"I'm really, really sorry I tried to eat you."
"That's okay," Theo said.
"I just… I had no idea you were in there! You believe me, don't you!?"
Theo nodded politely. Walnut seemed sincere, but Theo was still having a hard time getting past what had happened. The Sentret had nearly killed him after all, and when Theo closed his eyes he could still picture Walnut's gigantic jaws, just about to close.
"We're still friends, aren't we?" Walnut asked.
"Of course," Theo said. He wasn't sure about that, though. Friends never ate friends.
Kamon was sleeping by the ruins of the campfire, and Theo and Walnut were talking quietly in their Pokéballs. Theo didn't want to hurt Walnut's feelings, but he sort of missed the quiet moments of the journey back when it was just Kamon and him. They would walk in silence for hours sometimes, nobody saying a thing. That was never the case with Walnut; he always had something to say, or a question about the Pokémon world.
Not to mention, Kamon had never tried to digest Theo when they were walking alone together. That was another perk.
Theo rolled over in his Pokéball. "Get some sleep, Walnut."
"I can't," Walnut said. "Pokéballs are uncomfortable."
"You get used to them," Theo replied. "They were designed for maximum Pokémon comfort."
"Then why are they round?" Walnut complained. "I can barely lie down in mine. Maybe we should switch Pokéballs?"
"You can't switch Pokéballs," Theo sighed. "They don't work that way. And trust me, my Pokéball is just as round as yours is. So lie down and go to sleep, because we have a long day's training tomorrow. I want to be well rested for-" Theo paused and looked over at his trainer. Kamon was shivering in his sleep. Theo had been on the road with Kamon for two weeks and he'd never noticed that before. As Theo stared at his trainer he saw something even stranger; the boy was muttering to himself.
"That's new," Theo whispered. He put his ear towards the edge of the Pokéball to better hear what Kamon was saying.
"Tra…Train," Kamon muttered. "Evolve. Befriend."
"What's he saying?" Walnut asked. Theo listened closer.
"Train. Evolve. Befriend. Train. Evolve. Befriend. Train. Evolve…."
Kamon suddenly thrashed to the side. Theo was about to release himself and wake up his owner, when Kamon jolted up. He scrambled out of his sleeping bag in a panic, before he remembered where he was. Then he turned to Walnut and Theo, who were looking at him with worried expressions.
"Sorry," Kamon said. He gave them an awkward wave, and Theo saw his hand was shaking. "Just a bad dream."
Kamon rolled over and went back to sleep. Soon Walnut did too. Theo did his best, but it would be several hours before he slept again.
The following morning Theo found he was paying for his lack of sleep. He could barely keep his eyes open as Kamon packed up their campsite and continued walking farther along Route 30. Luckily Kamon had decided Walnut needed more training, so the Sentret was walking beside him while Theo napped in his Pokéball.
Soon they came to a steep path. Theo remembered it well from their earlier trip to Mr. Pokémon's house. There had been trainers battling along the path, and Theo and Kamon hadn't been able to pass them. Those trainers were long gone now though, and the group climbed the path without trouble.
While nearing the top, they heard somebody shout at them from below. Theo turned his head and saw a boy younger than Kamon in shorts and a cap. The boy waved at Kamon and ran up the path to him.
"Can I help you?" Kamon asked.
"I just lost, so I'm trying to find more Pokémon." The boy took out a Pokéball and examined Walnut. "Wait! You look weak! Come on, let's battle!"
"I look weak, huh?" Kamon said. "Well you just lost a battle against someone, so I'm thinking you're not that good at judging other trainers' strength."
"Shut up!" said the kid. "Rattata, I choose you!"
A small purple rat appeared on the field. "Rat! Rat!" it cried.
Theo reflected that this Rattata was bigger than the one that kept attacking Kamon. Its teeth were filed sharply and it was well-muscled.
"Wait a second," Kamon said. "You just said you lost a battle! Why's your Rattata at full health?"
"That was a lie!" the kid said "It was to give you false confidence!"
"Well now I know you lied," Kamon said. "And you had to resort to tricking me to get an edge, so that tells me you're not very good. So now I have real confidence. Thanks for that."
The trainer swore loudly, and ordered his Rattata to attack.
"I don't need you for this," Kamon said to Theo. "Walnut needs the experience more than you do."
