WASSUP BOYS!

Chapter 7 is finally here! It's been a while, hasn't it? I just got back to school and my schedule is an absolute wreck. But fear not, it's here now.

Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 7: Sergeant Woods

"Ok, screw this!"

So said Anthony as he went through an inner turmoil. He wanted to go back to Grapevine Woods and catch another Pokemon, but not without everyone else. Well, excluding Justin. He kinda deserved being left out of one small detail of the trip, considering he went and caught a Pikachu on his own.

But what about Shawn and Diana? I don't want to leave them in the dirt. Wait a minute, I'm an idiot! I know what to do.

He pulled out his Pokenav and wrote a text message to Shawn and Diana.

Hey guys, it's Anthony. I had an idea. How about the three of us go back to Grapevine Woods so we can get ourselves another Pokemon? It's only fair, since Justin went off and caught that Pikachu of his. Regardless, I'm leaving at 11:30 tonight. Meet me in front of the Pokemon Center if you're in.

Anthony was just leaving the Pokemon Center, when he saw Shawn and Diana walking towards him.

"So you're coming along too, huh? Thanks for that. I could use the company."

"You know something, Anthony? You're really bad at sending messages to the right people."

They turned to see Justin tossing a Pokeball up and down in his hand with Nightcrawler on his shoulder.

Anthony meant it when he said Justin wouldn't be going with him. "Well then, what now? I'm not going if you're going too."

"Well it's a good thing I'm not coming. Just... good luck. I have faith in you guys, but you never know. Also, if you'd like, Zeus can come with you, so he can show you around the forest."

"No thanks," Diana said. "We'll be fine. Thanks anyway, though." Shawn remained surprisingly silent.

"Okay then. See you tomorrow." With that, he walked back upstairs to his room.

"That... went surprisingly well," Shawn said.

"Yeah, I honestly expected him to whine about us being pricks. Guess he figured he deserved it. Well, let's get going!"

Anthony took off towards the forest, Shawn and Diana right on his tail.

Justin stared out the window. I hope they'll be all right.

They will. I'll make sure they're safe from any sort of danger.

Just... don't interfere unless you have to. I put my faith in them, and I don't want to feel like I'm holding them back or anything by not letting them get out of situations themselves.

Okay then.

Justin released Blitz.

"Hey buddy, we're gonna start working on something fun tomorrow. You up for a challenge?"

Blitz nodded instantly, a grin that seemed almost maniacal on his face.

"Next up, Nightcrawler." Said Venipede was released. "Hey buddy, I know I haven't worked with you as much as I should. That's gonna change tomorrow. You ready for some kick ass training?" Justin normally watched his mouth, since his friends didn't like it when he said stuff like that. But this was his room. He had his own rules. Not that he said too many bad things, but he still wasn't as reserved.

Zeus popped up next. "Ready to train tomorrow? We're going learn something special for ya." The Pikachu in question nodded.

I'll train Poseidon too, but this isn't the best place to let him out. Not that he can't survive outside of water, but he's waay too big. Oh well, time to go to sleep. He laid down, the last thing he was thinking about being how strong his team will be when his friends evolve.

"Maybe we should have enlisted the help of Zeus."

"Anthony, I told him we didn't need Zeus's help because we can take care of ourselves. Plus, it would've felt like Justin was here, too. We agreed to do this without him."

"Still can't believe he didn't bitch even a little," Shawn said.

"Watch your language!"

"Does it really matter? We're trainers now, we're basically adults according to the legal system. Honestly, foul language isn't that big of a deal..But since you asked nicely, and I use the term loosely, I still can't believe he didn't whine even a little. Happy?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

Shawn had himself an idea. "Let's split up. Maybe we can find what we're looking for more easily. Plus, it'll be fun to surprise each other."

"Not a bad idea there, Shawn! Okay, I agree!"

With that, they went their separate ways.

Shawn already knew what he was looking for, and quickly headed for a large garden he had seen earlier. In the corner farthest to the back of the garden, he found what he was looking for. He released Geodude.

"Hey buddy, use Hammer Arm on that Budew back there, okay?" Geodude nodded. Its arm started glowing vigorously with massive amounts of energy.

Anthony headed for the waterfall he remembered seeing near the lake. He hoped what he had seen was still there. As he looked over to it, he spotted a serpent like creature swimming around the water.

