Cerulean Saga: Chapter 3: Dance, Dance Evolution!
The land around the mountain morphed even further into arboreal beauty as the party continued on their way. The trees grew taller, greener, and more vibrant. The skies were bluer, the clouds fading away into pure azure, and there was a faint smell of lake water in the air. As nice as the climate was becoming, however, they couldn't enjoy it, the tension of the situation driving them to the point of panic.
Atlanta was hyperventilating as she dashed alongside the disappearing trail of footprints, her nose twitching as she inhaled the fading scent of her trainer, desperately trying to keep going. Odors, after all, faded as time went on, and if this one did before they could find Nicole then…
Atlanta shuddered, deciding that it was best not to think about that horrible, depressing, and all too possible conclusion. Rather than thinking about the morbid possibilities she instead focused on the task at hand: finding her beloved Nicole.
She heard the humans, as well as the other Pokémon, gasping loudly for air as they plodded and hovered behind her, following her every step as she led them down the path, all of them drenched with sweat and panting loudly as they followed her. One of the Pokémon, Tony's Paras to be precise, had actually collapsed and had needed to be returned to his Pokéball. Given how worn out the others looked, Atlanta feared that soon they might join the Bug/Grass-type in unconscious heaps and then she'd be the only one who could rescue Nicole. While the Vaporeon was confident about her own power, she wasn't so sure that she could defeat whatever it was that had kidnapped Nicole on her own, and if her trainer's friend and his Pokémon couldn't help her then… She shuddered, not wanting to think about it. The more help she had the better, petty pride be darned.
They moved in relative silence, save for the constant panting of hot air escaping their lungs and cooler air being sucked back in as they struggled to keep up with the Vaporeon. Tony had filled Misty in on his relationship with Nicole and Sabrina very briefly (by briefly I mean he basically said "She's my friend, she's my teacher, end of story, keep running," getting it all out there as quickly as possible so that he might save the precious breathes he would need for running). Misty, being equally intelligent, simply nodded to his brief explanation and followed after him. Tony wasn't exactly sure why, though; sometimes she hated him and sometimes she wanted to help him save his friends. I'll never understand girls, he mentally lamented to himself, unaware that Misty was thinking the same thing in reverse.
To make a long story slightly less long, the group kept moving for about fifteen minutes straight and finally arrive at where they suspected Nicole might be. Not only did the trail of footprints lead to the cave, but it also stood out like a sore thumb.
Sitting atop of a ledge that stood about five feet over the path, surrounded by sparse greenery, was a small cavern, carved into the side of the mountain, completely surrounded by layers of ice that were frozen to the doorway. A small path of vines and ivy was growing from the side of the dirt and clay ledge, making a makeshift ladder that led up to the cave.
Misty, who was standing on her tiptoes, frowned as she stared inquisitively at the icy little cavern that stood above them. "Okay, I know we haven't climbed that high. How the heck can there be ice already?! It's not even cold…"
Tony was equally befuddled but decided that they could ponder how such phenomena was possible later on. The tracks that Sabrina had deduced belonged to Nicole's kidnapper led up to the vines and up to that cave. If his mentor was right, that's where Nicole would be.
Still, he reasoned, it didn't hurt to be sure. He turned to Kadabra. The Psi Pokémon had been following the rescue party adamantly but didn't seem entirely interested in what was going on. Tony was no Pokémon whisperer, but he could tell that the Psychic-type was probably bored with the whole situation and perhaps even a little angry that it had happened at all. Still, Sabrina had instructed him to keep an eye on them, so Tony figured he'd might as well find a way for their unwilling guard to make himself useful.
"Kadabra," he said as calmly as he could, still panting from the aftermath of his jog. "Could you use your powers to detect if there's a human in there?" He wasn't sure how powerful the Psi Pokémon was but he knew from wildlife documentaries and Pokémon nature books that doubting the power of a Psychic-type was an incredibly foolish move.
Kadabra nodded. "Dabra," he muttered, his gaze following the human's hand up to the cavern. The Psychic-type raised his spoon with one hand and put his other over it, his fingers twitching slightly as he closed his eyes, focusing his immensely powerful brain as he mentally reached out into the caverns, seeking the more intelligent brainwaves that only humans and Psychic-types like him possessed.
I wonder where Tony is right now… Hope he's not too worried about me… Maybe Jynx will run into him and she could bring him here…
Kadabra's eyes snapped open and he groaned. The girl was calm – too calm for his comfort. Either it was a different girl who knew who Tony was and was waiting for him to come and see her or she was being forced to remain calm via psychic influence. In the world of Pokémon, the latter was surprisingly more believable. "Dabra," he said quickly, pointing to cave with his free hand whilst mentally forcing his bent spoon to straighten again.
"She's in there?" Tony asked hopefully.
Kadabra nodded. "Dabra."
"Great!" Tony said, relieved. "Lucky, Spear, Gamera, let's go!" he ordered his Pokémon, charging boldly for the vine-covered wall.
"H-hey!" Misty shouted, following after him. "Wait for me!"
Kadabra was just about to follow them when he felt it – the same psychic energy he had felt before.
Mistress…
I sense it, too. What is it?
With the evidence we've gathered, I would deduce that it is a Jynx.
A Jynx… She doesn't feel too strong. Let the boy handle it.
The boy?
She isn't too strong of a Pokémon. No need to waste energy fighting her.
As you wish…
Tony latched to the wall and began to climb up it, his weary limbs groaning and creaking as he crawled. Just before he could reach the top of the ledge, however…
"Jynx!"
Tony's eyes widened in surprise at the unfamiliar voice. Before he could ask who had made the sound there was a bright, stinging flash of white and blue as something horribly cold struck his hand. He screamed, frightened, and his grip on the natural ladder, falling off and dangling by one arm over the ground.
Misty nearly fell over, just as surprised as Tony was. "K-kid!" she shouted.
Tony winced as he opened his eyes and looked up at his hand, the one thing keeping him attached to the wall, although not by his own power. His hand was frozen in a thick, rough mold of crystal-clear ice. His fingers burned as if immolated by icy fire, sending an odd and numb pain coursing through his veins. His arm's joins creaked loudly as he hung there, the extra weights that he had been able to ignore pulling him down, threatening to dislocate his shoulder if he remained there for too long.
He grunted miserably as he swiftly planted his feet against the wall and pushed, screaming as the ice cracked and fell apart. He fell onto his back, dazed and stunned as he began rubbing his chilly fingers and shivering wildly.
Before Misty could ask whether or not Tony was alright another beam of frigid energy lanced over her head, leaving frosty crystals in her ponytail. She ducked and whirled to face their attacker. A humanoid, purple-skinned Pokémon with long blondish-white hair and a red kimono was stomping towards her and Tony's party. The creature's lips were curled into an angry frown as she approached, her hands raised in an offensive manner.
