A/N- Where I'm at with this story: So I'm enjoying writing the story, but I know that the formatting needs work. I've looked back over chapter 5 and fixed several errors, and hopefully made it a little cleaner. Thankfully, it also allowed to correct a couple inconsistencies with this chapter. I've also somewhat proof-read this chapter, but not completely. As for chapters 1-4, I'll start to revise them in between chapter 7's segments to break the task up. They will all be reposted when the new chapter is out
For this chapter: I initially hated the first part, but I don't think it's awful on re-reading it. This chapter is massive since I had to cram a couple extra segments at the end so I could get to the Ecruteak chapter next
Lots of ideas still to come, it looks like this story will be continuing to quite the considerable length. Original estimated length was 20K, we are now around 32K. and the new estimated length should be 50-80K minimum.
Thank you to those who have read and reviewed. I am listening and open to your words. Please tell me if this chapter was at least somewhat easier to read.
If you do have an issue, please specify which section it is in. I'm now placing where each segment is taking place, and whose POV it is, so use that as a guide in your review to fix things.
Enjoy Xx
Wednesday
Goldenrod Upper-class Aquatic Pavilion
Ethan's POV
With Wednesday afternoon came one of my favorite times of the week: swimming time. Ever since I came to the big city, my mother made me take swimming lessons so I would always be safe in the ocean. Dad also encouraged it in case my ship casually sunk due to an angry gyarados and I found myself out to sea without a boat. It really didn't make sense from that perspective as the gyarados would still catch up to me in seconds and turn me into a snack. And I do mean snack, those things are enormous, no chance to survive against one of them.
But I digress, over the years, while I knew I was never going to become an elite swimmer, I did find that it was an amazing form of exercise, kept me fit and healthy, and allowed me to gorge on treats more than the average person could. This was coupled with the joy of being able to phase out all of my issues in life and just 'be' for a while. Letting the world pass you by did wonders for my mental health, so swimming turned into the full package for me.
It did come with a single drawback though. "Oh Ethan! I've been looking all over for you! You act like you purposefully ignore me or something". And there it was; Misty Waterflower in all her glory. Being the runt of the Waterflower sisters, Misty eventually decided to move to Goldenrod to train as an elite level swimmer, whilst also using the pavilion's trainer pools to continue the training of her team. A fierce swimmer, a fairly accomplished trainer, and not awful on the eyes. You would think that she'd be more popular with the guys, however, she spent her time pining over one certain person: me. You'd think she would have gotten the memo years ago that I wasn't interested, even in the slightest. Like, I'd be more interested in that restaurant that serves magcargo, and that is one of my most morbid curiosities, and not something I'd ever genuinely try out.
While I could always pray that she would magically lose interest, today seemed like it would follow the normal patterns. This included jokes, bitching about the other swimmers, and grabbing my hand more often than needed. Let's get this over with so I can finally enjoy myself.
"Hi Misty, I didn't see you there". Casual, and disinterested, my base state here.
"That's ok. Do you notice anything different?" Huh? This was a bit of a new one.
"Did they fix that tap by the children's playground?" If they didn't they really needed to, the parents were complaining how it had been broken for the last week, and when you're dealing with the richest families in the city, you deliver.
My comments do nothing but add some frustration to her expression, but she quickly smothers it in order to, and I might be wrong here, give herself a self-induced pap-smear with her arms. "No, silly! I got a new set of bathers! I brought them just for you". Oh, the poor unfortunate soul.
"You realise they have goldeens on them right? I'm pretty sure I've seen children's underwear with the same pattern". As she turned red out of embarrassment, I continued on. "I'm not sure why you would buy bathers for me, when I'm the model here, if you wanted to impress me with your fashion choices, you failed miserably. Next time you go shopping for another set, I'll go with you and make sure this doesn't happen again". Shit, good will Wednesday just happened, but my mistake has been made.
She naturally forgets all the insults I just made about her fashion choices and latches on to the one thing of use to her, "You'll go shopping with me? You're such a cutie, no wonder we're perfect together". As she winks at me, there's only one way to salvage the situation.
"I could never leave my little sister out in the cold like that". Visibly deflating, I knew it worked.
We make our way over to the main pool and start our session. I'm not even sure why someone of Misty's level swims alongside us, but it's good for the morale of the class to have someone to aspire to. Still a pain in my arse that she will only go in my lane and she almost literally swims laps around me, but I've learnt to tune it out and simply enjoy myself. As we finish the session, tired but satisfied with life, I get out and find that my stalker is already latching on and chattering away.
"What an easy session that was, swimming with these groups just doesn't push me since no one is at my level, but it's great to have a time to focus purely on technique". I don't think she realises that she's insulting me yet again to make herself seem better. I saw her struggle just minutely in that last set anyway, so it's just hot air coming from her. Quite the natural occurrence really.
While we are making our way towards the change-rooms, we see a surprisingly large group between the entrance to the pokemon pools and the outside pools. It was a somewhat interesting development since this pool was frequented by the rich and famous, being made purely for the upper class. That's not even factoring in that some of the most famous swimmers in the world trained in this complex. So who would cause such a fuss? I feel a hand grab mine, and heard a "let's check it out!" before I was manhandled towards the crowd.
As I saw a head of scarlet hair, I was instantly frozen with a sense of deja vu.. Surely the fates couldn't be so cruel as to run into this man twice in less than a week, not to mention have a physical altercation with him. Feeling my sudden tenseness and shock on my face, Misty gave me a confused look, before she clicked. From there, I knew things were going to go south very fast.
We arrive in the circle and I realise that as intimidating as the man was, he was downright scary with his clothes off. Every inch of thick muscle was on display making me seem as meek as a little lamb. Arms? Pecs? Abs? Legs? He had it all and was on full display for everyone to envy. In fact, the only part of him that wasn't bare was the area covered by his swimming trunks, and his... Neck? What was that thing lying around his neck, and why did it just wiggle? Blue, with a white belly in a serpentine figure. Why, the only thing that resembled something like that was a dratini?
