Chapter 21: Team Rocket's Thundering Ambitions!
"Phew! Home safe!" A green haired Team Rocket grunt climbed out of her invisible military tank, landing safely on the solid concrete ground of a driveway. She took off her glasses and used a piece of her shirt to wipe off some dust or fog. Standing before her was a small, yellow house with a red door and brown roof tiles, looking as warm and comforting as ever, as though it were welcoming her home.
However, the green haired woman wasn't smiling. She looked up at the cute house with dejected brown eyes. "I can't believe I actually did that," By that, she meant attempting to steal someone's vulpix. Just dragging the poor pokemon away wounded her heart. In an ironic twist, she was actually happy that said vulpix's trainer saved her. She wasn't sure what she'd do if she took the vulpix back with her, nor did she want to know.
With that burden lifted off of her heart, she pulled out her house key and stuck it in the whole. Turning it twice, the door creaked open as she ambled right inside. "I'm back-"
"This is the third time you've gotten yourself thrown in jail, Margeaux!" The commanding voice of a woman stopped the green haired girl in her tracks. She knew that voice anywhere. She did find the courage to take two more steps inside.
There was Margeaux, standing before a red haired woman abjectly, staring down at her feet, not looking right at her. A tall, red haired woman stood over Margeaux, freezing her in place with an intense glare, her crimson eyes brimming with anger. Said woman was wearing a white Team Rocket themed dress that stretched down to her legs, with long slits going up above her knees, tall silver boots, and long gold earrings shaped like stretched out triangles. Emblazoned on her breast was a black shield with a red R on it.
"You're setting a poor example for any Team Rocket grunts lower in rank than you!" The red haired woman wagged her index finger at the girl like she was scolding a naughty child. "The police are already on our tail enough as it is!" All Margeaux could do was shrug. The red haired woman continued scolding, her voice tight with frustration. "Don't expect me to bail you and Yannick out the next time you both get thrown in jail!"
"I'm sorry, Ariana…" Margeaux whispered abjectly.
"That's Commander Ariana to you!" Ariana scolded sharply once more, causing Margeaux to press her lips and squeeze her eyes shut. "Try to improve yourself so you can ascend the ranks," She told her sharply before turning on her heel. She stopped to notice the green haired woman behind her. "Oh. Hello, Harriet. Perfect timing."
"Huh?" Harriet tilted her head to one side.
Ariana crossed her arms, maintaining her rigid posture. "Listen carefully. Earlier this morning, I received a call from Archer. He wants us to come with him to capture one of the legendary beasts for J," She explained tersely. "It's a very special mission. If you don't feel you're up to it, feel free to decline the offer."
"I'll stay here!" Harriet sputtered sheepishly. "I...I have too little experience. I'd only...hold you and the other grunts back, and I...don't want to...ruin the mission," She fiddled with the bottom of her shirt with her fingers, twirling one piece of it into a cylinder. "Besides, someone has to watch for police in case they're hunting us down."
The two women watched her curiously as she explained herself. After some rumination, Ariana nodded affirmatively. "You raise valid points, Harriet. I admire your honesty. Stay here and keep an eye out," She turned to Margeaux, who shivered the moment her eyes fixated on her. "As punishment for your recent blunders, Margeaux, you will stay here with Harriet. I cannot risk someone like you screwing up and ruining everything for J and the rest of us."
Margeaux didn't bother to contradict her. She accepted her punishment gracefully without a word. "Yes, Commander. Thank you," With that, Ariana strutted out the front door, carrying herself with dignity. As soon as she left, Margeaux plopped down on a taupe-colored cough and let out a groan. "Uuuuuuugh! Why do I always screw up so bad?!"
"What happened?" Harriet sat down at a desk on the other side of the room as she pulled out a purple pen and a piece of paper.
"Oh, you're not gonna believe this, Harriet!" Margeaux pulled out a tabloid magazine, flipping through some pages about celebrities and recent scandals. "You've heard of shiny pokemon, right?" She didn't wait for Harriet's answer, continuing on. "Yannick and I found a green ursaring in the middle of Cadmium Town two weeks ago! It even knew impossible moves like Play Rough and Metal Claw! We tried to nab it, but as it turned out, it had a trainer! By Arceus, that kid was sooooo annoying!" Margeaux complained.
Harriet listened intently as Margeaux told the rest of the story. The trainer used his other pokemon to capture them, some of which were bug pokemon who still knew String Shot, and turned them into the police all by himself without a second thought. Harriet wrote some things down as she listened, not stopping for one second.
"It was just awful!" Margeaux continued. "I called Ariana to let her know what happened, and thank Arceus she bailed me out, but still! I try to nab a super rare pokemon for J and all I get for it is being told I'm setting a bad example! Can you believe it?!"
"You tried," Harriet told her in a calm voice. "That's what counts," The green haired grunt wasn't sure if she meant it.
"And Yannick was no help either!" Margeaux interrupted. "He kept acting like he did everything right while I was the one who completely ruined everything! What bullocks!" She threw her magazine down on the wooden floor and yanked out another one. This one was about Pokemon Contests and fashion designers. "It's just like him to act like he's the perfect little angel! I swear, he gets away with everything! He thinks he's sooooo special just because his parents are some of the highest ranking Team Rocket veterans!"
"I never did like him," Harriet replied. "I'm surprised Archer put you two together."
"He should have paired me up with someone I can actually cooperate with, like Woodrow or Sielis or Holden or maybe even someone cool like Emmylou! At this point I wouldn't mind working with you! I don't know why Archer and Ariana don't put you on more missions!" Harriet cringed at the sound of that, not that she let her housemate notice. "Uuuugh!" Margeaux let out another groan. "And now I'm hungry, too!"
Harriet forced a smile. "After I finish this, I'll make some cookies."
"Please!" Margeaux raised her hand. "You're such a sweetheart, you know that, Harriet? I don't know why someone as sweet as you is working for Team Rocket."
The green haired woman quickly stood up from the desk, turned the letter over, and marched into the kitchen, her shoes scratching the wooden floor. Her fingers dug into her palms as she marched over to the stove and leaned over it. "It's not like...I ever wanted to be here in the first place…" She whispered in such a low voice that not even Margeaux could hear it.
Her body began to move on its own as soon as the opened the cupboard. Brown sugar, chocolate chips, butter, flour, and any items she may need for making cookies were set on the counter. Like clockwork, Harriet stirred the chocolate chips into the sugar and butter. A smile split her face as she placed the dough on the cooking sheet and slid it into the oven. Already, her heart grew warm, and it would only take ten minutes for the cookies to be ready.
Pitter-pattering sounds caught her ear. She looked down to find a small crustacean pokemon standing by her side, looking up at her with big white eyes like it was begging for cookies. The crab's upper body was a reddish orange color, with two spikes protruding from his head, with his lower half being protected by a beige outer shell. He held up his large pincers but didn't act as though he had any intention of cutting Harriet to pieces, and his skinny spider legs scuttled across the floor, making the pitter-patter sounds.
"Hey there, Cookie!" Harriet kneeled down to the krabby's level and stroke his head gently. "How's it going?"
"Kuuukiii!" The krabby made harsh croaking sounds, but jumped up and down cheerfully.
"Don't worry. They'll be ready in a few minutes," Harriet told her friend.
"I swear, Harriet," Margeaux suddenly piped in from the other room. "That krabby of yours just kept staring out the window looking for you the whole time you were gone!" She exclaimed. "After four straight hours he just went back to your room!"
"Yeah...Cookie's like that," Harriet replied sheepishly as Cookie rubbed himself against his trainer lovingly.
"Kuuki kuuki," Cookie replied affirmatively.
