Ch. 7 - Crash and Burn

"And that's it, Cyndaquil is down!"

"Wait!" Carrie shouted, holding a hand up at the referee. "Come on, Cyndaquil, get up! Are you gonna just let it throw you around?"

Cyndaquil twitched in response and began to force himself back onto his feet, even to Carrie's astonishment. The moment was short-lived however, as Cyndaquil's tiny legs gave out and he collapsed again into the dirt with a small whimper.

"As I was saying. The victor is Muk, and the winner of this match and the tournament is Kit!"

Kit smirked as she recalled her Muk to its pokéball. Carrie took some comfort in the crowd's halfhearted applause; at least she wasn't the only one to think she got cheated.

"Well, good try, Cyndaquil," she said, recalling her own Pokémon to safety.

The announcer called Kit to the small podium where he presented her prize.

"In addition to the monetary winnings, Kit will also receive this special Pokémon-" he held a pokéball up to the crowd; rather than the normal red and white pokéballs, this one was pure white with a red stripe down the middle "-a Bellsprout, raised with the expert care of the Elder himself!"

The referee handed the Premier Ball to Kit, who took it and bowed in thanks, before turning to leave the schoolyard as the announcer finished his speech: "That concludes this year's Sprout Tower tournament! We, er, hope to see you back next year, where we guarantee the tournament will be bigger and better! Please enjoy the remainder of the festival and your time in Violet City!"


"That was so cheap," Carrie whined.

She, Tori and Nichole left the schoolyard and walked together to a shaded park bench, discussing the tournament along the way.

"I mean, really! How was Cyndaquil supposed to win against that? Did they even plan this out at all? That Bellsprout should have been mine! If only they didn't-"

"Carrie, chill out!" Tori interrupted. "I know it was unfair, but, don't you think you're, like… overreacting a little?"

"Overreacting? They had no plan for this tournament at all! They-"

"Carrie, stop," Tori said sternly, barely keeping her own anger in check. "Stop yelling at us. We know how you feel, or did you forget that she, like, totally wiped us both out right before you? It was unfair, we know, but taking it out on us isn't going to change anything. I'm going to go get my Pokémon checked out." She stood up, and quietly added: "And after that beating, I would suggest the same for your Pokémon."

Tori turned and started walking away. Carrie shot an angry glance at Nichole on the bench next to her. The girl had been picking at her own fingernails, afraid to get involved in the shouting match going on next to her. She looked up upon noticing the silence to see Tori stomping away, and then timidly turned to Carrie. She squeaked a little in surprise at her fierce glance, and sprung into a standing position.

"I, uh, need to heal my Pokémon too, so I-I'll just-" she choked out hurriedly before turning and sprinting down the path that Tori had taken.

Carrie sat alone in the shade, staring at her shoes, breathing steadily to calm herself. Only now that Tori and Nichole left her did she start to regret her attitude. She was unsure of how long she sat there before the bench creaked with the weight of someone sitting down next to her.

"Hey," came Sam's voice. "How did the tournament go?"

"Where were you?" Carrie asked.

"You sound upset, did something happen?"

"I asked you a question," Carrie shot back, ignoring her hypocrisy. "I thought you were going to watch."

"Well, I, uh… I was," Sam replied. Carrie looked up at him; he wasn't looking at her, but rather down at the pavement, blushing.

"See, there was this game of hide-and-seek around town, right? Well, I thought it would be fun, so, I signed up. I thought I had a pretty good hiding spot, because even Abra couldn't find me. But after a while, you know, I wondered how I'd know when the game was over… so I left my spot and went back to the game's starting point… turns out no one was even looking for me. Funny, huh?"

Somewhere inside, Carrie felt the urge to laugh, doubting very much that it was an accident that no one had been looking for him. She ignored the urge, just this once.

"So yeah, that's why I missed the battles… so, um, how did it go?" Sam asked again.

"I'll tell you on the way," Carrie sighed as she stood up. "I need to get Cyndaquil healed."


Morning came far too quickly. Carrie reluctantly forced herself out of bed and dragged her feet all the way to the shower, her only motivation being that the gym would finally be reopened today.

Her mood improved somewhat afterwards, and she even was smiling a bit as she walked downstairs to the Pokémon Center's café. With a quick glance around the room, she spotted Sam sitting alone at a table, attempting to feed his Zubat what looked like oatmeal. Just as Carrie considered getting her own table, Sam caught her gaze and happily stood up, waving like a madman. Carrie sighed, and walked over. So much for her good mood.

