I do not own Pokémon. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, GameFreak and Creatures.
(*)
Pierre rubbed his eyes again, Cynthia watching him from over her drink.
"Is there something wrong with you?" she asked finally. "You haven't been sleeping well recently."
Pierre shook his head and tried to clear his thoughts. "No, nothing's wrong. Just been a little restless is all."
Cynthia nodded and took out her notebook, using her bookmark to turn to the section she'd dubbed 'Pierre's Training'.
"So," she said as he packed up, "let's review what we know. Your Pokémon are fairly well trained, if a little rusty, and you have low grade telepathy, correct?"
"I wouldn't call it low grade…" Pierre muttered.
"Can you read your Pokémon's minds?"
"Well, no, but-"
"Low grade telepathy," she insisted, scratching something into her book. "And you know someone who can help you train that Goomy?"
Pierre looked at her sharply. "I thought you were helping me!" he exclaimed.
"I am, I just thought that friend of yours would be better suited, wanting to catch every Pokémon like Goomy and all," Cynthia explained. After writing something in her book she closed it and put it away.
"So, what are we doing today?"
"We have to get to a source today, he said he'll meet us at a Pokémon Center. Whatever you do don't start a fight with him."
"Why?" Pierre asked suspiciously.
"He should be fairly strong, and I don't want to run the risk of him kicking your butt too soon."
Pierre scoffed but ignored the jab, deciding instead to finish packing up. Once he was done he lifted his things and waited for Cynthia to leave.
"Alright," she said finally, picking up her things, "let's get going."
(*)
"What do you mean psychic powers?" Cynthia asked dubiously.
"I mean some of the people on my mother's side may have psychic powers," Pierre said, absently rubbing the back of his neck. He was already beginning to regret telling her, but if she was going to be his teacher it couldn't be helped.
"What kind of psychic powers?" she asked half-jokingly.
"Well, I think I saw my Aunt levitate a rock once," he said awkwardly. "And my Grandma could send commands directly to her Pokémon's minds."
Cynthia nodded before freezing and staring at him. "Did you do that when you were battling that other boy?"
"I might have."
Cynthia nodded and stood, gesturing for him to get up. Confused, he stood and she sent out her Garchomp.
"Now, we're going to practice those telepathic commands of yours," she said. "But only the telepathic commands."
(*)
It was afternoon when they finally arrived at the Center, but there was such a lack of Trainers milling around that Cynthia visibly paused.
"Excuse me,| she asked Nurse Joy, "but where is everybody?"
"They all ran out to catch an Entei that showed up the forest," Nurse Joy answered.
Cynthia quirked an eyebrow at the Nurse's casual tone before sighing and turning to Pierre. "Do you want to -?"
She stopped talking when she noticed he was gone, his bags and anything that could have weighed him down resting on the floor.
"How did he even…?"
(*)
Pierre sat against a tree, struggling for breathe as his Pokémon waited for him.
"Sorry," he wheezed, looking at his team apologetically, "but I'm not very good at running."
Raichu rolled his eyes and stood straighter, his ears perking up as he tried pinpoint where Entei was. When Pierre finally felt he could breathe properly again he stood up and waited for Raichu to finish. Suddenly the Electric-type straightened and darted off, Pierre racing to catch up. They came to an area that seemed to have less tress and there, standing on a rock taller than Charizard, was Entei.
Pierre's breath caught in his throat and he froze, staring in awe at the powerful Legendary. He was shaken out of his stupor by Raichu charging an Electro Ball before straightening his tail and holding it in the air. Before he could complete the attack Entei disappeared, reappearing behind him and batting him aside.
"Quick Piplup use Hydro Pump!" someone called out and Pierre turned his head enough to notice three Trainers there, one with a Pikachu, one with a Lucario and one with what he assumed was a Piplup.
The Piplup drew back its head before unleashing a torrent of water from its beak, the blast hurtling towards Entei, who responded by sidestepping the move altogether. Pierre stared in awe and unconsciously took a step back, surprising Raichu.
He couldn't beat it. It didn't take a genius to see that Entei was barely exerting itself even while their Pokémon were putting their all into their attacks. As if to prove his point Entei opened its mouth and sent bathed the area in flames, all while once again barely exerting itself.
Once the flames receded one of the other Trainers commanded, "Lucario, Aura Sphere."
Pierre watched as the Pokémon in question fired a glowing blue ball at Entei that collided with the Legendary. Any satisfaction the Trainer felt was short lived as Entei, none the worse for wear, blasted him and his Pokémon with another burst of fire.
"Pikachu use Thunderbolt," the last Trainer commanded. Something in the back of Pierre's mind said the boy seemed familiar, but he couldn't place him.