At least Harriet had a friend here. She did not consider Margeaux her friend, as well meaning and open and friendly as she was. To Harriet, she was just a Team Rocket grunt, someone she really didn't want to associate with, even if she did acknowledge that Margeaux was more than that. In fact, being in this house made her feel rigid and uncomfortable, like she was being trapped in a cage. Cookie was the only thing that kept her from going crazy. But even that had its limits.
Already, the aroma of sweet chocolate chip cookies wafted in the small kitchen.
Somewhere in Olivine City, Amara had checked into a small hotel. It wasn't anything fancy, and it looked more like a glorified motel than anything. Two beds covered with olive green comforters, watercolor paintings adorning the wallpaper-covered walls, a single TV with limited channels, and all of those things. Grapevine Hotel, it was called.
"Oh my lanta, I'm so full…" Amara groaned, laying back on a bed as the TV played loud hip-hop music. A steel tray sat on a mahogany desk, with a bag of potato chips open and half-eaten, as there was a lot left inside. Shrimp tails dotted the white plates. Croconaw took all of them and gave one to weepinbell, one to a large, purplish pink bulldog pokemon, and the other to a large, orange bird pokemon with a long beak and a hot pink mohawk. A haunter helped himself to the rest of the potato chips.
Wearily, Amara picked up the remote. "Man, there's, like, nothing on!" She pressed the arrow buttons to surf through the very limited selection of channels. Nothing noteworthy was on. "Jeez! You'd think they'd have something decent!" Already, she began to miss the hundreds upon hundreds of channels that her TV at home used to have.
"Granbull…" The bulldog pokemon mused as she laid down on the bed next to Amara's.
Amara shot an intense glare at the granbull. "Don't you dare use those big teeth of yours to rip anything up!" She scolded. Granbull tensed up and hid behind the side of the bed to avoid her deathly glare. To the granbull, it almost always lead to yet another beating. "If anything's broken in here, we have to pay for it, and we're low on money as it is!" Unlike before, Amara didn't beat her this time.
Croconaw rolled his eyes before muttering, "Says the idiot who spends money like water and breaks stuff on a near daily basis," under his breath. Amara obviously couldn't understand anything he or the other pokemon said. Good thing, too, or else Amara would have subjected them to even worse beatings. Like her beatings weren't bad enough on their own.
The bird pokemon cawed, shaking his head in agreement. "I'll bet in the next hour, she'll throw something at that painting and then blame it on one of us."
"I want to argue she's not that crazy, fearow," The haunter piped in cynically. "...but I can't deny the possibility."
Once more, Amara surfed through the channels as the pokemon occupied themselves. Amara wasn't sure why she let them out. But somewhere, deep in her conscious, something in her told her that her pokemon deserved to have a break and play by themselves. It was the least she could do since she treats them so bad. After all, as much as she absolutely loathed them, and pokemon in general, she needed them to fulfill her dream. Chanel's dream. She couldn't fulfill that dream if her pokemon weren't in tip-top shape. She knew that much. Still, seeing all of the pokemon she caught made her blood boil.
Every single one of them could sense the rage in her heart. Croconaw watched as Amara laid back on the bed, channel surfing. The big alligator had always dreamed of being with a good trainer. Seeing the world, making friends, battling strong pokemon, making good memories out of it, and being treated kindly, like his friends were. None of this was what he had in mind, and Amara was not the ideal trainer he wanted to spend his life with. Even though Amara was quiet at the present, croconaw could still hear her shrill voice scolding and yelling in his ears.
Sniveling sounds off-set the voices in his mind. Croconaw turned to find weepinbell huddled between a soft red chair and the lamp, his whole yellow body drowning in a puddle of tears. A truly pitiful sight. Croconaw's heart sank to the pit of his stomach as he kneeled down to the plant pokemon with a sympathetic look in his eyes. Croconaw extended a hand out, but as soon as weepinbell saw it, he yelped and huddled deeper into the corner, covering his eyes with the leaves on his body.
"Oh. Sorry," Croconaw apologized ruefully. He wondered if all those months of being used as Amara's punching bag made him scared of others attempting to touch him. He could see the faint fist marks on the plant pokemon's yellow body.
Weepinbell's only reply was soft sobbing. It wasn't a sound any one of them, even Amara, liked hearing. "I...I can't...I can't do this anymore…I can't take no more of it…" Weepinbell rambles through his sobs. The instant he said that, croconaw figured out what he meant.
"It's about Amara, isn't it?"
"I'm sick of it!" Weepinbell cried. "I always hated humans, but that girl makes me hate them even more!" It hit him right then and there. Not once did weepinbell ever refer to Amara by her name. It was always "that girl" or "that human," or even "it." Considering how she always treated him, he wasn't surprised. It said a lot about how the plant pokemon viewed her. "I'm always the one getting hit, kicked, punched, yelled at, whatever! Even when I'm not doing anything!" He continued to cry. "'Weepinbell, you're such a worthless pokemon! You can't even do anything right! Why can't you be strong?! You're weak and pathetic!' I know all of that! I don't need it reminding me every single day!"
Hearing that made croconaw's face contort with disgust. He had been subject to Amara's harsh verbal lashings as well. It didn't mean he was used to them. Still, just watching weepinbell cry wounded his heart.
What weepinbell said next made croconaw's concern morph into legitimate fear. "I...I want to die…" Weepinbell whimpered. "Will you please kill me?"
Croconaw's immediate answer was, "I can't do that."
"Why don't you?!" Weepinbell weeped. "You're a croconaw! You're supposed to be naturally vicious, and your teeth can chomp anything open, even my flimsy hide! Just kill me already! I don't wanna live anymore!" The pain and desperation in the plant's voice broke croconaw's heart even more. "I don't wanna be that girl's punching bag!"
"You don't have to be!" Croconaw reasoned. "You still know Sleep Powder, right? You can just knock her to sleep and escape!" He waved his arms up and down as he explained. "You can do that right now!"
Weepinbell shuddered weakly. "I...I can't. It won't work for very long," He replied in a hoarse voice. "Besides, even if I do escape, where would I go? She'll find me for sure, and she'll probably kill me."
The blue crocodile sighed. He made good points. "Can you idiots keep it down?!" Amara shouted. "I'm freakin' bored, and I don't need your jibber-jabbering today!" Weepinbell covered his eyes with his leaves yet again. Croconaw said nothing. Haunter simply disappeared.
All of a sudden, Amara pressed a button on the remote, and a voice on the TV shouted, "We fight for the peaceful coexistence of pokemon, nature, and people!" Amara sat up on the bed, leaning closer so she could see the TV. Six people dressed in spandex outfits appeared on a cliffside, striking superhero poses. "We are the Hoenn Rangers Coexistence Force!"
"Shut the front door!" Amara found herself crawling to the foot of the bed she sat on, her aquamarine eyes twinkling with delight. "Hoenn Rangers are still around?! I thought they cancelled it!" Memories began flooding her mind as she watched the episode title fly onto the screen. Running home from school to grab the TV remote and hopefully be in time to watch the show. Begging her mother to buy her figurines or a costume for Halloween. She and Julia pretending to be Hoenn Rangers, striking pretend poses, and playing pretend in the backyard acting out scenes or entire episodes. Any semblance of rage she had in her heart faded, like it was never there in the first place.
Suddenly, she began hearing voices. The voice of her eight-year-old self and her six-year-old sister, sitting close to the TV watching as Lilycove Viridian kicked a monster across a river. "Yeah! You go, Viridian! You're the best!"
"Ivory's the best!"
"I think Cobalt is the coolest!"
"Watch out, Bodoh!" Julia couldn't say Bordeaux back then, and pronounced it bodoh.
