The Southern Cerulean woods were a dark maze of tightly packed trees and intertwined branches. They grew low and stretched out wide, fighting each other for the scraps of sunlight peering down through the canopies above. Their leaves lay flat, pointing up at the dots of light. This however had the unfortunate side effect of making them small little blades, cutting and slicing at anything that tried to push through them. Although they couldn't break the skin, they gave it their best try, leaving grazes and red marks behind. Green struggled through the walls of sharp leaves, aided by Machoke who snapped the branches like they were mere twigs. Still, there were too many to break them all. Not if they wanted to keep pace with Abby who seemed to wriggle through the mass of leaves and branches effortlessly. Her eyes were not even so much as glancing at the obstacles. Instead, they remained fixated on the canopy above, following some kind of trail that Green couldn't see for the life of her. Dratini sat comfortably around her shoulders, his scales protecting him from the edges of the leaves. He smirked and snickered impishly as Green swatted at the leaves and tripped on the minefield of roots underfoot. Dead, rotting leaves created a dark brown blanket on the forest floor. At first, Green thought it was nice, like walking on a cloud but quickly she grew to hate it. All it served to do was cover the many looped and twisted roots from her. Every couple steps she found herself snagging one and staggering forward. Often right into a wall of branches. Again Machoke helped a bit, his huge weight snapping any roots he stepped on but there were too many for him to break them all. The roots didn't bother Abby either, hopping and skipping over the unseen roots. The ease in which she moved only grating Green more each time she tripped.
"Almost there," Abby said, looking back at her with a pitiful look.
That gave Green some relief but swiftly a root caught her foot to take it away. She cursed and kicked at it, the cracking sound making her grin. As much as the forest pained her, Green knew she could not argue against taking it. To her right, the forest was separated from Route 5 by a wall of trees and hedgerows. Although you'd be forgiven for not knowing. The trees shielded any sight or sound from escaping or entering. The wall of trunks impenetrable, bar a few small cracks that you could find if you knew where to look. Thankfully, Abby had known or they'd been caught immediately. That, Green was certain of. Rangers would undoubtedly be guarding the routes out of Cerulean by now and even if they weren't it's best they not be seen leaving. A 6-foot Machoke and purple dragon aren't exactly hard to miss.
"This secret base of yours, what is it exactly?" Green asked as she ducked through a gap in the branches made by Machoke.
Abby hopped over an unseen root and turned around, walking backwards.
"A tree-house! I made it when I was a kid." She explained proudly before spinning back around and slipping through a wall of branches.
Green gave a pained look at the branches and shot Machoke a pleading look. He chuckled and snapped them away, pushing through them like opening a door. Green hurried through before they whipped back into place, she had learned the hard way to be quick when he did that. When she saw Abby again, she was pointing up at the canopy and grinning back at her.
"The leaves up there, they're like stars during the night. You can follow them if you know the pattern well. You see?" Abby asked, gesturing to the big flat leaves that spread out like giant fans, intertwining to create a roof.
Dratini followed her finger and scanned the patterns of the leaves. His eyes squinted and his brow furrowed before recognition sparked in his eyes. He grinned and began to follow the leaves with his eyes. Machoke watched too but his face remained dull and puzzled. Green gave a quick glance up before returning her attention to the ground below. She hopped over an unseen root and smirked smugly at the ground before tripping over the next one. This time she stumbled into a proper fall and she slammed into Machoke's back. The impact did little more to Machoke than to distract him from the leaves. Green gasped with fright and clung to him, her arms wrapping around his waist. Her shock subsided and Green's face flushed as she found herself with her cheek pressed against Machoke's bareback. Machoke was looking back at her under a raised arm with an amused smile. He took a step to the side and with a smooth movement of his arm, hugged Green to his side.
"Ma..." He sighed with a laugh and escorted Green through the next wall of branches, shielding her from their twiddly poking arms.