"Jynx…" the creature growled, snowflakes leaping from her lips as she opened her maw wide and breathed out. A lancing beam of cold shot from her mouth and towards the downed Tony, who had yet to recover from the first attack.
Before Tony's Pokémon could as much as scream Misty was already moving. In less than a second she had yanked a Pokéball from her belt and tossed it into the air, shouting, "Goldeen! Use Water Gun on that Ice Beam!"
The ball popped open and the Goldfish Pokémon flopped down to the ground. "Gold!" she cried as she spewed a pressurized blast of water from her mouth. Frozen liquid struck lucid, and the two blasts exploded in a burst of icy fragments and chilly droplets.
As Goldeen engaged the Pokémon, Misty ran over to Tony and yanked him to his feet. "You okay?" she asked, once again forgetting her grudge in favor of ensuring that the boy was still alive.
Tony shivered and whimpered pathetically as he shook his hand, wriggling his fingers rapidly to get the blood flowing through them again. "T-thank to you," he said gratefully, his own distaste for Misty forgotten as well. (It's funny, but the two seemed like friends only when their lives were in danger.)
"Don't thank me now," Misty replied, glaring over at the Pokémon. "You know what that thing is?"
Tony pulled his Pokédex out with his good hand and scanned the attacker, getting the same results as Nicole did: "Jynx, the Humanshape Pokémon," the Pokédex reported emotionlessly. "An Ice/Psychic-type. Average Height: 4'7. Average Weight: 89.5 lbs. It seductively wiggles its hips when it walks. It can cause people to dance in unison with it. This specimen is female and scans suggest it to be roughly eight years old. Its special ability is Forewarn. Its power level is 20."
Tony managed to smile just a little. If it was a Psychic-type then that meant it was weak to Bug-type attacks. "Lucky!" he shouted to his Pokémon as he pulled Paras's Pokéball from his belt. "Use Silver Wind! Gamera, help Goldeen keep those Ice Beams away! Spear…" He paused, remembering the Beedrill's injury, and said, "Uh, you just stay there," he finished meekly.
Spear, who had been eager to punish the Jynx for her attack, groaned angrily and stopped his foot on the ground. "Bzz!"
"Sorry, sorry," Tony muttered. "Eh, go, Paras!" he shouted, tossing his Pokéball into the air and releasing his newest Pokémon.
Paras landed on the ground and winced as he saw the angry-looking Jynx on a warpath towards him and his new trainer. "P-paras…"
"Paras, quick!" Tony shouted. "Hit her with Stun Spore!"
Paras blinked. "Paras?" he asked, clearly not understanding.
Lucky rolled her eyes. "Freeh…" she muttered. Just shake your mushrooms at the thing, you idiot…
Paras nodded. "Paras…" Oh, right…
"Goldeen, you attack, too!" Misty shouted, deciding to join in. "Use Water Gun and hold off the Ice Beams with Squirtle!"
The Pokémon all snapped into action at once. Lucky shot forward and beat her weighted wings as hard as she could, whipping up a fierce windstorm of shimmering gales. Gamera scuttled forward alongside of Goldeen, who flopped by his side gracefully as they both blasted away at the Ice/Psychic-type with their Water Guns. Paras crawled along after them, shaking his mushrooms and whipping up a cloud of glimmering golden dust. And Spear… just stood there and grumbled about the unfairness of things.
Atlanta growled and was just about to follow her friends when Kadabra suddenly grabbed her by the tail and brought her to an instant halt. The Vaporeon looked up at him with a confused and angry expression written on her cute face. "Vapor?!" she demanded.
Kadabra put a finger to his mouth to shush her and then pointed with his spoon to the cavern. Atlanta got the message instantly and as much as she hated what the Psychic-type was telling her she knew that her first duty was to protecting Nicole, not Tony, Misty, or any of their Pokémon. "Vapor…" she conceded.
Kadabra nodded and placed his hand on her head. He twirled his spoon around and focused on the weak brainwaves that were emanating from the cavern and, with neither of our heroes or their Pokémon noticing, vanished without a trace, taking Atlanta with him.
Unfortunately for our protagonist and his plucky partner, they didn't notice that they had just been left behind. To make matters worse, as their Pokémon attacked the Jynx was completely ready for them. She stood her ground as they charged at her and raised her hands, wriggling her fingers and crying out in a bizarre voice, as if she were casting a spell. A freezing gale suddenly roared into existence, screaming as it rushed through Lucky's Silver Wind, easily overcoming the lesser wind, and scattering the Water Guns and Stun Spores before slamming into the four Pokémon themselves. Lucky, Gamera, Goldeen, and Paras were all sent flying with various cries of displeasure.
Misty swore and tore another Pokéball from her belt. "Psyduck, we need your help!" she shouted, releasing her second Pokémon.
"Psy?" Psyduck quacked as he landed in front of his recovering allies, scratching his head as he stared at the angry Jynx that was barreling towards him.
Misty picked up a piece of gravel and chucked it at the Water-type's head. "Use Confusion!" she shouted as the rock struck the back of Psyduck's head, causing the poor Pokémon's headache to intensify, increasing his psychokinetic power in the process.
"Psy!" Psyduck cried as a ripple of energy burst into existence through his forehead, humming with mysterious energy. A wave of shimmering, practically invisible violet rays rushed through the air and slammed into the charging Jynx. The Ice/Psychic-type cried out in surprise as the attack struck, sending her flying back onto her rear.
Misty grinned. "Gotcha!" she shouted as her and Tony's downed Pokémon recovered from Jynx's previous attack, ready to take revenge against their attacker.
Deciding that it was a good time to switch strategies, Tony shouted, "Lucky, let's try to put her down! Use Sleep Powder! Paras, get behind Jynx and use Stun Spore again! We'll finish this quick if we can knock her out!"
Both of his Bug-types nodded, Lucky translating for Paras again, and sprang into action, Lucky flying above the recovering Jynx and Paras scuttling behind her. Both Bug-types shook their bodies and unleashed two waves of glimmering toxins, yellowish dust flying from Paras's 'shrooms and green dust from Lucky's wings.
Jynx scowled as she stood up, the spicy scent of the poisonous dusts already stinging her nostrils. The Ice/Psychic-type growled, folding her arms over one another in an X shape, like a karate fighter preparing a block, and then extended them in one swift motion. An explosion of frost and wind ripped through the air and easily tore through Lucky and Paras's attacks and tossed the two Pokémon aside once more.
Misty's grin vanished, replaced with an enraged scowl. "Darn it… Psyduck, Goldeen, we're gonna hafta knock her out!" she shouted.
