neogirl7900: Well, to tell ya' the truth, you won't find out about what the coin means for quite some time. ; And I'm glad you like the characters so far, that's what I worked hardest on! Thanks for reading!

Antithesis: Glad you like it so far. I actually didn't have the part with Charmander and the ice cream in there at first, but since I added it in it's become one of my favorite parts. Oh, and here's your hug: -SQUEEZE-

Okay, here we go, chapter numero five!

The Glass Half Full

Ch.5 Decisions, Decisions…

(This is where you wanted to take us? An old abandoned house?) said Charmander in disbelief. He stared up at the rickety old shell that had once been a house.

It was hard to imagine that anyone had ever inhabited it. The windows, if not broken, had all been layered with dirt and residue over the years, and there wasn't a single shingle on the roof that didn't look as if someone had loosened it, or pulled it up, to make it look tattered. Kayla walked up to the ragged door, which was half open, and wondered too why Cubone had brought them here.

The brown pokemon lazily walked over to where Kayla was standing; his gaze following the edges of the doorway. (This is a very important place for the both of us,) said Cubone, his gruff voice now softer, deeper.

Kayla gave a nod, even though she had no idea what he was saying to her.

The pokemon looked up at her for a moment; then blinked. (Oh yes. I forget, you are unable to understand me… Come this way,) he said, leading them to the interior of the house.

Kayla hesitated. But when Charmander walked past her shrugging, and went in; she decided it was alright.

Inside the house were… things. People's things, like magazines, books, a pencil, and what appeared to be an old plant that had gone wild. They were all dirty and looked as if they had been uncovered from some sort of archeological dig. Kayla had never seen an abandoned house before, but she thought it was the saddest thing ever…

She picked up the old magazine. "How sad… these things from people's lives, just lying around. Forgotten…."

Cubone blew on a picture frame that he had picked up. He took a moment to stare at it, and then walked over to Kayla, who was still looking at the magazine. He offered the picture to Kayla so she could look at it.

Kayla blinked, "Y… you want me to look at it?" she asked to make sure.

Cubone nodded, waving the picture to show that she could take it.

Kayla grabbed onto the picture and wiped away some of the residue on it. In the picture was a couple. And in an instant she recognized the young man with dark brown hair and bright blue eyes; and the woman next to him with fluffy red hair that was not unlike Kayla's…

"M-my-my parents…?" she said, looking down at Cubone.

(Yes…) said Cubone, nodding.

Charmander jumped up a little. (What's that? Is that a picture of her parents? What's going on!) he said anxiously. He couldn't sit still without knowing what was going on; and all of this was so confusing to him.

Kayla stood silently for a few moments, looking around the house, "So… this was my parents'… house? But I thought that Grama took every… well, now that I think about it, she did say that some things accidentally got left behind. She must have dropped this in the process of getting their things…." She looked back at the picture of them. But then she noticed there were others in the picture besides just her parents…

Four pokemon; a Pidgey, a fiery weasel-looking pokemon she had never seen before, an Ivysaur, and a short brown pokemon with a crack on its forehead that looked like one eyebrow…

"Mr. Cubone? Is this… you?" she asked timidly, secretly knowing the answer already.

Cubone nodded quietly.

"So you were one of my… my father's pokemon?" she asked, drawing the conclusion from the positions of the pokemon in the picture.

Cubone nodded again.

It was then that Kayla remembered looking through the pictures of her parents with her grandmother, and seeing these same four pokemon throughout them. Cubone was one of them. She hadn't realized it before; she had been so preoccupied with looking at her parents, that she hadn't given the pokemon a second glance.

Charmander blinked. (How did you meet Kayla's Dad?)

(That, is a long story… but because Kayla cannot understand me… I will have to make it brief,) said Cubone, looking at the ground. He walked up to the old pencil on the ground and picked it up. He turned it over so that the eraser was facing down, and the dusty tip was facing up. Then he bent over and began to draw lines in the dusty dirt on the floor.

Kayla leaned over to see what he was doing.

(From the time I spent with my Master, I learned a great deal of things about human beings… You see, from the very beginning of my life, I had only known cruelty. However, my Master showed a different side to the world around me, and also a different side to humans. After a time with him, I began to want to communicate with him more, so he taught me some words of the written human language… I have not used them in years, but I think today is the day to remember,) Cubone paused, and took a step back from his spot to admire his handiwork.

