Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon

Chapter 4: A Lesson in Ailments

I sighed as I watched the Nurse wrapped N's arm with a bandage. 'How often do you have to treat more than one person injured by the same Pokémon in a day?' I joked.

She gave a wry smile. 'It happens more than you think.' She gently patted N on the hand. 'It's a minor burn compared to White's so I've applied a coolant and wrapped it. You should be able to take the bandage off tomorrow; the skin will be sensitive for a few days but it should be fine otherwise.'

N stared at her. I nudged him. He looked at me confused, opened his mouth and closed it again. It was as if someone had hit a mute button on him. 'Thank you.' I thanked the Nurse on his behalf.

She smiled. 'It's fine. Just try to get Zara to stop attacking people.'

I nodded, thanking her again as she moved off to help a trainer who had just entered. I sighed, turning back to N who sat on the chair, staring at his arm. I couldn't help but think it was his own fault. After greeting me earlier, N had turned to my Pokémon, kneeling close to them. Triton had started chattering straightaway angrily, no doubt telling N off for scaring us. I had kept my hand on Zara's head, trying to keep her calm, though a low growl at the back of her throat indicated that she wasn't too happy with his proximity. N had turned to the Charmander and had reached out to touch her before I could warn him; Zara had reacted, letting out an Ember. A little black fox Pokémon I hadn't noticed until then had pushed him out of the way, the Ember just brushing N's arm. With no supplies on hand I had been forced to bring N to the Pokémon Centre.

'I thought you would know better than to approach others Pokémon before asking.' I said crossly to the older boy. Didn't anyone teach him manners? 'I could've told you that Zara was sensitive around people.' The little black Pokémon yapped at me, unhappy with my tone.

'It was just a misunderstanding.' He replied. 'There was no need to place her in a Pokéball. I'm sure we would have come to an understanding if you had given her a chance.'

'I put Zara back in her Pokéball for your safety, not as punishment for her.' I frowned, gently brushing the balls of my two Pokémon. I had returned them after Zara had attacked, not wanting to know what would've escalated if I had kept them out.

'But if you had just given me a chance to talk to her…'

'Zara was not in a talkative mood, if you haven't noticed the wound on your hand.' I folded my arms crossly. 'And speaking of wounds, how on earth did you not know to cool a burn with water? I nearly had to hold you down so Triton could give it a little spray. Didn't you learn any basics before you left home? You'd think a Pokémon fanatic like you would know how to treat a burn. What if it had been your little…' I indicated towards N's Pokémon; I wasn't sure what it was. '…friend who had gotten burnt? How would you have treated him...her?'

'A male….and…well….'

Ignoring his stammering I turned my attention away from N and onto his Pokémon. Pulling out my Pokédex, I quickly scanned it. Zorua, Dark Type. The Tricky Fox Pokémon. He barked crossly at the sight of my Pokédex so I put it away. I turned back to face his trainer, frowning. N was clearly older than me, looking more like a young man than a boy but he had just revealed an ignorance that rivalled Bianca's about the world. And that resemblance made me feel reluctant to leave him alone until he learnt something about taking care of himself and his Pokémon.

The best way to learn was through experience. I sighed and turned to leave. 'Follow me.' I said shortly, indicating towards the door. N silently picked up his Zorua and followed me out of the Pokémon Centre. I paused. Perhaps the Dreamyard would be a good place for basic training.

'White!'

I followed the voice to see Cilan coming down the street. I smiled and waved. 'Hey Cilan. Sorry about leaving so quickly before.'

He waved it away. 'It was nothing. What have you got planned now?'

'Well, I'm trying to give my….friend here a crash course on trainer basics.' I indicated towards N, not knowing how to describe him.

Cilan smiled at him and N nodded in reply. He turned back to me. 'Have you tried the Trainer School?'

I raised my eyebrows. 'There's one here in Striaton?'

He nodded and pointed down the street. 'I just came from there. Go straight down and it's on the right. Just look for the big sign. You can't miss it.'

'A trainer school…what is it like?' N asked curiously.

Before Cilan could answer I jumped in. 'I'll explain it to him later. Are you headed somewhere?'

Cilan nodded. 'I have to go help my brothers out actually. I might see you later.'