Green happily accepted the help and clung to Machoke tightly, laying her head against the side of his chest. His great arm wrapped around her securely. With Machoke taking care of the branches Green was free to focus solely on the ground. She began hopping over the unseen roots, watching for where they bulged the leaves rather than for their wood. No sooner had she begun to feel proud of herself did the woods open up to a small, tight clearing around the base of an especially thick tree. The canopy is provided stood taller and stretched wider than any of the other trees. Its roots created long, winding bulges along with the now bare dirt of the clearing. Thick enough themselves that if leaves had been covering them you might have mistaken them for small toppled trees. No branches grew out a face level, they grew high above them at the very lowest. At their highest, they looked like no more than tiny twigs. Up the tall, thick trunk was a crude ladder. No more than rectangles of wood nailed in place. It leads to a thick, long-reaching branch where a wooden cube with windows and a small precarious balcony.
"Piiiiiii! Piiiiii!" The cries suddenly thundered down at them and they spied a huge Pidgeot perched on the end of the branch.
Its large, piercing eyes surrounded by a mass of black plumage glared down at them. Its huge wings opened, making a canopy of their own. They fluttered, the force of which made the small tree house creak and groan. The branch bounced as the huge weight of the pokémon was lifted. To Green's terror the Pidgeot dived down at them, talons bared and wings wide. Its eyes locked onto them intensely. Green turned into Machoke, clutching him tightly and shutting her eyes. He spun around, shielding her with his back. Only, instead of being attacked a huge gust of wind blew by them followed by Abby shrieking. Green sprung her head up and flew from Machoke to help her friend but stopped with an astounding look.
"Okay! Okay! Hello to you too!" Abby shrieked with delight.
The Pidgeot was on top of her, his huge talons on either side of her body. He nuzzled her with his huge head, gliding his long smooth feathers across her face. His once fierce eyes were droopy with joy and the closest thing to a grin a beak could make was shining bright. Abby laughed and ran her hands through his feathers, clawing her fingers to scratch him playfully. Pidgeot cooed long deep coos.
"What have you been doing?" A frantic voice barked from up the tree.
Green whipped her head, jumping with fright, still tense with confusion and fear. She saw a tall man with long auburn hair, wearing a faded brown jacket and old torn jeans scurrying down the ladder. He hopped from the 8th step and landed on the ground with a thud. His hands flew to his large, wide-brimmed hat and straightened it as he barrelled towards Abby. His face was swollen, black and blue with bruises. The left eye was swollen shut, twice its size and black completely. Dried blood was caked lightly around where the swollen eyelids were clamped shut. His good eye, large and a deep brown didn't so much as glance at Green as he passed by. He grabbed Pidgeot by the scruff of his enormous neck and with both hands wrenched him from Abby. Abby's face dropped when she saw him.
"Pete? Oh my god, what happened to you?" She cried out, now just as frantic as him.
She jumped to her feet and fussed over him, caressing his face with a horrified look. Pete's frantic anger weakened seeing his sister so worried and he looked away shamefully.
"It's nothing, stop." He grumbled, swatting her hands away.
Abby didn't relent and she grabbed his cheek firmly, twisting his face back to hers. She scowled, her hand slowly releasing from his face and clenching into a fist.
"It was Dad, wasn't it? Fucking bastard." She seethed.
Shame set in more for Pete and he shuffled his feet.
"I guess I did deserve it, John… he's-" Pete stopped, his shameful sideways glance catching Green's confused stare.
He whipped back to Abby with a confused and horrified look.
"Who is this Abby? Surely you're not travelling together? What do you think will happen to her when they figure out she's helping you? It's not right." He hissed, glancing at Green.
Green found her voice and stood forward, not as boldly as she would have liked.
"It was my idea, I knew the risks." She lied.