Entei, apparently bored with the battle, roared, sending a wave of air that knocked them all off their feet. By the time they'd regained their bearings Entei was long gone, and one of the other Trainers looked pissed.
"Alright," she told the boy with the Pikachu, "you let it escape."
Pierre didn't bother correcting the girl, turning on his heel and heading back towards the Pokémon Center. Raichu squeaked in surprise before hurrying after him.
As he walked Pierre tried to put everything he'd seen into some sort of order. One fact stood out above them all though: Entei had been far too strong for them to face as they were. Raichu had tried a combination move, but the time it took had left them too open to attack, especially from Entei. He doubted even Cynthia would have stood a chance.
Is Mew anything like that? He couldn't help but wonder, shuddering at the thought.
Noticing that Raichu had gotten ahead of him he broke into a run and began racing his Pokémon to the Center. They could worry about everything else later, for now he needed to apologize to his teacher.
(*)
Marty sipped at his tea, hissing when it burned his tongue. The woman across from him quirked an eyebrow at his antics but said nothing, reaching over to grab one of the snacks he'd brought.
"Sorry for stopping you," she said, startling him, "but I was curious as to your relationship with that boy I saw you with."
"Boy?" He had no idea who she was talking about.
"You know," she insisted. "That boy, um, Lucien I think his name was."
Marty nodded hesitantly, nervous as to why she seemed so interested in his traveling buddy. She waited for him to respond and when he didn't she sighed.
"Look, I'm not going to do anything," she tried to reassure him. "I just wanted to ask your friend how he was doing. Last time we spoke he seemed preoccupied."
"He's looking for a Pokémon," Marty explained.
She smiled. "Well, I was hoping to talk to him."
"You have my attention," someone behind him said. Marty barely stopped himself from jumping in surprise, turning his head to see Lucien leaning against his chair.
"Oh, good," Cynthia said hesitantly. "As you know me and Pierre have been traveling for about a month now, but we've come up short on anything significant. We're hoping that splitting up for a while will help us in our research."
"And what does that have to do with me?" Lucien asked semi-sarcastically.
"Pierre's ultimate goal is to capture the Legendary Mew. I just thought you might like to help," she explained.
Lucien tensed next to him. "Is that so? Well, I don't think I'll be of much use."
"Just give it some thought," Cynthia urged. "It could be a great opportunity."
"Marty Stu, Marty Stu!" Nurse Joy called.
Marty stood, leaving the two older Trainers to their conversation as he headed for the desk.
"Yes, is there a problem?" he asked.
"Nope." Nurse Joy handed him three Pokéballs. "Your Pokémon are fully recovered. We hope to see you again soon."
"I've been meaning to ask about why you say that."
"Better you show up here than we find you out there," Nurse Joy explained.
Marty shrugged and took the offered Pokéballs, attaching them to his belt before heading back to Lucien. Noticing that Cynthia had left and Lopunny was out he plopped down across from his partner and took a cookie.
"So, what's up?" he asked.
"Apparently if I ever run into Pierre I'm going to do everything I can to scare him off," Lucien said casually.
"And you're just doing that for free?" he asked dubiously.
"I have my reasons Marty," Lucien said solemnly.
Marty shrugged and reached for the last cookie, but before he touched it Lopunny snatched it away and scarfed it down.
"Hey!"
"You had seven, let it go."
(*)
"We're splitting up?!" Pierre exclaimed, sounding slightly hurt.
Cynthia rubbed her eyes and sighed. "We're not splitting up, we're taking a break from each other. I just feel like we can advance in our search if we separate for a little bit."
"Is this about me ditching you yesterday? Is that the problem?"
"That was a little annoying, but no." Cynthia was aware of his Pokémon watching them as if they were some sort of TV show. "I just feel like I've taught you as much as I can for now. The only way for you to develop as your own Trainer is for us to, well, take a little break."
Pierre was silent for a moment and Cynthia took the opportunity to shoot his team a glare that sent them right back to training.
"So, when are you, uh, leaving," Pierre asked.
"I have something later, so maybe tomorrow," she answered. "For now though we have to meet up with that contact I mentioned."
"What's his name?" he asked as headed for the lobby.
"Sorrel," she said, looking for him. They searched for a few more minutes before she sighed and headed for the Nurse's desk.
"Have you seen a boy by the name of Sorrel?" she asked.
Nurse Joy nodded and handed her a piece of paper. "He told me if he didn't come back I should hand this to Cynthia. I presume that's you?"
Cynthia nodded and took the note. She skimmed through it and frowned before thanking the nurse, pocketing it and taking a seat against the wall.
"What is it?" Pierre asked as he sat next to her.