'Bye.' I waved until I saw him enter the café I had eaten at earlier. I turned back to N. 'Let's get going.'

We began walking. 'Trainer school?' N repeated.

I shrugged. 'It's pretty much how it sounds.' There was a moment of quiet before I realised that he really didn't understand. 'A Trainer School is where people, mostly young children though there are older students, go to learn the basics of Pokémon, Pokémon care and how to be a trainer.'

'Did you go?' N asked curiously.

I shook my head. 'You don't have to go to school to learn how to be a trainer; it just helps. Sort of gives you a foot up the ladder.'

'What ladder?' I made a face. That would be the sort of question Bianca would ask. N however, realised it was a question I wasn't bothered to answer. He continued. 'Are there lots of Trainer Schools? Why didn't you go? Why doesn't everyone attend?' His speech quickened as it had earlier; obviously when he got passionate or curious he couldn't help himself.

'Not everyone attends because learning about training in school isn't the same as being a trainer out in the field. Different ways of learning for different people.' I quoted my mother when I had once asked her the same question. Of course, I had been six at the time but that was beside the point. 'I attended a class once when I was younger but I was learning the same thing elsewhere with a more hands on approach so it was kind of pointless. I chose not to go again. And I'm not sure about Unova but I know other regions usually only have one, if any. The most famous one, and the one that caused the others to be built, is the Pokémon Trainer's School in Hoenn.' I took a deep breath, realising I was blabbering. Strangely, N's silence after asking questions made him easy to talk to. 'That should be all your questions.'

He nodded slowly, as if processing the information. 'But why do I need to go?'

'Because even though Zorua's healthiness and glow,' Zorua puffed his chest out in pride, 'show that you know about Pokémon health care, not knowing about status ailments and treatment for those injuries is a problem for any sort of trainer.' I informed him flatly.

Before he could reply I stopped and went backtracked a little, realising that we had accidentally walked past the school. Scolding myself inwardly for my inattention, I went in, N and Zorua right behind me. Instantly, a low hum of chatter filled our ears as I saw many trainers, mostly on the younger side, standing around in groups, talking. An old man came up to us. 'Hello there. You were here for the gym leader's lecture? I'm afraid you just missed it. He left a moment ago.'

I smiled at him. 'Thank you but we're just here to learn about status effects on Pokémon…and well, people too.' I shrugged. They had the same effect on both of our species; it's just that one was less sensitive to it.

N stared at the old man but he didn't seem to notice. 'I'm afraid that there aren't any more lessons for today. But don't worry dearie, the gym leader left that information up on the board. They probably haven't rubbed it off yet so you could have a look now.'

'Thank you sir.' He nodded and left. I elbowed N, who had been staring after him. Zorua growled lightly at me; I ignored him. 'That was rude.'

'I don't believe I did anything that could be considered rude.' N told me calmly.

'Staring intensely at him was.' I retorted and walked towards the board, leaving N no choice but to follow.

We walked up and saw the writing was still there; scanning it I saw it was exactly what he needed. I turned to N and put my hands on my hips. 'Well,' I nodded towards it, 'start memorizing.' N stared at the board in fascination. I yawned, rubbing my eyes for a moment. This day was becoming tediously long. A low murmur caught my attention.

'When a Pokémon is poisoned its HP decreases while it is battling…'

I turned to see Cheren standing there, eyes fixated on the board. 'Cheren?'

He turned. 'White! You caught up. Did you come looking for the gym leader? He was just here. You might've walked past him.'

I shook my head. 'Nah, just helping N out.'

Cheren raised his eyebrows. 'N?' I indicated behind me, where the older male was still staring at the board. 'Are you sure this is a good idea?' Cheren whispered.

'He's harmless.' I whispered back. Cheren shrugged, accepting it. I returned to my normal tone. 'What are you doing here though?'

Cheren's eyes lit up. 'I attended the gym leader's lecture. You can never have too much knowledge. It was great listening to what he knew.'

I gave a wry grin. 'Going to use it against him?'

'No way!' Cheren pulled out his badges' case, showing a glistening badge nestled safely there. 'I've already beaten the gym. It was a little tough though. Patrat wasn't quite up to it, so I gave him to Professor Juniper. She said it's been interesting to watch her two Patrat interact.'

