Chapter 45: Three Trainers and a Spoiled Brat
Julia sat on the grass, her big sketchbook sitting in between her legs, as she finished adding the flames on a Ponyta drawing she was working on. The lead on her mechanical pencil shrunk as she added more details to the Ponyta's mane. She wished she had some colored pencils with her so she could add some color to everything, but her parents advised against bringing them. She didn't need colored pencils on a journey all over Johto, they told her. Plus, her money was to be spent on necessities, nothing more. Oh well. Julia shrugged and continued drawing, even as her PokeGear kept ringing.
Every half hour, her PokeGear would spring to life, making that lively ringing sound. Hearing it once was one thing, but hearing it over and over again was really starting to get aggravating. Julia held the PokeGear in her hand and scowled at it, recognizing the number. Her mother's. She simply stuffed the ringing PokeGear in her bag and went back to drawing. She was in absolutely no mood to talk to her mother right now, and hadn't wanted to do so since she gave Geraldine away. But the second she tried to draw the Ponyta's eyes, the lead on her pencil suddenly snapped.
"Darn!" Julia groaned, holding the pencil close to get a better look. "It made me mess up its eyes!"
She was so focused on her drawing that she didn't notice Caiseal approaching her from behind, accompanied by Saoirse and Ravenclaw. Noticing the sketchpad in her lap, he leaned closer to get a better look, and his eyes shrunk in awe.
"Wow. You seriously drew that?" He asked.
"Yeah I did," Julia replied.
"Man, I didn't know you could draw, much less that good," Caiseal sat down next to her, with Ravenclaw settling on his left shoulder soon after. "I suck at it. I can only draw stupid stick figures."
"Yeah, I like it," Julia pressed the eraser end of her pencil and made some more lead pop out, immediately returning to drawing the Ponyta's eyes. "I haven't done it in a while, though."
Now that Caiseal was sitting down, he managed to get a better look at her drawing. It was a lone Ponyta running through what appeared to be a grassy meadow. At first, he assumed it was Twilight, but upon further inspection, the Ponyta she drew didn't have a prosthetic leg. Still, the drawing was almost complete, and he could tell the Ponyta in her drawing looked happy and excited, running through the meadow freely, its fiery mane and tail flowing in the wind.
"It's not Twilight, in case you're wondering. I'm not good at drawing prosthetic legs," Julia explained, filling in the Ponyta's eyes.
"That's what I figured," Caiseal said.
"Hey. Blackthorn City has a gym, right? Who was the gym leader again?"
"Clair. Clair van Drak," He explained. "She uses dragon type Pokemon, but I know she often keeps a Gyarados on her team as well," He had read about that in a book, though since it was so long ago, he wasn't sure if she would still have a Gyarados on her team. But for all he knew, he might be wrong, so he shrugged and continued on. "Dragon types are weak against themselves, surprisingly. But ice types and fairy types are strong against them, too. If you ever plan on battling her, Tokiko might be the best Pokemon you can use."
Julia kept working on her drawing as she conversed with her friend. "That's what I thought, too. I'd use Saoirse as well, but she doesn't know any fairy-type attacks, Ice Fang can only go so far, and she doesn't really like battling," She looked down at her pink friend, who simply laid down on the grass, soaking up the sun. "No offense, Saoirse."
"Snubbull," Saoirse replied, and Julia knew she was saying, "None taken."
"Doesn't Aqua know Play Rough?" Caiseal asked. "Maybe you can call your parents and have them send her over."
It was then that he saw Julia's expression darken a bit. Her hand stopped drawing, and she pressed her lips together tightly. Right then, her phone blared to life again. One ring. Two rings. After the third, Caiseal pointed to her backpack.
"Aren't you gonna answer it?"
"Murkrow?"
"No," was Julia's swift, terse reply. "I know it's Mom, and I don't want to talk to her."
Caiseal was about to ask why, but the Geraldine incident flashed through his mind. Particularly, the phone conversation Julia and her mother had back in Mahogany Town. He happened to hear everything, which wasn't a surprise, since the two of them were yelling quite loudly. Was that why? Granted, he had to admit her mother's concerns were valid, as Geraldine did almost destroy part of Mahogany Town, even if it was unintentional, and Julia could barely do a thing to stop her. But he knew Julia never did anything without good reason, so he knew he couldn't just dismiss it as her being stubborn.
"Is this about Geraldine?" Caiseal finally asked.
Julia sighed before answering his question. "I get it. I know she was right about Geraldine being too much for me to handle. Her nearly destroying Mahogany Town and my being unable to stop her proved as such," She began. He could tell from the way her voice was terse and somewhat snappy that she was trying to keep herself composed. "I should have listened to her. But...I didn't want to give up on Geraldine."
She went on to explain that after she gave Geraldine over to Lance, her mother called her the next morning and was livid to find that Julia didn't release Geraldine outright. Even after Julia explained why, her mother was still angry and yelled at her the entire time. But what made Julia especially angry was that her mother was going against everything she had ever taught her. It was her mother who always taught her to treat Pokemon with respect and make efforts to understand them, especially if they're troubled or have problems, and to never give up on them. But all throughout, she kept talking about Geraldine like she was some heartless, murderous monster, and acted like Julia finding an alternative to releasing her was tantamount to setting an entire neighborhood on fire.
"I'm sorry. I know this all sounds really petty, but...I just can't let this slide!" Julia continued, her voice rising. "It's so hypocritical of her to say that, and she has the nerve to claim I'm being a brat and having an attitude for calling her on it!" At this point, any attempts to hide her lingering anger failed. She slammed her fist on some grass, and she could feel her hand throb from the impact.
The notion that her mother just casually went against everything she ever taught Julia her entire life absolutely disgusted her.
"She probably didn't mean it to come off that way, but...she was definitely implying it whether she knew it or not," Julia fumed. All the anger that came bubbling right out rendered her unable to draw. For her, emotions had a way of consuming her so much that they made her unable to do anything except let them all out once the floodgates opened. "Like, for example...would you like it if I told you to release Stacey because there was a teeny tiny chance that she may or may not turn out to be vicious and chop your head off with her big pincers?"
All throughout, Caiseal listened in silence, which continued as he pondered Julia's question. While it was true that Pinsir could definitely be dangerous, especially since they're known to completely crush their prey with their big pincers, often outright tearing them in half in most cases. One definitely needed to be cautious on that front. However, for as long as he's had her, Stacey had been nothing but a friendly, amiable, and laid-back Pokemon who never attacked anyone. She got along very well with Heracles, from what Caiseal had seen, and was always gentle with the smaller Pokemon, even letting them climb on her horns sometimes as long as they were careful not to cut themselves on her smaller horns.
"Of course I wouldn't," Caiseal finally found his answer. Actually, he knew his answer all along. "I mean, it'd be one thing if Stacey really was aggressive and violent, but she isn't, and I love her. All my other Pokemon, too."
"Murkrow!" Ravenclaw squawked in agreement.
"Snubbull," Saoirse did the same, only her reply was more a relaxed huff.
"I mean, who am I to tell you which Pokemon you should and shouldn't catch or try to control your life?" Julia continued.
Caiseal stretched his legs out. "I do agree with you," He told her, at which time Julia's PokeGear stopped ringing. "But I don't think ignoring your mom all the time is the best way to go about it. For all we know, maybe she wants to apologize and is calling you so she can do so. I could be wrong, though. Better yet, you can tell her everything you told me, and let her know how her yelling at you about it made you feel," He suggested.
"Believe me, I'd like to. But she's really stubborn. More stubborn than a Golem sleeping in the middle of a road for a thousand years."
The blonde boy couldn't help but chuckle at the analogy. Plus, the image of a Golem sitting right in the middle of a busy road, blocking all traffic was rather funny to picture in his head.
