Chapter 2 Second day, breathtaking views
Its early in the morning when I wake up, and I have to squint my eyes cause I am extremely unused to the sun shining directly in my eyes first thing in the bloody morning. I fully awake quickly though when I feel something digging into my ribs, I cast my eyes down to see three eggs resting in the incubators. And with that sight, my mind wakes up too as it remembers the events of yesterday.
I sit up quickly in the dark green hammock and gather the two incubators in my lap. I study them meticulously for any cracks or signs that they might have been injured in the night or have started to hatch, and I smile softly as they all check out to be just fine. The one egg alone in an incubator is dark blue with black markings and two white circles on either side, a riolu -or so my brother said- that's bound to be adorable! The second egg in the other incubator is a light blue at the bottom, but the top is covered by a black fur like looking substance with small red dots running around the top, Cute, but I'm not sure what it is, maybe I have seen a picture of it before or something?….. And the last egg is nearly pure white with small specks of blue at the bottom and specks of red at the top, again not sure what it is.
I take a couple minutes to stare at my eggs adoringly before I put them down on the ground climb out of my hammock. I hiss in pain as my shoulders and lower back tremble as I leap out of my hammock to the ground, maybe I should take an hour or two before I start out again. Damn backpack making my life this morning absolute hell!
I turn around and open my backpack and dig through it to find a couple pre-made sandwiches in plastic wraps. I take out two and sit myself down on the edge of my hammock, my feet grazing the ground to keep myself stable so I don't fall out of the hammock by mistake.
I unwrap my sandwich and greedily take a bite. I hum happily, trust mum to make THE best food around. After a couple more bites I hear the snapping of a twig near my makeshift camp (Camp is really just my hammock with the incubators on the ground underneath me since I was too lazy to make a campfire), I snap my head up to look around, and I smile as I spot the newcomer.
A pink Deerling is warily standing at the edge of my camp, it must have snuck up a couple moments ago. As I glance over it I notice it's looking longingly at my second sandwich in my lap, well it certainly has good taste in the sandwich department.
I chuckle quietly which seems to startle it somewhat, I then say "Hungry? I was planning to shove this in my pocket for later, but hey, you seem to want it more than I do"
I put my half-eaten sandwich beside me before I unwrap the second sandwich and hold it out towards the Deerling
The Deerling glances at me then back to the sandwich, I smile kindly, probably looks demented on me but eh, I then say "It's ok! You can have it, it's really good!"
The Deerling walks slowly to me before taking the sandwich from me and eating it. Its big brown eyes open wide as it eats, and it closes its eyes happily as it chews. After eating its lets out a happy cry "Deer! Deerling!"
I grin "A foody huh? Well I'm not as good a cook as my mum, but she did teach me a few things so if you wanna join me I can totally make you sandwiches and all that good stuff" the Deerling backs away from me slightly when I say that so I quickly add "Of course you don't have to join me if you don't want to! It's just a suggestion. But I will totally bribe you with food if that's what it takes cause I would really like to have another foodie with me, like, do you know how hard it is to find someone who likes the plain stuff too?! I mean, does everyone have to love spicy food!?"
The Deerling looks at me hard, I can practically sense that it's thinking about my character so I just keep talking cause why the hell not? "I'm not sure if I want to be a battler like 90% of all other trainers or if I wanna do something different, so no guarantees about battling if that's what you're interested in. I did hear about these Pokemon contests in another region or two from my older brothers, so that sound pretty interesting, of course, I also just love wandering around in the wilds and seeing all the different Pokemon so I don't really know what I want to do"
The Deerling is starting to look interested in what I'm talking about, so I'll just keep spewing random thoughts from my very random mind "A thing I know for sure though is that even if I do become a battler or whatever and travel from region to region I don't want to keep constantly catching new Pokemon, no sir, I think I would just like one team with maybe a couple more, cause more the merrier, but not too many or its overkill and someone will feel left out and I wouldn't want to feel like that so I shouldn't make others feel like that either"
The Deerling nods in agreement and starts to move even closer to me "I personally don't believe in having a partner like most trainers, not that I don't like Pokemon or anything! It's just that when a trainer has a partner, more often than not, all of their other pokemon kinda get ignored and left out, and I don't like that at ALL, especially when that partner is favoured above all else and that could hurt other pokemon's feelings. Cause like, damn, if you gonna have a team, don't bribe them about seeing the world and then lock them away in a Pokeball until you absolutely need them! That's not fair at all and I would never do that. I mean, if they wanted to be in their Pokeballs sure, but I think Pokemon should be free to come and go from their Pokeballs not trapped unless the trainer lets them out"
The Deerling is still staring at me but now it has taken a seat near my feet and is smiling. I stop rambling and meet the Deerlings stare "So now I all gotta ask now is, do you wanna join me? I am pre-warning you, I got three Pokemon eggs that are not too far away from hatching and they might be a handful, or, well, hoof-full in your case, plus I have no idea what two of them are so I am probably not prepared"
The Deerling just grins and noses my side. I can tell I am wearing a matching grin, but hey, a Deerling wants to join me! And all because of my mum's sandwiches and my rambling, gotta thank her later. And this is probably the first being in the world who actually listens to my word vomits! So HAHA, I'm happy!
