A League Of Their Own: Episode #4 ~ Enroute
An all-new style; Including a new world, new battles, and even new clothes.
A/N: Oh my GOD this is late! X___X Blame the Holiday season! *jumps up and down* That's it! It's all December's fault! ...Eh, you don't believe me, so just read. *frumps off*
Still walking diligently (As if "diligence" was even a word they knew the meaning of.) along behind Gary, who had finally succeeded in winning the little fight over who was leading, Eevy, Ash, and Richie continued scanning the trees and bushes around them. It was getting darker, and not even the great Garick Oak enjoyed the feeling he was getting all too much. Around them, they heard the cries of Pokemon they did not recognize, and it was all too unnerving. Finally having decided it was time to take his mind off the landscape, Richie quickly drew his new Poke'Nav and began attempting to work it out. Clicking through it, he found himself, after many failed attempts, at a map of the Hoenn region. Being too dark to see the actual paper map by now, the tiny screen with the even tinier light was going to have to do.
"According to this thing…" he said quietly, causing all three of his companions to look at him, "We're about three quarters of the way to Oldale."
"So we have only a fraction more to go," Gary announced, grinning.
"Yes, but it's gotten really dark really fast," Eevy shuttered, looking up at the trees, which now showed no light between their leaves, "I think we should stop for tonight. If we get up early tomorrow we can make it to Oldale and maybe part of the way to the next town."
"Yeah…" Ash agreed, "I don't like the feeling I'm getting. It just…Doesn't seem right."
"Stop trying to sound important," Gary grumbled.
"Enough," Eevy raised a hand between them, "We agreed on no fighting, remember? So both of you stop."
Each of them answered with nothing more than a grunt and a scuff of their feet. Sighing, Richie and Eevy went on about setting up their fire while Gary and Ash kept quietly bickering over who had done this, and who got to do that, and yadda-yadda-yadda…Finally having a decent-sized fire going, Eevy dropped her sleeping bag and kicked it out. At her feet, Ash did the same. Across the fire, Richie laid his, and to the top of Eevy's, Gary unrolled his. A few moments later, they found themselves seated on their respective beds, munching on small bits of food. Eevy seemed to be the only one eating healthy, devouring two apples, while the other three gnawed at what appeared to be junk food.
"It's getting late," Eevy noted suddenly, watching the other three tossing their garbage into their backpacks again, "We should get some sleep so we can get up early and get to Oldale Town."
"Right…Here's to hoping any of us can sleep," Ash shivered, looking left to right, "I keep feeling like we're being watched."
"You too?" Richie questioned, quickly slipping into his sleeping bag and ducking down, "I thought it was just my imagination."
"I've been feeling a little weird too," Gary nodded twice, halfway into his own sleeping bag, "Eevy? What about you?"
"Yes," she agreed, fairly slowly, "Just a bit."
"OK…At least we can all agree about one thing," Ash grumbled, "Too bad it's not quite the best thing to agree on."
All four, though slowly and seemingly overly-cautiously, slipped into their 'beds' and prepared for sleep. Finally calming their slightly wracked nerves and aching muscles, they settled quicker than was expected, and slowly began to drift to slumber. Really relaxing for the first time all day, and putting the day's events as far behind them as they could, they let the nighttime darkness and the chirp of crickets lull them deeper into their dreams. Just as they started to fall into the perfect state for a good, deep sleep, something let out a long wolf-like howl. All four trainers shot up straight, looking frantically around in every direction, and Vovo and the other Pokemon came shooting out from inside the backpacks sitting near their masters, panting heavily.
"What the hell was that?" Gary asked quickly.
"Do we really…Want to know?" Ash questioned, quivering violently.
Richie shook his head side to side over and over again, "No, no, no, no, no."
"It was just…Just a Pokemon," Eevy concluded firmly, beginning to lay back down, "Stop being so para-"
Before she could even get the last word out of her mouth, whatever it was howled again, this time accompanied by three or four more. Screaming, Eevy ducked under her blanket and shook profusely. Taking their cue from the oldest person in their party, Gary, Richie, and Ash did the same, all four of them refusing to emerge until morning.
*^~^**^~^*
"I…Is it safe?"
"I dunno."
"You look first."
"Bullshit."