Truthfully, she hadn't considered that until now. Taking part in the gym challenge made her a public figure. She'd be on TV and the internet each time she challenged a gym. If she was discovered to be helping Abby, doing the challenge would be impossible. Pete gave her a sceptical look but Abby backed her up.
"This is Green, she's that kid champion's little sister. She'll be a strong trainer for sure. If anything she'll keep me safer by travelling with me." Abby protested, stepping in between Green and Pete, "and she's my friend!" She added.
Pete sighed with a defeated look.
"Okay okay. I see you've made up your mind there's no point." He relented and turned from them.
"Come on them you two, we can plan our next move up here," Pete said grimly as he clutched the ladder.
Abby rushed after him, still fuming with residual grit. After an awkward glance at each other, Machoke and Green followed. Before Green mounted the ladder she considered it then looked back at Machoke.
"Sorry buddy, you're too heavy I reckon. Get some rest okay?" She said apologetically, grasping for Machoke's ball.
Machoke looked at the ladder and had no choice but to nod with agreement. Before Green could return him he stepped forward and clasped her face. He pulled her close to him and kissed her deeply. Green giggled against him and returned the embrace, leaning into his kiss. After a few glances of their tongues they broke off and Green returned Machoke to his ball. With a giddy smile, she began climbing the ladder after Abby. It didn't occur to Green right away but after a couple minutes of climbing her eyes glanced down. What had originally seemed like impossibly tall trees could now be seen in their entirety. Large mighty trunks reached up around her like pillars of wood. Their branches were no longer tightly packed. Instead, they reached out with long, sturdy limbs that weaved between the other trunks. All around her pokémon played amongst them, running, flying and jumping along the branches. While she felt like a tiny insect clinging to the back of an ancient giant. Above her, Pete and Abby disappeared into a small, square opening in the bottom of the treehouse. Quickly Green followed, not able to take her eyes off the beautiful scenery around her. When she poked her head up through the opening Green was met with Abby's outstretched hand.
"Cool isn't it?" She asked beaming passionately.
Green took her hand, although Abby's skinny arms did nothing to really help her. Still, she returned the smile as she stepped up into the treehouse. Her head hit the ceiling as she tried to stand up straight making her gasp. The single room of the treehouse was tiny, like a shrunken version of a normal-sized room. In the corner was a tiny, crude wooden table with two equally tiny and crude stools. Bent nails jutted out awkwardly at all angles and the legs of the table were of odd size making it lean sightly. In fact, the whole treehouse was like that and suddenly Green didn't feel very trusting that it wouldn't just give out beneath her feet. Abby and Pete seemed comfortable enough however so she brushed off the mistrust. Pete lowered himself down onto a stool, his arms trembling as they braced against the table. He grunted as his ass hit the stool, wincing. The damage to his face was far worse than Green had originally thought. Now she saw the cut beneath his swollen eye, crusted with dry blood. The bruise along the left side of his face and a bloody scuff in the middle of it on his temple. His lip was swollen and split, his nose crooked. The right side of his face seemed unharmed but it was smudged with the brown of dirt and the green of grass stains. His clothes were dirtied too, his red jacket caked in dried mud along with every other piece of clothing he had. Even his hat was stained. Pete seemed to notice her look of pity and turned from her.
"What were you going to say about John?" Abby asked, her face now stern and hard.
She sat down across him from on the other stool. Even her short legs bending so her knees came to her chest. The question brought a shameful, pained look onto Pete's face. He stared down at the table and clutched his side, caressing his ribs through his shirt. Awkwardly, Green joined them and sat on the floor.
"He's… hurt, hurt really bad," Pete admitted.
"It's my fault I should have been watching Pidgeot I should have-" Pete stopped and winced, a pained whimper interrupting his rambling.
Abby seemed more surprised than shocked, not a hint of distress on her face. She leaned forward and held her brother's free hand.
"Geez he really hurt you this time," Abby muttered to herself.
"Who's John?" Green asked gingerly, glancing awkwardly at Pete and meeting a sceptical look.
