The next morning, Cael woke me up, all smiles.
"Rise and shine, Vera!"
"Urgh. What time is it?"
"7:30am - just the right time for breakfast!"
"You have GOT to be kidding,"
"Nope! It's ready! Come into the pokémon centre, already!" He said, pulling me out of bed.
"Okay, okay, okay," I said, being dragged into the front of the pokémon centre. There was a small table set up, with pancakes and some sort of green tea on it. I sat down on one side, and Cael sat on the other. He was stuck into his pancakes and the sweet-smelling green tea.
"Uh, what's this green stuff?" I asked, only being used to the cheapo tea that my family gets, even though we're not really big on tea in the Crystal household. "It's Ocra tea! My favourite!" He said, proudly, after swallowing about four pancakes at once. I took a tentative sip, and, my goodness, that stuff tastes excellent, like moonbeams and rainbows, and sushi. It was delicious. "Wow! This is good!" I said, revived slightly by its taste
"Yeah, I know," He beamed, proud to have introduced me to that tea. I continued eating in silence, due to the ungodly hour I was woken up. I would've strangled him if he weren't so likeable. "So, what are we doing today?" I asked, sipping my fifth mug of Ocra, having finished the pancakes. "Safari Zone!" He announced, as if he was the executive of a company and had just come up with the idea that would lead to the company's success.
"I heard it's expensive," I said, still drowsy from the early wakeup. "My treat, of course,"
"Big surprise there. You've got so much money it's not funny,"
"Hey, money isn't everything!"
"Okay, Einstein, then what is?"
He hesitated for a moment there, before saying. "Uh... Health," somewhat sheepishly. "Money can buy health,"
"Can't!"
"Can too!"
"Can't!"
"Okay, fine, it can't." I said, too tired to really argue.
"You're right about that!" He said, grinning one of those postcard smiles again. My stomach went funny; I thought it was just due to my overindulgence of pancakes and tea...
After about an hour we were both ready to go to the Safari Zone, kitted in jeans and stuff. Cael's were, naturally, top of the line. I envied his richness, silently promising to myself that I would become a famous movie star and buy myself lots of stuff, just like what Cael's got. After about five minutes of walking, we went into the large entrance building. Cael went up to the counter, and returned with two bags of Safari Balls, grinning.
"Okay, we're allowed in! Let's go!" He said cheerfully. First, we handed our pokémon to the warden, then we walked through the big double doors, and I just gasped. It was amazing - long, long grass, a few rest houses visible, and a huge lake in the middle of it. Cael also looked awestruck. I wondered why - after all, he was part of what probably was the richest family in Jhoto or Kanto! He probably had something like this in his backyard. I didn't say so, though. He seemed embarrassed to talk about his richness.
"It's big, isn't it?" He broke the silence.
"Yeah, really big. There's meant to be lots of pokémon"
"Of course there are. Except you're not allowed to use your own to capture them, only bait and rocks,"
"I didn't see any bait?"
"There's a lot in the bag," He said, opening a pocket in his bag, revealing a lot of dark yellow pellets.
"Okay, we've got bait. Let's go catch some pokémon!"
"Who says we have to catch pokémon?" He said with a sly grin. I had no idea what he meant. "Huh?"
"Oh, don't worry," He sighed. "Let's catch some!"
"That's the spirit!" I grinned. "Let's get them!"
With that, we walked into the long grass. I couldn't see anything, not even Cael who was right next to me... or was he?
"Cael?"
"I'm right here," Said a voice from beside me
"I can't see you,"
"I can't see you either," he said, and I felt a hand touch mine.
"Is that you?" I asked, nervous.
"Yeah, this way we won't lose each other,"
"How are you meant to catch pokémon in grass this long and thick?"
"I dunno," He said, truthfully. "Perhaps there's a clearing or something?"
"I don't think so, but it wouldn't hurt to look," I said, still holding his hand tightly. I didn't want to get separated from him - being alone without my pokémon in the middle of a place inhabited by really strong pokémon isn't my idea of a nice outing. Suddenly, something hit me in the head. The next thing I remember was Cael leaning over me. Which was spooky. Being unconscious and waking up to see your best - okay, only - friend leaning over you is freaky. Believe me.
