Antivenom
Chapter IX
"All this snow..."
So we kept walking through this totally bland, almost all-white land full of snow. Why do ice-types love living here? It's so boring-looking. Even that cave had this one color all over the place. Save for some of the junk I found lying around, but those were small, like berries and those coins.
I kept following that Turv kid. It's a little weird; how did I end up at the one place he'd get all beaten up at? There's all these other icy caves and snowy woods to have dungeons with places at the end to use as a place to stay at the end. What're the chances of me really having saved that kid?
It's just like it was supposed to happen.
... Whatever. It's not gonna bug me much.
I could use some food, though. I haven't eaten since I left my cave to sneak around that Treasure Town place. I wonder what they're thinking after I messed up that 'Lucario' guy? They're probably gonna wise up and stop looking for me. And if they find me, they're gonna run away like whiny little girls.
Makes keeping this kid safe much easier, I bet.
My gut grumbled.
Food would be pretty nice right about now...
I must've been loud enough, because Turv stopped and looked at me.
"What's wrong? Are you hungry?"
I nodded 'yes'. At least the kid could figure things out.
He looked around a bit.
"Um... I can't see any good places for something to eat. Are you really that hungry? We should get there soon, and they'll have food when we get there."
Sounded good. I shook my head 'no', and we kept going. Eventually, I just carried him on my back, since I could go faster.
To tell you the truth, all of these Pokemon looked different. They weren't at all like the ones back in Unova. I only wonder what Pokemon the "Snow Witch" was, 'cause I had no idea. I never hung around places with ice-types in Unova, so I got no idea.
With a bit more time, Turv had me stop. He said we were near, but I didn't see anything. There was a little bit of woods again over to the left, but he said that wasn't where she was. I paced around a bit while he tried to remember. He told me I shouldn't walk around too much. I saved him, I could do as I-
OH SHIT!
The snow suddenly broke out from under me, and I fell down some slide made out of snow and ice. I couldn't sit myself up properly, so I just helplessly tumbled down.
Turv called after me. I could tell he hopped down the tunnel too, 'cause he kept calling and his voice was pretty near.
We slipped and slid over all sorts of curves, sometimes riding on the walls for a second or two. You know, this was actually kinda... fun!
I tried to get myself upright, and eventually did. I was lying on my back though, and we just kept sliding. What a rush, how fast we were going! I couldnt even run this fast!
We came up to a bend that just ended there, and got launched off and into some long pit.
Oh. This is why. The slide was just a trick.
Dammit...
We both actually fell for a bit. Turv was trying to reach me, but it was dark and we couldn't see. We started to see light as we kept falling, and that was kinda bad. That means we were getting near the bottom.
Oh, this is gonna hurt...
WHAAAM!
... Thud.
Aw, shit... I think I broke something. Ow...
I was laid out on my back again. That fall was killer, but I was still awake. Turv wasn't as heavy, so I think he wasn't as badly hurt, 'cause he quickly got up and ran over. Either it was his weight, or he had some kinda stuff that made falling in snow less painful. Probably the first one, though.
"Canderack! Are you okay?"
I groaned and shook my head 'No'. I just hit the bottom of a long pit, and I hurt. You think I'd be okay?
He nervously looked around.
"Um... Um! What do I do, what do I do...!"
He opened my bag and looked through it. He got out the only other Oran berry I had, and fed it to me. The pain quickly went away, and I was back in... okay condition. Burn still there, though.
"Hey! Who's there?", a girl's voice came calling from an opening. "Trespassers...!"
I got to my feet. I dug my feet into the snow, scratching, ready to fight.
"Uh! That's...!", Turv said, familiar with the voice.
... Then... she came.
Had this dark purple skin I think, under this mask she had on. IT had two bits of ice on it, eye holes, and this empty hole in the middle and a big one on the bottom with toothy-looking points on it. She had this white wavy thing on, and a red bow was on it, too.
I lost my cool a bit. Something made me a little... I can't really describe it. I don't know, she made me feel... comfy. Even though she was probably pissed and gonna want to fight us.
She came into the room.
"The Venom Bandit is here! How did you find-!", she started.
"Xiva!", Turv called, suddenly hugging onto her kimono.
"Turv! Look out, the Venom Bandit followed-", she once again started.
"No, no! It's okay! He saved me from my dad!" Turv interrupted.
... This is the 'Snow Witch'?
I thought she'd be ugly. Not... Whoa.
"Turv, did he make you do this? What does he want with us?"
"He's got a burn, but a Rawst berry probably couldn't fix it. We know that you could maybe help and... and..."
"You want me to help one of the most infamous criminals in the world?"
"He has a heart! You gotta trust me!"
Xiva put one of her hands to her chin, thinking.
Oh, so even these people who live out all alone know about me. Shows just what beating people up and taking their stuff does for you.
"... You didn't lie to me before, so... I'll trust you. Don't let me down, Turv."
"Thank you so much! Canderack won't hurt anyone, I swear!"
"He had a name?"
I grumbled. Ass...
"Yeah. He told me back at this cave my dad was...", Turv trailed off.
'Xiva' hugged that Turv kid close.
"Shush... It's okay."
She looked over to me.
"Come on. We'll treat that burn you've got."
She led Turv and I into this really nice smelling room. There were soft things with patterns all over them. I liked those soft things for one reason.
They had flower patterns on them.
Xiva must've been making something, because she was making something in a small... thing. It was round.
"Does Canderack drink tea?", Xiva asked.
Tea? The crap is tea?
"I don't know.", Turv said, looking to Canderack.
... Uh.
I walked over to the stuff in the thing. I gave it a smell. It smelled kinda nice. I slowly lowered my mouth to try some.
Then 'Xiva' pushed my head back up.