"Good morning," Sam said gleefully.

"Hi," Carrie responded. "Please tell me they have actual food up there… Do Zubat even eat that slop?"

"You know, I don't really know…"

Carrie signed again and mumbled vaguely about getting breakfast before there was nothing left. By the time she returned, relishing a simple piece of toast with eggs, Sam had returned his attention to Zubat, who was now attempting to bite his neck.

"Cut it out!" he whined as he covered his head with his arms. Zubat only shrieked with laughter.

"I'm going to the gym," Carrie said, ignoring the ridiculous scene playing out in front of her.

"Oh! I'll go too! I mean, you can battle first, of course! Ladies first, right?"

Carrie raised an eyebrow. "Right…"


A half hour later, and the pair were standing outside the huge tower that was Violet City's gym. Much to their surprise, Tori and Nichole were there, apparently waiting for them.

"We wanted to wish you luck before I left," Nichole said shyly.

"Haha, thanks girls!" Sam answered. "It means a lot to know I have fans who-"

"I-I was talking to…" Nichole whispered, glancing at Carrie and blushing horribly.

"Er… well, thanks," Carrie said awkwardly. She blushed a little herself, feeling incredibly stupid about her outburst in the park. She figured she should apologize. "Listen, about yesterday in the park-"

"It's totally cool," Tori cut her off. "Everyone has bad days, and I, like, totally would have felt the same way if I were you, after that battle!"

"Actually," Sam said, "That was Carrie on a good day…"

Carrie elbowed him in the stomach.

"Let's get this over with."


Less than ten minutes later, Carrie stood across the battlefield from the gym leader, while Sam, Tori and Nichole were seated in the stands, waiting for the action to begin.

"Welcome to the gym," the leader spoke. He was a rather young-looking male, perhaps in his twenties, with pale blue hair and a rather odd outfit. "My name is Falkner – do not mispronounce it – and I specialize in Flying Pokémon, specifically ones that I inherited from my father. If I'm not mistaken, you are Carrie, aren't you?"

"Er… yes, I am," Carrie answered, her voice shaking as she tried to cover up her nervousness. "How did you know that?"

"Believe it or not, I was watching the tournament yesterday very closely. If I may say so, as with most beginning trainers, your battling style could use a bit of work, however you have potential."

He paused, and Carrie began to sweat as she realized he was waiting for her to respond. What was she supposed to say to that? In any other moment, she probably would have taken it for an insult, but right now she was both too excited and too nervous to be angry. Then, remembering Falkner was waiting for an answer, she took a deep breath to compose herself. Unable to think of a response, she simply nodded her head once.

"Relax," Falkner said. "There's no need to be nervous. This is just a battle like any other. Are you ready?" Again, Carrie could only nod, afraid that if she opened her mouth, all the Butterfree in her stomach would spew out.

Charming.

"So you know, these are the rules of the gym. We both will use two Pokémon. Whoever defeats both of the opponents Pokémon is the winner. I am not allowed to switch my Pokémon mid-battle, but as the challenger, you have that right. Finally, as the gym leader, I must choose first." Another nod. "So, that's that, and I think we're ready. Go, Hoothoot!" Falkner tossed his pokéball onto the battlefield. It opened in a flash of white light, revealing a tiny, round, brown owl. It blinked its red eyes once, looking as if it had just been trying to sleep, then hooted as it hopped onto one foot.

"Well… not much choice," Carrie said. "Let's win this, Cyndaquil!" She tossed his pokéball and the tiny fire-type popped out, looking unusually determined.

"The first move is yours," Falkner called.

"Right… Cyndaquil, Smokescreen!" Carrie glanced at Hoothoot, as Cyndaquil wasted no time in carrying out the move. She hoped that, with the owl's tiny wings, it wouldn't be able to blow away the smoke. Both Falkner and his Hoothoot, however, looked unfazed.

"Hoothoot, Foresight!" Falkner countered.

Hoothoot hooted happily as it emitted an eerie red beam from its eyes. Carrie hissed silently as she looked on, trying to work out what was happening. Cyndaquil didn't sound like he was in pain… so what was that move doing?

Then she noticed Cyndaquil's silhouette glowing a deep red from within the thick smoke, and gasped.

"Wing Attack, Hoothoot!"

The tiny own hooted again before hopping into the air, flapping its tiny wings hard just to stay airborne, and darted into the smoke. A cry echoed through the building and Cyndaquil came flying out of the cloud, Hoothoot right behind him.