Amara smiled as she watched the Hoenn Rangers episode playing right now. She wondered if Julia still liked Rustboro Ivory. Were they still making toys? Were any DVDs out? She shook her head. Why was she gushing over a TV show she liked when she was little? She couldn't waste time idling away over a TV show. She needed to fulfill her dream and Chanel's, and the police were still on her tail. But...she was in a hotel right now, and nobody was disturbing her. Perhaps it'd be good to sit back and relax and watch TV, which was exactly what she did.
All of the pokemons' mouths fell agape, eyes wide with shock. "Breeeeeh?" ("She can actually smile?") Fearow asked out loud, as though Amara smiling was as unlikely as space aliens coming down to dissect their brains.
Haunter shrugged. "Hauntah hauntah hauntah," ("I didn't think she was even capable of smiling.") He said.
"Gran granbull," ("Maybe she's secretly good inside and doesn't want to show it.") Granbull reasoned.
Nobody dared say anything for now, as they occupied themselves while Amara was glued to the TV. Oddly enough, weepinbell managed to creep out from behind the red chair and crawl over to the front door. Right as the episode ended, weepinbell extended a vine out, reaching for the door knob. He immediately pulled it back in fright as someone knocked on the door.
"Maid service!" A woman's voice cried from behind the door. Amara immediately opened it up. A woman was dressed in a blue dress with a white apron on it. Behind her was a crate full of cleaning products. "Do you mind if I cleaned the toilet real quick, miss?" She asked in a kind voice.
"Sure. No prob-" Amara was about to reply kindly-so as to not expose herself-but she felt something brush against her leg. It was weepinbell's leaf. Before she knew it, the maid suddenly kneeled down, grabbed weepinbell by the brown vine on his head, and handed him back to her.
"Oh! I got it!" The maid exclaimed as Amara took him back.
"Sorry!"
"It's okay!" The maid waved her hand telling her it was nothing. "I have little kids at home, and they're always up to some kind of mischief."
The maid came inside and spent about fifteen minutes cleaning the toilet. Anger simmered from within Amara as she kept glaring at weepinbell, telling him she was going to give him a beating right after this. She didn't dare do it in front of the maid, as she knew she was sure to report it. Amara couldn't afford to be reported. Once the maid was done, Amara couldn't contain her anger anymore. Her conscious was telling her to leave weepinbell alone, that he didn't deserve what she gave him. But her heart didn't listen.
"I can't believe you!" Amara yelled, scaring weepinbell into trembling silence. "Why'd you try to escape, huh?! You're so freaking pathetic!" She raised a hand in the air, ready to give him another beating. Oddly enough, before she could do anything, croconaw ran in between them, stretching his stubby arms out, glaring at Amara like he dared her to lay even so much as a hand on him. "Out of the way, you!"
"Croconaw!" ("Leave him alone!") The blue alligator croaked. Amara couldn't understand what he said, but the look in the crocodile's eyes said it all. Even though she was his unofficial trainer, she couldn't deny that if her pokemon were pushed hard enough, they could easily kill her. Croconaw knew Ice Fang and Bite. If he dug his teeth into her, her chances of fulfilling her dream would be history.
Reluctantly, she put her hand down. "Don't pull that stunt again, you hear me?" She hissed. "You guys are my ticket to the Pokemon League, and you better know your place!" With that, she slumped back on the bed. Croconaw continued to shield weepinbell like a knight protecting his princess. Amara picked up the remote and turned the TV back on, wondering if Hoenn Rangers was still on.
The first thing that appeared on the TV was… "Mom?!"
There was Kassia right on the TV, with some microphones being held to her face. Truman had his arms wrapped around her, making a futile attempt to console her. Kassia looked up, eyes red and puffy. Amara shivered. Kassia looked right at her.
"Amara...if you're out there somewhere…" Kassia began with a whimper. "I want you to know that I miss you. We all miss you, and we want you to come back safe and sound," That was enough to make Amara's face contort with irritation. But she didn't turn off the TV. "I know you think we don't care about you or love you, but we do. We'll always love you, even if we're not proud of what you've done," Kassia wiped a tear away. "We just want you to do the right thing. That's all. No matter what, you're still our daughter."
Amara let out a grunt. As much as she wanted to believe her mother, another part of her claimed that she was really good at pulling out the croconaw tears. That this was all a cruel joke and that they only want her back so they can make her forget about Chanel. Kassia's plea didn't persuade her one bit. To Amara, it was all false guilt and pity. As the scene changed to a weather forecaster, Amara turned off the TV. The screen changed to pitch black.
"Shut up, you liar," Amara hissed, slamming the remote on the bed. "I am not going to jail and you can't make me!" She turned around and buried her face in the pillow. She wanted the whole thing to be a lie. That her parents didn't love her and only wanted her to go to jail. That they were only making her suffer. She wanted to believe that delusion with her whole heart.
And yet… 'How can you go on treating them like this?' The voice in her head asked her. 'They're your parents. They're worried sick about you. If they didn't love you, why would they make a public plea and broadcast it on TV?' She wanted it to shut up. Shut up shut up shut up. Leave her alone. 'The least you could do is let them know you're safe! Send them a letter or something! Do it for them, please!'
For once, Amara agreed with the voice in her head. It hit her right then and there. What if Chanel had gone missing? Would her parents have made a public plea, crying for her to come home? She was sure her father wouldn't. That deadbeat deserved to be in jail after what he did to her. Her body began to move on its own, and her hand reached for a pen and some paper. Before long, she opened the pen and began to write.
Perhaps she could do this much for them.
Perrine Innocenti couldn't wait to battle Chuck again. After reconciling with Kitsune-now a beautiful, elegant ninetales-she made up a new strategy to go up against Chuck in their next gym battle. This time, she was ready for him. The day after, Perrine and Chuck were on the battlefield, the air around them brimming with determination. Julia and Caiseal could feel it, even on the bleachers, and yes, the gym didn't smell bad anymore. Kitsune had just knocked out Chuck's machoke, so now it was a two on two battle.
"Primeape, let's go!"
"Kitsune, show them what you're made of!"
The pig monkey and the fox descended onto the battlefield. With that, the battle began. "Primeape, use Dynamic Punch!" Once again, Chuck made punching motions.
"Dodge it by dancing around!" Perrine commanded. As soon as primeape came close, Kitsune would always dodge however she could, such as doing backflips or jumping over the pig monkey. Other times, she would simply duck. Her elegant movements made her look as though she were dancing.
'This is my chance!' Perrine thought to herself before shouting, "Use flamethrower on yourself!"
Everyone's mouths fell agape. Flamethrower on herself? What was that about? Before long, Kitsune spewed a stream of blazing hot fire all around herself. Since she was a fire type, everyone was sure she wouldn't get hurt or burned in any way. In fact, Kitsune smiled and rolled in the flames, enjoying herself. Before long, the flames faded and Kitsune was glowing in a red hot light.
Julia stood up from her seat, smiling joyfully. "I get it! Flash Fire!" She shouted. Caiseal smiled as well, understanding what she meant. If a pokemon has the ability Flash Fire and is hit by an attack, their fire powers grow stronger.
Chuck nodded affirmatively as he crossed his arms. "It's good that you're using your pokemon's abilities to your advantage!" Once again, he made punching motions. "A trainer that can think on their feet is destined for greatness! But we're just getting started!" He roared. "Primeape! Use Rock Slide!"
"Priiiiiiimeape!" The pig monkey bellowed as he stamped his feet like he was throwing a temper tantrum. Green lights appeared in the sky, with rocks spilling forth, rolling right toward the fox.
