Hey, everyone! :)
Last chapter saw James finally defeat Blaine, the Cinnabar Island gym leader, to win the Volcano Badge. With James' sights now firmly set on the Viridian gym, the group boarded a ferry heading for James' hometown of Pallet.
Upload Date: 5th October 2014
Chapter 52: Homecoming
Route 21, Kanto
7:16am, 30th May 2005
James was awoken by the loud, deep sound of the ship's horn. He felt the cabin reverberating slightly as he tried to organise his thoughts and snap out of the dreams of the previous night's sleep. The first thing he noticed was that a pale light had filled the room from the behind the small, white curtain which covered the porthole. It had been almost completely dark the previous evening when they'd turned out the lights.
He reached up and rubbed his eyes, letting out a yawn as he did. He was surprised by how well he'd slept, as the bed was not the most comfortable that he'd slept on. It had a thin sheet with an old, light brown blanket on top instead of a duvet. The sheet was nice and smooth and meant that the scratchiness of the blanket hadn't bothered James while he slept. There was also only a single thin pillow.
"Are you awake, James?" James heard Richard call quietly down to him.
"Yeah," he replied.
Richard's head appeared over the side of the top bunk. "Did you sleep well?"
"Well enough." James nodded. "How about you?"
"Yeah, me too." Richard nodded as well. He was about to ask something else when the ship's public address system started up.
"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," it began. "We hope that you had a pleasant night's sleep."
"Because we're about to interrupt it!" Richard called sarcastically to James, who laughed.
"We're due to arrive in Pallet Town in about an hour. In the meantime, the restaurant on Deck 3 is now open for breakfast."
"You want to head for breakfast?" James asked as Richard jumped down from his bunk.
"Yeah." Richard nodded. "Let's get dressed and then get Livvi."
"Got it." James got up as well. They quickly got changed and left the cabin, locking it behind them with their key card. They turned left and walked down to the end of the corridor, where they knocked on the door of the last cabin in line. There was a delay of about fifteen seconds before the door opened.
"Yes?" Livvi greeted them tiredly. She was still in her pyjamas and had pretty bad bed head. That and her still-sleepy eyes indicated that she'd only just woken up.
"Morning," James said. "We're planning on getting some breakfast – are you coming?"
"Oh, umm, yeah!" Livvi replied. "I'll just be a few minutes – I'll meet you at the restaurant in a bit!" She closed the door. James and Richard heard a click as it locked.
"Let's go then!" Richard grinned.
"Yeah." James nodded. The two of them headed for the nearby staircase up to the next deck. As they got up, they noticed that a number of people had gathered outside on the deck and were looking at something in the sea.
"I wonder what's going on," Richard said.
"Let's have a look." James walked to the door out onto the deck and opened it. The two of them made their way along to a space at the railings and looked down. Not too far from the ferry, a large serpentine pokémon with blue skin and a gaping mouth was diving in and out of the water.
"What is that?" James wondered, pulling out his Pokédex.
"Gyarados, the atrocious pokémon and the evolved form of magikarp. When magikarp evolve into gyarados, their brain cells undergo a structural transformation. It is said that this transformation is to blame for this pokémon's wildly violent personality."
"The 'most pathetic pokémon in the world' evolves into that?" Richard cried in surprise.
"I'm more worried about the 'wildly violent personality' part," James replied.
Fortunately, the gyarados seemed to be swimming away from them.
"Looks like it's gone," one of the others sighed.
"Oh well," another said. "Do you want to have a pokémon battle on the ship's arena?"
"You bet!" The first person grinned, sending out his pokémon as they started walking towards the arena.
"Kingler, the pincer pokémon and the evolved form of krabby. Their large and hard pincer has 10,000 horsepower strength. However, being so big and heavy, it is unwieldy to move and tires kingler out quickly. They wave their claw to communicate with others."
"This has been a good morning so far." James grinned as he put his Pokédex away. "I got to see two pokémon I hadn't seen before. Shall we go and watch that battle?"
"Don't forget about breakfast," Richard reminded him. "And Livvi would be annoyed if she showed up and found out that we'd abandoned her to watch a pokémon battle."
"I guess so." James nodded.
