Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. If I did it would have a lot more going on then it does. *ahem * Anyways, I just want to say if you try to sue me, you are crazy, since I don't have anything worth, well.... Anything *shrugs * But it's your choice. Well, the story below is one that I've been doing over the past month. I wanted to try something new, but couldn't decide at first. Please review it and tell me if I should write more. Thanks a bunch! ^_^
Beginning of Marau!
By (who else) Marau-chan
"Go, do your Take Down attack!" the woman stated calmly from the sidelines of the large stadium. The creatures in the ring below began to move once again in their deadly dance. The large bull with multiple tails bellowed its challenge as it began to charge forward. The other creature, which resembled a small striped dog, howled in pain as the bull rammed into it, sending it crashing into the wall of the stadium. It crumpled in a whimpering heap as the boy who had trained it cried out in shock.
"No!" The boy leaped into the battlefield, automatically ending the match. He rushed to the small dog, scooping it into his lap. "I'm so sorry, Growlithe." He whispered softly, cradling it gently to his chest as tears filled his eyes.
"I'm sorry also," a soft voice came from behind him. He turned slowly to view his victor. "I never meant to cause your Pokemon harm." He gave a small smile as he stood up, holding the Growlithe tighter in his grip.
"It's alright, Mistress Marau. It was dumb to challenge you in the first place." He looked down, closing his eyes in shame. "I wasn't even close. You knocked out my strongest Pokemon in one hit."
Marau smiled gently down at the young trainer. "Casey, I was once a trainer, such as yourself. I lost my share of battles before I learned how to become the strongest." He tilted his head lightly to the side, peering up at her with quizzical eyes.
"What did you learn, Mistress?"
"Well now, young man, that is for you to learn on your own." She placed a hand on his wild brown hair. "Now then, why don't you go to my father, Zantar? He should be able to heal your Growlithe up as good as new." Casey gave a grin and set his Growlithe gently onto the floor. He took out a Pokeball.
"Return Growlithe." He commanded. A red beam shot from the ball, hitting Growlithe and pulling it into its depths. Casey shrank the Pokeball back down and stuck it on his belt. He ran towards the exit, twisting around to wave at the woman's figure.
"Bye Mistress Marau! I'll be back to battle again soon!" Marau grinned and waved at the quickly disappearing boy.
As the door closed behind his exit, Marau sighed happily as she turned to face her Pokemon. Tauros bellowed gently as it came up to her, nudging her hand, demanding she stroke its large nose. Marau complied readily, feeling the large head nuzzle against her. She slowly brought out her Pokeball and held it out towards the animal. Tauros snorted and lifted its head to look at her with unusual kindness for its kind. Slowly it bumped the Pokeball and disappeared with a flash of red.
Marau put the Pokeball back with the other ones at her side, strolling out of the battling stadium into the cool air of the evening. She closed her eyes as she felt the autumn breeze caress her and breathed in the crisp smell of falling leaves. A smile twitched on her lips as she thought about what going home would bring. Her husband, Kazier, had been married to her for a year now. The reporters for the "Pokemon Party Magazine" were coming to interview her and her sister, Maria.
Her smiled widened as she thought of the past, of the joint wedding she had shared with her sister and Maria's husband, Daren. Both men had been fellow travelers on their separate Pokemon journeys to the top of the Elite Masters.
She cut off her thoughts as she approached the house she shared with Maria and Daren. It was no problem for both the couples to be living under the same roof since the house was so huge. Marau remembered when they had first moved in, she had gotten lost in the twisting majestic hallways before. She and Kazier basically stayed in just one of the wings in the mansion, enjoying a little cozy area instead of the great spacious rooms in the house's center.
Marau entered the gates of the house and was immediately assaulted by the house's Guardian Pokemon. The large plant Pokemon tackled her, driving her to the floor as it licked her face with enthusiasm. Marau collapsed into giggles as she tried to push it off her chest.
"Ivysaur! Ivysaur, get OFF me! Come on girl! Stop it!" She stopped speaking as she was hit by another bout of giggles as Ivysaur pulled itself off her, shaking so hard with restraint that it was vibrating the floor.