Wait just a hot second. Elite 4 member who specializes in the vicious and elusive dragons, and an object that looked oddly like a dragon... My eyes light up like stadium lights at the prospect of being so close to a real dratini! Suddenly, this whole thing seems worth-it.
However, while I'm stuck in my daydreams, the real world was getting messy. Misty had trudged through the gathered crowd, heaving me every millimeter of the way and declared rather boisterously, "Lance Wataru, I, Misty Waterflower of Cerulean City challenge you to a match to avenge my boyfriend!" Oh. My. God. Did she just declare battle, and declare that we were dating? Bloody shenanigans.
Lance, bothered by the noise more than anything turned to check where said noise had come from. Quickly glancing at Misty, and seeing who this 'fallen boyfriend' was, he met my gaze and noticed how uncomfortable and over it I was, not to mention how my hand was still in Misty's vicegrip. Surprised at first to see my face, the reaction was quickly dropped before he... Wait, did he just lower and raise his eyes? Did he seriously just check me out? It can't have been, but then why did Misty's anger suddenly become palpable? '
"Misty Waterflower? The sister of the three Cerulean City gym leaders? And dear Ethan Williams, the son of Norman Williams, the prior Goldenrod City gym leader. What a... quaint couple". Definitely mocking if the small smirk meant anything. "I accept your challenge. If you win, Ethan's 'honor' will be avenged, and you will take over my position as an Elite 4 member". At this, Misty looked surprisingly smug. "But if I win, I get to take Mr Williams out for a drink and you shall forfeit any future attempts to challenge me."
What? Wait, that was internalised. "What?!" Was Lance seriously staking a date with me on a match with my apparent 'girlfriend?'. "Why do you want to go on a date with me?"
The smugness was back. "Who said anything about it being a date? Are you not satisfied with your current relationship that you would seek out little old me at the smallest opportunity. Are you not happy with your current girlfriend?"
Misty, who was getting steadily angrier since the stakes were set had finally reached a point where she gripped my hand so tightly that I couldn't help but wince at the pressure, not to mention that my hand was still recovering from hitting the present company. Lance, who caught the action looked on in a minute second of what I believe was sympathy or concern before continuing on.
"Let us move to the pokemon pool. Since the stakes are set, our reward must be segregated from the two of us by an impartial audience member. Is there anyone in the audience that would mind the fair maiden? Anyone at... what?" Out of nowhere, the dratini snuggled up to Lance woke up and floated over to me. With a flick of its tail, it whipped Misty's arm and shocked her out of holding me, before proceeding to rest its head and body around my neck and going back to sleep. As shocked as Misty and I were, since I just had a rare dragon inhabit my shoulders, and she just got smacked by said dragon, no one was quite as shocked as Lance appeared. I give him a confused look trying to convey a message of 'is this ok', and he collects himself and states more to himself than anyone in the audience, "Never in his short life has he given such trust to anybody but myself. No dragons are ever trusting of someone who isn't their master or family." He pointedly tells me, "You're a very privileged individual Ethan Williams, the dragon gods smile upon you. He will look after you while we have our match."
Suddenly, the baiting man is gone, and someone serious and assessing takes his place. As overloaded as I was in this situation, his last words rang in my ear. Why would a dragon choose me? I'm not worthy of such an honour as he proclaims, but would a dragon really make a mistake such as that? As if sensing my perturbance, the dratini mewls in my ear, and the sound is enough for me to forget my worries and smile softly at the creature. On the plus side, at least this dratini was lighter than Princess, and fit snugly around my body.
With the inner- turmoil over, the entire crowd moved over to the pokemon pool. At Lance's command, the staff opened up the roof for more room. Why he thought they would need room was beyond me, but he was the professional here. Misty, who had grabbed one of the balls from her bag, stated that she was ready to go, and with a nod to the referee on staff, the referee began to officiate the match.
"This battle will be a one on one match between Lance Wataru of the Elite 4, and Misty Waterflower of Cerulean City. The match will end when a pokemon on either side is unable to battle, or the trainer forfeits. There are no substitutions. Let the match begin!"
Without a second of hesitation, Lance through one of the balls from his bag, and out came a large majestic seahorse, the likes I had only ever heard about. A kingdra. From my studies, I could easily recognise that the monster was easily an extra 20cm taller than the average specimen, and I'm fairly sure that the antennae on it's head were significantly bigger to represent its status among its brethren.
Almost lost in the beauty of such a pokemon, I almost missed the fact that Misty had sent out a towering gyarados. It looked as vicous as all the news stories made them out to be, but this one seemed to be a little smaller than the average gyarados, a fact that Lance quickly confirmed. "You're truly challenging me to a match against a pokemon I've also raised? Even more insult is the fact that this gyarados is only recently evolved. I wouldn't expect it to even have a true grip on its thrash attack yet. It seems you tried to intimidate the wrong person Ms Waterflower". Red at being caught out by the man, she ordered the beast to use a tackle attack. Much like the previous match I watched with Lance's charizard, he didn't even bother to give his kingdra any orders, like the whole match was very much beneath them, and by the way the kingdra's bubble attack did significant damage? It truly was beneath them. Bubble, renown for being one of the weakest water attacks known just caused an overgrown water serpent to recoil in agony.
Misty, not one to be easily discouraged, sent gyarados to do yet another tackle, but this time the only difference was that instead of a bubble attack, the kingdra sent out a full water gun attack, the likes of which hammered the gyarados against the wall. Barely hanging onto consciousness, the gyarados somehow withstood the attack. At this, Lance spoke up. "Ms Waterflower, it's clear that you have absolutely no chance to win this match; please forfeit and I will spare your pokemon any further pain."