"Now, Hoothoot, Hypnosis!"

"Make another Smokescreen!" Carrie countered, knowing Cyndaquil had no time to return to the first one.

Luckily for Carrie, while Hoothoot was faster, its target was also further away, allowing Cyndaquil to easily create a second ball of smoke. Hoothoot's hypnotic waves entered the gray, and were lost.

"Hoothoot, Foresight into Wing Attack!" Falkner ordered.

Hoothoot obeyed. As soon as Cyndaquil was illuminated, Carrie made her move.

"Cyndaquil, turn around and fire Ember straight ahead!"

Carrie watched as Cyndaquil's form changed position, and after a brief cry, dozens of tiny fireballs erupted from the cloud – straight into the oncoming Hoothoot. The owl hooted in pain as it recoiled away and retreated further into the air.

"There's that potential I was talking about," Falkner commented. "Very clever, I underestimated you and you took complete advantage of that. As a gym leader, I should never have fallen for that."

Carrie grinned briefly before calling for another order or fireballs.

"Hoothoot, Mirror Move!"

Just as another barrage of fireballs shot from the Smokescreen, Hoothoot closed its eyes and, astonishingly, let loose its own fireball stream from its beak. Cyndaquil's aim was completely off, having not been told where to aim, but Hoothoot's Ember was dead-on, due to Cyndaquil glowing in the Foresight.

"Carrie, Cyndaquil's lit up like a Christmas tree!" Sam called from the stands. "You can't hide in Smokescreen, all it's doing is killing Cyndaquil's aim!"

"I know that!" Carrie shot back, which was true, though she had honestly only realized that seconds before.

"Hoothoot, Whirlwind!" Falkner called.

His tiny owl, still somehow keeping itself in the air, beat its wings harder, blasting the entire field with wind. The Smokescreen quickly dispersed, and Cyndaquil lay clutching the ground desperately.

"Ember!" Carrie called, having no other way to reach Hoothoot.

"Confusion!" Falkner retaliated.

Cyndaquil launched yet another string of fireballs, this time with much better accuracy. Hoothoot, however, was having none of that; its eyes changed to an eerie bright blue, which then blasted through the arena. Cyndaquil's embers flickered and faded in midair, and Cyndaquil himself was in visible pain from the blue light.

"Return!" Carrie cried, and recalled Cyndaquil to his pokéball. She reached down to her belt to replace it, but right before she grabbed another one, she hesitated… who could she possibly use now? Spinarak wouldn't likely listen to her, but Metapod was a sitting duck. And both of them were weak to flying attacks. Her gut told her to go with Spinarak as the logical choice, but her arm tossed out Metapod's pokéball instead before she could react further.

"Come on, Metapod! We'll show Kit that you aren't useless!" Carrie called, trying to portray a confidence she didn't feel.

If Falkner was surprised by his newest opponent, he didn't show it in the least. "Hoothoot, Confusion!" he called without missing a beat.

Hoothoot, however, looked tired. It had landed back on the ground, panting slightly, but immediately its eyes glowed blue upon receiving the order. Again, blue light bathed the field, and Metapod shook violently in pain.

"It's almost over, Hoothoot! Peck!"

"Harden!" Carrie cried frantically.

Metapod's outer shell hardened and stiffened as Hoothoot flew closer. But just before it struck…

"Tackle, now!" Carrie ordered.

Metapod's eyes turned fierce, and he lunged with all his strength at Hoothoot. The tiny owl didn't let up at all, but the reinforced shell of Metapod was too tough for it. Hoothoot was thrown back and into the ground, Metapod landing on top of it.

And then, Metapod began glowing. The white light he became warped into a new shape, resembling a butterfly. When the light faded, Metapod had become just that – a purple butterfly with bright red eyes and tiny blue claws and feet.

"Wow…" Carrie said, staring at her new Pokémon in awe. She pointed her pokédex at it.

Meanwhile, Butterfree looked down and Hoothoot and screeched angrily. The Hoothoot hooted one last time and closed its eyes in submission.

"Hoothoot, return," Falkner called with a hint of sadness. "You did well, my friend. And now," he said, now addressing Carrie and Butterfree, "here comes round two! Go, Pidgeot!"

And as the giant cream-colored bird burst from its pokéball, the ray of hope that found Carrie upon Metapod's evolution evaporated.

The giant bird spread its large wings and almost sung its name. Butterfree, however, wasn't amused. Without an order, he flung himself at the Pidgeot.