Jynx huffed angrily, glaring at the loudmouthed redhead and the distressed blond. She loudly cracked her knuckles, realizing that she would have to step up her game if she wanted to scare the humans and their Pokémon off. "Jynx!" she cried loudly, already channeling her psychic energies through her body. Raising her palms in the air, she unleashed a powerful Psywave, rings of shimmering azure energy rushing through the air and slamming the poor humans and their Pokémon with a solid wall of psychokinetic energy and sending them flying in a discordant chorus of screams and cries.
Tony and Misty grunted in unison as they hit the ground, their Pokémon flopping down after them, dazed and wounded. Tony sat up, groaning through gritted teeth as he rubbed his sore back. "I'm really starting to hate the mountains…" he muttered as he stood up. "We're gonna need a plan…"
"No, really?" Misty grunted as she rose as well, rubbing her bleeding elbow and wincing. "What did you have in mind?"
"Well, for starters," Tony said, "we could try negotiating with her."
Misty gaped. "You cannot be serious."
"H-hey," Tony said, "we've got Kadabra with us! He's a Psychic-type, she's part Psychic-type, so maybe she'll listen to him!"
"And what if she doesn't?" Misty asked, glancing warily at the glowering Jynx as she approached them, getting into melee range of the humans.
"Then he might distract her long enough to think of something else," Tony whispered. "Unless you have a better idea right now…"
Misty sighed. "Hey, Kadabra!" she shouted over her shoulder. "Why don't you come over here and…?" She paused and blinked, confused. "K-Kadabra?"
Tony whirled, following the redhead's gaze, and mimicked her dumbfounded expression. Kadabra was gone and, upon taking a second glance, he realized that Atlanta was also gone. Try as they might, neither humans nor Pokémon could make hide nor hair of the two. "K-Kadabra!" Tony shouted. "Atlanta! Where'd you-?!"
A hand tapped his shoulder. "Jynx."
Tony winced and sweat-dropped. "Aw, crud…" he muttered as he slowly turned to face the angry Jynx. "Uh," he stuttered, trying to think of a way to avoid a thrashing, "hi. Sorry about the…"
Jynx's fist, which radiated with a frigid aura, rammed right into Tony's gut, knocking him flat on his back once more. The poor boy clenched his bruised, cold abdomen, feeling like he had just been decked by a boxer with gloves made of ice.
"Kid!" Misty cried, taking a cautionary jump back to avoid meeting the same fate as Tony. Before she could try to make a move to save Tony, however, Gamera, who had recovered from his beating, was the one who came to the rescue. The little Squirtle had only just received a trainer of his own and wasn't about to let some weird-looking Pokémon take him away.
"Squirt!" Gamera cried, standing up and charging towards Jynx. He leaped into the air, before the Ice/Psychic-type could counter, and slammed his head right into her abdomen with as much force as the Tiny Turtle Pokémon could muster, which, thankfully, was quite a bit.
Jynx moaned as she stumbled back, stepping away from Gamera and his trainer, clutching her gut much like Tony had been. She glared down at Squirtle and growled loudly. "Jynx!" she hissed.
Misty swiftly ran over to Tony and helped him up. "The heck was that?" she demanded.
"An Ice Punch, I think…" Tony groaned as warmth returned to his badly bruised abdomen. "I feel like I just lost a boxing match with a snowman…"
"No!" Misty shouted. "I meant why she didn't see your Squirtle coming!" Getting no response from Tony, who was trying to register what she had meant, she swiftly dug her hands into the boy's pocket and took out his Pokédex.
"H-hey!" Tony cried. "That's…"
Misty ignored him, having just managed to find the information about Jynx again. "Hah! Now I get it!" she said, pointing to the screen to the section of Jynx's description that explained her special abilities in detail.
"Forewarn," the 'dex droned before Tony could ask what she was so excited about. "This special ability warns the owner of the opponent's strongest move in combat."
"That's the trick!" Misty said with a wink and a grin. "We've been using our best moves against her! We need to use their weaker moves so that it'll be harder to counter 'em!"
Tony nodded slowly, a little surprised that Misty had managed to use his 'dex so easily to put that together. "Alright," he replied, "I get it… Squirtle!" he shouted to the Water-type. "Use Tackle again! Lucky, you use Tackle, too!"
"Psyduck!" Misty cried. "Use Scratch!"
In an instant, the Pokémon all shot forward, aiming their entire bodies at the enraged Jynx. Lucky slammed into the Humanshape Pokémon's side, the extra weight of her bands giving her some additional force as she dive-bombed her foe, and Psyduck raked her stomach with his sharp claws, whining all the while about his headache.
Jynx's scowled as Gamera charged her again. Her frown vanished as she pursed her pink lips and reached out as the reptile leaped at her once more. Before Tony could cry out, Jynx seized Gamera in her arms and – "Smooch!" – planted a wet, sloppy kiss right on the little Squirtle's forehead.
"S-squirt!" Gamera gagged, wincing in revulsion before his face did a one-eighty, the disgust replaced by his usual dopey expression. The Squirtle went limp in the Jynx's arms, letting out a loud, happy snore as he fell unconscious.
"Gamera!" Tony shouted angrily. "Now is not the time to be taking a tap!"
Misty snorted. "Little perv… One kiss and he's all to pieces."
The Pokédex, still clutched in Misty's hand, begged to differ: "Lovely Kiss," it beeped, "a Normal-type move. The user kisses an opponent to put it into a deep, happy sleep. This technique is the signature move of the Jynx line."
Tony face-palmed. "Oh, so now we've gotta look out for kissing, too… Great…"
Jynx dropped Squirtle gently to the ground before glaring at the humans again. The Ice/Psychic-type was panting loudly and one of her eyes looked a little swollen. Regardless of Gamera's rather embarrassing state of unconsciousness, it was clear the Tony, Misty, and their Pokémon were winning the fight.
Jynx narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth. Not on my watch, she thought. It was time for her to bring out the big guns.
The teens noticed Jynx's exhausted posture as well and quickly put together that they had her. "Alright," Misty said, pulling an empty Pokéball from her belt with her free hand. "One more hit oughta do it. Leave the rest to me."
Tony shook his head. A part of him wanted to be the one to catch Jynx – after all, he was the one with the Pokédex that needed filling, not Misty – but he decided that arguing about it wasn't worth it, especially when their foe was still awake. "Not a chance," he said. "We'll bring it down together to be safe. Even if she's weak, we shouldn't take any risks. A cornered Pokémon is the most dangerous one."
Misty nodded, albeit with some reluctance. "Alright," she said, "let's go! Psyduck, use-!"
"Jynx!" Jynx suddenly cried, raising her hands and silencing Misty's order. "Jynx!"
Tony and Misty both paused, confused. Jynx sounded tired and submissive. Was she finally going to call it quits?
There was a brief moment of absolute silence and stillness. And then, Jynx smiled in a mysterious, mischievous way before rocking her hips to the left and then to the right.
