Chapter 4: Keep Calm and Rock On
Leaf absently noticed that waking up in the Pokemon Center this time around was much less eventful than her last visit. Of course this time she was in the Trainer's Rest Area and not in the hospital wing, which she was quite happy about not visiting again.
As she stretched out her body, the worries of her journey faded away. She had gotten a Pokedex, a full team of Pokemon with more to spare and she was free of that idiot Red. Sure, he may have caused some wanton destruction in his wake, but it's not like she'd ever have to deal with that idiot again.
Putting on a triumphant smile, she quickly dressed herself and tidied up the small room she was in. It was more of a broom closet in Leaf's opinion, but she supposed she should be grateful that it was free-of-charge.
After exiting the Center, she made a beeline for the Pewter City Park at the northeast side of town. Just a little distance from the Gym, the Pewter City Park was really just a small and well-kept hilly patch of grass with a few floral arrangements interspersed along the main path. At the end of the hill there was a small fenced-off overlook from where one could see the rest of the city along with a small sign that read "Welcome to Pewter City!"
In Leaf's humble opinion, it was a lovely, quiet place to plan her next move.
Leaf was a driven young woman with her own goal: To be the best, like no one ever was...
No, that's not it.
It was to complete the Pokedex. She was determined to catch every Pokemon she came across in order to learn more about them.
The question is, how? Leaf pondered, leaning her upper body over the fence. Should I just walk around aimlessly, or maybe I should try and talk to the renowned Gym Leaders in Kanto. Surely, they would know about all the different types of Pokemon and where they can be captured...
Leaf, though she loathed admitting it, also wanted to see how she stood against those professional Pokemon Battlers.
Before her battle with Red, Leaf would have paid the Gym Leaders no mind, thinking herself to be better than all of them.
But if she lost to an idiot like...that guy...then maybe there was something she was missing.
Argh! Leaf's face contorted as she stomped her foot on the ground. It irks me even now to think about it!
If she was being honest with herself, she would have to admit that Red had a talent for battling and communicating effectively with his Pokemon.
However, she refused to acknowledge that such a pedestrian character would have any talent at all, especially when compared to someone who had studied Pokemon for quite some time and was one of the best in her class.
"Fine, then!" she snapped, determination burning in her eyes. "I'll go to this Gym and challenge the leader! If I'm not mistaken, he's the Rock-type Gym Leader, so maybe he can tell me where I can find such Pokemon...after his defeat of course! Ohohohohoho!"
Leaf didn't know it, but because of her overlooking view and the wide-open space it provided, her laugh echoed all over the town. Anyone outdoors at that moment had one unified thought: What an annoying laugh.
"And then I suppose I'll go to the Pokemon Museum here. I've always wanted to visit it."
What a nerd.
With her goals firmly in mind, Leaf set off down the hilly path of the Pewter City Park and towards its Gym.
In hindsight, Leaf realized much later that going to the Gym was a terrible idea.
It started out well enough. When she entered the Gym, she stepped into a small, air-conditioned waiting room with a few plaques on either wall listing the trainers who had challenged and defeated the Gym. On the left side of the room there were a few vending machines for both the trainer's and employee's convenience, and to the far side there was a set of automatic doors, which Leaf assumed led to the Gym proper.
She was greeted by a laidback and suave-voiced, if somewhat portly, man by the name of Clyde. He told her that this was indeed the Rock-type Gym and that it was led by a man named Brock. He also told her that there was a challenger already ahead of her, but she was free to watch and wait until the challenger was finished.
Thanking the man, she went through the double doors. Glancing around, she saw that the Gym proper had the look of a large rocky terrain. Some parts could even be described as mountainous while others were just low craters. Leaf had to hand it to whoever designed the Gym; a Rock-type Gym Leader would be proud to call this his or her arena.
There were defeated Gym Trainers nearby, employees who worked for the Gym Leader and made sure that only worthy trainers could challenge him. In their current state, they couldn't even protest Leaf's presence here, which she was grateful for. Leaf imagined that the trainer ahead of her must be somewhat talented if he managed to make it through all these professional battlers.
