Trying not to be bothered by Arthur's clear disapproval of Gilbert's not being ready, Gilbert took the offered towel with a soft, “Thanks,” and began to dry himself off. He shoved his bag into the corner of the tent, and kept his eyes up at Arthur let his own pokemon out. The tent was warm, and mostly still dry, but rather cramped. Even with Arthur laid out, and himself huddled, he could feel the heat coming off the other trainer's body. Which, was actually rather nice, since he was shivering. Gilbert had never dealt with the cold well, and now was no different. At least it was just rain, he told himself.

“Thanks, for letting me in...” He offered, half heartedly. He eyed outside the tent unenthusiastically. Gilbert's pokemon were mostly fire types, the water didn't get along with them, and really, after Emolga's attack on Arthur and Croconaw, Gilbert figured he really owed the other. “Guess I owe you one.”

He couldn't say he was particularly pleased that Arthur was all to ready to agree with him. It was always hard to travel with people, and Gilbert had a big problem with owing people things. He made a note to pay Arthur back ASAP, to avoid letting the Water Pokemon Trainer calling in that favour at an unsavory time, as people tended to do with those sorts of things. He moved as Arthur asked him too, and gave a wide eyed stare as the other made room for him on top of the sleeping bag. He couldn't really turn this one down, the ground was hard and the bag was at least a little bit of cushioning on top of it. He laid down on the offered space, and stretch just a little, pressing himself against the opposite side of the tent, putting as much space as was possible between them. It wasn't much, but it was something.

With the towel still wrapped around him, Gilbert used his arms as a pillow to rest his head on, and closed his eyes. He could feel Arthur's gaze on him, and tried hard not to feel subconscious about it. His personality usually made people stare at him alone, he was loud and obnoxious, and cocky as all hell, so he wasn't surprised when people stared at him for those things. He didn't like it much when they stared at him for his looks though. As a breeder, Gilbert knew how to spot defects, and knew his own too well. If he'd been a pokemon, he would have been the least sought after of the litter due to his coloring. It would have marked him as inferior. He didn't like being reminded of that.

“So, where all do you plan to look for your brother? The cities are pretty hard to track people in, did you have any places in particular you think he'd have gone?”

This felt like a safe subject, and would hopefully draw attention away from looking at each other. Unconsciously, Gilbert shifted the towel, now damp, so that it covered his shoulders and part of his head, kept him partially hidden from sight.

Gilbert let out a soft chuckle, wondering if he'd ever sounded so annoyed at his own younger brother. Likely, but not for the same reason. There was tension between Arthur and his brother that Gilbert didn't think was between himself and his own bruder. But perhaps it was just that he didn't sense it. He could tell it was time to change the subject. Still wide awake from the rain, Gilbert didn't have all that much interest in trying to sleep now. He shifted a little, turning his head to stare at Arthur's back, letting his gaze sweep from the Blonde's messy hair to where his legs were bare and back up again, a flash of lightening illuminating the grumpy boy a bit.

“You travelled before settling as a gym leader, ja?” He could remember Arthur mentioning it, “Just here in Kanto? You said you didn't have all your badges, ever think of going und getting them?”

This seemed like a much safer topic then the one they'd been discussing. He let his gaze drift away, watching the tent again, trying to ignore the sound of the rain.

Gilbert gave a short nod, though he knew the other couldn't see it. It made sense, as a gym leader, Arthur had no need for the badges. But Gilbert, who strived to collect all the badges, even if he rarely took part in the actual main competitions, it was hard to understand just not caring. In his mind, a good trainer strove to collect all the badges and prove they could- but then most 'good' trainers would also be concerned about the main league battles. Gilbert had only taken part in two League Competitions, and he didn't see himself lingering in Kanto long enough to do so here. He had to go home, and then he planned to eventually leave Hoenn again to tackle the Orange Islands League.

“What about the other ones you didn't get? Ever thought of trying to get those ones?” He shifted to lay on his back, arms folded behind his head, eyes locked on the darkness above him. Another flash of lightening. He grinned a little, and tilted his head a bit to lock his eyes on Arthur for a second. “Or is that too hard to do with such a one sided team?”

It was a mean jab, but his voice was teasing, not meant to actually offend. Even Gilbert knew how capable a specialist could be of taking on their weaknesses. Sure, his pokemon had failed at the Cerulean City Gym, but they would manage next time, he was sure. Just needed a bit more practice, that was all.

He couldn't help the bark of laughter he gave. Arthur had taken his joke a bit too seriously, but that was fine. The speech he gave about using a single type seemed a bit to practised for Gilbert's taste. As if he'd rehearsed it. The albino rolled onto his side, facing Arthur this time, and leaned slightly closer. There wasn't much space between them anyway, so he didn't have far to go if he wanted to be in the blond's face. Any closer and it was kissing range, which was not quite something Gilbert wanted- he had to admit that the blond was attractive, but that could lead to a world of awkward he wasn't certain of yet.

“Ja, I do. They do tend to follow a pattern in types, but at least I tried. Und will try again.” He was not leaving Kanto until he had that Cerulean City gym, no way no how. “It was a joke however, so sensitive, Arthur.”

He flashed a grin, “Tell me something, Arthur, what do you do locked up in your city when you're not training? You asked me earlier, if I get tired of travelling... do you get bored of staying in one place?”

Gilbert was talkative. He always had been, he hated silence, so even when he was travelling alone, it wasn't uncommon for him to fill the silence by constantly talking to his pokemon. It helped him keep on track most of the time, since his attention had a habit of slipping and he could forget what he was doing rather easily. He wasn't particularly pleased by Arthur's answer.

Gilbert was quickly finding that most of Arthur's answers were not very good. Not that he didn't seem to believe, so much as... they felt force fed. They felt more bland, and automatic then anything else. As the son of a very important pokemon breeder, who was supposedly destined to take on that post, Gilbert knew what it was like to have expectations thrust onto him. To have his life charted out before him, and what it was like to break free from that.

He'd left his home in a similar manner that Arthur's younger brother had. Just up and run away- though Gilbert had registered, and when his father had managed to track him down and drag him back, he still fought at every turn. His first year as a trainer had been filled with a lot of running away and being pulled back home. By the time Gilbert had gotten his last badge in Hoenn, his father had finally given up. He was free from that family obligation.

Arthur was tied down, and Gilbert got the feel that he was content to be that way. He couldn't wrap his mind around it, but it made him a bit uncomfortable to think about it. Rolling back onto his back, Gilbert glared at the roof of the tent. “You're an odd person, Arthur.”

It was all he could bring himself to say. He wasn't sure how else to say it without coming off as rude and getting himself kicked out of the tent. So he left it at that, and wondered...