"Use Extrasensory and throw them at primeape!" Kitsune's eyes glowed in an eerie purple light as energy circled around the rocks, freezing them in mid air. Her long tails stood right up, facing the ceiling, right as she lifted her head. All of a sudden, the rocks flew right at primeape. Without hesitating, primeape punched the rocks that came his way, smashing them to smithereens. However, some of them managed to hit him. One managed to knock him off his feet, making him fall on his fluffy rear end.
"Primeape! Don't give up, my friend!" Chuck yelled reassuringly. Good thing primeape had no intention of giving up, as he got right back on his feet despite the injury.
"Great job, Kitsune!" Perrine cheered, jumping up and down.
"Nine!"
"Use Dynamic Punch again, and make sure it hits!"
"Priiiiime!" Once again, the pig monkey charged right at the yellow fox with intent to knock her out.
"Bite on his fist, Kitsune!" Perrine shouted. On cue, once primeape got close, Kitsune opened her large mouth before clamping her teeth down onto the pig monkey's fist. Her teeth dug into primeape's skin, making him writhe with pain. "Use Confuse Ray!"
"Niiiiiiiine…" Primeape was helpless to do anything, as Kitsune's eyes glowed in an eerie blue light. As soon as primeape made eye contact, his mind was suddenly thrown asunder. Kitsune let go of his fist, but primeape found himself unsteady, wobbling side to side like he was drunk. His eyesight became blurry, and everything around him seemed to have doubled in number.
"Primeape, no!" Chuck exclaimed. At this point, he knew primeape was finished. He couldn't switch primeape out, as the gym leaders aren't allowed to make substitutions.
Confidence was brimming within Perrine. The chance to defeat that primeape was ripe for the taking. "Finish it with Flamethrower!" She shouted proudly. Kitsune spat out a stream of red hot fire that swirled all around the confused pig monkey. The intense heat was too much for the pig monkey to handle. No amount of punches and kicks could make the flames dissipate. Soon, primeape fell to the ground, charred and unable to move.
"Primeape is unable to battle!" The same female referee from before raised a purple flag in Perrine's direction. "The winner is Kitsune the ninetales!"
"Niiine!" Overcome with joy, Kitsune hopped over to her trainer and licked her face, making her giggle. In return, Perrine stroke her friend's head gently.
"Good job, girl. You're the best," Perrine complimented as Kitsune nuzzled her this time. "Do you want to take a break for now?" Kitsune nodded affirmatively, letting Perrine put her back in her pokeball.
Chuck was quick to call primeape back and send poliwrath out. Perrine sent Florian out since she figured the bayleef could handle poliwrath's water attacks. "Battle begin!"
"Use Water Pulse, buddy!" Chuck roared, punching the air.
"Poliwraaath!" A rippling sphere of water shot out from the circular pattern on poliwrath's body.
"Slice it with Razor Leaf!" Perrine commanded. On cue, Florian swung the leaf on his head, commanding smaller leaves to come flying out. Two of them managed to slice through the ball of water, making it splash onto the ground. Other leaves managed to strike poliwrath's stomach and legs, leaving small cuts.
"Hypnosis!" Chuck shouted.
"Wraaaaath…" The circular pattern on poliwrath's abdomen glowed in a purple light.
"Close your eyes, Florian!" Perrine shouted. Florian managed to squeeze his eyes shut before Perrine could shout the command. In some way, he knew poliwrath was going to pull this stunt. "Use Vine Whip on poliwrath's legs!" Thin vines shot out from the leaves on Florian's neck, coiling around the tadpole's legs. "Throw him in the air!" Mustering all his strength, Florian threw the tadpole high in the air, right as he pulled his vine back.
Florian's eyes snapped open. "Use Razor Leaf before it hits you!" Once again, Florian sent a barrage of razor sharp leaves at the falling tadpole.
"Water Pulse!" Again, poliwrath blasted a sphere of water at the grassy dinosaur. This time, the sphere managed to splash Florian, sending him rolling on the battlefield. Thankfully, some of the razor leaf managed to scratch poliwrath's arms and abdomen. That didn't stop the tadpole from landing on his feet as the dinosaur struggled to get back on his own.
"Are you okay, Florian?" Perrine asked, clutching her vest worriedly.
The dinosaur stood back up, turning to his trainer and giving an affirmative nod. "Bay," He said, almost in a low whisper. Something in Florian's red eyes told Perrine that he wasn't done yet. In fact, he was just getting started.
"Knock'em out with Dynamic Punch!"
"Wraaaath!" Poliwrath's fist glowed in a white light as he charged at the dinosaur. Oddly enough, Florian didn't move, nor did Perrine give him any commands.
"What's she planning?" Julia asked, clutching her hoodie tightly, her entire being consumed with worry.
"I don't know. But she better do something soon or else Florian is done for!" Caiseal replied, looking just as concerned as Julia was.
Once poliwrath got close enough to punch the daylights out of Florian… "Vine Whip!" Florian's vines coiled around poliwrath's arm faster than he could see. "Poison Powder!" A cloud of purple dust exploded from the leaves around Florian's neck, consuming almost the entire battlefield. Everyone was quick to cover their mouths to keep from inhaling the poison.
Except for poliwrath. The purple cloud exploded right in front of his face, so he was unable to use his free hand in time. Soon, he felt as though the entire inside of his body was on fire. Every nerve in his body singed like he was trapped in a whirlpool of blue flames. Before he could do anything else, Florian lifted him up and threw him across the battlefield once more. Florian didn't even stop there, as he ran toward the helpless tadpole, leaped into the air like he was flying, and slammed right down on poliwrath, making a big hole in the field.
"Wow!" Julia exclaimed, standing up from the bleachers. "Did you see that, Caiseal?! Florian just learned Body Slam!"
"Heck yeah!" Caiseal raised his fists into the air and whooped. "Whooooooo! Go Florian! Go Perrine!"
"We're not finished yet!" Chuck slammed one of his feet down on the ground. "Poliwrath! Use Low Sweep!"
"Use your vines and jump!" Right as poliwrath's foot extended out toward Florian's feet, the dinosaur leaped into the air, using his vines for an extra boost. "Finish it with a final Razor Leaf!"
Unable to dodge, a barrage of leaves struck the poliwrath without mercy, leaving him unconscious on the battlefield. Florian fell back to the ground, lifting his leaf up like he knew victory was his. The referee examined the fallen poliwrath before announcing, "Poliwrath is unable to battle! The winner is Florian the bayleef, and the victory goes to Perrine Innocenti of Goldenrod City!"
"Yaaaaaaay!" Perrine's cup of happiness finally overflowed. Florian ran over to his trainer and rejoiced with her in their victory. Perrine hugged her dinosaur friend and jumped around in circles like a little kid. The two laughed and giggled and cheered happily. Chuck could only call poliwrath back with a slightly sad smile.
"You were great, my friend," Chuck told him in a kind whisper. Soon, the sadness dissipated as Julia and Caiseal came racing toward the battlefield.
"You did it, Perrine!" Julia took her friend's hand in her own. "You and your pokemon!"
"You really rocked it back there!" Caiseal slapped one of her shoulders with one hand.
"Thanks…"
"Bay bayleeeeeef!"
With a smile on his face, Chuck marched over to Perrine and held his hand out, with a Storm Badge smack dab in the middle. "Here ya go, Perrine. That was a great battle, and you've proven yourself worthy of this," He told her. Perrine gingerly took the badge out of his hand.
"Thank you, sir," Perrine told him gratefully.
"I still think you should have called it the Fist Badge or something," Julia piped in. Everyone broke into merry laughter. In a way, they agreed. Why name a fist shaped badge the Storm Badge, anyway?
