Chapter 34
The tip of the sun was just starting to come up over the mountainous horizon. The disastrous events from the day before all caught up to them, especially Ash and his Pokémon, and they all headed to bed early that night, curled up in their sleeping bags around the fireplace to never be cold again. The position of the sun rising was able to peek in through the window at the front of the cabin, and although Ash and Brock were dead to the world in a deep rest, Ash's Wartortle was the first to wake.
Crawling out of the sleeping bag, Wartortle's ears twitched as it looked at the crackling fire place still blazing in the center of the lobby, and it gave a yawn and a stretch as it climbed completely out while trying not to disturb its sleeping Trainer. Noticing the sun was sending beams of sunlight through the window, the Pokémon climbed out of the in-ground couch pit and jumped up on the wooden table against the wall. "Wartooor!" it breathed happily, a wide smile spreading across its face when it looked through the glass.
The snow had stopped the morning before, and now that everything was all settled, it was a beautiful setting outside with fluffy snow spread out all over everything in sight. "Wartor, Wartor!" Wartortle cried excitedly, and leapt down and headed to the front door. It would let Ash sleep, but it wanted to play in the snow.
Behind it, Mankey, Bulbasaur, Charmander, Vulpix, Geodude, and Psyduck all sat up from the in-ground pit as well, sleep still heavy in their eyes, but wondering what the commotion was all about. But when they felt the rush of cold air from the front door opening, and Wartortle's tail disappearing through the doorway, they decided to follow.
One by one, they all peered out of the corner of the exit, all of them piling on top of each other until Psyduck flopped on top of Geodude and sent them all tumbling to the ground in a heap. They all scrambled to get to their feet, and looked up to see Wartortle had already hurried on ahead, and turned to them to give them a wave. "Wartor!" it beckoned. The gang all hurried off the front porch to join the leader of their group, and Mankey slid down the banister on its feet, pushing snow as it did before leaping off to join them. Psyduck saw this, and wanted to do the same, but when it climbed up onto the railing, the Duck Pokémon realized it wasn't quite as balanced as Mankey, and fell flat on its face in the snow. There it stayed for a moment before peeling itself off, but it stared blankly at the impression left in the snow.
The group were all playing in the snow, throwing it high into the air and letting it sprinkle upon them. Geodude had made a snowball and was juggling it back and forth in its massive hands, while Vulpix rolled happily in it like a cat would in dirt. This was interrupted by the earth shaking beneath them, and a loud growl pulled their attention back to the cabin where Onix was slowly and excitedly approaching with a rare happy look on its face. Even Onix wanted to join in on the fun! But the shaking from its massive body caused a pile of snow from the pine trees above to fall from the branches, and a large pile fell on top of Wartortle, completely burying it and only leaving its ears and tail poking out. "War..."
The others laughed at the Water Pokémon's misfortune, and all went their separate ways to go play on their own. Pulling itself out of the pile of snow, it followed Mankey who was the only one that stayed nearby. The Fighting Pokémon – like many others – had never seen snow before, and was highly amused at the fact that everywhere it walked, it would leave behind footprints. The Pig Monkey Pokémon was walking backwards, and a cackle of delight escaped from its unseen mouth before it stamped its feet repeatedly in the snow. Wartortle couldn't help but laugh at its teammate – despite its short temper, Mankey was almost child-like when it was in a good mood.
The two exchanged a smile and headed off until they found another set of footprints. Looking down, Mankey pointed its paw at it and cocked its head questioningly at Wartortle. "Mankee Mankey?"
"Wartor!" Wartortle responded, getting down on all of its limbs and giving a serious expression. These footprints were Bulbasaur's. Mankey looked up ahead and saw Bulbasaur and Charmander at the top of a hill at the end of the footprints, with the Fire-type jumping up and down and waving its hands telling them to join their group. But when Mankey stepped forward, its eyes were drawn in by another strange set of prints. It was circular with a long end. Not even Wartortle knew whose prints they were.
