Operation Matchmaker: Part 10
Pokémon were mysterious, powerful creatures. They possessed elusive and startlingly strong powers. They could change the world without ever intending to do so. There was the matter of different Pokémon Types, different Pokémon moves, the concept of evolution and those that did not evolve and of course, the matter of the legendaries. While it was difficult to be able to research the legendaries, a scientist or a Pokémon Professor could research the less powerful Pokémon and of course, Pokémon generally accepted as starters such as Oshawott for example.
Dr Zager liked experimenting on rare Pokémon, the rarer the better which was probably why some species were indeed, pretty rare like the Starters. And since an Oshawott was rare, he fervently wanted to capture it and besides, it had tried standing up to him and therefore, it needed to be taught another painful lesson.
He understood the concept vaguely. A weakened Pokémon was easier to capture than a strong Pokémon and this one, still afflicted by the paralysing energy beam, had obviously been weakened. He drew out a Master Ball since he had heard that it could catch any Pokémon that he threw it at, even the legendaries.
"Er, what are you doing?" Ash began.
"Shut up," said Dr Zager calmly. "I do not care what you think about me or my experiments or Pokémon as a whole. Do you think I'm just going to let you get away with this insult to me and Team Rocket? Of course not. I have many Master Balls on my person since my dealings with Silph Co. A Pokémon captured is never as strong as a wild Pokémon but I will extract its true potential even after capture. It has already been done."
Dr Zager launched the Master Ball at Oshawott who would have whacked it aside with his scalchop had he realised what was about to happen. Then he realised that he wouldn't have needed to do so anyway.
The Master Ball flew into the air after hitting Oshawott and for a moment or two, it looked like it would open and capture Oshawott without letting him fight against its control. Therefore, Dr Zager was thunderstruck when it plummeted back down to the earth and was for all intents and purposes, completely unusable.
Ash, Iris and Cilan started sniggering after a short period of silence and then it soon turned into full-blown laughter that echoed down the mountains: how could such a professed Team Rocket Scientist make such a massive mistake? Even the professionals made mistakes it seemed. Even Jessie, James and Meowth chuckled amongst themselves although they did look faintly embarrassed. Oshawott just rubbed his head; that Ball hurt.
"What a kid!" Iris laughed. "Even the most novice trainers know that you can't capture a Pokémon that's already been captured even with a Master Ball!"
"Talk about an anti-climax!" Ash sniggered. "I guess that means you have no more ideas left, Zager."
Dr Zager quietly seethed with rage. Embarrassment was an unfamiliar emotion for him but he was feeling it now and to be laughed at by a bunch of kids was practically murder. He did not realise his obvious error at first since he had never travelled about as a Pokémon Trainer. During the course of his research on Pokémon, the question of Pokéballs and the environment that they created for the Pokémon to reside in never cropped up since he was more interested in their power and strength than anything else.
How infuriating.
"What are you waiting for? Go and capture them already!" Dr Zager snapped at the Team Rocket trio. He was not amused when all they did was shuffle about on the spot uncomfortably. He hadn't even noticed that their Pokémon had been returned back to their Pokéballs some time ago.
"Sir…" James began. "I don't think we have many options left. The Grunts have retreated and we would be wise to retreat too…"
"Hmph. Well if you lot are too lily-livered to take on a bunch of kids and their Pokémon then I shall still have at least one prize for my collection!" Team Rocket stepped back sharpish, realising what was about to happen next.
It was foolish of him to try and snatch up the weakened Oshawott when there were so many other Pokémon there and he did not have a back-up plan such as that of an electro-net or other such devices that Jessie, James and Meowth carried about with them, especially in the old days when they used all sorts of things just to nab a few Pokémon. Team Rocket even had back-up plans for back-up plans for the most part. Oshawott, drawing on what strength he had remaining left, launched his scalchop straight at Dr Zager causing the scientist to topple backwards into the snow.
It was also satisfying to see somebody else be electrocuted by Pikachu for a change as well before the inevitable follow-up of a few other moves.
Dr Zager landed in front of the helicopter with his coat and hair singed and he growled with rage when he saw that the spare energy core that he had been carrying in his pocket after all this time had shattered into countless pieces. Oshawott was released from the core's cruel snare and the burn effect had finally died down too.