Strong arms encircled her from behind. Marau started in shock as she felt hot breath on her ear. An amused voice spoke. "She's happy to see you, don't you think?" Marau calmed, turning around with a grin on her face.
"There you are, Kazier!" she said in mock severity. "You know the magazine people will be here any moment! Come on! Let's make something for them to snack on as we tell the stories." Kazier nodded and slowly followed her into the house.
Maria sat at the table snacking on a powdered donut as she read a book. She looked up as Marau entered.
"Oh, hi sis! How was the battles?" Marau laughed and went to the refrigerator, pulling out a pair of A&W Root Beer and handing one to Kazier. They went and joined Maria at the table.
"It was fun, lil' sis. I won, of course." Marau stated. Maria set the book down and looked at the two across from her.
"So, when are those people coming?" Just then the doorbell rang. Marau gestured at the door.
"There's your answer." All three got up simultaneously, strolling into the living room, opening the door. Daren stood there, looking extremely sheepish as he fought to fend off the enthusiastic Ivysaur.
"Hey guys!" He gasped as he managed to shove off the Ivysaur and slip into the house. They all slammed the door behind him but a muffled thump still was heard as the Ivysaur ran headlong into the wood.
Maria crossed her arms and stared intently at her husband.
"Where were you?" She demanded, "You've been gone all day." Daren put a hand behind his head, looking at her guiltily.
"Well, you see, your father had this Pokemon come in that was extremely rare but very sick and I went to get a picture of it for the magazine." Maria frowned crossly.
"Why on earth would you want that Pokemon when I have plenty of them that are perfectly photogenic?" Daren held up his hands in a defensive position.
"No! It isn't that your Pokemon aren't good enough! It's just that this one is one you don't have!"
"And what would that be?"
Daren gulped slightly but began to look proud of himself. "I got a picture of a Porygon! It was so cool! Zantar agreed that it was a once in a lifetime chance." Maria uncrossed her arms and sighed.
"Well, as long as I get a picture of it, I'll forgive you." Daren grinned and gave her a hug. Kazier cleared his throat from across the hall. Marau gave them a small grin as Maria and Daren looked over at the other couple.
"As much as I love this heartwarming scene, we need to get ready for the people." Marau reminded them. Maria ducked her head and blushed slightly.
"Sorry about that." She mumbled. Marau brushed off the event with a wave of her hand.
"No harm done whatsoever." Marau said absentmindedly as she went back into the kitchen for something that they could eat while waiting. The others followed close behind.
About twenty more minutes passed before they heard a thud and then frantic ringing of the bell. Maria jumped to her feet and ran over, yanking the door open. Three men stumbled in, looking quite ruffled as Ivysaur tried to throw them off of the house property. Maria escorted the shaken people into the living room as Daren and Kazier wrestled to get Ivysaur to calm down. Marau laughed softly at the antics as she followed her sister.
Soon as Kazier and Daren joined them the reporters began. The man with the spiky black hair seemed to be the leader of the group as he spoke.
"Hello Masters of the Elite. I'm Vego and these are my coworkers, Truns and Gokat. We came to get the exclusive story of your lives that has never been released to the public before." He turned to nod at the sisters. "Would you two do the honors of telling your life story to this recorder while we listen?" Marau nodded her consent and Maria enthusiastically agreed. Vego grinned and pressed record. "You may start anytime now."
Marau nodded again, her eyes glazing over as she remembered her past. "Well, at first, both me and my sister were just plain kids. Nothing unique happened to us. The only excitement we ever got was when an emergency case came into the hospital our father, Zantar, owned." Maria nodded in agreement and continued for her sister.
"Though our father was the famous Pokemon healer, we didn't have much special. We did have an extensive knowledge of Pokemon from the day we could speak. Our father seemed to almost crave for us to know and care for Pokemon as much as he did. He would let us even miss school to have us see him care for an injured Pokemon brought in the day before." Maria stopped speaking as Marau took her place.
"Yes, it was soon after we had graduated from Junior High school when we found our very first Pokemon. In the beginning, we hadn't even thought of being trainers since I wanted to be just like my father and Maria wanted to be a Pokemon breeder. We caught our first Pokemon completely on accident. It just happened over the period of a few months, she found her Sandshrew and me, I found my Kabuto...."