But when they heard the repeated quacking of Psyduck, they realized what it was. Off to the side, Vulpix and Geodude were watching with odd looks on their faces as their teammate was holding its head and jumping from area to area to slam its face and leave a print of it in the snow. Wartortle raised a single brow at the odd behavior, but it wasn't out of the ordinary when it came to Psyduck.
Mankey quickly lost interest in this and hurried on ahead after the group, who had left without them into the trees. While it went further than before, its interest was captured once again by an odd footprint in the ground, and it called out to Wartortle with a wave of its paws in the air. "Mankee Mankee!"
Wartortle approached the Fighting Pokémon and looked down at the footprints. They were massive, and were almost as big as Mankey itself. The Water-type dragged one of its stubby fingers across its chin in thought. "Wartor War." It was best to just leave it alone, as it wasn't any of their friends' footprints. Mankey was curious, however, and ignored the words of advice from Ash's Wartortle, and trotted after the trail of giant footprints. Wartortle hurried after it, and held out its arms to stop the Fighting-type from going further, and tried to argue its cause lightly so not to agitate Mankey and get it to go on a rampage.
Suddenly, a loud footfall behind them made them turn their heads around slowly. A pair of brown feet stood at their side, and both Pokémon slowly ran their eyes up the Pokemon's body until they reached the top of its brown and black head. The Pokémon looked down at them and for a second, Wartortle was intimidated by the glare as it studied the pair, but it smiled and bent down to greet them. "Kangaskhan!" it greeted in a friendly tone. Both Pokémon cocked their heads, but the Kangaskhan stuck out its belly and tapped at its pouch. "Khan, khan!"
Just then, a pair of hands reached out and held the flap of Kangaskhan's pouch before the top of a small little head peered out shyly at the new pair. "Kanga..." it muttered quietly.
"Wartor!"
"Mankey!" The two Pokémon smiled warmly in an attempt to get the baby Pokémon to come out of hiding.
"Khan, Kangaskhan?" the Parent Pokémon asked as it folded its claws together. It was asking if its child could play with Wartortle, Mankey, and their other friends. Wartortle and Mankey nodded in response, and the Normal-type grinned happily. "Kangaskhan!" it replied, and tapped its belly gently. "Khan, khan, khan!"
"Kanga..." its child murmured, and disappeared beneath the pouch once again. Kangaskhan gasped as its child disappeared, and scratched its head bashfully at the two, who only giggled in response.
The scene was broken up when a snowball went flying through the air and landed in between Wartortle and Mankey, and the Kangaskhan. All eyes turned to where it had come from, and they looked to see Geodude quickly floating away and hiding comically behind a skinny tree. Without the one eye peeking out around the corner, the tree would have looked like it would have had two muscular arms. Psyduck was also hiding from Charmander, while Bulbasaur stood out in the open. Charmander rushed forward and threw the snowball it was holding, only for the throw to fall short, and Bulbasaur threw its own snowball it was carrying in its vines. The ball connected and covered Charmander's face with snow, and the Fire-type slid to the ground.
The activity brought out the curious baby Kangaskhan, and it smiled at the antics. Taking advantage of the situation, its mother plucked the purple Normal-type from inside its pouch and placed it down on the ground. "Kanga..!" it cried, and quickly scurried behind its mother's tree-trunk sized legs before peeking out at Wartortle and Mankey. The Water-type beckoned it to come over to it, and Kangaskhan slowly stepped forward, but was suddenly pelted in the side of the face with a snowball. It shook the snow off it and looked to see who had thrown it. In the forefront, Geodude flexed its arms and smirked at the baby Kangaskhan in a taunt. The bluff didn't work, and Kangaskhan retreated back behind its mother's leg.
Geodude's arms fell and it frowned, but Charmander stepped forward and waved its arms in the air. "Char char!" it called to Kangaskhan, telling it to come play. A single eye peeked out from behind the Kangaskhan's leg, and while the gears were still turning in its shy little head, Wartortle walked up and held out a snowball that it had just made. Kangaskhan stared at it hesitantly.
