CURRENT TEAM: 2
miro [oshawott], tiny [lillipup]
DEATH TOLL: 0
CHAPTER THREE:
I'll Run
Derryn stood at the entrance to Accumula Town, his arms loosely wrapped around the warm body of his starter. The otter in question was glaring up at Cheren, who had barred the timid boy's path and had frozen him in place with little more than a narrowed eyed look. The brunette in question swallowed nervously, "Um, Cheren could you please let me by?"
"Have you even tried training it?" The bespectacled male asked, Derryn glanced down at Miro and blinked. The Patrat and Lillipup that made Route One their home had found the energetic otter to be quite the handful— the water type had attacked them with little to no provocation on their part, and as such had grown to a healthy level eight. "Not the Oshawott, your Lillipup."
"Tiny?" Derryn asked, glancing timidly at the canine. The dog wagged his tail at the glance his trainer gave him, though he didn't seem to take too kindly of Cheren's skeptical tone. "I don't think he likes battling very much, not as much as Miro anyways."
"It'll only end up hindering you if you let a member of your team lag behind like that." Cheren sighed in exasperation and knelt down, "It's weak, hardly strong enough to stand up against any of the wild Pokémon on the route let alone a trainer that would come up against you."
"B-but if he'd rather not battle…" Derryn dropped down on one knee next to Tiny, the small dog was snarling at Cheren now. The fur along his ruff had been raised, his canines glistened— Derryn was a little relieved that the dog didn't know Bite, for fear that he'd sink his teeth into his friend's flesh.
"So you'll just rely on your starter?" Cheren's tone was cold, but logical. "If you do that he'll get hurt. You do know that death rates of trained Pokémon have sky rocketed in the last three years right? And wild Pokémon don't know how to hold back properly. That runt needs to beef up or you're doomed before you can even think to get to Striaton."
Tiny let out a low growl, and whirled before plunging back the way they'd come. Miro huffed impatiently, squirming from Derryn's grasp to hurry after him. The trainer himself only gaped, surprised by his Pokémon's display of aggression, "S-sorry Cheren, um…" He scrambled to his feet and tripped after the two, "I gu-guess we're training more."
"Good luck." Cheren commented, Derryn stumbled after his Pokémon and spotted Miro slamming into another Patrat. The creature whirled, looking a little worse for wear. The brunette halted, feeling a slight pang of pity for the creature.
Miro squared his shoulders, sneering a little as the creature missed its next attack. As it gathered its wits Tiny nudged Miro aside, a low growl ebbed up from the canine's throat. Paws planted firmly, and after a moment Miro stepped back to stand next to Derryn, and crossed his paws over his chest to watch the puppy.
"Tiny are you sure…" Derryn whispered, the Lillipup had, thus far, turned battling down with a tilt of his nose skyward. Considering the dex's mention of him being "somewhat vain" Derryn assumed that the puppy just felt that fighting was beneath him. "Y-you don't have to battle if you don't want to, really. W-we can catch a fighter in the next route, right Miro?"
Tiny growled, a low irritated sound, dark eyes narrowed at his opponent that had seemed to regain its senses. The brown Pokémon dropped to all fours, head lowered it sprang and slammed into Tiny. The puppy yelped, but landed on all four paws and didn't even hesitate to leap forward in his own attack.
"Osh!" Miro yelled, bouncing up and down. Tiny's tail wagged once, and the puppy glanced over his shoulder at the water Pokémon. The next instant the Patrat was exploding up from where it had been knocked down, its head slammed into Tiny's chest and a sickening crunch exploded through the air. The puppy didn't yelp, didn't make a single sound, as he soared quietly through the air and thudded lifelessly into a thick patch of grass.
"T… Tiny?" Derryn croaked, surprise flooded him and he stumbled toward the tiny puppy. Miro dispatched of the Patrat, intercepting it as the creature made a move to Tackle Derryn as well but the brunette didn't even notice, he was crouching next to his Lillipup. "Tiny are you okay?"
The small Pokémon didn't move, didn't wag his tail or sniff proudly at him. Just remained as he was. Still. Miro padded up behind Derryn slowly, a soft sound echoed out of the otter's throat, and he reached one paw forward and pressed it gently to the forehead of his comrade. The Oshawott tipped his brown nose down, and fell very still.
Derryn covered his mouth with his hands— this was surely all his fault. His fault, because if he hadn't let Miro battle Tiny in the first place he'd never have captured the Pokémon. If he hadn't had Tiny with him he'd be lying somewhere else, letting the sun bask his fur. But instead…
"He's dead." Derryn whimpered, tears flooded his eyes. Cheren had, only moments before, reminded him of how harsh training could be sometimes. He reached out and stroked the soft fur, numbly murmured, "The Tackle must have broken his neck."
"Oshawott…" Miro muttered, Derryn scooped the Lillipup's limp body into his arms. He shuddered and heaved out a soft sob, "Osha?"
"I d-don't know what I'm supposed to do." Derryn whimpered, pressing his face against Tiny's fur. The creature was still warm. He'd only just been alive, only just been wagging his tail and wanting to prove himself. "I don't… they never tell you what to do at this part. When they give you the trainer card, and when they hand around the pamphlets. There's nothing in the handbook that tells you what you're supposed to do when…"
He broke down, pressing his face into the fur and wishing that somehow he could revive the still Pokémon in his arms. Miro pressed against him, before lightly tugging the legs of his pants. The brown-eyed male watched as the otter padded away and started digging at the earth next to a tree, his starter's head darted up, dark eyes met his with a solemn graveness that didn't seem to suit the pale face they were set in.