After that, the kids hopped on the first ferry back to Olivine City. For all they knew, Jasmine was probably running the gym again since Ampere was all better now. Perhaps the Pokemon Center got fixed? They weren't sure, but they hoped that was the case. When night fell and the ferry docked at Olivine, their hopes were answered. The Pokemon Center was back to normal! There were still some broken pieces of wall that were yet to be replaced, but the Pokemon Center was open to the public once more, now that everything was fixed.
The kids and their pokemon wasted no time eating dinner, taking showers, and preparing for bed. As soon as Caiseal fell on his bed, he was out like a light, snoring contentedly, but not loud enough to wake anyone up. The rest of his pokemon were asleep as well, except for Mallow and Stacey. Mallow sat on another bed with the rest of the pokemon, brushing some dust off of his favorite bone. Stacey just sat on the floor next to him. Since Mallow was on the bed, he and Stacey were able to literally speak at eye level.
"How long have you been Caiseal's pokemon?" Stacey asked out of the blue, but in a low whisper so as to not wake anyone up.
Mallow looked deep into his bone, examining it for any cracks and nicks. "About...three years," The lonely pokemon replied quietly, in a solemn tone of voice.
The stag beetle pokemon looked down at her large feet. "I...I always lived in the forests…" She began thoughtfully. "I had no idea there were such things as oceans and sand and boats and all of that stuff…"
"Now you know," Mallow piped in calmly.
"The human world is so mysterious…" Stacey mused out loud. "Other pokemon I knew said that humans were cruel and drove them from their homes, and...that we should fear them," She looked down at her thin hands. "But...I don't see what's so scary about them."
"There are both good and bad humans," Mallow clutched his bone with both hands. "I've seen it with my own eyes."
Voices echoed through the solemn cubone's mind. The shrill voice of a hysterical, bordering on angry, middle aged woman shouted at the top of her lungs, "You're a monster! I hated you even when you were inside me! I should never have given birth to you!" But the voice wasn't directed at Mallow. The silhouette of a blonde haired boy fell to his knees, bawling his eyes out. The tears were too real to be a mere illusion.
The cubone squeezed his eyes shut. How long had it been since that awful day? Mallow always thought that humans helped each other, like pokemon did. Reality could be cruel sometimes. He had no idea that even humans were prone to hating their own flesh and blood for any reason.
"How did you and Caiseal meet?" Stacey asked curiously.
Mallow laid back on the bed, facing the dark ceiling as his mind drifted down memory lane.
(flashback)
Three rattata were thrown against some cardboard boxes. A lone cubone stood before them, his yellow eyes freezing them in place, as if daring the three mice to cross him. The cubone pointed his trusty bone at them with one hand, and an unopened plastic bag of jumbo marshmallows was in the other one.
"That'll teach you to steal my food!" Cubone yelled, guarding the bag of marshmallows like it was genuine gold.
The trio of rattata struggled to get back on their feet. Developing bruises dotted their small purple bodies. One rattata's tooth was chipped slightly. All of a sudden, one rattata's tail began to glow in a shiny, silver light, resembling steel. With a mighty hiss, the rattata charged at the cubone with blinding speed before slamming the bone right out of cubone's hand. The bone soared high in the sky, farther than any of them could reach.
Cubone's eyes widened with horror. "Oh no! My bone!" He couldn't do anything but watch as his precious bone fell into parts unknown.
"Wow! I didn't know you knew Iron Tail!" One rattata complimented before the trio scuttled away. They had grown tired of messing with that cubone. The bag of marshmallows wasn't worth it. With that, the rattata were gone, leaving the cubone all alone.
Although cubone still had the bag of marshmallows in his hand, it was nothing compared to his bone. That bone was like his security blanket. It was the only thing that he could use to ensure his own survival. But this was no time for angsting over it. He needed to find it and he needed it now. With resolve in his heart and the marshmallow bag in his hand, he scurried to the place where he thought his bone fell. He searched through alley ways, trash cans, empty cardboard boxes, even in the backyards of other people's houses. Unfortunately, the cubone's search came up fruitless.
Boneless and in tears, the cubone found himself in a particularly dirty alleyway, rummaging through a pack of old newspapers that had droppings and urine stains on them. The alley was dark, with the houses so high they blocked off any kind of sunlight, leaving it dim. Cigarette butts and candy wrappers dotted parts of the street. A trash can was knocked over, spilling most of its contents on the street, many of which consisted of half eaten hamburgers or cardboard box remains. Red and blue dumpsters were covered with colorful graffiti that cubone couldn't understand nor interpret.
Cubone fell to his knees abjectly. His bone was gone. He had no idea how he was going to survive in the future. Did he even have a future? Would he even live to see tomorrow, or would some human or a giant strong pokemon attack him and leave him for dead?
"Hello?"
The lonely pokemon's head snapped up. A small voice caught his ears. But who was it?
"Is this yours?"
Cubone turned around. Standing behind him was a boy of about nine or so years old, with messy, shaggy blonde hair that looked as though it hadn't been washed for at least a week. Hazel eyes fixated on the cubone with curiosity. The boy was dressed in a dirty purple sweater that had some mud spots on it, blue jeans that had some small holes on them, white and blue sneakers, and a bright green scarf. In the boy's hand was...a bone!
"Cubone!" ("My bone!") Unable to contain his joy, the cubone snatched the bone from the boy's hand and nuzzled it with his skull covered head affectionately, like he had been reunited with a lost child. The boy found himself smiling.
"So it is yours. I found it over there," The boy pointed to a nearby street. A red fire hydrant stood alone amongst the many houses.
Cubone stopped cuddling his bone and looked up at the boy with curious eyes. The boy must have found it and noticed him rummaging around, thinking the bone belonged to him. The cubone nodded at the boy gratefully, thanking him for finding his bone. The cubone had no idea humans could be like this.
The boy smiled. "You're welcome. I've never seen a cubone around before," He said, kneeling down to his level. "Do you have a trainer?"
The cubone shook his head, which told him it was a no. "I see," All of a sudden, a harsh rumbling sound echoed in the alleyway. The boy's face turned beet red with embarrassment. "Oh dear," The boy put a hand on his stomach. The cubone got a closer look at the boy's hands. Calloused and dirty from soil and mud. The cubone knew that sound anywhere: hunger. He looked down at the marshmallow bag.
That would help. After all, the boy did generously give his bone back. Perhaps this would be the best way to thank him. The cubone tore the bag open, pulled out a marshmallow that was far larger than his hand, and showed it to the boy. Confused, the boy looked down at the marshmallow, then at the cubone, back at the marshmallow, and back to the cubone.
"Is that for me?" The boy asked, pointing to himself.
"Bone," Cubone nodded affirmatively.
"Thanks!" The boy took the marshmallow and chomped off a chunk of it. He knew it wouldn't be enough to completely fill his stomach, but at least some of the hunger would be alleviated. "My name's Caiseal, by the way."
Cubone sat down next to Caiseal and ate his own marshmallow. Caiseal seemed nice enough. He didn't look or act as though he would hurt him, nor did he seem malicious. The cubone had always stayed away from people. Not because he hated them, but others said they were bad or hurt other pokemon. The cubone wanted nothing more than to survive and live his life. But he had seen human parents with children walking by sometimes, smiling, laughing, and having fun, wrapped in warm clothes and looking well fed and happy. Caiseal looked nothing like the human kids he saw. His hair was unkempt, his clothes were dirty, and he was hungry. What happened to reduce him to such a state?
"I better go now," Caiseal stood up and brushed some dirt off of his shirt with both hands. "You probably have family to take care of. Bye," With that, Caiseal walked away, leaving the cubone all alone.
