Allison didn't want to be leader.
Sure, everyone expected her to want that. Topher was so quiet and Dino was childish, so they both deferred to her anyway.
Allison liked their trust in her, but she didn't want that responsibility. If they lost, it was her fault. If they won, she a great hero and was expected to lead them into victory against another team. Each medal they win would weigh on her, until she couldn't walk. Allison didn't want that responsibility. All she'd do is let her friends down.
Her friends. Allison was worried about them and her. Before, they had clicked. Their contrasting personalities created a balance while their similar interests tied them together. After years of living in the same neighborhood, they were inseparable. They had decided to go on there journey together. When they learned of the Alliance League, a similar tournament with teams replacing individuals, Allison and her friends jumped at the chance. They didn't care if they had to wait a year before it became an official league. They'd waited together.
But now... What were they? Before their trio had been so in sync, and now they were all dancing to their own tempo. Two years ago, Topher and Dino would've known that she didn't want to be leader. They would've seen through her bravado and swagger. It made Allison sad to think that her weaknesses and insecurities were her burden alone.
"Thita?" Gothita said. Allison was violently pulled back to reality. "Sorry. Got distracted." Allison muttered as she started walking again. I can't believe I sat there for so long just brooding. Allison thought. Brooding. I don't brood. That's Topher's specialty,not mine.
The others are probably waiting on me. Allison thought. She hurridly ran towards the direction of Lumoise Gates, searching for Pokemon amoung the dark trees and bushes of Route 16. If she was late, they'd never miss the openuing ceremony of the games and miss their chance to register. Fuck.
"Gas!"
Allison screamed out a stream of profanities.
Valerie looked Togekiss. "Do you feel that?" she asked.
"Kiss?" Togekiss asked.
"Somehow, somewhere, Allison has just disappointed us."
Allison looked up at the big ball of violet smoke that had scared her. Gastly.
Allison brought out her Pokedex , a card-shaped machine with a holographic center, but Gastly grabbed it. (How, Allison wasn't sure. It was literall a ball of smoke. It didn't have hands).
"Hey! Give me that back!" Allison cried. "Feint Attack, Loli!"
Gothita jumped from Allison's shoulder and sped towards Gastly. Loli went to hit Gastly, and Gastly dodged, but Loli feinted to the right and struck. She grabbed the Pokedex and darted back to Allison.
"What now!?" Allison taunted it. Then she realised it was weakened . Allison slowly brought out a Pokeball.
"Where is she?" Topher muttered, leaning against the bench Berg and Nume were in. They were all in the Lumoise gateway, a restop for trainers between Lumoise and Route 16.
Dino shrugged, running a damp cloth over his new Poliwhirl, Whirl, and spraying it with Super Potion. "Maybe she's having trouble catching something ."
Topher scratched his head. "I guess. We can wait longer. I've sent our info to The Nurse Joy of Inner-Lumoise and asked her to submit our names, so we should-"
Both their heads snapped up when they heard a scream.
"Allison!" they returned their Pokemon and ran to Allison.
"Dear Arceus," Allison ran up to Gastly , her voice hoarse from screaming it's name.
The small ghost type was barely moving. Whatever that flash of light was that just hit it, it was powerful. Hyper Beam?
"Are you okay?"
Allison looked up. Walking towards her was one if the oddest men Allison had ever seen. His pale ivory hair was cut in a surfer style, like it had just dried after being soaked all day, and his face was chiseled perfectly. But the man's clothes didn't fit. Draped over his shoulders were a long robe of the same color as his hair with a golden leaf pattern. Under it he wore a purple shirt, white trousers and sandals. Atop his head was a blue and gold Bishops hat.
He gave Allison the impression of surfer dressing up as a holy man.
In his hand, he carried a cane with 6 Pokeballs of the same color as his robes hanging on it.
And at his side was a hulking grey and yellow pokemon with long ears. Diggersby. Shit.
"Hello miss, my name is-" he started.
"Feint Attack!" Gothita launched itself at Diggersby.
"Double slap." Diggersby hit Gothita with it's ears one after the other, knocking Allison's Loli back without much effort on it's own part.
"Loli!" Allison dived and caught Loli. The man moved forward, but Allison demanded that he stay back. To her surprise, he complied.
"Who are you and why'd you attack Gastly?" Allison asked. She was pissed. "That's a cowardly move, using Hyper Beam on a low level Pokemon. Especially since your Diggersby is such a high level. You could of killed it!"
The man frowned. "It attacked you."
"It was playing." Allison growled. "Stop trying to justify murder and answer my question before I kick you ass." Allison growled fiercely. "Who. Are. You."
Allison glared at the man, threatening him bodily harm with her eyes. She wasn't going to let him walk away from this with anything less than a broken limb.
"Okay. Let me start over. I am Arch Bishop Joseph." he anounced.
"Arch Bishop? You?!"
He ignored her. "I am a representative of the Church of-"
"What?" Allison had no idea what a church had to do with anything. "What does this have to do with you attacking Gastly?"
Joseph groaned. "Look, it's church protocol to introduce myself and tell miscreants what their transgression was before justice is served. I know it's a pain, but we all have rules to follow."
"Wha-?"
"Now if it were up to me," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I wouldn't be involved in all this kidnapping business. It would be much easier to just give out pamphlets, maybe go door to door- save the kidnapping for only the true criminals. We aren't a petty villainous team like Plasma or Flare- we should have standards." He shrugged. "But I have orders, and you're valuable, as the apprentice of a celeberity. Forcing you into Penitence would make quite the statement."
Allison had no idea what Penitence was, she what she did know was that no one was going to force her into anything. "I'm valuable? Aw, your making me blush. You know what would be really sweet? Backing the fuck off. That would make my day."
