Merry Christmas everyone! Can't believe I forgot to add that earlier.
"Bubbles" poke speech
"That was close!" Jason said as he fell back onto a bed. Ruby had managed to teleport them in front of Eterna City's pokecenter. Luckily for them, there was enough room's for them to stay for the night. The only bad news was that Gardenia was doing some research in Eterna forest for a while and he can't battle her until she gets back. But Jason wasn't too worried by that fact, he was in no rush to battle someone, or anyone for that matter, any time soon. He was happy just lying down on a comfortable bed in a comfortable own private bathroom, a small TV, a window that faced the Eterna forest, and some snacks on the coffee table next to the bed. Everyone seemed to be quite happy being in Eterna City, except for Nate that is.
"Let's make this fast guys," Nate said nervously as he paced around the room. Nate seemed to be quite fidgety and seemed tense, as if he was expecting someone to sneak up on him. "We don't want to fall behind schedule now do we?"
"Schedule?" Joseph said as he drank a cup of coffee. He was wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans. Joseph shaved his face as soon as he could when they arrived into the pokecenter and looked much less intimidating, although he skill looked like someone who you wouldn't want to mess with. "Did we even have a schedule?"
"Can't we just stay here for a few days?" Jason asked looking at the ceiling lazily. Jason was wearing a blue shirt that read 'Oreburgh City Rocks!' and red shorts. "I mean we just got here."
"I know I know," Nate said as he paced around, biting his finger nails. His blonde hair was stuck out in all directions, mostly because he had just taken a shower upon the recommendation of Joseph to try to help him calm down. He was wearing a large yellow t-shirt that hung onto him loosely and grey sweatpants. Every now and then he would look over his shoulder, making sure no one was behind him. "It's just that I don't want us to fall behind thats all."
Joseph looked at Nate questionably for a while before taking another sip from his coffee. "How about you tell us why you want to leave so badly?" Joseph said as he picked up a nearby book on the table. "After all, you seem to be quite nervous. Mind explaining that to us?" Joseph said as he looked at the cover of the book before putting it back down.
"N-nervous? Me? Of course not," Nate said as he tried to act calm. He crossed his arms and gave a smile that showed that everything was okay, but his eyes betrayed him. His blue eyes shone with panic as well as a small tint of fear. It was as if he was trying to escape something, but he knew that he could not outrun it. Joseph eyed him for a bit before letting out a sigh.
"Regardless we still have to stay here long enough so that Jason can battle Gardenia," Joseph said as he put his cup down. He then looked over at Jason, who was half-asleep. "You think your ready?"
"Yes?" Jason mumbled as he got up slowly. Rubbing his eyes, Jason looked around the room as if he was missing something. "So what were we talking about again?"
Letting out another sigh, Joseph got up from his chair. "We'll talk about it later," Joseph said as he took his cup of coffee with him. Making sure he didn't leave anything else in the room, he began to walk out before stopping. "One more thing, did you manage to get that telepathic link up yet?"
"Did I get the telephone line up?" Jason asked sleepily. Jason then glanced around the place, looking for a telephone. "No, I don't see one. Maybe tomorrow."
"Never mind," Joseph said as he realized that he couldn't get anymore down today. "Get some rest you two."
"Good night," Nate replied as Joseph went to his room. Nate then sat down on a chair and looked at the book Joseph put down a few minutes ago. His mind was still focused on what had happened and coming up with ways to avoid repeating the same thing.
"Jason, can I ask you a question?" Nate asked as he opened the book and began to read. It was about the lore behind the Old Chateau and the rumours behind the alleged ghost sightings. When he didn't hear a response, Nate looked up from the book to see that Jason had already fallen asleep. Putting down the book he decided to also go to his room. Walking out of Jason's room, he looked back just to make sure that everything was still alright. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Nate walked down the hallway and entered into his room which was the third one to the left. Just when he closed the door he felt a familiar presence, one that brought back painful memories.