Standing over her friends, Eevy placed her hands on her hips, tilting an eyebrow back at Gary, who merely shrugged unknowing. Poking Ash's side, Eevy sniggered as he screamed slightly, causing Pikachu to shock him beneath the blanket. As both she and Gary ducked away and Richie and Sparky peeked out from under their blanket to check on him, Vovo and Evo sniffed quietly at Ash's smoking form.
"Are you all right?" Richie asked quickly, being that Ashura was now whimpering quietly.
"I'm…Just…Wonderful…" he murmured, right eye twitching.
"Pikapi…" Pikachu murmured, rubbing the back of his head.
"Aww…It's OK, Pikachu," Eevy patted his head, "You were just trying to protect him."
"Yeah. Besides," Gary knelt down and grinned wickedly, "Ashy-boy's been through much worse than a little shock now and then. And look at the way his thick head survived that."
"Garick…" Eevy sighed, turning to him, "Can't you be just a smidgen more decent? We're going to be together for a while, so the least you can do is try and get along."
"Yeah, yeah…" Gary crossed his arms, "But still; I really would like to know what we heard last night too."
"Whatever it was, there was more than one," Richie noted, "I woke up early this morning and heard them yowling again. Sounded like five or six of them all together."
"Like a pack of wolves," Eevy shuttered, hugging Vovo close.
"I don't suppose anybody knows anything about any Wolf Pokemon, huh?" Ash asked, brushing himself off.
"Are you kidding me? I just learned what a Taillow was," Eevy sputtered.
"…What's a Taillow?" Richie asked, sweatdropping.
*^~^**^~^*
"Ah-hah! Oldale Town!"
Looking around the expanse of their newest location, all four trainers grinned. It was a small town, and very docile, so there was most likely no reason to worry about wolves (or whatever the heck they'd heard the night before). Eevy suddenly slouched lower; there were two routes out of the town, aside from the one they'd come in on. That gave her even more of a chance to get lost. Wonderful.
"Looks like a pretty normal town to me," Richie murmured, looking side to side, "So…Where's the Pokemon Center?"
"The Center would be that way," said someone to their side, "But for an old hag like little miss Champion Mistress there, it's still too easy to get lost."
Teeth clenched and eyes practically raging fire, Eevy turned slowly off to her right, "You!" she shrieked, "What are you doing here, Luminati?!"
"Training," Daemeon smirked, "So I can kick your ass and become Champion."
"Shove it somewhere the sun don't shine, ya' little maggot," she growled.
"That's not something a Champion should say to a little kid," Daemeon laughed hysterically, "Especially one as pathetic as you!"
"Why you no-good rotten little rodent!" she threw her fists down to her sides, "I swear to God, one of these days, you'll be eating your words for appetizers and my fists as a main course!"
"You're a scary old witch, aren't you?" he grinned, "How about I give you a taste of pure Hoenn power? Or are you afraid you're too weak to beat me?"
Eevy's right eye began to twitch, "Evangelina…" Ash backed away slowly, hands raised.
Pikachu, on his shoulder, and Sparky and Evo and their masters also started to carefully back up. Knowing that she'd like to have some experience battling Hoenn region Pokemon before marching into a Gym battle, Eevy snapped a knuckle. Biting her bottom lip as her upper began to quiver, she attempted to calm herself. Even so, red and black boiled up from the bottoms of her irises. Clenching her lower lip, her fangs began to grow. Long and serrated, akin possibly to a shark's, they dug into her chin before they ceased growing.
"No one…Calls me weak," reaching back, she drew a Poke'Ball and swung her arm around, "Go, Rain Ball!"
The blue light that fell from the Poke'Ball formed into her Vaporeon, whose eyes flickered black and red as well as he shook himself off, "Por!"
"Go! Nuzleaf!"
What broke from the ball was slightly stout and looked something like one would imagine Pinocchio. Finally having been able to tame her fierce anger, Eevy made a face of utter confusion, as did Gary, Ash, and Richie. Tilting his head, Novo blinked twice, letting out another tiny cry. The Nuzleaf flexed his arms, then punched the air, letting out a long, nasty shriek.
"Now is one of those times I'm happy to know Pokemon Professors," Eevy noted, pulling her Poke'Dex from her pocket and popping it open.