They went back inside and walked along the corridor until they reached the restaurant at the stern of the ship. They quickly found a table close to the entrance so that they could look out for Livvi and took turns to get their breakfast. Another five minutes passed before Livvi showed up to join them.
"So what's the plan for when we get to Pallet Town?" Richard asked as Livvi arrived back at the table, having left again briefly to get her breakfast.
"First stop is home!" James grinned. "It's Monday today, so my mum should be there."
"And after that?" Richard asked as Livvi started eating her breakfast.
"I don't know," James replied. "I want to stop by professor Oak's lab and check on Saeloc at least."
"Are you going to add Saeloc to the team again?" Livvi asked.
"Yeah." James nodded. "I'm going to need Saeloc's Icy Wind against the Viridian gym."
"Do you know what type they use then?" Richard asked.
"Yeah." James nodded. "Do you remember Doug, that guy I fought in the SS Anne Tournament?"
"Yeah." Livvi and Richard both nodded.
"Well, he said he was a gym trainer at the Viridian gym and all the pokémon he used were ground types."
"That's true," Livvi said thoughtfully. "What if it turns out that it's not a ground gym though?"
"Saeloc's one of my toughest pokémon anyway," James replied. "So it makes sense for me to include her on the team anyway."
"That makes sense." Richard nodded. "Did you want to try and get to Viridian City today?"
"I have a sneaking suspicion that we may not be allowed to," James sighed.
Pallet Town, Kanto
8:04am, 30th May 2005
Pallet Town was just as it was when James had left it almost two months ago. As he, Livvi and Richard walked along one of the streets leading towards the eastern outskirts of the town, they could hear the sound of flocks of pidgey and spearow calling to each other as they soared overhead. As they walked along the rural roads, past the large bungalows and their beautiful gardens, some of the locals greeted James, asking him how his journey was going and assuring him that they were confident he'd win the Viridian gym battle.
"Looks like you're quite the celebrity around here, James!" Livvi laughed as he excused himself from another of his neighbours and the three of them continued walking down the street.
"Well, we're in my neighbourhood now," James replied. "Everyone around here knows each other and my mum's been keeping them up to date with where I've been and what I've done – they're the same with the other kids from this part of town who've gone off on pokémon journeys."
"Still, no one other that the people on my street would greet me like when I got back home after a long time away from home," Livvi said. "And even then, they'd all be more interested in Tessa anyway."
"Come to think of it," Richard began. "Do you know where Tessa is right now? I mean, it is getting close to the start of the Kanto League."
"No idea," Livvi replied. "She might already be at the Indigo Plateau by now."
"Here we are!" James grinned, gesturing to the rectangular, yellow-coloured house in front of them. He led the two of them up the path to the front door and knocked on it. There was a short delay before the door was opened.
"James! You're back!" Elizabeth cried, immediately hugging her son.
"Mum! We're in public!" James protested, trying to shake her off.
"I'm sorry," Elizabeth sighed, reluctantly letting him go. She looked at Livvi and Richard. "It's nice to finally meet you in person Livvi and Richard." She smiled.
"It's nice to meet you too, Elizabeth," Richard replied politely.
"Same here, Mrs Bur… I-I mean Elizabeth!" Livvi stuttered as she corrected herself.
"Thank you for taking care of James for me."
"It's nothing!" Livvi laughed nervously.
"We survived." Richard shrugged, grinning at James.
"Hey! I've been taking care of you guys as well!" James protested.
"You three must be tired from your journey here." Elizabeth interrupted him. "Did you want to come in and have a drink?"
"That'd be lovely, thank you!" Livvi nodded eagerly.
The three trainers walked through the door, taking off their dirty shoes before they ventured further into the house.
"I'm the only one in at the moment," Elizabeth said as she headed for the kitchen. "Will and Tom are at school and Dad's at work."
"I thought so," James replied, dumping his backpack in a corner of the hall. "Follow me," he said, turning to Livvi and Richard. He led the two of them to a door across the hall. "This is the lounge," he said. Livvi and Richard followed him in and looked around. There were two sofas, one large and one small, in the lounge. The smaller one was facing the door they'd just entered from and had its back to the window. The larger one was on the left side of the room, facing the fireplace, an armchair and another door on the right side of the room. Both sofas had dark red covers and matching cushions. A bookcase full of a wide variety of books stood immediately to their left and a dresser adorned with ornaments and photographs was in the far left corner, by the window. A coffee table stood, more or less, in the centre of the room. As they sat down on the large sofa, they noticed the TV, which was tucked away in the bottom right corner of the room.