Misty, who took the statement as an insult replied, "Never! Gyarados and I are going to win! I'm going to show Ethan just why we were meant to be together, and no brute is going to swoop in and take my little teddiursa away from me!" Even the crowd were starting to spare me some looks of sympathy, while Lance just got the verbal evidence he needed that we weren't together.
"Sorry dear, but he's all mine now!" With a flare of his arm, Lance's kingdra suddenly shot out a fully powered dragon pulse, which slammed into the gyardos, and the resulting explosion sent it spiraling out of the pool and crash landed in one of the viewing areas. As the referee called the match in Lance's favour, he thanked kingdra and continued on. "It was clear right from the start that he wanted nothing more than to be friends with you. It was also easy to tell from the way that he was cringing in silence and how he hasn't spoken up once from the pain you were causing him that he is either used to receiving pain from you, or he is just too kind to tell you off. Also, the fact that no self-respecting model of Ethan's caliber would date someone with goldeens on their bathing suit shows that you were never an item. Since you have lost, Ethan owes me a date, and you have lost your right to challenge me in the future. Have a lovely day Ms Waterflower". With that, he walked over to me, and I couldn't help the nerves at the unknown of the situation. "Ethan, would you do me the honor of accompanying me to get a drink at one of the nearby cafes?"
Charming, attractive and putting me completely off my game, I couldn't do anything but stutter out a "Yeah". How have I been reduced to such a mess in a short time?
Noticing my discomfort, he smirked lightly and thankfully continued on where I had failed. "Great, why don't you get changed and we'll meet at the entrance? I never actually made it to the water, so I'll just simply put my clothes on and wait for you.". As he went to head towards the exit, he added one more thing. "Oh, dratini can stay with you. Don't be afraid to tell him to move otherwise you'll never get your shirt on. Shame". With that, he exited the room.
Trying to get my thoughts and breathing straight, I bypassed the entire audience who were giving me unmasked looks of jealousy, although I think I may have heard one group of girls squeal and proclaim how cute we were together. That was honestly a bit scary. In the change rooms, I quickly asked the dratini if it was ok to head into the showers, and with nothing but a nod, I hopped in. Getting clean and changed as fast as I could in order to not leave Lance waiting, I found my way out in a little over five minutes. Dratini was surprisingly not too much of an obstacle in that regard, but I may have made it out in four if he weren't there.
Seeing Lance over by the entrance, surrounded by yet another crowd, I wandered over a little shyly, not quite sure how to disrupt the crowd without being rude. I thought I may have been able to sneak out without him, but cursed that that was probably the whole reason he left dratini with me; the damn thing was insurance so I didn't skip out. Noticing both my presence, and my issue of breaching the crowds, he parted the sea with a mere "I need to leave, but it was nice meeting you all", and stood in front of me.
"I'm surprised you didn't run off on me, but that was the whole reason I left dratini with you". That smirk was back.
'I almost ran off with him, he is such a beautiful pokemon after all". With a soft smile on my face, I stroked the pokemon around my neck, which illicited a soft mewl. Looking up, I noticed that Lance's smirk has softened off, and had almost reached the other side of his lips now. It seemed that the man had a soft spot for his dragons.
"Shall we head off then? We can go somewhere nearby if you'd like. Do you know of anyplace nearby?" With a nod, I tell him about a place right around the corner, and lead the way. A couple minutes of walking later and we reach the cafe. After being led to a booth in the back, since the staff knew I didn't like to be bothered, doubly so since I was with an Elite member, we sat down and Lance put his serious face back on.
"I apologise for all that fiasco back there, but I could see that you were struggling with her, and I also couldn't pass up the opportunity to talk with you and clear the bad blood from last weekend".
Understanding where he was coming from, but also a little disappointed that the man wasn't actually interested in a date, I responded. "Thank you for that, she is someone I've known for several years, but she just doesn't seem to realise that I'm not interested in her. I've done everything other than blatantly say to her that she doesn't have the parts for me to be interested in her, but it just hasn't worked'. It truly was frustrating how persistent she was.
"So you really were interested in the idea of a date with me then? I couldn't quite tell if it was an act to get her away from you or not. Being a model naturally meant that you had some level of acting ability after all". Shit, that did just come out as a confession of interest didn't it? "But I guess you are more the 'wear your heart on your sleeve' kind of person after protecting your eevee". Oh right, the other side of the conversation. It's been weighing heavily on me anyway, so may as well get it all out.
"I truly am sorry for what happened. I just got so emotional seeing her hurt in such a way, and your comment made me lose all reason. I'm so, so sorry for hitting you!" Looking down at the table, almost with tears in my eyes at my own embarrassment, I heard a chuckle. Throwing my head up to look at him in confusion, he spoke.
"Here I was trying to apologise to you, and here you are not even letting me get a chance. Ethan, make no mistake about it, I was the one at fault in the situation. I was the one who didn't give the battle enough room. I was the one who didn't stop the match when I could tell charizard was about to up his power. I was the one that insulted both you and your eevee when she was hurt. You shouldn't be sorry; in fact, you should be the one angry at me. Let me repeat. You did nothing wrong". The intensity in his eyes and voice almost convince me.
"But I hit you! I threw a punch, and not only that, but I did it against someone of political power, and someone who had no intention of taking the matter into the physical realm!"