I turn to my backpack and dig out an empty Pokeball. I then hold it out to Deerling who pushes the button with her nose.
The Pokeball opens and a red beam hits the Deerling, the Pokeball then shuts and shakes from side to side for a couple tense moments before it shuts completely with a click. I pump my fist into the air with a triumphant "YES! HAHA! SUCK IT DAVY!"
I open the Pokeball to let Deerling out and I feel a shiver of joy crawl up my back as I see the Deerling, my Deerling now.
Deerling rears up on its hind legs happily "Ling! Deerling!" I grin before digging through my bag again and bringing out the Pokedex. I quickly scan Deerling and look over the information
Deerling
The season pokemon
Deerling changes its appearance depending on the current season, this change does not occur after capture.
Female
Ability: Chlorophyll
Knows Aromatherapy, Tackle, Double kick, Camouflage, Attract.
Evolves into Sawsbuck
"Damn, you got moves girl! And now that I know you're ACTUALLY a girl, how about a name? Do you already have one?"
The Deerling drops back down to all fours and shakes its head. I then run through a couple names in my head, Cassie? Veela? Sira?, no, none of them sound quite right.
I then offer tentatively "how about….Wonder?" Deerling nods her head with a smile.
I sit back down and look at the newly named Wonder and smirk smugly before explaining to a no doubt confused Wonder "My brother David, he bet that I wouldn't be able to catch a Pokemon before 5 days. My other brother Scott was on my side though, for twenty bucks at least, so now I can convince Scotty to give me at least half"
Wonder glared at me with indignation and hurt in her brown eyes, it surprises me before I realize what she could be angry about "oh! No no! Your not some prize or something stupid! I promise! It only just occurred to me about the bet! I really do like you Wonder! I'm sorry if I made you feel like you were some means to get something, I didn't mean it like that"
Wonder seemed to forgive me as she stopped glaring and let out a soft "deerling ling, deerling"
I sighed "I should probably shut my mouth and pack up now huh?" Wonder giggled and nodded before wandering over to the incubators underneath the hammock. She nosed them curiously before laying down beside them and watching them.
I get to work with putting away the hammock and packing it back into my backpack. Thankfully in only a few short minutes, everything is packed up and ready to go. The hammock is packed, Wonders Pokeball is now on my trainer's belt, and the incubators are safely tucked away in between my spare clothes.
After I go through my mental checklist I look to Wonder who is sitting and waiting patiently for me to finish up so we can get on the road, I then ask her "Do you want a ride in your Pokeball? Or would you rather walk with me?"
Wonder hops up to her feet and turns towards the path, she then looks back and beckons me with a "Deer! Deerling ling!"
I nod and pick up my backpack, I wince as my shoulders and back protest the weight. Wonder notices and to me surprise uses Aromatherapy on me. I exhale in relief as I feel the ache seep away as the gorgeous smell fills my nose. After the smell dissipates I look to Wonder with a gentle smile "Thanks, Wonder!"
Wonder smiles and bounds through the thick underbrush to the path with little to no trouble. I groan and start trudging through the underbrush, Wonder lets out a high pitched giggle at my very apparent irritation, I glare at her half-heartedly and grumble "Oh sure, let ME suffer through the bushes"
When I finally struggle through the bushes and onto the road, I see Wonder sitting down on the road, smiling like a little school girl seeing her parents come to pick her up. I puff and brush a few stray strands of black hair from my face "c'mon then, let's go"
As we walk I have decided that I have been smiling and grinning entirely too much this morning, so now I'm not sure if this Deerling is a good influence or a bad one. Because too much smiling is never a good thing! Then again NEVER smiling is also not a good thing…...
Wonder and I take our sweet, sweet time walking on the path. I do wonder why there are so little trainers on this path though, but until I got Wonder I suppose that's a good thing.