"Wait, Butterfree!" Carrie cried out, but it was too late. Pidgeot had already whipped up a small tornado and Butterfree was sucked inside, spinning violently around.

"I think it's had enough of a demonstration," Falkner said casually. His Pidgeot beat its wings once and the miniature tornado dispersed. Butterfree collapsed on the ground. The "demonstration" only seemed to anger Butterfree further, however, and he quickly stood up, and attempted his first flight on his new wings.

Still pointing her pokédex at Butterfree, she scanned his new moves, though admittedly, there weren't many.

She then aimed it at the Pidgeot. Falkner, meanwhile, sent his bird into the air, making it harder to scan. She did manage to catch it, however. The Pidgeot was at a much higher general level than any of Carrie's Pokémon.

She looked up and caught sight of Butterfree flying blinding towards the Pidgeot again.

"Butterfree, no!" she cried.

Again, it made no difference. Pidgeot simply slapped Butterfree with a wing and sent him flying back towards the ground.

"You can't win this with brute force, Butterfree! Pidgeot's too strong! Make use of your speed!"

Butterfree turned to glare at her; he was having enough trouble learning to fly properly, let alone fast. He turned back to the bird, ready to lunge again.

"Butterfree, can you create Poison Powder?" Carrie asked.

In response, Butterfree flapped his wings. Much to his surprise sprinkles of purple dust scattered on the ground in front of him. Satisfied, he took off once again, flying directly towards Pidgeot, this time scattering poison power with each flap of his wings.

And was met with the same results.

"Don't fly at it, fly over it!" Carrie called, irritated with her Pokémon's lack of discipline. She did admit, though, she admired his determination.

"Pidgeot, Quick Attack!" Falker called.

Just as Butterfree reached Pidgeot's level, the bird shot towards it, ramming its body hard into the soft Butterfree. This time, the bug was able to right himself in the air, but he was visibly worn.

"Okay, Butterfree, we're going to try something else. Scatter Poison Powder! In the air, on the ground, just get as much out there as you can!"

Butterfree growled, but obeyed, and began spraying more purple powder throughout the arena. With a simple order, Pidgeot created another miniature tornado. The Gust attack gathered up most of the falling poison, but Butterfree relentlessly emitted more. Even more, when the Gust attack faded, the gathered dust swirled around, how drifting in the air currents.

Perfect, Carrie thought. There's no way Pidgeot can fly around now without flying through that.

"That's enough of that," Falkner said, showing concern for the first time this battle. "Pidgeot, Aerial Ace!"

His giant bird sung again, and darted through a thick cloud of poison. The bird didn't seem to be effected at all as it soared through the air. It easily rammed itself into Butterfree, slamming him hard to the ground. As Pidgeot took to the sky once again, Butterfree remained on the ground.

"Ugh… come back, Butterfree," Carrie growled. If you'd just listened to me in the first place

She stared at the Pidgeot again. There was no hope for Cyndaquil to even reach the bird, let alone defeat it… or was there?

"Okay, you're up, Cyndaquil!" she cried, releasing the fire-type once again. He still looked worn out from the battle with Hoothoot, but bravely stood up anyway, the fire on his back blazing.

"Smokescreen!" she ordered. Cyndaquil obeyed, all to familiar with the move by now.

"Again?" Falker said, clearly disappointed. "Pidgeot, Gust!"

Another tornado later and Cyndaquil's cover was gone. Even worse, the wind has stirred Butterfree's poison from the ground, causing Cyndaquil to start coughing.

"Ack, no! Cyndaquil, burn it away! Ember!"

Cyndaquil wasted no time in expelling some tiny fireballs straight at the ground, burning up the powder that lay there as well as what had been in his system.

"Pidgeot, Aerial Ace!" Falker commanded. Carrie glanced at the bird briefly, then back at Cyndaquil, still coughing up fireballs, and had an idea.

Just as Pidgeot reached ground level and turned straight towards Cyndaquil, Carrie shouted her orders.

"Get on it's back, now!"

The fire-type obeyed, leaping up as Pidgeot approached, and landed exactly where he planned, much to Carrie's surprise. Falkner, however, looked even more disappointed.

"Do you really think you're the first person to try that?" he taunted. "Do it, Pidgeot!"

At his command, the giant bird did a loop in the air, and Cyndaquil almost fell off, saving himself only by biting down on Pidgeot's head feathers.

"Get under there, Cyndaquil!" Carrie called. "Hide under its feathers and hold on!"