"Alright then. I probably shouldn't force you to do something you don't want to," Caiseal said. Although he did wish Julia would at least answer her calls-the incessant ringing was starting to make his own ears ring-he didn't want to accidentally push her buttons or make her angry. He figured she'd call her mother when she felt she was ready. "Anyway...how's-?"
"WHAT?!" Out of nowhere, a shrieking Perrine cut through the quiet atmosphere, making both Caiseal and Julia suck in sharp breaths. What was that all about? They both turned around to find Perrine sitting on the grass, with her PokeGear held up to her ear, blue eyes wide as saucers. But she looked oddly frantic, like she heard that someone had died. "Dad was held hostage in the radio tower and you're only telling me this NOW?!"
Radio tower? Hostage? That didn't sound good. Was her father alright? Julia and Caiseal stood up and ran over to their friend, wondering what was up. They could hear Perrine's mother's scratchy voice on the other line, as the PokeGear's volume was surprisingly high, and it wasn't on speaker mode.
"Sorry, Perrine. Your father didn't want you to worry, so he told me not to inform you until everything was resolved. He didn't want you to just drop everything and put your journey on hold just for him. Besides, there was the chance that you'd get hurt as well, and he didn't want to put you in any danger," She had explained.
"But Mom! Dad could have died! I would have gladly hopped a plane to Goldenrod and made sure you guys were okay! You should have told me!" Perrine shouted, her frantic voice rising, both sad and angry at the same time. "I'd never be able to forgive myself if...something happened to him…!" Julia could see her friend trying hard to blink back tears.
Julia reached a hand out. Even though she knew her father was alright-everything Perrine's mother said implied that he was-she still couldn't hold back the urge to put a reassuring hand on Perrine's shoulder. But she stopped and pulled her hand back at the last second, hesitantly looking down at the grass. 'Don't try to reassure her,' The voice in her head told her. 'You'll only end up making her angrier,' Past experiences had told her that any attempt she tried to make at consoling or reassuring someone usually ended with someone yelling at her or telling her to go away, even when they knew she was only trying to help. Caiseal raised an eyebrow when he saw Julia pull her hand back.
"You're right, Perrine. I should have. I was worried sick about him, too," Her mother lamented softly. Perrine could tell she was remorseful from the way her voice trembled.
"Is he okay?"
"Yes, he is, dear. Don't worry," Her mother reassured, calm as can be.
Perrine exhaled a soft sigh of relief. "Thank goodness," A smile returned to her face. "I had no idea something like that actually happened."
Much to her friends' relief, their conversation turned pleasant right afterward. Caiseal and Julia simply stayed silent as Perrine finished talking to her mother. "I have to go now. We're just out of Mahogany Town and we still have a long trek ahead of us. But I'll let you know when we get to the next Pokemon Center. Tell Dad I said hi and that I'm glad he's safe, okay?"
"You bet I will. Remember to eat healthy foods, do your laundry, and take care of yourself. Love you."
"Love you too, Mom! Bye!"
With that, Perrine stuffed her PokeGear back into her pocket. This time, Julia and Caiseal's curiosity got the better of them. "What was that about? What happened at the radio tower?"
"Yeah. It sounded serious!" Caiseal exclaimed.
Perrine explained everything her mother told her. She expected them to be completely surprised, and they were, rightfully so. "Whoa! No foolin'?" Caiseal could hardly believe it. "Team Rocket actually tried to take over the whole tower, and they seriously killed people in the process?"
"Yeah they did."
Julia looked down at her folded hands. "Those poor people…" She murmured sadly. Her heart ached for those who died in the attempted takeover. Nobody deserves to go out like that. Now she really hated Team Rocket. How could they do something so horrible to innocent people, and inflict terrible pain on their friends and families by extension? She definitely felt Perrine had every right to be shocked and angry. Her father had been held hostage, and was probably close to death had the police not managed to apprehend TR. But then she wondered...what would she herself have done if her family was in that kind of situation? Her mom, her dad, Amara, her relatives, all of the Pokemon friends she made…
"Did they arrest Team Rocket?" Caiseal asked.
"That's what Mom said," Perrine answered. "But apparently some of them escaped, like this one guy...Archer I think she said his name was. I hear Pokemon Hunter J had some involvement in it, too."
Hunter J...they knew that name all too well. Julia could still see the Olivine City incident in her mind as clearly as it had happened yesterday. In some way, she could still feel the burn on her elbow from when J placed a lit cigarette on her skin. The awful, burning, searing pain that shot through her entire body...she wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to forget that sensation for as long as she lived, much less the screaming she did when it happened. God, that noise she made...it even hurt her own ears. But she saw Perrine hold her head down, glassy eyes staring at her hands, just like Julia was doing now.
"Honestly, I'm just happy Dad's okay," It was easy for the kids to hear her voice tremble. "Things could have gone so much worse…"
She couldn't resist this time. Julia wrapped her arms around Perrine and pulled her close, trapping her in a big, warm hug. Caiseal simply smiled and put a friendly hand on her shoulder. Their gestures were warmer than any thick winter coat her parents could ever buy for her. Tears trickled down Perrine's cheeks and she smiled as she hug Julia back with one hand, placing her other hand on Caiseal's.
"Thanks guys. You're the best."
"Don't forget your Pokemon, too!" Julia pointed out, letting her go.
As of right now, all of the trainers' Pokemon were out of their PokeBalls, playing, frolicking, relaxing, or doing whatever else. Mushi and Baloo were running around chasing each other, probably in a game of tag, and Mushi could barely keep up with the balloon Pokemon. Florian laid down in one part of the meadow, content and happy as sunlight warmed his green skin. Kitsune and Twilight were firing flames into the sky. Julia could tell Kitsune was teaching Twilight some new fire attacks. Fuwari was floating about in the sky, singing a little tune to herself, happy as can be. Chirin sat on the grass, having gathered a big pile of yellow autumn leaves, no other colors. Perrine smiled bigger. Her Pokemon were all her precious friends. Where would she be without them?
"So, how far is the next Pokemon Center from here?" Caiseal asked.
Perrine pulled a book out from her backpack. "I'll check," She flipped through the pages and found something right away. "Alright, there's one a little further down the road. It'll take us about...maybe an hour or so to get there from here on foot. But it's only ten o'clock right now, so we don't need to rush."
"I agree," Julia crossed her legs. "But we do want to get there before it gets dark. How about we leave at about noon? That'll get us there at about one, and we can use that time to prepare."
Caiseal stood up. "Good idea. Let's go with that. Agreed?"
"Agreed!" Both girls cried out in unison.
After that, the kids dispersed and decided to have some fun before having lunch and moving on. Julia went back to her spot from before and returned to her drawing, figuring Perrine needed some time for herself in regards to that radio tower incident. Not only that, her cold from before was completely gone, and for the first time in a long while, she actually felt great. No more snot running down her nose, no stuffy noses, no being even more sensitive to everything around her than usual, no staying inside a tent for several days straight, no more headaches...it felt good to be back outside again. The cool autumn breeze soothed her as she finally finished the Ponyta's eyes. The drawing was finished! Then she turned the page and immediately went to work on another one. Saoirse remained by her side and watched as she started on a new drawing.
It was at this time that Hikaru and Rino were skulking the outskirts of some nearby woods. With their ears up high and eyes wide open, they were on the hunt for some tasty berries. They could smell the cool, slightly dry scent of Oran berries, and since they were still a long way from the Pokemon Center, they figured they could gather some in case anyone got hurt. But where could they be? Hikaru kept her nose to the ground, following the scent, walking carefully with each, stealthy step. Eventually, she found herself looking up at a big tree, with blue dots all over it. Upon closer inspection, the blue dots were Oran berries.
