Uploaded December 16th, 2012

Well, here you are, my people! The next one!

I walked into the waiting room, supporting Hitmonlee who once again refused to rest in the pokeball, and was greeted by a hearty scream from Bane. "That was so dang awesome!" he told me, giving me a high-five. "I mean, the way Hitmonlee fell and caught himself, and then when Luxray fainted on the other side. People couldn't write stuff like that!"

We simultaneously shot a glance at the author, who was scribbling something about the next Gym Leader. No breaking the fourth wall! he shouted. You're practically cracking the fifth, already.

"…Moving on!" Bane declared, bringing you back to the plotline. "Hitmonlee needs to get to the center." I agreed and we ran to the Pasturida Pokemon Center.

Alysson ran to meet us as we approached the desk. "Great match, Storm!" she congratulated.

I thanked her and the nurse came to the desk. "Hello, how may I help you?" She saw Hitmonlee and gasped. "Oh, you poor thing," she said sympathetically. She turned to me and glared (as much as a Nurse Joy can). "How could you let it get to this shape? And then make it walk here!"

"Hey, it's not his fault!" Bane defended. "Hitmonlee doesn't stay in its pokeball. I mean, look at it!" We turned to Hitmonlee, but he was gone. We looked and found him sitting on the nearby couch, trying, with difficulty, to meditate.

"Hitmonlee," I groaned. "You know that won't help those kinds of injuries, right?"

Hitmonlee remained silent as Bane sat nearby. "Come on, you're a pokemon, right?" he asked. I tried to stop the next part, but couldn't make it in time. "You're a pokemon, he's your trainer, therefore, you gotta do what he say-" Hitmonlee gave him a swift kick to the gut. "…Never mind," he said, in a very high-pitch, for some reason.

I sighed and sat across from Hitmonlee. "How long will it take you to heal this way?" I asked, going along for the moment. Hitmonlee held up three fingers, his eyes closed. "Three days?" Hitmonlee confirmed this with a nod and pained twitch. "Okay, prideful, stubborn, whatever you are, you've gotta admit you're in pain." He stayed silent, so I went on. "And you need help."

Hitmonlee snapped his head at me. "Hit-lee, MON!" he argued.

I glared at the stubborn fighting-type. "I don't care if you think it's a better method, it's not," I argued back. "Nurse Joy is a highly trained and licensed – oh wait, you don't really care about licenses, do you?" Hitmonlee shook his head. "Whatever, she's well trained and experienced. You need to put aside your anger against humans for a minute." He seemed surprised at that comment. I guess he didn't know I'd figured that out a while back. "You need help and, right now, a human is the most qualified one for the job. So, stop pouting and just take a helping hand, already!"

Hitmonlee recoiled slightly from my outburst, then thought over my words. It seemed like it was going to take some time, so Bane and I walked off to let him think. He stopped us part-way to the front desk and sighed, reluctantly joining us before the nurse. "Mooooooone," he conceded, sitting on the desk.

"Do you have any berries?" I asked the nurse. She nodded, typing Hitmonlee's info on the computer. "An Oran berry then, for my friend." Now this really surprised Hitmonlee. Seriously, I thought he was going to instantaneously grow a mouth, just so it could hit the floor.

Nurse Joy finished up and nodded. "No problem," she replied, taking Hitmonlee back to the care center. I heard her say, 'this way, sir,' as the automatic doors shut behind her.

I had already given my other pokemon to the nurse to take care of, and Bane an Alysson did the same, if only for a check-up. So, we went over to the TV and sat and watched it… Though that was really boring, so let's watch something else, kay?

Moving into the care center, a few minutes later…

Hitmonlee lay on a hospital table with bandages on his left leg and head; apparently the shock had done some bad damage since he was in close-range to Luxray's mane. On a nearby table were Furyash, who was sleeping, and Shellder, who was complaining about his bed.

"This thing is too high up!" he shouted. "I don't like heights! Someone lift me down! …Wait, who has arms?"

"I DOOO!" Anorith shouted from the nearby pool. It was an in-ground pool for water-types, but Shellder had glue healing a crack in his shell, so he wasn't allowed in for another half-hour.

"…Anypoke else?" Shellder asked, looking around.

Porygon turned to stare at Shellder from a nearby countertop. "The only pokemon in the room that could assist you are Furyash, Shiekire and Woobat, Hitmonlee, myself, and Bane Junior."

"…Well?" Shellder asked. "Help me!"

"No one is able to, at the moment," Porygon said. Shellder was about to yell some more, but Porygon interceded. "And, for the sake of the residents of the center, I will explain why. Furyash is asleep, and sustained injuries in his match; he needs his rest. Shiekire and Woobat would have to work together to lift you, and then there's still the risk of them dropping you and your sustaining further injuries to your crack."

Shellder looked at the crack in the front of its top shell and shook itself. "Nah, they won't be able to. I'm all muscle."

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Anorith burst out, waking the sleeping pokemon. "All MUSCLE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! He's a shellfish! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Water-types! AHAHAHA-" And Anorith promptly fell asleep.

"…You were saying?" Furyash said to Porygon.