What Kayla saw in the dust of the floor were the outlines of something large and pointy with a thick bottom and arms that twisted and turned… much like the creepy Oak tree in the woods… Below it were some scribbles that remotely resembled a word.

"H… ho… home? That old oak tree was your home?" asked Kayla, a bit surprised that her father's pokemon could live in such a place.

Cubone nodded.

(I… I could write human words too if I had enough time!) said Charmander in a whiny voice from behind Kayla, folding his arms.

Cubone went back to draw more. With the pencil and the dust on the floor, he showed Kayla many things about his past. He drew himself by the tree, and a blobby stick figure labeled "Master" walking to the tree. Then he wrote "caught" after that, and drew a long arrow for the distance he had traveled with Kayla's father. When he was done, Kayla was satisfied, but still had one more question…

"How did you get here though, and not hurt or captured by the people after my parents?" she said curiously.

Cubone then wrote the word "escape" on the ground.

Kayla assumed he meant 'escaped', and nodded. She paused for a moment and glanced at the picture. "But… what about the other poke--."

Cubone bowed his head and shook it slowly.

"Oh…" said Kayla feeling sorry for the other pokemon, even though she had only known about them for a very short time.

There was a long silence for a few minutes. Kayla kept staring at the picture Cubone had shown her. Her parents looked so happy in the picture… and they were together, with their pokemon, like a family… Kayla felt tears start to form in the corners of her eyes. She swallowed.

Why was it so easy to miss someone you've never known…?

Cubone watched Kayla wipe her eyes quickly. Then thought for a moment. He began to write again in the dust.

(What are you doing now?) asked Charmander, feeling left out again.

(I am attempting to ask the lady a question,) he said, eyeing Charmander dangerously.

The orange lizard took a step back. (Okay Pops! You don't have to get all bent out of shape abou--)

Cubone glared at him.

(Uh… I think I'm gonna wait over here behind Kayla!) he said nervously, his small voice cracking a bit.

Kayla managed to look down at what Cubone had asked her in the dust. The word was one he had written before, but this one had a question mark after it...

"Capture?" it said in the dust.

Kayla blinked. "Y… you want me to… capture you? You want to come with us?"

(What!) said Charmander, not expecting this old Cubone to actually want to pokemon train.

(Yes,) Cubone nodded, (It is the least I could do for my Master's daughter…)

"I was kinda, um, hoping you would want to come with us Mr. Cubone. It would be like if my father were here with me in some way…," said Kayla, smiling. She thought to herself for a moment. "But, I don't have a pokeball…."

(The Pokemon Mart should have some!) suggested Charmander, glad that he could actually add something to the conversation. He pointed to the way out.

Kayla nodded, "You know where I can get some Charmander?"

Charmander nodded back, (Yep, this way!)

Cubone followed close behind the lizard, as Kayla paused in the doorway. She was still holding the dusty picture of her parents. Giving a weak smile, she grabbed her pack and pushed the old picture into one of the many pockets, being extra careful not to bend or break it. Then, giving the empty house one last look, she walked out into the sunlight, and closed the front door behind her.

Charmander had spotted the Pokemon Mart a while back when Cubone had been leading them to Kayla's parents' house, and so he knew where it was. The small shop was only a block away, and in the early evening its shadow extended longer than it was tall. As the trio entered the large Pokemon Mart through the glass doors, a small grumbling noise was heard.

(Heh, uh, I guess I'm hungry!) said Charmander, rubbing his head.

Cubone ignored him, and kept walking with Kayla.

Kayla approached the front desk, and the man at it.

"Um, excuse me sir, but how much is it for one pokeball?" she asked timidly.

The man pulled off his blue hat with the pokeball insignia on it, "Just… one?" he said, looking extremely skeptical.

"Well, uh, yes. You see, I need it for this Cubone…" she answered, feeling herself getting more embarrassed. Why did he act like she had asked him to give her a pet Aerodactyl?

"Oh, well, you see usually I get beginner trainers that ask for six, ten, some even twenty pokeballs. But hardly ever just one. Come to think of it, I don't think any trainer has even asked for just one… Don't you plan on catchin' more than that one there?" he explained, still giving Kayla an odd look.

"Well… I don't kno--."

"Hey Kayla!" said a voice. Kayla turned around.

It was Mike. "Hey! Remember me?" he said, waving with one arm, and cradling a large amount of pokeballs in the other.