"The Wily Pokemon, Nuzleaf. Pokemon number 274; a Grass/Dark-type. This Pokemon pulls out the leaf on its head and makes a flute with it. The sound of Nuzleaf's flute strikes fear and uncertainty in the hearts of people lost in a forest. Because of this, some ancient cultures revered it as the bringer of death, destruction, and misfortune."
"Geez…Sounds like you on a good day, maggot. Since it's half Grass-type, we'll start this out with a simple victory of type advantages," Eevy smirked, "Go, Novo! Use Ice Beam!"
"Nuzleaf, Sunny Day attack!"
As the Vaporeon fired his Ice-type attack and the Nuzleaf his Fire-type, both Pokemon jumped away. The Sunny Day melted the Ice Beam, creating a small river of water in the dirt, which was immediately sopped up into the grass. As the sun hit Nuzleaf's leaf, Eevy noticed a sudden change in its speed.
"What in the world…?" she asked quietly, her eyes narrowing.
"You really are clueless!" Daemeon laughed hysterically, "In Hoenn, Pokemon are equipped with special Abilities that help them both in and out of battle! My Nuzleaf's ability is Chlorophyll!"
"Oh really? And just what does Chlorophyll do?" Eevy asked, narrowing one eye.
"Chlorophyll ups the speed of Pokemon with the Ability when it's sunny," he smirked, "You'd better pay closer attention to the battle than to me."
As Eevy looked back down, Nuzleaf bolted in and crashed a direct hit to Novo's face. Shrieking, he backed away from his opponent, rubbing his snout, then hissed and stomped forward.
"You little maggot…You distracted me!"
"Shut up and battle!"
"Go, Novo! Use your Blizzard!"
"Nuzleaf, dodge and fight back!"
Eyes widening as Nuzleaf lunged away from the oncoming attack, Novo ran directly into his firing pattern. Forming in his hand a tennis ball-sized seed, Nuzleaf threw it at him. Again and again, five times in a row, a giant seed cracked into the Water-type's face. Slipping back on his side, Novo whimpered before straining to his feet.
"He's kicking my ass," Eevy grunted to herself, eyes narrowing, "That stupid Ability of his is making that Nuzleaf way too fast…Wait a minute," her eyes widened, "If his Pokemon gets an Ability…Why doesn't mine?!" she reached back to her pocket and popped open her Poke'Dex, "Give me the available Ability of that Vaporeon!"
"Vaporeon Ability…Scanning…Data recovered. Swift Swim; Doubles Pokemon's Speed when raining during battle."
"Hey! You can't do that!" Daemeon shrieked, "That's unfair!"
Eevy grinned wickedly, "I have a lot to learn, but so do you. Novo, use Rain Dance attack!"
Forcing himself to a stand, the Vaporeon leapt from the trail of a last minute Solar Beam. Throwing his head back, Novo called a storm and it began to pour. His frills spreading, he took off like a shot toward Nuzleaf, who was now stuck in mud.
"Nuzleaf, Bullet Seed attack!"
Forming a seed in his hand once more, Nuzleaf threw it over his head at the Water-type charging at him. Novo slipped off to the side, splashing dirty water into the Grass/Dark-type's face. Wincing, he rubbed his eyes and shouted.
"Novo!" Eevy held her backpack over her head as it continued to rain, "Surf attack, now!"
Daemeon quivered as the tremendous wave towered over both him and his Pokemon. It crashed down on his Nuzleaf, then washed back into him. The crash from the thunderous water drowned out everything else, and the rain slowly came to a stop. Looking up and across to where he'd been standing, Eevy dropped her arms to her sides, the puddles that had formed in her wrinkled backpack spilling out.
"He's gone…" she whispered, then started screaming, "That little insect ran away! He has the gall to call me weak, and then he runs away?!"
As she continued ranting, Ash, Gary, and Richie stood back behind her, all sopping wet and twitching.
*^~^**^~^*
A figure, this one seated in front of a screen flashing red and black, watched a computer monitor intently. When the buzzer on the outside of the door sounded, and the red light above the entrance flashed on, he looked away from the electronic graph.
"Come in."
The doors slid open, and a woman stepped in, holding a red folder, "Master…We've found some information that should be most interesting to you, sir."
"Let me see it," he murmured, sitting back.