"I'm going to help my mum with the drinks, so make yourselves comfortable," James said as he turned to leave.
"Oh! Did you want me to help as well?" Livvi asked.
"Don't worry, it's fine." James smiled back at her. "See you in a second!" He left the lounge and went into the kitchen.
"So, how did your rematch at the Cinnabar gym go?" Elizabeth asked as he arrived.
"I won," James replied, pulling out his Volcano Badge. "Leytor was a big help, but everyone did their best and we managed to pull through."
"I'm glad to hear it," Elizabeth replied. "Are you giving them plenty of rest before the Viridian gym battle?"
"Yeah." James nodded.
"Oh yes!" Elizabeth said, suddenly remembering something. "I got a call from Professor Oak yesterday. He said that he wanted you to go to the lab the next time you were back in town."
"I was planning on heading there anyway, but thanks for letting me know," James replied as he took three glasses out of one of the cupboards. "If it's okay with you, then I'll go after we've finished our drinks."
"That's fine," Elizabeth replied. "By the way, I've made some extra food for this evening and we've set up the spare room for Livvi and the spare bed in your room for Richard."
"As I suspected you would," James sighed with a smile, annoyed that they'd had no say, but happy that they were guaranteed a good meal that evening.
9:29am, 30th May 2005
"It feels weird to be back here," James murmured as he stood on the steps leading up to the lab. "It feels like only yesterday that I met Charka here for the first time."
"I'm excited to finally be here," Livvi said, looking up at the lab ahead of them. "If things had gone according to plan, then I'd have come here to get Barru rather than needing you to deliver him to me."
"That was a good thing in the end." James grinned at her. "After all, we might not have met otherwise."
"Yeah." Livvi nodded.
"Are you two going to reminisce for the rest of the morning, or are we going to the lab?" Richard asked exasperatedly.
"Sorry!" James apologised as he started walking up the stairs. Once they reached the door, he pushed it open and they went inside.
"Ah, James! It's good to see you again!" Professor Oak called to them. He'd just entered the hallway they were in as they'd entered.
"It's good to see you too, Professor," James replied. "How's Saeloc?"
"She's fully recovered from her injuries," Oak replied. "Since then, she's been training constantly with the other pokémon here."
"That's great!" James grinned. "I was planning on using her in my Viridian gym battle!"
"I should let you know that she's learnt a new attack as well," Oak continued.
"Really?" James cried in surprise. "What attack?"
"Slash," Oak replied. "I think she spent all that time training in anticipation of you returning her to the team."
"Can I go and see her?" James asked.
"Of course." Oak nodded. "She should be out in the garden at the moment.
"I'll be back in a second!" James called to the others as he tore off to the back of the lab. The other three watched him go for a couple of seconds.
"Thank you for giving me my bulbasaur, Professor." Livvi changed the subject as she turned back to the professor.
"You're most welcome." Oak smiled. "How has your journey been so far?"
"It's been great." Livvi nodded. "We've seen lots of amazing places so far!"
"I'm glad to hear it," Oak said. He turned to look at Richard. "You must be Richard Winter."
"That's right, Professor," Richard nodded politely.
"James and Livvi have told me a lot about you." Oak smiled. "You've only just become a trainer yourself if I remember correctly."
"Yes." Richard nodded again. "Actually, there was something I wanted to ask you professor."
"I'm all ears," Oak replied.
"I was wondering if I could get a Pokédex," Richard admitted. "It seems like it really helps James and Livvi learn about new pokémon."
"That's fine," Oak replied. "Every registered trainer is entitled to a Pokédex. Come with me a second." He led Livvi and Richard into the next room and started rummaging around in one of the cupboards. He pulled out a Pokédex and booted it up.
"I'm back!" James walked through the door behind them, Saeloc at his side.
"Hi, Saeloc!" Livvi grinned, crouching down to pet her. Saeloc purred happily.
"Fine, ignore me!" James huffed, pretending to be offended.
"Welcome back, James," Livvi sighed as she stood up again.
"Glad to be back!" James grinned. "Anyway, what's going on now?"
