Awakenings
Chapter 3
"Training Begins"
The next morning, Laureen was awakened from a good dream by the sound of her door creaking open. She heard the light tapping of footsteps on the floor. Still trying to wake up, she saw a blurred silhouette of Charizard standing over her, smiling.
"Mornin' sunshine." he said sarcastically.
"Ugh. What time is it?" Laureen groaned. She looked at the clock sitting on her dresser. It was 8:30.
"It's...to early. Must...sleep." Laureen said weakly. She laid back down in her bed.
"C'mon Laureen! It's time to get up!" Charizard said, taking to covers off her.
"No it's not. I'm never up before noon." Laureen mumbled into her pillow. She pulled her covers over her.
"But today's the day you start your magic training!" Charizard said, taking the covers off again. Laureen caught the blanket halfway.
"All the more reason to stay in bed then." she said grumpily. Charizard leaned down to meet her eyes.
"Did I mention there's steaming hot blueberry pancakes waiting for you on the kitchen table?" He hoped that would be enough to get her of bed. To his surprise, it worked. Laureen's eyes lit up and she sat straight up in her bed.
"Well why didn't you say so?!" She yelled. Laureen jumped out of her bed, grabbed her clothes sitting on the dresser and ran into the bathroom to change.
"Hm. I'm starting to like that kid." Charizard said to himself.
When Laureen made it to the kitchen, she heard several voices on the other side of the door. She recognized Charizard's and Mewtwo's, but a couple were unfamiliar. Since Laureen couldn't make out what the voices were saying, she opened the door ever so slightly. As she did, the delicious smell of blueberries filled the air. She'd forgotten how long it had been since she last ate! After a few moments, she forgot about trying to hear what the voices were saying and could only focus on the aroma of the blueberries. Right when she was about to open the door, it swung outwards and hit her in the face.
"Whoa! Laureen, are you ok?" Charizard said with a giggle.
"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, rubbing her nose.
"Good, 'cause I have a couple friends I want you to meet." He said excitedly.
"But wait I--" Without letting Laureen finish her sentence, Charizard grabbed her arm and went into the kitchen. Laureen identified the two sitting at the table as the two voices that she hadn't recognized earlier.
"Well look who finally decided to wake up!" One said angrily. He appeared to be a gigantic turtle. Laureen found it strange that he had blue skin. She'd never seen a blue turtle before!
"Yeah, we've been waiting for you to get your magic butt in here for like half an hour!" the other added. He stood almost seven feet tall, Laureen guessed, had blood-red eyes and had what looked like a huge plant on his back.
"FOOLS! Shut your mouths!" Mewtwo yelled furiously. He struck them both with a wooden spoon he was using to cook.
"You'll have to excuse them. They're always cranky before they've had their breakfast. Mewtwo said apologetically.
"Uh...sure." Laureen said nervously.
"Now Laureen allow me to introduce to you...Blastoise." Charizard said, motioning to the turtle.
"The one and only!" Blastoise said, holding his head up high and putting his hands on hips. Charizard rolled his eyes.
"And...Venusaur." he finished. A vine came out from the plant on his back, and it stopped in front of Laureen.
"Nice to meet ya." he said. Laureen realized that this was his way of shaking hands.
"Likewise." Laureen said, shaking the vine.
"Please, have a seat Laureen. Mewtwo said, pulling out a chair for her.
"Thank you." Laureen said politely. As she sat down, she noticed Mewtwo had a white apron on with flowers printed on it. He looked so ridiculous, Laureen had to put a hand over her mouth so she wouldn't laugh. As Mewtwo walked over to the stove, Laureen snuck in a giggle under her breath. Charizard who was sitting beside her, heard it.
"What's so funny?" He asked softly so no one else would hear.
"Does he always wear that apron when he cooks?" she asked.
"Yes. And he looks like an idiot in it." Charizard replied.
"I know." Laureen said, once again trying not to laugh.
"Hey! What's all this whispering going on over here? You weren't talking about me were ya?! 'Cause if you were..." Blastoise threatened, holding up a fist.
"Relax Blastoise. It has nothing to do with you." Charizard said.
"Oh? Than what does it have to do with?" Mewtwo asked, giving Laureen her plate of pancakes.