"Hey, Leaf! One day out of the gate, and I'm already beating a Gym. Pretty good, right?" It was then that Leaf knew that by entering the Gym at this exact moment, she had fucked up.
That barbarian Red was standing in front of her to challenge the Leader. She seriously considered just turning around and leaving.
"Hey, hey." The deep voice of the Gym Leader Brock sounded out. "You can't say that until you beat me, you know."
"Pfft, yeah right," the idiot responded, patting his Charmander on her head. "Ash'll take you out, just like the rest of you rockheads. Ohh!"
"... Are all you kids this stupid? There was a ginger kid who came in here a half-day ago and made the same stupid puns."
"..." Red glared at Brock. "You're stupid, shut up."
Leaf thought that leaving right now was a good idea—
Wait a second. Did that idiot just say he'd fight the Rock-type Gym Leader with a Fire -type Pokemon? After she had told him about Type Effectiveness? Didn't this idiot know that Rock beat Fire?
On second thought, she would stay and watch. If only to rub that ungrateful idiot's defeat in his face. Ohohohoho!
Red and Brock paused to look at Leaf strangely.
"Miss, do you have something in your throat?" Brock asked. "We have a vending machine in front you can visit, if you'd like..."
"Er, uh. No. I'm fine. Please continue." How dreadfully embarrassing. I need to stop this habit of laughing out loud.
Leaf was directed to the side of the room where she could watch the battle from a safe distance. She held her Pokedex in her hand to catalog any battle experience when it was her turn to fight.
Both Brock and Red faced each other in the main circle, the latter with this stupid cocky grin on his face while the Leader had his arms cross and a stoic expression on his. Leaf also noticed that Brock's eyes were quite narrow, almost to the point where they looked like closed, straight lines.
"How is he able to see? He looks like he's always sleeping," Leaf asked one of the Gym Trainers standing next to her, a youth in what appeared to be a green Boy Scout uniform.
Both Gym Trainers had also moved to the sidelines to witness the battle and to cheer on their boss. This kid had been a brute as he took down their poor Geodudes with unnecessary force. What's more, he gloated about how this Gym was a breeze afterwards! They hoped Brock wiped the floor with this jerk.
The boy shrugged. "We asked him that, but Brock didn't really answer us. To be honest, he doesn't talk much at all. He's a pretty severe guy. Except he gets all weird whenever he sees one of the Nurse Joys."
"I see." Leaf then turned back to the fight which had now just started. Red was busy trying to egg Brock on for a solid minute with little success.
It was apparent that he was frustrated as he then shouted, "Ash, let's show this guy what we're made of!"
The Charmander hit the field, baring its claws and fangs menacingly. Brock took out a Pokeball and released what looked like a boulder with rugged arms sticking out from the side and a face. How creative.
"Geodude, the Rock Pokemon. Its round form makes it easy to pick up. Some people have used them to hurl at each other in a snowball fight."
This world is full of morons, Leaf thought, rolling her eyes. She would bet her life that Red would be the type to use one of those Pokemon as a snowball.
"Ash, use Ember against that oversized rock!" Ash attempted to set fire to the Geodude…only for the rock to remain as stoic as ever with very little damage done to it.
"Huh? That's odd, why didn't that do more damage?" Red said, scratching his head.
Type. Effectiveness! Leaf wanted to scream that out to him, but managed to hold her tongue, instead giving a small snicker. This ought to be good.
"Geodude, use Rock Throw," Brock ordered.
"Geo." With that grunt, the living boulder grabbed a moderate-sized rock and lugged it with all its might at Ash. It made a direct hit in her gut, flooring the Charmander to the ground.
"Rrrr…" Ash whimpered, slowly getting up and shakily gaining some balance.
Red's eyes widened. "Wait, is this…a super-effective move?!"