"Richard's getting a Pokédex from Professor Oak," Livvi explained.
"Cool." James walked over to watch as Oak finished setting up the Pokédex and handed it to Richard.
"You just need to register it with your trainer card and it'll be all good to go," he explained.
"Thanks, Professor," Richard replied as he took the Pokédex. He immediately pulled out his trainer card and started registering the Pokédex to it.
"Here's Saeloc's poké ball." Oak handed the poké ball to James. "Did you want me to take care of one of your other pokémon in the meantime?"
"Actually, could I leave Cuba here with you until the league begins?" James asked.
"That's fine." Oak nodded.
"Huh? Why?" Livvi asked as James handed over Cuba's poké ball.
"I'm still a new trainer after all," James replied. "Once I'm more experienced, I'll feel more confident taking more than six pokémon with me at once."
"I guess so," Livvi sighed.
"All done!" Richard beamed, admiring his new Pokédex. He pointed it at Saeloc.
"Persian, the classy cat pokémon and the evolved form of meowth. Persian have six bold whiskers that give them a look of toughness. The whiskers sense air movements to determine what is in the pokémon's surrounding vicinity. It becomes docile if grabbed by the whiskers."
"Looks like it's working alright." Oak gave a satisfied nod as Richard put his Pokédex away and James recalled Saeloc to her poké ball. He turned to James. "Let me know when you get to the Indigo Plateau and I'll send Cuba back to you."
"Thanks, Professor!" James grinned.
7:45pm, 30th May 2005
"So, what are your plans for the next few days?" Elizabeth asked. James, Livvi and Richard were sat at the dinner table at James' house along with Elizabeth, James' dad, Patrick, and his two younger brothers, Will and Tom. There was more conversation now as they'd mostly finished eating. The dining room was part of a larger room with the kitchen, with a counter marking the dividing point between the two. All of James, Livvi and Richard's pokémon were eating their food there.
"We'll set off for Viridian tomorrow," James began. "It probably won't take us that long, so there'll be plenty of time in the afternoon to do some training."
"Aren't you going to challenge the Viridian gym tomorrow?" Will asked.
"No." James shook his head. "You see Will, if I blindly charge into a gym battle, then I'll end suffering a humiliating defeat."
"You know that from experience, right?" Tom piped up.
"He's got you there!" Livvi laughed.
"Give me a break," James groaned. "I've only lost…"
"Four of your seven gym battles so far." Richard finished for him, a big grin on his face.
"It's the end result that matters," said Patrick. "As long as you try your best, that's all anyone can ask of you."
"Yeah, I know!" James nodded. "Anyway, I'll challenge the Viridian gym the day after tomorrow. We'll set off for the Indigo Plateau as soon as I've won my last badge."
"Which pokémon are you going to use?" Will asked.
"I think the Viridian gym specialises in ground type pokémon," James replied. "So I'm going to use Ayra, Saeloc, Leytor and Raenok."
"Why Raenok?" Tom asked. "I didn't think that fighting types had an advantage against ground types."
"I expect that you're anticipating some ground-rock types, right?" Patrick asked James.
"That's right." James nodded.
"The Pewter gym had pokémon which were both rock and ground type," Livvi added.
"Since everyone's finished eating," Elizabeth began. "Would you three," she looked at James, Will and Tom, "like to start collecting up the plates and put them in the dishwasher?"
"Yes, Mum," they sighed.
"Do they always do this?" Livvi asked as James, Will and Tom started gathering the plates to take over to the dishwasher.
"Sometimes they have to be persuaded," Elizabeth replied. "And we do it some of the time anyway."
"It's not as bad as you think it's going to be!" James called. "I don't really mind collecting the plates!"
"So, James," Richard stood up and walked into the kitchen. "What's the plan for the Kanto League?"
"I can't really make plans until we actually get there," James replied. "But the first thing I'll do is bring Cuba back."
"What about the battles?" Richard asked. "Do you think it'll be the same as the SS Anne Tournament?"
"It'll probably be similar," James replied. "They said something like that during the SS Anne Tournament, didn't they?" He finished loading the dishwasher and shut the door. "I guess we'll find out when we get there."