She hurried over and slid a disk into the side of the laptop, "This information was gathered using our satellites above Littleroot Town, sir. It shows a tremendous surge of power."
The grid he watched was a simple black background with white lines. Along the bottom was a thin red line, and below that a line of blue. With no warning, the blue line shot up six boxes, completely covering the red one. His eyes widened.
"What is this?" he asked quickly.
"Keep watching, sir."
He looked at her a moment more, then looked back again. Three lines down from the top, white melted in from the side, utterly engulfing the rest of the chart. He leaned quickly away; there was so much of it, it hurt his eyes to watch.
"What is this?" he questioned again.
"This came from the waters off Littleroot Town Harbor, sir. The source of the red and blue energies is apparent, and it appears the white is that of the Angel of the Prophecy. She's come to Hoenn, Master."
He shot to his feet, his deep red eyes narrowing, "Her power is already tremendous; far superior to all we've simulated. She will awaken the gods quicker than we had calculated. We must find her before Archimedes can," he clenched his fist on the table, "The power of the Lord of Earth and the Lord of Water will be mine!" his assistant stumbled back as he slammed his fist to the table and jolted even the laptop upwards.
*^~^**^~^*
"She's been on the phone for hours…"
"I'm glad we don't have to pay for this…"
"We're already almost flat broke…"
Ash, Gary and Richie sat on the bench behind Eevy, watching her as she waved her arms around in front of the videophone screen. They didn't even want to ask what she was talking to Professor Birch and Joshua about that was getting her so excited. Her mouth was going, her arms were still waving, she was fidgeting around constantly…
"But I don't understand, Professor, how my Vaporeon acquired an Ability like that! They've never had them before; I would have known about them!" she shrieked, arms thrown out to her sides.
Birch laughed, "There's been only one sane theory on how Pokemon from other regions are gaining this power. It's believed…" he reached off screen for a book and flipped it open, holding it up, "That some kind of magnetic surge from deep beneath the Earth's surface is causing Pokemon's molecular structure to morph and is giving them these Abilities. Somehow, the main generator for this power seems to be branching out from beneath the Hoenn region and slowly affecting the other regions as it grows."
"Unfortunately, this raises a lot of questions," Joshua put in, also picking up a book to show her, "Such as if there is a way to get rid of these Abilities, and if there's some kind of danger in these magnetic fields for either Pokemon or humans."
"Is there?" Eevy questioned.
"Not that we've seen, no," Birch shook his head, "In fact, it appears to sometimes make Pokemon a great deal stronger."
"That's good to know," Eevy sighed, "But is there a way to figure out what's creating the field?"
"Well, from thermal satellite photos of the Hoenn region from above," Joshua dragged over a large board with photos pinned on it, then adjusted the camera so she could see, "There appear to be three specific points of power generation. We've visited them, but so far we can only locate two, and they are both the location of ancient shrines, which appear to be permanently sealed. We're not permitted to open them. It's still believed that unsealing them could unleash tremendous monsters. But here's a map of their placements."
He held it up for her to see, "They're in a perfect triangle," she murmured, "Can you send me a copy of that map? I'd like to see it. Perhaps we'll be able to find something if we pass those places."
"Of course," Birch nodded, "But I don't want to send it to the Pokemon Center. It leaves a log in the binary files of the mail system, and someone could easily find it and go searching. I'll send it to Petalburg Gym. The Gym Leader there, as I've told you, is a good and trusted friend of mine. Norman Riker."
"Yes, I remember. I understand. We'll pick it up there when we reach Petalburg," Eevy agreed.
"See? We told you you'd be able to help," Joshua grinned.
"Hey, we haven't found anything yet," she waved her hand, "I'll call you again when we reach Petalburg Gym. Thanks a lot, Professor."
"You too. Goodbye."
The screen went black, "OK, guys!" she turned around, "Ready to--Huh…?" blinking twice, she grunted as she found her three human companions and all four Pokemon asleep on the bench, "Good grief…"
*^~^**^~^*
"I'm too tiiired to walk…" murmured the dazed Ash as he stumbled along behind Eevy.
"We were having such nice naps…" Richie coughed, rubbing his right eye.
"Pikaa…" both Pikachu and Sparky agreed.