Misty blinked. "The heck-?!"
Tony heard a quiet noise from his waist, like two pieces of metal gently tapping against one another. He looked down to see that, like Jynx, his hips were shaking about rhythmically, the Pokéballs attached to his belt clacking against one another.
His face went bright red as memories of Jynx's Pokédex entry returned to him: "It can cause people to dance in unison with it."
"Oh, no…" he groaned.
Misty squeaked in surprise as she looked down and realized that she as well as mimicking Jynx's actions against her own will. "Oh, no!" she shouted, glaring at Jynx with blushing cheeks. "Don't you dare! Don't you dare! I do not dance!"
Jynx's smirk conveyed her answer quite well: You do now!
The Pokémon, who had been looking on, confused, suddenly found themselves following their trainers into Jynx's rhythmic trap. Lucky, Spear, and Psyduck began to shake their own hips from left to right in unison with their trainers, crying out in surprise and discomfort. (Frankly, Lucky and Spear were surprised that they even had hips.) Goldeen helplessly flopped up and down, wriggling about and waving her fins in midair. Paras, having no hips and no ability to really wriggle at all, simply bobbed up and down to the left and right, his 'shrooms wriggling as he did so. "P-p-p-paras?" the Mushroom Pokémon chittered. H-h-h-hey… This is kind of… fun? He gave a mandibled grin. "Paras," he snickered to himself.
Jynx gave a long, flighty laugh as she began to do the Mankey, her enraptured victims following suit. While she would have preferred to have simply scared the intruders off they had stubbornly refused to cower and would now have to pay the price for their perseverance.
She would dance and so would they – until they were all lying on the ground, exhausted and unconscious. Then she could do with them as she pleased and no one could stop her.
Off course, exhausting them could very well take a while… so she decided to have a little fun while she did it.
Jynx smirked as she reached down to the ground and scooped up the sleeping Gamera, grabbing one of his forearms and putting her hand on his shell as she held him to her chest. The very moment she did so, Tony and Misty were pulled together, as if they were magnets, screaming "No, no, no, no, no, no…!" in unison before they were slammed right into one another. Misty's arm jerked and her hand found its way into Tony's, and Tony's free arm wrapped around Misty's torso and grasped her bare back.
Both Tony and Misty's faces were so red that you could mistake them for tomatoes as they found themselves face-to-face, separated only by their noses, their chests pressed against each other as they followed Jynx's every move. (What Aunt Sally would have thought, Tony didn't date to imagine.) The Pokémon were little better off; Lucky found herself in Paras's pincers, wishing that she could bop the Mushroom Pokémon between the eyes so he'd lose that stupid grin, Spear had scooped up Goldeen and was doing his best to dance with the slippery goldfish, and Psyduck, having no partner, had settled on picking up a rock and was twirling about with that.
"W-when I get out of this…" Misty growled, feeling absolutely humiliated and taken advantage of.
"I-it's not my fault," Tony said quickly. "I'm trying not to…"
"I was talking to that jerk Pokémon over there!" Misty shouted, glaring at Jynx. "I know…" She paused as Tony slowly began to tilt her over. "D-don't you dare dip me, don't you dare dip me, don't you dare dip me…!"
Tony dipped her. "S-sorry," he apologized.
Misty winced as he yanked her back up and they continued their dance, casting a poisonous look at the Jynx. "Not your fault. Just be glad that she isn't making us do something really stupid like can-can…" she grumbled.
Jynx paused in her tango, stroking her chin. That wasn't too bad an idea…
"Charmander, use Ember!"
Jynx's malicious thoughts of forcing Kalosian dances upon her victims were replaced with only one thought as a scattershot of fireballs slammed right into her back in a series of fiery explosions: Ouch. The Ice/Psychic-type screamed in agony as she clenched her smoking rump, dropping Squirtle on the floor and releasing her victims from their choreographic torment. She whirled with a snarl and glared at the next two intruders.
Blue Oak grinned, his Charmander perched on his shoulders, smoldering smoke still flowing through its nostrils. "Okay," he said, "before I kick your butt, make them do the dance again."
Nicole stared past Kadabra's waving hand, acting as if he wasn't even there. Her eyes had a starry, far-away look, and her smile was utterly stupefied.
"Dabra," Kadabra muttered, shaking his head. Brainwashed. The Jynx got to her.
"V-vapor?!" Atlanta cried, placing her front paws on her trainer's leg and shaking her roughly, trying to raise her from her comatose state. W-what should we do?!
Kadabra stroked his mustache calmly, quickly putting together a plan. "Dabra," he said to the panicking Vaporeon. This form of mind control is effective but crude when compared to more advanced psychics such as myself. It's simply there to keep her still and quiet. A simple surprise or shock should be sufficient enough to remove the trance.
"Vapor?" Atlanta nodded. "Vapor…" Really? Oh, okay… The Vaporeon inhaled deeply.
Kadabra's eyes widened. "D-dabra!" W-wait!
"Vapor!" Atlanta cried, spewing a wide spout of water right into her trainer's face.
Nicole's calm expression turned to panicked. She spluttered and coughed loudly. "A-A-Atlanta!" she cried out. "What the heck?!"
Atlanta ceased her attack and happily leaped into her soaking trainer's arms. "Vapor!" she cried, nuzzling Nicole's chest with her cheek.
Nicole unhappily spat out a mouthful of water. "Ugh… backwash…" she muttered pathetically before realizing where she was. "W-wait a second. Where'd…" Her voice trailed off as she realized that Kadabra was standing in front of her. She squeaked girlishly and leaped to her feet, slipping on the ice and falling back down with a cry of terror. "W-what the-?!"
Kadabra gave Atlanta an unimpressed look. "Dabra." I could have broken the trance with my mind, you realize.
Atlanta blinked. "Vapor." Oh. She shook her head and then yanked her trainer off of the ground with her tail, giving Nicole a moment to steady herself on the ice, and then quickly gestured towards the mouth of the cave. "Vapor!" she said urgently.
Nicole reluctantly took her eyes off of Kadabra and looked down at her friend. "What's wrong?" she asked, confused as to what in the heck was going on. "W-what happened to Jynx?"
Kadabra, in response, simply reached out and put his hand on Nicole's forehead. "Dabra," he told Atlanta, who nodded and touched her tail to his leg.
"W-what's going…?" Nicole began before she, along with Kadabra and Atlanta, disappeared in a flash of violet.
"O-okay," Blue sniggered, trying hard not to fall over laughing. "You don't need to make them do the can-can. But how about ballet? Can you make them do that?"
Jynx scowled as she glared at the redheaded boy. It seemed that troublesome humans and their Pokémon were just jumping out of every nook and cranny. Just when did her mountain become so darn popular?