Pete unsteadily sat up straight and faced her. She wasn't sure if he was glaring at her or if the pain was making his eyes look as wild as they were.
"Who are you?" He asked back starkly, "and are you stupid or just ignorant of what you've gotten yourself involved with?"
Abby scowled at him and prodded his chest, making him recoil away from Green.
"I told you who she is, she's my friend and she's brave, not stupid!" Abby yelled.
Dratini, who had been calmly and silently watching everything till now slid down her outstretched arm. He gazed at a pained Pete with his knowing eyes and zapped him with a tiny yellow bolt. Pete jumped and brought his hand to his head but didn't cry out. The shock seemed to focus him and he calmed, his face softening slightly. He sighed and turned from Dratini back to Green.
"Alright, sorry I'm just…" He paused, "stressed." Was the word he finally settled on.
Dratini smiled and happily slithered off Abby's hand, slinking around Pete's shoulders.
"It's okay," Green responded awkwardly, shuffling her feet. "My name is Green."
That brought a smile onto Pete's face and he laughed gently.
"Your parents called you and your brother Red and Green?" He asked with an amused grin.
Green blushed but couldn't stop herself from giggling.
"Yeah, and the kid next door was called Blue." She added timidly.
Pete rested his forehead against his hand, his elbow on the table. He chuckled softly as he tried to avoid hurting his tender sides. Abby didn't join their laughter, however. She pulled back from Pete and crossed her arms.
"Green's a strong trainer, when rangers come for us she can keep me safe," Abby said stiffly with a growl, staring daggers at her brother.
Pete's eyes quickly fell to Green's pokéball belt and to her badges. He sighed.
"Beating Misty is impressive but it doesn't make her strong. Anyways it's not important, fighting rangers is the last thing any of us want to be doing, especially you two." Pete remarked bluntly.
"My plan is to head north and get to Hoenn through the mountains. You two on the other hand need to stay here if you're going to be a Dragon Tamer." He pointed to Abby, "and if you're going to do the gym challenge."
He swung his finger over to Green.
"If they find out you're travelling with my sister they'll hunt you too. Those gym challenges are broadcast all over Kanto and Johto. Most likely they'd be outside the doors by the time you finish with a gym leader and I honestly don't put it past them to just barge in during the match. Staying hidden and undetected is your most important priority."
Green hadn't considered that until now. It was true though, nearly every gym was in the middle of some major city that would be crawling with rangers. If they knew she was helping Abby she'd be arrested immediately.
"What'll happen if they catch us?" Green asked, not sure if she really wanted to know.
Pete sighed and Abby looked away uncomfortably.
"If it were anyone else you'd probably just go to jail but you're not with just anyone, you're with Abby. If they catch you they'll not only take your pokémon, they'll hurt you in ways you can't even imagine. Our father isn't exactly known for his empathy or for his mercy." Pete explained grimly.
Green looked at Abby bewildered.
"Who the hell is your father?" She asked shocked.
Pete groaned.
"You didn't tell her?" He asked with a strained, tried voice before burying his face into his hands.
Abby's face flushed sheepishly and slowly turned to face Green.
"My dad is Kanto and Johto's head ranger…" She admitted, shifting her eyes away awkwardly.
For a moment all Green could say was.
"Oh." The three of them sat in silence for a moment.
Pidgeot landed back on the branch outside, shaking the treehouse but no one reacted in their awkward silence.
"Okay." Green said determined and sat forward, "It doesn't change anything, I'm still going to travel with you." Abby grinned happily hearing that.
Pete didn't smile but he at least lifted his head from his hands.
"You two should get along great then." He huffed, "Which gym are you going to next then? You'll need to plan a spot to rest near the city. You can't go resting in Pokémon Centre's anymore."
Green didn't hesitate with her response.
"Saffron it's-"
"No." Pete cut her off before pulling a small device from his hip.
