Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. There, now, wasn't that simple?
Before the Capture: Venus
Chapter Two
Unfortunately for the little Bulbasaur, the voice belonged to Zephyrus, the Grand Guardian of Breezewood Meadow and protector of all its inhabitants. Of course, Venus usually referred to him as the Grouch Guardian since he rarely let her explain any of the trouble she caused, and when he did, he'd scoff at her and accuse her of making petty excuses. She sighed, sat down, and awaited the dreaded lecture.
{Venus, ever since your parents arrived here with you a year ago, you have been nothing but trouble. Your mother has been a saint putting up with all your mischief. But this, little Bulbasaur, is beyond even your troublesome nature. Don't you realize how distressed my wife and I were when we found one of our eggs missing? Hatched or not, they are still our children, and you had absolutely no right to take any of them! I'm afraid I can't let you go with just a warning this time.}
{But I didn't—}
{And don't you even dare give me one of your tiresome excuses. Next you'll tell me that some other Pokémon was stealing it, and you were trying to get it back.}
{That's right! But if you know that, why am I in trouble?}
Zephyrus's eyes glowed in barely controlled anger before taking a deep breath and replying, {Venus, this is not some game! This egg could have been broken, or snatched by a hungry Ekans—}
{Well, it almost was eaten by an Ekans. Until I rescued it, that is.} Venus puffed out her chest in pride.
At this point, many of the other meadow Pokémon had come to see what the commotion was about, including Venus's mother and a Spearow named Blade, Venus's best friend. Zephyrus's wife, Gale, also arrived and took the egg into her wings in tears. After consoling Gale for a time, Zephyrus turned his attention back to the Bulbasaur.
{Don't be ridiculous! A tiny Pokémon like you could never defeat an Ekans and retrieve the egg. You're simply not at a high enough level.} That really struck a cord.
{I'm extremely strong for my level!} Venus cried. {And besides, I didn't battle it—I outsmarted it. I'm also very intelligent for my age. Mom said so.} Venus could hear her mother sigh behind the intimidating Noctowl.
{I don't want to hear any more,} Zephyrus decided. He turned to the female Venusaur behind him. {Aphrodite, I want you, Adonis, and Venus to meet me at sunset at the Meeting Peak. This is something that must be discussed.} With that, he, his wife, and most of the other Pokémon left to go back to the meadow. Only Venus, her mother, and Blade remained behind.
{Mom! It isn't fair! I actually do something right, and I still get chewed out!} Venus told her mother. Tears began to form in her bright red eyes.
{Well, Venus, it is a rather… imaginative story…} Venus's eyes went wide.
{You mean you don't believe me? I can't believe it! Not even my own mother…} She ended abruptly, the tears now flowing freely. Aphrodite put a vine tenderly around her daughter.
{No, Venus, it's not that I don't believe you. I am perfectly aware of what you can do. It's just… well, we only came here a year ago, and we need to spend more time here before we can oppose authority. Otherwise, we risk being exiled, and then we'd have to wander to find somewhere else to live.} Venus sniffled.
{And by wandering by ourselves, we risk being seen and caught by trainers, right?} she replied snidely. Aphrodite smiled, oblivious to her daughter's tone.
{Yes, dear, you understand. Now, come along. It will be sunset soon, and we and your father need to speak with Zephyrus and work this out.} Venus's mother then turned around back toward the meadow. When she was out of hearing range, Blade hopped up to Venus to get more information.
{Wow, what happened? Why did you have that egg? Did you really outsmart an Ekans for it?} she eagerly asked. Venus smiled at her friend, silently remembering how they came to be friends in the first place…
Unlike most Spearow, Blade had a pleasant and friendly temperament, which made her easy pickings for the mean-spirited Spearow that also lived in Breezewood Meadow. She and Venus met when the other Spearow stole an old abandoned baseball Blade had found by the river. The teased her and stole it from her and played an unfair version of Mankey-in-the-Middle until Blade broke down and cried. Venus heard her, and she arrived on the scene just as the other Spearow began Pecking Blade because of her crying. Being the noble Pokémon she was, Venus snatched the ball with her vine and Tackled the other Spearow away. Of course, Zephyrus didn't commend Venus for that, but she figured the friendship she found that day was more than enough reward.
So, Venus told Blade of how she scared the Ekans nearly to death and how it had let go of the egg to save its life. As they walked back to meadow, Blade listened with eyes wide and mouth agape.
{Golly, I wish I could be brave and strong like you,} Blade said.
{Well, one day when you evolve, you will be stronger than I am, since Flying-types are strong against Grass-types,} Venus replied.
{Yeah, but you'll be a huge Venusaur when you evolve—I'll only be a four-foot Fearow,} Blade responded sadly. Venus giggled.
{Well, when you get to be a high enough level, you'll find out that size doesn't matter. I've seen a little Bellossom defeat a huge Rhydon, simply because he was a higher level and had the type advantage.}
{Wow, amazing! Did you see that before you came to Breezewood?} Venus nodded.
{I wish I could travel around to see stuff like that,} the Spearow sighed. {But being stuck here doesn't let you see many Pokémon besides the same old Grass- and Flying-types.} Venus stopped in her tracks.
{Blade, that's brilliant!} Blade also stopped and turned around.
{Huh? What is?}
{We should travel around! Explore this huge world! It's not right for us to be cooped up in this meadow all our lives—how are we going to get stronger like that?}
{Er, Venus, I didn't mean it that—}
{Come on, Blade—stop being such a Pidgey and toughen up. It would be fun!}
{I'm going to ignore the Pidgey remark—but wouldn't it be a better idea to do this when we're older and can, you know, take care of ourselves?}
{Who says we can't take care of ourselves? I took care of that Ekans, didn't I?}
{Yes, but—}
{And being out there against the elements and new Pokémon might help train you to be braver and stronger.}
{That's true…}
{And you can see all the magnificent sights I used to see before I was stuck here.}
{Well… maybe. But what about our parents?}
{We'll leave them a note tonight while everyone's sleeping. If we tell them directly, they'll never let us go.} The tiny bird shifted uneasily.
{Doesn't that tell you something?}
{Yeah, that our parents want us to be weak little pre-evolutions all our lives.} Blade sighed. Suddenly, they heard Venus's mother calling.
{Oh, I gotta go, Blade. It's time for the "meeting,"} she told her friend. Blade nodded.
{Well, good luck. I just hope Zephyrus isn't as angry now as he was earlier.} Venus paled at the thought.
{Aw, I'm sure he's cooled off by now,} she said. Blade shrugged before saying goodbye and flying off.
{Ah, there you are, Venus,} her mother said as Venus trotted toward her. {We're going to see Zephyrus now. I only hope your father and I can talk you out of this one,} she fretted. Then she and Venus went to meet with Adonis and proceed on their way to Meeting Peak.
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What does Zephyrus have in store for Venus now? And will she and Blade actually go through with their plan? You have to read and review to find out! {Saur! (^n_n^)}