There it is! I've always wanted a Dratini. He smirked as he released Chinchou. He was too excited to worry about stealth. "Psybeam!"

Diana walked towards the lake, all the while looking for Budew or something else that she thought was cute. As she passed by a group of trees, she felt something fall on to her shoulder. She looked to her left to see a Spinarak crawling on her arm. She slapped it off her arm and released Piplup. You know, for a disgusting little bug, it's actually kinda cute. "Hydro Pump!"

Shawn was racking his brain for ideas. Budew had put Geodude in a nasty spot. Geodude was stun spored and Budew was draining his energy. I've gotta think of something quick. I could try Hammer Arm again, but Budew will probably just dodge it. I haven't tried Mega Punch, but I've got a gut feeling that Budew will just dodge that too. Well, at this point, anything's worth a shot. "Mega Punch!"

Budew stopped short, not knowing what to expect from this new attack. It figured it out, although after it hit might have been a bit too late. Budew was sent flying, and didn't get back up.

Shawn tossed his Pokeball at Budew quickly, not wanting to take the risk of it suddenly getting back up again. Another easy catch. He gave Geodude a potion and a paralyze heal. Unfortunately, potions didn't completely heal wounds, but they did extremely accelerate the healing process. Paralyze Heals, on the other hand, completely cured the Pokemon of battle paralysis. Next up, he sat with his legs crossed and released Budew, giving it a revive. As the yellow powder went in Budew's mouth, it slowly regained consciousness.

"Hey there Budew, you okay?" At its happy nod, he continued. "I caught you, you know that?" Budew nodded once again. "So, how about you come along with me? We'd get to meet plenty of friends, and have plenty of adventures!" Budew became suddenly excited, jumping up and down. "Well, I guess there's my answer!" Shawn pulled out his Pokedex and scanned Budew.

Budew, the bud Pokemon. Male. It is very sensitive to changing temperatures. When it is extremely warm, its bud blooms, releasing toxic pollen. This Budew knows the moves Growth, Water Sport, Stun Spore, Giga Drain, Extrasensory, Leaf Storm, Seed Bomb, Sleep Powder, and Synthesis. It has a Bold nature. It's ability is Poison Point, which may poison opposing Pokemon upon contact with it.

Dayum, the moves tho! I really wasn't expecting that. Still, Budew aren't known to be fighters. Even with moves like that, it's gonna take a lot of training to get Budew to be a true battler. But I'm not worried. I know Budew has the power to be a monster as a Roserade and I'm gonna do whatever it takes to make sure Budew can live up to his potential. Shawn started heading back to the gates of Glazeburn.

"Bubble Beam!" Chinchou sprayed massive bubbles towards Dratini at high speed. Dratini became nothing but a blur as it slipped into Extreme Speed yet again. Dammit! I can't even lay a scratch on that thing. It just keeps using Extreme Speed over and over again. I've got to figure something out. Wait a minute. I've got it!

"Psybeam! Aim for the floor!" Chinchou blasted the ground with psychic force, and instead of the beam bouncing off the floor, it spread into a large wave, stunning Dratini and giving Anthony the opportunity he needed.

"Now, one last Psybeam!" Chinchou sprayed Dratini in the head, and it finally fell unconscious. Thank god, that was starting to become a total drag. At least I'm done. Anthony chucked the Pokeball at Dratini and easily caught it.

Anthony released Dratini, but decided to scan it before reviving it.

"Dratini, the Dragon Pokemon. Female. It is sometimes known as the mirage Pokemon, as almost nobody ever sees one in their lifetime."

"Lucky me..."

"This Dratini knows the moves Wrap, Leer, Thunder Wave, Twister, Dragon Rage, Slam, and Extreme Speed. Its ability is Marvel Scale, which increases the Pokemon's defensive abilities while afflicted with a status condition. It has a Jolly nature, and prefers Sweet foods over Dry ones."

I definitely already knew Dratini had Extreme Speed. And Dragon Rage. Can't forget about Dragon Rage, he thought as he recalled Dratini. I'll revive Dratini when I'm with Shawn and Diana. He started walking back towards the town gate.