"I'm not sure. He says he had to leave in a hurry and might not be back, but I'm more surprised that he left so little detail." With that she stood up and said, "I expect you to be in the Pokémon Center's training field in ten minutes. Just because I'm leaving doesn't mean I won't leave you with homework."
"Of course not," Pierre groaned.
"And like that you're training too," she shot back as she left.
Pierre groaned and, after a few minutes of kicking himself, headed after Cynthia.
(*)
A few hours later Pierre was tossing Charizard's Pokéball up and down, waiting patiently for the two across from him to finish their arguement.
"I'm just saying I don't think you should battle him," Marty argued. "I just don't think it's a good idea right now."
"I'm doing it whether or not you agree," Lucien stated. "The only discrepancy is if you'll referee. If not I'll ask somebody else."
"Fine, whatever," Marty sulked, moving to the side of the battlefield. "I'll be referee."
Pierre nodded and pulled out a Pokéball. "Go, Charizard!"
Charizard burst onto the field and roared upwards, sending a plume of smoke into the air. Lucien quirked an eyebrow at this, but he seemed too relaxed for someone who'd lost to him before. For his part had Marty taken a step back at Charizard's display, but had quickly steadied himself.
"This battle will be a one-on-one match between Pierre from Pallet Town and Lucien from Floarama Town," Marty said. He paused for a moment before taking a piece of paper from his pocket and glancing over it. "Each combatant will only use one Pokémon, and the match ends when either side is unable to battle," he finished, putting the paper away.
"Marty," Lucien called out, "pay close attention. I want this to be a learning experience"
Before Pierre could respond Lucien tossed the Pokéball he was holding and sent out his Pokémon. Pierre was expecting Lopunny again but was caught off guard by the Ambipom that appeared. As he watched Lucien said something to it and its entire demeanor changed, its eyes narrowing at Pierre from across the field..
"Let the match…begin!"
"Charizard use Flamethrower!" Pierre commanded.
Charizard blasted a wave of fire at his opponent. Just before the flames reached it Ambipom swerved around the attack and rushed forward, catching Charizard off guard and cutting its attack short.
"Double Hit." Ambipom began throwing lightning quick punches, each hit knocking Charizard back a little more.
"Dragon Claw!"
"Astonish."
Charizard's arm swung around but before it could land the attack Ambipom yelled and slapped it, the Fire-type flinching in response.
"That wasn't half bad. Have you been practicing?" Pierre asked, trying to buy time.
"Thunder Punch," Lucien said simply and his Pokémon responded by nailing Charizard in the gut, doubling it over even as electricity coursed through it.
Pierre swore and tried to think of a way out. Deciding at this point it was all or nothing he commanded, "Charizard use Flare Blitz!"
Charizard reared up and blasted fire at Ambipom, forcing it back. Fire gathered around its body and it leapt forward, its body bursting with heat it aimed squarely at the annoying Normal-type.
As Pierre watched however he heard Lucien say, "Bounce."
Within a split-second Ambipom jumped up and swung its tails downward, driving Charizard into the dirt. Pierre waited for a few minutes until Marty ran over and looked it over.
"Charizard is unable to battle," the boy declared. "The winner is Lucien."
Pierre recalled Charizard almost absentmindedly, stunned at the ease with which Lucien had beaten him. He looked at Charizard's Pokéball, trying to puzzle out how he could have lost. His teacher had beaten his father, and his father was one of the strongest Trainers he knew. Was he just not strong enough?
"So, what did you learn?" he heard someone ask. Lucien?
"Speed is essential, but so is knowing how to use your power," some else (Marty?) answered.
Pierre felt anger surge up inside of him and glanced sharply at Lucien. "How did you beat me? You can't- There's no way you can be strong enough to beat me!" he insisted, shaking his head.
"Pierre, don't embarrass yourself," Lucien warned. "If you can't beat a random teen from Sinnoh what exactly leads you to think you'll stand a chance against a Mythical Pokémon?"
"That's-" Pierre said, shocked. "You-"
Marty frowned and said, "Lucien he looks upset. Should we go?"
Lucien nodded and the two returned to the Center, leaving Pierre stunned and holding a Pokéball. Glancing down at it he shuffled into the Center, trying and failing to figure out why he'd lost. Realizing he'd stopped in front of Nurse Joy's desk he handed his Charizard over.
"Excuse me Nurse, is there a mountain nearby?" he asked.
The Nurse gave him an odd look. "There's definitely an area I'd call mountainous, but there is a large mountain farther away that is said to have all kinds of powerful Pokémon. There are even stories that say there are rare gems there."
"Really?" Pierre asked rubbing his chin. Maybe this was what he needed. "Please, tell me more."
(*)
Merry Christmas and Happy New Years.
If anyone wants to this story is accepting OCs though I can't say that you'll see them immediately.