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
(Flash back)
Marau-chan was a cute young child. Blond hair flowed wildly down her back as her blue-gray eyes sparkled with interest, darting around to take in all detail. Her younger sister, Maria, was much the same in looks besides that her hair was shorter than Marau's was. Both were very close and loved to spend their free time playing with their father's Guardian Pokemon.
They went to the same school, being only three years different in age. Together, they were inseparable, sticking to each other like magnets. At home, they loved to swim with their father's Gyrados in the lake near their home, as the watchful sea serpent guarded them closely. They would also tease their father's Alakazam, as the poor psychic creature was forced to teleport in the way of the children to keep them from hurting themselves.
Their father, though amused by his children's antics, encouraged them to go and do things together in the woods, hoping that they would study Pokemon in the wild. Maria and Marau would comply quickly, going into the woods and stirring up all the wild Pidgys and Spearows they could at one time, finding it most amusing.
All too soon, though, the mischievous duo grew too old for the same childish games of their youth. Once Marau hit the age of fourteen, she found herself busy with school and work while her younger sister, Maria, found herself increasingly involved in sports and activities after school.
The only respite that Marau had was when she was allowed to go off into the woods by herself to her special place down in a clearing. In the center of the clearing there was a smooth rock which she would sit next to and stroke gently. It was strange, this rock, only about a foot and a half long and half a foot tall. It was so smooth and warm, though, that Marau thought of it as almost alive, talking to it as she rested in the peace of the forest around her. She would sometimes even bring crackers and feed the local Pokemon, finding pleasure in their enthusiastic eating.
Every day after school and work was finished Marau would retire to her special rock and recount the day's events to the evening sky. Maria often wondered where her sister went off to but knew that Marau valued her privacy over most everything else. So instead of prying, Maria found her own secret spot next to the lake's edge.
Right next to her was a field that a tribe of Sandshrew and Sandslash lived. These Pokemon rodents that claimed this part of the earth as their own eternally entertained Maria, as she would sit there for hours watching them dig and work together to protect themselves. The Sandslash would stay up top of the ground to protect their weaker counterparts from the occasional hordes of Spearow, Fearow, and Pidgeotto.
Needless to say, both of the sisters found a way to entertain themselves in the evenings when they needed peace of mind the most.
Then it happened. Marau found her Pokemon first on a late night where she had been hard at work doing homework....
Marau sighed in frustration as the words in her textbook began to blur in front of her exhausted eyes. She growled softly, slamming the book shut and setting it to the side.
"I need to relax..." she murmured to herself absently. Almost without thinking, Marau found her feet taking her out the door and into the darkness of the woods.
She paused slightly at the edge of the trees, noticing immediately that the moon was full and glowing an almost unearthly red. Marau knew that this happened once a year, but still, every time she saw it happening in real life, she was overcome with a sense of awe and peace that she never felt for anything else.
Marau started forward once again, being swallowed by the surrounding trees into darkness. Marau had no problem finding her way at night. Her sure footsteps spoke of much experience and familiarity of this environment as she approached her destination.
But as soon as she had entered her clearing, Marau knew without a doubt that something was different, not menacing like some feelings, but just like something unusual and unique was about to happen to her.
Marau searched cautiously through the tall grass, scanning the area intently. She didn't see anything until her eyes fell on her rock, the one that she had always thought alive.
It was glowing softly in the moonlight, reflecting the reddish hue of the moon on its smooth surface. Marau was overcome with a sudden desire to feel its surface, to approach the strange phenomenon. But as she crept closer, hand outstretched, Marau got the shock of her young life. The rock moved. It slowly rose into the air about an inch of the ground and then tilted upwards. Marau blinked. A set of red beady eyes watched her back as the small insect legs of the now living rock dragged it towards her. Slowly it came to her feet and peered up intently at her. Marau just stared back, in complete and total shock. Then it touched her.
Marau screamed. The creature scrambled backwards in terror and began to bury itself frantically in the ground. Marau backed up until a tree prevented the movement. She trembled violently as the living rock buried itself halfway until it looked almost exactly like it had originally. With a quick shake of her head, Marau scrambled around the tree and ran like a Persian back to her room, diving beneath her covers.