"Good job, dumbass! You get a gold star," Leaf taunted. Maybe she was being mean, but it would be a tough lesson for Red to learn; one can only learn from experience, after all. Besides, he had the perfect move to defeat Rock-type anyways. Not like Leaf was going to spoil it or anything, though.
"Hit it with another Rock Throw." The Geodude grabbed another rock and hurled it at Ash.
"Dodge that rock, Ash!" The fire lizard did so, as the rock slammed into the spot where she once stood.
"Don't let up, Geodude! Keep throwing; one more should take it out," Brock ordered.
The Geodude was hurling as many rocks as it could at its foe. It looked like Ash was doing a comical dance as she tried to best to avoid the stony missiles from causing any more damage to her.
"Gah! Um, Ash, try using an Iron Tail on it!" Red shouted, hoping that it would do something to the evil rock.
Ash's tail hardened and she swung it at the Geodude. Unfortunately in her panicked state to avoid getting hit, Ash missed the Geodude by five meters, who then proceeded to hit her with rock to the face.
She was knocked out, making small groans in pain. Red couldn't believe this. Ash was his strongest Pokemon and all he had left was Guts. Maybe his badass scar would intimidate the foe.
As he recalled Ash and sent out Guts, a faint smirk graced Brock's lips. He knew that he had won this match.
"Guts, use Harden!" Red commanded. Guts' body trembled for a moment and seemed to have grown tighter after using the move.
"Geodude, use Rock Throw."
The Geodude hurled many rocks upon the Metapod's body until the pod tumbled over and shut its eye in defeat.
"Sorry, kid. You gave it a good shot," Brock said in a rehearsed monotone. He recalled the Geodude and accepted the reward money from Red.
Red's face was priceless to Leaf. It was somewhere between indignation and confusion, as if he couldn't comprehend how he had lost.
"I don't get it; I won every other time! What's your secret, man?" Red asked Brock.
The Leader shrugged. "Just get good at Pokemon. Then you can beat me."
Red's mouth tightened and his eyes burned brightly. He lifted a trembling finger and hissed, "I will return to destroy you, blind man."
"I'll be waiting." Brock then added, "And I'm not blind, asshole. My eyes just look this way."
Red stood there glaring at the Leader before spinning on his heel and stomping away. He then looked at Leaf and said to her, "I bet you're real happy about my loss, huh?"
Leaf gave him a cheerful smile. "Maybe a little. I'll give you a hint, because I am such a benevolent person: you were on the right path with Iron Tail. Remember, Type-"
"Effectiveness. You don't need to remind me all the time. See you around," Red said. He then added quickly, "Oh, right, I almost forgot. Burning down parts of a forest…it does the environment some good, right? It lets new stuff be able to grow or something beneficial, right?"
Leaf gave him a look that could kill. "Don't you know anything? Only certain habitats need to have trees burned for new life to grow. And they use a controlled burn technique; they don't light the damn place on fire!"
"Geez, there's no need to pop an artery," Red said. "Is it your time of the month, or something?"
Leaf smacked Red in the head with the base of her palm. She briefly wondered if it was even evolutionarily possible for someone to be as dense as this idiot. Surely by now he would have been weeded out by natural selection, right?
She then turned her attention to Brock as he approached her. "I take it you're here to battle me as well? You'll need to go through my Gym Trainers before you can face me."
Leaf nodded. "That's fine. I look forward to battling with you." She had seen some of his battling style already; with her knowledge of Pokemon moves and abilities, she would make sure not to lose.
"Ha, you may have kicked Jerry's butt, but you're still light years away from facing Brock!" the Trainer said haughtily, holding up a Pokeball.
Leaf smiled in excitement. She had just beaten the first Gym Trainer, the boy in the green camper uniform. He had only one Pokemon: a giant gray behemoth called Rhyhorn. She only needed to send out Bloom for the fight.
She had used a wait-and-heal strategy to win the match: whittling down Rhyhorn's health with Leech Seed while also planting roots with Ingrain to gain more health after every round. Combined with Tackle (which she noted didn't do much against the Rhyhorn's hard exterior), the Rhyhorn eventually went down.