Theo was disappointed. This would have been his and Kamon's first real trainer battle. The battle against Totodile and that thief didn't count; there had been all that drama and Theo had barely followed orders. Theo hoped that wasn't affecting Kamon's decisions now. Did Kamon distrust Theo because he disobeyed during the battle against Totodile? Sure Kamon still used the Cyndaquil against wild Pokémon, but now he had Walnut as well. Theo fretted in his Pokéball as Walnut and the Rattata faced each other across the ledge.
"Walnut, use Scratch!" Kamon shouted. Walnut raced towards Rattata and raised his paw. His claws gleamed in the morning sunlight.
"Rattata, Quick Attack!" The Rattata ran straight for Sentret, faster than Theo imagined was possible. He rammed against the larger Pokémon and sent him falling back.
"Sen…" Walnut wasn't too badly hurt, but he seemed frightened by the strange attack. He began to pace away from Rattata.
"Of course," Theo thought. "He lived on Route 29, so he's never seen attacks like this." Now Walnut was edging farther away from the Rattata. He looked willing to abandon the battle entirely… and he had his eye on the Pokégear in Kamon's bag.
"Oh no," Theo thought. "Don't do that. Please Walnut, just leave it alone and keep fighting." Theo had managed to convince Kamon not to abandon Walnut once before. He wasn't sure he could do it again, especially if Walnut ruined a trainer battle and ate Kamon's Pokégear.
In that moment Theo knew he had to do something. He was the starter Pokémon, and he'd always thought that simply meant he had a special bond with his trainer. Growing up in the lab with Chikorita and Totodile, all they talked about was how close they would become with their trainers. But watching Walnut lose made Theo realize something different about starters. They weren't just their trainer's favourite; they were responsible for protecting the team. The younger Pokémon were their responsibility.
"Rattata, Tackle!" the trainer shouted. Rattata ran towards Walnut again, and Walnut looked terrified. Theo had to make a decision soon. Walnut was turning towards the Pokégear…
"QUIL!" Theo released himself from the Pokéball in a flash of light. He ran towards the Rattata, and placed himself between it and Walnut. The Tackle hit him in the stomach, but he had braced himself and he was able to endure it.
"Hey!" the other trainer shouted. "What are you doing!? Two against one is unfair!"
"I'm… switching out, I guess." Kamon recalled Walnut, and the Sentret looked happy to return to his Pokéball. "Okay Theo, use Ember!"
"Rattata, Quick Attack!" the other trainer shouted.
Theo felt the flames heat up in his mouth. Rattata jumped towards him, even faster this time. The purple rat connected with Theo, and the fire type struggled to stand his ground. Then he released his flames with an angry cry, and hot sparks flew at Rattata.
"RATTTT!" The Rattata fell against the ground and didn't get up again. It had fainted.
"Oh…" the other trainer said. "I'm all out of Pokémon that can fight." He took a few small bills out of an old wallet, and handed them to Kamon. "Here you go. My parents keep me on a pretty tight allowance, so that's all I have…"
"Don't worry about it," Kamon said. He gave Theo a congratulatory pat on the head and then took the money.
"Hey, can I get your number?" the trainer said. "I'll ring you up to battle!"
"What?" Kamon looked confused. "Look, I don't even know your name, and frankly, the battle wasn't that challenging."
"My name's Joey!" said the trainer. "And I know that Rattata and I will get stronger. We're going to catch more Pokémon too! I've always wanted a Dragonite!"
"Dragonite, huh?" Kamon looked dubious. "Well, good luck with that."
"So can I have your number?" Joey asked. "Please?"
Kamon sighed, and gave Joey a number that Theo knew belonged to someone else. He was pretty sure it was the phone number for the New Bark Town pizza parlour.
"Thanks!" Joey said, as he keyed the number into his Pokégear. "I'll call you soon!"
"I bet you will." Kamon smiled faintly and waved goodbye. They continued along the path, leaving Joey behind them.
When they were a safe distance away, Kamon stopped and looked down at Theo.
"We need to talk about the battle back there," Kamon said.
Theo gulped. Kamon had already come very close to releasing Walnut. Was he about to do the same to his starter?
"I wanted to thank you," Kamon said. "Walnut clearly wasn't ready for a trainer battle. I should have seen that, but I didn't. That's the second trainer in a row where you knew better than me what to do." Kamon laughed. "Maybe I should be the one in the Pokéball."
Theo couldn't help but smile at the image of that.
"Anyway, I wanted to thank you," Kamon said. "As far as starters go, you could've been a lot worse."
It was the first compliment Theo had ever received from his trainer… or the closest thing to a compliment anyway. The Cyndaquil squeaked in delight.
His spirits improved considerably, Theo happily followed his trainer along the path.