(A/N) Sorry for the long update.
WOW, Already this story has OVER 50 VIEWS! Considering the fact that I started this story around a week ago, I'm really surprised and happy.
Other than that, there isn't much else to say.
I hope you enjoy the chapter!
It was the middle of the night. A figure ran in the darkness. Every few minutes it would stop to look around, but otherwise it would just keep running.
"I have to hurry so I don't get caught . . ." The figure muttered. It ran a little more and suddenly skidded to a stop. "Here. Perfect. I didn't expect to find it so quickly."
Something weird coursed through the air. The figure looked around in astonishment.
"Is my presence already known of?" The figure wondered aloud in bewilderment. "If that's the case, I'd better move quieter. Will that help, though? Maybe a wormhole . . . No, this close would be like sending up a beacon. I guess my best bet would be to lean on stealth."
Another course of that energy again.
"Soon," said the figure. "This is one out of six, and there'll be plenty more to find. Probably should've gone for light first, but this one had the only location I knew."
The dark outline became a little clearer, but before she could see who the mysterious figure really was, everything melted into the darkness.
"Hey, Leaf, c'mon, get up."
Something was shaking her. Leaf opened her eyes and realized it was Blaze. The fire had gone out, and bright daylight shone through the canopy of leaves.
"What?" She asked, pulling herself up. "Wait, it's morning? Already?"
"Yeah, we decided to let you sleep through the night." Blaze said.
Leaf nodded. She had had this weird dream last night. Oh well, it was just a dream. She would worry about it if she needed to.
Leaf stood up and stretched. It really was a beautiful day today, with the sun shining and everything.
"Yo, you're finally up!" Zephyr said. He walked over and handed her a big, bright red apple.
"What's this for?" Leaf asked, staring at the fruit.
Zephyr stared at her. "Uh . . . to eat? What else?"
"Oh." Leaf said, feeling embarrassed. She took a small bite of apple. It was really good. She took another, larger bite.
"So, we're leaving after breakfast, right?" Zephyr asked Blaze.
"Yes. If we start soon, we should make it in only half an hour."
"Awesome." Zephyr said. "That last mission was fun, but I really want to get back to Azure."
"A-Azure?" Leaf asked, confused. "What's Azure?"
"The local town." Zephyr said with a shrug. "We live there, and it's basically a mission central. Well, Treasure town is busier, with the exploration guild and all that, but Azure town is really cool too."
"Since there are no guilds or training academies anywhere near Azure town, we have to train ourselves." Blaze said. "So the process slows down since there's no mentor."
"If I'm getting this clear, this is a town that is also inhabited by Pokemon?" Leaf asked.
"What do you mean, also?" Zephyr asked. "Only pokemon live in it! Have you ever heard of Obsidian Village? Elderly Springs?"
Leaf shook her head.
"Oh. Well I've never been to either."
"Why not?" she asked.
"BECAUSE OBSIDIAN VILLAGE IS LITERALLY ON THE SIDE OF A VOLCANO THAT I'M PRETTY SURE SHOOTS LAVAS OUT OF IT'S MOUTH ALL THE TIME AND ELDERY SPRINGS HAS A BUNCH OF OLD POKEMON! AND LAVAS!"
"Ooh-kay . . ." Leaf said. "So there are no humans? No Pokemon Marts or Centers to buy items or heal you up? No houses or anything?"
"No, there are houses and stuff!" Blaze said. "There are shops and facilities that take over the roles of marts and Pokemon Centers. And Zephyr, there is no such thing as lavas. You just say lava, like, a horde of miltank, not miltanks."
"Well, what's wrong with saying lavas and miltanks? Will it kill you if I say awrodeyctialis?"
"What's an awrodeyctiali?" Blaze asked.
"That purple dragon-pterodactyl 's rock flying, and-"
"You mean aerodactyl?"
"Whatever." Zephyr said. "Aerodactyl, awrodeyctiali, arkensaw, it doesn't matter."
Blaze slapped a claw to his forehead. "And I assume you call gyardos guyiariadaws or something?"
"Of course not. And by the way, it's pronounced guyoariadious supreme."