Tony and Misty, who were frozen in mid-tango, were equally perturbed by Blue. Only rather than his presence, it was his rather callous nonchalance and mirth at the situation at hand. Misty had been dipped and twirled like some sort of, in her own words, "girly floozy," and Tony was holding a woman who was not his aunt who wasn't wearing nearly enough clothes for him to be comfortable touching her, especially in a manner usually reserved for significant others and not for people who could hardly be called friends.
Tony gritted his teeth and called over to his giggling rival. "Blue…" he said. "Any chance you could come over here and give us a hand?"
"J-just a sec, Tory."
"It's Tony."
"Whatever. So, anyways," Blue said, returning his attention to Jynx, "is your weird voodoo control over them limited to just making them dance or can you make them do other stuff, too?"
Misty growled. "Blue…"
"Could you make them, like…" Blue smirked mischievously, "kiss?"
"Blue!" Tony cried, his face bright red. "Help us out – now!"
Misty was equally enraged, albeit she did a better job at showing it: "I swear to Heaven, I'mma kick you between the legs so much that you will never have children!" she shrieked, her pitch and volume so loud that people in Pewter City could hear it.
Blue winced, his smirk faltering slightly. "Oh, fine," he said, rolling his eyes. "Jeez, you can't take a joke…" His smile vanished, his eyes narrowed, and suddenly he was all business. "Charmander, go!" he ordered.
The Lizard Pokémon grinned cockily as he leaped down from his trainer's shoulder. His tail burned brightly as smirked at the glaring Jynx. The reptile didn't make a move as he stood there, calmly awaiting his trainer's order.
Jynx tossed Gamera aside, resulting in the leads of her dancers tossing their partners aside. "Jynx…" she growled, glowering at the arrogant hotheaded reptile (and the Charmander, too).
Tony's anger was briefly – very briefly – forgotten and replaced – again, very briefly – with concern. "B-Blue!" he called to his rival. "Be careful! She'll make you dance, too!"
Blue snorted. "Yeah, I know. So what? You think Charmander can't fight while dancing?" He smirked cockily. "She can dance all she wants but it won't do her any good."
"Jynx!" Jynx snarled, annoyed by the human's arrogance. In a fit of rage she rose up on one toe and began to pirouette with the grace of a prima ballerina.
"No, no, no, no, no!" Tony and Misty cried in unison as they and their Pokémon began to spin like tops on their toes (no easy task for Misty, who was wearing flip-flops) and were sent twirling towards Blue. No dancing for the good Mr. Oak and his Charmander; they had annoyed Jynx so much that she wanted to knock them out as quickly as possible. After all, if she just made them dance she would have to listen to him talk even more and if anything that would be punishing her rather than him.
"Charmander," Blue called, preparing to dodge his unwilling assailants, "circle her!"
"Charm!" Charmander growled, getting down on all fours and dashing around Jynx, strafing her with his flaming tail raised in the air.
Blue gritted his teeth as Tony, Misty, Spear, and Lucky all spun towards him, with Paras and Goldeen, neither of whom could really pirouette in such a manner and were just sort of flopping about, and Psyduck, who was spinning around… on his head.
"B-B-B-B-Blue!" Tony cried, his voice distorted by his constant spinning. "D-d-d-do something!"
Blue sidestepped, allowing Tony to whiz right past him, and quickly dodged Misty right afterwards. "Charmander!" he shouted. "Use Metal Claw on Jynx!"
Charmander, who was still running literal circles around the competition, nodded. He broke from his circle and leaped at the twirling Jynx, claws bared and sharpened, and slashed at her. The Ice/Psychic-type cried out in pain, distracted from her dance as the metallic claws dug into her hide.
Blue grinned as the Humanshape Pokémon's puppets all collapsed to the ground in exhausted heaps, their master's dance interrupted by Charmander's attack. "Alright!" he shouted to his starter. "I think it's our turn to put a spin on things! Use Fire Spin!"
Charmander growled and fell down on all fours. Raising his tail in the air and spinning it like a blazing lasso, the Lizard Pokémon swiftly formed a roaring tornado of fire and smoke. "Char!" he cried as he gave his fail a flick, unleashing the terrifying attack at the Jynx.
Jynx's eyes went wide with terror as she realized that her advantage was gone. She cried in anger and terror as she raised her arms up and blasted back with a powerful Psywave at the Fire Spin. The two attacks met with a spectacular flash of scarlet and violet, sparks of elemental energy flying everywhere as the two Pokémon struggled for dominance. Charmander kept spinning his tail around, smoke flying from his jaws, whilst Jynx kept pushing back with her psychokinetic waves, frost frothing with every labored pant she took.
Tony, Misty, and their Pokémon, all of them exhausted from Jynx's dance, could only watch with awe as the battle between fire and ice raged. If he hadn't been so tired, Tony might have felt a little jealous of Charmander's greatly improved strength. Misty, on the other hand, was absolutely dumbfounded that the little reptile she and the Starmie formally known as Staryu had effortlessly tossed aside the day before had become so powerful so quickly.
For a moment, the two opposing forces were evenly matched. Then, for a brief second, Jynx faltered. Blue noticed it, though no one else did, and knew that the time had arrived to put the battle to rest. "Now!" he shouted over the crackling and roaring of the opposing attacks.
Charmander's eyes widened with rage and his body was encompassed in a bright, scarlet glow as he roared in an amazingly deep voice. His tail was spinning faster than the rotors of a helicopter and the flames blasting from the tip could melt one, too. There was a bright flash of heat and flame as he went all out, putting every bit of power that he dared into the attack. The Fire Spin tore through Jynx's Psywave and washed over the terrified Humanshape Pokémon. She screamed in terror and anguish as the wave washed over her with its all-consuming flames.
Finally, Charmander, still sparking with red energy, brought his tail to a halt. He gasped loudly slumped down to his belly, exhausted by the fierce, albeit brief, battle. Jynx, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. The Ice/Psychic-type fell onto her back as she desperately struggled to protect herself with her Ice-type attacks, trying to keep herself safe from the fading flames before she finally slipped into unconsciousness, passing out as soon as the fire faded into smoke. Her red kimono was covered in dirty soot and her arms and legs had ugly, reddish burns that swelled up through her skin. Her hair was blackened and her eyes were red and full of tears as she collapsed to the ground, out cold.
When he was sure that Jynx was truly unconscious, Blue allowed himself to smile again. "Alright!" he boasted. "Good job, Charmander!"
"C-char…" Charmander panted, happy that the difficult battle was finally finished.
Blue turned to Tony and Misty, who were lying on the ground and staring at Charmander and Jynx with wide eyes. "Heh," he chuckled, rubbing the bottom of his nose. "How about that?" he asked Misty. "Who's the wimp now?"