The man snapped his fingers. "How about no."
"Fine. Then tell me what you want." Allison demanded, which she knew was a stupid thing to do when the person on the receiving end of her anger was a psycho who was way more powerful than her. She just didn't care. She had to keep him talking so help could arrive. She didn't have any Pokemon with full life left except- no, not him. She couldn't use him.
Joseph shrugged. "Not much. Just release your Pokemon." he said it like another person would of said Could you lend me a dollar? Was he insane?
Allison crossed her arms. "I thought you weren't with those freaks from Unova."
Joseph smiled back "I'm not." he replied. "But your Pokemon are cursed. You must remove them before they taint your Anima."
"Anima?"
"Your essence." He said. "You must protect your essence at all costs and let no one take it from you."
Definitely insane.
"My mom had this conversation with me already. 'Don't trust any drink given to you by a boy you don't know, always carry pepper spray- "
He faced palmed, which would of been funny if Allison wasn't so pissed."That's your innocence." he said. "Your essence, or Anima, is your soul. Tainted Pokemon will corrupt it."
"There's nothing wrong with my Pokemon!" she argued. Well, maybe there was something wrong with Warren... But he was all she had. Allison tried to discretely pull a Pokeball from her bracelet with the same hand it was on, so it was less obvious. "And you're not touching them! So leave before I call the cops!"
Joseph raised his cane and pointed at her, and Allison remembered that his Pokeballs were kept on the cane. "You're out numbered and out ranked. Release your Pokemon and then leave. Or..."
"Or what?'" Allison had it in her hand, but she wanted to wait until he was distracted to throw him out.
"Or you could join us. The Hallowed doctrine states that all sinners are welcome, as longer as they repent."
"Does that mean you get Gastly?" Allison asked.
"And your Gothita." he moved towards her.
"Oh hell no." Allison growled. She forgot her plan. She forgot that her Loli wasn't at full health. No one threatened Loli.
"Psyshock !"
Loli held up it hands and bubbles of silver light formed above it. Loli pointed at Diggersby and they shot at it. Diggersby dodged to the left.
"Mud shot!"
A ball of glowing mud formed between it's ears and shot at Loli. Loli ducked and rushed forward. "Feint attack!"
"Hammer Arm!" Loli feinted to the left, but Diggersby was expecting that. It hit Loli into the air with it's ear.
"Hyper beam!"
Allison screamed as the beam of pure white energy hit Loli. Allison ran and caught her as she fell.
"Give me the Pokemon so I can finish them." Joseph intoned.
"No..." Allison held Gothita close to her chest and looked at her. She had scratches all over her lavender head, black at the top. It's body was black, with a white zigzag on it's midsection, only now it was covered in scratches and scars. The Pokemon was adorned with bows, two on either side of it's head and one on it's chest. When Allison was ten and she got Loli, she made a bow that matched Loli's. Now she still wore a bow on all her outfits. Today's bow was on her shoulder.
Gothita had picked it out.
"Miss, if you would just-"
"No." Allison growled, holding back tears. "You can't have Gothita. And I won't let a psychopath like you touch Gastly. " Allison stepped forward defensively. "Gothita is one of my best friends and they're both living creatures. How could you do something like this to them? What religion is worth a life?"
Joseph smiled, and it was like Allison had broken a dam. His composure broke into pieces like a glass shattering on the floor.
Allison was reminded of her sister and some other trainers she had seen battle her. They had the same look, like 'This is what I live for'. It was a look of absolute rapture. Only this look was less passion, and more obsession. Allison could tell right then he wasn't completely sane.
In other words, he was sufficiently distracted.
"Warren, Hypnosis!" Allison yelled as she released her strongest partner.
A small white Pokemon with what appeared to be green hair and a white skirt appeared. Diggersby charged, but Warren's red horns glowed and sudden it started to float.
Allison made a sound of annoyance.
"That's not what I- Ya know what, never mind. Whatever works." At least he attacked who he was supposed to. Allison thought.
"Ditto!" Joseph cried, throwing out Ditto, who promptly changed into a Kirlia. But she didn't have time to do anything else- attacking people was kinda hard when you had a face full of Diggersby.
Allison, who had ducked for cover, glared at Warren. "You could of hit me!" her Kirlia smirked, like Too bad I didn't.
Allison stood up. "Return." she growled. She pointed his Pokeball at him and a beam of red light hit the little annoyance until he disappeared.
"You-" Joseph raised his staff in anger, and Allison darted forward and kicked him in the shin. He fell forward, and she grabbed the staff and darted away.
"Give that back!" he yelled. Joseph moved to charge Allison, but she raised a Pokeball. He froze in his tracks.
"Try me." she warned. "I have plenty of powerful Pokemon besides Kirlia." That was a bluff, but he didn't need to know that. "Now get on the ground."
Joseph started to comply, but then stopped. He turned his wild grey eyes at Allison and smirked.
"I have Powerful Pokemon too. Six of them." He motioned to his staff. Allison glanced at it and saw that there was only three Pokeballs on it.
Three Pokeballs on the staff, two already called out. That's five. Where was his sixth Pokemon-
While Allison wasn't staring at him, Joseph pushed her down.
Allison looked up and saw an Joseph pick a Pokeball up off the ground and let oit a pink and tan Pokemon. Crap.
"Finish her." Joseph commanded. Allison braced herself.
"Icy Wind!"
In a matter of seconds Joseph and Audino were frozen solid. Allison could see his surprised look in those creepy eyes.
"Guys!" Allison yelled. She hugged her friends.
Topher grinned and Dino hugged her back. "So, this makes me leader right?" he asked in her ear.
Allison pulled back and punched him in the chest.