"Wartor!" the Turtle Pokémon urged, holding the ball further out. But while Kangaskhan was still deciding, a snowball flew out and hit Wartortle on the side of the head. Charmander and Bulbasaur's laughs filled the forest, but Wartortle looked bewildered with snow all over its face and blinked a few times.
Suddenly, a smile spread across the baby Kangaskhan's face, and the baby Pokémon let out a hearty laugh at the look on Wartortle's face. The laugh brought Wartortle back into reality, and the Water Pokémon turned back to the other two Pokémon and glared at them. "Wartor War!" it scolded, but the snowball in its hand was snatched up by the baby Kangaskhan and thrown forward. Both Pokémon ducked and the snowball flew harmlessly over their heads, and they laughed when they raised their heads again. This time, Charmander raised its hands in victory at getting Kangaskhan to participate. This celebration lasted a short while, as the pair darted off. Now participating in the game, Wartortle, Mankey, and Kangaskhan all rushed after the pair while the mama Kangaskhan smiled at her child playing with new friends.
The three jumped off a small mound, and immediately, Wartortle was taken off its feet by a hit in the face by a snowball. Charmander came around the corner and laughed at Wartortle's misfortune, but the laugh was cut off when a snowball hit its own face. The Fire-type blinked away the snow to see that Mankey had thrown the snowball this time. Now it was an all-out war. Wartortle, Mankey, and Kangaskhan were on one side while Charmander and Bulbasaur were on the other, and they were throwing snowballs back and forth to the other side.
They stopped for just a moment to take a breather, but then continued back up once again. This time, Charmander and Bulbasaur bum-rushed the three, and they all let out squeals of feign terror as they retreated from them.
Over the ledge at the top of a slope, a small red sled had been discarded and long forgotten. That is, until it was discovered by the baby Kangaskhan. Having come out of its shell, Kangaskhan and Mankey inspected it curiously before the purple Pokémon climbed inside it. Mankey followed suit, and with a happy huff from its snout, and it rocked it back and forth before the sled dislodged itself from the snow and began to move further down. Charmander saw this, and quickly hurried after them. It didn't want to feel the wrath of the mama Kangaskhan if its child got hurt playing with them. "Charmander!" the Fire-type exclaimed, and rushed after the sliding sled.
The sled was just starting to pick up speed when Charmander finally reached it, and puffing hard, it gave a mighty leap and jumped behind the wild Pokémon. It was a little cramped with the three of them, but it was definitely safer, especially with the trees they now had to navigate through. Leaning its body this way and that to weave through the trees, Mankey and Kangaskhan were having the time of their life with their hands in the air.
They skidded past Bulbasaur and Wartortle, who had just finished chasing each other down the mountain, and they followed the sled with their eyes. Wartortle's mouth was open in horror, as the same thought that ran through Charmander's brain earlier was now going through its own, but Bulbasaur had a different idea in mind. Its vines coming out from under its bulb, it lifted up Wartortle into the air. Before the Water-type had any idea what was going on, Bulbasaur slammed it down onto its back and leapt onto its stomach. Bulbasaur was using Wartortle as a sled. Wartortle let out a cry of protest, but they were already on a good slant of the mountain, so they were beginning to slide down at a fast speed. Bulbasaur's red eyes were locked on the sled in front of it, and it was able to lean its body to navigate its makeshift sled through the trees much like how Charmander was doing.
The path led to a dead end, and then all of a sudden, they were flying off the side of the ledge and flying through the air. The drop to the snow below wasn't very far, but they still managed to fly over the group of Onix, Vulpix, Geodude, and Psyduck. Brock's Pokémon watched curiously as the sled seemed to come from nowhere, and the three Pokémon inside it let out a grunt as it landed in the snow and continued down the mountain. They didn't have much time to respond before Bulbasaur riding Wartortle came crashing down as well, and Bulbasaur chuckled as it maintained balance on the Water-type and followed after the other three.