He didn't lose his strength in the matter. "Ethan, it was clear that you had never thrown a punch in your life. I'm quite certain that you hurt yourself in the process more than you hurt me, in fact, the dratini around your shoulders has hurt me more when he's been hungry. You seem like a kind soul who under natural circumstances wouldn't hurt another living being. It was clear in the way you treated your eevee, and even the way in which you treated Ms Waterflower. You mustn't take the burden of the accident. I goaded you while you were under immense emotional pressure, I'm the only one to blame. Just me, and me alone". His words finally start to resonate and I deflate. "I see you're finally listening to reason, so let me continue on. Watching the video back truly showed me how badly I acted. Not just as an Elite 4 member, but as a clan heir, and most importantly, as a human. I shouldn't have assumed that your eevee was a battler, and knowing you now, it's clear to me that you aren't a battler either.'
Knowing that he was right, and not needing to see any more of his pride be squashed for my sake, I stop him there. "Lance, your words truly hurt, but I've already forgiven them. The hate and anger is pointless, and they were only an avenue for my sorrow to travel through. You don't need to apologise for your judgement errors either. You assumed based on your knowledge of the world, so if it was anyone else, you probably would have been correct. It's better to leave this in the past, and try to simply become better, well rounded people".
His smile was back. "You truly are too bright of a spark for this world. A beautiful soul that is uncorrupted by the darkness that taints the average person. I see now why dratini decided to trust you". Blushing a bit at the undeserved praise, I asked him to clarify what he meant. "Dragons, as I said back at the pool, only trust their masters, or their family. In order to train a dragon, you must show that you are both virtuous and strong, striding ever towards justice in this world. While I'm not sure you quite fall under the category of strong, since you aren't a trainer, you've definitely proved to have a virtuous soul, and that is the reason why dratini is drawn to you. I wouldn't honestly be surprised if half my team suddenly decided to adopt you and whisk you away from harm."
This was all really too much. "I don't know why you keep claiming I'm someone special. I'm just a guy who's trying to move through life one day at a time." That was it. Point blank.
"Then tell me this. Your hand that you punched me with, that was the same hand that Ms. Waterflower was crushing, wasn't it?" With a nod, he continued. "And instead of tell her that you were being hurt, you chose to keep quiet, because you felt that she was doing something that was important for her, and if you had of ripped your hand away, you knew it would only hurt her?" A more hesitant nod this time. "My point, a normal person cares about self-preservation, while you went through what was probably agonising pain to keep someone, who you don't like very much, happy". When he said it like that, it almost made me look like a saint. I went to argue the point, but he held out his hand to stop me. "Look, Ethan. You don't have to believe it. Just know that a mythical beast has decided that you are worth-while, and if this experience teaches you anything, I hope that you start to think that too."
We got our food, and I spent the entire meal replaying events over, and trying to find the flaws in Lance's statements. As time went on though, I found that the incidents where I thought I was the scum of the earth, had been very minor situations where I had put myself first, like that time I cut in line at the supermarket. I still can't believe I did that; I'm sure it destroyed that women's whole day. Starting to find myself in turmoil over the situation, I feel a hand on mine. I look up startled to find Lance with a look of concern in his eyes. "Care to tell me what you're struggling over?" The genuine look on his face makes me decide to share my thoughts.
"I was going over reasons why you'd be wrong about me being considered virtuous, and I remember this one incident from when I was 15. Mum and I went to the grocery shops, and I had such a long day that when it came time to head to the register, there was one lady about to go into the line, but I cut in just so I could get out of there faster. I'm sure that destroyed her day. I'm also sure that she would have been furious at the situation".
At the sound of muffled laughter, I look up at Lance who was barely restraining himself. Finally giving up, he released a full belly laugh that had some of the nearby booths looking over in confusion. A little insulted that he would laugh, I ask him: "What's so funny?"
When he calmed down his laughter enough to talk, he replied, "That's what got you so down?" A stiff nod in response. "You don't realise what a gem you are, do you? People steal, bribe and hurt others with a clear conscience, but you cut in front of a lady, and you deem yourself a horrible person? There can be no doubting now why the dragons accept you, and know that I don't think I'm too keen to let you go either." Such a blatant statement of claim, and I'm back to red. "Have you ever thought about coming to Blackthorn and working with the dragons there? Really though, what are your future intentions? Surely you have some intention of getting your license and following your father's footsteps?" He didn't seem to be asking to force the conversation, so I decided to answer honestly.
"I thinking I want to go into pokemon research; I've been studying up the pokemon in the Kanto-Johto bistate, and I think I've reached a stage where I could be employed in the research institutes. The problem is that I'm physically not allowed to get my license. My dad, being a gym leader, used the Fuma law to prevent me from going into the wilderness and getting hurt, so I'm stuck being a model until I guess the time when either of us dies really.'
Surprised by the information, Lance replied, "You haven't heard from him since Sunday? I thought he would have told you straight away."
"What would he have needed to tell me? We spoke on Saturday after the accident, but that's it."
"After the video went viral, he called the plateau on Sunday to yell at me through a conference with the entire league". Eyes wide with shock, I let him continue. "I won't get into the details of the call, but in the end, we learnt about how he used the Fuma Law against you, and afterwards, Agatha set out Koga and Lorelai to change the wording of the law so it was less ambiguous, and limited to the age of 18. Norman knows this, and it's clear to me now that he was going to act like nothing had ever happened in the hopes that you didn't catch on." The seriousness on his face only adding to the dramatic statement.
"You mean, I'll be able to go for my license in the near future?" I said slowly, not daring to get my hopes up just yet.
"Within the next couple weeks, you should be free of such a thing. In a way, our meeting on Saturday was a blessing, since without it, the Elite 4 would never have known about your circumstances."
Screw it, I'm just going to get those hopes up. "You really mean it? I'm finally going to be able to stop modelling and see the world? I'm finally going to be able to help Princess evolve? I'm finally going to be able to help countless pokemon I come across? Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"I'm happy to have been able to help you, but you'll need to thank Lorelai most of all: she was the one who caught your dad out. Speaking of which, you didn't seem shocked about his call?"