Misty managed to tear her eyes from the smoldering battlefield so she could glare at Blue. "Don't think I forgot about the kiss thing, you pervert…" she growled dangerously.
Blue smirked but took a cautionary step back nevertheless. "Jeez, it was just a joke. But I understand if you wouldn't want to kiss someone like Tammy."
"I-it's Tony…" Tony gasped out, his voice too weak to convey his annoyance.
"Whatever," Blue snorted. "The point is, I just saved your lives. You could be just the tiniest bit grateful, you know. And if you don't want to kiss what's-his-face…"
"Blue!" Tony snapped, finally managing to put some anger in his words. "Leave her alone!"
Blue frowned. "Fine, fine…" he muttered, folding his arms behind his head and turning away.
Tony sighed as he stood up, wincing as the weights Sabrina had given him pulled at his weary arms and legs, all of which felt like jelly. "Thank you…" he said reluctantly, "for saving us…"
"Oh, it was nothing," Blue replied casually. "Not for a serious trainer like me, anyways. You all I should be grateful that I was even on this road! Otherwise, you might've gotten hurt."
"Yeah…" Misty grunted, cracking her knuckles. "Why don't you come over here so I can 'thank' you?"
Blue ignored the thinly veiled threat. "Anyways," he asked Tony, "how'd you two get into this?" He smirked, already anticipating an embarrassing explanation.
Tony kept his tone neutral. "It was… Well, it was a training accident."
Blue's smile faded. "Eh?"
"You know…" Tony allowed a small grin. "Kinda like the one you had yesterday with Misty."
Misty snickered wearily. "An 'accident.' Yeah, that about describes our little spat…"
It was Blue's turn to blush. "W-whatever," he muttered. "Can you just tell me what's…?"
There was a bright flash of violet. Kadabra, Atlanta, and, much to Tony's surprise and relief, Nicole. The Unovan girl woozily stumbled forward as the light faded, almost falling to the ground before Tony dashed forward and just managed to catch her, his arm supporting her back and keeping her from hitting the ground.
"N-Nicole!" Tony cried, helping the girl up. "A-are you okay?"
Nicole covered her mouth, trying to resist the urge to vomit that came with everyone's first teleportation. "I-I'm fine, Tony…"
Blue, seeing a girl who hadn't beaten him in a fight, as well as having all of the curves that Misty lacked, immediately rushed forward and snatched her away, knocking Tony flat on his back in the process. "Oh, hey," he greeted. "I didn't think you'd be here, Nicky."
Nicole blinked, surprised. "B-Blue?"
"That's me!" he said, pulling her up so she could stand again. "Nice outfit, by the way. You really pull off that whole treasure hunter look. If I was giant boulder, I'd totally chase after you through an ancient temple*1."
Nicole smiled awkwardly, sweat-dropping. "Uh, thanks…?" she said, unsure if that was really a compliment.
"What a loser…" Misty muttered, shaking her head as she yanked the dazed Tony off of the ground.
"Uh…" Nicole said, looking to the redhead. "W-who is she? And whose Kadabra is this? Could someone please explain what's going on here?"
Tony scratched the back of his head. "It's kind of a long story… Well, see, there's this Jynx…"
Nicole's eyes went wide. "J-Jynx?" she looked around frantically, finally spotting the burnt, unconscious Humaneshape Pokémon. "Jynx!" she shrieked, horrified, running past Blue and up to the Ice/Psychic-type.
"N-Nicole!" Tony shouted. "Don't! She tried to kill us!"
Nicole ignored him, throwing herself to her knees next to Jynx and shaking her. "Jynx, Jynx!" she cried. "Wake up!"
"J-jynx…" Jynx groaned, her eyes slowly flickering open.
"Jynx, what happened?" Nicole asked. "Why are you all burnt up?" Her eyes widened. "T-there's not a fire around here, is there?" she asked warily.
"Uh, actually, that was Charmander…" Blue began.
Nicole whirled around, giving the Oak boy an ugly glare. "Y-you did this to her?!"
Blue winced. "H-hey!" he argued. "She was forcing Tory and Foggy-!"
"It's Tony!" Tony muttered.
"And Misty!" Misty agreed.
Blue ignored the interruption and continued. "She was forcing them to dance against their will! Charmander and me saved them from doing ballet!" He huffed, folding his arms across his chest. "If we didn't show up, they could have danced until they passed out!"
"Jynx wouldn't do that!" Nicole retorted. "She's too sweet! Aren't you, Jynx?" she asked, hugging the singed Pokémon.
Jynx winced as Nicole pressed against her burnt skin. "J-Jynx…"
"Uh, Nicole?" Tony said slowly. "She, uh, kinda did try to dance us to death." And with a tango, no less, he thought, blushing.
Nicole huffed. "Jynx was the one who saved me from that rockslide!" she shouted. "If she wanted to help me, why wouldn't she help you?"
"That's an excellent question."
Tony, Misty, and Blue all squeaked in terror and whirled about. Standing right behind Tony was Sabrina Natsume, her arms folded across her chest and her expression as dull as always. Bud, who had been walking by Sabrina's boot, eagerly cried out when he saw her trainer and dashed over to Nicole, and Venomoth was safe and sound inside of her Pokéball, though she would undoubtedly receive a scolding from her trainer later on for her incompetence.
"S-Sabrina?!" Tony stuttered. "I-I mean, Natsume-sensei! H-how did you get here?!"
"The same way you did," Sabrina replied. "I walked."
"Uh, who's she?" Blue asked, elbowing Tony in the side gently.
"Sabrina Natsume," Sabrina quickly introduced. "Gym Leader of Saffron City, Psychic-type expert, and, no, I'm not interested in you, so do not speak to me."
Tony bit his lip to keep from sniggering and Blue sweat-dropped. Didn't even say anything… the redhead thought.
Sabrina cast her cold look at Tony. "And as for you," she said, her chilly voice freezing Tony's blood, "I thought you could handle such a low-level Psychic-type. Clearly I was mistaken."
Tony winced, bowing his head. "S-sorry…"
"Hey!" Nicole cried, rising up from Jynx and stomping over to the red-eyed girl. "You leave Tony alone! He didn't do anything-!"
Sabrina gave the Unovan girl a cold look and Nicole's jaw snapped shut at once, any criticism she had dying in her throat. That done, the Saffron Gym Leader returned her gaze to the humbled Tony. "That being said," she added, "there was some fault on my part for thinking you could handle something like that so soon. As such, the blame is…" she frowned, hardly wanting to admit the truth, before finally saying "partially mine."
Tony looked up. "I-it is?"
"Yes. About… thirty-five percent of the blame is mine. The rest is yours."
"Oh. So, sixty-five percent…" Tony winced; Sabrina's admission of making a mistake wasn't all that satisfying when she was still piling most of the blame on him.
