Chapter Twenty-Eight:
Tricky
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3
Note: Another delay in my life. Much tragic. Such busy. So exhaust.
In other words, I had incredibly busy days and weeks at work, prepping and enjoying my Marine Corps Birthday Ball with my fellows. I was narrator, which naturally meant I had long hours on practice, not much time here. I was also blindsided with inspiration for a few other projects, but I'm back and here's a new chapter, in the end!
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"I've learned that life is very tricky business: Each person needs to find what they want to do in life and not be dissuaded when people question them."
-Eli Wallach
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He awoke to find his trainer still sitting at the edge of the bed, her mismatched eyes glued to the television set. She was leaning forward, her body tense and still like stone. Security tapes were piled in towers all over the floor. The remote was sitting beside Lupin on the bedspread. It didn't look like she had even slept, if the neat and orderly appearance of her side of the bed was any indication. Bullet was still sleeping on his side, flopped against the other pillow. Riptide slithered across the mattress on all fours, careful not to disturb the Growlithe as he passed and pushed himself upright when he was beside Lupin.
She didn't look any worse, which surprised him. Most humans would have looked like hell. He knew Professor Elm and Phillip alike always did, whenever they pulled several all-nighters in a row, never mind just the one. Greasy hair, bloodshot eyes, gaunt faces and tired reflexes were all that remained of the men whenever they pushed themselves too far for too long. But Lupin had none of those signs. She looked fine, considering she most likely hadn't slept at all.
He realized he had just made yet another shocking discovery about werewolves. They really were made of sterner stuff than humans. He wondered just how long she could go without sleep before it began to affect her.
"Morning," she quietly greeted without looking at him. The volume of the television was turned down, but Riptide knew she could hear it just fine. She had simply reduced it for his and Bullet's sake so they could sleep.
He tilted his head at her before dipping his snout in a nod. "You've been up all night watching these things, haven't you?"
"Yes."
"Looking for them?"
"Yes," she hesitated and scooped up the remote. She pressed a button and the frame on the television froze, an almost picture perfect shot of Bugsy's Scyther, Glade, in mid-flight, a bladed limb raised up in attack. Glade was facing off against a large, crouching Persian, who looked ready to launch an attack of its own against the bipedal bug. The camera shot itself was from a high up angle, but it was an impressive viewpoint nonetheless. It must have been purposefully set up not only for security purposes, but for later reviews of every battle.
The Persian's trainer was a young child, barely entering his teenage years, but Riptide didn't entirely trust his judgement of human ages. Lupin herself looked to be in her early twenties, but she was in her mid-thirties. Or so she claimed.
Lupin sat up straighter with a long, heaving sigh, wincing when a few audible pops and cracks made themselves known as she stretched.
"I need a shower," she said after she finished, pulling her limbs back down from their awkward positions. Lupin couldn't move her left shoulder as well as her right, Riptide had come to find. It was severely limited in its rotation and the height in which it could move past, which was barely shoulder height with her arm outstretched. It made dressing awkward at times for her, and he sometimes had to help drag her shirts down when she couldn't quite get it herself. He wondered, not for the first time, what kind of beast or pokémon that could have done such horrible damage, pain, and lasting scars on her like it had.
Riptide glanced at the television screen, humming for a moment. "You haven't found anything."
It was more statement than question. She shook her head. He issued a drawn out hiss.
"So it was a waste of time," he continued, glaring sullenly at the frozen image. Glade the Scyther looked as intimidating on a television screen as he did in real life. When the Croconaw faced Lupin, he was surprised to see a small smile gracing her lips and her mismatched eyes winking with mischievous glee.
"Not entirely."
He studied her, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't, he snapped his jaws with a loud enough clack that it made Bullet twitch and snort, but the Growlithe didn't wake.
"Then why are you smiling? You said so yourself, you didn't find any of the people you were looking for."