Her opponent Jerry commended her and she was allowed to heal up Bloom with a Potion before facing the next Gym Trainer, a boy in a brown scout uniform named Liam.
Leaf was also able to take down this kid with few problems: his Geodude was a bit of a hard hitter, but she took it down using her previous strategy.
After the Geodude went down, Bloom suddenly let out a surprised cry and clenched her face as if she was thinking really hard about something.
"Bloom? Are you alright?" Leaf said. She realized what was going on and pointed her Pokedex at her Pokemon. It gave a sharp ding and a message appeared on the screen.
Notice: Bloom wants to learn Vine Whip, but cannot learn more than four moves. Would you like it to forget a move to learn Vine Whip?
Perfect! Just at the right time, too, Leaf thought, a smile stretched across her face. It was terribly inconvenient that Pokemon only learned up to four moves and were forced to forget one if it wanted to learn another, but Leaf could at least understand the reasoning. Learning new things was a hard task even for humans, so it would cause mental strain upon a Pokemon's mind to learn more than four moves at a time.
She looked at the moves registered to Bloom and picked Growl to forget. Seriously, it's kind of a useless move up to this point.
Would you like to forget Growl and learn Vine Whip?
Leaf pressed the "Yes" button. A short ding came from the device and the robotic voice said:
Congratulations, Bloom forgot Growl and learned Vine Whip.
Bloom let out a joyful cry and took up a battle stance as Liam sent out…a yellow, round creature with black eyes.
Leaf found the creature to be quite adorable as she looked up its data. "Sandshrew, the Mouse Pokemon. It burrows and lives underground. If threatened, it curls itself up into a ball for protection."
"Wait a second. Isn't that a Ground-type? Well, I guess they're close enough to Rock-types, but still…" Leaf said, though she decided that she was nitpicking rather needlessly. Geodude was also part Ground in addition to being a Rock-type. "Anyways, Bloom, let's test out your new Vine Whip attack!"
"Bulba!" Bloom cried. Two vines appeared from her bulb and began to smack at Sandshrew, who instinctively curled into a ball for protection.
"No, Sandshrew! Scratch at your enemy!" the Trainer shouted, though the Sandshrew ignored him as it was dribbled around like a soccer ball before being smacked into the wall by a vine and closing its eyes in defeat.
"Gah, I can't believe I lost for a third time against a newbie trainer!" Liam cried in anger.
"Nice work, Bloom. This Gym Battle will be a cinch!" Leaf said, stroking the head of her Pokemon. She nuzzled up against it in affection.
Leaf then said to Liam, "You should get to know your Pokemon better or it won't listen to your orders. Also, a light year is a measure of distance, not time. Check your facts first before using them, idiot."
Liam's face became cherry-red as he sputtered, "I-I knew that! Heh, yeah, totally knew that. Anyways, you're pretty hot." He then jabbed a finger at Brock and shouted, "But you're not as hot as Brock!"
Leaf raised an eyebrow and pondered that statement.
"Are you gay or something?" Red asked, sullenly pouting in his corner of the gym. He had decided to stay to watch Leaf's battle. She had told him that he might learn something from this, to which he stuck his tongue out at her and proceeded to pout.
"What?! No, you're gay!"
"You want to start something, kid?"
Leaf could feel an incoming migraine as the two children continued their bickering. Tsk! Why are boys so annoying!?
"Just ignore him," Jerry stated resignedly, as if he was witnessing an everyday occurrence. "He's kind of...like that."
"Another Red," Leaf groaned. "That's exactly what this world needs."
Leaf sighed before walking up to the podium where Brock was standing. He had his arms akimbo and seemed a bit more ready to battle than how he was with Red earlier.
"You seem to have some potential, miss," Brock told her. "But as a Gym Leader I believe in rock-hard defense and determination. I won't lose."