"W-WHERE DID YOU GET THE SUPREME FROM?" Blaze cried, thrusting his arms into the air.
"The internet." Zephyr replied with a shrug. "Google it, it's definitely pronounced guyoariadious supreme. Or was it actually Giniarouse?"
Blaze slammed his head into a nearby tree a few times. His mouth was opened, like he was screaming, but no sound came out.
"Aaaaaaaanyways . . ." Leaf said, thinking of something to say to change the subject. "Uh . . . so, what kinds of Pokemon live in Azure town?"
"All kinds." Blaze said, lifting his head and rubbing it. "I think the population is over a hundred. You'll see when we get there."
"I-" Leaf stopped. "Wait, I'm coming with you guys?"
"Sure, why not?"
"Well . . . first of all, we only met yesterday night, a few hours ago at most!" Leaf said. "And what would I do? I have nothing I need, nowhere to be . . . I don't live there like you guys, or do missions, and-and I was just released less than 24 hours ago, and I'm not used to being without a trainer . . . besides, I'm not even an explorer!"
"About that . . ." Blaze said, looking down at his feet.
"What?" Leaf asked, but as she said it a possibility came into mind. "No way . . . you want me to-"
"I was kind of hoping you would, actually." Blaze said. "You're strong, smart, and the exact same events brought you here that joined me and Zephyr together. You have nowhere to go, nowhere to stay, and nothing to do. Do you want to join Team Crystal and become an explorer?"
Leaf had not been prepared for that when she woke up this morning. Join an exploration team on the spot? She liked Blaze and Zephyr a lot, and was actually beginning to consider them as friends. Joining a team with them would probably be fun.
But this was what she had been trying to avoid-letting herself trust and join somebody to quickly. She didn't want to blow them off, and Blaze was right about her having nowhere to go now-but joining an exploration team right away was a little . . . extreme and sudden.
And then the perfect solution popped into her head.
"The thing is, I've never explored or even been in a mystery dungeon." Leaf said. "I'm guessing that you guys go into them and explore dungeons, but I have no experience with Mystery Dungeons at all."
Zephyr looked at her like she was crazy, and his eyes said 'who needs "experience" and what is it', but Blaze seemed to understand her point.
"I have an idea, though." Leaf said. "I can come to Azure Town for a day and go on a mission thingie, and then I'll decide if I want to join Team Crystal."
"That's a good idea." Blaze said. "Okay then, we'll head to Azure right now and choose an easy mission to do for the day."
"As long as it's not for a forgeliest," Zephyr said. "They look like rotten jack-o-lanterns with pink hair. And their pre-evolved form? Boompakou?"
Blaze covered his face with his claws and screamed. "IT'S GORGIEST!"
"Bro, we discussed this. I don't care how to pronounce things. As long as they don't kill me for saying it wrong, it's fair game."
Leaf decided that if she ever wanted to torture Blaze, she would make Zephyr pronounce a bunch of names wrong. And since there were over 700 Pokemon, it should't be too hard to come up with some stuff to make him say wrong. She could already see it. Gordeeveviawr. Pieofioneeai. Amollamadolamolaloha.
Well, it was easy to mispronounce that last one. Leaf could never say it correctly. Alomalomamo? Amolamomola?
By the time they stopped, Leaf was too tired to think of any more names for Zephyr to annoy Blaze. The walk had been long, and even with the sun giving her an energy boost, she had tired from it around halfway.
They had stopped at two trees that had grown lopsided so they intersected with each other, creating an arch that acted like a doorway. An Ursaring was standing in front of the arch, stopping anyone from going through it.
"Yo, Ursaring, you on guard duty again?" Zephyr asked.
"Yup." said Ursaring in a deep voice.
"Bro, you need a break." Zephyr said. "It's not like humans are actually gonna come here, and they're definitely not gonna go inside Azure Town."
