Nurse Joy carefully took each round, shiny Poke Ball with care, handing it back to the young brunette awaiting her Pokemon's return from the healing machine. The exhausted Pokemon were now ready to battle once again in the field of Pokemon.
Joy bowed politely, as she always did, a soft, sweet smile on her face, which always made any person cheerful or lightened up. "Here are your Pokemon! Have a nice day." With that, the nurse turned around, answering to a Blissey that was waiting beforehand.
"Thank you!" The cute little girl said, before the nurse directed her attention to someone else. Easing the sleek, elegant red and white Poke Balls into her light green bag, Sophie left the counter, and sat at one of the nearby sofas in the Pokemon Center, sorting out her inventory. This was very significant to her, for, she needed to be ready for the epochal moment of the day. Today, she promised herself, after a agonizingly long term of patience, waiting, and training, she was going to challenge the Gym Leader of this town; Bugsy.
From the word she has heard around town, Bugsy was no joke. This Gym Leader knew practically everything about Bug-Type Pokemon. If this person used bug-type against her team, she wouldn't be in too much trouble, since none of her Pokemon would be weak against them, and because she owned a HootHoot; which could use peck. That would definitely help out a lot. Though, perhaps she shouldn't underestimate this Gym Leader? If Falkner was hard, this one must be even harder.
"Hauu...," Sophie muttered to herself, rummaging through her bag to find a specific Poke Ball. Soon enough, she found the right one, and brought it out of the comfortable bag, clicking the front of the ball and opening it. Out came her beloved, and strongest Pokemon, Pichu. She never really used this Pokemon unless she absolutely needed to in a battle, though, this was her very first Pokemon, in which she always carried around.
"Hau, Pichu," Sophie said, speaking to the Pokemon on the cold, glossy tiles of the floor, "I-I'm so nervous again, like I was with the other gyms! This is a new region with new Pokemon, and..Hau, I'm still doubting myself." Taking to Pichu always made the sensitive girl more calm, especially right before something exciting or nerve-racking was going to happen.
Putting her stubby little furry paws on her hips, Pichu gave Sophie a face as she always did. "Now, come on girl! Don't start this up again. You know you're going to do fine!"
Sophie giggled a bit, laughing at how animated and spunky her little Pichu was. "H-Hau, well yeah..But, I mean, we've been preparing forever! Is it enough?"
"Enough? Of course it's enough! Owly and Carl and even Toad are pumped up for the battle!"
"Really?" Sophie asked Pichu, almost clearly understanding Pichu's speech by now. "What makes you think that?"
"Well, they've told me. Especially Carl. He's really eager for this! You don't want to keep him waiting, don't you?"
"Not on an empty stomach, I don't.." Sophie grinned, poking her petite abdomen as it rumbled angrily at her.
~*~
Spreading the large, red and white checkered sheet across the fresh, crisp green grass, Sophie began to make her picnic.
The view was wonderful; They were just outside the Pokemon center, the afternoon sun shining brilliantly on them. The orange and yellow trees around the town swayed lightly in a calm wind, the scent of burning charcoal in the chilly air. Across from them was the back of the Gym; it was large and dome shaped, with many dark glass windows covering it, creaking with the breeze. Everything was so perfect to Sophie, specifically since it was the fall time of the year.
"Hauu, here we go!" Sophie joyfully cooed, sitting down onto the soft, delicate blanket. Setting her bag out in front of her and Pichu, she took out the remaining Pokemon in there, which consisted of Poliwag, HootHoot, and Phanpy. When the Pokemon emerged from their Poke Balls, they jumped in joy to see the outside world once again.
"Sorry, guys, if lunch is a bit..meager..," Sophie smiled nervously, having not been to places to shop yet; though, like she has any money at all to shop with.
Carl nodded, moving closer to Sophie. "Eh, don't worry about it! As long as we get to eat, it'll be alright, won't it?"
Owly, the HootHoot, scoffed snobbily. "As if! I expect a decent meal, for once."