Lupin bobbed her head, not quite a nod, but neither was it a shake of the head. She motioned to the television screen and clicked the remote. The images resumed playing. Glade swiped his deadly blade at the Persian. The nimble big cat leapt away at the last moment, countering with a series of furious swipes of its claws at the bug pokémon in retaliation.
"What do you see?"
"I see Glade, and a human child's Persian battling."
"Battling. Exactly."
The Croconaw tilted his head, not quite understanding at first. Then it dawned on him as suddenly as a thunderbolt out of the blue.
"We can study Bugsy's battling techniques while we continue searching for your nest-mates."
He snapped his head toward Lupin, and found her beaming at him proudly. She reached over and tapped the tip of his snout gently with a fingertip. "You are one very smart Croconaw."
Riptide puffed his chest out and snorted. "Of course I am. I'm one of a kind."
She laughed at him, but not unkindly, as she reached for him again. This time, she ran her fingers across the bony plate of his skull until it hit the softer spots behind it, and she gave him a few good scratches. He closed his eyes at the pleasant tingles that ran along his spine at the simple gestures. It practically made him want to melt into the bedspread the longer she rubbed at his head. He barely caught her last words before she stopped and retreated to the bathroom, chuckling as she went.
"Ohhhh, yes. You certainly are one of a kind, Rip. That I can't ever argue with."
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"Okay, okay—here. Right here. He isn't above using stat-altering moves such as poisons and paralyzers to chip away at his opponent's health and wear away their chances at winning. Items can't be used in the gym leader matches, so if either of you get hit, you're pretty much screwed."
"So don't get hit. Got it!" Bullet quipped back with a lolling tongue and happy grin.
"It's easier said than done, Bullet," Lupin replied, pressing a button to speed through a few more matches. "Powders, dusts, and spores are harder to avoid when they're in the very air you need to breathe. Unless you grow wings and can blow it all away, you'll basically have to hold your breath until you're ready to fire. Not to mention, string shot is a sticky web silk that can be almost invisible in some lightings until you go tripping over it."
"Not to mention, you need the air around you to ignite and feed your fire, dunderhead. Hard to do that when you're inhaling paralyzing spores in the middle of your attack and end up choking on it all. Pay attention." Riptide snappishly added. Bullet growled sullenly at the big jaw pokémon, but it quickly turned into a dejected whine.
"Lupiiiiin, he's being mean again! Make him stop!"
"How about both of you stop it? Rip, stop goading Bullet. And Bullet, suck it up, you're not that young of a pup. Okay, now this one. Bugsy isn't above using the stat-altering moves, but he seems to focus more on defense first, before moving onto the debilitating offense. A good defense is the best offense and then he switches it around to the best offense is a great defense."
She stopped fast forwarding to focus on another battle. In the corner of the video, a date stamp showed this one had been recorded barely two weeks prior to their arrival in Azalea.
A Metapod was sitting still in the middle of the battlefield, serene and content where it was. A Zigzagoon, a native pokémon of the Hoenn region, was pounding away at the green-shelled cocoon pokémon with its sharp claws. It started out furiously, its curved claws dancing in wide arcs, back and forth, rocking the Metapod on occasion, but it remained adamantly unscathed. Eventually, the Zigzagoon's stamina began to whittle away. Bugsy's command came at last, a calm and confident bellow to the Metapod to use string shot.
A tangle of silvery webbing caught all around the limbs of the Zigzagoon, soon trapping it in the silky, sticky strands. The cream and white-furred pokémon struggled, its strength renewed, but it only succeeded in tangling itself further in the sticky substance.
"Tackle attack!"
The Metapod moved with surprising speed and struck the helpless Zigzagoon with fierce intensity. Lupin watched carefully. To the average human eye, not many could follow the Metapod's lightning quick assaults, but Lupin could. It was an impressive feat for a seemingly immobile pokémon. She had watched quite a few previous battles that involved other Metapod who employed the same tactics. Lupin remembered the Butterfree Bugsy was working with the other day when she visited. It made her realize early on that he must have trained them since they were Caterpie, continued in their training through their evolution as Metapods and kept their offensive attacks present in their move sets. She theorized it must be a method of producing stronger Butterfree when the Metapods eventually evolved. If that was the case, she knew she and her two pokémon had their work cut out for them.