"Riiiino!" Rino was bigger and taller than Hikaru, so he could see them more clearly.
"Pika pika!" Hikaru cheered, immediately running up the tree to get some. She found some right away, and whacked them with her tail, knocking them right off their branches. They rained down from the tree, and Rino was quick to catch them with his horn, taking care not to cut through them. When they fell down on his head, he manipulated his body so they could gather between his ears. They were big enough, and he could use them as a means to carry the Oran berries.
"Ni! Ni! Ni! Ni!" Rino was quick to move all around the tree, catching all he could carry. But more berries hit the ground, so he couldn't quite get them all. Soon, Hikaru hopped down from the tree, a small bundle of berries cradled in her arms.
"Pika pikachu!" Hikaru chirruped happily, showing Rino her treasure trove. Rino's collection obviously outnumbered hers, but that was alright. There was plenty to go around. They couldn't wait to take them back and show everybody.
Suddenly, one of Hikaru's ears perked up. "Pi?" She looked toward a set of bushes nearby. Rino did the same, wondering what was wrong.
"Nido?"
The leaves on the bushes were shaking and rustling. Immediately, Hikaru got down on all fours, standing in front of her Oran berry collection and adopting a defensive stance. Was there a wild Pokemon hiding behind those bushes? Rino held his horn out, ready to attack, just in case. One couldn't afford to be too cautious when out in the wilderness. Anything could happen. The rustling got louder, and suddenly…
Something pink and brown popped right out. Before Hikaru could react, something wrapped around her, squeezing her tight.
"Piiiiiiiii!"
Hikaru's screech echoed all over the meadow. Julia, Perrine, and Caiseal all whipped their heads up, surprised by the sudden noise. What was that about? Julia was the first to hop straight to her feet, hearing the distress in her friend's voice. "Hikaru!" She dropped her drawing materials and sprinted across the grass, worry suddenly sprouting in her heart faster than she could run. Something bad must have happened to Hikaru! Seeing her run like the wind, Perrine and Caiseal followed her. Baloo and Ravenclaw, also having heard the loud screech, gave chase.
It didn't take long for them to find Hikaru. But they immediately stopped right in their tracks when they saw what...or who, Hikaru had encountered.
"Wowie! It's a Pikachu! I found a Pikachu!"
"Piiikaaaaa!" ("Let me go already!")
Instead of a ferocious wild Pokemon or a potential Pokenapper, what they found was a young girl, hugging Hikaru so tight that the mouse Pokemon was struggling to break from her grasp. Rino could only stand and watch awkwardly, wondering where this kid came from. The girl in question looked to be about six or seven years old, with brown skin and long, black hair tied into poofy, spiky pigtails with red ribbons. She was wearing a short sleeved, dark pink shirt with a glittery flower on it, a big, poofy, pink skirt that looked more like a ballerina tutu, matching pink shoes that also had glittery flowers on them, and tall red socks. Hanging off her back was a bright purple backpack with a big, glittering butterfly on it. Julia and the others could only exchange confused glances. What in the world was going on? But more than that, where did this girl come from?
Of course, Hikaru was obviously in distress, using her small hands to try and pry herself out of the little girl's tight grip. But the girl kept her arms wrapped around Hikaru, nuzzling her with her cheek. "You're gonna be my bestest friend forever!" The girl rejoiced, continuing to almost choke Hikaru to death with her well-intentioned hug.
Julia knew she needed to take action, so she made the first move. "Ummm...excuse me!"
The girl turned in her direction. A shiver ran up her spine. 'Oh Arceus! She's looking right at me!' She thought fearfully, but knew she had to get Hikaru out of her arms, so she pushed her lingering fear deep inside. "That's actually my Pikachu you have there. Her name's Hikaru," She told her in the most polite, friendly voice she could muster. "May I have her back, please?"
Unfortunately for her, the girl stuck her lip out and held Hikaru tighter. "No! I found her so she's mine!" She cried petulantly. "Finders keepers, losers weepers!"
"Pikachuuuu!" Hikaru protested, pushing her hands on the girl's arms with all her strength. Again, she wasn't budging.
Then Julia remembered. She had Hikaru's PokeBall! She took it out, called Hikaru back, and the girl could only watch in shock as the Pikachu turned into red light and went into the PokeBall. "Sorry. She really is mine. This proves it," Julia told her.
"Awwww! No fair!" The little girl whined, stamping her foot on the grass. Not wanting to be her next target, Rino scurried behind his trainer right away.
"What's a little kid doing all the way out here anyway?" Perrine whispered to Caiseal.
"I have no idea. Maybe she's lost?" Caiseal suggested.
"That seems likely," Julia replied. "I wonder where she came from."
"Let's ask her," Perrine added.
Julia's eyebrows furrowed. "Would you mind doing it?" She asked Perrine. "I'm not good with kids who are younger than me."
Caiseal raised his hand. "I'll do the talking," After that, he approached the young girl with a smile. "Hey there, miss. What's your name?"
The little girl raised an eyebrow, sizing him up. "Who're you?"
"I'm Caiseal, and those are my friends, Perrine and Julia," He explained in a calm, welcoming voice. Julia and Perrine simply waved at her in silence. But Julia still hid behind Perrine, not wanting to be in the little girl's sight.
Immediately, the little girl's face brightened right up. "Oh! Are you guys Pokemon trainers?!"
"Yes we are."
"Cool! I'm Abby Webster, and I'm six years old!" The little girl, Abby, finally introduced herself in a loud, squeaky voice that definitely matched her age. A hand flew to Julia's right ear in an attempt to block it out. "I'm a Pokemon trainer, too!"
Again, the older kids looked at each other, completely perplexed. "I'll be right back," Caiseal told her before running to the group. Something had to be done about this little kid, and now was the time to have a discussion about it.
"She can't be a Pokemon trainer," Julia told them. "It's illegal for someone under age ten to travel on their own. The only way anyone under ten can travel is if they're supervised, by an adult or a trainer who's older than them," She explained further. She had read about this in a book, and knew every rule there was to being a proper trainer.
Perrine nodded in agreement. "That's true. I think maybe she's lost. Her parents are probably worried sick."
"You might be right," Caiseal said, crossing his arms. "I can't think of any explanation as to how a kid her age got here of all places. Besides, the Pokemon Center's about an hour's walk away from here. Maybe we can take her there and see if they can find her parents."
Julia raised both eyebrows. Why was he suggesting that? An hour's walk was still far away, and the last thing she wanted was to be stuck with some kid she didn't know, much less one who tried to claim Hikaru as her own. "Can't we just call the police right here and have them come get her?" Julia asked, eyes wide with trepidation.
"Route 44 is a pretty big area," Caiseal reminded her. "And we don't know our exact location, so how will we be able to explain to the police where we are? I think the best thing to do is take her to the Pokemon Center we're heading to and then call them from there, that way they can at least know where to look."
Good points. Julia winced. She was going to be stuck with this little kid for possibly over a whole hour? Already, Julia could see nothing but misery and doom in her future, and the thought of spending any amount of time with this kid made her tense up and flap her hands up and down at her sides. Abby literally tried to claim Hikaru was hers solely because she found her wandering around! If that wasn't a sign of potential bratty behavior, she wasn't sure what was. But she had to admit, Caiseal made good points. As far as she knew, Route 44 was really big, and since the area they were in was a big meadow, there weren't any landmarks they could use to explain specifically where they were, like a building, some large tree, or a funny-looking rock.
Conceding defeat, Julia let out a great big sigh. "Alright. We'd best take her there ourselves. I still don't like this idea, though. Who knows what she might do?"
"If she does anything, I'll handle it," Caiseal reassured the girls.
Perrine raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you some kind of kid expert or something?" She asked with a touch of sarcasm. "Last I checked, you're not a dad."