"Ah, yes." Porygon nodded. "Bane Jun-… Wait, you were awake this whole time?" Porygon asked the crimson firebird.

"Yes," Furyash replied. "But you were right; that match took a lot out of me." Furyash gave a screeching yawn. "Please continue."

"…I can tell that you've matured quite a lot, Furyash," he told him.

"Hey!" Shellder reminded him. "On top of a wheelie cart, here!" The table Shellder was on had started moving. Granted, it was going slower than a lazy Slugma, but it was moving. "Help me!" Porygon thought for a moment. "Help me NOW! Now, I command!"

Porygon sighed and poked Bane Junior. The Electabuzz gave a stretch and scratched his back. "Yeah, Pory?" he asked, still child-like at heart.

"Pick up Shellder, please," Porygon directed, pointing to the complaining shellfish.

"Okey-dokey-doo!" Bane Junior replied, getting up and picking up Shellder. "Done!"

Porygon nodded as Shellder began relaxing. "Good. Now, please stop the table from rolling."

"Okay!" Bane Junior pushed the bed-table up against a wall, halting its momentum. "Done, 2!" he exclaimed. "Now what?"

"Now we put Shellder on the floor, gently," Porygon added on memory to the last time Bane Junior had been holding Shellder, back when he was an Elekid. Bane Junior gently lowered Shellder near to the floor, then dropped him not-so-gently.

"Hey, be careful!" Shellder said to the big child pokemon. "I'm not a Clamperl, or something with a hard shell. I'm a soft shell."

The other pokemon all laughed at this, making Shellder go on a tantrum again. Hitmonlee, however, did not laugh; he lay on his bed, looking at his Oran berry. "Lee?" Furyash asked, bringing the fighting-type's attention to him. "You okay?"

All of the other pokemon were staring at Hitmonlee, so he took a bite of his berry and shut his eyes. "What's wrong?" Bane Junior asked him. "Berry bad?"

Hitmonlee sighed and leaned up. "No, the berry's fine," he replied.

"Then what's wrong?" Anorith asked from the ceiling fan… which was turned on. "WHEEEEEEEEEE!"

"…I thought you fell asleep," Shellder said from near the pool.

Porygon floated into Shellder's path. "You are not allowed into the pool until twenty-four more minutes have passed," he told Shellder. "Please back away."

"But I need water!" Shellder said. "I'm a water-type! We need water! Don't you have a brain in that big, weird-shaped head?"

Porygon turned to Anorith. "Anorith, could you please give Shellder some water?" he asked. Shellder tried to protest, but was immediately silenced by a water gun that avoided the glue-filled crack. "Is that better?" Porygon asked Shellder, who replied with a stone-cold glare. "Thank you, Anorith."

"Yippidy-dippers!" Anorith replied, still spinning. "I see shiny lights! And legendary pokemon! OOH, I SEE ELVIS! HI ELVY! How's bubbles?"

"…Anorith, you knew Elvis Presley's pet Mankey?" Shellder asked the prehistoric shrimp-pokemon-thing.

"Yep!" Anorith replied, spinning faster. "And my name is not Anorith, it is King Pompadour, the forty-fourthetheth!" Porygon turned the fan off and Anorith fell onto the floor. "WHEEEEEEEeeeeee…" Anorith passed out.

"…Good grief, what the Bouffalant was that about?" Shiekire asked the other pokemon.

"…You actually talked," Shellder stated.

"That's the first thing you've ever said to us," Bane Junior added happily. "Yay! He learned talk! …But what move did you choose to forget?"

"…Ignoring the reference," Shiekire said. "I've always been able to talk, but there was never a need before-…"

"Before what?" Furyash asked him. Shiekire shot a nervous glance toward Woobat, who was talking to Alysson's other pokemon.

"Ahh," Shellder said in understanding. "Shieky and Wooby, hangin' from a tree, K-I-"

Shiekire hissed and smacked Shellder, shutting him up, thought mostly because Shellder's shell had involuntary shut, snapping his tongue. "OW!" Shellder yelled. "You bade be bite by tongue!" Shellder said in swollen toungue language. "I'b gonna get you!"

At that moment, the nurse walked in, prompting everyone to fake sleep. "Aw, they're so quiet," the nurse whispered. "I'll let them rest a bit longer." She quietly closed the door back.

As soon as her footsteps echoed away, the group of pokemon went back to whatever they were doing before. As the scene exits, Hitmonlee thinks and eats his berry. …He called me his friend.

No, it isn't the longest chapter, but I had fun with it.

Bane: My story has another chapter!

Yes, people liked it, so I'm allowing more to be written. By the way, have you people noticed that I've been in a slightly insane frame of mind, lately?

Bane: Always, buddy.

Well, the BAFW story is my outlet. *smirks viciously* Enjoy… Oh yeah, in this story's news, I'm considering making a pole.

Bane: OOH! What about?

About which pokemon of our heroes' is people's favorite. More for curiosity's sake than anything else. But first I have to find out how to make a pole.

Bane: Are you spelling that right? I think you mean poll.

No, I mean… Shut it like a Trapinch!

Bane: …Meh. Make Anorith more prominent!

No. He's nuts… Although…