Wanting to join in on the fun, Onix lowered its body and grunted to the other Pokémon. Knowing instantly what it was planning, they all jumped and latched onto Onix's head spine before the Rock Snake Pokémon started to slide down the snow as well on its stomach. It charged at them like a subway train, and with its weight and speed, it didn't take Onix long to catch up with them. But while Ash's Pokémon were light enough to go over the mounds of snow that had piled up with time, Onix was crashing straight through them, and Onix was quickly rearing up behind them.
Going up on one final mound, the snow exploded underneath them as Onix's snout crashed through it before they could jump off it, and they all let out a cry as they were thrown off-balance and tumbled backwards through the air and a mist of snow. They all quickly latched onto one of Onix's segments, but once Wartortle steadied itself once again from the wild ride it had just endured, it looked straight ahead to see the lake Professor's Oak's cabin stood near right at the bottom of the hill they were heading toward. "War-TOOORRR!" Wartortle cried with horror, telling Onix to stop. But the Rock Snake Pokémon groaned back. It was going much too fast to be able to stop. There was no other option – Wartortle threw its hands over its eyes and braced for impact.
A loud yell echoed through the mountains, even cutting through the sound of Onix barreling down the slope. "KANGAAAA!" Wartortle peered through its fingers to see the baby Kangaskhan's mother running quickly down the side of the mountain. It was moving so fast that the snow was even being kicked up behind it. The Normal-type Pokémon zoomed past Onix, and Kangaskhan gave out a small cry as its mother spun around on its feet and positioned itself with its arms up in front of Onix. Both Onix and Kangaskhan flinched as they collided, and all the Pokémon riding on the Rock-type lurched forward, but their descent wasn't stopped completely. In fact, Kangaskhan's feet were dragging across the snow as it used all its strength to stop the out-of-control Pokémon. In a feat that was too close for comfort, the slope straightened itself out, and right before Kangaskhan's feet went into the lake, they stopped.
Onix let out a groan of relief, and Kangaskhan smiled up at the others while they all gave chirps of thanks.
o 0 o
For the rest of the day, the Pokémon all played with both of the Kangaskhan. Psyduck and Mankey both hung off the mama Kangaskhan's ears while it rocked its head back and forth. Inside its pouch, Wartortle, the baby Kangaskhan, and Charmander were all popping in and out of it in a game of whack-a-mole with Bulbasaur. Meanwhile, Geodude was chasing Vulpix around the spines that jutted out of Kangaskhan's back, with Vulpix being able to navigate through them on foot and Geodude floating after it. Playing with them and seeing its child in such a happy state made Kangaskhan smile from ear to ear, it seemed.
But finally, the sun was starting to go down. The whole day had escaped them, and it was time for them all to part ways. The baby Kangaskhan was sitting on its mother's shoulder, and both parent and child looked down and grinned at their new friends. "Khan," the mother thanked, and placed its child back in its pouch.
"Kangaskhan!" the baby Pokémon cried happily, waving both of its hands in the air. They all waved goodbye to their friends, and the pair turned and walked away back into the mountains until they could no longer be seen. But seeing the bond between the mother and child Kangaskhan really made them miss being with their own Trainers, and they all frowned momentarily.
On cue, Brock's voice cut through the silence. "Hey!" he called.
"C'mon, you guys! Time to go home!" Ash added, and all the Pokémon looked to see the pair of Trainer, all dressed up in winter coats, waving to them from the top of a ledge. The Pokémon all hurried up the slope to get to their Trainers, and Wartortle jumped into Ash's arms when it reached him, which made the Pallet Town Trainer chuckle. "Did you have fun, Wartortle?"
"Wartor!" the Water-type nodded. The other Pokémon also joined in, and Mankey and Bulbasaur nuzzled Ash's leg while Geodude clutched Brock's arm, and moments later, Vulpix leapt into Brock's arms and wedged itself in his red festive sweater before sticking its head out and smiling. Down at his feet, Psyduck pulled at the hem of the sweater.