Or so he thought. After just a few feet, Caiseal could see a small shadow behind him. He turned around and saw the cubone again, marshmallow bag in hand. "What's wrong? Are you lost?"
The cubone shook his head no.
"Do you have family? Kids? A mom or dad?"
Again, cubone shook his head.
"Oh. I didn't know," Caiseal replied. "I'm trying to get home. I know my home address, but I don't know how to get there from here."
Cubone's eyes widened. All kinds of questions were running through his mind. Was Caiseal far from home? Did he run away and end up in some place unfamiliar? Or did his parents…? Hearing Caiseal's confession made the lonely pokemon run cold. There were plenty of dangerous pokemon around here and in other places, big and small. Caiseal didn't look like a pokemon trainer, nor did he have any essentials on him. There was absolutely no way he could possibly survive the wilderness all on his own.
That was when it hit the cubone right then and there. Cubone put the marshmallow bag down and took Caiseal's hand into his own. "Bone bone cubone," He told him.
Caiseal got the message. "Do you...want to be my friend?"
The cubone nodded affirmatively.
A huge smile split the young boy's face. "Awesome! You're the first pokemon I've become friends with!" He picked the cubone up and held him close, trapping the lonely pokemon in a hug. At first, the cubone found himself confused. The boy's skinny arms were holding him close, like he never wanted to let go. Was this how humans expressed their affection? Caiseal wasn't hurting him, so the cubone took some comfort in that, and Caiseal seemed genuinely happy to have him around.
"I'd love to bring you to my house! I've got lots of video games and toys and lots of stuff like that!" Caiseal said as he put the cubone back down. The two of them began strolling through the streets. "I'll even let you ride on my skateboard! I'm trying to do this one trick but I always mess up and fall!" Cubone didn't know what a skateboard was, but from the way Caiseal made such a huge deal about it made him think it was something special. "My sister likes pokemon, too! Her name's Violet! She'll just adore you!"
Cubone liked the idea of seeing his house and meeting his sister. Despite how dirty and calloused Caiseal's hand was, it still felt warm to the touch. "Hey...can I give you a name?"
"Bone?" The cubone tilted his head to one side, confused.
"Yeah! It'll make you different from other cubone. It'll feel more...you!" Caiseal explained in a way that even he wasn't sure was right. "If that's okay with you, of course."
The cubone found himself lost in thought. He heard a lot of human names over the course of his life, namely through humans calling out to each other in loud voices. Terry, Paige, Zinnia, Todd, Kathy, Andrea, Martine, Zoey, Leslie, Lindsey, Ramona, Nate, Hilbert, Hilda, etc. Everyone had a name that made them stand out from the others. The more he thought about it, the more he grew to like the idea. If he had his own name, he wouldn't be confused for another cubone.
"Bone!"
"Awesome! How about...Bone!"
Cubone shook his head, not liking the simple name. "Cubone…"
"Yeah. Too simple. How about Gilgamesh? Nah, sounds like a meat sauce. Howard? You don't like that one, huh? How about Cash? It sounds like me! Don't like it. Okay then. Ben? Too simple. Oh!" Caiseal pounded his palm with one fist. One name came to mind. "Mallow!"
"Bone?"
"Caleb Mallow is a famous trainer who has a marowak!" Caiseal explained. "You evolve into marowak, don't you? He's also a singer and I love his music!"
Mallow...something about the name sounded so pleasant to the cubone. Mallow sounded harmonious yet simple, but not a plain, dull, uninteresting kind of simple. It sounded...just like him. The cubone nodded. "Bone."
"You like Mallow?"
"Bone!"
A smile split the boy's face once more as he held a hand out to his new friend. "It's nice to meet you, Mallow. I hope we can be great friends!"
"Bone bone!"
(end flashback)
"...and that's how we met," Mallow finished. Stacey had listened to the tale intently, silent as a mannequin. She had no idea trainers and pokemon could meet under those kinds of circumstances.
"What happened after that?" Stacey asked quietly.
Before long, Mallow's eyes grew heavy. He rubbed them with his tiny fists to keep himself awake, but his body was begging to go to sleep. He figured he might as well relent. It was getting late, after all, and every human and pokemon needed sleep.
"I'll tell you later," Mallow laid down on the bed, right next to Apollo. As the darkness covered everything up, the cubone's eyes closed shut, drifting off to dreamland.
Raikou dashed across a vast meadow, but not in a joyful, merry way. Smaller pokemon watched as the lightning pokemon raced across the grassy terrain, like he was in a big hurry. Something in the sky reflected the light of the morning sun. Something invisible. Spheres of bubblegum pink liquid adhesive shot out from a cannon from the invisible thing, charging right at Raikou.
"Raaaawr!" With a mighty roar, raikou called forth a lightning bolt that struck the pink liquid adhesive, reducing it to nothing. Even so, the invisible pursuer refused to stop chasing him. Raikou could tell, as he continued to run like the wind.
"Surrender now, Raikou!" A middle aged woman's voice shouted through some megaphone. Raikou wasn't sure how whoever was chasing him was able to communicate with him. "You have nowhere to hide!"
The lightning pokemon didn't dare stop in his tracks. He had to evade this pursuer somehow. He had done it before, and he could do it again. Yes, he knew his pursuer, from the day he told Hikaru to escape somewhere safe. Raikou could only hope that Hikaru was safe from harm.
Dark clouds began to form in the sky. Raikou's normally zig-zagged tail suddenly stood straight up, with blue electricity cackling all around it. With another mighty roar, five thunderbolts dropped down, striking the earth beneath it. Two of the blue thunder bolts struck the grass. Another one suddenly hit the invisible thing that was pursuing Raikou. The invisibility faded, revealing it to be a black airship.
"One of the horizontal stabilizers has been hit!" A man's voice shouted.
"A rudder's on fire!" Another woman's voice yelled.
"Everyone! Prep for an emergency landing!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
As the airship descended to the ground, Raikou watched as he hid amongst thick trees. Good, he could use this chance to evade them for now. This was no time to let himself be captured by hunters. With a low growl, he marched deep into the forest, happy that he managed to at least get them off his tail. For now, anyway. Even so, he needed to keep his guard up. One wrong move, and he was done for.
The next morning, Julia was on the makeshift battlefield behind the pokemon center. Blossom and Aqua were currently pitting themselves against each other for training. Blossom attempted to punch the round blue mouse with her stubby hands. Aqua, being the agile mouse that she was, managed to dodge every move by hopping around or doing backflips. All of the other pokemon sat and watched their friends train. Tsubasa glared at them with intense envy, wishing she could train and battle.
"Alright! Good job, girls!" Julia exclaimed, gesturing for the pokemon to stop training. "You're doing great!"
Blossom beamed and nodded vigorously. "Gloom gloom!"
All Aqua did was modestly scratch her ear with one hand. "Marill mar…"
Caiseal sat on a bench holding a crossword puzzle in one hand and a pencil in the other. He scratched his bushy blonde hair with his pencil, looking stumped. Apollo leaned closer, wondering what was leaving his trainer so dumbfounded. All the giant beaver saw were white blocks with some human language written on them.
'Do humans really find something like this entertaining?' Apollo asked himself, looking just as confused as his trainer.
"Hey guys!" Perrine called out as she ran toward them, her orange hair swaying wildly in the breeze. "Check this out!"
"What's up?" Both Julia and Caiseal approached their joyful friend, wondering what she was so excited about. Perrine shoved a newspaper in front of their faces. The first thing the kids noticed that there was a picture of Raikou racing across the ocean.
The headline read, 'Legendary Pokemon Spotted Crossing Whirl Islands,' in bold black letters. Hikaru hopped on Julia's shoulder to get a better look. Obviously, she couldn't read any of the letters. But the picture of Raikou was enough to completely grab her full attention.