Pidgeot continued to loop, flying even faster, trying to fling the fire-type from its back, but Cyndaquil was happily protected by feathers all around. Falkner didn't seem to expect that; He opened his mouth as if to call out a command, but all that happened was his mouth hanging open.

"Okay, Cyndaquil," Carrie continued, "Ember attack! Aim for its right wing!"

Unfortunately, Pidgeot's hearing was just as good as Cyndaquil's, and it made a sharp right turn, positioning its right wing underneath it. By some odd stroke of luck, though, Cyndaquil confused his left and right, and fired a barrage of fireballs into Pidgeot's exposed left wing.

Carrie sighed, but took it how it was. "Again, Cyndaquil! Keep striking that same spot!"

Another stream of fireballs bombarded the Pidgeot's wing. The bird continued it's futile effort to twist and loop, but Cyndaquil hung on tight. In addition, it appeared the poison had affected it after all, and was now starting to take its toll. Pidgeot began coughing and panting as Cyndaquil struck with another fire attack. This time, Pidgeot's feathers were set aflame. The bird cried out in pain and plummeted to the ground, crashing hard.

Cyndaquil was finally flung from Pidgeot's back from the force of the collision. Both Pokémon remained on the ground briefly, before Cyndaquil managed to crawl to his feet. Pidgeot was still smoking as Carrie called out.

"Ember!"

"Pidgeot, get away!"

The bird barely had time to look up before several more tiny fireballs exploded in its face. It cried in pain – even hurt, managing to sound as if it were singing – before giving in and falling back to the ground.

"Pidgeot, no!" Falkner cried. All the trainers' eyes, including Sam, Tori, and Nikki in the seats, were glued to the Pidgeot, waiting to see if it would recover. Meanwhile, Cyndaquil lay himself down, though he kept his fire alight to show he wasn't about to give in. Eventually, with a final small cry, Pidgeot gave in to unconsciousness.

Falkner stared out onto the battlefield, hardly able to comprehend what just happened. Eventually, he held out a pokéball and recalled his fallen friend.

"You did well, Pidgeot. Take a rest."

"Like, oh my gawd!" Tori called from the stands. "You won! You actually won! I totally don't believe it!"

Tori, followed by Nikki and Sam, jumped from their seats and ran across the field. Tori barely gave Carrie time to say thanks before she pulled her into a backbreaking hug.

"That was awesome!" Sam commented, practically jumping up and down. "I mean, really! You, a rookie, beat the gym leader's fully evolved Pidgeot! How incredible is that!"

"C-congratulations," Nikki whispered shyly.

"Thanks guys," Carrie choked out, feeling suddenly sick. "That was… terrifying. Cyndaquil, that was… awesome."

"Quil…" the tired Pokémon squeaked. Carrie recalled him so he can rest.

"Well," Falkner said, suddenly standing behind the small party, "Looks like I really underestimated you. You deserve this." He held out a tiny bright blue, U-shaped badge.

"Never thought I'd get it," Carrie said as she took it from him and pinned it proudly to her cap. "I saw that Pidgeot and almost cried."

"Excuse me," Sam cut in. "When can I have my battle?"

"A gym leader usually has more than two Pokémon," Falkner commented. "We can get started as soon as you're ready."

"Oh. Well then, looks like it's my turn!" Sam exclaimed. He pointed at dramatically at Falkner. "Now, prepare to get whipped! …Again!"


A/N: Yes, two chapters in the span of (about) 24 hours, for two different stories, no less. What can I say? The sudden antisocial-ness I've developed this week did wonders for my writing. Don't get used to it, though.

Anyways... not much to say here, really. Still working on Carrie's "holier than thou" attitude adjustment. Though to be fair, I'd be pretty ticked too if a supposedly official tournament had bad planning like that. xD

The main reason why this was held up, aside from laziness, is that I couldn't figure out how Cyndaquil was going to defeat Pidgeot. No idea where the random inspiration came from, but suddenly it was there - if Pidgeot couldn't damage Cyndaquil, no matter how strong it was, it couldn't win. And what better way to do that than by hiding on top of your opponent? From there it was a matter of stalling for burn and poison damage, which eventually is what did the job. Oh, and in case you're wondering, in the anime universe, Falkner did have a Pidgeot, not a lousy Pidgey like in the game. I thought it would make for a more interesting battle.

Looks like Sam's up next, so next chapter we'll finally see him in action. And Falkner's got some more surprises to throw out there, in addition to the Pidgeot. Anyone care enough to guess (or remember) the other Pokemon he used?

Guess that's all for this one. Yeah...