"Hey, it looks like...!" Ash pointed out, looking up into the sky. More snow was falling down from the sky, but unlike the blizzard they had encountered the day before, this one was much more calm. The pair of Trainers laughed in delight, and soon their Pokémon joined in, but they were all tuckered out from the day of fun, and wanted to head inside. Ash and Brock obliged their Pokémon's request, and after exchanging a glance, they headed inside the cabin.
Before going all the way in, Brock pulled out two Poké Balls, and with one in each hand, recalled his Onix and Geodude. "Guys, we know it's a couple days late, but we're going to celebrate Christmas with you tonight. We need to go into town just down the road to pick up some supplies. Can we trust you guys to stay here while we're gone?" Ash asked. Wartortle frowned with worry and stepped forward, but Ash seemed to read its mind and chuckled. "It's okay, buddy. The town is just down the road, and besides, I have Pidgeotto and Tauros with me in case anything goes wrong."
"That's why I have Onix, Geodude, and Zubat with me, too," Brock added, noting the look on Vulpix's face. Psyduck's was as blank and unreadable as always as it stared at the wall with its head in its hands. This seemed to ease any worry that Wartortle had, and the tension visibly left its shoulders. Ash and Brock nodded, and with their heavy sweatshirts on, they headed toward the door with their Pokémon close behind to see them out. "It was really nice of Professor Oak to let us stay here for the holidays," Brock commented. Since it was actually happening, it felt right to be able to say it out loud.
Ash nodded in agreement, and they stepped out the door before glancing at the clock in the corner of the room. "C'mon Brock, we've got to go pick up the Christmas cake," he urged, and threw a look over his shoulder. "You're in charge while we're gone, Wartortle." And with that, the door was shut, and the Pokémon all stared longingly at the door, unsure of what to do to pass the time until their Trainers returned.
Mankey was the first to break away, and trotted through the lobby before it noticed a door towards the back of the cabin open slightly. It cocked its head and hummed in thought, as the door hadn't been opened since they arrived. The rest of the gang followed it, and it was Wartortle that pushed open the door.
Inside the cozy room, a purple plush carpet covered the hardwood floor. An unlit fireplace stood against the wall, and on top of the mantle were a bunch of sparkling decorations, but the one that mainly caught their eye was a glass wreath that was decorated with a pair of fake bells and held a sign saying 'MERRY CHRISTMAS'. They walked further into the room to inspect it more, and was instantly hit with the smell of pine. The smell was coming from a Christmas tree standing up in the back of the room, beautifully decorated with ornaments, lights, garland, and bows. Of course, at the top stood a beautiful, sparkling star, and as the Pokémon looked at it, they were all overcome with joy. All of this decorating was what Ash and Brock must have been doing while they were outside and playing.
It was Charmander that next spoke, and it called to Wartortle, pointing into an archway that led into a kitchen area. The Pokémon group all walked in to find the table had been laid out with all sorts of party favors. Wartortle, Bulbasaur, Charmander, and the other more agile Pokémon were able to climb up on the table to better inspect the favors, but Bulbasaur had to use its vines to lift Psyduck up.
Strange, multicolored cones were laid about the table, and as Vulpix sniffed the point of one, Wartortle and Mankey inspected others curiously in their hands. Mankey waved its cone around while Bulbasaur placed its own in its mouth and over its nose. Charmander wasn't sure what it was either, and peered through it like one would a telescope, but it didn't have an opening on the other side, and was just a plain white inside. Psyduck simply stood holding its head with its own claimed cone in its bill.
Vulpix was the one that eventually discovered their use, having remembered them being used at a party once before that it went to with Suzy. Putting the tip of a cone in front of it in its mouth, Vulpix tossed the cone up and let it land on the curly hair on its head. The cone was a hat! "Wartor!" Wartortle realized, putting the hat on its head between its ears. Mankey also gave a happy chuckle and placed the hat upon its head. The other Pokémon followed suit, and the only one who failed to do so was Psyduck. The Duck Pokémon placed the hat on its head, but the three hairs that stuck out on its skull were too long for the hat to settle, and when it raised its head, the green party hat with red question marks decorating it flipped off and landed on Psyduck's tail.