"Uuuuuuuuh..." Charizard and Laureen said together. They hoped the other would have an answer.
"I was just uh...telling Laureen how good your famous blueberry pancakes are, boss." Charizard said.
"Nice save Charizard." Laureen whispered to him.
"Thanks." he smiled.
"Well you don't have to be so secretive about it! Just let the girl find out for herself!" Mewtwo said.
"Sorry boss." Charizard said, his voice a little shaky from nervousness. Laureen shoved a bite of pancake in her mouth. Everyone at the table was anxious to see her reaction.
"Oh my God!" Laureen said after swallowing.
"What? You don't like them?" Venusaur asked.
"No! They're great! I can see why you're so famous for these, Mewtwo!" she said, taking another bite.
"Hehe. I've never met anyone who didn't like my blueberry pancakes." Mewtwo said proudly.
"I can believe that!" Laureen said, taking another huge bite.
After breakfast, Laureen went back to her room before her magic training began. She still felt tired and laid in her bed.
"Magic...I wonder it will like? How long will it take to learn? What skills will I learn?" So many different thoughts raced through her mind. She still didn't know if she liked the idea of having magic. She had no idea what it was capable of...or what it would do to her. After a few minutes she drifted off to sleep, but was awoken by someone knocking on her door. Her heart skipped a beat.
"It must be Mewtwo telling me it's time to start training." She sighed and got out of bed. "I guess I gotta do this sometime." She said to herself. She opened the door.
"Oh! Charizard! I thought it was Mewtwo telling me it's time..." She said in relief. Charizard looked guilty.
"Well actually...I'm here to tell you that it's time to start." He said with a frown. Laureen whimpered.
"Oh, come on. I'm sure it won't be that bad. Besides, Mewtwo told me the first lesson will only take a few minutes." he assured her.
"Well, ok. I guess I better get goin' then..." Laureen said, walking over to the doorway.
"Good luck." Charizard said.
"Thanks. I'm gonna need it." Laureen responded with a smile. As she walked out of her room, she saw Mewtwo seated at the couch at the opposite side of the room. Mewtwo saw her and to Laureen's surprise, he disappeared from the couch and reappeared right in front of her!
"Ah!" Laureen said in shock.
"So, are you ready to begin?" Mewtwo asked.
"Um...yeah. And how did you get over here so quickly?"
"I teleported. You will be learning to do that as well." Mewtwo answered,
"Really?!" Laureen said excitedly.
"Yes. Your type of magic lets you teleport and read minds, which are abilities that psychics, like me, and magic users share." He glanced at Laureen to make sure she was still listening. Her eyes were wide open. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Wait...you mean there are different types of magic?" Laureen asked in confusion.
"Yes. Many kinds. There is magic that allows you to heal people, turn yourself invisible, or even move backwards or forwards in time." Mewtwo went on.
"Time travel...wow." Laureen was very impressed. She thought that one day, she could have these amazing powers. Then she remembered what Mewtwo said about different types of magic.
"So, what type of magic do I have?"
"Well, actually, you don't have any of those." He replied. Laureen frowned. This meant she could never learn any of the magic Mewtwo had just told her about.
"You have what's called elemental magic. You can use magic like lightning, fire, ice and so on." Mewtwo finished.
"Oh wow! That's awesome! When can we start training?!" Laureen forgot all about time travel and teleportation. Elemental magic was much more exiting. Mewtwo laughed as he was amused by her enthusiasm.
"Well, we have to start with the basics. Elemental magic is dangerous if you do not know how to control it. First, you learn mind reading. Please, follow me." Mewtwo said. He hovered towards a small table and, as Mewtwo commanded, she followed him. Laureen was a bit irritated that it would take so long to learn to use elemental magic. "Oh well. Maybe mind reading won't be that bad." She thought.
Laureen sat down at the small table. Mewtwo sat opposite of her.
"Alright. Now, before we begin, there are a couple things you need to keep in mind." Mewtwo started. Laureen nodded in reply.
"First of all, you can read the minds of anyone, but only those with talents like ours can talk to each other through mind reading.
"Well that makes sense." Laureen commented.
"Secondly, you must remember that even though you have the ability to read minds, it is very rude to enter someone's mind with out asking their permission first. Do you understand Laureen?"