"I must have been more stressed than I thought." Marau muttered, shaken. She closed her eyes, trying to shut out the vision of the rock from her mind. Slowly, she sank into a shallow sleep, dreaming of red moons and moving stones.
The next morning, Marau was reluctant to drag herself from sleep as usual. But this time she had a reason. Marau had managed to convince herself that the rock incident the night before was nothing but hallucination on account of her studying too hard. She had to stay home. She was tired and besides, she never had finished her homework.
So when her father came in to drag her out of bed, Marau faked sickness, feeling guilty but also knowing it had to be done.
Her father was sympathetic, and agreed to let her stay home for the day. Marau collapsed on her bed in relief. She thought for sure that her father would have seen through her act, but he was distracted by some emergency call from the hospital.
As her father left, Marau sat up in bed, throwing the covers off. She couldn't stand to be cooped up all day in her room. That was torture to her, so she got dressed and went out into the forest.
Marau was still apprehensive as she approached her special spot. Though she had convinced herself it was a dream, she couldn't help but think that she was wrong.
Well, she thought, maybe it was real; maybe I should just go in there and face the rock creature. It didn't seem that evil. She gulped and carefully walked towards the rock. Marau knew immediately that something was different. Her mind froze as she stopped within a foot of it. It had been real! For here in front of her was the rock, sitting up on its hind claws and staring at her quizzically.
Marau barely caught her sanity in time, as she was about to scream and repeat the night before. Instead, she squatted down in front of the creature and held out a wavery hand.
"H....hello th...there.." she whispered tentatively. The creature ever so cautiously reached out a claw and gently touched her hand, making soft tittering noises as it did. Marau moved forward just a bit more. "Oh.... You aren't so b...bad, are you?" She smiled at the little creature and moved her other hand to touch it on the shell.
It screeched loudly and dove past her hand, into her lap. Marau gasped sharply as it burrowed itself happily into her chest, rubbing against her and making a strange purring sound. Marau blinked rapidly, not sure how to take the strange turn of events.
She reached down and picked up the creature, holding it above her face.
"What on earth are you?" She murmured gently as it waved its claw-like legs around, making happy sounds. She paused, taking its appearances in for the first time. It had the rock shell on its back but beneath it had four claw-like legs, colored gold. Its underbelly was completely black but its eyes shown with an unearthly red like the moon had the night before.
Marau laughed as it clambered out of her grip and onto her shoulder. "Well, I can't leave you here, can I?" Marau said as she stood up and started back home. "I hope my dad knows what you are."
She paused, listening to it whisper the same word over and over again.
"Kabu...kabu...kabu....to...to...to..."
What on earth is a Kabuto? She thought to herself.
That night, Marau couldn't wait for her dad and sister to get home. The creature was so cool! They had become almost instantly inseparable. Marau leaped up as she heard the door open to the front of the house.
"Whose home?" She called as her Kabuto clambered from her lap onto her shoulder.
"Honey? Are you feeling any better?" Her father walked into the living room with a worried look on his face. But as he saw his daughter with the creature, he froze in astonishment before running up to her.
"Marau-chan! Do you have any idea what you have here?" Marau blinked as her father reached for the creature on her shoulder. She pulled back.
"No! But you aren't taking him from me! I want to keep him!" Her father moved faster than she thought he could and grabbed the creature from her.
"Amazing! No one has ever seen one of these alive before and actually having a living specimen in the house! This is a scientific breakthrough! I'll just take it to the lab!... Hey!" The creature was struggling wildly making loud distressed sounds.
"Dad! Stop it! Leave him alone!" Marau cried, scared for her new friend. Zantar dropped the creature as it shot a powerful beam of water in his face. He came up spluttering.
The creature dashed quickly back to Marau, hiding behind her, trembling. Marau looked down in concern at her pet. She heard her dad get up and approach her again.
"I'm sorry, dear. I lost my head for a moment there." He sat next to her as she stroked the creature's shell gently. "Tell me, where did you find it?" Marau sighed and told the whole story to her father. When it was finished she looked up at him.