With the party hat dilemma behind them, Mankey jumped off the table and went back to the Christmas tree that sparked its interest. Wartortle followed as to make sure the Pig Monkey Pokémon didn't get into any trouble while the others stayed behind to further explore the decorations in the kitchen. Opening its eyes slightly, Mankey saw its own reflection in a silver ornament, albeit distorted. Wartortle did the same in a golden one, and it opened its mouth to make a funny face in it. Mankey laughed with delight and proceeded to do the same.
Back in the kitchen, Bulbasaur was looking at a plate of cookies laid out on the table. The cookies were decorated to look like various different types of Pokémon, but the one that stood out the most to it was, of course, the one that was shaped like a Bulbasaur. "Saur..." it muttered happily, extending its vines and picking up the cookie carefully with them. Beside it, Charmander had found strange things that looked like party hats, but the part that was supposed to be open was sealed, and a string was sticking out of the top.
"Charman..." Charmander muttered, and pulled at the string, but when it found resistance, it bit down on the string and used all of its strength to tug. As Bulbasaur opened its mouth to eat the Bulbasaur-shaped cookie, the favor in Charmander's mouth popped and blew out confetti. The sudden noise scared Charmander and Bulbasaur, and while the Fire-type stumbled and fell backwards, landing on top of Bulbasaur, the Bulb Pokémon jumped, which made the cookie fly into the air. Mouth still open in fright, the cookie landed in Charmander's mouth, and it ate it until there was nothing left.
This didn't sit right with Bulbasaur, who yelled at Charmander and claimed it was its cookie. "Bulbasaur!"
"Charmander Char," the Pokémon apologized bashfully, scratching the back of its head nervously, but when this wasn't enough for Bulbasaur, Charmander jumped off the table and ran away. Bulbasaur gave chase, and they ran past Vulpix who was emptying the candy out of a strange oversized red stocking. It buried its head further into the stocking, but when it tried to get its head out, it found that it couldn't. The Pokémon waved its head wildly back and forth, but to no avail.
"Vul! Vulpix!" the Fox Pokémon cried, but they were muffled in the cloth, so it wandered out to try and find some of its friends to help. Unfortunately, it also couldn't see where it was going, and collided into the wall before falling onto its back.
The last Pokémon remaining on the table was Psyduck. The yellow Water-type stared curiously at a decorated green bottle. The tag label read 'SPARKLING CIDER', but that meant nothing to Psyduck. Lifting up the green bottle, it felt some sort of content inside it. It placed the skinny part of the bottle in its mouth and bit down on the top part, but it was blocked by some sort of cork. Pulling the bottle out of its beak, it inspected it before realizing it could slightly see through the glass and the liquid inside was bubbling from the movement. Bringing the bottle to its ear, Psyduck could hear it fizzing as well, and the noise brought a smile to Psyduck's beak, and wanting to hear more, it shook the bottle up and down briefly and brought it back up. The fizzing made more noise, and Psyduck was ecstatic about it, so it continued to shake it.
Meanwhile, back in the living area, Wartortle pulled its attention away from the Christmas tree ornaments and watched as Bulbasaur angrily chased Charmander around the room. Mankey's attention was still focused primarily on the ornament, playing with its own reflection and admiring the party hat on its head.
Knowing that it wasn't able to catch Charmander on its feet alone, Bulbasaur extended out the vines on its back and shot them out at the Fire-type. Charmander gave a gasp and hurried out of its way, hurrying behind the closest object: the Christmas tree. The vines curled around the potted tree and wrapped around Charmander's midsection, but this only prompted the Lizard Pokémon to run faster and away. The vines hit the skinny trunk of the tree, and it wobbled before tilting to the side. Wartortle gasped and quickly used an arm and a leg to steady the pot it stood on, and as Bulbasaur gave chase – ignorant to the fact that it almost knocked down the tree in its rage – Wartortle was able to balance the tree once again. Mankey barely noticed, only seeing the wobbling as a way to give birth to a hilarious new position in the ornaments, and now danced around them at angles.
