The sound of rushing water roused Wysteria from her slumber. She slowly sat up, eyes still closed, and let out a yawn.
She raised her arms, preparing to rub the sleep out of her eyes when she noticed something. Were my arms always this... stubby?
She opened her eyes, taking in the scene around her. I don't remember falling asleep in a forest, let alone next to a river. She looked down at her hands. What the-? My fingers are gone! And... my arms are purple?
She stood up, making her way to the river's edge. She knelt down next to the water, intending to splash some on her face and rid herself of this obvious hallucination when she noticed her reflection.
She screamed, stumbling backwards and falling on her behind. That... that can't be me! I'm a human... not an Aipom!
That's when it hit her. I remember... I got that game from that shady-looking guy, and when I played it I saw that face.
Wysteria got back up, shakily leaning forward and catching her reflection again. I guess it was my face.
She began to pace, her new stubby arms now feeling over her new large ears. How did this happen? I don't remember anything except for that night. Come on, think! What was the name of that game?
She paused in her pacing, her panic slowly ebbing away to reveal a widening smile. "It was Pokemon Mystery Dungeon! And I've turned into a Pokemon! This is awesome!"
She started to pace faster, barely able to contain her excitement. "That's right! When I played the game, it sucked me into the screen, so it must have taken me here! That means-" She paused, panic flashing on her face once more. "That means I'm here for a reason."
Sitting back down, Wysteria tried to keep her composure. I'm no hero! How can I possibly save this world? I've never been the one to take that kind of responsibility! She took deep breaths, trying and somewhat succeeding to calm herself down. I'm probably just getting ahead of myself. What if I've just been sent here to live out a cool, interesting life as a Pokemon?
She sighed. It can't be that simple.
Pushing herself up, her hands brushed up against an appendage she didn't remember having. Oh, right. I forgot Aipom have tails. With some effort, she tested it out, eventually able to move it feely. She brought the tail around to the front of her head, examining the hand that sat on its tip. If I remember, correctly, I'm supposed to be able to grab things with this. She targeted a stick on the ground, moving her tail to pick it up and grabbing it after a few tries.
She brought the hand back in front of her, still holding the stick, when she noticed something. Is that... a crack? She reached out and touched her tail-hand with her actual hands, feeling over the mark she'd seen on it. Not a crack, just a mark of some sort that looks like one.
She swung her tail back behind her, deciding to start walking. I can't decide what to do if I'm just standing around, she reasoned with herself. Maybe I'll run into someone who can help me figure things out.
As if on cue, two Pokemon tumbled out of a bush right next to her, knocking her over and pinning her to the ground. She struggled, barely able to move as the Pokemon on top of her attempted to get off.
Once they did, she popped back to her feet, ready to give them a piece of her mind, when she realized which Pokemon were now standing before her. She saw a Riolu and an Eevee, both looking very apologetic.
The Eevee started to apologize, but it went completely over her head as her mind was focused on something else entirely. They're so cute! I never thought I'd get to see Pokemon like these in real life, but here they are!
Clearly, her excitement did not go unnoticed, as the Eevee trailed off midsentence, looking uncomfortable. The Riolu noticed too and waved a paw in front of her face. "A- Are you okay?"
Wysteria flinched, realizing she'd been staring at the two with a very wide grin. "Oh! Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry I was staring at you. I tend to... zone out."
The Eevee let out a sigh of relief. "That's good. I was worried we'd broken something in your face. Anyways, I'm Eeva."
"I'm Wysteria," she replied, smiling in what was hopefully a normal way. "Pleased to meet you." She turned to the Riolu. "So who's your friend, Eeva?"
The Riolu smiled back. "Hi," he said. "I'm Trace."
Wysteria nodded, placing her hands on her hips. "So, if you don't mind me asking, what were you two doing in that bush?"
Eeva turned to Trace and fixed him with a foreboding stare. While Trace looked away and pretended not to notice, she said, "Me and this idiot have been hiding in that bush since this morning. He thinks he can catch who's been stealing supplies from our guild."
"Your guild? Is that close by?"
Trace nodded, reaching into the bush and pulling out a sack. Digging around in it for a while, he eventually found what he was looking for and produced a badge from it. "Yup! Me and Eeva here are a rescue team at the Accelgor Guild!"
Wysteria examined the badge, noticing that, indeed, it had a design mostly dominated by an Accelgor.
Trace put the badge back into the sack and, after more searching, pulled out two bandanas, one black and tattered, the other hot pink and almost brand new. He tied the tattered bandana around Eeva's neck before donning the hot pink one himself. He then slung the sack over his shoulder, bouncing it a few times to test its weight.
He turned to Eeva. "Well, I suppose if my idea is destined to fail, we can just head back."
Eeva nodded. "We can try and think of something else when we're there. Hopefully something... less stupid."
She turned to Wysteria. "Well, it was nice meeting you, but as you can see, me and Doofus here have business to attend to."
Wysteria watched as the two Pokemon started to walk away. Then a thought struck her. What are you doing?! Are you just going to let potential help walk away from you?
"Hey, wait up a second!" she exclaimed. They stopped and turned to face her. "Um, I actually need some help. You see, I kind of just... woke up in this forest and I don't know the way out. Would you two mind helping me?"
Eeva looked exasperated. "What do you mean, you 'kind of just woke up' here? Didn't you fall asleep here too?"
Wysteria scratched the back of her head with her tail, slightly embarrassed. "Well, no. I, in fact, did not fall asleep here. I actually don't recognize this area, like, at all." She raised her arms, attempting to emphasize her point. "Hence why I need help."
Trace nodded. "I get that. I wake up in weird places all the time! Why don't you come back to the guild with us? I'm sure we can find someone who can get you back to wherever you live."
Wysteria smiled. "That'd be great. Thanks, Trace."
Eeva took a moment to glare at Wysteria before turning around and walking once more with Trace, this time with Wysteria following behind.
"Hope you're ready for a long walk!" Trace called back to Wysteria.
I guess I am.
Wait.
How am I supposed to tell them I'm a human!?