"I'll need to get her a gift, what does she enjoy? And no; I knew right from the start after Lyra told me about the video that he would be coming for you. It was easy to see that I didn't put myself purposely into harms way, so he would attack what did. I'm sorry about him by the way, he's just had a couple close calls with me when I was younger, so he's a little protective."
Lance just sighs. "There you go again with protecting those who have done you wrong. Might I ask what could possibly have happened to make him into that? The man damn near chose a war between nations for you." Not quite understanding what that meant, I regailed Lance about the story of when I was a child, and barely survived the meeting with the ariados.
"Ok, I see what he means now, you're probably going to need bubble wrap out in the field." He looked mostly like he was joking, but there was a hint of something a little more protective in there as well.
"Hey! I know better now, so I wouldn't wander into a pokemon's nest, especially when I know they have status invoking powders". And I meant it too, through my studies, I knew just how much damage they could do to the human anatomy. While we may often be in control of the pokemon, we were frail in comparison.
"I guess. Moving back to the point at hand though, you should be contacted in the near future by Agatha, and you'll be a free man from there". He stood up and continued. "While I've enjoyed this time with you more than I thought I would, I need to head off. The concept of a date was only meant to be a joke to spur on Ms Waterflower, but I think I'd like to get your number, and we could try this again for real if you felt the same?" He seemed a touch unsure about that last part.
"I'd like that. I wasn't entirely comfortable with the whole thing as it played out, but it seems like fate was just playing with us, and I enjoyed spending time with you as well!" Honestly, the only person I felt this relaxed around was Lyra, and I'd known her for years.
"Excellent! If we exchange numbers, and we can organise something for a couple weeks. I'd like to do it sooner, but I'm actually in Goldenrod on official League business, so I'm not sure what my schedule will be like for a while".
Dissappointed slightly about that, we exchanged numbers, and he left the cafe after paying. Once I went up to pay as well, the cashier made me realise that he had pulled a sneaky on me and payed for my meal as well. Chuckling slightly, but vowing to pay him back, I left to head back home, but called up Lyra for the trip.
"Hi Ethan, what's up?"
Thanking her internally for answering on the first try, I responded. "You'll never guess how my day has turned out..."
Thursday
Internet gossip magazine- The Daily Chatot
In surprising news, the drama between Lance Wataru of the Elite 4 and international model Ethan Williams has seen a second act. Readers will remember that the two had an altercation last Saturday that resulted in Williams hitting Wataru. While the event went viral after videos were leaked, Williams' PR representative explained that Williams was mortified at his own actions, and only did so during extreme emotional duress. Agatha Oak, the champion of the bistate also stated that the blame should fall solely onto Wataru, and not Williams.
This event would have been completely swept under the rug, but it seems that the drama is only growing. Yesterday at the Goldenrod Upper-class Water Pavilion, the two met again. This time however, the gossip just got juicier. Misty Waterflower, with Williams in tow confronted Wataru and challenged him to an official match in order to avenge her 'boyfriend's honor'. That's right readers, Misty Waterflower and Ethan Williams are supposedly dating!
But it goes further than that. The stakes that were agreed on was that Williams' pride will be restored on Waterflower's victory, or Williams was to go out for 'a drink' with Wataru after he won.
This is it readers: Williams is caught in a love triangle between Waterflower and Wataru. And if you need further clarification of why this is big news: international model Ethan Williams has been shown to be bisexual, and one of the strongest trainers in the bi-state, and all around dragon type prodigy, Lance Wataru, has expressed that he is gay!
For those thinking that the prospect of 'a drink' was through the two just being friendly, let us correct you. The two were seen after Wataru's inevitable victory having lunch together and holding hands, not to mention that Williams spent the entire day with one of Wataru's famed dragons draped over his neck. If that isn't enough evidence, then we need to find our self a new profession.
Readers, we leave this article with a lot of questions: Is this the end of Williams and Waterflower's sudden relationship? Will a prestigious clan such as the Wataru's accept that their heir isn't straight? What truly happened on that date to have such a quick turn around from enemies to lovers between the two men?
We don't know, but we will find out.
Signing off, The Daily Chatot
Friday
Goldenrod City- Eastern suburbs
Lance's POV
It was finally time to regroup with the other members of the task-force assigned to the gang case. I'd been hearing their reports as they came through, but it was always necessary to meet in person so everyone was on the same page, and just in case someone forgot to mention a point that turned out to be vital.
With everyone present and accounted for, I decided to get this over with. "Thank you for all coming in. This is mostly just a routine meeting, but I also need to fill you in on what I've achieved over the last few days".
"You mean catching criminals, or catching STI's?" Everyone started laughing while Sam preened under the attention. Damn peacock that one. Not particularly thrilled at the implication towards either Ethan or myself, I turn back to him.
"If by STI you mean Sam's torn insides, then I'm sure my dragonite would be happy to give you a lesson in it". That shut him up. I lift out my temporary phone. "Now back to the matter at hand. During the week, I managed to find my way to a rocket operative and convince him that I was going to be a valid candidate to join. I received a message today to meet up with him for an initiation ceremony, so I should be within the ranks of team rocket by the end of the day".
Shocked by the prospect of me already managing to do two weeks work in a few days, they tried to get a bearing of what I just said. Finally, Trina responded. "Damn, why do you even have us? You'll just single-handedly destroy the organisation. I could be training my team instead of living in a hole!" That got nods from Sam and Aaron who were out there in even worse conditions than Trina was.
"You're all here as my back-ups. Don't be angry, I've just been doing this longer than you all have. Also, while we were fairly sure that Team Rocket was in the area, Will, you also heard an interesting rumor". Turning to him, I gesture for him to explain.
"Yes, yes! I was out on the streets chatting with some of the new fam; that's what we call our friends in the hood, when I came across a most interesting conversation. I didn't hear much before I needed to keep moving, but it seems like there is a second gang down here in the hood. You can recognise them based on their red clothing, but they work a lot more discreetly than the rockets do. I do believe it was a Team Mareep or something!"
