Goodness. This chapter is going to be a long one…We've finally gotten to the main story and a lot is about to happen, so I think I'll cut it into two parts. Part 1 will be pretty short, only about 2000 words, but part 2 will be a lot longer.

Please enjoy part 1 ^_^


Mischief - Chapter 10: Beginning of the End Part 1

"Angel!" I called, running out into the guild gardens, Mischief gripped firmly in my one arm. "Angel! Where are you?"

The unmistakable sound of wing beats was my answer. The large brown and red bird swooped out of the sky and hovered in front of me.

"Hello Angel."

"Pidgeooh!"

"I know it's been a while since I've come to visit. I've been really busy training. But now I'm about to set out on my first mission and I talked to the Guild Leader and he gave me permission to capture you, and, well, I was wondering if maybe you'd like to join me?" I asked nervously as I held up a Pokéball.

"Vee!" Mischief cried indignantly. She squirmed from my grasp and jumped at the flying Pokémon, biting onto its tail.

"Mischief!" I gasped, dropping the ball in my hand. The Pidgeotto, however, seemed unfazed. Reaching down, it planted a single hard peck to the Eevee's head. The little fox dropped to the ground and I immediately scooped it back into my arms.

"I am so sorry Angel! Mischief is a bit, well, mischievous…" I apologized, but the bird just looked amused. Swooping down, it landed beside the Pokéball I had dropped and pushed the button with its beak. In a flash of red, it disappeared. The ball shook once before settling.

"Looks like we have a new member of our team, Mischief," I said as I crouched to pick it up.

"Vee," the Eevee huffed and looked away from me. I put the ball on my belt and held Mischief out so I could look at her.

"What's the matter? Shouldn't you be happy we have a new friend?" I asked with a chuckle. In response, she bit my hand. I dropped her, crying out, "You horrid fur ball! What was that for?"

But she was already gone. As soon as she hit the ground, she pressed the button to her own Pokéball and disappeared in a flash of red.

"Fine. Be that way you miserable little creature…" I grumbled as I examined the bite. She must be really mad; she even punctured the skin. Blood was welling up and began to drip off my fingers. Sighing, I griped the wounds tightly, trying to apply as much pressure as possible and walked back to the Guild. "I guess I should go see Dr. Lee to get it cleaned up and wrapped."

"I'm so sorry I'm late!" I cried as I approached the fountain I was supposed to meet Light by. He was already there, sitting on the fountain's edge watching a couple Azurill that were playing in the water.

Looking up at me, he raised an eyebrow. "You were supposed to be here thirty minutes ago," he stated.

"I know, I know. I'm so sorry," I apologized again.

"Let me guess," he said, an amused smile overtaking his irritated expression, "Mischief?"

I nodded.

"What did she do this time?"

I held up my bandaged hand. "She bit me."

Light chuckled. "Alright. What did you do?"

"Nothing!" I exclaimed exasperatedly. "I asked Angel if he wanted to join me on my journey, then Mischief bit me. And now look-" I took Mischief's ball off my belt and pressed the button to release her. It opened in the typical flash of light then closed with Mischief still inside. "She's giving me the silent treatment!"

Light laughed. "It looks to me like she's jealous."

"Why would she be jealous?" I rolled my eyes.

"Well, you do have a stronger bond with that Pidgeotto than you do with her and she'll sense it," he stated.

"But she doesn't even like me? Why would she care if I have a bond with another Pokémon?" I asked, slightly indignant.

"Every Pokémon has some form of loyalty to its trainer, whether or not it like them. And it's not that Mischief doesn't like you-she just has a naughty nature so she acts up and gets into trouble," Light explained patiently. "And though she didn't seem phased by it, your threat to release her may have scared her just a bit. Then when you went and caught a new Pokémon, it may have scared her even more. Even the smallest part of her may have believed that threat."

I looked down at the little fox's Pokéball, gilt knawing at my stomach. He was right…I had said when she first hatched that I didn't care what her nature was, but I had been acting like I didn't want her.

"I'm sorry Mischief…" I whispered.

Light placed his hand on my shoulder and I looked up at him.

"Come on. We have a long way to go if we want to reach Little Root before nightfall," he said with a warm smile. "And don't worry too much about Mischief. You learned your lesson; she'll come around before too long."


Thanks to my delay and a few too many encounters with wild Pokémon (during which Mischief still remained stubbornly in her ball), we entered the city a few hours after nightfall. Fortunately, we had Kai-Light's Raichu- to use Flash to help guide us through the wooded paths on our way to Little Root.

Stifling a yawn, Light said, "We'll spend the night at the Pokémon Centre and go to the Library for our debriefing tomorrow."

I nodded tiredly, not fully registering what he was saying as I followed him to the red-roofed building. Once inside, we were welcomed warmly and shown to rooms we could use for the duration of our mission. They were small and simple, with nothing but a bed, nightstand, and small, nearly empty book shelf, but it was still comfortable. As I closed and locked the door behind me, I let out a deep yawn. It must have been at least one in the morning and we had been walking nearly all day with only short breaks.