"Uh… Mike?" said Kayla, a little surprised to see him.

Mike walked up to the man and Kayla and dropped a bunch of pokeballs on the counter. There must have been at least twenty of them there.

"Wow…" said Kayla quietly. The man wasn't really exaggerating when he had told Kayla about the new trainers.

Mike looked at the man. "Hey, can I get these quickly. I need to get to the Viridian Forest before dark. I'm going to camp out tonight like Gary!" he said in his usual determined voice.

"Yeah sure," said the man in a bored voice. He went on to mumble about 'good for nothing kids'.

Mike turned to Kayla as the man counted the pokeballs. "So, you going to camp out in the woods too?" he asked, looking excited about the whole idea of camping.

Kayla blinked. "Well, I never really… um… thought about it. I just assumed that I would stay at the Pokemon Cent--."

"Yeah, that's what I thought too. But then Gary and I saw each other at the Pokemon Center, and he was saying that he was going to stay in the forest tonight and catch a Pokemon considering there were none really between here and Pallet," said Mike very quickly. Kayla could easily tell that he was really energized by all of this. He was obviously ready for some action.

Charmander leaned over to Cubone, (Someone put extra sugar in that kid's Poke Berry juice…)

Cubone gave an annoyed look to Charmander, and moved a few inches away from him.

(What?) said Charmander, a little offended, (I was just trying to lighten the mood…)

"Oh… well, I guess… maybe we could too… maybe even the three of us could end up together," said Kayla hopefully. She still wanted another human to travel with even though she had two interesting pokemon to be with.

Mike shrugged, "I guess it's possible. The Viridian Forest isn't really that big. Well, you do what you want. Me, I've got someone to compete against. Oh yeah, and don't bother with the gym in this place. The gym leader is gone on some sort of vacation or something, so they're not letting anyone battle anyway. Some weirdo guy was there though wanting to check out the gym. I think he was an aide of Professor Oak's…"

"Mr. Quigley?" said Kayla, picturing his white lab coat.

"Hey kid! You gonna hurry up and pay or what? I thought you were in a hurry!" growled the mart man. Mike jumped.

"Oh yeah! Sorry. Well Kayla, gotta go!" he said, stuffing some bills into the man's hand. The man quickly counted them, and when everything was in order, Mike ran out the door, a strong wind in his wake.

(So are we going to camp out?) asked Charmander, hoping not. He had been looking forward to sleeping with human comforts.

"Well… I guess I'll buy that pokeball now, and then decide what to do…" she said, turning once again to the man at the counter.

Kayla purchased the lone pokeball, and Cubone willingly retreated into it in a surge of red light. But since Kayla wanted both her pokemon out with her to keep her company, she tossed Cubone's pokeball to release him again. However, the flash of light that came from the pokeball when Cubone was released was not the typical white color. Instead, a dark black light flashed, and Cubone was soon standing on the ground.

Kayla and Charmander stared.

"Um… why was the light black? Are you okay Cubone?" Kayla asked, feeling a bit creeped out.

Cubone nodded in his usual fashion, and seemed to just brush it off. He acted as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

Charmander raised an eyebrow. (That guy sold us a defective pokeball!)

(No,) said Cubone in a very grave tone, (I always appear in this way no matter what pokeball I am in…)

Charmander blinked. (Huh…?)

Kayla tried to ignore it. If Cubone thought there was nothing wrong, then she wouldn't worry about it. Besides, she had a big decision to make. "Hey you guys… do you think we should camp out?" asked Kayla, unsure of what to do.

Charmander thought for a moment. (But that means no soft pillows…)

(I think we should. You can never hope to understand how pokemon think until you have lived where they live,) said Cubone, nodding his head.

Charmander looked worried, (Well… I guess so… But let's spend a night in the next town please! I already think like a pokemon, so I don't need too much time in the woods…)

With Charmander's confirming nod, Kayla nodded too. "Alright… Good thing Grama dusted out that old sleeping bag for me. Looks like I'm going to need it."

Charmander's stomach growled angrily again. Charmander blushed.

Kayla laughed. "Maybe once we get a little ways into the woods, we can stop for some dinner. I've got some really tasty canned food."

Charmander licked his lips. (Are there Raviolis?) Things were looking up for him.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Next chapter will feature some insane Butterfree, the reunion of Kayla, Mike and Gary, and a challenge from a familiar Samurai. Stay tuned!