He placed it on the table and faced the screen up. He pressed a button, tapped the screen and a holographic map popped up.
"First of all Saffron is where headquarters is located. Going anywhere near it is too risky for now. Second, Sabrina is not a gym leader you challenge with only two badges and." He glanced down at Green's belt.
"Three pokémon." He added, almost sounding disgusted.
Green bit her lip and slunk back from her confident sitting position.
"When there?" She asked in a quiet voice.
Pete pointed at the map.
"Vermilion, there is a grove straight south from here a good distance from both Vermilion and Saffron. You can camp there." Pete instructed.
Abby's eyes flashed with recognition.
"You mean that meadow we visited as kids?" She asked and Pete nodded.
"Hardly anyone knows it exists, you should be safe to live there while you challenge Surge."
The plan made sense to Green and although her ego was still a little bruised after Pete reproach she nodded along with him in agreement. Abby pointed at the map now and traced a wide, curving line from Vermilion to Cerulean.
"We'll take a wide girth around Saffron, just in case." She grinned at Green.
"The forest gets less dense the further south we go, don't worry." She assured her cheerily.
Green feigned a smile and tilted her head.
"Thanks." She said through gritted teeth and Abby laughed.
Suddenly Pidgeot's huge head stuck through the window and gave Pete a beckoning look. Pete sighed and looked at Abby reluctantly.
"We need to head out soon, time is precious right now." His voice was pained, a different pain than from his face and ribs.
Abby frowned and leapt up from her tiny stool, she flung her arms around Pete and hugged him. Pete winced but still smiled, if only slightly. Abby pulled back and frantically slung the small bag she was wearing off from her shoulders. She unzipped it and pulled out a still unopened, slightly crushed purple box.
"Wait, you have to see how they look before you leave." She insisted, tearing the box open.
Green looked at the silver jewellery in amazement. Each one is decorated with intricately detailed dragons. Dratini looked at them excitedly, shooting from Pete's shoulder and onto Abby's arm. He gazed at them in wonder as Abby lifted each piece from the box and put them on. The Salamance rings she put on her middle and index finger. The Flygon bracelet she slipped onto the same wrist. Finally, she fastened the Haxorus claw necklace around her neck. Dratini couldn't drag his eyes away from the claw, flickering purple. Pete's smile widened into a warm, bright smile. He re-embraced her and pressed his forehead against the top of her head.
"You stay safe, work hard." What would have normally been a rough and course instruction came out as a wavering stammer?
Abby nodded and pressed her face against his chest. Green rose to her feet and waited by the ladder. After a moment, they pulled away. Pete's shirt now with a small wet spot where Abby's face has been. Abby wiped her eyes and together they turned from one another.
"Alright time to fly," Pete said to Pidgeot, leaping through the window and clambering onto Pidgeot's back.
Abby and Green both watched them soar up and break through the roof of the canopy, as they hurriedly climbed down the ladder. Once at the bottom Green swung her bag from her shoulders and retrieved the healing machine Misty had given her. She unclipped Mankey's and Graveler's balls, placing them inside the machine. It began to hum gently as golden light pulsed around the pokéballs.
"Okay, ready," Green said to Abby, releasing Machoke from his pokéball.
Abby nodded, her face stiffening.
"There's a river east of here, we'll follow that until we reach Route 8."
Green looked around unsure.
"Which way is east?" She asked, trying to judge where the sun is through the canopy.
Abby looked at the ladder on the tree before pointing confidentially past it.
"This way." She assured before running off in that direction.
Green followed with Machoke between them. Machoke ran in front of Abby and began clearing a path for the both of them this time through the mess of branches.
"I'm sorry about your brother," Green said timidly as they followed Machoke.
Abby shrugged.
"Why? I don't care he got hurt." She responded gruffly.
Dratini raised his head and gazed up at her with a judgemental stare. She scowled.