"…I hope you didn't mean to make a pun out of that," Leaf said before going into battle mode. "Let's go, Bloom!"
"Bulbasaur!" Bloom said, her eyes narrowing. She still remembered being defeated by that Charmander. She would not lose this time; she would make her trainer proud of her.
"Go, Geodude." The same Geodude came out with a grunt, glaring at his foe.
Leaf recalled that Geodude, like most Rock-type Pokemon, were slow-moving. "Hit it with a Vine Whip!"
She expected to do a great deal of damage to the Geodude. She didn't expect to knock it out in one hit.
Brock didn't seem all that fazed. "I think I know the outcome of this battle. Grass is four times effective against Geodude, who is…"
"Both Rock and Ground, of course!" Leaf said, her eyes widening. Whatever Brock had next would be cake walk. She tried her best to keep herself under control until after she won the match.
Brock smiled a bit more. "You're pretty good. But my strongest is yet to come. Come out, Onix!"
The ball opened to reveal a towering gray Pokemon with boulders connecting one another to form a chain and a horn on its head. It stared down at its opponent with dark eyes.
"Onix, the Rock Snake Pokemon. As it grows, the stone portions of its body harden to become similar to black-colored diamonds."
"Oh my," Leaf gulped, holding her Pokedex up to the stone leviathan.
Red, meanwhile, pumped his fists and shouted, "Holy shit! That's really awesome!"
N-No matter, Leaf. It's also part Ground, so Grass will be effective four times against it. Just keep calm and carry on.
"Alright, Bloom, use-"
"Onix, Bind the enemy." The Onix easily slithered around Bloom and wrapped its tail around the creature.
"Bul—BAAA!" Bloom screamed in pain as the coils tightened around her small body.
Leaf attempted to keep her breathing under control. "Bloom, just keep calm. Take slow breaths and use Vine Whip!"
Bloom heard her master's orders and did as she was told. She ignored the bind and proceeded to, as the kids these days say, "pimp slap the shiznitt" out of the Onix.
"Groawr!" the beast roared out in pain. It unknowingly released Bloom, who took that moment to scuttle away and catch much needed air.
"Okay, another Vine Whip should do it—Oh, come on!" Leaf's mouth was agape as the Onix seemed to heal from the damage by chewing something in its mouth.
"Oran Berry. Very handy in tight spots," Brock explained, though he grimaced again as Bloom hit his Pokemon with grassy vines. Of all the days to forget a Potion…
"Onix, use Rock Tomb!"
Onix grabbed nearby rocks and hurled them at the foe. Leaf decided to make a split decision based off her last battle with a human opponent.
"Err, dodge those rocks, Bloom, and finish it off with Vine Whip!"
Bloom ran forward, avoiding most of the damage while still procuring some nasty cuts from the attack and her movements slowed down because of the obstacles. As soon as she got close enough, she let loose her vines from her back and smacked the Onix as hard as she could.
With that final smack, Onix closed its eyes and toppled to the ground with a thundering crumble, turning up a thick cloud of dust.
Leaf covered her mouth and coughed while swiping away much of the grime away from her. She would need to wash her clothes after this match; what a pain.
As the dust cleared away, Leaf could see that a new crater had been formed from the fainted Onix and understood that a lot of the "décor" of the Gym was actually from Onix's large body hitting the ground. Probably to minimize damage costs for the Gym repair.
The gray rock beast was put away into its ball and Brock approached Leaf, still with a serious look on his face. Leaf felt a bit tense as she held out her hand.
"It was a good match, Brock. Thank yo—Oof!"
Leaf was nearly barreled over as Brock slapped her on the back quite hard and let out a jovial laugh.
"Fuhaha! Not bad! Leaf, was it?" he congratulated, giving her a wide smile. "I took you for granted, which is why I lost. Sorry about that."
"Uh, no. It's fine." Leaf massaged her sore back as she let out a smile. She had won against her very first human trainer. And she was able to beat someone that won against that moron Red!