I stripped my dirt-covered clothes off and left them in a pile on the floor before tiredly pulling on some pyjamas. I clicked my two utilized Pokéballs off my belt and placed them on the nightstand as I sat down on the surprisingly comfortable bed. I yawned again as I flicked off the lamp and laid down. As I closed my eyes, about to succumb to sleep, a bright flash filled the room.

Groaning, I opened my eyes to see my little Eevee facing toward me on the bed, looking sadly down at the sheets. Remembering what Light had said and seeing her hurt expression, all irritation left my mind. Slowly reaching out, I stroked the top of her head.

Startled, she looked at me with wide, hopeful eyes. And yet, I could see the doubt there. I smiled softly at her and lifted the blankets with a single arm.

Her spirits lifted as she happily accepted the invitation I had never offered before. She curled up against my chest. I pulled her into my neck, just as I had done the day she hatched - my beautiful, naughty, wonderful little Pokémon.

"I won't ever leave you," I whispered softly to her. "I may get other Pokémon, but you'll always be special - my very first."

With a contented little sigh, Mischief relaxed completely and fell asleep. I drifted off shortly after.


Trainer and Pokémon soared over chaos-filled lands. The entire country seemed to be at war with itself - and not just its people that were locked in grizzly combat, all rules of engagement forgotten. No, the lands themselves clashed in anger. Soot blanketed the sky in a black shroud so the sun could no longer be seen. The angry sea raged against it, waves growing larger with every moment. Freezing rain fell in sheets, burning the girl's eyes and skin. Her heart pounded painfully as water and blood crept into her vision. She shook her head, but otherwise ignored it. Leaning further into the soaked feathers beneath her, she began to say something to the Pidgeot. However, the thunder claps cut over her voice, making it impossible to be heard.

Fierce winds threatened to cast the intruders out of the sky, but the bird Pokémon bravely surged on.

A loud screech cut sharply through the thundering and roaring of the world. Rider and Pokémon cringed as a Staraptor suddenly appeared, launching itself at the pair from above, talons extended. The girl cried out as the blade-like claws made contact with her shoulder.

Before she could recover from the blow, the black raptor was making another dive. In a desperate attempt to protect his master, Pidgeot pivoted in the air, extending his own talons.

The girl was unable to grip the feathers now slick with rain and blood. She slid off her mount and plummeted helplessly toward the raging sea bellow...


SMASH!

My eyes shot open. I found myself sitting up in bed, hands extended as though I was trying to grab something. I blinked in confusion and lowered my arms.

CRASH!

My attention was suddenly drawn to the room around me. It was completely trashed! The bookshelf had been knocked over, the lamp was on the ground (thankfully unbroken), the contents of my bag strewn out across the floor and bed, and in the middle of it all were my two monsters glaring daggers at each other.

Grabbing the ball that remained on the nightstand, I began scolding the two. "Angel! I expect this sort of behaviour from Mischief, but from you? Really?"

Both Pokémon turned to me, very much resembling a couple of startled Sentret. "Return!" I called. In a flash of red, the bird was gone. "Now you," I said sternly, looking at the Eevee. "What did you do with your ball?" It gave me an innocent grin.

I growled and rubbed my eyes. "Please? It's too early for this," I grumbled. "I need to get this cleaned up and you need to be out of the way. I'll call you out again before Light and I leave on our mission."

Agreeing to my terms, Mischief walked over to the downed shelves, prodded it with her paw, then looked up at me.

"Is it under there," I asked, narrowing my eyes. The Eevee nodded. Sighing, I threw my blankets off and stood up. I walked over to the shelf and heaved it back into its original position.

"Mischief!" I cried, "You did that on purpose, didn't you, you naughty little puff ball?"

"Vee," she said stubbornly, puffing out her cheeks. She had crushed the ball, breaking it in half by knocking the shelf on top of it. I sighed again and picked her up, holding her out so I could look her in the face. "I know you don't like your Pokéball, but you can't just destroy it."

"Vee."

"Is this why you and Angel got into a fight?"

"Vee…" she looked away from me.

"Right." I said, hugging her to my chest. "How about making a deal? I keep you out of your ball as much as possible, and you don't destroy them anymore? They're rather expensive. Deal?"

I felt the Eevee sigh.

"Deal?" I asked again.

"Ee-Vee…" Mischief replied quietly, nodding her head.

"Good," I said, placing her on the bed. "Now let's get this mess cleaned up and we'll go meet Light for some breakfast."


And that concludes Beginning of the End Part 1 ^_^ I hope you all enjoyed it. It was a long slower, but I think it was good to see a bit of the relationship between Scout and Mischief more than them just aggravating each other.

I'm also excited to see how Mischief's and Angel's relationship will turn out. I didn't plan that rivalry at all, it kinda just…happened. It's funny how characters will do that; it's like they have a mind of their own.

I'd also like to say happy Independence Day to all my American readers ^_^

Oh, and just to clear up some confusion: I will accept characters in a PM or a review. Whatever you'd rather do.