"Pichu!" ("Daddy!") Hikaru exclaimed, her diamond shaped ears standing straight up in alarm.
"What about it?" Caiseal asked as he scratched Apollo's head.
"It says here that there are people who saw Team Rocket going after him," Perrine pointed to the second paragraph of the article.
But the picture of Raikou wasn't the only thing that caught Hikaru's attention. Further down the article was the mugshot of what appeared to be a woman, whose eyes were obscured by thick black goggles. She didn't look friendly in the least, as a scowl split her face.
"PICHU!" Hikaru suddenly screamed.
"Yow!" Julia's hands flew to her ears. "Hikaru! Don't shout like that!"
Hikaru grabbed the newspaper, stood on the ground, and pointed to the picture of the woman. "Pichu pichu pichu pichu!" ("This is the woman who tried to hurt me and Daddy!") She kept slamming her paw on the newspaper, making crinkling sounds.
"Hold on," It didn't take long for Julia to comprehend what Hikaru said. "That's the woman who tried to kidnap you and hurt Raikou back before you met me?"
"Pichu!"
"Wait, when was this?" Perrine asked.
Julia took some time to explain what Hikaru told her back in Ecruteak City. "Whoa. I never knew," Caiseal's eyes were wide with bewilderment.
The yellow mouse gave the newspaper back to Perrine. "So this woman...apparently she's known as Pokemon Hunter J. She's known for stealing pokemon and selling them for big money," Hearing that made a shiver run down everyone's spines. Confusion immediately morphed into anger. Selling pokemon? How cruel could a person get? Pokemon aren't plastic pieces of merchandise! Julia thought that if she ever ran into that J woman, she'd punch her right in the face. "The police have tried to catch her for years, but she's always one step ahead of them. She's number one on the Federation's Top 20 Most Wanted list for multiple counts of grand larceny, pokemon cruelty, assault, grand embezzlement, pokemon and human trafficking, and even murder!"
"What's larceny?" Julia asked.
"It means to steal something and use it for your own purposes," Caiseal explained calmly.
Julia found herself thinking hard about the charges this J woman acquired. Hurting others. Killing people and pokemon. Stealing money. Her brain immediately spilled forth the definition of trafficking, along with the memory of a movie she had seen on it once. Men were selling young women, most of them being poor or from third world countries, to other men, for less than savory purposes. The images flooding her mind made her eyes burn, along with everything else. All she could do was squeeze her hands into fists to stop the tears from spilling forth.
"You okay, Jule?" Caiseal asked, seeing his friend's face contort.
Even Hikaru noticed. But she knew what her trainer was thinking. A human doing all of those things to both people and pokemon...the scope of their crimes was beyond their imagination. Julia kneeled down to pick her friend up and held her close, trapping her in a soft hug, as if to reassure her that she was safe. Hikaru knew she was safe, now that she had friends here with her. But still, the memories of that awful day flooded her mind.
She wasn't sure if she could endure this again. Not again.
FLASH! Striking yellow thunderbolts flashed through the early morning twilight. The kids' heads all snapped upward. Three streaks of lightning shot into the sky. Soft rumbling sounds shook the earth beneath them just a little bit. Dark clouds came crawling over Olivine City. Voices of confused citizens polluted the air.
"What's going on?! What is that?!"
"Are you seeing this, too?!"
"Take cover, everyone!"
"Is that an airship?!"
"Someone call the police!"
"Is this a movie or something?!"
"Does that look like special effects to you?!"
"We gotta get out of here!"
Julia stole glances from Perrine, Caiseal, and the other pokemon. They knew they had to see what was up. With solemn nods, they put their pokemon into their pokeballs, sans Hikaru, and raced away from the Pokemon Center. Lightning was striking everywhere. A stream of flames fired on the ground.
There was Raikou, growling at a large, blue dragon pokemon with sharp red wings. A huge crowd of people watched in awe and frightened wonder as the dragon pokemon swiftly descended to the ground. A woman with shaggy silver hair stepped off of the dragon pokemon, her pitch black goggles obscuring her eyes. A light grey, oval shaped machine was strapped to her left arm. She wore a pitch black leather jacket over crimson pants, matching high heels, and matching fingerless gloves.
The three kids gasped. There was absolutely no doubt about it. It was the woman from the newspaper article, the one who is after Raikou.
Pokemon Hunter J.
"Graaaaaaar!" Raikou let out a thundering roar, glaring at the woman and dragon.
"Target identified," J said in a cold, calculating voice. She raised her arm upward, facing the electric tiger. The hole on the machine glowed in an orange light. All of a sudden, an energy blast shot right out of it. Raikou let out yet another thunderous roar, calling forth a lightning bolt that blasted the beam into smithereens. The woman barely reacted, keeping a stone faced expression the whole time. "Won't back down without a fight, huh? Very well then! Salamence, use Hyper Beam!"
The dragon pokemon behind her, salamence, let out a roar before shooting a white blast of energy right at Raikou. But this electric tiger wasn't going to let these two mess with him. Once more, Raikou called forth five thunderbolts this time, colliding with the Hyper Beam attack. An explosion covered the entire area as grey clouds polluted the air.
"Use Dragon Pulse!" J commanded.
Salamence only managed to take in at least two breaths before shooting a colorful, dragon shaped blast of energy right at Raikou. Julia couldn't believe it. Even in battle, J wasn't easy on her own pokemon, let alone the ones she wanted to catch. She couldn't just sit here and do nothing. Her hands moved on their own. She threw two pokeballs into the air.
"Aqua and Tokiko! Use Water Gun and Dazzling Gleam!"
Once Tokiko and Aqua materialized, the water mouse spat out a geyser of water strong enough to hold off the Dragon Pulse. Once the salamence was distracted, Tokiko flew right in front of its face before flashing a brilliant white light bright enough to make the dragon squeeze its eyes shut. The grey clouds finally dissipated. Like before, J didn't even so much as smirk.
Julia wasn't sure what she was doing. Her body knew, but her mind didn't. She knew one thing for sure: Raikou didn't deserve this. "You leave Raikou alone!" She bellowed bravely. Perrine and Caiseal joined her, pulling out some of their own pokeballs in case they needed to duke it out with her.
"Hmph. You children are fools to get in my way," J mused out loud. What a nuisance these kids were. "Salamence! Dragon Pulse once more!"
"Apollo! Use Flamethrower!"
"Kitsune! You use Flamethrower, too!"
"Hikaru! Disarming Voice!"
As soon as Apollo and Kitsune materialized, they wasted no time shooting flames at the dragon shaped beam of energy, holding it off. Oddly enough, Hikaru didn't attack. Julia looked down and immediately realized why. The tiny pichu was trembling in fear. Her diamond shaped ears stood upward, stuck in a rigid stance. Her small eyes burned, desperately holding back tears.
"Pichu…" ("I can't go through this again…") Hikaru blurted out in a choked voice, like she was about to fall apart, like crashing glass. "Pichupi…" ("Not again…") Memories flooded Hikaru's mind. J attempting to do whatever she wanted with her. Raikou saving her. The big machines hurting Raikou. Hikaru being forced to run and leave him there, knowing it was a hopeless battle.
Since Tokiko and Aqua were still out, she figured Hikaru deserved to stay out of the battle. "Aqua and Tokiko! Help them out!" Once more, the fairy and the mouse offered their aid as they held off the salamence.
Unbeknownst to them, J happened to notice Hikaru standing right next to Julia. The memory of her attempted first capture of Raikou came to mind. "That shiny pichu's the same one from back then," She didn't waste time lifting her arm up. "It'll be worth it's weight in gold."