Viridian City, Kanto
1:23pm, 31st May 2005
It was a bright and sunny afternoon as James, Livvi and Richard entered the southern outskirts of Viridian City. It was hot, but not unbearable. The smell of freshly cut grass was in the air.
"I'll take over from here," Livvi said cheerfully, moving to the head of the group and starting to lead the way through the city.
"Good," James replied. "I can't really remember where your house is anyway."
"You forgot already?" Livvi cried.
"I've only been there once," James replied. "And that was almost two months ago!"
"I guess so," Livvi sighed.
"Are we going to have lunch soon?" Richard asked.
"I thought we could have lunch when we get there," Livvi replied. "I've let my parents know that we're coming, so they'll probably expect us to stay for lunch."
"That's fine with me!" James grinned. "The food at your house was really good the last time I was there!" He turned back to Richard. "Livvi's dad is a really good cook," he explained.
"Awesome!" Richard grinned back. "I look forward to it!"
The three of them rounded a corner and found themselves on a street James recognised.
"Is this it?" James asked. "This street seems familiar."
"I live at the far end of this street," Livvi replied. "We walked along here when I first took you to my house."
"So that's it." James nodded. "I know where we are now."
"Good," Livvi replied. They continued walking down the street. Once they were close to the far end, Livvi led them to a house on the left hand side of the street. She walked up to the door and rang the bell. There was a brief pause before the door opened.
"Livvi! Welcome back!" Livvi's mum, Holly, cried.
"Hi, Mum!" Livvi smiled back as Holly hugged her. "How's everything been?"
"It's been a bit lonely with both you and Tessa away, but other than that we've been fine," Holly replied. She looked past Livvi at James and Richard. "It's good to see you again, James." She smiled.
"It's good to see you again as well," James replied with a grin.
"And you must be Richard." Holly turned to Richard.
"That's right Mrs Weston." Richard nodded.
"Don't worry about being formal," Holly said with a grin. "Just call me 'Holly'."
"Got it." Richard nodded.
"Anyway, you three must be tired after the walk from Pallet Town – come on inside!" Holly stepped aside so that they could get past her. The three of them walked into the house and took off their shoes. "We're just about to have lunch," Holly explained. "Did you want to take James and Richard through to the dining room, Livvi?"
"Will do." Livvi nodded. "Follow me, guys!" She led James and Richard along the hall to the room on the far right. She pushed open the door to the dining room.
"Hi, Livvi! Fancy seeing you here!" They were greeted by Tessa, who was sat at the head of the dining table at the centre of the room.
"You!" Livvi shouted. "What are you doing here?"
"I live here," Tessa replied casually. "You didn't forget that, did you?"
"Where's Lallo?" Livvi asked cautiously, looking around.
"He's in his poké ball," Tessa replied, patting one of the poké balls at her waist. "You don't need to worry, Livvi."
Livvi sighed. "You guys can just sit wherever you want," she said, gesturing to the table.
"Thanks," James said as he took the seat to Tessa's left. Richard sat down opposite him.
"How have you two been?" Tessa asked the two of them as they sat down.
"Pretty good." James nodded.
"Same," Richard added.
"How many badges have you got now?" Tessa asked James as Livvi sat down next to James.
"Seven," James replied. "I won the Volcano Badge two days ago."
"So I guess you're here for the Viridian gym badge then?"
"Yeah." James nodded. "I'm planning to challenge the gym tomorrow."
"To allow time to train, I assume?" Tessa asked.
"Yeah." James nodded again.
"That sounds like a good idea." Tessa nodded. "I can help out as well if you want."
"Is it okay if Tessa helps?" James turned to Livvi.
"That's fine," Livvi replied. "On the condition that she has a battle with me!"
"Fine by me." Tessa shrugged. "We'll go to the public arenas after lunch."
2:19pm, 31st May 2005
"Alright, let's get this started!" Richard called, having taken on the role of referee. "This'll be a three-on-three pokémon battle between Tessa and Livvi. The battle will be over when one side loses all three of their pokémon!"
"Go, Dorru!" Livvi called, throwing out Dorru's poké ball.
Dorru cried out as she burst out of the ball.
"Go, Lallo!" Tessa called.
Lallo cheered as he materialised.
"You can do it, Livvi!" James shouted from the sidelines.
"Good luck to both of you!" Holly called from next to him.
"Begin!" Richard called.