Pichu crossed her stubby arms, looking at HotoHoot coldy. "At least you're getting a da-"
Sophie gave them all a weary, unhappy smile. "Hau, now come on, guys, don't fight!" She said, turning the Pokemon's attention to her. "Just stay quiet so I can make something, okay?" She tried to ask kindly, her voice cracking a bit. Pichu blinked, then nodded, looking at the others rather sagely. That made her trainer smile, and made her relax a bit.
"Hau..Now, let's see...What do I have left?" Sophie asked herself, searching through her shoulder bag. "Man, I gotta keep organized...," She muttered once again, passing the PokeBalls and various other items she owned throughout the back. Eventually, she hit the bottom of the cluttered pack, feeling something cold and metallic. "Hau? Oh!" She uttered, reaching the other hand in to help pull out the few small cans of Canned Berries she owned. "Eureka!~"
All the Pokemon, whom were lazily chatting about during the whole hunting session, jumped, their expressions blissful and full of zest. Their stomachs grumbled; They were all ready to eat!
"Hau, now hold your Rapidashes!" Sophie said, giggling, as Carl tried to climb up her. "I got enough for all of you!" Steadily, Sophie grabbed the tab of the soft top of the can, turning it, and then pulling it, causing the lip to snap off, revealing a can of nice Razz Berries floating in a sea of Berry Juice. "Hau, now you can eat!~" Said Sophie, setting the can down, only to let Carl have at it.
Sophie repeated the process, opening a can of Oran Berries for Owly, Pecha for Pichu, and Rawst for Toad, herself having a mixed blend of some berries. Happily, the proud trainer watched her Pokemon either eagerly eat the food, or calmly nip at it. "Hauu..~" Sophie said, holding the can to her mouth, sipping the flavored, thick liquid. "You know, I always liked these, Pichu...It's like looking at a pretty, weak can, and then when you open it, you get a surprise; a surprise of which berry you'll get." Pausing, Sophie began to think of what she just said. Did her inner conscience just tell her something?
Sophie shook her head, before Pichu spoke. "Well, yeah!" Pichu seemed to of agreed, but, she was also smart enough to have a good guess at what Sophie was thinking of.
Bugsy might give me a surprise..Though, I could also give him one! Everyone has their own tactics...Their own strategies..I guess Pichu was right all along...Darn her! Sophie stopped her mental war with herself as she heard a giggle nearby; It was Pichu. The Pokemon has been watched her facial expressions, which were amazingly hilarious.
Sophie giggled at herself, then took a sip of the remaining juices in the can. "H-Hau~ What-" Immediately, she stopped, and her head turned. Nearby, walking to the gym, were three people; one boy, and two other girls. They clearly looked like beginner Pokemon trainers, such as Sophie herself, and they seemed to be ready to challenge the Gym Leader. But which one, though?
Gradually, and still staring at the gym intently, Sophie began to pick the drenched berries from the can, chewing on them slowly. Pichu looked up at her owner, curious to what she was thinking. Out of the corner of her eye, Sophie saw Pichu's gaze. She smiled, and looked at her Pokemon, knowing why she was staring. "Don't worry, I just saw a couple of trainers going into the Gym..I wonder when they'll be coming out...," She said, puzzled, picking up another berry.
Pichu shrugged, then her tiny little heart seemed to stop. "Sophie! W-Wait a moment!" Pichu cried loudly, jumping on Sophie as the girl bit into a certain deep red berry.
"W-What is it, Pi-" Immediately, Sophie blinked, her eyes swelling up with tears of pain as her tongue felt as if it was on fire. Did she just eat what she thought she did...?
"Hauuuuu!" Sophie wailed, tears streaming down her cheeks as she covered her mouth with the dark, gray-ish black sleeves of her jacket. "T-Toad! U-Use Water Gun!" She screamed through her sleeves, looking at her Poliwag desperately.