"No!" Julia grabbed Hikaru and dodged the blast that came out from the machine. Again, Raikou shot lightning bolts at salamence. This time, one of them struck the dragon's left wing.
"I don't want to resort to such drastic measures, but it seems I have no choice," J mused as she pulled out a walkie-talkie. "Bring forth the capture tanks!"
Immediately, rumbling sounds made the crowd disperse in fear. Two large, silver tanks with long claws extending outward came rolling onto the scene. Hikaru shivered even further. Those were the same tanks that caught Raikou the last time. Before the kids could do anything, Raikou leaped forward, clawing at the tanks. Unfortunately, they managed to latch onto the electric tiger before electrocuting him with purple electricity. The tiger roared as the energy burned every fiber in his body.
"PICHUUU!" ("DADDYYYY!") Hikaru cried, covering her face with her small hands.
"Apollo! Use Rollout and free Raikou!" Caiseal commanded.
"You help too, Kitsune! Use Extrasensory!"
"Tokiko, you keep J distracted!"
Everyone nodded. Kitsune's eyes glowed as she faced the large claws, singlehandedly pulling the claws away from Raikou. Apollo rolled into a ball as he charged at the claws, ramming himself against them to help Raikou get free. Raikou couldn't gracefully leap away like he usually did, and the electrocution rendered him numb, so he simply fell to the ground, limp like a wet towel. Tokiko flashed yet another Dazzling Gleam attack, blinding both J and the salamence.
"Tch! Little brats!" J hissed, vexed by this unexpected turn of events. "I'll have to think of another plan. Salamence, let's go!" She leaped onto salamence's back as the dragon ascended into the air. The tanks retreated from the area, disappearing into the woods.
"You get back here!" Caiseal yelled into the sky, his voice echoing. Unfortunately, J had already disappeared.
Raikou laid dormant on the ground, unconscious and unmoving. Gradually, the crowd from before came back fearfully, observing the chaotic scene from afar. Police sirens pierced the uneasy silence, and the ghostly red and blue lights flashed in the distance, growing brighter and brighter the closer the cars came. Parts of the ground were completely black, charred thanks to Raikou's thunder attacks, probably to defend himself from J and whoever was working with her.
"Pichu!" Hikaru leaped out of Julia's arms, running toward Raikou in tears. Once again, Raikou was hurt, and it was all that woman's fault. Once Hikaru got close, she pressed on his long paws with her own, pleading with him to wake up. His body rose and fell in tune with his breathing, so he was at least alive, much to Hikaru and everyone else's relief. But it didn't stop the tears from falling.
"Hikaru…" Julia could only watch as her friend stood by her adoptive father's side.
"Pichu…" ("Daddy…")
Heeeeeey all you people and Pokemaniacs! Happy belated new year! I hope nobody got too drunk on alcohol or overdosed on any drugs and partied safely! Anyway, it's a new year, and that means new beginnings! I'm gonna find myself a job with my parents' help, avoid certain places I want to stay the heck away from, and hopefully make this year better than last year. I hope you all had a happy new year, too!
I have a new poll up, too! Check it out and place your votes!
Random Fact: Jasmine's last name in this version is Pitt, as in Pittsburgh, the steel city. I wanted to give her the last name Chilikov, since it comes from the Turkish word for steel, chilik, but I thought Pitt sounded better and more compact. I also gave Chuck the last name Bergman, which means "Man of the mountain." I figured Chuck would be the kind of man who would do special training in the mountains to improve himself.
Also...
To the anon who keeps accusing me of plagiarism: Please stop. I only deleted your review because you were being a whiny brat, and as of now, you continue to do so, and your "review" wasn't a review for my story nor does it have anything to do with it. I will delete it every time. I'm not a plagiarist. Stop accusing me of things I don't do. I won't stand for that kind of attitude here, nor do I want any drama, so please kindly leave if you so wish. Don't let me hear from you again.
Julia's Party:
Hikaru (Shiny Pichu, Female, Jolly Nature)
Ability: Static
Attacks: Thundershock, Disarming Voice, Sweet Kiss, Tail Whip
Aqua (Marill, Female, Mild Nature)
Ability: Thick Fat
Attacks: Rollout, Bubblebeam, Play Rough, and Water Gun
Tokiko (Togetic, Female, Hardy Nature)
Ability: Serene Grace
Attacks: Extrasensory, Headbutt, Dazzling Gleam, Magical Leaf
Papillon (Butterfree, Female, Calm Nature)
Ability: Compound Eyes
Attacks: Confusion, Sleep Powder, Psybeam, Stun Spore
Tsubasa (Pidgeotto, Female, Naughty Nature)
Ability: Keen Eye
Attacks: Tackle, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Twister
Blossom (Gloom, Female, Docile Nature)
Ability: Chlorophyll
Attacks: Acid, Poison Powder, Stun Spore, and Mega Drain
Perrine's Party:
Kitsune (Ninetales, Female, Quiet Nature)
Ability: Flash Fire
Attacks: Heat Wave, Extrasensory, Confuse Ray, and Faint Attack
Florian (Bayleef, Male, Gentle Nature)
Ability: Overgrow
Attacks: Razor Leaf, Tackle, Body Slam, and Poison Powder
Fuwari (Skiploom, Female, Relaxed Nature)
Ability: Leaf Guard
Attacks: Tackle, Fairy Wind, Bullet Seed, and Sleep Powder
Mushi (Paras, Male, Quirky Nature)
Ability: Effect Spore
Attacks: Scratch, Stun Spore, Growth, and Giga Drain
Baloo (Jigglypuff, Female, Docile Nature)
Ability: Cute Charm
Attacks: Sing, Wake-Up Slap, Disarming Voice, and Round
Fukuro (Noctowl, Male, Sassy Nature)
Ability: Tinted Lens
Attacks: Confusion, Peck, Hypnosis, and Dream Eater
Caiseal's Party:
Mallow (Cubone, Male, Lax Nature)
Ability: Lightning Rod
Attacks: Bonemerang, Bone Club, Headbutt, Growl
Apollo (Quilava, Male, Bold Nature)
Ability: Blaze
Attacks: Flame Wheel, Tackle, Quick Attack, and Smokescreen
Flippy (Quagsire, Female, Jolly Nature)
Ability: Damp
Attacks: Water Gun, Mud Bomb, Mud Slap, and Slam
Ravenclaw (Murkrow, Female, Hardy Nature)
Ability: Super Luck
Attacks: Wing Attack, Night Shade, Dark Pulse, and Haze
Viole (Oddish, Male, Quirky Nature)
Ability: Chlorophyll
Attacks: Acid, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder, and Sweet Scent
Stacey (Pinsir, Female, Serious Nature)
Ability: Hyper Cutter
Attacks: X-Scissor, Swords Dance, Seismic Toss, and Double Hit
Amara's Party:
Croconaw (Male, Lonely Nature)
Ability: Torrent
Attacks: Water Pulse, Crunch, Ice Fang, and Scary Face
Weepinbell (Male, Modest Nature)
Ability: Chlorophyll
Attacks: Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Growth, and Sleep Powder
Beedrill (Male, Hasty Nature)
Ability: Poison Point
Attacks: Twineedle, Fury Attack, Tackle, and Pin Missile
Granbull (Female, Quirky Nature)
Ability: Run Away
Attacks: Fire Fang, Play Rough, Lick, and Thunderbolt
Fearow (Male, Timid Nature)
Ability: Sniper
Attacks: Drill Peck, Pursuit, Aerial Ace, and Leer
Haunter (Male, Impish Nature)
Ability: Levitate
Attacks: Shadow Punch, Hypnosis, Dream Eater, and Poison Jab