Episode 9: A deal for the pokéflute!
"A…snorlax…" Niko said slowly, trying to comprehend what was before his eyes. A crowd appeared behind them, either interested in leaving Camphrier Town or to see the marvel in front of them. "A snorlax is sitting in our way."
"My oh my!" the trio turned to hear a short, portly-looking man with an incredible mustache running towards them. "What happened to snorlax!?"
"Sir, it must've taken a nap on the bridge," a taller, stately-looking man said.
"We need to get to Ambrette Town, sir," Niko mentioned. "Is there a way to get the snorlax out of the way?"
"Sure, there is," the portly man said. It took Niko a moment to realize that this man wasn't some ordinary person. He wore a crown. "I, Lord Shabboneau, am the proud owner of a pokéflute."
"Lord Shabboneau…?" Charlotte asked. "We still have royalty?"
"Of course we do!" Lord Shabboneau snapped.
"Either way, could you use the pokéflute to help move the snorlax?" Niko asked, thinking back to another time he and his friends needed to move a snorlax out of the way. It almost didn't end well for them.
"Well, err, there's a problem with that, sirs and madam," the taller man, presumably an assistant of some sort to Lord Shabboneau, said. "You see, the pokéflute is missing."
"Missing…? What do you mean by that?" Warren wondered.
"It's…in the hands of other royalty," the assistant said. "And we cannot get it back."
"Why not?"
"The current owner is a very entitled young woman," Lord Shabboneau said. "Princess Allie in Parfum Palace."
"Parfum Palace?" Charlotte said aloud, "That's just north of here, isn't it? It's not too far, actually."
"No, it's not. But Princess Allie refuses to give up the pokéflute. She stole it from us years ago, and we managed to get it back then, but…" Lord Shabboneau said, clearly looking dismayed.
"We'll just have to find a way, then," Niko declared. "I want to get to Ambrette Town, and so do my friends. We'll get the pokéflute back."
"Thank you!" Lord Shabboneau said, his eyes lighting up. "Thank you so much!"
"No problem," Niko said, motioning for Warren and Charlotte to follow him. "How far is Parfum Palace?"
"Not too far, actually," Charlotte said with a look of satisfaction. "Maybe a half day's walk."
"Then let's hurry it up a little," Niko said, extending his stride, which forced his friends to quicken their paces as well. At one point, Charlotte was practically jogging.
The trio made it past route 6—a path characterized by tall grass and trees all positioned in a neat, straight line—and to Parfum Palace by mid-afternoon. Once it was within sight, the three of them paused to marvel at it. Parfum Palace was a grandiose, multiple story building that was shaped in an elongated "U" shape, much like the Versailles Palace (only smaller).
"According to history, this palace was built by the King of Kalos 300 years ago," Charlotte stated.
"Interesting," Niko said as they walked through the massive courtyard and past numerous different patterned bushes and even a practice battlefield. By the time they made it to the front door, they had been at the palace for several minutes. "Should—should we knock?"
"No idea," Warren said, looking up at the massive golden doors in front of them. "Man, this king really liked to embellish."
"He designed the palace specifically to display his power," Charlotte added. "It was in the aftermath of a war, after all."
As it turned out, they didn't need to knock—the door opened for them, revealing a massive room with stairs running to each side and in the back and columns positioned in rows on both sides. Standing in lieu of the door was a man who looked to be a butler. He wore a fitting suit and a monocle, and otherwise looked rather dashing for his presumably old age.
"Afternoon, children," he said with an accented voice. "How may I help you?"
"Hi, uh, my name is Niko. This is Charlotte, and Warren. We are here to ask for Lord Shabboneau's pokéflute."
"Ah, and may I ask why?"
"We are trying to leave Camphrier Town, and there is a snorlax on the bridge out of town. It won't move," Niko explained.
"Well, the pokéflute was won for us in a contest some time ago. Princess Allie highly values it, and I do not believe she is in the mood to give up such a prized possession of hers."
"Please, sir," Niko said, "we need this pokéflute."
"I'll see what I can do," the butler said before turning and walking up the left set of stairs, leaving the trio in the open doorway. While they waited, they noticed maids and other assistants to the Princess walking by, staring them down, sometimes with curiosity, and other times with disgust. The latter of which seemed to irk Niko, who nearly snapped at one of them, but was put back in his place by Charlotte.
"We don't want to cause any trouble," she whispered to her friend.
"You're right—sorry," Niko muttered.
Minutes later the butler returned with a young woman of average height and looked to be around a little older than Niko. Her hair was red-orange and curled on both sides. She wore a slim-fitting, bright pink dress.
"SO!" she—presumably Princess Allie—shouted, immediately catching Niko's attention. "You want MY pokéflute, right?"