"Here, as proof of your victory, I'll give you this official Boulder Badge." Brock dug in his vest pocket and pulled out a small gray badge in an octagonal shape, resembling a boulder. How original.
No one noticed, but Red was having a mini-conniption fit in his pity corner. Actually, everyone noticed. It was just that no one cared.
"Thank you, Brock," Leaf said, admiring her miniature trophy. While she wasn't all that interested in battling apart from toughening up her Pokemon to see them grow, she loved the feeling of being recognized for her hard work and skills that she had come to learn and perfect over time. She hadn't felt this good since she graduated from the Pokemon Academy with honors and earned the title of Quiz Bowl Champ. Validation felt pretty awesome.
"That Badge boosts your Pokemon's attack stat. It also allows you to use the HM Flash outside of battle," Brock explained.
"Really? How does a small pin like this manage to boost my Pokemon's stats and allow me to use a Hidden Machine?" Leaf asked, slightly perplexed. "Explain further."
Brock shrugged. "Well, the League has them made at Silph Co. where they install a chip in each badge that gives it a certain function. After you leave, I make a report to the League about your victory and they'll activate the chip so it will take effect soon afterwards."
"Really? That's pretty technical," Leaf said. She then lifted up her bag and attached the Badge to it, making sure that it was secured properly. She wanted everyone to see her award.
"Here, you can have this as well," Brock said, pulling out a small disc from his pants' pocket. "Gym Leaders give this as a courtesy prize for a job well done."
"A Technical Machine? Thanks," Leaf said, accepting the gift. Written on the top of the disc was "TM 39."
"It contains Rock Tomb, the move you saw my Onix use in our battle," Brock said. "Make sure you choose wisely who learns the move. Our TMs aren't as sturdy as those made in other regions, so they break soon after use."
"Will do." Leaf stored the TM in a separate section of her bag. "Thank you again for the battle. Perhaps you could tell me where I can find the Pokemon you own in the wild?"
"Well, let me think…Geodude can pretty much be found frequently in Mt. Moon and the Rock Tunnel, or even by breaking rocks. Onix are rarer, only appearing in the Rock Tunnel or Victory Road. Did that help?"
"Yes, thank you very much. Have a good day."
"You too, Leaf," Brock said. Just as Leaf was about to leave, he added, "And once that Red kid comes out of his stupor, tell him to get better at Pokemon. You two seem to be quite good friends."
Leaf shuddered in place, but nonetheless said, "Y-Yeah, I'll tell him that. Bye," and waved her hand shakily.
"Welcome to the Pewter Museum of Science. The entrance fee is 50 Poke."
Leaf handed over some of the money she had won today, and entered after the clerk accepted the money and bowed to her politely.
The interior of the museum was spacious and pristine, as there was only a handful of people wandering the place. There were a few exhibits on display to the public and a spiral staircase leading up to the second floor.
Leaf thought that it was a lovely change of pace from the conversation she just had with Red a few moments ago. After the match, she had to physically drag him out of the Gym and relay Brock's message to "get good at Pokemon." After throwing a childish fit, he took off into Viridian Forest. Honestly, she was worried about the state the forest would be in come the next few hours, but she was more relieved to be free from his presence.
Shaking those thoughts off, Leaf walked about the building and observed each exhibit with fascination. She started on the second floor where it was mainly astronomical and geographical exhibits to look at: a space shuttle that landed on the moon's surface, a few Moon Stones discovered in the depths of Mt. Moon, and several early maps of the regions during the Age of Discovery.
After making her way down to the first floor, Leaf learned more about art and relics from the past, including fossils of ancient Pokemon trapped in stone or amber. Her favorites were the skeletal remains of the historic predators Kabutops and Aerodactyl.
Any normal girl would have probably been creeped out by the Kabutops' intimidating scythes or Aerodactyl posed in mid-flight menacingly, but not Leaf. She wanted to learn more about these Pokemon than just what was cataloged on the plaque beside them; she wanted to battle with these Pokemon and record them inside her Pokedex.