Now having finally made it into the living room, a loud, muffled cry from Vulpix was let out as it launched itself into the air in a state of panic to try and get the stocking off. It landed in the tree toward the top, and the tree wobbled once again, this time leaning toward the other side. Wartortle cried out in horror and booked it to the other side of the tree, where it had to use all of its strength to keep the tree upright. The stocking flopped to the floor, and Vulpix blinked its amber eyes, wondering why it was up in the tree now that it could see. Vulpix dropped to the ground gracefully and Wartortle leaned against the pot, breathing heavily with relief. "Wartortle!" it scolded the Fire-type, but the Fox Pokémon only blinked in response.
Once again Charmander rushed by the tree, and this time, its leg got caught on the end of the string of lights at the bottom and sticking into the wall. This unraveled the unlit lights from the tree and pulled it to the side. Vulpix cried out and scurried away to not get any pine needles in its coat, while Wartortle let out another cry and hurried to the other side. It met more resistance than before since Charmander was still running and had yet to notice the wire around its ankle, but as long as Wartortle held the tree, it would stay up.
Just then, the cork from the bottle that Psyduck had been shaking finally popped, and as foaming liquid all poured out and knocked the Water Pokémon onto its back, the cork ricocheted off the corner of the kitchen and flew into the living room, which bounced off another wall, and smacked Wartortle square in the forehead. The cork caught Wartortle by surprise and knocked it off its feet. This also meant that the Christmas tree crashed to the ground on top of Wartortle.
Tangled in lights, both Charmander and Bulbasaur now realized what had happened, and looked hesitantly at the Christmas tree. Vulpix walked over and sniffed the star, and gave a small utter to see if Wartortle was okay. The Water Pokémon crawled out from under the tree, but Bulbasaur and Charmander both threw their heads back and laughed hysterically at the scene they had caused. Charmander pointed at Wartortle as it laughed, while the Seed Pokémon beside it slammed its foot into the carpet from how hard it was cackling.
"Wartor..." Wartortle muttered angrily as it pulled itself out from under the tree and its party hat fell onto the ground. Bulbasaur and Charmander instantly stopped laughing, and looked on in fright at Wartortle. The Water-type turned angrily at the pair, but as it stepped forward, Wartortle realized they weren't giving the horrified look at Wartortle, but at something behind it. Suddenly realizing who had been behind it, it was Wartortle's turn to freeze.
It felt as though the air had chilled, and Wartortle slowly turned its head back. Sure, Wartortle was mad about the situation, but no one was currently more angry than Mankey, who had lost its play toy. The ornament lay shattered in the carpet before it, and the Pig Monkey Pokémon's red eyes were open and bloodshot with its pupils dilated. It breathed heavily as if it had just run a mile, and then its eyes shot over to Bulbasaur and Charmander. The two Pokémon instantly stopped breathing and stood completely still, but suddenly, Mankey let out a loud screech. "MANKEEE!" it exclaimed, and launched itself at the pair.
The Pokémon only had time to cry out before Mankey began to use Thrash on them, repeatedly scratching and punching at the two. They struggled to escape, but every time they tried, Mankey would just follow them. The three tussled back and forth, creating even more of a mess than what had happened before. Objects were knocked off the mantle when they hit the wall loudly, and some of the furniture was knocked over in their wake. Wartortle looked on helplessly, wanting to help them but at the same time not wanting to get attacked by Mankey. Instead, it followed after the hurricane of destruction that Mankey was creating, lifting things back upright that had been knocked over. One thing in particular was a small brown chest, and when it was lifted up, Wartortle looked at it curiously before opening the top.
A soothing melody ticked from the box, and a beautiful light shimmered from underneath it, making the glass Christmas tree inside glitter like a jewel. Wartortle couldn't help but smile at the sight as the glass bulbs on the tree lit up along in time with the song. As it continued, Wartortle noticed a lack of noise, and looked up to see that Mankey had turned away from Bulbasaur and Squirtle – who were covered in bruises and scrapes – and slowly walked toward the music box. It seemed that the music had calmed the savage beast.