As Wonder and I walk, I think about what I really want to do on this journey.
Battling does seem fun and I can definitely get a thrill from it, but soooooo many people have done that before and I'm no wannabe! That and it's a bit overused.
Pokemon contests that I heard about from Davy seems cool too, using Pokemon moves for beauty and creativity, but it's not really my thing, dress up and glitter doesn't mix well with me
Pokemon researcher crossed my mind briefly but Nah, that would be barking up the wrong tree, they already have enough people in that department.
Maybe a Pokemon Ranger? Could be interesting with poachers and all, but I don't know about day to day.
It sucks how I don't know what I want to do. But hey, at least I got time to decide.
Wonder walks quietly beside me as I think, I then say aloud "What do you want? Battling? Contests? Protecting other Pokemon? Pokemon breeding? Give me a clue"
Wonder shrugs carelessly...great... she doesn't know either. Well, that's just fantastic!
OH MY GOD AM I IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE OR WHAT!? Wonder and I have been walking a ridiculously long time without ANY sign of civilization. I mean, we are taking our time but STILL. Then again, I probably don't have a map so I coulda passed a town by now or something.
Of course, time passes wonderfully when I have good company, and Wonder is definitely fun to have around. We kinda made up a game where its like a weird version of truth or dare, where if I ask Wonder a yes or no question and she doesn't want to answer then I get to give her a dare, and vice versa (But she uses body language and moves to ask me questions, it's also like charades in that way)
The sun is shining delightfully on us both, a slight breeze ruffling the leaves and cooling us off. The dirt path making dust puffs around our feet. Kinda dirty but eh. Overall it's a very nice day, and- WTF? something is tickling my back so I stop in my tracks and Wonder is gazing up at me in concern
"What the hell is that!?" I crane my neck around to try and look at the backpack, which was taking this time to start vibrating.
I shrug off my backpack and open it up to see one the eggs in the incubators is glowing on and off like a faulty flashlight. My eyes shoot wide open as I recognize what this means ' oh god. An egg is hatching!'
It will take a while though judging on how slowly it's flashing. I look to Wonder who has her brown eyes wide open in surprise too and say "We should stop for the day, it's going to hatch real soon!" my voice slowly climbs to a high pitch as I speak, my excitement overtaking my control over my voice.
I shut the bag and immediately go searching for a place to make camp, Wonder helps by springing into the bush and looking for a small little clearing a ways off the path. We soon find somewhere perfect for the rest of today, it's only around lunch, but I am NOT moving while an egg is about to hatch! I may know that it will be fine to hatch while travelling but go ahead and sue me for being cautious!
As I walk into the site Wonder had found I can see that it really is perfect. It's a small clearing 5 minutes away from the path, it has large oak trees perfect for the hammock and it's very calm and serene.
With Wonder's help, it doesn't take quite so long to set up the Hammock, but Wonder can't really help me with setting up a small campfire. HEY, IT MAY STILL BE AFTERNOON BUT I LIKE TO BE PREPARED AND IT'S NOT LIKE I HAVE LIT IT YET!
Once everything is all done and set up I go back to the incubators, I then carefully pick them up and bring them over to the hammock and lay them down. However, I take out the incubator with the flashing Riolu egg and sit down on the ground with it.
Wonder lays down beside me but keeps her head up to watch. I unscrew the top of the incubator and bring out the black and blue flashing egg, I don't need the incubator anymore for this egg so I place it beside me so I can put the egg in my lap.
Wonder shuffles close enough to me so that she touching my side, I don't think she knows what do with an egg either. Oh well, I know enough anyway.
Several hours pass like this, my sitting with the flashing egg in my lap with Wonder nearby. Of course, we both get up now and then to stretch and get some food. I take a quick peek at the book about raising Pokemon and eggs for extra info.
Not terribly exciting but its an egg! So it's fine.
OH MY GOD HATCH ALREADY.
How long is this going to take?
And as if someone answered my prayer the egg flashed quicker and quicker until it was one burst of light. My and Wonder both close our eyes with the momentary light but it quickly fades.
Opening my eyes quickly I am greeted by the sight of a little Riolu with pieces of a burst egg scattered around it. Holy shit it's adorable!
The Riolu rubs its eyes with its tiny paws before opening them a crack to look directly at me with its red eyes. It cocks its head to the side slightly before squeaking "lu?"
I smile gently "Hey there little one. I'm Shari and this is Wonder" the newly hatched Pokemon looks at Wonder before looking back to me. After a couple moments of uncomfortable staring, it jumps up at me and wraps its arms around my neck.
