Jerito League: Gym Leader Challenge
By Arizima
AN: Character development time, yay! ^_^;;; There are also a lot of scene changes in this chapter, but that's just how it works.
Brooke couldn't truthfully say that she enjoyed mopping up the mud from Gligar's Mud Slap, but the battle had been worth it. It had been a long time since she was in a Pokémon battle, and even though she had been nervous at first, it had all come rushing back.
Brooke suddenly put her mop down as she spotted a Poison Sting needle that Levina had missed. Rather than calling her over, Brooke carefully picked it up and made for the pile of Poison Sting needles a few feet away. Unfortunately, she slipped on the mop and lost her grip on the needle, which then scratched the back of her hand. Brooke stared at the long cut as a white-hot pain patiently made its way down her fingers and hand. A burst of fear suddenly gripped her heart as she realized that she was poisoned, and she could feel her pulse quickening.
' Don't panic, you idiot, it'll only get to your heart quicker!' screamed a voice in her head, but Brooke paid it no heed as she fearfully got up, staring at the purplish stain around the cut, and wincing at the pain that had made its way to her elbow. Now in a state of panic, she stepped backward and tripped over the pile of Poison Sting needles. An sudden stinging pain in her right buttock confirmed that she had sat on them, and quickly spread to her waist and leg. She continued to stare at her hand, eyes wide, when she began to feel light-headed.
" Guys…. Help!" she managed to croak out before she passed out.
* * * * *
Brooke came to with a horrible medicine-like taste in her mouth and fluttered her eyes open. Seeing Terran's face inches from hers to her right, she shouted the first thing that came to her mind as she shoved him away.
" Don't get so close, I don't need to see your pores!" A male voice above Brooke laughed.
" She's alive and kicking. You'd better get her to the infirmary anyway, Max Revives are meant for Pokémon. She might have side effects." Brooke looked up to see a boy – no, young man, with very dark blue hair smiling down at her.
" Uh, hi."
" Hello." He smiled. " Can you get up?" Brooke nodded, and the man released her arms from his gloves that were the same color of his hair. " You'd better get to the infirmary or medical office or whatever it's called, Poison Sting attacks aren't meant for humans, and neither is Pokémon medicine." Brooke nodded weakly again and stood up woozily. Her vision suddenly exploded with black-and-purple checkerboards that slowly faded away as she became more sure of her feet. She looked behind her and saw Terran hand an empty bottle to the dark-haired man, then rush over to her.
" What are you doing?" she asked.
" Taking you to the infirmary. This is all my fault, I'm the one who had Gligar use Poison Sting from far away." There was a tone of regret in his face, and he was hanging his head.
" No it isn't, we all knew the dangers."
" Well, Terran's the one who challenged us," Levina said, popping up on her other side.
" Levina," Brooke said warningly. " Go finish cleaning up or something, I don't need you blaming Terran. It's everybody's fault, I'm the one who accepted and you're the one who volunteered to referee."
" Okay then," Levina said brightly, suddenly fingering two Pokéballs. " Raichu, Magneton, go!" Brooke paused and watched, interested, as the large orange hamster walked through the water, dragging its tail through it. Terran laughed.
" Levina's a genius! Once the water is charged, Magneton will be able to pick it up magnetically! Come on, let's go." Brooke nodded as the two made their way into a small office not far away from the large room.
* * * * *
" Well?" Brooke asked nervously as the ship's doctor put away his penlight.
" You seem to be fine, but I think I'll give you a few Poison Cure Berries just in case. And the poison may have weakened your immune system, so be very careful about handling things, at least until we get to Jerito. And in about an hour, you may have to urinate very badly, so I suggest you not get in too deep a sleep lest you have an accident." The doctor handed Brooke a few tiny purple berries and she ingested them, standing up.
" And now, I think you should get some rest. Your cabin number is on your ticket, and is also the telephone extension." Brooke pulled out her ticket again and saw the characters '4-B.'
" It says 4-B," Brooke said.
" Hey, that's right by my cabin! I'll take you there." Terran volunteered.
" Wait a second," said the doctor. He rummaged through a refrigerator and pulled out an egg in a baggie.
" If you're still feeling sick after you urinate in an hour or so, then you should open the baggie and fill it with boiling water, then close it almost all the way and let it sit for a few minutes, then eat the egg, understand? And if you don't urinate, come see me, because the poison would have done something to your bladder." Brooke blinked, but nodded.
" Isn't that a Chansey egg?" The doctor nodded and sent them on their way.
" Listen, I'm really, really sorry about this." Terran apologized again as the two walked down a corridor.
" Don't be, I'm fine." Terran stared at her.
" You know what would happened if you were allergic to Gligar or Poison Stings? You could have died!" Brooke shrugged.
" I guess I'm lucky, then. I've been having a lot of luck today, I nearly ran into the ocean earlier when my dad caught me." Terran raised an eyebrow.
" I'm not going to ask…. This is your cabin." He pointed at a door with a gold-colored plate labeled '4-B'. " I'll call you in a while to see how you're doing, alright?" Brooke nodded and opened the door.
" Bye."
" Bye." Brooke went in and took almost nothing in as she made her way to a bed and flopped down on it, not even stopping to take off her shoes before she fell asleep.
* * * * *
Brooke was awakened to a feeling of incredible pressure in her lower gut. She realized that this was what the doctor was talking about, and rushed for the bathroom. As soon as the poison was flushed out, she heard a mechanical, cheery voice call out,
" Ring ring ring! Ring ring ring! Phone call! Phone call! Ring ring ring! Ring ring ring! Phone call! Phone—"
" Hello, Brooke Cascade speaking." Brooke said once she had picked up the receiver. Terran's relieved face appeared on the monitor.
" Hi, Brooke! Are you alright?" Brooke nodded.
" All that poison was just flushed down the commode, I should be fine now." A brief look of confusion appeared on Terran's face, but then he understood.
" That's good, listen, I—"
" Don't even think about apologizing again," Brooke interrupted in a dangerous voice. She heard Levina's voice laughing in the background. " Is Levina there with you?" Terran nodded.
" Hey, would you like to come over? We could play cards or something, I dunno."
" Yeah, sure. Where are you?" Terran grinned.
" Hang up and go to the door." Brooke raised a skeptical eyebrow. " Just do it, okay?" Brooke nodded and waved goodbye, then hung up. Once she had opened the cabin door, she saw Terran waving from the door next to the one across the hall.
" Told ya you were right by me," he grinned as she went inside. Brooke shook her head, laughing.
AN: Aw, Terran's a gentleman. Next chapter: They finally arrive in Jerito! *swirly eyes* Yay!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, have not owned Pokémon, and will never own Pokémon. I am not making money off of this, have not made money off of this, and will never make money off of this. I do not have Nintendo's permission, did not have Nintendo's permission, and will never have Nintendo's permission to write this. But since there haven't been any lawsuits against Pokémon fanfiction before (that I know of) I'm not too worried. That said, let's move on.
^_^ Remember, this story was brought to you by reviewers like you. Thank you. ^_^