"Mmm… Maybe seventy percent, actually…" Sabrina murmured, stroking her chin. When Kadabra cleared his throat she shook her head and continued. "Regardless, you're still wearing the weights."
"O-oh," Tony muttered as his body jerked forward slightly, finally feeling the weight of the heavy sweatbands. "W-when Nicole was in trouble I just sort of forgot them, I guess…"
Nicole blushed. "T-Tony…"
"So, uh, I'm not in any trouble, right?" Tony asked cautiously.
"Not with me," Sabrina replied. "You didn't break any of the conditions."
"Y-yeah, but I didn't beat Jynx…" Tony pointed out.
"Not being a complete failure of a Pokémon Trainer," Sabrina said rather callously, "was never one of my conditions. Besides, failure is an excellent learning aid. If you're smart, you'll learn from this experience and do better next time."
"E-excuse me!" Nicole finally said. "Why is everyone trying to beat up Jynx?! She'd never hurt a Butterfree!"
"Freeh…" Lucky muttered. I beg to differ…
"Why would Jynx help me and try to harm you?" Nicole demanded.
"Why don't you ask her?" Sabrina asked calmly, pointing to the guilty-looking Jynx.
Nicole blinked, confused. "B-but she can't speak…"
"Psychic-types can communicate mentally," Sabrina interrupted. "And she's clearly strong enough to have that strength of mind. Ask her why she would attack them."
Nicole slowly looked to Jynx, who was staring miserably at the ground. "J-Jynx?" she asked. "W-why would you attack Tony and Misty and not…?"
Suddenly, Jynx reached out and grabbed Nicole by the face, silencing the Unovan girl. Before anyone could say or do anything, the Ice/Psychic-type's long, blonde-white hair draped over the girl like a curtain and began to glow, the silky tendrils wrapping around the girl's body.
She saw a young lady, about her age, who was scowling angrily.
"Jynx! Can't you do anything right?!"
"Jynx…"
She saw the girl tossing a Pokéball to a boy.
"Here, you take her. She's too weak for me to use."
She saw the boy yelling.
"Ice Beam, I said! Ice Beam!"
"Jynx…"
She saw the boy tossing the Pokéball to another girl, this one younger than the first. "U-uh, here. This is a rare Pokémon called a Jynx."
"Ooh, really?"
She saw the younger girl's face contort into an expression of disgust.
"Eww, she's gross! Why would you give me such a gross Pokémon?!"
She saw a teary-eyed Jynx walking away from a riverside city and up to the rocky path of Mt. Moon.
Nicole's eyes snapped open as the hair fell away from her and Jynx released her face. Tears spouted from the girl's eyes and she embraced the burnt Ice/Psychic-type. "Oh, Jynx…" she whispered. "I'm so sorry…"
"Uh… Why?" Blue asked, even more confused than Tony and Misty were.
"This poor girl was abandoned by her trainers…" Nicole explained, still hugging the teary-eyed Jynx. "She was just lonely for company… When she saw that I was in trouble, she helped me and took me to her home so that she could have a friend…" She stroked Jynx's hair, wiping some of the soot away. "She didn't mean any harm…"
"Oh…" Tony slowly nodded, realizing that Nicole was making sense. "So, when she saw me and Misty were trying to find you, she was worried we'd try to take you away from her…"
"And when your Bulbasaur and my Venomoth tried to stop her, she froze them," Sabrina added.
Nicole blinked. "W-wait? She did what?" She looked down at Jynx with an unamused, albeit not unfriendly, expression. Jynx merely smiled sheepishly in response.
"Regardless," Sabrina said, "there is clearly no need to waste an energy or time in further conflict."
"R-right," Tony agreed with a little reluctance, still not entirely sure if Jynx could be trusted.
His own nervousness was completely ignored by Nicole, who unclipped an empty Pokéball from her belt and held it out to Jynx. "I don't know how you feel about these…" she said, "but you're hurt and need some medical attention. Besides, if you still want to be my friend we can travel together and explore Kanto. How does that sound?"
Jynx smiled and nodded slowly, wincing slightly in pain. "J-Jynx," she agreed.
Nicole grinned as she tapped the ball's button on Jynx's forehead, letting it pop open and absorb the Ice/Psychic-type within. Jynx vanished in a flash of red, happy to have a trainer who she could trust at long last.
Only when Jynx was inside of the ball did the others allow themselves to relax. It was all over, at long last, and Tony, Misty, Blue, and their Pokémon were all dead tired.
Tony groaned as he rubbed his weary arms. "W-well," he said, "that was… uh… something…"
Blue grinned. "We are something, aren't we?" he chuckled. "Good job, Charmander. You… Charmander?"
"C-chaaarm!" Charmander groaned. The reddish energy that was emanating from the Fire-type had grown into a full-blown aura of scarlet power. The Lizard Pokémon's body was little more than a bright silhouette, his body sparking and twisting.
Blue gaped. "W-what's going on? Charmander!" he cried, his smugness vanishing, replaced with concern for his partner.
"H-he's evolving!" Misty said.
Sabrina rolled her eyes. "Thank you, Ms. Obvious."
Nicole squeaked girlishly and leaped behind Tony, Atlanta and Bud joining her.
There was one last bright flash as Charmander's legs, arms, and claws elongated. A long, sharp-looking horn rose from the back of his head. His tail flame burned brighter, giving him a brilliant glow even as the light faded from his new body. "Char…" he growled in a deeper, scratchier voice as the aura of change faded, leaving a brand new body in its wake.
Blue gaped and then grinned like an idiot as he pulled out his own Pokédex and switched it on. "Charmeleon," the 'dex reported, "the Flame Pokémon. A pure Fire-type. Average Height: 3'07. Average Weight: 41.9 lbs. When it swings its burning tail, it elevates the temperature to unbearably high levels. This specimen is male and scans suggest it is two years old. Its special ability is Blaze. Its power level is 16."
"Yes!" Blue boasted. "He evolved! All that training paid off!"
"C-charm…" Charmeleon growled, looking over his new body with an uncertain but proud grin.
"You see that?" Blue asked, pointing to his newly-evolved starter. "How's that for an 'accident,' eh, Foggy?!"
"It's Misty!" Misty spat back.
"Whatever! Point is, I've got a Charmeleon and you don't!" Blue taunted.
"Thank goodness for that…" Nicole muttered.
"Ah, man, I've gotta get to the Pokémon and call Gramps to give him the good news!" Blue cheered. "Charmeleon, let's get going!"
"Char!" Charmeleon agreed, eager to test out how fast he could get with his sleeker body.
"Oh, yeah, and Tor… Tony!" Blue added, pointing to the blond. "I'll let you go today but next time we run into each other I'm going to wipe the floor with you, y'hear?"