"Hello?" Nate said, looking around. Seeing no one besides him, he shook his head trying to clear his mind. 'Don't worry so much Nate,' he thought to himself as he went to bed.
Outside two figures stood outside of the pokecenter. One of them had its eyes closed as if in deep thought, the other looking at the building looking for points of entry as well as any security measures that they might have to face.
"He's there," said the one who had its eyes closed.
"Are you positive?" asked the other. "We wouldn't want anymore surprises other than the ones we have already have in store. Hate to return those."
"When have I ever lied to you my sweet?" replied the other as she giggled and leaned onto the shoulder of the other person. "Trust me, we have found him."
"Well then, let's get things started," said the other, holding the hand of the first. His eyes gleamed with anticipation as they to walk towards the pokecenter. "Ready or not old friend, here we come."
"So how do I set up the , uh, telephone link?" Jason asked as bit into his peanut butter sandwich he had prepared a few days ago. He initially wanted to go to the cafeteria for his breakfast but Joseph said it was wiser to finish off any food that may spoil first. That way they wouldn't waste any supplies as well as throwing away any food. So now they were having breakfast in Jason's room around the coffee table that they moved into the middle of the living room.
"It's telepathic link, for the fifth time," Joseph said as he rubbed his temples. In front of him was a half eaten piece of toast as well as a cup of instant noodles. He spent the past ten minutes trying to explain Jason the importance of having a telepathic link with his pokemon and how to do so. So far all Jason got was that a telepathic link was a bit like having a telephone in your head.
"So anyway, how do I set up the telephone link?" Jason asked again, completely forgetting how to pronounce it correctly. Joseph groaned in reply as he realized the trouble he got himself into.
"First off you need a psychic type pokemon," Joseph stated as he stirred his chopstick in his instant noodles. "Seeing as you already have one we that saves us the trouble of looking for one. Next you simply ask you pokemon to create a telepathic link between you two as well as the rest of the team. Once you have done that you are pretty much finished. You can now understand your pokemon as if they are talking in english by using your thoughts only."
"Is that all?" Jason asked as he drank some oran juice. Jason thought it would be much more complicated then simply asking his ralts. He thought it would include a bunch of wires, a drill, and a telephone.
"It's that simple," Joseph replied as he finished off his toast. "I suggest that you do that as quickly as possible so that you won't forget."
"Plus we are in a rush," Nate added as he looked outside the window. Nate had calmed down quite a bit although he still seemed nervous and looked from side to side occasionally. The panic had gone away from his eyes although the fear still remained. "I say we should leave today. Keep on schedule and making sure we don't fall behind from everyone else you know." Joseph eyed at Nate once more, trying to figure out why he was so nervous and in such a rush to leave. Perhaps this place brought up bad memories, Nate had old enemies here, or simply this was the after effect of being chased by a horde of zubats. Regardless, Joseph couldn't tell with what he knew currently and decided to ask Nate about this later in private.
"That depends on when Gardenia returns from her trip from the Eterna forest," Joseph pointed out. "Until she comes back we're here to stay, unless of course something else shows up that is."
"How about we just go check right now?" Jason asked as he finished off his sandwich. Brushing any crumbs that had fallen onto his shorts, Jason got up and began to pack up his bag. "Its not like we have anything else to do right now."
"There is the matter of creating the telepathic link, which you haven't done yet might I add," Joseph replied as he got up. A walk around Eterna city didn't sound like a bad idea to him. He might even bump into a few friends and catch up with them.
"Oh yeah, the telephone line," Jason said as he scratched his head. "So how do I do it again?"
Joseph groaned in frustration as Jason stared at him blankly, waiting for a response. Trying to teach Jason was as frustrating as capturing a legendary with a poke ball. Its possible, but it requires a lot of patience, luck, and suppressing the desire to simply knocking the pokemon out and calling it a day.
