Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Never will, unless... never mind, that won't work.
We laughed, talked, and munched comfortably on the sandwiches. It was casual, normal even, especially considering I was just visiting.
Keith looked at me and smiled, "Remember when we got caught snooping around in the basement? The look on Mr. Kincaid's face was hilarious!"
I nodded, "What about when that Staravia ran into the window?"
To my right, Luana laughed too. "You guys sure had an interesting time at school."
"Are you kidding me? When I was still in school we put the math teacher's car on the roof!" Barley said, his loud, bellowing laugh followed.
Crawford chimed in and I braced myself for a bad joke, "And I bet he went through the roof!"
Everyone was silent for a minute, and then abruptly burst out laughing. Well, Crawford didn't. He just made himself look pitiful. I admit I kind of wanted to hug him.
Then Mr. Woodward burst into the clearing. "The Pokémon at the beach have gone wild!"
It was a catalyst that led to Crawford standing suddenly, knocking over his glass of water, Luana blurting out questions through a sandwich, and Barley calming them down in a less than 30 seconds. I felt insignificant as they got all the information needed before I could fully process what had happened.
It was a lot like when your teacher assigns a project that you don't understand, or having said teacher just say "Make a presentation on chapter three of the textbook." And then leaving you to wing it without telling you what you are being graded on. Yeah, that just about sums it up.
Next thing I knew, we were at the beach and Barley was barking orders.
"Luana, Keith, Makenna, calm down the Starly, Munchlax, and Pachirisu!" They immediately ran out to the Pokémon, but it took me a moment to realize what to do. I ran to the first one I saw, the Munchlax, without really thinking about it. I had to stop and think before I remembered what to do, and succeeded in doing it.
I captured the tired Pokémon and looked around, trying to see what the others were doing. I saw them running back to Mr. Woodward and quickly followed, dodging slime from the Shellos.
Before I could reach them, I heard the Munchlax cry out and turned to look. It had stepped in the slime and couldn't get up. I walked over and grabbed its paw, pulling the heavy creature out of the puddle. I gently helped it to its feet, and it grabbed onto me to steady itself.
"There, now let's get back to the others." I smiled, and it smiled back. I hurried over to the others, who already had their Pokémon calmed and ready to be released.
"Go ahead and let that one go, it wasn't really very wild to start with." Barley said, and I complied.
"Alright, go on." I said to the Munchlax. It didn't leave, and I turned to Barley for help. What was I supposed to do? No one had said anything about Pokémon that wouldn't leave after being released.
Instead, it was Crawford who spoke up. "Maybe it likes you, but since you aren't a Ranger yet, it'll just have to go for now."
Elaine chimed in, "Maybe you'll see each other again. Partner Pokémon aren't easy to find."
A Munchlax for a partner? I had always pictured my partner as something strong, or elegant. Something that people would look up to. A Munchlax was just… there. Why didn't I go after the Starly? Even the Pachirisu would be better than this…
"Yeah…maybe." I offered a small smile, and once again, the Munchlax mimicked it. Except I'm pretty sure its smile was real.
I didn't learn as much as I could have from the experience at the Ranger Base; at the time I blamed the Munchlax for distracting me. It wasn't really his fault, it was just a bit clumsy, but I had no sympathy for the heavy-set Pokémon. I released it as soon as I could, even going back to school early by claiming to be tired. All that to be rid of the follower.
I knew the moment I graduated what I would do, I had a history of taking care of fire-types at my grandparent's farm, so I would track down a fire-type and it could be my partner. I remembered seeing a Luxray accompanying a Top Trainer, so perhaps something like that. An Arcanine, or maybe a Rapidash, would work nicely.
I was stationed in Vientown, which was perfectly fine. I'm not the kind of person to look for work unless I'm sure I can handle it, and it's a fairly peaceful town.
The Munchlax was waiting outside the morning before my first real assignment. Despite Crawford's protests, I sent it away without looking back. I was going to befriend a strong Pokémon, one that was worth calling my partner. So I entered Marine Cave with the hope that something would jump out at me, but nothing did. The Graveler hiding in one of the caverns looked appealing, but it didn't even look at me twice. I destroyed the machine, and left empty-handed.
I even did a few quests as a Ranger with no partner, and even though that wasn't uncommon, some people had seen me travelling with a Munchlax and assumed it was mine. They had assumed wrong, of course, and I was quick to let them know.
Big Bertha was one of them, "Dearie, I thought you had a little Pokémon following you around."
"I know it was probably little to you, but that thing was HUGE!" Little Tim commented, and I escaped the awkward moment by reminding Bertha to come back earlier next time and help Tim with the Miltank.
When the fire started I immediately volunteered to go. I told them about my history with fire-types and how I can handle burns. At first they were hesitant to let a rookie go, but I showed them one of the worst burns on my right shoulder after a Magby attacked me and it was ruled that I had the most experience. Luana went with me, and Crawford was already waiting for us.
"Makenna, go around the left side of the lake, and look for the source of the fire." Luana said. "Call me if you see anything or need assistance." I nodded and ran across the bridge to the lake.