The entire group suddenly heard sirens whirring in the distance as well as noticing the flash of blue lights that indicated the near arrival of Officer Jenny and her cohorts. Dr Zager fled into the helicopter whose blades quickly began to rotate.
Before he slammed the door shut behind him, he whispered venomously to the group: "I'll get you all yet; you and your Pokémon. See if I don't." Ash, Iris and Cilan shielded themselves from the whipped-up snow as the helicopter began to take off. Jessie, James and Meowth prepared to leave too as they strapped on their jetpacks.
Jessie tossed Ash a disc of some kind. "Maybe it would be wise if you used this. Don't ask why we're giving it you otherwise we will have to steal your Pokémon sooner than intended again."
"Yeah. And that thing might be to our advantage anyway!" Meowth cackled. "We don't do somethin' for nothin' ya know!"
"No doubt we'll meet again," said James. And with that, the familiar Team Rocket trio blasted off via jetpack straight into the black sky and were soon lost to sight. Ash scratched his head with confusion and went to pick up the thing left for him.
"Well, that was strange," Iris sighed. "I guess I'll never understand those crooks."
"Neither will I, Iris," said Cilan. "It's like those people who add heaps of sugar to perfectly good herbal tea when there is simply no need for it. It spoils the aromatic flavours and the delightful scent of the brew. What is it they left you by the way, Ash?"
"It's the TM Scald!" said Ash excitedly. "That will be a useful move for Oshawott. I suppose it would be useful in areas such as these. Maybe that's why they left it. And they would probably want Oshawott to learn this before they try to capture our Pokémon again since no doubt they will. I guess that's how they work. And Scald's supposed to cause burns from time to time, right? That'll be really good for future battles."
"Alright, Team Rocket! Put your hands up and get down on the ground, you're under arrest!"
"Hey there, Officer Jenny," said Cilan as they saw her pull up on her snowmobile with a number of other Officers. "We're glad to see you but I'm afraid you're too late though. Team Rocket already took off in a helicopter and the others flew off with jetpacks."
"Those villains!" she cursed. "We will get our hands on them at some point, you can bet your last Pokédollar on that! But enough about that, you guys must be absolutely freezing. Put these coats on this instant."
"T-Thanks!" they stuttered, suddenly realising that they were indeed freezing after all the excitement was over. They got their Pokémon to return to their respective balls as well for a well-earned rest although Snivy and Oshawott remained outside.
"So I see you got your Pokémon back," said another familiar voice. "Well thank goodness for that! I would have hated for anything to happen to them."
"Professor Juniper!" they exclaimed with surprise as she climbed out of one of the snowmobiles. "How did you find us?"
"Oh, I met up with Oshawott when he was trying to figure out where you lot had gone," Juniper explained as she picked up her tired former charge. Oshawott gave a wide yawn. "I saw which way he had gone after I contacted the police. You've raised him well, Ash, by the way."
"Er, thanks Professor," he said, embarrassed. "And anyway, it just goes to show how resourceful Oshawott is! Oh yeah, and we know why he was acting the way he was too!"
They quickly explained the whole tale from Oshawott finding them to the battle with the Rocket Grunts and the encounter with Dr Zager and so forth. Officer Jenny listened in as her Officers examined the cages left behind, placed them in the back of the snowmobiles and generally searched the area for clues.
"We've got him on our books," she said gravely. "He is a menace to Pokémon and trainers alike but you can be sure that we will get him one day too. You wouldn't want to hear the things that we've heard but he shall be justly punished when we nab him."
"Aww, so that's it is it?" said Juniper smiling. "Well, I think you have yourself a good mate," she said to Snivy. "He's got a good heart but you just make sure that he doesn't get up to any trouble." Snivy smiled at that. "And I do believe you have a good mate in turn don't you, Oshawott?"
Oshawott didn't answer however. He had fallen straight asleep in Professor Juniper's arms almost the moment she had picked him up. It had been a long night and he was absolutely exhausted. He had curled up in the warmth of her jacket and had been lulled to sleep by that and their talking.
"Bless him," said Juniper fondly. "I'd be asleep too after all that. Tell you what, why don't we all get back to the Pokémon Centre? It's too perishing to be out here any longer."
"Definitely!" said Ash grinning. Juniper passed Oshawott over to Ash once he was safely in one of the snowmobiles. Snivy made herself comfortable next to Oshawott on Ash's lap and considering the night that they had been through, she dozed off pretty quickly too with their tails touching each other. Pikachu, to give them some space, travelled with Cilan on the way back.