"Peck!" Piplup's beak became encased in glowing light as it charged towards Spinarak, who immediately hopped out of the way before slashing at Piplup's back with a surprisingly sharp leg encased in dark energies. What is that move? I know I've seen it somewhere. Spinarak then became shrouded in ghostly energy, and seemed to blend in with the shadows as it charged towards Piplup. Shadow Sneak. Well if that don't beat all... "Hydro Pump!" Spinarak was unable to stop its charge in time to dodge the blast, and was instantly knocked out. Diana tossed the ball carefully at Spinarak, making sure she didn't waste a Pokeball by missing. The catch wasn't very hard.

I don't want to release Spinarak until I'm with the others. To be honest, it's still a bit creepy and it really freaked me out when it crawled down my arm. I just want to make sure I have backup in case something goes wrong. Yeah, that's it. I'm not scared. But then why I am trying to reassure myself of that? Oh well. I'd best head back. Although it wouldn't hurt to get another look at that gorgeous lake. Diana started walking in the direction of the lake.

Shawn woke with a start when Anthony tapped him on the shoulder.

"What is it? I'm up." Well, barely, anyway.

"Diana didn't come back yet?"

"No, she didn't. Wait, you didn't see her?" I hope nothing's wrong. I couldn't live with myself if one of my friends had gotten hurt and I just napped through it.

"Nope. Think we should go look for her?"

"No, give her like, five or ten minutes. You know girls, after all. Always taking their time." She's probably out doing something girly...

Diana was still absolutely mesmerized by what she was seeing. It wasn't very tall, but it was still absolutely beautiful. Its pink "hair" went down the sides and back of its head in dreadlocks, and directly in the center of its forehead lied a great red gem. It looked too brilliant to be a ruby, but what else could it be? No other gem she knew of could possess such a brilliant red, yet there it was. She looked at its tails to see crown-shaped structures at the end of them with gems of the same brilliant red directly in the middle of the crown. It was beautiful, and made her want to stare at it forever. Her emotions felt amplified somehow, so she felt like the slightest bit of sadness could make her burst into tears, and happiness could make her easily jump for joy.

I am Mesprit, being of emotion and first of the lake spirits of Sinnoh. I sense much emotion within you young one, and yet I also see much potential.

Mesprit? No way. I don't believe this is happening. Mesprit had the voice of a young woman, yet she seemed to hold so much power.

I see an inner turmoil within you. Tell me, how much do you appreciate what is given to you in life? Answer with your mind, it's easier that way.

So all I need to do is think my answers and you'll hear them?

That is correct.

Well, I always be sure to feel thankful for the things I get in life in the back of my head.

How often, however, do you feel yourself wanting more than what you are allowed?

I don't think lying would do me any good, so I'm just gonna tell you the truth.

You're right. It won't, but continue.

I always seem to find myself hoping for more than what I've got. I feel like everyone else has the same thoughts. You never have enough, you always need more, and you most of the time pay dearly for it.

Excellent. I will help you on your journey.

Wait, what? But I admitted to not being pure or whatever.

Yes, but you spoke truly and honestly about your own emotions, which is what I desired. Do not tell your friends Shawn and Anthony of me.

Wait, what about Justin?

He already knows of your alliance with me. Just as you will know of his alliance with Azelf, my brother.

Justin's hanging out with one of you guys too?

To make a long story short, yes.

Cool, I guess. Well, I've got to go. I'm sure my friends are worried about me.

Very well. If you ever require my assistance, merely ask for me in your mind and I shall answer.

Cool.

Sayonara, young miss Diana.

With that, Diana walked towards the town gate.

...like her hair, Anthony thought.

"So, how'd everything go?"

"I made off like a bandit", Shawn said. "My Budew knows so many awesome moves. I'm sure Budew will make a great asset to my team."

"Dratini's got Extreme Speed."

Diana and Shawn gave him a look of "What the hell?"

"Dratini? I'm not even gonna ask how. Spinarak seems okay. I haven't released it since I caught it. I kinda wanted to show Justin, since he showed us Zeus."

"Okay then. Wait to show Justin it is, then. Let's head back to the Pokemon Center."

With that, they started walking.

What did you think? Sorry this update took a while, by the way! I didn't exactly have much writing time, what with school starting up again. Teachers sure do love giving homework nowadays, I'll tell you. I hope you guys don't mind too much!

Hope you enjoyed. Until next time!

- Justin