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"What's wrong, boy, why are you so down?"
The Dewott simply glared at him. Once again, he called her a boy, but she was actually a girl. Does this idiot of a trainer had any clue that she was a girl?
Sampson point a finger, "Finish your food, Dewott. Waste not, want not."
The Discipline Pokémon stared at her meal: A red orange bowl filled with water-type Pokémon food. It was said to be packed full of vitamins and minerals, specially calculated to suit her. Dewott looked back at Sampson, he waved his hand urging her to eat. She sighed and picked up a few pebbles. Dewott held them up with two fingers, feeling unsure. She glanced at Sampson again, then back at the pebbles. Finally she popped them into her mouth and chewed them, they tasted more like sawdust than food. The Dewott gulped it down, it felt like she was swallowing sand.
"That a boy!" Sampson said.
Dewott rolled her eyes, Whatever.
The Discipline Pokémon and her trainer Sampson were eating lunch at the Pokémon Center in Nimbasa City. The place was a little crowded. There were other trainers and their Pokémon, either too eating lunch or tending to ailments. Dewott felt their weight pressing against her, the unnerving feeling of being surrounded by people made her skin crawl. She turned back to her food. She wasn't hungry, but she ate anyway. Sampson was clear that she must eat it all before they could leave. He dug into his lo mien noodles, slurping them down like it was some sort of contest. Ugh, the pig, lunchtime isn't suppose a contest or anything.
The Dewott chewed through a few more pellets, managing to swallow them down her throat. As she reached up to take a sip of water, a stab of pain shot through her shoulder. Dewott winced, it was still hurting despite the healing ointments the Audinos gave her. Just hours ago, she had battled a skirmish just outside of Nimbasa City. The damn what's-his-face tackled her, she flew through the air and smashed her shoulder against a boulder. That pretty much cost her the match. At least Sampson had the courtesy to bring her to the Pokémon Center where she could get it treated.
She rubbed her shoulder, flexing it till the pain eases away. Dewott frowned, she have to deal with it for the next few weeks thanks to him, Greedy little piece of-
"Dewott," said Sampson, shattering her train of thought. She looked up at her trainer, slightly annoyed, "Show everyone a smile once in a while, sometimes I worry about you."
You only worry about me because of the damn Unova League, she thought.
Nonetheless, she lessen her frown into a tiny smirk. Not exactly a smile, but it was big enough to please him, "There you go, boy."
Dewott said nothing, she went back nibbling on her meal while Sampson continue to dig into his noodles like there was no tomorrow. Several strands topple over his bowl, spilling over onto the counter. Dewott turned away, not only was he stupid but he also had no matters.
The Discipline Pokémon turned towards the window. It was beautiful day outside, not a single cloud in the sky. Somehow, high-noon was the best time of the day. The sun seemed to crown itself on you, making you feel like you're on top of the world. Dewott sighed, a trip through human civilization and untamed Pokémon wilderness was a plan for every journey, but only if there was free access to it. Dewott was barred – no, caged – from it. Her freedom controlled and regulated by him.
Just a month ago – or two months ago, Dewott wasn't sure – she was an Oshawott under the care by Professor Juniper. Like all the other Pokémon before her, she was carefully bred to be strong and healthy. At first she thought that trainers were caring people who would take her in and love her; she heard stories how trainers loved and treated their Pokémon like family, caring them with their best interests in mind. It sounded good, true even.
Until Sampson came along.
He picked her out from the trio of starter Pokémon, Juniper says she was a male. That was the first of a series of contradictions and misinformation that drove her nuts. Sampson was not a bad trainer, though he wasn't a good one either. He had other Pokémon with him: An Emolga, a Boufallant, that Patrat from the woods. He trained them, but not very well. His commands were off, his methods flawed. Sampson lost more battles than he won, yet he managed to win two gym badges after week two.
It was around that same time where she evolved. Her mental processes changed as much as her body. Discipline, it seemed, became more of a focus than the silliness she used to harbor. When she was an Oshawott, Dewott always looked up at her trainer with a cheery glee. He trained her hard, and it paid off.
Things suck after that.
The Pokémon food she always ate started tasting boring, and she began to feel less and less happy. Dewott wondered if she was missing something, something that she wanted. Sampson fed her, bathed her, even trained her. Yet Sampson couldn't give her this one little thing. This tiny little thing. Sampson gave her everything but that thing, and probably never will.
A choice, she thought as she ate another sandy pebble, the freedom to have a say in things.