They barely remembered their clamber out of the snowmobiles even though the journey probably took less than fifteen minutes altogether. Ash, Iris and Cilan trudged back to their room in the Pokémon Centre accompanied by Professor Juniper and without bothering to undress, they promptly collapsed into the beds. Pikachu took his usual place next to Ash while Oshawott and Snivy lay next to each other, covered with warm blankets and sleeping under the gaze of moonlight.
"You mean I didn't have to go through all that?" Oshawott cried.
"I said you didn't need to prove anything, didn't I?"
"Well, I suppose, but I could have avoided a really embarrassing moment at the florist's…"
Oshawott and Snivy finally had the chance to enjoy each other's company after everything that had happened the other day and be left in peace. After running about in the cold for so long, Oshawott had developed a nasty fever causing him to burn up and feel swelteringly hot and freezing cold at the same time. Fortunately for him though, it hadn't lasted long and Audino was especially pleased that her patient hadn't kept running away this time. Even if Oshawott had planned to, he had actually been too weak to do so on this occasion but Snivy had insisted on being with him this time.
Professor Juniper left them both a present of (oh, sweet irony) Enigma Berries as part of her congratulations before she headed off into town to do some further Pokémon research, waving goodbye to the trainers. It was one of the joys of being a Pokémon Professor to see Pokémon like Oshawott and Snivy giving themselves to each other and she treasured such memories. Truly, Pokémon were marvellous creatures.
Oshawott was pleased to learn Scald, finally replacing his old move Water Gun even though that had proved very useful in the battle against Team Rocket. He used it in the battle against Stephan and knocked out his Darmanitan in practically one shot. Though Stephan had lost, he was elated that they had finally had a full-on Pokémon battle against each other without being interrupted for once. With this unexpected luck, he decided to have a battle against Cilan and Iris as well which was what they were currently up to after his Pokémon had had their deserved rest.
Pikachu bravely took on the role of entertaining Axew and Scraggy for the day. He had enlisted the help of Emolga as well just to make sure that she didn't interrupt them in any way. Oshawott supposed that she would still try and tease him in some way but he could safely ignore that now. And in any case, she would have Snivy to contend with and she didn't take prisoners lightly.
Oshawott nuzzled up to Snivy. "I'm just glad that it all worked out in the end, really."
Snivy nuzzled him back. "I am too although I would have loved to see you in that costume you say you looked so ridiculous in!"
"Yes, well it was," he murmured, leaning lightly against her. "I still wish I could have got you something though…"
"Oshawott, it doesn't matter," she whispered. She pressed a hand against his scalchop, a sign of the absolute trust between them. Oshawott quivered slightly; it was still such a strange feeling to have somebody else touch his scalchop when it was still attached to his body. His heart fluttered. "I heard what it was you were trying to do; the Berry, the Miracle Seed, but at the end of the day, it's the thought that counts."
"I was afraid that I wouldn't look good enough," Oshawott admitted, nuzzling her again. "I know you wouldn't have wanted anything too impressive so I thought I'd get something simple and not too… garish. And at first, I guess I was just trying to follow tradition. But I'm glad you see it that way anyway. So thank you."
They sat in silence for a while on the grass underneath the warm and bright sun. They shared an apple that Pikachu had given them before. Oshawott, acting the gentleman, insisted that Snivy had the bigger piece although this was partly due to him making up for his previous lack of food at breakfast this morning. Snivy knew that but she didn't mind; it was a nice gesture which she graciously accepted.
"Oshawott, I've just been wondering…"
"Hmm?"
"During battle, I'll still be using Attract against my male opponents since it is a very useful move. And you know what that means. You won't suddenly become the jealous sort will you?" she said with a mocking smile. Oshawott folded his arms and smirked back.
"Of course not! What do you take me for? I'm not like Emolga who gets jealous over just about everything. She doesn't like the fact that I like you, er, well, love you really," he corrected himself, blushing. "More than I like or love her. She's probably going to swear revenge any moment now if she hasn't done so already. And then she'll really hate us."
"Oh, well, nothing much changes there does it?" said Snivy as she finished off her piece of apple. "I suppose we better watch out then if she's got something planned up her sleeve especially if she keeps using Attract on everybody."