"You two…" Eevy shook her head and Vovo snickered on her shoulder, "If you hadn't fallen asleep, you wouldn't be having this problem. You should have been like Gary and just put on some sunglasses to rest your eyes."
"Yeah," Gary nodded firmly, grinning wide, "It creates the illusion of sleep and makes you feel just as rested."
"Maybe for psychos like you…" Ash snorted, rolling his eyes, "How far are we from Petalburg now, Richie?"
"Not too far, by the looks of things," Richie noted, still rubbing his eye, "We'll make it in a couple of hours."
As he turned off his Poke'Nav and yawned wide, Gary stopped, causing everyone else to do so too, "What's the matter?" Eevy questioned, peeking around his side.
"What are they…?" he muttered, only just loudly enough for everyone to hear him, then started towards two strange trees on the side of the road.
Evo hopped down from his shoulder and scampered along behind him, "Eevee…" he murmured, tipping his head as he sniffed the base of the tree, "Eevee-eev."
"What do you think they are?" Ash asked, poking a large berry that hung from one of the branches.
"Let's see if the Poke'Dex knows," Richie aimed his at the tree on the right, "Analyze."
"Berry number 03; The Pecha Berry. A very soft and sweet Berry, which is also very tender. Handle with care!"
"Let's see what this one is too," Ash pulled out his own Poke'Dex and aimed it at the other tree.
"Berry number 07; The Oran Berry. A peculiar Berry, with a mix of all five Flavors; Spicy, Dry, Sweet, Bitter and Sour. They are very hard and grow in half a day."
"Pecha and Oran Berries…Hm…Never heard of them," Eevy scratched her head, "Are we allowed to pick these?"
"Affirmative," Ash's Poke'Dex blurted, "It is permitted to pick all Berries throughout the Hoenn region, and preferred that you replant at least one."
"Looks like there's two of each," Gary noted, "Should we take them?"
"Why not?" Eevy shrugged, "Maybe we can find out what they're used for."
Each trainer took hold of a Berry, then pulled them carefully off. Within seconds, both plants crumbled and disappeared. Backing away, they looked blankly at each other and swallowed hard.
"Were they supposed to do that…?" Richie asked quietly.
"I sure hope so," Ash sweatdropped.
"Well…Let's replant them, just incase," Eevy grinned stupidly, taking one of each Berry and kneeling down.
"Hey, neat! A Ralts!"
"Hm?"
"Huh?"
"Wha?"
"Eh?"
All four trainers and all four Pokemon looked quickly up. In a large patch of grass, along the road a ways, they saw a trainer running around. Staring strangely, they stood and watched the pale green-haired boy throw a Poke'Ball. Out popped a brown sloth-looking Pokemon. With one swipe, it hit a small white and green Pokemon in the side and knocked it over. It got to its large feet and clapped its hands together, Growling loudly at the sloth, who merely sat there through it. It Growled again, and then the sloth attacked once more. The boys wandered off to watch, and Eevy finished burying the Oran Berry before scrambling to her feet to join them. Standing behind the trainer, they watched him pull a Poke'Ball. Heaving it forward, he covered his eyes as it hit the white Pokemon and began rocking side to side. After three rocks, the Ball locked. It then rolled carefully back to his feet, bouncing off the toe of his shoe. Spreading his middle fingers from his ring fingers, the trainers stared at it, then looked around to see if it had just been thrown back. Picking it up, he suddenly smiled.
"I did it! I caught Ralts!" he shrieked, holding it up, "I actually caught a Pokemon! Whee!"
He froze solid at the sound of hands clapping behind him, "That was really good," Eevy grinned.
"Ohhh…Are you who…I think you are?" the boy asked quietly, stepping away once.
"Hm?" she paused, the boys standing beside her, "Well, I suppose that depends on who you think I am."
He pulled his feet from the tangled grass and approached carefully, stopping in front of her, "Can you…Maybe…Come down here?" he scratched the back of his head.
Eevy sweatdropped and got to one knee, coming just about eye-to-eye with the boy, "Is this better?"
He nodded and began looking her over, and his eyes caught onto hers, "…You are…You are!" his jaw dropped as she stood up, "You're the Champion Mistress from Gertan Rin! I knew it was you! I knew it!"
Ash snickered, "I thought you said no one over here knew who you were."
"Aheh…" she shrugged, turning slightly red.