Cringing at his explanation, but knowing that the only difference between our characters was that I actually knew how to not be a nerdy psychic with an abnormally high IQ and an affinity for empathy. Looking around, I can see that the others are also trying to ignore the second hand embarrassment from the flamboyant psychic.
"I may have the rocket situation under control, but with this new information, I believe that it would be prudent for the four of you to switch targets over to this seperate team. I will still be able to back you up under pressure, and I will still call on you for regular meetings, or if I need a hand dismantling any operations. Sam and Aaron, I know living in the slums is hard, but I need you to stay there and move around to a different area of it now and then. If you can, start to draw a little bit of attention to yourselves in order to attract their attention, but not so much that you become targeted by those looking to move up in the world. I think it would also help to gain a pokemon each for protection and for the attention. Sam, since you're a flying type trainer, I'd like you to get yourself a zubat, and Aaron, a pidgey or ratata would suit your normal typing well". With nods of acceptance, I know I can rely on the two of them to get their jobs done. "Will and Trina, you keep doing what you're doing. Find the gossip out, and start to spend a bit of time in more populated parks and shopping districts. You're both capable of gossiping with other people, so use them to your advantage". With that, I think I had covered everything.
"Did you still want to hear our reports?" Oh, that was a good point. Holidaying had made me lazy.
"I've heard it all, but it wouldn't hurt for you to go over the information together. Put any information that was ambiguously gang related into a separate report so that we might have a lead to go off of. Unfortunately, I'll need to leave you in order to make it to the initiation. Good luck, and look after yourselves. Don't take unnecessary risks." With that, I turn to exit the meeting spot. I wish I still had my regular attire on, because turning dramatically without a cape just doesn't make an exit as fun.
I look at my phone, even though I have the message memorised, one last time. -Meet me where you first met me at 3:20pm, or you'll regret meeting me in the future. B-. The guy really didn't know who he was messing with, but that suited me just fine.
I backtrack the streets I took last time, and eventually find what I was looking for. The guys around the street would have been subtle if you weren't me, but that was the beauty of not being mediocre. I approach the spot and knock on the door. After several seconds, the door opened to reveal the one and only Billy. "For an overgrown brute, you're surprisingly quick on the uptake. The initiation starts at 4, and we got ground to cover". Nodding, and deciding that the route of 'overgrown brute' was probably the better one to decide, I stayed silent and puffed my chest while following.
We twisted and turned through the streets, and finally reached an out of the way carpark. It was clear that there was some sort of fiasco going on since the crowd was growing by the minute. "Yo, this is how it'll go down. You shut the fuck up, and when I give the order, you step forward. You'll go through the initiation test, and you better pass; I ain't putting some pussy footed bitch in for my quadrant, it'll make me look bad". Nodding along, and expecting nothing less of these scum I wait patiently.
There was no grand speech to dictate when the event had started, only the call of 'Quadrant One', and the first person moved forward. Internally, it helped to familiarise myself with what I was calling 'quadrant captains'. The more I knew about who was running these gangs, the easier it would be to take down. Over the next hour or so, many attendants had been called up, but I was still remaining in the crowd. Finally, I hear 'Quadrant 19' and Billy spoke "About fucking time. Come".
With that, he moved quickly through the now rather dispersed crowd and we disappeared from sight. As we arrive at our destination, which was simply an empty room with nothing but several grunts and a person with a bag over their head, Billy left me to stand to the side.
"Recruit from Quadrant 19, to pass the initiation, all you have to do is prove to us that you have what it takes to make it in this world. Before us is another one of the rats that populate these streets. Eliminate them". With that, he took off the bag to reveal a ratty bearded man. It was clear that he was homeless, and likely had been for most of his life. Unhappy with the task, but ready to do so from the start, I send out koffing. The fact that I don't just have a basic ratata causes some of the recruiters to raise their eyebrows in appraisal.
While they had specified what the task was, it didn't mean that I had to make it gore-y. In a clear voice I command, "Koffing, place one of your holes into the man's mouth and use poison gas". Unflinchingly, the koffing fulfilled it's task and let the man inhale nothing but the noxious fumes of a poison pokemon. Within 10 seconds, the man was dead, but I'm sure it only would have taken four seconds at max. This was one of the tricks Koga taught me before I left the Plateau since he knew it might be necessary to know.
"Damn, that was brutal. This guy is hard-core." I look into the eyes of the recruiters unflinchingly, trying to unnoticeably raise my chest up and flex slightly to give me a bit more intimidation. It worked. "You pass. Billy, where'd you find this guy? He'll be raising up through the ranks in no time!" Wow, I guess it all worked just a bit too well. Guess it was going to be hard to stay under the radar with so much talent in such a rag tag bunch of degenerates.
"Found him through the market. He almost begged me to help him battle that ho Whitney. I knew though that he was destined for better things than that though, so I lead the kid here instead. I'll have you know that I actually taught him how to do that trick he pulled. Arbok and I have been doin it for years now!"
While I didn't like someone taking credit for a friend's work, it could be a blessing for me if they thought that I didn't originate the technique. "Well you've done a fine job train'n him. Bit of a brick though. Could be good for manual grunt work". The leader of the posse turned to me. "From this moment on, you're a grunt of Team Rocket, the best criminal organisation in the whole bi-state. You'll be called regularly to handle missions and tasks to which there is no failure. You fail here, and you wind up dead like the guy you just killed. Understood?" I nod in response. "Good. Billy will be in touch with you over the next week to get you ready, now get lost grunt.' Taking it as a pretty clear dismissal, Billy and I leave after recalling koffing.