Tony sweat-dropped. "W-whatever…" he muttered.
"Oh, yeah, and Nicole," Blue added, smiling politely and waving at the Unovan. "Seeya around."
Nicole snorted, flustered by both by Blue's attempts to be charming and the fact that there was a source of fire standing not ten feet away from her. "W-whatever…" she muttered.
And with that, Blue took off, laughing like a lunatic as he and Charmeleon made their way down to Cerulean City.
The moment that she was sure Blue was out of earshot, Sabrina said, "Obnoxious braggart."
"That about sums it up…" Tony admitted wearily.
Sabrina turned to her pupil. "This little adventure is over. Continue to Cerulean City and wait for me to make contact with you."
"U-uh, sure," Tony replied, "but how will you find me?"
"Believe me," Sabrina replied, "I think I'll manage. Continue on your way and…" she frowned, sighed, and then said, "you can take the sweatbands off now."
"I-I can?" Tony asked hopefully. "O-oh, thank you, Natsume-sensei, thank you!" he said, swiftly ripping his bands off and plopping them down on the ground before running to help his weary Pokémon with their own.
Meanwhile, Misty was introducing herself to Nicole. "Hey," she greeted, "you're Nicole, right? I'm Misty."
"N-nice to meet you," Nicole said, still recovering from her exposure to Charmeleon. "T-thanks for the help… Or, trying to help, that is…"
Misty blushed a little. "Not a problem. You know, he was really worried about you," she said, gesturing to Tony.
"Yeah," Nicole replied with a smile. "He's a good friend."
Misty nodded slowly. "Yeah, I guess he is…" she muttered, looking over to Tony as he tugged the weighted bands from the weary limbs of his Pokémon.
"H-here you go," Tony was saying to Sabrina, handing her the bands he had collected. "So, uh, how long will it take for you come looking for me?"
"However long it takes for me to come up with a training method more suitable for your low level," Sabrina replied, effortlessly placing the bands into her bag. "For now, I'd recommend staying with your friends and keeping out of trouble. I don't want to have to come and save you again."
"R-right…" Tony replied. "Uh, so, are you going to walk with us to Cerulean?"
Sabrina snorted. "No. Kadabra and I will teleport there," she said as the Psychic-type walked to her side.
"Oh…" Tony smiled hopefully. Natsume-sensei had been quite kind that day, so maybe she would give him a ride. "Uh, any chance I could come with…?"
"Kadabra, use Teleport," Sabrina said, not giving him any time to finish. Kadabra nodded and grabbed his trainer's shoulder, the two of them vanishing in a bright flash of blue and violet.
Tony sweat-dropped and groaned wearily, realizing that he would have to hike the rest of the way on foot. Even without his weights it was going to be a long, tiring hike. "So tired…" he muttered.
"Hey." Misty tapped him on the shoulder, surprising him. "I wanna word with you."
Tony turned to face her, worried for a brief moment that Misty was going to start yelling at him again. To his surprise, however, there was a remorseful look on the redhead's face.
"I'm… sorry I yelled at you yesterday…" she said, scratching the back of her head. "You're not a total jerk after all if you're willing to go so far to try and rescue your friend… and I guess it was kind of stupid of me to just assume you'd risk your friends' lives to save someone you'd just met…"
"N-no, it's okay," Tony replied quickly. "There's nothing to apologize for, really. Let's just call it even, okay?"
Misty smiled. "Alright," she said, jabbing him lightly in the arm. "We're cool."
"Let's start over," Tony offered, holding out his hand. "I'm Tony, Tony Miller."
"Misty," Misty replied. "Misty Waterflower."
"Uh, what are you two talking about?" Nicole asked.
"Oh, nothing," Misty replied, deciding to spare Tony another scolding. "So, where are you guys going now?"
Tony sighed. "Cerulean City… by foot," he muttered; he felt tired already.
"Well, that's the nearest town, so I'm going there, too," Nicole agreed.
Misty grinned. "Hey," she said, "I live in Cerulean. Why don't you guys come with me and stay the night at my place? It's a heckuva lot better than the Pokémon Center and we've got some great food, too!"
"Uh, I don't know…" Tony said, not entirely sure if he was comfortable staying at someone else's house, especially someone who he had only met recently.
"Come on!" Misty said, wrapping her arms around Tony and Nicole's necks. "It'll be fun! Besides, I could use some company. Everyone else in the house is such a drag…"
"Well…" Nicole said, yawning slightly, "I am kind of tired… and hungry…"
"Then it's settled!" Misty cheered. "Party at my place!"
And with that, the humans all returned their exhausted Pokémon to their Pokéballs, shouldered their backpacks, and finally – finally – made their way down the mountainside to Cerulean City, unaware of the conflict that awaited them. A conflict brought about by far worse than Team Rocket thugs, wild Pokémon, or backbreaking training methods.
Sibling rivalry.
Author's Note:
'Nother late chapter, 'nother sudden title change. Usual excuses, usual apologies, yadda-yadda, you've heard it all before. I hope the 10,000 plus word chapter made up for it. Onto the actual message.
And so our heroes are finally on their way to Cerulean City, which means I no longer have to scratch my head when I entitle these chapters as part of the Cerulean Saga. I honestly would've retconned that had I not done the Mt. Moon Saga Interlude already and I want to keep the interludes focused on furthering the plots of the antagonists. But, hey, what can you do?
Anyways, you could argue that the two Jynx chapters were filler but I'd have to… sort of agree, sort of disagree, really. It does feel a bit like filler (like most of the little tournament subplots in the anime, which, to be fair, I kind of liked) but it brings Nicole back into the story in a more interesting way than "she shows up in Cerulean and becomes buddy-buddy with Misty instantly." This gives a chance for their friendship to develop as well as Tony and Misty's relationship as well, which, there's no point in denying it, needed some help. It also featured Jynx, one of my favorite Gen 1 Pokémon, and a character obtaining her, so I feel it was worth it. Besides, nothing's wrong with a little filler, right? The manga had filler, the anime was basically all filler… You get the idea.
Well, tune in next time to see Cerulean City – yes, we're actually going to be there at last!
Reader Question Time!
New Megas, including Mega Latios and Latias, Mega Rayquaza, Mega Pidgeot, and, best of all, Mega Beedrill have been confirmed! Which one is your favorite? Do you even need to ask what my favorite is! Mega Beedrill all da way! XD
Culture Time:
*1: "If I was giant boulder, I'd totally chase after you through an ancient temple." This horrible, horrible flirt is a reference to the scene in the American adventure film Raiders of the Lost Ark, where the protagonist accidently sets off a trap in ancient ruins, resulting in a gigantic boulder which rolls after him.
Next Chapter: Cerulean Saga: Chapter 4: The Waterflowers of Cerulean City!