"Actually, it's very possible." Blaze said. "The average full grown human is, depending on genetics, DNA and overall growth, around six feet tall, and if the length and width of this arch, which curves high enough for around that hight, is approximately-"
"I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THOSE WORDS MEAN BUT THEY SOUND NERDY SO I'M SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS TO STOP THE SCIENCEY BRAINY STUFF!" Zephyr yelled loudly. When there was just awkward silence, he grinned. "Awesome, it works every time. Let's go in."
Leaf walked through the arch. Behind it was a sheet of soft ivy and leaves that made a curtain. Leaf went through the curtain and gasped.
She wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but she was probably expecting to see a field of tall grass and some burrows. Instead, a huge clearing larger than the inside of a Pokemon Center was spread out in front of her. There was grass, but it wasn't long and unkempt like she would have thought. There were houses made out of wood and stone and clay and regular building materials humans might use, and though they were small and extremely likely one-roomed, they all had a unique customization to it. The houses were set next top each other to form a ring, and in the center of the circle of houses was a small, perfect blue lake. A little spring sprayed out of the middle of the lake, like a fountain.
"Arceus, Azure Town is amazing!" Leaf said in awe. "This town is huge!"
"What, you thought the North Plaza is all of Azure?" Zephyr asked.
"T-there's more?"
"Of course." Blaze said. "There's a south, east, west, and main plaza too. This is the North Plaza. The north and south plazas are the plazas with houses, and the east and west have rent housing and smaller, less important facilities. Oh, and the Main Plaza is the most important. It has the routes and paths that lead to dungeons and stuff, but also the important shops and industries."
"And of course, it holds the most precious thing to all explorers," Zephyr said in a slightly dramatic voice. "The Exploration Bulletin Board!"
"It's a big bulletin board with job requests, outlaw wanted posters, missions, and a list of nearby dungeons you can explore." Blaze explained. "It's extremely essential to being an explorer."
"So we're going to the Main Plaza?" Leaf asked.
"Yes, let's go." said Blaze. He led them to a path that was almost a straight line from the arch that also had a curtain.
"What are these curtain things for?" Leaf asked.
"Beats me." Zephyr said, then he walked through it.
Leaf went through and felt her jaw drop. This was not gasp-worthy or eye-popping. It was jaw-dropping amazing. It was twice the size of the North Plaza, which had seemed big but now felt tiny. Booths, shops, markets, and buildings dotted the Plaza. The bigger, or apparently more important shops were lined up in a ring, like the North Plaza. Smaller booths or salesmon were dotting the plaza as well. In the middle of it all, outlined with flowers and a cobblestone ring, was a big, crystal-blue lake. It was a beautiful, azure shade of blue and was double the size of the lake in the North Plaza. There was real, mon-made fountain in the middle of the blue lake.
"This is not possible." Leaf mumbled as Blaze walked through the curtain.
"Of course it is, you're looking at it!" Zephyr said.
Leaf looked around. There were so many things. All kinds of Pokemon, from Raticate to Pangoro were walking around, buying, selling, or simply relaxing.
"Blaze! Hey, Blaze!" called a voice. Leaf saw it was a combusken who was waving at Blaze.
"Oh, hi Colonel!" Blaze said, waving back shyly. "That's Colonel from Obsidian Village. He visits here scarcely."
"Ooh, he lives IN A VOLCANO!" Zephyr said excitedly. "Is he, like, immune to burns? Ooh, maybe I should get his autograph! Or tell him my combusken joke! 'What do you call a chicken in a trash composted? A COMPOSTKIN!"
After viewing the town, the hotel-like rent-a-room building where Blaze and Zephyr were currently renting a room, and the rest of the plazas, Blaze said they should do some shopping before choosing a job request.
The shop they went to was called Kecleon Market and was run by two Kecleon. They were both siblings and could change colors, though they couldn't change the red zig-zaggy stripe on their bellies.
"Hello, hello!" One of the kecleon said. It was the sister of the pair and was a rose-pink color (Except, of course, the little stripe on her belly). She seemed familiar with Blaze and Zephyr, but smiled when she noticed Leaf.
" Ah, a new face around town. Here, you get a free Apple the first time you shop here." She said, handing her a shiny red apple.
"Do you have any Reviver Seeds for sale?" Blaze asked.