"I do have a little sister," Caiseal explained. "Sometimes I had to stop her from doing stupid things myself, so you guys can leave Abby to me."
Julia's head perked up. 'Wow. I didn't know Caiseal had a sister. Then again, I never did ask,' She thought to herself, surprised by this new revelation. He said little sister, so he was an older sibling, in contrast to both girls. Perrine was an only child, and Julia was the youngest in her family. Plus, the more she thought about it, it did make sense that she wouldn't know. Caiseal always had been touchy about the subject of his family.
"Hey!" Suddenly, Abby took the liberty of throwing herself into their group. "What'cha talkin' about?" She asked, jumping up and down like a Spoink, completely oblivious to any attention she might draw to herself. It didn't help that she practically pushed her way into the group, standing mere centimeters away from Julia. Way too close. Julia was quick to back away two steps to get a safe distance away from her.
"Okay, Abby," Caiseal kneeled down to her level. "We're on our way to a Pokemon Center, and it's not quite safe for you to be out here all by yourself. Would you like to join us?"
Abby's dark eyes sparkled with delight, and she jumped up and down once again. "Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah! I wanna go! I wanna go! I wanna go! I wanna go!"
Just like that, three trainers became four. Well, to be more specific, three trainers and a tagalong kid.
Unfortunately for them, Julia wound up being right about this girl. After only twenty minutes on the road, Abby started loudly complaining about anything she could think of, like walking for too long or the walk being boring. Julia kept her hands on her ears the entire time, but not even that could muffle the sound of her screechy whining. It was only a matter of time before something, anything, could go wrong. She could just feel it in her whole being. But more than that, she wished Abby would stop whining already and be quiet.
"This is sooooo booooooring!" Abby whined, sitting right down on the grass, refusing to move after twenty minutes. "I'm tired!"
"Sorry kid, but we have to keep going," Caiseal told her matter-of-factly, seeing the growing distress on Julia's face. "I'm sure you can keep walking for just a little longer, right?"
Abby didn't budge. "No! I don't wanna!"
Caiseal narrowed his eyes at her before kneeling to her level. "Alright then, I'll make you a deal. We'll walk for ten more minutes and then we can take a break. How's that?" He suggested, keeping his voice calm and collected. Julia had to admit, Caiseal was good. Not just at being able to ignore Abby's whining, but for keeping himself composed even as she refused to do what she was asked. How in the world did he have that kind of patience, and where did it come from? She wished she had his patience.
Too bad that didn't work either. Little Abby stuck her tongue out at him, blowing a raspberry right in front of his face. Good thing he somehow saw that coming, and backed right off. "No! I wanna take a break now!" Abby screeched, bounding back to her feet and stamping her legs into the grass.
'Oh great. Why am I not surprised?' Julia thought bitterly, squeezing her hands tighter on her ears. This was the exact reason why she wanted to just call the police and have them pick Abby up there right away. At least by doing that, they'd take her to the station and it'd be their job to give her back to her parents, not her's, Perrine's, or Caiseal's. By this point, Abby was making high pitched squealing noises, so high pitched that they made Julia's ears explode on the inside. Julia found herself on her knees, curling into a fetal position, hands still clamped over her ears.
A white light shot out from one of her PokeBalls, materializing into Hikaru. "Pika?" Hikaru gently put her paw on her trainer's arm, looking up at her with concern.
"Sorry...Hikaru. I can't stand...kids crying…" Julia croaked. Abby's screeching and whining stripped her of her voice, and she was barely able to speak. Hikaru had long ears, so she could hear every word just fine. A Pikachu's hearing was better than a human's.
"Jule?" It was Perrine's turn to notice Julia's distress, and she lowered herself to her level, also looking concerned. "You alright?"
On the other hand, Caiseal wasn't having any of it. He simply crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at the petulant girl. "If you're gonna keep screaming like that, then we're not gonna have a break at all, so we'll just keep walking!" Caiseal bellowed, finally putting his foot down. He looked over his shoulder, seeing Perrine and Hikaru trying to console their friend. If this kid didn't stop screaming, they weren't going to get anywhere, and he could see Julia curling deeper and deeper into herself. Something had to be done.
"Your choice, Abby. We walk for ten minutes then have a break, or we keep walking with no breaks," Caiseal's voice rose and turned stone hard. "What's it gonna be?"
Finally, Abby stopped. "Okaaaaaay…" She puffed her cheeks out and began stomping right past him. She paid no heed to the two older girls. But for Julia, that was perfectly fine. With Abby's tantrum finally quelled-for now, at least-Julia stood back up and they went back to walking. Still, Julia didn't remove her hands from her ears, even though Abby stopped screaming. This was only temporary, and she could tell Abby was only complying with intent to start back up later on. Who knows when she'd suddenly throw another tantrum? She wished she was an Abra, so she could teleport far, far away from this kid. Maybe teleport her to a police station and just leave her there.
It didn't help that even during their ten minute walk afterward, Abby just kept on talking, talking, and talking about everything. That in itself wasn't bad. Julia had often went on and on about things as well, especially her own interests. At least, to anyone who listened or wanted to know about them. If they didn't, she'd stop and move on to something else. Easy as that. Abby, however, kept talking about anything she could think of, and her voice rose several octaves in doing so, making her louder than she was before. She wasn't screaming like just now, but Abby was still loud enough that her talking hurt Julia's ears again. She was practically yelling rather than just talking.
"Hey! What kinda Pokemon do you have? Can I see them?"
"How many badges do you got? Got all eight yet?"
"Are you super strong? Stronger than the champion?"
"I wanna see your Pokemon right now! I wanna see them!"
Julia grumbled under her breath, her hands barely doing much to protect her sensitive ears. 'Seriously, kid! Do you have NO concept of an indoor voice?!' She screamed in her head. Not even Caiseal gently telling her to use an indoor voice worked, as Abby just kept on talking really loud. She'd tell her herself, but it didn't look like Abby was the kind of child who'd do as she was told. Not without a fight, that is. The last thing Julia needed was a big brouhaha and yet another tantrum, so she kept quiet. But dear Arceus, did she want to explode!
It was here that Perrine caught up to her, again, looking worried. "Seriously, are you okay?" Perrine asked. "Her yelling is hurting your ears that bad, huh?"
"Like you wouldn't believe…" Julia hissed. "It feels like my eardrums are being stabbed over and over again with knives, spears, swords, or any sharp object that exists in this universe!"
"Chuuu…" Even Hikaru couldn't help but agree, pulling one of her long ears down with one paw.
Perrine flashed a sympathetic smile in her direction. "We'll get to that Pokemon Center soon. If Abby gives you or anyone else a hard time, don't hesitate to let us know," Perrine told her reassuringly. "You know we're always here for you."
Julia flashed a weak smile. "Thanks. I'm sorry about all this. I must be so petty and pathetic. I can't even handle a little kid."
"There's nothing to be sorry about."
The ten minute walk seemed to drag on forever. Eventually, they sat down in another clearing for a fifteen minute break this time. But even as she sat down and watched the tree branches swaying in the cold autumn winds, she could feel her stomach twist in a million different places. Not even having Hikaru around was enough to make this bad feeling go away. That feeling of constant dread, the fear that Abby was going to do something, like pull some stupid prank or throw yet another tantrum weighed heavy on her mind, constantly banging around in her brain like a Beedrill ramming against a glass window. She tried to remind herself that not all kids younger than seven were bratty, destructive, and constantly needing attention. But somehow, one way or another, she always seemed to wind up running into the bratty ones. Julia had to wonder if she was some kind of bratty child magnet or something.