I freeze for a second or two before returning its hug with one arm. With the other arm, I bring out my Pokedex and scan the Riolu that is still hugging me tightly
Riolu
The emanation Pokemon
Riolu has the power to see and understand emotions like happiness and anger in aura waves.
Female
Egg move: Blaze Kick
Ability: Inner focus
Knows…...
Evolves into Lucario
I chuckle at the Riolu "hey there sweetheart, I'm not going anywhere so you can stop hugging me now"
The Riolu squeaks slightly and lets go of me to sit down in my lap. She looks around curiously at her surroundings. While she is doing this from the safety of my warm lap, a thought pops into my head. Should I get out a Pokeball now or wait for a bit?
I cast my gaze over to Wonder who is staring at the Riolu and ask "Should I bring out a Pokeball or wait for a little while? I don't want to risk her falling into someone else's hands, but at the same time, she might not like getting captured just yet"
Wonder thinks on it for a bit before nodding her head towards my bag where the Pokeballs are. I pick up Riolu and stand up to walk over to my bag, she looks up at me in confusion "Riolu?" I just walk over to my bag and dig out a Pokeball.
I then sit down again on the ground and set Riolu on the ground in front of me. She looks at with a smile but with a bit of confusion still evident. I then say slowly and clearly, so she understands me "This is a Pokeball in my hands. What I want to do is capture you so you can stay with me, is that okay?"
The Riolu nods excitedly so I continue to explain "This is what happens from my end. When you touch the big white button on the Pokeball, you disappear in a flash of red and go into the Pokeball. It will shake a couple times then click shut. Then I will let you out again. Is this okay with you?"
The Riolu still looks confused, but I'm pretty sure I got her with 'Stay with me'. I hold out the Pokeball and she immediately touches the button, she lets out a little yelp as she goes in.
The Pokeball shakes for a couple moments before clicking shut. Yes! She decided to stay! I open the Pokeball and she comes back out in a flash of red.
She cries out as soon as she's back and runs back into my arms and buries her snout into my shirt. I then whisper soothingly "Oh honey, it's okay, you're okay. See? It's just a way to travel sweetheart"
She looks up into my eyes with a sniffle. Wonder trots over and nuzzles her carefully.
I smile at the two before saying "Do you want a name honey?" the Riolu nods still clinging to me.
"Alright then…..How about Ria?" the newly dubbed Ria nods her tiny head, I'm fucking dying, she is far too cute for my heart to handle.
All three of us cuddle for a long while. Now I'm not much of a cuddler, but this is nice. I like this.
Ria falls asleep not long after so I gently place her in the hammock and I start to get a small fire going as once again, it is getting dark.
Wonder sets herself down beside the hammock and waits patiently for me to start dinner, which I gladly get to once I get this bloody fire going.
Damn. I'm a good cook! Just look at this set up! I got a tasty looking sandwich for me and two bowls of Pokefood mixed in with a couple treats…..sssshhhh I totally made this from scratch.
As me and Wonder get to eating our supper, Ria wakes up blearily to the smell of food. She spots us and jumps down from the hammock. Her first few steps are shaky, but my girl gets walking down pretty quick.
She stands at my side for a couple minutes, watching me and Wonder eat our food with a bit of trepidation. I raise an eyebrow "Wanna eat Ria? It's good, I wouldn't give you anything that wasn't"
Taking a glance at me again, she slowly walks over the Pokefood set out for her and cautiously picks up a piece of food and pops it in her mouth.
She brightens up immediately and starts shovelling food in her mouth. I laugh "Don't go so fast! It's not going anywhere" Like any true kid, she ignores me and just keeps going until her bowl is empty.
She licks her lips and yawns sleepily. It is dark now, and me and Wonder just finished our dinner so I suppose it is time to sleep.
Cleaning up is a bit tedious but I get it done fairly quick, washing the dirty dishes with a bit of water from my water bottle then setting them back into the backpack. I dump a bit of dirt onto the fire until only embers are left, cause leaving a going fire while I am sleeping is kinda reckless. I'M NOT PARANOID!
Once that's all done I pick up Ria in my left arm and the other incubator with my other and lay down in the hammock with a bit more success then the other night, (still think I could be in the circus tho)
Wonder rolls over until she is underneath the dark green hammock, I think she just wants to be near me honestly.
As I gaze up to the stars I actually understand why some trainers go from region to region, it's so freeing being out here. With this thought, I close my eyes and fade into a calm sleep with Ria curled into my side and the incubator tucked into the crook of my arm.