"Yo, those were some pretty hard-core moves back there. You made me look damn good, and that'll raise my street cred. I'll get in touch with you next week to get your outfit sorted. Now, I got hoes to deal with. Later, grunt!". With that, Billy took off. Finding that there was nothing else to gain today, I headed back to the complex 'Cain' was staying at before teleporting back to where I belonged. Now that it was all over for the week, I had a few days to relax. Perhaps I should get back to Ethan about that date? No, there was a reason I was waiting. I'd see him again after Agatha had given him his license.
Maybe I'll just go train for a couple days, that was always fun. Dratini also needed to get a start on his training; no point being a mythical creature if all you're going to do is sleep all the time. Child or not, he was getting a workout this week.
Saturday
Ethan's home
After such a chaotic week, I was happy to finally be able to have a full day off and spend some time with Princess. Dealing with the accident last Saturday had only been the beginning of a tumultuous week. The fallout in the public's eye had been the biggest issue since it almost cost me some of my biggest contracts, but thankfully, I only initially lost four of my smaller job offers before Stella had been able to minimise the damage for me. Of those four jobs, between her and Leo, two of them had a change of heart and reoffered the job to me. I truly was thankful that they were so good at their jobs.
I thought that would have been the end of the drama, but in a shock twist, Lance caused even more drama and pressure to be applied to my life. The tabloids were having a field day with my apparent love triangle, even though I'm not with either one of them. I know which one I'd rather be with, but that means absolutely nothing in the long run. The worst part abou the situation is that now Misty is on my back double-time! The whole region now thinks that I chose Lance over her, but she still thinks that we're an item. The daily phone calls were beginning to truly bug me.
Thankfully, not everything had been going badly since meeting Lance. Everything was askew, but not bad. It had been televised yesterday that what Lance had told me about Fuma's Law being amended was correct. Now, in the near future, I'd be free to go for my pokemon license regardless of what my dad thought since I was well passed my 18th birthday. I still didn't quite know what to do with my life now that freedom had so callously been thrown at me, but I was spending every waking moment considering the endless possibilities.
I'd come to the conclusion, that I was most likely going to give up modelling, if only temporarily to chase my dreams, but that didn't actually take me very far in my mind. I was considering still leaving some of my biggest contracts in place though, since it never hurt to keep my foot in the door in case being a trainer didn't end up working for me.
The biggest concern I had with the situation is that my dad still hadn't made contact with me. I felt a bit shafted by him since it truly was clear that he was doing what he could to hide the new changes, especially since he has known for almost a week about them. The other problem this raised was what would happen to Princess. She was still regarded as the pokemon of Norman Williams on all the systems, so will becoming a trainer mean I'll have to part from her, and she'll be sent back to mum and dad in Hoenn? It truly was the one thing that was holding my mind back from moving forward with my plans.
The only other concern I had was what Lance said. While there were many things in that conversation I couldn't wrap my mind around, specifically the claim that I'm virtuous enough for dragons to trust me. The one thing he said that left me confused was his statement that the champion of the bistate was going to get in contact with me. Why in the world would a woman as renown as Agatha Oak go out of her way to speak to me, and me alone? It made no sense in my little mind.
In the end though, I had to put it all to the side. Before I could become a trainer, I had a golden opportunity in the modelling world. A going out party if you must. I'd be leaving for Ecruteak in less than a week now, and I couldn't be more excited at the prospect. Princess too would be going, and it would do her a world of good to see the famed eevee-lutions that the Kimono Girls were famous for.
Every clan had a certain pokemon that it idolised and put on a pedestal. The Kimono Girls of the Suzuki Clan were just as famous for their use of their eevees as Lance and the Wataru clan were famous for their use of dratinis. Some clans chose to worship a type instead, but popularity of a pokemon still ran prevalent in those situations. An example of this being the Fuma Clan from Fuschia. They were well known ninjas famous for their poison types, but crobats and weezings were significantly more popular than other poison types.
As I continue to think about what had been happening recently, I hear my pokenav ring. Groaning at having to deal with another of Misty's calls, especially on my day off, I get up to answer it. I could have just ignored it, but I truly was too nice for my own good. Just because she was presumptuous and clingy, didn't mean that she should be left feeling isolated and rejected.
Looking down at the screen, I look down pleasantly surprised that it isn't Misty calling, but Lyra. Answering it with a lot less apprehension I spoke, "Hi Lyra, what's up?"
She looked rather excited, so something must have happened. "I'll tell you what's up, the greatest person you know in the world just pulled through for you! After seeing that Fuma's Law was changed, and that you were likely to have your trainer license in the near future, my grandparents were far more keen to take you in as an apprentice."
Shocked at the sudden declaration, it took me a second to take in. "Are you saying that not only will they let me work for them, but that the offer for an apprenticeship is there as well?"
It was definitely a sharp contrast to where the couple had placed him just several days before. When I called up Lyra to tell her about the 'date' with Lance, she let me know that she was struggling to convince her grandparents to let me work for them. No amount of knowledge could persuade them that letting an unlicensed, and thus illegal, worker into their business was a good idea. Now that that blockade had been removed, so had their reservations apparently.
"Yes! It's shocking isn't it? They really have enjoyed you from the few times that they've met you back in New Bark, and they believe that you will eventually be able to handle both their jobs with some aids to make your life a bit easier."
"You mean to say that they think I'll be good at both training pokemon, and breeding them as well? You know I don't think I'll be good with the baby pokemon, we've covered this." This better not go into another damn virtuous speech.
"I don't think you've noticed this Ethan, but pokemon seem to gravitate towards you. Bob doesn't get along with many people, but she trusts you as much as myself. Don't start on the whole 'She's known me my whole life' spiel, she doesn't even like my parents that much. You and my grandparents are the only ones she'll let her guard down for". Damn, this was still heading in the same direction as Lance took. I still don't see it myself though.