Toad jumped up from his meal, alarmed at what was happening. Pichu quickly tried to explain that Sophie had eaten an extremely spicy berry, and that she needed him to spray her with water. Toad nodded, and when Sophie removed her sleeves from her mouth, the Poliwag used a soft, cold water gun on her mouth; that only helped a little, until Sophie decided to spit out the berry. Her tongue hanging out, she dumped the rest of her berries out onto the grass. She searched through them, and thankfully to her luck, she found a Lum Berry. Her hands greedily grabbed it, and then she put it in her mouth, slight relief overfilling her burnt mouth.
"L-Luckily it was only an Occa Berry...I-If it had been a Spelon or Tamato...H-Hau..B-But, thank you, Toad!" Sophie said, her eyes still a bit red from her crying. But, ignoring that, she smiled happily at her Pokemon.
"It's no problem, Sophie!" Toad happily muttered, giving her a happy face, content he did a good job.
~*~
Sophie packed up the last of her stuff, cramming it all into her big bag she held across her shoulders. It fit just right along her scarf and jack, falling down to her checkered skirt. "Hau, return, Toad, Owly, and Carl!" She said with a smile, holding each Poke Ball out in front of them so they would return, leaving behind Pichu to stick out from the rest.
"Hau, in a bit-" Sophie was going to say something to her Pichu, when she saw the three people emerge from the Gym once again. Sophie peered over at them, seeing the 'girliest' of the girls having a deep red face, her fists clenched. She seemed to of been yelling at them, because she turned and shouted something at the boy. He cringed, and rubbed the back of his head, saying something that made the girl pout, her extremely long orange hair seeming to make her more intimidating.
"Hey, Pichu..," Sophie said, her eyes wondering over to the trio of trainers, "Let's go check them out. They might know something about Bugsy."
Pichu nodded, and hopped onto Sophie clothed shoulder, clinging to her tightly until she got onto a good position to stay still. "Pi!"
Casually, Sophie began to saunter, only the other, green headed girl noticing her. Though, for some odd reason, she didn't say anything; perhaps she was the shy type? Soon, though, Sophie was able to begin to hear what the girl was saying. Eventually, she heard Bugsy's name. This made her run up to them, and question them.
"Hau," Sophie calmly began, her heart pounding a bit, "Did you just challenge Bugsy?"
Before the red-head could snap at her, the silent green haired girl covering her mouth as the boy, which had blue hair, spoke. "Eh, yeah, Shelby did challenge Bugsy...Though, she-"
Shelby shoved the green haired girl's hand away, her orange eyes flaring. "I did challenge him, but I lost! How could I, of all people, lose to such a weakling? Ugh, Falkner was a breeze, but this cheater was absolutely horrid!"
Sophie was a bit taken back at her attitude. Was this girl actually serious? "H-Hau..Y-You mean, he's tough?"
"Tough? Tough?" Shelby screeched, her voice high pitched and shrilly. "That stupid bug freak completely obliterated me!"
"Now now...," The green haired girl said, patting Shelby's shoulder, "That's enough anger for today...You can always try tomorrow-"
"But, this was my first Gym Battle I lost, Leah!" Shelby spat out at Leah, directing her anger toward her friend.
"B-But, Shel, it's getting evening time, don't you think your Pokemon should rest?" The blue haired boy asked, a worried expression drawn on his face.
Shelby turned toward the boy, her teeth bared. "Shut up! I'm the leader of this team, Todd! I tell you when to quit or not, got it?"
"Yeah..Whatever," Todd muttered, looking away from Shelby, a disgusted face.
Sophie blinked, then gave them all a fake smile. It was hard witnessing such a thing. "U-Um..Well, what would you think if I..um..Challenged him to a battle this evening?" She asked, mostly to Shelby.
Shelby looked back at Sophie, completely forgetting about her until now. "Well..He'll kick your butt, got it? He'll take down each and every one of your Pokemon-"
Leah shook her head, her eyes adverting to Sophie's. "..Just, do your best, okay kid? Shel's just exaggerating."