"Yes, yes, I do," Niko said confidently. "We need it to wake up a snorlax in Camphrier Town."
"Oh, boo-hoo!" she sneered. "It's always Camphrier Town! Honestly, Lord Shabboneau should just buy a new one!"
"Well, we would like to borrow the pokéflute right—"
"No."
"No?" Niko repeated.
"No. The pokéflute is mine."
"But, what if we returned it?"
"How can I trust you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking evilly.
"Well, there is no way for you to, other than believe me in good faith that I'll return it," Niko replied, shrugging.
"Hmm. Well, there is one way," she said, slowly walking up to Warren all of the sudden. "You seem to be a handsome enough guy, if you dressed nicer."
"W-what!?" Warren said, recognizing this and backing away. "I—no. I have a girlfriend."
"Then no pokéflute for you."
"Wait, I have an idea," Niko suggested, but the princess ignored him.
"What is it, Niko?" Warren asked, sounding desperate.
"I'll battle you for it. One on one. Provided, of course, that you have a Pokémon."
"I just so happen to, actually," Princess Allie said, raising her nose to Niko. "Why wouldn't I?"
"I honestly have no idea, but I figured I should say it."
"Whatever. Anyway, why don't we have a battle, then? If you win, you get the pokéflute. If I win, I get your friend."
"Niko…" Charlotte said, herself unsure of this.
"Let's do it," Niko said, holding his hand out to shake Allie's. "You're on."
"NIKO!" Warren shouted.
"Trust me on this, bud," Niko said, grabbing Warren's shoulder. "I won't let you down."
Sighing, Warren nodded, suddenly feeling nervous about his friend gambling his fate. Princess Allie and her butler led the trio back outside to the courtyard, and furthermore towards the battlefield, which sat in a lowered space to the rightward-most point of the palace. Charlotte and Warren stood on the sidelines, while the butler acted as the judge of the match.
"This will be a one on one battle between Princess Allie and her challenger, Niko. When one trainer's Pokémon is unable to battle, the other will be declared the winner!" the butler declared.
"Furfrou, I choose you!" Allie shouted, summoning a poodle-like Pokémon. It had thick, white and red trimmed fur that made it look like it was in a kabuki play.
"Furfrou, the Poodle Pokémon. Normal type. Historically, in the Kalos region, these Pokémon were the designated guardians of the King," Niko's pokédex read.
"Of course it was. Alright then, Fletchling, I choose you!" he shouted, summoning the Tiny Robin Pokémon. "Let's start off with agility!"
"Charge beam!" Allie commanded.
"WHAT!?" Niko said, eyes widening. Charlotte audibly gasped and Warren looked like he was about to throw up. The Furfrou commanded a beam of electrical energy at Fletchling, who fortunately managed to dodge the move with agility and move in for a quick attack, which she successfully landed. "Nice job! Now use peck!"
"Bite, Furfrou!" Allie shouted. Fletchling managed to hit the Poodle Pokémon with a quick peck attack, but quickly felt her opponent bite down on her wing and thrust her through the air. "Charge beam!"
"Fletchling, quickly get out of the way!" Niko shouted. Once more, Fletchling swerved out of the way, which seemed to irritate Princess Allie. "Great! Now, quick attack again!"
"Bite, Furfrou!" Allie commanded, thrusting her hand to the side. Niko could see a slight smirk on her face. Just like before, Furfrou managed to grab onto Fletchling's wing. "Well done! Charge beam!"
"FLETCHLING!" Niko shouted as he watched the Tiny Robin Pokémon rocket backwards, static electricity surging around her. She crashed onto the battlefield before rolling and eventually coming to a stop just behind Niko. "Fletchling…are…are you alright?"
The Tiny Robin Pokémon slowly got up, but crumpled again. Just as the butler opened his mouth to declare the match for Allie and Furfrou, Fletchling got back up, stared for Furfrou and Allie with her smug expression, and began to illuminate a bright white color. Niko covered his eyes from the bright light as Fletchling began to grow to nearly triple its original size.
The new Pokémon was, like Fletchling, a bird, and was still predominantly orange, but it was now covered in black plumage as well. It had a sharp, black beak and a small, pointed crest atop its head. Its black eyes have yellow, mask-like marks extending from the back. Its upper side was reddish-orange and its belly remained gray, with a flame pattern marking the boundary on the breast. Its pointed wings are black with yellow tips and undersides. Its legs are also black, with sharp talons with two toes forward and one back. Its long black tailfeathers were marked with two white "v"-shapes. The tail ended in two points and had another feather sticking out of the base on each side, giving the impression of the fletching on the end of an arrow.
