Vivian: Kanto Ranger Chapter 3
We got back to Kanto late last night. My parents told Jack to use the guest room whenever he needed it.
My mom even made breakfast in the morning, which is unusual. She actually made French toast, my favourite. Usually she just looks at me and tells me to do it myself. I'd like to say that she made it today because I'm finally back from Almia, but I bet the real reason is because Jack is here.
"You two better eat up, you have such a big day ahead!" my mom chirped happily.
I gave her a strange look as Jack told her how delicious the breakfast was. I rolled my eyes as they continued to make small talk.
My mom left the room, and Jack stopped eating for a moment. He was looking at a basket on the marble counter with pillows on the bottom and blankets covering it. "Viv, what's up with that basket?"
"Oh that? Those are where my parents leave the Pokémon eggs when they can't carry them. It keeps them warm. Usually they keep the eggs in these ridiculous pouches that look like a phanny pack or something. By the looks of the basket, I'd say there are two in there." I got up and walked up over to the basket.
"What're you doing?" Jack asked.
"I'm just taking a peek" I whispered.
We stood by side, looking at the two eggs in the basket. We stood in silence for a moment, until Jack was surprised at the sudden movement of the eggs.
"What the hell! It's shaking!" he chuckled.
I smirked at his lack of knowledge on Pokémon eggs. "That just means it's going to hatch soon, genius."
He smiled, "Yeah that's what I meant by shaking. Wouldn't it be awesome if they ended up as our partner Pokémon?"
I smiled as his arm found its way to its familiar spot across my shoulders. "Yeah it'd be pretty cool. I don't really see it happening though."
I covered the eggs again, hearing a small noise from inside. "…is that sound normal?" Jack asked.
I chuckled. "Yeah it's normal, they'll most likely hatch tonight."
Jack tugged me away from the counter, moving towards the front door. "Let's get going, shall we?"
We gathered all of our Ranger gear and headed towards Cerulean City Police Department.
We walked to the northeast corner of Cerulean to find the modest-sized police building. It was right near the water's edge, giving a peaceful feel to the chaos surrounding it.
"Quiet little place, isn't it?" Jack asked with amusement. Did I ever mention how amazing he looked in the bright sunlight? Especially that lovely naturally tanned shade he is? I wish you could see it.
"Yeah, it's nothing like Vermillion or Saffron. Can you believe this though? This is day one of being an official Ranger…"
We stood in front of the building, the reality setting in. We must have spaced out a little, because we were spooked when the double doors suddenly burst open. An agitated Officer Jenny stood before us, gloved hands on her hips, with Growlithe scowling at her side.
"Are you two just going to stand there or do I have to make you come in? It's a busy day and crimes don't wait to get solved!" she turned quickly, heading back into the building. Growlithe huffed at us, and followed the blue-haired officer inside.
Jack and I nervously entered the busy building.
My eyebrows rose at the chaotic sight before us. Police officers rushed by, Growlithe trying to keep up, and Officer Jenny motioned for us to follow her into her office.
She sat behind a large oak desk with file folders scattered across it, and Growlithe proudly sat to her right. She smiled lightly at us, which made me feel a tad uneasy about her. Was she not just freaking out a minute ago?
"It's nice to have some Rangers around here. We've been needing help dealing with criminals. We had some trainers, including Lance of the Elite Four here in Kanto, help us out, but now there's just too many bad guys!" the officer said. Growlithe barked in agreement.
"What's been happening?" I asked.
"Well there's a new organization of goons. We're not sure what their name is yet, but we intend to find out within two days. There have been attempts at stealing gym leaders' Pokémon, so we at least know what they're after. I'd like for you two to head over to Pewter, as that is where the most recent incident occurred. I want you two to ask some questions and find out whatever you can. Do you still have your Ranger School Stylers?"
We nodded yes.
"Give them here, you won't need them anymore" she said, putting our stylers into a box. "The Ranger Union sent over some new stylers for you. These ones have much better reception, and a much more secure frequency for communication. There's a code on the bottom that's used for adding contacts to your voicemail. It will allow for you to use them like walkie-talkies. Other than that, they operate the same as your others ones." She handed us our brand-new stylers with a smile.
"So are we going to need anything else for this assignment?" Jack asked.
"Well, I recommend a notepad to write down information to ensure you don't forget anything. And I'm assuming you don't have partner Pokémon yet, correct?"
We slowly nodded.