There were several places in the past few weeks she wanted to check out and explore. But Sampson kept her tucked away in her Poké ball. Oh damn, that Poké ball! That unnatural tiny pocket dimension! It contained her, limiting her to a tiny space. But thankfully, Sampson would call her out if something was going on. She wanted to see several places, like the movies, carnival, several stores, etc. But no, Sampson insisted on seeing this before they see that. The order was mind-boggling, "Okay," he once said to her, "We'll go see it right after we do this thing."
Damn, how many times had he said those words?
Too many times.
"Is your shoulder still hurting, Dewott?" Sampson asked.
The Discipline Pokémon nodded.
"You did great out there, Dewott. Among all the Pokémon I had, you were the most cunning and mature. I never seen Pokémon battle like you."
The same old silly words with the same old emotion. Fool's gold, just downright fool's gold.
Sampson raised an eyebrow, it almost as if he was reading her mind, "Now don't look at me like that, Dewott. I really meant it, sure you had lost a few battles but one day you might win a major tournament, or even a League."
A lot of Pokémon would cherish these words from their trainer. They took pride in them, feeling proud of the accomplishments they had done. However, these same words sounded cold and bitter to Dewott's ears. She knew better. She learned from time that around one point or another, their trainers would eventually abandon them. Sometimes by giving them away, or abandoning them. It was a heartbreaking experience to go through, it was as if the world had cursed them to such misery.
But for Dewott, the world had something better than Pokémon battling. Something more than tournaments, gym battles, and Pokémon leagues. There were plenty of opportunities, plenty of places to go. She wanted what the humans had: Freedom.
No, not just freedom. Freedom from being treated like a child or a dim-witted Pokémon. Freedom to make her own decisions. Freedom from being manhandled by people who only care about her performance, not the personality she harbor. People like Sampson wouldn't stop and think for a moment about their Pokémon's deep desires. Pokémon helped their trainers achieve their dreams almost every day, but what about trainers helping Pokémon achieve their dreams? What was it? Respect? Is that what they call it?
Yes, Dewott thought, It is.
But where was the respect? Sampson didn't give her any. Heck, she wondered if he had ever considered what she was thinking. Clearly he noticed something, but was too much of an idiot to pursue it further. Stupid, he was stupid. All he thinks about are those silly gym badges that would get him into that silly Unova League. She had no doubt that he would lose, Sampson would crash and his dreams would blow up in his face.
No way was she going down with him.
Dewott chewed a few more pellets, then looked up at her trainer, "Hey, Sam."
Her Pokémon speech nearly made Sam choke on his noodles, Dewott felt pleased from that. He cleared his throat and turned to Dewott, "You need something, boy?"
She pointed towards the restroom doors, "I need to use the bathroom."
"Okay," he said, "You need to figure out how-"
Dewott shook her head, "No."
"Take your time, Dewott. There's no rush."
The Discipline Pokémon got up from the table and walked towards the bathroom. There were two bathroom stalls, one for men and one for women. She went through the women's door.
"Dewott," Sampson called out to her, "That's the girl's bathroom!"
"Idiot," she grumbled under her breath. She felt the urge to give him the bird, but forced herself not to. The Discipline Pokémon wasn't in the mood for more of his sh*t.
The door closed behind her, muffling the constant chatter. Dewott breathed. Ah, alone at last.
There were only bathroom stalls, no urinals for obvious reasons. Dewott couldn't keep track on the number of times Sampson brought her to the men's room. Almost every occasion, he expected her to use the urinals. The Discipline Pokémon grumbled. This idiot of a trainer dictated her life, even telling her on where to pee. She felt so embarrassed when Sampson dragged her into the boy's bathroom and positioned her in front of the urinals in front of all those people. Dewott wondered if they figured she was a girl, yet refrained from telling Sampson. Unable to aim in the urinals, Dewott would beg him for her to use the toilets by pretending to need to go poo. Usually it always turned to her favor in the end. But at times Sampson would wait for her outside the stall, shattering whatever privacy she managed to spare.
A storm cloud flied over Dewott's head, she growled. She was mad. Mad at Sampson for the life he damned her in. She was a Pokémon with a conscious, she deserved a private life and to make her own choices once in a while. Why does Sampson had to be so strict, it wasn't like she was going to wonder off.
Let it go.
The Dewott walked into a stall and approached the toilet. She pulled up the seated herself. She took a deep breath and relaxed as she done her business.
With Sampson not prowling outside the stall door, she felt relaxed but not quite relaxed. Once she stepped out of the restroom, she would be at his mercy once more. Back into the Poké ball she would go, forced to spend another few hours in that tight limiting space till Sampson decided to use her again. Dewott shook her head, she couldn't take much more of it.
I hate it here, she thought, I hate being chained to that stupid Sampson!