"Yes. It'd be the same as entering a room with out knocking right?" She asked.
"Yes! Very good. You seem to be understanding this quite well." Mewtwo complimented.
"Thanks." Laureen said with a half smile. "Can we start practicing now?" She knew she had to learn this before the elemental magic.
"Very well." Mewtwo smiled. "First, we will communicate using our minds, since that is more complicated than simply reading minds." Mewtwo explained.
"Ok." Laureen agreed.
"Before you can do anything, you must learn to relax. Now, close your eyes." he commanded. Laureen obeyed, but opened one eye slightly to see if Mewtwo closed his eyes too. Mewtwo also snuck a peek to make sure she was obeying.
"Ah, ah, ah! No cheating!" He said.
"Ok." Laureen giggled.
"Now, take a few deep breaths." Mewtwo told her.
"This is stupid." Laureen thought. "How is this going to help me mind read?!"
"Oh, trust me. It is necessary." Mewtwo said.
"H-how did you...?" Laureen stuttered.
"Mind reading...remember?" he answered.
"Oh...yeah." Laureen felt her face warming out of embarrassment. Mewtwo wasn't supposed to hear that!
As they continued to relax, Mewtwo instructed Laureen to block all the thoughts going through her mind. This wasn't easy for Laureen. She couldn't stop thinking about the elemental magic. But she didn't want him to read her mind again and forced herself to do it. A couple minutes passed, but nothing was happening, and Laureen was getting impatient.
"Nothing's happening, Mewtwo! What's wrong?" She asked.
"You're trying too hard. Just relax, and take your time." He replied.
Once again, Laureen blocked out every thought in her head but still...nothing. Just when she was about to give up, a huge booming voice appeared out of nowhere.
"Laureen...Laureen, can you hear me?" Mewtwo's familiar voice echoed in her head. She almost spoke out loud, but remembered they were mind reading, so she thought it instead.
"Yes." Laureen answered. Her voice too, echoed in her head, like she was in an empty room.
"Good. See how easy this is?" Mewtwo's voice called.
"Yeah. It's kinda fun too!" Laureen told him.
"Hehe. Well, it appears that you've mastered the basics of mind reading, Laureen. You may open your eyes now." Mewtwo's booming voice called. As Laureen opened her eyes, his loud voice faded away, and it took her a moment to recover from what just happened.
"Did you enjoy mind reading for the first time?" Mewtwo asked.
"Yeah. Once I got the hang of it, it was easy." She said proudly.
"Well, since you're so confident, I have a homework assignment for you." Mewtwo said, standing up.
"Homework?" Laureen groaned. "Do I have to write an essay or something?" She asked. Mewtwo laughed.
"Hmm...as essay. That's not a bad idea." Mewtwo said with a smirk.
"NO!" Laureen yelled.
"Don't worry. You don't actually have to write an essay. All you have to do is successfully mind read someone." He finished.
"Oh. That should be pretty easy." Laureen said cheerfully.
"Do you know who you will mind read?" Mewtwo asked. Laureen thought a moment.
"Hmm...I don't know...Charizard?" She said.
"I figured you'd say that." Mewtwo smiled. "And don't forget to ask his permission first!" He reminded her.
"I won't. Thank you for teaching me this Mewtwo." Laureen said politely.
"Oh, the pleasure's all mine." The way Mewtwo looked at Laureen sent shivers up her spine. He glared straight into Laureen's eyes and the same eerie, sinister smile wiped across his face, just as when she first met him. Memories came rushing back to her. She remembered how suddenly she arrived to the castle, and how Charizard hunted her down, and then took her to Mewtwo. Her sole purpose for being here was to awaken her magic. But why...something just wasn't right.
"Laureen? Are you alright?" Mewtwo asked after a minute.
"What...oh, yeah. I-I'm fine." She said, snapping back to reality.
"Well uh, I got that homework to do so..." Laureen said, getting out of
her chair taking a couple steps back. Right now, all she wanted to do was get away from Mewtwo.
"Alright. Tomorrow you will be learning teleportation. You're free to do whatever you like now." Said Mewtwo.
"Th-thanks." She answered. She walked as fast as she could without running back to her room. Mewtwo remained there, watching her.