"I've been watching your battles and everything over the internet since you were on PKMN TV! I can't believe I'm actually meeting you!" the boy clapped his hands together and bowed his head, "Your speech from New York was the best, and so inspiring, Mistress!"
She placed a hand on his head, silencing him, "Tell me; what's you're name?"
"Waller-Eh…Wally," he muttered.
"Hm…Don't like your full first name?" she smirked, "Well, Wally, where are you from?"
"Petalburg," he answered quickly, "Do you want to go there? I can show you a shortcut."
*^~^**^~^*
"That was a shortcut?"
Richie came stumbling out of the trees behind everyone else, and Sparky hopped up onto his head as he steadied himself. Wally had assured them they were taking the shortest way into town, but it had taken so long they were all almost sure (since only fools are positive), that he'd taken the long way merely to spend more time attached to Eevy's side, jabbering away at her. Apparently, was an over-enthused fanboy who adored Eevy for everything she was and everything she did. He had been a long-time fan of Eusine, for all his travels, and Morty, for his amazing Ghosts, as well before Eevy began training, and when he found out Morty had a baby sister, he said he considered it only natural to be a fan of hers as well.
"When you became Champion, I was so excited!" he had chirped when they were still in the woods, "I'll bet Morty and Eusine are really proud of you!"
"That they are," Eevy had agreed, nodding, "So…How far is it to Petalburg again?"
When they had exited the woods and stepped out into Petalburg City's streets, Eevy had stopped dead and examined her surroundings. When asked what was wrong, she merely grinned and sighed longingly. Wally searched frantically, wondering what she could have been seeing that she seemed so intent about, as did the other boys and the Pokemon.
"Is something wrong, Eevy?" Ash asked, his Pikachu tilting his head.
"This place…Reminds me a lot of Rose Town," she murmured, her eyes growing a bit foggy, "I miss being home already."
"Don't worry, Eevy," Gary waved one hand while plucking briars from his shirt and pants with the other, "We'll be back home before you know it. But only after you become Champion, and then I beat you myself."
"Yeah, dream on, Gary," Ash smirked, "Like you could even hope of beating Eevy, let alone beating me to beat Eevy."
"Well, you're both wrong, because neither of you will beat me to beat Eevy," Richie chimed in, grinning wide.
Wally watched them as they continued exchanging remarks as per those just mentioned, "Are they always like this, Miss Eevy?"
"Oh yeah…All the time," Eevy nodded and sighed, "So, Wally, can you tell me where the Gym is?" she asked, smiling down at him.
He smiled twice as brightly back at her, "You're going to the Gym? I'm going there too! Are you going to battle Master Norman?"
"Oh, probably not. I've heard his a bit more difficult than the Gym Leader in Rustboro," she shrugged, "But I do need to see him about something. Will you take me?"
"Uh huh!" he clapped his hands together, grabbing her wrist and running, "Come on!"
"Woah! Hey, slow down! Guys, let's go!"
*^~^**^~^*
(Please note: In TAA, neither Norman nor Professor Birch have children. So no May or Max for us. Why? 'Cause I said so, I guess.)
Wally finally stopped running when both his feet hit the edge of the cement walk leading up to Petalburg City Gym. Eevy nearly dropped to the ground behind him, heaving away. Leaning down on her knees, she wiped a bit of sweat from her forehead and stood up straight. It was very strange…When they first met this boy back en route to Petalburg in the first place he was very pale, almost breakable looking. But now…He had lots of color to him, and he looked as healthy as anyone. Very odd indeed.
"Why are you here, Wally?" Eevy questioned, watching Ash, Gary and Richie flailing up behind them, "Are you going to challenge Master Norman?"
Wally laughed a bit, "No, I just started training. Master Norman let me borrow his Slakoth so I could catch my own first Pokemon. He's really nice."
"He sounds it."
"Did you guys…Have to run like that?" Ash asked, holding his chest, "I think I'm gonna die…"
"Oh, don't be so pathetic," Eevy waved both hands at him, "But hey, we're at the Gym."
"Great!" Richie clapped, shooting up, "We can challenge the Gym Leader!"
"Oh no you don't," Eevy shook her head, "We're not battling here yet. I heard enough about Norman from the trainers I talked to in Oldale Town to know he's not to be faced without experience with Hoenn Pokemon."