"Okay, so this is what you need to do."
"That wasn't so hard!" Jason said cheerfully as he, Joseph, and Nate walked down the street towards. They had all changed clothes before heading outside. He was wearing a blue shirt with the words 'Mining is cool!' in white with grey sweatpants. Joseph wore a black leather jacket, jeans, and sunglasses. Nate followed the two wearing a red shirt with yellow strips and a pair of shorts. With Jason now able to understand what his pokemon is saying he could be a better trainer. Now if he had spent the past two hours training as recommended by Joseph then Jason should be ready to face Gardenia. Instead, he spent the entire time asking his ralts, who he has named Ralph upon learning that he was a boy, what it was like being a pokemon. Obviously that was a huge waste of time.
Joseph opened his mouth in reply but wisely decided to say nothing. It was probably best not to ruin Jason's moment of glory now. Plus he didn't want to spend another thirty minutes listening to Jason explain why he is such a party pooper.
"So where are we headed after checking if Gardenia is at the gym?" Jason asked as he read a brochure that he got from the local poke mart. Both Terra and Ralph were with him, Terra on her usual place on top of is head and Ralph walking next to him. Ralph would get distracted every now and then and spend a few seconds staring at whatever caught his attention before running back to rejoin the group. Terra just lied down on Jason's head as usual and occasional blew a few bubbles out of boredom. Jason would've also brought his zubat with him but realized that having a zubat flying around the place wasn't such a good idea.
"I wanna go swimming!" Ralph said enthusiastically as he tugged at Jason's pants. Pretty much everything Ralph has said since establishing the telepathic link was him saying that he wants to do or eat certain things. Most of the time he didn't even know what he was talking about. He just said it because it sounded like fun.
"But there's no swimming pool here," Jason replied as he looked around, checking to see if he could find one. He then looked at the map in the brochure just to make sure if there were any swimming pools. There weren't any unless you consider a lack as a swimming pool. "How about we go to a flower shop instead? There's a lot of flower shops here."
"Flowers are stinky!" Ralph said, crossing his arms as he sticked out his tongue in protest.
"Do you even know what a flower is?" Jason asked. Even before he spoke those words, he already knew what the answer would be.
"Nope!" Ralph replied happily, grinning with glee. Jason groaned in response and continued to walk towards the Eterna city gym with Ralph still holding to his pants. At first Ralph thought about letting go but realized it was much more fun hitching a ride then walking.
"How about going to Veilstone city?" Nate suggested as they walked past the poke mart. "It's pretty close and I beat Maylene just a few weeks ago so I can give you some tips." All signs of being nervous had simply disappeared when they left for the Eterna city gym. In no time Nate returned back into his usual self, although he did stare into the unknown from time to time.
"We should discuss this later. We're here," Joseph said as he stopped in front of the Eterna city gym. It was a massive building with a large orange roof. Six large windows were on the front and sides so that people can see any pokemon battles going on inside and the pokemon logo was proudly displayed on a orange sign above the entrance. Through the windows one can see that the lights were on and, most important of all, a sign read "Open to all trainers" was hanging on the front.
"Yeah!" Jason said in excitement as he sprinted towards the entrance. This sudden shift of speed almost made Terra lose her grip on Jason's head and made Ralph cling onto Jason's pants for dear life.
"What do you think you doing?" Joseph asked as Jason nearly ran into him. Joseph tried to grab onto Jason's arm but he missed.
"I'm gonna get my first gym badge!" Jason replied as he burst through the doors filled with anticipation. Jason's sudden entrance startled the people who were already inside and they stared at him in confusion. Jason looked around the large room until he found a women with orange hair standing on a small podium near the back of the room. She had orange eyes, the same colour as her hair, and was wearing green boots. Her orange shorts and small green cloak revealed her abdomen. Thinking that he had found his opponent he stood at the challengers circle. All the training, which wasn't much, was about to be tested in a few moments as he pointed towards the Eterna city gym leader and shouted,
"Gardenia! I challenge you to a battle!"