"Use Rapid Spin!" Tessa yelled to Lallo.
Lallo nodded and withdrew into his shell while simultaneously spinning towards Dorru.
"Dodge it and use Poison Sting!" Livvi ordered.
Dorru nodded. She darted to the left as Lallo approached, before turning and diving back towards him as he stopped spinning and emerged from his shell.
"Use Withdraw!" Tessa shouted.
"Lallo managed to pull himself back into his shell at the last moment and Dorru bounced back.
"Use Double Kick!" Livvi called.
Dorru spun round and gave Lallo's shell a pair of powerful kicks, sending him flying.
"Are you alright?" Tessa called as Lallo emerged from his shell. He appeared a little dazed, but otherwise largely unharmed. He gave Tessa a determined nod.
"Alright, use Hydro Pump!" she called.
Lallo fired a powerful jet of water towards Dorru, hitting her and blasting her back.
"Now start using Skull Bash!" Tessa yelled.
Lallo lowered his head.
"Use Fury Swipes!" Livvi called to Dorru as she pulled herself back to her feet.
Dorru nodded and started charging towards Lallo. Lallo suddenly sprang forwards and smashed into Dorru, sending her flying back again. She landed in a heap close to Livvi.
"Dorru is unable to battle!" Richard called. "The winner is Lallo!"
"Great work, Lallo!" Tessa grinned.
Lallo nodded, a smug grin on his face.
"You tried your hardest, Dorru, I'm sorry." Livvi apologised as she recalled Dorru to her poké ball. She pulled out her next poké ball. "Go, Barru!"
Barru cried as he emerged from the poké ball.
"I was wondering when I'd see Barru again." Tessa grinned. "Use Rapid Spin!" she called to Lallo.
Lallo withdrew into his shell and took off towards Barru.
"Dodge it and use Leech Seed!" Livvi shouted to Barru.
Barru charged forwards before darting to the right as Lallo approached. He simultaneously fired a handful of small seeds at Lallo, hitting him and sprouting to sap away at his energy.
"Now use Vine Whip!" Livvi called.
Barru extended his vines and lashed out at Lallo as he stopped spinning, sending him flying.
"Are you alright, Lallo?" Tessa called.
Lallo nodded as he pulled himself back up.
"Alright, use Skull Bash!" Tessa ordered.
Lallo nodded and lowered his head.
"Use Razor Leaf!" Livvi shouted.
Barru fired a cloud of leaves towards Lallo. He cried in pain as he was hit by the leaves. He took a couple of steps back, but managed to regain his composure. There were some nasty cuts all over his arms and head though and it was clear that Leech Seed was also taking its toll. He cried out again as he lowered his head again and charged towards Barru.
"Dodge it and use Tackle!" Livvi called.
Barru nodded. He darted to the side as Lallo approached, narrowly avoiding his attack. While Lallo was still off balance, Barru turned round and started to use Tackle.
"Use Withdraw!" Tessa shouted.
Lallo immediately pulled back into his shell and Barru's attack bounced off.
"Now use Hydro Pump!" Tessa called.
Lallo popped back out of his shell and fired a blast of water towards Barru, hitting him but not doing much damage.
"Use Razor Leaf!" Livvi yelled to Barru as Hydro Pump subsided.
Barru fired a cloud of leaves towards Lallo, who couldn't get out of the way in time and was caught by the attack. He cried in pain as he was thrown back.
"Are you alright, Lallo?" Tessa cried.
Lallo responded weakly.
"Lallo is unable to battle!" Richard announced. "Barru is the winner!"
"Great work, Barru!" Livvi grinned.
Barru grinned back as he took his position for the next round.
"Thanks, Lallo, you take a good rest," Tessa said as she recalled him. "Go, Pie!" she shouted as she threw out her next poké ball.
"Pie?" James wondered aloud.
"That's the nickname Tessa gave her butterfree back when it was a caterpie," Holly explained.
Pie cried out as she emerged from the poké ball and floated gracefully above the battlefield.
"Use Tackle!" Livvi called immediately.
Barru nodded. He charged forwards, preparing to leap at Pie and knock her out of the sky.
"Use Gust!" Tessa called to Pie.
Pie nodded. She started flapping her wings rapidly, summoning up a powerful gust of wind which caught Barru and sent him flying back.