She placed a hand over her head. Dewott was tired, being angry always zapped her energy. If losing Pokémon battles was bad enough, being berated by his false logic was harder. Dewott sighed, she couldn't go on. She couldn't go on being angry and fighting Sampson's battles, the Discipline Pokémon wondered how she gotten this far without crashing. Oh that Sampson, that stupid Sampson!
Let it go.
Dewott shook the thought out of her mind. She pressed a button on the toilet. A small jet of water shot up and cleaned her got up from the toilet and flushed, then washed her hands at the sink. Dewott stared at herself in the mirror, she could make out the dark circles underneath her eyes.
Let it go, Dewott. Let it go.
She pressed her hands against her ears. Her head throbbed, blood pound against her brain getting ready to blow a vessel. Dewott took another deep breath, the air started feeling stuffy.
Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. Let it-
"Go?" she asked herself.
Her eyes opened. Bright sunlight shined over the sink and mirror. She turned and saw a window. It was dirty, covered with grime and mold. It looked like it hadn't been cleaned in a while, let alone used. Dewott approached the window and looked outside. Bright blue sky greeted her, along with paved concrete and neatly trimmed grass.
The Discipline Pokémon pressed her hands against the windows, her breath fogged against the glass as she pushed upward. The window cracked open, fresh crisp air flooded in from outside.
That's it, she thought, I had enough.
Enough was enough. She wanted freedom to be independent. No one should force her inside a Poké ball and use her as a tool. That wasn't right, she knew it wasn't right in the beginning. Just why hadn't she escaped sooner? Oh well, it doesn't matter. She was escaping now. Screw everything, screw Sampson. She was done with him.
Dewott pressed her hands against the window and pushed, it creaked open on its rusty hinges. She stepped out into the Pokémon Center's garden and shut the window behind her. The Discipline Pokémon held her hands against the window to savor the moment, then let go.
I'm outta here. Goodbye, Sampson, you nincompoop.
She casually walked out to the street, then made a turn towards the main road. Dewott passed by several people and their Pokémon, their eyes rolling over her. She was part of the crowd, a simple pedestrian. They view her as one of their own, not some rebellious Pokémon who had just left her trainer. Dewott shrugged. They were the lucky ones, at least they didn't have a trainer like hers. The Discipline Pokémon looked around, she saw some potential opportunities but they were still barred from her. As long as she was in Nimbasa City, Sampson still had a hold over her.
She had to get out of the city before Sampson figured out she was gone.
So Dewott went and located one of two bridges that link Nimbasa City to the rest of Unova. She took a moment to awe at the bridge. It was a beautiful display of human ingenuity, built by the smartest people on the planet. Smart people, really smart people. Dewott walked along the bridge, she felt Sampson's hold weaken with every step. With every step, she felt the stress and anger fade. A smile formed on her face. No, not a smile that she usually wear as a mask. A real smile, a smile that was being held up with her own happiness.
Happiness she hadn't felt in a long time.
Pedestrians continued to pass by her. They bore her no attention, not even a simple glance. They just walked by as if she wasn't there. Dewott felt like a pedestrian herself. She had a place in mind where she could go, or a few ideas. Dewott doesn't care at this point, all she cared was that she was moving on her own accord.
My accord.
Dewott stepped to the edge and glance over the pristine blue water. It was somewhere around 70 to 100 meters down. The Discipline Pokémon done the mental calculations. Yes, she suppose it could be survivable.
Why not let the river take me to the coast, she thought, I am a water-type after all.
A water-type in her natural environment: The water, the lovely water.
The Discipline Pokémon climbed under the railing and stood at its edge, nearby pedestrians finally began to take notice, "What is that Dewott doing?" she heard someone asked.
She bent her knees.
"She's gonna jump!" someone screamed.
Dewott leaped over the edge and nose-dived towards the water, several folks screamed as she let gravity pulled her towards the water. When she got around half-way, her body burst into a bluish-white comet.
Aqua Jet, a very powerful move that she normally used against opposing Pokémon, would now propel her towards her to a random destination. Dewott stuck out her arms and balled her fist, she shut her eyes and waited.
She hit the water hard, but Aqua Jet took out most of the shock. Dewott opened her eyes, the crystal-clear water world of the Nimbasa River greeted her.
Sweet!
The Discipline Pokémon used her tail as a rudder as she swam with the current. She charged up her Aqua Jet and torpedoed herself down the river. Bubbles and moss-covered boulders zipped by like a blur. Whatever anger or stress she used to harbor was gone, cast away among the currents. Dewott laughed, she never felt so happy and free before in her entire life.
The last of what's-his-face's influence break away, and with it the memories that held her back. Dewott cheered as she swam with the currents, heading towards a brand new life.