found herself completely broken. The day she gave up, she found she had no idea who she was without him. She returned home - half-starved, and still barely ate. But time passed, and she found she had no desire to stay with her family. As winter faded, she recovered, and left her family, and set about searching for her own meaning.

She found that, as months wore on, it was easier to bear his loss if she began to act a little like him. She traveled from town to town, offering any sort of hired help - but in her heart she knew why she was doing it. She was searching for him just as much as she was searching for herself. Months became years. She learned to fight on her own, but held back from evolving, and the pain became easier to bear. Being on her own forced her to become more sociable, talkative, and she was able to bury the worst of it.

**Moveset**

+ Bulk Up - Pepper flexes her muscles, causing them to temporarily thicken and increase somewhat in size. Once combat ends, they shrink back to normal.

+ Slam - Pepper takes her wooden beam and literally slams it into her opponent, home-run style.

+ Dynamic Punch - Pepper vaults off of her wooden beam to get herself somewhat airborne, and attempts to slam her fist into her opponent with all of her might.

+ Low Kick - Pepper dives low and attempts to kick her target's legs. Does more damage if the target hit is heavier.