"Now use Psybeam!" Tessa ordered as Barru struggled to right himself.
Pie fired a purplish beam of psychic energy towards Barru, hitting him before he could get out of the way.
"Are you alright, Barru?" Livvi cried anxiously.
Barru managed to pull himself up, but he looked exhausted. The last two attacks had really taken their toll on hum.
"Alright, use Razor Leaf!" Livvi called. "Try and finish this up as soon as you can!"
Barru nodded and fired a cloud of leaves towards Pie, hitting her but only really causing an annoyance rather than significant damage.
"Use Gust!" Tessa shouted. "Finish them off!"
Pie nodded and started flapping her wings rapidly again.
"Use Vine Whip to hold yourself in place!" Livvi yelled to Barru as the wind picked up.
Barru nodded. He extended his vines and slammed them into the ground. The gust of wind raged around him, but he was able to hold his position and avoid being blown back.
"Now use Razor Leaf again!" Livvi shouted as the wind died down.
Barru nodded and fired a cloud of leaves towards Pie again. Like the last attack, it didn't do much damage.
"Now use Leech Seed!" Livvi shouted.
Barru fired a cluster of seeds towards Pie, who was still occupied with the remnants of the Razor Leaf attack. The seeds hit and immediately sprouted.
"Quick, use Psybeam!" Tessa ordered.
Pie nodded and fired another Psybeam towards Barru.
"Dodge it!" Livvi called to Barru.
Barru made an attempt to dodge the attack, but simply didn't have the energy to move quickly enough. He cried in pain as the attack hit and slumped to the ground.
"Barru is unable to battle!" Richard called. "The winner is Pie!"
"You tried your best, Barru, thanks," Livvi smiled as she recalled him. She pulled out her next poké ball.
"Go, Cylune!"
Cylune cried out as he burst out of the ball. Like Pie, he also floated above the battlefield.
"Use Gust!" Tessa shouted to Pie.
Pie started flapping her wings rapidly.
"Counter with Silver Wind!" Livvi called to Cylune.
Cylune started flapping his wings too. The two blasts of wind hit each other and cancelled each other out.
"Use Safeguard!" Tessa called as the wind subsided.
A silvery aura appeared around Pie.
"Now use Silver Wind!" Tessa yelled.
Pie flapped her wings again and sent a gust of wind full of scales towards Cylune. The attack hit him and blew him slightly back, but otherwise did little damage.
"Use Psychic!" Livvi shouted.
Cylune's eyes glowed blue. Suddenly, Pie was surrounded by a blue aura and thrown to the ground with a crash.
"Are you alright, Pie!" Tessa called in alarm.
Pie took off again and nodded. She was getting weaker though – Leech Seed was still sapping her energy.
"Alright, we need to finish this up quickly!" Tessa called to Pie. "Use Gust!"
Pie quickly flapped her wings and summoned up a gust of wind.
"Use Silver Wind!" Livvi shouted to Cylune.
Cylune started flapping his wings as well, but it was too late. The gust hit him and sent him flying back and toppling to the ground.
"Now use Psybeam!" Tessa shouted as Cylune tried to pull himself up.
Pie fired a beam of psychic energy towards Cylune. He cried in pain as he was hit.
"Are you alright, Cylune?" Livvi called anxiously. She'd thought that Cylune could easily defeat the already weakened Pie, but not it looked like Tessa had the advantage.
Cylune took off again and gave Livvi a reassuring nod.
"Alright, we need to reduce their speed!" Livvi called. "Use Stun Spore!"
Cylune flapped his wings, shaking of a large cloud of Stun Spores and blowing them towards Pie. However, as the spores passed over Pie, the silvery aura from Safeguard lit up.
"Argh! I'd completely forgotten about Safeguard!" Livvi cried in frustration.
"Use Gust!" Tessa shouted.
Pie flapped her wings and sent a Gust of wind back towards Cylune, this time carrying back the Stun Spores intended for Pie.
Cylune cried out as he was engulfed by the spore cloud and dropped to the ground.
"Use Psychic!" Livvi shouted.
Cylune's eyes glowed blue. Pie cried out in alarm as she was grabbed from the air and brought crashing to the ground.
"Use Psybeam!" Tessa shouted.