Gary just shook his head, "You know we could beat him."
"Maybe, but I'd rather we wait," Eevy turned and headed for the door, "Come on, let's get in there."
Wally bounced ahead of her and attempted to pull the door open. When he placed his hands on the handle and she did the same on the other, she realized the great contrast in their skin tones. He was so pale…Nevertheless, he pulled with all his might and got his half of the door open. He ran in ahead of her and grabbed the wooden wedge to hold the door open. At least, if nothing else, the cute little guy was spirited.
"Why's he so pale?" Gary asked Eevy quietly, "Is he sick or something?"
"I think so," she nodded, "But he sure didn't seem it a minute ago…Humor him," she smirked down at Wally as he rubbed the back of his head after placing the wedge, "You're a strong little guy, aren't you? Cute…" she ruffled his hair as she passed.
He snickered and ran after her, "Thanks!"
Eevy paused in the middle of the room, looking around as everyone else piled in behind her. It was empty. There wasn't a soul in there, nor was there even a chair where the Gym Leader would sit. Wally ran a few steps ahead and put his hands up to his mouth.
"Master Norman! I brought your Pokemon back and there's someone here to see you!" he called, "Are you here, Master Norman?!"
The only door aside from the exit, which was on the wall directly across from it, slowly opened. Out stepped who Eevy knew had to be the Gym Leader, just by the way he walked. His head dropped for a moment before he lifted his gaze and grinned. He stepped quietly, but walked quickly, and stopped in front of Wally. He was only ever-so much taller than Eevy herself, and he looked to be only a bit older than Eusine. He lifted a hand over Wally's head.
"You must already know I'm Norman, the Petalburg Gym Leader. I've been expecting you," he noted when he accepted Eevy's hand, "Professor Birch told me you'd be coming, Evangelina, was it?"
"Yes, I'm Evangelina," Eevy nodded, "And these are Ash, Gary and Richie," she lifted her left hand, and all three boys nodded, "We don't mean to be a bother, but we're to do some research for Professor Birch and need the map he sent."
"It's no trouble," he shook his head, "I'll get you that map in just a second," he knelt down to Wally, "So, Mister Wallerain, what did you catch for yourself?"
Wally winced at the horrible sound of that name, "I caught a Ralts, Master Norman. Thank you for letting me use your Slakoth, sir."
Norman accepted the Poke'Ball Wally handed him, "A Ralts, hm? They're hard to find. I hope it makes a good friend to you."
"It will," Wally grinned confidently, "I'll make sure of it."
"Now then," Norman stood, "The map."
Leading them across the room and toward the corner, he opened the door, which lead them directly into his arena. It was flat and very traditional, and appeared to have been there a while. It also looked as if it had been used recently. Along the wall was a bench, the top of which Norman lifted, and pulled out two sheets of paper. Turning, he handed them to Eevy as she came up behind him.
"One is the map, and the other is a bit of information about the map," Norman shrugged, "Thad is very thorough. He always was."
Gary nodded, "Yeah, we noticed that when he was explaining the full Hoenn map to us."
"Well, I suppose you'll want to start on your way now," Norman pointed to the window, "Come straight out of the Gym and turn to the right. Follow that route and you'll find yourself at Petalburg Woods. Straight through there and you'll find the Pretty Petal Flower Shop. You'll want to stop there; the sisters might be able to tell you something about the Berries around here."
"I forgot about those," Richie pulled the Pecha Berry from his backpack's pocket, "We should ask them about these, and see what else they can tell us."
"Master Norman…" Wally stepped over to his side, looking up at him, "I don't mean to change the subject, but do you think I could be a Pokemon trainer like you and Eevy someday?"
"I'm sure you could," Norman nodded, "You're a bright boy, and with a little work, I know you'll be just as good as anyone."
"Thanks," Wally grinned.
"Well, we should be going now," Eevy waved, "Thanks for your help, Master Riker."
"Please, just call me Norman," the Gym Leader crossed his arms as Eevy turned away, "Authority holds that power, doesn't it?" Eevy stopped dead in her tracks, and Norman smirked slightly, "You are my superior, are you not?"
Eevy glanced over her shoulder as Ash, Gary and Richie paused, "Hm…" she narrowed one eye and smiled wickedly.