"Fletchinder, the Ember Pokémon. Fire and flying type. The hotter the flame sac on its belly, the faster it can fly, but it takes some time to get the fire going," Niko's pokédex read.
"Fletchinder…" Niko said, watching the new Pokémon stare down Furfrou and spit out a fireball from its mouth, presumably as a threat to her opponent. "Let's win this now."
"What!? That's not fair! He can't just evolve his Pokémon in the middle of a battle!" Princess Allie shouted. "I won't fight! No! I refuse to give you the pokéflute!"
"Then you don't take my friend, either. Fletchinder, ember!" Niko shouted, thrusting a hand forward. The Ember Pokémon shot forward at Furfrou and landed a small orange fireball before swerving upwards, leaving Furfrou to deal with the burn it might have incurred. "Now, quick attack again!"
"Furfrou, charge beam!" Allie commanded. The Poodle Pokémon summoned a stream of electricity and fired at Fletchinder, who turned to the right before crashing into her opponent, resulting in a small cloud of dust to erupt from the ground. Once the dust dissipated, Fletchinder was hovering just above the ground, and Furfrou was laying on its side, unable to move.
"Furfrou is unable to battle, Fletchinder is the winner! And the victory goes to Niko!" the butler declared.
"NO FAIR! NO FAIR!" Allie shouted, pointing at Niko. "He did not play fair!"
"I did. If you battle enough, you realize these things happen on occasion. Fletchling—I mean, Fletchinder—was ready to evolve. And, frankly, I think she just wanted to beat you," Niko said, watching Fletchinder perch herself on his shoulder. "You're definitely not as light as you used to be, that's for sure," before the Ember Pokémon pecked him, Niko stammered in nervousness, "it's a good thing, though! You're so much stronger now!"
"A deal is a deal, madam," the butler said as he walked over to the two battlers. "I know you don't like it, but you must honor that deal."
"Why would I honor a deal with peasants, though?" she asked, still fuming.
"Losing sucks, Allie," Niko said. "Trust me, I know that too well. But honoring a deal is more important, and it is a sign of respect to do so. If you really want the flute back, we can bring it back. I promise you that. But we just need it so that we can continue on our way. I'd prefer not to stay in Camphrier Town for the rest of my life."
"Oh, pfft, I know. That town is so disgusting!" Allie said with a snort.
"Well, not exactly, but—"
"But I see your point. You're right, I need to learn respect. Fine, if you promise to bring me back the pokéflute, I will let you borrow it."
"It's a deal," Niko said holding out his hand. Princess Allie hesitated, but eventually shook it, although she seemed pained to do so.
"We're back!" Niko shouted, turning heads as he walked up to the snorlax. "Uh…where's Lord Shabboneau?"
"He's off making a new pokéflute," one of the townspeople said.
"But, but…we have one right here," Niko said. "Does anyone know how to play it?"
"Uh…I do, actually," Charlotte said quietly, which turned her friend's heads.
"Really?" Niko said, an expression of shock and impression on his face. "When did this happen?"
"When I was a kid. It's been a while, but I think I can do it."
"Only if you want to—no pressure," Niko said as he held out the pokéflute. Charlotte hesitated, and then took it, and slowly approached the sleeping snorlax. She then took a deep breath and began playing. A soft, pleasant melody sounded from it. Niko couldn't help but smile as he watched his friend run her fingers along the flute, silently dictating which sounds were heard and unheard.
Eventually, the snorlax began to stir, and moved its head towards Charlotte and the pokéflute before turning over on its side and slowly beginning the arduous process of standing up. At its height, it easily dwarfed Charlotte, but that was hardly an issue when it turned around and lumbered off towards the mountains to the south of route 7.
Once snorlax was gone, the crowd clapped for Charlotte as she quickly turned, thrust the pokéflute in Niko's hands, and looked down at the ground in an odd attempt to hide herself.
"You did great," Niko said, tapping her on the shoulder. "Thank you."
"No problem, Niko," Charlotte said, an embarrassed smile etched on her face.
"Now we can finally go!" Warren said aloud.
"Not yet," Niko said, running his hand along the pokéflute. "We have a promise to keep."
"Oh…right," Warren said, sounding thoroughly displeased with the fact that he had to return to Parfum Palace. Noticing this, Niko and Charlotte let out a long, drawn out laugh at the thought of Warren seeing Princess Allie once more.
A long day past, the trio made their second trip to Parfum Palace, leaving just as the sun was setting. The following day, they'd continue on towards Cyllage City, and the second Kalos gym.
Author's Note: Hopefully y'all are alright with a dialogue-heavy chapter. It was more dialogue-based than I am used to, but I think it came out alright all the same.