Finally, she didn't hear Abby's voice anymore. Julia could finally focus on important matters without Abby's squeaky voice taking up so much space in her brain. She pulled out some bowls and began pouring Pokemon food in them. But when she looked up after pouring food in a fourth bowl, she saw Abby standing right behind Hikaru, with her hand outstretched and ready to grab Hikaru's tail. Wait...she was going to grab Hikaru's tail?! Abby smiling as she put both hands on Hikaru's tail pulled her back to reality. The bag of Pokemon food fell out of her hands as she bounded toward the girl, horrified at what would happen afterward.
"Don't pull her tail-!"
It was too late. Abby yanked Hikaru's tail with both hands. Unsurprisingly, Hikaru let out a pained screech. Sparks came flying off of her body as soon as Julia pulled the girl off. "Chuuuuuu!" Julia whirled around with Abby in her arms, avoiding the streaks of lightning striking the ground around them. How she managed to escape a Thunderbolt attack, Julia had no idea. But was Hikaru alright? Julia dropped Abby and ran over to the frazzled mouse. Hikaru's back was arched upward, and her tail was standing straight up.
"Hikaru! Are you okay?" Julia questioned, her green eyes brimming with worry. It didn't take long for Hikaru's body to relax.
"Pika…" Hikaru sat down before taking her tail in her paws, massaging it.
"What happened?!" Both Caiseal and Perrine ran to the scene. On the other hand, Abby kept staring at them in wide-eyed confusion.
Julia wasted no time glaring at the tiny culprit in question. She pointed at the confused child and shouted, "Abby here pulled on Hikaru's tail!" Then she turned her attention to speaking to Abby face-to-face. "You shouldn't have done that! Pikachu don't like it when people pull on their tails! That's like pulling someone's hair!"
Abby's cheeks puffed out as she struggled to respond. It took a moment, but she spat out, "No I didn't!"
"Don't you dare lie! I saw you!" Julia barked. First Abby pulled on Hikaru's tail and now she had the audacity to lie about it, and right to her face? Obviously, someone needed to discipline this kid. "How would you like it if I suddenly pulled your hair, huh?! You wouldn't like that, now would you!"
"I-I-I-I was just playing! I just wanted to play with Pikachu!" Abby cried, balling her little hands into fists, like she was trying really hard to come up with something to say to them.
At this point, Julia had no sympathy for her. She pushed the child over to Hikaru, keeping her hands on Abby's little shoulders, tight as vice grips. No way was she going to let her get away with almost hurting Hikaru really badly. Suddenly, memories of watching her mother scold Amara flashed through her mind, along with everything else that came with them. The intense, oppressive feeling in the air. The way her mother waved her finger around in exaggerated motions. Amara either looking away from her, giving her a dirty look, or arguing back at her. It took no time at all for Julia to find herself in her mother's position.
"You apologize to Hikaru right now!"
"No! I don't wanna!" Abby yelled back.
"You don't have a choice! Now tell Hikaru you're sorry!"
"I don't gotta say sorry!"
"Uh, yeah you do! You pulled on her tail, and that's bad!"
"No it isn't!"
"Yes it is!"
All three trainers were surprised at how stubborn Abby was being. Caiseal and Perrine could only exchange confused glances. What was it going to take to get her to admit she did something wrong? Not only that, they could hear Julia's voice shaking, and her face was scrunched up in rage. They couldn't blame her. If someone tried to hurt their Pokemon and disrespect their boundaries, intentional or not, they'd be mad, too. Abby wasn't making things easier by refusing to cooperate, shouting and stamping her feet. Not wanting to watch this go on, Perrine stepped up, walking over to Abby with an austere expression.
"Abby. You have to say you're sorry," Perrine ordered in a strict, no-nonsense manner, similar to how she saw her own father display when she herself was being scolded. "If you don't, we won't let you play with our other Pokemon," She didn't have time to think of better reasons to make Abby cooperate, and it pained her to even mention the notion of Abby playing with the other Pokemon. If Abby thought it was okay to pull on Hikaru's tail, even though Pikachu absolutely hate having their tails pulled, who was to say she wouldn't do something similar to the other Pokemon? But Abby did need to be punished, so Perrine couldn't spare another minute on thinking too much.
Eventually, Abby crossed her arms and mumbled, "Sorry for pullin' your tail. Stupid Pikachu."
Julia shot another angry glare in her direction. That apology sounded so fake! The fact that she called Hikaru stupid only cemented how completely unrepentant Abby was about the whole thing. Plus, Abby simply crossed her arms and stomped away from them the second she apologized. She plopped down on another patch of grass just two feet away from them.
"Good job, Abby!" Perrine complimented.
Abby didn't respond.
Julia took Hikaru into her arms, holding her close. "Sorry I didn't stop her sooner, Hikaru. I bet it must have hurt."
"Pikachu!" Hikaru agreed, still massaging her tail.
"Alright," Caiseal began rummaging through his backpack. "Who's hungry? I have some stuff we can eat."
Said stuff mostly consisted of leftovers from earlier, and a few candy bars. They didn't want to spend too much time cooking everything, what with having already done so earlier, and they needed to get to that Pokemon Center soon. The less time wasted, the better. Julia returned to pouring Pokemon food in the bowls she set out, and this time she filled them all up. She also had some food of her own, so she sat down next to her Pokemon and took a bite out of a peanut butter sandwich she had prepared earlier in the day. Only peanut butter. No jelly. Jelly tasted weird, it made her feel like she was eating little amoebas, and it was always so slimy and sticky.
"Here, Abby. You can eat this," She heard Caiseal say about ten feet away from her.
"Ooooh! Candy!"
Julia kept focusing on eating her sandwich, but Abby's voice cut through her ears again. Not only that, she didn't hear Abby say thank you to Caiseal. As much as she wanted to point this out, she was sure if she did that, Abby would throw a tantrum. She didn't want that to happen, so she just went back to eating her sandwich. As she ate the last of it, the melodious ringing of her PokeGear rang to life again. Julia simply glared at it, ignoring the ringing as she rummaged through her bag to eat something else. Last time she checked, she had a packet of fruit gummies she could eat. Was that still in there…?
Her fingers grabbed a pack of fruit gummies, but as she pulled them out, she looked up and saw Abby standing in front of her. The little girl had extended her arm out, holding a fully opened chocolate bar in front of Julia's face. Julia backed up a little bit, feeling that Abby and the chocolate bar were a little too close. But she immediately turned rigid. What was Abby doing here, and why was she looking at her? Julia wanted to run like the wind. But she knew she couldn't, and she was basically trapped.
"Umm...hi?"
"You want this?" Abby asked, her voice low and calm for once.
Julia looked down at the chocolate bar, then at Abby, then at the chocolate bar again. "Are you...giving this to me?"
Abby nodded vigorously, shaking her head up and down really fast. Julia's mouth fell agape. Was she seeing things? Here was this little kid who nearly got herself hurt and hurt Hikaru and gave them grief about it, and now she was sharing her candy bar? Julia was sure her mind was playing tricks on her. One part of her wondered if this was some kind of trick. Maybe Abby was trying to trick her into thinking she was being given candy, but when she'd eat it, Abby would probably throw a tantrum and claim Julia stole it from her. It happened. She had seen it happen a lot to her favorite characters on various TV shows, only the bratty kids would get away with it and the one being tricked would always be unfairly blamed. She always hated that, and no way did she want to go through something as awful as that. On the other hand, another part of her suggested that maybe Abby did learn her lesson and this was her way of making amends. Children aren't perfect little angels, but they're not malicious little devils either, her conscious reasoned. Give Abby a chance. Maybe she wants to actually apologize.