"I thought I recognized your name," Norman nodded slowly, "Champion Mistress Evangelina Chenoweth Hikoboshi of Gertan Rin."
Eevy laughed quietly, "I knew this wouldn't be easy…"
Ash slowly turned the doorknob and began to step through, but stopped again, "Uh…Eevy?" he looked quickly back at her, "Am I missing something?"
Richie looked over his shoulder first, his eyes going wide, "Where the heck is the door?"
Gary poked his head out under Ash's arm, "I know there was only one door where we came in. What kind of insanity is this?"
Norman smirked, "To either enter or exit my Gym, there are certain things you need to learn. Does anyone know what happened? Mistress?" Norman looked at Eevy, "Any idea?"
Eevy's eyes narrowed a bit and the colors began to spin together, "Transporter tiles."
Norman looked a bit surprised, then sniggered, "How'd you know?"
"You turned the doorknob to the right both times when you opened the doors. When you came in the first time, I saw the handle turn counterclockwise, which meant on the other side you turned it clockwise, and you did the same when we came in here. Ash just turned the handle left. You can activate where it takes you by the direction you turn the handle in," she folded her arms behind her head and turned around, "We've been looking at them ourselves for Rainbow Metro."
Wally clapped frantically, "Wow! You're the best!"
"I'm most impressed," Norman bowed low, "Good luck on your journey, Mistress Hikoboshi. Don't forget to come and challenge me."
Eevy nodded, suddenly latching on to Ash and the others, "I don't think they'd let me, if I ever could," she dragged them around, shoving them out the door, "Coming, Wally?"
"Oh…Yeah!" Wally ran after them, "Bye, Master Norman! Thanks for all your help!"
Norman raised a hand, "Take care of yourselves!" he dropped his arm as the door shut, "The best of luck to you and yours, Mistress."
*^~^**^~^*
Eevy stretched her arms all the way up above her head, "So then, Wally, where to next?"
"I'm sorry, Miss Eevy," Wally stopped, just near the outskirts of Petalburg, "I can't go any farther with you."
"How come?" Ash questioned.
"Pika?" Sparky asked as he sat on Ash's head.
"Pi?" Pikachu also inquired, sitting atop Richie's head.
"I'm not really allowed to go any farther than I did today. My parents really worry about me," he pointed to the house to their right, "This is where I have to stop, it's my house. I caught my Ralts today so I can take it to Verdanturf with me when I go there this weekend. The doctor says the fresh air there will help me."
"So you really are sick," Richie murmured.
"Yeah…" Wally nodded, "But I'll be OK!" he clapped his hands together, "So just follow this road on to Petalburg Woods and right onto the route to Rustboro and you can have your first Gym battle! I'll watch and see if they broadcast it, Miss Eevy."
"Thanks for all your help, Wally," Eevy nodded, stepping up to him, "Here. This is for all your help," she dug into her pocket and handed him the Oran Berry she had stashed there, "To help you with your training."
"I've never had a Berry before," he stared at it, "What do I do with it?"
"Plant it and take care of it," Eevy patted his head, "Bye," she waved, turning and heading off, "We'll be seeing you, Wally!"
"You bet!" Wally hopped up and waved, "Maybe we'll meet up in Verdanturf! I hope so!"
Eevy grinned back at him, then threw one arm around Gary's shoulders and the other around Richie's, "Let's go, guys. We've got a long way to go."
"Hey!" Ash flailed upon realizing he was the only one not included in the group-hug type thing that was going on ahead of him, "Hey, what about me?! Eevy!"
*^~^*Episode 4: End…*^~^*
A/N: OK, I definitely HAVE to stop making graphics and get back to work on this. I SWEAR I'm going to start working more, but it'll just have to wait until after Christmas. Hopefully not TOO long after, but you never know. x_X Life is hectic, yes...Meh, I'm off!
*^~^*Pro_V*^~^*
-=O~The Pokemon~O=-
Next Up: TAA Season 5 ~ A League Of Their Own *Episode 5* ~ Team Rivals
TAA Pokemon Of The Month: December 2003: The Sealion Pokemon ~ Seel & Dewgong
Nope, I don't own Pokemon or anything affiliated with it. But I am officially advertising for them on my website. *grins all stupid-like*