She also noted that for beginning trainers such as herself, he liked to utilize a Metapod in his battles. But he also liked to use one of his Scyther. Glade, it turned out, wasn't the only one he had in his possession. He had two others for his less advanced battle parties, but they weren't any less deadly. Sometimes Bugsy switched it up, but it seemed as of lately, the gym leader was on a kick with those blade-armed bugs.
I could use Bullet first. His fire attacks should blow away the Metapod, but it's a Scyther I worry about him using. Chances of him using a high-leveled one like Glade are low considering our level, but they're still very fast and if Bullet gets hit by one of their blades, he'll be down for the count. Even if he isn't…I don't want him hurt.
Lupin glanced at Riptide, taking note of his scaly, tough hide.
He could probably withstand a few hits before going down. But the question is, how many can he take and just how hits in return can he deal out and will it be enough?
Chances of Bugsy using a Scyther were looking more and more likely, but she wanted to prepare for any and all possibilities. She even went so far as to research the exact species of pokémon that were present in the Azalea City Gym and what levels each were. Riptide helped her with tidying up the list and level categorization. Bullet even helped out with who were easiest to toast and who would be a bit harder because of their dual-types playing a factor. When she had asked about his rather extensive knowledge on the matter, Bullet had grown rather embarrassed and mumbled out a mostly incomprehensible reply that sounded something like "games" and "setting fires" and "bugs". Lupin had wisely decided not to pursue a repeat of the answer, while Riptide had only stared wide-eyed and unblinking at the puppy pokémon for the longest time.
Riptide kept his jaws shut on the matter as well after a time, returning to the matter at hand. For a good while, they continued on with the quiet commentary, pausing or rewinding certain battles, until they were nearly caught up.
"I don't believe Bugsy gave these tapes to you just so you could search for your nest-mates."
The comment threw Lupin and she stared at Riptide for the longest time before she turned back to the television screen. The video was paused again, this time highlighting a battle between a Beedrill and a Mr. Mime. The date stamp showed it was five days before they had arrived in Azalea.
"He gave them to us because…he wanted us to see how he fights." Bullet remarked, his ears flaring back and pressing down on his head. He was staring at the Beedrill apprehensively.
"Not how he fights, necessarily," Riptide corrected, tilting his head to look at Bullet. "He wanted us to know powerful his pokémon are. He's showing off."
"But we also get to see how he's fighting. Lupin's right. He starts off defensively, and then goes on the offensive. He wants to wear us out. And if he starts off with any of his pokémon that know harden and string shot, which most of them do, they'll only make it that much easier to do so. We have to hit hard and hit fast. I should go out first; I can torch them quick and easy."
Lupin was messing with the bangle at her wrist, more out of habit now than actual nervousness. Her fingertips roved over the engravings carved in the metal as she started the video back up to finish the battle. She caught Riptide staring at her and she stopped fiddling with the bangle. He glanced down with a tip of his snout, his eyes half-lidded and lazy-looking.
"You're playing with it again."
"And?"
"You don't play with anything else you own, except for that thing. Not your necklaces, not your photos, not even your precious book gets that much attention these days." He snorted softly, a puff of air dancing across her skin. "That must have meant something important to you before you lost your memory. Something must be trying to tell you that, if not through memory, than at the very least through tics."
Lupin paused, considering that. She dropped her gaze to the bangle on her wrist, eyes raking over the design carved into the metalwork. They almost seemed to make no sense, but further inspection, she noticed they were almost like knotted or even braided hearts. The lines curled over one another and back again, intricately woven together. The craftsmanship was remarkable, and the details had been done with love and care poured into it.
She wasn't entirely sure if it was her style or not. If I have it, then it must have been at some point.