"Lucky for you, I have one left in stock." Kecleon said. She gave Blaze a Reviver Seed. "That's 80 Poke, please."
Blaze handed her a pile of shiny gold coins. Leaf assumed it was the Pokemon currency.
"Thank you, is that all you would like to purchase today?"
"Yes, thank you, Kecleon." Blaze said, taking the Reviver Seed. "Okay, let's go choose a job."
Leaf stared at the blue bulletin board. In big letters, the words EXPLORATION BULLETIN BOARD were printed on the top. On one side of the board, an assortment of wanted posters was pinned to the wall. Leaf glanced at the pictures of the wanted outlaws; Illumise, Darmanitan, Ambipom, Gliscor, Sudowoodo.
Blaze and Zephyr were looking at the other side of the bulletin board, which was the list of missions and job requests available. Soon, Blaze pulled a piece of paper off the bulletin board and showed it to Leaf.
"How's this one? It takes place at a dungeon that's really close by and isn't too hard, and it's also like treasure hunting, looking for a valuable item.
Leaf saw that the piece of paper had writing on it. She quickly read the small summary of the mission.
Dear kind explorers reading this,
My name is Jumpluff and I am a resident of Azure Town, South Plaza. Yesterday I went on a short search to find a Leaf Stone for a good friend of mine, Gloom, in Shrub Meadows. I found a Leaf Stone, but I must've dropped it while I was still in the dungeon, because when I returned I could not find the Leaf Stone anywhere. I would go back into the dungeon to find it, but unfortunately I can't go back into the dungeon because I do not like mazes that much. Please find my Leaf Stone and return it to me.
I am offering 50 Poke for the return of my Leaf Stone and one Sitrus Berry.
-From Jumpluff
"I didn't know we get rewards." Leaf said in surprise. "But that's alright by me."
"So, do you mind if we do that one?" Blaze asked.
"Sure, why not."
"HOLD ON A SECOND!" Zephyr said, snatching the paper away from Leaf. "We only get FIFTY Poke? That's a smaller reward than a E-Rank Outlaw capture!"
"The reward isn't what matters," Blaze reminded Zephyr.
Zephyr frowned. " I'd rather go to Obsidian Village and see an active volcano."
"Okay, that is an absolutely random thought that I am going to ignore simply because you're Zephyr." Blaze said. "But if Leaf has a problem with this mission, she can choose another."
"No, no! I don't have a problem with it!" Leaf said.
"Great, we can leave for Shrub Meadows now." Blaze said.
Excitement began to bubble inside of Leaf. She was going on her first ever exploration. And even though she had never been exploring, she felt like she was going to love it.
And if she did, her worst fear since being released wouldn't matter.
If she joined Team Crystal, she'd have a purpose, somebody who actually cared about her, and she would have fun doing her job.
And she could finally prove to that milifraction of a cell part of her that was worried that she still needed a trainer.
Leaf got more excited as they began walking to Shrub Meadows.
My first exploration. Leaf kept thinking. I'm going on my first ever exploration.
And as they walked to Shrub Meadows, she couldn't help but smile.
(A/N) I feel like that ended strangely . . .
Here's something I noticed while writing this:
Alomomola
And then, if you write it backwards . . .
Alomomola
HINT: It's still Alomomola when you write it backwards.
Now, because this already has over 50 views . . .
The best way to torture Blaze is to pronounce Pokemon names like Zephyr. Because Zephyr is so . . . unique, Only he can pronounce them the way he does! If you give me the name of a Pokemon in your review, I will make Zephyr say it to Blaze in the next chapter's Author's Note. HAHAHAHA! Think of all the mistakes he'll make! Think of all the suffering it'll cause for Blaze! MUAHAHAHAHAHA!
BLAZE: WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?
LEAF: Because It'd be hilarious. Why else?
All you have to do is write the name of a Pokemon in a review. That's literally it. It's so easy.
Remember to write a review for the chapter! If you have any questions about the story, or for the characters personally, I (or they) will answer them in the next chapter. (As always, please don't write anything inappropriate)
That's all I have to say!
-Static Eevee 198