It would be nigh impossible, as they were quite rare to obtain. Most archaeologists who discovered the fossil remains would often isolate them for intense study after reviving them, only handing them out to highly skilled trainers. Many, like these fossils, were simply used as exhibits.
Well, she had done the impossible before. Maybe one day she'll encounter some prehistoric Pokemon…
"Excuse me, young lady?"
Leaf turned around to see a young man with a slightly red face approach her with something in his hand.
"Is this your first time visiting the museum?"
"Oh, yes, it is actually. It's a wonderful museum. I'm surprised there aren't that many people here."
"Heh, yeah, it's a real shame," the man, who Leaf guessed was a researcher here, chuckled as he shifted a bit uncomfortably. "Well, we of the museum would like to thank you for your interest by giving you this. Think of it as a gift for your first time visiting us."
He then presented Leaf a small shard of crystallized amber. On closer inspection, Leaf could catch a glimpse of what appeared to be an arrow-shaped object encased inside of it.
"Wow, is that a fossil inside of that amber?" she exclaimed, after taking the amber piece in her hands.
"I believe so. There's a Fossil Restoration Center far away on Cinnabar Island. If you ever get there, I'm sure they can revive it for you."
"Well, thank you very much for this gift," Leaf told him, pocketing the piece into her bag pocket.
Before the guy could work up the nerve to ask the pretty girl he noticed out for lunch, Leaf headed for the door.
"I can't believe how much time I spent here. I better get going. Have a nice day, sir, and thank you!"
With that, she was out the door and out of his life.
The researcher could only sigh in despair. Not only was he not getting a date, but he was going to get yelled at by his superiors for giving away a highly-valuable Pokemon fossil.
He should have just become a member of that snazzy-looking Rocket organization.
"Well, haven't seen you in a while. How've you been, Leafy?"
Oh, great, Leaf thought as she was face to face with that other idiot with the color name, the messy hair and those garish purple pants. I'm just running into all the "world's greatest minds" today. Lucky me.
After visiting the museum and healing/restocking, she had decided to head out onto the next route for training and potential capturing time. She had run into various trainers and did quite well against them. She had also captured a few new faces, including the male species of Nidoran, a Sandshrew, a creepy purple serpent called Ekans, and a pink furball with eyes the size of dinner plates called Jigglypuff. She was enjoying the peaceful scenery as her Pokemon grew stronger and her Pokedex filled up with more data.
And the best part was that she had seen no sign of that imbecile! This had put Leaf in a good mood when she entered the Pokemon Center located conveniently outside of Mt. Moon to rest for the night.
And then she ran into Blue, lounging on a couch and drinking a can of soda.
Leaf planted her hands firmly on her hips and looked away. "You should be more concerned about your progress than someone else's, but if you must know, I have been filling up my Pokedex and even won a Gym Badge today. It was quite exhausting."
Blue took a long sip of his cola before crushing the can in his hand and tossing it into the waste basket nearby without even looking. He shoots, he scores.
"Good for you, Leafy, though you were a bit slow catching up to me. I take it that dork hasn't won against the Leader of Pewter yet, huh?"
Leaf looked quite smug. ""Hasn't won yet," you say? Oh, Red lost spectacularly against Brock. It was rather sad with how many mistakes he made; it made me want to cry…that idiots like him could actually lose to the first Gym Leader. Ohohoho!"
"Man, you have an annoying laugh," Blue said with a light scoff.
As Leaf glared at Blue with a scowl, the boy stood up and added, "And Red will catch up eventually. He may not look it, but he's pretty smart when he puts his mind to it."
"…He burned down a fifth of Viridian Forest and vandalized a Pokemon Center."
Blue could only shake his head and roll his eyes. Classic Red.
He then said, "Well, I would usually challenge a tough trainer like you to a battle, but I'm heading to bed early tonight. I got a lot of work tomorrow going through Mt. Moon and catching some thieves."