Sophie nodded, before hearing Shelby sigh. "Whatever...Come on, guys, we gotta go to the Pokemon Center." Shelby frowned, then stormed off, Todd and Leah following after her.
Sophie looked back, confused and puzzled, looking up at the orange tinted sky. "Hau...I hope Bugsy isn't as hard as others say..," She muttered to herself, Pichu looking up as well. Looking down, though, Sophie continued. "Doesn't mean we can't give it a shot, though."
~*~
Her dark, thick boots crunched underneath the dying grass, the sounds of various birds chirping and insects crying around her. Sophie's lustrous, dark brown hair bounced up and down slightly as she walked, Pichu following the beat. Her velvet black jacket covered her pale arms, along with the thin white leggings and short black, yellow, and red checkered skirt. Her green, determined eyes shined in the sunset that was setting beneath the trees. Calmly, the confident trainer took the cold, titanium handle of the glass door, and turned it, opening the door silently.
Inside was a clutter of different kinds of trees, surrounded or inhabited by a lot of bug-type Pokemon. Each tree was unique, having a different shade of red, yellow, brown, or a mixture of the three. Some of the leaves from this environment were falling onto the ground, touching the blades of grass elegantly. The sweet scent of bugs and flowers invaded the greenhouse like Gym, giving it a more serene and less intense feeling. Occasionally, Sophie even heard a few noises of Pokemon. She could tell most, if not all, were bug types.
Looking both ways, Sophie began to walked forward through the trees. She didn't say anything; She was too afraid to. Would if this Bugsy person was some big, tough, bulky man? Would if Bugsy was angry or saddened by 'Shelby'? Either way, she wanted to be careful, for Bugsy would probably have a lot of good strategies to pull against her.
Breathing calmly, ahead, she saw a person sitting down. This person had light, lavender hair which covered their head, because they seemed to be looking down, completely oblivious to Sophie and Pichu. Their attire was that of a boy scout, being green, with a brown belt, and a handy bag tied to the belt. The person seemed to be sitting criss-crossed, occupied by something extremely important.
A net lay down beside the person. As Sophie came closer, he picked up the net, which held a few red and white Poke-Balls. The person also got up from their sitting position. Sophie stopped, looking at Bugsy, the Azalea Town Gym Leader. Bugsy looked back, with a grin, his lavender eyes shimmering.
"Hello," Bugsy greeted Sophie, making her less tense. He didn't seem so tough!
Sophie smiled back, and bowed, her eyes showing her determination as a trainer. "Hello, Gym Leader Bugsy."
"What is it that you want, ma'am?" Bugsy said calmly, ready to sit back down and assort the leaves he was playing with.
"Well, Bugsy, I was wondering if you're up for one more battle before the night," Sophie began, her heart racing, "I've been getting up the guts all day to come here, and I'm ready to challenge you!"
"Is that so?" Bugsy beamed, holding the net tightly. "Well, how about a three on three battle?"
"Yep, and sure!" Sophie piped enthusiastically, being absolutely sure she won't lose. "Gym Leader Bugsy, I challenge you to a battle!"
~*~
"Go, Carl!" Sophie shouted out, sending out her first Pokemon. She threw the Poke Ball high in the air, letting it open, sending out the chosen Pokemon.
"Phan!" Carl glared at Bugsy, his little stubby feet rubbing against the ground like an angered bull.
Bugsy chuckled, and took out a Poke Ball from his net. "Well, a Phanpy, eh? It looks wells trained, but will it be a match for my Metapod?" The Gym Leader clicked open the ball, sending out a sturdy looking Metapod. "Ladies first~"
Sophie blushed, but she didn't let that simple, silly little comment distract her. "Carl, let's start out with a Rollout!" The trainer commanded, trying out a strategy she heard of.
Phanpy nodded, and curled up into a ball, and shot toward Bugsy's Metapod. Carl hit the enemy Pokemon, making it fall back a little; but other than that, it barely even made a scratch.