She wanted to believe that part of her mind so badly. But she knew she couldn't let her guard down. At the same time, she knew it'd be rude to reject her offer outright. With that in mind, Julia simply smiled and accepted the candy bar. "Thank you very much, Abby. This is very nice of you," She snapped the candy bar into two, and she could feel some of the chocolate melting onto her fingers. "But I don't want you to not have any for yourself, so here. You can have half back," She handed the bigger half to Abby. "Caiseal gave it to you, so you should have some, too."
Oddly enough, Abby didn't say a word. The little girl took the big piece into her hand. Satisfied, Julia ate her whole piece, relishing in the chocolate melting inside her mouth. Maybe Abby wasn't so bad after all.
Unfortunately, that thought lasted all but seconds before high pitched screaming assaulted her ears. They practically exploded, even as Julia's hands swept in to cover them. But it wasn't enough. The screaming cut through her ear drums like spears cutting through hide. When Julia opened her eyes, Abby was lying on the grass, screaming at the top of her lungs, flailing her little arms and legs up and down. Julia took three steps back, completely taken aback by the sudden change. Actually, she had expected this somewhat, but still flinched the second it started.
"What the-?!" Julia couldn't believe what she was seeing. Why was Abby throwing a tantrum? Just seconds ago, she gave Julia a piece of her candy bar. This didn't make any sense at all!
"Hey! What's going on?" Caiseal exclaimed as he and Perrine ran up to them. "What happened?"
"That big girl took my candy and ate all of it!" Abby screeched, still kicking her legs and flailing her arms. "She's a big fat meanie!"
Blood rushed to her face, turning it red hot with anger. Julia clenched her teeth. So Abby DID intend to give Julia candy and pretended she stole it! She wished she had listened to the part of her brain that saw this coming.
"No I didn't! I swear, I didn't take it! I never steal!" Julia pleaded, her voice almost bordering on hysterical. Her eyes blurred with incoming tears. Surely, they knew she would never steal candy from a little kid, right? They knew her better than that, and they knew her for much longer than this screaming kid did!
'Don't count on it, Julia,' A voice in her head sneered. 'They're obviously gonna believe Abby's story. People always believe little screaming kids. Stop deluding yourself into thinking they'd actually believe someone like you. It's your own fault for being stupid and falling for her scheme. You really should know better by now,' The voice was dripping with condescension and scorn, and it made Julia's blood boil further. But what could she do against a screaming six-year-old girl? This was too much. Nothing made any sense anymore. She squeezed her eyes shut, in a futile attempt to block everything out. But nothing she did would ever push away how humiliated she felt in that moment.
Was this how it was going to be forever?
"Oldest trick in the book, kid."
Julia's eyes opened again. What? Perrine's voice...She looked up, seeing Caiseal and Perrine standing over Abby, arms crossed and looking none to happy. Not only that, Abby had stopped screaming at this point. She sat up and looked at them, confused.
"We're not falling for it, y'know," Perrine chided. "I can see the chocolate all over your face."
She was right. Abby did have a huge chocolate stain on the left corner of her mouth. Julia used what little energy she had left to get a look. The stain was much darker than Abby's skin. Then she remembered: it was dark chocolate, not regular chocolate. She could see the color difference plain as day. If it were any lighter, she might not have been able to tell the difference. Even more than that...Caiseal and Perrine didn't believe Abby's story!
"You should be ashamed of yourself!" Caiseal wasted no time scolding Abby, showing no mercy. "Why would you do that to our friend?! Is this because she got mad at you for pulling Hikaru's tail? You've got some nerve!"
Abby kept flailing her arms. "She's mean, and it's her fault for being stupid!"
Julia couldn't resist the urge to roll her eyes. How exactly was scolding someone for not respecting a Pokemon's personal boundaries mean? One would think a six-year-old would know better than to just yank on a Pikachu's tail, and not just to avoid getting electrocuted. Doing so was a violation of a Pokemon's boundaries. Plus, she really wasn't helping herself by trying to put the blame all on Julia.
"Uh, no. I don't know what made you think doing that to her was okay, but it isn't, and she's not stupid," Perrine scolded her in the same no-nonsense, authoritative voice Caiseal was using. "Do you have a phone number or something?" She was quick to pull her PokeGear out. "Because I wanna call your parents and have them take you home!"
In that instant, Abby started screaming again. "NO! I don't wanna go home! It's boring!"
Finally, Julia had feeling in her legs again. Before she could even think, she found herself sprinting away from the scene. Away from everything. Away from Abby. Away from all the screaming, the noise, the brattiness. Everything was too much.
"That little brat!" She found a big tree nearby and hid behind it. She could still hear Abby's screaming, but it was far enough that it didn't hurt her ears anymore. Even so, her eardrums continued to throb. Too many thoughts swirled around in her mind, competing with one another. Where were Abby's parents? Why haven't they come for her right now? Why was Abby being so stubborn, and why did she pull that insipid prank on Julia like that? What in Arceus's name made her think that was okay? All Julia did was try to discipline her for pulling Hikaru's tail. That was what her mother did when Julia and Amara did bad things. What was so bad about that? "Ugh...this is so stupid…"
Julia wished this day would just be done and over with. Actually, it'd have been better if it had never happened at all. If they hadn't found Abby, they'd have arrived at the next Pokemon Center long before now. No, if they had left her there, who knows what could have happened. A six-year-old girl couldn't possibly survive in a place like this all on her own. That was impossible. It'd be cruel to just leave her out in the wilderness, she reminded herself. Still, did she really have to be so rude and bratty?
"Pika!" "Chokki!" "Espeon!" "Snubbull!"
Thankfully, more familiar, welcoming voices pulled her out of her mind. All of her Pokemon stood in front of her, all looking at her with worried expressions. Even Twilight, who was normally always moody and brooding, whose eyes were always gleaming with a desire to battle, looked concerned. Were they here to console her? Julia sniffed. Of course they were. Why would they follow her all this way if they weren't? A smile finally spread across her face as she pulled Saoirse and Hikaru onto her lap.
"Hey guys. Sorry I ran off like that," Julia told them. Twilight sat down, putting herself at her trainer's level, since she sat on the grass. "I just...couldn't stand it anymore. All her screaming and whining...and that stupid stunt she pulled on me…"
"Snubbull snubbull!" ("She shouldn't have done that!")
"Nido niiii?" ("Is there anything we can do to help?")
Twilight let out a huff before neighing. "Neeeeeigh!" ("Can I roast that little brat?")
Knowing what the fire horse was implying, Julia shouted, "Absolutely not!" She had to wonder why Twilight would even think that was a good solution. Or maybe she was just speaking in jest. Still, all of her Pokemon huddled around her protectively. Her entire being turned warm with gratitude. She held Hikaru and Saoirse in her arms, pulling them into a gentle hug. "Thanks guys. You're all the best Pokemon a trainer could ever ask for."
"Chokki!"
"Snub snubbull."
"Julia!" It didn't take long for Caiseal to catch up to her. Once he stopped to catch his breath, he knelt down next to her. "I'm so sorry about earlier. I should have seen this coming."
Julia's eyes widened. Caiseal was actually blaming himself for what Abby did? That wasn't right at all. She waved her hand dismissively at him. "It's okay! You shouldn't blame yourself. Abby's the one who did it, so she's the one who should be sorry. Plus, I probably should have done something myself."
"I know…" Caiseal looked down at his boots. As much as he appreciated her kindness, he still couldn't help but feel bad about what happened. "But I do have some good news. The Pokemon Center's nearby now, so we can probably get there before dark."
"I wish we could get there now," She wasn't sure how much more she could put up with Abby. But knowing sitting here wasn't going to get them anywhere, she decided to return to the group. Maybe once they got to the Pokemon Center, they could spend the night and then plan out what to do next.