Mankey wasn't the only one attracted to the lights and song. Vulpix came up to it and peered down with a cocked head, and Psyduck waddled in from the kitchen and silently watched it. Eventually, all six Pokémon were gathered around it and listening to the beautiful song being produced. Finally, the music box turned off with the melody over, and everyone looked saddened at the fact that it had, but the moods had been changed.
With everyone back in their right head, Wartortle frowned and looked back at the Christmas tree laying on its side. Everyone else followed its gaze, and looked at it with a guilty conscience. Ash and Brock had worked so hard on getting this surprise ready for them and let them play outside all day, and they repaid them by destroying it. "Wartor, Wartortle!" Wartortle suggested with its arms out to its friends. Bulbasaur and Charmander smiled and nodded in agreement, and even Mankey gave a chuckle at the proposal.
Using a combination of teamwork and Bulbasaur's Vine Whip, Wartortle, Vulpix, and Charmander managed to get the tree back up onto its pot while Mankey and Psyduck collected the ornaments that had been strewn about. The sun that had already been setting when they came back inside was long gone, and the stars in the sky twinkled like diamonds through the window. But they still had a lot to do to clean up before Ash and Brock got back.
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The noise of the door opening sounded throughout the cabin, and when the pair of Trainers walked inside with their arms full of presents and bags of food, they could hear Ash's voice. "It's pitch-black in here!" the Pokémon Trainer commented as they exited the cold and retreated inside the house.
"It gets dark really early now," Brock commented as he shut the door behind him, and the pair crossed the lobby and went into the living room. As they opened the door, they heard Wartortle's voice cut through the darkness.
"Wartortle-War!" it called, and Ash let out a grunt of confusion, but before he could flick on the light switch, Wartortle pushed the plug into the electrical socket. Instantly, the Christmas tree's lights came to life. It had been completely redone with the help of the other Pokémon, and all of them smiled up at their Trainers, all of them huddled around the Christmas music box. The glass Christmas tree inside was lit up and glowing for comparison, and they had matched the Christmas tree with the one in the box. They had even taken the glass wreath that was on the fireplace and hung it on the tree near the star so that it shimmered with the lights below it.
Ash and Brock approached with their arms full and grinned ear to ear at the hard work their Pokémon had done while they were away. "Wow!" Ash exclaimed excitedly, and Brock added an amused laugh of his own. "C'mon, guys! Let's start the party!"
"I'll cut the cake," Brock offered as he began to walk into the kitchen with the large cake in his hand.
"I want a big piece!"
"That's a big surprise!" Brock replied back sarcastically, and chuckled. "Merry Christmas!"
"Merry Christmas, everybody!"
"Wartortle, War!"
-end-
Ash:
Party:
Wartortle (Poké Ball)
Moves: Skull Bash, Dig, Water Gun, BubbleBeam
Pidgeotto (Poké Ball)
Moves: Gust, Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Wing Attack
Bulbasaur (Poké Ball)
Moves: Tackle, Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Leech Seed
Charmander (Poké Ball)
Moves: Flamethrower, Fire Spin, Skull Bash, Ember
Tauros (Safari Ball)
Moves:
Mankey (Poké Ball)
Moves: Thrash, Mega Kick, Scratch, Seismic Toss
At Professor Oak's Lab:
Muk (Poké Ball)
Moves:
Tauros (Safari Ball)
Moves:
Krabby (Poké Ball)
Moves: ViceGrip
Badges:
Boulder Badge
Cascade Badge
Thunder Badge
Marsh Badge
Rainbow Badge
Soul Badge
Brock:
Party:
Onix (Poké Ball)
Moves: Tackle, Bind, Dig
Geodude (Poké Ball)
Moves: Seismic Toss, Tackle
Zubat (Poké Ball)
Moves: Whirlwind, Supersonic
Psyduck (Poké Ball)
Moves: Tail Whip, Scratch, Disable, Confusion
Vulpix (Poké Ball)
Moves: Fire Spin, Flamethrower