"Darn, you're awake," He joked - or, at least, I think he was joking. "I was just about to give you mouth-to-mouth!"
"Huh?" I said, groggily. "What happened?"
"A Marowak hit you with its bone-club,"
"I don't see a Marowak?" I asked, confused. "Did you scare it off?"
"No..." He said, twirling a Safari Ball on his finger. "I caught it!"
"I thought you didn't like wild pokémon?" I said, which wasn't the most appropriate thing to say in the situation, I guess.
"I don't. But Nyassa here gave you a pretty big hit, and she's not on very high a level..."
"I see. So you caught her just because she was strong?"
"And because she hurt you. I real-"
Suddenly, a booming voice was heard. "VERA CRYSTAL AND CAEL YETINCA! YOUR SAFARI ZONE TIME IS UP!" "What? Already?" I said, as Cael helped me up. We had ten minutes to get back to the house, or we'd have to forfeit the pokémon we caught. Which, in our case, was just an aggressive Marowak. Cael seemed to know the way out, because, a minute later, he'd dragged me out of the grass, and into the building. He got his Marowak checked out, and we got our pokémon returned. I wasn't terribly pleased at losing them, even if was only for an hour... or was it more? Didn't we pay for four hours of Safari Zone time? I pulled Cael to the side after the formalities of getting our pokémon back were over.
"How long was I unconscious for?"
"Just under three and a half hours"
"So what exactly were you doing for three hours?"
"Well, it took about an hour to catch Nyassa - she kept on running off - then I went to the rest stop, and I couldn't find anyone there. Then I was standing around, not really knowing what to do. Then I started wondering if I should try to help you or something. I remembered that mouth-to-mouth is meant to help, so I was about to, but then you woke up..."
"WATER is what you use on fainted people. You give mouth-to-mouth to people who can't breathe, dimwit," Cael looked somewhat hurt when I said this. "But I guess your heart was in the right place..." "It most certainly was!"
"Yeah. Well, you owe me dinner."
"I always buy the food!"
"I know. So tonight will be no exception, will it?" "Darn." He said, in mock annoyance. We walked back to the pokémon centre, together, talking about the day's events. When we reached the centre, I was somewhat stunned. It was CHOCCAS full of people. The only table that wasn't taken was the small one that we usually sat at - the nurses must've kept it clear for us. We sat down, ordered, and waited for our food to come. I ordered sushi, of course, and Cael ordered some sort of curry. The nurse brought us drinks - Ocra tea, to my delight. As I was sipping on mine, Cael broke the silence - okay, it was pretty noisy, but we were quiet. I was enjoying the taste of the tea, and who knows what Cael was thinking.
"Uh, Vera?" He said, hesitantly.
"Yeah?" I asked, wondering why he would sound so nervous. Perhaps he was afraid he'd get hero worship from me! Hardly likely; he wasn't exactly there most of the time that I was unconscious.
"I, uh, really... I really think you should try curry some time!" He said, looking embarrassed - his face was redder than my pokéballs! He obviously was going to say something else, but I wasn't sure what. "Well, I don't really like hot food. Not even wasabi in sushi. "
"Oh... Well, you still should try it... "
We sat in silence for a while. Cael looked like he was arguing with himself, silently. I wasn't really paying attention - I really liked the taste of the tea! Even now, as I'm writing this all down, I'm sipping on a cup of it. It's beautiful stuff. But back to the story. The sushi and curry arrived, and we ate it in silence. The sushi wasn't as good as what Dad made at home, and I felt homesick for a moment. I pushed the thought out of my mind, and finished my sushi. Cael had long since finished the curry. "So, what are we doing tomorrow?" I asked.
"I was thinking we could challenge Koga,"
"Who's he?"
"The gym leader."
"Oh, yeah. What type of pokémon does he use?"
"Sleep, Confusion, and Poison, "
"Poison's the only TYPE there. "
"I meant ones that could cause that effect, "
"Oh, I see what you mean, " I said, feeling stupid. "I think I'll go to bed. Getting knocked out really takes a lot out of you. " "Okay," Cael said. "I'd better get to bed soon, but I've got a few things to take care of first. "
"Mmm... " I said, realising how sleepy I was for the first time. I got up, went into our room, and changed into my pyjamas. I fell asleep before Cael even came into the room.