"The rollout technique, huh? That's what Whitney did...Metapod, use Harden!" Bugsy said, watching his Metapod shine like metal for a split second, before returning to its normal green tint.
This wouldn't be good for Phanpy, especially if Bugsy used the same move over and over, increasing his Metapod's defense, which was already extremely high.
"Carl, use Rollout again!" Sophie shouted out a Carl, watching her Pokemon do the same move as it did before. This time, it might actually of hurt Carl, because the Metapod's texture seemed to be made of iron.
Bugsy has a big, satisfied smirk on his face. "Metapod! Use Tackle!" He commanded, not bothering to increase his defense again as his Metapod hopped to Phanpy, and slammed into the poor Pokemon. Phanpy cried out, and fell onto his side, before slowly getting up.
"Carl...," Sophie muttered out, seeing her Pokemon was already exhausted in two turns. "Carl, use Rollout again, with all your strength!"
Carl grinded his little Phanpy teeth, and curled up into a ball. He cried out his Pokemon cry, and flew across the grass like lightning, striking the Metapod with immense power. Bugsy's Metapod screeched, fell over, but sadly, got back up. Phanpy, on the other hand, was hurt once again by Metapod's sturdy outer shell.
Bugsy crossed his arms against his chest, a smile on his face; he knew he was going to win. "Metapod, finish the Phanpy off with Tackle!" He said, watching his Metapod once again slam into the weak Phanpy.
With that last hit, Phanpy toppled over, not getting back up from the clean grass.
"Hau...C-Carl, return!" Sophie said, biting her lip harshly, holding up a Poke Ball and returning her beloved Pokemon. Bugsy did the same with his Metapod.
Is this guy really that tough? Sophie asked herself. I..I guess I'm going to go with Owly to finish off at least one of his Pokemon!
"Hau, Owly, come on out!" Sophie said, sending out her HootHoot, who was ready for this important battle.
"A HootHoot? No problem! My tough bug Pokemon will defeat that bird any day!" He mused, opening another Pokemon; Kakuna.
"Hau..Really now?" Sophie said, a smug look on her face. "HootHoot, Hypnosis!"
Owly leered its eyes at the intimidating Kakuna, and screeched, sending its hypnotizing waves at the Pokemon. The waves hit the Kakuna, and immediately, it fell asleep.
Sophie heard a happy chuckle from Bugsy. "Heh, you just wasted your turn, you know." He said, looking triumphant.
"W-What do you..?" Suddenly, the idea hit her. Kakuna had a special ability to shed its skin, removing any status ailment from itself.
Just as Sophie thought those exact words, Kakuna shed its skin, which lay behind it, leaving it fully awake.
"Kakuna, use Poison Sting!" Bugsy told the Pokemon, hoping it would do what he hoped it would.
The Kakuna leered back at Owly, sending a sharp, pointy need at the owl-like Pokemon. Owly cringed, then suddenly felt nauseous. It was poisoned!
"N-No...Owly!" Sophie gasped, seeing her Pokemon turn a bit purple due to the effects of being poisoned.
"H-Hoot hoot...," Owly muttered, hating this feeling.
"Owly...Use Peck!" Sophie said, shaking the nervous feeling, knowing Owly should try his best before going down.
Owly frowned, and flew to the Kakuna, pecking it harshly with its beak, happily seeing it cringe at the pain.
"Kakuna!" Bugsy began, noticing Sophie was picking up a bit. "Poison Sting again!"
Kakuna shot another fatal needle at Owly, but it didn't make the HootHoot faint, which was completely agonizing for it.
"Owly, try peck again!" Sophie commanded after Owly was, once again, affected by the poison. Weakly, Owly pecked at the Kakuna again, doing slighly less damage than before. But, it was enough for the hard-shelled Pokemon to faint! Slowly, the pain settled in, and both of the Pokemon fell to the ground, the Kakuna going first.
Sophie smiled for one of the few times in the battle as she returned her Pokemon, along with Bugsy. This was her last chance, her last chance to get the Hive Badge!