Unfortunately, when they met back up with Perrine, both she and Abby were spitting mad. A book was on the ground, face down, with the edges of the cover bent and damaged. Several ripped pages were scattered across the grass, many of which had been shredded into little pieces. Julia picked the book up, holding it in her hands. Half of its pages were completely gone, making the book feel lighter in her hands than it should be. Perrine was absolutely the picture perfect image of anger, erupting like a volcano spewing lava all over the place. Julia facepalmed. What did Abby do this time?
"The heck?" Caiseal asked.
"You ripped up my Jammin' Ninja book!" Perrine was yelling so loud, her voice was already growing hoarse, and it didn't sound as though her it belonged to her. "You completely destroyed it! Didn't anyone tell you not to mess with other people's things?!"
Caiseal and Julia exchanged shocked expressions. Abby ripped up one of her precious Jammin' Ninja books? Julia was glad she managed to bring her bag with her when she ran off. Still, Perrine absolutely loved those books. How could Abby do that?
Of course, Abby was completely unrepentant. She simply stuck her tongue out before yelling, "It's your fault, you big fat meanie! You should have given it to me!"
Julia decided to just gather all the ripped pages and stash them into the book for safekeeping, even though it wouldn't fix it. After that, Caiseal simply took Abby by the hand and the four of them continued to walk through Route 44. All three of the older kids were wishing that this Pokemon Center would just appear already. All throughout, Abby did herself no favors by continuing to stress them out and be a brat to them at every turn. Shouting all the time, calling everyone names, attempting to pull Lucretia's tail this time (Julia managed to stop her from doing so, thank goodness), trying to rip the rest of Perrine's poor book, spitting on Julia's sneakers...at one point, she even flipped Perrine's skirt, and right in front of Caiseal. "I just wanted to see her undies!" Abby whined. Nobody hesitated to call her out on what was basically sexual harassment, even if she was a child and didn't know how bad flipping someone's skirt was.
After what seemed like hours, they finally saw a building come into view. A large, white building with a red roof in the shape of a dome. "Finally!" Julia cheered. "We made it!"
They wasted no time checking in and renting some rooms. By this point, Abby was asleep, and Caiseal had carried her into what would be the girls' room. "Oh thank goodness! She's finally asleep!" Julia groaned, falling right onto a bed.
Perrine gently pulled Abby's backpack off her back. "I kind of feel bad about doing this, but I'm gonna look and see if there's anything that'll tell us where she lives, or maybe her contact info," Perrine said, unzipping the backpack and looking through it. All she found were lots of unused PokeBalls, Marnie dolls, hair accessories, bracelets, and a bag of fruit gummies. Caiseal leaned in to get a closer look. "Seriously? She actually thought she could go on a journey with all this junk?"
"Hey!" Julia suddenly exclaimed. "I see something!" She pulled out a small card, which was bent in half and full of creases from being stuck underneath all of those Marnie dolls.
Abby Webster
987-145-2335
If Found, Please Call This Number
"Ooh! This might be her phone number!" Julia cheered. Finally, they could actually tell someone that Abby was missing. Better yet, this might be her parents' phone number. "I'll call them right now!" In the blink of an eye, she pulled out her PokeGear, dialed the number, and waited as the phone rang. After a third time, someone answered.
"Hello?" A woman's voice asked. It sounded young, but still distinctly an adult's.
Normally, Julia absolutely hated talking to strangers on the phone. But at this point, she didn't care. She just wanted someone, anyone, to get Abby out of their lives. "Umm...hi! Is this the Webster residence?"
"Yes. To whom am I speaking?"
"Ummm...do you have a daughter named Abby? Because...I think we found her."
Just like that, the woman's voice went from calm to almost bordering on screaming. "Oh my goodness! You found her?!" Julia pulled the phone away from her ear, the woman was so loud. But it was far nicer to listen to than Abby's screaming. "Oh, thank Arceus! She ran away from home this morning, and we've been looking for her all over the place all day! She's not hurt, is she?" Julia could hear the relief in her voice.
"Nope. She's fine, and she's sleeping right now."
"Ohhhh! Thank you so much for finding her! Where are you right now?"
"We're at a Pokemon Center on Route 44. I don't know the exact address, though."
"Don't worry. I know which one you're talking about. We live just three blocks from it," Abby's mother explained, more calmly this time. "We'll meet you there right away! Thank you! Bye!"
Before Julia could say anything more, the call cut off. Still, she was happy to know that Abby was going to be out of their hair soon. She stashed the card back into Abby's backpack, that way the latter wouldn't try to claim Julia stole it. Suddenly, soon after that, Abby began to stir. Julia immediately hid behind Perrine, not wanting to be subject to her tricks yet again.
"Boooo!" As soon as she woke up, Abby started whining again. "I'm boooored!"
On the other hand, Caiseal smirked. "Hey Abby. I heard something fun's happening in the Pokemon Center right now. Do you want to see it?"
Immediately, Abby's brown eyes lit up. "Really?! Cool! What is it! I wanna see!"
"We'll show you!"
The girls smirked this time. Oh yes. They knew what Caiseal was up to.
When they got to the lobby, they realized it was practically empty, save for a few people sitting on some of the sofas. Abby kept looking around for whatever it was that Caiseal was talking about, but didn't see anything. Then, two adults ran through the door, a man and a woman, both wearing glasses and looking quite well dressed, like they were going to church later today. But nothing could mistake the relieved look in their eyes when they saw Abby.
"Abby!" The woman ran over to her daughter and hoisted her in her arms. "Oh, thank goodness you're safe! We've been so worried about you!" Abby's mother was absolutely beaming with joy. Julia could see tears trickling down her face. The taller man-Julia could tell he was Abby's father-wrapped his arms around both wife and daughter.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Abby's father crooned. He then took notice of the kids and bent over in a bow. "Are you the kids who found her? I'm her dad, Boris. Thank you so, so, so much for finding her and keeping her safe."
Perrine waved her hands dismissively. "Oh no. It's nothing, really-"
"Oww!" Suddenly, Abby's mother let out a yelp, and Abby herself wriggled out of her arms.
Boris was quick to run over to her. "What happened?"
"Abby just bit me!" The woman put her arm out, showing him the fresh bite marks.
Everyone's hands flew to their mouths. Abby bit her own mother? Her mother, who was probably sick with worry and had been looking for her all day? She reunites with her daughter, and this is how Abby reacts? Any relief the parents had vanished, and Boris took the girl by her hand. "Abby! What have we told you about biting people? You shouldn't have done that!"
"I don't wanna go home!" Abby screeched, stamping her feet. "You're evil! I hate you!"
Once again, Julia's palm met her face. Seriously? Abby's parents had been worried sick about her. One would think a child would be happy with seeing her parents again. But not only did she bite her mother, but actually called them evil and said she hated them? This was just too much.
"Are you okay, ma'am?" Perrine asked.
"Yes, I'm fine," Abby's mother replied.
"I'll take Abby with me, Amanda," Boris told her before locking his gaze on his still screaming daughter. "As for you...you are coming home right now, missy, and we are going to have a long talk about your little stunt!" He didn't relent, even as Abby kept writhing and screaming and struggling to break out of his grip. Amanda exhaled a big sigh as she watched her husband take Abby outside. She turned to the kids and flashed a weak smile at them. Julia could see from the way she almost hunched over that she looked exhausted. Probably from spending so much time searching for Abby.
"I'm sorry about that. I'd like to thank you again for finding Abby for us," Amanda told them, her small voice trembling a bit. "She snuck out of the house this morning even though we grounded her, and we've been searching all over for her. We couldn't find her anywhere."
"I can imagine," Caiseal said. "Well, I'm just glad that card was in her backpack, with your phone number and everything."
"Wait," Julia suddenly interrupted them. "You said she was grounded. What for?"