"Rise and shine, Vera!"
"Urgh. What time is it?"
"7:30am - just the right time for breakfast!"
"You have GOT to be kidding,"
"Nope! It's ready! Come into the pokémon centre, already!" He said, pulling me out of bed.
"Okay, okay, okay," I said, being dragged into the front of the pokémon centre. There was a small table set up, with pancakes and some sort of green tea on it. I sat down on one side, and Cael sat on the other. He was stuck into his pancakes and the sweet-smelling green tea.
"Uh, what's this green stuff?" I asked, only being used to the cheapo tea that my family gets, even though we're not really big on tea in the Crystal household. "It's Ocra tea! My favourite!" He said, proudly, after swallowing about four pancakes at once. I took a tentative sip, and, my goodness, that stuff tastes excellent, like moonbeams and rainbows, and sushi. It was delicious. "Wow! This is good!" I said, revived slightly by its taste
"Yeah, I know," He beamed, proud to have introduced me to that tea. I continued eating in silence, due to the ungodly hour I was woken up. I would've strangled him if he weren't so likeable. "So, what are we doing today?" I asked, sipping my fifth mug of Ocra, having finished the pancakes. "Safari Zone!" He announced, as if he was the executive of a company and had just come up with the idea that would lead to the company's success.
"I heard it's expensive," I said, still drowsy from the early wakeup. "My treat, of course,"
"Big surprise there. You've got so much money it's not funny,"
"Hey, money isn't everything!"
"Okay, Einstein, then what is?"
He hesitated for a moment there, before saying. "Uh... Health," somewhat sheepishly. "Money can buy health,"
"Can't!"
"Can too!"
"Can't!"
"Okay, fine, it can't." I said, too tired to really argue.
"You're right about that!" He said, grinning one of those postcard smiles again. My stomach went funny; I thought it was just due to my overindulgence of pancakes and tea...
After about an hour we were both ready to go to the Safari Zone, kitted in jeans and stuff. Cael's were, naturally, top of the line. I envied his richness, silently promising to myself that I would become a famous movie star and buy myself lots of stuff, just like what Cael's got. After about five minutes of walking, we went into the large entrance building. Cael went up to the counter, and returned with two bags of Safari Balls, grinning.
"Okay, we're allowed in! Let's go!" He said cheerfully. First, we handed our pokémon to the warden, then we walked through the big double doors, and I just gasped. It was amazing - long, long grass, a few rest houses visible, and a huge lake in the middle of it. Cael also looked awestruck. I wondered why - after all, he was part of what probably was the richest family in Jhoto or Kanto! He probably had something like this in his backyard. I didn't say so, though. He seemed embarrassed to talk about his richness.
"It's big, isn't it?" He broke the silence.
"Yeah, really big. There's meant to be lots of pokémon"
"Of course there are. Except you're not allowed to use your own to capture them, only bait and rocks,"
"I didn't see any bait?"
"There's a lot in the bag," He said, opening a pocket in his bag, revealing a lot of dark yellow pellets.
"Okay, we've got bait. Let's go catch some pokémon!"
"Who says we have to catch pokémon?" He said with a sly grin. I had no idea what he meant. "Huh?"
"Oh, don't worry," He sighed. "Let's catch some!"
"That's the spirit!" I grinned. "Let's get them!"
With that, we walked into the long grass. I couldn't see anything, not even Cael who was right next to me... or was he?
"Cael?"
"I'm right here," Said a voice from beside me
"I can't see you,"
"I can't see you either," he said, and I felt a hand touch mine.
"Is that you?" I asked, nervous.
"Yeah, this way we won't lose each other,"
"How are you meant to catch pokémon in grass this long and thick?"
"I dunno," He said, truthfully. "Perhaps there's a clearing or something?"
"I don't think so, but it wouldn't hurt to look," I said, still holding his hand tightly. I didn't want to get separated from him - being alone without my pokémon in the middle of a place inhabited by really strong pokémon isn't my idea of a nice outing. Suddenly, something hit me in the head. The next thing I remember was Cael leaning over me. Which was spooky. Being unconscious and waking up to see your best - okay, only - friend leaning over you is freaky. Believe me.