"Go, Toad!" Sophie shouted, her heart racing, the air around her and Bugsy tense with the battle. Seeing that the girl sent out her last chosen Pokemon, Bugsy sent out his; Scyther.
Sophie's eyes widened a bit in fear, her face scared. "S-Scyther..? Crap..," She muttered, knowing the last Pokemon would always be cunning and hard.
"Scyther...Use Leer!" Bugsy ordered, trying to lower his opponent's defense quickly. The Scyther in front of him glared at Toad deeply, scaring the Pokemon almost senseless.
"Toad!" Sophie yelled, "Stand your ground! Use Rain Dance!"
The Poliwag nodded its tiny little head, before looking up, summoning a small little dark cloud around itself and the Scyther, occasionally raining on them.
"Rain Dance? Will that help much?" Bugsy asked. "Eh, it doesn't matter..~ Scyther, use Quick Attack!"
The Scyther smirked, and darted toward Toad, faster than the eye could blink, hitting the little Pokemon with its razors. Sophie was astounded at the Pokemon's amazing speed, but also worried. Toad had taken a really bad hit from that, and next turn he could even be down!
"L-Let's see here...," Sophie nervously mumbled, "...Ah ha! Toad, use Hypnosis!" She was lucky that she remembered teaching that move to Toad a few days ago; hopefully it'll turn out to be useful!
The same waves that hit the Kakuna hit the Scyther right on target; Sophie was getting even luckier!
Bugsy frowned. This time his Pokemon couldn't recover from the sleep. "Scyther! Come on, wake up!" He called out to his Pokemon, but saw no difference response from it as it soundly slept on the battlefeild.
"That's it! We got them right where we want them, Toad! Now, use Water Gun!"
With the Rain Dance boosting up Toad's water-type moves, this would be an easy finish for the Pokemon. With all its training and might, Toad reared back, and shot a heavy Water Gun at the Scyther, causing it to fall back; but also to wake up.
Seeing that Bugsy needed a last resort, he chose to use the move he had been planning. "Scyther, use Fury Cutter!"
The fragile Scyther made a faint battle cry, before running to Toad. The first slash it made was not bad, but the second got worse, and the third, and the fourth, and finally a fifth slash was landed on the Poliwag.
Pichu's eyes were on Scyther and Toad, watching them intently. Sophie didn't command Toad to do anything; she was gaping at the amazing power of the Scyther. And Bugsy didn't say anything, because he was waiting for something to happen.
After several silent moments, one of the Pokemon finally made a move. It was Toad. The petty, battered, frail Pokemon took one meager step, some water dripping on its sleek head. It tried to take another step, but instead, it shivered, trembled, and then close its eyes, falling to the ground with a loud thud. Bugsy's Scyther panted, staying up, knowing that the battle was finally won.
"T-Toad...," Sophie breathed, shocked at how brave her Pokemon acted. The trainer ran to her Pokemon, picking it up and hugging it softly, holding it in her arms.
Bugsy smiled kindly, wiping a bead of sweat off his forehead. That was a close battle; almost too close. He returned his Scyther before walking over and kneeling to Sophie. "Hey.."
Sophie looked up, and blushed a deep scarlet, taking notice of the boy leaning down to her. Though, she was more embarrassed about the tears forming in her eyes; big girls didn't cry, she knew that! "H-Huh?"
Bugsy tenderly smiled down at Sophie, looking at her injured Pokemon. "That was a close battle back there...I'm really impressed you were able to handle it off like that. That last girl didn't really train her Pokemon well, especially with kindness."
"So, you're saying that..?" Sophie looked up, taking one of her soft, black sleeves and wiping her eyes with it.
Bugsy nodded. "Of course!" He paused, patting the top of her head gingerly."I'm sure if you trained a bit harder, and probably thought before you told your Pokemon's command, you'd win against me."
Taking this advice, Sophie nodded back. "I-I'll be sure to win against you next time, Bugsy!"