"Did you really think you could win against Gardenia unprepared?" Joseph said sternly as they walked back towards the pokecenter. Jason lagged behind, weighed down by failure as well as the realization that he required more training if he is to succeed. Jason had Ralph in his arms while Terra was in her poke ball which was safely inside his bag.
"Kinda," Jason said embarrassed. He didn't even last one minute against Gardenia. Terra was easily beaten by Gardenia's Roserade and Ralph was put to sleep the moment he got out. "I thought I could handle it."
"You decided to fight her without your zubat. The whole reason why you even caught it WAS to battle Gardenia. Why would you fight her without using the very pokemon you caught that could beat her?" Joseph continued as he shook his head. He never understood why new trainers always wanted to rush everything. "You have to be more patient. Spend more time training with your pokemon. Speaking of which is your ralts awake yet?"
Jason poked Ralph's check as he slept in Jason's arms. Ralph's response was a small stream of drool sliding down his mouth. "I would say no," Jason replied as he tried to avoid the drool from touching his sleeve. Nate watched Jason do this strange dance while trying to avoid the small stream of drool coming out of his pokemon's mouth.
"Here's a tissue," Nate said as he pulled out a small wad of tissue from his pocket. "This should work better than your weird dance of yours."
"Thanks," Jason said as he wiped the drool of Ralph's face. "So I have to start training tomorrow?"
"Today would be better," Joseph replied as they stepped into the pokecenter. There were a few other trainers inside, some waiting for their pokemon and others sitting on the chairs and exchanging stories to each other about past battles and new regions. "Now first things first, let heal up your pokemon."
"Hey nurse joy can you heal my pokemon?" Jason said as he put Terra's poke ball onto the counter. He then got Ralph's poke ball and returned him into it. Handing both to the nurse joy behind the counter, Jason felt like he was forgetting something.
"Of course. Please wait over there while we heal your pokemon. It shouldn't take long," Nurse Joy replied as she took Terra's and Ralph's poke ball and placed it into the healing machine. She pointed towards the area of the pokecenter designated as the 'waiting area'. Although not separated by a door or walls, most people refer to the waiting area as simply the waiting room. It had numerous chairs and tables with magazines on them, not to mention one large TV on the right wall.
"So while we're waiting, lets talk about how we should help you train," Joseph said as he pulled himself a set.
"Well I think that we should jus-" Nate began when someone interrupted him.
"Well isn't this a pleasant surprise?" a voice called from behind. "It had been a long time since we have meet, hasn't it old friend?"
Nate, Joseph, and Jason looked back to see the owner of the voice. They saw a young man, no older than twenty, with dark hair wearing a black jacket and jeans. His clothes hung on him loosely and his black hair was choppy with a large strand covering the left side of his face, but not covering his eye. He smiled at them, but they could tell that this was not one that expressed friendship or happiness. Rather it was a silent challenge. The most startling thing about him was that he had two different colour of eyes, one red and the other blue. Both shone with anticipation as if he was looking at a present that he could't wait to open up.
Beside him was a Gardevoir hugging his arm protectively. This Gardevoir looked exactly how one expects to see a Gardevoir. Elegant, graceful, beautiful are the words that come to mind when one see her. However there was something off about her.
"Adrian and Sarah. Didn't think to see you here," Nate said slowly as he got up from his chair.
"Well isn't that thoughtful of you Nate, remembering our name after all those years." Adrian grinned as he slipped his arm our of Sarah's grasp and causally walked towards Nate. "Don't you think it's right to spend you last few moments with an old dear friend?"
So how do you guys like this new chapter? Hope that this little bit of mystery spices things up a bit. If not then let me know by review or PM.
Edit: I also changed the ending, didn't like it one bit. If you guys have any complaints about it PM me or reply.