I made a face. 'Cheren…if you stuck with Patrat I'm sure he would've gotten stronger.'

'You gave your Lillipup away.'

'Happy was willing but incapable. Your Patrat wasn't incapable; probably just got beaten by experience.' I scolded slightly.

'I'm looking for the strongest White. If I want to be Champion, I have to have the best.' Cheren stated. I frowned. 'Fine, I'll make a bet with you. Beat me in a battle and I'll try it your way. If I win, and I will, you have to accept my way of doing things. I think we're both good enough we can handle an inside match.'

I made a face. I wasn't really in a mood for a battle. I was about to refuse when I noticed it had gone quiet. Looking around I saw all the people in the room had gathered, eager to see a Pokémon battle. Even N was looking at us now, though it was with a slight frown at Cheren. I sighed. 'Fine. Let's do this.'

Cheren looked pleased. I focused; just because I didn't originally want to battle didn't mean I was simply going to roll over. Knowing Cheren, he was going to begin with his starter Pokémon. I gripped a Pokéball.

'Go, Snivy!'

'Come on out Zara!'

I didn't usually care about type advantage. But I knew Cheren would more likely respect this bet and also have his pride less damaged if I played this by the book. Both Pokéballs hit the ground, bursting open. Snivy sneered at Zara, who growled a challenge.

Cheren pulled out his Pokédex. 'Huh, no data?'

'Regional Pokédex.' I explained. 'Won't have data on Pokémon found outside of Unova until Professor Juniper thinks we info on the ones in it. It's how it always works. But for your information, Zara's a Charmander and a fire type.'

Cheren frowned but put the Pokédex away. 'Snivy, Tackle!'

'Zara, Ember!'

The battle didn't last long. Zara's eagerness for battle and her type advantage overwhelmed Snivy. Triton had a little more difficulty with Cheren's new Purrloin but he still won his match. When Triton dealt the final blow there was a cheer in the classroom. Triton laughed and gave a little bow.

Cheren returned Purrloin to his Pokéball and walked over. 'Perhaps your way does show some good results.' He held his hand out.

It was the closest thing to an apology Cheren could give. I smiled and shook his hand. 'Yeah, it can be hard to find balance but the results are worth it.' The crowd began dispersing, now the battle was clearly over.

Cheren pushed his glasses up his nose as he considered me. 'You should challenge the gym. I reckon you might win.'

I frowned. 'Why does everyone want me to take on the gyms?'

'Well you could win. And getting badges is important.' Cheren informed me.

'Hmm….' I suddenly realised N was still behind me. I turned to see him looking as if he was about to burst-no doubt through curiosity. I sighed and turned back to Cheren. 'I have to help this guy, so I got to go. It'll be a while.'

Cheren shrugged. 'I'll come. Now the gym leader's gone I have nothing else to do in Striaton.'

I walked out of the school and started to head to the Pokémon Centre. 'Okay N, shoot.'

'Shoot what?' N asked, confused.

I sighed. He was amazingly ignorant for a boy his age. 'Ask your questions. BUT, one at a time.' I cautioned, before he overwhelmed me.

There was a pause. 'It's strange. Trainers force Pokémon to participate in battles but your Pokémon seem to love it.'

It wasn't really a question but I answered anyway, 'Well Zara just likes battling. She likes it. With Triton, I don't think it's the battling so much but the fact that we battle together. I mean, things are always fun when you do it with friends, right?'

N was silent for a moment. 'What about the Pokédex? How do you know so much about it?'

I smiled. 'I used to live in a place called Pallet Town, in Kanto. I used to spend a lot of time in Professor Oak's lab and I bugged him with questions all the time. If he didn't answer, I could always ask previous Pokédex Holders.'

'Professor Oak? I thought Professor Juniper gave you the Pokédex?'

'She did. She gave me one that I personally would own. I wasn't old enough so Professor Oak would only let me look. But you can learn a lot just by observing. I learnt heaps off him.'

'White's the reason Bianca and I have Pokédexes.' Cheren explained. 'When Professor Juniper wanted to learn about Pokémon in this region she went to White, who was recommended by Professor Oak, who then asked on our behalf as well.'