She wondered if she'd have any luck with trying to find out if anyone in the region had made it. The professor must have gone big-scale, inquiring with big name jewelry makers and hadn't focused on the fine-tuned lesser known companies or individuals. She made a mental note to start looking into jewelry shops and inquiring if they knew of who might have made it. Perhaps they could point her in the right direction from there.
It's not much, but it's something else to work with.
"Maybe," she concluded at last, feeling it to be a somewhat lame response. She forced herself to stop playing with it and turned back to the television. The last battle ran its course and the tape ended. She sighed, glancing at scattered pages of paper around the bed, at the lists she and the other two had put together. Her eyes drifted amongst the pile of 'most likely battle candidates' and picked it up. She tried reading it, but her eyes weren't focusing on any of the words.
Her thoughts kept turning back to the bangle on her wrist and how she was suddenly aware of its touch against her skin and its weight seemed to grow greater with every passing second. Riptide was still watching her critically as she tried to pretend to focus on the paperwork.
Somehow, the weight of his gaze felt heavier than the bangle on her wrist.
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"Welcome back! Good to see you again."
"Somehow, I find that statement really, really…just—just bullshit."
"Ha! Fair enough." Bugsy was smiling nonetheless, and it was still aimed at Lupin. Asami had just left to the break room to enjoy her lunch hour. It allowed her and Bugsy to speak in private, more or less. The lobby of the gym was empty, just like last time. It was almost worrisome. Did he not have any challengers lately?
She felt Riptide shift his weight to lean against her. Bullet wisely chose to sit beside her as well, instead of wandering off like his first romp about the gym building. He whined softly when he noticed old Dickens the Heracross was watching him from afar with those buggy, unblinking eyes. Just sitting there, watching, waiting, hoping to browbeat the Growlithe if he wandered inside. Bullet pressed tighter against Lupin's other leg, feeling unnerved by the Heracross's fixed, leering gaze from behind the glass doors leading to the gym biosphere proper.
"Thanks for returning the security tapes, by the way. All of them seem to be here. Did you find what you were looking for?"
Lupin expelled a sigh, long and quiet, shaking her head. "No. Not entirely. The people I was looking for weren't in any of the tapes. But I did find something else."
Bugsy, who was sitting on Asami's desk top, rather than in her seat, leaned back and tilted his head inquiringly. "Oh? And what's that?"
"That you didn't just give those tapes to me out of the goodness of your heart, and because you wanted to help. You wanted me to see your battles. To see how good you are, and perhaps entice me into a battle."
Bugsy stared at her, his face a blank canvas for a long time. His face split into a wide grin at last.
"I guess I'm just not that clever or subtle, am I?" His dark eyes winked with mischief. "Did it work?"
"You really aren't subtle about it at all," Lupin agreed, shaking her head slightly. "But I'll admit…I'm tempted." She paused briefly, and she swore she saw a flicker of anticipation line his face. She continued, and watched as his face fell briefly as she did. "I'm tempted to walk away and keep going the way I have been, but you did bring up a good point. The way I'm going about this isn't entirely right, but it isn't all that wrong either. These gyms have a popular and high traffic of people coming and going. Chances of someone that I might know or can help me coming through here is too big a chance I can't afford to miss. But I have other places to look into that might help as well."
The young man waited, staring expectantly back at the werewolf as she drew forth another pause between them. She didn't let it last too long before she smiled a little.
"So in the meantime…I think I will take up gym challenges. I have a trainer license. I have my pokemon. What's the point in doing all that traveling without doing much else in between my searching?"
A grin grew on Bugsy's face, a wide and approving thing beaming at Lupin.
"So that's what you decided, huh? Well now. I didn't expect you to change your mind so easily. You seem like one of those extremely stubborn types that won't change their minds about anything once they've set it to something."
"I can be persuaded to think differently…given the argument is valid and the conclusion works well enough to benefit me."
She glanced down at Riptide as she said that and he tilted his head to view her more fully, a crimson stare watching her intently back. The Croconaw rattle-laughed, baring his crooked smile at her. She rubbed at that special spot on the back of his head, turning her mismatched gaze back on Bugsy.