An angry Wartortle stomped around the dry lake, ignoring the rising smoke and spitting water at small patches of burning grass. I ducked around it to avoid any unnecessary conflict and find out what caused this.
Just as the machine caught my eye, a tree fell and both startled me and blocked my path. Not only that though, as I dodged burning branches I caught my foot on a rock and twisted my ankle. I limped over to a nearby ditch and ducked beneath it to get away from the smoke and wreckage. Looking back, it wasn't such a good idea.
Another heavy branch hit the ground just above me and I rolled down the hill. My right arm caught on a sharp rock and I felt it break skin. Another hit my hip, leaving a bruise, and another my ankle, which gave way and cracked at the same time as my only way to contact Luana did. I resigned myself to lay there until the fire burned itself out or the others came to look for me.
I lay on my back in a daze for… I don't know how long; probably not anymore than a minute. Then I saw a form above me, I was sure it was Crawford or Barley at first, and then my vision cleared.
It was Munchlax. It had followed me here, or at least I liked to think that. At the time I dismissed it as coincidence whenever the thought entered my head.
The Pokémon dumped the items it carried, and as they fell into focus I saw they were Rawst Berries. I'd seen them often; Grandpa used them to heal Pokémon when they got into fights. The Munchlax apparently knew that too. It smashed them into a pulp and rubbed them lightly on a burn on my arm, avoiding the gash.
I smiled as it fumbled with the berries, big paws making it hard to manage them. It caught my eye and smiled back, but this time both were real. I couldn't believe that the Munchlax had followed me, and was amazed at its dexterity and ability to get through the fire with no noticeable burns. I lifted my arm to touch a small bruise on its cheek, but it smiled nonetheless.
Maybe this wouldn't be so bad; I mean, not a lot of people have a Munchlax following them around. My partner would be unique. A Munchlax that would run through fire for me, and I would do the same for him. I owe him that, but he would never ask for it, just as I never will of him.
So that's how it happened.
After a little while, Crawford appeared at the top of the ditch. He jumped down, landing gracefully nearby. It seemed more graceful to me considering my method of getting there.
"Alright Munchlax, you're going to have to move so I can get her to base." The Munchlax reluctantly backed away so Crawford could pick me up, though gently so as to not aggravate my injuries.
"Crawford…?" I muttered, wincing slightly at being moved.
"The fire's almost out. Luana got a Blastoise to help; the rain should start over here pretty soon." He said his voice slightly uneven. He may be a Ranger, but he's still human. Seeing his newest partner lying in a ditch must've startled him at least a little bit.
Munchlax tugged at his pant leg and made a quiet noise. "She'll be fine, now we have to get back. You're welcome to come too, if you want." He said.
He carried me back to the town, but by the time the Base came into view Elaine and the Operator were carrying me on a stretcher, which I was perfectly fine with. I had inhaled some smoke and must've hit my head, so at that point I was pretty tired. Tired as in, as soon as the nearest doctor said I didn't have a concussion I went to sleep.
I woke up to the Operator's gentle prodding.
"Come on, you need to wake up and eat. Big Bertha brought some pudding over, and you haven't eaten in-"
"How long was I out?" I groggily said, not completely hearing her.
She sighed. "You slept the rest of the day, and all night. It's 10 o'clock in the morning."
I sat up slowly, groaning, and my stomach growled. "Can I have some of that pudding then?" She nodded and got up, but Crawford was the one to bring it back.
"Hey." I said casually.
"But you're not a Tauros." He said, smirking at his own joke. I honestly didn't think it was that funny.
"Shut up and give me food." I said, reaching over to get the bowl of pudding.
He pulled it back, "Not until you apologize."
I sighed. "Fine, I'm sorry for making you carry me back here." He looked at me pointedly. "Alright, and for going off on my own." He didn't look away. "What is it!" I nearly yelled.
"Apologize to him." He gestured down to the floor. I looked over to see the Munchlax lying on his stomach, fast asleep. "You made him leave; he liked you, and you made him leave. Apologize."
My shoulders sagged and I stared down at the Pokémon. Oh, I guess he really did like me. It hadn't hit me until then, lying in bed wounded, that I should've just accepted it. I might have thought about it in that ditch, but I hadn't actually… regretted the decision.
"I'm sorry." I whispered. Crawford left the bowl on the bedside table and slipped out. As the door closed behind him, Munchlax sat up and drowsily rubbed his eyes before looking up at me. He stood up, stretched, and turned to me. I smiled, and like a cliché story, he smiled back.
I sat back up on the bed, the Munchlax putting his paws on the side. I reached over to pick up the banana pudding, and saw that it had two spoons.
"Crawford…" I muttered. I handed one of the spoons to Munchlax, who happily accepted it.
"Well," I sighed. "I guess we're partners then."
He smiled and toddled over to the shelf on the opposite wall of the bed, and returned with my Styler. "Yeah, we're definitely partners." I repeated.
He smiled again, and reached for the pudding.
A/N: Almost no symbolism hurts Author Birdie, but makes Fishing Birdie proud.