Still on the ground, exhausted, but with a little bit of energy left, Pie fired another Psybeam at Cylune. He cried out as the attack hit him and fell back.
Pie also toppled forwards, unable to survive the loss of energy from Leech Seed.
"Both Cylune and Pie are unable to battle!" Richard called. "As Tessa still has one pokémon left and Livvi has none, she is the winner!"
"Phew!" Tessa let out a sigh. "Great work, Pie!" She recalled the butterfree to her poké ball.
"Thanks, Cylune, you did a really good job." Livvi smiled sadly as she recalled him.
"That was an excellent battle, both of you!" Holly called. "Now I want both of you to shake hands!"
"Yes, Mum!" Livvi sighed. She walked over to Tessa and offered her hand.
"Thanks for the battle," Tessa said as she shook her hand.
"I'll win next time," Livvi said quietly.
"I guess I can expect another battle soon then?" Tessa sighed.
"Yeah." Livvi nodded.
"Well for now, let's focus on helping James get ready for the Viridian gym battle," said Tessa.
"Sounds like a plan to me!" James grinned, standing up.
"Alright." Livvi nodded. She let out a sigh. "Let's get to work!"
Hopefully the rival battle livened up the chapter a bit, since not a lot happened otherwise. We'll have the Viridian gym battle next week.
Until next time! :)
James' Team:
Active:
Charka (Charmeleon): male, naïve, often scatters things, likes sweet food, fire type, Blaze ability, known moves are Fire Spin, Smokescreen, Flamethrower and Metal Claw.
Kacha (Pikachu): male, modest, sturdy body, likes dry food, electric type, Static ability, known moves are Thunderbolt, Agility, Slam and Thunder Wave.
Raenok (Mankey): male, impish, loves to eat, likes sour food, fighting type, Anger Point ability, known moves are Rock Slide, Screech, Cross Chop and Brick Break.
Ayra (Paras): male, lax, loves to relax, likes sour food, bug-grass type, Dry Skin ability, known moves are Aerial Ace, Leech Life, Bullet Seed and Spore.
Leytor (Seel): male, careful, good perseverance, likes bitter food, water type, Thick Fat ability, known moves are Water Pulse, Take Down, Safeguard and Ice Beam.
Saeloc (Persian): female, rash, likes to thrash about, likes dry food, normal type, Technician ability, known moves are Slash, Screech, Bite and Icy Wind.
In Pallet Town:
Cuba (Cubone): male, serious, quick to flee, eats anything, ground type, Rock Head ability, known moves are Bone Club, Double-Edge, Bonemerang and Bone Rush.
Livvi's Team:
Active:
Barru (Bulbasaur): male, timid, highly persistent, likes sweet food, grass-poison type, Overgrow ability, known moves are Tackle, Razor Leaf, Vine Whip and Leech Seed.
Dorru (Nidoran): female, quiet, mischievous, likes dry food, poison type, Rivalry ability, known moves are Fury Swipes, Double Kick, Poison Sting and Bite.
Cylune (Venomoth): male, modest, proud of its power, likes dry food, poison-bug type, Shield Dust ability, known moves are Stun Spore, Psychic, Poison Powder and Silver Wind.
Evoro (Eevee): male, jolly, alert to sounds, likes sweet food, normal type, Adaptability ability, known moves are Bite, Double Team, Take Down and Quick Attack.
Salea (Chansey): female, gentle, somewhat vain, likes bitter food, normal type, Natural Cure ability, known moves are Softboiled, Refresh, Double Slap and Egg Bomb.
Richard's Team:
Active:
Naro (Nidoking): male, mild, sturdy body, likes dry food, poison-ground type, Poison Point ability, known moves are Horn Attack, Megahorn, Poison Sting and Double Kick.
Sting (Beedrill): male, hardy, often dozes off, eats anything, bug-poison type, Swarm ability, known moves are Focus Energy, Poison Sting, Twineedle and String Shot.
Spear (Spearow): male, mild, likes to thrash about, likes dry food, normal-flying type, Keen Eye ability, known moves are Peck, Double Team, Aerial Ace and Agility.
Helix (Omanyte): male, naïve, somewhat stubborn, likes sweet food, rock-water type, Shell Armour ability, known moves are Protect, Water Gun, Mud Shot and Leer.