"I suppose I'll need to schedule a battle with you, then."
"No need. It's been slow the last few weeks. I'm open anytime," Bugsy waved her comment away with a flap of his hand, motioning with the other toward the gym proper. "We can battle. Right now, if you'd like. I suspect you didn't just come here to drop off the tapes and rattle off a pretty little speech, did you?"
His grin turned sly and knowing. Bullet shivered beside her, and she felt the heat of his fur rise a little higher. Riptide thrummed quietly on her other side, the vibrations riding up her leg.
"I gathered as much. Right now's as good a time as any. The sooner, the better. Maybe after this, I'll go through the Ilex Forest and head for Goldenrod next. After I beat you, of course."
"Ha! Don't get too cocky now. You're going to have to earn that victory. I don't just hand them out." He motioned for her to follow. She trailed after him, with Riptide was close on her heels. Bullet eyed the glass doors from afar before setting out after his trainer, once satisfied that yes, Dickens the Heracross was indeed gone. Perhaps he fled when his trainer began heading for the door. Bullet decided that he was never wandering off in a gym again. He didn't need to be jumped by any other gym leader's crazed pokémon.
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Kenji, the usual referee that overlooked gym matches, was still out to lunch. Asami was roused from the break room and out of a pokémon soap opera daze featuring singing Meowths from the streets to take his place. She looked just as at home on the grassy battlefield as Bugsy did lounging at the other end of things. Lupin felt a rush of adrenaline coursing through her, knocking out any chance of feeling nervous, out of place, or worse, getting cold feet about this.
If this was the way the gym leaders were willing to help her—a battle in exchange for information, then she'd be willing to shed a little of her pride to get it. Besides, she found she was getting rather good at battling. In between the reviews of the security tapes, she had taken Bullet and Riptide out on the outskirts of town and into the wilds to practice against feral pokémon.
Grinding, it was most commonly called, besides training, was needed to level up. And she needed Riptide at his top form, as well as Bullet. Even with at least one type-advantage, she wasn't about to slack off against a gym leader.
The sun was out and shining, making the entire biosphere light up. There was still a layer of dew on most of the grass as well, a field of crystallized emerald gleaming all around them with speckles of golden light in their midst. The peaceful lull was about to be destroyed by the imminent battle.
"The rules here are simple!" Asami called out, drawing both trainers out of their silent reveries. "This will be a one-on-one battle and each trainer will utilize two pokémon! When a pokémon is knocked out or unable to continue, they will be withdrawn from battle! The trainer who has the last pokémon standing will be the winner! Are there any questions?"
The willowy woman looked at Bugsy first, who shook his head, and then to Lupin. She too shook her head in response. Bullet growled softly, his frame rigid and fur standing on end. Riptide hiss-growled when he noticed they weren't entirely alone. On the fringes of the tree line, he saw unblinking buggy eyes watching them. Wings fluttered softly, antennae twitched constantly, limbs wiggled. They were anticipating the battle anxiously.
Asami picked up a flag at her feet, a faded green nylon thing that had certainly seen better days and waited. Bugsy motioned to her.
"You first. You're the challenger."
Lupin glanced at Bullet. The Growlithe looked up at her, snorted and gave her a lolling-tongued grin and an instant later, was trotting out onto the field.
Bugsy smirked a little. "Predictable. I had a feeling you were going to try to fight me with fire first. But let me tell you something right here, right now. I don't lose when it comes to bug-type pokemon. With the research I've been doing, it's going to make me the ultimate authority on them, and I aim to be the best trainer as well. I'll demonstrate what I've learned to you now!"
With that said, the young man whipped out a pokéball and tossed it onto the field. The pokéball split, and a burst of energy and light poured forth and shaped up. A moment later, a Metapod sat in the field across from Bullet.
"You ready?"
She smiled at the two of them when they nodded. Asami raised it high up above her head before bringing it down quick and hard, the flag fluttering in her wake. "BEGIN!"
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