I shrugged. 'Well I couldn't do it alone. For one thing, there are three starters the Professor has-each one given to a different trainer to observe their behaviour and how they grow. I was only one person; Professor Juniper still had two more Pokémon so you two were the best options.'

N opened his mouth to ask another question when Zorua gave a yap. N looked at him and the Pokémon yapped again. 'Zorua's hungry.' N remarked.

Cheren and I looked at each other. 'I could so with some food.' Cheren said.

I looked at my Xtransceiver. 'I suppose we could do an early dinner.' I had a thought. 'You know what? I won some money off a few trainers earlier. My shout.'

Cheren thanked me but N frowned, 'Shout?'

I rolled my eyes. Cheren explained for me. 'It means she'll pay.'

N nodded thoughtfully. 'I know a good place.' I said, ignoring him. 'I'll lead the way.'

We headed off. I walked along the road, the two boys closely behind. I headed towards the café I had eaten at earlier. 'Here we are.' I said happily when we reached the building.

'White…' Cheren frowned. 'Why are we at the gym?'

I turned to look at him, frowning as well. 'What are you talking about? This is a café I had lunch at earlier. It was pretty good.'

'Well that's funny.' Cheren crossed his arms. 'Because I had a gym battle here earlier.' He replied with absolute certainty.

'Yeah but-'

'Hello White.'

We all turned to see Cilan coming out of the building. He smiled as he came to stand in front of us.

'Hi Cilan.' I shot Cheren a I-told-you-so look.

Cilan turned to Cheren. 'You're the challenger from earlier, Cheren, right?'

'Yes I am.' Cheren shot a I-told-you-so look right back at me.

'I believe there is some confusion as to the purpose of this establishment.' N put in quietly.

'Huh?' Cilan took a moment to process before a look of understanding dawned on his face. 'Oh, this building acts as both a gym and a café.'

'Oh. So we were both right.' I gave a rueful smile before realising the implications of this. 'Hang on. Cilan doesn't this mean…'

Cilan nodded. 'That's right. I'm the gym leader here.'

'He's the one who gave the lecture at the Trainer's School.' Cheren put in smugly.

'Why didn't you tell me?' I asked, exasperated.

Cilan looked confused. 'I assumed you knew. Most people who come to Striaton City knows about the gym.' I made a face. There were way too many gyms in the world for me to try and remember all the details of them. 'By the way, how was your crash course?'

There was a pause. 'Oops, I forgot.' I turned to N. 'Did you read the info?'

N nodded. 'Status ailments is a disability caused by moves a Pokémon makes that does not intend direct damage. There are three types of status ailments or effects; permanent, temporary and battle focused. Permanent statuses are ones which creates an effect on a Pokémon that remains until the Pokémon is healed, though sometimes the status may eventually fade on their own, often causing damage over time. This type of effect includes poison, paralysis, burn, freeze and sleep. Temporary statuses are ailments which will disappear after a certain amount of time or if a Pokémon is taken out of battle. This includes confusion, flinching, infatuation-'

'Stop!' I yelled. My head spun from the information N had rattled off extremely quickly. 'How on earth did you memorize all that so quickly?'

He looked confused. 'Was it wrong to?' I sighed, shaking my head.

Cilan looked impressed. 'I believe that was word for word of what I had written on the blackboard.'

'I wish I had your memory.' Cheren said wistfully.

I shook my head. 'More importantly, did you understand it?' I asked him.

N nodded slowly. 'I believe so. Though I must admit, I don't see the relation between status ailments, such as confusion, being healed by a Pokéball.'

'It's not really a healing. You just give the Pokémon some time by itself without distractions so it can focus again.' Cilan explained.

N still frowned. I sighed; it probably had something to do with his anti-Pokéball ideal. 'Giving them a Persim Berry is just as effective.' He commented.

'A what?' Cilan and Cheren chorused.

'Certain berries can be used the same way potions and other healing items can.' They both looked at me. I shrugged. 'My friend's family used to grow all sorts of berries on their farm; we learnt which berries did what. But those sorts of berries aren't native in Unova.' I turned to N. 'How do you know about them?'

'A man once gave me some seeds when I was a child. I planted them in a garden that lay outside my bedroom. Many Pokémon friends of mine would come and eat them.' N said simply.