"Well there's nothing we can do about. That's something that happens on its own. Anyway, go home, pack up, and meet back here by 15:00 hours at the latest. We'll send you to Pewter by Fearow, but you'll have to come back on your own. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am!" we replied.
"Good. Now get to it!"
On the way back to my house, we had fun trying to guess what our partner Pokémon would be.
"I bet you'll get a Magikarp!" Jack said, trying to say it without chuckling.
I glared playfully at him. "You really think so? Hm. I bet you'll get a Hopip!"
"Come on now, be nice Viv" he said laughing.
"That would be better than the Ditto you'll probably get!"
"Hey! There's nothing wrong with Ditto!"
"You're right, that was mean. I'll just stick with my first guess. Magikarp it is!"
I laughed a little as I punched his arm. Before we knew it, we were back at my house.
There were various bright coloured balloons tied to the front gate. Jack looked over at me with a questioning (yet strangely alluring) look on his face. I guess I should explain to him what they meant.
"The eggs hatched. This is my parents' way of celebrating" I said. I was pretty used to this habit of theirs.
Jack looked amused. "So I take it this happens often then?"
I turned towards him and asked if he was dumb. "You do know this is a daycare right? Where people often breed their Pokémon?" I tried to sound mad, I tried hard not to laugh, but that didn't work well for me.
"Yeah yeah, calm down; I get it, dumb question" he said with a smirk.
"I'll never forgive you for such a stupid question" I said, attempting an evil smile.
He put his arm around my shoulders once again. I should really be used to this by now. "I dunno VIv, I'm pretty sure you'll forgive me."
Well, to be honest, if he keeps this up, I most definitely will. It's no wonder half the Ranger School thought we were dating…
We walked into the house to find my parents gushing the newly hatched Pokémon. It surprised me, however, that there were no trainers there to pick them up.
"These little guys haven't been abandoned, have they?" I asked.
My parents were shocked to see us. "No, no," my dad said, "We found these eggs out in the wild during one of our walks. It was strange; they weren't even near any nests! We found one near the Cerulean Cape, and the other near Mt. Moon."
"Poor babies, I don't think they would have lasted very long on their own. Neither of them have any of their types around here" my mom said.
The two baby Pokémon were Ponyta and Cacnea. It was strange to see the two of them. Ponyta aren't usually found around Cerulean, but it was stranger to see the Cacnea. It made me wonder who had lost the eggs in the first place. Or maybe if a trainer let their Pokémon run off and frolic for a bit and…nevermind. That thought stops right there. Nasty thought.
"So what are you two doing back so soon?" my dad asked.
"We have an assignment in Pewter. Officer Jenny told us to pack a few things we might need" Jack answered.
"Oh you better hurry! Officer Jenny doesn't like to be kept waiting!" my mom cautioned us.
Oh trust me mom, we know.
After digging through luggage trying to find some simple items we might need, we found everything we needed to stuff into our bags. We fastened our new stylers onto the special clip on our belts. We found ourselves at the front door once again, just about ready to go. Just as we were about to leave, the baby Pokémon awkwardly stumbled over to us.
Jack laughed, "Looks like someone wants to tag along." Cacnea cried out happily, and stuck its tiny thorns to the fabric of Jack's shorts. Jack shot me a pleading look, wanting to take them with us. I shook my head at him.
"There's no way they're ready for it. They've just hatched. They won't have the energy to travel with us yet" I said. Ponyta came up and nuzzled against my hand, causing me to wish they could come with us.
"Aw come on Vivi, just to Pewter and back? Pwetty pwetty pwetty pwease?" he pleaded, like a child. He even pouted his bottom lip, and made his brown eyes large and innocent-looking. Damn him for being attractive. I almost wanted to give in at that point. Instead, I ended up laughing a little.
"No Jack, come on. I don't want to piss off Officer Jenny again. The last thing I want is for her to send Growlithe after us."
"Oh shit. You know, I never thought of that" he responded.
"Knowing you though, you probably don't think about much!" I laughed.
He smiled, then pretended to look hurt. "You don't mean that!"
I continued to laugh as we headed out the door. "Oh but I do!"
Jack playfully glared at me. "I think a tackle is in order!"
I started to run towards Cerulean. "Uh, how about not? We could always just pretend that you did!"
Instead of receiving a verbal answer, I was tackled from behind, and knocked to the ground. Somehow after a few seconds of tumbling, I ended up on top of Jack. How fantastic.
I get the feeling that things are about to get interesting around here.