"We'll see. Please don't expect too much from me though, I don't think I'll live up to all of your expectations. I'm also not sure where I want to take my life after getting my license, so I can't promise anything. Even if I just spent one or two days a week with your parents though, it would be amazing first hand guidance at raising and caring for pokemon."
She was giving me the 'you're a fool look again'. "You truly don't give yourself enough credit, but I think that's just a result of your dad making you feel like you are unworthy of being a trainer. Don't deny it, I can see the damage his actions have done to you, even if they were unintentional.
I'll tell you what. Bob is bound to go into breeding season within a few weeks. I'll see if she will allow you to raise up her baby from when the egg is laid. Of course you'll have to deal with her fussing over everything while she supervises, but I think that will be a good way to build your confidence up. My grandparents will also be there to help you out."
With a sigh, I know that I can't get out of this, but I know that she is only doing it because she cares. "Thanks Lyra, I'll do what I can, and I won't break Bob's trust in me. I'll get back to you once I'm cleared to take my test. At this stage, please tell your grandparents that I'm humbled by their offer, but I'm not sure if I'd be willing to learn from them full time."
From there, we continue to talk about what we've been up to over the last few days, and I hang up feeling just a bit lighter than when she first rang up. I'm so glad that she was up here in Goldenrod for a while, but unfortunately, she'd still have to move back to New Bark after a while. Guess I'd just appreciate her presence for as long as I could.
As I get ready to take Princess down to the park, I hear my pokenav ring again. Seeing that the ID showed Misty Waterflower, I groaned and resigned myself to this fate.
Mr Pokemon segment
'Welcome back one and all to another session of The Pokedex Show, with Mr Pokemon. Today we'll be continuing our journey through not only the Kanto pokedex, but through the vulpix evolutionary line. For those new to the show, in this weekly series, we discuss aspect of a pokemon including physical characteristics, habitats, abilities and first hand experiences you, the viewers, have had with such a pokemon.
In today's session, we'll be discussing pokedex entry number 38: Ninetales. Following on from last week's segment on vulpix, Ninetales is one of Kanto's resident fire type pokemon, and a beloved member on many trainers teams, as well as appreciated by many cultures as a dangerous and vain spirit.
Physically, a vulpix will undergo several changes upon its evolution. Of particular note, it gains a yellow colouring instead of its naturally red fur, and it also gains another three tails, totally nine and giving a ninetails it's namesake. A vulpix upon evolution will also double in size, growing from an average of 0.6m to 1.1m. Finally, the crest on their head will change from a vulpix's famed curls, to a wild mane of fur on ninetales. It is thought that the skin colouring on a ninetales will continue to pale as it increases in strength to signify the heat of their flames.
There are many rumours and speculations based upon this pokemon. One of the tamest is that they will live for up to 1000 years, and it is thought that those that reach over 700 years are the ones with the palest of fur. The otherside to this rumour is that if you touch one of a ninetales' tails, you will be cursed for a thousand years, bringing you nothing but misery and ruin. Both of these combined are what gives ninetails the title of 'the millennium' pokemon. The only other rumour, and by far the least factual one, is that the first ninetails was created through nine power wizards deciding to merge together. This myth is particularly prevalent in the Celadon region.
Ninetales, unlike their pre-evolution, are not commonly found in the wild. Due to the need of a fire stone to kick start the genetic modification, it is extremely rare to find a ninetails that wasn't once owned by a trainer. Those that are seperated from their trainers, through death, abandonment, or any other reason, they typically seek out harsher environments where they won't be disturbed. There are reports from the scientists who brave Mt. Silver that there are tracks from at least one wild ninetales. The exception to this rule is when they are looking to breed. At that point, they are found to gather in sunnier inland areas. Once they mate and their eggs hatch, they often leave their young behind, and head back to exclusion.
As far as natural abilities go, ninetales will not gain any new abilities upon evolution. It will have both the ability to absorb other fire based attacks, or when threatened, they will produce the effects of a sunny day, causing the clouds to disperse. It is said that the species developed this secondary ability due to their vanity, and not wishing for their fur to be anything other than pristine. It also helps fend off predators that use water attacks.
As far as moves go, a ninetales follows the normal stunting that any pokemon evolved through a stone experiences. It relies on the moves it learns as a vulpix, and amps up the power of them drastically. There is, however, one move that it gains access to which its predecessor does not: nasty plot. It's thought that due to its vanity, if anything disturbs a ninetales, it becomes vengeful, and nasty plot adds to the cunning charm that they naturally possess. It is also thought that the charm that it possesses through these traits is what gives it the feared ability to take control of a human's mind, whether their trainer or not.
Through the use of tms, a ninetales gains access to a plethora of moves on evolution. Most noticeably is the ability to use more psychic based attacks like psyshock and calm mind. It is unsure of why they possess latent psychic abilities, and just why the introduction of a fire stone is capable of waking those abilities up.
Since ninetales is more so on the rare side, the listeners didn't have that many stories, however, there was one story based on Carla from Celadon. Carla stated that she was east of Celadon and witnessed the birth of an egg from a ninetales. Upon the egg leaving her body, Carla said that the ninetales had a very disgruntled look upon her face and spent the next 90 minutes making sure that every part of her body was clean and preened before raising her nine tails in the air haughtily and walked off. Carla stated that the ninetales didn't care about the egg, only because it had made her 'less beautiful' in her own eyes. Do not fret listeners. Carla ended up protecting the egg, and that vulpix became a beloved member of her team, and she is currently looking for a fire stone of her own to evolve that vulpix.
In conclusion, Ninetales is a very powerful pokemon, not just through physical strength, but through cunning and manipulation. When encountered, be sure to never touch their tails, and be mindful at all times over how much you are disturbing them. If a situation seems to be going south, get out of there immediately.