'Well berries are rare here in Unova, so it's more effective to use a Pokéball and other man-made objects. The last thing you want is for a Poisoned Pokémon to be wasting their energy walking around while their bodies are trying to fight the toxins.' I replied.

'If Pokémon weren't forced to battle, we wouldn't need to rely on these objects.' N said mildly.

'Where's the fun in that?' Cheren muttered. He cleared his throat. 'Look, even in the wild, Pokémon use status ailments to attack. Knowing how to use these items means outsmarting them.'

'I prefer other methods.'

'And what happens if you're ever in a situation where those methods don't work? What would you do then?' Cheren challenged. I think he was irritated by N's outlook on Pokémon battles.

'It's good to know these things, even if you only end up deciding this way isn't for you.' Cilan said, trying to loosen the tense atmosphere.

N nodded. 'I concede that the spreading of awareness is an excellent position to take.'

'Back to the point,' I interrupted. 'N, do you understand how certain attacks cause certain effects and how you might treat it?'

'I understand this theory, yes.' N nodded again. Zorua yapped a few times. 'Zorua states that it might be good to see the theory in action though.'

Cilan nodded. 'Experience is the best teacher.' N nodded in agreement.

'And how do we do that now?' I pointed out. 'It's getting late. A lot of trainers will be eating dinner then crashing for the night.'

There was a pause as the others thought about it. 'Simple.' Cheren said, clapping his hands together. 'You challenge the gym White.'

I was shocked. 'Me? I said I didn't want to.'

'You said it yourself. You can learn heaps by observing.' Cheren said. 'N can watch while you take on the Striaton Gym.'

N nodded slowly. Cilan smiled. 'This sounds like an interesting plan.' Cilan grinned.

'Why not N?' I argued.

'He has no clue what he's doing.' Cheren said rudely. 'He can watch you first and then apply what he learnt, if he wants to challenge the gym as well.'

'I have to, to achieve my goal.' N stated.

'What goal?' I asked. Then I shook my head, turning back to Cheren before N could answer. 'Why are you so eager for me to challenge the gym?'

'Because it's weird that my rival doesn't have badges to show that she's capable of taking me on.' Cheren said flatly.

I was surprised. 'Rival?'

Cheren nodded. 'You've beaten me twice now. When I become Champion it won't feel right, unless I beat you as well to claim my spot. But if you're not going for Champion, how can I claim to be the strongest? So I need you to get the badges and enter the League.'

I laughed. 'So it's an entirely selfish reason that you want me to take on the gym.' I teased.

Cheren grinned, knowing I meant no offence. 'Exactly.'

I thought for a moment. 'But I want dinner.' I tried to resist.

'If you win the gym challenge, your meal is free.' Cilan put in.

The offer was tempting. A free meal for winning a battle. Cheren wanted me to enter the League, which I wasn't going to, but I suppose one badge couldn't hurt. It could be fun. I called Triton and Zara out. 'Do you guys want to challenge the Straiton Gym?' Triton chattered happily, content with my decision. I turned to Zara whose tail flame suddenly got brighter. She gave a little roar, her eyes shining. I laughed. 'I take that as a yes.' I turned to Cilan. 'I'm challenging you for a gym badge.'

He smiled. 'Well, you'll have to prove yourself worthy in taking on the Leader first. Come inside when you're ready.' He headed into the building.

I turned to Zorua. 'Sorry but you'll have to wait a little longer for your meal.'

Zorua yipped. 'He said it's fine.' N said quietly.

I turned to Cheren, hands on hips. 'Happy?'

He nodded. 'Very. You ready?'

I turned to my Pokémon. 'Let's do this.' I got two cries of approval.

Somehow, Cheren's role in this story keeps on growing. He wasn't meant to play such an important role orginally but it just flowed. Oh well, if it works, awesome. Poor Bianca though; she's just been left behind. She'll have a more important role soon.

I did get stuck on this chapter. It had a lot more dialogue than planned and the gym challenge was meant to be in this one but then it went on way to long, so the gym's gonna have to wait until the next chap. It seems we're staying in Straiton a little longer than planned.

Less action in this chap but don't worry-next one will more than make up for it. Thanks for reading and reviews would be helpful!