"What's gotten into her?" He asked himself. "Could she—no, that's impossible." He said. He flew up the spiral staircase to his room.
When Laureen returned to her room, she remembered that she didn't get enough sleep the night before. She laid down in bed and fell asleep in a matter of minutes.
Unfortunately, the peace didn't last. The door loudly creaked open. Laureen, who was still half asleep, looked to see who it was. As she expected, it was Charizard.
"Sorry. Did I wake you?" He asked, still standing in the doorway. Even though Laureen was very tired, she enjoyed it when Charizard came to visit her.
"No, no. Come on in." She motioned for him to sit beside her on the bed.
"Are you sure? You look really tired." Charizard said, sitting Laureen's bed.
"Trust me. I'm fine." Laureen reassured him.
"Well, if you say so. How did the trainin' go?"
"Mewtwo told me I have elemental magic. And I can use fire and lightning and stuff." For the first time in a while, Laureen once again grew excited by the thought of elemental magic.
"Wow! Can you show me?" Charizard asked.
"I wish." She frowned. "Mewtwo said I have to learn these stupid mind reading and teleportation things first."
"Oh." Charizard said. He sounded disappointed. "Hey, what were you doing at that table?" He asked curiously. Laureen's face turned bright red.
"Y-you saw that?!" she said in surprise. Seeing her embarrassed expression, Charizard couldn't help but grin.
"Yeah. Did you fall asleep or something? I saw your eyes closed." He teased.
"N-no! I-I was just..." Laureen stuttered. Her face was now an even brighter red. Suddenly, she remembered the task Mewtwo gave her.
"Oh, I almost forgot! As a homework assignment, I have to read your mind." Laureen said. Charizard's eyes widened.
"He gives you homework?! Geez, he's a tough teacher!" He said, Laureen giggled.
"Yeah. But I don't really mind." Laureen told him. A few seconds of silence passed. It seemed very awkward and uncomfortable to both of them, so Charizard got brave and broke the silence.
"So...what do I have to do so you can read my mind?"
"You don't have to do anything. Just think something and we'll see if I can hear what you are thinking."
"Uh...ok." He answered nervously.
"Are you ready?" Laureen asked.
"Yeah...whenever you are." Charizard didn't like this at all. There were many things in his mind that he didn't want Laureen to know.
"Ok then." Laureen said. Charizard watched her close her eyes, and waited impatiently to see if she heard anything yet.
"Anything?" he asked.
"Don't say anything out loud, just think it." Laureen instructed. Charizard's thoughts boomed loudly in her head.
"I wonder if she can hear this." Charizard thought. He glanced at Laureen and saw her smiling, so he guessed that she could. "You're very lucky to have magic, you know. Very few people can. Sure, I can breathe fire and all, but that doesn't compare to having magic..." Laureen listened to Charizard ramble for a few minutes until she became bored of it. She was about to stop when she heard something interesting.
".............I wonder what's for dinner. Maybe I'll ask Mewtwo to make his Five-cheese Lasagna. Man, that stuff is good! Maybe after dinner I can take Laureen to--" Charizard abruptly stopped when he remembered she was still reading his mind. Laureen opened her eyes. "What? Where are you gonna take me?" She asked anxiously.
"She wasn't supposed to hear that." Charizard said under his breath.
"It's a surprise." He answered coolly.
"Will I like it?" She asked, trying to get Charizard to at least give her a hint. Unfortunately, she got none.
"I think so." He responded with a sly smile.
"I wonder what he's planning....I still don't know if I can trust him...what if he's on Mewtwo's side....?" Laureen pushed the thought away.
"So...until then, what can we do?" Laureen asked. It was only around mid-day. And there was still plenty of time left before dinner.
"You're kidding right? This place is huge! There's tons of stuff to do here!" Charizard answered.
"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Laureen mounted Charizard's back and screamed when she saw how fast they took off. They flew across the spiral staircase room and headed for the roof. Mewtwo, who was watching from atop the staircase, saw them.
"Charizard's becoming quite attached to that girl. Heh. We'll see how his loyalty upholds when the time comes." He said aloud. He flew off into the depths of the castle.
--TO BE CONTINUED...