"Well, I know for certain it won't work on me!" said Oshawott brightly. "She's already tried that one once. And she only uses Attract to get things done for her that she can't be bothered doing herself. No, she'll probably electrocute me instead but I'll be ready this time."
"I know you will," she said. She was quite confident about Oshawott's abilities, more so than ever. Oshawott was certainly proud of himself; that was definitely her Oshawott. And apart from that, Emolga was aware that Scald could cause a nasty burn so for the time being, she had been keeping out of his way as Oshawott proudly professed his new skill to her; a thinly-veiled warning indeed.
It was just so pleasant to be able to sit together with nothing more than the sounds of the Bird Pokémon in the sky and a light breeze rustling past the grass to accompany them. The moment was a perfect one. The only thing now was that Oshawott was working up his courage to do so something that he had never done before.
"Er, Snivy?" he said timidly. Oh, sweet Arceus, his heart was already pounding faster.
"Yes?"
"I, well, er, you see, I… What I mean to say is…" said Oshawott, stumbling over his words. Oh, no, was this going to be harder than actually declaring his love in the first place? Snivy rescued him.
"I think I know what you're trying to get at," said Snivy lightly.
"Y-You do?" he stammered.
"I was… thinking about it myself," she confessed. "Emolga might have had loads of boyfriends so that moment won't be special to her but I… have not."
Oshawott wrapped his arms around her letting his smooth fur brush against her warm skin.
"Snivy, I love-"
"Hiya, Oshawott! Hiya, Snivy! You guys are missing out on all the fun! You should have seen what happened earlier!"
Oshawott practically threw himself backwards as Axew and Scraggy, otherwise known as Pests 1 and 2 came bounding over to them dragging a sorry-looking Pikachu behind them tied up with what looked like String Shot. Oshawott sighed; this moment reminded him of the romantic films that humans tended to watch. Why on earth was the first kiss in any relationship interrupted every single time?
"Sorry," said Pikachu. "They decided it would be a good idea to crash into a Joltik nest and guess who had to go in there and rescue them? That's right, me. And now, it's been apparently a good idea to drag me along like a trussed-up hatchling. So yeah, sorry for disturbing you. I told you two Oshawott and Snivy wanted to be alone!"
Oshawott sighed again and began slicing through the String Shot ropes with his scalchop, trying to avoid Pikachu's fur as he was doing so while Pikachu continued talking.
"And where's Emolga gone off to?" Snivy asked. Pikachu shrugged or at least tried to.
"Beats me. She probably thought that looking after two kids was too much like hard work. I'm guessing she's somewhere eating apples right now. Thanks, Oshawott," he said as the String Shot fell from his body. "Er, I'm guessing this was also a very private moment wasn't it?"
"Yes, it was," said Oshawott, staring at Axew and Scraggy who true to their nature basically ignored any sort of reprimanding.
"You've still got to do that favour for me!" Axew cried, tugging at Oshawott. "I did keep my promise after all!"
"I'll do it later!" he hissed. "I haven't forgotten."
"What sort of favour? And what promise?" Snivy asked curiously.
Oshawott groaned and explained the situation to her including what he had accidentally admitted to Axew. Snivy smiled. Then Scraggy piped up.
"Emolga was tellin' us earlier that when somebody has a relationship with somebody else, they soon have an Egg afterwards because that's what couples do! So I wanna ask you: where do Eggs come from and how are they made?"
Snivy and Pikachu couldn't help but laugh when Oshawott suddenly fainted on the spot although Axew and Scraggy couldn't understand what was so funny. When nobody would explain to them how Eggs were made, they shrugged and ran off again to play.
I don't think we need to think about that just yet, thought Snivy to herself as Pikachu ran off after them and finding themselves thankfully alone again, she then revived Oshawott with a kiss.
And that is the last chapter I'm afraid! Thank you for your support and your lovely reviews, my dear readers! It's been nice writing this story and giving my mind a break from exams and revision and so forth. This was going to be a two-parter would you believe it and Parts 9 and 10 were originally joined but it seemed better to split them up. I'll go through this story and edit any parts that need editing and hopefully, there may be more Oshawott stories in the future. :D
If you're wondering why I included the part about the TM Scald, it's because I've taught my own Oshawott, Callisto, that move and it is highly useful. Oshawott is cute; we all know this. I shall never evolve mine. ^o^