"Don't drink that, it's too hot!", Xiva warned.
I grumbled.
"He's hungry, too. I heard his belly growl pretty loud on the way here.", Turv added.
"Not surprising, considering he can't buy any or get any for free from anyone...", Xiva returned.
I growled. She wasn't gonna be sarcastic about me. She does that again, I swear...
She had me sit on a couple of soft cushion thingies. I just took in the sweet smell in the room. She took the round thing off of a fire after a bit, then blew a little Icy Wind into it to cool it down, then put it into a small cup. She held it up to my mouth.
"Here, drink this. It'll help you recover."
I tasted it. It was a little... not sweet. Bitter, kinda. It felt good, though. It made me feel tingly. My burn felt really tingly, though.
It stopped burning. The skin that was peeling peeled off and fell off. I felt... I felt great! I felt like I could take on the world!
What IS that stuff? I want more of it!
I finished it off. I didn't feel any better, but I still felt kinda tingly.
"Do you like it? It's a special recipe my mother taught me. I help other Pokemon with it, every once and a while.", Xiva said.
I nodded. It was good, it just didn't taste that good. This world's got all kinds of weird stuff in it...
"Wow...! Your burn healed like it was nothing!", Turv said, a bit astonished.
"I had to use this tea for you too, Turv. You weren't awake when I had you drink it, you were unconcious from exhaustion. You were in pretty bad shape.", Xiva said.
... Figures the kid probably left his dad before. Considering the crap I saw back at that cave, this isn't surprising. 'cept...
... Whatever.
I'm not gonna care...
...
...
Too much.
"Is this all you came here for, Turv? Just to get Canderack's burn healed? Not even to say hi?"
"Well... Um... I don't know. Where's the Snow Witch?", Turv asked.
"Come on, Turv. You know that's my mom." Xiva replied.
Wait a minute. THIS girl isn't the Snow Witch? It's just her kid?
Who the hell's the real deal, then?
Probably not as...
I felt my face get warm for some reason. Hell if I know why.
Had something to do with that 'Xiva' girl, though.
I don't think they saw me, though. Which is kinda hard to believe, since I'm eight frickin' feet tall. Wait, why did I care about them seeing me? My face is just warm. It's not like I'm sick.
Am I?
"You never told me her name. You just kept calling her 'Mom'.", Turv said, a tad bit defensive.
"Did you ever call your parents by name, kiddo?", Xiva wittily fired back.
"Um..."
Turv looked off to the side. Girl's got a brain. I never called MY parents by name...
Not that I even know their names. All I know is fight. And hating people.
I looked around the room a little, enjoying the smell and the stuff around me. It was not like home, it seemed like it was pretty and belonged somewhere else. Then again, this IS somewhere else.
Duh...
"Exactly. So, what's with Canderack? Not much of a talker?", Xiva asked.
I grunted. Sure, let's go with that...
Turv scratched the back of his head.
"I don't know. He didn't say much to begin with, but people say he says all kinds of mean things. He literally hasn't said anything other than 'no' and his name."
Then Xiva looked over at me.
"Then it's not that he's 'Not a talker'. He most likely can't really talk to others. Is that true?", she asked.
I grumbled, and nodded 'yes'.
"That's... That's not even right...", Turv commented, seeming down.
Xiva floated over to me. She... She put her hand under my chin, almost scratching.
My face felt real warm. I looked down with only my eyes.
"You were raised terribly wrong, weren't you...?", she asked.
I just grunted. St-stop being so close to me...!
"Um, Xiva? I think he's blushing.", Turv commented.
Blushing? Who the hell was...
...
Dammit.
That's why my face was warm.
Xiva floated up to see me, face to face.
I stared into her eyes. She stared into mine.
"What's the matter? Never been touched by a girl before?", she giggled.
Piss off! I'm not used to people touching me, period!
Arceus help me...
"So that's why you're an outlaw! You couldn't really tell anyone, and... Uh...", Turv trailed off.
"Easy to anger.", Xiva finished for him.
Yeah, well screw you, too. You're not the ones who had to fight or get beaten. Or fight and lose and get beaten anyway.
Asses...
"So... What do we do now?", Turv asked.
I glanced around for some kind of exit. I needed to get away from Xiva. She made me feel... weird.
Some sort of weird-good feeling.
I don't know if I like it or not.
"Look, you both ought to stay for a bit. You've had a long day. It's getting dark. I'll get some dinner ready for the two of you. Canderack, I don't know if I have anything to set you up for some cozy sleeping, but the floor isn't too cold. Do you mind?", Xiva asked.
I shook my head.
Wait, why was I just going to agree with this girl? I need to be more damn cautious. The last time I trusted a girl, she stabbed me in my Arceus-damned back.
... Dammit! That stupid Juniper prick!
I grit my teeth, but I made sure I turned my head away first, so they wouldn't pick up on it.
I'll save you the details. Xiva made us dinner. It was pretty good... for berries and red fruits. Is that all they had here for food? Not that I don't like the taste...
Xiva and Turv slept in a bunkbed. Xiva slept on top, Turv took the bottom. I got the floor, but a few cushions to lie on. Gotta have something, I guess...
Damn. Ever since I've taken to helping this kid, good things have been happening to me. Mostly. Falling down a pit sucked. I still got that burn fixed though, so that's still a plus.
I sighed.
After I started protecting this kid, or at least thinking I was gonna be his protector, which is a nice thing, nice things have been happening. Is this really what being a 'good' guy really sums up to be?
I don't want people to like me. They'll bug me to do crap I don't feel like doing.
... At least, I think. Probably... Yeah.
Whatever. I could just go for some sleep.
So I dozed off.
I'd have to figure out what to do tomorrow...
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"Trying to elude me are you, beast?"
Aw, son of a-