"Right." Derryn choked, sliding over to where his Pokémon was before gently placing Tiny in the grass next to Miro. Together, he and his starter worked on a hole. Moved the earth, and then placed Tiny inside. Miro pushed the dirt over the top of him, and Derryn pulled the otter close and silently wept into his fur.
Time slid by slowly, and oddly enough no wild Pokémon approached the duo. Miro didn't move as his trainer cried on him, but as the sunlight began to fade from the route he nudged the young man's chin. Carefully Derryn got to his feet, and stumbled back toward Accumula Town.
He would have gone home, if it weren't closer.
Entering the hilly town, Derryn made a beeline for the Pokémon center. His heart hurt, his head hurt, everything hurt. A large crowd of people were gathered around a hillside but he ignored them, sliding inside the Pokémon center and blinking when he nearly ran into Bianca.
"Whoa, Derryn, didn't see you— hey, are you okay?" The blonde's voice dropped with concern and Derryn shoved Miro in her arms. She blinked down at the otter, bewildered. "Derr?"
"I c-can't be a trainer." Derryn stammered, trying not to cry again. He took a step back, "He'll just die with me."
"Osha WOTT." The small starter bellowed with something like indignant fury, before leaping from Bianca's arms and bolting from the center. Derryn automatically started after the creature, a pathetic sob worked its way out of his throat.
"M-Miro, please, go back with Bianca." Derryn scooped him up at the last minute. The otter turned an angry glare his way and he flinched, "Please Miro, you just… y-you don't understand, I'm not strong enough to take care of you."
"Shaaaa… wott, osha…" The Pokémon murmured, looking down. Ears flattened against his skull, "Osha."
"Your Pokémon." A voice started just next to Derryn and he jumped, nearly falling over and flicking his brown gaze to the speaker who was crouched next to him and staring intently at Miro. "Just now, it was saying…"
Derryn only blinked, pulling Miro closer to him automatically. The boy that had spoken to him had a wild tangle of green hair, a ballcap was perched atop the mess but it seemed almost like it was ready to explode off of his head. Level gray eyes met Derryn's brown, a quizzical expression lit up his face, "Oh, then you can't hear it either… how… sad."
The young man spoke almost dreamily, as if his mind was rather occupied with something else. Still, he was uncomfortably close to Derryn, so close that had he been doing something other than crouching on the ground clutching an Oshawott to his chest Derryn would have probably tried backing away. As it were he only leaned precariously to the left.
"Who…" Derryn pulled Miro closer to him, "Who are you? A-and what do you mean? C-can you understand Miro?"
"My name is N." He responded, Derryn blinked. N? Like… the letter? Miro snorted as though he found it funny and the green haired male reached forward and plucked Derryn's Pokédex out of his sweater pocket.
"H-hey that's mine!" Derryn complained, reaching for it.
"Ah, a Pokédex," Those slate eyes, which had been slightly friendly before, hardened a little. "So you're going to capture many Pokémon in Pokéballs for this."
"W-well…" Derryn looked down. He didn't want to train, not after Tiny. He pressed his face against Miro's fur, fighting the tears, "I don't know anymore."
"Osha." Miro glared at N, dark eyes narrowed in defiance and anger, "Osha, oshawott."
"Interesting." N glanced to the left, where Derryn just noted a Purrloin was emerging from the shadows. Those eyes flicked to Derryn and then to Miro before a rumbling meow echoed from the creature's chest. N stepped back, "If you insist."
"If you insist what?" Derryn asked, clueless. Miro inhaled deeply, before letting a gush of water explode at the Purrloin. Derryn yelped, dropping the otter and hopping back in surprise, "M-Miro wait, p-please I don't want you to get hurt."
The otter ignored him, running full tilt at the Purrloin who's claws snapped out to scrape over his face. He hissed, inhaled again, and spit another powerful Water Gun in the tomcat's face. He was sent soaring, a loud growling hiss exploded from his maw.
"Please, call your Purrloin off." Derryn whirled on N, who tipped is head to one side quizzically.
"That Purrloin is merely a friend who wanted to test the skills of your Pokémon." N said calmly, he arched a brow, "You mean you're a trainer who doesn't like to battle?"
"I-I don't know, I just don't want Miro to get hurt!" Derryn winced as the Purrloin shot between them, drenched so thoroughly that his ribs were showing through his pelt. Miro watched the creature run off into the shadows, huffing a little and looking up at N with a level stubbornness. "You're okay."
Derryn heaved a sob of relief and scooped the otter up, hugging him close. Miro blinked, surprised by the gesture, and N looked on with an expression of immense confusion. The eccentric male walked over to him, grabbing his hand and pressing a small pendant against his palm.
"Take this." N murmured, those slate eyes flicked up to his. Calm, steady, curious— "I've never quite met a trainer like you, in my travels across Unova. Keep that, it will make your friendship a bit easier I imagine."
"What…" Derryn peered at the odd object, it was glowing with something like electricity and emitting a small hum. A strange P-like letter was etched into it, and as he looped the chain over his head so it could dangle at his neck his ears started to ring a little, "What is this?"
But when he looked up N had disappeared. He blinked, reaching up to grab the odd pendant and Miro huffed a little impatiently, ("Well that guy was sure as shit the mayor of Crazy Town.")
"I wouldn't say he was crazy— w-wait." Derryn jumped, eyes meeting Miro's who had looked up in surprise at his words, "Did you just talk?"
("Oh holy shit you understand me.") Miro said in response. Derryn stared for a moment, fingers wrapped tightly around the pendant that N had just given him, before his eyes rolled up into the back of his head and he collapsed on the sidewalk in a dead faint.
A/N: The strange thing about writing Nuzlockes is that there are Pokemon I legitimately didn't care about in-game that make me cry when not. Boooo