"I don't." She insisted, "Whatever happened to him he deserved."
"Oh, okay," Green responded awkwardly, averting her gaze.
Dratini continued to stare at Abby, moving his head to follow her gaze. A tense, awkward silence lingered over them.
"You're not worried about him?" Green prodded gingerly.
Abby sighed and shot her an annoyed look.
"Would you care if it was your brother?" Abby snapped.
Now Green was scowling.
"Of course I would. He's an idiot but he's still my brother!" Green snapped back.
Abby looked away quickly with a pained look. Dratini now turned his attention to Green with a curious look, tilting his head at her.
"He wouldn't care if I was hurt. Hell, he got hurt trying to hurt me!" Abby looked on the verge of tears.
She ran ahead, not giving Green a chance to respond. Green watched her duck under Machoke's arm and squeeze through the branches. Machoke looked back at Green with a puzzled look.
"I don't know..." Green muttered to him.
Wearily, Machoke resumed breaking through the branches. The two of them silently made their way through the forest, not catching so much as a glimpse of Abby or Dratini. Eventually, they came across the river. It was small and narrow, thin enough to step over easily. Skinny banks of gravel and silt lined the stream. The trees grew close but far enough away from the banks to allow them to follow the river unimpeded. Green didn't know the first thing about tracking but even she could see where Abby had been. Rocks had been kicked into the river, leaving behind small holes where they had once sat undisturbed. Small branches had been snapped all the way along, laying on the ground or lazily floating down the stream. Scuffs formed a path down the banks where silt had been kicked up. If it wasn't for the anxiety that she had ruined her friendship with Abby, Green might have found this part of the walk relaxing. The running water made a calming trickling sound, joining the gentle sounds of the forest to create a warm ambience. Slowly the river began to widen and grow deeper. The gravel and silt became soft sand. While the treeline receded further and further back. Allowing for a bank of moss to form between them and the sand. That moss turned to grass and that grass became decorated with wildflowers. Soon Green could see Oddish and Bellsprouts playing amongst them, making glowing green leaves bounce off one another. However, they always scurried back into the forest when they saw Machoke walking towards them. In the water Magikarp lazily floated with the current, bobbing up and down along the surface of the water. Goldeen swam along underneath them, using the horns on their head to look for food underneath the stones of the river floor. As the river widened further and further, the canopy became thinner and thinner. Until the leaves no longer reached each other and a streak of open sky ran parallel with the river. They rounded a corner and saw a huge, Vileplume sunbaking on top of a small embankment. The large, red flower on its head pointed directly at the sun. Its eyes were closed and a relaxed grin was on its face. A little further down Green found Abby again.
"We'll camp here tonight and get an early night. We should get up early so we can cross Route 8 while it's still dark." She grumbled, not so much as glancing at Green.
Abby was crouched down on the river bank, poking at the water with a stick. Dratini lay next to her, taking in the sunlight with a delighted smile. He rolled onto his back, crying happily as the sun shone on his white, squishy underside.
"Sure." Green agreed timidly.
Behind Abby the trees curved out away from the bank, creating a small meadow before curving back to their regular distance. The ground was bare, still starved of sunlight but the canopy. A noticeable shadow separated the river bank from the bare meadow. Green slung her heavy bag onto the ground and placed the healing machine next to it. The pokéballs were still glowing with golden light.
"Do you need a rest too buddy?" Green asked Machoke, offering the pokéball to him.
Machoke shook his head and placed his hands on her lower back, holding her gently.
"Ma..." He whispered sensually, pulling her to him.
Green giggled and hugged him, kissing his chest.
"Well I do, so let's set up the tent." She said with a laugh.
Suddenly Green realised Abby didn't have a tent of her own or anything much apart from the clothes she was wearing. She wanted to say something but as she went to approach Abby she found herself unable to. Awkwardly she turned away and got the tent from her bag, leaving Abby to herself.