"Darn, you're awake," He joked - or, at least, I think he was joking. "I was just about to give you mouth-to-mouth!"
"Huh?" I said, groggily. "What happened?"
"A Marowak hit you with its bone-club,"
"I don't see a Marowak?" I asked, confused. "Did you scare it off?"
"No..." He said, twirling a Safari Ball on his finger. "I caught it!"
"I thought you didn't like wild pokémon?" I said, which wasn't the most appropriate thing to say in the situation, I guess.
"I don't. But Nyassa here gave you a pretty big hit, and she's not on very high a level..."
"I see. So you caught her just because she was strong?"
"And because she hurt you. I real-"
Suddenly, a booming voice was heard. "VERA CRYSTAL AND CAEL YETINCA! YOUR SAFARI ZONE TIME IS UP!" "What? Already?" I said, as Cael helped me up. We had ten minutes to get back to the house, or we'd have to forfeit the pokémon we caught. Which, in our case, was just an aggressive Marowak. Cael seemed to know the way out, because, a minute later, he'd dragged me out of the grass, and into the building. He got his Marowak checked out, and we got our pokémon returned. I wasn't terribly pleased at losing them, even if was only for an hour... or was it more? Didn't we pay for four hours of Safari Zone time? I pulled Cael to the side after the formalities of getting our pokémon back were over.
"How long was I unconscious for?"
"Just under three and a half hours"
"So what exactly were you doing for three hours?"
"Well, it took about an hour to catch Nyassa - she kept on running off - then I went to the rest stop, and I couldn't find anyone there. Then I was standing around, not really knowing what to do. Then I started wondering if I should try to help you or something. I remembered that mouth-to-mouth is meant to help, so I was about to, but then you woke up..."
"WATER is what you use on fainted people. You give mouth-to-mouth to people who can't breathe, dimwit," Cael looked somewhat hurt when I said this. "But I guess your heart was in the right place..." "It most certainly was!"
"Yeah. Well, you owe me dinner."
"I always buy the food!"
"I know. So tonight will be no exception, will it?" "Darn." He said, in mock annoyance. We walked back to the pokémon centre, together, talking about the day's events. When we reached the centre, I was somewhat stunned. It was CHOCCAS full of people. The only table that wasn't taken was the small one that we usually sat at - the nurses must've kept it clear for us. We sat down, ordered, and waited for our food to come. I ordered sushi, of course, and Cael ordered some sort of curry. The nurse brought us drinks - Ocra tea, to my delight. As I was sipping on mine, Cael broke the silence - okay, it was pretty noisy, but we were quiet. I was enjoying the taste of the tea, and who knows what Cael was thinking.
"Uh, Vera?" He said, hesitantly.
"Yeah?" I asked, wondering why he would sound so nervous. Perhaps he was afraid he'd get hero worship from me! Hardly likely; he wasn't exactly there most of the time that I was unconscious.
"I, uh, really... I really think you should try curry some time!" He said, looking embarrassed - his face was redder than my pokéballs! He obviously was going to say something else, but I wasn't sure what. "Well, I don't really like hot food. Not even wasabi in sushi. "
"Oh... Well, you still should try it... "
We sat in silence for a while. Cael looked like he was arguing with himself, silently. I wasn't really paying attention - I really liked the taste of the tea! Even now, as I'm writing this all down, I'm sipping on a cup of it. It's beautiful stuff. But back to the story. The sushi and curry arrived, and we ate it in silence. The sushi wasn't as good as what Dad made at home, and I felt homesick for a moment. I pushed the thought out of my mind, and finished my sushi. Cael had long since finished the curry. "So, what are we doing tomorrow?" I asked.
"I was thinking we could challenge Koga,"
"Who's he?"
"The gym leader."
"Oh, yeah. What type of pokémon does he use?"
"Sleep, Confusion, and Poison, "
"Poison's the only TYPE there. "
"I meant ones that could cause that effect, "
"Oh, I see what you mean, " I said, feeling stupid. "I think I'll go to bed. Getting knocked out really takes a lot out of you. " "Okay," Cael said. "I'd better get to bed soon, but I've got a few things to take care of first. "
"Mmm... " I said, realising how sleepy I was for the first time. I got up, went into our room, and changed into my pyjamas. I fell asleep before Cael even came into the room.