"What is he?" She asked, "Can you give me some background information on him." Zantar stood up and gestured for her to follow. As they walked, he tried to explain.
"What you have found is a legendary Pokemon called Kabuto believed to be extinct. You are the first one to ever find one alive. You see, it is a shellfish Pokemon that is closely related to a water beetle. It has powerful attacks and an almost impenetrable shell that kept it alive for millions of years. People believe that it finally evolved into the resent Pokemon of today but no one is for sure." He turned to her. "You realize now that since you've got this Pokemon and it seems quite attached to you that you must take it into your responsibility to raise it." Marau nodded in understanding as they stopped walking. Her father took her by the shoulders.
"Listen, Marau-chan. You are extremely lucky. It isn't every day that a Pokemon chooses who its trainer will be. I want you to think about actually going out and battling with people using your Kabuto." He paused. "You see... since it might be the only one of its kind, you might not want to stay with it in one spot for long or else someone might steal it or take it to the zoo or claim it for scientific research." He stopped again, looking her into the eyes. "This is hard for me, as your father, but I think that you should leave home. The best route to take would be to become a Pokemon Trainer." Marau looked at her father in shock.
"But dad! I don't want to be a trainer! I want to be a doctor like you!" He shook his head.
"I know you do but answer me this. You love Pokemon, right?"
"Well... yes, but...." He cut her off.
"You've always been an excellent strategist and you've studied Pokemon attacks. You know how to train them. You get along with them better than almost everyone I've seen but your sister...." Marau opened her mouth to protest but couldn't find anything to say. She looked down.
"Think, Marau. Either the Kabuto or school." Marau sighed in resignation. When she thought about it, Pokemon training wasn't like a terrible fate. And it was certainly a whole lot better than school and here she was getting permission to leave. She smiled.
"You know, dad! I think you're right! I think I would like to go on a Pokemon journey." Zantar hugged her. The Kabuto wiggled between them with a squeal. Marau laughed and picked it up.
"First of all, Marau, you must get registered for a league. What league would you like to sign up for?" He asked her as he led her to the lab. Marau paused.
"Well, is the Hojita League available? I always thought it was cool." Marau grinned, getting into the thought of becoming a trainer quickly. Zantar looked at her in shock.
"Dear, you don't want that league! It's a lot tougher than most!" Marau shrugged, cutting off his arguments.
"It'll be more of a challenge. Don't worry dad. I can take care of myself." Zantar sighed.
"I know, but I can't help but be worried about you, Marau-chan. You are my daughter, after all." He went to the computer and typed quickly at the keyboard. Marau watched as writing flashed over the screen and a voice called out:
Welcome... Marau... to the Hojita League of Pokemon. Good luck. -Bleep-
"There you are, Marau. You leave tomorrow morning." Zantar handed her a starter Pokemon pack. She took it gently. He stood up and took her by the shoulders. "Marau. I want to let you know that I will always cheer for you." He hugged her roughly. Marau had to push Kabuto from her lap as she hugged her father back.
"I'll miss you dad." She sniffled as she felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. He watched as she left the door, both proud and sad that his daughter was growing up.
Marau flopped onto her bed and took out the pack. Kabuto crawled over to her hands, poking at the bag. Marau laughed softly.
"Kabuto, stop it!" It back down, watching her intently as she pulled out a belt with six Pokeballs strapped to it. Marau picked one off the belt and peered at it intently.
"Come on, dang it, WORK." She muttered as Kabuto crept forward and poked one. Suddenly it squealed as the Pokeball shot out a red beam and sucked it into its depths. Marau leaped up.
"Kabuto!" She grabbed the Pokeball it had just disappeared in. "Go Kabuto!" She cried as she threw the ball. The ball opened and Kabuto reappeared in a red flash. Marau caught the Pokeball as it went back to her. She ran to the Pokemon and hugged it. "You're now officially mine, Kabuto." She whispered to it." It just chittered happily at her.
Okay... I know I kind of just left it hanging there but I had to go help my parents. How'd you like it? Please review and tell me! I need to know these things. But be gentle. My self-esteem is a very fragile creature. Thanks again!