Leaf stopped scowling to look at Blue in surprise. "Thieves? What do you mean?"
"There's a notice on the bulletin board at the front desk that the police put up tonight. Apparently, there are some shady people wandering through Mt. Moon, harvesting fossils and Moon Stones, and even attacking trainers for their Pokemon or valuables. There's a reward for anyone who puts a stop to them."
"That's awful. So why are the police relying on bounty hunters and not handling this themselves?"
Blue shrugged and replied, "Mt. Moon's pretty huge; lots of hiding spots if you don't put time into searching. Besides, have you seen the Kanto Police Force? It's a joke."
He wasn't wrong there; not a lot of the budget went into local security as it all went to the League and maintaining the environment, such as major routes and cities. Everyone just assumed that if you wanted to be safe you either had Pokemon that you trained up well or lived in towns. Kinda fucked-up thinking when you get down to it.
She got an idea that she would probably regret later on. "Well, if you're going to Mt. Moon, I might as well tag along with you. You can't take on a group of thieves by yourself, no matter how good you say you are, I don't want to be traveling alone if criminals are running wild, and I'm interested in capturing new Pokemon and getting a reward. Safety in numbers, cleaning up society's trash, getting experience, and all that."
Blue raised an eyebrow. His first impression of this girl was that of a loner than someone who partnered up with others. But he didn't mind the company of a cute companion with some brains and skill helping him out.
"I don't mind if you come along; just try not to get in my way. It could be dangerous and I'd hate for a pretty girl like you getting hurt."
Don't think that sounded cool or anything. It won't impress her.
Leaf stomped her foot in irritation. "Idiot, don't get the wrong idea! It's not like I care about your well-being. I just want the reward and someone watching my back, that's all! Not like I need you or anything!"
"Aww, you do care about me, Leafy!" Blue teased with a smirk.
"Stop calling me such an embarrassing nickname!"
Blue then waved his hand at her and said, "I'll wake you up tomorrow and we'll have a light breakfast, my treat. Be ready to head out early. Goodnight, don't let the bed bugs bite."
After Blue left for his room, Leaf merely grumbled about how all boys were useless wastes of air and headed for the check-out counter.
Leaf's Team
Bloom – Level 14
Leaf's starting Pokemon. Helpful, friendly and down-to-earth.
Bulbasaur, Female
-Ingrain (Oak/Egg Move)
-Leech Seed
-Vine Whip
-Sleep Powder
Ability: Overgrow
Feather – Level 10
One of Leaf's first catches. Agreeable, but no distinct personality.
Pidgey, Female
-Tackle
-Sand-Attack
-Gust
Ability: Keen Eye
Munchie – Level 8
Another of Leaf's first catches. Likes to munch.
Rattata, Male
-Tackle
-Tail Whip
-Quick Attack
-Focus Energy
Ability: Run Away
Wing – Level 9
Very aggressive, do not attempt to pet.
Spearow, Male
-Peck
-Growl
-Leer
-Pursuit
Ability: Keen Eye
Banana – Level 11
Beats her chest a lot, ill-tempered, and enjoys fighting, like a typical Mankey.
Mankey, Female
-Scratch
-Leer
-Low Kick
-Karate Chop
Ability: Vital Spirit
Cyan – Level 12
Accidentally poisoned Leaf in their meet-cute. A cinnamon roll who just wants pets and attention.
Nidoran (F)
-Scratch
-Growl
-Tail Whip
-Double Kick
Ability: Poison Point
Boxed Pokemon
Squishy – Weedle – Level 4
Lettuce – Caterpie – Level 4
Apis – Kakuna – Level 7
Papilia – Metapod – Level 7
Hemlock – Nidoran - Level 6
Aria - Jigglypuff – Level 7
Dusty - Sandshrew – Level 10
Hissy – Ekans – Level 8
Next Time on "Pokemon Misadventures": Red burns with the desire to defeat Brock! What will this reckless kid do to achieve victory? And a new member joins Red's team? Find out in the next chapter!