"Umm, hello."
I hadn't been expecting a voice. Pedestal and I had been eating our lunch, munching on whatever we found that day. (It wasn't exactly appetizing, but at least it was cooked properly. I was getting the hang of using Des' back for such things.) I dropped my sandwich, whereas my Numel just looked up with its same lidded expression.
There was a trainer standing behind me. At first, I honestly thought he was a girl, because of the blush and shy expression. Plus, his outfit did little to change that; he wore an oversized purple sweater and just-as-baggy jeans.
"Do you know where we are?" the trainer asked, rubbing his arm awkwardly.
"Why are you wearing that hat?" I asked instead. The grey didn't match with anything, really, unless his whole theme was grey. Come to think of it, he wasn't exactly wearing any bright colors. The brightest he got was a green stripe on the sweater. "You're very dull looking."
The trainer was no longer shy and blushing at that point. "What?!"
"Your clothes. They're so… dreary. Where are you from, anyway? Some ghost town?" I was actually curious; I hadn't met any foreign trainers yet.
"I'm from Kanto, if you must know. Lavender Town. I don't see how you're in a position to point out my fashion errors, anyway."
"What's that supposed to mean…?"
"You look like you just rolled out of bed." Actually, I pretty much had. "You're a new trainer, aren't you?" he asked suddenly.
I couldn't help but narrow my eyes. Was it that obvious?" "…A little. I wouldn't say new, really, but--"
"I knew it." He tilted his head back and laughed, placing his hands on his hips. "You must be a newbie. That Numel is probably your only Pokemon, isn't it?"
"So what? Des can whip any of your Pokemon!"
Pedestal looked up at the sound of its name, chewing slowly on another berry. "…Nu?"
"Is that a fact?" Now, the other trainer seemed smug. That only ticked me off more. "I have a team of six Pokemon. You only have one."
"One on one, then!" Looking back, okay, maybe I was feeling a little cocky. Or maybe I just wanted to beat something. Pedestal was already level 12, or so said the PokeDex, and we could easily beat most of the wild Pokemon in the area with one blow at that point. (Yes, we needed to move on. We were going to. Eventually.)
"Fine then! Go, Ra!" Quicker than I could react to, the other trainer had reached down to his belt and pulled one off.
"Ra--?"
Ra turned out to be a Ponyta. I had seen them before, but usually they were happy, skittish, and loved to race things. This one… seemed to be a match for Pedestal when it came to interest given to the situation. The pony Pokemon surveyed the scene regally, deeming it all below it, apparently. It was spoiled, too, I could tell, because of the gold rings around its neck. (It only occurred to me later that the rings might've been why it had been named Ra.)
"I won't use my strongest on you. Since I'm such an awesome, gracious trainer and all," the boy said airily, waving his hand dismissively.
"Oh yeah?! Go, Des!"
Des did no such thing. It continued to finish up its meal instead. I heard a howl of laughter and turned to see that the other trainer was literally rolling on the ground, laughing. "Your N-Numel doesn't even listen to you! How long have you been training, kid? A week?"
By that time, Pedestal had finished eating, and lumbered over to the impromptu playing field. It twitched its round ears, staring at the Ponyta. Ra stared back, albeit with much more dignity.
"Yeah, well--Des, use Magnitude!" I shouted. The Numel did something that might have been a nod, and brought its forelegs down into the ground. It started shaking, and with a vindictive grin I saw the other trainer get tossed into the air like a rag doll. The Ponyta fared even worse. By the time I got back up--I had been knocked down as well, because, come on, it was the ground shaking--the fiery pony was lying on the ground, barely conscious.
"Ra!" The other trainer gave a very feminine squeal, rushing over to his fallen Pokemon. The Ponyta gave a weak whinny just before it was returned in a beam of red light.
"Ha! Who's the newbie now, hmm? You can use another Pokemon in the battle, if you'd like, Mr. Hotshot. Me 'n Des won't mind. Maybe you'll be able to get in a move this time--"
Much like how I had taken advantage of his laughing to launch my first move, the other trainer tossed another pokeball and shouted, "Go, Kyu! Water Pulse!"
My head snapped around, ego gone. I knew what water would do to my Numel. "Dodge, Des!" I yelled, in a much higher voice than I would've liked. It was too late, however. Numel were not fast Pokemon, after all.
The little Psyduck on the opposite side of the arena let out a fierce blast of water from its mouth. Des went over like a sack of potatoes. It then mumbled something and held its head, sighing. "…Psy?" it asked its trainer.
"Good job, Kyu. You can return now." He called back his second Pokemon as well, and then walked over while I was trying to find Des' pokeball. It was in my backpack somewhere, I knew, but just where… I wasn't aware of his presence until he spoke again. "You know, you would have won that battle if you hadn't let your ego get in the way."
"Yeah, so?" I knew that.
"Hand over half your money."
"Here," I grunted, handing him a fistful of bills.
"Thanks." He didn't bother counting it, and just pocketed it instead. I finally found Pedestal's pokeball, and returned the unconscious Numel. This was the first battle we'd ever lost. Mostly because we had gotten lucky, with a lot of weak wild Pokemon and few other trainers. "Vahe."
"Huh?"
"Don't you want to know the name of the trainer who beat you?" he asked with an evil smile. "And you know what? I hadn't even wanted to battle you in the first place. I was only wanting directions."
That was really a kick when I was down. Literally, too, since I was still kneeling by where Des had fallen, and Vahe was standing over me. He probably wasn't that much taller than me--if at all--but he sure seemed to enjoy the height difference now. I pointed over to where the path continued behind me. "…That way is to Veilstone City."
"Thanks," he said, still with that evil smile.
And just like that, he left, and I had lost my first battle.
Sure, there had been a type advantage, and probably a level advantage, but Des had gone down in one move. It was a bit of a downer. Okay, more than a downer--I was absolutely heartbroken. My plan was falling to pieces around me. How could I become the best trainer ever if my one and only Pokemon had such a weakness? It's not like water types were uncommon, after all; there was even a Gym that specialized in them!
As I carried Des' pokeball back to the nearest Center, I resolutely, and a bit hesitantly, came up with a solution. I would simply have to get another Pokemon. One that was excellent against water Pokemon. In fact, it would be so good, that it wouldn't have any weaknesses! I would train it up to be a great Pokemon, and together, with Pedestal, we would win the championship effortlessly!
Now I just had to figure out what Pokemon to add to my team. This cheered me up a little, even as I waited for Pedestal to return from the Nurse Joy.
What really cheered me up, though, was that Vahe would sure be surprised when he found out that he was headed to Floaroma Town instead of Veilstone City. So what if I was a little spiteful? It only served him right for beating Pedestal in one move like that.