Another sigh from Amanda, only a tired sigh. "Abby's had some behavioral problems we've been trying to rectify...to no avail, admittedly. She hit one of her classmates in school, and last week she found a wallet full of money on the road and didn't tell us about it. The next day, one of her teachers called us and said she gave a hundred dollars to all of her friends," She explained. "The wallet had $500 total, and the teacher took it and the money from her as soon as she saw what she was doing. We were called into the school...but before we got there, Abby had kicked the teacher so hard she fell on a stapler and cut her leg."
Nothing could prevent the ungraceful dropping of all the kids' jaws when they heard what happened. They saw that Abby was very poorly behaved, and experienced a lot of her childish machinations first-hand, but to actually steal someone's wallet, give money that wasn't hers to her friends, and then kick a teacher when punished for it? If that wasn't bad behavior, they weren't sure what it was. Suddenly, Julia couldn't keep it all in anymore.
"Oh, you should have seen all the things she did to us when we were trying to bring her here!" Julia shouted.
"Jule, I don't think-" Perrine tried to stop her, but there was no stopping Julia now. She was dying to get it all out of her system.
Without any hesitation at all, Julia told Amanda about all the things Abby did to them from when they first found her. As Amanda listened, her eyes kept widening in shock the more she heard. When Julia finished, remorse overcame Amanda and she bowed before them, just like her husband did. "Oh, goodness! I honestly had no idea!" She seemed especially shocked when Julia told them about Abby destroying Perrine's book out of spite. "I'm truly sorry for all the things she did to you. Trust me, after all that's happened, Boris and I will make sure she's properly punished."
"You better!" Julia yelled.
"Hey. Enough," Caiseal put a gentle but firm hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know you're mad, but I think Mrs. Webster gets it. She feels bad enough about Abby as it is. We don't need to make her feel worse," Caiseal advised.
He did have a point. Julia didn't bring up the issue any further. She was just glad Abby was finally going to be gone forever.
After again thanking them profusely for keeping Abby safe, Amanda left the Pokemon Center. She offered to give Perrine money to replace her new book, but Perrine rejected the offer, saying she had plenty of it, so there was no need. With that, the Websters left, reunited and happy to be back together. But Julia hoped that Abby would be severely punished for all that she did to them. When dinner time came around, they decided to eat in the dining area, since there wasn't many people in the PMC right then.
"Thank Arceus she's gone!" Julia groaned, ready to chow down on some steamed broccoli she ordered. "That, my friends, is the reason I don't want and will never want kids! Ever! Nor do I want to be a teacher!"
"Yeah. Well, she's gone now, so we finally have peace again," Perrine agreed before taking a bite out of some salisbury steak.
"Alright, so let's plan our next move," Caiseal began after he finished chewing some salad. "It's dark out now, so we'd best spend the night here. What do you guys say about leaving at about ten first thing tomorrow morning?"
Both girls nodded in unison. "I'm down with that," Perrine affirmed.
"Me too. We're close to Blackthorn City, so-"
Before Julia could finish, her PokeGear rang again. Any happiness she tried to get back was pushed to the side. She yanked it out of her bag and saw who was calling. It was her mother. Again. "Ugh! Fine, fine!" She growled. "I'll answer it this time!" She pressed a button and held the phone to her ear. "He-"
"Julia! About time you answered!" No surprise, Julia's mother bellowed into the phone, her voice a fearsome combination of both angry and worried. Once again, Julia held the phone away from her ear. "I've been trying to call you all day! We need to talk right now!"
She knew where this was going. Why couldn't she just let it go? "Mom, I already told you I'm sticking with my decision to put Geraldine in a-"
"No! Just listen! It's Amara! She's been arrested! The police finally got her!"
A/N: Alrighty! I'm back in the groove of things! Hey, Babysitters Club fans! Remember Karen Brewer? That annoying, self-absorbed, obnoxious little brat who always did bad things but never got punished, disciplined, or called out on it, and who always got her way even when she shouldn't have? Well, Abby is basically her, except she actually DOES get punished! I always hate it when creators of media have bratty kids get away with their antics, ESPECIALLY when the victims of said antics always wind up taking the blame (I'm looking at you, Petite Princess Yucie episode 15! AND Sailor Moon S episode with the English title "Art Appreciation!")! So consider this my jab at said tropes. Anyway, the next chapter will be an Amara one again, and the one after that...they finally go to the Ice Path and find out about Caiseal's past! Look forward to it!
In other news, I finally finished my Tales of Zestiria AU fan fic, Love Feels Like Home, which I have to admit I'm really proud of. Not only that, I started on a new Harvest Moon fan fic that I've been dying to start writing for a while. Of course, now that my writer's block for this is gone, I'm going to have MarJour take priority for right now, because I'm going to finish it no matter what!
Julia's Party:
Hikaru (Shiny Pikachu, Female, Jolly Nature)
Ability: Static
Attacks: Thunderbolt, Disarming Voice, Quick Attack, Volt Tackle
Lucretia (Espeon, Female, Bashful Nature)
Ability: Magic Bounce
Attacks: Psybeam, Trump Card, Bite, and Shadow Ball
Tokiko (Togetic, Female, Hardy Nature)
Ability: Serene Grace
Attacks: Extrasensory, Headbutt, Dazzling Gleam, Magical Leaf
Saoirse (Snubbull, Female, Gentle Nature)
Ability: Intimidate
Attacks: Ice Fang, Bite, Fire Fang, and Scary Face
Rino (Nidorino, Male, Modest Nature)
Ability: Poison Point
Attacks: Double Kick, Poison Jab, Peck, and Horn Attack
Twilight (Ponyta, Female, Lonely Nature)
Ability: Flash Fire
Attacks: Flame Wheel, Solar Beam, Hypnosis, and Stomp
Perrine's Party:
Kitsune (Ninetales, Female, Quiet Nature)
Ability: Flash Fire
Attacks: Heat Wave, Extrasensory, Confuse Ray, and Faint Attack
Florian (Meganium, Male, Gentle Nature)
Ability: Overgrow
Attacks: Petal Blizzard, Vine Whip, Body Slam, and Grassy Terrain
Baloo (Jigglypuff, Female, Docile Nature)
Ability: Cute Charm
Attacks: Sing, Wake-Up Slap, Disarming Voice, and Body Slam
Mushi (Paras, Male, Quirky Nature)
Ability: Effect Spore
Attacks: X-Scissor, Stun Spore, Growth, and Giga Drain
Fuwari (Skiploom, Female, Relaxed Nature)
Ability: Leaf Guard
Attacks: Bounce, Giga Drain, Fairy Wind, and Energy Ball
Chirin (Ampharos, Male, Adamant Nature)
Ability: Static
Attacks: Discharge, Cotton Guard, Power Gem, Signal Beam
Caiseal's Party:
Mallow (Marowak, Male, Lax Nature)
Ability: Lightning Rod
Attacks: Bonemerang, Bone Rush, Headbutt, and Rock Smash
Apollo (Typhlosion, Male, Bold Nature)
Ability: Blaze
Attacks: Flamethrower, Flame Charge, Rollout, and Smokescreen
Viole (Gloom, Male, Quirky Nature)
Ability: Chlorophyll
Attacks: Petal Blizzard, Sludge Bomb, Sleep Powder, and Sweet Scent
Ravenclaw (Murkrow, Female, Hardy Nature)
Ability: Super Luck
Attacks: Wing Attack, Steel Wing, Dark Pulse, and Roost
Heracles (Heracross, Male, Relaxed Nature)
Ability: Moxie
Attacks: Brick Break, Megahorn, Aerial Ace, and Endure
Flippy (Quagsire, Female, Jolly Nature)
Ability: Damp
Attacks: Water Gun, Mud Bomb, Mud Slap, and Slam